Transposed, A Canterlot Wedding
Princess Celestia stood at the head of Canterlot Castle’s Great Hall, the broad balcony behind her letting in her cherished Sun. It was a joyous day; two of the ponies she knew best, her adopted niece Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, and the trusted captain of her guard Shining Armor, were about to tie the knot of marriage.
But she was not as happy as she should have been; as she would have liked to have been. Her personal protégé, Twilight Sparkle, sister of the groom, was not there. The last time she had seen her student, Celestia had scolded her for accusing the bride of being evil, of all things. Now she was having doubts. It had boiled her blood as she hardly ever felt when Twilight, whom she had put so much trust in, had lashed out at her niece. But should she have left Twilight alone in such obvious emotional distress? Nopony had seen her since; if she had run away, or done something drastic…
But she could worry later. The wedding was happening now, and she was officiating. Celestia narrowed her focus firmly around the couple standing before her. “Princess Cadance and Shining Armor, it is my great pleasure to pronounce you–”
“Stop!”
The crowd gasped as one and all eyes turned to the double doors at the far end of the hall. There, as determined as ever, stood a purple unicorn. Twilight Sparkle. Celestia did nothing. Inside, relief at seeing Twilight okay was warring with renewed disgust that she would interrupt her own brother’s wedding ceremony. But most of all, she was puzzled. She couldn’t understand what her student thought she was accomplishing.
In the meantime, her niece took the spotlight, addressing those around her. “Ugh! Why does she have to be so possessive of her brother?” Was that anger in her tone? Cadance must be truly at the edge of her rope. And was it possessiveness alone, Celestia wondered, that spurred Twilight on? Something didn’t feel right.
Cadance continued, sobbing. “Why does she have to ruin my special day?” Now Celestia was sure something else was going on. That shift had been too sudden, almost as if it was faked…
“Because it's not your special day! It's mine!”
The crowd’s attention again focused on the doorway. Standing next to Twilight was… a second pink princess. A second Cadance. As the crowd fell to silence, so did Celestia’s mind. It had been a long time since she’d felt this. Surprise, that’s what it was. She felt surprised.
Her niece, the one standing at the altar at least, helpfully expressed aloud what everypony else was thinking. “What? How did you- This makes no sense!”
Twilight stepped forward, a bit of a grin peeking through her hardened expression. “But it does…”
⁂
When you all left earlier, I was upset, confused.
Twilight was moping on the steps near where the bride and groom were to stand. “I could have gained a sister, but instead, I’ve just lost a brother…” She lay there for a long time, with the occasional sniff and the more than occasional tear.
But I still couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. The Princess Cadance I knew wouldn’t have acted the way she did, regardless of excuses.
The unicorn pushed her front up, setting her face. “Maybe I can make it up to them. She isn’t the Cadance I once knew. She may not be evil, but she certainly isn’t nice. Something is wrong, and if I can figure out what it is, what made her change, maybe I can help. Maybe I can bring the nice Cadance back.”
I rushed straight to the Canterlot Archives. I would learn everything I could about Mi Amore Cadenza; her schools, her residence, her social life, her interests. Thankfully her status as royalty means a lot of that is in the public record.
Twilight sat amongst a vortex of scrolls and old newspapers, reading two and three at a time before quickly turning to the next set. Her eyes were still red, and dried tears matted her cheeks, but her frown was one of concentration.
She paused in her work, blinked, and levitated the last scroll back over. She gasped and dropped the whole set, burying herself in paper. Restarting her magic, she moved the pile off of her, then frantically searched through to recover the document she’d come across.
And do you know what I found, hidden away in the records? A notice of departure for Princess Mi Amore Cadenza to a boarding school in Prance. A notice that predated the first time she was ever my foalsitter.
⁂
Celestia watched as the Cadance on the altar glared across the room at Twilight and her guest. She remembered thinking of sending Cadance to the École Aurore once. Her niece was just a filly at the time, and she had a bit of an attitude problem back then. Rather like how she’d been behaving the last few days, in fact.
The ruler turned to look at one of the stained-glass windows, tracing its pattern absently. It couldn’t be. Cadance hadn’t gone to that school; she’d promised to fix her behavior instead, and she did. She’d grown up wonderfully. And now Cadance was getting married to a handsome stallion whom she’d first met at the school right there in Canterlot. That document was just a mistake.
Celestia saw the pink mare across the hall through the corner of her eye. But that looked like Cadance, too. The royal’s lower lip found its way between her teeth, where substantial pressure was applied.
⁂
No other documents under the name of Mi Amore Cadenza mentioned this school.
Twilight scrunched her nose at the stack of papers she’d searched through. Then her ears picked up and a grin spread across her muzzle. She ran off to another section of the archive, where she took down a collection of tomes to sort through. A small stack began to form beside the unicorn, and her grin broadened.
But plenty of Prench literature has made its way to the Canterlot archives, and cross-referencing École Aurore…
⁂
Twilight’s horn lit, and a novel appeared in the air before her with a pop. She flipped the book open and read aloud, “A number of notable people attended the Academy during my tenure, including the son of Duke Nickerbutter, an Equestrian princess by the name of Mi Amore Cadenza, and…”
She cut off, placed the book to the side, and summoned another one, already open. “One such customer was a pony from the academy who called herself a princess; Cadenza, I believe her name was…”
Pop! A third book materialized as the second one was placed on top of the first. “As you can imagine, a prestigious academy like Aurore has no shortage of upper-class snobs; but perhaps the worst among them lived not only in my dormitory, but right across the hall; I cannot say I was sad to give my goodbyes to ‘Princess Mi Amore Cadenza’ (Elysium forbid you attempt to give her any sort of nickname) after three years as her neighbor.”
