Long ago, before the dawn of the modern age, two civilizations were at war. A war that would rage across an entire planet.
First, there was the ponies. Fighting in the name of friendship and kindness, they were led by the mighty alicorn sisters, Celestia and Luna. Neither of them were too keen at the prospect of starting a war, but they felt it was necessary given the circumstances. Their enemy was relentless, and refused to attempt a peaceful resolution. So their only option, the only way to protect their country, was to fight back with all they had.
Then, there was the changelings, fueled by their desire for love and all the power it brought. But their leader, the ruthless Queen Chrysanthemum, wasn’t content with gathering up this precious resource peacefully. Rather, she much enjoyed stealing love from innocent, unsuspecting creatures. This was, of course, in conflict with what Celestia had taught all of her beloved ponies.
It was during this war that the alicorn princesses, Celestia and Luna, finally proved themselves to their subjects. Their steely resolve was key in keeping their footing as the world was thrust into chaos. As if ignoring the destruction around them, they calmly led their forces against the enemy, unfazed by the insurmountable odds they seemed to be facing up against. This was truly a war to behold, and most accounts will tell you that it was as if the Armageddon was already happening.
The war raged on for decades, until eventually, one side rose to claim victory. The nation of Equestria was victorious, and the changeling empire was left crippled, their queen dead. It would be eons before the changelings even thought to attempt to start another war.
Coincidentally, one changeling was born just before that second attempt at war, though. One changeling that would show that not all changelings were inherently evil. A changeling that would display more emotion than any changeling before. A changeling that would become a martyr for her race. Her name?
Being exiled along with your family when you’re nothing but a pupa is rough, but Tenna already knew that. After all, that was her fate when she was still developing. But little did she know, life was going to get a lot rougher from that point onwards. How could she have known that her father would die when she was only three years old? Surely, her mother would always be there for her in the wake of her fathers death…
But then those radical ponies had attacked her and her family, leaving her with nothing. With her home destroyed in a blaze of flames, she could do nothing but wander the outer edge of Equestria. Going in was totally out of the question. Ponies hated changelings, and changelings hated ponies.
...right?
She wasn’t entirely sure how she felt about either race. Sure, she herself was a changeling, but that didn’t absolve them of what they had done, and were still attempting to do. Her mother had always taught her that violence was never the answer, so why did the changelings constantly try to use it to get their way?
But at the same time, why had those ponies attacked her village all those years ago? She had heard stories about the legendary Princess Celestia, and she knew of the lessons she taught her ponies. To treat everyone equally, no matter their race. Yet it seemed that in recent times, all of those lessons had been forgotten in favor of a simpler way of thinking. Ponies were good, and changelings were bad.
So then, why did she so desperately want to meet at least one pony? Why did she so desperately want to prove that she could be different? Maybe it had to do with her brother’s final words to her.
"Go and live your life, the way you want to."
Those words had really struck a chord with her. Maybe she didn’t have to be like other changelings. Maybe she could leave her mark on Equestria in a good way, unlike any other changelings before her. As Tenna walked down the dimly lit dirt road leading to a town called ‘Ponyville’, she decided that that was exactly what she would do. She would start by making friends in this ‘Ponyville’, then make her mark on the rest of Equestria.
As the trail before her seemed to get darker and darker, she almost gave up right there. Much like her life, this path was only getting darker and darker as time went by, and it sent a chill through her that resonated throughout her chitin. Perhaps she wasn’t ready for this, and she had only fooled herself by believing she was.
“No… I can do this.”
So, with much more resolve, she picked up her pace. She was going to do her best to see her goal through to the end. Even if she failed, whether she be run out of town or…
No. That wouldn’t happen to her. These ponies were going to see how much she truly wanted to get to know them, and then they couldn’t possibly harm her. At least, that’s what she hoped. The path before her as getting darker still, and it didn’t look like it was going to stop anytime soon. For now, all she had to occupy her were her own fleeting thoughts. Thoughts of her old home, of the other changelings, even of what she was going to say to the first pony she met. She still had no clue how to even address a pony without possibly scaring them senseless.
‘I suppose I could just… oh man, this is so hard…’
Indeed it was. It wasn’t like she could simply walk into the town and say ‘hello’. She’d be assaulted on the spot, in all likelihood. Not only was she a changeling, but she was a changeling that was alone. She wouldn’t stand a chance if they decided to do something like that. No… she had to bank her efforts on finding one pony that she knew would accept her for who she was. Again, though, that seemed nigh impossible at the moment.
Tenna had seen many ponies throughout her life, and absolutely none of them had nice things to say to her. Some had been so cruel that she had run away in tears, so finding one that wouldn’t be that rude, let alone would be accepting, was going to be a bigger challenge than anything she had faced in a long while.
And yet, she found herself welcoming it. It had been a while since she had had any interaction with other creatures, so she was definitely willing to do it, no matter how long it took. It didn’t seem like it was going to take much longer, though, as the trail before her finally seemed to be brightening, a sign that she was getting close to her destination. Picking up her pace a bit more, she reached a clearing at the edge of the forest she had been walking through.
Looking down from her spot, high up on a hill, she could see the town she had been heading towards for the past couple hours. Cottages, small and large, made up most of the inside of the town, with the outer areas being home to much larger buildings. To the northwest lied a large farm, absolutely filled to the brim with trees. Between the town and herself lied a quaint little cottage, with what looked like an animal pen in the back yard. All in all, this town looked… nice.
