[i]That was the summer nine hundred and sixty three years after Discord's fall, when everyone called me Chryssy and I knew better than to correct them. That was before Princess Luna was banished, when ponies and changelings mingled without fear. When all I wanted was to best my sisters and become queen. When finding a mate was the furthest thing on my mind. That was the summer we went to the Macintosh Hills, on the border of changeling and pony lands...[/i]

[hr]

The concierge sputtered upon seeing six identical pegasi land on the chateau concourse. They weren't [i]exactly[/i] identical, on second glance: one was larger than the rest, one heavier, one of them had face-planted on touch down. The concierge ran to get Cellar Keg. His "special guests" had arrived.

"I didn't plan that landing out too well," moaned the one on the ground.

Behind her, the others broke into laughter. In a green flash, one of them turned into a pony-sized changeling and rolled on the ground. "You should see your dumb face right now!"

The pegasus already on the ground became a slightly taller changeling, with braces on her fangs and a ponytail. "Sh-shut up, Nympha!"

The largest of them decloaked, shaking her head. "Chrysalis, [i]do[/i] pull yourself together. You wouldn't want us to look bad in front of Cellar Keg."

"She can't help it, mother," said a third, dark of mane and sharp of eye. "Chryssy's a born screwup."

"Hedylie's right," said the fourth, considerably rounder than the others and fuller of face.

"Hush, Pierida," said the last, taller than all but their mother. She bent and helped Chrysalis to her hooves, returning her glasses. "[i]You[/i] hardly make us look better."

Their mother inclined her head slightly. "Thank you, Diurna, for keeping your sisters in line. Now shut up, all of you. He's here."

A portly, greying unicorn emerged from the chateau, the concierge remaining behind, watching with fearful eyes. The stallion grinned as he approached them, bowing low.

"Queen Io! The pleasure is all mine!"

"Indeed it is, Cellar," Io said, inclining her head slightly, voice neutral.

"Will you be staying the whole weekend?" Cellar Keg rose and continued to grin excitedly at her. "We've got just a [i]bundle[/i] of activities planned! I promise it'll be a great time for you and your daughters!"

Io cast a weather eye back at them, catching Nympha and Pierida with their forelegs around Chryssy's neck. They cleared their throats, grinned, and straightened.

"Yes," she said languidly, "they [i]could[/i] use a break from trying to kill one another for my favor." She gave him a fanged smile. "Come, Cellar, my old [i]friend[/i]. Let us talk."

Cellar nodded, turned back to the chateau, and whistled, the concierge scooting to his call.

"Carry your things?" Cellar asked, leading Io along the path.

"We travel light." The Queen turned back to her progeny. "I expect you all to be on your best behavior this weekend! Do not make me regret bringing you along!"

"Yes, mother," they chorused, variously sycophantic and sullen.

As Io and Cellar moved off around the chateau, the concierge reached the changelings. He looked around, saw no luggage, threw his hooves up and shook his head, muttering about something. Diurna placed a hoof on his shoulder and gave him her most alluring smile.

"Tell me, pony, what activities did Cellar Keg speak of?"

"Oh!" He rubbed the back of his neck and tried unsuccessfully to scoot out from under her hoof. "W-well, there's shuffleboard and bingo, the lake... Tonight, there's complimentary dance lessons at the gazebo, and be a magic show tomorrow. Gosh, I'd have to get the schedule to know everything for sure. Oh, but the big to-do is the talent show on the final night! Dancing, singing, whatever you wanna do!"

Diurna smiled at him like a snake before a mouse. "Wonderful. You have served us well, peasant. Begone."

The concierge was happy to oblige.

"Very well then, my sisters," Diurna said, turning to them. "Shall we compete to prove which among us is most talented? I shall sing, of course."

"An excellent idea, sister," said Hedylie. "I shall recite poetry."

Pierida opened her mouth, but Nypha interceded. "I'll play my harp!"

Pierida scowled at her. "I'll d--"

"I'll dance!" Chrysalis shouted.

Pierida punched her in the shoulder. "Hey, that's what I was gonna say!"

Nympha could barely stifle her giggles. "You dancing, Chryssy? You'd probably knock the walls out!"

"I was gonna dance!"

"Can it, fatty," Hedylie said, sneering.

Pierida gasped. "I am [i]not[/i] fat!  I have a big exoskeleton!"

"I'll do it!" Chrysalis said. "I'll show you all! I'll win that contest!"

She stalked off, head high, the others snickering when she tripped over a paving stone.

"I'll do [i]interpretive[/i] dance, then," Pierida groused. "That's different."

[hr]

Free dance lessons at the gazebo had seemed like such a foolproof plan, ignoring the propensity of Chryssy's body becoming friends with the floor. All she would have to do is sit through an hour of swaying, learn a few steps, and then voila! Talent!

Reality, like her cousin gravity, is a harsh mistress.

The instructor, a unicorn named Foxtrot, could not have been more openly disdainful of her students if she had covered them in tree sap and affixed them with signs reading "I Hate You, Signed Foxtrot." Chrysalis especially seemed to catch her ire, and was paired up numerous times with the old earth pony mare who was too blind to tell a changeling from a diamond dog.

