It Takes a Village to Reform a Changeling

by MattTOB

Chapter 2: Rise and Crime

It Takes a Village to Reform a Changeling

Chapter 2: Rise and Crime

---

The first thing that came back to Mandy when he woke up two days later was his sense of touch. He could feel a fuzzy blanket over his prone body, the large amount of bandages wrapped around his injuries, something heavy clamped onto his horn, and his forelegs being bound together by something thick and sturdy.

The next thing to return was the pain.

Mandy wheezed as it all hit him at once. His head felt like it was splitting open, the numb spots flared up when he tried to shift around, and his wings felt ragged.

He slowly, very slowly, opened his eyes. Colored dots swam through his sight as his vision tried refocusing. Eventually, his sight readjusted, and he blinked back a thin crust that'd formed in the corners of his eyes.

He was in a fairly standard hospital room, with sea-foam green wallpaper and polished wooden floors. He looked down at himself, seeing plastic tubes from IV drip bags stuck into specific spots across his body.

But what really disconcerted him was that his hooves were bound by a thick rope, and a magic-inhibiting ring had been placed around his horn.

And he was undisguised, too.

Mandy tried to sit bolt upright, but his body screamed in protest, forcing him to remain lying down. He was captured, likely being healed so that he'd live to see his punishment for being a part of that stupid invasion, for following that stupid excuse of a queen, for –

The door to the room slowly swung open, and a VERY familiar purple unicorn walked in. When she saw him awake, her expression shifted to an unreadable stare.

Great. The Element of Magic herself was here to finish him off. Just his luck.

He put his head into his forelegs as he wilted under her scrupulous gaze, but made no attempt to fight back or leave. Not even his Changeling senses could properly decipher the whirlwind of emotions that raged in her head.

"Hello," she began in a near monotone, "did you sleep well?"

Mandy simply nodded in response.

Twilight eyed him. "Can you speak?"

Mandy went to reply, but a coughing fit wracked his body. For a moment, concern flashed across Twilight's face as he nearly hacked up a lung, but it faded when he finally caught his breath.

"Y-yes," he finally muttered, his voice hoarse from lack of use.

Twilight glanced over at a nightstand next to Mandy's bed, where a large pitcher of water and a glass had been set out. "Here, have something to drink," she said, using her magic to pour a glass and levitate it to him.

Mandy eyed the water warily.

"It hasn't been tampered with," Twilight stated bluntly.

He hesitantly took it in his hooves, and took a sip. Then he quickly downed the entire glass, sighing in relief as the liquid helped soothe his larynx. "Th-thanks," he mumbled, his voice no longer hoarse, yet still sporting the dual-toned qualities of the standard Changeling.

"Don't mention it. Now, I've been requested by Princess Celestia to ask you some questions in her stead. She would've been here herself, but she's busy. Helping repair the damages." Even though she tried to hide it, Mandy could still sense the venom practically dripping from that last statement.

"Okay..." the Changeling was in no real position to argue, so he resigned himself to cooperation.

Twilight nodded. "First question: Do you have a name?"

He gulped. "Mandy Carapace," he replied.

Twilight's eyebrow raised. "...'Mandy'?"

"Short for 'Mandibles'..." he clarified quietly.

Twilight nodded again. "Second question: Why are you here?"

"Flung from Canterlot," Mandy replied truthfully, "couldn't correct my flight, and I crashed."

Twilight eyed him suspiciously, but if she didn't believe him, she didn't voice it.

"Third question: What can you tell me about your Queen?"

Mandy couldn't suppress a scoff. "Chrysalis is no Queen of mine. She was nothing more than a pompous bitch, ignorant to the fact that her Canterlot Invasion was doomed from the start."

Twilight's eyes widened. That certainly wasn't what she was expecting. Though, she reasoned to herself, it might be a trick, so she'd better file it away. "Then why would you go through with such a plan?"

Mandy sighed. "Because without leadership, a Changeling is nothing. If your Princess Celestia asked you to run a fool's errand, what would you do?"

Twilight bit her tongue. On one hoof, she knew that her Mentor's judgement was almost impeccable.

But that was the keyword here: Almost. Nightmare Moon was proof of that much.

Mandy continued, "Not only that, but she's also..."

Twilight raised an eyebrow. " 'Also...' what?"

Mandy seemed embarrassed to admit this, but he powered through anyway. "She's also my mother."

Twilight blinked. "So? Aren't all of the Changelings the Queen's children?"