She just hoped the citizens were as nice as the town looked as she took her first step towards what she hoped could be her new home. Heh, home. It had been a long time since she had been able to call a place by that name.
“Ever since I was just a little filly,” the butter colored pegasus responded with a smile. It was a disarming smile, and Tenna suddenly felt very comfortable around this pony. She supposed that she had lucked out, meeting her first.
“What about your parents?” the tiny changeling asked meekly.
“Oh, they stayed in Cloudsdale after I chose to stay down here,” Fluttershy took a small sip of her tea. “What about yours?”
“Oh…” Tenna struggled to think of a good way to put it, but eventually she managed a tiny smile. “They’re in a better place now…”
“Oh, I’m so sorry, I had no idea! Stupid, silly Fluttershy!” the pony across from Tenna began scolding herself, causing her to speak up.
“N-no, it’s okay. You didn’t know, and it’s only natural you asked about m-mine after I brought yours up…”
The way this pony reacted stunned Tenna. Instead of making fun of her because of her lack of parents, she had apologized profusely. Up until now, she had been taunted or made fun of by every pony she had come across. Life had been… difficult, to say the least. With Tenna’s words finally seeming to seep in, Fluttershy refocused herself, and took another sip of her tea.
“I’m very sorry to hear that. Do you… um, mind if I ask what happened?” Much like Tenna, Fluttershy felt oddly comfortable around the girl in front of her. She was nothing like those other changelings that had attacked Canterlot. She was… nice.
“O-our home was attacked by ponies when I was just a little ‘ling,” Tenna recalled her past calmly. “But m-may I ask you something?”
“Go ahead,” Fluttershy gave her that smile again, curing her of all her worries.
“W-why are you being so nice to m-me? M-my kind hurt you badly…”
“Well, everyone deserves a little bit of kindness every now and then. I-I wouldn’t even have the friends I do if we weren’t kind to each other…” Fluttershy finished softly, taking another sip of her tea. “W-would you excuse me? I’m going to get some more tea.”
With that, Fluttershy rose from her seat and went off to her kitchen, leaving Tenna alone. The kindness this pony had shown her so far was mind-boggling, and she had no idea how she could possibly begin to repay it.
It had been Fluttershy that had found her in the woods outside of her house. Scared, shivering, and alone, she had been in pretty bad shape when the animal-loving pegasus had stumbled upon her. Rather than leaving her there, though, she had taken her into her home and offered her refuge from the harsh elements. It had been raining rather hard when she had come inside, and the rain had yet to let up since then, Tenna noticed. In fact, it seemed to be coming down harder with every passing minute.
After a couple more moments of pondering her situation Tenna was broken out of her thoughts be the sound of a plate being placed down on the table between she and Fluttershy, who had just returned. For what seemed like hours, the two simply stared at one another. Every so often, Fluttershy would take a sip of her tea, but that was it.
It was Fluttershy who ended up breaking the silence, though. “S-so what bring you to Ponyville?”
“I-I was hoping to start over, and make a name for myself,” Tenna quickly replied, smiling widely for the first time in what seemed like years. “I-I’m just glad I met you first, and not some m-mean pony…”
It was true. Fluttershy stumbling upon her was possibly the best thing that could have happened since she had started staking out Ponyville from the forest. Had it been someone else, someone that felt nothing for changelings, she likely would have been left to die.
“Oh, none of the ponies here are mean. Some can be a bit rude at times, but I’m sure any one of them would have helped you like I did.”
Tenna wasn’t entirely sure if that was to be believed, but then again, Fluttershy had known them for most of her life. Maybe she had finally found a place where she could fit in? The chances were slim, she knew that, but she’d already made one friend. Who was to say she couldn’t make more by displaying the same kindness Fluttershy had shown her?
“A-are you okay?” Fluttershy’s voice broke her out of her thoughts once more.
“Y-yes, sorry. I-I was just thinking.”
“Oh, okay then,” Fluttershy gave her that smile yet again before taking a big sip of her tea. Looking at the changeling across from her, she could tell that she was scared. Of what, the pegasus had no idea, but she was almost certain it had to do with what she had said earlier. It reminded Fluttershy of… herself. Or at least, how she used to be. Scared to meet new ponies, and scared of the unknown in general.
“Fluttershy, what’s it like to have friends?” the sudden question left Fluttershy stunned. Did Tenna really not know what having a friend was like? Had her life really been that rough?
“Well, it’s hard to explain, but I suppose having a friend is like having a personal guardian angel. Friends are always there for you, and they’d do anything to see you happy.”
“Well, I hope we can become ‘friends’,” Tenna looked up a bit, catching Fluttershy’s confused gaze. “S-sorry, nevermind…”
“I just… I thought we were already friends,” Fluttershy took another sip of her tea and smiled. Tenna became confused herself upon hearing that.
“W-we are?”
“I’d like to think so. I helped you when you needed it, and we’ve really opened up to each other. I know a lot more about you now than I do about most ponies,” she explained, making Tenna smile this time.
“W-well then I’m just happy you’re my first friend.”
The statement gave Tenna a warm feeling, and she suddenly felt a lot happier than she had before. As all of the excitement finally began getting to her and building up, she exploded with joy.
As the party around Tenna continued to rage on, she found herself looking over at the pink party host. This party was supposed to be in her honor, a welcome of sorts to Ponyville. So then… why wasn’t she having as much fun as everyone else? Silently cursing her intense shyness, she looked away from Pinkie Pie and over to the refreshments table. Letting out a small sigh, she rose from her seat and walked over to it, intent on getting some punch.
