It was another glorious summer morning in the Crystal Empire, with the sun high in the sky, which was a perfect blue, with the occasional shade dispensing cloud wafting through the sky lazily.
Inside the Crystal Palace, Cadance and Shining Armor were eating their respective breakfasts, occasionally glancing up at the other and smiling. After some minutes the door to the room creaked open, and in walked Shining Sapphire, a noticeable bounce in her step, followed shortly thereafter by Wisp, who was not bouncing, but did look almost unnaturally cheerful. The two ponies seemed unusually preoccupied with looking at one another, which meant they didn't notice Cadance raising an eyebrow at Shining Armor, and looking for all the world like she was trying not to break out in song. The two youths quickly chose a meal and sat down next to each other, occasionally glancing at the other and smiling. This didn't slow down their eating, however. Cadance looked over toward Shining Armor, while at the same time focusing all her willpower towards not breaking out in a grin, much less laughter. Shining Armor just coughed.
"So, Sapphy, what've you got planned for today?" he asked. The young mare blinked, before just simply shrugging.
"I'm not sure" she said, still smiling broadly, glancing toward Wisp.
"That's a first" Shining Armor smirked, at which point she tried to glower at him. She failed miserably, and just shook her head. Soon enough, the two ponies finished their meal and then left the room, leaving Shining Armor and Cadance staring at one another. There was a loud click as the door shut behind Shining Sapphire, before Cadance just broke out into a massive grin.
"Yes!" she declared, before catching herself, and making an attempt at looking dignified, which was not a rousing success. "I mean, good for them."
Shining Armor just stared wide-eyed, before tilting his head toward the door. "Should we start making up invitations?" he asked, "or wait a while?"
Cadance bit her lip, clearly trying not to show any sign of mirth. "We'll leave them to it, Shining. I think the last thing our daughter would want is us trying to help her."
"Guess you're right" Shining Armor said, looking over toward Cadance's meal.
"You gonna finish that toast?" he asked.
*****
Shortly thereafter, having finished his meal and Cadance's, Shining Armor left to get started on the day's activities. He was barely halfway down the hallway when he heard an incredibly quiet cough. He turned to see Whisper Wind standing a short distance behind him, the colt looking like he wanted at that moment to be anywhere but there.
"What's up?" Shining Armor asked. Wisp jolted, before trying to look at Shining Armor. He managed it for all a few seconds before his eyes moved away.
"Sorry to bother you, sir" he said nervously, "but... I was wondering if I could ask you something."
Shining Armor stared at the colt, wondering what he could possibly want to ask. Then he recalled the conversation from three days ago, when he'd presumed Whisper Wind was his son. His mind seized up in panicked embarrassment. He quickly tried to move around this. The last thing he wanted was for every conversation with his daughter's coltfriend to be tinged with embarrassment and awkwardness on both sides. Especially since he knew neither Sapphy or Cadance would stand for it.
"Ask away" he eventually managed to say. The young stallion just shifted uneasily on his hooves.
"It's just..." he said, "I just wanted..."
"Yes?" Shining Armor asked. The colt paused, and then, quite suddenly a determined look overcame his features.
"I was wondering if you could train me."
Shining Armor blinked. "You what now?" he asked. Wisp just looked about.
"You know, self-defence moves, magic, that sort of thing."
"Why?" Shining Armor found himself asking. Wisp shuffled again.
"Because after everything that's happened in the last few months" he said, "I really think I need be able to defend myself better than I have, and Sapphy said you have some experience with that sort of thing."
Shining Armor regarded the pony in front of him. He wouldn't have labelled the pony as miniscule in any sense, especially since he almost came up to his chin anyway, even without the obvious fact that the pony did have some muscles on him.
'As if I know anything about this kid' he found himself thinking. He looked at Wisp, and then nodded.
"Alright. When do you want to start?"
Wisp just smiled nervously. "Not right away, sir. I think I still need some time to heal up."
"Next week, then?" he suggested. Wisp nodded.
"Thanks" he said, before hastily adding another "sir." Shining Armor just nodded back.
"It's okay, kid. And you don't need to call me 'sir', either. Makes me feel old."
"Well, what would you like me to call you?" Wisp asked.
"How about 'Shining Armor'?"
Wisp considered this. "If you insist" he said reluctantly, "but it doesn't feel right."
Shining Armor just stared at the colt. "Anything else?" he asked. Wisp paused for a moment.
"Well..." he said slowly, beginning to smile bashfully as he did, "actually, there is something..."
