//------------------------------// // Parenting is Hard // Story: What Else Could Go Wrong? // by Ponibius //------------------------------// It was strange returning to the Canterlot palace after visiting Ponyville. I’d lost my job, found out I was a dad, and discovered my long-lost sister, but life kept right on going. Cadey went back to her royal duties as she tried to catch up on everything she had fallen behind on between our honeymoon and the recent drama. That was doubly weird when I wasn’t going into work. After a couple of days, she offered to let me help her with some of her own duties—there were at least a few things I could do as prince-consort to help Cadey out, even if most of it was helping her in court or ceremonial stuff that came up now and again. Even if I didn’t have any real official power, it was something to keep me occupied. I at least had more time to hang out with the guys and have our usual game night, the usual problems with getting everyone together for sessions notwithstanding. A nice new addition to my life was getting to exchange letters with Dinky and Sparkler. It was still incredibly weird to think of myself as a dad, but I was getting there. I was looking forward to when I’d next get to see them, even if that did come with a few complications. One of them came up after Cadey and I woke up to join my aunts-in-law for breakfast. It was still really weird to think of the princesses as my aunts; Celestia had been my princess my entire life and then my Commander-in-Chief when I joined the Guard. That put her on a whole different level, one that made it difficult to think of her as family. In some ways it was even weirder with Prince—Aunt Luna. She might as well have been a legend for how well I had known her, and I had been really unsure about her to start with, especially after hearing some of the details of what had happened between Twily and Nightmare Moon. But now she was my aunt, and I was expected to make nice with her. Life slowly becoming weirder and weirder seemed to be a running theme. I was actually starting to worry what the next big twist would be at this rate. It was on the way to breakfast when I noticed a pair of servants glancing at me and Cadey and whispering to one another. That wasn’t altogether strange, as servants usually didn’t want to catch the attention of those they worked for. No sense getting yourself into trouble or roped into more work if you could help it, after all. Though there was something different in their looks and whispers. It started setting my senses on edge after happening a few more times on the way to breakfast. Part of me wondered if I was just being paranoid, but there was something about it that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I was pulled from my thoughts when Cadey wrapped a leg around mine and gave me a squeeze. My ears perked as I looked to Cadey. There was something about the way she was holding me that made me worried. “Everything alright?” Cadey’s ear twitched. “Just some of the gossip I’m hearing.” She squeezed my leg again. “It’s not important.” “Oh.” I forgot that Cadey’s hearing was well above average as an alicorn, so while I couldn’t pick up on what the servants were saying, she probably could. Though if she said not to worry about it, then I was going to try and put it out of my mind. Not like the daily gossip of the servants was a huge deal, right? We arrived at the Sisters’ private dining room. Aunt Luna was yawning from a long night, while Aunt Celestia struck me as far too chipper for the early morning as she beamed at us. Aunt Celestia always managed to be energetic in the morning, though whether that was because of a natural disposition or some esoteric connection to the sun, I could only guess. Granted, if I actually asked her, I’d probably only get some cryptic answer that would bother me for the rest of the week. “Good morning you two,” Aunt Celestia said as she pushed a pair of pancake covered plates to us. The pancakes were topped with smiley faces made of whipped cream and fruit. Cadey smiled appreciatively. “Thank you. I see you’ve made your smileycakes.” “It's been a long time since I got to spoil anypony with smileycakes.” Celestia shot her sister a wry grin. “Since somepony usually doesn’t want them.” Aunt Luna replied with an unconcerned yawn. “You know I do not enjoy pancakes for dinner.” She had a salad and some kind of carrot casserole in front of her, and while it looked quite good, it didn’t exactly scream breakfast. “Now coffee on the other hoof would be accepted quite gladly.” “Oh very well.” Celestia levitated over a pot of coffee and poured us all a cup. “Well, I don’t mind having some smileycakes,” Cadey said as she picked up a fork and knife. “I remembered loving these as a filly. This is definitely the way to start the morning.” Celestia beamed her approval. “My pleasure, really. I hope you two slept well?” Cadey nodded. “Just fine, thank you.” “Really well, actually.” I picked up my silverware to start cutting my pancakes. “I really appreciate it, the last few days have had us running around almost nonstop.” “Yes, I've heard.” Celestia tipped her coffee, then delicately cleared her throat. “I've also heard that it's been smooth sailing so far after your recent troubles?” “So far, yes.” I squeezed Cadey’s hoof. “Relatively. We've been okay so far.” Naturally we had to explain everything to Cadey’s aunts, even if that hadn’t been the most comfortable of conversations. Celestia was like a second mother to Cadey, and having to explain that I’d had a kid out of wedlock was one of the last things I wanted to do. But I’d been doing a lot of things that were on my ‘Things I never ever want to do’ list, so that had been par the course. Cadey squeezed my hoof back. “It hasn't been easy, but we've been taking it day by day.” “I'm glad to hear that, especially today.” Celestia glanced Luna’s way before turning to us again.  “You remember how we were planning on releasing a statement explaining this whole situation?” I groaned and my appetite disappeared. “Right, that was today wasn’t it?” As we had all discussed, it was only a matter of time before the public at large found out about Dinky. My aunts-in-law had advised me to get ahead of the news and release a public statement explaining things. At least then it wouldn’t seem like we were hiding the truth, which would only have pumped more fuel into the inevitable fire. Because I needed to have my reputation run through the mud some more... Aunt Luna pulled out a newspaper and offered it to me. “It didn't take long for the press to pick up on it.” I felt the bottom of my stomach drop out as I took the newspaper from her, and it only got worse as I read the front page headline: “Scandal in the Palace: Prince Shining Armor Fathers Illegitimate Child” It didn’t get any better as I read through the article. While the newspaper tried to keep a neutral tone in its analysis of our press release, it wasn’t hard to pick up on a disapproving undertone. Even when it conceded that my unnamed daughter had been born before Cadey and I had started dating, it still sounded like it was condemning me. The only good part was that Dinky and Ditzy’s names had been left out of everything. It was easy to enough justify on privacy grounds, considering Dinky was a minor. I’d gladly take the full brunt of everything as long as she didn’t have to see any of this. I could only hope she would remain oblivious of it all. I groaned as I finished the article. Cadey grimaced as she leaned in to read over my shoulder. “That bad?” “I am afraid our ponies are not acting as we would desire to the news,” Aunt Luna said. “It seems the newspapers plan on using this scandal to sell as many prints as they can.” Against my better judgment, I turned to the opinion columns. Little surprise, all of them were about me. Though where the news article had restrained itself with an air of professional journalism, the opinion columns were absolutely scathing. “An embarrassment.” “Should have his crown pulled off his head.” “A good-for-nothing lout!” “If I was the Princess, I would have tossed him out on his rear.” “Disgraceful.” “If he hadn’t already been fired as Captain of the Royal Guard...” It was all I could do not to bury my face into the newspaper. “Cadey, I am so, so, so sorry.” Cadey’s ears wilted and she rubbed my back. “It's okay, Shining. We'll get through this. We knew something like this was going to happen sooner or later.” “It’s still not fair to you.” I groaned and tossed the newspaper onto the center of the table. “I hurt you, and now I’m even more of a disgrace than I already was.” “You’ll get through this.” Aunt Celestia placed a hoof on my shoulder. “It’s hard now, but I have every confidence you’ll weather this and come out fine in the end.” “The worst should pass in time,” Aunt Luna agreed. “If nothing else, something else will catch the papers' attention before long, and withdrawing public spotlight should help the flames subside with time.” She sighed. “I should know, being the center of my own scandals.” Aunt Celestia nuzzled her sister. “I’ve weathered my fair number of scandals over the centuries, and while it might feel like the whole world is falling down on you right now, you can get through this.” I sighed. “Yeah, eventually. Still don’t like it, though. Small mercies, I can’t be canned as Captain of the Royal Guard twice.” I winced. “Even if half of the opinion columns said I should be dishonorably discharged.” Cadey shook her head as she picked up the newspaper to look over herself. “That’s not fair to you. You can’t quit the Guard over this.” Aunt Luna snorted. “Do not pay those words heed. We have already asked too much of you by asking you to step down as Captain. If you wish to retain your commission, then we will honor that request.” Aunt Celestia’s ears wilted. “And asking you to step down as Captain of the Guard was more than I wanted to do, especially in light of my own failures. But it was the only move I could think of to both save your career and assure everypony that everything would be okay after the changeling invasion.” I grunted. For all the good quitting as Captain had done me, I very carefully didn’t say. The bitter part of me couldn’t help but feel that I had been used as nothing more than a scapegoat to minimize the political damage in the aftermath. Throwing me to the wolves to show