The draconequui siblings soon put an end to the disorienting chaos of it all. Discord turned Gladmane’s guards into plushies, the siblings put out the fire, and Capri went to retrieve Vapor, Gabby, and Steven – who was very elated to see her again. After everything was said and done, Capri and Discord brought the castle and its grounds down to Earth, with only the now-thin cloud layer separating the piece of Paraddock from the ground. Twilight, Flash, her parents, and the rest of the Canterlot family swiftly came to Las Pegasus to deal with Gladmane’s misdeeds.
On the Paraddock castle grounds, Twilight said, “Well, Gladmane, it seems I had valid reason not to forge an alliance with you.”
Gladmane pleaded desperately, “Oh, please, Your Highness! I can change! I’ll become a better king! A-a-a nicer king! Just please gimme another chance! I’ll be good!”
Luna said, “The citizens of Las Pegasus and the Canterlot family are in consensus. Gladmane, you are hereby abdicated from the throne and shall be incarcerated indefinitely.”
Gladmane nervously smiled, though he knew it couldn’t be good, “I’m sorry, what does that mean?”
Discord groaned and agitatedly explained, “It means you’re not king anymore and you’re going to jail for your crimes.”
Gladmane protested frantically as the guards led him away, “No! No, please! Please reconsider! You’ll regret havin’ me off the throne! There’ll be chaos, anarchy! My beautiful kingdom will be destroyed! You’ll be sorry!”
Capri scoffed, “His kingdom? Ha! I practically created Las Pegasus on his wishes.”
Roller asked, “So, what are we going to do with Silver Tongue?” He gestured to the unicorn bound in magical rope, the same that had bound Gladmane.
Twilight stated, “He will be punished for his crime of attempted murder. We’ll send him back to Maretania and remove him from his place as heir.”
Silver entreated, “With all due respect, Your Majesty, if word gets out that I almost…murdered the Guardian of Empathy, it would not just ruin my family, but all of Maretania. My crime will cause the other nations to cut off trade with us and bring about my country’s demise. I’m willing to accept any other punishment you might have in mind for me. Just don’t hurt my country.”
The Guardians – especially Mischief – were greatly confused and stunned by this side of Silver’s personality. Just hours ago, the prince tried to kill Flurry’s fiancé via a duel. Now he wanted to save his country from his mistakes? Was he trying to look noble or was he actually being noble?
Capri and Twilight exchanged nods and the draconequus said, “All right. We’ll grant your request, but this shall be your punishment in return: Silver Tongue, I hereby banish you from Paraddock forever.”
Silver sadly hung his head and said, “I shall live with that.”
Mischief couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. Though Silver had tried to eliminate him to gain Flurry’s heart, Mischief remembered what the unicorn had said the night they had dinner at the chateau. Before Silver asked the couple about their relationship, he told everyone present how he loved being on his own and away from his boring lifestyle. Mischief took a closer look at Silver’s downtrodden expression and found no trace of malice or irritation. There was only regret.
He couldn’t believe he was about to do this, but he spoke up, “Wait. It doesn’t have to be forever. Maybe it can be until he can learn good behavior.”
Everyone – including Silver Tongue – was surprised to hear this. Why would the Guardian of Empathy stand up for the one who tried to kill him?
After some thought, Twilight agreed, “It’s settled, then. Silver Tongue, if you can improve your behavior within the next five years, we’ll allow you to return to Paraddock whenever you like.”
As the ropes binding him were magically loosened, Silver smiled, “Thank you, Your Majesty. I shall not forget your kindness.”
Just then, they heard a loud “ahem”. Everyone turned to see Dandy Grandeur standing on a small box next to the cloud layer below.
He said, “Now that the rightful culprit has been apprehended, I believe I am owed an apology.”
Rainbow Dash asked in bewilderment, “For what?”
“For suspecting me as the mastermind behind the Dark Rider attacks. It’s one thing to call me out for trying to do terrible things on my nephew’s wedding day, but it’s another thing entirely to subtly accuse me of crimes that were not mine!”
Everyone was speechless until Fancy Pants said, “You’re certainly right, old chap!”
Dandy was surprised to hear this and he uttered out, “I am?”
Rarity nodded, “Indeed! And we were wrong to let Gladmane arrest you. So, as our apology, we want to turn management of Las Pegasus over to you! The city’s going to need a new leader since Gladmane’s no longer fit for the job.”
