Chapter: The Only
The tiny filly sat on the cave floor, happily cooing and gurgling as newly born foals often do. She was a Pegasus with a warm pink coat and an oddly dreary two toned black and dark purple mane. Still in spite of her unusual location a pure contentedness shown from the sparkling green eyes that that had no doubt been inherited from her mother.
Contentment, happiness, these were the only things her mother ever wished for her child to have. Certainly at such a young age a mother’s sustaining love was more than enough to ensure the filly’s cheerfulness, but what of the future? How could she justify keeping her offspring hidden away in a cave? Eventually her daughter would want to explore beyond the cave seeking the one thing her mother could not provide, friendship.
The mother coughed heavily, tasting a metallic ichor on the back of her tongue. She pushed her sickly blue mane out from in front of her eyes with an oddly perforated black hoof. Her dragon-like green eyes matched her daughters in appearance and remained focused on the quill and parchment in front of her. Each was held in a green aura as the pen slid carefully putting words to the page. Still the pen strokes were rushed and every thought on the page was only half complete. Well, all but one. That point was communicated with an odd consistency that begged for it to be noticed by the reader.
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Dear Princess Celestia,
Surely you will be overjoyed to hear that I will soon be dead. Please however do not disregard the rest of this message. First know that I do not nor will I ever apologize for my actions at Mi Amore Cadenza’s wedding. I am not seeking forgiveness for my choices, but I am also not seeking to justify them to you.
My current location is seven hundred forty-six leagues south by southwest of your castle in a cave with an entrance lined with moss. I only mention this, because I am sure you would love the opportunity to gloat while I still have some life left in me. Also perhaps you would like to meet my daughter.
I have found recently that love magic is a curious thing. When Cadenza and Shining Armor expelled my army and myself from Canterlot some of their love managed to… let us just say it entered me. Not in the way that would feed me and make me stronger, but in the way that feeds off of me and weakens my already wounded body. I never knew that foals had such insatiable appetites.
Oh yes I don’t believe I mentioned yet, she is a filly. A little pony, just like all your subjects… maybe. Do Pegasi usually drool every waking moment of their young lives? It is rather disgusting; I may ask you to take her with you after your visit.
You also don’t have to worry too much about her smell. I have kept her clean, but I am growing weary of the constant upkeep required to keep her so.
Anyway enough about the little one, as I said before, I am dying, perhaps Cadenza and Shining Armor would like to hear that as well.
Maybe I should be a little more honest, my daughter isn’t exactly a pony like your subjects… she, well she is also a little bit like me. She doesn’t consume love the same way I would, but she does take love from me that I could have used to survive. Isn’t it odd that instead of destroying the parasite I find myself more than willing to give my life for hers?
Yes I get the irony. Oh she’s crying again. Why don’t you come visit us and we can finish our little talk. Maybe you could bring something for the little one to eat so she isn’t bored by our adult conversation. Or I suppose you could take her to your palace and feed her there… and raise her… and love her…
Your Fallen Adversary,
Chrysalis
Chrysalis, Abject Mother and former Queen of the Changelings
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Rolling the parchment into a scroll with her magic Chrysalis coughed again before focusing her magic into a gout of green flame that consumed the letter. If she were the sort to believe in a god the changeling might have prayed for the letter to reach its intended recipient.
Instead she merely lay down beside the crying filly and used a hoof to pull the little pony close. She was just about to slip into a restless sleep when the sudden sound of magic seemed to echo through the small cave she had been calling home.
Chrysalis smiled, the sound had been that of a half dozen teleportation spells, certainly she was not equipped to entertain multiple guests, but she understood and even applauded Celestia’s foresight in being on guard enough to bring soldiers.
“You wanted to see me?” Celestia stood tall and spoke with the warmth of a noonday sun. Her guards waited patiently ready to leap to their princess’s aid if the need should arise.
Chrysalis on the other hoof merely smiled at the princess of the sun before replying, “Certainly, we do have a bit of business to discuss after all.”
