All her life, Fluttershy felt different from the other pegasi. She preferred the ground to the clouds, and the simple love of her animal friends always seemed to refresh her... And she never really had to eat... She didn't remember her parents, either...
One day, though, her life changes forever, when she and her best friends find out what she truly is.
Fluttershy was feeling very content lately. The squirrels had new babies, the cricket's song was especially cheerful... life was truly wonderful. Whenever she felt this content, she always felt like she could do anything if she put her mind to it.
"Oh dear." Fluttershy said, her keen senses picking up the sound of a struggling bunny. Instantly, she flew from the cabin, heading straight for the river. It seemed a beaver's dam had broken, as the river was much higher and faster than usual. She spotted a tiny baby bunny struggling to stay above the water. It continued to be swiftly carried down the river, which she knew ended in a waterfall.
"Oh... oh dear!" She flew down, trying to get a grip on the little bunny with her hooves, since it was too small for her to risk getting a grip with her mouth, especially with the hectic pace of the river water. However, the rushing water meant that she didn't have enough time to safely scoop the bunny up!
Again and again, Fluttershy flew down and back up, trying to safely retrieve the bunny, but no matter how many times she tried, the bunny was either moving too fast for her to safely grab, or her hooves would slip. "Oh Fluttershy!" She chided herself "Why do you have to be so bad at this?". The happy feeling from earlier had completely left, filling her with two emotions: The desire to save the bunny, and shame for not having saved it already.
Over and over, she tried. Again and again she reached down, only to have her hooves come up empty. She redoubled her efforts, until she saw a waterfall coming up, and realized just how far the bunny had already been swept. She concentrated all her power on saving the bunny. Unknown to Fluttershy, a soft emerald light began to glow above her head. It grew, until the shape of a wicked-looking, large, jagged horn was visible, protruding from her forehead. Slowly, the glow began to wrap itself around the bunny, and was no effort on Fluttershy's part, the bunny was lifted up, and placed gently down on the shore.
Fluttershy was so relieved and confused at once, she didn't watch where she was going. With a loud thud, she slammed headfirst into a tree. A moment passed, as the tiny bunny hopped up to its motionless savior. When she came to, she was looking up at the little bunny she saved, as it sat on her. "Oh.. good, you're okay..." Fluttershy muttered, completely dazed. As her mental faculties began to return, she remembered what happened. "H...How did I do that?" She said, sitting up quickly. The bunny tumbled off her chest. "Ah! I'm sorry!" she said, catching the bunny with a hoof, and setting it down gently on the ground.
She slowly stood up and tried to put her thoughts together. She'd never head of Pegasi ever having that kind of magic before. "I... I should go speak to Twilight." She said, nodding to herself. "She'll know what to do..." She began to walk back towards Ponyville, only looking back to see that the bunny had hopped away. She knew that bunny's family, and knew that it would be found quickly, though she wished she could deliver it to them. She felt that finding out what happened was very important though, and she didn't know why.
--
Twilight was reading yet another dusty old tome, this one titled The Ins and Outs of Pegasus Relocation Theory. It was an ancient book, written before the uniting of the pony races, when Unicorns thought Pegasi were birds and had to fly south for the winter. Twilight shook her head as she read, silently muttering to herself. Some of these old tomes were interesting, but this was just painful for the librarian to read. This whole period of their history, when ponies were measured by their species instead of by the pony's own merits...
A quiet knocking on the door was enough to make her look up. She closed the book, a little happy to not have to finish it, and called out. "Come in!"
The door slowly pushed open, and Fluttershy quietly stepped in. "Oh, were you reading? I'm sorry, I'll just go..." She said, turning back around.
Twilight sighed and walked over to her. "No, it wasn't a very good book anyway. What do you need, Fluttershy?" She said, smiling gently. Fluttershy hesitated, then turned back around, looking at Twilight for a moment, before responding.
"Twilight... can pegasi... use magic?" She managed to ask, quietly.
Twilight looked confused. "Um, well, they have their own brand of pegasus magic so they can influence the weather, but I have the feeling that isn't what you're talking about." She responded, "What brought this up?"
Fluttershy stood quietly, feeling very self-conscious. She slowly explained what happened, as Twilight listened carefully. Twilight's expression changed as she listened, going from curious to bewildered. "Well..." Twilight began, "It's possible you created a strong air current to save the bunny without realizing it..." Twilight began, slowly, "Because I've never heard of a Pegasus using Unicorn magic."
"Oh... I see..." Fluttershy said, "Thank you." She turned around, about to leave.
"We... could run a few tests, if you'd like, though." Twilight continued, noticing Fluttershy's reaction. She had no idea why this was bothering Fluttershy so much, but she knew not to make light of something like this. Besides, her other theory was flawed. No pegasus magic she knew of ever caused an aura to appear, that kind of magic was firmly in the realm of unicorn magic. Fluttershy seemed worried, but the fact that her friend was willing to help her in this made her feel a bit better.
"T...Thank you, Twilight." She said, smiling softly.
Moving deeper into the library, Twilight began pulling out various books, as Fluttershy looked on. It was going to be a long day, they could both feel it...
Twilight was surrounded by a number of old books. Thanks to that awful book she had been reading, she had an idea of what to look for. In the days before the pony races united, unicorns were known to hide their unicorn identity. As was traditional for unicorns of that period, a counterspell had also been created, which could be used to reveal if a pony was a unicorn or not.
Book after book explained how to hide one's horn, but they only briefly mentioned the other spell. Since unicorn against unicorn espionage was especially rare back then, this didn't surprise her. She was beginning to grow frustrated, though the sight of Fluttershy silently watching her with that worried expression was enough to keep her going.
"Maybe this one, Twilight!" called Spike, holding a large purple tome, Obscure and Useless Magics.
Twilight's eyes lit up, as she realized just what the ancient unicorns must have thought a spell like this was. Useless. "Thanks Spike!" She called, closing the book she was looking at, and magically taking the other book. Just as she suspected, the spell was written, plain as day, right there. She got a quill out, and started copying the spell onto a nearby piece of parchment.
"Fluttershy, we may have an answer!" Twilight called out, double and triple checking that she copied the spell correctly. "I found a spell which should, in theory, tell us if you have any unicorn magic."
Fluttershy smiled gently. "Oh, thank goodness..." She said, quietly. Twilight walked over, reading the spell over, and smiling.
"Alright, ready?" Twilight asked, still very concerned for Fluttershy. Fluttershy seemed to have found her resolve, and nodded.
Slowly, Twilight's horn began to glow its soft pink light, as she began to cast the spell. It wasn't a particularly hard bit of magic, but it was new, and she wanted to take it slowly just to be safe. The glow focused onto the tip of her horn, where it became a small pink ball of light. With a soft, almost inaudible noise, a beam of pink light shot out at Fluttershy.
Pink energy cracked across her body, slowly moving towards her forehead. Twilight was now done with her part of the spell, so she stepped back near Spike, as they both watched her. She was sure nothing would happen, perhaps a passing unicorn had helped Fluttershy secretly, or maybe it really was pegasus magic, combined with the sun reflecting off the water, but on the other hand... Twilight had a nagging feeling that something wasn't right.
The energy finally reached her face, and arced visibly towards her forehead... Only to suddenly turn a shocking green color, as it traced up and down something invisible on Fluttershy's forehead. The energy then quickly disappeared, leaving Twilight looking on in shock.
"That... That's not one of the things the spell said it would do!" Twilight said, looking back at the copied spell. If the pony was a unicorn, it was supposed to hit their horn, then make it visible. There was nothing mentioned about what it meant if it turned green. The shape that the energy traced out... it seemed familiar, and not in a good way. It had been so brief, though, that Twilight was not certain.
"Oh... Oh dear..." Fluttershy said, seeing Twilight's face. "Is there something wrong?" Fluttershy's voice had a note of panic to it as she said this.
"I'm sorry, Fluttershy, but I don't know what just happened." Twilight said, trying to sound calm. Something was really nagging at her now. "I'll need to do some research." Twilight turned around, and began pulling books off the shelves.
"Twilight! I just put those back in!" Spike protested, futilely.
Fluttershy stood there, unsure of what to do. "I'll... I'll just go home, then?"
"Yeah, sure." Twilight said, already in full-on research mode. "Spike, mind handing me my copy of Forgotten Legends of Cloudsdale?"
Fluttershy turned around quietly, and left the library. She slowly walked home, the expression Twilight had worried her...
--
"No, no, no, no, no!" Twilight yelled, as Pegasus Diseases toppled over to the ground, and Spike, grumbling, ran over to put it back on the shelf.
"There's nothing here! I've checked every book I have on Pegasus biology and magic, and nothing says anything about this!" Twilight yelled, pulling out a book at random.
"I guess I'm staying up all night... again." Spike muttered, as he put the book he had retrieved on the shelf.
--
Fluttershy was restless tonight. Something about what happened seemed to have jostled something loose in her mind, as her dreams were full of dark caves, an emerald hue, and the sound of buzzing insectoid wings.
However, the morning came, as it always did, and upon sitting up and greeting Angel Bunny, the dreams were forgotten.
After she fed the animals, and saw to it that they were all taken care of, she felt quite a bit better, as she always did when she was with them. She happily opened the door to her cabin, and after waving to the animals, she set off for Twilight's library.
