Author's Note

The next installment is here, I wrote through the night and into the day to get this done, and the next chapter is already in the works. I am on a army deployment at the moment which is both good and bad for time. I don't to a whole lot but when do have to do things it get bad.

I have looked over the chap to make sure that it is good to go, as always something always slips through i am already looking to fix the first story because i keep finding crap wrong with it. other than that enjoy the read every pony.

The Morning After

Chapter one: The morning after

Cadence

When one thinks of retired gods, they see them resting in a grove or hidden away in a cavern that the world has forgotten about. They sit in silence and bliss without a worry in the world to bother them until they are found by an inspired youth that drags them into a world that needs them more than ever. That was a nice thought, a good story to tell the youth of the world; foals needed something to believe in. The truth, however, was much more brutal.

The first few decades that the princesses had were just like the stories; they had the wealth of hundreds of lifetimes to keep them secure in their little hideaways, but no amount of planning can prepare for everything, and time can whittle down even the largest of mountains. The cottage that was the hideaway of the Alicorns for so many years was soon absorbed in the ever-growing cities that dotted all of Equestria. The once easy life turned harder and harder as time passed. Then Twilight lost the crown, and control of all that was Equestria was given to the council.

At first this didn’t have too much of an effect, but as more time passed and the council that might have once respected the old gods faded, and the last little light that they enjoyed disappeared. What little land they owned disappeared, and the wealth they once held rendered moot. That’s how the real story goes: gods homeless and adrift because the world no longer believes in them. Nothing but a speck of dust in the whirlwind that is the world that is no longer theirs, forced to adapt.

Cadence moved from her small bedroom in the apartment that she could barely afford, the once great changeling queen sleeping in her bed. The bar was no place for them to reconnect, or to talk at all really, but by the time Cadence got them to her small one-room apartment, Chrysalis was dead tired and passed out just from sitting on the couch. Cadence managed to magic her into the small bedroom after that, laying her down and tucking her into the covers. It wasn't much, but she was sure that it was more than enough for Chrysalis.

She looked over at the clock that was mounted on the wall, reading the bright red number that it displayed, 0341. She gave out a sigh and planted herself barrel-first on the couch. She had to be awake by six so she could get ready for work. Even after all this time, one thing might as well have stayed the same: Cadence hated Mondays.

Chrysalis

It was the sound of running water that awoke the sleeping changeling. Her first thought was panic; she searched the bed, thinking that she had fallen asleep with her latest catch, her fog-covered brain not remembering the events that happened last night, her hooves tangled in the bed sheets as she toppled off the alicorn-sized bed with a bang. Panic as in full force as she struggled to free herself from the blanket prison, only to stop as the bathroom door on the other side of the room opened, flooding the dark room with light.

The flood of light shed more light on the situation and redoubled the panic that Chrysalis was facing, her black chitin reflected the light, her bug-like wings buzzing as her long black legs fought an unknown enemy. Her breath quickened as her mind let her know that she wasn’t even in disguise. She was about to get caught in her true form; this could happen again. It was then, as her racing mind was leading to a full-blown panic attack, a pink magic wrapped around her struggling form.

Chrysalis closed her eyes and waited for that scream that would come; she had not been caught in a long time, but she would never forget, long ago, when her body was not used to the hunger and weakness that would pain her from the lack of food. She would slip into sleep with her hunt of the night, and then in the dead of night, while she slept, her magic would fail and her glimmer would vanish. She would be awoken to the screaming of a pony that had a monster in bed. It was always a mad dash to escape the attacks after that.

So it came as a surprise to the floating changeling when the magic that enveloped her stayed gentle; the attacking blows that she expected instead freed her tangled legs and placed her and the now folded blanket on the bed. The scream that she thought she would hear was instead a question from a both amused and very concerned voice: “I heard the fall from inside the bath; are you okay?” The voice was familiar yet not at the same time, like something that sat at the very back of one's head. Chrysalis's ears flicked as her mind started to wake up; she listened to the hoofsteps on the carpeted floor.

