Dear Diary,

My stomach keeps turning…

“Did you really save the day?” Fluttershy sat by the door, asking me the question the moment I came in the door. I ignored her, pretending I hadn’t heard what she said. No one seemed to react to it, so I assumed none of the others had really heard what she said either.

I took my seat next to Twilight’s bed again. Through the window I saw that the sun had started its descent to the horizon.

“We can’t really do anything before tomorrow,” Twilight said, glancing at Rarity. The white unicorn did move much, or say anything.

“Wait, why?” something about the feel of the room was not right with me. I had started to get over the relief that had been as a stone in my stomach since the Changelings were defeated, and now the fact that these people seemed so… unaffected by the situation was really starting to get me. Against my common sense, I started to speak out about it. “Sweetie Belle and Applejack could be dead! We need to do something before it is too late!”

“I don’t think so,” my new girlfriend shook her head. “The Changelings doesn’t kill if they don’t absolutely have to. They are dependent on keeping cattle to survive. They wouldn’t kill them if they already had them captured.”

I didn’t know what to say. Cattle? That was the fate we left Applejack and Sweetie Belle to suffer?

“I worry that unless we rest and make sure we aren’t carrying any wounds from the fight, we won’t be able to save them. It is harsh, but Sweetie Belle and Applejack would have been captured a while ago. I doubt one day will make a difference for them, but it might for us.”

“Twilight is right,” Rainbow pitched in, giving me a hit to the shoulder. I was sure I felt hesitation in it. “Don’t worry about it. We’ve dealt with the Changelings before, and that time we didn’t know before it was almost too late. Now we get to prepare for how we are going to kick their asses!”

“I think we need to talk to the girls to see how they are holding up,” Fluttershy spoke up, so much that everyone turned and looked at her. “And let Twilight do the planning for tomorrow. I fear for how this could affect Applebloom and Scootaloo. We might have to postpone saving our friends, but I would be ashamed if we let ourselves forget about those we can help without waiting.”

Yes Ma’am, by brain instantly responded, without thinking. Something about how she said it seemed to have made everyone just go along with the idea without question. Rainbow said she’d check up on Scootaloo, while Pinkie and Fluttershy said they’d go to Sweet Apple Acres. I was left in the room with Twilight, Rarity and Spike.

“I really do should go back to the Boutique. I still have a few things to do before I can lie down, after all. The world of fashion doesn’t stop because of some personal inconveniences.”

Rarity put on a smile that was obviously fake, but there was one thing that stood out in much greater clarity from her message; she wanted to be alone. Spike was about to say something, but Twilight pinched his arm, calling his attention.

“Spike, I need you to get back home immediately and start finding every book on the Changelings that you can. I’ll be there in a little while.”

The door slammed behind the guy, leaving Twilight and myself alone in the room. I wasn’t quite sure of what to say. She had a blush on her cheek, avoiding looking me in the eyes with a minimal margin at every turn of her head. She seemed just as unable to come up with something to say as I was.

“So…” I started. Generic. Meaningless. Empty.

“Yeah…” her response was so much like mine. “I… let’s just continue where we left off before this whole ‘boyfriend’ thing came into the picture. I shouldn’t have said that, I…”

“Given my behavior, I’m surprised they didn’t think I was someone else’s boyfriend,” a nervous laugh emitted from me, for a couple of seconds.

“Well, it is heat-season,” Twilight just shrugged and smiled. “Everyone is sleeping around these days. Well, almost everyone…”

“Still,” I shrugged too. “I’d assume Pinkie Pie were my girlfriend if I were an outsider looking in.”

“Not if you knew her. She’s - pardon my language, I don’t mean anything wrong by it, I just don’t know how else to say it - the biggest slut in Ponyville. She thinks sex is fun and that people should get to do it when they want to, with someone fun.”

We laughed a little at this, but I made myself stop. We had work to do and we shouldn’t linger on this more than we had to. With my head I gestured for the door.

“Those two Changelings,” on our way out of the hospital, I probed at Twilight’s knowledge. Her eyes were distant. “You said you and your friends had fought Changelings before, right? Were they all that tough?”

“No, the last time we fought them we only lost because they were an army, and we were only six. These two were… special?” the last word was a question, removed from the rest of the sentence. I raised by eyebrow. “The one who died was more formidable than the one who got away. If there are more of them, we could easily die or be captured.”

A stone sank into my stomach, and nothing more was said for the rest of the walk home.

**

“Spike!”

