Of Flame and Shadow

by Garuda IV

Chapter 55- Return to Canterlot

Twilight stood outside of the schoolhouse as she waited for class to end for the day. Once the bell finally rang, she watched as a stampede of young colts and fillies ran out of the door, eager to get their weekend started. But, when she saw the colt that she came for, she smiled and walked over to meet him.

"Hello, Soul," Twilight smiled. "How was school today?"

"It was fun, but not much really happened today," he answered.

"Well, at least you had fun."

"Yeah. It was mostly thanks to the Crusaders. It's weird, though."

"Why's that?"

"Ever since early this week, they've been giving me hugs."

"Why would they do that?"

Soul shuffled a hoof in the dirt. "I might've told them about where I lived before you and Dark adopted me."

"Any reason why you would tell them?" Twilight asked. When she saw that Soul was nervously avoiding her gaze, she gently turned his head to look at her as she gave him a warm smile. "You're not in trouble or anything, Soul. I'm just surprised that you would tell them."

"Well... it's because they know that I'm half-changeling."

Twilight's eyes widened in surprise. "You told them?"

"No. Turns out that their sisters did. When they did, they came to me the next day and began asking me questions."

"Were they mean about it?"

Soul shook his head. "Not at all. From what I felt, they were actually more curious than anything. There was barely any fear coming from them when they asked me." With an understanding nod form Twilight, Soul continued. "Well, after that, I began telling them about different things, and eventually I got so into it that I accidentally told them about how I lived alone in the Everfree Forest for years."

"Ah, I see now," Twilight said understandingly. "So that's when they began giving you hugs?"

"Yep."

"While that's very nice of them, you better tell Spike about it so he doesn't get the wrong idea. After all, they're his fillyfriends."

"Yeah. I still can't believe that he has all three of them for his fillyfirends." Soul's eyes downcasted as he gave a small pout. "Lucky dragon."

Twilight patted Soul on the head. "Don't worry, Soul. You'll find yourself your own special somepony someday."

"Are you sure?"

"I know I am," she smiled, wrapping a foreleg around Soul as he gave her a hug. A few seconds later, she let him go. "Now, I need to talk to Cheerilee for a moment."

"I'm not in trouble, am I?" Soul nervously asked.

"No, you're not. I just needed to talk to her for a moment is all. In the meantime, why don't you go on ahead and play in the playground while you wait for me. When I'm all done, I'll teleport us to the train station."

"Okay, Twilight."

Taking his saddlebag so that he could go and play freely, Twilight made her way to the school and knocked on the door. When the door opened, she smiled and gave Cheerilee a friendly hug.

"Hello, Cheerilee," Twilight said.

"Hello, Twilight," Cheerilee welcomed, stepping aside for Twilight to come in. Once they were both seated down, Cheerilee continued. "So, what brings you to the school today?"

"Just came to check in on how Soul has been doing these last two weeks. I'm a little worried that with Soul's new lifestyle that his grade may be affected."

"That is very mature of you to do, Twilight," she said with a smile. "I wish that some of the other parents would be as diligent with their children as how you are with Soul. Even if he's not your biological kid."

"That doesn't matter to me. Whether or not we're related by blood, he's still apart of our family."

"Good to hear," Cheerilee said with an approving smile. "Now, as for his grades go, they have been affected since you and Dark took him in."

Twilight sighed in disappointment. "I knew I should've been more strict with his free time."

"Oh, no. It's just the opposite, in fact. You see, ever since you two adopted him, the grades on his homework have been improving."

"So the new changes in his life are having a positive outcome on him?"

Cheerilee nodded. "It seems like whatever you guys are doing is helping him. If I may ask, what are you doing to help him?"

"Well, if he's having trouble with his homework with something he isn't understanding, he'll come to either myself, Dark, or Spike for help. And while we do help him, we won't give him the answer directly. We'll help guide him and correct him if he's wrong, but the final answer will always be his own."

"That's good to hear."

"But I am curious, though, as to how his classmates are doing with him."

"He gets along with most of the students. However, lately the Crusaders have been rather affectionate towards him. If this keeps up, I might be worried for Spike's relationship with them."

"Soul told me about that actually," Twilight said. "As it turns out, the Crusaders were told by their sisters about Soul being half-changeling, which brought them to talking to Soul about it. Along the way, he mentioned to them about how he was an orphan living alone in the Everfree Forest, and that's why they've been giving him hugs."

"Oh... well then, that explains that. So they don't have any romantic feelings for Soul then?"

"Nope," Twilight answered, her lips slowly forming into a coy smile. "However, perhaps you might know of somepony who may have her eyes on Soul?"

Cheerilee shook her head. "I'm sorry, Twilight, but I haven't seen any signs like that towards him so far."

"That's okay. I was just curious was all." Twilight looked up to the clock hanging on the wall. "Well, I guess I better get Soul and get going."

"You heading off to somewhere?" Cheerilee asked.

"Dark is fighting in the Canterlot Coliseum tomorrow, so today we're taking Soul with us to see my parents and the princesses."

"Well then, I suppose I shouldn't keep you any longer," Cheerilee said, standing up and walking around the desk to give Twilight a hoofshake. "Good luck to you and Dark presenting Soul to them. I can only imagine what your mother would do."

