> The Black Heart
>  by Wooden Wheel
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> In the ruins of an old castle
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the ruins of an old castle, green and purple sparks accompanied by the growing and shrill sounds of battle illuminate and burn the floor and walls of what appears to be an infinite corridor.

Fast galloping through the dusty hallway were Queen Chrysalis and Princess Twilight Sparkle, destroying all types of decoration, from paintings of barely visible images belonging to faces, moments or places from the distant past, to rusted armor whose pieces scatter on the floor or melt at the contact of the arcane forces being shot from their respective horns; competing in what was became a deadly race to get their hooves on the mythical artifact hidden within that lair.

Not many days ago, news spread of the archaeological discovery of the century. In the south west of Equestria, near the shores of the San Palomino Desert, in the South Luna Ocean, a floating island had appeared out of nowhere. And buried beneath one of its mountains lay the remains of the fortress of Saint Ashtray the Grey, a mysterious master of the magical arts about whom there is little information to be found. Of his existence it is not even known what type of creature he was, but if we go by what the vast majority of posts made by ponies tend to do, there is no doubt that it was a pony. What is known about him, or at least what all the records that mention him do, is that among his vast collection of artifacts, none was more precious than a magical gem only known as ‘The Black Heart’.

Publicizing the latter might have been a mistake on the part of Freedom Press, the reporter pony that got the scoop, not least because it ended up causing a massive stampede of fame-seeking explorers and fortune-seeking treasure hunters, but because the news also reached the ears of the one and only Changeling Queen.

How dangerous this knowledge might be? Well, The Black Heart was described as an hexagonal black gem with the ability to indefinitely enhance the magical abilities of whoever possesses it, allowing an earth pony the durability of an army and enough strength to lift mountains and create earthquakes with their bare hooves, a pegasus an unprecedented flight speed and the ability to create and destroy huge storms with the flap of its wings, and if of a unicorn were speaking, magical powers capable of rivaling or even surpass those of the alicorns.

And if this could be applied to a changeling, and especially to the Changeling Queen herself, this could represent not only a considerable increase in her magical potential; but also could mean that her hypnotic powers should allow her to take control of hundreds, thousands of creatures simultaneously, creating the most faithful army of all time; and consume the emotions of a town or even a city without difficulty; or in other words, make Chrysalis the most powerful creature in the entire world.

It is truly strange that creatures of a distant past could create artifacts of unimaginable magical power, while unicorns of the present, with greater access to well-documented arcane knowledge, have trouble with spells more complex than telekinesis or teleportation; one could muse, but that is neither from here or there.

Back in the present, running neck to neck, Chrysalis swings her body in Twilight’s direction, trying to crush her against the wall. Sweating with fear like she hadn’t done since the time Rainbow Dash made her life’s mission to teach her how to properly use her new wings to fly, the Alicorn Princess realizes her enemy’s intentions in time. Thinking as fast as possible, Twilight concentrates some of the last remnants of magical energy she has left, managing to avoid the tackle using a quick teleportation spell, disappearing from the Queen’s path at the last second.

Chrysalis scream in rage and pain as the self inflicted collision just cost one of her insect wings to bend and broke.

Panting, Twilight reappears back in her place, still running, now taking the lead, but any sign of premature celebration was cut short when a bolt of magical green energy manages to hit her left wing, burning off some of it’s feathers.

Considering that taking the lead may not have been a good idea, Twilight worryingly risk a look back, and while she could see that the flames on her pursuer’s horn sparked and flickered, signaling a similar magical exhaustion on her part, and that she should not fear any more magical bolts, it meant little comfort when said pursuer was a rapidly approaching black armored juggernaut filled with murderous intent, called Chrysalis.

Memories of a long-forgotten nightmare resurfaced in those moments. The one in which her older brother, Shining Armor, convinces her parents to take her to the tryouts for the Canterlot High School Hoofball Team instead of enrolling her in Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns.

In a similar manner to how that nightmare always ended, the Changeling Queen successfully catch up to her, ramming her against the stone wall.

Passing through the wall, they both tumble and roll through the hard, cold and dusty floor of the dark room they were now in. Twilight growls, rubbing her head with one hoof, while with the other looks for possible damage to her barrel, finding some bruises, but nothing seemed to be broken (thanks Celestia for that earth pony sturdiness gained with the ascension to alicornhood), and except for her burned wing, the rest of her body was intact. Chrysalis simply coughs up a cloud of dust, shaking her head to clear the dizziness from the impact and some old cobwebs that stick to her face.

Torch holders suddenly came to life, illuminating the place, revealing it to be a secret chamber, or rather, an entombed throne room.

Before any of them could figure out what was happening, a peculiar glow in the distance hits them in the eyes, catching their attention. Like moths to a bright flame, both place their gaze on the origin of this light. At the end of the room, there is a throne, on the throne lie the remains of who one can guess was Saint Ashtray the Gray, and on the head of that puppet of bones that are held in place by ancient silk threads, embedded in a white turban was The Black Heart, a jewel barely bigger than an average pony hoof, radiating power and extremely tempting.

Wasting only the time to exchange glances, both mares desperately rush out to claim possession of the artifact.

Near the last stretch the sound of a stone tile slowly descending was heard, a sudden rumbling was felt, a hidden trap had been activated. The walls crumble behind them as bits of rock and rubble begin to rain from the top, starting with the smallest of pebbles before larger chunks of the ceiling began to fell around. The columns that support the chamber fall, cracks begin to appear all over its surface, expanding across the ground.

Finally, just a couple of steps before eather of them can put their hoofs on the artifact and claim it as her’s own, the floor gives way. With a last-ditch jump and the fractured buzz of translucent wings and the uneven flapping of scorched feathered ones, pony, changeling and artifact are swallowed by the darkness below, with the rest of the collapsing chamber.





Blinking slowly, Twilight wakes up in pain and surrounded by darkness. After a few seconds of confusion, wondering why her bed was suddenly so cold and hard, the memories of what happened come back, the lair, Chrysalis, the race, the tomb room, ‘The Black Heart’ and the fall. She immediately stand up, with the adrenaline pumped through her body helping her with the symptoms of nausea and dizziness and easing the pains all over her.

Using her last remnants of reserve magic, Twilight uses her horn to illuminate the surroundings with a magenta light. It was some sort of underground plain, or it would be a plain if it were not for the rocks and debris from the collapsed room above scattered all over the place.

Before she could carefully analyze her situation any further, specifically where exactly was she, Chrysalis burst out of the darkness in front of her; quick reflexes saved her snout from being bitten off by scary sharp teeth.

They fight, but with a greater difficulty than what happened at the top. The Princess’s movements were clumsy and slow, surely hampered by the fatigue and damage already suffered, but so were those of the Queen, who does not seem to be in better condition, with cracks and cuts across her chitin, with dried green blood to accompany the wounds.

The thought of using an offensive spell crossed Twilight’s mind, but she quickly dismisses the idea as it was already an exhausting task to keep the light on on her horn, and knowing that being without her horn’s light would mean death against the Changeling Queen and her eyes better suited to see in the dark.

If she wanted to get out of this situation alive (and she fully intended to do so), this was the time to use what for her was her best and greatest tools: her intelligence and reason. Hoping against hope they would work with Chrysalis.

Looking at Chrysalis square in the eyes, at the murderous look and unsuppressed fury pouring from them, Twilight spoke:

“You know you don’t need to do this, right?”

“While I do appreciate your confidence in my abilities, I think I would need to get rid at least of you and your friends in order to take over the world and reclaim what was stolen from me!”

That was good, I mean, not the part in which Chrysalis seem to be sarcastically appreciative of an apparent support, nor the part in which she threaten to kill her and her friends, but the fact that the Queen had open up the door to conversation.

“The reality is that no one took anything from you,” Twilight responds, ignoring the Queen’s megalomania comments, choosing to focus on what was important to present for her argument.

“Back in the hive, we offered you forgiveness and friendship. It was your choice to flee and continue on a lone path of violence and vengeance.”

Twilight decided to leave out the fact that if they had wanted to, they could have captured her and she would be in a dungeon either way, or, had she accepted friendship, the reprimands and reparations that would have occurred; after all, the road to redemption is full of those; the Queen’s pride do not needed to be hurt nor her mental state to be burdened with the minutiaes of reformation.

“Yes, you would have liked that, wouldn’t you? Force me to disfigure myself in body and mind, to ‘Reform’.” Queen Chrysalis spew that word with so much hatred and disgust and what was most definitely real venom out of her mouth. “To become something different, something less changeling and more pony-like”.

“That is not true!” Twilight exclaimed with greater confidence and certainty. “Thorax’s transformation was the result of a stressful situation and that of the rest of the changelings was just them following his example.” Here Twilight had to rein over herself and not let her emotions do the talking, avoiding clarifying that said “stressful situation” was Chrysalis trying to kill him by stealing all of his love, pushing Thorax to share it.

“But before all that, he was living perfectly well, feeding on the love that was freely given to him by his friends.”

Once again, Twilight had to push and contain deep within her desires to nerd out and begin to debate the existence of posible changes in the changelings’ psyche caused as a result of the reformation metamorphosis, and how as of now, with Queen Chrysalis as the only unreformed changeling in existence, she was an invaluable source of information on the matter, both as an individual and as a potential test subject.

“And that is what I propose to you, that you can live your life in peace, with us, without the need to change, transform or even go through the metamorphosis if you don’t want to. It is true that to start anew, to not be enemies, to be allies if not friends, you would have to stop kidnapping ponies and not try to get what you want through means of force and fear. You know, reduce evilness perhaps a tad below what’s socially acceptable?”, concluded Twilight, panting.

To Twilight’s disbelief, Chrysalis sheathes her fangs and raises her head, but does not take her eyes from Twilight’s.

“Are you sure what you’re talking about?” The Queen finally asked after a tense moment of silence.

“I’m 100% sure,” assures the Princess of Friendship with courage and confidence, only to shrink a little below the skeptical gaze of the Changeling Queen. “Well, actually, maybe only 99.999% sure.”

“And for this I would only need to not kidnap more ponies...”

“Any creature!” Twilight quickly amended, remembering that she was now responsible for more than just the ponies.

“Fine! Any creature!” growled the Queen, annoyed; hard to say if it was because she felt offended that the pony thought it was necessary to clarify, or because it really was necessary to clarify.

“And you must be diplomatic in dealing with others. No more attempts to force anyone to do your will through threats and violence.”

“And if I accept these terms, do you guarantee that I will receive the love I need to quench my hunger?”

“What I’m telling you is that if you act more... Amicable,” Twilight said, feeling like she was walking on eggshells, trying to avoid using the F-word more than necessary, not wanting to trigger Chrysalis into another fit of rage. “You will no longer need to resort to lies and subterfuge to get the love you need to live. Have you ever wondered what it would be to live without the need to hide who you are to be loved and not have to run away all the time?”

At those words, Chrysalis twitched her eyes and frowned. Twilight swallowed the hardest lump of saliva, thinking for a moment that with that question she had crossed some of the Queen’s boundaries, and that she had surely ruined the last chance to achieve peace between ponykind and her.

That is when Chrysalis spoke: “Fine! I agreed to give you a chance to try this crazy idea of yours. But I warn you, if I don’t feel satisfied with the promised love, or if just a little color starts to contaminate my black carapace, If the holes in my hoofs disappear or I feel like I’m glowing in a funny way, I’ll end your little experiment and go back to my tried and trusted changelings ways of doing things. Do we have a deal?”

“I promise that nothing bad will happen to you and that you will not regret giving us this opportunity. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!” Twilight hummed, making some strange movements, ending up poking an eye with one of her hoofs.

Chrysalis looked at her with an expression of confusion and mild disgust.

“He, he, he”, Twilight laughed, her cheeks turning red in embarrassment. “This is how my friends and I make sure we keep what we promise.”
> In the caves beneath the castle
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once they agreed on what they would do when they got out of this situation (if they got out of this situation), Chrysalis and Twilight gave each other the space and time to rest and tend to their wounds; the Princess never losing sight of the Queen, always keeping her in sight, in reach of the light of her horn.

While Twilight could only rub the places where she felt pain, casting only the most basic of healing spells on herself, she could see how Chrysalis tended to her own, cleaning the wounds with her forked tongue and mend them with a regurgitated sticky goo. Her mind fought against her stomach, to see which of the two showed more control over her, one wanting to know the possible antiseptic properties of that substance, while the other, for how much longer it would be able to retain the morning daisy sandwich she got for breakfast.

It was quite surprising to Twilight how well that changeling body blended and became one with the darkness, creating an unnerving effect in which a pair of disembodied green eyes seemed to flicker in and out of existence every time Chrysalis blinked.

Several minutes passed, in which Twilight could swear that Chrysalis had read her mind and had begun slow her blinks in order to upset her.

"It's time to go," Twilight said, standing up, not wanting to prolong that experience any longer. "Come, stay close to me."

"Oh, Twilight, are you afraid I'll leave you down here, alone?" Chrysalis said in a mocking tone, also getting on all fours, walking slowly towards her.

"I just think it would be better if we stayed together, that way we reduce the risk of suffering an accident," Twilight replies matter-of-factly, not taking the Queen's childish bait. Also, although she would not admit it, she was afraid of losing sight of the Queen and becoming a victim of one of her traps.

"You have nothing to worry about me, Twilight. I'm always sure where I put my hooves," Chrysalis said. And as if the Lord of Chaos itself had heard her and wanted to make fun of her, she immediately stumbled while simultaneously a creaking sound could be heard coming from one of her front legs.

The Queen was sure that she had placed her hoof on a stone, but stones do not make a loud crack when they break, and she had definitely never come across a stone that was hollow.

Chrysalis looked down, feeling that something had become lodged inside her hoof, while something else trapped part of her leg. Feeling through her hoof, she tried to identify what was underneath. It was something hard, but with a somewhat smooth surface.

Raising her leg in view of both of them, to see what thing had dared to make her look like a fool in front of the Princess of Friendship, pony and changeling gives a silent gasp when they were immediately able to identify the offending object as a skull.

Horrified, Chrysalis turned to look at Twilight, who shared a similar expression. Then look back at the skull, then at the pony and finally back at the skull.

This was a most delicate situation, which the Queen had to resolve quickly and in a way that would allow her to get out on top of the pony. And so, displaying a control over her emotions as only a master like the Changeling Queen could, Chrysalis let out an unqueenly scream and began to run madly around, shaking her leg violently, waiting for the skeletal remains to fall off of her.

"Chrysalis, wait!" Twilight shouted, trying to keep an eye on the hysterical Queen, but her erratic movements ended up causing her to wander out of sight.

"Chrysalis, where are you?" Twilight asked, her concern increasing when she stopped hearing the Queen's screams, afraid that in her race she would end up falling over the edge of the plain, into the abyss.

Fortunately for his nerves, she managed to hear the faint sound of some grunts of effort, then the sound of a skull crashing to the ground in the distance, and finally the panting that signaled the conclusion of a tiresome task. Enough clues to find and bring the Queen back in to the light.

When Chrysalis finally caught her breath, she turned to look at Twilight.

"You will speak to none of what you just saw, do you understand!?" The Queen said embarrassedly, trying to sound intimidating and commanding.

Twilight managed to stifle a giggle and just nodded, signaling to the Queen that they should move on.





Through some probing around, Twilight managed to find a path of sort that led up and, hopefully, to an exit from this cave. After observing some frighteningly not-so-ancient remains of enormous creatures, and sharing the terrible sensation of being watched, they both concluded that for now it would be best to remain silent and not attract unwanted attention.

Soon the path became narrower and narrower, to the point that for a large portion of the stretch, they had to walk (or rather climb) along a rocky slope, resembling the mountain goats that live in the famous Alps, to the south of Prance. According to Princesses Celestia and Luna, who, to the young Princess's confusion, have recently started talking as if they were planning to take a long vacation, they are a very friendly and attentive group of bovines, proud of their climbing ability and their cheese based cuisine, although short-tempered.

A rock fell under Twilight's hoof, receiving colorful recommendations on how to be more careful and words of encouragement from the Queen, who was almost hit by it. Holding her breath, the Princess waited to hear the piece of sediment hit the bottom, but the sound never came.

Twilight was the first to reach an open space, stretching out a foreleg to help Chrysalis ascent. For her part, the Queen preferred to be prideful (or stubborn in Twilight's eyes) and climb on her own.

They weren't close to reaching the outside yet, but rusty mining tools, a railroad, and an abandoned wagon told them they were on the right path and, with a little luck, close to an exit.

Walking along a wider and less steep path, old timbers supported the tunnel. All this time Twilight never let the light from her horn rest, struggling not to look exhausted, still not feeling safe, trapped underground with Chrysalis. But if they didn't reach the exit any time soon, she would be forced to ask for a stop and to take a break.

A few minutes later, a roar was heard and the tunnel and everything inside it shook violently, putting them both on alert.

"What was that?" the Changeling Queen asked, trying to let her annoyance mask her concern.

"It sounded like an explosion," Twilight replied, her eyes darting around at high speed, not bothering to hide her nervousness.

"I know what I heard! What I want to know is why was there an explosion!?"

"The treasure hunters," Twilight said as the horrible realization of what was happening hit her. "Some of the treasure hunters must have found an abandoned path into the castle and are using explosives to..."

Another larger explosion interrupted Twilight's explanation, shaking the inside of the tunnel even more violently.

Removing her legs from her still-buzzing ears and opening her eyes, Twilight could see Chrysalis, lying on the ground in a similar dazed state, but also the cracks in the logs above her. Knowing what was about to happen, the Element of Magic ran towards her and pushed the Changeling Queen just in the nick of time to save her from the roof landslide.

Regaining consciousness, Twilight found herself trapped (fortunately not crushed) under one of the wooden beams.

"Chrysalis, are you okay? Can you help me?" ask the Pony Princess desperately.

A toxic neon green light emanates from a jagged horn, dimly illuminating the dark tunnel. Beneath the horn a pair of eyes that share a similar glow rest on her, observing -appreciating- everything on their sight. Twilight can see this, she can see the thoughts of success, of victory, that cross Chrysalis' mind, as an evil smile forms on the Queen's face, enjoying of Twilight defenselessness.

Frightened, Twilight tries to get up, to pull herself out, to use magic and lift the wooden beam even a little, but to no avail; by this point she's exhausted, all of her strength is gone and there's nothing she can do. She became overwhelmed by thoughts of sadness, thinking of her family and all her friends whom she would never be able to see again and whom she would not even be able to say goodbye to; despair, over her current -final- situation; and, above all, of regret, regret of having helped Chrysalis and believing that someone like her was capable to reform.

To Twilight's confusion, instead of feeling her head being crushed by a black hoof, or her neck torn by sharp teeth, she began to feel a lightness on her back. Wiping the tears from her eyes, Twilight watched in surprise as Chrysalis pushed the wooden beam away from her back.

"Y... you help me, but... why?" ask the Princess of Friendship in disbelief after standing up and catching his breath.

"I am Queen, did I not? I told you I would give you a chance to prove your ideals to me. And my word is golden," replied the Queen in an imperial tone.

Twilight smiles, trying hard not to smile too much in order not to make the Changeling Queen uncomfortable. With new and growing hopes of convincing Chrysalis of the value and importance of harmony and, if things go better than expected, making a new friend of hers.

"If it was not obvious, for a moment there I thought that you were going to kill me. You know, you seemed very happy and willingly to work on that thought."

"I'm not going to lie and pretend I didn't enjoy the moment," truthfully said the changeling.

Risking the current mood between the two, Twilight leans her body towards Chrysalis for support. To her surprise once again, the Queen does not push her away, nor recoil in disgust or annoyance, she did not even protest her actions. Instead, the Queen simply appears to have rearranged something within her elytra.

She's just putting her wings in a more comfortable position, thought Twilight as she realized that the side she was leaning on belonged to Chrysalis' damaged wing. And to add another pleasant surprise, after a couple of steps, the Queen also leans on her. And so, in that way, they both moved towards the exit.





Outside the buried fortress, on the slopes of the mountain, five mares were anxious, after how unexpected, sudden and terrifying it was to experience those explosions in such proximity. They were a unicorn whose coat was white in color and purple mane; two earth ponies, one light orange with a stetson over her blonde mane, the other was a pink cotton candy in almost a literal sense of the word, and two pegasus, although from the way one of them walked It would be hard to believe; one was blue with a rainbow mane, and the other, who looked like a trembling jelly, was yellow with a pink mane.

"I still can't believe that mule of a girl left us behind and ran off to chase that Changeling varmint on her own," Applejack said, letting her annoyance be heard through her country accent.

"Calm down Applejack, dear. You know how Twilight feels about everything related to that deposed Queen. We shouldn't be surprised that the moment she saw her, forgot everything and ran after her," with a posh voice, Rarity responded, trying to put order on her mane, removing the leaves and branches that lodged in it after the explosions.

"What I can't believe is that they allowed to bring dynamite to those dumb Daring Do wannabes," Rainbow Dash said, flying low, close to his friends, shaking his head, trying to get rid of the ringing in his ears.

“Let's consider ourselves lucky that the royal guard stopped their dangerous act before anyone got truly hurt.”

"I think it was quite funny how the earth shook under our legs," Pinkie said happily, moving as if she had springs instead of hooves. Surprisingly, the fact that Fluttershy clung to her like it was a second coat of hers didn't hinder her jumping.

"Argh! Could we hurry now? We have to find Twilight quickly and help her against that evil bug villain," Rainbow Dash tried to hurry her companions, annoyed at how slow she felt they were moving.

"Now, now, Rainbow, all of us are as worried about Twilight as you are, but if we acted so hastily, without knowing exactly which path our dear friend took, moving quickly will only mean we won't find her."

"And what do you suggest we do, that we stay in this place, doing nothing and wait for Twilight to appear in front of us?"

"Uh, uh, uh, I know what we can do!" Pinky exclaimed, shaking her hooves frantically to get her friend's attention.

"And what could that be, Pinkie?"

"We could just ask Chrysalis where Twilight is," Pinkie suggested. That response got the attention of all of her friends.

"And do you know where she is?"

"Yes, she's over there!" Pinkie pointed to a peculiar direction on the mountain.

From a pile of half-dead bushes they saw a black chitinous hoof breaking the planks that centuries ago blocked the entrance to that particular mining tunnel. Seconds later, the full body of the Changeling Queen emerged from the hole.

"Let's get her!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, flying to meet her, followed in second place by Applejack. Rarity ran in third place, trembling at the thought of what all this fast galloping on this rocky terrain will do to her delicate hooves. Tied on last place, Pinkie was jumping happily, with Fluttershy still clinging to her.

After a few deep breaths, Chrysalis saw the group of angry ponies coming for her. At first she was taken aback by this, but instead of cowering, she adopted a fighting stance, ready to face them all together.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack narrow their eyes at this, ready to clash with the Changeling Queen, and likewise, the Changeling Queen does the same.

But before the two sides collided, a purple blur materialized in the middle of them both.

"STOP!" Twilight shouted. "Girls, stop!"

"I'm fine, she's fine, everything is fine now!"

Applejack and Rainbow pull the brakes and crash among themself, but manage to stop inches away from making a sandwich out of Twilight between them and the queen. The rest of their friends soon join them.

After giving her the opportunity to take deep breaths, rest a bit and drink water from a bottle that Rarity pull out of her Hoity Toity travel bag, Twilight explained everything that had happened since she had separated from them. How she had discovered Chrysalis' presence on the island, hows she followed her into the castle, their first confrontation, how they found and subsequently lost The Black Heart, the discussion and agreement they had deep in the depths of the castle caves, their journey out, how she saved Chrysalis's life and how she in turn saved hers.

Throughout the entire explanation, Rainbow Dash and Applejack, and on some occasions Rarity, direct looks of disbelief and distrust at the Changeling Queen, who decided to put as much distance from them as they did from her.

When Twilight finished her story, the first to speak was Rainbow Dash:

"Okay, what did you do to Twilight? Are you mentally manipulating her? Did you brainwash her or what? There's clearly something bad going on in her mind."

"He, he, he," Chrysalis chuckles mockingly. "I assure you, whatever mess that exists inside your friend's mind, it is of it's own doing."
> Back in Ponyville
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back in Ponyville, Starlight and Spike almost had a heart attack when they saw Chrysalis enter through the doors of the Castle of Friendship, surrounded by the girls. Before either of them acted abruptly (Starlight!), Twilight, just like on the floating island, island that was currently in the process of being properly anexed to Equestria (In Canterlot, everyone could hear a powerful gust of wind coming from the castle, Celestia had just sighed in relief knowing that she would not have to deal with either the griffins or the dragons for the property rights of those lands), was quick to inform them that the Changeling Queen had not come looking for trouble, but on the contrary, she was there to end the conflict. And while this is the case, Chrysalis would be welcome as a guest.

Once they arrived at the throne room, each of them took their place on their respective crystal throne denoted by their cutie mark, with Chrysalis occupying the seat to Twilight's right, a place that until then was exclusive to Spike. Luckily for Twilight, the small drake had decided to keep himself safe busy reading comics in his room, thus avoiding the possibility of her plan falling apart all because of a fight over a chair.

Once everyone was seated, Twilight decides to properly introduce and presents her plan to Chrysalis and the rest of her friends.

"As long as she wants, Chrysalis will be a guest staying here at the castle," Twilight begins, directing her gaze towards Chrysalis, aware that giving her the freedom of choice was one of the cornerstones of what she proposed to the Changeling Queen. "And she will be able to roam freely around Ponyville. And for the sake of this -let's called it- 'experiment in social experiences', Chrysalis will have daily individual interactions with all of us."

This news caused some groans of concern and dissatisfaction among the rest of the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, who did not seem very happy with the premise of allowing so much freedom of movement to someone who, in their eyes, was a very dangerous and untrustworthy individual. Not to mention the fact that they would have to spend some time alone with Chrysalis. And likewise, Twilight could hear the beginnings of an angry growl coming from her right.

Twilight could feel the tension in the room rising, clearly that part of her idea hadn't sat well with at least three of her friends; Fluttershy was shaking with anxiety in her seat, but, well, that had been her state since even before the trip back to Ponyville, so it was difficult for her to say what her pegasus friend position was on the matter.

And Pinkie... Pinkie was happily bobbing her head up and down, with her eyes closed and her tongue out, as if she was licking the frosting off a cake or an ice cream. So it was impossible for Twilight to tell whether she was paying attention regarding what was being discussed or not.

Before the situation could go from growling to words, and then escalate from words to possible (and most likely) violent actions, Twilight caught the attention of those present by tapping her hoof on the surface of the table and continued in a serious voice:

"In correspondence with these concessions, Chrysalis promised not to attack anyone, neither physically nor magically, unless it is in self-defense. She will not use her powers to mentally manipulate anyone, brainwash them, charm them, or anything of the sort. She will not trap anyone in cocoons. She will not steal anyone's love, in this regard she commits to only feed on the emotions in the environment or those specifically directed at her. And finally, she will be undisguised, showing everyone her true form, at all times."

Twilight concluded, emphasizing that last condition, making it clear that it was a vital part of demonstrating the viability of her proposal.

The nerves among her friends seemed to have calmed, changing their expressions of negativity and skepticism to ones of deep thought, trying to find something that Twilight had possibly overlooked and that the Changeling Queen could take advantage of.

Having found none, they, with certain reservations, agreed to support and be part of their purple friend's plan.

At that point, all eyes turn to Chrysalis, expecting an answer from her part.

"First you talk about me having freedom, but not long after you said something that makes you and your friend sound very similar to being my jailers, mind to explain that?" hisses the Queen, almost, almost regretting all the decisions she made that led her to this point.

"Gladly!" chirped Twilight, mentally patting herself on the back, proud of herself and that all those hours she spent preparing for this moment were time well spent. "First of all, to prove, or in your case disprove, the point where I propose that you can obtain enough love to live without the need to steal it, you obviously need to interact with other creatures, don't you? I mean, you didn't think to stay locked in your room all the time until you starve to death and then use that as an excuse to invalidate it, right?"

Twilight showed her a knowing smile, a challenging smile, but above all, an innocent smile. Chrysalis didn't know whether to love that smile or to hate it. The Queen show herself flustered at those insinuations, the blush on her face only getting worse when some muffled snickers coming from the other seats reached her ears. She was undoubtedly insulted that Twilight and friends believed her capable of such foolish behavior. No sir, the Changeling Queen would never be caught imagining and carrying out such a childish tactic.

"And secondly, you shouldn't see us as jailers. Think of us more as... 'helpers', or 'assistants'." Twilight wanted to use the term 'Friends' so, so much, but she still didn't consider it safe to use that word with Chrysalis, not yet. "After all, what better way to acclimate yourself to normal social interactions than to have a group of individuals who already know you, to help you, and who can function as intermediaries between you and the rest of Ponyville's inhabitants?"

"You may not believe it, Sparkle, but I can be a social butterfly when I wanted. I do not need to be babysitted for that", Chrysalis said, proudful as ever.

"I know you can 'act' like one, but that is not the point, and you know it," Twilight refuted. "What I wish is for you to realize that you don't need to pretend to be good to get the love you want, that simply being good would be better for you."

"Fine! If this are the rules of your little foolish game, I accept to follow them. Just be ready to cry when you are proven wrong."

Seeing that Chrysalis had relented and had no further questions, Twilight turned to address her friends.

"Well, with that business out of the way, I think we're done here. Girls, you can go back to your homes."

And with that, Twilight concluded the meeting.

"Chrysalis, follow me and I will show you where you will stay and rest. We'll start first thing, tomorrow morning."
> The day with Twilight
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was early in the morning in Ponyville, where inside her castle, Twilight could be seen walking through it's halls, until she reached the room where Chrysalis was staying. Knocking on the door, she gets no response. 

Knocking again, this time she puts her ear to the door, listening to what she deduces as a double and somewhat out of sync snore.

For the third time, Twilight knocks on the door with more strength and calls Chrysalis in the same way. On this occasion she can hear a thump, followed by some strange noises that could be interpreted as swearing. A few grumbles later, Twilight heard a "Coming!" and steps towards the door.

"What!?" angrily asks Chrysalis, opening the door, her gaze blurry and unfocused. Her pupils thinned and her eyelids drooping. She looked disheveled, almost like she was sleep deprived.

"Breakfast is ready," happily as only a morning pony could, announced Twilight.

"So early?" Chrysalis complained, feeling a headache caused by the voice of her host. "Wait, what time is it?"

"It's early in the morning. Princess Celestia just raise the sun less than 30 minutes ago," Twilight responded, then, after seeing the queen's appearance, added with slight concern: "Are you okay? It looks like you didn't have a good night."

"You try to live in the wild, without any sort of the comforts you've been accustomed to, for several months and then tell me how you can wake up early looking good."

"Do... do you wish for me to come later?" Twilight offered, with a mixture of worry and disappointment.

"No, no. Let's get started with this," Chrysalis said, finally leaving her room.

Upon arriving at the dining room, Chrysalis could see a table where plates, cups and cutlery were already arranged, with a stack of pancakes as the centerpiece, surrounded by syrups, jams and creams, to add their sugary flavor.

By the time Chrysalis took her place at the table, Twilight had already filled both of their cups with coffee.

"Let's enjoy ourselves!" Twilight said, using her magic to take some of the pancake pieces and place them on her plate, with Chrysalis taking the rest.

"Where are the others?" The Queen asked, having gained lucidity after the first sip of the brown and steaming hot concoction, eyeing around.

"Oh! I just thought that to begin these new social experiences, it would be best to start them small, so I asked Spike and Starlight to leave us alone for the day, so that we could have our interaction one on one. I hope this is not a problem for you."

"I mean your guards, Sparkle! From my room to this place, we crossed several hallways and I did not see nor sense the presence of any of them."

"I don't have any guards."

"After everything that has happened to you and yet it is your choice to not have security in this castle!? Aren't you, princess, an important piece for the rulership of the ponies!?" Chrysalis chastise her, sounding quite annoyed with the answer she was given.

Twilight cringe at the mention of her royal status, still not comfortable with her being referred to as such, preferring the casual approach.

"Is your tiara not a sign of authority, but a mere accessory to embellish your image and with it sell toys to children!?"

"Look, it's not like I don't know that I need guards, I am perfectly aware that a lot of nasty stuff could have been avoided with having them here. It's just that I don't think I would feel comfortable having them all around me. I've been talking to Princess Celestia about it, but every time I do the discussion veers into tax matters, and I just don't... Look, it's complicated. Can we not talk about it and just eat in peace, please?" Twilight pleaded, looking almost desperate to not start her day with that kind of discussion.

The Queen just grunted and started eating, taking big, feral bites of her pancakes spread with different kinds of sweeteners. Twilight sigh in relief and followed suit, with more modest manners.

During breakfast, Twilight watched Chrysalis with interest. As the changeling filled her mouth with each bite of more than half of one of the pancakes decorated with multiple of the sweet substances with which she accompanied her food. This image, while a little disgusting, peaked her curiosity enough to want to ask her, then and there, a couple of questions.

"Chrysalis..."

"Queen Chrysalis," quickly cut her off Queen Chrysalis.

"...What?" Twilight finally spoke after recovering of her train of thought being so suddenly derailed.

"I have been lenient with you until now, Sparkle, but from now on, whenever you seek to speak to me, you will refer to me as 'Queen Chrysalis'."

"But... you know...?" Twilight stuttered, getting nervous.

"What?" growled the Queen through clenched teeth, narrowing her eyes menacingly, warningly to Twilight that she should really measure her words and truly think hard about what she was about to say, unless she wanted trouble.

"Deposed?" Twilight responded, shrinking nervously in her chair.

"Just because at the present I lack subjects, it doesn't mean that I am any less of a Queen! And you will address me as such, and that's a non-negotiable!" roar the Queen, rising herself up to become perfectly visible, her wings flaring, slamming her hooves on the table, shaking everything on it.

"Okay, okay, I'll do it!" Alarmed, Twilight quickly concedes, trying to de-escalate the situation.

And that's where the situation should have ended... That didn't happen. Twilight could and probably should have end things there, but then she continues: "Why is it so important for you to be recognized as one, why do you care so much for a title?"

"For you it is a mere title, for me it is an important part of what and who I am. And if you want to make me believe there is any sort of respect among us, that is the smallest and easiest way for you to do so."

The Queen concluded, making it clear that there was no room for further discussion on the matter, returning to her seat, angrily gobbling down more of the pancakes.

Twilight let out a tired and depressed sigh. Her mood had gone down, so did her cutlery. This deviation in the conversation had spoiled her appetite. She began to develop a headache, thinking that perhaps it was wishful thinking to believe that it would be an easy task to reform Chrysalis -Oh, sorry, I mean Queen Chrysalis-. In fact, she had begun to believe that after this blunder, it would be impo...

"What was it you wanted to ask?" ask Queen Chrysalis, slowing down her chewing, once again stopping and pulling out Twilight of her current line of thought.

"What?"

"What was that thing you wanted to ask me about at the beginning?" asks the Queen once again, in a more subdued tone, but with a bit of annoyance dripping out at having to repeat herself.

After rebooting her mind and rewinding her memories, Twilight finally said: "Oh, yeah! I was going to ask, if it is okay, your... highness..?"

"I allow it."

"Why do you need to feed on emotions, love in particular, when it is clear that you can eat -and for the look of it, quite enjoy- regular food?"

"That is a pony misconception. It is another changeling thing. One I think you would not understand, Princess Sparkle."

"Hey, one of the reasons we're doing this is because I truly believe that by knowing each other better we can achieve what I promised you. So, try me!" Exuding new confidence, Twilight encouraged her to open up and share her knowledge. "Oh, and, by the way, if it pleased you, you can call me just Twilight."

The Queen remained silent, deep in thought, thinking about what, how and how much she should reveal. By the time Chrysalis finished arranging her thoughts, Twilight had already teleported a quill, ink, and papers, to write down whatever knowledge the Queen intended to share with her.

"Our hunger is not like yours," the Queen began. "When we speak about it we are not talking about a hunger of the body, but about the hunger of the essence. In that sense our hunger is more similar to the dragon's Wants.

