On the Dangers of Magic Mirrors
[Main Universe]
It was a sunny afternoon in Canterlot. The pegasi had cleared the clouds, the birds were singing, and the dragonsneeze trees wafted their perfume through the city.
It was in the West Tower (aka, the Tower of Faust) that Celestia was sitting across from Chrysalis, the both of them enjoying a simple afternoon tea... or coffee, in the case of the alicorn, a fact which Chrysalis found humorous.
"So you never liked the taste of the iconic royal drink," the changeling said with a smirk, drinking from her own cup of ginseng. "I never would have guessed, given all the times you've had it at social functions."
Celestia visibly shuddered. "Don't remind me. I've never been able to stand it. It's too bitter, no matter how much sugar you add."
"Well, I won't tell anyone... unless I find a good reason..."
"Chrysalis, my aversion to tea is HARDLY good blackmail material."
"You never know, Celestia. It only takes telling the right pony. as I recall, Luna decided to give you a set of exotic tea blends for a Hearth's Warming gift, correct?"
There was a palpable silence before Chrysalis spoke again, chuckling a little.
"Relax, I'm joking. But I have come to discuss something very important with you, and it does involve Luna... as well as your older sister."
Celestia went wide eyed, and barely managed to swallow her coffee instead of spitting it out.
~~~
Of course, neither of these powerful political figures knew that in a universe very similar to their own, two ponies were having a very similar, though not identical, conversation.
~~~
[The Mirrorverse]
Princess Celestia cocked her head. "But are you sure that could have happened?"
The bespectacled changeling across from her nodded her head. "If the King did absorb all of the residual evil within Luna and yourself, the shock might have been enough to..."
Celestia held up her hoof. "But it's only a theory. You don't have actual proof?"
Duchess Chrysalis, Ruler-in-Stead of Equestria, patron of Love, and leader of the changelings, tapped her hooves together nervously. "Well, no... I'm only saying it's a possibility."
Celestia furrowed her brow. "Well, I'm... honestly not quite sure what to think of this... given what you've said, it seems like idle fantasizing..."
Here Chrysalis spoke, more confident. "Celestia, I might be the patron of Love, but I've relied on my intuition as much as, or possibly more than, my heart. 200 years ago I led an army of changelings across the sky, attacking and conquering the cloud city of Timbucktu for no reason other than a simple lust for power and a feeling in my gut telling me it was the right thing to do, and I was proven right when Manechuria attempted to invade Neighpon's shores, and the addition of a flying city proved valuable to the defense of my home country. Yes, I've mellowed out greatly since my days of wanton conquering, but my intuition has never steered me wrong, and right now it's telling me that she's out there, alone and scared, and we need to find her."
Celestia was silent for several minutes.
"Very well," she said at last. "Luna and I will begin searching immediately."
The Duchess smiled. "Thank you."
The meeting over, the changeling took her leave, deciding to take a look at something that had been picking at her mind for the past few months.
~~~
[Main Universe]
Her conversation with Celestia having finished several minutes ago, Chrysalis had decided to explore the castle. She had only been here a few times, and so was unfamiliar with all the little nooks and crannies found within the ancient building. Of particular interest were the lower levels of the castle, which she had reached by late afternoon, full of old, forgotten rooms and passageways.
Why she had found herself drawn to this one particular secret room, however, she didn't know.
Why the only object within it was a mirror... she also didn't know. It certainly LOOKED magic, if she had to guess, though the assumption was more based on a mirror she had seen in some elf queen's castle than anything else.
Here was where the more "nerdy" side of her brain took over. she inspected the mirror, prodding it, poking it, and breathing on the reflective surface. When this yielded no results, her horn lit, and the mirror was wrapped in a green glow.
What happened next can best be described as a quiet explosion. There was light and force, certainly, as Chrysalis was nearly blinded by a bright flash of light and thrown backwards, but there was no actual noise.
When Chrysalis regained her vision, she was surprised. Instead of a reflective surface, the mirror now contained a purple, smoky vortex. Cautiously, the queen got up, and stuck her hoof in, feeling around.
Upon feeling something grab her, she panicked, flailing backwards, and pulling whatever had grabbed her through the mirror, at the same time accidently kicking the mirror itself, causing it to shatter as it hit the floor.
Chrysalis didn't process this as she was too busy looking at... herself.
Well, almost herself. The clone was lighter colored than she was, and devoid of any holes. Her horn was slightly curved, and her large wings had faded heart designs on them. Her mane was more similar to Cadance's, as was her crown, though only in shape, not color. She wore purple shoes, as well as a purple-ish collar with a pink heart on the front. Completing the entire ensemble was a pair of round glasses perched in front of her eyes.
Both changelings looked at each other, then looked at the shattered mirror. The silence continued for several minutes before both spoke at the same time.
"Oh Kurappu."
The two changelings continued looking at each other for several minutes after their simultaneous exclamation. It was the lighter-colored one who spoke first.
"...Am I that... thick... around the middle too?"
Chrysalis blushed brightly. "I'm pregnant, if you must know."
"Oh... sorry, I didn't mean..."
"It's fine, but back to the bigger question. Who are you?"
The bespectacled mare raised an eyebrow. Chrysalis rolled her eyes. "BESIDES an alternate version of me, I mean."
"Duchess Chrysalis, Patron of Love, Empress of Neighpon and the changelings, and ruler-in-stead of Equestria."
Now Chrysalis raised an eyebrow. "Duchess?"
"Just a formality I need to follow when I'm in Equestria. Surely they don't call you an Empress outside of Neighpon?"
"Queen, actually."
"Oh."
"Yes. Alright, first thing's first, we can't both go by Chrysalis here, that's just asking for confusion and chaos."
The Duchess nodded her head. "True. I suppose I can just go by my title. After all, this is your home dimension."
Chrysalis smiled. "Well, alright, Duchess. Now for the more immediate problem of getting you home."
Duchess looked at the shattered remains of the mirror. "That might be a problem. This was one of Starswirl's artifacts. Your Starswirl, I mean."
"So it's ancient, difficult to replicate, and is probably the only link to your home universe..."
"Pretty much."
Chrysalis sighed. "Alright. let's sweep up the shards and explain to Celestia what happened."
"Alright... I just hope my son can handle things while I'm away..."
~~~
[The Mirrorverse]
It was another typical day at Changeling Keep. The citizens of the walled city went about their daily lives, and Prince Staghorn wandered the corridors of the castle.
Like his mother, he wore glasses, but he also only had three legs due to an unfortunate run-in with a Cragadile a few decades ago.^
The words best describing the prince would be shy, unadventurous, and awkward. At 220 years of age, he was a fairly attractive stallion, but his meekness had prevented him from taking a wife, though he did have one mare in particular on his mind...
"My Lord?"
And there she was. The High-General of the Changeling guard. Stag nearly panicked.
"Oh, um, h-hello, Double. It's nice to see you."
The mare smiled. "The same to you, my lord. Sadly, the news isn't so nice... your mother's missing."
Stag's eyes widened. "What?"
"We just received the news from Canterlot," Double continued. "We don't suspect any foul play, and from what we can tell, she was in Canterlot during the time of her disappearance. Until then, you've been appointed ruler until her return."
"...So... King, then?"
"It would appear so, my lord."
"...Um... Double?"
"Yes?"
"Would you mind... um... going on a personal patrol with me? To better survey everything and keep the citizens calm?"
She smiled. "I'd be honored, my lord."
"...Just Stag, please."
Author's Note
^Main Universe Stag had a similar experience a few centuries ago, but escaped with only a broken leg. when stressed, he has a semi-noticeable limp
