Chapter Four: The Date (part two)
“Cadance?” asked Twilight warily once she’d retreated to a safe distance. “Cadance, what are you doing?”
“I’m here to help you, Twilight,” she said softly, taking a step forward. “I’m the Princess of Love. I know what you want, what you need. I’m going to save you.”
“I-I don’t understand. Save me from from what?”
“From me,” said a soft voice, and Twilight swung her head around to stare at Chrysalis, who stood with her entire body drooped and her gaze averted. “I told you I would win your heart, but I… I didn’t have any idea how to. I don’t know how to create love. So… I went to Cadance and I… I…”
The changeling gagged, one hoof going to her mouth, but she managed to keep her bile down and continued. “I asked her for help. To help me make you realize how much I love you, how happy I could make you. She’s been giving me advice this whole time, telling me what to do on each date.”
“So… all those things you did…” said Twilight slowly, “All the terrible things you did during our dates…”
“They were because I was weak. Because I couldn’t do what Cadance told me to.” She turned further away, something that sounded suspiciously like a sniffle coming through her mane. “If… if I’d just listened to her, if I'd left you alone after I walked out on our first date instead of taking you away the next night, then maybe… maybe…”
“Wait. Wait.” Twilight held up a hoof, a look of horrified comprehension dawning on her face. “Cadance told you to leave me like that?”
“Of course,” sniffed Chrysalis. “That way you’d be more interested in me. She called it ‘playing hard to get’.”
“Cadance…” growled Twilight, turning back to the other Princess.
“Do you see it now?” asked Cadance, nearly whispering, a serene smile on her face. “She doesn’t love you. She can’t. Look at how easily she threw away her supposed ‘love’, how easily she listened to what I told her and hurt you.” Cadance took another step forward and held out her hoof. “Come here. Come to me and this whole nightmare will all be over.”
Twilight gave her a furious glare, eyes tight, then spun around to march back to Chrysalis's side.
“Don’t turn your back on me, Twilight,” said Cadance warningly, but the pony just ignored her.
“Chrysalis?” Twilight spoke gently, reaching out a hoof only to pull it back at the last second. “Chrysalis, are you telling me that every time you insulted me, every time you ignored me or said something cruel… when you left me during our first date… that was Cadance telling you to do those things?”
“Of course.” Chrysalis gave Twilight a quick glance, eyes wet, then turned away again. “She was trying to help me, but I… I couldn’t…”
“No, Chrysalis, no! Cadance was lying to you!” She threw an angry look over her shoulder at her sister-in-law. “I don’t know why, but she was! You don’t make a pony love you by pushing them away and hoping that makes them want you more. You make them love you by doing exactly what you were trying to do—by sharing your love with them, by showing them how much you love them, by treating them with kindness…”
“Then… you mean…” Chrysalis turned to meet Twilight's eyes, her own wide. “When I left you at the restaurant on that date, and you wrote me that letter—“
“I meant every word in it. I was furious. What you did was horrible, and… and I wanted nothing to do with you after that.” Twilight, eyes wet, mouth trembling, met the changeling's gaze. “But then you took me on a date to the Canterlot library, and then a used book store—the same way my mother did with my father. That wonderful, amazing night…”
“It was a fluke!” spat Cadance. “She did it by accident! She doesn’t love you, Twilight.”
Twilight glanced at the look of understanding slowly growing on Chrysalis’s face, then turned to Cadance. “Are you telling me,” she said in a low, angry voice, “that everything Chrysalis did that was kind, and sweet, and caring… that was all her? And those terrible things, leaving me behind on dates, insulting my outfits and hairstyles… that was you, lying to her, Cadance?”
“I wasn't lying to her, Twilight. I was showing you the truth. That is what she's really like.”
Twilight dismissed her again, turning back to focus on the changeling. “So, when you ditched me on that date… you never wanted to?”
“Of course not!” gasped Chrysalis. “Why would I ever not want to spend time with you?”
“All those times you ignored my suggestions about where to go on dates…”
“Mostly her idea.” Chrysalis gave a weak smile. “You know, I actually wanted to go to that museum last month, too. They had their first exhibit with an artist who was out as a changeling.”
“The dance contest?” asked Twilight breathlessly. “Where you took a stallion as your partner, because you ‘wanted to win’?”
“The only thing I wanted, more than anything else, was to dance with you,” said Chrysalis softly, running a holed hoof through the pony’s mane.
“And… when I beat you in the dance contest and you set the building on fire…?”
This time Chrysalis turned away, clearing her throat uncomfortably and refusing to meet Twilight's eyes.
“No, that one was all her,” said Cadance from behind them. “Not that I tried to stop her, mind you. And it’s a bit disingenuous of you to say you ‘beat’ her in that contest, Twilight. Just because she got disqualified before you did doesn't mean you won.”
“So, all this time…” said Twilight slowly, “everything you did that seemed mean, or cruel, or uncaring… that was because you love me? Because you were following Cadance's fake advice to try and get me to love you?”
"I just wanted you to love me so much, Twilight." Chrysalis's voice was low and hoarse. "I'd do anything for you, and I guess that's why I was foolish enough to let her trick me so easily. Do you… do you hate me?"