"In the same way a dragons feed their greed with a hoard of gems and other treasures to grow in size and power, we need to feed on love to live.

"Yes, we can eat just as easy your pony food, your cakes and scones, fruits and vegetables, even mineral rocks. And before you ask," at this, Chrysalis retracted her lips. "These are not just for showing."

At the sign of those teeth, those big, protruding and sharp fangs, something primal and deeply rooted in the pony's survival instincts made Twilight fold his ears back, shrink into his seat, tense some of her muscles, those evolved for a sudden and explosive gallop, make her want to put distance between the changeling and herself, and have her eyes give a quick gaze at the exit door, looking for an escape route.

"But it doesn't matter how healthy or nutritious the food we eat is, it will never amount to the smallest fraction of what love can do for us. For us, Changelings, love it is not just life, it is a power like no other."

"Then, why eat regular food at all? I mean, if you said you changelings can live of love alone. What purpose does it serve to the changelings eat regular food?"

"Well, for starter, we need to eat food to be able to properly disguise ourself as any creature we wish to imitate. Would you not find extremely suspicious of an acquaintance, a friend or a lover that you never saw eat?"

"I...guess," Twilight answered after considering this and similar scenarios.

"Besides, while love can keep us alive and healthy, most of the time it is just more efficient to consume the necessary nutrients from an outside source to help our bodies grow and develop.

"And finally, we changelings have a set of organs and glands, which function as storage chambers in which food goes through a process similar to fermentation, to produce all kinds of useful resins." At this, Chrysalis rise her left hoof and then added: "I believe you already saw me use one of them, healicus, to treat my wounds back there in the caves." Chrysalis pointed to a bump on her leg that could be considered a scar on her carapace.

"If you wish, I can give you a live demonstration of another one."

Chrysalis then open her maw and let out a dry retch.

"NO! That won't be necessary!" Twilight intervened quickly, trying to keep her still fresh breakfast inside her stomach, wanting to avoid imitating the Changeling Queen and her ability to voluntarily regurgitate what she consumed.

"What is the matter?" the Queen asked in a tone that made it impossible to know whether her apparent indignation was feigned or real. "In this respect, we changelings are very similar to bees, and you don't seem to have any problem consuming their honey."

"Let's stop this conversation and continue it never."





After breakfast, Twilight decides to take Chrysalis and give her a guided tour of her castle, passing through several dull rooms, lacking significance and identity, and very similar to each other. The Changeling Queen thought that not even in it's worst moments did her hive ever look so dreadfully liminal, whit it's only saving grace being the lancet two-toned green glass windows, even if they are not of the correct imperious changeling green color.

"I saved the best for last," Twilight says after many samey rooms later, finally reaching a place that she seems too eager to show off.

Twilight opens the doors and proudly presents the castle library. The interior was a huge open space, with the walls covered in books neatly arranged on bookcases. In the middle, there were large, round tables, with books resting on some of them. And creating intricate corridors around them, were dozens of shelves filled with hundreds, possibly thousands of books that varied in age, size, color and content.

Chrysalis doesn't seem too impressed, but then her senses begin to detect something. Sticking her tongue out, much like snakes would, she taste the atmosphere, sensing love. It's the kind of love you feel for a friend, with a pinch of obsession and possessiveness, Stoge with a mix of Mania. Not the best kind of love, definitely not her favorite, but it was love she could eat, and this love came from the princess herself towards her book collection.

"What do you think?" Twilight asked, referring to her library.

"Not bad, but I've tasted better," Chrysalis honestly responded, after finishing chewing part of the aforementioned love.

"You can look around and when you find a book you like, bring it here and we will read it together."

While Twilight pick a book on advanced spell matrices and sits around one of the available tables, the Queen wanders around, looking at the many books arranged on the many labyrinthine shelves that made up the library, but not seeming interested in choosing any.

After some time passed, Chrysalis finally took one book off the shelves, getting Twilight's attention. The Queen looks at it’s pages, and reads some of her paragraphs. From her place Twilight can hear her let out a nostalgic sigh, followed by some giggles and declaring: "So young, so innocent, so inexperienced," and then putting the book back in its place, and moving to another shelf.

Driven by her curiosity, Twilight took advantage of Chrysalis entering into the fiction section and quickly moved to see which book the Queen had grabbed.

'The art of pretending', she read. This was a recent copy of the book, not even five years old, but the original work had been written centuries ago, even so this piece of literature was still considered a master class in current acting lessons.

Twilight was confused. She could understand why the Queen would show interest in that book, with everything that came with being an unreformed changeling, but not why she would express herself about it in that way... until she read the name of her author: Chrys A. Lis.

Before Twilight can properly settle her thoughts about this possible revelation of the existence of changeling literature within that of the ponies, she realizes that she has lost sight of Chrysalis and moves to look for her.

When she locates her, she is curiously observing a board on a table, some wooden pieces scattered over its surface composed of light and dark squares.

"What is that?" the Queen asks once she detects Twilight's presence.

"That is an equestrian chess board," answer Twilight taking a didactic tone. "Chess is a very old strategy game of unknown origins. Some of the oldest records of it trace it to Coltcuta, but it is also known of its ancient existence in Neighpon and even Saddle Arabia."

"I know what chess is!" the Queen interrupts, not wanting to receive a several-hour lecture on the matter. "What I want to know is, what do the pieces represent?"

"Oh, well, these ones here are the Pawns, and are represented by Earth Ponies, powerful in numbers and the best for close approach. These are the Rooks, and Pegasuss take their place, fast and agile. These ones from here are the Advisers, called Vizier in Saddle Arabia, and are represented by the Unicorns, for long range tactics. The effigy of the royal guard is used for the Knight pieces. And finally, Princesses Celestia and Luna take the place of the King and Queen pieces, respectively."

"I want to play," Chrysalis requested, taking over on Black's side. Go figure!, thinks Twilight, while also getting a bit surprised at hearing a somewhat childful glee coming out of the imposing Changeling Queen.

Twilight takes her place and arranges her pieces, but before she can make her first move:

"I will go first," demands Chrysalis.

"The rules say that White goes first," Twilight says, regretting letting the ‘rules lawyer’ part of her act faster than she could think, believing that the Queen would become aggressive at sensing that her will was being challenged.

Much to her surprise, Chrysalis's reaction is calm, almost playful:

"Come on, Twilight! We are not in a tournament. We just want to have fun."

"Okay," Twilight says, pleased, but taken aback by Chrysalis calling her by her name so casually.

Chrysalis begins the game by advancing her Lunar Earth Pony two spaces. d5

"You know, Twilight, we changelings do also have our own version of Chess."

Twilight's ears perk up, signaling that she was paying attention to the conversation, but her eyes don't move from the game board. Imitating the Queen's movement, she block the Lunar Earth Pony's advance with her own. d4

"For us, the place of the Pawns is occupied by what we call Drones."

Lunar Advisers Earth Pony advance two squares. c5

The Queens Gambit? How fitting, Twilight thinks as she sees the Changeling Queen's opening move. Should I accept it or decline it? Twilight ponders, considering whether she should grant her a hoof of control over the center of the game board or challenge her for said control. Was there a deeper meaning to that movement? Was Chrysalis playing mind games with her? She had agreed not to use that type of magic, and a quick magical self-check indicated that that was still being the case; of course, Twilight knew that Chrysalis was among the most devious of creatures in the world and this could be nothing more than regular mind games. It could also be her acting extremely paranoid and there was nothing of the sort at play and this was just your everyday chess game; after all, The Queens Gambit was a pretty popular strategy do to how solid and effective it was.

Taking a deep internal breath, calming his nerves, Twilight decides to take the Gambit.

White Lunar Earth Pony take over Black Lunar Advisers Earth Pony square. d4c5

As she moves the pieces, Chrysalis continues explaining them.

"The Rooks are the Scouts, to explore and find hunting grounds.

"The Advisers, the Infiltrators, to mix with the population and gather love.

"The Knights are our Warriors, to defeat our enemies.

"And of course, I am the Queen, the strongest piece of them all," said Chrysalis with an arrogant grin. Twilight, unamused, does not need to be a changeling to feel the egocentrism and narcissism permeating the surroundings.

More movements took place before Twilight realized something. The Queen had omitted to mention one last piece.

"Your highness, what does the King represent for the Changelings?" she asked. Not getting an immediate response, Twilight looks up to see Chrysalis's face. It was quick, almost imperceptible, but Twilight could see that the Queen frowned and clenched her lips. This little reaction revealed that this detail made Chrysalis uncomfortable and she did not want to talk about it.

Twilight remained silent, choosing not to press the issue, returning her attention to the game, but that nagging feeling never left her mind.

What could the King's piece mean for the Changelings? It is true that the piece of the Queen is the most powerful piece on the board, but not the most important. So, who among the Changelings could it be? Who would Chrysalis allow to occupy a greater importance in the changeling hierarchy than her? Did the Changelings had a King in the past? Did Chrysalis have a consort? If that was the case, what could have happened to it?

It turns out that Twilight could give herself the freedom to be distracted and preoccupied with these thoughts, since Chrysalis was not a very good player. The Queen managed to capture some of Twilight pieces early in the game, thanks to an 'aggressive queen' strategy; but after that, Chrysalis began to lose pieces rapidly in order to protect her queen.

Maybe I overestimated Chrysalis and her opening moves were just a coincidence caused by her whims, Twilight mused, keeping any hint of disappointment in the challenge behind a mask of stoicism and concentration in the game. The Queen's face, on the other hoof, went from annoyed when she lost her first piece, to worried when she started losing more. She didn't even castle to protect her king. In fact, she hasn't moved the king at all. Maybe it is prohibited to move the king according to the changeling chess rules?

And in a few more turns, and with the move of a Unicorn piece:

"Checkmate."

Twilight takes her gaze from the game board to look at Chrysalis. The Queen does not seem to be all there, looking at the board with a blank expression, similar to when one is overwhelmed by terrible news and is unable to process it. To Twilight it was an unsettling sight. At that point she would have gladly accepted the irate of the Queen, seeing her picking up the game board and trusting it against the walls in fury and frustration, launching some curses, accusing her of having won by cheating; she would have welcome anything just to get a diferent reaction from Chrysalis.

Finally, Chrysalis lifted a hoof and slowly approached it to the piece with the effigy of Celestia, and with a light push, she knocked it down.

"What does the king piece represent for the changelings?" giving a dry gulp, Twilight venture to ask once again. This time, she got her answer.

"The hive."

Chrysalis takes a deep, painful sigh and without saying another word, gets up and walks out of the library, her face still expressionless. Twilight follows her at a safe distance, not sure of what to do or if she should even do something to put her out of that trance-like state she seems to be.

When she was about to gallop and catch up to her, Chrysalis had already locked herself in her room.

"Chrysalis, your majesty, are you alright?" Of course she's not alright, she chides herself after knocking on the door.

There was no answer.

"Chrysalis, if you need something, I'll be... I'll be... If you need something, anything, just call and I will be here for you, okay?"

Without getting a response, Twilight left.





Twilight entered one of her many rooms that she had converted into a studio, closed the door behind her, let out a sigh, sat down behind the desk and taking out quill, ink, and papers from one of the drawers, she began to write.



Dear Princess Celestia,

How are things going with the island of Saint Ashtray the Gray? Hope everything goes well. I thank you for keeping me informed of the progress in the search for The Black Heart.

In more important events to report, I am writing to inform you in detail of what has happened since our departure.

As we assumed, Queen Chrysalis was already there when we arrived, and once it was impossible for her to maintain the deception, she ran in search of the artifact, and I followed her. We managed to enter the hidden fortress, where we engaged in running combat, and in a bit of a painful move, we ended up finding the throne room and apparent burial chamber of Saint Ashtray the Gray, where we also located the gem. In a sprint to be the first to grab it, a hidden trap was activated, causing the chamber to collapse and fall into an abyss.

When I woke up, I had to face Queen Chrysalis once again. We were both exhausted and clearly very badly injured. In what I thought was a long shot, I made an attempt to reach up to her and extended a hoof to her as a sign of friendship; and with a well-detailed and explained argument, I postulated that she could enjoy a good life in peace with us, the only thing she would have to do is abandon her evil and wicked tendencies. She, of course, didn't believe me. Given her skepticism, I told her that she could try it, as long as she was willing to put an effort. She accepted my offer, but seems to think of it as some kind of challenge whose objective is to prove me wrong, however detrimental that may be to her.

As such, I devised a plan of action that involved placing her in individual social interactions with me and the rest of my friends, here in Ponyville, where she is staying in the castle as my guest. But the situation may be much more complicated than imagined.

Even though Queen Chrysalis has done nothing to actively sabotage the experience, our first day has been a roller coaster of discoveries and emotions, sadly ending in a, shall we say, gloomy mood.

The culprit seems to be something I didn't consider at the time and now I have to find a way to deal with it. What do I mean? After the events that occurred in the Changeling Hive, it seems that Queen Chrysalis has been living alone in the wild, and this has caused her mental state to be affected.

For this reason I am contacting you to ask for guidance, advice and help to properly deal with this situation, to not only help Queen Chrysalis to recover her mental health, but also to be able to make a friend out of her.

Sincerely, your former student, Twilight Sparkle.

P.S. As you may have already noticed, Princess, even though her status as queen has already been revoked, Queen Chrysalis has asked me to refer to her as such. Wishing to respect this part of her identity, I have agreed to this. I will inform the rest of the girls about this detail in order to avoid any inconvenience that would otherwise result from it.



Twilight put the quill on its stand and read the letter, making sure it was ready and properly written before it was sent. She then remembered something very important and dipped the quill once more into the inkwell and wrote once more.



P.S.2 I strongly suggest having a discussion with the Equestria Food and Medicine Administration regarding the Changeling Honey we are importing from Thorax's hive.


> The day with Fluttershy
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chrysalis was upset, but she wasn't sure with what to be more upset. If with the glances of dozens of ponies that apparently can't keep to their own business. The bravest ones, giving her surreptitious glances; the most curious, through windows, trees, bushes, or anything that would serve as a hiding place if the Queen granted them the privilege of recognizing their presence; and the most cowardly, (or the most experienced and sensible of the inhabitants of that frenetic town), running to take refuge from the calamity imagined by the sighting of its royal presence. All of them sharing one of four emotions: distrust, curiosity, fear or hate.

Curiosity and distrust as if she were a species of wild and exotic animal being paraded, an animal that had been captured, trained and in the process of being domesticated, to demonstrate the ponies superiority over the rest of the creatures, a superiority that they achieved over her; the only thing missing from this image that her paranoia and insecurity presented to her was a muzzle over her and a leash around her neck.

Some pretentious philosophers prattled on about what the opposite of love was, whether it was fear, hate, or indifference, but the Queen knew the truth. Love is sweet, fear and hate were bitter and pungent. Chrysalis had tasted and received her fair share of that, she knew changelings who, in their most glorious times, had caught a taste for those emotions, she never judged them harshly for this, fear and hatred were simply never her cup of tea, as the ponies would say; furthermore, today more than ever, these emotions brought back bad memories. But indifference? Indifference was a big piece of nothing, without taste or substance and without any nutritional value to the changelings.

Or with the fact that she was walking slowly and casually through the streets of Ponyville, with Twilight right at her side, as if she, the Changeling Queen, were a nymph her mother was taking to her first day of school, proud of her; although their respective heights and body language would suggest the opposite, painting her as an annoying and frustrated mother who is forced to take her eager daughter to school.

"This is unbecoming of a queen," says Chrysalis holding her head high, her expression decorous and her presence regal.

"What is unbecoming of a queen, your highness?" ask Twilight, pleasantly surprised that Chrysalis would start a conversation, even if it was just to vent her grievances. Expressing her emotions to sort them out through dialogue, rather than acting upon them, is a step in the right direction, Twilight thought.

"This, walking among commoners," answer the Queen, instead of saying what was really bothering her.

"Don't call them that. They are citizens of Equestria," Twilight reprimanded her in a conversational tone, and then added: "Beside, when you were regent of the Changelings, did you never walk among them?"

"These are not my subjects," Chrysalis replied. But they could be, she added only in thought and containing the smile that accompanied it.

"You said that I will be able to roam freely around the streets of this town," She continued. "I don't know, then, why are you escorting me? Why don't you just teleport us to were we are supose to go?" The Queen asked, once again to avoid, without having to say it directly, this situation that she found uncomfortable.

"I did. But remember that I also said that my friends and I will function as intermediaries between you and the rest of Ponyville's inhabitants. If they saw you walking alone through the streets of the town, there would be panic for sure. It is true that if we teleported we could avoid those unnecessary problems, but what better way to make them feel comfortable and safe with your presence than by seeing you walk with me and the rest of the girls?"

Chrysalis just grumbled in response, clearly not satisfied with that answer, but not wanting to prolong the discussion.

"This is only temporary. I promise you that if everything goes well, sooner than later, you will be able to move alone with out feeling that all eyes are on you," Twilight concluded, proving to Chrysalis that she was more perceptive of what was bothering the Queen than she seemed.

They continued walking in silence for a few minutes, taking a path that led to the outskirts of Ponyville, near the edge of the Everfree forest.

"I think that from here on, you can continue on your own, right?" Twilight said pointing to Chrysalis' next destination. "And before I go, remember to be kind."

"Yes, mom. You have nothing to worry about it, mom. I know I need to play nice with your friends, mom," Chrysalis said mockingly, perfectly imitating what a spoiled filly would sound like, trying to annoy Twilight as much or more than she felt.

Twilight gives her a unamused look, but then spoils the Queen's mood, giggling. "I'm being serious. You can be the love thieving queen, but if you pay attention, my friend Fluttershy could teach you a thing or two about how to get it without even asking for it."

And with that Twilight give her back to Chrysalis and began walking back to Ponyville, only turning once to wave a hoof to say goodbye to her.

Queen Chrysalis faced the indicated direction. Next to a squalid tree with multiple nests and birdhouses, there was a 'barely necessary and barely big enough for someone of his royal size to cross it' bridge, that gave way over a rivulet -hardly call it a stream in the eyes of the Queen- to a knoll of land. A mound full of burrows belonging to the dozens of creatures that raised their bodies or ears in her presence; among them she could identify rabbits and mice, snakes and raccoons and... was it a family of pangolins that the Queen saw? And above it all loomed a cabin, or rather a cottage that seemed to have emerged from beneath the earth itself, with its roof covered with a thick blanket of grass and other kinds of vegetation. It almost looked like a Hobbit house, with its windows resembling the burrows around it. More birdhouses could be seen hanging from it.

It wasn't until she walked over the bridge that she become aware of the ferret den, complete with a small dock at it's entrance, that existed beneath it. And only until she was a few steps from the front door, past a patch of over-watered petunias, she discovered that what she had believe at first to be a gaudy mailbox was in reality... even more birdhouses.

Good grief! If this pony wanted to live so much surrounded by so many birds, she should have chosen to live in the clouds, thought Chrysalis.

"You can come in, the door is open," a soft voice is heard coming from the inside, in response to Chrysalis knocking on the door.

Somewhat annoyed that she has to open the door, she is greeted by a strong and warm wave coming from inside, to the point of overloading her senses. And although the simplest way to describe it is as similar to a strong current of hot air, it was not something whose strength could be measured with an anemometer, nor whose temperature could be quantified with a thermometer. It was something that could only be truly felt in a palpable and measurable way by the Changelings. It was love. Or rather, a large and varied amount of loves.

She could detect Philia, Storgé, Ludus, Pragma and more inside that cottage. All of them belonging to and coming from the dozens of animals that roamed within this collective burrow. Mice coming and going from holes in the walls, squirrels and chipmunk, beavers, cats and a skunk moving across the floor, and even... more birds coming out and flying out of bird cages and birdhouses.

Chrysalis was aware that even animals could feel and emanate love, but the more controlled by their instincts and the less sapient the creature, the less a source of nourishing love it was, which is why the changelings did not bother to turn them into pets, functioning better as sources of minerals and proteins. The fact that such an incredible amount of love could come from these vermin had the Queen gobsmacked.

"Her highness may come in... if she wishes to," spoke a soft voice belonging to the owner of the cottage, a shy yellow pegasus named Fluttershy, who, coming down from the second floor, looked for who had opened the door but chose to remain outside.

Chrysalis entered once she recovered from her shock. The place was a nice, clean, dry cottage, with a pleasant smell and a set of a divan and an armchair to sit on, with a table in between. A pair of animal beds lie on a green wooden floor decorated with red rugs. Some stairs lead to an upper floor. It was a pony-home, and that means comfort.

She suddenly remember something and narrowed her eyes, and with a furtive glance looked around.

"Where is Discord?" Cautiously (definitely not worried) with a hint of animosity towards the aforementioned Lord of Chaos, the Queen asks Fluttershy, made aware by Twilight that the Draconequus had chosen to live here with the pegasus.

"Oh, Discord's not here. When we got back and I told him what happened, he got upset. He said he already had something big planned for the future, to boost Twilight's confidence, but with this turn of events, everything got ruined. Then, acting dramatically, he said that he no longer wants to be part of this universe anymore, and with a snap of his fingers he puff himself out of existence. Or something like that. I'm sure he's fine and he'll be back once his irritation wears off," Fluttershy responded, downplaying Discord's actions.

So this magnet of love, this fountain of Agape that is this meek pegasus pony that live so far away of anyone, is unguarded and alone with me? Oh, how easy it would be for me to cocooned her, take her place and feed on her love and the love that all these creatures have for her.

"Chrysalis, are you okay," Fluttershy said with concern for her guest, seeing how the Queen was frozen, looking at her intently.

"What? Yes, I'm fine," Chrysalis responded, brought out of her thoughts, wiping her watery mouth with a hoof. "I was just thinking that you have a lot of animals living with you in this house."

“Oh yeah, where are my manners. Boys and girls, can you come for a moment, please? I want to introduce you to Queen Chrysalis. Queen Chrysalis, these are the animals I take care of.”

Suddenly, Chrysalis felt like she was being watched by too many eyes. But unlike the ponies, she could hardly know how they felt about her. Most of the mammals sniffed the atmosphere, capturing its scent and continued their walk around the cabin. The birds just chirped a few notes and went back to preening their feathers. But the greatest source of emotion came from a white rabbit with very black eyes, watching her through the stair balusters, giving her a dirty look. The rabbit pointed one of his paws at her, then at his nose, telling the Queen that he had already identified her.

"Spark... cough* cough*... Twilight told me that I would spend part of the day with you. What activities did you had plan for me to partake in, Shy?" Chrysalis said, turning her attention back to Fluttershy.

"Oh, while Twilight gave me a list of suggested activities, I think the best thing I can do is to show you what things I do and you can help me do them... that is, of course, if Her Highness so wishes to," Fluttershy said timidly.

"Goody, what would you like us to do together?" Showing her lack of spirit, Chrysalis asked.

Fluttershy took Chrysalis to the back garden of her abode, where the Queen became quite confused at the flat, open space that she was sure couldn't possibly exist based on the front view she had of the pony house.

Fluttershy went on to hand her a small bag full of seeds, then proceeded to open the door to a chicken coop that was at the back, announcing that it was time for breakfast. A small flock of hungry hens began to sprout from within, eager to eat their food.

Then the firsts of them laid their eyes on the black figure that loomed over them like an imperious titan and slowed down in their race. Concluding that their safety was urgently more important than satiate their hunger, they fearfully ran back to the safety of their henhouse, some of them having to jump the fence when one of them decided to close it behind her.

Chrysalis, upset by this demonstration of fear at her presence, throws the bag of seeds to the ground.

Of course, after all this time, I couldn't have expected anything different from creatures raised by ponies, the Queen thinks, turning around in the direction of the cabin.

But before she reaches the door, Fluttershy beats her to it and stands in her way.

"Please, you have to excuse them. It's just that they get very nervous when strangers come," plead Fluttershy.

"Sure. It definitely has nothing to do with how I look," retord the Changeling Queen.

Fluttershy evades Chrysalis's fierce gaze, hiding a slight blush on her face behind her mane, she even shrinks a little, but still finds her voice to say:

"Still, that's no reason to stop trying. Could you give them another chance, please?" Fluttershy requested, parting the curtains of mane of her face to give her a smile that the Queen would have to try hard not to call cute.

Chrysalis thought that if she returned to the castle now and locked herself in her room for another day, this might be seen by Twilight as an excuse for the failure of her experiment, blaming her for not really trying, and that was the last thing the Queen wanted. Thus, venting her frustration with a grumble, she turns around, ready to face the chickens.

Seeing this, Fluttershy quickly flies to the chicken coop and opens the corral door again and enters it to talk to her chickens.

"Let's go girls. It wasn't kind of you to run away scared of our guest just because she looks... imposing," Fluttershy says to her chicken after a few seconds of thinking about the right word to describe Chrysalis in the kindest way possible. "Come on, I promise you that nothing bad will happen to you. Chrysalis, they're still a little unsure. They say they will come out If you promise them that nothing bad will happen to them."

Chrysalis suppressed a growl and, trying to sound disarming, a task that at this point was herculean for her, said:

"I promise I won't do anything bad to them."

At this, Fluttershy happily left the chicken coop and the hens cautiously began to march behind her. Then she gave the bag of seeds back to Chrysalis and encouraged her to distribute them among the poultry.

Chrysalis put her hoof into the bag and threw a handful of seeds between her and the chickens. They took a few steps forward, but before they could get any closer, they turned to see Fluttershy, who smilingly nodded in their direction to let them know that everything was fine and they had nothing to fear from the Changeling Queen.

First there was one, then two, and, to her surprise, Chrysalis quickly found dozens of chickens pecking the ground in search of seeds in front of her.

Time passed and more animals began to show up to receive food from Fluttershy, who was always kind to them. Most of them were distrustful of the Queen, but not feeling any aggression coming from her and with Fluttershy's support, they became accustomed to her presence.

The next activity Chrysalis helped Fluttershy with was bathing some of the creatures.

Inside a pair of wooden tubs, a kitten and Angel Bunny were placed and bathed with a stream of warm water. Fluttershy was going to be the one to bathe Angel, but the rabbit was uncooperative at the prospect, running away from her and swatting her with his little paws every time she tried to catch him.

"Enough!" growled Chrysalis, who was exasperated at what she saw as a disgraceful display of insubordination from the part of the white rabbit, trapping him within her telekinetic magic.

Fluttershy became extremely nervous at first, fearing what the Queen might do to her unruly pet, sighing in relief when she had just deposited Angel into her bathtub.

"I must say," Fluttershy begins to say as she bathes the cat, who does not seem pleased with the treatment she was received, unfazed by the kitten's bites and scratches, despite how gentle the pegasus was being. "I didn't expect that Her Highness could be so kind when bathing small animals."

Angel, just like the cat, was not happy with the treatment he was receiving and on one occasion caught Chrysalis's hoof with his little paws, ready to unleash his fury with a painful bite, but just before of that, his eyes crossed paths with the Queen's, who, parting her lips, revealed her own sharp teeth, making it clear to the bunny that, if he bit, she would respond in kind, just not the kind of kind he was used from the kind pegasus. Understanding the state of his situation, Angel let go of her, closed his mouth, crossed his arms, and annoyed, let the Queen continue with her ministrations.

"It shouldn't be a surprise. I have quite a bit of experience bathing small foals," answers Queen Chrysalis, pouring water from a bucket onto the angry bunny, beginning to slather it with shampoo and gently lather it. "Not mine, of course," she clarify. And before the implications of that comment said by the creature who usurps identities to steal love could become clear, she added:

"From when I was acting as a babysitter," Chrysalis half lied, half told the truth to appease Fluttershy nerves.

Next, Fluttershy took a picnic basket and they headed into the forest.

Seeing that Fluttershy, even without having her mouth busy carrying the basket, was not a pony who liked to start a conversation, the Queen began to ponder.

During all this time with Fluttershy, she was feeding on the love that saturated the cottage and its surroundings. That which came from the animals was inferior, barely nutritious, but that which came from the pegasus, a pony that seemed to have an infinite pool of love capable of encompass every living creature, was intoxicating. Even at that moment, she was emanating a love that was like a tendril that held Chrysalis by the muzzle and with which she was led.

Then it hit her.

So, this is Sparkle's real plan. She thinks she can win me over by making me believe I am dependent on her charity, making me feel like I should be grateful for the roof and food they given me. Well, I will show them that I am not a mere animal that they can cage and control with crumbs. I will not be stripped of my independence and freedom!

She thought, becoming angrier and angrier by the second.

While Chrysalis was having these thoughts, Fluttershy had stopped in a clearing in the forest. Looking around, she dropped the basket and spread the picnic tablecloth, beginning to take out the plates and food, arranging them on top of it.

I should take this opportunity, now that she is alone in the forest, away from the rest of the other ponies and their domesticated animals, and cocoon her and take on her identity. I will feed on the love they feel for her and, once full, escape and plan my revenge.

But before Chrysalis could act, a noise brought her out of those thoughts.

A large bear came out of a cave, it was dark grayish amber with grayish gold snout and underbelly. He was enormous, easily two and a half Chrysalis tall, and several times her weight. It was a mountain of hair and muscle, a fine beast, wild and free. He looked quite hungry and was heading in their direction.

An evil smile formed on her face, eager to see the pony's true and hypocritical colors once she has to face a fellow predator. Ready to use the result of this encounter as irrefutable evidence to prove that Twilight was wrong, and there was no way the ponies could accept her presence among them, much less be willing to give her unconditional love to feed on.

The bear was already standing behind the distracted pony, with its paws raised, ready to attack. The Queen thought about intervening... after the first or second blow, to gain some heroic points with which she could negotiate with the ponies.

And to the surprise of both the pony and the changeling, the bear lifted Fluttershy into a hug.

"Oh, Harry, you surprised me," Fluttershy says with a laugh, responding to the bear's hug with one of her own.

"What is this?" Chrysalis asked, once she recovered from the shock of seeing the unbelievable.

"This is Harry, my friend. We agreed to meet each other today for a picnic lunch." Fluttershy introduce him; and once the bear put her down, she introduce her. "Harry, this is Queen Chrysalis. She is staying with me today."

Before Chrysalis could form her thoughts into a proper greeting, Harry had already reached out for her, pulling her into a tight embrace.

Chrysalis's screams were lost, as she became trapped in Harry's dense fur.





Back at the cottage, the changeling and pegasus were relaxing drinking tea. Chrysalis lying on the divan and Fluttershy sit on the armchair.

"I don't understand." Chrysalis said after drinking from a cup and saucer that were levitated by a green magical aura and then placed on the table, next to a tray with cookies and scones. It was a green tea mixed with lemon and a touch of blueberries.

"What do you not understand, your highness?" Fluttershy asks after doing the same as the Queen.

"Are you a Changeling in disguise?" Chrysalis asked back.

Fluttershy blinked a few times, caught off guard by that unusual and non-sequential question.

"No, at least, I don't think so," Fluttershy answers doubtfully, not knowing if that question was rhetorical or if she was really a changeling and if she must be having an existential crisis at that moment.

"So why do you do it?" Chrysalis asked, struggling to contain the fury and frustration she was feeling at his lack of understanding. "Why do you waste so many resources cultivating a love that you don't need to live or that you can turn into power? How, why are you so kind?"

Fluttershy put her cup down, then brought her hoof to her mouth, thinking deeply about what would be the most appropriate response to give to her guest.

"I don't believe I'm wasting resources, nor do I care about them nor do I care about power. I just think Kindness, for kindness's sake, is its own reward," with a cheerful smile and beaming proudly but humble, Fluttershy give her answer.

That was not the answer the Queen was expecting to hear, and that upset her. She wasn't even sure what she was expecting as an answer, and that upset her even more.

"I think I get it now," Chrysalis responded calmly, caught in deep thought.

She didn't get it.
> The day with Rainbow Dash
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Queen Chrysalis walked through the streets of Ponyville yet again, this time guided to her new destination by Fluttershy.

Everything indicated that Twilight was right in what she had told her when she was the one who had directed her to the animal keeper, or at least that she was doing a diligent job to be right, and the looks and emotions coming from the ponies who watched them pass had decreased in intensity toward her.

She could still feel a certain fear and aversion emanating from them, but in a smaller, more tolerable and manageable dose; It was distrust. She could ignore that, especially since her attention was focused and occupied on her guide.

While on the day she actually met Fluttershy, she was slightly dazzled by the amount of Agape that the Pegasus exuded, and of which she had taken a bite or two of, this Agape was directed particularly towards the animals she cared for. Aware that by consuming part of this love she was technically breaking the rules, but if Fluttershy had realized this, it seems she didn't care.

Today Chrysalis was having a pretty good breakfast. The meek Fluttershy, who usually acted shy and nervous, today walked happily and peppy, emanating a love that Chrysalis consumed with pleasure and at ease, but with self-control so as not to hurt the pegasus or raise the levels of distrust of those who observed them.

And she could do this openly because the Queen knew that this love was directed to her, as payment and gratitude for the help she had given her, or so she assumed. But that was usually rewarded with Pragma, and no matter how much she tested it for something different, what Fluttershy was giving her was unadulterated Philia. This continued to confuse her.

Getting this kind of love from a pony can't be that easy. This doesn't make sense. It must be an anomaly. This is nothing like I know.

"Here we are," Fluttershy announced, breaking the Queen out of her musings.

Chrysalis looked ahead, seeing nothing. Ready to point out the obvious, she now followed the direction where Fluttershy's hoof was pointing, placing her eyes on something that, in her view, offended her sensibilities for what she considered good taste.

It was a house of clouds. A gaudy three store tall cloud house, each floor adorned with columns of clouds, with rainbows pouring out of it top, creating rainbow ponds on its cloud garden, spilling out towards the earth. Chrysalis knew that pony architecture tended to be an extension of her twisted personalities, but this seemed like an exaggeration even to her.

"Is that where I have to go?" Chrysalis asked, her face reflecting disgust.

"That's the house of my dear friend, Rainbow Dash. And it is with her that you will spend the day." Fluttershy said. And before she left to return to her cotage with her animals, she added: "And please, remember to be patient."

Chrysalis waited for Fluttershy to disappear into the distance and, with a grumble, unfolded her insect wings and flew in the direction of Rainbow Dash's house.

Chrysalis knocked on the door. At least this house has a door of adequate size to allow someone of my royal stature easy access. It was the first and only thing the Queen thought of as a complement to the house.

"Who's there? Oh, it's you," Rainbow Dash said in slight annoyance once she opened the door and saw Chrysalis on the other side. "You can come in."

Chrysalis entered the house and internally sighed with relief when she saw that the inside of the building was more normal than its exterior appearance implied.

The lobby, because that's what it was, was a mess. Books, boxes and various items were scattered around, without any apparent order or reason.

"What is the meaning of this?" Chrysalis asked.

"I was packing some things that I was planning to take to the academy, but I got bored and decided to stop and rest for a while."

"Didn't Twilight tell you I was coming?"

"Twilight says a lot of things that don't always make sense to me, so I tend to tune them out. So I didn't plan anything we could do," Rainbow Dash said, jumping up and letting herself fall nonchalantly on a couch.

"If you want, you can sit on that couch and rest too," the cyan pegasus said, pointing to a couch just visible among the boxes. "Or you can look around. Just be careful not to break anything, my stuffs will one day be collector's items worth a fortune, or they will be in a museum exhibit dedicated exclusively to me."

Suddenly the exterior of the house became clear to her.

Chrysalis was upset and at the same time happy. Upset by this lack of respect coming from Rainbow Dash. Happy because this was the return to normality. This was the kind of behavior she remembered and recognized from ponies, especially pegasus. Creatures who think as highly of themselves as their wings can lift them. Attitude that validated her point of view and took away the credit of Sparckle's words.

How can you ask a pegasus to give love to another creature, especially to one that is a predator, when they are so full of themselves?

This house reeked of Philautia. Philautia was not bad on its own, she herself had fed on creatures that were aware of their worth, but more times than she could count, if these individuals were not grounded in reality or their egos did not keep on check, Philautia would become narcissism. And narcissism to changelings was a kind of cage or puzzle, a long maze that needed to be solve in order to get to the good love.

