Chapter Eleven
Maternal Instinct
Chapter Eleven
Philomena enjoyed the solitary nights she spent out in flight. Princess Celestia was kind enough to let her fly over Canterlot every night; she glided over the dazzling city of lights at night, letting her gorgeous red-feathered body be engulfed in the warm glow.
The opportunity she was given this day was different; she was given the opportunity to soar over the skyline of the Changeling capital city, a metropolis of just as wood as concrete, something she had not seen for more than a century. For the centuries old phoenix whose life had mostly been lived in the Equestrian continent, the experience was very exotic; the lights (which were starting to come on at this time) were candlelit and the air was more humid than what she was used to.
Her excursion around the city was not to last long; she had her orders from her mistress. She arrived at her destination at King Cocoon Hospital around dusk, not too long after the fight between her mistress and Queen Chrysalis destroyed the peace and took some buildings along with it. It made sense to her that her target was going to be moved after what had recently happened, but tracking her down was not the difficult part, because that came in the form of a horde of apoplectic doctors and nurses.
“You two, get that dirty beast away from the Princess, at once!” Dr Kemushi shouted at the two beefy stallion orderlies, pointing at the phoenix that was perched over Pupa’s body, her face blushing green with anger. The creature had appeared in the hospital room ten minutes ago and refused to leave the Princess’ side. She refused absolutely to leave her side.
The orderlies, however, had no chance in laying a single hoof on Philomena, who, once she flew away from their attacks, landed right back in place. Some of the doctors went as far as firing bolts of magic at her.
Philomena’s eyes lit bright yellow; she spread her wings threateningly and cawed at them with the force of thunder, rattling the hospital windows and skittering the changelings in front of her like bowling pins.
The doors kicked open and a group of stallions clad in golden armour marched in. All of them were ponies, white and beige in colour and significantly taller and stronger built than their changeling counterparts.
“I told you she’s in here! Move, move!” the unicorn stallion at the head of the group shouted, pointing at the phoenix. His comrades followed him uniformly into the room, accompanied by the loud chinking, clanking sound of their armour that would be too heavy for any normal pony to carry. These were members of the Equestrian Royal Guard, the few hoofpicked by Princess Celestia herself to accompany her to the Changeling Kingdom.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Dr Kemushi demanded, flabbergasted.
The unicorn turned back to one of his subordinates, ignoring the doctor completely, instructing him, “Go and tell the Princess she has arrived and the procedure can begin.”
“Yes, Commander Mirror Match, sir.” He saluted him and galloped off without another word.
Dr Kemushi now looked like she was about to blow a gasket. She stormed right up in the unicorn’s face like she was going to tear it off with her bared teeth.
“HEY! I don’t know who in Tartarus you think you are, but you must have a lot of nerve if you think you and your grunts can just barge in here whenever you feel like!” she screamed at him outraged, whose straight, emotionless face did not flinch, even when her spit flew in his eyes. “Now all of you get out! And while you’re at it, take that beast with you!”
“That ‘beast’, as you call her, ma’am,” Mirror Match started, getting back into her face, keeping his tone calm but with noticeable underlying anger, “is a ‘phoenix’, and she belongs to Princess Celestia.”
“I don’t care what she is or who she belongs to, the Crown Princess is in critical condition and that creature will harm her!” She jabbed him violently in the shoulder with her hoof, daring the stallion to try and strike her, even though as a changeling mare, she stood some feet over him.
“Halt!”
Another set of loud hoofsteps echoed from outside and a second group of soldiers entered the room in an organized formation, except this time, all of them were members of the Changeling Royal Guard. At their lead was Captain Beetle, who looked just livid enough he was about ready to buck somechangelings’ heads in.
The changeling guards flooded the room to the point where nochangeling and nopony could budge. Almost instantly, both sides broke out yelling at each other, drowning out any individual’s voice. Beetle roughly grabbed Mirror Match and took him aside to berate him.
“Captain, you were specifically ordered to wait in your quarters until my guards came for you!”
“We did wait! We waited for hours but nopony came!” Mirror Match argued, trying hard to be reasonable. “As the Equestrian Royal Guard, we are obliged to follow the orders of our Princess.”
“And you fail to recognize that while you are guests in our kingdom you are obligated to adhere to our rules first and foremost!”
“That’s it!” Kemushi roared, stomping her hoof so hard the room fell silent and all heads turned to her. “I want you all out of here, now!”
The rest of the pony guards were seriously getting fed up with the doctor’s attitude and one pegasus, a beige stallion named Slick Wing, stepped in front of his comrades and glared her down. If it was not for years of training and discipline or the fact that he was on duty, he would have clocked this jacked-up cockroach in her ugly mug.
“Hey! Back off, sweetheart!” he snapped, pushing away her hole-ridden hoof. “If you’d listen for one damn second, you’d know Princess Celestia has sent her here.”
She sneered, “Oh, I’m sure.”
Mirror Match too was becoming very frustrated by now, with the doctors, the changeling guards and the whole situation in general. He took a letter folded into a small square out from his chest plate and gave it to the doctor.
“Here,” he told her gruffly. “Just read this. It explains everything.”
Still holding her sneer, Kemushi unfolded the small, brown piece of paper and began reading, turning her back to the ponies. She said not a word, except for the occasional mumble or murmur as she read. Every pony and changeling remained quiet until she was done.
When Kemushi finished rereading the note for the second time, she looked up and down repeatedly from the letter to the ponies bewilderedly. She regrouped with Kemushi and her coworkers and they started conversing in their native language, some peaking over each other to glance at the ponies and the unconscious princess before returning to their huddle. The guards waited patiently in the ensuing awkward silence.
