//------------------------------// // The Tale of Shining Armor // Story: My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic: Tales From The Stallion Six // by SuperPinkBrony12 //------------------------------// Once inside Sugarcube Corner, The Cutie Mark Crusaders began to search for any sign of Rainbow Dash. Scootaloo searched the hardest of all, refusing to believe that her search would turn out to be in vain. "You guys looking for someone?" a familar voice asked. "None of your business, now go away!" Scootaloo said crossly, not bothering to turn around and see who it was. "Say, what's with the attitude?" the voice asked "Turn that frown upside down." "Don't mind her." Sweetie Belle replied "Scootaloo's just in a bad mood because she can't find Rainbow Dash." "Is that all?" the voice asked "Sounds like an awful lot to get bent out of shape over. Heck, getting bent out of shape in general sounds like a really bad idea. Trust me, I know." "Well, you wouldn't happen to know where Rainbow Dash is, would you?" Rumble asked. "Actually, I do. She came here this morning to tell me." the voice explained. "What did she say?" Apple Bloom asked. "She said that a family emergency had come up, and that she had to leave at once." the voice replied "She didn't say when she'd back though, cause she took off before I could ask her. That's just like Dashie though, to rush off to help somepony at a moment's notice." "So that's where she's been all day long?" Rumble asked. "Yes indeedy." the voice replied, then its owner noticed something "Say, you look familiar. Where have I seen you before?" "What do you mean?" Rumble asked, then he realized something about the voice "Wait, you're the one that owns that party cannon that Scootaloo shot me out of!" "That's right, and I'm sorry to say that my party cannon is still off limits." Pinkie Pie said seriously "It's for decorating for parties, not for launching yourselves into the sky." "It wasn't my fault." Rumble complained "It was Scootaloo's idea to go through with it, even though I told her not to." "Oh sure, blame it all on me." Scootaloo argued back "If you really wanted to you could've backed out, but you went along with it." "What is it with these two?" Pinkie Pie asked "Why are they constantly arguing and bickering?" "It's been like this all day." Sweetie Belle whispered. "I think Scootaloo's just taking out her frustration because she's been looking for Rainbow Dash." Apple Bloom added "We came all this way here, hoping to find her. Instead, we've heard stories about how my big brother Big Macintosh, Thunderlane, Soarin, Fancy Pants, and even my cousin Braeburn got their cutie marks." "There's just one more pony who's story we have yet to hear about." Sweetie Belle explained "Have you seen Shining Armor around by any chance?" "As a matter of fact, yes." Pinkie Pie said with a smile "He came over here with Twilight just a short time ago. Apparently, this is the first time in weeks he's been able to spend time with her. His devotion to his sister reminds me of my sister Maud." "You never mentioned that you had a sister before Pinkie." Rumble spoke up, having long since ceased his arguing with Scootaloo. "Well, if you guys have time after talking to Shining Armor, you should hear my cutie mark story." Pinkie Pie encouraged "Let's just say that my past wasn't all sunshine and rainbows, literally." Pinkie Pie then bounced happily away, humming a tune that Apple Bloom could swear she'd heard before. "So, are we going to hear Shining Armor's story, or are we just going to sit around here doing nothing?" Scootaloo asked. "Well, I must say I'm surprised." Shining Armor spoke up, coming over to the table that the CMC were seated at "If Pinkie Pie is anything to go by, you guys really wanted to hear my story. Is there something you're not telling me about all of this?" "Let's just say that your story may solve a question we've had since we started asking ponies for their cutie mark stories." Apple Bloom explained "But we're still going to listen to the whole thing." "It's been such a long time already. I'm not sure if I really remember all the details." Shining Armor admitted. "Awwwww!" the CMC complained. "However, I'll see what I can recall." Shining Armor added. "Yay!" the CMC cheered. "As I remember, from a young age I always wanted to be part of The Royal Guard." Shining Armor recalled "There was just something so appealing about it. Maybe it was because my grandfather had served in their ranks as an Admiral, or maybe it was because I was so brave. Even as a foal, my parents said that I feared nothing though I'm certain that's not true. Eventually, I became old enough to sign up with The Royal