> Disguise
>  by Fret
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue - Lost Property
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The little changeling attempted to give one last gallop towards the others. They was swiftly falling behind of the other dark figures, and it was becoming more difficult to stay at the same pace with each step they took. The trees around them were beginning to become much more frequent, blocking out the little light there was under the black sky. They felt small as everything around them felt much larger and more significant than they did. Even the grass was beginning to grow taller than them.

As they stared at the strange and grand life around them, they failed to notice themselves begin to stumble in a separate path from the others. Everything was just making them dizzy and lose their balance, causing them to fall. Once they could find the strength to lift their head off of the ground, they tried with all their strength to open their mouth and cry for help. The weak rasp, however, failed to reach anyone at all. They were just too tired to pull themselves back on their hooves, for they were completely drained of all energy at this point.

They lay on their side, their right wing crushed by the little weight their body had. They moved their eyes so they could look up, but everything was merely blurred shapes at this point. The sky seemed non-existent now, since the stars had seemed to dissolve, leaving only a black hole above them. The trees had somehow grown even bigger in the past few moments they had been lying there. Even the ground seemed to act strangely, feeling as if it were falling through itself. That’s all they could remember before they felt the black hole that had replaced the sky consume them.





They opened their eyes to a strange scent drifting through the air. It wasn’t at all a bad scent, but it was not familiar. They dragged their head off of the soft surface they lay on, that being the heaviest thing they had ever lifted in their life. It took a while for their eyes to adjust to the strange scenery surrounding them - no longer the dark, grey forest they had last been seen, but rather a warm, strangely welcoming shelter. The sunlight was out again, at least, and the sky was finally back. The rays entered the shelter through holes in the cave walls, which was very strange.

All was peaceful and still, so it startled them when a white shape dashed past them. They had no idea what it was, since it was soon gone. It soon came to their attention that other life forms may be present, and they may be a threat. They planned to stand and be on guard, but the ground was unnaturally soft, preventing them from making the decision. They decided to stay lying down, for it was the better option for the moment.

Again, all was peaceful for a while longer, until a loud sound - a voice - could be heard. It was like no other voice they had heard before. It was high-pitched, quiet and... 

...Comforting?

Their eyes darted around until they settled on a large, yellow figure - a figure similar to their own, just much bigger. The creature had long, pink strands of hair growing from its head and hind, and large eyes to accompany its features, but unlike the ones they were used to, these eyes were mostly white, with a blue-ish green colour surrounding completely black pits. There were also extra limbs growing from its sides, along with strange marking on its flanks. The creature was unlike anything they’d seen before.

The creature spoke again. They could understand some of what it said.

“You’re... weak… poor thing… I don’t… do this, but… you… so helpless.”

The thing then lay next to them, extending one of its extra limbs to cover them. They flinched, unsure to what was going on. And yet, the extra limb was soft, like the strange surface they were lying on, and was very fascinating. It seemed to be covered in hollow sticks with fluffy leaves coming out of each of them. There were too many to count, and they also looked familiar. They soon realized they were identical to that of a bird. Now they had actually seen them up close, though.

They were getting even more comfortable with the extra limb folded on them, however a ‘ding’ was heard from somewhere, which was some sort of call for the creature to go to them. A pit of unexpected disappointment filled their insides as the limb was stolen from them. The creature disappeared for a while, until returning. They felt some excitement as it did. This time it was balancing a perfect-shaped circle - no ridges whatsoever - on its limb. Piled on the circle were smaller, slightly less-perfect circles that were also a different colour. These were brown instead of grey. There seemed to be a visible gas released from them as well. The thing lay down in front of them and dropped the pile of circles in front of them. It was apparent that it was these brown circles were what were releasing the pleasing scent. They couldn’t help but lean forward to move closer to them. The creature settled in front of them lifted what could only be described as a perfectly shaped hoof and pushed the substance closer to them.

“Eat up.” The short sentence could be understood. So this was some form of… solid energy? Interesting.

They couldn’t help but lean forward, then tried to absorb the energy. And yet, no energy fueled their body. They were confused, so looked up at the yellow creature for answers. The thing was staring at them with a curious look, before its mouth widened.

“Eat… like me.” The creature picked up the solid energy in its mouth, its teeth breaking it up into smaller pieces. It shocked them, their eyes widening at the sight. They had guessed they wanted them to mimic their actions, so, while full of doubt, they picked up one of the circular energy solids and bit into it.

It was surprisingly easy.

The energy wasn’t as fulfilling as it could be, but a pleasant taste was left in their mouth, so they took another bite. And another. And another. Soon, the whole circle was gone, but there were many more. They picked up another and chewed it up into tiny pieces before swallowing. The thing sitting opposite gave a strange sound that sounded something like, “ha ha ha”. It sounded like a sound of approval, so they weren’t scared. The thing then said something which, again, they couldn’t fully understand.

“I hope… find a home.”

They knew what a home was. They never actually had one though - it’s something they had never actually had. They weren’t sure what to think about what the thing said, since it wasn’t fully understand. But the thought of a home didn’t last long, since another being came to their attention. It was about their size, but looked like a miniature version of the large creature. It was also yellow, but had green hair sprouting from itself rather than pink, though the ends of the hair did have a pink tint. It also had the black pits in the white eyes, but two different colours surrounded the blackness - the left green and the right red. The larger creature pointed to the smaller and said the sound, “Evergreen”. They guessed that this was what the creature was called. Then the larger creature pointed to them, looked at ‘Evergreen’ and said, “Butterfly”.

Is that what I’m called?

Butterfly looked at Evergreen in wonder. They had no idea what creature these two were, or if there were more, but they seemed like they were no threat. They had also given them energy, so they can’t be an enemy of any sort. So, with that thought in mind, it must’ve been safe to rest.





Butterfly was woken to voices. One was familiar, the other was not. It was deeper than the yellow one’s voice. They opened their eyes, seeing an orange figure standing at what seemed to be the entrance to this shelter. It was similar size to the yellow one, but had blonde strands of hair rather than pink, and it was also much shorter. Its eyes were the same, except with rich green surrounding the black pits. They noticed the newcomer kept glancing towards their direction, an unsettling glare as their expression. Butterfly didn’t react, just stared right back at them. While doing so, they listened in to what the two were saying, trying to understand the words being said.

“Not safe… risky… don’t trust…”

“But it’s… a child… no harm…”

“But… a changeling…”

“Can be raised… be good…”

The orange one paused at what the yellow one had just told them. Butterfly could guess they were talking about them, but wasn’t sure what about. Then the yellow one spoke again.

“...You want a child…”

“Yeah, so?”

“Butterfly could…”

“No.”

“Why…?”

“Changeling…”

“Young… can be raised-”

“But how can I-”

“Please?”

Butterfly wasn’t too sure what they were discussing, but they could hear distress in both of their voices. This raised concern, since the yellow one had done just that for them, so they stood up for the first time in a while and sauntered over to the yellow one. Butterfly leaned on their perfect hoof and looked up at them. They looked back down on Butterfly, a caring look in their eyes. They then looked back at the orange one.

“Give them a chance.”

Butterfly then glanced at the orange one in confusion. The orange one glanced at them with uncertainty.

“Well… seems innocent enough.”

The yellow one gave an excited gasp at that. Butterfly still had no idea what was currently happening, but they guessed it was something good.
> Chapter 1 - Paranoid
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Butterfly pushed the crate so that it was grouped with the rest of them, each almost overflowing with apples. She wiped a couple drips of sweats from her forehead with her hoof, before giving a loud sigh and returning to her original position.

“Nice work, Butterfly!” She heard her mother call from nearby. She turned her head towards where the voice came from, almost immediately spotting her figure waving to her. She waved back.

“Thanks, mom,” she replied. She then buzzed her insect-like wings and lifted herself off of the ground until she was at the same height as the fruit growing on the trees. Once she was close enough, the changeling extended her hoof and latched it onto the branch, then leaned forward to clamp her fangs onto one of the apple’s stem. The stem became loose as the sharp edges on her teeth sliced through it, separating the apple from the branch. Butterfly watched satisfyingly as it fell to the ground, very close to one of the buckets she had put below her.

She continued to pick each apple and allow them to drop to the ground a few more times, but was interrupted as the branch her teeth were holding began to shake violently. She gave a yelp of surprise as she let go of the tree, trying to still herself in the air. Once she composed herself, Butterfly’s eyes trailed along the branch, searching for what was causing the strange behaviour. As she got closer to the trunk, she spotted green fur and red claws swiftly move out of sight. She rolled her eyes.

“I see ya there, Flame,” she grunted. For a moment, she got no reply, but soon enough a familiar face came crawling along the branch, his body weighing it down as he got closer to the edge.

“What are you even doin’? Can’t y’all see I’m trying to work?” she muttered, landing on the grass beneath her and beginning to gather up the apples she had picked. Flame gave a cackle from above.

“I’m just tryin’ to lighten the mood. Seems real quiet over here,” he explained. His red mane flopped over his face as he looked down on her. Any other pony would’ve fallen or lost balance on such a small branch, but Flame’s claws were sharp and his tail was strong and flexible. There was only one way to make him fall.

Zap!

“Ah!” Flame leaped up on all fours as Butterfly’s horn lit up and shot where the branch and trunk was connected. With no way to grip onto the tree, Flame ended up tipping over the edge and landing on his back, grass flying around him as he hit the ground.

“Not cool,” he complained, staring right at her with his slits for pupils.

