7. Mistaken Identity
Above me, the stars twinkled and I found myself in front of a castle’s doors. At the slightest touch, they parted open. Setting hoof inside, I noticed a few things. The grand pillars, high ceilings, and bright polished floors were nothing like the hive, just to name the obvious.
No, something felt off. There were rooms, rooms, and more rooms inside. One led to another and another would lead to more. Up a flight of stairs and down a spiral staircase. A kitchen, a dining room, and a reading room were some of the things I wandered into. But for a place so big, there was not a single pony or changeling around.
After wandering around without any real direction, I stopped and sat down.
“Where am I?” I said aloud.
“In a dream,” said a voice.
I turned to whoever had spoken. I was in a rather large room with a magnificent throne at the end. In it sat a pony, who was busy signing scrolls and papers as they flew out of one pile and into another.
She sighed without looking at me. “Even in a dream, there is still work to be done.”
“Who are you?” I asked.
She stood taller than any pony I’ve seen, almost as tall as my mother. She had a starry mane and a moon on her flank. The mare had a long, majestic horn and a pair of feathery wings. On her head sat a dark crown. She put down the piece of paper she was writing on.
“Greetings!” she bellowed, shaking the walls of the room. “We are Princess Luna, Ruler of the Night! Tis wonderful to finally meet you!” A second later, she started blushing. In a much quieter voice, she said, “Oh, do forgive me. I still haven't gotten over old habits and learning the lingo used these days takes some getting used to.”
Dream or not, my ears were still ringing. “What did you mean by finally meet me? Where are we?”
She put down her quill. “It is as I said. We are in a dream. This place you are standing in is the castle in Canterlot.”
I raised a brow. “Canterlot? But I've never been to Canterlot."
“I may have made changes to your dream. It was so terribly dark in here that I couldn't see where I was going. So, I brought this dream to the castle.” She began walking down from her throne towards me. “Isn’t it lovely, my little pony?” she asked, nodding to a set of beautiful stained-glass windows showing a group of familiar and not-so-familiar ponies.
Though, what really caught my attention was the last thing she said. “O-oh, I’m not a… I mean, I'm pretty sure I'm not, um…” I stammered, watching Princess Luna grow more confused.
“Are you alright?” she asked worriedly.
I nodded. “Yes, I'm just…” I shrunk under her questioning gaze. “Before, you said something about meeting me?” I asked, changing the subject.
“Ah, yes. It has come to my attention for many years now of a lost child in the realm of dreams. For a long time, I have known but could not identify whose dream it was. With a dream as pitch dark as yours, the only thing I had to go by were the voices.” She now stood in front of me. “Now, what is your name?” she asked.
I swallowed my nervousness. “Nymph.”
Her head leaned closer to meet my level. “It's so nice to meet you, Nymph,” she said softly. “Is there anything you would like to talk about?”
“Well…”
“Oh! You’ll have to excuse me while I make things more comfortable.” She chuckled.
The room melted and warped. In place of a throne was a long, red chair. Across from it, Princess Luna sat in her own large seat, while a lit fireplace crackled between us. She held a clipboard and a quill in her magic. A pair of glasses rested atop her nose.
With her magic, she adjusted a framed piece of paper with fancy words and writing on it that read “Diploma,” whatever that was, before smiling at me.
“Now, please. Lay your head on that couch over there. I think you'll find it way more comfortable.”
Unsure what was going on, I did as she said and hopped onto the couch, curling comfortably in my spot.
“Comfortable? Do you feel okay?” she asked.
I nodded.
“Good. These sessions are meant to be intimate—that means close and personal. Now, what problems do you seem to be having?”
“Oh, I don't have any problems,” I said.
She tapped her clipboard with her quill. “None at all? Truly? How fortunate. Then, tell me about yourself.”
“Like what?”
“It can be about anything.”
I fidgeted on the couch. “Anything?”
She nodded. “Anything you feel like sharing.”
I scrunched my face in thought. It's not easy trying to find something to talk about. “I don't know…” I glanced towards the patiently awaiting princess. “Well, today I made friends.”
