//------------------------------//
// A Few More Meetings 
// Story: A Change of Pace 
// by Votederpycausemufins 
//------------------------------//

	It didn’t take long for Cicada to reach the castle. She had taken a few wrong turns, but she was glad Spike had followed her and shown her the real way. Even though she had time to calm down after her argument with Rainbow Dash, Cicada just kept thinking about it.
'Why can't she just see I want to go home? Honestly, I bet she and Ambassador Rainbow would get along perfectly.'
The changeling kept storming toward the castle's throne room. Two guards outside were blocking the door. Cicada was in enough of a bad mood she didn't think much of it and just threw the doors open to let herself in.
Upon entering, Cicada found the two guards that were in the throne room directing their spears at her. She rolled her eyes and used her magic to throw them out of the room, where they collided with the two guards from outside before she shut the doors and used her magic to lock them.
"Who are you and why are you here?!" Princess Celestia boomed at Cicada.
"Queen Cicada. You asked me to come here for a meeting with you and your sister, did you not? I apologize for being late. I had some trouble finding this place."
The princess calmed down a bit. "Ah, you would be the changeling queen my former student told me about. I'm sorry for how my guard may have treated you on your way in, but in all due respect, we were expecting you to arrive as yourself and not a pony."
Cicada looked down at herself. Indeed, she was still disguised as Fireworks and not in her normal changeling form.
"Sorry about that." She said, dropping her disguise. "I was informed that the ponies of Canterlot were less accepting of changelings than those in Ponyville are. I created a pony disguise for when I was in public. I'm so used to never having a disguise on that I forgot I was in one."
"That's quite alright. I can understand why you would have wanted to do that. If you would follow me, we'll be moving to the meeting room in the castle. We'll be meeting my sister there."
"Wonderful. I've been looking forward to meeting her."



It didn't take long for everypony to settle down again, but it did take one pony a bit longer to finally stop worrying.
"I wish to assure you all that that was the first time I have actually tried to activate the spell myself. I assure you all that when she is a bit closer to me than currently, It will work in a much better fashion."
One mare raise her hoof. "Yes Miss Shimmer?"
"Not to rain on your parade Empress." The unicorn addressed the ruler, "But last I heard, the changeling you held in captivity was unwilling to help."
"I finally convinced her otherwise. She says she will eventually. And you know the royals in particular do not go back on their word easily."
Another unicorn mare spoke up. "From what I've seen so far from the changelings we've captured so far, none of them have made it past three days. The latest reports I had heard made it sound like she wasn't going to last that long."
"For your information Lulamoon," Twilight started. "She actually told us how to fix that. Because of this, another changeling that has been quite useful to us so far has been moved to her quarters in the dungeon."
"Not to say you're wrong or anything, but you really think it's a good idea to have two of these beasts in the same room?" Ambassador Rainbow asked.
"I know that Twilight recruited extra guards for these two including my husband." A pink pegasus mare answered. "She's obviously got things handled."
"Yes, I assure you," Twilight confirmed. "As long as my brother is there to help guard the two changelings, I feel there is no reason for us to worry about them causing any problems."
"Why don't we just execute the one changeling?" A white unicorn stallion asked. "With their main leader stuck in another dimension with no way of getting back and their only backup currently in our dungeon, getting rid of this one would force the changelings to surrender."
The empress looked at the stallion. "You make a good point there Fancy Pants. Still, I told you all that at random moments I've been able to see what this supposed queen can see. She ended up in an Equestria with different versions of all of us. I believe from what little I've seen that she has been successful, for the most part, on getting these ponies to side with her. To make matters worse, there is a good chance there is still Celestia and Luna in that Equestria. I had some trouble beating her yesterday with the magic strength of her power combined with what she received from Luna. If Cicada finds a way back and brings help back, there is no chance for us to win."
“And what are we supposed to do while we wait?” Trixie asked.
“Well, I want Fluttershy and Applejack to go ask the changeling some more questions.” She turned to face them. “I want you two to question him more once we’re done here. He may know if the other changelings had any plans for if they lost both their leaders at least temporarily.”
The two mare nodded before the alicorn went on. “Now, if no pony has anything to add…” She paused and looked around. “Alright, this meeting is over. Go back to your regular schedule and I will summon you all again if we find something out.”



