We Have to Start...

All he wanted to do was get home.

Intel worked at the library all day. Usually sorting books, organizing shelves, and reading to the young fillies and colts who would come for the afternoon session. That last part was never tiring. As the foals were some of the few ponies who accepted him. They didn't hate him for where he had been born or what his kind had done in the past. It felt refreshing to see this side of the ponies again. The kindness and compassion was a joy to feel.

But unlike before, when they only accepted his disguise, this time the love and affection was directed at him. They cared about him, not the pony he'd pretended to be for nearly five years. He smiled when he thought of one specific, and very special, filly. Rainy Skies, an orphan, and the very first pony he'd read for after shedding his disguise.

All of the other foals had been too timid to come near the large bug. Rainy was the exception. She picked a big book from the shelf and carried it over to him on her back, dropping it in his lap and just looking up at him expectantly. As if a floodgate had been opened, the other foals rushed towards him. They crowded around, jostling each other for spots until they were arranged in a semi-circle around Intel. The staff had been shocked, but not nearly as shocked as he had been.

He could never repay her for her help that day. However, if the adoption hearing went well tomorrow he could at least try.

It was a quiet night. The noise and movement of Canterlot had toned down considerably. There wasn't a pony to be seen... anywhere. Something was off and it took him a moment to understand. Canterlot was never this quiet, especially at night. Now was the time that the ponies who led double lives came out to have fun.

The prim and proper unicorns who disguised themselves, or maybe unmasked themselves would be a better term, now as loose and fun loving as a pegasus on cider day. The stallions, who frequented the clubs out of the watchful eyes of their mares. Their mares, who danced at said clubs. The bars, that no noble would be caught dead inside, were now filled to maximum capacity. That was a usual Canterlot night.

Now... the streets shouldn't have been so empty. He sped up his pace. Whatever was happening gave him a bad feeling. He couldn't explain why, but he felt as if he were in danger.

All he wanted to do was get home.

CHANGELING LIBRARIAN FOUND IN CRITICAL CONDITION ON THE CORNER OF RED MANE AND APPLE AVENUE

Intel Espionage, 24, was found badly wounded at 6:50 a.m., following an attack by an unknown number of suspects. In addition to minor injuries it is confirmed that he suffers from one broken foreleg, a dislocated wing, a torn ear, and 3 broken ribs.

According to video evidence, the attack began at 10:39 p.m. and ended at 11:00. 10 ponies passed by the attack, and 16 more by the writhing changeling on the ground, without attempting to offer any assistance. Espionage tried to drag himself in what was later found to be the direction of his home. He collapsed at 5:36 a.m. Sea Foam, 22, found Intel on her morning jog, at the estimated time of 6:50, and rushed him to Canterlot Medical Emergencies, arriving at 7:00. Espionage is still unconscious, but he is expected to make a full recovery. This attack is thought to be linked to a recent outbreak in anti-changeling integration protests. Two weeks prior to this act of aggression, Espionage revealed himself at his workplace, where he was met with mixed results. 3 co-workers left in disgust... (Continued page 6)

Mask

I read the cover of the newspaper again as I picked at my breakfast. Probably not the best idea. I was nervous enough about my first day, and stories like this weren't doing a thing to help my case of the jitters. I chewed on a flapjack sadly, and stared at the medallion that hung from the chair in front of me.

"Mask!" My mother yelled from the next room. My ears perked up as I raised my eyes from the metallic chain. "It's 8:15," she called.

I tossed the last of the flapjack into my mouth, calling to Mom at the same time. "Aeg ore muu wae!" She leaned out the door, one eye ridge raised. I downed a half cup of apple juice, speaking only when my mouth was clear again.

"I'm on my way," I repeated, smiling sheepishly. She nodded and headed back into her room, preparing for her own day. I grabbed my saddle bag, and was halfway across the kitchen.

"Don't forget your charm," she called, a bit softer, and more reserved, than before.

I sighed and levitated the trinket over. A suppressor charm, created by some of the most powerful unicorns under the instruction of Celestia, was made to do exactly what the name entailed. The spell was designed to suppress the magic of whoever it was cast on. Usually used to aid in the arrest of unicorns and pegasi, or to keep those patients restrained in medical emergencies. Rarely used on earth ponies to physically weaken them. When an object was charmed with it, the spell's power was restricted to the pony wearing it.

In light of recent events, the spell had been altered by Princess Twilight Sparkle. This version was now suited for the changeling refugees who had come from Chrysalis's rule. It reduced how much love we could take in, made it nearly impossible for a changeling to take love from anyone who was unwilling, and restricted our ability to shape-shift. Each one had a magical imprint on them that reacts to each individual magical signature of changelings. That allowed changelings to take on one "registered" pony form. We could not disguise ourselves as anything else. At least, not legally.

I allowed the charm to slip over my head and rest at the base of my neck. Luckily, there were no real noticeable effects. No draining, no pain, and no spontaneous combustion. Most changelings didn't have a problem with them. I'm not like most changelings. I wasn't willing to roll over and sit when ponies asked me to. That wasn't how I planned on living my life.

"Now hurry up or you'll be late," she said.

"Alright," I called back, heading for the door. "Love you, Mom."

"And don't forget that you'll have the house to yourself for the night."

How could I forget? At best I'd get the complete silent treatment at school. Then I'd come home to an empty house. What a joy.

I can't wait to get started, I thought sarcastically.

Luckily the flight from my home to school was a quick one. Leaving me with just enough time to head to the principal's office before classes began.

"Now, Mr. Roles," she began. "I don't think that I need to explain the gravity of your situation."

"No, Ma'am," I responded. I understood perfectly well.

"Good. You know that they'll be watching you." She leaned forward on her desk her eyes locked on mine. I leaned back a bit in my seat. "They'll use you as an example to make the public resent you." She leaned further. I pressed my head up against the head-rest. "If you slip up, even once, you may find that whatever friends you make here will turn on you in an instant." Her face hovered an inch away from mine, her eyes slightly manic, before she sat back and straightened her glasses.

"That being said, I truly hope to see you do well in my school," she said as she stood up. "If you have any problems with the students, or the staff, I hope that you will report them to me. Now, the first bell will be ringing in moments, and you need time to find your classes, yes?"

I nodded.

"I suggest that you get going now, then. Have a good first day, Mr. Roles." She opened the door and motioned for me to leave. I had to resist the growing urge to bolt from the room, but I couldn't repress the shudder that passed through me after the door had closed.

"She has that affect on everyone," said the mare at the desk next to me. "Trust me. I'm only here for another two years and I can't get through them fast enough." She giggled. She was quite the pretty unicorn, with a leaf colored coat, and a bob-cut white mane tucked just behind her ear. Her golden eyes held no contempt in them. Her cutie mark was that of some type of feather and piece of parchment beside it. "My name's Quill Point, and I'm interning here as a principal's assistant, and you're the new student right?"

Oh, a quill. Duh. I nearly slapped myself for not noticing the obvious, but settled for a nod.

"Then you're going to need your schedule, let me see if I can find it." She opened a drawer at the desk and a large folder floated out, covered in a yellow aura. "Last name?" she asked.

"Roles," I replied. She nodded and opened to what I assumed was the "R" section.

"Let's see," she muttered to herself. "Rake, Resplendent, Reverb, Roanoke... Ah, here we go! Roles." She pulled the paper out triumphantly. "Let's take a look shall we?"

She scanned it before hoofing over to me. "Your first class is 'Applying Magical Theory'. That's on the third floor, left side of the hall. And you should be able to figure the rest out from there."

"Thanks Ms. Quill," I said, tucking the sheet into my saddle bag.

"Just call me Quill. And you're quite welcome. Good luck, Mask."

I nodded once more before I left the office, making it into the hallway just as the first bell rang and the students, who were lounging around, made their way to class.

"Well," I sighed. "Looks like we're starting now."

Author's Notes:

Mask Roles is 16 years old in the story. And, in my mind, 17 is the age that Equestrian citizens are considered mature. But 18 is the age that they can live on their own. Meaning that consenting for intercourse and drinking is allowed once they reach their 17th birthday. But a citizen cannot own a house or live without adult supervision until the age of 18. So Mask is nearly considered mature, But he'll live with his parents until he's 18.

Also, high school is an institution for the advancement of skills. It is not a requirement for pony society. Neither is college. Since most ponies earn their cutie marks when they are still considered either colts or fillies, they have an idea of what they want to do for the rest of their lives. Many jobs either don't require much knowledge or they require something such as an apprenticeship or internship. Ponies with more ambition, or who need more knowledge before they pursue a craft. Careers in writing, science, or math, are some jobs that ponies would pursue through higher levels of education. While blacksmithing, woodcrafting, gardening, etc, would require other channels of knowledge.

This is a multi-POV story.

...I Have A Dream...

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Mask

"Alright class," Mr. Silver Bell said. "Today is going to be a bit of a review. As well as a test to see which of my students pay attention in class, as opposed to doodling and writing on napkins."

There was a quick burst of laughter throughout the room as most of the class looked towards the embarrassed looking, grey pegasus to my left.

"Anyway," continued Mr. Bell, regaining the classes attention. "Let's start with the basics."

"Magic, like any activity, requires energy. And depending on what race you are your magic releases itself differently."

Or species, I thought.

"Who wants to tell me how the races of Equestria use magic?" he asked, drawing a pony from each race on the board

Somepony waved a hoof in the air, wildly trying to get Mr. Silver Bell's attention. He seemed surprised that somepony actually wanted to answer the question. He grabbed a piece of chalk with his brown aura before calling on her. "Yes, Field Rose?"

"Well, earth ponies are the strongest of the three races, and the only race that can grow food and flowers," the pink mare said excitedly.

"The only race?" Mr. Silver Bell asked as he began writing.

"Okay, maybe not the only race," She admitted, deflating slightly. "But," she continued, perking up again. "Definitely the best at growing plants. Our magic makes sure that anything we need to grow gets big, strong, and lively. Without earth ponies, all of Equestria would starve."

"Ha!"

Mr. Silver Bell turned towards the bark of laughter. "Do you disagree with Field Rose, Stormbringer?"

The electric-blue pegasus grinned. "Well, she's not wrong about the whole growing thing. But earth ponies aren't the only ones to thank for the food in Equestria."

Said earth pony glared at him. "And who is?" she asked. "You?"

He stuck out his tongue at her. "Who do you think makes sure that your crops get rain? And sun?"

She opened her mouth to reply, paused, and closed it as she turned around in her seat. Obviously sulking.

"Pegasi have latent weather magic," The colt continued. "Meaning that we can manipulate a lot of the weather. Which is also why we can walk on clouds. Our magic makes the clouds denser when we get close to them."

"Correct again," Mr. Silver Bell said, adding the description to the blackboard. "Now, who wants to explain the arcane ways of the mystical unicorn?" He asked, waving the chalk, in his magical grip, around dramatically

"Unicorns channel their magic through their horns," said the grey pegasus to my left. He was probably attempting to prove that he had paid attention in the class, at least a bit. "Which is why they tire more easily than earth ponies or pegasi. Because their magic has a more active use than either of the other races."

"Correct," he said. He added to the board as he continued, "Unicorns channel their inner magic through their horns. Allowing them to accomplish feats that no other race can accomplish. Some spells allow a mimicry of the magic of other races. However using this magic is much more taxing on unicorns than either earth or pegasi ponies."

"Brainiac," He called over his shoulder. Said purple mare raised her head from the notes that she'd been recording. "Let's hear straight from a unicorn. How do we achieve mastery of spells?"

"It usually comes down to three things," she said. She twirled her quill in her magic. "Understanding, execution, and practice. First you need to understand what it is that a spell does. Not simply the effects of the spell, but what it can do to you as well as whatever you are casting it on. Then you need to cast it. Which is much more difficult than it sounds. Most unicorns cause small scale destruction the first time that a spell is cast. And finally, you have to practice it as much as possible until you are fully confident that you can use it at any time." She returned to scribbling her notes.

Mr. Silver Bell nodded. "Exactly," he said as he added to the growing mass of text on the board. He turned back towards the class once he'd finished. "Now, how ab-"

He stopped short, noticing the hoof of the colt on my left. "Yes, Wolfe?"

"What about changelings?" he asked.

I felt my blood run cold. The class went silent.

Just when I thought that I could make it through the day completely invisible. So much for staying under the radar.

The class was looking at me. The entire class. Glaring, glancing, and staring at me. Judging me. Why did he have to say something? I asked silently. I was perfectly fine with being ignored.

"It's just," He continued. "We've talked about the magic of the three pony races. But what about Changeling magic? What do we know about that?"

"Honestly, nothing," Mr. Silver Bell replied. "I shouldn't say 'nothing'," He back-tracked. "We know of their ability to transform. Either creating a new alias or mimicking that of a pony. And they have the ability to extract energy by draining love. There are a lot of mysteries to solve on that species and no one is sure where to begin unraveling them."

"You could start by asking."

Who said that? I questioned. I glanced around, searching for the location of the voice. Why is everyone looking at me again? I wondered. My ears dropped a bit as realization washed over me. ...I said that didn't I?

I felt like applying a nice cold hoof to my face.

"Very well then. Mask Roles, would you mind filling in the gaps in our knowledge on changeling magic." He stood poised with the chalk.

I hesitated. "W-well. Uh..." I cleared my throat. "Changelings are a balance between the three races. We're normally stronger than unicorns and pegasi, have the flight that eludes both earth ponies and unicorns, and we can channel magic."

"We can't achieve the levels that any race has mastered however. We don't have the stamina or speed of a pegasus." I gestured at Wolfe. "Or the strength of an earth pony." I gestured towards Field Rose. "And we definitely can't achieve the mastery of spells like a unicorn," I finished as I turned back to our teacher who was still recording what I'd said. I glanced around the room while he continued writing. The most studious of students were busy taking notes on my explanation. While the more judgmental kept their focus everywhere except me. However, most of the room was silent. Too silent for me to judge how they felt about the direction the discussion had taken.

Finally, Mr. Silver Bell stepped away from the blackboard. In the center of the three ponies, he'd added a, surprisingly, well drawn representation of a changeling. As well as the information I'd given him. "Anything else?"

"Like you mentioned earlier, we have, or had, the ability to disguise ourselves as ponies, or creating an alternate identity for ourselves. And we intake love as a source of energy."

"Would you mind giving us a demonstration?" He interrupted, adding those last details before turning to face me again. "Of the transformation, not the love absorption."

I nodded, reluctantly, and closed my eyes. Focusing on the identity that I'd created after crossing the line between the hive and Equestria. Seeing the colors and shapes in my mind. Cobalt coat. Green and lilac mane and tail. The wings, just above average size. Forest green eyes. And the masks that would adorn my flank.

In a flash of green flames, my body shifted. Fur sprouted, hair grew, and my horn receded into my head. Feathers covered the membrane of my wings. My fangs retracted, my muzzle shifted, all while my eyes gained pupils and shifted in color. When the transformation was complete I lifted my head. I expected to see either revulsion, fear, or hate.

That, however was mostly absent. Buried beneath my classmates piqued curiosity

"Why didn't you become one of us?" Field Rose asked me.

"Well for one thing, I have this stopping me." I pointed to the medallion that still hung around my neck. The one thing that couldn't transform with me. Branding me as a changeling for every minute that I wore it. "It limits my magic, it restricts the amount of love I can absorb at one time, and it only allows me to take the form that I created when my family became citizens."

"Secondly," I added. "Most ponies find it invasive for one of us to transform into one of you. So I wouldn't do that even if I didn't have my charm."

"How does the love siphoning work?" asked Wolfe.

I winced a bit at his word choice. He made it sound so criminal. Okay, maybe to ponies it would seem a bit wrong, I admitted.

"Usually, changelings take the place of a family member. A friend. Or, what do you call it, a special some-pony? They feed off of the love that ponies direct at them. Ponies, of course, are unaware of the deception, and continue to directly feed the changeling. That type of feeding is passive and holds no ill effects on the pony involved."

"I guess that means changelings can't love each other." I scowled as Stormbringer's muttered comment got a few laughs from the ponies I'd already labelled as judgmental.

"Changelings don't have the capacity to radiate positive emotions like ponies do," I retorted as I once again assumed my natural form.

"So changelings can consume feelings other than love?" asked Braniac who furiously scribbled even while she asked the question.

"Yes, we can consume most positive emotions. Love. Affection. Friendship. Lust." There was much giggling, blushing, and laughing at the end of my answer.

"So what you're saying is," began Stormbringer, forcing me to glare in his direction. His tone suggested that he was either going to be extremely offensive, or extremely dirty minded. Or possibly both.

"Stormbringer," Mr. Silver Bell cut in. "If this is another interruption to give us more insight into your close-minded and offensive head, then you can expect to spend the rest of the week in this room after school."

He wisely decided to keep his muzzle shut.

"Now, Mask, if this is a subject that you'd rather not broach then I understand. But I'm curious to know about the draining that took place during the attack on Canterlot. That seemed much more aggressive. Prince Shining Armor was weakened to the point where he couldn't cast a single spell."

Before I could make an excuse, the bell rang. I sighed in relief as I packed my supplies into my saddle bag.

"Alright class, no homework tonight. But be prepared for further discussion when we come back tomorrow. Mask, can I see you for a minute?"

And even the almighty bell does not have enough power to save me.

I slowly approached the desk. Mr. Silver Bell removed his glasses and massaged his forehead before sighing deeply.

