A pony on hard times

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter 1 - Crystal Heart
Chapter 2 - Making friends
Chapter 3 - Better connections
Chapter 4 - Getting inside
Chapter 5 - Trust (Noun): Confidence in or reliance on somepony
Chapter 6 - The ensuring mare
Epilogue - All bad things must come to an end

Prologue

(This is set before series 1, although hopefully the story makes that clear)

Every big city, even in the magical land of Equestria, has a seedy underbelly.

Manehattan was no different.

And the economic backbone of this underbelly were the strip clubs where bits are exchanged for titillation, and deals were done in the darkness.

Some were nice, some less so.

The Prancing Mare in Manehattan was the nicest, the best of the best. Where reasonably well off Stallions came for their stag dos and businessponies would unwind after a long week.

The mares who worked at these places did so for various reasons – the better pay than other jobs provided, or they enjoyed what they did. Some had no other way to make a living except using their body.

Our story focuses on a pony that fell into the third category…

There were not many horns on the exotic dancers or waitresses in any strip club. Desperate unicorns could always get a job with the greater skills their inherent magic afforded them, so most of the ponies in the industry were Earth and Pegasi.

Around a third of the ponies who danced were Pegasi and the custom was to decorate their wings with gems and glitter, as well as their bodies like the Earth ponies. After all, in a society where nudity was the most common form of dress it was the dressing up along with the showmareship that still made stripping popular.

However applying gems to wings is very difficult to do to yourself, so the waitresses and dancers would help each other get ready. As they spent so much time together it paid to help each other out as no doubt your generosity would be returned in other ways.

At the Prancing Mare, this spirit of helping went further as they share the bits they earned. A quarter of all the tips each mare received was placed in a pot, to be shared out equally at the end of the night. They all depended on each other – the barcolts created the drinks that the waitresses served which loosened the wallets of the customers towards the dancing mares.

However there was one mare the others refused to help, even thought she helped others when they needed it. She was left alone to apply her makeup and wing decorations. The boss of the Prancing Mare would normally order the other employees to help any pony should such a situation arise, for the benefit of the whole club. But luckily for the owner of these wings it wasn't really a problem.

Because she was one of only two known ponies in Equestria to have both wings and a horn.

Chapter 1 - Crystal Heart

It was a stormy autumn evening, and despite being inside and underground the noise of the storm was still audible in the dressing room. Former Princess Cadence sat looking in the mirror, applying the gems to her feathers. Her magic gave her a much greater control over the final product than hooves could ever achieve, so her wings always looked their best no matter how little attention she really gave the task.

The other mares that were due to dance and waitress that night avoided her as usual as they got themselves ready, but that was okay for Cadence. She understood that the mares were nervous around her, which was natural given her fall from so high. And of course she understood there was a lot jealousy towards her as well.

And that was also completely understandable.

Firstly, Cadence had the edge of the alicorns natural longer body & legs, as well as a thinner build than the normal races. This made her more physically seductive than any normal pony could ever hope to achieve. Her face had the sort of beauty that could launch a thousand airships, especially her gorgeous purple eyes that were soft yet spoke of seeing more than a normal lifetime of experiences. Her muzzle had a regal point and yet was so often in a gentle smile rather than a snobbish frown.

Sure, there were some exquisite mares such as Fleur, who she used to be best friends with, but since her ascension many thousands of moons ago Cadence had anypony beat - she was possibly the most beautiful pony in the whole kingdom

But apart from that, Cadence was given some of the best dance times and was always in demand for private dances. She therefore rarely had to wait the tables and when she did she could use her magic to do so which made the task that much easier than for the other non-magical ponies at the club.

There were therefore a lot of reasons for the other mares to be jealous, and she reflected on that as she readied herself before her shift started.

When the alicorn first joined the Prancing Mare, it was one of the best clubs in town but was a little run down. However, she had single hoofedly accidently turned the place around.

The Prancing Mare was a successful club before 'Crystal Heart' turned up, but became much more popular after word spread and was at capacity every night. Crystal Heart got a lot more tips than any of the other mares, no doubt helped by the better time slots. However, Cadence knew that it was her former status that probably helped bring in most of the bits.

As success meant more bits, this allowed the owner to invest in redecorating, which led to more higher class patrons. Success bred success, and everypony benefited…but the other mares still hated her.

Cadence had finished applying the glitter and fake gems. The body glitter wasn't too bad but whoever had started the trend for gems in feathers was either not a Pegasus, or was a masochist. They itched like anything and getting all the glue off every night was a pain. Of course she could use magic to do so, but with everypony else already hating her she kept her spellcasting to a minimum.

She brushed her mane which was already in a good state, and proceeded to add in a few decorations. She heard a bit of commotion to her side, and noticed that one of the earth ponies had put too much glue on a pegasus’s wings, causing the feathers to become matted. Cadence flared her horn and removed all the glue with her magic, as well as repairing the damaged feathers. A task that was so simple for a horned pony, yet for those with magic it would have been a huge issue.

She turned back to the mirror without getting a thank you, nor did she expect one.

The clothing was next - Lots of layers for her to remove piece by piece. She was lucky in that it wasn't too bad compared to some of the others. She had started off with the standard styles of costumes like the other mares, but as the patronship increased the owner had brought her better clothing. Another reason the others no doubt hated her.

Lastly, she put on one of the tiaras which were lined up on her dressing table. She hated wearing one as no other dancer wore such a headpiece and it sat all too much like a crown atop her head for her liking. However the boss had insisted on it when she first joined and she was in no position to argue

She wandered out of the changing room and to the back of the stage, listening to the music blaring out. She was just about on time and only had to wait a few moments before she heard her introduction from the MC.

“And now Gentlecolts, for your entertainment on the main stage Crystallllll Heart”

The pony separated the curtains with her magic and paraded herself out onto the stage. She seductively walked down the stage and bits started being tossed onto the stage, the alicorn using her magic to collect them up as she moved and performed…

After her main turn on the stage, it was time for the table-dancing before her next set. Crystal Heart's name was called out a lot compared to the other dancers, and she was busy most of the night. Of course everypony in the room knew it was the former Princess Cadence, but there was a shared harmony of thought that nopony would dare call out her real name – nopony was sure what had happened but they didn't want to get involved.

There was a group of stallions, dressed in some of the most expensive clothing in the city, which frequently visited the club. They paid well, but what was strange was that they seemed to actually be there for business more than the entertainment – there was a core group which had a permanent booth booked and every night different stallions, and sometimes mares, would come and go. Some of the dancers and waitresses felt uneasy around them, but to Cadence it was all the same really.

As the club closed for the night, the mares returned to the dressing room wash up and go home. Quickly finishing herself with the aid of a few spells, Cadence counted her bits and put half of what she had earned into the sharing jar, about a third of the total. However, Cadence never took a single bit out.

Picking up her few belongings, she left the room and let the other mares that ignored her happily share out her bits.

Cadence returned to her dingy studio apartment – it was called a studio apartment but it was just a one room flat in a run down building. It was in one of the safest areas of downtown and that was the most important thing.

She had the bits for a nicer place and in fact could easily afford something in nicest areas in the city. However, it quickly became apparent that nopony was willing to rent to her - they always offered her a place when they saw her bits, but after a few hours the offer would be withdrawn and she would be out on the street.

No doubt the change in heart was due to pressure put on by Celestia or her government, and she couldn't go up against the might of that. It was the same reason she was unable to find any other job – she would get offers, but then they were quickly withdrawn. Even working in fast food places seemed to be too good for her!

Cadence had become desperate and even came close to theft in order to eat. However she had one area left to turn, and that’s when she found herself outside the Prancing Mare talking to one of the bouncers. The stallion soon let her in to speak to the boss who was looking for new talent, and even the bouncer could see potential when so obviously in front of his face.

The owner of the club was a savvy businesspony and knew Cadence could be a bit of trouble. The rumours of Celestia’s unofficial wishes were known throughout the city but he was willing to risk it. Not just for profit, he felt genuine sorrow for the Princess. And he doubted Celestia would mind Cadence working in what was considered a dirty industry,

And he never got any pressure put on him by the authorities, so the gamble paid off...and Crystal Heart was born.

Chapter 2 - Making friends

The next evening Cadence flew towards the red lantern district, where the Prancing Mare stood just on the edge of…the good edge luckily. She landed a few feet from the door and trotted in gracefully. Despite her life seemingly having hit an all time low, she always had a spring in her step.

As she started to get ready she could hear one of the dancers crying and being comforted by many of the other mares. Of course Cadence's natural instincts meant she wanted to help and comfort the mare as well, but knew that her presence would not be welcomed. However she listened in with her super-effective hearing as the mare told her tale to the others.

One of the earth pony’s parents was very ill. The problem was that they lived on the other side of Equestria and the mare didn’t have enough money to afford the trip. Even if she gathered the bits, she couldn't afford not to work as she had two young foals to look after. Taking a week off would push her over the edge financially and out on the streets where the government would then take away her foals.

