Alicornae: The Legend of Starlit Sky

by PortalJumper

Part IV - Chapter 13: Sentimentality

Starlit took a cautious step forward as Spike's claws dragged backwards along the crystalline ground, exposing Cadance to the cold. Her crown sat at her hooves, dented and patinated, and she wore no royal regalia. Her coat, which must have once been a lustrous shade of pink, was faded and dingy, and her purple and yellow hair hung in limp, impotent waves that hid her face as she cried.

The wind howled along with its Princess as Starlit approached, and Cadance turned her face away as Starlit got too close.

"Your Highness," Starlit said, keeping her voice as calming as possible given the circumstances.

"Go away," Cadance moaned. "Haven't you done enough? My city is a ruin, my husband is dead, my daughter despises me, and now you would deprive me of my very home?"

"Cadance, I know what has happened here must be hard to process, but you have to listen to me," Starlit continued. "Equestria needs you, and I fear that we may already be running out of time."

Cadance whipped her head around, exposing her sunken purple eyes, thin cheeks, and tear-streaked face. It was a face that may have once held regal beauty like her fellow Princesses, but had been abused and uncared for for so long that any trace of that beauty had long since vanished. All that was left behind was a haunting, pale shadow of what was once there, made all the worse for the faint hints of its former glory.

"Equestria needed my Empire once, and look at what that has cost me," Cadance retorted. "My citizens are monsters, ponies hate and fear my name, and the power that was supposed to be shared freely has been hoarded by the two mares that all of this rests upon."

"And that is exactly why we need your help now," Starlit countered. "Equestria is dying without its magic, your magic, and Twilight Sparkle tasked us with fixing the mistakes that you all made."

A low, sinister chuckle wormed it's way from Cadance's throat at the mention of Twilight's name, although Starlit had come to expect this by this point.

"Twilight Sparkle? My dear, darling sister-in-law, Twilight Sparkle? She started this whole mess, and now she wants to try and make nice, pretend that none of this ever happened?"

"Trust me, the last few hours have been pretty eye-opening regarding Twilight's moral compass," Starlit admitted, "but that doesn't change the fact that Equestria has been a misery-wracked hell-hole ever since the war, and it didn't get that way until you all decided to abandon it. Celestia and Luna admitted that much, anyway."

"Ah, the sisters have been made to see the light as well," Cadance said, a twinge of sarcasm in her voice. "They command the sun and the moon, surely they could manage the job on their own. No more scorching days and jittering nights, that should make for a fine start."

"And what about the ponies of Equestria?"

"What about them?" Cadance snapped back. "When push comes to shove, when their backs are against the wall, ponies will always protect themselves over others. It doesn't matter if you are just a friend or their Princess, eventually everypony will show their true nature when they leave you, alone and afraid, just to save their own skin or to die for an ideal."

A gust of wind blustered past, throwing Cadance's hair to the side and freezing her constantly flowing tears to her cheeks. Starlit could see her anger, the betrayal, the complete shattering of her faith in the goodness of ponies, and it made her heart feel heavy like lead.

Starlit looked around, between Sun, Rainbow Dash, Spike, and finally back to the seething, bitter alicorn in front of her, and an idea planted itself in her head. It would be a long shot, and had the chance to go catastrophically wrong, but she could feel in her gut that it was a good one.

"Spike, can you fly yet?" Starlit asked.

"MY EXHALATION OF BREATH WARMED THE ANCIENT MAGIC IN MY BODY, SO I SHOULD BE ABLE TO," the dragon answered, unfurling one of his wings into a makeshift ramp. "WHERE DO YOU WISH TO GO?"

"Home," Starlit announced. "All of our homes."

"YOU'LL HAVE TO BE MORE SPECIFIC, I FEAR," Spike said back as all eyes fixed on Starlit.

"What are you playing at?" Cadance demanded.

"Yes, I would also like to know what you mean," Sun added, stepping around to put himself between Starlit and Cadance.

"She's hurting, Sun," Starlit said. "She's lost faith in everything that mattered to her, and for good reason. There is nothing I can say that will convince her to lift this endless blizzard and do the right thing, but we can all show her that there is something good still in Equestria. Something worth saving."

Sun looked between Starlit and Cadance, his brow furrowed in that particular way it would when he was contemplating something. He then looked past Starlit to Rainbow Dash, an eyebrow cocked.

"Don't know what you want me to contribute to this," Rainbow quipped. "If it means that I get a free ride home, then I'm all for it. I've been gone too long, and Scootaloo's probably worried sick about me."

Starlit stepped past Sun and offered up a hoof to Cadance, who was still sitting on the ground. The Princess's eyes flitted between the hoof and the mare holding it out, her expression of anger melting away into confusion.

"And what if I decide you'd be better off dead?" Cadance asked. "All of you?"

"Then I would fight you forever and ever," Starlit answered curtly, levitating her black stone necklace out from her cloak. "You could never kill me, and I would never stop trying to convince you."

Cadance's eyes widened when she saw Twilight's necklace, and she took a reflexive scoot backwards.

"Did she give that to you?" Cadance asked.

"Twilight did, yes, and it has kept me alive far longer than I should have been able to live. You will never be able to stop me from trying to drag you kicking and screaming to Canterlot, so I would highly suggest that you leave the theatrics by the wayside and come peacefully."

"Do you know what that is?!" Cadance demanded, rising to her hooves. She was only slightly taller than Starlit herself, although her horn added a bit to her height.