“What are you even doin’ here?” Butterfly trotted over to him and tilted her head. “I thought you were helping Apple Bloom cleaning up the barn.”

“We finished a little earlier than expected,” Flame stated. “I was gonna go straight to Ponyville, but I wanted to see if you were doin’ anything later today.” The dragon-hybrid rolled onto his stomach and leaped up onto his claws again.

Butterfly shrugged. “I don’t really have any plans for today.” She buzzed her wings to raise herself up to another branch and began to pick each apple once again. “Say, do you think that maybe you could put those apples in the bucket for me?”

“Sure,” Flame answered, darting forward so he was positioned underneath her. “So are you just planning to do this all day?”

Butterfly dropped the first apple for him to catch. “Depends when mom thinks we’ve done enough.”

Flame returned from the bucket. “You’ve been doin’ this all mornin’. I think you should ask for more free time.”

“Well-” she tugged an apple off of the branch, some of the wood coming of with it, “-Maybe you would like that, but I’m quite happy helping mom with the chores all day.”

“Sure you are,” he scoffed, tossing the apple she had just dropped into the bucket.

Butterfly raised a brow. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh, nothin’,” Flame could be heard blowing his mane from his face. The changeling couldn’t help but pause mid-air to stare right at him.

“What is it?”

The hybrid stared back up at her. “Sometimes I just feel you’re trying to hard to please everyone,” he admitted. “I mean, the help’s appreciated and all, but you really gotta find some time for yourself.”

Butterfly blinked, then landed in front of him. She opened her mouth to speak, but she wasn’t really sure what words to begin with. Luckily, however, the conversation was interrupted.

“Say, how’s that bucket comin’ along?” Applejack asked from a short distance away from them. The two cousins looked over to where the mare stood, then Butterfly looked into the bucket.

“It’s about half full,” she replied. When she looked back at her mother, she saw her trotting over to them.

“Ah, that’s good,” she commented. “Say, once y’all fill up that bucket, I think you’ve earned yourself some free time.”

Butterfly’s ears perked up slightly. “Really? Are you sure you can handle all this by yourself.”

Applejack gave her a smug grin. “Why, of course I can. Besides,” she embraced her with her hoof. “You’re still young and y’all ain’t getting properly paid to do this yet.”

“I know but,” Butterfly glanced up at her, “I don’t want you to do so much work that you’ll end up-”

“Hey.” The changeling was cut off. “I know my limits. It’s you I’m getting concerned about.”

“Agreed.” Flame nodded.

Butterfly gave a look of uncertainty, then sighed. “Alright, if you want me to have free time, I guess I’ll have free time.”

Applejack smiled. “Good. I just don’t want you to be exhausting yourself, ya hear?”

Butterfly nodded.

“Good. Now, you go ahead and do whatever you wanna go do. I’ll sort these last few buckets out.” She patted her on the back before nudging her forward. Butterfly looked back at her mother.

“Are you sure you don’t want any more help?”

“Of course I’m sure. Now go ahead and have fun.”

Butterfly nodded again, then turned towards Flame, who had a wide grin.

“Awesome! Come on, cuz! Race ya to the barn!” Before she could protest, he dashed off. Butterfly gave a frustrated sigh as she stared after him.

“There is no way I am running all the way to the barn…” she muttered under her breath as she began her much slower journey.

“Hey, I think you’re losing,” Applejack teased, followed by the sound of her hind hooves hitting the trunk.

“I think I’m okay with that…”





Butterfly was halfway down the path to the barn. She didn’t realize how tired she really was until she had began walking. Her bones were actually aching, as well as her wings. The heat of the sun also wasn’t helping her current situation, since at this point her mouth was really dry and craved anything close to water.

“Maybe I have been overworking myself lately…” she wondered aloud. She was pleased to see the shape of the barn up ahead, she couldn’t help but quicken her pace. The thought of some sort of drink was enough motivation for her to keep on moving.

As she trotted down the pathway, she began to pay attention to the trees surrounding her. Some were covered in fruit, some weren’t. Either way, it was a nice distraction from the long walk she was taking.

The changeling was almost completely lost in the scenery and how peaceful it was, when a sound caught her attention. She swung her head around to where it had come from; a group of bushes only a few feet away from her. She arched a brow, before calling,

“I know that’s you, Flame.”

No response.

She let out an annoyed, yet amused scoff and took a step forward.

“Flame? I heard you, come on out.”

Still no answer.

She took a few more steps towards the bushes until there was a very small distance between them.

“Or maybe it’s Syrup hiding in there?”

Silence.

“Or an animal…?”

It wasn’t that abnormal for animals to pass through the orchard, though it still made her curious to what animal it was if it wasn’t Flame or Syrup stalking her. She raised a hoof and lightly touched the bush, making sure not to disturb anything that was in there, just in case it really was an animal. As soon as her hoof touched one of the small leaves growing from the plants, a black figure flashed on the edge of her vision, making her gasp loudly and jumping backwards in surprise. She tried to get a clearer view of the creature, but the trees were in the way, no matter what angle she stood. All she could see was a fairly large creature - about her size - with a dark colour, and most likely had four legs. But no matter what she tried to relate any of those features to, she couldn’t identify the creature with any animal she knew of. One thing for sure - it definitely wasn’t either of her cousins.





Butterfly eventually arrived at the barn, panting at this point. She had fled from the scene where she saw the creature and hadn’t taken a break until now. When she looked up, she spotted Flame sitting near the barn doorway, a proud grin glued onto his face.

“I remember you being faster than this,” he commented as she stalked towards him.

Butterfly sighed. “I didn’t run all the way here - just the last five minutes.”

“Yeah, okay.” He stood up to walk towards the entrance to the house. She followed on, at one point almost tripping over the trap door that was on the ground.

“Ugh, why does the door to the basement have to be there?” she muttered.

“Aunt AJ made some weird choices when she was younger.”

The two cousins entered into the kitchen, where Butterfly poured herself a glass of water. The feeling of the liquid entering her mouth was refreshing, and also helped with the lack of energy she had.

“Phew.” She gave the cup a quick wash under the tap and then set it down with the rest of the dishes.

“So, what do you wanna do?” Flame asked, cantering around the kitchen impatiently. “I was actually thinking about going to find Gale, see if they’re free.”

“Well, you can do that if you like. I think I’ll pass on the offer.”

Flame pouted when he heard this, but soon returned to his normal self. “Okay then, just make sure you don’t bore yourself.” He began to gallop towards the door. “See ya later,” he called, before leaving her alone in the house.

Butterfly’s ear twitched. The creature had left her mind until Flame left, and now she found it hard now to think about it. She still wasn’t sure what it was that she saw and whether there were more, or if it was some sort of threat.

She then shook her head.

You’re overthinking things. Just go and do something that will take your mind off of it.

Butterfly tapped her chin, wondering what she could do that would take her mind off of things.


I could visit Iremia… she always has some interesting things to say.





Butterfly knocked on the large door to the glimmering castle. She had known this building all her life, and yet it was still overwhelming to look at every time it came into view - which was a lot, since she and the rest of her friends used this place as their usual hang out.

She waited for the double doors to swing open, wondering who it would be on the other side. It seemed to be someone different each time, but not matter what, it was always a nice surprise.

Soon enough, they did indeed swing open. She had to take a couple of steps back since a draft always seemed to blow in her face each time either of the huge doors moved. She blinked open her eyes to see a tired face.

“Oh, why hello, Butterfly,” the princess murmured, a smile appearing on her face.

“Good afternoon, Princess Luna,” Butterfly bowed her head in respect. The tiredness on the alicorn’s face caught her attention. “I’m sorry, was I interrupting something?”

Luna gave a curious look, before realizing why she asked that. “Oh! No, I just look a little rough because I woke up about twenty minutes ago.” She gestured with her hoof for Butterfly to enter, to which the changeling obliged. “I still need to sort out my makeup.”

“I think you look fine,” Butterfly commented. Luna gave a chuckle.

“Why, thank you. Now, I’m sure you’re not actually here to see me - who is it you needed?”

“Oh! Yes, I was looking for Iremia. Is she around?”

Luna nodded. “She is. I was also about to look for her, so I can take you to her myself if you’d like.”

“I would like that, thank you!” Butterfly smiled. “I still get lost in this castle after all these years.”

Luna laughed. “It is a very big place, is it not?” Her eyes scanned the hallway. “It’s a good thing it isn’t just Twilight and Spike living here anymore.”

“I agree. How is Princess Twilight, anyway?”

“She’s doing well, thank you for asking,” Luna replied. “What about you and your cousins?”

“They’re doing good too, thank you.” Butterfly nodded. “So, why did you need to see Iremia, anyway?”

“She borrowed my mirror yesterday,” Luna said. “I’m hoping she still has it, or I’m going in blind with my eyeshadow.” They sped up both of their walks as they began climbing the stairs. “I could use my magic, but that ruins the lighting.”

Butterfly giggled, and felt relief when they ran out of stairs to climb.

“So are you just here to visit Iremia?” the princess asked.

The changeling nodded. “My mother gave me some free time, assuming to be for the rest of the afternoon.”

The two of them were soon outside Iremia’s door. Luna raised a hoof and knocked.

“Iremia? Are you in there?”

Hoofsteps could be heard a couple of times before the door slowly opened. A pinkish-purple head poked out, her purple and pale lavender mane pressed against the door. Her blue eyes confirmed that there were no strangers outside her door, prompting her to fully open it.

“Hi, mother, hi, Butterfly!” She grinned. She tilted her head to Luna. “Let me guess - you’re looking for your mirror?”

