Changing Diamonds

Rarity sat in a carriage, her head pressed against the smooth wall. She watched as the Canterlot streets whizzed through the tinted window. Normally, she’d love a trip to Canterlot. The sights and sounds would usually make her heart pound with excitement. Instead of joy, a pit of something writhed in her stomach. It made her want to curl up into a ball.

Rarity sighed, her eyes fluttering shut. She could remember the disappointment on her friend's faces so clearly.

She shouldn’t feel bad; she was a top changeling, Chrysalis’s right-hoof mare! But if she was so important, then why was she tearing up? Rarity attempted to blink the burning tears from her eyes, her breath hitching.

“A-hem.” Chrysalis cleared her throat sharply. Rarity popped up, quickly wiping the tears from her eyes.

“Yes, my queen?” She responded, tapping her hooves on the seat below. Chrysalis eyed Rarity, peering suspiciously.

“You seem distracted. You’re not having second thoughts, are you?” She questioned. Rarity quickly shook her head.

“Absolutely not! I wouldn’t dream of such a thing!” Rarity huffed.

Chrysalis hummed, eyeing Rarity once again. Rarity shuffled uncomfortably, tapping her hooves on the seat below. Chrysalis’s green eyes stared deep into the mare's soul.

“I don’t believe you.” She said, calm as ever. With a brief glow from her queen's horn, Rarity was enveloped with magic. She felt something inside her wither away like ash in the wind. She shook her head, her chest feeling lighter.

“Now, how do you really feel about ponies?”

Rarity stuck her tongue out, scrunching her muzzle.

“They’re absolutely horrendous! The sooner you take over this retched place, the better!”

A smile crept onto Chrysalis’s face, and she straightened her posture.

“Good. Commence phase three.” Chrysalis ordered with a mild hiss. With a quick flash, Rarity’s form morphed into Shining Armor. She stretched her now muscular legs.

“You are not to speak unless spoken to. Understood?” She ordered. Rarity nodded, watching her queen change forms. Just as planned, she was that disgusting pink princess.

The carriage slowed to a halt, stopping in front of the castle. Rarity stared at the castle in awe. She had seen the Canterlot castle plenty of times before, but this was different. By the end of the day, this would be changeling territory.

The doors were opened by Celestia’s guardsmen, greeting the pair with a bow. Chrysalis strolled out of the carriage, keeping her head high.

“You two, disperse,” Chrysalis hissed to the disguised carriage pullers. The poorly made carriage rocked away. At the entrance stood Celestia and Luna. Between the mares stood dozens of guards, all standing at attention.

“Aunt Celestia, hi!” Chrysalis said with a faux smile. She trotted through the guards, keeping her head high. Each guard bowed as the pair walked through. Rarity was supposed to love attention, but this felt…wrong. She shook her head. She would get over this feeling by the end of the day; she was sure of it.

Chrysalis nuzzled under Celestia’s chin, hiding a grimace.

“I’m so happy we can finally sit down and talk. You’ve been quite busy since your wedding.” Celestia reminded.

“You know how being a princess is. Just work!” Chrysalis fake laughed. A smile crept onto her face. She turned to Luna, who bowed at her presence.

“It is an honor to meet officially. As you presume, I was moderately industrious during your courtship.” Luna apologized. Chrysalis blinked, her fake grin growing wider.

“Mhm!” She responded. She turned back to Celestia. “Shall we get going? I just can’t bear the wait any longer.”

“I suppose this is a well-needed break?” Celestia chuckled, leading the pair inside.

Rarity began to tune out the conversation between the royals. Was she really doing the right thing? While she felt better than she had in the longest time, she couldn’t help but feel a gnawing in her stomach. She shook her head, quickening her pace. She needed to do something to get her mind off this internal debate.

Rarity followed closely behind Chrysalis, her eyes wandering as they entered a new hallway. Stained-glass windows lined the walls. The sunlight shined through them, leaving a multi-colored pattern on the floor. They were absolutely stunning. She had to make a mental note to design a dress inspired by this.

Her eyes trailed to the next window. It was her friends! Well, former friends. They all posed gracefully, standing on their haunches. On the top was that horrid draconequus, Discord. A spark of hope flickered in her chest.

