Introductions
The seven mares in the dining room all sat nervously as Princess Cadance told the changeling outside it was okay for him to come in now. Most were apprehensive, and all for understandable reasons; this had been their first official interaction with a changeling since the royal wedding, and they were all a bit on edge.
Everypony but Rainbow Dash.
The prismatic mare still firmly remembered the day when her and her friends fought against these creatures that seemed Tartarus-bent on taking over the city. In fact, she still had dreams/nightmares of the creatures, with some involving her fighting them and others of her and her friends being captured and put into cocoons like what happened to Princess Celestia.
Since then, she swore to herself that she would never allow herself or her friends to come to harm from those creatures, and now, one of them claimed it wanted to be friends with them?
"Fat chance" she whispered to herself as she reflected on that last thought.
Princess Cadance stepped away from the door, causing all seven mares in the room to turn and look towards it. They saw nothing for a few moments, but then, a shiny black head with two turquoise eyes and a curved pointy horn poked in.
"It's okay" Princess Cadance reassured the creature, "you can come in."
The changeling's brows were furrowed in worry, but after taking a breath, he finally walked through the door.
"Everypony, I'd like-"
A blue blur shot past the princess quicker than anypony could blink. The changeling was impacted hard and knocked against a wall, pinned down by a certain mare.
"What have you done to Princess Cadance?!" came the accusatory voice of Rainbow Dash.
Thorax was so overwhelmed by both fear and the intense negative emotions that he could do nothing but whimper. He was also starting to feel the nausea come on again as the mare glared over top of him. If she didn't move or calm down soon, he would end up making a mess of the floor.
Rainbow made to shout again, but a magenta aura grabbed her and threw her back into her seat. A rope blinked into existence and proceeded to tie down the mare, preventing her from leaving the seat entirely.
"Hey!" Rainbow calls out in indignation. "What gives?!"
"What gives" comes the very stern voice of Twilight Sparkle, "is that fact that you just assaulted a creature that has done nothing to you so far."
"Done nothing?!" Rainbow parrots in disbelief. "Don't you remember the wedding when they-"
"EVERYPONY REMEMBERS THE WEDDING!" Twilight shouts, her voice almost reaching the levels of the famous Royal Canterlot Voice. "There is not a single pony here that does not remember that day."
"You, however, seem to have forgotten your promise to be on your best behavior."
"I made no such promise!" Rainbow retorts. "I said bring him in!"
Twilight wants to say something, but can't put the words together. Before anypony can say anything else, something shocking happens.
Applejack, a close friend and rival of Rainbow Dash, leaves her seat and heads over to the mare, and without warning, strikes her hard against the cheek.
Everypony in the room gasps as they see the act happen. Rainbow herself is stunned by the pain in her cheek and the fact of what pony had just done it. She turns to call out her friend for her behavior, but is stopped when she sees the livid expression on her friend's face.
"I... cannot... believe y'all right now" the earth pony forces out.
Rainbow attempts to regain her composure, but can't under Applejack's gaze. At this moment, it might be even stronger than Fluttershy's infamous Stare.
"I've been yer friend ever since y'all came down from Cloudsdale to work on the Ponyville Weather Team, and I've seen ya do some mighty pig-headed stuff, but this one takes the apple right off the top of the tree."
The mare stutters as her friend looks at her now with disappointment instead of irritation.
"I remember Canterlot perfectly" Applejack continues. "Ain't nopony gonna forget that day, most of all Princess Cadance. It was her weddin' after all!"
The emphasis on the last sentence has taken what fight was left in Rainbow Dash. Her previous struggles against her bindings cease as the pony in front of her continues making her point.
"The princess and her husband is the ponies most hurt by what happened, and have every reason not to trust these varmints any further than Big Mac can toss a hay bale. But ya know somethin'? They done just that! They gave one of these critters a chance to prove how good he is, and I think we all should too."
"So, iffin' ya can't stop bein' so gaul' dern' pig headed, ya can stay tied up in that chair for the rest of the visit!"
