As everyone prepared for the dinner taking place at the Ponyville Recreational Center, Discord made himself comfortable near Fluttershy’s cottage with some of her animal friends. He sat on a floating lawn chair with a pair of shades, while Angelica Bunny served him a cup of chocolate milk. He grabbed it with his tail and took a sip of the glass, leaving the milk behind in his hand. He then tossed it aside, causing a tiny explosion when it hit the ground.
“Discord?” called Flurry, as she flew in to meet him.
“Flurry Heart? What are you doing here? Aren’t they having a dinner right before the wedding tomorrow?”
“It’s not for another hour. Fluttershy told me you’d be here, so I just wanted to drop in to ask you something real quick.”
“Ah, I see.”
Discord snapped his fingers and made everything around him disappear. A notebook and pen appeared in his hands, and he was now wearing reading glasses and a tie.
“Well then, Princess. What pearls of wisdom do you need from me today? Got a problem ol’ Discord can iron out?”
“Well, not really a problem, I’m just a little worried about something with the wedding.”
“Uh oh. Pre-wedding drama. Sorry, Princess, but I’m not really good with that sort of thing. You’ll have to go ask Rainbow Dash or somepony.”
“No, it’s not drama, I’m just a bit skeptical about something. First of all, you weren’t around when the Canterlot wedding invasion happened, were you?”
“Nope. I was a stone statue at that time, waiting for the ponies to release me and for Fluttershy to start me on my path to redemption. I’m sure you know the rest.”
“Alright, well what about the second changeling invasion? From what I remember, you weren’t captured right away like the others were.”
“Correct. Chrysalis hid out in her fortress and I unfortunately couldn’t use my powers since it blocked all magic. Starlight, Trixie, Thorax and I went in and were captured then, but thank goodness it all worked out. Had it not been for our heroic little quartet, she would have won that day.”
“But they still managed to replace a lot of ponies. Mom, Dad and I were all captured and put in some of those gross harvesting pods. I obviously don’t remember it, but it’s just crazy to know I was one of them.”
“Yes, it wasn’t the most glamorous of experiences; I’ll say that much.”
“So…what if I were to tell you…”
Flurry paused for a second. Discord turned around and looked at her quizzically.
“Yes?”
“What if I were to tell you…I have a feeling there might be changeling activity at the wedding?”
“Oh? What makes you think that?”
“Well a lot of the attendees are acting weird. They were whispering a lot during the rehearsal. Even my mom and Applejack were doing it at home.”
“That’s it? That’s your reason for thinking there are changelings at the wedding? Oh, come now, Princess. Everypony whispers.”
“I know, but it just felt weird. A lot of them were doing it. They were also smirking, like they’re up to something.”
“Well sorry, but you haven’t convinced me.”
“But Discord, if something does happen and Chrysalis is trying to hijack this wedding, you’d step in and help stop her, right?”
“I’m actually not attending the wedding.”
“Yeah, Mom said you weren’t at Applejack or Rainbow Dash’s weddings either. Why not?”
“Weddings just aren’t my thing. Of course I’m happy for Pinkie and Cheese and I’m sure they’ll make plenty of beautiful foals, but I have personally decided to steer clear of such gatherings. The Lord of Chaos isn’t exactly welcome in all corners of Equestria, you know. I tend to have a habit of turning things upside down wherever I go, and I’d hate to ruin their big day. About the only wedding I probably will attend is Fluttershy’s, and even then, any stallion will be lucky to get to her through me first.”
A life-sized cardboard cut-out of Fluttershy appeared next to Discord. A blank, grey stallion-shaped one with a question mark on its face appeared on the other side. Discord stood between the two of them, wearing a suit, sunglasses and a curly cord attached to his ear. He scanned the stallion cut-out with a metal detector.
“You’re all clear, Lover-boy, but I’m warning you: anything beyond a kiss on the cheek will earn you one full year in Tartarus!” he sternly told the stallion cut-out, as it spread its wings and flew off with the Fluttershy cut-out.
“Alright, so you won’t be at the wedding, but again, if Chrysalis did do something, you’d help, right?”
“Let me think… No.”
“What? Discord!”
