• Published 31st Jul 2013
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The Advent of Applejack - Mister Friendly



Applejack has yet to truly know what it means to be a changeling...

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Chapter 26: The Paths We Walk

A soft summer dawn broke over the thatched roofs of Ponyville. Under a sky dyed pink and yellow, doors cracked open, and ponies cautiously emerged from their homes. The looked up, down, all around, reflexively scanning for the source of the cataclysmic rumbling and booming.

Cloudkicker was among the first wave, and she stepped through her door expecting to find the world in ruin. Which was why she was carrying a cast iron skillet, the closest thing to a weapon in her house. She scanned about for the closest monster in need of a good whap across the face.

Instead, she was greeted by a rather nice day; the air was cool, the breeze mild and bracing. And all the houses around her still stood, none the worse for wear. She twitched her nose, but the only thing she detected on the wind was the scent of drew-laden grass and wet dirt.

There was something in the air, though. Not a smell, but a strange feeling Cloudkicker couldn't place. The morning felt a little too calm, a little too picturesque, considering the harrowing night they’d been through.

Cloudkicker couldn't place it, yet somehow she knew: something momentous had happened last night, something incredible. The same feeling had gripped her the night Twilight Sparkle inexplicably sprouted wings; a feeling of knowing without actually knowing.

She had no idea what it could be, standing on her doorstep, watching the gold and pink rays of morning crest over the rooftops across from her. Ponies up and down the street emerged with similar looks on their faces, undoubtedly sensing the same inexplicable nuance Cloudkicker had.

Something brushed against her side, and she turned to find Bumblebee standing beside her in the doorway.

She’d bounced back from the previous night quite remarkably, in a way only a changeling could. Just a few hours ago, she could barely lift a hoof. Now, her luminescent eyes were sharp, her ears perked up and aimed forward. She was alert and scanning for… something. Perhaps the same something they all were feeling.

She was still a little wobbly, but something was compelling her to action. Cloudkicker could see it.

Bumblebee turned to her and met her gaze. They didn’t say anything - neither could think of anything that needed to be said. But somehow, Cloudkicker understood.

She bumped her nose against the changeling’s and smiled. It was the only way she could show she understood. Well… not really, yet she did. It was a complicated feeling roiling about in her heart.

Bumblebee blinked, then smiled. Then, her wings spread, were brought to a droning buzz, and she took off. Cloudkicker watcher her go until she’d disappeared over the rooftops, and was gone.

The sky was not quite as picturesque after that.

“Hey! Hey guys! Come look at this!”

Cloudkicker jolted, then turned. Further down the road, a stallion was waving a hoof at the crowd that had started to form in the street. He was gesticulating at some point around the corner of the last house on the block, where the cityscape fell away to an open grassland.

Curious mutterings broke out. Ponies started to flock in that direction, wondering - and dreading a little - what the commotion was about.

Cloudkicker paused, glanced at the rooftops, then followed while ignoring the strange weight in her chest. What was going on?

~~***~~

Again, Cloudkicker found herself bracing for a scene of total annihilation.

She didn't know what to expect, having heard the distant booms and flashes of light the previous night. Some around her undoubtedly thought they’d emerge to find their homes the only ones left standing in a war torn wasteland.

Yet the countryside they were directed to seemed just as pristine as before, confusing many. Hills of green sprawled out in every direction in front of them, rising higher in the distance. Trees sighed and swayed in a morning breeze. Grass danced in waves. Tree houses ambled in packs.

Something about that last thought didn't sound right to the collective residents of Ponyville.

But as the spectacle went on, and as more ponies blinked harder and harder to banish the lingering dreams they must be seeing, more ponies found themselves watching the same bizarre spectacle taking place just outside of town that, astonishingly, was not a dream.

Living homes were ambling slowly across open fields on many squat legs, giving the town a generous berth. Given the sheer size of them, and the way the ground noticeably shook with their lumbering strides, it probably wouldn’t take much for one of those things to knock a building down by accident.

The houses appeared to be made of trees and brush, or more accurately, like trees and brush cultivated in the shape of buildings, not counting windows and doors or other such fixtures, of course. The houses were moving along on an array of roots of varying sizes that crawled forward purposefully, but carefully, as if afraid of trampling someone. Some improvised feet were thick and sturdy and left divots where they dug into the earth. Others were barely bigger than twigs, and shuddered under the considerable weight they were supporting, or milled uselessly without finding purchase.

As ponies watched the improbable herd migrating by, they soon noticed shapes moving among the tree houses.

Immediately it became obvious that those shapes belonged to changelings. The townsfolk had seen enough of them by now to recognize their flitting movements and bright blue eyes peeking out from cover.

Drones were herding the congregation of some thirty or more houses, the onlookers realized. Some darted in front and around each waddling, creaking structure, making squeaking cries to some unseen operator inside. Every once in awhile, a relayed squeal would come from an open window; a response of some kind that the onlookers did not understand.

Once, a spotter let out a quick, high pitched bleat. The house he was guiding immediately stumbled to a stop, leaning forward precariously before rocking back again. After a series of high pitched calls, the tree house lumbered awkwardly to one side and skirted around some unseen obstacle - a boulder, perhaps, hidden by the tall grass.

On the edge of the field, ponies watched transfixed with a mix of curiosity and mild apprehension, as was the custom with unfamiliar spectacles. In their midst, a young sky blue filly started pawing at the side of her father to get his attention.

“Daddy? Daddy, where are they going?” she asked, watching the houses march passed.

“I don't know, honeybunch,” her father responded, frowning.

“Are they leaving?” the filly said, voice rising nervously.

“I don't think so,” said Cloudkicker, speaking for the first time in what felt like ages.

Everypony turned to look at her, then realized she was looking away from them, towards the horizon. She raised a hoof and pointed to something rising from over the nearby hills.

And there, rising high into the air, was an improbably spindly spire of brilliant crystal. Its summit - a geometrically impossible pyramid resting amid petal-like plates and spires of crystal perched atop an alarmingly thin, crooked shaft - shined in the dawn light, and seemed to make the air around it shine, as well.

The crowd stared at the all new curiosity, only barely paying attention to the other curiosity taking place right beside them. The silence in the group was only broken when Cloudkicker spoke again.

“They’re going home.”

~~***~~

Princess Celestia stood quiet and inscrutable on a balcony atop city hall. The vantage point allowed her a view over the rooftops of Ponyville, though the object of her attention hardly needed it.

She gazed pensively at the crystal spire now rising on the horizon. The rising sun’s rays hit its many facets, making the sky sparkle like it, too. Her thoughts her own, she stood in silence, scrutinizing the latest change to her beloved country.

A faint sound behind her made her ear swivel around, though her eyes stayed forward. She had a fair enough idea who it was.

Sure enough, her sister spoke from behind as she trotted towards her. “The Guard has finished their sweep,” she said. “They will be returning to Canterlot within the hour.”

“Mmm,” Celestia said distractedly.

Luna eyed here, but continued. She pulled to a stop beside her sister, and followed her gaze. “Furthermore, I took the liberty of raising the quarantine on the changeling district,” she said. “Captain Steel Shod has not made any public announcements since last night. I suspect he is still too much in shock. It may be best to begin procedures to find a replacement.”

“Mmm.”

Luna glanced at her sister, a mildly annoyed look flashing across her freatures. “And I must report that I am with foal,” she said evenly.

Celestia whipped her head around. “Really?”

Without changing expression, Luna turned to stare at the sunrise on the horizon. “At least your selective hearing still works.”

Celestia sighed. “I am sorry, sister. There has been much on my mind of late.” she turned, and gazed at the spire again.

For a time, they were quiet, each watching the tower of crystal as if expecting it to jump to life and start rampaging across the countryside.

“You feel it, too, do you not?” Celestia asked quietly, though they were alone.

“I do,” Luna said with a nod. “It is something I have never felt before.”

Celestia nodded, as well. “In all of our journeys, in all of our adventures before coming to this land, I thought we had experienced every form of magic this world had to offer. I admit, I was very naive back then, but even so. Magic may come in infinite forms, but it always seems to boil down to the same principles that were not as flexible. But this magic… This is something… different.”

