Silver Spirit, Ghost of Equestria.

by Powerdrainer

The Enemy of My Enemy...

A trio of timberwolves raced through the thick foliage of the Everfree Forest. 

Something had happened. Something they had not expected. Something which shook them to their very core. Something the Alpha needed to know.

Moving in a blur, they reached the small clearing their pack called home; entering their Alpha's cave.

"Alpha!" they barked, their tone of voice making it clear something was wrong.

"Kio estas? Kio okazis? Ĉu la interloper eskapo?"

"What is it? What happened? Did the interloper escape?"

"Jes," one of the wolves admitted shamefully. "Tra la enmiksiĝo de tiujn tri."

"Yes. Through the interference of those three."

The Alpha growled as he caught on to the underlying tone, and realized which three ponies they were referring to.

"Vi permesis ilin helpi la interloper ellasilo!?" the Alpha barked, wooden teeth bared, and the three wolves flinched back.

"You allowed them to help the interloper escape!?"

"Ne, ni faris ne," one of the wolves replied.

""No, we did not."

"Do, diru al mi. Se vi faris ne permesus ilin eskapi, tiam kial vi diranta min ke ili faris ĝuste tion!?" the Alpha said with a hissing growl, eyes narrowing.

"Then, tell me. If you didn't allow them to escape, then why are you telling me that they have done just that!?"

"Tie estis animon rikoltanto," all three wolves said simultaneously, and their Alpha froze on the spot.

"There was a soul reaper."

"Kion!? La poneojn' animon rikoltanto detenis vin?" the Alpha said disbelieving.

"What!? The ponies' reaper stopped you?"

"Ne la poneojn' rikoltanto," they replied, hesitant. Still having trouble believing it themselves.

"Not the ponies' reaper."

"Tiam, kiu!? Kies rikoltanto estis ĝi!?"

"Then, who!? Whose reaper was it!?"

"... La Malluma Onia."

"... The Dark One's."

An eerie silence filled the cave, none of the wolves daring to move.

"La morto... de la Mallumo Unu?" the Alpha muttered to himself, an angry growl rumbling in the back of his throat.

"The death... of the Dark One?"

His head snapped back up, eyes aglow, a dangerous growl escaping him, "Trovu la Mallumo Unu! Venigu li al mi, NUN!"

"Find the Dark One! Bring him to me, NOW!"

Two beings were standing on a lone hill, their black cloaks blending in seamlessly with the dark of night, making them all but impossible to see, save for their glowing red eyes. 

"So, you brought her home?" Mort asked Eddie as they gazed out over a massive apple orchard.

"I did," Eddie confirmed. "You?"

"I dropped those three off near the edge of their village. There was a soul I had to reap, so I was short on time."

"I see," Eddie mused, both of them watching a silhouette moving through the trees, the faint green glow of the individual's eyes having attracted their attention.

 "... Who was it, if you don't mind me asking?"

"An elderly mare, Chocolate Swirl... I'd had my eye on her for a while now. Poor health."

Eddie hummed softly, stroking his imaginary beard. "So you were not near those fillies after you dropped them off?"

"No, why?"

"... Nothing… Just a strange feeling I have, " Eddie answered after a second. The colleagues observing the silhouette hovering up, and moving towards one of the many windows of the farm house below. "Like there is..."

"Like there is, what?"

"... I'm not sure," Eddie admitted, looking at the glow of his eyes in the reflection on his scythe. "Just… a feeling."

"I… see."

"No, you do not. Nor do I, and that is what worries me." Eddie sighed. "... We should go. No need to break our skulls over this, and there are souls to reap."

Giving a hesitant nod in agreement, Mort left Eddie's side; looking at him through the corner of his non existent eyes, before fading from view. Eddie, however, remained standing on the hill for just a moment longer.

"... Just a feeling..." he muttered to himself, and then he, too, faded from view.

'I will, mom. I will.'