Just as she was about to turn around and go back to the chair she’d made her temporary home, a voice to her left caught her attention. “Hi!”
Turning her head a bit to face the source of the voice, Tenna managed to say “hello” back, sounding almost scared as she did.
“Not a fan of parties?” the pony ventured a guess, catching Tenna off guard, before continuing. “Yeah, I hear ya. I only came here because my friends insisted.”
Taking a sip from her punch, Tenna examined the pony before her. She was blue, with a long brown mane, and her cutie mark was what looked like a quill next to a heart. She also seemed to be the only pony at the entire party wearing glasses, definitely an unmistakable feature.
“Heh, see something you like?” the pony’s voice cut off her thoughts and made her blush.
“S-sorry, you’re just the first pony to talk to m-me tonight,” Tenna seemed almost sad, and the mare across from her could tell.
“Well, I’m glad I could change that,” she smiled, making Tenna giggle. “My name’s Novelle.”
“I-I’m Tenna…”
“Heh, I sort of gathered that from Pinkie Pie before the party got started,” she replied, laughing at the thought of it.
---
“Oh my gosh guys, I met this super cute pony except she’s NOT a pony, she’s a changeling! And her name is Tenna and she has this weird hair antenna thingy that makes her look like an alien even though she really looks like a bug, so everyone say hi to Tenna!”
---
Tenna, as shy as she was, had simply cowered behind Pinkie Pie. One of the other had simply said ‘that’s our Pinkie Pie’ as if it explained anything at all. “So what brings you to Ponyville, Tenna?”
“O-oh, um… I just wanted to make some friends and s-show that not all changelings are mean.”
“Well you definitely started in the right town,” Novelle looked out at the crowd of dancing ponies momentarily before looking back to Tenna. “The ponies here are definitely different, that’s for sure.”
“H-how so?” Tenna asked, happy that she had apparently picked the right place to start her quest.
“Well, nobody here really judges anyone else based on their race, or what they’ve done in the past. Here, it’s almost like every day is a chance to start over or meet new ponies. I remember when I came here from Canterlot. It was shortly after the, um, changelings attacked it,” she said carefully, hoping not to upset Tenna.
“I-it’s okay. It’s not like you have to pretend it didn’t happen around m-me,” Tenna assured her it was alright, albeit shyly.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Novelle continued her story. “Anyways, when I first got here, I thought I’d have a tough time making new friends. But life has a funny way of working, and Pinkie Pie met me first. That pretty much ensured that I’d know everyone in Ponyville within a day,” she laughed, causing Tenna to as well.
Truly, the pink party pony was an oddball. She knew everyone, everyone knew her, and all she wanted to do was have fun. Tenna could respect that, since it most certainly made life a lot more enjoyable.
“After that, life became really easy around here. It’s been a lot of fun, too.”
“So do you think everyone will accept me?” Tenna asked her, curious. Sure, they seemed to be enjoying the party, but that didn’t necessarily mean they liked her.
“As long as you’re nice to the ponies here, they’ll be nice back. Heck, everyone around here loves Discord now, and what he did was much worse than what the changelings did.”
That bout of confidence made Tenna smile widely for the first time all evening. She had heard stories about Discord, and none of them had been very good. So if these ponies had accepted him, and even called him their friend, then her chances were pretty darn good. “Thanks. I just hope I can prove myself to everyone.”
“Trust me, it’s not hard to prove yourself to all these goofballs,” Novelle gestured towards the many dancing ponies. “You wanna know how I met them all?”
“H-how?”
“I, being clumsy, fell down a flight of stairs and landed right on Pinkie Pie. I guess her twitchy tail wasn’t on that day…”
“‘Twitchy tail?’” Tenna wondered what Novelle had meant by that, but she simply got a laugh in response.
“You’ll find out, trust me. But anyways, have you found a place to stay yet?”
“N-not yet. I need to get a job first, so I can buy a house,” Tenna explained, looking sad again.
“Well… I’ll tell you what. Until you get a home of your own, you can room up with me,” Novelle suggested, stunning Tenna.
“Y-you really mean it?”
As soon as Novelle nodded in the affirmative, she was pounced on by Tenna, being pulled into what she could only describe as a choke hug. Tenna’s front legs were wrapped tightly around her neck, and she could hardly breathe. “Can’t… breathe…”
In an instant, Tenna let go of her and began to apologize profusely until Novelle cut her off. “It’s alright, that was nothing compared to how Pinkie hugs…”
At that, the two giggled. Both of them knew just how much it hurt to be hugged by Pinkie Pie, and it wasn’t something they liked to experience.
“A-are you sure I wouldn't be intruding?”
“Not at all! I was given the same opportunity by Lyra when I first move here.”
“Well… okay then. Thank you, really.”
“It's no problem, really,” Novelle assured her with a smile. “Anyways, there’s still plenty of night left. You wanna go meet some other ponies?”
Pondering the question, Tenna found that she wasn’t entirely sure. On the one hand, all of the ponies she had talked to directly thus far had been very nice. On the other… no, she wouldn’t run into more ponies like the ones who had attacked her home.
“Oh! Maybe this color and… no, that doesn’t match at all. Perhaps it would look better in a light aqua color? Or maybe a dark green? Hm... what do you think, Tenna?”
Watching a seamstress like Rarity at work was a spectacle to be seen, that was for sure. It seemed like she never stopped moving, and breaks didn’t seem to exist in her world. Rather, she liked working non-stop on dresses. It was, after all, her biggest passion in life. Since arriving in Ponyville, Tenna had often wondered what she would be able to do well. Unlike ponies, changelings didn’t have one talent they were especially good at.
