//------------------------------// // Chapter 35: It's Overwhelming // Story: Relationships are Evil // by TheTimeSword //------------------------------// “Listen, Twilight. I just want to apologize for the way I yelled at you back in Canterlot,” Starlight said. “I was just angry at you because I hadn’t been in your focus for a while. But the party, and now this? Well, you definitely are the Princess of Friendship for a reason. Thank you for not giving up.” Twilight lifted a brown saddlebag onto her back with her magic. “I should be thanking you. You’re the one that opened my eyes to how closed off my vision had become to what’s going on around me. The changelings are moved in, Chrysalis is with them, and now all I’ve got to deal with is two knuckleheads trying to win me. Now is the time to focus on those closest to me. It’ll be nice for it to just be the two of us today.” “Perhaps we should also spend some time at the spa. I’m sure you have a boatload of knots in your back.” Starlight opened the door of the castle, letting Twilight exit out into the snow first before closing it behind them. “Though if I’m being honest, I really just want to go somewhere warm. I’m sick of the snow.” The alicorn chuckled. “If there’s time once we’ve wrapped up practice. We can’t let the daylight fade away, after all.” She led her student through Ponyville, making small talk as they went. “Have you been brushing up on your spells lately?” “Well, I suppose I have been a tad neglectful, which is why I get where you’re coming from. It’s becoming more difficult to manage friends, studies, and myself. Not that I’m complaining,” she answered with a short giggle. They made their way to a pristine, snow-covered clearing on the outskirts of town. Twilight threw off the saddlebag and rummaged through its contents, pulling out a scroll. “Alright. This spell comes straight from Celestia herself. After a little coercing, of course. I saw her pull it off with ease. Let me try then you can give it a go,” Twilight explained. She stepped away from her apprentice and read the scroll. After closing her eyes her horn lit up with sparks of energy, unleashing it into the air. A small area around her ignited and the snow melted, creating a warm ring no larger than the full extent of her wingspan. Twilight looked around and then said, “Well, it’s a little smaller than Celestia’s but it’s not bad for a first try. Why don’t you give it a shot?” The unicorn was handed the scroll to which she carefully studied. “This doesn’t seem too difficult. Alright, here goes nothing!” she said as she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to center herself. Starlight focused on her magic, forming the spell in her mind. Her horn began to light up with sparks of energy, just like Twilight’s had, but unleashing it yielded little effect on the area. The snow hadn’t even turned to slush, let alone melt. Starlight was out of breath already, and Twilight noticed. “Are you alright Starlight?” Twilight asked as she came closer and pulled the unicorn into the grassy warm spot she had created. “You seem to be a lot more out of touch with your magic than you let on.” “No, I’m fine,” she panted. “It’s just a really powerful spell, that’s all.” Her drained eyes lifted to match her teacher’s. “R-Right?” More powerful than a Star Swirl crafted time traveling spell? I doubt it, Twilight mused. “Well, good thing I brought us some snacks. Nothing refreshes the spirit like cinnamon cookies!” She let Starlight sink to the ground and then went for her saddlebag. Levitating a wrapped cloth out, she brought the covered cookies over to Starlight and sat down next to her. “Did you make these yourself? I know you had them at the party but I don’t remember if I already asked you.” Starlight took a cookie and bit down on it. “They’re really good.” “Thank you! Well, I-” Twilight paused. Her eyes had caught movement of black and red coming from the same path they had traveled. She groaned once her vision focused on Tirek, realizing a mistake had occurred. “Oh for the love of… I forgot to tell those two not to disturb us today. Give me a moment to take care of this.” She shifted her face to become as serious as it could be, as she made a fast-paced stride through the snow, meeting the centaur halfway. “Hello, Tirek. I’d hate to be rude but I’ve promised Starlight we’d be spending the day together. Alone. Is there something you need?” “I’ve grown tired of waiting, Twilight Sparkle.” She took a step back. He rarely calls me by my full name anymore, she thought. “Waiting? Waiting for what?” “Your decision. Naming the winner of the bet. It’s clear that Discord and I are the main competitors, and I believe it is time for you to choose. No more waiting. Whether I win or lose, the time to pick is now.” Twilight froze. Her mind began to race and she could feel her face heat up like an oven. “Y-You can’t be serious!” There’s no way I could outright choose! If this were ancient times I’d have them battle to