She ported in several more books, setting them in a neat pile beside her. Celestia imagined the decision to refrain from reading the rest of them pained her student, but it didn’t show.
Twilight stood straight and bold, turning her gaze back to the crowd. “Princess Mi Amore Cadenza has been in Prance for the last thirteen years!”
The entire audience gasped. Celestia waited for her niece’s reaction, but the one standing on the altar didn’t appear to respond at all; she just kept glaring daggers at her doppelganger. For her part, the double appeared to shrink back under the vicious gaze, half-hiding behind Twilight, the confident air she had entered with all but absent.
Silence reigned for several moments. A motion stirred at the side of the altar as one of the bridesmaids, Applejack, stepped forward, drawing the attention of the crowd. “I’m a might bit confused here. None of that explains how there are two of ‘em.”
As one, everypony looked back to Twilight. Knowing her well, Celestia managed to catch the brief crack in her student’s confidence, revealing a familiar nervousness beneath. To her credit, the unicorn fought it down before anyone else noticed.
Twilight raised a hoof to her mouth to clear her throat, awkwardly. “That’s a little complicated…”
⁂
What I had uncovered brought up a lot of questions. I decided the first one I would pursue would be how the Princess Cadenza in Prance could have avoided the media and paparazzi for so long.
Twilight waved down the archivist, catching up to the graying mare near a towering row of filing cabinets. There was a brief exchange, ending when the older unicorn slowly shook her head and turned away.
Turns out she didn’t avoid the papers; she didn’t have to. It seems that over the last decade, a substantial portion of Prench-language dailies, weeklies, and monthlies had mysteriously gotten lost on their way to the archives. Somepony was filtering information.
Twilight sat at a café, poking at a sandwich, when a rustle of wind in a nearby tree caused her to look up. Her eyes caught on the great pink dome encompassing the city; her brother’s massive shield spell. He had said there had been an anonymous threat made against the city. The week of Princess Cadenza’s wedding. The Princess Cadenza for whom records had been tampered with. The chance of this all being a coincidence was minimal. She stood up, leaving her sandwich uneaten, and cantered to the edge of the city.
I decided to take a chance. I convinced a guard to let me through the southern border, near the abandoned mines. If there was a force of any size hidden near the city, I imagined that’s where they would be. And if this entity had helped the Cadance of Canterlot cover her tracks, perhaps she would be there, as well.
“Hello? Anypony here?” Her calls echoed deeper into the cave, fading into the shadows cast by her horn’s light. She paused again, almost certain this time that she’d seen something down one of the tunnels; but only rocky protrusions met her gaze. She sat down to think, though her ears remained on alert. It had been silly of her to assume that just wandering around would lead her to something the guards had missed, but there was one other thing she could try.
Twilight stood back up, but stayed where she was. She whispered into the darkness. “Sunshine, sunshine-” She paused, then started again, louder. “Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake.” Raising an ear, she waited for the echoes to die down. Then she did it again. “Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake.”
Silence.
“Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake!”
Darkness.
“Sunshine, Sunshine, Ladybugs Awake!”
A movement in the shadows ahead of her. Twilight began doing the little dance that went with the nursery rhyme, trotting in place, “Sunshine, sunshine,” then crouching down and putting her forehooves over her eyes, “ladybugs awake!” When she removed them at the final word, there was a creature standing there, a few dozen hooves away.
She did it again. “Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake!”
The creature slowly moved closer.
“Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake!”
It looked vaguely like a pony, but it was too far out of the light to see clearly.
“Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake!”
A few more of them where coming out of other side-tunnels, approaching cautiously.
“Sunshine-” Twilight’s voice cracked, but she continued against her nerves, “sunshine, ladybugs awake!”
The first creature came within her circle of light, revealing a twisted body of chitin and holes. It cocked its head to the side, unsure what to make of Twilight’s display.
She tried once more, “Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs… awake?” then turned, prepared to make a run for it. She shouldn’t have gone down there alone, she should have told the guards her suspicions, she should-
“Clap your hooves and do a little shake!”
Twilight froze. It was faint, but she had heard it. The second half of the rhyme, carried by a voice that she half-recognized. She looked back down the tunnel to see that the creatures had turned their heads; they’d heard it, too. Twilight called out a final time.
“Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake!”
Upon uncovering her eyes, she saw a larger shape coming out of the tunnel. It lit its own horn with a blue-green glow, revealing a form similar to the others, but taller and distinctly more regal. A deep magenta shell covered its back, with a vibrant pink mane cascading down its charcoal shoulders.
The thing sat down a little ways away and spoke in a voice similar to Cadenza’s, but with an added buzzing undertone. “Clap your hooves,” it lifted one holed-riddled foreleg, then the other, then the first again, thrusting them lightly forward to the syllables, “and do a little shake.” the creature stood up, turned around, and shook its butt at Twilight, causing its long pink tail to sway.
And I was right.
“…Cadance?”
The pony-like creature didn’t answer; instead remaining with her back toward Twilight, head hung low.
Twilight stepped closer. “Princess Cadance? Is that you?”
As Twilight approached, the creature retreated, stumbling a few steps to the side. “…no…” Twilight couldn’t see its face, but the quaver in its voice was enough. It was crying.
On instinct, Twilight closed the distance between them and wrapped the great big bug monster in her hooves, hugging its- her, shoulders.
