Edited by Iakovl, DJ_Neon_Lights and Magic Man
The first thing she picked up on was the sound of merry music wafting on the gentle breeze as she acclimated herself to her first unobstructed view of the Crystal City. She was a tall unicorn, fresh off the train from Manehatten. Her ebony coat shone with impeccable neatness, groomed with the attention of a mare who cared greatly for her appearance. Wearing little more than a white sun hat and a diaphanous scarf of red silk, she felt light and comfortable, rather than being burdened with some of the more ridiculous excuses for fashion she had once modeled in. Carrying herself with great pride and assuredness, she took a moment to bask in the sun over the sparkling new train station. Her saddlebags were of the most fashionable design, made by a certain fashionista known personally by Princess Celestia. Her emerald eye flickered over the scene before her; ponies wandering about their business, lost in their own personal worlds.
The royal entourage for the diarchs of Equestria had disembarked first. The white alicorn chatted with her darker sister. Both took the time to smile at their subjects as well as the subjects of their adopted niece and nephew-in-law. Impassively, the unicorn watched until they boarded a large covered chariot pulled by four burly Crystal ponies. Within minutes, they were off to the sound of clattering hooves and rolling wheels over cobblestones.
She smiled, tossing her thick, long and luxurious sea-green mane and flicking her perfectly brushed tail. Ignoring the crowds, the mare took the moment to watch the princesses disappear down the street. Those who did look upon her would do a double-take. Her left eye was whole and perfect, full of life and resolve. Her right eye was gone, taken years ago. In its place was a pearl-like facsimile. Over that eye ran a vertical scar from her maneline down to her jaw line. This marred her beauty, but in a way almost poetic. A wide lock of mane was draped artfully over the false eye, partially concealing it. Certainly, her ruined eye drew stares, but stallions found themselves holding their breath as she glided past them, her baggage in tow within the grasp of her magic. Three suitcases and a carry-on was in addition to her saddle bags. A porter offered to take them off her hooves, but she brushed him off with a simple shake of her head and a flipped bit in his direction.
A pair of sunglasses lifted effortlessly from her right saddlebag and was put on with a content sigh.
The mare thought of the reason why she was here. Ah, yes, a contract. She had sent another letter, coded, of course. The price was generous, the offer good. The client had asked for her services before, and she had delivered both times. There were others who used her skills, who paid her fees. She had enough in her for one more job.
She quivered in anticipation, shivering in the sun as a stallion approached. He was pale, with a brown mane. He wore a blue uniform, complete with a white pith helmet. In its center was mounted a badge of authority, with some numbers beneath the word ‘CONSTABLE’.
This was new.
“Good day, madame,” greeted the stallion apologetically. “I must apologize as I need to check to see your papers.”
She stopped, regarding the nervous stallion with her good eye. “Oh? Of course. Might I inquire as to why?”
“Haven’t you heard?” the stallion asked. The mare shook her head. “Well, yesterday was Prince Reign Cloud’s birthday. He had a private celebration with his family. Today, he shares his birthday with all of the Crystal Empire!” His tone changed as he swelled up with pride.
“How nice,” she said, pulling the requested documents from her pack. “Ah, here we go.” She hoofed them over and smiled. “I would assume such a public showing of the prince would need the right security.”
“Well, given the number of attempts on his life and the sparse times he’s been seen publicly, the Royal Family can’t be too careful.” He cheerily began to leaf through her travel papers. As the Crystal Empire was considered an independent ally of Equestria, passports were needed, mostly due to criminals thinking they can find refuge in this new country.
“What sort of celebration is going to be held?” she asked curiously. “More presents for the prince? I find that a bit excessive.”
“Oh, nothing of the sort!” chortled the stallion, looking up from his examination for a moment. “The prince gives toys out to every colt and filly who comes to the party. It’s for the citizens and guests of the Crystal Empire!” He resumed scrutinizing every detail within her official papers.
