Chrysalis considered the walls carefully as she thought about her plans. "Hmm... yess... that could work," she chortled while Sweetie lay on her stomach, chin on the floor and bored out of her mind.

"How long are we going to stay here? I want to—"

Chrysalis stopped when Sweetie's whining was cut short. Blinking, she slowly turned around to face the young unicorn. "Sweetie, is everything okay?"

Sweetie Belle was standing, looking around at the prison with a confused look. When she heard Chrysalis' voice, she opened her eyes wide and turned to look at her. "Y-your majesty!" she stammered, bowing.

"Why are you calling me..." Chrysalis trailed off, immediately noticing Sweetie had changed. She frowned. "You have a cutie mark."

Sweetie looked back at the broken star and note. "Uh, yes, I recently got it. Um. I promise I'm on your side!" She bowed again. "The glade is dark and quiet," Sweetie said softly.

Chrysalis' eyes widened and she put her hoof firmly on Sweetie's mouth. "The spider’s web full,” she muttered in reply. "How do you even know that, Sweetie?" she shook her head. "You're not a changeling. You're still a pony... but you're not my sister!"

"Your... sister?" Sweetie Belle blinked. "Uh..." she shook her head. "Okay, this is going to sound weird, but... I am Sweetie Belle, just from another dimension."

Chrysalis stared at Sweetie Belle for a moment. "Okay, you have been lying to me all this time and Purity put you up for this, didn't she?"

"Purity?"

"Rarity!" Chrysalis snapped. "My sister! Your sister!"

"Rarity is your sister?!" Sweetie Belle gasped.

Chrysalis turned around and started pacing. "This is not real. My sister did not just get replaced by herself from another universe. I'm just having a breakdown. Breathe, Chrysalis, breathe. When you look at her, she's going to be the same old Sweetie Belle, bored out of her mind and asking how we're getting out of here."

When she looked back, Sweetie Belle still had that strange cutie mark and was looking at her in obvious amusement. "I think I'm missing something here," inter-dimensional Sweetie-Belle said. "We're family?"

"I feel like I had this conversation earlier," Chrysalis muttered. "Yes, we are. To make a story short: Your sister Rarity is my sister Pupa, she's always been a unicorn and always a changeling. It was a weird thing that happened and they became one thanks to my older sister saving both their lives. I know it's complicated but—"

"Ooh! I get it! Both souls became one and they shared a body!" Sweetie nodded. "That makes sense!"

Chrysalis blinked. "It does?"

"Of course!" Sweetie nodded. "If one soul can be fragmented into several pieces, it makes sense that two young souls would be able to be molded into one and grow as a single entity."

"Okay, now I know you're not my Sweetie Belle, she wasn't that smart."

"Hey!"

"Anyway, there's still the matter at hoof," Chrysalis gestured to the cell. "We need to get out of here and get to Twilight." She sighed. "I had intended to find a way where Sweetie would not be in danger..."

"I can take care of myself," Sweetie Belle said.

Chrysalis gave her a level look. "Very well then." She walked to a seemingly random wall and touched it with her horn. The wall shuddered and slowly opened, revealing the halls outside. "My daughters forgot one very important thing," she said, smirking. "Even if they 'took over' I still am the Queen, and the Hive belongs to me."

"That's pretty impressive!" Sweetie Belle remarked. "A symbiotic relationship with not only the changelings, but the Hive itself? How come you never told me that?"

Chrysalis rolled her eyes. "Until now you were not a high level spy of the Changeling Intelligence." She took a deep, calming breath. "How did you become a high-ranking spy in my army?"

Sweetie Belle smiled. "I tried really, really hard."

Chrysalis just shook her head in disbelief.

"Oh, and you taught me to sing too!" Sweetie Belle called over her shoulder as she cantered past.

"What?! Come over here you little twerp! You have to tell me how you managed to do that one! And no half-answers!"

"So, you're looking for a purple crystal that has a lot of magic inside," Chrysalis summarized as they made their way through the hallways. "That's easy, mother had one just like you described fitted at the top of the throne." She pointed in the direction they were going. "She thought it was a particularly strong empathy gem. But it never worked the same way, and if it has Twilight's knowledge, it's no surprise it didn't work for her or me."

Sweetie nodded. "Although it doesn't seem that you're evil..."

Chrysalis stopped. "I am ruthless, Sweetie Belle," she said slowly and deliberately. "My regrets are things I deal with in a manner of minutes if they exist. There is only one..." she looked down at Sweetie. "...well, two, soft spots for me now. But as much as I love my sister and sister," she turned to glare ahead. "My throne and my queendom are my priorities,"

Sweetie nodded as they resumed walking. "That's more like the Queen Chrysalis I know," Sweetie said, keeping her eyes on the hallway. She hesitated.

"What?" Chrysalis asked, immediately catching her sister's reaction.

"I... think you're happier, in this world, than in the last one," Sweetie Belle explained. "I spent almost a whole year meeting with you there and... you only smiled sincerely once."

Chrysalis was quiet until they reached two large double doors. She took a deep breath and nodded. "I have regained much these last few weeks," she explained. "Maybe that's the difference, though I'm sure there's more."

Sweetie watched Chrysalis activate her magic, horn aglow, and order the doors to open.

The throne room was large, although not as big as Celestia's. It was certainly darker, with little decorations other than the throne it, which had, as Chrysalis had said, a purple, glowing gem at the top.

Sweetie and Chysalis approached the throne. "Well, this is it," Sweetie said, her magic wrenching the fragment from it. "Are you sure you're fine with me taking it?"

Chrysalis rolled her eyes. "As much as I enjoy chatting with a Lieutenant Spy, I'd rather have my regular sister back, if you don't mind." She smirked. "Besides, her face when she wakes up sitting on that throne will be priceless."

Sweetie Belle chuckled and nodded, sitting down on the throne and giving Chrysalis one amused glance. "You really are different here. I like you."

Chrysalis opened her mouth to say something, but at that moment the fragment vanished, along with Sweetie Belle's cutie mark, leaving an unconscious filly sitting on the throne.

Several changelings rushed in, alarmed by the magic they hand sensed and the flash of light. They stopped and stared at their Queen when she turned around to face them with a smirk. "My loyal subjects."

"My Queen!" One of the changelings saluted. "Did you capture this unicorn filly? Do you want us to take her to prison?"

Chrysalis shook her head, smiling as she heard a small cough and a groan behind her. "No... just follow my lead."

Somewhere else...

Author's Notes:

Keep following the links!