Rainbow flinches at the last line as Applejack returns to her seat. After fixing the position of her hat, she then looks around at everypony in the room, even Thorax.
"Sorry for mah outburst, y'all" she says to them, "but sometimes that mare gets as irritatin' as if ya got poison ivy all over yer hooves."
"It's fine, Applejack" Twilight tells her, then looks over at Rainbow rather sternly. "Someponies just don't know how to behave themselves."
Rainbow looks at her two friends glaring at her disapprovingly. Then, she realizes that they're not the only two. All the ponies in the room are looking at her with disapproval. In fact, the only one who isn't is the changeling she just assaulted. He was cowering and clenching his stomach as though he were ill.
"Uhh... is he okay?" she suddenly says with confusion.
Everypony looks at her with the same confusion until they follow her eyes. Thorax is curled up into a corner of the room, fighting back a powerful urge to vomit.
"Oh, no!" Princess Cadance suddenly says as she produces a waste bin out of thin air and gives it to Thorax.
Despite his best efforts to keep it down, Thorax is unable to contain his sick.
The mares flinch as his body voids itself of the negativity it had just been force-fed. Once he stops heaving, he steadies his breathing before looking into the bin. Flinching he then looks at Princess Cadance apologetically.
"I'm sorry" he says. "I'll-"
"It's okay" she responds as she makes the bin disappear in a flash. "We can get another waste bin easily enough. Are you feeling better?"
Thorax nods. "All the negativity just... overwhelmed me is all."
"Oh, you poor dear!"
Fluttershy's voice startles everypony as she suddenly darts over to Thorax. Without any prompting, she begins examining him.
"Do you have a fever? Have you been feeling chilly? Do you sneeze a lot? Can you smell alright? Is your breathing steady?"
Thorax can't keep up with how fast the mare is speaking, but more surprising is the amount of genuine concern rolling off of her. It's the first time since the princess and prince accepted him that he felt a pony feel genuinely concerned for his well being.
"Might wanna give him some room to breathe 'Shy" Applejack calls over to her friend. "He did just upchuck somethin' unpleasant a moment ago."
Fluttershy takes what her friend told her into consideration, and then realizes what she was doing a moment ago. She immediately backs away from the changeling and averts her eyes.
Thorax blinks for a moment before he looks at the other ponies. "Is she okay?"
"She's fine" Twilight answers. "She's normally very shy, but she tends to overcome that in situations where a pony or other creature needs help."
Thorax blinks as he looks at the mare. He notices her trembling, and can also sense her fear; she still remembered the day of the invasion very well, and was trying to fight her instincts so she could face this with her friends.
"Well, why don't we try this again?" Princess Cadance offered as she gave Thorax a hoof to help him stand up.
"Everypony, I would like you to meet Thorax."
The mares all looked at the changeling as Princess Cadance introduced him. Most of them were unsure of how to feel, not because of what Thorax was, but because of the series of events that just unfolded.
Getting the idea that he might need to do something to move things along, he elected to raise a hoof and wave it. "H-Hello?" he greets them timidly.
He watches them for a response before he suddenly realizes one of them is gone. A split second later, and a pink face with two blue eyes and a huge smile fill his vision. Startled, he stumbles backwards onto his flanks.
"Do you like parties?!" the mare in front of him asks in a sing-song kind of voice.
Thorax is taken aback by the sudden forwardness of this pony compared to the reserved and hesitant demeanor of her friends.
"I guess?" he answers her, unsure of whether or not his did in fact enjoy parties.
The pink mare gasps and suddenly disappears from the room. Thorax blinks again as she suddenly disappears. He can't help but look at the other ponies and ask them "What just happened?"
"It's Pinkie" Twilight answers. "Believe me, it's just better to accept that than to try and rationalize it."
"I'd take her word for it if I was you" Applejack adds while nodding her head.