The changelings have this game, a game she enjoys more as a spectator than a participant, in which they have to get a creature with narcissism and find a way to get it to give its love to them. And once love is achieved, the changeling abandons the creature never to see it again. The more severe the case of narcissism, the more outstanding the achievement. The more broken the heart is left, the funnier the anecdote becomes.

Chrysalis wandered around the space, while being taller than the average pony gave her a better view of her surroundings, her legs, being thicker, meant she had to be more careful when navigating crowded spaces, so she moved around carefuly; not because she cared about the things around her, they were all garbage to the Queen, but because she knew she was being watched.

She could feel the suspicious gaze of the blue pegasus following her every movement. Waiting for her to make a mistake, for Chrysalis to do something so Rainbow Dash could accuse her to Twilight, like a jealous little filly waiting to catch a schoolmate doing something wrong and tattle on her to the teacher to affect her grades. But the Queen knew better. If this experiment was going to fail, and by its very nature it was destined to do so, it would not be the fault of Chrysalis's nature, but of the ponies.

The first thing Chrysalis noticed was a stack of Daring Do books. Next to all that (and what was impossible to ignore) was the memorabilia regarding the Wonderbolts. Posters, books, collectible figures, next to the entrance there was a life-size statue of one. But what really caught her attention was a picture on the wall. While the print was recent, the photo belonged to an ancient time, the sepia colors gave it away.

It was a photo of one of the first teams belonging to the Wonderbolts, posing for the camera, uniform on and wings spread.

Chrysalis tapped on one of the pegasus that made up that team. It had short mane. It was difficult to tell, but it was a mare, small physical differences were an indication of this, but what clearly gave it away was that her uniform had an ornament similar to a short skirt around her hip, unlike the rest.

The Queen smile, a toothy smile, an impish smile.

"I did not know you were a fan of... me"

"What...? What was that?" Rainbow Dash asks having faintly heard Chrysalis' voice.

"I didn't know you were a Wonderbolts fan," Chrysalis responds in a louder and more animated tone, turning to face the Pegasus.

"Oh, yeah! I was a fan, their biggest, but now I'm much more than that. Now I'm an official member of the Wonderbolts!" Rainbow Dash says, almost shouting, Chrysalis wickedness flying above her head, trapped in emotion at the name of the Wonderbolts, jumping out of her couch made bed, flying, proud of her accomplishment.

"Then you wouldn't mind giving me a taste of what today's Wonderbolts can do, right?" ask Chrysalis, cocking her head.

"What do you mean?" said Rainbow, finally suspecting that the Queen was planning something.

"A race, a competition between you and me, to see who is the best flyer."

"Ha! You really think you could beat me, the faster flyer in all Equestria?"

"I will understand if you are afraid..."

"Oh, you're on!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, flying towards Chrysalis, nose to nose, fiery eyes meeting gleeful eyes.

"Follow me! If you can!" Rainbow Dash said, dashing out of her house, leaving a rainbow trail behind.

Chrysalis laughed loudly at how easy it was to manipulate the cyan pegasus to do exactly what she wanted.

I could have dared her to break rocks with her head and then watch her spill her brain out just to show how good at it she is. Well, now I know how to get rid of her if... when this experiment fails and we become enemies again, Chrysalis thought leaving the house. Looking up at the sky, in the direction of the rainbow trail, she opened her elytra, spread her wings and followed Rainbow Dash.





"Welcome to the Pegasusdrome!" Rainbow Dash announced once they touched the ground on the top of a mountain, presenting an immense building whose top had the appearance of a gigantic cloud. Dozens of pegasi could be seen entering and leaving that place.

"The Pegasusdrome is the place where we pegasi can exercise, improve our flight techniques and compete with each other to see who is the best flyer of all."

Chrysalis looked around with genuine interest. They, the Changelings, never had anything like it, never needed it; most of the physical training took place inside the hive, and the flight exercises took place in the outer space that existed around it.

Suddenly green fire emerged from the ground around Chrysalis, covering her completely, leaving a mare in her place.

"Hey, Twilight said and you agree that you wouldn't take any other forms!" After the surprise of the change, Rainbow Dash almost yelled at Chrysalis, accusing her of breaking her word, angry and ready to fight.

"Calm down, Dash! What I agreed with Twilight was that I wouldn't take other forms with the intention of deceiving anyone," Chrysalis said calmly, in a false defensive tone, with a voice that was clearly no longer hers. "This appearance is not to deceive anyone, it is to make our competition fair."

Rainbow Dash looked at the Queen suspiciously, trying to figure out if there was a trap or an evil plan at play, but she couldn't come up with any ideas, the appearance of the disguise rubbing her in the wrong way. The mare she saw in front of her was a little older than her, but not that different in build. Her coat was a dark grayish-purple, and her tail and mane, which was trimmed into a short mohawk, were a double teal color, very similar to her original changeling mane. Her cutie mark was a five-pointed blue shooting star with a trail of green fire. She was sure she knew this mare from somewhere, but she could not put her hoof from where.

"Of course, I can enter in my true form and cause a commotion. But then you don't want to say that the race wasn't fair and that your defeat wasn't valid, right?"

"In your dreams! Let's go inside, so I can beat you faster and make you eat cloud dust."

Inside the Pegasusdrome, Chrysalis and Rainbow Dash got inside the obstacle course, a wind tunnel suspended at the top of the building and that circulated throughout its entire length. Chrysalis set the difficulty to medium, but Rainbow Dash immediately, with a confident and challenging grin, set it to hard. Chrysalis's smile never left her face, simply raising an eyebrow, in a 'are you sure?' meaning. Rainbow Dash's grin just grew wider in response.

"Are you ready?!" Rainbow Dash asked, her wings spread to their fullest extent, crouching into position to start the race.

"Wait a second," said the pegasus that was now Chrysalis, beginning to stretch and contract its limbs, wings included, moving them up and down in an almost mechanical manner.

Is she warming up? Rainbow Dash wondered in bafflement. What had her confused was not imagining the Changeling Queen doing those warm-up moves, but the fact that they belonged to the old school, calling them obsolete would not be inaccurate, and the only reason she recognized them as such was because she had seen them in the history books. Who is she? The nagging feeling that she knew the mare she had next to her returned.

"I'm ready," Chrysalis said getting into position, breaking Rainbow Dash out of her musings, concentrating back on winning the race.

The two looked at the flag and the lights that would indicate the start of the race, Rainbow Dash with anticipation and Chrysalis with a disinterested calm.

For a split second, Rainbow Dash looked at Chrysalis and wondered if the disguised Changelings could maintain a face that reflected an emotion they weren't internally feeling, as if they were wearing a mask that they could program to maintain a facial expression at all times, or if Chrysalis was really so calm, so sure of her victory.

That stopped being important to Rainbow Dash almost immediately, looking intensely at the flag again.

The moment the flag lowered, and the restraining bar gave way to them, Chrysalis and Rainbow Dash started the race with a trot, a flap of their wings and in a couple of seconds, the two were already soaring through the sky track.

The first part of the obstacle course started as a sunny day with a calm breeze. While Rainbow Dash knew she needed to get a quick lead, she was aware that this part wouldn't do her any good to expend her energy, so she didn't push herself to get the lead, flying neck and neck with the pegasus that was Chrysalis's costume.

The calm breeze turned into a windy one, with a wind speed of up to 3 knots. That was the first and only obstacle of this section of the race... and when Rainbow Dash finally decided it was the time to gain the advantage, beginning to leave Chrysalis behind.

The wind began to increase its speed, now the air currents reached a speed of 7 knots and the first real obstacle appeared in the form of clouds. These were not the typical clouds that pegasi could use as resting points, squeeze them to cause rain or hit them to produce lightning. These were harmless to contact, but could obscure the sight of those who collided with them. It was better to avoid them.

The third part of the obstacle course began with an increase in wind speed, now at 10 knots, or 12 mph. False birds were added to the obstacles. Depending on the size of the 'bird' will depend on how much the hit will affect you, which wouldn't be much, but even hitting one would make you look bad among your flying teammates. Both Rainbow Dash and Chrysalis dodged them all with ease, however the cyan pegasus keep gaining advantage over the changeling.

The wind increased again, now reaching 16 knots speed, or 18 mph. Adding to the clouds and birds, the new obstacle was now some sheets of paper, simulating the leaves of the trees. Just like clouds, this accumulation of 'leaves' was mostly harmless, intended to cause the flyers to lose speed by getting stuck in their wing feathers; In the least case, a minor discomfort that would only cause a slight itch, in the worst case, hinder their flight, forcing them to have to make a pit stop to preen their feathers. Better to avoid them.

By the end of that part, Rainbow Dash already had a few hundred feet lead over Chrysalis, but she knew things were about to get... interesting.

The light began to diminish, that was the sign that the easy part of the obstacle course had ended and the medium difficulty had begun.

21 knots of wind speed, the 'walk' turned into a 'jog'.

27 knots. The clouds turn gray and hitting one of these can hurt. Rainbow Dash can hear the wind howling.

33 knots. There are no longer 'birds', but the clusters of 'leaves' have increased in size and are now accompanied by hard padded bars that act as 'branches'. Excitement and adrenaline flow through the body of the cyan pegasus as she swayed from side to side, up and down, avoiding that and all obstacles. The road was getting darker.

Still confident in her abilities and her assured victory, Rainbow Dash looks back, expecting to see the Changeling Queen far behind, having trouble with the weather obstacles, but to her surprise, Chrysalis is flying with the same ease with which she started the race and was closing the distance. Her face showing a confidence very similar to that of the rainbow-maned pegasus.

40 knots, 46 mph winds. The gale. They were officially entering the danger zone. Pegasus without proper training were not supposed to fly under these conditions.

47 knots. The most difficult part of the obstacle course started here. This was 'Lock yourself in your house, close the doors, and stay away from the windows' territory. The wind was so strong that Rainbow Dash felt like she was carrying one of the heavy training vests and a movement restrictor on her wings. Being hit by the smaller obstacles was equivalent to being stoned and colliding with one of the larger obstacles would be more equivalent to a knock out than a pit stop. Chrysalis was not doing better, but the Queen continued to close the distance.

55 knots! THE STORM! This was 'Applejack's barn is about to be torn from its foundations and thrown into Manehattan.' Only Wonderbolts and weather control veteran Pegasus were intended to fly in these conditions, and only to save lives. The small obstacles were left behind, or rather had become inconsequential. Now what the pegasus and the changeling had to worry about were the bars that were now as thick as tree trunks. But Rainbow Danger Dash wasn't about to give up so close to the finish line and especially when she was about to dunk on one of their (if not the) worst enemy. So she pushed onward, to go even further beyond!

63 KNOTS! THUNDERSTORM!! This was 'Ponyville is about to be wiped off the map' kind of storm. Winds moving at 1/10 the speed of sound. Lightning bolts were added to the list of obstacles. One wrong move and you would have to be taken to the ER. If there was a moment of doubt in Rainbow Dash's mind, this was it. Even Chrysalis allowed worry and fear to show on his face; she was a Changeling Queen, but not even Celestia would be foolish enough to challenge the power of unleashed nature.

Well, that is my answer, Rainbow Dash thought, remembering her question before the race.

This was it! This was what Rainbow Dash had been waiting for and this was the time to take advantage of! Pushing with everything she had, and flying as fast as she could, she pushed forward, ready to overcome the last obstacle!

70 KNOTS!! HURRICANE!!! This was no-pony land, where winds howled at speeds greater than 80 miles per hour. Only Alicorns or a small battalion of well-trained pegasi were capable of facing this kind of climate, and coming out unscathed was not guaranteed. Luckily for Rainbow Dash, she didn't need to face it, just walk through it.

While Chrysalis was busy navigating the storm clouds, dodging the lightning bolts, Rainbow Dash entered the swirling winds, struggling not to lose control of her flight. She was trapped by the strong winds, but she remained in control. In the middle of it all, there it was, the eye of the storm! That was a safe place where one could escape and take refuge from the strong winds, but it was also an obstacle, a trap! To pass this test, you had to overcome the hurricane, entering its eye meant having to re-enter the storm once again, and it was a guaranteed that the second time it would hit you even harder than the first time you entered.

Avoiding obstacles that could kill any pegasus, Rainbow Dash was ready to get out of the hurricane and win the race. When the winds brought her close to the opposite end of the storm, she folded one of her wings while stretching the other to its maximum extension, allowing and ensuring that all of her momentum was directed in a single direction and that direction was outward of the hurricane.

"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash celebrated once she was out of the whirling winds, opening both wings again.

So sure was she of her victory that she slowed down and turned around, only to see the hurricane take over the Queen.

Chrysalis had finally left the lightning bolts behind and with surprise and awe she saw the last of the obstacles. She, too, could see that on the other side and almost completely stopped, was Rainbow Dash, cocky as ever.

Oh, it's on! Chrysalis thought, changing her surprised face to a big confident grin.

Spreading her wings, Chrysalis contracts her muscles so that her secondary feathers rise on her right wing and lowered on her left wing, beginning to spin faster and faster around her longitudinal axis.

Within a couple of seconds, she was spinning so fast that the image of the pegasus was no longer visible, now a shooting star took her place, leaving a trail of green flames that propelled her forward, increasing her speed.

In this form, the shooting star entered the hurricane, cutting in a straight line through the strong winds that were deflected by the spinning force.

Rainbow Dash stands stunned in her place, all thoughts regarding the race forgotten as she witnesses and recognizes that movement.

Before she could even react, the shooting star had broken through the hurricane; rushing past her, the strong air current it carried making Rainbow Dash spin in place.

Finally, the shooting star begins to slow down, both in its forward movement and in its spin, the figure of the pegasus reappearing in time to descend on solid ground, having won the race.

Rainbow Dash lands seconds later, rolling and sliding across the platform, stopping at the feet of the pegasus that was Queen Chrysalis, who saw her wearing a victorious smile.

"That was the 'Jade Flame Shooting Star Aileron Roll'! But, but, but, but that would mean that you are... you are...!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, finally recognizing the mare in front of her.

The mare is engulfed by a bubble of green fire, and when the flames disappear, she is wearing a Wonderbolts uniform, one with a skirt-like attachment around her hip, being the same image and position of the mare in the photo that Rainbow Dash had in her house.

"Fast Flame!"





Chrysalis and Rainbow Dash return to the cloud house, the first in her true form, still wearing a triumphant smile, from time to time her happiness was accentuated by some chuckles; the second was still in shock, processing what happened at the Pegasusdrome.

On this occasion Chrysalis took possession and a place on the large sofa that Dash had used as a bed in the morning.

With nowhere else to rest, Rainbow Dash took the single couch.

"What? When? Who? How?" Rainbow Dash asked quickly, finally recovering from her shock, wanting to know, well, everything!

"He, he, he, he," Chrysalis laughed once more before telling her story. "Back in the old days, when the Wonderbolts were formed as Equestria's air defense force, they became a mystery of great interest to us Changelings. We needed to know if this group of pegasi were going to be a problem, a nuisance or a non issue for us. So, I started sending changelings who could infiltrate them and get us an answer. But there was a problem. We could easily fake identities for each of the dozens of spies I sent, but at that time, our talents in the art of flight were not what they are today, so none were accepted. The only changeling with the ability to match and surpass your average pegasus was me.

"With a little 'Changeling Magic' to create an identity from scratch, and a changeling with the talent to pass the entrance exams, Fast Flame was accepted into the ranks of the Wonderbolts!

"Mind you, maybe it would have been a better idea to go incognito like a stallion over a mare, because back then females were rare in the military ranks, and this made it more difficult to blend in and not stand out. Also females were force to use some additions in their uniforms, such as the 'aerodynamik skirt', this do to the prevalent belief that female pegasi could not fly as good nor as fast as males, what a bunch of nonsense."

Rainbow Dash let out a low growl. She was not deaf to the truth, but she did not like to hear things that tarnished the good name of the Wonderbolts, no matter how true and valid they were.

"Ah, but you see, a good spies knows to take advantage of their identity disadvantages. Yes, the majority of the Wonderbolts were not happy to have a mare on their team and they never lost an opportunity to let me know, constantly catcalling me or through similar behaviors. But among them there was a fool among fools. His name was Storm Chaser. I would call him a pig, but that would be an insult to the porks.

"He was shameless, always trying to look down my tail. Always showering me with the most insulting pick up lines. He was a tool and I had all the intention to use him as such. You see, while his attitude was the worst, his feelings were genuine... to some extent, and so, he became my energy source during the mission.

"The rest, wanting to get rid of me, began an investigation about me, looking through my past, or rather Fast Flame none existing past, trying to find something with which to expel me, now that it had become clear that their behavior would not be enough. We changelings are masters in the forging of identities, but our trails don't then to go very far. It is one thing to falsify a birth certificate, another one is to forge an entire life full of memories in which other ponies have participated and can vouch for the existence of our false identity. Too much effort for what tends to be a life of a few days or a low-risk infiltration.

"Which meant I had to leave early, before they catch on the fact that Fast Flame does not actually have a past to investigate. Not a big problem, between the insults and the amount of intel I have manage to gatter thus far, I concluded that the Wonderbolts would be nothing more than a sideline annoyance for us changelings, at that time.

"But at the exact moment I was ready to leave, we received an emergency call. A level 5 storm formed in the north and was heading towards Cloudsdale, and all active members of the Wonderbolts were called in to help. Can you guess what happen next?"

"The storm of '87!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, knowing what Chrysalis was talking about.

"That's right! From time to time I visited the Wonderbolts museum, to see my memorial and admire my medals... well, until the museum was renovated and my things stored who knows where.

"Mind you, if I had known that my heroic but mysterious 'Missing In Action' would eventually spark an investigation that would allow the development of the Wonderbolts from being a dude-bro fraternity to an actual competent branch of the equestria military, I would have just saved the day, accepted the medals, then quit and disappear into obscurity."

"You were part of the Wonderbolts," Dash said in a new state of shock. "I probably wouldn't be a Wonderbolt if it weren't for you."

"Yeah, just... do not go screaming about it to the four winds, would you? Is not one of my proudest moments, now it seems," said Queen Chrysalis, petting Tank the turtle, who had finally come down from the third floor to see who visited them, a reflex she gained after her time with Fluttershy.
> The day with Rarity
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Queen Chrysalis was grouchy. Her head hurt, she felt dizzy and anxious; or in other words, she was hungry. The trick she pulled in the Pegasusdrome the other day had cost her almost all of her energy reserves, but there was no way she was going to let herself be beaten by that pegasus named Rainbow Dash, her lack of respect couldn't go without answer. Sadly the love she was able to extract from her pet turtle by petting it, once back at the cloud house, was barely enough to allow her to maintain the appearances.

So hungry was she that that day she walked slowly and heavily through the streets of Ponyville, not even aware of the ponies around her, only emotions that she couldn't clearly distinguish, they were not love, so they may not even exist for her at that moment; all her attention occupied, consumed, by her hunger, while the pegasus moved, flying lazily a few inches above her.

She had not felt this hungry since her fight with the Princess of Friendship in the caves of that mysterious island. If it had not been for her need for a source of emotions from which to feed, she would never have agreed to anything the pony proposed and flown away the moment she left the mine. In a truth that she will never reveal, that love Twilight felt for her family and friends after the landslide was most likely the only reason why both were able to survive and leave that place alive.

There was no other reason, she thought, trying to convince herself of this. Fate had simply dropped the pieces that way, both for her misfortune... and for my fortune. That last thought put a smile on the Queen's mouth, but the growling of her stomach turned her smile into a frown almost immediately.

Unlike Twilight, who fed her with her love for books, and Fluttershy who fed her with her love for the animals that she took care of, Rainbow Dash wasn't giving her anything.

Oh, Rainbow Dash was oozing an emotion, just not one she could properly feed off healthily. It was frustration. Why or to whom? Chrysalis couldn't say, that wasn't how her ability to sense emotions worked, she could only guess. That was a job for her hypnotic powers, but that went against the rules she had agreed to, and even if she didn't care to follow them anymore, again, she was to low on energy to do so.

The obvious answer would be that the origin of her frustration must be because she had lost the race in that gym for pegasi, but this frustration was not against her, if that were the case she would feel it more intensely as it was directed towards her; but it had to be with something related to her, she had started to feel this frustration emanating from Rainbow Dash from the moment she opened the door, and it only intensified when they saw each other again today.

Between the hunger and the annoyance of not receiving the emotion she needed to live, being bombarded by an unhealthy emotion and all that accompanied by the annoying curiosity to know where it came from, Chrysalis needed to do something.

"What's your problem, Dash? Does it bother you that much to realize that your beloved Wonderbolts weren't always an admirable bunch?" Chrysalis asked, fishing for the truth.

"What? No! It's not that," Rainbow Dash responded, slightly insulted.

"So you're just upset because you can't tolerate the fact that you lost to someone better than you?" the Queen pressed, her annoyance at not getting an answer rising.

"I guess you're the expert on how it feels to lose to someone better than you, right?" snipe back the pegasus.

For a second Chrysalis forgot about her hunger, anger taking complete control over her.

Turning to look directly at the pegasus, the changeling growled, like the growl of a true wild animal. So fierce and loud that all creatures who heard it stopped all activity to pay attention to the scene that was being presented in front of them.

Rainbow Dash didn't back down and met Chrysalis' furious gaze with one of pure determination, almost as if daring the changeling to jump on her and start a fight.

But between blinks, Rainbow Dash looked around and saw all the civilians who would surely be involved in the conflict between them, and she gave in.

"I apologize," leaving behind the aggressive features, and raising her front hooves in a disarming manner, Rainbow Dash offered.

The Queen abandoned her combat stance, taking a neutral pose. The only reason she didn't attack Rainbow Dash and turn her into an emotionless shell in those moments, was because she genuinely felt surprised by that unexpected action of the pegasus. Unexpected and genuine, if the guilt emanating from her was meant to be trusted.

Seeing that the feeling of aggression between the changeling and the pegasus had dissipated, the rest of the inhabitants of Ponyville returned to their daily activities.

"I shouldn't have said that," Rainbow Dash continued. "No, I'm not upset that you 'technically' won the race -but you and I know that if I hadn't stopped at the end, I would have been the winner- it has nothing to do with that. Look, it's something which you don't have to worry about, okay?" she concluded defensive and dismissively, crossing her front hooves and looking away.

Chrysalis accepted her apology and her response, even if she never truly answered the question, deciding not to press further. Her anger and her hunger giving way a little to these more positive sentiments directed at her.

"Well, here we are," Rainbow Dash said after a few minutes of walking, stopping in front of her next destination.

Chrysalis looked at the building with mild interest. It looked extravagant, but not in the gaudy and exaggerated way like the house of the pegasus. From the outside it had a cylindrical shape, with decorative pillars and pony sculptures lining the lower and upper exterior. And as she later found out, the house, which was also a business, lived up to its name by looking like a fairground carousel.

"This is where Rarity lives," Rainbow Dash pointed out. "Oh... and... well... she is... you know..." she stumbles at speaking, having trouble with what to say and how to say goodbye. "Just be cool, okay!" and with that, the pegasus flies away at high speed, leaving a rainbow trail on her path, back to her home in the clouds.

Seeing an 'Open' sign hanging on the door, she opens it without knocking, immediately being greeted by the sound of a bell.

"Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where every garment is chic, unique and magnifique!", sing-song Rarity coming out from behind some curtains.

"Why, hello, hello! I was expecting you much sooner." Rarity says the moment she opens her eyes and sees that it is the Changeling Queen. "Please, come in and do not forget to brush your hooves before you enter."

Struck by this odd and unexpected behavior, the Queen does as she was told, wiping her hooves on the mat before entering the business house.

"Please, your highness, follow me and step over there," says the white unicorn, not allowing Chrysalis to have a word in the conversation, directing her to a display area.

The Queen, still stunned, stands on a platform surrounded by three large oval mirrors. A few seconds later, Rarity reappears with glasses on her face, a pencil, a notebook, and a measuring stick floating around her, all held by her magical aura.

After a few minutes of writing, doodling, and uncomfortable takes of measurements for the changeling, and being covered by multiple pieces of various fabrics, Chrysalis finally realizes that she is Queen, and begins to act as such.

"What is the meaning of all this?" Chrysalis ask, freeing her sight from a heavy piece of salmon pink velvet fabric and shaking her right front leg, trying to remove a red ribbon that somehow managed to get tangled between her holes.

"Hoof down and stand still, please," Rarity says without bothering to look at Chrysalis, still focused on her notebook and the notes she made in it.

Chrysalis lower her hoof and rize her head, and after the two or three seconds it took her to realise she had just follow a command, a pony's command no less, without a second thought her face contorted into an angry scowl with just a taint of shame on her.

"Are you testing my patience, pony!?" Chrysalis exclaims, this time shaking her entire body, throwing all traces of fabric from her body.

Rarity finally stops her scribbling to look over her glasses at the Queen, unamused, the years of dealing with unruly customers showing themself in the form of her calm.

"Why, of course, darling! This is all to see if you're capable of working in a modern society with all its ups and downs without becoming a criminal. And remember, this is for your own good," she replies smiling and animated, then added: "Besides, although this is a test, this behavior I am having with you is exactly the same that I have with all my clients and friends."

"Also, my name is Rarity, and I would much appreciate if her highness refer to me as such," Rarity concluded, with a little bit more of sharp in her tone to make that point cross.

"Fine, Rarity," concide the Queen, almost growling the name. "I repeat: What is the meaning of all this? And this time I would much appreciate for an answer," the Queen responds back, showing that she could also wield a bit of a sharp on her words to make her point cross. For good measure, she also show the sharp she wield on her teeths.

For a second there, Chrysalis could see that Rarity's brave mare mask had fallen off, showing a bit of fear by taking an uncertain step back. But as quickly as it fell, the business mare mask returned to its place, and so does the hoof.

"Well, if you must know, I'm working on a dress for a client, but since this client is royalty, and there aren't many mannequins of her measurements and proportions that I can use, you are the perfect model for this job."

"You could just tell me who your client is and I could transform in it, if I ever met him or her", said Chrysalis in a more sedate tone.

"You can do that," Rarity said in a sotto voice, more to herself than to her guest, half a statement half a question.

Chrysalis began to feel a lot of conflicting emotions emanating from the unicorn. Ideas were being born, gears moving at incredible speed, her eyes moving from the Queen to the privacy of her mind to weigh the viability of said ideas.

For a second Chrysalis felt in danger, afraid that this mare would jump on her and keep her locked in her basement or dug a hole to trap her in, forcing her to do unspeakable things in exchange for enough love to keep her alive. 

But before Chrysalis could run and jump out the window, Rarity let out a nervous and dismissive laugh, reining once again over her emotions, as if she had finally discarded all those ideas born from realizing how beneficial it would be for her to have someone with the transformation abilities of the Changelings, or at the very least, file them to return to them later.

"No, dear, I could never ask you for something like that. Besides, I hold my clients' privacy in high regard."

Chrysalis held a sigh. Not only because the sense of danger had disappeared, but because she wasn't sure she could sustain a transformation for a prolonged amount of time, not with her current low energy levels, and she didn't want to look weak or needy in front of anyone, much less one of her enemies.

But her mistake wasn't offering her help to rush whatever the fashionista was working on, no; her mistake was thinking about how hungry she was, for that was what her stomach needed to make itself heard in the form of a loud gurgle.

"What was that?" Rarity asked at a blushing Chrysalis.

"I assume Twilight has shared my dietary needs with all of you, correct?" Chrysalis asked.

Rarity responded with a nod.

"Well, your friend Rainbow Dash has not been the most loving of hosts," the Changeling Queen responded, a tinge of anger towards the pegasus in her words.

"That I can believe."

"Well, that won't do," Rarity said after a moment of consideration, removing her glasses and putting away her sewing tools in a nearby drawer. "Follow me."

"Where we'll be going?"

"I can't work having you all hungry, can I? We will go outside to have a snack."

The Changeling Queen was confused by what the unicorn had just said. She was sure Rarity wasn't going to take her to cocoon a pony and feed off it’s emotions, but after what had transpire less than a minute before, she would not put it past her to do so now. Intrigued, Chrysalis followed her out of the store, back in to Ponyville.



 

"Welcome to 'The Kiss of the Rose', may I take your order?" Finally a waitress approached with a nervous smile, having lost a game of 'Hoof, Wing, Horn' to see who would serve that table.

"I'll have a carrot a la crêpe and a camellia tea to drink for both! And for my company, tell Pandion to prepare his best dish number '8', which has to be fit for a queen," Rarity said masterfully and without pause, demonstrating how frequent her visits to this establishment were.

Rarity hadn't lied when she said they were going out for a snack. 'The Kiss of the Rose' turned out to be quite a romantic restaurant for couples in love to visit, even with the wide girth of space that the rest of the couples were giving them, Chrysalis could taste, savor and enjoy the love that permeated the atmosphere.

"I'm quite happy that you're enjoying the establishment, but you might want to use a napkin there, you're salivating, and a lady, and especially a queen, never salivates in public.

"Can you blame me?" Chrysalis said taking the offered napkin, wiping and hiding her mouth with it, still savoring the love. "No offense, but the love you feel for your dresses, the love your friend Dash feels for herself, the love Twilight feels for her books, and even the love Shy feels for her animals can't be compared to this kind of love. It doesn't help that I haven't tasted a similar love in months."

"That is understandable, but please, don't overdo it, I wouldn't want to start hearing couples fighting around us for lack of love."

After a few minutes of waiting, the waitress returns, balancing a tray with their orders on her back, skillfully placing it on the table, and arranging the orders in front of them.

A plate with a carrot crepe for Rarity and a mysterious plate, as it was hidden under a cloche, for Chrysalis. The waitress nervously placed the plate in front of the imposing Changeling Queen. Usually this behavior would annoy her, but in those moments she was almost drunk with love and, feeling generous, she didn't give it any importance. She was so content that she wouldn't mind eating pony food.

And it was for that very reason that when she raised the bell she was quite surprised that accompanying some slices of orange, tomato, onion, lettuce leaves and so on, there was a roasted fish, in fact, the fish was the centerpiece of the dish.

"How?"

"Twilight." Rarity responded, beginning to eat, using her magic to levitate her cutlery. "Since she arrived in this town, many things have changed. We haven't been in conflict with the griffons for a long time, but seeing one was a very rare sighting. Now? Ponyville is a glamorous tourist spot that attracts many of the creatures that inhabit the rest of the world, not just Equestria. And since not all of them are strictly vegetarian, some alternatives had to be implemented.

"Pandion is a griffon who loves to make dishes and was hired to satisfy the carnivorous needs of all creatures that wish to taste meat here. Of course, as a predominantly Pony town, we are still apprehensive about these dishes, which is why they do not appear on the menu, so as not to scare away what is still the majority of the commensals."

Chrysalis listened carefully to what Rarity was telling her, she also using her magic to levitate her cutlery and eat her fish. It didn't have the taste and potency that only love can have, but the taste of properly prepared meat was a pleasantly welcome experience.

Sitting comfortably, satisfying both of her hungers, listening to all the information related to the rest of the Elements of Harmony and what had happened to them in the last few months that Rarity was sharing with her, reminded Chrysalis of those occasions when her Scouts and Infiltrators returned to the Hive and reported anything of interest and importance that happened in the world, that's how she had found out about the royal wedding. In truth, prior to the invasion of Canterlot, she had not left the hive for years, if not centuries. Her duties as Queen had prevented her from doing so. This was pleasant.

Suddenly something came to her senses, caughting her attention.

"...Did you roll in sugar? Because you are so sweet..."

*snickers*

"...And your hair is brighter than Celestia's sun..."

*Chuckles*

"Did I say something funny?" Rarity stop her talk and confused asked, seeing that Chrysalis was about to burst into guffaws.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it's just..." Chrysalis apologized to Rarity, then turned in her seat, in the direction of one of the couples surrounding her... "Hey, girl! I hope you're not falling in love with those nymph-level sliminess, because the only thing that colt wants from you is a one-night stand, if all the lust he's emanating is any indication of his intentions."

The couple first looked worried at the tall black figure who called them; when they finished hearing her words, the mare looked at her confused. The stallion, If it had been another stallion or a nosy mare who had said those words, would have stood up and demanded an apology, but because the one who had spoken was a Changeling Queen, giving her an angry look would have to suffice.

The stallion returned his gaze to his date, ready to offer to continue the date elsewhere, but the stern look he received, demanding to know if what Chrysalis had said was true, made him blush and hang his head in shame.

The mare wiped her lips with the napkin and then tossed it on top of the rest of the food, and left with her head held high and her dignity intact. The stallion, feeling the many eyes on him, dropped some coins on the table and ran in the opposite direction.

"You can know that?" Rarity asked her once the scene was over.

"It's called 'Eros', my dear; lust, heat, the carnal love that every creature experiences unless it wants to become extinct. And yes, we Changelings can tell when someone is feeling frisky!"

Given this admission, an uncomfortable silence fell over all the tables of 'The Kiss of the Rose'; glances avoiding glances and many blushes found home among the cheeks of everyone present, Rarity included.

"Stop that!" Chrysalis said to Rarity.

"Stop what?" Rarity asked, taken by surprise by the Queen's sudden exclamation.

"You're starting to have thoughts. Thoughts I don't like."

"Am I doing it? Are you reading my mind?" Rarity asks back, masking her accusation with a playful smile.

"I don't need to read your mind. You have your untoward intentions written all over your face."

"Oh, okay, I'm doing it! But you have to understand, you possess a particular set of impressive and useful skills that many would very much love to have at their disposal."

"And abuse of them," Chrysalis declare.

"As you have done," Rarity punctuate.

"For the survival of my species, not for my amusement," Chrysalis defend herself back.

Rarity only smirked and raised an eyebrow, resting her head on one of her hooves, looking around at the remains of the scene caused by Chrysalis with one of said skills.

"Ok, fine. From time to time I do things for my enjoyment. Is that a crime in pony society?"

"As long as you don't go around causing broken hearts between couples, I'd say it's fine."

"As a love devourer, I tell you that I would never do anything so despicable," the Changeling Queen swore... and then added through her teeth and as a wisper: "...without a good reason."

Rarity stared at her, with an unamused expression, but after a few seconds she smiled.

"We're done here," she said, calling for the waitress to bring the bill and pay for the food.

"Follow me, there is still a place I want us to visit before we return to the boutique," leaving a generous tip, Rarity and Queen Chrysalis left 'The Kiss of the Rose'.





"I must say, dear, you're handling the heat a lot better than I expected," Rarity complimented Chrysalis, seeing how unaffected the Queen was by the hotness around them.

"Oh, this is far from a volcano. And besides, we Changelings prefer and handle high temperatures better, so this is most pleasant," Chrysalis responded.

Both were resting on wooden benches in a sauna room, within the Ponyville Spa facilities. Rarity was wearing her personal, customized robe and a towel covering her mane. Not having a queen-sized robe, Chrysalis was wearing three towels, one around her neck and two over her barrel.

From time to time a blue earth pony bathed with water a pile of stones that were heated inside a stove, filling the space with steam.

"Oh, but forgive my interruption. Please do continue. What were you telling me about him?"

"I was telling you that his 'marefriend' was a Changeling," Chrysalis says.

"I can't believe it!" Rarity exclaims at what the Changeling Queen was gossiping about to her.

"Mhmm," Chrysalis nodded, reaffirming what she had said.

"But all this time, all those photos in which he kissed her and the interviews in which he confirmed how much he loved her; the supposed child they were expecting!?"

"All a ruse."

"Did he know?"

"He knew he was a male, that's how they met, but he never knew he was a Changeling."

"That's horrible!" Rarity said, appalled by that revelation, and... wait! "'Male'?" Rarity asks, her mouth dry.

"Yes! Male... and that's how he wanted it. But his record label and his manager forbid it, bad for business when a star becomes publicly unattainable for the demographic that makes up the majority of those who attend concerts and buy the merchandise. Luckily for him, Changeling! A couple of seconds behind a closed door and Instant Marefriend! for when you have to appear in public. And when the lights go out, the curtains close and a few more seconds of waiting in your private residence, back to colt."