The actual dancing consisted of staggering about half a beat late while listening to Foxtrot screech about how poorly they were doing. Yet somehow, when it was finished, they applauded and she praised them for a job well done. Chryssy suspected acting among the dance instructor's talents.

"I'm surprised to see you here."

Chrysalis found herself on the floor once more that afternoon, staring up at her eldest sister's legs. Diurna reached down and helped her up.

"I would have thought such a talented dancer as yourself wouldn't [i]need[/i] lessons."

Chrysalis glowered after her, puffing out her reddening cheeks. "I-I'm just warming up for the talent contest! Wouldn't want to get rusty, after all. I don't actually need lessons!"

Diurna laughed and moved off through the crowd, stopping to speak with Foxtrot.

[hr]

"Mister Cellar Keg, I actually need dance lessons, can you help me-e-e-e?"

The sentence came out in a single breath as Chryssy slid across the plush carpeting, clinging to Cellar Keg's hoof.

"If I help you out," he grunted turning his eyes toward the ceiling, "will you let go?"

She did.

Sighing, Cellar turned to her. "If you really want to be a dancer, I'll set you up with Noble Sway, my best instructor. One lesson, on the house. How does that sound?"

Chryssy grinned and clapped her hooves. "Yay! I'm sure that'll be just the thing I need! And then I can show up my sisters and be next in line to become queen!"

Cellar shook his head. "I wouldn't be doing this if you weren't related to the changeling who saved my life years ago. I'll tell Sway. Meet him in the foyer in an hour."

[hr]

Chryssy flicked back and forth between three different forms as she waited in the foyer. Not that she was ashamed of her natural form, the indecision just helped take her mind off how nervous she was.

She was halfway between unicorn and pegasus when she heard hooves at the door and whirled to face it. The pony standing there was like none she'd ever seen before: a stallion black as herself, winged and horned, with red highlights in his wavy mane and tail. On his flank was a set of four flaming horseshoes. Her eyes locked with his and he gaped openly at her.

"A-are you...?"

Frightened by his words, she dropped the disguise, and his face fell with it.

"Oh," he said flatly, "a changeling." He puffed out a breath, making his hair flip upward. "Just who I wanted to not get commission on."

Reminding herself that she was a princess, she forced herself to speak. "Do you have a problem with changelings?"

Shaking his head, he strode past her down the hall. "Fugeddaboutit. C'mon, old man Keg wants me to teach you how to dance, so you're gonna learn how to dance."

His tone was brusque and his voice carried a rough, nasal accent she couldn't place. She tried to shake that thought off and concentrate on how he moved. Males had never really been her concern in the hive, but the way he walked was powerful as it was graceful, like, well, a dancer. She'd never quite seen a creature like him and found herself quite captivated.

"Lesson's in here if you're done starin' at the goods," he said, holding a door open to a studio. She scooted inside, blushing.

[hr]

The lesson with Noble Sway -- if that was really his name; he'd never introduced himself -- was a different sort of disaster than the one with Foxtrot. He tried walking her through a series of four dances, but every time she thought she was getting the hang of one, she'd stumble over her own hooves, or bump into him, or crash into the phonograph (no matter where it was placed). With each trip or fall, the alicorn got angrier.

Finally, he cut the music and pinched the bridge of his nose in one hoof. Chryssy steeled herself; she knew what happened when her mother got this way. Taking a deep breath, he dropped his hoof and looked pointedly away from her.

"Why d'you wanna learn how to dance?"

Her mouth went dry. "I, I, I want to win the talent contest in four days."

"The contest?" He let out a sharp laugh. "Kid, you'll be lucky if you don't get last place minus one with moves like that. You sure you're not a better singer or, I dunno, accordion player?"

"But I told my sisters I was going to dance..."

"Ahh, the truth comes out!" He gestured as if showing somepony a new house. "I don't pretend to know much about changelings, but I got a feelin' you and your sisters fight over who gets to be queen next, am I right?"

She ducked her head and nodded.

"Great. So not only am I not makin' full pay on account of Mister Keg's got himself indebted to changelings, but now I gotta groom one for politics too!" He slapped his wings against his sides.

"N-now, listen, you, you..." She swallowed. "I am a princess of the changeling hive and I will not be spoken to in such a manner by someone I'm not even related to!"

"Some princess." He turned his back on her. "I thought princesses were s'posed to be graceful."

"What would an alicorn stuck teaching dance lessons know about royalty?"

She knew she'd said the wrong thing when he stopped, still as a statue.

"Us alicorns, we're a dyin' breed," he said quietly. "Ponies don't need ruled like they used to. Me, I got a backstory so dark and mysterious, even I don't know nothin' about it."

He whirled on her, his eyes blazing. "Not like [i]you'd[/i] know anything about [i]that[/i], miss Pretty Pampered Changeling Princess!" The clock on the wall chimed. "Oh, look at that, lesson's over. Now kindly buzz off!" He stalked out of the studio, grumbling about spoiled daughters.

She stared after him for quite some time. Eventually, she managed to squeak out a "Sorry." It was too little, too late. As plans of hers went, this one had been an utter failure. She'd even been told off by a commoner! She wasn't good at swinging her title around like Diurna, but if he wasn't actually royalty, he should at least have treated her with common courtesy! No one should ever speak to her that way!