She dared to open her eyes, cracking them just enough to get a look at who was now standing at her bedside. Her mind came to full attention at the sight as memories of the night before played in her mind like a fast-forwarded movie. The bar, the meeting, the love, the forgiveness—everything rushed into her head and hit her like a ton of bricks. She sat up on the bed, staring at the concerned Cadence in front of her. She then looked down at the bed and back at Cadence; she didn’t. There was no way that they, her eyes filled with panic at the thought. Chrysalis might have been desperate, but there was no way that she.

The calming voice of Cadence hit her ears once more. “Hey, hey, look at me.” Chrysalis looked up slowly, her eyes coming to meet Cadence’s as she moved in closer, coming to rest at the foot of the bed and right in front of the changeling. She slowly placed her hoof on Chrysalis’s shoulders. “I want you to take some breaths with me; just take some slow, steady breaths.” Chrysalis did as she was told, following the soothing voice as she calmed her breathing. What was just a few moments felt like years to the changeling, but in the end, the onset panic she felt was calmed. It wasn't gone, but her once rushing mind calmed long enough for rational thought to take root.

She closed and opened her eyes, readying a torrent of questions, only for Cadence to answer said question as if she could read Chrysalis’s mind: “No, we didn’t do anything.” Her voice was the only sound of reason in the room at the time, leading Chrysalis out of the hole her mind had dug: “We came back to my place to catch up, but you passed out as soon as we made it back.” Cadence moved back, letting Chrysalis have a little room, and turned on the light.

Light flooded Chrysalis’s vision as she got a look at the room that she had slept in; calling it small wouldn't even begin to describe it. It had just enough space for two ponies of the size they were to move about. The bed that she sat on took up most of the moving room they would have had; there was a dresser on the end of the bed, one that looked nearly ancient, and as Chrysalis looked a little more closely, it had as many preservation enchantments as an item could have. Other than that, the room was sparse; old posters of the Royal Guard hung with care, also preserved to Tartarus and back.

The walls of the room were a dull white, grayed with age and lack of care, the carpet much the same, having seen many owners over the decades of use and an uncaring landlord. While it had problems, it was the home of the goddess of love, and what little there was was more inviting than most of the city on its best day. Chrysalis was now calm an thinking straight, faced Cadence for the first real time that morning, taking in the sight of the dripping wet Alicorn that had come to her rescue, she didn’t even know what to say; last night was hard enough, but now adding on this morning, what should she do?

Cadence

Her alarm went off with a vengeance right at the time that she had set it for, 05:55, waking the sleeping Alicorn like she wasn't a god that could smite it for just existing. Cadence, much to her annoyance, rolled over like she was in bed to turn the alarm off, only to fall off of the couch and face plant into the floor. That had woken her up more than the alarm had, and with a groan, she turned the blasted noise off, letting her check the phone the alarm had been set on. The screen shone to life, giving off a light that was akin to looking at the sun at high noon, blinding the poor mare, who was forced to squint through the pain to turn the brightness down.

No notifications; that was good at least. She made to stand up using her magic to hit the light switch to light up the kitchen-living room combo that was the main entrance to her apartment. It was here that her daily routine started, with a practiced ease that only came from doing something for years. Multiple things happened around the room at once. The older coffee maker in the corner of the kitchen sprang to life, pouring out the dark liquid that paved the way for a functional society; next to it, the radio was tuned to the weather for the day, letting Cadence know the state of the air in the city and the predicted cloud moment.

As sad as it was to say, the magic that was once used to control the weather was long forgotten and phased out for more autonomous ‘control’ at the cost of more randomness. Why pay a weather team to plan every little detail and carry it out when you could just leave it up to itself? Cadence shook her head at that; the council had deemed the weather service a waste of tax money. She could still remember when most of the cloud factories in Cloudsdale had their funding cut and were told to automate. She thought that the pegasi were going to riot. Cloudsdale's economy has yet to recover from the loss of jobs. Even after all of the campaigns promising to fix the problem, it seems in the end all they did was trade one form of noble for the other when the council came to power, for the pony by the pony was nothing but lies when it came to the lower class. Cadence listened as she danced around the kitchen putting together a small but filling breakfast, making an extra plate for her new guest still sleeping away in her room.