Twilight giggled at the thought. "If I had to guess, I'd say that she'd start doting on him. Can't say for the princesses, though."

With a goodbye hug, Twilight left Cheerilee and made her way over towards Soul swinging on the swings.

"All done, Twilight?" Soul asked, seeing her approaching him.

"All done," she answered, returning Soul his saddlebag. "So, are you ready to go?"

With a quick nod, Soul fluttered up and landed on Twilight's back. With himself settled down and secured, Twilight lit her horn and teleported the two of them to the train station.

---

Everyone was already waiting at the train station as Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie, Applejack, Rainbow, and Pyre were talking amongst each other while Spike and the Crusaders were off in their own group. As they talked, Dark sat alone on the bench looking over a list he made.

"Okay. Got that, got that, got those... yep. Looks like I've got everything," Dark said to himself.

"Hey. What are you doing?" Pyre asked, walking over to him.

"Hmm? Nothing much. Just looking over my list."

Snatching it out his claw, Pyre looked over Dark's list. As he continued to read it, he began to slowly raise an eyebrow.

"What kind of a list is this?" he questioned.

"Just some things that I may need for this weekend," Dark answered nonchalantly.

"Really? Are you sure that you're not taking inventory for an armory?"

"I am."

"Dark..." Pyre turned the list around and pointed at it. "There are over five hundred weapons on this list!"

"Yeah, so?"

"'So'? Where are you keeping them all?! You have enough weapons to arm an army!" Dark gave Pyre a silent smirk as he walked past him and snatched his list back. With no answer, Pyre huffed. "Will you at least tell me what your plan is for wining this gauntlet thing?"

"Well, I think that for starters, I'll just be using raw strength and weapons. I'd rather not try to use my magic until the end or if I'm forced to."

"... that's stupid. Why would you do something like that instead of just ending it quickly?"

"Because I don't want to show them my power until towards the end the gauntlet. That way the champion won't know what to expect from me if I get far enough to fight him or her," Dark answered.

"Don't you mean when you get that far?"

"I'm trying not to jinx it here, Pyre," he said defensively before walking over to rejoin his friends. As he did, a flash of light off to his side caught his attention. When it faded, Dark smiled and walked over to give Twilight a welcoming kiss. "So, how's he doing?"

"Cheerilee said that he's been doing better in school," Twilight said with a smile.

"Good." Dark walked over along side Twilight and playfully ruffled Soul's mane. "We wouldn't want to have to ground him during our trip now, would we?"

"You're kidding, right?" Soul questioned.

"Hehe, yeah. I'm just teasing you, kid. However, if your grades do decide to take a dive for some reason, then you can expect a grounding from both of us. Understand?"

"Yes, Dark."

"Good."

Letting him free, Soul hopped down off of Twilight's back and ran over to the Crusaders and Spike while Twilight and Dark went over to join their friends.

"I still can't believe that you're letting your sisters come and watch," Twilight said.

"They wouldn't stop pestering us once they found out about it," Rainbow said. "Especially when they heard that Spike is going too."

"And besides, we did sorta dump them on Big Mac last time. Now that Ah know that he's datin' Cheerilee, Ah don't wanna burden him too much by havin' him watchin' over the girls. Besides, when was the last time we brought them ta Canterlot with us?" Applejack asked before quickly turning to Rarity. "Not includin' the time when they came ta fix Sweetie's sabotagin' your headdress-thingy."

"Well then," Rarity began, "if we're not including that, then I would have to say... huh. I can't seem to recall the last time."

"It wasn't during the wedding when they were Cadences flower fillies, was it?" Twilight asked, but before any of them could answer, the train started to pull in.

"Well, looks like it won't matter soon," Rainbow said.

With Soul, Spike, the Crusaders, and Pyre gathered around them, they waited until the train stopped at the station. Once they waited for the passengers to unboard, they began to file into the train cart. But before she went in, Twilight turned around and looked at Spike.

"Hey, Spike?"

"Yeah?" he replied.

"Why don't you try to levitate your luggage with you when you come in?"

Sighing, Spike held out a claw and began to focus. Squinting his eyes in concentration, a green magical aura matching the color of his spines enshrouded his claw. A few seconds later, that same aura was covering his luggage, and, with a strained grunt, the bag lifted off of the ground an half-inch before it dropped back down. Panting from exhaustion, Spike looked back over to Twilight.

"Sorry, Twilight, but I can't do it yet."

"It's alright, Spike," she returned smiling. "I should've known that that bag would be too heavy for you to carry this early into your training. But you did good, though."

"Thanks, Twilight," Spike said, grabbing the bag handle with his claw and walking on in.

"But don't think that just because we're going to Canterlot means that you can neglect your magic pratice," Twilight told Spike, causing him to give a small groan. "Oh, don't complain, Spike. Look, you can practice on the train ride there, okay?"

"Okay."

---

It was later in the afternoon when the train started pulling into Canterlot, the near-setting sun casting a warm glow across the evening sky. However, despite the beautiful scenery that the sunlight was showing, they were a little pressed for time as Twilight and the others were suppose to meet Celestia and Luna for dinner up at the castle in an hour. The deal was that as soon as they got their luggage and unboarded the train, Twilight would teleport them all to the castle gates while Dark would Shadowport in right after them.

