The next day, Marmalade, the anticlimactically named changeling queen, woke up.

She refused to talk with anyone once she was told that we knew she didn't have an army. I went to talk to her, but I was quickly ushered out of the room by concerned nurses.

A couple hours later, while walking with Luna in one of the palace's more open hallways, joyfully discussing the ridiculousness of 'teapot day' and how it somewhat stuck, I spotted, though one of the large, slightly ajar lavender stained windows, that Marmalade was walking out of the main gates.

With her bandaged head to the ground and her tail between her legs, she slowly headed away. She leant on the few changelings by her side, unable to carry her own weight by herself. The changelings themselves bared similar wounds, one limped on a cast-encased leg, one had a bandage wrapped around their stomach and a smaller one wrapped around their horn, or what was left of it, and one shook and twitched involuntarily every couple seconds.

They were watched by many ponies, some hiding their children, some glaring and some staring in a look of almost-sympathy.

Luna tapped my shoulder, "Is everything okay? ...Dan?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine." I said as I rushed to wipe the tear from my face. "Just tired."

She smiled and we kept walking, "I expect so. You had an early morning." She thought for a second. "Want to hear about the time my sister fell asleep during a traditional harvest ceremony?"

And so the conversation continued, as if nothing had happened.

I wanted nothing more than to run down there and help them, but even if I had ran, I would never have made it in time.

A couple weeks past, Spring had sprung and the cold weather began to fade into misty mornings and occasional downpours. The relief (and for some sick individuals; disappointment) of having a war called off at the last second had faded and life returned to normal. Well, as close to normal as it could get. Made me feel a little empty really, not having anything to work up to or think about.

Well, aside from Steve and Dawn's upcoming wedding.

The wedding was due in a couple of days when I called for a 'band meeting' of sorts. It was a late Saturday night when we all met in Steve's room.

Dawn, Steve, me and Eb were all sat in our respective pairs on the two sofa's either side of the small table. Alloy stood awkwardly at the end of the table next to a small pile of instruments. They were all happy to be there, though some were getting a little impatient. Even I was getting a little antsy, we had yet to execute the plan I had had in my head for a very long time.

"Okay guys." I said, once everyone was settled. "It's time to get serious."

Steve blinked and glanced to Dawn. "It wasn't serious before?" He asked, looking at me slightly confused.

"No! Of course not, you were just learning how to use it. Now its time to learn how to play it."

Him and Dawn shared a quick grin, "'Human song' time?"

I nodded. "Human song time."

The couple both gleefully hissed in silenced celebration, simultaneously hoof/claw pumping a little. I think we all smiled at their enthusiasm.

"Okay." I said, standing, "Who here can read sheet music?"

Dawn and Alloy raised their hooves.

"Who here can write sheet music?" The same two hooves stayed up. "Brilliant."

I leaned over the table and picked up Ebony's guitar from the pile. I plucked a string. "And who can tell me what note that was?"

Dawn lowered her hoof slowly, looking slightly disappointed, Steve wrapped an arm over her shoulder and swayed her gently in a comforting manner. Dawn smiled and responded by giving a sharp jab to the griffin's ribs. Flinching slightly, Steve chuckled to himself as he pulled his fiance closer to him. Dawn gave in and leaned into Steve's feathery pillow of a chest. They both giggled inwardly.

Though very distracted by the couple's strange transaction, Alloy kept his hoof raised.

Ebony seemed entranced by the act of affection across from him.

"...Go on." I said, acknowledging Alloy's hoof.

Alloy lowered his hoof and looked slightly guiltily to Dawn for a second. "A. The note was... A."

Dawn shrugged acceptingly, unsettling her living bed of neatly layered feathers. His slight annoyance upon noticing his plumage's disarray only proved to further disrupt his once pristine and delicate formation of feathers. The pegasus smiled in content as Steve let out a low, burbling avian growl, slowly sinking further into his chair, accepting his fate.

"Good." I said, placing the guitar down on the table. "Okay, agenda for the... lets say... next week or so, excluding the wedding day;" I pointed to Dawn, who springed into an alert sitting position, saluted and smirked at me as a few light brown feathers settled atop her head, "Dawn, teach Steve and Eb your ways of music reading." She nodded, then rushed out of the room, leaving everyone slightly wind-swept.

A couple seconds later, her head poked back into the room. "Come on slowpokes, weeks only last a few days!"

I smiled as Steve rolled his eyes, picked up his guitar and made his way to the door, trying helplessly to flatten his puffed-up feathers. Ebony looked up at me, seeming slightly worried. "You might need this." I said, handing him his guitar by its neck. He smiled weakly, took the guitar in his improving magical grasp and walked out of the room, following Steve who was muttering under his breath.