"You can tell me on the way," Starlit said as she walked past Cadance and headed towards Spike's unfurled wing.

Starlit cast a look back to the assembled ponies, happy to see that Rainbow Dash and Setting Sun were already making their way over to Spike. Cadance stood and stared from the ruin of her palace, and Starlit let a small smile dance across her face.

"Spike's back is quite warm," Starlit called. "I'd hate for you to catch a chill out here."

A long moment passed as Starlit and Cadance stared each other down while Sun and Rainbow climbed onto Spike's back. Finally, after a seeming eternity, Cadance slowly made her way to Spike's wing. Her steps were unsteady, both from the slick of ice and water on the ground and the fissures Spike had made, but she soon made her way up the leathery wings and nestled in behind Starlit.

As the four ponies settled into their spots Starlit weaved a bit of her magic around them to hold them down in place, making extra sure that Cadance was secured due to her frail constitution.

"WHERE ARE WE GOING, STARLIT SKY," Spike asked, curling his head around until he was eye level with Starlit.

"South, across the Crystal Wastes until you come across a small outpost just on the edge of the tundra," Starlit answered. "Try to stay out of sight for as long as you can, we wouldn't want to cause a panic; those ponies can be quite quick to jump to the worst conclusion."

"This is because I arrested you, isn't it?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"You tell me," Starlit answered back, before turning to face Spike with a nod.

A low exhalation of breath rumbled out of Spike's lungs as he lifted his wings into the air. The moment hung with anticipation until he swooped them back down, sending Starlit's blood into her hooves and her eyes back into her skull as Spike shot into the air with amazing speed. The wind chill alone was making her eyes water, and over the cacophony of the air she could hear Cadance, Sun, and Rainbow Dash screaming in a mix of terror and elation behind her.

Scootaloo sat by herself by the gate leading out to the tundra, gently rocking the sled Rainbow Dash had gotten her underneath herself as she waited. The sun was going low over the western horizon.

"Hey kid," one of the guard ponies said as she walked past, "Sun's gettin' low, you might wanna get inside before it gets too cold."

"Can't I just stay out for five more minutes?" Scootaloo pleaded. "She'll be back soon, I know she will."

The guard pony looked out to the horizon past the gate, let out a low snort, and settled down next to Scootaloo.

"Kid, you've been sitting by this gate for nearly a week waiting for Rainbow Dash to come back," the guard said. "I'm not trying to crush your dreams here, but if she hasn't come back by now I don't think she will be. That ice is treacherous, and if the ice doesn't get her then the monsters out there will."

"You don't know that!" Scootaloo retorted. "Rainbow Dash is the bravest, strongest, smartest pony ever! She'll be back any minute now, just you see!"

Scootaloo turned away from the guard, trying to keep the ache in her heart from showing. Rainbow Dash wanted her to be brave, and she promised that she would come back home. Rainbow Dash never breaks promises, so to Scootaloo that word was as good as gold.

"I'll give you another fifteen," the guard relented, "but then we've got to shut up the gate for the night. That okay with you?"

"Mm-hm," Scootaloo murmured, setting her eyes to the horizon again.

The guard pony sat with Scootaloo, and her presence wasn't entirely unwanted; Scootaloo had been having trouble sleeping without Rainbow Dash around, and she hadn't gone to school ever since Rainbow left. Her aunts hadn't minded so much, but they'd eventually insist that she get back to a normal schedule.

Scootaloo leaned her head up against the guard pony, who wrapped a hoof around her shoulders as they watched with the last fading light of the sun.

Just as the sun sank below the horizon Scootaloo saw something odd, something coming from the north. A burst of green lit up the night sky, followed by a second, closer spot. The guard pony stood up and pulled her guidestick out, illuminating its red gem to get the attention of the other guards on the wall.

The bursts of green came closer and closer, and as they did a whooshing sound accompanied them. It sounded like wings, but from something much larger than a pony could possibly be. Scootaloo stood to attention, running out last the gate to try and get a closer look.

"Kid, stop!" the guard pony shouted, but Scootaloo was past the gate before they could close it on her. The noise grew louder and louder, and the bursts of green soon proved to be green fire, and their source was steering towards the ground. The klaxon for the outpost sounded as she heard ponies inside scurrying back to their homes, and the guard pony had just gotten to Scootaloo when the source of the fire landed.

A massive creature with wings as wide as twenty ponies landed only feet in front of Scootaloo, its iridescent green eyes shining in the darkening sky. It unleashed another gout of fire in a semicircle behind itself, igniting the icy stone and burning despite their being no fuel. The green flames cast a sickly pallor over everything, and Scootaloo ran behind the guard pony to hopefully protect herself from whatever this beast was.

"Wait! Don't attack!" a voice called from off the beast's back, one that Scootaloo would recognize immediately. She poked her head from around the guard pony as she saw the beast unfurl one of its massive wings to the ground, allowing a selection of ponies to climb off of it.

The one Scootaloo was looking for she could see immediately in the pale green light the fire was giving off; she'd recognize that mop of rainbow hair anywhere.

"Rainbow Dash!!" Scootaloo cheered as she ran past the guard, who was too slow to try and stop her.

"Scootaloo!" Rainbow cheered back, running at a limping pace before Scootaloo fully tackled her to the ground in a massive hug. Both of them were crying from sheer joy and relief, and Scootaloo's mind was at ease for the first time in days.

"Okay, you've got to get off of me, I'm hurtin' real bad," Rainbow playfully admonished, and it was only then that Scootaloo noticed the large scrape on her face and the bandage wrapped around her right hip.