something was being done had kept public opinion from exploding. Before my dismissal, more than a few ponies had started demanding Cadey step down as head of the EIS, that a whole bunch of officers should be made to step down, an independent review commission made, and more besides. My resignation had cooled tempers long enough for my aunts to do some damage control, though I wondered if I would ever get a new posting now that this scandal was out in the public eye. Tornado could waste a whole lot of time justifying not giving me anything to do on the grounds that now wasn’t the right time, and damnit, he might just be right. Even throwing me a bone could just add fuel to the fire. Cadey wrapped a wing around me. “You okay?” “No.” I didn’t even bother with a white lie. What would’ve been the point? If I went with trying to be stoic she would see right through it. This was beyond just having a bad day—my life was falling apart around me. What future could I hope to have? I was a disgraced officer, husband, and father. Professionally or privately, my life was a mess and now everypony knew it. “We’ll find something for you as soon as things cool down,” Aunt Celestia told me. “That I promise. In the meantime, you can concentrate on some other things that need your attention.” Her lips curled into a grin. “Like a couple of ponies who I believe will be visiting you next weekend.” My ears perked. “You mean Dinky and Sparkler?” She nodded. “I would like for you to take care of your family for now. Once there is harmony inside, everything else will follow.” “I am looking forward to getting to see them again.” A one-week stop at Ponyville hadn’t been nearly enough time. Seeing them for another week while they visited me and Cadey wouldn’t be long enough either, but getting all our schedules to line up was going to be tricky for a while, especially when Dinky and Sparkler were still in school. Me not having to work was going to be to my advantage once I cleared out some of my princely duties. Cadey smiled and wrapped her leg around mine. “I want to see them again too. Dinky’s as adorable as they get.” I grinned as I remembered getting to meet her for the first time. “Yeah, she’s a great kid. Ditzy has done a great job with her.” Even if that thought caused another twinge of guilt within me. Aunt Luna nodded. “And it is good that you are taking responsibility, even if some things might not have gone as we would have wished. That speaks well of you.” “I’m just trying to do the right thing.” I picked up my fork to start poking at my breakfast. “With both her and Sparkler.” Aunt Celestia smiled as she cut a slice out of her own pancakes. “Set your house in order, and then we’ll deal with everything else. Things should calm down in a month or so, and we’ll work out a plan for moving forward by then.” I nodded, then turned my attention back to my ‘smileycakes’. I had seeing Dinky and Sparkler to look forward to, at least. That was enough for now. Next week found me waiting at the Canterlot train station alongside Cadey. For a day that I had been looking forward to for awhile, it sure was causing me a lot of anxiety. Maybe I was just being a bit impatient, but could I really be blamed for wanting to see my daughter? I wanted to make up for lost time, to be a good dad, and ... do other dad stuff. Then Sparkler would want to spend time with me too. She had said as much in her letters, and I wanted that as well. Things were still pretty awkward, though, the newspapers hadn’t made things easier with their questions about Dinky and Cadey. I’d managed to avoid doing anything that would get me into more trouble, but it hadn’t been easy. There were only so many times a stallion could be asked if he was going to be divorced before it got to him. Still, today was supposed to be a good day. I did my best to push aside those unpleasant thoughts as the train came into the station. That was made easier when Cadey wrapped a wing around me, and I smiled for her. As long as she stood by me, I could deal with anything. Soon enough, ponies poured out of the parked train. I craned my neck to try and spot two in particular amongst the crowd. I didn’t have much luck, probably in part due to the fact that all of them were comparably short. Both Twilight and Sparkler took after Mom’s height, and Dinky was—well, dinky. The first warning I got was when Cadey grinned and nudged me. “They’re here.” The next thing I knew, something small, blonde, and light lavender had collided with me and latched itself onto my leg. “Hi, Mister Shining!” Dinky chirped as she smiled up at me. “I've missed ya!” I picked her up and hugged her as best I could while she was still latched onto my leg. “I've missed you too!” Sparkler and Twily weren’t too far behind Dinky as they weaved their way through the crowd. “Aww, Dinks, don’t go running off like that.” Despite the reprimand, Sparkler didn’t sound all that concerned that Dinky had gotten away from her and Twilight. My littler sister grinned and waved. “Hey, bro. Hey, Princess.” “Just 'Cadance' is fine, Sparkler.” Cadance smiled and gave her a nuzzle. “You're my sister too now.” Twilight smiled and nodded. “Right, we're all family here.” “Couldn’t