> The Day the Darkness Died
>  by lunabrony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

*THUD!*

The elongated legs of Queen Chrysalis slammed into the decorative tiles of Canterlot palace, as 
the Matriarch of Darkness gave a victorious laugh.

"It's all over!" She announced with a wicked grin, clearly pleased with herself and how her 
master plan had turned out. In a moment of desperation and completely out of alternatives, 
Twilight Sparkle turned to her brother and his bride to be, who cowered nearby.

"Your spell! Perform your spell!" She urged.

Queen Chrysalis laughed with hysterical disbelief. "Your spell?" She mocked. "What good would 
that do? My Changelings are free, I've already won!"

"No!" Shining Armor demanded, stomping his foreleg down in defiance. He wouldn't let it come to 
that. He absolutely refused to accept that result. Not without one last fight. The migraine in 
his skull was already reaching nearly unbearable levels, but he clenched his teeth despite the 
pain and his horn lit in a fiery fury. But his constant vigilance combined with his weakened 
state had left him unable to perform a defensive aura, and he hung his head in shame.

"I don't have the strength anymore. I can't do it..." He admitted. Hearing this, Cadance 
immediately approached him, and pulled him into an embrace.

"My love will be your strength." She cooed.

Chrysalis made a face of disgust. "What a ridiculously lovely sentiment. Too bad it won't do you any good. 
Any last words?"

Shining Armor glared at her with all the hate he possibly could. His horn glowed once more with 
renewed vigor, coupled with what little strength Cadance could provide. Their horns began to 
spark, leaving their enemy momentarily stunned.

"What is this foolishness?!" She demanded, taking several steps backwards.

The light from the horns of the two equines grew only  brighter and stronger. It pulsed with its 
own supernatural power, even by the standards of Twilight Sparkle. The purple unicorn in 
question backed away, a motion seconded by her friends. All except for Pinkie Pie, of course, 
who simply stood and stared at it. Applejack dragged her backwards by the tail.

"Git back here an quit lookin' at it b'fore ya blind yerself, Pinkie!" Applejack scolded.

The party pony merely snorted off the warning. "But it's so PRETTY!"

Chrysalis was less amused, and sputtered with useless objections. "Stop this! Stop this at 
once!" The light only grew brighter at her protest, until a powerful shock wave of magic burst 
forth. Those with pure hearts were left untouched, but the Queen of Darkness and her army were 
not so lucky. "NO!" She screeched as she was blasted through a nearby window. "I'll get you for 
this, Twilight Sparkle! JUST WAIT!"

Queen Chrysalis was vanquished, her army defeated. All was right in the world of Canterlot, and 
a magnificent banquet followed a beautiful wedding. Order had been restored.

[ONE YEAR LATER]

The town of Ponyville was a peaceful place, although it had its fair share of trouble. Today, 
however, the most troubling thing about it to a particular purple dragon was the large tome that 
Twilight had asked him to retrieve, only to find it out of his reach. He wasn't the number one 
assistant for nothing, however, and was determined to get it. The Library was, as would be 
expected of a Library, completely full of shelves and books. There was a rolling ladder against 
every wall, unneeded by a unicorn of Twilight's ability, but necessary for a baby dragon.

Spike stood on the top rung of the ladder, his claws reaching feverishly for EQUESTRIAN HISTORY 
VOLUME 15. "Are you sure you need THIS one, Twilight?" He called to the unicorn who was studying 
downstairs. Maybe he'd get lucky. Maybe she'd change her mind, or want a different book altogether.

Twilight was surrounded by a pile of novels, several more held in the air by her horn and 
rotating in a slow circle around her head as she read eight of them at once. "Yes! My test is in 
two weeks, and Princess Celestia hasn't told me what it will be on, you know that. Since I don't 
know what book to read, I have to read all of them!" She was about to say more, but was cut off 
by an enormous noise from upstairs. "Spike! What was that?"

The dragon poked his head out of the enormous shelf of books he'd knocked over, holding up his 
prize victoriously. "Nothing, Twilight! Got it! Coming!" Note to self, clean up this mess before Twilight sees it. 
Work for a number one assistant was never done.

Twilight shook her head in wonder, only to be distracted by the doorbell. Spike's voice called from 
upstairs. "I got it!" 

Twilight cut him off. "Never mind, Spike. I got it." She moved to the door, and opened it. "Can I help-" She was cut off by a yellow blur tackling her to the ground. The squeak of embarrassment was immediately recognizable. Twilight just smiled in expectation.

"Hello, Fluttershy. What's gotten you all riled up?"

"Twilight! Oh, gosh, it's terrible, it's horrible, it's awful, just awful!"

The unicorn sighed. "It's going to be very difficult to help you when you're sitting on my face, 
Fluttershy. Slow down. Let me up. What's the problem?"

The pegasus squeaked and quickly removed herself. "Oh! I'm sorry. It's the Changelings, Twilight! They're 
back!"

Twilight was instantly on her hooves, horn flaring with agitation. "Changelings, Fluttershy? Are you sure? Are you ABSOLUTELY sure?"

Fluttershy  nodded meekly. "Uh-huh. One of them was in my house just this morning!"

The unicorn thrust forward, pinning her against the door. "How do I know YOU'RE the real Fluttershy, then?"

At this, between being interrogated and pinned against a door, the yellow pegasus burst into tears. "I don't... I mean... I am... at least I think I am... oh, I never should have left my cottage!" She sniffed. T

Twilight backed off, convinced, and stomped her hoof against the ground. "I'm sorry, I had to ask. Now come on. Let's go get some answers!"
> Part One/Fluttershy 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sun rose slowly over the rolling hills of Equestria, its gentle morning glow met with a chorus of birdsong. Ponies were slowly stirring in their beds all over Ponyville, beginning to get ready for the day ahead. Of course, not everypony was just beginning to wake up. One of those ponies lived in a small cottage near the Everfree Forest, a place of gathering and relaxation for many of the local animals.

The owl had been up all night. Of course it had, it slept during the day. And so an exhausted Fluttershy had taken advantage of the birds nocturnal cycle to fix a sprained wing, which had been stretched out for the better part of an hour as she applied a splint.

"Oh, Sir Hootington, I just don't know how you managed to fly into that tree. You're supposed to watch where you're going." She scolded.

"Hoo?" The bird responded.

"You, mister!" Fluttershy scolded.

"Hoo?"

The pegasus had just about had quite enough of that. "We're not playing this game again. Now you're going right to bed and you're not to use that wing until I say so." She demanded, and took to the air, her wings flapping gently as she examined all the other birds in her aviary. The rising sun cast its soft glow upon the cottage, and the birds responded in kind, as they had been trained to do.

"Ah-ah-ah-ah-ahhhh!" A pair of canaries sang.

Fluttershy squeed. "Ah-ah-ah-ahhhh-ah!" She sang right back. She winced noticeably as Angel delivered a swift kick to her foreleg. Breakfast wasn't for another fifteen minutes, but he wanted it now.

"What is it, Angel?" She asked. The bunny pointed to his empty bowl. Fluttershy gasped. "Oh, gosh, I completely forgot to get more lettuce leaves! I'll be right back, I promise!" The market should just be opening for the day, she should be able to get there and back within half an hour. The yellow pegasus bolted out of her cottage and down the path. "Oh, I knew I shouldn't have gone outside today. Just need to get a few things, and I'll be home again." She made her way up to one of the produce vendors upon reaching the market. "Two heads of lettuce, a bag of tomatoes, three turnips, and a... a mango, please." She squeaked.

The vendor smiled and began to put everything in a basket. "Sure enough, six bits for the lot."

Fluttershy squeaked. "But... but... it was five bits last week... and I only brought five..."

The vendor shrugged apologetically. "Sorry, miss. Prices went up. Not my doing of course, had some hard times over in Coltifornia this winter."

Ears pinned down, Fluttershys voice lowered to a dull whisper. "Oh. Okay. Only one head of lettuce then. I'm just going to have to do without."

The vendor handed over the basket, which the pegasus bit into. 

"I say, what's going on over there? Watch out, now!" The vendor exclaimed.

Fluttershy backed up instinctively, only to be nearly overrun by Applejack, who galloped past as quickly as if she was on fire, chasing a terrified blue pegasus. 

"Howdy Fluttershy! Can't talk now, got a varmint tah catch!" In moments, she was gone around the corner. Fluttershy didn't like the look of that. 

"Hi, App- oh... okay..."

Slightly frightened, she returned to her cottage. Fluttershy was content there, if a bit confused, and continued her preparations for feeding her animals. Angel was fed first, as he didn't like to be kept waiting. It took her almost two hours to prepare and feed her animals, but she enjoyed doing it. "There! Almost all done! Only three otters left!" She exclaimed proudly, placing cans of processed fish down for the mammals she had counted many times before. She counted as she placed each animals breakfast down, it calmed her nerves. "There. One, two, three... four!?" She was absolutely confused again now. "Oh, gosh, where'd YOU come from?" She didn't mind new animals visiting, but she certainly preferred to know about it beforehoof.

The fourth otter shimmered, something was not quite right about it. Fluttershy poked its nose very gently with her hoof. "Are you alright? I... oh!"

The shimmering intensified, and the creatures brown fur rapidly turned black. Its flesh rapidly deteriorated, leaving large gaping holes where skin and fur had once been. Most of its features disappeared altogether, while more prominent fangs curved downward from its snout. Fluttershy had seen such a creature before, even if it had been quite a while ago. She'd hoped she'd never see one again.

"Oh... no... nonononono..." She backed up, staring into the abominations enormous blue eyes. The Changeling waved its front hooves frantically, trying to get her to calm down. They couldn't speak of course, which caused many moments of consternation.

"What to do... what to do... Twilight! I have to tell Twilight!" She grabbed a bucket from her shelf and flew up over the Changelings head.

"Hey.. um... mister Changeling? I need you to be unconscious for a little while, um, if that's okay..." The Changeling looked up stupidly. Looking away in fear, Fluttershy summoned all her strength to slam the bucket down on the creatures head. She poked at it to be sure it wasn't going anywhere, and raced as fast as she could to Twilight's Library, to bring the unicorn up to date on what had happened. Fluttershy didn't like the thought of Changelings in Ponyville. No, that wouldn't do at all.

Upon ringing the doorbell of the Library, Fluttershy found herself in hysterics, and promptly fell upon Twilight's face. Upon being removed, she was interrogated, which only sent her further into tears. Twilight demanded to know if Fluttershy was a Changeling herself.

"I don't... I mean... I'm not... at least I think I'm not... but what if I am?!... Oh, I never should have left my cottage!" Fluttershy whimpered. Twilight backed off, convinced, and stomped her hoof against the ground. "I'm sorry, I had to ask. Now come on. Let's go get some answers!"

It took a bit to calm Fluttershy down, but once Twilight had told Spike to watch the Library for her, the pair quickly made their way back to the cottage. En route, they were quite suddenly and nearly smashed to the ground by a red wagon which had come barreling down the crest of a nearby hill. There was nopony on it, and the cart veered off into the bushes where it finally came to rest.

Twilight had cast an aura around herself and Fluttershy to protect them, but seeing the danger passed, the shield was dropped. She scratched her head in amazement. "Where in Canterlot did that come from?" She sighed. 

Fluttershy was worked up again. "Can we just get this awful meanie head out of my house, please?" She asked, cowering by the door. Twilight nodded.

"Of course. Stand back."

Fluttershy didn't need to be told twice, and stood aside as Twilight charged through the door. The bucket lay abandoned on the floor, no sign of the Changeling. Twilight immediately assumed a serious tone. "Fluttershy, take inventory of all your animals. Let me know if you see anything unusual."

"Right." Fluttershy disappeared into the back room.

Twilight narrowed her eyes, glancing out the window. Almost noon. Changelings didn't necessarily mean danger, but it certainly wasn't a good omen.

She wanted answers, and she had all day to get them.
> Morning/The Crusaders 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sun was just beginning to rise over Equestria. Somewhere in a Castle far, far away, Princess Celestia was performing the same duties she'd been serving for centuries, and bringing morning to the land. Similarly, as the last glimpse of the moon disappeared beneath the trees, the Princess of the Night was retiring for the day.

Near the outskirts of Ponyville, a large tree house sat perfectly (and safely!) balanced in the branches of a tree. Well of course it did, where else would one find a tree house? Inside its painted walls lay two fillies, huddled together in blankets. The previous nights sleepover had worn them both out. The white and purple filly was nearly completely hidden beneath piles of decorative and fashionably designed fabric, while the orange filly had barely a pillow and sleeping bag, which she was sleeping in completely backwards. Her bare flank and purple tail lay sticking out of the top of the bag, snoring coming from deep within.

Their sleep was short lived, however, as a third red and yellow filly burst through the door, banging on a metallic triangle.
"Git up, git up, git up!" She sang, much to the annoyance of the other two. "Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, it's time fer another day of Crusadin'!"

Scootaloo refused to emerge from her cocoon, Sweetie Belle threw a pillow at the newcomer, who promptly ducked. "Apple Bloom, what time is it? It's barely 7!"

"Ah know! That's what y'get fer workin on a farm! Ah shoulda been awake five hours ago!" She declared.

It took quite some encouragement, but the trio were eventually roused from their sleep. 

"Come on! It's a full day, and it's not scheduled to rain until the weekend!" It was Sweetie Belle this time who drove the encouragement, and the three were soon huddled around a table. They spoke over one another so often, it was difficult to tell who was speaking.

"What are we gonna do this time?"
"We could be candle makers!"
"We did that last week."
"Acupuncturists?"
"We did that yesterday, AND they asked us not to come back again."

All three were silent for a moment, deep in thought, before Apple Bloom announced.
"Ah know! Cutie Mark Crusaders Time Travelers!"
"Yeah!"
"Cool!"

Further plans were disrupted by the sudden crashing in of the ceiling. Scootaloo screamed. Apple Bloom gasped. Sweetie Belle shrieked. A strange creature had smashed through the ceiling, and landed upon their table. The trio stared at it, completely confused, as they had not been allowed to know about the events of the Changelings the first time around. Even having performed as Flower Fillies at the wedding, lengthy measures had been taken to ensure their safety.

Scootaloo poked at it with a stick. "Is it dead?"
Sweetie Belle shook her head. "I think it's cheese, cheese can't be dead."
"It can't be cheese, it's breathing."
Apple Bloom pointed out the obvious. "More importantly, it's a blank flank!"
Sweetie Belle gasped. "Apple Bloom! That's not nice!"
"Ah ain't wrong, it is!"

The Changeling slowly awoke, and quickly shot to its hooves, finding itself surrounded. Sweetie Belle quickly affirmed their innocence. "Don't worry, cheesey pony! We're not gonna hurt you! We're the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" The Changeling seemed relieved. "We were just about to get out Cutie Marks in time traveling, wanna come?" Their new friend nodded eagerly.

A half hour later, at the top of the highest hill in Ponyville, the three fillies strapped themselves into helmets, climbing into Scootaloo's bright red wagon alongside the Changeling, who'd been more than happy to come.. "Are y'all sure about this?" Apple Bloom asked. Scootaloo waved it off. "This is fine, you're talkin' to a speed expert here! We just gotta break the sound barrier, and WHAM! Time travel." Sweetie Belle frowned. "I don't think it works like- YEEP!"

