Chapter 27 - Royal lunch
“Well, I am willing to admit when I’ve met my match,” Ledger said as he looked at the Empress’s Platter from outside. It certainly lived up to the reputation of ‘The fanciest eatery in the city’. “I doubt too many places I know of could match this one.”
Morning had been a subdued affair. Wake up, breakfast, barter with the chefs for their fish recipes while offering his potatoes and fried spinach in exchange. The rest of the mid-morning had been mostly doing touristy stuff, though Cider had asked to pay a visit to Precious Growth for a crystal that he said he’d get. Ledger had carefully escorted her back to the room once they’d gotten it, and made sure nopony was liable to trip over it anytime soon.
Soon enough, they found themselves staring at this place with rumbling bellies. The unicorn looked over at Midnight with a raised eyebrow, as if asking if she was sure they were supposed to come here.
The Thestral was dressed in her armor, but not her usual one. It wasn’t until she had put it on that Ledger saw the difference. It was far more ornate than her usual set. Covered in stunning etchings and fastened with pure silver buckles, the Thestral looked like one of the stars in the night sky.
“Yes, I believe this is the place,” she replied with a roll of her eyes. “I don’t think I’m hard of hearing and this is the only building in town with this name.”
“Fair enough,” Ledger said as he stepped forward and pushed the doors open by hoof, standing to one side as he did so. “But I think you should go first, miss ‘I’m totally not Luna’. You at least know who we’re supposed to be meeting.”
Scope stifled a giggle as Midnight gave a nod and walked in. The maitre’d looked like she was trying to sniff the ceiling, her nose was so high up. A glance in the dining hall saw that almost everypony was wearing an outfit that cost more than what Ledger would make in his life.
“And now I feel underdressed,” Ledger admitted. The only thing he’d had to wear - a fancy suit that the mares had insisted he get fitted for once he became more well-known in Las Pegasus - felt like such a minor thing, he might as well have gone without.
Scope ducked behind the group and looked around, before there was a small flash and she reappeared, wearing a cute, sparkly dress.
“I bet these idiots can’t tell an illusion from the real thing,” she winked.
“They will if you don’t act right,” Ledger hissed. “Still, A for quick thinking. Now let’s just follow the Thestral to lunch.”
The mare at the desk pointed inside, and Midnight gave a polite nod to her as the group entered, led by a waiter. Once inside, a few patrons gave them half a glance, turning up their nose at Cider and Ledger’s attire, but a returned glare from Midnight caused them to turn back to their meals.
“The private room is right this way,” the waiter said.
“Private room?” Ledger questioned. “Okay, I was intrigued before, but now I’m curious.”
“Well of course,” the waiter nodded. “I wouldn’t want our finest guests dining with the common rabble now.”
Cider blinked as he led them to the room, letting them inside and closing the door behind them. It wasn’t until Midnight gave a chipper greeting, did the rest see just who they were dining with.
“Heya Shiny! Lovebutt! Wassup?”
Ledger paled. Almost visibly paled. His eyes did twitch as he turned to look at the ponies in the room before slowly turning and looking at Midnight.
“You...didn’t mention this...whyyyyyy?”
“Because your reaction is just too perfect,” Midnight giggled as she took a seat. Scope sat next to her as Cider just stood next to Ledger, sharing his look of shock.
“Oh come on, sit down so we can order,” Shining said, waving a hoof at the ponies by the door. “We don’t bite.”
“Unless you ask us to, of course,” Cadance said with a grin.
“I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again,” Midnight smiled at Shining Armor. “I like her~”
“She’s in a good mood,” Shining said with a sigh. “And there’s no easy way to get her to stop, either.”
“...Have you tried taking her to bed an-” Ledger started, causing Shining to blush and Cadance to laugh.
“Yes he has, and that only generates a positive recursive loop,” the pink mare said with a grin.
“This is gonna be great,” Midnight giggled as she perused the menu. Scope just shook her head as she glanced at Ledger, before blushing and looking at her own menu.
Cider finally found her voice and stammered. “R-Royalty...we’re-we’re dining with...the Princess?”
“Fun royalty by the look of it,” Ledger said with a more relaxed air. “I suppose I can treat this like the time I met Princess Celestia then.” It was only then that the unicorn realized the size of the error he had just committed.
After all. He’d met the Princess because of his little secret. Multiple times.
“Oh? You’ve met my aunt?” Cadence replied chipperly as Cider finally took her seat. “Seems you’re all pretty popular then.”
“It was just after the Toll Taker thing,” Ledger attempted to brush off. “She wanted to make sure that the number two of that...I hesitate to call her a pony, I really do. Anyways, the Princess wanted to make sure that I wasn’t like my former employer.”
“Sounds like her,” Shining nodded as he perused his own menu. While he normally wasn’t one for fancy eateries like that, he made the odd exception. “Still, that sounds like a matter that shouldn’t be discussed here..”
“Because there are much more pressing matters,” Cadence nodded, looking all serious now.
“Ah?” Ledger asked semi-coherently. Mostly because he agreed with Shining, was curious about what Cadance could possibly want, and was trying to browse the menu as well.
“Your herd,” Cadence nodded again. “Details. All the details.”
“Ah…” Ledger paused, trying to parse the details into pony-friendly terms. How exactly would you say ‘I was trying to secure an extra emotional food source and had only just gotten used to the idea of sex again, then Cider attempted to seduce me and I rolled with it for the food’? There was a term for most of those events in Changeish, funnily enough. He didn’t think they would want to hear them, though...
“It started when I transferred to Las Pegasus,” Midnight spoke up, covering Ledger’s extended pause. “I ended up rooming with Ledger and after everything that happened, I guess we sorta hit it off. Ledger and I...we have a lot of personal problems. And, I guess we could relate, but that also led to a few issues as well.”
