I'm Not Saying It Was Changelings... But It Was Changelings
The sound of hooves on stone echoed in the large cavern. In a pool of light, a white unicorn fidgeted nervously. He wasn’t used to being so alone or scrutinized so intensely.
“Well? What do you think?” A voice finally drifted out of the darkness.
“Hm… I dare say, it’s perfect.” A second voice finally replied from another direction. “Perfect… but not right.”
The stallion flinched at that, not knowing what he’d done wrong; terrified of the consequences for disappointing his examiners.
“What? But… but I-!”
“Oh, don’t worry. It’s nothing that can’t be… heh, ‘fixed’.” The voices continued to circle, and the unicorn tried to regain his composure. If he broke now, then there was no hope for any of them.
“You see, if there’s one thing I’ve learned about these dear little ponies, it’s that while they can be very, very good… they are never perfect.”
“... ah. I see, of course.” A black, chitinous hoof reached into the spotlight, and with almost artistic deliberation, ruffled the unicorn’s mane. A curl of hair came loose and settled along his face, clearly astray from the rest of his locks. “Yes… yes, I see it now, what you meant. Not perfect…”
“... but right.”
The unicorn perked up, unable to hide the burst of hope he felt.
One of the voices chuckled. “I think we’re ready, then.” A pulse of magic washed through the cave and activated the other illumination crystals, banishing the shadows and gloom. There, directly before him, towered Chrysalis, Leader of the Hive. Tall, elegant, radiating power like any alicorn princess… the unicorn reacted with pure instinct and bowed before her.
“What is your name?”
“Prince Blueblood.” The words were uttered without any hesitation, any thought.
“Where are you going tonight?”
“To the Grand Galloping Gala; the most prestigious social event of the year. Between gossips and the press, also one of the most closely watched and analyzed.”
“And what were you hoping to achieve there?”
Blueblood raised his head and looked her squarely in the eye and said with utter conviction. “To meet new ponies, and make friends.”
Chrysalis threw back her head and laughed. “Yes! Yes! Go then, Blueblood, go the Gala and mingle and make friends!”
Not sure if that was an official dismissal or not, he looked over his shoulder at the other figure in the room for confirmation. She nodded, smiling in her mysterious way, and gestured towards the tunnel that would take him into a hidden corner of Canterlot castle, where no pony would see him enter. Not wasting another moment, the unicorn trotted swiftly away; throwing only a couple of glances back over his shoulder before the tunnel twisted out of sight.
Chrysalis watched the retreating figure, only speaking again when she was certain he was too far away to hear. She shouldn’t… couldn’t show any doubt, not so close to success. “This is the one, isn’t it? It has to be.”
The other figure stepped next to her and laid a wing across her back. “Of course it is. I am certain that this year… this Gala… this will be the one that makes it all worthwhile. All the years, all the work… trust me, Chrysalis.”
The Lady of the Swarm smiled nervously and turned to look at her co-conspirator. “Do you really mean that, Celestia?”
“Absolutely,” the Solar Diarch of Equestria smiled back.
•§•§•§•§•
Blueblood awoke slowly. He wasn’t in his bed, and he could hear the sound of another- no, several others in the room with him.
Cracking an eye open slowly, he was met by the sight of three undisguised changelings standing in the door of the small room he must’ve been carried to. Their posture shifted as they sensed that he was awake.
Shaking off the last dregs of sleep, Blueblood sat up and looked at them with narrowed eyes. “So… back for a rematch, eh? Think that just because the three of you work together, you can take me again? I’m on to your tricks!”
The changelings all laughed at his blustering, and slowly started to close in on him, grins growing wider with every step.
Keeping an eye on them every moment, Blueblood edged around the room until there was a table between himself and them. “Oh, you think I’m funny? Let’s see how much you’re laughing after a few rounds of THIS!” With a flash of magic from his horn, Blueblood slammed a deck of cards on the table. Without breaking eye contact, he began to demonstrate some very deft telekinesis; riffling, bridging and shuffling over and over, all without looking at the cards.