“That’s...different,” admitted the mare, a bit shocked, but not surprised. Ponies always were doing strange things in the Crystal Empire. “Is it some sort of charity?”
“Oh, not in the least, Miss… Emerald Spire?” The stallion looked up. “THE Emerald Spire?”
“Is something wrong?”
He blushed a little beneath his furry cheeks. “Oh, nothing. What is a fashion model like you doing here? My wife spent years trying to wear the clothing lines you modeled for.”
Emerald Spire chuckled lightly, flushing beneath her dark fur. “Oh, I haven’t done any of that since my accident,” she said, lifting up her sunglasses slightly and presenting her right eye. “This more or less ended my career.”
“Oh, Celestia!” The constable blanched and winced. “I apologize,” he said, averting his eyes back to his duties.
“Pish-posh!” she cried in good humor. “There is more to life than posing for cameras in questionable attire!” The stallion blushed again, clearing his throat. Emerald then asked, “Have you heard of Prince Shining Armor’s efforts in acquiring a professional hoofball team?”
He nodded eagerly as he hoofed back her passport. “I have! I used to follow the Marauders in Manehatten before calls for experienced law enforcement was sent out by Princess Cadence. The Guard simply was not enough.”
She placed it back into her saddlebag. “Not enough?”
“I am an unarmed peacekeeper, Miss Emerald Spire,” he said unabashedly. “My job is to be a visible presence without being seen as a threat. I do apologize, but I can’t really spend time explaining you our short history.” He smiled, almost embarassed.
She believed him. “I apologize for keeping you from your duties, Constable…?”
“Equal Eye, ma’am.”
“You’ve been more than professional in your job, Constable Equal Eye.”
He gave her another nod and a genuine smile. Half-turning, Equal Eye paused and gave her an almost hopeful look. “Do you think you’ve got a good chance of bringing us a team?”
She replied with a half grin and a wink, “We’ll see. I’m not the only one interested in backing a potential franchise. It’s an enormous amount of work.” Her research into the matter had turned out to be a nightmare. Why would anypony want to own a sports team?
“Well, thank you and good luck!” called the stallion. He turned, smiling, and went off to check another pony’s passport. He was already on the next one within moments.
She moved on, her hooves carrying her deeper into the Crystal City. There was a tourist information booth up ahead and she decided to stop by for a map. There were a lot of ponies milling around it, as well as a couple of griffons. A zebra was looking at a large public map while holding a translation book in a hoof. She glanced up at the board, then down to her book, her lips moving silently as her brows creased in concentration.
Emerald ignored her and fished out one of the countless maps offered freely to newcomers to the fair city a thousand years behind the rest of the world. Her luggage was still hovering behind her as she pursed her lips, browsing through a list of hotels conveniently printed on the back of the map. There were attractions and other points of interest listed, but her journey had been long. The trip from Manehatten alone took four days. The unicorn sorely wanted a room and a nice, soft bed. Oh, and a bath! A lovely, long bath with all the scents and lotions to make a girl relax.
Curious of the revelation this was a sort of national holiday centered on the birth of a young royal, Emerald Spire decided to find a hotel, freshen up, then go see what this celebration was all about. It was still early in the morning, somewhere between lunch and breakfast. She never bothered to check the time until her eyes sought out and found a tower clock above the train station. It was just past nine, she discovered. Luckily, there was also a schedule of events pertaining to the public celebration of Prince Reign Cloud’s birth.
As she strode in a stately manner in the general direction of the hotels, she eyed the events planned for today. Indeed, when she did look up from her reading, there was bunting and balloons of bright colors. The atmosphere was festive. Vendors sold all sorts of food, most of which was probably not considered a healthy fare. The smells assaulted the unicorn’s nostrils, an aroma of guilty pleasure and the promise of too much sugar and a great number of empty calories. She noted with a wry smile how many foals raced past her, shouting and hooting, some bearing balloons tied to their tails. Not able to stop herself, she purchased a funnel cake coated with powdered sugar and fresh strawberries. It would go straight to her flanks and thighs, of course, but smelling the decadent indulgence overrode her self restraint.
