Author's Note

Alert! There will not be sex in this chapter. The second, optional clop chapter is currently in the works, and I'll have it out asap. It isn't required for the story, but it does compliment it.
Also, if you faved, don't forget to like!

Struggling in the Queen's Clutches

Drip. . . Drip. . . Drip. . .

Twilight's ear twitched with every quiet plip of water. Her eyebrows came together as a wayward drop found its way onto her snout, trailing slowly down her face before disappearing into her coat. A strained exhale escaped her lips as she tried to force her eyes open, only to give up after a second or so. The purple alicorn shook her head clumsily, doing her best to focus through the fog that hung thick around her thoughts, and with a weak groan she willed her eyelids open.

A swimming, greenish-black blur was all that awaited her. Twilight shook her head again, a bit more vigorously this time, and tried to bring a hoof to her too-heavy head. After a couple absent-minded attempts, she realized that the hoof wasn't coming. She looked down in bleary confusion to see that, from the collar bone down, she was encased in a green, slightly transparent substance. There was an uncomfortable twinge of recognition, but it was a moment before the connection actually occurred to her.

Changelings.

The realization snapped Twilight from her stupor like a firecracker, and she gave her head a final, furious shake, determined to clear the cobwebs out of her mind so that she could assess her situation. When she opened her eyes, her vision had cleared enough to reveal a small but open chamber of dark stone. The room was lit by several luminous, bright green orbs scattered across the walls and ceiling. Ahead of her, the lights grew sparse as the chamber narrowed into what she assumed to be a tunnel. Looking around as far as she could, she saw that she was cocooned next to a wall, and that the glowing orbs were concentrated around her.

She looked down at the mound of material she was trapped in. While it was undoubtedly of changeling origin, it seemed more solid and less gel than anything she'd seen them produce before. She gave her limbs a few experimental tugs, but was unsurprised when they didn't budge. Casting a furtive glance around the room, she angled her head as best she could and funneled a shattering spell into her horn.

There was a feeble crackle as her horn sparked a couple times before dimming again. Twilight tried again, doing her best to ignore the cold noose now settling in her stomach, but if anything the flash only dimmed. After several increasingly desperate attempts, the princess slumped forward, trying to wrestle back the panic of losing her most useful and beloved asset. Focus! she willed herself. What would Celestia do in this situation?

Twilight closed her eyes and took a long, deep breath. "Okay," she whispered to herself, "I've been captured by Changelings, that much is obvious. I don't know where I am, but it looks like they've left me alone, at least for now. I can't use my magic, but I still have my horn, so that should wear off. Think, Twilight. What can you do to get out of here?"

"What indeed?" echoed a very familiar voice from the far end of the chamber. "Not even awake for two minutes, and you've already figured out what's happened and are working on an escape plan." There was a pause. "What else have you come up with?"

Twilight's face hardened into a mask of anger and disgust. "That you must have drugged my tea with Rarity. That it might not have been Rarity at all. That, if you've gotten into the Palace of Friendship, at least one of my guards isn't really my guard anymore. And, obviously, who you are." She paused to give the shadows a look of contempt. "Of course, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that you're behind this, Chrysalis."

"No, it doesn't," agreed the creature as it emerged gracefully from the shadows. Queen Chrysalis sauntered up to Twilight unhurriedly, pausing a few feet away with a small, calculated grin on her muzzle. "It really was your friend, although she won't remember slipping essence of Ebon Lily into your tea. I saw to that personally." She raised an eyebrow. "Given how concentrated the dose was, I wasn't sure you'd be so acute this soon after waking." She gave Twilight a cool nod. "I'm impressed, though not surprised."

"Well, happy not to disappoint," said Twilight sarcastically. "Did you 'personally' nullify my magic too?"

Another cool nod.

". . . I'm surprised you're not gloating about how helpless I am."

Chrysalis's expression barely changed. "Would you like me to gloat about how helpless you are?"

Having no response, Twilight pursed her lips and fell silent. "What do you want?" she eventually demanded.

The changeling Queen's expression turned quizzical, although her grin remained in place. "What do you think I want?"

Twilight glared at her for a few moments. "Well, unless you've learned your lesson," she said, taking a meaningful look around the cave, "and it doesn't look like you have, I'd say Equestria."

Chrysalis simply nodded. "Of course."

"Of course," Twilight echoed sarcastically. "And how does kidnapping the newest, youngest, least powerful princess factor into that? Why choose me?"

"Several reasons," the changeling replied. "The first of which being that you were the easiest target."

Twilight considered her words for a moment before shrugging. "Makes sense, I guess, but what are you gonna do now that you've got me? Interrogate me? Hold me for ransom?" She gave Chrysalis a cold look. "Neither one would get you Equestria, but I bet you didn't think that far ahead, did you? Considering how dumb your plan for my brother's wedding was, I'd be surprised if you even know what questions to ask me."

Twilight smirked grimly as Chrysalis tightened her jaw, her eyes hardening in an instant. The smirk was short lived, however, as only a moment later the changeling's shoulders sagged, and she let out a sigh as her head dipped toward the ground. There was a very pregnant pause before she murmured, "I wasn't planning on interrogating you, or holding you for ransom." She looked up at Twilight, her eyes full of both bitterness and something that the unicorn couldn’t believe she was seeing: shame. "As for my attempt to take Canterlot, even though it nearly worked. . . you're not wrong. Dumb is a good word for it." Chrysalis held Twilight's gaze for a moment before asking, "Do you know why I'm the Queen of the Changelings, Twilight Sparkle?"

Twilight narrowed her eyes critically, doing her best to assess her captor's unexpected admission. Something about Chrysalis was different this time around. She seemed to be sharper, more focused than before. Hoping that she could keep the Queen talking while she formed a plan, Twilight asked, "Why?"

"It's because I'm bold. It's because I'm not afraid to act. It's because I can move quickly while others sit and wait." With every sentence, Chrysalis's voice grew more intense, and her eyes went long ago and far away. "Every rival I ever had, every queen that could have been, all of them were so true to the changeling way; Be secret, be subtle, don't strike until the perfect moment. So they waited, and while they waited, I seized the initiative. I acted, and I became the Queen. I was decisive, and that's why they bow to me." Her expression grew suddenly harsh. "That's why, even after the Canterlot disaster, and all the accusation, criticism, and betrayal that came with it, they still bow to me."

Chrysalis held her grimace for a few beats before it collapsed back into mild, unhappy shame. Twilight, who had finally begun thinking, There's the Chrysalis I was expecting, instantly felt her unease return as the changeling said, "Looking back, I've learned two important lessons about my rise to power. The first is not to let victory go to your head. No matter how many times you might win, even if each one is easier than the last, never expect it. Expecting to win makes you arrogant, and arrogance makes it easy to become stupid." She snorted irritably. "That was a hard truth to swallow."

Twilight was too caught off-guard to respond. Did she really just call herself stupid? The boasting, mocking, 'it's all over' Changeling Queen, admitting that she was stupid? A strange, cold strain of apprehension began seeping into the back of Twilight's mind. I have a bad feeling about this.

Chrysalis, heedless of Twilight's inner musings, continued, "The second lesson I learned was that, while brash action might work perfectly against other changelings, it doesn't work so well against other races." She turned a rather intense gaze back onto Twilight. "There's a reason changelings act the way they do. Stealth, secrecy, subtlety, it's what we're designed to be good at, and most of us act accordingly. But me?" She shook her head. "My rise had taught me how to be decisive, but not patient. I thought that patience was just a way of justifying cowardice, and in doing so, I ignored the greatest advantages of being a changeling. After all, you can't be secret or subtle if you aren't also patient." She chuckled humorlessly. "The very boldness that had been my greatest strength became my greatest weakness."

Abruptly, Chrysalis swooped forward, her snout stopping barely a hoof's length from Twilight's as her expression turned deadly serious. "I was a fool, Twilight Sparkle," she murmured. "I was such a fool. I have an army of of near-perfect spies, and yet I infiltrated Canterlot alone. I was sloppy in covering my tracks, and because of that, Canterlot was locked down. In spite of the shield, I refused to retreat or delay, leaving me cut off and alone in hostile territory." She grimaced. "I had your brother's mind in my hooves, and yet I didn't use him against you, or even make him lower his own shield, thus weakening my own army by forcing them to break through." She paused, shaking her head. "I revealed my true self right in front of Princess Celestia, and while I did beat her, I certainly hadn't expected to. But the worst mistake," she growled, eyes practically blazing, "the worst, stupidest, most arrogant mistake I made, was to scoff at the idea that love could beat me." Her muzzle twisted into a lemon bitter smirk. "I, a Changeling Queen, a being who can't survive without love, who defeated Princess Celestia herself because of love, laughed at the thought that love could stop me." She shook her head again. "That was the depth of my arrogance, Twilight, and I have never paid a higher price for anything in my life."

As Chrysalis finally fell silent, Twilight's mind reeled with everything she had just heard. Ever since the wedding, Twilight had remembered Chrysalis as the most boastful, arrogant villain she had ever met. With the possible exception of Trixie, Twilight had never faced an opponent who could compare in terms of sheer ego. Now she's systemically naming the mistakes she made the last time we met, Twilight mused with rising dread. Unbidden, one of Clover the Clever's many proverbs occurred to her; "From the humble loser, who learns each time they fail, must in time arise a victor who cannot help but prevail." If she's swallowed her pride this much, then Equestria might be in serious trouble. At the same time, something doesn't add up. . .

