Me and My Shadow
Principal Celestia pulled into her driveway with a trunk full of party supplies and a mind spinning with confusion. Once the kids had returned from the store and handed her everything they had bought, she cut their meeting short and let all them make their way back home. After they all left—in one huddled mass, which succeeded in unnerving her—she rushed to a shop in the mall and picked up a few supplies of her own. She was not sure if the taser gun and the pepper spray were going to do anything to the Changelings, but she was not one to take any chances. Before she got out of her car she took the weapons out of their packaging and stuck them in her purse.
Celestia’s visit from the real Sunset only added to the bewilderment she had been feeling. Each time she tried to make sense of the absurd idea of shapeshifters and multiple universes her headache seemed to increase. Part of her could not come to terms with the otherworldly knowledge, because she feared the life she had been building up since a child was ready to topple at any moment. Celestia felt like an ant that realized there will millions of other ant hills that she would never interact with or influence at all. She knew she was being foolish by feeling this way, but she still could not shake the sense of uselessness that pervaded her conscience.
She walked up the steps to her house and stuck her key in the front door, only to realize it was already unlocked. I swear I locked it this morning. Not one for taking any more risks, she grabbed the taser in her purse while she slowly opened the door.
All the lights were still off, and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. She hung up her coat and entered the kitchen. A few fruits on the counter were nearly spoiled, and she realized she had not made any food in the past few days. She made a note to clean up after she was done sweeping the house.
Then she entered the living room and came face to face with herself.
The other Celestia was sitting on a chair in a large regal gown, adorned with golden regalia. When the Principal appeared she stood up and began advancing toward her, an expression of apprehension on her face. “Greetings, Celestia. Please understand that I had no intention of breaking into your house, I just need something—”
A shot of ice-cold fear flooded through Celestia. “Stay back!” The principal yelled, pointing the taser at her imposter. “Don’t take another step!”
The other Celestia raised her hands. “Listen to me. I only need to know where Sunset is.”
The principal took a step away. “I’ll never tell you,” she hesitated, “You . . . you Changeling!”
A shocked expression crossed the other’s face, and she took a step forward. “I believe we have come to a misunderstanding. I am not a—”
Principal Celestia fired the taser at the woman, who crumpled to the ground with a shriek. She took a step back from the figure. “Oh god, what am I going to do? I need to let it out of here!” She ran over to a window and threw it open. “Here you go, Changeling! A method of escape! You can fly away now!”
The Celestia stayed limp on the ground.
“Uhm . . .”
The principal walked over and gently kicked the creature.
“You can change back now. Go . . . "
The woman on the floor groaned. “I’m not a Changeling . . .”
Three knocks landed against the wooden door to the janitors closet.
“May I come in?” A voice called from the other side.
The three girls inside tried to scream through their gags.
Chrysalis opened the door and stepped in. “Oh shut up, will you? You should see how we treat prisoners back in Equestria,” she threatened.
Adagio stopped yelling and glared at Chrysalis, who met it with a haughty smirk.
“I figured I would drop by and chat with you girls just a little bit, since you can’t exactly say no or anything. Now I know it has only been a couple hours since I came to visit you for lunch, but I find you three just so much fun to talk to.”
Chrysalis sat down on the ground across from the three girls. Aria and Sonata followed Adagio’s lead in glaring daggers at her.
“It’s a shame your power is through your voice and not your eyesight. I might actually be siren-food if it were the case.”
Chrysalis examined her fingernails.
“I’m still offended that you couldn’t take me seriously. My family told fairy tales of the sirens to me as a child, how they destroyed whole settlements in an instant and gained enough territory to rival all of ponykind. How the mighty have fallen,” Chrysalis taunted.
“You’ve forgotten what it means to have goals beyond basic survival. You chase the thrill your powers in Equestrian gave you, even if you need to sink to the lowest level imaginable. When you confronted me, you were doomed from the start. You may have been sirens once, but all I see now are three teenagers with a grudge against the world.”
Adagio leaned forward, eyes nearly popping out of her skull. Chrysalis grinned wider.