The chitin-clad figure blew out a huff of air in indignation. "Why does everyone always assume that?! Contrary to popular belief, much like ponies, we have separate parents. Mine just happens to be Chrysalis."

Twilight nodded in understanding, but also blushed at her own misconception. "Okay, I apologize for the assumption. But still, my point stands: what does her being your mother have to do with it? Why not just go against her?"

Mandy stared at her with featureless blue eyes. "If I'd rebelled against my mother's wishes, she'd have no choice but to punish or banish me to assert her authority." He sighed, "Though I suppose that's no better than what's happened regardless..."

Twilight eyed the dejected Changeling warily, but could find no ulterior motives, no signs of deception, nor could she disagree.

And this scared Twilight.

"If you'd excuse me for just a moment..." Twilight stifled an eye twitch as she backed out of the room, fumbling with the door as she kept her gaze locked firmly on the bug-pony.

Mandy sat there for several minutes, listening as he heard a group of voices talking, arguing about something (presumably him). Mandy toyed with his cup while he waited, then refilled it.

Eventually, the door opened, and the Elements of Honesty and Kindness were pushed inside by Twilight's magic.

AJ sighed, relenting to her unicorn friend, "Alright, we'll give it a shot. Ah just don't see why yer trustin' this thing in th' first place."

"I'm just as surprised as you," Mandy concurred, drawing the attention of the earth pony and the pegasus.

Fluttershy took this moment to hide herself behind her friend's back.

AJ eyed the bug for a moment. "Alright, let's get down t' business: Why, exactly, are ya here? What's yer evil plan?"

"I've already told the purple one, I didn't come here willingly! I was flung out of Canterlot and crashed here!" Mandy huffed.

AJ squinted. "An' how do Ah know you ain't lyin'?"

Mandy raised an eyebrow – or rather, the Changeling equivalent. "Because I am in no position to lie to you, for several reasons. 1: You wouldn't believe me or my species anyway; 2: lying would only disadvantage me in my injured state; and 3: there were far too many witnesses for me to have a hope of crafting a sufficient lie."

AJ's eyes widened, and she tried to give a rebuttal, but she couldn't think of one. So instead, she just sputtered for the better part of a minute, as Mandy took the opportunity to take another drink.

Fluttershy peeked out from behind her friend, set just a little more at-ease by Mandy's words. "Oh, um, that, that makes sense, I think..." She spoke barely above a whisper.

AJ finally regained control of her voice. "O-okay, then. So, question: were you, or were you not, involved in the Canterlot invasion."

Mandy shrugged "Well, not willingly, but yes, I was there."

AJ glared at him, confused. "What exactly do ya mean? Why weren'tcha willin'?"

The Changeling tapped his chin with his bound forelegs. "How should I put this... It was a stupid idea from the very start, but if I didn't go along, that arrogant bitch of a Queen would've had me banished, or worse. I won't lie that I had some fun rounding up ponies like you would cows in a rodeo, but I never expected it to work, and I was right."

Fluttershy flinched at the implications, and a look of... Well, Mandy couldn't decipher the look that flashed on AJ's face, but it was clear that she was processing the words he'd just spoken.

When a while passed without anyone speaking, Mandy sighed and closed his eyes. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to get some rest before I'm punished."

AJ's face widened. "Wait, that's it? Yer not gonna, Ah dunno, try 'n escape back t' yer hive?"

The drone groaned, though his annoyed tone was also laced with dread. "I'd rather be tortured by the Elements than return to living under Chrysalis's demented rule."

Fluttershy gasped. "Tortured!? Oh goodness no! The Elements of Harmony would NEVER–"

"Nightmare Moon was banished to solitude inside the moon for a thousand years, and Discord's been turned to stone for even longer. Twice. If those aren't considered torture, then I don't know what is," Mandy countered emotionlessly, ending the discussion with no room for argument.

Fluttershy looked on helplessly as the Changeling shifted in his bed, winced, and tried to fall into a fitful sleep. "AJ..."

"C'mon, Flutters; we should, uh, give 'im some privacy," the farmer said in a hushed tone, leading the torn yellow pegasus out of the room.

---

Mandy didn't know how long he'd been asleep for, but he woke up as the door opened once more. He turned his gaze, and reeled slightly.

There, entering the room in front of him, were Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadence, and Shining Armor, flanked by several royal guards.

Mandy sighed, letting his head hang. "Well, let's get this over with."

