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Deceptions

A cool wind swept over the crystal laid castle, sending the flag perched at the top flapping in a pin pointed direction. The blades of grass that laid in the open fields went waving, creating a wave of green and brown. No pony in particular set hoof on the gravel streets of the town, for most were inside, wrapped up in a warm blanket. Fall was approaching fast, sweeping summer to the side.

The castle itself was cool as well, the blue crystal lining the walls storing the crisp air in it's cracks and crevices. The windows were fogged up a little, carrying many small drops of dew on it's clear smoothness. Inside, the halls were warm, the heat being brought about by the torches mounted upon the wall. The light glowed, reflecting off of the icy ground and walls. They were filled with the sound of a conversation, one voice being the clear and concise voice of Applejack, the other the raspy, vibrating voice of Hux, who were both in a room leading off of the main area where the thrones sat.

The room they were in was, like the rest of the castle, a crystal lined room, certain points of crystal jutting out of the main wall. The room housed a small, circular table, along with two chairs. The room itself had no torches, so the only illuminating glow coming from a small, white candle which sat upon a golden base. It was lit, diverging a plethora of oranges and reds around the room. The orange country pony had taken off her hat and hung it on a hook that protruded from the door on the inside. The two sat, looking around the room to avoid each other's eyes. Applejack broke the silence that had lingered for a moment.

"So," she spoke, "you know what you are supposed to do, Hux?"

Hux looked at the orange pony, "yeah, I think so."

"Wanna' relay it one more time?"

Hux nodded. He only had one chance to prove to these ponies that he was trustworthy, and he didn't want to screw it up due to one tiny mistake.

"So, for five days," she lifted her hoof up to her chest which showed only slightly above the table, "you will act and look like me. We have not told anypony about this, so you mess anything up and they will think it is me."

"Wait," Hux pondered, "doesn't your family know?"

Applejack closed her eyes and swayed her head back and forth. "Nope."

Hux scrunched up his muzzle. "Oh jeez. You guys really are putting a lot of trust on me."

"And I hope," Applejack said, "that you can return the feeling of trust to us. We truly don't want to do anything bad to you Hux, but you have put us in between a rock and a hard place."

Hux nodded, taking a gulp. "You really don't like changelings, do you?"

Applejack stared, unflinching. "Not particularly. I do hope, though, that you can change my mind set. You seem good enough, Hux, though, whether I believe it or not, my gut is not giving me a good feeling."

Hux shrugged, "I guess it's just your instinct. Changelings and ponies have been at each other's throats for a long time."

The two sat in silence, digesting what had just been said, until Applejack spoke out again.

"Okay, so you will be me for five days. We will not have any eyes on you, Hux, so do as you please within the town. If you leave, it won't exactly help your cause."

"Got it."

Applejack nodded slightly. "And, if you leave," Applejack spoke, trying to lighten the mood with a slight smile, "keep my hat here."

Hux returned the smile. "Sure thing."

Applejack raised her hooves to the table, scooting her seat away from the table that separated the two. "Well, best be goin'."

Hux copied her, his making a slight screech that rang down the halls and through the rooms. He winced, the sound hurting his ears a little. "Sorry."

Applejack ignored the apology, sliding off her chair and clopping to the ground. Hux followed her to his feet, looking at her as he touched down.

"Thank you again, Applejack, for giving me a chance."

She stopped and looked at the ground, her eyes wiggling as she scanned the reflections. "Just don't make me regret it. I won't like being trapped in here anymore than you would've, so it would be a waste if you ruined this."

"I'll try not to, Applejack. I understand how hard it must be, giving up your life for five whole days."

She nodded and stood still for a few moments, eventually lifting her head back up to it's normal height. She reached for her hat which laid against the door but put her hoof back down after realizing that she wouldn't even have her hat with her here. She motioned for him to grab it, to which he complied.

He slid the hat on top of his head, then willing his body to be enveloped in a green vortex of energy, his bone structure and muscles warping to fulfill the role as the country pony, making an almost exact copy. The green energy faded into the air, small wisps hanging on to existence longer than the others, but they too dispersed in time.

