Contains: micro, plot building

Like last time, Chrysalis checked every room of the house while Alex prepared himself to bathe her. He knew it was her routine to get clean when she got home, but he wasn't sure about her need to check every room. Last time he had assumed she had been searching for him, but now it seemed like she had other intentions.

Chrysalis returned and prepared to levitate Alex behind her, but he stopped her. "I can fly now you know."

His rude statement earned him a cross look from Chrysalis. "Then follow me to the bath," she commanded.

Alex cringed at his own words. How could he have let such a thing slip? He had to remember his place. Flying after her, he made a mental note to keep his mouth shut for a while.

In the tub room Chrysalis turned on the water as usual before taking off her crown. She shook out her mane as she waited and deposited the royal headpiece on the shelf. Alex waited beside the strange thing where she had put him the first time. Once the tub was full of steamy hot water, she shut off the spouts with a quick flick of magic. Chrysalis then gingerly tested the water before taking a small hop into the deep end. She lowered herself and let the water soak into her skin. Her tail drifted in unseen currents and her mane turned dark green as it absorbed the crystal clear liquid. Alex waited for her to get his washcloth and soap, but she seemed determined to take as long as possible.

Chrysalis squirted the gooey soap into the water and stirred the bath with her magic. Now with the towers of bubbles spread across the liquid surface, she hummed and took deep breathes of the pleasant aroma. From somewhere on the lower shelf she produced a candle and lit it with her horn. In seconds, the room filled with a sweet scent Alex could only describe as flowery. Finally, Chrysalis pulled out his trademark washcloth and soap chunk, leaving both on her back for him in a clear invitation to get started. Alex automatically swooped in to do the job he was assigned.

With the air full of steam and the smell of flowers as he worked, Alex busied his mind thinking over his situation once again. He was in a spectacular world full of monsters and magic. Changelings were just one of the many powerful species on this planet and Chrysalis intended to topple one of the other empires and take love itself from its people. She hadn't explained why this war was necessary though. She seemed well fed and strong, so it didn't seem like they were suffering from some kind of famine. But what did he know. Didn't royalty always get the best even when everyone else suffered?

"Did Apple teach you all Equus's history?" Chrysalis asked suddenly.

"I think. She focused a lot on a country called Equestria." Alex said in the most respectful tone he could muster. His earlier slip of the tongue still fresh on his mind. He'd have to make up for it.

"Of course she would," Chrysalis scoffed. "That's who we're going to war with. Not to mention the largest and most powerful nation today."

"Then why are you challenging them?" Alex asked, confused.

Chrysalis looked at him. "For their power of course. If I defeat Equestria, I will be in control of the most powerful kingdom ever." She grinned toothily. "I'll make my mother awfully proud with that, now won't I."

"How do you intend to defeat them?"

Chrysalis glanced at her almost cleaned back. "Are you hungry?" she asked out of the blue, totally changing the subject.

"Uh... yes?" Alex answered, thrown off balance by the question.

"I'll explain my reasons over dinner then." And that was the end of their conversation. At least until they had something to eat.

She had told him that changelings didn't eat food. Her exact words being, "food gives our bodies minimal, if any, energy." So her skill at preparing an actual meal was pretty bad. For herself, she had a glass of wine and some kind of steak which appeared burnt. She gave Alex a small bowl of water and a plate of various berries and nuts. Alex was in the mood for meat, but he wasn't complaining. He was supposed to eat emotions anyway.

Chrysalis ate slowly and carefully, thoroughly cutting her steak into small bites and making sure they were thoroughly separated before raising them to her mouth. Her use of a fork and knife made little sense to Alex when she was just going to levitate them anyway. Chrysalis would take a tiny sip of her wine between bites that he was sure were too small for her taste-buds to even register. Alex tried to eat with as much civility as she did, but it just didn't fit him. If he had something he actually wanted to eat, he probably would have been able to maintain the masquerade of civility. But strawberries were never something he enjoyed and, now that they were almost as big as him, he still found their flavor undesirable. Grapes were okay, and the cherries tasted good, but Alex didn't even touch the different nuts.

Chrysalis began what was going to be an interesting conversation. "Do you really want to know why I must take control of Equestria?"

Alex looked up at her. "Yes, my queen. Why are you going to war?"

Chrysalis eyed a bite of steak as she levitated it in front of her face. "Its the same reason as before, but there's more to it." She looked down at him, hate in her eyes. "I need to destroy them."

Alex flinched. "You're doing this for revenge?"

"Revenge? No." She looked at the ceiling for a moment. "Look around. Is this a palace fit for a great queen?"

Alex already knew what her dining room looked like, but he let his eyes roll over the walls for appearance's sake. "No my queen. This is a cave."

"EXACTLY!" Chrysalis slammed a hoof down on the table as she blew out Alex's eardrums with her roar. "Changelings have always been left in the shadows of history despite all we've done. We are powerful and many, yet we feed on scraps!" she raged.

"A-and y-you want to change that?" he asked, intimidated by Chrysalis's sudden outburst.

"Forever! Even the poorest pony eats more than an entire noble changeling family combined." Chrysalis ripped the steak out of the air with her fangs.

