//------------------------------//
// Faking a Princess 
// Story: Counterfeit Princess, Counterfeit Bride. 
// by SkyeSilverwing 
//------------------------------//

The trip into Canterlot was a brief, though nerve-wracking one, for Shining Armor. Time was of the essence, of course- Princess Celestia had to be warned of the impending threat to Canterlot- but he could not shake the feeling that something was terribly, horribly wrong. 
He thought it might have something to do with the fact that Cadence had not brought that huge chest when they were taking into Canterlot with them when they had left the city originally. The thing was huge, and it bothered him a little that he had not noticed it before.
Then, there was Cadence herself. She had, in a fit of sudden formality, begun using the original name she had been given when she had first been taken in by the Princess, “Princess Mi Amore Cadenza”, and had insisted on being called that by everypony. Even him. She was still his Cadence, though, whatever she wanted to be called, but that, too, bothered him.
Or it could be the question of why couldn’t he recall the names of the dozen or so soldiers that Cadence had insisted on having accompany them? He was certain he had trained them himself, since Cadence had assured him of it, but that certainty was not producing names, or even recollection of the time spent on that training. Perhaps it was the blow to the head he had taken during the fight, but his lack of knowledge of these supposedly steadfast and loyal ponies made him nervous.
In fact, what brought him to his bride-to-be’s room this time was the fact that several of the guards in her entourage had been acting as if they had forgotten their training entirely. They did not salute him quickly enough and they seemed unsure as to if they should act immediately when he gave them an order, claiming that they had their orders from Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.
He tapped his hoof on the door, intending to discuss with Cadence the lack of decorum of her guards, but then… 
All he could recall was her hooves on his head, cradling him and holding him to her, her eyes filling his field of vision, and nothing was wrong. The guards, they were only doing what they were ordered. That made sense. They had their orders, so his own orders had confused them. Nothing wrong there. 
And yet… Shining Armor left the room feeling dizzy. He hoped they could reach the safety of the City soon. 
.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.
Byss stared after Shining Armor with a slightly concerned look on his face. He looked at Chrysalis, who was breathing a little more heavily now than she had been. “My Queen,” he said softly, “You cannot continue to alter his mind like that. You know how taxing it is. Especially when he keeps resisting like that.”
Chrysalis glared at Byss for a long moment, not so much annoyed at his insubordination so much as at the fact that he was right: If Shining Armor continued to resist her influence, the effort of keeping him under her control would deplete her energy reserves faster than his love for Cadence would be able to build them. “Well, what else can I do?” she demanded. “Shining Armor knows Cadence too well, and his mind keeps rebelling against the idea of me being her. He keeps picking up on every single detail that is wrong. If he outs me, we won’t even make it into Canterlot.”
Byss thought for a long moment. “So… give him something else to think about.” He said, “Something that will bring him to you willingly.”
Chrysalis raised a pink eyebrow. “Such as?” she asked.
Byss rubbed his hoof on his chin. “How about pain?” he suggested. “If you use pain, he will focus on the pain, instead of the details around him. And then you can have him come to you to relieve it, and you can ensure that he is still under your control. If he submits to your magic willingly, it will reduce the energy cost.”
Chrysalis stared at Byss for a long moment. “How did you come up with that?” she asked.
Byss smiled. “I replaced a healer once.” He said, “When my prey was in pain, they were far more likely to miss things.”
Chrysalis smiled, and swept out of the room. “Brilliant.” She said, “I shall begin immediately.”
.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.
Shining Armor and Princess Mi Amore Cadenza walked into Princess Celestia’s throne room, ushered in by several of Celestia’s guards.  “Princess Celestia…” Shining Armor said, looking absolutely worse for wear.  “There is a force of enemies outside of Canterlot. They attacked us at the Chateau outside the City. We need to- nuuuugh!”
He flinched, reeling, and slumped against Cadenza, prompting Celestia to take several steps down from her throne before the Pink furred Princess raised a forestalling hoof. “Oh, no.” she said primly, “His injuries must be worse than I thought! Princess, you need to see to the defense of the City. The threat is very real. I will see to my Fiancé’s wounds personally.”
Celestia looked at Cadenza for a long moment, and finally nodded. “Very well.” She said, “I shall leave him to you while I confer with my sister.”
Celestia galloped from the room, headed for her sister’s quarters, leaving “Cadenza” and her “Guards” to carry the collapsed Stallion to the chamber that had been set aside for the true Cadence. Chrysalis had extracted its location from Cadence along with various other pieces of information during the trip by threatening to hurt Shining Armor. 
Ponies were so weak willed.