"You're hurt? What happened?" Scootaloo asked.

"I come riding into town on a dragon, and you're more worried about a few scrapes and cuts?" Rainbow Dash asked back.

"It's just that you were gone for so long, and I was so worried, and everypony said that you were never coming back, and I—"

Scootaloo was silenced by Rainbow Dash wrapping her up in a big, tender hug, which Scootaloo eagerly reciprocated.

"I wouldn't have expected anything else from you," Rainbow Dash said, happiness coating every word. "I'm so happy to be home."

They hugged, long and deep, until Rainbow Dash finally pulled herself to her hooves and made her way to the gate, passing the guard pony as she went and giving her a pat on the shoulder. Scootaloo pranced eagerly behind as the gate screeched open, and the two of them went back inside.

"Do you have a new story, or is now a bad time?" Scootaloo asked, trying not to impose but trying to satiate her curiosity all the same.

"You bet your life I have a story," Rainbow Dash said. "It involves peril, mystery, magic, the single greatest feat of flying in Equestrian history, and a great sacrifice to save somepony special, and its all true."

"All of it?" Scootaloo asked.

"All of it," Rainbow Dash repeated, unfurling her wings to show that they were now gemless, just like Scootaloo's own, "and none of it would've happened without those no-good, layabout, trespassing unicorns I picked up."

Scootaloo turned her head to look back at the dragon and the other ponies that had been on its back. She recognized the two outsiders that Rainbow Dash had brought in, and saw a third unicorn who was covered up by a heavy cloak. She gave them all an enthusiastic wave, which the two outsiders eagerly reciprocated.

Starlit, Sun, and Cadance had decided not to stay in the outpost, instead flying south until they got out of the frozen north and settling in for an actual evening of rest. Starlit had shown Cadance exactly what she wanted her to see at the outpost, and didn't want to let anypony know about Cadance's current state until she was ready to accept her responsibility again.

Cadance seemed to be a bit more at ease, save for when the three of them were on Spike's back, but she was still mostly keeping to herself. After getting a fire going, Starlit asked Sun to go set up the tents so she could get a few minutes alone with Cadance.

Cadance cast a wary eye to Starlit as she sat down on the opposite side of the campfire, tending to it with a stick to keep it going.

"I don't know about you, but I'm happy to be out of that frozen wasteland," Starlit said, eyes still on the fire.

"It is nice to not have to worry about freezing to death," Cadance replied. "It's been so long, I had forgotten how good the sound of wind rustling through leaves was."

"I missed it too," Starlit said back. "You never really notice how much you appreciate something until it's gone. Just look at how happy Scootaloo was when we dropped Rainbow Dash off."

Cadance let out a small chuckle, barely audible over the fire, but Starlit heard it all the same with her finely honed mother's hearing.

"I thought she was going to knock the wind out of Rainbow Dash when they collided," Cadance admitted.

"My little filly is the same way," Starlit said. "She'd tackle my husband to the ground whenever he came back from patrol, so excited to ask about his day. I'm pretty sure he was faking it for her, but it made her happy all the same."

Starlit saw Cadance's expression drop from across the fire, although she had anticipated the talk of husbands would sour her mood.

"Starlit, I know what you're trying to do here," Cadance stated bluntly. "You're trying to get me to see the good in the world that I abandoned, but you're throwing pearls before swine. Everything is temporary to somepony like me; I'm going to outlive everypony that I will ever come to care about, so why worry about any of them?"

Starlit pondered the Princess's question for a moment, letting it stew in her mind as she tended the fire.

"A thing isn't beautiful because it lasts, Cadance," Starlit replied. "A thing can't be good if it will always exist. All things are temporary, even you ultimately, and eventually all that we'll have of any of this, of existence itself, are the memories of the ponies or other beings that will come after us."

"And this is supposed to be comforting?"

"No, not really, but it is enlightening," Starlit answered. "It's helped me out a lot, at least."

"How so?" Cadance asked, her tone flippant.

"Because it lets me stay grounded in what I do now," Starlit answered. "I had a grandmother that I grew up with who I absolutely adored. She taught me, bandaged my wounds, filled my belly, and passed on all the wisdom that she could give to me, but she ultimately passed away in a thestral attack."

"I was devastated when she died, especially in so gruesome a fashion, but I still remember everything she taught me about being a good mare; to be kind, just, decisive, and above all else to care about what happens tomorrow. I learned to never take anything for granted, because tomorrow it may not be there and I'd have to learn how to carry on without it."

"A fine sentiment for a common pony like yourself," Cadance counters, "but what happens when the thing that you lose is the very thing that defines you, that you hold dominion over? I lost my love, Starlit Sky. Shining Armor was my everything, and without him I couldn't be anything."

"Do you remember what he looked like?" Starlit asked.

"What?" Cadance retorted.

"What he looked like. Do you remember what he looked like?" Starlit repeated.

Starlit saw Cadance stare down into the fire before tilting her head back to look up at the stars. When she finally came around there was a soft, kind smile painted across her thin, haggard face.

"He had fur as white as the snow, hair as blue as a midnight sky," Cadance said, her voice reverent and sweet. "His eyes shone like twin sapphires, and his chest was broad and stout."

"What was he like?"

"As brave as brave could be," Cadance answered with a dreamy sigh. "He had been a palace guard in Canterlot before we ever met. The first time I visited the city he was doing his rounds, making sure that the walls were secure, and I watched him dive headfirst off of those walls to save one of his fellows who had tripped over the parapet."