“Are you angry? Angry that I pointed out your lack of vision? You had no plan when you came to confront me. When I invaded Canterlot, I admit, it did not go entirely as expected. But I still spent weeks planning it all out, weeks watching my people withering away and crying for me to save them, before I even got close to thinking I was ready. But you three heard about my arrival and decided to hop right on over here without any regard for your safety. Every ounce of anger you feel should be at yourselves. I wonder how much that annoys you all, having anger turned onto you for once.”
Chrysalis never broke Adagio’s relentless glare. She rolled her eyes and got onto her feet. “Fine, fine. I’ll take off your gag, just this once.” She walked over to Adagio and ripped the rope out of her mouth. Adagio spat on Chrysalis’s face.
“Fuck you, asshole.”
Chrysalis laughed and wiped it off. “That’s it? That’s all you have to say to me?” She sat back down across from the three girls. “I was hoping I could at least learn a few modern tricks from you ancient creatures. This human world is quite fascinating, and I really don’t have much time to stay as I would like. It’s faster on the other side of the mirror, you see; I bet a couple weeks have passed over there already. Would you like to hear about our success? About what you couldn’t achieve in a thousand years?”
Adagio turned away from Chrysalis’s gaze. “All Changelings have ever been are parasites. What happens when your group on the other side of the mirror runs out of food? I’ve seen it happen to a hive firsthand. Once all the meat is sucked dry you all just hop over to the next group of ponies. But now everyone is meat, and no one is left to repopulate.”
Chrysalis sighed and leaned back against the wall. “Yes, yes, that is quite the issue. But that’s why I’m over here, isn’t it? Haven’t you been surviving off of this world for centuries?”
Adagio stayed silent.
“That’s what I thought. Hypocrisy at its finest. You see, Adagio,” Chrysalis scooted closer, “I did some thinking about this long before I invaded Canterlot, and long before I even knew the existence of this mirror world—something quite unfamiliar to you lot, I’m sure. The Changeling Queen prior to my rule viewed it much like you did: we’re parasites, and therefore must quietly capture our prey from the shadows. Well, I would like to think that it’s more of a symbiotic relationship.”
Adagio almost laughed. “How far is your head up your own ass?”
Chrysalis was unfazed. “Far enough to have confidence in my leadership. Once we establish ground in this world, I will return to Equestria for a period of time. A pony can last about six months in a pod without dying. On month five, we’ll release all of the pods at once. Some ponies start to rebuild, others form rebellion groups, and the majority try and relish their suddenly returned freedom. Pregnancies skyrocket, of course. I might even go as far as pretending to be Princess Celestia to lull them into a false sense of security. But none of them will have realized the true intention of releasing them.”
“And what’s that?”
Chrysalis’s mouth upturned into a wicked grin. “Slowly, reconstruction will grind to a halt. Rebellion groups will no longer feel like keeping up the fight. The ponies will realize that life isn’t as good as they remembered it in the pods. They’ll all have gained an addiction to it without even noticing. So, once everypony has their body re-energized and their love refilled, we take back over. They’ll practically walk right into our hooves!” She leaned back and laughed. “Repeat this ad infinitum, and the ponies get to live a life of bliss while we get to feed to our heart’s content.”
Adagio scowled. “You’re a fucking monster.”
“Am I? Any more than you? Any more than Princess Celestia is a monster to my people? This form I’ve taken, the face I’m using, is she a monster too? I’m only the monster because my world has no place for you,” she growled. “Of course, you never put your eggs in one basket, just in case a few too many people think you’re a monster. That’s why we started this little expedition across the mirror.”
Adagio turned away and refused to respond. After waiting for a minute, Chrysalis placed her hands on her knees and stood up.
“Well,” she said, “It was a good chat. Don’t worry, I won’t keep you all in here forever. Once the Fall Formal is over you are free to do as you like; you could even face me one on one, but it won’t really matter by that point,” Chrysalis grabbed the gag and shoved it back into Adagio’s mouth, ignoring her growls of protest. “Just sit tight until then, Sirens.”
Chrysalis sauntered out of the janitor’s closet and slammed the door behind her, leaving the three sirens to brood in the dimly lit room, seething with anger.
