"So, we heard you had a bit of an adventure yesterday?"

Rochelle, sitting with Nuisance in her lap alongside Candy Floss, was riding in a carriage with Luna and Celestia. While not strictly necessary, since everyone concerned could fly, it was nice to ride in style. The fact that Rochelle had decided that today, she wasn't going to wear a disguise had surprised all parties involves, and turned a few heads on the way down, the changeling had decided to stop hiding. Hiding now felt like she'd be letting whoever had done this win...

With a sigh, Rochelle answered Luna's question, saying, "Well, it wasn't really an adventure. Just some idiot thinking that an ingestible poison would actually hurt changelings. I mean, if it was a liquid, it could have done some damage, but solids just end up in the stomach pouch for storage, and since changelings don't have saliva, it wouldn't have ignited like it would have in Candy's mouth." Rolling her eyes, she said, "I swear, it was if they were intentionally trying to get a pony, and not a changeling, hurt..."

Luna and Celestia both flinched noticeably. Rochelle would have raised an eyebrow in surprise, if she had been in disguise. Putting two and two together, the changeling said, "That was what they were trying for, wasn't it?"

After a moment, Celestia admitted, "Either that, or it was indeed gross incompetence on their part: While a new law is being prepared to be implemented in the next few weeks that would ensure the rights of changelings across Equestria, that law is not popular, and if the public outcry against it were to become too great..."

Nodding, Rochelle said, "I get you. And if a pony like Candy was suddenly and inexplicably harmed while in a room full of changelings, then there would be more than a few ponies who'd be saying, 'There you go, proof that changelings are evil and can't be trusted.' And then all the work done by changelings like Ling and Mole Cricket would be undone in less than a day."

After a moment, Luna nodded and said, "Exactly. I think that you may have the right idea, by going out in the open without a disguise. We will have to ask the other changelings in the city if they'd be willing to do the same: Once it has been revealed that there is a sizable changeling presence in the city, and that those changelings have been living in peace with ponies for an entire year, that may help in smoothing things over a great deal."

Candy chuckled, then said, "Well, I'm still surprised that there's an actual law going into effect about changelings in general."

With a long, sorrowful sigh, Celestia admitted, "It has proven necessary to reaffirm one of the founding principles of Equestria: Equality for all, regardless of race or species. There are those who discovered that, since changelings are ignorant of the laws and regulations of other nations, they would be easy targets for manipulation. Since the only experience most changelings have with authority is their aristocracy and queen, it would only be natural that they'd assume that the stories that they were told were true."

Luna nodded and said, "The idea that each individual changeling would be held responsible for the invasion is... madness. When two countries, or even when a rogue state like the changeling swarm and a country like Equestria, go to war, it's understood that such an action is the choice of the leadership, not the collective will of each of its citizens. While Equestria does allow for conscientious objection, other lands are not so kind, and refusal to contribute to the war effort can have terrible consequences."

"Right," Rochelle admitted. Refusing to take part in any sort of military action in the swarm was a quick way to get fully extracted, and your paralyzed body to either be left in a hallway as an example to others, or being dropped to the bottom of a lake to spend eternity in the dark depths if the swarm was on the move. The slow madness of dry hibernation was the stuff of nightmares: Alive yet not alive, you were frozen in time, yet fully aware of time's slow crawl around you...

The changeling suppressed a shudder, and said, "Well, anyways, like I said a little while ago, I don't have a problem with giving Nuisance up, provided that Silver Tongue and his wife are as nice as Candy tells me they are."

Giggling, Candy said, "I think you'll get along with them. They're good ponies."
-------------------

As the carriage finally came to a stop, Rochelle sighed, and said, "Well, here we are, I guess."

Candy raised an eyebrow, and asked, "Having second thoughts?"

"After yesterday? No," the changeling said, more than a little angry, just thinking about it. "You know that Nuisance has a sweet tooth: she could just as easily have tried to eat one of those cookies yesterday. Bad enough you were put at risk, but you're a big girl: Now that you know that being around me can be dangerous, you know to be more careful. Nuisance doesn't have that luxury. She's too young to know the risks that come from being associated with me now. In fact, I don't think she'll ever understand what careful means, to be honest with you."

Candy giggled, then said, "I do see your point. But, just because you're letting others take care of her, doesn't mean you'll never see her again, right?"