She let her mind wander what this could mean for her now; last night had kind of just happened. The meeting wasn't planned, and while that was okay, it did make her think about what would happen now. She wanted to help the changeling queen, but at the same time she couldn’t help someone who didn’t want it; forced help would only make her shy away from any real help that was offered, but at the same time she couldn’t just let her wander through the streets not knowing when the next time that she might eat would be.

She moved from the kitchen with a piece of toast stuffed and dangling out of her mouth as Cadence made her way over to her bedroom door. She hesitated slightly; was it out of nervousness or fear? What might she find on the other side of the door? She had, in all intents and purposes, let a changeling into her home. It would seem even after all this time she couldn’t fully let go of the past; she choked down the rest of her toast and willed her resolve forward. The door opened a crack, just enough for a spear of light to enter the room. Cadence peeked in and saw nothing but the sleeping form of Chrysalis.

The thoughts of fear vanished in that moment; looking at the sleeping form, she looked so... meek wasn't the right word; maybe peaceful, just lying there, still covered in the blankets, mumbling to herself while she slept. Cadence felt a sharp stab in her conscience; there was nothing she could do about it now; she would just have to do better. She pushed the door open further before slipping into the room and closing it behind her, plunging the room into darkness.

It was with light hoof steps she walked through the darkness, making her way through in a way only someone who knew the exact layout of the room could, even though it really wasn't that big or cluttered. It was only a few short hoofstep later that she found the door that she was looking for, slipping into the small bathroom. She hit the switch on the wall close to her, bringing the room into the light. It was small, just enough room for her to turn on her hooves. Faust, how she missed her old bath.

She didn’t really have time to think of the past as she turned on the shower, letting the water heat slightly before stepping in. She would have to be fast; the morning was already going slow thanks to her wandering mind, and she couldn’t afford to be late. She moved with purpose as she lathered herself with soap and shampoo, doing her best to hit all the spots that the grime might build up on. The hardest part was always her wings, as the tiny shower that she used barely had room for one wing to spread out, let alone two of her alicorn size.

She had just stepped out of the shower when she heard a loud thump from inside her room. Chrysalis must have woken up; she continued to dry off until she heard the sound of muffled struggling and decided to see if her new guest was okay. She hung her towel on the rack, intending to come back for the cloth. The thought, however, died as soon as she opened the door and laid eyes on the fully panicking changeling. Cadence's mind flashed back, replacing Chrysalis with a young Twilight amidst one of her many daily panic attacks.

The scene corrected itself as Cadence forced herself into the present; she carefully reached out with her magic, picking up the struggling changeling ever so lightly, just enough that a strong enough struggle would break the hold. When the changeling didn’t free herself from the hold, Cadence used it to remove the cover and place both of them back on the bed. She also used that time to walk to the bedside, making sure that her hoof steps made enough noise for the on-edge Chrysalis to hear. She needed to calm her down, and to do that she would need for her to trust her enough to do that.

She spoke softly, asking a simple question just to see how she would react, not wanting to scare the panic changeling any more than she was “I heard the fall from inside the bath; are you okay?” Simple was the name of the game here; she wanted to help ground her, not overload her, yet even then she didn’t get an answer. She approached slowly, taking in the shaking form that not long go was trapped and too frightened to even free herself from the sheets she had managed to wrap herself up in. oh Chrysalis Cadence thought looks like you are just as frightened as I was.

Cracked eyes meet Cadence, a good sign; she went slightly tense at the sight of her, but for her panic state, that could have been normal. Cadence was flying blind after all, never having dealt with a panicking Chrysalis. It surprised her when she shot up suddenly; sitting up like a vampire pony rising from a coffin, she sat bolt upright, looking Cadence down with a manic look. She wanted to do nothing more than back away and give space, but the poor mare in front of her needed her more than ever now.

She placed herself right in front of Chrysalis, watching as her eyes went from herself to the bed and back to her. Cadence did need to be psychic to pick up on what she was thinking; she worked fast but carefully, placing her hooves on her shoulders to help ground her as she spoke, “Hey, hey, look at me.” Chrysalis’s eyes slowly came to meet hers; the helplessness that they exuded made Cadence's heart ache. She pushed forward "I want you to take some breaths with me; just take some slow, steady breaths.” Luckily enough, Chrysalis followed the instructions, bringing in normal breaths “and letting the calm take root in the chaos.