Applejack scanned Hux's new, orange body. She looked to his eyes and nodded. "Looks good."

"Believable?"

"Hopefully," she responded, "it is kinda' necessary for it to be."

Hux nodded in agreement, turning away for a second and then returning his eyes to his partner in the room, the pony who was giving him a chance despite her hatred for his kind. He had to reassure her some how, he had to try to remove those wisps of doubt in her eyes. "I'll make sure to keep your family safe."

Applejack looked at the ground yet again, a shininess laying across her eyes. "You better."

The silence enveloped again, neither of them talking. Hux didn't want to stay any longer, in fear that Applejack would change her mind. He opened the door and trotted his way out through the main door of the castle, leaving a tearing up Applejack alone in the room. A single tear trailed down her nose and lost it's grip at the tip of her muzzle, hitting the ground and distorting the reflected image of the room.

"You better," she said, a shimmer of sadness in her quivering voice, "you better."

Twilight sat near the entrance leading to the path which in turn lead to the castle. She was levitating a book, studying the inscription upon the paper. She had decided, along with the rest of the group, to not be in the castle while the two conducted their business. They understood that Applejack was a really family dedicated pony, and they understood giving them up for five days was probably the most stressful thing she had ever had to do. Especially with her hatred of changelings.

The book that was shimmering with a purple aura was a blue, leather bound book, the papers a slight tinge of yellow from the old age. She had had this book sitting on her bookshelf, never actually giving time to reading it. The cover and back were a blank blue slab, the spine reading The Golden Ages of the Changeling Species, under it reading Transcribed by S. S. Bearded. She had taken a particular interest in page 347, where a graph was drawn out. The graph showed a steadily decreasing line that sometimes jutted up or down in spastic intervals. The x axis was labeled "Years after ponies and changelings met" and the y axis was labeled in turn as "Changeling population." The graph's title read "Changeling Population After Ponies Made Contact."

She ran her eyes across the words under the picture, but stopped as she noticed the blob of orange making it's way towards her down the gravely path, the crunching of her hooves hitting the small stones reaching it's way up to her purple ears. She forced energy to her horn and returned the book to the bookshelf with a simple poof. She outstretched her wings, flapping and sending the wind under them clashing into the ground. She raised into the air, pointing towards the orange pony, and made her way over to her.

The orange pony stared at the ground as she trotted down the path, sending pebbles flying the opposite way. She stopped once she heard the flap of wings and the churning of the air. She looked up to meet the eyes of the alicorn descending in front of her. "Hey, Twilight."

"Hi," she winked, "Applejack."

"So, uh," Hux spoke, Applejack's voice escaping his new lips, "where do I live?"

Twilight pointed her hoof, "that way. You live on a farm named Sweet Apple Acres."

"Okay, I'll head there."

"By the way, Applejack," Twilight said, stopping his stride, "you need to have an accent. You are a country pony after all."

Hux rolled his eyes and left the purple pony standing on the gravel. Twilight lifted off once again, catching up to Applejack where she then touched ground and trotted along at the same pace.

"You want any information, like, about the town or anything?"

Hux nodded after pondering, "who all is in my family?"

Twilight looked towards where the pair was walking. "You have your brother, Big Mac. He's a big red stallion, strongest on the farm except for maybe you. You can't miss him. Then there's your little sister, Applebloom, a real sweet heart, loves you to bits. Then, finally, there's Granny Smith. She's a bit old so she might talk nonsense at times. Real wise though, so try your best to act exactly like Applejack."

Hux nodded, his new blond mane swaying in the cool breeze. "Where should I go if I get hungry? I am actually not a big fan of apples."

Twilight looked to the pair's right, nodding towards a building that stood two stories high, white popping out along some of the decorated areas of the building. "That's Sugar Cube Corner, the best place to get sweets in Ponyville. It's owned by Mr. and Mrs. Cake, two really nice ponies. They have been serving treats since before I moved here."

"When'd you move here?"