“Yeah,” Ledger agreed slowly, able to say this much without worry at least. “After the whole ‘mutual life saving’ bit, we grew to trust one another. And that trust and care...blossomed into something more.” He sipped at the water at his place before nodding. “I’m not saying our relationship is perfect. None is. It has a few bumps here and there that were revealed when Cider joined. The difference is...we’re willing to try and talk them out and understand each other’s view.”
Cadence nodded, she would have loved to have heard every last detail, but feared that would take a while. “So, how did you get involved Miss...Cider was it?”
“Yes Your Highness,” Cider squeaked and the Alicorn waved a hoof.
“Cadence will be fine dear. Now, do you mind telling me?”
Cider gulped, she really hoped the Princess wouldn’t hate her for this. “W-Well, ah was tending mah farm...”
Scope, of all ponies there, giggled and covered her mouth with a hoof. “I’ll bet you were.”
Cider groaned and hung her head. “Fine, ah was recovering from testing mah latest batch of hard cider okay? Happy?” Then her face turned red and she glared at the Pegasus. “Ooh, you little-”
“Moving on,” Midnight chuckled.
“Right, anywho. Ledger here comes by at some Celestia-forsaken time in the morning, wanting to set up a trade route between mahself and one of the local clubs. Ah wasn’t thinking too straight...and well, it had been a while.”
Cadence nodded and placed a sympathetic hoof on her shoulder. “I know your pain. Do you have any idea how long it took for him-” she pointed at her husband with a wing. “-To get a hint that I wanted more than hugs and kisses?” She gave an exasperated sigh. “I had to wait on his bed, wearing the skimpiest lingerie I could afford...and still had to practically spell it out for him.”
“To be fair, my father was impressing on me the importance of waiting until after I was married to buck a mare,” Shining said in his own defense. “Once he found out that we were dating, he all but policed my trash to make sure there was no...evidence from us doing...anything.”
“And this is why one learns protective spells,” Cadence nodded. “Anyway, I seem to have interrupted you. Continue.”
“Well,” Cider took a breath, “As I said, clouded thought, cute stallion...and he seemed, receptive. Ah had no idea he was already taken...and when ah found out...” She had been terrified. She didn’t want to be labeled a homewrecker. What if Ledger had been married? Had foals? What if he had a stallion at home, and she’s tempted him to stray like that? “And then...then ah met Midnight Song...”
“And your life went to Tartarus?” Shining finished.
“Exactly!” Cider nodded, and the resident Thestral had a rather indignant look on her face.
“Not cool,” she said. “Not cool at all.”
Ledger responded by putting a kiss on Midnight’s closest cheek relative to him before humming. “If this is Tartarus, I’ll take it over Elysium any day,” the stallion observed aloud. “I find my current life to be far more interesting and fun as-is.”
“I’ll drink to that!” Shining chuckled, only then realizing he didn’t have a drink. “Well, dang.” Then he had a lightbulb moment as he looked at Ledger and smiled widely.
“Midnight, I am instinctively afraid of that smile,” Ledger said as he edged a little closer to the batmare. “Is that a good thing or a bad one?”
Midnight just shrugged, still wondering if she could sneak a kiss on the cute Alicorn. Shining laughed and shook his head.
“Don’t worry. The day after tomorrow is the Crystal Fair. And on that night, I’m a free stallion for a while, so some Guard buddies of mine are going out for a night on the town. Care to join?”
“Ah, maybe?” Ledger hedged. “I’m a lightweight though, so I’ll probably not drink as much and just try and stop as many of you from getting into stupid shenanigans while drunk…”
“That’s the spirit!” Shining smiled as Cadence sighed, lightly whapping the back of his head with a wing.
“You seem dependable, and it would be nice for somepony to be able to show this lunkhead where the castle is after. I’d rather not find him and his friends asleep somewhere strange again.”
“You get picked up from a bakery one time at two in the morning, and you never live it down,” Shining muttered.
“That’s nothing,” Song suddenly grinned. “We played a great prank on one of the Guards back in Canterlot. Uh...Flash-something. Anyway, guy got totally hammered with a few buddies, so a few of the Guardsmares grabbed ‘em and put them all in the same cot once they were out for the night.” She paused to let that scene sink in before continuing. “Four stallions woke up, with every mare in the Guard watching them, complimenting them on providing such a good show~”
“...And she claims to be tame now,” Ledger said to Shining Armor. “I am both afraid and...actually, strike that, just afraid. I don’t suppose you know if there’s a return policy?”
“Nope, she’s your problem now,” Shining waved a hoof. “Our Thestrals don’t come with gift receipts...”
“Nope, we come if the other is good enough,” Midnight giggled. Ledger just moaned and hit his head on the table, wondering when they would be allowed to order, if only to provide a momentary respite to the constant teasing. As if responding to a psychic command, a waiter almost materialized next to him with a small smile.
“Is everypony ready to order?” he asked.
“I’ll have the Crystal Berry juice, not wine, thank you, and your tuna melt sandwich,” Ledger said as he pushed his menu forward. He’d had tuna fish in a sandwich before, on a dare at the Chop Shop...but the ‘melt’ part of this dish...intrigued him.
“Very good sir, and Your Hignesses?”
“Our usual please,” Cadence nodded.
“Ah’ll try yer apple salad with croutons and some Crystal Wine,” Cider said, wondering what her competition was like.
“Always with the apples,” Song giggled, shaking her head. “I’ll take the Tuna melt as well please. It sounds nommy~”
Scope peered at her menu, not knowing what half of these fancy terms even were. “Would it kill some of these places to stock a hayburger?” she wondered aloud.
“So, two melts, the Royal Usual, an apple salad and a gourmet hayburger?”
“You do have them? Sold!” Scope giggled and hoofpumped the air. Ledger sighed but smiled at the...cute display she was making.
“I do believe that should be all...oh, Midnight, Scope, you forgot your drinks,” Ledger observed aloud.