Insectoid wings buzzed faintly as Erlea hovered before the window of the earth pony filly who had, along with her friends, protected her from the timberwolves. 

Peeking inside with her luminescent green eyes, she saw the filly she had heard called Apple Bloom lying on her bed; back turned to the window, asleep.

This was cause for relief for Erlea, as she was afraid the sound her wings made would have drawn Apple Bloom's attention. However, there were others to be wary about, as she could sense two others within this home. There was one, she could tell, close by. Just a couple of rooms away, so she knew she had to be careful, lest she be detected.

Humming softly to herself, a noticeable echo to her voice as if two voices were speaking together, she lit her horn with the faintest amount of magic, unlocking the window and opening it, allowing her entry.

Sneaking inside with cat-like grace, not making a sound as her hooves touched the floor; only for the wood to creak as her weight settled down onto it. Her eyes fearfully darted down, and then back up at the shifting form on the bed.

"... but sisss…. ah donwanna go ta schoo..." Apple Bloom slurred, before falling asleep again. Erlea gave a mental sigh of relief.

'This is a really stupid idea.'  

Tip hoofing towards the sleeping filly, Erlea stood just a hoof's length away from Apple Bloom, when the filly rolled over. Her legs lashed out and flailed around in a grabbing motion as if she was looking for something. 

Erlea found herself in too close a proximity, and without enough time to react, as she was suddenly caught in the surprisingly strong hold of the sleeping filly. The young earth pony pulled the intruder closer to herself, mumbling in her sleep while snuggling the flustered changeling.

Erlea, with wide eyes and a burning green blush on her cheeks, tried to wiggle out of Apple Bloom's hold, only for the earth pony's grip to tighten, locking her in place and sealing her fate.

Silence.

'Oh, son of a diamond dog.'

Dawn approached, and the crow of a rooster brought Apple Bloom out of her slumber.

She was faintly aware that something was off; a weight near her. But her still drowsy mind shrugged this off as she smacked her mouth a couple of times, eyes fluttering as they tried to focus in the early morning light.

Suddenly, there was movement, and Apple Bloom became aware once more of the weight next to her. The next thing she noticed was something held tight in her forelegs. And lastly, she realized she was looking into the luminescent, embarrassed, and somewhat irritated eyes of a changeling.

"AA—"

Apple Bloom jumped up in fear, just beginning to scream, when Erlea lodged a hoof in the pony's mouth, stifling any sounds that might otherwise draw unwanted attention.

"Finally, you're awake," she said with clear annoyance. "I've been waiting forever to get out of your hold," she complained. Apple Bloom's eyes widened in fear of the creature before her, and of what it might do to her. Her fear didn't go unnoticed, of course.

"I know you're afraid," Erlea said, trying to sound gentle, but only managing to heighten Apple Bloom's feeling of fright, sending a cold shiver of disgust down Erlea's spine. "Okay, how about this? You promise not to scream, shout, yell, or do anything else to draw attention to us, and I will remove my hoof. Deal?"

"Hmph pfhh hmmm," Apple Bloom mumbled, covering Erlea's hoof in a layer of drool.

Disgusted, Erlea shot Apple Bloom a glare. "Just nod!"

Nodding, Apple Bloom agreed with Erlea's proposal. 

"Good," she said as she removed her hoof, wiping it clean on the blanket. "Now-" she started, only to be interrupted by someone knocking on the door.

"Hey, Bloom. You alright?" the sleepy voice of the eldest Apple sibling came through the door, and both Erlea and Apple Bloom looked at the door in fright. More so as they noticed the knob turning, and the door starting to open.

Erlea shot Apple Bloom a glare, telling her without words to fix this, or else.

True, the 'or else' part was mostly empty 'words'. But Apple Bloom didn't know that, and she quickly jumped into motion. Poking her head through the gap and using a leg to keep the door from fully opening; hiding her bed, and the changeling on it, from view. Apple Bloom gave her brother the most honest, sheepish, and nervous smile she could, causing the stallion to raise an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Yer not doing anything ya shouldn't be, are ya?"

