Dear Princess Luna,

Trixie paused, unable to continue writing. "Trixie dislikes using this word…" She held the quill in her magic, reached it over to the inkwell and loaded a little more ink on it.

Sorry, Your Highness, but Trixie cannot continue. The Prince and Princess do not deserve to be lied to. Trixie is going to meet with them now, with your book, and turn herself in. It is Trixie's estimation that the changelings in the Crystal Empire have nothing to do with Chrysalis' hive anymore, and are good ponies. Prince Shining Armor and Princess Mi Amore Cadenza are both good ponies, and worthy of leading.

Closing the book, Trixie knew all too well that her words were appearing in Princess Luna's copy of the book as she wrote them. She inhaled deeply and picked the book up, grabbed her emergency rod, and stood up straight. Beside her, on her bunk, her armor sat; it was pristine, polished as best she could, and was a symbol of everything she had learned in the Crystal Empire. And Trixie had marred it.

Turning, she marched from the barracks, heading for the castle. A glance at the "guard entrance" was all it took for Trixie to decide she had to take the main entrance this time. She realized the habit of measured, militarized steps was hard to break, and stopped trying as she neared the entrance. "Trixie needs to see the Prince and Princess as soon as possible. This is important business."

The two guards didn't move to block her, and Trixie knew this was an invitation. She suddenly felt like a condemned pony, heading off to face exile, or banishment. The stairs were oddly hard to climb, but soon Trixie found herself in the royal throne room. Other ponies were talking to Cadance on her throne. Shining was absent, but Trixie knew each ruled evenly with the other. When the previous ponies ended their audience, she stepped forward.

"Trixie, you're out of uniform?" Cadance noticed the grim look on Trixie's normally ever-positive features and tilted her head a touch. "Is there something wrong?" Her heartbeat rose, something definitely seemed wrong with this mare who was the hero of the Equestria Games Incident.

Clearing her throat, Trixie stepped close enough to the throne that she could see Careful in his alcove, taking notes and writing orders. "Trixie wishes to surrender and beg Your Highness' mercy." Trixie placed book and rod on the ground before herself. "She was the spy from Canterlot, sent by Princess Luna to… to…" Tears had started, making the rest of her intended surrender impossible to understand.

Cadance's eyes were wide, the news causing her to glance toward Careful's desk and see the drone equally shocked. But then her attention was back on the blubbering unicorn before her. "Trixie Lulamoon?" Cadance climbed up off her throne and stepped forward. She knew what the rod was, but the book was interesting. "Why are you telling me this?" She sat down again, sitting only a hoofful of inches from Trixie.

Some tears faded, just enough for Trixie to get some words out. "Trixie cannot do this. Princess Luna taught Trixie that she should listen to that little voice inside that tells her to stop and think, and that voice has been screaming at Trixie. Lying to… to you and Prince Shining…" Trixie started to cry again, sniffing sobs back. "It was not a Great and Powerful thing!" She used her magic to flip the book open, revealing her resignation.

Cadance picked the book up in her magic, and immediately felt the magic within it. "I think we should call Celestia and Luna here for a… more frank discussion." She reached forward with a wing and pulled the surprised Trixie into a hug. "I am more disappointed in Auntie than in you—you told me the truth."

The hug was a shock, enough of one to make Trixie stop crying a moment and look up to Princess Cadance. Trixie lied to her, and Princess Cadance still hugs her? It only made the pain inside worse, which made her tears start up again.

"Careful?" Cadance held the still-sobbing Trixie to her side while she addressed her spymaster. "Please have a guard fetch Shiny; we are about to have visitors." Floating the little "alert stick" up in the air, Cadance twirled it around. A glance revealed that Trixie still sobbed, although quietly now. She lifted her throat and tried to give her best Royal Canterlot Voice impression. "Attention!"

Trixie's ears shot up straight and she moved without thinking. She dashed back from the Princess and snapped to attention.

"Corporal Trixie!" Cadance almost coughed in her efforts to keep her voice steady, but at last she relaxed her vocal cords. "Trixie, I don't hold your past actions against you. Princess Luna used you, as any leader should, and you acted as any pony could be expected to. But you have a choice, do you want to keep working for us?"

The question stumped Trixie. "Y-Y-Your Highness? Trixie lied to you, you shouldn't trust her—"

"No." Cadance cut in, stopping Trixie's verbal-flagellation. "I really shouldn't. But I think I can trust you more now, than ever. Trixie, tell me now if you ever plan to lie to me or Shiny again?" Trixie shook her head violently. "There. Settled. Now, do you want to work for us?" The shaking turned instantly into a nod, sharp and sure. "Good, then go and fetch your armor, and be back as quick as you can."