“Business?” The confusion in Celestia’s voice reminded the changeling of a summer breeze but still aggravated her as it meant wasting another portion of her remaining lifespan to explain.
So she rolled her eyes at Celestia’s ignorance, it was obvious now that she had given too much credit in regard to the princess’s powers of deduction. Still she was not above reproach herself so with a sigh she spoke, “The business of my punishment. I imagine it will be execution. At first I thought it might be exile, but really, aren’t I already in exile?”
Celestia’s eyes darkened at the mention of capital punishment. Such practice had been abolished long ago and Celestia would not allow such things as long as she lived. Her tone became harsh, reminding Chrysalis of a smoldering ember, "And what pray tell would my reason be for putting you to death?”
With another roll of her eyes the former changeling queen replied, “I committed a crime, do you not punish criminals in your country? I’ll be dead soon anyway so I guess whatever torture you devise will be more than adequate.” It was then that the small filly in her gentle embrace stirred causing Chrysalis to suddenly smile.
It was not a smile Celestia was used to seeing from a changeling. It was true that she had little experience with them as a species but the malicious grin that Chrysalis had worn at the wedding a year ago was nothing like the expression she wore when looking at her… filly? After stretching for a moment the foal opened her eyelids revealing the catlike green orbs to the princess.
Celestia finally understood. Everything in the letter made sense now. Chrysalis was dying and… and she wanted, no, needed somepony to care for her foal. Celestia realized why Chrysalis could not simply leave the filly at any doorstep in Equestria. It was then that she found she couldn’t help but whisper, “She’s so beautiful.”
The changeling beamed, though there was a strange sadness in her voice as she replied, “Even though she has my eyes, right? I also gave her a pony name so you won’t have to worry about that. I named her Crystal Dream; I honestly can’t help but feel silly saying it though so I just call her Chrysie for short.” Chrysalis suddenly felt it, love, real love, spontaneous and unconditional love directed at her little pony. Maybe the ex-queen had chosen the proper surrogate mother for her daughter, a thought that became fact when Celestia uttered her next words.
“Why say that when you have such lovely eyes?” A flash of magic materialized a bottle of warmed milk. She had gotten an odd look from her head chef when she requested food for a foal, but was able to convince him that his career would last much longer if he obeyed a direct order from his employer. She would have to apologize when she returned, but for now there was a hungry filly to feed.
The bottle floated slowly into the tiny pony’s reach and without hesitation Crystal clamped her jaws on the rubber tip and began suckling, showing the obvious instinct to nurse that anypony would be born with, that was all the proof the ruler of Equestria needed that this was indeed a pony deserving her protection.
Chrysalis chuckled warmly, which she instantly regretted as it drew out another fit of heavy coughing. After she managed to calm herself the changeling spoke in her most civilized tone so far, “I figured it out. You can punish me for my crimes by taking my daughter from me and raising her as your own. Raise her as your own and never tell her of her true origins and the monster that is her mother.” Tears welled up in both of the elder ponies’ eyes. Chrysalis wept at her own weakness, but Celestia’s tears were out of concern that the dying queen before her was so unwilling to release her true feelings in her final hour.
The princess spoke through the tears, her voice was pleading, begging to be heard. The sound reminded Chrysalis of falling rain, “Please Chrysalis. Please give up your pride, and make your request. Despite what you might think you are a subject under my protection, so please tell me your true desire. Tell me, my little pony, why you sent me that letter.”