Cicada followed Celestia to the meeting room. As they got closer, Cicada had trouble keeping stone faced at the idea of getting to see Selena again, thought it would be different with her going by her old name. Selena had been like family to her and Nymph after their mom had been killed.
When they reached the doors to the room, Celestia let Cicada open them herself. Upon opening the doors, the changeling quickly entered the room. She wasn’t surprised to only see one pony in the room, what put her off was that she didn’t know who it was.
“I thought you said I would be meeting with you and your sister Luna.” Cicada said to Celestia.
“Yes I did. Don’t you see her sitting there?”
Cicada looked back at the mare in the room. The mare was also an alicorn, but she had a dark blue coat. The spotted part of the mare’s coat on her flank was black though the cutie mark was a moon. Instead of the white crown Selena always wore, this mare wore a smaller black one, as well as being smaller herself. The mare’s mane, while similar to Selena’s, seemed more solid than the ethereal mane she had sported.
“That mare seated there is not Luna. The Luna from my world looked nothing like that, and except for the slight change in mane style that this world’s Pinkamena has, every pony has looked exactly like their counterpart.”
The mare got up from her seat to greet Cicada, being far away enough that she had not heard the debate on who she was.
“Hello there, you must be Queen Cicada that Twilight informed us about.”
“Yes I am, and who would you be?” Cicada asked the supposed Luna.
“I am Princess Luna. I’m sorry, it had not occurred to me you might not know who I am. Twilight’s letter suggested you would recognise us.”
“Twilight was indeed suggesting that in her letter.” Cicada agreed. “The problem is, I have never known a mare that looks like you ever in my life.”
The two alicorns looked at each other, confused by Cicada’s reaction, especially when she started crying.
“Selena was part of my family. She was the closest thing we had to a mom after ours died. She loved to take care of Nymph and helped me when I didn’t know what to do ruling Equestria. I was so excited to finally get to see her again, and instead I’m told that a mare I’ve never met before is supposed to be the one I grew up with?!”
Before either of the princesses could respond, Cicada ran away towards the castle vault. When the sisters thought it had been long enough, they went off to find the changeling, hoping that she had calmed down. The two of them finally found her in the hall filled with stained glass windows. Cicada was still crying a little bit, crumpled down in front of one of the windows.



When the two alicorns neared her, Cicada noticed them walking over and wiped some of the tears off her face. “I-I’m sorry, I guess I should have realised there was something off when Luna was still with you.”
“What do you mean by that?” Celestia asked the queen.
“Since anyone bad from my world is good here, and vice versa, that meant Selena was the bad version of your Luna.” Cicada looked back towards the glass. “What did she go by here?” she asked Luna. “I mean, if not Luna or Selena, what did you call yourself when you were…”
“Nightmare Moon. I chose that because it’s what I heard some ponies call me when they thought neither my sister or I was able to hear them. I ended up deciding if that’s what they wanted to see me as, that’s who I would become.”
The group of royals looked around somewhat awkwardly, none of them sure what to do next. Finally, Celestia broke the silence by asking Cicada, “Should we return to the meeting room and finally have the meeting we were supposed to.”
“Yes, that would be nice. Sorry for the outburst earlier.”
“It’s fine. You’re still coming to terms with this place. It will take time.”