Scootaloo had pushed off the hill, and the wagon picked up speed almost instantly. All four of its occupants held on for their lives. "Aren't we gonna hit the town?" Apple Bloom asked worriedly. Scootaloo snorted. "Relax, we'll be in the future by then!"

The wagon continued to go faster and faster, as they came ever more dangerously close to Ponyville. Apple Bloom shouted over the noise. "We ain't gonna make it! We need to bail!" 

Sweetie Belle was near tears. "At this speed!? We'll be flattened!"

The Changelings wings buzzed, and it grabbed all three of them, wings pounding the air as hard as it possibly could. It lifted the fillies into the air, but could only hover for a few seconds carrying such weight, and all four tumbled into the grass. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle immediately tackled the Changeling with hugs, showering it with thanks. "Ah think we should probably never do that again." Apple Bloom offered. Sweetie Belle was quick to agree. "That sounds like a great, SAFE idea."

The wagon, meanwhile, shot off into town, barreling straight for the library. "LOOK OUT!" Sweetie Belle screamed, and covered her eyes. "Oh, I can't watch." Apple Bloom and Scootaloo peeked out from behind their own hooves, as the wagon came closer and closer to Fluttershy and Twilight, who'd been standing outside the door. Twilights horn flared, and a purple aura shot up around herself and Fluttershy. It was unnecessary, however, as the wagon veered off into some bushes.

"Oh, thank Celestia." Scootaloo breathed. "Something terrible could have happened to my wagon."
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle glared at her. "Seriously?" The latter asked.
"Go get your wagon and bring it back to us, we'll take the cheese pony to Rainbow Dash, she knows everything, I bet she knows all sorts of things about it!"

Scootaloo protested. "But that's a long way to carry a wagon!"
"Well you could fly it back, oh wait, you can't." Scootaloo gasped. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and the Changeling made a run for it. The wagon was forgotten, as an angry filly gave chase. "COME BACK HERE AND SAY THAT AGAIN!"

All three were laughing within moments as they took course to find Rainbow Dash.
> Morning/Rarity 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rarity would have loved to sleep in, beauty sleep was desirable for a pony of her brilliance. She was deep in slumber, dreaming of the perfect marriage with the perfect stallion, one who would cater to a lady and be respectful of both her looks and talents. However, with the rising of the morning sun, her favored pet had other plans. Opalescence, a finicky feline of purebred heritage, rubbed her face against that of her owners. 

Rarity mumbled, barely awakened. "Five more minutes, Sweetie..."

Opal, seeing that primitive measures were not working, arched her back and hissed, her claws digging into the fashionistas foreleg. 

Rarity sprung awake, the soothing slices of cucumber falling from her nightly facial mask. "Goodness! I'm up, I'm up!" Opal looked pleased with herself, and Rarity stumbled out of bed. "Would it be too much to ask to sleep in once in a while, darling?"

"Mow." Was Opal's response.

"I thought as much." Rarity made her way to the kitchen in the back of the lower level of the Boutique she cared so much for. "We really need a servant to do these things. Or Sweetie Belle. Or a robotic Sweetie Belle." She blinked at the thought, and burst into laughter. "A robotic Sweetie Belle, as if THAT would ever catch on." The cat was fed, and Opal was distracted enough for Rarity to move to her cleaning station, to remove her facial. Upon completion, she moved to her workroom, where several of the ponyquins she'd been working on the night before lay dormant. Her attention, however, was not upon them, but  upon the pampered cat sleeping atop the nearest one.

"What..." She slowly approached it. "But... I just... you were..." She poked at the cat hesitantly. "Opal?"

The cat opened its bright blue eyes. Rarity stared in confusion. "What..." The cat sat up, its body shimmering. Like a ripple in a lake, it assumed a form known all too well to the fashionista.

"Oh, no, no, not again." She whispered.

The Changeling did not attack, however, and simply sat up, staring at her. Rarity narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Are you going to be trouble?" She asked firmly.

The Changeling shook its head.

The Element of Generosity stared at it for a good long while, then finally relaxed. Opportunity before Opposition, that was as good a philosophy as any. "Good, then you can help me. Sweetie Belle is off on a sleepover with her little friends, and I need a model. You'll do!"

Her guest protested, but was quickly being fitted for a filly sized dress. "You want to prove yourself, you'll help me. Otherwise, you and I are going to have a confrontation." The Changeling relented in defeat. Rarity looked at work, and hesitated. "Still something not quite right, wait here." She left the room to pick up her phone. It was a large clunky thing, and very expensive. But most businesses had them, even if they weren't used all that much in favor of regular mail. Rarity, however, despised the mail system, partly due to the pegasus mailmare's tendency to always get the mail mixed up.

A babbling nonsensical gurgle met her ears on the other end after several rings. "Akka!"

Rarity sighed. "I'm afraid I'm not in a position for shenanigans, Pound Cake. Put your father on." It didn't seem to occur to her that the foal had no idea what she was saying.

The response was equally distorted. "Ibabwa!" The phone quickly changed hooves. "Sorry, Rarity. He's a bit faster than I am. What can I help you with?"

"Is Pinkie available?"

"I believe so, she's downstairs making cupcakes with the missus, as usual. I don't know where she puts it all." Mr. Cake said cheerfully.

Rarity hesitated. "Rainbow Dash wasn't around earlier, was she?"

"Not that I know of, why?"

"No reason.  Just an unsettling dream I had once. Would you please tell her to come over immediately?"

"I'll do just that, she'll be over shortly. Is it a matter of urgency?"

"Yes, it is, in fact. Thank you, darling." Rarity hung up, and returned to the workroom, where the Changeling was still waiting patiently. A measuring tape and ruler floated into the air. "You'll be just the model I need for-"

Pinkie slid through the door, scaring the daylights out of the poor unicorn. "HI RARITY!"

"Agh!" The measuring devices clattered to the floor, Rarity clutched her chest. "But... how did you... I JUST called..."

Pinkie snorted. "I know! Sorry I'm late! I used the chimney!"

Rarity stared. "The... never mind. We have a problem." She stepped aside, where the Changeling stood awkwardly in the half finished dress.

Pinkie's eyes went wide. "Whoa! That's a doozy of a problem, alright!"

"Thank goodness you understand. You see what I mean?" Rarity asked.

"I sure do! You're using a back-stitch instead of a cross-stitch, silly!" Pinkie said cheerfully.

Rarity rubbed her horn with a foreleg. "That is NOT the issue, Pinkie. I was referring to, you know, the Changeling wearing it?"

Pinkie gigglesnorted. "Ooooooh. That's not a problem. That's Jeffrey."

"....What."

Pinkie tilted her head, as if Rarity had just asked her why two plus seven equals chair. "Doesn't he look like a Jeffrey? Or maybe more of a Simon."

Rarity sighed. This was going nowhere fast. "The things name is not a matter of importance."

The party pony looked stunned. "Of course it is. If you don't have a name, then who are you?"

"Um... nopony?"

"Exactarundo! And since this Changeling is here, its obviously somepony, which means its not nopony, and if its not nopony, its got to have a name! Easy-peasy!"

Rarity facehooved. "But what do we DO with it?"

Pinkie faltered. "Oh. Why didn't you just say so? Well Jeffrey is already helping, so if he doesn't cause trouble, why not keep him around?"

"I suppose. But we absolutely must keep an eye on him."

"Well, duh. If nopony is watching him, how do we know he's there?"

Rarity facehooved again. This was going to be a long day.
> Morning/Applejack 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Life on the farm was never easy. It took a lot of work to run one, and the Apple Family was fortunate enough to have a lot of able bodied ponies willing to help. Unfortunately, they were short-hooved today.

The sun wasn't even up yet, dawn wasn't for another hour. But Applejack was already up and about alongside PInkie Pie, doing  her typical morning inspection of the farm. Pinkie was not usually up at this hour, but she was still coming off of a late night rave hosted by Vinyl Scratch herself.

Pinkie yawned, which caused Applejack to give a warm, knowing smile. "Wassa matter there, Sugarcube? Ain't tired already, are ya? Day hasn't even started yet."

The party pony sneezed, and a flurry of confetti burst out of her ears. "Tired? ME? Never! I'll just drink some coffee, and I'll be bouncing off the walls in no time!" She said confidently. Applejack shuddered.

"Ah'd hate tah be in the way of YOU on caffeine, Pinkie." She said.

"Why?" Came the innocent response.

"Oh, never you mind." Their walk took them back full circle around the entrance to the farm, by which time the sun was starting to appear in the sky. "Ah really do appreciate yer helpin' out, Pinkie. Apple Bloom is off on a sleepover, so she ain't around tah help this mornin'." She led her friend inside. "How bout some breakfast b'fore we get started? We got fruit salad, apple cinammon pie, oatmeal-" The rest of the list was cut off by Pinkie's gasp.

"Oatmeal? Are you CRAZY?" Pinkie sputtered. "Never!"

"Y'all never did tell me why y'hate oatmeal, come tah think of it."

Pinkie snorted. "Oh, that's easy! I- oh! Butterfly!" She gasped, and raced after it. "Wait! Come back!"

Applejack hollered after her. "Be back in an hour, we got work tah do!" She didn't like the thought of Pinkie on an empty stomach, but one didn't exactly tell Pinkie what to do. She did whatever she felt like. Applejack only had her for a few hours anyway, as Pinkie had promised Mrs. Cake she'd help bake cupcakes for the afternoon lunch rush over at the bakery. The farm pony shook her head, and passed her brother, already hitched to his harness and preparing to plow the field. 

"G'mornin', Macintosh. Lovely day, ain't it?"
"Eeyup." Came the baritone reply.
"Do y'all EVER take that thing off?"
"Nnnope." He went on his way towards the field.

Applejack shook her head. "Nice talkin' ta to you too." She said sarcastically, and pushed open the door to the shed, and stopped dead in her tracks. She blinked several times to convince herself she wasn't seeing things, and proceeded to poke at the Changeling sleeping on the floor with a stick. As a precaution, she grabbed her rope from its peg on the wall and attached it to the side of her work saddle. She was on the defensive almost instantly as the thing woke up and sprang to its hooves.

"Y'all got exactly five seconds tah tell me what yer doin' here b'fore we play a little game of rodeo."

The Changeling just sat there. They'd never been big conversationalists. Made Macintosh look like a Mockingjay by comparison. "Time's up. Y'all better git tah runnin'. Ah ain't got time fer shenanigans." The Changeling bolted down the path, squeaking in protest, and Applejack took chase. As they neared the town, Applejack only a few paces behind the frightened shape shifter, the Changeling put up a defensive. Changing first into a green unicorn, then a blue pegasus, it barreled around the bend which branched off towards the market square. Fluttershy was trying to buy a head of lettuce, and it didn't appear things were going in her favor.

Fluttershy lifted her hoof to wave, but Applejack just kept running. "Can't talk now, Fluttershy! Got a varmint tah catch!" She shouted in apology, and disappeared around the corner. Poor Fluttershy just looked Flabbergasted.

Once on the other side of town, a path stretched up into the hills. Her keen eyes picked up minute details, the Crusaders running towards town with what astonishingly appeared to be yet another Changeling in tow. Note to self, thank them later, she thought. Conveniently, she also spotted a multicolored tail hanging over the edge of a low hanging cloud. Oh, this wasn't going to be pretty.

"RAINBOW DASH!" She screamed.

The tail twitched. There was no response. Trying to wake up Rainbow Dash was about as safe as trying to invite a Timberwolf to a tea party.

"RAINBOW! WAKE UP!"

"Huz-wha? This better be good..." The speedster muttered.

"Changelings! Round 'em up!" Applejack yelled.

Rainbow Dash woke up immediately, and a blur of blue filled the sky. She sped towards the pegasus running from Applejack, and yanked it off the ground. The changeling with the Crusaders met a similar fate, and with a whirl of her trusty rope, the farm pony had 'em both hogtied together. Her and Rainbow on one side, the Crusaders on the other. 

"Well that's one heck of a wake-up call." Rainbow Dash muttered. "What are they doing here? Can I beat 'em up? Please?" She sprang onto her back legs, her forelegs giving the air a heavy one-two punch.

"An excellent question," Applejack replied. "And no, we ain't beatin' nopony yet, so put down yer dukes. But First we get these varmints off th' street. Let's take 'em to Twilight. She'll know what tah do." She looked over at the Crusaders. "You three head on back tah th'farm, s'not safe with these things out here. Go get yer Cutie Marks in weed pullin' or somethin'. And STAY OUTTA MAH SHED!" She called as they ran off. "Ah got dangerous equipment in there!"

Applejack and Rainbow Dash, meanwhile, each grabbed a Changeling, neither of which seemed very happy about their situation, and started hauling them back towards the Library. Maybe they'd finally get answers.
> Morning/Pinkie 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Oatmeal. Pinkie thought it was a very unusual breakfast choice indeed. It wasn't that she hated it, she found it very difficult to hate things. But she certainly wasn't about to go out of her way to eat it. And here Applejack actually wanted to eat some.

Pinkie gasped at the very idea as soon as it was suggested. "Oatmeal? Are you crazy?!"

Applejack just shook her head. "Y'all never did tell me why y'hate oatmeal, come tah think of it."

"Oh, that's easy!" Pinkie explained. "It all started when I was just a little filly. I- oh!" Her eyes locked onto a butterfly whom had been woken up by the warm morning air, and immediately proceeded to chase after it. Applejack's voice called after her, but her mind was completely elsewhere. Pinkie bounced along the path, following the insect for a good quarter mile until she tired of it. She'd never catch the butterfly anyway, they were simply too unpredictable. Pinkie yawned and turned around, setting course for the bakery. She still had work to do on the Apple Farm, but maybe she could squeeze in some sweets.

When she arrived at the bakery, Mrs. Cake waved to her. "Oh, good, you're back, Pinkie! Macintosh just called, something came up at the farm and you've been relieved of chores for the day. Which means we can get an early start on those cupcakes!" She said delightedly. "Would you be a dear and start the first batch? I don't know what you do to them, but yours are always spectacular."

"Macintosh called? Huh, he must be a chatterbox today." At the mention of cupcakes, Pinkie, of course, sprang into the air with anticipation. "Oh boy! I'll get right on it!" She dove into the kitchen, and began singing her own musical concoction to pass the time. "All you gotta do is take a cup of flour, add it to the mix..."

Mrs. Cake coughed. She'd heard the song a hundred times before. Everypony had. "Pinkie, dear, perhaps we could do without the singing this morning? Or at the very least a new song?"

The party pony was unphased, and already had a large vat of batter going. She worked unnaturally fast, nopony had been able to explain it, but then again, nopony complained about her efficiency either. "Alright." She said calmly, pouring the batter into tins.

Mrs. Cake smiled with relief. "Thank you, dear." Her ears perked up. "Oh, that'd be the phone. Be right back." 

Before she could move, however, Mr. Cake's voice called from the other room. "I got it!"

Pinkie went back to her baking, and soon had batter filled tins in the oven. She heard annoyed voices from the other room. "Pound Cake, no, give daddy the phone. No. Pound, GIVE, it, thank you! Hello? Oh, hello Rarity."