After several moments of stunned silence, Dandy spoke, “A-are you sure? I’m not quite certain I should be king again. My horrible record and all, you know.”
Fancy Pants said, “That’s why you’ll be chancellor of this fine city. I think your credentials are enough to overshadow your…faults in this case.”
After the other royals nodded their heads, Celestia’s horn glowed as she declared, “Dandy Grandeur, we hereby name you Chancellor of Las Pegasus.”
In an instant, Dandy’s attire changed into a more formal chancellor’s outfit.
He squealed, “Thank you, Your Highnesses! Thank you!” He then trotted happily towards Las Pegasus as he rambled, “Now, where to start? Now, where to start? Oh, I know! I’ll create a council of seven! No, wait, eight! Oh, how about nine?”
Sunset asked Rarity with uncertainty, “Are you sure it was a good idea to name Dandy Grandeur as chancellor?”
Her sister answered, “Of course! The poor thing seemed to be so restless and downtrodden at the chateau.”
Fancy Pants continued for his wife, “If he couldn’t be king, just who would he be? Naming him chancellor gives him a new purpose in life and it’ll help him make amends for his past mistakes.”
Just then, Dandy came back and exclaimed, “Oh, I forgot something!” He pointed to the draconequui siblings as he asked, “Could either one of you two…creatures put Las Pegasus on a cloud like Paraddock? It’ll really add to the wonder, you know?”
Sombra spoke up, “You would need the consent of the people first before you raise the kingdom on a cloud.”
Capri raised her tiger paw, “I’ll go. If they say ‘yes’, I’ll raise Las Pegasus just like that.”
Luna said, “I shall accompany you all in case there’s…trouble.”
While they waited for an answer from the foursome in Las Pegasus, Discord decided to explore the rest of Paraddock in the sky while the others talked amongst themselves near the Paraddock castle on the ground.
Vapor Trail asked the pirates, “So now that we both know we come from long lines of Pony Pan and Captain Hoofs, should we keep playing those roles to keep the tradition alive?”
Celaeno answered, “We’re not going to stay on Paraddock, that’s for sure.”
Mullet said, “We’ll convert the Polly Roger into an airship and travel the skies.”
Boyle spoke up, “While being swashbuckling treasure hunters!”
Lix Spittle added, “Gems, gold coins, daring sword fights, you name it!”
Squabble, the parrot who couldn’t speak, squawked in agreement.
Zealot said, “Well then, we wish you the best of luck.”
Celaeno then asked while pointing to Sky Stinger and Vapor Trail, “Say, what about you two? Are you still going to be Pony Pan and Windy?”
Sky shrugged, “Well, why not? Now that there’s no more Captain Hoof chasing our tails, maybe Paraddock will be a good place to raise the baby and introduce him to a lot of adventures.”
Vapor smirked, “Um, don’t you mean he or she?”
Sky wrapped his arms around his wife, “Well, whichever it is, I’ll be happy.” When he hugged Vapor, he whispered, “Though I hope it’s a boy.”
Vapor surprised him by saying, “I heard that.”
The group chuckled before Silver offered, “If you wish to stay on Paraddock, then I will gladly offer you my home…just as long as nothing valuable gets broken.”
The others were surprised by this and some got a little suspicious.
Skater remarked, “Wow, Silver. You would do that? Why?”
He explained, “Well, before you all came along, I knew nothing about friendship. The only thing I did know was how to be a prince. When I would give something, it was usually just out of courtesy or obligation. But this time, I give my chateau out of goodwill.”
Flurry asked in confusion, “But Mischief said you tried to break his self-esteem and later challenged him to a duel on the castle roof.”
He shamefully admitted, “Yes, I did that…because it was how I was raised. My parents taught me to take every opportunity and to always put yourself above the rest. The only reason why I wanted you as my wife was because I thought you deserved better than Mischief. I thought you deserved a prince instead of…someone with mixed heritage. I tried to erode his confidence at first, hoping it would drive him away from you. When that didn’t work, I simply waited until the right time to challenge him to a duel. But…something happened while I waited.
“We got to the castle and it was just so magical. I learned then that chaos could be more than…well, havoc-wreaking. It could create many incredible things and make possible what would normally be impossible. I knew the same could apply to Mischief because he was born of a creature of chaos. I was going to let him have you until you took the children back to their parents. With you away, my old lessons overtook me and I couldn’t resist the chance to dispose of Mischief once and for all.”