have said it better myself.” I squeezed my daughter as I nuzzled her. “She is?” Dinky’s cheeks puckered out as she thought seriously about this topic. “Oh yeah huh, 'cause she's Sparky's sister-outlaw, an' she's Mister Shiney's sister.” Her eyes crossed like the complicated branches of the family tree. “But I'm her sister too, an' now I'm all confused.” “Oh boy, she's hamming it up early with a captive audience.” Sparkler snerked as she gave me a wry grin. “Careful, or you'll find yourself wrapped around her hoof.” “I don't know what you're talking about,” I said as I pecked Dinky on her brow. Twily rolled her eyes. “He'll find out. Dinky is insidious in her adorability.” Sparkler grinned knowingly. “Oooh yeah, he's going to find that out real soon.” Dinky smirked in her sister’s direction before giving me a nuzzle. “Don't listen to Sparky, she's a brat. And we all know brats can’t be trusted, because they’re brats.” Sparkler conceded the point with a nod. “Well, she's half-right.” I chuckled. To state the obvious, she was beyond adorable even when her sisterly rivalry was kicking in. But that was just part of growing up. “Be nice to your sister—my sister?” I frowned as I thought how I should put that. “This is going to be weird.” “Now you know what I’ve been dealing with for the past couple of months.” Twily looked between us. “So, think you got these two handled? I was thinking of heading off to take care of a couple of things while I was in Canterlot.” Twily had been a sport helping to bring Dinky and Sparkler to Canterlot. Ditzy probably could have done it, but considering her schedule this weekend it was more convenient for Twily to help. Not to mention it would give Ditzy a bit of a break from the kids; having been a single mother for all this time, I could only imagine how much of a relief a weeklong break must have been. “I think we're good.” I grinned knowingly at Twily. “Why, looking to head to the library already?” Twily raised her chin in a haughty expression, though the look was undermined by the ghost of a grin at the edges of her mouth. “I just wanted to give all of you the chance to bond... And you don't know I was going to head to the library. I might want to go to the bookstore instead.” “Or the book club.” Sparkler nudged Twily in the ribs with an elbow while smirking. “Or form a book club if there isn't one around.” As beheld her princessly dignity, Cadance hid a snicker behind an upraised hoof. Twily shot Sparkler a wry grin. “Oh ha ha. Sue me, I like books.” I snorted. “If liking books was a crime, I would’ve had to drag you away for life in prison by now as a serial offender.” Dinky went wide-eyed and gasped. “You can't do that! I like books too, like Daring Do an' stuff, an' I like the longer stuff Aun' Twilight has me read even i—“ Sparkler interrupted her by pointedly clearing her throat. “Dinks, remember what we talked about?” “I said Miss Twilight.” Dinky’s ears flattened to her head. “Sorry.” I nuzzled Dinky, feeling bad about having to remind her like that. Ponies overhearing that we were family might cause some complications right then. The full truth was going to come out sooner or later, but it would be best if that were properly managed.  “It's okay. It’s just—“ There was an audible click, followed by a bright flash that temporarily blinded me. I blinked the spots away in time to see a pegasus with a camera darting away from us. A pair of Cadance’s pegasi guards were hot on his heels as he flew out of the train station. That had to be one of the newspapers’ photographers. Had he been waiting all this time to catch me with Dinky? I was going to be seriously ticked if a photo showed up in the papers. It was one thing for me to suffer because I’d goofed badly once in college; it was something completely different for Dinky to get mobbed by reporters. My aunts-in-law had promised me that wouldn’t happen. It was easy enough to justify bringing down the hammer on anyone responsible for harassing a minor, especially when they had me as a ready punching bag for the press. Shame that didn’t mean some tabloid paper wouldn’t go ahead and try and print a picture with me and Dinky together. Plenty of ponies would pay to see who the prince-consort’s illegitimate kid was, and a tabloid might think the fine Aunt Celestia would slap down on them would be less than what they would earn from the printing. That’s why Cadey’s guards had chased after that photographer. If they caught up with him, they could find out who he was and remind him that it might be a very bad idea to harass royalty. I didn’t know how much somepony could be fined for something like this, but hopefully it was enough to scare him off and destroy the photographs. Shame my luck had not been that good as of late. I grimaced, knowing there wasn’t much I could do at the moment. “Maybe we should head inside somewhere?” Cadey scowled after the photographer. “I think that would be a good idea.” Dinky detached herself from my leg and allowed precious blood to flow through it once again, sending pinpricks right up my leg. “What’re we gonna do?” I lowered her to the ground and smiled, putting the photographer out of my mind. Today was about Dinky and Sparkler, not