Cadence's heart was breaking inside as she listened to this tale. She knew a lot of ponies were in tough situations, and all they had to do was ask for help – Equestria’s mayors and councils were much more generous than most ponies gave them credit for. The problem was many of the disadvantaged did not have faith in the system, which caused them further problems rather than seeking the safety net that the government was there to provide.

Cadence had to prevent herself from crying and mucking up her already applied makeup. She didn't want to seem cold by ignoring the mare, but knew that she couldn't help right now. Quickly using her magic to finish getting ready, the pink pony left the dressing room early to do some table dancing before her main set…

It had been a successful night’s work for Crystal Heart – it was a busy weekend evening and the alicorn made the most of it. She worked harder than she ever had that evening, even casting some spells which she wouldn't usually do during the show, to entice as many bits as possible.

Cadence was adept at fancy magic – she wasn't the best at offensive magic, but was a master of defence magic which included distraction and allusion. Having smoke and fireworks timed to her moves and music really made for a extra good show. This seemed to please the regulars massively as anything new was by it’s nature much more interesting.

Having finished removing the gems and make-up, rather than heading over to the tip jar, Crystal Heart went over to the mare that was crying earlier that evening, who was still occasionally sobbing. She took her bag of bits she had earned that night and dropped it on the table in front of the sad mare, causing a very loud thud as the heavy pouch spilled its contents. Cadence just walked away in silence, knowing it was enough bits for the pony to visit her parents and cover the lost wages.

As she walked out of the dressing room, unacknowledged by any of the other mares there, she had a smile on the inside as she knew she had really helped a pony truly less fortunate than herself.

And that was worth more to the beautiful pony than anything she could ever buy with her bits.

Reaching home, she sat on her small and lumpy bed looking out of the window. The bright city lights blocked out all but the brightest of stars, but the moon was always visible. “Oh, Mare in the Moon” Cadence looked up at the horse shaped head that was the moons markings “I know the legends say you are the bringer of nightmares…well I hope mine finishes soon!" But she then felt guilty at that very thought - she had options to get this finished when many of the ponies she worked with had none.

The following evening Cadence was looking at her reflection as she started applying her makeup.

“Hello” a voice suddenly addressed her, making her jump in surprise.

“Hello…”Cadence turned to the pony next to her “Sorry, what is your name?"

“I’m Orange Shadow” the orange coloured earth mare, with a dark coloured Orange tree as a cutie mark, responded a little nervously.

“Well hello Orange Shadow, nice to meet you” she smiled back

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Princess Cadence”

“Please, I’m not a princess…” the pink alicorn started

“Balderdash! Despite whatever Celestia may have done, you’re still a Princess!” Orange threw her hooves in the air for emphasis. By now some of the other mares had started paying attention, but Cadence hadn't noticed

“That’s the past…all in the past. I am just a regular pony now!” Cadence meekly replied.

“If you insist Crystal Heart” Orange Shadow replied with a little sigh “Anyway, I just wanted to say what you did for Lyrical was, well, just magic…no pun intended”

“Who?”

“The mare yesterday. We all…” and she pointed now to the other mares who were starting to gather round “…were all going to chip in what we could for her trip and see what we could collect during her absence”

“It was going to be tough” another mare chipped in “Most of us don’t really have much to spare at the end of the week…even if you do sort of help us all out” she finished, rubbing one of her front hooves against the back of her other leg nervously.

“Well, she clearly needed it more than I did” Cadence smiled back, not used to the mares actually talking to her

“If you don’t mind me asking…why do you need any at all?” Orange Shadow asked.

“Are any of the rumours true?” another one of mares at the back asked

“That’s a terrible thing to ask, of course they're not!” Orange snapped back

Whilst the media had not reported on Cadences situation, Manehattan was filled with all sorts of stories about what may have brought the former Princess to become it's newest resident. The nicest ones just related to some form of epic argument between the two alicorns, but these were quickly dismissed as surely Celestia wouldn’t be as cruel to ruin the life of somepony, let alone a Princess, over an argument.

The most evil rumours were the hardest to believe, but seemed to fit the punishment. It hadn’t been long since Celestia had taken a new personal student, one that Cadence used to foalsit. It was hard to believe that Cadence had done anything to the foals she used to sit but that didn’t stop the rumours that Cadence had been exposed as some form of foal-fooler.

“I’d…I’d rather not say” Cadence spoke softly.

“Just…it’s nothing to do with…the royal protégé is it? I mean, it’s a silly rumour and all…” Orange Shadow sort of mumbled and prodded the ground with her hoof

Cadence's face was one of pure disgust and shock “Of course not!”

“Okay Princ…Crystal, that’s good enough for me!” Orange quickly replied “So how about we get your wings ready?” and before the Alicorn had a chance to respond she and the pegasus who's wing she recently repaired started gathering the various decorations.

“Sure” Cadence sort of stumbled “And I can help sort out your wings and manes” she said as she levitated over two brush sand started working on Orange's tail and the pegasuses mane.

“Wow, we can be done twice as quickly if you can multitask like that!” Orange giggled, noticing how much smoother a magically wielded brush felt compared to one moved by a hoof.

All the mares were ready extra quick with all the help from each other and Cadence's multitasking skills. And it wasn't a moment too soon as the place was packed. Worst still, the performers soon found out that due to an outbreak of pony-pox, most of the waitresses and two of the three bartenders on duty were off sick.

Cadence went over to the boss who was with the MC discussing what to do.

“Look boss” Cadence interrupted “I know you’ll want me dancing to keep the crowds entertained. But given how backed up the kitchens and bar are, I think perhaps this…” and she tapped her horn “…is better off trying to clear off some of the backlog?”

“Sure, I guess I’d be stupid not to use your magic to help out. Just try to get some dancing in if things slow down”

“Of course” Cadence rolled her eyes. The MC began to protest that the star of the show was needed, but the boss explained that getting the drinks to the punters would loosen the bits for everypony.

Cadence closed her eyes and her horn glowed. The layered outfit meant for dancing was replaced in a flash with a revealing maid outfit of her own design instead. It covered all the areas that were not normally covered in such a way that it was more alluring than anything else. Even the tiara was replaced by a saucy maids hat.

“Wow…you look…just wow” the owner of the club stammered in shock at the beauty in front of him

“Boss, you don’t normally act this way” the MC sniggered, trying to cover up his own stares.

“Sorry Crystal, that was most unprofessional of me..." the owner started to babble.

Cadence just giggled and waved a hoof to interrupt him “It’s okay” and she pointed at her exposed Cutie Mark “I always have that effect on Stallions…it’s my destiny” and with that Cadence bounced off, in a not deliberately suggestive way whatsoever, leaving two Stallions speechless behind her. The MC came to his senses first and quickly reorganised the dance list.

Cadence quickly got to work, and noted that the bartender had a stack of orders piled up. The waitress’s kept bringing orders over and everything was getting confused as the single bartender was doing his best at keeping on top of things. The alicorn went over to the bar, and going through the orders she starting levitating glasses, bottles of juices and sprits, ice and everything else all around her.

As nopony was dancing, Cadence made a big as show as possible mixing some of the drinks, tossing bottles through the air, juggling fruit, setting some spirits on fire and generally making a show out of it. When she had cleared the large backlog of drinks, she organised them all onto various trays. The overworked unicorn bartender mouthed a massive thank you as Cadence trotted off levitating many trays of drinks in her aura.

The clients were astonished by how much she was carrying, and the skills she had shown mixing drinks, and it made them more aroused. She may not be dancing but it acted as a reminder that such a formidable creature was reduced to serving and dancing for them, which was a powerful feeling indeed.

And the wonderful outfit closely hugging the stunning pony's figure didn’t hurt the eyes either.

Having helped get the backlog of drinks orders out of the way, and with one of the dancers beginning their routine, Cadence took a more subtle role and began serving the tables one at a time. The other waitresses were dealing with the food orders, and helping out in the kitchen, but as Cadence was the only one who could mix drinks she focused on this.

Of course, whilst she didn't have time to dance, she was being as sexy and sensual as she could as she took orders. She swayed her hips and tail around, giggled at the stupid jokes they told and got quite close and personal to the various customers. But of course she never touched them.

Whilst it was all an act, Cadence felt she had to make a show of things. Afterall, the punter ponies had presumably worked hard to earn their bits, so they deserved something in return. In fact, it quickly became apparent to the owner of the club watching, and mentally tallying up tips, that the ponies seemed to prefer Crystal Heart this way than dancing on stage. And the barkeep was most grateful that the Alicorn helped with mixing the drinks, rather than just serving them.

Cadence found the whole thing rather sad that she had to fake liking these strangers – normally when she danced it was a bit more of a distant relationship, but tonight she was forced to talk and listen to them. Of course she could have cast a spell over them all to do whatever she wanted, such was the power of fake love, but nopony with such power would ever abuse it by messing with love that way…nopony!

