I didn't have to open my eyes to know who had shouted. I was familiar with the voice by now. Had anypony else called out, I might not have stopped the compression of my spell. It was only because it was her that I had postponed my judgment.

"MY LITTLE HEART!" Queen Cantata's voice was dripping with a mixture of emotions. A few I could identify were relief, joy, and a small tinge of worry. I suppose seeing my daughter -- if I had a daughter -- safe when I thought the worst would elicit the same feelings in me.

"Sunset," the princess' voice had cooled several degrees from the initial passionate shout, but there was still a very real desperation in it. "Please... don't."

"She's too dangerous, Cadenza," I replied calmly. She had to know that my decision hadn't been made from a place built on a foundation of emotions. It wasn't a rash choice I had made, nor was it born of anger. Chrysalis was a true menace and letting her live would be a liability, not just for Cadenza and the Empire, but for the rest of Equestria as well. That was a fact I knew to be true. "She refuses to negotiate and she will not surrender," I sighed, rubbing my face with a hoof. This was so much more responsibility than I'd ever wanted, but to keep everypony and everything I loved safe, I'd make the tough decisions others wouldn't. "What would you have me do? Let her go?"

"I..." the princess was on the verge of tears as she watched the changeling struggle inside her cage of punishment. I turned to watch the cretin fight for her life as well. She looked so pathetic, trapped in that small prison of light, doing all she could not to end up a messy pile of flesh.

It was sad.

So stubborn... So pitiful.

...

"Can I... can I try and talk with her?" Cadenza's question was so far detached from any kind of order that I almost immediately withdrew my spell and agreed to her request. "Sunset..." The way she said my name made me give her my full attention. I turned to find her gaze locked on the carpet below. "She is my sister."

Several gasps and shocked sounds came from the Elements.

Queen Cantata remained silent.

Guess they hadn't heard about that little tidbit of information yet.

"How can you be sure?" I looked back at the insect. She was pressed on all sides, her cheek and one jade eye glaring at me as if I was the monster. She no longer looked afraid or even worried. All of her effort was now fully placed in the hatred category. With the way she was scowling at me, I was confident that had our roles been reversed, I'd already be dead. "She tricked Twilight. She tricked all of us... How do you know you're not under her spell, too?"

"I don't, Sunset," she trotted up to the prism of mana. Chrysalis took her gaze off of me, looking at the pegasus instead.

What is...?

I couldn't be certain, but it looked like the queen's visage had softened a bit at seeing the princess up close.

"But... are you really willing to condemn an entire species to extinction for the transgressions of their ruler?" Cadenza asked, placing a hoof against my spell.

"I..." my body went rigid, my eyes snapping open. How I hadn't connected those dots was beyond me. If Chrysalis' mother was truly gone then the changeling before us was the only thing left of the monarchy. The hive wouldn't be able to survive without a queen.

What should I do? I bit my lip, wishing for nothing more than the opportunity to speak with my mentor. But she wasn't here. I couldn't even talk to Star or Twilight. I had to make a decision.

...

We have her. She's completely neutralized.

I couldn't fathom the countless problems setting her free could and surely would cause, but now, after Cadenza's question, I was just as worried there'd be massive ripples on the world if I put an end to her life.

"Sunset... what do you think Princess Celestia would do?" the princess asked, turning to look my way. Her light violet eyes pleaded with me to reconsider my choice. It was an unfair question.

Celestia is perfect.

...

I put an end to my spell, the Queen of the Changelings falling to the floor in a heap. She fought to catch her breath, sweat pouring from every inch of her body as she grew acclimated to the much cooler hall. I turned to face the Elements and Queen Cantata.

"This is your Empire, Your Highness," I swept a hoof towards the changeling. "I will defer to your judgement. I will stand by whatever decision you make."

The Elements collectively looked at the monarch who merely sighed in disappointment. Her weariness came back to the forefront as she pinched the bridge of her nose with a hoof.

"I..." she glared down at the changeling. She considered her choices for a moment before speaking. "Marengo did all he could to aid the changelings..." She sighed once again, her anger waning a bit as her demeanor softened. "Speak, Cadenza. If you are unable to sway her, there will be no other options save execution."

"M-MOM!?" Cadenza gaped at her mother, stunned by what she clearly perceived as cruelty that was uncharacteristic of her parent.