"Who, me?" Apple Bloom asked innocently. "What would give you that idea?"

Giving her a flat stare, Macintosh sighed. "Apple Bloom. What're ya hiding?"

"Nothing, really!" Apple Bloom replied, a frantic edge to her voice as she attempted to close the door, only for her older brother to stop her with a hoof.

"Apple Bloom!"

"Oh, are you for real!?" a double voice piped up, irritated, and Macintosh's eyes widened as the door began to glow green, swung open, and revealed a changeling standing behind his youngest sister. 

He didn’t have much time to react as he suddenly found himself entranced by the hypnotic glow coming from the changeling's eyes; mirrored by the glow coming from her horn.

"You will leave us alone and forget I was ever here," Erlea spoke with a commanding voice, and Macintosh nodded, eyes unfocused and blank, before he slowly moved away, the door closing after him.

"WHAT THA HAY DID YOU JUST DO TA MAH BROTHER!" Apple Bloom shouted, glaring at the bug.

Shaking her head while wobbling on unsteady legs, Erlea glowered at Apple Bloom. "I did what you couldn't. Get rid of him. Gha..." she grunted as she almost lost her hoofing, before managing to steady her stance. "He's fine, if that's what you're worried about. I barely have enough strength left after that, so he won't be under my mind control for much longer."

"What tha… How did Ah end up here?" Macintosh's voice drifted in through the window.

"See."

Apple Bloom glared at the changeling, not sure whether she should buck out a couple of teeth, or run away. For now, she decided to keep some distance between herself and the bug, and see what she wanted.

"Why're you here?" she asked, eyes narrowed, slowly moving in a half circle around the changeling, looking for any weak spots should they be necessary. "What do ya want?" 

Erlea, not impressed in the least by Apple Bloom's poor attempt at 'observing her prey', merely fluttered her wings, filling the room with an insectoid buzzing for a moment, before locking her eyes with the pony's.

"You and your friends. You helped me."

"Yeah, so what of it?"

Blinking, Erlea cocked her head in puzzlement. "Why?"

Taken aback, Apple Bloom stopped in her tracks, staring at Erlea in silent confusion.

"Why what? Why did we help you?" Apple Bloom asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Yes, why did you help me?" Erlea asked again. "You ponies never help changelings, ever. Not even when we asked for it, back… then," Erlea's eyes fell as she whispered the last part.

"Back when?" Apple Bloom asked, and Erlea's eyes shot back up, locking with Apple Bloom's a second time, fangs bared.

"Like you would care. You ponies never seem to give two bucks about us changelings," Erlea replied with venomously, and Apple Bloom visibly recoiled. "Yet you and your friends helped me. WHY!?" Her form suddenly seemed to dominate the room, and Apple Bloom shrunk down under her intense stare, gulping.

"Because ya needed help," Apple Bloom answered with a squeak, and Erlea looked as if she'd been kicked in the gut, before hissing in anger.

"Don't lie, pony. Ponies don't help changelings. I know you and your friends must have a reason for helping me. Maybe you three found out I'm the queen's daughter, and wanted to hold me for ransom!?"

"You're tha queen's daughter…? Doesn't that make ya a princess?" Apple Bloom said, glancing at Erlea's wings, before shifting her focus to the jagged horn currently letting out glowing green sparks.

"Don't pretend you didn't know! What other reason would you have to help me!?" Erlea snorted. "It's not like you would know what it’s like to be looked down on by others just because of what you are."

"Actually..." Apple Bloom spoke up, "Ah do." Erlea hissed in disbelief. "No, really. Ah do…. Kinda." Erlea snorted, but backed down, slightly, allowing Apple Bloom to continue. "There're these two bullies who keep making fun of me and mah friends because we ain't found our Cutie Marks yet. They think they're better than us, and keep tellin' us we're losers and such."