She sighed, her eyes dropping thoughtfully. A bemused smile flickered. “Just when I believe I’ve solve the changeling mystery, something else comes along to ruin all of my hypotheses. What a bothersome bunch they turned out to be.”

Luna glanced at her, then looked back towards the sky. “A magic that has not truly existed for ten thousand years… And now it is in the hooves of a simple farmer without the faintest inkling of what to do with it. Truly fate has a cruel sense of humor.”

Luna turned towards her sister again, and gave her a searching look. “And what do you suppose Applejack will do now? She is one of a kind, alone in the world with what she’s become. The Court will fear that. They will try to snuff it out. You and I both know this incident was just a skirmish compared to what will come if they are desperate.”

Celestia nodded, her grin fading. “Yes, I am aware. And I am sure so is Applejack. What she does next could decide much and more for all of us. It is… quite the burden. Especially for, as you said, a simple farmer.”

She turned back towards the sky, her expression becoming mercurial again. “What happens next is up to her.”

~~***~~

The first thing Applejack became aware of was a soft, rhythmic thumping. She was warm, and supremely comfortable. It almost felt like a crime to wake from such relaxation, but wake she did, bit by bit.

And bit by bit, she became aware of her surroundings.

She heard the soft ticking of a clock. She felt the familiar lumps in a familiar bed. She smelled the familiar notes of dust, cinnamon, and apples. She was home, safe and sound.

Something shifted around her. A voice mumbled peacefully, and then her bedding snuggled her closer.

Applejack cracked open one eye. A rainbow spectrum of colors blinded her. She found herself in a tangle of limbs, all neatly slotted together like matching puzzle pieces.

Rainbow Dash slept, halfway next to her, halfway on her. she'd worked her hooves around Applejack in the night, and now held her as securely as a teddy bear. A wing was draped protectively over her, wrapping her in a warm, downy embrace. Applejack blinked, slowly. She couldn't remember ever being this close to Rainbow before. she could see her chest rising and falling… Rising and falling…

She was so close that she could see several scars from her many crash landings. The one by the tip of Applejack's nose was crescent-shaped, and virtually invisible under Rainbow's fuzzy coat of fur.

Applejack blinked again. Was she awake? Or still dreaming? It had been a most wonderful dream…

Her eyelids grew heavy. she yawned, then put her head down, in between Rainbow's hooves, where it was warmer. she pressed her forehead to her chest, and felt herself slowly drift off, lulled by the rhythm of Rainbow's reassuring heartbeat.

Almost immediately, however, Applejack was roused again, this time by a sudden jostle.

She blinked, bleary-eyed, and looked up.

she found herself looking up into a familiar face framed by a rainbow mane. A face that had turned beat red.

“Rainbow?” Applejack croaked.

Rainbow jumped like she had been shot at. And in the next instant, Applejack found herself on the floor, tangled in her blankets, a pegasus-shaped contrail leading out the window and towards the distant horizon.

In her wake, she left a very confused and disoriented apple farmer on the bedroom floor.

"The hay was that for?” she grunted as she righted herself, looked down, and noticed the long, ebony legs protruding out from underneath her.

Her legs.

~~***~~

Applejack blinked at herself. She’d been doing that for some time, and each time felt like, maybe this time, the dream would dissipate. She’d wake up, and things would be exactly as they had been before. It would be just another morning on the farm, her chores waiting impatiently while she cleaned up for the day. Her life, the one she felt she hadn’t experienced in years.

But the strange yet beautiful face in the bathroom mirror did not change. In many ways it was familiar, but in many others it was not. She kept finding herself daydreaming, then suddenly noticing the face in the mirror and snapping back to reality, over and over.

The black chitin was familiar, though… different. Smoother, maybe, softer-looking. Maybe it didn’t have some kind of loathsome sheen she’d never noticed before, or making the black quality of it looked richer somehow, more… healthy? Something along those lines, but whatever it was she couldn’t identify it with simple words.

And there was something in the face that haunted her. It would take a day or two before it struck Applejack that in the strangeness of the features, she could see a ghost of something familiar - a ghost of her mother. There was no concrete aspect that she could point to, but now whenever she looked into the mirror, it always was accompanied by thoughts of Carnation.

The amber eyes were familiar, save for the normal, round pupils that now sat where narrow slits had been. The eyes, once haunting and unsettling even to her, looked… strange. Brighter, perhaps. More expressive, though that could have been because they weren’t quite as alien as before. And now those eyes were looking at her with a strangely speculative, shy look. Guarded, cautious.

She no longer had fangs, and the lack of contact of tooth-on-lower-lip while in this form was something strange to miss. She kept finding herself moving her lips and mouth, trying to find a familiar sensation that wasn’t there anymore. Once, when she was younger, one of her fangs had slipped behind her lip when she closed her mouth, and the sharp edge had gouged her gums. Ever since then, the lack of them against her lip made her anxious.

At least her mane had stopping glowing like molten metal and wafting in an ethereal wind. That had been alarming for a great many reasons. But now it laid motionless and glow-less, like always. Whatever power had erupted inside her had cooled, settled, like lava turning to inert stone. It was still there, buried deep down; when she stopped, closed her eyes and concentrated, Applejack just thought she caught a tickling sensation of something that hadn’t been there before, a nuclei of simmering magma not yet cooled, waiting to wake the volcano inside her.

Her hair brush worked it's way through the strands, tugging lightly as she straightened her mane. It still shined, but not in an otherworldly sense; It was so glossy and beautiful now that anything she did to it now seemed far beneath the standards it deserved. It was longer than she was used to, but then again so were the hooves she was using to brush it. It all equalled out, but the change in scale also did not go unnoticed. The chair she sat in felt like it’d been borrowed for a foal’s plastic playset. The vanity mirror she studied herself in looked almost comically undersized, and the brush she was using felt miniscule. Her hooves felt stretched and cumbersome, her neck just as much so.

Applejack paused mid-stroke. She glanced at her hooves, now without holes riddling them. Everything seemed so… different. The story of her life, perhaps; a tale of peculiarity trying desperately to masquerade as normal. This time she had an aspect of peculiarity she could see, at least.

But this time… this time it didn't feel like something bad or wrong. It felt… she wasn't sure. But the apprehension hadn't crept up on her like she’d expected. This was something new. Something… new. That was the only way she could wrap her head around it. She didn’t find herself repelled by her new features like she had been by her former self for most of her life, but a part of her dreaded if that was because the novelty hadn’t worn off yet. Sooner or later, the old familiar feelings would come back, maybe stronger than ever, once it sank in that this was her, now. Some part of her felt certain of it, so certain she couldn’t help but mentally gird herself against this phantom possibility.

There was so much to think about, so much to evaluate. And Applejack sure was getting tired of thinking. She’d been thinking so much by now that her head felt like a chewed up wad of gum; flavorless, rubbery and unpleasant.

She nodded minutely to herself, then put the brush down. She closed her eyes, and with a brilliant green flash, a gust of warm air washed over her. She opened her eyes, and a familiar orange face looked back at her. This one was unchanged, much to her relief.

She smiled at the face in the mirror, and it quirked half a grin back at her. She tried not to dwell on that as she tied her mane, reached for her hat… and patted an empty spot on the counter.

Right. It was gone. Broken to pieces on the summit of that crystal… thing. She’d have to get a new one. The cache of Stetsons she’d kept stockpiled in case of accidental hat incineration was still upstairs in her closet, collecting dust and cobwebs and all but forgotten after being neglected for so many months. She’d have to grab one before heading out. Something tugged at her heart, but she ignored it.

A knock on the door distracted her.

“Sis? Ya alright in there?”

Applejack broke into a smile despite herself. She hadn’t even intended to - it just flashed out instinctively, though no one could see it. “Sure am, Apple Bloom. Just… workin’ through some stuff. Got a lot ta adjust to.”

There was quiet on the other side of the door for a moment, “Well, alright. If ya say so.”

Another pause.

“Um, Applejack?”

“Yes?”

“Um… Yer a queen now, right? Does… does that mean yer goin’ ta leave the farm?”

The tug in Applejack’s heart was back. This time, she couldn't push it aside as readily. She looked back at the mirror, at the familiar face that looked back at her for answers as well. But her brain felt as chewed and rubbery as ever.

“... Go downstairs, Apple Bloom. There’s somethin’ Ah gotta talk to y’all about.”