*****
Shining Sapphire looked up from her book to stare at the item sitting on the desk. It was still there, and still a crown. She didn't like looking at it. She didn't trust it. It was a changeling object, after all. It could've been capable of anything, and neither her, her parents or Wisp had any magic that was able of determining whether there was anything truly sinister about it. Even the fact that she and four of the five changelings were staring at it didn't do anything in the slightest to alleviate this concern, and more than anything, it was beginning to bother her, since she just wanted to read her book in peace and quiet. She did have a lot of new books to read after all, including some fascinating ones on insects, though she presumed Wisp didn't share the interest, if his reaction was any indication. Not that she could blame him. The bit about bees was admittedly disturbing, even after last night had more-or-less proved that it didn't apply to changelings. There were some things that a stallion just didn't want to learn, it seemed.
She heard the sound of the library door opening, and turned to look as Wisp entered the room. He smiled at her.
"How did it go?" she asked, as she set her book down.
"Great" Wisp said. "He agreed, and we're starting next week."
"That's good to hear" she smiled, before adding, "it's nice to see you two getting along."
"What's that mean?" Wisp asked. She just looked at him.
"What? It's not like you two were exactly best friends before, was it?"
Wisp paused for a moment. "No" he finally said, "but we weren't exactly enemies either."
Shining Sapphire just smiled brightly, "all the more reason for you two to be getting on, then, isn't it?"
"Yes" Wisp eventually said, "but I think it's traditional in this sort of thing for at least one of the parents to disapprove of me."
Shining Sapphire just stared at Wisp for a moment, before shaking her head. "My parents wouldn't do that" she stated, confidently. Wisp didn't respond to that, just glancing toward the crown sitting on the table.
"Has it done anything?" he asked. Shining Sapphire shook her head.
"No. It's just sat there, not doing anything. Or at least not anything that I could tell" she added hastily.
She glanced at it, then back to Wisp. "I hope if it is going to do something it hurries up and does it already. The suspense is incredibly distracting."
Wisp didn't seem to share her opinion. "I just hope it doesn't do anything."
"Do you really think Chrysalis would send this to us, and not lay in some nasty trap while she did?"
"No" Wisp said instantly, "I don't."
He sighed, and looked toward Shining Sapphire. "Not that I don't think she's above sending something that doesn't do anything, in order to get a perverse giggle from our going mad over it."
He moved in closer toward it. "Or maybe it's enchanted so that the minute I put it on my head, I'll burst into flames. Or... worse."
"Worse?" Shining Sapphire asked, before suddenly reconsidering. "Actually, no, don't tell me. I don't want to know what worse is."
"I wasn't going to" Wisp said. Then he looked about.
"Well," he said, in an unusually bright tone, "I think I'm just going to go outside for a walk. Would you like to join me?" he asked. Shining Sapphire looked at him, then to her book, then to the smile on Wisp's face.
"I think," she said, "I think I'm going to pass on this one, dear."
"Okay then" Wisp shrugged, heading toward the door. Shining Sapphire went back to her book. Then, quite suddenly Wisp returned and kissed her, grinning madly before he rushed out of the door, leaving Shining Sapphire staring after him. One of the changelings rolled his eyes at the sight. Shining Sapphire stared at the door for several seconds after he was gone, before she suddenly felt unusually warm and uncomfortable, and shifted in her seat, before she went back to her book.
*****
The hours passed, as hours have been known to do. Wisp briefly reappeared around lunchtime, then disappeared again to do something. Shining Sapphire felt a brief glimpse of concern about this, but she decided it was best not to worry about what Wisp was doing. When she was halfway through her second book of the day, just a while after dinner, he reappeared, an odd look on his face.
"Hey" he said, calmly. She looked about her library uncertainly, wondering what he was doing.
"'Hey' yourself" she replied. Wisp just stood there, as still as a statue.
"What is it?" she asked. Wisp just smirked briefly, then scratched the back of his head.
"It..." he started, "I have something I want to show you."
She stared at him for a moment, before going back to her book. "Honey, if you want to entice me, you'll have to do better than 'something'."
"No," Wisp said, "it's... it's not really something I can explain. I do have to show it to you"
She looked at Wisp, and his bright blue eyes, and then smiled. "Alright" she said, walking over toward him.
"Lead on." He paused, and then smiled nervously.
"You'll have to keep your eyes closed until we get there." She stared at him with the most un-amused expression she could manage.
"Seriously, Wisp?" she asked incredulously. His face was practically the picture of seriousness.
"Alright then" she said. "This must be pretty important if you feel you have to put this much effort into secrecy."
Wisp said nothing to that, as she closed her eyes, allowing him to lead her out of the library. As she did, she began to ponder as to what it could've been that he was up to, and then, an idea came to her. It was ridiculous, and unlikely, she knew, but it was an incredibly alluring idea all the same.