"Alloy." I said, getting his attention. His stare was a mixture of ambition and anxiety. "We still need a couple of vocalists, a bassist and maybe someone else to pair up with Steve."

Alloy awkwardly cleared his throat, "Bass... ist?"

"Bass guitar." He blinked. "Nevermind, just go and find me a couple singers and as many washed-up violin and cello players as you can. You have tabs in the music industry right? Shouldn't be too hard."

He didn't look so sure, but nodded sharply after taking a while to think. "S- sure. I can do that. I'll round up who I can."

"Great. Now, if you don't mind..." I said, turning and heading towards the door. "I have an old friend to speak to... Actually... I should talk to Celestia first."

I only wish that had been an intentional bash at the princess.

***

I approached the throne room doors, the guards either side of them eyed me suspiciously. I sighed inwardly as I used both hands to push open the two doors. I considered ramming them, for old times sake, but I wanted to be on Celestia's good side for what I was about to ask her.

Luna's throne was vacant and had a small note on it, folded so it could stand up. I squinted my eyes to read the small text from a distance.

"Dear sister" It read. "Me and Chrome are going out for the night, if you could cover for me while I am unavailable, I would be most appreciative. - Luna".

The room was lit with a 50/50 combination of moonlight, and candlelight. The ornately-stained windows spread the natural light into a multitude of tranquil colors that ricocheted off of the varnished stone floor and filled the large room with their peaceful hues, while the candles filled the dimmer, more light-deprived corners with a harsh orange flicker.

Celestia, who was luckily sitting alone on her throne, sighed as I entered the room. She set the seemingly ever-growing pile of paper down beside her throne and looked to me, her eyes were heavy and foreboding, but she was trying her hardest to look as attentive and caring as always. "Feather wanted to see you." She said, "Something about you owing her an explanation."

Nice of her to give Chrome and her sister a night out... but she looks incredibly tired.

"Yeah yeah, I'll deal with that later." I said, waving a hand dismissively. In reality, I had been purposely avoiding the orange unicorn, I wasn't looking forward to having to explain my time in prison to her. Over the last week or so, I had been trying to shorten the story as much as possible, so if she caught me in a weird situation, I could answer quickly and get it out of the way. I walked to the foot of her throne then threw myself at the ground, grovelling dramatically. "Oh great and powerful sun b-"

"How much?" Celestia sighed, summoning a small pad of paper and a small quill.

"Yeah, just take all the fun out of it why don't you." I mumbled as I stood. She looked to me expectantly as I stood in silence, watching her slowly raising eyebrows. "One thousand bits." I announced, attempting to sound confident. But I think, due to Celestia's very immediate reaction, the last couple syllables came out as a low-pitched mumble.

She sat up suddenly. "One thou-" Mid-sentance, her mouth fell slack, as if unhinged, then failed to make a tangible sentence for a couple of seconds. "Wha- Why?" She finally forced out.

I shrugged. "Need it."

She shook her head in disbelief, "Bu- You don't even pay tax! You don't have a job! You use palace rooms and services free of charge and you expect me to just give you that much?!"

"Yes?" I asked, looking up at her hopefully.

"No." She said, impassively.

"Please?" I pleaded, attempting my best 'pathetic' voice.

"No." She repeated, exhaling ten times more air than necessary for the word.

"You'd be best priiiinnceeesss."

"No, Dan." She moaned, rolling her eyes and dropping her shoulders.

"Come on..." I whined, "I promise, I'm not even spending any of it on myself."

She blinked, "...That just makes it worse!"

I frowned pathetically. "You gave me fifty for the armor. What's another measly 'one'?"

She rolled her eyes, "That was an investment."

"And you shined up my daggers with gem-y stuff for free!"

Her expression faltered slightly, "...That was also an investment."

I raised my eyebrows and crossed my arms. "I'm never using the daggers or armor ever again, if I can help it. Not exactly a smart investment."

She looked me up and down. "You have both daggers on you right now, plus some of the armor."

I looked down at myself, my daggers where in their usual place round my belt and I had the silken-portion of the armor under my normal clothes. Damn. "...So I do... Well, it's just a precaution." I thought for a second. "Wait... Are you... 'Investing' in my protection?"

"No." She said sternly. A little too quickly though.

I leaned towards her, "Kind of looks like you aarree." I teased.

She rubbed her face with a hoof, then thudded it down on the arm of her glorified chair. "Fine, take your money." She said, scribbling on the small piece of paper before tossing it at me.

