//------------------------------// // You're the best // Story: Moments of Heaven // by Slick Dash //------------------------------// “But Cadence! If I go to sleep now, I’ll miss Armour!” Twilight whined, wriggling free of her Foal sitter’s expert tucking. Once free, the filly tried to jump away, making for the door to the living room. However her sitter had seen this move a thousand times before! Gently, the cloud of faint blue magic surrounded the magenta filly as she soared through the air. The young princess took the filly back to her pillow, lifted the sheets up, and slid her back into place. Twilight sulked. “That’s not fair!” She moaned to Cadence’s amusement. Laughing sweetly, she tucked the filly back into bed as she spoke. “Twilight, it’s getting late, your brother may be out for a few more hours!” Twilight perked up. “But I’m fine with that! I’m not...” Her sentence was cut short by a large yawn. Her little mouth stretched hard with tiredness, and when it was over it left the little filly looking defeated. “Tired.” She finished moodily. Cadence laughed again. “You’ll understand one day, he needs to stay out late tonight because of how important that exam is, you need to sleep because YOU have a test in two days don’t you?” Twilight shrugged. “It’s only a little one, just to check I learned the spells Princess Celestia gave me to practise.” “Then you need your rest.” Cadence retorted. She knew she had cornered the little filly. She had looked after the little one for a while now; she knew how the magenta unicorn’s mind worked. She had just taken advantage of this! Twilight would never want to sabotage her chances at a test. “Ok...” Twilight said slowly, staring moodily towards the floor. “Hey,” Cadence lifted the little ones face up to look at hers. “If he comes home in the next ten minutes, I’ll tell him to come in.” “EVEN IF I’M ASLEEP?!” Twilight shouted happily. The princess nodded, and the little filly beamed at her joyously. “Now!” Cadence said, growing a very businesslike tone. “Sleep!” She sat there, only for a few minutes. Soon the day had caught up with the little filly, and she was well within the world of her dreams. She looked so adorable, cuddling her little doll as she slept. The little unicorn’s lips slowly pressed over one of the little plush pony’s ears and began to suck gently. Cadence always loved this part of foal sitting for Armour’s little sister, she was so cute! Carefully, the princess stood and slowly made her way to the door. Avoiding the floorboards she had learnt long ago were creaky. She made it to the pine panel in seconds; she then opened the door, and slipped out into the living room. With a sigh of relief when she put her ear to the keyhole and heard Twilight’s soft breathing –still fast asleep- Cadence turned and made her way to the sofa looking over the fireplace. A few hours passed as Cadence lay across a couple of cushions red read her magazines. She glanced through the articles, finding nothing of real interest. She saw the usual advertisements for the summer sun celebration, this year it would be held in Las Pegasus. Cadence laughed, ‘That’s going to be a wild night!’ she thought, remembering that each pony was meant to stay up for the night before the summer sun rising. She was looking forward to the time in the crazy city! She’d have to come, simply to accompany her aunt Celestia. She noticed a small periodical focused on the new filly singing sensation, her name was ‘Sapphire Shores.’ As she glanced over the picture of the pop Diva like filly, Cadence couldn’t help but believe that little foal’s carrier wouldn’t last that long. She was too... flashy! “Why is it I always find you reading magazines, and never actually looking after my sister?” asked a joking voice from behind the bored princess. Cadence jumped, she turned around to see Twilight’s big brother. She was sure she hadn’t heard him enter! Shining Armour was a very attractive stallion, Cadence had always noticed that. Geez, all of her friends at high school had thought the same thing before they graduated. But now, for some unknown reason, Cadence saw the appeal all the more easily. Maybe it was the fact that she didn’t see Armour everyday now they were adults, or maybe he had just grown even more attractive, but either way, she noticed all the more. “I...I-I...” She spluttered, trying to find her voice. The white stallion laughed, moving to the small table nestled in the corner of the room. “It’s ok Cady, I was just pulling your tail.” With a look of relief, he pushed the bulging saddle bags off his back and onto the waiting table, which creaked ominously under the weight of the large amount of books they held. Cadence gave a breath of relief; she had thought that Armour had actually been genuine in his