"Was he an alicorn, like Twilight?" Starlit asked, her curiosity piqued.

"No, he was a unicorn like she had once been," Cadance answered. "In those days the source of alicornhood was well known, and it was a special privilege to have the gift given to you. I myself had it bestowed upon me by my mother, who had it bestowed upon her by her forebears, on and on back through the generations."

Starlit gave a knowing nod, filing that information away in her brain for when she next saw Twilight. The pile of things Starlit had to ask Twilight was growing greater by the day.

"Shining Armor leapt off of the wall without a care for his own safety, and I ran to the wall to see if he was alright," Cadance continued. "I saw him hanging there, clenching his teeth into one of the banners hanging off the side as he used his magic to hold the soldier who had fallen off."

"What did you do?" Starlit asked. "Surely it wouldn't have been befitting of your station to get involved, especially if you were on a diplomatic visit."

"You are right, it wouldn't have fit, but in that moment I lost all care for courtesy and propriety. I flew down and offered my hoof to Shining Armor. He immediately took it with his free one, and with great effort on both of our parts we got back up onto the wall."

Cadance let out another small chuckle, this one more genuine, like she was recalling a joke she'd been told years ago.

"We all collapsed into a giant pile on the battlements, with Shining Armor pressing my face into the ground with the weight of his breastplate. As soon as we got ourselves sorted out he immediately bowed and submitted himself for disciplinary action for causing such as scene and putting me in such a state."

"My husband, Stalwart Warden, met me in a similar manner, although not nearly that grandiose," Starlit said, sidling a bit closer to Cadance. "He was one of the patrol stallions for our small town, and we passed each other one day while he was making his rounds. To hear him tell it, he was so star struck by my beauty that he completely forgot where he was walking and tumbled head over hooves into a cabbage merchant's cart."

"Oh, stallions do go so loopy for a pretty face and a coy smile, don't they?" Cadance commented. "Shining Armor followed me around like a lost puppy all day after I told him to think nothing of our little incident, and after I had concluded my business he asked me if he could do anything to make up for his rudeness and impropriety."

"And what did you tell him?" Starlit asked, putting her chin onto her hoof.

"I told him that he could buy me dinner, and we would do our introduction over," Cadance answered with a wry smile. "We had kale and cashew salads with a rose-wine vinaigrette dressing and a slice of strawberry cream cake for dessert, and he was an absolute gentlepony."

"You were smitten from day one, weren't you?"

"Absolutely and completely," Cadance answered, letting her eyes drift back to the fire. Her smile slowly began to fade as she stared deeper into the flames, as if hearing things that only she could.

"He was my everything," Cadance muttered under her breath. "We were joined, body and soul, and then he left me."

"But he hasn't really left, has he?" Starlit asked, putting a hoof on Cadance's own. "He lives on in you, in the moments you shared, the good times you had, the troubles you weathered together, and even in your final parting. You knew that the two of you couldn't last forever, not with what you were, but you chose to love him with all you could for as long as you could."

Cadance kept her eyes to the fire, but let her other hoof lay on top of Starlit's. Her eyes flicked back and forth as the flames flickered and danced in the darkness, and they soon began to water and tears spiked down her cheeks.

"That's all I'll ever have of him," Cadance said. "Memories of the way things were. The cities he defended are in ruins, the ponies he defended are all long dead, and the love of his life has a heart of stone."

Cadance looked to Starlit, her purple eyes dancing with flicks of orange from the fire's reflection.

"What would he think of me now?" Cadance asked. "To see me like this, despondent and haggard and uncaring and unloving. What would he say, Starlit?"

Starlit drew up to her full seated height, and for the first time was able to look one of the Princesses dead in the eye. Cadance's eyes were begging for an answer that Starlit simply didn't have, but she could at least make an educated guess.

"I can't honestly tell you that because I only know him through your account of his character," Starlit replied as she stood up, "but if I were him I'd ask why the mother of my daughter, the love of my life, and the most kind, understanding, and caring mare in all of Equestria stopped caring for anypony but herself."

Cadance looked back into the flames as Starlit's words sank in, but Starlit knew that it wasn't her place to be there while Cadance thought her words over. This was something she needed time for, and Starlit was quite tired after the day's events.

"It was good talking with you Cadance," Starlit said, patting the Princess on the shoulder. "We have an extra tent set up for you by Spike's belly so you can stay a little warmer tonight."

"Thank you," Cadance replied, still focused on the fire with a worried expression.

As Starlit closed the flap of her tent behind her, a soft sobbing echoed through the night.

Feeling the sun on her face and the wind in her hair without the biting chill of the Crystal Empire was doing wonders for Starlit's mood as she, Cadance, and Sun sat astride Spike's back and made their way further south. Sun in particular had been especially pleased to hear where their next destination would be as it would give him the chance to see the fruits of his efforts.

"Right there, just before that line of trees!" Starlit yelled to Spike so that she could be heard over the rushing wind. Spike gave a quick nod and began his descent, which he had been practicing on making more gentle for his smaller and more fragile passengers.

The landing was smoother than the other's that they had endured, but the rush of air from his wings was sufficient to blow a swathe of the fruit off of the apple trees from Applejack's orchard.

"She's gonna kill you for that one," Sun commented to Starlit as he descended down Spike's wing.

"She could certainly try, I have a dragon backing me up," Starlit countered.

