Intermission: Damselfly's Story
Year 982 of Celestia’s Reign
In the Badlands, there was a large, jagged rock formation. To an outsider, as odd as it looked, it just looked like a rock formation weathered by time and erosion. Thanks to its black coloration, it stood out in the vast desert. But it was still nothing more than a rock formation.
Anycreature that got too close, however, would be in for a surprise.
Despite its lifeless external appearance, the inside was bustling with life. Anycreature that got too close would fall victim to the trap that is the nature of the stone. You see, this stone was specially constructed to cancel out any and all magic within a three-mile radius. Unicorns become unable to craft spells. Pegasi become unable to manipulate the weather and are rendered flightless. Earth Ponies become unable to connect with the ground and lose their strength and durability. Even Alicorns, with their vast power and potential, will fall victim to the magic negation.
And the effects don’t stop at ponies. To Breezies, it would be a death sentence. Windigoes would simply vanish. A cockatrice’s stare is nothing more than a staring contest. A Timberwolf would collapse into scrap wood. Poison Joke would be nothing more than an eye-catching blue plant. Kirin would be cut off from their magic just like a Unicorn, and Nirik would be nonexistent…which isn’t that bad. Even the Elements of Harmony would be nothing more than inert rocks.
There is, however, one and only one type of magic that is exempt from the magic negation. The inherent magic of the race that constructed the material in the first place. It is a race that the world doesn’t even know exists. That is because anycreature that learns of their existence is eliminated. There was, however, one exception. The one and only pony to live to tell the tale was Princess Celestia herself. But that battle was so long ago that Celestia assumed the race to be long extinct.
This mysterious race that the world is unaware of, whose magic is exempt from the magic negation, is an insectoid-like race called Changelings. Many creatures have interacted with Changelings before and lived to tell the tale. The only reason they don’t is that they were completely unaware of the fact that they were Changelings. You see, Changelings have the ability to transform into any creature or even inanimate object that they want.
These Changelings, invisible to the rest of the world, call this rock formation home. After all, it is no ordinary rock formation.
On the inside, there were thousands of Changelings. Just as the Changelings can change shape, so does the interior of this hive. Only a Changeling can successfully traverse the constantly changing interior. Any other creature, if they’re lucky enough to avoid the Changelings, would almost certainly die in the ever-changing labyrinth. If not by starvation or dehydration, then simply old age.
Today, however, was a special day. A clutch of eggs was ready to hatch. Among that clutch was a special egg that Queen Chrysalis, the ruler of the Changelings, took special care in creating. Most Changeling eggs are the result of asexual reproduction. They make up the mass majority of the hive’s Changelings. However, a Queen will choose to have a successor. In this case, the Queen will procreate with another Changeling. And this one egg is such an egg. This Changeling would be no drone, or soldier, or infiltrator.
This Changeling would be a Proto-Queen.
Queen Chrysalis watched as the other eggs began to hatch. The Proto-Queen was not part of this clutch of eggs. But Chrysalis felt that the best way to ensure that her successor was loyal to her was to have her live as any other Changeling would. After the other eggs had hatched, the Proto-Queen was finally about to hatch. After a few minutes, the only indication that she was different from the others where her eyes. But it seemed that even that allowed her to fit in better.
The Proto-Queen had baby blue eyes. Certainly not the cobalt blue of most Changelings. But it’s not unheard of for some Changelings’s eye color to change with their personality. But other than the color, the eyes looked like any other Changeling’s eyes, with a minor variance that was unnoticeable. The center of the gradient in her eyes was a slit shape, like a Queen’s, rather than the circle shape of non-Queens.
“My child,” Queen Chrysalis said as she levitated the larva in her magic, “You will make the perfect successor.”
Year 985 of Celestia’s Reign
As infiltrators, it was their duty to go out into the world for multiple reasons: to gather love, scout the area, act as a spy, etcetera. Although three-year-old Changeling Nymphs were too young to disguise themselves, it was common for infiltrators to introduce the young to the outside world early.
This was true even for the Proto-Queen Nymph.