"About five years ago," Twilight smiled, recalling all of the memories she had had in this town, "I moved here by my own will and the acceptance of Princess Celestia. I was her student at the time."

"Is Celestia the white one with a sun on her butt?"

Twilight looked over at him, annoyed. "Yeah, that's her. The one your queen-"

"Look, don't go into that. After talking with y'all for a while I realize how bad I feel for that. I don't know why we attacked, but I know it wasn't right."

Twilight looked forward again. "If you need anything else you might want to ask quick. We're almost there."

"Aren't you leaving before I get there?"

"I think I can make this a little easier for you and get them to keep you in bed for a few days."

"How?"

"Take off your hat for a minute."

Hux had actually almost forgot that he had on her hat. It was quite comfortable, after all. He removed the hat with his orange hoof. "What now-"

A sharp pain rang through the back of his head, filling his new nerves with a feeling of agony. He lifted his hoof up to the back of his neck before falling to the ground, the hat gliding down softly onto Hux's side. "Sorry, didn't mean to hit you that hard. It'll work anyways, though." Hux opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out, for all of the wind had been knocked out of his lungs. His vision started to diminish, the color fading from the scene and being replaced by a dull black, leaving the orange pony knocked out on the road only a mile from the farm.

Twilight quickly looked around to see if anyone saw what she had done to the orange pony, but no one was around so she suspected she was in the clear. She put will into her horn, lifting the pony, hat and all, into the air, trotting along with it the rest of the way towards Sweet Apple Acres.

Hux opened his eyes once again, having to blink to remove the white spots from his eyes. As his vision returned, he inspected his new surroundings. He was covered up in a bed, the white sheets doing little to keep him warm. He was in a room with red walls and a white ceiling. One the wall to the right of him was a door, hinged to the wall by golden hooks. There was a hole in the wall where, supposedly, somepony had opened the door too hard. On his left was a window where rays of golden light hit the floor, giving the room most of it's light. There was also a bed side table, painted green with red apples painted on the front. On the table sat a white envelope and a bowl of soup, still steaming.

As he tried to sit up, he finally felt the bandage on the back of his head where he had been punched by that purple jerk. He winced as he applied pressure to the lump that had formed. He finally managed to sit up all the way, after which he reached over to pick up the envelope. His eyes grew as he realized that he wasn't orange anymore, and his legs were once again filled with holes. Hopefully no one had seen him like this.

He reached again for the envelope, hitting the white bowl which staggered, eventually tipping off the side of the table. It hit the ground with a crash, the noodles and bits of apple spreading out in the pool of tan liquid. The spoon clanked to the floor last, sending a ring throughout the room. He winced, hoping no one heard that. He reached and finally grabbed the envelope.

He tore the seal, flipping the top up, revealing a yellow card inside. He slid it out and inspected the card. On the front it said "Get Well Soon" in red letters, a slight amount of glitter being glued to the front. He flipped the card opened, revealing a plain white inside with black scribbles on the right. He read it out loud, making sure his voice still worked and that it hadn't been ruined by the knockout.

"Dear Hux," he started, "I am sorry I punched you. Just look on the bright side, though, you will most likely be out for a day or two, though with how hard I punched you it might be longer. When you get this, find a way to get out of the farm and make your way back to the castle. We need to refresh your brain of Applejack's appearance. Signed, Twilight Sparkle."

He waved his eyes over the writing again, making sure he didn't miss anything. Hux loved to read, the art being one of his favorite pass times. His eyes were drawn off of the card as he heard steps nearing the door. They were big hoofsteps, making him think that it was probably that Big Mac that Twilight was talking about. He hoped his memory was fresh enough, and willed his body to change again, once again being enveloped by the green energy.

The door burst open, a cloud of dust from the old wood flapping into the air, making it hard to see the pony that made it's way into the room.

"Why, Applejack," a male voice spoke, "is that you?"

He spoke, his throat feeling a little dry from the dust making it's way into his throat. "Is that you, Big Mac?"