Twilight's response was to wrap her forelegs around the changeling and, forgetting her alicorn strength, squeeze so hard she would have hurt any other pony.
"Oh, you are just the sweetest thing!" she cried, burying her face in the shocked changeling's mane. "I'd never hate you, not for something like that."
Chrysalis stared down at her, then slowly raised a hesitant hoof to drape it over the pony's neck. They pulled back, looking at each other, but before either could speak the sound of clapping hooves interrupted them.
"Well, bravo, she knows the truth now," said Cadance happily. "But… why don't you tell her the whole truth, Chrysalis?" Chrysalis froze up, her body stiffening around Twilight.
"Chrysalis? What… what does she mean?"
Instead of responding, Chrysalis slowly removed her leg from around Twilight and slunk away, head down.
"Chrysalis, please…"
"Oh, come on, Chrysalis," Cadance said teasingly. "Why don't you tell her what you told me? Tell her… why you didn't decide to marry her until after she became a Princess?"
Twilight gasped, causing Chrysalis to flinch and shy further away. The pony turned, taking a step towards the changeling. Her mouth moved, trying to form words, but none came.
"Oh, no, nothing to say?" A giggle came from Cadance. "Come now, Chrysalis, tell us how a simple unicorn who lived in a library wasn't good enough for you."
A dead silence filled the air of the restaurant, none of the ponies moving.
"C-Chrysalis," said Twilight finally, then licked her lips, cleared her dry throat and tried again. "Chrysalis, you can tell me. Please. I… I won't be mad. I just want to know."
"The hive… has to be safe," said Chrysalis hoarsely. "It has to be strong. So, my mate must be strong. You were strong, Twilight Sparkle. Brave, intelligent… beautiful.
"But… you weren't strong enough. You weren't a leader. And when it came to the hive, to my children, versus my heart… I did what I've always done, what I have to do—what's best for the hive—no matter how it hurt my soul, no matter how it killed me inside to have to turn my back on you."
She raised her head, trying and failing to smile. "I thought my heart would burst when I heard you became a Princess. That I could finally, finally, combine my duties and responsibilities with where my heart was leading me. The only thing that's ever made me happier was when… w-when I thought you had accepted my proposal."
Chrysalis trailed off, and Cadance let out a snort. "There you go, Twilight. The truth. If you weren't a Princess, she wouldn't have given two bits about you. You're nothing more than a safety net, someone to deal with all those ponies that come seeking justice from her, someone to swat them away like they're nothing more than pesky flies."
She sneered at the pony, whose head had dropped and now faced the floor. "How do you feel now, Twilight? Still think a changeling can actually feel love?"
"I'm so sorry, Twilight," Chrysalis managed to get out, her voice a husk of its usual self. "I'll just leave—"
Twilight, with her head still down, started shaking. Princess and Queen stared at her, and then suddenly she threw her head back, laughing uproariously.
"Hahaha! That's… t-that's the best you can do?!" she chortled, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Do you really think I don't understand duty? That I don't understand responsibility and sacrifice?! I may have only been royalty for a few years, but give me some credit!"
She got down on her haunches, gently lifting Chrysalis's chin with one hoof to look her in the eye. "Chrysalis. I would never, ever ask you to put my happiness above that of your hive. Even if it meant a thousand years of bliss for the two of us. I wouldn't see one single changeling be hurt. It may sound a bit cold, but putting your hive first was the right thing to do."
"You can't be serious…" growled Cadance through clenched teeth.
Chrysalis stared at her, face disbelieving, then squeezed her eyes shut with a happy smile, a single tear leaking out. "I always knew you were the one, Twilight," she whispered.
"Are you kidding me?!" Cadance yelled. She stomped one hoof on the ground, the shockwave interrupting the two. "Twilight Sparkle, you cannot tell me you actually love that changeling!"
Twilight gave Chrysalis her hoof, helping her back to her hooves. "I don't know if I do or not," she said, missing the look Chrysalis shot her as she turned to face Cadance, "but what do you think you're doing here?! Why are you trying to force us apart?! And with such dirty tricks! How could you do this to me?!"
"I'm doing this for you, Twilight!" cried Cadance desperately. "I'm trying to save you! She doesn't love you!"
"Why do you keep saying that?!" Twilight shouted back, stomping her own hoof. "You heard what she just said to me! You've been spying on all our dates! You had to force her to be mean to me!"
"What about all the awful things she did? She set that building on fire, she laughs when she sees other ponies get hurt, she dismisses ponies she thinks are lesser than herself and insults them constantly—"
"But she doesn't do any of that to me, Cadance. She does love me. And I don't like seeing her be so mean to other ponies, but she's working on it. For me. Because she knows I don't like it, and no matter what you say, she loves me."
Cadance was shaking, head down and teeth clenched. Suddenly her head snapped back up. "What about the park, Twilight?! She pushed you in the fountain and tried to drown you!"
"What—?" Twilight's frown of puzzlement turned into comprehension. "Do you mean that night we went strolling in Canterlot Central Park? And she pushed me in the fountain and we roughhoused for a bit?" Twilight giggled, sharing a smile with Chrysalis. "That was just a bit of fun, Cadance. I dunked her quite a few times myself."