"Really," Erlea said flatly. "Bullies? That's the best you can do? And what's so important about these flank marks you ponies are so obsessed with anyway?"

"Hey, a Cutie Mark is very important!" Apple Bloom shot back defensively. 

"Pfhu... More important than food?" Erlea asked bitterly, and Apple Bloom looked at her in confusion. "That's what I've been trying to find, while you and your friends were busy finding these flank marks."

"What do ya mean?" Apple Bloom asked and Erlea, much to her surprise, felt a genuine feeling of concern coming from the pony.

"Like you don't know. I know how you ponies think. How you care more about each other, and are more concerned about this stupid image on your butt," —Apple Bloom gasped — "yet my kind is wasting away from hunger, and you ponies never helped us, no matter how many times we've asked you for help." Erlea hissed angrily. "Calling us monsters and such... " She dropped to the floor, her legs giving out, and a tired sob escaped her. "You ponies never cared about us… So why did you help me?"

Surprised by the changeling's sudden change in demeanor, Apple Bloom was uncertain how to react. Yet unable to just ignore her, she hesitantly stepped forward; placing a hoof on Erlea's withers.

"We helped ya because ya needed help," she said honestly, and Erlea froze, unable to sense anything that would suggest she was lying. Looking up, her luminescent eyes met Apple Bloom's.

"... You're serious?" she said in a half whisper.

"Of course Ah am," Apple Bloom replied, frowning. "And ya won't have ta look fer food anymore either. We've got a whole orchard full of apples. We won't miss a few."

Erlea looked at Apple Bloom as if she had just grown a second head, unable to comprehend what she had just heard.

"Whu…?"

"Although Ah don't know just how many apples ya'd need," Apple Bloom pondered, holding a hoof to her chin. "Ah mean, one or two trees should be fine, but any more might be tough."

"Wha…?"

"Maybe three, depending..." Apple Bloom continued, deep in thought.

"Wha…?" Erlea shook her head to clear her thoughts. "Eh… Thanks, I guess. But apples are not going to help."

"Huh, why not?" Apple Bloom said, shocked, snapped out of her thoughts. "You said ya needed food, right?"

"Yes."

"So, apples are food."

"Not to a changeling," Erlea answered. "We can eat them, but they won't sustain us."

"Then what do ya eat?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Emotions," Erlea answered truthfully. "The positive ones, preferably."

"Whu…?"

"You know: happiness, compassion, love."

"Wha…?"

"Negative emotions can work, but they taste horrible."

"Wha…?" Apple Bloom shook her head to clear her thoughts. "So ya can't eat any normal food?"

"Oh, we can eat 'normal' food. It just won't sustain us."

"... That's really, really weird."

"Not to me," Erlea replied, when a loud rumble came from her stomach, and she placed a hoof over her belly, blushing fiercely. "I guess I used more energy controlling your brother than I thought."

A few moments of silence ticked by, then Apple Bloom snorted in laughter while Erlea stared at her in embarrassment. Yet Apple Bloom, unknowingly, did provide her with a fresh surge of positive emotional energy, and Erlea was quick to consume as much as she could.

"Well, Ah guess we better find ya something ta eat then," Apple Bloom said, before suddenly realizing something. "Wait, how does tha whole emotion eating thing even work?"

"Actually," Erlea said, "you already gave me some."

"Ah did?"

"Yes, when you laughed just now." Erlea sighed. "But it is hardly enough. Not for me. And certainly not enough for anyling else."

"Well, that's no good," Apple Bloom said, frowning. "... Eh… Is there any way ya can, Ah dunno, eat more emotions from me or something?"

Erlea looked at the pony in complete disbelief. Never before had she heard of a pony offering her emotions for food like this. Well, except for those stories of long ago. Still, shocked by the pony's offer, she gave herself a mental slap, forcing her to snap out of her stupor.

"Uuhh… There is a way, I suppose. But, uhh..."

