Love is Life

Twilight waved her hooves around to try and calm the rapidly panicking mare who shared the tub, "Whoa! That's not what I meant, Rarity! Calm down, let me explain!"

Rarity's eyes narrowed as her horn glowed, various implements surrounding Twilight in a halo, many of them sharp, "Explain quickly!"

'It was going so well, too...'

Twilight closed her eyes and her horn glowed, "dispelling" the "Illusion" that she was, in fact, sexier than Fleur de Lis could ever hope to be, and returning her to the slightly pudgy bookworm she'd always been. There was no flash of green fire, her horn color was the same as it had always been, and no other signs of Changeling were present, "See? I just copied their spell... I wanted to be pretty..."

'Quick thinking, and good job hiding your magic color. None of us could ever figure that out!'

'Magic colors can change over time, so that's why I didn't recognize it at first, but it takes a severe incident to do so and it still "matches" the unicorn who uses it. I'm surprised I didn't notice with you sooner.'

'You had other things on your mind, and honestly, who would have expected changelings?'

Rarity interrupted the mental conversation by visibly relaxing and putting her weapons back where they belonged in short order, "Twilight, darling. You may not be Fleur, but you have your own undeniable beauty. The only reason that stallions aren't breaking down the door to ask you out is because they're intimidated by your status, and that breaking down your door would probably result in a quick visit to the moon for a very long period of time."

Twilight blushed on hearing that, then cleared her throat, "So I figured I'd show you when I came over. Then, well, one thing lead to another..."

'And another... and another... I didn't know you could do that, honestly, and I was mimicking then Princess of Love...'

The librarian mentally snorted in humor and climbed out of the tub, grabbing a towel for herself and Rarity, "We had better get unpacking and then get over to Sugarcube Corner. After that, I'm absolutely starving."

'Hah, no you're not!'

'Appearances must be kept until I can sort this out, Chrysalis.'

'We share a head, call me Chryssy. Oh, and you might want to head to that Zebra and get some anti-conception herbs unless you want to start breeding drones next week'

The gears in Twilight's mind stuck for a moment, as if one of them was missing a tooth, before spinning into rapid motion, 'By the moon, how did I forget my estrus cycle starts next week!?'

"Twilight, darling, are you okay? You seem to have gone into shock..."

Shaking her mane, the unicorn responded, "Sorry, I just remembered that next week is... my week..."

Rarity tilted her head, "Oh? ...Oh! Oooh... Well, I'll be sure to swing by the library and bring you some calming tea and take Spike off your hooves."

"Please... I don't... not with him around..."

The seamstress shivered slightly as she blushed, "Oh, but I do... Oh dear, did I really just say that out loud?! Twilight, you must not tell anypony!"

Twilight blinked a little. Rarity's admission had shocked her. She'd known Spike crushed on the mare for the longest time, but the fact that the attraction was returned was news to her, "Well, just be careful, you know how he can get when he gets what he wants."

Rarity blushed even more at Twilight's smirk, "That's part of what thrills me..."

Twilight blushed as well and the two finished drying and began to unpack Rarity's collection of clothes in an awkward silence. Finally, though, Twilight had spoken up, "So, what if I had been a Changeling?"

"I'm... not sure. I'd mostly be wondering how it had happened, considering that you would have been blown away from Canterlot with the others had you been one then."

Twilight nodded, "What if I told you the Queen had come to me, to apologize, and transferred her powers to me before she died from the wounds inflicted when my brother and Cadence united?"

"I'd find that extremely hard to believe without evidence, and now I'm wondering why you're asking."

"No reason in particular. Wishful thinking, perhaps. Well, not her death. I have always believed that everypony can be redeemed. Especially since we saved Luna. Though, you have to wonder what the hay she was doing while the Changelings were wrecking up Canterlot."

Princess Luna sat in her chair, a pair of headphones covering her ears as she felt herself become absorbed in the music flowing through them. Her eyes were glued to the screen as the controller in her magic shook slightly from nerves. The release of the remastered Sunny Town collection had allowed her to wander in the hooves of Hairy Mason in search of his daughter Cherry, and now as Sunder Land as he searched for his wife. The audio landscape had her completely absorbed when a large explosion rocked the castle, causing her to shriek and dive under her bed, where she continued to play the game after grumbling about loud weddings.

"I told the princess that getting her to adjust to modern society should omit video games until later, but she just had to give her that Xbuck 360 for Hearth's Warming," Twilight said, rolling her eyes and placing the last roll of fabric in its designated spot. The two shared a laugh as they left, heading for Sugarcube Corner and a lunch with Pinkie Pie.