"But—you were so scared after that, you couldn't even leave! You thought she'd hurt you if you tried."
"Cadance… I stayed with her because I was enjoying myself. We spent the whole night talking." She gave Cadance a puzzled look. "You were listening, how did you not pick up on that?"
"You caught a cold because of her!"
Twilight chuckled. "That was my own fault. I got so caught up in talking to her that, well, I didn't even think about drying myself off or getting somewhere warm." She looked over at Chrysalis, who smiled back. "And this big sweetie came to take care of me."
"Twilight, she force-fed you meat!"
Twilight's expression turned sour, and Chrysalis turned away, whistling a few innocent notes. "Yes, while it was really nice of her to feed me soup while I was sick, I really wish she had told me it was chicken soup before I'd eaten most of it."
"Old changeling folk remedy!" cried Chrysalis desperately. "Chicken noodle soup is very good for colds."
"Don't you see, Cadance?" pleaded Twilight. "She loves me. There's no tricks this time. No invasion. It's just… love."
"It's… not, Twilight." Cadance's breathing was ragged as she stared at the two standing side by side. "It's not love! It can't be! Changelings cannot love. Period."
"How can you keep saying that?! You've seen Chrysalis with me, you've heard what she says, you know how she acts around me. You've even talked to her in private about her love for me! And you know exactly what you've put her through over the last six months! Chrysalis put aside her pride to ask you for help, and even when you tortured her by making her do things that went against what she believed in, she kept it up, because she thought that's what she needed to do to earn my love! How can you not call that love?!"
"Because changelings can't love, Twilight," said Cadance desperately. "They just plain can't. Ponies give out love, changelings eat it. It's one way. It can't go backwards."
"Why not?!" thundered Twilight, and Cadance gaped at her in shock. "You should know this better than anyone, Cadance. There's no limit on love. The fact that changelings need more of it just means we need to give them more. And we should cherish what they give back."
Cadance took an unsteady step backwards, shaking her head in a simple, flat refutation of everything Twilight had said. "You're wrong, Twilight. You're wrong. And I'm doing this… I'm doing this for you, don't you understand that? You never asked for this. It was all a misunderstanding, wasn't it? Maybe she tricked you, maybe she didn't. It doesn't matter now. Just… just leave her, come over here to me. She said herself she'd agree with whatever you decided, so make the right choice and come to me now."
"I don't know if it is the right choice, Cadance," said Twilight softly, and the Princess flinched back like she'd been struck. "I don't know what the right choice is now. You've… you've poisoned everything so much I can't see anything clearly anymore."
"I did what I had to, Twilight. She's not right for you. You shouldn't be in love with her! It's not right!"
"That's not for you to decide! Love comes from what one pony feels for another, not from the decision of some third party. What gives you the right to decide that for me? For anyone?!"
Twilight knew those words were a mistake as soon as they left her mouth. Cadance froze, then drew herself up to her full height. Her eyes were wide and cloaked in shadow as she lifted her head and her mane fell down over her forehead, but her pupils were highly-focused pinpricks.
"I am Cadance, Princess Mi Amora Cadenza, the Princess of Love," she said in a proud, cold voice. "I am love. I decide which ponies get to love each other… and which ones don't." She spat the final word from her mouth like it was something foul.
"Cadance…" said Twilight, careful to keep her voice calm as she retreated one hoofstep at a time, using a wing to nudge Chrysalis along with her, "Cadance, that's not how being a Princess works, and you know it. You were one of the ones who taught me, remember?"
"Isn't it, though?" Cadance asked cheerfully, beginning to pace side to side. "Princess Celestia decides when the Sun rises, Princess Luna decides when the Night falls. Why shouldn't I get to decide who loves whom?"
“Because love isn’t predictable! It doesn’t appear and disappear at the same time every day! It doesn’t follow a cycle!”
“Well maybe it’s time it did! Maybe it’s time it was regulated, that it was given to those who deserve it, and taken from those that don’t.” Cadance's eyes moved from Twilight up to Chrysalis. “And who better to start with than the Queen of the changelings?”
“You can’t,” objected Twilight in a terrified whisper.
“Why not? I can bring out the love two ponies feel for each other.” Her grin turned into a sneer. “So who says I can’t put it back? Who says I can't take love away when I see fit?”
“She’s a changeling, Cadance! She needs that love to live! You’ll kill her!”
“Oh, don’t worry. I’ll leave her just enough to let her crawl back to her little hive.” Cadance's smile reappeared, mocking now. “Besides, I’m not going to take away all her love. Just whatever little delusions of love she might have for you.”
“I forbid it,” declared Twilight. She stood up straight, her horn glowing, and a magenta dome formed over Chrysalis, leaving the changeling blinking at the brilliant, coruscating light surrounding her.
“Is this really what it’s come down to, Twilight?” asked Cadance softly. “Are you really going to raise your horn against me? When all I'm trying to do is help you? When all you have to do is just walk away and no one will be harmed?”
“I don’t want to do this. You’re forcing me,” growled Twilight. “I won’t let you hurt my friend!”
Cadance stared at her for a long moment, then let out a dreary sigh and turned away. “Maybe… you're right, Twilight,” she said, voice barely audible. “I am the Princess of Love, after all. I don’t even know if I can take love away. Even if I can, I probably don’t even have it in me. My purpose is to give love, not take it.”
