Sweet Hearts and Princesses

by lollipopchica

Chapter 9

“Chrystal, which one do you prefer?” Madame Brass asked as she held up both fabrics for inspection. She was looking for fabric for a new dress she wanted customized for a gala that was to take place later in the month. Though her husband had departed this world, the widow still kept up her duty as an upper class lady of Equestrian society.

The darker mare didn’t bother to hide her disinterest as she stared at the fabrics. Silk the shade of cerulean was paired against satin the color of snow white. Chrysalis' black heart fluttered as her lips tingled from the ghost of a kiss. Her face flushed as a sigh of annoyance left her mouth. Why couldn’t she get him out of her mind? "Neither," she grumbled folding her forelegs across her chest as she settled back on her haunches. "They clash with your coat and ruin your complexion."

The spectacled mare rolled her eyes as she gave her own sigh of vexation. "I asked for help Chrystal, not a bitter harpy brokenhearted over a breakup." Luckily none of the other ponies milling about the small store heard the snarky comment.

“I am NOT bitter." The proud mare insisted turning her nose up in the air.

"You forgot to deny brokenhearted dear."

Chrysalis was momentarily offended. “I... he's... it's not…” Before she could incriminate herself any further, the light teal haired mare popped up and stomped off in a huff.

Madame Brass giggled at the sputtering mare, her annoyance giving way to amusement.

It would seem her tenement had had a falling out with her stallion friend. Not that she had any problems with having her errand girl back, it was just she preferred cheeky Chrystal to bitter Chrystal. After giving the other a chance to compose herself, Brass took her time before approaching her with something akin to motherly comfort.

“Maybe you should call on him, dear…” She soothed with a smile. “I prefer the slightly less irritable Chrystal to this pining version of you…”

Chrystal groaned feeling vexed by her situation as well as her feelings for the pony in question. Befriending a pony was one thing, but harboring ardent feelings was a different kind of animal. “I am NOT pining! I’m not upset! I’m not bitter and I most definitely do not care about the feelings of some prince charming stallion!”

Brass bit the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. “Prince Charming, dear?” The flashing of realization on the younger pony’s face was almost comical. Almost.

Bright eyes widened as a multitude of realizations clashed against the stone wall she tried to erect around her heart. Was she really falling for the snow white stallion? Chrysalis couldn’t deny the last few days had been lacking more than she ever thought possible. She’d been a brooding melancholic mess since she hadn’t spoken to the stallion. She didn’t realize how much she looked forward to seeing Shining Armor till now.

The older mare took pity on the conflicted pony and gave her a light nudge. “Whatever it is that happened between the two of you I’m sure it can’t be that bad.”

Chrysalis was pensive as she flashed back to the argument she had with Shining Armor.

After the two had managed to make it back to her apartment, she made sure he was settled in the living room before quickly disappearing into her own room and making sure to lock the door behind her.

Her thoughts were abuzz with all sorts of things she would rather not think about. The amazingly wonderful kiss she’d shared with Shining Armor was the most prominent. Thankfully, the stallion had not insisted on talking about it. However, she had a feeling that tomorrow morning would be different.

She woke up bright and early the next morning, wary of her sleeping guest. Deciding she needed to clear her head as well as her apartment she decided to take a long walk around the block hoping the stallion would be gone before she returned.

About half an hour later she was entering her home to find she had been right in her assumption.

“About last night…”

Instead of vacating, Shining Armor had showered and made hot chocolate invoking an unwritten rule between the two. Whenever one was bearing sweets to the other, namely Chrystal, the presented, was obligated to hear the presentee out. Cerulean eyes were hopeful as the two stared at each other, both apprehensive about the other.

She sighed as she walked toward the steaming mug upholding one of the odder rules of their friendship. “What about it?”

“Chrystal…”

“Shining Armor… Nothing happened last night. You were drunk and I forgive you for being overcome by my charming air and rugged good looks.” She tried to joke her way out of the conversation.

“You can’t ignore what happened.”

“Isn‘t that the mare‘s line?” He scowled at her. “What about pretty-in-pink?” She scrambled lamely.

“What? Who- Cadence?” Shining Armor sounded flabbergasted. Chrysalis gave him a look. “She’s my sister’s foal-sitter- That’s all! Why does everypony keep insisting on us being something else?”

“I guess you two just make sense. Good mare, good colt, good match.”