--
The library was dark, and books were scattered all over the floor. The candles had burned out, and Spike had obviously given up putting away the books at some point and went to bed. Twilight's head was lying on an open page of Time Travel in Celestia's Universe, and her snores echoed throughout the enclosed library.
A gentle rapping at the door woke her up. She sleepily looked around, then got to her hooves and slowly worked her way to the door. She tried opening it with her face, before remembering how to use magic.
Fluttershy gasped as she saw Twilight. Twilight's mane was in disarray, her eyes were bloodshot, and she did not seem to be even the slightest bit aware of what she was doing. "Twilight! You look awful!"
"Huh....? Fluttershy...?" Twilight muttered, collapsing to the floor. Fluttershy quickly flew in, shutting the door behind her. She grabbed Twilight gently, and worked her way up the staircase, cradling Twilight with her front hooves. She set Twilight down on her bed, and then sighed.
"What am I going to do with you?" Fluttershy said, speaking almost as though Twilight were one of her animal friends. "You know you shouldn't overwork yourself!"
Twilight was slowly starting to regain her senses as she lay upon the bed, the rest doing her a world of good. "Oh, I'm sorry, Fluttershy." Twilight said, slowly. "I just feel like there's something... very wrong about what I saw..." Twilight stretched, starting to feel better. A very faint green glow was around her, though neither she nor Fluttershy noticed it, even though the same glow was faintly also present in front of her forehead.
"Well, I know you did it for me, Twilight, and I'm very happy to have such a good friend." Fluttershy said, with a worried voice. "But you should take care of yourself, too!" Fluttershy smiled gently at Twilight.
Twilight, meanwhile, was starting to feel very refreshed. She sat up, and got off the bed, the green glow vanishing as she did so. "I know, Fluttershy, but..."
"No buts! Lie back down, you haven't had any..." Fluttershy started, but then stopped. Twilight looked at her curiously, her eyes clear and normal. Her mane was back in order as well. "Twilight... how do you feel?" Fluttershy asked, completely confused.
"Uh, Great! I feel really rested now!" Twilight said, smiling. "I'm ready to get back to my research!" She started happily walking towards the bottom floor, picking up Spike as she passed by him.
"Hey!" Spike protested as he floated behind Twilight in a ball of pink magic. Fluttershy could do nothing but watch as they passed her, heading downstairs. Moments later, the tell-tale sound of pages turning reached her ears. She stood there for a moment longer, then followed them down.
--
Fluttershy had left the library after an hour of waiting. She decided that she wasn't going to be much help, and the wait just made her feel more and more worried, so she decided to go visit Pinkie, since if she couldn't help her feel better, nopony could.
Fluttershy quietly entered Sugarcube Corner. "Hi!" Pinkie Pie yelled, from behind the counter. It seemed that today, she was in charge of the store. She leapt over the counter. "What brings you to my neck of the woods, Fluttershy?" Pinkie asked, giggling. "Need a cake? A cupcake? A muffin? A muffincake? A cupmuffin? A cupmuffincake?"
"Hi, Pinkie..." Fluttershy said, quietly. "I don't need any sweets, and I don't know what those last few were..." She paused. "I'm just feeling... something." Fluttershy said, not quite coming up with a word to describe how she felt.
"Something?" Pinkie asked, hopping over to her. "Happy? Sad? Confused? Angry? Annoyed? Tired? Explosive?"
"Um, I don't know what it would feel like to be explosive..." Fluttershy responded, nevertheless appreciating Pinkie's attempts to lighten her mood. "I do feel confused, though. I just came from Twilight's. She's been researching something for me..."
"Oh, wow!" Pinkie Pie yelled, hopping up and down. "What kinda research? Need a new animal friend? Found a plant you need to know something about? Just bugging Twilight like I do sometimes? What is it?"
"Oh... um..." Fluttershy hesitated, then explained everything that happened.
"Whoa whoa whoa! You did MAGIC? That is soooooo cool! You must be a Super Pegasus or something!" Pinkie kept hopping up and down in joy as she spoke. "You're so lucky!"
"Um... I... guess?" Fluttershy said, not really feeling lucky at the moment. "Twilight looked worried..."
"Oh." Pinkie stopped jumping. "Well, sometimes she's worried about stuff for no reason!" She said, resuming her jumping. She began to feel a little worried too, however. While it was true that Twilight was sometimes overly worried about the littlest things, other times...
"Well, how about you get a nice treat, on the house!" Pinkie said, smiling reassuringly. "You can't leave a bakery without getting with something nice!"
Fluttershy smiled. Visiting Pinkie was a good idea. She was already feeling more like she did that morning when she left the cabin. "Thanks, Pinkie. I suppose I'll have a cupcake, then..."
--
Twilight was getting incredibly desperate. Every book she read, no matter what the subject, had nothing on what was happening to Fluttershy. Throwing her modern copy of An Equestrian Encyclopedia of Birds on the ground, Twilight picked up the next book on the shelf, a particularly ancient tome by the looks of the title, An Equestrian Encyclopedia of Demi-Ponies and started reading.
She flipped through it quickly, stopping dead when she reach the page about changelings. A changeling queen was depicted in sketch form on the page, and Twilight couldn't keep her eyes off the shape of that horn.
It was the exact same shape the green energy had briefly outlined on Fluttershy's forehead.
Twilights mind worked at a furious pace. Fluttershy is a changeling queen? But then... does that mean that Fluttershy is actually Chrysalis? How dare she kidnap and imitate my friend! She felt the anger build up inside her. I've got to warn- Her panicked and angry thought process was stopped by a new train of thought. No... I can't jump to conclusions. She may just be somehow influenced by the Changelings.
Twilight set down the parchment she had already lifted to write a letter to the Princess. I can't be sure of anything right now, and the last thing I should do is start a national crisis by declaring my friend was kidnapped and replaced by Chrysalis. Twilight sighed, and started reading through various tomes on Changelings...
--
Fluttershy was taking the long way back to the library. She ate the cupcake slowly. They always tasted the same. The frosting, the cake... even the other foods Pinkie made tasted the same. It was delicious, of course, but it always seemed to her like different foods were supposed to taste... different. There were those cakes that Pinkie Pie made her for her birthdays, but other than that, everything tasted the same.
She finally made her way to the library. Fluttershy stopped, hearing pages turning frantically inside. Twilight must have found something! She gently knocked on the door, and waited patiently. "Come in!" Twilight yelled, sounding a little distracted. Fluttershy quietly opened the door, and saw Twilight pouring over a book, stacks of books on either side of her.
"Twilight?" Fluttershy quietly asked, making Twilight jump.
Twilight spun around, looking at the yellow pegasus behind her. Her brain worked furiously. What do I say? Do I accuse her, right here and now? No. That wouldn't work, unless she IS Chrysalis, and in that case I'd be revealing what I know too soon.
Twilight cleared her throat, and spoke. "Fluttershy... Do you remember your parents?" Twilight asked in a serious tone.
Whatever Fluttershy was expecting, this was not it. She looked a little taken aback to hear this question. "W... why are you... Um... No, Twilight. Why do you ask?" she said, the bewilderment overpowering her anxiety. What did this have to do with... anything?
Twilight sighed, then looked at Fluttershy. "Do you remember... anything of your foalhood? Do you remember who raised you?"
Fluttershy looked at Twilight, incredibly confused. Not only were these questions bizarre, but she never told anyone about her early memories being missing. "No..." She said, quietly.
Twilight stood there, frozen in place. This made even less sense. Chrysalis would have made something up, surely? She had been prepared to trap her, but... Well, maybe Chrysalis was smarter than Twilight expected. She had one more trap ready, though. "Fluttershy, when I first met you, you were teaching the squirrels acrobatics for the Summer Sun Celebration, right?" Twilight asked, a cocky smile slowly creeping onto her face. I've got you now, Chrysalis!
Fluttershy's confusion only increased. "No, Twilight, I was helping the birds with their singing..."
Twilight's smile immediately vanished. Chrysalis could NOT know about that, it simply wasn't possible. But then, what was happening? Was she actually just the victim of a changeling plot somehow? From her research, she knew the most a Changeling could do to influence a pony in any way was mind control, like what happened to Shining Armor at the wedding. There was no way to turn a pony into a Changeling, or give them any other changeling features. Myths about Monsters ended up being incredibly valuable to her research.
Twilight paced back and forth. There was one spell... one spell that would tell her one way or the other. If nothing happened, nothing happened, and then it would be time to explore other avenues of inquiry. However, if her changeling-revealing spell that she practiced after the wedding did something... She couldn't decide what she'd do.
"Fluttershy... I think I know how we can find out what happened. Let me cast a spell on you. It'll give us the answers we need." Twilight said, solemnly.
Fluttershy was still very confused, but if Twilight thought she knew what was wrong with Fluttershy; Fluttershy should just go along with it. "A-alright, Twilight..." She said, quietly.
Twilight's horn glowed, as she cast a simple, extensively-practiced spell, a soft ball of light forming, then moving towards Fluttershy. As soon as it hit her, it sparked green energy, as a large, jagged, wicked-looking horn appeared on Fluttershy's forehad.