There wasn’t even time for Twilight to let out a sigh of relief before Cadance spun back around, jabbing her hoof out at Twilight.
“SO LET’S GIVE YOU SOME LOVE!” she bellowed.
Twilight cried out as Cadance’s magic gripped her body, canceling out her own spell and making the shield around Chrysalis pop like a bubble. The magical aura dragged her across the room, knocking tables aside as she went, forcing the pony to raise her forelegs to protect her face. A dozen feet before reaching Cadance she suddenly launched into the air and hung there, above Cadance’s head, struggling in the magical field.
“So who’s it going to be Twilight?” asked Cadance, grinning up at the pony past her outstretched hoof. “Ready for round two with Flash Sentry? Or maybe you want Fluttershy, instead. I’d hate to lose the pool to Pinkie, but you two would go good together. Although, pretty much anypony at all works. Heck, maybe even a griffin or two! Just take your pick, and I’ll fill you with so much love you’ll forget the bug even exists!”
“Cadance… please…” Twilight tried to struggle, tried to cast the most basic of spells, but Cadance’s magic had overwhelmed her completely.
“Or, maybe I should just skip right to Celestia! It’s a century or two early, but better safe than sorry!”
“N-no…”
Cadance grinned wider, the glow of her horn ramping up in intensity, then she suddenly let out a cry as something impacted against her head with a skull-shuddering thump. When she opened her eyes after the momentary shock had passed, she saw Chrysalis, forehead equally bruised, pushed up against her face.
"That’s my wife you’re bucking with,” said the changeling.
Her twisted horn, locked with Cadance's, gave off a flare of light, and the pulse of magic threw the Princess back into a pile of tables. Turning quickly, Chrysalis caught Twilight in her magic, lowering the plummeting pony gently to the ground.
“Are you okay?” she asked softly.
Twilight let out a breath and nodded, placing one hoof on the changeling’s shoulder. “I am. Thank you—“ she suddenly stopped, stiffening and her eyes going wide. “Cadance! We have to stop her! We need to find some way to restrain her, before—“
She was interrupted by the pile of tables exploding apart, filling the room with a cloud of sawdust. When it cleared, Cadance was standing before them, body glowing as raw magic leaked off her very being.
“Another suckerpunch,” she said, sniffing dimissively. “Well, what can you expect from the Queen of Cheapshots?”
She pushed herself into the air, wings spreading wide, and all of that power concentrated itself in her horn. “Let’s see how you handle me when I’m ready for you!” she shouted with unmistakeable eagerness.
“Chrysalis—“ Twilight started to shout and move, only to find herself swept back by a holed leg.
“Get behind me, Twilight!” cried the changeling, and lit up her own horn.
A shield sprang up before them, and Twilight's mouth dropped open. Chrysalis’s shield was a wall of interlocking hexagons, a honeycomb of thick magical plates. Each section looked corrupted, holes opening and closing on their surfaces, but the magical signature of the spell was solid. Raw magic dripped off the shield, magic that should have floated away as a fog but was so heavy it flowed more like slime. And the entire structure shone with a brilliant, beautiful emerald light.
Even as Twilight’s eyes were widening in awe, Cadance fired. This wasn’t some simple bolt from the tip; her spell came from the entire length of the horn, a thick, concentrated beam of pure, destructive love. It crashed into Chrysalis's shield like a landslide of affection, splattering vicious pink hearts in all directions that slowly floated upwards and faded before being replaced by more.
Twilight flinched back from that cataclysm of love, but the shield held like a rock. Chrysalis, though, clenched her jaw and squeezed her eyes shut at the impact.
“You’re doing it…” said Twilight softly, then raised her voice. “Chrysalis, you’re doing it! Keep it up, she can’t last forever!”
“I can… If you stop… d-distracting me…” panted the changeling.
“FOOLS!” bellowed Cadance, glaring at them from eyes swamped by the pink light of love. “DO YOU TRULY THINK YOU CAN DEFEAT LOVE? THAT THERE IS AN END TO THE AMOUNT OF LOVE IN THIS WORLD?!"
She lowered her head, amping up her power, and even more pink hearts filled the air. “IT DOESN’T MATTER IF YOU WANT THIS OR NOT, TWILIGHT! I WILL FILL YOUR HEART WITH LOVE!”
“Oh, no…”
Cadance’s power increase was clearly too much for Chrysalis's shield, and even as Twilight watched it began to fall apart. It didn’t crack the way a pony shield would, but the holes in its surface were becoming more real. A pink gas began to seep in, and she suddenly had to skip aside to avoid a heart that came floating past.
“Twilight… I’m so sorry…" groaned Chrysalis, now shaking and sweating with the effort of holding the shield in place.
“Please, hold on Chrysalis! We can—wait!”
Twilight's eyes went wide as inspiration struck, and she bounded over to the changeling’s side, dodging some slowly wavering hearts in the process. She got up on her hind legs, putting one foreleg around Chrysalis for support, and stretched herself up until her head was level with the changeling’s.
“Twilight, what—“ Chrysalis started to say, turning to Twilight with fear and confusion in her eyes, and the pony interrupted her.