It was a busy and long night for the Alicorn, as during the only quiet spell in drink orders she took her turn on the stage rather than take a break. All the other workers were thankful for this, as it kept the bits flowing in which they all benefited from.

As the club closed for the night, it turned out to be one of the most profitable ones ever, despite the lack of staff. All the mares returned to the changing room exhausted, but with bit pouches fuller than normal which at least perked up their enthusiasm despite their tired bodies

Cadence practically dragged herself into the dressing room, and when she sat down she suddenly felt light headed and collapsed to the floor. All the ponies came running over and Orange cradled Crystal’s head in her hooves.

“Oh Prin…Crystal…you’ve been on your hooves all night whilst using your magic most of the time! You’ve exhausted yourself!”

“Nonsence” Cadence timidly replied “I’ve done much more before”

“Did you even have anything to eat or drink” another mare asked, and the lack of response sort of confirmed that she hadn’t. One of the mares had rushed to get the club owner, who came galloping in when he heard his star was in trouble.

“What’s wrong?” he asked nopony in particular, looking at the pony lying on the floor

“She’s overworked herself and hasn’t eaten or drunk anything all night!” Orange replied almost in despair

“Silly thing…she’s too stubborn for her own good!” the owner gasped “Quick, go get her some juice and bread!”

“Yes boss” two of the mares quickly dashed towards the kitchen

“I’ll be okay, no need to fuss” Cadence tried to get to her feet but collapsed again. The mares returned with food and the alicorn took a long drink from a straw in a glass.

After a few minutes of eating and drinking, Cadence managed to get back on her hooves, despite the others trying to stop her, but she calmed their fears and explained she was fine now.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay to get home?” the owner and Orange Shadow asked almost simultaneously.

“I’m fine” Cadence blushed “It was just dehydration”

“Well, I suppose you know your physiology better then us, but do take care” Orange replied.

“I will, but I do want to get home as quick as I can. Sorry for my showing off”

“What showing off?” a pony called out as Cadence flared her horn, teleporting herself out of the club leaving the gems, glitter, and jewellery neatly put away on her dresser, and her share of bits in the jar.

All the mares that had ignored her for weeks now felt really guilty, as Cadence had clearly put everything into that night. And they knew that it wasn’t for her benefit, she clearly had enough bits. It was for the collective good – their collective good. She may not be an official princess anymore, but she cared for them like they were still her little ponies. And they were all impressed by that.

Unbeknowingly to Cadence, one of the regulars was even more impressed by her actions that evening.

Chapter 3 - Better connections

The request was unexpected “I want you to come to my mansion tomorrow night”.

“I’m not sure what sort of mare you take me for!” Cadence replied, giving a firm but not too hard slap across the stallions face.

There were a lot of rules at the Prancing Mare, and any of the girls caught doing anything illegal would soon be out of a job. And any of the punters asking for anything illegal would soon be banned.

“Hey, we all know what you are whore!” one of the stallions entourage replied, raising from his chair his horn glowing in anger.

Cadence shifted on her hooves and her own horn began to glow. Everypony nearby started to back off…they all knew that the Alicorn’s magic was only second to Celestia’s and didn't want to get in the way if things turned nasty.

The stallion turned to his acquaintance and gave him a hard slap across his face with the back of his hoof "Do not speak to any pony like that, especially a lady such such as her!”

“Yes boss“ came a meek reply as the unicorns horn fizzled out. Cadence horn dimmed, and everypony went back to normal, still keeping an eye on the tense situation.

“Crystal Heart, I didn’t mean it like that!” Cadence gave the Stallion a harsh look but gave him a chance to continue “I am having an intimate get together of business associates, and would like to have you waitress for us…and as some entertainment”

“Thank you, but I’m due to have tomorrow off” she replied courteously

“I’ll pay you two hundred bits” the stallion replied dismissively, as if such a sum of money was nothing to him.

“I don’t really need the money”

“Yes, but I’ll also give you a nice meal and a comfortable bed for the night. I know you are struggling to get them, despite all the money you may have access to”

“How do you know that?” the alicorn’s eyes narrowed slightly

“Everypony is aware of your situation Crystal Heart”

Cadence looked at the stallion with a bit of anger at the way he had spoken her name, but he seemed unphased by this “Look, I’m not going to try anything funny and even if I did I don’t think you would have any trouble looking after yourself with your magical abilities.” He glared at his associate as he said this “I just want to show off to some of my out of town business partners and can’t think of a more exquisite way of doing so!”

She wasn’t really sure what to expect, but if it meant a nice meal and a comfortable bed, how could she refuse?

“Okay, it’s a deal.”

The club owner was okay with Crystal Heart having this job on the side, and Cadence mulled this over as the limo that had been sent for her whisked her through the streets of Manehatten. Normally any sort of private work was banned, even if not illegal, and she wondered what was the bigger factor – that she used to be a Princess, or the seeming high standing of this business pony.

However, there wasn’t too much time to think as the limo pulled up outside some gilded gates, which were opened by two rather large earth ponies. The limo drove into the compound and stopped in front a rather large and impressive mansion. It may not have been Canterlot Castle, but was probably one of the biggest places for a pony to live.

A mare, in a formal servants outfit, approached the visitor as she got out of the Limo. “Crystal Heart I presume?”

“Yes, and you are?”

“My name is Silver Platter, but you should refer to me as Ms Platter. I am the head of the household, and tonight you shall report to me”

“Yes Ms Platter”

The older looking mare, although a baby in comparison to Cadence real age, then leaned in close and whispered “Sorry Princess but I can’t go easy on you in front of the other servants. I have strict orders from Mr Spur”

“I understand” Cadence responded softly “but please don’t call me Princess”. She took note that this was the first time she had heard any part of the stallions real name.

Ms Platter coughed and straightened out “Right, of course, follow me Crystal Heart”

The pair walked into the house and quickly went up the main staircase to the upper floors. Ms Platter opened a door halfway down a corridor on the third floor “This shall be your room for the night”

Cadence looked around the room and felt a little more at home. It wasn’t as fancy as a castle but was on par with the top hotels in town. She could see into a beautiful tiled bathroom and also a comfortable large bed that would actually fit her.

“Dinner is due to start in less then an hour, so you best start to get ready. Various sizes of maids outfit is in the wardrobe…but I don’t think any of them will fit your unique frame”

Cadence pointed to a box on the bed “I guess that what that’s for” and opened up the box. Inside she levitated out an outfit, as well as some jewellery inside

“I guess Mr Spur wants to treat you specially” Ms Platter sighed “Just try to keep it professional”

“Yes Ms Platter, I’ll try my best but I don’t know what’s expected of me”

“Nor do I. I’ll leave you in peace to get ready”

Cadence put on the seductive maids outfit that was in the box and looked into the mirror. It was a more dignified than the ones she wore at the Prancing Mare. It matched the colour scheme of Ms Platter’s outfit, but was clearly designed to show off the Alicorn’s form. She applied a little makeup and jewellery from the box, and looked around the room. Whatever she had to do tonight, it was worth it for that bed and the bath that would be waiting for her.

Cadence trotted down the stairs, where she saw one of Mr Spur’s bodyguards talking to Ms Platter and a few of the other servants. Cadence noticed that the other servants were attractive young mares but she was the only one in a different outfit. As she approached, all the other ponies went off to do their tasks, and Ms Platter came over to her.

“I’ve been told that you are to greet our guests, and then serve drinks and socialise with them prior to dinner. The others will serve dinner and then you will be around all evening to fill in serving drinks and whatnot”

“I understand Ms Platter” Crystal Heart responded with a dignified nod.

As the out of town guests started to arrive Crystal Heart greeted them all at the door, bowing to each one and taking any coats or belongings in her aura. Seeing the former princess welcome them made the first impression that Mr Spur was after.

After all the guests had arrived, Crystal Heart trotted into the main reception room where Ms Platter was serving some drinks. Seeing the alicorn arrive, the older earth mare walked over and Cadence lifted the serving tray off her back. Cadence thought about carrying it in her Aura but instead placed it on her back, spreading her wings slightly to help balance it. Of course there was no need to do so for carrying the tray but her slightly expanded wings made her look all the more impressive. Cadence was as tall as the tallest of guests, but also had the biggest wings and the longest horn. She was an impressive figure, and whilst all the stallions thought it, none of them mentioned the mare.

She made drinks and served the guests, making as much small talk as she could. Despite having dealt with ponies for hundreds of years, she found it difficult to talk to these. Normally she would be in the position of power with everypony looking to impress her. But in the outfit she was in, and being forced to act all flirty, she just didn’t really want to be there.

After a good amount of time socialising, it was announced that dinner was ready so the guests and the host moved into the dinning room. This gave Cadence some time alone, but she knew it wasn't going to be long enough to do anything useful, like get acquainted with that bath.

She instead looked over the room and noticed a small harp in the corner. She knew how to actually impress ponies and so levitating the instrument in her aura, she followed the ponies into the dinning room. She sat in the corner and started played the strings of the instrument in the earth pony way. She had never played a lyre before but you pick up these things during a life that spans generations…and that’s just the life she could remember.

