Plan B

by Dropbear


Food Fight


Chrysalis stared at the mountain ahead of them, her thoughts still on the fight that had happened an hour ago. The burnt forest had given way to rocks once again, the area generally barren save for a few hardy mountain shrubs.

The entire group was sitting down and waiting for Nigel to finish washing his armour and hands, the human smelling of dragon gore right up until they had found a small stream. None of the nobles had even spoken to him during the walk, and the bat-ponies were keeping to themselves more than usual. He didn’t seem to mind, strolling along as usual without seeming to care about the fact that he had nearly become flame-grilled human.

Chrysalis herself didn’t know what to feel. On one hoof she’d faced one of her great fears, and had even defeated it with a shot through the heart, but on the other she was seriously double-guessing Nigel’s behaviour. Granted, she’d seen him be violent before, but this time there was no remorse or even acknowledgement that he’d done something.

She didn’t pretend that she was a good changeling at heart, but she couldn’t help but shudder at the memory of Nigel beating a dragon to death while calmly lecturing the creature.

The enthusiastic gem-retrieval efforts didn’t exactly help ease her fears, either.

The clacking of metal on rocks drew her attention, Chrysalis looking down to her left. It was the bat-pony leader, Beams or something along those lines. The pony was looking up at her awkwardly, and Chrysalis could feel Beams’ eyesight often rest on her horn.

“Your Majesty,” the pony softly greeted with an awkward cough. Chrysalis could see that she had one of her legs raised off of the ground. “I… uh, I’d just like to say thanks for the whole… dragon-thing. I was sure that I was going to be burnt to a crisp.”

Chrysalis stared at her without speaking, the bat-pony leader lowering her ears before beginning to back away.

“I’ll… I’ll give you some time to… yeah.”

With that, the mare turned and limped back to her comrades. Watching her the whole time, Chrysalis caught the looks that all of the wary looks that the foreigners were giving her. Glancing towards her own nobles sitting off to the side, her eye twitched when she saw the exact same looks from them as well.

Focusing back on her own forehooves, she didn’t even notice the sound of splashing water cease until a wet hand placed itself on her withers.

“You okay there, Chrissy? You seem a little out of it.”

Looking up into the blue optic of the black helmet, she sighed. “I suppose I am. I just need some time to gather my thoughts.” Grimacing, she hesitated before asking the next question. “And how are you?”

Nigel took a deep breath, Chrysalis knowing that underneath his helmet was a large smile. “Never better, to be honest. Out in the wild, exploring the world with the grandkids and you, fighting dragons and taking names… it’s glorious.” He paused when she stared at him. “What?”

“I think I just need some time to gather my thoughts,” she repeated, Nigel thankfully taking the hint without apparent issue.

“Sure, I have to check up on the guides anyway. Let me know when you’re good to go again, we both need to be in tip-top form once we get to the city.”

Chrysalis watched him walk away towards the bat-ponies, wondering if she may have bitten off a little more than she could chew.


‘She’s probably just shaky from the fight,’ Nigel reasoned, leaving Chrysalis in peace. ‘She never really was that good at hiding her emotions.’

He stopped thinking about Chrysalis’ behaviour when the bat-ponies saw him and turned. Approaching them, he slowed and sat down on a large rock with a few meters to spare. The five were sitting on their packs in a tight cluster, and he noticed that the mare who’d initially been caught by the dragons was staring down at her rear hooves. The bat-ponies all drew closer when he sat, two in particular putting their wings protectively around the unresponsive one.

“Hi all,” he greeted, not missing the winces at his voice. “How you all holding up?”

There was silence for a few moments, before Diplomat Beams glanced around at her fellows.

“We’re all alive and un-cooked,” she answered, then gestured at the one in the middle of the group. “Belfry’s a bit shaken up, but she’ll be ready to move shortl-“

“I’m fine to go now,” Belfry suddenly spoke up, getting to her hooves and lifting up her pack.

Beams gave her a concerned look. “Are you sure?"

“I’m sure,” came the grumbled reply. “Pretty much all of this is kind of my fault anyway.”

Nigel didn’t comment on that, instead he stood up and made to return to Chrysalis. Obviously he wasn’t needed, and he was sensing some underlying problems within the diplomatic group that were probably best left to them to sort out.

“Okay then, lead the way.”

Walking back, he paused when the trotting of hooves followed him. Glancing to his left, he slowed to allow Beams to speak.

“Thank you for giving those gems to the dragons. I don’t think they were joking when they made all of those threats towards Belfry.” She glanced back to her group. “She didn’t say it, but she’s thankful that you did as well.”

“It’s all good,” he waved a hand in dismissal. “No harm has been done apart to the dragons, and we’ve still got all of our gems and silver. Besides, without you bat-ponies we wouldn’t even have left the hive and even thought to travel to your city. On that note, I should probably also thank you for the opening you gave Chrysalis. You’re braver than me, going in without any armour at all.”

He left out the fact that the dragon’s fire was unlikely to harm him through his armour, happy to let the pony leader have that one.

Beams was looking at him strangely, her eyes narrowed with confusion.

“That’s fine as well,” she mumbled, halting before they reached the Queen. “I better be heading back to lead us on, but we’re nearly at the city.”

Shrugging when she left, he returned to Chrysalis just as she was getting to her hooves.

Nigel once again caught a flash of confusion on Beam’s face, before the diplomat turned on her hooves and trotted off. Shrugging it away, he returned to the still-silent Chrysalis and gave the seated queen a pat on the shoulder. “Good to go?”

“I suppose,” Chrysalis mumbled, getting to her hooves. “It does mean that we can leave this horrible place.” A shuffling to their right caught their attention, the nobles all getting up as well. Nigel frowned when Chrysalis glared at the ten. “Hurry up, we’re leaving!”

“Hey, no need to snap at-“

“Nigel, not now!”

He jerked his hand back at the sudden snarl she directed at him, Chrysalis’ sudden swing in mood far more startling than the fangs she bared. The area was quiet save for the faint chirping of a single bird in the sky above, Chrysalis continuing to glare at him.

Nigel resisted the urge to engage her back, moving his right hand behind his back so Chrysalis couldn’t see him clench it into a fist.

“Someone’s cranky,” he muttered after taking a few seconds to relax, before he turned and ambled off towards the ten nobles. She didn’t say anything as he left, although he could still feel her stare on his back.

He reached the ten changelings just as the bat-ponies, previously having been watching Chrysalis’ outburst, started to clamber over the rocks with the mountain being their apparent goal. Chrysalis followed the bat-ponies without pause, Nigel waiting for the others to move before bringing up the rear.

He walked over the rocks without much difficulty, his helmet attached to his side. The sun was rising in the sky but thankfully the heat had yet to set in, although the bed-sheet toga that he was wearing underneath his armour no longer felt as comfortable as it once did. Pausing in an attempt to resettle it, he looked up when he heard hoofsteps on the rock.