Guard, and I did so eagerly. Unfortunately, I soon learned that the so called 'proctectors of the throne' didn't take kindly to newcomers." And Shining Armor couldn't have been more right. Until Captain Gleaming Shield became aware of it, and put a stop to it, The Royal Guards tended to subject their newest members to the harshest amount of hazing possible. They claimed that it was to help build character, and teach the new recruits discipline, but that was just a lie to make them feel better about themselves. It started off harmlessly enough, with Shining Armor being asked to do things like scrub the floors, wash the dishes, and clean the windows. Shining Armor complained a little bit at first, but when the guards threatened to tell Gleaming Shield about his so called "attitude problem" he decided to just grin and bear it. But before long, the "harmless chores" became much more cruel. Shining Armor would be asked to clean the bathrooms, even when it wasn't his turn to do so. Or he'd be asked to polish all the helmets and suits of armor in the barracks. Other times, he'd be forced to assist the other guards when they participated in archery or jousting competetions (whenever Shining Armor tried to enter the guards would lie, and say he was too young to take part). Neither Princess Celestia or Captain Gleaming Shield were aware of the hazing, and so it went on for quite some time. Meanwhile, Shining Armor grew crosser and crosser. The other Royal Guard members retaliated by uping the cruelty of their torment and abuse. They would delibertly drop dishes on the floor, or spill food and drinks onto the dishes. They even went so far as make Shining Armor wear his own suit of armor, do 50 push-ups in the mud, and then make him clean the mud from said suit with only a toothbrush. Then, when Shining Armor had showed up late to his assigned post, they took his helmet and hung it from the flag pole. When Shining Armor tried to take it back, they laughed and played a game of keep away with it. One faithful day, that would all change. That day started out like any other, with Shining Armor being forced to wash all of the dishes from the latest meal in the mess hall. "I just don't understand it." he thought to himself "Why would The Royal Guard be filled with such bullies? Princess Celestia would never allow such jerks to protect and serve her." He vowed to somehow get even with them, but he didn't know how. A familiar voice interruped his thoughts. "Please give me back Smarty Pants, she's my only friend." the voice pleaded. "Sorry kid. Finders keepers, losers weepers." a royal guard member taunted. Shining Armor looked out the window, and saw two of the royal guards that most frequently harassed him. Only now they were picking on his little sister Twilight. One of them was currently using his magic to hold Smarty Pants, Twilight's favorite doll, so that Twilight couldn't reach it. Normally, Twilight would have more than enough magic to fight back, but she was burned out from her classes. Shining Armor couldn't believe what he was seeing, this was the same filly that had recently gotten her cutie mark and become Princess Celestia's personal student. And yet, even she was not safe from the cruelty of these bullies that dared to call themselves royal guards. "That does it!" Shining Armor said to himself "Those guys have crossed the line! I don't care if it costs me my dream, I will not allow them to pick on my little sister!" "I said, give me back Smarty Pants!" Twilight said crossly "She's mine!" "Correction, she was yours, but now she's ours." one of the guards teased, as he held the doll aloft with his magic "Now, what should we do with this eyesore?" "Smarty Pants is not an eyesore, she's my friend!" Twilight cried, tears forming in her eyes. The guards took no notice. "Let's flush it down the john! It belongs in the sewers anyway." the other guard suggested. "No! Please don't flush Smarty Pants down the potty, she'll get all dirty!" Twilight pleaded "You're not suppose to flush things that don't belong in a potty, it can cause problems." "Shut up kid, unless you'd like to see what the inside of a toilet looks like." the first guard threatened "I can assure you, it won't be pretty." "We should totally just do that anyway, and then make Shining Armor fish her out." the other guard suggested "That'll serve him right for saying we're a disgrace to our uniforms." "I don't want to go inside a potty." Twilight gasped "It sounds all icky and disgusting." "Well, perhaps instead we can just flush your doll and then retrieve it for archery practice." the first guard taunted. "Yeah, your doll would make the perfect target." the other guard chimed