The princess perked up at this. “Wonderful! Tell me about them.”
“One of them is named Pound. He’s a pegasus. He also has a sister named Pumpkin,” I started. “We had a lot of fun playing together, and they showed me around town. Do you know they live in a house with a giant cupcake on top? It’s not real though, in case you were wondering.” The thought of them made me smile.
Luna scribbled something on her clipboard. “Go on.”
“The rest of their family is nice, too. They made all this good food for me. Oh, but you should meet these other ponies in Ponyville who are just as nice,” I continued. Everyone I met in Ponyville came to my mind, as well as a mother and daughter on a train and a loving couple in an orchard.
“Oh, I'm sure I am well acquainted with some of them,” she said, writing something else down.
“Yeah. It was really fun.” My smile dropped. “But…”
Luna looked up from her clipboard. Her quill stopped writing.
“I also did something bad. I ran away from home and left my mother without her knowing. She must be worrying about me, while I'm here having fun seeing all sorts of things in Equestria. ” My hoof idly runs through my mane as I stare at the ceiling. “Does that make me bad person?”
A hoof rested on my shoulder, and I found Princess Luna smiling warmly right next to me. “Every pony needs to see the world at some point in their lives. Of course, a mother will worry about her child because to her that child has become her entire world. Your mother will feel lost and confused. So it falls upon you to hold her hoof and re-assure her that everything is alright.”
I let that thought linger in my head for a while. “Re-assure her…?” I repeated.
Princess Luna nodded.
“Is that what I'm supposed to do?”
“It is not my place to tell you what you should do, but rather, I am here to guide you in making your own choices.”
I let her words sink in. “Thank you, Princess Luna,” I said. “I guess knowing what to say is part of being a princess.”
She chuckled. “Well, there is that. But, such wisdom only comes from experience and learning from past mistakes.” The look on her face turned solemn. “And I have had more than my fair share of mistakes.
I raised a brow. “You, a princess, make mistakes?”
“Yes, I know it sounds hard to believe, Nymph. But I was a case when I grew up—a case of jealousy and pride crashing to the ground.” She let out a heavy sigh. “And when I woke up, I was a different pony altogether.”
There were all sorts of emotions that crossed her face when she spoke. It was a blend of sorrow and hurt, all bottled up inside her like one of Pinkie’s sarsaparilla.
I stared at her. “So everyone makes mistakes…” I said aloud.
“Everyone,” she repeated. “To call oneself perfect is foolish. What really matters is what you do after your mistake.”
A ringing clock appeared out of thin air in front of Princess Luna. She took it in her magic and glanced at the time before making it vanish with a poof.
“It’s about time that you wake up from this dream,” she said. “But before we part, is there anything else you want to talk about?”
My mouth opened to say something but closed as I thought better of it. There were still things I needed to sort out with myself.
“No. I'm fine.”
“If you are sure,” she said.
Before I can say goodbye, a pair of feathery wings wrapped around me. I looked up to see Princess Luna’s muzzle above me. Her head moved close to my ear and she whispered, as if passing on a secret:
“If you ever find yourself feeling all alone in the world and doubting that you will ever feel loved again, it is best to find someone else who also feels the same way.”
Just like that, it was as if she knew what I had been feeling. My eyes watered as the room melted and was washed away by tears. Maybe she knew what it was like to feel lonely too.
“Goodbye, Nymph.” The words echo in my head.
~~~~~~~
Nymph.
“Nymph.”
“Nymph, wake up!” shouted a voice.
I opened my eyes. “Huh? What?”
Something orange brushed past the corner of my eye. I felt warm and cozy under the blanket, more comfortable than I've ever been in all my times of waking up. Except, the thing I had been holding seems to be squirming a lot.
“Pumpkin?” I asked.
“Yeah. Good morning to you too,” she said, a little sourly. “Now would you let go of me? I want to get some breakfast.”
“Oh, sorry.” I reached a hoof to my face to rub my eyes but pulled back when it touched something wet.