"She wants absolute power, Cadenza," Cantata pointed an accusing hoof at the queen. "The changelings have the numbers to slowly infiltrate all corners of Equestria. Who knows if they haven't already done so?"

"But-"

"SHE KILLED YOUR FATHER!" The sudden rage on Queen Cantata's face made all of Chrysalis' prior anger look like a foal's.

"I... I know that, Mom," Cadenza turned back to face the murderer. The culprit was back to normal, breathing heavily and looking much like a cornered animal, but no longer struggling with the effects of my spell. Surprisingly enough, she still hadn't tried anything. If she did, I was more than ready to put her right back in her place, but it was a wonder she was being "good" for the time being.

"Then speak to her, Cadenza," the queen's fury was gone, sadness all over her face. "Show me what your father never could."

The pegasus offered the insect her hoof, possibly to help her up. It was promptly swatted away as Chrysalis stood without any aid.

"So you managed to escape my trap..." Chrysalis growled. "Congratulations," she said mockingly, turning away.

"I guess your heart wasn't really in it," Cadenza reached out with the same hoof that'd been previously hit before slowly lowering it to the floor. "Why?"

"Why, WHAT!?" Chrysalis spat, still refusing to face the pegasus.

"You could've made it impossible for me to escape if you'd wanted," Cadenza didn't push back nor did she lower herself to the changeling's level of immaturity. She kept a noble grace about her as she tried again. "You didn't, though. Why not?"

Chrysalis continued to be uncooperative, staring at the wall.

...

"CHRYS-"

"Perhaps, it was all part of my plan," the bug cut her sister off. "Perhaps, I knew you'd come now and you would end up saving my life."

"Fat chance," I scoffed, drawing the attention of the pair. "I said it before, Chrysalis; somepony with your massive ego? You never expected to lose and you most certainly did not make any plans in advance in case such an event occured."

Chrysalis' fiery glower confirmed my sentiments, her eyes filling with malice as I exposed her lie. She bared her fangs for a second before turning to face the wall yet again with an endlessly annoyed exhalation.

"You damned ponies," she scratched at her face with a hoof, growing silent.

"Have you always known?" Cadenza, to her credit, would not stop trying. "That I was your sister?"

...

"Please, talk to me, Ch-"

"I have," the queen's voice was so low it would've gone unheard had the hall not been as silent as it was. Her short reply brought hope to Cadenza's face.

"I didn't," the princess bit her lower lip in shame. "Why didn't y-"

"To what end, Cadenza!?" the changeling whipped around, bringing the two face to face. The rage on the queen's face caused the princess to cringe. "So our families could live happily ever after!? SHE," she pointed a hoof at Queen Cantata who was clearly stunned by the gesture, "is the one who ruined everything for ME and MY family! Marengo loved my mother more than anyone else and yet he still..."

The changeling looked to be on the verge of tears, a staggering difference from her normal lofty arrogance.

"Chrysalis, I never mean-"

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH, CANTATA!" Chrysalis roared. "IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! FATHER MAY HAVE PHYSICALLY BEEN WITH MY MOTHER, BUT HIS HEART WAS NEVER HERS!" she ranted like a madmare. "I DESPISE YOU AND EVERYTHING YOU HOLD DEAR!"

The Queen of the Crystal Empire could do nothing more than close her mouth in shocked silence.

"Then..." Cadenza was nearly whispering. "that must mean you hate me too..."

...

Chrysalis took a deep breath, a long sigh escaping her mouth as she turned and walked away from her sibling yet again. She placed a hoof against the wall, knocking against it several times as she spoke.

"I ABHOR ponies," she stopped rapping with her hoof with one final strike against the crystal. "You... have always been the only exception, Cadenza."

"Chrysalis?" the princess took a cautious step forward.

"Don't misunderstand my words," the changeling pressed a hoof against her face. "I WANT to," she growled, striking the wall once again, this time with more ferocity than before. Despite the aggression Cadenza took another step forward. "I WANT TO HATE YOU!" Chrysalis' hoof returned to her face. "Love is sustenance for a changeling... It is nothing more than weakness to experience such a pathetic emotion for my kind."

...

"I..." Cadenza came to a stop right behind the queen. "I hated your kind," she told the truth. "Mostly, I hated your mom. She took dad away from me... and my mom's husband away from her," she continued, her foreleg lifting a bit. "But... I don't want that feeling. I've never wanted it," her hoof hovered right above the changeling's shoulder, not making contact. "For ponies... hatred is weakness," she lowered her hoof to the floor. "It's... It's hard, right?"