For this practice, a group of Nymphs would be led into the wild. And then they would be left to their own devices to get back. Of course, they wouldn’t be taken far. This was a simple test to practice following pheromone trails.
The group of Nymphs was excited about this new training as they were being led to their drop-off point. All except one, that is. The little Proto-Queen was more excited by her distraction. She got to see the outside world for the first time!
“What’s that?!” she asked as she motioned to a gangly object rolling by.
“That’s a tumbleweed,” the teacher said. He was clearly getting frustrated by this one little Nymph who kept asking these questions.
“Oh! And what’s this?!” she asked again, running over to a large, thick, green…thing…with tiny pointy…things on it.
“That’s a cactus,” the teacher said, “Don’t touch it. Those needles are sharp.”
Something else caught her eye. An insect. She was familiar with insects, but this one was new to her, “What’s this insect?”
The teacher looked again. His frustrated expression morphed into one of confusion, “That’s called a damselfly,” the teacher said in fascination, “They aren’t normally seen in the desert, though.”
“Do you think the Queen will let me keep it as a pet?!” she asked excitedly.
“STOP ASKING THESE POINTLESS QUESTIONS!!!” the teacher snapped, scaring away the damselfly, “I guess there’s no need to wonder now.”
The Proto-Queen’s ears folded back as she looked down to the ground, “You didn’t have to be so mean about it,” she said meekly.
“With an attitude like that, you’re likely going to be part of the thirty percent that won’t make it back,” the teacher said, “Now, come on. We’re almost to the drop-off point.”
To a pony, the fact that thirty percent of a group of three-year-olds won’t make it back during this training would be considered exceptionally cruel. Especially when you consider that twenty-five out of that thirty percent are expected to die since they are not sought out.
But this was simply how Changelings did things. To a Changeling, this was as normal as a pony foal going to school.
In order to ensure that the Nymphs didn’t just simply follow the teacher back, they were put to sleep and then separated so that each Nymph was on their own.
When the Proto-Queen woke up, she was in the middle of the desert. This was done at night to avoid detection from diurnal creatures like ponies, who may notice that the rock formation that was always there was being magically obscured. Sure, they were out during the day. But they were put to sleep long enough for it to be nighttime now.
It was easy for her to detect the pheromone trail back to the hive. Her natural ability to notice minuscule details allowed her to easily determine which direction to go in. But those same minuscule details also allowed her to detect several other pheromone sources.
There was strength in numbers. So, if she could gather the entire group, her Queen would undoubtedly be proud of her. So rather than head directly towards the hive, she instead followed the first of the smaller pheromone sources.
After a little bit of searching, she found another Nymph. And unlike the other Nymph, this one seemed more scared. Rather than even trying to find his way back, he was just curled up in a ball.
“Hi!” she said, causing the Nymph to jump several feet in the air and hover as he buzzed his wings, “Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
The Nymph slowly descended to the ground, “Um…hi,” he nervously said, “W-Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be going back to the hive?”
“Yeah. But I thought the Queen would be impressed if we all got back for once,” she said, “And I can sense the pheromones of the other Nymphs. So we can all go home together!”
This caused the scared Nymph to smile. Then, they headed off in another direction.
The teacher didn’t like the idea of having to sit outside and wait for the Nymphs to return. It would likely even take a full day or two for all of the expected successes to return. But there was no determining when they would come back, and there were always a few exceptional Nymphs that came back soon.
It had only been a few hours since the Nymphs would’ve woken up, though. So, for any of the group to be coming back this soon truly would be exceptional.
That’s when he picked up on a mass of pheromones. He turned in that direction and was shocked at what he saw. The entire group of Nymphs were heading back already. And they were led by one of the Nymphs he expected to be part of the thirty percent. That female Nymph had led the rest to a 100% success.
There has never been a 100% success rate. The highest was an 85% success rate. This truly was noteworthy.
The teacher drone had headed to inform Queen Chrysalis of the success. But the Queen wasn’t pleased.
