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Prologue - Lost Property1,675 words
Chapter 1 - Paranoid4,741 words
Chapter 2 - Sleep-deprived4,659 words
Chapter 3 - Pest Control4,663 words

Chapter 3 - Pest Control

Dirt clouds arose as Butterfly’s hooves hit the ground with each step. She she struggled to dodge each passing pony, at best she would brush them, at worst she would topple them over. Though she’d mutter an apology, it’s likely they wouldn’t have heard it and she would’ve already been gone. She was focused on the path ahead of her, which seemingly had no more ponies walking by, until a black shape flashed in front of her, leading to a collision with a mare with a purple mane with lighter highlights. Butterfly blew her blue mane from her face then looked down at the mare she bumped into, who was staring up at her with her deep blue eyes.

“Gee, what’s gotten you in a rush?” she questioned.

“Oh… Gemma, sorry...” she scrambled off of her. “I didn’t mean to bump into you, I’m just looking for Iremia.”

Gemma snickered. “You have like, ten more hours of today left. Spending all the time you can with her, I see.” She smirked, her brows wiggling. Butterfly cocked her head at the weird gesture.

“...I guess? I just need to speak to her as soon as possible,” she replied. “Say, you don’t happen to know where abouts she’ll be, would you?”

Gemma tilted her head. “You didn’t know where she was? Where exactly were you going then?”

“To the castle.” Butterfly glanced towards the large crystal structure in the distance.

“Oh, me too!” Gemma exclaimed, trotting over to stand beside the changeling. “I was gonna go visit Radiance.”

“Ah. Well, we could go look for them both together, if you want.”

“That’s what I was hinting at, silly filly!” She patted Butterfly’s head. “Anyway, we ought to get moving!” With that, she darted down the pathway. Butterfly scurried after her, struggling to keep at the same pace, having used up most of her energy on the way here. They both galloped down the pathway, which was lit up by crystals of multiple colours. She finally reached the steps that led up to the door of the castle, probably about a full sixty seconds after Gemma.

“You’re a bit of a slow poke today,” Gemma commented, smirking.

“I have shorter legs than you,” Butterfly retorted, panting as she climbed the steps. “Anyway, have you knocked yet?”

Gemma shook her head. “I decided to be polite and wait.” She then raised a hoof to knock as hard as she could on the door. They both then stood there, waiting for someone to answer.

“...So, what was it that you needed to talk to Iremia so urgently?” Gemma suddenly asked.

“Oh, just… somethin’ about.... dreams, I guess.” Butterfly shrugged. “What did you need to see Radiance about?”

“Well, we were discussing the magic of the Crystal Heart the other day, and I was wondering if she had found anything else about it.”

Butterfly nodded as she listened. “What was it you were talkin’ about?

Gemma flickered her ear. “Oh, just… err-” The door opening interrupted them both.

“Who is present?” a young sounding voice pryed.

“It’s fine, Sirius! It’s just us,” Gemma replied, amused. “No villains to be seen here!”

The door then opened slowly, allowing the sunlight to shed onto the grey-lilac alicorn filly eying them both curiously with her amber glare.

“I see. Mother mentioned your presence yesterday, Butterfly, so I can assume you are here for my older sister.”

Butterfly nodded slowly, but did not feel obliged to move without this young foal’s permission. Sirius turned her burning gaze onto Gemma.

“You. State your purpose.”

Gemma, somehow, remained unphased by the filly, and instead kept her casual grin.

“Just here to see Radiance, ‘tis all!” she stated.

“I see. Well, I trust you both in our home, so I will allow you to stay.” She then shut the door behind them with her magic. “Now-”

“Sirius!”

The filly’s ominous attitude seemed to make a one-eighty as she heard her foalsitter’s voice.

“Yes, Radiant?” She spun around to meet the pale lavender unicorn.

“Stop acting as if the castle’s under attack,” Radiant scolded her. Sirius pouted.

“But mother says to stay alert of castle visitors!” she protested.

Radiant rolled her violet eyes. “Yes, as in, strangers. We’ve known these two for years.”

Sirius grumbled something under her breath. Radiant sighed, then turned to Gemma.

“Hey, you here for me?”

Gemma nodded, trotting over to her and giving the mare a hug, though the gesture was, expectedly, not returned. The black mare then stepped away from her, an excited grin plastered on her face.

“Say, you read up anything on Crystal Heart magic yet?”

She gave a nod. “Of course I have. I said I would.” She pushed her blue glasses up her muzzle with her white hoof. “I still need to write up some notes on it though.” She then turned to Butterfly, who was standing there silently. “You looking for Iremia?”