Luna nodded.

“I left it on your and mom’s bed this morning…”

The alicorn blinked.

“Well, that means it’s on the floor somewhere, considering I pulled the covers off the bed just before,” she sighed. “I’ll see you two later.” With that, Luna trotted off down the hallway. Butterfly then drew her attention to the unicorn in front of her.

“Hi, Butterfly! What brings you here? Do you need something?”

Butterfly shook her head. “I just came to visit, that is if you’re not busy already.”

“Oh! Well, I was just about to leave to see Cherry and Lapis, but I’m sure they’ll be glad to see you.” Iremia opened the door a little more so that Butterfly could stand by her side as she entered. “What do you say, wanna come?”

Butterfly grinned. “Sure, why not? I don’t exactly have anything else to do.”

She watched the mare rush to her bed to straighten the blankets with her magic, while also placing two books back on the shelf.

“What is it with you and keeping your room so tidy?” Butterfly commented. Iremia gave a side-glance.

“If I don’t, mom will freak out,” she quickly explained. “And I don’t really want her rummaging through my things in the name of organisation.”

“Want me to help?”

“No, it’s okay,” she said as she picked her brush up from the floor. “I already have it covered.” She then trotted back to her side. “Okay, I’m ready to go,” she announced.

Butterfly nodded. “Alright, should we leave then?”

“Yep, we better get moving, or we’ll be late.”





“Say, Butterfly, are you free for the entire afternoon?” Iremia asked as the trotted along the path to Sugarcube Corner.

The changeling nodded. “Yeah, my mom gave me the rest of the day off. Apparently I’ve been overworkin’ myself.”

Iremia gave a chuckle. “Well, you are known to do just that,” she stated. “And I think it was nice of your mom to give you all this free time.”

“Yeah, it was,” she agreed. They both then looked ahead to see the doorway to Sugarcube corner. Both of their trots turned into gallops as they entered the cafe. There were a few ponies sitting at the tables, but none of them were Lapis or Cherry.

“I guess we’re a tad early?” Butterfly assumed.

“It doesn’t really matter,” Iremia said as she led the way to the counter. “We can just order something while we wait.”

Butterfly followed the unicorn, eventually meeting Pumpkin Cake waiting at the counter. She looked up from the book she was reading and gave a smile.

“Why howdy there, Iremia and Butterfly, how can I help you on this fine but very hot day today?” She lay her head on her hooves as she leaned over the counter towards them.

“Hi, Pumpkin, we’re doing good. We were just wondering if we could err…” Iremia paused and leaned over into Butterfly’s ear. “Say, what do you want?”

“Hmm?” Butterfly looked at her. “Oh, I don’t mind.”

“Oh, alright then. Could I get two cupcakes, please?” Iremia asked.

Pumpkin rubbed her chin. “Hmm… I’m not sure I can…”

Iremia’s ears drooped in disappointment, only to be answered by Pumpkin laughing.

“I kid, I kid. Of course I can!” She turned to face the kitchen. “Hey Pound! Two cupcakes, up and running!”

“Got it,” Poundcake’s voice could be heard from the kitchen.

“Thanks,” Iremia said, before gesturing towards a random table. The two friends went and settled around it and, on cue, saw a particular unicorn walk in the cafe. Iremia straightened up and began waving her hoof.

“Lapis! Over here!” she called. The grey unicorn lifted some of his purple mane from his amber eyes in order to see them clearly. He gave a small wave before trotting over to them.

“Hello, Butterfly. I didn’t expect to see you here,” Lapis greeted them with a nod, but paying most of his attention to the changeling.

“I just thought I might as well tag along,” she stated.

“It’s nice to see you, anyway.” The stallion sat down next to Butterfly and opposite Iremia.

“Back at you.” Butterfly smiled at the statement.

“So, where’s Cherry? Do you know?”

Iremia opened her mouth to answer, but was interrupted by a pink, curly mane coming out from under the table next to her. The three friends weren’t sure how to reply, instead just staring at the mane.

“She’s very close…” a new, high pitched voice whispered. The mane then lowered itself below the table again, appearing next to Lapis next. “And she has something for you…”

“What is it?” Lapis asked calmly.

“...Twooooo cupcakes!” The brown mare finally revealed herself, leaping a few feet into the air holding a tray with four cupcakes. She dropped it in the middle of the table and landed on the extra seat. “Plus two more cupcakes for yours truly and this guy,” she added as she pointed to Lapis.

“...Thanks, Cherry,” Lapis said flatly, using his magic to pick the cupcake up and bring it to his mouth.

Butterfly was still quite surprised at the unexpected method of revealing oneself, which brought her mind back to something she had completely forgotten until now.

“Butterfly? Butterfly!” Two brown hooves clapped in front of her face, snapping her out of her small trance.

“Huh?” She flinched, staring at the mare opposite her. Her blue eyes were wide and curious.

“Say, what’s gotten into you?” Cherry tilted her head.

“Me? Oh, nothin’. Just kinda tired from today’s chores, that’s all.”

“Are you sure?” Iremia asked, wiping some icing from her mouth.

“Err, yeah, positive,” Butterfly assured her, quickly reaching for the cupcake with her hoof and taking a bite out of it as a distraction.

“Okaaaay… so how is everypony?” Cherry gave a wide grin. “Lapis? Stuff happened today or no?”

“Hmm… not much. Mother’s been doing good with all the dress orders we’ve been getting,” he began. “The Summer Sun Celebration always brings in more customers than usual-”

He was cut off by Cherry placing her hoof on his mouth.

“Good, good, very interesting, what about you Butterfly?”

Butterfly shrugged. “Not much. Just usual chores.” She paused for a moment. “I mean… there was a…” she trailed off.

“There was a what?” Cherry leaned over the table, intrigued.

“A… erm… I’ll just tell you later. It’s nothing important.”

“Welp, okidoki,” Cherry said, sitting back on her seat properly. “Iremia?”

“Not too much happening with me.”

“Huh.” Cherry’s muzzle twitched.

A few moments of silence passed by.

“SO, what about you, Cherry?” Cherry suddenly asked herself. “Why, I’m so glad you asked, Cherry, thank you!” She gave a flattered smile. “Well, something super exciting recently happened. And what’s that, Cherry? Well, you see, the cakes entered one of their most prized desserts into a veeery well known competition that none of you will actually know about, and they came in third! The best part? I personally helped with the dessert!” She then gave herself a small applause, to which Iremia joined in.

“What part of the dessert did you help with?” Lapis asked.

“I helped with the sprinkles! Cool, right?”

“...Uh, yeah, sure.” Lapis bit his lip and looked away.

“Thanks, I know, no need to tell me.”

Butterfly and Iremia both laughed.

“So, how many desserts were entered into this competition?” Butterfly asked.

“Oh, it’s nothing, just a few hundred.” Cherry waved her hoof dismissively.

“That’s quite impressive that you and the Cakes came in third,” Iremia praised.

“I know, I’m so proud.” Cherry fluttered her lashes. “So, Butterfly, I’m really curious what this thing was you were about to tell us about.”

“What thing?” Butterfly’s ear twitched.

“The thing that you decided to not talk about even though you were about to.”

“...Oh, that thing.” The changeling sighed.

Iremia gave a sympathetic look. “Hey, you don’t have to tell us if you don’t want to.”

Butterfly raised her head to look up at the unicorn. “Oh, it’s nothin’ big. You see, I just saw this thing run away from me while I was walking through the orchard.”

“What thing?” Cherry urged her on.

“Well… that’s just it. I don’t have the slightest clue what it was. It kinda freaked me out at the time.” She tapped her hoof nervously on the table. “But I look back at it now and laugh. I’m sure it was nothing.”

“Yeah, me too,” Cherry nodded. She then went on to start a conversation with Lapis, but Butterfly didn’t hear here and instead zoned out for a few moments. She was broken out of her daydream by Iremia, who tapped her on the shoulder.

“Hey, if you wanna talk about it, just come to me later.”

Butterfly nodded.





“Well, it was nice hanging out with you guys!” Cherry said as she wrapped her hooves around all of them in a big (but forced) group hug. “I’ll see you some other time!”

“Bye Cherry,” Lapis answered coolly, watching her bounce of in the opposite direction to him. “I better get going too. I got a new idea for an outfit when we were at the fountain earlier.”

“I look forward to seeing it,” Iremia told him. “Bye, Lapis!”

“Goodbye.” He gave a short wave before galloping in the direction of the boutique.

Once he was out of sight, Butterfly nudged Iremia on the shoulder. “Say, Iremia?”

“You want to talk about the thing you saw?” Iremia guessed. Butterfly nodded slowly. “Okay, tell me what this thing looked like.” The mare sat down in front of her, the only other sound being that of the stream flowing next to them.

Butterfly also sat down, facing her.

“Well, I was walking back to the barn, and I heard something in the bushes,” she began. “I went to investigate because I thought it was Flame or Syrup, but it wasn’t.”

Iremia nodded as she listened to the story. “What was it?”

Butterfly shrugged. “I have no idea! I didn’t see it clearly since it disappeared deeper into the trees, and could move really fast.” She brought her mind back to the moment. “All I remember seeing is a large, dark-coloured body. I think it was around my size, but I’m not too sure.”

“Anything else you remember?”

Butterfly gazed into the stream as she tried to think. “Err… it had four legs, I’m quite sure.”

“Did you see its eyes?”