Then again, no one had ever called her pretty before, either.

[hr]

Inside the shack, dozens of ponies danced, though perhaps 'dancing' was the wrong word. It was more like the night was a machine and the ponies were being sucked through its gears. They gyrated and ground against one another, and while she could taste love from some of the couples, more palpable was the heady, intoxicating flavor of unbridled lust. Junk food.

In the center of it all, covered in mares, was Noble Sway.

The rude stallion had been on Chryssy's mind all evening. Try as she might, she couldn't get his words out of her head. So, after considering what Hedylie might do, she came up with a scheme. A little eyelash-fluttering at a busboy and some love magic, and she learned the whereabouts of the staff's secret party spot. Sure, she felt a little guilty passing the "Employees Only Beyond This Point" sign, but a quick form change into a mare headed into the opposite direction and she was ready to do what changelings did best: infiltrate.

While she might not have been as cunning as Hedylie, or quick-witted as Nympha, Chryssy was still smart enough to realize illicit activity when she saw it. This dancing was positively [i]dirty[/i], nothing like what she'd seen ponies do, and certainly nothing like she'd ever seen in the hive. She could [i]use[/i] this.

She waited until the doors swung open, another couple leaving to most likely copulate, if their emotions were any indicator, and slipped inside as they swung shut behind her. Everything changed. The music pulsing through her body, thick, heavy bass beats and high, tinny saxophone that drove the ponies to frenzy. They became a sea of churning bodies, pressing against her, crowding her, laughing and moaning and saying indiscreet things to one another.

Sighting Noble Sway, she tried to catch his attention. When that didn't work, she summoned up what little of the dance lessons she could recall, remembered she was using somepony else's body, and shimmied her way toward the pile of mares surrounding him.

When she was almost there, she tripped over someone's tail and face-planted right at Noble Sway's hooves.

"Parsley?" a light voice called. "I thought you went back to Hard Knocks's place!"

She felt magic lifting her and setting her back on her hooves.

"That ain't Parsley," Noble Sway said, glowering at her. "I'd know that face plant anywhere. What in Celestia's name are you doin' out here, Chryssy? I don't remember anypony invitin' you."

Pouting, Chryssy dropped her dropped disguise and once again tried to remember why she was here. "I invited myself," she said, trying her best to sound aloof. "That's what [i]princesses[/i] do, after all."

He rolled his eyes and pushed one of the mares out of his way. "Yeah? Well uninvite yourself, braces. I'm kinda in the middle of somethin', if you couldn't tell."

She smirked at him. "Tell? Now who would I tell about what it is you do out here? Certainly not Cellar Keg, my mother's [i]dear friend[/i]."

That got him; his black face turned a sickly shade of grey.

"I-I don't know what you're talkin' about..."

She took a step forward. "It's just that Cellar seems [i]awfully[/i] uptight, don't you think? Why, if he knew what his dance staff did on his property after hours..."

Noble Sway gritted his teeth, turning away. The mares surrounding him had vanished one by one, none remaining.

"Please don't tell him," he said softly.

"What was that?"

"I said don't tell him!" He looked at her, eyes wide. "Please, I [i]need[/i] this job! Ain't nopony likes to hire alicorns these days!"

"I thought so." She blew on her hoof, polishing it against her chest. "Of course, I have every [i]intention[/i] of keeping this secret, [i]if[/i]... you do something for me."

He put a foreleg around her neck and led her toward the back of the building. "Fewmets... Name it, ya [i]highness[/i]."

She smiled at him as sweetly as she could. "Teach me to dance for real."

[hr]

The next morning, Nympha sat at a table in the dining area, chin perched on crossed hooves, watching Pierida shovel oatcakes and who-knew-what-else into her face.

"Chryssy's been montaging," she said languidly.

"You told me." Pierida scowled at her. "Now shut up, I'm eating."

Nympha pursed her lips. "I'm only mentioning it because I know [i]you[/i] wanted to dance, and you're hardly doing yourself any favors by eating as much as you have been."

Pierida upended a bottle of syrup and sucked at it, eyes bulging at her.

"She's right, you know," said Diurna, sitting at the table. "Pony food goes right to your hips."

Nympha snickered. "If you're not careful, all you'll be able to interpret is 'beached whale'!" She laughed for a solid minute, banging on the table and attracting stares from the ponies in the dining room. Her sisters regarded her with looks alternately flat and hateful.

When the moment had passed, Nympha sucked in a deep breath and shook her head. "But seriously, clumsy Chryssy is getting outside help and it [i]bugs[/i] me." She buzzed her wings. "I'm starting to wonder if she might actually have a shot at this dumb contest."

"Talking about Chrysalis, are we?"

Nympha shrieked, turning into a manticore as Hedylie appeared beside her, talking into her ear. Diurna took a mouthful of her fruit salad and waved her fork at her.

"Indeed we are. It seems dear Nympha -- change back, sweetie, ponies are staring -- is afraid our least capable sister might have a shot at winning the contest."

