This story is a sequel to The Queen and I, Book 1: Ponies and Changelings
(Cover art by Taggerung)
Even a person with perfect judgement could make mistakes if they didn't have enough information. That's the one consolation available when you make a mistake and hurt someone; it doesn't mean you're necessarily a bad person.
If only it were that simple. When people depend on you, when you accept that responsibility, it stops being so easy to just go on with your life when you make a mistake. When you realize that you've hurt someone, or let them down, it tears you up inside.
I'm going to keep moving forward, though. The only way to make things better is to learn from my mistakes, and act on that.
(You may notice an anachronism in this image; I urge you to ignore it, as it is irrelevant to the story)
(Infusions 2: Tea is considered a prologue to this story. This fic is part of a larger continuity of stories; for a complete breakdown, click here.)
Not sure why did you make it as different story especially that some authours write longer chapters than your story right now :D
5507121 The reasons for the separation should become apparent soon - if they aren't already.
*Urge to hug Chrysalis rising...*
Well, and except for the changelings that are wondering why no ponies are visiting them
Well, last I checked, Pinkie Pie is one of Celestia's subjects
Um. so the narrator isn't Twilight, then? Because she should know Cheersalis...
Wait, what? Expire?
Hoboy. That went south fast.
Remind me... what is she princess of, again?
Woah. Looks like this story will be about Cheery finding her own identity, then? Innnnteresting!
One remark:
> as the aura wrapped around her horn and started sliding her,
"and started sliding her"? That sounds... strange.
Ahh, Spike wrote the letter. That explains the chaos.
Heh. I guess with her age, she has her own list of failures. And I'm fairly sure she includes the mess with her sister
If she lasts, that is. She seems pretty... unstable
Glad to see that musicalitis is still a common affliction in Equestria!
)
(Though, it helps to know what melody it is meant for. It didn't really fit on the Transistor soundtrack I'm currently listening to
Welp. That's comforting to know, at least. I was beginning to wonder if she'd need magical therapy to keep her alive or something
Cheersamoth?
This explains so much
PP: "Wait till Maud hears of this!"
Ch: "Who?"
PP: "You have more sisters!"
Ch: "Eeeee!"
Shouldn't that be "Hyalophora [some horse related pun on 'columbia']"?
Ah! "Coltlumbia!"
One remark:
> You were right; this was a situation that deserved my immediate attention.
The situation is hardly over, so I feel that should be present tense... "You were right; this [is] a situation that [deserves] my immediate attention."
Hee. She's got a fan. Kid's gotta feel like they're sending a letter to a real-life Santa Claus
Ohhh. One of Iqqel's siblings.
...wait. This is Chrysalis, isn't it?
I didn't know she and Iqqel were sisters!
These letters never got sent anywhere, did they?
Yup. She's Cecily, all right.
She cracked, all right
Well. That was kinda depressing
One remark:
> I just with to return home
"I just [wish] to return home"
Pffhah! Not exactly a good save
Celestia is totally inside the Hive, isn't she?
Hey, she has a Wise Old Teacher image to uphold, you know!
Ah, forget the glasses
There ya go
Welp. I finally caught up with everything (I think? Unless there are any more small side thingies I've missed?)
Lots of feels in this chapter. Nice, nice. Eagerly awaiting more
5531664 Typo fixed, thanks for pointing that out!
5531723 I prefer the past tense, as Celestia is reviewing Twilight's decision (in the past), rather than remarking on the current situation.
5531774 Typo fixed. Thank you for being so astute regarding these. I'm not sure how they slipped through this far, but I'll iron them out as they're found.
5532123
Ah, no worries. I still find silly mistakes like that when rereading my own writings as well
5531792
I bet Chrysalis is going to come rushing in after hearing that Cheer came back with Celestia of all ponies, see Cheer having successfully transformed, and crash headfirst back into feelings of inadequacy. Because Cheer seems to be good at doing literally every single thing that Chrysalis wishes she could do/had done.
5546032 Despite not having finished more of the sidestories, I was inspired by your comment to post the next chapter. I don't want to leave you guys in suspense :P
5546250
Small hint: People do not get notifications of replies unless the reply is made in the same chapter as the original comment. So click that nice chapter link at the top of the post before replying to it.
Ohhhh. That's what this is all about! Of course. It's only proper for her little sister to get a proper name
Still, kinda surprised at her reaction. Though in retrospect, a lot of her behaviour could indeed be explained as worrying about a sibling who's abroad.
