Twilight could not remember ever being so nervous in her life.

She could feel her heart hammering in her chest, a strange white noise ringing in her ears, making it impossible to listen to her friends’ reassurances. They were all there with her: Spike, Fluttershy, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Starlight… even Trixie. All dressed in beautiful flowing dresses, Spike’s tuxedo unbearably cute, pressed together in the enormous room, all of them trying to cheer her up; her friends, her extended family, her whole world.

So why did she feel so utterly alone?

She felt somepony tugging at her dress, and a little startled yelp left her lips as she skittered away. Blushing, she soon realized it was only Rarity, and she quickly calmed down; the unicorn was just adjusting a fold in Twilight’s white gown. Always the perfectionist, even in this somber occasion, it was almost enough to make Twilight smile. Rarity said something Twilight didn’t understand, so loud was the buzzing in her ear, so the alicorn just nodded, hoping it would be enough. Rarity frowned, obviously concerned, but she didn’t have time to insist: a vivid fanfare of violins and trumpets sounded off in the next room, making them all jump.

The ceremony had started.

The group of ponies and one dragon scrambled to get into formation, standing side by side in pairs. They shot Twilight a few last glances, hopeful smiles and worried frowns all around, and once the song hit its next stanza they marched out of the room. Through the open door Twilight had a glimpse of a large familiar room, hundreds of ponies sitting in attendance, the music making her ears twitch. Everything was so beautiful on the other side of the door, so happy, so colorful… then her heart did a somersault when she spied a hint of black on the far side of the room, and the door closed on her, cutting her off.

Now she was truly alone.

The static in her ears grew to deafening proportions, she could see white spots dancing before her, her heart apparently trying its best to burst through her chest. Her mind swirled with a thousand thoughts: was her plan going to work? Would she regret this forever? Was this a mistake? Why was her dress so tight all of the sudden? She waited and waited… Then it finally happened.

The music changed again. The happy tempo slowed, the violin strokes becoming triumphant and powerful, beckoning her forward. This was her cue, no time to think anymore. She felt like she was standing on the edge of a bottomless cliff, and she had to willingly leap into the void. For just a second she thought about running away, she thought about all the hopes and dreams she would be forfeiting once she stepped through that door… but it didn’t matter: she had to do it.

A quiet feeling of peaceful resignation fell upon her.

Her racing heart slowed, the ringing in her ears went silent, and she released a breath she only now realized she had been holding. This was it, no going back, no time for regrets. She just had to step through the door, and face the music. A curious smile blossomed on her lips without her prompting, and she did nothing to chase it away. To Tartarus with her doubts. She was Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship, savior of Equestria and paragon of Harmony. She had chosen this path, she had vowed to do this, and she would not let fear bog her down. She would not run!

With a decisive step, she approached the doors, and with a magical push she marched into the Canterlot wedding hall, the bridal chorus welcoming her in. It was just as she remembered, the room hadn’t changed since Cadance’s and Shining Armor’s wedding. White banners adorned the walls, flower petal sprinkled the lush red carpet beneath her hooves, ponies of all shades of the rainbow turned on their seats to look at her. The room was radiant with colors and warmth, the band played a perfect rendition of “here comes the bride”, the sun shone brightly through the open archways… it was truly breathtaking to look at.

But, there was one black stain on this beautiful canvas. One dark creature that didn’t fit with the harmonious celebration, one false note in the melody. A wolf amongst sheep, a monster in the night.

And it was waiting for her at the altar.

Twilight chased the depressing thought away, and she walked confidently down the aisle, smiling softly to the surrounding ponies, nodding to the familiar faces. Most of Ponyville was in attendance, as were all her old Canterlot friends. She was glad to see several new faces in the audience, like dragon-lord Ember, who seemed to be utterly confused by the ceremony. Next to her sat Thorax, king of the new changelings, who seemed to be trying to make himself as small as possible, his antlers trembling with fear; understandable considering who was standing at the end of the aisle. A gryphon diplomat, a minotaur envoy… even the yak prince, Rutherford, had taken the time to come, though he seemed to be sound asleep; an Equestrian wedding was probably a boring affair for a yak.

All of Equestria’s newest allies were present to acknowledge this historic event.

Twilight kept walking, the altar fast approaching. The front rows were occupied by her closest friends and family, all wearing conflicting expressions. Rarity and Fluttershy leaned against one another as they cried silently, Rainbow Dash wore a fierce scowl, Applejack had a confident but somber expression… and Pinkie Pie was smiling from ear to ear, bouncing in her chair; she even waved happily as Twilight walked past. Always the optimistic one, that Pinkie, it made Twilight want to laugh.