“Yes, Twilight!” the boy came running with a heap of scrolls in his arms, dumping them on the nearest table to the entrance. He had to blow out a candle before it burned one of them. “I found everything we had on the Changelings. Not that we had much. Only these scrolls. Second hand reports, most of them.”

“Thank you. Now, I want you to go check on Rarity. I think she need someone to talk to.”

Spike leapt at the chance to, but stopped in his tracks. He glanced first to me, then back to Twilight.

“Why don’t you go?” he asked Twilight.

“Because I have to read about the Changelings so I can find a way to fight them.”

“Then why doesn’t he go?” he pointed to me. Good question. “Rarity seemed to be really friendly with him before we parted ways.”

A one-sided affair. I didn’t want to talk to Rarity right now. Or anymore, if I could avoid it. Being angry with her was easy, and even if I were under some mind-spell just like her, at least I hadn’t turned violent.

“Because I’ll need his help with this.”

“But I’m your Number One Assistant.”

“Why are you so persistent on not going to see Rarity?” I had to ask the question. It just popped into my mind.

“I’m not, I’m just saying that if you two want to be alone, you can just say so.”

“Fine, whatever!”

The door slammed and there was one less dragon-boy in the room. Twilight’s little outburst sent a shiver up my spine.

“So, why did you want him to go?” I asked, hesitantly.

“Because you have experience with the Changelings in person and could possibly shed some light on these,” her hand gestured to the scrolls. “And because Rarity needs someone to speak to.”

I nodded. Fine with me.

“And because I’d like to spend some time alone with you.”

The sentence was added as an afterthought, delivered with a blush that faded instantly. Instead, a look of determination came to her as she levitated a couple of scrolls to me. The task was simple; read, ask and report. No words were needed to get the message across.

**

Fourteen scrolls into the heap of about 20 or so, I let out a yawn. Hours had passed and it was going towards the night. Almost every sentence of the scrolls had to be examined closely and against my memories, and what we had noted down on the Changelings we had met after they had come up time and time again in Twilight’s small ramblings of speculation. It made even short works tedious to go through. Any effort to divide the work between us was futile, as Twilight would have to ask me questions all the time. Spike hadn’t returned.

“Why is it that none of these scrolls can agree on anything?” I said, without expecting an answer. The scrolls were diverse, almost as if they weren’t even talking about the same creatures, save for the signature mind-control part. Physical aptitude, mental stability, the degree of their control, their motivation: none of these were the same in the reports on them. A couple of scrolls even suggested that “real” Changelings didn’t really transform either.

“I don’t think reading will help this time,” Twilight mumbled to herself. She had skimmed through the rest of the scrolls, frustrated. “There is nothing here on how to fight them.”

“Maybe we should,” I wasn’t sure if I should continue, but I forced myself to keep a stiff upper lip. “I don’t know, wait maybe? We’ve already decided to wait until tomorrow.”

“That is to make sure that we’re not carrying any wounds into a fight.”

“And that is different from not knowing enough to win how, exactly?”

“It isn’t,” Twilight looked to her feet. “But if we don’t leave tomorrow, I don’t think I could stop Rarity from going on her own. That is why I wanted Spike to go to her, to make sure she didn’t run off without us to save Sweetie Belle. I don’t know how she’ll act if Sweetie Belle is in danger. The last time Spike was in danger she nearly lost control. I don’t think it’ll take much more now to drive her over the edge.”

I didn’t respond. I couldn’t think of anything to say to that. Did the other girls know this? They had to, right? Was Rainbow’s bravado just that? Rarity had had a façade going on ever since we left the Diamond Tunnels, so why not the others?

I wondered if Sweetie Belle had been a Changeling since the first time I met her. No, that was a bad brain. I didn’t want to think about that.

“If we can’t get anywhere by reading, what is there left to do? Get a good night’s sleep?”

“More or less,” Twilight just nodded, levitating the scrolls away from us. They were set down orderly in an empty section on a shelf. “We could pick up where we left, though. It is only evening still.”

“Umm,” the last thing I remember doing alone with Twilight was to give her a… horn-job? Something like that. Speaking of which, if we were to sleep in the same bed tonight, she’d have to put something on that horn. Minor scratches were okay. A seven inch deep puncture wound wasn’t.

“I still don’t know much about your world or species. You’re so similar, yet so different. Your scent is both familiar and foreign. From my limited exposure alone, I’d conclude that the pheromones our species produce would be very much alike.”

Wait, pheromones? I didn’t mind the sexual nature of her topic, it just struck me as odd. Or not, I’d guess. I was still supposedly her boyfriend-to-be or something like that. We had pretty much agreed to start to date once this was over. And she did make a claim to me once this heat season was over.