“No, I didn’t see its face.” Butterfly sighed. “I’m just worried that it’s something dangerous, and it could be a threat to our crops or even us as a family.” She lifted a hoof to a mouth and widened her eyes. “What if there’s more of them?”

Iremia lay a hoof on Butterfly’s shoulder. “Hey, it’ll be fine.”

Butterfly gazed into her ice-blue eyes. “You really think so?”

The mare smiled and gave a nod. “I really do. I suggest that if it worries you to the point where you can’t focus, you should tell your family to keep their eyes peeled-”

“Ew, gross.” Butterfly smirked, to which Iremia did the same.

“But in all seriousness, I’ll go and see if I can find anything that somewhat matches your description of this thing.”

“You will?” Butterfly blinked in surprise.

“Of course I will!” Iremia laughed. “I can’t guarantee a perfect answer, but I’ll try my best.”

“Oh, thank you, Iremia!” Butterfly embraced the unicorn in a hug. “You really are a true friend.”

“It’s my pleasure,” Iremia replied. “I hate seeing you worried about… anything really.” The two broke off their hug. “Now, it’s getting quite late. I think it would be best if you went and got some rest.”

Butterfly looked up at the sky - she was right. The sun was nearly completely covered by hills and mountains, and the sky has a pink colour to it as it showed the gold fading into complementary purple.

“Yeah, good idea,” she agreed. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Sure! I’ll definitely be around somewhere,” Iremia replied, standing up on her hooves. “Well, I’ll see you tomorrow, Butterfly!”

“Goodnight, Iremia!”

The two of them waved, before galloping off into opposite directions. By the time Butterfly returned to the barn, the sun was completely out of view and was now replaced by the moon. The barn was especially quiet, which convinced Butterfly that everyone had already settled down or maybe even drifted of to sleep already. The latter thought sounded the most appealing to her.

She quietly crept up the stairs, treading lightly so that creaks could be heard from the floorboards. Soon enough, she was in her room. Her bed was waiting for her, and she gladly leaped right onto it, welcoming the plush mattress. She flipped the cover over herself lazily, then allowed herself to lose consciousness, hoping that the creature she saw earlier wouldn't be visiting her dreams tonight.

> Chapter 2 - Sleep-deprived
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Butterfly relished the feeling of the cool breeze brushing over her leathery skin as she trotted through the tranquilizing forest. The only sound that could be heard was the song of a bird and the sound of her hooves echoing off each tree branch. The silence couldn’t be more soothing to her.

The earth she stood on was warm and still. It kept her stable as she made her way through to the unknown. She’d occasionally come across a dried leaf on her path, only making it more satisfying to step on, hearing the crunch below her hoof. She also felt no unease walking past the unknown behind the trees on either side of her, for the view of which she had only showed the appealing side of the forest.

Yes, everything was going perfect.

Until the sun disappeared.

The changeling stopped in her tracks and looked up at the sky. It had suddenly gone completely black; not nighttime so much as a missing piece of the entire sky. Unsure what to do, she continued to stare at where the blue once was. For a while, nothing seemed to happen… at least, as far as she could tell. She couldn’t exactly see anything since every light source originally in the sky was gone. That is, until it was replaced.

The black sheet above her suddenly blinked open two bright, white lights. They lit up places even the sun couldn’t, forcing Butterfly to shut her eyes tight until she could adjust to the new light. She soon dared herself to blink open one eye and stare back up a the strange new splits in the sky. She thought she would’ve been blinded… but no. Unlike the sun, she could look at the two lights with little strain. Cautiously she opened her other eye, then stared right into the lights. After some observing, she could eventually make out the shape of an eye.

That’s exactly what these things were.





Butterfly gasped as her eyes shot open. The vision of those two white eyes glaring down at her was burned in her mind. Her room was dark, only a shed of light able to get in through a small gap between the curtains.

She tried to close her eyes a couple of times, but the brightness of those two unknown eyes appeared brighter than day, so she ended up staring at the wall of her room. She lay on her left side for a while, hardly blinking, before flipping onto her right side and falling onto her pillow. She allowed her pupils to trail along the other wall, eventually reaching her window. The brightness of the moon struggling to get past her curtains was expected - and yes, the first curtain did indeed battle with the moon to block the light out of her room. She then looked to the second curtain, expecting a mirrored image of the first. But… no.

She froze. There, on the other side of her window, was a dark silhouette. And if that wasn’t enough, there, staring right back at her, was two piercing white eyes, identical to her dream, even on a dark background, only smaller. Though, that didn’t make the situation any less terrifying.

She and the figure kept their gazes locked for some time, she wasn’t sure how long, until the silhouette suddenly bolted. Butterfly still didn’t dare move a muscle, including her eye lids. She wasn’t about to sleep with a mysterious intruder lurking around the farm. She lay there for a while longer, unblinking, until she finally threw her blanket off of herself and stepped onto the wooden floor. She took one last glance at the window, ensuring the figure had not returned, before dashing out of her room and down the corridor. She stopped as she reached the door she wanted, and knocked on it quietly.

She waited a while, and when she got no reply, she knocked again a little louder. A few more minutes passed and still no response. The changeling then pressed her ear against the door, enabling her to hear the faint snoring of her uncle. She let out a sigh, before turning the knob and slowly opening the door, cringing each time a creak was heard. Once the gap between the door and the frame was wide enough for her to squeeze through, she treaded lightly with each step into the room. She stalked towards the bed as silently as she could, soon stopping at the side.

“Uncle Big Mac?” she whispered, raising a hoof to prod the stallion. “Uncle Mac, y’all awake?”

He shuffled and let out a low groan, but he didn’t turn over to face her. Butterfly nudged him again, a little more forcefully. 

“Uncle,” she repeated. This time, Big Mac turned over on his other side and opened an eye.

“...Eyup?” he muttered.

“Sorry to wake you, uncle, but…” she glanced outside his window to make sure the thing wasn’t outside. “I swear I just saw something lookin’ through my window. Do you think you could go outside and check that nopony’s out there?”

“Mmm… eyup…” Big Mac sat up and wiped his eyes. He then stepped off of his bed and stood next to her. Butterfly smiled.

“Thank you!”

“Mhmh…” He gave a yawn. “Where was this here intruder?”

“Oh! Right, err...” She then led the way down the stairs and outdoors. It was still dark - the moon high up in the sky.

“So, uhh… it was…” She galloped around the house to reach her window. “It was just outside my window-” she pointed up to her window, “-either they were standing on somethin’, or they were flyin’.”

“Eyup,” Big Mac murmured in agreement, clearly putting in a lot of effort to stay awake.

“I think it ran away into the orchard, but I don’t know.”

“Eyup…” He then sauntered around the house, his green eyes scanning the area for any movement. Butterfly followed close behind, keeping at his slow pace. Soon they had circled the entire house, and there was no sign of any intruder.

“No sign of anythin’,” Big Mac told her. Butterfly gave an uncertain look and glanced around her.

“A-are you sure? Should we do another search, just in case?”

Big Mac shook his head, turning towards the door. Butterfly didn’t follow, instead turning her head to face the orchard. The light of indoors caught her attention and made her break her gaze from the farm. Big Mac waited at the entrance, holding the door for her.

“You comin’?” he asked. Butterfly hesitated to answer, causing him to sigh. “Butterfly, I promise you there’s nothin’ out there. You’ve been overworking yourself recently, which has made you more tired than usual. Your mind is likely playin’ tricks on you.”

It was then she realized how tensed up her muscles were, and so she took a breath and allowed herself to relax.

“Yeah… I… I guess you’re right, Uncle.” She prodded forward, entering the house. Big Mac closed the door once she was inside, and then turned his attention to her.

“If you see or hear anythin’ suspicious, just wake me up.”

Butterfly nodded. “I will. Thanks, Uncle.”

He nodded back. “Eyup.”





“Good mornin’, Butterfly.” Applejack greeted her daughter as she slipped into the kitchen, her mane ruffled and her face lacking any sort of makeup.

“Mornin’, mom,” she mumbled, walking over to the table. She sat down at her usual seat, which was a couple of seats away from Apple Syrup.

“Geez, did you find an ants’ nest under your mattress last night?” He tilted his head, chuckling to himself.

She looked over to the brown stallion. “Nope.”

“Well, something is up,” Applejack pointed out, placing a plate in front of her and Syrup. “Didn’t get much sleep last night, did you?”

Butterfly shrugged. “Not as much as usual.”

“Dang, what went on?” Syrup leaned forward towards her, brushing his orange-and-sand coloured mane away from his face, so his magenta eyes were fully visible. “Some weird dream? If so, lemme hear it.”

“Well...” Butterfly pursed her lips. “You could say that.”

“Ooh, what happened? Was it like that one time you dreamed about Gale blasting me off into space where I met a living constellation of Flame?”

She shook her head. “It wasn’t as weird as it was… err… well, I don’t really know the right word for it.”

She had been so lost in the conversation that she hadn’t noticed Apple Spice walking up behind her and sitting opposite her. She flinched and glanced in his direction.

“What’s this here about dreams?” Spice asked curiously.

“Butterfly had a weird dream about… something. We don’t know what yet,” Syrup explained.

“I see,” Spice said cooly.

Syrup then sat back in his chair and took a bite of one of his pancakes. Butterfly remembered that she had her own food, and took a bite out of her own.

“I just had a weird dream about the sky having eyes.”

Next to her, Syrup almost choked.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” He arched a brow and smirked, despite his mouth being full.

“I mean that the sky had eyes. It was weird.”