The beautiful music played softly in the background, being a suitable accompaniment to the meal. Mr Spur looked over at Crystal Heart concentrating hard both on her hoofwork and trying to remember the notes of a long forgotten tune. Wow, she really is keen to impress. She must really want to earn that bath and bed!

Cadence ran a hot bath and got out of the outfit she had been forced to wear all night. She settled her body down into the water and it seemed like all the cares of the world faded away. The rest of the evening had gone well. The ponies she was talking to actually were often quiet interesting. However the fact that most the guests were stallions and they couldn’t help themselves from staring at her when they thought she wasn’t looking didn’t make it the most comfortable of evenings.

But that didn’t matter given it meant she got to have this bath. The tub at the Prancing Mare or the one she shared with others in the block of studio apartments wasn't really big enough for her larger pony form. But this was just perfect; a heavenly treat for the immortal Princess. The jacuzzi’s jets sent wonderful heat into the Princess’s body and just for a brief moment she was back in Canterlot Castle’s wonderful spa.

Unfortunately just as she was getting lost in the moment, a knock on her suite door interrupted her thoughts and the boss called out to her. She thought about covering herself up with a robe or something but thought against it. After all, she could probably use herself to distract the stallion which might help her cause.

“Come in Mr Spur” she cooed softly but confidently.

The stallion entered the room, and looked around until he came across Cadence in the bathroom. He stood shocked still as he noticed the alicorn lying in the bath and seemed a little more than flustered at seeing Crystal Heart soaking. Her plan seemed to be working.

“Oh, do you need a robe or something?” he stuttered.

“Well I think you've seen plenty enough of me at the Prancing Mare. What else is there left to see Mr Spur?”

“Please, call me Stainless” the large earth pony blushed a little at this and Cadence thought it was strange the effect she seemed to have over him – he was a powerful pony and yet here he was acting like a young colt around his first love. She checked to make sure she wasn't casting a love aura by mistake, as she had once done as a filly, but found instead the effect was natural not magical.

She wasn’t sure to be flattered or offended, but either way stored the information away for future use.

“Yes, it’s a shame to see you reduced to serving the common ponies at the club” Stainless replied

“It pays the bills” Cadence acted dismissively but made sure her voice sounded despondent enough.

“Well, you did well tonight Princess…” he started

“Crystal” she corrected instinctively

“In this place, you’re Princess, okay!” Stainless half demanded. Cadence just smiled at him, picked up a few bubbles from her bath and placed them on her head as a crown

“Whatever you say, boss” she grinned whilst striking a regal pose with her head, causing the stallion to blush again “You were saying?”

“Oh yeah, well, you certainly impressed my business associates, not just because of who you are. You’ve more then deserved the bits, bath and bed tonight! Can I count on you to do this again soon?”

“Only if you get more marshmallow scented bubble bath” Cadence responded splashing the water a little and with embarrassment at maximum for the earth pony, he quickly left the Alicorn to her bathing.

It was the dead of the night, with the moon high in the sky. Cadence lay in the most comfortable bed she had been in for a long time. It seemed like such a shame to leave it but she had to take the chance when she could.

Knowing how paranoid the mob boss was likely to be, she was under no illusion that there would be at a minimum cameras and spells monitoring her. She cast a small levitation spell to bring a glass of water over, but at the same time ran a scan to see what was there. If my magic’s being monitored, at least this will just look like I’m getting a drink

As expected she could sense the spells surrounding her room, designed to track her movements should she leave the suite. There was also another spell monitoring for spells that she casted, but it was relatively amateurish and designed for specific types of magic only. She could easily cast spells that wouldn't set off that alarm.

There were also a number of hidden cameras in the room which would cause a bit more of an issue. Afterall, she couldn't simply disable them as they were bound to be monitored. The fact somebody was watching her as she slept made her feel a little uncomfortable but then she was more than capable of looking after herself.

Cadence took a moment to think about it and worked out what to do - she may not have been trained like the Royal Guard, but spending time around one of them meant she had learnt how to make a plan on the hoof. She cast an illusion spell and she saw a slight shimmer surround her as the spell took effect. She lay still like she was sleeping and the spell started copying her. After a few minutes she made herself invisible and teleported out of bed.

In the bed was something that certainly looked like her sleeping soundly and would certainly fool anypony watching via the cameras, at least long enough for her to get a good snoop. Carefully calibrating her magic to the spells surrounding her room, she teleported out to the corridor on the same aura frequency as to be undetectable.

Cadence had seen a bit of the mansion during the evening and had a rough idea where to go. She carefully walked towards what she assumed was the mobs main work area, constantly checking for any spells. She found that once she was away from her room, the spells were more focused on keeping anypony out of the building, rather then monitoring the inhabitants within.

She approached the study to find the lights still on. Cadence crept towards the door which was slightly ajar and peaked inside. There was nopony in the room so she carefully edged the door open, pausing to see if anypony heard the squeak but when nothing happened she skulked in.

Looking around, she could sense there was a safe behind a large picture, but this was a well designed magical safe installed by somepony who really knew their spells. There was no way she could break into that and keep a low profile. The desk had some locked drawers, which she could and did easily open, but leafing through the documents within there was nothing of interest.

Her horn glowed with a long drawn out spell as she cast one of the most complicated spells she had ever done. Normally, casting spells that couldn't be sensed by other unicorns was something on the most powerful of mages could achieve. She being an amateur spellcaster would normally not have a chance, but then she was of course one of the most naturally gifted spell casters around which helped greatly. The spell ended up being a bit crude, but with the extra magic she could put in thanks to her massive magical reserves, it would surely work.

With a final extra push, a small invisible and hopefully undetectable orb left her horn and floated in the room. It would allow her to hear what was being said, and allow her to record it in her mind, but only if she was nearby. I guess I’ll be spending more time here than I want too.

Checking she left no signs that she had been in the room, she carefully made her way back through the mansion and safely back into her bed. The raid had been a partial success, something at least she could build upon.

Chapter 4 - Getting inside

In the morning Cadence woke up and deliberately used a bit more magic than required to grab a nearby dressing gown. This set off the hidden magic alarms, but that was her plan – hopefully Stainless Spur would be fooled into think his security was completely foolproof. Within moments she had a knock on the door and opening it she found a mare with a breakfast tray on her back.

Cadence levitated the tray off of the mares back, thanked the earth pony and returned to bed. She was desperate to leave this place in case her spell was found quickly but at the same time she had to act natural and seem to be in no rush to leave. She sat down at the table and delicately ate breakfast, trying to make sure not to look at the hidden cameras. Luckily this task was made easier as somepony had entered the bosses study, so she distracted herself by snooping in via her spell. It turned out just to be a cleaning mare but at least Cadence knew her spell was working.

It was a glorious day so once she had finished breakfast, rather than take the offered limo back to the main part of the city Crystal Heart told Stainless she wanted to fly back. She went on to explain that she hadn’t flown for a few days and really felt like it as her spirits were lifted. Of course the main reason was because she had managed to plant her spying orb, but stainless incorrectly assumed it was due to the luxury the Alicorn had enjoyed.

As she flew over the suburbs at a leisurely pace, she saw a large plume of smoke appear in the distance. It didn’t look good to see so much smoke in the middle of a city, so she started flying at speed towards it. Approaching the scene she could see a large tower block, not too much unlike her current residence, fiercely ablaze. The cities fire response units were on the scene but given the size of the problem they were ghastly overpowered.

Even from the distance she was at she could hear the fire-fighters talking about reaching the trapped ponies and she gathered that they were not going to get to them in time. Cadence may be undercover, but sensing the scared mares, stallions and foals cowering in fear she just had to react – regardless of anything else, she had the power and therefore the responsibility to save them.

Speeding through the sky like a hoofball thrown by a star quarter-back, she clmed**upwards into the sky. Weather spells were not her specialty but she had been born a Pegasus and knew how to handle clouds. Using all the abilites of flight and magic she could muster, she started gathering every cloud in sight.

A huge dense black cloud started to form over the raging tower block and seeing what the Alicorn was up to, other pegasi joined the pink pony in adding clouds. Once it had reached critical mass, Cadence kicked the cloud to make it start pouring with rain making an instant impact on the raging fire.

With other Pegasi feeding the raincloud more water, the Alicorn turned her attention to the trapped ponies. There was too much going on to do a safe teleport from a distance, so instead she had to come up with another solution. She dove towards the flaming tower, cast a shield around herself and prepared for impact. She burst through the burning rooftop to land in a corridor, flaming ceiling falling around her. Looking around, she broke down the door to an apartment and galloped inside to find a family cowering in the corner.