"But, what?" Apple Bloom asked.

"It is kind of tiring. For you, I mean."

"Well… Ah don’t have many chores ta do, ‘cept going ta school today. So being tired ain't really that big of a deal," said Apple Bloom.

"... You ponies are weird," Erlea said, giving Apple Bloom an odd look.

"Nah, that's Pinkie Pie's thing," Apple Bloom answered with a slight smirk. Erlea, however, flinched upon hearing that name, but managed to hide it from Apple Bloom.

'She knows one of them! This could be of use… maybe?'

"Riiight," she said, drawing Apple Bloom's attention back to her. With a sudden gleam in her own eyes, she continued.

"As I said, there is a way for me to get more emotional energy, but it’s tiring for you. You still want to do this?"

"Uhh… Is it gonna hurt?"

"Only if you struggle. So…?"

"... Ah guess," Apple Bloom said, a hint of hesitance in her voice. "What do Ah need ta do?"

"Just... hold out your leg."

"Umm… Okay?" Apple Bloom said, stretching her leg out before her. "Like this?"

"Yes, perfect!" Erlea proclaimed.

"Shoot, Ah don’t even know yer name!" Apple Bloom suddenly realized. "Ah kinda think Ah should know that, at least."

"It's Erlea," Erlea answered before lunging forward; sinking her fangs into Apple Bloom's leg.

"Wow. You look rough," Scootaloo said, gazing at her earth pony friend with concern.

The school day had only just begun, and everypony was gathering on the playground, waiting for the dreaded moment where Miss Cheerilee would ring the bell and they would be forced to endure yet another day of boring learning. But Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle knew this wasn't the worst part of the day. Not by a long shot. After all, they were still in a whole lot of trouble, and they knew school was just the easy part.

Although, for Apple Bloom the day did prove to be more interesting than others. Not counting all their crusading mishaps, or Sweetie Belle being a spirit. No, waking up with a changeling by her side and then having it suck her emotions straight out of her, through her leg no less, was definitely out of the norm, and darn tiring as well. 

Not that she could complain, much. Erlea did warn her this would happen. But to say she wasn't expecting it to be this bad would have been no small understatement.

"Yeah," Apple Bloom groaned. "Ah feel like it too."

"Did Applejack do this? Was it Big Mac, or Granny Smith?" Sweetie Belle asked, worried.

"Nah," Apple Bloom yawned. "Erlea."

"Who!?" Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle asked, glancing first at each other, then at Apple Bloom. 

"Right..." Apple Bloom yawned again, loudly. Glancing around with tired eyes, making sure they weren't being spied upon, she beckoned her friends to come closer. "She was that changeling from tha other day."

"WHAT!" Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle shouted, drawing attention from several of their classmates. 

"Shh… Keep it down, will ya?" Apple Bloom said.

"But the changeling!?" Sweetie Belle protested. "Isn't she supposed to be dangerous or something?"

"Eh... girls..." Apple Bloom said, trying to cut them off. 

"Yeah," Scootaloo agreed. "I mean, sure, we kinda saved her life and everything. But everypony keeps saying how dangerous they are!"

"Girls!" Apple Bloom tried again, louder, only to be interrupted by a rustling coming from the bush near their position.

"Figures," came Erlea's voice, drifting from within the foliage and two luminescent eyes, barely visible, glowed between the leaves.

"Apple Bloom!?" Sweetie Belle said.

"Yeah… She's here."

"You're all the same," the bush muttered.

"Oh..." Scootaloo chuckled nervously.

"I take it she heard us?" said Sweetie Belle.

"You think?" came the voice, leaves rustling.

Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom were glancing between themselves nervously, when a new voice cut in, drawing their attention to a pernicious pair of earth ponies.

"What are you three losers planning this time!?" came Diamond Tiara's biting voice. Silver Spoon stood behind her, looking down. "Going to cause more trouble, as usual, Blank Flanks!?" Diamond Tiara stuck her nose in the air, circling Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle with an air of superiority; grimacing at the sight of them.