It fluttered to the ground at my feet, I picked it up. '999 bits'. "Oh you cheap bitch." I said jokingly as I folded it up and placed it in a pocket.

She rolled her eyes and smirked. "Go have fun with it, it's the last one you're getting from me."

"Thanks anyway." I said as I turned and left.

I can always get money from Luna, I'm sure she'd be more than willing to surrender a little cash if I asked nicely enough.

***

I left the palace and was greeted with a strangely warm breeze, despite the moon being high in the sky. As I re-traced my steps to the small shop I was headed to, I noticed that there were a lot of ponies out on the street, out on late night walks with siblings and partners. Though they all donned scarfs and similar accessories, they were more for show, rather than warmth.

As I walked, looking from pony to pony, I noticed a metal clang behind me.

I turned abruptly, startling the young-looking guard behind me slightly. "Oh, sorry." I apologized as he composed himself again.

"Nah, it's my fault." He said in a fair, northern-sounding voice, adjusting the strap on his helmet, "Still getting used to the armor."

"So... you're new?"

"In the guard? Yeah." He nodded. "I'm not supposed to talk about it though."

I shrugged, "Hm, okay."

There was a small silence. I think we both felt rather out of place, being the only stationary beings in the bustling street.

He cleared his throat. "I know how it looks but I wasn't following you, I was just coming to check on you since you looked... kind of confused."

"Er, yeah." I said, pointing down the dim street at the ponies trotting about in small groups. "What's with all the ponies? They're not usually out this late."

He nodded, understanding my confusion. "Yeah, they're not, usually. But earlier in the month, the weather teams messed something up somewhere and needed to equalize it, leading to a rather warm night." He shrugged, "Couples and friends are taking advantage of the nice weather."

"Oh cool, thanks. I'm kind of out-of-the-loop when it comes to current events."

He grinned. "Just doing my job." He said, buffing out his chest proudly.

I shook my head, smiling, and turned away, heading back in the right direction.

"Always wanted to say that." I heard him mumble gleefully as we walked away from eachother.

I continued on my way through the streets. The ponies seemed to become sparser as I became further from the palace and into the less-fancy areas of the city. The cobblestones on the road also became more sparse and irregular, as well as the street lamps causing me to be shrouded in darkness for longer and longer intervals as I walked. I made an active effort to walk a little faster while in the dark patches.

Fate though, despite this, had other plans by the looks of it.

"Dan!" A mare's voice called out from a small shop as I passed it. I turned to see the door burst open and the tailor, Hazel Thread, pour out onto the street like a equine-shaped slinky before rushing towards me.

She jumped at me, throwing a hoof over each of my shoulders and hanging onto me like a necklace. It looked a little painful, so I knelt down, allowing her to get into a more natural position.

"Oh hey Hazel." I struggled as I attempted to pry the mare off of me. "Long time no see. How's it been? And... please let go, it's starting to hurt."

She gasped and took a step away from me, "Sorry, I..." Her gaze darted around, as if checking for onlookers, "I guess I let my excitement get the better of me." She straightened herself into a slightly more regal pose. "It has been a long time. How have you been? Need any more clothes? What about the-"

I extended my arm and put a finger to her lips. She fell silent, looking slightly embarrassed. "I asked you first." I said quietly.

Her eyes relaxed and a small smile spread across her face. She lifted a hoof and pushed my arm down, allowing her to speak. "Things have been going great, the business is really taking off."

Another mare poked her head out of the shop door Hazel had come from. "Excuse me miss, you haven't paid." She said in a surprisingly patient tone. In her position, which I have been while manning the till in the music shop, I would have ran after Hazel, in fear of her having stolen some picks or something.

"I'll let you deal with that," I said as Hazel turned in shock towards the shop, remembering she apparently hadn't paid for the small bundle of flowers perched on her back. "And I've been good."

Hazel, after staring for a couple of seconds, turned back to me, gave me another quick hug then ran back into the store, spewing apologies to both me, and the shop-keep. The flowers bounced off of her back as the door began to shut behind her. A few seconds later, as if in an Indiana Jones flick, a hoof shot out from the quickly closing door and snagged the bag and pulled it in just as the door clicked closed.

Again, after having been distracted yet again, I continued walking.

I made it to my destination without any further trouble. The blacksmith's door had a large wooden sign on it, burned into the wood in a bad attempt at ornate font were the words: "I do not make or repair clothes or jewellery!!!"

Looks like he finally got tired of all the higher-classes walking in expecting him to fix their dress's buckle or broach.