“Are you alright, Nymph?” Pumpkin asked, glancing my way. She gave a worrying look.
“Yes. I'm just…a little confused.” I wiped the tears from my eyes. “Must've been a dream.”
“What were you dreaming about?
Only faded pieces of a dream came to me as I tried to grasp them before they disappeared. “Um, there was a castle and a big chair and… I don't remember.“ There was something important I had to remember but what was it?
“Well, don't think about it too much. We’ve got a lot to do today.”
I slipped out of bed, careful with the leg I hurt yesterday. There was an itch on my knee that I couldn't scratch because of the tightly wound bandages on it. Applejack really knew how to keep the bandages from coming undone.
I walked slowly out the door, following Pumpkin.
What greeted me downstairs was the sight of Pinkie stirring a mixing bowl while working with a frying a pan. “Morning, sleepyheads! Sleep well?” She asked sliding a plate that was holding a stack of brown discs. It looked soft. Almost fluffy looking and drenched in dark brown liquid.
I nodded quietly while shoving a mouthful of the thing that Pinkie made. Whatever it was, it tasted great. Happy gave a curious glance at me as he poked his food. Looking around, I noticed the only two ponies who weren't around were Pound and Pumpkin’s parents.
“Mr. and Mrs. Cake went out to pick up some fresh ingredients for the bakery,” Pinkie said, as if reading my mind. “They should be back soon.”
She bounced towards Happy, filling his plate with more food. “Eat up, Happy! No need to hold back. We’ve got plenty of yum-tastic pancakes to go around.”
The pony-disguised changeling smiled awkwardly and took another mouthful. “Tastes great…” he said while looking ready to spit it out at the first chance he gets.
Licking up the last drop of syrup on my plate, I held out my plate towards Pinkie. “More please.”
Pinkie trotted towards me, giggling as she gave me my second helping. “Coming right up!”
Another helping is served and eaten just as quick. I held out my plate. “More.”
Another serving. I held out my plate. “Mo—”
“I think you've had enough, Nymph,” Happy cut in.
I looked at the surprised looks on everyone’s faces and at my own empty plate. “Oh…”
“But hey, I'm sure we'll find something later for you,” said Pumpkin.
“Yeah!” Pound said. “There’s a lot of places you haven't seen in Ponyville! Like the bowling alley or the candy store or…”
“Or the library!” Pinkie joined in.
Pumpkin stood up from her seat. “Yeah! The one near the ice cream stand!”
Pound got up from his seat. “Pinkie, do you mind if we go show Nymph the library now?”
“Not at all. You guys go have fun and say hi to Twilight for me. I'll clean up here,” she said, picking up the dishes.
As we all left Sugarcube Corner, I turned to Pumpkin. “Twilight?” I asked.
“Yeah! Didn’t you know that Princess Twilight Sparkle lives here in Ponyville?”
I shook my head. “Why here, though?”
“You see,” Pound began, “back when we were little, Twilight did all sorts of things for Equestria and saved Ponyville a bunch of times with her friends.”
“So what’s so special about the library?” I asked. “And why are we going there instead?”
“Because that's where she spends most of her time. Pumpkin and I like to see her when we have nothing else to do.”
When we finally reached a tall oak tree with windows and a door, there was a gold plaque propped up in front of it.
“What's it say?” I asked.
“In memory of the Golden Oaks Library. Where a home once stood, hope still grows,” Happy read out loud. “A memorial just for a library?”
I scratched my head. “I don't get it.”
“I hear the library used to be a lot bigger than it is now,” Pound answered. “That was before some attack on Ponyville that Twilight had to save us from. Mom and Dad said we were too young to remember.”
“She was kind of homeless for a while,” Pumpkin added. “But that doesn't matter anymore because she got her own castle outside of town! See?” She pointed to the crystal building way across town. How I didn't notice that was beyond me.
I stared at what she pointed and compared it to my own hive. “Huh.” It was certainly a lot shinier.