Starlit carefully led Cadance down the wing until she was back on solid ground. The last few days of travel Starlit had been making more and more of an effort to bolster her strength, but Cadance still needed help with long bouts of walking after her centuries encased in ice up in the north.

The trio made their way down the dirt path that led into Appleoosa proper, only to be greeted by a large, cherry red stallion galloping up the walk towards them.

"You?" Big Macintosh asked, stopping short. "What're y'all doing back here? And what was that big noise?"

"I was feeling homesick," Sun replied, holding a hoof out to Mac for a shake. "And our new method of transportation can be a bit… unstable. Is Applejack around?"

"Yeah, she's back down at the house runnin' figures for the harvest," Big Mac answered, gesturing down the lane. "She'll be pleased to see you alive and well, that's for certain. Who's your friend, if I may ask?"

Cadance pulled the hood of her cloak over her face more than was necessary, and Starlit stepped in front of her to hide her as best she could.

"She's somepony that we picked up in the north," Starlit answered. "She could use a few days of rest after everything that she's been through, and we were wondering if you and Applejack could provide."

"You'll have to take that up with her. She's been mighty busy after all the nonsense in Sunspire, but you're welcome to try. Follow me."

Big Mac led the group down the dirt path, and Starlit could already tell that the effects of Celestia's curse were coming undone; the fruit on the trees were brighter and bigger than the withered little apples she'd seen when she teleported in the first time, and there was more grass and other incidental plant-life growing out of the once arid dirt.

The farmhouse was quaint, much like Starlit's own, with a large front porch covered by a thatch roof and a selection of produce bags arrayed in front of the porch itself. Big Mac held a hoof up, motioning for everypony else to stop while he went to talk with Applejack. He went up to the well carved door and rapped on it twice, which opened after a few moments.

"Mac, shouldn't you be out in the orchard gettin' those apples out of the trees?" Applejack asked curtly, a pencil held in her teeth. "We both have a lot of work to do gettin' ready for this year's harvest and you know it."

"A thousand pardons, but something dropped in on me," Mac replied as he moved back and gestured towards Starlit, Sun, and Cadance, who was still doing her best not to be noticed.

Applejack's mouth fell open and the lentil clattered to the porch.

"How've you been, Applejack?" Starlit asked.

"A sure sight better now, that's for sure!" Applejack answered as she cantered off the porch and gave Starlit and Sun a big hug. "Boy you all are a sight for sore eyes! Are you back for good?"

"Unfortunately, no," Sun answered, "but we had a way to get back here and thought we'd pop in and say hello."

"Can't say I'm not disappointed to hear that, but you do what you gotta do," Applejack replied. "Are y'all hungry, I could get something whipped up."

"That'd be just perfect," Starlit answered, "just make sure there's enough for all three of us."

Applejack looked past Starlit to see Cadance, who quickly averted her gaze.

"Oh, my apologies, I didn't see you back there," Applejack said as she pulled her hat off and held it to her chest. "My name's Applejack, and any friend of Starlit and Sun's is a friend of mine. Who might you be?"

"Uh… Mi Amore," Cadance answered meekly, holding her hoof out for a shake. Applejack took it heartily, giving a good three pumps.

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance. I hope you like apples, because we've got them in spades."

Cadance cast a quick glance over to Starlit, who nodded her head and gestured back to Applejack.

"That'd be lovely," Cadance replied.

Cadance threw her cloak off into the floor, relishing the chance to stretch her wings after a long day of having to keep them hidden. According to Starlit and her friend Applejack they had had a bad run in with Celestia, and the presence of another alicorn so soon after wouldn't send the best message. Now that she had her own space in the town's tavern she felt more at ease.

The sun had set an hour ago, and Cadance found her eyes drawn to the stars. The skies above her own home had been blocked by snow for so long that she had forgotten just how good a clear night sky could look. She could even pick out a few constellations, although most of the ones in this part of the country were different than the ones she had learned growing up in the Empire.

A soft rapping on her door drew Cadance's attention, although she didn't turn to face it.

"Come in," Cadance said. There were only two ponies she could think of that would want to see her, and both knew her true nature.

"Are you settling in alright?" Sun asked as he opened the door with a soft creak.

"I don't have much to settle in with, so I'd say so," Cadance answered keeping her eyes fixed out the window. She hear soft hoof steps behind her as well as the door closing, followed by the rustling of her mattress as Sun sat down on the bed.

"You got the good room," Sun commented. "This bed's always been overstuffed, it makes it really soft and good on the back."

"Did you want something, or are you just here to comment on the upholstery?" Cadance asked curtly.

There was a brief pause, followed by Sun sitting down next to Cadance at the window. She flicked her gaze towards him to find that he too was staring out the window with her.

"I just wanted r see how you're getting along, that's all," Sun answered. "I know Starlit and I kind of dragged you all over town today, so I just wanted to make sure we didn't wear you out."

"The days activities were tolerable," Cadance replied, "from a purely physical standpoint. Your house was the most interesting locale we visited today, if I'm going to be entirely honest."

"Then it looks like Starlit owes me a bit," Sun commented with a smirk.

"You made a bet on what I would find the most enjoyable?" Cadance asked, mildly insulted.

"Starlit thought that Applejack's orchard was going to be the one, but I was certain that a cosmopolitan mare like yourself would be more impressed by all the experiments and gadgets I had kicking around."

"I will admit, for a pony from such a… rustic place, you have quite the impressive working knowledge of many facets of magical theory."