"Oh." Hedylie stared unblinking as Nympha resumed her natural form and stuck her tongue out. "What a tragedy that would be, if it were to happen." Her lips parted in a slow, toothy smile. "Luckily, I know her instructor is a disgraced alicorn. And quite a good dancer, if you're willing to take my word for it."

"I am," Diurna said. "I am. Do you think he might be able to overcome her clumsiness?"

"Indeed I do, dear sister."

Diurna leaned back in her chair, humming and smiling to herself. The other three looked at her intently.

"I know what that look means, Diurna," Nympha said. "Spit it out. What are you plotting?"

"Plotting?" Diurna laughed airily. "My dear sister, you've confused me for Hedylie. No, I was only thinking."

After a pregnant silence, Pierida swallowed and said, "Thinking about what?"

"Oh, you know." Diurna traced a formless pattern through the air. "That it would be an awful shame if Chryssy's [i]excellent[/i] instructor made her a little [i]too[/i] confident and set her up for a fall. That it would be an even [i]greater[/i] shame if Chryssy's dear, [i]loving[/i] sisters put aside their differences and worked to decrease their total number of rivals by one." She pouted. "But you know, I was only [i]thinking[/i] about it..."

"I'm in," Pierida said through a mouthful of hashbrowns.

"Me too!" said Nympha.

"I'm intrigued," Hedylie added at length. "And just how do you plan to go about bringing about [i]dear[/i] Chryssy's downfall?"

Diurna shrugged. "Oh, I don't know. Only that her name is Foxtrot, she partners with Chryssy's dance instructor for the big evening floor shows, and you can usually find her at the gazebo around two."

Hedylie grinned ferally and sank beneath the table. Diurna tittered to herself, then leaned forward.

"And as for you two..."

[hr]

A more gruelling day's work, Chryssy could not remember. True to his word, Noble Sway -- he asked her to just call him "Sway," as his friends did -- had given his all, teaching her more complex techniques than he had the previous day. True to her word, she had concentrated on the dancing and forgotten about the reason she was blackmailing him. He'd even tried to be nice to her, though that was undercut by him being serious about undoing her flaws.

Strangely enough, it was working. She'd been able to get through an entire routine without falling once, though she still stumbled. He said that was natural for a novice, and she should really be more concerned with staying on her toes than staying upright. It was encouraging; she was actually starting to enjoy herself.

Until she crashed into the phonograph again. It had become such a regular occurrence that she had gotten fairly skilled at putting it back together. But this time, as she returned the horn to its mounting and replaced the record, she heard heavy breathing on the other side of the room. She turned to see him with a hoof up against the wall, panting through clenched teeth, and her ears folded back.

"I-I'm sorry, I'm try--"

"What are you afraid of?"

The question caught her completely off guard, and she sat back. "What?"

"What--" he stalked toward her, head low to the ground, teeth still clenched-- "are you. [i]Afraid[/i] of?"

"I don't understand."

"Yeah, you never--" He swung his head around, stomped his hooves, and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look, I'm tryin' to be nice. We got off on the wrong hoof, you're actually makin' progress. But you wanted to win that talent show, right? That's why we're doin' this!"

She nodded.

"Then why are you holdin' back? Huh?" He leaned in close. "What are you so afraid of that you can't keep your eyes on the prize and give it a hundred and ten percent?"

She blinked at him. Then she frowned. Was she afraid of something? He was staring at her, and in his eyes, she saw an intense clarity and focus. They were green pools, vortexes that drew her in and told her timeless stories of movement and shadow, of longing and love and ecstasy. Above all, they were fearless, as he always had been. Her cheeks grew hot.

"I-it's just..." She looked at the herringbone pattern of the flooring. "Every time I feel like maybe I'm making progress, I start worrying. I'm always screwing things up. My mother and my sisters, they're all pretty, or talented, or smart, and I'm just... not. I'm clumsy and gawky and I have to wear glasses and braces, and..." Hot tears slid down her cheeks.

A leg wrapped around her shoulders and a hoof drew her chin up to so she could look at him.

"Hey kid, it's okay, don't cry. So what if you're not as good as your sisters? You gotta try and be as good as [i]you[/i]. That's what my old man taught me."

"G-good as me?"

He nodded. "Be the pony... the changeling, I guess, you were meant to be, as good as you can possibly be. And if that ain't good enough for somepony else, forget 'em. It ain't worth listenin' to what they gotta say." He poked her in the chest. "But first, you start lookin' at all those problems you have as obstacles to get past, not walls that stop you cold."

"Sway!"

They both looked to door as a grey earth stallion shot into the studio. He spoke in the same rough accent as Sway, so fast she could hardly him. "Sway," he panted, "I got bad news."

"Talk to me, Knocks." Sway stood and trotted over to him.

"I-it's Foxtrot, she's real sick! Doc says she's gonna need a couple days' bedrest before she's better."

"Aw, fewmets." Sway ran a hoof through his mane. "For serious? We got a show tonight! Ain't nopony else knows the routine like her!"

Knocks shook his head. "It's real bad, bro, I'm sorry. Maybe you could get Gingersnap or, Lemon Cream..."

Sway scowled and made a guttural noise, stalking in a circle. He stopped on the second revolution, staring at Chryssy as if he'd forgotten she was there.