"First of all," he said after a brief silence. "I'd like to apologize for Stormbringer's attitude. He's been rowdy lately, but I've never seen him so blatantly disrespectful."

"It's nothing I can't handle," I assured him.

"Regardless, you are a student of mine. And I will see to it that you are treated with the same amount of respect as any of the others.

Says the stallion who ignored the fact that he could have asked me about my kind instead of dodging around the subject.

"And I hope you understand that I wasn't trying to ignore you," he went on. "I simply didn't want to put you on the spot on your first day. I'd planned to ask if you minded sharing some things. But now that's not necessary." He gestured to the board, and the one unanswered question on it.

Okay, okay. I take it back universe.

He paused again. Hoping that I would answer it for him. When I remained silent, he sighed again. "As I said, I understand. If you ever have an answer for me, I would be grateful."

I nodded and took a step back. He took the hint. "Yes, you can go. I'd hate for you to miss a class on your first day."

I headed for the door, stopping only when he called my name. "Good luck," he said.

The next two classes passed by fairly quickly, and weren't nearly as engaging as my first. However I expected as much from Gardening, which was basically a class full of social groups. My group consisted of myself and a sunflower. And Weather Control, which I only took to learn the signs and types of weather one could expect in Equestria, (I still have no idea what this snow thing is.) Before I knew it, the time for lunch had rolled around. While love was necessary to sustain my life; food was necessary to sustain my body.

I joined the line of ponies who piled on hay fries, dandelion sandwiches, apples, oranges, and the like. A feast compared to what we ate in the hive. As I levitated an apple and a sandwich onto my tray I noticed one of the lunch mares glaring at me. I tried to ignore it, instead figuring out the total in my head as I picked up a glass of apple juice. All together I would owe six bits. And if I got the same lunch everyday then I would need thirty bits for the week. Something to tell Mom.

I made it to the cash register, and handed over my bits. The mare wiped her hooves on a dishrag before accepting them. Before I could walk away she said, "That'll be ten bits."

"What?" I asked, confused.

She folded her forelegs. "Ten bits," she repeated. I glanced at the sign, ready to point out the price on it, when I noticed that she had laid the rag just over the price value for each item. She place her foreleg on top, smirking at me. "Is there a problem, bug?"

It took all of my will power to not fling the four bits in her face. Muttering to myself, I began to look for an open table. As I approached potential spots, bags suddenly appeared. Trays were placed in the way. Limbs were stretched out. Whispers began. I gave up on finding any table with company, and set my sights for the empty tables at the back of the lunchroom.

As I made my way over, I noticed a grey hoof waving in what seemed to be my direction. Figuring that I had nothing to lose, except more of my dignity, I changed course. Eventually, I came into the sight of the pegasus and unicorn from my first class, Wolfe and Braniac, as well as a large yellow coated earth pony, and a grey coated bicorn.

"Hey!" Wolfe greeted.

"Hi," I said slowly.

There was a half-second pause before he forged ahead. "I was just wondering if you wanted to sit with us."

I glanced at the faces surrounding the table. The earth pony seemed suspicious, but not openly hostile, while the bicorn gave me a slightly subdued smile. Brainiac turned my way, chewing on a carrot, and nodded to the space next to her.

I hesitated for a moment. They seemed like good company, and I preferred to not sit alone. "Alright," I agreed, seating myself beside Brainiac.

"That's Spot Weld," Wolfe told me, pointing at the yellow coated and short, curly, and purple maned earth pony. "And this is Temporal Tune," He pointed to the grey bicorn with the darker purple mane, styled to the side, and light purple highlights. I only noticed he had orange stripes on his body when he raised a hoof in greeting. "Of course you already know Brainiac," he added, pointing at the purple coated mare. Her mane and tail were darker toned than her body, with dark pink at the spiky ends of her mane and tip of her tail. I nodded to each of them in greeting.

"Why aren't you purple?" I asked the pegasus with good-natured sarcasm. His coat was a light grey while his fiery two tone mane was nearer to black with blue roots. He ran a hoof through his hair. "Silver and blue is the only color for this colt," He replied, chuckling. I smiled back, but focused on eating while they resumed the conversation they'd been having.

"Look, I'm not saying that I'm Batpone," Wolfe said. "All I'm saying is that no one's ever seen me in the same room as him."

"I've also never seen you in the same room as Wonder Mare," responded the bi-corn, smugly. "Something you'd like to share, Wolfe?"

Wolfe glared at the pony opposite of him. "I hate you, Tempest."

The others laughed at what I could only guess were regular antics between the two.

As the conversation continued, I found my attention drifting.

"Why is he even here?"

I turned my ears toward the whispers but made no other indication that I was eavesdropping. The muttered conversation came from the table behind me.

"They know what his kind did, and they let him in here?"

"Give it a few days, he'll find out he's not welcome. And if he doesn't then we'll show him."

Next was the table to my right.

"Can you believe that they even let him go to our school. Why don't they just make a school for his species and stuff them all in there."

"Why even give him a school, all he's gonna do is use everything against us. That's all they ever do."

I polished off the last of my lunch. I didn't want to hear anymore.

"Thanks guys," I said when their chat lulled. I tried to keep my voice upbeat. "This was better then sitting alone."

"No problem," Wolfe replied. "You're welcome here any time." I received nods from the other members of the table.

"I appreciate it. But for now I think I'll head to the library and check out what kind of books they have." I lifted my tray in a field of energy. Giving them a quick wave, I set off. Ignoring the glares I got from the tables adjacent to me.

Wolfe

"You can stop looking at his flank anytime now."

I felt my face heat up as I whipped around. "What are you talking about?" I asked Brainy. My reaction immediately set off the laughter of Spot Weld and Tempest.

"It was pretty obvious, Wolfe," she responded. Her face displayed the mirth that she held back. "I'm surprised that you could concentrate on the conversation at all."

I turned towards my food indignantly. I admitted to myself that he wasn't bad looking. But I'd hardly looked at him.

"So that's why you invited him over here?" asked Tempest. "You sly dog."

"Ha ha," I responded sarcastically. That was not the reason at all. I just didn't think he needed to sit alone. Besides, I wanted to make sure that he wouldn't get attacked or something by himself. I read the newspaper this morning.

"Might want to adjust your wings. They seem a bit happy."

I grabbed my bag and tray, using the strap of the former to restrain my wings, eager to get away from the table.

"Library?" questioned Spot Weld.

"Maybe," I replied. I realized what that sounded like and hurriedly explained myself. "To find Click Clack!" I added, referring to the missing member of our little group.

"Sure you are." I glared at the bi-corn.

"I'll come with," said Spot Weld. He grabbed his own bag and tray

"Have fun," Tempest called after us. "But not too much fun."

I was tempted to toss my half-eaten apple at his face. He'll probably catch it and send it back, I argued to myself. I satisfied myself with the knowledge of the secrets I knew about him. Then I spent the rest of the walk trying, desperately, to figure out what secrets existed. I sighed when I came up with nothing.

"Hey," Spot said, nudging my shoulder. "Look."

I followed his hoof. I found Click working on his laptop, no surprise there. The surprise came from the changeling sitting next to him.

Why does the universe just love to make my life difficult? I thought as I pulled my bags straps just the tiniest bit tighter.

Mask

I gazed at the stack of books beside me. It stood a good two inches higher than my horn. "Okay, maybe I should put a few back," I admitted. After choosing the books I wouldn't die without reading, I searched for a table to sit at. Expecting the lunchroom scenario again, I was a bit surprised when the first pony I asked agreed to let me sit with him. Provided that I didn't bother his work. The blue unicorn typed away, furiously, at the laptop in front of him. Suddenly he sighed in exasperation.

"No, no, no," He repeated as he tapped away at the backspace key. "It wouldn't make any sense having Soarin' killed off this early. Maybe I can use Vinyl? She's one of the few pony who keeps spirits up. But I was saving that one to help plunge everyone into despair. Maybe I need a new motive."

He groaned, then looked at me. "Say, you wouldn't happen to know the game Dangan Ronpa would you?"

"Yes?"

"What do you think would have been a good motive to include?" He asked.

I thought for a moment. "If Monokuma had caused them all some type of physical pain," I said. "And promised relief only after a murder occurred. I feel like that would drive some ponies mad enough to kill."

He nodded. "I like it, but would pain be enough?"

I shrugged. "Depends on the type of pain. A loose tooth can cause the biggest headache possible. Imagine that for days."

"Ooh, I need to write that down," He tapped away at his keyboard. "Thanks by the way. I'm Click Clack, famous author extraordinaire." He raised a hoof in the air and struck a pose. He must have seen the look of confusion on my face, because he lowered it to his short brown mane a moment later. "In a few years anyway," he added, laughing.

I chuckled as well. "I'm Mask Roles, professional actor," I stated proudly. Then I added, "In a few years."

"Well, when they make my books into movies, I'll be sure to give you a call." He extended a hoof towards me.

I smiled at him. "I'll be there," I said, bumping hooves with him.

Wolfe

"We can't just barge over there," I argued. "It's rude."

"Uh huh."

"Besides, what if they're talking about something important, we'd be a nuisance," I tried.

"Yep."

"The why are we still walking over there?" I asked.

"Reasons."

I sighed. "Is this because he's a changeling?"

He shrugged.

"What? Do you think he'll drain Click in broad daylight? With everyone watching him?"

He shrugged again.

I would have responded, but the two had just noticed us approaching. "At least be civil," I murmured.

"Sure," he assured me.

Click greeted us as we approached. "Hey guys." He gestured towards Mask. "This is-"

"We've met," interrupted Spot Weld as he sat himself between the two. "You wanted to show me something?" he asked Click.

Real civil, Spot. When I was sure that neither of the other two were paying any attention, I apologized for his bluntness. "Sorry about him. It's not a personal thing."

"Don't worry about it," Mask said. He glanced at his schedule. "I've got to get going anyway. My next class is on the other side of the building."

"Is it advanced flying? I've got that too. We can go together." I made to stand up.

"Actually, I think I'd rather go alone," he said. Crushing my hopes at spending some time with him. "Need to learn my way around the school sometime right? I'll see you there." He levitated the books in front of him back onto the shelf before he left. My wings shifted a bit as I watched him leave.

I sighed after he had gone.

"Yeah," Click said from behind his laptop. "You've got it bad."

"Shut up!"

Mask

"Nothing personal," I repeated to myself. "Nothing personal? Of course not! Thinking bad of me, because of what mistakes members of my kind made in the past, is 'nothing personal' at all. No, I say that everypony should expect the worst from me."

"Hide your foals," I said loudly. "Hide your mares, and hide your stallions too because we're draining everypony out here." I was grateful that no one was around to hear my rant. For all I know, somepony would have used it to prove that changelings were still "evil".

I huffed and looked at my schedule again. Advanced flying was room 204, the gymnasium. Hopefully I could blow off a bit of steam there. But not with these wings, I thought as I shed my true skin in favor of more powerful, and feathered, wings. I dropped my bags in the locker room before I took a look at the spacious gym. It was pretty constricted for a pegasus, but I supposed that it was good enough to give us students a workout. A few clouds drifted around, most seemed to act as platforms, targets, or obstacles.

"The gym is off limits until class starts, or a sporting event is taking place," Someone said from behind me.

"Sorry," I said, turning around. "It's my first time and I just-" I stopped short, noticing Stormbringer for the first time.

"You just what, bug? Thought that no one would see you sneaking in here?" He flapped his way into my personal space.

"No," I replied calmly. "I was-"

"Scoping the place out? Trying to hide so you could attack us normal ponies?" He shoved me, making me falter in my footing.

"All you bugs ever do is look for ways to get us to trust you," He shoved me again. This time, however, I was ready, and was able to hold firm.

"Look," I growled, taking a step forward. "I didn't come here to get harassed by some jerk pegasus who thinks he raises the sun!"

"Well I didn't come to school to sit next to some disgusting changeling," he retorted.

"Tough," I shot back.

He raised a hoof but, before he could strike, a second voice rang out.

"What in Luna's name are you two doing?"

Immediately, Stormbringer dropped to the ground. "Nothing, sir," He said, sickeningly innocent. "Just telling the changeling that the gym's closed until class starts."

At that exact moment, the bell rang. Signalling the beginning of class. I grinned cheekily at Stormbringer.

Much later, I hobbled from the gym, sore everywhere. Coach Hard Abs refused to let me use my pegasus form for flying. He said that I should build the muscles on my real body and not take the shortcut of transformation. I tried to explained to him that no matter which form I trained in my muscle definition would increase proportionately. The only advantage I would have was the feathered wings.

Unfortunately, he assumed that I was talking out of my... abs. Then he gave me an extra twenty laps around the gym. Meanwhile, Stormbringer took every opportunity to either crash into me, or bump me into a cloud. And the heckling continued non-stop. Strangely, Wolfe seemed to be avoiding me. I assumed it was to save face in front of his athletic peers, something I couldn't blame him for. I'd probably do the same thing in his horseshoes.

I skipped the after class shower for a number of reasons. Eagerness to get to my drama class being at the top of the list. My second reason was that I wouldn't have the self control needed to keep my hormones in check while surrounded by somewhat attractive stallions. After gym class. In the shower. The third reason was lower on my list of worries. Stormbringer. I was confident that I could hold my own against him. But why stoke the flames unless I wanted a forest fire? I refused to admit that the earlier newspaper affected my reasoning in any way. Besides, it wasn't as if anypony would have believed that I was being harassed by a pegasus.

The school "lost" my paperwork, which is why I'd started two weeks into the first quarter. Luckily for me, Ms. Thespian was still doing the "get to know you" thing that most teachers do during the first week of school. So I hadn't missed much.

I can't explain why, but acting has always been something I've loved. Some found it freeing to show the world who you are. To "be yourself". I find it freeing to pretend. To imagine yourself as someone or something else. To seal off all of your imperfections in an instant, and assign yourself a new identity. My hive designation was an infiltrator. I would have lived most of my life as a pony, pretending that I belonged. Pretending that I was no different from the rest of them. Sometimes, I wonder if I would have been happier doing that. Living a lie that kept me happy.

When school finally ended for the day, I found myself actually pleased to go home. I'd had enough of the stares, and glares, to last me the week. The silent sanctuary of home was feeling very welcome at the moment. With a quick buzz of my wings, I took off. Canterlot streets passed by me in a blur. The newspaper story I read earlier came unbidden to my mind, and I hurried my fight just a bit. When I finally arrived home, I found that the newspaper was still on the table. I stared at it for a moment, tempted to finish the story. But instead I threw it into the recycling bin. I didn't need to read about a life I was already living.

Shameless Signal Boost.

CC's story can be found over here. It's an awesome story, and the more people who read it, the more people who can yell at him to get the next chapter out. Come check it out

Author's Notes:

Refusing to respect someone because they differ from you in a way that is biological, racial, because of gender, because of a disability, because of an orientation, or because of a religious belief is just wrong. How could hatred for something that people cannot change, or that is a simple part of them that does not affect you, be justified. Bleaching your skin doesn't change your race, getting a prosthetic leg doesn't change the fact that you've lost it, taking medicine for depression doesn't make you the happiest person on the planet, dating a woman doesn't make someone a "man" or "straight". those aren't the things that matter. The only thing that matters in life are actions and intentions. Don't hate people and expect them to change or be better than what you think they are simply because you see them differently.

People deserve respect. They deserve respect for the choices they make, and the struggles that they live through every day. they deserve respect for being who they are, and never changing their core, their center. Simply existing is enough cause for respect, because existing in itself is a struggle.

Many people will never truly understand why many blacks and African Americans see race much of the time. It is because everyone see race, whether subconsciously or not. People attach negative stereotypes to people of color for years, and it still goes on today. We wear the same clothes, speak the same, act the same, yet we are the ones stopped on the side of the road, we are the ones eyed suspiciously as we walk into stores. Is that fair? Is that unbiased?

Many will never understand the animosity that many Native Americans feel. They were here first. But they were the ones herded from their land like cattle. They were died by the hands of the colonists they had befriended, and were slaughtered when they tried to defend themselves.

No one will ever understand what many Jewish people underwent in WWII. No one will ever understand the true horrors of the holocaust.

But we can coexist without understanding the past. We simply need to understand each other as people.

...That All Men Are Created Equal...

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Mask

The rhythmic clacking from the trains’ wheels did little to interrupt the the war I waged against Dad. Both of us had our eyes fixed forward, analyzing each other. He thought that he had size as an advantage, but I had range and speed on my side. Enough to irritate him after a few hit and runs.

We were down to the final stage. No more room to run, not that I wanted to. I had to end this here and now. I steeled my nerves and lit my horn, readying myself to attack.

“Check,” I said, smugly. Moving my rook forward, I forced his bishop from its place on the board. As I took his fallen piece he gritted his teeth and moved the king a space to the left. I took advantage of the sloppy retreat to attack his queen with my knight.

He moved a pawn forward, but I hardly noticed. Focusing too intently on my imminent victory. I advanced my rook, placing it directly in front of his king, where it was backed by my knight. He had no option except retreat. He stared at the board intently. Foreseeing every possible scenario.

After a few minutes of internal debate, Dad finally expressed his thoughts. “You wanna call this a tie?” he asked, leaning back in his seat.

I looked at the board. No way! I thought. I’m a move away from… The thought trailed away as I looked at the board, slowly realizing that I’d walked directly into a trap. While I thought that I was stringing the king along, in reality his king was a decoy. Simply bait for me to snap at while he encircled me. And the pawn. The Celestia-forsaken pawn. It was a space away from the last square of my side of the board, and all of my pieces were barred from attacking it. And it was obvious what he wanted.