“Tenna, are you alright?” The question broke her out of her stupor, and she nodded her head.
“I’m fine, sorry. I was just watching you work, and I guess I zoned out a bit…”
“It’s alright, no harm. I was just wondering which one of these colors you liked?” Rarity asked, holding up three color cards in front of Tenna. After a few moments of thinking it over, she pointed at the one in the middle.
“That one,” she began, “It looks very pretty.”
Turning the color cards around, Rarity smiled at the changeling’s choice. “Seafoam green? Yes, I think I can make that work, as long as you don’t mind some of the dress being light green as well.”
“Oh, I don’t mind. You’re the expert after all, but I did have one question.”
“Ask away, dearie.”
“Can I sit down now? My feet are starting to feel sore…” she complained softly, hoping not to offend the seamstress.
“Of course! Now that I’m finished measuring you, I can begin working on the dress!” Rarity beamed.
‘W-wow, she really enjoys her job...’ Tenna thought to herself. “Um, how long do you think it will take?”
“Hm… I’d say probably… two, three hours?”
“O-only three hours?” Tenna was stunned. She didn’t know much about dressmaking, but she was certain that it took a lot longer than that for most seamstresses. Especially if they were making a dress like the one Rarity was making for her.
“Mhm! I am the best fashionista in all of Ponyville!” she jokingly bragged, making Tenna giggle.
“Do you mind if I stay here while you work on it?” Tenna asked, not wanting to be a distraction.
“That’s quite alright. I could use your opinion on some aspects of the dress, after all,” Rarity said, and Tenna went to sit down on one of the many couches in the main room of the boutique. “There’s also fresh coffee if you’d like some.”
That struck Tenna as odd. Pretty much every pony she had met so far drank tea, yet the most posh of them all seemed to prefer coffee. Heck, she’d had almost four cups already since Tenna had arrived. “Oh, no thanks. I don’t, um, drink pony stuff.”
“What ever do you mean, darling?” Rarity asked as she cut a piece of cloth, “coffee was invented by the gryphons.”
“Oh, um, what I meant was… I don’t need food…”
“But… surely you must be thirsty!” Rarity exclaimed. “You’ve been here all morning and haven’t had a thing to drink!”
“No, I mean, I don’t need it,” Tenna put more emphasis on the word ‘nee’, hoping Rarity would catch on.
“You don’t… need food? At all?” Rarity couldn’t believe her ears. How could anyone survive without ever eating or drinking? Such a thing was almost impossible to believe.
“N-no… Changelings don’t need to eat food to survive. We just need love…”
“Oh, I see. I suppose that does make sense, in a weird way,” Rarity cut another piece of cloth. “Can you eat food, though?”
“I can, but I don’t think it tastes very good. I only really eat it if I can’t find any love…”
“Are you, um,” Rarity put her hoof to her chin, unable to think of the right way to ask her question, but Tenna seemed to understand what she was getting at.
“You’re being very nice to me, and that’s keeping me full,” the changeling smiled. “But I do wonder why you’re making a dress for someone like me…”
“Just think of it as me welcoming you to Ponyville,” Rarity said, stitching two pieces of cloth together. “I can tell you’re going to look absolutely ethereal in it.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that… I’m not as pretty as you or Fluttershy…”
“I will have none of that! You are much prettier than you think, especially for a changeling!” she exclaimed, blushing right afterwards. “No offense.”
“I-it’s alright, it’s just sort of weird looking different from the other changelings,” she explained, making Rarity laugh.
“Trust me, darling, being different is nothing to be ashamed of. Why… you’re a diamond in the rough!” she complimented Tenna as she continued working with the cloth she had picked out. Not knowing how to respond, Tenna simply smiled at the alabaster mare.
“So tell me, Tenna, what brought you to my boutique this morning? Certainly it wasn’t of your own accord,” Rarity ventured a guess, to which Tenna nodded.
“Pinkie Pie basically dragged me over here, and everyone was staring,” Tenna giggled a bit at the thought of it. She had looked pretty silly, being dragged down the street by an insane pink pony who seemed like she never had to breathe when speaking.
“Ah, that definitely makes sense. Pinkie never seems to notice when ponies don’t want to do something. She sees things the way she wants to, and that’s how it’s always been.”
“Well, I’m just glad she’s happy,” Tenna smiled, making Rarity smile as well.
“And that’s certainly a good thing. You wouldn’t want to be around her when she’s… sad.”
“Why not? Is it bad?”
“You’ll find out one day…” Rarity said simply, laughing. “Now, about that dress…”
As Tenna approached the big tree home she now knew Twilight Sparkle called home, she found herself nervous. That note that had been left on the front door of her home hadn’t explained much, and had only said for her to be here at this exact time. After a couple more seconds, she found herself knocking on the door of the tree with her hoof. She could hear a little bit of shuffling inside before the door opened, revealing a purple unicorn.
“H-hello, Twilight. I got a note telling me to come here, do you know anything about it?”
Seeming to ignore her question, Twilight rose one of her legs and checked the watch on it. “Right on time, excellent. Please, come inside.”
Confused, Tenna did as she was told, and Twilight slammed the door behind her. “So, um, why did you want me here?”
Ignoring her again, Twilight went over to a whiteboard and, picking up a marker with her magic, started to write tons of different formulas on it. “You’ve been here for almost four months, right Tenna?”
“Um, a little more than that, I think.”