“My Queen, I’ve come to report on the Nymph infiltrator training,” the teacher said.
“What are you doing here?!” Queen Chrysalis snapped, “You’re supposed to be out there waiting for the Nymphs to return!”
“B-B-But that’s why I’m here!” the teacher stuttered, “They’ve all already returned!”
This caught Chrysalis’s attention, “No stragglers?”
“No stragglers. All twenty of them have returned,” the teacher confirmed, “It was a 100% success rate. And they were led by one specific Nymph.”
“Was this Nymph a female with baby blue eyes?” Queen Chrysalis asked, her interest piqued.
“Yes, my Queen,” the teacher confirmed, “She was also asking a lot of questions on the way to the drop-off point. You know of her?”
“It is of no concern to you,” Chrysalis dismissed, “Her training is to continue as normal.”
“Yes, my Queen.”
With that, the teacher scurried off. When he was gone, Chrysalis began thinking to herself, “It seems that you’re making a name for yourself, little one. You truly will become a formidable successor.”
The next day, the little Proto-Queen headed to one of the chambers. It was a room that a specific Changeling preferred to go to, and she wanted to introduce herself to him properly after the training.
There, she saw a nymph playing with dragon figurines. This Changeling was different than most. He didn’t have any interest in being aggressive like the others. He was a proverbial black sheep in how gentle he was. In fact, the Proto-Queen had ultimately saved his life.
“Hi,” she said, causing him to jump just like the night before. This caused her to giggle at the reaction. It was hard to believe that she was even the same species as the other Changelings.
He recognized her baby blue eyes, “Oh, uh, hi,” he said nervously.
“Can I play too?” the Proto-Queen asked.
This caught the Nymph off guard, he was so used to other Changelings making fun of him just wanting to play with toys. He’s never been asked if someone else could play before.
“Yes?” the Nymph said more as a question than confirmation, “You don’t think I’m strange for wanting to play with toys instead of battling?”
“I think it’s cute,” she said with a cute smile. He blushed at the compliment, “Have you ever thought of giving yourself a name?”
“I’d rather not,” he said, “I would just stick out even more. And I’d rather not attract attention.”
“But it also would show you as being bold,” she countered, “By asserting yourself with a name, you could convince the others that you’re stronger, and they wouldn’t make as much fun of you.”
He took a moment to think that over. There was logic in what she said, “Well, I always thought that if I ever did give myself a name, there was a name I had in mind.”
“I’ve been thinking about it for a while. I just never thought of a name,” the Proto-Queen said, “But then, when we were on our way to the drop-off point, teacher told me the name of that insect. So I’m naming myself Damselfly!”
“I like it,” the Nymph said, her confidence becoming infectious, “Hi, Damselfly. You can call me…Thorax.”
The two Changelings, with their newfound names of Damselfly and Thorax, started playing with the toys together.
Year 987 of Celestia’s Reign
The Proto-Queen had been going by Damselfly for two years now. Thorax was less enthusiastic about sharing his newfound identity. But as long as Damselfly was with him, she managed to bring out a confidence that he never knew he had.
They had just recently turned five years old. This was the age when all Changelings discovered their ability to transform.
Infiltrators are taken to a forest to the north to practice their transformation training. They were to practice transforming into other forest creatures and fitting in. Thorax chose a squirrel, while Damselfly chose a lynx. They had to stay in that form for a week while collecting love. They were graded based on how much love was collected.
What the young Changelings didn’t know was that the teachers were also taking part. They specifically acted as predators to thwart the students’ progress. After the week was over, the Changelings reacted to the attacks in different ways, including plenty of injuries and even one death.
Thorax had succeeded in protecting the other squirrels to safety during the attack. This resulted in a reward of love from the other squirrels. They were grateful to him for that. Because of this, he scored second place.
First place went to Damselfly. During the attack, she protected a family of lynxes with kittens. Not only did she actively fight the alleged predator, but she also took the initiative to fake an injury. Like with Thorax’s squirrels, the lynxes were grateful, as well as concerned for the one who had protected them. That fake injury earned her extra love through sympathy.