“Soo… how does the sky having eyes equal you not getting any sleep?” Syrup muffled his words through his food.

“I… um…” The image of the figure flashed in her mind, but she shook her head. “It just did. It was a lil’ freaky, that’s all.”

“I can understand that,” Spice agreed, taking a sip of his water.

Butterfly gave a small smile as she finished the last bite of her pancake. She wiped the sugar off of her lips with her hoof before stepping off of her chair. “Right, I think I better get ready. I look like a mess.”

“Okay, have fun with that.” Syrup gave her a small wave goodbye as she left the room.





Butterfly’s eyes darted back and forth as she passed through the orchard. Every sound of the trees and bushes rustling made her flinch, and each time she did, she would nervously laugh at herself for being so paranoid.

Soon she found herself out of the orchard and on the pathway to Ponyville, to her relief. Good, no weird shadow creature pounced on her. She began to calm down - maybe she was worrying over some weird hallucination she saw late at night after a strange dream, and none of it was real in the first place. It at least, made her heart beat slow.

She decided to buzz her wings and carry herself over the upcoming stream rather than using the bridge, for their were already ponies walking over it. She wasn’t ready to face anypony this early in the morning.

“Hey, Butterfly!”

Nevermind.

Butterfly landed on the other side of the bank and angled her head towards the sky, searching for the pegasus that had just called her name. The corner of her eye spotted a blurred blue shape somewhere above her. She quickly swung her head to that direction, but saw only a blue sky. She stared at nothing in confusion, wondering where the pegasus went.

“Sup?”

Butterfly gasped and stumbled sideways as she attempted turn around and compose herself at the same time. She fell backwards on her hind and shook her blue mane out of her face. She fluttered her lids and looked up at the mare in front of her.

“Damn. What’s gotten you so worked up?” She stifled her giggles as she stared down at the changeling.

“Nothin’,” Butterfly replied.

She scoffed. “Whatever you say.” She lent her gray-blue hoof to her, to which Butterfly obliged.

“Thanks, Hurricane,” the changeling said.

“No prob,” Hurricane returned. “So, where are you headed right now?”

Butterfly shrugged. “Not sure. I was just getting away from the orchard for bit.”

“Ah. Any reason?”

She opened her mouth to explain the events from last night, but then clamped it shut. At this point, she was almost certain that none of it happened, and the way she would describe it would probably cause Hurricane to have a fit of laughter.

“Nope,” she replied.

“Oh, okay. Say, I was just on my way to Lightwing’s house. Wanna come?”

The thought of visiting Lightwing sounded a lot more interesting than avoiding strangers in Ponyville all morning, so she nodded.

“Sure, why not?”

The two started to walk down the path that would eventually lead towards Lightwing’s cottage. Neither of them started any sort of conversation for a while, until Hurricane let out a long sigh.

“No way I’m gonna take this long getting there,” she muttered. She then spread her wings, making Butterfly step back.

“What do you say?” Hurricane cocked her head to Butterfly. “Or are you just gonna keep going by hoof?”

The changeling blinked at her. “Err…”

“Awesome, come on!” Hurricane grabbed her hoof and dragged her into the sky. Butterfly let out a yelp of surprise, not used to travelling so quickly by wing. She then felt the grip around her foreleg disappear, causing her to go off balance and tumble in mid air as she tried to still herself. She eventually did, shaking her mane away from her eyes.

“Hurricane Wind?” she called, confused. A moment after she said that, the pegasus bolted past her, a strong gust of wind following her, also carrying Butterfly along with it. At first she panicked, trying to work out how to escape. She glared at Hurricane, about to call for help, but got distracted by the fact that she was somehow keeping up with her. Confused, she glanced over her shoulder at her buzzing insectoid wings, and realized that the gale Hurricane had created had given her a boost. Her frown disappeared, replaced with a wide grin. She turned her head forward and laughed.

“I’ve never gone this fast before!” she remarked. At this point, she was almost neck-and-neck with Hurricane.

“Heh, you’re welcome.” She winked her rose coloured eye at her.

“Is this what it’s like being a good flyer?” Butterfly asked as she observed the view as the ground passing by below her.

“I mean… I wouldn’t call you a bad flyer,” Hurricane said.  “You don’t even have feathers. You wouldn’t compare an insect to a bird, would you?” She then circled around Butterfly so that she could get behind her, before darting forward again, carrying Butterfly along with her.

“Well, no,” she replied flatly. “Birds eat insects. That would be kinda silly.” The pegasus, who was now gliding through the air facing upwards.

“...That’s one way to put it.” Hurricane’s muzzle twitched. She then twisted her head to look at the ground below her, and her face lit up.

“Oh hey, we’re here!” She flipped back over and dived towards a familiar cottage below. Butterfly paused and watched the pegasus dash ahead, before she chased after her, panting as she strained her wings to flap as much as they could. A couple of minutes after Hurricane landed, Butterfly finally reached the ground, her wings still buzzing. She hovered just above the grass, her head hanging low and sweat dripping from her forehead.

Hurricane snickered. “You okay?”


The changeling finally dropped onto the floor, barely able to hold herself up.

“Over the moon.”

“Well that’s a relief, I thought you were about to pass out,” Hurricane chuckled, then turned away from Butterfly and along the dirt path. Butterfly took a moment to catch her breath, then stumbled after the pegasus.

Butterfly felt more comfortable in the rural area of Ponyville. The gaps between each house seemed to widen with each home they passed. She took a deep breath and savoured the fresh air, a lot of which came from the Everfree Forest in the distance. The scent of fresh, as well as cut grass filled her nostrils, as well as wild and planted flowers.

Then she paused, holding her breath. The regular scent she inhaled had a strange tinge to it. The scent was something she was sure she hadn’t smelled before, but it seemed to click in her mind that it was familiar. She stood in the middle of the path, confused. Hurricane had realized only her own hooves could be heard, causing her to glance over her shoulder.

“Hey, what are you doing back there?” she asked curiously. Butterfly was broken out of her thoughts by the mare’s scratchy voice. She cleared her throat and continued walking.

“I just got a weird wiff of a scent, is all,” she explained, sprinting over to the mare’s side.

“What kind of weird scent?”

Butterfly shrugged. “Probably nothin’ important.” She brushed it off, and yet the scent had somehow brought a sense of insecurity. She stepped a little closer to Hurricane Wind, glancing around to make sure there was nothing giving off a weird smell nearby.

Could it be…?

She snorted and shook her head.


No, no. Probably some weird plant I don’t recognize.

And yet, she couldn’t help but inhale again.

The scent’s warm. Definitely not a plant.

She then rolled her eyes for even bothering to analyse a damn smell.

...Though, just to be safe, she thought, biting her lip, maybe I can ask Fluttershy or Evergreen if they have some new animal about or somethin’.

Butterfly broke away from her thoughts once again, and widened her eyes in surprise, seeing they had already arrived at the cottage. Hurricane grinned, and quickened her pace, to which Butterfly mimicked. They paused once they were at the door. Hurricane raised her hoof and knocked loudly, then tapped her hoof impatiently on the ground as they waited for someone to answer. After a while of no response, Hurricane knocked again, harder than before.

“Hello? Anypony home?”

A few seconds after she called this, the door opened a little. A red-coloured eye could be seen through the crack of the door, until the door swung open, revealing a yellow pegasus with a green mane, the tips of it a dull red.

“Hurricane! Butterfly!” she exclaimed excitedly, embracing them both in a hug.

“Heh… hi, Evergreen,” Butterfly returned sheepishly.

“In a good mood, as always.” Hurricane gave a huff of laughter. Evergreen released her tight grip on them both and took a step backwards.

“Yeah!” She beamed. “Why wouldn’t I be? No school today!”

“You say this every week.” Butterfly smiled and raised a brow. Evergreen looked at her with her different coloured eyes and scoffed.

“No school is always something to celebrate, Butters,” she said. “Anyway, what are you both doing here? Hurricane, I’m guessing you’re here for Lightwing?”

The pegasus nodded eagerly. “Yep. Is he around?”

“Upstairs listening to his weird emo music.” She directed her to the stairs, to which Hurricane abliged, while her head faced towards Butterfly. “You here for me or Lighty?”

“I’m here for whoever,” Butterfly replied dryly. Evergreen grinned and her eyes sparkled.

“Well, you can be here for me!” she declared, dashing to a table that held a notebook. She grabbed it with her mouth and flew back over to the space in front of Butterfly with her wings. Evergreen excitedly flickered through her notebook, holding it out in front of Butterfly. She muttered some inaudible words as she did so, scanning each page quickly as they flickered by.

“Ahah!” she yelled, satisfied. Her hoof slammed on a page, stopping the pages from flickering. Butterfly watched in confusion.

“What?” She tilted her head in wonder.

Evergreen’s eyes widened. She, again, hit the page with her hoof. “Look!” she commanded. Butterfly flinched and did so. On the page was a tiny, black piece of… something. Butterfly scrunched up her muzzle, clearly out of the loop.

“It’s a… broken piece of a rock?” she guessed. Evergreen laughed, shaking her head.

“No. I thought it was at first, but then I saw it shine in the sunlight, and it was then that it caught my eye.” She pushed the book onto Butterfly’s chest, which was Evergreen’s way of saying ‘hold this’. Butterfly did so, clumsily taking the notebook from her friend.

“You see, Butterfly, unless it was a pebble, it shouldn’t have shone as brightly as it did unless it was wet. And I knew it wasn’t a pebble because it was rough and triangular-like-”

“Erm, where’d you get all this information about rocks?” Butterfly asked.