“And yet, in this whole time that you’ve been here,” Twilight continued, “you’ve never shapeshifted. Is there a reason for that?”
“W-well, I don’t really need to…” Tenna responded quietly.
“I know that,” Twilight turned away from the whiteboard to face Tenna. “But seeing as how you hang out with Rainbow Dash, I guess I assumed you might have used the ability to prank ponies.”
“Oh, heavens no!” Tenna exclaimed, catching Twilight off-guard. “I’ve never even gone pranking. It’s… mean.”
“Hmph, glad to see that someone else agrees. Pinkie and Rainbow have been out of control with the pranking this month,” Twilight frowned at a particularly bad memory. “But enough about them. I have a proposition for you.”
“Um, okay…” Tenna muttered, unsure of whether or not she wanted to hear it.
“Before I left you that note, I had Spike fetch another pony. He’s going to be our guinea pig in this experiment.”
“A g-guinea pig?”
“Come on out, Tech,” Twilight called into the basement, and out of the doorway came a green pegasus with a blue mane. He let out a sigh, and turned to Twilight.
“So why am I here, again?”
“You, my green feathery friend, are here to be the guinea pig in my latest experiment.”
“This isn’t going to be anything like the drumsticks experiment, is it?” the pegasus recalled coldly, making Twilight chuckle nervously.
“Hehe, no… Rest assured, you’re in no danger this time around. I think…”
“You think? Do you have any idea how long it took me to clean my hair after that experiment?”
“Let’s not talk about that in front of our friend,” Twilight ignored Tech’s question. “Tenna, does your ability to mimic ponies have any negative repercussions?”
“Um,” Tenna put a hoof to her chin, taking a moment to think long and hard about it. “I… don’t think so. We only really use it to feed on love.”
“So you’re saying it won’t weaken or hurt Tech Beat over here?” Twilight points at him, and he smiles and waves shyly.
“Um… I don’t think so?” Tenna herself was unsure, as she had only done it a few times in her life.
“Alright, you heard it, Tech! If anything goes wrong, you can blame her for saying it wouldn’t,” Twilight said, making Tenna go wide eyed.
“W-what?! B-but you’re the o-one who called m-me here!”
“First question!” Twilight yelled over Tenna, once again choosing to ignore her. The changeling supposed that it was just in the unicorn’s nature, so she couldn’t really fault her for wanting to hurry things along. “Obviously, as a changeling, you lack the basic reproductive organs common in most sapient life in Equestria.”
The sheer bluntness of the statement threw Tenna for a loop, and she blushed all the way through her chitin. “Actually, um, I have… those,” she finished, obviously not wanting to say the actual words.
“Really?” Twilight asked curiously, writing something else on the whiteboard before turning back to Tenna. “When you take on the form of a pony, do you gain their respective set of reproductive organs?”
“N-no!” Tenna yelled at her, blushing even more furiously. “I-it’s just like a, a costume!”
“Sorry for being so blunt,” Twilight apologized quickly, turning back to her whiteboard and writing something down. “I just wanted to get that question out of the way right out of the gate.”
“No offense, Twilight, but what does that have to do with anything?” Tech asked from besides her, getting a quick ‘shh!’ in response. “Fine then, don’t tell your volunteers what they want to know…”
Turning back around, she put her marker down. “Alright, go ahead and mimic Tech, Tenna.”
“B-but he’s a… boy.”
“And? You said yourself that you only change in appearance, not biologically,” Twilight reminded her, smirking. To that, Tenna had no retort, and she let out a sigh of defeat.
“A-alright…” she muttered, her body beginning to glow a bright green. After a couple of seconds, flames of the same color popped up around her, and her body slowly began to change from the legs up. Twilight and Tech watched in awe the whole time, never having seen the transformation take this long. Once her body had completely changed, the flames slowly dissipated and the glow faded away from her body. “T-there. Is that good?”
Looking at Tenna, Tech felt as if he was looking straight at a mirror. “Whoa, she looks just like me!”
“Not to mention ‘sounds’,” Twilight added in, turning back to her whiteboard. “How long are changelings able to maintain their mimicked states, Tenna?”
“Um, I guess it depends on how much love we have. M-my mom used to say that’s what powered it.”
“I see. So right now, how long do you think it would be able to last?”
“Hm…” Tenna thought for a moment, trying to come up with a good estimation. “About… six years?”
“SIX YEARS?!” Twilight and Tech yelled out at once, their jaws dropping, making Tenna giggle.
“W-well, I’ve been gathering up love from you guys since I arrived in Ponyville,” she explained. “That’s almost four months worth of love.”
“So then, a day worth of love could last you over a week?”
“I think so,” Tenna looked right at Twilight, “but it’s hard to tell, really. There’s different types of love, and some are stronger than others.”
“What do you mean? I could use this info in my notes!” Twilight exclaimed, getting right in Tenna’s face. The changeling remained calm, though, and began to explain.
“Love between friends is strong, but not as strong as love between, well, lovers.”
“Ah, that makes sense. Now, I just have one last test to do and we can go.”
“A-alright, what do you need me to do?” Tenna asked curiously. Hopefully it wouldn’t be dangerous.
Summoning up her magic, Twilight cast a spell and two long, thin objects appeared in the air beside her. “Could you hold these drumsticks for me?”
“Run, Tenna,” came the voice of Tech, and Twilight glared at him.
“B-but I…”
“RUN!” he shouted again, causing Tenna to yelp. As she turned around and ran out of the library, still mimicking Tech, she could hear Twilight berating him. That had certainly been a close one.