“Start off with a five-bit ante, queens are wild, and see where the evening takes us... sound good to you fellows?” The changelings nodded eagerly, rubbing their hooves in anticipation.
Blueblood was just about to start dealing when he froze. Peering closely at the changeling on his left, he asked in a low, slow voice, “... did you remember to bring the snacks this time?”
The changeling’s eyes started darting back and forth, and it made some clicks and buzzes that sounded almost, but not quite, like excuses.
“Oh, come on! You know the rules. I bring the cards; you bring the snacks. That’s the deal.”
Blueblood kept staring at the increasingly quiet changeling until it shot to it’s hooves and pointed over his shoulder with a loud, scared-sounding buzz. Blueblood quickly looked over his shoulder to see..!
… a completely blank wall.
By the time he looked back, the changeling was gone from the table, and a trail of dust leading out the door was still settling.
He rolled his eyes and went back to shuffling. Turning to the other changelings, he said “We’ll just wait for him to get back with the snacks, yeah?”
His two remaining poker buddies nodded in agreement.
•§•§•§•§•
“Eeeee! I know it, I know it, I can just FEEL it, this is going to be the one!” Chrysalis continued to pronk as Celestia hid a grin behind her hoof.
“I can hardly wait for tomorrow, Chryssie. Once we tell everyone, and- well. If it’s going to happen at all, I should head up as well. The Gala can hardly start without me, after all.”
Chrysalis stopped hopping with a loud gasp before rushing in front of Celestia. “Tia… what if… you know, just this once…” There was a flash of green magic, and Celestia found herself looking up at herself with big, pleading, puppy-dog eyes. “... maaaaybe I could go in your place? I mean, you always say how bored you are!”
Celestia couldn’t help but laugh, and gave herself a quick nuzzle. “Oh, Chryssie, how I wish we could switch… but you know the rules. We both agreed to them, when we started all this.”
Chryslestia pouted, but nodded in agreement. “I knooow… I’m to stay down here, so that the changeling can prove itself, by itself, without a guiding hoof from me. It’s just… I have a really good feeling about this one, Tia. This’ll be the year!”
Celestia beamed at Chrysalis. “I agree completely. Something about this Gala feels… different. After this year, everything will be changed. Oh, just imagine! First Luna, now you… we’ll finally all be together again!” She fluffed and settled her wings, clearly happy just thinking about the coming reunion. “Now I really must go. I’ll have practically no time to myself once the Gala starts, and I’d really like to catch up with Twilight-”
“Wait, your student will be there? The one who finally saved Luna? Now I really wish I could go! Aww!”
“Not just her, but all of the bearers of the Elements. After everything they’d done for Twilight… for us… inviting them was the least I could do.”
“Sure, sure! Rub it in how I won’t be getting to meet any of them tonight.” Chrysalis flared back into herself and stuck her tongue out at Celestia, causing her to giggle again.
“I promise, when we have the ceremony tomorrow, you can meet them all. Look on the bright side; you won’t have to pretend to be me the entire time. You can meet them as you.”
Chrysalis perked up a little at that, and waved goodbye as Celestia left for the party.
•§•§•§•§•
“By the way, thanks for dragging me to my room last night.” The changelings didn’t look up from their cards, but nodded in acknowledgement.
“No, no, I mean it. Thanks. I don’t normally get that deep into my cups, but, well…” Blueblood sighed and picked two cards to discard. “It’s just that I heard that the Elements of Harmony were going to be at the Gala this year! And I’m going to miss them! Don’t get me wrong, you guys are great, but…” That got a clicky sort of chuckle out of them, except for the one on the left who still hadn’t made up his mind about what cards to keep. “Really, come on. Meeting the mares who saved Equestria? Stopped eternal night? Saved Auntie Luna from Nightmare Moon? Also, it’s been what, more than a year since I’ve seen Twilight? There’s so much to catch up on and-”
Blueblood was cut off by some good-natured snickering and pokes in the ribs from the changelings next to him.