Butterfly nodded.

Radiant turned to Sirius. “Would you mind escorting Butterfly to wherever Iremia is?”

Sirius nodded. “Fine, fine.” She began to walk, then turned back to Butterfly who hadn’t yet moved. “Follow me, young changeling.” Butterfly did as she said, and followed closely behind her to the library. Sirius stopped outside the door to the room and turned to face her.

“She is in there. Please enter quietly, in caution of my sister lost in her psychological thoughts.

Butterfly smiled nervously. “Uh… thanks, Sirius.” She then proceeded to slowly push the door open.

“Wait!”

She jumped at Sirius’ command, hitting the door with her hoof a little too hard by accident.

“Wha…. what is it?”

Sirius, surprisingly, was staring at her with a friendly gaze.

“Say, how’s Syrup?”

“Syrup?” Butterfly echoed. “Oh, he’s doin’ good.”

Sirius smiled. “That’s good! Now, I’ll leave you alone.” The alicorn then trotted in the direction they had just came from. Butterfly had beads of sweat dripping down her forehead, and felt relieved to finally be alone. She then returned to opening the door to the library.

She stepped into the room, scanning the area for the pink unicorn. She soon spotted her placing a book back onto a shelf.

“Iremia!” she called, galloping over to her. Iremia glanced away from the shelf and smiled at her.

“Hello, Butterfly! I heard you coming in.” She finished shoving the book back into placed and turned towards her.

“Did you find out anythin’ about the thing?” she asked before she had even stopped galloping to her.

“Oh…” Iremia’s smile faded, making Butterfly’s stomach tighten. “I’m afraid… not much.” She then trotted over to her usual reading spot, which was some cushions piled up on one another. Scattered among them were different books on different Equestrian creatures, both mythical and legendary. Butterfly followed the unicorn to the spot, counting five different text books, Her blue eyes widened.

“You read all of these overnight?”

Iremia nodded. “Well, scanned thoroughly, but it’s close enough.” She levitated one of them off of the ground and flickered through the pages. “I didn’t find much that matched your description, Butters.”

“Oh.” Her rigid ears drooped.

“I’m sorry I can’t assure you about your worries, but I did look into it, and came to the conclusion that it was probably just another pony lurking around the orchard.” She lay a hoof on the changeling’s shoulder. “I suggest that you and your family keep a lookout for any suspicious behaviour, since it could be somepony planning to-”

“It wasn’t a pony,” she suddenly blurted out. Iremia was taken aback, drawing her hoof away from her.

“You don’t think so…?”

Butterfly narrowed her eyes as she picked up one of the books with her magic. She flicked through it, her icy blue pupils searching for a certain image. After a few moments of searching, her eyes landed on the page she had hoped for. She held the book in front of her, revealing what was written to Iremia. Iremia squinted, looking over the pages before her.

“...A changeling?” she finally said uncertainly. Butterfly nodded confidently. Iremia didn’t look so sure. “How can you be positive it was?”

“Because I visited Evergreen today.” She slammed the book shut and dropped it onto the pillows. “On the way I caught a wiff of a strange scent I didn’t recognize. Then Evergreen told me about a specimen she had found around the edge of the Everfree Forest. We looked into it, and came to the conclusion that it came from a changeling, but not me.”

Iremia cocked her head sideways. “How do you know it wasn’t you?”

“It was a different colour from my skin,” she explained. “It couldn’t have been me.”

“...And you’re both sure it was a changeling?”

Butterfly nodded frantically. “Yes, Evergreen’s the expert when it comes to nature!” She then stepped forward and grabbed Iremia by the shoulders. “There’s changelings stalkin’ me, Iremia! They’re here to take me to their hive and interrogate me about pony culture! We’re doomed!” she cried, burying her muzzle in Iremia’s chest fur. She felt the unicorn console her by stroking her mane gently.

“I’m sure that’s not the case, Butters,” she assured her.

“How can you be so sure?” Butterfly stared up at her, her eyes large and desperate.

Iremia blinked a few times, trying to think up an answer. “I...I’m sure changelings don’t do that. They have no need to, since they can disguise themselves.”

Butterfly narrowed her eyes at her. “You’re not lyin’, are you?”

Iremia shook her head. “You can usually tell.”

“True.” She could recognize Iremia’s smile to be genuine, rather than faked. “And I don’t think you are.”

“Good, because I’m not.”

Butterfly parted herself from the unicorn. “I’m sorry about all this, it’s probably botherin’ you,” she sighed. “I’m just really worried somethin’s gonna happen to me or maybe somepony else.”