She then felt a pang of sadness when she met her mother’s eyes: her parents held each other as they watched their precious daughter walk past, a trembling Spike huddled between their hooves; the tears running down their cheeks were clearly not ones of happiness. Twilight tried to reassure them with a smile, but she faltered when she saw her brother sitting next to them. Shining was shaking with anger, his eyes bloodshot, his horn fizzling dangerously; if it weren’t for Cadance holding him back, he would probably charge at the creature standing at the altar. The princess of love tried to smile at her step-sister, and failed; they both knew what this wedding entailed.

With a deep breath, Twilight finally looked up towards the altar, where her betrothed awaited her.

Chrysalis, queen of the changelings, her old enemy; and now her bride, soon to be wife. The changeling was bored, and she did nothing to hide it, her disdain for the current procedures completely evident; she was not even wearing the tuxedo Rarity had reluctantly tailored for her. No, chrysalis was naked, her glossy carapace shining like polished latex, her long powerful legs flexing in impatient anticipation, the generous curves of her hips on full display...

Twilight’s throat suddenly felt very dry, and she quickly looked away from the changeling’s backside. Chrysalis shot her a glance, rolled her eyes, then tilted her head dismissively, as if to say “just hurry up already”; there was no warmth in the changeling’s eyes. Twilight felt a chill run down her spine, but she ignored the bitter feeling and started to walk up the steps. Of course Chrysalis didn't care about the ceremony, nor did she care about her bride. Twilight knew this union was not one of love.

As was often the case with political marriages.

As she ascended the altar Twilight’s gaze flicked to the mare officiating the wedding, and she couldn’t help but avoid Celestia’s worried eyes. Like a mother hen protecting her young, the ancient alicorn had been ferociously opposed to this union; she had gone as far as propose she take Twilight’s place and marry Chrysalis herself… but it was impossible. The solar goddess was much too important to be married off in this way, as was Luna. Twilight on the other hand, she was but a young princess, with little political influence… and it had been her idea.

It made sense really. With this union ponies and changelings would finally know peace: Thorax and his reformed changelings would be protected from their brethren, the rogue changelings still hiding amongst the population would be free to live their lives, and Chrysalis would give up her plans for revenge… all in return for one alicorn bride. And as her wife, Twilight would be in the perfect position to make Chrysalis see the error of her ways, the changeling would not even see it coming!

Reforming a villain by marrying them was a little unorthodox, but Twilight was confident it would work.

Luna had called her plan foolish while Celestia had begged her to reconsider, but Twilight had not wavered: as long as there was but a glimmer of good in Chrysalis, the changeling could be won over. Cadance had reluctantly agreed with her on that point: since the queen could love her subjects —even if her love was twisted and selfish—maybe she could learn to love a pony. It was a gamble, but it was one Twilight was willing to take, for the good of both changelings and ponies.

Finally, Twilight climbed the last few steps, and she turned to face her bride; Chrysalis still looked like she was dying of boredom, but Twilight didn’t let it get to her. The orchestra went quiet, a feverish sort of tension filling the room, and all eyes turned to Celestia. And they waited. And waited some more.

The silence stretched, a few awkward coughs sounding amongst the audience, but still Celestia didn’t move. The alicorn seemed to be frozen in place, her worried eyes riveted to Twilight’s, as if imploring her former student to change her mind: it’s not too late, she seemed to be saying. The audience was becoming restless, but Celestia only stared at Twilight, offering her one last chance to back out.

Twilight’s smile grew, her heart going out to her old mentor, but she only shook her head; she would not run away. Celestia closed her eyes, a spark streaking down her cheek, and she put on her usual princess mask. She smiled, her eyes empty of light, then she began her speech, silencing the hushed whispers. The words were practiced… but Celestia’s voice was hollow, her eyes unfocused as she went through the usual wedding banalities. Twilight winced, she had never seen her mentor so shaken, and she quickly tuned the alicorn out, choosing instead to watch her bride.

Chrysalis was now wearing an amused grin, her eyes twinkling as she watched Celestia drone-on; was she remembering the last time she had been standing on this very same altar, listening to Celestia say those very same words? Of course, she had been wearing Cadance’s appearance at the time, the real alicorn trapped underground, hurt and alone… Twilight felt a little burst of anger, but she quickly snuffed it out; if she was to make Chrysalis love her, she couldn’t let the past blind her. The changeling’s ear twitched, and she turned to her soon-to-be wife, as if sensing her thoughts.