Pinkie's mind drifted as she watched the lumpy batter slowly rise in their beds. She never could keep her mind on one thing for very long, especially when confectioneries were involved. Her nose and hooves pressed up against the fireproof pane, drool dripping from her lips. "Cupcakes..." She whispered, in a world of her own.

"....ie? Pinkie!" Mr. Cakes voice snapped her back to reality.

"Yes?" The mare called.

"Rarity would you like to come to the Boutique immediately. It sounded urgent."

"Oki Doki Loki!" She called, and sprang into an action. She pulled down a jar from the shelf, plainly marked "FOAL POWDER." The party pony threw a hoof-full of it into the fireplace, and jumped into the flames with an announcement of "Carousel Boutique!"

A moment later, mere seconds after having gotten the phone call, Pinkie slid in through the door. "HI RARITY!" She announced. Rarity jumped several feet in the air. "But... how did you... I JUST called..."

Pinkie snorted, she had her secrets. "I know! Sorry I'm late! I used the chimney!"

The next hour or so was a blur of activity, in which Pinkie was introduced to the Changeling inhabiting the Boutique, who unsurprisingly was already dressed in the frilliest gown Pinkie had ever seen.

"Well duh, if nopony is watching him, how do we know he's there?"  Pinkie finished her logical response to Rarity's comparably very silly question.

Rarity facehooved. "Never mind, dear. Would you kindly help me carry this brute to Twilight's library? Normally I'd just drag it, but this is a very fine fabric and it absolutely MUST not touch the ground. I think that's our most appropriate option right now, Twilight always knows what to do in these situations. Pinkie nodded again. "Oki Doki Loki!" She balanced the Changeling on her back, whose movement was still restricted by the dress it was wearing, and the two set out towards the Library. Although the Changeling was not tied up, it did not give up much of a fight upon being taken elsewhere. 

It took almost half an hour to make the ten minute walk, as Pinkie's distractable nature kept interfering. By the time Rarity pushed open the door to the Library, they were surprised to find Applejack and Rainbow Dash already present, with two more Changelings tied up with ropes.

"You too, huh?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Indeed." Came Rarity's reply.

"So what do we do now?" asked Pinkie.

"Now, we play th' waitin' game." Applejack responded. This sounded like a fantastic idea to Pinkie.

"Oh! Oh! I like games!" She exclaimed.

All three of her friends just smiled and shook their heads. "What?" Pinkie asked.

Rarity smiled. "Nothing, darling, just keep on being yourself."

"Why wouldn't I be myself? Who else would I be? Oh! Let me be Trixie!" She puffed herself up, taking on a very serious face. "The Great and Powerful Pinkie demands balloons! Bring Pinkie balloons, so Pinkie can show you all how much better she is than you!"

Rainbow Dash cracked up with laughter, soon followed by the others.
> Morning/Derpy 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

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> Morning/Rainbow Dash 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The air was filled with the sounds of cheering ponies. Hurtling down a steep hill was a massive boulder, which just so happened to be on fire. Racing down an equally steep hill on the other side was a three headed dragon, each set of its massive jaws snapping more dangerously by the minute.

In the middle of these two things, sat a foal carriage, cradled in which was a very upset infant Discord. The baby draconequus wailed with fear and anticipation, wondering which of the two objects would cause his untimely demise first. Or would they?

A bolt of blue shot down from the clouds, seemingly flying at hundreds of miles an hour. She flew like a streak from the stratosphere, a sonic rainboom pulsating from within the clouds. Then a second, then a third. Although nopony else could hear it, she was singing her own theme song.

"With a bit of a mind flip,
You're into the time slip!
Nothing can ever be the same!
You're spaced out on sensation,
like you're under sedation!
LET'S DO THE TIME WARP AGAIN!" 

She pulled up at the last minute, missing the ground by inches. "AW, YEAH!"

Spectators were pointing upward and flashing cameras in every direction. Children balanced on their parents backs as if the Princess herself was making an appearance.

"Wow, look at that!"
"A triple rainboom!"
"She really IS the most amazing pony in Equestria!"

Rainbow smirked. Of course she was, this was not news. She landed between the two deadly objects with a force that gave off a shockwave, and spread her wings. 

*CRASH!*

The dragon and fiery  boulder smashed into her wings at the same time, both objects exploding into her wings with deadly force, but they were no match for her incredible wing power! The boulder and dragon burst into a shower of gold coins which fell from the sky.

The Wonderbolts themselves approached her, with awe in their eyes. "Rainbow Dash, that was amazing! We'd offer to let you join us, but you're just too cool for us! You'd make us all look bad."

Rainbow waved it off. "Aw, geez, it was nothing. All in a days work. I'm just doing what any other super amazing pony with my talents would do."

"I know, I know!" Spitfire insisted. "We can start a whole NEW division, we'll call it the RainbowBolts! Three cheers for Rainbow Dash, the most spectacular and truly awesome pony in Equestria!" The crowd took up the cheer almost instantly.

"Rainbow Dash!'
"Rainbow Dash!"
"RAINBOW DASH!"

The eyes of the pegsaus flew open. "Huz-wah?"

"RAINBOW DASH!" That wasn't the Wonderbolts. It was Applejack. Rainbow peered over the edge of the cloud, annoyed. "This better be good." She muttered. 

Applejack pointed unquestioningly to a familiar creature held both by the Crusaders and one by Applejack herself. They were no challenge for the speedster. She zoomed around the creature A.J. held, and plucked it from her hooves. Same deal from the Crusaders, who protested that it wasn't hurting anything. 
"Yeah, that's just what it WANTS you to think." Dash whispered to them, and plunked both Changelings down on the ground where they were swiftly tied. She tried to punch one of them, but was held back by Applejack. "Aw, come on, lemme beat em up! Please?" Dash protested. She had fire in her eyes.

Applejack denied the request, and the two quickly set a course for the Library, which was opened using Twilight's spare key. "Isn't the egghead here? She's ALWAYS here." Rainbow complained, setting the Changelings in the center of the rug. 

Applejack shrugged. "Ah think she was goin' tah help Fluttershy with somethin'." She said calmly. They waited for a while, but nothing seemed to happen. Rainbow Dash was getting impatient, and headed for the door, only to narrowly avoid being smacked in the face as it swung open. She threw her hooves up, expecting a fight, but put them down when she recognized Rarity instead. 

"You too, huh?" Rainbow Dash asked, noting the Changeling the pair was carrying, which was quickly deposited by its friends, who, despite the circumstances, seemed rather happy to be reunited, and looked around as if expecting one more. But there weren't anymore. Not here, anyway.

"Indeed." Rarity said, as elegantly as she always did.

"So what do we do now?" asked Pinkie, who would likely bust out the party cannon if asked.

"Now, we play th'waitin' game." Applejack, always the logical one.

"Oh! Oh! I like games! Wait here! I'll go get Maneopoly!" She said, and rushed into the closet, only to Rarity's disgust. 

"I suppose I will involve myself in some entertainment, as long as you don't make me be that AWFUL tacky hat again, that thing needs to be burned at once."

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, and the game commenced, every so often one of the friends would look up expectantly at the door.

Pinkie put her piece down in the middle of the Everfree Forest, and picked up a card. "Lost deep in the Forest, your friends desert you. Get turned to stone for three turns. Awwww..." Her ears flattened, and her mane deflated.

"She's bound to be back sometime." Applejack said encouragingly.

"Indeed she is." Rarity agreed. "And then we can get this whole mess sorted out and I can go back to my perfectly pristine environment instead of this dusty old cabinet."'

Applejack shushed her. "Hush now, y'all. Ah think ah hear somepony comin'. Be ready in case it ain't friendly. S'dangerous tah have all these Changelings in one place. Bad voodoo, n'all." All four ponies leaned forward, on their guard, watching the door expectantly.

Just then, the door cracked open.
> Morning/Twilight 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight Sparkle was not having a good day. There had been so many things she'd wanted to get done today, all carefully organized on a very large scroll  that Spike had dictated for her. Although gone were the days that she considered her work and studies more important than friends, she was still a notoriously hopeless workaholic.

All that had changed when Fluttershy appeared at her door.

Through no small series of events, the terrified pegasus had appeared at her door and insisted that Changelings were in her cottage. Twilight had since returned to said cottage with her, intending to get to the bottom of this.

"Can we just get this meanie head out of my head, place?' Her yellow friend squeaked.

"Of course. Stand back."

"Oh!" Fluttershy slipped around to cower behind Twilight. "Be care-"

Twilight charged through the door, horn a blaze with magic, looking around suspiciously.

"Fluttershy, take inventory of all your animals, let me know if you see anything unusual." She ordered.

"Right." Taking to the skies, Fluttershy disappeared into the back. Twilight slowly stepped further into the room, her foreleg  kicking a large metallic bucket. She frowned. She didn't like seeing things where they weren't supposed to be, it made her twitch. "Fluttershy, why is there a bucket on the ground?"

"Oh!" The pegasus called. "Well I didn't want the Changeling hurting my animals so I asked it very nicely if it could be unconscious until I got you." She explained.

Twilight facehooved. "You knocked it unconscious with a bucket."

"Um...  yeah." Came the squeak.

A small clatter came from the closest, Twilight immediately whirled around and approached it, horn glowing. She flung open the door, only to find...

"...Spike?" She asked in confusion.

The little dragon waved to her.

Twilight wasn't buying it. She'd left Spike back at the library, he'd never be irresponsible by leaving without telling her. Or at the very LEAST sending her a scroll. "Nice try." She said, and though instinct told her to grab the thing, her voice lessened to one of concern.

"Are you alright?" She asked. Spike shook his head. "What's wrong?" A claw was pointed in the direction of Fluttershy, and the clone rubbed his head. "Aw, did Fluttershy hurt you?" There was a set of words she never thought she'd  put together in one sentence. "Fluttershy! Come out here!"

The pegasus soon appeared, and immediately squeaked, scooping up the dragon. "Oh, hello Spike!" She said.

"That's not Spike. That's your Changeling."

"Eee!" She dropped it instantly, and Twilight caught it before it hit the ground. "Fluttershy! Stop beating up our witness, please." Fluttershy squeaked.

"Sorry..."

"Now come on, let's get back to the Library and figure out where it came from."

Fluttershy rubbed her head. "Um... can I stay here? If that's okay? I need to calm down my animals, they're so frightened from all the noise, and-"

Twilight held up her hoof. "Alright, alright, you can stay here. I'll take this thing off your hooves. She left the cottage with "Spike" holding onto her mane, and after a bit of a walk soon approached her home. She heard noises inside, and quietly approached the door. It sounded like Applejack. Twilight slowly cracked the door open. Her lights were on. She burst into the  room with a defiant yell of surprise.

"Gotcha!"

Pinkie barely moved. "Hi!"
Rarity shrieked and jumped into Applejacks hooves, who promptly dropped her on the carpet.
"Git off me." She said, annoyed.
Rainbow Dash bounced back and forth on her hind legs near the door, her front legs in the air. "Twilight! I coulda knocked you to Canterlot!"

"I doubt that." Twilight said, and dropped Spike near the Changelings. "I see you four have been busy. Excellent work."

"Thanks Twi." Applejack said proudly. "But what's Spike got to do with this?"

"It's not Spike, it's a clever attempt at a facade."

"What's a faucet got to do with this?" Applejack asked.

"Not faucet. Facade. A disguise. SPIKE! Come down here!" She yelled. The little dragon came sliding down the banister of the spiral stairs.

"What's up, Twilight? I stayed here just like you- whoa!" He looked at the clone in the center of the room, poking at it. The Changeling retaliated by dropping the disguise. Spike jumped backward. "Dude, that's creepy."

"That's a Changeling, Spike."

"I know what it is, I was the ring dragon!" He said proudly.

Twilight looked over at her friends. "Have they hurt any of you, caused any damage, or made any threatening behavior?"

The answer was a unanimous no.

"Then for Celestia's sake, untie them. They haven't done anything." Twilight explained, and turned her attention to the four Changelings. "You guys just want to help, don't you?" Her guests seemed to consider this, then nodded. 

"Good." Twilight said. "Perhaps we can all learn something today. Girls, go back to your homes. I will send you each a Changeling later today, and perhaps with a bit of luck, we'll all learn something."

The mares seemed reluctant, but knew Twilight had good intentions, and slowly filtered out, leaving Spike and Twilight alone with the shape shifters.

Spike found it much more entertaining than Twilight did, and was already playing with one of them, staring back into his own face. "Now do me with a mustache!"

"Spike!" Twilight scolded. 

"Aw, alright." Spike wandered back upstairs, mumbling. "Never lets me have any fun..."

Twilight circled the four of the creatures, looking them over. "I'm expecting good behavior from all of you. You'll stay here for a few hours while I run some tests, then I'll send you out to see how you get along with the others. I don't want any trouble. If there is, I'll hear about it. Got it?"

They nodded.

"Good."

Twilight smiled a bit more confidently, and made her way upstairs to hopefully locate a book on Changelings. "Maybe there's hope for you guys yet."
> Celestia/Luna 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

With the soft glow of her long horn, Princess Celestia latched onto the sun as she always did. She suspected that in times of crisis, if for whatever reason both Luna and herself were incapacitated, the sun and moon may very well rise without the interference of the royal family. 

But she had no intention of finding out.

As the sky turned from black to pink, the first rays of light began to pierce the darkness. Right on cue, a soft rustle came at her side as her younger sibling emerged from her own duties, and took a seat next to Celestia on the balcony. They did not often get much time together, not like they used to. Dawn and dusk were their special times together, when it was technically neither night nor day, and for a few brief moments, technically neither of them were on duty.

"How comes Project Everfree, dear sister? I have made the necessary arrangements for you to meet with several contractors."

The project was one which they were both working on, an attempt at reclaiming the wild depths of Everfree Forest. More specifically, reclaiming and restoring their old castle which now lay in ruins. Since their seemed to be a habit of new princesses popping out of nowhere every few months, it may very well be needed in the future. But that was another story for another time.

Princess  Celestia nuzzled her sister in affection, a gesture which was returned without hesitation. "The project moves forward, but it will be a long one. Not even I know every species and every danger which now inhabits the dark woods." She said seriously.

Luna  nodded in agreement, and was about to respond when one of Celestia's royal guard burst onto the balcony, immediately saluting to attention. Celestia frowned in disapproval.

"Double Edge, this had better be important. You know how much Luna and I value our time together when it can be afforded."

The guard remained at attention. "A report from Ponyville, your Highness. Changelings have been spotted in Ponyville."

"It appears that our time together will have to wait," The younger sibling responded. Luna was the first to ask the question on everypony's mind. "Chrysalis?"

"Negative, Princess, only Changelings. As of this moment, they are not provoking attack. They are just... there."

Luna and Celestia were instantly on their hooves, with the latter taking command. "Ready my chariot. I can be there  by the afternoon. Does Twilight Sparkle know of this?"

"Yes ma'am, I believe they are all aware of the potential danger."

"Keep your defenses up, but do not provoke the Changelings until we have further information."

"Yes, Princess!" The guard departed back to his post.

Luna moved in to come along, but now that the sun had risen and the day had begun, she failed to hold back a yawn. Princess Celestia smiled.