*****
Several minutes of walking later, and Shining Sapphire was beginning to wonder what possible revelation could've been worth so much suspense. She wasn't entirely certain where she was, but she knew there had been a flight of stairs not too long ago, and now her curiosity was threatening to overwhelm her. There was the sound of a door being opened, and the feeling of a draft wafting past her.
"Okay," Wisp announced a few steps later. "We're here."
She opened her eyes, uncertain as to what she would be seeing. She saw a view of the Crystal Empire, with the sun dipping behind the horizon, casting everything in sight in wonderful golden-orange colours. She blinked, and turned to Wisp.
"I'm going to need some help on this one" she said, "what am I supposed to be seeing?"
"Wait for it" was all Wisp said, as he looked up at the sky. Slowly, she turned to look. There was nothing but the sky, without so much as a cloud to be seen.
"Wisp? What's going on?"
"Wait for it" he repeated. She looked around, and waited. And waited. The sun set, and everything turned to dark blues and purples. She turned to look at Wisp, who looked slightly embarrassed.
"Sorry" he said sheepishly, "I might have jumped ahead a bit. I didn't want you to miss it, though."
"Miss what?" Shining Sapphire found herself asking. Wisp pointed a hoof skyward.
"Well, that, for one thing."
She swivelled, and looked. Up against the night sky was a single star. She turned to look at Wisp, then back to the star. She waited. After a few seconds another star appeared, and another, and another. And slowly, one by one, she saw a familiar pattern forming in the arrangement of the stars, one she knew very well indeed.
It was her Cutie Mark.
"Surprise" Wisp smiled. She tried to say something, but for whatever reason couldn't find the right words. She stared at Wisp, who was grinning excitedly.
"Why? How? Who?" she sputtered, before stopping, trying to collect her thoughts. After that, she paused, not trusting herself to do anything more than blurt sentence fragments.
"Explain" she stated. Wisp bowed his head.
"Easy. Just before I went looking for you the other day, I asked Princess Celestia to ask Princess Luna to arrange a meeting with me, and then the next time I fell asleep we met, we talked for a bit, and I asked her for a small favour."
"You asked her to make a constellation in the shape of my Cutie Mark" Shining Sapphire finished, staring at the sight, as some part of her wasn't convinced it was real. Several more were asking what Equestria's astronomers were going to make of it.
"Okay, that's... that's beautiful," she added, "but why? And why did she agree to do this?"
"She agreed to help because I asked nicely" Wisp explained, as he made his way over toward her, "and as for the why... well, actually, the 'why' is this: to distract you."
"Distract me?" Shining Sapphire asked, "distract me from what, exactly?"
Wisp walked over toward the balcony, and looked downward. "From that."
Her curiosity piqued, she walked over toward the balcony, and looked down, just to see what was so impressive he needed Princess Luna's assistance to distract her. Her jaw dropped at the sight. A huge crowd of ponies had gathered in one of the streets, and even from her current height, she could see what they were doing. Slowly, the crowd rippled, and revealed massive placards which slowly revealed a single message. She turned to look at Wisp, who was smiling bashfully.
"I kinda figured I owed you a ridiculously huge romantic gesture" he mumbled. "So I decided to ask about the city, asked a few ponies for some assistance. They were actually pretty willing to help out."
He looked out over the crowd again, and scratched his head. "Although I don't recall asking this many ponies though."
Shining Sapphire just alternated between staring at Wisp and the crowd of ponies. After a few seconds she resolutely closed her jaw, and stared at Wisp, who just shuffled nervously.
"I wasn't really sure if now was the best time to do this" Wisp said, slowly, "but after the last few days, after last night, after everything, I'm pretty sure now might be the only time."
Shining Sapphire blinked, as she felt a rising mix of terror and joy. She was fairly certain she could tell what Wisp was going to say. Some part of her wanted very much to stop him, but for whatever reason she could only stand there and listen to what he was saying.
"Shining Sapphire," he said, "will y-"
In an instant, she found herself somehow going from standing still to leaping on him and hugging him. There was a surprised noise from the pony as she did so, before she began kissing him. Down below, she was fairly certain she heard the crowd roar, and then felt the distinctive feeling of the Crystal Heart's magic washing over her.
"Wisp" she said, ignoring the lump in her front, "I... I..."
She released her grip, and coughed, trying to fight down the urge to grin manically. "I think I said the other day, did I not, that I didn't want to get married right away."
Wisp opened his mouth to say something, but she cut him off. "And furthermore, you were somewhat vocal on how you didn't want to get married either."