the death! “What are you two talking about?” The student’s voice seemed a lot closer, startling the alicorn. A quick turn of her head and she noticed Starlight standing behind her. She threw her eyes back to the centaur, giving a steely glare. “We will talk about this later, Tirek. I do not have time for this right now. Later!” she huffed, her face still redder than the shiniest apple. Starlight rolled her eyes and said, “Yeah, you don’t have time for much anymore.” Twilight turned her head, squinting and frowning at the unicorn. “S-Sorry. I know, you’re trying. Just a little resentment still left inside.” Twilight sighed, her ears fell flat. “No, you’re right Starlight.” She turned back to the stallion and nodded. “Tirek, we will discuss this later. I shall give you an answer soon enough. For now, I would like to spend time with my favorite pupil.” Before Tirek could say any more, she teleported Starlight and herself back to the grassy circle, grabbing their things and teleporting once more. They arrived at Sweet Apple Acres where Twilight let out a flustered and frustrated grunt. Starlight stood by her, watching as she took a moment to center herself. “Maybe I was more right about the spa than I thought. Stress seems to be getting to you, Twilight. I know that you’re trying but I don’t want you to hurt yourself in the process.” Placing a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder, a smile edged Starlight’s lips. “You taking the time to do this means more to me than you know, but shouldn’t you take some time to relax?” “I’d hate to break it to you, but I’m supposed to be relaxing right now. With you.” Twilight wrapped her hoof around her student, pressing their cheeks together. “We’ve still got a ton of fun things to choose from today! The spa does sound pretty nice, or we could go to Canterlot for a short day trip.” Before Starlight could answer, another softer voice called out, “What are you two doing here?” They turned to the purple dragon who was walking towards them. “I could ask you the same thing, Spike,” Twilight replied. “It’s a little cold for you to be wandering around without a jacket or scarf. What are you doing here? Visiting Applejack?” Starlight leaned in and whispered, “Don’t bring up the A word!” “A word?” Twilight asked, puzzled. “It’s alright Starlight. It’s actually good that I ran into you. I wanted to ask if you might know how long I should wait before trying to mend things with her. It’s only been a few days, but I don’t want it to seem like I’m avoiding her.” Spike rubbed the spines on his head. “Should I see if I could talk to her now?” “Wait, back up a second. What happened between you and Applejack?” Twilight asked, even more puzzled now. “How do you not know that Spike turned her down? He’s your one and only assistant!” the unicorn spat. Spike raised his claws up. “It’s not her fault, Starlight. I hadn’t told her yet!” With a heavy sigh and contempt in her voice, Twilight said, “I suppose it’s good that you came to me then. I suppose that if I were in your horseshoes I’d-” “Actually,” Spike interrupted, “I wanted to know what Starlight thought.” Twilight stood in a silent moment of disbelief, only muttering, “B-But, I’m…” “It’s not that I don’t trust your advice, Twilight. It’s just, well, I don’t want to put you in a position where you’d have to choose a side between me or Applejack if I continue to muck things up. I just want to have things go back to being simple. Plus, Starlight’s got a ton of experience dealing with falling outs.” “I-I suppose you’re right, Spike,” Twilight conceded. “I’m always here for you should you change your mind.” She then stepped back, giving a nod to Starlight before taking a few steps away. She remained close enough to eavesdrop but not close enough to interfere. “I don’t really know how to fix you and Applejack,” Starlight answered. “I mean, Sunburst and I never really had a rough falling out, and it took years upon years with a little help from a friend to finally work up the nerve to do something about that. I’d say… don’t wait that long.” She chuckled. “But you should probably also ask Chrysalis. She’s pretty knowledgeable.” Chrysalis. Twilight squinted at that name. “Yeah, that was actually my first thought. I was just heading up to the hive before you two appeared in front of me.” You’d ask Chrysalis over me, Spike? She didn’t stop him from heading up the snowy incline nor did she say another word to him as he left. Instead, Twilight stood silently brooding and sulking, half-broken hearted and half-filled with scorn. “You okay?” The words snapped her from her stupor. “Y-Yeah, let’s get out of here,” Twilight replied, turning back to face her student while also trying to relax her angered muscles. “What should we do-” Another voice calling her name interrupted her. She let out a disgruntled moan and shouted, “Why are there so many interruptions!?” Though she was lack in her patience for the interruptions, she could not stay mad for long once