“Okay,” mumbled the voice on the other side of the door. Applejack listened to the retreating patter of hooves, and once they were gone, she turned back to the mirror.

The face looking back at her had not changed. That questioning look remained. But something different was in it now. It wasn't filled with uncertainty, only apprehension. The look was a question in itself: was she ready for what came next?

And if she was honest, she wasn't sure, but she had to be anyway. Story of her life, indeed.

~~***~~

There was something reassuring and altogether surreal about stepping off the landing and finding herself thrown back into the regular hustle and bustle of home. It felt like she was stepping into a forgotten life, or some half remembered dream that filled her with nostalgia.

As usual, at that time of day all the action was in the kitchen. Big Mac was busy setting the table, aided by Apple Bloom eagerly setting the silverware. Granny Smith tended the stove, probably because Big Mac had been unable to convince her to sit, instead. Then again, Nopony made apple cinnamon pancakes like Granny Smith, and nopony told Granny Smith when she could and couldn’t make them. Applejack smiled warmly at the scene. It felt like ages since she’d seen it, like she’d been gone far, far away, trapped in some kind of visceral nightmare. Had the horrors of the past few days been a bad dream?

Through the window over Granny Smith’s head, a glimmer caught Applejack’s eye. There, in the distance, a towering spire glowed in the rising sun. Even with Ponyville between her and the spire, it was unmistakable.

The smile slipped from Applejack’s face. The illusion broke. She was back in reality again.

“Everythin’ okay, sugarcube?”

The wizened voice of the Apple matriarch snapped Applejack back to reality. She found Granny Smith eying her. The old mare was smiling, but there was something… cautious in her eye. Despite her age and bouts of battiness, something in that look gave Applejack the impression that Granny Smith could see straight through her, and she knew what was coming.

Big Mac had stopped setting the table. He looked up, face mute as ever, yet questioning. Apple Bloom peered over the table, a look of concern in her eyes.

Applejack sighed internally. Then, she offered a small smile. “Everypony, would ya mind takin’ a seat? There’s… somethin’ Ah want ta talk to y'all about.”

~~***~~

The warm morning wind whistled in Rainbow’s ears. She barrel rolled over a cloud, turning it into a corkscrew as she went. But she was only really going through the motions.

Rainbow’s body still ached with a dull, stiff pain from all of her recent flying. She had to have set some kind of record - from Ponyville to the Crystal Empire and back in a day! Beat that Wind Rider! - But of course nopony would believe her. That wouldn’t stop her from bragging, though.

What she was really trying to do, however, was not think about anything. The moment she did, she recalled the image she had woken up to; Applejack's face and muzzle, millimeters from her. All the blood had rushed to her head... and suddenly she was racing across the wild blue yonder.

Stupid, stupid… Applejack must think she was such a weirdo. But the moment she saw her, everything started moving at once.

Rainbow shook her head. Applejack was the same old Applejack. So why did just looking her in the face turn her into such a dummy?

Stupid, stupid...

For the moment, she was content to feel the wind parting over her lithe shape, like a blade through warm butter. The wind in her ears sounded so much like a distant cheer from a stadium. Then she’d catch a bump of turbulence, it would fade, and she’d be left with only an empty howling.

Some subconscious part of Rainbow’s brain knew where she was going. It followed the dictation from the tugging in her chest - not a near-physical pull now, but more like a… longing of some sort. Like the needle on a compass, pointing her to the center of her universe.

The sky felt warm, the winds calm and smooth. In the distance, Sweet Apple acres spread out like an unfolding blanket, materializing through a bank of wispy clouds.

The danger was gone. The urgency, passed. Rainbow felt no need to really lay on the speed. And now that she was done acting like an idiot, she felt no need to daudle.

Then, as she started to dump air from under her wings and gradually arc towards the ground, the glimmer of a distant crystal spire shined right in her eye. She winced, then glanced towards it. And as she did, an idea occurred to her.

A brief image flew through her mind - a shattered crown, transforming then into an image of Applejack holding a Teston in her hooves, anxious, thoughtful.

Without much more thought, she set her jaw, and banked towards her new, glittering destination.

~~***~~

The sun had risen high enough now to bathe all the land in a warm summer’s glow. Applejack shielded her eyes with her hat - one of many spares she’d kept stashed away over the years, in case she incinerated one by accident. It jutted uncomfortably into one of her temples, but she knew from a lifetime of experience that it only needed to be broken in first.

Grass as tall as her knees flowed and waved in waves of wind, sighs of a breeze coming and going as it reached and passed her, again and again. It was like she was wading through an ocean of green, the smell of wildflowers replacing the brine of the sea.

She was climbing a shallow hill. Behind her, over another hill, she could just make out Sweet Apple Acres, its shape known only because she knew what to look for. Eventually she reached the top, and came upon a lone apple tree - long since rendered barren. Its bark was warped and cracked from disease. Some of its branches were bare skeletons while most still were filled with healthy green leaves. It was an old tree, one of the oldest around, usually forgotten and left alone far from the orchards. Someday, perhaps when the next big windstorm hit, it would split right down the middle, and be no more. Yet here it stood, stubborn as a mule, even as death slowly took hold a twig at a time.

Applejack crested the hill, and found herself gazing down upon Ponyville’s sprawling vista. It was unchanged, pristine, despite its many tribulations and trials. Despite everything that had happened, the little town carried on much the same as it always had, unfazed by the machinations of others. The resilience of such a humble town was truly remarkable.

And not just this recent calamity, which had upheaved several homes on the city’s outskirts and very nearly spread a pall of hate across everything she could see now. When her friends had had their cutie marks swapped and processed to wreak havoc across town. When Discord had seemingly turned the world into a realm of madness. When Nightmare Moon had snuffed the sun and very nearly brought ruin to everything. Time and time and time again, Ponyville simply brushed off its shoulders and got back up.

Applejack couldn’t help but smile at it. Despite everything, it was still the same place she’d known her whole life. She wondered if this was what her Mama had seen, maybe under this very tree, when she’d staggered up from the south. Was it this resilience that she’d seen? This indomitable spirit that, no matter how many times darkness invaded it, always found a reason to rise again, unbowed, and throw open hooves and hearts to welcome, even cherish, everything and everyone that asked for a chance.

She wondered if, had Carnation been standing beside her right now, were these the things she’d point out? Would she smile fondly, a mother cherishing the site of her children, and at last tell her, “This is what I found, Applejack.”

The wind in the grass sighed louder than before. A gust rushed up the planes, and crashed over her. She felt it catch the hat on her head, and suddenly it was gone.

Applejack turned, and watched the Stetson sail away, born on the wind. She turned to give chase… when she caught sight of somepony standing behind her.

Where the changeling had come from, she would never know, though that was hardly unusual. But to find a drone standing there quietly at that precise point in time took her aback.

The drone, she could tell, was old. His chitin was pockmarked in places, and bore distinct dark wrinkles under his heads, like tarry canyons. It hung loosely around his neck in what could be construed as jowls. His mane was short and shot through with white. He looked tired, like he hadn’t slept in days.

Yet he still offered a small smile, a gesture designed seemingly only to placate Applejack. “Morning,” he said, his voice gruff. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it? A lifetime, I’d wager.”

Applejack paused, not sure what to say. Rather than be offended, the drone sidled up towards her, and took a place under the tree with her.

“Do Ah know ya?” Applejack inquired, raising an eyebrow.

The featureless blue of the changeling’s eye shifted, and she could tell he was looking at her. “I be surprised if you did,” he said, and there was a strange undercurrent of amusement in his voice.

Applejack’s eyebrow raised higher, but the drone’s eyes shifted away from her. He turned to gaze down at Ponyville, his expression composed. “Beautiful, isn’t it?” he said. “Despite being the epicenter for the war between you and the Council, Ponyville still stands unfazed, both in body and spirit. Truly remarkable. Either that or the lot of them are stupid beyond comprehension. I haven't decided which it might be.”

“What are you-” Applejack started to say, then cut herself off. Her eyes grew huge as a sudden realization hit her.

She didn’t know why the name suddenly popped into her head, or what had brought it on. It hadn’t occupied her thoughts at all for a long time, not even a shadow of it. And yet, hearing him echo the thoughts bouncing around in her head, seeing the deep age lines around his eyes and muzzle, hearing the words he’d said in greeting, it popped up as if summoned.