Twilight stared at it, in complete shock. How is this possible? No illusion magic that exists can counter this spell! She stepped forward, and put a front hoof on Fluttershy's horn. It's really here... then that means...
Twilight sighed, then looked up at Fluttershy. "Fluttershy... you're a changeling."
Fluttershy stood there, unable to process what was being said to her. "W-what?"
Twilight pulled out a small mirror, and showed Fluttershy the reflection upon it.
Fluttershy fainted.
--
Slowly, she began to regain consciousness. She felt a soft bed underneath her, and slowly opened her eyes.
Twilight's face was less than an inch from hers. "Oh good, you're awake!" She said.
Fluttershy leapt out of the bed, hovering in a corner of the room, which turned out to be the Library's bedroom. "D..Don't scare me like that, Twilight!" Fluttershy said. She suddenly remembered what happened, and clapped her hoof to her forehead. It lacked a horn. She breathed a sigh of relief, it must have been a dream.
"The spell doesn't last very long, so it's already worn off. That is why your horn isn't there." Twilight said, not really thinking.
Fluttershy looked at Twilight. "So... I didn't... dream that?" She spoke quietly, as though afraid of the answer.
"No. That really was your horn. You're a changeling." Twilight said, slowly, trying not to provoke another fainting spell like last time.
Fluttershy sighed, landing on the ground. "I... I thought of that before... after the wedding..." She said, softly, "But... I just decided that it was impossible. Just because I didn't need to eat... or the way I could feel everyone's emotions..." Fluttershy's voice got even softer. "I just... didn't think I could be one of those... monsters..."
Fluttershy was surprised to look up and see Twilight's face inches away. "Fluttershy, you're not a monster, no matter what you are. You're still Fluttershy."
Fluttershy couldn't hold it back anymore, and tears appeared in her eyes as she looked at Twilight, "T...Thank you, Twilight..." She said, softly.
"I'm just glad I'm the one that discovered this! Imagine me being told this second-hoof?" Twilight thought, then suddenly looked terrified. "No, don't imagine that. I would have done terrible things..."
Twilight smiled, and Fluttershy, feeling Twilight's friendship refreshing her, smiled too. Even the bird watching them through the window smiled.
--
Fluttershy was on her way back to her cabin, having had a long talk with Twilight, when she saw one of her chipmunk friends. It gestured for her to follow, then scampered off. Fluttershy followed it, even as they began to enter the Everfree Forest itself. "Is... is it okay to go this deep?" She asked the chipmunk.
In response, the chipmunk smiled. "This is just about deep enough." It said, in a very familiar, insectoid voice. A large green fire suddenly enveloped the chipmunk, and suddenly Queen Chrysalis stood there.
Fluttershy immediately stood completely still, frozen with fear. "T...T...The Changeling Queen!" Fluttershy squeaked, "D-d-d-Don't hurt me!!" She said, cowering.
Chrysalis' expression softened, and she took a few steps towards the yellow pegasus. "I believe you are Fluttershy, correct?"
"Y-yes..." Fluttershy said, looking up at the towering changeling.
"I came to apologize, Fluttershy." Chrysalis said, her tone of voice sounding quite different from the wedding. "I... didn't know there was another Queen here. I wouldn't have invaded if I had known."
Fluttershy blinked, then stood up slowly. "Queen?" she said, repeating the word. "I'm a queen?"
Chrysalis nodded. "Of course." Her eyes widened. "Wait... how is it possible that you didn't know?"
Fluttershy shook her head. "I don't know... I just found out I was a changeling..."
Chrysalis put a hole-filled hoof up to her chin. "That... does explain a lot. Why you didn't contact me, and why this village is unhurt."
"W...what do you mean?" Fluttershy asked, "Would someone attack me if they knew I was a queen?" She thought back to the wedding, and how power-hungry and greedy Chrysalis seemed. Even if she didn't apparently want to hurt another changeling, that didn't say anything about the other Changeling Queens.
"Yes... but that's not what I meant." Chrysalis said, grinning as she leaned in. "You wouldn't want to see your little pony friends hurt, would you?" She asked, a sinister tone entering her voice. "If you ever transformed into your real form... well..." Her grin widened. "It would probably be the end for Ponyville." She cackled.
Fluttershy looked at Chrysalis, her eyes wide. "Oh... oh no!" She squeaked, feeling terrified of something else now, herself.
"Well," Chrysalis started, standing back up to her full height. "I must leave now. My hive needs their queen so we can rebuild. It was a pleasure meeting you, Fluttershy." Chrysalis said, that grin remaining on her face, as she transformed into a bird and flew away.
Fluttershy stood there, with no idea what to do or where to go.
--
Rainbow Dash flew up to the raincloud. It had obviously floated for quite some time to end up over here, considering it was supposed to be over Canterlot at this time. As Rainbow Dash pushed it back towards Canterlot, she looked down, and saw something yellow and pink. "Fluttershy?" Rainbow Dash muttered to herself, kicking the cloud towards Canterlot, as she flew down and landed next to Fluttershy.
"Uh, Fluttershy? What are you doing?" Rainbow Dash said, as she stood next to the vacantly staring Fluttershy.
"Oh! Ahahahaha! Nothing at all! Everything's fine! I'm not a danger to all my friends! Don't ask any more questions!" Fluttershy said in a high-pitched, falsely happy voice. "Well, I need to go feed Scootaloo, see you later!" she said, walking in a random direction.
"Your cabin is that way" Rainbow Dash said, pointing with a hoof, "And Scootaloo is a pony."
"Oh, right, of course, haha!" Fluttershy responded, turning around and going as fast as she could.
Rainbow Dash was not about to let one of her best friends go off alone in that state, so she went high up into the sky and followed her, using the natural camouflage of the sky.
Fluttershy ran into her cabin and locked the door, not noticing Rainbow Dash, who softly landed and snuck down the side of her house to peer in a window. "Rainbow Dash, you are the Empress of Stealth." Rainbow Dash said to herself as she clung to the side of the house.
Fluttershy, on the other hand, had no idea what to do. She was feeling better, since her animal friends were around, but she paid them no attention as she ran up into her room and closed the door. "Oh Fluttershy, what are you going to do? You don't even know how to transform, but if you do, everyone could be hurt!" Fluttershy said, sounding pathetic. "I wish I never found out I was a changeling!"
"WHAT?" Yelled Rainbow Dash, from outside her window.
"WHA- OW!" yelled Pinkie Pie, banging her head on the underside of Fluttershy's bed, where she'd been hiding to surprise her with a cake she baked to try to cheer her up.
"Oh..." was all Fluttershy could say, as Rainbow Dash flew into the open window, and Pinkie Pie crawled out from under her bed.
"YOU'RE A CHANGELING?" They both yelled in unison.
Pinkie seemed to be taking it better. "Ooooooh, that explains why you even liked the baked bads, huh?" Pinkie said, "I bet it's the love we put into the food that tastes good to y-" Pinkie was interrupted by a blue streak slamming into Fluttershy.
"Where's Fluttershy, Changeling?" She yelled, anger filling her body. "She's the only other Pegasus friend I have! Where'd you take her???"
"R-r-Rainbow... Dash..." Fluttershy said, not willing to argue with her friend, especially considering her current mental state. "Sorry."
"Sorry??" Rainbow Dash yelled, angrily shaking Fluttershy. "How can you be sorry, when you've kidnapped one of my best friends!" Rainbow Dash said, tears forming in her eyes.
"Dashie! Stop!" Pinkie Pie yelled, running over and pushing Rainbow Dash away from Fluttershy.
"Oh, are you a changeling too? Are all my friends changelings?" Rainbow Dash said, growing quite paranoid.
"Dashie! Look!" Pinkie Pie yelled, pointing with a hoof at Fluttershy.
Fluttershy was sitting there, her head down, tears streaming down her face. She wasn't even making any noise, other than the occasional hiccup. Rainbow Dash recognized it immediately. This was the exact same way she found Fluttershy after she'd been picked on so ruthlessly by those bullies up in Cloudsdale.
"Oh... Fluttershy... What... what am I saying?" Rainbow Dash moved back up to Fluttershy and gently set her hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Fluttershy. I shouldn't have done such a terrible thing... I know that you're still you." She paused. "Well, now I do."
Fluttershy smiled for the first time in what felt like a very long time. "T...Thank you, Rainbow Dash." She said, wiping her tears away. She turned towards Pinkie. "And thank you too, Pinkie."
"Nooo Problem!" Pinkie Pie said, "I kinda suspected it anyway since you always knew when I was a little sad, no matter how I hid it. I figured either you were a changeling, or Twilight cast some kinda spell on you." Pinkie happily proclaimed. "Now eat your cake!" She said, turning around and pulling the small, frosted cake with "Be Happy, Fluttershy!" written on it in frosting.
Fluttershy felt tears begin to fall again, though for the exact opposite reason. "T..Thank you so much!" She said, as she hugged the both of them.
--
Princess Celestia was softly humming a song to herself as she worked on her paperwork. It was dull, but she didn't mind it too much.
The doors at the end of the room burst open, as two guards carried an obviously wounded unicorn into the throne room. The unicorn was barely conscious, and black crystals covered his horn.