The group eventually broke up and Dr Kemushi, at their head, asked them with a hint of hope in her voice, “And your Princess believes this will work?”
“I told you, we’re only following her orders.”
“You cannot be serious!” brayed one especially sceptical stallion doctor, a short stub of a changeling who glared at the foreigners with an intense disdain, like their presence alone was making the whole room unsanitary. “Your method has no solid scientific basis. It has not been thoroughly analysed or tested to prove the medical benefits.”
Slick Wing retorted bluntly, “It’s not science, it’s magic.”
Speaking again in their language, Dr Kemushi seemingly gave her colleague a reprimand and then issued instructions to her fellow changelings, who immediately got to work fetching and setting up the hospital apparatus, now leaving the phoenix alone for the time being with Pupa. Meanwhile, the guards were left on the side-lines again. Mirror Match made several hoof gestures to them and they all took their positions around the room while the doctors worked.
One changeling set up a pole with a couple of IV bags and she and another gingerly attached the wire to Pupa’s leg. A nurse brought over a tin cup, holding it awkwardly like she did not know what to do with it. Kemushi took it from her and gently set it down on the bed in front of the beak of Philomena, who had tucked herself snugly between the filly’s free leg and the soft blanket, rather like Pupa’s plush ladybug.
“Now, what are we to do?” asked the same stallion doctor impatiently.
“We wait,” Mirror Match replied coolly. “She’ll do all the work.”
So that is what they did: a circle was formed around the Princess’ bed so to give Philomena sufficient space, nopony or changeling stepping beyond the invisible line. Some of the medical staff and guards from both kingdoms left the room.
After five minutes of nothing happening, Kemushi leaned over the unicorn, hissing irritably in his ear, “Well? How long is this supposed to take?”
“Longer than five minutes.”
“Why are we whispering?” Slick Wing chipped in.
“Shut up, Slick.”
Drip
All eyes fell on the bed. A large bead of water rolled down Philomena’s smooth, golden beak until it reached the tip, finally breaking off into the tin cup with a resounding drip. More beads followed from her glistening yellow eyes, gradually turning into two flowing streams of hot tears.
For all her centuries of wisdom, Celestia knew she was not infallible, despite what so many of her little ponies thought of her. She had made more mistakes in her lifetime than she liked to admit: Nightmare Moon, the royal wedding and the Changeling Invasion to name only a few.
Yesterday, her decision to confront the Changeling Queen in the latter’s fragile state of mind was already poorly thought out; Chrysalis was usually only one to talk when it was a chance to gloat over her enemies, so a trading of blows was not unexpected. Her barging in on her extremely private mother-daughter moment was just a matter of bad timing that made things worse.
A narrow beam of pale morning light forced its way through the crack of the shut windows. Celestia’s sensitive ears listened intently to the pitter-patter of the rain (she noticed that rainfall was rather common in this country) from her comfy spot on top Chrysalis’ soft bed in the latter’s chamber. She had been here since it was still dark, cutting her sleep short to keep an eye on her, despite the doctors’ insistences that both monarchs should remain separate while they recuperated.
Chrysalis was lying on the bed with her, snuggled up against her side, slumbering quietly. When the medics came to bring her back to the palace, they wrapped her entire midsection and legs in bandages and pumped her with enough drugs to take down an elephant. Celestia had punched her in the muzzle so hard they even had to fix some of her teeth. Her face expressed content as she slept, save for her exceptionally loud, drawn-out snoring. Both her frayed nerves and exhausted and seriously unfit body needed this rest so much.
Celestia herself was left mostly unscathed from yesterday’s fight; she sported only bruises on her chest and a black eye, with a few bandages to be safe. Her alicorn body was far stronger than Chrysalis’ and she had taken much worse punishment in past battles.
Noticing the blanket was slipping off the Queen’s round flank, Celestia grabbed one end with her teeth and pulled it up to Chrysalis’ neck. The grey mare mumbled into the embroidery, likely in the midst of a dream. Celestia grinned; she knew right then and there she was looking upon a vulnerable, tender creature and not a heartless tyrant.
At that moment, the Queen stirred and her leg brushed the alicorn’s plush white coat. She was waking up. Celestia held her breath, watching the heavy black bags of her eyelids slowly open and her buggy eyes peering into space. Eyeballs swivelling left and right in their sockets, she took in her surroundings without moving her head. They fell dully on the alicorn Princess and she forced her head up, drawing a loud, unsophisticated yawn.
“Good morning, Your Majesty.”
Chrysalis lowered her trembling upper body back onto the bed, surprisingly regarding the Princess’ presence with only mild irritation. She croaked, “... Where am I?”
“You’re back in your chamber,” Celestia told her pacifyingly, doing her best to keep the mare relaxed.
“How long have I been asleep?”
“Only since yesterday.” She gave a reassuring smile, looking her over and running her hoof over her crooked back. “By the looks of it, you were in desperate need of a long night’s rest.”
Chrysalis began looking around the room, her vision still fuzzy and she frowned. This was most definitely her royal chamber, but something seemed off. Something in the room had changed, but she could not put her hoof on it.
She sniffed the air about and she picked it up: freshness, with a strong hint of detergent.
“You’ve cleaned it,” she deduced.
“Your maids did, actually, and they really had to, Chrysalis,” Celestia curled her lips, remembering the stench that had her retching when she first stepped into the room yesterday. “The aroma was becoming unbearable.”