“Yer that Spymaster fella, ain’t ya?” Applejack asked, her voice quiet.

The changeling sniffed. “Titles are stuffy,” he grunted, then turned to look at her. “Call me Trochanter, please.”

Applejack blinked, completely taken aback. Trochanter seemed to notice, though he kept his bemusement down to a twinkle in his eye.

“Quite the eventful past couple of days you’ve had, huh?” he said, and the amusement was back in the timbre of his voice. Like he knew a funny little secret but wasn’t going to share it. “Had your life turned upside down -again- and got to save Equestria while you were at it. All in a day’s work for Carnation’s kid, I’d wager.”

He must have seen the million questions in Applejack’s eyes, because he chuckled under his breath. “You didn’t disappoint, either,” he said. “Untested as you are, I’d say you passed this trial with flying colors.”

“Trial?” Applejack repeated dumbly.

He nodded. “Yes, a trial. What else would you call what happened? A trial of character, of willpower... the list goes on. It’s tradition for the mother to test the daughter when she comes of age, to prove she is ready to take up the throne. And your mother was always big on traditions. But she's not here, so I figured I'd be the judge, instead.

Applejack raised an eyebrow, but Trochanter ignored it.

"I wanted to see what you were capable of, myself, and so I intentionally kept my distance and let Carnation’s test unfold.” He glanced at her meaningfully. “You wouldn’t have wanted the mystery spoiled for you, would you?” he asked.

Applejack’s eye got wider. “Ya knew what was happening to me?” she asked.

“Knew? No, not really. Few drones would,” Trochanter said back. “The inner workings of queens are known only to queens themselves. None have ever been deemed worthy, otherwise. So it helps that I have never known a queen’s presence; got no sense of their holier-than-thou personas. So I have no problems sifting through old books if it pleases me.”

Seeing the look he was getting, Trochanter glanced towards Ponyville. His eyes traced the many streets and the denizens meandering about them. “I’m sure you have many questions for me. Too many, I’m afraid. First, allow me to apologize.”

Applejack blinked. “Fer what?”

Trochanter’s expression hardened slightly. “Had I known Phantasma’s minions were getting involved, I would have intervened before things escalated as much as they did. This was supposed to be your first test - I wished to see how worthy you were of Carnation’s legacy. But I took too far of a step back, and naturally, they exploited it. I should have seen it coming...”

He sighed. “I had always suspected the remnants of Phantasma’s hive would try to do something to exact revenge against you, sooner or later. In much the same way that your followers resent and fear Phantasma, what’s left of her hive has come to despise you. Can't really blame them - your mother took their queen from them. By now I shouldn’t have to explain how devoted changelings can be to their queens, no matter how monstrous they turn out to be.”

Applejack frowned. “Let me get this straight. Y’all woulda let Equestria be destroyed, just to test me?”

Trochanter was unfazed. “Since when as a little catastrophe fazed you or your friends?” he asked. “I was confident you’d pull through, just like always. The only real question was what you’d do.”

Trochanter turned to face her. “It was never a question of if you would succeed and overcome the changeling curse. Your mother was very careful with her plan - you’d think she’d been anticipating it all along, having to sacrifice herself and leave you behind. I admit, I doubted her, just like all the queens down south. But it all came together just like she’d said it would.”

He abruptly lit his horn, and with a puff of sulfurous fire, two golden bits landed in front of Applejack.

“Uh, what’s this for?” she asked, but he just shook his head, as if to say “you wouldn't understand”, and laughed under under his breath.

“It was a question of how you would react,” he went on, ignoring her flummoxed look. “Would you turn and run, when you found out the fate of all queens, and try to spare your subjects from the monster you'd become? Would you stand and fight and overlook the solution standing right beside you the whole time? Personally, my bits were on that one.”

Applejack’s frown deepened. “Ya make it sound like it weren’t no thing,” she grumbled. “Why didn’t Mama leave more clues? All of this coulda been avoided if she’d just made things clear.”

Trochanter’s expression didn’t change. “You see, when she’d regained her heart, she become one of the most insufferably optimistic creatures I have ever met. Including Princess Celestia, and that mare could find a silver lining in the world blowing up.”

He turned to look down at Ponyville again, and in so doing he drew Applejack’s gaze towards it, as well.

“Carnation believed in the hearts of ponies,” he explained. “Their boundless capacity for forgiveness, for acceptance… She wagered the future of her entire race on that. She wagered your future on it. So strong was her faith in their kind that she gladly sacrificed her very life to ensure they survived just the way they are now. She placed you in the care of ponies, not your own kind, because she knew they would guide you better than any of us could. And she knew - she knew, without a shadow of a doubt - that when the time came, it would be a pony that pulled you back from the darkness haunting us. And she knew that pony would find you, one way or another. Like I said; insufferably optimistic.”

Trochanter turned, catching Applejack’s attention again. Her heart was starting to thump in her chest, though she didn’t know why. She felt like she was being accused of something embarrassing.

“Honestly,” Trochanter said, “I thought she was a fool. Over the years, I never detected any attempt by you to figure out who or what you were, and you better believe I had my ear to the ground all these years.. I couldn't even be positive you were still alive. If Vigil hadn't shown up, I wonder where we would be right now. And you accuse me of being reckless...

“Carnation had so much faith that you would find the one that would save you yourself that she felt no need to offer guidance, at least that is what I imagine. In fact, to do so ran the risk of tipping off your enemies, should they find the clues before you. And after what happened last night, I think you now know that it’s not just the Court that you need to be afraid of.”

He then sighed. “Perhaps she always believed Hyacinth would be there to protect you. But it seems you found your way into a group of perfectly capable mares, yourself. Resourceful bunch, they are.”

Applejack scowled even worse. “That’s… well that sounds dang reckless,” she grumbled. "All of this coulda been avoided if she just told me... or, left somethin'..."

Trochanter belted out a laugh so suddenly it made Applejack jump. “I told her as much, myself. But she never could be swayed, not when she’d made up her mind. You take after her in that way a little too well, I think.”

Applejack turned to face him. Though her heart felt fit to jump out of her throat, she swallowed, and spoke again. “You knew her,” she stated.

This was not a sudden revelation, but rather one that she’d had to work up the courage to confront. Certainly one could draw that conclusion just by hearing him talk.

Trochanter nodded, slowly, guardedly. “I did,” he did, choosing his words carefully now. He was gauging her, wondering where this was going.

Applejack started to ask something. She’d almost let the words slip passed her lips… but swallowed them at the last minute. She wasn’t sure she could handle what Trochanter would say.

Something in the old drone’s expression changed. A knowing look flashed through his eyes.

“She was strong,” he said. His words made Applejack jump and her breath catch. “And she loved you very, very much. To her, you were her entire world, before and after her heart came back to her. Without you, she never would have become the incredible mare she turned out to be. Never forget that.”

Applejack stared, eyes wide. Then, a brittle smile spread across her face, her expression screwing up. “...Thank ya.”

Trochanter smiled politely, then turned to face Ponyville again. “Carnation gave her life to give you the chance to rise above all others. To finally show us the way back into the light. And I am happy to say, you have done just that. At least, your hooves are on the path now. And it is all thanks to the resilience and compassion of those ponies down there.”

He glanced to the side, catching Applejack’s eye. “So that leaves a very important question: what will you do now?”

The wind rushed over the hill. The fur on her coat rustled. Her mane danced in the frantic waves of air. The ancient, disease-ridden tree creaked and rustled in the breeze.

When it passed, Applejack’s expression had changed.

“Ah think we both know,” she said.

Trochanted nodded. “Yes, I think I do,” he said. His expression was expertly unreadable, but Applejack just thought she caught a glimmer of approval in those tired old eyes. “Then, I will only say this, young lady. You are one of a kind. Unique. But that only means your path is one you are free to choose. Carnation’s plans for you end here. The rest is for you to decide. I know how intimidating that sounds, but if you are half the pony I know you to be, you’ll rise to the challenge.”

He turned, and started to amble away, apparently in no rush. “Well then, I will leave you to it. I’ve got a country to safeguard; the Court’ll be testing our defenses after this latest incident.”