Expecting Reflection given the fact that she had so far been the most welcoming, he was instead surprised to find that it wasn’t her. There was no healing crack in the side of the newcomer’s chitin, and it took him a moment to identify the short female.

Recognising Holey due to the noticeably plumper frame compared to her fellows, he raised an eye when she hesitantly approached and waited for him. Resuming his walking, she moved alongside and matched his pace without a word.

It took her a few minutes to find what she wanted to say, Nigel deliberately lagging behind but still keeping the main group in sight.

“So… how’s things?”

Nigel had to hold in a chuckle at that attempt to start a conversation, Holey immediately folding her ears down while muttering to herself.

“Stupid… what was I thinking?” Clearing her throat, she tried again. “Uh, I mean I heard you and Chrysalis fighting before. Are things not going well?”

“Really?” Nigel replied, not even bothering to correct Holey’s failure to use Chrysalis’ title. “What ever, ever gave it away?” She folded her ears down again, causing him to sigh and elaborate. “Look, Chrysalis is obviously moody, and she kind of has been since I came back. It’s all up and down with her at the moment.”

“Well, it’s a bit better than her just being mean all of the time like she used to be.”

“Yeah, well it’s not like I’m not making an effort to keep her happy and all.” He noticed the stare, and folded his arms across his chest. “What? I have been.”

Holey paused to jump up onto a large boulder in her path, looking at him all the while. “You did just… kill a dragon a few hours ago, and then… cut it open.”

“She also killed one.”

“Well, yes,” Holey shuddered. “But she didn’t seem to, and please don’t be mad, enjoy it. It was very disturbing for all of us.” She kicked a pebble, her head hung low. “Changelings aren’t the nicest creatures by nature, but that was…”

“A bit much?” Holey nodded, Nigel glancing up to look ahead of them. He could just make out Chrysalis sulking at the head of the other nine nobles, all of them currently traversing a slope of loose pebbles. “Well, to be perfectly honest she’s seen me do far worse before.” Despite his excuse, her words did make him think.

‘Maybe it’s not what I did,’ he thought, recalling that Chrysalis had also taken down a scaly attacker. ‘She was pretty nervous about dragons as well.’

Shrugging, he decided to just pass it off for now. After waiting for Holey to scramble over another rock, he tried to put his mind off Chrysalis and move on to a different line of conversation.

“I appreciate the attempts, Holey, but I think that me and her just need to keep on adjusting to all of the changes. I’ll try leaving her alone for the next few hours or so, let her sought it all out with herself.” He kicked a rock, watching as it clattered down. “So I’ll hang back until we reach the city, then I suppose I’ll have to make sure she doesn’t just go and order all of the bat-ponies to be strung up from the roof in… cocoons I think she called them.” He paused, looking down at Holey. “Do you guys really do that, by the way?”

Holey’s hesitation answered that question before she had a chance to speak. “…rarely.”

Nigel shook his head at that, a chuckle escaping him despite his past words with Chrysalis. Normal people would probably find the concept of hanging living creatures from the roof to feed off their emotions appalling, but he honestly found it an amusing way to store one’s food.

Ignoring Holey’s once-again confused look, he wiped his nose before asking her another question.

“Well, it looks like you’re planning on sticking around me for a while. I’d have thought that you would have been following Cupid around, based on what I’ve been told.”

“I’m sure everyone has been telling you everything about the others,” Holey mumbled, before she sighed. “I… I’m the youngest of all of the lines, a year into adulthood, and that’s never a good thing when you’re a changeling. The higher you are means the more changelings you can boss around. I’m a noble and part of the Queen’s favoured bloodlines, but even then I’m the youngest out of the ten.”

She paused speaking in order to swerve around another boulder. “Sure, Cupid’s not the nicest out of everyone and I have to act kind of mean to stay friends with her, but she’s the second-oldest and can protect me from the others.”

“Protect you from the others? Why? So far, only Cupid has really been an issue in my experience.”

“Yeah, well you’re big and scary-looking,” Holey huffed. “Plus, you’re the consort-“

“Please refrain from calling me that.”

“-of the Queen,” she finished after his interruption. “So you’re higher socially than all of us as well. It’s not really an issue for me most of the time, but it can get really bad sometimes. Buzz used to take half of all of my love rations when we were little, as long as the nurses and Chrysalis weren’t watching.” Holey looked down at her forelegs. “I’m probably the shortest because of that, the Queen mentioned that lack of love can stunt growth.”

“Nah,” he counted, the armour of his right hand sliding up so he could give her a pat on the head. “The Holey I knew as a nymph was the smallest as well, and Buzz back then was almost twice the size of her.”

“Really?”

“Yep.”

“Huh,” Holey muttered, before shaking her head. “Anyway, he’s pretty nice now and he even apologised for what he used to do, but from time to time there are still issues with the others. So, I stick around Cupid and I usually get left alone.”

Nigel looked her up and down, Holey taking notice but not saying a word. After a few moments, he shrugged and gestured to the group ahead.

“You know, you don’t need Cupid to protect you. You’re a very nice changeling, Holey, and all ten of you are adults now. I suspect that if you stop acting mean and following Cupid around like a…” He refrained from using the word ‘drone’, considering it was an actual changeling social class. “Lackey, then you might find them warming up to you. Look at them now; they’re all happily talking to each other already.”

Holey looked up, before she let out a snort. “When you consider the other choices for conversation partners are the bat-ponies, the angry Queen, or the human who just killed a dragon-”

“Very funny. Besides, you’ve managed to find the courage to speak to the much-feared dragon-slayer.”

His companion went silent for a few moments, before looking up. “Yeah, I guess.”

Nigel smiled slightly as they continued to trudge closer to the mountain, his mind already forgetting the argument with Chrysalis.


Beams swallowed a lump in throat when she climbed up the last slope of the path and set eyes upon the massive cave mouth.

It itself wasn’t imposing, and in actuality the familiar sight would normally be welcoming as it led to home, but the prospect of bringing in changelings and the human into her home city spoiled her joy. She could make out the ten guards posted outside of cave mouth, and highly doubted that convincing them to let in the changelings was going to work without issue.

Turning to nod at the next soldier in line, Belfry, Beams quickened her pace towards the guards in the hopes of avoiding having the cover blown.

‘I don’t even know what to do once they’re in the city,’ she silently cursed, the guards looking towards her with their wings on their sword hilts. ‘Trap them in a hotel? Ambush them in a cave? Gah, why can’t things just be easy?’

“Halt!”

She stopped just in time, two of the guards moving up to examine her. They were both stallions wearing the light silver-plated breastplates and helmets of the City Guard, and Beams insured that her wings and forelegs remained clearly visible.