It was gone by the time she made it to the hotel she had settled on, but still made it’s previous presence known by a minute amount of powdered sugar left on her muzzle. The Crystal Comfort was a recent renovation, based on the facade. It was bright and inviting...and morbidly expensive. A door pony in a red suit opened the door for Emerald and she passed through with a nod of thanks to the freckled colt.
The main lobby was breathtaking: The brightest and most perfectly cut crystals made up the pillars supporting the ceiling and ten floors above it. The unicorn was impressed, finding everything opulent and very expensive. She needed to impress and this expensive hotel would suffice. Her stay was for an indeterminate amount of time. There were things to do and she planned on no more than two months at the most.
She made her way to the service desk, where an older mare with her mane in a bun smiled at her as she approached.
“Good morning, ma’am. Welcome to the Crystal Comfort!” chimed the mare in welcome. “How can I help you?”
“Have you any rooms available?” Emerald asked, returning the smile.
“Have you a reservation?”
“Should be under the name Spiral,” she answered.
“One moment, please, Miss Spiral.”
“Of course! No rush, so long as everything is proper and in order.” Emerald set her baggage down next to her and doffed her hat and adjusted her scarf. She hoped the scarf had not wrinkled. Silk could crease.
“Ah, here you are, Miss Spiral,” announced the mare. “You reserved the Royal Suite?”
“I did indeed!” she still wore her smile, allowing it to grow larger.
“If you would be so kind as to sign in, please?” The mare turned the register and held a pen out for Emerald to take. The unicorn took it gently with her magic and signed where she needed to, then hoofed the quill back to the still-smiling mare. As she did so, the mare behind the counter waved over a bell hop. A rather large and burly young Crystal pony trotted over, dressed in red to include his black, bellhop cap with gold braid trim.
“Royal Suite it is!” the mare hoofed over the key with a smile as the ledger was returned. “Enjoy your stay, Miss Emerald Spire.”
A luggage cart was soon holding the unicorn’s possessions as an elevator was taken to the top floor. She was shown her room and found it perfectly suitable for her needs. Emerald gave the bell hop a few bits after he showed her everything and thanked him. Once she was alone, she considered a few things thoughtfully. She had options and she had time before meeting her potential client for further instructions. Perhaps she could study this festival in detail, as it was certainly a more recent addition to the list of holidays on the pony calendar.
“Should I change?” she wondered aloud, casting her eye to the walls and the ceiling of her living room. There was also a large bedroom with a walk-in closet, a small but full kitchen, a very large bathroom with a luxury bath fit for a king, and a small garden complete with a koi pond outside.
Of all the most expensive hotels rooms she could choose from, Emerald had spared no expense. And why not? She deserved it after all of her hard work. The mare busied herself to putting her things away, anticipating an extended stay. Once she was satisfied everything was where she wanted it, she stepped out on the garden enshrouded roof of the hotel. She made her way to the edge where a white rail served as a barrier. As she did so, with her floated along the list of events. The sounds of the crowd and the various music of the festival wafted up above the streets, creating a happy background for the mare. Emerald tilted her attention towards the castle. There was a flow of ponies and other beings streaming to and from it, going between vendors and rides and shops. Joy filled the air.
She noted there were few changelings in the area below her. Curious, she thought there should be more about. Perhaps she should look into this? It might be nothing, as changelings tended to keep to themselves rather than mix with prey species.
“Feh, something for later,” she said aloud, startling a pigeon. She followed the flight of the bird impassively before returning her stare upon the castle.
