//------------------------------// // Getting Settled In // Story: Long Live the Queen // by QueenChrysalisForever //------------------------------// Changeling Castle- Left Wing- Apatelodes Shiny what’s his name and I stopped as we reached the top of the stairs, lowering the cart to the polished floor. I leaned against the wall, stomach grumbling, hooves and horn tired from the exertion of the heavy wagon. “Next time,” I panted, “the cart stays downstairs.” “That would be fine, next time it won’t have so many whistles to carry,” he said and chuckled. I rolled my eyes. This pony was worse than many of them, he shouldn’t be this happy being here. But then, being employed as a music teacher for the pupas and others in the hive he was protected from being fed upon. I longed to sink my fangs into that too proud neck of his and bring a little fear to him, but Chrysalis would surely be angry if I did. “Great,” I said and rubbed my forehead near my horn. I could feel a headache coming on. “Classroom 116 contains what musical instruments we already have, so let’s put you in there. Know how to play any other instrument?” “Oh yes, I know many. The Penny Whistle is my specialty though. I guess your Queen would want me to teach more than one.” “She’s your Queen now too,” I hissed. “As long as she has you employed. The last music teacher didn’t last long, guess we will see how you do.” “No need to get angry. My mistake, our Queen would want her people to learn more than one instrument.” He said and strapped his infernal cart back to his back. “Now, Apatelodes wasn’t it? Please show me to the music room.” I widened my eyes in surprise. He had remembered my name? “Right, that’s me. I am the royal guard to the Queen.” I said, proudly putting a hoof to my chest and raising my chin. “So I’ll be the one to evaluate your performance with the hives young.” I sent a penetrating glare his way. “So don’t be teaching them anything our Queen would not approve of.” “I’ll make sure to study up on what that would be, thank you for the warning.” “Right, well, let’s get you settled so we both can get some grub,” I said, as my stomach began growling again. I led the way down the hall, lighting torches along the way with green fire. I stopped in front of two double wooden doors, a dusty iron 116 nailed to the right door. “Here we are,” I said and pushed the doors open, cringing as they creaked from disuse. “Will have to get that oiled,” I murmured as I led the pony inside. Thick curtains covered the windows. I magicked them open, and light filtered through to the dusty room. Chalkboards lined the wall on the right, a little set of chairs facing them, one having fallen over with a broken leg. Dust covered everything, except for the hoof and wheel prints I and the Shiny Wheel? had made walking in. A pile of instruments sat in one corner: triangles, horns, tubas, and other such stuff. A bookcase in the back held a few ragged books, a pile of yellowed music sheets on the bottom shelf, some torn as if a mouse had made its home there. “Well, looks like it needs a lot of work. After a good meal though I’ll be up for the job. Might only be able to work with my whistles for the first few weeks, but I think I can make this work,” Shiny Fork said and undid the straps of his cart, letting it rest by the chalkboards. Ugh, his optimism was annoying. “You better, otherwise our Queen will surely not be happy,” I chuckled darkly. I stretched, getting the kinks out of my back. “Come on, hopefully, there is still some food left for us. Then you can come back up and get to work. Will you require a guide to get back here?” “For the first few days perhaps, and to a bedroom?” “Of course, we’ll find an empty one for you after lunch,” I sighed and led the way back to the door. “Oh, and stay away from Queen Chrysalis. A Queen shouldn’t fraternize with lowly employees. That’s for me to take care of.” I couldn’t let him get too close to her. At least one of them seemed to like him, else he would be heading to the dinner table tonight as food rather than a guest. “Oh, okay Apatelodes,” Shiny Willow said, and I chuckled a little at the sad tone in his voice. These stupid ponies and their ‘need’ to be friends with everyone! We reached the stairs and began to walk back down. Thankfully without those annoying whistles! I kept quiet, tired of making small talk, as my stomach growled again. Cursed pony! If it hadn’t been for him, I’d be having some delicious love right now. “Sorry to keep you so long from lunch,” Shiny Water said as we reached the end of the stairs. I scowled at him. “You’re just lucky not to be on the menu yourself.” I pushed open the door to the kitchens. Pony and changeling hurried back and forth from the dining room, bringing empty plates and bowls, along with ponies sleeping off their latest feeding job. Shiny Winter stopped in his tracks at seeing them, pupils dilating and short of breath. “Scared of that happening to you?” I said with a grin. “Maybe… a little, but you said teachers are exempt from that right? Heh, need