She wondered how her friends were doing now. Had they escaped her well-planned prison, or had they torn each other into bits? Rarity didn’t know why she cared; she shouldn’t care about ponies anymore! But even then…a part of her hoped that they had escaped.

“Shining Armor, you have been awfully quiet. Anything on your mind?” Celestia asked. Chrysalis shot Rarity a warning glare.

Rarity quickly pursed her lips, her brain racing with a thousand thoughts. How did Shining Armor speak? She wished she had paid more attention to him.

“I am simply adequate.” She responded, flicking her mane out of her eyes. Celestia brought her hoof to her mouth, chuckling.

“My oh my, what an interesting vocabulary you have.” Celestia teased. Chrysalis cleared her throat, bringing the attention back to herself.

“You know how stallions are. Trying out new words.” Chrysalis brushed. “Now, I think that-” And with that, Rarity had once again stopped listening.

Soon enough, they made it to a room. It was rather fancy, looking like it was used for meetings. On the table lay a bountiful meal, only reserved for royalty. Rarity almost felt bad for intruding on such an event.

“Wooow, this looks…great!” Chrysalis half complimented, approaching the table.

“Thank you, I made it myself!”

Rarity followed after Chrysalis, sitting next to her. The food looked absolutely delicious; it was a shame that Rarity wouldn’t be able to enjoy it.

With a quick flash, Chrysalis materialized a metal tin. She placed it on the table, nudging it toward Celestia.

“I brought you two some tea to relax your nerves. Being the ruler of Equestria is so hard.” Chrysalis batted her eyelashes. Celestia flipped open the box, gazing at the herbs within. She smiled, passing the box to Luna.

“Luna, do you mind making us some tea?” Celestia asked.

“Of course, sister,” Luna said, carrying the tin out of the room.
“What have you two been doing since the honeymoon?” Celestia inquired. Chrysalis gave a fake laugh, inching her plate away from her.

“Oh, you know, a bit of this and a bit of that.” She chuckled. “What have you been up to?” She quickly deflected. Just as planned, Celestia started talking about herself. Oh, how wise Chrysalis was to make Celestia change the subject. Rarity sighed. Her queen was astonishing.

Rarity shifted her food around the plate, barely listening to the conversation. How was she meant to contribute without ruining everything? So she did what she did best; she created.

She nudged her food, turning it into nonsensical shapes. What would she do after this? She could open a changeling dress shop. Did changelings wear clothes? Rarity sure hoped they did. What would she do if they didn’t?

Rarity spared a glance at Chrysalis. She could spend the rest of her time as the Queen's assistant. While it wasn’t ideal, other changelings would see it as an honor. Though…she wasn’t any other changeling, was she?

A changeling raised by ponies would stick out like a sore horn. Rarity placed her hoof on her chest, a sharp ache forming.

Rarity peeked up, seeing Princess Luna now across from her. She idly sipped on her tea. When had she gotten back? She looked back at her plate, now gazing at what she had made.

Her mashed potatoes, carrots, and peas formed into the shape of several ponies. She’d recognize those shapes anywhere. It was her friends. Sure, it was only a crude depiction, but it was them.

Rarity levitated her spoon, quickly stirring the food into a fine mush. She looked around, wondering if anyone had seen. Luckily, no one had noticed. Her gaze wandered to Celestia, who was sipping her tea.

“This is delicious! Where did you get it?” Celestia complimented.

“Oh, it’s just a brew I’ve whipped up. It’s nothing special.” Chrysalis replied, a charming smile across her face. Celestia passed a teacup to Rarity, letting it slide across the table.

“Shining Armor, you must try some.” She offered. Rarity reached for the cup but was stopped by Chrysalis’s wing blocking her path.

“Oh, he doesn’t want any of that. He had enough earlier.” Chrysalis butted in. Rarity huffed, looking back at her food. It was best that she didn’t speak. She pursed her lips, going back to prodding at her mush.

Rarity listened to the royals for what felt like hours. How long was this charade meant to go on? They were already in the castle, and she was sure Canterlot was riddled with disguised changelings by now. It was all on Chrysalis; with one word, this room would be swarmed.

Rarity was having second thoughts. Why was she having second thoughts? Rarity was meant to be a top changeling! Feelings like this were absurd. Rarity wished all of these horrid would be shoved away, never to be seen again.