...

"I really hope you're not expecting me to break down and apologize for everything I've done," Chrysalis chuckled, a purely sarcastic sound. "I may have lost this battle... but that won't stop me..." the changeling whirled around, looking past her sister at the rest of us. "YOU LOATHSOME PONIES DON'T HAVE THE GALL TO PUT ME TO DEATH!" The rest of us merely groaned, her oblivious attitude trying both mine and Cantata's patience. The changeling looked back at Cadenza. "This is all an elaborate ploy anyway. You're trying to get me to lower my guard, trying to make me fall for stupid sentimentality so you can-"

"Chrysalis..." Cadenza sighed, interrupting her sibling. "You're the one who put those weak shackles on me." That fact brought a look of dumb realization to the bug's face. "I'm only here right now because you chose not to bind me more securely or have me sent to the hive and replaced."

"That's..." Chrysalis lifted a hoof defiantly, but it immediately went slack. She spun around, facing the wall once again. "You fool, Chrysalis." She'd whispered to herself but the hall was just way too quiet at the moment for it to have worked.

"We're sisters, Chrysalis," Cadenza stated kindly. "There was no reason for you to tell me about that unless you wanted me to know... I've always wanted a sister. Ever since I was young... ever since dad-"

"How sad..." Chrysalis laughed mockingly. "You'd have gotten one, too... if you were still going to marry Shining Armor."

"Once this is all over, she still is," Cantata interjected with a hiss. It was evident she was beginning to tire of the game the Queen of the Changelings was playing.

"That's going to be hard to do when-"

"Chrysalis," Cadenza interrupted the insect, her voice as gentle as she could muster. "You don't have to keep doing this. It's... it's already over. You don't have to bluff anymore. I want to help y-"

"WHY WOULD I EVER NEED YOUR HELP, CADENZA!?" the queen said her name as if it were the most disgusting thing she'd ever had in her mouth.

"You don't, Chrysalis," Cadenza smiled meekly, lowering her head. "But you're my big sister... and I don't want to be your enemy."

No way...

Chrysalis turned around again, facing away, but right before she had done so I'd seen the maroon tinge that had come to her cheeks.

She roughly slammed both hooves against her face, rubbing vigorously as she let out an exasperated shout of frustration.

Cadenza stood her ground, lifting a hoof towards the bug while the rest of us waited with bated breath for the Changeling Queen to calm herself down.

...

"So then, what?" she finally asked. "You wish to reform me? You want me to change who I am simply to satiate you and the rest of the pathetic ponies that look down on me and my children?"

"That's the last thing I want," Cadenza shook her head. "Tell me what you want, Chrysalis. What you really want. We don't have to be enemies. We can find a way to make things work."

Chrysalis grew quiet. I wasn't sure if she was actually contemplating what Cadenza had said or if she was planning on trying something stupid. I hoped for the former but expected the latter.

"What I really want..." the changeling paused. I expected nonsense. I was surprised. "I desire nothing more than the power I need to ensure the survival of myself and my family."

"And just how much power is that?" Cantata huffed in annoyance. "You're their queen now. You have the entire changeling nation at your beck and call, yet you still thirst for even more?"

"You wouldn't understand, Your Highness," Chrysalis mocked the monarch, sneering while giving a halfhearted bow of her head. "Ponies are not changelings."

"Clearly," the Queen of the Crystal Empire turned her nose up at the Queen of the Changelings. "My ponies don't go around murdering others."

"NOR DO MY CHILDREN!" Chrysalis bellowed, taking an angry step towards the pegasus. As soon as my horn showed signs of activity the changeling backed down, a loud tsk coming from her.

"Then I guess they're nothing like their new mother, are they?" Queen Cantata turned her head away in disgust. Chrysalis' rage was building, her anger multiplying as she sucked in a deep breath. And then it was all gone in an instant. With a tired exhalation the Queen of the Changelings lowered her head.

"When an entity as powerful as the Unknown approaches you, you don't refuse any of its requests," Chrysalis sighed. I was intrigued by her statement.

"The Unknown?" Uttering its name sent a chill down my own spine.

Was that his name?