With the royals seated once more in the meeting room, they were finally able to begin their discussion. 
“So, where would you like me to begin?” Cicada asked.
“I am very interested in your Nightshade Phoenix, Queen Cicada.” Luna started. “You do realize that their eggs only hatch underneath a moonbow, correct?”
“Yes, my mother told me. Lila was actually hers.”
Curious, the alicorn asked, “Oh? Do tell me how she came across this magnificent being.”
“Oh, I'm sorry, I don't know. I never got to learn how she found Lila's egg, or even if she found Lila as an egg.”
“I see…” Luna paused to think of a new question. “Then, can you tell me about your mother? She seemed to be a wonderful changeling if she was able to raise a daughter like you.”
Nervously, Cicada responded. “Oh um… my mother was indeed a good leader. She helped to make sure we had enough love so that we wouldn't starve. At first she tried to work on relationships with ponies via your counterpart Celestia.” She gestured toward the older sister.
“Then what happened?”Luna asked.
“Well, I'm not fully sure what happened. All I know is that one day, Celestia came for a short visit to tell that the meetings between them were done, and I didn't see her again until I became queen myself.”
“If you were to become queen yourself, then that must have meant that your mother was... disposed of.”
Cicada pursed her  lips slightly “Yes... it was actually my world's Twilight that did it. I hadn't seen her since the last time Celestia had come to visit before her final visit. She had been rather nice to me before, and we were becoming friends... I don't know what happened.”
At this point, Celestia decided to join the conversation.
“So my sister mothered your family after the passing of your mother? If the ponies of your world are evil, then why would my sister assist in your cause?”
“I figure it has something to do with how in this world, Luna became Nightmare Moon. I feel that it may have been that Selena was actually genuine in her feelings towards the ponies, because she decided to start living with changelings before the other you stopped visiting. 9:49
“My change as Nightmare Moon… That brings back some painful memories.” Luna said.
“I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…” the changeling started.
“No, it's alright. I was reverted back into this form you see now due to the influence of the Elements of Harmony, Queen Cicada.”
“Wait… Elements of Harmony?”
“Yes, the that’s what I said.”
“Forgive me, I don't know what those are.”
“They are six magical artifacts that are capable of impressive magical feats.” Celestia answered. “They represent the core elements of friendship; Honesty, Generosity, Kindness, Laughter, Loyalty and Magic.”
Princess Luna continued her sister’s words. “Before they were returned to the Tree of Harmony, they were wielded by Twilight Sparkle and her friends.”
“Wait... are you referring to the six gems of accord?” Cicada asked.
“The six gems of accord?”asked Celestia. “What are those?”
“Nearby the castle I one ruled at before it was taken over by Empress Twilight, there is a jeweled tree. Implanted in the tree are six gems, which legend states that they are one of the few things that show rightful punishment to the powerful and evil.”
“That almost sounds like the Elements of Harmony. Tell me, did your world's version of Twilight and her friends take possession of these gems?”
“Not that I know of.” Cicada answered. “When the threat of ponies first became known after my mother's death, we made sure to seal the area in hopes that if something were to happen, only a changeling could find them. That may have changed now that Twilight rules the castle”
“If she does have possession of them, then this is worrying news.” Celestia said. With these gems, how powerful would you estimate her to be?”
“So far, they have not been used in our world. At least not that I know of. You would most likely have a better judgement at that than I would.”
“I trust that she does not have possession of those gems.” Luna spoke up. “If she did, then your world's version of me would have been supporting your enemy. Is that correct?”
“Again, I am unsure.” the queen replied. “Even though Twilight has been around changelings before, I don't believe she knows much about us. The main things we know about the Gems of Accord are from legends, and even we barely know how they work.”
“Regardless, there are a few pieces of information brought into light. The Gems of Accord are your world's version of the Elements of Harmony, and the Elements of Harmony allowed me to live my life once more. Therefore, the Gems of Accord should be able to have a similar effect on your world's version of me.”
The lunar princess paused for a second before she asked, “Remind me again about the condition of your world's version of me.”
“A-are you really sure about that…” Cicada asked.
“Positive. If it is important information, then I demand that you tell me everything you know about her.”
“Currently she is... de-deceased…”
Princess Luna paled “D-d-deceased? But how? She should not succumb easily to death!”
“She and Celestia battled when her sister tried to take the rule of Equestria about a year after I had claimed the throne.” Cicada explained. “The battle lasted for almost a day. In the end, Celestia won. Selena, hopeful she would recover asked me to get her to a place to recover. Before I could, she asked me to take her magic so that the balance of night and day could still exist. I was foolish enough to do it close enough to her sister that she was killed after she gave me her magic.”
“Wait, does that mean that I was trying to take the throne and not Twilight?” Celestia asked.
“Originally... yes. But then she seemed to betray you much like... as it seems... Luna did when she became Nightmare Moon. For a short time, I felt pity for her. Now it is Twilight and I who have the powers to wield the sun and moon, and I do not know exactly how. Because of this, the sun and moon are stuck on opposite horizons, giving just enough light to live by.”
“So your world's version of my sister killed your world's version of me. So now, you have the power of night and Empress Twilight has the power of the sun.” Luna asked, making sure she had heard correctly.
“Yes. In fact, after she gained her Celestia's magic and finished her off with use of dark magic, then she was able to become an alicorn herself. I didn't know that was even possible!”
“Now we get to the biggest question; why are you even in our world? Do the changelings of your world need you to find a way to learn how to keep the balance of night and day?” Celestia asked.
“No! I don't know how I even got here. The portal I created was supposed to take us back to our base. Instead, Lila and I ended up here. We want to go back and hopefully sooner rather than later. If I stay too long, the empress with see it as a chance to take down my forces and secure her reign over Equestria.”
“This is indeed troublesome.” Luna spoke. “My sister and I will lend our assistance to you in helping you return back to your world.”
“Thank you. Is there anything else you wish to know?”
“Nothing else. We have all of the information we need to know.”
“Thank you…”Cicada said. “Though there is one thing I would like to ask you two…”
“You can ask us for anything. Especially If It might be able to return you to your home.”
The queen gave a slight pause before saying, “Seeing just how much our history seems to differ, I want to see if i can track down the point in time where our two timelines first separate. Since you two seem to be the wisest of the ponies here, and seeing as this is the capital, I was wondering if I may be able to have a place to live in Canterlot. Hopefully someplace that I won't be easily disturbed.”
“That can be arranged.” Celestia told Cicada. “There is an empty house nearby the library Twilight lived in back when she still lived here in Canterlot. I believe she told me she let an old friend of hers have the library there, so you may want to contact her if you need help finding resources.”
“Thank you, I’ll be sure to do that. And if that’s all, I think I will go to find this place.”
“It was nice to meet you Queen Cicada.” Celestia said, holding out her hoof.
“Please, If we need to meet again, just call me Cicada.”
“I hope everything goes well for you.” Luna told her, giving a slight nod as her goodbye.
“I hope so too. Thank you for all of your help.” and giving a nod in return, Cicada left the room, off to find the vacant home.