Chrysalis turns away from the wooden counter. She’s much taller than your average pony, and as a result, said counter is far beneath her. Similarly, she must actively look down to make eye contact with most ponies. This humors her to no end, as it adds to her intimidation factor.
This intimidation factor seems to be coming out in full force, as while she slowly exits the post office, the long line of ponies that were waiting behind her wordlessly steps aside to make room for her. She stifles a chuckle as she continues to walk straight forward, relishing the feeling.
She may be a “good guy” now, but these ponies still need to know their place.
When she steps out of the post office and into the midday sun, she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. She really, really doesn’t want to do this, but she supposes she has no choice. With a resolute grunt, she begins the short trek to the other side of town.
Luckily, her two “closest friends” were supposed to go with her to pick up her wedding dress. They should be expecting her, and she can easily ask them to be her bridesmaids. She’ll kill two breezies with one stone.
It doesn’t take long for her to arrive at the humble two-story house. With a sigh, she raises a hoof and knocks on the simple wooden door. Her eyes flick upwards just in time to see an upstairs curtain quickly close. She was being watched.
Well, of course she was. That’s par for the course when you’re friends with–
“Chryssi, how’s it going?!”
“...Hello, Lyra.”
Lyra Heartstrings. The mint-green unicorn greets Chrysalis with a smile and an overly enthusiastic hoofshake. Seconds later, her wife, Bon-Bon, walks up behind her.
“Good afternoon.” Her voice is noticeably more reserved. “I take it you’re ready to go grab your dress?”
“Yes, I am. I don’t enjoy doing things late.”
Lyra stops shaking her hoof and happily trots out of her house, followed closely by Bon-Bon.
“That’s great! The boutique is just down the road, so this shouldn’t take too long!”
“Yes Lyra, I remember where the boutique is in the town that you can walk end-to-end in ten minutes.”
“You say that like you actually want to go,” Bon-Bon mumbles. “I was surprised when you asked us to help you get a dress. I was shocked when you showed up three minutes ago.”
“For all of my virtues, I don’t exactly have a lot of knowledge about pony dress customs,” Chrysalis says with an eye roll. “Anon told me he isn’t allowed to help me with it, and I don’t have a lot of options outside of you.”
“Wow, I’m flattered,” Bon-Bon says sarcastically. “It’s not like you could have just asked Rarity yourself. …Oh, wait. Yes you could have.”
“Can it two-tone, before you wake up in a preservative sack.”
“Oh no, I’m so scared.”
After a moment, both Bon-Bon and Lyra begin to laugh. Chrysalis continues to walk, though whether or not she’s stifling a laugh of her own is impossible to discern.
Lyra and Bon-Bon are Chrysalis’s two closest friends. They “generously” approached her not long after it became clear that she would be living in Ponyville permanently and offered to hang out with her. Chrysalis refused, but apparently, those two don’t know what the word “no” means. The next thing Chrysalis knew, they were calling themselves her best friends.
Chrysalis doesn’t really care for friendship. Not only did it leave a bad taste in her mouth in the past (several times), but she also sees it as a bit frivolous and unnecessary. Granted, she’s been indulging in plenty of frivolity with Anon as of late, but that’s beside the point.
All in all, she’s got a good thing going with those two. Although it was unlikely, the two mares voted “most likely to be background characters in someone else’s story” during a party not long ago became practically inseparable from the once-evil queen of the changelings.
…At least, that’s what it looks like.
Beneath the surface, a conspiracy has been taking place. Behind their unassuming personas, Lyra and Bon-Bon hide their true identities: agents of a top-secret organization, the Secret Monster Intelligence League of Equestria, also known as S.M.I.L.E..
The two mares were given a simple order: Keep a close eye on Chrysalis and her movements. Although she claims to be “reformed,” it is their duty to ensure that she stays that way by any means necessary. They realized very quickly that their cover could get easily blown if they tried doing this by sticking to the shadows, so they instead went with plan B: becoming friends with her.
Doing so turned out to be easier than they thought. Now, acting as her best friends, they can track all of her movements. S.M.I.L.E. has naturally been informed about this and her coming wedding, so as time has passed, they haven’t had to watch her quite as closely. Still, everything is going according to plan, and Chrysalis is none the wiser.
Or so they think.