Iremia gave her a pitiful look. “I know, and I’m worried about you.”

Butterfly stared at the floor. “I wish I didn’t go and visit Evergreen. Now I’m never gonna stop worryin’ about an entire changeling hive surrounding the barn while we sleep!”

Iremia gave a solacing gaze, before raising a brow as an idea seemed to come into her mind. Butterfly looked up at her hopefully, wondering what she was thinking.

“I was just thinking… maybe we could trek the orchard at nighttime, and see if there really is anything lurking around,” she suggested. Butterfly’s eyes widened.

“I-is that safe?” she fretted. “I mean, just the two of us? At night? Coming into contact with a hive of changelings?”

“True, but we don’t have to make ourselves known,” Iremia said. “I can also ask my mother if she can come with us. It’s her job to guard the night, after all.”

Butterfly thought for a moment. That was true, and an alicorn as powerful as Princess Luna would be very helpful in this situation.

“Good point… but would she take us seriously? All the proof we have is my apparent delusions and a tiny piece of changeling hoof.”

Iremia grinned confidently. “Of course she would! If there’s a possible threat to Equestria, it’s her duty to look further into it.” She then smiled sheepishly. “Also… it would be nice to get some quality mother-daughter time. We’ve both been rather busy lately.”

Butterfly tilted her head. “You consider changeling hunting as quality mother-daughter time?”

“Yes. Yes I do.” She grinned. “My mother and I on a nighttime hunt for a colony of changelings? Once in a lifetime experience!”

“Goodnight, Butterfly,” Applejack said quietly, only her head poking through into her room at this point. Butterfly smiled at her from across the room.

“Thank’s, mom,” she replied. Applejack gave a warm smile, before completely exiting the room. The little light that shone through into her room shrank and then completely disappeared as the door closed, leaving only the moonlight to shine through the gap between the curtains, which was the only light that allowed her to see her surroundings.

She lay there in bed, her eyes as wide as they could possibly be, staring up at the ceiling. The wood sheltering her head seemed to be much more appealing that resting her head on the soft pillow and allowing her mind to drift off into the dream world. She wasn’t sure how long she stared at the planks of wood above her, but time seemed to fly by a lot quickly than it usually did. She noticed that she was constantly tempted to allow her eyes to shut, and kept having to flash them open.

She was counting each dent in the wood looking down at her, when a blue-ish beam of light shone into her room from outside. She jumped and gripped onto her covers, preparing to dive under them to hide from whatever was shining a light into her room. She kept her eyes glued onto the window, which was where the light was coming through. Her eyes then narrowed, and she found the courage to shuffle to the edge of her bed and step onto the floor. She treaded as quietly as she could, and then peeked through the gap between the curtains. There, standing outside, was Iremia and her mother. She let out a sigh of relief.

Butterfly pulled one of the curtains out of her way, to make herself more visible. Iremia immediately spotted the movement and shone the bright light shining from her horn directly at Butterfly’s eyes, causing her to squeeze them shut. Iremia must have realized what she had done and the light disappeared. Butterfly blinked open an eye, then opened the other once it was confirmed that she wouldn’t be blinded by unicorn magic.

She saw the unicorn move her lips, but whatever she said was inaudible. Butterfly reached up to the handle that would open her window, and pushed it forward to create a small opening. Iremia repeated,

“Come down here, but quietly!” she told her. “We don’t want to wake anypony.”

Butterfly nodded, then looked at the gap she had made in her window. It wasn’t a window with a large opening - the flap was at the top of the window, and wouldn’t stretch very far. Then again, Butterfly was small in size, though her insectoid wings may get in the way.

“...There’s no way I’m riskin’ waking my family up by walkin’ down the corridor,” she muttered to herself, then buzzed her wings so that she could fly up to clutch her hooves onto the window’s edge. Then, as she reached the level she had wanted, she glanced back to the desk next to her bed, where her bandana she always wore lay. She dashed towards it and snatched it, tying the knot on the front of her neck quickly, before returning to the window. She saw Iremia and Luna’s confused and concerned expressions, but she did her best to ignore them. She began forcing herself through the gap, being careful not to scratch her body on the window’s edge. She grunted as she managed to pull each limb through to the other side, keeping a close eye on her wings as she did so, making sure they wouldn’t be shredded.

Eventually she managed to escape the small space, and began buzzing her wings so that she wouldn’t fall from the second floor of the barn. She wavered about in the air, shaking her mane out of her face, then closed the window just enough so that there was no opening, but also no click to signal it couldn’t be opened from the outside again. She then flew down to the ground and landed in front of Iremia and Luna.