Queen Chrysalis had just been informed of the most recent training endeavor. And her thoughts were…mixed.
“Damselfly is becoming too independent,” Chrysalis said, referring to her daughter’s chosen name as if it were venom, “She’s guided Changelings who would’ve originally failed tests to success. She’s made the runt of a clutch of eggs find confidence that wasn’t there before. But most of all, she had taken a name for herself.”
Chrysalis, however, begrudgingly had to admit that she was also impressed and even somewhat proud.
“And yet, she recognizes that there is strength in numbers. She brings out strength from even the weakest of Changelings. She was able to not only rank top of her class in the most recent training, but also managed to go above and beyond by fighting off a teacher disguised as a predator, but also used her transformation to fake an injury to gain sympathy from the other animals,” Queen Chrysalis continued, unable to hide the pride in her voice, “She’s been breaking records left and right. Even records that I myself held. She is becoming the perfect new body for me to take. I just need to start keeping a closer eye on her.”
The next day, Damselfly was walking down one of the corridors to meet up with Thorax again. However, she was stopped by another Changeling, “What is it with you?” the Soldier questioned, his purple eyes piercing into Damselfly’s very being.
“Oh, Pharynx!” Damselfly exclaimed, surprised, “I was just on my way to see your brother, Thorax. You don’t mind, do you?”
Pharynx was a rare case in the hive. Changelings would only refer to other Changelings as siblings if they came from the same clutch of eggs. An entire clutch of eggs is designated as either a Drone, an Infiltrator, or a Soldier. The clutch that Thorax and Pharynx were hatched from were designated as Infiltrators. However, Pharynx had a more aggressive nature than the others. So he had managed to change his role in the hive to being a Soldier, despite being designated an Infiltrator at hatching. His level of independence that allowed him to change roles is reflected in how this change also altered his eye color, causing him to stand out.
Damselfly respected Pharynx for his ability to change roles and even become dominant in that role. And though Pharynx doesn’t show it, the respect is mutual. Pharynx cared about Thorax ever since they were Nymphs. He was aggressive towards Thorax only because he wanted him to become stronger. But if Thorax was bullied by other Changelings, Pharynx would defend him. Pharynx respected Damselfly ever since she led him back from a mission that he was expected to fail. And she had managed to bring out confidence and strength in Thorax. And though he’s never admitted it to any other Changeling, Pharynx chose to give himself a name after Thorax had taken a name. He was actually jealous of Thorax for naming himself first.
“I’ve been watching how close you two have gotten lately,” Pharynx said in an accusatory tone, “I’d better not learn that you will end up hurting him.”
Another reason why Pharynx respected Damselfly was the fact that she refused to be intimidated by him.
“I would never!” Damselfly said in an offended tone, although in reality, this was just how she and Pharynx had a casual conversation, “You know what they say about a chain being only as strong as its weakest link. Well, I take it upon myself to make sure that those weak links are reinforced.”
“I don’t appreciate you implying that my brother is a weak link,” Pharynx said.
“If you don’t consider him a weak link, then I consider that a job well done on my part,” Damselfly countered.
With that said, Pharynx walked away. But before he left the corridor, he paused, “Thanks.”
It was almost inaudible, but Damselfly heard it before Pharynx walked away. A smile formed on her face. The way he cared about Thorax was heartwarming, even if it’s rarely shown.
Year 989 of Celestia’s Reign
For the past couple of years, Queen Chrysalis had been keeping an eye on Damselfly. And she wasn’t secretive about it either. She simply claimed that Damselfly’s skills had gained her attention. Though Chrysalis taught Damselfly what she made sure the rest of her Changelings were taught, many of them were lies to keep them under control, and many details were left unsaid.
That is how she controlled her Changelings: She told them only what they needed to know and misinformed them when necessary. It kept them subordinate and kept her powerful.
But ruling a hive meant that she couldn’t watch Damselfly all day, every day.
Damselfly had grown close to Thorax, close enough that one day, they had chosen to show how close they were. But that’s something that is only intended to be behind closed doors. Simply put, Damselfly and Thorax planned on starting their own family.