“Cider,” they both echoed, sharing a giggle.
Cadence also smiled, and once the waiter had left, she gave the two a cute stare. “So, is this adorable little thing part of your family as well?”
“Kinda-sorta,” Ledger said, spinning a lie that he hoped Cider wouldn’t call him out on. Fortunately, the best lies were based in truth... “She’s genetically predisposed to be small, and for that she was...all but abandoned. Midnight and I took her in and while there have been some bumps getting her used to civilized society, she’s come a long way from when we first found her.”
“You poor little thing,” Cadence cooed as she pulled Scope into a tight hug, the petite Pegasus glaring daggers at Ledger.
“And another discovers the joys of Scopey-hugs,” Midnight nodded. She looked at Shining and grinned sharkishly. “Aw, what’s up Cap? You wanna hug as well~?”
“Just wondering how long Cadence is going to hug the not-a-filly,” the Prince of the Empire said with a smile. Spending so much time around Twily had done wonders for his ability to understand words that Ledger seemed to like to use.
“He has a point,” Ledger pointed out. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she was as old or older than me.”
“If you must know,” Scope said, resigned to the fact that Cadence was not gonna let go. “I’m twenty four.”
“Wow,” Ledger said with wide eyes. “I’m turning twenty next month.”
Cider and Midnight just stared at him with wide eyes.
“You’re that old?
“You’re that young?”
“Wait, what?” they echoed.
“Yup,” Ledger said with a nod. “Came to the city before my nineteenth birthday. Spent a year under Toll, thanks again for helping me with that Midnight. I turn twenty...on the twentieth,” he finished with a wry grin.
“Convenient,” Midnight hummed, as a pretty pink Pegasus in a distant city gave a powerful twitch. Plans would have to be made.
“Well, ah’m barely eighteen,” Cider admitted. “Turned a few months back.”
“Luna, do I feel old,” Song muttered. Ledger just looked at Cider and winked before turning to Midnight, with a wide smile on his face.
“You are about to be an ass, aren’t you?” Midnight replied dryly.
“Maybe~” Ledger said. “It depends on how you view me asking you your age to be. Is it asinine to know how old one of my marefriends is, or when her birthday is, so that I can get her something for it? Perhaps a nice mango treat?”
“My birthday is May 13,” Song replied with a smug grin. “But you won’t find out how old I-”
“She’s twenty six,” Shining replied with his own grin.
“My thanks, Captain,” Ledger said, giving a nod to the stallion. “Now I know I need to get her at least twenty-seven mangoes come May. One for every year.”
Midnight glared at Shining Armour. “They will never find the body...”
“Midnight dear, do calm down...regularly,” Ledger asked in his polite tone. “We don’t want to be making any enemies of the ruling body of the city we’re currently visiting...add in the fact that Celestia and Luna are Cadence’s aunt, and perhaps you should rethink that statement?”
“Hah! The little bat wishes she could take me,” Shining said, brushing his chest with a hoof. “In all our sparring matches, who would win them?”
“Go buck a cactus,” Midnight retorted.
“Aw, she likes you!” Ledger cooed. “She told me the same thing once. I suppose I should be thankful she came to bed and not a cactus, but some days it’s hard to tell the difference.”
“What’s that? You want the couch tonight?” Midnight said innocently. “Fair enough.”
“Hey Scope, there room on your bed for two?” Ledger ‘innocently’ asked.
“..........” Scope just buried her head under Cadences’ wing, eliciting another coo from the alicorn.
“Heehee, your family is quite fun Miss Song,” Cadence said with a bright smile. “I really wish we could talk all day...”
“And if we did, she or I would get under another’s skin so badly it’d take Cider to make us stop bickering,” Ledger predicted. “But that’s how you can tell we love each other: we did it before, we’ll do it again. Because this is worth fighting for.”
“Yup, Ledger’s a total ass, but he’s my ass,” Song nodded as their drinks arrived. The waiter pushing them in on a cart. “Ohh, yay~”
Once they been dispensed, the waited gave a small bow and left them again. Scope was finally able to return to her seat and gingerly sipped at her cider, thoughts of last night running through her head.
“Isn’t that how I’m supposed to refer to the both of you?” Ledger asked, once again using his ‘innocent’ voice.
“And here I thought I got enough of this from Cadence,” Shining sighed.
“He’s so adorably innocent,” the princess giggled. “I’m working on it though.”
“With Midnight, you either learn to adapt, or try to avoid having a permanent blush on your face,” Ledger said as he sipped at his juice. Just as tasty as the wine had been, and he’d be able to remember that without any additional memories...cropping up.
“I get the feeling life is anything but quiet for you,” Shining chuckled. Cadence sighed and pouted, poking out her bottom lip adorably.
“Lucky, the only excitement I’ve had recently was being attacked by a Tatzelwurm...”
Ledger winced at the thought. “Oh man, those are nasty pieces of work,” he said aloud, recalling both the description and the sight of an entire platoon of Yellows taking one down...barely. “Short of a massive amount of soldiers doing all they can to kill one, the best advice I read regarding one was ‘run away.’”
“Yeah, the one that Twilight and I fought only lasted a minute or two...then sneezed on Discord,” Cadence chuckled at the look on his face.
“I...wha...you?” Ledger shook his head a few times. “I’m going to parse that sentence until it makes sense. Though that might be impossible with Discord in the mix.”
“Discord wanted a flower to cure a fake illness, Twily and I were attacked and we fought it off. Then it sneezed on Discord and gave him a real nasty disease...karma.” She laughed again as Midnight just shook her head. So she’d solo’d a raid-level boss. Nice.
“Alicorns,” Ledger moaned. “I will never understand you. Heck, that applies to most mares as well. Any time I think I have a hoof-hold...poof! Gone.”
