I followed Luna’s advice and worked on little things in my life first. I would work up to some of my bigger issues as I became more comfortable in my own skin.

I also tried to be social when I had the energy for it. Some days were even fun! I plan on revisiting the ‘Cookie Zombie’ prank in my dreams regularly.

One of my biggest, upcoming social strides was meeting somepony new; Starlight Glimmer.

I had heard plenty about her from the others over the last year. She was a lot like me in some respects. She was reforming and studying with Twilight now. And it seemed she’d turned over a new leaf. Twilight had suggested I meet her once I was comfortable. I’d finally decided it was time and was heading for the castle.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I arrived. This pony had enslaved her town and nearly destroyed the world over revenge. All I could think of was Chrysalis...

I knocked on the door of the castle and took a deep breath.

“She can’t be that bad.”

The door opened to reveal Spike.

“Oh. Hi Shade.”

“Hey Spike. I’m supposed to be meeting Twilight-“

“Yeah. She’s in the library with Starlight.”

He stepped to the side and let me in. I walked by, glancing at the dragon from the corner of my eye. He seemed upset.

Once I was in, Spike closed the door and led me to the library. He left me alone at the door and disappeared around the corner. What was wrong with him?

I opened the door and found Twilight and a mare sitting inside. Twilight smiled as I entered.

“Shade! I’m glad you could make it. I’d like you to meet my student, Starlight Glimmer.”

I walked forward and held out a hoof.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Starlight. I’m Shade.”

Starlight’s eyes darted over my body and her head tipped slightly.

“You’re...not a pony...”

I smiled.

“You’re half right. I used to be a changeling.”

She took a step back, a brief moment of fear crossing her eyes. Twilight put a hoof on her shoulder.

“It’s alright Starlight. He’s a friend. And he works with Princess Celestia.”

Fear turned to curiosity.

“Really? How did that happen?”

I chuckled.

“It’s a long, depressing story to be sure. The short version is that I have a talent that makes me invaluable to the Princesses. I absorb knowledge.”

“Absorb?”

I summoned a book from the nearby shelf and passed it to Starlight. Her eyes were bulging until I parted my mane to show off my stump of a horn.

“Unicorn. Just shorter than average. Now what book do you have there?”

“Um...The Magician’s Almanac”

“That’s a good one. Pick a page.”

She opened to the middle of the book.

“Page 174?”

I thought for a moment. Ah!

“When summoning an apparition, whether it is from bones or illusion, one must always remember the primary steps of a summoning charm in their precise order. If these steps should be improperly ordered or all together skipped, the charm will dissipate and risk the expulsion of the magic energy that should have gone into the charm.”

I turned to Twilight.

“How was that?”

Twilight glanced at the book and nodded.

“Word for word.”

Starlight looked up from the book.

“That’s amazing! You can recall anything you’ve ever read?”

“Yup. All 84,328 books to be exact.”

Now Twilight’s eyes were bulging. I stifled my grin as best as I could.

“So Starlight. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Her ears dropped.

“None of it good I’m sure.”

“Not all, but some. You’ve got a long road ahead just like me. But Twilight is definitely the mare to learn from. She taught me a thing or two when I first showed up. Though I think it bugged her how fast I moved through the reading material she provided.”

Twilight regained her composure and chimed in.

“Friendship can’t be rushed Shade. No matter how much you read.”

I started laughing.

“You don’t have to tell me twice. I’ve made plenty of mistakes along the way. I’m just glad I have friends that are willing to be patient.”

I turned to Starlight.

“And you’ve got those friends now too.”

Starlight smiled.

“I guess so.”

We sat down and talked for a while, sharing experiences from our former days. She listened intently as I described living in Everfree. I had to stop a few times to recompose myself. Reliving that time wasn’t easy.

Starlight shared her story of her town and her quest for revenge. It was amazing what she’d nearly accomplished. She was one of the more powerful unicorns in Equestria given the evidence. Twilight had been smart to take her under her wing.

“So why are you in Ponyville if you work in Canterlot?”

The question caught me off guard. It took a moment to form an answer.