She extended the shield around them, and told them to follow her. Being told to do something by a Princess, even if an ex-princess, seemed to snap them out of their fear and they followed her. Cadence then broke down the door to the next flat and repeated the procedure with the pair of music students inside. The alicorn, and her growing entourage, went carefully from room to room gathering up all the ponies trapped in the building. The fire was abating thanks to the rain and the work of the fire ponies, but with the flames licking the shield it was obvious that there was still a lot of danger.

As soon as she had gathered all the ponies she tried to get them safely down the stairs, but despite her powerful shield the flames were too intense to safely protect them all. She instead started ushering them up to the top floor where she broke a hole in the ceiling with a blast of her magic. The ponies helped themselves and each other through the hole onto the roof.

As soon as the pegasi noticed the ponies appearing, they started working in pairs to fly them off the burning building. Cadence helped the remaining ponies up through the hole and waited around with them until they had all been rescued, using her shield to keep the flames away. With everypony safe, some of the pegasi came over to see if she if the hero was okay, but before anypony could speak to Cadence she flew off with all her might.

Cadence lay on her bed thinking through everything that had happened over the past few hours. She had done the right thing, as the trapped ponies would have likely died without her divine intervention. No matter what, the Princess of love could not imagine any scenario where she wouldn’t help out any pony in distress.

But just as the operation was coming together, her actions risked blowing the whole thing apart. The fire was bound to be front page news, but she hoped that Celestia’s hold over the media would keep her out of the news. It would be difficult to persuade them to do so, but no doubt Celestia could explain that she didn't want the former Princess made a hero. Of course it would be easier to explain the real undercover mission to them, but at the moment they had no idea who could be trusted in Manehattan.

Cadence lay her head down and tried to get to sleep but the thought of the fire keeping her awake. She had seen some awful things in her life, but ponies cowering in fear sparked off a feeling of old memories in her head, memories that she just could focus clearly on.

The next morning, Cadence walked through the streets on the way to the local store. She walked past a newsstand and had to have a look at the stories splashed over the front pages. And she breathed a huge sigh of relief. The media reported a pair of brave fire-ponies had rescued the trapped residents, and an unknown clever Pegasus had started the thunderstorm. There were lots of pictures all over the media and not a single one of them showed an Alicorn. As long as not too many ponies actually saw her, she might just get away with it.

The next day Cadence entered the Prancing Mares changing room and on her dressing table she saw a little bunch of flowers. They weren't anything special, looking like they were home grown, but there was a small card with them. She lifted the card which simply said “Well Done Crystal!”. She heard some hoof stomping behind her and turned to find all the ponies gathered round giving her the applause. Orange Shadow came up and gave the larger pony a massive hug, breaking down in tears

“Whats going on?” Cadence asked confused, almost crying herself for some reason.

Orange looked the mare right in the eyes “My sister and her foal was amongst the ponies you saved. We owe you so much!”

“I didn’t do anything…” she started to protest

“Drop the act Princess! It was unmistakably you and Stormy Skies here…” Orange pointed to a waving mare “…he was one of the pegasi that followed your lead”

“It was an honour to work with you to save those ponies” the blue mare bowed in front of the Alicorn.

“Look, we need to keep this quiet. Thank you for the flowers and the kind words, but please don’t tell anypony else”

All the mares looked each other confused, until one spoke up “You’re a hero, ponies deserve to know!”

Cadence sighed “I cannot say why, but it’s important I continue to keep the lowest possible profile”

“Okay Princess…and I’m calling you Princess back here from now on so don’t you dare complain about it!” Orange playfully prodded the Alicorn in the chest as she spoke “I don’t know what’s going on, but I trust it’s in your best interests”

A few weeks later and Crystal Heart was back in Mr Spurs mansion, acting as a living statue in the main reception room opposite an exact ice sculpture of her. Whilst she got to put on a regal pose, the fact was this was much more humiliating for the Alicorn to just stand there to be looked at next to a copy of herself.

Since the fire rescue the unofficial word had spread through the grapevine that Cadence was somehow involved and the unmoving pony heard a few whispers from the guests having a guess on how Stainless Spur managed to get her onto his staff. This would please him no doubt and Cadence took a little pride that she was at least doing the job he was paying her to do.

This was the fourth night she worked, and all the ponies of the staff had started to like Cadence. She helped out whenever she could with other tasks, always tided her room before leaving and generally gave everypony her respect. This made a difference to any other “entertainment” Mr Spur had hired before who were rude and didn't have respect for themselves, let alone anypony else.

Once all the guests had left, Cadence was saying goodnight to the other servants and about to ascend the stairs to that wonderful bath when she heard Mr Spur call out “Crystal Heart, would you join me in my study please”

All the mares looked at each other in a little confusion, and seeing Ms Platter nod the pink alicorn followed Stainless to his study. She pretended that she hadn’t been in it before, and looked around the beautifully decorated room as any first time visitor would be expected to. Meanwhile, the stallion has poured himself a glass of whisky and lay down on one of the sofas.

“Princess Cadence" he started, snapping the mares attention to him "How would you like to become a permanent member of my staff? You would be looked after, more respected, work less and it would be so much better than the life you currently lead."

“It's a kind offer, but the other mares at the club need me…I can'y stop now as they are all struggling as it is”

“You can't think of others all the time, not anymore. Whatever caused you and Celestia to fall out, you don’t deserve to be miserable forever. If you are indeed immortal…” Stainless half stated, half asked this “…how long before you get some luxury back in your life, luxury all members of your divine species deserve”

“Still, it wouldn't be fair on them. Revenues would fall at least 10% if I were to leave.” Cadence replied, relying on her natural caring instincts.

“Well, if you perform your duties well, I’ll ensure the Prancing Mare continues to get lots of customer”

“Perform what duties?” Cadence asked a little defensively, not wanting to enquire how he could ensure the continuing levels of customers but having a good idea at the answer.

“My apologise, wrong choice of words perhaps. If anypony harms you, or does anything to cause you distress, then they would have to deal with me. Let alone I’m sure a thoroughly good pasting from your own magic!”

Stainless continued “I think you've already had a taste already of the sort of thing I’m talking about. You are so good around the other ponies, and indeed myself when I entertain. Don’t get me wrong, I know it’s all an act but that’s all I would expect from you. But you will be appreciated for the fine lady you are”

Cadence decided to change tack, and instead of standing up awkwardly as she had until now, she confidently lay down on the couch opposite the stallion “Okay, level with me…why?”

Stainless sighed, swirled his drink and sipped a little “How many ponies can say they have a former Princess in their staff? And undoubtedly the most beautiful pony in the whole kingdom?" Stainless was blushing a little, but tried to remain composed "Not only that, but I think you would be willing to also put in a honest days work around the house.”

Cadence picked up a glass and poured herself her own drink “It’s a tempting offer, I have to admit. Would it be a day and night role like some of your bodyguards?”

“Not at all, I wouldn't expect to be able to cage a free spirit as yourself” Stainless replied, before visibly flinching at his own corny line.

Cadence softened her face again like the awesome actress she was, playing the part like a pro. She gave a little giggle and made sure she seemed to be slowly coming round to liking the stallion.“You do have a way with words” Cadence sipped her drink,

“You would be free to live your own life when not on duty – four days, three evenings and whatever evenings I entertain guests on top”

“And you’re not expecting anything ‘extra’ to develop, either personally or for your soirées?” she eyed the Stallion cautiously

“Not at all. I can get that cheaper and with probably less ‘hassle’ from other mares” Stainless sipped his drink a little, as if reminiscing. Cadence made a gentle cough to kick him out of it “No, your are too priceless to even think of attempting such a thing”

“Perhaps if I’m priceless I should demand a bigger bath?” Cadence laughed a little softly.

“If it was physically possible than the oversized one I found for your room, I would get it for you”

“So you got something special for me for the first time I worked for you? That’s more than a little presumptuous!”

The earth pony looked a little worried as the Alicorn scowled at him, until her face cracked and she started to laugh. The mob boss sank back in his chair and took a sip of drink – having the Princess around may just give him a pony he could have a decent conversation with, as she wasn't scared of him.

“Princess, it’s nice to see you acting how you should, although I understand why you don’t around the other ponies. So, Is it a deal?” Stainless asked, sitting up, putting his drink down and extending his hoof

Cadence levitated her drink to one side and sat up “It’s a deal” she shook his hoof.

It was emotional when Princess Cadence said her goodbyes to the mares at the Prancing Mare. They had been seeing her a little less recently, but it hadn't softened the blow. The alicorn promised to send as many bits to them as she could spare, to use as they saw fit. There was a battle of protests from both sides, but the alicorn pulled out her large wings to win that battle.

The MC and the owner understood that the pink princess had to move on eventually, but were sad from a professional and a personal perspective. She had turned their business around but that’s not why they would miss her. She was always good for a bit of banter or interesting conversation, and the chances of them ever conversing with royalty again were slim.

Cadence then went back to her flat and said goodbye to her neighbours, to make sure they didn’t worry if they didn't see her for a while. Levitating her few belongings over her head she made her way to her new more home. It was more luxurious, and ceratinly where she needed to be, but life was going to be more dangerous and interesting from now on.

