42. On My Shoulders
Princess Cadance walks slowly and regally into Rarity's suite, flanked not only by several royal guards, but also by the three bridesmaids whose identities I'd only uncovered a few moments ago. When Lyra spots me, she waves happily at me, but I ignore her for now, instead gazing at Cadance, wondering what the hell is going on.
I remember Cadance being calm and happy, putting on a smile at like, every other word. I've never seen her like this. Just looking at her face, I can tell she's pissed off at something. She's also carrying herself differently than I remember. She holds herself like she knows she's somepony important, which stands in stark contrast to the pony who told me in the garden that she was no good at formalities.
“Princess!” Rarity exclaims, immediately rushing over to Cadance and giving her a deep respectful bow. Cadance once again defies my memories of her and looks down at Rarity with thinly veiled disdain, as if the pony in front of her is nothing more than an insect. “I must say, it is a tremendous honor to be a part of such a momentous occasion.”
“Uh-huh,” Cadance emits, unconvinced. This is getting weirder and weirder by the moment. She sounds less like the Cadance I remember, and more like me. That's not right, because only I'm like me. “I assume you have my dress ready?”
“But of course! I assure you that you will be most pleased with my work,” Rarity responds, working as hard as she can to give Cadance the utmost respect. Which doesn't seem to be impressing the princess, despite the fact that I know she never really cared that I didn't give her much respect. Rarity leads Cadance over to the ponyquin containing the bride's dress. “And here we are! What do you think, your Highness?
Cadance scrutinizes the dress in front of her with a critical eye. Almost immediately, her frown deepens, which means she probably doesn't like what she sees. “It's...not terrible, but I was looking for something with a longer trim and a bit less frill,” Cadance criticizes. Rarity looks like somepony just slapped her, but to her credit, she composes herself quickly.
“I...see. Don't worry, princess, I will fix it immediately. Only the best for the bride-to-be, after all,” Rarity assures her with a nervous giggle, whipping out a notebook and writing down the criticism she just heard. Cadance doesn't respond, instead looking less pleased with every passing moment. “What do you think of the dresses I made for the bridesmaids?”
Rarity indicates with a hoof the bridesmaids' dresses, in front of which I'm standing with my arms crossed, watching Cadance closely with narrowed eyes. Twilight is doing the same, I notice.
Cadance turns, but because she doesn't bother to look before turning, she runs right into me, her muzzle impacting with my chest. “Oh! What is this thing standing in my way?” Cadance rages, but then she steps back and gets a closer look at me. Her eyes widen slightly, but nowhere in her lavender eyes do I see any sign of recognition. “What...exactly is this, Rarity? Is it...alive?”
“Yes, I'm alive, and I talk. What the fuck, Cadance?” I demand, and she looks further surprised by my intelligence. What the fuck is going on? She can't be so dumb that she'd forget me after only a month and a half. Twilight may be on to something, because Cadance is not acting like Cadance.
Twilight and Rarity both look scandalized at the overly informal and rude way I just talked to the princess. Even the bridesmaids are staring at me in shock, wondering if I've gone insane. Cadance looks affronted, which is also an expression I've never seen her wear. “I don't know what you are, but is that any way to speak to a princess of Equestria? My name is Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, and I'd like you to address me as such!” she snaps at me, her eyes narrowing. Okay no, I'm not going to deal with this shit any longer.
“How about no? You specifically told me to call you Cadance the last time we spoke. I don't know what's up your ass, but I'd like you to stop it right the hell now,” I shoot back, glaring into Cadance's eyes. Seriously, why is she suddenly such a bitch? “Besides, you know what I am. I'm human, I told you as much over a month ago.”
“You...!” Cadance looks like she's about to blow her top, but then she calms down and forces a smile at me. “Oh, of course. My apologies. With all the wedding preparations, I guess it must have slipped my mind.”
With that, Cadance walks past me so that she can look at the bridesmaids' dresses, that criticizing look returning to her face. I watch her the whole time, unable to believe what she just said to me. I run over my past conversations with her in my head.
“I'd rather not ask your species, as I consider that rude of one to ask another, especially if we've just met.”
“I'd rather that not be an issue. Just call me Cadance, please.”
“This is exciting! It's amazing that you're alive, even after thousands of years! Did you know that most of our technology and culture is based on what we've discovered of humans?”
“I guess it must have slipped my mind.”
My eyes narrow at her. Bullshit. Cadance was as excited to find out I'm a human as Twilight was. She would never have forgotten. Cadance just contradicted everything she said to me in our first conversation together.
Which means one of two things. Either the unknown enemy from outside has somehow managed to control her, or that isn't Cadance at all. I don't know if illusion spells are a thing, but I suppose anything is possible with magic.