Chrysalis would have questions; she had woken up not even remembering where she was and who she had been with, enough to think that she had bedded with her; she needed to get the answer to that one before the doubt would set in: “No, we didn’t do anything.” She kept her voice soft, doing her best to soothe out what stress and panic was left: “We came back to my place to catch up, but you passed out as soon as we made it back.” She let that sink in for a moment. Chrysalis would need time to think and ground herself, and to do that she would need something to look at other than what she would see in the thin ray of light that came through the bathroom doorway.

Cadence moved away with some reluctance and used the tip of her wing to turn on the main room lights; they flared to life and gave color to the world around them. A tiny world, but a world no less. She watched as the eyes scanned, taking in all they could. That was good; it meant that she was focusing on the world around her and not the one in her head. Cadence let this go on until Chrysalis looked as calm as she was going to get. Now instead of looking panicked and care out of her mind, she looked like she just didn’t know what to do, much easier to deal with in Cadence's opinion.

Sadly, this little clam-down session took up most of the time that Cadence would have used to get ready, so now she had to deal with both an awkward changeling and not being late to work. She opened the dresser at the foot of the bed, feeling Chrysalis’s eyes follow her as she did so. “I am really sorry to do this; I know that you have questions.” She pulled out a work uniform that consisted of a white button-up shirt with a gray vest. A name tag sat above a small chest pocket that read SILVER LINING CREDIT MANAGER. “You are more than welcome to stay here until I get back.”

Chrysalis

To say that she was at a loss for words was an understatement; she watched as the pony who not only a few seconds ago had calmly walked her down from her panic attack looked on the verge of her own, running around her room getting ready for ‘work’ in a manner that would have made a Wonderbolt blush with shame. When all was said and done, you could have never believed that the dull gray unicorn with a boringly pale green mane was once the Alicorn of love. She just looked so average, so unsuspecting, so, well, normal. When did they, the rulers of nations, fall into being normal?

By now both of them had left the confines of the small bedroom and made their way into the loft area, not that that sported much more room, but it was still better than nothing. Most of the conversations they had as Cadence got ready were one sentence replies or quick quips, nothing that was rude, but I did show a mare that was more than in a rush. So Chrysalis sat there with a fork in her magic as she played with the breakfast that was offered to her. While yes, she did need solid food to support her body, most of her energy came from feeding off love, so imagine her joy when the toast that she took a bite out of had a little of both.

She always laughed at the expression that the secret ingredient to most foods was love, but in this case it seemed to be true; with a little more gusto, she nibbled at the food, doing her best not to gobble breakfast down like a dragon with a hoard of gems. It was when she had a small piece of egg in her mouth that Silver Lining, aka Cadence, thought it best to make a very brief and unplanned goodbye, all in a very rushed tone that didn’t match the boring look she now wore. “Um, there is my number on the counter if you need to call me; the phone on the wall still works; there is an extra key under the number in case you have to leave; PLEASE lock the doors; I have already had one pony try to break in.” She looked around as if she was making sure that she had everything she needed.

“I should be back around five, so until then feel free to have free rein of the place; my home is yours.” Chrysalis did her best to swallow the egg that she was still chewing so that she might be able to speak, but before that could even happen Cadence's eyes shot to the clock on the wall before letting out a wail, “OH DEAR FAUST, I AM GONNA MISS MY BUS,” before nearly ripping the door off its hinges and zooming down the hallway. “HAVE A GOOD DAY, SEE YOU LATER.” was the last thing Chrysalis heard before the door closed itself and left the changeling in an empty apartment with her half-eaten breakfast.

Chrysalis sat there for a moment trying to take in all that had happened over the morning now that she had some peace and quiet, not that she minded the pink alicorn, as it was her home. She ate slowly, taking in her surroundings. She had been in many apartments over her life, and she could positively say that this was the standard setup for low-income housing. It had just enough space for one pony; they were not often placed in the best areas of the city, and the landlords that ran the places were the worst of the worst. Although for all that she said this seemed like it was one of the better ones, the walls still had paint, the carpets didn’t have fleas, and this one even had a window…. That led to a brick wall.