“Staff-Sergeant High Beams of her Majesty’s Lunar Guard,” she quickly fired off with a whisper. “I apologise for the haste, but we have an urgent matter of great importance to deal with. My squad and I are on a mission from Luna herself, and I must stress that I require entrance to the city immediately to see the council.”

The guards stared at her, Beams sneaking a glance back to see that the last of the changelings crest the edge.

“Ma’am,” the first guard replied with a raised eyebrow. “You must understand that such claims will need proof-“

“There’s not much time,” she cut off, lowering her voice even further. “We had to dump our armour and papers to help with the deception. I have to urge you to refer to me as ‘Diplomat’, not Staff-Sergeant, and to not betray any knowledge of knowing this as a lie.”

“Ma’am-“

She could see the eye-roll from the second guard. ‘Urgh, I don’t have time for this!’

“Look, I’ve got the Queen of the Changelings herself and ten of her nobles behind me right now, along with one of Equestria’s most dangerous enemies! You need to let us in, organise a meeting with the council, and distract the changelings long enough for us to spring a trap and capture them!”

The first guard shook his head, about to open his mouth to protest.

“Something the matter?”

Beams nearly jumped out of her fur at the sound of Chalmers’ voice right behind her. Judging from the way the two guards leapt back with a flutter of their wings, they hadn’t noticed him approach either.

‘How in Luna’s name did he sneak up like that?’ She gulped after the thought while looking up at the fully-armoured and helmeted biped. ‘I hope he didn’t overhear anything, or I’m so dead.’ The human seemed focused on the guards however, the other eight at the cave mouth watching but not approaching. The pair that she had been speaking with shared a look, before glancing back at Chalmers.

“Ah… no?” the first guard hesitantly answered.

“Good,” Chalmers nodded, hands behind his back. “Is there anything I can do to speed up our entrance to the city?” He glanced down to her. “I must admit, Diplomat Beams, disembowelling that dragon really has taken it out of me and I look forward to sampling your city’s hospitality.”

“Dr-dragon?” the second guard whispered, earning another nod in response from the human.

“Oh yes, nasty bugger. Put up a bit of a fight and all that, but we got him sorted out right and proper. I even managed to snag a tooth from him as a trophy.”

Beams had to fight to hold in her stomach contents when he withdrew a long fang from a compartment in his arm armour. It was five times the size of her own fangs, with a brownish-red stain that could only have been blood.

The guards both paled, their yellow eyes shrinking as they took another step back. Glancing once again at each other, the first guard tried his best to smile at her. “Ah, of course. St- Diplomat Beams, please gather your group and… guests to follow us inside. We’ll take you right to the council immediately.”

“Thank you.”

Her voice remained stoic, but inside she gave a relieved sigh. The first hard part was over, now all she needed to do was keep up the façade long enough to form a solid trap for her opponents.

“We’ll be right back with the others then,” Chalmers advised the guards, Beams turning to follow him after a final glance towards the cave mouth.

She desperately hoped that the gambit would pay off, the consequences of failure now would be even more dire than before.


Chrysalis continued to stare straight ahead while trotting forwards, her teeth grinding while the cave continued to echo with the sound of hoofsteps.

As soon as they had reached the cave mouth, the bat-pony leader had rushed ahead to talk with the guards posted. Soon after, Nigel had strolled out towards them, Chrysalis having caught enough of a glimpse to see him startle the guards and leader alike. Then, after a brief exchange of words, they had been permitted entrance into the cave.

Now, she was trotting through the torch-lit tunnel while surrounded by bat-pony guards. Their nervous and confused glances were only half as annoying as the jolly whistling that echoed out from behind her. Nigel seemed to be having the time of his life, the fool oblivious to the danger they were walking into.

Her glare deepened when she went over the likelihood of their shoddy plan actually working. Granted, yes the bat-ponies had historically little-to-no run-ins with the changelings under her rule, but Chrysalis knew that if it came down to supporting Equestria or them then the bat-ponies weren’t likely to pick the side of the changelings. To be honest she still thought the trip was a waste of time, the last few days ruining even the prospect of spending some alone time with Chalmers.

She quickly glanced behind her at the thought, spotting the armoured human walking amongst the group of ten nobles. Admittedly there had been a glimmer of their behaviour improving slowly, but she still held the opinion that he was far too soft on them. However, currently she was of the opinion that Nigel was causing far more trouble for her than any of her nobles had.

“Just a little further,” a female voice called back from the front of the guards leading them. Chrysalis returned her eyes to the front and grinded her teeth.

‘Nigel may be completely naïve in trusting her,’ she thought, resisting the urge to snarl back at the bat-pony leader. 'But I’m not. That bat-pony is up to something, I can feel it.’

Still, at the moment there was nothing to do but trot blindly into whatever trap was awaiting them. Chrysalis tried to focus her thoughts on the rhythmic sound of her hoofsteps and away from her problems. It wasn’t very effective however, and before long her mind drifted back towards the bipedal being behind her.

‘Moron, just what is he thinking?’ Scoffing to herself under her breath, Chrysalis stared down at her hooves. ‘To think that I once looked up to him and thought him amazing, what a foolish drone I once was. It’s obvious now that even he doesn’t know what he’s doing most of the time!’

Despite her sour thoughts, she couldn’t help but feel her heart give a twitch at the memories of the days long gone. Cursing under her breath and smothering the feeling of affection under a blanket of annoyed distaste, her face remained stony and cold.

It had only served as a reminder of how badly her life had gone, leaving her bitter and twisted as a result.

Chrysalis had no more time to reflect on her mood, however. Jerking her head up and stopping her hooves, she managed to avoid colliding with the rump of the armoured bat-pony stallion ahead of her when the group of guards stopped moving. Just before she had the chance to demand an explanation, the Head Diplomat trotted out of the guards with a foreleg and a wing pointing towards the front.

“Everyone,” High Beams addressed, an obviously forced smile on her face. “Welcome to the city of Noctis!”

Giving the bat-pony a harsh glare, Chrysalis grudgingly moved her eyes away from the leader and glanced at the no-doubt cheery and overly-colourful city of the bat-ponies.
Only for her lower-jaw to drop at the sight of the malicious-looking black spires that rose towards the massive cave ceiling.


“Well, that is admittedly quite the sight.”

Beams continued to try and hold her smile while she waited for the ‘guests’ the finish taking in the entire visage of her home city. The human was currently walking up to the edge of the ledge, a low whistle escaping from his expressionless helmet.

“Well, Chrysalis, you can’t say that it doesn’t make you feel right at home,” he continued on while the other changelings looked past him with wonder plain to see in their eyes. Beams turned around to have a good look herself, intrigued by his comment.