"Chryssy." He took a few steps towards her. "We been practicin' the routine Foxtrot and I usually do. Do you..." He slapped himself. "Sweet Celestia, I can't believe I'm even sayin' this."

"I'll do it!" she shouted, standing and smiling as she realized what she'd said. "I'll do it, Sway! I'll overcome those obstacles like you said, and we can do the routine, a-and I'll even take on Foxtrot's shape so nopony knows the difference!" She did just that, then turned back, as Knocks stared at her.

Sway gave a sharp laugh, looking between the two of them. Then he trotted over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Atta princess! You're a peach! Listen, take a break, go have some lunch, I gotta go check on Foxtrot. When I get back, you and me are goin' through the wringer."

He laughed again, grasped her hoof, then charged off after Knocks, leaving her alone in the studio.

"The 'wringer?' I have a feeling I didn't plan this out too well..."

[hr]

The "wringer," as it turned out, was four hours of nonstop dancing. She'd fallen more times than she could count, but every time, she envisioned a wall breaking down in front of her, and got up to do it again. She ignored the shouting, knowing he was just worried about his job. But after an impromptu gloating with two of her sisters, Chryssy was feeling strangely good about the whole thing. That feeling vanished when she met Sway backstage.

The lights were awfully dim. How was she supposed to see her hooves? Not to mention Foxtrot's body was uncomfortable, made worse thanks to the white dress clinging like moss to her sides. She missed her wings. And there were rather a lot of ponies out there, in the darkness, just waiting to run their gleaming eyes all over her stolen body.

She barely managed to stifle a shriek when Sway put his hoof on her shoulder.

"Don't chicken out on me now, Chryssy," he said in hushed tones. "You know the routine, just follow my lead and it'll be over before you know it. Okay?"

She swallowed. "O-okay."

"Obstacles, not walls," he said, and moved out onto the stage. "C'mon, that's our cue."

She did her best to swallow her fear and joined him.

They swept around the stage, smiling at the audience, and then they began to dance. She pushed through the obstacles.

The dance was graceful, but it was technical. They would flow one way, stop, and flow the other without ever missing the beat. She placed her hooves where they needed to be. She let him lead her through the tune, and put on flourishes a half beat after him. It made them look like a moving sculpture. Her smile widened.

The song was nearly over; she recognized this swell. He crossed to the other side of the stage and knelt down. She turned, sweeping her hoof, and ran at him.

That was when the camera flashed, right in her eyes. She blinked and teetered, nearly losing her balance. Worst of all, she stopped. Sway's smile grew plastic.

"Do the lift!" he hissed through his clenched teeth. She nodded ever so slightly, took a step back, and...

"Boo! Boooo!"

The voice sounded strangely like Nympha's. Thinking about her sister threw Chryssy completely. She rushed to him and they simply embraced. With taut expressions, they finished the last few steps, turned, and bowed. The audience applauded. Chryssy was very happy when Sway pulled her back behind the curtain.

"Sway, I'm sorry, I--"

"No, don't apologize." He ran a hoof through his mane. "You done good, they liked it, we're the only ones who know what it was supposed to look like."

"Not the only ones!"

They whirled to find Cellar Keg behind them, tapping his hoof.

"I have to say, that was one of the most disgraceful displays I have ever seen, Noble Sway. And you, Foxtrot! I'd heard you were sick!"

Chryssy opened her mouth, but Sway stepped in front of her.

"It's my fault, Mister Keg. I convinced her to dance even though she was sick."

Cellar Keg nodded, his eyes wide. "I should say it's your fault! I put up with a lot of horseapples from you, and I expect perfection! The [i]audience[/i] expects perfection!"

"Well, they liked it," Chryssy mumbled, earning a glare from Sway.

Cellar drew in a deep breath. "Yes. Yes, I suppose they did. But at Cellar Keg's, [i]quality[/i] is our priority. See that you uphold it in the future, or the [i]quality[/i] of your paycheck might decrease!" He turned and stomped off, pausing after two steps. "And find a healthier dance partner before the next show!" With that, he fumed out.

Chryssy waited until he was gone before dropping her disguise. The dress hung limply over her frame. Her head drooped. "I'm sorry, Sway."

"It's okay, Chryssy," he said, his voice tight. "You did really good. Stayed on your hooves and everything. It wasn't perfect, but I'm proud of ya."

"You mean it?" She sniffed.

"Well, yeah." He chuckled and they moved toward the rear exit. "I mean, yesterday you could barely walk without tripping, and tonight? You went through that routine like a pro."

"I didn't do the lift." She avoided his gaze, shame-faced.

"It don't matter. Cellar Keg gets twitchy this time of year." He lifted her chin and fixed her with an intense gaze. "Listen, you ain't the one that works for him. What he said? Just let it flow over ya."

Chryssy sighed. "Well, I'm still sorry Foxtrot got sick."

He shrugged. "Ain't your fault neither. Hey, listen, I'm gonna go say hi to her, you wanna come?"

She shook her head.

"All right. Catch you later, Chryssy."

She watched him go, feeling something tug at her, but unwilling to follow it. Once he was out of sight, she scowled at the dress. Its limpness mocked her, reminding her that she wasn't even as pretty as a pony. She was halfway out of it when she heard hooves on the floor and turned toward them.

