• Published 18th Jan 2013
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The Queen of Hearts - Pumpernickel Rye



Chrysalis attempts getting her crown and her revenge by running a dating service.

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Sweet Candy and Bitter Memories

Sweet Candy and Bitter Memories

Tonight was the holiday which honored one of the two alicorn rulers, Princess Luna, or at least Nightmare Moon, Luna’s envy given life. Chrysalis didn’t understand why the ponies would want to celebrate a holiday about a monster which stripped them of one of their beloved rulers for a thousand years. However, she really did like the idea of having a holiday all about herself, but she wasn’t sure what she would call it. Chrysalis Day was just far too simple. Maybe Chrysapalooza or Chrysmas would work better. She decided she would think about it later.

Work for her had lightened up since most ponies became more focused with the coming holiday and lessened their romantic priorities. Chrysalis actually felt relieved for a smaller workload, what with the stressful assignments and the ‘jelly’. So far, the slime that she had been providing for the Cakes was beginning to work out for her. They filled their pastries with it and even established a new kind of ice cream milkshake from the stuff. It certainly caused a small flux of love whenever they were sold and she couldn’t wait to see how it would do in the long term. She wanted to see the potential results, but she still could not accept how disgusting the whole concept was and wished Pinkie would stop eating them so much around her. The sight and even the sound of her consumption of the goo were just unbearable.

Chrysalis decided to participate in Nightmare Night since it involved scaring others, which was something she loved doing. For a costume, she decided that she would go as the scariest thing she could think of: herself. Of course, she wasn’t foolish enough to go parading around town as her real self since she would easily draw attention to herself with her huge height and the obvious holes in her legs. Instead, as her form of the unicorn Cherub, she painted herself black, dyed her hair and tail greenish blue, wore fake wings that were attached to her midsection that was wrapped in green paper wrap, and covered her horn with a fake one. She looked herself over in the mirror, thinking to herself about how good she looked. Chrysalis then realized that she was pretending to be a pony who was now pretending to be her and she tried to stop thinking about it as it made her head hurt.

She exited from Cupid’s Arrow and headed towards Sugarcube Corner as Pinkie wanted to show her how the holiday was celebrated in Ponyville. Chrysalis hoped she would do something interesting tonight and at least learn some more about Nightmare Night. By some miracle, she had grown somewhat tolerant of Pinkie’s shenanigans. Chrysalis still saw her as an annoyance, but she never got as agitated by her as she did since they first met and even began to value her as worthy. She hated to think about it, but the pony was slightly growing on her. She also felt odd that she was hanging out with ponies who were much younger than her, especially ones that are her mortal enemies. Given her age, she was basically going to hang out with children and she preferred older ponies to be friends with. But then again, the fewer ponies she got involved with, the better.

She entered the sweet shop, which was appropriately decorated for the holiday. She saw Pinkie’s friends, minus Fluttershy, standing by the stairs and wearing their costumes. Rarity was a witch, Rainbow Dash looked like an explorer, Applejack was a timber wolf, Twilight was dressed in some fancy robes, and Spike was something she couldn’t possibly describe. “Goodness, Cherub,” gasped Rarity. “I almost thought you were really Chrysalis for a moment.”

“Thanks,” Chrysalis laughed, “I worked real hard on it. Your costume’s nice too, but I think witches are supposed to be ugly.”

Rarity stroked her mane. “I’m a fabulous witch.”

The changeling rolled her eyes. “Where is Fluttershy?”

“She hates Nightmare Night,” answered the lavender mare. “She just locks herself in her house and doesn’t answer the door for anypony.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Chrysalis had been looking forward to seeing if it was possible to scare a pony to death for a while and was disappointed that the pegasus didn’t show up. The next thing that caught her attention was the dragon on Rarity’s back as his costume was a bizarre mix of different animal parts. “And what about you? Did you shove a bunch of costumes into a blender?” The ponies laughed at the comment.

“I’m supposed to be Discord, Ruler of Chaos!” Spike complained.

“Ah yes, Pinkie has told me a lot about him.” She wondered what Discord was up to since his apparent reformation, but after hearing everything he can do, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to know. A deity with such power and a mind of a child was a dangerous combination. “If that’s how he looks, then it’s a pretty impressive costume.”

“I really like it. Rarity worked really hard on this just for me.”

Rarity nuzzled his cheek. “Anything for my little Spikey-Wikey. Doesn’t it look great on him?”

“He’s as threatening as a teddy bear,” remarked Chrysalis and the ponies all laughed again, causing Spike to blush.

“Well what about my costume?” Pinkie Pie’s voice called from upstairs.

They all looked upstairs and saw her coming down. When she came into clear view, all of her friends were in stitches, except for Chrysalis, who stood in complete disbelief. Pinkie was dragging a large cardboard box with her and she was dressed as a changeling.

“Wow, Pinkie, you look pretty good,” commented Rainbow Dash.

“I know! It’s the best costume idea ever because now, I can change into other costumes!” She jumped into the box and popped back out several seconds later. “Look! With my amazing changeling powers, I’m a princess.” She went back in and came right back out. “Now I’m an alien from space.” She jumped in a third time and came out wearing both costumes. “Now I’m the Princess of Space! Your puny Equestrian weapons will have no effect on me!”

Besides Chrysalis, everypony was rolling on the floor in laughter. She was taking deep breaths, ready to explode in fury. Pinkie had done things to tick her off before, but this was easily her greatest sin against both her and her people. Just as she had begun to tolerate her shenanigans, the pony went and offended her kind. Now she wasn’t sure if Twilight was the one she hated the most.

“That really is a hoot, Pinkie Pie!” said Applejack as she clutched her sides.

Pinkie then noticed Chrysalis dressed as Chrysalis and ran right up to her. “Wow! We both had the same idea!” She kneeled in front of her. “I am at your command, my queen.”