“Hey, hey, it’s not like that!” The unicorn blushed a little and picked up his new cards. “I mean, yes, I know I can be a bit romantic at times, and I’ve told you about how I’d just love to meet my very special somepony in the garden under a full moon, and how it would be love at first sight and we’d dance and dazzle all the other guests, and I could just swoon into her hooves, knowing she could protect me… but really! I just want to meet them because they saved the kingdom. Really. That’s all.”
The changelings just looked at each other and smiled. He wasn’t fooling anyone.
Blueblood puffed out his cheeks and glared at them. “Are you guys gonna ante up or not?”
•§•§•§•§•
Prince Changeling. Changeblue. Blueling. Fauxblood. Bluebug. Changeblood. Princeling. Blue Beetle. Bloodling. Ooh, Bloodling! That was a good one; no pony would dare start something with… Bloodling.
Bloodling (better known to his friends back in the Hive as Nymph and to Chrysalis as Nimmy) looked around the gardens in his best, super-sneaky way. The Gala was underway, and there were already quite a few ponies wandering the grounds.
He grinned and rubbed his hooves together. So many ponies, and not a single one suspected that the dashing and mysterious Bloodling was in their midst. If all went according to plan, they never would, either.
Aside from Princess Celestia, of course. She knew all about it. Probably Princess Luna too, now that she was back. And the real Blueblood, obviously, but he wasn’t here so he didn’t count. And a few of the older guests, who’d had their turn at being replaced. And really, if everything went to plan, tomorrow every pony would know when it was announced that changelings were going to start integrating into society.
But for now, practically no one had any idea that Bloodling was on the prowl! Calm, cool, collected, he was the epitome of a changeling at work, ready to-
Bloodling was nearly knocked off his borrowed hooves by a sudden wave of hope/desire/infatuation/trepidation. It hit with the power of seeing a long-lost love return, or possibly even love at first sight; to the eager young changeling, it felt like he’d been bucked in the back of the head by chocolate and sparkles.
‘... whoa.’ was all he could think for a few seconds. ‘I don’t know who that was, but I know who I want to spend the rest of the evening with.’
Bloodling resumed mingling, but now also keeping an eye out (well, emotionally-receptive neural cluster) for a pony who could feel so strongly about the prince.
•§•§•§•§•
Chrysalis poked her head into the room just in time to see Blueblood lose the latest hoof of poker.
“The Whole Hive Hootenanny is about to start… are you sure you don’t want to come along?”
“Thanks, but no, Auntie. I still need to win back all the bits I lost last year.” Blueblood looked around the table with a goodnatured glare. “And the year before. I haven’t forgotten, you crooks. ‘Never even heard of poker’, my flank...”
Chrysalis laughed and wished him luck, grinning as she went to join the rest of the Hive. Talking to Blueblood, even just being around him, always made her feel better.
•§•
When meeting her for the first time, even when introduced by Celestia herself, other ponies had tended to react… poorly.
In the old days, when the Windigoes were still fresh in their minds and survival was everypony’s job, they had usually tackled her and told Celestia to save herself while they held Chrysalis at bay. That had never stopped being awkward.
As Equestia was tamed and the ponies became more settled though, battle cries gave way to just crying. Even with Celestia at their side, they’d be skittish through the initial meeting. Many guests would then stay in their room, barricade the door, and wait for Celestia to come for them in the morning. A few even got so upset that Celestia and Chrysalis were forced to convince them that it had all been a dream; that they’d gone to the Gala, overindulged on champagne and canapes, and then some bad cheese had brought on nightmares of things that were not ponies but wished to be, and who had taken their place at the Gala.
Those times had hurt more than any physical assault. Why were they so afraid? Why couldn’t they… why couldn’t any pony see the changelings the way she did? All their potential, their close connection to one another… they were beautiful. Why was she the only one who didn’t shy away in fear and disgust?
Except Blueblood. He hadn’t lashed out, or cried, or cowered. He had only stood there, listening, as Celestia and Chrysalis had explained everything to him. At the end of it, he’d only asked one thing. “So… you’re Princess Celestia’s sister?”