"My dear Luna, you have worked hard through the night. There is no immediate emergency, only a situation which requires questions to be asked and a brief investigation. Return to your bed, and I will wake you if the situation becomes worse."

"But what if it IS an emergency? I don't want a repeat of the wedding!" Luna protested.

"No buts, Luna. It will not come to that, and I will not have my sister battling Changelings at the same time as her own fatigue. You will be immediately summoned if the situation becomes more serious. For now, bed." 

Luna sighed, but nuzzled her sister. She knew she wouldn't win this argument, and made her way up the winding staircase towards her room. There were times when she despised being the one to control the night, for she missed important things during the day. But there was no hate in her, not as there had once been. Celestia was right of course, and wouldn't let a dangerous situation go un-announced.

The elder sibling, however, was preparing herself for a trip to Ponyville. She hadn't been there in quite some time it felt like, so it might be a nice change of pace from Canterlot Castle's decorative walls and stained glass windows. She checked her sundial. Seven in the morning. It would take a few hours to prepare the chariot, and another few to make it to Ponyville.

During the wait, Celestia dictated a quick scroll, which would inform her number one student of her knowledge of the situation, as well as her impending arrival. As the scroll was sent off, Celestia smiled. "I really don't hope this gets out of control again."

"Your chariot is ready, Princess." One of the guards instructed.

"Excellent." Celestia climbed in, and the chariot took to the sky. "Set an immediate course for Ponyvile."

As the elder of the royal siblings looked to the sky, she silently prayed that nothing was wrong, despite the Changelings return. They had not attacked yet, perhaps they did not mean harm. This would be an interesting afternoon.

[End of Act I]
> Afternoon/Twilight 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight Sparkle was trotting in a circle. Around and around she went, as she always did when she was worked up about something. She paced so frequently that Spike swore that particular circular section of floor was lower than the rest of the Library.

Spike gazed his worried eyes over at the scroll which had arrived an hour earlier, and lay opened on a desk. "Come on, Twilight. It's not that big of a deal. So Princess Celestia is making an unannounced visit. It's not the end of the world."

"Not the end of the world?!" Twilight snapped, her eye twitching slightly. "I'm sorry, Spike. I didn't mean to yell at you. But she could have at least said why she was coming! All she said was she wanted to meet with me! Today! In a few hours! Which was a few hours ago!" She insisted. "I'm sure it's about the Changeling thing. What if she's late? What if I'M late? What if I can't get the Library reorganized by then?"

"A princess is never late, nor is she early. A princess arrives precisely when she means to." Spike recited.

Twilight sighed, continuing her orbit. "Shelves have been dusted?"

"Yes, Twilight."

"Books have been put away?"

"Yes, Twilight."

"Calm down, I'm sure everything is going to be fine."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "When is morning in Ponyville EVER fine when there's so much work to do? I feel like I'm running myself into the ground."

The dragon pointed at the worn out section of floor. "Well, technically..." Spike looked excited. "Morning in Ponyville, huh? That sounds like it'd make a good song."

"Spike! Focus!" Twilight said. There was a knock at the door. "Oh, that's her! How do I look, is my mane alright?"

"Twilight, you're overreacting. You're her number one student. She doesn't care what your mane looks like. I'm sure she'd take on an audience with you even if you were dressed in a plaid suit and completely bald," The purple dragon assured her, and went to answer the door.

"Spike! That's not even funny!" Twilight exclaimed.

Princess Celestia entered, smiling as kindly and patiently as ever. "Good afternoon, Twilight. I hope I find you well."

The unicorn did her best to compose herself. "Yes, yes I'm alright. What can I help you with today, princess? You've already borrowed all of my books at least twice." It was her attempt at a joke. It was a terrible one.

"No, Twilight, I am not here for books today. I am here on the matter of Changelings, a matter which  you are well experienced with, and which I still owe you a debt of gratitude for."

"Oh, that? Anypony would have done the same thing when Canterlot was threatened."

Celestia shook her head. "No, they wouldn't have. Many may have tried to defend it, but many would have also failed. You succeeded, which is part of what makes you so unique. I wouldn't have it any other way. But enough of that. What have you done concerning the Changeling matter? How have you treated them? What are your methods? I want to hear your own solution, Twilight Sparkle."

Twilight sat on her haunches, frowning. "They were mostly brought to me by the others, there were four of them that we found altogether. Applejack had hers tied up..."

Celestia snorted with amusement, and quickly covered her snout with a hoof to hide her smile.

"...and I think Rarity was using hers as a fashion model. But once all was said and done, they were rounded up and kept here, where they were treated kindly."

"And why did you treat them kindly, Twilight? You act as if the situation in Canterlot never happened."

Pinkie Pie, at that moment, burst out of a nearby cabinet. "Oh! That's just what Jphyper said!" Both Celestia and Twilight gave her a concerned look. "Who?"

Celestia coughed patiently. "If you don't mind, Pinkie, this is an important matter between myself and Twilight at the moment. I hate to be rude, but might you leave us? I assure you I will come visit when things are settled here."

The party pony gasped. "Oh! I'm a silly filly! Of course!" And disappeared back into the cabinet, and the doors shut behind her.

Twilight took a moment to recover from that. "I treat them with kindness because, essentially, they are a hive mind, Princess. Under the control of Queen Chrysalis, they acted with evil intent because they were led by a queen with evil intent. But we don't know what happened to her, we can only assume she's gone forever."

Celestia interrupted. "Never assume that evil is gone forever, Twilight. I learned that the hard way myself. She may be gone, yes, but do not presume so confidently that she will  never be seen again. Continue."

Twilight turned red. "They are no longer led by Chrysalis, they are drones without a hive. And without a queen, I imagine they are akin to children. Lost, frightened, confused. The last thing they need is for me to yell at them. Is that right?"

Princess Celestia smiled. "You continue to astound me, Twilight. Where are they now?"

"They wanted to help, and I sent them off with the others. One is with Pinkie, one with Applejack, one with Rarity, and one with Rainbow Dash. I'm too busy studying for that test of yours, and Fluttershy won't leave her house."

That got her a soft smile of knowing. "About that test, Twilight."

"Yes?"

"Expect the unexpected. I have nothing but confidence that you will pass with... flying colors." Celestia said. "You'll do wonderfully, I know you will. In the meantime, as long as I am in Ponyville, I may as well check in on the others and ensure that the Changelings are indeed behaving themselves." She nuzzled her number one student. "Don't worry so much." She said, and made her way out the door, which closed behind her.

Spike sighed with relief. "See, that wasn't so bad was it? I told you everything was going to be fine."

Twilight groaned and collapsed to the floor in a pile of books.
> Afternoon/Applejack 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Ah miss y'all."

Applejack was not, by nature, an extraordinarily emotional pony. She was tough yet fair, sometimes thick headed. She'd almost killed herself once trying to harvest the entirety of Sweet Apple Acres by herself. It was a big place, filled with apple trees of all  ages and sizes, and varying degrees of importance. But the most important apple tree was not the biggest tree, nor the one which carried the most fruit.

It was an old stump. Hidden from the rest of the world deep within the maze of orchards and hills that made up the majority of Sweet Apple Acres. Few knew it even existed. To most of the rest of the world, it may even appear to be an eyesore.

Applejack sat upon it, running her hoof along the crevices in the old bark. It had once been a proud and mighty tree, but that was years and years ago. She cringed, tears running down her face. She could still see so vividly the wild, terrible storm that had brought the tree crashing down. There had been a storage barn nearby once, one that the tree had been dangerously close to falling upon. She remembered almost everything as if it had only just happened.

The rain was pouring down from the sky in a violent torrent, visibility was nearly nonexistent. Lightning had struck the tree, and although the rain had nearly put out the blaze that had ensued, the tree threatened to topple over at any moment.

Big Macintosh stood outlined against the darkness, his build already impressive at his then younger age. "This is too much!" He yelled over the wind. "It ain't safe to be out here! Y'all need to get inside!"

Applejack's father had shaken his head. "We gotta make sure the barn stays up! We can't afford a new one, and if it goes down we won't have no place to store our equipment!" 

Macintosh had protested. "Ain't safe! We can deal with it!" The two had begun bickering. Their mother was shivering. "Applejack! Git back inside an' watch Bloom's crib! This terrible noise'll wake'er up!" Applejack didn't like any part of this, but knew better than to argue with her mother. She had turned to head back to the house, and had only gone a few steps when the tree fell.

Her memories went slightly hazy at that point, lots of shouting, her father pushing Macintosh out of the way.

Dead silence. Pouring rain. The longest night of her entire life.

Macintosh blamed himself for that night. He had had barely talked since then.

Applejack found herself crying over the stump, comforted only by a golden plated hoof on her shoulder. "Bad time?" A familiar voice asked gently.

The mare looked up to see Princess Celestia standing near her, and quickly wiped her eyes in embarrassment. "Ah'm jes' allergic to... to... aw, heck, it ain't allergies." She admitted. Lying didn't come at all easily to her. "How'd y'all know ah was here?"

"It's my job to know." Celestia said. "I think about it too, you know. In my own way."

"Does it ever git easier, losin' someone y'care about?"

"No." Celestia said, looking up at the afternoon sky, where the crescent moon was barely visible. Applejack followed her gaze and fell silent. "But you learn ways to deal with it, if only to pass the time. You stop asking yourself what you could have done differently, and instead ask yourself how to prevent it from happening again. That's the important thing. Come on now. It's not good to dwell on the past. It only makes the future seem more unpleasant." She nudged the farm pony, and two slowly began to veer away from the remains of the tree.

"What brings y'here?" Applejack asked, composing herself.

"I heard something about my little ponies having an encounter with Changelings, of course I had to look into it. I understand that you've seen them?" She asked gently.

"Course ah did, ah got in some good rope practice too." She said proudly. "Din' hurt the varmints of course, jes' a bit of rasslin'."

"And you brought them to Twilight?"

"Yess'm! She always seems to know what tah do in these situations. Course ah could have handled it mahself."

"I'm sure you could have. But I'm glad you all sought help. Did they stay with Twilight?" Celestia knew all this, of course, but it was important she encourage the others to tell the truth on their own.

"Nope. She sent one out with each of us. 'Cept Fluttershy. Ah don't think she really wants tah leave th'house, dang things scare her somethin' awful."

"And where is yours?" She asked. "I would have thought that he'd be helping you on the farm."

"Aw, heck, ah sent him off with Apple Bloom and 'er friends. Seemed more appropriate, bein' about their size and age ah guess. He weren't hurtin' nothin', was jes' gettin' in mah way anyway."

Celestia smiled. "Then it looks like I've some Crusaders to find. Thank you, Applejack. You've been a big help."

"Shucks, weren't nothin'. Ah needed tah stop mopin' anyway. Ain't right."

"It's perfectly normal." Celestia assured her. "The ones we love are held closest to us, and are the hardest to let go of. But as long as you remember them, they are never truly gone." The princess began to depart for the clubhouse, not yet entirely convinced that the Changelings were to be redeemed so easily.

Along the way, she stopped, and summoned a scroll. With a flawless glow of her horn, words appeared on the parchment, words that she had been meaning to say, at least more often, for a long time. Nothing extravagant. With a flourish, the scroll was sent off.

Far away, in Canterlot, Princess Luna was awoken from her sleep by a flash of fire. A scroll unraveled.

I love you.
-Celly

Luna clutched the scroll tightly against her chest, and cried.

> Afternoon/Fluttershy 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Princess Luna quickly composed herself upon recieving the scroll from her sister. She had been asleep, but the two siblings didn't get to see each other all that much anymore outside of work, and it was a pleasant surprise to her; enough to give her energy to remain awake for a few hours. A gentle buzz of adrenaline ran through her as she returned the letter. Oh, this was fun.

Dearest Celly,
Thank you for your message of affection. It was just what we needed to lift our spirits.
We love you as well.
-Lulu

With the scroll sent, Luna sat in the center of her room, closing her eyes. She could sense things that others couldn't, an ability that was not easily explained, not even to Celestia. She could tell when she was needed when awake, although most of the time she worked tirelessly even in her sleep while her physical body regained its energy. To the outside world, it appeared merely as if she was in a trance. But to Luna, complex spells were being put in motion.

Away from all the action, Fluttershy was taking a much needed break from all the shenanigans that had been going on that day. She was dressed in bright pink, fuzzy hooved pajamas, her favored teddy bear kept close and tucked under her foreleg. "Oh, gosh, I wish I was brave like the others." She whimpered. She really didn't like the thought of the Changelings running around town. Hurting her animals. Impersonating her friends. Wreaking havoc in the-

*SQUEAK!* Fluttershy dove beneath the blankets of her bed. Like everypony else, she has her good days and her bad days. Today she just wanted to hide from the world until this was all over. Her animals were fed and cared for until dinnertime, and unless an emergency arose unexpectedly, she had some time to herself.

"Maybe I'll just rest... for a moment..." In what seemed like moments, the pegasus quickly fell asleep.

Fluttershy opened her eyes quickly, standing in a large field of beautiful flowers of all colors. Some were small, barely reaching the tops of her fetlocks, others towered over her head. She gasped both in astonishment, and in alarm. "Wh-where..." It was a beautiful place, but she did not recognize it.

Princess Luna emerged from the shadows, her mane billowing majestically even in the complete absence of any wind. "Do not be alarmed, Fluttershy. Thou art safe in the world of slumber. Dreaming, in fact."

"Oh!" Fluttershy immediately began to genuflect, but Luna halted her. 

"Rise, Kindness. There is no need for that." 

Fluttershy interjected. "Am I sleeping? How are you here? Wh-why are you here? Did I do something wrong? I'll do better, I promise!"

Luna raised her hoof. "Thou hast done nothing wrong, only become frightened, and we are here to soothe you. The magic behind doth not be important. Why art thou scared of the Changelings?"

Fluttershy thought about it for a moment. "One came to my house, and he was going to be hurt me, and-"

"Was he? Dost thou know that for sure?"

"They did last time... and they look mean..."

Luna shook her head. "They were under improper leadership now. If anything, now they hath been lost. Thou art Kindness, you thine should know of deceiving appearances."

"So they weren't going to hurt me?" The pegasus asked.

"We do not believe so. We believe... how to put this... they were more like baby ducks, separated from their mother." Luna explained.

Fluttershy gasped. "Oh, no!"

"Precisely. It is good that you and your friends art giving them a chance to find a place in society, perhaps there is hope for them yet. Of course, if they do attack, the response will be swift and merciless."

Fluttershy yelped, pinning her ears back, then tilted her head. "Um... your accent keeps going in and out... that is, if you don't mind my saying..." How DID one ask a princess why she was talking funny? 

A soft smile graced the lips of the Princess of the Night. "We are getting better, but do not quite have it down yet. We will get it. Continue doing what you've been doing, Fluttershy. Thou art in no danger. We are always watching." Luna assured her, and began to walk back into the trees. 

"Oh, wait, don't leave me here by myself!" Fluttershy exclaimed, and rushed after her. She tripped on a branch and squeaked her way down a hill, head over hoofs. "Oof!" She said finally, finding herself on the floor next to her bed, tangled in blankets. 