Looking over the large spires of obsidian that contained the city council and the great houses, she could see why he had said it. Tall and imposing, the sleek spires certainly shared a similar look with the changeling’s hive-castle thing that she had witnessed herself. Lights shined out from the windows that dotted the surface, and it would definably look unsettling to an outsider.

The spires towered over the rest of the city, houses and businesses made out of dull grey stone sitting next to the occasional marble government building. A single fort sat in the centre of it all, it and the guards patrolling its walls a reminder that changelings weren’t the only threat to the city. Her eyes went for the tallest spire, the council chambers being her next priority after making sure the ‘guests’ were settled in.

Beams turned to first Bites, then thought better and tapped Belfry on the shoulder. After a nod from the mare, Beams nudged the guard captain beside her before clearing her throat.

“I’m afraid that I have to head out ahead to… ensure that everything is ready for your arrival,” she lied, managing to only hesitate slightly. “Captain Lumen and his guards will escort you all to our city’s finest hotel, along with the rest of the diplomatic party. I’m sure everyone is tired after the trip, so we’ll arrange for a meeting with the council first thing tomorrow morning.”

She looked around, bracing herself for the flood of complaints that were sure to come. Surprisingly, all of the changelings were either silent or nodding slightly. The Queen was still scowling, but to be honest that was a given, and even the human didn’t object. A nudge from the guard captain was the only response, Beams leaning in so he could whisper in her ear.

“The fanciest hotel? Do you have any idea of how we’re going to pay for it?”

“Tell them it’s official city business and they’ll be reimbursed fully,” Beams whispered back, not wanting to have to deal with hotel managers at the moment.

“And if they refuse that?”

She rolled her eyes. “Make sure you show them your sword, then restate the order.” Turning away from the wide-eyed captain, she reluctantly gave the changeling Queen a respectful bow. “I will bring news as soon as I have it, and I’ll fly with haste.”

Turning towards the city, she prepared her wings for flight.

“Take your time.”

Ignoring the Queen’s mutter, Beams flapped and took off from the ledge. Soaring up towards the ceiling of the massive cavern, she paused and looked back. Captain Lumen was already leading the visitors down the large stone ramp intended for wagons and carts, Beams silently wishing him luck.

With the way things were going, he’d need it.


“This feels so wrong.”

Nigel glanced down at Joy while she muttered to herself. “What’s wrong?”

“This,” she tried to explain, glancing up and gesturing with her head. He looked out towards the crowd around them, the guards escorting them only partially screening them from the curious stares. “We’re not meant to just be trotting about without disguises on.”

Nigel didn’t know what she was so worried about, after all, he was the one armoured in black and towering over everyone.

“It shows that you’ve got nothing to hide,” he suggested, noticing Chrysalis glare at a small child up ahead of them. A sigh escaped him when the young bat-pony retreated back inside of the fruits store as fast as its hooves could carry it. “Just try to remain nice and polite, and you can even use Chrysalis as an example of what not to do.”

His last few words carried more venom then he expected, Joy quickly looking away and going quiet. Deciding to do the same, he focused forwards and kept his mouth shut.
The escort of guards and diplomats ensured a fast travel time past the crowd, their path taking them through what appeared to be a market district. Bat-ponies paused in their tracks to stop and stare, whispers and wide-eyes common to almost all of them.

In other circumstances he would have been happy to interact with the crowd and attempt to win them over, but for some reason he felt… down. Glancing once again at Chrysalis trotting ahead of him without a single bit of acknowledgement, he figured it was because she was ignoring him.

Nigel hated being ignored.

He went over many different ways to grab her attention. There was the very risky route of literally grabbing her, a likely disastrous plan involving a song and dance routine, and of course his usual backup plan of ‘start a fire’ would not be well-received by their hosts. All in all, save for causing absolute panic and getting slapped with a hoof, he doubted much would be achieved.

As he stared ahead and brooded, he couldn’t help but notice the rather rhythmic way the Queen walked. Chrysalis had gone and grown up on him, far from the adorable young drone that he’d once known.

Eyes going to her hindquarters, he couldn’t help but admit that she did have a pleasing form.

‘Yup, she’s certainly grown up in some ways at least.’

Pulling his gaze away, he decided to stare at the ground instead so that his current sulking couldn’t be overridden by other thoughts. The rather… ‘exotic’ taste he had developed over the years was steadily coming to the forefront, and he wasn’t too sure if it was going to prove to be a blessing or a curse when it came to dealing with the moody queen.

Their group eventually left the market area and turned into what he assumed was the back streets. Without looking around, he could tell that they had picked up some inquisitive followers. Judging by the way the guards occasionally and pointedly cleared their throats, such curiosity was firmly discouraged.

With the sword-armed soldiers around them, they were left alone for the remainder of their walk. Nigel looked up when the trotting slowed, to be met with the sight of what he assumed was the hotel that they were going to be staying in.

Truth be told, it wasn’t half bad judging from the outside. Marble pillars broke up the smooth stone walls, two solid wooden doors were swung open to reveal a warm entrance lobby, and inside a bat-pony couple dressed in fancy clothes veered away from the exit and made a very hasty detour towards a stairwell.

There was no more time for examinations, the guard captain gesturing with his head before trotting into the entrance hall. Nigel looked back and noticed that most of the guards stayed outside, only the captain plus two escorting them in. It was then on immediately to the reception desk, a single young mare in a light blue vest looking up from a magazine. She quickly closed it and patted down her dark-blue mane, her eyes widening once she noticed them.

“Hello Miss,” greeted the guard captain. “We’ve got twelve diplomats here that require rooms, the best ones.”

The receptionist took a few seconds to process the request, before she glanced at them all and slowly shook her head.

“I uh… I don’t think I can do that.” She paused to check a mass of papers before her. “For starters we don’t have enough deluxe single rooms-“

“We’re okay to share if needed,” Reflection spoke up.

“We do have doubles, though,” continued the receptionist with a slight twitch of her eye. “That’s not the main problem. I can’t just let you have all of the best rooms without warning, my boss will kill me.”

The Captain sighed. “The city will pay for it; it’s all on council business.”

Checking another paper taped to the desk, the young mare looked back up with a hopeful look. “Do you have a note signed by a council member?”

Watching the Captain sadly shake his head, Nigel noticed the stallion glance to the sword sheathed at his armour with a hesitant look before the guard smiled awkwardly at the receptionist.

“Look, I get it, but you have to understand that I’ve been given an order to get these guests your best rooms. And please, my bosses are a lot scarier than a hotel manager.”
A shudder. “You haven’t met my boss. He once reduced one of the council members to tears.” The receptionist glanced around, before looking behind her to a small door. “Still, I can go and see my manager about it, but it’ll take a while and all…”

Nigel knew from experience that she was trying to stall to avoid dealing with them, so he decided to act and hurry things along. Having gotten a quick glimpse at the questionable magazine hastily hidden inside of the gardening one she had been reading before their arrival, he’d already formed a plan. Glancing back towards Chrysalis, he also smirked before refacing the desk.