“I’m sure you will be a valuable contribution to my kingdom,” she said sarcastically, fighting the temptation to ram the pony’s head through the floor.

“Alright. That’s enough fooling around, girls,” Twilight interjected after she controlled herself. “The night won’t last forever and there’s a lot to do.”

“So what are we doing tonight?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“We’re going to play some of the games in town and see if we can win any candy. Princess Luna will also be dropping by, so we should go see her. Hopefully this year will go better than the last.” Chrysalis’s ears perked up upon hearing about the princess. She recognized Luna as being much more interesting to be around then the other ponies. She hadn’t had company with her in a while and figured it would be much more fun to be with her than these little kids. If she really worked on it, she could possibly retrieve inner knowledge of the alicorns that could help her take Equestria.

“Sorry, Twilight,” said Spike, “but I’m going Trick-or-Treating with the Crusaders this year.”

Twilight gave her assistant a worried look. “I don’t think it’s wise to leave you alone with those three. You had nightmares for weeks about the Cutie Mark Crusader Taxidermists the last time I left you in their care.”

The dragon shuddered as he recalled the repressed memory and Rarity calmed him down by wrapping him in a hug. “Not to worry, dear. I will be sure to look after him while they’re together and we’ll be done before Luna arrives.”

“I’m only going to stay for a little bit, but then I’ll be busy scaring the daylights out of ponies for the night,” said Dash as she rubbed her hooves together deviously.

For once, Chrysalis agreed with the pegasus. “That does sound like fun. Mind if I join you?”

She shook her head. “Sorry, but this girl is a one pony show.”

“Alright girls, let’s get going,” Twilight spoke.

As they all exited the shop, Pinkie was next to Chrysalis, bouncing as she moved. “Are you excited for your first Nightmare Night in Ponyville, Cherub?”

“Every day is a nightmare when I’m with you, Pinkie Pie.”

“Hey!” shouted Pinkie as her boss and her friends laughed.


For a holiday that was all about scaring, Chrysalis didn't see much of that and she was not surprised in the least. Ponyville mostly had corny things like fake spiders, fog machines, and other things that were far from scary. Of course the puny ponies would have more kiddie fun than some actual horror. She tried playing some of their games to get into the holiday spirit, but it was to no avail. When she returned to her kingdom, she was going to give this holiday the scare it deserved. She just stood nearby, feeling bored while the rest of the ponies were out having fun. Pinkie took noticed of her and ran over. "Aren’t you having fun?” she asked with concern.

“Sure.” This was the fifth time Pinkie had asked her in the night, obviously noticing her disdain. Chrysalis wished that Dash had taken her for the pony scaring because it sounded much more fun, but she had a better idea. She didn’t need her, she was already scary and she could just do it herself. Unfortunately, Pinkie hadn’t left her alone all night, so she had no choice but to let her in on the fun. “Pinkie, my royal subject, I have an assignment for you.”

The pony dressed as a changeling bowed before her. “I am at your command, your highness.”

That time, the real changeling actually smiled, nostalgic of her days as a ruler. She leaned towards Pinkie and whispered, “You and I are going to scare some ponies.”

“That sounds like fun! Everypony loves a good scare.”

Chrysalis felt moderate satisfaction that she was up to the idea. “Excellent. Follow me.” They both left the fairgrounds and hid behind some bushes in the outskirts of town. “Now, ponies are still terrified of changelings, so scaring them shouldn’t be too difficult. Just act like one and they will be running for the hills.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got this whole changeling thing down.” Pinkie smiled and brought her box next to her, ready for use.

“I hope you do.” She looked out from the bushes and noticed some children approaching, who would have made great practice. “Here come some now. Just stay quiet and wait for my cue.” They both waited silently, with the exception of Pinkie giggling. When the group was close enough, Chrysalis jumped out and towered over them. “It is I, Queen Chrysalis! Give me all of your love!” The children screamed in terror and cowered in front of her.

Pinkie was next, leaping out of the bushes. “Be afraid by our amazing changeling powers as we turn into something completely different! Now I’m a changeling,” she jumped into her cardboard box and reappeared, wearing a clown costume, “and now I’m a clown!” She honked her clown horn. The children stopped screaming and were now laughing.

“Wow, Pinkie,” one of them said, “you really scared us!” They all stood up and walked past them. “Happy Nightmare Night, Pinkie Pie!” he called while waving to her.

“You too!” she said, waving back. When she turned back, she could see that Chrysalis was very annoyed.

“A clown?” she asked in extreme frustration. “That’s your idea of scary?”

“Hey, clowns can be scary,” the pony argued. “Like how do they all fit in that tiny car?”

Chrysalis tore the wig off her head and tossed it into the box. “Take off that ridiculous outfit and hide.” They both returned to their hiding spot and sat in silence while waiting for their next victims until Pinkie spoke.

“Cherub?”

“What?”

“Are you unhappy?” she asked, sounding uneasy.

Chrysalis just shrugged. “Because you messed up one scare? A little, but not really. Just try harder next time.”

“No, I mean are you unhappy about everything?”

Her boss gave her a confused look. “What are you talking about?”

“Are you still upset about your fiancé?”

Chrysalis let out a loud, annoyed sigh. The made up backstory was a great excuse for her behavior, but Pinkie could never mind her own business. “I am. Why are you bringing this up now?”

“Well I was wondering if you would be interested in finding another one now. I know plenty of ponies you might like!”

Chrysalis turned away from her. “No thanks.”

“But-”

“Are you done bothering me?”

Pinkie frowned. “I just want to help.”

“If you want to help me, then you need to just keep helping me find other ponies that need help with love. I promise you that will make me happy.”

“You got it!” Silence had fallen over them until Pinkie broke it once again. “Cherub?”

“What now?”

“I just want you to know that I will always try to make you happy.”

Chrysalis looked at her funny. “Yeah…thanks.”