With the train now having stopped, they each stepped out into the station and waited for the rest their luggage to be unloaded. While most had brought a single bag of some sort, Rarity's luggage consisted of over a dozen bags and cases, insistent that they were necessary for her weekend trip.

The wait was rather peaceful for them as the other ponies stayed clear of them upon seeing Pyre. While they waited for the poor ponies to unload Rarity's luggage, though, Soul began to feel weird. It started out as a small headache, but as the seconds rolled by, it became worse until he began to groan and catch Dark's and Twilight's attention.

"Is something wrong, Soul?" Twilight asked, seeing his discomfort.

"I don't feel so good," Soul answered, leading up against Twilight to support him from the dizziness.

"Did you eat something bad?" Dark wondered, getting a headshake from Soul.

"No."

"When did you start to feel sick?" Twilight asked.

"Right after we got off of the train," Soul replied, his eyes now closed from how dizzy he was getting.

Concerned, Twilight placed a hoof over his forehead. "Well, you don't feel like you're running a temperature, so you're not ill like that."

"Can't be motion sickness either, considering that we're no longer on the train," Dark mused out loud.

Twilight nodded. "I know. I just can't think of what-" Twilight suddenly paused and looked up. As she did, her concern turned to worry as she saw the green crystals hanging above them. "I can't believe I forgot about them!"

"What?! What is it, Twilight?!" Dark asked, worried by the tone of panic in Twilight's voice.

"It's the crystals!" she said, pointing up to them.

"Okay, what about them?"

Before Twilight could answer him, green flames appeared beside Twilight. Knowing what, or whom, it was from, Twilight turned her head to see that Soul had been forcefully changed into a changeling. However, unlike his pony body, Soul was almost half as big as he was as a pony, and while his eyes no longer had any pupils, Soul did maintain his dim-blue eye-color.

"That's why," Twilight sighed. "I forgot that after Queen Chrysalis' invasion, Princess Celestia had these gems imbued with magical wards that'll remove a changeling's disguise."

"But Soul is only half-changeling."

"Yes, but apparently the wards also work on him despite that."

"Am I going to be in trouble?" Soul worryingly asked, his voice now having an echo to it.

"Don't worry, Soul," Twilight said, assuringly. "You'll be fine."

"Yeah," Pinkie said as she bounced over beside them. "Besides, you look really small and cute as a changeling."

"I-I-I do not!" he protested.

"Yeah, you do," Scootaloo said, walking up to him. "I mean, look! You're smaller than we are now!"

Seeing him pouting in embarrassment, Twilight giggled before placing a hoof on his head.

"Sorry, Soul," she began with a smile, "but I have to agree with them. You do look kinda-"

"Aaaahhhhhh! A Changeling!!!"

From that one shout, all of the ponies in the train station took a second and looked at where the screaming mare was pointing. And as soon as they saw Soul, they all began to shout and run away in a panic. Seconds later, a swarm of royal guards charged them, pushing the others away from the changeling while Soul ducked down beneath Dark and Twilight, who now stood defensively above him.

"Your Highness," one of the guards said, approaching with his spear drawn, "please move away from the changeling."

Twilight gave a firm headshake. "No. This changeling is with me and will not be harmed."

"I'm sorry, Princess," another guard said, the rest cautiously approaching them from the ground and sky, "but our orders are to capture any changelings that wander into Canterlot."

Dark barred his fangs with a loud hiss. "Did you not hear what she just said?! She told you that Soul is with us!"

"And we have our orders from Princess Celestia and Princess Luna to capture any changeling that enters Canterlot! Now surrender the changeling. You're sorely outnumbered."

"So what? You may have us outnumbered, but Twilight, Pyre, and I alone have more firepower individually than all of you put together."

Another guard approached them, but flinched when Dark's eyes darted over to him. "Forgive us, Princess Twilight, but while we would normally obey your orders, Princess Celestia's and Princess Luna's orders take precedence over yours at the moment. If you wish to make a claim about the changeling, then you must speak to them about it."

Feeling like this could get dangerous for them, Dark unfurled his wings and draped one protectively over Twilight and the other down to block their sight of Soul below him.

"Okay, I admit it, Twilight," Dark quietly began, glancing over to her, "you were right about sending Princess Celestia that letter about Soul last week."

Twilight sighed. "If I had remembered about those wards, then I would have."

"Well, not much we can do about that now. So, how can we-"

"DARK! TWILIGHT! HELP!"

Hearing Soul's cry for help, Dark and Twilight turned around to see Soul being pulled out from beneath them by a unicorn guard who'd snuck up close behind them and grabbed Soul with his magic. Using her own magic, Twilight grabbed Soul away and pulled him against her chest, his smaller changeling body making it easier for her to hold him while he held onto her as best as he could.

While Twilight had Soul secured in her hold, Dark sent a shadowy tendril out from his shadow and wrapped the stallion in it before bringing him to eye-level.

"You dare to assist a changeling?!" the guard shouted at Dark, struggling to break his bonds. "Princess Celestia will hear of this!"

"Good," Dark snarled, his eyes now having turned red and his voice changed. "You can explain to her why you and the other guards ignored Twilight right now!"

"Wait, whaaaaaaaaaaaa..."