The secrets go both ways in this friendship, as Chrysalis is well aware of their true identities. As far as she’s concerned, it doesn’t matter how talented of a secret agent you might be. No matter what, you can’t fool the Queen of Liars.
Besides, S.M.I.L.E. has targeted changelings many times in the past. They proved to be a thorn in her side back when she ruled the hive, and as a result, she has long since infiltrated their agency and discovered their secrets.
Heck, she didn’t even need to do any digging to know who Lyra and Bon-Bon are. She’s just that good at seeing right through them.
However, just as they are using her friendship as cover, she is using theirs for the same purpose. She doesn’t really care for friendship, but if these mares want to maintain the facade that the three of them are getting along just fine, it’ll keep the pressure from Anon (and, to a lesser extent, ponies like Twilight Sparkle) off her back.
For now, they’ll continue “keeping an eye on her,” and she’ll continue pretending she doesn’t know. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship, if not a complex (and mildly unhealthy) one.
Finally, the three of them arrive in front of the Carousel Boutique. Chrysalis groans as Lyra opens the door for them. She really doesn’t care for Rarity, but she’s the only mare that would even think about taking her measurements, let alone making her a wedding dress.
“Ah, hello everypony!” Rarity greets them with a smile. If she has any ulterior motives or hidden feelings about Chrysalis, she is an expert at hiding it. “You’re just in time! I have your dress right over here!”
Rarity trots to the far side of the room, and the three mares follow her. To their surprise, she retrieves an entire mannequin from behind a large screen. While the other mannequins in the room come in several shapes and sizes, this one has clearly been made recently, as it perfectly replicates Chrysalis’s figure (holes and all, to her shock and mild discomfort).
Upon this mannequin is a gorgeous wedding gown. It’s snow white, and despite being a wedding gown, it isn’t all that flow-y. In fact, in several places, it looks more like a suit than a dress. This was at Chrysalis's behest, not necessarily because she’s concerned about her appearance, but because she hates moving around in large dresses.
However, Rarity has taken enough creative liberty to make it work regardless. While the legs remain fairly unrestrained, the flank has an ample amount of frills. In a creative decision that confuses Lyra and Bon-Bon but leaves Chrysalis mildly impressed, a faded silver material has been used in the flank to create a pattern that vaguely resembles the holes in her tail.
Along the back, there are two slits for her bug-like wings. Ever since becoming a light changeling, her wings tend to shimmer like glitter when hit with light, even after taking on the appearance of a dark changeling again. Rarity capitalized on this, creating a similar effect near the wing slits that spread out across the back and gently fade away.
All in all, even Chrysalis has to admit that the dress is stunning.
“I’m very proud of it,” Rarity boasts. “You’re definitely one of the more… unique patrons I’ve ever had the pleasure of designing for, but darling, I cannot express how inspired I was when you asked me to make you a wedding dress!”
“It looks incredible, Rarity!” Lyra’s eyes gleam with excitement.
“You always were good at making wedding gowns,” Bon-Bon says quietly while sneaking a look at her wife.
“Well, Miss Chrysalis? Do you like it?”
“...” Chrysalis eyes the dress closely. The room is filled with a tense silence as she wordlessly studies the dress, her discerning eye scanning every inch of fabric. Slowly, that gaze turns towards Rarity, who smiles an anxious smile at her. “...It’ll do.”
“Phew. I’m so pleased to hear that.”
“What do I owe you?”
“Oh, Anon covered it already!”
“He… did? I thought he wasn’t allowed to see the dress.”
“Oh, he hasn’t seen it. He paid me to help with the decorations for the wedding itself and decided to cover the cost of the dress at the same time.”
“Ugh, I wish he’d stop doing that.”
“To be fair,” Lyra whispers, “you don’t exactly have a job.”
“Quiet.”
“Well,” Rarity says with an excited stamp of her hoof, “let’s try it on, shall we?”
The three mares exit the boutique, Chrysalis’s horn glowing as she magically carries her new wedding dress.
“Well, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Lyra asks with a smile.
“I’m just glad we have that taken care of.”
“Anything else on your agenda for the day, or are you gonna go back to that dark little basement of yours?”
“I don’t live in the basement anymore.”
Lyra lets out a mischievous chuckle.
“Oh, I know. You and Anon have been getting nice and–”
“Shut up.”