Nodding, Rochelle admitted, "Right."

Opening the carriage door, Candy said, "Then don't be so down. It'll all turn out alright."

The princesses stepped out first, followed by Rochelle and Candy Floss. Upon seeing their destination, the changeling froze, stunned. She'd expected that Nuisance's prospective parents would have a house, perhaps just a big one, since they knew the princesses...

...Nopony had told her that they lived in a mansion.

"Wow," Rochelle said, her mouth hanging open. "You didn't tell me your aunt and uncle were loaded, Candy."

Giggling, the pink pegasus said, "You never asked. Uncle, well, step-uncle, Silver Tongue is a part of the Metals clan, one of the wealthiest and most influential families in Equestria. Silver owns high-class restaurants all over the place. Aunt Sweet Dream married him a few years back, and while I'm not 'officially' part of the clan, just related by marriage, I'm considered an honorary member."

After a moment, Rochelle laughed, then said, "You know, we've been friends for a year now, and I'm horrified to find just how little I know about you. Remind me, when we get back, that I need to ask you a few questions."

The princesses, the changeling, and the pegasus were admitted entrance without hesitation, and were met by a gray on gray pegasus who could only be Silver Tongue, as well as a blonde maned, purple-coated mare who, given the similarities in facial structure and body type, had to be Sweet Dream, Candy's aunt. The princesses, naturally, were greeted first. Decorum, and all that.

After a moment, Sweet Dream turned towards the changeling and, with a radiant smile, said, "And you must be Rochelle. Candy has told us so much about you. Mind you, she didn't tell us you were a changeling until yesterday, but I suppose every girl has to have her secrets."

With a laugh, Rochelle admitted, "Well, I just found out that Candy has a few secrets of her own that she's not yet decided to share with me, but I think I can forgive her for that. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs Sweet Dream." Rochelle extended a foreleg to shake hooves, but was startled when she was abruptly pulled into a fierce hug.

"I probably should have warned you," Candy said, giggling. "Aunt Dream is a hugger."

After they detached, Rochelle was surprised to find that Sweet Dream was now holding Nuisance. Cooing at the little griffin, the mare said, "So you're the little bundle of trouble that I've heard so much about. You don't seem so bad."

As if on cue, Nuisance took Sweet Dream's mane in her tiny beak, and yanked hard, pulling out several hairs. Staring down at the griffin, Dream's shocked expression was priceless.

With a chuckle, Silver Tongue said, "Well, I can see why you named her Nuisance."

Laughing herself, Rochelle admitted, "Well, I was originally going to go with Pain-In-The-Flank, but it doesn't quite roll off the tongue."

With a small giggle, Sweet Dream said, "Well, I'd read that most griffins start out a bit rowdy." The mare hugged the griffin, who immediately hugged her back with a coo. "But they usually grow out of it by the time they're three. It'll be a bit of an adventure, but I think we can get her under control."

Silver Tongue walked over to Rochelle, and said, "I am Silver Tongue. I heard about what you did yesterday. If you ever need anything, let me know. I, and the entire Metals clan, are in your debt."

Blushing, Rochelle said, "It wasn't a big deal. She's my best friend after all..." The changeling's train of though trailed off, as she suddenly caught a scent. A familiar scent, and one she had smelled only yesterday. One suspiciously similar to insect repellant...

Candy Floss turned towards Rochelle, and said, "Rochelle, you're growling. What's wrong?"

Changelings don't have hackles like a dog does, but they do have a fringe on the back of their necks that will sometimes shake when angry. And Rochelle was very, very angry. Her frill was shaking so violently that it was vibrating...

"Be right back," Rochelle said, and with no further explanation, she was off.

Rochelle's top speed had been clocked at something like fifty miles per hour in the past, and that was without 'burning' love to increase her own natural abilities. She was burning love now. Oh yes, and how. The windows of the mansion rattled as she ran by, paintings shook from the nails that they hung by, and had she not taken a brief detour on the walls and the ceiling, she would have collided violently with more than one pony along the way. In less than three seconds, she had crossed the entire length of the mansion and was now standing in front of a chef, a youngish yellow earth pony wearing an apron and toque. With no warning, and no delay, she grabbed the chef, and hauled him back in front of the princesses, going, if anything, even faster. Had she gone even slightly faster, she might have created a sonic rainboom on hoof...