It was still better than she was doing; having a home was better than hopping from room to room with a nameless pony each night, fighting to stay alive in the underbelly of the city. She ate a little more quickly after that, and with her newfound strength, she had two full meals back to back and carried the dirty plate to the sink with her magic; the sink was empty other than one other plate and a pan, but having taken food from her host, Chrysalis set to washing them. The task wasn’t a hard one, so it took less time than she would have liked, leaving her with nothing to do but wait.

Normally when she was brought home by one of her targets, and not to a motel, she would snoop through the house. She would search for anything that she could take and disappear into the night with; that was not an option here. Cadence was more than a target, and she had been brought back to her home out of a newfound trust. She was a wanted guest, and that came with rules, rules that Chrysalis didn't really know. Even when she was queen, she didn’t really have guests, not to mention that she was never an invited guest because of, well, her being a changeling.

Chrysalis made her way from the kitchen into the very small sitting area. For its small size, it was cozy enough for a pony of her size. The love seat that she sat on wasn't the most comfortable, but who was she to complain? The small television set had caught her eye. It was an older model, big and boxy, not as streamlined as the flat models that lined the streets of the more wealthy districts. Chrysalis reached out with her magic, turning the dial on.

The box sprang to life; its volume was on the low end, the channel showing the news for the day. A mare stood outside of the capital building for New Canterlot, a thick cloud hanging over the area as most of the creatures that walked the street moved with a purpose, wanting to avoid the rain that was coming. She was talking about some new bill that had just passed through the council chambers. It was with a slight camera shake that the capital disappeared in favor of a brown-furred pony in a long blue cloak and dirty blonde mane.

Chrysalis did a double take at the stallion; she knew him; he was a meal that she had recently taken from. Chrysalis beat herself over the head as she listened more closely to the news anchor. “Here's one is now,” her voice was full of authority Chrysalis was sure that she didn’t have; news ponies always thought they had a right to know everything. “Councilor Royal Scroll, is it true that a bill was just passed to cut funding to the Crystal Palace Preservation Fund?” The news mare was practically standing on the stallion as she waited for his answer.

With a mic shoved in his face and the look of a pony that wanted to be literally anywhere else at that moment, the councilor signed and then spoke. His voice was harsh and unforgiving, his answer straight to the fact and nothing more: “Yes, and while it might be a shame for such a bill to go through, I and the other councilors feel that it is a waste of money to keep up that rickety old castle when it could be going to bigger and better things.” He almost looked proud at that answer until the news mare shot back.

“What of the history that the castle holds and the artifacts that it houses, and what project is the funding being routed to ,as the city's project manager, Golden Apple, is still facing counts of embezzlement of government funds and is waiting for trial?” The string of questions locked Royal Scroll down before he did what all career politicians did: refuse to answer questions.

“Be that as it may, it was decided by the council and will be placed in more than capable hooves.” Royal Scroll stated as he picked up his foreleg and checked his watch, “Now I have no more time for questions; I am already late as it is.” With a turn, he sauntered off.

A bright purple unicorn took his place, her hooves full of papers. “Sorry about the councilor, every creature; he is just a bit under the weather lately.” She straightened her glasses as she spoke; her voice was both young and old at the same time, like she was putting on an act for the camera. “His office is more than willing to take any questions or concerns; please just follow the proper channels that are provided.” She was about to say more when the councilor's voice shouted from off screen.

“Will you hurry up, Twinkle? I don’t pay you to lollygag.” The purple mare shot offscreen, doing what Chrysalis could only assume was a struggled run to catch up with the attitude with legs that was her boss. Chrysalis paid little attention after that; most of the news after was sports and weather anyway. Her mind was still stuck on the fact that the Crystal Palace of the Crystal Empire was still standing, or was at least, as now what little funding was keeping it standing has been cut.

While the news wasn't life-changing for her, she did remember that it used to be the home of Cadence; she could only hope that the pink mare wasn't taking the news too hard.