“Now, Flurry Heart, I’ve been approached about this sort of thing before, and honestly, ponies say the same thing every time: ‘Where’s Discord when you need him?’ ‘Why doesn’t Discord step in?’ ‘You know Discord could just use his powers to stop this villain, right?’ Like, sweet mother of Twilight Sparkle! Read a book, people! It’s almost as annoying as those fools that think the Spirit of Harmony should always intervene every time something happens!”
“But you stepped in with the Sorceress not too long ago.”
“I know, and that’s what got me thinking about all this. I wasn’t much help once I figured out she was Cozy Glow, even though I did get her to Canterlot, but that was about it. Look, I’m tired of being the hero in some of these events. I’m too overpowered, and there comes a time when you ponies need to figure out how to solve these problems yourselves. Otherwise, what is the point of learning a lesson if a creature of chaos just does it all for you?”
“But-”
“Besides, I just spoke with Pinkie earlier and she seemed like her own regular, energetic, life-loving self. Do you really think Chrysalis is disguising herself as Pinkie right now?”
“Well…no, I guess not. She seems fine to me too.”
“Precisely. Perhaps you’re just overreacting?”
Flurry closed her eyes and sighed deeply.
“Alright, fine. I guess I am getting a little worked up over nothing. I just really hope this doesn’t turn out like my parents’ wedding.”
“That’s better. Now run along. Don’t wanna be late for that dinner. Aren’t you giving a speech tonight?”
“Yeah. I’m actually quite excited to give it.”
“Well then let’s turn that frown upside down and go make some ponies smile. Ta-ta!”
Discord put his fingers on the corners of Flurry’s lips and forced a smile on her face. He then flew off, waving before disappearing. Flurry sighed again.
“Well he wasn’t much help. Still, he’s right: I just need to relax. It’s fine, Flurry. Nothing bad is going to happen. There are no changelings at this wedding besides Ocellus. Oh and then Thorax is coming with an entourage I heard. Yeah, I’m sure everyone’s got this under control.”
Unfortunately, things only got worse for Flurry as she walked to the rec center for the dinner. She noticed royal guards had erected large plates of the magic-canceling mineral that came from Chrysalis’s throne all across Ponyville. This material could stop any magic in vicinity, with the exception of changelings, so Flurry wondered what the need was for them. She decided to ask one of the guards what was going on.
“Excuse me, sirs,” she politely asked one.
“Huh? Oh, Princess Flurry Heart! Is there anything we can do for you?” the guard asked, nervously.
“Yeah, I don’t mean to be inquisitive, but is there a reason why we’re using the magic-canceling rocks all over town?”
“Uh…well Princess Twilight ordered that we do this for the safety of the wedding.”
“Yeah, but doesn’t that not work on changelings?”
“That would be correct, Princess, but we’ve already taken all precautions with changelings. These are meant to shield against other magic-users that could cause trouble.”
“Oh. Well I guess that makes sense. Sorry, I was just curious.”
“That’s alright, Princess. Have fun at the dinner.”
“Thank you!”
Flurry returned to her walk but noticed how a few of the guards whispered to each other, glaring at her as she went. Her suspicions began to grow again, but she was interrupted as soon as she saw Buttercream at the front entrance of the rec center.
“Flurry! There you are!” Buttercream called.
“Butter, hey. Is everyone else there?”
“Sure are! You ready for your speech?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I guess I’m just a little nervous is all.”
“Well that’s understandable. This is a huge event. Anyway, let’s go inside and find your friends.”
During the dinner, all the attendees sat at their tables and talked amongst each other in the cafeteria of the rec center. Some of them chose to stand and walk about to speak with friends. Pinkie and Cheese stood by the food table and conversed with relatives. Cheese had Sans Smirk with him, but Maud was off to the side, speaking with King Thorax.
“Hello, you’re King Thorax, right?” she asked the tall changeling.
“That’s correct. Oh, you must be the mare of honor, Maud Pie!”
“Yeah, that’s me.”
“It’s great to finally meet you, Maud. Pinkie’s said great things about you.”
“That makes sense. My sister and I are pretty close.”
“Are you happy she’s finally…how do some ponies put it… tying the knot?”
“I couldn’t be happier for her. To be honest, I was waiting for her and Cheese to do this for a while now.”
“Hehe. Pinkie and Cheese do make an amazing couple for sure. I’m glad I could attend this wedding.”
