Armored Equestria: The Meeting of Harmony

by Graxdon

Chapter 1

The grand city of Ether Peak shone above the massive mountain in a very literal sense. The magical lights along the streets illuminated everything all day and night, and as the sun began to dip down, the glow was becoming more noticeable. It wasn’t that late, but in this region of Equestria, the days tended to be shorter than normal. The city itself was bustling with activity, mostly unicorns, but also the other pony races, as well as gryphons, and even draconians, those dragons who didn’t give in to the temptation of greed and remained smaller, bipedal creatures, albeit still very strong and formidable.

The largest house in the city was the Manor Arcana, home to the Lord and Lady of House Arcana since the birth of the city, and this ancient, but immaculately kept mansion was bustling with activity, for tonight was a very important night. In the main hall, the beautifully garbed Lady of both the home and the House, Twilight Velvet, helped direct the various servants and other such hired help, calling out, “No, sir, could you please only light half of the candles in the chandelier? Too many causes a bit of a glare from the Coat of Arms.” She gestured to a crystal and platinum shield set at the top of a staircase, making it visible from anywhere in the expansive hall.

As the mare helped the various stallions and mares prepare for the night, a stallion came down the steps from behind her, the midnight blue stallion dressed in a truly majestic suit. He approached the busy mare from behind, going unnoticed by her until he gave her a loving hug from behind, her ‘eep’ of surprise causing a hearty laugh more akin to that of a younger stallion’s to come from the Lord before he gave her a kiss on the cheek, ignoring her smack to his shoulder. She was blushing, her tone reprimanding even as she failed to keep down a smile, asking, “Why can’t you act like an adult, Night, if only once? Tonight is very, very important!”

Night Light, Lord of House Arcana, ruler of Ether Peak and its domains, and, until recently, bearer of the Element of Arcana, just gave her a boyish grin, banishing the lines in his face as he said, “I can’t help myself, my dear. Just the sight of you makes me feel like I did when I first met you!” He got a cheeky little smile, leaning in to whisper into her ear, “Especially when looking at you from behind.”

This caused her cheeks to flush even brighter and give his shoulder another smack, the household staff all smiling at the antics of the old, but admiringly close couple. Still, she pulled away from the embrace, asking, “Tell me, my Lord husband, are you here just to get underhoof, or to actually prepare for the coming of our guests who will be arriving sooner than later?”

“Probably more the former than the latter,” he replied with that youthful grin, one that Twilight Velvet tried to keep from getting to her as well, as he said, “Love, you worry too much, really! They may be the other five most powerful ponies in Equestria, and their heirs, but they’re still my friends, which makes them your friends… well, except for two of them, but one is like a grandmother, and the other is a rigid bi-“

A very stern look that spoke volumes caused the rather unrefined ruler to quickly hush up and clear his throat before saying, “I, uh… I’ll go check on the children, shall I?”

Twilight Velvet nodded, saying, “Yes, why don’t you do that, honey. I’m sure Twilight is a nervous wreck, and Trixie… well, I just hope she behaves herself.”

Night chuckled at that, nodding as he turned away, his wife doing the same to give more directions, which left her unprepared for the quick lunge to steal another kiss before he ran off with a laugh, leaving his wife blushing and flustered like a schoolfilly, which caused her both love and frustration with her husband.

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Night Light hummed as he made his way to the wing of the castle that was mostly left to the kids, not that they didn’t spend time with their kids, yet another way the current nobility of the House differed from some others in their dominion. The first door he went to had a blue trimming to it and was painted in… well… he was a ruler of a sixth of a country, not an art critic, but it looked gaudy to him, not that he would tell its artist that. He smiled and gave a few knocks on the door, calling out, “Trixie, may I come in?”

There was a pause before a voice full of irritation called out, “Whatever it is you wish, my Lord, it is your home!” He winced before opening the door a crack. The room was filled with all manner of things. There was a work area for the construction of magical foci such as staves or the like, as well as a small area where his daughter was working on the creation of… well, he would have guessed it to be a Starswirl outfit going by the cape and pointy hat, but there weren’t any bells and it was in purple, not blue.

He opened the door further to see his daughter dressed in a fairly casual dress with a look of irritation on her face before it was hidden by her deep bow. The powder blue unicorn’s voice was filled with the same irritation that was on her face as she said, “Greetings, my Lord, how may I serve thee?”

He frowned at the behavior from his daughter, not happy with the way she’d been acting for the past week after Twilight had been received the Element of Arcana instead of her. He sighed, closing the door behind him after stepping in, asking, “Honey, aren’t you going to wear the dress your mother got for you to wear tonight? It is pretty important you know?”