"¿Was this common among changelings?" ask Rarity, completely enraptured by curiosity.

"Sometimes a trooper has to do what a trooper has to do to bring love to the hive."

Rarity go flustered, and not because of the heat of the sauna, but because of the thoughts and detailed images that ran through her mind.

"Oh, yes, that's it! Good and spicy," Rarity overhears Chrysalis, watching her enjoy the lus 'Eros' she was emanating, snapping her out of those thoughts, pushing herself to think about new ones.

"Tell me, dear, speaking of forbidden loves... can you fall in love?" Rarity asked with a sly grin, once Lotus dropped another spoonful of water onto the hot stones and left them alone in the room.

"Of course we Changelings can fall in love. Families also exist in the hive," Chrysalis answers, surprised by that question that seemed silly and insulting.

"That's fascinating, dear Queen, but it seems you misunderstood me. When I said ‘you’, I specifically meant you. Have you ever fallen in love with someone?"

Now was the turn for Chrysalis to be taken aback, raising her head and blinking a few times, thinking.

"Are you coming onto me, pony?" ask back the Changeling Queen with a sassy smile to challenge Rarity's one.

"Ha, ha, ha!" laughed Rarity in good nature. "While it's true that I already bought you dinner, I think we're still a little bit far from that," she jest back.

Rarity could have pressed for an answer, but she wouldn't be a good socialite if she didn't pick up social clues easily, and what Chrysalis had said was meant to say that she didn't want to answer that question; and so, Rarity did not ask further and remained silent, enjoying the moment.

With that question left behind, Chrysalis also realized that she too was enjoying the moment. This particular day she had had quite positive experiences that she didn't remember having or being a part of...ever? Whatever it may be, she thought she wouldn't mind sharing these lovely experiences again... Wait, 'sharing', 'love'?! At that thought a pang of fear an adrenaline rush over the Queen, but she manage to not show it. As calmly and nonchalant as she could fake it, Chrysalis lifted one of her front legs, and looked at it as if she were appreciating a polished hoof.

It was still as black as ever, and all her holes were still in place.

Suppressing another sigh of relief, Chrysalis rested her leg once again on the surface of the wooden bench as if nothing had happened, as if her heart wasn't pounding as fast and hard as it was doing so in that instant.

She couldn't be careless. She had to be mindful of her emotions and feelings now that she was aware that, if she did not keep them in check, they could betray her, and push her into 'reformation'.

She shuddered at that thought.

And yet, if all that was needed to keep enjoying such pleasant experiences was to reform... Would it be so bad for me to do so?

For the first time since she could remember, the Queen felt unsure.
> The day with Applejack
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

After the Sauna, the Queen and Rarity returned to the Carousel Boutique, where she and the fashionista continued on the design of the dress the unicorn was working on. The only difference this time was that Rarity asked for her opinion.

"I'm working on a dress for royalty, so who better to give an opinion on what it should look like than someone who is royalty?" Rarity asked and Chrysalis obliged as best as she could.

Of all the sapient creatures in the world, the Changelings were most likely the ones who disdained the concept of clothing more than any other. Clothes did not exist in the hive because they were not necessary, at least not to wear, there were so many things more important to their survival than to waste their resources on something as frivolous and superficial as that. Some Changelings had clothes, but these were a kind of hunting trophies, the rest were resold so that the infiltrators could finance their false lives to a certain extent, or burned to bring heat to the hive. 99 out of 100 times if a Changeling needed to wear clothing during an infiltration, they could always just copy it from the stores and make it part of their costume. And for those rare occasions when they need or are forced to wear real clothes, as was her case with the wedding dress, or when the weather becomes too cold to function, they could simply buy them or steal them.

As such, they, the Changelings, including her, never bothered to develop skills related to the textile industry. So Chrysalis kept her contributions vague and related to what she found attractive in pony fashion, so as not to come off as ignorant.

Chrysalis thought Rarity wouldn't find her recommendations fashionable, but if the unicorn did, she didn't show it. She just entered one more of her deep thought states, scrunching up her face and after a few seconds she squeaked, "Idea!" and then she pushed the Queen out of the store, saying that she needed to concentrate on her work alone.

That was how she ended her interaction with that pony for the day, deciding to return to her room in Twilight's castle.

Chrysalis should have been happy when, upon seeing the Princess of Friendship again, she told her that for her next social interaction with one of her friends, for that occasion she would finally go alone. And in the beginning that's how it was. Finally free from being babysitted! No more uncomfortable walks that make me feel like an animal being taken for a walk, the Queen thought, happily. She must have known that there would be a catch to this, and a catch to this there was.

Chrysalis opens her mouth, showing her white fangs slightly tinged with green, her forked tongue extending out of her mouth, letting out a yawn.

It turned out that the reason for this was that, even if she herself had misunderstood that she had established a positive (if not good) relationship with the white unicorn, Rarity had declined to interrupt her beauty sleep just to lead the Queen to Applejack's farm, once she found out at what time her farm pony friend was demanding Chrysalis's presence.

"Don't hold it againts Rarity," Twilight told the Queen apologetically once she shared the news. "It's nothing personal, I assure you. That's just how she is. The world could be in trouble and we could be called upon to defend it, and our biggest challenge would be waking up Rarity in the middle of the night," the purple alicorn joked in good nature.

There were still two or three hours before Celestia woke up and the sun rose by the time Chrysalis reached Sweet Apple Acres.

"Howdy!" Applejack welcomes the Queen with her distinctive and cheerful country accent, leaning against the fence, wielding a laso.

"Why did you ask for me to be here so early?" Chrysalis asks, blinking lazily, fighting to shake off the drowsiness she still carried.

"Well, I thought if you were going to continue up this far, I could use your help doing work for the farm for the day."

*Grumble, grumble*

"What was that?" Applejack asked in a lightly reproachful tone.

"Nothing. I mean, where would we start?"

"That's the spirit! Follow me," Applejack said more cheerfully, leading Chrysalis.

"Here at Sweet Apple Acres we grow multiple crops; from corn, beans, pumpkins and carrots," Applejack began to introduce, almost as if she were a tourist guide. "But I suppose you can guess what our quintessential crop is, right?" asked the farm pony, stopping in front of a field full of apple trees as far as the eye could see.

"Apples, goody!" Chrysalis responded with a hint of disgust.

"Oh, yeah! I seem to remember you were not fond of my apples, back at the wedding." Applejack recalled, unloading baskets and buckets from a cart. Chrysalis could feel a sense of hurt and annoyance coming from the pony.

"They are crunchy and sour. If you don't bite them correctly they make an annoying noise and leave you with an uncomfortable sensation, not to mention that there is nothing more annoying that when part of their skin gets stuck between your teeth."

"That's fair," Applejack replied understandingly.

"I prefer peaches or strawberries," Chrysalis added.

"HA!" Applejack let out a laugh at that revelation.

"What's so funny about that?" Chrysalis asked defensibly, slightly angry at the earth pony's laughing outburst.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound rude," Applejack said, aware that her reaction may have come as mocking. "I am only surprised to discover that the fearsome Changeling Queen, twice almost conqueror of Equestria, has a sweet tooth."

"What exactly do you want me to do?" Chrysalis asked, trying to change the subject, not liking these feelings of vulnerability.

"Well, if it's not obvious, you will help me harvest all these apples."

"That's all?" Chrysalis asked, slightly annoyed, finding that this task did not require her to be woken up so early.

The Queen stood in front of the nearest apple tree, closed her eyes and her horn began to shine emerald green, feeling all the apples on the tree, holding them in her magical aura. But before she could give the telekinetic command to rip them all off the tree, Applejack swat her in the horn with her hat.

"That's not how we do it around here, Queeny, and especially not on my farm," Applejack says, removing her hat from Chrysalis's horn, returning it to her head, preempting anything Chrysalis might ask.

"And how are these things supposed to be done around here?"

"The way of the Earth Ponies."

"Oh, I hope this isn't some tribalistic thing," Chrysalis accused, rolling her eyes.

"It is not!" Applejack responded quickly, too quickly to convince the Queen otherwise. "I mean, it is, but at it's heart, it's not."

"This should be interesting to hear," Chrysalis said, skeptical, but interested to know.

"Earth Pony tradition aside, there is a reason why it falls on us Earth Ponies, and the way we reap almost all the fruits," Applejack began her explanation, stepping in front of one of the apple trees, placing one of her hoofs on its trunk. "Because when we buck the trees, we not only shake them with the sufficient and necessary force to make them drop the ripe fruits, we are also communicating with the tree, letting them know our desire and need for their fruits. And from this it is the tree that decides which fruits are ready to fall. After all, who can better judge which fruits are ripe than the tree on which they grew?" Applejack concludes, demonstrating how she bucks an apple tree, and watches as only the perfectly ripe apples fall into the buckets and baskets and onto the ground surrounding them.

Chrysalis's senses began to feel something, it wasn't exactly love; It was something that mixed Philautia, Pragma, Philia and Storge. Applejack was exuding pride; pride in herself, pride in her heritage, in her birthright, pride in her work, pride in the tree and even in the apples.

Suddenly, Chrysalis's drowsiness decreased as she fed on it, gaining energy.

"Ah, I'm sorry if I couldn't explain it well, I must have made little to no sense," Applejack says, scratching the back of her neck with one of her forelegs, misunderstanding Chrysalis' loud chewing.

"No, no; I think I understand," Chrysalis said, somewhat annoyed that her plate of pride had so suddenly transformed into shame. "It's Earth Pony magic. The Pegasi couldn't buck the trees hard enough to get enough fruits down to make it worth their effort, especially lacking Earth Pony magic, and flying to get them would take a long time, as they must analyze if the fruits are ripe and pluck them one by one. And collecting them properly with magic would be extremely difficult for the caster who would need to fix the spell so that it can tell if the fruit is ready to be harvested or not, a group of characteristics that are not set since each fruit is unique, and even then, having to cast this spell, even if it could be cast on each tree instead of each fruit, would probably burn through it's magical reserves rather fast."

"You must be a lumberjack, because with that sharpness you just let me stump," Applejack proclaimed once she shook off the surprise of knowing how well Chrysalis understood things.

"Yes, well, you know your food source, I know mine; but that still leaves us with a problem. I'm not an Earth Pony, I'm a Changeling Queen and the most likely thing we'd get if I bucked this tree is that I would break it," Chrysalis assured. She was aware that in her current condition, of buckling the tree without the use of magic, she would only leave the mark of her hoof on its trunk, but if she were engorlled with love, she could actually make the tree fly with one kick; so she believed that she was not lying there.

"Yeah, I can see how that could be a problem," Applejack said, analyzing the situation.

"Well, if that's the case, I'll buck the apples out of the trees and you'll pull the cart once it is full," Applejack concluded, placing a collar around the Queen's neck, tying her to the cart with the leashes.

"This is degrading," said Queen Chrysalis, feeling that being reduced to a beast of burden did not sit well with her dignity.

"I'm pretty sure this is not the most degrading job that her majesty has ever done," Applejack responded as she busied herself loading the buckets and baskets into the cart.

At that response, Chrysalis bent her neck to look at the Earth Pony with a surprised and taken aback expression. Did she mean to imply that I...? The Queen tried to sense Applejack's feelings, wanting to figure out if the pony was really trying to imply what she thought she was trying to imply. The farm pony was busy securing the last buckets of apples into the cart, paying no attention to her. Chrysalis couldn't pick up on anything particular coming from Applejack, she was being inscrutable with her emotions, so she decided to drop the subject, concluding that, no matter what the pony was trying to imply, any of the degrading jobs the Queen had subjected herself throughout her long life, all of them were under a false identity with which to protect her dignity.

"So, where am I taking this, Jack?" Chrysalis asked once the cart was full and the load secured.

Suddenly something hit the Queen's changeling senses, it was so strong and sudden that Chrysalis felt alarmed. It was a feeling of intense longing, yearning, nostalgia mixed with Storgé. All of it coming from Applejack, who was standing still, with a loss stare, looking at the sky.

Before Chrysalis could ask her what was wrong, Applejack took a deep breath and shook her head, snapping herself out of that trance state and said to the Queen, without giving her a face, hiding it behind her hat: "The name is 'Applejack', one word. Or you can call me 'AJ' if you want to pretend we're already friends," and then she added. "You have to take these apples to the barn. There, Big Mac will take care of them. Once that is done, you have to return. Don't be late. There is a lot of work to do."

Then Applejack ducked out of sight into the apple orchard.

The Queen wondered what she could have said to trigger such a strong emotional reaction in the apple farm gal. Unable to come up with an answer, Chrysalis chose to do his job and pull the cart in the direction of the barn.

And for more hours than the Queen could be bothered to count, she was at work, feeling and watching the sun move from the horizon to the top of the celestial vault, going back and forth from the apple orchard to the barn and from the barn back to the orchard, only encountering a big red pony who she assumed was the one called Big Mac, a stallion of very few words, only answering with taciturn "Eeeyup"s or "Nnope"s when the Queen asked him a question. If Applejack was an emotional wall, this Bic Mac was a fort that Chrysalis wasn't in the mood to test.

"Okay, we're done for the morning," Applejack said, wiping the sweat from her forehead and fanning herself with her hat a few times before returning it to her head. The Queen noticed how the pony's mood had returned to normal once she had returned after carrying the first load of apples.

"Finally!" Chrysalis celebrated, removing the harnesses that tied her to the cart, unhappy to find that, somehow, chitin could get chafed.

"Wait an apple-picking minute, Queen! I'm not done with you," the apple-farming pony called, seeing that Chrysalis was eager to leave.

"What do you want now?" said Chrysalis, feeling sore, and thus irritated.

"You have being a mighty big help so far, sadly for you, we are not done yet. But here in Sweet Apple Acres can't let a hard worker go without its do reward. Come home with us, it's almost time for lunch, and we'll finish the day's work after we eat."

"If you insist," Chrysalis said, holding her head high, hiding his tiredness, his hunger, and the good feelings it caused her to have his efforts recognized and, apparently, about to be rewarded.





Chrysalis didn't know what she was expecting. It was a barn, a house that resembled a barn, so much so that at first glance she thought it really was one. I mean, compared to the other ponies' houses, a crystal castle that grew from a tree, a burrow house, a cloud mansion with a rainbow fountain and a house that is also a clothing store, at least this looks like a real house, the Queen muses, shaking her head, with an air of resignation as she entered it.

While Fluttershy's house was cozy, the farm pony's house had a rustic warm, making it more pleasing to the Queen's senses, reminding her of the many lives, even if they were short, she lived in familiar spaces.

"You can rest here, while I go help Granny with making the food. You only show up in the dining room when she calls for it, and don't even think about making her wait, she get cranky if you do that, and you would not like granny when she get cranky," said Applejack giggling at her ingenious pun, leaving what would be the living room, entering the dining room and later into the kitchen, where the noises of pots and pans, knives and spoons and drawers and hinges were heard.

The level of trust this mare must have, to leave me alone, unguarded, Chrysalis ponder, conflicted between respecting her or considering her a fool for that.

But then her senses caught a new presence. Turning quickly in the direction of the origin of that new but also familiar essence, she could see that from the top of the stairs that led to the second floor, a small foal with a yellow coat and red mane was watching her; Apple Blossom or something like that, the Queen thought, trying to remember what Applejack told her her younger sister's name was.

Finding herself caught by the Changeling Queen's gaze, Apple Bloom yelped and hid on the upper floor.

Once she was sure that she was now alone, Chrysalis opted to look at her surroundings, gathering information like a good Changeling spy would, rather than sit back and waste time.

There was nothing very useful, so she concentrated on looking at the multiple photographs hanging on the walls. In them she could see Applejack, the Big Mac stallion, the little filly who was now hiding on the upper floor, an old mare with a green coat and gray hair whom she assumed was the one Applejack called 'Granny'. But what caught her attention were a couple of pictures that showed a couple of ponies that she didn't recognize and that Applejack hadn't mentioned.

The stallion, with a cutie mark of a green apple cut vertically in half, had round features and a coat and mane that appeared to be the same color as Apple Blossom's. The mare was of average size, with a light pale yellow coat, with a styled, apparently curly orange mane and tail. Her cutie mark a butter-brewer.

The last one, or rather the most recent one, in which there was a teenage Applejack and Big Mac, with a baby Apple Bloom on the mare's back, revealed that they were the heads of the family.

"The food is ready! Everyone to the dining room!" Grannys call was heard and subsequently the aroma of the baked goods was smelled. Chrysalis put the photo in her place and as per Applejack instructions, she got to the dining room, stopping past the door.

Seconds after Chrysalis reach the room, Big Mac entered through the door that led to the back of the house.

"Did you finish cutting the wood?" Granny Smith asked her grandson, taking her place at the table.

"Eeeyup," the red stallion responded.

"And the orders? Are the apples properly counted?"

Big Mac responded in kind.

Granny Smith then quickly looked up and down and up again at Queen Chrysalis.

"What are you doing standing there? Come, sit with us at the table."

Chrysalis took the invitation —because it was an invitation, not an order!— and sat next to the matriarch of the Apple family.

"Apple Bloom, you better get down here right now or I'll give your dessert to your big brother."

Chrysalis thought that the older mare had a commanding air about his progeny and nodded at the display. She liked this. The oldest and wisest ruler giving orders, the younglings following them without a second thought.

"I'm coming, Granny!" The young filly said, bouncing happily into the dining room, but her joyful trot turned into a worried walk once she noticed the Changeling Queen's presence, cautiously circling her until she reached the chair next to Big Mac.

Seconds later, Applejack came out of the kitchen, handing out what she had helped prepare for lunch.

"Hot applesauce with gravy for our dear Granny, some apple fritters for us, and a something special for our helper of the day," Applejack concluded, placing a small pie in front of Chrysalis.

"Come on, try it! It won't bite itself," Applejack encouraged Chrysalis, watching as the Queen looked at her food with trepidation.

Chrysalis sighed with resignation and slight annoyance at what she took for granted was an apple pie, so she ended up looking pleasantly surprised when the sweet taste of peach reached her taste buds.

"Apples are our favorite fruit, that doesn't mean it's the only one we know how to cook," Applejack says with a boastful smile after seeing the surprise on Chrysalis's face.

Chrysalis was enjoying her meal, not just the peach pie, the whole room was impregnated, saturated in fact, with Storgé, the family love, one of the best types of love; all the members of this family exuded it for each other. But this same situation made her realize that something was missing in this family image, and driven by her curiosity, she asked the question:

"Where are your parents?"

As quickly as it happened in the garden, the mood and emotions changed pretty quickly. An uncomfortable feeling of longing and yearning filled the dining room; Chrysalis could still feel the presence of Storgé, but now it was mixed with sadness.

The cutlery was placed on the table and gazes moved from one pony to the others, gauging their reactions, and then three of them landed on Applejack. 'She's your guest, so you tell her,' they said.

Getting their meaning, Applejack took a deep breath and paused, holding it for a few seconds before releasing it and responding: "They... they're not with us anymore."

Chrysalis did not need further clarification to understand what those words meant, the abrupt and sudden changes in the emotional atmosphere of the room, all that she had already felt and witnessed on multiple occasions when she herself took the role of infiltrator, they had responded to her question even before Applejack answered her.

Everything indicated that her feeding of love had been cut short, having to settle for the pie, which she would never openly admit, was quite delicious; but before anything else could happen, Applejack continued:

"But it is thanks to Pá and Má that we are the good, kind, honest working ponies that we are, and as long as we continue to practice and use their good teachings, it is as if they never left."

And as suddenly as they were gone, Storge and Pride expelled all emotional negativity from the dining room, just a little yearning and sadness present, but they were of the good kind.

Chrysalis nodded, more in appreciation of the good love than out of understanding, munching on her tart to complement the experience.

"And what about you, Miss Chrysalis? What can you tell us about your Pá and Má?" bravely and full of curiosity asks the little Apple Bloom.

Chrysalis stopped mid-bite of her pie, more because of the oddity of her being addressed as 'Miss' than because of the question itself. In the past she had already been addressed as 'Miss' to her face, but never to her real face. It felt strange and weird and a little uncomfortable.

Chrysalis swallowed and replied dryly, "I don't have them," and then she took another bite of her pie.

A sense of sadness and kinship coming from the young ponies hit her.

"Oh...! I'm sorry to hear that you lost your parents too," lamented a crestfallen Apple Bloom.

"You are mistaken. When I said 'I do not have them', I meant what I said. I don't have parents, I never had them."

"Do you mean that you lost them when you were still little or that they abandoned you?" Applejack intervened, seeking clarification, considering the first option rather sad, the second monstrous.

"That's horrible!" said the eldest and youngest mares of the family in unison, the first in a low sigh, the other in an audible lamentation.

The Queen sighed in exasperation. "I had no parents not because they had died, nor because I was abandoned. I don't have parents because I was never a child. We Changelings are not a long lost evolutionary branch of the ponies, nor are we the result of a curse that distorted our form or burdened us with an unbearable hunger. We just were, and we still are. As you see me now is as I always have been. One day I wasn't, the next I was. My first memory, my oldest memory, the oldest Changeling memory belong to me, freeing me and my kind from the insides of a sick and rotten tree in what was a hostile swamp. And before the cold, before the fear, the first thing we felt was a deep and all consuming hunger. And in that moment, surrounded by small and confused creatures similar to me, before I knew who we were, what to call us, before I even knew my own name, I knew that it was my right to rule over them, to keep them alive and to find them food to quench their hunger, our hunger, at any cost; that is my duty as their Queen."

Applejack's eyes bulged from their sockets at what she was hearing and flinched slightly, trying to imagine popping into existence out of the blue in the conditions that Chrysalis had described, but her mind could not grasp it. If what Chrysalis had just said was true, this broadened the image she had of the Queen and changed some of the perceptions she had of her. She knew that their situations were not the same, how could they be?, but resting her gaze on Apple Bloom, and remembering that frightful and fateful day when she was told that her parents had died, and how she felt when the duty of taking care of her dear little sister fell at her hooves, even with her granny and older brother at her side... she still remembered the crushing sensation of that amount of responsibility on her back, and the fear of not being able to carry it; in that instant Applejack felt that she could empathize with the Queen, even a little.

The rest of the meal was uneventful, Applejack and her family did not press Chrysalis for more information about her past, the Changeling seemed to be mulling on something deeply; whether regarding the information she had shared or what Applejack shared, the farm pony didn't know.





Once the meal was over, it was time to continue with the work. While Big Mac loaded boxes and barrels full of apples onto the cargo cart, the orders they had received, Chrysalis and Applejack tied each other to the front of the cart that, on this occasion, they would carry it together, and would take the load to sell to the town.

Several minutes after their departure from the farm, and after a long, quiet walk, they finally entered Ponyville.

"Where exactly are we going?" Chrysalis asked after they crossed some streets, gardens and other open spaces, when through all her senses she was able to perceive an emotional concentration in the direction where they were going.

"To the market. That's where we should leave all these apple orders," Applejack replied.

As a Changeling that she was, and specially as a Queen, Chrysalis could feel more and more sources of emotions as they approached it. At first there were a few, belonging to other individuals who were also heading to that place, but soon the number reached hundreds. Each pony, or rather creature, emanated a complex and intricate mix of moods and feelings.

Ponies, and non-Changeling creatures, could see colors, smell aromas, hear sounds, taste flavors, and feel sensations, but that ability to sense emotions added an extra layer of complexity to the senses of the Changelings.

Chrysalis, like all Changelings, could see the emotions emanating from their owners, but she could also smell them and, of course, taste them. But saying things like that sadness is 'blue', that greed 'stinks' or that love is 'sweet', was an oversimplification of how they actually perceive them.

The ability to sense emotions was more than just a sense that all Changelings used to perceive the moods of other creatures. It was a set of sensory cells that existed throughout their body and that enhanced the rest of the senses. With this, they could see through their eyes the emotions and their range of colors that the creatures emanate or radiated in the apparent form of a bright mist; smell with their nose the acidic or caustic nature of that same fog when it comes from fear and hatred; savor with the tongue the complex and different sweetnesses of loves; and to a lesser extent, this capability also extends to the sense of touch, allowing them to feel emotions as if they could make physical contact with their body. Even through hearing, a Changeling can hear the emotions carried by the sound waves produced by emotional creatures.

An advantage of this multisensory skill was that, if a Changeling suffered some misfortune that deprived it of one or more senses, the Changeling could still know what the creatures around him were feeling through his other senses and act appropriately. Chrysalis still remembered with admiration a Changeling warrior who, after having lost his eyes in a Maulwurf attack, said that he was able to discern the emotions of those around him, listening to them with every beat of their heart.

But at the same time, this sensory boon had its price. Since in the hive, Changelings by habit secure their emotions from being perceived by other Changelings, only allowing this type of intimacy with those they considered as close as if they were family, they were not instinctively prepared to deal with a high and concentrated amount of emotions. If a Changeling who lacked control over their ability to feel emotions were quickly or suddenly placed in a space where multiple sources of emotions were found, it would suffer from sensory overload, as all of his senses would be assaulted by an emotional discordance, leading to the suffering of anxiety in mild cases, at worst, physical pain in the form of a terrible burning sensation in the eyes and mouth, difficulty hearing and breathing, and a painful tingling all over the body, concluding in the loss of control of their disguise and be exposed, becoming unable to escape or defend itself from the crowd that surrounds them and that ultimately would become 'unfriendly' to his true nature. And it is for this reason that the Changelings were not allowed to participate in infiltration missions into densely populated areas, not until they had gone through their second molt and receiving proper training to control such a vital and important ability.

As they enter the market, Chrysalis could sense each and every new source of emotion; there were those who were happy to have gotten what they were looking for on sale, those who radiated irritability for the simple fact of being in such a crowded space, even those who were upset when they considered themselves scammed by the high prices that some unscrupulous merchants put on their necessary products. Figuratively speaking, for a Changeling this experience would be similar to walking through streets full of a nebulous maelstrom of colors, hindering the visibility, and each of them carrying a different aroma, flavor and sensation. But for the Queen they were something she paid little attention to, as she had learned to dim the impact of so many mixed emotions congestioning her surroundings.

"You wait here," Applejack would say every time they stopped in front of or near a stall, so that the earth pony would then get lost behind a door or curtain and start negotiating with the owners of said stall.

And on each of those occasions Chrysalis grumbled, having nothing to do other than make sure that no one stole the Sweet Apple Acres's merchandise. Her task was rather easy and boring, since no one was brave or stupid enough to approach the imposing Changeling Queen.

Chrysalis yawned after counting for the tenth time that afternoon the number of holes in her legs, thinking that one of these days she will need to molt her exoskeleton, aware of all the cracks and scars that populated it even before the incident in the hive, when suddenly, a projectile hit her in the back of the head, pushing her out of that musing and bring her back to reality.

More surprised than annoyed, but still angry, she sought to locate the object that had offended her, soon landing her eyes on a small blue rubber ball.

A small copper-colored Earth Pony filly with a blue mane had made her way through the wave of ponies, managing to enter the area that had been granted to the Changeling Queen, in search of her ball. Her youth was reflected in the lack of a cutie mark.

The happiness of knowing that she had found her ball was short-lived when she realized that it was floating in mid air, held in the magical aura property of an imposing creature that she did not recognize and therefore did not know how to act.

Chrysalis began to feel a very low level of fear coming from the filly, it was caution, caution mixed with a sense of wonder and curiosity at the presence of a creature she had never seen before.

The little girl exchanged glances with the gigantic black figure that was Chrysalis and with a look that even a puppy would consider adorable, she asked for the return of her toy.

The Changeling Queen showed disgust at such a sugary display, but anyway she advanced in the direction of the filly, and once she was close to her, freed the ball from her magical grip and took it with her hoof with every intention of returning it to her owner.

The filly happily extended her front legs, eager to retrieve her ball, when suddenly a pair of larger front legs surrounded her and pulled her away.

"Get away from her!" shouts a pink mare with a curly green mane, with a pair of glasses and a pearl necklace around her neck, with a cutie mark in the shape of a typewriter, hugging the filly tightly and worriedly, who took a couple of seconds to realize that she was now between her mother's hooves.

"What's your problem, ma'am?" Chrysalis asked, taken by surprise at the mare's abrupt reaction. "I was just trying to get the ball back to the filly."

"You are my problem!" The mare accused Chrysalis with trepidation after making sure that her daughter was not injured and hiding her behind her.

"I don't even know who you are," Chrysalis defended, restlessness growing on her.

"But I do you! You are the Queen of those beasts that attacked us." At that declaration, the mare had gotten the attention of the creatures around her who stopped their chores, taking in the scene that was taking place in the middle of the market; and with that, she now spoke as if she were speaking to the crowd. "I was there, in Canterlot, when it happened! I could see the shield that protected the city and your kind outside, beating on it, watching us with hungry eyes, waiting for the moment when it would fall and then could attack us. I witnessed the destruction that you critters unleashed on us with your rampage. I was among the first ponies to be cocooned. I thought I was going to die, that I was going to die not knowing what was going to be of my family!" shouted the mare with righteous indignation, striking Chrysalis with a full force wave of hatred and resentment.

With every word of the mother pony, Chrysalis could feel the anger and aggression of that mare infecting all the ponies around them and then being directed towards her. Insulting murmurs and ramblings could be heard all around them. The Changeling Queen could now feel herself being pushed and shaken, burned under the gaze of hundreds of emboldened angry ponies. Literally attacked by the entire sudden mix of negative emotions bombarding her from all directions. Feeling cornered, a sense of dread and anxiety was swallowing her whole.

"What in tarnation is going on here!?" Applejack asked, returning when she heard the commotion, pushing her way through the crowd, placing herself in the middle of the Pony and the Changeling who both seemed ready to jump on each other.

"And you!" the mare now pointed at Applejack. "Whose side are you on? Aren't you supposed to be an Equestrian hero, an Element of Harmony? So tell me, why you allow this wild Changeling to walk free among us?"

"Side? Ma'am, the last time I checked, Equestria and the Changelings are in conflict no more! I'll know, I was there when peace was made between us," Applejack pointed out, slightly indignant.

"Maybe with those who accepted reformation," the mare conceded, but giving Chrysalis a dirty look, she continued: "But look at her! She's still black, she still has holes all over her body; she clearly hasn't reformed! She's still a Monster!"

"Wait a second, that's not..." Applejack managed to say, but whatever words were to follow were never heard as it was at that moment that a terrible, powerful, fierce roar that lasted for several seconds escaped from Chrysalis, threatening to tear out her throat due to its intensity, with all her teeth in full view, aimed at the source of her fury.

When the mare's heart was able to beat again and the color returned to her face, she took her daughter and galloped in the opposite direction screaming in horror, leaving behind a trail of unadulterated fear.

The Queen remained in her place, panting heavily, and when she was finally able to control her breathing, she looked around worriedly. Every creature around her was frozen in place, only fear permeating the surrounding atmosphere, fear of her. Chrysalis looked for Applejack, find her in a similar dazed state as the rest of the creatures around, her eyes shrinking to pin pricks due to her outburst, she was also among those emanating fear from the Queen.

With an annoyed growl, Chrysalis spread her wings and flew from the scene.

"Chrysalis, wait!" Applejack shouted once she regained control of herself and realized what had happened, seeing the Queen flying away.

With concern, Applejack looked back at the cart with her apples and then at Chrysalis, once again at her merchandise and then at the Changeling Queen already disappearing into the distance.

"Horseapples!" cursed Applejack, stomping the ground with a hoof, starting to gallop in pursuit of Chrysalis.





It was around the time when the sun was hidden on the horizon by Celestia, with orange tones turning dark covering the sky, giving way for Luna to put the moon and the stars up. 

Applejack was still galloping at full speed, frantically searching everywhere to find the Changeling Queen, forgetting the detail that if a Changeling didn't want to be found, it wouldn't be found.

She dreaded having to inform Twilight and the rest of the girls that Chrysalis had left under her watch more than Rainbow Dash finding out about this, even if of the two, the pegasus would be the one who would never let her forget it.

She was beginning to think that it had been a mistake on her part not to immediately report what happened to Twilight and form a search party, but her stubbornness prevented her from considering that option at the moment.

Lucky for her, she finally caught a glimpse of the shape of the Changeling Queen. She was sitting on a small and solitary hill, overlooking the town of Ponyville. She looked hateful, spiteful, but also thoughtful.

Cautiously Applejack approached, slowing her trot so as not to startle the Queen.

"What was all that, back there?" Applejack asked bluntly.

"This whole thing doesn't make sense," Chrysalis said in a conversational tone, once she concluded that Applejack had gotten close enough to hear her.

"What are you talking about? What doesn't make sense?" ask Applejack, sitting aside to the Queen.

"Your friend Twilight Sparkle's experiment."

"What makes you say that?"

"It may not be obvious to you, but it is to me. It has been since the moment I set my hoofs in this town. Even long before that," Chrysalis replied, in a resigned, defeatist tone, almost sad. And before Applejack could ask for further clarification, the Queen gave it to her. "Because I can feel it. Their looks and reactions when they see me existing, when they know who I am, what I have done —what I need to do to live— it feel like weapons are pointed in my direction... I can't blame them, but it hurt. Now imagine how it feels when you can also sense what is really hidden behind their eyes. More than hatred or fear, it is their prejudice.

"For the entire time I've been here I've been on my best behavior. I uphold my end of the deal, and in practice, you do too. But it's one thing to say 'I am glad to have you here' and another to feel it. As a Changeling I can sense your feelings and none of you feel it. You didn't feel it when Twilight explained the deal we had made, and none of you truly feel it now.

"All the other creatures in the town, their fear and their hatred, all of that is born from a single thought. They see me as a monster, and that's how they feel like treating me, no matter what," Chrysalis spoke, anger boiling inside her and spilling out through her words. "So, because no matter what the outcome of Twilight's little experiment is, everyone is still going to think of me as a monster, then why not end it all and just be the monster they are so set to believe I am?" concluded Queen Chrysalis looking and snarling at Applejack, as if daring her to contradict her, to say that her words are not true, that they are lies. That she was not one of the most vocal in her group against the idea of allowing her to remain in the town, the right to roam freely, that she did not want her to be sent in chains to Canterlot to rot in a dungeon.

But Applejack didn't flinch. The emotional wall preventing Chrysalis from picking out what crossed the farm mare's heart.

And that was being the case for several seconds, but then she began to feel the wall crumbling, or rather, opening up to her.

Applejack looks at the ground and digs a hole with one of her hoofs, thinking hard about what she was about to say and how to say it.

"You know," the apple farmer finally speaks, looking at the Changeling Queen straight in the eyes. "Everyone thinks I'm incapable of lying, and I don't know why."

Chrysalis twists her face in confusion at Applejack's unexpected and seemingly non sequitur comment.

"I can lie," Applejack continued. "I don't like to, but I can lie like anyone else. If I think that a good lie would get me, my family or my friends out of trouble, chances are I would use it. I have lied to my friends and family, even quite frequently, and sometimes I still do; and yet, when they talk about me, they always said how honest I am, that I am incapable to keep secrets and that the mere thought of lying twist my guts. Because, for some reason that I cannot grasp, I was chosen to be the personification of the element of honesty.

"Or, on the opposite side, there are creatures that believe that by that same principle, I am incapable of being lie to; that if someone tells me a lie I would instinctively and instantly recognize it as a falsehood, as if I were a magical lie detector. And I do not know from were they get that Idea!" Applejack exclaimed, raising her front hooves, demonstrating her bewilderment at that notion.

"If any of that was remotely true, you and me would not be here right now, you get me? I mean, I am surely would still be here, farming apples, but you and the rest of the Changelings that invade Canterlot would be in the dungeons because I would have to be able to see through your lies when you were pretending to be Cadence."

"What is your point?" The Queen said, somewhat miffed by the fact that it seems nobody would let her forget for as long as she live that one of her most shameful and humiliating moments of her life.

"My point is: we can be whatever we want, and what others think, or let us know what they believe about us, is not and should not be an impediment to that.