As he moved through the swaying grass, away from Applejack, one last question came to mind, shouldering aside all the others.

“Trochanter,” she called, and he paused. Stiffly he turned, and eyed her questioningly.

Applejack bit her lip, then asked, “What ya told Twi’ about Steel Shod bein’... bein’ my other dad. Was that true?”

Trochanter blinked at her, then opened his mouth. Applejack braced, steeling her nerve for whatever he had to -

“Heck if I know,” he grunted, “But it stopped him, didn’t it?”

He grinned at her dumbstruck expression, then turned away again. With a wave of his horn, his form shimmered like a fading mirage, and he was gone. Some part of Applejack wondered if he’d ever actually been there in the first place, as when she looked, there were no hoofprints in the soft, springy grass beside her. It was like he hadn’t existed at all.

~~***~~

Halfway across the country, amid the majestic soaring towers of Canterlot, A disheveled brown pegasus mare hurriedly flapped her way down a richly decorated hallway. Her hooves full of papers that seemed to have a mind of their own, She kept having to pause to snatch up an escaping document or report before hurrying on again.

Finally she reached the end of the hallway and turned left towards a large oak door. After fumbling with her hooves and the jumbled up mess of papers for several seconds, she gave up and knocked her forehead against the well polished door, twice, sending her glasses more askew than usual.

“Come in,” came the tired response, and as if sensing the messenger’s burden, the door mercifully unlatched itself and swung inward.

“S-s-sorry for being late,” Peony said breathlessly.

“Nonsense,” responded a tired-looking old changeling seated in a plush red chair. “You’re just in time. I just wrapped up some other business..”

Peony smiled nervously, then flitted up to his table, and promptly dumped the contents of her hooves all over his desk.

“These are a-a-all of the rep-p-p,” her face scrunched up, “ports I could turn up, Spymaster.”

Trochanter leaned forward. He didn’t smell of wildflowers or an open grassy meadow. Instead, his breath was heavy with the smell of coffee as his horn lit, and a number of pieces of paper floated towards him. They revolved around him in shimmering green auras, allowing him time to scan briefly over each before sidling aside for the next.

As he read, Peony spoke, slowly this time to lessen her stutter.

“The ponies are wrapping up their investigation of Lord Bullion’s manor. They turned up some correspondents with some known changeling hate groups, and they’re chasing down a few leads. Given the extensive nature of Bullion’s contacts, it could take several months if not longer to unravel everything. Though by now, they are fairly confident they’ve got their pony.”

“Of course they are,” Trochanter sighed. With a wave of his hoof, he banished the sheets of paper to an orderly pile on one undisturbed corner of the room. He reclined back and put a hoof to his mouth thoughtfully. “And the medical reports?”

Peony nodded, as if to confirm something he already knew. “Traces of changeling magic were found in Bullion. Residual, but they seem to indicate a very long time of changeling influence. His family and lawyers are suppressing any information at the moment, though. I’m sure they’ll point to Princess Twilight Sparkle’s testimony of that unidentified crown being the culprit - that Bullion was just a pawn.”

Trochanter nodded. “Well, on that we can agree,” he said.

Peony nodded. “It’s worked itself out too perfectly. As careful as Bullion was, there’s too much evidence of his involvement flooding in now.”

“Then,” Trochanter said darkly, “All we have is the scapegoat. The real Bullion - the one responsible for attacking the princess and staging this ruse - is likely long gone. All we have is the pony he replaced.”

Peony’s eyes grew wide. “Then… that would mean the culprit was really a changeling, and that they are still at large.”

Trochanter nodded. “I’d wager he has been here ever since Phantasma died, just like Carnation’s hive fragmented and left some of its number here. That would explain where all the holes in our defenses have been coming from; we’ve had a sleeper agent in our midst for years and never knew it. It’s quite brilliant, really; if he ever got caught, all he had to do was use the pony he’d replaced as the red herring, and fade into the shadows. Then, he’d switch places with somepony else, maybe even the same pony after it was determined that they’d been influenced by something or somepony, and pick up where he left off. And his lofty place among the aristocracy kept him above general scrutiny, not to mention his replacement would have happened so long ago no one would be paying attention for a shift in personality now. A changeling strategy, through and through.”

Peony nodded, “He must have been waiting for the moment to fulfill Phantasma’s work; to turn Equestria into a changeling feeding ground. Nopony devotes most of their life to something without some sort of goal, and only a Queen could drive a drone to such extremes. For him to remain in Equestria for years, he must have been up to something. But I'm guessing Applejack changed his plans, made him sloppy.”

Trochanter sighed. His brows, already deeply furrowed canyons, grew deeper and grimmer. “If only it were that simple…”

Peony gave him a worried look. “Sir?”

“This opens up a whole new spectrum of complications,” he grunted. “Who knows how many affluent ponies are really Phantasma’s insurgents in disguise, installed at a time when there’d be no reason to suspect them? And if there are any, they will be on guard now. Tracking them down will be a challenge.”

A darker cloud fell over his features. “But the uncharacteristic boldness, like they are trying to get caught… all those years of careful tip-toing, thrown away so brazenly. I don't like it. Unless…”

Peony chewed her lip. She’d learned to let Trochanter mull in peace when he was like this. If he wanted to include her, he would in due time. That being said, she had a bad feeling she knew where his train of thought was going.

The sloppiness came at too perfect a time, and when changelings were involved, coincidences rarely happened. If that was the case, what if it hadn't been the imposter that tipped his hand, but an unseen, third party who tipped it for them, one that was being infinitely more discrete?

There was only one party that jumped to mind, and just the idea of their involvement was confusing… and deeply troubling.

Trochanter had many questions, and he hated not being the one with those answers. When one lived in the dark, seedy grotto that was the changeling world, not knowing things was liable to get one killed. Playing with all the cards was the only way to keep on top, especially when the gazes of queens fell on them. This, more than anything, was the adhesive that kept the Court from pulling itself apart. Only together did they have all the cards. And so their internal cold war had been maintained, just as Phantasma designed it.

But now there was Applejack. And the whole system was showing signs of strain. Peony could sense it. Trochanter could sense it. An upheaval was coming. Or… it was already underway.

Whatever the case, Trochanter knew this was not over. The day had been won, the darkness thrown back again. But the dawn wasn't breaking yet. And with Phantasma’s Corastone out of their reach, it was only a matter of time before they were revisited by that spectre again. Only next time, she would have had time to consolidate her strength. A frightening idea, to be sure.

“Sounds like we’re g-going to huh-have our hooves full,” Peony said. She was smiling slightly, expectantly.

Trochanter glanced at her, then dropped his hoof. He chuckled, a more authentic grin spreading across his tired old features. “So it would seem,” he chortled. Then, he rose from his chair.

His mind sloughed the dark thoughts like one might shed a heavy, burdensome coat. Instead, it came alive with other paths of inquiry, firing off like a power cord spitting sparks.

His smile broadened. The idea of a challenge invigorated him, making him feel ten years younger. He rolled his neck, then trotted around the desk. “Peony, be a dear and fetch my coat. We’ve got work to do. We can't let a few mares show up us professionals, can we?”

Peony beamed, then threw a salute. “Aye, aye, sir!” she turned, and quickly darted from the room.

Trochanter continued trotting forward after Peony disappeared. Then, he took a detour, arriving instead in front of a full length mirror shoved away in one corner of the room.

He eyed the tired old thing glowering back at him for a moment. It didn't exactly strike him as the most friendly appearance in the world. He was liable to scare the fur off a Manticore looking like that. A change was in order, he thought.

A brief flash of green fire, and his tried and true pony form reasserted itself. And immediately he felt in a better mood. It was practically conditioned.

Unlike whoever had been masquerading as Bullion, Trochanter felt no need to hijack somepony else’s life to achieve one’s goal. It was amatuer, lazy even. Trochanter preferred to create his own identity, and then trick others into thinking he’d been there all along, hiding in plain sight, right dead center in the spotlight without anyone ever being any the wiser.

He smiled, and the reflection grinned broadly back. He turned away, and together they trotted from the room, ready to take on the world.

~~***~~

The sun was high in the sky by the time Applejack reached her next destination. By then, the summer heat had really set in, and the sunlight beat down from overhead remorselessly.