"What do you want, Diamond Tiara?" Scootaloo sneered, scowling at the obnoxious pony.

"Oh, it's not about what I want," Diamond Tiara replied, holding a hoof against her chest, feigning surprise, before a scowl replaced her fake innocent look. "It's about what you three want!" she hissed. "I know you're the ones causing all this trouble Silver Spoon and I are having. And I know you are planning something else, just because you three are jealous of how popular I am, and what losers you three really are." Her eyes shifted to Sweetie Belle. "And no amount of fancy magic will ever change that."

"What're you even talking about?" Apple Bloom said, trying to sound serious, but a massive yawn ruined it. Diamond Tiara, however, saw this as an act of defiance towards her.

"Oh, am I boring you!?" she snarled. "Well, you better sleep with one eye open from now on, ‘cause I'll be watching you. I know you're up to something. I know you're hiding something. I will know what it is, and I will find a way to knock you back down into the mud where you belong." And with that she turned around sharply and marched away. Silver Spoon shot the three fillies a hesitant, almost apologetic, glance before following behind her friend.

"... Is it just me, or did she seem meaner than usual?" Apple Bloom asked, rubbing her eyes to make sure she was awake, and not having a nightmare.

"It's not you," Scootaloo confirmed.

"And what did she mean with that whole fancy magic thing?" Sweetie Belle asked, worried.

"Is she always this… distasteful?" the bush asked; a gagging sound soon following.

"Ehh… Depends on if it's a good day, or a bad day," Apple Bloom answered.

"And which one is it now?"

"Honestly..." Scootaloo said.

"It's starting to look like a bad day," Sweetie Belle finished. "A really, really bad day."

Their conversation was cut short when, with a cheerful clang, Cheerilee rang the school bell, forcing the fillies to leave their new 'friend' alone as they entered the school. The door closing behind them after Cheerilee was sure everypony was present, all as Erlea's luminescent eyes watched on from the depths of her bush.

"... Maybe they do know what it is like after all."

Moving through the bushes, taking care to stay out of sight, Erlea circled around the school and snuck towards the window of the building's only classroom. Dropping below the windowsill and perking up her ears, she listened in on the class in session; picking up on several different emotions. Most of them, though, radiated boredom.

Still, a chance like this to gain some intel on the ponies' educational system was an opportunity she just couldn't pass up.

However what the ponies seemed to regard as important knowledge to bestow on their young was anything but interesting, and seemingly unimportant, to Erlea who soon found herself nodding off. 

What Apple Bloom had said a couple hours prior suddenly made a lot more sense to her.

Deciding that these teachings were of no importance to her or her kind, she instead focused on the many emotions she could feel. Paying close attention to five sets of particular potency. The first three she recognized as coming from Apple Bloom and her two friends. The other two originated from those spiteful ponies they encountered just a moment ago. 

'What were their names again?' Erlea thought. 'Diamond Spoon? Tiara Silver? Meh... it's not important,' she decided, but she was interested in something else surrounding those two. 'Her attention isn't even remotely on the lesson,' she thought as she focused on the pony who talked down to Apple Bloom and her friends. 'There is only a feeling of… of… huh, whaddya know. Jealousy. And a whole lot of anger,' A wave of sudden dizziness swept over her when she switched her focus to the silent one.

'Wh… What was that?' She shook her head to focus. 'Her emotions are all over the place. I can't make any sense of it!?' A shudder went down her spine as she pushed the alien sensation away from her; a sudden cold feeling squeezing the very core of her being. 'Who is that pony?! And what the buck is going on with her?!'

"Apple Bloom," the teacher's voice suddenly cut through the air. "Wake up!" Which was swiftly followed by the sound of somepony falling, and a chorus of laughter. Yet, besides her friends and their teacher, one other pony didn't laugh, and Erlea once more focused on the gray filly, daring to peek over the windowsill to get a better look at her.