Thorax looks at the two mares and decides to take the advice. He much enjoyed pony company over his hivemates, but there were things ponies did that just seemed so strange to him. Princess Cadance again approached and offered a hoof. "How about we take our seats now?" she suggested, to which Thorax readily agreed.
The princess and changeling made their way to the two empty seats, going around the side of the table away from Rainbow Dash. The mare hadn't said anything, but was still watching the changeling warily. Once sat down, Twilight elected to start things off.
"I'm Twilight Sparkle" she begins. "And these are my friends."
Twilight then proceeds to introduce all of her friends, pointing to them as she goes.
"The orange earth pony is Applejack."
"Howdy" Applejack says as she tips her hat towards him.
"Next to her is Fluttershy."
"Um... H-Hello" the timid pegasus says as she waves her hoof slightly.
"This is Rarity"
"Hello" she greets with her own hoof wave.
"Over there is my newest friend and pupil, Starlight Glimmer."
The lilac mare blushes slightly and waves hello to him.
"And that is Rainbow Dash over there, tied down." Twilight put emphasis on the last two words, wanting to make a point to her rather obstinate friend.
Rainbow looks at Twilight as she sees the glare from earlier begin to return. Letting out a breath, she looks away from the changeling before simply saying "Hi"
"AND I'M PINKIE PIE!"
Thorax jumps at the suddenly loud voice in his ear. Before he can react further, he feels strong hooves wrap him into a tight hug. He goes to move away, but is suddenly bombarded with more happiness than he could ever know what to do with. After a few moments, the hug is released, and the changeling's eyes stop spinning in their sockets.
"I hope you like your party!"
"Party?" he says in confusion before his vision returns to him and he looks around.
The dining room, which had only had a table and some chairs before, was now filled with streamers and balloons. On the table was a white table cloth decorated with a design of balloons and confetti. In front of each pony was a plate with a fork beside it, and on the plate was a piece of chocolate cake with pink frosting and rainbow sprinkles.
"DOYOULIKEITDOYOULIKEITDOYOULIKEIT?!?!?!"
The mare talks faster than Thorax could comprehend, but his brain finally catches up.
"It's... nice?"
Pinkie gasps and takes him into another hug. "OH! I knew you would love this!" Releasing him, the pony quickly moves over to her seat and begins tucking into the slice of cake there. The other ponies giggle as they take their own bites as well.
Rainbow, however, is left sitting and staring at her own piece, her hooves unable to move because of the ropes holding them down. A quick flash of magenta removes the ones holding her forehooves but leaves the ones on her barrel and hindlegs.
She looks around in confusion but then focuses on Twilight. In her eyes is an unspoken warning for the pegasus to be on her best behavior. Not wishing to upset anypony worse than she had before, she silently takes her fork and proceeds to eat the piece of cake, letting out a happy sigh as she enjoys the flavor.
Thorax watched all of this unfold and then looked at his own cake. "Well, when in Pona" he thought as he took the fork and cut off a piece of cake and took a bite.
Changelings could eat food, but it didn't really nourish their bodies. Instead, the material would be converted into resin to be used for either building or imprisoning prey. He flinched at the thought, but pushed it aside as he tasted the cake.
Thorax could only let out a moan of satisfaction as he chewed. It was moist, sweet, and had been crafted with a great deal of love. He took another bite before somepony realized what was happening.
"Hey! I thought changelings only ate love?"
The voice was quite clearly Rainbow Dash, who watched him with surprise as he tucked into the cake. With all of the others now watching him, he swallowed the bite before answering her question.
"That's how we get nourishment," he answers, "but we're able to eat other things. It just gets converted to resin for us to build with."
"Really?"
This new voice was Twilight Sparkle. In her magic now was a quill and some parchment which the mare was using to write something down.
"Oh boy," Applejack says with a chuckle. "There she goes again."
"Huh?" is all Thorax can say as Twilight begins to look at him more closely.
"Do you know why you guys have holes in your legs?" she asks him.
"Twilight," Cadance scolds, "I don't believe Thorax came here for you to play twenty-thousand questions with him."