"He's... back..." the wounded unicorn said, before passing out.
Princess Celestia was shocked. This poor unicorn was obviously affected by Sombra's magic, but she'd heard nothing from the Crystal Empire about this, and that unicorn looked more like a Manehattenite. "Send out an alert!" She ordered, "King Sombra has returned!"
--
Fluttershy slowly left her cabin. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie had long since gone, and Fluttershy was left working up the courage to go tell her remaining best friends that didn't know about her true identity. First, I need to go see Twilight. Fluttershy thought, I need to tell her about what the Changeling Queen said.
For the third time in two days, she knocked lightly on the door to the library. "Fluttershy, is that you?" Twilight asked from inside the Library.
"Yes." Fluttershy said quietly, feeling nervous.
The door slowly opened, and Twilight peered out. "Oh good." She said, opening the door and letting Fluttershy in before closing it. "Sorry, I'm a little paranoid because of this letter the Princess sent." Twilight said, gesturing to a letter lying on a desk. "She said that King Sombra appears to have returned... and is attacking everywhere."
"Oh no!" Fluttershy said, gasping. "I... I guess I'll just leave then, you have much more important things to worry about here!" She said, starting to turn around.
"No, no, don't worry, I'm sure you had a good reason to come here, and we don't have any reason to think Sombra is anywhere near Ponyville." Twilight said, quickly.
Fluttershy turned and looked at Twilight. "Yes, I do have something to tell you..." she paused, steeling herself. "The changeling queen that attacked us told me tha-"
"YOU TALKED TO CHRYSALIS?" Twilight yelled, leaping up in shock. "She was here? In Ponyville?"
Fluttershy nodded, and told Twilight everything Chrysalis had told her.
Twilight sat in thought. "I don't know if we should believe her or not. On the one hoof, you're a changeling now, a queen according to her, and we haven't seen her do anything to other changelings. But on the other hoof, we don't know enough of Changeling society to know if Queens fight each other or not, or she could easily still be angry about your role in trying to stop her during the wedding."
Fluttershy nodded. "But what about the other thing? What if when I transform, something bad DOES happen, like I lose control or I explode or something?" She asked, a little panicky.
"I think I have a solution for that." Twilight said, smiling. "In Changeling Interrogation and You, I found an old spell which was used to force a changeling to appear as their true form, without actually transforming them. It's a simple illusion spell, you see. I could probably modify it so you could decide which of the two forms to take with a small amount of magic." Twilight said, nodding.
Fluttershy was unsure of what to do. "Well, I still need to tell Rarity and Applejack... they might think I'm crazy or something if I tell them, so I might need that..." she said, thinking aloud, "OK, Twilight, let's do it."
Twilight smiled, and once again her horn glowed, a soft ball appearing at the end of her horn. It shot out, hitting Fluttershy, seemingly to no effect. "All you have to do is use a very simple spell now to switch back and forth." Twilight said, smiling.
Fluttershy looked completely confused, and Twilight realized what was wrong. "Oh. Well, let me give you a crash course on magic, Fluttershy..."
--
Fluttershy decided to head to tell Rarity first. The longer she was by herself, the more worried she became. She felt exhausted, both mentally and physically. She was nearly at her wit's end, and felt herself coming close to a breakdown, even with all the reassurances everypony gave her. Oh dear oh dear oh dear...
Fluttershy walked up to Carosel Boutique, and knew at once that something was wrong. The interior was incredibly dark, and she'd never seen it look this dark inside, especially during the day. School was still in, so Sweetie Belle wouldn't be inside, but at the very least Rarity should have been home.
Fluttershy knocked on the door gently. "GO AWAY!" A raspy, sickly-sounding voice yelled from inside, only sounding a bit like Rarity.
Fluttershy knew that something was wrong, and so she ignored the voice and opened the door. "Rarity?" She called into the dark interior. She stopped dead when she saw what was inside. The entire room was filled with dark crystals of various sizes and shapes, and Rarity appeared to be trying to sew herself a dress covered in them.
Rarity looked up and hissed, in a very un-Rarity-like way. "Close the door! Stop letting that horrid darkness in!" She said, returning to her sewing.
Fluttershy walked in and shut the door, letting the room grow much darker. "Rarity, what are you doing, why is it so dark?"
"Dark? It's brighter than ever! These wonderful glowing crystals are lighting this room up beautifully. I don't know how you can stand it out there in the dark, with that ball of darkness you call the 'sun'" She scoffed, "I'm making this dress so perhaps I might be able to bring this light out there!"
Fluttershy's worry only increased as Rarity spoke. "Rarity... it's really dark in here, you should come outside! Something's wrong with these crystals, anyway!" She said, rather loudly compared to her usual speaking voice.
Rarity paid no attention to Fluttershy, and just continued to sew more and more crystals into the dress. "Soon, I will never have to be away from this beautiful light..." She laughed a hollow laugh. "Fluttershy, why don't you join me... I can make one for you too!"
Fluttershy shrunk back in shock. "Rarity... are you okay?"
Rarity laughed again. "Of course! I've never felt better! I should give everyone some of these crystals, haha! We can all take refuge from that horrible sun brought about by that demon, Celestia!"
"RARITY, SNAP OUT OF IT!" Fluttershy screamed. Rarity's expression changed to an evil smile, as her eyes turned red and green, purple energy radiating from them.
"You truly care about this seamstress, don't you?" Rarity said in a new deep voice. "It is a shame she is already under my control..."
This isn't Rarity! Fluttershy realized, shocked. "Give Rarity back! Give her back!" Fluttershy screamed, tears streaming down her face.
The thing possessing Rarity merely chuckled. "It is too late. You can do nothing! And now, you will also serve me!" Rarity yelled, throwing the completed dress onto Fluttershy.
Fluttershy steeled herself, ready for something to happen, as the evil voice continued to laugh...
Fluttershy kept waiting...
"Do you now see the glorious light present in my crystals?" Rarity said, looking at Fluttershy.
"No! They're horrible and black! Get this awful thing you forced Rarity to make off me!" She yelled, thrashing around.
"What? Impossible!" Rarity yelled, backing up. "No pony can resist my power!"
Fluttershy thought quickly. I have to do something... but... it's still Rarity! I can't hurt her! Oh...What would Rainbow Dash do? Fluttershy slowly smiled, and did her best cocky expression, trying to look like Rainbow Dash. "I... am no pony!" She said, a tiny green spark appearing where her horn would be, as a great gout of green fire shot out of the ground, as Twilight's spell did its job.
Rarity could do nothing but watch, as the flames slowly died down, revealing a creature that is very much NOT a pony. A changeling now stood before her. Her mane a bright yellow color, the same color as her waist. Insectoid wings replaced her old feathered ones, and a huge wicked-looking horn now sat on her forehead. Her new stature left her towering over Rarity, and the black exoskeleton replacing her skin made her look very intimidating.
"I... am a CHANGELING!" Fluttershy said, her voice now having a distinct insectoid note to it. I did it, Rainbow Dash! she thought. Rarity looked furious.
"A Queen? A Changeling Queen?" The voice roared. "The changelings have never meddled in pony affairs before!" Rarity stamped her hoof. "No matter, being immune to my powers means nothing! I still have your friend!"
"Nopony... HURTS. MY. FRIENDS!" Fluttershy yelled, and, thinking like Rainbow Dash, aimed a kick at a nearby crystal, which shattered. She smiled, and began breaking every crystal.
"No! Stop!" The voice said, as Rarity's eyes began to flicker. "You fool! This won't stop-" The voice stopped, and Rarity's eyes returned to normal as the last crystal shattered on the floor. Fluttershy ripped the evil dress off and crushed it underhoof.
"There! That's what I think of YOU!" she said, smiling. She then turned, and looked at Rarity. "Rarity, are you alright?"
Rarity screamed. "GET OUT, YOU FILTHY BUG!" Rarity yelled, picking up a nearby broom and swinging it wildly at Fluttershy. "What did you do to me??"
"R...Rarity..." Fluttershy muttered, her earlier bravado vanishing as Rarity advanced upon her with the broom. "I... I'll go...." She said, sadly, walking out the door.
She didn't even think about turning back to her pony form.
--
Fluttershy was running. Running faster than she ever ran before, as a giant mob of ponies, most of whom she knew, chased her. "I'm Fluttershy!" She yelled as she ran, but no one seemed to listen. She just had to keep running.
"In here, Queen Fluttershy!" A familiar, but insectoid voice whispered. Fluttershy knew better than to question it now, and ran into the alley the changeling drone was standing in. Pressed up against the alley wall, they waited, as the huge mob ran by.
"T...thank you." Fluttershy said, turning and looking at the changeling drone.
The drone smiled smugly. "Well, this changeling of course felt it necessary to assist her queen. Was there EVER any doubt?" The drone said, her voice now incredibly familiar.
"T...Trixie?" Fluttershy asked, looking down at the drone in surprise. The drone smiled back up at her, and in a burst of green fire, turned into Trixie, complete with cape and hat.
"Trixie assumes you've been told that Trixie would be here? As the only member of your hive, Trixie had to meet her queen." Trixie continued, smugly. "Who would have thought she would be one of Twilight's friends? Truly, this is the greatest thing that could happen to Trixie!"