5549548 The silly site-notification bar always brings me to the comment on the story page, rather than in the chapter. Lately, I'm often in a hurry on-site, so I'll have to try to remember that.
5552191 Indeed. There's actually something interesting you bring up in your comment, which is that Chrysalis' behavior needs to be interpreted, meaning we don't understand it completely. That's intentional, but I wonder if you had noticed that that's different from some of the other characters.
5552592
The main view now gives a link to the comment in the chapter view though, so you just have to click that. It's right next to the post's upvote/downvote buttons
5552597
Yeah, they all seem to act differently... which is good
Meanwhile, Twilight's first reaction was to dispell her
Heh. Even when dying, he's a cheeky one
Soooo... they have a pool of memories of their dearly departed? That's a nice way to build up a knowledge base
Looks like being a Queen is much more than a status, then... she bears the personas of the whole line of queens. Also explains why she wanted Chiri to have a separate status; she's a royal, but without that part.
Ahhhh, wrong Chrysalis! She even warned you about this, you idiot!
Heh. And, in some rather repressed past, Chryssi was
Very nice and insightful chapter!
img0.derpicdn.net/img/2012/6/21/13372/large.jpg
Its just :D
5531754
Either that or "best sis" is simply a term of endearment, like "best bro."
Fingers crossed for that, anyway.
5521447 *ditto*
Well, that gave me feels.
Can't wait for the third book!
6076869 Here's hoping I get on that soon. I've stalled out for a very long time due to various RL issues, but i'm still here.
6077302 I know the feeling; no worries and no hurry!
How exactly are Cheery's wings? Do you have a picture?
While changelings have the wrong idea? And after all this infltrating how is the hive back in technology? And doesn't the changeling know magic?
See? Too impressionate.
This makes me sad...
6840435 Yes. This is how they look right after the transformation: 1.bp.blogspot.com/_cS6tJzs0vQY/TR6_uC9yb4I/AAAAAAAAABM/CCP6IIofqCo/s1600/lep_columbia_moth071.JPG
6840646 Does she have the same anatomy past that?
6840675 The same as the moth? No. The same as before? Well, her thorax, antennae, and horn are different, as well as a few other changes mentioned in Eclosion.
6840684 Do you have a picture of her or whatever?
6840901 No post-transformation pictures, sorry.
6840938 You could always request something I guess right?
This was extremely unexpected. How did this occur to the Queen?
Wait does the Queen have to be present in the death of each and every one? Does the Queen give birth to other changelings or do they have families and stuff? *shrug*
I admit, at first I misread "the changelings developing new disguise magic that let them slip a fake on-board" as "the changelings developing new disguise magic that let them slip on a fake beard." Let's hope I'm a bit more lucid for the rest of the story.
Oh. Oh, Twilight. You know what they say, once imprisoned in an abandoned mine, twice shy. I understand why she did what she did, but it's still sad to see her jump to conclusions like this. Hopefully, with Pinkie's testimony, she'll realize that her beef is mostly with Chrysalis. Assuming Pinkie will ever speak to her again.
Okay, that's a pretty safe assumption; this is Pinkie we're talking about. Still, Twilight done goofed. At least she's immediately taking steps to rectify said goof.
And so we finally get a peek through Celestia's eyes. She isn't nearly as intimidating from the inside. There's no omniscient goddess here, just a mare calling on centuries of experience of dealing with people and problems as best she can. She seems a bit slippery with her tenses at times, which makes sense. The years blend together after a while.
The song's rhyme structure is a bit weak, and converting lyrics to pure text rarely goes well, but you conveyed the feeling well enough.
Very nice stuff with the transformation. I looked up that moth species once Twilight mentioned it. Beautiful stuff. Also, mothponies are always neat to see. I think this may be the first time I've seen one on Fimfiction.
Hmm. Now I'm wondering how changeling family structures work. They clearly exist, or the writer here wouldn't refer to them, but they seem to be quite different from pony families.
Oh. OH. I see who it is now. After all, to whom was Iqqel close?
Wow. This is extremely bittersweet. I can easily see how this bright-eyed nymph became the crusading invader. Her dreams were crushed by countless tons of reality, and then they metamorphosed into a desperation tactic. I'm just not sure if the desperation came more from a food shortage or just a desire to improve her people's lives.
Careful who you call "sister," Chryssy. Otherwise, you're related to the pink menace.
In any case, I do love the parallel of the beginning of the song, followed by the divergence when Chrysalis has no one to reassure her. Her insecurities are laid bare, and of course noling dares enter her chambers to reassure her. (Hint, hint, Iqqel.)