They remained perched behind the bushes as they continued waiting. Chrysalis began wondering how long Pinkie would be concerned about her wellbeing. The thought of actually talking to her about her issues was tempting as she kept so many problems and fears to herself, but it was Pinkie Pie, so her advice wouldn’t exactly be the greatest. She was also curious why she was bringing this up so suddenly. She just hoped Pinkie wouldn’t end up setting her up with a blind date.

Her thoughts were interrupted when Pinkie tapped her and pointed towards an approaching group. Chrysalis could see that it was Rarity, Spike, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders coming towards them. She was looking forward to scaring the little trio since they broke her window two weeks ago trying to earn their demolition cutie marks. Sweetie Belle was dressed like her sister, Scootaloo was a skeleton, and Apple Bloom was a devil, which she found to be very appropriate after what they did. Once they were close enough, Chrysalis jumped out and caused the four children to fall onto their backs. “Give me your love or suffer my wrath!”

The four screamed loudly from her sudden appearance. “Please don’t eat us!” Apple Bloom pleaded.

Sweetie Belle took cover under her sister and put her hooves over her eyes. “Make her go away, Rarity!”

Pinkie appeared from behind the changeling. “You cannot fight us! Especially when we can turn into…” she went back into the bushes and came out, “a dragon!” She then did a fake roar.

Chrysalis smiled as she stared down at them, until they burst out laughing. She had a feeling of what had gone wrong and turned around. While Pinkie was dressed as a dragon, which was an improvement, she was wearing the dumbest looking costume she had ever seen. “Pinkie, what is that supposed to be?” she asked, agitated.

“I’m supposed to be a dragon, silly!”

“So that’s where my old costume went,” said Spike as he picked himself up.

Sweetie Belle came out from her hiding place. “You two were really scary. I almost thought you were actually changelings!” she exclaimed excitedly.

“Yeah, until Pinkie came out,” remarked Scootaloo. All of the crusaders giggled at them and Chrysalis could feel the burning shame wash all over her.

“Now come on. Let’s leave them to their fun. We need to get back to town,” addressed Rarity. Spike and the Crusaders waved goodbye as they ran ahead. “Don’t stay out here too long. There’s much more to this holiday than trying to scare ponies like Rainbow Dash does.” She then walked ahead to the busier part of Ponyville.

Once she was out of sight, Chrysalis looked over at Pinkie. “Is that costume supposed to be scary?” she questioned with one of her eyes visibly twitching.

“I think so. Have you ever seen a dragon as goofy looking as this?”

“Take it off. Now.” Pinkie complied with her demand. “No more stupid costumes. You will just simply be a changeling, which is something all ponies should fear. Now get behind the bushes and try not to screw up again.”

For over half an hour, they both continued trying to scare any pony that had come by. Pinkie eventually got the hang of things, ceasing her costume changes and spooking the ponies with her changeling appearance. They scared off a few groups before Chrysalis thought she had enough fun and began heading back.

“That was so much fun, Cherub!” Pinkie cheered.

Chrysalis gave a light smile, satisfied that Pinkie took into her taste. “It could have went better, but I suppose you did a decent job. I find that surprising since you’re probably the least scariest pony I know besides Fluttershy.”

“I can be scary!” Pinkie looked around and saw a young colt with a white coat and brown spots dressed as a royal night guard. “Watch!” She ran ahead and jumped in front of him. “Blarg! Give me your love and stuff!”

The colt laughed at her feeble attempt. “That is a nice costume,” he said through his thick accent, “but I don’t think changelings are scary.”

Chrysalis couldn’t believe her ears and approached the little pony. “Oh really? So what do you think is scary, child?”

“Nightmare Moon, of course! She’s the scariest pony ever! Neither the changelings or Chrysalis come close.”

The former changeling queen scoffed at his words. “Oh please. Chrysalis is far scarier than stupid Nightmare Moon.”

“DO YOU WANT TO SAY THAT TO MY FACE!?”

Chrysalis and Pinkie jumped and whirled around, finding Nightmare Moon herself right behind them with her eyes glowing brightly and staring angrily at them. They both screamed at the sight of her and Pinkie jumped into Chrysalis’s forelegs, shaking in fright as they looked at the alicorn. Pinkie saw how Nightmare Moon was growling at them, showing her sharp teeth. “She’s going to gobble us up!” she shrieked.

“I’m too beautiful to die!” Chrysalis cried.

Suddenly, Nightmare Moon dissolved into mist and in her place was Princess Luna, who was laughing hysterically. “Gotcha!”

“P-Princess Luna.” Chrysalis realized who she was holding and dropped her onto the ground. “I hate to admit it, but that was the best scare of all night. Better than my attempts.”

Pinkie got up from the ground and started bouncing in front of the princess. “When did you get here? I wanted to show you how scary I was!”

“I have been in town for some time. Twilight didn’t know where you had run off to and I figured you would turn up eventually.” She turned her head towards the colt. “I was accompanying young Pipsqueak here until you two came. Your costumes are quite impressive.”

Pipsqueak looked at Luna excitedly. “Did you see how brave I was, Princess? I wasn’t scared at all!”

She smiled at the child and rubbed his head. “You were indeed very brave. Maybe I should enlist you into the royal guard when you’re older.” She then looked back at them while Pip was jumping around. “So have you two been out here scaring ponies this whole time?”

“I know it seems childish, but yeah. I think we’ve done a decent job, though.”

“Well I’m going to spend a little more time with Pipsqueak. If you’re still in the mood after, I can show you how to really scare.”

Chrysalis gave a small grin. “Please do.”

Pinkie brought out her candy bucket from her box. “I want to scare too, but I’m far behind on my candy collecting and I need to catch up!”

“Very well, Pinkie. I hope you enjoy this wondrous night.”

“I will! Bye, Luna and Cherub!” shouted Pinkie as she ran into Ponyville.