Chapter 5 - Trust (Noun): Confidence in or reliance on somepony

A few weeks had passed since Cadence had moved into the mansion and she had learnt a lot about the mobs operation. However, as of yet she didn't have the smoking canon: the one piece of proof that would make sure that they would get a successful conviction. But as she was worming her way slowly into the group she knew it would only be a matter of time.

It was a rainy afternoon and not wanting to go outside and get wet, Cadence had decided to spend her day off reading in the mansions extensive library. Fortunately Stainless seemed to have a fondness for reading, and whilst his library may not be as well stocked as the one at the castle, or Twilight Sparkles bedroom, there were still a large number of novels she had never read and new ones arrived every week.

As she was lying there lost in the world of the book, she was disturbed by the boss and some of his gang. As they opened the door she jumped up a little on the couch and spread her wings a little, as if surprised. Of course, she wasn't really surprised as she knew they were coming having now placed various sensing spells all over the mansion. But it made sure that they knew she was there and helped with the act she was living.

“Sorry Crystal, we didn't mean to startle you” the stallion spoke, the alicorn lowering her wings in responce.

“No need to apologise Mr Spur. Should I leave?”

“No need, we are just looking for information” Stainless responded.

Cadence returned to reading her book, and the other ponies started looking through some books in a section on culture. It was quite an extensive section, as the mob boss entertained all sorts of creatures and ponies from across the whole world, and he always wanted to be prepared for all local customs.

After a while the group started getting a bit annoyed, as they hadn't found anything useful. Cadence could overhear them talking about a Griffon visitor, but most of the books had nothing on their culture. Cadence knew that the Griffon would be an important out of Equestria contact, and probably a sucessful meeting with him would lead to something big…

Recalling her knowledge of the species she knew exactly what they could do, but had to decide if it was worth it. She realised that not only would it help the meeting, it may be just the thing she needed for the mob to finally trust her. Cadence looked around the room and seeing the book she needed levitated the book from the bookcase the others were looking through over to her.

The other ponies stopped to look at her as she flicked through the book, before levitating the book over to Stainless opened on a certain page. The group looked over to the reading mare who just looked back at them.

“Sorry Mr Spur, but I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. Knowing the odd thing or two about the Griffon culture, I knew exactly where to look!”

The stallion picked up the book and read through a few pages, his eyes growing a little “So, to have his respect, I have to have been victorious and enslave an animal stronger than me?”

“That is their culture, yes. Griffons were much more aggressive in the past than it is now, Celestia..." she paused for a moment, feigning sorrow "...helped to calm them as part of our growing relationship. The old ways are still in the cultural background though, although now it's usually symbolic through artwork. But you would really impress this visitor if you could have an animal under your command. Do you happen to have any dragons or Ursa Majors to hand?”

“No, of course not!” Stainless scoffed, a few of the other ponies joining in. Nopony can vanquish an Ursa Major!

The mare then put down her book, got up of the couch and stretched out her legs “Then it’ll have to be me…” Cadence sighed

It was the day of the meeting with the Griffon, and everypony was busy going over the preparations. Cadence had found a couple of items required for the ruse in the Manehattan antique district and was filling Stainless Spur and his associates in. But some of them were being surprisingly stupid.

“You expect that cheap looking object to fool anypony. You think that looks like a magic suppression ring capable of controlling…well you?” the mob’s second in command, a black Pegasus, scoffed in the alicorns face. Cadence held a simple, rough looking metal ring with only a few runes inscribed on it in her Aura.

“Who is the most competent unicorn?” Cadence asked, looking around.

“Probably me?” an older grey haired unicorn approached. Cadence made a note of this, although from the security spells she had continuously overcome she knew he couldn't be that good.

“What do you make of this ring?” the alicorn floated the ring over to the unicorn, who accepted the ring in his aura and

“Yep, it’s just a normal ring, nothing magical about it at all. Any creature could sense that!”

Cadence then pulled back the object from the unicorn, deliberately overpowering his aura to annoy him, and placed the inanimate ring over her horn “And now?”

The unicorn tried to read the ring again, straining as he did “I can’t read anything” he grimaced almost with resentment “Crystal Heart's natural power makes sensing anything attached to her impossible”

Cadence made a slightly smug look towards the other ponies, her point made.

“But it still doesn't look like an ancient powerful relic” the second in command snorted, still unimpressed and annoyed on how the mare was working her way into the organisation.

The alicorn rolled her eyes in a noticeably sarcastic fashion and turned back to the unicorn “What does a suppression ring look like?”

“I don’t know…nopony has seen them for over a thousand years since they were banned and most destroyed!”

Cadence then turned to the boss “Mr Spur. What was ponies’ knowledge of metallurgy thousands of years ago?”

“Pretty rudimentary when it came to jewellery” he mused

“So surely such a ring would look basic? Much like this one?”

Mr Spur laughed “Princess, you are a master of this aren't you”

“Well, I might have a slight insider knowledge of how things used to be thousands of year ago!” she smiled, shooting a smile to the second in command, who return it with a scowl. The conversation then moved on to the rest of the plan.

Cadence made her way downstairs to prepare for the guests arrival shortly. She had no makeup on, her mane and tail were styled elegantly but plainly with no decorations, and for the first time in entertaining she had no clothing. She only wore two objects, the ring over her horn and an ancient looking collar locked around her neck.

“Are you sure about this Princ…Crystal” Ms Platter asked waiting at the bottom of the stairs “It goes against everything I stand for”

“It’s just an act…I won’t come to any real harm” Cadence tried to reassure her.

The older looking mare leant forwards and gave the alicorn a hug “Just be careful, okay”.

Cadence felt the heartfelt concern from the mare, and she knew that like most of the ponies she had met during this mission, they really did have feelings for the former Princess. She then proceeded through the mansion and into the drawing room where Stainless was waiting to entertain his guests. Cadence lay down on the floor next to chair he was in, and levitated a leash over to Stainless.

“Are you sure about this?” the stallion asked nervously, taking the end of the leash and connecting it to Cadences collar, before latched the other end to a ring in his chair.

Cadence just smiled back “No, but it’s worth it for an upgrade to my bed”

“What upgrade?” the stallion asked confused.

“We’ll talk later” she giggled back, breaking the ice a little.

Just then, one of the bodyguards came over and announced that the guests had arrived at the gates. Spur tensed up a little, knowing this was a very important meeting. Suddenly, he felt a comforting hoof hold his, and looking down he saw Cadences pink unshod hoof in his. The Princess hadn’t touched the Stallion before, but he found the mares touch very calming.

“I’m not sure how important this meeting is to do, but you’ll do great!” she smiled, before removing her hoof and taking her lowly position again. The visiting group then entered the drawing room, led in by Ms Platter. She saw Cadence on the floor and her blood boiled – to see the former Princess like this was an outrage! But she was a professional and trusted Cadence completely, so she just announced the guests and made a hasty retreat.

Cadence tried to pay no attention as the group entered the room, trying to act like the broken mare she was supposed to be. But out of the corner of the eye she saw there were four ponies; two earth, a unicorn and a Pegasus. But it appeared the leader was the Griffon of the group.

Stainless got up out of his chair and went to greet his guests. The Griffon soon noticed Cadence shackled to the chair and lying on the floor, and interrupted the conversation. “Is that Princess Cadence?” he asked a little bemused, slowly walking over towards the alicorn with an authoritative swagger.

“Former Princess” Stainless replied deliberately smugly, as one would if he had ownership of a goddess “And we call her Crystal Heart now.”

Cadence lifted and tilted her head towards Stainless when he mentioned her new name, as if awaiting a command, but when none came she resumed her lying position.

“Impressive! I heard that she had fallen from grace, but how did you manage to capture her?”

“Well, we do have our ways” the mob boss strutted next to his guest “I’m not sure we can fully crush her, but with her magic taken away she was easy to break…she had lived such a pampered life after all!"

The Griffon was a little suspect of the whole situation, as is a common trait for his kind. “Really, that little ring can hold her magic? I find that hard to believe. Arcing, check it out!” he snapped at one of his bodyguards.

The unicorn visitor approached the Princess, who outwardly completely ignored all that was happening around her and the guest cast his sensing spell. He turned back to the Griffon “No idea what it is boss, but whatever going on in and around that horn it’s powerful”

Stainless sort of snorted a little gruffly “Do you think this is some sort of ruse?” in an aggressive tone towards the Griffin, having had Cadence teach him about how aggression is an important part of their culture, especially when in a position of power.

“I’ve always learnt to be careful in this business” the half bird got in the pony’s face and met his stare, but with a slightly impressed grin.

“Why doesn’t she fly away?” the pegasus asked, thinking the natural thoughts for the freedom loving race.

“Because she knows better then to do anything without an order” Stainless replied. Thinking fast, and hoping Cadence’s sharp mind would be up to speed and ready to play along, he approached his alicorn. He unclipped the leash from her collar, freeing her but she didn't even move a muscle. But he decided that if he was going to convince his guests that he had broken the mare, they needed to push it further.