Cadance watched Trixie gallop from the throne room, heading for the main entrance. "Take the guard entrance!" She giggled when the mare slid along the floor a little as she changed direction. Cadance lit her horn and reached around the throne room, touching every corner that a pony could be secluded. Satisfied her conversations would be private, she climbed back up on her throne. Cadance settled down and started to read the book. It started off dry, listing just the most basic facts about Trixie entering the Empire, establishing herself in the guard.

Trixie has made some contacts, other guardponies, they are nice.

"Cady? What's wrong?" Shining Armor burst into the throne room, throwing the doors wide. He looked around, expecting enemies. Then he saw his wife sitting relaxed and calm, saw the book she was reading, then he noticed the alarm stick she was twirling in her magic. "What… what happened?"

"You beat Trixie back, to start." No sooner did Cadance say the words than Trixie appeared from the guard entrance, poking her now helmeted head in and spotting Shining Armor. "Come on over, Corporal Trixie. Shiny, come and curl up on this throne with me." Cadance raised an eyebrow. "And I think it is time." Cadance's magic rushed out again, but this time it blocked the doors, locking them with pure force.

Shining froze in his steps, staring at Cadance. "T-T-Time?" His eyes flicked to Trixie, then back to Cadance. Breathing a deep sigh, he dropped his disguise and resumed walking. "News of this doesn't leave this room, you understand?" He looked to Trixie, saw her huge eyes, wide as saucers. "At the wedding—"

"No dear, wait for all our guests to show up." Cadance scooted over on the big throne. She waited for Shining to take his seat beside her before she flipped the stick over to Trixie, passing it to her neatly. "Please break that."

Trixie looked at the little artifact in her magic. She took a deep breath and broke it in half. A cobalt-blue shield of magic manifested around her immediately, trapping Trixie inside and leaving her wide-eyed. She banged on the side of it. "What is this? What is going on? Trixie is scared!" But from what she saw of Shining—the changeling-like Shining that is—and Cadance was… relaxed acceptance. A flash of gold, and another of blue, were the only warnings that Princess Celestia and Princess Luna had arrived.

"Don't." Cadance spoke just the one word, even as she felt magic building in the room. She did like the protective spell that had enveloped Trixie, it showed that Luna cared for her tools. "Just don't, I am sick of all…" she waved a hoof in the air, gesturing vaguely to Trixie's "prison," then to the broken stick, the book, "this. You wanted to know what exactly was happening in our Empire, here it is."

Celestia's eyes were wide, she saw the changeling-like creature on the throne beside Cadance, saw the way they sat, what little of their fur remained. "Shining Armor?" The changeling creature nodded. "Well this explains a lot." She relaxed just a fraction, she wasn't quite ready to blast away, but she wasn't dropping any of the magic she had charged, ready to protect her and her sister. This is honestly so terrible a reason I doubt any changeling would think of it.

"What did you do to Trixie?" Luna was less inclined to stand down. "I got her message about telling you, and then her emergency alarm goes off." Her eyes bored at Cadance and the creature that resembled Shining Armor. "If you are mind controlling them…" The threat went unfinished.

"Well," Shining gestured with one hole-filled hoof at the blue ball of magic Trixie was still trapped in, "why don't you ask her?" All the tricks and games were over, he realized, there was no more hiding from his former leaders.

Luna looked between Trixie, who appeared to look more than a little shocked, and Shining Armor. Lifting one hoof, she brought it down, dispelling the sphere around Trixie Lulamoon. "Trixie, report."

"Trixie doesn't want to…" The words tumbled from Trixie's mouth before she realized it. She slumped in place as she realized what she had said, awaiting her smiting. When it didn't come, she had to peel a hoof away from one eye.

"Corporal Trixie Lulamoon." Shining's voice was the same as when he used it in a parade ground, it cut through the silence of the room like a hammer. The desired effect was immediate, Trixie sat up straight and stared blindly at him. "Trixie, you can tell her everything, it's okay." His tone was softer, warm.

"Trixie doesn't want to lie to Prince Shining and Princess Cadance anymore." Once again, Trixie was surprised by what came out of her mouth. She avoided looking at Princess Luna or Princess Celestia, locking her attention on the odd-looking Prince, and Princess. "All her notes are in the book, as reported, but she doesn't want to do this anymore." At last Trixie turned to look at Luna, staring at her mentor in the eyes. "You taught me that lying was wrong, that it led to a pony being less Great and Powerful…"

The accusation drained all of Luna's anger away. She had never heard Trixie speak in the first person before, and it surprised her how much of an impact her words had, just because of that. "We did." Luna felt a keen stab, and a surge of something inside herself. No, leave me alone.