"What do you mean, Trixie?" Fluttershy asked, remembering to change back to her pony form. "And... I wasn't told anything like that..."
"Well, no matter. Trixie can now truly make up for the Alicorn Amulet incident. Trixie's previous attempt was not nearly enough of an apology." Trixie said, looking a little regretful. "However, now Trixie can answer your questions! Trixie has been a changeling for a very long time, so she can easily assist you." Trixie said, somehow sounding both smug and respectful at the same time.
"Well... I still don't know how to transform... I was only able to sort of transform because of Twilight's spells..." Fluttershy muttered, staring at the ground.
"Aha! That is an easy first task for the Great and Powerful Trixie! However..." Trixie hesitated. "Trixie does not recommend switching to your true form. Trixie had wondered how you had managed to be so... well." She looked around, before continuing. "Queens are the leaders of their hives. Because of this, any excess love is used to make the queen more powerful, so she can better protect and lead her hive." Trixie said, seriously. "You... You live with your animals, and have five best friends. The sustained love from all those sources... You are likely even Greater and More Powerful than Trixie!"
"W-what?" Fluttershy said, "But... But..."
"Not only that, but you are likely so powerful..." She pauses again. "Well, there would be a lot of collateral damage if you transformed..." She said, shrugging. "So Trixie advises against that!"
"I... I see." Fluttershy said, nodding. At least she knew what kind of danger transforming brought. "But... how can you be part of my hive? I only recently found out about being a queen!"
"You're a year older than Trixie." Trixie said, "When a changeling hatches, they are assigned to the hive of the most compatible queen, personality-wise. In this case, Trixie was made the first and only member of Fluttershy's hive, as Trixie is MUCH too great and powerful for most hives." Trixie said, nodding. "The reason Trixie came through Ponyville, as well as why Trixie used the alicorn amulet, it was all to discover who my queen was."
Trixie looked out the alleyway, and saw that the coast was clear. "Well, everypony is gone now. You'll be able to take your leave now, Queen. As to how to transform, you merely need to think of the shape you wish to take, while focusing magic in your horn."
Fluttershy nodded, and stepped out of the alley, before heading back toward the library to tell Twilight what had happened.
"Trixie shall do what she can to help you!" Trixie called after her, before transforming into a bird and flying up into the sky.
--
"...and there was this horrid changeling in my room when I came to!" Fluttershy heard Rarity's voice, sounding normal, coming from the library.
Twilight coughed. "Um, Rarity, well..."
Fluttershy knocked quietly on the door, and Twilight immediately opened the door for her. "Oh, Fluttershy! Perfect timing!" Twilight said, a sincere smile on her face.
Fluttershy hesitated, then stepped inside. "Twilight..." She started, glancing at Rarity.
"Go ahead, Fluttershy." Twilight said, nodding to reassure her.
"Twilight... Rarity was being controlled by King Sombra..." Fluttershy said, quietly. "I could hear... his voice coming from her."
Rarity looked taken aback. "So that's what happened to me? That explains the crystal shards all over the floor..." Rarity looked at Fluttershy. "You were there? You must have left before that horrible changeling appeared!"
Fluttershy backed up. "Oh. Yes. That must... be it..." Fluttershy muttered into the floor.
Twilight wasn't sure what to do, since this was a very delicate situation. "Fluttershy... how did Sombra control Rarity?"
Fluttershy slowly looked up. "The black crystals. Carousel Boutique was full of them." She said, a little more sure of herself. "And she was making a dress with many of the crystals. Sombra tried to use it to control me too, but it didn't work... because of... that." Fluttershy said, not wanting to say any more than she had to.
"Hmm, so you're immune to Sombra's mind control? That's a good sign." Twilight said, making a note. "And when the crystals were destroyed, Rarity was freed, right?"
"Yes." Fluttershy said, nodding.
"Darling, I don't understand! How could you know all these things?" Rarity said, confusion in her voice. "And why are you immune to his mind control?"
Fluttershy merely backed up and muttered random noises into the floor. Twilight sighed.
"Rarity... Fluttershy..." Twilight began.
"IS A GREAT FRIEND NO MATTER WHAT!" A loud voice yelled, as Pinkie Pie floated through an open window, a large number of balloons tied to her waist.
"Well... of course!" Rarity responded, confusion evident on her face now. "But..."
"I..." from the corner of the room, came Fluttershy's soft voice. "I'm not a pony... I'm a changeling."
Rarity stopped moving, and just stared at Fluttershy. "Hahaha, oh, that's impossible." Rarity said, brushing it off.
Fluttershy suddenly burst into green flames, leaving her in her changeling queen form.
Rarity fainted.
Pinkie Pie looked from the changeling Fluttershy to Rarity and back. "Well, I think you look cool." Pinkie said, shrugging as she floated out a window on the other side of the room.
--
"Hey, Rainbow told me y'all had something important ta tell me." Applejack said, as she entered the Library. Rarity was still a little shocked, but seemed to be trying her best to overcome it. Twilight was writing notes down on what Fluttershy had told her about Sombra and what Trixie had said, and Fluttershy was standing next to Rarity.
"...I take it this is somethin' pretty serious, huh?" Applejack said, closing the door behind her and taking her hat off, holding it in front of her mouth.
Okay Fluttershy, she's the last one, let's just get it over with. "Um, Applejack..." Fluttershy began, before deciding to just take the plunge. She transformed into her Changeling Queen form.
Applejack looked at Fluttershy, surprised. She paused, and then spoke. "Yer a changeling? Huh, never woulda guessed." Applejack said, putting her hat back on.
"W...what?" Fluttershy asked, bewildered. "You... trust me, just like that?"
"Of course." Applejack said, shrugging. "Ya still look like you, even as a changeling. Yer still the same pony I've always known." Applejack smiled. "Besides, I've never heard such a softspoken changeling before."
Fluttershy smiled, and ran up to Applejack. Applejack, why do you always have to be so good and make me look so bad? Rarity thought, sighing. Fluttershy smiled, and hugged Applejack with her newfound magic.
"Ugh, Fluttershy... yer kinda squeezin' me too tight." Applejack muttered from within Fluttershy's green aura as she was pressed to Fluttershy's face.
"Oh, sorry." Fluttershy said, setting Applejack down carefully. Applejack walked over and picked up her hat, which had fallen when she was picked up. She placed it back on her head and smiled.
Twilight smiled. "Why don't we eat together, since we're all here anyway?" Spike ran by, carrying a bowl of salad he had just finished preparing over to a table.
And so, they all happily started to eat, as they talked into the night.
It was late in the evening by the time Fluttershy left the library in high spirits. All her friends had accepted her, and she felt incredibly joyful. She hummed a happy song as she opened the door of her cabin.
However, she noticed quickly that something was different. Namely, the huge hole in the floor, which had a soft green light radiating from it. Nervously, Fluttershy walked over to it, and peered over the edge. A small cavern, lit by that green light, lay there, and she saw something moving around down there.
"H-hello?" Fluttershy quietly said.
A changeling drone wearing a blue wizard hat popped into view. "Oh, hello Queen Fluttershy. Trixie was just remodeling." she said, as she moved something out of sight.
"Under my house?"
"Well, since you are Trixie's queen, this is Trixie's hive now." Trixie responded, matter-of-factly. "Trixie is merely creating a living space."
Fluttershy hopped into the hole lightly, fluttering her wings to slow her descent. In the hole, she saw green pods of goo and glowing dripping slime on the walls. "What do you think?" Trixie asked, smiling expectantly.
Surprisingly, Fluttershy felt rather at home in these alien surroundings. Perhaps it was because she was a changeling. "I don't know why, but I like it..." Fluttershy said, quietly.
Trixie beamed. "Splendid! Trixie is glad she was able to meet with her queen's approval."
"But... what about the animals?" Fluttershy asked, feeling concern about how they'd react to these drastic changes.
"Trixie hasn't noticed any animals making any fuss, so Trixie assumes they don't mind." Trixie said, turning around to move one of the goo pods around, revealing Angel latched to her leg, biting at Trixie's thick exoskeleton.
--
A few hours later, and a quick letter to Applejack, a trapdoor was installed. Trixie was rather nonplussed, but helped build and install it anyway.
"Now this is really somethin'" Applejack remarked to Fluttershy after the door was put in place. "Ta think that Trixie was not only a changeling, but yer changeling." Applejack let out a low whistle. "Life sure is strange sometimes, ya know?"
Applejack tipped her hat, and left, as Fluttershy waved. "Thank you so much!" She called after her.
"Not a problem!" Applejack responded.
Fluttershy went back inside the cabin and closed the door. The animals had all settled down, now that there wasn't a glowing pit in the middle of the floor. Angel glared at it suspiciously, but seemed to have also calmed down.
Fluttershy sighed, and climbed up the stairs to her room, before collapsing on her bed. Though the day ended well, Fluttershy was completely exhausted.
--
Fluttershy was walking down the streets of Ponyville, happily looking around at all the smiling ponies who waved at her. She felt really good!
Suddenly, she stopped, as she felt her forehead tingling. Her horn suddenly appeared, and suddenly, in a burst of green flame, she transformed into her changeling form! She panicked, as the onlooking ponies gasped in horror at the large Changeling Queen standing near them.