I sighed and nodded, my hopes of winning dashed. The elation that I’d felt now giving way to defeat. And a small amount of indignation. “You could have won,” I pouted, feeling that he’d thrown the game in my favor.

“Probably,” he admitted while he collected the pieces. I folded my forelegs and turned away, expressing my annoyance.

“However,” he continued. “My plan would have relied on a single piece. If I’d lost my queen, the little strategy I had would have fallen apart.” He gestured to me. “Yours held room for versatility.If you hadn’t given up, it’s likely that you would have won.”

“Great,” I muttered, half to myself. “So I spent days on that strategy for nothing.”

“It was a good strategy, son,” he chuckled. “It’s the strategist that needs some work.”

I stuck my tongue out at him. “Thanks,” I said sarcastically.

He grinned and chess bag over to my side of the booth, before adjusting himself so Mom could rest more comfortably against him. She’d fallen asleep about halfway through our game, and neither of us had the heart to move her.

She’d worn herself out at the hospital again. A lot of the staff had quit, for obvious reasons, and it fell to the remaining workers to pick up the slack. My mom made it her mission to do any work she could without complaint. She told me that she owed it to her boss, especially when he didn’t fire her despite the reduction he was having in his work force. The unfortunate side effect was the fatigue and stress that now hung over her like a cloud.

Luckily the empty train car made for the perfect place to sleep.

That was one of the main reasons I was excited for the weekend. She could do with a chance to relax and de-stress, we all could. And a family reunion was the best way to do it. The town the adults had picked was supposedly famous for their tolerance and acceptance. Meaning that the weekend would be fun, and the only excitement would be from the younger drones and workers.

The train whistle signaled that we were near our destination, Ponyville.

“It really is great to see you again, Melody,” My aunt, Nurture, gushed. “And I can’t wait until you see how the boys have grown.”

She turned towards me as we walked. “I think Strike is about your age, Mask,” she added. “And they’ve both been excited about meeting the family.”

I nodded, hardly focusing on the conversation. Instead I was completely enthralled by the beauty of Ponyville. Especially the large crystal castle that rose near the center of it. Other large and creative designs stood throughout the small town, capturing my attention in turn.

Ponyville also had a simplistic and natural beauty, so different from the city, where things were made to be beautiful. So much so that they lost meaning. The citizens of Ponyville, however, shaped the world around them. I could see it in the way they built. The homes were made of natural materials, and had basic designs. While that could go up in flames, it probably helped to have pegasi nearby, who could put it out in seconds.

I just watched the ponies go about their business. Laughing, smiling, running, and talking. They looked so peaceful and… loving. I could see why they were more accepting of changelings over other cities and towns. They were bursting with love, care, and affection for each other. It made me happy.

I was ripped from my peaceful state of mind, realizing that I’d begun to lag behind, when I heard Dad try to explain a recent situation.

“You should have knocked!” I yelled in retort, running ahead to rejoin the group.

“We’ll call you when the food’s ready,” Mom yelled from behind me. “Until then just get your things settled.”

“Alright,” I called down in reply. I shut the door and chose one of the three beds, tossing my bag on top, and flopped onto it. My hooves ached from the walk from the train to Aunt Nurture’s home at the other end of town.

At least they set up a few extra beds, I thought.

I grabbed my bag and rummaged through it, pulling out my copy of Animorphs once it had been uncovered. It wasn’t anything special, a group of ponies who’d been gifted the power to turn into animals, entrusted to save the world from brain hijacking slugs, and a couple of weird aliens thrown in. While the book as a whole was a bit bland and hackneyed, the humor and idea behind it were enough to get me to continue to read. That and my compulsiveness to figure out when the characters would finally wise up and tell everypony about the Yeerks. I was in the middle of Wise Guy realizing that his mother was Visser One, when I heard Mom call from downstairs.

I marked the page in my book and tossed it on the bed behind me as I made for the door. Unfortunately, someone had the same idea as me. The door opened just as I reached it,slamming into my forehead just at the base of my horn. The ‘Ling on the other side continued into the door, expecting it to be open, and bumped into it as well.

“Ow,” The other voice groaned. “You alright over there?”

“Yeah,” I replied. I stepped back and pulled the door open fully, revealing my accidental assailant. He was a bit taller than me, and a bit more muscled. Okay, I was a twig compared to him. His mane was shorter than mine. It was kept in what I remember to be the hive’s regulation style. As was his tail. However, we might have been considered twins if not for his much blacker carapace as opposed to my lighter shade.

He rubbed his nose, smiling guiltily at me.

“Probably not the best way to meet a cousin of mine,” he chuckled. Sticking out a hoof, he introduced himself, “I’m Flame Strike, or just Strike.”

I took a hoof away from my aching horn long enough to introduce myself. He winced when I put it back almost immediately.

“Sorry, you sure you’re okay?” he asked worriedly.

I waved it off. “I’m fine,” I insisted. “Really.”

He didn’t look convinced, maybe the wincing between every word was too suspicious, but he didn’t question me further. “Well, if you’re going to be stubborn about it.” A simple smirk indicated that he was joking. I grinned back.

“Aunt Melody sent me up to make sure you heard her.” He inclined his head towards the stairs. “They need some help putting the food outside.”

I groaned, knowing, by the pain in my horn, that I wouldn’t be able to use magic to carry the food. Sorry boys, I thought giving my hooves a pained smile. No rest for the weary.

Nearly an hour later, I found myself lying on the grass outside. My hooves made sure that their displeasure, at being overworked, was known. Meanwhile my horn mocked me by letting its pain subside. I decided to put it to work by rubbing at my hooves, hoping to soothe them a bit.

“Don’t tell me you’re tired already?” Strike asked from behind me. He set a plate down in front of me; stacked with my favorites. I tucked into the watermelon first, talking only after I swallowed the first mouthful.

“You’re not the one who had to carry 6 fruit cakes on his back.”

He sat beside me with a sigh. “Look, I really am sor—”

I interrupted him with a raised hoof. “I already told you not to worry. I just like giving you a hard time about it.”

“Besides,” I went on, a grin beginning to cover my muzzle. I took a bite out of my oats. “The less you apologize, the less guilty I’ll feel about kicking your plot in the races later.”

“Dream on,” he retorted. “They don’t call me ‘Strike’ for nothing. I’m the fastest ‘Ling for miles.”

I laughed through the coleslaw. “That’s because you haven’t raced me yet.”

3rd person/Soothing Melody

Soothing Melody laughed with her sister as she watched the antics of their two children. As well as that of their respective husbands.

“I’m telling you it’s impossible,” her husband, Brick Layer, argued. “There’s no possible way that you can even begin an operation like that unless you remove the coolant system first. that’s the only way to make the system shut down forcefully.”

“You’re forgetting about the overcharge safety gate,” her sister’s mate, Gear, this time.

“Do you even realize how dangerous that is. Increase the power output too quickly and you—”

“Yeah but that didn’t happen,” Gear interrupted with a smirk.

“But it could have.” Brick was becoming visibly exasperated as the argument continued.

Melody turned to her sister, a mirthful smile still on her muzzle. “Do you think we should break them up?”

“Nah, they’re having fun,” She laughed. “Besides, they’re setting a great example for the kids.” She pointed at their sons.

“Yeah right,” Mask said, rolling his eyes.

“Would I lie to you?” Strike asked.

“Yes,” Mask answered immediately.

Strike feigned a wounded look. “Well, why don’t you let me prove it with a little practice race?”

“Where to?” Mask asked.

“This way,” he yelled as he took off.

Mask took a last bite of his hay fries before dashing off in pursuit.

“There they go,” Melody said, shaking her head in amazement.

“They’re not the only ones,” her sister quipped, pointing to the older drones.

“Well then let’s see who is right,” Gear said. “I’m sure there’s a tech shop in town.”

“Fine,” Brick responded throwing his hooves out in annoyance. “And when it blows up in your face, I’ll be sure to call an ambulance.” With that, the two began walking into town, still arguing loudly.

Melody sighed. “I suppose that we should go after them.”

“I’ll look after the drones who can cause damage,” Nurture said. “You go make sure the boys are alright.”

Melody nodded. “Be careful,” she laughed.

“Oh I’m sure they’ll be covered in ash by the time we get back,” her sister laughed. “You’d better get going, looks like they’re leaving you behind.”

She was right, both boys were zipping across the fields. Melody began buzzing her wings, and lifted off in the direction of the young drones.

Mask

“Get some sleep boys. We’re planning a trip into town tomorrow.”

We mumbled a chorus of replies as we flopped onto our respective beds.

Strike won our race, but just barely. I insisted it was because I’d just ate, and he agreed. That didn’t stop him from boasting about it though. I managed to shut him up by beating him on the way back.

The other members of my family were pretty cool. Another cousin of mine, Sky Fang, was an amazing flyer. He pulled off techniques that I’d seen very few pegasus do.

And I had another aunt who was writing a book. She said it was to detail the lives of some changelings after being exiled from the hive, and had tons of interviews set up.

Neither of us won the races. The victory went to my cousin Terra. She held the lead for nearly the entire race, and wasn't even sweating at the end. Flame was more upset than I was. Probably because of his loss to me just before.

Strike had some pretty big plans for himself. He told me that he wanted to join the royal guards. I told him that he was crazy, because he’d probably have to fight the changelings who still followed Chrysalis.

If only that had been all he had to worry about.

“Hey, Mask,” he asked just as I got comfortable. “You still awake?”

“No,” I whispered. “I’m completely unconscious.”

“There’s this awesome place that Robin and I have to show you.”

“You’re gonna love it,” Robin Sight added, chuckling.

It was hard to believe that Strike’s younger brother was born female. Had I not been told in advance (so I wouldn’t ask any awkward questions that I was bound to have asked otherwise) I wouldn’t have assumed anything. He didn’t seem to mind my queries, but I made sure to not be a bother. He probably got enough of that from the town.

“What type of place is it?” I asked.

“That part is gonna stay a surprise,” Strike answered cryptically.

“Just so you guys know…" I began, awkwardly. "I’m not legal yet.”

The abrupt silence was soon filled with hysterical laughter.

“It’s not that kind of place." I could imagine him wiping the tears from his eyes. Trust me. It’s foal friendly there.”

“Then why can’t you just tell me?” A little annoyance crept into my voice.

“What fun would that be?” Robin asked. Bot of them laughing all the more at my confusion.

I sighed in defeat. “Fine, have your secrets. I’d just better not get a lecture like Dad and Uncle Gear got.”

“It’ll be fine. We go there all the time. Just stick with us.”

“Alright,” I said. “Can I go to bed now?”

In an extremely disturbing voice that emanated from directly in front of me, he answered, “You can always got to bed, Mask.” He lit his horn, revealing his face, inches away from my own. “Always.”

I glared at him. “Get off of me.”

“Aw, you do like me.”

“OFF!”

Author's Notes:

Some of you have brought up the fact that changeling magic is being oppressed. That they are now vulnerable. This is true. But from the pony side of view, the changeling magic is dangerous. Their new neighbors are not to be trusted. This needs to happen for the safety of the Equestrian citizens.

But think on this. If you move to a new country, a country that you used to be at war with, and they decide that your glasses can be used as a dangerous weapon. They decided to take from you what you've depended on for much of your life, something that is a part of you, for the safety of the people who cannot trust you. Is that right. Is that fair.

But what if they didn't. What if they allowed everyone with glasses to keep them freely. What if someone gets hurt?

Wouldn't it be easier to keep the problems from happening, rather than dealing with them as they come?

But, you must also ask yourself. Is it fair?

This story received a review by the awesome Spy11887. You can find it here. As well as the group that does the reviews. Check it out.

...They Will Not Be Judged...

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Mask

"Excuse me. Sorry! Coming through!" The clip-clopping of hooves heralded the arrival of Wolfe. "Hey, Mask," he said as he caught up, barely out of breath.

I shook my head in amazement. Giving a quick glance back to the crowded hallway behind us, I asked, "How do you do that? Are you secretly an alicorn?"

He started laughing.

"Come on," I pleaded. "You can tell me. What's your secret?" Somehow this just caused him to laugh harder.

I was convinced that Wolfe had unicorn ancestors and some magical abilities. There was simply no way someone could move as fast as he did, through large crowds, or up walls, without bumping into anypony or thing. Not without using his wings, a teleportation spell, or at the very least some type of charm.

"I keep telling you, you come out training with me..."

"I think I'll stay on the sidelines. You're going to need someone to pick you up when you break a leg."

"Ha ha," he said sarcastically.

"Did I miss something?" I asked. "You caught up in a hurry, even for you."

"Well," he said. "Tempest, Click, and I thought it might be fun to grab a bite, since school lets out early today. We thought it would be a great way to end off the week. You wanna join us?"

I thought for a moment. I'd been a bit upset that my last class of the day would be cancelled. I'd started to really enjoy my drama lessons. But I definitely wouldn't mind leaving school nearly an hour earlier than normal.

"Sure," I said. "Not much else to do." Mom, as usual, would be working late. And Dad had started working overtime for the week.

"Any ideas where?" I asked.

He shook his head. "That's part of the fun. We usually get lost anyway, so it's more entertaining to just head in one direction until we find something."

"It has nothing to do with finding things for you to climb up or jump off of?" I asked, grinning.

"Complete coincidence." He turned his head away for a moment, poorly concealing a smirk, giving me enough time to roll my eyes.

"Anyway, we'll meet in the front of the school after flight class," he told me. We walked into the nearly full gymnasium just before the bell rung. "Just under the juniper,"

"I know the one," I responded as we started our pre-flight stretches. The two of us eventually drifting apart as Wolfe's competitive nature took over. Meanwhile, I did enough to push myself, but not enough to tire quickly. However, Coach Abs giving me the stink-eye was a great motivator to ramp it up.

Wolfe

"I'll meet you guys after I run to my locker," Mask shouted.

"Cool," I yelled back, trying to make my voice heard over the ponies excited for the slightly shorter day.

The throng pushed me out the door, and almost down the steps, of the school. I split off and headed in the direction of our usual meeting place. I found Click waiting, curled up next to one of the large roots of the tree. Still typing away on his laptop, as usual. I tried to peek at some of his work, but he immediately snapped the device shut.

"Come on," I begged, reaching a hoof towards the computer. "Just a little read?"

He held it out of my reach, coating it in a field yellow magic. "You know my rules, Wolfe. No one reads—"

"Anything you write until you're absolutely 100% done," I finished, sitting on my haunches, disappointed. "I know the spiel."

When he was satisfied that I was done trying to read over his shoulder, he resumed typing.

"What if I became your editor?" I asked.

He looked at me over the monitor, his hooves never ceasing in their movements. "We both know how bad you are with deadlines, Wolfe."

"I'm not bad," I pouted. "I just like to work at my own pace,"

"Well an editor needs to be able to work at good pace. Not a snail's pace."

"Alright, alright. I'll just sit around for two years, waiting for the next chapter."

He didn't respond, so I busied myself with looking out for our mutual friends. "Is Brainy a definite no show?" I asked after a few minutes.

He nodded. "Says the test is too important to leave to chance. She's gonna spend the night studying. And Spot's out sick."

"Again," we said in unison.

I sighed. Spotting Tempest, I waved him over.

"Ah well, we can have fun with just the four of us."

"I take it that Mask is going to join us?" Tempest asked as he sat down.

I nodded. "Actually..." I looked back towards the doors, the few usual stragglers were leaving. "He said he was just going to his locker," I said worriedly. "He should have been here by now."

After another minute revealed no sign of the changeling, I decided to go check on him.

"I'll just see what's keeping him," I said as I began walking back towards the school. "Stop giving me that look, Tempest," I threw over my shoulder. The muffled snicker that followed further proved my friends teasing. "I'm just checking on him. He said that he wouldn't be long, and we've been waiting for a good bit."

"I remember when I lied to myself."

Instead of defending myself, I simply shook my head and continued on my way into the school.

Mask

I all but lunged around another corner. My hooves scraping against the floor, heart pounding in my chest. They were close, really close. I kept running. Just barely able to stay out of reach of magic.

Unfortunately, I forgot about the Stormbringer.

He rammed into me from a side hallway, tossing me at the wall of lockers. For a moment the world spun, causing me to stumble in my steps as I tried to stand. I felt the back of my head slam against the metal again, a cold grip squeezing around my throat. I fought back, trying to use my own magic to pry his aura's grip from my throat.

He let his magic waver for a moment, letting me fall to the floor. Before I could think of retaliation, I was lifted up and slammed painfully against the ground. In desperation, I charged up a quick magical burst, hoping that it would knock my attackers back and give me an opening to escape. When they stumbled from the force of the blast I turned to run, crying out when I felt the vice-grip that clamped around my leg.

I twisted and fired a quick shot at the offending horn, breaking the unicorn's hold on me. By now, Stormbringer's and his other accomplice had caught up to me. Stormbringer blocked my exit, forcing me to stop and face him. Which left the perfect opening for the earth pony to tackle me. He tried to pin me, but I forced him to back off with a swift kick to the gut.

Stormbringer took that moment to ram me into the lockers again, holding me up with one foreleg. Through the spots that danced in my vision, I could just make out his silhouette. His hoof poised to meet my muzzle. My body was too exhausted, both my magic reserves and my stamina were at zero. I pushed feebly at his arms, my head still swimming.

