Rainbow Dash sat outside the door of the interrogation room Twilight had brought Midnight in, she had been listening in on the conversation and was thinking back to only a few hours ago.
She had performed her Sonic Rainboom like always and the returned to find Scootaloo being held back by Twilight and a changeling unconsciousness on the ground. She had watched the changeling's body slowly morph in, what Twilight said, was a way completely different from Changelings using their changeling magic. She had seen how Midnight looked after the changes were done and even listened to Twilight's lecture about how it was possible with interest. Twilight had then brought both the Changeling and Scootaloo to separate interrogation rooms, which Rainbow was surprised to find even existed in the castle, and then she had sat down and waited while Twilight interrogated the Changeling.
The doors opened and Rainbow smiled warmly at the Changeling, it was a bit of a habit, towards shy ponies, that she had picked up from being best friends with Fluttershy for so long. "Hey. How are you?" Rainbow asked Midnight, who hid behind her mane in a similar way Fluttershy did. Rainbow couldn't help but to imagine Midnight as her and how she'd look hiding like that.
"H-hi." Midnight whispered so low that, had Rainbow not been use to it from Fluttershy, she wouldn't have heard.
"You know, you were pretty good at acting like Scoots, Twi says you were likely doing it for nearly five months."
"Y-yea... q-queen's o-orders."
"You don't have to be shy around me, I'm under royal orders from twi to not bring you any harm, Scoots is too." Rainbow, Twilight, and Midnight started walking after that. The walk was more of a tour, since Scootaloo's interrogation room was on the other side of the castle, so Twilight decided to make it just that.
"Y-you don't h-have t-to do t-this, I d-don't think I-I deserve i-it." Midnight said, she clearly felt bad for taking a filly away from their life like that.
"You're right, you probably don't, but you need to be familiar with the palace and all it's rooms and secrets. You're going to be staying here, more specifically here in Dashie and Scootaloo's quarters, from now on." Twilight said.
"Wait what!?" Rainbow Dash asked in shock.
"Midnight can't return to her hive, and I don't think my subjects will accept her just yet. Besides, I wouldn't exactly be the Princess of Friendship if I didn't at least give her a chance. What makes it worse is that she was part of an Insect Hive, which has no form of individuality for its members except the queen, so she isn't use to thinking for herself."
"Okay, but I don't think Scoots will like it."
"I doubt so, but she'll have to deal with it, I'm the princess and it's my wish."
"You're starting to sound more like a real princess, and I don't like it."
"I-I think s-she's just n-nedding t-to pract-tince." Midnight, who hadn't spoken during the conversation, said.
"Midnight's right, I've got court in thirty minutes and I need to give the image of a princess if I'm to at least lower the amount of complaints from those stuck up nobles, especially since several of them are moving here soon." Twilight said.
The door to the room opened up, causing Scootaloo to look up from her place on the floor. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and the Changeling walked in.
"Yes?" Scootaloo asked as Twilight walked up.
"You've got some explaining to do." Twilight said, motioning to the sword by Scootaloo's side.
"I'm a Child of the Night, ponies that were tortured or abused in orphanages. The sword is a copy and enchanted version of the sword Luna used against the Nightmares that once tormented pony's dreams. It grows as I grow and is literally tuned to my soul and my soul alone. I usually keep it in the cave I live in, which is within the Everfree Forest, so it's quite a useful thing to have on hoof when Manticores, Timberwolves, and other creature come by." Scootaloo said, then looked hatefully at the Changeling.
Midnight shied away from Scootaloo's haze and hid behind her mane again, then she remembered something she was wanting to ask. "H-how?" she asked.
"How what, bug?" Scootaloo asked.
"H-how did y-you know m-my hive's n-name?"
"How did I know your hive's name? They killed my parents that how!" Scootaloo's sword began glowing again. Midnight flinched away from the hateful tone.
"Scootaloo, that is enough. Midnight, and the changeling that killed your parents, didn't have a choice in what they did. The Crimson Hive is an insect hive, they don't have control over themselves. Either way, Midnight said she's only been a Changeling for a year, so it wasn't her. You can't blame it on her." Twilight's voice was firm.