Applejack took shelter from the heat under a fur tree, one of many lining a sleepy forest valley that suddenly found itself host to quite a bit of activity. She watched with no small amount of fascination as living tree houses shambled their way over a nearby hill, which only a few hours ago had been used as the last line of defense of the Royal Guard - against her.

The thought churned her gut, but she pushed it away. Instead, she watched as so many of those houses were settled into new locations. She could see new blocks taking shape, with avenues for new streets and generous gaps for gardens and parks underneath the enchanted village canopy. It was remarkable to watch so many coordinating with very little interruption, like the hive had long ago scoped out this very basin, drawn up plans, and practiced these very maneuvers.

Whether there was already growth in the way seemed totally inconsequential: any trees that stood where a house wanted to be were simply incorporated into the building itself. More than a few entryways found themselves accentuated by new elegant trusses and decorative eaves.

All of these houses were clustering around the base of that gigantic crystal spire, which practically glowed like a shaft of rose quartz against the sky.

Standing at the base of it, the structure seemed to defy reality, rising up impossibly high into the sky. Its shape alone seemed to laugh in the face of physics, given its many crooks and spindly zig-zags that somehow held up a massive crystalline formation atop its summit that by itself was big enough to be a modest cathedral.

Applejack also noticed the countless crystal shards lying all around her, embedded deep into the earth where they’d fallen. Some were no bigger than a boulder. others were monolithic in size, dwarfing every tree around them. Even away from direct sunlight, they glowed pink, and Applejack could tell they were having some sort of effect on the land.

Pure white flowers bloomed all across the broken fragments, spreading on ivory vines. The flowers were unlike anything Applejack had ever seen before: small, delicate, with six heart-shaped petals and a pink center. They released a faint, yet pleasant aroma that already permeated the valley. Some of the crystal shards were developing the strangest growths - twining, glassy spindles that rose like creeper vines into the air. It was like the shards were... growing.

Several drones were scuttling around some of these fragments, sniffing them warily and squeaking apprehensively, as if expecting them to leap up and devour them.

Some drones, Applejack saw, were merely sitting in place, looking around with strangely listless expressions, or looks of wonder. The more Applejack looked, the more she noticed this behavior - changelings, seemingly without direction, meandering about aimlessly. Normally the hive was such a bustling, purposeful place: everyone had a task, be it business or pleasure. Rarely had she seen drones just kicking back and taking it easy, but now she noticed them everywhere.

Something about this onset of listlessness worried Applejack, and she couldn’t help but wonder if her own new form had something to do with it. Drones were bound to their queen - this she knew, no matter how much she disliked it. But if something happened to that paradigm… what then?

‘What now’, corrected a small voice in the back of her head.

Before she could pursue that thought much further down its rabbit hole, the sound of fluttering feathers reached her ears. Applejack turned, eyes looking for a flash of blue for some reason, but instead she found herself looking towards the familiar purple shape of Twilight as she set herself down on the grass a little clumsily.

“There you are,” Twilight said as she regained her footing, then trotted over to her. As she did, she cast a glance this way and that, looking for somepony who wasn’t there. “Um… have you seen Rainbow Dash?”

Applejack blinked. For a fraction of a second, a dark sense of concern flew through her head, but was quickly washed away. “Can’t say Ah have. Why?” she asked.

Twilight huffed, her expression turning sour. Just that look gave Applejack all the answers she needed, and she had to suppress the urge to laugh at the look on her friend’s face. “The doctor told her she was on bed rest! You know, for a pony that loves to laze around, you'd think that wouldn't be so hard!”

Applejack couldn’t keep her snort in. .

Twilight eyed her in a way that made Applejack a little uncomfortable. “It’s weird, though. After how hard she worked to reach you yesterday, I could have sworn I’d find her here.”

Applejack tried to be flippant about it, but inside she was swatting down those nasty thoughts again - what if something happened to her? What if someone attacked her and now she’s hurt and bleeding and - she cut it off right then and there, thank you very much.

She did recall the look Rainbow had given her that morning, though. How wide her eyes had been, and how red she'd looked. But again, Applejack discarded the thought.

“Ah’m sure she’ll turn up,” Applejack said with a wry grin. “She always does.”

She reached up and touched her chest. For a moment, she thought the wind seemed strangely louder, whistling in her ears, over her body… But it was just her imagination. Still, the worries fell silent after that, as if getting the answer they wanted and skulking back to whatever dark hole that’d spawned them.

For a while, she and Twilight stood under the fur tree and gazed up at the crystal spire Applejack had somehow created. It wasn’t that they had nothing to say - they had all too much, really, but no way to know where to start.

Applejack reached up absently to correct her hat, but found her hooves swatting open air. Right… it’d been blown away.

The silence seemed to stretch on and on, until Applejack started to feel herself slip into that thinking hole she’d grown tired of. But just as thoughts started to swirl in her head that she didn’t have answers for, Twilight spoke up. “Um, Applejack?”

She turned, and noticed the look Twilight was giving her. Unbeknownst to her, Twilight had been fidgeting restlessly throughout the silence. Not because she’d had too much to say and not the words to start saying them like Applejack had thought, but because she had one thing to say and too many words to say it. But finally she’d parsed it down, and finally opened her mouth to finally say what she’d wanted to say.

“I’m really glad you’re okay,” she said. That simple statement seemed to open the floodgates, because right behind it was a stream of other words. “And, if you need to talk, or just need to get something off your chest, or need help with anything, just ask, okay? Me, and the rest of the girls, too, will be there for you. I just want to make sure you know that. You don't have to go through this on your own.”

Applejack blinked, taken aback by the flood of words she’d just been pelted with. Then she smiled. And it felt like one of the most genuine ones she given all day. “Thanks, Twi’,” she said.

Both of them knew Applejack probably wouldn’t take her up on her offer, Applejack being the bullheaded individual that she was. But just having the offer given was reassuring in a way Applejack needed at the moment, without realizing she did.

Applejack turned away again, her eyes casting up to the summit of the spire. A thought occurred to her then, and she turned back to Twilight. “Actually, Ah was wonderin’ if ya could do something fer me.”

Twilight looked honestly taken by surprise. She blinked, jumping a little, then smile. “Of course! What do you need?”

Applejack smiled, repressing a laugh, then jerked her head in the direction of the spire. “Ah was wonderin’ if ya could help me up there.”

Twilight’s smile softened, her horn illuminating. “Sure thing.”

~~***~~

The view from the summit was second to none. With the walls blown out of the pyramid-shaped formation topping it, Applejack could see far and wide, to the very curvature of the planet rimming places unknown. She could see what must’ve been the Canterhorn, proud and regal in the distance. The dense cloud formation far to the west could have been Cloudsdale, thought it was impossible to know for sure. To the north, she thought she could just see a silvery crescent marking the rim of the Frozen North. To the south, the land turned steadily more and more brown, before fading away into a hazy slash of sandy gold. Her eyes lingered on that golden crest for a time before she moved on.

Everywhere in between were forests, marshes, glittering lakes, green meadows, the subtle irregularities of cities. When Applejack looked to the southwest, she just thought she could see a huge bulge in the Everfree’s endless treetops - a dome marking the forgotten, hushed grave of Freedom.

All of these things she could see, or at least imagined she could see, from atop her crystal throne room. her throne room. The thought didn’t quite sit well with her, like a gift she hadn’t particularly wanted.

The crystals were strangely, but not unpleasantly, warm to the touch, and even magically oblivious Applejack could feel an undercurrent of power here. She continuously got the feeling that she was at the heart of some great engine, whose power churned and hummed ceaselessly all around her, relaxed but ever in motion. What it was doing, where it was going, she had no idea, but the feeling never went away.

After a moment, she turned towards the center of the throne room - the center of everything here, she felt. There, she found a crystal formation more elaborate than any others, sitting directly in the middle of the angular room. It was bowled in the center, as if meant to be sat in or laid down upon. It was certainly big enough for her to sprawl in, even in her new form.

Applejack could actually see it shifting right in front of her eyes: spokes of crystal grew and receded, as if the thing couldn’t quite make up its mind on what its final shape should be.

Over this strange throne, the roof suddenly and quite spectacularly thrust downward with a thousand spikes and shafts of crystal. The effect was a wide fan of radial spokes, some representation of a sunrise, all pointing at the throne - and the crystal heart slowly revolving over it.