she discovered who the interrupter was. The black blurs rushed down the slope, passing the purple dragon. They skidded to a stop in front of the mares, pushing snow into the holes of their hooves. “Timber! Toy! It’s been a little while,” Twilight greeted them. “How’re my two favorite changelings?” “We’re your favorites!?” Timber shouted, a huge smile on his face. “Shh, don’t tell the others.” She winked. Toy hugged the alicorn and asked, “Do you wanna hang out with us, Princess Twilight? We’d be super honored!” She looked down at the pleading changeling, his smile glowing below his bright blue eyes. Her head turned to look at Starlight who was grinning worse than Pinkie Pie whenever she had another party to plan. “Sorry little one,” she started to say as she looked back at Toy. “I’d love to but…” Starlight prodded Twilight on the shoulder and whispered, “Y’know, Twilight. It doesn’t have to be just the two of us. These two seem to really like you, so why don’t we pal around with them? Just for a little while.” Twilight sighed a happy little sigh and gave a nod to her student. “Alright. I’d say you twisted my wing, but I don’t think I could really say no to these two even if I wanted to,” she confessed. Timber and Toy jumped joyously around each other, happily chanting Twilight and Starlight’s names. “Hey, they might just become my favorites too,” Starlight teased. “After Chrysalis, of course.” Yes… Chrysalis. Twilight turned her head to the hive that sat atop the hill, her face turning sour as she thought of Canterlot – the queen’s words echoing in her mind. ~*~*~*~*~*~ They followed the two energetic changelings as they skipped and hopped into town. It wasn’t before too long that they discovered why the changelings were so excited, one more so than the other. “It’s been closed every day since we moved here!” Toy gushed. “Something about a backlog due to Hearth’s Warming. I’m not sure what that means.” The bell above the door rang out as it was opened to the four. “It’s been a while since I’ve stepped into a store like this.” Starlight eyed the walls. Shelves held stuffed animals, wooden figurines, board games, blocks, and all sorts of other toys for fillies and colts. “A long while.” “I should probably pick something up for my niece while I’m here. Just another reason I’m glad we bumped into them,” Twilight replied. She watched for a moment as Timber played with the wooden toys while Toy scampered around the store aimlessly. “They really are just children at heart.” “So, what’s the difference in these two and Chrysalis? Why don’t you like her?” Twilight stopped and turned her head to face Starlight. Though her words had sounded malicious, Twilight could see nothing of the sort in Starlight’s expression. “No, it’s not quite that simple. I like the changelings, they deserve kindness. Chrysalis on the other hoof… she’s a bit more… derisive. It’s not that I don’t like her, I do. She can be fun, and she introduced me to something I never thought I’d like. But she can also get under my fur, more so than even Discord can. It’s a bit hard to explain since I’m not sure what is going on in her head.” “Well, maybe she’s more of a foal than you realize? Perhaps the strange way she acts is comparable to that of how a filly would treat a colt she likes. Pulling his hair, calling him names, something like that.” Starlight grinned with a nervous chuckle. “Not that I’d have any experience doing such a thing.” “That’s a very astute observation, Starlight,” Twilight applauded. “I think you might be right, it might very well be that simple.” She stepped close to Starlight and placed a hoof around her neck. “Tell you what, after we’re done here why don’t we go meet up with Chrysalis? She might be out of the running on the bet for now, but that doesn’t mean I won’t let her worm her way back into it if she’s nice. That means no more hair pulling.” For a moment, and only for a moment, Twilight saw Starlight’s eyes flicker. “What do you mean worm?” the unicorn asked, toneless. “Y-Y’know. Move on up, s-scurry in, and yadda yadda. She’s going to have to work for it is what I’m saying,” Twilight replied with a fretful tone as she quickly pulled away from the student. Why would Starlight be offended for Chrysalis? I didn’t even mean that as an insult, she wondered. Starlight smiled. “That’s true. It does seem like Discord and Tirek are faring better than she is. But don’t count her out yet. She’s a very determined creature.” “R-Right?” Twilight uneasily smiled back and then turned away from her student, hoping to hide any anxiety from showing on her face. Note to self. Walking on egg shells is a must when it comes to all things Chrysalis. She gave a breathy sigh as she wandered off to find a gift. After Toy and Timber had their purchases in tow, Twilight and Starlight followed them back to the Ponyville Hive. The warm interior of the hive made the winter air seem like it had never existed. “Thank you Princess Twilight!” the two changelings hollered