accusation! Slowly she made her way to the stallion, who with much happiness, collapsed into a nearby chair. His drawn eyes and gaunt expression showed how tired he was, worriedly the princess asked “Rough day?” Armour gave a low whistle as he ruffled his mane with a hoof. “You could say that, that entrance exam was a total pain!” Today had been the day Armour took the royal guard entrance exam. It had always been a dream of his to be one of them, even in their days back at school. “Well, they do need THE BEST!” Cadence said slowly, trying to calm the stallion’s apparent nerves. He frowned. “You’re acting like I failed it!” “I thought YOU thought you had.” Cadence said defensively. “Nope! It was difficult, but I aced it!” Cadence’s jaw dropped. “You got it back today?” The stallion nodded, beaming happily. “They took one look at it, and the examiner told me to stay behind. He marked it in front of me, and showed me THIS!” The stallion dove into the bags and pulled out a single sheet of paper, not even bothering with magic in his excitement. Cadence scanned it quickly, discovering it to be a multiple choice exam, and right in the top corner lay a large, red, ‘100%!’ Cadence’s face broke out into a toothy grin; quickly she flung her hooves around the stallion. “That’s wonderful Armour!” The stallion took a second to register what had just happened, and then slowly he let his forelegs fall onto the princess’s back and return the hug. He wasn’t sure, but he felt something. Deep in the pit of his stomach, a yearning. It was almost like hunger, but it was less tangible, almost as though his body craved something unknown. He wasn’t sure, but he could swear it had something to do with the scent of the hundred different perfumes and soaps that radiated from the princess, as she still hugged him. He savoured the moment; Cadence wasn’t exactly, bad looking. After the rough day he’d had, he was grateful to have such wonderful contact with the beautiful princess. Cadence wasn’t sure why she was holding the hug for so long. She tried to order her limbs to break away, but they wouldn’t obey her! All she could do was stand there whilst holding the stallion close to her. After what seemed like an hour, she finally gained control again, pulling herself away and standing awkwardly in the middle of the room, quickly brushing her mane out of her face as it fell across. The feeling was mutual; Armour was still sat on his seat, though slightly unevenly from the contact of the hug. He seemed slightly dazed. Cadence gave a small cough, which brought the stallion out of whatever reverie he was in. “So...” She asked, her voice squeaking slightly as she tried to calm her nerves from that oddly sweet moment. “When do you start training?” Armour frowned for a moment, what was she talking about? Then it hit him. “Oh, tomorrow! They said I’m ‘too valuable to keep waiting.’” He smiled, slightly pompously from his praise. “Did not!” Cadence laughed. “No lie! I mean it, they said I start tomorrow!” The stallion laughed. Cadence joined him, but her laughter began to die as she noticed the stallion stop and then grow slightly uneasy. “Which means... I’m gonna need somepony to watch Twily a lot more.” Cadence’s heart plummeted. “S-somepony?” she asked, unable to believe what she was hearing. Armour nodded. Why not her? What was wrong with Cadence sitting Twilight? She loved it! “Well, you have your own duties to attend to, and over the next few months I’m gonna be away a lot. I can’t ask you to”- He was cut short by a murderous gaze that the young princess sent him. “You dare try to take me away from little Twilight, I’ll have you killed!” Armour sat there stunned for the second time that night. For a moment, the two gazed into each other’s eyes, before bursting out into laughter. “Ok, ok, so you don’t mind watching her?” Armour asked between fits of giggles. Cadence smiled finally pulling her own laughter under control. “Not at all, I love her! I’d love to keep coming and keep her safe.” Armour smiled, got out of his seat and came up close to the stationary princess. Cadence watched as he approached, she didn’t know what he was doing, and felt slightly nervous. Immedietly all the rumours from high school sprang to mind yet again! That he was some debonair ‘Clopablanca’ romantic! Was he about to scenranade her? Seduce her? She wasn’t sure, but she thought she saw a slight glint in his eye. Why was she so curious to his intent? Was it...was it because she wanted it to be true? All these thoughts shot through her mind in a blink of an eye. They confused her, yet thrilled her at the same time. The stallion reached her, lifted a hoof and rested it on her shoulder. He looked gazes with her beautiful faint purple eyes, and smiled “Thanks Cady! You’re the best.”