“Pop Rock,” Evergreen stated bluntly. “As I was saying, I picked it up, wondering why it was so shiny, I picked it up and observed it. I then realized it’s texture was nothing like that of a rock, especially a piece of broken rock. It was leathery.”

Butterfly’s interest perked, prompting her to lift the book to her face. She observed the material carefully, even gently stroking it with her hoof. It did indeed have a strange, leathery, but tough feel to it. She lowered the book, and jumped back a little as she saw Evergreen’s wide-spread grin closer to her face than she would like.

“See? Not rock-like, right?”

Butterfly slowly nodded. “It is weird,” she agreed, “but what do you think it is?”

The pegasus shrugged. “I dunno, but that’s what I wanna find out!” She wrapped her hoof around the changeling. “It clearly doesn’t belong to a bug - it’s too big for that.” Her eyes squinted as she stared at the black material. “Nor is it an unnatural object - I did tests, and it clearly has cells.” She then pressed her cheek against Butterfly’s, much to her discomfort.

“I might’ve found a brand new species, Butters!” she squealed, her eyes lit up. “As far as I know, there is no large enough creature with this same dark-coloured, leathery, touch skin!” Both of her hooves then touched both of Butterfly’s cheeks. “Can you think of any creature with such skin?”

Butterfly stood still, her blue eyes gazing into Evergreen’s red and green.

“...Yes,” she said. Evergreen’s grin disappeared into one of wonder.

“You do?” she gasped. “What is this creature?”

“You’re lookin’ at her.”

Evergreen didn’t blink for a good long moment. She then broke any physical contact she had with the changeling and took a step back.

“...Are you sure?” She cocked her head sideways.

Butterfly nodded. “My skin is leathery and dark, Evergreen. And, according to Princess Twilight, bits of changeling’s hooves break off as they age.” She then raised her hoof, revealing the dents and holes in her hoof. “It was probably just part of that. Where did you find the specimen?”

“Around the edge of the Everfree Forest,” she replied. Then she gave the specimen a suspicious look. “But, here’s the thing, Butters.” She picked up the book and looked real close at the black object. “It just doesn’t look like it came from you.”

“You sure that just ain’t wishful thinking?” Butterfly asked.

“Nope, hold on a sec-” Evergreen then kneeled on the wooden floor, right in front of Butterfly’s foreleg. She was about to move it away from the pegasus to give her some space, but it was instead grabbed by it.

“Don’t move,” she commanded. Butterfly froze in place. She watched as the pegasus peeled the tape off the paper, the specimen coming with it. She held it in front of her hoof, even sticking the tape on her hoof at one point. She then pulled it away and stuck it back down on the paper and stood up.

“It’s definitely not yours, Butters,” she confirmed. “It’s the same texture and all, but it’s not the same colour.”

Butterfly blinked. “Huh?”

“Yeah, it’s grey, but it’s lighter than your skin, and even a different hue of blue. It’s more of a really dull cyan, actually.”

The changeling’s jaw hung open a little. “So… it doesn’t belong to me?”

She shook her head. “Nope!”

“But…” she bit her lip. “Then… what animal does it belong to?”

Evergreen raised a brow. “Erm… a changeling,” she stated. “Just not you. Does that clear up any confusion?”

“But… but why is there another changeling in Ponyville?” Her voice grew louder and was filled with concern. “Evergreen, where did you see you found this thing again?”

Evergreen had a blank expression. “Err… the edge of the Everfree Forest?”

“Well, come on!” Butterfly grabbed Evergreen’s hoof with on hoof and the book in the other, and dragged her out the door and down the path, towards the Everfree Forest. The two sprinted along the grass and to the border of the forest, the trees already beginning to tower over them.

“Erm, what are we doing out here, exactly?” Evergreen asked, her gaze following Butterfly as she scanned the floor that she paced around frantically on.

“Looking for more changeling hoof pieces… whatever they are,” she said. She began trying to pick up any sort of scent in the grass, but the scent of the greenery was too strong. She groaned.

“Alright, what scent am I lookin’ for?” she asked herself, picking up the book her head dropped on the floor. She raised the specimen to her muzzle and sniffed. Once the scent processed in her mind, her eyes widened.

“Huh?” She sniffed again.

“Something wrong, Butterfly?” Evergreen finally asked, sounding both confused and worried.

Butterfly swung her head to face her.

“I know this scent!” she exclaimed. “I smelled this on the way here!” She clenched her teeth.

“Erm… so?” Evergreen’s pupils darted from left to right.

“There’s been a changeling here, Evergreen!” Butterfly cried.

“It’s only one changeling! What harm could that do?”

The dark colour of the apparent changeling hoof caused images from the previous night to suddenly flash back into her mind.

“It’s just…” She shook her head. “I… last night, I…”

She had trailed off, and was interrupted before she could continue.

“Hey, what are you both doing out here?”

They both turned their heads towards where the voice had come from. They saw Hurricane and Lightwing galloping towards them.

“We were watching you from the window. Why were you both sniffing the grass?” Hurricane questioned.

“Oh… just looking for bugs,” Evergreen said slowly.

“You were?” Lightwing flickered his ear, also flicking his brown and pink mane out of his face. “Is this about that thing you found?”

“...Yep.”

“What thing?” Hurricane asked.

“Oh, just this thing I found yesterday while I was out here,” Evergreen explained, holding the specimen out so that Hurricane could see.

“...Is that it?” The blue pegasus scrunched up her muzzle.

“Yep.” Evergreen slammed the book shut. “We couldn’t find anything out here, so…” She stood up, beginning to stroll towards the cottage. “We’ll just be on our way.”

The yellow mare glanced over to where Butterfly sat, expecting her to get up and follow, but instead, she stood up, not facing towards the cottage.

“Actually, I just remembered I was gonna visit Iremia at some point today,” she told them, beginning to walk in a slightly different direction to Evergreen. “She’s on the other side of Ponyville, so I ought to begin my journey now rather than later.” It wasn’t a complete lie. She was planning to see Iremia today, after all.

“Oh, okay then.” Hurricane waved her goodbye as she watched her leave.

“I’ll catch up with you tomorrow, okay, Evergreen?” Butterfly called. The yellow pegasus nodded.

“Sure thing.”

With that, Butterfly sprinted off, wanting to be as far away from that forest as she could.
> Chapter 3 - Pest Control
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dirt clouds arose as Butterfly’s hooves hit the ground with each step. She she struggled to dodge each passing pony, at best she would brush them, at worst she would topple them over. Though she’d mutter an apology, it’s likely they wouldn’t have heard it and she would’ve already been gone. She was focused on the path ahead of her, which seemingly had no more ponies walking by, until a black shape flashed in front of her, leading to a collision with a mare with a purple mane with lighter highlights. Butterfly blew her blue mane from her face then looked down at the mare she bumped into, who was staring up at her with her deep blue eyes.

“Gee, what’s gotten you in a rush?” she questioned.

“Oh… Gemma, sorry...” she scrambled off of her. “I didn’t mean to bump into you, I’m just looking for Iremia.”

Gemma snickered. “You have like, ten more hours of today left. Spending all the time you can with her, I see.” She smirked, her brows wiggling. Butterfly cocked her head at the weird gesture.

“...I guess? I just need to speak to her as soon as possible,” she replied. “Say, you don’t happen to know where abouts she’ll be, would you?”

Gemma tilted her head. “You didn’t know where she was? Where exactly were you going then?”

“To the castle.” Butterfly glanced towards the large crystal structure in the distance.

“Oh, me too!” Gemma exclaimed, trotting over to stand beside the changeling. “I was gonna go visit Radiance.”

“Ah. Well, we could go look for them both together, if you want.”

“That’s what I was hinting at, silly filly!” She patted Butterfly’s head. “Anyway, we ought to get moving!” With that, she darted down the pathway. Butterfly scurried after her, struggling to keep at the same pace, having used up most of her energy on the way here. They both galloped down the pathway, which was lit up by crystals of multiple colours. She finally reached the steps that led up to the door of the castle, probably about a full sixty seconds after Gemma.

“You’re a bit of a slow poke today,” Gemma commented, smirking.

“I have shorter legs than you,” Butterfly retorted, panting as she climbed the steps. “Anyway, have you knocked yet?”

Gemma shook her head. “I decided to be polite and wait.” She then raised a hoof to knock as hard as she could on the door. They both then stood there, waiting for someone to answer.

“...So, what was it that you needed to talk to Iremia so urgently?” Gemma suddenly asked.

“Oh, just… somethin’ about.... dreams, I guess.” Butterfly shrugged. “What did you need to see Radiance about?”

“Well, we were discussing the magic of the Crystal Heart the other day, and I was wondering if she had found anything else about it.”

Butterfly nodded as she listened. “What was it you were talkin’ about?

Gemma flickered her ear. “Oh, just… err-” The door opening interrupted them both.

“Who is present?” a young sounding voice pryed.

“It’s fine, Sirius! It’s just us,” Gemma replied, amused. “No villains to be seen here!”

The door then opened slowly, allowing the sunlight to shed onto the grey-lilac alicorn filly eying them both curiously with her amber glare.

“I see. Mother mentioned your presence yesterday, Butterfly, so I can assume you are here for my older sister.”

Butterfly nodded slowly, but did not feel obliged to move without this young foal’s permission. Sirius turned her burning gaze onto Gemma.

“You. State your purpose.”

Gemma, somehow, remained unphased by the filly, and instead kept her casual grin.