“Walk with me, Cherub,” Luna requested. Chrysalis followed Luna and Pip as they headed into town. “I hope you are enjoying tonight as much as she is.”

“I think so. It’s definitely gotten better when you arrived and Pinkie left. She just isn’t really the type to strike fear into the heart of anypony.”

Luna gave a light giggle. “So I saw.”

“It should be a lot more fun with you around. That scare you just did is what I’ve been aiming for all night. But if you don’t mind me asking, why are you hanging out with a young child?”

“I try to spend as much time as possible with all of my subjects. Pipsqueak here is a very sweet colt I met last year and I wanted to see him again.”

The earth pony hopped onto the alicorn’s back and hugged her neck. “I love Nightmare Night and Princess Luna is the best princess ever! Don’t you think so too?”

Chrysalis gave off a quick laugh. “She indeed is, but don’t let her sister know you said that.”

Pipsqueak felt nervous by what she told him and Luna could feel him shake. “W-why? Am I going to get arrested?”

Both of the mares began laughing uncontrollably.


Chrysalis and Luna spent hours scaring ponies together and the changeling was surprised by how much fun she was having with one of her biggest enemies. After Luna received her candy tribute from the children, something which Chrysalis thought about doing for her own holiday, they rested nearby the Nightmare Moon statue and began splitting the pile, admiring their large amounts of treats. “Thank you for spending time with me, Cherub. I think you’ve helped make this night much scarier than last year.”

Chrysalis laughed as she sorted through the mountain of sweets. “I do believe I do a good impression of the former changeling queen.”

“A few times I was convinced you were really her, and that would have actually been scary.”

They both gave out a giggle. Chrysalis found it amusing that Luna was completely unaware who she was talking to. The irony was just delicious. However, she was a little curious about something. “Speaking of changelings, how is it going with Nymph and her people?”

Luna just shrugged. “Same as usual. It’s just a stalemate between Celestia and I when it comes to Nymph. As for the rest of the ponies, their opinions just keep changing. Nymph is certainly a persuasive changeling.”

Chrysalis scoffed as she grabbed some chocolate. “Of course she is. Her kind is all about lies. You’re the only one who is keeping Equestria from falling into their hooves.”

“Not all changelings are bad, Cherub. I’ve seen them for myself and I don’t see them as much as a threat. I truly wish to help them.”

“You keep telling yourself that,” muttered the false unicorn under her breath.

“What was that?”

“Nothing. If you ‘care’ for the changelings, then why are you still having conflicting opinions with Celestia?”

“It’s only because I’m concerned about Nymph. She does not seem entirely trustworthy and I’m even more suspicious now that she has been asking about her sister.”

The sister mentioned looked up at her. “She has?”

“Yes. She has claimed that neither she nor the changelings are aware of her current whereabouts since her banishment.”

“And why would she even want to find her? She was the one who had banished her in the first place.”

“I don’t know, but she seems to be really worried about her. It’s hard for me to imagine that Chrysalis would have completely disappeared without a trace and not try to make some contact with her.”

Chrysalis thought deeply about what she had told her. It was weird how Nymph would show her the door and then want to know where she was, especially after their rough history. Had she found her, the only thing that would happen would be her being sent to the moon or something similar. She then realized something. “I know what she’s doing. She wants to use her as a bargaining chip.”

The alicorn tilted her head. “Bargaining chip?”

“She wants to find her sister so she can trade her in for changeling citizenship.”

The princess gasped. “That’s horrible! Chrysalis may be a fugitive, but I can’t believe her own sister would do that to her.”

The changeling shrugged as she kept taking more candy. “Well what do you expect from Nymph? She’s no different from her sister.”

“Did you know that Queen Nymph actually said she hoped that we found her first?”

Chrysalis became confused. “Huh? Why?”

“She said that if we were to find Chrysalis first, we were permitted to punish her under reasonable means.”

Her mouth hung open. “She said what!?

“That was both Celestia’s and my reaction. We asked if she was sure and she was. Nymph even said that we should let Cadance and Shining Armor decide what to do with her, just as long as it wasn’t something like torture or execution. She felt that some justice would be necessary to ease the tension between ponies and changelings.”

Chrysalis could not believe what she had just heard. It was one thing to have her banished, but to hope that the ponies would punish her was going too far. She was going to make Nymph suffer the next time they met. “That is just horrible of her.”

The alicorn firmly nodded. “Indeed, and I’ll be very sure to inform Celestia about this ‘bargaining chip’ business. I think even she would be disgusted by this. Though, sometimes she can be just insufferable and doesn’t listen to me about that queen.”

“I know what that’s like. Sisters can be such a pain,” she said gloomily.

She had unintentionally caught Luna’s curiosity. “I did not even realize you had one, Cherub.”

Chrysalis became very mad at herself as she realized that she had let it slip. “I do. It’s just we don’t get along anymore.”

“Why is that?”

She looked away from her, actually feeling uncomfortable. “I don’t want to talk about it. We had a falling out and we haven’t even seen each other in months.”

The princess moved a little closer to her. “Have you tried to patch things up with her?”

“I think I prefer never seeing her again for the rest of my life. I hate her,” she said coldly.

Luna was shocked. “That’s an awful thing to say, Cherub.”

“Sorry, but we all can’t have an amazing sister like you do.”

“What is she like?”

“I don’t want to talk about her anymore. She’s no longer in my life and it’s going to stay that way.” She hoped Luna would drop the subject since she could not think of a story about her alter ego so suddenly. There was also the fact that it would bring up a lot of bitter memories.

Both of them sat in silence. Luna looked at the unicorn, who was currently flicking a tall blade of grass in annoyance. “Cherub, I’m beginning to worry about you.”

Chrysalis loudly groaned. “Why?”

“Pinkie often speaks about you through her letters,” she informed the outcast.