"Why are you telling me all this?" Twilight asked quietly.

Chrysalis smiled. "Firstly, because I still love to hear myself talk." She shrugged. "Some habits are harder to kick than others." Her serious expression returned. "Second, and more importantly, because I owe, you, your friends, your brother and sister-in-law, and, to some degree, all ponies, an apology."

Twilight recoiled in confusion. "Huh?"

Chrysalis shrugged. "In spite of all the things your kind has accomplished, I didn't see you as proper adversaries. I didn't respect you, Twilight. I thought myself so much smarter and more cunning than you all, and in doing that, I insulted you." She bowed her head slightly. "I'm sorry for that."

For a few seconds, Twilight could only stare, brow furrowed and jaw wide open. Eventually she managed to stammer, "What did Shining and Cadence's magic do to you?"

Chrysalis smiled that small, cool smile again."How best to describe it. . ." she said, looking away thoughtfully "Pain. Incredible pain. Body, mind, heart, there was plenty of pain for all. The spell itself was painful, though not nearly as painful as the landing. The humiliation of being so completely beaten was painful. Trying to gather and rule a scattered and broken hive while also avoiding the Royal Guard teams hunting us, I can't even tell you what a pain that was." Her smile faltered. "Having some of your subjects turn on you and try to get rid of you by any means necessary. That. . . That was very painful, Twilight."

Chrysalis stood in somber silence for a few moments before assuming a wry look. "I can say this about pain, though; it's a very good teacher. It makes sure that you don't just learn the lesson. It makes sure that you apply it, and so I have. It's taken the last five years to rebuild the hive, but I haven't been wasting that time. I've been doing what I should have done since I first arrived in Equestria, Twilight. I've been watching."

A knot of cold tension began coiling itself around Twilight's stomach. "Me?"

Chrysalis nodded. "Naturally. You, your friends, the Royal Sisters, the Royal Guard, and the new rulers of the Crystal Empire." She smirked a bit. "Beautiful place, by the way. They have the best berry pies I've ever eaten, although the tastiest thing by far is the aura of the Crystal Heart." She rolled her eyes indulgently and shivered. "It's such a pity we can't feed on it." She turned her gaze back onto Twilight. "You, however, have been my primary target of observation."

Twilight gave her a confused look. "Why me?"

The alicorn recoiled as Chrysalis reached forward, brushing a hoof along her cheek and down her mane. "That is adorable," she said gently.

"What are you talking about?" squealed Twilight as she tried in vain to squirm away from the Queen's touch. "I'm being serious!"

"I know you are," replied Chrysalis. "That's why it's adorable." She moved her hoof under Twilight's chin. "You really don't think that you're anything special, do you? In spite of everything you've accomplished, everything you've learned, and everything you've become, you still don't see how truly exceptional you are." She paused, and there was a look in her eye that Twilight couldn't quite place. "I admire that about you."

Twilight gave her an uncertain stare before resuming her attempt to escape the Queen's hoof. "You're wrong," she said, her horn blinking dimly as she instinctively tried to push Chrysalis away. "I'm just another pony. I'm no more special than any other pony." She paused as Chrysalis finally set her hoof back on the ground before acquiescing, "Sure, I was the Element of Magic, and okay, I'm a princess now, but that doesn't make me better than everypony else!"

"Better?" said Chrysalis, giving Twilight a critical look before shrugging. "Maybe not, depending on how you mean it. As for the other things. . ." Chrysalis straightened herself up a bit. "Personally, I suspect that you still are the Element of Magic, but even if I'm wrong, you've still done much more than the average pony ever will. You are not ordinary, Twilight Sparkle, even if you wish you were." To Twilight's stubborn look she said, "Do you realize that the downfall of every major threat to Equestria since Luna's return bears your mark? Nightmare Moon, Discord, King Sombra, Tirek, you were instrumental in defeating every single one, Twilight." She gave a slightly guilty smile. "Me too, of course."

"But I didn't-" began Twilight, only to be silenced by a green aura around her muzzle.

"You might not have cast the spell that repelled us," Chrysalis said insistently, "but that spell never would have happened if you hadn't found Princess Cadence and escaped from the diamond mines. She'd have stayed down there as my hostage, I'd have used your brother to undermine Canterlot's defenses, and I likely would have won. But I didn't, because she escaped, because you helped her." She raised an eyebrow as her horn dimmed. "Do you still have an objection?"

Twilight's mouth opened and closed a few times before she finally said, "Fine. You've been keeping an eye on me. You've kidnapped me. What now?"

Chrysalis gave a rueful smile and nodded to herself. "I suppose it is time I got to the point, isn't it?" She lowered herself so that she was on the same level as Twilight. "To make things short and simple, I'm going to bring you around to my way of thinking, Twilight Sparkle."

A sharp chill made it's way down Twilight's spine. Even so, she set her jaw determinedly and said, "That's never going to happen."

"Oh, I think it will," Chrysalis responded. "I've had decades of practice, and I have something very special planned for you."

"Well I've been practicing techniques to resist mind control ever since the last time we met," shot back Twilight. "Even if you can break me, it'll take so long that somepony will wonder where I am."

"They might," said Chrysalis, "if I didn't have a team of my best infiltrators posing as you. By the way, you've just started on your latest obsessive project, so your friends will be expecting you to act a bit strangely." A sly grin made its way onto her muzzle. "Ironically, it's translating a book about changelings that you found in the Everfree Castle. It gives very detailed information on behavior, physiology, weaknesses, etc. All fake, of course. No sense in taking chances." She gave Twilight a meaningful look. "I've arranged to keep you here for days if I have to, although, with what I have in mind, I don't think I'm going to need them. Incidentally, those resistance techniques. . . how many can you do without magic?"

Twilight tried to harden her expression, but she couldn't quite keep the fear out of her eyes. "One."

Chrysalis nodded. "I thought as much. Well," she said, drawing herself up again, "it should make this more interesting, if nothing else. I wonder how it'll hold up against my new technique."

"A technique that I'm sure you're going to tell me all about now, right?" Twilight snarked, trying to sound more brave than she felt.

Chrysalis smirked. "Well, I suppose, if you want to hear about it so badly." Her voice took on a bright, yet distant tone as she said, "I've been the Queen of my hive for over a hundred years, and, as a changeling, I've been dealing with love for even longer. I'd like to think that I know a lot about love, yet there's so much about it that remains a mystery, especially when it comes its interaction with magic. Magical lust is foal's play to create, and affection can be compelled with practice, but love?" She shook her head. "Nopony can replicate that. There are spells and potions that claim to, but all are poor imitations of the real thing. Not even Princess Cadence can create love. She simply knows a lot about it, and can bring it to the surface when she sees it." Chrysalis leaned closer to Twilight. "It's ironic, but, thanks to her, I might have learned something about love and magic that even she doesn't know."

"If you think that you know more about love than Cadence does," said Twilight venomously, "then you haven't learned much about being less arrogant."

The changeling just shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. The spell that banished us wasn't actually her magic, so-." Chrysalis stopped mid-sentence as Twilight gave her a perplexed look. "What? You didn't think it was a spell of hers that drove us away, did you?" She shook her head. "She didn't cast the spell, Twilight, and neither did your brother. What happened, or so I would guess, was that the strength of their love allowed them to tap into something much greater than themselves." She gave Twilight a thoughtful glance. "I imagine it's similar to the way the bonds of friendship activate the Elements of Harmony. Their love may have been the catalyst, but the spell itself was something more. Something unique." Her eyes took on a look of far away awe. "It was agonizing, but not so much so that I couldn't sense it for what it was; magic and love in perfect balance. I could feel the way they interacted, where one began and the other ended, where they coiled in on themselves to become a single, inseparable whole. I learned as much about love in those few minutes as I'd learned in my whole life before that." She eyed Twilight seriously. "I still can't create love, Twilight. I don't think anypony will ever be able to do that. However, I have learned how to shape it, as long as it's already there."

In some small corner of her mind, Twilight understood what Chrysalis had just told her and how serious it was. On the surface, however, Twilight was so bemused that, for a moment, she forgot to be afraid. "So. . . what? Are you telling me that you're going to make me love you?"

Chrysalis just smiled.

At first, Twilight snorted incredulously at the grinning changeling, but Chrysalis remained quiet and unphased. The silence stretched into a minute, and from thence to two, and with each passing second Twilight felt her smirk becoming a little less genuine. After nearly four minutes had passed, the thought that Twilight had been trying to fight back finally forced it's way to the front of her mind.

What if. . . what if she's serious?

Twilight's breathing hitched and her eyes grew saucer-wide as the full gravity of the situation finally hit her. It's not possible, she thought as arcs of icy electricity crawled their way up her limbs. There's no way. "You're lying," she whispered, the denial in her voice sounding far more desperate than she liked. "You're LYING! You can't make me love you! You just. . . you can't! Nopony can do that! You even said it yourself!"

"No," replied Chrysalis patiently, "I said that nopony can create love." She lowered herself down to Twilight's level and placed her hoof against the alicorn's cheek again. "Fortunately, I don't need to. There's plenty of love inside you already, Twilight Sparkle. All I have to do is redirect it."

As her mind raced to interpret the Queen's statement, Twilight suddenly narrowed her eyes. "You'll never turn me against my friends. Discord couldn't do it, and he's more powerful than you'll ever be."