“...You couldn’t simply walk out the door?” Iremia asked, stifling her giggles.

Butterfly shook her head. “Somepony would’ve heard me. I was bound to bump into something.”

“Fair enough, then.” Iremia shrugged, before turning to her mother. “So, where should we start looking?”

Luna gazed into the shadows that were casted by the many apple trees.

“I suppose we could just start by searching any place near the barn,” she suggested. “If there is indeed a colony of changelings lurking about, we’d want to check for signs of them if they’re anywhere near your home.”

Butterfly nodded in agreement. “Are we just gonna be searchin’ all night?”

“No, I want you both to get some rest at some point,” Luna said. “You’re both in need of sleep.”

Iremia smiled and rolled her eyes. “We’ll be fine, mother. Now,” she spun around to meet Butterfly, “we’ve worked out a plan to get the job done quicker.” She put a hoof on her shoulder and pointed in the direction behind the barn. “You’ll be searching in that general area, while we,” she gestured her hoof to the area around them, “will be searching around the front and sides of the orchard.”

Butterfly’s eyes widened. “W-we’ll be splitting up?” she gasped.

Iremia nodded. “We’ll be here all night otherwise.”

The changeling flattened her ears. “But how will we know if one of us found something and need backup?”

“We’ve got that sorted,” Luna said, her horn lighting up a blue aura, brighter than Butterfly expected. She shielded her eyes from the brightness, watching as a beam of light was shone from her horn into the sky.

“How do you do that?” Butterfly asked, staring at the beam. Luna grinned.

“It’s a light spell, just made a lot brighter,” she explained.

Iremia copied her mother, her blue magic also shining bright into the sky. Butterfly stared up at both of the light beams, glanced up at her horn. She squeezed her eyes shut as she attempted to ignite a light spell. She felt the magic flooding through her horn, then opened her eyes, only to see a couple of blue sparks. Her ears drooped.

“Now what?”

Luna squinted, before turning off her light and instead allowing her horn to glow normally. A bright flash then appeared just above Butterfly, revealing a flash light being levitated above her head. Butterfly reached up with her hoof to grab it. She pushed the button on the side, and it flickered on in response.

“Is this bright enough?” she asked wearily. She shone in up towards the sky. While it was visible above the treeline, it wasn’t quite as bright as the light being powered by magic.

“It should be,” Iremia replied. “We tested it out before, and we could see it from quite a distance.”

Butterfly pressed the button so that the light would turn off. She sighed, then looked towards where she had been directed to.

“Well, with that sorted out… I guess we better begin searchin’,” she said dryly, beginning to walk towards the back of the barn. She had only taken a few steps when she felt Iremia lay a hoof on her shoulder. She stopped in her tracks and looked up at the mare.

“I know this may be out of your comfort zone,” Iremia gazed at her, her eyes filled with sympathy. “But I promise you, nothing will happen. As long as you keep your guard up, that is.” She lent a reassuring smile.

Butterfly nodded. “I know… I’ll do my best,” she affirmed, the corners of her mouth raised.

“I’m sure of that,” the unicorn agreed, giving her a wink. “Now, we better get moving.” She stepped away from Butterfly and faced towards where she had been assigned. Luna nodded.

“Agreed. Now remember, keep your eyes and ears peeled.”

Butterfly and Iremia nodded in unison, before they both darted off in opposite directions. Butterfly kept the flashlight tucked under her bandana, and occasionally had to tuck it back in before it would slip from the clothing. As she made her way behind the barn, the light that shone from the lamps hanging from the front door began to fade, and soon enough she found herself in almost complete and utter darkness.

She raised her head to look at the moon in search of any sort of light, but all she could see were branches blocking her view. Her eyes narrowed as she searched for a clear view of the night sky, when a branch behind where she stood shook. She jumped, and stumbled forward while also searching for her flashlight. Her hoof soon found it, though she also ended up dropping it onto the floor. She scrambled to grab it and felt for the button. As the light flickered on, she pointed it in the direction she had heard the noise. The branch still rustled, until a small shadow scurried down the trunk of the tree. Butterfly followed it with the flashlight, and soon let out a sigh of relief once she recognized the figure of a squirrel darting off into a bush.

