The hallway was much longer than usual today. Each step I took towards Cadance’s room made my heart beat faster. It felt like school all over again. I hoped she still liked me, but couldn’t be sure. All I could think about was how devastating it would be to get rejected. Here I was a grown stallion, but nothing had changed about this part of me. The dork who couldn’t talk to mares. I got lucky back then. I got through it. I got the girl. I was married, and didn’t have to worry about dating or impressing mares anymore. I was passed that. Yet, here I was having to do it all over again.
I stood in front of her door for what must have been a solid ten minutes. Sweat had built up on my back, and I was taking big long breaths to calm myself down. Should I have brought a gift? Maybe some flowers or chocolate? I could have dressed up. Looking nice never hurts. Was my mane ok? It was good enough for regular interactions, but I didn’t expect to have to shoot my shot today. Or ever again for that matter. I rubbed my mane, looking for places it might be messed up. I probably messed it up in the process. Was I about to mess this up too?
“My Lord?” I snapped around way too abruptly. As if I had been caught doing something bad by a teacher.
“Pell!” My voice nearly cracked. “Oh I was just um… hello.” I greeted her.
“You weren’t about to go in there were you?” Pell raised her eyebrow in suspicion.
“Uh, well, yes.” I rubbed the back of my head. “Actually I was. Is that bad?” I looked back and forth down the hallway, feeling guilty.
“She can’t see you right now.” Pell put herself between me and the door. Was she blocking me from going in? “At least, it’s best if you didn’t disturb her.” Something on Pell’s face seemed hesitant. As if there was something she didn’t want to say. Was it really that bad? Had I gone so far, and hurt her so much that she was bitter?
“You mean, she doesn’t want to see me?” I could feel my heart breaking, ready to crumble to the floor.
“No, my lord.” There it went. Shattered into pieces. “Please give her some time.” What good would time do? If she wasn’t interested anymore, I may not be the best at math, but zero plus zero is zero.
“I…” I held back my tears. The last thing I wanted was to make a scene, or cry out in the open. “I understand. I’m sorry, just… tell her I’m sorry.” I turned to walk away.
“No harm done, my lord.” Pell tried to sound cheerful for my sake. However, harm was done. I had hurt Cadance, and now I was devastated as well. “Oh, also the parade got moved back an hour.”
“What?” I looked back at Pell.
“The parade that’s scheduled at the end of the week. The planners thought it would be best to have it right at sunset.” Pell continued casually. I guess there was nothing to be done, but go about with business as usual. “The royal seats will be on the main castle balcony promenade, as usual.”
I opened my mouth to tell Pell to tell the planners to cancel the parade, but closed it. Life had to go on. I understood that.
Ugh, great. Cadence and I would be forced to sit together. That was going to be awkward. Hopefully the parade would be a good distraction from that. I couldn’t help but remember our homecoming parade. And the float that my friends and I spent so much time making. Not to mention the costumes, and the song we wrote. How long did we have to keep up this charade of ‘happily married couple’?
That’s when the idea hit me. If Cadance didn’t want me anymore, so be it. But I was going to go out with a bang. I would let her and everypony know exactly how I felt.
****
“My lady.” Pell’s voice took me out of my thoughts and back to consciousness. “Is that all you’re going to wear?” I sat in front of the vanity mirror in my room. I had no dress, no crown, or any of my usual princess accessories today. In fact, it would likely be a long time until I’d feel comfortable wearing all that glitz and glam again.
“Is it already time for the parade?” I asked. Time went by at a bizarre pace in the week following Queen Chrysalis’s assault. Laying in my bed recovering from my wounds made the days pass agonizingly slow, yet somehow the week had flown by me. I was delighted to finally have the bandages removed from my wings yesterday, and the scars on my cutie mark were healing well. My injuries prevented me from attending any royal duties, but now I was healed enough, the parade would be my first outing since the attack.
“We have a few minutes, but yes.” Pell said while staring at my mane. “I see you went with the ‘classic’ look.” She raised her eyebrows at the word “classic.” The only “outfit” I had chosen to wear was to tie my ponytail with a baby blue bow. Just like when Pell styled it for my doomed date with Shining. I hadn’t seen him all week. Apparently he had been diligently leading the recovery effort in the capital, while I sat on my butt recovering.