"Twenty-Thousand?" Thorax thought before he shook his head.
"It's okay" he tells Princess Cadance. "I imagine there's ponies that are quite curious about changelings. Maybe if I answer a few questions, it'll put some minds at ease."
He takes a moment to think before he answers Twilight.
"Honestly, I'm not really sure" he answers. "I've heard all sorts of things from other changelings over the years. One story says the we faced ponies a long time ago and their magic scarred us and created the holes. Another one says that it's a result of our hunger, and that they'll go away when we finally are able to end the hunger. Honestly, though, I think it's the mark of a curse."
"The mark of a curse?" Twilight asks.
"Yeah" Thorax answers while nodding his head. "I found a magic book once that said there's some curses that leave a physical mark on their victim, and some are so strong that the curse actually passes down from generation to generation."
"That... actually makes a lot of sense" Twilight realizes as she writes down the answer she's been given. "Since you raised that point, then does feeding actually make you feel less hungry?"
"Actually, yes and no" Thorax answers. "It makes it feel better for a little bit, but then it comes back with a vengeance. It's almost like you've never eaten at all."
Twilight writes down the information before smiling. "That does sound more like a curse" she states simply.
"Do you think it could be broken?" Thorax asks hopefully.
"I'm sure it could," Twilight answers, "but curses are usually something that has to be resolved by the affected pony breaking them themselves. The changelings would have to figure out how to resolve the curse in order to be free from it."
Thorax looks at the floor dejectedly for a moment before he looks a bit hopeful. "Maybe I could find a way to break it?"
"Maybe" she responds. "If you're as nice as Princess Cadance has told us you are, then I would certainly hope you could for your sake."
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ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!!?
HE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!!!!!
So that YOU CAN IMMEDIATELY ASSUALT HIM!!!!?
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She doesn't like changelings.
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THAT IS NO EXCUSE FOR VIOLENCE
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No, it isn't. But, there is more story.
Don't worry Thorax, you'll lift that curse in no time
Also *hits Rainbow with a fly swatter* bad Rainbow! You don't attack poor innocent cinnabugs and get away with it! Now sit in the corner and think about what you've done!
yeah, I think eating love is a curse
RAINBOW DANGER DASH!! I am very disappointed in you, young lady!!! How dare you attack the changeling that has agreed to meet with you without getting to know him and see if he even poses a threat?!!! You may be an Element of Harmony but you're not acting very friendly right now!!!
Anyway, Thorax's mention of curses does make sense. Break it themselves...hm...do I smell foreshadowing to the season finale~?
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Why do you think she's tied to a chair?
Rainbow come on just relax
Okay rainbow if you don't know how to calm down you need a timeout Missy
It's okay Fluttershy you were just concerned and that was pretty nice of you to do that
Trust me thorax there's sometimes you had to realize you can't question Pinkie Pie
Oh boy she's going twilighting again
Oh wow that really escalated so quickly when thorax entered the room figures Rainbow didn't calm down and basically just pinned thorax on the ground shouting at him they basically had to restrain her and basically she's not coming down and it looks like Applejack just had enough with her friends attitude at this point and told her what she did was wrong and it looks like it worked kind of and it looks like thorax is feeling a little sick after feeling all that negative emotion but after that they continue introducing themselves to thorax and so far Things Are going pretty well even Pinkie Pie was very excited to meet him actually to throw him a party and not only that Fluttershy actually was concerned of him after what just happened and it looks like Twilight was very interested about his kind and how they function and everything and apparently she thinks that there's another way for a cure of their situation which I think we know what it is but that would be another story well I would say this is pretty good so far and I really hope that Rainbow Dash actually just realize that he really means no harm and I was hoping that Starlight would say something but I guess maybe that would be next time
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Is the next chapter almost ready by now?
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I'm still working on it. A lot of my focus has been on my other story Fitting In Is Hard To Do. I have some artwork I'm working on to feature in the next chapter for that. Can't say for sure when I'll have the next chapter for this, but I should have it out before end of year.