Chrysalis could not stop her tears; truly she had underestimated the Equestrian ruler. She had never wept openly before but she didn’t take the time to appreciate the irony that the first creature she had cried in front of was at one time her most powerful enemy. Instead she spoke, openly baring her feelings to the princess of the sun, “I want to live! I want to watch my little Chrysie grow up and make friends. I want to watch her fall in love; I want to watch her raise little fillies and colts of her own. I don’t want to die before I get to see what kind of mare she will be!” Chrysalis stood in renewed defiance. She would not die here; she would fight and take Celestia’s place. She would…
“Look down.” Celestia’s voice quelled the changeling’s rage instantly, like cool running water. Chrysalis found herself obeying without question. What she saw was certainly not something she was expecting, below and behind her lying peacefully on the cave floor was a changeling queen curled around a tiny foal still suckling on an empty bottle. Chrysalis was silent leaving plenty of room for Celestia to speak.
“This is truly the most painful of my duties and for reasons that should be obvious I am still unwilling to burden my sister and faithful student with such things.”
“How long have I been…?” The question was unfinished, but it was one the princess was had often been asked.
Celestia’s tone once again became warming to the now fearful changeling, “Not too long, just before I arrived. You sent me the letter and when you fell asleep it was for the last time. I would say you should be thankful to have gone with such peace, but if that were the case you would have no regrets and you would not be here. I cannot bring you back, but I can promise you two things. I promise I will raise your daughter as my own. She will never have a need that will not be filled. She will never fear isolation or animosity, but instead she will live in companionship and goodwill. Above all however she will know your name, and she will hold that name in the highest regard.”
Chrysalis felt as if she were drifting away on a gentle tide but still managed to speak, “and the second promise?”
Celestia smiled. The warmth seemed to be like a gentle spring after the harshest winter and her voice was the same, “I promise that you will see her grow and play with friends. You will see her fall in love and you will see her raise her own foals. You will watch her grow old and when the time comes she will join you and joyfully tell you what kind of mare your daughter became.” Without another word Celestia lowered her horn to touch the conscious spirit of Chrysalis. In a flash the soul was gone and a bright green star bloomed in Luna’s night sky.
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Five years later…
“Mommy! Mommy! Auntie Wuna says the tickle monster’s gonna get me!”
Celestia looked down at the tiny pink Pegasus that had her minuscule legs wrapped around her left front hoof. With a smile and a flourish of magic Celestia lifted the young filly to eye level. She then allowed herself a mischievous grin before speaking, “Well little Chrysie I guess that means Auntie Luna forgot to mention who the tickle monster was.” Celestia paused as her younger sister came into view behind the currently floating filly. The elder princess gave her sibling a playful wink as she leaned to whisper in young Crystal’s ear, “I’m the tickle monster.”
Without missing a beat Chrysie began squirming to escape Celestia’s magic but was unable to resist giggling uncontrollably when the princess of the sun pressed her lips to the filly’s belly and blew the biggest raspberry she could. Then as she nuzzled her daughter, Celestia felt her old memories afflict her, forcing tears to well up in her ordinarily regal eyes. It was not the first time and it would not be last, but today was the first time Chrysie noticed her mother’s tears.
“Mommy, why are you cwying?” The tiny filly’s voice was filled with an insurmountable concern. It was something so pure that even in her darkest moments Celestia had to smile warmly.
The princess spoke then with a truly motherly tone, “I’ll tell you when you’re older dear. Now it’s almost sundown and that means bedtime.”
If making puppy dog eyes was a skill to be learned, Celestia had to admit that her daughter had mastered it. Chrysie’s eyes and tone of voice were equally pleading as she stared into her mother’s own eyes, “Aw, but I wanna see Auntie Wuna waise the moon. Pwease mommy?”
Celestia chuckled warmly, “Alright, but right to bed after that. Your Auntie Twilight said she wanted to teach you how to make a proper book fort.”
“And Uncle Spike is gonna tell me how to be a libwawy!”
After another warm bout of laughter Celestia guided her filly to Luna’s tower to watch the changing from day to night. The stars were exceptionally bright that night, but none more so than one that seemed to glow brighter when a particular little pony looked up at it.
Seeing the brightness increase Chrysie bounced with joy as she exclaimed, “Wook Mommy, Chwisiwhistle is smiwing again!”
