//------------------------------// // Meeting Twilight Sparkle // Story: A Different Breed of Changeling // by Zoljen //------------------------------// (Day after the Wonderbolt Banquet) Talon burst through the throne room doors and quickly closed them, gasping for breath as he leaned on the doors and stared at all the guards and Luna who looked confused at what had the changeling so panicked. “What is the problem, Talon?” Luna asked calmly. “There is this purple alicorn chasing me! I was walking calmly when I saw her. I said hi, then suddenly heard the sound of something snapping. She suddenly glared at me and charged her -” He was cut off by a loud pop a few feet from where he stood as a purple alicorn stood there, growling at him with her horn already glowing. “Can't run from me changeling!” she growled and fired her magic, making Talon dodge to the left and quickly take to the air. Twilight followed him as she fired off a few more bolts at him, all failing to connect as he picked up speed. “Twilight…” Luna started. “Help me get it, Luna!” she said as she vanished from her spot, reappearing in front of Talon and firing her horn again. He quickly dive bombed the ground to dodge the attack. Upon landing he dashed towards one of the windows, only to stop as she appeared in front of him again. This time when she fired, he vanished from his spot. Twilight quickly looked around with a growl, her eyes stopping on Princess Luna, who had a hoof to her mouth and was chuckling. “Why are you laughing? Help me find it!” “You must be used to having something on your back, eh?” The voice made Twilight's head snap to the left, looking at the changeling currently reclined on her back with a smirk. She growled and teleported again, making him yelp and fall to the ground. He looked up just in time to see her powering another blast right at him. He rolled to the side and stood up, ready to dash but found he couldn't move his limbs. He looked himself over and noticed a purple haze. “Aww shards,” he grumbled as he looked forward, staring into the glare of Twilight Sparkle. “Uh… hi?” He grinned sheepishly as Twilight kept him locked in place, she turned to Luna and looked confused. None of the guards had bothered to move to help her capture this changeling, and Luna was currently laughing. Twilight looked confused. “Uh, Princess Luna?” She took a few steps towards her, dragging the changeling along. “This is the pony we told thou about, Twilight.” She said between chuckles. “We are unsure why thou lost thy disguise.” “Oh, that would be me.” A new voice made Luna and Twilight furrow their brow. As Talon blinked and looked around as best he could. “I was wondering when he’d show up again, and seeing him in that hallway just before Twilight. I couldn't resist!” Discord floated into view above the throne, pointing to the changeling and laughing. Twilight tilted her head, and moved Talon in front of her. “So he’s not evil?” Talon held the best grin he could have and nodded as best he could. “Then… I am so confused.” She let him go. “He, er, dropped in on us one night.” Luna looked to Talon, who was slowly inching away from the young alicorn. “She does not mean thou harm, Talon.” “Just uh, getting some distance from her. She is still pretty angry, and confused. But mostly angry.” He kept inching away. Twilight glanced at him, then back to Discord. “What did you mean when you were wondering when he’d show up?” “Ah, that would be a history lesson for you. Let’s just say I had a momentary prison break a while back. But I choose to return to it because some pony beat me,” he trailed off as Luna glanced up at his grumble, “But anyway!” He vanished, appearing next to Talon, making him squeak and tumble back towards Twilight. “Here he is now! Not lost to the aether like I thought he would be!” “What did you do?” Twilight glared at the god of chaos, ignoring the changeling between them. “Oh, we had a civil chat, a short spar, and I teleported him to Canterlot! It was fun!” “Yeah, Canterlot. About 20 years later!” Talon growled and looked up at Discord. “Bah, details. You're here and that's what matters, right? Least nothing bad happened to you! Seriously, it was either teleport you here, or let you live out the last of your pitiful years trying to get here. At least Ember didn't fail that.” Talons ears shot up and his glare lightened as he looked at Discord. “E… Ember? Where is she?” Discord shrugged, then appeared on the other side of Twilight, leaning on her and looking towards Talon. “She’ll turn up soon. A few chapters I think, depending on the author that is.” He grinned, earning a confused expression from those in the room. Discord sighed, “Only Pinkie Pie understands me. Ah well, tah tah!” He snapped his fingers and vanished from view. “Well, that was random.” Twilight said, before looking at Talon. She hummed and looked him over. “You know… you are pretty unique.” Her horn started