But she didn’t want that, did she? Deep down, Rarity wanted to feel. She wanted everything to go back to normal. Things wouldn’t go back to normal if she let this continue, would they? Rarity could never truly live without her friends.

Rarity began to weigh her options. On one hoof, she’d be with creatures like her, creatures with the same struggles and urges. On the other hoof, she could live more freely than ever with her friends.

Would they accept her for who she is? Rarity sure hoped they did.

The doors slammed open, snapping Rarity from her internal conflict. At the door stood five very familiar ponies. Rarity’s heart sped up. They made it out.

Rarity’s ears flattened. They looked furious. It was directed at her, no doubt.

“Twilight!” Celestia gasped in surprise. “What brings you here in such a hurry?” She questioned. Twilight jutted her hoof out, pointing at the disguised queen.

“That’s Chrysalis!”

Chrysalis looked between the Princesses and Twilight, her jaw slacked. She had to come up with an excuse. Any excuse.

“I-uh-guh.” Chrysalis sputtered nonsensically. Rarity stared, wondering what the next move would be. Would she argue back? Would she start a fight?

“Oh, to hell with it.” Chrysalis hissed. In a quick flash of green, Chrysalis turned to her original form. She grabbed Rarity by the neck, fury filling her eyes.

“How did they escape?” Chrysalis spat, pointing to the pitiful ponies.

“I-I don’t know!” Rarity stammered. Chrysalis grumbled, rubbing her hoof across her muzzle.

“I can’t take you seriously when you look like that.” She critized. “Change into something more presentable.”
And with that, Rarity changed back into her changeling self. As natural as this form was, it felt…wrong.

Rarity glanced back at her friends. They stared at her with an expression she couldn’t read. She huffed, letting her gaze wander elsewhere.

“Chrysalis!” Celestia half yelped, stumbling from her seat. She stood firmly, her wings open in defense.

“Surprised to see me?” Chrysalis taunted. Celestia glowered, sparing a glance at a terrified Luna.

“Luna, get the guards,” Celestia ordered. Luna flapped into the air, bolting above Twilight’s head.

Chrysalis chuckled at the princess's attempt. Her horn began to spark, a high-pitched noise ringing through the room. Rarity squeezed her eyes shut, her ears ringing.

There was a distant sound of buzzing rapidly approaching the room. Rarity peeked her eyes, seeing hundreds of changeling barreling towards the room.

Amidst the swarm stood Princess Luna. In a swift moment, she was piled on top of. Rarity grimaced.

Wordlessly, Celestia lowered her head. Her horn crackled, a dull spark flying out. She stumbled, nearly crumbling to the floor.

“What did you do?”

“I see you’ve enjoyed my special tea.” Chrysalis taunted. “It tends to block magic." She tilted her head toward Celestia. In an instant, Celestia was thrown back with a blast. The alicorn skid across the floor, her back hitting the wall.

“Get her,” Chrysalis ordered. A group of changelings flocked in with gleeful hisses. Any attempt that Celestia made to get up was proven useless. She was piled on, nearly crushed under dozens of changelings.

“Stay away from her!” Twilight bellowed, charging at the changelings.

Rainbow Dash flew around the horrid creatures, punching in any direction she could. Applejack threw out her hindlegs bucking through the swarm. Fluttershy, surprisingly, dodged nearly every hit. Her skittish nature helped her slip through the changelings wanting grasps. And Pinkie was just being Pinkie. She cartwheeled through the swarm, occasionally hitting a changeling with the burst of confetti.

Rarity let out a sigh. She couldn’t tell if it was admiration or annoyance.

Unfortunately, they were outnumbered. The changelings swarmed around the ponies, poking and prodding at them. They laughed evilly, teasing the ponies.

Rarity felt stuck. Her legs trembled. The line between who she was and who she would be is blurred. Should she step in? Should she stay where she was? Rarity couldn’t be certain.

“Put me down!” Rainbow Dash ordered, thrashing in the changeling's arms.

“What should we do with them?” One changeling asked, ignoring Rainbow’s cries. Chrysalis looked between Rarity and the ponies. A knowing smile spread across her face.

“Drop them.” She commanded. The drones quickly complied, dropping the mares to the ground. Twilight tried to bolt up, only to be pinned down by another changeling.

“You,” Chrysalis jutted her hoof towards Rarity, “fix your mistake. Deal with them. Prove your worth.”