As Tenna walked down the main street of Ponyville, she found herself wondering why Rainbow Dash hadn’t met her yet. She had been told to meet her on this street, and yet, she wasn’t anywhere to be found. With how busy the street was today, it seemed unlikely that she’d even find her.
“Hey, bugbrain, how ya doin’?”
‘Scratch that,’ the changeling thought with a sigh, ‘she’s here...’
“I-I Told you not to call me that, Rainbow Dash...” Tenna muttered to the pony floating above her. “My name is Tenna.”
“Lighten up, would ya!” Rainbow Dash landed in front of Tenna, stopping her in her tracks. “I give everyone nicknames. Fluttershy’s is ‘Nutter Butter’,” she added, laughing at the name. Even Tenna had to laugh at that one.
“Okay, um…” Tenna tried desperately to come up with a nickname for the pegasus in front of her, but found herself unable to.
“Don’t hurt yourself,” Rainbow chuckled. “Now, I suppose you’re wondering why I wanted you to meet me here.”
“Um, yes?”
“Today, we are going to...” Rainbow started, but didn’t seem like she was going to finish.
“Um, why did you stop talking?”
“To pause for dramatic effect!” Rainbow exclaimed. “But you just ruined it, so now I have to start over. Ahem. Today we are going to… teach you to be assertive!”
“B-but why?” was all Tenna could manage to ask. Not many ponies had been mean to her in the six months she’d been in Ponyville, and they’d been chased off by other ponies anyways.
“Because standing up for yourself is important if you really wanna show that you’re not like the other changelings. You have to be able to help out other ponies if they need help. No offense, but I bet you’d just tuck your tail between your legs and run off, right…?”
It wasn’t a lie, and Tenna knew it. At any sign of confrontation, all she seemed to do was run away or just take the verbal abuse without fighting back. “Y-yes…”
“And that’s exactly why we’re going to do this,” Rainbow said confidently. “You need to stop letting other ponies walk all over you.”
“W-well, if you say so…”
“Alright, then follow me,” Rainbow took to the air, beginning to fly towards one of the many open fields around Ponyville. Sighing, Tenna decided she didn’t really have a choice, and spread out her own wings. The action seemed to garner the attention of a nearby pony, who called out to her.
“Hey, nice wings weirdo!” he exclaimed, making Tenna pause. Maybe this would be a good time to try being more like Rainbow Dash? She had seen her be assertive before, doing what she called, oh what was it…? ‘Garbage speech!’ she yelled internally. “How can you even fly with such puny things?”
Taking the time to land in front of the pony, Tenna saw a slight hint of nervousness work itself onto his features. “T-the same way you’d better fly away if you don’t want to get h-hurt.”
‘Hah, good one! I’m so tough,’ thought Tenna to herself. ‘Rainbow Dash would be so proud if she saw me.’ Little did she know, Rainbow Dash had stopped flying, and was observing the altercation from above.
“Me, run away from you? Don’t make me laugh, you’re so puny!” the pony laughed, and Tenna couldn’t help but get very angry. If there was one thing she didn’t like ponies making fun of, it was her height. Instead of replying with words, she took a step towards him, growling ferally. This time, it was the pony’s turn to look like he didn’t want to be there. As Tenna took another step forward, he turned around and high-tailed it.
“That’s right, you better run!” Rainbow Dash called from above, laughing her butt off the whole time. Flying down and landing next to Tenna, she grinned. “You did it without even needing my help!”
“W-well, not exactly. I just thought of what you might do, and d-did it.”
“Well you did a great job,” Rainbow congratulated her. “We don’t even need to do the training!”
“R-really?” Tenna asked, hoping it was true. It wasn’t that she didn’t like Rainbow Dash, it was that she didn’t want to find out just what kind of teacher she was. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, definitely. Just don’t go being assertive too much,” she warned Tenna, “I wouldn’t want you to end up like Nutter Butter did.”
“Wh-what did Fluttershy do?” Tenna asked, scared of hearing the answer. She had seen her get angry a few times in her six months in Ponyville, and it was never a pleasant sight.
“She went crazy and started being mean to everyone, then she locked herself in her home for like two days and had her rabbit tie her up.”
“Wow.” That was all Tenna could really say in response to the story, silently thanking god that she hadn’t been in Ponyville for that.
“Yeah, she took lessons from this big minotaur, and way too seriously. From what I could tell, he actually seemed nice.”
“So then he was kind of like you?” Tenna joked, making Rainbow Dash blush. “Hahaha!”
“Yeah, I guess… but I’m a better teacher than him!”
“You didn’t even teach me anything, though,” Tenna said, giggling. “So how can you be better?”
“You learned by example, didn’t you? Remind again who you observed to learn how to trash talk,” Rainbow replied, grinning the whole time. At that, Tenna could only giggle again before closing the gap between the two and pulling her into a hug.
“Aww, come on, I hate lovey dovey stuff…” Rainbow whined, but Tenna ignored her.
“Thank you, Rainbow Dash.”
“For what? I didn’t really do anything, you took care of that jerk all by yourself!”
“For being my friend,” Tenna clarified herself, and a silence fell between the two. After a couple seconds, she could hear Rainbow mutter “Aw, what the heck”, and return the hug.
As she kicked her legs backwards and felt the apples rain down around her, Tenna looked over at Applejack. “L-like that?”
“I think we finally found somethin’ you’re really good at, Tenna,” the farm-pony replied, grinning.