"Something weird is going on," she said to herself, quickly ducking into cover when several heads turned to the window she was hiding below.

Not wanting to take any more chances, Erlea quietly snuck away. Staying out of sight while keeping an eye on the school.

The bell rung, and the school's door practically exploded as a tidal wave of young ponies came rushing out. 

Cheers of joy and reclaimed freedom filled the air, with many of the colts and fillies running to the nearby field for a quick game of hoofball. It was a sight that was strange and alien to the young changeling, observing it all from the safety of her original bush.

She wasn't entirely sure why she was even there, and yet, she found it impossible to leave and continue her search for a new food source to bring back to the hive. Although she was still curious about what the strange waves of energy she felt in the forest could be, and was more than eager to investigating further, the sudden appearance and rescue by those three ponies; not to mention what she had sensed from that gray filly, made this a difficult task.

She needed answers, and the best way to get them was from those ponies. Those three who, against everything she knew, helped her. 

She continued to observe through narrowed eyes as she spotted Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo leaving the school. Followed closely, in a rather poor attempt at stealth, by the distasteful pink earth pony... her gray cohort lagging behind.

"Hmmm," she hummed, wings fluttering slightly. "How can I use them to my advantage?" Focusing on the wellspring of foul emotions, her eyes suddenly widened in recognition. 'That feeling. This narcissism….' She then noticed the image of a tiara displayed on the pink filly's flank, and a devious smirk found its way across her face. 'So, it's her,' she thought as she quietly snuck away, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle were standing in front of their school, looking with wary eyes at the two ponies waiting for them. 

First there was Bellflower, who was waiting to take Scootaloo back home; not trusting her to keep to her curfew on her own. The same held true for the large red stallion waiting for Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. The latter forced to stay with her bow-wearing friend since their older sisters had gone to Canterlot for some kind of important business. 

True, she was supposed to have been brought over to Sweet Apple Acres last night. But cleaning the mess she mostly didn't cause took longer than expected, and Rarity's friend, who was watching over her, allowed her to stay at the Boutique for the night, arranging for her to be picked up by Apple Bloom's brother the following day after school instead.

And thus, as it was said, so it was done. With a bummed out: "Bye," from Scootaloo, they parted ways. Scootaloo heading back into town under Bellflower's watchful eye, while Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle sulked towards the apple orchard with Big Mac trudging behind them; stalk of wheat in his mouth.

"This blows," Apple Bloom muttered, though not making any effort to hide it from her brother.

"I know," Sweetie Belle concurred. "... At least we are together, though."

"Not that it'll do us much good," Apple Bloom sighed, looking at her brother through the corner of her eye. "Ah doubt Big Mac would let us do any crusading," she said, before adding under her breath: "Or spirit training."
 
"Eeyup," Macintosh Apple said, confirming what Apple Bloom had said. Or at least the part he had heard anyway.

Sweetie Belle let loose a throaty groan, kicking away a small pebble.

"Now yall stop complaining. Ya brought this onto yerselves," Macintosh told them, before ushering them back into motion. "Now, you two better behave. Yall are already in enough trouble as is, no need ta make it worse fer yerselves."

"Fine." Apple Bloom sulked as she and Sweetie Belle moved down the path towards the farmhouse. Yet, unbeknownst to the morose duo or their reluctant keeper, they were watched by a pair of light blue eyes; the silver tiara perched on her head glimmering in a stray beam of light that managed to penetrate the bush she was hiding in.

Deep down, within the walls of the Hive's castle, Chrysalis strained herself to remain standing. However, in her current state, slumped in her throne was about all she could manage. Yet she kept forcing herself, not wanting her already troubled subjects to descend into complete pandemonium should their queen succumb to her illness.

She had to be there for them; a small awareness in the back of their minds. Faint, like so many others, but still present in their rapidly dwindling hive mind. Whispering comforting lies to them, telling them everything would be alright.

