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Chapter Text

 Stinger stood to attention beside countless other Changeling soldiers. The majority of them would be staying to guard the queen and the hive, while some were sent to take and impersonate important and beloved ponies.

 Queen Chrysalis stood atop her throne, looking down at her loyal subjects. Stinger could only hope that he could be as useful as the others for the queen.

 She tapped her hoof against the throne impatiently as she studied the candidates for the mission.

"I've received news of a very popular restaurant. I do not know who owns the restaurant, but one of the generals has discovered the identity of the owner." Queen Chrysalis paused for effect before she continued. "She is a Pegasus who goes by the name 'Spearmint Brownie'. We don't want ponies to realize she's missing by the flavor of their meals changing, so one of you will impersonate her roommate and best friend named 'Wood Trotter'. At the moment, he has been reported missing. How much joy would they feel if he reappeared?"

 General Cocoon, the only changeling with a remotely shared bloodline with the queen, called three names. "Horn. Barb. You two are to search for the missing pony incognito, so he doesn't end up interacting with anyone he knows." He glanced at the crowd of willing changelings, perhaps searching for reliable face amongst them.

"Stinger. You will impersonate the restaurant-pony's roommate. Come you three. We managed to extract an image of him."

 Stinger was ready and willing to serve the queen of his hive. Loyalty had been drilled into him since he first hatched, just like all the others.

Except the traitor. Thorax.

 He followed obediently behind General Cocoon and the other two lucky changelings. Personally given an assignment in the Queen's presence.

This is amazing! I wonder how else I can assist the hive in the future?!

 Stinger stood firm beside Horn and Barb as the general stopped in front of a case. He wanted to peer at it in curiosity, but if he wanted to keep his position, he had to be still.

 The general nodded to the three of them, giving permission for them to study the appearance.

He looks like an ordinary pony. He's an earth pony too, of all things.

 With a brown body and a red mane, as well as dull brown eyes, he looked more ordinary than all the other multicolored ponies in Equestria.

 Stinger practiced changing into the unimpressive form. From his cutie mark, he wasn't even special. Just a plain carpenter. He looked at his reflection in a nearby puddle, studying the boring features.

 All changelings given an assignment were only permitted to ask one question. He had to use his wisely, but he was curious, and his success depended on knowing. He changed back and asked.

"What does the restaurant pony look like?"

 The general nodded, silently affirming that he was heard and would receive an answer. "You're lucky. We happened to acquire a picture of her as well."

 Stinger followed General Cocoon to another room, leaving Horn and Barb behind to study the carpenter pony's image.

 The stern general brought him through several corridors, all uncannily familiar to Stinger, as a changeling hive was special in shape.

"This is it, Stinger. Study it carefully. We only have one try to succeed. I know, for a pony she looks even worse, but at least attempt to bear it." The general gagged, as the majority of ponies looked unpleasant to changelings.

 Stinger took in the picture of a smiling pony. Her fur was brown, like the chocolate he saw on a bakery window once, and her hair was pearly white with light green streaks. Her vivid green eyes sparkled in joy in the photo as she made what seemed to be brownies.

 He glanced back at General Cocoon's retreating form.

She's the pony I have to deal with?

------

 Stinger transformed into several objects on the way to a crowded tourism village. It had recently become popularly known in large cities due to the restaurant's fame.

 He formed the image of the owner in his mind, trying to remember the details of it.

 At the time of day it was now, she should be at her house. According to General Pincer, Spearmint Brownie and Wood Trotter were buying the house in installments, the final one was the day before his disappearance, so now it was officially her house.

 He found what looked to be the right house, and quietly shifted in the alley he hid in. A quick glance at his reflection reaffirmed that he looked like the photo.

 He made his way to the front door and knocked. Stinger waited patiently for the restaurant owner to open the door.

"Who is it at this hour? Honestly, if it's you, Cedar-" The door opened to reveal a Pegasus who looked a lot more vibrant than in the photo, her expression showed complete shock as liquid arose in her eyes. "W-Wood?"

 Tears streamed down her face as she took in Stinger's impersonated appearance.

 She whispered to herself. "If this is a dream, don't ever let me wake up."

 If Wood Trotter was missing for a while, maybe it would be best to feign losing memories. "Am...am I at the right place? I don't remember a lot but-"

 He cut off his sentence in surprise as the mare hugged him tightly.

"Don't ever disappear again, Wood!" She hiccuped through tears.