“Yeah. Anyway, this is an off-topic question, but how exactly did you go from looking like how evil changelings do to looking like this?”
“Oh, well changelings all start off in their ‘black’ forms with holes in their legs and an unending appetite for love. When I transformed, and I had no idea I would, I simply shared my love and then entered a cocoon. Before you knew it, I came out looking like this.”
“So as soon as you turned good, you transformed?”
“Not exactly. The process takes some time. I had wanted to betray Chrysalis for quite some time, even before the Canterlot invasion. Even when I left the hive, I still had a ways to go. After the Crystal Empire pardoned me, my wings grew sparkly. The transformation didn’t happen until Starlight encouraged me to share love while we were infiltrating the changeling castle. I can’t really explain how the transformation is possible, but it’s a feeling like no other. After I came out all new, with no more holes, I felt so much better. All the other changelings around me did the same. I guess they had the same thing on their mind: they were tired of stealing love and working for an evil queen. We wanted freedom and to share love with ponies.”
Maud looked deep in thought as Thorax spoke. Her eyes wandered about and she stroked her chin.
“Sparkling wings. Interesting,” she said.
“Have you been studying changeling culture lately?”
“Uh…no, I was just curious. I’m still just a geologist.”
Meanwhile, at Flurry’s table, she sat with Spike, Buttercream, and all her friends. They chatted amongst each other and ate their food, but Flurry had only a piece of bred and a cup of water. Pound was worried about her and finally spoke up.
“Flurry, is everything alright?”
“I guess.”
“Seriously, you only got bread and haven’t touched it yet,” Stormy added.
“Flurry, why so down?” Pumpkin asked.
“I’m just a little scared is all.”
“Scared? Of what? The speech?” Chip asked.
“It’s okay, Flurry. I always get nervous when I speak in public too,” Annie added.
“It’s not the speech, guys.”
“Then what is it?” asked Spike.
“You’re gonna think I’m crazy…”
“Come on, Flurry. You can tell us,” Buttercream said.
“It’s just…I…I dunno, guys. I was really excited for this wedding, but I can’t help but feel…”
“Feel what?” asked Spike.
“Feel…like it’s been hijacked by changelings.”
“Changelings?!” Stormy said before Spike put his hand over his mouth.
“SHHH! Stormy, let’s not talk too loudly about that,” he said. “Flurry, Twilight’s got everything under control. I promise you.”
“I know, but there’s a lot of weird things I keep seeing. Some of the attendees keep whispering like they’re keeping secrets. I know ponies whisper a lot, but it’s not just that. Did you also notice all those magic-canceling rocks they’re putting around Ponyville?”
“Yeah, Twilight ordered we do that so we can protect the wedding from any villains.”
“I know that, Spike. But what if it’s because the guards are changelings and they’re using those rocks to prevent us from using our magic? Those rocks don’t even affect changeling magic!”
“Flurry, Flurry, calm down,” Pound said, putting his hoof on her shoulder as she panted a little. “Did you talk about this to anyone else?”
“Yeah, just Discord, but he says he’s not going to help cuz he wants us to learn to solve all the problems. I get what he means, but come on!”
Flurry then realized how much she was overreacting and calmed herself down before apologizing.
“I’m sorry, guys. I didn’t mean to freak out, but I just really want this wedding to go perfectly. We’ve been planning it for weeks now and I’d hate to see the changelings attack.”
“Maybe you should go talk to Pinkie over there,” Pumpkin said as she pointed to Pinkie.
“Maybe. Pinkie’s been fine thankfully.”
“Do it, Flurry. Pinkie will cheer you right up,” Buttercream told her.
“Alright. I’ll give it a try. I can’t be like this before I give my speech.”
Flurry hopped own from her seat and made her way to the food table to speak with Pinkie. Everyone else then looked at each other to discuss what just happened.
“Poor Flurry. I hope she doesn’t let it get to her,” Annie said.
“Was anypony like this at Cadance and Shining Armor’s wedding?” Stormy asked.
“One of us was,” Spike explained. “You should’ve seen Twilight when she walked in during the rehearsal. We all thought she was going insane, but now that we know Cadance was actually Chrysalis in disguise, I feel bad not taking her side. But that was years ago when no one knew what the changelings were up to. Trust me, guys; the wedding is foolproof. Twilight’s taken all kinds of precautions to make sure we don’t have any changelings using their disguises. Right now only Ocellus, King Thorax and a few of his attendants are here.”