An instant before his hoof would have smashed against my face, a blur came from nowhere, picked up Sormbringer, and took him down the corridor.

"Back off!" was the only thing I heard. Followed by a very loud thud.

"What the hell!" The unicorn shouted.

I didn't waste a second. I launched myself from the wall and rammed into him, shoulder first. As he fell, I turned towards the earth colt and let loose another quick shockwave, knocking him off of his hooves.

I had to duck as the two pegasi came back down the hallway. Fighting like hawks, wings flailing, each trying land as many blows as they could on the other.

"Wolfe?" I called in shock.

Unfortunately, my confused shout distracted him long enough to take a solid hit to the muzzle. The blow sent him reeling backwards, but he righted himself mid-fall and glided back down to the ground. I supported him with my shoulder, just long enough for him to clear the dizziness from his head. When we looked up again, Stormbringer and his two cronies had fled.

Wolfe stomped the ground in angrily. He spread his wings, ready to give chase, but I held out a hoof and shook my head. "It's not worth it."

"The hell it isn't!" he yelled. He pointed a hoof down the hallway. "That was assault, on school property. More than enough to get those—"

"And who do you think a court would believe?" I interrupted irritably. "Who would the guards believe? A group of three ponies or one changeling? I'll give you three guesses."

He opened his mouth to retort, but I cut him off again. "It would be our word against theirs. And the word of a changeling means next to nothing around here."

"But you couldn't have instigated a fight," He reasoned. "The guards know about the charms." He indicated the necklace I wore.

"These things?" I laughed bitterly, flicking the medallion that had stayed around my neck despite the fight.. "As far as the guard is concerned, changelings know every possible way to get around these charms. Sure they can tell when and if we remove them. But no one cares about that. All anypony cares about is making sure that the 'changeling threat' is kept completely underhoof."

I laughed. "You know what's funny? I keep hearing ponies call us bugs, insects, and even parasites. Well that's what it feels like. We're small bugs next to the pony giants. We need to watch our step every second of the day or else, SPLAT!" I ground my hoof into the tiled floor for emphasis. I hadn't even realized that I'd been shouting until I'd opened my eyes and saw Wolfe's shocked face.

I felt like apologizing. But I knew I couldn't take back what i’d just said. And I realized that I didn't want too. "Just..." I turned away, feeling too empty to keep arguing. "Just let it go, Wolfe," I said as I began to walk away.

He followed me until we got to the exit. Before I could leave, he stepped in front of me. His muzzle an inch away from mine. Had I not been completely drained of emotion, I might have been afraid, or even confrontational. Instead I settled for an stoic stare.

"Alright," he said. "I get that you don't want the royal guard involved or anypony else getting involved. So I won't say anything, this time."

I felt some weight relieve itself of my chest. I was glad I didn't have to try to convince him.

"But I want you to do something for me."

I blinked. "What?"

"I know you're upset. I'm furious right now. You want to go home and sulk. Lay in bed and yell at the ceiling. But what's that going to accomplish? Nothing. Shove it in their face by having a good time despite them. Carpe Diem!"

He put a hoof on my shoulder. "This is supposed to be a really inspiring way of saying that I want to make sure you're okay. And I'd rather not leave you alone to get jumped again."

It finally clicked what he was yammering about. "You still want me to come with you guys?"

"Well it's either that or I follow you home. And I know that you'd hate to make me miss lunch with Tempest and Click."

"Are you guilt-tripping me?" I asked incredulously.

He shrugged. "Maybe a little."

I opened my mouth, ready to give him every argument that I could think of. Then I deflated, my brain spent. "Fine," I sighed. "A few hours, then I'm heading home. Deal?"

Wolfe

I looked around. Searching for a good spot to begin. It couldn't be too high, and it needed to be somewhat close to something comfortable for my friends to rest on.

By now, my friends were used to our misadventures. And we would start them as randomly as possible. Back in our first year, we would plant to go out to restaurants or cafes, but we never made it. Most of us had a horrible sense of direction, or bad memory, and we'd find ourselves nowhere near where we meant to end up. It got to the point that we would just decide to go on adventures through the city until we got hungry. Adventures that I sometimes led them on. I smiled back at the others as we walked. Click and Tempest were having a conversation about classes. With Tempest griping about the teaching method used in the technology course being too much explanation and not enough hooves-on work. Mask trailed along more slowly, making it easy to tell that his mind was hardly on the bag of food he held in his mouth.

I waited for my friends to sit down in the nearby grass. Taking the time to size up the spot I'd chosen. A couple of walls, stairs, guardrails, a ramp, and a nice abstract build to top it all off. I nodded in satisfaction. It was perfect.

After a quick stretch, I set my eyes on my starting point; the lowest and narrowest of walls. I took a breath, and lifted my hooves. The stress of a few hours ago slipped away. All that existed was the present and immediate future. I leaped, my hooves clicking against the stone wall as I landed. My wings flared, aiding me in keeping my balance before I tucked them away again. I ran forward, my head bobbing with each step.

I leaped, front legs out, back legs trailing behind me. I landed smoothly on the next wall, this one being much wider than the other, and began galloping again. I aimed my sights at the ledge of a higher wall. I leaped at it, landing on the vertical surface hooves first, and kicked downwards, my hooves propelling me up the surface and allowing me to grab the top. I pulled myself up, spreading my wings again for balance.

I flashed a confident smirk down to my friends. Tempest merely waved, a somewhat cheeky grin on his face. Click raised a nacho in acknowledgement. And I could see Mask’s jaw dangling just above the ground. I grinned wider.

If he likes that... I looked over the drop, setting my sights on the narrow guard rail a few feet beneath me.

He’s gonna love this, I decided, taking a few steps back to allow myself a running start. I could see the bar in my mind’s eye, and kept it’s location fixed in my head. I took a breath, steeling my nerves, and took off at a quick trot. I waited until I was a few inches from the ledge before leaping. Mid-air, I twisted my body, moving my back legs in front of me. I landed hooves first, and used my forelegs to steady myself on the bar as it rattled from the force of my drop.

“Geez,” Tempest exclaimed, startling me for a moment. “That’s the most intense you've ever been.”

I chuckled, only then realizing how hard my heart was beating. “I've got energy to burn.” I explained.

“You alright?” he asked. “I know how you get when you’re ‘in the moment’ or whatever you call it.”

I rolled my eyes but gave my body a quick check anyway. Everything was still attached, nothing was broken, and there were minimal scrapes on my four legs.

“Hey, Wolfe?” Click called. “I think you broke Mask.”

Mask

“You do know that he likes you right?”

That question still burned in my head. When Temporal told me that, I’d thought it was a joke. But what he said next erased most of my doubts.

“I've known Wolfe for a long time. Long enough to know when he’s crazy about someone. Just look.” He had indicated Wolfe just after he had finished stretching. (A sight that I will admit was nice to see.)

“In all the time Wolfe’s done these stunts, I've rarely seen him so utterly focused. And only when he’s got something to prove.”

I was captivated from the start. I didn't even know how to describe what or how he did what he did. All I knew was that it was amazing.

When I tried to ask Temporal what he was talking about, he clammed up. He said that it was close to dark territory. Territory that he couldn't talk about right now. I accepted that answer without complaint. I had enough to think about already.

Of course I knew he was attracted to me. I’m a changeling, even with this stupid charm on, I could taste it. But I didn't realize that the attraction was more than physical. I guess I’d become so used to it, that I didn't even notice a shift. Thinking about it though, it would make sense. I could have died earlier. Wolfe could have walked the other way. No one knew he was there. I wouldn't have even thought about blaming him. But he chose to put himself in danger to make sure I was safe. He was ready to finish the fight for me.

Do I feel the same?

I stopped at the door of my apartment. Seriously pondering the question.

What was Wolfe to me?

At the very least, a friend, I affirmed as I opened the door. That much was obvious. He’d been one of the few ponies to give me a chance when I’d first arrived. And he’d gone out of his way to make me feel welcome. And he continued to extend the invitation whenever he could. if that wasn't a friend then I didn't know the first thing about friendship.

Best Friend? I wondered as I hooked my saddlebag on a chair. Well, we insulted each other, argued about the stupidest and most mundane things. I’d been over to his place so often I was considered a second son, with food privileges. And he’d come over to my home enough times for me to feel a bit jealous of how my parents treated him. And a bit annoyed; he and Dad would sit for hours discussing enough technical jargon to spin my head a hundred different ways.

Do I like him?

The question caused me to pause momentarily. I had never really thought about it before.

He made me feel happy. And safe. He’d been there for me since the beginning. I wasn't saying I wanted to marry the guy, but I definitely wanted to give it a shot.

Tomorrow then, I decided. We'll test the waters tomorrow.

Feeling pleased with my decision, I made myself a celebratory glass of apple juice. I took a quick glance at the calendar as I closed the fridge's door, and facehooved.

"The one time," I muttered. "The one time I want to go to school and it's a weekend?"

I raised my head to the ceiling. "Thanks, Universe!" I shouted, taking another sip of juice. "Thanks a lot!"

Author's Notes:

If I see one person singing "Let it Go" in the comments, I will be disappointed. I'd better see at least 5 of you.

Something that sucks but is also interesting:
Ferguson.
The incidents started shortly after me starting this fic. And I find that a bit... unexpected, to say the least. If you don't know what happened in Ferguson, I'll give you a quick rundown. First off, #AmericanProblems. With that out of the way, let's get into the gritty things, eh?

Recently, in Ferguson, Missouri, racial tensions have been rising due to multiple recent events. On August 9th, 18 year old Mike Brown was shot six times by police officer Darren Wilson. He died.

Conflicting witness reports muddy the issue. Some say that Brown, black, had his hands raised in surrender when he was shot by Wilson, white. Others say he was advancing on Wilson, white, threateningly. Some reports say he was attacked for no reasons while others say that he shoved a store employee and wrestled with a police officer for his gun.

I don't know who's right. But I know this. the issue isn't what he did, but what the aftermath was.

Fact: He was unarmed. You don't use lethal force unless it's justifiable. No one was in danger or had been seriously harmed. It takes a few seconds to switch from a gun to a taser. Lethal force was not required.

So, why is this considered racial prejudice?
That comes form years of simmering thoughts that no one said aloud. Alright, let's be completely honest. You'd trust a black person a lot less than you'd trust a person of another race. Black people are, quite regularly, seen as dangerous, suspicious, and untrustworthy. When it comes to encounters with the police, we are more likely to be charged with minor offenses, stopped under suspicion of influencing substances, etc. I've seen people avoid sitting next to me on public transport. They tighten their grips on their possessions when we come near, and check that they aren't missing something when we leave. Black people are seen as dangerous and we are generally treated as such. We are more likely to be affected by police brutality, and less likely to have our emergency calls responded to.

Here's my belief, Prejudice is not something terrible. Prejudice is something that we as humans do to group information and people. However, when you let preconceived notions affect how you interact and treat the people around you, that is when it becomes a problem. That is when discrimination occurs.

And it works in every way.
Not every black person spends their days eating fried chicken, sitting on the front steps, and rapping badly. Or dancing sexually with their weave bouncing.
Not every Hispanic insults you in another language, or say "Chica" every five seconds.
Not every white person is self entitled. Nor are they gullible or naive people.
Not every Asian person is a genius, contortionist, martial arts fighter.
Not every Muslim is a terrorist, and I really can't believe that that needs to be said.
Not every African American is uncultured, or speaks with a pause between every other word.
For pete's sake, don't ask an Australian to "Throw another shrimp on the barbie".
Don't think that every British person walks around with a monocle and tea in hand.
Don't assume everyone of French descent is rude.
Being gay doesn't make someone a "sissy".
Being transgender doesn't mean someone is confused about who they are.
Don't blame religion for a person's faults.
Urban does not mean ignorant.
Clothes don't constitute a person's personality.

The list goes on guys. These stereotypes are fine on their own as long as you accept them as stereotypes, not fact. Remember that.

...By The Color of Their Skin...

View Online

Mask

I didn't ask him.

I know, I know, "I'm stupid, I’m an idiot, and a complete moron." But at least give me a chance to explain the situation.

I was going to ask him, I even made it to lunch before everyone else so I could ask him out in private. That didn’t work out as I had planned.

When everyone else got there before he did, I was confused. It wasn't odd for Wolfe to be late, but he was never the last one to the table.

We kept looking around, expecting to see him streaking through the cafeteria. We didn't notice him at all until he dropped his bag at the table and sat down silently. His eyes were bloodshot and strained. His movements were slow and hardly coordinated. Obviously something was up.

For a few minutes no one spoke. We didn’t really know what to say. At least, I had no clue what to say. The situation was entirely new to me. This wasn’t normal for Wolfe.

“Hey, bro?” Spot spoke up. He looked concerned. “You all right?”

Wolfe blinked and shook his head as if he’d been shaken awake.

"Yeah," he answered slowly. He cleared his throat and attempted a smile. "I just..." He deflated slightly, his grin slipping.

"I didn't get much sleep,” he said, looking away.

His answer wasn't fooling any of us, though we couldn't exactly call him out on it.

At least, they couldn't. I could feel the pain and hurt that wafted off of him. Before I could voice an opinion however, Wolfe stood up.

"I think I'll take a nap in the library," he declared. "Last thing I need is coach giving me a hard time for falling asleep mid-flight."

I made to follow him, but a hoof against my foreleg lightly returned me to my seat. I gave Temporal a questioning look. He motioned for me to stay put but didn’t explain himself.

I waited, impatiently, for Wolfe to leave before turning towards the bicorn.

“You don’t seriously buy that excuse do you?” I asked annoyedly.

“Not in the slightest,” he said, shaking his head. He clenched his jaw for a moment, before huffing in frustration. “I don’t like Wolfe lying to us.”

“He has a good reason for it,” Brainiac said. “He must.” she added at my inquisitive glance.

“You guys know Wolfe doesn’t bottle things up. Ever. You have to scream at him to stop talking before he’ll go quiet.”

“Which is why I’m worried,” I interjected. “What would be bad enough to get him to hide things from us?”

No one had an answer.

As I pushed my key into the lock on my door, I heard the sound of shattering glass from inside. I quickly pushed open the door.

“Who’s there?” I yelled.

“It's me, honey,” Mom answered calmly. Shards from a ceramic plate were scattered across the floor near her hooves. “Just had a little mishap with dinner.”

She levitated a broom and dustpan to her side. Even from afar, I could see how the field of energy wavered. The usual vibrant yellow was now pale.

“What are you doing home so early?” I asked, tossing my bag into a chair.

he snorted. “Mr. Heart said I’ve been working too hard. He told me to take the rest of the day off.”

“And yet here you are,” I deadpanned. “Working.”

“I can handle a bit of dinner!” she said indignantly. As she spoke, the cleaning tools slipped from her grasp and clattered against the floor. She sighed and put a hoof to her forehead.

“Not a word,” she said, pointing her hoof at me. “Not one.”

“Mom, please. Get some rest.” I lifted the broom and dustpan. “I’ll clean up and finish dinner. You have been working too hard, and you can’t do anything if you pass out from exhaustion. Alright?”

She sighed and, heeding my advice, stepped into her room, shutting the door behind her. I waited a moment to be sure she wasn’t still moving around before I set about cleaning the broken plate fragments. It didn’t take me too long, and I soon began to work on dinner. She’d already brought out a large package of hay fries, so I went into the refrigerator to find dandelions and lettuce.

As I closed the door to the cooling unit, a large red circle on the calendar caught my eye. I’d nearly forgotten that I would be celebrating my birthday in less than a week. I knew that Lightning and his family would be coming, as we’d planned in advance, but other than that my guest list would be rather small.

Maybe I should invite my friends at CH?

I wasn’t too sure about doing that. While it seemed the others accepted me as a friend, I still felt disconnected from the group as a whole. They had years together, while I was the changeling barely into his second quarter.

Well, what have I got to lose? At the worst, they don't come. At the best they do, and we have a blast.

“Besides,” I said, a bit sadly. “I’ll rarely get the chance to see them once they leave.” While most of the others were finishing their second year, Spot Weld would be starting an internship in Manehattan, this was only my first. I planned on leaving Canterlot once my schooling was finished. But until then, I had a very low chance of seeing any of my friends again.

Thinking about this, I realized that I knew next to nothing about the ponies I called my friends. I hardly had any idea what they wanted to do with their lives, or their plans for when they left school.

Nearly halfway through the school year and I don’t even know their favorite colors...

Was that why I felt like an outsider? Had I even been trying, or had I stayed purposefully closed off?

Today was a perfect example. I had no idea how to handle the situation with Wolfe, while the others seemed to know exactly how to respond. Give him some space, don’t pressure him, let him come to us. I was ready to fly off the handle and go after him.

Probably would have made the situation worse.

I made the decision to attempt to invite them. I couldn’t simply expect ponies to be friendly, it was a two way street. If I wanted to be a part of their culture, I had to make an effort to include myself. I needed to allow myself to open up, and trust the ponies around me.

Geez, I thought. I pulled the hay from the oven. Cooking is a great time for introspection.

Wolfe

All I could hear was the rain.

The pounding of my heart had slowed until it was a dull ache in my chest. My heavy breathing had subsided. My hoof still stung, but I couldn’t be bothered to get up and bandage it. Blood dripped from the wound.

I realized I was still crying. The salt beginning to stain my fur.

I reached for the letter. Feeling weirdly compelled to read it again.

