//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 - Cadence // Story: Night Shine // by SparkStone //------------------------------// On a sunny morning, Night is accompanied by Cadence as she makes sure his health is in check. He seems to be stable so far, and he’s coming close to accepting his alien nature. The only thing that seems hard on him is that he’s still in the castle. Until everyone is sure that Night Shine is okay, and no more checkups will be needed, he’ll need to stay in the castle until then. He barely sees his family, but that doesn’t mean they don’t visit. The castle hours are just inconvenient at these times. But today is pretty convenient! Shining Armor and Twilight will be coming over soon. Night Shine couldn’t be happier, but he tends to forget about it because of Cadence. She’s extremely fun to play with. She also lets him eat some sweets during breakfast and dinner. She tends to spoil him, and Night loves it. “Alright Night, what would you like to do today?” Cadence asked. “Can we hoof ball again?” Night requested. “It’s really fun!” Cadence smiled and poked the boy’s nose with her hoof. “You sure love sports~! Don’t you?” Night scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. “Maybe?” Going to the open courtyard, Cadence brought out the ball. In a couple of rounds, they played over and over. Night Shine kept using his hands, which wasn’t cheating apparently, because there’s no ‘Cannot use hands’ in the rule book of Hoof Ball. As frustrating as it may be, Cadence actually knows her way around the ball. She actually won even with Night’s appendage advantage. By the time the game was over, the usual winner takes the throne. “No fair Cadence!” Night complained. “How’s it not fair?” Cadence questioned, smirking in victory. “You’re too good at this game! I need, like, ten ponies to beat you!” “Or maybe you just need your big brother!” Shining chimed in. The two turned to Shining Armor and Twilight Sparkle entering the courtyard. Night smiled widely as he ran to them and gave a family hug. Cadence smiled at the scene. It was so sweet to see them together. “So, I heard you were being watched over by Princess Celestia and her niece Cadence.” Shining stated. “That’s right.” Night Shine nodded. “Has she been treating you well Night?” his brother asked. “Yeah! She’s super nice! She lets me eat cake and candy, and she also makes me less sick than before!” “I’m glad to hear that!” Shining grinned. He looks up to Cadence and says to her, “Thanks for everything. You have no idea how much this means to us.” “It’s no problem.” Cadence replied honestly. “Hey Night!” Twilight called out. “Let’s play together!” “Do you want to play Hoof ball?” Night suggested. “You better be careful though! Cadence is really good at the game!” “Oh really?” Shining smiled. “Not as great as your big brother though, right?” “No, she’s much, much better!” Night bragged. Shining stood still as he declines the greatness of his brother to his caretaker. Cadence giggles some and hugs him a bit. “Oh you~!” “It’s true though! Cadence is like a big sister!” “Buuuut~! You love your big brother much more, right?” Shining questioned. “How about your little sister?” Twilight asked. “Settle down you three.” Cadence told them. “There’s no need for jealousy here.” Night laughed a bit while Shining was trying to impress his younger brother. It’s been too long since he’s seen him, and he’s already forgetting how much Night used to admire Shining. In any case, Shining had to beat Cadence at something. Thinking about it, he has an idea. “Hey, how about a game of hoof ball?” Shining suggested. “Yeah! Hoof ball!” Twilight and Night Shine cheered. “Good idea. We’ll play a team of two.” “That’s fine.” The older brother agreed. “I’ll have Night on my team.” “Alright then! Twilight, is it? You’re with me!” Cadence told her. The kids cheered and prepared to play the game. Night Shine was having a great time with his family and his big sister as they came together to play with him. Meanwhile the parents, Twilight Velvet and Night Light, were having brunch with Princess Celestia. The three talked about many things, but the most concerning one was of the boy, Night Shine. “He seems to be doing fine.” The princess told them. “He required some things none of us were aware of until we did a checkup. He’s not a pony, but a creature that walks on two legs and eats meat among his other food groups. He also for some strange reason, possess no magic.” “How was he able to stay out this long without magic?” Twilight Velvet asked. “When we found him, he was very healthy. He lived most of his years without such an event. Why now?” “That is strange…” The princess agreed. “Tell me, where did you find him?” The two looked at each