I quietly walked into the building and shut the door behind me. The shop was rather dark, though there were a couple of candles burning on the counter, getting still-warm wax stuck to both the counter and the floor.

The old pony who usually resided behind the counter was nowhere to be seen. Instinctively, I looked around the room for a summon's of sorts, a bell to ring, a button to press, anything. But I had no such luxury. So, before sitting down, I stuck my head back outside to check for any signs. A small "open" sign hung above the outside of the door.

Relieved I didn't just accidentally break into a store, I slumped myself down into one of the hard, underused waiting chairs.

While waiting, I noticed a muffled conversation coming from a heavy-looking metal-plated door in the back of the room. At first I wanted to investigate, but the cumbersome and somewhat threatening tools and workstations between me and the door worked as a great deterrent. Instead, I sat patiently. I had been having a good run in 'behaviour' at the time, and I wasn't about to break my streak.

Who knew? Maybe if I was good enough, Celestia would give me more money before I was forced to resort to Luna's wallet instead.

After what felt like an eternity, also known as, about five or ten minutes without anything to focus on, the sound of shifting metal sounded from the door.

After presumably unlocking, the door swung open, hitting the wall rather loudly. "You're doing this shift! I don't care if your 'friends' are waiting, your old man's in need of rest and the shop's staying open for another three hours!" An older pony yelled as he walked through the shop and out of the front door, not even noticing me. As the front door closed behind him, I recognised him as the blacksmith.

I quickly stood to follow the pony, but I was stopped in my tracks by another familiar voice which sounded from the room the blacksmith had come from.

"Dad! Come- Ugghh. ...by Luna's tail-end I swear if that party turns out good I'll..." The deep, yet whiney voice mumbled as it's source entered the room. I turned to see a dark-grey pony with light hair tied back in a... pony tail sigh as he slumped into the chair behind the desk. He placed his back hooves on the desk and leant back in his chair until only two legs were touching the ground and his sharply chiseled chin brushed against his chest. He stretched his front hooves then placed them behind his head to support his neck.

He had his eyes closed for most of his time in the room. That, combined with the dim lighting in the room, made it so that he, like his father, didn't see me. I still didn't know why I recognised his voice though.

I quietly walked up the the counter, he seemed to be dozing off slowly. "Er, hey." I said as I approached.

Now, I will admit, I may have raised my voice a little, just to freak him out, but I didn't expect his chair to break.

The only two legs still touching the floor both snapped as he flailed to get away from me. His chair collapsed backwards and, like any good captain, he went down with his ship. Leaning forwards to maintain eye contact with me saved the back of his head from smacking the floor, but the impact still looked painful.

He rolled off of the remains of the chair and stared up at me.

His fearful gaze turned to recollection, then to embarrassment. "Oh boy..." He sighed, looking down at the chair, "My dad's going to kill me."

"Sorry, I er... Didn't mean to..." I started, he silenced me with a raised hoof.

"No, no it's the wake up call I needed." He smiled, "I haven't seen you since the 'battle'! How have you been?"

I blinked, "Erm, not to seem rude but... Do I know you?"

He looked slightly offended for a split second, then looked down at himself, smiled and shook his head. "That's like, what? The third time you've done that to me? It's me, Midnight."

"O-oh! Midnight!" I said, finally realising where I recognised his voice from. "I didn't realise you were the blacksmiths son, but I guess the trade runs in the family?"

He nodded. "Yep. Small world we live in, huh?"

I nodded along with him. "Say, er... Do you take cheques?"

He was about to answer when the door behind me burst open so fast it nearly flew off its hinges. His eyes widened, then mellowed out. Confused, I turned around, to see what would cause such an odd reaction.

There in the doorway, positively fuming, was Feather. She was staring at me almost as intensely as Midnight was at her.

"DAN!!" She growled, stepping into the shop.

"Oh shit," I mumbled, "YEAH??"

Midnight looked to me, shocked. "You know her?" He whispered. "She's..."

"Shut up." I whispered back through grit teeth.

"You know why I'm here." Feather said ominously.

Midnight leaned on the counter infront of him with both of his... Elbows? "She's beautiful..." He mumbled.

"Shut UP." I whispered harshly. He didn't even seem to notice me as he stared at the unicorn just past the doorway. "Yes Feather, I know."

Midnight whispered her name under his breath like a priest would utter a sacred prayer.

Feather glared at me. "Well? Let's hear it then."

I grimaced, "It's kind of a long-"

"You're really pretty." Midnight said from behind me.

I couldn't help but smile inwardly at his unfortunate choice of mare. Feather just looked at him impassively, "Thanks." She said, clearly not actually appreciating the compliment.