When they said yes, he nodded. “Well, she’s my auntie, and if you’re her sister, that means you’re also my auntie.” Then he’d trotted over and hugged her. He said something about family, but Chrysalis hadn’t been able to hear it over her own shock and the waves of honest acceptance and blossoming familial love that were rolling off of him.
He wasn’t afraid. He didn’t hate her. Celestia had vouched for her, and that had been enough for him to call her family.
He’d been just as accepting of the changelings. Where all other ponies had been frightened to see their doppelganger, Blueblood had only clapped his hooves and laughed; something about seeing the back of his own head just made him giddy as a schoolfilly. He went to the Whole Hive Hootenanny, and declared it superior to the Grand Galloping Gala. He somehow convinced a few changelings to start a game of poker, a game of bluffing and reading others and had laughed with every loss.
At the end of the night he asked one more question, and with it, secured his place in Chrysalis’ opinion as the best pony in all of Canterlot.
He asked if he could come back next year.
•§•
Chrysalis came out of her reminiscing as she entered the main cavern, where nearly all of the Hive had gathered. The chamber buzzed with music and life; like silent fireworks, the flashes of changelings in disguise competitions came from all sides. Upon seeing her enter, a Chrysalis in the middle of the dance floor froze before quickly turning into a normal changeling and grinning sheepishly.
Here, surrounded by the Hive, Chrysalis felt like she’d stepped into a warm, soft sea; the laughter, the joy, wave after wave of unadulterated enjoyment… it washed away all of her worries and fears.
‘Everything will be fine… this year will be different,’ she thought with a smile.
•§•§•§•§•
In yet another stunning display of cunning and cleverness, Bloodling had managed to track down the source of the emotional outburst he’d felt earlier. So what if there were only about seventeen ponies in the garden, and all he’d done was talk to each of them to see if they’d flare up again? That was still cunning. It was totally cunning.
He’d only had to introduce himself to confirm his suspicions; the burst of fear/excitement/desire/surprise was too intense, too raw... this mare had never met Blueblood before.
If they’d been lovers forced apart for whatever reason, there would be a familiarity to the feeling; it’d be complex and full-bodied, like a vintage wine. If she’d been crushing on him around the castle, there would be a hint of an ache to it; a tangy undercurrent, from a dream within reach but unpursued. This was crisp, like fresh snowfall; this meeting would be the very first thing to leave a mark on it.
If he were a lesser changeling, he wouldn’t even hesitate to take advantage of that and wring every iota of love out of the mare.
However, Bloodling was made of sterner stuff. He would not give in to his impulses; he would make his Lady proud and not get the real Blueblood tangled up in scandal or obligations.
That being said, he still wanted to spend the Gala in her company; just being next to her was like knocking back an entire bottle of wine. Her emotions were so earnest, so powerful… he was actually feeling a little lightheaded from it.
Clearly, the best course of action would be to stick with her, but try and temper her feelings for him. After all, he had been told to mingle and make friends, just not lovers.
When she mentioned the rose, Bloodling saw his chance. Rather than present it to her, he kept it for himself. The burst of disappointment/sadness/dismay was like an iced coffee; it cleared his head and bolstered his confidence in his plan. Another flawless scheme by Bloodling!
•§•§•§•§•
“Wait, no! Argh...” Blueblood groaned as his discarded cards were swept away. He’d let his mind wander, and had accidentally put down the wrong cards. It only ruined a pair of nines, but it was still… huh.
His new cards completed a flush. That was… lucky.
As he collected the pot, Blueblood’s ear twitched. He tried to ignore it.
•§•§•§•§•
It was getting harder to ignore the urge to feed off this mare. Her shock at the trick with the flower had faded, and her hope and desire for Blueblood had rallied faster than Bloodling had expected. Stealing her seat in the garden helped for a while, but she refused to let it dampen her mood. It was so pure, so focused… if he allowed himself, Bloodling figured he could become the second most powerful changeling in the Hive from the strength of her emotions. He still wouldn’t be able to compare to Chrysalis, but one can’t hold a candle to the sun in any case.