“Ooh, he’s learned quickly,” Cadence giggled. “Seems you have quite the catch there ladies. But here’s the real test.” She leaned forward with a wicked smile. “What’s he like in bed?”
Midnight looked at Ledger, and the smile that crossed her muzzle spelled very bad things for him.
“Ladies, if you go into too much detail, I reserve the right to try out the spell you love...and use all sorts of liberties with it on your food,” Ledger said evenly. It was just a simple transmutation at its core, and it hadn’t been too hard to figure out how to not make it target him.
Midnight’s smile widened as she trotted around to Cadence’s side of the table and began whispering in her ear. Watching the various facial expressions on the Alicorn was quite amusing, as was her deepening blush. By the time Midnight finished and returned to the table, Cadence just stared at Ledger.
“Uh...wow...”
“For the sake of my sanity, I’m going to ask not to know,” Ledger said as he sipped at his juice. He didn’t need to know, either. His threat had mostly been so neither one might accidentally reveal his nature to the two that had the most reason to hate Changelings in all of Equus.
“He’s...is that really true?” Cadence looked at Cider, her forehooves indicating at what she was hinting at. Cider blushed and nodded.
“I have no idea which is more impressive, the fact that there’s another stallion that matches Shiny here, or the fact that you two can...”
Ledger looked over at Shining Armor with a raised eyebrow and idly mused something aloud. “So it wasn’t his looks or his charms that drew you in,” the brown unicorn said. “But his big, fat-”
“OKAY! Where is that food?” Shining suddenly said loudly, causing all the mares to giggle at him.
“Despite what you may think,” Cadence said. “I love Shining Armor more than anything, and yes, it was his adorable charm that really drew me in. His desire to protect everypony and never giving up.” She gave the Changeling drone a sly wink. “His ‘gift’ is just a much loved and appreciated bonus~”
“Sounds like you and me are in the same boat, buddy,” Ledger said as he raised his glass with his magic and floated it towards Shining Armor. “My condolences. Yours is immortal and will never stop to get what she wants. Midnight at least can be worn out. Eventually.”
“Oh, Cadence has her limits,” Shining smiled, revelling at the chance to get her back. “And believe me, I take great pleasure in finding those limits.”
“Ohh, Shiny finally grew a pair,” Midnight giggled. “Hmm, I like Cadence, but you’re looking pretty good too. Hey Ledger, can I borrow them for a while?”
“Hey Ledger?” Cadence giggled. “Can we borrow her for a while?”
“Midnight, if I have to put Cider in charge of you, I will,” Ledger threatened. “Or better yet, if I have to ask Scope to take charge of you, I will do it in a heartbeat. And really you two?” Ledger shot his best disappointed look at Shining. “It’s bad enough when she just plays off of us, but please don’t encourage her like that. She’ll take you seriously, you know she will.”
“Don’t look at me!” Shining threw up his forehooves. “I will have no part in this.”
“Agreed,” Cider nodded as she sipped her drink. “She’s all yours Scopey.”
Ledger just looked at Cadence for a moment before sighing. “Why do I get the feeling you’re doing all this on purpose?...”
“Because,” Cadence winked. “This is the most fun I’ve had in ages. We should do this again sometime. Maybe you could meet Twilight and her friends. I bet you’d all get along great.”
“Well,” Cider replied. “Applejack is mah cousin. And ah’ve met her friend Pinkie Pie before. She tried to throw a welcome party for every Apple member when we went to the last Family Reunion.”
“...Wouldn’t that be redundant?” Ledger asked as he blinked. “A party to welcome every Apple member that is...already attending a party?”
Cider sighed and looked at him. “Ah will say just this. Her name. Is ‘Pink’ie Pie.”
“And my question is withdrawn,” Ledger said while gulping his juice, muttering something about unpredictable pink mares.
“You know,” Midnight hummed next to him, just low enough for him to hear. “Princess Cadence is a pink Alicorn.”
Ledger just glanced at the Princess in question before slowly scooting away from her a little. The day would come when there were no pink mares or nymphs in his immediate vicinity...and then he would be happy about it.
Cadence just tilted her head and then smiled at him. It did not alleviate his fears.
The food finally arrived and Shining took a second to thank the creators. Right before he had to excuse himself to the little colts room. Cadence watched him leave, and then turned her attention back to Ledger, who had by this point gently bitten into his tuna-melt sandwich. He suddenly felt really warm for some reason, as three mares gasped. Ledger gave them a curious look, before staring back down at his sandwich...and the black, chitinous hooves that held it.
“Buck,” he cursed, before looking at Cadence and expecting the worst sort of reaction.
“So...my aunt was telling the truth,” Cadence said, the glow of her horn dying out after peeling away his disguise. “You really are one of them.”
Ledger slowly nodded, not trusting himself to speak again without cursing just yet. This was an Alicorn. He knew his limits. Though he’d not go down without a fight, he also wouldn’t start one if she didn’t.
“P-Princess,” Song suddenly said, as Ledger found her standing between them. His mare, was facing down a freaking Alicorn for him! “Look, I know what this looks like... but you have to believe me, Ledger’s a good guy.”
“Midnight,” Ledger said. “I believe this is between me and her. The thought is appreciated, love...but we need to work this out ourselves.”
“So you defend him?” Cadence said, taking a step towards her. Midnight, for all her loyalties to the Crown, did not budge an inch.
“With all that I have and more,” she said, as her voice became quiet. “W-when it counted...I wasn’t there. I hid, I cowered...when I should have fought. So yes, I will defend him! As I do Cider, Scope, or anypony!”
Cadence was looming over her now, the smaller Alicorn suddenly looking large and imposing. At least she tried, until she broke out into a wide smile and hugged the bat, whom let out a confused squeak in response.
“Ohhh, I’m so unbelievably happy!”