‘Let’s see her ignore me after this.’

The receptionist jolted in her seat and Captain Lumen stumbled back when Nigel moved forwards and leaned across the desk. Staring into the young mare’s wide eyes, he reached a hand up and removed his helmet.

It came away with a hiss of air, Nigel smiling warmly while she stared at his revealed face.

“You’ve got very pretty eyes,” he complimented, stunning her momentarily.

“I… ah, thanks?” Her eyes widened further when the armour slide back on his right hand, her left forehoof soon grasped with fingers. Everyone else had gone dead silent, and Nigel could feel Chrysalis glaring a hole into his back.

“My name’s Nigel, Nigel Chalmers. Excuse me for my forwardness, but it’s not every day that I am treated to meeting such an attractive mare such as yourself.” Her breathing quickened and he began to circle his fingers upon her foreleg, forming trails in the blue-grey fur. “Such physical beauty must surely be accompanied by an equally fitting name, Miss…?”

It took her a few moments to reply, a furious blush already evident on both cheeks. Stammering at first, she managed to provide it. “It’s… Mistletoe.” Gulping, she shifted on her spot and continued to stare into his eyes. “You’ve… you’ve got nice eyes as well.”

Despite his attempt, he couldn’t help but feel a small measure of pride at the compliment.

“Well, thank you for that,” he grinned, straightening slightly. Leaning further forwards, he used his other hand to hold her other foreleg. Almost nose to muzzle, he used his thumbs to rub the bottom of her forehooves absentmindedly. Mistletoe offered no complaint or resistance, her bat-wings standing up taut behind her. Chalmers could hear her heart beat rapidly, and there was equal parts confusion and arousal in her golden cat-like eyes.

“Now, how about we talk about those rooms we need, hmm? I understand that your boss might get angry at you for letting us in on such short notice, but the poor Captain here is telling the truth when he says that he’s been ordered to find us specific accommodation. All we need is two single rooms and five doubles, that’s all, and if we can get them soon them I’ll be ever so grateful.”

Mistletoe’s eyes went for the rack of room keys, and she fidgeted in her chair.

“I’d love to give them to you,” she mumbled. “But I’ll get-“

“If your boss causes a fuss, send him to me,” Nigel reassured, removing one hand to cup her around the face. Mistletoe’s breath hitched. “I’ll set him straight, and make sure that all of the blame is off you. What do you say?”

There was silence for a few seconds, Mistletoe seeming to not want to move, before she finally nodded. “O-okay, I guess if you’re okay with talking to him if he gets mad…”

“I am, trust me.”

She nodded again, Nigel pulling his hands away with a final pat on her head.

“I’ll send for the porters, and the maids will have the rooms ready in a few minutes.”

“Thanks so much, let me know if I can do anything to repay you.”

Turning around with his back to her, he gave everyone a victorious wink and strolled over to the awaiting water cooler. Chrysalis didn’t say anything, her gaze averted so she was scowling at the opposite wall, and the guards made no move to halt him.

Fumbling for one of the plastic cups, he paused and turned when he heard trotting beside him.

“Hey, Reflection,” he smiled, chuckling to himself. “Did you see that receptionist? She was like putty in my hands.”

Instead of a ‘congrats’ or even a laugh, all he got from her was a long, hard stare with silence. Then, she turned away and trotted towards Chrysalis who was brooding in the opposite corner.

‘Was it something I said?’ he wondered, before the approaching Captain Lumen whisked his attention away from her behaviour.


“What is the meaning of this?”

Hopping down from the window, Beams folded her wings back up as her hooves hit the stone floor of the main council chambers. The twenty nobles who effectively ruled the entire city rose from their cushion seats, forehooves banging on expensive wooden tables and demands for an explanation voiced by all. Rolling her eyes at the display, but reminded of the seriousness of the situation when four armed guards moved from the door towards her, Beams used one foreleg to lower her hood.

“Beams?”

Looking to the guards, she noticed one of the three mares staring at her with recognition.

“Lumie?”

It was now that she put a name to the face. Luminescence Splendour, who preferred the name ‘Lumie’ for obvious reasons, was a pony that she hadn’t seen in years.
Evidently her friend was just as surprised, a happy grin on her face soon growing while she continued to approach. Beams found herself smiling as well, the rest of the room going quiet when both trotted forwards to share an embrace. “What are you doing back, I thought you were stationed in Canterlot?”

“I am,” Beams answered, stepping back. “While I’d love to say that I came back to visit my best friend, unfortunately I’m here for work.” Glancing to the remaining guards and puzzled politicians, she winced. “Speaking of…”

Lumie nodded. “Of course, we’ll organise something after.”

Nodding in thanks, Beams turned to the council members, bowed, and cleared her throat. “Hrm, sorry for that and my unusual entrance, your Honours, but I have information and a pressing request to ask of you.”

The murmurs increased amongst the sitting members, Beams frowning when she heard multiple references to ‘respect to your betters’.

“You haven’t made the best impression so far,” one member spoke up, quieting the others. Beams looked up, meeting the gaze of the oldest pony there. With a greying coat that apparently used to be a vibrant purple and a long white mane, Councillor Artibeus was easy to identify. Beams could still remember how he had complimented her when she was accepted into the Lunar Guard, the elderly stallion possessing a presence far belied by his age. “What manner of information, and request, do you have?”

“It’s to do with a matter of great diplomatic importance, and possibly to the security of the entire world.”

That caused a stir, the council chambers once again erupting into chatter and debate. Throughout it all, Artibeus continued to gaze at her.

“Diplomatic importance concerning Equestria, yes?” He spoke, once again ushering in quiet without needing to ask. “Tell me, Corporal Beams of the Lunar Guard, what can we do to help?”

Beams was initially stunned, her next words initially jumbled. “It’s… ah, it’s actually Sergeant-Major now.” He smiled in response, nodding his head. Interpreting it as both a compliment and a que to continue, she straightened. “In regards to your question, my squad and I were tasked with observing the interactions between one of Equestria’s deadliest enemies and the changelings.”

At the word ‘changelings’, hushed murmurs broke out amongst those gathered. Beams could understand the looks of concern, after all, the news of the nearly-disastrous attack on Canterlot had even reached the isolated subterranean city.

“Princess Luna herself requested that we ensure that maintain a constant watch over our target, and report back if any plans of attack were revealed.”

“This… enemy,” one of the council members, a middle-aged mare, spoke up. “It’s in league with the changelings?”