We approached the large tree. Inside, there were books that covered every surface from floor to ceiling. Shelves lined the walls and tall stacks of books, all alphabetized and categorized by subject and author, towered beside the shelves. There was just barely enough room to walk through the aisles. As we walked in, I couldn't help but notice something with what Pound and Pumpkin said about the princess.
“How come you don’t call her Princess Twilight?” I asked. “She has the title, after all.”
Pumpkin shrugged. “I don't know. Twilight is just Twilight to us. Almost everyone calls her that. She’s also our friend, so it would feel weird to call her that, or so she says.”
“I think she gets embarrassed being called a princess,” Pound said. “Maybe she just wants to be normal around everyone.”
How strange. Who wouldn't want to be called a Princess or a Queen? With my eyes wandering around, I didn't notice who was standing in front of me as I walked inside.
“Whoa!” shouted a tall, scaly creature as we nearly collided. He pivoted away from me, then wobbled in his steps as he tried to right the swaying stack of books. “Surprised me there. Good thing I've got plenty of practice from dodging Rainbow Dash’s crash landings.”
If there was one thing Mommy ever told me to always avoid, it was…
“D-d-dragon!” I shouted.
I ran behind Happy, using him as my shield. Mommy told me there were dragons that sometimes roamed the Badlands. It was also one of the reasons she told me not to go outside.
“No no, he’s okay! Spike is a nice dragon. Aren’t ya, Spike?” Pumpkin said, nudging the dragon.
Spike shifted the stack of books to one arm. “Well yeah. I'm not going to hurt you.”
I peeked from behind Happy. “Really?”
“Honest,” he said, holding a claw to his chest. “I've been living here ever since Twilight and I stepped into Ponyville, and not once have I ever hurt somepony…intentionally.”
I trotted slowly towards Spike to get a better look at him. “This is my first time seeing a dragon.”
“No worries. But if you thought I was scary, you should see the others. They are huge!” He chuckled. “Say, I never got your name.”
“Nymph. And this is Happy,” I said, pointing to the disguised changeling. He gave a small wave of his hoof and the tiniest of grins.
“So are all of you here to check out a book?” Spike asked as he brought another book from the shelf to the growing stack in his arms.
Pumpkin jumped between us. “Nah, we’re showing Nymph and Happy around town. We were going to meet up with Twilight. By the way, is she here today?”
“Same place she always is.”
“Thanks, Spike. Don’t trip.”
The dragon made a snort. “Puh-lease! As if I would start tripping on an old book as long as I’ve been arou—”
Where once stood a tall, scaly dragon was now a pile of books. A heavy sigh came from the green spines sticking out of the mess. I giggled as I passed by him.
As we trotted farther back of the library, the room seemed to grow darker. The stacks of books blocked the windows from daylight. Loose papers littered the floor and the air smelled like old pages.”
Something deep and rumbling reached my ears. “Do you hear something?” I asked.
Snores erupted from a dark corner. Closing in on the snores, we saw the sleeping form of a pony tucked away in the corner, out of sight from any passersby. A large, open tome made her pillow, and a melted candlestick sat unlit on the desk she was leaning on. Long purple feathers lay strewn about on the floor around her.
“Is that the princess?” I asked, looking at the mare with the messed mane. Everything about her went against what I thought how a princess should look. I thought she would look more majestic and princess-like than this.
A particularly loud snore left her mouth. “Huh? What did you say, Princess Celestia?” she asked, blearily looking around. When she got a better look at us, her face took on a rosy color. “Oh… hi. What are all of you doing here at this time of the night?”
“Twilight, it’s morning,” Pumpkin answered back.
Twilight let out a yawn and smacked her lips, glancing at one of the library’s windows. “So it is.”
I watched as she scratched herself and stretched her wings. “She’s a princess?” I whispered to the others.
Twilight's ear flicked towards me, and she cleared her throat. “Yes, I am. And who might you be?”
“My name is Nymph,” I answered. “Princess Twilight, what are you the princess of?”
“Please, just Twilight is fine, and to answer your question, I am the Princess of Friendship.”