"What I'm about to say to you is the honest truth," Applejack said solemnly for emphasis, pausing for a few seconds and then continued. "I bet to Rainbow Dash that, even though Twilight would shows you that she is right and that you can earn enough love to live through honest means and without the need to reform as the rest of your folks, you are going to reject it and run away to plan your revenge and our demise or whatever others evils whatnots you fancied, because you'd rather be in denial than proven wrong, even at the cost of your own happiness."

"Whether Twilight or I are right or wrong, it will depend on your actions, not what other creatures say." Applejack concluded.

"You are free to go now. I have to go back and see if I still have apples to sell... and thanks again for your help in the orchard."

And with that, Applejack leave Chrysalis to her own.
> Back to the Hive
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chrysalis's morning was uneventful. During breakfast she expected Twilight to lash out to her about the events that occurred at the market, either because Applejack informed her of what happened or words of her altercation with a rather resentful mare would had reach her ears, but in either case, It seems that the Princess of Friendship chose not to sour the early meal by bringing up the topic for discussion, instead making small talks on trivial topics, stopping her chatter to thank her pet dragon for his services or give him instructions to follow.

Oh yeah! After her day of interacting with Twilight, Chrysalis began to see the drake back inside the castle to return to his cleaning duties. Chrysalis remembered that his name was Spike, but she refused to recognize him as such, not until the little lizard grew a spine and deigned to face her, aware that since his return, he had been avoiding her, always staying close to Twilight, watching her with distrustful eyes, as if he was a frightened larva and its mother, avoiding being alone in the same room with her. This behavior didn't bother the Queen, after all, what should she care what a servant might think of his betters?

She was also aware that Starlight Glimmer was back at the castle too. Chrysalis had not seen her yet, it seemed like the Princess had gone the extra length to prevent them from meeting, but she could feel the unmistakable essence of her every time she was near. It was curious, unlike the dragon, she did not feel anything coming that could indicate that the unicorn felt any ill emotion, no hate nor fear towards her. Chrysalis knew of Starlight's magical power and how she apparently had no qualms about using it violently, but it bothered her that she felt so safe with the Changeling Queen so close to her.

"By process of elimination, I take it that today is my turn with the Pink one," says Queen Chrysalis walking next to Twilight, towards the exit of the castle.

"Her name is Pinkie Pie," Twilight reproached her. "And no, you won't meet her today," she concluded, a tinge of her sudden nervousness not escaping the Queen sences.

"Huh?"

"Pinkie told me that she will be very busy planning what, in her own words, 'Must be the best and super duper biggest and most important party of them all!' and asked me to postpone your meeting for a couple more days.

The Queen didn't know how to feel about this news. On the one hoof, she was relieved to not have to deal so soon with another pony and its possible odd behavior, on the other, she couldn't help but feel a little hurt that a dumb party was taking priority over meeting her, the one and only Changeling Queen.

"Don't feel bad," Twilight said, having heard the hurt grunt that Chrysalis shouldn't have let out, and then continued: "I've been talking to other friends about our situation and a couple of them have been willing to participate and spend time with you. One of them in particular seemed very excited to meet you the moment I told him that you were with me and what we were doing. So, for today you are going to meet with some old acquaintances."

It was then when Twilight opens the door, reaching the front space of the castle. If Chrysalis was able to do it, she would have turned pale in that instant. A fear like she had never felt before fell on her like a hundred tons of stone (and she had faced some pretty terrifying things in the past); If it were still up to her, Chrysalis would have spread her wings and flown in the opposite direction at full speed rather than face what was in front of and waiting for her, but it was too late, she had already been spotted and her pride would not allow her to take that course of action. A couple of quick and deep breaths were the only thing she allowed herself to take control of herself.

A very ornate carriage as colorful as the pair of Changelings driving it was waiting for her, ready to take the Queen to her next destination.





Traveling from Ponyville towards the Badlands was proving to be a heavy task. The fact that her coachlings did not bow before her made her departure bitter, and during the trip they never bothered to speak to her or tried to start a conversation with her. This didn't bother Chrysalis, no sir, after all, she was Queen! And Queens do not engage in idle conversation with their servants, did they not?

To distract herself from this lack of respect and how it didn't faze her at all, Chrysalis closes her eyes and decides to remember her last days in the hive and how her plan went downhill. A small smile start forming on her lips thinking about how bad of a situation they must be in, and how the hive must be a garbage dump and be in ruins without her and how her subjects will jump of joy, happy and pleased to see her back again, and will demand her return and reinstatement as their legitimate Queen, begging her to take them out of the deplorable state in which they must find themselves after succumbing to the ponies corruption.

And she will gladly take them back... well, after they grovel for a little bit; After all, no matter how loving of a Queen she was, they, as her subjects, needed to be taught their place.

The enjoyment of her imagination came to an end the moment she opened her eyes and could see her old hive in the distance.

Her once imposing hive was no more. The shape was the same (minus the main tower, thanks to what transpired on that terrible day), but now its dark exterior was a clean gray blue and much of its jagged edges were dull, covered by vines, moss and colorful flowers, in addition to a large number of various plants. The harsh, arid desert that surrounded it was now occupied by a lush and vivid vegetation.

She could barely recognize it as her own.

When the chariot finally descended, Thorax and another Changeling were already there to receive her.

Meanwhile the Changeling drivers bow to Thorax, who seems quite unaccustomed to this kind of treatment towards his person, and a military salute to that other Changeling, Chrysalis was still dumbfounded, admiring, appreciating the new appearance of the hive. It was quite beautiful.

After saying goodbye to the Changelings drivers, Thorax approaches to greet her in a warm and friendly manner.

"Welcome back to the hive, Que..." Thorax tried to say, but the other Changeling interrupted him, 'slightly' punching him in the side.

"Don't address her that way," the other Changeling chides in a stern tone.

"But don't you remember what Twilight told us in her letter?" Rubbing his side, Thorax turned to the other Changeling who was looking at him with a hard look.

"Well, the pony princess is not here, and even if she was, she is no one to rule over us; you are our leader, so you do not address her that way."

Chrysalis finally snapped out of her stupor and paid attention to the Changelings in front of her who were arguing among themselves. To the left of her was Thorax, that was obvious. The image of the traitor and subsequent usurper was burned into her memory. His green chitin, his orange antlers, his eyes, elytra and sparkling purple tail. What a mockery of the Royal Changeling form was his own. Disgusting!

Averting her gaze from such an unpleasant image, it now landed on the other smaller Changeling, even if it was larger than the average one, this was a true oddity in her eyes. His chitin was a dark cyan color; just like the traitor, his eyes and elytra were purple, albeit in a darker tone, but his antlers and tail were an amaranth color. She couldn't recognize him, not only because of his 'reformed' appearance (yuck!), but because his scent, his pheromones were completely unknown to her.

"Ahem!" Chrysalis clears her throat to get the two Changelings attention, as they were still bickering among themselves, apparently forgetting that she was there.

"Who is this Changeling?" the Queen asked once she got their attention.

"I'm sorry about that, your highness..." Thorax paused to look at his companion, having expected another blow to his side; but on this occasion, the Changeling was serious, looking straight ahead. "This is my older brother, Pharynx."

"Pharynx..." Chrysalis repeats, squeezing her face, trying to remember the owner of that name. "Pharynx? My head of changeling patrols!?" Chrysalis exclaims, incredulous at what she was seeing and hearing, a tinge of anger covering her words.

"That's me," Pharynx confirms in an emotionless tone, looking straight ahead, not at Chrysalis.

"What happens to you? You were once one of my best warriors."

"I am still the best," the dark cyan Changeling responds back with a little more excitement, still not bothering to look Chrysalis in the face.

"False!" Chrysalis roars into Pharynx's face as if she were a drill sergeant, her anger unleashed. "If you were the best, you would have stopped the ponies from infiltrating my hive!"

Pharynx's firm and serious expression never left his face during the entire verbal barrage, but once it finish, a smirk show in his face and then said:

"The only time I fail and it ends with the best thing that could have happened to the Changelings? Damn, I am truly the best." Pharynx concluded, still not deigning to face the Queen.

Chrysalis's eyes, injected with green ichor, glowed with fury, foam escaping from her mouth.

"Ha, ha, ha..." Thorax laughed nervously, placing himself between Chrysalis and Pharynx, before the Queen bit, or tried to bite, his older brother's head off. "How about we enter the hive and start the tour?"

Thorax had to forcefully push his brother into the hive, turning his head giving the Queen a pleading look, to forgive his brother, then morphed it to a more friendly one, to invite her to come inside the hive.





The inside of the hive was as different, as strange, as alien to her as the outside was. The hive was warm, mind you she always made sure it was warm, but now it was both warm and illuminated by the sun that now came, mostly, through the hole left by the destruction of the main tower... the tower in where her throne room was located.

As they walked, she could see hundreds of colorful Changelings moving animatedly back and forth. The hive had become a center of activity like she had never seen. There were Changelings taking care of the plants, making ceramics, textiles, resins, jewelry and various crafts, all of them with a clear Changeling cultural image, with thick lines, with predominantly sharp edges accompanying soft curvatures, but now painted with solid brighter colors beyond the black, green and blue that she remembered as the only ones they previously use.

"What is all this?" Chrysalis asked, wanting to distract herself from the uneasiness that this view caused her.

"Well, now that we have more energy than ever, we were able to get busy growing plants with which to beautify the hive and, when we saw that we could do more, also its surroundings!" Thorax expounds with childlike joy, as a pair of Changelings fly over them, gardening and watering the plants with loving care.

"Some, wishing to try different activities," he continued, "have dedicated their time to making a wide variety of items, such as Changeling silk, creating figurines made from our resin, and the design of jewelry with the crystals and precious gemstones that exist all around the hive."

Passing by them, a pair of Changelings wearing yellow helmets and covered in a little dirt were pulling a cart full of precious stones of various shapes and sizes, distributing them among the multiple customers, to use them in their different arts. Some embedded them in canvases of colorful and delicate fabrics, others made them into a fine powder and to mix it with a viscous substance, giving it shape before it hardened, and a few analyzed them with meticulous eyes, taking only the best, most beautiful and shiny, polishing them and attach them in fine metal receptacles, making rings, pins, necklaces and other jewelry items.

"Yes! Who would have imagined that not dying of hunger all the time would allow us to prosper and expand our horizons as a species?" Pharynx says with venom and sarcasm directed towards their guest.

Chrysalis feels the sting in the Praetorian Changeling's words, but other than an angry tick in her right eye, the Queen chooses to ignore it.

"And what about the use of clothing and... accessories?" Chrysalis asks, having noticed that a large number of Changelings were wearing everything from the aforementioned small pins and earrings on their ears or fins, to complex dresses that cover almost their entire body. This notion made her feel uncomfortable, as if she were naked where she shouldn't be.

"Oh! And now that we don't need to use disguises anymore, some Changelings decided to experiment with clothing and accessories to express their individuality, and the idea stuck once the rest of the hive members saw them. Isn't this fantastic!" Thorax responded enthusiastically, giving small jumps, like a child happy to share his tastes.

"And here we have 'The Field of Flowers', our Honey Production Center!" present Thorax with pride. "Our honey is one of the main products with which we began to trade with many other species, turning out to be quite popular with ponies for its sweet flavor and its varied colors."

In front of them they could see a long line of Changelings entering a large room filled with hundreds of thousands of flowers, and more small bugs flying from one to another. On the other side the Changelings could be seen leaving a couple of minutes later, all carrying jars full of the aforementioned honey, depositing them inside boxes destined to be transported to Equestria.

"Although a few days ago we received a letter from the ponies, asking us to stop the shipments," Thorax mentioned, raising a hoof to his lips, confused. "Supposedly some kind of warning was issued by the Institution that regulates their food. They seem to want to investigate how we specifically make our honey. Do you know anything about it?"

"I have no idea," Chrysalis replied, shaking her head. "Ponies seem to be very delicate creatures and quite capricious about what they eat."

Thorax shrugged, not wanting to bother with that issue any longer.

A Changeling just out from the flower room shook his hoof, happily greeting Thorax.

Thorax returned the gesture and used his raised hoof to indicate to the Changeling that there was something on his face; A drop of a liquid strangely similar in color and consistency to what was in his recently filled honey jar dripped from the corner of his mouth.





A few more moments of traveling through the main halls of the hive, Chrysalis finally realized something. She was able to sense the emotions of all the Changelings around her. She could feel their apparent perennial happiness waning a little as a hint of worry and unease washed over them the moment they caught a glimpse of her. This discovery filled her with dread. She shouldn't be able to perceive other Changelings' emotions so freely and openly. I mean, as the Queen that she was, she could always do it, but for that she would have to force them out of them, nothing like what was happening at that instant.

"Are you okay, your highness? You look tired," Thorax said, looking worried, finally noticing Chrysalis's state, mistaking her downcast state as exhaustion.

"No... no. I'm fine," the Queen lied, raising her head into an imperious pose. She really wasn't feeling well, in fact she felt dejected. Every change she saw was a stroke of regret, every Changeling happy and with a feeling of fulfillment doing something they could never have done under her rule a pang of guilt.

"I know what could lift your spirit!" Thorax exclaimed like he had a great idea. "I know for a fact how much her highness love music, so, how about we go to the theater to hear some!"

Given this suggestion, Chrysalis actually perk up. Yes, it was true! It was no secret among the Changelings that of the few things that the Queen indulged in enjoying from time to time, music and everything that it entailed was among them.

"Yes, I'd like that," Chrysalis said, flashing her first genuine smile of the day.

To her surprise (and relief) the theater inside the hive was just as she remembered, everything seemed carved in rock, with an air of prestige, luxury and elegance. In those moments she could care less that some curtains were new, that the space was cleaner than before, or that the lower floors looked more worn.

At the entrance of the theater, the three crossed a hallway which was adorned with carvings of Changelings representing various theatrical activities, some playing musical instruments, others in histrionic poses of tragedy, comedy and everything in between. The path came to an end at what was the entrance to the main box —Queen Chrysalis private box— a large elevated space in which she could see and hear in the best possible way her Changelings participating in some of the few artistic activities allowed in the hive.

Pharynx took his seat in one of the side spaces, reserved for the Queen's bodyguards or high-ranking Changelings who were fortunate enough to share presence with the Queen in her moments of leisure and fun.

To her amusement and to the apparent and audible annoyance of the smaller Changeling, Thorax offered Chrysalis the larger seat —HER Queen seat— in the middle, while he took the other space next to her.

In a few minutes the lights dimmed in the room, leaving only the stage illuminated.

The Queen looked forward to hearing again the calm and peaceful Changeling music produced by the beating of logs like a drum and the collision of stones against stones as she had enjoyed in years past.

And that is what was happening at the beginning at the back of the stage, where a Changeling slowly and rhythmically hit a half log with a pair of sticks acting as drumsticks, when, suddenly, a new Changeling is illuminated and the chords of a guitar reverberated throughout the theater, followed by the drummer animatedly hitting the cymbals. Soon a chorus of trumpets and tambourines joined the orchestra as eight pairs of Changelings entered from each side, dancing and singing:



Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love is the greatest and deepest
Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love is the greatest and deepest
Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love

You and me
the happiest we are
lovesick
We love each other

You and me
the happiest we are
like this is how we are
In love is how we are

You and me
the happiest we are
United we always go hoof in hoof
We are madly in love
In love
In love



The Changeling couples were lively doing circles, jumping and spinning while lifting their partners without stopping the dance, hugging each other, cheek to cheek, professing the love they sang about.



Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love is the greatest and deepest
Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love is the greatest and deepest
Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love

You and me
the happiest we are
lovesick
We love each other

You and me
the happiest we are
like this is how we are
In love is how we are

You and me
the happiest we are
United we always go hoof in hoof
We are madly in love
In love
In love

Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love is the greatest and deepest
Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love is the greatest and deepest
Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love is the greatest and deepest
Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love is the greatest and deepest
Our love is the loveliest in the world
Our love is the greatest and deepest



If she felt defeated before, this had been the Queen's coup de grace.

She couldn't recognize this as her hive. This were definitely not her Changelings, at least, not anymore.

They truly look the happiest they have ever been.





Leaving the theater, while Thorax bounced on his hooves giddily over the seen spectacle, trying to imitate some of the dance steps, Chrysalis seemed to be a metaphorical corpse, a body without spirit, moving solely by inertia.

So out of it's was the Queen that she almost didn't realize that it was about to crash with a Changeling and his pet iguana. Oh yeah! Having pets was a thing now in the hive too.

"Ah, Queen Chrysalis, it is a pleasure to see you back in the hive." The old Changeling, or at least he wanted to look old if his glasses without lenses and fake mustache were any sign of that, took off his fedora hat and made a half bow.

Who would have thought that this small act of respect had the power to revive the dead, because hearing herself being addressed with true feeling and meaning as Queen, was all it took to bring a warm sensation back to her insides. She felt so pleased that a tear almost escaped her eyes. But regaining her composure, she contained herself; After all, a queen cannot be seen crying by her subjects.

"Are you planning on returning to us?" the Changeling asked.

That question shook Chrysalis again. What was she supposed to answer? Even before she knew what she knew now, she wasn't sure if she would ever return. But now? Now she was more insecure than ever. Did she want to go back? Did they want her to come back? She felt overwhelmed by doubt and uncertainty. What should she answer?

But before she could reply with any possible answer...

"She's only here to visit," Pharynx responded in a rather serious tone, giving the old Changeling a threatening look.

"Oh, look at the time. I'm almost late for my daughter's recital. It was a pleasure to see you, Her Majesty. Thorax. Pharynx," trembling with fear, the Changeling excused himself and ran past them carrying his pet iguana.

"It seems that at least your elders still know how to properly address me," says Queen Chrysalis, tall and powerful, or at least taller in spirit than she had been not many minutes ago.

"Well, it's obvious that, even if the metamorphosis cured our hunger, senile dementia is a disease that can still affect anyone."

And as soon as she got it, Chrysalis's tiny happiness was crushed under Pharynx's merciless words.

"Pharynx, I don't understand, why are you being so rude to our guest?" Finally Thorax intervened, unable to remain silent any longer in the face of his brother's antagonistic behavior and comments.

"You want to know why I'm acting the way I'm acting!? You want to know why I'm being so rude to you!?" Shout out Pharynx with an angry scowl, pointing first at Thorax and then at Queen Chrysalis.

"Because you were a coward!

"Under your command we were defeated again and again. We were on the brink of collapse as a kingdom and of extinction as a species; At the time when we were scared, confused and directionless, when we most needed a leader, a ruler, a queen, what did you do? You fled! You could have accepted an honorable defeat and asked the ponies for the help we so desperately needed, but you chose to abandon us!!

"My little brother got to work and with no one to tell him how to do things, he picked up the pieces that were left and with them he rebuilt the kingdom that you left in ruins.

"And in my stupidity and foolishness I became a hindrance to his efforts, because in my senselessness I kept a spark of hope that my queen would return and turn us back to a kingdom of proud warriors, not realizing that this would mean our doom.

"We're doing better than ever and now suddenly I hear that our failure of a queen is mixing with the ponies and that my sweet, caring, naive brother has invited you back to the hive!?

"How must I feel about the nightmare of your return only to drag us back to a worse point than we were even before the decision to attack Canterlot?

"I should kick your flank for having the galls to show your face to us after everything you've put us through!"

"Are you challenging me, grub?" snarl Chrysalis under her breath, her entire body was shaking with fury by this point, her jaws were clenched so tight her molars were in danger of breaking.

"You know what? Yes! I challenge you, fallen queen, to a Changeling Combat!"

All Changelings who pretended not to be paying attention to the scene that these —the three greatest personalities in the Changeling kingdom— were displaying in the middle of such a public and crowded area of the hive, froze at the proclamation of that challenge; now all their attention solely on them.

"I - I don't think that is a good idea," nervously chime in Thorax, trying to defuse the situation.

"SHUT UP, THORAX!" yell both angry Changelings, making him back off in fear of the sudden scream directed at him.





On the way to the combat grounds, Thorax tries to make his two companions reconsider, first with Chrysalis, but even before he can stutter his thoughts, he remains silent, swallowing whatever he may wanted to say at the visage of pure rage in the Queens face.

Slowing down a bit, he stands next to his brother.

"Please Pharynx, stop this," he begs.

"Dont worry, bro. I am not going to hurt your guest that badly, just going to humble her and make sure she get in her thick skull she should not even think to try dragging us back in to her miserable rule," says Pharynx excited, confident that he can kick Chrysalis's flank.

"Now, if you are so worry, then you know where you need to go, right?" Pharynx continue, more like an order than a suggestion, giving a side glance to his brother.

Thorax sighs in defeat, aware that there is no way to stop this train wreck, but at least he can ensure that it doesn't end in fatality. Quickening his pace, he move to where he needs to go.

Upon entering a building that could be considered a coliseum, the Queen can see inside the existence of training equipment and a bunch of colorful Changelings participating in training combat, both among themselves and with training dummies.

A small bent upward in her lips is a sign that her anger diminishes before the air of security of that familiar sight, which tell her that there is still some part of her hive present.

As if reading her mind and on cue, Pharynx speak, souring once again the mood of the Queen.

"Thorax may have make us act all friendly to other creatures, but I know not all creatures will act friendly towards us. So, I still train some Changelings for combat. You know, to protect those we care from those that want to harm us, as the likes of you." Pharynx threw the first metaphorical jab at Chrysalis, taking pleasure in seeing the annoyance on her face.

The fight area was promptly vacated and cleaned. It was a circular ring without ropes, except for a thick rope at the bottom of the arena, to delimit its perimeter. Outside of it, all the space around them was being occupied by the present warriors and a constantly increasing number of Changelings who heard about the fight, and who had been following them from where the challenge was launched, eager to see the fight.

Queen Chrysalis feel the emotion or emotions that surround her, and all the support is directed in favor of Pharynx. The only exception (and just by technicality) came from Thorax, that, from a small box on the side, was equally worried about both of them.

"The rules are simple," Pharynx begins, stretching his limbs, warming up, never taking his eyes off his opponent.

1.- No magic is allowed.
2.- Flying is frowning upon.
3.- No bites are allowed.

"Do not cite the ancient rules of Changeling to Changeling combat to me, grub." Almost in a roar said Queen Chrysalis. "I was there when they were written. By me!"

From his referee box, Thorax explains to the audience and the contestants that the fight will begin when he says so and will end when the goo from a goo clock finishes flowing.

Once silence falls over the coliseum, Thorax spins the clock and as soon as the goo begins to flow down, he shouts:

"Begin!"

The fight start with both of them circling each other. Taking the initiative, Pharynx lands the first blow, with an uppercut-style headbutt, pushing the Queen up and back.

The public howls excitedly.

Pharynx was very confident, thinking that this blow will be enough to knock down Chrysalis, but his expectations are shattered the moment the Queen's head descends furiously forward, onto his own. 

All Changelings present flinched as the echoes of chitin smashing chitin are heard around the combat ground.

Standing on their hind legs, the fighters begin to exchange a barrage of blows. Finding himself at a disadvantage against the longer -and incredibly strong- Chrysalis legs, Pharynx chose to go in all four and rams the Queen, finally making her tumble to the floor.

Without stopping in his assault, Pharynx runs towards her and when he is sure to be at the right distance, spin around and throw a buck with his hind legs. Chrysalis, still on the floor, shake her head, expelling her dizziness fast enough to see what was coming to her, but not fast enough to dodge all the attack. One of Pharynx's legs manages to connect with the left side of her snout, drawing the first blood of the fight.

Some of the Changelings roar with excitement, but most begin to feel uncomfortable at how violent the fight is turning out.

From her spot, Thorax's eyes move from the fight to the clock, poking and shaking it, wishing the goo would flow faster, so he can end the fight sooner.

Back in the arena, Chrysalis moves from side to side, searching for a weak point in Pharynx's defense, but the Praetorian's stand is rock solid, closing every opening Chrysalis' position could offer her.

Screaming in fury, Chrysalis decides to charge at Pharynx like a battering ram, her twisted horn wielded like a spear, thrust forward to impale her enemy. Pharynx smiled at the clumsy move that he had seen novice warrior Changelings perform a thousand and one times, and that he always enjoyed punishing for their carelessness. He stood up on his hind legs, ready to drop them on the Queen's exposed head.

But at the last moment, Chrysalis makes a sweeping move, surprising the veteran warrior, causing it to fall to the surface of the arena.

Rolling around, Pharynx avoids being trampled by the Queen's legs, but she does not stop in her attack now that she has the advantage, not allowing her opponent to get up, she continues to stomp on a Pharynx who can only drag back.

Trapped between the edge of the ring and the Queen, Pharynx watch as Chrysalis rise on her hind legs, with murderous intentions written all over her face, ready to drop her front legs and crush his face.

Pharynx close his eyes and cringe, ready for the deadly impact. The holed legs begin their descent like pistons in pressure...

"STOP!" Thorax scream in perfect imitation of the Royal Canterlot Voice a few seconds before the last drop of goo falls from the clock, but not fast enough to stop the Queen's legs from falling.

Pharynx opened his eyes, seeing a pair of black pillars on each side of her head, and over him, the face and bloody snout of someone who barely managed to contain her desire to kill him.

Backing up a few steps, allowing the Praetorian Changeling to stand, the Queen addresses all observers.

"You all have judged me solely for my recent failures, completely forgetting, ungratefuls, all those times when I risked my neck for the hive. I was the tip of the fang that pirse our enemies defenses and weaken them. All our conquests occurred under my leadership. When the Diamon Dogs invaded our hive looking for the worthless stones with which you now garnish yourselves, when the Maulwurf start eating our larvae, when the Dragons invaded our lands and threatened to burn us, remember that I was your Queen!" scream Chrysalis in indignation.

Turning towards the exit, Chrysalis spits out a stream of blood to the ground.

Thorax caught out to her, anxiously showering Chrysalis with what she thought were apologies or similar useless platitudes, a ringin in her hears would not allow her to be sure. She doesn't care.

"Take me back to Sparkle," demanded the Queen. "There is nothing for me in this hive anymore."

The Queen hides her face with her hair, she had to do it, after all, a queen cannot be seen crying by her subjects... But deep down inside her, she knew that they were not hers, not anymore, the tears that fell from her eyes confirmed it.

In the arena, Pharynx notices something sticking out of the puddle of green blood. He approaches and picks it up, realizing that it is one of Queen Chrysalis's fangs.
> The Queen's Closet
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Not a couple of days ago, the Pegasus Breeze family had gone on a trip, a vacation in celebration of the fact that the youngest member of the family, little Chill Breeze, had finally gotten his cutie mark. At his request, the Crystal Empire had been chosen as his tourist destination, arguing that what he wanted most was to see the Crystal Heart; and although this was true, the real reason why the young colt wanted to visit the newly annexed kingdom was that he had secretly developed an infatuation with his appointed princess, Mi Amore Cadenza, a secret that only his older sister, Warm Breeze, was aware of, thanks to the fact that once, entering into their shared room unannounced, she caught him kissing a poster of the Pink Princess, teasing him about this ever since, but always in private, away from the eyes of his family and friends.

But unexpectedly a strong snow storm put a dent in their plans, forcing them to make a stop at a convenient abandoned hotel in the middle of the mountains. Little Chill seemed upset, disillusioned and disappointed, but his father, always happy seeing the good side of any situation, said in an optimistic tone with which he wanted to keep his family's spirits up, that the stop would be momentary, just for what the storm lasts and that the Empire and its Heart would remain in its place no matter what.

For two days the storm kept them locked in that place, but by the night of the third, Warm Breeze and Chill Breeze left the abandoned hotel, galloping desperately, trying to get away from the cursed property, fighting against the stormy winds and a dense layer of snow.

Now both of their parents lay dead, cut and torn to pieces on the floor of the foyer of that place.

Warm Breeze leads the way, with his wings trying to protect her eyes and her brother from the cruel and merciless onslaught of the snowy storm, both of their wings numb and unable to fly, internally lamenting that such an important celebration of her younger brother's coming of age ended in such a tragic event.

Little Chill stumbles and for a moment get lost, submerged in the cold snow that already lies on the ground, and hidden by the snow that falls from the sky. Warm Breeze digs her head into the snow only to lift it up seconds later, having caught her brother, pulling him out by his mane, urging him to continue.

Several minutes after entering the forest that surrounded the property, desperation begins to find space in their fear. Luckily for both of them, among the roaring rain of snowflakes, the older sister manages to spot a cabin where they can take refuge and hide.

The door is half open, but once inside Warm Breeze makes sure to close it and fortify it with a long, thick wooden beam.

"We will spend the night here and tomorrow morning, when the sun rises, we will fly to the nearest town and get help," Warm says confidently, trying to be strong and to hide and minimize the tragedy for her little brother, of whom he was not a witness of.

"Dad said the storm…" Chill weakly tried to retort.

"WE WILL FLY...!" Warm shouts irritably, cutting off the discussion, giving her younger brother an angry look, as if he were to blame for what happened, and part of her believes so.

Chill sobs and cowers in fear at her sister's altered scream.

"We will fly..." she says after taking a breath, feeling ashamed, reproaching herself for her outburst and calming her nerves, "... and we will get help for mom and dad." She lies, Warm knows that there is no way to help her parents anymore, but she knows that this will help calm her brother in these stressful times.

A tapping on the window glass tenses them both. Warm hugs her brother with the strength of an earth pony, seeking to shelter and protect him. They both calm down when they see that it is nothing more than just a branch that, moved by the strong wind, stings the glass.

Then a bolt of lightning illuminates the outside, revealing through the window a terrifying figure watching them with a deep and penetrating gaze through his only eye, visible through the features of a grotesque mask made of a burlap sack.

When the light goes away and only the trembling of the thunder remains, the figure, the monster that she knows was the one who killed her parents and that has now come for them, also disappears.

They both scream as if their life depended on it. Warm picks up his brother and they hide inside the closet in the only room in the cabin.

Inside the small, claustrophobic space, Warm hugs Chill, pressing him tightly against her overworked chest, partly to protect him and keep him safe, and partly to keep him from screaming and revealing their hiding place.

From there they can hear the monster pony trying to enter the cabin, kicking the door with all its bestial strength.

She almost yelps when she hears the hinges being ripped off the frame and the door is finally "opened", but she manages to drown it out.

The slow clip clop of the murderer's walk and the sound of something being dragged, scratching the staves that make up the floor of the cabin is disconcerting.

Tears escape Warm Breeze's eyes as she prays for Celestia to raise the sun as soon as possible, as if that way whoever is outside will vanish like the rest of the dark shadows that only exist in the messy foals' rooms.

Suddenly she stop hearing the hoofsteps and the scratching on the floor, even the howling of the storm wind seems to have subsided to stillness; Silence has taken possession of the cabin.

Has he gone? Warm thinks wishfuly, but she doesn't let out the breath she's holding in her throat, she's not so delusional as to think that she can or should do it. She still has to wait for the sun to rise and the winds of the storm to calm down so she can feel safe.

"Maybe the bad pony is gone," Chill whispers to the horror of Warm, who immediately puts a hoof on her brother's mouth.

As expected and to her mental and physical dismay, she can see and hear the door to their hiding place being violently hit. For the second hit, splinters from the door fly inside. For the third, part of the blade of a sharp axe intrudes into the small and no longer safe space of them.

The blade is retracted and through the hole that remains they see themselves observed by an eye, an angry eye full of murderous intentions.

Warm and Chill Breeze scream.

The door is blown to pieces by the next blow.

The axe rises above both crying children like the fang of a bloodthirsty beast ready to strike its pray...





"Spike!" Twilight shouts as she calls for the fourth time and doesn't get a response from her dragon companion.

Taken by surprise, the little winged dragon drops the comic book he was reading and jumps rather than flies upward, where his claws allow him to grab onto the crystalline roof of the crystalline castle, as if he were a frightened cat.

"Twilight!?" exclaims Spike, releasing its claws from the ceiling, gliding down to the floor. "Could you be more careful? You almost squeezed the jewels out of me."

"I'm sorry, Spike," Twilight apologizes sheepishly before getting back her bearings. "But I want to talk to you and you weren't answering."

"Oh, yeah? And what did you want to talk to me about?" asks the little dragon, while he removed some of the dust that had stuck to his scales.

"About how you've been acting lately."

"And how has I been acting lately?" Spike says, crossing his arms defensively, opening and raising his wings, feeling like he's being accused of something bad.

"Well, to be honest, I think you've been acting a little -but only a little- paranoid towards Chrysalis," Twilight responded, trying to sound as diplomatic as possible with her oldest friend and companion. "And I don't think reading this kind of material is appropriate or doing you any favors right now." She concluded after lifting up and looking, with a bit of disdain, at the comic book that the violet and green dragon was reading. In large bloody red letters it could read: "Tales of Horror", with the subtitle "Shining the 13th" and a drawing of a tall dark figure, wielding an axe ready to attack a colt and a filly.

"Give me just one example of me acting 'paranoid' towards her," Spike demanded, indignant at that baseless accusation.

"Well, there was the time you thought she 'brutally' killed someone when you mistook strawberry jam for blood coming out of her mouth..."

"That jam was very red..."

"Then there was that time when you thought she had stolen some duvets from Rarity, when in reality she had bought them..."

"Where do she get the money to start buying things!?"

"And just yesterday you tried to rally a group of town ponies, for what I hope was not an attempt to lynch her, just because you heard her laughing."

"It wasn't a 'Ha, ha, ha' funny laugh! It was a 'Mua ha ha' evil laugh! I'm telling you, Twilight, she's eeeviiil!" The baby dragon concluded by alarmingly raising and shaking her arms to emphasize his point.

If Spike hoped this would solidify his point with Twilight, it didn't; obtaining an unamused look from the purple pony.

"Fine! Maybe I've been acting a little paranoid towards her, but how come you don't want me to act that way when we have our worst enemy living under the same roof? She has stop following through with your plan to meet and interact with the rest of our friends," Spike shot back. "Besides, what I read has nothing to do with how I act," he added, jumping to regain possession of his comic book from Twilight's magic.

"That's because Chrysalis asked to take a few days off from the friendly interactions," she responded, remembering with some discomfort the moment when the Changeling Queen returned from her trip to the hive earlier than expected, battered and bloody. Concerned, Twilight asked for answers about what had happened to her and if she needed medical assistance, but the Queen just ignore her and for the third time since she arrived in Ponyville she locked herself in her room without saying a single word. The answers came from Thorax, who explained that his plan was to impress Chrysalis with how well things were going for the hive and the Changelings now, and convince her to return to them and all things good, but that he had not counted on with his brother Pharynx carrying so much pent up resentment and lashed out at her, ending in a hoof fight. The poor leader of the Changelings looked miserable as he gave his testimony, feeling like he had ruined everything.

"Twilight, I'm just worried about your safety and the safety of the others," Spike said sighing more calmly, changing his defensiveness to concern. "I'm telling you, she's just pretending, that's her specialty! There's no way someone like her can be reformed. She doesn't even address me by my name, in her eyes I'm a lizard, or a reptile derivate; the best thing she has called me is drakegrub, and even so I think there is something degrading in that word."

"Have you discussed this with her and told her that you would prefer she refer to you by your name?"

"Well... no. It's just... I've been busy, yeah?" Spike responds, not wanting to admit that the only reason he hasn't talked to the Changeling Queen is because he's afraid of her. "But any time now I'm going to give her a piece of my mind."

"Really, Spike? Please, don't fight with her, just talk to her. Don't make things worse than they already are," Twilight pleaded a little frustrated.

"Why are you scolding me like I was the one that did something wrong, like if I'm the bad guy!?" Spike puffed his cheeks, feeling annoyed. "I'm not the one that attacked Canterlot. I'm not the one that hurt our friends. I'm not the one that almost got you killed! It was her! She is the one with a black heart! Not me!"

"Spike, calm down!" Twilight said resting her hoof on Spike's shoulder. "I'm not saying you're the bad guy."

Spike turned away from her, his arms crossed once again. "It sure sounds that way."

"I'm not saying that we should forget everything she has done to all of us. I just think that showing her resentment and distrust is not the right way to teach her about the magic of friendship."

"I don't want to hear it!" Spike turned, and began to stomp towards the door. "She has you, all of you wrapped around her holed hoof, and you just don’t want to see it."