Still, I have to wonder what happened to her earlier hopes. I think my earlier guess was off the mark. Was it the need for respect? The expectations of the crown, whether imposed by society or Chrysalis herself? I'm clearly going to need more information to know for certain.
More than anything, Iqqel's perspective reminds me of a text adventure game.
Get ye flask.
The Queen doesn't need me to get ye flask!
In any case... hoo boy. The inevitable meeting is definitely going to be interesting. Still, good to see someone in Chrysalis's corner, and it's interesting to see how the cycle of self-loathing carried over to Cheery. Both needed to reinvent themselves to adapt to these changing times, and Chrysalis has yet to do so. Fortunately, that's exactly what changelings are designed for.
It says a lot that Chrysalis's usual smile is the one she uses when she can't smile sincerely.
Between the surprise surprise reversal and that heartfelt speech, this was a beautiful chapter. Sometimes you just need to step outside yourself and see what you've become. In Chrysalis's case, that need was bit more literal than usual. Still, this has definitely been a good experience for the both of them.
Celestia and me. You wouldn't say "They let I in on their plans." I don't normally harp on this, but I do when it's Twilight's internal narration.
Yeah, if anypony's familiar with the perils of overthinking, it's Twilight Sparkle. In the best case, it forces a magical clone to establish her own independent identity. Needless to say, the best case rarely crops up.
Ah. Chrysalis gave her sister the position she wishes she could have herself. At least someone gets to.
The last rites were fascinating. Poor Krittith. Just when he was getting back on his feet. And I think I see the agent that shifted Chrysalis's love of ponies into something darker...
Quite a lot to take in. And I can't help but draw parallels between Chrysalis and Twilight herself. Not just the overthinking, but having royal duty foisted upon them by a quirk of fate. Neither asked for it, but both are rather adept at it. More than they think. I wonder if they're going to notice that.
5531664 Twilight is, of course, Princess of Friendship, Books, and Teleporting To Conclusions. dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/Emoticons/misc_TwilightWut.png
Okay, Twilight jumping headfirst into things without really thinking works pretty well.
The voicing in the letter in chapter 9 is very good, and matches the confusion and intensity of the situation well. I like the touch with Spike at the end, and think it's a good fit for something he'd do: play support well and keep his cool when Twilight isn't.
I like the way Cheery's color design ties back in to Pinkie (pink = red + white), plus changeling black. And the move to more narration-heavy formatting worked well as a means of moving through more time and events without ballooning the word count.
The letters in chapter 10 are odd. Some aspects suggest coming after an opening associated with the exchange program from the beginning (like the liberalization on naming among nymphs, which I think is new information, or the simple fact that she thinks the letters may in principle have been sent (of course, could be pure deception on Piro-Ammon's part)), but then other aspects point to the opposite, like the degree of closure and apparent requirement for secrecy in sending the letters. It even has me wondering if it's the same Iqquel; then again, she did originally figure she'd be a Thinker.
Ah, okay. So it probably was a young Chrysalis. Pushing the irony of her resentment that others would prefer what she once did herself--but then, not quite: she'd wanted to import (and maybe in part leave herself, but that didn't seem like the sole focus), to change the hive along pony lines.
Interesting that the Luna parallel is probably stronger with Chrysalis herself than Cheery, despite explicitly being mentioned in the latter case by Celestia; then again, given the placement at the very end before moving to two Chrysalis chapters, maybe directing thought along those lines was the point.
Kind of a feeling of a retroactive political marriage at the end of chapter 13. It's hard to tell exactly how this will go on a personal level; it could depend greatly on Chrysalis's interpretation, whether that be one of personal subordination to her and the more direct bond across species or something else. But from the ceremony and her earlier emoting love, it appears to be much more positive than that, at least on the surface.
Though at that, she still seems as of the start of the following chapter to be ill at ease and insecure. (Heh, Twilight agrees to the word.) But then, it seems to be based less on that than the news the story is being coy about.
Ah, that's cool. Actually, reminds me greatly of Dune, a world and system I'm quite fond of.
Last few sentences are wonderful. And there's so much more weight to what Chrysalis was going through, and sparing Cheery from, when this was the one part of her position that would never be taken from her.
This and the first Book feel like a complete story together, to get back to my earlier criticisms. Actually, at this point, I wonder what's left to be covered. All right.
Purdy Changeling! Though that resolved rather quickly. I like your take on Celestia. She felt very natural.
You bastard... a tear. You get one... I will not yield another -.-
I really like how you write Iqqel