My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic — Season Ten

Smolder opened the door to Starlight's office. "Come on in, Posey."

The disguised Chrysalis entered the room and froze up when she locked eyes with the purple unicorn. Smolder left the room and closed the door as Starlight left her desk.

"Posey, was it?" Starlight asked as she trotted around the desk to greet the newcomer.

Chrysalis cleared her throat and nodded. "Yeah, that's me. Posey. And you're... Starlight?"

"That's me," Starlight replied with a smile. "So, Smolder tells me you're unsure about friendship. Care to share why?"

Posey sighed and sat down on the floor. "Whenever I tried to connect with ponies, I messed it up. I guess I just didn't understand what I was doing wrong."

"Like what?"

"Well... I played a prank that I guess I took too far?"

Starlight chuckled. "That sounds bad. Pranks are a tough thing to get right. To little, and it isn't worth doing. Too much, and you're in trouble. That's why I don't even try."

"See? You know what you're doing. I clearly need help."

"You certainly do," Starlight said with a smile. "And this place can help you. You're sure to make many friends during your stay here."

"My... stay?" Posey asked.

Starlight nodded. "We expanded the dorms, so you can have your own room, if you want."

Posey stared at her before jumping to her hooves. "Yes, I will take a room."

Luster left Shade's house as the griffin followed close behind. "Alright. Today's the day."

Shade walked up next to her and patted her back. "You got this. Just be honest."

The unicorn nodded. "Alright, Shade. I'll see you... later?"

"If you want."

"Cool! See ya!" Luster called as she took off towards Moss' house. "Time to get more forgiveness!"

"I didn't say I forgave you."

Luster screeched to halt and turned around. "Huh? What?"

"You betrayed my trust," Shade said bluntly. "And all you did was show up in the middle of the night. During a rainstorm. Crying."

Luster sighed heavily. "You're right. I guess I'll... think of something." She then began to back away. "I'm gonna give you the best apology ever!" She called out, before she took off again.

Shade just raised an eyebrow.

Smolder led Posey to her dorm room. "Today's already started, so your classes will start tomorrow," Smolder explained. "For now, just relax."

"Most appreciated," Posey said with a forced, but believable smile.

Smolder gave her a wave and left. The fake pink unicorn's smile faded and she closed the door before she turned to look at her bed. She let out a sigh and closed her eyes.

~~~

Chrysalis entered the bedroom just off her throne room where her stone bed lay. She sighed and dropped onto it. She had stolen a very thin mattress, but it was still hard rock underneath.

~~~

Posey opened her eyes and trotted over to the bed before she ran her hoof over the soft sheets. She even pressed down on it a few times before she climbed onto it. As she rested on her back, she closed her eyes again.

~~~

Chrysalis disguised as Cadance entered the large royal bedroom with Shining Armor and made her way over to the bed. "I'm sorry," the mare cooed, feigning drowsiness. "I'm not sure what came over me."

"Just rest," the stallion said with a smile. "Tomorrow, we have wedding business to attend to. And I still need to write to Twilight about us."

Cadance smiled. "You go do that. I'll be okay."

Shining gave her a kiss on the forehead before he left. Cadance then climbed onto the bed and sighed at the softness of the sheets and nuzzled the pillow with a smile.

~~~

Posey opened her eyes and rolled onto her side, her frown deepening before she closed her eyes to take a nap.

Luster spotted Moss Glow trotting past Fluttershy's cottage into the Everfree Forest. Now that the Elements of Harmony were gone, the forest was alive once more but seemed to have calmed down over the years. Now it was only mildly dangerous. Luster quickly followed after the kirin as the thick tree canopy blocked out the sunlight.

"Hey, Mossy," she greeted.

The kirin stopped and looked over her shoulder. "Oh. It's you." She then leaned to the side as if to look behind Luster.

The pink unicorn looked over her shoulder to see what the kirin was looking at. When she saw nothing, she gave the kirin a confused look. "What?'

"I don't see Crimson."

Luster frowned, understanding what the kirin meant. "Ha ha." She then moved forward. "Look, Mossy, I... I wanted to apologize."

"Did you talk to Shade yet?"

"Yeah, why?"

"When we headed back to town, she seemed... pretty upset. I just wanted to make sure you spoke with her first."

"Oh. Well, I did."

"And did she forgive you?"

Luster's ears dropped. "N... No, not really, no."