"Well... maybe I'll just make some tea and try to calm myself down." She decided. Her rabbit, Angel, had other ideas however. He tapped his large foot on the ground angrily, pointing to a pocket watch. 

"It's not dinnertime for another two hours. You have to wait." She said firmly.

Angel stomped the ground again, but got no further by being impatient.

"I said no. You'll spoil your appetite." The rabbit glared at her, then went off on his way. Fluttershy smiled weakly. If she could handle a bunch of animals, how hard could a Changeling be? Maybe she'd go find Twilight with this new bravery of hers, and ask if she could have a turn! Yes, that'd work! She made her way towards the front door, and charged out of it with a sense of confidence. She had only gone a few steps, however, when a cricket jumped from a nearby branch and landed on her nose.

"AGH! MONSTER!" She shrieked, and dove back into the house, door slamming. The Changelings could wait.
> Afternoon/Rainbow Dash 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Changeling's wings flapped harder than they had ever flapped before, making up some speed as the air rushed through the holes in its wings. Something about air resistance or aerodyamics or some such complicated malarkey the purple unicorn had tried explaining to it, to no real effect. It was trying to catch up, but panting in exhaustion, and couldn't go all that much farther.

A blue blur whizzed like lightning up behind the Changeling, and skidded to a midair halt, wings flapping in a very lazy manner. "Come ON." Rainbow Dash protested. "What's taking you so long? I've already lapped you seven times. What fun is a race if you're not even gonna try?" 

The Changeling just glared.

Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Alright, fine, we can walk the rest of the way, I guess." She relented, and reluctantly folded her wings, landing expertly back on all fours from a few feet in the air, striking a runners pose. "I can out fly you, I bet I can out run you!"

Her companion for the day sank to the ground in relief, panting heavily and barely able to lift its wings. 

Rainbow frowned. "Aw, nuts. I guess I worked you a little TOO hard." She knew she could be a little bit over competitive. Okay, a lot over competitive. "Uh... good effort, I guess." She said. "You don't talk much, do you?"

The Changeling responded by rippling into a perfect replica of Dash herself, but said nothing.

Rainbow Dash blinked in surprise. "You're bold, kid. I like that. I'm gonna call you Sparky. Come on, Sparky! We're gonna be late for meeting the Crusaders! They're over at Scootaloo's mother's house today, I've never met her, but if she's anything like Scoots, she's sure to be almost as awesome as me!" She boasted.

Sparky facehooved, but followed regardless, assuming its insectoid shape once more.

"How about a good old fashioned adventure song, Sparky?" Rainbow asked. "Something with lots of power behind it! Do you know any good travel songs?"

Any response from the Changeling was cut short by a bright pink pony bursting out of the hole of a nearby tree. "Oh! Oh! I know one!" She inhaled sharply.

It's adventure time! Come on grab your friends!
We'll go to very distant la-

"No!" Rainbow interrupted, and shoved Pinkie back into the tree. "I wasn't being serious!" The Changeling was hiding fits of laughter behind its hoof.

Rainbow looked annoyed. "Ugh, why do they always have to stick me with the slowponies?" She complained, continuing her journey towards the outskirts of Ponyville. They passed a playground, where parents watched their little foals squeal and giggle.

"I wonder why Scootaloo never talks about her mom, anyway." Rainbow wondered aloud, the Changeling dragging behind, quite obviously tired, and ignored the statement.

"Alright, alright, already." Rainbow said impatiently, and hoisted the creature up onto her back, taking to the air again. She did several loops around the park, before finally landing in a residential area. She approached the house she'd been directed to, and was shocked to see Princess Celestia herself standing half-hidden in the shade. Rainbow lowered her front legs immediately. "P-Princess! What are you doing here?!"

"Observing." Celestia said. "As I always have." She frowned slightly. "Your Changeling looks exhausted."

"Yeah, we were racing. I won, obviously."

Celestia frowned in disapproval. "Rainbow Dash, you must learn to harness your speed. Not everything is a race. You are a very gifted flier, but not everypony can keep up with you. There are times you may have to slow down. What good is seeing a rose if you cannot watch it grow?"

"Huh?" Rainbow shrugged. "I'm not talking about roses, I just wanna go fast!" She beat her wings a few times.

Pinkie Pie bounced past again at that point, her own Changeling tagging behind, and once more singing one of her completely random lyrical concoctions.
Gotta go fast!
Gotta go fast!
Gotta go faster! Faster!
Faster faster fast-whoop!

The party pony, not watching where was going, had tripped right over a rock. "Oooh! I don't have this one yet!" She exclaimed, picked it up, and bolted off so fast that her shadow was left behind. The shadow gasped, and bolted off after its owner. The Changeling looked as if it was about to go completely crazy, but ran to catch up.

Princess Celestia held a straight face through all of this, and tried very hard not to acknowldge what had just happened, instead turning again to the blue pegasus. 

"I know." The princess smiled. "But be careful you do not fly right past what's important."

"Duh," Rainbow said, and the door flung open. Rainbow Dash looked towards Celestia again, but the princess was gone. "How did she-" The rest of her statement was cut off by Apple Bloom.

"Come on! Come on! Yer late!" The farm pony insisted, dragging Dash and the Changeling inside. 

Sweetie Belle sat with a second Changeling and Scootaloo, the latter of whom was bright red. 

"Are you SURE you wanna meet my mom? I mean, we don't have to," Scootaloo said, looking nervous. 

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. The Changeling she had brought went to join its companion, and the two exchanged a small series of clicks. A figure appeared in the doorway, and a familiar voice filled the air. 

"Well, well. Rainbow Dash! It's always nice to see you again."

The multicolored mare squinted her eyes, which nearly bulged out of her head when she saw who it was. "YOU?! But... but... buh..." Darkness overcame her, and she fell to the floor.

Apple Bloom facehooved. "She fainted, ah called it. Y'all owe me two bits."

Scootaloo was trying to hide her face in her wings. "Aw, man. I knew this was a bad idea."

Sweetie Belle was giggling. "Well, THAT could've gone better."

The two Changelings just exchanged glances. They had no idea what was going on.

> Afternoon/Rarity 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Afternoon was beginning to turn towards evening by the time Rarity returned home to the Boutique from her daily rounds of shopping. Her horn glowed brightly, and a good six or seven bags of various retailers gracefully floated themselves down onto the polished floor. Her Changeling companion, not quite as gifted, struggled to pull the remaining few bags inside. Rarity frowned.

"DO be careful, darling. There are some very expensive, and might I add hard to find, gemstones in that bag." She warned. The Changeling didn't seem to pay attention, and pulled all the harder, nearly ripping the bag on the edge of the door. Rarity bit her lip with worry, and took the bags herself. "Never mind, thank you very much, dear. You've been very helpful. Come! We have much work to do, and not a moment to lose!" She tossed her mane back, and pranced into the back room where she kept her materials. 

Her companion followed, and immediately found itself thrust into a world of girly fabrics and gowns. Rarity seemed absolutely dedicated to finding the right look.

"This one, this one, this one, oh my stars that's HIDEOUS, what was I thinking..."

Her model stamped its hoof in irritation several times before Rarity finally stopped.

"Whatever is the matter? You act as if you don't enjoy the chance to-" Her eyes widened. "But of course! All these dresses, they aren't your style at all, are they? You wouldn't happen to be a male, would you?"

The Changeling rolled its eyes, as if it was obvious. Unfortunately, they DID all look exactly like. 

"Oh! And here I am putting you in all sorts of dresses!" Rarity laughed. "You just wait right there, and I'll get you a snazzy little jacket instead!" She made her way to the closet, but was distracted by a knocking at the door.

Four sharp knocks in rapid succession. A brown earth pony who had been waiting in her lobby immediately bolted upright. "Not again!" He exclaimed, and ran out the back door.

"What in Canterlot was his problem?" Rarity mused, swinging open the door. "I guess you just never knooooo-oh!" Her eyes widened.

"Good afternoon, Rarity." Princess Celestia said.

"Miss Celestia, I don't... I'm not prepared... I look absolutely horrid!" The designer fussed. She always wanted to look her best when meeting a superior, who knows what of connections they might have?

"That's alright. May I come in?" She asked, clearly not caring about the state that Rarity was in.

"Of course!" Rarity said, stepping aside. "My Changeling and I were just working on a new look for the upcoming Summer Solstice."

"Precisely why I'm here." Celestia said.

"You want a dress for the summer solstice?! From me?!"

Celestia laughed. "No, Rarity. Your Changeling. I'm checking up on all of them, you're my last stop before heading back to Canterlot. Is he behaving himself?"

"Oh, yes indeed!" The fashionista replied. "He's been a pefect gentle....pony?" She wasn't sure what the terminology for Changelings was.

"That's wonderful to hear, and it seems to confirm Twilight's suspicion that they mean no harm." Celestia said. "All of the four Changelings who have appeared seem to simply be lost and confused, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't undestimate them."

"Of course, Princess." Rarity said. "I wouldn't dream of causing him any harm, he's actually been a wonderful help with Sweetie Belle having the day off. I didn't want to interrupt her sleepover this morning, or her visit to Scootaloo's this evening. Such interruptions are terribly uncouth."

Celestia smiled. "I'm glad to hear that. Would you care to send me a letter on your findings? It's the strangest thing, but I don't seem to get as much mail as I used to. I do miss hearing from my little ponies, it's a nice break from writing new laws, paying taxes and studying up on diplomatic relations. I miss my letters." She admitted.

Rarity looked guilty. "Oh, of course, I'm sure something can be arranged. Truth me told, I do miss writing letters as well, with the exception of those AWFUL ink stains. Completely ruin my hooves, you know."

Celestia nodded. "Very well, my business here is done. Good night, Rarity. Let me know if anything comes up." She turned to leave, satisfied with her findings for the day.

Rarity waved. "Oh, and Princess! What about the Summer Solstice?!" She called.

"I suppose a new gown might be advisable." Celestia said. "Put Luna and myself down for an order. That is, if it isn't too much to ask."

"Oh, not at all, not at all, don't you worry!" Rarity waved, and watched as the golden chariot took off on its return voyage to Canterlot. She waited until she was safely back inside the Boutique before letting out an excited shriek, bouncing up and down like a filly. "Two orders for the Princesses! This will require another round of shopping!" She announced, and raced back to her workroom.

"Helper! We depart at once! I've just-" Rarity blinked. The Changeling was gone, leaving behind only an open window. Rarity peeked outside into the fading light. "He's gone? But why? Where? And worst of all, he took my favorite lavender gown with him!" Rarity stomped her hoof, and screamed out the window, scaring off a nearby owl.

"HEATHEN!"

Rarity's cry of rage echoed over the ears of two Changelings, one of them still wearing a frilly light purple dress. The second changeling snickered with fits of laughter, while the first whacked its comrade upside the head. A series of clicks was exchanged. Both creatures looked both ways, left and right. Finding themselves completely alone, they snuck through the entrance to the Everfree Forest and quickly vanished into the overwhelming darkness that waited within.
> Afternoon/Pinkie 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

With the summer sun high in the sky, its intense life-giving light flooding into every house in Ponyville, many ponies were spending the day outdoors. Unfortunately, someponies were not so lucky, and that included Pinkie Pie. Although she had begged Mr. Cake to let her bake muffins outside for the afternoon rush at the bakery, the stallion had declined.

"Sorry, Pinkie." He said. "Too much going on outside. If the mischevious children don't get them, the insects will. We've got a business to run, we'll just have to keep them inside today." He explained.

"Aw, nuts!" Pinkie sighed, and returned to the kitchen. She put an oven mitt over her hoof and pulled out a tray of blueberry muffins from the oven. Her own Changeling sat nearby, drooling with anticipation. "Let them cool down first, then you can taste them for me!" Pinkie said cheerfully, and set the muffin tin on the counter by her first batch, or where her first batch had been a moment ago.

"It's gone!?" She gasped. She pointed a hoof at the Changeling. "I didn't say you could eat them all, Changeychanga! Or is it CherryChangey?" She wrinkled her nose. "Maybe I better just call you Steve."

Steve narrowed its eyes in annoyance.

"But if you didn't eat all my muffins, then who-" Pinkie facehooved. "Oh, of COURSE." She rolled her eyes. "Oh well! I'll just make more, which means more time with my favoritest favoritey favorite Changeling in Ponyville!"

Steve rubbed his neck bashfully.

"But first, the suggestion box!" Pinkie said, and did a very strange thing that even she should not have been able to do. She reached into the solid brick wall, and pulled out a transparent screen, cluttered with lines of text. "Let's see if anypony gave me any good suggestions today!" She chirped. 

"Somepony15 writes, Pinkie, did you ever get your Flugelhorn?" 

The party pony stomped her hoof, and stared into the wall. "No! But I WANT a flugelhorn!" She demanded. Then scrolled down a bit. "Prince Black Bane writes, Pinkie...is... insane?" Her hair deflated a bit at that, and she pushed the wall of text back into the wall where it disappeared. "That's not nice..." She said sadly, but her sadness was interrupted by a sudden shaking of both back legs. "Oh! Twitcha twitch! That sounds like Princess Celestia! Somepony's talking about the Changelngs!"

She bolted upstairs, the Changeling stayed behind. He was never entirely clear on how she could appear on the other side of Ponyville in mere moments. Pinkie returned a minute later. "Doesn't want my help, fine. And not even Rainbow Dash appreciates a perfectly good song! She's too cool for it!" She sighed. For a moment her hair started to deflate again, then bounced right back up. "Oh! I know! Let's check the birthdays today!" Off she went again, onto another completely random top with barely a moment of rest. Pinkie pulled out an enormous chart, it was completely covered in names. "Here's my birthday planner, I have everypony in Ponyville on here! Plus some zebras and dragons!"

Pinkie scanned the chart. "Only two birthdays today, Streaky Clean and Snowdrop!" She giggled. "Come on, Steve! We need to go visit them a happy birthday! Or else they'll be sad, and nopony deserves to be sad on their birthday!"

Pinkie called to Mr. Cake that she was going out for a moment, turned off the oven, and bounced upstairs with her Changeling shadow.

A bit of time passed, Pinkie and Steve were on the far side of Ponyville, where Pinkie was just picking herself up from falling while singing her 'make time go faster' song. "I shoulda watched where I was going, I'm a silly filly!" She looked down, and picked up a rock. "Oh! I don't have this one for my collection yet!" She tucked it away. "Almost to Streaky Clean's house, Steve! S'go!"

The rest of the afternoon, understandably, was a flurry of birthday songs and singing. By the time Pinkie returned to the bakery, the sun was beginning to set, The Cakes had left behind a chore list of things for Pinkie to do the next day, and Steve was exhausted. Pinkie was not. She flung open the back door and burst inside, crashing right into Princess Celestia.

"Pinkie! My goodness, what's the hurry?" Celestia hadn't budged, it was the equivalent of a marble rolling into a brick.

"Princess!" Pinkie quickly genuflected. "We were just out wishing the ponies of Ponyville a happy birthday! What brings you here? It's not your birthday is it? No, it can't be, your birthday isn't for another 217 days!"

Celestia blinked several times, trying to do the math in her head, but quickly gave up. "No, Pinkie, it's not my birthday. I'm just doing routine followups on the integration of the Changelings. Any problems to report?"