“Well, it’s not like I’m as good as you are,” Tenna smiled at her, secretly happy that Applejack had complimented her. During her time in Ponyville, she had grown to admire the apple bucking machine greatly. Her work ethic was unlike anything she’d ever seen, and she had a ‘never say die’ attitude that really seemed to rub off on her friends. “I’m just happy I’m getting to know you better.”
“Well,” Applejack bucked a tree, the apples falling right into the buckets, “it’s been a pleasure getting to know you, too. I heard you met my little sis’ a while back, and she scared you senseless.”
“She and her friends are…” Tenna couldn’t think of a word to describe them for the life of her. They were reckless, but that wasn’t all. Nosey was another way to describe them, as it seemed they always wanted to know what Tenna was up to when they saw her. But they were also as carefree as anyone could possibly be. Nothing seemed to bother them, and they were certainly living life to the fullest.
“Crazy? Foolish? Deceitful?” Applejack supplied, making Tenna giggle. It seemed they were on the same page about those girls. They were certainly a handful, that was for sure.
“Yeah, definitely. One time, they asked me to go tight-rope walking with them. I guess they thought they’d get their cutie marks for that,” Tenna couldn’t help but wonder what was going on in the head of those fillies.
“Again? Those three are gonna be dead by age twenty if they keep it up,” Applejack kicked another tree.
“Th-they’ve done it before?” Tenna asked, sincerely hoping it wasn’t true. If it was, those fillies were walking a tight-rope over their own lives. Nah, they were doing that anyways, she decided.
“Yeah, two times before you showed up. Those three have tried everything you or I can possibly think of to get their cutie marks. If anything, I’m just stunned they haven’t found their talents yet.”
“Heh, maybe their talent is to not have one true talent,” Tenna quipped, making Applejack laugh. It was certainly a possibility, and a conundrum at that. Could a pony even get a cutie mark for not having one true talent?
“That wouldn’t surprise me at all,” she replied, setting her buckets down below another tree. “But enough about them. Have you found out what you wanna do here yet?”
“Oh… not yet. I guess I haven’t really given it any thought,” the normally meek changeling replied. For some reason, she felt far more comfortable around Applejack than she did any other pony. Well, aside from her two closest friends. But it was true, the stutter that plagued her around most ponies seemed to be gone entirely. “How did you find out that you wanted to work on your farm?”
“I ran away from home, thinkin’ I’d like the city life,” Applejack replied, sending her hind legs crashing into the tree behind herself. “Long story short, I didn’t, so I came back here. That’s when this appeared.”
Tenna followed Applejack’s gesture to her cutie mark. “That certainly sounds like it was a lot easier than your sister has it,” she joked again, Applejack grinning in response.
“That’s for sure. What about you, though? Can changelings even get cutie marks?”
“I don’t think so, but I’ve heard that if we transform into a filly without one, we can earn it.”
“Heh, that’d be somethin’ to see. Imagine how upset Apple Bloom and her friends would be if they saw that happen,” Applejack said, causing both of them to laugh. “But I can’t lie to ya, it’s still weird havin’ a changeling living in Ponyville.”
“It’s weird to me, too,” Tenna replied, Applejack raising an eyebrow at her. “Well, I mean, it’s weird living with ponies when I’ve either lived with changelings or by myself my entire life.”
“Have any of the ponies here given you any trouble?” Applejack asked suddenly, her voice taking on a serious tone.
“Just one, a couple weeks ago, but I did what Rainbow would do and scared him away.”
“Boy, I wish I coulda been there to see that. I’m an honest pony, Tenna, and I don’t like ponies that make fun of others just for being different. Hay, I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve had to get onto Apple Bloom for that.”
“Aw, she’s just a filly, though. Besides, with you as her big sister, shes guaranteed to be a great girl when she grows up,” Tenna complimented her as she kicked another tree, letting out a grunt as she did so.
“Well, I appreciate you saying that, it’s mighty kind o’ ya. I just don’t want her growin’ up like that little brat, Diamond Tiara. The name was certainly familiar to Tenna, and not without good reason. That pony had tried numerous times to get her mad, but Tenna hadn’t budged at her comments. She definitely owed that to Rainbow Dash.
“I don’t like her, either. She called my tail dumb the other day. If she wasn’t just a filly, oh…” Tenna seemed to be turning red, and the sight of it alone made Applejack burst into laughter.
“Man, she got to you to, huh? You should have been there when she called Twilight a ‘peanut brain’. Whooee, I thought Ponyville was gonna burn down that day!”
“How did it not?” Tenna quipped. She had known Twilight long enough by now to understand not to challenge her intellect, much less make fun of it. Doing that was a one-way ticket to witnessing one of her patented ‘Twilight Tantrums’.
“Well, I’m just about done apple-buckin’, so what do you say you and me go get somethin’ to eat. I don’t know about you, but I’m starvin’.”
Tenna definitely wasn’t starving, she wasn’t even hungry. But she did know that she wanted to spend more time with Applejack. She hadn’t had this much fun chatting in a while, any she hoped it wouldn’t end any time soon. “Sure, that sounds great.”
“And heck, maybe I can tell you more about my family. I’ve got some funny stories I’ve just been dyin’ to share with someone,” she suggested, beginning to walk off towards her house, Tenna quickly falling in line behind her.
Regal, yet modest. That was how Tenna viewed the interior of Canterlot Castle, a place she had been called to over a week ago. It was only now that she could make the trip, finally having gotten a break from moving into her new home. She had made plenty of friends during her time in Ponyville, but this was the biggest challenge she had faced. The first changeling to enter Canterlot since… that day.