"Sway?"

"Hardly."

Her breath caught in her throat as she faced her four sisters. They smiled at her mockingly.

"Quite the little screwup you are," Diurna said. "If Cellar Keg finds out what you did, ooh, I don't think you'll be going anywhere except home in a hurry."

"I didn't do anything," Chryssy protested. "I was helping Sway."

"Sway, Sway!" Nympha said, mocking her. "After tonight, he won't want anything to do with you!"

"He's my friend! He said he was proud of me!"

"Kind lies from a kind pony." Hedylie licked her lips. "Just wait until he learns what the doctor found out about his beloved dance partner."

Somethin icy clawed its way into Chryssy's stomach. "F-found out?"

"Drained of love," Diurna purred. "By changeling magic."

Nympha gave her a wicked grin. "And it'll be no problem convincing him that you were the one who did it."

"But I was with him all day!"

Pierida laughed. "Yeah, but Hedylie did such a good job on that pony, she won't be able to tell one changeling from another."

"What?"

Hedylie's eyes bugged out. Nympha smacked her forehead. Diurna made a slashing motion across her throat at Pierida, who blundered on.

"Yeah, they're all gonna think you seduced and drained her so you could have Sway all to yourself!" She laughed. "It's gonna be... What, why is everyone looking at me?"

Hedylie swarmed over Pierida, grabbing her throat. "You've said too much, you oaf!"

Pierida paled. "B-but I thought we were showing our hoof early, like Mom said!"

Diurna drew a hoof down her face. "Not [i]that much[/i]. You show enough to [i]gloat[/i], not give the jig up!"

"Sisters, she's getting away!" Nympha took to the air and the other three scrambled after her, piling up in the doorway and getting stuck. "I told you not to eat so much, you hog!"

"I've just got a big exoskeleton!" Pierida protested.

Diurna screeched.

Chryssy had a big head start, but in the crowd of ponies exiting the dining hall, she stood out. If she changed form, the flash would give her away. But if there was one thing she had learned after a lifetime of being the second-youngest and out and out scrawniest of her sisters, it was how to evade them. She didn't really want to do this, but Nympha was right on her tail.

She took a deep breath and farted.

Well, the ponies nearby her thought that was what she had done, anyway, pinching their noses and groaning. After they'd breathed in a lungful or two of her pheromones, however, their looks of disgust were replaced by starry-eyed bliss. All it would take a little push.

"Look at [i]that[/i] little cutie!" she squealed, pointing the nearest pony at Nympha. Her sister was but a few body lengths away when half a dozen ponies swarmed her, moaning in pleasure and whispering dirty things in her ear. Nympha shrieked as the pile of amorous equines pulled her out of the sky.

"I'll get you, Chryssy!"

Chryssy was already gone.

The sky opened up as she pounded the turf between the chateau and the staff sleeping quarters. She nearly ran headfirst into Hard Knocks, stopping short only because of her recent dance training.

"Knocks, where's Foxtrot's cabin?" She panted, out of breath.

"Uh... Number eleven, why?"

"Thanks!" She took off again, leaving the earth pony muttering about "crazy changelings."

When she reached the cabin, the light was on. Sway stood as she appeared in the doorway, panting and sopping wet. In the bed lay Foxtrot, dazed and muttering. The doctor pony, another unicorn, stood also.

"What's the meaning of this?"

Sway closed the distance to the door. "Chryssy, what's up?"

"It [i]is[/i] my fault," she gasped. "Foxtrot... my sisters..."

"Hey, hey, easy now. Take a deep breath." He led her inside, grabbing a towel for her. "Tell me, in small words."

Chryssy gulped in air before answering. "My sisters. Drained Foxtrot of love. They were trying to get to me. I had to tell you before rumors spread."

The doctor's glasses fell from his face, saved from the floor only by the chain around his neck. "Good heavens, so it is true!"

Sway eyed her. "I don't get it. Your sisters did this?"

She nodded. "Hedylie seduced her and drained her."

"But why?"

"All my life, we've always fought." She sat down, swiping the towel over her eyes. "Whoever's the victor becomes queen. So we plot and we scheme, and we try to kill each other, and our mother, constantly. But they've never ganged up on me like this before. I'm scared, Sway. I could be in real danger."

Sway nodded to the doctor, who sat back down. He put a hoof around her and looked into her eyes.

"So you're tellin' me your crazy sisters doped my friend and almost killed her, just to make you look bad?"

She nodded, afraid of what he might say next.

Sway's eyes closed and he took in a deep breath. "All right, Chryssy, now you listen to me. That talent contest is in two days, which means we got two days to practice. Win it, and you beat them, right?"

She nodded again.

"Okay. You and me, we're gonna dance like we never danced before. I'm gonna do everything in my power to make you win that contest, and we're gonna get your sisters back for what they did to Foxtrot. Capiche?"

"Capiche." She had no idea what that meant. "But... why do you care about my sisters?"

