Cadance had reappeared somewhere in the Spire, several guards had asked her if she was okay, and she easily explained her appearance away as having to do a quick errand. She then got to work. Amber had left her a schedule on her desk, and among the paperwork and the meetings where she had to disclose the details of said paperwork, she had the open court for three hours starting at two.
She went through the whole day in a daze.
She was at first concerned that she was being mentally affected by whatever Dusk had done to her, but she could easily pull herself away from it if she focused. Her mind was just drawing her to try and comprehend other things, and by other things,
Dusk.
Cadance's mind was locked firmly on the pony, and wouldn't let her higher functions work on anything else. She was also mildly concerned she was under some sort of spell. She ruled it out, the mysterious pony garnering the right amount of interest and concern from the monarch. At least so she thought.
She tried to understand well... Anything about him. Her, whatever; every time she came up short.
Dusk is exquisitely good at distancing himself from ponies. From me. Everything I've seen from him has been completely honest, but equally a front. A mask.
He doesn't want me to get to know him, doesn't want to be controlled or tied down.
But to go through so much mental effort?
She just couldn't understand it. Everypony liked companionship, friendship, socializing. Ponies were herd creatures at heart, sure some ponies liked the calm and the peace that came with being on their own but...
Cadance couldn't put her hoof on it, but something about her intuition told her that Dusk just wasn't that kind of pony.
It could be another trick...
She tried to organize what she knew about Dusk, about what he'd been up to, what she'd seen. Everything pointed to the same answer.
I know nothing, and I've been getting manipulated throughout...
Cadance's scoff laughed, which interrupted a court plea for the crown to intervene with a territory dispute between two ponies' housing lines. The mare in question didn't take too kindly, Cadance apologized and focused on finishing up court.
It was when she arrived to her office did she come out of her mental fog. The sun was on it's way, but the dusk setting still filtered in through any open windows.
"Evening Princess."
"Hi Amber, can we talk?"
Amber stood from her desk right outside Cadance's office, and followed Cadance's gesture to enter her study/office. Cadance followed in after and shut the door behind her with her magic.
"So,"
"Princess Cadance, as your advisor, I have to urge you to do something about... That pony." Amber said, having turned and addressed her Princess with a pleading tone and look.
Cadance, having been submerged in a melancholic mindset for the duration of the day, elected to take the conversation slowly. "Explain?" She offered.
Amber nearly scoffed, but held her composure, still trying to remain professional, "Explain? Your majesty, that pony is... What they're capable of, the way they snuck into resurrecting a noble house, using blood magic? Dark magic?"
Amber paused momentarily to catch her breath. "What do you need me to explain?"
Everything.
Cadance had spent the day organizing her thoughts, and as Amber listed out supposed issues with Dusk, she had mentally crossed out each one, with adequate reasons or excuses for Dusk to have done the things he did. The same arguments she made to herself and shot down.
"Amber."
"Yes Princess?"
Cadance took a moment to consider how she was going to try and explain her perspective, "As of this moment, Dusk has not done anything wrong."
Amber blanched and retorted, "Wrong? Dusk has committed several serious crimes!"
Cadance shot back just as quickly, but far calmer, "With each either being annulled for circumstance or equally valid justification."
Before Amber could respond, Cadance held up a hoof, "Now I know, Dusk has done illegal things, but he's never done anything wrong. Different? Absolutely, I've never met a pony with the expertise and... I'm going to say irreverence for the law, but Dusk has only ever acted for positive purposes."
"Princess he-"
There was a knock from the door, and Shining entered. He gave Cadance a look, Cadance turned back to Amber to see her look of apprehension replaced with confidence.
Cadance's posture changed, and she ruffled her wings. "What's going on here?"
Shining walked up next to Cadance and got her attention by brushing up next to her. She stepped away.
"Honey, me and Amber talked this morning; I'm concerned about you, and Amber rose a lot of good points."
Cadance narrowed her eyes, but didn't speak.
Amber spoke up, "Princess, from what the Prince described to me, it sounds very much like you're under some kind of enchantment, or geas."
"So what, this is some kind of intervention?"
Shining shook his head, "No, we just want to make sure you're safe."
I don't feel safe
Her heart was screaming at her that something was wrong here. That there was something out of place. Her instincts were telling her to do something; her anxiety building and making her muscles clench.
But what? What's going on?
"Cadance?" Shining said softly, "Are you okay honey?"
What's setting me off so badly?
Wrong. That was Shining's voice, but that... it was his face, those were his eyes
What is wrong!?
Cadance gasped out, realizing she was holding her breath, her horn sparked.
"Princess!"
Cadance's mind was on fire, suddenly her senses were assailed like she was under some magical affect, and just as swiftly the pressure disappeared, and her magic stopped flaring.
Shining had a hoof on her shoulder, "Cadance, what's wrong?" He was desperately concerned.
Cadance shook her head "I don't know, I've never felt like that before; something is very very wrong."
Cadance was scared.
"Dusk." Shining's eyes narrowed as he snarled, it was wrong
Cadance's horn flared again, this time under her own power as she felt something twinge her in the ambient magical wind, and just like that, it was gone.