One look at the heart-shaped diamond and one couldn’t help but draw comparisons with the one hundreds of miles to the north, sitting passively beneath the palace of the Crystal Empire. Except for a few crucial differences, one might say they were identical, at least in shape and size.

The difference, however, was its color.

Where the Crystal Heart in the north was a peerless and uniform shade of blue, this one shined a brilliant orange. One lobe of its heart-shaped structure was strangely incongruent, and though the seam was flawlessly fused to the rest of the body, one could tell it hadn’t been a part of the whole originally. This lobe swirled with a dozen colors, seemingly liquid beneath its hard surface. The whole thing glittered with countless hues as it slowly revolved - sometimes blue, sometimes red, sometimes purple.

It also seemed somehow less stable than the Crystal Empire variant, too. Where that one merely revolved and appeared to do little else, the one floating before Applejack’s eyes regularly pulsed with a clearly visible light that didn’t ripple through the air, but did course through the walls and spires and floor all around her. A burning, pink aura seemed to engulf it, too thin to be flames, but too active to be smoke. Sometimes it flared up, then calmed again.

Despite its eccentricities, Applejack felt nothing but calm comfort at the sight of it. Nothing about it struck him as wrong, or unsightly, or dangerous in any way.

Applejack was so busy watching the thing slowly turn round and round that she forgot she wasn’t alone, not until she heard the glassy clip-clop of hooves behind her.

Standing behind her, Twilight looked around with eyes filled with wonder. Every sight she beheld only seemed to make her eyes dance more, like every single facet in the walls held untold mysteries she simply had to unravel. “This is a pretty amazing place you’ve got here,” she remarked as she approached.

Applejack gave a sheepish grin and averted her gaze. “Oh, uh… thanks, Ah guess.” She turned back around, rubbing her shoulder. “Um… So, How was Rainbow doin’, anyway? Did ya get those tests back yet?”

Twilight chuckled. She’d figured she’d ask sooner or later. “Considering what she’d gone through, she’s got quite a bit of pep in her.”

Applejack nodded, her grin morphing into a smirk. Did she look almost… proud? “Don’t Ah know it. But…. Phantasma took a big chunk outta her—magically speakin’, of course. Ah could feel it. Ah just wanna make sure she’s okay.”

Twilight nodded in understanding. “Well, the doctors did find something off. Nothing bad,” she added quickly, seeing Applejack’s look. “I doubt it’s anything we need to worry about, actually.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. She wasn’t in the mood for beating around the bush.

Twilight trotted up to the edge of the throne room, and cast her gaze out over the endless expanses of the countryside. After a moment, Applejack trotted over, aware of the way her hooves echoed in the chamber, and the way the crystal seemed to glow slightly whenever her hooves touched it, but not Twilight’s.

She took a seat beside Twilight, who was gazing down over Ponyville, over the trees of the distant Everfree and out towards the limitless horizon. From here, one really could see just about everything.

“There’s a trace of magic mingled with hers now,” she mentioned. “Nopony’s ever seen anything like it; foreign, yet self-replicating, as if linked to some external source. Without it, Rainbow would be in really bad shape right now - the doctors don't think she'd even be able to fly.” She glanced to Applejack. “I think I know exactly what—or who—that external source is.”

Applejack’s sheepish grin was back, drawing a bemused grin from Twilight. “You’re blushing,” Twilight teased.

Applejack punched her shoulder, nearly toppling her. “Am not. Everythin' looks pink up here, that’s all.”

Twilight giggled and righted herself. “Okay, okay. Anyway, for now, it seems largely dormant, but there’s no telling what the magic you two share can do.”

Applejack sighed. She raised a hoof and looked into it. “Well, that ain’t news ta me,” she said. “Ah don’t need ta tell you how magic ‘n me get along. Ain’t nothin’ but a mystery as far as Ah’m concerned. Don't really matter what kind it is.”

Twilight gave her a sympathetic smile.

“But…,” Applejack went on, and her brows knotted now. “Ah… can feel it. It’s different, peaceful. Like… Ah don’t know. It kinda feels like… that feelin’ ya get when ya get a hug from somepony ya care about, or when we’re hangin’ out with the girls, only… different. It ain’t easy ta put into words.”

She gave up and furiously rubbed the back of her neck, embarrassed. “Argh, it don’t make a lick of sense, but if Ah had ta put it ta words, that’s what it’d be like, Ah guess.”

She put her hoof down and turned to Twilight, who’s grin was growing bigger. “What?” Applejack asked, raising an eyebrow.

Twilight giggled. “Applejack, do you know what you just did?”

Applejack’s eyebrow went up. “Uh… you mean talk? Ah do it all the time.”

Twilight giggled again. “No, silly. How you just described your magic is exactly how I’d describe it.”

“Ah ain’t followin’.”

“Applejack,” Twilight said with a smile that was a touch exasperated now. “You can sense it! You can feel your own magic, but beyond that, you can make sense of it. Do you know what that means?”

Applejack gave her a flat look. “No Twi’, Ah don’t, but Ah get the funniest feelin’ y’all are about ta tell me.”

“It means,” Twilight said, now definitely exasperated, “you and your magic are in tune! Before you had only enough of a grasp on it to know it was there. But now, you are able to understand it. You can reach down, feel it, quantify it. I know that doesn’t mean much to you right now, but that’s a very important first step. For unicorns, it’s the first sign of somepony gaining control of their magic!”

Applejack blinked. “Uh… that’s… great?” she said, sounding a little nonplussed.

Twilight beamed, unfazed by Applejack’s uncertainty. “It means, with some practice, maybe you can start using magic!”

“…Why?”

Twilight just stared at her. “What?”

“Why?” Applejack repeated simply. “Ah got four perfectly good hooves. What would Ah need magic for?”

Twilight opened her mouth, took a breath to launch into the mother of all lectures. Her friend, inheritor of an ancient, forgotten magic the likes of which nopony had ever seen before, wondering what use it was to learn to control it?! Oh she was gearing up for a dozy of a rant… but stopped. “Ugh… you know what? Never mind. We’ll figure that out some other time.”

Then she smiled. “I think I like normal Applejack more, anyway.”

Applejack smiled back, then turned to look out over Ponyville again. A warm summer breeze toyed with her mane and carried the scents of the forest through the open chamber. It was a refreshing smell laden with pine needles and warm wood. Maybe she had been a mindless monster, but she'd picked a beautiful place to be one.

“How do you feel?” Twilight asked.



Applejack didn’t respond at first. She sat still, her expression unreadable. Then, quite unexpectedly, she changed. Twilight looked up, eyes huge, at the tall figure seated beside her. Applejack didn't look, but she felt her friend's amazed stare all the same.

“Honestly? Ah’m the first changelin’ in ten thousand years not ta be carryin’ around Amora’s curse. The magic inside me only barely feels like the changelin’ magic Ah’ve spent my whole life with. Thinkin’ like that, it’s easy ta see Phantasma was right; Ah… am alone in the world.”

She glanced to her side, as if suddenly realizing Twilight was there. “Er, sorry. Ah didn’t mean ta put it like that. Ah got a lot on my mind right now, Ah guess.”

Twilight gave her a worried look. “You… don’t really believe that, do you? You’re not alone, you know that, right?”

Applejack snorted, a rueful grin sprouting on her face. “Oh don’t you worry about that, Twi’. Ah know good and well Ah ain’t.” She glanced up, raising her head towards the horizon. “At least… Ah don’t want to be.”

She said that last part so quietly, it was like she’d said it only to herself. Twilight had nearly missed it, and for some reason, it caused a lump to form in her throat. Twilight followed her gaze, and spotted the object of her attention; a prismatic bolt arcing through the heavens, trajectory aimed straight at them.

After seeing, she nonchalantly glanced to the side, and saw Applejack’s expression had softened. Twilight had never seen her look quite that relaxed, or the tiny smile that graced her lips. Seeing it, Twilight knew Applejack’s fears, as well as her own, did not matter. Applejack would be just fine, of that she had no doubt anymore.

“Welp, guess it’s time,” Applejack said. She rose off the ground and stood up straight.

Twilight gave her a worried look. Time? Time for what?”