Oh, the world knew of the adopted son of Princess Cadence and Shining Armor. The tabloids loved him. All sorts of made-up stories circulated about the young colt. Emerald had amused herself in the past by picking up copies and reading the stories. She was sure most of them had to be false. To be able to lay eyes on him for herself added to her curiosity. Most curious was the very idea of Prince Reign Cloud would give presents to subjects of his generation. According to the pamphlet she had picked up from the visitor center, there would be a banquet tonight in the castle. All would be welcome within the walls of the palace. Games and food and music; everything needed for a proper birthday.
Emerald was impressed, if a bit put off at such generosity. As she stared at the castle, her mind worked, reasoning out certain things in her mind. Clucking her tongue against the back of her teeth, she pursed her lips and snorted with a flare of her nostrils. She could practically feel the celebration on the streets below. All of the city was alive with happiness.
The mare decided to do a little exploring, as she had several hours before main events would unfold. It was rare she could afford the opportunity to relax and simply take in the sights. Perhaps she could see a changeling or two. There was a changeling district here, so she could assume the primary inhabitants of the city were more or less used to them. She was curious as to the nature of the changeling community. There was none other in the world quite like this one and so far as she knew, the only one known publicly to exist.
Shortly after, she found herself back on the streets, gliding through the pockets of ponies lost in their own navigation of the streets. Emerald took a moment to find her bearings, her hat and sunglasses once again in place before setting her legs to cruise in the general direction of the castle.
It did not take long for her to figure most visitors to the Crystal City were from Equestria. They didn’t exactly have overwhelming numbers, but other races were few and far between. Equines dominated the streets, going about their business. There was the odd griffon here and there, but little else. Most other races found the journey inhospitable unless they took the lone railway from Equestria.
Small herds of laughing foals raced past her legs, dragging behind them balloons and a yapping and excited puppy. She watched them until they disappeared into the crowd, their squeals of laughter sounding through the din of ponies. Emerald’s eyes followed the balloons until they turned a corner and past a chromatic-maned pegasus mare talking animatedly with somepony the unicorn couldn’t see.
She had considered having lunch in the hotel’s café, but the funnel cake had stoked the desire for more carnival fare, much to the chagrin of her flanks. Festivals like the one encompassing the seeming entirety of the city (it was in truth filling six city blocks, including one of the largest public parks in the Crystal City) offered a wide variety of food. Most of it was in one form or another fried. Almost none was for those with healthier eating habits.
Emerald Spiral was certain she would regret the extra pounds, but a girl was allowed to indulge every now and again, wasn’t she? With a hitch in her step and steel in her nerves, she spied out the food vendors and spotted one with a colorful sign proclaiming ‘Fried Caramel Bars’ and ‘Fried S’mores’ among the delectable delights available. Just thinking about them gave the sensation of teeth rotting and falling out of her gums.
“Why not?” she sighed, knowing she was going to hate herself in the mirror.
Some hours later, her hooves were sore and her belly was full of the sorts of food no fashion model (retired or otherwise) would be caught dead devouring. Having enjoyed herself, she took the time to study the demeanor of the inhabitants of the city while traversing through the party. Some well-placed questions with some of the residents at their booths filled her in with the details of why this celebration had been set.
Prince Reign Cloud was turning ten this day. He was a full decade into his young life, a milestone Princess Mi Amore Cadenza felt warranted sharing with her beloved subjects. It was also a tactical attempt at winning the hearts and minds of a small nation already enamoured with her and her husband.
There was even a wife-tossing contest Emerald had witnessed in its entirety. For almost an hour, she witnessed stallions attempt to throw their wives over a heavily padded range, knocking down as many suspended foam hearts as possible. Points were determined by a combination of distance, number of hearts knocked down, and style as judged by a panel of seven ponies in various stages of inebriation. The waves of laughter from the crowd with each toss was followed up by either a cheer or groan, depending on the effort taken in the stallion hurling his beloved like an unwanted boulder. It was even funnier if the husband and wife bickered at each other if the attempt was particularly poor.
The grounds upon which the contest was held was a portion of the park with a stretch of a hundred yards. Bleachers were set along both sides of the selected field, with colorful arches thirty yards high bearing multi-colored pennants flapping gently in the breeze. They had begun to fill as soon as the contest had been announced.