"Why not?"

"I sort of... showed up on her doorstep during the storm... crying. She said she was being nice to me because we're friends, but... that she hasn't forgiven me yet."

"Have you just... apologized?" Mossy asked. "Like you just did with me?"

Luster went wide-eyed. "I... I just... thought she needed a special apology, you know? Like a cake, or something."

"Sometimes the best apology is just saying you're sorry," Moss said, before she turned away and continued on into the forest.

Luster quickly trotted after her. "But... you forgive me, right?"

"No. You'll have to do better than that."

Luster stopped following and sat down as the kirin disappeared through the brush. "This friendship thing is hard."

Chrysalis awoke the next morning, still in her Posey disguise, to a knock on her door. She groaned and sat up. "Yes?" She called out. "What is it?"

"May I come in?!" Came Starlight's voice.

Posey went wide-eyed and checked herself to make sure she was still pink. "Y-Yeah! Yes! Come in."

The door opened as Starlight trotted in. "Good morning, Posey. Sleep well?"

"Very well. Yes. Thank you."

"Good. Now... where did you come from?" Starlight asked as she walked over to stand beside the bed.

"I... don't want to talk about it..." Posey said as she looked away.

"It's okay. You're safe here."

"I don't want to talk about it," Posey snapped angrily as she looked at the unicorn.

Starlight's smile faded a little. "I apologize. In your own time, of course. I came to take you to your first class, if you're ready. And later the princess is stopping by."

Posey's expression went from angry to surprise. "Princess... Twilight?"

"Of course," Starlight said as her smile returned. "Are you ready to start your day?"

Posey slid out of bed and dropped to her hooves. "Ready as I'll ever be."

Starlight led the pink unicorn out of her dorm and down the halls to where Fluttershy was teaching a kindness class. "Here you are, Posey. Have fun. Make friends."

Posey forced a smile. "I can't wait to... make all the friends."

"Glad to hear it," Starlight said, before she waved good-bye and trotted off.

Posey watched her leave before she sighed and trotted into the classroom. She found a desk near the back and dropped down. With a groan, she let her head fall on her desk with a THUNK.

"Yeah, I know how you feel," a raspy voice came from her right.

Posey sighed and looked over to see a hippogriff female with black fur with a long yellow mane, yellow eyes, yellow beak, and yellow claws. "Who are you?"

"My parents named me Evening Stars," the hippogriff scoffed. "Something to do with their first date, I guess. You can just call me Eve."

"Well, Eve... Something tells me you'd rather be anywhere else."

The hippogriff smiled. "I can guess the same about you."

Princess Twilight landed by the front door of the school where Starlight waited to greet her. The two hugged before Starlight used her magic to open the door.

"Anything new?" The unicorn asked with a smile.

Twilight trotted past her. "Unfortunately," she said before she stopped and turned to her friend. "Cozy Glow, Tirek... and... Chrysalis... are free."

Starlight went wide-eyed. "What?!"

"And... Crimson Ash is back."

"Who?"

After explaining, the two were by the guidance counselor's office. "So, we're in trouble," Starlight said as she opened the door.

"Welcome," Trixie said with a smile. "How can I... Oh. Starlight. And Twilight?" She said as she left her desk. "Welcome, princess," Trixie said with a bow.

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Hello, Trixie."

"So," the blue unicorn said as she stood upright. "What's up?"

Twilight sighed and got ready to explain again.

"So, we're in trouble," Trixie muttered as she slumped in her chair.

"Have you noticed any creature acting strange?" Twilight asked both mares. "Anything at all?"

"Can't say that I have," Trixie said with a shrug.

Starlight thought for a moment. "Two come to mind."

"Two?" Asked Twilight.

Starlight nodded. "We gained a new student yesterday. Posey, She began her classes today. Snapped at me when I asked where she came from."

"The timing is interesting," Twilight muttered.

"But the day she showed up, we also had a hippogriff join us who... was anything but kind."

"Really?"

"Yes. Eve. She doesn't talk about her past either."

Twilight thought for a moment. "So, they both showed up the day after Chrysalis is freed."

"Well, we can't just go and blast both of them," Trixie pointed out. "We don't even know if one of them is Chrysalis."

"Trixie's right," Starlight agreed. "We can't be certain either of them is Chrysalis. And if we attack the wrong one..."

"It would undo everything we're trying to do here," Twilight finished.