A look of frustration came over his features as his ears twitched in irritation. “Maybe I don’t want good! Maybe I want selfish and conceited!” Harlequin eyes widened at the words as her heart tripped all over itself. He wants selfish and conceited? Her brain forgot to take offense at the terms. “What’re you so afraid of?” Shining Armor sighed as he composed himself

There was no way she was letting him flip the script on her even if her response lacked her usual confidence. “B-because I’m not receptive of your affections something’s automatically wrong with me?”

“Sounds like talk to me…”

“I don’t have to justify anything to you…” The changeling was beginning to lose her patience. “I’m thankful for all you’ve done for me, but I don’t need you. I don’t need anypony- and they don‘t need me.” She said the last part so quietly that the stallion had to strain to hear her. She almost believed herself.

“Don‘t need you? What‘s so wrong with being wanted or needing somepony besides yourself? You can’t keep running from things that make you uncomfortable or afraid. “

She shook her head as her weary gaze met his. “You don’t know me…”

“I know enough to know that’s not you.” Chrysalis gave a bitter laugh as she moved around her bar with the cup of hot chocolate magically in tow. The stallion continued on following her. “The Chrystal I know isn’t afraid of anything…”

“Then you really don’t know me…” She chuckled bitterly. Plopping down in front of her fireplace, she was forced to hold his gaze as he lowered his head to her level.

“I know you feel the same way about me that I feel about you.” Cerulean eyes were bright with confidence as he calmly stated his piece.

“That’s awfully presumptuous of you…” She said with narrowed eyes. Forgetting her cup of hot chocolate she rose to glare at the self-assured stallion.

“Maybe but that doesn’t make it less true.” There was a shadow of a smirk on snow white features. It was infuriating making Chrysalis wonder if this was how he felt dealing with her sometimes.

“I don’t… feel… anything for you.” She lied with steel in her eyes. Shining Armor studied her features for a moment before stonewalling.

“So you’re a liar and a coward…”

Harlequin eyes widened as his words hit too near to her heart fanning her blush with anger and indignation. “You have no right! You don’t know anything about me… Anything at all! Get out, Shining Armor! Get out!”

She winced at the memory of her front door slamming.

Madame Brass gave her a light nudge and an encouraging smile. “Tell him how you feel, dear. The rest will work itself out.”

Could it all be so easy?

She wouldn’t know unless she tried.

An air of determination came over the mare as she found herself wanting to take the older mare’s advice. Before Madame Brass could blink, Chrystal was out the door and on her way back to the apartment. She shook her head at the impetuous mare. “Young and dumbly in-love.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” Concurred the lady behind her who overheard part of the exchange.

“What am I doing?” Chrystal vocalized halfway to her home. Naiveté was not her friend. So why was she being so chummy with it now? She didn’t know what to do with her feelings for Shining Armor, but since she was over halfway home already, she figured she might as well continue on.

After magically unlocking her door, the mare halted dead in her tracks as her mouth dropped open.

“You’d rather masquerade as a pauper than take your rightful place as Queen?”

There stood her mother with all the pride and power associated with somepony of her title. Queen Imaga stared at her daughter disdainfully.

Chrysalis was speechless as she took in the ponies around her. Her mother was flanked by four top ranking changeling guards. She never thought she’d end up in a situation like this. What was her mother doing here? And how had she not sensed her?

“Chrystal… what’s she talking about?“ The disguised princess felt her heart sink.

“Shining Armor…“ She whispered fearfully. The Queen smirked as she moved to show two more guard with a familiar pony in their grasp.

The changeling guard tightened their grip on the angered stallion as he yanked against their hold.

Who were these twisted creatures? And how did they know Chrystal?

“I’m afraid you’ve gone…” Icy hues flicked over the snow colored stallion before coming back to Chrysalis in what the princess could only call ‘mock sympathy,’ “soft.”

“Daughter?! Chryssie, what‘s she talking about?!” He demanded struggling against his captors. “Chryssie!” He was livid, but above all he was confused and that served to feed his temper more.

The changeling princess did not know what to say. Her eyes filled with guilt as they locked with his incensed expression. “Shining, I… I‘m… I’m so sorry…” How could he possibly understand? And what could she say to explain any of this?

Imaga’s nose twitched as she was suddenly struck by a sensation only familiar to changeling senses. The richness of the sentiment was enough to make her tilt her head as she truly studied the shaking frame of her daughter, before giving the stallion another glance.

