"There she is," came a click as beetles emerged from every direction, plunging us right into darkness. I couldn't see any of them, but I could hear them when they moved or talked. "The two-legged one said the dark colored one would take care of us and keep all the bad things away."
"But she is a bad thing!" came another's click. "She dug up my friend and ate him right up without remorse."
I turned to where I saw Sweet last. "Sweet, they're nervous because you ate their friend."
Sweet sounded sorry. "I didn't mean to scare them. If they want to live with me, I'll do my best to keep them all happy and fed. I know what beetles like to snack on." She tilted her head. "Can you teach me how to talk beetle?"
Trixie's voice emerged from the dark. "Being able to talk to one's food strikes Trixie as unsettling."
I passed Sweet's message on with an addition, "She does eat beetles, but she also likes them a lot. She would be the last predator you ever had to worry about ever again."
"She can stop birds from finding us?"
"And moles?"
"And ponies running us over while they do their stupid ground bothering?"
I nodded towards where I thought the voices were coming from. "You'd live with her, in her house, away from all of those things."
Sweet suddenly giggled. "Aw, aren't you just the most adorable thing." I heard little movements. What were they doing? "Aw, yes, come to momma... I'll take such good care of you. I think you're making it hard for my friends. Can you lighten up a little?" They couldn't understand her, but her gentle talking seemed to be winning her friends.
"She seems nice."
"She looks hungry."
"She's fun to ride!"
A beetle nudged at my leg. "What do you want in return?"
I crouched down closer to its level. "For what?"
"For what? You're giving us a new home. You want something in return, yes?"
Ah, right. "Actually, there is something. We need to find the shadow that's around the area. something dark, like you guys."
The beetle clicked thoughtfully. "Well... The ponies get dark sometimes. When the big yellow thing is highest above, they get together and it's pretty dark."
I looked around but it was still pitch dark. "Mom, you there?"
"Trixie is here. Ick, she thinks a beetle is trying to crawl up her leg. Shoo! You want the other pony. Shoo shoo."
"The spell you were using, was it to detect shadow or darkness."
Trixie made an uncertain sound. "Trixie does not understand the... oh. These beetles are what she found. The shadow has to be around here somewhere."
I clapped my hands. "I think I figured it out with the beetles' help. The ponies are holding the shadow. That's why they were acting so funny, and were pretty confident we wouldn't find anything."
Trixie's horn glowed brighter, managing to pierce the darkness dimly despite looking like she was putting in a mighty effort. "Very astute, familiar. Then let's knock the shadow out of those ponies and return to the city. Trixie has no desire to remain out here in the cold."
Sweet, just barely visible under a small pile of exploring beetles, looked to Trixie. "Not literally, I hope. It's not their fault, is it?"
I waved a hand at the beetle pile. "First thing's first. We should get them away from the farm so they don't get caught up in what we're doing, and we can see." Switching over to clicks, I addressed them, "go on that way." I pointed down the road we had come in along. "Just a little bit, off this farm. We'll fetch you on our way back to the city, promise."
The beetles gave a chorus of agreement, with a few uncertain clicks, worried we'd leave them behind, but they all eventually scuttled off, and the relative light of the night sky returned to us. Trixie's horn became a blindly-bright beacon for a moment. "Oops." She let her magic go out, leaving us in the moon's glow.
Trixie pointed to the farm house. "Do you think we need to approach them together, or perhaps one at a time?"
"From what I was just told, the shadow only comes when they're together, around noon." I crossed my arms. "So that's when we have to make our next move. Defeating the shadow should free them, I hope?"
Sweet smiled at that. "So you won't hurt them? That's good. They're ponies, like us. We shouldn't hurt them if we don't have to. What is noon?"
Trixie glanced at Sweet nervously. "Noon is when the sun is highest in the sky. It's brightest then."
Sweet's smile faltered. "Oh... I'll do my best." She fished out her pink glasses and set them on her snout. "There, ready. How soon is noon? Is it coming now?" She looked around as if night would abruptly transition to mid-day.
I giggled a little at that. "Relax, Sweet. Night has to end first, and it becomes brighter slowly until it's noon, then it gets a little darker as night comes, back and forth. Not suddenly one or the other."