Princess Celestia's gaze locked onto him, professionally emotionless as she begun the unorthodox trial. "Mandibles Carapace, you have been accused of aiding in the Changeling Invasion of Canterlot, destruction of property, and aggression towards civilians. How do you plead?"

The drone looked down at his hooves, then spoke. "Guilty as charged."

Though Celestia's trained expression didn't show it, Mandy could sense the surprise that radiated from her for a moment.

The same went for Luna as well, though her anger became overpowered by confusion and, strangely enough, hope.

Shining Armor and Cadence, however, remained unfazed; if anything, they felt vindication.

Celestia thought for a moment, glancing back at Luna before turning back. "Very well, then. Before we serve any punishment, do you have any final requests?"

Now it was Shining and Cadence's turns to be surprised, turning to the Sun Monarch. "Are you serious, Celestia!?" Shining demanded. "After everything they've –"

Celestia held out a hoof in front of Shining's face, though her stoic expression never broke. He begrudgingly clammed up at this.

She turned back to the bed-ridden bug. "Now then, what say you?"

Mandy looked at her in disbelief. But, with only a slight hesitation, he simply said, "If you find my older brother, Thorax, then please go easy on him. He's the kindest 'ling I know, and... and tell him that I'm proud of him."

Cadence's expression widened. Were her ears betraying her? Judging from the expressions of everyone else, she hadn't misheard.

Celestia pressed curiously, "Is that all?"

"Yes," he nodded solemnly, lifting his bound arms like a prisoner. "I'm ready for whatever punishment you see fit."

For the first time, Celestia's expression cracked. It didn't last very long, but Mandy saw it nonetheless.

But instead of anger like he'd expected, he saw the faintest hint of a smile.

It quickly reset into its practiced position, however, and she lit her horn. "Then it shall be done," she declared, and Mandy braced himself for the sweet embrace of death.

But instead, what happened next surprised him and everyone else in the room.

Celestia didn't fry his brains out with the power of the sun; she didn't banish him to the Moon for an eternity; she didn't even squash him with a comically-sized flyswatter.

Instead, she severed the rope around his forelegs.

Frozen in shock, nobody in the room except for Celestia and Luna could comprehend what'd just happened. The room was deathly silent for a long time, save for the increased beeping of Mandy's heart rate monitor.

Finally, Celestia stepped forward, and decreed: "Mandibles, as punishment for your crimes, you will be sentenced to one thousand hours of community service, starting after you've made a full recovery. While you are under this punishment, you shall be provided food and shelter, but you are not to leave the city limits of Ponyville or use magic until your service has concluded. Is that clear?"

Mandy barely registered what she'd said, snapping out of his shock after a moment. "Y-y-yes, ma'am," he hastily said, out of fear of what she might do otherwise.

"Then it is decided," she finished with a stomp of her hoof, sealing his fate. "Now come, my fellow Princesses and Captain. We must get back to Canterlot at once."

Luna happily obliged, silently but profusely thanking her sister, while the others more warily stepped out.

"I think he got off too easily," Shining Armor muttered under his breath as they left, closing the door behind them.

For once, Mandy couldn't agree more.

Comments

[Starlight Glimmer1]

You have my interest.

[Gyro Pony]

A very good start.
Let's see where this goes, shall we ?

[AstralFlare42]

"I still think he got off too easy," Shining Armor muttered under his breath as they left, closing the door behind them.

Ponyville is the spot where most of the dangerous creatures attack.

[Yoshifan30]

Mandy looked at her in disbelief. But, with only a slight hesitation, he simply said, "If you find my older brother, Thorax, then please go easy on him. He's the kindest 'ling I know, and... and tell him that I'm proud of him."

Well then I didn't know thorax has another brother Other than pharynx

[Yoshifan30]

So mandy don't trust Chrysalis after that failure inversion and apparently thorax and pharynx are Related to mandy and looks like hes going to live here in ponyville this should be very interesting for him

[Dream Seeker]

I love the fact that it’s 1000 hours

[SomePersonOnTheInternet]

10537225
Same buddy, same

[JazzyWaffles]

Assuming 8 hours a day, that's... 4 months? Huh.

[JazzyWaffles]

10403333
Note that this implies that Thorax and Pharynx are royalty.

[Revluc_The_Pony]

Did you draw this?

[Doctor_Den]

as someone who grew up in an incomplete and not entirely prosperous family, I really appreciate family ties, so it's hard for me to see stories where a character hates his relatives and subsequently kills them.