Feeling a sharp pain running up her sinuses, she tapped it gently with her hoof tip and winced. “You broke my muzzle...”
“Well, you didn’t leave me much of an option,” Celestia retorted, motioning to her bruises and black eye. Horn glowing, she lifted a silver tray up from next to the bed and placed it front of her changeling counterpart. “I brought you breakfast. It’s still hot.”
The changeling eyed the steamed rice and miso soup disinterestedly and turned her muzzle up at the dish.
“I don’t want anything, thank you.”
Celestia nudged her on the shoulder encouragingly. “Come on, it’s your favourite.”
She scoffed, “You don’t know my favourite.”
“It’s miso.”
There was no arguing with that: Chrysalis loved a hot, calming bowl of miso. But right now, she was in no mood, no matter how alluring the wafting, mouth-watering aroma. She glared venomously at Celestia, trying to push herself up against the mattress.
“Well, with all due respect, Princess, you can take your soup and stick it... stick it...” Chrysalis staggered, falling back on the bed with an ‘oomph’, her legs splaying out like a smoked turkey. Her legs were jelly, as was the rest of her body from her neck down. “W-what have you done to me?!”
“You were injected with an extract of muscle relaxation potion in your sleep, the kind often used for physical therapy. You won’t have the strength to get up or use your magic for a while.” Celestia’s expression and tone toughened and her demeanour was coming close to threatening. “Until then, you are going to lie there and eat your breakfast, and what’s more, you are going to shut up, is that understood?”
Chrysalis knew she could do nothing to defy her; her horn was completely numb. She tried gathering a surge of magical energy in the spire, but felt nothing. Besides, her stomach was rumbling something fierce; she did not remember the last time she ate.
“Fine.” She muttered, looking down at the bowls of food on one side and the chopsticks and spoon on the other. “I can’t exactly...”
The spoon lifted, dipped into the miso and raised itself to her lips. She rolled her eyes at the nonchalant alicorn, whose white horn was lit up.
“I will not be spoon-fed like a grub...” Chrysalis paused for a second, before she groaned, slumping her shoulders in defeat. “Oh, just feed me the damn soup.”
For the next few minutes, Celestia silently fed Chrysalis her breakfast, starting with the soup, next the rice, then the grilled mackerel. The Changeling Queen did not think it was possible to feel both comfortable and threatened at the same time. Her sleep had rejuvenated her and the countless drugs they pumped her with were dealing with the pain, but now she was completely at her worst enemy’s mercy. She was just waiting for Celestia to suddenly grab her by the neck and snap it like a twig.
Celestia, meanwhile, was finding the situation quite amusing. The absurd image of the Princess of Equestria feeding clumps of rice into the Queen of the Changeling Kingdom’s mouth was any young, ambitious photographer’s dream. At least Chrysalis was acting compliantly.
“I appreciate your people’s dishes,” she smiled, scraping the rest of the sticky rice in the bowl into one last lump with the chopsticks. “It’s a shame they’re not as popular back home. I’ve always found food to be an effective method of bringing cultures together.”
The Queen did not respond and took the last mouthful, grains falling messily over her muzzle.
“Now,” Celestia set the bowl down and tilted her head at a concerned angle, trying to meet her gaze. “With that out of the way, how are you feeling, Chrysalis?”
“Useless from the neck down,” came her deadpan response. “Other than that, refreshed and kinda full. I want my tea.”
The white porcelain pot poured its steamy contents into a tiny matching cup, which lifted to Chrysalis’ lips.
“You were acting completely out of control,” Celestia reasoned with her nemesis while the latter was busy drinking. “We feared you’d lash out again once you woke up.”
“You’re right; if I could, I’d smash that tea pot over your head,” Chrysalis said plainly, her voice resonating in her cup. She sucked down the rest of her tea, not appreciating the flavour, and pushed the cup away. “Why have you come here, Celestia?”
It was a fair question and probably the most rational sentence to come out of her Queen’s mouth since their reunion, something she, by all accounts, should have asked the Princess yesterday instead of attacking like a madmare, even though she would not admit it to her or herself.
“You’re not here to fight me, I can see that now. If you really wanted to kill me, you would have done it in my sleep. I’m paralysed; you could do it right now. So let’s drop all this small talk and you tell me what is that you want.”
For one fleeting moment, Celestia did not respond. Her alluring magenta eyes drifted away from hers, looking up at the ceiling distantly. She was carefully thinking over what to say. When the words came, she faced her again, her expression one of empathy.
“I have come here to help, Chrysalis, if not for you, then at the very least for your filly and perhaps even your country. Your scepticism is justified, and I was wrong in how I handled myself yesterday, and I am sorry.”
Chrysalis blinked, staring at her incredulously. Did Celestia, of all living ponies, just apologize to her? Since when did Celestia apologize for anything?
“While you were out and I was being treated in the palace, I had… interesting conversations with members of your family. I talked to your uncle again, and then I had the privilege of meeting your sister.”
Chrysalis let her imagination wonder about this meeting between Celestia and her little sister. Given her sister’s penchant for anything to do with foreign high-class culture, she easily pictured in her head Danauria doing her best to suck up to the alicorn Princess, and at the same time, also imagined her trying to put on a defiant but crumbling front against such a powerful world leader.
She chuckled mirthlessly, “She’s a charming mare, I know.”
“I found out some things, Chrysalis.” Celestia now appeared uncomfortable with what she had to say next. “I was not aware your daughter was...”