in. "You can't do that, Smarty Pants is a gift from someone very close to me." Twilight said, in between sobs "I'll do anything, just please give it back to me." "Cry all you want, your doll is still going to be taking a ride into the sewer system." the first guard laughed. "And if you don't stop your crying, you'll be seeing what happens when you flush the can with a filly inside it!" the second guard threatened "Have fun learning from that experience." "That is enough!" Shining Armor said crossly, as he yanked the Smarty Pants doll away with his magic and gave it back to his sister. "You guys should be ashamed of yourselves! Picking on a defensless filly, don't you two dunderheads have any shame?!" "Butt out Shining Armor! You don't belong here!" the first guard said crossly. "This is none of your business, you're overstepping your boundries!" the other guard snapped. "Be that as it may, I refuse to let you continue to pick on my little sister!" Shining Armor said seriously "You two are acting like a bunch of immature brats!" "Oh yeah, and what are you gonna do about it huh?!" the first guard asked. "You try anything, and we'll report you to Captain Gleaming Shield. And I'm sure she'll be anything but pleased when she learns that you started a fight with two of your superiors." the other guard threatened. "Go ahead and report on me to Gleaming Shield for all I care!" Shining Armor said, standing between his sister and the two guards "I don't want to be a part of The Royal Guard if it means turning into a bully like you two!" "A bully? Us? Now you've gone too far Shining Armor!" the first guard snapped. "And you should know, we don't take kindly to others telling us how to do our jobs!" the other guard replied. "Uh B.B.B.F.F, not that I mean to question your bravery, but are you sure you know what you're doing?" Twilight asked. "Twily, listen to me very carefully." Shining Armor whispered "When I tell you to run, run! Run away, and don't look back!" "What?" Twilight gasped. "Run! Now!" Shining Armor instructed. "But I-" Twilight began. "Do as I say right now, while I still have some sense of reason left in me!" Shining Armor bellowed. That was enough of a motivation for Twilight, who took off as fast as her legs could carry her. "Now it's just you and us Shining Armor." the first guard snickered. "Say your prayers!" the second guard said ominously. But before either of them could do anything, Shining Armor's horn surged to life. In a matter of seconds, a familiar violet-pink aura had appeared. Everything seemed to happen at once. Shining Armor shouted at the top of his lungs, and unleashed a powerful blast of defensive magic. The magic inside of him was so powerful that it actually lifted him off of the ground, and into the air. "B.B.B.F.F?" Twilight gasped, as she looked back. She was incredibly worried. The two guards were worried as well, but before they could run away, Shining Armor grabbed them with his magic. He brought them up close to him, and the guards beheld a sight that would haunt them forever. Shining Armor's eyes were completely white, his eyebrows slanted to show just how angry he was. "Listen to me very carefully!" he said loudly, his voice echoing all around "If you dare so much as hurt my little sister again, you'll regret it for the rest of your lives! Get out of my sight and never show your faces in my prescence again if you know what's good for your health! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!" The guards gulped "Sir, yes sir." they said at the same time. "Good." Shining Armor replied, and used his magic to push the guards away. The force channeled into the push was so strong that it was enough to bring them to their knees. They were pushed so far back that they ended up out of Canterlot. Deciding to cut their losses, they ran away and were never heard from again. Later, when it was found out what they had been attempting to do, they were dishonorably discharged. And Captain Gleaming Shield vowed to put an end to the hazing rituals, a promise that she kept for the rest of her tenure. "Are you okay Twily?" Shining Armor asked, when the magic surge wore off. The last time such a thing had happened to him was that time as a school colt when he'd gotten the blue flu, and the illness had severly affected his magic. "I am now, thanks to you B.B.B.F.F." Twilight said happily, then she gasped as a white flash appeared on Shining Armor's flank. "B.B.B.F.F, you got your cutie mark!" "Nice try Twily, I'm not falling for that one again." Shining Armor said with a chuckle. "No, I'm serious." Twilight insisted "Take a look for yourself." She held up a mirror with her magic, and showed it to Shining Armor. Sure enough, Shining Armor found out that his littler sister was telling the truth. On his flank was a shield that was the same blue tint as his mane. Surrounding it were three lighter blue stars, and emblazoned upon the shield itself was a six-point star that was the same magneta color as the star from his sister's cutie mark. He didn't even need to ask what it symbolized, it was quite obvious that his special talent was protecting others. But although Shining Armor was normally a very calm and collected pony, the excitement of getting his cutie mark made him as giddy and lighthearted as a school colt. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!" he cheered, bouncing all around. Twilight couldn't help but join in on the fun. "And from that day forward, The Royal Guard's reputation had no where to go but up." Shining Armor explained "I suspect that this was also what got Princess Celestia's attention, and why she took such an interest in me." By now, all of his friends, and his sister, had gathered round to hear the story. They were quite amazed. "Looks like my little hunch was right after all." Sweetie Belle said to Scootaloo. "Beginner's luck." Scootaloo replied. "Well, she is more skilled in magic than you." Rumble taunted. "Alright, I get it! You don't have to rub it in!" Scootaloo complained. "She has a point there." Apple Bloom stated "So knock it off already. I, for one, have gotten sick of all this arguing. It's driving me up a wall." "But I thought the saying was 'When two ponies fight, they really care about each other.'" Sweetie Belle said, obviously confused. "Normally's that the case, but there are always exceptions." Apple Bloom explained. "You know, I never really thought about it until just now, but if you hadn't stood up to those bullies right then and there, I never would've gotten my cutie mark." Big Macintosh said to Shining Armor "Heck, I probably wouldn't even be sitting here, having this conversation with you." "Same goes for me." Braeburn admitted "If that surge hadn't come from you when it did, I would've been sqaushed flatter than a pancake by that Longhorn fellow. And I certainly wouldn't have gotten my cutie mark." "I certainly wouldn't have survived that fall, or met Fluttershy, if your magic hadn't pushed that cloud into my path." Thunderlane added "And all this time, I thought it was some sort of supernatural event." "Without that spell of yours, I would've lost the race and my cutie mark would've never appeared." Soarin said gravely "And that stand against those bullies would've all been in vain. I would've hated myself for the rest of my life if that had happened." "This is so uncanny it almost hurts." Fancy Pants spoke up "If your magic hadn't knocked my bits away, I never would've met Miss. Rarity or Fleur. And I would've never gotten my cutie mark. And yet, until this day I've never known who to thank for making this all possible." "Well, now we do." Shining Armor replied with a smile on his face "I suppose that on that faithful day, fate was similing upon us. I can't help but wonder though, what might have happened had any of those events turned out differently?" "Let's not think about that shall we?" Soarin suggested. "Soarin's right, let's think about what did happen." Big Macintosh said firmly "That burst of magic brought us together, even if we didn't know it back then." "You know what this calls for!" Braeburn said happily, a massive smile forming on his face. "Group hug!" the six stallions all said at the same time. They each embraced each other, and smiled happily. They had come to realize just strong their friendship truly was, and the thing they had that made it so unique. "Aw!" Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Rumble cooed. "Ew! This is so cheesy!" Scootaloo complained "If I want this kind of sappy stuff I can just talk to my parents, they're always acting like this!" "Come on Scootaloo, you can't deny that it's cute." Rumble replied. Scootaloo tried to think of a good counter-arguement, but she couldn't come up with anything. She sighed. "Fine, whatever. But if anypony starts singing, I'm out of here!" "Group hug?" Sweetie Belle asked. Apple Bloom and Rumble nodded, and then looked to Scootaloo. Scootaloo sighed once again and said "Group hug." And she reluctantly took part in the group hug with her fellow CMC. Anyone that saw this scene would've thought it the most adorable thing to ever exist. Of course, Scootaloo would deny it, being the tomcolt that she was. At the end of the day, Shining Armor and his friends went their seperate ways, as did the CMC. Scootaloo reluctantly decided that Rainbow Dash's cutie mark story would have to wait for another day.