As they spoke, Flurry walked over towards Pinkie. She was in the middle of talking with Cheese’s parents and Sans Smirk, so Flurry had to wait a bit.
“Well Pinkie, we were waiting for our little Cheese to find his sweetheart one day, and we’re just so happy he found you,” Cheese’s mother said.
“We knew there was another party pony out there for him,” his father remarked.
“And I never would’ve discovered I was a party pony if it weren’t for her,” Cheese said as he nuzzled up to his fiancé.
“Dawww!” Pinkie said, nuzzling him back.
“I must admit, when she walked in to the factory, I had no idea she’d be the one he’d be married to years later,” said Sans Smirk. “And I am honored you have chosen me to be the best stallion, sir.”
“And the best part is, I finally finished the song I was going to use to propose to her,” Cheese continued. “I couldn’t finish it back then, but she helped me finish the lyrics. It sounds better than I intended!”
“What’s the name of the song, sir?”
“We titled it How Did I Get So Lucky. It’s sure to be a hit at the reception, but maybe we could sing a bit right now, Sweetie Pie?”
“Sing it now?” Pinkie said, looking rather shocked.
“Sure, why not?”
Cheese cleared his throat and started.
“How did I get so lucky? How’d this happen to me? Come on, honey!”
“Uh…maybe we should wait for the reception, Cheesie?”
“Naw! Mom and Dad really wanted us to sing a few bars tonight!”
Cheese continued singing, while Pinkie looked nervous. Flurry had been smiling the entire time she listened to them, but now she noticed how strange Pinkie was acting.
“You were sent from above me. Luck had nothing to do with it, now I see, we were meant to-”
“Uh, Cheesie?” Pinkie interrupted.
“Yeah?”
“Sorry. Can you guys excuse us for a second?”
Before any of them could respond, Pinkie led her fiancé off to a secluded area. Flurry ducked down and crawled underneath some tables to follow them. Pinkie took Cheese into a nearby room. She shut the door behind her, but it bounced back open, allowing Flurry to hear what they were saying.
“Pinkie, what’s the matter?” Cheese asked.
“Cheese, I dunno, I just…I can’t sing the song right now.”
“Why not? You said you wanted to tonight for my parents. They haven’t heard any of it yet.”
“I did…er, oh yeah. Well, I can’t.”
“Is something wrong?”
“No. Nothing’s wrong.”
“Come on. Talk to me. You’re acting rather strangely.”
“Cheese…just…just look me in the eyes.”
“What?”
Flurry then saw a green flash of light come from the room they were in. Cheese started moaning like he had been hurt.
“Ugggggghhhhh…what…what happened?”
“Are you okay, Cheesie?”
“My head feels weird. What were we just talking about?”
“Nothing. Everything’s fine. Come on, let’s go back out! There are still plenty of ponies that want to talk to us!”
“Um…okay…”
Flurry quickly leapt behind a potted plant and watched as Pinkie left the room, hopping along, joyfully. What Flurry saw next shocked her: Cheese looked very tired and the sclera in his his eyes were milky and greenish. She suddenly remembered seeing a photo from her parents’ wedding where her father had the same look in his eyes. That photo was taken while Queen Chrysalis had her disguise up, and the real Cadance had yet to appear. It all made sense now: this wedding was a changeling invasion, and Pinkie Pie was actually Queen Chrysalis in disguise!
Meanwhile, Twilight stood on the other end of the cafeteria, talking with some of her friends. They were in the middle of laughing about something, until Twilight noticed something out of the corner of her eye: it was Flurry rushing through the crowd to get out the front entrance. She appeared very distressed.
“Flurry Heart?” Twilight said, before turning back to her friends. “Girls, could you excuse me for just a second?”
“You got it, Twi,” Rainbow Dash told her.
Twilight walked quickly in Flurry’s direction and watched as she pushed against a door that said “PULL” on the inside. Flurry then stood back and used her magic to pull the door open and rushed back out.
“Flurry Heart!” Twilight called to her, but Flurry could not hear her under the murmuring of the crowd.
Flurry ran over to a nearby railing and put her hooves on top while breathing deeply.
“I…I can’t believe it!” she yelped. “It’s Chrysalis! She’s Chrysalis! She really did take this wedding after all!”