Her face contorted into a scowl, the tone in her voice harshening. “She’s what, Celestia? Retarded?”
“That’s not what I was going to say.”
She flicked her mane and snorted dismissively, “It’s what you meant to say.”
“No, I didn’t. I was aware she was disabled, but not like what your family has described to me.” The Princess’ legs shifted; she could now see the creeping shame written once more over the Queen’s face through the bitterness. “I’m... I’m sorry for what has happened to her, Chrysalis, I really am.”
It was as if her words had reignited the recently extinguished fury in the dark mare’s heart. Her fangs gritted and she violently jerked her head at her, her muzzle bopping against hers.
“Stop apologizing to me!” Chrysalis yelled. “I do not want your sorries, and even if I did, do you truly believe I deserve them?!”
“I...”
“You say you’ve talked to my family. Well, did they tell you what I did to Pupa, Celestia? Do you know?!”
That last question hung ominously in the air. Celestia was taken aback by what she saw next; angry tears streamed from Chrysalis’ bloodshot eyes in rivulets. The question, or rather how she asked it, conjured any horrific image of the mother and filly she could put together.
She did not know the best way to answer, other than hanging her head and saying simply, “Yes.”
“Then what are you waiting for?!” The changeling demanded as she, in spite of both the magical restraints and the torment her body had experienced, found the strength to steady herself on her forelegs. She took a shuddering breath and shut her lids with more tears spilling out the corners, shaking her head in self-loathing. “You should be spitting on me and cursing my name!” Celestia could hear hysteria rising in her voice. Chrysalis grabbed her by the golden collar, looking desperately in her eyes, her chitinous chest beating up and down vigorously like a pounding drum. “So hit me. Beat me up! I want you to; I deserve it!”
“Chrysalis, get a hold of yourself,” she ordered in a near whisper, removing Chrysalis’ grasp from her collar and holding her down by the shoulders with gentle hooves. “Listen, me beating you senseless will fix nothing. I don’t want to. Why can’t you understand? I don’t want to hurt you!”
“You should!” Chrysalis spat, rubbing her puffy eyes to dry her tears but only made herself look more of a mess. “I don’t deserve anything better, especially not from you!”
There was not much Celestia could think to say to counter that. Chrysalis was not just her enemy, but an enemy to her entire nation. Following Discord’s reformation (if she could truly call his rocky process complete), the Changeling Queen and her kingdom were amongst the few open threats left to Equestria, however inactive and bound by red tape both sides were. Chrysalis had harmed her personally by her abduction and replacement of her beloved niece, Princess Cadance, and the attempt to manipulate her and Shining Armor’s own wedding as a means of invading Canterlot and all of Equestria.
Others had killed in the hundreds of thousands for less.
“How many of your precious little ponies would blame you?”
None, at least, none Celestia could name off the top of her head. A leader’s role was to act in the long-term interests of her subjects, however, sometimes not what her subjects believed they thought was in their best interests.
“Chrysalis,” she finally began after what must have been a solid minute. “Those years ago, if I wanted to, I could have ordered a counter-offensive and launched an invasion by air, land and sea against your homeland.” As she continued to speak, Chrysalis felt her jelly legs tremble with pain and her neck craned down in shame. “It would have been really easy, too. I could have firebombed your cities with a single word, and I would have had universal support. But I did no such thing.”
“Why?”
“Because with all due respect, Your Majesty, I have never seen war as my first option to solving all international conflicts.” The gaze in Celestia’s eyes became wistful as picked her lengthy memory with reluctance. “I have taken part in more wars than I can remember and having witnessed their increasingly destructive nature....” She paused contemplatively before adding, “Let’s just say, I try to avoid it however much I can. War is nothing heroic.”
“Oh, don’t talk to me about war,” the Queen hissed, mostly out of the pain in her legs and not just the immediate memories of those drawn-out, tedious meetings. Beads of sweat were forming on her forehead. “I never thought I’d grow up sick and tired of war.”
She went on unheeded, “I’ve always believed in the possibility of restoring peace between our kingdoms to how they used to be years ago.” She attempted to put a comforting leg over her hump. “I know it may surprise you, but I am not the tyrant so many of my own little ponies fear me to be, and you are not the monster so many believe you are.”
Flinching from the cold touch of her golden slipper, Chrysalis brushed her off. “Now you’re just patronizing me.”
“I’m not.”
“Then you’ve had your head rammed up your rump this whole time!” Chrysalis yelled, spit firing out her mouth. She now appeared grossly offended by the Princess’ placid attitude. “I can't believe how disconnected you are! I kidnapped your niece, tried to take over your kingdom, imprisoned you in a cocoon, and now—I’ve killed my own child! How can you call me anything less than a heartless, unfeeling monster?!”
“If you were such a heartless monster, why else were you there at the hospital yesterday?” Celestia countered, wiping Chrysalis' spittle from her cheeks. “And for that matter, why did you even have Pupa rushed there in the first place and donated your own blood? Why did you lock yourself in this chamber for days? Chrysalis, look at yourself...” Her hoof caressed the dark mare’s cheek just under her sore eyes; tears leaked down onto her slipper. “You’ve been crying your eyes out. What kind of monster possesses any hint of regret?”
“And you think that makes everything alright?!” she asked dumbstruck. “Y-You think simply because I feel horrible about it erases what I did. What I did to Pupa was—evil!”
Her hole-ridden legs feeling like they were now aflame and her face glistening with sweat, Chrysalis’ body slowly collapsing to the mattress. She stopped to take a set of deep breaths and Celestia waited patiently for her to pull herself together before she was able to continue.