"Oh, no, of course not!" The figure stepped out from the dust cloud. It was a tan pony with a blue and white button up on, his cutie mark being an apple with a small cut in it, a piece being cut out from it. The figure wore a straw hat, a well made one at that, and his mouth was covered by a mustache of red. "It is me, your old friend Flam!"

Hux squinted. He did not remember being told about somepony named Flam. He didn't know exactly what situation he was in, but he did not like it, not one bit. "Oh... right."

"I was just talking to Granny Smith the other day-"

"About what?"

Flam looked annoyed at being cut off, "about the whole feud we had a while back. You do remember that, don't you?"

"Uh," Hux tried to act natural, not knowing what could come out of this, "oh yeah. What about it?"

"Well, Flim and I realized that we actually did win. The whole bet was about who could make more barrels, not better tasting ones. So, in reality, we are the new owners of this farm!"

Hux opened his eyes wide. He was in a hole, a very deep one. "That was a long time ago," he tried to act like he knew what he was talking about, "it doesn't matter now, does it?"

"Well you see," a new figure said, stepping into the room, "Flam crashed the Super Duper Cider Squeezy 6000 into a ditch, so we are kind of in a dilemma. We had nothing, but then we realized that this whole feud we won! So, we went from having nothing, to having everything!" The pony, supposedly Flim, spread his arms, looking into the sky. He went back down to all fours after a moment, though.

"That is not how it works," Hux spoke.

"Oh, but Applejack, it does," Flam said. "So I guess this gives you two options: leave our farm or stay here working for us for free for the rest of your lives. I don't think you guys want to be called in for trespassing, do you?"

Hux slid out of the bed, the white sheets returning to their flat state on the mattress. "This is our farm, you freaks. We are not letting you have it."

"Applejack," Flim spoke, lowering his eyes on Hux, "you don't want to go to jail, now."

"Shut it and leave."

"Applejack," Flam said, "this is our-"

"No it ain't!"

Flim put on a scowl, making his way over to Hux. He slapped him hard enough to go flying into the wall, a sharp pain going through him as the lump on the back of his head hit the wood. Flames writhed in Flim's eyes. "Do not talk to us that way, young lady!"

Hux spit in Flim's face hovering three inches away from his, hitting him directly in the left eye. He backed up, hooves over his eye. Flam now made his way towards him, lifting his hoof up. Hux quickly kicked at the stallion making his way towards him, colliding with his knee, which made an ungodly snap as it broke from the strength of his kick.

Hux got to his hooves, running out of the room. He emerged into a hallway, the right side leading to a dead end. He made his way down the left side, the floor creaking under his weight. He continued, eventually reaching a flight of stairs. He took them down, leading him to an open room, the floor covered in hay and the corners of the room being occupied by stacks of hay barrels. He spotted the door, galloping towards it and reaching a hoof out to push it open. He was instead met with a metal door, not even budging from his advance. He looked up the stairs where he came from, where Flim stood, holding a remote in his hoof.

"No where to run, Applejack!"

Hux stood where he way, preparing for a charge towards the tan pony.

"Oh, go right ahead, Applejack."

Hux pushed off with his legs, racing towards the unflinching pony. He ran faster and faster, about to hit him when...

The sound of a gun shot rang into his ears, a splitting pain racing through his side. He fell on his side, blood oozing from the hole. It spilled over his orange coat, creating a pool on the wooden floor. His vision started to fade, once again being clouded by darkness.

Flam, gun in hoof awkwardly walked on two legs over to Hux, still disguised as Applejack. The smoke still rose from the silver revolver in his tan hoof, the revolver that had released the bullet. Hux tried hard to not fall unconscious again, fighting to withstand the pain. He clenched his teeth at the blackening sight of the pony who had shot him, who in turn stared into his eyes.

"This could've gone a different way, Applejack, but you made us use force. Now say goodnight." Flam, now balancing on only one hoof, kicked Hux in the muzzle, blood splashing on his eyes before they went completely black.

He thought about Applejack as his consciousness faltered, Applejack and her family. He hope they would be alright.

He truly hoped they would rise above these two ponies.

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