Romance is a fickle thing. One may perceive it to be a necessary part of life, and yet its origin is simply chemical reactions in our brains. A simple need to breed, produce offspring, and continue the survival of a species. The primitive minds of the first creatures were not so concerned with things like “dates” and “love”. Even now, having evolved into so complicated a courtship system, there still remains for some the instinctual urge to have children. Something that our pair of unicorns have discovered for themselves.
“Paladin, are you ready to leave yet?” Twilight called, craning her neck up the stairs.
“Almost ready mom, just packing a few things into my bag real quick!” replied the light purple filly, her short blue and purple mane bouncing around as she dashed about the room. Grabbing pencils and paper off a desk, a stuffed pony toy off her bed, and finally a small hoofball from inside a bin of toys. Stuffing the items into her saddlebag, she fastened the straps around her middle and trotted off down the stairs.
Twilight watched with a smile as her daughter bounced and bounded down the stairs, filled with the boundless energy of a young foal. The filly hopped down the last few steps and landed in front of her mother, mane askew, bag crooked, and grinning from ear to ear.
“Are you ready to go see uncle Shining and aunt Cadance now? They’ve come all the way down from the Crystal Empire just to see us. And your cousin Flurry Heart is here too.”
“All set,” Paladin answered, raising a hoof to her brow in salute.
Twilight’s heart melted at the adorable sight, along with a pang of familiarity and guilt at who the gesture reminded her of.
“We’ll see him later anyways,” she thought, not wanting to go too far down the rabbit hole of her and her daughter’s relationship with Shining. Instead, she simply walked off through the royal quarters. As she opened the door to leave however, she was greeted by the sight of a squadron of royal guards, led by a reddish purple unicorn mare with a distinctive cracked horn.
“Royal escort, reporting for duty Princess,” Tempest said, raising her hoof in a stiff salute.
“Tempest, really, I said we wouldn’t need an escort. We’re not even leaving the city,” Twilight said earnestly, trying to shoo away the procession.
“It’s for your own safety,” Tempest said stubbornly, holding her ground.
“Really, Fizzlepop? We’ve been at peace for years, and even if there was a problem, you think I wouldn’t be able to handle it?” Twilight said, raising an eyebrow at the captain.
The use of her real name having obviously rattled her, Tempest pursed her lips and hissed in a whisper “Please don’t call me that in front of the guards. I know you don’t really need any protection, but it’s our job. Equestrian law states you must always be accompanied by an escort. Just let us come along, we’ll be as discreet as possible.”
Sighing, Twilight acquiesced. “Fine, just try and keep a low profile.”
Fortunately for Twilight, the trip itself was relatively uneventful. Dispensing with the fanfare of the royal carriage and procession, they kept to the side streets and back alleys, avoiding most of the bustling crowds of the capital. The few ponies who they did encounter were largely too shocked at seeing the Princess to make a large fuss. At any rate, they moved on past before their presence could be broadcast. Tempest and the other guards kept their word, staying hidden in the shadows and almost never allowing themselves to be seen. So in what seemed like no time at all, they had arrived at their destination. Twilight and Shining’s foalhood home.
Lifting up the brass door knocker, Twilight banged it several times. Just a few seconds later, the door swung inwards and Twilight and Paladin were greeted with the sight of a beaming Princess Cadance.
“Twilight! Paladin! Oh, it’s wonderful to see you again, come inside, come inside. You all too,” she said, gesturing to the guard detail.
“Thank you ma’am, but we should stay out here to guard the premises,” Tempest responded, taking up a position in front of the door.
“Oh alright. I’ll bring you out some snacks later. Can’t have Equestria’s finest getting the munchies.” Cadance said sweetly as she closed the door.
“Cadance, they’re Royal Guards, not foals,” Twilight said, though she wore a telling smile.
“Oh hush now, everyone can use some snacks now and again. From what you’ve told me, that little badger in particular has a sweet tooth. I mean, look at him now.” They all peered out the window, where they could see Grubber was attempting to raid the dumpsters as Tempest looked on in disdain.
“Truth be told, he doesn’t really seem like Royal Guard material,” Cadance idly wondered.
“He’s honestly not, but he was Tempest’s only true friend before she reformed, and I didn’t want to separate them. Besides, it’s nice to have someone a bit more light hearted around the palace. Faust knows we could all do with a laugh now and again.”
By now they had reached the living room, where they found Shining Armor and Flurry Heart waiting for them. Then it was time for a round of greetings and hugs as everypony got reacquainted. Shining gave his little sister a noogie, and Paladin a kiss on the cheek which she made a show of wiping off.
“Ugh, uncle Shining, why?” she said in disgust, running a hoof over her cheek.
“Just my way of saying ‘I love you’, Paladin.” Shining said cheekily. “Flurry Heart gets them too,” he continued, giving said alicorn a peck on the cheek as well.
“Yeah, well, I’m not your daughter.” Paladin said dismissively. Shining’s eyes twitched nervously at this, and he exchanged a look with Twilight, who shook her head.