The creature squirmed a little, but didn’t reject the contact. “What- What are you doing? I’m not- I told you I’m not-”
“Are you the pony who took me to the park every week for a picnic?”
“I’m not- not a pony-”
“Are you the being who took me to the park?”
“…Yes. But-”
Twilight pulled back slightly and circled around to look her in the eye. “But what?”
The creature turned away again, but also sat down, one of her legs quietly reciprocating the hug. “But I’m not Cadance. Don’t you see? It was all fake. I’m a changeling; we pretend to be somepony we’re not and… steal love…” With that, she started to sob in earnest.
Twilight guided not-Cadance’s head to rest on her shoulder, cradling the larger creature as best she could. Nobody spoke for a while. Their audience, the other changelings, were keeping a respectful distance a ways down the tunnel.
Finally, Twilight began to talk. “Did you pretend to be the best foalsitter ever?”
Not-Cadance stopped sniffing for a moment. “…What?”
“When you bought me ice cream, or helped me study, or pushed me on the swings. Were you only pretending to do those things?”
There was a pause before she answered. “I was pretending to be Cadance.”
“But were you pretending to be a good foalsitter? A good friend? Was that really all an act?”
“I…” Not-Cadance trailed off, growing still in thought.
“Because I’ve met the ‘real’ Cadance, and she’s nothing like I remember you. She isn’t nice, or patient, or caring. If you were trying to be her, you did a pretty terrible job.”
Not-Cadance picked her head up off Twilight’s shoulder. Their eyes met, and Twilight observed the peculiar double-irises, a light pink surrounding a darker purple. They looked unfocused, unsure. A tear rolled slowly down the black muzzle below.
Twilight spoke again, putting conviction behind her voice. “You are the only Cadance I ever knew. I love you for what you did, not for who you said you were.”
The creature pondered on that. Her fanged muzzle slowly turned up in a smile. She leaned forward to hug Twilight with both forelegs, beginning to cry even harder than before. Twilight hugged her back, content to let her finish.
⁂
“I found Cadance in the mines. Not the Cadance born with that name, but the Cadance that I knew. The Cadance who had played with me, and helped me with my homework. The Cadance who hung out with my brother and giggled at his jokes. The Cadance who has been a source of light and joy for this city and its ponies for the last decade. The Cadance who deserves this wedding.”
Celestia still wasn’t sure what to think, so she suspended judgement and listened with the rest of the crowd. Twilight half-turned to look at the Cadance slouched behind her, motioning the sort-of-princess to stand next to her, reassuring her with a smile. Twilight turned back to her audience as that Cadance took a very visible deep breath and complied.
“Princess Mi Amore Cadenza is standing at the altar. But the pony who everyone here knows, the pony with the reputation for kindness and love, and the pony who romanced my brother, is here by my side. She is a changeling, and she is my friend.”
That word caught Celestia’s attention. She hadn’t seen a changeling in a long time, but it would certainly explain some things. Deception was their forte, anger and paranoia their product. “Friend” was not a word she would normally associate with the creatures. But she held back from leaping to any conclusions, the guilt at her prior distrust of Twilight still fresh in her mind. She would not act without all of the facts, this time.
Over at the entryway, Twilight looked expectantly at the pony next to her. The Cadance duplicate closed her eyes, took another deep breath, and began to glow with a yellow-green fire. The visage of a pony burned away, leaving a changeling in its place, as promised. Celestia silently noted that the creature had not substantially changed in size; meaning she was larger than the typical changeling, but smaller than their queen. A young royal, perhaps? Celestia found her lips turning up at the idea of one princess impersonating another princess and quickly straightened her expression.
The crowd gasped at the reveal, and hushed words were exchanged around the room. The real Princess Cadenza took an unconscious step back, but continued to scowl at her former clone, more aggression in her face than fear. The changeling opened its eyes, looking slowly around the room as ponies whispered and pointed. Its gaze settled on the altar, and an expectant silence fell. It was looking at the groom. Everypony held their breath.
And continued to hold their breath. Some of the nobles in the crowd were turning quite blue in the face when the changeling finally took a hesitant step forward. “Shining?”
The changeling’s prompt caused no visible effect. Shining Armor stood quietly, staring straight ahead. Come to think of it, Celestia hadn’t seen him move at all since Twilight had burst in. Celestia took a step toward him herself, but paused when she saw the pink-themed changeling cross the room, quickly breaking into a canter and racing up the steps, with Twilight following a ways behind. Some of the crowd stepped back as the monster rushed past, but Cadenza stood her ground, crouching into a combat stance as her horn lit. Her expression turned from anger to confusion when it became clear the changeling wasn’t going for her.
The changeling slid to a stop in front of Shining Armor. “Shining?” Face to face with a fanged monster, the white stallion remained motionless. The changeling reached out a hoof to poke him in the chest, then grabbed his shoulders and shook. “Shiny! Wake up!”
It stood back, its gaze snapping from the unresponsive groom to the would-be bride. Purple-ringed pupils narrowed to vertical slits. “What have you done to him!?”
Cadenza took a step back, then two steps forward, covering her fear with a scowl. “I haven’t done anything.”
The changeling stepped forward itself and crossed horns with Cadenza. A guttural hiss sounded from the monster’s throat, the threat clear. Twilight ran up to her brother; he remained still and vacant as she hugged him. Celestia decided observation time was over.