As Cadance proceeds to belittle Rarity's work, I consider my next course of action carefully. Now that I've determined this, I need to act upon it. But I need to be careful, because she's got those two guards with her, as well as the bridesmaids. Still though, Twilight seems to be too dense to figure this out on her own, so it falls to me to take care of it. Though how Shining Armor hasn't noticed this change yet is beyond me.
“I think these dresses need to be a different color,” Cadance finishes, glaring at Rarity.
“But, they look really nice!” Lyra speaks up, indicating the mint green themed dress that was no doubt designed for her. Twinkleshine and Minuette both agree as well, gazing at the dresses with radiant admiration.
Cadance turns her head with such a frightening expression on her face that all three of the bridesmaids are cowed. “You heard me, Miss Rarity. Make them a different color,” Cadance orders, and then she stalks back towards the door, indicating for the bridesmaids and guards to follow her.
When the princess left the room, Twilight steps back towards the center of the room, glaring out after her. “Wow. Maybe we should call her Princess Demanding,” Twilight snarls. “It's not like we're trying to make tomorrow the best day of your life or anything. A bit of appreciation couldn't hurt.”
“It's no big deal, darling. It's her right to pick and choose. After all, like you said, tomorrow is supposed to be the best day of her life,” Rarity justifies with a shrug. “It just means I'll have to do a little extra work. Not a problem.”
“But, that's not...” Twilight begins, but she cuts off when she sees me storm past her, heading for the exit. “Seth? Where are you going?”
“Out. Stay with Rarity, or do whatever you want. I don't care,” I snap back at her. Twilight recoils at the viciousness in my tone, but I don't care. My suspicion has been raised, and I won't stop until I get some answers.
“But, Seth, I still need your...” Rarity begins.
“What I'm doing is more important than some fucking dresses,” I interrupt her. Without waiting to see her reaction to my overly rude words, I leave the room. The guard next to the door starts to follow me again but I turn around and transfix him with a deadly glare, magic suffusing my eyes. “Try to follow me, and I'll crush you.”
The guard blanches at my blatant threat. He looks at his companion, who nods in my direction, probably telling him to follow me anyway. But it's too late. By the time he looks back at me, I'm already gone.
Let's see, Cadance can't have gone far. I jog down the hall in a hurry, pushing my way through the staff and the patrolling guards, keeping my eyes peeled for any sign of pink. When I reach an intersection, I look in all directions, until at last I spot her heading down the hall to my right. I cut down the hall after her.
I make sure to keep some distance between her. If I want to confront her, I'll have to wait until she's relatively alone. If there's only those two guards she's got with her, I can handle them, but not in the middle of the hall. I'd get swarmed by so many guards it wouldn't even be funny. So I hang back and follow her.
After a few minutes of that, she turns her head and spots me out of the corner of her eye. However, she doesn't exhibit any reaction, instead choosing to continue down the path. She looks like she's heading for the great hall...wait, she just turned down a small corridor.
When I turn down the hall after her, I notice that it's mostly empty, save for a few staff members. Excellent. Now if I can just get Cadance and her guards in a room on their own, I can finally get some answers.
Luckily enough, Cadance turns into a dressing room, labeled as such by a golden plaque on the door. God, it's times like this that I'm glad I can read now. When I stop outside the door, I notice the room is fairly large, but also empty of anypony except for Cadance and her group. I'm not foolish though. I know this is a trap. Cadance knows full well that I'm following her. The fact that she led me to an empty room means she's either willing to talk, or she's planning to ambush me. Well then, I guess I'll spring the trap. I've gained a lot of power over the past month and a half. If anything, I'm confident in my ability to blow a hole in the wall and escape if things go south. Hopefully that doesn't happen though.
I have to act before the guards even know I'm here. My eyes narrow, and then I release my magic, entering base form immediately. Remembering my training, I open my mental awareness to the air around me, to the point where I can feel currents of magic flowing in the air around me like a calm hurricane. I grab hold of a current that heads in the direction I want, and then I zoom along at it at a speed so fast, that normal eyes won't be able to track it.
The first guard gets no warning before I suddenly appear in front of Cadance, to his immediate right. I clench my left hand into a fist, hold my forearm parallel to my chest, and then use my right hand to lever my elbow right into the side of the guard's head. I put a significant amount of power into that attack, such that he's knocked out immediately and sent tumbling across the room.
“What the...” the other guard cries out, lifting his spear with his magic. Before he can bring it to bear, I pivot on my right heel and slam an open palm into the remaining guard's temple, rendering him into the same state as the first.
Throughout this entire exchange, Cadance watches me coolly, not blinking an eye at my sudden appearance nor my show of force. The bridesmaids, however, are terrified and confused, especially Lyra. “Seth? What...what did you...why...?” Lyra stammers, looking at the knocked out guards in horror.
“You three. Get out of here. Right now,” I command them, my magic flaring around me to the point where the carpet burns at my feet. Twinkleshine and Minuette don't need to be told twice. They sprint out of the room like bats out of hell, while Lyra steps back, but doesn't leave. “Lyra, I swear to god, if you're still here by the time I count to three, I'll do to you what I did to those guards!”