A changeling pair tried to enter, but was met with some hesitation as it was the mare who wanted to throw her husband. Considering her size in relation to her mate’s, it was allowed. The changeling mare was enormous and carried herself with a calm confidence. She was easily much larger than her stallion and they had four hatchlings to cheer them on. Rather, they ‘chirped’ their parents on.
Emerald could tell the non-residents of the city were uncomfortable with the sudden entry of a pair of changelings (some had outright horrified looks), but the ponies comfortable with the changeling pair began to grumble at the judges, most of them in favor of allowing them to participate. By the time the decided to accept the unexpected pair, those who had an issue with their presence had either left or fainted dead from the sight of them. They were neatly stacked off to the side under the shade of a tree and watched over by a bemused old stallion gumming the stem of a worn old pipe.
“Tourists,” he grumbled, giving the unconscious ponies the stinkeye.
Emerald caught herself giggling before turning with some interest at the sight before her: a changeling mare instructing her attentive husband in whispers into his ear in detail. He nodded, eyeballing the foam hearts dangling from hooks at the end of colorful bits of string. Both bore grim expressions of seasoned warriors determined to make a heroic last stand. Their bounding brood at their hooves made it all the more comical, given the festive air around them.
Finally, they assumed their wife-tossing positions (in this case, husband-tossing). The mare placed her hooves in the placement marked for all the previous contestants, her husband dutifully at her side. She then licked the end of a forehoof and stuck it in the air. There was very little breeze. Satisfied (after the amused tittering of the onlookers), she simply grabbed her husband, reared back on her hind legs, cocked her husband over her head with her front legs, and with a mighty heave, sent him flying like a clown out of a canon.
He screamed like a madpony, as his wife put a bit too much into the throw and angled him a bit too high in the eyes of the onlookers. The stallion went through the string, arching at an angle beneath what most other contestants had gone through. Their children watched in silent and open-mouthed amazement. Their father unintentionally gathered string, hearts falling as he passed through with impressive speed. He did not use his wings, and on his downward arc, closed his eyes shut as his body gathered more and more string that broke off from the arches they dangled from. There was a soft ‘thump’ as he sank into the deep cushions on the ground.
He arose from the soft crater completely disoriented and covered in string. Once he got his bearings and figured what he was entangled with, he sighed and glared at his uproariously laughing better half. Half the stands were filled with laughing onlookers while the other half simply gaped at the display of raw power.
“Yamir, come out of there!” commanded the mare as she wiped tears from her eyes.
Like a proud, disoriented peacock, the changeling stallion hauled himself out of the cushioned pit, accepted hooves offered to him. The four hatchlings buzzed over to him, nuzzling their father and excitedly recapping what they saw with their own eyes. They never stopped bouncing as they smiled in awe at the changeling. The big mare lazily flew over to him, still chuckling as her significant other gave her a mock glare. She landed, looked him over carefully, giggled for a few moments despite his withering glare, and straightened. Both adults looked at the judges to see their scores.
They flashed some numbers, their purpose Emerald could only get a gist of. One was for the number of hearts knocked down, the other might have been for distance. A third one might represent style points. There were four other numbers, their purpose escaping the unicorn. From the hoof stomping of the audience, it was an enjoyable spectacle.
Yamir plucked at the string entangled to his body with a hoof and sighed.
Having seen enough, Emerald Spire adjusted her hat and her sunglasses and disappeared into the passing crowds, making her way in the general direction of the changeling district. She was curious to see if they were inclined to share their own celebratory moods with the other races. It was clear the Crystal ponies didn’t seem to mind the young prince being a half breed, but how were the changelings taking his existence?