“Cadenza!” Her stern shout caught the attention of both the princess and the changeling. They looked at her out of the side of their eyes, reluctant to withdraw their horns. “I’m still not clear on what’s happening here, but I will be very displeased if it comes to blows.” Celestia let a mote of fire briefly flicker in her eyes, and allowed herself an internal smirk as the two slowly separated.
She turned to her niece, addressing her in a practiced tone of deadly calm. “Mi Amore Cadenza. Do you know what is wrong with the captain of my guard?”
The smaller alicorn visibly recoiled, but spoke firmly. “I have done nothing to him.”
Celestia stepped closer, looming over the pink pony. “I didn’t ask what you did, I asked what you know.”
“I don’t know anything.” Cadenza held her ground, meeting Celestia’s gaze for several silent seconds.
“Apparently.” Celestia said, not breaking eye contact. “So what did you do?”
Cadenza said nothing, choosing only to continue to glare.
Twilight picked that moment to interrupt. “I think it might be an overapplied Fiducia Compelus, or something very similar.” Celestia spared a glance to her student, who was peering closely into her brother’s eyes, her horn lit in examination. She didn’t seem to have noticed that she had spoken out loud.
Celestia noted how this new information redoubled the changeling’s death-glare at Cadenza, but was more focused on the princess’s reaction; a flinch, a brief grimace crossed her face at the words before vanishing, but it was enough.
“Is Twilight correct?” Celestia asked. A light tap on Cadenza’s façade.
The young alicorn before her answered quickly. “No! Well, I might have used that once or twice, but that can’t be what’s wrong with him!” Celestia felt grim satisfaction as the crack reappeared, then spider-webbed across the façade as Cadenza continued to speak. “It was harmless; I only did it a few times; it was just to calm him down when he got stressed! It’s not my fault he needed it every few hours to hold it together for the wedding!”
Cadenza fell silent, having noticed the shattered remains of her defense. Celestia gave a look of warning to the changeling, who gave the distinct impression that it was about to pounce and rip out Cadenza’s throat, before looking past her cowering niece to Twilight. The unicorn appeared oblivious to the shouting, instead holding her horn against her brother’s, a scowl of concentration upon her muzzle.
The wedding guests stood with mouths open and ears forward, and the only sound was the muttering dialogue of Twilight continuing to talk to herself under her breath. Celestia looked at Cadenza; she was frozen in place with panic. Celestia looked at her student, struggling to remove layers of haphazard enchantment. Celestia looked at Shining Armor, trapped in a wayward spell. Celestia looked at the changeling; the creature was trying to murder Cadenza with its eyes, but every so often it would glance over at Shining Armor, and its expression would morph to one of unmistakable care and longing. The emotions transitioned seamlessly; two sides of the same coin. Celestia made a decision.
Fixing the changeling with her gaze, Celestia spoke softly. “Go to him.” There was hesitation as the changeling processed the words. Then it was by Shining’s side, hugging him tightly around the neck. Twilight stepped back, her attempt to remove the spell a failure.
The changeling began to sob, but Celestia schooled her expression, waiting for something else. The soft crying echoed through the silent hall. Then, there was a sharp crackling noise. A brilliant blue spark flew from the end of the changeling’s curved horn and found its way to the horn of Shining Armor, tracing a loop-de-loop in the shape of a heart along the way, the symbol hanging in the air for several seconds afterward. The crowd gasped as the groom finally stirred, squeezing his eyes shut and turning his head to the side. Celestia allowed herself a genuine, if subdued, smile at the display. Her hunch had paid off.
Shining Armor groaned and opened his eyes, immediately meeting the suddenly unsure gaze of the changeling’s double-irises. “You’re looking good, Cady.”
“I’m not-”
“Shh. You’re not Cadance, you’re a shapeshifting bug monster, I know. The last few minutes – and days - are a little blurry, but I caught the gist of it.” Shining Armor brought his foreleg up to return the astonished changeling’s hug. “I heard enough to know that, regardless of what you look like, you are my Cadance.”
The changeling began to cry anew, leaning into Shining Armor as he rocked onto his hindquarters to better take her weight. He closed his eyes again and hugged her tightly to his chest.
Princess Cadenza reared back from the scene. “What- what just happened?” She sputtered.
Twilight tore her gaze away from the couple to find Celestia and second the question, in an ever-so-slightly miffed tone. “I admit to being a little confused, myself. Those enchantments weren’t budging for me.”
Celestia allowed her smile to broaden. “The changeling before us has displayed a rare talent, one which my niece” she sent a hard look in the direction of Cadenza, who recoiled visibly, “had once shown promise for: Love magic. Among other things, it can clear and focus the mind, lifting confounding enchantments with its touch.” Celestia stepped toward Shining and the changeling, and the changeling lifted her head to give Celestia a cautious, but hopeful, look. “This inclines me to trust you. However, I would like to hear the whole story before making a judgement.”
The changeling exchanged a brief glance with Shining Armor before they parted. She stood straight and tall, but her wings buzzed with what Celestia suspected to be nervousness. She began, “Fifteen years ago, the Queen of our hive, my mother, decided that she wanted a hoof in Equestrian government. To that end, she began to groom me to learn all about the young Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, and eventually… to replace her.”
She paused to glance toward the princess in question. Cadenza appeared to be stuck somewhere between confusion and anger; she opened her mouth to speak, but remained silent. The changeling continued, “Two years later, I was told it was time to put the plan into action. But when the opportunity presented itself, I… I panicked and hid. The Queen was very angry with me, but she gave me another chance. So I watched for weeks, waiting for another opening. It came in the form of a decision to send Princess Cadenza to a boarding school in Prance. With some record tampering, I could replace her in Canterlot without having to…” The changeling bit her lip with one of her impressive fangs and cut off, before pushing through to the next part of her story.