"Nope! Steve has been a super duper looper helper!" Pinkie said proudly, then made a face. "Looper, ugh, what a terrible movie that was."

Princess Celestia looked confused, but then most ponies were often confused around Pinkie. "What- never mind. I'm glad to hear you're doing well, I'll leave you to your work. I wish I could stay longer, but the day is almost over and I need to visit Rarity next. After that I should be home just in time to watch my sister raise the moon." She said with pride in her voice. "Keep up the good work, Pinkie Pie."

Celestia made her exit, and Pinkie attempted a goodbye, but her mouth was full of cookies already. When she could finally talk again, she turned the oven back on. "Come on, Steve! How about you and I make a giant super huge cake and then eat all of it, just us, for no good reason!" She exclaimed with excitement.

Steve lit up and nodded quickly. Pinkie might be a pain at times to hang around all day, but dang it if the rewards weren't spectacular.
> Afternoon/The Crusaders 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, well. Rainbow Dash! It's always nice to see you again."

The multicolored mare squinted her eyes, which nearly bulged out of her head when she saw who it was. "YOU?! But... but... buh..." Darkness overcame her, and she fell to the floor.

Apple Bloom facehooved. "She fainted, ah called it. Y'all owe me two bits."

Scootaloo was trying to hide her face in her wings. "Aw, man. I knew this was a bad idea."

Sweetie Belle was giggling. "Well, THAT could've gone better."

It was quite a few moments before Rainbow Dash opened her eyes. She was lying on her back, wings sprawled out at a painfully unpreferred angle. "I just had the most awesome dream... I... for a minute, I thought Scootaloo's mother was..."

"Me?" Spitfire asked, standing over the fallen pegasus.

Rainbow's eyes bulged. "But... but... you're a..."

"A Wonderbolt?" Spitfire finished. "What's that go to do with anything? As far as I'm concerned, I'm a mother first, and a Wonderbolt second."

"Aww!" Sweetie and Apple Bloom gushed. They'd clearly had more time to process this than Rainbow Dash.

"EWW." Scootaloo made a face. "Do you HAVE to embarrass me in front of my friends? It's bad enough I can't fly." She muttered, her wings vibrating like a hummingbird. The young filly's back legs achieved lift to a comical degree, but not enough to get her hooves off the ground.

"Come on, Dash. We have some catching up to do." Spitfire said encouragingly, and nudged Rainbow with her hoof. "That is, if you think you're up for it."

"What do you-" Rainbow began, but Spitfire had already burst out the window and taken to the sky. "Hey! No fair!" Dash shouted, and bolted after her. 

"Expect the unexpected, Rainbow Dash! You of all ponies should know that by now!"

Scootaloo pushed the door closed, now left alone with her two friends and the Changeling. She crossed her hooves, clearly completely embarrassed.

"Aw, cheer up, Scoots." Sweetie Belle said brightly. "We all love you, whether or not you can get off the ground."

"That's not the point!" The pegasus said. "I don't want to be treated any different, why do you think I don't tell anyone about my mom? My grandmother and my mother are super fantastic fliers, and I can't even fly yet." Her wings locked against her sides. "I'm not special at all! It's not fair!"

"But y'all ARE special, Sugarcube." Apple Bloom said. "Y'all not bein' special fer not flyin' is like me not bein' special 'cause ah can't buck a tree in one kick like Big Macintosh."

"Or me not being special because I can't cross-stitch three dresses at once. I can barely even pick up a pencil with my magic." Sweetie sighed.

Scootaloo looked a bit more cheerful. "Oh, well I guess that's okay then. Come on, let's go get my scooter out of the back. We can get our cutie marks in daredevil-ing!" She said excitedly, and ran from the room towards the back of the house.

"Alright, but ah wanna use it tah jump off the roof into a pool of sharks!" Apple Bloom.

"Absolutely not." Scootaloo said firmly, as the two disappeared around the corner.

Sweetie Belle facehooved, and looked at the Changeling. "We'll be right back, so you stay here alright?" She hurried after her friends without waiting for a response. The other two were already arguing.

"I'm not going to let you kill yourself! You need to be a certified professional like me!" Scootaloo was saying.

"Th' only thing yer certified in is bein' a nincompoop." Bloom shot back.

"I told you to stop making up words!"

"Ah ain' makin' up words, s'what y'are." Bloom said simply.

Scootaloo was about to say something, but was interrupted by Sweetie Belle, who fell to her knees and tugged at her mane with her hooves.

"WHY CAN'T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG?!" The singer screamed.

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo burst into giggling. They didn't mean any of the rude things they said to each other, it was just a defensive mechanism that most girls had.

Scootaloo jumped onto her scooter, and wheeled back towards the house. "Come on, girls! The day is young!"

Sweetie looked at the sun, which had almost ready to set for the day. "Yeah, sure, the day is young. What timezone are YOU in?" She quipped, and the three entered together, blinking in confusion shortly after. 

"Where's our Changeling?"

All three looked around for it, but couldn't find it anywhere.

"Huh, that's strange. You told it to stay here, but it's gone anyway." Scootaloo observed.

"Thanks a lot, Captain Obvious." Bloom quipped.

"Why does life have to be so ironic?!" Sweetie yelled.

Meanwhile, outside, the Changeling was running towards the woods. The Changeling stopped at a crossroads at the same time as one of its companions, and did a double take at the purple dress its kin was wearing. It started snickering with fits of laughter.

The second Changeling whapped the first upside the head, exchanging a series of angry clicks. The two looked left and right, until they were convinced that nopony was watching. The second Changeling ripped off the dress it was wearing, and left it laying in a puddle of mud created by an earlier rainshower. Together the two shape-shifting creatures entered the depths of the forest as the day drew to a close.
> Night/Derpy 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Princess Celestia made her return to Canterlot just in time to lower the sun as she had done for centuries. The sunset, a phenomena she never grew tired of, was different every night, and a wondrous sight from the high vantage point of Canterlot Tower that the matriarch never grew tired of seeing. Princess Luna stood next to her sister, the first sliver of moon appearing in the sky, gradually rising higher as the sun disappeared.

The two were quiet, looking out at the landscape together until finally it was Princess Luna that spoke. 

"Did thou enjoy thine trip to Ponyville, sister?"

"Indeed I did, I was worried that the Changelings would pose a problem at first. But they seem to be completely under control. Not only that, but they've found ways to help and be part of society. I thought Changelings would never be able to reform themselves. I have never been so wrong."

Far away, back in the cozy darkness of Ponyville, a grey pegasus was putting her daughter down to bed. The young filly fidgeted restlessly.

"Sing me the Tribble song, mama!" She insisted.

"That old thing?" Derpy asked. "You know that's nothing more than an old myth."

"I want the Tribble song!" The filly insisted again.

Derpy rolled her eyes. "Very well." She nuzzled her nose into the bangs of her daughter, and quietly sang.

Soft Tribble
Warm Tribble
Little Ball of Fur.

Happy Tribble
Hungry Tribble
Churr, Churr, Churr.

Derpy glanced down at her daughter, who was already contentedly nearly asleep. Derpy blew out the nearby candle. "May Luna watch over you until you wake." She whispered, closing the door. 

A shadow bolted past the window. Derpy frowned.

"Hello?" She called quietly. No answer.

Derpy stepped outside, taking just a step or two away from the door. "Hello?"  She called again. No answer. With a soft shrug, the pegasus disappeared back inside and closed the door.

The two Changelings who had run past the window stayed quietly hidden in the shadows of a nearby alley. The first pointed in concern to the house they had just passed. The second perked its ear, waited a moment, then shook its head. Together the two ran towards the edge of town and eventually passed into the border of Everfree Forest, where they met up with their two comrades. The four creatures sat in silence, until a pair of golden eyes glared at them from the darkness.

"Were you seen?"

All four shook their heads.

"Good. What took you so long?"

One of the Changelings burst into a series of rapid clicks.

"I don't CARE if Pinkie wouldn't go to bed. I told you to be here at eight, that means you're here at eight. I don't want to hear excuses that you couldn't slip past a pony with the attention span of a brick. Got it?"

The Changeling nodded.

"Good. Tonight we make our final plans. Those ponies won't know what hit them."
> Part Two/New Plans
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sun had set across Equestria, as it had for countless millenia before. Ponies of all kinds and colors were asleep for the night, although some were more restless than others. Where most of the lights in residential areas had been turned off, a few yet flickered, and one of those lights came from the Ponyville Library.

Twilight Sparkle stared impatiently out the window, a frown crossing her features. She'd spent the day studying following the departure of Princess Celestia, and when she hadn't been studying, she'd been worrying. And that uncertainty had not passed over her number one assistant unnoticed.

"Come to bed, Twilight." Spike's muffled voice came from buried deep within the blankets covering his own bed. "It's late. You've been working all day, and you know I can't sleep when you're up like this."

Twilight shook her head. "I can't put my hoof on it, Spike. Everything looks fine. Everything seems fine. But I don't feel fine. I have this awful feeling like we're on the verge of something terrible."

Spike yawned and rolled over. "It's Saturday, Twilight. Something weird happens EVERY Saturday. I don't know why, it just does. Besides, you need your rest if you're going to take that super secret test for Princess Celestia next week."

Twilight sighed. "You're right, maybe I'm worrying about nothing." She reluctantly slipped into bed. 

"I just hope I'm wrong."

Another light burned in the lower level of Sweet Apple Acres, on the far outskirts of Ponyville. Applejack was equally restless, but for a different reason.

"Ah looked all over th'place." She was saying to Big Macintosh, who stood like a silent guardian in the doorway. Apple Bloom had long since been put to bed, protesting aspirations of wanting to get her cutie mark in tiger taming. Applejack continued to pace. "Ah can't find that dern Changelin' anywhere, do y'think it ran off?" She asked.

Big Macintosh shrugged.

"Ah hope we din' scare it off, ah thought it'd be good for 'im to hang out with mah sister an' her little friends, but they can be more work'n a county fair. Y' think somethin' bad happened to it?" She asked.

"Nope." Her brother replied quietly, trying to reassure her.

"Was a feisty little critter, ah'm sure it can handle itself. Ah jes' hope s'alright. Din' cause no trouble, so its welcome back here if it decides to turn up."

Back at the bakery, Pinkie Pie was asleep. If her missing Changeling bothered her at all, she showed no signs of it. She stirred in her sleep, mane flat and deflated, mumbling semi-incoherently, "No... Dashie... not... hacksaw... " 

Fluttershy was asleep in her cottage as well. She had not been bothered by the days events, due to her friends kind intentions of not wanting to frighten her. 

Rainbow Dash and Rarity, however, were still awake, having met for a late night sandwich at the Ponyville Diner.

"And then the brute simply disappeared, taking my latest prototype with it!" She was far too worked up to sleep.

Rainbow Dash was in the same category, as she had spent the day with Spitfire, and was shamelessly retelling the story to anyone who would listen. "Uh huh. Yeah. That's great. So then Spitfire was like, do a barrel roll! So I did, straight through the clouds, without being able to see a thing! And then-"

"Darling, do finish what's in your mouth before continuing your story, it's most unbecoming." Rarity cringed. "And you STILL haven't helped me figure out what to do about my missing gown!"

"Can't you just, you know, make another one?" Dash said casually.

"Just... JUST make another one?!" Rarity exclaimed. "Every piece is a work of art, one does not simply 'just make another one'." She said irritably. 

"Well maybe it'll turn up." Dash said.

"I hope so, darling, I hope so." Rarity replied.

---

Meanwhile, while all of the others were finishing the events of the day, the four Changelings were lined up deep within the Everfree Forest. A large figure was pacing back and forth in front of them. A very bruised and very annoyed Chrysalis was not in the best of moods.

"Well? What do you have to say for yourselves, did you think I was going to wait all night for you?" She snapped.

One of the Changelings responded, in the clicking manner that only their kind could understand.
<It's not our fault. The ponies we were assigned to seemed to really enjoy our company, and it would have rude to just disappear on them while they were awake.>

Chrysalis snorted. "Rude? Since when did any of you ever care about rudeness? We attacked Canterlot, or has your small brain has forgotten that already?"

<Maybe that was a mistake.> A second Changeling spoke up, and Chrysalis froze in her tracks.

"A mis- what?!" She narrowed her eyes. "You're serious. I don't believe this! I send you into Ponyville for reconnaissance for ONE day, and the four of you come back completely brainwashed. What did they do to you?!

<We made cupcakes.> Said Steve.
<She wanted me to be a model.> Said the second.
<We read together!> Said another.
<I saved their lives.> Said the last one.

"You saved their- why would you do that? That's less foals to deal with later!"

The Changeling looked down. <They made me a Crusader. It was the least I could do.>

Chrysalis groaned. "You know what, fine. It may have been a mistake to attack a city with two princesses, but I can certainly handle a dinky little town mostly filled with earth ponies. You're all fired."

The Changelings looked surprised.

"Did I stutter? You're all fired. Go on, leave! Go back to the ponies who you 'love' so much. You can go down with them."

The Changelings remained, unsure of what to do.

"I SAID GO!" Chrysalis screamed. The Changelings scattered.

It was not long after this that one of them began feverishly shaking the shoulder of Twilight Sparkle.

"Not now, Spike." Twilight mumbled.

The Changeling shook harder.

Twilight sat up. "What IS it, Spi- oh, it's you!" She yawned, then frowned. "It's really late. This better be important. I can't study if I'm not rested."

The Changeling burst into a series of high pitched clicks and chirps, leaving poor Twilight struggling to catch up. "Hold up, my Changeling is a bit rusty. Something happened... in a forest... "

Yet more chirps.

"Ponyville... attack... The Christian Rights Movement? I don't even know what that is."

The Changeling facehooved, and chirped more slowly.

"Ponyville... attack... Chrysalis?! My Twilight senses were tingling yesterday, I knew something like this would happen! But does anyone listen to me, noooo, you're overreacting, Twilight, nothing to worry about, Twilight, well I-"

The Changeling coughed loudly.

Twilight quickly composed herself. "In any case, in matters of importance, I'd say that definitely qualifies. Are you sure she's back?"

More chirps.

"Well when I get to the bottom of this, you and I are going to have a long discussion about who you hang out with at night." She scolded, climbing out of bed. She was halfway towards the lump that filled Spikes basket when she hesitated. "Nah, better leave him out of this. It might be dangerous."

Twilight raced downstairs and out the door.

Back in the forest, Chrysalis, now alone, was pacing back and forth, watching Twilight run through the door via a glowing green emerald she had grown out of the ground.

"Run as fast as you can, Twilight Sparkle. It won't do you any good." The mare snickered. 

"I'm coming for you."
> The Tables Have Turned
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The once mighty Queen Chrysalis strode through the forest, following the scattering of her handful of remaining Changelings. She was thinking on her actions, although her mind was far from regretful. "Stupid Changelings. I don't need them. Do I?" She paused for only a moment, tossing her head back to flick a strand of blue hair out of her eyes. In the proces of this motion, her extensive horn caught on a tree branch, and her body flung to the ground. "Agh! Beta Twelve, why didn't you warn- oh. Right." She quickly stood up again, continuing her voyage towards Ponyville.

