The After Party

by Blackdrag-rose

X: Nightmare Night

Chrysalis walked around Ponyville and came to a stop in front of the fountain, looking around for any sign of the stallion she was trying to capture. Now that Nightmare Night was upon them she and her fully healed soldiers could blend in without raising suspicion. Except for the fact that Pinkie and Wisdom seemed to keep their eyes on her whenever they were around her, which almost seemed to be all the time.

"Come on guys," Peachy, dressed up like Miku the Vocaloid, not that she told anypony who she was, with her fox on her head, said, "Nightmare Night is upon us."

Peachy and the rest of the gang, who could make it to the meeting at the library, waited patiently for Twilight, Spike, and Rocket to emerge. Tick was dressed up in the strangest suit in the world and had a huge hat with a 10/6 sign and some feathers on top of his head. He was supposed to be the Mad Hatter and he was great thanks to Rarity's work. Wisdom was dressed up in a green full body suit, though he said he was supposed to be a ninja of some kind. Everypony else, meaning Twilight and her friends, were dressed up as they were last time and they knew why Twilight was because she had told them before they had arrived.

"Where's Rocket?" Peachy asked, wondering why he hadn't stepped out the door yet.

"He's putting the finishing touches on his costume," Twilight said, smiling as the group silently waited for a minute. "Okay, seriously, it doesn't take that long to finish putting on a costume."

There was the sound of glass shattering, followed by a wolf like howl, which caused them to enter the library and find...no Rocket Sky. There was a broken window on the second story in Twilight's room, but other than that the place looked the exact same as it had before.

"Great, we have a werepony on the loose," Rainbow said, turning to Twilight and flying up close to her, "What did you do to him?"

"Me?" Twilight asked, taking a step backwards, "I didn't do anything to Rocket. I suggest that we begin searching immediately before something happens to somepony."

There was a scream and Peachy said, "Well, it looks like something might have already happened. Let's get moving."

Rocket grinned as he hid in an alleyway, surprised that his trick had worked so well. Getting up close to a pony in his current state wasn't easy, but he did and ended up scaring the life out of what looked like Bonbon. Still he should have felt something for scaring the poor mare besides the joy he felt. He peeked his head around the corner and scouted out who was roaming the streets until he noticed the Crusaders down the street. They were the perfect opportunity that he couldn't pass up.

"Look Twilight," Rarity said, moving a trash can to the up right position while the rest of the group moved on, "I know we agreed to help create the illusion, but this almost feels like we've gone too far. Can't you just cancel the spell and return him to normal?"

"I will when we find him," Twilight replied, though she pretended not to know anything, "besides, Luna should be here any minute to join the fun."

As Twilight flew after her friends she failed to hear Rarity say, "Sometimes I wonder what's gotten into you Twilight."

Princess Luna sat on her chariot as it approached Ponyville and her eyes scanned the streets. She wanted to know where the majority of the fun was supposed to be so she could easily get things in the spring she wanted them to be in. Plus she had to make sure that Rocket Sky was alright and wasn't suffering from his experience with the Ursa Major, but considering she had yet to answer to her sister Luna suspected that Rocket didn't remember a thing.

She heard a scream and watched the mare named Bonbon run down a street. but from what she couldn't tell. So, deciding not to waste anymore time, Luna unfurled her wings and headed down into the town, landing in front of Twilight and her group. Her appearance was met with pleasant comments, but she kept her eye out for whatever scared the innocent mare.

"Oh Princess Luna," Rainbow said, "we've got a slight problem on our hooves. It seems that Rocket Sky might actually be a werepony and is out in the town somewhere scaring ponies silly."

"A werepony you say?" Luna asked, pondering the events as they unfolded, "There should be none of those left in existence. Let us see if we can find Rocket Sky and determine the truth of this little mystery."

Chrysalis, now surrounded by fourteen Changeling soldiers, grinned and proclaimed, "Kneel before your new Queen you pathetic worms. I am the true Changeling Queen Chrysalis, Queen of the Swarm. Prepare to be conquered tonight on the night you lower your guards the most. Prepare to become food for my soldiers."

Everypony around them stared at her and started laughing as they went about their night, ignoring the Changeling Queen and her soldiers.

"Bu...but...but...," Chrysalis said, unbelieving that she was being foiled yet again, "come on here. I am the TRUE Changeling Queen. How are you not running around and screaming in terror?"

"Told you this wouldn't work," one of them, number 067, said as she separated herself from the group, "now I am going to hang with Peachy Keen and her friends for the night. See you around 'Chrysalis'."

Chrysalis hung her head in defeat and walked to the nearest bar, her soldiers unsure if they should follow her or leave her alone.

"My Queen?" one of them, the leader from the previous ambush, asked, "Are you alight?"

"I'm fine," she said, waving a hoof in a dismissing manner, "Go have fun and what not. Try to gather some useful data and such while I drink myself away. I will call you if I need you."

The Changeling nodded and then the group left, following whichever pony they could find after leaving the fountain area. Chrysalis watched them and laid her head on the table of what seemed like a familiar restaurant.

"And what would you like this fine evening?" the waiter, the same one that served Wisdom and Pinkie, asked.

"Got anything that makes you drunk by chance?" Chrysalis asked.

"I do believe we have some whiskey that was just delivered recently," the waiter answered, "Would you like some?"

"I think I'll take a whole bottle just to be sure," Chrysalis said, "and don't bother with a glass please."

"Right away Madam," the waiter said, vanishing into the store as she returned to watching the streets.

Apple Bloom and her friends ran down the street screaming, passing by Twilight and her now larger group. Luna caught something about a werepony in an alleyway and marched up the street, looking for the pony responsible for the tricks. As she looked she couldn't help but notice that a earth pony mare, dressed up like a Changeling of all things, had joined the group and was chatting with Peachy Keen. Luna was about to comment when something jumped her and she threw it off, tossing it into the open area.

"You're ruining my fun you know," the pony said, looking up to see Luna staring at him, "but if it's the Lunar Princess then I guess I'm cool with it."

"What? No fighting or begging?" Luna asked, shocked that the pony was even bothering to talk to her, "Well that's boring to say the least. And I thought wereponies weren't supposed to actually talk like a normal pony would."

"Then that means the illusion is strong," the stallion said, smiling a bit at her shocked face, "What? Did you honestly think that I was a real werepony running around scaring everypony I could find? Nah, I'm just a unicorn who had some help on his costume for Nightmare Night."

Sure enough the illusion faded until a normal looking Rocket Sky was standing there. He was wearing some sort of garments that allowed him to change his appearance at will, which had no doubt come from Twilight.

"Twilight, did you know about this?" Luna asked, turning to see the alicorn mare laughing.

"Of course I knew about it," Twilight answered, "Rarity was designing costumes for him and his friends when he came up with this little trick of his. Rarity designed the garments you see around his legs and I enchanted them. When I said he was putting the finishing touches on his costume I meant that he was getting ready to being his charade. Nicely done by the way."

"Thanks Twilight," Rocket said, "I couldn't have done it without your help and Rarity's lovely garments."

"Then you'll be taking them with you when we capture you," a voice behind him said, causing him to turn around and come face to face with a tall skinny dragon.

The dragon was black scaled and stared down at him, while two more appeared behind him. The other two were blue scaled and violet scaled. All Rocket knew was that he was in trouble.