He closed his eyes. "I know what it's like, not bein' loved. Us alicorns, we used to live in harmony with the other pony tribes: earth, pegasus, unicorn, crystal and night. Then one day, someponies decided they didn't like us no more. Oh sure, the Princesses of the Sun and Moon, they're great. They make day and night, so they get to rule over everything." He chuckled wryly. "But a Prince of Dance? Don't really need one o' those. So they took away our domains, made us obsolete. Now there's just a hoofful of us left, besides Celestia and Luna. When I said we was a dyin' breed, I meant it."

He looked back over at Foxtrot and the doctor, who weren't paying attention.

"Chryssy, when I look at you, I don't see a princess or even a changeling. I see a scared filly who's had a rough deal in life." He stroked her mane gently. "Call me a sucker for hard-luck cases, but I wanna help that filly. And if that means beatin' her evil sisters at a dance contest, then by my sister's mane, that's what I'm gonna do. You with me?"

"Y-yeah," she mumbled, staring up at him.

"I said are you with me, Chryssy?" he shouted, grasping her shoulders with both hooves.

She caught his infectious enthusiasm and grinned. "I'm with you!"

"Then let's do this!"

[hr]

"No, no, no!"

Chryssy kicked the phonograph stand. Sway was just barely able to keep it from breaking up with his magic.

"Whoa, take it easy!"

She growled and stomped her hoof. "I'm not getting it! I'll never be good enough!"

"Hey, hey." He circled around her, touching her side gently. "Just calm down, you know that ain't true."

She wrinkled her nose. "This is just the same old same old, Sway. You saw the audience last night. They'll applaud for any old thing. But I need something [i]fresh[/i], something [i]new[/i]! If I want to win..." She paused, looking up at him. "I need to dance like you did, that first night!"

He blinked. "Whattaya mean?"

She pressed her chest against his, lifting a hoof to the back of his head. "That dance I saw at the party." Waggling her hips, she pushed him backward. "I'd never seen anything like it, but I know it's the key I need to win this contest. Not just beating my sisters, winning the whole thing." She drew her face close to his. "Can you teach me, Sway?" She grinned slightly as he flushed.

"Uh, I... Yeah, I guess. But Mister Keg's gonna be mad when he finds out..."

"Then we'll just have to be... [i]confident[/i]." She grabbed his head and turned it to they were nose to nose. "Won't we?"

"Yeah. Confident." He grinned, lopsided, and took a step back from her. "C'mon. Get up on your hind legs."

That was, of course, easier said than done, and for a few minutes, Chryssy felt like she was back at day one, falling all over herself. But with his help, she was able to balance. He wrapped a leg around her waist and drew her close.

"The secret to this dance," he began, "is there ain't no secret. Do what you wanna. Let go, don't let [i]nothin'[/i] hold you back, or you're gonna look like a bird."

She nodded, removing the band holding her mane back in its ponytail. "Nothing holding me back, got it. Uh, Sway?"

He was staring at her. "I, uh..." He cleared his throat. "That's a good look on you."

She grinned. "Thanks!"

"All right, let's just... give it a try." He swapped records and started up the phonograph. "Just listen to the music, close your eyes, let it flow through you, and do whatever comes naturally."

What came naturally wasn't just dancing, it was moving, [i]feeling[/i], until their hearts beat for one another. There was nothing [i]physical[/i] physical about it, yet it was nonetheless carnal.

They kept doing what came naturally until an "Uh..." came from the doorway. The music stopped and so did they, staring at Hard Knocks, who in turn stared at them.

"That's the last time I come in here for no reason," he mumbled, before turning, stiff-legged, and leaving.

Clearing their throats, they disengaged from one another, looking pointedly at the walls.

"I should, uh," she said.

"Yeah, me too," he said.

And so they did.

[hr]

"Be on your best behavior, Chrysalis, dear."

Her mother had called her over to her table to give that cryptic remark and wave her off again. Chryssy could only wonder about the vague grin tugging at the corners of her mouth.

Backstage, the nervous concierge gave all the participants their order in the day's proceedings. The five changelings were performing in the middle of the lineup, with Chryssy last among them.

She was just wondering when Sway would get there when she felt a rough hoof on her shoulder.

"Sway...?"

She spun around only to get a hoof in the face. She grunted and fell to the ground, clutching her nose. Behind the hoof was Diurna, glaring furiously. Hedylie, Pierida and Nympha joined her. Their scowls could have cut steel.

"W-what are you--"

"You," Diurna snarled. "Because of you, we're on thin ice with mother."

"[i]Someone[/i] let out what we did," Nympha said, glowering.

Chryssy tried her best to return their glares. "That was Pierida's fault! Take it out on her!"

"We already have," Hedylie said, her voice dangerously neutral.

Pierida muscled her way past the others. "Now it's your turn!" She kicked Chryssy in the jaw, knocking her backward.

Remembering she had wings, Chryssy tried to escape them, but they pursued. Hemming her in, they pushed her into the backstage corner.

"You have always been the worst of us, Chrysalis," Diurna said, breathing hard. "It's time we put you in your place once and for all!"

The blows rained down.

Unable to overpower her sisters physically, Chryssy tried to fight back with her magic. Though she got in a few good hits of her own, Diurna and Hedylie were able to overpower it, and Nympha and Pierida got in solid bodyblows. Chryssy could feel parts of her shifting that shouldn't be. She closed her eyes; this was really the end.