The green flames didn't die down even as time continued to pass, they merely continued to increase in intensity...
Then everything was on fire.
--
Fluttershy woke up in her bed, screaming. She looked around, panicked, before slowly realizing that there was no flickering green light out the window, no sounds of screaming ponies. It had just been a dream. Trixie burst into the room. "My Queen!" She yelled, in changeling form, "Are you alright?"
Fluttershy slowly slowed her breathing. "Y-yes, Trixie. It... was just a nightmare." she said, slowly calming down. "I just dreamt I turned into a changeling and... and then everything was on fire."
Trixie paused, looking at Fluttershy, before responding slowly. "Well, Trixie hopes that your nightmare does not keep you awake. Changeling flames do not work like normal fire. Your dream couldn't really happen."
Trixie smiled, and slowly walked out, closing the door behind her as she called "Now go back to sleep, Queen Fluttershy. Trixie will keep you safe."
Fluttershy wished Trixie had been more specific, but she did feel a bit better, and she slowly settled back into her bed.
--
The rest of the night was dreamless, and soon it was morning again. Fluttershy awoke to the sound of birds chirping, and for a moment, all of what had happened was forgotten as she lay there, listening to the birdsong. That illusion was broken as Trixie opened the door. "Good morning, Queen." Trixie said, smiling as she stood at the threshold.
"Oh, good morning, Trixie." Fluttershy responded, everything that had happened returning to her. She slowly got out of her bed, and walked over to the door.
Trixie's wings buzzed as she slowly flew down the staircase in front of Fluttershy, her hooves barely above the staircase. Fluttershy couldn't help but find this a little cute, as this motion strongly reminded her of a hummingbird.
--
The day carried on, as Fluttershy and Trixie took care of the animals together. At first, Trixie had a lot of trouble, as none of the animals trusted her, and she was frankly quite poor at taking care of small animals. With some guidance from Fluttershy, and Angel being in a slightly more forgiving mood than usual, Trixie eventually got a general idea of how to do it.
"Was there EVER any doubt?" Trixie responded, grinning cockily, ignoring Angel latching onto her leg again.
Time passed in this way, until around noon, when there was a knock at the door. Fluttershy stopped trying to coax a group of bunnies out of the little changeling hive and headed over to the door. "Coming!" She called, opening it.
"Howdy!" Applejack said, tipping her hat. "Just came to see how y'all are doin', and how Trixie is settlin' in." She smiled, and gestured at a small basket at her hooves. "Pinkie asked me to bring these over to ya, too."
Fluttershy looked in it and saw a collection of small cupcakes, with an especially thick green frosting, reminiscent of the slime in her mini-hive. "Oh. Thank you, Applejack. We're doing fine here." Fluttershy smiled. "And thank Pinkie for me. Would you like to come in?"
"Sure!" Applejack said, stepping in. "Howdy, Trixie." She tipped her hat at the Changeling, who at that moment was being chased by a group of squirrels. Trixie stopped to respond, only to have a squirrel make a great flying leap and attaching itself to her face.
"Trixie's been doing much better." Fluttershy said, smiling gently.
Applejack watched, chewing on a bit of straw. "If this is better, I don't think I wanna know what happened when y'all started this." She muttered, as Trixie, unable to see, crashed into the wall, dropping a birdhouse onto her head.
--
Eventually, with some assistance from Applejack, Fluttershy managed to get the animals calmed down.
"Trixie requests that she never has to do that again." Trixie said, putting a small bandage on her face where one of the squirrels gnawed on it, managing to crack her carapace.
"I... think that would be for the best, Trixie." Fluttershy said, as she continued to try to coax Angel off Trixie's leg.
"Sheesh, looks like y'all got yer hooves full here." Applejack said, "I was plannin' on headin' back to the farm, but..."
"Oh, don't worry about us, you've already helped a lot." Fluttershy said, tugging at Angel. "Trixie and I will be fine here, you go ahead."
"Well, if ya insist. See y'all later!" Applejack tipped her hat, and then left the cabin.
Fluttershy used this time to take out the cupcakes. She ate one, and found it to be just as delicious as Pinkie's foods usually were.
--
A knock rang out, and Fluttershy walked over to the door, and opened it. Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Applebloom all rushed in, knocking Fluttershy over.
"Alright! Time for the next meeting of the Cutie Mark Crusaders in Fluttershy's House to commence!" Scootaloo yelled, as she rushed past, not even stopping. Fluttershy immediately realized that today was the day she was supposed to be watching them, as Rarity had an appointment with a Canterlot clothing boutique, who a week ago wrote her saying they were interested in stocking her dresses.
Fluttershy looked around, unsure of what to do. The trapdoor was obvious in the middle of the floor, and thankfully at the moment Trixie was down in the hive. "Well, hello girls..." Fluttershy said, quietly, forcing a smile. She had to get them out of the main room, before they found the hive. "Oh, it's such a nice..." She glanced out the window as she spoke, "...evening out there... shouldn't you girls go play outside while the sun is still up?"
The three fillies paid no heed to Fluttershy, and instead continued to run around in the small room, knocking over various things. "Gotcha now, Sweetie Belle!" Applebloom yelled, jumping off the couch and attempting to bellyflop onto Scootaloo, who dodged just in time for Trixie to open the trapdoor under her.
"What in the name of Fluttershy is going on up-" Her question was cut short as her face met Applebloom's stomach. Her head whipped back, and she fell into the small hive, knocked out cold thanks to a combination of her light changeling form and Applebloom's heavier Earth Pony body.
"Whoops, sorry Trixie." She said, getting off the changeling's prone form. "Hey, yer not Trixie..." She said, "What are ya, anyway? Some kinda bug?" She asked, walking around her, before looking up, distracted, before memories of the wedding managed to come to mind. "Whoa, lookit this place! It's all glowy and gooey and stuff!"
The other CMC soon poked their heads down the trap door, and were awed by the sight they saw, as Fluttershy danced around them, muttering things like "Oh dear, it's dangerous down there" and "Applebloom you must apologize to Trixie" and "Ooooooh I knew I should have just stayed in bed today..."
It wasn't long before they had gathered in the small cavern, and started playing around, examining the goo (Tastes like mint), throwing goo-balls at each other, playing with Trixie's hat... It was a great playground for the three fillies, and they did everything they could to try to get their cutie marks, even if it was in 'goo tasting'.
Fluttershy fluttered down once she got the nerve, spotting Trixie lying on the ground. She was torn, wanting to tell the fillies off... but she didn't want to bring attention to the area. The fillies were terrified after the wedding, after all. While her friends might have dealt with it rather easily, the fillies were... well, fillies! Still, she couldn't just leave Trixie unconscious like this. "Girls, it's not safe in here~" She said, in her sing-song 'Please act like my animal friends' voice that she had used before against the CMC.
The fillies looked at each other, then sighed. They really wanted to enjoy themselves a bit longer, but they knew that Fluttershy getting that voice meant that they'd better obey her, since at least once before not paying attention to that voice meant dealing with a cockatrice, so they figured there must be something pretty dangerous down there. Applebloom lightly tossed Trixie's hat, and it fluttered onto the unmoving changeling, blocking her insectoid form before Applebloom could place her familiarity.
The three crawled out of the trapdoor, looking up at Fluttershy as she closed the trap door behind them. "It's not safe down there!" Fluttershy said, as she looked each of them in the eye, making sure they understood. "There are so many sharp rocks down there, you could hurt yourselves!"
"Yes, Fluttershy..." The three intoned in unison, looking a bit mopey about the whole thing.
"That's better, now you three scoot along, before anything baaaaad happens." She said, trying to sound normal, though her voice managed to break as she said 'bad'. The three fillies slunk out the front door.
Fluttershy sighed in relief. She listened as the three fillies talked to each other as they left.
CRASH.
Just as Fluttershy was finally calming down, and moving back towards the trapdoor, Applebloom dove through the window next to the door! "I JUST REMEMBERED!" She proclaimed, loudly, running up to Fluttershy and tackling her, her body fueled with adrenaline and good ol' earth pony magic, her eyes nearly bulging as she looked panicked. "Fluttershy! There was a changelin' down there!" She shouted, "It's gonna eat ya, Fluttershy! We gotta get you out of here!" She said, hopping off the prone pegasus and trying to drag her out the broken window by the ear, before Sweetie Belle returned to open the door.
"Applebloom, just use the door." She said, sighing. Applebloom looked at Sweetie Belle as though she was a genius, before slowly changing direction, dragging the prone Fluttershy across the floor.
Of course, Applebloom was a little filly, so it took all three of them to 'evacuate' Fluttershy from the 'dangerous' house with the 'evil changeling' in it, but they managed to drag her part-way out the door before Fluttershy came to. "Girls! Girls!" She said, looking around at them, and moving a bit to try to flip herself back onto her hooves, before remembering she wasn't a tortoise and just sitting up.
"But Fluttershy!" Applebloom protested. "There's a Changelin' in yer basement! We can get our cutie marks in savin'... aaah, that ain't important right now! We gotta save you even if we don't get any cutie marks!" She said, blushing a bit at her near-selfishness, as she attempted to continue to pull Fluttershy. Fluttershy was now fully aware again, though, so she suddenly felt a lot heavier.