Her curiosity piqued, Emerald flicked her tail and paused long enough to consult her map one more time. They city’s layout was round, like a great wheel, the areas between the spokes were labelled. The changeling district was in between the same spokes as the temple grounds, though on the outer part of the section. As she moved along, she caught subtle movement along her peripheral line of sight to her left. She glanced, finding the chromatic maned pegasus again, this time with an orange earth pony wearing a stetson and a pink earth pony busy feeding ice cream to a pair of foals. Shrugging to herself, Emerald moved on.
Eventually she left the celebration behind and found herself traversing streets lined with homes. There were few ponies here, mostly going about their business. Emerald figured so long as she was going with the spires of the temples to her right, she would eventually make her way to the changeling district. She noted the neighborhood was a touch below middle class; not exactly at the middle income bracket nor was it something considered impoverished. The homes were small and neat for the most part, rows upon rows of three story houses on either side of the street. Some had small front yards barely big enough to fit no more than three ponies. Some had been converted to lovely little flower gardens.
More than a few stallions openly ogled her.
She ignored them, but smiled to herself as she kept the map out for reference. The unicorn wasn’t worried about being mugged, not in this city. After a string of incidents some years ago, the Crystal Guard had taken steps to stamp out the unexpected violence. With the help of the changelings living in the city, they were quite successful, though petty crimes were still common. As there were few unicorns residing in the Crystal City. Not surprisingly, most were nobles, just like in Canterlot. Unlike the capital of Equestria, here there were quite a few Crystal pony noble families, more so than even the unicorns.
Spurred by curiosity and a desire to spend her free time satisfying it, she could barely hear the sounds of the festival behind her as she came out from one of the narrow streets and beheld one of the wider avenues; a spoke of the city’s wheel. Here, there were small parks dividing the two sections. She could make out a few dark forms flitting about, chirping sounds and buzzing noises no pony could make sounded in her swiveling ears. There they were, changelings.
Changeling vendors on street corners hawked fruits and vegetables, calling out to passers-bye by vibrating their wings invitingly, making loud and strange vibrating sounds. Some were sitting in the park and as Emerald passed by them, gave her a glancing interest before returning to their own business. Most ponies would consider a changeling a rather hideous creature, especially a sheltered pony. Just a look at one and any pony would understand a changeling was a predator. It was not uncommon for a pony to flee in fear upon sighting one of the shape-shifters or faint dead away.
Here was a thriving community in the middle of a pony city.
Changeling mares watched their hatchlings as they played in the park. Some even had pony friends who played with them. They were few indeed, as Emerald imagined most colts and fillies were playing the games offered at the festival and going on the rides offered there. There seemed to be plenty of adult supervision.
An old pair of changeling stallions playing chess took notice of the mare and grinned at her shamelessly. Both were missing most of their teeth and had chitin grayed with age.
“Lost, filly?” asked the taller of the two, his head wobbling on his thin neck. “Don’t get no unicorns ‘round here. Not many here in the Crystal City to begin with.”
His partner snorted and glowered at him. “Feck! You numbskull! First nice tail we see all day and you get all creepy-like on her!” He was a dumpy looking old coot, with one fang missing. “Don’t pay Feck no mind, miss unicorn.”
“No offense taken,” she said, amused greatly by the two. “At least you know a pretty mare when you see one.”
Feck laughed. It was of the wheezing sort, which alarmed Emerald enough to think he would keel over and die from the effort. “Me and Nort here just like the ladies. You smell nice, too.”
His companion sniffed at her. “Yeah, you do smell nice. Don’t normally get any ponies that smell quite like you.” He eyed the chess board with spite and made an aggressive move with a pawn. “Check! Ha! I got you today, Feck! You’re going down!” he crowed with grotesque delight.
“Nevermind the game for a minute. Mare in distress!” the old changeling charged, thrusting a hoof at Emerald. “Focus!”
Feck ran his tongue over his worn fangs, then threw an appreciating stare along her full length. “Focusing!” he chirped with greedy eyes on Emerald.
Distress? “I’m not—” The unicorn noted the stallion with the wobbly neck was drooling while he stared at her. “Focus harder,” she warned. “Eyes on eyes. Be a nice boy.”