“I spent the next thirteen years living as Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. I learned what it was like to be a pony, what it was like to have friends,” She looked back at Shining Armor with a small smile, “what it was like to fall in love. But as time passed, I began to feel guilty. I was living a lie, and the pain grew worse every day. I tried to ignore it, to obey my mother’s wishes, but when Shiny proposed to me…” She paused to fight back a fresh round of tears. “When he proposed, I was overwhelmed. I just couldn’t keep doing this; I couldn’t keep deceiving him. So I sent a letter in Shining’s name to the real Princess Cadenza in Prance. I thought that, maybe, if I could give this life back to her, the guilt would go away, and everypony could be happy. I now see how ill-thought that plan was.” She once more looked to Shining, and he gave a slight nod for her to continue.
“When I returned to the hive, the Queen was absolutely furious. She wanted to take the city and… kill Cadenza. I sent an anonymous tip to the Royal Guard advising them to raise the shield, and followed my Queen into the old mines outside of Canterlot to try and talk her down. But she wouldn’t listen to me. She wouldn’t even acknowledge me. And then Twilight found me. She told me what was happening with the wedding, and I realized how stupid I was being. I realized that my love for Shining, for this city, wasn’t something I should run away from.”
Celestia immediately keyed in on one thing. “So there is an invasion force outside the city? How large?” Her horn lit up, preparing to send a spark out the window to signal the perimeter troops into high alert.
“Well…” The changeling princess paused, her forked tongue flicking out to lick a fang as she considered. “five thousand, maybe?”
Shining Armor’s eyes widened. “That’s enough to completely overrun our defenses!”
“It’s okay! They can’t get through your… your...” The changeling trailed off, her eyes directed over Celestia’s shoulder. Celestia turned to look, already suspecting what she’d find. Through the windows, the telltale pink shimmer of the barrier dome was no longer visible.
“Look, everypony! The shield protecting the city from certain doom is gone!” Came an incongruously jubilant shout from another of the bridesmaids, prompting panicked shuffling and cries of fear from the gathered wedding guests.
Celestia signaled the city defenses as the guards lining the side of the room sprang into action, corralling the crowd away from the windows and overturning benches to barricade the outer doors. Celestia herself began charging up several spells for varying contingencies.
beside her, a grunt from Shining Armor drew Celestia’s attention, his eyes were squeezed shut, a grimace of pain across his muzzle. Two small sparks fell from his horn before quickly dissipating. After a moment he opened his eyes and locked them with Celestia. “My magic reserves are exhausted; I can’t get another shield up right now, I’m sorry.”
“Do what you can, then.” As Shining cantered over to coordinate the other guards in preparation for escorting the civilians deeper into the castle, Celestia refocused on his lover. The changeling was still staring out the window, the vertical slits of her eyes nearly dilated into circles, the insectoid wings on her back twitching erratically as though she wanted to take flight but had forgotten how. Out of the corner of her eye, Celestia could see Cadenza, too, at the edge of panic, and a detached part of her mind mused on how similar they looked at that point, even without the disguise.
She hesitated on grabbing the changeling’s attention as she searched for an appropriate means of address. She finally settled on “Princess!”
Both Cadenza and the changeling blinked out of their thoughts and turned to look, with the pony quickly averting her gaze when she realized it wasn’t her being called. The changeling responded as soon as she saw Celestia looking at her. “Yes, Aunti… Princess Celestia?”
Celestia’s thoughts tripped, but she pushed aside the personal address spoken by such an alien creature as very much not the priority right then and got to the point. “Are there any specific details you can give us about this invading force or their plan of attack?”
“Um, I didn’t know what her actual plan was, but my best guess would be that they start by dive-bombing from...”
A loud crackling interrupted her, filling the room and sounding as though vicious flames were licking along a massive log. The changeling’s eyes darted towards the balcony. “That sounds like my mother’s portal spell!”
Sure enough, a ring of green fire several meters wide sprung up from the floor just in front of the balcony doors. The tongues of fire reached high into the air, meeting in the middle to form a dome large enough to fit several ponies inside. A moment later, they receded, leaving behind only a ring of charcoal around the new arrival.
The new face was, in fact, a very old one. The tattered blue mane and tail and the blue-green eyes and shell marked her as the same Changeling Queen whom Celestia had encountered centuries ago. The pitch-black chitin of her legs was punctured with holes larger and more jagged than anything her daughter had, and the wicked blade of her horn smoldered with a putrid green flame for a second before cutting out with a crackle. A dozen guards brought their spears to bear, but they kept their distance, and the minute shuffling of their stances told Celestia that they could sense the power of this ancient foe. There were a few stifled screams from the crowd, but mostly the nobles made little more than squeaks, likely from an instinctive desire to avoid drawing the attention of this creature. The imposing black figure gazed disdainfully down her nose at the gathered ponies, sweeping the room slowly and purposefully, before finally turning to meet Celestia’s eyes, narrowing her own in an almost exaggerated display of detestation. “Celestia.” She sneered.
“Chrysalis.” The Sun Princess replied in kind, fueling her returning glare with memories of old conflicts and unsettled scores, of burned villages and lost friends. But that confrontation was not to be, it seemed, for another’s movement caught both of their attentions.