Chrysalis suddenly glared at her. “And what does she say?”

Luna slightly shrunk. “Try not to get mad at her.”

“What does she say about me?” she asked angrily. She never liked the thought of ponies talking about her behind her back, whether it about Chrysalis or Cherub.

The alicorn took a deep breath before speaking. “She says that you tend to get mad very easily, like right now for instance.”

The changeling dressed as a changeling rolled her eyes. “I have a temper, so what?”

“Being angry all the time isn’t a good thing. I know you are still upset about your previous fiancé and apparently your sister, but you need to try to move on. Another thing is that Pinkie Pie knows a lot about everypony in this town, even if she hasn’t met with them often, and yet you two almost spend every day together and she knows next to nothing about you.”

Chrysalis huffed. “I like to keep things to myself. Pinkie just needs to mind her own business.”

“You really shouldn’t bottle yourself up. It isn’t healthy.”

The false unicorn growled with annoyance. “I don’t get why you’re lecturing me, Luna. What do you want from me?”

“You’re a friend of mine as well as Pinkie’s. I just want to make sure you’re alright.”

“I don’t recall me being friends with that idiot,” she quickly responded in a harsh tone.

Luna slightly flinched. “Then who are your friends, Cherub? Pinkie and her friends have never seen you with anypony else.”

Chrysalis remained silent. Nymph was actually her only real friend when she was a child. As she grew, she managed to associate herself with other changelings. She did actually befriend many and was very well loved like her sister. But of course, that changed. And when she returned from her failed invasion, the little friends she had left turned against her as she endangered them all. For the moment, she was truly alone.

“Cherub?” Chrysalis was brought back to reality. “Do you not have any friends?”

“No,” she answered hesitantly. She felt the weight of the world pushing down on her now that she had said it out loud. She never gave it much consideration before, but being left without friends was awful.

Luna could see her gloom and got even closer to her. “You just need to open yourself up more. I’m sure you will find some if you do.”

Chrysalis rested her head on the grass. “I wish it was that easy.”

“It is easy,” said the alicorn encouragingly. “You just have to try.”

“I can’t do it, Luna.”

“Why not? Just try telling me more about yourself and we’ll figure something out.”

“I don’t want to talk about this anymore,” she responded through clenched fangs.

“Please talk to me. I just want to know you better,” Luna pleaded. “Maybe it will help you stop from being such a grouch all the time,” she added with a smile.

Being made fun of by the princess pushed her over the edge. Chrysalis shot up, furious. “You want to know more about me? Fine! I’m a pony who tried to do something great for others and ended up becoming a complete failure! Everypony I have ever known now hates me and I went here to get away from it all and hopefully make something of myself! I have no friends and the only family I have is a sister who I cannot stand! There! Are you satisfied, princess!?” She took rapid deep breathes as she stared down her company.

Luna looked at her in surprise. “There’s no need to be so hard on yourself. I really doubt that they all hate you.”

“Trust me, they do. They will likely never forgive me for what I did.” Saying that had immediately filled her with dread. She at least knew that her people couldn’t resist having an entire town filled with love to themselves, so she wasn’t completely hopeless.

“Cherub, sit down and take a breather.” The changeling reluctantly obeyed and got back down. “You need to stop worrying about the past so much. You just need to focus on the present.”

“That’s all I have been doing. I really need them to get over my mistake. It means more to me than anything but sometimes I worry that they never will,” she confessed.

“They will. No pony can stay mad forever, so just relax.” Luna placed a hoof on hers. “Just tell me what you did and we can talk about it.”

Chrysalis quickly pulled her hoof away. “That is none of your business, Princess!”

The princess’s patience was beginning to run short. “You really need to calm down. I’m sure whatever it is that you have done can easily be forgiven and forgotten.”

“I hope you’re right. Oh, and thanks for being such a 'good' friend. I don’t think I have ever felt this awful before in my life,” she spat.

Luna briefly flinched. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to help you.”

Chrysalis still felt angry, but deep down, she actually felt a little touched that both her and Pinkie were so concerned about her. She wished she could confide with them and tell them everything in hopes for some actual reassurance, but that would have been a death sentence. What also surprised her was how Luna was being tolerant of her rude behavior and she felt a little thankful that the princess had not punished her for anything she did as she was more focused on trying to help her. One thing she had said to her earlier was however bugging her. “Luna?” she asked shyly.

“Yes, Cherub?”

“Are you really my…friend?” She didn’t know why, but she felt slightly embarrassed for asking.

Luna smiled at her. “Of course I am. Did you think otherwise?”

Chrysalis swore she could feel her face warm up. “Well I didn’t think you would consider me being your friend because I’ve been a jerk to you on more than one occasion and we have only met once.”

“And you were sorry every time you were rude and that one time was a lot of fun. I enjoy your company and I wish to know you better. I want us to be good friends, Cherub.”

The changeling smiled. “I will gladly accept your offer for your friendship.”

“And you may have it under one condition.”

“Which is?”

Luna cleared her throat and used a more authoritative tone. “I want you to try to act nicer from now on. I know you have problems, but lashing out at others will not bring you any comfort. If you truly wish to make friends or even attract ponies to your business, you must try to be a more likable pony.”

Chrysalis decided not to argue with her and sighed. “Very well, I will try.”

“And I think you should become actual friends with Pinkie,” the alicorn added.

“Hey now, one step at a time.” They both chuckled. “But I guess I am a little hard on her. Her heart’s in the right place, but sometimes she can really test my patience. The girl tries so very hard to impress and she certainly delivers. I will try my hardest to be her friend.”

“It’s not difficult to be friends with Pinkie. She already admires you greatly and desires your friendship badly,” informed Luna.

“I've noticed. Also, I just wanted to apologize for me snapping at you. My personal problems have really soured my mood as you can tell.”