“Yes,” she answered, recalling the interactions between the shapeshifters and the human. “AS far as we know, the Human has known the changeling Queen for a while and is…” Beams struggled to find the right words, considering the recent trouble between the two. “Supportive, of her plans of conquest.”

“Human?” asked another council member.

“The creature that the Princess wants us to observe,” she clarified. “It’s bipedal, possesses magic, apparently uses powerful weapons, and is as least as intelligent as a common pony.” Searching her mind, she decided to fill them in on the details she had learnt herself. “He’s a male, uh… eccentric, prone to violence, and feels very protective towards the changelings as apparently he sees them as some kind of pseudo-descendants.”

“He’s rather jovial,” she continued. “Appears to have never seen bat-ponies before, is possibly insane, and he… he beat a dragon to death…” she paused, the room going quiet. “Then he cut it open to get the jewels out of its stomach.”

It was so quiet she could hear a pencil drop to the stone floor, only a single council member managing to not look completely shocked and horrified.

“You seem to know an awful lot about this… human,” commented Artibeus with an inquisitive look in his eye. “One would think you’ve had first hoof experience with him.”

‘Oh,’ Beams winced. ‘Here we go.’

“Well…” she began, tapping a forehoof on the stone floor. “During our mission, we were observing the changeling hive, and our water supplies… were compromised. After going over our choices for survival, it was decided that we pose as a civilian party and attempted to barter with the changelings for water.”

“Barter with them?” For once during the explanation, Artibeus looked surprised. “With changelings? From what we know, they’re hostile to everything.”

“We knew that, and that’s why… we posed as a diplomatic group and earned their trust.”

Beams forced a smile and looked up at all of the council members. Once again there was silence, but this time there was something… different. Artibeus was muttering softly to himself, before his eyes slowly widened. Taking a step backwards, Beams struggled to maintain her smile.

“Sergeant-Major,” Artibeus slowly began. “When you said that you posed as diplomats, and have a request… what exactly did you mean?”


Sheen touched the tip of his muzzle to the furry white towel, pausing to look behind at the door before guiltily rubbing his face against it.

The hotel bathroom was certainly something, pure white tiles a direct contrast to his grubby black form. The air smelt of soap and unidentifiable floral smells, and the warm light above finished off the pleasant atmosphere. Overall it was prissy, high-class, and occupied by some of the softest towels he’d ever felt.

And currently, Sheen was loving it.

“Ah,” he muttered, pulling away and shutting the door with a hind hoof. Trotting towards the bath, he frowned at the strange pipe-thing that was posed at the top. What was even more puzzling was the lack of a natural spring and the presence of four metal things on the wall. “Okay, so how do I make it work?”

He climbed in and stared at the plug, before cautiously reaching a hoof out towards one of the metal things.

“Sheen.”

Nearly slipping over in the tub, Sheen scrambled for some hoofing as the bathroom door was opened and Joy trotted in. “Hey, privacy!”

“Pfft, it’s nothing I haven’t seen before,” she dismissed, grinning at him. “Come on, there’s no time for baths right now.”

“Yes there is,” he replied, still not too happy about her presence. “Have you seen this place?”

Joy nodded. “Hmm-hmm, and the rest of the room as well. But still, as nice as it is we have to go. Reflection and Holey came up with an idea on how to get Chrysalis and Nigel back together.”

That caught his attention. As if things hadn’t been awkward before, Chalmers’ admittedly impressive work with the receptionist had only served to further sour the relationship between the two. The Queen and the Human had even taken separate rooms, while the rest of them shared doubles.

“How?” He thought for a moment. “And why, exactly? I mean, them being happy is good I suppose, but it’s like getting in between two charging yaks.”

Joy turned back from sniffing the bottles of pony mane-cleaner to roll her eyes at him. “Sheen, look. If Chrysalis is happy then she’s more likely to treat us well, or at least overlook our rule breaking. We all know what happens when she’s furious, and with them currently fighting…”

He shuddered, remembering the time Chrysalis had ordered an entire squad of bumbling soldiers to be ‘de-chitined’. Thankfully she hadn’t gone through with it and instead had been content with yelling at them for an hour, but there had been times when the Queen’s emotional hair-trigger had led to problems for them all. “Fine, what do we need to do?”


‘What now?’

Chrysalis huffed and rolled off of the large four-poster bed at the knocking on the door. Trotting over towards the door, she narrowed her eyes at the wood and growled.

“What?”

“Um… My Queen?”

She recognised the voice of the noble, Sheen. Her scowl relaxed, and she unlocked the door. Opening it, she was greeted with the sight of Sheen standing before her by himself. Able to sense his nervousness, she tilted her head at him and waited for him to speak.

“Hello, Your Highness,” Sheen continued after a few tense moments. “I can see that you’re… um-“

“Upset?” She moved her head closer to him, one eye twitching. “Slightly off-put at the situation?” He visibly gulped under her cold stare, so she took a step back. “You know, my apparent love deciding to go to all lengths to not just annoy, but outright spite me?” Her mood once again souring, she glared at him again and bared her fangs. “So, get to the point. What. Do. You. Want?”

Sheen took a breath, and winced. “Uh… I want you to follow me to a surprise that will hopefully cheer you up?”

In truth, it was certainly not the answer she was expecting from him. It actually stunned her for a moment, although outwardly nothing changed. Sheen was still looking at her hopefully, but Chrysalis wasn’t about to just fall for such an obvious trick.

“You expect me to just follow you?” She laughed, but there was no trace of joy at all. “What is this, some attempt to rub my face in it all? Are you trying to mock me?”
Sheen stepped back hastily, his rump hitting the stone wall behind him. But she wasn’t about to just let him get away that easily, Chrysalis advancing out to pursue him.
“No doubt you think it’s funny, taunting me like this!”

He scrambled back down the corridor at her growl, Chrysalis losing what little cool she had left.

“You nobles are all the same! You have no idea what I put up with every day!”

She chased him down a flight of stairs, her horn starting to glow green.

“But no, things only get worse, and of course you can’t resist throwing more wood onto the fire!”

They both passed two utterly confused bat-pony maids, and Sheen backed up through a set of double doors. Storming after him, she never stopped nor wavered.
“Nothing can ‘cheer me up’, you simpleton! Nothi…”

Her eyes widened and she stopped insulting him, Chrysalis looking up while her trotting paused. Something was off, very off. Glancing around the darkened room they were now in, she then stared at the single table set in the middle of the massive dining room.

Candlelit flickered out, the only source of illumination in the entire room. It was set for two, and already there was a bottle of what looked like wine set up beside two thin glasses. Plush cushions were set upon the two seats, Chrysalis looking back at Sheen.

“What… how…?”