“I wouldn’t know about that,” I responded, truthfully. “We – as in homo sapiens – don’t really have a sense of smell strong enough to consciously notice them.”

“So, you can’t…” she swallowed and blushed. “You can’t smell my – my arousal?”

It looked like it had taken all the effort she could muster just to utter it out loud. Maybe they were like humans in many ways, after all. It struck me that, even though I didn’t really mind her being aroused, she couldn’t have picked much worse of a moment. I shook my head in response, trying to be nice about it.

“It gets worse, you know,” she said. “The heat, I mean. Every year it becomes harder to manage by yourself. Last year I couldn’t even- I couldn’t even do it by myself…”

My face started to get a lot warmer. Hers too, from the look of it. She had a strange little smile on her lips, coy and playful, bordering on malevolent. I assumed she could smell something on me that gave her more confidence to continue.

“I’ve never been, well, particularly good with guys. Closest males in my life have been family, or Spike. And I wouldn’t dare to break the relationship I have with him over some silly sex thing. So I’ve had to deal with it myself for so long now. If it weren’t for Pinkie Pie getting involved last year, I could have gone crazy.”

“Did- didn’t you say you never… you know?” I felt like my face was burning. Most of the blood in my body was divided between my face and south of the navel.

“Never with a stallion. Nor ever after that one time with Pinkie.”

She stood up and it struck me that acting on this feeling would relieve her of tensions she had carried ever since I got here. How she had decided to not do anything the night I happened to share her bed was now a show of her self-control. I got to my feet too, and reached out my hands to take hers. I wasn’t making decisions with my mind anymore. I could feel the butterflies turn my stomach around at every move.

She embraced me, leaning her head against my chest. In return, I closed my eyes and planted a kiss on her forehead. I felt something press against me from all sides, and when I opened my eyes we were in the bedroom. Magic was convenient.

We let go of one another. For a split second she stood still, allowing me to make a decision. I acted on the first thought that came into my head and started to gently unbutton her shirt. Once open, she pushed me backwards, hard enough for me to have to take a step back. The edge of the bed was right behind me, tripping me, so I had to sit down.

Twilight was less gentle in her treatment of my clothes, using her horn to force my pants and undies off. Once they moved far enough down my legs to allow it, she climbed onto my lap. With a little help, she got my shirt and tshirt off.

Again she pushed me, making me fall to my back. On my way down, I took a hold around her waist, pulling her down with me. She smirked and returned the kiss I gave her earlier. Her horn lit up again and I could hear the sound of fabric being rapidly cut. She had lost her patience with taking of her own pants before she even began.

I lay naked on the bed with Twilight on top of me. She still had her bra and unbuttoned shirt on. I could feel her grind against me. Pulses of pleasure invaded my mind. I might not have been able to fight her magic, but I was still stronger than her, so I tossed the two of us around so I was on top. She bit into her lip when I started to pull off her remaining clothes.

”Let’s leave them on,” a push form behind, presumably her magic, forced me down so she could whisper in my ear. Her horn lit up again, taking hold of my member and guiding it into her entrance.

“Nnng!” she had to be as tight as the Cutie Mark Crusaders had been. Slowly I pushed in, savoring the feeling. Twilight had closed her eyes, leaving her mouth partially open. She had a euphoric expression. She crossed her ankles behind my thighs, preventing me from doing more than move back and forth inside her. Pulling out was out of the question.

Taking the opportunity, I locked my mouth to hers while she still had her eyes closed. Our tongues wrestled, with a slow and gentle pace. My arms were at her back, running along it from bottom to neck.

My penis didn’t get all the way in, meeting too much resistance around two thirds, so I pulled backwards until only the tip was still inside. Then I started to move forward again. Twilight broke the kiss and started to gently bite me on the ear instead, stroking my neck and back.

Our chests and necks were pressed up against one another and I could feel the rapid heartbeats emitting into my body. I could barely keep track of which beats belonged to whom.

Lit up by a purple light, I felt I was being tossed around. Twilight did as I had earlier, putting herself on top. She sat up, riding cowgirl, grinding back and forth. In my own loins, the pressure started to build.

While her eyes were closed almost all of the time, the few glimpses of them I got made me think that she had let her instincts take over completely. Placing my hands at her hips, I increased the speed we were going, pushing both faster and harder.

“Ahh!” Twilight fell forward as a result of me penetrating her deeper and deeper. Her breath was entirely uneven and as heavy as an overachiever’s backpack. Her hands, still on my back and neck, started to shiver. Her grip became less and less firm with every thrust. Before long it had faded entirely and she let out a sigh.