“Just here to see Radiance, ‘tis all!” she stated.

“I see. Well, I trust you both in our home, so I will allow you to stay.” She then shut the door behind them with her magic. “Now-”

“Sirius!”

The filly’s ominous attitude seemed to make a one-eighty as she heard her foalsitter’s voice.

“Yes, Radiant?” She spun around to meet the pale lavender unicorn.

“Stop acting as if the castle’s under attack,” Radiant scolded her. Sirius pouted.

“But mother says to stay alert of castle visitors!” she protested.

Radiant rolled her violet eyes. “Yes, as in, strangers. We’ve known these two for years.”

Sirius grumbled something under her breath. Radiant sighed, then turned to Gemma.

“Hey, you here for me?”

Gemma nodded, trotting over to her and giving the mare a hug, though the gesture was, expectedly, not returned. The black mare then stepped away from her, an excited grin plastered on her face.

“Say, you read up anything on Crystal Heart magic yet?”

She gave a nod. “Of course I have. I said I would.” She pushed her blue glasses up her muzzle with her white hoof. “I still need to write up some notes on it though.” She then turned to Butterfly, who was standing there silently. “You looking for Iremia?”

Butterfly nodded.

Radiant turned to Sirius. “Would you mind escorting Butterfly to wherever Iremia is?”

Sirius nodded. “Fine, fine.” She began to walk, then turned back to Butterfly who hadn’t yet moved. “Follow me, young changeling.” Butterfly did as she said, and followed closely behind her to the library. Sirius stopped outside the door to the room and turned to face her.

“She is in there. Please enter quietly, in caution of my sister lost in her psychological thoughts.

Butterfly smiled nervously. “Uh… thanks, Sirius.” She then proceeded to slowly push the door open.

“Wait!”

She jumped at Sirius’ command, hitting the door with her hoof a little too hard by accident.

“Wha…. what is it?”

Sirius, surprisingly, was staring at her with a friendly gaze.

“Say, how’s Syrup?”

“Syrup?” Butterfly echoed. “Oh, he’s doin’ good.”

Sirius smiled. “That’s good! Now, I’ll leave you alone.” The alicorn then trotted in the direction they had just came from. Butterfly had beads of sweat dripping down her forehead, and felt relieved to finally be alone. She then returned to opening the door to the library.

She stepped into the room, scanning the area for the pink unicorn. She soon spotted her placing a book back onto a shelf.

“Iremia!” she called, galloping over to her. Iremia glanced away from the shelf and smiled at her.

“Hello, Butterfly! I heard you coming in.” She finished shoving the book back into placed and turned towards her.

“Did you find out anythin’ about the thing?” she asked before she had even stopped galloping to her.

“Oh…” Iremia’s smile faded, making Butterfly’s stomach tighten. “I’m afraid… not much.” She then trotted over to her usual reading spot, which was some cushions piled up on one another. Scattered among them were different books on different Equestrian creatures, both mythical and legendary. Butterfly followed the unicorn to the spot, counting five different text books, Her blue eyes widened.

“You read all of these overnight?”

Iremia nodded. “Well, scanned thoroughly, but it’s close enough.” She levitated one of them off of the ground and flickered through the pages. “I didn’t find much that matched your description, Butters.”

“Oh.” Her rigid ears drooped.

“I’m sorry I can’t assure you about your worries, but I did look into it, and came to the conclusion that it was probably just another pony lurking around the orchard.” She lay a hoof on the changeling’s shoulder. “I suggest that you and your family keep a lookout for any suspicious behaviour, since it could be somepony planning to-”

“It wasn’t a pony,” she suddenly blurted out. Iremia was taken aback, drawing her hoof away from her.

“You don’t think so…?”

Butterfly narrowed her eyes as she picked up one of the books with her magic. She flicked through it, her icy blue pupils searching for a certain image. After a few moments of searching, her eyes landed on the page she had hoped for. She held the book in front of her, revealing what was written to Iremia. Iremia squinted, looking over the pages before her.

“...A changeling?” she finally said uncertainly. Butterfly nodded confidently. Iremia didn’t look so sure. “How can you be positive it was?”

“Because I visited Evergreen today.” She slammed the book shut and dropped it onto the pillows. “On the way I caught a wiff of a strange scent I didn’t recognize. Then Evergreen told me about a specimen she had found around the edge of the Everfree Forest. We looked into it, and came to the conclusion that it came from a changeling, but not me.”

Iremia cocked her head sideways. “How do you know it wasn’t you?”

“It was a different colour from my skin,” she explained. “It couldn’t have been me.”

“...And you’re both sure it was a changeling?”

Butterfly nodded frantically. “Yes, Evergreen’s the expert when it comes to nature!” She then stepped forward and grabbed Iremia by the shoulders. “There’s changelings stalkin’ me, Iremia! They’re here to take me to their hive and interrogate me about pony culture! We’re doomed!” she cried, burying her muzzle in Iremia’s chest fur. She felt the unicorn console her by stroking her mane gently.

“I’m sure that’s not the case, Butters,” she assured her.

“How can you be so sure?” Butterfly stared up at her, her eyes large and desperate.

Iremia blinked a few times, trying to think up an answer. “I...I’m sure changelings don’t do that. They have no need to, since they can disguise themselves.”

Butterfly narrowed her eyes at her. “You’re not lyin’, are you?”

Iremia shook her head. “You can usually tell.”

“True.” She could recognize Iremia’s smile to be genuine, rather than faked. “And I don’t think you are.”

“Good, because I’m not.”

Butterfly parted herself from the unicorn. “I’m sorry about all this, it’s probably botherin’ you,” she sighed. “I’m just really worried somethin’s gonna happen to me or maybe somepony else.”

Iremia gave her a pitiful look. “I know, and I’m worried about you.”

Butterfly stared at the floor. “I wish I didn’t go and visit Evergreen. Now I’m never gonna stop worryin’ about an entire changeling hive surrounding the barn while we sleep!”

Iremia gave a solacing gaze, before raising a brow as an idea seemed to come into her mind. Butterfly looked up at her hopefully, wondering what she was thinking.

“I was just thinking… maybe we could trek the orchard at nighttime, and see if there really is anything lurking around,” she suggested. Butterfly’s eyes widened.

“I-is that safe?” she fretted. “I mean, just the two of us? At night? Coming into contact with a hive of changelings?”

“True, but we don’t have to make ourselves known,” Iremia said. “I can also ask my mother if she can come with us. It’s her job to guard the night, after all.”

Butterfly thought for a moment. That was true, and an alicorn as powerful as Princess Luna would be very helpful in this situation.

“Good point… but would she take us seriously? All the proof we have is my apparent delusions and a tiny piece of changeling hoof.”

Iremia grinned confidently. “Of course she would! If there’s a possible threat to Equestria, it’s her duty to look further into it.” She then smiled sheepishly. “Also… it would be nice to get some quality mother-daughter time. We’ve both been rather busy lately.”

Butterfly tilted her head. “You consider changeling hunting as quality mother-daughter time?”

“Yes. Yes I do.” She grinned. “My mother and I on a nighttime hunt for a colony of changelings? Once in a lifetime experience!”





“Goodnight, Butterfly,” Applejack said quietly, only her head poking through into her room at this point. Butterfly smiled at her from across the room.

“Thank’s, mom,” she replied. Applejack gave a warm smile, before completely exiting the room. The little light that shone through into her room shrank and then completely disappeared as the door closed, leaving only the moonlight to shine through the gap between the curtains, which was the only light that allowed her to see her surroundings.

She lay there in bed, her eyes as wide as they could possibly be, staring up at the ceiling. The wood sheltering her head seemed to be much more appealing that resting her head on the soft pillow and allowing her mind to drift off into the dream world. She wasn’t sure how long she stared at the planks of wood above her, but time seemed to fly by a lot quickly than it usually did. She noticed that she was constantly tempted to allow her eyes to shut, and kept having to flash them open.

She was counting each dent in the wood looking down at her, when a blue-ish beam of light shone into her room from outside. She jumped and gripped onto her covers, preparing to dive under them to hide from whatever was shining a light into her room. She kept her eyes glued onto the window, which was where the light was coming through. Her eyes then narrowed, and she found the courage to shuffle to the edge of her bed and step onto the floor. She treaded as quietly as she could, and then peeked through the gap between the curtains. There, standing outside, was Iremia and her mother. She let out a sigh of relief.

Butterfly pulled one of the curtains out of her way, to make herself more visible. Iremia immediately spotted the movement and shone the bright light shining from her horn directly at Butterfly’s eyes, causing her to squeeze them shut. Iremia must have realized what she had done and the light disappeared. Butterfly blinked open an eye, then opened the other once it was confirmed that she wouldn’t be blinded by unicorn magic.

She saw the unicorn move her lips, but whatever she said was inaudible. Butterfly reached up to the handle that would open her window, and pushed it forward to create a small opening. Iremia repeated,

“Come down here, but quietly!” she told her. “We don’t want to wake anypony.”

Butterfly nodded, then looked at the gap she had made in her window. It wasn’t a window with a large opening - the flap was at the top of the window, and wouldn’t stretch very far. Then again, Butterfly was small in size, though her insectoid wings may get in the way.