“Let me help!” she cried out. “Use my magic!”
Her horn lit up, magic flowing out to combine with Chrysalis’s. The beams twisted together, forming a corkscrew of green and magenta light that grew tighter and tighter until it merged at the shield. As it did, light blossomed once again, and six-pointed magenta stars appeared over the holes in the shield, slowly pulsing.
“We’re doing it!” cried Twilight giddily. “We’re going to—“
“NOOOO! I WON'T LET YOU STOP ME FROM SAVING YOU, TWILIGHT!” screamed Cadance.
More magic poured out of her horn, flowing down to envelope her body, and the debris scattered about the floor below her began to rise into the air, caught up in the sheer amount of power she was putting out. The lights around the room, powered by magic, first flickered and then dimmed as Cadance's magical field began to interfere with theirs. With another scream, a brilliant nova of light exploded off her body that battered and beat at the shield like waves tossed up by a hurricane.
“We can hold it…” groaned Twilight, even as her magic began to falter, the stars on the shield shrinking and letting the magical love gas seep back in. “Just a little longer…”
The shield suddenly began to grow unstable, and Twilight, hearing a rasping sound, looked over at Chrysalis and gasped. The changeling's mouth was open, sucking in the love that was flowing through the damaged shield, and even with Chrysalis’s eyes half-lidded Twilight could see the intensity of the power glowing within them.
“Chrysalis?! Chrysalis, stop!” Twilight tried shaking the changeling, to no effect. “That’s pure love! You can’t handle that much power!”
“Can’t… stop…” said the changeling faintly, with a sluggish shake of her head. “So much love… need to feed…”
The end came quickly and spectacularly. Chrysalis lost all control of the magic she had siphoned and it surged into the shield, overloading it and blowing it apart in a burst of magical feedback that sent royal bodies flying in all directions.
Silence reigned for a moment in the restaurant. Plaster dust drifted down from the ceiling, decorating the circular area in the middle of the dining room that had been swept clear by the blast. A table that had been teetering on three legs finally collapsed, and one miraculously intact plate rolled out of the wreckage.
Then Cadance stood up.
“Do you see, Twilight?” she said, walking slowly over to where her sister-in-law, now barely conscious, lay. “Love wins. Love always wins.”
She lit up her horn, holding her head high, tears of relief and joy starting to leak out of her eyes. “I saved you, Twilight! I sav—grrlk?! Grrlkhhk!”
Her hooves lifted off the ground, her body wrapped in a bright green magical aura. She tried to struggle against the magic, legs flailing uselessly in slow motion, and then the glow intensified and she was held rock still. Carefully, gently, she was rotated onto her back, then turned upwards, to face a changeling Queen nearly bursting with magical energy.
“You’re right,” said Chrysalis, voice crackling and jumping with power. “Love does win.”
Cadance began struggling, managing some slight movements even against the power Chrysalis now wielded, and she tried to bring up her own magic once more. But she’d given too much of it to the changeling, and Chrysalis suppressed her efforts with ease.
“This… isn’t… fair!” Cadance forced out as Chrysalis began carrying her to the other side of the room. “You don’t deserve Twilight!”
She managed to get her lips up into a snarl. “You tried to steal my love from me! I deserve to steal yours!”
Chrysalis, utterly ignoring Cadance’s ranting, had been scanning the far wall of the restaurant. Her eyes lit up, as she spotted a wide section that was relatively free of decorations or damage. Floating Cadance over, she gently pushed the Princess through the wall.
Chrysalis spent several moments inspecting the resulting pile of bricks. It didn’t look like anything under them would be getting up anytime soon, so she nodded happily and turned away.
Taking a deep breath and releasing it slowly, she let the excess magic she had collected flow away and dissipate into the air. Once it was gone—Well, most of it; waste not want not! she thought with an internal grin—she trotted over to Twilight's shifting body.
“Easy there,” she whispered gently, helping Twilight to her hooves. “Are you alright?”
“I-I think so,” groaned Twilight, rubbing her forehead. “But my head feels like the time Pinkie thought rocksalt was a proper substitute for confetti in her party cannons.”
She wobbled, and Chrysalis carefully helped her sit down on her haunches.
“I can’t believe this,” Twilight said with a sigh. “I never thought Cadance would attack us, attack me, like that. She—“
Twilight suddenly jerked upright, body quivering. “Oh no. Where is she? Is she going to—“
“Shh, Twilight, relax.” Chrysalis gently stroked Twilight's mane with one hoof. “We’re safe. I… took care of Cadance.”
“W-what do you mean?” stammered Twilight, looking fearfully up at Chrysalis.
“I mean…” repeated the changeling, giving a wide, fang-filled grin. “… I took care of her.”
“Oh, no. No, no, no—“ Shaking, Twilight managed to stagger to her hooves. This earned her a disgusted sigh and eye roll from Chrysalis, who simply nudged her with a hoof and sent her back down to her haunches.
“As you said earlier, give me at least some credit,” the changeling said dryly, grin now a mischievous smile. “I know what she means to you, even after all this. And I know how you feel about ponies you like getting hurt, even if they might deserve it.”