Because it went so well the last time, I thought, bitterly.

Some of the words were smudged by tears, mine and his. But I knew the message by heart by now.

My eyes scanned the paper, each word was pain. I understood why he sent it as a letter, didn’t mean I respected him for it, or even supported his decision. He was still a coward. He was still too afraid to face me.

My hooves shook, threatening to tear the letter in two. I grunted and threw it. Letting it flutter out of sight. It slid down the wall and under my bed. Joining the now broken picture frame.

I needed to leave.

“Hey, Mask?” I asked suddenly, interrupting his explanation of invisibility spells.

“What?” he asked. It was still a bit cute to see him irritated. And being interrupted was a personal pet peeve of his.

“This is going to sound awkward,” I said, scratching at my neck. “But are you free? After school?”

He blinked. “Uh… What do you…?”

“Just to hang out or something. Nothing special.”

“Oh.”

Did his face fall just a tiny bit, I wondered. No, I must have imagined it.

“Yeah,” he continued. “Mom’s still on forced rest, and Dad took the day off to spend time with her. I should be alright for a few hours. Meet at the usual spot then?”

I nodded.

“Ahem!”

My head whipped around to face a glaring Mr. Silver Bell.

“You two seem to be having quite the animated discussion. Care to share it with the class?”

“Well-”

“I was just explaining the fundamentals of invisibility to Wolfe. And the importance of one’s mentality when casting a spell. Mostly the idea that you need to believe in a spell or it won’t work. You can’t be invisible if you don’t truly trust the spell to do it’s job.”

“Yes, very true. Wolfe, did you have anything to add?” That chesire like grin made me gulp. I’d completely blanked out during Mask’s spiel.

“Yeah, you said that you could draw a parallel to other types of magic?” Mask added, giving me the smallest of winks.

Celestia above, I loved this guy. It paid to have a friend who could improvise at the drop of a hat.

“Well, I said that it’s similar to pegasi trusting their wings. So much so that it becomes instinct to use them in certain situations.” I had to fight to keep a grin from my muzzle at my quick thinking.

Mr. Silver Bell grunted and turned back to the board. But not without sending a knowing glare my way. I decided to keep the rest of my conversations strictly related to class.

“I mean it’s not like it’s a date or something,” I said.

…

“Okay, yes I want it to be a date," I admitted. "But it’s not one.”

…

“At least. Not yet.”

My reflection in the mirror grinned at me. Agreeing with my plan.

After the mirror pep talk, or weird bathroom moment, take your pick, I made my way outside. I didn’t see Wolfe by the juniper so I sat down and prepared to wait.

“You’d think,” I muttered closing my eyes against the sun’s rays. “That somepony that invites you to hang out, would show up before you do.”

Something moved in front of me, blocking the sun’s warmth from my carapace. I opened my eyes and looked up. A quick chitter escaping me as I jumped in surprise. Wolfe nearly fell out of the tree laughing.

“Don’t do that!” I yelled when I found my voice.

He flapped his way to the ground, clumsily. His flight interrupted by the fact that he was still clutching at his sides.

“T-total accident I-I s-swear,” he managed to get out between bursts of giggling.

I sighed. “Just, don’t tell anyone I did that.”

“That you did what?” he asked, his laughter finally ceasing.

I looked away, my face heating. “The chirping. It’s a primal thing, and most changelings look down on that.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Alright,” he said. “I’ll make sure to never mention it to the hordes of changeling friends that I have.” He started walking away, motioning for me to join him.

“Just don’t mention it,” I pleaded. I grabbed my bag and hurried after him. “It’s embarrassing.”

“Mask, trust me. Nopony is gonna care that you make a chirping noise when you get spooked. It’s actually pretty cool."

"'Cool'. Right."

"I'm serious!" He laughed. "It's like a cricket. Or a cicada."

I winced. "Hey, Wolfe. Comparing changelings to insects..." I let the statement trail off, hoping that he could fill in the gap.

He hit himself in the forehead. "That's a major no-no isn't it?"

I nodded. "Some of us don't take that too kindly," I added.

"Sweet Celestia, I'm an idiot. I'm sorry."

"Hey now, you didn't know," I assured. "It's just a little forewarning. So you don't get ripped to pieces by the one overly sensitive 'ling."

"One I'll take note of." He rubbed at his forehead. "Discord's horns, I'm so dumb."

"Wolfe..." It wasn't that big of a deal. I knew he didn't mean it to be spiteful.

"Not because of that," he said, prodding at his forehead. "I just gave myself a headache." He winced and groaned.

I stifled my laughter.

“Alright,” I said as we sat down. I grabbed a wheatburger from the bag. “What’s been going on with you?”

He sighed. “Look, it’s… complicated.”

I made myself comfortable in the grass. “I’ve got time.”

He didn’t say anything for a moment. Then the moment turned into minutes. I groaned and rolled over, resting my head on his shoulder.

“If you don’t feel like talking, I could just root around your memories. Much more painful but it’s quick.”

He laughed. “That’s not a changeling ability.”

I grinned evilly. Lighting my horn, I gripped his mane, lightly, pulled it back, and styled it in a generic ponytail.

“Who said anything about changeling magic?” I asked. I shifted his style to something a bit more regal. “There are a few unicorn spells that get the job done.”

He glared upwards. As if trying to set his smoothed mane on fire. I laughed and fiddled with it a bit more; stopping when it was back to it’s original look.

“And what was that supposed to prove exactly?” He asked, running a hoof across his head until he was satisfied.

I sighed tiredly. “Just spill the beans. You are the one who asked me out.”

“Here!” I added hurriedly. “Asked me out here!”

“Fine,” he sighed again, not seeming to notice my innuendo. “Just give me a minute alright?”

I nodded and settled into Wolfe’s side. Offering silent support while I waited.

“My parents got divorced when I was little. They never told me why. They just said that it was 'complicated'."

"Dad promised me nothing would change. That I'd still see him around. That we'd hang out and talk; still do father/son things, you know?"

I nodded.

"At first, he kept his promise. But it didn't last. He found a marefriend, and I think that's what really drove us apart. I guess that I kept up the idea that my parents would get back together before that. I guess he sensed how I felt. He stopped asking for me. He stopped showing up at events for me. And it hurt."

He gave a bitter laugh. "Though, not as much as the times he did show up. For my sister that is."

"Anytime she had something planned. Birthday parties. Musical performances. Graduation. He was there for every single one. I remember telling him off. On Father's Day no less. Pretty cold of me."

"No way!" I interjected. "You were angry, and for a good reason. And that took some guts."

"I thought it was over. Thought that the worst I'd have to do is say "Hi" if I saw him around town. But then he surprised me. He came to a parkour competition for me. All the way over in Vanhoover. At first, I didn't even want him there. But when he asked for a second chance..." He stopped, shaking slightly.

I put a hoof around his shoulder. Urging him to continue.

"I gave him the chance, and it went well at first. We started hanging out. He was the first pony I came out of the stables to. The first pony to give me full support."

After a minute's silence, I said, " He sounds like a great stallion."

A genuine smile crossed Wolfe's face. "He is.” The smile faded. “And he's moving."

I felt the pain in his words. Changeling or not, you could sense Wolfe's hurt.

"Where?" I asked.

"Las Pegasus," he whispered. "He got a job transfer that he can't say no to."

He sniffed. "I get it. And I don't blame him. But he tells me in a letter. A freaking letter!" He gets angry. Producing said letter from his bag, he tossed it to the ground. “He puts this crap in my mailbox and hightails it out of there.”

I picked up the paper and began reading. “He doesn’t give me an address, area, time, or anything!” he continues. His voice rising with each word.

“This isn’t the full letter.” I interrupted.

He stopped mid rant. “What?”

“There’s more, or at least, there should be.”

“How do you-”

“It’s the style.” I pointed at the writing itself. “If he wanted to rush the letter, it would be much sloppier.” I pointed at the inked out sections. “And you’d see more edits to it.” I stared at the letter for a moment. I think you may have dropped the second half somewhere.”

“You sure?” I could detect hope in his voice. “Why are you so confident?”

“Come on, I’m a changeling.” I bumped him in the shoulder and hoofed over the letter. Half-jokingly, I said, “We are masters of espionage and analyzing details.”

He still didn’t seem convinced.

“Wolfe,” I turned towards him, placing a hoof on his shoulder. “Just hearing you talk about all that you went through, and what he went through, to get this relationship working. I firmly believe that this is something neither one of you wants to throw away.”

He smiled. Now was the perfect time. I’d more or less saved a relationship he cared about. We were sitting in some grass. I was looking at him, he was looking at me. Anypony would be crazy to say “no”.

He turned away, rooting around for his double hay burger with extra lettuce.

“Hey, Wolfe?”

“Yeah?” He came up with half the burger hanging from his mouth. I couldn’t help but snort and roll on my side in laughter.

He joined me in mirth for a moment before pulling my mind back on track.

After my sides stopped heaving, I gathered my courage. “I was just wondering…” I begin

“If you thought you could make it to my birthday party next weekend?”

Wolfe walked me home that night, we took a shortcut through downtown Canterlot, which I both regret and feel indebted for. It happened just as it was getting dark.

“Well, looks like we got ourselves a bug and a bug lover!”

Without even turning around I recognized the now obnoxious voice. As did Wolfe, who groaned.

There were three of them again. The same three that attacked me. But now we weren’t in the small hallways of school. We were outside, where I could stress my abilities to the max.

“What do you want, Stormbringer?” I growled.

“Well, for starters. How about banishing all the insects to the sun, eh? See if it works the same as a magnifying glass.”

Wolfe took a step forward, his wings already unfurling. I knew how hot headed he could be, and moved to intercept him.

“He’s not going to start a fight out here, Wolfe. Just let it go. It’s not worth the trouble.”

I turned my back on the enemy. And that’s where it went wrong. I can hardly describe what happened.

I remember a hoof, I assume Wolfe’s, pushing me to the side. Seconds later there was a sickening crack, and when I looked up both Wolfe and Storm were gone.

“Not worth it, huh?!” Storm yelled.

I glanced upwards to see the two of them engaged in another aerial fight. But this one seemed a lot more one sided. With Wolfe on the losing side.

“What are you two idiots waiting for?!” Storm yelled. “Beat that bug into a pulp!”

I ducked just in time to avoid the clumsy lunge from the earth pony. And spun back around to face the unicorn. Lighting my horn in the process.

He blasted an energy beam at me, which I blocked with a small dome shield. I shot a quick blast his way and tried to circle around him. Chancing a glance upward, I nearly took a hit to my legs. I leaped back and sent a blade of energy at the colt.

I was forgetting something.

A quick roll to the left allowed me to evade the large hoof that would have stunned me. And a quick jab to his gut made him stagger into the beam meant for me, sending him skidding along the ground. I blasted the unicorn while he was distracted, and he flew backwards.

I turned to see if there was anyway I could help Wolfe. I got him in my sights mere seconds before he took a punch that grounded him. I remember time slowing down. I remember watching him crash into a wall, and from there to the concrete.

I remember feeling something snap inside, and I started to burn.

Extremely dangerous, burning love. Life threatening if abused. Every changeling had the ability to burn the essence of love in their bodies like fuel. In doing so, we heightened our physical attributes. Strength, speed, stamina, and magic. The problem? We need love to survive. Burn too much of it, and we’d be left in a comatose state. That’s what happens to a changeling drained of love. Stay too long in that, and your body would die from malnutrition. It was a fate I wished to avoid. But at the moment I was far from thinking rationally.

I clamped a vice grip around Stormbringer, and tossed him at the earth pony. Who was trying to stand at the time. The two of them went flying backwards, I heard them crash into something. Probably a wall, I didn't care. The unicorn hit me with a charged blast. Not enough to do damage, but it was enough to stun me. Just long enough for him start running. I lunged at him, seeing his plan. But he made it to the other two before I could get my hooves on him, and teleported himself and his friends out of my sight. I growled, starting to give chase, but a voice stopped me. A very faint and weak voice.

“Mask?”

Immediately, all of my rage disappeared. I turned back and ran to Wolfe. He scooted backwards and screamed in pain. I couldn’t see why until I got closer. His left wing was stuck under his right shoulder. His right shoulder.

“Luna’s Moon,” I whispered. “Help!” I turned and ran, searching for somepony, anypony who might know what to do. “Please! Anypony! Please!”

The streets were empty, doors were shut, blinds were down. But I could see the eyes. They just sat there. They made no indication that they heard me, but it was impossible not to.

“I’m begging you! Please! He needs help!” I ran up to a door and started banging on it. “Please! I’m not trying to cause trouble, we just really need some help.”

The door opened quickly and I sighed in relief. “Thank y-” A broom hit me square in the face, forcing me backwards.

“Get out of here!” The brown mare brandishing the broom yelled. “I’ll not have your kind attacking my masters again.”

I stood there, stunned.

“I said go!” She whipped the broom around wildly, catching me in the side of the head.

“You heard her, changeling!”

“Leave!”

“Your kind is not welcome here.”

“H-he just needs some help,” I whispered. “Wh-”

The broom caught me in the face again. Smearing my tears across my muzzle.

Doors opened, windows as well. I could hear the shouting.

I did the only thing I could.

I walked away.

I went back to Wolfe, helped him onto my back, and left. I tried to make the trip as comfortable as possible, but I could still hear him whimper with each hoofstep.

...But by the Content...

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Mask

It was early in the morning. Way too early to deal with this mare. I didn’t care if she was a royal guard. I wasn’t going to roll over and beg for her amusement.

“I’m telling the truth.” I fought the urge to yell directly in her face. A hot head wouldn't help me. It would only prove that I was exactly what she saw. A threat. “We weren't seeking anypony out," I continued. "We didn't go looking for trouble. My friend was just walking me home when Storm-”

“I find it hard to believe that a pony would attack anyone else like this. Now your kind is one thing.”

I rolled my eyes and groaned. Too tired to actually respond to her insults and bias against me. I leaned back in the chair and brought my hooves to my face.

She suddenly slammed her hooves against the desk. “I know you you instigated this situation!”

“I didn't do anything!” I yelled back.

“Did you addle their brains with your freaky magic like that queen of yours? Mind control?”

She stuck her snout into my personal space. “Or maybe you did it yourself, and just needed a good alibi?”

I felt my muscles tense up with the accusation. Did she just accuse me of hurting him? I asked myself incredulously. For a moment I was frozen in silent shock. But that soon gave way to anger and indignation. I was a second away from throwing social norms, and the law, out the window when a voice interrupted her “investigation”.

“Lieutenant!”

The royal guard in front of me growled and turned towards the door. “I’m in the middle of something, Centurion.”

The new figure walked into the room, an intense gaze locked on the guard still sitting at the desk. “I think you could use a coffee break, Lieutenant.” He put his hoof on her shoulder. "Why don't you let me finish up here?"

The mare shook the hoof off. “I’m fine, sir. I'm almost done.”

“That wasn’t a request, Lieutenant.” The hoof replaced itself, albeit a bit softer. “The colt will be left to me. You’re head’s not clear enough for this.”

“But I-” Her shoulders slumped. And in a quiet voice she responded, “You’re right.”

She turned to me, sighing. “I’m… sorry. I thought I could do this fairly, but it’s obvious I can’t.” She seemed like she wanted to say something else, staring at me
for a moment. But she turned away and left the office. Closing the door behind her.

The lunar guard sighed when she left and glanced at me.

“You think you’ve got problems?” He asked, removing his helmet and revealing his furry ears. “I’ve got to deal with that almost everyday.” He spread his leathery wings and popped the joints in each one. Sighing in relief as he did so.

I raised an eye ridge, gesturing to the cracks and cuts that adorned my carapace. “I’m the one that’s targeted by ‘that’ almost every day.” I countered.

The lunar guard shrugged. “Eh, we’ll call it a tie,” he said, smirking. I couldn’t help but laugh,r knowing that he meant to make the atmosphere a bit more jovial.

“But seriously,” he said, his face shifting towards concern. “Are you alright? I went to see your friend first, nothing too notable other than the wing. But you?”

I waved off his worries. “I’m fine. Nothing that won’t heal in a few days. I really just want to go home and get some rest.”

He nodded in agreement. “Let’s make a deal,” he said as he pulled out a notepad. “We both make this as simple as possible, then we both go home and get a full day’s sleep. You even get a day off from school courtesy of the the royal guard.”

I hesitated. It was tempting, but I couldn't just leave without making sure Wolfe was really alright.

“Well you can check on your friend before you go, of course.”

That alleviated my worries, and I nodded in agreement.

“Excellent. Well I’m Iron Mail, 3rd centurion of the Canterlot division of Royal Guards. And your name is?”

He asked me to describe what occurred in my own words, then a series of questions pertaining to the time or place a certain event happened. When I got to my love burning he interrupted me.

“Isn’t that incredibly dangerous? Especially considering how young you are?”

I nodded, reluctantly.

“Huh,” he said, scribbling something on the side. “Continue.”

After I explained all that I could remember, he stared at his notes.

“For some reason I get the feeling that Stormbringer will have an entirely different account. It’ll be your word against three.”

I nodded. This was something I already knew.

“The witnesses on the scene have been unforthcoming.”

“Shocker,” I said bitterly.

“Without witnesses, I don’t see either one of you having any sort of case.”

“That’s fine,” I cut in, standing up. “This isn’t something that I would want to pursue. It would just make my life more difficult.”