other before turning to the princess. “He was in a basket.” Night Light told her. “We took him in when we passed by the basket on the way home.” “Hmm… I wonder who were the original parents of this boy…” The princess wondered. “And why they left him in the middle of nowhere.” “There were some days I wondered that.” The mother told them. “But I thought that for now, all I wanted to do was make sure he grew up fine and healthy.” “It seems that we are safe from any health issues for now.” Celestia stated. “Speaking of health issues.” Twilight Velvet brought up. “So, if he was unable to make any magic, how were you able to give him some?” “The answer is within your question.” Princess Celestia said. “I pooled in my magic to him. Something you and your family will have to learn how to do.” “I see!” The father spoke. “Well then, we should see a demonstration then as soon as possible.” “Don’t jinx Night Shine dearie.” The mother warned him. “I don’t want anything to happen under such short notice.” Just then, Twilight Sparkle came rushing through and screamed to her parents. “Night fainted!” Wrapped in a cozy blanket and sitting beside Cadence, the doctor does another checkup on the boy. “Say ah” Opening his mouth with an “Ah”, the doctor looks around. With a couple more procedures followed by a magic examination, the doctor puts away his clipboard and asks, “How long have you been playing?” Night looked away and said, “1 hour.” “Night Shine…” The doctor said sternly. He sighed and said, “3 hours…” “Without another pooling?” He said with a huff. “Night shine, you know better than to over exert yourself. Your magic capacity has severely dropped, so you have to take as much rest while we keep pooling in magic.” “I’m sorry.” Night shine apologized. “It’s alright Night Shine. You were just having fun.” Cadence assured him. “You’re not off the hook either miss.” The doctor commented. Cadence jumped a bit before the doctor continued. “You know just as well as he does about his condition. You should have done a pooling before this happened.” “I’m sorry.” Cadence apologized. “Just don’t let it happen again.” He sighed. “After all, I worry for you Night.” “Thank you Doctor Syrup.” Night told him. “Your welcome.” He replied. “Now that you need another pooling, I suggest you do it with your family watching. They need to see the procedure in order to understand what must be done.” “Aren’t you excited to see your parents again Night?” Cadence asked him. “Of course! It’s been a really, really long time since I saw them!” Night exclaimed. “No shouting until your pooling mister.” Syrup warned him once more. With that in mind, they exit the office. Going to Night Shine’s room in the castle, the family awaits. A hug from his parents and his siblings came forth, squealing in excitement. “You’re alright!” his sister Twilight spoke. “We were so worried!” His mother Velvet stated. “Don’t scare us like that!” His father Night Light told him. “Are you feeling better?” His brother Shining asked. Celestia and Cadence smiled before tapping their hoof on the ground to get their attention. Once the hug ended, Night Shine went to the bed and lied down. He waited patiently as Princess Celestia explained everything. “What I’m about to show you is how to give Night Shine magic in order for him to stay awake and healthy. You should all learn this in case anything happens when we are not available to assist him.” Beginning the demonstration, Celestia placed her horn onto Night Shine. Her magic flowed through and swirled into the boy. His body glowed for the time being up until three minutes passed. Once it was done, Celestia raised her head and a newly energized Night rose from his bed. “How are you feeling Night Shine?” “I feel a lot better!” He said smiling widely. Twilight Sparkle was astounded by the process. The once tired looking Night Shine from back then turned into the old energetic Night Shine she remembers. With such an amazing feat to bring her brother back to his older, better self. She was inspired. “So magic will make him better?” Shining Armor asked. “He needs to be given some every now and then since he cannot make his own.” Cadence explained. “I want to learn more about magic.” Twilight Sparkle thought. “It is very useful, especially for the sake of Night here.” Celestia stated. “With magic, he can live how he wishes to. Perhaps someday, his magic capacity will be large enough to only need to recharge once a month, or longer.” With that in mind, Twilight had an idea. She went up to her brother and said, “Night Shine! I’m going to learn as much as I can about magic to make sure you feel better!” Night smiled at his sister’s ambition. Cadence stood beside Twilight and said, “That’s a great idea! I hope you succeed.”