I said I wasn't done writing Mysticons fanfic, and I meant it! As the title and plot summary implied, this will take place after the end of the series, and will mostly focus on Zarya. Not everything will be from her POV, though. I can't imagine she'll have an easy time of it, going from street rat to princess, so I thought I'd showcase some of it here. Compliant with canon and Mysticon Short Stories.

I own nothing.

Changes

Sarren Goodfey had summoned both of her daughters to her office. She was looking over a piece of paper as they stepped inside. At the sound of their approach, she looked up and then quickly stuffed the paper into her pocket.

"You're early! I wasn't expecting you for another few minutes."

Zarya narrowed her eyes. "What was that you just shoved in your pocket?"

Mom frowned. "None of your concern." Zarya was about to argue—anything that could affect her was most definitely her concern—but Mom had pulled up something on her spell pad. "Now, as for why I've called you both here…

An image was projected into the air. "Due to substantial evidence, we have decided that Gawayne is unfit to rule Gemina, which means that we needed to choose a new successor."

An expression of sheer horror settled onto Zarya's face. Don't you dare say it's me…

Sarren, noticing that her younger daughter clearly did not want this for herself, quickly continued, "We have agreed that Arkayna is best suited to be queen of Gemina. Since she is older, it was the logical choice."

Zarya collapsed to the floor in relief. "Don't do that to me again. I thought you were gonna say it was me, and there's no possible way that could end well."

Mom smiled at her. "We did take that into account. However…" She paused for a moment. "This must be announced to the citizens as soon as possible. We have set a date for one week from today, and we can have Zarya's coronation at the same time."

Zarya shook her head emphatically. "Again, no possible way. I don't want a coronation, Mom. People already stare at me enough."

Arkayna just hid a smile. Mom has no idea what she's up against here.

"You don't… want a coronation for yourself?" Mom looked like she was having trouble processing that. "But… you're going to be second Crown Princess… It will look very strange if you don't."

Zarya shrugged. "So? What about this situation isn't strange?"

She's got a point, Arkayna mused. "Mom, there's no law stating that a coronation is necessary. And I really can't say as I blame Zarya for not wanting the attention right now."

The queen considered the two teenagers in front of her. Both of them seemed far more mature than their fifteen years would suggest. Slowly, she nodded. "If you insist. We will announce Arkayna's ascension as planned, but that will be the only thing to happen."

Zarya nodded, already looking happier.

Before they could react, the older woman stepped forward and quickly hugged them both. "I'm just glad I have you here with me." She took a step back. "All right, that's all I needed to discuss with the both of you. Arkayna, stay a moment, please."

Zarya left the room. Arkayna waited where she was. "What's up, Mom?"

Mom smiled at her. "Are you sure you're all right with this? I know it's sudden, but we really didn't feel like we had a choice. Gawayne can't be allowed to rule, and Zarya is still so new to palace life… You've also shown remarkable progress recently; don't think I haven't noticed."

Arkayna smiled back. "I'll do my best, Mom. I do think Zarya would be a better ruler than Gawayne, but it's not really a high bar. She's got a serious temper on her, too."

As though saying her name had summoned her, Zarya stuck her head back in the room. "Hey, Mom? I like this design the best." She was indicating something on a piece of paper in her hands.

It took a moment for the queen to register what the girl was holding, but when she figured it out, she quickly patted her pocket and found nothing. "How did you… did it fall out of my pocket?" She sighed. "It was supposed to be a surprise. I must not have had it in there securely and I dropped it."

Arkayna took note of Zarya's innocent expression and snorted. "Yeah, it fell out… with a little help from some sticky fingers."

Zarya scowled at her. "Give away all my secrets, why don'cha?"

Sarren glanced between the two of them for a moment, then focused on Arkayna. "What exactly did you mean by that?"

Arkayna pointed at the sheet of paper. "You didn't drop it, Mom. Zarya picked your pocket."

"Arkayna!" the queen exclaimed. "That's a terrible thing to say about your sister."

"Seriously?" Arkayna stared. "She did. Zarya, you don't live on the street anymore; why do you keep pickpocketing people?"

Zarya smirked at her. "Because it's fun."

"Enough!" Mom broke in. "Zarya… you know how to pick pockets?"

Zarya stared back and forth between her mother and her twin sister, disbelieving. "I learned on the street. Obviously." When Mom looked at her expectantly for another minute, she sighed. "Fine. You're looking at the best thief in Drake City right here." There was the barest trace of pride in her voice as she spoke. "I lived on the street four years; you don't survive down there without racking up an impressive criminal record. I kept a whole bunch of kids alive, and I don't regret that for a minute."

Sarren looked over her daughter for a long moment. "I can hardly fault you for doing everything you could to survive. But you don't live on the street anymore—you need to stop this."

"No, Mom. Remember how you agreed you wouldn't try to turn me into some kind of Arkayna clone?"

"Hey!" Arkayna broke in, offended.

Zarya rolled her eyes at her sister. "You said I could keep my outfit and my hairstyle… well, this is another thing I won't change. You'd be surprised how often these skills have come in handy."

"She makes a good point, Mom," Arkayna grudgingly agreed.

"…Fine. I'll let this go for now," Sarren replied. "But no more pickpocketing."

Zarya grinned suddenly. "That goes for Arkayna, too, right?"

Mom frowned. "Arkayna doesn't know how to…" She trailed off at the guilty expression that had settled onto Arkayna's face. "Wonderful. As if having one criminally inclined teenager wasn't enough."

The grin on Zarya's face had widened. "Who do you think taught her?"

Sarren could feel a headache coming on. Maybe she'd only known Zarya for a few weeks, but she could already recognize the tone her daughter used when she had no intention of doing what she was told. She pointed to the door. "I need some time. No more pickpocketing, either of you. Go do some schoolwork or something."

As soon as they were out of earshot, Arkayna turned to Zarya, and in a conversational tone, asked, "When are you going to tell her you used to be a sky pirate?"

Zarya rolled her eyes again. "Remember how Em said not to give parents heart attacks? I can't dump all this on her at once; I'm waiting for the right time."

I know this isn't the most exciting chapter, but I needed to set the stage for some of the things that will happen later. Stay tuned, and please read, review, and enjoy!