 Stinger didn't like it. Whatever happened to the carpenter pony shouldn't cause another to be so liquid-y about it. He had to see the mission through to the end, so he had to put up with the strangeness of the pony for a while.

 He waited for her sobs to quiet before allowing her to tug him inside the house.

 He glanced around curiously. Most of the furniture was wooden, instead of stone or metal like kitchen appliances.

 She pushed him to sit on the couch. "Stay here! Let me get you a cup of tea."

Tea? I don't believe I've had it before... "Uh...sure?" He replied too quickly for his brain to function.

"Alright! Do you want sweet or bitter? I don't know if your tastes have changed while you were gone, so let me know!" She asked too brightly to be normal, since her nose was still pink from the onslaught of tears.

Flavor? Flavor...um... "I'll...I'll have a..." He trailed off as he glanced into the kitchen. "...What flavors are there?" He settled on.

 She smacked her forehead with her left wing. "Ah! Right. Should've started with that. Let's see...we've got peppermint, spearmint, regular mint, chai, jasmine, chamomile, lemon and lavender, pomegranate, mango..."

 Stinger zoned out as she rattled off different flavors of tea. Are there really so many? Why isn't there just Tea?! Why do ponies need so many different kinds of tea?!

 She took a breath and continued the list, but he cut her off. "I'll have spearmint, then. Sweet, please." It's not like it changes the flavor for me. I'm a changeling.

"M'kay!" She flapped her wings to give herself an extra push. She mumbled to herself, repeating what he asked for. "Spearmint, sweet..." She looked through the cupboards and exclaimed loudly when she finally found it. By that time, the hot water was whistling from being boiled.

How strange. Water whistles when heated. I wonder if the hive knows this?

 Stinger waited for a few minutes as she served the water into a pot and set the tea's bag into the cup.

It's a surprisingly lengthy process...

 The pony hummed as she brought two cups of tea. "One for you, one for me!" She cheered.

This feels like a definite mood swing from before.

 He eyed her as he sipped the tea warily. It startled him that it wasn't too hot, and he could taste the flavor just fine. She caught his surprised look and shrugged with a broad smile. "Tea is a past time for me, but it usually gets too hot for me too, so I fill it mostly with hot water and then add either some ice or some cold water."

 Stinger downed the whole cup quickly, as it was surprising to be able to taste anything other than love.

"Let me introduce myself properly, since I don't know if you remember me very well." She flew a few feet off the ground hovered for a moment before tipping her head to introduce herself. "My name is Spearmint Brownie. Nice to meet you! You can call me Spearmint!"

 His mouth moved before his mind caught up and he found himself asking to use a different nickname. "What about Spear?"

Chapter Text

 Spearmint blinked at Stinger. Clear surprise on her face.

"If you want, you can call me that. I don't mind." She turned back to the kitchen to put away whatever was left over.

 He couldn't help himself as a small smile crept across his disguise's face. "Well then, Spear it is."

 Before he knew it, Spear had left the house by the front entrance. He was curious as to where she was going, so, he followed her. He remembered to close the door behind him, as it was proper pony manners.

 He was quiet as he followed the pegasus behind several buildings before entering a large one from the employee only entrance. He glanced at the sign on the door. "Am I allowed past this point?" He asked Spear as she opened the door with a wing.

 She glanced back in surprise. "You followed me? Well...I guess it couldn't hurt to show you around..." She shrugged and opened the door completely, pulling him along with her other wing.

 He could feel her feathers brush against his coat as she guided him inside so he didn't crash into any of the ponies in what looked like a bustling kitchen.

 Stinger let his gaze roam the kitchen, looking at ingredients and the chefs. Spear brought him to a corner where he could watch them uninterrupted.

 A sudden gasp from her surprised him, making him jump at the unpredictability. Her cutie mark, which looked like a kitchen knife in front of a chef's hat, glowed faintly. She dove towards one of the chefs, who was about to put in some sort of spice. "Don't use that! Paprika would ruin the flavor!" She snatched the container with her wing and turned sharply to reprimand another chef. "No! Not that! That'll have too much salt! Add this instead!" She slid the bottles of spices onto her wings and distributed them where necessary.

Is this why Her Majesty Queen Chrysalis Can't replace the chef? Because she can fix flavors at a moment's notice and if she doesn't speak up, anyone could realize?

 The chefs in the kitchen took the criticism without complaint, used to her many flavor repairs.