"I suppose those sniveling foals have warned Twilight Sparkle by now." Chrysalis snorted. "I suppose I can deal with a bit of resistance." She was talking to herself again, but didn't seem to care. "Perhaps it's not the wisest decision to give up what little army I had left, but better for them to choose a side now than later. No matter. An insect WILL be squashed tonight, and for once, it won't be me."

Back in Ponyville, six ponies were being awakened and prepped for an imminent assault. Rainbow Dash, Twilight Sparkle, Rarity and Pinkie were out of bed and meeting under a street lamp, which Twilight had lit with a quick illumination spell.

"Where's Applejack and Fluttershy?" Rainbow Dash asked impatiently. "They should be here by now. Making us wait is so NOT cool."

Twilight sighed. "Give it time."

At the cottage, Applejack had a tight grip on furry yellow hind legs. Fluttershy was wearing footed pajamas with bats on them, and refused to give up her grip on the doorframe, tears streaming down her eyes.
"I don't wanna!" She sobbed.
"Let... go..." Applejack glared. She was a strong pony, but Fluttershy was delicate, and couldn't risk using her full strength. Not in this situation. "Twilight needs us, Sugarcube!"
"So does my teddy bear!" Fluttershy squeaked.
"Yer teddy bear can wait. Chrysalis is comin'. We need all th'help we can get."
"But-but..."
"Alright, fine.  Have it yer way. Oh, lookit that, that poor little raccoon is caught in a pet door."
"WHERE?!" Fluttershy shrieked, her grip loosening on the doorframe. Applejack yanked backwards, and the two flew backwards into the bushes.
"Come on, we got work tah do." Applejack said, half-dragging Fluttershy towards the groups meeting place.
"I'M BEING PONYNAPPED!" Fluttershy protested to no avail, hooves dragging in the dirt.

***

A little while later, the six friends stood in a circle. All were ready and eager to protect their home except Fluttershy. She, while usually up for adventure, preferred to do so in broad daylight. From the confines of her cottage. Not wandering into the middle of the Everfree Forest in the middle of the night.

"Alright, girls, listen up, Chrysalis is coming." Twilight said. "Nopony is to make any attacks, is that clear?"

"But I thought the whole point of coming out here was to defeat her again!" Rainbow whined. "Can't I just beat her up a little bit?"

"No!" The unicorn said. "We have to stay strong, and show courage. True courage means knowing not when to take a life, but when to spare one."

Rarity yawned. She'd been half asleep, her nightly facial still plastered over her face. She didn't like being denied her beauty sleep, but it was for a good cause. "Good heavens, darling. When did we ever say anything about taking a life?"

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "It's a quote. From the book I sent all of you last Hearth Warming. The one you all told me you read."

All five ponies looked at the ground.

Twilight groaned. "Never mind, we don't have time for this right now."

A bit of movement came from the shadows, like a creeping shadow in an alley. Queen Chrysalis, who had clearly seen better days, emerged. "Twilight Sparkle." She said calmly.

"Chrysalis." Twilight said.

"Let me guess, the Changelings warned you of my arrival."

"You bet your flank they did!"  Rainbow said, attempting to fly towards the Changeling Queen, but Rarity grabbed her tail and yanked her back.

"And where are they?"

"We had them stay at our homes. We have a hard enough time dealing with you, we don't need them getting in the way. This is between us." 

"Aw, isn't that cute." Chrysalis sneered. "But alas, it's wrong. You see, Twilight, you may think you have the upper hoof right now, with your elements of harmony, and your "friendship", but I have a secret weapon, one which I think changes things, if you'll pardon the expression. You may attack me, but it's not me you'll be hurting."

Applejack didn't like the sound of that. "What's that mean? What do y'all mean?"

Chrysalis smirked, and a large green bubble appeared in front of her, floating several feet off the ground. "You see, Twilight, I know where I went wrong last time. I tried to attack you by taking what mattered most to you away. I choose poorly, but I fixed my mistake." The bubble drifted closer, out of reach. Contained inside, and very much asleep, was...

Twilight's eyes blazed with fury. "Spike! Give him back!"

"No, I don't think I will." Chrysalis said calmly. "You see, if you attack me, it's Spike, who suffers. So choose your next move carefully, and meet me in the castle ruins in the Everfree Forest. Don't worry about taking your time, we can wait." She smirked, and the pair vanished in a flash of magic.

Twilight felt her eye twitched. "She didn't... she CAN'T..."

"She just did." Rarity said soothingly. "But we'll get him back. I promise."

Applejack pointed towards the forest, and the previously silent yellow blur running towards it. "Perhaps y'all should get her back first," she countered.

Fluttershy galloped at full speed towards the dark depths, tears streaming from her eyes, steam blazing from her nostrils in fits of rage. "Nopony takes a baby animal under my watch! NOPONY!"

"Fluttershy! Wait! We don't have a plan yet!" Twilight yelled, racing after her, and the remaining four followed suit.
> Mare Trek Into Darkness
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The normally shy and reserved Fluttershy led the assault into the Everfree Forest. While only moments ago it was unclear if she'd have to be dragged into the Forest in the first place by her hind legs, she had broken through to the front lines and charged ahead, hooves kicking up dust and steam blowing from her nostrils.

"I WILL DESTROY YOU IF YOU HURT HIM!" She screamed.	

Twilight and Rainbow Dash were right behind her, and only with their combined efforts managed to take the pegasus down. Rainbow Dash looked impressed. "Dude, next time we play football, I totally want you on my team. We can put a nest of baby squirrels or something in the opponents endzone, we'd win every time!"

Twilight glared at her. "Rainbow! You can't do that!"

"But you saw the way she ran, it'd be like a secret weapon!" Dash insisted.

"Now is not the time for that. We  need to formulate a plan, or this will turn into the Canterlot hedge maze all over again."

Rarity and Applejack brought up the rear. "Uh... any of y'all seen Pinkie?" the latter asked.

"Never mind that, she'll turn up. She always does," Twilight said with confidence. "And if history has anything to say about it, it'll be at an extremely convenient moment."

Fluttershy was breathing heavily, but had calmed down. "She can't do that! She can't just come in here and take Spike like that! Oh, I'm so mad I could just stomp!" She raised her right front leg, and brought it crashing down towards the ground. She halted her movement at the last possible second, noticing a ladybug crawling directly underneath.

"Oh, gosh, I'm sorry, you go right ahead. You were here first." She said meekly, backing up into Rainbow Dash, and promptly screamed. "CHRYSALIS! Oh. Hi Dashie."

"Aaaaaaaaand secret weapon is gone in ten seconds flat." Rainbow Dash complained.

Rarity looked more upset than any of them. "If she touches one SPINE on my little Spikey-Wikey's head..."

Applejack spoke up again. "We don't even know that it WAS Spike. For all we know, it was one of 'er own Changelings made to look like 'im."

Twilight nodded. "I agree, we have to prepare for anything. We stick together, get him back, and defeat the Changeling Queen for... what is this, the third time?"

"Yeah." Rainbow Dash snorted. "First the Crusaders, now Spike. She never learns, does she?"

"So what's the plan?" Rarity asked.

"We head for the old castle ruins ,the ones that Celestia and Luna used centuries ago," Twilight said. "I've no doubt there may be trickery in store for us, so no matter what happens, we keep moving."

The five pressed onwards into the forest. Twilight and Rainbow Dash led the group, with Fluttershy in the middle in case she tried to run away again. Applejack and Rarity brought up the rear. Twilight threw up a hoof after about ten minutes. "Shh, listen."

They all listened, but heard nothing. Rarity frowned. "I don't hear anything, sweetie." She said gently, taking great care to step over a particularly revolting patch of swamp.

"Exactly. It's too quiet. We need to be extra careful and on our guard, so we don't accidentially trigger any-"

Fluttershy put her hoof down, stepping on a hidden wire. The five ponies were instantly airborne, lifted off the ground by a massive netting. Fluttershy grinned meekly. Applejack glared at her.

"Traps?" Applejack asked.

***

Back at the old ruins, Chrysalis paced in front of a solid green cocoon. Inside the prison, Spike pounded on it with his fists. He was angry, and quite scared, but wasn't about to let Chrysalis know that. "You won't get away with this!" He demanded. "Twilight will come and get me!" He warned. Of course, that wasn't exactly how the vision played out in his head. In his head, Rarity came swooping in leading an army of ninja battle monkeys, rescued him from this awful prison, and carried him away on her back. He sighed dreamily.

Chrysalis waved her hoof in the air in a semi-circular motion. His protests amused her. "What's that? Twilight will come to save you? Oh, darling, I fully expect that. But I'm prepared for her this time. Her love for you far exceeds that of Cadance, although it's not the same type of love, it will have to do."

"There are different kinds?" Spike asked. That was new.

"Of course, foal." Chrysalis sneered. "There is romantic love, which is the most powerful. We all know how that turned out. Then there is the love for your friends, which is the kind I intend to feed off of next. Then there's petty things, such as the love for a favored goldfish or the love for a particular kind of sandwich. Those are useless to me."

"Yeah, well she's gonna stop you anyway! No matter what kind of love you need! You underestimate the power of-"

Chrysalis cut him off. "If you say the power of friendship, I will feed you to the Timberwolves." She snarled. "Yes, it's powerful, but like all power, can be manipulated." She smiled. "You just have to know how."

***

Twilight did not like being stuck in a net. None of them did. Rarity perhaps least of all.

"Ugh, this mesh is SO tacky." She complained.

Applejack flicked her in the nose with her tail. "Well ah'm sorry, sugarcube. Next time we get ourselves wrassled up like hogs ah'll be sure to request cozier accommodations. Twi, can't y'all jes' use yer magic t'get us out of here?" She asked.

"I'm trying, but I can't concentrate! I don't have room to work and Fluttershy won't stop crying." She regretted that last bit as soon as it was out of her mouth, and quickly tried to apologize for it.

Fluttershy sniffed, tears streaming down her face. "Oh, no, I'm the one who should be sorry. I dragged you all out here, this is my fault. I should've just stayed home with my teddy bear..."

Rainbow Dash snapped. "Hush, somepony's comin'!"

A dozen or so figures emerged from the darkness, completely surrounding the hanging net. Diamond Dogs, and ugly ones at that. The pack leader stepped forward, bigger and nastier than the rest of them.

The leader grinned, showing sharpened fangs. "Look what we got here, boys! Looks like it's pony for dinner."
> Out of the Frying Pan
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Fluttershy screamed. "But I don't want to be dinner! Eat Twilight first!" She whimpered. She immediately turned to look at the purple unicorn. "I'm sorry, Twilight. I didn't mean that." Her ears were pinned. "You're such a nice pony, I don't want them to eat you."

Twilight sighed. "Let's just stop that kind of talk right now. Nopony is getting eaten, and that's final." She looked annoyed. "We can find a way out of this, we always do."

"I beg to differ, you're not going anywhere!" The leader of the Dogs said. "My name is Alpha, and my pack is eating well tonight."

Rainbow Dash looked suspicious. "Your name is Alpha? Is that really your name, or do you just call yourself that?" She snorted. "Cause I mean, that's really convenient. Doesn't matter though, I'm still gonna give you a walloping for threatening my friends no matter what your name is." 

One of the Diamond Dogs bitter. "It's more frightening than Leslie, at least."

Alpha snarled at him with such ferocity that several of the other Dogs whimpered. "Do you want to lead this pack, Carl?"

"No."

"Then shut yer muzzle. Question is, how do we get 'em down?"

Rarity spoke up, knowing from experience that Diamond Dogs were not all that bright. "Why don't you just let us down, darlings? I not to fight back. We'll cooperate." She said sweetly.

Rainbow Dash looked annoyed. "We will?" Applejack kicked her. "Oh, yeah, we will! Totally!"

"I don't know, what if you're lying?" Alpha rubbed his chin with a paw.

"I promised not to fight back, and a lady never lies." Rarity said. "It's horribly unbecoming."

"Very well." Alpha still sounded unconvinced, but slashed at the rope holding the net with a paw. The netting fell to the ground, and the area was instantly filled with bursts of rainbow colored equines running in every direction.

"You said a lady never lies!" Alpha exclaimed angrily.

"Ladies don't. But I'm not a lady. I'm a fighter!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, knocking the skulls of two dogs together in a comical fashion.

Applejack was running circles around another two with her lasso, which had been tied around her waist. She never left home without it. "Yeehaw!" She exclaimed. "It's jes' like the rodeo!" She hollered.

Fluttershy, on the other hand, was not having as much luck. A Diamond Dog sat directly in front of her.
"Whatcha gonna do about me, pink pony?" He sneered.
Fluttershy whimpered, but took a deep breath. "You hurt my friends, the pain never ends!" She growled. The Diamond Dog started laughing. 
"Is that all?"

Fluttershy's eye twitched, and she turned her full attention on him... and Stared. "You will leave. Right now."

The Dog's smile faded. "But..."

Fluttershy Stared harder. "RIGHT NOW!" She hollered in such a tone that all four of her other friends stopped what they were doing to look at her.

The Diamond Dog whimpered, and took off into the darkness with his tail between his legs.

"Anyone else?" Fluttershy turned her attention on one of the mutts harrassing Rarity, and the rest of them took off.

"Whoa." Dash said. "Fluttershy, that was one of the coolest things I've ever seen."

"Extremely brave of you, darling!" Rarity agreed.

Fluttershy was back to normal and had tears in her eyes, trying to chase after the Diamond Dogs. Twilight pinned her tail down. "No! Wait! Come back!" The pegasus yelled. "BE MY FRIEND!" She demanded.

Twilight just shook her head. "Let's get out of here, Flutters. You did good, but I don't want to be here when they get back," she said gently.

Renewed on their journey to save their missing dragon, they pressed forward into the night towards the ruins of the old castle.

***

"Thirty one buckets of oats on the waaaaaaaalllll!" Spike sang. "Come on, cheese-legs, there's still thirty one more buckets left!" The dragon had been singing for well over an hour, a time consuming melody which he'd been taught by none other than Sweetie Belle.

Chrysalis growled with annoyance. "I swear to Celestia, if you call me cheese legs one more time, I'll send you to the depths of Tartarus."

"No you won't!" Spike said defiantly.

Chrysalis glared at him. "And how do you know that?"

"Because you'd have to explain yourself to Twilight, and Twilight always wins. She's the best. How many times has she beaten you now? Three?"

His captor slammed her hoof down in the ground. "Twice. And one of those was a technicality."

"You're a technicality." Spike said.

"That doesn't make sense."

"Your face doesn't make sense!" Spike quipped. He was a child after all, and even child dragons were prone to such games.

Chrysalis snarled. She was about to say something else, but a noise at the entrance of the cavern distracted her from whatever she'd been going to say. "Wait here, I need to check on this." She said.

Spike rolled his eyes. "Like I have a choice," he sighed, slumping within the prison that contained him. This whole experience was really starting to get to him, and he was starting to wonder when Rarity would finally come swooping in to save him.

Chrysalis wandered through the darkness, her eyes long since adjusted to the gloom. "Who's there!?" She demanded. 

She got no answer. Just another noise near the entrance.