"You can call it backwater, it won't insult me," Sun replied. "Although it has been doing better ever since Celestia stopped frying the whole region with her magic."

"I didn't want to mention it earlier, but the heat here is quite severe," Cadance admitted. "I'm amazed that anypony can live down here."

"You come from a kingdom that's been buried under an endless blizzard for centuries, I think you might have some bias regarding the climate," Sun replied.

"Perhaps I do."

A long moment of quiet as the two of them simply stared out the window. The stars twinkled and flickered against the deep blue backdrop of the sky, and the moon shined in a perfectly crescent shaped scar of light across the inky darkness. It was calming, but a disquieting sensation wouldn't stop eating at Cadance's mind.

"Why are you doing this?" Cadance asked apropos of nothing.

"You mean looking out the window?" Sun asked.

"You know what I mean, don't insult my intelligence," Cadance reprimanded, looking down to Sun. "This, flying me all across Equestria, showing me the land and the ponies in it. Why are you doing this?"

"If I'm going to be honest here, it was Starlit's idea," Sun admitted, looking back at Cadance. "I know that you were there for that conversation and all, but were it up to me we would have just forced you back to Canterlot."

"In my current state you probably would have succeeded," Cadance admitted, "but that doesn't answer my question."

"To provide perspective, probably," Sun answered. "To show you that there's more out in the world than just the pain and loneliness that you've shut yourself up in for all these centuries."

"And yet everywhere we've gone so far I have seen nothing but ponies toiling their lives away, doing what they have to to subsist and survive in a world that seems dead set on killing them," Cadance countered. "Whether it be Rainbow Dash's community that is barely eking out an existence in the frozen north, or here where all of your land is a desert, I'm not seeing anything that is making me particularly confident about the future of Equestria.

"Unless my memory is faulty, I'm pretty sure that the first of those problems is one that you are still actively causing," Sun replied, "and this place used to be even more of a blasted wasteland before Starlit convinced Celestia to stop using her piece of the Crystal Heart to immolate it."

Cadance felt her heart skip a beat at the mention of her ancestral birthright, the source of her magic, and the source of her pain and heartache.

"How do you know about that?" Cadance demanded. "Who told you about the Heart?"

Sun's face was that of a pony who had just realized that had said far too much, and could find no appropriate way to run it back and so was forced to admit even more.

"It was your daughter," Sun admitted. "We found her outside the Empire; one of her crystal ponies led us to her and she in turn told us about the Heart, and how you all broke it into pieces or share it's magic among the Princesses."

"Flurry is alive?!" Cadance demanded.

"She is, and…" Sun began, before falling into a deep state of thought.

"What?! And what?!" Cadance hollered, heart pounding in her chest.

"I think this would be something for her to explain to you in person," Sun finished as he channeled a small amount of grey magic into his horn. The grey soon turned to a vivid blue as a series of glyphs and sigils illuminated on his forehead.

Before she could react a blast of cold air filled the room from behind them. A hole through reality was letting ice and snow and wind blister into the room, scattering the few books on the nightstand and blowing the blanket on the bed to the floor.

Cadance saw an indistinct shape form in the solid white light of the portal, which slowly resolved itself into a tall, pony shaped silhouette. Cadance could see a curly mane whipping back and forth, a long and proud horn protruding from the forehead, and a pair of wings with much the same pattern of feathers as her own extend and retract in the wind.

A soft hoofstep landed on the worn wooden floor, unshod but in a familiar pink-white color. The pony's hair was streamed in a similar manner to her own, but with pinks and light blues, and her eyes shone like a pair of sapphires as the portal closed behind her.

"Thank you for calling me Sun, I was starting to worry…" Flurry began before trailing off as her eyes slid over to her mother.

Cadance needed no prompting as she rose to her hooves. Her little filly, her bouncing bundle of joy, had grown so much. Flurry Heart was a picture of regal beauty, statuesque in height and demeanor, but with the perfect amount of disarming warmth in her face to make her seem approachable.

Flurry Heart was everything that Cadance no longer was, and the comparison was all the more cemented when Flurry knelt down and wrapped her mother up in a tight, warm hug.

Sun had wisely decided to give Cadance and Flurry Heart the room, which suited Flurry just fine; her mother was in a strange place surrounded by strangers, and right now a reminder from home without any onlookers would be what she needed.

"Mother, it is so good to see you again," Flurry said as she let Cadance out of her grip. "Where are we? I expected Starlit to stay in the Empire until she could convince you to go to Canterlot and end the blizzard."

"Starlit Sky can be quite persuasive, but I get the distinct impression that she didn't want to spend any more time in my frozen prison than she had to and concocted this plan of hers as an excuse to leave."

"And what plan would that be?" Flurry asked.

"She wants to show me Equestria, see how the country is doing to try and reignite my love for this place again," Cadance answered curtly.

"Judging by your time of voice I would guess that it isn't working?"

Cadance looked out the window, now fogged over fro the blast of cold air let in by Flurry's portal, before looking to the floor.

"I don't know," Cadance admitted. "Starlit Sky means well, she really does, but I have been hurt so much by this country and the dream that Canterlot represented. I thought I had lost everything during that war, and despair ate at my heart like a disease."

"But I'm here now," Flurry said, turning Cadance's head to face towards her again. "I'm here for you now, and won't leave you again."

"And how can I trust that?" Cadance asked, an edge to her words. "You stole the Heart of Love from me, robbed me of the source of my power at the moment when I most needed it. You betrayed me just as much as your father did."