Nort rolled his eyes and shook a hoof at his friend. “Be respectful, you dirty old stallion! I swear, pretty tail goes by and you think you’re a colt again! Be nice to her and she might stick around long enough for the both of us to remember her the rest of our days!”
The unicorn sighed. “Go back to your game, gentlecolts. I’ll ask somepony who’s not inclined to be an old and lecherous foal.”
Nort shrugged, going back to his game and moving his bishop, removing the pawn holding his king in check. He turned back to Emerald. “Me and Feck, we know everyling in this city, from those like us who were here for the King of Shadows to the refugees who fled the civil wars that’ve been raging for the past ten years. You can take that check and shove it where the sun don’t shine, Feck!” he cried.
“Cheating old son of a gelded mule!” snorted Feck in a mumble.
“King of Shadows?” Emerald asked curiously.
“Sombra,” both old changelings answered in unison. Nort added, “The King of Mean, Pooper of Parties, and Bane of the Sisters.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Beaten by a stallion throwing his wife,” chortled Nort, suddenly laughing the moment the words left his old lips. Both old stallions were hooting uproariously as they played the image in their minds. “Saw it with my own eyes! Plain as day! Shining Armor, he just lifted that pretty wife of his and zinged her at Sombra. Blew him to smithereens!”
Feck shook his head. “You idiot, he threw Cady at the falling lizard holding the Crystal Heart. Get it right!” He made a futile swat at his friend’s head.
Emerald was greatly amused by these two friends, probably having known each other for generations. “I take it the both of you were here a thousand years ago?” she asked.
“Yep!” said Nort.
“I was born here. I’ll die here,” proclaimed Feck proudly.
“Might I ask who’s in charge of you changelings?” Emerald asked, tilting her head to one side. “I’ve heard of the priestess, but from what I’ve heard, changelings don’t follow the clergy. Don’t you have a queen?”
Both old stallions stared at each other in silence. “Well,” Feck began, licking his lips as Nort moved his rook. He glared at him. “That’s a stupid move, Nort.” The two glared at each other for a few seconds before Feck resumed his explaination. “We get spiritual guidance from Zeala. She ain’t the bad sort, I don’t think, but she’s creepy-like. As for a queen?” He scratched the back of his neck. “I suppose that would be Wilda. She’s not officially our queen, but it’s more or less fallen on her shoulders by default, what with her being the only brood mare. You know about brood mares, don’t you?” he asked.
Emerald nodded. “Yes. Aren’t they the largest of the females of your kind?”
Nort sighed wistfully. “The afterlife is full of brood mares just a-waitin’ for me. And that wasn’t a stupid move, Feck, you idjit! You just don’t know my strategy!”
“Been the same damn thing for the past thousand damned years,” retorted Feck. He moved his knight. “Check.”
“Where might I find this Wilda? Does she hold court? Is it open to anypony?”
Feck and Nort gave her a blank look.
“She doesn’t have a palace,” said Feck slowly, blinking as he went. “She’s got a flower shop on the corner of Obsidian and Snowflake. No petitioners or anything of that sort. Just a meeting every Wednesday where those who are interested gather down in the old Glory Theater and voice whatever concerns we got. Wilda just keeps things from going outta control. Her and those friends of hers. Makes everyone feel like a gaggle of hatchlings when the politics get too lively.” Both old stallions began giggling in a disturbing manner.
“It’s a sight to see when she gets mad!” laughed Nort.
A queen running a flower shop? How strange! “Where might I find this flower shop?” she asked. “I’m not familiar with the streets.”
“If you’re going to go to her flower shop, you’d better buy something. She’s a business mare and doesn’t really care for ponies nosing around, asking questions, and not helping out her business,” Feck said with complete seriousness. “She works full time, has a house full of hatchlings, and has no time for nonsense.”