“Crystal, there’s some comfortable cushions over there, wouldn't you rather rest on one of them?” The pony lying on the cold marble floor looked at her master, but didn’t respond knowing this wasn't actually a question a creature in her position would usually respond to.

“Crystal, please bring yourself a cushion over to rest on” Stainless then ordered more directly. The alicorn nodded softly and slowly got up to retrieve the cushion with her mouth, before settling down again without a single emotion visible. Stainless then reached and reconnected the leash to Cadences collar, looking confidently at his Guests as he did.

“Impressive…if it’s not an act” the griffon growled and leaped forwards. With an adept spatial awareness, he placed a sharp talon right against the Alicorns neck, close enough that the Princesses soft fur parted each side of the razor sharp point. Mr Spur tensed up, fearing what the powerful princess may actually do now threatened, but to everybody’s surprise the pony did not even flinch despite the immediate apparent threat to her life.

“Wow, you really have broken her haven’t you?” the Griffon asked impressed as he withdrew his talon, the pony seemingly not even concerned for her own safety anymore.

Stainless was almost stunned silent, but managed to keep in the act “Do you expect anything less from me, the leader of the most powerful organisation in Equestria? I’m almost insulted!”

Cadence just continued to play the part of a broken mare, looking dispassionately at nothing in particular, but inside she was practically dancing – after this she suspected she would have Stainless’s unconditional trust.

That evening Cadence lay in bed, her mind working a mile a minute. The plan had worked perfectly – as she was Mr Spurs “slave”, she was kept by his side all night and it was to the benefit of hearing all the discussions between the two crime syndicates without having to cast any spying spells.

When it came to the dinner, Ms Platter nearly gave the game away as Cadence was forced to eat from a bowl on the floor, like the animal she had apparently became. The alicorn ate it directly as neatly as one would expect of a civilised creature but without any of the grace a Princess would be expected. She could see out of the corner of her eye Ms Platter fuming, and luckily one of the other servants got her out of the room before the guests noticed.

But the outcome was worth having a little humiliation, as it meant that she knew exactly when and where to now spring the trap, it just had to be arranged.

Chapter 6 - The ensuring mare

Cadence lay in the large bath in her room, for what she knew would be the last time. Tonight was the night that months of undercover work were going to pay off, hopefully. There was no lying that she was a little nervous but no more than she expected she would be on her wedding day, whenever that would be. She used the thought of the day she had dreamed since she was small to help calm her down...

She replayed everything through her mind to make sure nothing had been missed. The local police department and the Royal Guard were ready, having been tipped off by Cadence on the perfect night to pounce. Three syndicates were meeting up today and one of them were bringing a new type of drug with them. It was twice as addictive as anything currently on the streets and had to be stopped before it was too late for the vulnerable ponies of Equestria.

She smiled as she remembered how she managed to get the messages to the authorities - when she went out in Manehattan the Princess knew that she was often followed, and she could not be sure who you could really trust in this town. But as she had completely earnt Stainless's trust, she asked for a brief vacation to go back to her spiritual home of cloudsdale. With the earth stallion enthralled with the mare in more way than one, he allowed it.

She knew that Cloudsdale had no crime problems as the pegasi home city was one of the most loyal and law abiding in the land. Having made it there without being followed, she was able to arrange the meetings she required. She replayed the various memories of the meetings into a projecting crystal and the gathered ponies of the various courts and police departments all agreed that they had enough evidence to convict.

Getting out of the bath, and looking back at the old friend fondly for the last time, she did her hair, makeup and put her servants outfit, not forgetting to put on the fake suppression ring.

Downstairs, the other mobsters had arrived and Crystal Heart’s job was just to act as a carrying tray – the other servants placed the drinks and the alicorn just slowly delivered them. The room was full of criminals that the Equestrian authorities would be grateful to put away and capturing them all together would be the final evidence they would need.

She noticed that all the ponies she had expected were there, but not the Griffon himself. That was a shame, but probably made the whole thing easier. But also one pony wasn't there for a change, the head of the servants Ms Platter.

The night before Cadence had taken Silver to one side after dinner and found an empty room.

“Silver, I want you you call in sick tomorrow and not come into work” Cadence started

“But it’s a big event, Mr Spur will need me”

“Do you trust me?” The alicorn lowered her head to meet that of the smaller mare, and looked at her right in the eyes with genuine concern.

“Who’s speaking here, Crystal Heart or Princess Cadence?”

The alicorn smiled “Your Princess. Please Silver, just call in sick tomorrow. Don’t say anything to anypony…I am trusting you here”

“Okay Cadence, for you!”

Cadence slowly plodded around the room, the broken mare pretending to be a serving tray, and she was left alone with her thoughts. Sizing up all the ponies in the room, and their bodyguards, she was glad that her friend wasn't around in case things turned ugly...when things turned ugly.

Suddenly, a huge commotion was heard from outside, and some more bodyguards came running in

“Boss” one of them called out “The fuzz are here!”.

Almost instantly bright floodlights lit up the building and looking out of the windows the gathered ponies saw hundreds of police ponies and Royal Guards surrounding the mansion.

“We have you surrounded” the Captain of the guard called out "Come out unarmed and surrender!"

Suddenly, the lights flooding the room changed from a natural white to a light blue. Looking outside, they could see a blue shield had been placed around the whole compound. This caught the mobsters out in surprise, as all of the ponies in Equestria knew that shields can only be cast from inside, not from outside.

As if by one thought, every head in the room turned to face Cadence. Looking at her, the tray shed from her back and her majestic horn glowing, it was obvious that she was casting the spell. It took but a moment to realise this had been a trap sprung from within, and like every animal in a trap they all did one of two things – fight or flee.

Some of the ponies panicked and started fleeing out of the room, looking for a place to escape too. Of course Cadence had known about the tunnels under the compound and the ponies heading that way would soon find not only a gaggle of guards blocking them, but that her shield passed under the mansion to create a complete unbreakable bubble. The ponies running away were therefore of no concern to Cadence, and would soon be caught.

However the trained bodyguards that were approaching her, ready to fight, were of greater concern. They were a little wary of what was going to happen to them, going up against a powerful magical creature, but their loyalty to their respective mob bosses was unfaltering. As she was slowly being surrounded by the smaller but more muscular ponies, Cadence did the most logical thing

She ran.

This took them all by surprise as they expected to be fought by her magic first and that give her the breathing space she needed. She sped off down a corridor before quickly being chased by a pack of Earth pony bodyguards. She wouldn't be able to outpace them for long and could hear their stomps and shouts from behind her, but there was no need for her to worry.

Diving for a stained glass window at the top of the main stairs she smashed through it and extending her wings flew off into the sky, leaving the large ground based ponies behind. She couldn't go through her shield and maintain it from the outside, so she was as currently trapped with the ponies she was trying to contain. Whilst taking to the air gave her a bit of a breather it only took a few moments for the pegasi guards to take flight after her.

Having quickly organised themselves unicorns on the ground started firing various spells at Cadence as she ducked and dived avoiding the chasing flyers. Luckily the spells were weak and she was moving too fast to aim properly. Others unicorns were trying to weaken her shield but given defensive magic was her speciality, there was no way they were going to be successful.

But the princess found herself in a bit of a quandary – whilst the shield kept the evil ponies trapped inside, it didn't allow any of the police or guard in to arrest them. It was therefore a bit of a standoff as she was currently too busy avoiding some decent Pegasi flyers to focus enough to create small doorways in the shield to allow the guards in. Ducking below one of the better aimed blasts, and diving beneath two pegasi approaching her, she tried to calculate the best way of using her magic.

The obviously solution was to try to incapacitate her pursuers, so that her flight would keep her safe from the two ground based races. But to do that, she would have to use her magic which was focused on keeping the shield up. Speeding away from a chasing pack of pegasi, she had to try to guess how quickly between dropping the shield spell and casting an offensive strike she could then re-activate the shield spell. Of course if any of them did try to escape the guard were waiting outside, but she wanted to try to end this without any bloodshed, and getting them to surrender was the best way to do this.

Cadence rose to the top of the shield and stopped casting her shield spell, the shield remaining in place for a moment. Instantly she cast a lightning spell but no doubt distracted by the adrenaline coursing through her veins and given her initial pegasi birth, the weather based spell was much stronger then she expected. The whole shield lit up with bolts of energy, striking all the other flyers and shocking them out of the sky. It also stunned every creature outside the safety of the building, such as the unicorns trying to blast her.

Once the spell faded, and having started casting the shield spell again, Cadence found herself in a moment of calm. Looking at the creatures that had fallen out of the sky, her natural caring instinct meant that she hoped she hadn't permanently hurt any of them. However, the logical part of her did realise that given what she was sure they would be willing to do to her if they had caught her, it was her only option.