Before the guard could finish his question, Dark whipped the shadowy tendril around and threw the stallion up into the air towards Canterlot Castle. Then, using each of the guards' own individual shadows, Dark created a shadowy claw that shot up from under them before grabbing each of them around their barrel, and pulling them back down to the ground. Not even the pegasi guards were safe from their own shadows as they soon found themselves pulled down to the ground by their own shadowy claws. With each guard now being pinned down to the ground and unable to move, Dark began darting his eyes over them expectantly.

"Anypony else wanna try and take Soul from us?"

---

Princess Celestia was sitting on her throne, looking over the last of the papers of the day before having to lower the sun. With a final wave of her quill, she sighed in relief as the last of the documents had been signed. Putting it off to the side, Celestia stood up from her throne and stretched out her stiff legs and wings. With an audible pop from each joint, Celestia began walking down the dais when Luna teleported into the room.

"Greetings, sister," Luna said with a smile. "How was court today?"

Celestia gave a small sigh. "Same as always, Luna."

"Nobles wanting Blueblood freed?"

"Unfortunately. Apparently his influence was greater than we thought."

Luna scoffed. "I remember a time when the nobles wouldn't question us and come complaining to us about such trivial matters. Why can't we bring back some of the older laws that we used to have?"

"Because times have changed, Luna," Celestia told her, her mind now wandering back to their earlier years of ruling.

Luna gave a small pout. "Could we at least bring back the Death Sentence?"

"No, Luna."

"Are you sure, Tia? Because I've heard about this executioner in Saddle Arabia who lets his victims have a final chance at freedom by running away from him."

"And?"

"None of them made it. Even after giving them a head start, he's killed each of them before they could escape. I also heard that he's gained quite the fame from it, and he loves it that much more."

Celestia blanched. "What kind of a creature would do something like that and enjoy it?"

"From what I've heard, Tia, he's an egotistical earth pony stallion called Craven, the Glorified Executioner."

"After hearing about that, Luna, there will be no way in Tartarus that I'll allow the Death Sentence to return."

"Awww, that's too bad," Luna playfully pouted. "I even had the perfect stallion in mind."

Sighing, Celestia shook her head to clear her mind of this Craven. "Speaking of Dark, how has the information he's provided you with been working out?"

"I do not know, sister. I told Shining Armor and Cadence the following morning after they both woken, but have not heard of any progress from their scouts."

"Hopefully they'll find something soon," Celestia said, beginning to lead Luna towards the doors. "Whatever is going on up there, we can't let it-"

Celestia's words were cut short by the sound of something crashing through the stone floors above. Seconds later, she and Luna saw a unicorn guard in a magical barrier hurtling through the ceiling and down into the floor in front them.

"Well," Luna blinked, "I wonder what happened there?"

Together, they approached the small crater and waited for the unicorn's barrier to dissipate. When it did, the stallion looked up wearily up to the two princesses.

"Guard," Celestia spoke, "what happened to you?"

"Your Highness," he spoke in a slightly-raspy voice, "there's a changeling at the train station."

Celestia looked at him with an intense look. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, Princess."

"I shall go handle it, sister," Luna said before charging her horn.

"Princess Luna! Wait!" But it was too late. Before the guard could warn her, Luna had already teleported herself to the train station, leaving him alone with Celestia.

"Was there something you wanted to add?" Celestia asked.

"Yes, Princess," he answered. "You see, the changeling was with Princess Twilight and company when we found it. Not only that, Princess, but she and Dark were protecting it!"

This caused Celestia to give a curious look. "Twilight Sparkle is protecting a changeling?" she asked, getting a confirming nod as the guard unsteadily rose to his hooves. "Hmm. Now that is curious. Was she under any kind of mind control spell?"

"None that the wards could detect, no."

"Well then, that is curious indeed."

---

By now, a group of ponies had gathered around, looking at the guards as they continued to struggle to break free of giant shadowy claws gripping them. While they were keeping an eye out on them, Twilight was sitting down, hugging Soul who was still clinging tightly to her chest while Dark stood behind them with a wing draped protectively over them. Even the Crusaders and Spike were at Soul's side to help protect and support him.

"How's he doin?" Applejack asked as she and the others walked up beside them.

"Not very well, but not as bad either," Dark answered. "Soul is sensing the negative emotions being directed towards him from the gathering ponies, but the positive emotions we've been giving him seem to be helping him."

"Alright, let me take care of this," she said, walking past them and ahead to address the growing crowd. But before she could speak, a flash of light directly ahead of her blinded her and sent her stumbling back.

"WHERE IS THE CHANGELING?!" Luna asked, accidentally using the Royal Canterlot Voice. Realizing her mistake, she cleared her throat and was about to ask again when she saw the guards being held down by shadowy claws coming from their own shadows.

"Princess Luna?" Twilight spoke, gaining Luna's attention.

"Twilight, where is the changeling at?"

Hearing the tone in which she asked that, Dark arched his back and placed himself between Luna and Twilight and Soul.

"What do you want with Soul?" he asked with a growl.

Taken aback by Dark's appearance and actions, Luna furrowed her brows. "I would appreciate it if you would mind the tone in which you speak to me with, Dark."

"Sorry if I may seem defensive, Princess," Dark said, not showing any signs of backing down, "but after what these guards tried to pull, you can't blame me for feeling a bit tense right now."