Not that he would feed, of course; there were far more important things at stake tonight than his personal growth. He would make his Lady proud, he wouldn’t embarrass Blueblood, and he would keep disappointing this lovesick mare.
Bloodling smiled as he spotted a spilled drink. It must be a sign!
•§•§•§•§•
‘It must be a sign,’ Blueblood thought, his stomach knotting as he won. Again.
He’d been getting better cards, the changelings’ tells were more obvious, they were falling for his bluffs more often… there was no denying it; he was on a winning streak. A Princess-forsaken, unnatural, portentous winning streak.
His ears flicked, his skin crawled, his hooves tingled… with every bet and every card, his cutie mark was screaming at him that it all meant something.
Although it looked like only a compass rose, Blueblood’s talent wasn’t limited to maps or navigation; he knew how to read signs. From the color of clouds at dawn, he could forecast the weather for a week. From the scratches and dents on a pocket watch, he could tell you everything about the owner except their name. From a game of poker, he could tell how a noble would act in court and what could sway their minds (that was why he enjoyed playing with the changelings; it’d been years since he’d found a pony he couldn’t bluff and read after five minutes).
Sometimes, if he really focused, he could pick up more esoteric signs. The flight of birds would tell him who would be picked next for promotion. From a scattered hoofful of rice, he could say if it would be faster to go by train or airship. The stars that Auntie Luna had chosen to twinkle on a given night were like a book, letting him know how all his friends were faring no matter where they were (he’d asked Luna about that, but she claimed it was whim and artistry that guided her hoof and nothing more).
From a game of cards and a complete reversal of fortune, he could only think one thing. ‘Lucky in cards; unlucky in love.’
He was dealt a full house for the next hoof.
•§•§•§•§•
Okay. Okay. So. So Bloodling maaay have indulged himself a little. Just a little! The mare was overflowing with emotion; probably prone to mood swings and dramatics. Heartfelt dramatics, though! She’d overreact, but they’d be sincere overreactions.
Hic.
Anyway! He’d only had a little. Skimmed some off the top of that thick, creamy love, with a spicy nibble of frustration and outrage after another couple of gaffes. He was still good for the mission. He could do the mission in his sleep! Pfft. ‘Blend in, don’t cause a scene, prove that changelings weren’t malicious troublemakers or whatever.’ Easy! Easy-peasy one-two-threesy.
Okay, he’d come reeeeally close to causing a scene with the fritters, but he hadn’t. And come on, those things had clearly been made with love. Maybe with a dollop of pride, too. If he’d actually eaten one, he’d probably have curled up in a corner, dropped his disguise, and passed out. But he hadn’t. Done either of those things. Cause a scene or pass out. See? All good!
Now he just had to make it through the next half hour, and then he could excuse himself politely, and curl up in a corner, drop his disguise and pass out.
•§•§•§•§•
“All in.”
The changelings looked at Blueblood. He’d been playing erratically for the last hour, his emotions in turmoil, but this took the cake. It was the last hoof of the evening, and he hadn’t even looked at his cards; just picked which to discard while they were still face down. Now he was pushing all of his winnings into the center of the table, more than enough to make up for all his losses over the last couple of years.
The changeling who was dealing hesitated, and Blueblood fixed him with a steely glare. “All. In.”
The changelings shared a concerned look, but let it ride. If this was how the prince wanted to play it, that was his choice. Everyone pushed all their bits into the pot, and showed their cards.
Full house. Straight flush. Four of a kind. Blueblood felt a stirring of hope, and reached for his own cards…
•§•§•§•§•
Blooding backed up, panicking. It looked like pulling her into the path of the cake had been a step too far after all. As the icing dribbled down her face, he could feel all the hope/love/disappointment crystalize into unbounded rage. He couldn’t even siphon some of it off to try and calm her down; it would burn him up first!
In a moment of clarity, he realized that he’d botched the mission and caused a scene. It didn’t matter if this mare killed him; Chrysalis would probably do it when he got back.