"Tempting as it is to turn your love of your friends upon me, that isn't really what I had in mind," Chrysalis replied nonchalantly. "Believe it or not, I actually want you to care about your friends. I have similar plans for all of them, you know, and your affection for them will be very helpful in making those plans work. Besides, the love you feel for your friends and family isn't the kind I'm looking for."

A swooping feeling of equal parts disgust, fear, and bafflement made its way through Twilight's chest. "But then. . ." Twilight's eyes shot back and forth for several seconds as she tried furiously to figure out exactly who Chrysalis meant. Eventually her eyebrows raised, only to fall flat as she gave the changeling the greatest deadpan of her life. "If you seriously think that I like Flash Sentry enough that I'd turn against Equestria for him, then you're even dumber than you were the last time I saw you."

Chrysalis drew back in confusion, mouthing, "Flash Sentry," a few times before a spark of realization appeared in her eyes. The changeling threw back her head and burst into laughter, her simpering cackle echoing around the chamber for nearly a minute before she finally managed to reign herself in. "Whew," she wheezed, "I wasn't expecting that. Flash Sentry. . . I'd almost forgotten about him." She gave Twilight's mane a stroke. "I have no intention of using a half-baked school-filly crush to turn you to my side, Twilight." She shook her head and giggled. "You're right. That would make me much dumber than I was when we met."

Twilight shook her head in utter bewilderment. "Then what are you talking about? Who else is there?"

Chrysalis went from jovial to deeply curious in the span of two seconds. She leaned forward so that her muzzle was nearly touching Twilight's and gazed quizzically into the alicorn's eyes. She remained that way for a long moment before finally murmuring, "Are you that deep in denial, or is it possible that you don't even realize it?" She tilted her head. "But how could that be? How could somepony be so oblivious to her own feelings?"

In spite of the situation, Twilight's deeply held need to know things was making the queen's musing more than a little frustrating. She tilted her head down as she ground out, "What do you mean?"

Chrysalis only looked away, her eyes full of disbelief. "You really don't see it. Somehow, someway, you don't see it. How does that happen?" She turned back to Twilight. "Have you never even thought about what it might be like to be with her? Has Cadence never spoken with you about this? I know she knows just as much as I do."

Twilight glared at Chrysalis for several seconds, shaking with anger and exasperation. "WHO?!" she finally demanded, her voice nearly deafening in the stone chamber. "What don't I see, Chrysalis, and WHO ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!"

Chrysalis stared at her before rolling her eyes and forcing a not-quite-condescending smile onto her face. "Princess Celestia."

Somewhere, Twilight was quite certain that she could hear the sound of breaking glass. Her face scrunched up so much that a passerby might have thought she'd just eaten one of Bonbon’s Lemon Zingers, and her jaw worked up and down spasmodically for several moments before she finally managed to say, "Huh?"

"You love Princess Celestia. You love her as much as any pony has ever loved another, and any creature with eyes, ears, and and slightest understanding of what love looks like could tell you that."

Twilight hesitated, trying to wrap her head around the changeling's claim. "Are you insane? I don't love the Princess!" Realizing what she'd just said, Twilight immediately backpedaled, "I mean, yes, I love her, but not like that! She's. . . she's my teacher, my mentor, my. . . one of my best friends. She's-"

"The pony you can't take your eyes off of whenever you're around her," interrupted Chrysalis. "The pony whose every word you hang on to as if your life's happiness depended on it. The pony that you'd do anything for, just so you could see her smile." Chrysalis tilted her head thoughtfully. "In fact, and I really should have expected this, I imagine that your regard for her is why you don't realize how you feel. You're so terrified that she'd disapprove that you won't even let your thoughts go there." She shrugged. "It wouldn't be the first time I've seen something like that."

As Chrysalis spoke, Twilight found that the Queen's words felt a lot more true than she liked, and a distant, unfamiliar feeling of things coming together began tickling the back of her mind. No, she affirmed, it can't be. There's no way I could feel that way about somepony and not know it. Still, a nagging sense a doubt settled in her thoughts and stubbornly refused to go away. Right?

"NO!" Twilight shouted defiantly. "You don't know what you're talking about! You don't know the first thing about me! You don't get to dictate how I feel to me!"

"I'm not trying to dictate how you feel to you at all, Twilight," Chrysalis said gently. "I'm simply telling you my observations, observations which, as a changeling, I am uniquely gifted to make." She glanced away. "Not that I'm the only one that's seen it."

A new, frustrated curiosity joined the shaky but determined denial in Twilight's chest. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

Chrysalis took a deep breath, and when she continued there was the slightest hint of exasperation in her voice. "Twilight, everypony who’s close to you knows that you love Celestia. Your friends know it, but they don’t know how to approach you about it. Your brother and Princess Cadence know it, but I’m guessing they want you to work it out on your own. Your parents have literally made bets on how long it'll take you to work up the courage to ask her out. Even Celestia knows you love Celestia." She shook her head. "The only one who doesn't know how you feel about Celestia is apparently you."

Twilight gaped for a moment before she began determinedly shaking her head. "No," she said, "no, no, and no. There's no way you can be right. None of you. I don't love her like that. I. . . I can't."

"Can't love her, or can't wrap your head around what's already there?" said Chrysalis, her face hardening a bit. "There's a pretty serious difference there."

Twilight sputtered for a few seconds before exploding," I don't know! Both, neither, who cares?! I don't know!" Her eyes burned into the changeling. "You don't know! You don't know ANYTHING!"

"Oh?" replied Chrysalis coolly, once again leaning down to meet Twilight's gaze. "Then answer me this, Twilight Sparkle. If you had to choose between saving your parents' lives, or saving Celestia's, which would you choose? What if it were Celestia or your brother? Celestia or one of your friends? Celestia or all of your friends? Think about that Twilight, think about that long and hard, and then look me in the eye and tell me who you'd honestly choose."

Twilight didn't want to think about the question, but years of engaging in intellectual exercises sent her thoughts buzzing before she could stop them. So she thought about it. She really thought about it. She considered each scenario, analyzed it, tried picturing it from another angle, and then another. None of them were easy questions, and the more she thought, the worse she felt about herself, but at the same time, she couldn't deny that for every choice, the answer was the same.

"Celestia," murmured Chrysalis, causing Twilight jump as she was broken from her thoughts. "You'd choose Celestia every time. You wouldn't feel good about it, but you'd still do it. You'd justify your choice in some pragmatic way, but in your heart of hearts you'd know the real reason." She gave Twilight a critical look. "Am I wrong?"

Twilight just scowled and refused to speak, unable to deny the changeling's words and loathing every second of it. The revelation had shaken her to her very core, and she couldn't seem to regain her balance. For the first time since she'd been officially recognized as the Princess of Friendship, Twilight felt deeply, utterly unsure of who she was and what she believed, and she couldn't decide who she hated more; herself for the truths that had just been revealed, or Chrysalis for making her see them. She looked down, her muzzle twisted in a bitter frown, and mulled as a pair of burning tears made their way down her cheeks.

Chrysalis's expression abruptly softened into something that looked like guilt. She raised a hoof toward Twilight's cheek, only to stop and withdraw it as the alicorn jerked her head away. She took a deep breath and exhaled heavily. "There's nothing wrong with the way you feel, Twilight. Virtually everypony, no matter how many others they may care about, has somepony in their life that they'd pick over anypony else. It's not a fun thing to think about, but it's a fact of loving, and it isn't wrong. It's just the way love works."

Twilight looked away and remained spitefully silent. Nearly two minutes of quiet fuming went by until-

"What would you do if Celestia walked up to you and began passionately making out with you?"

The visual sprung into Twilight's head before she even registered Chrysalis's question. The image of her and Celestia, lips locked and tongues squirming, was so shocking and unexpected that it actually managed to jolt Twilight out of her emotional stupor. Her entire face erupted crimson, and she sputtered at a very amused changeling for nearly ten seconds before she finally managed to shout, "What?!"

Chrysalis bit back a laugh and said, "Let me rephrase that. What would you do if Celestia asked you out on a date with her? How would you respond?"

Still too off-balance to remember that she was angry at Chrysalis, Twilight shook her head to make room for the new idea. The blush on her face receded, though not completely, and she spent several moments in uncertain silence before saying, "I don't know. The idea is so. . . big, so far beyond anything I'd expect, that I don't know what I'd do." Her expression turned irritable. "Why are you making me think about this? It's not like it could ever happen."

"So you wouldn't say yes?" replied Chrysalis, ignoring Twilight's question entirely. "Or rather, you wouldn't want to say yes?"

"No! I mean. . . She's. . . I don't know!" said Twilight, turning away in embarrassment in spite of the situation. "Why are you asking me? What's the point?"

Once again, Chrysalis ignored the question, instead giving Twilight an appraising look. "You've never been in a relationship before, have you, Twilight?"

Twilight considered not answering, but ultimately decided against it. What would it accomplish? she mused. I doubt she's going to go away, and she said herself that she's ready to keep me here for days. If I keep her talking, maybe she'll say something that she shouldn't. She shivered a bit as she remembered what the Queen had in store for her. Keep her going, Twilight. You can't let her win.

"No." Twilight said plainly.

Chrysalis gave an unsurprised nod. "I thought so. Now, as to why I'm asking these things, I want you to think about it. What would it be like if, by some impossible chance, you could have something romantic with Celestia.?" Her horn began to glow slightly. "What would you do? What kinds of things would the two of you enjoy together? What new traditions would you make? Think about it, Twilight."