But what was supposed to be a happy moment for them would become the start of a downward spiral for both of them.
Damselfly always knew that her eyes looked a little different from those of other Changelings. Though it wasn’t a big deal, the different color was a sign of her independence, similar to Pherinx’s purple eyes. But the shape of her pupils was what made her eyes different. It was hardly noticeable, though. That’s why it was no big deal.
But after Rarity had become gravid, the first thing she noticed was that her pupils had gone from white to black. And soon after that, she noticed a clear distinction between her irises and sclerae.
They were like the Queen’s.
The change in her eyes wasn’t the first thing to change. Her mane had grown slightly and was changing from the Changeling green to a navy blue. But her mane was a gradual change while her eyes were sudden.
About a week later, halfway into her gravid cycle, Damselfly went into hiding. She needed to keep her nature secluded from the Queen and, by extension, her eggs. Damselfly would gladly continue following her Queen’s wishes and have her own children follow her wishes as well. But she needed to disguise herself as her previous form. And she realized that she couldn’t do that while gravid.
After laying her eggs, she was surprised. Two eggs were not a lot for a queen, even for the first time. But this was good. It wasn’t uncommon for non-Queens to only have two. Only one would’ve been preferable. But all it takes is one egg for a Proto-Queen to become a full Queen. If Queen Chrysalis felt threatened in any way, Damselfly would have no eggs.
One day, as Damselfly was going to get food, she heard a voice behind her.
“Hello, Damselfly,” It was Queen Chrysalis. And the one in her voice was not pleased. Damselfly didn’t even dare turn around, “Or should I call you ‘Queen Damselfly’ now?”
‘She knows?’ Damselfly thought to herself. ‘Who am I kidding? Of course, she knows! She’s the Queen. And… I’m a Queen. A rival Queen!’
Damselfly’s heart lodged itself in her throat in fear. Without even moving, she immediately immediately cast a tunnel spell to get away. There was only one place she could go to, though. Her growing maternal instincts wouldn’t allow any other location.
A ring of fire appeared in the den where she hid her eggs. Damselfly came out of the ring before the portal quickly dissipated. In her haste, Damselfly could only grab one egg before another portal appeared in pursuit of her. Damselfly opened another portal and went through before Queen Chrysalis could catch her.
But Damselfly could only get so far before Queen Chrysalis was once again hot on her trail. Chrysalis continued to chase down the rival Queen into the forest. Her larger body allowed her to move faster than her daughter, though. And carrying an egg was slowing her down.
Before Chrysalis could catch her, she had managed one more portal. Chrysalis tried to detect the trail. But seeing how far into the forest she had gone, Chrysalis considered her as good as dead.
Chrysalis, however, was not as malicious as Damslelfy had thought. She didn’t want to kill a rival Queen. She just wanted to take her body as her own. She couldn’t transfer her mind to another body until that body was a proper Queen and not just a Proto-Queen. But if she was correct about Damselfly’s relationship with Thorax, then that body was now unviable.
Becoming a Queen requires a Proto-Queen to lay her first clutch of eggs. However, mating with another Changeling alters the physiology, preventing the chance of a mind transfer.
As Chrysalis returned to the den where one last egg was hidden, she first intended to destroy the rival Queen’s egg. However, when a Queen mates with another Changeling, the offspring will ultimately be a Proto-Queen. Normally, that would result in a single egg rather than the two Damselfly laid. But that meant that this second egg was also a Proto-Queen.
Rather than destroy the egg, Queen Chrysalis had something else in mind, seeing as this Proto-Queen was viable. Not only would she gain a new body again, but it would be the body of Damselfly’s daughter. What better way to get revenge than to take in Damselfly’s daughter as her own to become her new body?
Later, Queen Chrysalis will claim that she had killed Damselfly and crushed her eggs for betraying her, using her as an example that betrayal will lead only to death.
She can’t let her Changelings think that they can leave at any time they wish, after all.