Lyra's eyes widen, tears starting to form. Finally, she heaves a sob and sprints out of the room as well. I feel somewhat bad for terrifying her like that, but the further she is away from Cadance, the safer she is. Essentially it's for her own good.
“That was quite a show, human,” Cadance remarks, prodding the motionless form of one of the guards. “But you do realize that by attacking my guards, I can classify you as my enemy, and therefore an enemy of Equestria?”
She's technically right. Celestia would no doubt have sensed me using my magic. While she knows it's me and she claims she trusts me, she'll definitely come to investigate. I don't have much time. I need to beat down Cadance and have answers to present to Celestia by the time she arrives.
“Yeah, you can drop the act. I know you're not Cadance,” I accuse her , powering down in the hopes that it'll take Celestia longer to find us.
Cadance has the gall to look offended by that. “What ever do you mean by that ridiculous accusation? As you can see, I am Cadance, through and through,” she questions me coyly, turning her flank to angle her butt tattoo at me.
“Don't play fucking innocent. I spent enough time with the real Cadance to know that she wrote several papers on my kind,” I snap at her. “And yet you had no idea what I was. Nopony, especially not a fucking diplomat, has a memory that bad.”
“You seem quite sure of yourself. Is there no way I can convince you of my identity?” Cadance continues to act coy, despite knowing full well that she's been caught red...hoofed. The human phrase wouldn't work here, so don't fucking judge me.
“Absolutely not. So you can either tell me who you are right now, or I'll crush you here and we'll find out from your corpse,” I growl. Wow, I'm actually surprising myself a little with the things I'm saying. Is this how I am when faced with somepony that wants to do me harm?
“Oho, such a violent threat. I like you, human. You're a being after my own cold heart,” Cadance remarks with a grin, seemingly dropping the Cadance act entirely. She leans forward and sniffs at me curiously. “And...you don't belong here, do you?”
“What the fuck does that mean?” I demand, losing my patience fast. Cadance laughs heartily, and then she steps closer to me, bringing her head up to my ear in a seductive manner. Which makes me uncomfortable extremely fast.
“Tell you what. Shall I make you a deal, human?” Cadance whispers into my ear before proceeding to rub her body against my side, her tail flicking occasionally. I follow her with my eyes, just as she turns her head back to look at me, biting her lip in what she assumes to be a sexy manner. Oh god, and I thought Lyra was bad. What the hell?
“You'd better start talking,” I tell her flatly. I don't know what it is she thinks she can get out of me, but I need to get some solid evidence fast, before Celestia gets here. Especially since I can now sense Celestia's massive power moving down from the top of the tallest tower. Oh yeah, she's noticed.
“I would like you to keep quiet about your suspicions concerning me,” Cadance requests, to which I scoff. Right, because I can totally do that after knocking out two guards. “In return, I'll tell you everything later tonight, as well as give you a...special...reward, in my private chambers.”
Okay, the blatant flirting is pissing me off. It's like she's treating me like any other male. Bitch, I'm not going to give in to feminine wiles from a fucking pony. That's not how sex drives work, you imbecile.
“Right...in case you hadn't noticed, I knocked out two guards with my magic, and Celestia's on her way. If I don't take you down here, I'm going to get screwed,” I point out. “Besides, I doubt you can offer me anything that would make me take that offer.”
“How can you be so sure?” Cadance purrs, rubbing against my other side and nuzzling my shoulder. “I won't spoil it now, but I can offer you things beyond your wildest dreams.”
“Uh-huh. Right. Let's assume I say yes. How the hell am I going to get out of not capturing you? Celestia will crucify me if she thinks I hurt Cadance,” I ask, hating myself for even considering her offer. If I'm right, I'm dealing with our assailant, the one who tried to kill Celestia. If not her, then one of her underlings at least. If I accept her offer, I can go up to her room, learn her entire plan, and then crush her. “And don't even think about telling me to lie to Celestia. It won't work. She can read me like a fucking book.”
“Easy, you won't have to. I'll take care of it. I'll meet her halfway and present her with an explanation, while you return to fair Rarity,” the fake Cadance explains. “I'll even take into consideration the witness accounts from the bridesmaids, as well as the memories of the guards you knocked out.”
“That doesn't seem like it will...” I start, but the imposter cuts me off.
“Trust me, human. After all, I've been lying to Celestia for days,” she assures me with an evil smile, and I swear I hear something like a hiss coming from her throat. A shiver runs down my spine. What the fuck has taken Cadance's place? “Now then, you should run along, before Celestia sees you. I'll make sure she doesn't bother you. Remember, find me in my chambers tonight, at eight. ”
With that, the fake Cadance walks out of the room, giving me one last wink before she disappears from my field of vision.