“Anyway, I thought we were gonna have some fun today. You said we could play hoofball, and then look at some of your old favorite books and stuff later.”
Grateful for the change in subject, Shining quickly responded to the affirmative.
“Uh, yeah. We’ll head right out, we were just waiting for you all to arrive.” He used his magic to grab a sports bag from the side of the couch, stuffed to the brim with balls, cones, and other equipment. After a quick check to ensure everything was inside, he trotted over to the door, motioning to the others to follow.
As they exited the house again, the guard detail looked up in surprise.
“Don’t tell me you’re leaving? We just got here a minute ago!” one of them whined, causing Tempest to berate him.
Ignoring the disciplinary action taking place, the royal ponies continued off.
Not much later, they were all relaxing at their destination. A very familiar park, nestled in the heart of the city. Shining, Paladin, and Flurry all tossed a hoofball back and forth, Twilight and Cadance watched them while chatting, and even the guards were enjoying the sunshine. Though they still kept a perimeter all around the royal party, blocking them off from the other ponies in the park (though the royals didn’t particularly enjoy this either).
“So, I hear you’ve taken on a new student?” Cadence ventured.
“Oh, yes, her name’s Luster Dawn. She’s very bright, but doesn’t seem to have many friends.” Twilight replied.
“Heh, that sounds like somepony else I know,” Cadance chuckled, grinning suggestively.
“Yeah, yeah. I used to wonder what friendship could be, and look at me now. The princess of friendship,” she embellished with quotes. “Still, I know Luster can learn. Her heart’s in the right place. I was thinking of introducing her to the council of friendship at some point. I think it would be good for her.”
“Might be a good idea. Though of course, friendship is really something everycreature does on their own. You can’t force someone to make friends.” Cadance said sagely.
“True, true. But it doesn’t hurt to see some examples. If she doesn’t value friendship, I want to try and show her how important my friends are to me. And how I wouldn’t be here without them. I wouldn’t be here without you two either,” she said, indicating Cadance and Shining.
For his part, Shining was looking intently at his wife and sister as they chatted, becoming so distracted that the next throw caught him in the side of the face.
“Ouch!” he cried, more startled than truly hurt. He rubbed the impact spot with a hoof, while noticing a guilty look on Paladin’s face.
“Sorry, I thought you were paying attention,” she explained in a meek voice.
“Paladin, sweetie, just call my name if you want to get my attention, okay?” Shining said gently.
“Okay,” she said, her voice barely above a peep.
“Good. Now heads up,” he said as he tossed the ball back to her. She deftly caught it with a single hoof, and instead of tossing it back, tucked it in towards her body and began to run at Shining.
“Paladin sprints up the field looking for an opening,” she narrated to herself.
Squaring himself off to face the charge, Shining took part in kind “The defensive line is headed by Shining Armor. What will Paladin do?” he grinned as she approached.
“Flurry Heart out of nowhere!” came the response as said alicorn smashed into Shining, knocking him over backwards and giving Paladin the distraction she needed. She sprinted past them, reaching the line of cones. Slamming the ball down in triumph, she did a little touchdown dance, shimmying her hips and wiggling her hooves.
Shining could just barely see her through the tangle of limbs and couldn’t help but laugh internally “She’s as terrible a dancer as her mother”.
Soon enough, Paladin had finished her gloating, and looked over to where Shining and Flurry were still entangled. Grinning, she crouched low, pawing at the ground with a hoof. Making eye contact with Shining, who realized what she was about to do and whose eyes widened in fear, she charged. Sprinting towards the pile, she steadily picked up speed before leaping into the air, flying like a fuzzy purple missile before crashing into her target.
“Gaah!” Shining exclaimed as Paladin smashed into them. Flurry, who hadn’t noticed Paladin’s charge, screeched at the unexpected attack. She quickly regained her composure however, and counter-attacked. The two fillies rolled away, locked in a struggle. Shining managed to pull himself upright, leaning on a hoof and watching as they tussled. Though young, both fillies were strong beyond their years, and went on for a surprisingly long time. Flipping, poking, booping, and generally causing a ruckus. Eventually, Paladin emerged the victor, pinning Flurry beneath her in a full-body lock.
“Gotcha! Now yield!” she proclaimed, leaning her face in extremely close to Flurry’s. But the other Princess was not so easily dominated, and rather than give in, she channeled her magic and trapped Paladin in a telekinetic hold. Completely paralyzed, the earth pony princess was helpless against her alicorn peer as Flurry lifted her up and off.
“Not so tough, now, are ya?” she said, looking her in the eye and smirking.
“Flurry! Let her go!” Shining’s stern voice interjected.
Startled, Flurry released her magic and sent Paladin crashing to the ground. She turned to see her father with a look of mild fury on his face. It was reminiscent of his days in the royal guard, but just as effective at bringing unruly children under control.
“Good. Now let’s get back to your mothers. I’m sure they’ll want to speak with you as well, and it’s time to eat anyway,”
Though still glaring daggers at each other, both Paladin and Flurry heeded Shining’s words, and the three trotted back to the picnic blanket and rejoined Twilight and Cadance.