“...Okay, I’m gonna need a little bit of context,” Ledger said, throughly confused. He had been thinking he was about to be...well, he was certain the Crystal Empire didn’t practice capital punishment, so...banishment? Yeah, banished from the city. And suddenly Cadence was all huggy.
“Ever since the invasion, I’ve been so worried that Queen Chrysalis might have ruined pony/changeling relations beyond the point of repair. And yet, here you four are, living proof that what you look like, or how you live, isn’t a barrier, just something that makes you unique!” She squealed as she reached over and pulled Ledger into the hug as well. Ledger just let out a noise not unlike a ‘meep’ as he was hugged by the pink mare.
“Buh…” he managed to get out before getting his brain back in order. “So...I’m...not going to be banished, or tossed in the dungeon?” The dungeon had been a close number two in the ‘list of fates I might suffer for being a changeling’.
“Why would I do that?” Cadence blinked. Why did everypony think that if an Alicorn got mad, BAM! Banishment... Oh? Right. Thanks Auntie.
“No, you aren’t getting arrested or banished. I blame Chrysalis for what happened, but in the end, she was just trying to feed her Changelings...she just got...enthusiastic about it.”
“I suppose that’s one way of putting it,” Scope muttered. “I personally prefer deranged, idiotic, stupid, colossally stupid and irreparably, outstandingly stupid.”
“When you know the whole story, she does come off as a bit of a git,” Ledger agreed as he shifted around in Cadance’s hold. It was remarkably hard to get comfortable. “It wasn’t so much ‘I must feed my army’ as… ‘I want it all noooooooow~’” The drone actually did a decent whiny voice for the second impression.
“Pfft, you sound like Rarity,” Cadence giggled as she let them go. “But I suppose. While I hate what she did...I guess, I also pity her a little. But to explain myself Ledger, I do not hate changelings. Cautious, but not hate. I...could never hate.”
“The opposite of love isn’t hatred,” Ledger pointed out as he slipped back into his disguise, quite aware that Shining could slip back in at any moment. “I have known others that hate something with a passion, that love to hate that thing. No, the opposite of love...or hate, really. Two ends of the same spectrum, but their true opposite...is apathy. Trust the emotivores on this.”
Midnight’s ear flicked and she looked at the princess. “Um, does the Captain know...”
Cadence scrambled back to her seat and shook her head. “No...Shiny is a little more, well, less tolerant. Let me talk with him first. But you shouldn’t say anything just yet.”
Ledger nodded and bit into his sandwich again as though nothing had gone on while the captain was away. Surprisingly, it was still slightly warm.
As Shining walked in, nopony could hide the air of awkwardness hanging about.
“Did I...miss something?” he asked.
“Just a slight change in someponies worldviews,” Scope shrugged as she ate her burger, humming at the savoury taste. Ledger winked at her and nodded. Yes, they couldn’t and wouldn’t say anything directly.
It didn’t mean they couldn’t have fun, though~
Cadence just rolled her eyes as she dipped her spoon into her soup. Shining just blinked and looked at his wife for clarification.
“I’ll tell you later,” she said as she ate.
“Well, today seems to be going well,” Midnight said as the group finished their lunch. “For the most part.”
“We have had to shift a few plans around, but we made it work,” Ledger agreed with a nod. “Hmm. Maybe we should leave you and Cadance be for a little bit?” the brown unicorn said to the white one after wiping at his own mouth, to remove all traces of his sandwich.
“Shiny, I don’t wanna go to Court, can we ditch and play with these guys?”
Shining just sighed. “I’m not even dignifying that with an answer.”
“I’m certain Midnight would have some lewd response for that-” Ledger started, only to be interrupted by aforementioned Thestral.
“I’ll happily play with you~” she said with a sultry stare. “Cider can testify to how well I play with others.”
Cider just blushed and hid behind her cider mug.
“-But I will have to insist that we shape our schedules to be separate,” Ledger said, giving a Look to Cadence.
“Yes, we can’t keep the nobles waiting,” she sighed. One would think that being sealed for a thousand years, they’d have a different outlook on life. But no...different city, same complaints. “Also, we have to talk later Shiny. Something important.”
“Oh. Kay?” Shining Armor replied as he polished off his drink.
“Aw, so no playtime for Midnight?” the Thestral pouted.
“Sadly no,” Cadence said as she got up from her seat and slowly walked around the table towards the batpony. “But I can give you something…”
Midnight blinked, “Um...okay?”
And that was about when Cadence pounced, giving Midnight a kiss that she normally gave others! The alicorn held it for what felt like forever before finally tearing free and giving the batpony a seductive look.
“A good-bye kiss seems appropriate for the one that seems to have made it her mission to kiss all the alicorns,” Cadence mused before walking towards the door of the private room. “Coming, Shiny?” she called over her shoulder.
Midnight just stared into the void, unconsciously placing a hoof to her lips as Shining just sighed and followed his wife from the restaurant, chuckling that she could leave Midnight Song of all ponies, utterly speechless.
The Thestral just remained that way for a solid five minutes, and it looked like she’d continue to do so. Then Ledger gently poked her with a hoof, trying to snap her out of her daze.
“Ruined...” she muttered in a distant voice. “I am forever ruined by that. That was...the hottest kiss I have ever had~”
“Then in that case, I guess you can just say goodby to your cuddlebug,” Ledger said as he mockingly prepared to leave and let her chase after the pink alicorn. “I’m sure it’ll only take a little cajoling before Cadence lets you see her and Shining Armor…”
Midnight’s chair was suddenly vacant as she bolted from the room.
“...I would apologize for this, but I feel like I should at least get yelled at for it first,” Ledger said with a smile. “Plus, I trust she’ll come back to me. We’re loyal to each other, after all. And the longer she spends chasing Cadence…”
The disguised drone slipped over to Cider and drew her into a kiss to punctuate his statement.
Scope just rolled her eyes and smirked. “Oh, so all that talk last night was just talk huh? What about, rutting me into next week?”