the mess that had become my life. “That depends. What would you like to do in Canterlot? Got any ideas?” “Ooh.” Dinky stuck out her tongue to the side of her mouth as she thought hard. “I like going to the Wonderbolts' stadium here, and there's a lotta nice restaurants—ooh, and some of the museums here are really cool! My friend Alula likes the history one on her clan's compound, and Gramma and Grampa like the art museums.” “That sounds like fun,” Cadey said with a smile. “Which one's your favorite?” “I like the Wonderbolts' stadium best,” she announced. “The art stuff's kinda boring, though.” Sparkler sneaked. “To be fair, the last time we went there was some kind of postmodern exhibition going through. Half of the stuff there looked like an easel'd gotten sick, and I think one was just a blank canvas.” I chuckled, knowing exactly what she was talking about. Being an officer and then married to Cadey meant I had to go to art shows now and again. Plenty of the stuff I’d seen had gone completely over my head, like the table that was just covered by some produce that I’d mistaken for some cheaply done concessions. It wasn’t until Cadey stopped me from biting into an apple I’d taken off the table that I’d found out it was one of the exhibits. “I never really got art like that. A pretty picture of something I can get. A bunch of paint smeared on the canvas at random or some random junk haphazardly thrown together? Not so much.” Twily smiled a specific type of wide smile I knew all too well. “Actually, if you understand—“ Knowing that a full on lecture from my sister was incoming, I very quickly interrupted her. “How about you save the art history lesson for when we actually get to the museum? It’d probably work a lot better there.” It could be interesting to hear everything Twily knew about some random topic, but she really was a walking repository of information and was a bit too eager to share sometimes. I’d learned as a colt that I was one innocent statement from being subjected to a multi-hour-long lecture. Cadey nodded quickly, having been subject to many of Twily’s lectures over the years. “It's better shown as well as told, in my experience. Kind of like Professor Magetrix's experiments.” Twilight frowned and her ear flicked. She was never particularly happy when losing an opportunity to lecture. “You do have a point...” Not wanting to give Twilight the chance to start up again or give any other enterprising photographers hanging around a chance to grab more photos, I placed Dinky on my back and motioned for everypony to follow me. “Let's get going then. Sounds like we've got plenty of places to visit today.” I grinned back to Dinky. “And if not today, we have the whole rest of the week while you’re here.” Dinky smiled and hugged the back of my neck. “That sounds awesome! Oooh, where can we start?” “How about the Wonderbolt Museum?” I said as I started in that direction. “That should be a good first stop.” “Okay!” Dinky flopped onto my back and made herself comfortable. Sparkler snerked and hip-bumped Twilight. “Wrapped around his hoof. He's gonna be worse than Rainbow.” Twilight snickered in return and nodded. “He'll learn.” I didn’t know what they were talking about. Everything was going to be great. “So did you enjoy that, Dinky?” I asked my daughter as we exited the Wonderbolt Museum a couple hours later. Dinky nodded vigorously. “Yeah, that was really cool! All the different Wonderbolt costumes were so awesome. They’re super different than they used to be, and they changed over time, and there was all the cool and shiny stuff to look at!” She nuzzled my leg before she returned to hopping alongside me. Thankfully she was giving my poor leg a break from continually hugging it. There were times I was worried I was going to need a crowbar to get her off, which would have been a shame because of how cute she was. “Thanks again for takin' us!” “It was great to be able to show you around,” I told her. It had been a lot of fun showing Dinky around the museum—even if Twily had taken umbrage with some of the facts presented by the plaques. Something about them not being wholly accurate and disclosing some of the less-than-stellar facts about Wonderbolt history over the centuries. Though admittedly, the Wonderbolts hadn’t always been as well-organized as they were now. What an admiral was doing running an air unit was beyond me, and nearly drove me up the wall to learn about. I could relate to Twily’s sentiments, at least a little. Still, it had been a fun time, and Dinky had been eager to run around and see everything. The only issue had been that we had to keep tabs on her so that she didn’t get away from us. Losing Dinky in a museum was exactly not the way I wanted things to go for my first outing as a dad. Thankfully, Sparkler was well-behaved, minus the odd snarky remark now and again. But I could live with some snark if it meant getting to spend time with my long-lost sister. Not like I wasn’t used to snark growing up with Twily around. Cadey smiled down at her. “You're welcome. We're happy to get to show you around.” “Me too!” Dinky hopped over to Cadey to nuzzle her leg. “Especially since I get to hang out with ya more. Sparky