I waited for her to continue, but it seemed like that was all she had to say. “But…” I tried to find the right words to say. “Who are your loyal subjects then? Over where do you rule? How can you be the Princess of Friendship?”
Twilight chuckled behind a hoof, which I found slightly annoyed by. As a fellow princess, I'd like my question to be taken seriously. “I’m afraid you misunderstand, Nymph. My job isn’t to rule over everypony, although that kind of work falls onto me sometimes. I serve to help ponies all over Equestria with their friendship problems.”
I thought about this longer. After not having said anything for some time, she frowned. “Is there still something you don't understand?”
I crossed my hooved and closed my eyes as I thought about this. “I don't know. It sounds kind of silly to put all that into a title like Princess.”
“Nymph!” Happy hissed behind me. “Mind your manners.”
I thought Twilight would get mad about what I said, but she laughed instead. “True. If I was still me from many years ago, I would probably agree. But I’ve learned over time that friendship can be a powerful force.”
More questions piled onto my already existing questions.
“What are you working on?” Pound asked.
Twilight picked up the tome on her magic. “Oh this? It's just research on changelings.”
I suddenly found myself wanting to know more. Finally, something interesting to talk about that I knew a lot of. But why did Happy look so scared?
“Are you talking about those bug things that attacked Canterlot years ago?” Pumpkin asked.”We talked about that in class last week.”
Attack? I had never heard about any attack. “What are you talking about?” I asked Pumpkin.
“You don’t know? There was this big royal wedding and then these evil shapeshifting bugs invaded the city.”
“Yeah, I heard Rainbow Dash had to beat up a bunch of them before one of them took her by surprise,” Pound added.
I shook my head. “No, that can't be right. It’s not true, is it?” I asked Twilight.
She nodded sadly. “I’m afraid so. My close friend and foalsitter, Princess Cadance, was replaced by a changeling during her own wedding preparations. If I hadn’t suspected the changeling queen of impersonating Cadance, then we would have never known.” Her eyes took on a hard look as she talked.
My legs trembled as mixed emotions filled me. My mother? Hurting ponies? Not just her, but other changelings were part of it too? Now that can't be right.
“Oh dear. Are you alright, Nymph? You don't look well.”
I nodded slowly.
One of Twilight’s wings fell over my withers. “Well, it’s nothing to worry about. My friends and I got rid of those changelings, so there's nothing to be afraid of.”
“But, that doesn’t mean they’re evil, right?” I said. “There has to be a reason.”
“Changelings have shown to feed off of the love a pony gives, emotionally draining the pony in the process. They are incapable of feeling anything like love. Else, why would they need to feed on other ponies?”
I didn't know what to say. What’s worse was Happy wasn't saying anything about all this. He had a stoney look in all his silence.
Something inside of me burst, letting hot emotions spill out. “No..." I said, then in a louder voice, "No, that's not true! Changelings aren't bad!"
"Nymph—" Twilight began, but I interrupted her.
"They would never do anything like that!" I shouted. "When was the last time you ever talked to a changeling? When have you actually gotten to truly know a changeling? They're not bad creatures!"
In all my yelling and shouting, the touch of Twilight’s wing vanished and in Twilight’s eyes I can see shock and something else that’s too hard to read. “While it’s true that it’s been some time since I've seen a changeling, I think it's safe to say that most ponies who were at Canterlot at the time would agree with me. But why are you trying so hard to defend them?”
“Because…”
Happy coughed loud enough to get my attention, cutting me mid-sentence. I couldn't say anything. My tongue was tied.
“You seem pretty upset over this,” Twilight said. “Pound. Pumpkin. Can you two leave us for a moment? We can meet up later for lunch. Maybe a picnic.”
I had nearly forgotten the two other ponies in the room, who had been mostly quiet in all this talk about changelings. “Uh, sure,” Pound said, beginning to leave. “You coming, Pumpkin?”