What the fuck. I heave a sigh and leave the room quickly, taking a different path from the fake Cadance. I can't believe I just got persuaded not to turn her in. I mean, it makes sense for me to learn her full plan before turning her in, but...it's a huge risk. Plus, I am damn sure she was trying to seduce me in there. Like, more than Lyra ever thought about doing...I'm actually considering going easy on Lyra in the future. Though I'd have a bit of explaining to do to Lyra. I probably really scared her back there.
What does this assailant have to gain from letting me in on her plan? Maybe she thinks that because I'm different from the ponies, I'd be more open to helping her with...whatever it is she's trying to do? Or maybe she just wants an informant from within the pony ranks...hell, I don't fucking know. All I know is that after I visit her in her chambers tonight and find out what the hell is going on, I'm going to bust her ass straight from here to the moon.
Still thinking about what just happened, I walk back into Rarity's suite, where she's still hard at work remaking the parts of the dress that the fake didn't like. Okay, if I'm going to do this, I can't tell a single one of these ponies what I'm doing, or the first thing they'll do is go straight to Celestia, if they'd even believe me. After all, they don't seem to be listening to Twilight, either.
Twilight. She's the one pony that would believe me, despite the fact that she's too dense to realize that Cadance is an imposter. Still...I'd better leave her out of this. Luckily, these ponies should be easier to lie to if necessary than Celestia. Hopefully lying won't be necessary, however. Omission is all I have to do.
“Where's Twilight?” I ask abruptly, startling Rarity into nearly stitching her own hoof. There's no sign of Twilight anywhere, which can't be a good sign.
“Oh! Seth, I didn't hear you come in. Twilight went to the great hall to check on Pinkie's preparations,” Rarity answers, and then she turns fully around to scrutinize me with a concerned expression. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?” I ask, playing it cool, even though I know I'd left this room being a total ass.
“You were strangely agitated when you left earlier,” Rarity reminds me, walking closer to me. “What was the matter?”
“Something about Cadance seemed off,” I explain, using as little detail as possible. Though it seems I'll have to lie, at least for now. Everypony will be thanking me by the time this is over. “I guess the stress of the wedding was getting to her. I talked to her for a bit, and she seemed fine.”
“Ah, I understand. You were worried about us. At least you understand how the princess feels now,” Rarity replies, curving her lips into a smile. “Poor Twilight seems to think it's something more devious. I believe she's simply being paranoid.”
“Seriously. I mean, with all this security here, what the hell does she expect to happen? Because even if something is lucky enough to get past that barrier, there's so many guards it makes sabotaging this fucking impossible,” I express, even though I know that that fake Cadance has managed to get in regardless of all this security. I hope she explains how she did it when I go to see her later tonight. Then maybe I can barter that information to the guard somehow after I turn her in. Hell, I don't know. The only thing that is certain is that I'm going to bust that imposter's ass.
“Indeed. Anyway, would you be so kind as to help me finish the rest of these dresses? It is almost time to meet the others for dinner,” Rarity queries, reaching out a hoof. “I need another spool of lavender thread.”
“Got it,” I reply, resigning myself to working for just a little bit longer.
“Finished!” Rarity declares, stepping back from her work and gazing upon it with pride. Of course, the bride's dress looks the same as it did before, albeit with the changes the fake Cadance asked for. “I just know the princess will love this.”
“I'm sure she will,” I reply without really caring. I'm starting to get restless, because I know what's coming, yet I still have to wait to go do it. The longer I wait, the more uneasy I feel. Now, all of that aside, I realize I'm pretty hungry. “I'm guessing it's time for dinner?”
“That's right! Shall we go and see how the rest have fared in their preparations?” Rarity asks, but it's not really a question, because she's already moving for the door.
“Sure, whatever,” I say tersely. My conversation with fake Cadance has really made it so I don't really feel like talking. Not until I know she's taken care of and the old Cadance is back. Speaking of which, where is the old Cadance? Holy shit, she's not dead, is she? I mean, that's a real possibility, because if you're going to assume somebody's identity, you should kill the original first. Fuck...remember when I said history was in the making here? A princess may be dead, so you're damn right history is being made. According to what I've learned, nothing like that has happened...ever.
I follow Rarity absentmindedly, lost in my thoughts. I hate to admit it, but I'm also shaking slightly, without meaning to. I've never been in a situation like this, where a single decision from me can change the fate of an entire country. That's literally what's going on right now. Fuck, this is a lot of pressure.
Rarity leads me down to the castle courtyard, which is a massive open area decorated with grass and stone constructs. There's a table set up in one corner of the area, which seems to already be set up for us, probably by the castle staff. By set up, I mean there's eight glasses of water arranged in a circle on the table. Oh good, I could use some water.