“ItwasReflection’sandHoley’sidea!” spouted Sheen, before he raced off past her as fast as his legs could carry him. Turning to watch him leave through the same doors they had entered through, Chrysalis tried to puzzle it out by herself despite the haze of confusion.

Unfortunately her train of thought was interrupted by the second set of doors opening at the other end of the room.

“So, what was this about a… oh.”

Of course it was Nigel that stepped out from the other side, Chrysalis narrowing her eyes as the sound of the door locking behind her echoed out in the silent room. She watched him closely, Nigel staring at her before making for the doors behind him to leave.

That is, he would have left if it wasn’t for the smiling changeling noble shaking her head at him.

“Nope,” Joy taunted, starting to shut the door. “Now you two sit down and get along. We’ll unlock the doors in a few hours.”

With that, the last escape route was shut off, the click of the lock only hammering in the point. Both of them were locked in, with no way out.

To say things were tense was an understatement.

Neither of them spoke to each other, and Chrysalis certainly wasn’t going to make the first move. Instead she continued to glare, while he just stared back with that stupid, uncaring gaze.

“Well,” he began, breaking the silence. “I haven’t eaten for ages.”

She couldn’t believe it, watching him while he moved and sat down at the table. Absentmindedly flicking away some of the red candlewax, he plucked a slice of bread from a bowl and took a bite.

“Not half bad,” he mumbled.

“Not half-bad, not half-bad?”

He paused chewing, turning to look at her. “Yeah, it’s unusual at the current time, considering everything else tends to be rather… bitter.”


“There, we’ll leave you to split it between yourselves.”

Reflection set down the bag of silver before the group of bat-ponies, each of the twenty hotel workers eyeing it greedily. Maids and cooks rubbed shoulders with each other in the corridor, Reflection and the other nine changelings cautiously waiting for the response.

“It seems like a good amount,” the Head Cook nodded, moving forwards to inspect the sack. With a hoof he opened the top, his eyes lighting up at the pile of coins that lay within. “Yep, this will definably do. Besides, getting a single table ready and arranging a meal for two is pretty simple when every other guest has already high-tailed it out of the hotel.”

“Just take the money,” Reflection snorted. “And remember that our deal is that you make sure they’re happy. You keep them supplied with wine, and we keep you supplied with more silver.”

The Head Cook smiled at her, even going so far as to give her a small bow. “Rest assured, we’ll do our jobs perfectly fine. You’ve paid us all a week’s wages for a single night’s work, after all.”

“Good.”

The workers quickly moved towards the money with obvious greed, Reflection turning around and walking back to the other changelings.

“You sure that locking those two in a room is, like, a good idea?” Keith asked, earning nods from the others.

“I’m sure,” she reassured them all. “After all, what can go wrong when they’re in such a romantic environment?”


“And of course you’re still dressed in my bedsheets!”

Nigel ducked so that the second candle flew over his head, the waxy projectile clattering down against the wall.

“They’re so silky and comfortable!” he fired back, lobbing an apple back at his attacker. It was soon returned with flawless accuracy, and he only barely managed to shield his face with a plate while cursing Chrysalis’ magical abilities.

“You infuriating buffoon!”

A third candle flew at him, soon followed by a fork.

Suffice to say, the surprise dinner that the nobles had set up was not exactly going to plan. In truth, the last thing he had wanted was to be locked in a room with Chrysalis, but here they were.

Exchanging fire and all.

“Grouchy sow!” he insulted back. “Ill-tempered stinkbug!”

“Worthless failure!” Chrysalis returned with new-found ferocity.

Chalmers gritted his teeth and grasped his plate in one hand. Ducking below the cover of the table just in time to avoid a flying vase of flowers, he popped up to fling the plate at her Frisbee-style.

His irritation at Chrysalis’ assault quickly faded when he heard the crunch and the yelp of pain.

“Ow!”

The room went silent, and he slowly looked out over the table to see what had happened.

Chrysalis had evidently been too slow to react, the Queen sitting down on the stone floor with a hoof held over her nose. She was quiet, and he winced when he saw the tears in her eyes.

‘Ah, shit.’

Quickly getting up, he moved past the food-stained table and approached her only for Chrysalis to shy away without a word.

“Crap, I’m sorry.”

Bending down, he frowned when she tried to ignore him. The fact that she couldn’t even summon up the spirit to glare at him was a clear sign that something was really wrong.
Grimacing, he knelt down onto a knee, and as a consequence what used to be a bunch of grapes, to inspect the injury he had caused her. Chrysalis tried to keep her snout hidden, but he could see the lines of green liquid flowing down through a leg-hole.

“A little too far,” he muttered. Moving his hands, he grasped her foreleg and tried to pull it away. “I’m sorry Chrissy, I got carried away. Come on, let me have a look.”
She at first resisted his attempts to remove her foreleg, before she finally gave in and let him move it away.

Nigel sighed at the bloody nose he had given her, the blood still flowing out of the nostrils at a quick pace. He could see the line that that plate had left, a single horizontal mark sitting right on the tip.

“I honestly thought that you’d catch it,” he tried to explain, using a corner of the bed sheet to dab away the blood. “And to, you know, throw it right back at me.”

Chrysalis remained quiet, so he just continued to soak up the dribbled mess. At least the bed sheets were of the same green, but it was hardly the time to thank the fact that any stains weren’t going to be noticeable.

“Are we just going to keep on fighting?” she suddenly asked, breaking her silence along with a sniffle. “All of the time?”

He paused momentarily, before resuming. “I hope not. Despite it all, I’d prefer for us to start getting along a bit better.” The flow of blood was starting to slow, only a few drops remaining.

“You haven’t been helping much, especially with that show earlier.”

Nigel sighed, knowing that she did have quite a good point. “With the receptionist? That was just a ploy to get us our rooms without a huge fuss, that’s all.”

She didn’t seem convinced, so he admitted the rest of it. “Well, it was a ploy… and I may have been trying to make you jealous.”

There was silence once again, and the bed sheet was removed with only two faint green lines left as evidence of what had happened. Nigel carefully sat down, avoiding any mess on the floor from the ill-fated dinner.

“Make me jealous?” He was surprised when a hoof, covered with the remains of an apple, placed itself on his knee. “Why?”

Shifting on the spot, he cleared his throat. “Because you were ignoring me, that’s why.”

Chrysalis stared at him, a glare coming to life on her face.

“You complete and utter imbeci…”

Frowning, Nigel was admittedly confused. “Uh, you didn’t finish insulting me there.”

Yet more silence, before it was Chrysalis this time who sighed. All trace of her glare was gone, and instead she kept her eyes to the ground. “I… I know.” Sniffing, she wiped her mouth with a hoof. “Yes, you’ve been acting like a nymph. You’ve been stupid, silly, annoying, whiny, prudish, moroni-“

“Okay, okay,” he interrupted. “I get it.”

