- Chapter 8
- “Christie.”
- >Your lips straighten, as you stare disapprovingly at her.
- >”No, you stay put.” She pushes you back to the chair.
- >You cross your arms and sigh, not wanting to go through this.
- “I said, I’m fine.”
- >You cover your mouth with a hand, swallowing the pricking sensation on your throat.
- >She throws you a stoic expression.
- >You grin sheepishly, looking to her eyes.
- >She raises an eyebrow, still trying to read you.
- >You smile breaks, when the feeling on your throat suddenly lurches up your neck.
- >You cough violently, spitting out crimson chunks on the ground.
- >Your throat burns with the pain, which only couples as you cough.
- >You are hunched over to the ground, spewing tiny pieces of your lungs.
- >It wasn’t very pleasant.
- >Once you finish coughing, Christie puts you back up again.
- >You wheeze once, and sit still.
- >She clicks her tongue, as she begins to work her magic.
- >Your ragged breathing slows down, and the pain begins to cool and fade away.
- >Christie hands you a rag, to which you wipe your sweat.
- >She also points out a single bloody line running from your mouth.
- >You gingerly wipe it, and toss the rag.
- >”There we go, your medication for this week.”
- “Thanks.”
- >”You know- you could’ve mentioned this before.”
- “It’s just a minor problem; I just need to start making that medicine again.”
- >”Right.” She glances over to the emptied vials.
- >”Well then, since you are all patched up, I’m going out.”
- “What, again?”
- >”Yeah, I won’t be back for tonight as well.”
- “Very well…” You sigh.
- >She pauses, and looks at you with some degree of worry.
- >”Is there… something wrong, Anon?”
- “It’s just…” You rub the back of your head.
- >”Go on, spit it out.”
- “It’s nothing.”
- >She has this disdaining look on her face.
- >”I can read emotions, Anon. Don’t lie to me.”
- “You going out with those stallions again?”
- >She narrows her eyes.
- >”And what do you mean by that?”
- >You shrink to her sudden hostility.
- >Okay, clearly this approach isn’t getting the two of you nowhere.
- >You stay in silence for a while, slowly looking away.
- >”Anything else?” She asks.
- >You remain silent, you know not to evoke the wrath of the changeling queen.
- “… No.”
- >”Excellent.” She turns and leaves, not stopping to look back.
- >You kick the dust on the floor and groan.
- “Brilliant.” You mutter.
- >You look outside of the window, over to the vibrant city of Canterlot.
- >It has been… what- a week?
- >A week after that massacre.
- >After taking charge of the entire changelings, Chrysalis was extra busy.
- >She immediately pulled strings, getting the two of you a better home in the lower district.
- >It was still the same shit-hole you grew up in, but with cleaner floors.
- >Your pantry was full and you had enough bits to have your mother’s gravestone set.
- >And you had a warm bed.
- >It was safe to say everything was alright.
- >But it didn’t feel like it was alright.
- >You never saw Christie in the house, and if she was- she would be hurriedly rushing to get some stallion dick.
- >No.
- >That’s just wrong; you’re not supposed to guess her motives like this.
- >She was your friend.
- >She had the rights to do whatever she wished, and so did you.
- >But you missed her nonetheless.
- >Now with money and second-hand power, you had everything.
- >No need to beg.
- >No need to steal.
- >And yet, you eye your pocket knife, fingers twitching and ready.
- >You slide by a bench, sitting in the corner.
- >You look around, spying for possible targets.
- >You spot a burly stallion with a large saddle bag.
- >You can hear the jiggling of the bits from here.
- >He must be working for the bank transport.
- >You rise and begin to follow him, slowly making your way to the bag.
- >Once you are slightly ahead, you do your usual routine.
- >You pretend to fix your shoes, crouching on the ground.
- >As he passes by, you take out the knife and stab it to the bottom of the bag.
- >You pull it back, gashing a hole.
- >You don’t mind the noise; the rabble in the market is enough to drown it out.
- >Once the hole is made, you step back, and watch as tiny purses drop out of the bag.
- >Other opportunistic ponies notice this too, and move in to take the price.