and Mommy said you guys are super busy, so it's nice to get to do stuff.” Sparkler nodded, though she wore the smallest frown. “Yeah, but don't get too used to it, Dinks. S'like Gramma and Grampa, they can't do this all the time.” “Oh...” Dinky’s ears drooped for a moment, before perking back up again. “So I guess we gotta make sure this is all extra-special, huh?” Sparkler smiled for her sister. “Exactly.” It hurt to have to tell Dinky stuff like that. She was just so innocent, and didn’t deserve to have these types of complications in her life. Ugh, I really wished we could come up with a better solution, but everything I could think of would have been a pretty radical shift in Dinky’s life or was just outright unworkable. Me living in Canterlot and the two of them in Ponyville was the biggest issue. Unless someone moved, the distance between us was going to be a major hassle. Maybe time would offer a better solution. “We'll make what time we can for you.” I tried to reassure her. “And like you said, we'll make what time we do have together as special as we can.” Dinky nodded. “Okay!” “Sounds good to me.” Sparkler looked down the streets around us. “What's next on the agenda?” I looked to Dinky. “What would you like to do next? If you're getting hungry it might be a good idea to get something to eat before we hit someplace else.” Not that I would have minded a few minutes to sit down either. Keeping up with a six-year-old took some energy. “That is a good idea.” Dinky stuck her tongue out as she pondered. “Oooh! Can we get some ice cream?” Sparkler grinned as she rolled her eyes. “Oh boy, here we go...” She exchanged a knowing look with Twily. Dinky hugged my leg and looked up at me with big, hopeful eyes. “Pretty pleeeease?” My heart melted under that adorable look. “I don't see why not. I know a good place not far from here. Come on.” I turned to lead the way. “Yay!” Dinky let go of me so that she could hop alongside me. Sparkler gave me a wry grin. “Bro, I'm just gonna warn you now: she will overdo it if you let her.” “We’re just getting a little bit of ice cream,” I assured her. “Nothing wrong with that.” “Exactly!” Dinky was quick to say, and leaned up against me as she smiled brightly. “Besides, I know how to temperament myself.” “Temper yourself,” Sparkler corrected her. Dinky nodded. “That too. Daddy’s the best,” she said as she nuzzled my leg. I couldn’t help but smile at her affection. “See, everything’s great. You can get what you want too, Sparkler. I'll pay.” “Okay.” For some reason the way Sparkler said that made it sound ominous. Maybe it was due to some Ponyville oddity. One of the places that served ice cream in Ponyville was the Sugarcube Corner, where one of Twily’s stranger friends worked. Yeah, it probably had something to do with that. “And thanks, by the way.” “You’re welcome.” I led the way into an old ice cream parlor that I’d been going to since I was a kid. It was white, clean, and with a sense of history to it, which made sense since it had been a family business for centuries if the small plaque on the door was correct. Jeez, how long had it been since I’d been here last? Sometime during when Cadey and I started dating, if I remembered right. I had plenty of good memories of the place between coming here with family and friends, so it felt really nice to be able to show Sparkler and Dinky. I headed to the counter and looked over the selection of ice cream available behind the glass. “What would you all like?” Dinky pressed her face to the glass to better look at the selection. “Ooooooh. I like vanilla, but they've got chocolate too, and mint like Miss Lyra—ooh, and that's got caramel in it too! And I think that's coffee, and strawberry...” “You want a sundae then?” Cadey suggested. “We could always share one.” Sparkler spared a glance from the menu board to give Cadey a grin. “You wouldn't get much sundae if you did. Dinks is the Great Devourer of more than just muffins.” “She is a growing kid like that.” Twilight scanned the selection, and I could see her categorizing and organizing each flavor in her head. “They’ve added some new flavors since the last time we came here.” “No kidding,” I agreed. “I’m definitely feeling a bit of nostalgia. So Dinky, got any idea what you want?” “Hm. Hmm...” Dinky struck a pondering pose not unlike the more critically inclined ponies you’d see in an art gallery. “Hmmmmmmmmmm... I dunno, these are all good. Could I get a sample-thingy?” “We can check.” I turned to the bored-looking teenager that was running the counter. “Hey, do you have any samples we could try out?” The teenager’s head snapped up from whatever she had been drawing behind the counter, looking like she’d just noticed we were there. “We have our Sundae Special Surprise Sampler Spectacular if you want it. It includes all our flavors, along with all the toppings you want.” Dinky’s eyes went as wide as she smile. “Ooooh, I'd like that! And some sprinkles, please. Ooh, and gummy bears too. And maybe some chocolate chips? And whipped cream! And it's not ice cream without a cherry on top.” My daughter’s reaction made up my mind for me. “Sure, we'll get one of those.” Twilight watched as one scoop of ice cream