Pumpkin glanced between me and Twilight, looking unsure of leaving. “Yeah…” She turned to leave, but looking back she asked, “You’ll be back with us quick, right, Nymph? We’ve still got lots to do.”
I let out a grin. “Of course.”
“Spike?” Twilight called out. “Do you think you can pick up some more quills and paper at the store?”
“Sure thing!” Spike called back.
At the front of the library, there was a click as the door closed behind them. Now it was just me, Happy, and Princess Twilight.
“I see that you are genuinely upset over this,” said Twilight. “So how about this? You tell me what you know about changelings, and I'll tell you what I know. I'm sure it'll be an educational experience.”
“I think we should get going,” Happy said as he pushed me towards the front and reached a hoof against the door.
The door stayed shut.
“No no no, you must stay! Come. Sit,” she said, leading us to a comfy-looking sofa by another section of the library. Happy sat so close next to me that I could feel him shaking, or perhaps I was the one that was shaking terribly.
Twilight disappeared in a flash of light and came back a second later, carrying a tray of sweets, a pot of tea, and teacups. “Cookies? It’s made with love.”
I shook my head. “I'm not feeling very hungry,” I said.
When she offered it to Happy, he shook his head also.
“Hmm, suit yourself,” she said, setting the sweets aside and pouring herself a cup. She took a sip. “So… Nymph. Tell me what's got you bothered about changelings.”
My mouth felt dry, and the look she gave me was giving me chills—a calm smile that was hiding something. Nothing good can come from things that are purposely kept hidden. I licked my lips. “W-well, it just seems hard to believe that changelings would do anything bad.”
She set her teacup down on a saucer floating in her magic. “I've seen them first hoof, and I assure you that they aren’t all nice and friendly. What I saw that day, seeing every pony I care about get hurt, is nothing one ever forgets. Good and friendly just isn't the impression I got from a full-on invasion.”
“Maybe the changeling queen had a reason for invading? What if she needed help? What if she didn’t know how to ask for help?”
“And that's a good reason for kidnapping my brother’s fiancée? How about terrorizing ponies? How does that justify what they're doing? If there's even a single good reason for what she did, then please by all means tell me because it's not like I spent countless nights having nightmares about it!” The emotions she had kept so well hidden on her face were starting to show, like little cracks on a mask.
I'm at a loss. What could I possibly tell her at this point? “I just think that Queen Chrysalis cares about her changelings very much. I'm sure she wouldn't have done something so terrible if she wasn't desperate,” I said more to myself than to Twilight.
For a while, she didn't say anything. She hadn’t taken her eyes off us either.
“Funny… I don't remember ever mentioning her by name.”
The silence was thick, suffocating all of us and any attempt to continue the conversation. It’s as if all the air got sucked out of the room. Then, two things happened at once: Twilight’s horn glowed and Happy tackled me aside.
A brilliant light shot from her horn just as Happy came barreling into my side. The bolt of magic flew, just barely grazing me. The next thing I knew, I was on the floor.
“Run!” Happy shouted, jumping to the side to avoid another beam.
I wanted to do as he said, but I found myself frozen in place. Where had that nice mare gone just a moment ago? All I saw was a terrifyingly angry princess.
“Nymph, I need you to run far away! Now!”
The next shot went straight for Happy. There was no cry as he fell down, unmoving.
That seemed to snap me out of it because I found myself screaming. I ran through the maze of books, kicking up loose papers and knocking down stacks of books. Because of the bandages on my leg, I had to settle for an awkward gait than running as fast as I could.
I came to a dead end, a corner of the library where there were just more books. The sound of a set of hooves approached me.
“There’s nowhere to run,” she said, her horned lowered at me like a brandished spear. She took a step forward. I took a step back. “How dare you? Pretending to be two little foals just to feed off of some unsuspecting pony. But that won’t work. You won't get a shred of pity from me.”
I started throwing books at her. My hooves reached blindly behind me, fumbling to grab the next solid object. But, it was useless. The books floated in the air before rearranging themselves in a neat stack.
“There’s more of you, aren’t there? Tell me! Which pony in Ponyville is a changeling?”