‘Well, swat me,’ was the last thing to pass through his mind as the statue crashed and the pillars started to collapse.
•§•§•§•§•
Blueblood stared at his cards, and sniffled.
A royal flush. A blind, totally random, royal flush. He had no idea what had happened up there, but he knew one thing; his love life was bucked. He took a deep breath and managed to keep himself from crying. It was probably just his one shot at true love, after all.
Voice only a little bit thick, he said to the the confused changelings, “Guys, I… I think the Gala didn’t go so well this year. You, uh… you may need to be there for Auntie Chrysalis when she hears.” He looked up and bit his lip. “Also, uh… ahem. Can… can I stay here tonight? I think… I think I’m going to want to be around friends, too.”
The changelings looked at each other, then back to Blueblood. As one, they moved and gave him a group hug. After a few moments, one said, “Of course, buddy. We’re here for ya.”
“Thanks. I- yeah. Thanks.”
•§•§•§•§•
“I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”
“No! No, it’s… we agreed to this. This is… we agreed to this.”
Celestia hugged Chrysalis again, but she remained tense and distant. “You were very close! And it wasn’t just Nymph’s fault, there was a lot going on. I’m sure, next year will be-”
Chrysalis twitched at that, and cut Celestia off. “Yes! Of course. Next year. Always have to keep hoping... for next year.” Chrysalis extracted herself from her sister’s embrace and took a deep breath before continuing. “Tia, I… I’m going to have to let the Hive know about this, and… I’d prefer to do it alone. I’m sure Twilight and her friends could use a kind word about now; would you mind..?”
“If you’re sure…” Celestia hesitated.
“Yes. Please.”
Celestia silently gave one last hug before going, and kept glancing back over her shoulder until the tunnel twisted out of sight.
Chrysalis remained silent, eyes closed, until she’d finished counting to one hundred. Only then did she allow herself to break down in bitter, frustrated tears.
•§•§•§•§•
“Are you sure you wish to do this, sister?”
Eyes shining, she looked up at Celestia. “Absolutely! Can’t you feel it, Tia? That… that pressure of so much untapped potential!” She looked down at the enormous insects that wandered about the valley. “It’s like how you’ve always described the ponies… you look at them and know, just know, that they could do great things with only a little guidance. I feel that when I look at the changelings. I can… no, I have to do this.”
Celestia smiled and nuzzled her eager young sister. “Well, since you’ve already changed for the occasion, there’s probably nothing I could say to dissuade you anyway.”
“I could hardly offer to lead them looking like you, now could I? What sort of message would that send?”
“True, true,” Celestia nodded. “Black and green looks good on you, I must say. Have you picked a name to go with it?”
She bounced a little at the compliment before answering. “Since I hope to change them into something truly splendid… Chrysalis seems appropriate.”
“Ooh, I like it. Very apropos.”
“I wish Luna could be here for this…”
“Last night was a full moon; you know how tired she gets after having to move it.”
Chrysalis pouted, but her smile returned as soon as she looked back to the changelings. “I know this won’t be easy, Tia… and I want to make sure that when the time comes, they’ll be accepted; no history of fear or persecution.”
“What did you have in mind… Chryssie?”
“For now, they… we will stay hidden. I’ll help them and guide them, and when the time comes and I think they’ll be able to interact with ponies as equals… as peers... we’ll have a test. A lone changeling, to go among the ponies and demonstrate to them and to us, that they are ponies too; thinking, feeling beings and not mindless beasts.”
“Hmm… well, I can certainly arrange some event when the time comes. I can even make it an annual event, if…” Celestia trailed off and glanced at her sister.
Chrysalis shook her head. “No, I understand. To succeed on the very first try would be… well, a miracle.”
Celestia fixed Chrysalis with a steady gaze. “You know, of course, that you won’t be able to be there with them, right? They must prove themselves on their own merit, with no hoof-holding.”
“It’ll be hard, but if… when they do, it’ll make it all worth it.”