Silver then sighed, “I went too far that time and I cannot ask for your forgiveness. But yet…” He pointed to Mischief, “…you of all ponies wanted to spare me of harsher punishment. Why? After all I did to you, why?”
Mischief answered, “It wasn’t easy to trust you. After all, you did try to steal my fiancée. But when I saw how unhappy you were with being banished from Paraddock, I remembered what you said about being on your own and being independent of your parents. I didn’t want you to be robbed of your freedom. Plus, you were friendly to everyone but the kids and me. If you can be that…courteous to them, then maybe you can be like that with everypony else.”
Silver said, “But how? I don’t know the first thing about friendship.”
Flurry said, “We’ll teach you.”
Silver smiled and nodded, “Thank you, Princess…and Sir Mischief. I shall accept the offer.”
Applejack remarked, “Wow. You really are different from your father.”
“I think I inherited half of my grandfather’s heart. Mother always said he was wise and compassionate.”
Gale Force suddenly cried, “Look!”
Everyone turned to see Las Pegasus slowly rising towards the sky on a layer of cloud. When it was halfway towards Paraddock, the glamorous city stopped and rested in mid-air. Distant cheers could be heard as Capri teleported back to the Paraddock castle with Luna and Sombra.
Capri boasted, “Well, what do you think of that? My magic is back in full swing, baby!” She then realized something and asked, “Say, where’s Discord?”
The group pointed up towards the giant cloud. Capri teleported over the luscious candy jungle and soon saw Discord howling with joy as he surfed on a tidal wave. She flashed onto the shore just as Discord rode on the wave’s crest to meet her. Just before the water could crash onto her, Capri conjured up an umbrella for cover.
When his sister lowered and closed the umbrella, Discord exclaimed, “Capri, this place is awesome! I’ve never seen anything like it! I might never want to leave Paraddock!”
Capri grabbed his eagle arm and said, “Come on, 4-year-old. Let’s get going.”
He pulled his arm from her and pleaded, “Oh, please, Capri? Just five more minutes, I promise!”
She couldn’t resist the puppy eyes he was giving her, so she sighed, “All right. Five more minutes on the playground, but then we have to get going.”
Discord jumped for joy as he shouted, “Yahoo!” He dove back into the water and got Capri wet in the process.
She had an irritated look on her face before it melted into a content expression. “Some things never change.”
When everyone came back to the Crystal Empire, the preparations for the wedding continued as planned. The night after they came back from their wild adventures, the wedding was held on the very stage that was used for Skyla and Flurry’s Crystallings. The crowd of guests and family members watched as Flurry and Mischief exchanged vows.
Princess Luna, the officiant, proclaimed, “I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride.”
The couple was about to kiss until they heard loud sobbing coming from the audience. They turned to see Shining Armor bawling in his seat with Cadance comforting him.
Skyla facehoofed and muttered, “Oh, Dad…”
Flurry gave a chuckle before she locked lips with Mischief. The crowd cheered for the consolidation of the marriage. After the ceremony was over, everyone went to the gardens and partied to their heart’s content.
Discord - who was with his wife, daughter, and sister - commented in an annoyed tone, “I mean, really! Shining Armor made such a big deal over his daughter getting married! I never made such a fuss when Screwball got married.”
Screwball smirked, “Oh, I seem to recall that you did cry at my wedding.”
Capri perked up, “Ooh! I would’ve loved to see that!”
“I have flashbacks of the whole thing.”
Discord quickly protested, “Don’t you dare!”
Meanwhile, Skyla stood near the rosebushes and admired the beautiful flowers growing there.
She gasped when a voice spoke to her, “Well, this certainly brings back memories.”
She turned to see her beloved Blackthorn in formal attire. She was glad he agreed to be her date for the wedding despite being unused to pony customs. She wanted to cherish every moment he was here before he and his comrades would leave the Crystal Empire to embark on many adventures.
Skyla smiled, “Oh, yes. The day you appeared from behind a rosebush…”
“The night we talked to each other…Those were wonderful times.”
She sighed, “Shame it has to end all too soon.”
Blackthorn playfully told her, “I wouldn’t know about that.”
In surprise, she asked, “What do you mean?”