“No!” I cried back. I tried to reach for another book, but my hoof came back empty.
By now, Princess Twilight Sparkle was directly in front of me. “I won't let you or any changeling hurt my friends,” she said. “Not this time.”
In all her hate-filled anger, I wondered why she looked like she wanted to cry.
The light from her horn flew towards me. Too scared to move, backed into a corner with nowhere to run and no place to hide, I shut my eyes because that's all I could do.
A sort of whoosh sound passed my ears. I expected pain, but there wasn’t any. Not even a feeling of anything happening to me. When I opened my eyes, I was still my same old self and still in the same room, only now with a confused princess.
She stood, looking like a snuffed out flame. All the fire in her was gone. “You’re… not a changeling,” she muttered.
I didn’t know if it was a fluke or just dumb luck, but I used the chance to bolt through Twilight's legs and make a break for the exit. Going under her had shaken her out of whatever thought she was thinking.
“Nymph, wait!”
I tore through the library, kicking back books to slow her down, until I finally reached an open window. Throwing caution to the wind, I threw myself out the only exit in the whole place. A flowerbed outside cushioned my fall. A tight squeeze on my leg reminded me of my bandages, which had gotten dirty. I ripped the bandages off with my teeth and made a sprint away from the library. Twilight shouted something behind me, but whatever she said was drowned out by the sound of my heart in my ears as I ran past ponies. I couldn't see what expressions they wore on their faces as each face blurred with the next. Everything looked strange and unfamiliar to me as I ran through parts of town I must have been through at least once. Where was Happy? Where was Mommy? This was wrong, all wrong. It wasn't supposed to happen like this.
Then, something familiar met my ears. “Nymph?”
I looked to my right, noticing Pound and Pumpkin, each carrying one end of a picnic basket.
“We were just about to bring sandwiches for lunch with Twilight.”
I stepped away from them.
“Hey, what's the matter?” Pumpkin asked. She glanced inside the basket she’s carrying. “You're not allergic to daisies, are you? We have other stuff just in case.”
I shook my head. “I'm sorry,” I said before running off towards the town outskirts.
“Wait! Where are you going?” one of the twins asked.
“Leave me alone!”
I kept running until I reached a thick forest. Pushing through, I lost myself among the bushes and thickets. It grew dark under the canopy. Menacing trees with scary faces and outstretched arms, filled my vision. Something would scratch against my side as I ran, perhaps a tree branch or a monster hiding in the dark. It wasn’t until I reached a clearing in the canopy that I slowed my pace, panting breathless until I fell into a large patch of grass.
Now alone and scared out of my wits, I finally let it all out. I bawled and wailed, letting tears spill out and wet my cheeks while my nose started running. Wiping my face with my hoof only smeared everything. I was a mess.
I wasn't a grown-up. I wasn't a princess. Worst of all, I wasn't a changeling either. I wasn’t any of these things right now. I was just a stupid little filly who didn't know what any of these things meant and lost her close friend because of it.
Just when I thought about crying again, the snapping of a twig drew my attention to the other side of the clearing where I sat. A part of me felt happy that perhaps Pound and Pumpkin had followed me.
Shakily, I called out, “Pound? Pumpkin?”
Something came prowling out of the thickets. A wolf-like head with glowing eyes and rows of sharp wooden teeth emerged from its covering. A foul stench hung in the air. Then, two more similar faces appeared beside the leading wolf.
I slowly stood up, not taking my eyes off them.
A piercing howl broke the tension, and I started running.
I didn’t care where I was going as long as I was away from those monsters. The dirt beneath my hooves grew rockier. Loose stones wobbled underneath me, threatening to toss my balance. I climbed onto higher rocks. Sneaking a peek behind, I saw the wolves were having some trouble finding firm ground, but it wouldn’t stop them for long.
“Go away!” I shouted, tossing stones at them. A stone landed square in the face of one of them, but it only seemed to make it angrier.