He was quiet for a moment, and I took that as my cue to leave. Just as I reached the door however, he placed his hoof on my shoulder.

“For what it’s worth,” he said. “Some of us know what it’s like. To be blamed for a past you can’t change and are only a part of by association. Some of us know how hard it is to atone for things you shouldn't need to atone for. Just remember that you don’t walk this journey alone.”

I nodded and opened the door.

Wolfe

I kept running. I could hear them all just behind me. At least ten had broken off from their group to chase me. I could have flown, but I’m much more nimble on my hooves then I’ll ever be with wings. And those streets were much too narrow for me.

A sharp turn and I was barreling down the alleyway. Here the clicks and chirps echoed, feeding directly into my ears. It saved me however, thinking they were closer than they were gave me an extra burst of speed. I used it gallop from the alleyway and up an overturned crystal snowglobe cart. A quick flap of my wings was all that was necessary to land on the building ahead of me.

And to think some ponies said practicing this type of stuff was a waste of time.

I couldn’t stop there. While I’d lost my pursuers on the ground, there were a few in the air that zoomed to greet me.

“They call me ‘Wolfe’ for a bunch of reasons.” I yelled. “Here’s one!”

I took off running at my fastest speed. Leaving them in my metaphorical dust.

I would have made it to the next building. I was just a few hoofs away from the edge when it hit me. The flaming ball of changeling struck me in the side and sent me down. I hit the ground hard. I felt and heard a snap just to the side of my back. The pain quickly spread from the connecting joint through my entire wing. I screamed in agony. Unable to get up. Unable to run or fight. I was vulnerable, and afraid. The others surrounded me, hissing and clicking in desire. The one who blasted me from the sky lay at my hooves. It glared at me as if his predicament was my fault.

I growled at them, trying to buy time. For what exactly I didn't know, but I had to try something. They started clicking again, and I realized, with a start, that that was their laughter. This was fun to them. It was a simple hunt, and I was the target. The struggle was simply allowed to make the reward sweeter.

I heard more clicking from near my hooves and looked down. The changeling that knocked me from the sky was standing now, and began crawling over me.

I yelled and flailed my limbs. Hitting it anywhere I could, hoping to dislodge it before it could do anything. The others swarmed forward, grabbing at my forelegs and wings. I screamed in pain as my broken wing was roughly seized.

I felt breath at my neck, and renewed my struggles. I violently fought to free myself, but it was too late. I felt the fangs sink into my my throat, and screamed.

My eyes shot open and my hoof lashed out. Nearly catching it in the muzzle. I lunged forward and, forgetting about the weight of my injured wing, landed face first on white sheets. I scared it though, making it chirp as it fell backwards. Away from the bed I laid in.

I realized where I was, having been in the hospital for various injuries in the past, and who the changeling in front of me was.

“Mask? Geez, I’m sorry!” I tried to lift myself from the bed to help him up, but had to stifle a yelp as I shifted my wing. The pain was as sudden as it was crippling, immediately forcing me to lay still.

A hoof grabbed me lightly around the middle and helped to haul me up. I put a hoof to my side as gave a twinge of pain, but the new position was much better.

“Thanks,” I told the brown coated doctor.

“I need you to relax,” he ordered. He adjusted the bandages at the base of my wing. “I understand your mind is in a bit of an uproar, but your body can’t handle the stress of moving around right now.”

I nodded in apology. A deep breath calmed me, forcing the dream away from my mind, allowing me to focus on reality.

While I tried to get myself under control, the doctor focused on shining bright lights in my eyes.

“How are you feeling right now?” he asked.

“I guess a bit tired,” I replied just before a perfectly timed yawn.

He pressed a hoof against my throat and stared at his watch for a moment. “No nausea or dizziness? Any problems with your vision?”

Other than being a little winded from my meeting with the bed I felt fine, aside from my obviously broken wing, and told the doctor so.

“You should be clear to leave after we check on a few more things. I’m going to go speak with your mother for a moment.” The doctor shut the door behind him.

“So how are you really feeling?” Mask asked.

I grunted in anger. “He’s lucky I didn’t haven’t gotten much sleep lately. Because that fight would have gone much quicker if I had. And what is with him and sucker punches?”

“I meant your wing.”

“Oh this? This is nothing.” I couldn’t help but laugh. “I’ve dislocated my wing at least twice before now. This just makes lucky number 3.”

“Ouch,” Mask winced. Rubbing his own joints subconsciously

“Though breaking it is new,” I admitted giving the wing a little wiggle and hissing at the jolt that shot through it.

“Wolfe, I’m sorry. This is completely my fault.”

“Pft," I snorted. "Stormbringer would have found a way to get ruffle my feathers anyway. At least now I don’t have to hide the fact that I hate him.”

“Still…”

“Besides,” I added. “I wasn’t too out of it to not see you send them running. Not to mention carrying me all the way here.”

“But if I hadn’t been with you in the first place—”

“I would still be broken up over a letter. Or at least half of one.” I nodded towards my mom’s bag in the corner of the room. “Check the side pocket.”

He pulled the sheet out of the bag and started reading it. A smile breaking out on his face as he reached the end.

“This is great!” he exclaimed.

"She found it just below the mailbox, on the ground." I said nodding in agreement. “Turns out that I rush into things without thinking them through first. Totally out of character for me.”

He rolled his eyes, laughing. “Who, you? Never.”

I tossed one of my pillows at him. “Yeah, yeah. Get out of here and let me get some sleep before I have to get an earful from Mom.”

I didn’t even come close to hitting him, leaving me open to retaliation. Luckily, Mask was merciful and just put the pillow behind my head again. I waved goodbye as he left, and settled down to get some rest. But I was robbed of my sleep when the doctor came back in. A needle in hoof.

“Everything seems fine, but it appears you neglected to get your feather-flu shot before beginning school.”

He produced a towel and started wiping the tip of the needle while I tried to hide myself beneath the covers. “I’m 17! I make the decision to not take it!”

“Oh come now, I don’t know what’s with you pegasi and this vaccine. And this is my requirement before you leave. So you’re taking it.” He yanked the sheets away roughly and brandished the needle.

“Now just hold still.” He positioned the needle just above my cutie mark.

“Oooooooooooooooooooooooooowwww!”

Mask

“I got it!” I yelled as the doorbell rang. I opened the door and closed it immediately.

“Who is it?” Mom called.

“Just that crazy guy that lives in the alley,” I yelled, a bit louder than necessary.

“Ha ha.” The voice on the other end was muffled, but understandable. “Let me in or no present for you.”

I nearly broke the latch off in my haste to reopen the door. “Did I hear someone say ‘present’?”

“Maybe,” Wolfe said, hiding the box behind his back. Smirking, he added, “You’ll have to wait and see.”

I grumbled, but opened the door fully and let him in. “So who else is here?” he asked.

“Braniac and Temporal got here a bit earlier,” I replied as we headed for the living room. “We’ve been playing some Ponopoly while we waited for the rest of you.”

“Speaking of which,” Temporal jumped in. “I pulled a community chest card. You owe me 350 bits.”

“You are too lucky for this game,” I muttered as I added the fake, colorful bits to his steadily increasing pile. “There go my plans to buy Boardtrot."

"Skill," Temporal said as he passed the dice to Braniac.

"Do you want in, Wolfe?" I asked.

“With those two playing?” he exclaimed gesturing at my opponents.. “I’d be crushed in seconds. I’ll stick with watching from the sidelines.”

I mumbled something about Pegasi who missed the most obvious of hints while Braniac landed on my Canterlot Express.

"Hah! That's 3200 bits!" I held out my hooves expectantly. Instead I received a chance card. "IOU. Get out of one payment absolutely free? Come on!"

Before I could roll the die the doorbell buzzed again. I sighed and went to answer it. “At least take my turn for me,” I called as I opened the door again.

“Hey, Mask,” Click greeted.

“Hey, come on in.” I stepped out of the way to let him in. “Totally random question, but how good are you at Ponopoly?”

“Are Temporal or Braniac playing?” he asked suspiciously.

“Both!” Wolfe called from the next room.

Click turned to me with a sympathetic smile. "I think I'll pass."

I sighed and kicked the door shut.

Spot Weld

"I must be completely out of my mind," I growled.

I'd been pacing the lobby of the apartment building for the past few minutes. Every so often, I would glance at the stairs. Every time, I would take a step forward, then resume pacing.

"Look, Spot," Brainy had said. "I understand why you don't want to get involved. But you really need to give him a chance."

"Look, I don't hold anything against him. But I'm not exactly ready to forgive changelings yet."

"Then don't. Don't forgive the changelings that attacked your family. But realize something. Mask wasn't involved in the invasion. And he's going through tough times as well."

I scoffed. "Sure, a couple of bigots out and about. That's not so bad.

She stared at me like I'd sprouted wings. "You don't know do you?"

I raised an eyebrow.

“Stormbringer got a group together to attack him in the school. The only reason I know is because Wolfe told me. Mask hasn't said anything.”

“That’s doesn't make sense,” I said. “Why didn’t he tell the principal, or the royal guard?”

“If a changeling and a pony showed up at your door together, both claiming the other had attacked them, who would you believe?”

“But he has a witness!”

“Storm has three ‘witnesses’.”

I clenched my jaw and turned away. But she waited expectantly. I still hadn’t answered her question, not directly.

I hated my answer. I knew it was wrong, but changelings were known for being liars and deceitful. How was I actually supposed to trust what they said? How could anypony?

“Great,” I growled. “Now I’m thinking like the upper class.”

I grabbed my bag as I headed up the stairs. My present, and semi peace offering, to Mask were inside. It didn’t take too long to make, though it helped that Dad had a forge installed so he could take work home.

I began searching for his apartment. It wasn’t hard to find. 3rd floor, door at the end of the hall. There was somepony I didn’t recognize standing in front of it. He scribbled something on the door with a marker.

“Hey!” I yelled.

The unicorn jumped, looked my way, and ran the opposite direction. I galloped to the end of the hall and leaned over the top of the staircase, but he had already gone.

I knocked on the door hesitantly, hoping Mask wouldn’t think I was behind the graffiti. I read the writing even as I knocked.

Squash the Bugs!!

The words were written in dark red ink, directly in the center of the door.

“Just a minute!”

I waited nervously for the door to open. Nearly shouting the words as soon as the door was cracked.

“Someone graffitied your door.”

For the most part Mask took it well. He glared at the writing. Then at me. Then back at the writing.

“Come on in,” he said a bit annoyedly. He left me to grab a rag and went back to the door. “Everyone else is in the living room.” He pointed towards the room next door.

I nodded but hesitated.

“I can handle this,” he assured me. I didn’t respond, I simply watched as the red smeared across the door. I sighed and dropped my bag to the floor.

I took the rag from his grasp and started to wipe the door in earnest. “Get me a bucket of warm water, will ya?” I requested as I dug into the letters. Stripping them away slowly. I dunked the rag as soon as he put the bucket next to me, and brought it back up to the door almost immediately. It took just a moment to clean the door, and less time to clean the floor of the water that had splashed onto it.

“Thanks, Spot.” Mask said once we’d finished.

“I saw who did it, if it helps.” I could recognize the stallion in an instant if I saw him again.

He shook his head, sighing. “It wouldn’t matter. Door’s clean now anyway. Let’s just get back to the fun.”

“About that,” Wolfe said as we joined the party crowded around the table. “I’m pretty sure I’m worse at Ponopoly than even you. I’ve lost about 500 bits. And mortgaged 2 properties.”

Masks's jaw dropped in shock as he gazed at the board. “Tell me you didn’t give away my Waterworks.”

“Not so much gave away as… lost?” He scratched the back of his head. “They have just about every card in the chance deck don’t they? 'Give one utility to the player with the most on hand cash.'”

He completely missed the look of rage coming from Mask as he kept talking.

“Still not sure how you can tax somepony for an entire railroad either. Or how the bank can just decide that they want your hotel.”

Click snickered. “Don’t forget that you get a third roll, Wolfe. Hope you don’t get Doubles again.”

“No sweat,” Wolfe said as he lifted the die and prepared to roll. “There is no way I’d get doubles... three... times...”

Mask

“Okay, I get that you’re upset about the game. But was it really necessary to pull one of my feathers? That hurts you know.” Wolfe rubbed at his uninjured wing.

“I said sorry," I apologized. "When the rage of a gamer hits, you can’t control it."

“Your mom is an amazing cook!” Click interrupted through mouthfuls of veggie casserole. “This is the best stuff I’ve had in ages.”

“That’s probably because the majority of your meals come in take out containers and pizza boxes,” Wolfe chuckled.

I hid my snickers behind a hoof while Click pouted.

“This was a lot of fun,” Braniac said. “But I do need to get home sometime.”

“Same,” Spot Weld agreed. “But we’ll have to plan something again.”

The rest of us nodded in agreement, and my guests starting gathering their things.

"Do you want to keep this?" Temporal asked. He held the game box out to me, a teasing grin on his face.

"If it stays here it's getting burned,” I replied. “In the oven.”

Brainy gasped and snatched the box away. “Don’t you touch my baby!” she said dramatically. She hurriedly put it in her bag and slung it around her side, cradling it protectively.

“Fine, I’ll let it live,” I mumbled.

“Also, are you ever gonna take those off?” Temporal asked as I picked up the boxes from my presents. He was referring to the gifts that I’d been wearing ever since I’d opened them.

“Probably not,” I answered. I flicked the tail end of the green scarf behind me, turned up my nose, and put a Trottingham accent to my voice.

“I cut too much of a dashing figure to ever consider removing them.”

Temporal shook his head. “Wolfe, why did you get him that?”

The pegasus shrugged from his seat on the couch. “He seemed like a scarf kind of colt. I’m just glad I wasn’t off.”

“Besides,” I added. “This is going to make my mane a little bit less of a hassle in the mornings.” I indicated the gift from Spot Weld. A small band that wrapped around the end of my ponytail. Curved slightly inwards at the ends to prevent my hair from slipping through. It was much better than the rubber band I usually used to hold it in place.

“Thanks again, guys!” I said for the hundredth time.

“We already told you, ‘Don’t worry about it’,” Spot insisted. He swung his bag around his neck. “Just something we wanted to do for you.”

We stared at Click until he got the hint. He groaned and stood, though not before inhaling the rest of his plate.

"Where does it even go?" I asked. "Click, I'm maybe an inch below you in height, and I can't eat that much."

He shrugged. "It's a gift."

“Well, thanks for coming everypony,” I said as I led the way to the door. I waved a hoof at the kitchen table as I passed. “Mom wrapped up some cake for you guys to take home as well.”

"Sweet. Thanks Ma'am!."

“No problem kids, be safe getting home,” floated back into the kitchen.

“Happy Birthday, Mask,” Brainy said as she passed. Hugging me before she left.

“Yeah, have a good one,” Temporal added. I lunged forward and hugged him before he could escape. Doing the same to Click as he tried to sneak by.

“Thanks again for the scarf, Wolfe,” I said as I gave him a quick hug. He gave me a quick grin but rolled his eyes at my gratitude. "Hey, I like the scarf. If I want to thank you a million times, I will."

Spot Weld hesitated before going through the door. “You guys go ahead, I’ll catch up in a minute.”

I raised an eye ridge as he turned back to me, scratching at his neck awkwardly.

“Did you forget something in the living room?” I asked. “It’s not a problem if you need to get it.”

“No, no… It’s just…” he sighed. “I wanted to apologize.”

I blinked in surprise. “...for?”

"Ever since the first day you sat at the lunch table with us, I was suspicious of you. I expected you to do something to put one of them in danger. I was rude, I was distant, and a jerk. It wasn’t cool of me."

He sat down. “It wasn’t until a few days ago that… someone brought up how I’d been acting. And how much you’ve already got on your plate.” He stared at the door. “I realized that I was wronging you by not even giving you a chance. Like those flank-holes that watched you and Wolfe get attacked.” He growled in disgust.

“I’m not like that,” he declared. “And I don’t want to act like that either. I was hoping that we could… maybe…”

“Start over?” I asked, sticking my hoof out.

He nodded, stamping his hoof against mine.

“The name’s Mask,” I said. “Mask Roles.”

He laughed. “I’m Spot Weld. Nice to meet you.”

“Spot, come on!”

“Yeah, some of us have to get home!”

“I’m coming!” Spot yelled back, moving through the door to lean out into the hallway. “Keep your wings on!”

He turned back to me and nodded. “Happy Birthday, bro.”

I gave him a quick “bro” hug and waved goodbye as he joined the others in the hallway.

Once I’d heard their hoofsteps and conversation retreat down the stairs, I started cleaning. I needed to do something while I awaited my next guest. I’d just turned 17. There was no way I wasn’t going to use the privileges that came with it.

Just as I finished up there was a knock on my door. “Just a second,” I called.

I took a quick look at myself in the mirror. I wasn’t looking for any type of companionship, but that was no reason to look like a wreck. Luckily my mane didn’t look like I’d come from a stressful game of Ponopoly, and my scarf did actually look quite nice on me.

“You ready to go?” Flame asked after I opened the door. He wore a bright red jacket. and his mane had been flattened to one side.

I nodded. “Let me just let my mom know we’re leaving.”

I cracked her door, noting that the light was off. “Mom, I’m heading out with Flame,” I whispered. “Be back soon.”

“Alright, have fun,” She murmured sleepily. “And both of you be careful.”

“Of course.” I moved closer and gave her a quick peck on the forehead. “You just get some sleep okay?”