The younger changeling royal stepped forward with firm resolution broadcast in every hooffall, placing herself firmly between the Queen and the ponies gathered on the dais, as well as the audience beyond. The dual-tone of her speech resounded with a fire the changeling had not previously displayed as she announced to her elder, “Not one more step, Mother. You shall not lay a single tendril of your vile magic upon any pony in this room, or in this city. I’ve tried reasoning. I’ve tried pleading. But all you understand is force, so that is what you will get. Leave Canterlot now, or I will force you out.”
There was a moment of absolute silence. Celestia felt a mentor’s pride bubble up, unbidden, at the intimidating display that would even give herself pause; another feeling to reflect on when the danger had passed. And then Queen Chrysalis laughed. She threw back her head and cackled to the ceiling, the buzz in her exclamation lending a distinctly inequine flavor to the sound. A fanged smirk settled on her muzzle as she responded, “So my daughter’s carapace has finally hardened. How amusing.” Then the smirk vanished as fast as it had formed.
Chrysalis fixed the younger changeling in her gaze. “Have I ever told you how I got my crown, child?” The queen paused as if to allow an answer, but continued before her daughter could respond. “I hatched into a time of starvation and despair for the hive. At first, I believed it to be the way of life for our kind… but as I grew, I perceived the real reason. My own mother’s policies as Queen were leading us to ruin. Her rule was strict, but her instructions were cowardly. Only a very few love collectors were allowed to be out at any time. They were to approach only lone travelers on the roads or in the wilderness. They were to avoid those who appeared wealthy, further restricting the pool of marks. And never, ever, were they to enter a pony settlement. She insisted that all this was necessary to maintain our secret ways, but what was the worth of staying hidden if our people died of famine? I’d had enough of her disastrous over-caution: I challenged her. In front of the hive, I laid out how to save our race: Send out all of our collectors, into the towns, into the cities! No more restrictions on who could be targeted, or where, or when! She dismissed it all without a thought.
“At that display of callous disregard, a drone cried out in anger. And another; and then they were all shouting, a raging crowd fueled by fear and hunger and despair. My mother called for order; but they did not listen. I raised up my hoof, and silence fell. She was their Queen no longer. She looked me in the eye, then. I could see a deep-seated anger behind those eyes, but she never expressed it. She never said another word to me at all. She only removed the crown from her head to place it at my hooves, and walked away; out of the room, and out of the hive. I never saw that old hag again.”
Queen Chrysalis had removed the crown from her own head, and was gazing at it as she turned the item over in her hooves. “It never occurred to me that such would be my own fate. And yet today, when the shield around Canterlot fell and I ordered the attack, not a single soldier moved to obey. When I demanded an explanation, I was told of stories. Stories of my daughter imploring my soldiers for peace, insisting that there had to be “some other way”. Accounts of my daughter revealing herself to a pony. Embracing them. Heading back into the city, side-by-side. Tales that she was going to make an overture to the Equestrian Diarchs. Rumors… that she knew better than I.”
She looked up from the crown, fixating on the changeling princess still blocking her path. “ ‘Rumors’ that every drone believed with such conviction as to disobey my direct command.” She took a single step forward, but something in her daughter’s expression prevented her from moving further. Instead, she placed the crown gently on the floor. “As my mother before me, our subjects have made their choice. For the glory of the hive, or to its destruction, I am no longer their Queen.”
With that, she turned around and stalked back to the char mark left by her entrance. A few of the guards moved to stop her, but Shining signaled a halt. As she stepped into the circle, she paused to look over her shoulder at Celestia. “I only hope you will not judge my daughter with the same eyes you judge me.” Green flame promptly enveloped Chrysalis, and when it dissipated, so had she.
Nopony spoke for several moments. That suited Celestia well enough as she reflected on the former queen’s final words. She looked to the blackened tile, besmirched by one of the vilest, cruelest creatures she’d ever had the displeasure of encountering. Her eyes shifted slowly to focus upon that monster’s own child and heir. What she saw was someone she had helped to teach, helped to raise. False faces or not, Celestia knew her. Trust was broken and would have to be earned back; but it wasn’t a stranger standing there, back still turned to the rest of the room. It wasn’t a foreign general or a calculating diplomat, full of political machinations. It was her niece, currently watching the crown several lengths in front of her as though it was going to get up and start running around.
The mare at the center of Celestia’s thoughts abruptly about-faced, straightening up as though she had just been called upon by a school teacher. “Princess!” She blurted, then flinched back when she heard her own tone. She took a visible deep breath before starting again. “Princess Celestia; as, uh, ruler of the Changelings, I would like, that is, I request, um, humbly… graciously? I graciously request negotiations - formal negotiations, for a peace treaty with, er, between our peoples.”
Celestia barely suppressed a very un-diplomatic guffaw at the nervous display and simply dipped her head. “I accept your request. I suggest that we reconvene in the formal dining room at six o’clock. Much has transpired, and I have a few things to take care of first. As do you, I believe.”
The newly-minted Queen stared back unblinkingly, assuming that changelings ever did blink; Celestia hadn’t generally been in a state of mind to notice in previous encounters. “I do?” She asked.
“Would you prefer your people to remain in the dark?” Celesta prompted.
The changeling continued to look befuddled. “I doubt that’s an issue; I’m sure they still have fire-globes set up - Oh! Right. Informing them of what has happened. I should do that. Yes.” The transition to embarrassed was complete with what appeared to be the chitinous equivalent of a blush, the black of her cheeks taking on a green tinge.