“Shall we get going?” Pell asked cheerfully as I lingered in my seat.
“I guess.” I let out a long breath. “I just feel embarrassed to show my face after a week of doing nothing… again.” I slapped my forehead as the irony of my previous coma struck me.
“My lady, you saved us all.” Pell bowed. There was no wink or quirk in her movement. She was serious. “You did more work for us than any other pony, and you need your rest. You deserve your rest.” She insisted.
“The Crystal Heart saved us.” I retreated into my old doubts. I could almost hear his voice, the Crystal Heart, chastising me for doing so.
When you doubt yourself, believe in me. He had told me.
“The Crystal Heart needs a vessel to unleash that sort of power.” Pell corrected me. I could have sworn she was roleplaying the Crystal Heart.
Did you put her up to this? I focused my thoughts down my connection to the Crystal Heart, and I swear I could hear him laughing.
“Is it wise to hold a parade so soon after the attack?” I dodged our current conversation.
Pell stood thoughtful for a moment. “Wise isn’t the right word.” She shook her head. “It’s hope.”
“Hope?”
“I think that the citizens feel cheated that their festival was cut short.” Pell marched over to the bed. “I think they are angry that they were violated by the Changelings.” She began pulling the linens off to remake it. “I think they fear the Changelings are trying to take away who they are. They want to celebrate what their Prince and Princess have done to protect them, and pay tribute to the Crystal Heart who guides them.” Pell was a uniquely efficient worker, but something about her movements today was extra crisp.
“And that gives them hope?” I finished Pell’s line of thought. “This parade is their way of giving thanks.” She smiled out of the corner of her mouth as she finished making the bed.
“Are you ready to receive their thanks, my lady?” Pell walked away from her perfectly made bed, and stood by the door to the hallway.
“Yeah, sure.” I couldn’t help but giggle as I stood up. “What am I, some sort of goddess?” I pictured myself floating in the heavens, baked in divine light, and wearing a robe.
“No, my lady.” Pell closed the door behind us as we entered the castle hallway. “A goddess would not need a nanny to clean up after her and keep her on schedule.”
“Well, if you see a good nanny, be sure to send her my way.” I sassed back. Pell gave me a deathly glare, but her lips curled up with a grin.
“Good to see you haven’t lost your spunk, Princess.”
We made our way to the center balcony overlooking the grand plaza down below. This was the same balcony where I made my first announcement to the Crystal Ponies. I had used this balcony during evening pegasi showers to vent and reflect. Shining had been there for all of those moments. He was nowhere to be seen now. When we got to the balcony, there was only a silver colored earth pony with a jade mane. He was dressed quite dapper, and sat politely in one of four pre-arranged seats, facing the parade path.
“Jadiz?” I tilted my head. I had met him a few times, though our interactions were usually polite, but brief.
“Welcome, my lady.” He stood up to bow to me. A clean and crisp bow that he took nearly to the floor. Pell could learn a thing or two from him.
“Where is Shining?” I looked around the balcony with only the three of us standing on it.
Jadiz’s eye twitched before he spoke. “Apparently, he is still getting ready. He asked me to join him for the parade viewing, and said that Pellucid would most certainly be joining you as well.” The pronunciation of Pell’s full name sounded natural in his accent. “Naturally, I prepared our seating section ahead of time.” He gestured to his work. The four seats looked exquisitely comfortable. They were thickly cushioned, and had reclining action on them. Above them he had set up a rectangular overhang to keep the sun out of our eyes.
“Oh ok.” My eyes greedily fixated on one of the center seats. Such an inviting set up. “I’m sure he’ll be here any moment.” I wasted no time plopping myself into the seat, and leaning my head back. I may have been resting all week, but the recovery process still left me tired. Being able to lounge in a position different to my same old bed reminded me how it felt to truly relax. Pell sat on my right. Jadiz, somewhat reluctantly, sat on the far left, leaving the other middle seat for Shining.