“S-She didn’t mean to do anything wrong. I was just so stressed and worked up, and when I found her in my room and the mess she’d made, I...” A slight choke formed in her throat and fresh tears sprung. “Celestia, I got so angry.”
Chrysalis no longer bothered trying to stop herself from crying. Celestia listened with sympathy, but also impending dread. She brushed her hoof across her cheek.
“You don’t need to tell me everything that happened.”
“Yes, I do!” Chrysalis whimpered, pushing her comforting hoof away. “I... I slapped her, I screamed in her face! I said the most awful things to her. I told her she wasn’t my daughter, and that... that she was nothing but an embarrassment to me!” Her breath was caught in her tightened chest, but she spoke regardless, “And then—and then I started hitting her! I hit her and hit her and hit her! S-She was so tiny and weak and I just wouldn’t stop!”
Celestia’s jaw hung agape with shock. The image of a full-grown mare saying such hurtful things to her own filly was horrifying enough, but to picture a mare beating her filly senseless like some ragdoll rendered her speechless. Nothing what the royal family told her could have prepared her.
The Queen squeezed her eyes shut, sucked in one last breath and shouted as loud her overworked lungs would allow her, “I’ve killed her, Celestia! Sh-she l-loved me, and I beat my own child to death!”
Unable to bear the overwhelming guilt and her own weight, Chrysalis broke down and flopped against the bouncing spring mattress, throwing her hooves over her head and sobbing uncontrollably in despair.
Celestia had never seen the Changeling Queen cry like this. At first, she had no idea what to do, what to say. What could she say to console her? It was not like she could tell her she was not to blame here. After hearing it all from the mare’s mouth, what mare would not feel such feelings of shame and self-loathing?
After some time of nothing but Chrysalis’ sobs bouncing off the chamber walls, Celestia leaned forward and put her strong legs around her trembling form.
“Oh Chrysalis,” she spoke gently, pulling her into a compassionate hug. “Come to me.”
Chrysalis tried to resist her, shuddering at making any contact. “No!”
Celestia would no longer have any of it and firmly pulled her into her side. “I said “come to me”!”
The two matriarchs now pressed together in a warm embrace, Chrysalis looked Celestia right in her magenta eyes with her own watery harlequin gaze, her bottom lip quivering as she tried to say something. Her ears were laid back flat and half her mane hung over her face. It was pitiful, in the truest meaning of the word.
Then she started bawling cathartically again, collapsing into her plush white chest and limply returning the hug. They stayed there for some time, rocking back and forth on the bed and the alicorn doing whatever possible to provide her consolation, like rubbing her back in a circular motion and lightly nuzzling her neck
Chrysalis did not openly admit it as she buried her muzzle into the alicorn’s large neck, but she liked this very much. There was something so soothing being hugged by her old enemy; her immaculate coat was so clean and soft and gave off just the right amount of warmth to make her feel safe, like a mother should her filly.
When Chrysalis’ crying died down into a stream of whimpers and hiccups, Celestia asked in a whisper, believing the worst had passed, “Are you feeling better?”
“No—hic!—I’m not,” she said under heavy sobs. “I’ve been a terrible mother. I shouldn’t—hic!—be allowed to even have children!”
“You’ve made mistakes.”
“Quit trying to justify my actions!” Chrysalis yelled, loosening their hug so they would make eye contact again. “I’ve never been there for her, don’t you understand? Never! I c-can’t even remember a single time I told Pupa I loved her! Cerci had more right to call herself Pupa’s mother than I ever will.” She rested her forehead under her chin, carefully making sure to point her gigantic horn out of harm’s way. She mumbled bitterly, “Now it’s too late; I’ll n-never be able to tell my filly how sorry I am.”
“Chrysalis, your daughter is still alive.”
“For how much longer? My daughter was so tiny, Celestia, so weak, and I stomped her! We’re only prolonging her suffering.”
Helping her sit up on her haunches, Celestia did the same and put her hooves on her shoulders. She said, “You’re wrong. We can save her. I’ve brought Philomena with me.”
Chrysalis blinked a couple of times. “Your brought what?”
“Philomena is my pet phoenix.”
It took quite a bit of thinking, but Chrysalis recalled one of her private lessons in fillyhood when her tutor taught her about legendary and powerful beasts. Phoenixes, the long-lived fire birds that are reborn from their own ashes, were amongst the rarest of the breeds.
“S-So?” she stuttered, clearly not seeing any possible relevance it had. “You own a pretty red firebird as your pet, what does that have to do with—?” Celestia put her hoof firmly over her mouth before she finished prattling.
The Sun Princess sighed exasperatedly and elaborated, “And as a phoenix, she possesses many abilities; her very tears have healing powers.”
Chrysalis pulled her muzzle out of the way and asked, her voice still muffled, “What are you talking about?”
“Philomena is with Pupa right now and the doctors are injecting her tears into her bloodstream as we speak.”
Chrysalis did not respond; she only managed to stare back at her, her expression completely blank, while the gears in her head busied themselves processing what she had just heard and how exactly to respond. In the meantime, she brushed the dried tears from her puffy eyes.
“A-And what? I’m supposed to believe your pet’s tears are going to fix everything?” she scoffed, regaining some of her queenly composure, at least for the moment.
“They will be able to cure her immediate injuries. Phoenix tears are strong magic, Chrysalis; they are known to revive those on the verge of death.”