Sunset leaned back in her desk chair and scratched her forehead. “We’re not getting anywhere with this.”
“What else are we supposed to write down? This is your area of expertise,” Twilight responded.
The two were huddled around Sunset’s laptop, eyeing the document she had set up an hour previously. It listed everything they knew about Chrysalis and the Changelings, but it turns out that was actually a pretty short list.
“Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just talk with her without her attempting to take our lives?” Twilight asked.
Sunset winced. Yeah, wouldn’t that be nice. Putting the information that Chrysalis gave Sunset on her character profile would lead to suspicion from Twilight, and she did not want to risk it any further.
Twilight rubbed her chin. “I suppose we should have asked the Principal for some more details about her encounter. She may have had learned something that could have helped us.”
Sunset shook her head. “We’re already stretching for ideas. I think we need to admit,” She stood up from her chair and stretched, “That we’ve got nothing right now.”
Twilight sunk down against the side of Sunset’s bed. Sunset almost thought she looked like a sad puppy. “But . . . you said you knew what to do,” she breathed quietly.
“I said I would help you try and prepare to take her on. Look, my tactics are meant for high schoolers. Kids act vain, moronic, and open every second of the day, and it’s easy to figure out a way to get under their skin with a couple hours of observation. Chrysalis controls a whole goddamn army. The only thing we know about her is she’s got an ego that’s barely big enough for two universes, and she has no qualms with getting what she wants.”
“But what am I supposed to do?”
Sunset flopped onto her bed and sighed, choosing not to look at the hope dying out of Twilight’s eyes. Despite trying her hardest to come up with a plan to defeat Chrysalis, to at least stall her, she found no openings or pathways that actually gave them a shot at victory. “You wouldn’t happen to have the Elements of Harmony on standby, would you?”
Twilight glared at her. “We need real solutions, Sunset. We’re not going to find any magical artifacts over here.”
Sunset sighed.How can I tell her that I’ve got no more tricks left? We’re basically sitting ducks until they overpower us. Neither of us will survive at this rate. Sunset’s eyes shot open as she remembered Chrysalis’s offer. Although . . .
Sunset felt the cuts from Thursday start to sting on her back. She rubbed her hands over her eyes, ignoring the pain. “Maybe we should just wait.”
Twilight turned to her and furrowed her brow. “What do you mean?”
“Let’s just wait it out,” Sunset said, sitting up on her bed. “Chrysalis wants to take my place for a while, so we let her. There’s no point racking our brains if it all of our plans lead to disappointment.” Or worse.
“Surely there has to be more things we can do, Sunset. Don’t tell me that it’s hopeless,” she pleaded.
“It’s not hopeless,”For me, “We just need to take it slow,” Sunset began scratching the scars on her back, wincing from the pain.
Twilight stood up. “I can’t just sit here, Sunset! I need to do something.”
“I get it,” Sunset said, “But if you can’t find a way we can attack one of their weak spots, then I see no reason in losing any more sleep over it.” She glanced at the clock. “It’s getting pretty late. Let’s go to bed, and tomorrow I’ll show you around town to take your mind off of all this. We might need a day to relax and clear our heads anyway.” Sunset grinned, hoping that Twilight could not see the conflict flying around in her head.
Twilight’s expression softened, but her steely gaze held. “There’s something you’re not telling me. You know a way to solve this, don’t you?”
Sunset winced, but played it off as a forlorn sigh. “I really don’t, Twilight. I’m not giving up on you, but really, how much are the two of us going to do right now? We should use the time to acclimate you to the world better, rather than twiddling our thumbs.”
Twilight frowned and turned away. “Fine then. But don’t think I’m forgetting about my mission here. Goodnight,” she said, walking out of Sunset’s bedroom and shutting the door behind her.
“Good . . . night,” Sunset trailed off as Twilight left earshot.
Had it been last week, Sunset felt that she could have thrown Twilight to the wolves without a second thought; however, she now found her mind in a battle against her own empathy. Sunset felt as though her conflict with the Changelings was forcing her to the edge of a cliff, one step away from falling into the depths of Tartarus. Were it not for Twilight’s presence, she would already have taken the plunge without realizing it, caught within the Changelings’ destruction. Is this how I respond to her saving me? By tossing her aside like a bag of trash? Sunset ignored the flare of pain from her back.