Cider pushed him back and looked at him with a look of slight irritation. “Ledger...”
“You didn’t hear her call out your name in a cute voice, or feel the lust behind it,” the unicorn said with a hoof up. “I wouldn’t have done a thing without bringing it to you two first, and that’s if she agreed. The way she’s dancing around it, I fully expect her to grow to your size before she works up the courage to actually ask.”
“I was slightly drunk on all that lust in the room, and you..you...”
“Sounds like y’all came on a little too strong Ledger,” Cider explained. “Some mares are...delicate.”
“Remind you of anything?” Ledger deadpanned back at Cider.
“Oh mah stars, you just had to bring that up!” Cider groaned as she facehooved. Midnight walked back in, only having gone to the little fillies room. She wasn’t gonna go chasing Cadence...yet.
“Uh, what’s going on in here?” she asked.
“Ledger and Cider’s first domestic brawl,” Scope said.
“More like disagreement, and it started thanks to you, little miss,” Ledger reminded the fillyesque mare.
“Like I wasn’t going to tell them,” Scope said. “All in this together right?”
“Tell us what?” Midnight blinked, still utterly confused.
“You could have waited to tell them my clumsy attempts to bring you out of your shell - and not your exoskeleton - for when you, I dunno, worked up the balls to actually accept an invitation of mine,” Ledger bickered back.
‘Okay! I think everypony...and everybuggy just needs to chill a little.’
“W-What the buck was that?” Midnight blinked, placing a hoof to her head.
‘I’m the little voice in your head! ...but seriously, hi, I’m the Crystal Heart. And these two need to chill out. You all do, but it’s really bad with them for some reason. I think their emotions are going all over the place thanks to, well, being properly fed constantly.’
“Holy Celestia! He sounds hot!” Midnight sighed, her wings twitching a little.
“Ah...might hafta agree with y’all there Middy,” Cider nodded.
“Oh for fu- Really?” Scope sighed loudly.
‘Sorry mares, but I’m an inanimate object. You can’t do...whatever it is you’re fantasizing about with me. Now, do me a favor and watch your bugs, please? They seem to be a biiiit more temperamental for some reason. If they start getting out of hoof, feel free to help them readjust their attitudes.’
“Okay, so how do we do that?” Cider asked aloud, feeling really weird she was talking to a voice in her head.
‘Percussive maintenance.’
“So...” Midnight walked over to Ledger and Scope, before slapping them both upside the head with her wings, enough to nearly knock the two over. “That?”
‘Yup! A big enough jolt to the system to make them readjust their emotions. It’s just a lot easier to shake them up with a good old whap upside the head.’
Indeed, Ledger’s eyes were spinning around, before the stallion closed them, shook his head, looked at Scope...And blushed at what he’d said and done around her lately.
“Oh...my...” Scope ducked underneath Midnight and hid there. She’d done...and she’d thought... GAH!
“Well, this is interesting,” Midnight hummed.
“Just when life runs out of curveballs, you get a fastball to the face,” Cider agreed. A little known fact, Cider was actually a big sports fan.
“While I agree with the...sentiment of what I said,” Ledger squeaked out. “I probably would have waited about a month or two to say it. Especially that bluntly.”
“And...I led you on like that...” Scope sighed. “Friggen Heart! I’ll turn you into glitter powder!”
‘Hey, all I did was bring to the surface things that were already there...actually, that wasn’t even me. That was you digesting the love I gave you that did that. Yes, you became more loving and caring...and emotive in general, but it only enhanced what you already felt.’
“Not. So. Loud...” Scope said, grabbing her head. “Okay, don’t threaten a scary magical artifact.”
“Hearty, she’s harmless, so please don’t yell at her,” Midnight sighed. Dammit, she was hoping for a drama-free vacation... “Can...we just pretend that last night, well, after Scopey got home anyway, didn’t happen and move on?”
‘...I’ll stop yelling at her when she stops blaming me for her problems,’ the Heart said sullenly.
Ledger, on the other hoof, walked over to Scope and gently caressed the smaller mare’s cheek. He held the pose for a minute, just letting her know he cared, before speaking up.
“All my words still ring true, but only if you want them to.”
“I know you do,” Scope said quietly. “And...I’m only blaming the Heart because it’s easier than blaming myself. I just... I don’t know...if I even deserve...”
“You won’t know unless you try,” the unicorn said simply.
Scope Lens just sat there, her mind was racing and her heart was racing even faster. In a rash decision, her horn fired up and she prepared to teleport...
Ledger reached up with a hoof and gently touched her horn to disrupt the flow. “It won’t get any better if you avoid it,” he said softly. “Tell me simply, Scope. Do you want to be loved?”
“Of course I want to!” Scope half-shouted. “But have you forgotten? I tried to kill you. And I would have done it too! Without a second thought.”
“The past is then,” Ledger said with...had he been learning from Celestia?! That twinkle in his eye was real familiar. “It only haunts you if you let it, or if something from it resurfaces. The present and future are of your own making. You wouldn’t do that now, would you?”
“....no.” Scope sighed. Hives, what had her life become?
The answer was easy. Complete.
“Why me?” she asked. “Why would you even want to give me a chance?”
“Because you looked beyond the teachings of the homelands,” Ledger said honestly. “You...ignored that propaganda, and treated me fairly. Had you chosen anypony else, I would have done what I could to help you in your quest to be loved. The fact that you have apparently chosen me...complicates it a little, but I am willing to do what I can to see you smile more often.”
“See. That! Why the hell do you have to be so damned perfect!?” Scope pointed at him.
“Because, that’s Ledger being Ledger,” Midnight hummed, pulling the stallion into a chitin-cracking hug. The unicorn squeaked and was thankful for the fact that his disguise was in place. Otherwise he might have...quite a bit of healing to do.