Not knowing how to respond, the Queen bit down on her lip and her eyes darted left and right. She was trying to poke whatever holes she could find in Celestia’s logic, but she was struggling. Her own knowledge of phoenixes was hardly basic and what reason had she to assume she was wrong? Celestia could simply be lying, but after all that happened in the last half hour between them, Chrysalis found herself unable to see that as a possibility. What would be the point?
“How many times have you used them?” she asked, her voice dripping with suspicion.
“Few and far between. It’s like I told you, they are powerful, and thus ripe for abuse, so I only use Philomena’s power if absolutely necessary and try my best to keep it hidden,” Celestia explained, but still saw she was not entirely convinced. “I first used them over a thousand years ago, when my sister—when she was a filly—fell seriously ill. She had contracted a disease for which there was no known cure at the time.” A wince passed over her features; she still envisioned her little sister bedridden, deathly pale and struggling to breath. “I thought all hope was lost when in my research, I discovered the properties of phoenix tears and their powers. I was then able to cure Luna at a point when others told me to give up.”
“Pupa isn’t sick, she’s broken!” Chrysalis cried, becoming worked up again. “The hospital told me I may have given her brain damage! You’re so certain your phoenix tears can fix that?”
“I...”
“And what if it doesn’t even work on changelings? It’s not like you’ve ever had the chance to test on any of us, so how can you possibly know?!”
Celestia opened her mouth to speak, when she fully registered the words. She shut her eyes meditatively. No matter how much she insisted to her Pupa would be alright or how many phoenix tears they injected the filly with, there were no promises she could make. The situation was different than it was a thousand years ago and Chrysalis’ objections had some foundation: if the tears had never been used on changelings before, how were they to know if they really were compatible? And even if they were, there was a big difference between a virus and permanent cranial damage. While for Celestia herself it seemed an unlikelihood, the seeds of doubt were already sewn in the Queen’s mind.
She at last answered, heaving a sigh, “I don’t.”
“Oh!” Chrysalis forced herself to laugh, if just to prove the ridiculousness of the situation and deride the white mare. “So the perfect pretty pony Princess of the Sun doesn’t know the answer to every single little problem!” She pounded her hoof against the mattress in frustration, but her misery was far more palpable. “My baby is either going to survive brain-dead or she’ll die thinking her own mother hates her! It’s not fair!”
Celestia was not finished. She took her nemesis by the chin and lifted her head up, looking at her with a motherly tenderness.
“You’re right, Chrysalis, I don’t know the answer to everything, and as much as I want to tell you Pupa will survive this, nopony can ever know for certain what will happen. But what I do know is that Philomena’s tears once saved an alicorn filly and if that isn’t something remarkable, I don’t know what is.” She smiled and bopped the tips of their muzzles playfully together. “And I’ll tell you this: it’s never too late to apologize. Take that from somepony who knows.”
“But... she’ll never forgive me,” she snuffled.
“Sometimes, forgiveness is something that must be earned. I won’t lie, you did something, something terrible... but when I saw you at your daughter’s bedside, and the look on your face, I saw how genuinely sorry you are for what you’ve done. It’s up to her when she’ll forgive you, but a lot of fillies aren’t as spiteful as some think.”
Without either mare thinking, they enveloped each other and another hug was formed. Chrysalis let all her emotions out on her shoulder, but all she could now was shiver and whimper quietly.
“I... I just love her so much.”
“I know you do,” Celestia whispered, tears of her own swelling up, “and if Pupa doesn’t know it now, she will when this is all over.”
All five cups were filled to the rim and the nurse carefully phased the faintly sparkling liquid into the IV bag. The phoenix's tears ran slowly down the drip chamber and the wire and passed through the pierced skin into Pupa’s bloodstream.
The procedure was finished by yesterday night. All the pony guards had left, except for the Captains, Mirror Match and Beetle. Dr Kemushi was the only doctor remaining. She sat on a chair by the heart monitor, keeled over from exhaustion; her mane and uniform were sweat-soaked messes and her face was now a sickly pale. They were all so tired. How long had it been since any of them had a wink of sleep? When this was all over, no matter what the outcome, there was only one thing on all their minds.
Philomena remained curled up comfortably under Pupa’s leg, peacefully fast asleep. The fire bird was having a nice time snuggled there with the Princess and perching her beak on her warm potbelly.
“We’ve been here all night,” Kemushi stated, not with irritation but as simple fact.
“We’re aware of the time.” Mirror Match was so zapped out energy he needed to prop himself against his spear to keep him from dropping to the floor.
Kemushi little faith in the ponies and their supposed miracle medicine was wearing seriously thin. There had not been a single sign of improvement since the last drop entered Pupa’s bloodstream; the monitor continued its monotonous drone uninterrupted and Pupa lay stiff as a board and a look of peace on her face. Sooner or later, they would have to accept facts and call it off.
A pained whinny caught attention of both ponies and changeling in the room and startling Philomena awake.
Pupa’s eyebrow and upper lip were trembling violently and her eyes appeared to be trying to force themselves open, while the rest of her chunky face scrunched up. Her little, bandaged legs started shifting up and down her belly, like they were searching for something. A second disjointed whinny worked its way to her little mouth, progressively swelling up into a loud sob.
Kemushi flew up with such speed it knocked her chair over. Her jaw dropped so far it may as well have dropped clean off. She was at the Princess’ bedside in an instant, the pony guards idly wondering if the changeling had spontaneously learned how to teleport.
“Oh my gods, she’s waking up!”