“Flurry, is everything alright?”
“AGH! Twilight!”
“What happened to you?”
“Twilight…I…”
“Flurry, it’s alright. I’m here for you.”
Twilight put her wing around her niece and held her close. Flurry was still panting and wailing.
“Can you tell me what the problem is?”
“Twilight, it’s…there’s too much going on at this wedding that looks like…”
“Like what?”
“Twilight…I think we have a changeling invasion going on and I think Pinkie Pie is actually Queen Chrysalis!”
Twilight stared at Flurry in horror. She then turned back through the window to the cafeteria and looked sternly at the crowd.
“Let me check on that.”
Twilight opened the doors to the entrance and tapped the necklace she wore. It shone brightly and her eyes turned green. She then scanned the entire cafeteria with green rays emitting from her eyes. Her head panned across the entire room as Flurry watched. After she was done, she sighed with relief.
“Flurry, it’s alright. I just used the Changeling Necklace to scan the room. The only changelings here are Ocellus, Thorax, Kabuto, Carapace, Antenna, Pronotum, Tarsus and Tibia. There isn’t a black changeling in sight.”
“Er…are you sure? Even Pinkie?”
“Even Pinkie. She’s fine.”
Flurry sat down, disappointed. She just lost her mind over nothing and felt very embarrassed in front of Twilight.
“I’m sorry, Twilight.”
“It’s all right, Flurry. I know you want this wedding to go as planned. What got you thinking she was Chrysalis?”
“I…maybe I was just going crazy. He wanted her to sing that song they came up with for the reception in front of his parents, but she wouldn’t do it, so they went into this room and there was a green flash of light and he came out with his eyes looking all green and weird. I thought it was that spell my parents told me about that Chrysalis used on Dad before the wedding. I’m also seeing a lot of ponies act really suspicious. They keep whispering to each other. Oh, and then there’s the magic-cancelling rocks all over town. Do we really need those?”
“Oh yes. I’ve been warned that there could be attacks from other magic-users that may want to disrupt events that I or any other Elements of Harmony attend,” Twilight said as she pointed to some of her guards pulling one of the rocks in a cart outside. “We gathered up large portions of Chrysalis’s throne and are using them to create a temporary shield around the perimeter of town. The guards are also ready in case an intruder comes in that isn’t using magic.”
“Oh.”
“As for the whispering: I’ve noticed a lot of that too. Honestly, Flurry, I can’t explain that or what you saw with Pinkie and Cheese, but the necklace doesn’t lie. It’s been tested before. I’m guessing Pinkie just had a moment back there. She’s always really happy, but I’ve seen her get stressed out before. Weddings can be very stressful. Applejack spent a ton of time making sure her wedding with Tex would go perfectly, but a while later, Rainbow Dash didn’t really spend enough time doing it. The latter resulted in a pretty stressful wedding for her, but thank goodness Pinkie and the rest of us were there to help plan things at the last minute. She and Thunderhead were wed and everything went smoothly in the end.”
“So Discord was right and it’s just casual wedding stress. Boy am I losing it.”
“Flurry, don’t be hard on yourself. I did this same thing back when your parents were getting married too, only I was much worse.”
“Yeah, but Chrysalis actually was in that wedding.”
“But the changelings had yet to make a move, so none of us suspected that. I may have been right, but I was still irrational. I thought the real Princess Cadance had turned evil; I didn’t even know she was a changeling queen. You’re looking out for your friend. I understand.”
“I still feel anxious though; especially about the thing with Pinkie and Cheese.”
“Tell you what: why don’t you ask Pinkie to recall something that only the real Pinkie Pie would know; perhaps a memory that you and her both share that Chrysalis isn’t aware of?”
“Okay. I think I have a good one to use now that I think about it.”
“I’ll do opening remarks before you start so you have time to get ready.”
“Thanks. I’d appreciate that.”
Flurry then trudged back into the cafeteria, making her way to the table with all her friends. She sat down next to Pound as everyone looked at her.
“So…did you talk to Pinkie?” he asked.
“No, I talked to Twilight. It’s okay, guys. I was wrong about the changelings. Twilight used her necklace to check. I just have one more thing I need to do during my speech. I have a special question to ask Pinkie; then I’ll know everything is fine.”