1 Week Later
It had been a week since Damselfly had fled the hive to protect one of her eggs. During that time, she had formed a baby blue carapace around her torso, a change that could only be made by molting her exoskeleton. If there was any doubt left in her mind, the carapace squished that doubt like a bug. She was, without a doubt, a Queen.
Not only that, but the egg she saved was now hatching.
Now, Damselfly was on her own in a location that she didn’t know. And with a new Nymph to feed, collecting love to feed both of them would be harder than ever.
Damselfly had dug a burrow into the ground to hide in. But she needed access to love, and the forest animals wouldn’t be enough. So her burrow was in the forest but nearby to a walking path, She couldn’t stay in the previous forest she had been in. It was too dangerous, and the ambient magic would’ve been distracting. Thankfully, there was another forest nearby that was far more peaceful.
3 Months Later
Damselfly had been dedicated to making sure her Nymph was well fed. Unfortunately, that meant that she was malnourished. But that changed once the Nymph went into her metamorphosis stage. Because of how vulnerable a Nymph is in their metamorphosis stage, Damselfly went from trying to find love to chasing away anything that came near the burrow.
Damselfly had taken the form of a Timberwolf, not changing back to avoid energy usage. But keeping up a disguise took energy. That, combined with chasing away any potential sources of love, plus the extra love energy her Nymph required during the metamorphosis, made Damselfly starve herself.
It was now the third day of the metamorphosis. Damselfly gave her Nymph everything she had to ensure she could survive. Unfortunately, that meant that she had nothing left for herself. She collapsed to the ground, unable to sustain her transformation anymore.
Everything had been taken from her. Her home, her constant source of love energy, her own security…all because she was a Proto-Queen turned Queen by having a clutch of eggs. And now, it seems that even her own life was being taken from her.
But even though this was because she had a clutch, she couldn’t blame the Nymph for her own mistakes. That’s why she fed the Nymph rather than try to keep herself alive.
As Damselfly lay on the ground, her vision becoming hazy, she just had one hope. And it wasn’t for herself, not directly at least. It was for the last thing left of her to continue.
“Please, survive.”
Her last thoughts of her Nymph, hoping that she had given enough love energy to get her Nymph through the metamorphosis. Then her senses faded, and everything went black.
A couple was walking through Whitetail woods. Hondo Flanks, an off-white unicorn with a scruffy brown mane and tail, and a trio of footballs as a cutiemark. He was comforting Cookie Crumble, a pink unicorn mare with a stylized purple mane and tail, and a trio of cookies as a cutiemark.
Cookie had just come back from the doctor and learned that she was barren. She had wanted to be a mother with all of her heart, and now she learned that she cannot have children. Hondo was taking her on a walk through the woods to take her mind off of the bad news…hopefully.
“Are you feeling any better, Cookie?” Hondo asked.
The pink mare took in a deep breath through her nose, taking in the scents of the forest, “A little, I guess.”
“Adoption is always an option, you know,” Hondo recommended.
“From where, though?” Cookie asked, “There isn’t an adoption agency in Ponyville. Canterlot tends only to allow other Canterlotians to adopt them. Cloudsdale is…in the clouds. The closest option is Fillydelphia.”
“I didn’t say it’d be easy,” Hondo said, “But if you’re willing to put in the effort, then so am I! We could go to Griffonstone and adopt a Griffon if you want to!”
“You’re such a geek sometimes,” Cookie said with a smile forming, “Though it would be fun to raise a non-Pony. Could you imagine?”
Suddenly, the couple heard a rustling in the bushes. The animals in Whitetail Woods tended to be harmless, but the couple was still on guard just in case it was a dangerous animal, like a venomous snake. What they weren’t expecting was…an insect shaped like a foal.
“Well, hello there, little one,” Cookie said in a gentle tone, keeping at a safe distance, “What in Equestria are you?”
The small creature looked like it was trying to communicate. It kept looking at them with a worried expression and back in the direction it came from. It then turned back in the direction it came from and repeated looking back and forth.
“I think it wants us to follow,” Hondo guessed.