“Mother-” Chrysalis tried to explain.

“Silence!” The Queen hissed as her bright eyes widened. “He‘s… in-love with you… and it‘s requited…” It would seem that all Chrysalis’ courage and strength had failed her after that damning sentence left her mother’s mouth. A changeling that did not live for the hive was as good as dead. She never thought her monarch a cruel mare until the laughter that escaped her mouth cut at her frantic heart.

“Don’t-” Chrysalis made to move but was immediately halted as she was struck full on by a painful current of icy blue magic. She screamed as the agonizing force dropped her to her knees. Lean muscle spasmed out of control as the magic licked across her body burning nerve-endings stealing her breath.

She could hear Shining Armor in the background, but the only thing she could focus on was the intensity of her mother’s scorn. Those few seconds felt like forever as the pain seemed to push her to the point of her limits. When the Queen finally decided to release her daughter, Chrysalis was a moaning mass of mare on the ground. “Mother… Please…” She whimpered as she managed to lift her head despite the lingering touches of the curse she just endured. “Don’t…”

Imaga ignored Chrysalis’ pleas as her serpentine eyes turned on the straining stallion with murder in his eyes. She laughed at the pathetic display. The poor foal didn’t know what he was tied up in, she thought amusedly to herself. Nothing beat the stupidity induced by first-love.

“I bet it felt nice to hold that sinuous body close to you at night…” Shining Armor stared at the duplicitous creature sauntering towards him with barely controlled ire. Imaga chuckled darkly as she leaned nearer allowing her gaze to slowly travel the stallion’s body as she truly considered the creature that ‘distracted’ her now incapacitated daughter. “Would you like to know what you were holding? What sleek form truly lies beneath my daughter’s coat of lies?”

“Up yours, lady!” He spat only to be struck across the face by one of the monarch’s guard. Despite the potent taste of his anger, the Changeling Queen could still taste his desire to know the truth about the mare he ended up falling for.

“Stop it!” Chrysalis managed weakly trying to stand. “I’ll come back… I’ll do whatever you want… just don‘t hurt him… Please…”

A cold smile pulled across Imaga’s maw as she locked eyes with the stallion before her. Shining Armor pushed into his captor’s grasp as the look in the older mare’s eye chilled his anger allowing the sinewy fingers of fear to crept up his spine. Icy depths were devoid of any passion or anger… there was only cold nothingness- a revelation that truly made him afraid for the mare hurt on the ground as well as himself.

“You, dear heart, are a liar… But what can one expect from a changeling.” Imaga turned to stare lovingly at her daughter. “There is a lesson to be learned here, Chrysalis… Perhaps now you’ll take heed.”

“Don’t! Mother-” The Queen’s horn charged with dark magic as she turned her attention back to the wide-eyed stallion who‘d gone still. The air was charged with a sense of trepidation and immediately the young mare thought of Kira Wynn.

“No attachment is more important than the hive…” With those words Chrysalis watched in horror as Shining Armor was swallowed by the blue flames of the Queen’s magic. The sound of his screams brought tears to her eyes as she vainly tried to push herself forward.

*-*1111*-*

Chrysalis bolted upright with a strangled scream. “Shining!”

Her chest heaved as her panic was at an all-time high.

“Maker!” She gasped as wild eyes tore around her room in an attempt to assure herself. The conversation she’d had with Madame Brass a few days ago still weighed heavily on her mind. She still hadn’t talked to her friend, though she desperately wanted to. Since then her dreams had been filled with all sorts of unpleasant things. This one just happened to be the worst.

Scrambling to get herself out of bed she realized she couldn’t take this anymore.

She had to see him- and the sooner the better.

Sneaking through the city like a shadow of the night, the changeling mare found sneaking into Shining Armor’s room to be just as easy.

Did he always sleep with his window unlocked? Didn’t he know that unhinged ponies lived in Canterlot too?

Getting in was not a problem as she easily found her way up and through his window. A decent sized room, she could see the process of aging that took place in this room. He still had momentos from his childhood randomly hanging or resting on the shelves of his bookcase. There was a desk in the corner and straight across from that was the object of her dilemma quietly snoozing in bed.

Cautiously she padded her way over to his side. Chrysalis stared down at the sleeping stallion. She could still remember the horror that sank beneath her skin as she recalled the last few moments of her dream.