"Spike… Spike!" Twilight called for the baby dragon. He, however, didn't turn back, storming out to the room's exit and slamming the door shut behind him.





The next day, a tense feeling permeates the space of the dining room. Poor Twilight, in the middle of it all, could see the glances that Chrysalis and Spike were throwing at each other, avoiding their respective gazes. All the jams and flavorings on the table (curiously not a single honey jar in sight) couldn't make his breakfast taste better, do to the worry she carried thanks to this.

The owner of the castle tried to make small conversations with both of them, asking them how they feel or what plans they may have for the day, but they only gave short and cutting answers, clearly not feeling very talkative at that time. Having to mediate between two friends and not lose both of them in the process was still one of the most overwhelming tasks for the so called Princess of Friendship; facing Tirek was starting to seem less stressful than this.

Luckily for her, on this occasion neither of them said anything about the other that could lead to a confrontation.

Breakfast over, Spike picked up the dishes, ready to take them to the sink, but not before hearing Twilight say:

"Thank you very much for the breakfast, Spike. It was delicious." And taking advantage of the fact that him had his back turned, carrying the dishes towards the kitchen, Twilight gave Chrysalis a look that told the Changeling Queen (or rather demanded) that she should take this opportunity to say some good words to the small dragon.

Having apparently understood the gesture, Chrysalis rolled her eyes with all the drama she could gather at this early hour and said:

"Yes, I agree. The Queen is pleased with your culinary skills. You should be proud of this, drakeling."

Twilight hoof met her face.

Spike stopped, his entire body tensing. Taking a deep breath, his shoulders broadened and his wings flared... And as quickly as it came, Spike released his breath and his shoulders and wings fell down. Dejected, the young dragon slipped out the kitchen door and shut it behind him.

"You should be more polite with him, you know that, right?" From the other side of the door, Spike could hear Twilight scolding Chrysalis.

"What? I was being polite!" Chrysalis defended herself. "In the Hive, receiving a compliment like that would make it the best day of the life of any Changeling under my command."

Twilight let out a tired sigh. "I've already told you that's not what I'm speaking of. We've already talked about this."

"And I have told you that the day that baby dragon face me with something more than its fear and distrust will be the day I call it by its name."

That's where the conversation must have ended, since the next thing Spike could hear was the opening and closing of the dining room door that led to the castle hallway.

Taking another deep breath, Spike carried the plates, climbed onto his stool, and deposited them in the sink.





"I'm not afraid of her, I'm not a coward," Spike grumbled as he scrub the dishes. "And I'm not paranoid! She's a villain and is up to no good, it's Twilight who can't see it. I know that if given the chance, she would try to pluck my wings," the young dragon shuddered at the thought that something like that could ever happen.

"I just have to find proof that she's up to something evil, and we can go back to the way things were meant to be."

"And... done!" Spike said when there were no more dishes left in the sink. But putting a claw to his lips, he felt something wasn't right.

While Twilight was the one who could sense if something was amiss in her library, whether it was a book placed on the wrong shelf, or some of its pages were folded, the rest of the things inside the castle, especially those in the kitchen, were Spike's responsibility. As such, he counted the plates, the glasses, the spoons, the forks and...

"Aha! Another knife is missing," he exclaimed, scratching his head in confusion and somewhat annoyed after checking and not finding it in the sink.

Jumping off the stool, Spike begins to look for it, first on the floor, in case it has fallen, then in the pantry and among the other kitchen drawers, hoping that the mice have not returned and are preparing to try to take over the kitchen once again.

Seconds before deciding that enough was enough and to call pest control, Spike heard someone knock on the door.



 

"I'm going, I'm going!" Spike announced loudly, a hint of annoyance in his tone of voice.

Opening the door, Spike was slightly surprised to see Applejack on the other side.

"Oh, hello, Applejack. It's weird seeing you here so early."

"Sorry if I'm bothering, partner."

"Not at all! What can I do for you?"

"Actually, I came looking for Chrysalis."

"Her!?" Spike asked, surprise, confusion and a little bit of anger in the word. "What can you want with her?"

"I want to know if she's done using the axe and see if she could return it."

"An axe?" A bit of worry crept up the dragon's back.

"Yes. A couple of days ago, she came back to the farm and asked me if I could lend her ours."

"And you lent it to her!?" Spike shouted, as surprised as worried to learn that Chrysalis was now carrying an axe.

"She was quite helpful the other day and she was quite polite when she asked for it."

"Why would she need an axe?" Crossing his arms, Spike began to feel envious as he felt that only he was being treated so poorly by the Changeling Queen; also knowing that Chrysalis had also charmed the rest of the group made his concern and annoyance a little bit bigger.

"I rightfully do not know," answer Applejack, rubbing her chin with one of her hooves, remembering the interaction she had with the Changeling Queen that day. "When I asked her about it, she got a bit nervous and just told me that she was going to chop some wood with it."

"Well, I don't know if she's in the castle right now, but if I see her I'll tell her that you asked for the axe."

"You'd be doing me a big favor if you did. Well, I have to go, there's still a lot of work to do back on the farm. See you later, Spike."

"See you, Applejack."





Walking through the long hallways and corridors of the castle, Spike headed in search of Chrysalis. He really didn't know if the Queen was inside the castle or not, after a couple of days locked in her room, she had begun to go out as she pleased and at any time of the day; On a couple of occasions Spike had even caught a glimpse of the Queen abandoning the castle in the middle of the night, when he woke up to go to the kitchen in search of a midnight snack. But knowing that Chrysalis was now carrying an axe, he was quite determined to make sure that she returned it as soon as possible to her rightful owner.

Entering the corridor where the Changeling Queen's bedroom was located, and after a long walk along it, Spike finally stood in front of the door, ready to knock on it.

But before his knuckles could make contact with it surface, he could hear Chrysalis monologuing, talking to someone.

"... You are my precious..."

Trying to listen better, Spike pressed his ear to the door.

"... With you at my side, I will raise a new Changeling empire..."

At these statements, Spike's heart began to beat more intensely, but for the safety of not only Twilight and her friends, but apparently now for everyone in Equestria -if not of the world-, Spike remained calm and tried to see what was happening inside the room through the key hole, but the inside of the room was Changeling dark.

"...But before we can do it, there is still one more thing I need to take care of..."

Inside it, he could see the silhouette of Chrysalis and her bright green eyes, her face in a manic grimace. Suddenly her horn flashed in green and in front of her Spike could see the levitating reflection of the blade of a very sharp axe.

At this vision, Spike's heart jumped in his chest, and he retreated back from the door, gasping as a rush of adrenaline pumped through his system.

He tried to calm himself down, as he still had the opportunity to warn Twilight and put a stop to the Changeling Queen's evil intentions. But in his agitation, his tail gets tangled in the legs of a decorative table, making noise.

Worried, Spike quickly turns around and puts a stop to the rattling of the small furniture. But it's too late. He hears Chrysalis closing a drawer or a door inside her room, now walking towards the door.

Spike now had to go. Looking left and then right, he fearfully concluded that he could not escape through the corridor before being spotted by the Queen, and if she managed to see him and realized that he had heard her, he would be finished; There would be no way that after finding out what she was planning she could leave him alive.

Chrysalis's footsteps approached the door. In a last ditch effort to save his life, Spike looked up.

Chrysalis opened the door and suspiciously looked quickly and several times to both sides of the corridor, seeing nothing. The Changeling Queen stood in her place, looking left and right of the hallway for a few more seconds, hoping to see something out of place, but finding no one, she finally left her room carrying a heavy saddle bag with her.

Once the coast was clear, Spike unhooked his claws from the ceiling and lowered himself to the floor, finally releasing the heaviest breath of his life.

When he was finally able to calm his pulse and breathing, and gain a tiny control over his fear and insecurities, the young dragon stood up, knowing there was no time to waste. He had to warn Twilight of Chrysalis's plans and the danger they were in.





"Twilight! Twilight!" Running through the halls of the castle, Spike screams in fear and mad desperation to find her.

"Twilight!" The young dragon shouted once again, entering the room that he knew the Princess of Friendship preferred to use as a study.

Inside, Spike found her attentively reading a letter. He knew that the sender was Princess Celestia, having caught a glimpse of her golden signature on the floating paper held by the magical aura of Twilight, but nothing more.

"Spike, what do you want now? Can't you see that I'm a little busy dealing with very important matters?" Twilight told him, with a mix of tiredness and irritation, and if it weren't for how altered he was, Spike would have been able to notice a bit of concern in the way she spoke.

"Whatever Princess Celestia wants, it has to wait, Twilight! This is more urgent!"

"What could be more urgent than...?"

"It's Chrysalis, Twilight! She's planning to kill us and take control of the world!"

"Not this again, Spike," Twilight said with a tired, disdainful, and slightly disappointed sigh.

"No, Twilight! I'm being serious this time! You have to believe me!" Desperately, almost pleadingly, Spike went on to tell Twilight about Applejack's visit in search for her axe and how when he went to look for Chrysalis he overheard the Queen talking about how she intended to build a new Changeling empire.

After taking the breaths he didn't use to tell his story, Spike was a little surprised to see that Twilight seemed like she had actually heard him and taken what he had said to heart.

Spike had known Twilight all his life, chances are that there was no one who knew her better than him, and for this reason he could know with complete certainty that an idea had formed in the purple Alicorn's mind, her deep gaze, lost in thought, suddenly her eyes widened in some fearful realization, moving back and forth several times from Spike to the letter and from the letter back to Spike.

To her credit in Spike's eyes, Twilight managed to avoid going into hyperventilation by taking a couple of deep inhales and slow exhalations, in imitation of a breathing exercise that her sister in law had taught her.

Once she managed to calm down, she spoke in a serious tone:

"Are you sure what you heard?"

"I swear it, Twilight, for all the gems and comic books I keep under my bed, I'm telling you the truth."

Twilight began to tense. Looking once more at the letter and back at Spike, an internal conflict took hold over her. Part of her wanted to believe what he was telling her, but there was also this other part inside her that didn't want to believe what was being presented to her, dismissing it as mere circumstantial evidence.

Knowing that if he didn't intervene, Twilight could hurt herself getting caught overthinking the situation, Spike got an idea: "If you don't believe me, would you believe it if you saw it with your own eyes?"

"What are you suggesting?" Twilight asked, her responsible instincts taking over, snapping her out of that tense state, not liking where Spike was going with that comment.

"Let's take the opportunity that she's not here, to check her room."





"I'm not too sure about this, Spike," Twilight says having second thoughts, yet following the young dragon in the direction of Queen Chrysalis's room.

"Don't worry about what we're going to do. You better worry about what we're going to find. And you better have that horn ready in case we need it," Spike commented back, looking around the corner of the hallway that led to Chrysalis room, making sure she was not nearby, and finally approaching the door.

Spike knew that if he was wrong and they do not find any incriminating evidence that grant some weight to his claims an accusations, this would lead him to lose all credibility with Twilight and would undoubtedly fracture his relationship with her, which for him was in itself an equally terrifying prospect, which almost made him reconsider his decision. But knowing that this was for the safety of Twilight and the rest of his friends, he considered it a risk he was willing to take. Gathering some courage, Spike took a deep breath as he reached out for the door handle.

"Spike, stop." Command Twilight, catching Spike's claw with her magic, his face filled with heavy doubts. "I know that you are very worry for all of us -to tell you the truth, I do to-, but I'm asking you that we must stop," Twilight said conflicted.

"Twilight, if we want to be sure she is not planning anything evil, then her room —"

"Would be the best place to look for any kind of clues or evidence, I agree… but we're not doing it," Twilight concluded.

"Why!?" the dragon asked, sounding desperate.

"Because, after everything that's happened, that would be a disgusting demonstration of distrust on my part to Chrysalis."

"Trust? I thought you trusted me, but now I see that you would rather trust Chrysalis more," Spike almost shouted sounding sad and angry.

"I trust you, Spike. More than anyone in the world, but this... this is wrong. If I do this, I would be going against everything I have learned and everything I want to represent as the Princess of Friendship. I am sorry, Spike, but I cannot allow this to happen."

"Twilight, I just want to be sure!" Spike softened his expression and tone of voice as he saw how much this situation was hurting his mother figure. "I just want to make sure that you and the rest of my friends will be safe. I don't think I could live with that kind of concern just out of courtesy and consideration, not to someone like Chrysalis. Twilight, please, consider what could happen if I'm right?!"

Twilight cringe at that and close her eyes, and for several seconds she do so, seeing in front of her the worst possible scenario.

"You're right, Spike," Twilight said crestfallen, then sighing.

YES! Spike mentally celebrate.

"But this is not the right way to proceed. Come with me, Spike. We will both confront Chrysalis about our concerns and demand explanations from her. And if she can't give us them... I guess... I guess we will put an end to this experiment for good and... I do not know what we will do next. What do you think?" conceded -almost pleaded- Twilight, looking defeated and miserable, on the verge of tears.

"Okay... You're right, Twilight. I don't know what got into my head," Spike conceded now. "Let's go to the castle lobby and wait for her, what do you think?"

"Thank you very much, Spike!" Twilight exclaimed, letting out a sigh of relief, regaining her calm and joy, releasing Spike's claw, turning around, ready to go to the lobby.

"I'm sorry Twilight, but you'll thank me later!" Spike said quickly as he opened the door and throw himself into Chrysalis' room.





Chrysalis's room was dark, as dark as a real Changeling cave, so much so that even Spike's draconic eyes were having trouble seeing what was inside.

"Spike! You're in a lot of trouble, young dragon!" Twilight sternly enunciated, entering the Queen's room, turning on the lights, an action that actually did very little to illuminate the interior of the room. Apparently Chrysalis had made some changes and renovations to her alcove, one of them making the lighting occur through a green light, giving the interior an almost alien appearance, or to be more specific, a kind of Changeling hive. But beyond this, it looks like any other normal room in the castle.

"Well, now that that's been settled, at least now you could help me look out for evidence, before Chrysalis comes back and we both get in trouble?" Spike asked, brushing off Twilight's scolding, considering in his mind that any punishment and consequences would be 'future Spike' problems.

Twilight suddenly tensed, beginning to feel anxious and guilty for also having entered Chrysalis's room without her permission or invitation.

"Well, now that we're both in, I can at least supervise this intrusion and make sure that we don't overstep -even more than we already have- and do what we came to do in the most correct and efficient way, so that we can get out of here as soon as possible," said Twilight, now that she had already accepted and left her guilt behind and her curiosity drive her, trotting to the room interior, using her magic to open a pair of heavy black curtains, another of the changes that Chrysalis had implemented in her room, thus allowing the space to be properly illuminated by sunlight.

Now, with a better illumination and with Twilight's "permission", Spike moved from one side of the room to the other, quickly going over every space he could, on the mattress, between the duvets, under the bed, between and behind the books on the bookshelf (these Twilight's property), turning everything in the room; The only thing he found once he started looking through the drawers of the duchess table was a lone manebrush and nothing else.

In the bathroom what Spike could find was a tangle of teal hair clogging the drain of the shower, and with that he could only accuse the Queen of having poor guest manners.

Unamused, Twilight busy herself cleaning up the mess the young dragon left in his increasingly desperate and seemingly paranoid race to find something with which he could truly incriminate Chrysalis of something nefarious.

"That's enough, Spike," Twilight said, levitating the little dragon close to her in her magical aura, stopping him before he started scratching off the tapestry of the room's walls. "We've been here for several minutes and we haven't found anything. We better forget about this and get out of here before Chrysalis comes back and finds us searching her room."

"A little late for that," they both heard. A cold chill and a strong goosebump ran through their bodies.

Standing in the doorway, blocking the only exit -unless they both wanted to jump out the window- was the imposing figure of Queen Chrysalis, glaring at them with an angry scowl and a very sharp axe floating to her left.

*AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!*

Spike and Twilight screamed in fear. The cowering dragon clench himself to the pony princess face.

"Shoot her!" Spike instructed, pointing at Chrysalis, directing Twilight's horn in the direction of the Changeling Queen.

Squeezing her adrenal glands (or whatever Changelings have) Chrysalis used every possible ounce of adrenaline inside her to dodge the gigantic magic beam, flattening her body to the proportions of a sheet of paper to the floor, looking like a Changeling rug made with her carcase.

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU TWO!!!" Roared the enraged Queen once the dangerous display of indomitable magic power was finished, adrenaline still flowing throughout her body.

"I'm so sorry, Chrysalis," Twilight apologized once she was able to remove Spike from her face, setting him down next to her, giving him a reproachful look before addressing Chrysalis once more.

"If you allow me, and I will beg you to allow me, I can explain... but first, could you put the axe down, please?"

"Oh, yeah! You just shot a hole through your entire castle with that death beam, and I'm the dangerous one here with my common axe," the Queen shoots back, giving Twilight an annoyed look.

"It's... it's a long story," Twilight responded, cringing in shame, avoiding Chrysalis's gaze, but keeping an eye on the axe.

Unamused, the Changeling Queen keeps the axe inside her saddle bag.

Releasing a sigh, the Princess of Friendship goes on to tell her, first of all, why she and the little dragon were on edge regarding the axe, and then how Spike overheard her saying some "worrying things", insisting that because of security, they had to check her room.

"And now, Spike, I think we both owe Chrysalis an apology," Twilight said seriously.

"What? Why? She hasn't given us any explanation, like, why would she need an axe?" Spike asks defiantly.

"Why else? To chop wood," Chrysalis replied.

"But why would you need an axe to do that when you have magic?"

"Perhaps you haven't noticed, but magic is becoming a rather costly resource for me in my current situation. Thus, it is easier for me to chop wood with an axe," the Queen responded again, this time with a little of anger.

"And why would you need to chop wood!?"

"Because you two live in a crystal castle and this place gets pretty cold at night!"

Spike cower in fear at the Queen outburst, but unwilling to give up, not when he knows he still has one question that could turn the situation in his favor.

"And what do you have to say about what I heard you say about you raising a new Changeling empire?"

At this, Chrysalis raised her head, as if she wanted to put as much distance as possible between her and that accusation.

"You misheard," the Queen responds, saying no more, acting indignant.

Twilight did not miss the detail that it was just that, "acting", and not even a very good one, since she could see the nervousness that that accusation caused to Chrysalis.

Sadly the case had devolved to Spike paranoid word vs Chrysalis nervous word, and with nothing more than that, Twilight knew that, after what had happened, she didn't have a moral leg to stand on, heck, it felt like she didn't have even a moral hoof with which to dig herself out of the moral hole that she and Spike dug and fell into.

"I'm so sorry, Chrysalis, and I hope you can forgive us for all the inconvenience we cause you," bowing her head in shame, the Princess apologized to the Queen.

In those moments, Twilight knew she couldn't blame anyone but herself if Chrysalis picked up her few belongings, that is if she even wanted to bother picking them up, and walked away, ending their friendship experiment, having proven the point of the Changeling Queen. And if that were to be the case, Twilight would march straight to Canterlot and give Princess Celestia her tiara and resign as Princess of Friendship.

"Spike, do you have something to say?" Twilight asked her dragon companion.

Spike was going to refute, he was going to challenge, but before the look of the one he loved more than anyone in this world, a look that was not one of annoyance or anger but of unadulterated disappointment, a disappointment not only in him but in herself, whatever thing Spike was originally going to say couldn't escape his throat.

"Yeah, yeah, Chrysalis, I'm sorry for coming into your room thinking that you were planning to kill us and then take over the world or whatever," Spike said with his arms crossed, not deigning to face her, not truly feeling it, not when he was sure of what he had heard.

"If that's the best you can tell me, you can leave my room now, snake," the Queen snarled, pointing toward the exit to the intruders.

Twilight and Spike were walking towards the exit, both with their heads down, Twilight imagining everything she would have to say and explain to everyone, and Spike grumbling. But before he came out of Chrysalis's room, a beam of light hit him in the eye, and when he moved to see what it was, he recognized it at once and immediately jumped to grab it.

"Twilight, wait!" Spike triumphantly exclaims, having picked up the object of his excitement from the crevice of the closet's sliding door and raising it into the air so everyone could see it. It was a knife, one of the knives that had been lost from the kitchen.

"Can you tell us, bug queen, what you were planning to do by stealing knives?" Spike asked boastful.

Chrysalis made an angry face, but pursed her lips.

"You have nothing to say, huh? In that case, let's see what you're hiding in your closet." Spike mocked, placing his claw on the edge of the door, ready to slide it open and see what Chrysalis was hiding inside.

At this, Chrysalis ignite her horn, closing the door with her magic, jumping between it and the young dragon.

"Whatever I keep in my closet is not of your business!" The Queen growl, threateningly bringing her face closer to Spike, as if she wanted him to clearly read the words that had left her lips.

Frightened, Spike held the knife in his claws, pointing it towards the seemingly gigantic Changeling Queen, as if a knight challenging a terrible dragon.

But before the situation got out of control and someone got hurt, Twilight pulled Spike out of Chrysalis reach, levitating him with her magic next to herself.

"Chrysalis, if you ask us to leave, we will, without asking any more questions," Twilight said in an apologetic tone.

"What!? Why!?" Spike exclaimed, worried and confused.

But before anything else could be said, Twilight continued in a serious tone: "But given this new evidence, I warn you that if you do not reveal to us what you hide in that closet, our trust in you will be tremendously affected, putting everything what you have achieved in these last few days at risk. Therefore I ask you, let us see what you are hiding inside the closet."

At these words, Chrysalis's expression became worried. Her eyes moved around, looking for a way out of this situation. It was she now who considered jumping out the window or through the hole that Twilight had made through the castle; She even considered fighting the princess, but that idea was quickly discarded, recognizing that she was weak and the Alicorn was most likely in her current prime. Seeing no options, Chrysalis turned off her horn, releasing the closet door from her magic, stepping aside.

"AHA!" Celebrated Spike, having gone ahead of Twilight, opening the closet door.

To his and Twilight's confusion, what they found inside the closet was… wood.

On one side, six thick branches lay leaning against the wall. It did not escape Twilight's insight that they shared a curious coloration with her and the rest of the Elements of Harmony. Odd, a little uncomfortable to watch, but nothing that screamed evil masterplan to take over the world.

On the other side, they found lying on the floor what the princess suspected was another of the kitchen knives, its tip bent and nicked from what she could assume was heavy and improper use.

Towering above it were stacked a collection of logs, each and every one of them bearing a crude effigy of the faces of unreformed Changelings.

Twilight face cringe and contort in unease once the realization of what she was seeing dawned on her.

Turning to face Chrysalis, the Princess of Friendship could see the Queen in a state of mortification, her face glowing green with embarrassment.

Closing the door and backing away as if she had seen something that only the eyes of its respective owner should have, Twilight felt that the castle would do her a great favor if it immediately crumbled and buried her in its remains, never to be seen again.

"Chrysalis, I... I am... so..." Twilight tries to apologize, but she honestly didn't believe there were words in any language spoken by ponies to express how sorry she felt at that moment with the Changeling Queen.

"Twilight, don't apologize!" Spike interrupts her stuttering for an apology.

"Please, Spike, don't you think we've done enough damage already?" Twilight asks, more tired than anything, her patience with the young dragon having reached its limit.

"What I mean is, you're not the one who has to apologize to Chrysalis, Twilight; it's me who has to do it," Spike concluded, finally facing the Changeling Queen.

"Queen Chrysalis, I apologize for the distrustful way in which I have behaved towards you. I should have trusted Twilight more and listened to the rest of my friends when they vouched for you, and I hope that, if you don't want to forgive me, at least don't blame Twilight for anything, she never wanted to violate your trust and privacy, In fact, it was her who told me to talk to you first, but I, in my paranoia, didn't want to listen, and I was the one who forced her into your room." Spike concluded, feeling rather small, unable to look Chrysalis in the eyes out of shame, ready to be screamed at.

A few seconds of tense silence were cut with a "I forgive you and accept your apology, Spike," from a calmer and more ceremonious Chrysalis.

Not believing what his ears had just heard, surprised, Spike looked up to see Chrysalis in the face.

"Did you just call me by my..."

"Now get out of my room and never enter it again without my permission!" The Changeling Queen shouted, interrupting Spike, pushing both pony and dragon out of her room, slamming the door behind their back.

"What do we do now?" Spike asked, once they recovered from the sudden expulsion from the lend lands to the Changeling empire under the reign of Queen Chrysalis.

"Well, Spike," Twilight began with a wide smile, feeling proud of him, "I think it's time for you to do something we haven't done in a long time, and write a friendship report to Princess Celestia."
> The Queen's Laments
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once again Chrysalis didn't know how to feel, whether flattered or insulted.

Traveling encased in a flying chariot of gold and alabaster colors, surrounded by eight heavily armed pegasi members of the royal guard, sitting on highly comfortable purple padding, Chrysalis looks through the hard, magic-proof glass window at her destination. A castle with ivory towers with golden spiers and many waterfalls and rivers running through it, embedded next to a large mountain.

Descending onto a landing strip, the door to her highly ornate cage was not opened until the eight guards who guarded her during the journey were formed four on each side and another eight that were already waiting join them to escort the Changeling Queen inside the castle.

During the procession across a long red carpet, Chrysalis marched tall and regal, never moving her gaze from the front; Even so, she did not miss the opportunity to store every detail she could discern from her surroundings. She didn't want to give any praise to the architects who designed this building, but she couldn't help but think that this was indeed a proper castle, even if it had nothing overly special, except for the large windows giving a spectacular view of the outside world, and the large stained glass windows that depicted some of the most significant events in pony history. From the founding of Equestria, Nightmare Moon's return, the gathering of the Elements of Harmony, etc. But one of them put a frown in Chrysalis's face as she got to the one that depicted her defeat at the wedding. The glazier made sure to make her and the rest of the unreform Changelings out to look like hideous monsters.

For the first time, the Queen thought of giving some credit to the castle of the Princess of Friendship, which, in its dull and lacking appearance, had no room for these pretentious displays.

Arriving at her destination, stopping in front of an immense two-winged door with the effigy of the sun, the guard in front knocked on the door.

"You can come in," the hostess and next personality she was scheduled to meet almost crooned.

The doors opened giving way to a large room in which there was only a small table on which rested a tea set and plates, with a tray stocked with multiple snacks, and two bean bag like chairs, one of them occupied by the Princess of the Sun, Princess Celestia.

With a grimace on her face, nonchalantly trotting forward to meet her, Queen Chrysalis takes her place in the other chair in front of Equestria’s older reigning ruler. Celestia, for her part, received her with a smile almost as bright as the sun she commands.

With a golden glow radiating from her horn, Celestia arranges the plates and cups, moving on to serve tea for both of them.

Celestia's smile disappeared after seeing that the scowl with which her guest entered was now accompanied by her forelegs crossed; The sixteen soldiers that surrounded them were most likely the reason for this.

"Please, leave us alone," Celestia friendly command to her guards.

Every visible guard salute, signaling the reception of the decree, and in a couple of seconds they all leave the room.

Chrysalis uncrossed her forelegs and abandons her annoyed face in favor of a more neutral expression. Despite all this, she was aware that they were not truly alone, she can taste the emotions of some hidden guards. It was faint, a little bit of fear here, a few more of hate there, and a lot of the in between emotions clearly masked by years of training. Without giving any indication of knowing she was being spied on, the Queen decides that she was going to play the part of the puppet when in reality she was going to be the puppeteer.

Celestia lets out a sigh after the first sip of her cup of tea and proceeds to say: "All of you, I wish to be alone with our guest," and then Chrysalis stops sensing any kind of emotions in the room beyond those that come from Celestia.

"How did you know there were still guards among us?" asks the Queen, surprised by this and a little upset because the strings she intended to play with were cut so soon, so suddenly.

"You have your ways... and I have mine," Celestia responded, showing a complacent smile after sweetening her tea with a teaspoon of sugar.

There it is! The politician, answering the question without actually answering it, Chrysalis thought bitterly.

"Aren't the tea and snacks to your liking?" Celestia asks, a bit of disappointment painting her words. "We have meat available for when we receive visits from dignitaries from carnivorous kingdoms, if that's what you feel like right now." The solar ruler of the ponies offers with impressive naturalness, having lost all sense of discomfort with the carnivorous diet after more than a millennium of receiving or being received at strictly political and ceremonial banquets by Griffins, Dragons and very rarely by Diamond Dogs or Kirins tribal chieftain.

"The tea and snacks are fine," the Queen replied, sipping from her cup and munching on a glazed cookie, showing her teeth for a second, maintaining a serious expression that didn't give away her thoughts.

I am also capable of playing this game of giving answers that do not give answers.

Both Princess and Queen begin to chat very friendly, but after a while Chrysalis relaxes, not in a sense of security or comfort, but of boredom, having expected to test her intelligence and cunning against the Solar Diarch, thinking that throughout this meeting, which she saw as nothing more than a charade, the alicorn would try to extract valuable information from her.

But much to her disappointment, Celestia had come extremely uninterested in that kind of course of action; telling the Queen about the most vain and meaningless things, which barely got Chrysalis's attention.

Sensing boredom in her guest, Celestia turns the conversation to a topic that she hopes will be of greater interest, both for her and for the Queen.

"You know," Celestia began, refilling her teacup, "I was initially skeptical when Twilight informed me about what happened between the two of you on the island of Saint Ashtray, about your willingness to give up aggression for peace, and how you save her life; but now I more than happy to help in any way I can."

"Don't fool yourself, Celestia! I only agreed to your protégé's deluded proposal because having a source of energy would increase my chances of escaping from that place and tangently proving the falseness of his ideology will be a delicious result," Chrysalis responded with a little of strength, more than was necessary, but this had no effect on the Princess; she knew that the Queen was only being overprotective of her appearance.

"Even so, I am surprised that you had never attempted a friendly approach with us before. If you simply wished to feed your subject, you could have…"

"And there it is! The pony arrogance!"

"Excuse me!?" Celestia asks, having been taken by surprise by Chrysalis's outburst expression. She sounded angry, truly indignant, unlike her reaction to the previous comment.

"Did you never bother to wonder why it might have been that way? Did you truly believe Thorax was the first Changeling to try a friendly approach to the ponies!?"

"I...didn't." Celestia responds, beginning to introspect, realizing that that thought never really crossed her mind; In her mind she was always sure that the Changelings' decision to live in anonymity was a decision based strictly on her eating habits, if not on Chrysalis's tyrannical desires for control and domination.

"Well, he was not!" says the Queen. "In the past, when for the first time from the safety of the shadows we Changelings laid our eyes on you ponies, we could see how much delicious and nourishing love existed between you, far superior to the one of the woodland creatures, but only among those of the same species.

"We could see how, when ponies interacted with members of other tribes, they emanated contempt, distrust and hatred.

"So, tell me, Celestia, if the members of the ponikind were so willingly to go to war, to murder each other over such trivial differences, such as having or lacking a horn or wings, what chance would me and my kind would have to trive, to live openly among your kind?

"Did you ever hear of the Selalem Trials?" the Queen asked with an accusing and inquisitive look directed at the tall Alicorn Princess.

A shiver went through Celestia's spine. The name of that town sounded familiar to the Princess of the Sun, due to the infamous events that took place there. And the fact that Chrysalis was asking about them brought a new but equally abhorrent context to that historic event.

"A family of Changelings volunteered to see how the ponies would react to us. They spent several months in that town, living among its population. They then revealed their true nature to the town ponies.

"There was no fairness in those so-called trials, I tell you. They were all beaten, tortured and those who survived the initial stoning were subsequently burned alive at the stake."

Celestia listened carefully to Chrysalis. She had no way of verifying the veracity of the Changeling Queen testimony, but to her recollection, it does bring some clarity to what happened. When news of these insane events reached her ears —their names!— the so-called 'Black Trials', also known as 'The Selalem Witchcraft Hunt'. This zealots movement reached over two hundred accusations and had already claimed the lives of twenty ponies before she could put an end to them, all of them under the accusation of being aberrations of black magic disguised as ponies. Of only twelve of those 'sentenced' she was able to recover a record of names, families and belongings, but eight of the victims were lost from history. Celestia was aware that even after the union of the three tribes, her little ponies could be dangerously fearful of other creatures. Now there was a chance that the Changelings Chrysalis spoke of could have been among those eight.

"Now you get it, Princess?" Chrysalis asked, seeing the realization on Celestia's face. "Thorax wasn't the first good Changeling to interact with the Ponies, he was just the luckiest one."

Chrysalis doesn't know how right she is. Celestia thought bitterly, remembering the reports she received regarding the sightings of Thorax in the Crystal Empire. There's no such thing as a nice changeling. She remembered Shining Armor's written judgment in his letters. And from what Spike said upon his return, if it hadn't been for his intervention and support, Shining Armor and the Crystal Ponies could have seriously injured Thorax, if not worse.

"We would have died, Princess." Chrysalis continued in a somber tone. "If not under your hooves for the crime of being more than slightly different from you, poisoned by the only emotions that would be directed at us. And so, I made the decision that, for the survival of the Changeling kind, no creature should know of our existence.

"That is, Celestia, why until recently we never ever thought about coming out of the shadows, continuing to change our shape to harvest love without fear of dying."

"If true, why invade us?" Challenge Celestia, hiding her skepticism, not satisfied with what she was hearing. There were still some things with the Changeling Queen's explanations that didn't make sense to her.

Chrysalis let out a sad sigh, forcing herself to remember their arduous and distant past.

"When the Windigos showed up, attracted by the discord between the three pony tribes, things became even more difficult for the Changelings; We Changelings don't take well the cold weather. That is why we settled in the warm lands from the east; the ones you called "the bad lands" we called "home" for over a millennia. And from there we launched recollection missions to later bring that love back to the Hive."

Chrysalis explained, beginning to sound increasingly anxious and desperate as she recounted some of the details of her and the Changelings' past.

"But as time went on, the ponies became more and more capable. Able to defend themselves, able to work together between the three races, able to share information and compromise the existence of the Changelings. So, to maintain our existence a secret, we needed to be more discreet, reducing the number and size of scouting and gathering groups."

"But what does that have to do with the invasion?" Celestia press once again, on this occasion a bit of her disbelief could be heard in her words, not yet understanding why a race of creatures whose bread-and-butter was hiding in shadows and secrets, suddenly reveal their existence to the world by attacking so explicitly the capital of the Pony nation.

"Did that fool of Thorax never told you!?" shouts the Queen with the force of all her righteous indignation, wiping the table with a quick sweep of her hoof. "We were starving! Our love reserves were low, oh, so, so low." Chrysalis wailed sadly. "Even with the most generous of expectations, six months was the estimated time we could last, and that was with rationing."

Chrysalis took a deep breath and her eyes crystalized.

"That's why I concocted a plan, a simple and desperate plan, one that in our starving state the only thing it considered was ending our hunger." She continued, but not for Celestia anymore. The Diarch of the Sun was now nothing more than a witness to the Changeling Queen's decline into hysteria. Chrysalis didn't even look at her anymore, she talked to herself more than to anyone, like a crazy mare driven by guilt.

"We were meant to kidnap one of the most beloved ponies in Equestria and I was supposed to usurp her identity to harvest all the love meant for her and take it back to the hive to replenish our stores of love, and if possible, rinse and repeat for as much as possible, until there is no more love to gather or suspicion of my identity were unavoidable, then I would bail out. And in case the plan failed and I was captured, whoever we chose as a target had to be kept alive as a bargaining chip for my release.

"There were only two options: you and your niece."

Celestia, listening to that 'confession', pursed her lips at that little piece of information; that her beloved little sister was considered "not loved enough" by the Changelings, and the fact that she could not disagree with that sentiment, did not sit well with her. Despite her efforts, Luna had a hard and long way to go to get the appreciation Celestia knew her sister deserved from their subjects.

"Cadance was the obvious choice," the agitated Queen continues her explanation. "She was not well guarded and of the two she was the easiest to subdue. Everything was going perfectly. Then I met her boyfriend -soon to be husband- and that changed everything.

"The amount of love that fool stallion oozed for his bride was unbelievable. That was the only reason I decided to go through with the wedding. A 'honeymoon' in the Hive and I knew my Changelings wouldn't feel hungry for months or even years if I could keep up the charade.