She gestured at the opposite side of the room, where, on the other side of a roughly alicorn-shaped hole in the wall, a pink leg wearing a dented golden hoofcuff waved from a pile of bricks.
“I’m fine,” came Cadance’s faint, unsteady voice, and then the ragged hole shed a few more bricks, burying the leg.
“See? She’s fine,” said Chrysalis, offering a hoof to Twilight once more.
Twilight took it, letting Chrysalis help her walk out of the debris she’d landed in and towards the exit.
“What a mess,” groaned Twilight, rubbing at her head with her free hoof. “You know, it’s technically treason—or an act of war—to attack a Princess like Cadance just did. You only got away with it because we were able to use that ‘foreign wedding customs’ loophole. Cadance is also a Princess, though, which means that law shouldn’t apply to her either—that’s why Luna wasn’t executed after we subdued her with the Elements—but… argh, she’s officially a foreign Princess, an ally, so it does actually apply. Does she have diplomatic immunity, I wonder? She does most of the negotiations for the Empire, from what I understand. Oh, Celestia and Luna aren’t going to like this at all.”
Chrysalis giggled at her, and Twilight looked up with a frown. “This is all funny to you isn’t it?”
“Kind of,” admitted the changeling. “But I’m mostly laughing at you. It’s nice to see you like this. It’s how I want to remember you.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Twilight sighed, and her whole body sort of flopped down even as she stayed upright. “Well, we can let the other Princesses handle this. Let’s go home.”
She started to trot forward, only to find herself stopped by the hoof she was holding. She looked back, puzzled, as the changeling smiled at her.
“No, Twilight.”
“What?”
“I mean I’m not going back to your castle with you. I’m returning to the hive, and I’m not coming back.”
“But… but…” Twilight dropped Chrysalis's hoof, and the changeling’s smile warmed briefly before she turned away.
“Twilight, when Cadance asked you if you loved me, what did you say?” Chrysalis asked softly.
“I said…” Twilight trailed off, then swallowed and finished, “I said I didn’t know.”
“And when Cadance said she was going to remove my love for you, what did you say?”
“I… I…”
This time Twilight refused to continue, and Chrysalis finished for her. “You said ’I won’t let you hurt my friend’.”
She moved back, the same smile still on her face, and stopped in front of Twilight.
“Twilight,” she asked gently, “do you love me?”
“I…” Twilight paused to lick her lips, before continuing in a hoarse voice. “I don’t know.”
Chrysalis’s smile didn’t waver. “Then we’ve answered the question this whole night was about, haven’t we?”
She started to move away, and Twilight scrambled after her.
“Wait. Wait! We… we can try again!” she pleaded desperately. “It’s not fair! Cadance… she interfered! You didn't get an honest chance!”
Chrysalis paused, then turned back around. “Twilight,” she said again, “Do you love me?”
“I don’t know,” said the pony, repeating herself as well. “But I want to! I want to try!”
“Do you want to try because you might love me… or do you want to try because you don’t want to hurt a friend?” asked Chrysalis with crushing finality.
Twilight stood there, shaking her head slowly, and all she could do was whisper, “I don’t know.”
Chrysalis held her smile on Twilight for a moment, then bent forward and gently kissed the pony on her forehead.
“Goodbye.”
She turned away, moving slowly but with her head held high, towards the exit. Twilight stared after her, then tried to follow despite her stiff, pain-filled body.
“Wait,” she called out, but Chrysalis continued until Twilight called out again. “Wait, please!”
They stood there in silence, Chrysalis facing away, Twilight breathing hard. Finally, Chrysalis turned, peering at Twilight out of the corner of her eye.
“I’ll contact the palace, get them to draw up some papers annulling our marriage. I’m sure Celestia will be happy to approve them.”
“Chrysalis…”
“Have no fear for your kingdom, either,” continued the changeling. “Your hive and mine are allies, now and forever. I’ll send a team of changelings to be diplomats in my stead. If you ever need anything, anything at all, let them know, and we will do all that is within our power to meet your desires.
“Except one thing. You can never contact me again.”
Twilight’s eyes widened, body stiffening in shock. “No, Chrysalis—”
“I will retire to my quarters, and direct the hive from there,” Chrysalis said, heedless of Twilight's protests. “I have no plans to ever leave that chamber. The hivemind can be directed unconsciously, though. I need not be awake to monitor it. So one day, perhaps... I will go to the deepest spot of the hive, to burrow down and slumber deep under the earth for the rest of time. Just as mother did, centuries ago.” She stared into the past with far off eyes, then faced forward once again and began walking.
"Chrysalis, no…"
The changeling didn't respond, just continued to walk. The remnants of a plate crunch under her hoof, she had to sweep aside half a table with her magic, but she kept walking.
"Chrysalis, I am telling you to stop!" shouted Twilight frantically. "If you love me, then you have to come back here and talk to me!"
This time Chrysalis did stop, right at the door to the restaurant's lobby.
"I'm not coming back, Twilight, because I do love you," she said, not turning, and Twilight couldn't tell if she heard tears or a smile in that voice. "And you deserve someone you can love."
Suddenly, she was gone. Twilight heard the tinkling of the bell over the door, the faint buzz of wings that quickly faded, and then there was nothing.