Celestia almost laughed at her daughter’s attempt to pronounce the star’s name but instead, only replied warmly as she looked up at the verdant star, “That’s right sweetheart. Do you remember why Chrysalis is smiling?”
The tiny Pegasus flapped her wings with excitement before proudly replying, “Because she pwotect and woves me!” Then with a deep breath Crystal shouted as loud as she could while waving happily at the green star, “Thank you Chwisiwhistle, I wove you too!”
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I love it.
3980802 Thank you very much!
Well done.
3980843 Thank you kindly.
All the feels! All the f-hnnnnngggg... *dies from adorable overdose*
This ad me
the feels 
3980984 No! I'm so sorry... I did not mean to kill you with cuteness... but seriously thanks. I love getting feedback of any kind but it really makes me happy knowing that people enjoyed what I wrote.
3980996 I suppose I should feel bad for making people cry, but it is a sadfic so I guess the story is accomplishing exactly what I meant to have it do. So thanks for your comment.
3981434 Thank you, I'm glad you liked it.
Can I have more pwease
3981783 Well that is a bit of a delicate topic... the answer is a resounding maybe. I do want to finish more chapters on my other project before I take on more side work, but even then I don't want to make sloppy ill-conceived additions to this story and end up pulling a Lucas basically ruining peoples' memories of the original. That said, if I become inspired and have a story that I really want to tell in this continuity I will definitely write it.
If someone dares give this story a thumbs-down I will hunt them to the ends of the Earth.
WRITE MORE OR I WILL CUT YOU
I'm reminded of that line from the Lion King about how the great kings of the past are up there looking down on us. I can totally see Crystal talking to her birth mother eventually. I do want to see some shorts of Crystal growing up, this teaching of how to make a proper book fort interests me and I can only imagine all the antics she gets up to with her various aunties.
3981994 Dude, there's already two...You know what you have to do.
3981994 Um... you really don't have to do that... though I guess it's kind of neat that you like it that much.
3982034 Um... I refer you to the above reply... and maybe also the below reply
3982036 You know I didn't think about that but I think you're right, it is a little like Disney's Hamlet the Musical... I mean The Lion King. And here I promised myself I wouldn't get inspired to write more of this the same day I posted it. The really fun part is that you have basically listed a large portion of how I plan to expand on this story. Also speaking of book forts, the teaching will be fun, but the failed attempts that lead Twilight to teach Crystal the proper method will be fun to write as well. And yeah various aunties... so many aunties.
3982106 Does she get to join the Cute Mark Crusaders???? Because that has lots of potential. Oh yes, if at some point Crystal happens to get attacked by a monster, you might want to have Chrysalis's spirit appear and fight off the monster.
3982101 You know when I see comments talking about things like thumbs down like Dark Shade's, I always feel like it's just daring people to give thumbs down because right afterwards they suddenly crop up. Oh well I've got enough love from everyone else that a couple thumbs down aren't going to ruin my day.
3982106
3982101
Alright, I've taken care of the 'problems.'
However, I do not know their login information. Thumbs-downs don't count if their giver has died due to entirely natural causes, right?
3982130 That would be kind of neat... like an adventure subplot... Now to decide on a worthy monster...) For the other idea I will have to create a new set of CMC members because the time setting in this would assume that Apple Blossom, Sweetie Bot and Scoots-to-the-Loo are old enough to be banished for not having their cutiemarks... or they probably got them and would be in the process of recruiting new members to take care of the club house and continue the glorious tradition.
3982157 Um... I don't think the internet works that way.
While I would not object to a sequel, I'll say this right now, your story manages to end in nearly the perfect place. 9.5/10
3982106 WRITE IT NOW I EXSPECT 600000 CHAPTERS BY TONIGHT WITH 2000 WORDS EACH OR NO CUPCAKES
3982215
You clearly haven't been to the right parts of the Internet.
...Why don't you come with me, little girl...
...On a magic carpet ride...