Fluttershy got to her hooves, then looked at the three as they stopped trying to move her and gathered in front of her, confused. "Fluttershy?" Scootaloo asked, cocking her head. "Uh, why are you just standing there? Aren't you worried?"
Fluttershy shook her head. At least this was a good chance... "Girls, I need to tell you something." Fluttershy said, a bit quietly, but stronger than before. She'd already told quite a few ponies, already, after all. "I..."
WHAM. The trapdoor suddenly sprang open, and a very annoyed, very scuffed up Trixie began to crawl out of it, her chitin scuffed, dirty, and even slightly chipped in a few places. "YOU WILL PAY DEARLY FOR THAAAAAT!" Trixie yelled, using her magic to brandish her damaged hat, cuts and rips all over it. "NOPONY HARMS TRIXIE'S HAT AND LIIIIIIIIIIIVES!" She bellowed, charging out of the trap door at the fillies, who all ran, scattering as Trixie yelled at them, chasing them.
---
It was nearly an hour before Trixie returned, looking even worse, and covered in tree sap somehow. "Trixie... does not wish to talk about this." Trixie stated, flatly, passing by her queen. Fluttershy sighed, unsure of what to do.
"Trixie..." She said, speaking up. If she was queen, she needed to at least sometimes prove it, after all. "Trixie." She repeated, and Trixie stopped in her tracks, turning to Fluttershy. Fluttershy sighed, and activated the illusion spell, becoming her Changeling form, as she needed to tower over her a bit more... From this angle, she could almost pass as one of her animal friends, which was just what she needed. Telling off one of her animals friends was much easier than telling off a pony or changeling. "Trixie. You may have just caused me..." She paused, thinking about how to say this.
This was her first time talking as "queen" after all, so she didn't really know what to say. She swallowed, and pulled from the only resource she had. She stamped her hoof. "You have cost my hive dearly, Trixie! We have just lost three ponies who would have been our allies thanks to your temper!" She shouted. Well, she 'shouted', as she was actually speaking at only slightly over her normal level. "Now you will have to face my punishment!" She continued, "You will... um..." Her faux-Chrysalis, kinda-Celestia tone of voice that she was speaking in faltered. "Ummm..."
Trixie at first was rather startled by her queen's sudden change in expression and mood, but then she felt the usual uncertainty radiate off her, and chuckled. "The usual punishment for insubordination is banishment." Trixie stated.
Fluttershy's eyes lit up. "Oh, thank you, Trixie." She said, happy to learn the 'proper' changeling way. "Then in that case!" She returned to her strange half-Chrysalis, half-Celestia tone. "You will have to spend the next half hour in your room!" She said, nodding. "And that's final!" She said, now sounding more like a mother with a rather rambunctious foal.
Trixie merely smiled, and slunk back into the trap door. "Very well, Trixie will see you in half an hour, my Queen." She said.
Fluttershy felt good about this. Finally, she'd managed to stand up for herself and act queenly!
---
That night, she was just getting into bed when she realized something.
Fluttershy slept a dreamless sleep, for the first time in a long time. The combination of the fact that the CMC telling everyone wouldn't be too bad with all her friends backing her up as well as Trixie calming down her nerves regarding the dangers of her transformation meant that for once her mind wasn't buzzing like a changeling hive.
The next day, Trixie walked with Fluttershy through town, disguised as her usual pompous self. The town was peaceful. Evidently, Rarity or somepony else had headed off the Cutie Mark Crusaders before they were able to spread any rumors. "Fluttershy, you need to realize something." Trixie was saying, gesturing around her, "There are -ahem- 'ponies' like us everywhere," she explained.
As they walked, Fluttershy noticed a few of the ponies she knew passing by. Minuette was talking with her friend, Sea Swirl. Meanwhile, flying by were Sassaflash and Parasol, chatting about the most recent gossip from Canterlot.
Trixie turned to Fluttershy, and kept talking. "You see, a lot of us are quite adept at hiding ourselves, but not all of us have the ability of the Great and Powerful Trixie." For some reason, Trixie gestured at Parasol. "Some of us haven't yet been able to do more than just use a familiar form, and alter the colors a little," she said, quietly, to Fluttershy. Fluttershy didn't quite follow, but Trixie kept walking.
"Others are better than that, able to have truly unique forms, such as myself, but they, erm..." Trixie scratched her head as they passed by the school, and Cheerilee's voice could be heard emanating from within, as school was in session, and the warm weather meant the door was kept open. "They aren't quite able to come up with their own unique voice," she said.
Trixie stopped as they reached a large field on the outskirts of Ponyville. Whirling around, she faced Fluttershy. "You aren't alone, no matter where you are. I may be the only one in your hive, but..." Trixie sounded sincere as she spoke, stopping to think her words through carefully. "I'm not the only changeling who can help you if you have problems," she said, obviously not at all used to speaking from the heart like this.
Fluttershy blinked in surprise, then smiled gently at Trixie. "Thank you, Trixie," she said.
The two changelings stood there in the field, neither of them looking particularly buggy at the moment. The wind blew clean, fresh air, the sky was blue, without a cloud in the sky. Fluttershy almost forgot the events of the previous few days as she stared up at a flock of birds flying through the air.
She realized suddenly that birds of different species don't usually flock together like that, and not in such great numbers, unless...
"T-trixie, we might want to leave..." Fluttershy spoke, quietly, as she began to fear the worst. A great number of panicking birds were heading over the two changelings, retreating from something ahead of them. "Something is wrong..."
Trixie had only a few moments to look at Fluttershy with a puzzled expression before the trees at the far edge of the clearing began to crystallize. The natural forms of the trees becoming rigid and jagged. A creeping dread took them as they saw the ground slowly undergoing the same fate, the phenomenon moving like a wave towards them. The wave slowed, then seemed to stop, as it got closer to them.
"D-did it sto-" Fluttershy started to ask, but as she turned to Trixie, she was terrified to see that Trixie looked even more frightened than Fluttershy felt.
Trixie slowly turned her head to look at Fluttershy. "Not again," she said. Her horn glowed, and she suddenly teleported away in a bright green flash.
Fluttershy was left standing in the field, a few hundred feet away from the crystalline ground. Trixie had teleported away with green magic, meaning she was so panicked she hadn't even bothered to keep her magic disguised. Fluttershy moved slowly towards the line where the crystal grass was, and carefully looked at it. It hadn't stopped. It was slowly moving towards her. It would likely reach Ponyville in only a matter of hours if it kept at this pace...
---
"SPARKLE!" yelled Trixie, appearing with a massive green flash in the middle of the library. She had overdone the teleportation spell in her panic, as Spike rushed around, patting out little green fires around the room.
"What in the name of Equestria? Trixie?" Twilight asked, startled from her reading of 'Celestia's Travel Memoirs, Vol. MXVII' "I was just getting to Celestia's visit to Saddl-" she stopped talking as she saw Trixie rush over to her bookcases and start throwing books on the ground, frantically searching for something. "Trixie, what in..." she trailed off, as Trixie gave her a serious glare before returning to her search.
"No... No... NO!" she said, throwing aside book after book. She turned, and rushed over to Twilight. "Sparkle! Where do you keep your books of ancient history?" she said, her eyes bulging with fear.
Twilight stared at Trixie for a moment, then nodded. Trixie's face told her that she didn't have time to argue, she'd have to hear the story afterwards. "Spike, show Trixie to the books on ancient history, I'll finish putting out the fires," she said, and began to move around the room, while Spike moved to a corner of the room.
"Here it-" Spike started to say, as he held up a book, before the book was yanked away from his grasp. "Hey!" he said, watching as Trixie ran over to the table, setting the book on it before frantically flipping through it.
"No... no... Yes! No!" she shouted, first in annoyance, then triumph, then fear as she realized the implications. "Sparkle! We have no time to lose. I'm taking you to Fluttershy," she said, her horn glowing a sickly green.
"Trixie, you're a cha-" Twilight started, before getting cut off by the rush of magic. Spike rushed over to where they were just standing, sighed, and started trying to put out the green fires that had reignited.
---
Fluttershy was now quite far from the line, but felt that she had to keep an eye on it, since nopony else was around. She had retreated so far that she was pressed up against the back of the school building. In front of her, a bright green flash heralded Trixie's arrival. Twilight was with her.
With relief, Fluttershy quickly galloped over to them "T-trixie, thank goodness you came back..." she said.
Twilight stared out at the crystalline landscape ahead of her. "T-trixie..." Twilight said, realizing why Trixie had been so panicked. "A-are those crystals?"
Trixie nodded, and slammed the book down onto the grass, open to a certain page discussing events that took place in the far past. "Trixie has heard of this before. Changeling lore keeps record of things from this time period exceptionally well," she explained, and pointed a hoof at the book. "Long ago, before Equestria, there was a time when power was split between a large number of Princesses," she began to explain. "Each of them had great power, thanks to ancient artifacts they held that allowed them to do immense magic."
"One day, the artifacts were stolen by a great lava monster, who used the combined power of all the artifacts to turn himself and everything else into crystal." Trixie said, and glanced at Twilight, who was open-mouthed. "I see you understand my point, Sparkle." Trixie said. She turned to her other companion. "Queen Fluttershy, the fact that the world itself appears to be turning into crystal means that something with at least as much power as a multitude of princesses is behind this, and I don't think we can stop it."