Reluctant as she was to think about anything else that Chrysalis suggested, Twilight found herself strangely unable to do anything else. Unbidden, an image of her and Celestia appeared in her mind, the two of them reading together in Celestia's study as they had done many times as teacher and student. This time however, something was different. Celestia's wing was wrapped tightly around Twilight in a way that seemed both protective and possessive, and Twilight felt a comfortable closeness with her mentor that she'd never noticed before. As Twilight looked on, a profound and not-quite-unfamiliar warmth began bubbling up in her chest.

The image soon faded into another wherein she and Celestia were trading splashes in one of the Canterlot garden's more secluded ponds, Twilight dodging and giggling like a mad-filly and Celestia looking more jovial and at ease than Twilight had ever seen her. She closed on Twilight and soaked the smaller mare with a well aimed mouthful of water, and Twilight felt the strange warmth inside her grow.

This is what she wants too, you know, echoed a voice in Twilight's head as a new image, this one showcasing her and Celestia working on an insanely complex magical formula together, replaced the water fight. Celestia loves you every bit as much as you love her. The scene melted away into one of a picnic in Whitetail Woods, Celestia delicately offering a strawberry to Twilight, and Twilight accepting with a blush. However, she will never let herself indulge in that love, Twilight. She's too dedicated to her duty, and she'll never commit to a relationship with you when she knows she can't give you the time she feels you deserve. Twilight watched as Celestia pulled the covers of her massive bed over them before planting a kiss on Twilight's cheek and curling her hooves around the young alicorn as the two of them fell asleep. As the last image faded to blackness, she heard, It's a tragedy that even I can feel sympathy for.

Twilight blinked in surprise a few times before shaking her head, trying to clear it of. . . whatever that had been. She shot a glare at Chrysalis, but the anger in her eyes was offset by a lingering feeling of warm, utter contentment. "What in Equestria was that?" she tried to demand.

"A small nudge of your imagination," replied Chrysalis cryptically. "I helped you see what you wanted so that you would know what you wanted." She smiled. "That's why you feel so warm right now. Do you know what that warmth is, Twilight?" She bent down and, much to the alicorn's surprise and dismay, gave Twilight a gentle nuzzle. "Love. That's what love, fully realized and fully expressed, feels like."

Twilight tried to pull away, feeling the warmth in her chest plummet into hollow, ashy regret. "I still don't believe you. You made that whole illusion. Why should I believe you didn't make the feeling too?" She snorted humorlessly and gave a smirk that felt as bitter as bile. "I might have bought it, too, if you hadn't talked about Celestia wanting it."

Chrysalis withdrew from the nuzzle slowly, her face a mask of stern frustration. "How many times do I need to repeat it, Twilight? I can't create love. If I could, then all of Equestria would be worshipping me by now. All I did was tell your imagination which direction to go. Everything else, from what you visualized to how you feel, all came from you. And as for Celestia," the changeling continued, her tone taking on a bizarre, harsh note that Twilight couldn't quite place, "I didn't make that up either. She does love you, truly and deeply. I know it, Cadence knows it, Luna knows it, and judging by her diary, she knows it too, and yes, before you even ask, I have seen her diary. It took me four years to do it, but I did, and you'd be shocked by how many times she mentions her desire to be with you." Her face suddenly took on a smirk that was half amused, half. . . something else. "In detail, at times."

Twilight wasn't sure of the Queen's meaning, but something about it made her feel a bit uneasy. "What do you mean, 'in detail'?"

Chrysalis gave Twilight a quizzical look. "You don't know what that means? Really?" Her baring suddenly became thoughtful. "Come to think of it, something was off in your visualizations. There was no intimacy in your imagining. The farthest things ever went was that peck on the cheek before bed." Chrysalis tilted her head, giving Twilight that measuring look again. "Have you ever been intimate with another pony, Twilight?"

Twilight's blush from before began creeping back into her cheeks. "What?"

A small grin tugged at the corners of the Queen's mouth. "Sex, Twilight. Have you ever been involved in any sexual situations or activities with anypony?"

Twilight gaped like a landed fish for a few moments before sputtering and stammering a shaky, "N-no. No! What does that have to do with anything?"

Chrysalis raised an eyebrow. "Well, I expected that answer, but not that reaction. Why not?"

Twilight was trying very hard to curl into herself in embarrassment. Really? she thought. Chrysalis kidnaps you and says she's gonna turn you against your friends, and this is what you can’t handle? Nevertheless, she couldn't bring herself to meet the changeling's eyes as she struggled for an answer.

"Well?" said Chrysalis expectantly.

"I. . ." Twilight mumbled, "I just never really thought it was important. Growing up, there were so many other things to think about, what with being Celestia's student and all. After I moved to Ponyville, my friends talked about it sometimes, but again, I just didn't give it much thought. There was too much else to do."

"Are you saying you've never thought about it?" asked Chrysalis incredulously.

The alicorn's blush heated up. "Well, sure, sometimes. I mean, there was my first heat, but after that I learned a spell that let me ignore it because it was too distracting. A few times when my friends would talk about it, but again, it just wasn't interesting to me. I had my friends, I had my studies. . . now I have my duties as a princess, too. I don't plan on having a foal anytime soon, and without that it just seemed like another distraction. Why would I want another distraction from all of that?"

Twilight fell silent as she noticed that Chrysalis had fixed her with a rather focused look. Twilight grew increasingly uneasy as the Queen's eyes bored into her, her face not moving a muscle. Eventually, the corners of the changeling's mouth raised ever so slightly, and she whispered, "Wonderful." Her horn blinked for the briefest of instants and she licked her upper lip.

Twilight's expression grew worried. "What are you d-mmMMPH!" She squealed in surprise as Chrysalis suddenly swooped forward and pressed her lips firmly against Twilight's. The alicorn was so stunned that she didn't even try to resist as the Queen's tongue slipped gently into her mouth and traced the inside of her lips carefully. This continued for several seconds before Twilight came to her senses and jerked away, panting from a combination of shock, outrage, and a very out-of-place-feeling exhilaration. She opened and closed her mouth several times, at a complete loss for words, and when eventually she found her voice, all she could say was a quiet, "You kissed me."

Chrysalis nodded. "I did."

Another pause. “You used your tongue.”

“I did.”

Twilight's eye twitched a few times, and a stray lock of her mane suddenly sprung upward. She closed her eyes, doing her best to ignore both the taste of the changeling's saliva and the fact that it wasn't absolutely horrible. Desperate to take her mind off of what had just happened, she eventually managed to ask, "What was that spell you cast?"

"A test," replied Chrysalis simply.

"What kind of test?"

Chrysalis grinned. "Wait for it. . ."

Twilight put on a weary expression, but it gradually faded as the seconds ticked by. Wait for what? she wondered, but no answer was forthcoming. Twilight began trying to clear the Queen's flavor from her mouth. She hated it, but couldn’t deny that it was strangely pleasant, tasting mildly of some exotic, half-remembered honey pastry. Her lips were also really warm, thought Twilight as the taste finally began to fade. I never expected changelings to have such a high temperature, unless maybe it had something to do with her spell. Speaking of which, is it getting warmer in here?

The realization that it felt warmer than usual snapped Twilight out of her thoughts enough to realize two further things. The first was that her breathing had picked up quite a bit and was now just short of a pant. The second was that her entire body felt inexplicably tingly. She furrowed her brow in confusion as her thoughts began drifting somewhere that they hadn't gone in a very long time. Her eyes closed and a shiver went through her as those thoughts settled on the image of Celestia eyeing her teasingly from a very compromising position. A hoof went down her side, and she hummed breathily as every nerve gave a tiny, pleasant jolt. She grinned, cracking her eyelids open to reveal Chrysalis gently stroking her fur with a strangely fond expression on her face.

Seeing the changeling in front of her made Twilight suddenly realize what she was doing. Her eyes flew open for a frozen moment before slamming back shut as she furiously shook her head, desperate to cleanse the image from her mind. It took several seconds, and some new, insistent part of her was frustrated by it, but she eventually managed to push the picture away. She opened her eyes, fixing Chrysalis with a madly blushing glare. "You cast a heat on me!"

Chrysalis raised an eyebrow as a massively amused grin and a guilty expression battled for control of her face. "A heat?" she asked. "You think I cast a heat on you?" She chuckled. "No, Twilight. Not even close. I made my saliva mildly aphrodisiac to see how you would react to it. I wanted to see if you were perhaps asexual." Her grin somehow widened. "Glad to see that you're not. It'll make things easier down the road."

"What are you talking about?" said Twilight, drawing back as far as she could as her pupils shrunk down to pinpricks. "What are you going to do to me?"

"Nothing what you're thinking, unless I have to," replied Chrysalis, her expression suddenly becoming serious and somewhat uncomfortable. "I'd really rather avoid taking that from you until I've made sure that the love is there."

Twilight remained in her futile recoil, hyperventilating from both the near panic attack and the effect of Chrysalis's enchanted saliva. Focus! she screamed at herself, Calm down and think! However, no matter how much she tried, she couldn't gain any ground against the tide of emotions that the last several minutes had brought on. She began shaking as she looked into Chrysalis's eyes, not trusting the apparent concern she saw in them. Even so, an idea occurred to her. Not a great one, and not one that was likely to happen, but something.

"May I please have a free hoof?" asked Twilight weakly.