3982268 Um... I need an adult?
3982258 I am now frighteningly reminded of a certain pink pastry chef and her... unusual cupcake ingredients. Also I'll meet you in the middle and write a no more than one hundred over the span of a couple years.
3982237 That's nice of you to say, thank you. I won't do a stand alone sequel, I will write a collection of shorts that will expand on but not interfere with this story.
It almost seems like Chrysalis was Celestia's daughter? Hmmmm.
3982420 That sounds like hearsay and vicious rumor... you'll never prove it! There's no evidence! I'll take the truth to my grave!
Or I might reveal more information in the future.
3982454 I wouldn't say hearsay or rumors. There might not be some concrete evidence either but if you read between the lines it sure seems to go in that direction or maybe I am overthinking it. I will say this much though I love it!
3982503 Well mostly I was joking but it just surprised me to see that you were reading between the lines, not just taking things at face value. Which is good.
It actually occurs to me now that your comment is kind of headcanon. Well my story is fanon so maybe it's more like headfanon... I'll do some research on that, but thank you. It's always nice to hear that someone has enjoyed something I've made.
3982195 Manticore or Hydra gets my vote, something big and bad. But yes, the original CMC most likely have their cutie marks... and should be supervising the new generation in finding their own marks. Just make up an earth pony and a unicorn pony... and maybe an alicorn. By now Shining and Cadance might have had a kid right???
God damn, I cried :'|
3982683 I'm sorry, do you want to talk about it?
3982618 Oh or Stephan Magnet! wait... no, he was a nice guy... with a half-Rarity tail/half-self stache(So yeah, Stephen Magnet has best mustache)... yeah the unicorn is easy... it's the filthy mud pony I'll have trouble with... Wait that's it! Big Mac and Cheerilee would also probably have a kid by then as well. Perfect, it even uses my second favorite Big Mac shipping. But I was figuring that Cadence and Shiny's kid would be more of a rival to Crystal, a la DT and SS
3982771 Last line made me laugh and cry at the same time.
You sir, have made a grand story and I thank you for sharing it with us.
3982893 Thank you for saying so.
3982771 I'd say more friendly rival, I can't see Cadance raising a Diamond Tiara like pony. And Shining would have shipped a brat off to military school the moment he got a series of bad reports. So I can see them competing, but I can't see them being enemies like DT was to the CMC
3983045 Well that is mostly true, I was really over-exaggerating when I used DT and SS as an example... then I also remembered that Big Mac and Cheerilee would keep their filthy earth pony child in Ponyville thus making it difficult for her to be a member of the Canterlot chapter of the CMC... but I have figured out the unicorn. So I'm right back where I was...
Welll.... apart from the formatting derp at the end. Nice story :D
3983106 Hmmmm.... how about the kid of a royal guard??? That gives the Earth Pony some back ground that could include fighting skills and better than average strength.
3983140 Formatting Derp repaired! Yeah that was weird...
3983165 Yeah that might work, fortunately I'm not on a time table as far as writing these goes so I can work at a laid back pace.
3983318 That is good. It makes it easier on everyone.
3983329 Yes, very much so.
This is why we need a [Cwute] tag.
Oh, my... the FEELS
my heart is going to esplode! 
3983776 Aw, thanks. I'm glad you enjoyed it
3983793 And yet again my body count rises from the most terrible weapon known to man... uncontrollable cuteness and emotional overload.
I won't lie here............I have to fight from tearing up when I read these kinds of MLP stories.
Profile Picture is cutting an onion
You monster, you get a kick out of these feels don't you?
ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED IS THIS NOT WHAT YOU WANTED?
3984104
It's not just an onion getting cut, it's an onion cutting ITS SELF.
3984173
OH GOD
Well, that's adorable.
W-why you heartless monster!!!!
Amazing job on the story. You moved even me, and that's impressive. Keep up the good work, and if you ever need a pre-reader, feel free to drop me a PM.