We chatted idly for a few minutes before the parade began. The citizens down below eagerly positioned themselves on either side of the roped off pathway. Children sat on their parent’s backs, holding national flags, fresh flowers, and memorabilia. It reminded me of the first time I had seen them all gather together like this. So much joy and hope in their eyes. The hope that Pell spoke of radiated off of them like the reflected sunlight on their crystal hydes. It wasn’t until the parade began in earnest that I started to worry.
“Where is Shining?” I asked as the first float passed beneath the balcony. The parade was pathed to pass beneath us first and then drive out to the edge of the city. I waved to everyone who eagerly waved back at me.
“I-I’m not sure, my lady.” Jadiz’s shaky voice answered. Was he sweating? What in the world was going on?
The parade was spectacular. Pegasi would fly banners through the air, and drop confetti onto onlookers down below. In between floats there were marching bands, and dancing ponies on the street. They dressed in feathers and streamers, creating organized formations that appeared as various shapes from our vantage point. Larger than life balloons were guided by tethers. There was one for each of the royals in Equestria and the Crystal Empire. It was surreal seeing giant inflated representations of myself and Shining Armor pass in front of my view. It was a splendid sight to behold, especially considering how little time there was to plan it. Not to mention that it was taking place while the capital was still recovering. Bits of damaged buildings and broken storefronts were covered with colorful banners, but the scarring could still be seen peeking through. The floats and balloons dwindled as the parade seemed to be wrapping up. Ponies began flowing into the street, following behind the ending parade.
“I can’t believe he’s going to miss the whole thing!” I complained to Pell who seemed just as perplexed as I was. Jadiz remained quiet in his corner.
The street cleaners looked prepped to start their clean up, and I assumed the parade had come to an end. However, one more float came forward and turned the corner into view. This one was set up as a stage with instruments ready to go. The crowd abruptly turned and headed towards the stage, obviously expecting live music. There was an ancient castle setup in the back of the float, and, as the float got closer, a band came out from behind the setup, picked up their instruments, and stood ready to perform. In the center of them stood what looked like…
Oh, you have got to be kidding me.
It was Shining Armor! He was dressed in a ridiculously over the top old timey suit jacket. It had an obnoxious golden lapel complete with frilly sleeves, and ascot tied around his neck. He was holding a keytar. A freakin’ keytar?
I sat with my mouth agape as the float came to a stop in the center of the grand plaza. Shining Armor looked straight up at where we were sitting.
“This song goes out to the fairest mare in all the world!” He declared into the microphone set up in front of him. The speaker stacks on the sides of the float were massive, and their power showed as his voice boomed across the capital.
Pell and I turned to look at Jadiz at the same time with what I assumed was the same narrow eyed expression. His head slowly, and reluctantly, turned to face both of our suspicious gazes.
“Surprise?” He said with a shrug. Before we could chastise him, the song began. The instrumentation was loud like a rock concert. It was a rock concert. The crowd began to jump up and down with the beat.
Shining belted the song to the entire empire:
I love pretty pink mares. They make me feel so good!
I love tri-colored hair. It makes me feel so bad!
When they’re around they make me feel like the only colt in town.
I love pretty pink mares. They make me feel so good!
My cheeks were burning red. I couldn’t believe he was doing this. Well, other than the fact he had literally done it before - or so I remembered from his stories. But, this time it was for me. The current me. He wasn’t singing to his lost wife in high school. The memory of his beloved. He was singing to me. His singing voice wasn’t bad, however, he was certainly not a practiced performer. Yet, he belted away without an ounce of shame or remorse in his body. When he was done, the crowd erupted in cheers and applause. So many hooves stamped the city streets below, you could feel the vibration up here in the castle.
“Princess Cadance.” Shining spoke and the crowd subsided again. “Will you go out with me?”
I could hear the subtle ‘again?’ that he didn’t say. But I could feel it.
The crowd laughed at him. I heard “oohs” and “aahs” and hollering and whistling. Shining took it all in stride, while I felt embarrassed enough for the both of us. I assumed his comment was meant as a joke. However, he just stood there looking up at me. His baby blue eyes filled with anticipation.