“Alright, little one! Lead the way!” Cookie said, walking in the direction it was pointing.
The creature jumped in excitement before taking the lead. Hondo and Cookie follow. After about a minute, they came to a burrow. It was little more than a hole in the ground with how small and crude it was. So it wasn’t hard to find that there was another one of those creatures in it. A larger one.
“You’d better be careful, honey,” Hondo warned, “It could be dangerous.”
But that didn’t stop Cookie. This creature wanted help, and this larger one seemed to be the desired target for help.
Cookie pulled the creature out of the burrow to see it lifeless. Though she was able to still detect faint breathing. The smaller creature was then starting to nuzzle the larger one. Could they be a mother and child? No, the little one was trying to show Cookie what the larger one needed. Was this some sort of magical creature that needs affection to survive?
In any case, the little one came to them for help. And even if the older one may die…the younger one was showing a level of intelligence that may indicate Pony-like levels of intelligence. And if that’s the case, this young creature may be an orphan. Her heart went out to the child. Then a thought came to mind…
‘Though it would be fun to raise a non-Pony. Could you imagine?’
The words she said earlier…could this be? She could raise some unknown non-Pony creature. And if it’s not Pony level of intelligence, then perhaps it could qualify as an exotic pet?
“Let’s bring them back home!” Cookie said with conviction.
“Wait, what?!” Hondo questioned, “We don’t even know what they are?!”
“You’re the one who brought up the idea of possibly raising non-Ponies,” Cookie said, “And I think they may be near Pony intelligence. Perhaps even capable of talking. And they need us.”
Cookie gave Hondo a hopeful look. One that said, ‘I can’t have children of my own, but we can adopt.’ It was a look that tore through any arguments Hondo could’ve made. A look of somepony whose motherly instincts were kicking in, and if he said no, their upcoming wedding would be canceled.
With a sigh, Hondo submitted, “I suppose it can’t hurt to at least nurse them back to health.”
The look on the mare’s face looked content, like a new mother about to hold her newborn foal for the first time. And that look alone melted away any apprehension the stallion had.
2 Days Later
Damselfly woke up, feeling a bit stiff. The first thing she noticed was that the ground she was on was now soft. Her mind was still rebooting, so she didn’t have the cognitive faculties to question it at the moment. The second thing that she noticed was that it was warm. Specifically, there was something warm wrapped over her. The third thing that came to mind was that she was aware of a Nymph next to her also asleep. No, not just any Nymph. It was her daughter.
That’s when the realization struck her. Damselfly was still alive! Her mind finished rebooting, and her last memories came to mind. She was in a forest before she die…fell unconscious. She realized she was no longer in the forest. She was on some sort of cushion with a blanket on her. She lifted her head to see that she was in a dwelling of some kind.
Through the doorway, she could see a pink creature. Attempting to sneak out, Damselfly attempted to get up. That’s when she realized how little energy she had, and she collapsed onto the ground with a thump.
This thump alerted the pink creature’s attention, and she came in.
“You’re awake!” the creature exclaimed.
Damselfly then realized that she had been spotted undisguised. It was too late to disguise herself. And she was clearly too weak to fight. So she relied on her more feral instincts and began hissing to scare the creature away.
The creature flinched for a moment. But Damselfly was taken aback by the sudden sensation of love. And not just ambient love or love for another. This creature was directing love to Damselfly herself.
“It’s okay, you’re safe!” The creature said.
“Wh-Where am I?” Damselfly dared to ask, fear evident in her voice.
“You’re in my home,” the pink creature said in a soothing voice as she kneeled down to lay on her stomach, and attempted to make herself look smaller and less intimidating, “You’re…uh…little sister? She came to find us to help you. So we brought you back here to nurse you back to health.
Damselfly looked back to her daughter…wait, why did that creature call her daughter her little sister? Nevermind, that could be her cover story and could wait for later. Her daughter had saved her life. The thought of that warmed her heart.