She had needed to know that he was alive and well, but seeing him wasn’t enough- she wanted to feel it. Carefully, she lowered her weight atop of him. Teal tresses spilled over Shining Armor’s chest as the coal colored mare finished draping herself atop him.

She gasped when she felt him wrap his forelegs around her with a soft moan. She hadn’t realized he was awake. “What’re you doing?” He managed more asleep than he was awake.

“Seeing you…” She pressed her ear over his heart, relieved by the strong beating of the muscle.

“Breaking and entering, huh?” To be a soldier it was really easy sneaking into his house.

“I needed you,” was her response.

“This must be a dream…” The stallion murmured as he held tighter to the mare in his grasp running his hooves up and down the length of her back.

“What makes you say that…” She whispered as she lost herself in the feel of him as well as the calm he radiated. The anxiousness that had plagued her was slowly receding as she held to him.

“You wouldn’t be here otherwise… Saying such unChrystal-like things.” He chuckled softly at the idea.

Chrysalis raised her head to better gauge the half-lidded eyes lazily staring at her. “A dream, huh?“ It was so odd for dreams to be a source of comfort to him when all they seemed to do was torment her. She shouldn’t be so surprised as she was aware of his feelings towards her. Even though, it still gave her a shock to hear him vocalize it. She licked her lips as her heart raced against her ribcage. “If this is a dream you should probably make the most of it then.”

“Make the most of it…” he murmured. Maybe he really did think he was dreaming.

“Like this…” She breathed before slowly catching his mouth in a smoldering coupling of lips.

For once Chrysalis didn’t think about their different statuses or even the future. Her thoughts were of him- safe and teeming with life… Imaga nowhere to be seen.

Two weeks went by this way.

Despite their limited to nonexistent interaction with each other during the day, at night the two were almost always together. It was an odd arrangement and yet neither commented afraid the other would want to end it… whatever ‘it’ was. Sometimes they talked or kissed in the darkness of the stallion‘s bedroom, but they always slept holding tightly to the other.

If the stallion wasn’t on midnight detail, then Chrysalis was sneaking through his window to share his bed after she was sure his family was asleep. She’d long since dropped her alter ego Oceania so her nights were unoccupied.

As pathetic as it sounded, Chrysalis found that the nightmares were less frequent whenever the stallion was nearby. Every time she settled into his embrace she found it harder and harder to find excuses to not be with him. Their relationship could be described as timid as laughable as that word was in regards to her. But that’s what it was- shy kisses that turned febrile and hesitant touches that resulted in unfulfilled wants.

Shining Armor was afraid of scaring her away and Chrysalis was afraid of wanting to stay.

The concept of unconditional anything was befuddling to her. A changeling’s definition of thriving went as far as having enough to survive and maintain. She was taught to be precise and efficient in everything she did as everypony had a role to play in changeling society. Infiltration missions ran no longer than necessary as the longer one stayed out the higher the risk of exposure became. You only gave as much as you had to to get what you needed. The want she felt in regards to Shining Armor went against all of the things that made a changeling an adept predator. It went against all of the things that made her a changeling.

Comments

[Fourpony]

Good chapter, nothing much else to say.

[articunos bitch]

"They clash with your coat and ruin your complexion."

That sounds like a helpful answer.

She didn’t realize how much she looked forward to seeing Shining Armor till now.

“What about pretty-in-pink?” She scrambled lamely.

He doesn't care about her. This fic is making me question how the two were supposed to get together in the first place. Was he pressured into it? That's a terrible way to start a relationship.

“Maybe I don’t want good! Maybe I want selfish and conceited!”

Good for you.

“You don’t know me…”

You know nothing Shining Armor.

“You’d whether masquerade as a pauper than take your rightful place as Queen?”

Rather

Since then her dreams had been filled with all sorts of unpleasant things. This one just happened to be the worst.

Damn cheap cop-out. Thankfully you didn't drag it out too long.

Didn’t he know that unhinged ponies lived in Canterlot too?

I heard there's this one mare who forces ponies she knows nothing about to fall in love. Talk about a fricken psycho.

“What’re you doing?”
“Seeing you…” She pressed her ear over his heart, relieved by the strong beating of the muscle.

What are you doing? Handling weapons grade D'aww like that? Be careful, someone's liable to get hurt.

Chrysalis found that the nightmares were less frequent whenever the stallion was nearby.

I really need to see your license for distributing Sweetness this strong.

Very good chapter. Hoping to finish it soon.