"Princess Luna, if I may?" Twilight spoke, gently pushing Dark off to the side with a wing to look at Luna. "You see, Princess, the situation with Soul is bit more complicated than him simply being a changeling."

Seeing the small changeling clinging to Twilight's chest for dear life, along with Spike and the three fillies around him, Luna turned her gaze to look Twilight in the eyes. After a few seconds of searching her eyes for signs of deceit, she instead only saw conviction and pleading. Slowly, Luna stepped closer towards Twilight and Soul, prompting Dark to inch is way closer to them, a shadowy mist rolling off of his wings and onto the ground around them.

"I take it that you have a good reason for defending this changeling?" Luna asked sternly.

"We do," Twilight answered, her voice firm.

Taking a moment, Luna glanced down at Spike and the Crusaders, who each gave her a nod. She then looked over to their friends and Pyre, who too gave a confirming nod. With a small sigh, Luna looked back to Twilight.

"Very well then," she said. "We shall go to the castle. There you can explain to Tia and I why you are defending a changeling. But first," Luna darted her eyes to Dark, "would you mind releasing our guards, Dark?"

With a slight nod, Dark caused the shadowy claws to release their captives and retreat back into their owners' shadows.

"There," he grunted.

"My thanks. Now then, everypony and dragon prepare yourselves. I shall take us directly to the castle."

Upon hearing those words, Dark's eyes widened. "Princess, wait-"

---

While Celestia pondered on what would compel Twilight to defend a changeling, she paid the kitchen a visit for a few slices of cake that she brought back with her to the throne room, believing that Luna would want to speak with her there. As she sat on her throne with her plate of cake, she looked up and saw Luna teleport back with Twilight and the others with her, including their luggage. With a smile, Celestia sat her cake off to the side.

"Hello, everypony," she warmly welcomed them, getting a warm reply from each of them. However, when she heard a groan, she looked again to see Dark laying on his side before sighing. "Luna, didn't you know about Dark's teleportation sickness?"

Luna gave a small humph. "It seems fair to me, considering how he treated our guards."

"They started it," Dark groaned, his eyes and voice having returned to normal.

"Started what?" Celestia asked curiously.

With a foreleg still holding onto Soul, Twilight stepped forward. "They refused my orders when I told them to stand down."

"And why would you ask them to do that?" Celestia asked before noticing the small, black changeling clinging to her. "Ah, now I see. So, am I to presume that this is the changeling that Luna and I were told about?"

"He is, Princess. I told the guards that he was with us, but they wouldn't listen. They kept saying that your orders overruled my own. And while I do respect your wishes, Princess, I cannot allow for Soul to be harmed."

Celestia raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "Oh?"

Twilight nodded sheepishly. "Please believe me, Princess. Soul isn't a bad changeling... or pony."

"I'm lost, Twilight. What do you mean by changeling or pony?" As she asked, Celestia saw Soul look over to her and immediately know that something was wrong here, mainly because Soul's eyes didn't match that of a normal changeling. "Is there something special bout him?"

Again, Twilight nodded. "It's a bit of a story, Princess. If it's alright with you and Princess Luna, could my friends be excused to unload their luggage and get settled in?"

"Of course, Twilight," Celestia said.

Taking that as their cue, everyone but Twilight, Soul, and Dark gathered their luggage and made for the doors.

"Don't worry about me," Dark said, laying down in a daze from the teleportation sickness. "I'll catch up with you later."

With an eye-roll, Pyre reached down and began to unceremoniously drag Dark behind him by the tail.

"Come on, Dark," he said with a grunt, "let's go."

Once they were out of the throne room and the doors had closed, Celestia and Luna looked back to Twilight and Soul.

"Now, Twilight," Luna began, "care to explain to us what you are doing with a changeling?"

"Half-changeling, actually," Twilight corrected.

"Half?" Celestia repeated.

"Yes, ma'am," Soul softly spoke, still clinging to Twilight.

"Could you tell us how this happened, young one?"

"O-Okay. Y-You see, my mom was a changeling, and my dad was a pegasus."

"How did they meet?" Luna asked, her gaze still as hard as the moment she saw Soul.

"Mom didn't like how Queen Chrysalis ran the Hive and fled when she was about my age. Years later, she met my dad, who found her as a changeling and accepted her."

"Tell me," Celestia softly began, "did they fall in love, or did either of them force the other?"

"No, ma'am. It took some time, but they got married and later had me."

"And where are they now?"

That question caused both Soul's and Twilight's moods to dampen. Gently prying Soul off of her, Twilight put him down on the floor. When she did, Soul ran over to her side, keeping close to her while also keeping most of him hidden from Celestia and Luna.

Seeing how the question affected both Twilight and Soul, along with how Soul was acting nervous and almost afraid of them, Celestia gave the warmest smile she could and leaned down to the changeling.

"It's alright," she softly spoke, "you don't need to hide from us."

"But what about her?" Soul asked, pointing a hoof at Luna.

Celestia shook her head while maintaining her smile. "She won't do anything to hurt you, and neither will I. I promise."