“And I’ve been… cranky, and a little pushy.” She shifted, Nigel reaching out a hand to pat her on the back. “I just want things to be like how they were before. Back when I was happy.”

He could honestly understand that.

“I’d certainly prefer that as well,” he agreed. “But, Chrysalis, I think we both need to realise that it’s not possible. To an extent, I think we’ve both been a little disappointed in the way the other’s changed from what we used to know.” Giving her a pat on the back, he used the other hand to quickly pinch the bridge of his nose. “Shit, I mean, I guess I have been pretty horrible to you.”

“I haven’t done much better,” she admitted. “All I’ve done is insult you or try to seduce you.”

“To be fair, I often deserve the insults.”

That earned a laugh from her, abet a small one. Chrysalis seemed to brighten, a slight smile on her face instead of the previous frown. “And I suppose that calling me ‘Crankalis’ is often deserved as well,” she admitted with another small chuckle. He couldn’t help but smile at that, both of them going quiet again.

“Well, what now?”

“I guess we just finally decide to live with it,” Chrysalis answered with a shrug. “Both of us calm down and stop arguing all the time, and just work together like we used to.” She smiled again. “Well, we still need to argue occasionally.”

“Of course,” he seconded with a nod. “A healthy relationship is filled with insults and debates over how to bring ruin to one’s enemies, after all.”

“Oh stop it,” she laughed, letting out a sigh afterwards. “We both know that my plans are the better ones.”

“Bah.”

“It’s true, you just blow things up or fly into walls.”

Nigel honestly couldn’t argue with that. Rubbing her back, he shrugged and glanced out across the room. It was utterly destroyed, splattered fruit and pieces of bread covering table cloths, the walls, and even the ceiling. Chairs were upturned, plates lay shattered on the stone floor, it was like a miniature warzone.

“Well, all of that work those ten put into this has pretty much been spoiled.”

“Not exactly,” reminded Chrysalis, while she scooted closer and put a foreleg around his back. “We’re talking again, aren’t we?”

“Point.” He felt the foreleg slide lower, and he rolled his eyes. “Chrissy, really?”

“What?” she returned with an incredibly shoddy attempt to sound innocent. “Dinner’s out, so we might as well… have some dessert.”

Nigel snorted. “Well, this went from ‘emotional discussion’ to ‘low-budget porno’ in a matter of seconds. What next, I dress up as a pool boy and offer to clean the leaves from your pool pump while corny music plays in the background?”

He was met with a befuddled gaze.

“Nigel, that made zero sense.”

“You don’t know the background material. Trust me, I did spend years studying this while I was out. Anyone else would have found that hilarious.” He thought for a moment. “Or incredibly stereotypical and uninspired, one or the other.”

Chrysalis rolled her eyes, getting to her hooves. “You talk too much about silly things.” Trotting over towards the closest set of doors, she turned her head to look back at him. “Now come on, help me unlock this door so we can go back to my room.”

“Firstly,” he corrected while getting up to walk over. “It’s going to be our room. Secondly, allow me.”

“Watch it!”

He took her by surprise, bending down and lifting her up in his arms. He flipped her over so she was resting on her back, Chrysalis throwing her forelegs around his neck to steady herself.

“You know, you’re heavier than I-“

“You already did that bit.”

“Fine,” he mumbled, quickly searching his mind for another one. Giving up, he shrugged and looked at the doors baring their way. “Whatever, just watch and learn from the master. Blam!”

With the yell, he lashed out with a leg and kicked both doors open, splintering the lock and eliminating the one last barrier the two had left between them.

Or, at least he would have, had his foot not uselessly bounced off the doors with a pathetic thud.

“Ouch,” he mumbled, shacking it while his toes throbbed. A sigh drew his attention to the left, Chrysalis looking at him unamused. “What? It’s much easier when you’re wearing powered armour, and I left mine in the room.”

“Pathetic. Here, learn from the true master.”

There was a glow and a crackle, before a bolt of green energy shot out from her horn and impacted against the door. A hole was blasted straight through, and the poor lock was annihilated in the blast of magical energy. Slowly the two doors swung open, revealing an empty corridor leading to a set of stairs.

“Show-off,” Nigel mumbled.

“Sore-loser.”

“The things I put up with, I swear…”

“Just shut up and walk.”

He followed the command, murmuring all the while. Stepping out into the corridor while carrying the smug Queen, he didn’t even pause when a single bat-pony mare dressed in a blue waitress uniform rushed out from a side room.

“Is… is something the matter?” the young mare hurriedly asked with a slight stutter. “There was some kind of explosion and-“

“Everything’s fine,” Chrysalis interrupted. “Now be gone, we have no need for your dining room anymore.”

“Chrissy, be nice,” he followed up, having seen the waitress flinch. He turned his attention to the bat-pony. “Actually Miss, if I could request for a small amount of food to be sent up to room sixteen, it’d be appreciated.”

“Fuck the food.” Both he and the waitress stared at Chrysalis after the unexpected bout of swearing, the Queen aiming her half-lidded eyes at him. “Literally.”

Nigel glanced back at the wide-eyed waitress, rolling his eyes.

“I apologise, that’s her idea of dirty talk apparently.”

“Better than your ‘pool pump’ line.”

“I wasn’t…” sighing, he shrugged at the waitress and resumed walking. “You know what, forget it. Sorry about the room.” Leaving the poor, confused mare behind, he made for the stairs. “Really Chrissy, ‘Fuck the food’? You’re supposed to be a Queen.”

“Well, we can’t all be perfect, can we?”

“I guess not.”

“Now hurry up and take me to the room. You promised me a romantic trip and I think it’s high time you start fulfilling that promise.”

‘Could have seen this coming,’ he thought with a shake of his head, before he mentally steeled himself for the night which was sure to prove quite… interesting.


“Still think it was a good idea?”

Reflection winced as there was another rhythmic thump from the wall behind her head. She tried to ignore Holey and instead wrapped her pillow tighter around her ears.
“I mean, it’s been a few hours now and I don’t think it’s going to-“

“It was your idea as well,” she grumbled back, interrupting the other unfortunate changeling that shared the room directly opposite the Queen’s. “Don’t pin all of the blame on me.” Another thump, this one so powerful that it actually nearly knocked off the painting of the moon that was above her bed.

“At least we can say that it worked?” Holey tried, causing Reflection to grumble some more.

‘I sure hope that this will be a short trip,’ she thought, wincing and rolling over onto her stomach. The pillow was crammed tighter, but unfortunately the knocks from the next room sent vibrations through her bed every time. ‘Gah, I’ll have to switch rooms if this keeps up.’

Closing her eyes, Reflection merely tried to block out the sound and movements in an attempt to get some rest.

She didn’t think that she really had that much of a chance.