in unison before traveling up the main set of stairs. “You two be good!” she yelled in reply, waving them off. “They are little charmers.” She smiled to herself. “That they are. In fact, most of them are. I’m glad you convinced everyone to relocate them.” Starlight then nudged her teacher and asked, “Should we find Chrysalis?” She pointed to the queen’s room with her horn. Twilight stared at the door, her eyes twitching for a moment. “Why don’t we visit with some of the other changelings first? It is a hive full of them, after all,” she replied. Just as she tugged in the direction of the stairs, the changeling queen’s doors flew open with two guards making way for the queen’s exit. “Ah, Starlight. Picking up strays off the street now? I suppose I’m rubbing off on you.” Chrysalis strode in front of the two ponies, making her way past them and up the stairs. “You two hungry? It’s close to lunch and I could use some company while I eat.” “I could eat,” Starlight answered as she took Twilight by the foreleg, chasing after the queen. Chrysalis steadied her pace and turned her head back to the mares. “So what brings you two lovely things into my luxurious home? I certainly hope one my changelings hasn’t superseded me and won a date with the Princess Twilight.” At least they wouldn’t scare me half to death in Canterlot, Twilight begrudgingly thought. “Well, it was just me and Twilight for a while until we ran into a pair of your kin. We had so much fun with them that I figured the three of us could hang out too if you’re not busy.” “As long as we remain inside. The snow is rather chilly for my tastes,” Chrysalis answered before stopping at the top of the stairs. She leaned down to become eye level with the alicorn as they too reached the top. “What do you say, Twilight? Do you want to hang out with me too? C’mon. Don’t keep your emotions contained, open up and tell me. Don’t a-void speaking your mind.” Her teeth looked as sharp as ever in-between her grinning cheeks. Through gritted teeth, Twilight replied, “O-Of course, Chrysalis, I’d be more than happy to have you join us.” Just hair pulling. It’s just hair pulling. That’s all. Sounds of voices came barreling up the stairs, catching Chrysalis’s attention and giving Twilight a moment to breathe a sigh of relief, only for her to realize who it was that happened to be making such a racket. Great, now what? The voices made Twilight realize she’d rather deal with Chrysalis for the rest of the week rather than the two stallions who were coming into view at the bottom of the steps. “I know she’ll pick me, but I don’t know how long that’ll last if I keep letting you meddle!” Tirek shouted in Discord’s face as they traveled up the steps. “Tirek, I already told you I’d give an answer later. Now is not the time,” Twilight growled down at them. Chrysalis laughed and added, “Can’t you see she’d rather spend time here than with you two? Maybe that’s a sign.” Tirek held his hand up to the changeling queen, not even giving a look in her direction. “Twilight. This has gone on long enough. Win or lose, I’m tired of waiting for an answer. You’ve strewn us along for a while now and it’s obvious there are only two choices. Now is the time. Me or Discord.” “As much as I like you Tirek, you’re not going to win by forcing her to choose. As a matter of fact, Chrysalis is her best option right now since you two are so intrusive. I’d say you’re losing your touch,” Starlight replied, a smug smile on her face as she stood next to the changeling queen. “You should really listen to Starlight, Tirek,” Chrysalis mentioned. “I mean, she is Twilight’s pupil. She’d be the one to know how Twilight is feeling, after all.” How I’m feeling? Twilight’s eyes batted between the centaur, the unicorn, and the changeling. Every word that was uttered strained a muscle, tensing her until she could do nothing but cover her ears. She closed her eyes and prayed for it to all go away, unwilling to deal with the overwhelming tension that surrounded her. Nobody knows what I’m feeling. Nobody! The voices seemed to go on without a moment of ceasing before it all disappeared. She could still feel them standing there, moving and raising their voices, but the sound had vanished. Her watery eyes opened and she looked up, noticing that the three were still senselessly arguing, but she could not hear their words. That’s when she noticed the outstretched bear paw of the draconequus in between the trio. Her eyes followed up his arm to the warm smile Discord held. “It’s okay,” was all he said. She hesitated. Her hoof shaking mere inches from the tips of his nails. Everything seemed to boil down to this one moment, everything told her to take his paw. It was the right decision. But she couldn’t. She threw herself between them, barreling down the steps and out the open door. Her eyes stung from both wind and tears as she took flight. Her soaring speed could only hope to match the words and thoughts that were racing through her panicking mind.