The princess nodded in agreement. “I understand what it’s like to have your past affect you so much. I just want you to know that if you ever need anything, you can always ask me. I will try to be as supportive as I can.”

“That’s the other thing I want to talk about. While I get why you like Twilight or Pinkie, why are you interested in me? I’m just a moody mare.”

“As I’ve said before: I try to spend time with all of my subjects. I guess you stand out since you’re well associated with Pinkie. There’s also the fact that you thought I was still Nightmare Moon and I just wanted you to see that it was no longer the case.”

“You’ve certainly proved me wrong.”

“Good," Luna said happily. "You are also very fun to talk with, Cherub. We can relate to about anything and we mostly have a good time.”

“I apologize for ruining the good moments before. I know you didn’t mean any harm during those times.”

“And I as well. When we talk to each other, it’s like we’re equals, rather than princess and subject. And while I do enjoy Twilight’s and her friends’ company, I also want friends who are a little more…mature.”

“Are you calling them childish?” she teased.

“N-no!” Luna shot a slightly angry look as Chrysalis laughed at her. “They are fun to be with, but they always want to do things like parties or studying or other activities I am not interested in. I just want friends who I can get into serious discussions with or do something more grown up with once in a while.”

“How funny, but I think I see your point. I guess I should come visit sometimes to keep you company.” Having Luna as somepony to socialize with would likely make her feel overall better. Even if she couldn’t retrieve any vital information from her, she would at least have an adult pony to speak with instead of the company of herself.

“It might be better if I come here as Canterlot has lost its charm for a while.”

“I see.” Since things were going so well, she decided to push her luck. “By the way, do you want me to find a pony for you to date? I’m sure Pinkie and I can find you a very likeable stallion.”

The princess laughed and shook her head. “I appreciate the offer, but I must once again decline. I need more time. But when the time comes, I will leave everything to your hooves. I trust your judgment.”

Chrysalis felt a tingle of excitement. The moment Luna was ready was the moment she really made things happen for her business. “Thanks. I think this might be my favorite Nightmare Night yet.” It was her only Nightmare Night. “It must be so nice to have a holiday dedicated to you, or at least something that was you. I’d love to have a day when all ponies are supposed to respect me.”

Luna chuckled as she ate part of a caramel apple she found in the pile. “This night isn’t about forcing them to respect me. It’s about fun.”

“And we’ve definitely had some of that,” she said, recalling how she and Luna brought terror onto the public. “But does it bother you how it’s more about Nightmare Moon than you?”

Luna waved a hoof as she resumed her search through the candy pile. “She was a part of me, but it’s ancient history now. I’m just regular Luna again.”

“You’re very lucky that everypony has forgiven you after what happened,” Chrysalis said with a hint of envy in her voice.

“The reason I have been forgiven is because what had happened was not completely my fault. My body was consumed by some sort of force that fed on my jealousy. I was not in control of my actions.”

“And yet you were still sent up to the moon for a thousand years,” Chrysalis added.

“It was necessary,” Luna stated in a serious tone. “Nightmare Moon’s eternal night would have been the death of everything.”

Chrysalis looked up at the moon, which was currently full for the night. “What was it like, being isolated up there for a millennium?”

The princess joined her at looking up at the night sky. “The entire time I was imprisoned, I was in a slumber. I hadn’t even noticed such a long time had passed, but I still knew what had occurred. The banishment was actually much harder for my sister.”

“I still can’t believe she sent you up there. It must have been heartbreaking for her to lose you like that.”

Luna nodded while maintaining her gaze on the moon. “It was. She had apparently fallen into severe depression for a long time. I worry that the incident may have scarred her deeply for life. I don’t like to think about it, either. A thousand years of being with my sister and watching our world grow was taken from me and nothing I can do will ever change that.”

Her words stung Chrysalis. “I’m sorry to hear that. How are things between you two now?”

The princess finally broke away from the object in the sky and looked at her friend. “Things are going very well. Although we are awake during different times of the day, we still make time for each other. Sometimes she stays up the whole night just to be with me, despite me telling her not to.” A warm smile grew on her lips. “She’s not very productive during the day after.”

“She sounds a little clingy.”

“Not the word I would use. She feels partially responsible for what happened and is scared of losing me again. She just wants to make up for lost time, which there is a lot of, and we cherish every second.”

“So what do the royal princesses do when they bond?” she asked curiously.

“Nothing that special, I’m afraid. We like to play chess, do each other’s hair, or hike through any of the beautiful forests in Equestria. Mostly we just talk about stuff while relaxing in our rooms.”

Chrysalis felt slightly disappointed. “That’s all? I was expecting something a lot more exciting from you two since you’re both powerful alicorns.”

From seeing her expression, Luna decided to have some fun. “Also in our spare time, we go fly into space where we meet alien life forms or go create galaxies for fun, but we only do this when we’re not busy with time traveling,” she said jokingly.

They both shared a laugh. “Somehow I think I would have believed you if you told me that in a serious tone.”

A grin appeared on the blue pony’s face. “Really? Maybe I should tell other ponies this and see if they buy it. I could even change history books and make up amazing things we’ve done in the past to shock the nation. I’m sure Celestia wouldn’t approve, but it would be certainly amusing. I bet I could even have Twilight believe all of it and blow her mind. We may even have to give her therapy for making her think she was wrong about so many things.”

Chrysalis laughed hard and kicked her hooves against the ground. “I am just having the time of my life! I wish this night would never end!” As she continued laughing, she took notice of Luna’s hurt look. She wondered what was wrong with her until she realized that she had unintentionally referenced Nightmare Moon. “Oh, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to say it like that.”

“It’s all right,” she said with extreme discomfort. “I know you didn’t mean to say it like that, but those words still fill me with guilt. They will be burned into my mind forever.”