“Seth!” It looks like Rainbow is already there. Of course she is, she wasn't doing much of anything...or was she? Her mane looks stringy and the slightest bit damp, for whatever reason. Don't tell me took a swim somewhere while the rest of us have been working our asses off. “You should have seen the tricks I pulled off today. Can you believe I pulled off a double corkscrew back flip?”
“Nice,” I reply uncaringly, which puts a damper on her enthusiasm slightly. Rainbow's smile fades and she looks at me concernedly. I move past her, unzipping and unbuckling my coat. I'm going to be eating, so I don't want to be wearing it. Thankfully, there's a hook on the wall near the table, which allows me to hang the coat there. Now wearing just my sleeveless black shirt, I take a seat at the table, grabbing the nearest glass and gulping down its contents greedily. Whew, I didn't even realize how thirsty I am.
“Hello, Rainbow. You look like you've been working hard,” Rarity observes, thankfully saving me from Rainbow's incoming questions.
“You have no idea. I don't think I touched the ground for hours!” Rainbow exclaims, snapping back into bragging mode. “It was a lot of work, but I feel all warmed up and ready, like I could execute a double Sonic Rainboom!”
“That's not even physically possible," I interrupt, looking over at Rainbow incredulously, earning their attention. “The whole theory behind a Sonic Rainboom is that you're breaking the sound barrier. Once you've broken the sound barrier, it's broken. You can't break it again.”
“Uh, what are you talking about? What sound barrier?” Rainbow asks dumbly, which causes me to facepalm.
“Seriously? You've been doing Sonic Rainbooms here and there, yet you don't even know the theory behind it?”
“Well, I know I go faster than sound,” Rainbow supplies.
“Oh...my god,” I groan. Rarity giggles at the both of us, and finally the two of them join me at the table, sitting on either side of me. “The sound barrier is the point when an object, which in this case is you, goes from transonic to supersonic speeds. More literally, it's the increase in air pressure you feel as you get closer and closer to the speed of sound. Don't tell you haven't felt it.”
“Oh, that's what that was? I always thought those were the rainbows forming,” Rainbow gasps in wonder.
“Christ, you ponies!” My outburst gets the both of them laughing again. As Rainbow laughs, I can't help but notice a pungent smell emanating from her. Oh god, that's really strong. What is that, is that her sweat? It...well, if I admit it to myself, it actually doesn't smell as bad as horses do in my time. I can definitely smell the horse, but the ever present smell of shit isn't there, instead replaced by...something that I can't really describe. “Rainbow, how hard were you working? You smell.”
“Wha...I do not!” Rainbow protests, looking offended.
Even Rarity looks at me in exasperation. “Seth, there are some things you just don't say to a...” Rarity suddenly cuts off mid-scolding, taking a whiff of the air. “Actually, he's right. Rainbow...”
“I do not smell! If anything, Seth, you're the one who smells, since you're a...” Rainbow brings, but then she cuts off, smelling herself. She wrinkles her nose, and then she's silent for a good few seconds. Hilariously enough, an embarrassed blush suffuses her cheeks when she realizes that we're both right. “Oh...well...it seems I do.”
Just the way she said that gets me laughing, pounding the table with my fist. Even Rarity is chuckling at Rainbow's expense. Every time I think I'm going to stop laughing, I look at Rainbow's blushing face and I start up again, to the point where it gets hard to breathe.
“Sheesh, it's not that funny,” Rainbow mutters, scuffing the ground with her hoof. So this is the scene that Fluttershy and Pinkie enter.
The former looks confused at what's going on, while Pinkie zooms over to me and starts laughing obnoxiously as well. A few moments later, Pinkie snorts and asks, “So what are we laughing about?”
“It's Rainbow. She appears to have...” Rarity begins, but then an ice cube nails her right in the nose, courtesy of the red-cheeked Rainbow. “Why, I never! Rainbow Dash, I don't care how you view yourself, but you are still a lady, and ladies do not throw ice cubes!”
Oh god, if I still had access to my social media, I'd make that a favorite quote in an instant. Ladies don't throw ice cubes. That's just funny, and oh my god I can't fucking breathe. You ponies, stop being so entertaining.
“Um...I'm sorry to interrupt, but what's so funny?” Fluttershy inserts, smiling at our merriment. Rainbow glares at us all, daring any one of us to answer her.
“It's Rainbow. She worked too hard, and now she smells,” I reveal quickly, and then immediately cross my arms to defend against the veritable storm of ice cubes that Rainbow sends my way.
“Oh, are we tossing ice cubes!?” Pinkie squeals, taking out a glass full of ice from her mane somehow.
“No we're not! Put those away. Rainbow, stop throwing...” Rarity retorts, but then another ice cube soars at her, which she catches with her magic. “Throw one more ice cube at me. I dare you.”
“Now, Rainbow worked really hard to make sure the princess has the best wedding possible. I don't think we should make fun of her for it,” Fluttershy admonishes us all gently. I consider tossing an ice cube at her, but decide not to.