After some time had passed, Twilight noticed that she had raised her hoof, reaching after Chrysalis. She lowered it now, letting her entire body slump down to her haunches, and stared at the empty doorway.
Chrysalis was gone.
Twilight had spent so much time trying to make that happen, all because of a little misunderstanding. All because someone she thought was a monster had turned out to have a heart. She'd enlisted her mentor, her friends, her family, nearly everypony she knew in an effort to escape the marriage. She'd even gone as far as agreeing to this dating idea, half hoping she could convince the changeling that things weren't going to work out.
And now Chrysalis was gone.
She'd gotten exactly what she'd wanted.
The End.
(I'm kidding, I'm kidding, put down the torches and pitchforks)
So yes, Cadance had a bit of a Nightmare moment here. Luckily, before it could really get going it was stopped by Twilight and Chrysalis, along with the help of a friendly brick wall.
And now, of course, the aftermath has to be dealt with.
If you're curious, we are currently less than halfway through the story at this point. Perhaps a fight scene like this would have worked better as a climax and ending, but I don't think anyone wants things to end here, even on a cliffhanger. Learned that lesson the hard way. Besides, there's an even better battle that happens later.
Also, like last chapter, I have once again drawn fanart of my own fanfiction. Because I like mobius strips.
Cadance took an unsteady step backwards, shaking her head in a simple, flat refutation of everything Twilight had said. "You're wrong, Twilight. You're wrong. And I'm doing this… I'm doing this for you, don't you understand that? You never asked for this."
"I am Cadance, Princess Mi Amora Cadenza, the Princess of Love," she said in a proud, cold voice. "I am love."
(I'll get a higher rez version of this up on my deviantart and link to it here in a day or two. The "screentone" I used doesn't scale very well and it creates some odd effects and banding at this size.)
Better image is up on my DA, check it out here to see it with the screentone displaying properly.
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So are Alicorns just more prone to bouts of insanity or what?
This was a great birthday present. Also, I think Twilight is going to tell Celestia.... Just saying. You can't try to kill an ambassador and fellow princess without having some repercussions.
"Ship Note"?! Oh, gods, don't let this get out to the Brony Fand--- ... oh. Crap.
wow, way to play the feelings violin! >.>
No way this is over, not by a long shot.
After all, Chrysalis told Twilight exactly where to find her.
Twilight. You are by far the DUMBEST smart pony in Equestria
You loved Chrysalis on some level the first time you laid in bed reading with her in the hive.
Who is going to pay for the property damage? Chrissy and (possibly) Cadance have diplomatic immunity. Does Twilight boot the bill?
Excellent work.
Love is patient, love is kind. Love is about as confusing a thing as humankind has to deal with. I used this line in one of my fics and it fits well here:
You confuse me. And this is a good thing. I wish only to be confused by you forever.
I have NO idea what you could POSSIBLY be referring to, Codex.
*closes door to closet full of pitchforks purchased after the "ending" of Trials and Tribulations*
For the last part of the story, all I could think was
"Never mind I'll find someone like you"
You sir, are evil.
I love it
This sentence is a bit surreal to read
Also, the end of the chapter was painful to read. Not because it's badly written, but because it's, if it makes any sense, too well written. I could empathise with Twilight and Chrysalis all too well, and the way it was written just added to it. Seeing Chrysalis so heartbroken was just gut wrenching...
Meaning that this cliffhanger is pure undiluted evil. You monster
And you say that we are only at the halfway point of the story? Can't wait to see what you have in store...
My guess is, Twilight is going to try to win Chryssy back using Changeling courtship rituals (the actual rituals, not the story, even if she COULD use the story to that end... Not necessarily by throwing the book it's written on at her future wife...), meaning that the ultimate fight of the story would be the round two of the fight that stated this whole situation. It would be both sweet and symbolic, because it would end like it all started
Incredible chapter. So moving to read. Twilight needs to get her act together, before it's too late.
christ
ok that bucking does it since she done pissed me off..
-cuts off Cadance's horn and locks her in pinkamena's basement- go to tartarus you son of a bitch....
What did I just read?
That took a turn that I thought would be the most cliche way to go and it turned out to be better than any other way this story could have gone.
7781151 Unicorns seem pretty prone to them too. (Cough lesson zero cough)
I'm looking forward to the scene when they have to dig up Chrysalis' mother for the wedding.
"Nngg, it's way too early, just 5 more aeons."I'm actually crying...
AND I DON'T EVEN SHIP THIS!
So, that just happened. Welp, Cadence just went batshit crazy for a moment. Is it just me, or are Alicorns in more danger than others to the Nightmare influence?
7781151 Seems that way doesn't it?
While it's true that Cadance most likely has PTSD from the wedding, she still needs serious mental rehab since this whole thing appears to have brought to the forefront some serious mental problems and entitlement issues regarding her position.
Pretty much what I'm saying is; don't let her get off scot-free or with a slap on the wrist. She's a Princess and her actions have far greater consequences because of that title, not less.
7781192
Less 'kill' and more 'mind rape' since she had no desire to physically harm either of them. Only to forcefully remove all love/add all-consuming love to their mind via magical brainwashing/abuse of her Divine Portfolio.