She paused. "You might be able to do something to stall it, however," she said, and pointed at the book. "While it took the power of all the princess ponies combined to undo the horrible magic, the crystallization itself is a loss of all magic in an area." Trixie said. "If... If you transform into your true form, you would be able to re-energize the area around us, giving us at least a few more days. In that amount of time, we should be able to enlist the help of the princesses, and even some of the other Queens!"
Fluttershy looked at Trixie, unsure of what to do. "B-but, I don't even know how to transform... I've never done it!"
Trixie sighed. The crystallization process was picking up again. "We don't have time for this! Just... picture the hive under your hut! Imagine it's much larger, with hundreds of changelings living in it!" Trixie said, frantically.
"I'll go notify the Princess, Trixie! Fluttershy, I'm counting on you," Twilight said, her horn glowing as she teleported away.
Fluttershy looked nervous, but saw the encroaching crystal. "O-okay," she said. She pictured it in her mind. Hundreds of changelings, all standing to attention in a dark, dimly lit room. There were hundreds of them, all watching Fluttershy, as she stood there, a Queen.
Green flames shot up around her. That's right. She's a Queen. How DARE anything try to subvert her authority! She felt a new emotion fill her. It was a cockiness she'd never known in her life. Even Iron Will hadn't caused this great of a reaction. She was a Queen!
The green flames continued to rise, swelling into towering infernos.
Then, it was done. Fluttershy stood there, now a Changeling Queen. The flames died down. Fluttershy looked around the area, her eyes scanning the ground, as she wore a rather smug expression upon her insectoid visage. Even Trixie hadn't been prepared for the amount of power that Fluttershy must have possessed, as the Changeling Queen who stood before her was a titanic creature, towering over Ponyville like an Ursa Major.
Then, as Fluttershy surveyed the ground at her massive hooves with distant eyes, her horn began to glow. The glow grew brighter and brighter, before becoming a great green flash, which flooded over the entire area.
Fluttershy was standing there when the flare died down. She was still a changeling queen, but a much more appropriately sized one, with a much more normal expression on her face. The land, which was formerly a cold crystal, shone with vibrant life as far as they could see.
Trixie looked at Fluttershy, a look of pure awe on her face. "Queen Fluttershy, you've done it... and I had no idea you had that much power stored up inside you..." She turned to look at the field. "The land is rich with life. This should buy us enough time for us to stop this for good." She was about to say something else, when a sudden noise broke the quiet.
"WHAAAAT WAAAAS THAAAAAAAT?" They heard a tremendous shout come from the direction of downtown Ponyville, as a pink streak shot out of one of the distant buildings, before rushing over to the two changelings. Pinkie Pie landed between them, the ground under her hooves smoking. "I FEEEEEEL GREEEEEAT!!!" she yelled, launching herself back into the air.
Trixie and Fluttershy watched as Pinkie zoomed around the town. "I guess you gave everyone a boost there, Queen Fluttershy." Trixie said, mouth agape.
Fluttershy nodded, but wasn't thinking about anything except what just happened. She had felt so powerful, so superior...
It became apparent very quickly that you can't hide the existence of a titanic changeling for long. Not long after the excitable outburst by Pinkie, who had been indoors and hadn't seen Fluttershy, the ponies that WERE outdoors began discussing what they saw. The changelings among them tried to downplay it, but it was rather difficult to downplay, and so when somepony spotted Fluttershy, still in changeling form, the crowd moved towards her.
Trixie spotted the crowd while her queen continued to be lost in her own thoughts. "Er, Queen Fluttershy...?" she muttered, nudging her firmly with a hoof. "Trixie believes an escape is warranted here..." she said. Fluttershy looked up, spotting the huge crowd...
Unfortunately, she acted as she was wont to do. With a light sheep-like cry, she flopped onto her back, her legs sticking straight up into the air.
She had fainted.
-----
When she awoke, she found herself in a very unusual room. A light shone through tall windows around her, and a large bed, big enough for her to rest in even in her changeling form lay under her. A very tall, very colorfully maned pony stood over the bed, a look of concern on her face.
Seeing Celestia without her regalia on for the first time meant it took Fluttershy quite a bit longer than it should have to recognize the Princess.
When she did, she gave a light "Oh" and immediately fell off the bed in surprise. She got to her chitin-covered hooves and stood up. She was surprised to see that she was looking the Princess in the eye. "Princess Celestia," she spoke quietly, "I don't know why I'm on your bed but I'll just go now..."
Celestia reached out a hoof, and gently laid it on her head. "Fluttershy," the Princess spoke quietly, gently, like a Princess talking to her loyal subject. "I brought you here. You were in quite a bit of danger from an angry mob," she said. "It seems that some of my subjects feel threatened when they see a changeling Queen the size of Ponyville."
Fluttershy looked at Celestia quietly. "B-but, they're right," Fluttershy said, quietly. "I am a big menace... I felt so powerful... like everything was beneath me..." she spoke quietly. "I... I don't want to feel like that anymore."
Celestia responded with a light, gentle chuckle. "Oh, Fluttershy... you -were- a giant... everything -was- beneath you." she couldn't help but tease the young queen. "But you shouldn't be so afraid. You did nothing that isn't truly worth celebrating. All you did was help your friends and your town." Celestia said, a gentle hoof keeping Fluttershy in the bed. "But you did unleash quite a bit of magic. I really think you should rest here for now. You need to recover, even if you are a changeling queen." she says.
Celestia rose to her hooves, and stepped over to the center of the room. "And trust me, I know what it feels like to be so big and powerful. It can be overwhelming, but it won't change you. You'll be the same pony you've always been. Even now."
She paused, before turning back to Fluttershy. "Your friends are defending you, you know. At this moment, they're out there working on convincing everyone that your presence in the town is only beneficial. Rainbow Dash has been especially vocal."
As Fluttershy quietly lay there, she could almost hear Rainbow Dash's loud, brash voice... or rather, she realized, she COULD hear Rainbow Dash. Her words were unclear, but she was likely just outside the castle, and her tone made it clear she was not happy with how some ponies were treating Fluttershy. She could feel a warmth in her heart, a mix of the emotions of the moment, and the consumption of the love being directed towards her, which was strong enough to reach her even in this room.
Fluttershy nodded, looking at Princess Celestia. "Thank you... You're right." she says. "I guess I just... needed to be reassured." she said, her smile reappearing. The kind changeling soon fell asleep, exhausted from the day...
-----
When next she awoke, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were in the room, obviously keeping her company. "Hey, yer awake!" Applejack said, coming over to Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash quickly came over as well, a large grin on her face. "Oh my gosh, Fluttershy, you looked so awesome as a giant queen." Rainbow Dash couldn't help but gush over her friend.
Applejack shot Rainbow Dash a look, but then chuckled lightly. "Well, I can't rightly say I wasn't impressed too, but I figure you don't really wanna hear that right now." the strong earth pony said, putting a reassuring hoof on Fluttershy's body. "Trixie's still getting debriefed, and the crystals haven't returned since yer magic blast, so I think we've got time to relax. Rainbow managed to get the angry ponies to disperse, though I think that might take a bit more time before they really get used to it." Applejack sighed.
Rainbow Dash nodded. "They were such jerks! I woulda kicked 'em clear over Cloudsdale if Applejack hadn't held me back!" Rainbow Dash said, smirking. "But it's good to see you're doing okay, Fluttershy." she said, her voice turning a bit more gentle.
Fluttershy smiled gently, feeling very loved right now. "Thank you so much, you two... if it wasn't for all my friends, I don't know how I could have handled this..." she said, as Applejack lifted her back hoof, revealing a small white bunny latched, teeth first, to her hoof. "Angel!" Fluttershy smiled, as the rabbit leapt from the hoof into Fluttershy's grasp. Even the normally taciturn bunny was feeling quite affectionate right now, it seemed.
"Whoooa, we better calm down all the warm fuzzies here." Rainbow Dash grinned, "Or Miss Sunshine here might explode into a giant again." she teased. Fluttershy responded with a light giggle herself, feeling much better.
-----
A few days passed, with Fluttershy recovering from the incredible magic she used. While her magic stores were quickly replenished, her body needed to recover from swelling to such an immense height, and then dwindling back down to such a small size. The changeling queen was soon reunited with her other friends, and Trixie began spending most of her time in the room. Princess Celestia, meanwhile, had been using the guest room.
Trixie felt like she should be a lot more subservient and obedient to her queen, after seeing her true power, but that just wasn't her style. It wasn't long before Trixie was back to acting like she always did, though with a slight hesitation when she'd imagine the true scale of the power her queen held.
Once Fluttershy was rested and ready to move back to Ponyville, she was escorted by the Princess herself, as well as her friends, to a royal carriage. Fluttershy looked out the window as she sat in the carriage (Which she felt was far too luxurious for a simple pony like her, but she kept that little feeling buried in order to not seem unthankful), and watched as the town grew closer, and she wondered how she'd manage to rebuild her relationships with all those ponies who had been afraid of her.
Whatever she needed to do, she knew she would need her friends' help.