It’s for the greater good. If I side with Chrysalis then I might be able to take her on from the inside. It’s the best chance we’ve got.
You’re not looking deep enough into this. You’ve given up to fast because the easy option has been sitting right in front of you the whole time. You’re running away, like you always do.
She layed down on her bed, furiously wiping her eyes.
I’m sorry, Twilight.
The thought struck her as odd; when was the last time she had felt sorry for someone? When did she believe she had the capacity for such emotion? Those sentimental feelings were the thing mucking up this whole issue in the first place.
We’ll have an amazing day tomorrow, Twilight. And if we can’t find a solution still, then . . .
Try as hard as she might, the cuts on her back would not stop scorching her skin.
“So . . . I’m a queen?”
“Princess. It has far better connotations.”
Principal Celestia leaned back in her chair, eyes wide. “Wow, okay. So just to make sure I’m following along and not making things up: you’re a ruler of a land of intelligent ponies who look like the people in this world, which has currently been overthrown by a race of semi-sentient shapeshifters, and now they’re here to do the same for us?”
“More or less,” Princess Celestia said. “But perhaps I should remind you that only appearances and general personalities are the same. I can clearly see that you’re not the monarch of this land, and I’m fairly certain we are not of the same age. What exactly is your occupation, if you do not mind me asking?”
The Principal suddenly felt too small for her suit. “I’m a high school principal . . . another me is ruling a country and I’m just a schoolteacher.” The Principal’s feelings of inadequacy were stopped by the Princess placing her hand in the other’s lap.
“Do not belittle yourself for your type of employment in comparison to mine; I have wanted to be a teacher like you for centuries. I even founded my own school, and although I am headmaster in name, I never truly get the time to honestly teach my students.”
The Princess’s consolation had flown right over the Principal’s head. “Did you say centuries?”
She tilted her head. “I am over one-thousand years old.”
The Principal sunk even lower into her couch. “I’m thirty-nine. I’m thirty-nine while you’ve got hundreds of more years on me.”
“Do not consider yourself too unlucky, Principal. Incredible power needs an equal sacrifice from its wielder.”
“I’m sure it does,” The Principal stood up and walked into the kitchen. She reached into the top drawer and pulled out a bottle of red wine. “Want any?”
“It would be my pleasure,” The Princess responded. The Principal pulled out two glasses, poured, and brought them back to the living room.
She took a gulp. “Why did you come to my house? How did you get in my house?”
“Oh,” The Princess said, pulling a key out of her royal gown, “I found your key under your doormat.”
“How did you know?” She balked.
“It’s where I would have put it,” The Princess took a sip, “And to answer your first question: you have my book.”
Principal Celestia pointed at the bookcase on her living room wall. “Take anything you would like.”
The Princess let out a small chuckle. “No, not that kind of book. It would be easier if I found it myself,” She set her glass down and closed her eyes. The Principal felt the room begin to heat up, like a gentle front of warm air had descended upon her household.
The Princess abruptly opened her eyes, the heat following with it. She moved over to a small closet near the front door and opened it up. Tucked in the corner of the closet was a neatly-folded thick leather jacket. She grabbed the jacket and lifted it up. The Principal stood up and strode over to her.
“Hey, be careful with that. My student entrusted me with it.”
The Princess raised an eyebrow. “Your student?” She unfolded the jacket and unzipped it, reaching her hand in to dig around inside. “Ah, here it is,” she said, pulling the tome out.
The thick journal seemed to glow once Princess Celestia’s hand made contact with it. She opened it up and began flipping through the older pages, a serene smile gracing her face. Seeing the Princess in such a state confirmed to the Principal why she would never earn a royal title; never in her life did Celestia believe she would ever reach the grace that the Princess exuded naturally. As the Princess continued through the book, though, her smile slowly shifted down into a cold line.
“Sunset,” she murmured. “I’m sorry I could not have come sooner.”
Principal Celestia stared at the her. “How do you know Sunset?”