“I do not know that I’ve ever been so proud of you, sister... I wish you all the luck in the world. Go; if you wait any longer, I may start to cry.”
Chrysalis nuzzled Celestia one last time before descending into the valley of the changelings, to help guide them to greatness.
•§•§•§•§•
Chrysalis stood alone in the central chamber of the hive. After drying her tears, she had come down and told the changelings how the Gala had gone. The Whole Hive Hootenanny had started to break up shortly afterwards; not that she’d told them to stop, it was just… the mood had changed.
Chrysalis had lingered; smiling and nodding as changelings passed by on the way to their nests.
For some reason, she just couldn’t bring herself to follow. She didn’t want to stay in the dark, echoing hall… but what was the point? Where would she go?
She sighed, and tried to shake it off. ‘Maybe next-’
NO.
She couldn’t bring herself to even think the words; how many times, how many years had she said them? Said them to the changelings, said them to herself, heard them from Celestia?
Maybe next year.
It was always next year. Next year never came! Every single Gala, it was always ‘so close’ or ‘just one small incident’ and always, always, ALWAYS ‘maybe next year.’
No. Not this time. Not this year. This year, everything would be different. No more following the rules; what had that gotten her? She’d nurtured and stewarded the changelings into a race to rival anything, ANYTHING Celestia had had a hoof in. Who were the more harmonious creatures? Petty, scared, squabbling ponies, or her changelings, with their perfect empathy, their ideal equality?
It was obvious. It was obvious to anyone who could see, who wasn’t blinded by their own priggish pride. The Gala was a sham; a way for Celestia to tease her with hope and inevitable failure. If she was to show them just how well-behaved, how dedicated to fitting in and getting along changelings could be, well… it was obvious.
She’d have to invade Canterlot, replace hundreds of ponies for months, and reveal herself at the biggest, most important event of the decade. THAT would show them that changelings were nothing to be afraid of!
No more mucking about with the Gala, where Celestia would be watching every little mistake her poor, scared, lonely little changeling would make. No. It was time for her to take things into her own hooves and finally… finally show them all!
Chrysalis threw back her head and laughed, amazed at the clarity of her plan, of how simple it seemed now that she’d thought of it. This would be a turning point for her that would be remembered forever, she could feel it.
For a split second she considered changing her name again, as she had when she’d first gone among the changelings. The only thing that came to mind though, was ‘Nightmare Cocoon’ which she dismissed as being patently ridiculous. Still, something was needed to mark the occasion…
Her eyes lit up and she cackled again. Of course! If she was going to prove that she and her changelings were better than Princess Celestia and her ponies… what better way to start than by declaring herself Queen Chrysalis?
Queen Chrysalis swept out of the cavern. She had plans to make and changelings to train.
She was done waiting.
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My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
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Hm... Interesting and not at all what I expected...
Well. That was dramatic. Although I must admit I didn't really understand it, but I still loved it!
… wow. Just, wow.
I
Wow.
Your story. I’m jealous.
Ahhhhahahaha.
Celestia just does not have ANY luck with her sisters, does she?
Poor Chrysalis.
I felt that last chapter was a bit strained. Why insult an Element of Harmony? The reasoning is just so strange to me I feel like I need a textbook filled with your headcanon regarding changelings to grasp it completely.
4358604
Yeah... I'm starting to get the feeling that this could use a rewrite. I put "getting something done" over "doing a good job". I'll take a break and look at it again in a week; get some distance and see if it still makes sense, even to me.
Some of these interpretations are just tragic...
But Blueblood being buddies with the changelings and playing cards with them is, like the changelings themselves, strangely cute!
I am absolutely enthralled by how amazing these stories are. Well done!
I enjoyed this story immensely, and have been searching for such a good read for some time.
, and No! 
and Icantlook! 
You get a fav and a like for the following:
SPOILERS ALERT
Ch.1: my reactions with Dead Ringer's thoughts and actions: mostly just STOP!
I also liked that one's Blueblood through out the chapter until the next chapter.
all in all I couldn't stop reading till the end.