Seeing as I didn’t have to hold out much longer, I let to. I could feel it pumping a couple of times before it just stopped, and so did I. As I became flaccid, my member came out of her on its own.

I looked down on my chest a bit closer. Twilight’s subconscious had to be very used to that horn. Even though she had fallen right on my chest, her head had turned so that I wasn’t pierced by it.

“I don’t think I can go back to toys next season,” Twilight started to move again, smirking up at me. She placed herself in a more sleep friendly position.

“Um, Twilight?” before I fell asleep I had to bring it up. Seeing her horn missing me reminded me of something. “You don’t have something to cover up your horn with, do you? I don’t want to accidently get stabbed…”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll take care of it…”

**

Twilight, Rarity, their friends and I were back where we had fought the Changelings. The morning felt like it had been way too short. The butterflies in my stomach told me that I was nervous for what would happen. Twilight had decided that we had to enter the caves.

I nodded and turned my back at them, looking at the ground for tracks of any kind. Nothing but the mess from last time we were there that I could see.

“Twilight,” I began, preparing to ask if we shouldn’t wait a bit longer. When I turned back to the others, my blood froze. Rarity, Twilight and Spike were on their knees, knives at their throats. Behind them were Changelings. Pinkie, Rainbow and Fluttershy were too? How deep did this thing go?

“Relax, dear,” from behind I felt someone gently grab my shoulders. The voice was familiar. Molly. “Everything is going to be fine. We’ve been waiting for you, my dear pets. Come now, follow us home.”

She sank her teeth into my neck once more. I screamed and everything got blurry. I closed my eyes and felt a tear run down my chin.

“It is not wise to indulge your fears, even in your dreams.”

Looking up, I saw Luna. Nothing was blurry anymore. Her horn was lit and with the wave of a hand, everyone but the two of us disappeared.

“I am dreaming?” I didn’t need an answer. I felt relieved. “Well, thanks for letting me know, Molly, but taking on the form of Luna isn’t going to make me trust you. Now, could you be a kind Changeling and leave my head alone?”

“Molly? I presume this is the name you gave to whatever Changeling held sway over you. No, I am not a Changeling. As the Princess of the Night, it is my privilege and duty to guard over the dreams of the people of Equestria.”

“Right,” I began, but didn’t care to continue. This was insanity, whether it was Luna or Molly. I just wanted to wake up again, so I could start over.

“I have tried to contact you since before you came to Canterlot, ever since Twilight sent us the letter about your arrival,” the scene changed to the throne room. Her preference, I assumed. “But I simply couldn’t locate you. Then I could, but something prevented me from entering your dreams. That is why my sister and I assumed you were the Changeling at first.”

What the hell was she talking about? I listened, but didn’t speak.

“It would seem that your kind does not dream the way we do, and that something the Changeling did to you changed that. It is most peculiar.”

“Well, Molly, that is a neat story. I, however, am going to be a little more skeptical of a figure in my head trying to tell me something at this point. I’m sure you’ll understand.”

“I understand. To you, I must be indistinguishable from the projection your mind created to reflect the Changeling’s influence on your mind. But humor me, if you may. I believe that you may have overcome the Changeling’s control. If you believe I am the real Luna, something has changed that allows me to enter your dreams. I couldn’t do such a thing as recently as last night. Be very careful, for I do not know what this means.”

A growing part of my mind wanted to believe her, that she was the real Luna, but knowing the danger of assumptions with projections of my own mind, I forced myself to remain skeptical. It could be Molly trying to lower my guard, though the lack of pain and distraction didn’t strike me as being her style.

“If you’re in my dreams, does that mean you can prevent or help me wake up?”

“We can, to a degree. I can only hold it off or hasten it by so much.”

“Can you wake me up now?”

“I will try.”

**

I opened my eyes, looking around Twilight’s room. In our sleep, I had moved to be the Big Spoon. Sitting up in bed, I must have woken up Twilight.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just a strange dream.”

“What about?”

“Luna talked to me.”

“Oh… well, did she say anything nice?”

“Just warned me that since she now could locate my dream, I had to be careful.”

“That’s Luna, helping people through their dreams.”

Twilight was about to lay down again, but I grabbed hold of her shoulder.

“You mean to tell me that Luna actually enters people’s dreams?”

“Of course,” she yawned. “She is the Princess of the Night. It’s her duty.”

As I laid down, this rang through my head. Luna, the real Luna, had visited me in my dream? I grew cold inside. Something was terribly wrong, if what she said was true. Whatever that Changeling did to me, it seemed to have far more side effects than just hallucinations.