The Queen wandered closer, turned a corner, and immediately felt the beginnings of a migraine working its way into her skull. "Oh, NO. Not you." She protested. "Anypony but you."

Pinkie Pie held up a steaming pastry, a wide smile on her face, a smile that never seemed to go away.

"Cinnamon bun?"
> Into the Fire
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Chrysalis and Pinkie Pie stood face to face. Chrysalis was less than enthusiastic about this sudden development, but Pinkie Pie seemed un-bothered. Heck, did ANYTHING bother her? Last time Chrysalis had seen her, before the Crusaders incident anyway, Pinkie had been playing hopscotch with her own clones on the battlefield of Canterlot.

"Cinnamon Bun?" The party pony asked, that wide, everlasting genuine smile plastered upon her features. It was not the smile of a psychotic, although to a subtle extent Chrysalis suspected PInkie was exactly that. No, it was the smile of somepony who just wanted to make friends, no matter who they were or what they had done.

"No, I don't want a cinnamon bun, or any other foolish offering you may have." The Queen snorted. "How did you even get here, anyway? I thought you'd be with your friends." She hesitated, and quickly looked over her shoulder, as if anticipating an ambush from behind. But that was unlikely. This was the only way into her cave, one of many long since abandoned secret passages that had once led into the castle of Celestia and Luna, which was now hardly more than a crumbling foundation. What had once been the pristine example of royalty a thousand years ago was now in ruin.

"Nope!" Pinkie exclaimed. "They're slowpokes, so I took a shortcut. And now I'm here!" She said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"But how did you GET here?" Chrysalis demanded. "I have traps all over the place, surely at least one of them would catch y-"

"One does not simply catch Pinkie Pie," she said, puffing on a pipe which she'd pulled out from behind her. The pipe gave off several soapy bubbles which burst in midair. "I thought you would have learned that by now, sillypants. Oh, wait, that doesn't work, you're not WEARING pants." She frowned. "Can we start over?"

Chrysalis was confused.

"Start over with what?"

"This whole thing! You back up and come around the corner again, and I'll say 'Cinnamon Bun?' and you can look all grouchy with that face that looks like someone is annoying you. Yes, that one, the one you're doing right now!" Pinkie bounced up and down.

"No, we are not starting over, and we are not playing any of your stupid games!" Chrysalis growled. How in Celestia's name did anypony put up with her?

At this, Pinkie withered, and her mane slightly deflated. "My games... are stupid?" She asked in a timid voice. She looked as if she hadn't even been told this before, and was, for perhaps the very first time in her life, at a complete loss for words.

"NO THEY'RE NOT!"

Twilight came charging out of the jungle, flanked by three of her friends. Rarity and Applejack on the left, Rainbow Dash on the right. Fluttershy came trotting up a bit behind, a baby squirrel balanced on her back. "Um, if it's okay, can you guys keep it down? Mr. Peanut is trying to get his nap in."

Applejack looked at her in exasperation. "Can this wait, sugarcube? We're in a bit of a pickle."

"Oh, but he got separated from his family when the Diamond Dogs moved in!" She frowned. "Those dumb meanieheads." Her ears flattened. "Oh, gosh, excuse my language." Reluctantly, she set the squirrel down. "You just stay here and be safe." She whispered.

Pinkie, however, had perked up while listening to Applejack. "Oh! Oh! I LOVE pickles! Especially with wheatgrain and-"

"That's enough!" Twilight ordered, and everypony else suddenly turned their attention on her. "We're not here for baby squirrels, and we're not here to eat lunch! We're here for SPIKE, and I want him back! Now." She narrowed her eyes. "Give him back now, and I won't use number thirty seven on you."

Rarity and Rainbow Dash shuddered. "Twi, you WOULDN'T."

Chrysalis waved them off. "Very well. Who am I to stand in the way of friendship?" She asked endearingly. "Of course you can have him back."

Rarity stomped her hoof. "We won't take no for an answer, Chrysalis! If you strike us down now, we'll become more powerful than you can possibly- wait, what?"

"I said you can have him." Chrysalis shrugged, and stepped aside. "He's just through there."

"Oh, thank you, ever so much!" Fluttershy squeaked, and began to trot inside. Twilight teleported in front of her, and turned to face the others. 
"What's the catch?"

"No catch, foal. If you can find him, you can have him. Simple as that. And then we fight."

Twilight approached Chrysalis, and looked her in the eye. Chrysalis just smiled, but Twilight was unamused. "We aren't going to fight you, Chrysalis. We're going to get Spike back, and then we're going to leave, without any sort of confrontation. I Pinkie Promise."

Pinkie and Rainbow Dash both gasped. Pinkie looked shocked. "But Twilight, that's the most super duper biggest promise you can make! You can't ever ever ever forever never EVER  break it!"

"I know. And that's how you know I mean it."

Chrysalis looked stunned. Of all the possible endings she had foreseen for this situation, this was not one of the ways she had anticipated it turning out. "I don't understand. I threatened you, almost killed you, attacked your princess, abducted your children and kidnapped your dragon. And yet you do not wish to inflict any form of punishment on me? What sort of foal ARE you?" She demanded.

Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Applejack had begun to enter the cavern, all on guard, determined to be reunited with their  missing dragon.

"I've already punished you," Twilight said.

Chrysalis looked confused again.

Pinkie spoke up this time. "Your punishment is just being yourself. Living alone, without any friends. Not having any friends is... I can't even THINK about how awful that is." Her eye twitched, and she as well turned to enter the cavern.

Twilight just gave Chrysalis one last look, and followed her friends into the cave. For a moment, Chrysalis looked truly stunned, but then regained her composure. "I'll manage," she said simply, and stepped down a hidden grate in the tall grass. Almost immediately, there was a deep, ominous rumbling from within the cavern.

"What's that?" Rainbow Dash asked.

An enormous boulder fell from overhead, near the entrance of the cave. A relentless boulder of death, which began to roll towards the six with increasing speed.

"IT'S THE REVENGE OF TOM!" Pinkie shrieked.

Rarity glared at her. "I thought we agreed never to speak of that again."

"Never mind! Run!" Twilight yelled, and burst into a gallop. It didn't take long for all but Rarity to follow suit.

"But I might chip a hoof!" She protested.

"RUN, CONSARN IT!" Applejack yelled.

Rarity ran.
> Breaking Free
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The boulder continued rolling, picking up speed as the ground began to slope more sharply downwards. The ponies ran,as fast as their hooves could carry them, but it didn't seem to be enough. Applejack and Rainbow Dash, who could out run and out fly anyone in Ponyville, respectively, were hanging back under lesser power in order to ensure the safety of their friends.

"We can't outrun Tom!" Pinkie exclaimed, much to Rarity's annoyance. "It's just a BOULDER." She insisted, clearly having none of that. "But we need to take care of this immediately, if I keep running I'm going to work up a sweat, and ladies do not sweat!" She complained.

"Stop whining, Rarity." Rainbow shot back.

"Dashie, don't!" Twilight warned.

Too late. "Oh, you don't want whining? Whyyyyy didn't you saaaaayyyyy sooooooo." She whimpered in a high pitched whine that made Rainbow's ears ring.  And during all this, the boulder continued rolling. The six ponies rounded a corner, Pinkie diving into a small alcove.

"Girls, in here!" Pinkie called, and yanked Twilight and Rarity inside. Regrettably, there was not room for anypony else.

"Rainbow Dash! Get in!" Twilight  yelled.

"We can't fit, stay there and stay safe! Loyalty's got this!" her chest swelled, and took off, flanked by Fluttershy and Applejack. The trio ran as the boulder rolled past the other three, Twilight looking at Pinkie Pie in amazement.

"How did you even know this was here in the darkness?" She asked.

"i dunno." She shrugged. "It just smelled like a good place to hide."

"Sme- never mind. I don't want to know." Twilight said, shaking her head. She had long since given up trying to understand Pinkie Pie, some things you simply let happen.

In the meantime, the others ran for their lives. They wound through the darkened tunnels and as they rounded a corner  which ended in an impenetrable wall, All three slammed into it, and after a brief bit of head rubbing, looked upon it with dismay.

"We can't get through that!" Rainbow  Dash said with horror.

"Ah can't given up yet, gotta be a way out!" Applejack said confidently.

"..." Fluttershy said nothing, tears streaming down her face.

The boulder rolled closer and closer, the three ponies huddled together in defiance. They closed their eyes, expecting to be crushed into oblivion.

But no oblivion came.

"What the huh?!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, opening her eyes. The boulder had come to rest an inch from their faces, as still as a statue. "It... stopped... but how?!"

Four small shadows teleported from behind the rock, and saluted. Fluttershy gasped and tackled two of them nearest to her. "The Changelings!" She squeaked.

From the other side, Twilight's voice called. "Are you girls alright? What happened?!"

Applejack was fanning herself with her hat, and looked pale. "S'alright, the Changelings stopped the rock with their fancy magic! Kin ya get us outta here?"

"The Changelings?!" Twilight sounded surprised. "Alright, hang on, I think if Rarity and I just get hold of this thing with our magic, we can back it up a bit. Pinkie thinks she saw another side tunnel we missed, that MUST be where Spike is."

Rarity and Twilight set their horns to levitate, and soon the boulder was rolling backwards, inch by inch. It was laborious work, however soon the three behind the rock took a detour to the left, just enough to slip inside. The second trio followed, and the ponies were reunited once more. With a final thud, the stone was dropped from its tethers, and continued on its way down the hill, where it ended with a distant crash.

Applejack looked at Fluttershy, who was being hugged by all four Changelings. "Well I'll be dipped, ah guess they aren't so bad after all. But how'd they know we were here?"

"They used to work for Chrysalis, they must have suspected foul play and followed us here." Twilight offered. "Thank you, all of you."

The Changelings chirped.

"Now Spike should be right down this path," Rarity said. "We need to formulate a plan. There could be any numbers of traps lying in wait for us. We need to be careful, and methodical." She said, with a toss of her mane.

"Right! So here's what y'all do. Rarity, Twi, y'all go up ahead with yer fancy magic, an set tah disarm. Fluttershy, you an' Rainbow Dash can watch the ceiling. In case anythin' tries tah sneak up behind us, Pinkie and ah'll..."

"LEEEEEEROYYYYYY JENNNNNKIIIIIIIINS!" Pinkie screamed, charging around the corner.

Twilight blinked. "Or, we can just do that. Come on!"

Rounding the corner at the end of the tunnel, they found themselves in an open cavern. Spike remained in his prison, and looked overjoyed to see them. One in particular. "Rarity!" He sighed. "You came to save me!"

"We helped too, you know." Rainbow Dash said spitefully.

Rarity rushed forward, undeterred, and lit up her horn. "Stand back, Spike!"

The dragon didn't need to be told twice, and though he couldn't quite move from his position, did manage to cover his eyes. Rarity's horn glowed brightly, small cracks appearing in the prison. The cracks widened and expanded, and may very well have done away with the prison on their own had Spike not leaped through them with impatience, glomping into Rarity's neck. 

"Oh, Spikey Wikey, it's alright, darling. Let's get you out of this awful place," she said, and planted a kiss upon his forehead before flipping the dragon onto her back.

Spike went wide eyed, twitched, and slumped against the unicorns neck in a dead faint. The rest of the ponies laughed, until Fluttershy brought up a valid point, still surrounded by Changelings.

"What about Chrysalis?"

Twilight frowned. "She's licking her wounds, I don't think we're going to see her again for a while. But let's not tempt fate and get out of here while we can. Let's go home."
> Epilogue/A Letter At Last
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Princess Luna yawned, wide awake, wandering the long, empty hallways of Canterlot Castle. There were still some hours before sunrise, and she had no intention of going to bed before then. She watched out the window at a small flock of nocturnal Pegasi, tasked with sprinkling the grounds with brushes of dew before the sun rose. She was indeed distracted with watching them when a small flash caught her attention, one which typically was the result of a flare of magic. The Night Pony frowned, picking up the scroll which had appeared, and gave its contents only a slight glance before bursting into a grin, and making a gallop for the eastern tower.

"Sister, sister!" Luna called.

Celestia grumbled, barely awake. "What is it, Luna? Are we under attack again?"

"No, though it's not like you'd wake me up even if we were," she said, a hint of irritation in her voice.

"Oh, Luna, you're still mad about that?"

Luna shook her head. "Never mind, darling. What is it?"

Luna smiled, and her magic lifted up the parchment which had arrived moments earlier. "A letter for you. Most mail is diverted to me during the night hours, but I thought you'd want to see this."

"A letter?" Celestia was awake instantly. "I haven't received a letter in years. Not a casual one, anyway." Her heart ached somewhat, she dearly loved correspondence, and the little ponies just didn't have time for her anymore. Not like they used to. Intrigued, however, she unrolled the parchment, and began to read.

Dear Princess Celestia,

It has been a busy day in Ponyville for us. New friends, old enemies, hostage situations, mutinies and forged alliances. A typical day for us, I suppose. The Changelings which you tasked us with watching turned out to be faithful to our cause after all. Chrysalis returned, though her current whereabouts are unknown. We opted not to defeat her, instead leaving her pride more wounded than anything. I don't think we'll be hearing from her again for a while.
Spike was kidnapped... dragonnapped? Is that a word? It's not in any of my 35 dictionaries, I'll have to make a note to write to the publishers about that... oh yes. We would have all been flattened straighter like Pinkamena's mane if the Changelings hadn't come when they did, and we've decided to let them stay in Ponyville. We've all taken one, except for myself and Fluttershy. I'm very busy with my studies, and Fluttershy is too busy with her animals. But all things considered, it's been a successful day.
I think we've all learned an important lesson here today. The Changelings may look scary, and may even appear untrustworthy, but they really pulled through today. Everypony is deserving of a second chance. If somepony really wants to change, they will, they just might need a little love and encouragement.

Always Faithful,
Twilight Sparkle
AND SPIKE (although this was written in a sprawling cursive)

Celestia smiled, and looked across at Luna, who had already summoned a small black book in front of her.

"Make note of this, Luna. I think she's just about ready."

"We are in agreement, then, dear sister. Let the final tests begin."

"But once the sun comes up, perhaps?" Celestia asked.

"Of course." Luna replied. "For tomorrow is a new day."
> Afterword -Lunabrony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	I can't believe how big this story got. I know in comparison it's not all that large compared to the epics that span 100,000+ words, but for me, it's a personal achievement. I never expected the story to get as far as it did, in fact my original skeleton only covered the first day of the story. Originally the story was just going to end with the introduction of a villain, and set up a sequel, but I realized something after doing that, that I hadn't realized before.

People really hate cliffhangers.

I had maybe 2 dislikes by the time I finished the story the first time, which increased to 8 within hours of posting the cliffhanger. It was then that I seriously entered mental negotiations to rewrite the ending, and the change of pace is evident with the start of Part Two. I never even planned on that section happening, it just sort of took off on its own. It was difficult, coming up with an entirely new direction to take the story on such short notice, but I'm pleased with how it turned out.

All things considered, what started just as a simple project to challenge myself with providing a complex continuity throughout Part One has evolved into my most popular story. I never in a million years would have seen that coming.

Thank you everypony, for all your love and support, and most of all for all the constructive criticism.
I wouldn't have gotten this far without it.

Lunabrony