after another was added to our rather large bowl and she gave it a slightly pensive frown. “That's a lot of ice cream.” “That'll hurt your figure,” Cadey agreed. “No it won't!” Dinky said. “I'mma growing filly.” Sparkler raised an eyebrow as yet more scoops were added to the pile. “You eat like that every day, you'll be growing laterally as much as vertically.” Dinky ignored her sister, and instead gave me and Cadey a hug. “That is the biggest, best, ice cream ever!” “Certainly looks like it.” I watched as the server finished putting all the toppings onto the sundae and then pushed it towards us. I picked it up with a grunt of effort. “Come on, lets share.” “We're going to need to if we want to stand a chance of finishing that,” Twilight said. Sparkler whistled as I placed it on the table for our booth. “We're probably not going to, just so you know.” Dinky didn’t waste any time taking a seat, grabbing a spoon, and then scooping one mouthful of ice cream into her mouth after another. I chuckled as I scooted next to her. You know, this dad thing wasn’t so bad. I thought I was shaping up to be a pretty good father. I was a terrible father! Dinky groaned and held her stomach on the palace guest bed. Taking Dinky out for some ice cream had not gone the way I had hoped. Turns out I had let my daughter have a little too much, and she had gotten sick as a result. We didn’t have much other choice than to bring her to the palace and have her looked over by the palace physician. She had assured us that Dinky only had a stomach ache and that she just needed some rest, not that that made me feel a whole lot better as I stood there and watched her suffer, knowing this was my fault. I tried to think of what to do, and weakly rubbed her shoulder as she groaned again. “It's okay, just lie there and rest.” Cadey sighed and ran a hoof through her mane. “We'll need to make sure not to let her do that again.” “Yeeeah, you gotta learn when to say no to her,” Sparkler said. “Dinks doesn’t really know how to control herself, and she’ll play you if she can. Rainbow’s had to find that out a few times when Dinky pulled this type of thing on her.” I rubbed my face, feeling like a heel over everything. “Ditzy's going to be mad with me if she finds out. The first time I take my daughter out, and I let her get sick from eating too much ice cream.” Sparkler snerked and patted my shoulder. “Shiny, trust me—learning to resist Dinky is an artform. I just have an advantage resisting her because I’m her big sister. Mom's not gonna be thrilled, but she'll understand.” I groaned. “I sure hope so.” I didn’t want this to be the cause of some big meltdown between us. That was not something I needed right then. Cadey ran a hoof through Dinky’s mane to fix it up. “Dinky, would you like for us to turn the lights out to let you take a nap?” Dinky groaned and nodded. “Okay then.” Cadey pecked her on the top of the head. “Get some sleep. I'm sure you'll feel better later.” She turned off the lights and ushered us out of the bedroom. We made our way to Cadey’s living room. It was just me, Cadey, and Sparkler now. After getting the royal physician and making sure Dinky would be alright, Twily had gone off to talk with Aunt Celestia. Having absolutely everyone hovering over Dinky while she wasn’t feeling well wasn’t exactly helping her. Ugh, I just wanted to have a fun day with my family. It had all been going so well, and then this. Sparkler shot me a steady look. “So I won't say 'I told you so', but I will after a fashion, 'cause ... I did warn you.” I sighed as I sat down on the couch. “Yeah, you did.” I ran my hooves down my face, feeling almost as terrible as Dinky. “Hey, relax.” Sparkler sat next to me and placed a hoof on my shoulder. “Dinks just needs some time to digest and sleep it off. Although she does like to snuggle for a bit after she wakes up from a stomach ache. Probably because that's what Rainbow always does, but…” I nodded. “I can do that much once she's feeling better.” Anything that helped make up for my goof was fine by me. “We’ll give her whatever she needs,” Cadey said as she sat on the couch opposite of Sparkler. “I’m sure she’d appreciate that.” Sparkler paused for a moment as she looked between me and Cadey. “So, ... even with this, thanks. This was fun.” Despite everything, I smiled. “Right, I really liked this. It’s nice to get time to spend with everyone. It's something that should have happened a long time ago, but ... it's good we can do it now.” Sparkler frowned and grunted. “Wish we could stick around longer.” She wrapped a foreleg around mine and leaned her head against my shoulder. “S'a good start, but when're you gonna be come back to Ponyville next?” “Hopefully I'll be able to come to Ponyville in a couple of weeks,” I said. “I’m shifting my schedule around to make time for it. I’m not doing a whole lot in the Guard right now, so it shouldn’t be a huge issue until I get reassigned.” That news made Sparkler smile. “That'd be awesome! Not to steal you away from your new bride or anything, but I'd love to have you around for a bit. You can meet some of my friends, we can catch up, ooh—and I know you're going to love Star. She's seriously one of the