With all the pegasi grounded and most of the unicorns too overwhelmed to use magic, the earth ponies including the main mob bosses looked up at the Princess hovering above them, realising that her power was out of their league. Also finding themselves surrounded by a small and rather well equipped army of police and guards, they all knew the gig was up – Celestia’s government had finally caught them red hooved.

Stainless Spur knew not to fight as he might at least be able to feign ignorance, although he had a sneaking suspicion that with Cadence on the inside, there was going to be enough evidence to prosecute them all. However, despite being a crook, he had his own personal honour and didn't want to be taken away fighting or injured - if he was going to be in the media, he wanted to have some style!

He went back into his study, calmly put on his best coat, straighten his tie and looking at his office for one final time,walked out into the hallway. Passing a number of ponies who were trying to recover from the lightning shock, he helped them up to their hooves. He then came across a number of his gang, as well as a few other ponies from the other organisations, arming themselves with weapons.

“My friends…It’s over” the boss called out from the end of the corridor. The ponies just looked at him, and weren't sure what to do.

“We have to try something” his second in command shouted exasperatedly.

“We are surrounded, out-numbered, out-powered and out-manoeuvred …what do you suggest”

“We fight, and perhaps take a few of them down with us!” he responded a little resigned to his fate "We can't let that...that...mare...beat us!"

“It is better to live to fight another day, than die in a pointless act no pony will remember.” Stainless responded with his usual air of authority. He walked out of the mansions front doors into the lights being cast by the Royal Guards spells. He lay down on the lawn with his hooves spread and his gang started doing the same. Some of the ponies that were already outside, either preparing to fight or trying to flee saw this, and looking at the guard waiting for them on the outside, did the same.

With nopony left to run away from, Cadence landed on the ground, a little way from the other ponies. She carefully opened a small portal on the shield and the police and guards started streaming in to arrest the ponies, and gather evidence. The battle was over before it had begun, and except for a few singed feathers and headaches, not a single drop of blood was spilt.

Cadence kept an eye on what was going on around her, but as the police ponies started outnumbering the criminals, she could finally let her guard down a little. She almost began shaking as the adrenaline started to wear off, as well as the fact it was a cold night and the clothing she wore did nothing to warm her. She teleported the skimpy outfit off of her before anypony else noticed, but then heard her name.

“Well played, Crystal Heart” Stainless called out as he was being led past her and away by a pair of guards.

“How dare you speak to the Princess” one of the guards shouted, and smacked him with a hoof. Cadence shot the guard a look, and then approached the stallion.

“You showed me kindness, and it breaks my heart to have betrayed you. But you have betrayed all the ponies of Equestria with your actions” Cadences voice was soft and full of sorrow, despite all the action happening around her.

The mob boss sighed “I don’t blame you, it had been but a game for many years, and finally I have been beaten by a better player, Princess Cadence”

Stainless tried to bow but the two guards prevented him from moving. Cadence frowned a little, but didn't want to overrule the guards doing exactly what they were trained to do.

“I only hope you can be reformed. You are very clever and would make a worthy addition to pony-kind if you could only work for good, rather than this evil you have been focused on”

Stainless looked up at the Alicorn and with her innate perception of ponies feelings she could sense just a hint of genuine regret “I am sorry to disappoint you Princess but I think my gang and I are too far gone for that. However, I have no doubt you will do something amazing that will save ponykind, and I hope you find your prince in shining armour”

The Princess bowed her head and touched her horn to the earth pony’s forehead, an ancient sign of respect. The guard then proceeded to take him away, his crime syndicate smashed and Manehattan a safer place.

Epilogue - All bad things must come to an end

The adventure for Princess Cadence was coming to an end. She had been undercover for many months now and there were only minutes to go. But they were proving to be the longest minutes of her life, or at least the life she remembered.

She watched over the scene as the final arrests were being made ready to step in with her powerful magic had anypony tried anything. But they all knew that they had been set up perfectly by the Alicorn and the Manehatten police department – the reign of terror from this organised crime syndicate was coming to an end.

Outside the compound, the Royal Guard was keeping at eye on the perimeter despite their being no need with the shield Cadence was maintaining, and the local police were dealing with the more minor arrests. But this was a major event and so the Guard had to continue to make a showing. Besides, there was another reason one of the guards in particular wanted to be there.

As all the ponies left the ground of the mansion, Cadence was blinded by all the press taking photos. It hadn’t taken long for the word to spread, and with the media embargo out of the way there was no stopping them. They could finally break the silence and put all the rumours to rest – the Princess hadn’t fallen from grace, or done any terrible acts, she had put herself through this to help out Manehattan's police force.

There was a lot of noise and commotion, and lots of journalists calling out "Princess mi amore cadenza" to grab her attention, but the pink alicorns ears picked out one sound out of it all.

“Cadey” one of the guards called out as he ran towards the Princess, shedding his helmet against regulation 5447/b as he ran.

“Shiny” Cadence called out in delight and leaping over the gathered crowd galloped towards her colt-friend, coming together in deep hug. The press gathered round the hugging pair, capturing the moment for the front pages, but when the pair went to kiss all the photographers put down their cameras - for this was genuine moment of emotion and didn't need to be intruded on.

Suddenly, a loud “Yuck!” was shouted out from not far away in a high pitched but powerful voice. Cadence saw a purple ball of unstoppable energy heading her way. Separating herself from her colt-friend, she readied herself for the incoming unicorn filly charging her way.

“Sunshine, Sunshine, Ladybugs Awake, Clap your hooves and do a little shake”

the pair sang and danced in unison, the gathered ponies lapping up the sweet childlike moment between the Princess and the filly. Shining Armour looked on with a smile on his face as he didn't mind sharing his actual Princess with his sister, his little princess best sister forever.

Princess Celestia then came walking over as everypony including Cadence and Twilight bowed to her. She quickly picked up Cadences head and gave her “niece” a massive hug. One of the photographers sort of coughed, and Celestia nodded – she had no qualms at her subjects seeing this. The gathered photographers captured the tender moment between the two Alicorns, before the two siblings also joined in a family, or perhaps soon to be family, moment.

However, it was soon broken by the highest pitched voice in the group "Princess Cadence, can I ask you something?"

"Yes Twilight, of course" the loving voice replied

"Why are you wearing a horn ring? Did Shining propose?" Twilight squeed the second question and was jumping up and down in further excitement Celestia was struggling to suppress a smirk as the young couple blushed and Cadence quickly removed the ring and threw it away, as Twilight looked on confused at the response of the adults.

A few days had passed and Cadence was trotting through Canterlot Castle, alone with her thoughts. The newspapers had run front page stories for days about the whole thing including a clarification over the heroic saving of the ponies in the fire. Opinion polls on Equestria’s Royalty never showed a particularly low figure but right now they were through the roof! Coupled with the successful conviction of the mobsters, and the associated fall of crime, had made the whole ordeal worthwhile.

The first night back with her coltfriend after being away for so long wasn't too bad either!

But there was some unfinished business and making her way to one of the many reception rooms she heard a number of ponies chatting inside. She decided to be her usual playful self and instead of entering via the main door, went round to the back of the room and made a discreet entrance. All the ponies were waiting for somepony to enter and were sat chatting nervously, having never been to the castle before

“Silver Platter! I’m so glad you came. You two Orange Shadow” Cadence called out warmly from the back of the room “And welcome to the rest of you as well”

All the ponies turned in shock and started bowing to her. “Rise friends” the Princess laughed and trotted over to give Orange Shadow a long overdue hug “Whilst I may be a Princess, you should never bow to me. And please just call me ‘Cadence’, none of this 'Princess' business.”

The pony trotted to the front of the room with the clip-clop of her golden horseshoes being the only sound as the visiting ponies were all left speechless. She looked around and noticed most of the mares that she had befriended during her Manehattan stay had taken her invite to come to the castle.

“I have invited you all here today to join the castles staff as my personal maids, chefs and assistants. You all showed me compassion and friendship during the undercover operation, and as a thank you I want to give you this chance. It is not going to be a free ride and you will be expected to work as hard as anypony else. But I’m sure you will find your lives improved by working in Canterlot."

“But I don’t know the first thing about serving Royalty, you know what the type of serving we used to do” Orange Shadow's face looked embarrassed and the Princess saw some of the other mares have the same look of concern.

“That may be so, but I can't think of a better pony to help guide you then Ms Platter here” she turned to the mare, causing her to blush as well “You have each shown me your true colours and I would rather have you as the ponies I see everyday then somepony just trying to get in with Royalty. That is why until now I have had no staff of my own."

She smiled deeply and looked at all her friends "You will all get a place to live in Canterlot, and can bring your foals and partners to live with you. A free creche is provided and we can find jobs for any partners as well. So what do you say, friends?”

Cadence expected a thank you, and assumed it would be a meek one from their embarrassment at being round the Princess. Instead the alicorn found herself in the middle of a mass group hug, with most of the mares crying with happiness. A tear of her own escaped her eye as something deep down inside her was reminder of a time, long ago, when she was equally as loved as now…