“Pull yourself together, Butters,” she scolded herself, swinging around to face the other way. She stood tall, her hackles raised and her hoof firmly grasping the flashlight as she strided forward into the shadows of the trees. “There’s probably nothin’ out here…” she told herself. “Heck, how am I supposed to know what changeling smells like? Then again… I am one myself… but I don’t know what I smell like…”

A black shadow suddenly whooshed past her, so close that she could feel the breeze hit her. She froze, waving her light all around her to see what it was that had just flew by. Eventually the sight of feathers shimmering under the light could be seen, and Butterfly spotted a crow, preening its wings, that is until it realized it had been spotted, and bolted beyond the treeline. Butterfly sighed again.

“I guess this is just gonna be the entire night,” she muttered to herself, before continuing to saunter through the orchard.

She had passed several trees and shrubs when she heard a twig snap. She didn’t tense up this time, and rather just glanced in the direction where she had heard the sound with the torch pointing roughly where abouts the twig would be. She saw nothing, and moved on, her steps keeping quiet.

It then hit her that she had been walking for quite a while now, and got the sudden urge to look behind her. She did so, and saw that the barn wasn’t even in view at this point. Her anxiety began to catch up with her. She lifted her head up towards the sky, and still saw no stars or moon of any sort.

What if Iremia or Princess Luna found something but I can’t see their signals? she wondered. Her wings began to buzz in order to lift her up. She found a gap in between branches where she could fly through, even if that did mean she had to deal with them scratching her sides and coming close to clipping her wing. Eventually she was hovering above the trees, and she could also see the night sky. She glanced around, and saw no beam of light that was summoning her.

“Phew.” She let herself breathe. The sight of the barn’s roof top breaking through the treeline was also a comforting sight to see; she wasn’t too far away from it. She then began to float back to the ground, again being careful not to bump into any trees on the way down. She was doing good, that is until a branch caught the flashlight she held and caused her to lose her grip. She attempted to catch it as it began to fall, but failed to do so. It hit the ground, which seemed to make the light it was letting off switch itself off. She groaned in annoyance, and allowed a small glow to spark from her horn. It wasn’t as powerful as the torch, but she could at least see a couple of feet ahead of her.

She landed in front of the flashlight and picked it up, then searched for the button to switch it back on. She felt and looked for it, until she finally found it and pushed it, only to get no response. Her muzzle scrunched up in annoyance as she pushed it again, still getting to response. She couldn’t help but glance around her, seeing if there were any white eyes glaring at her through the darkness. She saw and heard nothing, which calmed her down a little.

She drew her focus back to the flashlight, and began to push the button frantically. When no light came from the bulb, the idea to hit the side came into mind. Butterfly did so a couple of times, and saw it flicker on for a fraction of a second, which also lit up some hope in her chest. She continued to knock it, which eventually earned her a reward of about five seconds of light.

During that five seconds, she pointed the beam to face ahead of where she was standing, seeing if the brightness was still the same. As she stared ahead, she saw the light land on a dark shape, with skin that didn’t shine as brightly as the crow from earlier. She moved the flashlight to that the light would reveal the creature’s face, and she froze once she saw its face.

As soon as its face was completely visible, however, the light flashed off. Butterfly broke out of her trance and attempted to switch the flashlight back on, literally smacking it with her hoof. The light flickered on again, and she pointed it back at the dark figure, only to see its white eyes inches away from hers. She yelped in surprise and dropped the flashlight, and turned to run. She had taken about three steps when she felt a strong tug on her tail. She glanced over her shoulder, seeing that her tail was lit up with a light glow, as well as the horn sticking out from the creature’s forehead.

“Let me go!” she begged, trying to escape the magical grip.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t do that,” it replied with a voice that lacked any hint of emotion.

Butterfly felt herself being pulled towards it, to which she tried to gallop away, only to end up running in place.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” it assured her.

Butterfly scowled. “Yes, because I’m gonna trust the changeling lurking around in my family’s orchard, aren’t I?” She spun around to face them, putting on a brave face and trying to hide her shaking hooves.

The changeling arched a brow at her, then gave a low chuckle.

“That’s a funny accent for a changeling,” they commented. Butterfly snorted aggressively.

“What are you doing here on our farm?” she questioned.

The changeling shrugged. “Reasons.”

She snarled. “Well, whatever reasons they are… I don’t care!” She took a step forward, and discovered she was roughly the same height as them. “You, as well as anyone else you brought here, aren’t welcome!”

The changeling pouted. “Aw, a shame. I spent all this time looking for you and this is my reward.”

Butterfly gave a quizzical look and took a step back. “Looking for me? What… what do you mean by that?”

They gave an amused huff. “You mean you never thought your real family would ever come searching for you?”

Butterfly’s stomach tightened.

...Real family?

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