best things that ever happened to me.” My smile became more strained at the edges. “I can't wait to meet her.” I’d barely gotten to know my sister, and already she was dating somepony I didn’t know. That was going to take some time to adjust to. Cadey’s smile was much more genuine. “I know I'd like to met her too.” Sparkler’s smile widened. “I know you will! She's really sweet, she's got this special way of keeping tabs.” She worked a hoof into her mane and pulled out a small gemstone that I could tell had been heavily enchanted. I studied that gem and looked it over. “A tracking gem?” That was ... something. I wasn’t sure how to take my sister’s fillyfriend placing a tracking gem on her. That could be taken a few ways. Something to ask Lieutenant Kicker about later, preferably in private. “D'aw, she likes keeping track of you,” Cadey gushed. “It's a quirk of hers, but it's sweet.” Sparkler put the gem back in place. “Honestly, her Cult of Shadow icon's a lot creepier. With its beady little eyes that're always watching me...” She shivered. “They’re not quite that bad,” I said. Little surprise, the Cult of Shadow had a significant following within the Guard given the number of Kickers in the ranks. Though given how solemn the religion could be, some of their icons could be a bit ... stoic might be the word for it. Cadey shifted to better face Sparkler. “Now you're going to need to tell us everything about Star. I want to get to know this mare.” Sparkler’s ears perked and she beamed. “You got it! Star's ... she's perfect. The whole tracking thing might seem a bit off-putting, but she only does that for ponies she cares about, and she made that one out of amethyst, just for me. She's got this beautiful blue mane, a dapple grey coat, and ... yeah.” Her smile became wistful. “Any time she's around, it just makes my day.” “She sounds nice,” I managed. “I can give her a chance, anyways. As long as you're happy, I can be happy for you.” I could already tell  this was going to take some adjusting. I made a mental note to talk to Cadey about it later. “I'm hearing good things,” Cadey said. “We're really happy for you. When do you think we could meet her?” Sparkler crossed her forelegs over her chest. “Hm, I planned on spending some time with Star here in a couple of days. I could check with her and see if she’d like to meet you then.” “That sounds wonderful to me,” Cadey said with a wide grin. “As long as we’re not intruding. I don’t want to butt into your date if it’s going to be a problem. It’s just that I’m really curious to see who my sister-in-law is seeing.” I suppressed the deep urge to groan. Seeing my sister on a date with somepony was way, way down the list of things I ever wanted to see. “Right, if we’re going to intrude...” “Nah, s’fine.” Sparkler waved dismissively. “I just want to double-check with Star before I commit, ya know?” Cadey nodded. “Completely understandable. And if not a couple days from now, we can always meet her later.” “Sounds good to me.” Sparkler hugged me, and I instinctively hugged her back. “Besides, I want her to get to meet you. Because—well, the obvious, right?” I sighed and nodded. “Right, I can understand that.” Even if I wasn’t wild about it. Sparker stared at me for a long moment before licking her lips. “Hey, um ... also. I have a favor to ask.” She gave me a wry grin. “And it's not just ‘Don't kill my marefriend.’” “Um, I wasn't planning on something like that,” I said quickly. I’d only passively thought of a few ways that I could dispose of a body if I really had to, which was perfectly normal. Who hasn’t ever carefully considered how to commit a murder at least once? “What favor did you want to ask?” Sparkler’s eyes narrowed. “Okay, first don't kill my marefriend—and second, um.” Her ears wilted and her voice turned serious. “I thought about talking to our mom, and...” She took a big breath and spoke in one big rush. “And I really don't wanna do that alone so can I please have you there with me, please?” I blinked in surprise. Not that her request had come as that much of a surprise, or at least the fact she wanted to see Mom. I figured that was coming one way or another. Just it was a bit sudden. My hesitation resulted in Sparkler’s ears wilting, her shoulders hunching, and she turned her gaze to the floor. I wrapped my other foreleg around her and drew her into a tighter, more protective hug. “Hey, if you want me to be there, I'll help out. I want to be there for you as your big brother.” A brittle smile showed on Sparkle’s features. “Thanks. Thanks, and ... thanks.” I squeezed her shoulder. “When would you like to see her?” Sparkler took another deep breath. “As soon as possible, I guess? To get it over with.” Cadey nodded. “I don't see a reason to put it off. It’ll just get harder, and I know Shining will be there for you if you need him.” She smiled at me. “It’s one of his more endearing traits.” “So I’ve noticed.” Sparkler nuzzles me. “Why I want him there for ... you know.” I held my little sister close to give her support. “Whatever comes, I’ll be there for you, Sparkler.” All I had to do was support my long-lost sister when she confronted our mother about abandoning her. No big deal at all.