 Suddenly, her cutie mark glowed dimly, signaling another about-to-be-ruined food. Stinger glanced around the kitchen, but wouldn't find anything wrong. He looked back towards Spear, only to realize she had vanished.

What the...where did she go?!

 One of the chefs sighed. "Alright. Who's turn is it to summon her back?" It was an earth pony with a grey coat with faint white spots on his flank, blue eyes, and a green mane. His cutie mark was of spices that he couldn't recognize.

 A sky blue pegasus with a stormy black mane and violet eyes raised a wing. "I think it was mine." Her cutie mark was of various foreign kitchen utensils.

 A blue-green unicorn with a purple mane and dark blue eyes sighed as she brought the blue pegasus some unseemly spices. "This should bring her back." Her cutie mark was of a cake. Maybe a baker?

 The pegasus lifted the containers with her wings, reluctant to put it in the food. Suddenly, Spear returned in a wisp of wind, yelling, "Don't do it!"

 She blinked a she looked around. "I'm back already?"

"Of course chef!" They all replied together in unison.

 Spear sighed. "Continue whatever you were doing then. I'll try not to be dragged away." She left the main kitchen and returned to the corner she had left Stinger in. "Well, I'm back now. I have a surprise for you." She grinned brightly.

"What is it?" He asked curiously. It was already a surprise that she could teleport without using unicorn magic, but perhaps it was a special property of her cutie mark.

 She led him with her wing to a private kitchen area. Probably for her own convenience. "I use this place to make my brownies most days, but now, I'm going to teach you how to make some!"

...What?

------

 At first, it seemed like a simple enough recipe to follow. Just copy exactly what Spear does.

 It was much more complicated.

 He had to properly measure the two cups of sugar, make sure the cup of butter was melted and slightly cool, and mix together. Then, he had to crack four eggs, add a tablespoon (which was one of the big spoons in the drawer near the usual mini ones) of vanilla extract, which was technically aged vanilla sticks.

 Then he had to which it together and add a cup of flour and cocoa powder, stir it together into a smooth chocolatey color, and add a teaspoon of salt and coffee powder for extra chocolate richness (according to Spear).

 Something that wasn't on the recipe, was Spear adding a teaspoon and a half of peppermint extract. She said it 'tasted like Heartswarming Eve' when finished baking in the oven.

 Once he was done whisking, Spear dumped a whole bag of chocolate chips into it.

"Stir some more." She ordered with a smile.

 He obliged and continued stirring while she set up the oven. After he was mostly done with the recipe, he realized he had actually enjoyed making it.

 It was actually fun to focus his entire mind on something for once. He actually liked baking the brownies.

 Spear watched his expressions after she put the brownies in the oven. "I told you, you would like the surprise. Now, wait until you taste it!" Her eyes gleamed with anticipation, as they only needed to wait 25-30 minutes for the brownies to bake.

 Stinger was curious about one thing, which wasn't on the recipe. "How did you know the amount for the peppermint extract?" He asked her. He sat down, since he was exhausted from all the stirring.

 She hummed and began putting aside two plates. "I saw the extract, a few years ago, a few days before Heartswarming Eve. I was curious as to how it would taste, and began testing with different amounts in different batches." She smiled and settled into her own chair (couch) after setting down a few more plates Stinger believed were for the chefs.

 Spear settled onto the couch comfortably and lay there. She yawned and nestled her head against the pillow as she draped her wings over her sides. "I liked the flavor, and kept it in my head since then."

 Stinger glanced at her flank, looking at her mysteriously inconspicuous cutie mark. "Was it before your cutie mark?"

 She blinked sleepily at him. Her mind was already turning off. "Yes. It was."

 Stinger looked back at the oven. He was getting impatient just waiting for the brownies to finish.

"Hm?" Spear stirred slightly, calling back his attention.

"What is it?" He asked, glancing around for whatever made her wake up slightly.

 She yawned and pat the side of the couch with her wing. He stood and walked over, paying attention to whatever she was going to say. He was a bit surprised that the couch was wider than he thought.

 Spear pat the side of the couch more insistently with her wing.

"Sit. It'll be a while before the brownies finish, and I need a nap. You're gonna get bored, so, sit and sleep. Goodnight." She relaxed and drifted off again, deeper.

 Stinger was a bit confused. Wasn't it strange to let somepony with amnesia near when the pony slept? She was she so lax? He was conflicted, but sat on the side of the couch.

 It was softer than he realized, and much more comfortable than the stiff walls of the hive. Before he knew it, he was drifting to sleep right beside Spear.