Nort moved his queen and took Feck’s knight. “Yeah, she gets mad when you don’t buy anything from her shop.” He half-turned in his seat and pointed at a street corner where a vendor was selling cabbages. “Go down that street there two blocks, then go left one. You can’t miss it. Wilda’s shop is called Wilda’s Flowers. If the sign don’t warn you, the huge greenhouse next to the shop should tip you off.”
“And don’t worry about us changelings,” quipped Feck as his head wobbled. “We don’t bite.”
“Thank you, gentlecolts,” Emerald said to them graciously. “I won’t disturb you from your game any longer. Have a wonderful day!” She smiled and went on her way, feeling their eyes on her flanks.
“In the name of love, Feck, would you look at that!” she heard behind her.
“I’m looking! I’m looking! Oh, checkmate, you ignorant sack of manure!”
“You filthy, stinking cheater! You cheating stinker!”
Dirty old stallions! She fought the blush creeping up in her cheeks and picked up her stately pace a bit. It was nice to have stallions appreciate her beauty, but this was a bit much even for her. Emerald Spire was far from a prude, but then again, old stallions simply didn’t give two bucks what others thought of them and said what was on their minds.
She went by the changeling selling cabbages to a rather thin shape-shifting mare bearing a small hatchling in her pouch. The little thing blinked up at Emerald from between his mother’s legs. When she drew too close, he withdrew into his mother’s pouch shyly, his chirps muffled as he barked. The unicorn thought it was one of the most adorable things she had ever seen, though the mother did hiss at her a warning. She then went back to purchasing her vegetables while Emerald gave her a respectful distance and an apologetic smile.
She trotted on.
Following the instructions to the letter, she soon found herself facing a rather ordinary building with a simple sign over the door with the name of the business. The storefront windows had a lovely display of vibrant colors as freshly cut flowers were arranged in a variety of vases. Some were ceramic, others glass. A changeling filly was sweeping the walk with a wicker broom. She had to be no more than eleven or twelve years old. Another one, slightly older was re-arranging the flowers in the window. A very young colt was checking the plants for water as he buzzed about slowly on his wings, his face scrunched in concentration to his task.
A customer exited the store, smiling as a very large bouquet of roses was in his magical grasp. “Good luck on your date, Mr. Chip!” called out a friendly voice from within.
Emerald was not expecting this. Hatchlings were running the business? Where were the adults? She spent at least a half an hour watching the front of the store, not really wanting to go in as she had hoped to see who the proprietor was. This Wilda seemed a very important changeling. As it was, she had found a bench across the street and had settled into it, using the tourist map from the information center. After a while, the filly who had been sweeping the sidewalk came out of the store and cautiously made her way across the street and towards the unicorn.
“Ma’am, are you lost?” she asked timidly.
“No,” she said simply, smiling at the little filly.
“Why are you staring at our store?” She stayed a safe distance from the unicorn, staring at her right eye. Emerald made no effort to conceal her old injury.
“Debating.”
“Debating what?”
“Flowers.”
The filly blinked in confusion. “You can come in our store and see what we have. Are you afraid of us changelings? You wouldn’t be the first tourist to be afraid of us. They sometimes get lost and wind up here. Most run away. Why aren’t you running away?”
The unicorn shrugged. “I’m not afraid. I was also told if I go into your store, that I should buy something. I’m afraid I don’t know if I want to buy anything. It’s a nice, sunny day and you have pretty flowers in the window. So I am debating if I want to go into your store or not.”
“Oh,” said the filly, even more confused now. “Okay. See you.” She backed away from Emerald, her expression suggesting through her fake smile there was a crazy pony in the street.
After a while, Emerald decided the owner of the store was not going to present herself any time soon, which led her to believe she was not available. Her ploy to try and draw the mare out had been fruitless, but she was far from discouraged. There was plenty of time. She glanced up at the position of the sun, gauged the length of the shadows on the ground, and decided to head for the castle. The prince would be showing himself soon and she wanted to see him.