- >You rush in and manage to snag one, and quickly retreat.
- >Not only you have to be patient, but also calculating.
- >As the poor ponies pile up, you sneak away, unknown.
- >You can’t help but to smile, throwing and catching the coins I mid-air.
- >Daily dose.
- >Speaking of which…
- >You enter the bar, taking some corner.
- >Some ponies recognize you and make some distance, but you don’t really care.
- >You order some cheap wine, throwing in five bits.
- >And some bread to go with it.
- >You down your food silently, watching as the bar scene unfold.
- >You were always a slow eater, and Chrysalis never ate actual food.
- >And you bury yourself in thoughts, thinking on where it would go from here.
- >To be honest, Chrysalis wasn’t a great leader.
- >She was brash, head strong and forceful.
- >You knew that all too well.
- >In fact, those attributes got her in trouble most of the time.
- >With you pulling her ass out of the fire.
- >For some odd reason, this brings some peace to your mind.
- >The thought of her needing you.
- >You smile, and finish everything.
- >Maybe you’ll go apologize later.
- >On your way back home, you decide to visit mom.
- >You sit next to the grave, staring silently at the horizon.
- >You watch as the sun set, and the stars fading in.
- >You can’t help but to sigh contently, sunsets were always memorable.
- >For a few seconds.
- >You walk back home, the alcohol barely having any hold on you.
- >Okay, maybe a little.
- >You stumble onto the door, shakily grabbing your keys and opening it.
- >Only when you walk in, you are in a full show of what Chrysalis is doing in the sofa.
- >She is wrapped around a stallion, his hooves trailing every corner of her disguised body.
- >You hear muffled moans coming from the two.
- >You cringe as you see their tongues lazily flop around each other’s
- >They seem to be completely engrossed with each other.
- >And all you feel is annoyance.
- >Their actions pick up, you see them grinding.
- >You feel your dinner welling up in your mouth.
- >Then you just feel disgusted.
- “Hey!” You shout at the two.
- >The stop and slowly turn to you.
- >”Who’s this guy?” The stallion asks.
- >You stride over, and stare at the stallion.
- “Get out.”
- >”Wha-“
- “Get the fuck out.”
- >You don’t give him a second to respond, and you grab him on his neck.
- >Dragging him to the door, you resist his attempts to break free.
- >You open the door, and throw him out.
- >You turn to Chrysalis, who looks equally angry and dumbfounded.
- >”What do you think you’re doing!” She shrieks.
- “Well what the fuck are YOU doing?” You shout back.
- “Acting like a goddamned whore, is this how you want to live your life?”
- >She transforms into her human form, and stands in front of you.
- >In a blink of an eye, she delivers a slap on your face.
- >You stare back at her, unwavering.
- >”Y-you think I’m doing this because I wanted to?” Her voice begins to break.
- >You hesitate for a moment.
- >”You think I enjoy doing this in front of you?”
- >A tear drops, followed by many.
- >”I’m doing this… To save you.”
- “What?!” You shout.
- “And this is saving me how?”
- >Her expression softens a little.
- >”You’re dying, Anon.”
- “I told you, with the right batch, I can-“
- >”It’s not enough!” She cuts you off.
- >”Can’t you see? You’re already progressing to stage three; no magic in the world can save you now. The reason I do this- the reason I force myself to the stallions is to… is to- get emotions.”
- “Emotions, huh? Like what?”
- >”Like love. Lust, anything. I need a lot of energy to restore you every week. Soon it will be days. I have to keep you alive, Anon… You’re the only family I have.”
- “Christie…”
- >”But you don’t care do you? You just think what you want to think. Why DO you care, huh?”
- “I…”
- >”Come on, spit it out.”
- >You go silent.
- >You just can’t bring up the words.
- >Your mouth is frozen.
- >”I thought so.” She wipes her tears, and walks past you, pushing through.
- “Chrys-“ You call out to her.
- >She’s at her door now, not intending to stop.
- >“And besides, no one will love me.”
- “Chrysalis!”
- >The door slams close.
- “I- love you…”