Cadance regarded Flurry with a stern look on her face. “I feel I shouldn’t have to remind you again that your quarrels shouldn’t escalate so far. Simple games do not need such force and violence,” she lectured to Flurry, who sheepishly looked away.
“The same goes for you Paladin. You need to learn to keep your competitiveness and aggression in check,” Twilight added, looking to her own daughter.
“Yes mom,” both fillies acquiesced, though neither in a particularly convincing tone. Twilight and Cadance picked up on this, and each regarded their daughter with a suspicious look. Their once pristine coats were now matted and tangled, covered with dirt and grass stains. And despite their attempts to look away, the less than pleased expressions they wore could still be seen. Nonetheless, Twilight didn’t resist when Paladin came up to her and nuzzled into the side of her neck, enjoying the affection of her daughter. Even if she did get a bit of gunk on her.
After she finished her little gesture, Paladin settled in beside her mother and tucked into the food. Several minutes passed in comfortable silence, the previous tension and wrought emotions dissipating in light of a good meal. Everypony was too distracted by the delectable feast in front of them to waste any precious mouth time talking. Though nothing was said out loud, each was still free to ramble on in their minds.
Paladin and Flurry each fantasized about triumphing over the other. Shining continued to keep a close eye on the two, worried about how quickly their competition had escalated. Cadance was focused on everypony’s physical well-being, looking them over and checking for any signs of injury. Twilight’s thoughts were going a mile a minute, quickly jumping between topics ranging from the Equestrian-Changeling summit to what to eat for dinner that night.
As nourishments dwindled and stomachs grew full, conversation started to occur again in fits and starts. First to speak was Shining Armor, hoping to extend an olive branch between Flurry and Paladin.
“So, when we get back, would you girls be interested in looking at some of my old comics?” he ventured.
It appeared to work, both fillies perking up and looking at Shining.
“Of course! I’m always interested in some antique entertainment,” Paladin confirmed excitedly.
“Vintage. Not antique. I’m not quite that old sweetie,” Shining corrected her.
“What’s the difference?”
“Antique means over a hundred years old, vintage simply means something from a previous generation,” Shining explained.
“Ah.”
“So I guess Luna and Celestia are antiques then,” Flurry interjected, causing the adults to stare at her in disbelief. Seeing their mortified looks, she said “What? It’s not like it’s a lie. They’re ancient and they know it.”
“That may be true, but please don’t ever say that to their faces. It’s not very nice.” Cadence implored.
“If you say so. Not like we see them very often anyway.” Flurry acquiesced with a shrug.
“Alright then,” Shining said while giving a small nod, “let’s pack up and head back.”
Returning back to the house, they once again split into two groups. Twilight and Cadance went to chat in the living room, while Shining took the fillies upstairs.
Reaching the top of the stairs and turning left, they located Shining’s old room. It was not entirely different from Twilight’s, a good amount of comic books and toys could be seen, but there were also far fewer books and papers, and far more balls and sports equipment. As Paladin and Flurry stood awkwardly, trying not to go too deep into the mess, Shining had focused his attention underneath his old bed. Among the various dusty artifacts preserved there was his old Princess Luna costume, a match set with Twilight’s Celestia costume in her room. Though that was not his goal. Eventually finding what he was searching for, his horn lit up and his magic dragged out a large wooden trunk.
“Here we go, this is what I wanted to show you,” he said, bringing it over to the two fillies. As they looked at him curiously, Shining undid the clasps and opened it up. Inside, carefully pressed and packed in plastic, were dozens of vintage comic books. Pulling a few out, Shining’s eyes gleamed with nostalgia as he reminisced.
“I loved these as a kid. The adventures of Daring Do, the Power Ponies, all the works. Before they were multi-billion-bit franchises, they started out with more humble beginnings.”
“I thought Daring Do was a novel series, not comic books?” Paladin questioned, holding up one of the issues.
“Well yeah, but they were expanded into comics later. I have all the original novels too. I should say we do, cause both me and Twilight had to share them. Your grandparents weren’t going to buy two sets of the same books.” Shining explained, while also going to his bookshelf and pulling out some of the novels in question. “Anyway, if you both wanted to look through those for now, I’ll head back downstairs. And remember to be careful with them, don’t crease the pages, and put them back in the plastic sleeves when you’re done.”
Paladin and Flurry both rolled their eyes, but nodded nonetheless as Shining backed out of the door, closing it behind him.
“Let’s hope they can get along better over comics than they do over hoofball,” he thought to himself as he trotted back downstairs to join the others. As he reentered the living room, he saw that Twilight and Cadance were already chatting away.
“Well they certainly fight like siblings, even if they don’t know it,” Cadance was mentioning.
“Hey now, Shining and I never got into fights like that,” Twilight countered.
“Well, I would hardly say that you have had the standard sibling relationship. But everyone fights. Maybe not of the same intensity, but they do. Siblings, best friends, lovers, parents, everyone. It’s just a matter of how you deal with it.”
Twilight gave a soft snicker before answering, “Heh, I guess you could say we’re ‘all of the above.’”