Ch.2 : I want more of Agent Blueblood's missions in some way or form. I'm still grinning about the absurdity of the whole misunderstanding, the poison, diffusing the bomb , the reaction to cake
(exploding twice!!) , I also loved the Granny (smith) and the Apple family introduction as the best infiltrators in the country, and his thoughts and pride at the beginning about zebras, earth pones, and pegasi ( those thoughts really helped in liking him instantly).
Ch.3 : I liked the whole having to keep a foot at the place you first got freed at, as for discord's argument well I think forgiveness is given in more relation to intent rather than action, or more closely worded as( I forgive you because I know you didn't mean to, or didn't know about the consequences), and going on from there, unlike the one who looks down upon others with contempt and arrogance...etc. those really have some things to change before being forgiven by most others. ( wow I rambled on there)
Ch.4 : I just laughed and laughed at the side effects, didn't help when he kept reading them for a few minutes.still laughing at some of the hallucinations.
Ch.5 : Best Blueblood so far, I just want to hug him. Also Rarity must have felt so awkward when were just sitting there saying nothing while he was enjoying the calm and quiet. can barely wait till you write the prequel/sequel to this one.
Ch.6 : I nearly cried when Chrysalis was having a flash back about the reactions she always got from almost every single pony! except Blueblood who treated her as family, it was one the best points of the chapter, followed by the emotional breakdowns of Chrysalis then Blueblood, then by "Queen Chrysalis" speech(thought?) and all.
you also get a follow for Agent Blueblood, and Shy Blueblood, and sick Blueblood, and friendly, caring, non racist, family loving Blueblood
Sorry for having to write athem all in one comment , and having you read through all of that( I know its not easy with my writing, sadly its the best I can come up with at the moment), now to go and wait for the next chapter.
I approve of the story title.
i.imgur.com/HZlOi.png
Came here after the recommendation from Chris's blog, and oh God, these were all hilarious. Maybe once or twice the coincidences stretched credibility, but then again, that was the point of a lot of them, and none of them ever took me out of it. I think my favourite was the secret agent one. That was hysterical.
They work on multiple levels, too. The Discord chapter also had an element of satire to it about redemption and fan reaction to certain characters that was rather clever. And also, some of these Bluebloods almost bordered on adorable at times in how earnest and just plain nice they are, which is also funny in itself considering who we're talking about. But for serious, Blueblood asking his auntie for a hug was just the cutest thing.
4577830
Wait, I got an unsolicited outside review and recommendation? I was totally unaware of that! Neat!
I'm glad you liked the stories, and I'll try to keep the laughs coming!
First off, amazing story title. Second of all, amazing stories. Third, award winning chapter title for this one. I'm going to be repeating 'I'm not saying it was changelings... but it was changelings' in my head all week. I now genuinely want to see a continuation for this one.
*Grins* Very cool idea and oh gods, my heart goes out to poor Blue.
An excellent, and hilarious story.
And each of them actually make sense on multiple levels, too.
Secret Agent Blueblood's misadventures were gut-bustingly funny. The misunderstandings, co-incidental pass phrases and such were well written and light.
Just as Drugged Blueblood's hilarious cavalcade of abuse at the hallucinations.
But it was chapters 5 and 6 that got the best mix of funny, charming and heartwarming.
Damn it. You set a high bar to follow, and I would say this story is amongst the best in the site, and is equal to that of the big hitters for Blueblood stories like the Platinum Crown.
This is amazing.
These are awesome and hilarious.
Do you have any plans to write any side stories based on any of the chapters? The setups for these stories are genius.
I adore the reference to Ancient Aliens memes. So hilarious. And these stories! I actually LIKE Blueblood, so of course I like any story that makes him out to be simply misguided or having had good intentions that just went horribly wrong.
This feels like it needs a version where Blueblood suffers from crippling mysophobia, and has years of therapy completely undone in the span of a few hours.
Though I guess you really couldn't drag a comedy out of that.
Any more chapters, ever? Or is it dead?
11130586
NO NO NO NO (yes) NO NO