But what was disarming to her was the love being directed towards her. Even after trying to scare her away, Damselfly still felt the love flowing to her. It was unlike anything she’s sensed before. It was warm and inviting and comforting. She’s felt similar sensations while disguised as animals. But this was being directed to her undisguised. This meant that this was being directed towards her genuine self.
“Little…sister?” Damselfly said, looking back at the Nymph.
“So she is your little sister?” the pink creature said, “I’m glad I got that right. She’s been worried about you this whole time and wouldn’t leave your side.”
The door opened, and another creature, a male, walked in. Out of a fearful need to hide, Damselfly, as quickly as she could, attempted to hide behind the pink one. Damselfly then realized that she hid behind that creature for protection. She felt like she would be safe with her.
The protector let out an amused laugh, “It’s alright. He’s a…friend.” What Damselfly sensed indicated that they were far more than just friends. This allowed her to trust this newcomer.
But rather than coming out from hiding, Damselfly just laid on the ground. She was still recovering her energy after all.
“Ah! So the rarity is awake?” The newcomer said, “My name’s Hondo Flanks. And this is my fiancée, Cookie Crumble. Do you have a name?”
Why would he assume what her name is then ask what her name is? Or did he mean something else when he called her… “Rarity?” Damselfly thought out loud.
“So your name is Rarity,” Cookie Crumble questioned, “That does seem like a fitting name. What about your sister? She is such a sweetie.”
“Sweetie?” Damselfly repeated.
“Her name is Sweetie?” Cookie questioned. She then looked at the nymph again, “Is it alright if I call her Sweetie Belle? My grandmother’s name was Belle after all. And I alway wanted to name a daughter after her.”
Damselfly began putting everything together. By accident, these creatures were able to give her and her daughter a backstory to hide with, “Sweetie Belle…yes, I like it,” Damselfly…no, Rarity said, “And my name is Rarity. And Sweetie Belle is my little sister.”
“You looked like you were all alone out there,” Cookie said, “Somepony…somecreature has to take care of you, right? How would you like it if we adopted you?”
“Adopt?” Rarity asked, her eyes beginning to droop, “What is adopt?”
“It means that I would become your new mother, and you would have a home where you can be safe and warm,” Cookie said, “But you can think about it later. You look tired.”
Cookie Crumble the lifted Rarity up back onto the cushioned thing she fell off of. Rarity got the chance to see that it was far fancier than necessary for the room, but it was visually appealing nonetheless. And the plush cushions were a deep red.
“I’m sorry that we don’t have a spare bed for you,” Cookie said, “But this couch is comfy to lay in, so we thought it would be a good alternative.”
“I like it,” Rarity said simply with a yawn. She let herself drift into sleep again. This was the first time in a long time for her that she felt like she could go to sleep and feel safe. As she drifted off to sleep, she thought about starting her new life and what that would be like. She’d have to use a disguise spell on her daughter…no, little sister and perhaps erase her memories of anything before this. She was too young to remember these things, but giving Sweetie Belle a new start will help her to bond better with Cookie as her mother…their mother. It did hurt to think that her daughter would no longer be her daughter. But it protected her that much more. And that’s what matters.
Also LikedSimilarAuthor
- Wanderer D · 1.3k words · 372 16 · 6.1k views
- Wanderer D · 29k words · 3,313 48 · 39k views
- Discorded SheepcityUSA · 42k words · 148 8 · 4.4k views
- CheshireTwilight · 58k words · 617 10 · 23k views
- Garnet Naturea · 8.7k words · 202 16 · 6.8k views
- SilverNotes · 53k words · 80 3 · 937 views
- silvermoon15000 · 37k words · 31 2 · 1.1k views
- JackRipper · 2.8k words · 335 25 · 7.7k views
Stats
Page generated in 0.142 seconds
Total duration
974 users online
1,949,654 hits today, 2,078,928 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2025
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2025 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
It's alive!
Nice to have some back story.
12053542
It is just a holdover chapter. But it's here by design. I took inspiration from the story Change, which also had 3 acts with intermission chapters in between them to add context. So, this is a mid-hiatus chapter.