To her surprise, Chrysalis took a small step back and nodded. "You may." As she spoke, her horn lit up, and the material around Twilight's right forehoof melted away, leaving the hoof feeling sweaty and stiff, but otherwise untouched. Twilight waved it a few times to get the blood flowing before placing it against her chest, taking a long, drawn out inhale, and sweeping her hoof forward as she let the breath shakily out.

Twilight nearly grimaced at how little it helped, but she also noted that the tightness in her chest had loosened, if only a bit. She repeated the process, forcing herself to breath slowly as she brought her hoof back toward her body. By the time she'd swept it forward again, it had almost stopped shaking.

It took nearly a dozen tries, but finally, Cadence's breathing technique allowed Twilight to bring her panic back under control. She was still distressed, not to mention still suffering the effects of the Queen's spell, but the mind-numbing fear had passed. She opened her eyes to glare at Chrysalis, only to find the changeling looking at her with what looked like some kind of strange, uncomfortable guilt. Chrysalis hesitated for a moment before murmuring, "Can I help?"

Twilight shook her head stonily. "I don't want any of your help," she grumbled. She placed her free hoof to her forehead and heaved a heavy sigh. " You don't. . ." Suddenly, her expression changed into one of confused curiosity. "Wait, why are you asking? It's not as if you need my permission."

Chrysalis’s eyes widened like a foal caught raiding the cookie jar. Even so, she responded, "Because it was respectful. You were upset, and I could help without upsetting my plans, and if I could help, why not?" She grinned a rather forced looking grin. "It's the least I can do for a worthy adversary."

"But why do you care?" pressed Twilight. Before Chrysalis could reply, Twilight continued almost accusingly, "Come to think of it, why did you free my hoof? How did that benefit you? And why have you told me all these you know? If I end up escaping, that'll all be a liability." By this point Chrysalis was trying to interject, but Twilight refused to stop. "Most of all, if using sex against me will make things easier, then why wouldn't you do it? What does it matter to you whether or not you've made me. . . you’ve done your love magic first? Why would you care?"

Silence fell heavily as Twilight finished her interrogation. Chrysalis opened her mouth, paused, and closed it before looking at Twilight inscrutably for a very long time. Eventually, the most wry expression that Twilight had ever seen another equine wear wormed its way onto the Queen's face. Chrysalis looked at the ground, wearing a grin that bore equal parts happiness and shame, and whispered, "I'm such a terrible changeling queen."

"What makes you say that?" asked Twilight, hoping that she'd finally stumbled upon something that she could exploit. "You've kidnapped a princess of Equestria, again, you did it without anypony knowing, again, and you've been living in our midst undetected for more than five years. What part of that makes you a bad queen?"

Chrysalis's expression remained unchanged. "None of it does, Twilight." She looked away. "I think I can say without arrogance that I've done a good job leading my subjects through the challenges we've faced since the wedding. I'm not a bad queen because of some failure to lead the hive, nor am I a bad queen because I botched your kidnapping." She turned back towards Twilight, and and in her eyes the alicorn saw regret, disappointment, and a strange, devil-may-care happiness. "I'm a bad queen because I've let myself get in too deep."

"How's that?" murmured Twilight, a bit disturbed by the queen's look but still hoping to gain something that she could use against her captor.

Chrysalis smiled a bit and snorted gently. "Once again, you don't see it, even when it's right in front of you." She shook her head. "I've been watching you for years now Twilight, and from the moment I started, it didn't take long to start admiring you. Your power, your drive, your thirst for knowledge. . . you'd make a good changeling queen yourself, you know. The more I learned about you, the more I found myself wanting to learn more, and eventually. . ." She sighed. "Eventually it became less about what I wanted to know and more about what I wanted to feel." She paused, eyeing Twilight intently. "Why am I a bad changeling queen, Twilight Sparkle? Because I've let myself care about you. You're a target, a means to an end, and I let myself care about you." Chrysalis scuffed her hoof a bit, still wearing that half-disappointed, half-uncaring grin. "I care about you quite a lot."

Having been dealt yet another emotional blindside, Twilight said nothing for several moments. After several failed attempts to speak, she finally managed to quietly ask. "Are you saying you love me?"

Chrysalis shook her head. "Not in the way you mean it." Her smile grew slightly. "But not far off."

Twilight just nodded with an intensely focused expression on her face. "So tell me then; is all this really just some twisted excuse for capturing me so that you can make me love you back?"

Chrysalis shook her head again, her face becoming serious. "No, Twilight. I'm doing this because it will ultimately make things better for my subjects. As the Queen of the Changelings, I have failed miserably to better their lives in the recent past, and it is my duty to make up for that failure. Having the Princess of Friendship's resources will open many doors that have been locked." Her smile returned. "I won't pretend that I don't look forward to having you by my side, though."

Twilight shook her head slowly, fear and hatred showing equally in her eyes. "I'll never stand at your side, Chrysalis. Never."

Chrysalis just smiled. "Yes you will." She once again reached a hoof under Twilight's chin and lowered herself to gaze directly into the alicorn's eyes. "I'm going to make you mine, Twilight Sparkle. Everything you are and wish you could be to Celestia, and more, you will be to me; student, lover, and willing slave." She gave Twilight a measured look as a green nimbus began to glow around her horn. "Speaking of which, I think it's time we got started. I've done a good enough job of keeping you too off-balance to make a plan, but I don't want to push my luck any farther." A slow, predatory grin spread itself across her muzzle. "Ready or not, here I come." With that, she tilted her head forward, pressing the tip of her horn against Twilight's.

Twilight braced herself, but couldn’t hold in a gasp as the spell washed over and into her horn. The feeling was very cold, but not unpleasant. It was like taking a cool dip after a particularly tough flight lesson with Rainbow Dash, multiplied tenfold. As the spell moved down her horn and into her scalp, she felt it shifting into a slightly fuzzy warmth, as though she’d finished her dip and was drying off with a sun-warmed wool towel. She tried to jerk her head away, but the Queen’s magic held her in place as the spell continued running down her horn and head like melted wax. At last, she felt the cold-turned-warmth sink into the very base of her horn, and a pleasant, tingling numbness began to settle in her head.

“NO!” Twilight shouted, her entire face screwing up in concentration as she focused on the the first thing that came to mind; Princess Celestia. Many of her earlier emotions tried to accompany the image, but she pushed them away, instead forcing herself to focus on nothing but a picture of Celestia’s smiling face. Twilight poured every iota of her concentration onto that image, creating a mental barrier around herself as the fuzzy sensation slowly made its way toward the center of her thoughts.

“So this is your resistance technique,” said Chrysalis, sounding much louder and more resonant than she had before. “Pure concentration. Not a bad defense for the well-conditioned. Considering your skill as a magician and prowess as a scholar, you must have a much stronger mind than the average pony, and if you’ve been practicing this technique, as I’m sure you have been, then you’ll be harder to break than most.”

Distantly, Twilight wished she could shut Chrysalis up, but she kept the majority of her focus on her picture of Celestia. I can’t let her down, she thought. If I crack here, then I’ve failed her. I can’t fail her. . . Whether Chrysalis is right about us or not, I can’t fail her.

“However,” continued Chrysalis conversationally, “I’d be willing to bet all the love in the Crystal Heart that I know what, or rather, whom, you’re concentrating on. Tsk, tsk, Twilight. Celestia can’t help you here, not even as a focus. As a matter of fact, all her image will do is help me.” There was a pregnant pause, and some part of Twilight became aware of a hoof stroking up and down her back. “Would you like to know what she says about you in her diary? I memorized a few entries for you, just in case you’d like to hear one.”

A breath caught in Twilight’s throat, and she screwed her eyes shut all the harder. Ignore it, Twilight. She’s lying. Just keep focusing on Celestia. You can’t let her down. She doubled down on her concentration as the numbing tingle began to pool around the edges of her barrier, tickling up the walls of her mental shield like overgrown creepers. She took another deep breath as she pushed the sensation away and pictured Celestia’s smile.

“No objections?” said Chrysalis. “Well alright then. Here’s one she wrote shortly after her visit during your first Running of the Leaves.” She cleared her throat, and when she next spoke, her dual voice had been replaced by a perfect imitation of Celestia. “Today I was able to watch Twilight as she participated in one of my favorite Ponyville traditions, the Running of the Leaves. I’m so proud that she’s so embraced her new life in Ponyville, and although I miss having her by my side, my heart soars when I think of how much she’s growing as a pony. To my surprise, she also took fifth place. It seems that a move to a more rural town has agreed with her physically. I couldn’t help but notice that being out and about with her friends has started reveal some of the curves of that petite little body of hers. I’m very happy that she’s doing well, in more ways than one.”

Twilight’s breathing hitched again as the imagined Celestia’s eyelids dropped a bit and her smile became a bit more. . . intent. There was a bizarre cracking sensation as a web of tiny fractures suddenly spread across her mental barrier. She tried to shake her head, but Chrysalis still held her fast, and so she settled for exhaling forcefully and trying to ignore the changeling.

“I saw that,” tittered Chrysalis. “I told you that picturing Celestia wouldn’t help you. Now, how about another?” She giggled. “You should enjoy this one. After all, it was the ‘best night ever’, or so I’ve heard.” She cleared her throat again.