The pressure left entirely, and she felt her heart slow and her body unclench itself.
Amber and Shining were both saying something but Cadance was too distracted by whatever just happened. Some wild magical surge, some affect that she resisted.
She pressed a hoof to her temple and took a deep breath, and let it out slowly.
Amber and Cadance were both steadying her, she hadn't realized it but she had sat down at some point. "That's it Cadance, we're taking you straight to Luna, she's going to check you out for dark magic influences."
Cadance shook her head, "That's not necessary, I'm okay."
"No Cadance, I'm putting my hoof down on this, we're telling the other Princesses and we're getting you away from Dusk."
Cadance tried not to raise her voice, and failed, "Why do you care so much about Dusk?!"
Shining stepped back, surprised, as did Amber
"What has he done to you? What has he done to any of us?"
Shining gently tried to calm Cadance down, his eyes wide, "Cadance hone-"
"No Shining, you want to put your hoof down? Fine, I trust you, but if I'm going to go along with it, I want a reason. A real one." She brought herself back under control. "Please."
Shining was stunned for a moment, he opened his mouth but then thought better of it; he began thinking deeply, trying to answer Cadance's plea. Amber simply looked to Shining, lost in this conversation.
Cadance, during Shining Armor's time thinking, tried to get a hold of herself.
Yelling at him? Cadance please
I'm far more stressed than I thought,
We just need to calm down and work this out,
Shining's being irrational, what is there too work out.
Except he's right to be wary, he just wants to protect you.
Her thoughts came to a halt, she took another deep breath and steadied herself.
Shining eventually spoke, "The lack of any technical issues is what worries me."
Cadance, "Please explain, and I'm sorry for yelling at you." She wrapped her wing around him.
"You summed it up the first time we discussed this," Shining said, "He's smart. He knows how to do all the right things while still achieving his goals."
Cadance softly asked, "What do you think makes his goals malevolent?" and tacked onto the end, "He said he was here to help."
Shining tried to respond, but couldn't quite get the words out, "I don't know how to explain."
Amber spoke up, "I believe what Shining is trying to explain is Dusk's volatile nature."
Cadance listened
"Dusk may not have lied when claiming he was here to help. However, Dusk's violent tendencies lead me to believe that his version of 'helping'" She said slowly, "May be harmful to us, or innocents."
Shining nodded along with her as she spoke.
"That's what I've been worried about too."
"So we're all on the same page?" Shining tentatively claimed
"So we just have to decide what to do."
"We're telling Celestia and Luna, simple as that."
"Shining-"
Shining shook his head, "You said if we could give you a reason, you'd go along with it. Dusk is abusing your leniency and kindness, regardless of his intent."
He's right...
"I don't know... It doesn't feel right."
Nopony had anything else to add onto the tail end of that. In the silence, Cadance squeezed Shining against her side with her wing, he nuzzled her in response.
"I don't know if I'm really at call to give advice her-"
Shining interrupted her, "You wouldn't be here if we didn't trust you to help Amber, if you have anything to say, go for it."
"Give him an ultimatum."
Cadance nodded, "He has to do certain things to prove he's safe for our ponies, or we call the Calvary."
"I... I'm fine with that," Shining said, "but what if he refuses?"
"Then we call Celestia and Luna."
Shining half chuckled, "No, I mean, what if he violently refuses. There's no telling what he's planned, and if I were him, I'd be ready for something like this."
Amber added onto his thought, "He'd have some sort of contingency, or escape plan."
If we do tell him that it's our way or the walkway, then he may just leave, and we'll never see him again if he doesn't want to be found.
"Then we'll just have to do it in one." Cadance said, waiting to see Shining's and Ambers confused looks before continuing, "I'll confront him, and give him the ultimatum, if he refuses, I'll call for Celestia and Luna, and keep him there until they arrive."
"I'm not comfortable that."
"The Prince is right, you shouldn't put yourself in the line of fire like that."
Cadance held up her hoof questioningly, "Who else can do it?" She looked down at her side at Shining, "He won't talk to you, and anypony else either can't hold a conversation with him, or is, no offense Amber, too scared or not powerful enough to deal with him directly."
How far we've come from that garden outside of Canterlot, and it's still only us who can do anything at all.
"You're not going in without backup."
"It's okay if you're nearby or even with me I think, you just have to promise not to get involved unless I call you in."
Shining nodded,
"This sounds like a viable plan Princess." Amber said,
"So when do we do it?"
Cadance laughed, "Not tonight, I'm going to bed." She stood and glanced over at her desk before sticking her tounge out the paperwork sitting atop it.
"Oh, um- Goodnight Princess."
"Goodnight Amber", "Night," Came both the royals' reply.
Shining and Cadance walked side by side back to their room, neither of them bothered talking, enjoying each other's company, and generally decompressing. Equally they plopped down into bed and began the attempt at sleep as soon as the sheets were in place.
As she fell into the dream realm, Cadance wondered about her magic, and the strange pressure she felt during the rising argument that she... realized she didn't quite defuse in time. Her failure woke her up enough for her to roll over and apologize once more to her husband.
His response was snuggling, it was her calmest night for a while.