The tone of her daughter’s voice didn’t change, and she didn’t raise her head from the bow as she said, “But my Lord, why would you want one who is sure to become yet another maid, or cook, or… or some other kind of servant!”

He blinked a few times before saying, “I… Trixie, what in the Stars are you talking about? And for goodness sake, would you stop bowing, I’m your bloody father!”

She finally rose up, her look moving to frustration and anger instead of just irritation, as she dropped the formal wording, almost shouting as she asked, “Congratulations then, you’re the father of a prince of a foreign nation, the next bearer of your element, and a NOBODY!” Screaming out the last word, her voice cracked, the hurt breaking through the anger. She took several quick breaths, trying to regain her thoughts to finally get what had been bothering her off her chest.

Night didn’t give her a chance though, closing the distance and pulling her into a gentle, loving hug, one that caused Trixie to stiffen up before letting out a sob of pain and frustration mixed together as she cried into his coat while he gently ran a hoof through her mane. He waited a few moments before he spoke in a soft, soothing tone, one he’d used many times with all his children, but Trixie more than the other two, “Honey, you are not now, nor will you ever be a nobody, alright? You are Trixie Lullamoon of House Arcana. You are gifted in magic, and have an artistic gift with illusions that make even myself jealous… not to mention the kind of skills with other styles of entertainment magic that put even some of the most famous of performers to shame.”

There was a sniffle from her as a hint of the anger came through her sadness as she asked, “So, I can go from a potential ruler to a stage magician?”

He shook his head, saying, “I’m just saying that you have the talent dear… and I remember the shows you put on during talent shows at the academy. You loved performing for others honey, it comes naturally to you. If that’s what you want to do with your life, I will support you as much as I support your sister and brother… and I know it would make your mother proud.”

Trixie blushed lightly at that thought before her tone soured a bit, asking, “And what of Velvet?”

Night softly sighed, but pulled away with a smile, saying, “Like I said, your mother would be proud… now come on honey, would you please get ready for the arrival of the other Lords and Ladies? For me?”

Trixie frowned, not saying anything, but nodded. This brought a smile to his face as he gave her another hug along with a kiss on the forehead before leaving her room. She frowned, heading to her vanity mirror and reaching into one of the drawers, reaching way back with her telekinetic grip, and withdrew an old photograph of her mother, lightly touching it with her hoof. She let out a sigh, putting it back in its hiding place before going to change into the dress that was waiting for her.

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Night Light shut the door to Trixie’s room with a sigh of concern for his daughter, for a moment looking even older than she actually was. He shook his head, magically pulling a pocket watch from his pocket, making sure he had plenty of time before heading to the other occupied room of the wing, passing the now empty room that used to be occupied by his oldest child, Shining Armor. He did miss the boy, quite a lot actually, but was also proud of him for starting the life he was living. As he approached the room of his other daughter, he saw a bipedal figure around half his height dressed quite smartly in a tuxedo… and looking in a small mirror while holding a fake mustache under his lip.

Spike the Draconian grinned as he looked at himself with a mustache, saying, “Hey, lookin’ good Spike, lookin’ real good!” A soft clearing of the throat behind him caused him to let out a shout of surprise, spinning around while putting both objects behind his back to try and hide them, and then blushing and bowing when he saw who it was, saying, “Oh, hello my Lord, I… I didn’t hear you coming.”

Night tried to hide his smile of amusement at the sight of the embarrassed youth, not wanting to further embarrass him, and he said, “It’s fine Spike, good to know that you’re keeping an eye on Twilight’s room though.”

Spike rose from the bow, still blushing some as he chuckled, saying, “Well, that is the job, isn’t it my Lord?”

Night chuckled, saying, “You know it’s not just a job, my lad… so, do you know if she’s ready for tonight?”

Spike shook his head, saying, “No idea my Lord, I checked in before I got ready and she said she’d be ready as soon as she finished what she was reading… she wasn’t clear on whether she meant the chapter or the whole book though, my Lord.”
Night sighed, though there was a hint of amusement in his eyes, as he said, “Oh dear.”

The room of Heiress Twilight Sparkle, the new wielder of the Element of Arcana, looked more like a library with books stacked everywhere, even on the bed. That was where the purple mare was currently seated, the simple crown with the star-shaped element next to her on a stand, and she turned the last page on the thick tome, sighing happily as she said, “There we go, done!” She set it aside and magically reached out to grab another, but stopped herself with a sigh, saying, “No, I can’t start another just yet, after the party tonight. Now, to get ready!” Sitting up, she glanced towards the clock, and froze when she saw how late it was, her ears going flat as her eyes widened. She simply stared at the clock, wishing it would wind back. When instead, it ticked forward a moment, she said the last words before the panic set in, “Oh… oh dear…”