“Last night was the night of the Grand Galloping Gala," Came Celestia's gentle voice. "Per usual, it was largely a dreadful bore, wherein nobles played the subtle game of one-upmanship that they always play, and I was expected to stand at the door to greet everypony that arrived, also per usual. Indeed, the only thing I had to look forward to was having Twilight Sparkle by my side. She looked absolutely stunning in her dress, and her obvious joy at spending time with me only made her more enticing. I had resigned myself to an evening of being caught between semi-forced cordiality and persistent, irritating want. However, something happened that hasn’t happened in over four-hundred years; the Gala ended in loud, colorful, chaotic catastrophe, thanks mostly to the antics of Twilight’s friends. I don’t believe I’ve ever laughed as hard as I did once the guests had finally been cleared from the main ballroom. I only wish Twilight had been there to share in it.”

“After organizing the clean-up, I was able to catch up with Twilight and her friends at Pony Joe’s Donut Shop. The remainder of the evening was spent amid several excellent donuts (I must remember to make some kind of arrangement with Pony Joe himself), much refreshingly inane and useless conversation, and a great deal of laughter, especially from Twilight herself. How I love Twilight’s laughter. Whenever she laughs, her eyes sparkle as much as her voice, and I can’t help but want to kiss her and hold her close.”

Twilight’s eyes snapped open to reveal a slightly grinning Chrysalis. Instantly, the empty, heavy tingle in her head began to envelope her thoughts, filling her with the sensation of mild drunkenness. Twilight hissed and bared her teeth, looking down as she tried to regain her center. With a great effort, she managed to push away the weight of Chrysalis’s influence, but it had cost her. She could practically feel her mental shield beginning to crumble as the Celestia in her head began to approach her, eyes now half-lidded and smile growing ever more sultry. STOP! she mentally screamed, and her imagined teacher came to a halt. Come on, Twilight, remember what’s at stake here. You CAN’T let her distract you, not even with Celestia wanting you. It’s all lies anyway. It has to be. No matter how much you want to listen to her, you can’t. You can’t let her win. You’re a princess. You have a duty to Equestria. You have to hold on.

“I’m getting to you, Twilight,” came Chrysalis’s voice, and this time Twilight could hear it echoing not only in the chamber, but in her mind as well. “I really wish you would stop fighting. I know that this is painful for you. Can you even spare enough focus to think of something besides Celestia? If you can’t, then this is already over. I have one last diary entry for you, and this one happens to be a favorite of mine. It’s about the last time we met. It’s a fairly long entry, so I’ll save us some time and skip straight to the significant part.”

Twilight found that she now hated the sound of a clearing throat.

“I am ashamed that I didn’t trust Twilight. Perhaps I wouldn’t have jumped to conclusions the way she had, but I should have given her the benefit of the doubt. She’s earned at least that much from me. So much pain and fear could have been prevented if I had only listened to her.”

“It was very difficult to listen to her song at the reception. Love is indeed in bloom. I love her. I love her as much as I’ve loved any pony over the millennia, and it hurts so much that I so casually dismissed her. It hurts nearly as much as it hurts to be so close, to know that she feels the same way, and to be unable to give in to what we both want. I can’t give her what she deserves without compromising my duty, and I will never forsake my responsibilities to my little ponies, but oh, there are days when I wish I could.”

“As I watched her step onto the train platform to go home, still radiant in her wedding attire, it took everything I had not to run to her, to swoop her up and say how sorry I am. How I longed to ask her to stay with me, to bring her to my chambers and kiss her deep, to pepper her body with nips and caresses between whispered apologies and sweet nothings, and to show her how I truly see her. To love her. I wanted it so badly. . . but I didn’t, and, now more than ever, I curse the changelings for reminding me once again how many ways Twilight Sparkle is beautiful.”

Twilight looked up at Chrysalis. In the alicorn’s eyes was hatred, disgust, and a desperate desire to believe. She held the Queen’s gaze for a long moment before closing her eyes grimly. By that point however, it was too late. Twilight’s emotions were a roiling maelstrom, and in the confusion she couldn’t find the stillness to focus. Twilight felt her mental shield shatter, and the warm, numbing tingle seeped into the cracks like anesthetic fog. She tried to throw it off, but she no longer had the strength, and it was all she could do to rest her head against the material encasing her and try not to think anymore. She grimaced, clenching her teeth in effort, and whimpered, “Please, just stop.”

“No, Twilight,” boomed the Queen’s voice, filling both the cave and Twilight’s head, “I can’t stop now. I’ve come too far to stop. As a matter of fact, you should stop.” A slight tone of regret began bleeding into her words. “I don’t like seeing you this way Twilight, even if it’s necessary. Why don’t you just give in? Stop trying to fight me. Let go, and I can get rid of all the turmoil that’s going through you. I can quiet the storm, Twilight. Don’t you want that?”

Twilight exhaled hard. The fact was that she did want that. Although she still hated Chrysalis, the Queen’s offer was strangely and utterly persuasive, and Twilight found herself feeling like a foal that desperately wants to do something that they know they shouldn’t. Would it really be so bad? she thought. At least then I could sort all these feelings out. That would-

NO! she roared in her mind, and to her surprise she found that she could shake her head. She grit her teeth, panting with the effort of pushing away the velvet touch of the Queen’s words. “Stop, Chrysalis,” she forced out, “stop it.”

“And still you resist. Even with your defense gone and your focus shattered, you still resist. I’m very impressed, Twilight. Very impressed indeed. This, however, has gone on long enough. Look at me.”

Twilight’s eyes opened of their own accord, revealing Chrysalis barely a breath from her face. Her eyes seemed brighter than usual, and they were filled with a mixture of guilt and hard, implacable determination. She brought a hoof to Twilight’s face and pressed it gently against her cheek. “Stop fighting me, Twilight,” she said firmly. “Let go. Let go of everything. It will be wonderful.” She began running her hoof up Twilight’s face to the base of her ear and back. “Can you imagine it? How nice would it be to let go of the burden of thinking? I know how hard it must be, trying to think through the confusion and the haze. Wouldn’t it be easier to let me do your thinking for you?”

Twilight jaw began to go slack as she stared, utterly transfixed by the Queen’s gaze. She wanted so badly to give in, wanted so badly to stop fighting and do as Chrysalis asked, that she couldn’t quite remember why she was resisting. Every thought felt like lead, and the temptation to let another handle them for her was irresistible. Still, something was bothering her. Somehow, the idea of giving her thoughts away seemed wrong, but she couldn’t put her hoof on why.

“Well?” asked Chrysalis. “What do you say? Are you ready to give in and obey me?”

For what felt like a very long moment, the word ‘yes’ trembled on the tip of Twilight’s tongue. For the life of her, she couldn’t figure out why her answer was frozen, until she felt Chrysalis’s hoof swoop gently down her side. The touch felt strangely familiar, and through the haze of her thoughts there rose a picture of a white alicorn that she was sure she recognized.

Celestia.

Twilight blinked as she suddenly understood what was happening to her. Terror cut through the mental cloud as she realized that, in spite of her best efforts, Chrysalis was winning, and though she had managed to break out of her trance, her mind was still so heavy and dazed that she had no idea what she could do. Think, Twilight! a muddled yell rang out. You’re so close to losing everything. One more slip and you’ll be hers. She’ll turn you against everypony you care about. She’ll use you as a weapon against Celestia, and who knows what she’ll make you do once she starts changing your heart? You have to find a way.

Twilight’s eye twitched, earning a frown from Chrysalis, as the alicorn pushed desperately against the mental weight. I have to do something about the spell, she thought. I have to break through the fog. But how? I can’t. . . I have to. . . have to. . .

Twilight suddenly whipped her head forward, clipping the Queen’s muzzle as she smashed her face into her translucent prison as hard as she could. A wet smack echoed through the chamber, only to be swallowed by Twilight’s cry as blood began pouring from her shattered nose. Twilight hissed with every inhale, shaking and whimpering as tears began to mix with the blood pooling under her chin. Even so, she smiled harshly through the pain as the heaviness in her mind vanished as though it had never been there at all.

No sooner did she open her eyes than her entire body seized up, clenched in a crushing telekinetic grip. Twilight found herself torn from her resinous restraints and slammed against the wall behind her. She looked forward to find Chrysalis glaring at her, the changeling’s eyes full of anger and bitter sadness. The Queen’s horn brightened, and Twilight groaned as an unpleasant series of pops erupted from her snout and the pain of her fractured nose faded. Chrysalis then vanished the blood, gave Twilight a critical once over, and stepped back to look the alicorn in the face. “I really wish you hadn’t hurt yourself, Twilight.”

Several long moments followed wherein the two simply stared at each other, one pair of eyes full of defiant loathing and the other a picture of anger and pity. Eventually the silence was broken as Twilight murmured, “I hate you, Chrysalis. I hate you, and I’ll never obey you.”

“Go ahead and hate me then,” replied the Queen, her expression unchanged. “Hate me as much as you can, and enjoy it while it lasts. You’ll still love me before this is over, and you will obey me, Twilight. You might have broken out of the trance you were in, but the damage has already been done.” Her muzzle twisted into a cruel smirk as her horn brightened again. “Say, ‘I love you, Chrysalis’.”

“I love you, Chrysalis.”

Twilight’s eyes widened in horror as she realized what she had just said. Unable to move, she could only grimace as the Queen’s smirk grew.

“There’s control of your actions,” said Chrysalis impassively. “Now, think of Cadence. Whatever the first thing that comes to mind when you think of her is, it’s now stuck in your head, blotting out anything other thoughts that might occur to you. Now tell me what it is.”