“Excellent, then it is decided.” Celestia then turned to confront the first of her tasks, most of whom were still bunched together near the seats. “Attention, all! The wedding has been… postponed, shall we say. I wish you all a good day.”
As expected, the various nobles and socialites grumbled a little, but departed the hall in a quick and orderly fashion, after the guards had removed the make-shift barricades. The friends and relatives of the groom looked like they weren’t ready to go, but reluctantly filtered out as well after Captain Armor and the new queen took their leave through a side door.
A turn to her other side, and Celestia saw task number two. Twilight Sparkle, grinning sheepishly in front of her friends. “I apologize, Twilight, for being so short with you. I do trust your judgement, and should have given more thought to your perspective.” Her student’s smile grew more genuine, and she returned one of her own. “If you could, however, I’d advise you to be a little more circumspect with how your voice your concerns. An emotional declaration tends to provoke an emotional response.”
Twilight slumped forward and nodded, then straightened back up and flashed a grin. “Noted. Thank you, Princess.” With that, Twilight led her friends out of the hall, the white unicorn of the group trailing behind as she loudly expressed her lamentations at the unfinished ceremony.
A deep breath, and then Celestia set off to work on her third task. Mi Amore Cadenza was standing off to the side of the altar, discussing something with a trio of unicorns. As she approached, she heard the tail-end of the conversation. “...really aren’t the Cadance we know.” The lime-green mare huffed, and then all three of them marched off.
“That is not my name!” Cadenza shouted after them, growling as they ignored her and disappeared around the doorframe. She turned around and promptly jumped back at the sight of Celestia standing behind her. “What do you want?” She spat.
Celestia resisted the urge to sigh. “I only wish to talk. We haven’t done that in quite some time, apparently.”
“Because you sent me away and forgot about me, you mean.” The words were delivered with vitriol, but watching carefully, Celestia saw a tear forming.
“I am sorry that’s what you experienced. But I promise that isn’t what I intended; we were cut off, any letters you sent were probably-”
“Oh, sure, not getting my letters explains why you didn’t recognize that there was this, this thing pretending to be me! I can’t believe you would just let me be replaced! Or maybe I can. Maybe you knew all along, and you didn’t care, because you thought it was better than me. The perfect princess for your ridiculous expectations!” There were a lot of tears, now, some of them flying off her muzzle as she threw her head to emphasize the final line.
The accusation rang in Celestia’s ears, and her breath caught as she wondered if there was a kernel of truth in those words; if she had overlooked clues to the masquerade because it was what she wanted to see. She reached out a hoof, any gesture to help calm down the younger alicorn, and herself. “Cadance…”
“That. Is. Not. My. Name!” Cadenza screamed, swatting away the hoof.
Celestia pulled back. She looked into Cadenza’s gaze, and saw her own failure; a filly who had grown up to be less than she could have been, had Celestia been a more attentive guide. But the past could not be changed, and what might have been could not be allowed to influence what is. “Very well.” Celestia closed her eyes, dreading what she was about to say. “Mi Amore Cadenza; for your failure to learn and grow into your role as Princess of Love, you are now stripped of that title, and demoted to duchess.”
“What!?”
“I advise you to think about how your actions affect others. Until such time as you do, I have other business to attend to.” Celestia walked past her for a door that led further into the castle. She did not look back at the sputtering dutchess. She could not; not with the tear in her own eye.
“...then it is decided.”
With that declaration, Princess Celestia turned away to address other ponies. Shining Armor took a few steps forward to come level beside Cadance-But-Not. “Would Her Highness like an escort?” The crisis was over, but the road ahead looked hard and bumpy; he needed to let off some stress first, and banter was his go-to steam valve.
The creature started, but visibly relaxed and smiled when her eyes met his. An outer ring of white, one of light pink, and one of deep purple, with a reflective black oval in the center. An average of the two irises would come to the shade he was used to, and the shape, although not a pony’s, was familiar; reminding him of the vertical pupils of his adoptive brother Spike.
“I don’t know about an escort, but some company would be welcome.” Her voice was as he remembered, but with an added buzzing echo that set a tingling down his spine. He wondered if the various resemblances to the “real” Cadance were coincidence or design; he’d have to ask at some point.
“Then allow me to accompany Her Highness on her outing.” He bowed deeply, and as he hoped, heard a small giggle in return - or a chirp resembling that of a cricket’s, which he interpreted as a giggle.
They had made it halfway to their chosen side door when they were intercepted by three unicorns who were lingering behind as the crowd filtered out. Recognizing them as Cadance’s friends, he felt it prudent to hang a few paces back as she stepped hesitantly toward them. Trying not to eavesdrop, he glanced around at the remaining guests. A few of his guard buddies gave him curt nods when their gazes met, and then he spotted his parents. His father just smiled and waved, but his mother was giving a “we need to talk” look. He decided whatever that was about would have to wait.
Returning his attention to his self-appointed charge, he witnessed the tail-end of an emotional four-way embrace, after which the mares waved and moved on. Shining stepped up next to the changeling again. “I see that went well.”
“Yeah…” She watched them as they left, a smile framing her fangs. She didn’t move until they were mixed in with the rest of the crowd.
They made their way out of the hall themselves, using a private corridor that the guests didn’t have access to. Shining walked slightly to the side and behind, in a customary escort position; but really he was positioned as such to covertly take stock of the changeling before him. Unlike the voluminous curls of the pony Cadance, the changeling’s mane and tail were straight, flowing rivers of translucent pink silk. The rest of her body was hairless, but did not give the impression of being bare, the glossy black… chitin, he supposed it was, acting as a cover absent any fur. Their brief contact earlier informed him that it was just as smooth as it looked, but not as hard, and substantially warmer.