“...There’s no way I’m riskin’ waking my family up by walkin’ down the corridor,” she muttered to herself, then buzzed her wings so that she could fly up to clutch her hooves onto the window’s edge. Then, as she reached the level she had wanted, she glanced back to the desk next to her bed, where her bandana she always wore lay. She dashed towards it and snatched it, tying the knot on the front of her neck quickly, before returning to the window. She saw Iremia and Luna’s confused and concerned expressions, but she did her best to ignore them. She began forcing herself through the gap, being careful not to scratch her body on the window’s edge. She grunted as she managed to pull each limb through to the other side, keeping a close eye on her wings as she did so, making sure they wouldn’t be shredded.

Eventually she managed to escape the small space, and began buzzing her wings so that she wouldn’t fall from the second floor of the barn. She wavered about in the air, shaking her mane out of her face, then closed the window just enough so that there was no opening, but also no click to signal it couldn’t be opened from the outside again. She then flew down to the ground and landed in front of Iremia and Luna.

“...You couldn’t simply walk out the door?” Iremia asked, stifling her giggles.

Butterfly shook her head. “Somepony would’ve heard me. I was bound to bump into something.”

“Fair enough, then.” Iremia shrugged, before turning to her mother. “So, where should we start looking?”

Luna gazed into the shadows that were casted by the many apple trees.

“I suppose we could just start by searching any place near the barn,” she suggested. “If there is indeed a colony of changelings lurking about, we’d want to check for signs of them if they’re anywhere near your home.”

Butterfly nodded in agreement. “Are we just gonna be searchin’ all night?”

“No, I want you both to get some rest at some point,” Luna said. “You’re both in need of sleep.”

Iremia smiled and rolled her eyes. “We’ll be fine, mother. Now,” she spun around to meet Butterfly, “we’ve worked out a plan to get the job done quicker.” She put a hoof on her shoulder and pointed in the direction behind the barn. “You’ll be searching in that general area, while we,” she gestured her hoof to the area around them, “will be searching around the front and sides of the orchard.”

Butterfly’s eyes widened. “W-we’ll be splitting up?” she gasped.

Iremia nodded. “We’ll be here all night otherwise.”

The changeling flattened her ears. “But how will we know if one of us found something and need backup?”

“We’ve got that sorted,” Luna said, her horn lighting up a blue aura, brighter than Butterfly expected. She shielded her eyes from the brightness, watching as a beam of light was shone from her horn into the sky.

“How do you do that?” Butterfly asked, staring at the beam. Luna grinned.

“It’s a light spell, just made a lot brighter,” she explained.

Iremia copied her mother, her blue magic also shining bright into the sky. Butterfly stared up at both of the light beams, glanced up at her horn. She squeezed her eyes shut as she attempted to ignite a light spell. She felt the magic flooding through her horn, then opened her eyes, only to see a couple of blue sparks. Her ears drooped.

“Now what?”

Luna squinted, before turning off her light and instead allowing her horn to glow normally. A bright flash then appeared just above Butterfly, revealing a flash light being levitated above her head. Butterfly reached up with her hoof to grab it. She pushed the button on the side, and it flickered on in response.

“Is this bright enough?” she asked wearily. She shone in up towards the sky. While it was visible above the treeline, it wasn’t quite as bright as the light being powered by magic.

“It should be,” Iremia replied. “We tested it out before, and we could see it from quite a distance.”

Butterfly pressed the button so that the light would turn off. She sighed, then looked towards where she had been directed to.

“Well, with that sorted out… I guess we better begin searchin’,” she said dryly, beginning to walk towards the back of the barn. She had only taken a few steps when she felt Iremia lay a hoof on her shoulder. She stopped in her tracks and looked up at the mare.

“I know this may be out of your comfort zone,” Iremia gazed at her, her eyes filled with sympathy. “But I promise you, nothing will happen. As long as you keep your guard up, that is.” She lent a reassuring smile.

Butterfly nodded. “I know… I’ll do my best,” she affirmed, the corners of her mouth raised.

“I’m sure of that,” the unicorn agreed, giving her a wink. “Now, we better get moving.” She stepped away from Butterfly and faced towards where she had been assigned. Luna nodded.

“Agreed. Now remember, keep your eyes and ears peeled.”

Butterfly and Iremia nodded in unison, before they both darted off in opposite directions. Butterfly kept the flashlight tucked under her bandana, and occasionally had to tuck it back in before it would slip from the clothing. As she made her way behind the barn, the light that shone from the lamps hanging from the front door began to fade, and soon enough she found herself in almost complete and utter darkness.

She raised her head to look at the moon in search of any sort of light, but all she could see were branches blocking her view. Her eyes narrowed as she searched for a clear view of the night sky, when a branch behind where she stood shook. She jumped, and stumbled forward while also searching for her flashlight. Her hoof soon found it, though she also ended up dropping it onto the floor. She scrambled to grab it and felt for the button. As the light flickered on, she pointed it in the direction she had heard the noise. The branch still rustled, until a small shadow scurried down the trunk of the tree. Butterfly followed it with the flashlight, and soon let out a sigh of relief once she recognized the figure of a squirrel darting off into a bush.

“Pull yourself together, Butters,” she scolded herself, swinging around to face the other way. She stood tall, her hackles raised and her hoof firmly grasping the flashlight as she strided forward into the shadows of the trees. “There’s probably nothin’ out here…” she told herself. “Heck, how am I supposed to know what changeling smells like? Then again… I am one myself… but I don’t know what I smell like…”

A black shadow suddenly whooshed past her, so close that she could feel the breeze hit her. She froze, waving her light all around her to see what it was that had just flew by. Eventually the sight of feathers shimmering under the light could be seen, and Butterfly spotted a crow, preening its wings, that is until it realized it had been spotted, and bolted beyond the treeline. Butterfly sighed again.

“I guess this is just gonna be the entire night,” she muttered to herself, before continuing to saunter through the orchard.

She had passed several trees and shrubs when she heard a twig snap. She didn’t tense up this time, and rather just glanced in the direction where she had heard the sound with the torch pointing roughly where abouts the twig would be. She saw nothing, and moved on, her steps keeping quiet.

It then hit her that she had been walking for quite a while now, and got the sudden urge to look behind her. She did so, and saw that the barn wasn’t even in view at this point. Her anxiety began to catch up with her. She lifted her head up towards the sky, and still saw no stars or moon of any sort.

What if Iremia or Princess Luna found something but I can’t see their signals? she wondered. Her wings began to buzz in order to lift her up. She found a gap in between branches where she could fly through, even if that did mean she had to deal with them scratching her sides and coming close to clipping her wing. Eventually she was hovering above the trees, and she could also see the night sky. She glanced around, and saw no beam of light that was summoning her.

“Phew.” She let herself breathe. The sight of the barn’s roof top breaking through the treeline was also a comforting sight to see; she wasn’t too far away from it. She then began to float back to the ground, again being careful not to bump into any trees on the way down. She was doing good, that is until a branch caught the flashlight she held and caused her to lose her grip. She attempted to catch it as it began to fall, but failed to do so. It hit the ground, which seemed to make the light it was letting off switch itself off. She groaned in annoyance, and allowed a small glow to spark from her horn. It wasn’t as powerful as the torch, but she could at least see a couple of feet ahead of her.

She landed in front of the flashlight and picked it up, then searched for the button to switch it back on. She felt and looked for it, until she finally found it and pushed it, only to get no response. Her muzzle scrunched up in annoyance as she pushed it again, still getting to response. She couldn’t help but glance around her, seeing if there were any white eyes glaring at her through the darkness. She saw and heard nothing, which calmed her down a little.

She drew her focus back to the flashlight, and began to push the button frantically. When no light came from the bulb, the idea to hit the side came into mind. Butterfly did so a couple of times, and saw it flicker on for a fraction of a second, which also lit up some hope in her chest. She continued to knock it, which eventually earned her a reward of about five seconds of light.

During that five seconds, she pointed the beam to face ahead of where she was standing, seeing if the brightness was still the same. As she stared ahead, she saw the light land on a dark shape, with skin that didn’t shine as brightly as the crow from earlier. She moved the flashlight to that the light would reveal the creature’s face, and she froze once she saw its face.

As soon as its face was completely visible, however, the light flashed off. Butterfly broke out of her trance and attempted to switch the flashlight back on, literally smacking it with her hoof. The light flickered on again, and she pointed it back at the dark figure, only to see its white eyes inches away from hers. She yelped in surprise and dropped the flashlight, and turned to run. She had taken about three steps when she felt a strong tug on her tail. She glanced over her shoulder, seeing that her tail was lit up with a light glow, as well as the horn sticking out from the creature’s forehead.

“Let me go!” she begged, trying to escape the magical grip.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t do that,” it replied with a voice that lacked any hint of emotion.

Butterfly felt herself being pulled towards it, to which she tried to gallop away, only to end up running in place.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” it assured her.

Butterfly scowled. “Yes, because I’m gonna trust the changeling lurking around in my family’s orchard, aren’t I?” She spun around to face them, putting on a brave face and trying to hide her shaking hooves.

The changeling arched a brow at her, then gave a low chuckle.

“That’s a funny accent for a changeling,” they commented. Butterfly snorted aggressively.

“What are you doing here on our farm?” she questioned.

The changeling shrugged. “Reasons.”

She snarled. “Well, whatever reasons they are… I don’t care!” She took a step forward, and discovered she was roughly the same height as them. “You, as well as anyone else you brought here, aren’t welcome!”

The changeling pouted. “Aw, a shame. I spent all this time looking for you and this is my reward.”

Butterfly gave a quizzical look and took a step back. “Looking for me? What… what do you mean by that?”

They gave an amused huff. “You mean you never thought your real family would ever come searching for you?”

Butterfly’s stomach tightened.

...Real family?