Twilight felt her cheeks burn, but was unable to stop herself. “Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake, clap your hooves and do a little shake!” As soon as the rhyme was finished, Twilight growled, “I swear that as soon as I get out of this I’m going to-”

“Quiet,” interrupted Chrysalis, and Twilight stopped as if struck dumb. Chrysalis nodded expectantly. “Good. It looks like I have your thoughts as well.” Her eyes glittered. “You still hate me though, right?”

Twilight nodded with a furious glare.

Chrysalis returned the nod. “I thought so.” She began to drift closer to Twilight. “I have your actions, and I have your thoughts. All you have left are your feelings.” She lit her horn, and Twilight felt the pressure around her loosen as she fell gently away from the wall and onto the cave floor. “Sit,” said Chrysalis, to which Twilight’s body automatically complied. “No moving and no talking unless I say otherwise.” The changeling laid down sinuously in front of Twilight and gave her a long, reproachful look. “I tried to put you in a trance so that things would be easier. . . for you, Twilight. This kind of magic takes an emotional toll, and I wanted to spare you from that as much as I could.” She reached forward and gently curled a hoof around one of Twilight’s own. “It’s over, Twilight. I have you. All that’s left to do is to turn your love of Celestia on to me. It’s going to happen, and at this point nothing can stop it, so I’m giving you this last chance. You can talk now, and I want you to tell me, Twilight, will you stop fighting and let me entrance you so that this will be less painful for you?”

Twilight’s only response was the most defiant, angry, bitter glare that she could muster, and a quiet, firm, “No.”

Chrysalis heaved a massive sigh, her face a picture of reluctant sadness, before giving an unsurprised nod. “I thought not. Oh, well.” She pushed herself forward, bringing herself just in front of Twilight, and said, “Picture Celestia again. Picture her as you were earlier, with all that happiness, all that affection, and all that love.”

Twilight couldn’t help it. Even her hatred of Chrysalis was shunted aside as the image of her favorite pony, looking more beautiful that Twilight had ever seen her, took its place at the forefront of Twilight’s mind. She fought to remember why she was angry, but the fullness of Celestia’s presence didn’t allow her to. Her entire body immediately filled with that profound, indescribable warmth, and the beginnings of a grin forced their way onto Twilight’s muzzle.

“Close your eyes, Twilight,” murmured Chrysalis. “Focus every thought you have on the love you have for Celestia. Let those thoughts of love fill you until there’s nothing else left inside.”

For Twilight, there was only Celestia. Her almost-smile blossomed into a beaming grin, and a few tears leaked from her eyes as the flawless, wonderful alicorn of her long unacknowledged dreams filled every last corner of her mind.

She heard Chrysalis taking a deep breath in. “I can feel it,” the changeling whispered, followed by another inhale. “Spectacular.”

A few silent moments passed before a quiet, crackling hum began echoing through the air. Twilight felt the tip of the Queen’s horn press into her chest, and all at once the love filling her felt. . . different. It was still there, still all-encompassing, but it felt somehow. . . soft, like a massive hill of sand. It was heavy, difficult to move, but it could still shift.

“Feel the love change, Twilight,” crooned Chrysalis, now with a slight pant in her voice. “Feel it as it becomes softer, melting down like hot wax. It’s still all there, just as strong, but it doesn’t feel as clear.” There was an electrical snap and Chrysalis hissed quietly. “I’m sorry for what comes next.”

Twilight cringed a bit as a very unfamiliar sense of wrongness began welling up inside her. She could still see Celestia, looking as radiant as ever, but the love she felt for her didn’t feel the same. It was all still there, but. . . it didn’t feel like it belonged to Celestia anymore. It almost felt like her mentor was somehow drifting away from her, even though she was still right there, and the love. . . she didn’t even know how to describe it. All she knew was that a terrible, hollow feeling was rising alongside it.

The buzzing was becoming louder, and the electric crackles were becoming more frequent. Combined, they nearly drowned out the strained pants coming from Chrysalis. Twilight felt the hoof around her own tighten as the changeling groaned and again whispered, “I’m sorry.”

Twilight barely registered her words, too caught up in the emotional storm of confusion, loss, and progressively less certain love. A sharp ache began to build just behind her eyes, but that was similarly reduced to background noise against the tumultuous state of her heart. Her teeth were bared, and tears were beginning to leak from her tightly shut eyes as a furious game of back and forth raged inside her head.

I love Celestia!

But I don’t love Celestia!

But the love is still there!

But it isn’t for Celestia anymore!

But it was!

But it isn’t now!

Are you sure?

No. Are you?

“Please,” Twilight whimpered, wishing she could clutch her head but still frozen by the queen’s command, “please make it stop.”

“Stay with me, Twilight,” the queen responded, her voice sounding thin and strained. Twilight felt another hoof press against her cheek and caress it shakily. “Stay with me.”

The hum was deafening now, so loud that Twilight could almost feel it in her teeth. Twilight, however, hardly noticed, too distracted by what she could only describe as the feeling of being pulled apart. A river of love filled her, but the Celestial spring to which it had always flowed had been dammed, and she felt as though she was now drowning in it. Additionally, every second made her feel as though she had lost something precious that she’d once had with Celestia, and as the moments ticked by, the connection that she felt for her mentor grew ever more grey. Is this what it’s like to fall out of love? she managed to think.

To her vague surprise, Chrysalis answered. “It is,” the changeling forced out between gasps. “This is all the pain. . . of falling out of love. . . condensed into minutes. . . instead of months.” The queen let out a quiet yelp, groaned in effort, and continued in a cracking voice. “I’m. . . so sorry Twilight. I wanted. . . to spare you. . . from this.”

“Please, stop,” replied Twilight, now openly sobbing. “This. . . I can’t take anymore. It hurts too much! Please make it stop!”

“The worst is. . . almost over,” Chrysalis murmured her words now carrying the edge of tears as well. “I promise. Stay with me.”

Twilight cried out as something inside her seemed to snap, and she realized that, focusing as she was on the image of Celestia, she felt. . . nothing. Respect for her as a ruler, perhaps, but nearly two decades of admiration, daughterly affection, and subconscious desire had been cut loose. It was as though Celestia had been her anchor and the line between them had broken, leaving her adrift upon the sea of her own feelings. All of the love she’d felt was still there, but it had no shape, no. . . direction, and that loss had turned her love into a hollow longing the likes of which she had never imagined. In that instant she felt completely, crushingly, achingly empty, and she wept at what felt like certainty that she would never find her way out of the void.

“Twilight,” came the queen’s strained voice, and her trembling hoof moved along Twilight’s cheek. “It’s alright. Look at me.”

Twilight’s eyes opened wearily to see Chrysalis, panting and drenched in sweat, before her. The changeling was staring at Twilight intensely, and from her horn, several pinkish, undulating arcs of magic snaked, dancing slowly across Twilight’s body. Chrysalis appeared to be in pain, her body trembling and her fangs bared in a determined grimace. Still, she forced a passable smile onto her face and stroked her hoof delicately along Twilight’s cheek. “Now clear Celestia. . . from your head. . . as you realize. . . that all that love you feel. . . is meant for me!” With that she lunged forward and once again pressed her lips to Twilight’s.

Twilight could only stare in wide-eyed surprise as the soft smoothness of the queen’s lips slid firmly against her own. As they made contact, the vision of Celestia that was plaguing her mind instantly disappeared, only to be replaced by one of Chrysalis. A whole new kind of confusion began roiling through Twilight as the directionless, listless river of her love began flowing slowly toward the image of the changeling. Twilight’s brow furrowed. With the new picture came a tide of hatred at wrongs done both to her and to those close to her, along with disgust and a certain, reluctant strain of pity. Nonetheless, the love was drawn to it too, pushing against the pall of negative emotions like a slow, rising tide.

Chrysalis’s lips moved shakily against Twilight’s, occasionally separating just long enough for the queen to pant things like, “From now on. . . I’m your teacher.” Another trembling kiss. “I’m your mentor.” The next was a bit shorter, cut off by a series of quick gasps. “I’m your friend. . . and I’m. . . so much more.” She drew back, and though she looked exhausted, there was a smile on her face and that strange fondness in her eyes. “Kiss me back, Twilight. . . and feel it all. . . becoming true.”

Twilight’s emotional turmoil had spared her from embarrassment before, but as she helplessly leaned in toward Chrysalis, she felt her cheeks heating up. She awkwardly pressed her lips against the queen’s, feeling clumsy and uncertain at the new experience, but also strangely excited. She wanted to hate it, knowing that she should, but inside her chest she could feel the tide of love inexorably pushing away the hatred and rage she felt toward the changeling. With each passing second, the kiss became less and less unwilling, and by degrees Twilight’s enjoyment of the feeling began to eclipse her disgust and anger at what was happening.

Abruptly, Chrysalis drew back with a sharp inhale, looking as if she’d just been doused in freezing water. “I can feel it,” she said with wide eyes, before closing them indulgently and smiling. “It’s delicious. . . even better. . . than I expected.” She took a deep, steadying breath, and when she opened her eyes, they were blazing. “We’re almost done, Twilight,” she purred, slithering the hoof on Twilight’s cheek behind her head. “It only gets better from here.” She then tilted her head slightly and pulled Twilight into a much deeper, much more passionate kiss.

Twilight squeaked at the intensity of the queen’s embrace, and as the mass of her love became ever more firmly attached to Chrysalis, she felt herself melting into the kiss as her body began to heat up. There were still plenty of conflicting emotions within, and more than a few things that she’d need to reconcile with the changeling, but for that moment she just found that she could do nothing but lose herself in the sensation of Chrysalis’s warm, supple lips against her own. It felt good. It felt right.

