AlwaysDressesInStyle's Ponyville CiderFest '23 Interactive App Stories

by AlwaysDressesInStyle

Stone In Love

Hook: When Discord helped petrify the villainous trio, he neglected to tell the princesses he’d made it so they could hear each other’s thoughts. No one would have predicted Queen Chrysalis and Lord Tirek would fall in love, least of all themselves.

Story #249
Title: Stone In Love
Keyword: Jailbreak
Characters: Lord Tirek, Queen Chrysalis, Cozy Glow
Hero/Villain

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The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and the statues in the Canterlot Gardens are being polished. The maintenance crew is oblivious to the conversation going on inside one particular statue as they clean its dais.

Mortals have no true concept of ‘eternity’. Waiting three hours in line to get tickets for a concert is ‘an eternity’ or saying ‘I haven’t seen you in forever’ when in reality it’s merely been a few months. Discord had spent more than a thousand years as a statue. He’d been surrounded by other statues, but they were just that – stone. He alone among them had once been ‘alive’, though to him ‘life’ was merely a concept. He’d never been confined to his physical body before, and it caught him by surprise to learn that he could be.

He’d been trapped all those years with nothing but his own thoughts. He considered it preferable to what he had inflicted upon the villainous trio that had defied him and stolen his chaos magic. Frozen in stone forever, he’d ensured that they would forever be subjected to each other’s thoughts. He couldn’t think of anything that they’d enjoy less.

If either Celestia or Luna noticed that Discord had woven the ability for the trio to communicate with one another into the spell, neither raised an objection. For the next few decades, things worked exactly as Discord had imagined. Tirek, Chrysalis, and Cozy Glow got on one each other’s nerves, and all three were powerless to do anything about it. If one had a thought, the other two would know it.

It was naught but a minor inconvenience for Chrysalis. She’d infiltrated mind readers before, and she just channeled her thoughts into a never ending stream of pure rage directed at Discord, Starlight Glimmer, the princesses, ponies, other creatures, logs, and pretty much everything else. Her mind was toxic: if she thought about it, she thought about it with disdain, and that hatred disguised some of her real thoughts.

Tirek was older and wiser than the deposed changeling queen. He made no effort to disguise his thoughts, content that they’d be above reproach.

It was worst for Cozy Glow. A filly barely old enough to have her cutie mark was forced to share all of her thoughts with an ancient centaur and the former queen of the changelings. They had experience and maturity. They had no patience at all for her foolish antics or cutesy act. Neither of them liked ponies in general, let alone Cozy Glow in particular.

Cozy Glow couldn’t stop thinking. She’d had a horrible poker face when she was free, and had rarely been able to keep her emotions in check. She’d never even tried to learn to guard her thoughts. Within days of their shared confinement, the other two knew practically everything there was to know about the adolescent pegasus – her past, her aspirations, her likes and dislikes, and even who she’d had a crush on. Her life was an open book to them, and they mocked her mercilessly for it.

Discord was an entity of chaos. Sanity was a concept he didn’t put much stock in. He hadn’t even considered that having one another there to converse with would keep the trio sane. They’d driven one another up the wall, but they hadn’t driven each other truly crazy.

Tirek and Chrysalis eventually bonded over their mutual dislike of the filly. It had taken decades, but they’d gone from slinging insults at one another as casually as they’d thrown them at Cozy Glow, to only directing them toward the third member of their group. Cozy Glow was a smart filly – she caught on before they did. Suddenly she had ammunition to use against them.

Tirek and Chrysalis, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G…

Foolish child. As if I could be insulted by a mere schoolyard taunt. Tell me, was she this annoying when you were stuck in Tartarus with her?

More so. When she could move she made things like friendship statues out of pebbles, and at least when she thinks about annoying pop songs, they’re in tune, unlike when she would sing them with her own lungs. Really, petrification is an improvement over life with Cozy in Tartarus.

You two aren’t denying it. Chryssie and Tirek love each other. If Cozy could still move her tongue, she’d have stuck it out.

I’m above such petty things as emotions. I feast upon them. If ever there was a creature that knows all there is to know about feelings, it’s me. If I was in love, I’d know it.

Likewise, did you learn nothing from me at all when we corresponded all those years ago? I told you that love was just a pointless distraction. Of course, now we know that you had that silly crush on…

Don’t say it! I will end you! Petrification hadn’t mellowed the filly’s temper in the least.

How do you plan on doing that? You’re no more capable of ending me than I am of terminating you. Even if you weren’t confined, I’ve no reason to fear a pathetic urchin such as you. Just as I’ve no reason to fear Queen Chrysalis, beautiful as she is.

You charming centaur.

Ugh. Please stop. Just… stop. Do you have to torment me every living moment of every day?

Yes! Chrysalis and Tirek exclaimed in unison.

Golly, I’m too young to be hearing about all that stuff. You’re going to ruin my innocence. I don’t want to hear about all that kissing and hugging things adults do.

I sometimes forget she’s still a child, Chryssie. She has such a devious mind.

But it would be fun to break that mind.

Perhaps, but we’re stuck with her. If we break her, we have to deal with what’s left for eternity.

She’d be quieter.

Tempting.

Hey! My mind isn’t some delicate little flower! Cozy’s objections were met with laughter.

I suppose that if Cozy’s going to call us out, I’ll admit it. I love you, Chryssie.

As much as I hate using that word, I suppose I must admit that I’ve come to love you, too, Lord Tirek.

There’s no need for formality. Just Tirek will be fine.

Ewww! You two really are in love.

If Chrysalis could’ve smiled, she would’ve.

Crack.

The statue split apart and rubble littered the pedestal. Chrysalis was the first to stand up. She focused on her horn… but nothing happened. She reached a horrifyingly intact hoof to her skull and realized in frustration she no longer had a horn. With no holes in her hooves, she feared what she would see in her reflection. She forced herself to look into the polished marble base that had once supported their statue and cringed. She was an earth pony. A drab gray mare with teal hair.

She turned to look at Tirek, who’d sprouted wings. Now a red pegasus with a black mane, he was still muscular, but not as strong as an earth pony.

The third member of their party… was still encased in stone.

“What do we do with the brat?”

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[CHOICE]

>Take her along. (hero)

>Leave her. (villain)