“Why? Those were Nightmare Moon’s words, not yours. She took advantage of you by possessing you when you were vulnerable. It’s not like you wanted to become her on purpose.” Luna flinched and quickly looked away from her. Chrysalis could feel chill run down her spine as she realized what the alicorn was implying. “Did…did you want to become her?”

There was a tense silence between them and the changeling actually feared what her answer would be. Finally, Luna looked back into her eyes and opened her mouth. “Y…yes.”

Chrysalis was taken aback by what she heard. “Goodness, Luna. Why would you ever do a thing like that?”

“I was just so angry. My night was something of beauty and no pony appreciated it back then. I just wanted them all to love it like I did. I wanted to become strong enough to overpower my sister, so I agreed to let her have my body. At first I was happy, but when she wanted to make the night last forever, I knew things were going too far. I just wanted to demand respect from Celestia and the ponies, not hurt them. I was so scared of thinking that I couldn’t be stopped, especially when I returned. I am so grateful Twilight and her friends succeeded in preventing the nightmare from coming true. If they hadn’t, I…I…”

If there was one thing Chrysalis never thought she would ever live to see, it was to see one of the mighty alicorn sisters cry. While this would have normally pleased her, she actually felt upset to see her like this as they were getting along so well. She never really had to comfort any pony or changeling before, aside from Nymph, but she thought it would have been better than sitting there and looking uncaring as Luna quietly wept. She actually wished Pinkie was around since she was more of the supporting kind. Chrysalis sighed as she got up and laid next to Luna. “I’m sorry, Luna. I didn’t mean for this to happen. Please stop crying.”

“It’s all my fault. I am to blame for everything.” Luna didn’t even notice her talking.

While she could see ponies telling her that it wasn’t her fault and how everything was going to be okay, Chrysalis was a little more realistic. “Not entirely, just mostly.”

Luna looked at her with moist eyes. “What?”

“I know you don’t want to hear this, but I do think you are at fault for the whole incident and you should feel bad for what you did.”

A surprised gasp came out of the alicorn’s mouth. “Why would you say that to me!? You’re supposed to be my friend!”

“Just hear me out! You yourself admitted that you let her become one with you, so there’s no excuse for that. You did it because you worried for your own selfish needs, but I want you to listen to me. You think you’re terrible because of what happened, but the truth is you’re not. If you were, you would feel no remorse for your actions and would probably still try to rid of Celestia.”

Luna sniffed. “I suppose.”

“My point is that you were terrible in the past, but you’re not anymore. You are now a very loving princess who loves her subjects and will do anything for the good of her country. Why should anypony define you because you made one mistake? I mean, sure it didn’t go as planned, but why can’t they appreciate the hard work their ruler has given them before? Why suddenly shun her for when she fails at doing something right just one time? Your subjects are just ungrateful for forgetting about everything else you have done for them before.”

The princess slowly nodded. “I think you’re right. There are still many ponies who think otherwise and I’m not sure how to change their opinions. I just want them to see who I am now so I can put this all behind me.”

“Well you know what? Buck ‘em.”

Luna gasped. “Cherub!”

“I’m serious, Luna. Why should you care about their opinions? They don’t know you like I do. The only pony whose opinion you should care about is Celestia, seeing how she was the one most affected by what happened as well as being your sister. Well, I guess there are also Cadance and Twilight, but you get my point. And if Celestia forgives you and loves you, what more do you need? Why care about ponies who won’t give you a chance? They’re just lesser peons you can just ignore. It’s not like they can ever do anything to you.”

It took a moment for Luna to stop herself from crying. “You’re absolutely right. I was guilty for allowing such a thing to occur, but I can’t change that now. What I can do instead is good deeds now and in the future. As long as my sister is at my side, I feel whole. And if ponies still wish to not accept that I have changed, then they are no concern of mine.”

“That’s the spirit. Do you feel better now?”

“Much. I actually feel much more relieved about the whole thing than before I came here tonight. You’ve actually helped me more than anypony and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

“Really? What about Celestia?”

“I’ve tried bringing up the past with her before, but it is something she tends to avoid. It was all very painful for her too and she just wants to move on. Twilight and the others also brush aside the issue, unfortunately. You, however, are different. I’m really glad I’ve met you, Cherub.”

“Me too. I haven’t enjoyed myself like this in a long time.”

“I’m happy to hear that.” Luna stood up. “As much as I would love to stay, I’m afraid that I must be going now. It is getting late and I have a busy day tomorrow.”

“I see.” Chrysalis was surprised she felt unhappy that she was leaving. “When will you come visit again?”

“I don’t know. I may not come by for a while as I have a lot of political duties that must be dealt with.” She could see the disappointment on the red unicorn’s face. “Do not feel sad, we can still communicate. I will have a magic mailbox made just for you. Just place a letter inside and it will be magically sent to me and vice versa.”

A smile appeared on Chrysalis’s lips. “Thank you, Luna. For everything.”

“And thank you as well. It is always a pleasure speaking with you. Twilight and her friends should also be able to provide you with emotional support if you need it.” She knew this was something she would never consider doing, but Chrysalis nodded anyway. “Now I must say goodbye to the people and be on my way.” She levitated her portion of the candy and made it disappear with magic, sending it somewhere else. “Just remember what we’ve talked about and I guarantee things will get better for you.”

“I will. Happy Nightmare Night, Luna.”

“Happy Nightmare Night, Cherub.” Luna then turned and left the changeling behind.

Chrysalis watched the princess walk towards town until she was out of sight. She gathered her candy and began her long walk home. Her mind was all over the place. The one thing she was sure about was that she was glad to be friends with Luna. She wasn’t sure what, but there was just something appealing to her about the alicorn. While this could be a tactical advantage in the future, she was just glad to find some comfort with her. Being isolated from her kind for such a long time and pretending to be somepony else was certainly very stressful on her. She constantly had days where she would develop doubts about her plan, worrying that it wouldn’t be good enough for them to accept her once again or that something would end up ruining it. She dealt with constant stress on a daily basis and could not open up to anypony about her real problems because of who she was, which often made her resort to turning toward the bottle. Chrysalis supposed that she could somehow try to make up similar problems to talk about with Luna.