to glow as Talon suddenly yelped and was forced to turn to face her. He blinked and looked panicked again as he was lifted off the ground and held out in front of Twilight. She grinned as she studied him, making him spread his wings. “Uh, Twilight?” She seemed lost in her own world as she looked him over. “Huh, chitin like a normal changeling, but scales at the joints. Those wings appear draconic too.” “Twilight?” Twilight turned him again and looked over his tail, “Long tail too, not horse-like either.” “Twilight!” he yelped as she lifted it some to get a better look at it. “Even has holes too.” She blinked as he was suddenly gone from her view, her horn stopped glowing as she looked around. “Where did he go?” Her eyes stopped by the throne, where Talon sat, gasping for breath. “Oh, uh, sorry.” She grinned sheepishly as she trotted up. “How did you escape my grasp though?” “I teleported,” he wheezed. “Didn't think I could *gasp* get this far though.” Twilight tilted her head, looking confused. “Teleported? But I thought changelings didn't have enough magic to do that.” “Not normally.” He finally regained his breath and sat up straighter. “I’d love to tell you about it, but I'm sure I’d bore you.” “Nonsense! I'm always willing to learn!” She grinned widely. “I even like to read when I can!” She put a hoof to her chest proudly. Talon raised an eyebrow. “Huh, didn't figure you for a bookworm.” “Why not?” She slumped. “Because you're an alicorn?” “Oh pish-posh.” Twilight waved a hoof. “You can give me wings, but you can't take away my love for reading!” “Hmm, so you’d be the one to ask on a book of spells for me?” It was Twilight’s turn to raise an eyebrow. “Why would you want that?” “If you want to buy me lunch, I’d be happy to tell you everything.” “Sure, we can get the cooks here to make you something, and you tell me everything.” She leaned close to the changeling, “And I mean, everything about you.” Talon just gulped as the young alicorn stared him down like a beast hungry for it's meal. “So, let me get this right.” Twilight looked into her note book. “You're from an extinct hive in the drake empire, a soldier, skilled with fighting and magic. You’re able to teleport short distances, and to top it off, you can breathe fire?” They were both outside, sitting at a table on a balcony attached to Twilight's personal room at the castle. Talon, currently a unicorn, looked at Twilight and nodded. “Yup, you take extensive notes.” She grinned and blushed slightly. “It helps to have all the facts. I do wonder what you would have done during the wedding.” “Probably challenge that queen to a fight. Ruining our image hurts more than just her.” Talon shrugged and took another sip of his tea. “Yes it does. But you know, I still don't believe you can breath fire. It doesn't make any sense why you could!” Talon smirked and inhaled slightly, just to exhale and let out a small puff of fire. Twilight just stared wide eyed at him. “Okay, that was cool. But again, that doesn't make any sense.” “I try not to question the little things.” He grinned, then blinked and turned towards the door, as about three seconds later there was a knock. He winced slightly and looked back at her. “Oh, right, my friends. I completely forgot about them.” She grinned. “Would you like to meet them?” “Uh, I’ll pass actually. I should get going, anyway.” He stood, gave a short bow and moved to the edge of the balcony. “Some other time perhaps.” “Wait! What about your wings? As a unicorn you…” Twilight trailed off as Talons horn glowed, his wings unfurling from his back in a matching glow as he lept off the edge. “...Can so totally cheat.” She finished.  He quickly flew off, as Twilight glanced back to her friends. “Who were you talkin to, Twi’?” An orange earth pony mare asked as four more followed her to the balcony. Twilight grinned sheepishly as she rubbed the back of her head. “Just a new friend, that's all. He’s a talented...unicorn, yeah.” “I’ll say,” The blue mare with a rainbow mane and tail spoke as she squinted and looked off to where he flew. “Looks like an alicorn. Though those wings seem a bit off.” “He just uses magic to conjure wings. Like I did for Rarity so long ago!” “Was he nice at least?” the buttercream colored mare with a light pink mane quietly asked. “Yes, actually.” Twilight looked back out to see Talon was just a tiny speck by now. “I bet he’s from some extinct tribe and was poofed forward like a decade or two by someone we know, and that he isn't what he appears and is actually really nice and cool and awesome!” The pink mare just grinned widely. Twilight just blinked and everyone just stared at her. “What? I read the scri… Wait, this author doesn't have one of those.” “No one else is freaked out by that?” asked a black stallion with a silver mohawk mane as he trotted up beside the orange mare. “Nope, it's Pinkie Pie. I think we’re all used to that by now,” Twilight chuckled.