“Maybe we shouldn't, but that doesn't stop it being funny,” I remark. Suddenly, an extreme chill falls down my back, causing me to shudder violently. I shake my shirt, and an ice cube falls out. I glare at Rainbow, her laughing face making it all too obvious who the culprit is. The moment I move, Rainbow bolts from the table, still laughing. “Oh no you fucking don't.”
I get up from my chair and chase after Rainbow, grabbing an ice cube as I do so. Behind me, Rarity groans and lets her face hit the tabletop, while Pinkie somehow got a pair of frilly pom-poms, and is wearing a shirt with Rainbow's face on it.
Rainbow takes to the air, flapping her wings furiously. I flare my magic and go airborne as well, determined to pay her back for that little prank. “You're not gonna catch me!” Rainbow calls back. Of course, because she isn't looking ahead of her, she promptly hits the wall on the other side of the courtyard. “Oof!”
I grab the back of her neck and hold her against the wall, a devilish smirk on my face. “Hold on, can you say that one more time? I didn't hear you. Who's not going to catch whom?” I taunt. Rainbow responds by turning her head and spitting out a half melted piece of ice onto my face. “What the...okay, that's it.”
I grab the ice cube I took with me and drag it slowly down Rainbow's back, causing her to shudder and yell. “Yeah, how do you like it?”
“What in tarnation is going up there?” I hear Applejack's voice asking from down below. Chuckling, I release Rainbow, noticing with annoyance that my palm is now greasy with her sweat.
“I don't even know,” is Rarity's hilarious response.
“Thanks, Rainbow,” I say, panting slightly at that sudden exertion. Rainbow turns around and gives me a baleful stare. “No, seriously. I needed to laugh.”
“Oh. Well, glad I could help then,” Rainbow says, perplexed. “Anyway, let's go back down. I think Applejack brought the food.”
“Oh good, I'm hungry.”
“...a couple hundred dozens of apple fritters, and then finished up the cake. Ah'd say it's goin' great!” Applejack finishes, listing off all the food products that she'd been cooking over the past several hours, while the rest of us eat the food she brought. “Ah think ah'm just about ready.”
“I finished the dresses, with Seth's help of course. There was a slight hiccup with the princess, but all in all, I think I did a pretty good job,” Rarity rejoins, looking at me appreciatively. Then she regards Fluttershy. “How about you, Fluttershy?”
Before Fluttershy can answer, Twilight enters the courtyard with Spike, though she doesn't happy at all. The first thing she does when she reaches us is slam both hooves on top of the table, nearly knocking over our dishes. “Now, I know what you're all thinking: that Cadance is the worst bride-to-be ever!” Twilight rages. I blink, wondering if she's gone crazy. That wasn't even on my mind at all. Apparently it wasn't on the minds of any of the others either, as they're looking at Twilight as if she's gone crazy.
“Twilight, what ever are you talking about? Cadance is an absolute gem!” Rarity questions, looking somewhat determined. It seems she's planning on stamping out Twilight's paranoia here and now. Even though her paranoia is absolutely justified.
“What? But she demanded so much from you, after you worked so hard!” Twilight demands, but I personally think that's a particularly weak defense.
“But of course! Why shouldn't she have the best on her wedding day?” Rarity returns. Twilight looks like she wants to protest further, but she gives up, and instead turns to Applejack.
“Applejack, did you know she lied to you about liking your food? She threw your gift in the trash on the way out!” Twilight continues, only this time she's talking about something I wasn't there for.
Applejack looks taken aback, but quickly gets over it. “Well, not everypony can like what ah make. She was probably jus' tryin' not ta hurt ma feelins,” she says with a shrug.
Twilight gets even more frustrated, and starts addressing each and every one of her friends, looking for support. But no matter what she does, they give her a perfectly reasonable answer that she can't refute without looking possessive of her brother. Finally, she turns to me. “Seth, you were there in Rarity's room. You noticed something was wrong, right? You said as much!”
That gets everypony's attention. They all look at me, waiting for my answer. Shit. After an awkward pause, I raise my hands. “Hey, it's not my problem. I'm only here because I'm being paid to be,” I say, choosing not to support or deny her. Twilight's response is to snarl in frustration, rubbing her temples with her hooves.
“Twilight, you must understand. Tomorrow is her wedding! I'm sure anything negative you've seen can be attributed to stress. It's one of the biggest moments of her life, after all,” Rarity explains, resting a hoof on Twilight's shoulder.
“It is not stress! She's an awful pony, who doesn't even deserve to talk to Shining Armor, let alone marry him!” Twilight's rage is getting stronger and stronger. Then finally, Applejack says what the rest of them are thinking.
“Don't ya think yer bein' a mite possessive of yer brother?” Applejack asks with a raised eyebrow. Twilight's jaw tightens. Oh shit, she's about to go off the deep end, isn't she? When she speaks again, it starts off calm.