Now before the princesses, Candy Floss, and the rest, Rochelle threw the chef to the ground, then stood over him, their faces a bare inch apart. Rochelle gave another growl, longer and slower. Some say that a growl is a threat. This one was a promise.

The chef shrieked in fear, suddenly realizing what had happened, and that he was now face to face with an angry changeling. Terrified for his life, he cried out, "GET IT OFF ME!!!"

"It? You have a lot of nerve, calling me it," Rochelle said, her voice shaking with barely repressed fury. With a swat of her hooves, she knock the chef's hat off. When it hit the ground, a small pouch fell out. The pouch opened, releasing its contents on the floor, small blue crystals, barely larger than a grain of rice. Almost instantly, the room was filled with the overpowering stench of insect repellant.

Horrified, Silver Tongue stared down at the bag, and after a moment, said, "Saffron Spice, how could you..."

Hauling the earth pony up with one hoof, and standing on her hind legs, Rochelle roared, "I'm an it? You almost put my best friend in the hospital! You could have done worse to my little girl! You dare to call ME an it?!" Her voice turned cold and hard as she said, "Well then, maybe I should show you what an 'it' can do." Reaching into her mouth, Rochelle pulled out something she'd had in her stomach pouch since yesterday morning. Making certain that the other ponies present saw what it was, the changeling said, "You tried to set Candy's mouth on fire. Let me return the flavor."

And with that, she shoved a whole Screaming Griffindorian Pepper, already one of the hottest peppers in the world and soaked in the juices of a dozen other, slightly less spicy peppers, into the pony's mouth, then crushed it between his teeth through the simple expedient of giving him an uppercut to the jaw.
----------------------

"ARRRRRGH IT BURNS IT BURNS IT BURNS IT BURNS IT BURNS MAKE IT STOP!!!"

"I don't approve of vigilante justice," Princess Celestia said, looking highly amused, in spite of herself, "So I'm going to have to ask you to let him drink something. Eventually."

Sitting atop the writhing pony, Rochelle said, "Well, he can wait a bit. It will be a little bit before Candy comes back with a glass of milk. Water won't help this kind of thing: It just spreads the pepper juice around, making things worse."

"THE PAIN!!! THE AGONY!!! MAKE IT STOP!!! MAKE IT STOP!!! MERCY!!! PLEASE!!!"

The Screaming Griffindorian Pepper was well named: even one drop of the juice would make a gigantic pot of beans unbearably spicy for the average pony. The entire pepper could make a grown minotaur cry out. Combined with the juices of the other peppers that had been sitting in Rochelle's stomach pouch, well, it made for a dreadful punishment, regardless of how well deserved it might have been.

Sighing, Silver Tongue said, "I can't begin to apologize enough for his actions. I knew that Saffron's brother had gone MIA during the invasion, and that he had expressed a dim view of changelings in Equestria, but this?" Shaking his head sadly, he said, "After six years, you think you know somepony, and then they do something like this."

Candy walked in, carrying a glass of milk. She set it down in front of the earth pony, and after a moment's consideration, Rochelle released her grip, letting the earth pony go. Tears streaming down his face, Saffron Spice drank deeply, swished the fluid around in his mouth, then swallowed.

With a shrug, Rochelle said, "Well, I'm sorry to hear about his brother, and I certainly hope he turns up one day, but that's no excuse for what Saffron tried to do. I mean, I could kind of accept it, maybe, if he'd just decided to go and beat up changelings: We're a hardy folk, and are used to taking the occasional beating, although we try to give as good as we get. But trying to make changelings look bad by hurting his fellow ponies?" With a sigh of her own, Rochelle said, "Well, I can't help but wonder what his brother would say about that."

"Well," a voice said, with a noticeable drawl, "Ah'd say that ah can't imagine what in the world he was thinkin', doin' somethin' like that. That jus' ain't right."

In the doorway, standing beside a female changeling, was a tall and rather well built earth pony clad in the armor of the Equestrian Guard. While his coat was a dark brown, and he was significantly more buff, the family resemblance was striking.

Gasping, trying very hard to find his voice, Saffron managed to croak out, "Mustard Seed? But how? I thought you were..."