Her chest had already been delivered down into the crystal caves below Canterlot, with the real Princess inside. She would be kept there, where the crystals prevent her from mustering the magic to escape, for as long as Chrysalis could continue to use her for information. After that, she would be easily disposed of. 
When they reached the room, Shining Armor stirred. “Cadence!” he mumbled.
Chrysalis placed her hooves on the sides of his head. “I told you… My name is Mi Amore Cadenza.” She said sinisterly, “Now relax and let me take care of you.”
Shining Armor gave a cry that ended abruptly as he collapsed into unconsciousness.
Byss stepped to his Queen’s side. “My Queen, if I might ask:” he said, “Why did you not take the Princess in the throne room just now?”
Chrysalis rolled her eyes. “Did you see the look on her face?” she asked, “She and Cadence were clearly very close. She picked up that something was wrong almost immediately. Her defenses were up. I had to make it look like I was concerned with something else. Being distracted is an excellent way to play off the difference in personality, which is why Phase Two needs the Army outside the City, and the Wedding inside.”
Byss smiled. “The Army to distract them, and the wedding to distract you.” He said, “It is brilliant, my Queen.”
Chrysalis tossed her hair aloofly. “Of course it is.” She said, “Don’t forget who you are talking to. It is Celestia’s Practice to stand before a bride and groom and face the wedding audience to announce them as bride and groom. That is the perfect moment to strike.”
Byss nodded. “And what are I and the rest of your ‘guards’ to do while you arrange the wedding?” he asked.
Chrysalis smiled. “With the City in danger, Celestia will post all the guards she can on the walls.” She said, “They should be well spread out enough that even with your limited reserves of power, you should be able to isolate them, one at a time, and neutralize them. When the time comes for me to strike, I want as little interference as possible.”
Byss nodded, a malicious smile on his face. “Yes my queen.” He said, “It would be an honor.”
.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.
“We should not be holding the Wedding at all under these dire circumstances, let alone moving it up.” Luna was saying as Cadenza walked into the War Room. “Our full attention needs to be on defending the City, not frivolous parties.”
Cadenza shot the Lunar Princess an annoyed glance. Luna did not know Cadence as well as Celestia did, but she still represented a threat to her plan. “There is nothing frivolous about keeping up morale.” She countered primly, “The Citizens of Canterlot are already getting worried over what it might mean if this proves to be an extended siege. If those… things… choose to clamp down on our trade routes instead of striking randomly at settlements and travelers around the City, we would be in big trouble. The citizens know this, and the fear of it might drive them to do something foolish.”
Celestia nodded. They had been having roughly the same argument ever since Cadenza had told them that she intended to move her wedding up to show the citizens, and the enemy, that they would not live in fear. “Cadenza is right, Luna.” She said, “If we give in to the enemy’s scare tactics, they win. The fact that these… shadow creatures… have not attacked our trade proves that they are not strong enough to do worse than scare us. We cannot let them succeed.”
Luna nodded in deference to her sister, but it was clear that she was not convinced. 
Cadenza grinned. “I will see to the preparations for the Wedding, while you two, and Shining Armor see to the defense of the City.” She said, “We cannot let the enemy scare us.”
Luna’s head rose slightly.  “Speaking of Shining Armor, should he not be present at this meeting?” she asked.
Cadenza nodded and indicated the shining purple magic field that dominated the sky. “My fiancé has been wearing himself out maintaining the shield dome around the city as well as seeing to his duties with the Royal Guard.” She said, “It would not be so taxing for him if he had had more chance to recover from his injuries before he had insisted on putting the shield up. I do what I can, but until he gets time to rest and heal, he is not going to be able to keep this up consistently.”
Luna nodded. “Shining Armor’s contribution *is* important.” She said, “If he needs the rest, we can deal with the countryside while he focuses on the shield.”
Cadenza nodded. “He should be back to himself by the time the Wedding is over.” She said, with a slight smile. “I do hope that won’t be too taxing on you.”
The Princesses nodded. 
.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.
The plan was coming together. 
The Invitations were out, the arrangements were made. With Shining Armor nearly blacking out from pain from maintaining the shield, and the Princesses constantly looking outward for threats, none of them could hope to realize the nature of the threat within. 
In three days’ time, “Princess Mi Amore Cadenza” and Shining Armor would say their vows, Celestia would fall, and a new era would begin. An era ruled by the changelings. Every angle had been considered, every eventuality planned for. Chrysalis’s plan was ready, and once it began there was nothing that could possibly get in her-
“Cadence! Sunshine, sunshine, Ladybugs awake! Clap your hooves and do a little shake!”
Oh… Horse apples.
.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.