“My comrades and I have heard many amazing tales about the Guardians of Equestria, going where they need to be and always saving the day. Before Gladmane summoned us, we were the ones saving the innocent from harm. But with the Guardians fulfilling that role, I think the deer need to have something new to do before Thicket returns. Something like, I don’t know, staying in the Crystal Empire as royal guards?”
Skyla’s eyes lit up with joy. “Oh, Blackthorn! You really mean it?”
He took her hoof as he answered, “I could not be more serious.”
In a quick second, Skyla locked lips with him. He soon returned the passionate kiss and their hearts synchronized in ecstatic harmony. Needless to say, Cadance and Shining Armor were stunned to discover this latest development.
The prince shook his head in amazement. “First Flurry, now Skyla. I swear, what is it with our daughters and antlers?”
Cadance shrugged happily, “C’est l’amour?”
Shining Armor playfully smirked, “I’ll show you c’est l’amour.”
His wife giggled as he took her in his arms and spun her to the left before exchanging an intoxicating kiss with him.
A few minutes later, Songbird Serenade spoke into the microphone on the stage, “Thank you, fillies and gentlecolts. It’s an honor being here tonight to sing at Flurry and Mischief’s reception. But for the next song, I would like to give the newlyweds a chance to sing their duet for all of you. Please give a warm round of applause to Princess Flurry Heart and Prince Mischief.”
The crowd clapped and some cheered as the now-married couple got on the stage.
A sweet melody began to play and Flurry started to sing, “We were strangers, starting out on a journey…Never dreaming what we'd have to go through…Now here we are, and I'm suddenly standing…at the beginning with you…”
Mischief sang, “No one told me I was going to find you…Unexpected, what you did to my heart…”
They both sang, “When I lost hope…you were there to remind me…This is the start…And life is a road and I wanna keep going…Love is a river, I wanna keep flowing…Life is a road…Now and forever…Wonderful journey…
“I'll be there when the world stops turning…I'll be there when the storm is through…In the end, I wanna be standing at the beginning with you…”
The princess sang, “We were strangers…on a crazy adventure…”
Her prince sang, “Never dreaming…how our dreams would come true…”
The couple sang together, “Now here we stand, unafraid of the future…At the beginning with you… And life is a road and I wanna keep going…Love is a river, I wanna keep flowing…Life is a road…Now and forever…Wonderful journey…
“I'll be there when the world stops turning…I'll be there when the storm is through…In the end, I wanna be standing at the beginning with you…
“I knew there was somebody somewhere…like me alone in the dark…Now I know my dream will live on…I've been waiting so long…Nothing’s gonna tear us apart...”
Flurry sang, “And…”
As his wife vocalized, Mischief sang, “Life is a road and I wanna keep going…Love is a river, I wanna keep flowing…”
The newlyweds sang together, “Life is a road…Now and forever…Wonderful journey…I'll be there when the world stops turning…I'll be there when the storm is through…In the end, I wanna be standing at the beginning with you…”
During the instrumental break, many of the couples present teared up at the beautiful song. To them, it was reminiscent of their journey to blissful happiness with their loved ones.
“Life is a road and I wanna keep going…Love is a river I wanna keep going…”
Mischief vocalized, “On…”
Flurry sang, “Starting out on a journey…”
The couple resumed singing, “Life is a road and I wanna keep going…Love is a river, I wanna keep flowing…In the end, I wanna be standing at the beginning…with you…”
The crowd erupted into huge cheers and applause when the prince and princess finished their song with a kiss. Shortly afterwards, the couple walked out of the gardens and towards the large mass of cheering citizens.
Steven, who was hovering above the Empire via a cloud he was sitting on, sang, “So it goes, short and sweet…They were wed down the street…May their marriage be truly blessed…Happy end to the tale, and tomorrow I sail…so I better go home and rest...” When the couple flew up to Steven, he continued, “Here’s a kiss and a hug…Sure you don’t need a rug? I assure you the fabric’s light…”
After the couple shook their heads as if to say “no thanks”, they flew off towards the horizon.
Steven waved them off as he sang, “Well, goodbye, worthy friends…Come back soon, that’s the end…till another…Equestrian ni-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-ight!”
As he sang the last two words, the Crystal Heart spun and bright rays of light shot into the air, decorating the starry night with its colorful wonder. After a few moments of gazing at the aurora borealis, Mischief grabbed Flurry and the two shared a kiss.