"Nah, but it got pretty close a time or two," Pulling off his helmet, and revealing a shock of bright yellow mane, the pony nodded to the princesses and said, "Sorry for not seeking you both out right away, your highnesses, but after a year away, Ah thought the first pony Ah should see when Ah got back was my brother."

Luna, smiling, said, "It's quite alright, sergeant. It's good to see you here. Although I feel a brief explanation might be in order."

The guard chuckled, and said, "Well, thar ain't much to it, really. When the big spell hit the changelings, this young lady here collided with me, and we both ended up flying out of the city. We ended up a real long way's off, in unfamiliar territory, and both of us pretty banged up. It took half a year before either one of us was fit to be movin' anyplace, and in the meantime, we had plenty of time to get acquainted. Since neither of us knew where we were, and things were pretty dangerous out in the back end of nowhere, we figured we'd stick together until we made it back to civilization... or maybe a little bit longer."

The changeling in question giggled, and said, "There's a lot he's leaving out, like the fact that we ended up spending half the trip here running from angry trolls, or the bit with the ogre, or the fact that he just proposed to me yesterday," she added, showing a bright gold band around one foreleg, "but that's a story for another time." Looking down at the now thoroughly abashed chef, she said, "You know, he told me so much about you. I was hoping that you'd be a lot better than this..."

Saffron now looked utterly humiliated: he'd gone to such lengths to 'avenge' his brother, when in fact he was not only still alive, but he'd been saved by, and was now engaged to, a changeling...

"But I suppose," the changeling said, smiling, "that I can forgive you. After all, you were out of your head with grief."

"Well shucks, if she's gonna say that, I suppose I can't stay angry at ya, neither," Mustard said, giving his brother a hug. "We've got a ton of catching up to do, brother. You would not believe some of the stuff that's happened..."

"Well, far be it from me to spoil a moment like this," Candy said, looking at the shamed earth pony. "I could get you into a lot of trouble, and we'd both agree you deserve it, but I think I'll be nice today and not press charges for what happened earlier." Saffron looked up, hopeful. "You still have a lot to answer for, naturally, but that's something you can talk about with the princesses. I'm sure they'll be compassionate, given the circumstances." Looking over at Luna and Celestia, the pegasus grinned cheerfully.

Looking thoughtful, Luna admitted, "Well, I suppose we could work something out. We'll discuss it at length a little later, after he's gotten caught up with his brother."

Celestia, grinning, winked, then said, "Far be it from us to get between two siblings, long separated but now suddenly reunited."

If Rochelle's eye had visible pupils, she would have rolled them, but she said, "I guess I can't hold a grudge. I think I've got it out of my system. But if I ever hear about him doing anything like this again..." She pounded her forelegs together meaningfully.

Saffron cringed, then said, "Never again, I swear!"

Smiling sweetly, Rochelle said, "Good."

Silver Tongue sighed, then said, "Well, as wonderful as all of this is, I fear I do have a problem I'll have to go and fix."

Raising an eyebrow, Candy Floss asked, "What problem?"

Pointing at Saffron, Silver said, "This young fool was supposed to be my entry for a major cooking competition tomorrow. While I didn't necessarily expect him to win, I've had a chef taking part in the contest every year for the last twenty years. It's a matter of prestige: Just sponsoring a chef in the annual 'Ultimate Chef Competition' is a tremendous honor, and it makes my restaurant, Le Couteau Doré, the talk of the city for weeks afterwards. I'd hate to break that tradition now, but I don't think any judge would want to try something he's cooked right now, and I doubt any of my other chefs would be willing to come in on such short notice."

Sighing, then staring up at the ceiling, Rochelle said, "Well, if it's just cooking, and it doesn't really matter if I win or not, I could probably do it."

Everypony, and since there was another changeling in the room, everybuggy, turned to look at Rochelle. With a shrug, she said, "Well, cooking for a group of judges can't be any more difficult than cooking for Nuisance. And if it's a matter of prestige, well, think how famous you'll get for sponsoring the first changeling chef in Equestria?"

Silver Tongue sat and thought for a moment. He seemed ambivalent about the idea...

Celestia walked over to the pegasus and whispered something in his ear. Silver looked up at the princess, shocked. After a moment, Celestia nodded. Turning to Rochelle, Silver Tongue said, "Alright. I'll give you a shot. Be here bright and early tomorrow morning, and we'll see if you can manage it."