Twilight managed to not look away as they locked gaze, even if those dark green eyes still unnerved her; she would have to get used to them sooner or later. And, now that she could look at them without fearing for her life, Chrysalis’ cat-like eyes were strangely… alluring. The changeling queen tilted her head, a curious expression on her muzzle, and she finally broke the staring contest; her slit pupils roamed over her bride’s body, as if considering her for the first time, and Twilight did the same.

It was strange, to look at her old enemy in such a way, and Twilight was surprised to find she didn’t mind what she saw. When she wasn’t trying to kill you, Chrysalis certainly wasn’t bad to look at: she had a strange alien beauty to her, she had an aura about her, something intriguing and… dangerous. Twilight couldn’t help but let her eyes stray a little too far south, towards the changeling’s rear, and she felt a twinge of shameful excitement fluttering in her belly. Chrysalis’ eyes widened, and her muzzle stretched into a fanged smirk. The changeling shifted her weight, making her hips roll sensually, watching Twilight’s reaction; the alicorn gulped thickly, her eyes following the hypnotic movements.

Just then Celestia coughed, startling Twilight out of her hip-swaying-induced trance; the solar princess was looking at her former student expectantly, and when Twilight only blinked in confusion, Celestia pointed towards the rings floating in her magic. Oh… OH! Twilight’s cheeks exploded into a blush, and she quickly bowed her head; she did her best to ignore Chrysalis’ teasing chuckle. She shivered slightly as the cold golden ring settled over her horn, and she rose in time to see Celestia grimace as she put the other ring on Chrysalis’ crooked horn.

It was done, they were married. Twilight felt a little woozy as the fact settled on her, and she barely heard the crowd erupt into polite applause; she was too busy thinking about the next step. Tradition dictated that she now had to kiss her wife, turn to the audience, and say her first words as a married mare. If kissing her former arch nemesis wasn’t strange enough, she knew that her first words had to be perfect: they would go down in history, and would be remembered forever. She couldn’t mess up on both counts!

Fighting very hard not to scrunch her muzzle, Twilight took a step towards her wife, and Chrysalis did the same, the tall changeling leaning down graciously. With a stomach full of butterflies, Twilight puckered her lips, desperately trying to remember what she had learned about kissing, which wasn’t much; books were surprisingly unhelpful on the subject, all asserting that no explanation could replace the real thing... Which was completely unhelpful for a first-timer! Twilight regretted being too embarrassed to ask one of her friends for help, but it was too late now; Chrysalis was already leaning towards her.

Twilight trembled, watching the changeling come closer and closer, and she closed her eyes. She felt Chrysalis’ breath on her muzzle –it was surprisingly nice and cool, almost minty– and she braced herself, her eyes scrunched shut, the hairs on her nose tickling as they came into contact with Chrysalis’ muzzle, then…

Twilight’s eyes fluttered open, surprised. Chrysalis’ lips were incredibly soft, not at all like she had imagined. The kiss was gentle, chaste, almost shy, and Twilight found herself leaning into it. She had expected something to happen, like a jolt of electricity, or some sort of feeling or wonder, or disgust, or… something! Weren’t first kisses supposed to be magical? Still… this was kind of… nice. It was almost as if the changeling knew she was new to this, and was taking it slow.

She shared a look with Chrysalis, and the changeling winked at her playfully, their lips brushing against one another. Twilight’s heart swelled with warmth: yes, she had been right! Chrysalis did have good in her! Her plan would work! Happier than she had been in weeks, Twilight willingly stepped into the kiss, her clumsy enthusiasm making Chrysalis chuckle against her lips.

Chrysalis quickly took control of the kiss, Twilight happily letting the more experienced mare lead her; the crowd was starting to whisper amongst themselves, the kiss was dragging longer than was strictly necessary, but neither seemed to care. Chrysalis purred in satisfaction, and her mouth opened, trying to deepen the kiss; her tongue poked at Twilight’s lips, requesting entry. The alicorn hesitated, a little afraid of taking this next step, and finally decided to trust her new life partner. Twilight parted her lips with a slight shudder of anticipation, and…

A fat tentacle-tongue suddenly rushed into her mouth, her cheeks bulging as it poked at her flesh, and the enormous fleshy tendril coiled around her poor little tongue… just like a snake.

“WAAAAAAAAAGLURKGLARKARHAGLH!”

And thus, the first words from Chrysalis and Twilight’s marriage echoed through the shocked wedding hall, to be forever remembered, written down in history.