“My lady, are you just going to leave him standing there?” Pell asked with Jadiz looking on in quiet approval.
I smacked my forehead with my hoof. “This can’t be happening.” I looked down to see he was still waiting for a response.
Fine. If he was willing to make a complete fool of himself, the least I could do was go down there and let him know how I felt about it. I spread my wings and gave them a quick test. I hadn’t flown since the attack. The base of my wings were still tender, and I probably wouldn’t want to fly anywhere for very long. Although, a quick controlled descent would be fine. I stood up on the balcony rail to a resurgence of cheers and applause. I leapt into the air, gliding my way down to Shining Armor’s cheesy castle float. He watched me descend with wonderment in his eyes, never averting his gaze as I landed beside him.
“Cadance, I-” I placed my hoof on his muzzle, instantly shutting him up. His trembling gaze weakened as he looked at my neutral stare. I decided to put him out of his misery.
“You had me at ‘I love pretty pink mares.’” I moved my hoof off of his muzzle and replaced it with my own. The crowd cheered so loud, my ears rang as I kissed him in front of our entire kingdom. I could feel his goofy smile on my lips.
“Is that a yes?” He asked as we broke away to take a breath with our horns resting against one another.
“Are you gonna make me say it?” I asked as both of our voices were being picked up by the microphone.
“It’d be nice.” The mischievous glint in his eyes blended with his boyish smile.
“Yes, Prince Shining Armor.” I sarcastically dragged out his full name. “I’d love to go out with you.”
He went back in to kiss me again, and the crowd went wild.
****
“So let me get this straight.” I asked Shining as he tried not to look embarrassed. We were standing in my room, far away from the prying eyes of the entire kingdom. I have no idea how many subjects knew the context behind that parade float moment, or if they thought it was just theater.
“When Pell told you that you couldn’t go into my room to see me, you assumed that I had demanded you be kept away from me. Because I didn’t like you anymore after you rejected me under a love draining spell. And not because it was the morning after the attack, and I was unconscious and recovering from my physical wounds, and exhausted from casting a mass essence regeneration spell.”
Shining stared blankly for a few seconds. “Well, when you say it all like that, it sounds pretty stupid and obvious.” I was about to say more when he continued. “But there is another reason. A good one I promise.” He held up his hooves in defense.
“I’m listening.” I raised one eyebrow.
“First of all, I’m sorry about what I said in the Crystal Heart chamber.” My heart sank at the mention of that. Chrysalis’s haunting laugh echoed in my mind. “The truth is, I want to love you. But we have to start where we are, not where I want us to be.” He took my hoof into his. “I want a fresh start for us. Give us a chance to make something out of what we’ve started.”
This was basically what I was trying to tell him on the balcony in the rain. I guess he needed to internalize it and make it work with his own thoughts. No wonder stallions think they’re so smart. They just steal all their best ideas from the mares in their life.
“And what about her?” I asked with a lump in my throat. I accuse him of putting his hoof in his mouth all the time, but I certainly had a knack for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time too.
“Best case scenario…” He swallowed before he went on. “She comes back. Then I have both of you. Because you’ll remember everything. We’ll gain everything we had before without losing a single day since.” He squeezed my hoof as his bright smile helped clear the dark clouds in my head.
“And worse case scenario?”
He paused to think for a moment. “Is there a worse case scenario? We’re together again. We go forward with what we have. We rebuild like we did with the capital after the attack.” He nodded.
“And that’s ok?” I asked barely above a whisper.
You’re not in this alone, Princess. You never were. The Crystal Heart’s words resonated with me.
“I would fall in love with you all over again, everyday for the rest of my life, If it means I get to have you.”
That’s when I knew that everything would be ok. Shining Armor gave me courage and strength where mine failed. Pell, the Crystal Heart, and my whole kingdom stood behind me. I would never fail them because they would never fail me. Brick by brick and day by day, we would never stop building upon what we had.
As our lips met once again, the doubts vanished from my mind. Never to return.
****