The accusation stung Flurry's soul, although it wasn't without merit. She could feel her mother's pain as if it were her own, and it was tearing her up inside that she was having trouble finding the words to try and express herself.

"You remember that night, don't you?" Cadance continued, backing away from Flurry.

"As clear as I'm seeing you now, and father didn't abandon us," Flurry countered. "He was trying to protect the Empire, and by extension us. You remember the type of stallion he was; he could never sit idle while somepony else did his duty for him."

"But we were his duty!" Cadance retorted. "We were family, he loved us, but he threw his life away in a battle overshadowed by hundreds of others raging at the same time when he could have done so much more!"

"Mother, please, he only did what he thought was right," Flurry said, feeling her chest grow tight to hear her mother speak like this.

"And what about what I thought was right?! I was his monarch, I was his charge! I told him to stay with me and he disobeyed! He died disobeying an order from his Princess! He died spiting me!"

Cadance finally collapsed into the floor, her chest heaving with sobs as every bit of her pain, loneliness, anger, and sadness came flooding back all at once, and Flurry's heart broke to see her. Slowly Flurry knelt down next to her mother, nestling Cadance into the crook of her neck and holding her close as Cadance wept.

"It's okay to feel like this, mother," Flurry said softly. "This pain, this anger, it's alright. To know a hurt this strong is to have known a love more powerful than any other."

"Why was he such a brave fool?" Cadance moaned. "Why couldn't he have been mine and mine alone?"

"Because love has many shapes, and he loved his ponies as much as you loved him, and as much as I love you."

Cadance looked to her daughter, and Flurry could see the spark of reflection hiding behind her tear-stricken eyes.

"If you truly want to carry him with you, to honor his memory, you have to accept what he did," Flurry continued. "He wanted to protect the ponies of Equestria that he so cared for, and gave the very blood in his veins and the breath in his lungs to do so. He died so that we all might have a chance to live."

"And what about you?" Cadance asked. "How can you possibly still care for me after everything I've put you through? Centuries of survival in a frozen wasteland can't have made for ideal living conditions."

"I never stopped caring, mother. The only reason I took the Heart from you is that I was afraid you would corrupt its magic with your anger, and I have been safeguarding it all this time."

With a swish of Flurry's horn another portal opened up, this one smaller and without a blast of cold air to accompany it, and out of floated a small chunk of crystal. It was a pale blue color that shone brightly in its core, and it was carved and faceted into a perfect heart. As the Heart of Love floated to the both of them and the portal behind it sealed, the Heart began to beat, slowly and softly.

"In a manner of speaking, I suppose I kept my mother's heart from breaking," Flurry said as she brought the Heart of Love to Cadance. "Nothing I can do could possibly replace everything that we have lost together, but you and the Heart have been separated for too long. All I can hope for is that we can start over again, and let the fire of love warm our lands again."

Cadance held her hooves out, taking the Heart from Flurry's magic and holding it close. It's beat pulsed and stirred faster as Cadance held it, staring deep into its immaculate surface.

"All this time," Cadance whispered reverently, "it never stopped beating."

"Love comes in many shapes," Flurry repeated, "and much like its Heart it has innumerable facets and dimensions. Perhaps you just need to find a new one."

Cadance let her horn, illuminating the Heart and sending her magic into it. The thread of her magic split into many different beams, scanning and tracing lines over the Heart as it beat ever faster. Soon the entire room was awash in blue light, enough that Flurry had to wince and cover her eyes.

When the spell finally subsided the Heart's beating slowed to a steady, healthy pace, and Cadance looked more like herself. Her face was fuller, her fur brighter, and her hair more kept. Cadance was still a fair sight away from when she was at the height of her rule, resplendent in royal regalia, but she looked more fulfilled and at peace.

"What did it show you?" Flurry asked.

"You, me, and a country that my husband loved more than anything," Cadance answered. "It was a future I'd like to try building."

Sun had channeled a small part of Silence's magic into the door to Cadance's bedroom to keep any sound from leaking out, which was upsetting Starlit to no end as she paced back and forth outside.

"What could possibly be taking them so long?" Starlit asked, obviously frustrated at the current turn of events.

"They haven't seen each other in centuries, they probably have a lot of catching up to do," Sun answered, maintaining his vigil at the door.

"But what if Cadance goes back to the Empire without us?" Starlit asked.

"Then we have Spike to get us back up there," Sun answered, his patience starting to wear thin. "Besides, Flurry knows what's at stake here; she wouldn't let Cadance up and leave without at least telling us why."

"Then could you at least let me listen in?" Starlit asked in a tone that belied the fact that she really wished it could be an order.

"No, this is a private matter," Sun answered for the third time since Starlit had come to check on Cadance.

Starlit let a groan of frustration out just as the doorknob to the room clicked over, sending a jolt down Sun's spine as he turned to face it. Starlit too stood to attention as they both saw Cadance walk out.

Her hood was down, and Sun could see that she looked healthier; her hair wasn't as strung out and matted, her face looked fuller and her eyes less sunken, and her fur and hair were brighter and more vibrant.

"Did you have a good talk?" Sun asked.

"In a few ways, yes, but in many, no," Cadance answered cryptically, looking over both Sun and Starlit. "Thank you for the privacy, it was much appreciated."

"Is Flurry Heart still here?" Starlit asked.

"No, she went back to the Empire to prepare for my eventual return, as well as the return of the Heart of Love," Cadance answered, holding out a small, heart shaped lump of crystal in her magic. It beat slowly like a real heart, and had a soothing light that shone from its blue surface.