Though hesitant, Soul looked up to Celestia and subtly began feeling her emotions. While she did hold a small amount of caution and fear towards him, it was almost nothing compared to the assurance and kindness that was flooding off of her. With a little nudge from Twilight, Soul tentatively walked away from Twilight and closer to Celestia. Once he was clear of Twilight, Soul watched as Celestia lit her horn and brought around a plate with a slice of cake on it.

"Would you like some?" Celestia asked. Setting the plate down in front of him, she watched as Soul carefully eyed her, Luna, and Twilight before inching towards the cake. Then, once he was close enough, he took a small nibble of it, followed by a slightly larger bite.

"Now, Soul," Twilight said in a slightly-scolding tone, "what do you say?"

Gulping, Soul looked apologetically up at Celestia. "Sorry. Thank you for the cake."

"You're welcome," Celestia said, her smile growing a little. "Soul? Mind if we talked to Twilight in private for a moment?"

With a small nod from Soul, Celestia took Soul in her magic and sat him on the cushion of her throne with the plate of cake. With him sitting comfortably, she then casted a soundproof barrier around him so that she, Luna, and Twilight could speak in private.

Making sure to have her back turned to Soul so he wouldn't be able to read her lips, Twilight began telling Celestia and Luna everything about Soul. With nothing being left out, and a quick break for Celestia and Luna to lower the sun and raise the moon respectively, Twilight's story lasted for a good hour before she'd caught them up date. By the time she was finished, Celestia's expression had turned to sorrow while Luna's had become one of regret.

"So then," Luna softly began, "that is the reason why you and Dark were resistant in surrendering him."

Twilight gave a silent nod and looked back to see that Soul had fallen asleep. "We don't care if Soul's a pony, a changeling, or something in-between. Either way, we've decided together to adopt him and give him a good home." Twilight turned her gaze towards the floor. "It's the least we can do for him."

Celestia walked up to Twilight and draped a wing over her in a hug.

"Twilight," she said, turning her chin up to look her in the eyes, "I cannot tell you how proud of you I am. Not just for being caring and responsible for taking Soul in and protecting him, but for also putting aside your feelings towards changelings. I know that you harbor ill feelings towards them, and rightly so. But in the end, you decided to put aside those feelings because it was the right thing to do. And please, Twilight, don't let the death of Soul's parents weigh you down. Nopony would want that. Especially Soul."

"Yes, Princess," Twilight said with a small sniffle.

After letting them have their moment together, Luna stepped forward.

"I should apologize to you too, Twilight," she said with a small bow. "It was wrong of me to jump to conclusions before hearing you out. Even if he is a chang- sorry, half-changeling."

"It's alright, Princess Luna," Twilight said.

"Thank you," Luna said before turning around and making her way towards the door. "I shall inform the guards and tell them that they are not to touch Soul. Shall I expect to see you all and the others at dinner still?"

"Yes," Twilight answered.

"Very well then. I shall see you all soon."

With that, Twilight and Celestia watched as Luna left them alone. Once she left the room, Twilight walked up to the throne where Soul was still sleeping and removed Celestia's soundproof barrier. Hearing him lightly snoring, Twilight smiled and leaned down to lightly nuzzle him.

"Soul, time to get up," she quietly told him, causing him to give a small squeak. With him awake, Twilight gently levitated him onto her back. "You feeling awake for something to eat?"

"Uh-huh," he answered, wiping his eyes.

"Before we leave for dinner," Celestia began, walking over to Soul. Once she was by him, she placed her glowing horn on his head and changed him back into his pony form. "There you go."

"How did you do that?" Soul asked, causing Celestia to give a small chuckle.

"I have leaned a lot over my years of ruling, Soul," she answered. "What I did was a transformation spell similar to the ones changelings use. Twilight has told me how you're unable to control your changeling powers of transformation, so this spell I casted on you should keep you as a pony, even with the wards around Canterlot."

"Thank you, ma'am."

"You're welcome, Soul, and please, call me Celestia," Celestia smiled. "Now then, what do you say we get something to eat?"

---

With dinner finished, Twilight, Dark, and Soul were making their way through the moonlit streets of Canterlot to her parents' house. They did offer for Spike to come along, but he'd asked that he stay with the Crusaders and bring them to visit them tomorrow before Dark's match began. As the three continued, they passed beneath more of the wards placed around the city, but none of them revealed Soul's changeling form. Even some of the guards that they'd passed, though a little uneasy about being told of what Soul truly is, didn't make any fuss about it. Finally, with the house in sight, Twilight smiled as she had an extra spring to her step.

"There it is," she said with a small bounce.

"Do you think they'll like me?" Soul asked.

"Why do you ask, Soul?"

"Is it because you're half-changeling?" Dark guessed, getting a small nod from him.

"Ponies don't like changelings. Even if I'm just half, they still don't like me," Soul said.

"I know, and I'm sorry, Soul," Twilight said. "But we like you, and so do your friends, our friends, and Princess Celestia. Heck, even Princess Luna started to warm up to you during our lunch together."

"I guess."

"Besides, I'm sure that my parents will love you regardless."

Less than a minute later, they walked up to her parents' house and knocked on the door. Despite it being a little late, however, they weren't outside for long as after a few moments of waiting, the door was opened by Velvet.

"Welcome home, sweetie," Velvet said, pulling Twilight into a hug and giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"Hello, mom," Twilight returned.

"Did I hear that Twilight is here?" Night asked from the living room.