to be healthy to teach,” he grinned, trying to appear fine, but the fear was still in his eyes. “Our feeder ponies are healthy. They get three square meals a day and are only fed upon once a week. Besides that, they usually work in other areas of the castle as cooks, gardeners, janitors, and other such positions. The ponies we feed upon need to be healthy. If they are sickly, that flows through their love to us and makes the changeling feeding on them sick. We might be called monsters by some ponies, but we value the health of the food we consume.” As the last of the ponies are returned to the kitchen, I sigh. “Looks like we missed lunch. I hope there are leftovers of fruit and such at least.” Shiny Watch lowered his ears, “I’m sorry, I’m probably making a bad first impression on you, aren’t I?” I snorted and nodded, and turned from the doors leading to the dining room back to the preparation tables. An orange pony was cutting up some apples near the kitchen fire, putting them in a large bowl. “You there!” She dropped her knife at my yell, startled, backing away from me. “Yes… yes sir?” she said and gulped. “Prepare enough apples to feed me and… our new music teacher here.” I pointed to Shiny Writer. “Yes sir, just give me a few moments and I shall have it ready.” She grabbed up the knife and washed it off in the sink behind her, then was back at slicing up the apples. I sat down in a chair against the wall, closing my eyes and rubbing my aching head. Apples would fill me for now, but I for sure would need some love for dinner. Been too long since I had any. “Don’t let him get to you, I’m grateful for your help,” Shiny Whims said. I opened my eyes to see him smiling at the mare and putting a comforting hoof to her shoulder. “Don’t distract the help Shiny Whips, else we’ll never eat,” I said and closed my eyes again. “It’s Shiny Whistle, Apatelodes,” he said and I grinned, he actually sounded irritated! “And I can help if you like?” He asked her. I rolled my eyes as she nodded and blushed. “Sure, sir Shiny Whistle. Knives in the second drawer to the left.” I watched as he went and grabbed one, and picked up an apple from the pile to be sliced. I folded one leg over the other and leaned back. If he wanted to do such a menial job, I wasn’t going to stop him. “So, what’s your name?” Shiny Whiskers… no it was Whistle, right? Whichever, he asked the orange mare. “Oh, I’m Star Bright,” she said and blushed. “Thank you for your help.” She finished slicing an apple and tossed the pieces into the bowl. “Of course, my mother did teach me well after all,” he chuckled and placed his own apple slices into the bowl. I zoned out as they continued, not caring to listen to their idle chatter. “Here you go Apatelodes.” I looked up to see Shiny Whistle holding out a bowl to me in one hoof, his own in his other, full of apple slices. “Thanks,” I said and took the bowl, tossing an apple slice into my mouth. He sat down on another chair and began to eat his as well. The orange mare was gone from the room, probably scared I would give her another job to do. We ate in silence, both of us hungry enough to want to eat without interruption. I licked my lips as I finished my bowl, putting it to the side. Looking over to him, I noticed he was done as well. He stood, and put his bowl in the sink. “May we find that empty room now?” he asked. I stood and stretched, “sure why not,” I sighed. “Follow me.” Woods-Changeling Kingdom-Queen Chrysalis “This has certainly been an interesting day already. Not every day we get a pony ‘wanting’ to work for us right?” I chuckled. “No, they are usually too scared of us. Though the ones in the villages near us seem at least a little more willing.” “And he’s not even from one of them is he?” “I don’t know, I’ve never met him before today. I thought I knew everyone around here. Seems like a Ponyville type pony though. We’ll have to ask him later. Until then, let us enjoy our afternoon off.” Chrys sighed. I nodded and plopped down on the cliff we had been on earlier. Resting my head on my hooves, I watched a colony of ants crawl by, carrying bits of leaves on their backs. My life had changed so much in the last twenty-four hours, or well more than that. How long had I been asleep after Discord dragged me from my own world? It didn’t matter, there was no going back to my old life, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about that, but this new life had such promise. I could help the changelings get back on their hooves. From what I had seen thus far, they didn’t deserve the way the ponies had treated them. Like anyone, they needed to eat. Of course, they could have gone a better route to get it, but who was to say anypony would have let them? The ponies employed with us helped, but it wasn’t enough. The hive grew larger all the time. Even now, at least two dozen eggs incubated, little pupas getting ready to hatch. They would need lots of love, especially their first few years, and we just didn’t have the supply. I needed to come up with a plan, and soon. Otherwise, I