"Oh." Sweet sniffed the air gently. "The beetles are gone, but I still smell them. They must have been living here a long time. Are you going to teach me their language?"
Like Trixie, that felt odd to me. "Are you sure you want to be able to talk to your food?" She nodded quickly. "Well, I'll try? After we're done here."
Sweet gently nudged me with a hoof. "We have to wait for the noon to happen, so we have time now. Besides, they're not just food. I said I'd protect them, and I will. They'll be my friends." She glanced away. "Delicious friends."
Trixie threw up her forehooves. "How is this alright with you?"
Sweet shrank back from Trixie's sudden outburst. "Is it wrong?"
Trixie set a hoof over her face. "Sorry... Trixie is not used to the idea of a pony predator, doubly not when they can speak to the victim. Trixie is having a hard time understanding it. You don't need beetles, and you obviously like them a great deal, so why eat them?"
Sweet shuffled in place, looking thoughtful. "Maybe... Maybe you're right. Before, beetles were our main food. Up here, you have so many different kinds of food." She reached down with her head and snapped up some crystal berries, chewing quietly a moment. "Not as good as beetles, but good."
We retreated off the farm, to the safety of Trixie's tent. Once secured away, Sweet began prodding me to start teaching her. I wasn't even sure exactly how I had learned myself, but I went ahead with the basics. Things like 'hi' and such. Before I could get into more specific and complicated topics, the tent plunged into dark.
Sweet spoke quietly in a click. "Hello."
"Hello!" came an excitable click.
"One of them hid under my hat." Sweet tried clicking at the beetle, but sounded like a mother babbling at a baby more than anything intelligible. Despite that, the beetle seemed pleased and clicked back at her.
Trixie cleared her throat. "Could you tuck your little friend away? Trixie likes being able to see while she goes to bed."
I spoke without thinking, "you prefer night lights?"
"W-what? No! Trixie... be quiet, familiar!" She crashed to the ground.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to poke fun." I reached out for her in the dark and found her flank, giving it a little pat. "A lot of people like night lights."
The darkness abated as Sweet tucked her little friend away back under her hat. "I think he's scared of being away. I can keep them for now, right?"
I didn't see any harm in it and shook my head. "Go ahead, just remember he makes it too dark for us when he's out of cover."
Trixie rolled over onto her back. "She wonders why they do that? Do they eat the light? How did they survive in the dark underground?"
Sweet tried making a few clicks, but it was that innocent babbling.
With a giggle, I tried for her in a series of little clicks and pops, "why do you all glow black and suck all the light away?"
The beetle replied, though muffled by the hat it was under, "I don't know. Being around light makes us feel good and our shells get harder. That's why we live close to the ground now."
Sweet tilted her head, clearly not understanding the reply. "Beetles eat things in the ground, not light. They eat smaller bugs, and we ate them. Um, ate them... I guess I won't anymore." She sounded quite guilty. "Why do I get into so much trouble with eating? I guess I turned into the right kind of monster."
I reached up to tickle under her chin. "You stop that right there. You're not a monster. You'll be the best pony mom these beetles ever had. Sure, they won't have one as awesome as Trixie, but you're almost as good."
Sweet burst into merry laughter at my compliment. "Do you really think so? I'll try. They'll be safe with me, I promise. What did they say, by the way?"
I pointed up at her hat. "They like the light, it makes their shells harder and tougher. Apparently that drew them out from deep underground to get more light."
"Oh..." Sweet frowned a little. "I'll have to make a part of my house get some light for them. I'll just not go in there during the... day, right? I'll check that room during the night, when it's darker."
Trixie nodded sleepily. "You are getting the hang of this quickly, Sweet Tooth. You'll do fine."
Sleep seemed like a good idea and I curled up beside Trixie. She put a leg over me and pulled me close. Her breathing became calm and silence descended over the tent.
The darkness of the beetle returning washed over me, but Trixie didn't complain, so I just relaxed. I could hear Sweet softly clicking at her friend, at least until I fell asleep too.
There would be things to accomplish in the noonday light, and I planned to be well-rested for it.