Yet there was one more reason for Chrysalis to push herself far beyond her own limits. Erlea. She told her to be careful, wished for her to be safe, but she knew that danger would be ever present for her daughter. It was this, and the knowledge that it was her daughter instead of herself out there, doing what she should be doing, and the fact that the condition she, as well as most of her subjects, were in was the result of their failed last resort option.

If only the ponies had helped them when they had asked for it so long ago.

Now, weakened to the point she couldn't even sit upright and forced to lean against her throne just to keep herself from falling over, the only thing she could do to aid her daughter was listen in on her connection to their shared minds. And, should things go wrong, maybe, hopefully, one of the few remaining fit changelings would be able to save her.

But she was weak, and her already strained mind had trouble reaching out to her daughter. She wouldn't let this stop her, of course. And with the sparsest amount of energy she could muster, she reached out once more. But a sudden stabbing in her mind resulted in her losing her weak focus, causing the connection to shift; transcending their mortal realm as it connected with something else through the Everfree portal, and accidentally shared the misery she and all the other changelings felt.

With a weak grunt of intense struggle, Chrysalis forced her mind to focus once more, reaching out to her daughter; unaware of what had happened in the few moments her illness took hold of her.

It stood unsteadily on its legs, shaking its head, ears folded flat. Hooves stomped down into the snow as it steadied itself; an aura of freezing cold radiating off of its body as it looked up, and towards the area the sickening feeling came from.

Something had called them. Something that was in distress.

It moved. They moved. The ground starting to tremble from the force of their hooves.

They were coming.

Avalanche and Snow Front stood beside the portal leading to the ponies' world, scanning the frozen lands for anything that might try to sneak past them. They wouldn't allow anything or anyone to enter this world, such was the duty given to them. A duty which they carried out to the full extend of their abilities. A task which, somehow, they failed.

The first clue they got to indicate this was the sudden reaction of the timberwolves guarding the other side, jumping up and growling to themselves while sniffing the air. The second clue they found was a faint trail in the snow, as if something had dug a tunnel underneath their feet, which had now collapsed.

Shooting each other a worried glance, they knew trouble was approaching. The most likely candidate, one which was able to dig its way through the snow as such a manner, would be a Beku Terwelu. 

Communicating without words, and only the faintest of nods, Avalanche was about to return to their village and report the bad news. 

However, before even a single step was taken, the ground began to tremble, and Avalanche, Snow Front, and the two timberwolves all froze in their tracks.

It was a low rumble at first, gradually intensifying as the source of this disturbance drew near. A large cloud of powdery snow being kicked up was clearly visible in the distance, and the two frost giants braced themselves for what was to come.

The rumbling grew louder and louder, the ground shaking in turn. A small avalanche fell from a distant mountain side, and the rapid pounding of hooves become audible. 

They knew what it was; what they were, yet they couldn't believe it. Never before had they witnessed these creatures move in such massive numbers this close to the village. Something had disturbed them, and it became clear to them that the portal was what they were drawn to.

A loud whiny echoed through the air, followed moments later many more. And in what could be best described as a blizzard, a massive herd of ice-blue horses ran for the hole in reality; too many for either frost giant to stop and they, as well as the timberwolves, jumped out of their path. 

A massive cold front followed in the equines' wake, freezing everything in their path, leaving the two timberwolves frozen solid in their shocked stances. 

These equines' manes and tails, made of nothing but frozen vapor, trailed behind them as they ran; ice forming on the stone floor of the abandoned castle wherever their hooves fell.

Another whinny came from the horse leading the herd, and the entire herd followed its lead; running through the hallways, freezing everything they passed until they found an exit, and entered the sun-basked courtyard of the abandoned castle, before taking off into the sky.

"By the ancestors," Avalanche breathed, looking up and breaking through the thin layer of snow and ice covering him. "What's to become of the young ones' world!?"