"But then, something happened, I became too attached to that love, it was... intoxicating. And that's when, for me, the plan stopped being just about feeding my subjects, and it became a plan for power. I have never had so much love turned into power, never that much love directed and flowed through me.

"Can you imagine living with a hole inside you, an ever-present hunger that reminds you of its existence scratching at the back of your mind every second of your life, a sword hanging by a thin thread above your head making you aware that at any moment it will kill you... and suddenly you discover that that hole has been filled, the voice in your head has silenced and the itch in your body has disappeared?

The Queen smiled with her lips, but her gaze was lost in despair.

"I was euphoric, feeling all that power coursing through my veins. I became addicted to it. And at that moment I just... I just stopped thinking rationally. I felt like I was on top of the world. I didn't care or understand the consequences of my actions, revealing the existence of the Changelings to the world, risking the end of the world by taking down the beings in charge of moving the sun and the moon... nothing really mattered, to Tartarus with all!"

The Queen begins to laugh, but it is a sad laugh full of self-loathing and pain.

"And then what started as a mission to quench our hunger, for me it became a mission for revenge.

"I didn't care how many Changelings were lost after being expelled from Canterlot. I didn't care about those who returned with me to the Hive. I didn't care that our reserves of love were quickly depleting. All I cared about was getting revenge. Revenge against those who had taken away my power and had cursed me to feel once again the cruel and painful sting of hunger...

“And before I knew it, I lost it. I lost everything!”

Chrysalis fell, face down on the table. She looked like a lonely body fallen on a battlefield, then a sob arose from inside her. For a moment Celestia didn't know what to do, how to react? She didn't expect the Queen to burst into tears, not with her in particular. Was this a testament to the Changeling Queen's trust in her as a fellow immortal ruler? Celestia couldn't tell.

Should I stay in my place or should I try to console her? Celestia thought. She didn't want to comfort a tyrant who was putting a tantrum over what was definitely her greatest failure and subsequent downfall. It did not escape Celestia that, although Chrysalis's reaction was honest (There was no way that the Changeling Queen, with all her pride, could fake such a performance... or could she?), her last whining were vague enough to be one or the other, a cry for her failure as a queen, a ruler, a leader, a mother figure to her Changelings, or for the loss of power and control over her subjects.

At the end, and after hearing a couple of more forceful and heart wrenching sobs, Celestia decides that instead she was going to solace a fellow ruler that cries because it has just realized she fails to do good for it's subjects do to her hubris. Celestia did not know which one of the two was being Chrysalis, she just hoped this was another step on her own long and hard road to become a better creature.

When the wailing subsided, Celestia called for some guards and instructed them to escort the Queen to a guest room and to pay no attention to her appearance.

Entering her room, Chrysalis wrapped herself in the sheets like a tight cocoon, closed her tired eyes and went to sleep.
> The Queen's Nightmare
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Queen Chrysalis was walking down a wide street in a city.

The sky was gray, slightly cloudy. Tall buildings surrounded her. She was disguised as a regular unicorn with an olive coat, carrot colored mane, green eyes and a cutie mark depicting a ladybug standing above three leaves.

She was accompanied by a large group of Changelings also disguised as ponies. This was a reconnaissance mission in hopes of seeing if this metropolis might be a good target to harvest love.

The Queen was pleased that everything was going smoothly and none of the ponies around them were suspicious of her and hers subjects.

Suddenly a feeling that something was wrong creeps up on her. She didn't remember how she had come to this city whose name she couldn't remember. She recognized the costume she was wearing, It was one she had recently created to... do something... but to do 'What?'... the memory eluded her; and like the name of the city, she couldn't even remember when she had put it on.

If she squinted and concentrated, she could make out horns or wings, beaks or claws when they were griffons, but the faces of the creatures around them were a mass of blurred features, as if a brush had been dragged and twisted across a freshly painted canvas. 

She began to feel extremely uneasy.

Suddenly, above her, the clouds part from each other and rays of the sun descend from the sky. But when the clouds dissipated, what was in the sky was not a normal sun, this star was a replica of Princess Celestia's cutie mark!

Once the beam of this faux sun reach them, bathing them in its light, it begins to burn their disguises, revealing their dark equine insectoids body.

Taken by surprise, Queen Chrysalis looks around desperately, discovering that the passing ponies have turned into colorful ghostly apparitions, with misty gray angry eyes on them. She and her Changelings begin to run in fear, wanting to escape from those entities.

In desperation the Queen flaps her wings and jumps into the sky, but the flight does not come! It is as if her wings find no resistance to propel her upwards.

Risking a glance back, she sees one of her Changelings being pounced by one of these gray-eyed ghostly creatures and entering inside him, much similar to a specter possessing a body. The Changeling displays a grimace of absolute terror and then emits a light from his chest, is lifted into the air and finally encased in a cocoon of light.

What remains after that spectacle is something that the Queen can no longer recognize as a Changeling, looking more like just another one of those colorful specters, with an unreadable expression and an eerie smile.

The Queen keep running, now through the streets of a town whose houses take on ridiculous and whimsical shapes, related to the type of business or service they seem to offer, shaking rhythmically from one side to the other.

Chrysalis becomes desperate as she can feel how every second that passes, more and more of her Changelings are attacked and possessed once they are caught, managing to see the flashes of light that they produce once their metamorphosis takes place; and, on the contrary, her pursuers gain followers who do not hesitate to join them in her pursuit, until she is finally left completely alone.

Escaping down a street lined with huge, dancing fruits and vegetables with fanciful shaped doors and windows, the Queen senses that something else is wrong. She is swaying her legs in a running motion, but she doesn't feel the impact of her hooves on the ground. Instead it seems that she is static, floating in mid air, and it is the houses, trees and buildings that move at high speed, becoming nothing but blurs around her.

Turning a corner, barely avoiding colliding with a cookie house, Chrysalis realizes that she is stuck at a dead end.

With anxiety running through her being, the Queen calls for her magic to make a hole in the wall or to become something that could easily climb it, but the magic goes out at the tip of her horn.

Finding herself with no escape, Chrysalis turns around, ready to face her adversaries. Taking a fighting stance and baring her teeth, she prepares to fight. If the Queen is going to fall, the Queen will go down fighting.

The first and closer apparition, a purple one, jumps on her. Chrysalis takes a bite, but the spectral creature passes through her as if it were intangible and collides with her right foreleg. Immediately the Queen sees with horror how her hoof turns lime green and her holes shrink until they disappear. More and more of those colorful ghosts jump on her, a yellow one, a blue one, a white and a orange one come next, producing a similar change where they touch her. One, who was once one of her Changelings companions, jump directly to her face and the first thing she noticed was how her fangs contracted until they disappeared, and while her barrel turned grayish blue, her face and neck took on a yellowish coloration, with strange heart-shaped protuberances sprouting around her neck. She could feel with horror the rest of the deformations that her body was being victim to. Her beautiful crooked horn straightened and curved in the front, her wings became round like those of a butterfly; The hairs on her tail fall out and a membrane similar to that on her new wings takes its place. Her crown made a *clank* noise as it fell to the ground, pushed off her head by a pair of antler-like horns sprouting from a mane of blue, BLUE! that curved at the tips. As if she could see her reflection in front of herself, she witnessed how her eyes, whose original coloring seemed to be the only thing pleasing to the monstrous force that was twisting her form, dilate, becoming larger and brighter.

Before she was fully trapped inside that cursed toy-like appearance, the Queen screamed in abject horror at the top of her lungs:

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

But before the transformation could be completed...

"ENOUGH!" Boomed a voice seemingly coming from everywhere.

As if reality itself obeyed that command, the sky, the ground and the colorful buildings ceased to exist; Likewise, the Queen's false body breaks and falls away from her, freeing her from her colorful covering.

Descending or rather penetrating that space through a sphere of silver light that resembles a full moon, a dark blue Alicorn descends to rest in front of a Chrysalis that is panting heavily and laboriously, her nerves still in shambles.

"This gotta be one of the most colorful nightmares I think I've ever witnessed," says Princess Luna with a smile and a mocking but playful tone.

"Salutations, Queen Chrysalis, a pleasure to finally make us acquaintance."

"A dream? I should have known," Chrysalis gasps one last time before regaining her composure.

"Do not feel shame for it. Not many creatures are capable to be aware of themselves when dreaming, not until I make my presence known."

"I thought you could only enter ponies' dreams."

"I can enter the dreams of any creature that may have them, if I usually limit myself to visiting the dreams of ponies, it is because not all creatures welcome the invasion of their dreams by someone they do not recognize and trust," explains Princess Luna.

"If you can, why have you decided to enter mine until now? One would think that with such a useful ability no enemy of Equestria could hide from you." 

"While the dreamrealm is quite different from the physical one, the two are linked in some ways." With this, Princess Luna swung her hoof in the direction of the sky, or wherever it was supposed to be, and in the vast darkness above them stars began to appear and accumulate. But these stars and their position did not coincide with any star map in existence, looking more like a map of the population in a hemisphere of the world. "For example, dreams occupy the same space in the dreamrealm as their owners do in the real world. Or put it in another way, if I don't know exactly where a dreamer is in the real world, I can't know exactly where its dream lies in the dreamrealm. Trying to look for someone in particular in the dreamrealm is not much different from trying to find a needle in a world size haystack.

"Or in other words, the reason I was finally able to visit you in your dreams is because I know that in the real world you are resting inside one of the bedrooms of our castle.

"And it's a good thing I decided to visit you, Chrysalis, since it seems you were being haunted by a disturbing nightmare."

"If you dare to tell anyone about what you saw..." The Changeling Queen threatens, even if she is aware that at this moment neither in the dreamrealm nor in the physical world does she possess the capabilities to represent a threat for the Princess of the Night.

"Don't worry, Queen Chrysalis. I give you my word that I took my job as guardian of dreams very seriously, and nothing I see in the dreams of dreamers ever leave my lips."

Using her magic that allows her to control the reality of dreams, Luna recreates the figure of how Chrysalis dreamed her 'reformed form' would be, going on to observe with curious interest some of the details of its shape and figure, much to Chrysalis chagrin.

"You know, I never imagined that a Changeling's worst nightmare would be change," Luna said conversationally, poking the fake Chrysalis's nose, causing its tongue to peek out, giving it a goofy facial expression, revealing itself to be a tongue that resembled that of a pony more than that of a Changeling.

"When it is a change against one's will, it is everyone's nightmare; I was under the impression that you could understand this concept better than anyone," the Queen answers back.

Luna stops seeing the faux Chrysalis, which instantly ceases to exist, to see the real one with confusion. "What do you mean by that?"

"I may not know much about pony history, but I know about you," Chrysalis said, chuckling, approaching Luna, looking down at the Night Princess, now aware of how small she was in comparison to her, the Changeling Queen. "Of how in the past you choose to go by another name, when you felt that your efforts were unappreciated, and you were being unwanted, unloved."

Luna, craning her neck to look the Queen in the face, stood her ground, hardening her expression.

"And when you returned from your exile in the moon, you did so full of resentment and seeking revenge, ready to unleash eternal night on those who did not bow before your legs. One moment you were 'From this moment forth… the night… will last... forever!' and the next, after being rainbow blasted, 'I'm so sorry, sister, can you forgive me?...'" at this, Chrysalis brought her muzzle closer to Luna's ear and whispered: "And you're going to tell me that those damned Elements of Harmony didn't brainwash you into submission, didn't change you at all and against your will?"

Luna takes a step back, having been struck by the Queen's words. But then the Princess of the Night opens her eyes, ready to challenge those very same words.

"There are those who believe that when I was healed by the Elements of Harmony, they, as you say, cleaned my brain or removed "the Nightmare" from me, as if it were a parasite that took control of mine body and will…"

Luna tells this, circulating around Chrysalis, who loses sight of the Lunar Princess for a fraction of a second, only to immediately see Nightmare Moon in her place.

The change in appearances was so incredible instant and clean that it could have made the most talented shapeshifter Changeling blush, and because that Changeling just so happened to be the Queen, and Queens do not blush, Queen Chrysalis hoped that Luna did not notice this reaction of her part.

What was now looking at her directly in the eyes was a darker mare who equaled her in height, but who in presence and menace made the Queen look pale and dwarf in comparison.

"But you see, Nightmare Moon never left, never died, because I am Nightmare Moon, Nightmare Moon and I are one and the same, in body and mind.

"What the Elements of Harmony did for me the second time they struck me, was giving me what a thousand years trapped on the moon did not do; they gave me peace of mind, and it is through that peace that I reconsidered the wishes of Nightmare Moon -my wishes. They showed me a path of peace, not with my sister but with myself.

"If I so desired, I could have rejected what the Elements offered me out of fear or contempt for the arduous task that would have come to achieve that atonement, and follow a path of rage and conquest, a path that would have undoubtly end with my life, if not at the hooves of mine sister in bloody battle, at the will of the subjugated creatures that would see me as nothing more than a tyrant or a monster," shouted Nightmare Moon, closing the distance against a Chrysalis who was backing away in fear. 

"It was difficult not to fall into fear grasp, but I do not regret in the slightest choosing the hard path to peace and happiness, because even when I know that I am still far from where I would like to be, the small and few rewards it has granted me had made it all worth it." Nightmare Moon concluded.

"Well, I have already said what I wished to say, but now I bid you farewell, Queen Chrysalis," Nightmare Moon says in a friendlier tone that more closely resembles Luna's. "There are other creatures that require my aid to face their nightmares. But before I go, let me leave you with what I presume will be a pleasant dream."

With a movement of his hoof, the space around them is transformed into a throne room similar to that of Canterlot Castle, but with darker tints, torches that emit an emerald green fire illuminating the interior, and huge emerald stained glass windows. In place of Celestia and Luna's throne is a slightly more ostentatious replica of the throne that Chrysalis had in her hive, and from the pillars extend banners with the print of Chrysalis crown, adorned with the ragged wings of the Changeling.

Through a balcony facing the outside, cries of fervent adoration towards a Queen named Chrysalis reach their ears, coming from dark Changelings and a multitude of various other creatures.

Chrysalis's eyes almost pop out of their sockets and her jaw unhinged in amazement at what was being presented to her.

But just as quickly, Chrysalis frowns at that vision and, furious, says:

"Not even in my dreams can I escape your tests? Do you think I'm a fool who doesn't realize that if I choose this dream, when I wake up, I will do so chained and locked in a dungeon?"

"That's not the case," Nightmare Moon explains. "I have visited the dreams of multiple ponies with dreams of grandeur, not very different from what I am presenting to you. But at the end of the night, all dreams, even those kind of dreams, are just fantasies with which the mind indulges itself, and I have learned to never judge a pony from them."

Chrysalis then puts a hoof to her lips, thinking.

"Are you telling me that if I accept this as my dream, it will not impact your opinion of me nor will you ever share anything that transpires in it, neither with your sister nor with anyone else?" The Queen said in a serious, almost threatening tone.

"I give you my word, as Ruler of Equestria!" Nightmare Moon answered solemnly.

"Then, I would like to ask you something different."

Nightmare Moon is surprised and interested to see what changes Queen Chrysalis will request. Maybe have Twilight Sparkle and her friends chained, with the Elements of Harmony and the Crystal Heart displayed as trophies, and her and her sister as royal fanners.





With her work here done, Luna, now as herself, opens her wings and prepares to rise into the air, ready to return to the dreamrealm, to continue with her task as protector of the dreams.

But before rising, she takes the time to look back one last time at the dream of the cruel and fearsome Changeling Queen, and with a smile, she launches into the air.

Down below, Chrysalis rested, spread out in a crevice carved in the trunk of a thick tree, in a clearing of a forest, accompanied by several Changelings, with some of them buzzing their wings, hitting rocks against rocks or logs against logs, producing a soothing orchestra, while the rest, in the middle, surrounded a warm and cozy bonfire.

She was happy, as happy as the Changelings that surrounded her, because, at least, in her dream, the hunger did not exist and they were all full of love.
> The Queen's Kite
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Queen Chrysalis was sitting on a grassy hill on the outskirts of Ponyville, with her back turn to the town. Beside her was no one but Starlight Glimmer, the pony whom she had threatened to unleash an inconceivable revenge upon her; both looking towards the sky, seeing a pair of kites flying.

Starlight's was a multicolored 'Box Kite' built with a mastery that could only be achieved with years of experience. The Queen's kite was a 'larger than usual' hexagonal one; to no one's surprise, black accompanied with  teal ribbons. And although its design was crude, denoting that this could very well have been her first, Chrysalis showed an unusual joy as she put it together, much to Starlight's delight. And while Starlight held the thread of her kite with her magic, the thread of Chrysalis's kite was tied to her right foreleg, around one of its holes.

Looking at her kite with a contained joy disguised with a frown, ignoring the lecture on kites and how to fly them that Starlight was giving her, something inane about the weight balance of the spars, Chrysalis rewound for the umpteenth time the events of the previous day and the morning of this one.

She remembered when Twilight broke the news to her that her next interaction with a Pony would be with Starlight Glimmer. In those moments Chrysalis' blood boiled with rage at that notification, how could it not? Starlight Glimmer was the Pony, no, probably the creature she hated the most in the world; of course she did not make this apparent to the Princess of Friendship.

That night she could barely sleep, planning every horrible thing and merciless punishment to which she imagined subjecting that loathsome unicorn, to the point of needing to buy a new set of pillows, since her current ones ended up playing the role of Starlight in her most heated temperamental moments.

In the morning, seeing Starlight Glimmer sitting at the table, talking with Twilight and Spike... the Queen still felt hatred for her, but now it was as if inside her there were only the smoldering ashes of the raging fire that she felt yesterday for the unicorn.

"Good morning, Chrysalis. Come, sit with us," Starlight said once she saw the Queen standing in the threshold of the entrance to the dining room.

Chrysalis remembered coming in and taking her place at the table, and throughout the breakfast they didn't exchange another word.

Between bites, she was trying to measure the lilac Unicorn. Just like on all the previous occasions when she caught a whiff of her emotions around the castle, Chrysalis couldn't detect any negative emotions on her part towards her. In truth, Starlight was neither worried nor afraid of the Changeling Queen. She was, for all intents and purposes, content.

Once breakfast was over and Twilight and Spike said their goodbyes and left them alone, Chrysalis tensed, thinking that this would be the moment when Tartarus would be unleashed between the two of them, but whatever the Queen expected to happen, it never came.

Instead, the Unicorn simply asked the Changeling to accompany her.

Twilight had taken her to a library (even if it was inside her castle), Fluttershy took her to the forest, Rainbow Dash to that pegasus gym, Rarity to a restaurant and subsequently to a Spa, and lastly, Applejack took her to the town market. Of all the places Chrysalis thought Starlight might take her to, she never even remotely imagined that it would be a craft store.

Inside, the Unicorn asked her to choose some specific items and with which, to her confusion, they began to work with them to shape the kites that were currently flying through the air above them.

"What are we doing here?" finally asked the Queen, not being able to bear the lack of understanding of her situation any longer.

"Flying kites, is not that obvious?" Starlight responded, giving Chrysalis a quick glance before returning her attention to her kite.

"Ugh! I know that!" shout out the Queen, clearly upset, not only by that answer, but by the honesty of it; Chrysalis's Changeling senses were telling her that Starlight was neither patronizing nor pitying her, which only made her incomprehension greater; If the response had been full of mockery or sarcasm, that would have at least brought some understanding to her annoyance. "What I am asking is: Why are we doing so?"

"Some ponies do so for the joy of it, others find the activity exhilarating, if you can believe that. I really like kites. I just think it is a therapeutic activity."

"Really?" asked the Queen, unamused after a few seconds of silence in which she digested that answer.

"You bring me here not to share a profound lesson in friendship or a great speech with the intention of making me change my way of thinking, but to fly kites, because you think it is a relaxing activity." Chrysalis wanted to scream and show her fury towards Starlight, but every time a scowl come to form on her face and her voice reach that threshold of becoming a scream, her attention and concentration needed for that were taken away by her kite, shaking at her movements, risking crashing it to the ground; and because that was the Queen's kite, it took priority above everthing else to keep it in the air.

"It is just what I think you need," said Starlight with her full attention on her kite. "It is one of the things that help me out to keep away intrusive thoughts. 

“You see, I was like you once." She continued. "Thinking I was above anyone else, that I could dictate how things should be done. And, let's just say that... that when my views on life were challenged..." Starlight paused to take a breath and collect her thoughts. Bringing back her past actions turned out to be difficult, too much guilt, regret and shame attached to that; much to her relief, it turned out not to be as difficult as she had originally believed; maybe it was because enough time had passed, or because she was telling it to someone she knew could relate better than any of her friends.

"I lashed out and tried to hurt ponies, really hurt them. I didn't care if I hurt myself or others in the process, as long as I hurt those I saw as the ones who wrong me." Starlight concluded.

"How dare you, Starlight Glimmer!" Chrysalis howled, finally managing to give her full fury to the mare next to her and at the same time keep her kite in a healthy position in the sky; with Starlight Glimmer reacting with a mix of shock and surprise to the Queen's outburst.

"How dare you?" Chrysalis repeats, continuing her rant. "Our situations are nothing alike and we are not the same! I am fully aware of your past actions, Glimmer, and why you are so ashamed of them.

"You were nothing but a mere child who felt that the world had taken something away from you, and in retaliation you were going to take away something from the world. All that you did, you did it for yourself, to make yourself feel good, to make yourself feel better, and nobody else. I, on the other hoof, am not ashamed of anything that I did, because nothing I did was for personal aggrandizement, to stroke my ego, or pushing a personal agenda; all of it was for the greater good of my race, for my Changelings! Your problems could have been solved with therapy and knowledge of the concept of pen pals!" Finished Chrysalis, directing the most angry and indignant expression possible towards Starlight.

Starlight frowned and brought one hoof to her lips in deep thought about what the Queen had said. The way she speak of, her high sense of personal importance bordering on narcissism, her need to divert attention to other people's failures, among other small details, all of this seems oddly familiar to her.

Where have I seen a similar behavior? And after a couple more seconds of contemplation, Starlight realized that Chrysalis was looking for a conflict on purpose. She couldn't be careless and fall for such an obvious ploy. She had to be smart. She was no longer the young (relatively speaking) student of friendship who had failed to convince the Changeling Queen to turn a new leaf so long ago. Now she had graduated and become a Master, well, technically an experienced Guidance Counselor in the process of becoming Principal of the School of Friendship, but let's not digress into specifics. This was as much a new opportunity for Chrysalis as it was for Starlight, and this time she knew she couldn't settle for just trying.

What is my best course of action here? Starlight pondered. Countering her argument is out of the question, that is exactly what Chrysalis want and what I must avoid. Maybe a passionate and impromptu friendship speech? Negative, that is not what she need. Guilt-tripping her would be a waste of time, Chrysalis already made it clear that she doesn't regret anything, not to mention that this would irritate her. How should I respond?

And then Starlight realized that she was overthinking it, and not only that, she was overthinking it in the wrong direction; and for a second there, she almost smack her face with a hoof. Starlight had almost forgotten that Chrysalis wasn't a student seeking a lesson in friendship; she was a 'repentless villain'. She shouldn't treat her in the same way... and, luckily for her, she didn't need to either.

And when that realization finally dawned on her, Starlight looked at the Queen with a sly grin.

"You don't believe a single word you just said about yourself, do you?"

Slowly, very slowly, the judjamental scawl on Chrysalis face began to transform in to a smile.

"Only half of them," the Queen manages to say, and soon enough both mares start laughing to the tears.

The next few minutes, they both pass them in silence, contemplating their kites in the sky.

"You know what? This is actually therapeutic." Confided Chrysalis.
> The day with Pinkie
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

This was it. This was the last day of Chrysalis as part of Twilight's experiment. And as soon as it was over, the Queen would be free to do whatever she wanted, Master of her destiny and actions, whatever they may be.

But that would have to wait until tomorrow.

Today she was still bound to fulfill her part of the deal she had established with Twilight Sparkle so long ago; and that meant spending at least a day with the last of the members of the Elements of Harmony.

Inside the kitchen of Sugarcube Corner, a bakery and confectionery whose appearance, with a roof resembling baked cookie dough decorated with whip cream topped with a cupcake, no longer impressed or bothered Chrysalis, finally accustomed to such eccentric pony architecture (or at least that's what the Changeling Queen swears); Pinkie moved excitedly and animatedly everywhere, collecting ingredients and kitchen utensils from the shelves, drawers and cupboard, the pink pony moved so fast that there seemed to be five of her at the same time.

Just like in many of her interactions with the other friends of the Princess of Friendship, once this meeting could not be postponed any longer, Pinkie had asked the Queen to help her with the preparations for the big party she's been working all these days and that it would finally be celebrated that same day; which involved, at that time, preparing the cake, cupcakes and other snacks that would be served.

In the middle of the kitchen, at the work island, Chrysalis finished stirring the mixture in a large bowl, moving on to flatten the resulting dough with a rolling pin. Thanks to Twilight's warnings, the earth pony's preternatural behavior and abilities did not faze her as they would normaly do to any creature that witness them for the first time; But what did end up surprising her was seeing that Pinkie, somehow, had gotten a Queen-sized tablecloth and chef's hat, getting Chrysalis to put them on, but only when the pony modified the hat to make it resemble her crown; how she had achieved this was, also, a mystery in which Chrysalis did not indulge her curiosity. The fact that the tablecloth had "Obey the Cook Queen" written on it was considered a great touch and the only reason why the Changeling Queen agreed to put it up.

"You know, Queenie C., of all the things I thought you could do -good at disguising, liar, singer, love thief, actress, etc.- I never imagined you could cook too," Pinkie says while decorating a tray of cupcakes with pastry cream, so fast that at first glance it seemed to have been all done in a single movement. Noticing that a hint of cream was left inside the piping bag, Pinkie places the tip inside her mouth and sucks the contents out.

"Don't be surprised, Pink One," the Queen responds, proud of all those compliments, parts of her body white stained with flour. Chrysalis knew her name was Pinkie Pie -Twilight had made sure to drill that knowledge into her head multiple times, and on all those occasions the Queen had thrown that notion away, refusing to call the Element of Laughter by any of her ridiculous names, choosing instead to refer to her simply as 'Pony' or 'the Pink One'. She considered it a fair trade as long as the hyperactive pony remained stubborn in using pet names forms out of her royal title to refer to her.

Mixing more ingredients, ready to make a new mixture, the Changeling Queen continues: "It is true that for us, Changelings, your pony food carries little importance, but anyling who value his infiltrations skills should, at the very least, know how to prepare your average daisy sandwiches, to keep appearances. And I myself have took the role of a chef of high renowned cuisine skills. You would be surprised how little attention creatures pay to the large amount of valuable information that comes out of their mouths when they are more distracted by the type of food that goes into theirs."

"Tell me about it! My friends always ask me how I know of a lot of stuff of a lot of ponies; well, that's how!" Pinkie answers back, now decorating the cupcakes with colorful sprinkles.

"Have you ever heard the phrase: 'The way to somepony's heart is through their stomach'?"

"Yeah."

"That was us."

"Really!"

"Well, originally we just said 'Happy heart, fully belly', but the meaning is the same."

Suddenly, and at the sound of a small wooden pony dressed as a chef hitting a small metal triangle, coming from a clock hanging on the wall, Pinkie jumps up in alarm.

"What's wrong?" the Queen asks, not so much keeping her calm and more not caring much about whatever it was that had generated such a reaction in the pink pony.

"I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!" Pinkie exclaims worriedly, having taken out an overgrow pocket watch from a pocket that apparently existed in the middle of her barrel, pushing it very close to the Queen's face, pointing at its hands. Once she let it go, the watch springs back into said pocket, which vanishes without leaving a trace of its existence.

"The guests must already be arriving and I needed to go to the place where the event will be and arrange the decorations and the tables. I won't be long, I'll ask you to finish preparing the best cake you can, and I will return as soon as possible so we can take it and the rest of the food to the party." Pinkie concluded, speeding out of the door, leaving the Queen alone in the kitchen.

So, I am all alone and in charge of making this the best cake ever? Thought Chrysalis unamused.

Then she got an Idea! An awful idea! The Queen got a wonderful, awful idea.





With an impish smile, a toothy smile, a smile that with every inch it grew showed more teeth than had the right to exist in that mouth, Chrysalis speed her work.

If this was going to be her last day living among the ponies, she was going to go with a bang! She would make the best cake ever. The greatest of cakes. The loveliest cake of all. A cake to die for. A cake that none of the guests who taste it could forget it for the rest of their life.

A few more jingles from the pony chef who lived in the clock, Pinkie walks back into the kitchen, surprised to see the finished cake. A massive 3 level cake with a creamy pink coating and several multi color cream decorations. Right next to the cake, the Queen show herself very proud of her work.





Placing the cake and the rest of the confectionery on a cart, Pinkie and Chrysalis walk in the direction of the place where the party is supposed to be held, arriving at their destination in no time.

"Could you wait out here?" Pinkie asks, reaching for the entrance door.

"What, why?" Chrysalis asks back, trying to read the pink pony through her emotions, but since she was able to measure her carefully, back on the island, the only thing this Pony emanated was a sugary happiness that the Queen was sure couldn't be healthy for her system.

"Dah! If you enter without prior notice the party could get ruined. I need to warn the guests inside that Queen Chrysalis is here and she's coming in."

This comment slightly hurts Chrysalis' feelings, especially because of her outstanding behavior and patience that she has shown with all the ponies of Ponyville just to keep her end of the bargain with Twilight.

"Very well," Chrysalis says, masking her pain with a show of disinterest. "But hurry! Because if I'm no longer needed, I wish to go to the castle and pack my belongings." If she was going to leave, she thought, she would have to take with her at least the most important of her possessions, her changelogs and what's in them.

Pinkie simply smiles and, somehow, quickly slides in with the cart of food without having to open the door completely, leaving the Queen outside, alone.

Not wanting to get bored, Chrysalis activates her Changeling emotional sensors, to get a sense of what maybe is on the other side of the door, feeling that, for a party that the supposedly best Party Pony Planner in the world had been planning for several days, there were actually very few individuals inside; and while she could only discern positive emotions coming from the inside, all of them were very tame and lukewarm.

"This is not going to be a very animated party," the Queen concludes, feeling insulted that all her effort in cooking those delicacies would apparently be for nothing.

Her musings ended the moment she hear the pink party planner pony screaming: "Ok, everthing is ready, you can come in now," from the inside.

Rolling her eyes, Chrysalis push the door open, and walk inside the building. But something doesn't feel right. She by nature had a great night vision, and yet all she could see inside was pitch darkness.

She recognize this as the result of a spell, a very powerful one at that. But before she could cast one of her own that allowed her to see over the veil of magical darkness, that spell and the one that was also in place to interfere with her emotional sensory senses where canceled and in an instant all of the Queens sences were overloaded with a strong wave of light, colors and emotions, all accompanied by a loud shout of...

"SURPRICE!!!"

...coming from everyone inside.

Taken by surprise and a little scared, the Queen of the Changelings needs a couple of seconds to get off the roof to which her legs had propelled her, reorient herself, regain her composure and be able to see all the guests present.

Under a sign that had obviously received a lot of revisions to avoid being condescending to her, ending with a "Happy 'You proved us that we can live together' party!", there were Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash , Rarity, Applejack, Princesses Celestia and Luna, and obviously, Pinkie Pie, jumping happily from one place to another like a crazy mare, releasing balloons and confetti everywhere, blowing through a little trumpet. Starlight Glimmer and Spike were also there, next to Thorax and Pharynx. Even Apple Blossom and her two friends, whom after the adventure they had in which Chrysalis saved them from a pack of timberwolf when they thought they had accidentally killed the Changeling Queen after they crushed her old carapace (which she had molt that day) with a giant rock, and to hide their crime they entered the Everfree forest to dispose of the corpse, they were present to.

"Chrysalis, are you okay?" Twilight is the first to approach her, to make sure she is okay.

"I'm fine," the Queen answers, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves. "What is the meaning of all this?" she asks, confused and still shaking. 

"It's a party," the Princess of Friendship responds, and before Chrysalis can growl in annoyance, state that that much was obvious, and demand clarification, Twilight gives it to her: "It's your party, or rather, it's a party for you, to celebrate your success in the experiment!"

"You do remember that the success of my position meant your failure, do you?" Chrysalis deadpanned, not yet understanding the purpose of the celebration.

"That's not entirely true," Twilight responds, taking a civil and cheerful tone. "If you remember correctly, I actually never bet against you, quite the opposite in fact. What I proposed to you was that you can live your life in peace, with us, without the need to change, transform or even go through the metamorphosis if you don't want to, this by only being friendly; and as far as that's concerned, every guest at this party is an irrefutable proof that you were able to do exactly that."

Twilight concluded, standing next to Chrysalis, so that the Queen could see the results of her efforts.

Chrysalis couldn't find words to refute what the Princess of Friendship was saying; It was true that, although she did experience some moments of hunger throughout her stay here, these moments were few and mostly the result of his overexertion in a particular task or her wishes to be alone, but on every occasion in which she needed to feed on love, she did not need to resort to deceptions, lies, subterfuges or to manipulate anyone to achieve it, every time her desire was heard, positive emotions on which to feed were freely given and without reservation to her.

"Bah," Chrysalis groaned as the only way to give credit to the Pony Princess's ideology.

Twilight chuckle in good nature and continued in a slightly downcast tone: "I would have love to have Cadence and my brother here, but they make crystal clear that they didn't want to be part of this, and that, and I quote "We would blast her away if she dare to ever show her face in the Crystal Empire".

"I guess they are still a bit miffed about the wedding incident and the kidnapping, aren't they?"

"Yes, it seems that way. But don't worry, if you really want to mend things with them, I will continue to insist that they give you a chance."

"I will think about it... and thanks in advance," the Queen thanked, unsure of wanting to be alone with that family after that kind of warning.

"You're welcome. Oh, I almost forgot," Twilight said lighting her horn, causing a gift box to appear. "Here's a gift from me."

Curious, Chrysalis immediately tore its wrapping and opened it. It was a chess board. What makes this set special, something the Queen immediately notices, was that the pieces were Changeling in shape, with the queen's pieces an exact replica of her crown.

"I may even give you some lessons to get better at the game, if you promise not to rage quit."

"I promise no such thing," said the Queen with an angry scawl in her face, making Twilight to flinch a little.

"But I promise to try," added Chrysalis with a calm and friendly expression, causing Twilight to release the breath she was holding and to relax from her sudden tension.

"That is what this is all about."

The Queen then approached the other Changelings present, dreading this interaction a little bit more than she would ever admit. The fact that they both wore shirt collars around their necks, with Thorax also wearing a bow tie, did not promise to make the encounter any less awkward.

"If it isn't the 'Bug bros.'," said Chrysalis dryly.

"Chrysa... I mean... Queen Chrysalis..." Thorax stuttered nervously, as nervous as she was, but unable to control his owns. "On behalf of all Changelings of the Hive, we wish for you to have this," said Thorax presenting a beautiful green box to Chrysalis.

Inside it was a doubly terminated pink gem.

"What is this," ask Chrysalis bemused by it. Even before opening the box, she had felt a strong but warm and oddly familiar energy radiating from it.

"We called it 'The Love Crystal'!" exclaim Thorax with pride. "I asked all Changelings in the hive If anyling would like to share some of their love with you…"

"He did," interrupted Pharynx, holding a cup that clearly contains an adulterated version of the drink offered at that party, with an expression that demonstrated his desire to be anywhere else at that moment, remembering all the time he was accompanying his brother, visiting every Changeling in the hive to collect all that love.

"… And we manage to cluster it all together and with it form this gift," Thorax concluded and then added more warmly. "So, if you ever feel low on love, you could absorb some out of it wherever you find yourself. And... you know... if you ever feel the Crystal is emptied up, you are always welcome back in the hive, and we will make sure to refill it in no time."

Queens didn't cry, but a cheeky drop of salt water from one of her eyes challenged that notion. Finding out that her subjects still had some love for her, even after everything that had happened between them... Chrysalis allowed herself to shed a single tear, but not one more.