"Knock it off!"

Just when she thought she was a goner, a flash bright enough to see it through her eyelids brought the assault to a standstill. She cracked open one eye, the other being too puffy, and saw her sisters suspended in a dark green magical glow. Behind them, eyes ablaze, was Noble Sway.

"I may be a washed up prince workin' his flank off for pocket change, but [i]I am still an alicorn[/i]!"

With a burst of power, he flung the four changelings shrieking through the stage exit door. He collapsed to one knee, panting.

"Nopony puts Chryssy in a corner."

Fast as she could, Chryssy was at his side, holding him.

"You're so brave!"

He laughed weakly. "It was nothin'. Just wish I was the alicorn of somethin' a little more powerful, y'know?" He tilted her chin up gently and winced. "Look at you... I can't believe your own family would do somethin' like this." Taking a deep breath, he said, "D'you think you can dance still?"

She shook her head. "I don't know. Maybe. It hurts."

He nodded slowly. "Chryssy, over the last couple days, I've, uh... I've kinda gotten to like you. A lot."

"I know," she said, stroking his face and smiling. "I'm a changeling, remember?"

"Oh yeah..."

"I feel the same way about you, I think," she whispered.

"Chryssy..." His gaze roamed over her, and his expression hardened slowly. "Take my love. Use it to heal yourself, make yourself stronger, whatever. Just go out there and dance your little heart out, okay?"

Her hoof flew to her mouth. "But Sway, you strained yourself fighting off my sisters! If I drain you now, you could end up worse than Foxtrot!"

He chuckled. "Just don't overdo it, okay? I trust you. I'll watch from here, promise."

She hesitated for a long moment. Then, slowly, she touched the tip of her horn to his and fed on his love. Her cracks and bruises healed instantly. She felt stronger, more alert. Only when he gasped did she remember herself and stop feeding.

She had fed on love before, of course, but something about it being freely given invigorated her in ways she'd never thought possible. Like lust, it was intoxicating, yet it also nourishing.

"I'll do it, Sway," she said, rising. "I'm gonna win this thing!"

"Go get 'em, kid," he said, voice weak.

Wincing, she gently lifted him and turned him around so he could see. She planted a kiss on his forehead, and strode onstage. The pegasus accordionist who had been performing gaped at her before being hip-checked off stage.

"Excuse me, Your Highness," said the concierge through chattering teeth, "but this is highly irregular."

"Irregular nothing," Chryssy said, feeling a rush of adrenaline as she asserted herself. "Princesses get what they want. Hit it!"

The pony at the soundboard hesitated, then started up the song she'd picked. It was energetic and hip, and above all [i]sexy[/i]. She started to dance.

She shook her hips. She crawled across the stage. She poured herself over every prop that had been left up there. The whole time, she kept her eyes on the audience. They ate it up.

Then someone shouted, "Hey! That's our dance!" and before she knew it, the house staff ponies had paired up and were dancing in the aisles, grinding and churning against one another. They got the audience in on it, too, switching off partners willy-nilly, even the blind old mares.

Chryssy turned to stage left and beckoned to Sway. He hoisted himself up, looking suddenly more fit than he had, and pranced out to join her. They moved as one, around, through and all over one another as the music played and played.

The only pony who was not enjoying the lurid display was Cellar Keg, sputtering to Queen Io.

"What is the meaning of this? Are you seeing this, Io, because I certainly can't believe my eyes! It's that no good alicorn, I'm sure of it! He's corrupted your daughter! Why, when I get my hooves on him, I'll--"

Io silenced him with a band of magic around his muzzle.

"I told her," she said, calmly and slowly, "to be on her best behavior." Releasing him, she smiled. "That's my girl."

[hr]

The dancing lasted long into the night, the talent contest forgotten. By the end of it, everypony had loosened up, had the time of their lives, and possibly become pregnant. Sway and Chryssy had snuck off in the middle of it, however, after she whispered something in his ear. They went down to the water's edge, the moon reflecting off the calm waves of the cold mountain lake.

"I can't believe it's only been four days," Sway said, holding her close. "You're like a completely different person than when I first met you."

"I feel like a different person," she said, tracing the lines of his face. "Thank you, Sway. Thank you so much, for everything. I love you."

"I love you too, Chryssy."

She giggled. "It's Chrysalis."

He laughed. "Chrysalis, then."

The wind ruffled his mane, like fire against the night sky. She gazed into his eyes, and the passion that she had been holding back those four days burst forth at long last. He leaned in, eyes closed, lips pursed. She extended her mandibles, her face splitting into four parts, and bit into him. He shouted and screamed wordlessly into her mouth as she slowly consumed his head. The screams eventually stopped, and when she was done, she shuddered in ecstasy. His body performed similarly, twitching, spasming, and falling off the dock to be swallowed by the murky waters below.

She belched and smiled, looking up at the moon and licking the blood off her face with her long forked tongue.

Then a shadow of doubt crossed her face.

"Oh, fewmets," she huffed, crossing her forelegs and pouted at the water. "I was supposed to [i]mate[/i] with him first!

"I really need to work on planning things out."