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What are you?

Darkness covered the Canterlot Gardens like a thick blanket. The moon was hanging high in the sky, while stars twinkled around it. The moon lit the garden softly; tonight everything was still. Everything except a small blue filly, who was walking by the sleeping roses. She sniffed them and sighed in pleasure. They smelled wonderful, even during the middle of the night. She looked around. Everything was so quiet at night: no guards clanking around, no busy ponies running off to the market, and no long lines of ponies in front of the castle waiting to talk to the Elders.

Her ears pricked to the sound of leaves rustling. She flared her wings and made her horn glow a bright blue towards the sound. “Who’s there?” she hissed.

The rustling stopped. A pony-shaped figure peeked out from the bush. Luna let her wings fall to the side, and lifted her horn at the sky, extinguishing the blue magic. She took a step towards the bush, while the creature took a step back, hiding itself further.

Luna lowered her voice, “It’s okay, I didn’t mean to scare you. I won’t hurt you.”

The unknown creature stood still, then slowly, it emerged from the bush, the moonlight exposing its strange features.

The blue foal gasped at the the creature in front of her. “Who are you? Why do you have holes in your legs? Where are you from? Why are you here? Where is—” The black alicorn took a step back, her green eyes staring widely at the blue filly. Oh no, she had scared the poor thing.

Princess Luna examined the creature. She had wings, but they were bug-like, her horn was crooked, her mane was a strange, tealish color, and her legs were covered in holes. Luna stood up straight and tried to remain calm, just like the Elders had taught her. She cleared her throat. “I’m sorry to have startled you, I just have not seen anything like you before. What are you?”

The young bug-pony took another step back. “I-I’m a changeling.”

Luna cocked her head to the side. “A Changeling.” She let the word roll across her tongue for a moment. “What’s your name?”

“Um, Chrysalis.” The tiny foal stood up straighter. “I am Princess Chrysalis of the changelings.”

The tiny Luna gasped, now completely disregarding formal niceties. “No way! I’m a princess too!” She stood straighter, trying to imitate Chrysalis. “I am Princess Luna of Equestria, Ruler of the night. See? That’s my special talent!” She waved her flank, showing off her splotchy moon cutie mark.

Chrysalis’ eyes widened. “Whoa that’s so pretty!” She looked at her own flank and frowned. “I wish I had one.”

Luna saw the young filly’s frown, thought for a moment, and then smiled. “Well, we have a wizard at the castle, and he says tons of other creatures don’t have cutie marks, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have talent! It just means that their talents are hidden inside of them! I bet you have one that’s super awesome that you don’t even know about yet!”

Chrysalis looked up and smiled. “You think so?”

Luna nodded really fast. “Yeah, definitely! Everypony has a special talent.” She looked at the tiny changeling. “So, why don’t I see changelings around Canterlot?”

Chrysalis sat on the soft grass. “Well, Mama says ponies don’t like things to change, so she says it’s better to live in the forest or go out in disguise, like this.” A bright green light enveloped the young Changeling as her hard, black chitin changed to soft, blue fur, and her small blue crown was replaced with a navy colored tiara.

Luna’s eyes widened, and she poked the copy of herself, the fur dancing on her hoof. “That’s me! You can make yourself look like me!”

Chrysalis blushed at the young fillies excitement. “Yeah, it took a lot of practice, but it’s what every changeling can do.” Another green light appeared, and Chrysalis returned to her true form.

Luna sat down beside the changeling. “I don’t get why you have to hide, though. You seem so nice.”

Chrysalis shrugged and shuffled her hooves. “Um, it probably has to do with our, uh... food.”

Luna cocked her head to the side. “What do you eat?” She gasped. “You’re not a car-ni-vore, are you?!”

Chrysalis shook her hooves furiously. “Oh no, no!”

Luna took a deep breath. “Well, that’s good. You scared me for a moment.” The pony looked at the wide-eyed changeling in front of her. “You know, I won’t freak out.”

“Yes you will.”

Luna folded her forelegs together. “Na-uh.”

Chrysalis sighed. “Okay then. I eat love. Okay?”

“Huh?”

Chrysalis shuffled her hooves. “Mama says ponies aren’t suppose to know, so I guess you don’t even know how it works, do you?

Luna shook her head. “No, could you tell me? I love learning, ‘Tia says I’m going to be the smartest princess ever when I grow up!”

Chrysalis tapped her hoof to her chin and thought about the question. “Well, it’s kind of like when a pony is in love or loves something; we Changelings take a little bit of that love—not enough to where the pony notices and absorb it.”

Luna sat there dumbfounded.

Chrysalis thought for another moment. “Well, it’s kind of like when a towel absorbs water. That’s kind of how a changeling absorbs love.”

Luna nodded. “I think I get it now.”

Chrysalis chuckled at the look on the confused fillies face. “I’m sorry, I wish Mama was here. She is a really good explainer about these things.”

The little blue alicorn nodded and yawned, then she looked up. The moon would have to be lowered soon. “Hey, Chrysalis?”

“Hm?”

“How about we meet again tomorrow? Right here and everything! I’ll bring my sketchbook, and maybe, if we build a big book of changeling info-stuff, we can show it to my sister and then she’d let you and your family come visit in Canterlot!”

Chrysalis beamed and stood up. “You really think so? We could come to Canterlot without hiding?”

Luna stood up and looked towards the darkened castle. “Of course! ‘Tia is my big sister and she’ll listen to me. She always does.”

Chrysalis looked at the blue pony. “Who’s ‘Tia?”

Luna gasped. “You’ve never heard of her?” The tiny changeling shook her head. “Well, she’s my older sister. She lifts the sun in the sky and brings it down. I raise and lower the moon and keep the stars sparkly.”

Chrysalis’ eyes grew wide. “Wow, that’s so cool! So, you two are like the most powerful ponies ever!”

Luna laughed. “Not really. Star Swirl could shoot me to the moon if he wanted!”

Chrysalis hugged the tiny princess. “Well, I hope he’s not that big of a meanie to do that!”

Luna hugged her back. “Oh no. He’s super nice. Maybe you could meet him sometime. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind. He’s not as busy as he says, he just says that because the Elders grow impatient with him sometimes—”

A deep voice rang out through the garden, loud enough to startle both ponies. “Princess Luna? Where are you? Princess Luna?”

The tiny princess began shoving her friend towards a bush, as she hissed under her breath, “Quick, hide! It’s Star Swirl.”

She had completely concealed Chrysalis behind the bush. Chrysalis whispered, “What about you?”

Luna looked out from behind the bush. He was close. “I’ll be fine. He’s super nice, remember?” She looked at Chrysalis and gave her a hug. “We’ll meet here again tomorrow, same time?”

Chrysalis nodded her head. Another call from Star Swirl rang out. It was closer than before.

Luna jumped out from behind the bush and trotted towards the familiar voice. “I’m here, Star Swirl.”

The bearded pony sighed in relief as he saw the young princess approaching. “You must stop wandering off for so long, you know how I worry about you at night.”

Luna began to walk beside him. “I’m sorry, Star Swirl, but I love walking through the garden at night. It is so beautiful.”

The mage chuckled. “I suppose you are right. The beauty of the night is sometimes underlooked, you must remember that, Luna.” The princess nodded, not really sure what he meant, and continued to walk towards the castle. She glanced back at the bush where she had left Chrysalis. She mumbled under her breath, “Goodnight, my friend.”

Chrysalis watched through the leaves as Luna walked away with Star Swirl, and whispered to the slowly disappearing shape of her friend, “Goodnight, Luna."

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