Luna also seemed to know what she was talking about since she was still co-ruler of Equestria and not still on the moon, but being nice wasn’t how Chrysalis became queen in the first place. But she wasn’t queen anymore, just a fugitive in hiding after her catastrophic failure. Despite her trying to hunt her down and being a pony, she was actually happy to be around the Princess of the Night. She felt that Luna would help her give insight on what she should do when she returned to the changeling kingdom. Maybe things would go better if she didn’t control everything with an iron hoof. She was even wondering if the invasion during the royal wedding was a big mistake from the start like Nymph had tried to warn her.

Chrysalis wasn’t sure of what she was going to do with her sister. She was curious of why she was so desperate to locate her, especially after exiling her. She didn’t really think Nymph as the type who would give her up to Celestia, but after what Luna had told her, she just wasn’t sure anymore. She wondered if Nymph would have done the same thing had they made amends upon her return. Nymph had tried before but after all that had happened between them, Chrysalis would have none of it. Nymph might no longer be as easily forgiving like her employee, Pinkie.

She then remembered Pinkie and grinned evilly. The future was going to have to wait since for the moment, she was only going to focus on the present.


Pinkie Pie was exhausted from her many activities. She played many games, ate tons of candy, and even screamed a lot from being scared. She was happy that she was able to reach her candy quota and had a feeling that Cherub had a lot of fun with Luna. Right as she reached the door of Sugarcube Corner, something caught her eye. There was a piece of candy on the ground, which she picked up. “Ooo, free candy!” She then noticed there was a second piece of candy and gasped. “Wow, another one! How lucky is that?” She looked at the ground ahead of her and discovered there was a trail of candy. Pinkie got excited and followed it, taking every piece she saw.

She had followed the trail for several minutes and it had led her into the Everfree Forest. She wondered how much more there was, but then she got her answer. In a clearing, there was a bucket of candy sitting there, unguarded. “Oh my gosh! This is the best Nightmare Night ever!” She ran over and claimed her prize, hugging it lovingly.

Her moment of joy was cut short when she noticed something moving through the trees and couldn’t help but feel afraid. “H-hello? Is somepony there?” She slowly walked towards the entrance of the forest, but was suddenly surrounded by green fire. Pinkie looked around, panicking. “W-what’s going on!?”

A shadow fell over her and she could feel her blood turn to ice. She slowly turned around, scared of what was there. When she looked, her worst fears came true. Standing there was a menacing and familiar figure. “C-Cherub?” She hoped that it was only a prank, but she noticed something. This Chrysalis had glowing green eyes and actually had holes in her legs. She then realized that this was the real one standing before her. Pinkie’s body flooded with terror as she looked into the monster’s eyes.

“PINKIE PIE,” her voice boomed, “FOR YOUR GREAT INSULT AGAINST THE CHANGELINGS, I WILL COMPLETELY DRAIN YOU OF YOUR LOVE AND DEVOUR YOUR SOUL.”

The pink pony dropped her candy, screamed at the top of her lungs, and ran faster than she had ever had in her life. She bolted out of the forest and ran towards the safest place she knew, crying in fright and praying that the monster wouldn’t catch her.

Chrysalis was on the ground, trying to catch her breath as she laughed incredibly hard. She decided that Luna wasn’t completely right about everything. Being mean got things done and was a lot more fun. She gathered all the candy that Pinkie had dropped and made her way home with a skip in her step, happy that she had easily outperformed Luna on her own holiday. She took one of the lollipops and put it in her mouth.

Revenge had never tasted so sweet.


“And then she said she was going to devour my soul! It was the scariest thing ever!”

Fluttershy trembled while hiding her eyes with her hooves. “T-t-that’s really s-scary, Pinkie. Y-you sure she didn’t f-follow you here?”

Pinkie gulped and got closer to her friend. “I don’t know, but I’m too scared to look.”

Both of them were huddled together under Fluttershy’s bed. This was the closest building Pinkie could run to and she hoped that she had ditched the changeling back in the woods. “What should we do?” asked Fluttershy. “Should we get Twilight or Princess Celestia?”

“You’re right! We have to tell them immediately!” Pinkie sprang from under the bed, but then immediately went back under. “W-well, I’m sure it can wait until tomorrow, when it’s not so dark.”

Both of them laid silently under the bed. The room was dark like the rest of the house with the exception of moonlight coming through the crack of the closed window curtain and they hoped that Chrysalis would think no pony was home. Even the animals knew not to make a sound as they were told of what was lurking in the forest. “Pinkie?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m really scared. What if she comes here? Is she going to eat my soul, too?”

Pinkie could see in the faint moonlight that Fluttershy was absolutely terrified to the point of tears. She reached her hoof over her friend and brought her closer to her. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect you from Queenie Meanie. She will never lay a hoof on you as long as I’m around.”

“Promise?”

The earth pony nuzzled against her friend. “Promise.”

Fluttershy smiled and gave Pinkie a peck on the cheek. “Thank you, Pinkie. I’m really happy that you’re here.”

Pinkie laid against her while stroking her mane. “I am too.”

While she ran her hoof through her friend’s hair, Pinkie had a weird feeling within her. For some reason, she felt very happy being with Fluttershy. While she was always happy and was happier when she was with her friends, she somehow felt really happy being with Fluttershy. She took another look at the peagsus, who was now sleeping soundly while breathing softly. Pinkie could feel her heart go light as she looked into Fluttershy's peaceful expression. She even felt warm when she got next to her, feeling her soft coat and taking in the light scent of her mane. Right now, she wanted nothing more than to be with her friend and protect her. She had done so many fun things that night, but somehow, this was her favorite moment.