"Flurry had kept it safe for all the time I was holed up in my tower," Cadance explained, "and peering into its surface helped me… come to my senses, in a manner of speaking."

"I honestly expected it to be bigger," Starlit admitted as she looked the Heart over. "The Heart of Light was about the size of my head, and the Heart of Power must have been massive for the amount of crystals Luna made out of it."

"Love is a small, fragile thing compared to the power of radiance and energy, but it weathers any storm," Cadance replied. "Even one as tumultuous as mine."

"So where do we go from here?" Sun asked, letting his spell abate. He could feel a twinge in his forehead as he ended it.

"I will return to the Empire to end my storm," Cadance explained, "and to help allay the fears from any ponies that live up there about the rumors and stories they've heard of the Crystal Empire. The particular thestrals created by the storm are connected to my will, powered by my emotions, so I will use them as my messengers and then let them pass into the good night they deserve."

"Flurry has accepted her new role as the ruler in the Empire," Cadance continued, putting the Heart away, "so after that has been taken care of I will travel to Canterlot to meet with my sister-in-law."

"We could go with you," Sun said. "Spike is a good mode of transport, and we need to go to Canterlot as well."

Sun noticed Starlit look askance as he made his suggestion, but Cadance interjected before he could ask about it.

"As much as screaming through the sky on the back of a dragon appeals to me," Cadance said, "I have my own means of returning to the Empire separate from you. You have endured much in my domain, and you two deserve some time to rest before you continue on."

Starlit made to protest, but Cadance held a hoof up to stop her before she could so much as get a word out.

"Starlit, I appreciate your fervor, but this is what I believe will work best for me. Furthermore, I thank you for traveling so long to find me, and for allowing me to see what I was willfully blind to for so long."

Cadance turned back to the open doorframe, illuminating her horn with ice blue magic as she did. Sun could feel the brief wisps of cold air blowing through the door,but they stopped as Cadance ended her spell.

Without a warning, she turned to both of them and wrapped Starlit and Sun up in a hug. Starlit seemed more taken aback by the sudden affection, but she took it in all the

"Thank you," Cadance said, "for helping me see how wrong I was. I owe you two more than words can say, but there is one thing I can do for you, Starlit."

"You don't have to, reall—"

"I do, and I won't take no for an answer," Cadance interjected. "If you'll come with me for but a moment, I can explain it to you in the Empire. It will provide the necessary context, I think."

Starlit turned and looked to Sun, her expression slightly nervous, but Sun waved her off.

"If worse comes to worse, you could always just fight her," Sun commented. ".I'll be right here when you come back.

Giving a small smile, Starlit turned back to Cadance, who had opened up a,portal in the doorframe back to the Crystal Empire. The wind blew in, cold and hard, but thankfully for Cherry Blossom no snow was blowing onto her floors.

With an outstretched hoof, Cadance ushered Starlit through, giving Sun an honest, warm smile. There was no wistfulness, no feigned politeness, just a pure, radiant smile that could light up a room, and as Cadance stepped into the snow, Sun could see puddles of water left in her wake.

Starlit hadn't anticipated being taken back to the Empire, and she found herself worrying that all of this was some sort of trap. The only comfort she had was the seeming aura of warmth and comfort that Cadance now exuded, which was protecting them both from the worst of the cold.

"What did you need me for?" Starlit asked over the howling wind.

"That necklace that Twilight gave you," Cadance began. "Did she ever tell you what it truly was?"

"No she didn't; I only found out it's true power when a pack of thestrals pounded me into paste and then I woke back up, right as rain."

"That would figure, given all the pain that that necklace and others like it has caused," Cadance replied, holding the stone out from Starlit's neck without taking it from her. "My daughter told you of the Crystal Heart, and all that has stemmed from it; magic, power, light, and love."

"She did," Starlit replied, wondering where this was going.

"Did she tell you of death?"

"You mean to tell me that this piece of crystal hanging around my neck is part of the Heart of Death?" Starlit asked.

"It is, and it isn't," Cadance answered, letting the stone drop. "There were many Hearts for many different aspects carved off of the Crystal Heart over the centuries that the Empire ruled for; generosity, kindness, healing, laughter, honesty, loyalty, and so many others were whittled off of the Crystal Heart and given to exemplars of our kind to turn them into alicorn rulers."

"And the Princesses had the Hearts of Love, Magic, Light, Power, and Death," Starlit cut in, trying to make sense of what Cadance was saying.

"All but the last one," Cadance replied. "Chrysalis showed up in Canterlot long after the United Kingdom of Equestria had been established, and she held with her a Heart as black as pitch and unlike any that we had taken out of the Crystal Heart. We had no choice but to accept what she told us about it, for we did not know ourselves."

"What she carried with her was a Heart of Fate; a Heart that could see the ending of Canterlot, and in her haste to try and forestall that end Twilight tried to shatter the Heart of Fate. This would end up pitting Chrysalis against Canterlot and setting the fire that would burn Equestria to the ground. These fragments have been lost to time, but Twilight entrusted one of them to you."

"But why?" Starlit asked. "Why would she entrust this to me without telling me what it is?"

"My dear sister-in-law was a confusing and secretive mare, but perhaps she wanted one pony that could be unbound by the predestination that the Heart of Fate foresaw. She needed somepony that could use its power to become truly free, and so she found you. You, who have done so much in so little time; you will be the one to save us, I think."