"Yes, Night. Twilight and Dark are here!" Velvet called out. When she let go of Twilight, she went over and gave Dark a hug. "And how's my future son-in-law doing?"

"MOM!" Twilight whined with a blush.

"Oh, come now, Twilight. Your father and I know that it's going to happen sooner or later. Now, Dark, how have you been doing?"

Dark smiled with a chuckle. "I'm doing just great, Velvet."

"What's this now? No more Miss or Mrs.?" she teased.

"Not unless you want me to go back to saying it."

"No, it's alright." Velvet let go of Dark when her eyes fell upon the colt hiding behind him. "Hello there, who is this?"

"This is Clear Soul, mom," Twilight answered, "and he's actually part of the reason why we're here."

"Alright. Why don't you three come in make yourselves comfortable in the living room. Would you like something to drink?"

"No thank you, mom. We just got done having dinner with the princesses and our friends."

"Okay, sweetie."

After letting them in and closing the door behind them, Velvet walked them into the living room where Night was reading the newspaper. Upon seeing them, he sat it off to the side and went to give Twilight a welcoming hug.

"How's my little filly doing?" he asked.

"I'm doing good, dad," Twilight answered, hugging him back.

Letting go of her, Night turned to Dark, who was subtly shifting from one hoof and claw to the others with memories of their last meeting.

"Dark," Night said with a nod.

"Hello, Night," Dark returned. "You're not still upset about what I am, are you?"

With a sigh, Night shook his head. "No. I'll admit that I'm still a little uncomfortable with the thought of my daughter dating Death, but I know you and I shouldn't have acted like that."

With a breath of relief, Dark's body relaxed. After exchanging a hoof/claw shake from Night, he motioned for them to sit while he retook his chair and Velvet took the loveseat.

"So, Dark," Night began, "are you ready for tomorrow."

"Pretty much," he answered. "Between working the forge and the training from Nocturne and Pyre, I should be ready to go."

"Who's Pyre?" Velvet asked.

"Oh, he's Dark's other brother," Twilight answered. "Pyre is the Lord of Fire, much like how Dark is the Lord of Death, and Aero is the Lady of Air."

"I see. So he's one of those special dragons, right?"

"Yep," Dark answered with a nod. "He actually came with us. You'll meet him at the Coliseum tomorrow."

"So then," Night began, "you say that you're ready, but do you have a strategy in mind?"

"I'll start off by using physical strength and weapons. I don't want to use my magic until towards the end, or unless I feel like I need to."

"Actually, Dark," Twilight began, "if it's alright with you, could you not use your death magic?"

"Which ones?"

"All of them, including your shadows."

Dark looked to Twilight in surprise. "Why?"

Twilight gave him a deadpan look. "After seeing how easily you neutralized those guards at the train station, if you did go into the fight with that magic, then you'd easily win. I just don't think it would be very fair for them if you were allowed to use it is all."

Dark looked like he was about to object, but the unmoving look Twilight was giving him told him otherwise.

"Only for you," he sighed in defeat.

"Thank you for listening," Twilight thanked, giving him a quick peck and causing his smile to return.

"So," Night began, looking at Soul sitting between them, "who's the kid?"

"Oh, right," Twilight said, returning to back to Soul. "Dad, mom, this is Clear Soul. Soul? These are my parents, Night Light, and Twilight Velvet."

Soul looked up to Twilight. "You and your mom have the same name?"

Velvet giggled. "Everypony calls me Velvet, dear. It makes it so that ponies don't mistake me for my daughter."

"Oh, okay, Mrs. Velvet."

"Now then, Twilight, care to tell your father and I what he's doing here with you?"

Oh, Celestia this is harder then I thought it would be, Twilight thought, nervously rubbed her hooves together. "Well... you see, mom... umm... Dark, care to help me out?"

"Sure," he shrugged, turning to Night and Velvet. "Okay, long story short, Twilight and I have adopted Soul."

There was a long silence that followed. Neither Night or Velvet could find anything to say at the moment as they were too surprised by the sudden news. It wasn't until a few minutes later that Velvet finally spoke.

"So..." she slowly began, looking between the three of them. "Does this mean that Soul is our grandson?"

Twilight nervously rubbed the back of her head. "Well, technically he'd be your adopted grandson, but yes."

Slowly, Velvet's expression turned from one of shock, to pure joy as she squealed and ran over to give Soul a loving and crushing hug.

"I can't believe we have a grandson!" she squealed.

Night blinked a few times before his brain caught up with him. "Well... that's quite the news."

"Yeah, I guess it is," Twilight said.

"So, what made you decide to adopt?" Night's curious look turned to one of mischief. "Is it because Dark's firing blanks?"

Both Dark's and Twilight's faces lit up in embarrassment.

"D-Dad!" Twilight shouted. "W-What would make you say that?!"

"What?" he innocently shrugged. "I'm just curious, seeing as how you two have decided to adopt instead of having a foal of your own. Not that I'm complaining about it or anything."

"That's because we've agreed that we're not ready for a foal of our own yet," Dark said defensively.

"Dark? What's it mean when a pony is firing blanks?" Soul asked.

"... I'll tell you when you're a little older, Soul."

Soul gave a small pout. "Is it related to the sex talk you gave me last week?"