That's the sort of shit that can get a Love Goddess stripped of her divinity (by their own pantheon nonetheless) in other settings. So yeah, still plenty bad though.
i feel like this is a social faux pass on chrysalis part.. or perhaps not such but more of a... misunderstanding. as she fails to realize twilight has no clue what love feels like and would fail to realize she loves someone easily. then again- i feel like author has something planned that will make such comments feel stupid.
also- this... just this, do you realize what you have done by saying this? the fight scene the story really ends with is a lot more meaningful.
7781198
... Call Ryuk, I'm taking the deal. My ships will be legend and canon.
Next chapter, Twilight invades the hive, to challenge Chrysalis to a duel, right?
Nuuuuuuu.
God dang it Cadance, Banish her to the . . . . no wait, not moon.
Banish her to love?
Where the hell even is that?
Ok I'm confused now.
7781477 she banish pony and other into the crystal heart where they stay trap in it for who knew how long
How I think Celestia will react to Cadence.
7781151
Statistics is a bitch like that.
You are am amazing author and I regret that I cannot give you an additional thumb up for each chapter.
7781151
I'm not entirely sure it was a bout of insanity as much as a fairly reasonable reaction to trauma. She looks at Chrysalis and all she can see is the kidnapping, of course she's going to hate her. The rest, from there, is just Cadance trying to "save" Twilight the only way she knows how. It's not that she went insane- it's that she abandoned her morals in pursuit of her single-minded goal.
Though it's possible she could have something like PTSD, which would make it even MORE understandable, really.
Holy crud. Did Cadence really almost went Nightmare on us? Well that would explain a lot, if my lore is correct (from other fan fics) going nightmare like this is bloody possible. I mean Cadence really became obsessed there didn't she?
Twilight, you do love her! Now, go chase after that big, sexy bug, and kiss her!
7781151 Well, lets stuff you with an entire planet's worth of magic and see how well you keep your sanity.
Keep in mind I have no clue if this is why Alicorns are crazy, but having that much magic holed up in their bodies can't be healthy in the long run.
I have a feeling for how all of this is going to end... these stories are going to come full circle with Twilight marching down into the changling hive, but this time she proceeds to kick Chrysalis's and claim her as her wife, showing her her love the changling way. I am basing this on that little tidbit you gave us.
while I understand it woud be much better if Twilight would have lived near the hive, even if Twilight wasn't powerfull back then, she could have talked about.....guarding her hive from....dangerous things...with one of the other princesses. I know she wasn't used to it back then.
Sorry I hope my sentence made sense, but i felt like I had to use well...different words than what would have been the right choice.
"That's not for you to decide! Love comes from what one pony feels for another, not from the decision of some third party. What gives you the right to decide that for me? For anyone?!" please tell that every Cadance in every chapter. I know Im slightly exaggerating right now, but it is usually Cadnce forcig the main char to advance on every little feeling they have, while they are still trying to decide if they are actually the right persons for them.
Why? because she is the princess of love, or because it is hurting her? Only because she can do pretty much doesn't means she should do it.
Like if a character has the power to destoy the whole planet or mess with someones mind, it still doesn't means he or she is allowed to do it.
That is pobably he definition of why I don't like Cadance most of the time, or characters who use their abilitys similar to her.
ooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh man, this is one of the moments where I hate it to be serious enough to still give them a bad time.
Okay I like the story, but I actually hope that I see them together before it is over two chapters later. I'm always interessted in what they do afterwards.
I wonder if Celestia is the one who will convince Twi that she is in love with Crissy. I see it like that talk a mentor to pupil. It be sweet, salt and awkward.
Another great update! Fantastic writing.
One typo found.
forcing the pony to raid her forelegs
raise
Oh man I hope I'm right about what that fight scene will be.
Because playing the "I am the princess of love, love is mine, I can take it away" card is such a good idea when going against the princess of friendship and/or magic.
The End
Bwahahaha
My god Twilight why are you so blind to your own feelings!
Haha, I know exactly where this is going and it will be glorious. Twilight will go to the hive, attack Chrysalis, who will think Twilight is trying to legitimately kill her. Twilight will kick her ass into the dirt, and then re-marry her the changeling way.
7781515 Considering how Luna seems to have a bit more of a willingness to start fighting things than Celestia, I wouldn't be surprised if she went this far:
i1042.photobucket.com/albums/b424/Ronanfalcon/Net%20Images/GIF/atatatatatatata.gif
Think this should be TWILIGHT!
7781151 You know what thy say about absolute power....something about ending up in a tiny house or something, I think.
Oh Cadance... her heart might have been in the right place, but her prejudice (or, better said, trauma of the past?) made her do this terrible thing.
Not justifying what she did. But a beautiful display how someone who has been traumatized in the past can carry a grudge for a long, long time and won't accept what's right in front of them.
She really didn't think that one though, huh? Using love magic on someone that is sustained by it. Good going, dum-dum
Indeed, Twi got exactly what she wanted. And now she has to reap what she has sown.
... Silly pony. She's an alicorn. Go after her, don't let her get away! You've already done this much for her, don't let it all go to waste. Your brain can't make up its mind, but your heart knows.
7781725 Head Canon accepted!
Congratulations! You have come up with an idea that satisfies my thirst for understanding!
A true hero indeed.