It hadn't even been a week since she'd agreed to become Shining Armor's student, and already Starlight Glimmer was finding herself lost in this maze of a castle. It was a miracle she'd ever found her way around, especially now that she'd re-styled her mane so that the left side fell into something of a curl.
"I swear, this castle looked a lot smaller from the outside," Starlight remarked to herself. "Now, where did they put the library?"
The mare trotted down the vast empty hallways, searching in vain for her destination. It didn't help that there wasn't a soul to be seen or heard anywhere, so asking for directions was out of the question. All she could do, was just try each door that caught her eye, and luck would do the rest.
"Gah!" Starlight cried, as she opened yet another broom closet and all the supplies inside it came tumbling down on her. "Why are there so many broom closets in this stupid castle?! I haven't seen a single butler or maid in these parts." She thought to herself, as she used her magic to put the supplies back and close the door.
Undeterred, Starlight tried the next door. This one wasn't a broom closet, thankfully, but it was a bathroom. And Spike was currently in it, brushing his teeth. "Morning, Starlight!" Spike greeted in between brushes. "Uh, do you mind?"
"Whoops, sorry!" Starlight apologized and hastily closed the door! "Well, at least he was only brushing his teeth. It could've been a lot worse." She thought to herself, breathing a small sigh of relief.
From the other side of the door, Spike called. "Looking for someplace? I know this castle like the back of my paw."
"You wouldn't happen to know where the library is, would you?" Starlight asked somewhat reluctantly. "Shining Armor told me to meet him there, and I forgot to ask for directions."
"Oh, the library? That's easy. Next door on the left, you can't miss it!" Spike called, then went back to brushing his teeth.
"Thanks, Spike, and sorry about earlier." Starlight apologized, and took off as fast she could.
Sure enough, the very next door on the left led to the library, and Shining Armor was already waiting for her there. "Oh, hello, Starlight. Nice of you to join me." He greeted, with only a slight hint of impatience.
"Sorry, got a bit turned around in this maze of a castle," Starlight apologized. "But I'm here now. So, what's my first lesson, teacher? Or, should I just call you Shining Armor?"
Shining chuckled a bit. "Either one's fine, Starlight, though I kind of prefer the latter. I've never had a student of my own before, at least not one I've had to directly take under my wing. This is going to be a new experience for the both of us, but if you're willing to learn, I'm willing to teach," Clearing his throat, he then added. "You already wrote that letter to those ponies in your old village, right?"
"Ah yes, the Cutie Markless Quartet," Starlight nodded. "You think they'll forgive me, eventually?"
"That's not my place to say, it's for them to decide," Shining replied quite seriously. "But that was merely phase one of your first lesson. Forgiveness and reapproachment are the keys, and now that you've sent an apology to those village ponies, it's time to reconnect with someone I think you'll be very familiar with."
Starlight gulped, a cold sweat forming on her face. "You mean... Sunburst?"
Shining nodded, and smiled. "Now, now, there's no need to be nervous. He was the first pony you ever cared about, and I think it's only fitting you let him know how you feel. Besides, I'm sure he'd be glad to make a new friend, or an old friend as the case may be. Of course, that's just a hypothetical scenario, we may have to postpone it."
"Oh, right," Starlight remembered, blushing a bit. "I hope my messing with time hasn't affected the baby's arrival at all."
"Not at all, everything's coming along just fine," Shining replied with a smile. "Doctors say she'll be due any day now, definitely by next week. We even have a special signal to notify me if the time comes while I'm here. I know Twily's gonna be thrilled to be an aunt."
"'Auntie Twilight'," Starlight chuckled. "Has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"
"It sure does," Shining said to Starlight. "Anyway, I still need to make final arrangements with Sunburst before you two meet. Now, why don't you do me a favor and check on the guys for me? Twily's briefing them in the throne room about something rather interesting she just learned. And it's tied into the baby that's on the way."
"Throne room! Got it!" Starlight replied, and rushed out as fast as she could. But then she came back and nervously added. "Uh, which way is the throne room again?"
"Forgot where it was, huh?" Shining eyed Starlight, then he laughed again. "It's okay, I do that too. Just go down the hall, make a left, and it's the third door on your right," Watching Starlight rush back out the doors, Shining added to himself. "One of these days, I really need to label those doors." Suddenly, his horn started to buzz! "Could it be?!" He thought, as he tapped a hoof to his horn, and a projection began to appear.
Starlight had barely made it to the end of the hall, when Shining suddenly came rushing up to her with a frantic look on his face! "Sorry to drop this on you on such short notice, Starlight, but it looks like your first lesson's gonna be delayed for a little longer! Cadence just contacted me via horn message, she's gone into labor!"
"Oh, well congratulations, I think," Starlight nervously smiled. "Hope it all goes well."
"Don't worry, our friends were already planning a trip up to the Crystal Empire," Shining replied to Starlight. "As soon as you get the invitation, I'll be waiting for you at the train station, and we'll continue our lesson plan from there. I've even left my notes for Twilight to look over, in case I'm gone longer than expected." And then, lightning up his horn, the alicorn prince vanished!
Shining barely had time to get his bearings, for once he had teleported to the Crystal Empire, he immediately rushed to the castle and made a mad dash to the bed chambers! Sure enough, there was Cadence, with a huge assortment of doctors, nurses, and castle staff all running around and fussing about her.
Shining was at his wife's side in an instant. "Cadence, I came as soon as I could!" He told her, gripping her hoof tightly.
Despite her current state, Cadence smiled. "I knew you would, Shining! I feel a lot better already, just knowing that you're here. It's too bad my aunts couldn't make it, we'll have to send them a card informing them of their new niece."
"Princess Cadence, your majesty," One of the doctors spoke up. "I'm going to need you to listen carefully to what I say, and do as I tell you, got it?"
Cadence nodded. "I'm ready, doctor."
"Okay, here we go. Deep breaths everypony." The doctor instructed, and the delivery process commenced.
It may have only been a few minutes, but for Shining and Cadence the whole ordeal had lasted a life time as far as they were concerned. But it was all worth it when they heard the healthy wail of their child, announcing its arrival to the world.
"Congratulations, your majesties," One of the nurses declared. "It's a girl!"
"Guess that means she's a princess," Shining teased. "Aw, and here I was hoping for another prince. Equestria's got enough princesses already."
"What should we name her?" Cadence suggested. "I didn't exactly spend a lot of time thinking of names, but it has to be something fitting."
Shining just smiled, as he looked down at his exhausted wife and told her. "Let's get a look at our precious little bundle of joy first, then we can decide."
"Uh... about that," The doctor nervously spoke up, attracting the attention of the royal couple. "The baby was delivered flawlessly, and she's quite healthy, no sign of defects anywhere. But... there is something you two should be aware of. Something I suppose was obvious, given who her parents were." He proceeded to hoof over the infant, wrapped in a swaddling, baby blue blanket.
And when Shining and Cadence got a good look at their new baby girl, they realized at once just what the doctor had been so concerned about. "This changes everything." They thought to themselves.