His eyes wandered across her barrel, where a shell covered most of her back, light pink near her dock and fading to a deep purple as it approached her shoulders, with a thin line down the center to remind that a pair of wings lay hidden beneath. Three purple bands wound around her stomach as though holding the shell on like a saddle. Her long legs held the intriguing feature of holes, which appeared to go straight through from one side to the other. The space between each knee and hoof contained two holes, placed seemingly without reference to where the holes on the other legs went, or indeed whether the bones should have any room to squeeze by. She wasn’t having any trouble walking, so perhaps changelings just didn’t have bones.
As they passed into a second corridor and the chatter from the hall faded behind them, his gaze wandered back to her head, to find that she was watching him from the corner of her eye. She averted her own gaze when their eyes met. Shining took a deep breath, followed by several elongated strides, coming up next to her.
“So,” He started, “A shapeshifter, huh?”
She nodded, but didn’t turn. After a moment, she added, “It’s our innate magic, the same way a pegasus is attuned to the sky or an Earth pony to plants and soil.”
Shining considered that. “If you turn into a pegasus, can you copy their magic and manipulate the weather?”
“Kind of. We can mimic another race’s magic, but it will be comparatively weak. I could never mold a cloud as cleanly as a real pegasus or grow a tree as well as an Earth pony. Magic is one of the few things that can’t be perfectly copied, whether it be racial or talent-specific.”
“I guess that makes sense.” There was another period of silence as they approached the lower corridors towards the rear gardens. She hadn’t really looked at him, and her words were distant; she only did that when she thought she’d done something wrong, and from prior experience, he knew that it would keep going until it was addressed.
“Cady?” He wasn’t sure if that was what he should call her, but it didn’t seem like the right time to ask about names. “Please talk to me.”
She nearly missed a step, but kept walking, and offered in a faux-jolly tone, “Sure, what about?”
“Whatever is bothering you. Stuff’s happened, and it’s clearly eating at you. You always say that relationships thrive on communication.”
They’d just about reached the exit into the courtyard. The changeling slowed her pace, coming to a stop some distance from the gold-painted wood. Her eyes remained fixed on the door, or perhaps what lay beyond.
“I’m scared.” She whispered.
“That’s why I’m here. Your own personal knight, remember?” He gave a hesitant, lopsided grin, although she still wasn’t looking at him.
“But… Why?”
His grin fell a little. “Why... what?”
“Why are you still here?” She stomped a forehoof into the grass. “I lied to you; I lied to you for years, and you’re acting like nothing happened!”
He took a half-step forward, raising a hoof even though she wasn’t quite in reach. “Cady, I’m not-”
“Don’t you dare say you’re not upset!” She whipped around, fangs bared as she shouted, the buzzing undertone in her voice growing more prominent. “I can feel it! I can feel your anger and your fear!” The shell on her back sprang open, two large, translucent wings popping out and vibrating, adding their own layer of buzz.
Shining put his hoof back down, but forced himself not to take a step back at the display. “I won’t say I’m not angry, but please, let’s talk about this.” He raised his hoof again and brought it to his chest, moving it out to signify breathing deeply.
The changeling hesitated for a moment, and then brought her own hoof to her chest. They breathed together for the next few minutes, saying nothing. The wings on her back came down from vicious buzzing to lazy flapping, eventually stopping entirely and half-retreating back under her shell.
When he deemed she was ready, Shining moved closer, and used a forehoof to brush aside some of her mane. “Your… The former queen, she implied that you collect and eat love. Does that mean you can sense it?”
The new queen nodded slightly and let Shining’s hoof rest against her neck. “We can sense all emotions; we’re natural empaths.”
“Then you can sense that I still love you, right?” He hazarded a small smile to reassure her.
She squeezed her eyes shut and turned slightly away, but didn’t retreat from the hoof. “Yes, I can sense your love… but it’s mixed with confusion, and hesitance, and fear, and all sorts of other things. Empathy isn’t telepathy; I can’t tell where those emotions are coming from or be sure of where they’re going, and I know it’s silly, but I can’t help but think the worst…” She ended with a choked-back sob.
Shining put his other hoof on her other shoulder, causing her to look at him through glistening eyes. “Cady-” He started with authority, then paused abruptly, “Uh, what’s your real name? I never got it.”
The changeling sniffed, but managed to answer. “Cadance is fine; it’s how you’ve known me, and I don’t think anypony else wants it.”
Shining nodded and started again. “Cady: I love you, I promise. Yeah, things have gotten a little weird; but you know I’ve never been one to run away from the unusual. I’m going to be by your side through whatever comes, and if there are more surprises? Well, that’ll just make the ride more fun. It’s like I said at the altar, and a dozen times before: I love who you are on the inside, and that hasn’t changed. I can feel it, even if I’m not an empath; I can still feel you. And if you just reach out, I promise you’ll feel me. I’m not going anywhere.”
Shining continued to lock her gaze, letting himself get lost in his love for the mare before him, pushing away the castle hallway, and the sound of birds and crisp mountain air drifting through the windows, and all of the rest of the world. Her exotic eyes held a familiar soul behind them, and he willed that soul to hear his own, to bridge the narrow gap between them. He recognized the exact moment that she understood; when their souls touched. As one, they moved in, and their lips met.
It was a celebration. It was a promise. It was a kiss.