At some point, Twilight became aware of a brightening in the room. She opened her eyes to find that, while the pink-tinged tendrils of magic had been reduced to a single arc between their horns, dozens of whisps of green light were drifting from her body and coalescing on Chrysalis in a layer of faint, verdant flames. Twilight realized that the queen had stopped panting, and the sweat appeared to be drying on her skin beneath the dim coat of arcane fire. She studied the spectacle in front of her, her newly formed affection now tinged with intense curiosity.

Chrysalis seemed to sense the shift in Twilight’s attention, pulling away to reveal eyes that now glowed brightly in the dim light of the cave. She gave Twilight an expectant smile. “Go ahead,” she murmured, “ask me. I know you want to.”

“Is that what happens when you feed?” whispered Twilight, left slightly breathless from both emotional exhaustion and the queen’s kisses.

“Mm-hm!” hummed Chrysalis brightly. “All changelings have a latent magic that turns love directed at us, or at least the form we’re wearing, into the energy that keeps us alive and healthy. The stronger the love, the easier and more pleasant it is to absorb.”

Twilight made a mental note, her mind instantly going to the place that it was most comfortable; insatiable scholar mode. “Can you eat normal food like ponies do?”

Chrysalis gave a shrug. “We can, but it doesn’t do anything to sustain us, and most pony foods don’t agree with changeling anatomy.” She flashed a humorous smirk. “Those berry pies in the Crystal Empire are a lucky exception.”

Another mental note taken. “Why do changelings have fangs, then?”

Chrysalis grinned with a nod. “A fair question. There are several plants whose extracts are useful to us, as medicines, building materials, etc. Our fangs are hollow, allowing us to draw off the juices of such plants and transport them back to the hive, or, if need be, inject them.”

“Fascinating,” said Twilight, wishing she had some note-taking materials. “Does it take much effort to absorb love?”

Chrysalis shrugged dismissively again. “As I said, that depends on the love. The stronger and more complete it is, the less effort it takes to draw energy from it.” She smiled. “Let’s take you, for example. I could easily sustain myself just by keeping you close to me. I wouldn’t even have to focus in order to feed.” Chrysalis moved in and planted a peck on Twilight’s lips. “And I’m not even done helping your love along.”

“You’re not?” asked Twilight. When Chrysalis shook her head, Twilight looked down. “I. . . Chrysalis? I have to ask you something. Something important.”

The queen’s expression instantly became concerned. “I imagine you do.” She gave a nod as the magical flames faded around her. “Go ahead.”

Twilight opened her mouth, only to shut it. She didn’t like her question. It implied that she didn’t believe in Chrysalis, and not believing in Chrysalis felt somehow. . .wrong. Almost like betrayal, somehow. Objectively, Twilight knew that her concerns were perfectly justified, but nonetheless, guilt gnawed at her stomach as she finally managed to say, “I know that you’re going to finish changing the love in me, and I want that, I really do.” Twilight briefly closed her eyes and smiled at the warmth in her chest. “I don’t know if I’ve ever felt this good.” Her frown returned. “That said. . . you have a lot you still have to answer for. For my brother, for Cadence, for all the ponies in Canterlot. . . You’ve done a lot of bad things, Chrysalis, and I have to know. . . can I trust you? Can I trust that you won’t be the same pony that you were?”

Chrysalis gave the ground a long, thoughtful look. “I will do what I think is best for my subjects, Twilight.” She put a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “One of the reasons I want you by my side is to help me do better than I have, and I promise that I’ll try my best to lead the hive in a way that doesn’t cause the kind of harm that I’ve caused in the past.” She looked up at Twilight, and her expression was solemn. “However, the day may come when I have to do something that must be done, even if it hurts one or both of us. That’s just the way things are right now. Can you trust me?” She shook her head. “I don’t know.” Chrysalis looked into Twilight’s eyes, and her voice became a plea that was almost desperate. “Will you trust me, Twilight?”

Twilight froze with her mouth open. On some level, she knew that this was it. If she said no, then perhaps there was still some small part of her that could resist the influence Chrysalis had cast over her, and in time she might even be able to bring herself back. If she said yes, then she would assist the changelings in conquering Equestria, where she would almost certainly be forced to betray the ponies she served, albeit with some influence over what happened to them, and she might well be captured and punished for her betrayal. For what felt like an eternity, Twilight teetered between those two words, unable to decide.

The longer she looked at Chrysalis, however, the longer she stared into the queen’s begging eyes, the more she realized that the choice was already made. She couldn’t, wouldn’t turn against somepony that she loved. It could be Tartarus, she thought, or it could be the mirror, or it could even be the moon. As long as I’m with her, maybe those things wouldn’t be so bad.

“Yes.”

Chrysalis didn’t hesitate. Her kiss was far softer, more tender, than the others had been, but the passion behind it blazed like a torch. Twilight felt their horns cross, and gasped as a sudden spark raced through her body, bringing with it a tidal wave of all-consuming comfort and warmth. Something inside her fell into place with a final, resounding crash, and she returned the kiss with enthusiasm, feeling a happy tear trickle down the side of her face. Chrysalis held the kiss for a long moment before finally drawing away, nuzzling into Twilight’s ear and whispering, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” responded Twilight, pulling back and looking amorously into the queen’s eyes. “I. . . I love you, Chrysalis, and I don’t know if I could ever do anything else.”

The two leaned in and enjoyed another long, gentle kiss before Twilight broke away and said sheepishly, “So, uh. . . can I move my body now?”

“Oh!” exclaimed Chrysalis, and Twilight giggled as the changeling’s entire face literally turned crimson. Chrysalis sputtered in embarrassment for a few seconds before babbling, “I- Of course! How silly of me to forget!” Her horn flashed, and Twilight felt her limbs come back under her control. She shook them experimentally and stretched, feeling the stiffness fade from her body, and moved forward to wrap her hooves around Chrysalis. The queen returned the hug firmly, one of her hooves gliding up and down Twilight’s back before patting her gently as they broke the hug.

“So what happens now?” asked Twilight curiously. “I mean, I suppose I should probably be getting back to the Palace of Friendship soon, right?”

“That can wait,” responded Chrysalis. “As I said, we have days before you really need to go back, and though we won’t use all of them, I’d like to get things off to a good start.”

“What do you mean?” said Twilight, furrowing her brow.

“You’re my student now,” replied the queen with a knowing grin. “I have many, many, many, things to teach you, and it’ll start with my people. I’ll teach you everything I can about changelings, Twilight, which is, needless to say, quite a bit.” Her grin grew. “I’ll even teach you our magic.

Twilight’s eyes were as wide as her grin. “Can you really do that?”

“Were you any other pony apart from Celestia or Luna, probably not. However, you’re Twilight Sparkle.” Chrysalis nuzzled Twilight fondly. “If anypony can master such a complex and alien form of magic, it’s you.”

Twilight blushed furiously at the words. They’d have been flattering coming from anypony, but coming from Chrysalis? “I. . .um. . . thanks. . . Chryssy.”

Chrysalis’s face went blank in a millisecond, and only a steadily climbing eyebrow gave any indication of what she was feeling. Twilight instantly recoiled, worry and embarrassment coloring her cheeks as she grasped wildly for an apology. “Omigosh, I’m sorry, I didn’t think it would be a big deal, and I thought it sounded cute, but I should have asked you if yo-mmph!”

Twilight squealed as Chrysalis stopped her lips with a firm, giggling kiss. The changeling waited until Twilight had suitably melted down before drawing back and saying, “Chryssy, huh?” She smirked. “I think you’re the only living thing that could get away with calling me that.” She gave Twilight a serious look, although the effect was ruined by her obvious attempts not to laugh. “Just remember what a privilege that is.”

Twilight gave a relieved smile of her own. “Of course, your majesty,” she said with equally giggly gravity. “I’ll never forget that you’ve bestowed such an honor upon me.” She then pushed herself into another nuzzle. “Seriously though, what’s the next step? I know that you have things to teach me first, but what’s the next part of your plan?”

Chrysalis remained silent until the nuzzle was broken. “I don’t know yet,” she said matter-of-factly. “I have several ideas, but I wasn’t going to decide until I’d shared them with you. I’ll give that. . . three days. That should give us enough time to start your new education properly.” Chrysalis bent forward to peck Twilight on the cheek. “I’m really looking forward to your ideas, Twilight. I’ve gotten pretty good at covering my bases and having back-ups, but as they say, two minds are better than one.” She kissed Twilight again. “Especially a mind like yours.” She looked into Twilight’s eyes, and the affectionate pride in her gaze almost brought another tear to the alicorn’s face. “There’s nothing we can’t do if we stand together, Twilight. Nothing.”

As the queen moved in for yet another kiss, Twilight felt herself grow happy all over again as she considered everything that she now had to look forward to. She had a teacher who could show her secrets that not even Celestia could. She had one of the world’s most secretive races at her hooftips, just waiting to be studied. She had a new challenge ahead of her, one that would require her to apply her mind and magic in ways that she never had before. Most of all though, she had somepony with whom she could share a feeling that she’d barely even considered until today, one that had rocked the foundations of her being and filled her with a kind of joy that she never knew even existed.

Twilight wrapped her hoof around Chrysalis’s neck, pressing deeper into the kiss as incandescent warmth rushed through her body, and smiled. She was happy.

Why wouldn’t she be? She was in love.