Then, after quickly banishing the tear from her face, she moved her eyes towards Pharynx, and then towards what was hanging from her neck... It was a fang, a sharp and pointy one, but not anyone's fang, it was one of the Queen's fangs.

"I told him not to bring it," Thorax said, embarrassed by his older brother's decision.

Chrysalis, for her part, looked Pharynx in the eyes, waiting for some sort of explanation.

"What?" asked Pharynx nonchalant and cocky. "I fought the biggest and toughest Changeling of them all and survived... I think I deserve a memento of that."

The Queen was not amused.

"But..." Pharynx continues, his tone most humble and sincere, with a tinge of pride. "It is also a reminder of what I need to be. A sharp fang that must protect the Changeling kingdom and everyling on it."

The purse lips of the Queen ark in a small proud smile and nod in approval.

"Well, if you two excuse me, it seems I need to talk with someone else. Pharynx, your Highness."

And with that, Queen Chrysalis left them to themselves and move to speak with other guests. 

Thorax was never a Changeling who knew how to deal well with compliments, much less being called ‘Your Majesty’, or ‘Sire’, or anything else that has a royal connotation to it, but in those moments, before the recognition granted by the Queen, the leader of the Changelings shine with emotion, huging his older brother with a powerful chitin crushing hug.

Chrysalis approaches the drinks and snacks table, where she saw Applejack and Rainbow Dash arguing.

The cowgirl pony ignores more of the pegasus' complaints and stretches her forleg in the direction of her multicolored-maned friend, with her hat down on her hoof demanding something. 

Chrysalis reaches them in time to see Rainbow Dash, annoyed, droping a large sum of bits into Applejack's hat, who once full returns it back to her head without a single coin falling nor appearing to feel the extra weight on her head.

Once the deal was done, Applejack turned to see the approaching Queen, who had a surprised expression on her face.

"I thought you said you bet against me?" Chrysalis asks, curious for an honest answer.

"And as I also told you, I can lie. And it seems I'm good enough at it to be able to fool even the Changeling Queen," Applejack responds with a cowpony smile, raising her cup of apple cider in a mock toast.

The Queen raises her eyebrows and almost smiles (but only almost) in pleasant surprise and nods her head in recognition of the Element of Honesty lying skills.

Then, frowning, Chrysalis turns to see who, by extrapolation, was the one who actually bet against her.

The cyan mare shrinks down under the accusatory gaze of the Changeling Queen, that shows a combination of annoyance, indignation and a desire for an explanation.

"In my defense," Rainbow Dash begins with her forlegs raised defensively. "I made that bet the same day you and Twilight left those ruins and she explained her plan to us, long before I knew you could actually do it." And then she pulled out a box from under her right wing, offering it to her. "And to show that I now believe in you, I want you to have this."

Intrigued by what the speedster was giving her, Chrysalis opens the box and gasps at the sight of its contents.

Below a framed photo of the Wonderbolt Fast Flame lay a laureate golden sun with the image of a winged bolt in the middle, with the word 'VALOR' above it attached to a ribbon.





"My... medal... But how?" Chrysalis asks, still stunned.

"It's actually a replica," Rainbow Dash confess, laughing a little awkwardly, but quickly regains her cool. "Well, you know, I had to do some digging through the Wonderbolts archives and warehouses, grant and ask in some favors here and there. But when you are as cool as I am you get what you want," concluded the humble pegasus, now presenting a poster. "The original will soon be exhibited and preserved at the Museum of Equestria History, in Canterlot, in a large exhibition dedicated to the history of the Wonderbolts; so if you want to go see the real deal, we can go whenever you want," and then added: "But I also thought it would be nice if you at least had something you could hold on to, so that you always remember the great good that you are capable of doing for your fellow creatures."

"WOW, Rainbow, I didn't know you had the know hows to be so eloquent," whistle Applejack a little -but truly- amazed.

"Hey, cut me some slack, will ya?" Rainbow Dash said with his cheeks sporting a red tint, playfully nudging Applejack.

"I will treasure it," Chrysalis thanked.

"Enjoying your party?" Starlight Glimmer asked, being the next to approach her.

"I...can't say I quite do," the Queen said, feeling a little uncomfortable. "I'm not used to this kind of situation, to being the center of attention."

"Not without a mask on or being the one pulling the strings, right?"

"What? No, that is not...!"

"Calm down," Starlight said after seeing Chrysalis's discomfort and defensiveness at being read and called out with such easiness. "Yes, it's normal to feel that way. To feel like it's an environment where you think you don't belong, or because you think you don't deserve it. And then you start to think that you would be more comfortable in a dark room, all alone, wallowing in hatred for those who ruined your plans, working on their imminent doom at your hooves, isn't it?"

The Queen said nothing, raising her eyebrows in surprise and expectation to see where this mare was going with those accurate words.

"I have a gift for you," said the lilac unicorn after appreciating Chrysalis's expression for a few seconds and saving it forever in her memory.

Using her magic, Starlight takes the gift box out of her saddlebag and hoofs it to her.

"A quill and a notebook?" Chrysalis asks truly confused.

"Yes. So whenever you feel overwhelmed by all this atmosphere of happiness, joy, peace and friendship and have the desire to go back to the good old villainous days, find a healthy outlet for it by writing whatever comes to your mind, whether it's an evil speech or a passionate threat, a brilliant plan to defeat your enemies or some scheme to take over the world. In the short time I've been living with Twilight and the rest of our friends, here in Ponyville, I've already completed five like this."

"Braggin much?" retorted the Queen with a laugh, accepting the gifts, taking them with her magical aura.

"A little bit," said Starlight with a friendly smile. She then gestured for the Queen to get closer and in sotto voice added, "Just, be fully open about it with your friends or keep it well hidden where no one else can find it. That is, if you want to avoid an awkward situation explaining whatever the contents of that notebook is, follow it by a stern lecture," Starlight concluded with an expression that revealed that she spoke from experience.

"Spike, right?"

"Spike," Starlight nodded.

Chrysalis nodded to, making sure to keep that gift safe.

Following up, Princesses Celestia and Luna approached together Queen Chrysalis.

"This is a lovely party, don't you think, sister?" Celestia asked.

"I think so to, sister," Luna agreed, looking around, appreciating the scene and the atmosphere.

"Yes, the pink *cough, *cough* Pinkie..." Chrysalis began, correcting herself in time, showing how difficult it was for her to use the name of the Element of Laughter with a straight face. "... did a splendid job arranging this party."

"It's true that Pinkie is the best at party planning, and she may have chosen the venue and worked with the food and decorations, but if the most important thing about a party, which is the guests, are here, that's all yours."

"Indeed, no matter how talented Pinkie is at preparing parties, if you hadn't managed to create any friendship, this would have ended up as a very sad party," the Princess of the Night seconded her counterpart of the day.

"I don't think I did anything special," Chrysalis replied, trying to contain a slight blush.

"That's the beautiful thing about friendship," the Princess of Friendship chimed in, joining the conversation. "You don't need to do anything special to win it over and make it grow. You just need to be understanding, tolerant, show that you care, and above all, trust in those that you wish to befriend."

"And speaking of trust," Celestia took up the word.

A small chest floating in a dark blue aura appeared in front of Chrysalis.

"We also brought a present for you," Luna finished.

Chrysalis took the chest and opened it with her magic, curious to know what gift the Princesses brought her. Inside were some stone fragments of dark green tones; Surprised, the Queen recognized them immediately, how could she not, if they were emanating her own magical signature, her own essence.

"My throne! These are fragments of my throne. I thought my throne was gone and its remains completely destroyed."

"While it is true that your throne as a whole is no more, we managed to save some fragments of it..."

"And while our captain chose to use them to fortify the magical defenses of our castle..."

"We saved a small portion of them, and my sister and I think you would appreciate having them with you."

"I... thank you both," the Queen thanked, closing and putting away the chest. "If I'm going to be honest, knowing that you two will keep your mouths shut would have been gift enough," Chrysalis added in a tone that was devoid of humor, addressing the royal sisters.

"Hey, that's not a nice thing to say!" Twilight chided her in a serious tone.

To her confusion, both Celestia and Luna began to laugh. Celestia was the one who gave her the answer.

"You don't have to worry, Twilight. We choose to believe that what the Queen meant to say is that she values greatly knowing that she can confide in us safely; isn't that correct, Queen Chrysalis?"

Chrysalis pursed her lips and looked to the side, trying to control the blush that was once again trying to appear on her face.

Rarity came next, clearing her throat to get the attention of all the guests.

"May I have your attention, please?" she hummed, directing their gaze to a small, curtained circular podium, which was being carried with great effort to the center of the room by her younger sister, Sweetie Belle, and her two friends.

When Rarity felt that she had gained everypony's rapt attention (and her three little assistants had finally recovered from their strenuous task and had left in the direction of the snack table muttering some complaints), she opened the curtains, revealing a dress, but not a common one, it was THE dress she had been working on since the day they spent together. It had to be, there was no other way, Chrysalis could see all of her suggestions manifested in that work of textile art.

Placed on a featureless queen-sized mannequin, one could see an ostentatious gown with a high collar (to adorn those with long necks) and short sleeves (to leave the holes in her forelegs visible and exposed), mixing the ragged appearance of the wings and the holes in her legs with the color of her carapace and eyes to form its appearance.

"Well? What do you think?" Rarity asked, proud of her work.

"It's beautiful," Chrysalis mused perplexed, admiring it, not being able to register the other signs of admiration for the dress coming from the rest of the guests.

Although Chrysalis could truly appreciate the dress, deep down she couldn't imagine herself wearing it, still feeling apprehensive at the concept of wearing clothes for the sake of wearing them, especially in her true form, much less such an elegant and eye-catching dress like that.

"I... I don't think there's any way I could pay you," she may not have known about clothes or how they were made, but she wasn't blind to the time and effort the unicorn fashionista had put into its making.

"It's a gift, darling. You don't pay for those," Rarity responded after laughing at that comment, then she got a little closer to the Queen and continued: "But if you ever feel the need to do me a favor, the doors of the Carousel Boutique will always be open if you want to lend your talents to help me with any future project I may be working on."

Continuing with the gift giving, Chrysalis received a Stetson from Applejack and a package of oils and many other products for carapace care from Fluttershy -gift that managed to catch the interest of Thorax and Pharynx as well.

From Pinkie, a neon green long sleve sweater that on the front was a lighter-colored bullseye with the words 'Hug Here' stitched on in black. When they asked Pinkie where she got it from, she only answered that she got it from another fic where Chrysalis reformed. Everyone else exchanged glances, waiting to see if one could pour understanding into Pinkie's words. When no one could come up with an answer, everyone shrugged and rolled with it.

At least I can see myself wearing this sweater on cold days... not in public, of course, Chrysalis thought, appreciating the sweater's functionality over its appearance, placing it with the other gifts.

And finally but not least amazing, an official Queen size CMC cape, from no others than the Cutie Mark Crusaders themselves (to the surprise and curiosity of Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash, who were never made aware of their little sisters 'adventure' with the Changeling Queen in the Everfree forest).

As time passed, mostly used for party games in which Chrysalis chose to participate merely as an observer; except in the game of Twister, where she agreed to be the one who turned the arrow on the board of colors and limbs, and a karaoke session, where the Queen demonstrated what a creature that has perfect control of its vocal cords can do, Pinkie announced that It was time to cut and share the cake.

With all the guests served with a slice of cake, Chrysalis couldn't help but look extremely eager to see everyone eating even a small bite of it.

"Pinky, this may be the most delicious cake I've ever had, you've really outdone yourself this time," Twilight praises her, as everyone else expressed their agreement, placidly savoring the cake, some ready to take another slice.

"Ah, that's very nice of you to say, Twilight," Pinkie replied, tossing her second slice of cake into the air, catching it with her mouth as it fell. As she finished savoring, chewing and finally swallowing it, she clarified: "But I didn't make this cake, Queen Chrysalis is the one who made it."

"Wow's!" and other expressions of surprise among the guests followed that revelation.

"If that is true, then, Chrysalis, I insist you have to share your recipe with us, this cake is just delectably wonderful," Rarity said, taking a generous bite of her slice of cake floating on her fork.

"I agree with Rarity," Rainbow Dash added, moving a large piece of cake around the inside of her mouth, trying to recognize the flavor but the answer eluded her. "It has a sweetness that I cannot figure out."

"I just follow the instructions on Pinkie's cook book," Chrysalis responded with a shrug, also nibbling on her piece of cake. "But if you really want to know how it tastes so good, the secret ingredient is love."

"Dawwwwww!" came from all the ponies at the party, and small gagging noises from a certain rainbow color mane pegasi.

"That's so sweet coming from you Chrysalis, and I guess we have to accept it if you want to keep the recipe a secret," Twilight said, admiring this sweeter, gentler and friendlier side of the Changeling Queen.

"No, she's telling the truth," Pharynx interjected. "Just look," he then proceeds to chew a large piece of another slice of cake, and after a couple of seconds of chewing it loudly, he expelled a fine pink mist from his mouth.

"Oh, Pharynx, that is so disgusting," his brother Thorax admonished. "We're not larvae anymore, don't go around showing what you just ate."

Pharynx ignored his brother and inhaled the mist back and licked his lips with his tongue, just to show how much he had enjoyed it.

"Oh, this is good love. It almost makes me regret that we don't need to eat it in this way anymore."

"Wait! You can put love -like, literal LOVE- in food? How?" Twilight asked, her curiosity outweighing that part of her that really didn't want to know the answer to that question, afraid to find out that she already knows what the answer is.

"You know how bees make honey, don't you? We Changelings can do something a bit like that," said the Queen.

Given that response, some plates still containing cake were promptly dropped on the table while their owners, disgusted and nauseated, ran desperately in search of a place to regurgitate the cake they now regretted having eaten; real gagging noises could be heard coming from everywhere all around.

Among the invited ponies, only Pinkie Pie didn't seem fazed by this, continuing to enjoy her slice of cake. Celestía and Luna, began to chew slowly, looking at the pieces of cake that lay on their plates, considering whether they should stop or not, but once they realized that this was still far from being the strangest thing they had ever tried and that, over all, it actually tasted pretty good, they continued enjoying the cake.

Spike just shrugged, he wasn't all that upset by this revelation either, and continued eating the cake.

When the party was finally over, Pharynx and Thorax were the ones who gladly took the rest of the uneaten cake back to the Hive.
> Epilogue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Many years have passed since Chrysalis, the Changeling Queen, set her hooves for the first time in Ponyville.

Many things have happened since then. Princesses Celestia and Luna officially step down as rulers of Equestria. Princess Twilight Sparkle fully ascended and took her place as the new ruler of the pony nation, moving to the Castle in Canterlot. The Castle of Friendship became property of Starlight Glimmer, who in turn became Principal of the School of Friendship, occupying it as dormitories for the students.

For her part, Queen Chrysalis rejected an offer from Twilight to build a house and settle in Ponyville, claiming that houses were a pony custom and that she wanted to live the way of the Changelings... minus the kidnapping of creatures to place them in pods and thus extract love from them.

She also never moved back to her old hive. She would visit them from time to time, but even when it was obvious that they would welcome her with open hooves, the Queen realized that she was no longer the one to rule them and she could never adapt to the new way of life of the colorful Changelings, too rooted in her old ways.

As such, Chrysalis spread her wings and flew to the Northwest, where she decided to build her own burrow -not yet a hive- in the forest area located between the Smokey Mountains and White Tail Woods. A space distant enough to keep herself away from unwanted meddling, but close enough from civilization, for when she wanted or needed to visit old acquaintances of hers and collect love or some other goods that she wishes to possess.

Digging it with her own hooves bring her back some memories, when she and her Changelings were a handful of nomadic creatures, far from having the numbers when they decided to settle in the 'Bad lands' and build their hive kingdom. Mind you, for her at that time she played more of the role of a supervisor and less of an actual worker drone. But if she had learned something from her time working with Applejack, it was that one should always be proud of one's work, especially if it was done with one's hoofs. And she felt proud.

Her new burrow was relatively small, but it would grow -oh, she had plans to make it grow. The main entrance was protected and hidden by a thick sheet of tree bark. The fragments of his old throne, even if less powerful than when they were a monolithic testament to her greatness, were scattered and hidden around the area, still functioning as a security measure to keep magical creatures away.

The first inner chamber was a kind of living room for when she received visitors (this one not getting much use lately), deeper in was the Queen's private chamber, equipped with a bed, a desk where there was an open notebook, a quill and an inkwell, and a bookcase where various books and a large collection of notebooks full of thoughts and ideas, plans and speeches that she had been writing over the years rested. The notebook that Starlight Glimmer gifted her was there, standing out from the rest for being the first and most ornate of all.

Hanging from one of the walls was a medal in the shape of a laureate golden sun, next to it a large commemorative crystal key, whose bow was in the shape of a heart. Around these esteems, there were some photos of the Queen accompanied by one or multiple of the creatures with whom she had established a relationship. One belonging to the party, where Chrysalis posed with all the guests, another showed her animatedly applauding the Changeling actors who bowed to the audience having finished a play. One at Princess Twilight's coronation ceremony, the only time she wore the dress Rarity gifted her. And many others from various moments in her subsequent life.

Leaving this chamber, hanging her worn out Stetson on a hanger on the wall, trading it for a queen size saddlebag custom made for Changelings, the Queen entered the most important chamber of them all, the nursery room, were her first clutch of eggs laid, the first of a new generation of unchanged Changelings, all of them ready to hatch in a couple of days.

Usually a Changeling nursery was cared for and guarded by at least two Changelings at all times, but the Queen had learned to manage. Walking slowly and carefully, so as not to disturb the bats on the ceiling and not to step on the spiders on the floor responsible for keeping the chamber clear of any pest, Chrysalis approached her eggs. Inside them, the mother could feel her larvae floating in the greenish substance that functioned as amniotic fluid for them.

Smiling proudly, proud of herself and proud of them, Chrysalis opened her jaw so wide as if she intended to eat them whole, an average pony would have fainted from shock at seeing how far those toothy jaws could separate from each other. But instead of introducing something into her mouth, a pinkish mist began to emerge from inside her, spreading it evenly over all of them, being quickly absorbed by the eggs. Inside, the larvae wriggle more energetically than before, feeling the rush of energy coming from mom's love.

"The time is approaching, my precious ones," the Queen cooed, caressing them. "With you at my side, I will raise a new Changeling empire."

"But first, Mommy has to take care of some unfinished business that she has been working on for a long, long time, so that you can be born into a world that we can truly call our own."

Leaving the nursery, Chrysalis entered her private chamber and with her magic moved an apparent giant stone embedded in the wall, revealing an access to a secret treasure chamber. Digging through its contents, she pulls out all kinds of objects and "treasures" that she had accumulated over the years, a curved, smooth, sharp at the tip and it gradients from dark gray to red 'stick', gems and various trinkets divided between those she had bought and some that she had obtained by less licit methods, until she reached what she had hidden in the deepest part due to its inconspicuousness: her Changelogs.

Taking one in particular, the one she had marked with the funniest face of all and therefore the least suspicious, Chrysalis uncorked it from its upper part and from its cavity she extracted something that she had kept hidden for years and eagerly placed it inside her saddlebag. Then, she headed to another chamber that functioned as a storeroom, to keep a well stock of lovepods that she had been collecting over the years.

The Queen took one and drank from it, throwing its empty remains on the floor, then she took another and with an animal-like craving she repeated the process until she emptied it. Chrysalis did this with several more of these, and in a few minutes she had consumed years of labor, the equivalent of all the love of a town, engorgening herself with enough love to quench the hunger of multiple dozen of Changelings for several days.

Greed and gluttony in chitin... but with a purpose.

Once she felt full of love, and the Changeling Queen knew she was full since for the second time in her life the voice of the hunger had been completely silenced, full of power to lift a mountain and reduce it to rubble, she left the now almost empty stockchamber, heading towards the burrow's exit.

The sun was already setting and the moon and stars were already taking their place in the night sky when Chrysalis emerged from her burrow. Taking a deep breath, she opened her elytra and spread her wings. Shaking them with great speed, the Changeling Queen began the flight in a Southwesterly direction, to the place where everything had started.





Hiding her presence in the darkness of the night, Chrysalis flies over the coasts of the San Palomino Desert, strong and cold air currents pierce and bite her through her chitin, but that unpleasant sensation does not deter the Changeling Queen from reaching her objective, and in a couple of minutes her eyes catch sight of her destination, a solitary landmass floating on the waters of the South Luna Ocean.

As she approaches it, her confident smile twists into an expression of confusion. The island of Saint Ashtray the Gray seems to shine with a pale white light, as if it perfectly reflected the light of the full moon.

Shaking her head, dispelling the strange illusion, and any concerns that this phenomenon causes her, the Queen hastily decides to continue her mission and put an end to her master plan that has been several years in the making.





Flying around on the slopes of the mountain, Chrysalis finally settles down after seeing what she was looking for: a pile of half-dead bushes that she knew hid an entrance to a tunnel that would give her access to the interior of the buried fortress.

Eager to enter the abandoned fortress once again, the Queen lights her horn and with it encases the dead bushes in green fire, reducing them to ashes in a matter of seconds.

Once the fire is extinguished, Chrysalis's brow furrows. Blocking access to the tunnel was a thick sheet of enchanted metal with the symbol of Celestia's sun stamped on it.

Of course they would do something like this, the Queen thought bitterly, pacing back and forth pondering what her next move should be.

Hitting it with her hoof, Chrysalis was able to roughly calculate the hardness of the enchanted metal and concluded that in its current state she could break through it, but this would not only take a long time, it would also consume a large chunk of her magical energy.

Before she weighed her options as to whether it would be more reliable to try to brute force her way in or to search for another way to gain access to the interior of the fortress, she heard a voice that filled her with dread.

"All access to the fortress has been similarly blocked and secured."

Turning quickly, Chrysalis saw the pony she least wanted to see at that moment emerge from a magical portal that appeared on the side of one of the trees that populate the area.

Tall, regal and purple, wearing a set of golden shoes, a breastplate and a crown with the symbol of a dark pink six-pointed star, with a tail and mane that shines like a starry sky, a numinous visual proof of her magical power, the ruling Princess of Equestria stands before her.

A thousand and one thoughts and ideas crossed the Queen's mind about what her next course of action should be.

Should I lie? No! There was no way she could spin her presence here in any way that would make her look innocent. If the creature in front of her was your average pony, perhaps, but the Princess of Friendship was quite a bit smarter than the average creature.

Should I fight? They were alone and Chrysalis was filled with enough love energy to put her on par or above her status when she defeated Celestia during the wedding, but she wasn't sure she could achieve a similar result with Twilight. What the Princess might lack in proper combat training, she easily made up for in raw magical power.

Before the Queen could decide to act in any way, Twilight had closed the distance between them and, to Chrysalis' bemusement, the purple Alicorn had caught her in a warm embrace.

"Chrysalis, I've missed you so much," Twilight told her.

"Personal space, Princess," was the only thing the Changeling Queen could say to break away from the physical contact, once she was able to regain her composure and process the ridiculousness of what was happening.

"I'm sorry," Twilight said apologetically, laughing good-naturedly. "I had forgotten that you are not that affectionate."

"I can be affectionate," Chrysalis defended herself. "I just prefer not to be touched."

"I remember now. But you'll have to excuse me, since I hadn't heard from you in years; I was beginning to fear that I wouldn't see you again."

"Well, here I am," Chrysalis said and immediately stiffened, regretting having said those words, since this would undoubtedly bring the discussion back to what she was doing here.

But instead of starting to question her about that situation -Why was she there, why had she returned to the island and why was she trying to enter the fortress of Saint Ashtray?-, Twilight simply and honestly smiled at her, as if those damnable questions hadn't crossed her mind.

"Come on, follow me," Twilight said in her place, and, opening her wings, she took flight.

Confused and nervous, Chrysalis took a few more seconds to think about what had happened and consider what to do. Twilight didn't seem to want to fight, so there was no point in it, not when there was apparently still the possibility of turning what happened into something more favorable, and escaping would accomplish nothing except confirm any suspicions Twilight might have and, consequently, make inevitable a fight that she would not be in a position and ability to win, not anymore.

Furious at the turn of events that disfavored her, the Changeling Queen spread her wings and followed the Pony Princess.





Twilight had flown to the top of the mountain and was now resting on the edge of a crater dug by ponies. What the view inside was like Chrysalis could not say, since it was also covered by a dome of the same enchanted metal as that in the tunnel, sporting and beaming an effigy of Celestia's sun to the sky.

Chrysalis descended to Twilight's side, but with enough space in between them to react if the situation turned dire... or worst, if the Princess felt like hugging her once again.

"They're beautiful, don't you think?" After a few seconds of awkward silence, Twilight finally asked Chrysalis.

"What?" the Queen asked eloquently, Twilight's seemingly incongruous question having brought her out of her worrying musings, bringing her some peace and calm in the process.

"The stars," the Princess clarified, all her attention concentrated on the night sky, continuing to ignore the situation, as if she wanted to avoid the conflict that should have broken out the moment they saw each other on the slopes of the mountain, irritating Chrysalis to no end, trapped in a position where she wanted to see the conclusion of this, but at the same time didn't. "Don't you think they're beautiful?"

Swallowing her bile, the Changeling Queen looked away from the Pony Princess and looked up, for the first time that night noticing the full moon surrounded by stars that sparkled and glittered in the night sky.

"Yes, they are," Chrysalis replied calmly, having seen a pair of shooting stars cross from one side of the dark blue celestial vault only to disappear on the other, as if the stunning sight had relaxing properties and finally had affected her. She also remembered that Twilight, even before rising to the top echelon of pony government, had been, and probably still was, an avid astronomer, who on quite a few occasions had invited her and the rest of her friends to stargaze.

Well, here goes nothing, Chrysalis thought after another interval of peace and relaxation, 'the calm before the storm' she considered it, returning to her original concerns, having concluded that, if Twilight had no intention of moving the pieces on the board and start the game, she would.

"Tell me, Twilight, do you trust me?" Chrysalis asked, a hint of trickery having colored her words.

"Of course I do," Twilight replied, her smile widening, acting completely obtuse and unconcerned with the fact that one of Chrysalis' hoofs was slowly moving into the pocket of her saddlebag.

"Let me rephrase the question," begin the Queen, with a more serious and menacing tone. "Would you trust me with your life?"

"That is a loaded question," said the Princess, taking a hoof to her chin, finally giving it the gravitas that was required to answer such an important question.

She remembered that after the party, Chrysalis became someone she could easily consider a friend, but someone she could trust with her life? Chrysalis did not always lend herself to participate in the many occasions in which Equestria was in danger and she and the rest of the gang were called to defend it, but in all the ones in which the Changeling Queen did get involved (even if she did not always seemed to participate in high spirit) Chrysalis was always of great importance, both for the perspective she brought to the mission, helping to anticipate the movements of the big bad evil guy of the season, and for her Changeling skill set, although her methods were constantly morally questionable and on more than one occasion scratched the definition of criminal. She still remembered how Chrysalis had disguised herself as Cadence and faced a resurrected Sombra, allowing the real Cadence and Shining Armor to recover the last pieces of Queen Amore to bring her back and banish the dark tyrant forever; A feat that ultimately earned her the gratitude and friendship of the royal couple, the recognition among the Crystal Ponies, and even being chosen as Flurry Heart's godmother. In all truth, Chrysalis never gave her reason to doubt her.

"Yes, I would trust you with my life," Twilight responds with conviction and confidence.

"In that case..." said the Queen, with a toothy an expectant grin, taking her hoof out of her saddlebag, ready to show its content. "You wouldn't care if I kept the…"

"'The Black Heart'?" finished Twilight for Chrysalis, without taking her gaze off the night sky. Getting no reply or hearing any sound coming from the Queen, the Princess looked at her direction, with just a hint of worry that something bad might have happened to Chrysalis and that was the reason for her lack of response.

To her relief, there she was, her eyes wide open and her mouth agape, and in her left hoof holding the dark gem. Twilight giggle lightly at the Queen's expression and, once it was obvious that she had nothing to worry about Chrysalis' state, she turned back to look at the stars in the sky.

"You... You knew that I had it?" the Queen asks once freed from her initial shock, but still stunned by the sudden and frankly unexpected revelation.

"I suspected it," the Princess calmly replied, playfully stamping her front legs on the ground to the rhythm of a song.

"Since when?" Chrysalis demanded.

"Since almost the beginning. You know, it wasn't hard to guess, even if it wasn't obvious at first. The day we left the ruins, I sent a letter to Princess Celestia and the first thing she did was send an entire battalion of the royal guard with the sole purpose of securing the island and searching for 'The Black Heart'. Since then we kept in touch daily, informing me of the progress they had exploring the island, and I, about your stay in Ponyville, with us. After a couple of weeks of searching, the Princess informed me that they had not found the gem, believing that it must have fallen into the abyss.

"I was ready to agree with that assessment, but then Spike came to me, telling me what he had heard you say, and I began to connect some dots, filling in the blank spaces. I remembered that when we fell from the chamber in which it was originally located, we did so on a plain, far from an edge near a deep trench, reducing the possibility of that idea; then I also recalled your strange behavior, how you run after crushing a skull; and the precautions you took when we were leaving, and finally I imagine what could have happened. The body, no other remains of creatures that we found down there were on the plain, so it had to have fallen with us, ergo: the skull that you stepped on was that of Saint Ashtray. When you crushed it, 'The Black Heart' had embedded itself in your hoof, but if you pulled it out into view, you knew that a fight would be imminent, so, feigning a panic attack, you ran away from the light, where you were able to free your hoof of the skull and hide the gem under your elytra, which could explain the following odd thing, later, when I leaned next to you, I had originally thought that you were arranging your damaged wing in a more comfortable position, but what you actually did was change the gem's location, right? Very clever of you, really."

"And you didn't say anything about it?" Ask Chrysalis, surprised by this turn of events, 'The Black Heart' still secure in her hoof.

Twilight took a deep breath to collect her thoughts and mirthlessly said, "Do you remember the first time I accused you of something without any evidence in my favor?"

"Do you mean the wedding?" said the Queen humorlessly; All those years and the memory of that damned event still seems to haunt her.

"Yes. Nobody believed me, they all ended up hating me and that was almost enough to allow you to take over Canterlot."

"I think this time everyone would have believed you if you had told them that I was in possession of 'The Black Heart'," the Queen replied.

"Perhaps, perhaps." Twilight shrugs. "At least, I thought that would be the case.

"But then I thought that if I did it, no matter what happened, the inevitable outcome would be that we would become enemies again. And that's just what I really wanted to avoid.

"I thought about it some more and concluded that the only way to break that cycle of antagonism between us would be to trust you. That regardless if you had it, you would not use it for anything evil. After all, how could I ask you to trust us if I didn't first show you that you could trust us?

"I promised you that you will have the love to live among us. Love and trust go from hoof to hoof. If I give you one but not the other, then I wouldn't be giving you what I promised you that day.

"So I trusted you, I trusted that you would see an opportunity to live in peace and harmony and choose to take it, over the chance to try to conquer the world."

"And now that you know that I have it... what will you do?"

"The same thing I've been doing since the day I approached you. I will continue to trust you to do what is right for yourself."

Chrysalis listened to Twilight, and by the time the Princess had finished speaking, the Queen was speechless. 

Looking again at 'The Black Heart', still firmly held in her hoof, beyond her reflection in the dark gem, the Queen could see promises of unimaginable power, the possibility of one day being alone on top of the world, with no one able to oppose her. Everything she once coveted. The kind of day of which I've dreamed since I was small.

But spinning it a little, almost accidentally, a light shone on it, and in that halo of light that surrounded the gem, Chrysalis was able to see the faces and shared memories of all those who trusted her first of all. The young and Friendly Twilight, the Kind Fluttershy, the Loyal Rainbow Dash, the Generous Rarity, the Trustworthy Applejack, the Considerate Thorax, the Unyielding Pharynx, the Brave Spike, the Wise Celestia, the Inspiring Luna, the Confident Starlight and the Cheerful Pinkie Pie; all of them and those who followed them and those who offered their love and unconditional friendship to live.

A thousand and one thoughts came to her like an avalanche, seeking to crush her, shaking her, not granting her firm ground on which to decide, to determine what she should do. Inside she felt trapped in between two giants fighting to claim possession over her; a maelstrom of emotions and feelings, both old and new at the same time, those that had been with her for centuries and screamed at her about retribution and conquest, and those that she had recently rediscovered, that whispered to her about peace and a fresh start.

We will gain more power than we have ever dreamed of! The Queen heard a voice -her own voice- full of greed and desire telling her.

Then she felt a pang inside her.

We already gain the power to make our dreams come true. Chrysalis heard her voice again, but this time it sounded kind and friendly. 

I will have my revenge! Boiling rage.

Another pang.

We have made friends from foes, let's be free of harmful grudges. Peaceful and mellow.

Friendship is like a disease! Fury and malice.

And another one.

Friendship is magic! Jubilant and cheerful.

Chrysalis was panting hard and sweating profusely. Whatever she had just experienced had taken its toll on her. She then looked in Twilight's direction, who was looking at her with concern and a sense of expectation.

"You can open this hatch?" The Queen asked, regaining her composure, with a tone that did not give away her thoughts and intentions, only that she had already decided.

"...Yes," the Princess responded after a pause that was neither too long, as to seem like it carried doubt, nor too short, as to seem like it was taken without consideration, and immediately her horn illuminated with a dark magenta glow; seconds later, the effigy of Celestia's Sun shone with white light and then disappeared.

The ground around them shook as the metal plates screeched as they opened. After a loud, metallic *Thump*, the tremors stopped.

A stream of stale air flowed from inside, impregnating the atmosphere around them with its warm and humid presence.

Chrysalis stood tall and looked at the unfathomable darkness that lay there. Her Changeling eyes allowed her to see more clearly deeper into that entrance, but not even she was able to see the end of what lay down below.

Twilight stood in her place, expectant for what the Queen was going to do.

Lifting the hoof in which she was holding 'The Black Heart', Chrysalis threw it forcefully back into the darkness where it belonged.

There were no screams nor tears. Any sense of regret on the part of the Queen shrank until it disappeared in the same way that the gem did within the dark pit, replaced by a sense of lightness in her own heart and that quickly spread over her entire body.

Chrysalis took a deep breath and looked at Twilight. The Princess of Friendship was pleasantly surprised.

Understanding what was left to do, they both spread their wings.





Seconds later two specks that shone with the moonlight could be seen flying overhead and away from that island, heading back to Equestria. 

Looking to the side, Twilight glanced at Chrysalis, who seemed to keep surprising her with her actions.

"You're smiling!" The Pony Princess proclaimed when she saw the Changeling Queen wearing the most honest and non-villainous smile she had seen on her to date.

"What?" Chrysalis responded and then looked forward and down, for the first time aware of that strange but pleasant muscle contraction in her muzzle. "No, I'm not smiling," she rebut, her smile growing wider.

"Then what's with that smile of yours? Explain it yourself!"

"I am not smiling, I am just... frowning less intensely."

"Fine, have it your way. You know, for the longest time I thought of you as someone stuck up and scary. But I guess I was wrong and you can also be a big softie! And I'm glad to have known you."

"No, I'm telling you, I'm nothing like that. You've got the wrong idea entirely."

"Ugh! You are the worst at accepting compliments, you know that?" Groan Twilight in good and playful manner.

"I wouldn't be me if it were any other way, wouldn't I?"

"No, I guess you wouldn't be."

"Twilight," Chrysalis called to her companion -no, now there was a better term, 'Friend', that was the right one; Chrysalis called to her friend. "Would you like to come to my place?"

"Oh! Are you finally going to let me know where you live?"

"Yes. But don't get your hopes up, it's still far from being a palace worthy of a Queen like myself."

"Don't worry. If it's not too much to ask, what brought this decision?"

"I just want to introduce you to someones."

"I'll be glad!"

In the background, the island of Saint Ashtray began to fade and crumble, and slowly it completely vanished without leaving a trace of its existence.