“I am not being possessive of my brother, nor am I taking it out on Cadance. The lot of you are just so caught up in your wedding preparations to even notice that there shouldn't even be a wedding!” Twilight's voice rises to a shout over the course of that statement, and then she once again slams both hooves down on the table, only this time with much more force, to the point where all of our dishes go flying.
Twilight storms away after that, leaving Spike with us. The rest of the ponies look at one another, unsure what to say after a tirade like that.
“This is just getting worse and worse,” Rarity observes after a long silence. The other ponies nod and make varying sounds of agreement.
Rarity is right. Things are just going to get worse until I confront the fake Cadance in her room tonight.
The outcome of the wedding rests solely on my shoulders.
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Awwhh I can't wait! :P
“Heck yeah I do. I saw the sound barrier nail you, and I knew I'd won,” Rainbow proclaims proudly. Chapter 39.
“Uh, what are you talking about? What sound barrier?” Rainbow asks dumbly. Chapter 42.
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....derp. Thanks for catching that. Fixed
Now. Question: Is Chrysalis going to be stronger than Celestia or are you going to go with the whole "If Celestia used her full power like she did before on top of the mountain she would destroy Canterlot and hurt 'her little ponies' so she has to make it seem she's weaker." And if that is the case does that mean Seth is close or as strong a Chrysalis?
4887785
Well, all of these questions delve into spoiler territory, but I'll do best to give answers by skirting around said spoilers.
Or...actually, I can't say a thing. Wow. Basically, I can assure you that I've thought everything through that you've just asked. Give it a few more chapters, and you'll have your answers.
Also...that was not Celestia's full power on the mountain. Otherwise Seth would be dead.
4887904 Sees wait for a couple chapters.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.
But I'll try my best.
I just had to ask, this the my second favorite story on this site besides Diaries of a Madman.
Holy crap this chapter was awesome!
Starting off, Seth ain't buying 'Cadance's' crap and immediately works out she is a fake. However instead of allying himself with Twilight, he takes matters into his own hands and confronts fake Cadance. Him just showing up in a blaze of dark magic and beating up two guards probably scared the living shit out of Lyra. To her this was an unprovoked attack and it shows her love interest as a genuine threat, something she has outright refused to believe since the moment she met him. With Bon Bon's constant criticisms about Seth, to see him do this was probably very unsettling and a little heart breaking. We know from canon what happens to Lyra during the wedding episode, but this time around it may play out different, or at least manoeuvre her into a different situation. Be interesting to see her next interaction with Seth. Back onto fake Cadance, with Seth not buying her act, she falls back onto her seduction and manipulation tactics, which aren't as effective as she thinks. Seth has no interest in Cadance on a 'sexual' level so the flirty behaviour does nothing but repulse him, and while fake Cadance has put him into a situation that gives her the advantage, she doesn't know anything about Seth, especially not about how powerful he truly is. If it came to blows, I'm not sure who would win, as her love magic was strong enough to beat Celestia in canon, but love magic and dark magic appear to be enemies of each other (or at least Cadance love magic, as we saw in the crystal empire) so they may end up equally matched. I have suspicions that this meet up isn't going to go well for Seth, as it seems to be occurring during the point where Twilight spied on fake Cadance using mind magic on Shining Armour in the canon. This could mean one of two things. A: Cadance has lured him into a trap which will be spied by Twilight and likely involve Shining Armour, possibly even having him try to arrest Seth, or B: this part of the story deviates from the canon and neither Twilight or Shining are involved (or maybe they are but it plays out differently then canon). either way, this meeting is going to be very intense.
Moving away from the seriousness for a moment, we now get to the dinner meet up where Seth catches up with Rainbow again. He is largely preoccupied by the fake Cadance situation, so doesn't pay much attention to Rainbow. When she first calls out to him she is excited to see him, but when he gives her a lack luster response, she doesn't appear disheartened, but rather concerned, as she was under the impression from earlier that he had been looking forward to catching up with her at dinner. This shows how receptive Rainbow has become to his moods. She knew he wanted to see her, so seeing him act like he didn't care didn't make her feel upset or unwanted, but rather that something had upset her friend and was distracting him. I'm not sure how much of the situation Rainbow will learn about from Seth (if he reveals anything to her) but this indicates she will likely give him the benefit of the doubt, even if she remains sceptical. His explanation of how her sonic rainboom works was entertaining, as Rainbow has shown she isn't the studious type and likely never considered trying to learn more about her signature move, simply because to do so would be 'egghead-y'. Perhaps this may lead her to seek him out for knowledge in the future, rather then subject herself to a Twilight lecture when she doesn't understand something. Having them play fighting by throwing ice around was hilarious. Rainbow declaring he couldn't catch her then immediately running into a wall and getting pinned by him was a brilliant way to shift from the more serious beginning of the chapter into some well earned comic relief between friends. He even admits he needed the laugh, and while Rainbow would normally be annoyed being the butt of the joke, her perplexed response indicates that while she had no idea what had stressed him out, she didn't mind lightening him up a little. If Dash doesn't get a lot of screen time over the next few chapters (at least at the more serious moments) I suspect she will definitely help to improve his mood. In fact with them staying in the same suite, I can see further shenanigans ensuing
.