Pupa’s sobbing finally turned into full-blown wailing, rocking her bruised body from side to side like a new hatched grub and reaching her legs out for something, or somechangling. The sound of her crying in that squealing, broken voice was heart breaking. Her eyes, opened to the size of slits, were redder than they were green.
“I want staff in here now! Tell them to bring more drugs, she’s in pain!”
As both guards galloped out the room, unnoticed by all, Philomena had flown off the bed and landed herself on a brass bed knob. She stood perched in silence and watched as Kemushi looked like she was either trying to restrain or comfort the Princess, who would just not stop screaming hysterically.
Stats
Page generated in 0.032 seconds
Total duration
673 users online
861,728 hits today, 1,822,946 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Update it.
now
PUT THAT STAFF IIN HER ALL THE WAY IN HER WOOhH!
damn, the docs didnt keep the meds going during the whole pheonix process? thats kinda ballsy if you ask me
Simply amazing, i cannot wait for the next update.
Pupa survives! And I shipped Celestia and Chrysalis in this chapter for some reason.
Love this chapter, scenes like this one with Celestia and Chrysalis are some of my favorites. Is Pupa just continuing her screams from before when she was hurt or is she just in pain right now? Hmm. Anyway, I'd love to see a new chapter soon!
Welcome back!
I feel as if Philomena should begin dying after this process
I'm so happy this updated, but damn...Poor Pupa..
Just to finally tell you, I've made Pupa my headcanon little sister.
3608663 I found her in the notes for one of my stories. I hadn't even realized I'd put her there. She just showed up. I was...suprised. Goes to show we all like this story right?
3609008 Yep. of course, it sort of means I've displaced her as immediately in line for the throne, but still, i'm a good big brother to her
3609110 Cute
3609134 Yep
Just don't take too long... ;-)
I kinda wish that the Phoenix tears would not only heal Pupa but fix her mental retardation. But...I don't think that's gonna happen. I can dream can't I? dl.dropbox.com/u/21167245/FiMFiction/Emoticons/misc_Spit_sad.png
Another solid chapter! This is one of my favorite fics, hands down!
3609683
i wouldn't be surprised if that was his plan. Then there would be interesting developments that would make a good plot arch if you ask me
save, not safe.
Also pleasantly surprised by this update :)
3610528
Seems like I completely missed that sentence. Not only that it should indeed be wedding, there also should be a comma following 'Cadance'. I think I speak for both me and the author if I say thank you for pointing it out. I lately have problems to concentrate.
3611618
Thanks to you as well. What a sneaky mistake.
3611868
Pish Posh, it´s fun to help out with those little things when you enjoy the story so much.
The thanks is all on my side. ;)
I loved the bonding scene with Chrysalis and Celestia.
I just know they're going to be the best of friends.
And They didn't have Pupa on meds? GAH!
Now she's suffering. She'd done enough of that. I want the little ling to be a HAPPY CHANGELING! 
HAPPY I SAY!
3611436 YAY
I'm not the only one who thinks so! Pupa is best changeling filly.
To anybody who says shit like "Manly tears were shed" or "I shed liquid pride"
FUCK YOU.
THE ONLY TEARS THAT SHOULD COME FROM THIS CHAPTER ARE SAD ONES.
Ok, time for some criticizing.
The thing that I can´t let go off is how utterly retarded/incompetent those supposedly elite guards are.
The changeling guard:
First of all they were guarding nothing. They allowed everyone to simply barge into the area that the future princess was held at. That was after a fight had probably broken a good part of the old one in the first place, where they were also absent.
Philomenai getting in might seem like an acceptable thing. But all changelings have wings and can use them. As such they would naturally think in those three dimensions and their building style as well as how their army functions should reflect that. As such "we let something fly in threw the window because we were not expecting it" looks utterly atrocious for anybody who lives in a society where flying is normal.
Then there is the part where celestias entire entourage was able to simply barge in threw the front doors into the room where the princess is held. Basic guarding fail. No sentrys, no posts and the reaction force arrived when it was already too late and as such too far away to do anything.
Old Chrysalis would have chopped off all their heads. And even in a normal military that kind of fiasco would see the entire officer and NCO corps responsible for the protection of that
personchangeling getting moved to a more adequate position.Of course in theory there could be options to try and explain it like the entire elite guard being bribed to be so incompetent by a third faction which once to assassinate the princess but even then being this sloopy is just asking to get killed. Or direct orders by the queen, but I doubt that.
The pony guard:
Considering that they were sent along as guards for a diplomatic mission I would call every single one of them a mistake made by Celestia.
No discipline, no patience, no (diplomatic) tact, asking for trouble.
Just looking how they acted and thinking about the changelings having the capability to even half decently do their duty we already would have had a very good chance for a bloodbath in the hospital. (It is also questionable how a bunch of Pegasi automatically knew EXACTLY where the princess was being held in the hospital, unless they were following the phoenix from the very beginning)
If these are the handpicked best she could get equestrias military force is a pushover, or would be if not for everybody else being just as bad ^.^ (leaning a little out of the window here, but hey!)
Know, I think I can understand the scene, it is there to get up some tension, maybe have a set up for future problems but mainly to progress the story to the juicy bits. It´s just all these little details nagging at me.
Mind you, it will not stop me from reading and enjoying this piece of art, I just hope that this might help for any future projects ;)
Yay! She alive and awake! Although I don't know if thats a good thing with the pain but at least she making progress!
Don't know if anyone's caught this typo, but...
"The phoenix ran slowly down the drip chamber..." I think "tears" is missing behind Phoenix.