Shining flashed with green fire, reforming his normal stallion-self. "I think Cady is correct. We need to lay our cards on the table. All of them." He looked significantly at Celestia. "So, we will admit there is a changeling agent in Equestria right now."

"You will withdraw him immediately." Celestia stood proud, tall, but something tugged at her senses, something trying to pull at her attention.

"Well, he was investigating the influx of Chrysalis' spies in Canterlot, but we will do that for you." Shining Armor felt a warm rush of delight at the looks of shock on the two Equestrian Princesses. "Didn't hear that one? She really wants to find out what happened to me. We have been getting quite good at hiding… this." Shining shed his disguise again, revealing his changes for all to see.

Luna found herself twitching every time Shining shapeshifted, it was unnerving to her to see. "Very well, what if we… worked together in this?" She gestured vaguely to Shining. "What was your intention with the new spies?"

"Slick Dive was going to probe their group, find if any are likely to be turned to our cause, and arrange for them to be on a train coming here." As Shining spoke, he noticed Princess Celestia look more and more distracted, until her eyes went pure white, and she collapsed. Old instincts took over, Shining was on his hooves and looking around, hunting for who or what had harmed the princess.

Cadance shot to her hooves, only to have a Shining flash with magic, spreading a big white wing cover her back defensively. "What is going on here? What happened to Princess… to Princess… Oh!" She started to bounce as she felt the rush of power. She remembered it—had only ever felt it once before. "A princess?"

More familiar with the sensation, Luna nodded. "We had been expecting this. Of course Twilight Sparkle would pick the least opportune time to ascend." All her anger and annoyance at the present situation evaporated in one happy blast of power.

"Twily?" Shining looked between Cadance and Luna, still on edge over a possible attack. "What is going on with Twily?" He pulled his wing back, folded it at his side.

"She is ascending. Celestia is with her, mentally, in the astral plane." Luna looked into Shining's eyes, a flash of curiosity aimed itself at his current form; Shining Armor was effectively a male alicorn, and it had been far too long since Luna had been with any stallion that really caught her eye. She saw in that moment, in Shining's look of worry, that this was the real Shining Armor. "Come and visit, soon." Luna gave a sigh, everypony present knew that it wasn't an invitation, but a demand; a very softly given demand that was backed by the might of two immortal alicorns. "We have a lot to talk about, but before we leave, what is causing—"

"Chrysalis." Shining's eyes hardened a little at the memory. "She wanted me to be hers, and only hers. From what we hear, she intended me to be so crazy from trying to keep all this," he gestured to himself with a hoof, "secret, that I would run away and join her in her hive…"

"That sounds like the plot of a bad romance novel." Luna seemed to shock everypony present with her announcement. "Well, it does. Not that I have read that many…" She reached out with her magic, adjusting Celestia into a more dignified pose. "Goodbye, Shining Armor, Mi Amore Cadenza." Luna turned her attention back to Trixie. The sight of the mare was enough to help her break her formal ties as her tutor, she was standing as straight as the best Royal Guard, and held the same look of boredom. "Goodbye, Trixie Lulamoon. Please come and visit."

Trixie was immensely thankful for her Guard training. It let her keep her legs steady, stare ahead, and even nod to Princess Luna. Trixie just needs to wait for Princess Luna to leave before freaking out and collapsing. She watched as Luna gathered up Celestia's unconscious body, and suddenly disappeared. The ground attacked. It came up suddenly and thumped Trixie first in the chest, then in the jaw.

Shining would have stopped Trixie's collapse, except he was distracted. "Hold on, so my little Twily is going to be—"

Cadance lifted Trixie's head enough to slip a pillow under her. "A princess, Shiny. Twilight Sparkle is going to be a princess." For some reason, Cadance couldn't stop giggling when Shining's wings pomfed up in surprise.

Author's Notes:

Humble and Honest Trixie: "Do you plan to stay in the guard if possible, or will you instead look to host your show elsewhere in the world"

"Trixie really has no clue what she is going to do now. Her Prince and Princess seem to think she is still part of their Guard, but honestly? Everything is different now. Trixie finds out that her greatest rival is now an alicorn princess, and that the Prince she swore to follow is a changeling? You will forgive Trixie, she needs to go and lie down for a week or two."

~~~~~+++++~~~~~

So I do this "Ask x" thing, x can be any pony within the story. You can ask them anything and I they will definitely hopefully reply. Keep the questions appropriate to the age-rating of the stories and of course, I they will answer the best question(s) in the author notes of the next chapter. The more votes a comment has the more likely I will get it to the right pony to answer, try and keep it to one answer per post! I They will pick one question per chapter.

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