would need to put much of the hive into hibernation so we could survive. “Being a leader can sure be stressful dearie. But I and Discord believe in you. You won’t let anyling starve.” “I sure hope I live up to your expectations. I’ve never been much of a leader, I was always the follower, back… in my old life.” “Well not anymore! Remember, you are Queen Chrysalis now, and we don’t give up! Perhaps… this Shiny Whistle can even be of use to us in that,” Chrys said. “So, there is an ulterior motive for you wanting me to hire him?” I grin, chuckling. “But then we always have that. He certainly seems the type to be… persuaded… perhaps. Maybe we will have to make time to learn how to play one of his instruments. And here I thought you liked him.” “Dearie, I like anypony or changeling that can be useful to me. He serves more than one purpose. Really, I can’t love, it is part of who we are. We can take love and imitate it, but never experience it for real ourselves. Or at least, I never have been able to.” “That is just… sad. So we’ll just be alone forever? Never truly finding that one to love?” “Oh we’re never truly alone, we have each other after all,” Chrys said, snickering. "And we can have lovers, we have had some… interesting ones in the past. Shining Armor for one, ah now he was something in bed.” I blushed green, and Chrys laughed. “Embarrassed about that sort of thing are you? Then you don’t want to hear about all the others.” “Just tell me there are no current ones? Apatelodes maybe?” “Oh my no! He’s simply our guard, not my type. Never has been my lover, and I don’t plan on it now. But if you want to let him into our bed dearie I won’t blame you. He is very handsome.” “Oh well, I… don’t feel I know him well enough for something like that,” I said and blushed even more. “Well dearie, there are very few I would object you taking in when you decide to. Just know it is usually frowned upon for us to bring a pony to bed unless it is just to consume his or her love,” she said. “But a child between pony and a changeling queen is very taboo. We are… usually not very compatible in that way. The eggs rarely survive, and when they do, the pupa is deformed and doesn’t survive for more than a few hours.” “So then what do you do if an egg is laid? Just cull it?” Chrys sighs. "It is the only choice we have." A breeze blew by, blowing our mane behind us. I shifted against the rock, getting a little more comfortable. How could I ever do such a thing? I guess I would have to, if no, when, it happened in the future. I stood and stretched, extending my wings out. “Let’s get back to some more flying practice,” I said jumping into the air and flapping my wings, closing my eyes as the cool air brushed against my face. Better to save such thoughts for later. I dropped gently down onto the balcony of my room. The sun had just finished setting, colors of violet and pink all that was left of it. My mood was still a little somber, but, at least my real duties would begin the next morning. Classes would resume for the hatchlings, and I needed to visit with each teacher to do my own reviews of them. Apatelodes would review them as well, but I wanted to make sure they would teach them well. After all, they were our future. I shook my body, dislodging some of the dust that had gotten caught in my carapace. Looking in the mirror, I scowled at my reflection. I looked horrible, covered in dust and little pine tree branches stuck in my mane. “So, do I have a private bathing room somewhere?” “But of course. That door you noticed earlier, is our bathing room.” I looked and grinned trotting over to it. Opening it, I looked in at an in-the-floor bathtub. Torches of green fire lined the stone walls, and a stone vase sat in one corner, blue tulips on long stems inside. “Simple, but useful. We don’t have a ton of time, so let’s start the water and get cleaned up before dinner.” I nodded and trotted over, twisting the knobs and watching as steam curled up and over the lip of the tub. After a few minutes, I eased myself down into the bath and sighed as I felt the dirt and sweat slip off me. I grabbed a scrub brush with my magic and scrubbed at my exoskeleton, eyes closed and wings spread into a more comfortable position. “Yes, this is nice,” I sighed, closing my eyes and sinking down deeper until just my face was showing. I would have to soak in here for longer next time, for I knew dinner would be ready soon. I stepped out much sooner than I wanted, levitated a towel over to me, and rubbed dry, shaking out my mane. “Shall we head to dinner, and see how Shiny Whistle is getting on? I know Apatelodes can be hard to get along with, for a pony. He has a low opinion of most of them.” “Well, we’ll just have to change that. Shiny Whistle seems like the stallion to do so,” I said and stopped in front of the mirror once I left the bathing room. “Think I am getting used to this new body, we are very beautiful.” I grin when Chrys chuckles. “Don’t become vain now,” she teased. “Aren’t we already?” I laugh and head for the door.