"Are you going to kill them?" Alex wasn't sure why he asked that. It was probably better than pointing out that changelings technically didn't need to eat in the first place.

She looked down at him like he had asked the dumbest question in history. "I'd be surprised if we didn't have to kill most of the ponies."

Alex winced at that, murder wasn't exactly something he took lightly. "If your race is so poor and weak, how can you win?"

Chrysalis was able to smile, surprisingly. "We may be on the lower end of wealth, but not on abilities. Did Apple tell you about the three different types of ponies?"

Alex took only a second to think about it. "Yes. There are Earth Ponies, Pegasi, and Unicorns. But there are also three Alicorns. They are the royal blood of Equestria." A bit of pride bubbled up in him for remembering that.

"My children are all like alicorns, able to fly AND use magic. However, a true alicorn has far more magic than a regular unicorn. An advantage my children do not have the benefit of. I'll fix that problem myself, of course."

"You're going to fight three alicorns by yourself?!" Alex thought she had lost it for a moment.

"Of course not!" she retorted angrily, but immediately relaxed. "The original plan was to replace all of the Solar and Lunar guards with my changeling soldiers over a period of a few weeks. Then they'd all throw off their disguises and take the city in but a minute. Celestia and Luna would be outnumbered a hundred to one before they had a chance to even blink! But now that the entire city is surrounded in a forcefield, there's no way any of my children will be able to get in to begin with. To make things more complicated, some of my children are already inside, trapped behind enemy lines."

"So what are you going to do?" Alex found it strange that she was telling him all this so willingly, even if he wasn't going anywhere.

Her grin returned. "I'm going to Canterlot myself. I will be able to slip through their defenses and get close to Shining Armor through his bride."

"Shining Armor?"

"The one responsible for the shield," she explained casually. "Once his shield is down, the invasion can continue as planned."

"And I'll be left behind during the battle?"

"I can't have my Personal Attendant getting hurt now can I?" her smile turned mischievous.

"But why did you choose me, and how?" Alex's posture sank a tad.

"Hmm?"

"If your people are hungry and weak right now, how did you bring me here?"

Chrysalis chuckled. "You act like I actually had control of who the spell brought here. It was a dark magic spell I learned in an old book. It was supposedly published by Nightmare Moon herself, just before her banishment."

"I was chosen at random?"

Chrysalis lifted her wine glass and began to stir its contents. "Yes."

Alex felt a little light headed at that realization. He had been kind of hoping he had some deep inner power and that he was destined to be a hero or something... like in ALL Hollywood movies. But such an idea was crushed by that simple yes.

Chrysalis sighed after swallowing her sip of wine. "Are you done, or is there anything else you would like to know?"

Alex lowered his head. "Is there anything I can do to earn my freedom?"

Chrysalis raised an eyebrow. Alex just wasn't going to give up on his freedom, but Chrysalis suddenly had an idea. "Are you really that desperate to go home?" He nodded in response. "Very well. When we win this battle, I'll send you home." Before Alex could begin celebrating and thanking her, she added some weight to the deal. "But you must serve me without hesitation. If you refuse to pleasure me when I ask for it, you'll stay here, with me, forever."

Alex could feel a drop of sweat run down the side of his head. That was some pretty steep terms considering what Chrysalis found to be pleasurable. Based on what Alex had seen, it wasn't much different from Apple's ideas of pleasure. Suddenly, he thought of something he could add to this deal that would be of benefit to him. "Will you never put me in the same room as Apple ever again?"

Chrysalis tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. "Fine." The corner of her mouth began turning upwards. "Just remember, you agreed not to refuse anything I ask of you."

Alex gulped again. He began to wonder if he had just made a huge mistake.

Chrysalis could only pat herself on the back. All this time she had wanted a willing assistant who would do all she asked and serve her in ways she had never been before. Now, Alex was making a deal with her that as long as she sent him home when she was ruler of Equestria, he'd do just that. She was curious why he didn't want to see Apple again, but it wasn't like it mattered right now. Maybe he just didn't like her voice or her personality.

Alex sat on Chrysalis's bed and waited for her, but now he was at an angle that he could see into her closet while she sifted through it. For some reason, all her nightgowns were the same green see-through robes with black feather trim. Despite that fact, Chrysalis acted like they were all completely different outfits and had to find the one that fit her current mood perfectly.

Alex wasn't paying her much attention though. His soul was full of hope that he'd go home when this was over. He had utterly no clue how he was going to tell anyone about this, but the feeling was strong and alive. All he had to do was survive four more days as Chrysalis's Personal Attendant, then however long it took her to win this battle.

"Just four days," he dreamed. Was Chrysalis going to have additional meetings with her advisers or was he going to be spending all that time with her now? Then there was another terrifying question. What if she lost the upcoming battle? How would that affect their deal?

These were going to be the most tense four days of his life and it all started as Chrysalis approached the bed for their third night together...

Author's Note

Forgive me for the time this took to publish. Been a little busy fighting off several computer virus infections. Long sob story short, my computer had to be wiped...so I've not been in a very good mood for the past 3 weeks.