Celestia kill me now, Dark mentally groaned. "Yes."

"So? What does it mean?"

"It means that he can't have foals," Night answered with a small smirk.

"Night, behave yourself," Velvet scolded before turning back to Dark. "I'm sorry about him, Dark."

"It's fine," he sighed.

"But you still haven't told us why you two adopted him."

"It's because I found I'm being chased in the Everfree Forest, which also happened to be where he lived for the last few years... alone."

Hearing the reason, Velvet tightened her hug on Soul and began nuzzling him affectionately.

"Oh, you poor colt," she said to Soul.

Feeling the love and affection being given to him, Soul smiled and began nuzzling Velvet back.

"I take it that you've gotten him checked up?" Velvet questioned.

"We have," Twilight answered. "For the most part, Soul was healthy when we first found him." Twilight paused as the other topic came to mind. "Also, there's something else about Soul that you should probably be aware of."

"Oh? What is it?"

Twilight took a deep breath before answering. "Soul is half-pony."

"Really? And what's the other half?"

"Well... do you promise not to freak-out?"

"Yes, sweetie. I promise."

"Thank you. In that case, Soul's other half is a changeling."

Velvet blinked in surprise. "Are you saying that Soul is a half-pony, half-changeling?"

"I am. Now, before you or dad start, I would just like to point out first that he isn't like the changelings we've seen. His mother left the Hive when she was Soul's age, so she has no connection to Queen Chrysalis or the invasion on Canterlot."

"He wouldn't by chance be the same changeling that I've heard of that was spotted at the train station, would he?" Night questioned.

"Yes, but it wasn't my fault," Soul said. "Those gems forced me to change. It's bad enough that I can't control it, but now I'm being forced to."

"If that's true, then why does he look like a pony now?" Velvet wondered.

"Princess Celestia changed him back into a pony and has placed a spell on him that'll cancel out the wards," Twilight answered.

Dark, meanwhile, cocked his head to the side. "You two seem to be handling this pretty well, considering what Soul is."

"Well, while it is a bit of a surprise, Dark, it isn't that hard to believe," Velvet said. "After all, when you think about it, Twilight's an alicorn, you're a kirin, Spike is Twilight's dragon brother, you have your own dragon siblings who are of a special and rare race of dragons, and now you have a half-changeling as an adopted son."

Running all of those facts through his head, Dark chuckled. "I suppose you're right. We do have a sort of mismatched family." Dark draped a wing around Twilight and pulled her over to him. "And I couldn't ask for a better one."

Smiling from the compliment, Twilight leaned over and began nuzzling Dark. "Neither could I. At least, for now anyway."

"Huh? What do you mean by that?"

"You'll find out eventually," she teased before giving him a kiss.

The next hour they spent catching up with each other, including a few stories from Soul about his travels with his mom and dad, and some of the things that he did at school. Night had himself an especially good laugh when Soul told him and Velvet about his pranking spree during Hearts and Hooves Day. However, as much as a good time they were having, the sound of Soul yawning reminded them that it was getting late for them and that they had to return to the castle. Placing the half-asleep Soul onto her back where he snuggled down into, Twilight and Dark made their way to the door where they said their goodbyes.

"Couldn't you three stay here for the night?" Velvet asked, sounding a little disappointed.

"Thank you, mom," Twilight thanked, "but it wouldn't be right for us to just barge in and stay over without any warning. Would you be okay with it if we did tomorrow?"

"Of course, sweetie," she said, giving Twilight a goodbye hug. "We'll be looking forward to it."

"We'll also be looking forward to seeing you in action tomorrow, Dark," Night grinned. "The Coliseum has been buzzing this last week about it. Apparently, the ponies around here still remember your fight with Shining and are hoping for another good fight from you."

"I'll try my best to not disappoint them," Dark chuckled. "It was nice to see you again, Night."

"You too, Dark. Have a goodnight you two, and see you tomorrow."

"Goodnight," they both replied.

With their visit having gone well, and tired from the events of this afternoon, Twilight, Dark, and Soul returned to the castle for some rest. Both for the emotional stress of that day, and for what's to come tomorrow.

Author's Note:

Not Craven, Craaaaaaaaven.

Comments

[Titan Commander Sebaste]

Well that got a bit hectic, but things turned out well in the end!

[SirDragon001]

Noxians, I hate those guys.

[Gem of Memory]

7303181
Wha?...

[BronyGuy2014]

For some reason I literally fell over laughing when Craaaaaaaven was mentioned, please tell me he'll appear later! :D

[Garuda IV]

7635311
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[Yelp]

So...Fight in Colosseum with Shining- You should have used your shadow magic instead of agreeing not to. Now fighting others in the Colosseum- You shouldn't use shadow magic because it would be 'unfair'...

[Fawkes]

7646330 she just said he shouldnt be goaded into handicapping himself, because shining was crazy. here, its a match for fun, so he should make it fair

[Admiral_Gravleos]

Sighing, Spike held out a claw and began to focus. Squinting his eyes in concentration, a green magical aura matching the color of his spines enshrouded his claw. A few seconds later, that same aura was covering his luggage, and, with a strained grunt, the bag lifted off of the ground an half-inch before it dropped back down. Panting from exhaustion, Spike looked back over to Twilight.

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