I was stood in a stunned silence, just staring at the figurative love hearts in Midnight's eyes.

"Dan?" Feather asked impatiently, "Tell me."

I sighed as I was snapped back to the situation at hand. "The prison I was in was the open-ish kind, where we were all kept in barred off rooms. I... got bored in my cell and started to hum a tune..."

"...And?" She pried.

"It kind of escalated into song... Which escalated into a duet... Which escalated into a... well... Long story short, I kinda ...started a riot."

Feather smiled in a way I've only ever seen on the faces of proud mothers. "You started a prison riot?"

"Accidentally! I was bored, sung a song, next thing I know, some scarred-up cutthroat had the keys, unlocked everyone's cells then started throwing personal belongings down from the storage room. As soon as I got my stuff I just kinda... left."

Midnight, who had every right to stare at me in shock, was still mesmerised by Feather's mere existence.

Feather grinned, walked to me and leaped up placing a hoof on my chest to steady herself and used the other to pat me on the shoulder. "You did good." She shrugged, "Well, good enough."

I blinked, "Erm... Thanks?"

She rolled her eyes at my awkward response then dropped back down onto all-fours then headed back to the door, "Enjoy the night you two," she said as she left, "it's warm out."

As soon as she was out of earshot, Midnight somehow grabbed me, by my face, and pulled me down to his eye level where he had his face a little too close for comfort. "Dan, you've got to help me out! Me and her, we're made for eachother."

My face was covered with a pained smugness that only appears when you know something that you wish someone else did, but the results of such ignorance could be quite entertaining. "...Sure dude. I'll hook you up."

A smile spread across his face so large I almost felt bad about doing what I was about to do. "Thanks Dan, dearly, truly."

I grinned, pulling myself away from his grasp, "Me and Feather have known eachother for a while, so I know what really gets her interested."

His eyes lit up with hope. "Tell me, please tell me."

"Okay, first, she likes anonymous love letters with hidden messages which give clues to the sender's identity." I said, Midnight, bless him, immediately pulled a notepad out from under the counter and began taking notes. "Nothing obvious, I'm talking super super subtitle, she's the head of interrogation I think, so you've got to be smart."

Midnight took a couple of seconds to quickly scribble the words down. "Anything else?"

"Hmmm... If that does not seem to work... Try really, really tacky pick-up lines that are unique to her and you, she loves that. But if you do do that, you've got to seem confident and you've got to throw in a couple fake clues in the poetry, so she doesn't figure you out too fast." I said as his pencil began to smoke from the sheer enthusiasm of which he was writing with. "She's a 'thrill of the hunt' kind of gal."

"Anything else?"

I thought for a second, then a devilish smile spread across my face, "You know what? She really likes ponies who can play instruments, especially deep ones, singers too." He took it down with gusto. "You know... I hear a local band has some spaces opening up..."

"Really?!" He asked.

I nodded. "Yep, you should go and check it out, I was thinking of joining them myself."

"Is that it?"

I couldn't think of anything else particularly entertaining, aside from 'inappropriate gifts' but I think I had already taken it too far by that point. "Yep, now, back to my order... Cheques?"

***

I left that building with one missing cheque and a grin on my lips.

But as much as I was joking around, looking back and taking into account the way this world works... That was probably the best advice I could have given him, especially for Feather. She seems like the kind of chick who likes a puzzle, or a challenge. Plus, I have found that what tends to work in cartoons tends to work here aswell, whether or not I'm actually in a 'cartoon' or if I'm just in a world that happens to work like one is... something I don't like to think about.

My grin, however, was short lived. It was wiped from my face and replaced with terror as, while on my way back to the palace, the ground mere meters infront of me was showered in glass. Then a music stand. Then a couple loose pieces of paper. I looked up at the palace to see a broken window high up on the wall I was at the foot of. I over-heard a few distant voices.

"What even is that?!"

"That's a note, Steve. I've told you this. Mu- Look what you did!"

"Why does it have to be so frustrating?! Just tell me the damn note you damn book!"

I sighed as a copy of "Music: The Basics. A foal's guide." Landed at my feet.

I may have put a little too much description in this one, tell me what you think, is it too much? I dunno.

Also, to those who know me, Steve getting frustrated over the notes has nothing to do with the fact that I also happened to do the same thing when I first picked up my guitar, it was planned to happen weeks ago, but I only just now actually wrote it out.

By the way, I now have every instrument they have aside from drums, so expect the descriptions of playing said instruments to be more realistic, whether that will make them better or worse at playing really depends on how well I learn. Hopefully I learn well... Here's hoping!