“Well...I went through a pretty big change in my life recently. Celestia figured I’d need some time to recuperate. So I’ll probably be around for a few weeks.”

Starlight didn’t seem satisfied with that, but I didn’t know her well enough yet to answer honestly.

After we had some lunch, I took my leave. Twilight tried to get me to stay longer, but I denied. My social meter had dropped to nearly zero. It was time to rest.

I made my way through town towards the boutique. I was halfway back when an intoxicating aroma halted me in the middle of the street. I took a good whiff and turned my head. The smell was coming from Sugarcube Corner.

“Well...I guess I could go for something sweet.”

I made my way to the bakery and opened the door. And then I almost tripped over a couple of infants. I was able to maintain my balance and stop myself from crushing the two little foals.

“Woah! Sorry about that!”

Mrs. Cake appeared from the back.

“How many times have I told you two not to play near the door!”

The foals ran away before their mother could catch them. She let out a huff of annoyance and turned to me.

“How can I help you dear?”

“It smells like something just came out of the oven!”

“Oh yes! I just finished up some cookies. How many would you like?”

“A small bag of them would be fine.”

She disappeared into the back again, leaving me alone. Or at least I was until Pinkie came down the stairs. She didn’t seem her normal self at first, but when she realized somepony else was in the room she put on a big smile.

“Hi Shade! How are you?”

In the seconds before I answered, I noticed a few things with Pinkie. Her mane was more disheveled than normal, which was saying something. Her eyes seemed a little more dull. And her tone was entirely wrong for being “happy”.

“I’m doing okay I guess. Could be better. That’s why I’m grabbing some cookies.”

“Oh! I smelled them too. I just thought I’d grab one or seven.”

She left the staircase, entering the room a little more. She wasn’t bouncing along like she did. I stepped toward her.

“Pinkie? What’s up?”

“Up? Nothing’s up. Unless you mean the ceiling or the sky or the sun or the moon or-“

I put a hoof on her shoulder and her voice faded. Now that I was closer I could see that her eyes were red in the corners.

“Rough day?”

She didn’t meet my gaze, instead staring at the floor.

“...Yeah.”

“I get it.”

“You seem like you’re doing fine though.”

“Well you taught me a few tricks, remember?”

“Oh yeah.”

A small smile crept onto her face. I reached around and gave her a hug. Her body pressed against mine as she grabbed hold of me. I felt her tremble a little and the slightest hint of moisture on my shoulder. I rubbed her back a little.

“It’s alright. Better days will come.”

“...yeah.”

She pulled away, wiping a tear from her cheek.

“What’s got you down?”

In that moment I realized I hadn’t told anypony else about why I was back. Part of me worried that she’d gossip about it, but another part of me knew she’d never betray my trust like that. I took a deep breath before starting.

“Well...I’m a pony now.”

She cocked her head to the side.

“Huh?”

“I might have tried to vaporize Discord a while back. He turned me into a full-fledged pony. And the biggest difference between species is that changelings can live a really long time. Now...”

“You’re going to die sooner than you thought.”

I nodded, my eyes beginning to water.

“It’s been tough trying to come to terms with my new mortality. There’s still a lot of times where I can’t think about anything else.”

“That’s rough. Makes me feel silly for being sad over nothing.”

My brow furrowed.

“Don’t ever say that. You can’t help what you feel.”

“True. Life is a lot more complicated than I thought.”

“You can say that again.”

“Life is a lot more complicated than I thought.”

I met her eyes and a smile crept across her face. We both began to giggle as Mrs. Cake emerged with my bag of cookies.

“Here we are! Fresh from the oven!”

I thanked Mrs. Cake. She was about to say something else when the twins raced by.

“Oh! Those two!”

She ran after them without another word. I turned to Pinkie and held up the bag.

“Cookie?”

She smiled and reached into the bag. As soon as she pulled away I put my own hoof in-

The bag was empty...

My eyes shot to Pinkie, her cheeks full of the cookies I’d just received. She swallowed and smiled sheepishly.

“Oops...”

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