She yawned and turned back over. I backed out of her room and shut the door.

“Alright,” I said as I turned back to the door. “Let’s go.”

Author's Notes:

I remember reading some comments for the first Hunger Games movie. If you absolutely deplore spoilers (and you're some weird person who never read the books or saw the movie) stop reading now. The comment said, "I'm not racist but, once they made Rue black, her death lost a lot of it's meaning to me."
First of all, the books let you know she was black from the moment she was introduced. I believe that they described her skin as either caramel or chocolate colored. Second of all, if the race of a character, or person, makes them less honorable, or memorable, you really need to rethink the way you think of people. Rue was very young, if I'm not mistaken, she was 12 years old. If the fact that she was black means that you feel like the death of a child, or the horrors she had to experience, amount to less. You truly need to take a step back and judge yourself. A life being lost has value. And that value should not change based on age, race, orientation, background, or future. Not even a "great" person's life is worth more than an "invisible." Don't let what someone is, change what they are worth.

...Of Their Character

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Mask

"So where is this place exactly?" I asked, giving another glance around as I tried to find some type of landmark. It felt weird knowing that I’d lived in this city for close to a year, yet I hadn’t taken the time to explore it. “I don’t really recognize anything around here.”

“It’s kind of out of the way,” Flame replied turning his head back for a moment. “But trust me, it’s worth it. Some of the best salt water around. And it’s open to changelings.”

I shivered and wrapped my scarf a bit tighter. The metal of my medallion and chain felt like ice against my shell. “It better be. After all this cold, I’m going to need some warm air.”

“A few cups and you’ll be warm in no time,” Flame assured. He slowed his pace to match mine and leaned in conspiratorially. A grin on his face. “Now, what’s this I hear about a stallion?”

I groaned and pushed him away. “I knew I shouldn’t have told you anything.”

“What? My little cousin has a crush and I can’t be a bit curious?” He pushed me back playfully. “Besides, it was your idea to start sending letters. Not my fault you thought I’d be mature about everything.”

“Barely a month older than me,” I mumbled. Then, in a louder voice, I said, “It’s complicated.”

“How so? He likes you, you like him.” He rolled his eyes. “So go out for dinner or something cheesy like that.”

“It’s more complex than that!”

Flame turned turned my way, an eyeridge raised.

“He doesn’t know that I like—”

“So you tell him.”

I sighed. “He doesn’t know that I know—”

“So you tell him.”

“And,” I said, a bit miffed at being interrupted. I sighed again. “Let’s be honest, pony-ling relationships? That’s almost doomed to fail.”

Flame put a hoof around my shoulder in a show of support. “You’ll figure it out. Don’t you believe in true love and all that?”

I laughed. “Wolfe seems to.”

“Starswirl’s beard, you’re really head over hooves for him aren’t you?”

I felt my face heat up and a slight blush color my cheeks. “I wouldn’t say…”

“Yeah,” Flame said, in a mockingly lovesick voice. “Wolfe believes in true love. And that’s why I loooooooove him. He’s just so dreamy and handsome. I just want to take him home and-”

“OK! I get it!” I yelled, trying in vain to shut my cousin’s muzzle before he could make any more of a scene. “I have a huge crush, ok? Just quiet down!”

Amazingly, Flame actually silenced himself, though not from my plea. “We’re here,” he said, gazing up at the building in front of us.

We stood in front of a generic looking bar. Complete with the generic name, Salty Whistle. It didn’t look too bad. The building wasn’t extravagant, but it was kept in good shape. The windows were all intact, and the little graffiti that decorated the place was obviously done in good spirit. Unlike other bars however, there weren’t any drunk ponies stumbling in the streets. Nor any brawls taking place outside. Even the neighborhood was subdued. The few ponies, and odd gryphon, that were around seemed happy and calm.

“I’m impressed,” I said. “This place actually looks nice.”

“And the drinks are amazing.” Flame grabbed the door and held it open for me.

I whistled as I walked inside. It looked even better inside, or that could have been the warm air talking. The place was comfortably packed. And housed a few changelings in addition to the usual collection of ponies. Most of whom clustered in the corner of the bar. Even the griffons seemed in good spirits. But something seemed… off. I couldn’t place my hoof on it, but I knew that there was something wrong with the picture I was looking at. Before I could spend too much time on it, Flame pulled me in the direction of the bar.

“Plenty of time to take in the atmosphere later,” he told me as he attracted the attention of the bartender. Tossing some bits on the counter he said, “We’ll start small. Two Zebracan salteds.”

The earth pony nodded and headed away.

“So what about you?” I asked. “Any workers catch your eye yet?”

By the blush rising to his cheeks, I guessed that I hit the nail on the head.

“Yeah, that’s something you don’t write about. Who is she?”

The bartender returned with the bottle, and a pair of mugs, while Flame fumbled for a dodge. “Just someone I know. She’s way out of my league though” he said quickly. He poured a moderate amount into my glass before filling his own to the lip. Taking a long drink before setting it down with a belch.

“You’re going to be a royal guard soon. Not even the princesses will be out of your league.” I argued. I grabbed my own mug and stared inside. I knew that the innocent looking liquid was filled with salt. Enough to give me a wicked high, if I drank the whole bottle.

“First taste is going to dry you out pretty quickly,” he said, ignoring my comment. “And you’ll probably get a headache. But the buzz kicks in pretty quickly.”

I nodded absently, still trying to summon the courage to do more than look at the cup. I lifted it slowly and examined it. Meaning I did more staring. A quick shake sent the salt, on the bottom of the mug, swirling around in the water. I felt uncomfortable with Flame watching me so I finally moved the glass to my lips and, throwing all caution to the wind, I took a quick gulp.

Horrible idea. I banged my hoof on the table as my throat burned and my mouth dried out completely. I let loose a cacophony of coughs while Flame leaned back on his stool and laughed his flank off. He wiped an imaginary tear from his eye, still snickering to himself. I simply glared at him as I tried to hold back the hacking.

“Even you have to admit that that was funny!” he exclaimed. He gripped his sides, barely controlling his laughter.

“I’ll start laughing when my throat no longer feels like sandpaper,” I managed to get out.

I grimaced at the salted water. Of course, I hadn’t expected to down one block on my first try. Didn’t mean I wanted to choke the minute it touched my tongue though.

“Hey Money Bags,” the stallion beside me yelled as he grabbed a plate filled with blocks of salt. He turned to what I assumed was his table and the blood-red unicorn seated there, nodding his head at me as he walked away. “Looks like we got another newbie!” He and his friend laughed rudely.

I refused to be beaten by a drink and, steeling myself, took another quick swallow. The second one went down a bit more smoothly than the last one, giving me a chance to taste. Flame hadn’t lied when he said it would dry me out. Even with the water that was in it. I felt dehydrated already. By the third gulp I hated it, even with the buzz that had finally started. And by the last one I wanted to burn all the salt in Equestria.

“Want to try another?” Flame asked when I finally slammed the glass back to the table. I winced as the drink burned at my throat again, but was able to answer him this time. “No, I… I think I’m done.” I pushed the cup away. Grimacing at the lightheaded feeling that spread through my body.

“Oh come on, you haven’t even tried it spiced yet. And the best salts aren’t even Zebracan. Just one more round?”

I groaned as he called the bartender back over. "Alright, one more. But after that, Flame, I-"

I was interrupted by the sound of something breaking, followed closely by a yell of rage.

"You. Stupid. Insect!" I recognized the voice as the one that had yelled at me earlier.

I turned around to find the same large, nearly dirt colored, earth stallion from before, menacing a much smaller changeling. The 'ling was obviously drunk, swaying on his hooves as he apologized. "So-ory 'bout thaaat.” He hiccupped before continuing, “Howse about I buy yous another one, eh?"

"So, you'd buy me a drink to make up for the one you dropped?" Dirt-coat asked, a smirk on his face. "What do ya think, Bags?" He turned back towards his table.

His unicorn friend was a bit smaller, but large in his own right. He was dressed as if he was going to a Canterlot style party. He grunted into his own mug before lowering it. "I'd say it's a good deal. You get a free drink from the bug." He took another swig from his cup. "Although..."

"You're right. There's a slight problem." He turned back towards the changeling, a chesire like grin on his face. The ‘ling seemed to have sobered up a tiny bit as fear took hold. "If I accepted a drink from you, that would make us equals, yes?"

The changeling nodded, a nervous smile on his face.

"Well, unfortunately for you, we are NOT equals."

The smile vanished.

"None of you are equal to us. You are insects, you are pests, and you are leeches!" He stomped his hooves getting everypony’s attention. At that moment it clicked. What I had felt when I first walked in. Glancing around now just made it clearer. The segregation. All of the changelings in one corner, huddled together. It made sense why I was called out earlier. Flame and I were the only changelings apart from the main group. Except for the 'ling in front of us, who was slowly backing away as he realized the predicament he was in.

"I-I meant n-no disrespect," he stammered. Trying to get away from the irate stallion. "A-and I ap-ap-apologize for the d-drink."

I remember getting off the barstool, and readying my horn, Flame mirroring me. As the stallion got closer, the changeling started to fumble in his steps. "Let's keep this p-p-peaceful. There's no n-need-"

"Shut up!" Dirt-coat yelled as he swung his hoof. Planting a heavy haymaker on the changeling's jaw, sending his body flying.

I acted quickly, and caught the 'ling before he had a chance to crash into the bar. He groaned and pressed a hoof to his face. Recoiling as he felt the cracks that had formed in his chitin. Green blood already starting to leak.

“You pests all seem to believe that you have the right to live next to ponies,” he lifted a chair above his head. “Some kind of right to live in our cities.” he grunted, and slammed the chair down, breaking it into pieces. He lifted a leg and brandished it as a club. “Some type of right to work our jobs, and talk to us like we’re equals.” He took a step in our direction. I readied my horn, primed to stun. “We aren’t equals!” he yelled, lunging forward and swinging his weapon wildly. The reckless charge caught me off guard, and I stumbled backwards, brushing against the bar. Luckily for me a very heavy, and very full, cider bottle made its way into Dirt-coat’s jaw.

“What a loudmouth,” Flame said as he placed the bottle back on the counter. “You alright?” he asked the changeling beside me.

“You bastards!”

I jerked in surprise at the yell. And turned around in time to dodge a large shard of glass as it embedded itself in the wood just behind me. The unicorn from earlier stood over his friend, his face red with rage, darkening his already blood colored coat. He hefted the leg from the chair and tossed it at me with a blast of magic.

I threw up a shield and extended it to protect the three of us as the rest of the patrons started throwing bottles, mugs, and broken glass our way. I helped the other ‘ling to his hooves while Flame scanned for an exit.

“Back door, 8 o’clock. Go!” Flame pushed me backwards and formed his own barrier. His was easily much stronger than mine, bouncing most of the projectiles back at their senders. I helped our injured friend along as the jeers and yelling from the bar grew louder. I could hear the other changeling patrons yelling in fear as many of them pushed past us to the door. A few ponies following suit.

When we stumbled into the relative quiet of the night I asked, “Are you alright?”

The other ‘ling shook his head to clear it. “I should be alright to make it home.” He gave me a grateful look. “Thank you.”

“Good luck,” I said, nodding to him as he ran off. Looking back in the direction of the bar, I couldn’t tell if Flame made it out. The shouting and fighting seemed to have died down, but I couldn’t tell if that was a good sign. Suddenly there was a yell of pain.

I readied myself to charge in, but, before I could move, Flame galloped out, chased by at least half of the ponies that just minutes before had been calmly drinking cider and laughing.

“Flame!” I yelled in fear. I took off. I’m not sure what I planned on doing, or what I hoped I could do. In retrospect, there was nothing I could do. But these weren’t the thoughts that crossed my mind at the time. My only worry was helping my cousin, my family, even if I had to die doing it.

That was when I first smelled the smoke.

I glanced backwards, and my steps faltered. The bar was on fire.

Click Clack

I remember not knowing what to say. What could you possibly say after hearing something like that? One of your best friends…

One of the first things I noticed was his absence. One day? Probably just taking a break. Two? Well, the cold did hit Canterlot pretty hard this year. Three? Maybe we should go visit and make sure he’s okay, not to mention help him catch up on schoolwork.

I was so naive.

The newspaper only came on Friday. So that morning was when I finally found out. I didn’t even make the connection right away, all I saw was the name. We hadn’t met, but Mask would talk about him so often that I felt like I already knew him.

“Mask,” I said, suddenly worried for my friend. Had any of us checked on him? If not, then we were truly bad friends.

The only pony I could think of that would know was Wolfe. Wolfe was at school, where Mask should be. Not…

I entertained the vague notion that I was possibly wrong. I thought that maybe I’d misread the name in the paper. Maybe it was just another changeling with the same name. That had to happen right? There are some ponies with similar names.

The somber mood at the school nearly broke me. I had to compose myself for a few minutes before moving on to class.

Usually, I was extremely participant in class. I was the colt that wanted all the answers that the teacher could give me. But today, there was nothing. No energy, no drive. Not even the teacher seemed to feel like doing her job, and I caught her wiping at her eyes on multiple occasions.

The next few classes passed in a blur, all varying levels of the first; quiet and gloomy. I approached the lunch table, hoping to see my friends looking sad, but not teary eyed. I hoped to see them upset, shocked, even outraged, but I wasn’t prepared for what I did see.

The usual spot was silent. Completely empty. Our table was deserted.

"No," I whispered backing out of the lunchroom. My heart too heavy to sit and pretend that this day was anything close to normal. One question burned in my mind. Why?

Mask

"Are you absolutely sure this is something you want to do?” She asked, staring at me with concern.

"It needs to be done," I replied, avoiding her eyes. “No one else is stepping forward to do something.”

"But..." The principal sighed. “It’s a bit unorthodox.”

"To be fair Ma’am," Iron Mail said, taking a step forward. “This entire situation is unorthodox."

The principal was silent for a moment before breathing heavily. “Alright,” she said at last. “I promised that I would help you with any problems you had here. And I meant that. Let me pull a few strings and I’ll get back to you.”

I nodded and made to leave the room. “Thank you.”

“Mask, remember what I said. They are still watching. Be careful where you step. And no slip-ups. They can take you from the shadows and vanish without a trace.”

Sweet Celestia, just when I thought she had gone sane. I laughed internally and nodded, playing along so I could leave the unstable mare faster.

“Wait, ‘they’?” Iron asked, obviously confused. “Who are you talking about, if you don’t mind me asking?”

I sighed. Shaking my head at the guard as the principal launched into another tirade about the “them”s and “they”s. Mentioning the shadow’s clan or something. Punctuating each remark with a slightly paranoid glare out the window.

After the door was firmly shut behind us. Iron Mail gave a small shiver.

“She does that to everypony,” I said, sharing a wink with Quill Point. She winked back, but gave me a concerned look. Her eyes were so full of sympathy that I had to look away. The dull ache in my chest returning almost immediately.

“Good luck, Mask,” She said as I left the office.

Iron Mail fell into step beside me, but remained silent. Something I was thankful for. The little fire I had earlier was down to cinders now. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could hold on before I broke down again.

“Thank you,” I said suddenly. “For helping me. I know I said it already…” I felt a hoof on my shoulder, stopping me.

“Mask, are you going to be alright?”

“Yeah.” My voice cracked and I turned away. “I just… need time you know?” I could feel the tears threatening to spill over.

“We’re going to get the pony that did this, Mask,” He promised, squeezing my shoulder a bit. “I’ll bring him to justice myself if I have to.”

I couldn’t listen anymore. I wanted to plug my ears. To scream. I didn’t even realize I was shifting until I felt my wings spread of their own accord, the feathers sprouting into place seamlessly. A quick flap launched me into the air. I heard Iron Mail shouting from somewhere below, but I didn’t focus on that.

Instead I focused on the searing pain in my chest. The crippling, torturous pain. I watched him die. I watched as my cousin died. He screamed for help and I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t do a thing to save him. By the time I reached him, he was already gone.

The tears were flowing freely now. I didn’t care, it hurt too much to keep inside. I landed on a cloud as my body became wracked by sobs. Too out of control to fly. It was a miracle that I hadn’t crashed. After I cried myself to near exhaustion, I finally addressed the pony waiting behind me.

“I’m guessing you just come up here to think?” I asked chuckling, humorlessly.

He didn’t say anything, just approached me and put a wing around my shoulders. I leaned into the hug willingly. Letting my hurt slip to the back of my mind as I took comfort in the range of emotions I got from Wolfe.

I nuzzled him. Letting him know that I understood, and was grateful. I wanted to know the reason behind his hesitation, but I could wait. He’d tell me soon.

“I’m not okay,” I said. Answering the unasked question. “But I will be.”

After a few moments I gently slid away and stood. I considered returning to my changeling body. But immediately rejected the idea.

Not just yet. I need to pretend, for just a little while.

I gave my wings a light flick and leapt from the cloud.

I pretended that I was normal. A simple, plain, ordinary pony. A pony who lived in Canterlot, went to school, and had friends. I was a pony that had the simple dream to be an actor. I wanted to be seen in plays and movies. I wanted to tour the country, and show my skills to the world.

I was not hurting. The pain was bearable, it did not burn. There were no tears. There was no screaming. There was no sobbing. My body did not still hurt. My sleep was not interrupted by the nightmares that didn’t disappear when I woke up. I was a normal pony.