"Do you know why I worked with that... THING!?" Chrysalis asked nopony in particular, though she looked at her sister. None of us replied, waiting for her to continue. "It was either that or..." she faltered, shaking her head and looking away to keep us from seeing her tears. "He was going to destroy the hive," she gritted her teeth, trying to replace the sadness with fury.

"So you lose your home," Cantata scoffed. "Was it worth killing your own parents to-"

"No, you FOOL!" Chrysalis growled. "He was going to destroy EVERYTHING!" she snarled, saliva flying from her mouth. "My parents, me, every single changeling, AND the hive itself."

Cantata looked stunned for a moment, her eyes going wide. The rest of us were just as surprised, the girls looking at one another uncomfortably.

"That is absolutely ludicrous," the Queen of the Crystal Empire barked back. "No creature, save the Immortal Sisters, could do such a th-"

"She's not lying," I cut her off, drawing all their stunned gazes. "That thing was strong enough to do it." There was no doubt in my mind. He'd toyed with me. Had he truly wished it, I would've been dealt with in seconds.

...

"Does that mean..." Trixie decided halfway through her question to leave it to Cadenza.

"Does that mean you didn't want to do this?" the pegasus sounded extremely hopeful that that was the case. "You only did it because you were coerced?"

"What?" Chrysalis looked down at her sister. "Of course not," her face screwed up in irritation. "Who's to say that one day Celestia won't just decide the changelings are a problem and decide to exterminate us all? I already told you what I wanted, Cadenza. I will do anything to ensure the survival of my children... even cooperate with a demon and kill my own father and mother."

...

That's it, Cadenza!

All six of the Elements took up combative stances, the queen behind them looking at the changeling with repugnance. I couldn't understand why. Thankfully, Cadenza had also noticed what I had.

"If that really is the case, Chrysalis," Cadenza lifted her hoof toward the bug. "Work with me."

"CADENZA!?" Cantata shouted in disbelief.

Chrysalis stared down at her sister's hoof, looking just as disgusted as Cantata did before a look of realization crossed her features.

"You cheeky little brat," the changeling actually smiled. Cadenza returned the gesture, shaking her hoof a little to try and entice her sister.

"After we sort this whole mess out, I swear I'll do everything I can to help you get what you want," Cadenza stated honestly. "Together we can make the hive an asset and not a liability to Princess Celestia."

"Why?" Chrysalis narrowed her eyes at the pegasus. "Why would you do this for me and mine?"

Cadenza lifted her extended hoof to her chin, tapping it a couple of times before answering. "I think I understand dad a little better now," she returned her hoof to its outstretched position. "You and your mom are his family, too. I think that's why he decided to return to the hive. It was for your sake, Chrysalis. I think you needed him more than I did. I think him being there for you changed you a little... for the better."

Chrysalis' mouth contorted into a frown. Even so, she didn't reject that logic. Still, the insect refused to take the pegasus' hoof into her own.

"Cadenza," she finally lifted her black hoof, but didn't shake her sister's, although they were mere centimeters away from each other now. "If it means saving my children... I will gladly stab you in the back without a second thought." The Changeling Queen didn't smile, didn't look sad, didn't laugh. She merely stated the truth, her expression emotionless. "If you're okay with that possibility, then I will... attempt to do things your way." The queen didn't take Cadenza's hoof into her own, instead letting her sister make the decision. Cadenza grabbed her sister's hoof without hesitation.

"Even if I thought that was the truth," Cadenza shook her hoof. "I guess I'd be okay with it." Chrysalis' eyes went wide.

"You'd be fine with..." It was easy to see Cadenza was doing the shaking and Chrysalis had been caught off guard by her sister's claim. "Why, Cadenza?" the queen looked down at the pegasus with a completely baffled expression.

"Well... because you're my big sister, Chrysalis," Cadenza leapt forward, throwing her forelegs around the changeling's neck. "And I love you!"

Chrysalis stood stock still, her expression one of utter shock, much like the rest of us. Before anypony could do anything further a blinding pillar of light shined down from above, passing straight through the ceiling and completely overtaking Cadenza's body.

Chrysalis stumbled backwards, the light singeing her carapace.

"CADENZA!?" we all screamed in horror, the Queen of the Changelings doing so along with us.

Author's Note

With Blooming Days I really wanted to explore new attitudes for characters. I didn't want anyone to be exactly like their canon counterpart. Chrysalis here might be the exception, though her story is yet to be finished. In canon she lost her children. Here she is willing to do anything for them... maybe.