The Princess’s eyes glazed over. “She was my pupil. My friend, I had enjoyed saying back in the day. We had a falling out some time ago; I don’t know the time discrepancies between these two worlds but I hope she has been able to move on in some way. You said she was your student?”
They walked back to the living room, book in tow, and sat back down. “Yes, she is a student at my high school. About two days ago another girl appeared through that statue, looking for her. This morning I ran into the two of them again.”
Princess Celestia’s stature visibly relaxed. “Twilight found her,” she took a breath. “Good. I sent Twilight across the portal almost half a month ago now.”
The Principal furrowed her brow. “It’s been a little over two days here since she actually crossed over.”
“Yes, I see. That would mean that Sunset has only been here for . . .”
“She enrolled in my school at the beginning of the last school year, but I’m not aware how long she was here before that. Long enough to gain solid financial footing and forge an identity, if what you say is true.”
The Princess leaned back, a small expression of pain flashing acrosss her face, quickly covered up but still noticeable to the Principal. “Her wounds are still fresh . . . I should not see her right away, then. Hopefully Twilight can talk some sense into her.”
Principal Celestia frowned. “What happened between you two, Princess? She doesn’t realize that I notice it, but anytime she looks at me she gets angry, almost like I’ve killed her dog or something.”
The Princess would not meet her eyes. “I can’t tell you now. There are more important matters to deal with,” she waved her hand and cleared her throat. “Like what we need to do to stop the Changelings. I have spent the past two weeks traveling across my world, meeting with as many leaders as possible. If we can defeat Chrysalis, I have the support ready to begin reconstruction of Equestria. All we need to do is actually defeat her.”
Principal Celestia took another drink, deciding not to push any further. “Sunset said that I needed to stay out of this as much as possible.”
“She did? I extend the same offer, but I will not need you for anything beyond a chaffeur, if you are willing.”
“I’ll help,” the Principal immediately responded. “I do not want to do the fighting, but I will not miss a chance to learn more about, well, you,” she said.
The Princess’s mouth twitched up into a smirk. “I am glad to hear that. I may have a way to succeed against the Changelings, but I need to gain definite proof before we contact Sunset and Twilight.”
“And what do you need to do?”
The Princess took another sip of wine. “I need to find where they are keeping the bodies. Any ideas?”
The Principal shook her head. “Sadly no. I can only imagine that it would not be too far from the city, though. We can search some potential areas tomorrow, if you would like.”
“Yes,” Princess Celestia said, “I think we should do that.”
The two Celestias settled down for the night, both inquiring about the other’s lives, comparing mannerisms, and keeping their discussions generally cordial. The Principal could not help but have a suspicion that the Princess was purposefully withholding information from her. She’s a centuries-old diplomat. I’ve got nothing on her in conversation, even if we think alike. She let the Princess borrow Luna’s room for the night.
Principal Celestia never slept all night, finding that her reality suddenly held more vividly interesting situations than a dream ever could.
Princess Celestia did not sleep a wink, instead reading her old dusty book with a worn leather jacket held close to her heart.
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Ohohoho, well now. Things are coming into focus.
And, it sounds like Sunset's back wounds are getting infected. That's bad.
Why did the ending hurt my heart so much? Tia misses Sunny
I am very curious how she got away or if she was allowed to escape as part of "the plan.". Good chapter.
Unless you're deliberately changing this for the story, Sunset's been a student at CHS for four years as of the first movie as she's won the Fall Formal crown the three years previous.
10370026
This story is set two years before the first movie. The upcoming Fall Formal was intended to be Sunset's second win in the main canon, but I'm diverging from the canon at the lead-up to that night. I chose to have it coincide with the Changeling Invasion, because that was about a year or two prior to the EQG as well.
10370034
Rechecking the first chapter I see where I misread. Somehow got the idea this was the year of movie.
10370041
No worries! Just glad I could clarify for you.
This reads like someone only learned of the show by reading /mlp/
10583282
Oof! I've never actually gone on /mlp, but it's good to know I have a home there in the future. Sorry if you don't like the story—I'm only writing to get better at it!
So... You're going to address why Celestia never tried sending a letter or anything, right?
Clover the Clever: *sweats in Memory Stone*