Lyra stops talking, but the sly smile on her face doesn’t fade. Eventually, the three come to a stop. This is the crossroads that will take them in different directions back to their homes.
“If that’s all, I think Lyra and I are gonna go have dinner,” Bon-Bon says with a grin.
“Right,” Chrysalis mumbles. She takes a step towards her home, causing her friends to do the same. However, she quickly remembers what she was supposed to ask them. Briefly, she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. “Before you go…”
“Hm?”
Chrysalis slowly turns around, an uncharacteristically sheepish look on her face as she does so.
“Do you… ugh, this is foolish. Do you two want to be my bridesmaids?”
Lyra and Bon-Bon share a glance. For a moment, they look surprised, but this surprise is quickly replaced by… laughter?
“What?”
“S-sorry, it’s just…” Bon-Bon wipes a tear from her eye.
“This is technically the second time I’m gonna do that for you! Haha!” Lyra continues to laugh with her wife, leaving Chrysalis thoroughly confused.
“What are you talking about?”
“Don’t you remember? Back at Canterlot? I was one of Cadance’s bridesmaids, and you did your whole brainwashing thing on me and a couple of my friends!”
“I… did?”
Suddenly, Chrysalis’s mind takes her back to that night. She did control the bridesmaids, made them do her bidding in an attempt to slow the real Cadance down and keep them from realizing the truth. In all of the time she’s spent with her, it isn’t until now that she’s realized one of those mares was Lyra.
“...”
She’s speechless. A thousand thoughts swim through her mind, many of which are unexpected and unwanted. However, she is quickly snapped out of her stupor by the mares, who look up at her and smile.
“We’ll do it!”
“Th…” Ugh, she hates this part. “Thank… you.”
The mares go back to grinning before they turn around and wave. Apparently, they have no further questions. That, or they know better than to press Chrysalis at times like these.
…Wait, were they expecting to be asked?
Chrysalis rests in bed, her eyes open and staring at the ceiling. Anon sleeps comfortably next to her, having once again fallen asleep before her. For some reason, she can’t quite get a thought out of her head.
“You did your whole brainwashing thing on me and a couple of my friends!”
…Why does that bother her so much? The more she thinks about that day, the more her chest hurts. What is it about that darn wedding that’s keeping her awake? What is this feeling she’s having?
Slowly, she turns her head towards Anon. He’s facing her, but still sound asleep. That all happened before he was even in Equestria, but he’s heard all about it. And soon, it will be their turn to get married.
Once again, she feels a tightness in her chest. With a sigh, she carefully creeps out of bed and makes her way to the bathroom. She helps herself to a quick sip of water and splashes some on her face. However, when she opens her eyes, the mare she sees in the mirror before her isn’t Chrysalis. The room around her isn’t her bathroom.
She’s back in that Canterlot Castle room. Her green eyes make it clear that she’s still herself, but not quite. She has a pink coat and a long, thick mane. A wedding gown, entirely different from the one she obtained earlier in the day, adorns her body.
She’s disguised as Cadance once again.
Immediately, her horn begins to glow green. She attempts to transform back into the real her, but when the magic fades, it’s still Cadance’s face staring back at her. Panic begins to set in, a feeling quite unfamiliar to her. Her breathing quickens, and sweat begins to form on her brow. She books it to the grand doors keeping her in the room, only to find that they won’t budge.
She turns around, practically sprinting back to the vanity mirror. This time, the reflection in front of her is not that of Cadance, but of her dark changeling self. She glances down, but gasps when she sees that, despite her reflection, she’s still pink. Another look into the mirror causes her to stumble backwards. Her reflection is no longer copying her movements, but instead grinning a wicked, toothy grin at her.
Its eyes are cold and cruel. A small crown adorns its head. Its wings lack the sparkle they’ve had since Anon took her in. Suddenly, it begins to speak. Or rather, it begins to sing. It sings in a cruel, wicked voice. Her voice.
“This day is going to be perfect, the kind of day of which I dreamed since I was small. Everypony will gather 'round, say I look lovely in my gown. What they don't know is that I have fooled them all! Aaaaahahahaha!”
Chrysalis’s eyes shoot open as she quickly sits upright. Her breathing is heavy, and she is covered in a cold sweat. Looking around, she confirms that she’s back in her bedroom, Anon still sleeping peacefully next to her.
It was a dream.
…
Once again, Chrysalis creeps out of bed.