I didn’t want to go back to school. I wanted to curl up in bed and sleep. Because that was easier than dealing with the world again. I didn’t want to see other ponies smiling, or watch time pass by. I didn’t want to see anyone or anything to remind me that my life would continue. I didn’t want it to. I wanted everything to stop.

Brainiac

“Attention students. We would like to have a moment of silence for Flame Strike. And extend our hopes and best wishes to his family and friends.”

The room went so silent that not even parchment rustled. Ponies cast furtive glances at him, trying to see his reaction. Luckily he had his eyes closed, else he might have been offended. I couldn’t tell if he was crying or not. He was deathly still.

Generally speaking, ponies are very empathetic creatures. Our friend's pain is our pain, and vice versa. So it was easy to understand the hurt that our group felt, especially when we couldn’t be there to help Mask. None of us had experienced anything like what he had. We hadn’t watched...

I wanted so badly to just walk over to him. Give him some words of encouragement. But I didn’t even trust my own voice. Not even Wolfe reached out. But there seemed to be a new connection between the two. The concerned glances from Wolfe and the nods from Mask persisted throughout the class. Usually after a hushed whisper from Field Rose and a glance his way. Or a glare from Stormbringer. Wolfe seemed to be giving him strength, and I later realized that that was almost literally the case.

From there, things progressed normally. Click rejoined us at lunch. But it felt like the first day of school again. Him, silent and trying to be unobtrusive. Us, trying to help him feel welcome. None of us knew how to broach the topic, and we didn’t want to ignore it either. Not even me, the so called expert on emotions and the pony mind. All we could do was let Mask know that we were there in our own way. I’d give him a quick hug if we passed each other in the hall.

He and Click would head to the library more often. Usually returning a bit later with a mountain of new books and smiles. They really bonded over literature which was to be expected, though they usually lost us in their discussions. Click used Mask to bounce ideas off of, telling us that it really helped him come up with more complex characters and plots. I just knew that it kept them talking longer, usually taking them to their own little world.

I was glad to see Spot took my advice, and he started to open up a bit around Mask. The two of them got along like brothers. Especially given Spot’s protective nature. Though he never acknowledged it, I noticed the times he would shoot a glare at another table. And if I looked, I’d see heads hurriedly being turned away, as if they’d been caught with their hooves in the cookie jar.

Meanwhile, Temporal kept the mood light. He always knew the perfect joke to tell, or the perfect time to make a pun. For the longest time, he would always get this smirk whenever he saw Wolfe and Mask together.

Friday afternoon there was an assembly planned just before lunch.

The only pony onstage was a Lunar Guard, one I recognized from various talks at the school. But he stood off to the side, leaving the center of the stage open. Students started muttering about speakers never showing up on time. And about the school’s poor planning skills.

I relaxed for a moment, and let the conversations distract me.

Mask

There was a sudden hush when I took the stage. Something I immediately linked to the future, and how this was how I hoped I would greet each night. Silence, as everyone waited for me to don my character and make them glad they bought tickets to the show. Today however…

I stepped up to the podium with my stack of papers. A quick glance confirmed that Iron Mail hadn’t abandoned me in the past few seconds. He gave me an encouraging grin.

My breathing quickened a little as the reality of my situation hit. This wasn’t something I could turn back from. I had to do it. And not just for me.

I gritted my teeth in silent agony for a moment, before forcing it aside. Time to cry later, I told myself.

I took a breath.

“I watched my cousin burn to death,” I stated, shocked by my own calm. Nopony spoke. “I followed a mob, who chased my cousin down. Beat him, and set him aflame.”

I closed my eyes. Seeing every moment replaying in my mind. “There were at least 15 ponies. Most of whom I fought.” I rubbed at my foreleg subconsciously. Remembering the beating I took. “We put up a good fight, but we didn’t stand a chance. They toyed with me. Letting me get close just to shove me back when I was in hoof’s reach. But there was something he did during the fight. Something that everypony found absolutely despicable.” I pointed at the medallion around my neck. “He took this off. And disguised himself as one of the ponies in the crowd.”

“Let me make something clear. He didn’t do it to hurt anypony. He did it to try to keep me safe, as well as himself. Unfortunately, they saw through his ruse, and took him out.”

“They put him on a wood cart. And set it on fire.” I screamed when they did that. It was then that I became desperate, I fought to get over there, yelling for them to put it out. By the time he had woken up…”

“There was no chance of survival. Not even when he woke again, screaming for help. They all said it was never meant to go that far. Most of them don’t even remember hearing him.” I relaxed my hooves as I realized how hard I was gripping the podium.

“I didn’t escape unscathed either. Nothing major, but I wouldn’t have been able to make it home alone.” I turned to Lunar Guard on my right. “I probably would have been in a hospital for weeks if Iron Mail hadn’t been working late that night.” He remained rigid and unmoving, however his eyes sent me silent waves of encouragement.

“I don’t blame anypony for being afraid of me. Of us. We have done wrong, for so long. We have been deceitful, treacherous, and we’ve obeyed our queen for so long, believing her way was the only one. Most of your first experiences with us stem from the Canterlot invasion. But there is a reason we deserved to be redeemed. A reason we deserve to be given a chance to prove ourselves. It’s the same reason Princess Luna deserved it. As did Discord.”

I paused, scanning the recital hall with blurry eyes. “We. Are. Trying. You have no idea the lengths many of us go through to please ponies. And it goes further than feeding on emotion. We want you to trust us. We want to try to get along without deceit. We trot around on eggshells, trying our best to not upset anyone. And still, we are treated like scum for simply existing. Let me ask you a question. What did Intel do?”

I was breathing heavy now. “What did Intel do?” I repeated. “Or my cousin, Flame? Or any other changeling that has been assaulted in the past few days? Months? Have we done anything? I will never claim we are innocent. I will never tell the lie that all of us have the best intentions. I won’t stand in front of you and tell you that you can trust everyling that you meet. But can’t the same be said for ponies? Or griffons and donkeys?”

That was the end of what I’d written, but I couldn’t be finished. I was missing something. I needed to truly make them understand.

“Don’t make the same mistakes as our queen,” I said. “Who thought the only way to protect herself, was to never be willing to trust others. Or Sombra, who used fear to control his subjects. Don’t be like the ponies of old, whose hatred almost caused an eternal winter.”

My piece said, I stepped down from the podium. My body felt hollow, as if I’d given everything I had for that speech. I half stumbled before Iron Mail caught me. “Great job,” he whispered. I nodded, but I was hardly listening, the silence of my peers was deafening in itself. I hurried my steps, eager to leave the room, and that was when it started.

You know how in movies and plays, the clapping starts off as one pony? And then it spreads? That wasn’t what happened there. The applause was simply thunderous and jarring. And one loud, Royal Canterlot-esque voice over it all.

“We couldn’t have said it better ourselves!”

The applause was doubled as Princess Luna, Princess Twilight, and Discord appeared on stage with a flash. Discord wobbled for a bit before straightening himself. “I swear you do something to me when you teleport, Twilight. And I’m pretty sure it’s on purpose.”

The princess in question simply rolled her eyes a she turned towards me. “Don’t mind him,” she said. “He just loves to complain.”

“And Luna, must you yell every time you make an entrance?” As he was speaking, his ears detached themselves and began crying softly. “My poor little ears can only take so much,” he said, stroking them lovingly.

Twilight groaned. “Just a second.” Her horn lit up as Discord was put inside of a bubble, immediately cutting off the sound of his voice. His mouth kept moving as he continued talking, oblivious.

“While he’s occupied,” Twilight said her eyes sad as she looked at me. “I believe we need to talk.”

I've Been to the Mountaintop...

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It was stupid for me to ask Twilight if there was anything she could do. She'd given me a grave look and told me, in no uncertain terms, that necromancy was not something she planned on dabbling in. When she saw my eyes drift she added, "And nor will Discord."

"Fraid not," the draconequus said apologetically. "That would cause chaos on a scale that even I couldn't control."

To prove his point he summoned a weighing scale. It was so large that he could fit on the plate. The plate with him sitting on it lifted while the other side lowered, as if Discord himself was lighter than air.

"Not to mention,” he continued. “It has the potential to throw the balance of life and death completely out of whack! You have no idea what type of creatures could be released." He sighed and snapped his fingers, causing the scale to disappear. "I'm always up for breaking a few rules, but even I don't cross certain lines."

No Twilight was there for something different. She apologized profusely for everything that had happened, from day one, and assured me that she was working with Celestia and Luna to put laws in place to protect the changeling population.

Changeling rights were a few tentative steps away from being added to Equestrian Law. The royal sisters had begun to speak with representatives of the changeling community. Meanwhile, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza was working to help the still hive bound changelings adapt to pony culture.

Then, Twilight offered me the chance to have a part in it.

"What you just did? That takes courage. It wasn't the greatest of speeches, but your heart was in it. You were passionate, but respectful. I'm impressed."

Princess Luna spoke up. "We don't yet have a speaking representative for the changeling population. We would like to know if you would be interested in taking up the mantle."

Unfortunately I already knew what my answer would be.

"I'm sorry," I apologized, shaking my head. "But no. I'm no politician."

Luna nodded. "We understand. It's very taxing, both emotionally and physically."

"Not to mention all of the double dealing, double talking, double dipping, and so forth," Discord added.

"All I'm saying is, for as pompous and pigheaded as Blueblood is, you'd think he'd have a set of manners at least close to the size of his ego. And it was much more than a double dip."

Twilight gave a groan of frustration. "30 dips for one tortilla chip. Do you even know how much bacteria could be spreading through that dip?

On the nights leading up to the funeral, I had nightmares. From lying next to Flame as we both died, to watching it again. Even in the dream it burned, it hurt, it felt like somepony had ripped my heart out and flung it into the fire.

Within my dreams, I screamed and fought. Running forward even as he was pulled further away. I knew it was a dream, but my mind didn't care. I did everything possible to try to get him back. Everything I wish I could have done. I fought with the rage of an manticore, but there were too many. They pinned me down and made me watch. I tried to fly over them, but they shot me out of the air with various spells. I ripped off my own medallion and turned into various monsters, but it was never enough to get to him.

Sometimes my dream would start in the fire. I would try to stand, to move away from the heat. But the flames suffocated me and made me weak. I tried to shove the burning wood away before the whole cart could catch fire. But the flames danced around, almost as if it were alive. Eventually, I just tried shoving Flame out of the wagon. But with each push the cart seemed to expand. Never letting either of us tip over the edge.

I didn't notice it right away. You know how dreams are, so illogical that your mind will accept almost anything that happens without complaint. In hindsight, it was obvious, but at the time I didn’t notice, or remember, being pulled from the fire. I didn't notice when the wagon disappeared completely, taking the flames with it. Nor did I notice the crowd dwindling in front of me as I fought to save Flame. It was when I found myself turning into a dragon, a feat that takes most changelings years to accurately become, that I realized that Luna was watching over me. She couldn't directly confront my demons, they were mine to defeat. All she could do was help to preserve my sanity, and send me hope.

It was something I would need.

I closed the door, ripping the tie from my neck at the same time. The funeral had been exactly what I expected. Sad. There was no better word for it. It was too quiet. Flame would have wanted some type of party, or celebration of his life. But we couldn’t celebrate.

I set the box on the table. I knew that inside of it were the letters he'd sent to me. Half of an archive of our conversations. Months worth of secrets, hopes, and dreams were inside of the box. His parents had given me the half I’d sent to him. They wanted to give me something to look back on. That’s all I could do… Look back.

On a much deeper level, they blamed me for not being able to save him. I could see it in their eyes. And they had every right to.

Robin looked broken. He wouldn't talk to me. Then again, he wouldn't talk with anyone.

Opening the box was one of the hardest things I had to do. After stalling as long as I could, I opened it. And read the first few letters.

He was going to be a hero when he got older. He was going to be the one to save Equestria from threats greater than Tirek. He was going to be the next Element of Loyalty, the first changeling element bearer. "Dream on," I had replied. So cynical.

The next letters were more serious. He was applying to the royal guard's recruitment program. If he got in, he could join me in Canterlot. "Hooves crossed." I replied with a messy scrawl, and claimed that I'd tied my hooves to keep them crossed.

We talked about nonsense for the next few weeks. In this time I revealed that I had a crush on a stallion, and he grilled me for answers. Of which he got very few.

I learned about his family's struggle in leaving the hive. The new council tried everything they could to force his family to stay. Fearing what type damage it would wreak on the image of the newly formed system. One of the downsides about being a well off family, when you wanted to leave, everyone wanted you to stay. And most would do just about anything to get what they wanted.

While searching for a town to stay in, he got into a few fights. Usually in defense of Robin. He never really learned to curb his aggressive side. And it got him into more trouble than he could get himself out of.

"I can take care of this 'Stormdinger’ guy. Just give me the word." I could picture him grinding his teeth.
"Don't worry about me. I can handle this easily. Besides, the worst I've gotten are a few words and shoves."
"... Alright, I'm on my way."

I laughed despite myself. My reply likened him to Wolfe, and I insisted that they would have been good friends.

The next letter had only three words on it, written so big that they occupied the page. "I. Got. In." My reply consisted of a few million exclamations of joy and congratulations. He replied immediately, telling me that his parents were letting him come visit me in Canterlot as a gift. He would arrive the day before my birthday and spend some time with friends, hopefully snag a room from them to use during training, and then meeting up with me. The he'd head back home to finish school.

The tears kicked in as I read it. The last letter. The last one he sent me before all of this. I screamed and kicked at the stack of parchment on the floor. Sending paper flying everywhere. It wasn't fair. He was not supposed to die. We were still young. We were still growing. We were supposed to die at an old age. He would attempt some heroic sacrifice and loose a hoof. Then he'd be discharged and living with his wife and kids who'd call me "Unca' Mask". I'd visit every other weekend, with whoever I ended up with, he'd make jokes that flew over the heads of his children. He'd tell us the same war story about four times an evening, changing how many foes he fought with each iteration.

"That's how life works!" I yelled. Only now realizing that I was near-hyperventilating.

I growled and began stuffing the letters back into the box. Seeing nothing but red now, I almost didn't notice it. The single napkin sticking out in a pile of parchment. I'm not completely sure why I picked it up. I may have been aiming to start destroying my mementos. Or maybe I wanted to see what this unfamiliar note would say. Either way, the first line caught my attention immediately.

To Wolfe,

I blinked, surprised. The writing was easily recognizable as Flame's. As to why he was writing to Wolfe...

Hoping that I'll get talk to you face to face, but I might be busy. If we don't get the chance to meet before I start my training I'll make sure to send this to you.

According to my cousin we're pretty alike, if that's the case then you should be able guess the word I'm thinking of. Answer will be on the back. If you can do it then I know my 'cuz will be in good hooves.
______________

Speaking of which, that's the point of this letter. I want to make sure something is understood. If you hurt Mask, I will break you. And I mean that in the nicest way possible. You may not be a bad colt, and I may not know that much about the whole drone on drone stallion on stallion drone on stallion dating thing, but I know what love looks like. And my cousin has it bad. And I hear you're feeling the same way.

(On a side note, how dense can you be? He's a changeling, we read emotions remember? He knows you like him, hook up already. Actually, don't worry about it. When I show up I'll make sure that the two of you get together.)

Back to the threatening you part. I'm joining up with the royal guard, so you don't want me on your bad side. I can make you feel like you're living in Tartarus.

Of course, if you make him happy I'll back off. Personally I think he needs a good guy in his life. He carries a lot of pain around, and refuses to show it. That's one of the reasons they started calling him "Mask".

But when he talks about you, it's like watching someone being happy for the first time in their lives. (Plus, if you two get together I can stop listening to him ramble about how great you are.)
He's told me about you sticking your neck out for him on multiple occasions, and that is something I commend. This guy makes it impossible to do something nice for him because he always wants to find a way to one up you. In short, you've stumped him.

Great now I'm the one rambling about you. See what he does? Anyway, I'll tell you all of this in person anyway so I think I'll catch some sleep before I get there tomorrow. See you then.

Your (Probable) Friend,
Flame Strike

I tried to sift through the range of emotions that raced through my body. Childish indignation, mature indignation, sadness, longing, anger. Too many to count. So I focused on the one emotion that would keep me sanest.

The laughs sprung forth like water until I'd replaced the mourning tears in my eyes with mirth. I fell on my back, gripping my sides. The image of my cousin, menacing a larger Wolfe was too much to handle. The idea of him shouting at the pegasus from a couple of inches was hysterical.

It felt good to laugh again. I hadn't realized how long it had been since I last laughed. In fact, it hadn't been since he made that stupid joke about me. Maybe that's why I laughed so hard at the letter, because it felt like he was continuing the joke. It was almost like talking to him again.

Why did he have to be dead?

Why did the universe need to claim living creatures?

Why couldn't it claim something stupid, like a rock?

He had an entire future planned out. He was already on his way there. He was kind, he cared about everyone, he was putting his life on the line to protect changelings and ponies. So why...

I mentally slapped myself. I couldn't lie there wishing things were different. It wouldn't make it any better. That was enough mourning for a little while. It was time to stand on my own hooves again. I wouldn't be moving on, I couldn't. But I could start looking forward.

This mentality helped me in the coming weeks. Especially that time I woke up in a hospital bed.

Together And Equal…?

by Wolfe and WindSilver

We Have to Start...

...I Have A Dream...

...That All Men Are Created Equal...

...They Will Not Be Judged...

...By The Color of Their Skin...

...But by the Content...

...Of Their Character

I've Been to the Mountaintop...