Applejack rose to her new impressive height. Her wings, usually ignored, whipped out and tested the air with a few thrumming beats. They were powerful enough to buffet Twilight, forcing her to squint.

Twilight’s concern mounted. “Applejack, what are you going to do?”

Applejack looked out towards the horizon. She wasn't smiling anymore, nor did she look apprehensive. Applejack had never looked so serious in her whole life. “Only one way ta make sure this doesn’t happen again.” She looked Twilight dead in the eye then, absolutely serious. “This is somethin’ Ah gotta do, Twi’. Fer me, everypony and everyone else.”

Twilight’s face fell. She could see it in her eyes: there would be no arguing allowed. “Well, alright. Just… if you see him…”

A lump rose in Applejack’s throat, but she still nodded. “Don’t you worry, Twi’. Ah’ll make sure ta give him a punch in the face just fer you.”

“That’s not…,” Twilight started to protest, even tapping a hoof in a weak stamping motion, then frowned. “Never mind. But if you do see him, make sure you bring him back. He’s… he’s got a lot to answer for. For what he did to you and Agave, I mean.”

She started to trot away, then slowed to a stop. She sighed, then glanced over her shoulder and gave a small smile. “Guess you’re not the only one with a lot on their mind,” she commented.

Applejack looked at her, but said nothing. She continued to look at her, even as Twilight vanished in a burst of purple light, leaving Applejack alone again.

~~***~~

Applejack waited impatiently for Equestria’s self-proclaimed fasted flyer to take her sweet time coming in for a landing. When she finally did touch down, it was almost two pony lengths away.

“Um…” Rainbow started, not quite meeting Applejack’s eye. “Er…”

On the way over, she’d practiced a hundred totally awesome things to say.

Hey, babe. Long time no see. What's say you and me blow this popsicle stand and get out of here and have ourselves a good time.

Yeah, something like that would be awesome for sure, grade-A stuff, without question. And then she'd seen Applejack - the new and improved Applejack - and forgot every last word of it.

So, she brought her B-game.

“Hey.”

Applejack quirked a smile. “That the best you got, sugarcube?”

“Look, I'm trying, okay?” Rainbow blustered. “this whole… this whole…” She waved her hoof between them. “this whole... it's new territory for me, okay?”

It didn't help that her head just went blank again the moment she laid eyes on her. She was so tall and strong and... and…

"Uh, sugarcube?”

Applejack looked at her, somewhat perplexed about why Rainbow was suddenly covering her face with both of her wings.

"U-Uh, Hey AJ? C-Could I get you to do me a solid? Could you maybe, uh, um… maybe, turn into a pony?”

Applejack frowned, confused. “Rainbow? Is somethin’ wrong?”

Then, a thought hit her. The last time Rainbow had looked at her, she’d bolted. Then, like now, Applejack had not been disguised. She had been in her new, strange form. And Rainbow had run from her. Now she couldn't even look at her.

A lump formed in Applejack’s throat, as did a spike of pain in her chest.

“Do… do Ah look…” she tried to say, but she couldn't mumble more than that.

Rainbow swallowed. She was still hiding her face. “You’re… you look…” And then, in a voice so low it squeaked, “You’re… really pretty…”

The moment she said it, Rainbow turned as red as a tomato, from her neck all the way to the tips of her ears. She squirmed on the spot, hooves doing a little dance on the floor. “Celestia, this is so… not… awesome…”

Applejack blinked at her, disarmed. “What?”

True to form, Rainbow jolted to all fours. Her wings flew open and she snarled angrily while still spectacularly crimson.

“I said you’re stupidly pretty, you stupid… bugbrain… stupid head! Is that what you wanted me to say? Huh?! That just looking at your stupid face makes me feel all these stupid things like stupid butterflies and stupid stuff like that! Is that what you want me to say, stupid? Cuz you’re the prettiest stupid thing in the whole stupid world and… and… Oh forget it!” she finished, and kissed her.

It was so sudden, so unexpected, that Applejack froze, completely and utterly. Rainbow cleared the distance between them in a split second, and mashed her face against hers.

In the history of kisses, this was probably the least romantic one ever delivered. It barely even qualified as a kiss, and could have been described better as a collision of muzzles, instead. All Applejack remembered about it was not the taste, or the feel. It was the heat of Rainbow’s burning cheeks that she would recall forevermore. That, and the serendipitous explosion in her chest.

She was left struck dumb, even when Rainbow pulled back, looking furious even as she blushed harder.

“Stupid,” she accused one more time from just hair's breadth away. “S-so hurry up and change so I can think straight.”

Applejack nodded dumbly, then in a flash of green light, she was once again an earth pony, staring blankly at Rainbows hooves instead of her face.

It took her a moment, but eventually Rainbow set herself down, and turned the other direction. She sat down hard, wings expanded, still red in the face. “Dang it…” she mumbled angrily. “it's not helping…”

She threw a hoof back at Applejack without turning around. “Stop being pretty!”

“Like Ah can help that!” Applejack snapped defensively. Color was starting to rise in her cheeks, now.

Silence rose after that. They both stood, hearts fluttering uncontrollably, no words to fill the void.

After several minutes, Applejack started to move. She trotted over carefully, then sat down next to Rainbow.

The pegasus was determinedly looking towards the horizon, her expression twisting up.

“Ah don't know about this whole…” Applejack started motioning between them. “This whole, either. So ya don't have ta say nothin’.”

She leaned against Rainbow’s shoulder. The shoulder she relied so much on for strength, for support. “Just… don’t push me away. Ah don’t think Ah could handle that right now.”

Rainbow finally turned to look at her. Her expression was a complicated mess of emotions, most hiding behind a defensive anger that came from nothing.

Applejack just smiled at her. Rainbow never had to explain herself to her. Well, this time, anyway. She leaned in, and the two rested their heads on one another. No words were needed after that.

Rainbow wing wrapped around her. The wind came up to tease Applejack’s mane and drone in her ears. But for a moment, up there where no one could see them, Applejack felt… at peace.

Rainbow sighed and relaxed into her. “You scared me, Applejack. I thought… I thought I couldn't save you.”

She pressed herself harder into Applejack’s side. Her warmth radiated through Rainbow, calming her nerves.

“So, whatever happens from here on, we do it together. You and me.” For the first time, she looked up, and met Applejack’s gaze. “And… I still haven't forgotten our promise, you know. You, me, and the mountains.”

Applejack smiled. It was almost too much for Rainbow. “Thank ya, Rainbow. For everything.”

Applejack straightened up. Rainbow rose with her.

The smile on her face drifted away. Applejack turned to the scenery, her expression turning serious. “But there’s somethin’ we need to do, first.”

Rainbow nodded, sobering up as well. “Just tell me what you need me to do. We’ll work out the details later.”

Applejack chuckled. “It ain't gonna work like that this time, sugarcube.”

She sighed and turned to the horizon again. She cast her gaze over Equestria, as if studying it. “Ah put this off long enough. Ah was kidding myself thinking Ah’d never have to, Ah guess.”

Rainbow bumped her and gave her a questioning look. “Are you planning what I think you’re planning?” she asked.

Applejack smiled, and nodded. “Somepony’s gotta confront them, RD. Show them there is another way. Ah know it don't seem like it, but they are still my family. And… and Apples never give up on family.”

Rainbow pulled a face. “Even if they are really totally super evil and probably deserve an epic beatdown or ten?”

Applejack smirked. “especially then.”

Rainbow sighed exaggeratedly. “Well, can't rest on our laurels, I guess.” She then smiled, fire in her eyes. “Lead the way, bugbrain. I got your back.”

Applejack chuckled, then after a thought, she pecked Rainbow on the nose.

Rainbow blinked, then turned molten red again. “Why would you do that!?” she squealed.

Applejack just laughed as she led the way. It felt good to laugh. Because she knew what came next was not going to be a laughing matter at all.

Author's Note:

*Bursts out of a shallow grave flipping birds all round
I live, muthafraggas!

Seriously though, I can't apologize enough for the long wait. Life has been working overtime to kill any free time I have. It's basically get up, work, come home, pass out, repeat. But things have finally settled down enough that I can start getting back into a state of mind for writing. (and I got writing apps on my phone. Technology these days...)

So all y'all have a merry christmas and I'll try not to see you all again this time next year!