“I’m hardly perfect,” Ledger admitted. “I’m well aware of my issues. Had you been a Yellow, I might be doing all I could to see to it that you were...persuaded to not show such interest in me. Plus it took me quite a while to figure out that you liked me at all. And if I had been ‘perfect,’ the first time I confronted you about it would have ended in some sort of cheesy romance scene where I swept you off your hooves and kissed you before re-introducing you to Midnight and Cider as their new herdmate.”
“Yeah, your sense of romance kinda sucks,” Midnight giggled, nuzzling the back of his neck. Scope nodded in agreement, recalling last night. Geh, stupid Heart.
‘I heard that.’
Dammit!
Scope looked at the three and then put the most adorable shy look on her face. “W-Well...when-when we get back home. Would you three...be adverse to, maybe letting me take you on a date?”
“Technically we’re already on vacation,” Ledger pointed out. “One we’re all paying for. If you wanted to look at it like such...we’re taking you out on a date.” The stallion got a grin on his face then. “Scope Lens, would you like to accompany us to the Fair tomorrow?”
Scope blushed and looked away. “Fine...I suppose I can let you do that.”
“In the meantime,” the unicorn said as he looked at the ceiling with a thoughtful expression. “I’m going to see if I can’t...fiddle with the soundproofing wards in our room. See if I can’t make it so nopony outside a bedroom can hear anything going on inside one.”
“That might be a very good idea,” Scope replied tersely. “Oh, and Heart?”
‘Yes?’
“Do you know what dragons eat?”
‘I am...aware.’
“Then, you should also be aware that I can turn into one,” Scope grinned, her fangs glinting in the soft light of the restaurant. “Just so you know.”
‘And how long would you last in the arctic temperatures without me keeping the weather at bay?’
“....you really are a Crystal version of Ledger,” Scope muttered. “I give up. Can we start over?”
‘Well okay...’ the Heart said...and if it had a body at that moment, anypony would have been able to see the mischievous smirk on its muzzle. Heck, they could almost hear it as it was.
‘Ah, you two are...different. Greetings, little form-changers...’
“Smartass,” Scope sighed, and looked at Ledger. “I swear, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you made the Crystal Heart.”
“Nope,” Ledger said with a grin. “Though I do like the cut of his jib. Apparently, when you do nothing but learn from ponies all day every day and suddenly find yourself capable of interacting with some of them…”
‘It tends to make you snarky, yes. I’m only a very old relic with a lot of knowledge stored in me. Why would I know better?’
“Reminds me of my time in the Lands, going between Hives and learning from them,” Ledger mused aloud.
‘We should swap notes!’
“Oh Hives, they’re freaking bonding.” Scope just shook her head and stood up, putting her regular Pegasus disguise on as she did. “Nope, I’m done. I need a drink.”
“Seconded,” Midnight giggled. “Let’s go Scopey!” The two nodded and left the restaurant, leaving Cider alone with Ledger.
“So uh, are y’all gonna keep talkin’ to yerself, or are we gonna go and do sumthin?”
“Meh, I can talk to the Heart anywhere,” Ledger said as he got to his hooves. “Why don’t you join Middy and Scopey for their drinking? I’ll make sure you three get back to the room with a minimum of fuss.”
“Ah suppose somepony should keep an eye on them,” Cider nodded. She leaned forward and gave him three kisses, one from each of them. “See you later then?”
“I’m coming with, love,” Ledger reminded her. “Though whether or not you’ll remember what happens next remains to be seen.”
“Pah, ah can hold mah liquor better than any o’you lot,” Cider said with a confident smirk as they left, the waiter bidding them farewell. Actually, she was concocting a plan, one she would have to speak to Midnight about...
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nice to see cady is cool with leger
Not unexpected. I'm pretty sure a certain inanimate object could interface with a golem for fun times.....
Keep going! ;)
wohhho, next chapter seems to come out at my birthday next wednesday
That was hilarious xD
Crystal Heart is best rock.
Crystal Heart and Ledger being friends. that is epic
I'm suddenly imagining Chrysalis being caught by her own Hive's Royalty, then being escorted to the Crystal Empire by her 'Dad', shoved in front of Shining, and told to 'Apologize' like she was six.
King Yellow: And what do you have to say to the nice prince?
Chrissy: I... I'm.. s... sorr-y.
KY: What was that? I don't think I quite heard you, and my hearing is better than his.
Chrissy: I said I'm sorry! Okay!?
KY: Sorry for what?
Chrissy: DaaaaaAAAaaaad....
KY: SORRY. For ... WHAT?
Chrissy: I'm sorry... for invading Canterlot, inciting public panic, and poisoning Pony-Changeling relations before they can start.
KY: And?
Chrissy: *Wince* And for foalnapping the princess and impersonating her...
KY: AAAAAND?
Chrissy: For putting you under a mind thrall...
KY: Little nymph, would you spit out the entire apology already!? Otherwise I'll let the Crystal Heart deal with you.
CH: I will too.
Chrissy: FINE! I'm sorry for the personal suffering I put you and your family through! It was wrong of me to attack Canterlot, but it was worse for me to undermine the trust and friendship of those you love and care about in my admittedly foolish attempt to get food. I was selfish and hot-headed, and this whole venture was poorly thought out! I'm a dumbass! You happy?
KY: Much. And you, Sir Armor?
Shining: *Blink*
KY: Not good enough? I can task her to work as a maid for a few months if you want.
Shining: Er... *blink* No. That won't be necessary. It's just...
KY: Just?
Shining: She's so small.
Chrissy: *pout* I'm still bigger than most ponies.
KY: The 'queen' thing was a disguise. And a poor one at that. I think she was trying to blend Royal Changeling with a character from one of those Neighponese comics she likes to read.
Shining: Wait, she likes comics?
Chrissy: They're called Mane-ga.
KY: It's a book filled with pictures instead of words. So, a comic.