Trixie eyed them both. "So... what should we do?"

"Keep an eye on them," Twilight said. "We all know how much Chrysalis hates you," she said as she looked at Starlight. "Maybe... if you spent time with them..."

"I could get her triggered," Starlight said with a smile. "Make her slip up and reveal herself."

Twilight smiled and nodded. "Do you have a class with her?"

"Sunburst is covering my class right now," Starlight said. "I can take over the next one. Eve is in the next and Posey is in the one after."

"It's a plan, then," the alicorn said confidently. "Just be on your guard. Stay safe. Remember, Cozy Glow is also free and she most likely has a grudge against this school as well."

"What about Tirek?" Asked Trixie.

"Tirek will most likely focus on Celestia, Luna, and myself."

"And... Crimson?" Starlight asked nervously.

Twilight eyed the floor. "She seems interested in Luster Dawn."

"Your student?"

Twilight nodded. "Luster had a run-in with her a couple days ago. Celestia and Luna are keeping a watchful eye on the area, as am I, just in case Crimson shows up again."

Trixie let her head fall on her desk. "And I thought we were done with all this."

"There will always be someone who will try and shatter the peace," Twilight pointed out sadly. "Which is why we must never let our guard down. Remember Opaline?"

"How could we forget?" Asked Starlight. I still can't believe you managed to shield all of Equestria from her."

"So, Crimson, Tirek, Chrysalis, Cozy Glow, and now Opaline?" Trixie asked.

Twilight shook her head. "Opaline is not an issue right now. The shield I cast will hold her off. For the time being, we must focus on the others. Especially Crimson and Chrysalis."

"Right," Trixie said. "If either of them come by, I'll see what I can get out of them."

"And I'll keep an eye on them in class," Starlight said with a smile. "We got this."

Luster headed back into town, her head hung in defeat. As she trotted through Ponyville, she saw Sundial talking with a shop pony in the market. She turned and headed for him, arriving just as he finalized his purchase. He put the item in his saddlebag before he noticed Luster.

“You look terrible,” he said, pointing out the obvious.

“Hey. So, I’m, like… sorry for the other day.”

“That’s a horrible apology.”

Luster sighed and sat down on her flanks. “I felt like I gave a good one to Shade, but she didn’t forgive me. I felt like I gave a better one to Mossy, but…”

“She said no, too?”

“She said no. What am I doing wrong, Sunny?”

The stallion smiled and trotted up beside her. “Sometimes, being sorry isn’t enough. Sometimes… it just takes time. They’ll come around.”

“What about you?” Luster asked hopefully. Sundial patted her on the shoulder as he went to continue his errands. “Yeah. That’s about the answer I expected.”

Chrysalis sat down in her History of Magic class, once again sitting as far back as she could. As the other students took their seats, Starlight Glimmer entered the room. The disguised changeling did her best not to stare, but the mare who took her hive away was right there. Chrysalis went wide-eyed when she spotted a changeling student a few seats away. Since they were no longer part of her hive, they wouldn't be able to sense her, but she still thought it awkward.

“Alright, listen up, students,” Starlight announced. “I’m pleased to report that we have a new student joining us today. So, if every creature could make Posey feel at home…”

Chrysalis put on her best sincere smile as she looked around the classroom.

After class, Chrysalis collapsed under a tree just outside the school with a heavy sigh. Eve peeked out around the tree and chuckled as she walked around to where Chrysalis lay.

“Didn’t enjoy class, either?” She asked.

Chrysalis groaned. “Starlight wouldn’t leave me alone. She kept having ponies help me catch up, and kept asking if I was all set.”

Eve raised an eyebrow. “Me, too.” She then sat down next to the pink unicorn. “You don’t think it has something to do with that missing statue, do you?”

Chrysalis picked up her head. “Come again?”

“The statue of those three that Princess Twilight and her friends defeated? It’s gone. And one of them was the changeling queen.”

Chrysalis thought for a moment. “She’s testing us.”

“Because we’re the new students.”

Chrysalis eyed the hippogriff. “But we have nothing to worry about, right?”

Eve smiled. “You tell me.”

Chrysalis sighed and stood up. “See you later, Eve,” she said as she trotted away.

Eve set her bag on the grass and pulled out her gemstone necklace. The rainbow colors in it swirled around frantically. The further Chrysalis went, the more the swirling calmed down.

“Interesting…”

TO BE CONTINUED