"Either way, she's a bug and she deserves to be squashed."
"I will not have you saying such things towards my guest Scootaloo, while I'd rather not, I'm willing to banish you if that continues." It was a bluff and Twilight knew it, but she didn't want such a comment directed toward the already fearful and sad Changeling. Scootaloo had gone silent after hearing those words.
Rainbow Dash was also silent, she knew Twilight was lying, but that didn't change her shock at hearing Twilight's anger when she had been only annoyed not two seconds before.
"So, Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo, you two take Midnight to meet the girls and show her around, I've gotta head to court." Twilight said calmly before turning and leaving.
"Let's go Scoots." Rainbow said as she motioned for Midnight and Scootaloo to follow her.
The loyalty section of the castle seemed to be made of clouds on the inside; The walls, ceiling, and floor were all clouds with a rainbow pattern to them; rainbow colored lightning shot across the ceiling, bathing the halls in the colors of it; all-in-all, the Loyalty section was extremely colorful.
"W-why's it s-so colorful?" Midnight asked.
"Beats me, I mean I like rainbows, but this place was like this when we got this castle from the Tree of Harmony. Now that I think about it, it's likely like this specifically because this is my wing of the castle, I wouldn't be too surprised." Rainbow said, even though she tried to ignore it, she couldn't help but talk to Midnight as if she was talking to Fluttershy, the two were just so similar and that brought out the kind and defensive side Dash almost exclusively showed to Fluttershy.
"What's with you Rainbow Dash, I expected you to be mad after she stole my life?!" Scootaloo asked angrily.
"There's more to life than revenge or anger Scoots. I wouldn't be the Element of Loyalty if I went against Twilight's wishes, just try to give Midnight a chance."
"Easy for you to say, her hive didn't kill your parents."
"They might not have, but yours likely died quickly, my parents were murdered in front of me and that was only after they had been tortured with me being forced to watch." Rainbow's voice came out terrifying and dark. Scootaloo was silenced for the second time that day.
"T-that's horrible, w-who would do th-that?" Midnight asked.
"No idea, but I will have revenge when I get the chance."
It wasn't long before they stopped in front of a door.
"This'll be your room, I'm just across the hall and Scoot's is next door. Now that you know where to go, let's meet the rest of the Elements." Rainbow smiled kindly as she motioned for Midnight and Scootaloo to follow her.
They first visited the Kindness section, which had an outdoors theme and a lot of animals.
"Fluttershy, you here?" Rainbow asked.
After a moment, Fluttershy flew down and landed. "Oh, um... hi Rainbow Dash." Fluttershy said.
"I wanted you to meet our new guest, she'll be staying with us for a while." Fluttershy looked up at that comment and quickly noticed Midnight, who was hiding behind her mane and mumbling hi.
"H-hi." Midnight said, rubbing one for-leg with the other like Fluttershy did.
"H-hi." Fluttershy repeated, also in the same position.
"Fluttershy, this is Midnight Locus, shes a changeling who's true form was altered from some event I'll talk about later." Rainbow Dash said.
"N-nice to meet you." Fluttershy said quietly.
"S-same."
"Okay, let's go meet Rarity now." Rainbow Dash said, trying to ignore the sheer amount of similarities between Fluttershy and Midnight.
The other element bearers had varying reactions. Rarity wanted to use Midnight for her modeling, since Midnight changeling magic meant she could turn into anypony; Apple Jack wanted her to help on the farm for the same reason, and Pinkie, natural, wanted to throw a huge party, Rainbow had to tell her that nopony in the kingdom except the element bearers and the CMC were allowed to know of Midnight's true form and so the party would have to be either for her in disguise or not happen at all.
Midnight shivered as her, Scootaloo, and Rainbow left the Laughter wing of the castle.
"I-I don't t-think I w-want a p-party." Midnight said.
"It'll be all right." Rainbow assured.