Scholar's Mate

by Undome Tinwe

3. Bc4 Nf6

Cozy had won her next few matches with a vengeance, completely destroying all of her opponents with almost gleeful viciousness.

"Mate in seven," she declared as she moved her bishop into position, staring her opponent in the eye.

Deep Blue, the reigning Equestrian Grandmaster, stared at the board for a solid minute before sighing. "I concede," he said in a near-monotone voice. He had such a dispassionate playstyle that Cozy wondered if he even cared about marrying Flurry, or if he'd just learned about a massive chess tournament and couldn't resist the urge to join.

Either way, they shook hooves, and the crowd cheered as Princess Cadance congratulated Cozy and informed the populace that the final match against Flurry would be played tomorrow.

Flurry herself also congratulated Cozy, her tone perfectly polite and cool, as befitting of a royal speaking to a stranger. Cozy, in turn, had bowed deeply and respectfully, her every word prim and proper and with not a single cheeky aside.

Afterwards, she was escorted back to the Palace. As the winner of the tournament, she'd also won the chance to have a private dinner with Princess Flurry Heart. This was supposed to be a celebration of their impending nuptials, and a chance to banter with one another in advance of their game, but instead, the two of them ate in total silence except to thank the staff and give their compliments to the chef.

Finally, as they picked at their desserts, Flurry spoke up. "I miss you, Cozy. You haven't visited since..."

"Since you said you were gonna throw the game tomorrow?" Cozy said after looking around to make sure the Bubble of Silence spell around them was still active. "Yeah, wonder why."

"I respect you, Cozy, truly I do." Flurry chuckled bitterly. "Do you think I would have proposed to you if I didn't? I don't fall in love with weak mares. Just like how I don't allow failure to be an option when I make my plans."

For a moment, Cozy almost relented. She did love Flurry's sharp mind so much, and honestly, she should have seen that her fiancée would pull something like this. But... "I won't let our marriage start with you coddling me."

"It's not like I could give it my all knowing the price of victory," Flurry pointed out. "Even if I tried to play fair, I'm not in the business of fighting against my own interests."

"You know, I'm not in the business of falling in love with weak mares either," Cozy said casually as she took another bite of her cake. It was perfectly moist, a delicious level of sweetness that wasn't saccharine, but it tasted like ash in her mouth. "Maybe you should think about that for a bit, Your Majesty."

Flurry's fork dropped onto her plate as her eyes narrowed dangerously. "Don't test me, Cozy. You won't be able to goad me into destroying you tomorrow."

Cozy snorted. "As if you could."

Flurry sighed. "I know what you're trying to do. It won't work. I'm not that easy to manipulate."

Shrugging, Cozy took another bite from her dessert. "It was worth a try. So, what happens now?"

Something lit up in Flurry's eyes, a spark of inspiration that Cozy loved to see. The princess grinned. "You'll see." She stood up, canceling the Bubble of Silence around them. "Enjoy the rest of your meal, Miss Glow, and I look forward to facing off against you tomorrow."

With that, she made her way out of the dining hall, leaving Cozy staring at her in confusion with her mouth open and full of cake.

Comments

[RainbowDoubleDash]

The comics established that Cadance is capable of wheels-within-wheels planning on a level that rivals Celestia, albeit usually put to far more obviously beneficent ends (like reuniting Tempest with one of her foalhood friends). I see it passed to her daughter too.

[AppleTank]

plot twist: double surrender