Chrissy: *Grumble* It is not...
KY: You seem interested, Sir Armor. Maybe after she serves her punishment you'd be open to having her as a guest. It would be nice to show that she's just stupid, not vicious.
Chrissy: Grrr...
Shining: Maybe. If she can prove she can behave. She still has to apologize to Cady directly for locking her in a cave for a week.
KY: Then let's see to it she does.
6647603 Fab.
I have to say that I enjoyed that chapter. I do hope to see more of them.
Dragonfox
The entirety of my focus is on Scope's attempt at romance with them. Deer God please let this happen.
*No spelling errors in that
6650221 And that's exactly what ruins the surprise of the characters. We already know but they don't. We are thus unable to immerse ourselves in their surprise.
6649716 Makes me wonder how the hell the Bonus Chapter happens. I've long since stopped caring much for this fic.
A further question: following on from the bonus chapter, it's apparent that several of the Hives' rulers are actually males, despite changeling society apparently being horrendously matriarchal. Furthermore, the Queens don't seem at all bothered by the presence of Kings and even deigned to let the Silver King act as 'leader' for them all. What gives?
6651319
There's been a push for equality as of late.
A forceful push.
A push lead by the Silver King and Ledger's mother, also known as the second most important Silver 'ling in the lands.
...
She might or might not have had something to do with the recent...
...regime changes, for the Red, Yellow, and Blue Hives.
Not sayin' nothin'.
6651347
Huh... So, who wants to bet Chryssi was trying to become a Black but failed because Cadance? I mean, at this rate Scope might become the first white, a completely theoretical opposite in almost every way from the Blacks, but all Chrysalis seemed to want was pure love, and fear to spread because of it. Of course, she failed but revealed her entire race, almost ruined changeling/pony relations, and made herself public enemy of the hives. Hell, it took Ledger being a big damn hero to start repairing relations between ponies and changelings.
6656188
Nah, wrong methodology. The bonus chapter described the process as effectively locking you in solitary with extended torture followed by effectively ripping out your soul and replacing it with dark magic.
Chrysalis just did something monumentally ballsy with the authority of nobility, but the intelligence of a box of rocks. Even the yellow royal commented that he was irritated with her whiny behavior and effectively told her 'You're a big girl, so go get it YOURSELF!'.
And of course, the Royal didn't consider the old mixup of: 'Beware idiots in power doing things' and wrote her a blank check in authority by saying that.
6662630 I believe that is what the nymphs did to drones, hence why they are fire and forget biological weapons. Because they drain all the emotion from every thing they come across, and feed it back into the dark magic that replaced their physical hearts to get more power so they can drain more emotions, and recursive loop.
6662984
Pure conjecture. See the following:
It says nothing about a drone at any point in that line. She (The Queen speaking), uses 'us' indicating the collective group to include herself, a female or nymph changeling. And then uses ''ling' androgynously indicating no favor for drones or nymphs being the victims.
About the only thing that is 'nymph-centric' indicated in that paragraph is that the end result is a vicious nymph 'Brood Mother' if everything goes according to design.
The way it looks. The process appears to be all or nothing in that once started, you either end up with a new brood mother (Success), or a deranged fire-and-forget psychopath on a dark magic nuclear meltdown (fail)... Unless it dies before then. (Critical Fail)
And we mustn't forget that changelings with enough power and skill can Gender Select at will. So if you consider every brood mother is a nymph, and that only the skilled and powerful survive to become a brood mother...
6663107 Ah, I forgot about that. I imagine they have a sort of interview process to prevent critical fails to a degree, else it wouldn't be much of a hive, just the third of 'lings who don't die or go mad from this process.
6663130
I can see that interview process:
"Are you a ruthless bitch/bastard who will do anything for unimaginable power?
"Yes."
"Then prove it."
Though I imagine calling it a 'hive' is a misnomer. A bunch of essentially 'drain you to death' changelings with a portion of them being psychopathic project plutos can't be conducive to staying hidden in anything more than a small pack.
6663209 I imagine it's more of a magical power type interview, because the dark magic probably takes a specific amount to keep running without it becoming a black hole. Like "can you lift these exactly one pound ball bearings while holding a conversation?" Followed by making them move around individually while keeping them levitating and slowly ramping up the difficulty, then begins the torture and and draining process. Oh, and don't forget the fact that they crank out the drone hate propaganda!
6664325
Probably, though you still have to make sure they'll be committed for more than five seconds.
6664356 To a degree, yes. But I imagine it's fairly similar to what the other hives have to do only with more sharp implements if you try and break the few rules they have.
6664361
Points are Persuasive when Punctuated with Proper Piercing Perspectives Picked by Persons with Poignant Political Pedigree.
Whether those points are the purview of the spoken domain or the physical has yet to be determined.
6664417 Very nice alliteration. Also, considering the joining process? Yeah. They aren't going to bother with less damaging processes of punishment.
6668178
6646942
Hah, even your Cadance is awesome, not holding grudges.
Crystal Heart is best rock.
6890173 Tom is best rock!
Maybe even boulder . . .
6928609 Tom is best boulder,
Boulder is best rock
I have a slight issue, and y'all feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but in one of the chapters Cider said she'd owned her farm for six years since she was sixteen. Wouldn't that make her twenty-two, not eighteen?
ok, i just have to put this here:
Are the Pinks... All Changeling variants of Pinkie Pie? Better question: Is Pinkie Pie a Pink?
Alright, that's it. I'm out.
There is nowhere near enough substantial plot to keep me here.
Magnificent chapter.
Love how level headed Cadance is.
Shinings Ling Phobie is understandable.
I guess PTSD.
Classic ♡
Did she just... what had she done to the fillies?!
oh, i just remembered a line from a "final fantasy" game:
"the past is history."
The Crystal Heart is most entertaining ♡
♡
Cadance will have a great time with it as friend