At the top of the rocks was a dead end. Nothing but a cliff and a river to stop me in my tracks. A growl behind me told me that the pack had caught up. I whipped around in time to see one of their faces coming towards me quickly. A roll to the side narrowly saved me as one of them pounced into the river below with a splash and was carried off by the current. The second one wasted no time coming after me with another pounce. On my back, I kicked my hooves out, catching onto the twigs of its body and sending both it and myself over the edge. Luck had been very generous when my front hooves grabbed onto the cliff.
I was now face to face with the last remaining wolf. I saw its glowing eyes as I struggled to keep myself up, and I can’t help but think that Mother was right. Outside was dangerous.
As a million thoughts raced through my mind, the wolf made a lunge for me. But then, it looked like it was getting further away, and I realized that the wolf wasn’t getting farther away. It was me. I had let go without realizing it.
Out of all the thoughts that raced through my mind, only one stood out to me: Why?
Everything had been going great up until this point. But in an instant, everything had changed. Where were my friends? What happened to Happy? Why was I here in the middle of a forest being chased by wolves? How could things have gone so terribly wrong?
I fell into the running water. It got into my nose and mouth as I thrashed and kicked helplessly. I was as good as a pebble tossed into the current. With every splash, I tried to scream for help but it came out garbled as I sputtered for air. The price of not knowing how to swim was going to be costly. My limbs began to tire out, and my worst fears settled in when my head dipped below the surface.
Out of nowhere, I hit something in the water, kind of like a wall. Something started pulling me out. I was left shivering on a warm surface. My nostrils burned and water wouldn’t stop coming out of my mouth in a fit of coughs. I couldn’t see much behind my wet mane, but there was a tall shadow blocking the sun. No longer in immediate danger, I let myself close my eyes.
When I open my eyes, this will all be a dream and I will still be at the hive with Mother and Happy and all the other changelings. And I will still be a changeling, just as Mother has always said.
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Well, I'm not surprised of Twilight's reaction and I'm glad to know of this coming back.
You did a good job here :D
Yus, it returns!
abused
changelingpony stories are best stories.Why does it have to be so short!? Grat story, just not enought of it...
I hop Twiloght got her Deathbeams on stunning. If she has a fily who willingly goes around with a changelong and calls him brother - that's some good revelation material.
Hey, we're back!
Twilight done goofed, hopefully her worldview has been softened by our little Nymph. Happy is going to be in an even more difficult situation now that he's essentially lost the Princess and got captured. We wonder how much time is left before Chrysalis comes and throws a gigantic wrench into things?
Keep going! ;)
Well crap, Twilight overreacting as usual. The cookie test was a nice hint though, seeing as lings don't eat and she said she made them with "love".
7556152 S'cool, I got hooked on :D
Welp, Twilight is as murderous as ever. And if you say that it's the changelings' nature, then they're not really evil.
Hopefully happy is alive. It maybe not, because if he is, Twilight will most likely run horrible excitements on him, because changelings don't have feelings, amirite?
Also, it's alive!
I've really enjoyed what you've written before! The story is so content-packed and quick. The concept is so interesting. I can't wait to read the next chapter! :D
MOAR!
Awe, thought there was an update, turns out to be a misclick
7907747 Sorry to disappoint. The difference between an Edit and a Publish is only a few measly pixels. If it makes you feel any better, I'm at ~5000 words and still working.
7907778 oh not truly disappointed, that's why it's in the bookshelf after all. We know how annoyingly easy it is to hit that publish button unintentionally.
just marathoned the story. love it so far. keep up the good work
Who saved Nymph? Find out next time on Drag- Oh wait.
Twilight, u dun fukked up good
There was a chance to meet a pony who has been in the changeling's world for most of her lifetime, and now you'll have basically scared her back into it.
As for Nymph, I suppose she has her identity crisis. Well, she can take heart when she finds out that she's been single-hoofedly keeping the Hive fed for nearly a decade. Besides, she's still a changeling in spirit and heart, if not in body. That's what counts, innit? Though she'll have to get her whole journey and find her inner self first and all that sappy stuff!