Ending the chapter is the canon scene of Twilight flipping out at her friends due to them not noticing how fake Cadance is (man they really are dumb sometimes) I can see her having something to do with Seth's meeting with fake Cadance next chapter. With Seth as the main protagonist throughout these events this time around, Twilight's issues have been relegated to the background and as such her story may play out differently. Only time will tell.
Man I am really excited for next chapter. This meeting can go a few different ways, but all of them will be epic. Can't wait
"Meet me alone in my private chambers. <vague promise of nookie>". Admiral Ackbar has some advice for Seth.
Shame he neglected to catch the entire scene on his cell phone.
Ho-ly fuckin' shit!
I laughed so much at the dinner scene before Twilight came in, that was fuckin' epic! 
Seth and Rainbow sitting in a tree
F-I-G-H-T-I-N-G
Okay, Seth just letting "Cadance" go after he confronted her is complete and utter bullshit.
I swear to God, if by the end of the chapter he won't think of an emergency plan in case he gets brain-washed I'll flip the table. "Cadance" said that she is good at lying and that she will take care of all witnesses. Combine it with mind controlling magic and he should have known that she can manipulate others. And now he is all like "Oh, I will totally keep everything to myself and go where she told me to go without any contingency plan. Buck telling Twilight or others, I'll just wing it". When did he become so stupid? Plus he had a phone for Gods sake, why did he have to be so retarded back there?
Also, not entirely happy with how OP he is becoming. I mean, really? He can fly? What the buck is this story, superman? I sure do hope that I won't regret reading further and that this won't deteriorate into countless chain of plot devices and deus ex machina o counteract them.
He could have stopped her right then and there. I'm sure Celestia would find a way to get info out of "Cadence". This whole thing is entirely uncalled for and needs much better justification to look even remotely passable. The first time the plot in this story seems bad to me.
Heavens forbid if Cadance would suddenly start to act like Seth! All hell would break lose!
Oh! He is onto something!
BWAHAHA! Big mistake there, Chryssi! He is not into such things!
Well, not yet. But there is an incoming Sash shipping.
That's the Rainbow we all love!
Current time: 00:04
If I fail my social diploma I'm blaming you.
6853727 well then.
>Social Diploma
>Fimfiction
>Up at midnight
Ya got more problems than a social diploma, bud
jk pls dont kill me
6216933 Agreed.
7745931
Don't worry, the royal wedding is pretty high up there on the list of "needs a rewrite pretty fucking badly." This story is still a work in progress. Feel free to point out other areas that don't make sense or that seem off. Every little bit helps!
Disclaimer: As I'm writing this, I've only just read this chapter. I still have a way to go and no real clue what's going to happen next.
That said, so finally here's Chrysalis, and from her prominence in the story image and her character tag I'd expect her to play a pretty significant role from now on. Should be interesting to see what that is and what sort of relationship she'll end up having with Seth in particular -- I could see that ranging from a "dating Catwoman"-style affair if the two end up having enough in common to "just another Janna, crush-kill-destroy" archenmity. (Okay, I'll admit it, I'd personally find the former far more interesting than the latter, but of course Seth has no reason to care what I think.
)
And of course Seth deciding to get to the bottom of things all by his lonesome instead of, oh, letting anyone else who's already on the lookout for intruders -- like a certain princess he grudgingly respects, or a captain of the guard -- in on it is definitely worth a double "What. An. Idiot." facehoof. That said, it's just the sort of mistake I can see him make out of sheer ingrained "I'm a solitary asshole, I don't need anyone else nosing into my business" habit; a couple of months or so in Equestria and carefully opening up to a very few select ponies can really only do so much. So it's basically just the sort of idiocy we've seen him display before (also taking into account that he's still kind of young and hardly as mature as he may think he is yet) and he's at least being consistent; I also fully expect him to kick himself over it later on.
I just have a few things to say here.
I was thinking you might make Chrysalis have a bit more forethought than in canon, but I guess not, since she was hardly concerned about major discrepancies others would notice from interacting with her; basically Twilight and Seth. It doesn't matter too much I guess.
And Seth notices and tries to take extreme action immediately? Wow. And of course he tells no one, not even twilight or Celestia. With twilight to back him up I bet their argument would be convincing enough. Wonder how this will play out.
Still an asshole as always.
8726181
Thats beautyful, isn't it?
And, i dunno how thigs go in other countries over the world, but for modern Russia Seth is a normal person. Maybe a little much asshole then somebody else.
8726181
Beats some 'Talk no jutsu' bs