It was both an honor and a curse. Some ponies had openly welcomed her, but most of the citizens of Canterlot had taunted her upon her arrival, and it was only with the help of Celestia’s royal guard that she had made it to the castle unharmed. Even now, they surrounded her almost entirely as she walked through the castle and towards the throne room. On the way there, she couldn’t help but look at all the pictures around her. Murals of past battles won by Equestria. Indeed, it seemed as if the kingdom would never fall.
She was jerked from her thoughts, though, as two large doors in front of her were opened by the guards. As she passed through them, the lead guard spoke up. “Princess, she’s here, just as you requested.”
“Thank you, you may go,” came a very regal, yet welcoming voice. Tenna couldn’t yet see the source of it, but it was obviously Princess Celestia. She had never seen the princess in person, not even a picture of her. As the guards around her began to leave the room, she finally saw the Sun Princess for the first time. Surprisingly, it didn’t overwhelm her. Apart from her size, she looked almost like any other pony Tenna had met. Well, aside from the fact that she had wings and a horn. Big ones, at that.
“Do I have something on my face?” The question broke Tenna out of her staring session, and she blushed.
“S-sorry, I’ve just never seen you before.”
“Do you know why I’ve called you here?” Celestia asked, to which Tenna shook her head. She had no clue, only a letter from Twilight telling her to go to Canterlot as soon as she could and meet the princess. “Well, we have very important matters to discuss. As you know, you’re the first changeling to stop hoof in Canterlot in almost three years.”
“I-I know. The ponies out there weren’t very… welcoming.”
“I’m sure you understand why, though,” Celestia said, to which Tenna nodded. “Your kind has caused much pain for ponies for as long as I’ve been alive. Do you have any idea how long that is?”
“I… have no idea. Twilight told me you’re immortal, but she never told me how old you are. I guess she didn’t know,” Tenna guessed, to which Celestia nodded.
“I myself can hardly remember when I came into this world. Discord is the only one that does, but he won’t say,” Celestia explained before getting to the topic at hand. “Here’s the deal. My sister and I are very happy that you’ve found a place that’s accepting of you. However, we think it would be best if you leave. At least, for the time being.”
At that, Tenna felt heartbroken. She had lived in Ponyville for almost a year, so what caused them to suddenly want her gone? As if reading her mind, Celestia answered her question.
“It’s not that we want you to. You have to.”
“But… why?” Tenna was curious now. Were there threats against her, or even worse, against Equestria for letting her stay?
“A couple of months after your arrival in Ponyville, Twilight Sparkle sent me a letter. She had done some research with you, does that sound familiar?”
“She wanted me to change in front of her,” Tenna recalled, Celestia nodding in response.
“That research was commanded by my sister and I. We wanted to see what made changelings tick, in case they ever decided to attack again.” At this point, Tenna was about to speak up, but Celestia rose her hoof up, beckoning for her to remain silent. “However, during this research, Twilight found out something… interesting about you.”
“Huh?”
“Haven’t you ever wondered why you look so different from other changelings, Tenna? Why you have a gender?”
“No,” Tenna shook her head, “My mom just told me I was special when I asked.”
“She wasn’t wrong, Tenna. Most changelings have no gender, no hair, and a much less jagged horn than your own. There’s only one kind of changeling that possesses those three traits.”
Tenna simply waited for Celestia to continue, remaining quiet the whole time. The only noise to be heard was her breathing, which had a very slight buzz to it.
“A queen.”
“A QUEEN?!” Tenna yelled out, her breathing suddenly becoming much heavier. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN I’M A QUEEN?!”
“Tenna, please stay calm, and I promise to explain.”
Doing her best to listen to the princess, Tenna’s breathing began to calm down a bit, but not much. “Just tell me!”
“Very well, but I can’t promise what I’m going to say won’t upset you. The truth is this. You were never ‘banished’, as your ‘parents’ claimed.” Celestia supposed she could tell Tenna about the ones she knew as her mother and father, but that could wait until another time. “You were left for dead.”
“Wh...what? I was left for d-dead?” Tenna was shocked. How could Celestia even know what had happened, and why wait until now to tell her? Once again, it seemed that her mind has been read.
“Discord is the one who informed us of this. When he was imprisoned, he could see and hear all of Equestria through his mind,” she quickly explained before continuing the story. “You see, when you were born, some of Chrysalis’ more… radical followers were worried that you would attempt to steal her throne. In an effort to keep that from happening, you were thrown out of the hive as a pupa.”
“How did I… survive?” Tenna asked, now more curious than shocked.
“You were found by two changelings who had also been thrown out of the hive. They took you in, introduced you to their ‘son’, and welcomed you as part of the family.”
“So… they weren’t my real parents?”
“They were as close to parents as you can be without being related by blood,” Celestia complimented them, making Tenna smile slightly. “If not for them, you surely would have perished. They did their best to care for you, and for that, they have our eternal thanks.”
“But… what’s so important about me? Even if I am a queen, I’m nothing special.”
“Not yet,” Celestia stating, causing Tenna to raise an eyebrow. “But someone has agreed to teach you everything you need to know about ruling a nation and unlocking your full potential as a queen.”
“W-who?”
“Hello!” a new voice yelled out, causing Tenna to turn around and look at the source. “You must be Tenna.”
“A-and you’re…” Tenna had seen pictures of him before, heard all of the stories about him.
“Discord. Hello, Queen Tenna, I’m going to be your teacher.”