That said, really excited to see this updated.
But Man I just want poor Pupa to wake up and be comfortable.
Why the hell doesn't this have more likes than it should?! And to add on that note, why are there dislikes?!
Hey there,
So I just read all the chapters while being stuck on a plane. I like the story overall, I felt like the story was going where it is right now, which is not a bad thing at all.
I found it interesting how you intertwined Japanese culture to changeling. I found that interesting. Did you do it because you felt there was a similarity, or just because you felt like it? Cool regardless.
However, I did have one issue. Normally it should be small, but for some reason it is really bothering me. It is Discord and Celestia. Now nothing is wrong with their characters or how they interacted.
So it is when Discord figured trouble brewing in the changeling kingdom. Nothing wrong with that, nor was Celestia's response to Pupa and Chrysalis. But what bothered me was early, Chrysalis was eating a pony, and doing this on a regular basis for a couple years now. So she is eating and killing them. I don't know how Discord or Equestria would notice this. Ponies constantly missing, and not link it to the changelings after the Canterlot invasion. I would assume paranoia would always blame the changelings if anything happened in Equestria after that.
So it was Celestia's actions, being nice to Chrysalis. But to me, how could she be nice if Chrysalis is killing ponies on regular basis. Or, how doesn't she know about that situation already? I have a hard time passing that.
Can you clarify that situation?
3635949 Tell me, when are you planning on updating this?
3609867 That's great, mate, thank you.
3608340 Well, that wasn't really the intention, but hey, eye of the beholder and all that jazz.
3608442 I see it as her waking up and reacting to the pain she's in at the moment.
3608663 That's really nice to hear.
3616705 I thank you for sharing this constructive criticism with me; it's always appreciated. Your points about the guards and their incompetence... well, that I can't really deny or defend it much, looking back. I suppose yes, I mainly wanted to get the plot moving along, though the royal pony guard doesn't have that much of a good track record for competence, but then again, that's much of an excuse, particularly with the Changeling Royal guard as well. Thank you again for being honest pointing this out and I will definitely take it under consideration in the future.
Thank you for your time reading and offering constructive criticism for my story.
3628366 Hey, thank you for reading my story and am glad you are liking it so far. In answer to your question about the Japanese culture, well, Chrysalis' designer Rebecca Dart drew inspiration from Horror Manga, that and how much I love Japanese culture and how it serves as a contrast to the North American/Western European culture of Equestria.
Regarding your concern about the ponies Chrysalis has been feeding on, don't worry, you haven't been the first to mention that issue and I will admit it, it is quite a bit of an elephant in the room. But again, don't worry, because it will be addressed, though I can't go into details here, due to the spoiler reasons, I'm sure you understand. Rest assured, though, it will be addressed at a point in the story.
3637480
Thanks for the reply. Yes I just wanted to mention that, as I didn't know if it was mentioned or not. But when I saw Celestia's actions, it felt really weird. Almost plot hole like, but since the story is not over, I can't say it is.
Anywho, I will be waiting for an update. Good story so far.
3637480
Thanks for answering. Even more so for working threw what I have written considering the horrible spelling mistakes I made now that I read threw it again myself
Mind you, considering that you have already set them up and given them some character I would say to keep it up. Realy don´t want to throw a wringer into the story. Also suddenly changing them from what they have shown so far to be suddenly better would be a little sudden. And the story is not about them in the first place!
Now to wait another two months for the next chapter
Oh damn.
Oooooohhh damn.
WHAT FUCKING DOCTOR SAID TAKE HER OFF MEDS!! FUCKING FIRE THAT DOUCHE!!
3608297 3650035
Actually, it would make sense. They're essentially giving Pupa a new, experimental drug, and there's always a chance that a new drug won't get along with something they're already giving her. Drugs have been known to cancel each other out, or create scary new side-effects.
This was AMAZING!!! Keep up the good work!
OH MY SWEET EMPEROR!!!!!!
i think the emote explains it all bu anyways its a good read and have been following the fic for at least over a year now and its still never ceases to inspire me so yeah keep it up bro 
I was looking up images of the queen on google (mostly as backgrounds, and because she is my favorite bad girl of the show). I came across one of her and a younger female changeling and I clicked on it. found the link to this story and started to read.
with in the first paragraph I was hooked, ive made it a point to read every chapter and just finished the 11th. I have been in tears on more then one occasion from reading this story! I never picture Chrysalis as a mother until this story and I have truly felt sorry for both her, and pupa at the same time. I can not wait to read the rest of it and eagerly await its publication on this sight so I can continue to delve deeper in the story. keep writing! you are one of the best ive seen so far.
A pox upon that usurping jackal Chrysalis! Bad enough she brought her plague upon Equestria, an action which justified Celestia calling down a solar flare upon her empire, but then too...
Bah! Where is the justice?
MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEE
Don't stop here I have to know what happens oh my gosh !!!im dying here!!!
3787948
If your interested in more changeling fics check out scarheart76's channel or anonymous Pegasus
New chapter!!!! Pretty pleeeaaaassseee
How soon before the next part?
3608295 ...why did. I read your comment in Arnold Schwarzenegger's voice?
I have a feeling you based Chrysalis beating Pupa on Ivan the Terrible beating his son.
Well done
3931504 That seriously just killed me. I ROFL'd
Hah, stronger Alicorn body my arse, it's all the cake-based padding you have, Celly.
At least Chryssie has had a shoulder to cry on.
Oh, thank Celestia and thank Kami! She's alive!!