Wisp paused for a moment. "I was in a terrible mood at the time" he said quietly, before looking at Shining Sapphire, "and I am allowed to change my mind, aren't I?"
"Yes" Sapphy admitted, deciding not to point out that it had only been three days since he'd said it. "But... are you sure you want to get married? In front of all kinds of ponies? Being a spectacle?"
Wisp twitched slightly at those words, and he turned to stare up the sky. The constellation of Shining Sapphire's Cutie Mark was already being disassembled by Princess Luna, now that its purpose was done.
"Do you?" he asked. Shining Sapphire paused.
"I..." she managed. "I think I stand by what I said the other day, that I don't want to get married right away. But..."
She stared down at the crowd below, then to Wisp. "Then again..." she murmured, "we have been seeing one another for several years now..."
Then she saw Wisp fighting down a smirk, and jabbed him with a hoof.
"Ow" he deadpanned.
"But you aren't answering my question" she said, "are you doing this because it's what you think would make me happy?"
"Would it?"
She stared blankly for a moment, before shuffling. "It... it might. It just might."
She brushed up against him, "but we don't need to be married to be happy, you know."
"We don't?" Wisp asked, almost sounding genuinely surprised.
"We don't" she smiled warmly, before shifting, "though I think we probably should be before we think about having kids."
Quite suddenly, Wisp paled. His eyes shrank, and his entire body tensed. Then he fell over.
"Wisp?" she asked in alarm, as he just stared into the night sky, not responding at all. She briefly wondered about shaking him, but then decided it would probably have been more bother than to just let him lie. After a few minutes he blinked, and slowly began to move again.
"Sorry" he said quietly, "not sure where that came from."
Shining Sapphire raised an eyebrow, trying not to grin. "If that's how you react to the idea of kids" she started, before realising she wasn't sure where to go with that sentence. Wisp just blinked.
"It startled me, is all" he said. Shining Sapphire gave him a Look which managed to convey just how much she believed him, before she started smiling again.
"Up you get" she said, trying to help him to his hooves. The two stood there for a moment, looking at the other and smiling occasionally. It soon occurred to them that not only was it getting dark, it was also beginning to get incredibly cold.
"Shall we go inside?" Wisp said after a few seconds.
"Yes" Shining Sapphire shivered, "let's."
The two turned, and headed indoors. As they did, Shining Sapphire leaned in toward Wisp. Then she noticed he had stopped.
"What is it?" she asked, seeing Wisp beginning to frown. He turned his head back toward the night sky, a pained expression on his face.
"They're here" he said.
*****
Elsewhere in the palace, and four changelings looked at one another apprehensively, before slowly making their way toward the nearest window.
In an entirely different part of the castle, in the small room that had been designated their bedroom, and was now serving as a makeshift dungeon, their fifth suddenly began to smile joyously.
*****
It started simply enough. One changeling had just randomly appeared in the sky above the city, and it had taken a while to notice it against the dark of the night. Once they noticed it, the inhabitants of the Crystal Empire had felt concerned, but not truly alarmed, since one changeling could've been easily dealt with by the proper authorities. Then there was another, then another, then more, then much more, and before anypony knew it there were what looked like hundreds of changelings hovering over the Empire.
And of course that was the point at which everypony panicked, running for cover. Some ponies even bother to declare that it wasn't fair, the changelings had already tried invading the month before, and why had they come back?
For a time, the changelings hovered in the sky, before gently settling upon the ground in front of the castle. Slowly, and cautiously, several guards surrounded them, pointing all manner of unfriendly pieces of metal at them, though the changelings seemed unconcerned by this. After a few minutes, the doors of the palace opened, and Princess Cadance emerged, making her way towards the changelings.
"What's going on here?" she asked. The changelings just stared at her. She could've sworn some of them looked apprehensive, or nervous, but she disregarded this. From behind her, she heard the sound of hoofsteps, and turned to see her daughter and her colfriend approaching. They stopped in front of her, Shining Sapphire smiling sheepishly as she did. Wisp just nodded cautiously, his attention drawn towards the mass of changelings standing nearby.
"Hi, mom" Sapphy said, in-between attempts to catch her breath. Cadance just smiled.
"Sapphy, I'm assuming these changelings are here because of that crown you mentioned yesterday."
Sapphy shuffled on her hooves. "Maybe" she said, a nervous smile passing across her face, although there was something else about her mood that Cadance could help but notice, especially about the way she was looking at Wisp. The younger mare nudged him to get his attention. He jolted and turned to look at her.
"You've got a plan, right?" Sapphy asked. Wisp just shook his head.
"Heck no" he said. Cadance resisted the urge to facehoof, as Wisp just looked at the changelings again. Slowly, he stepped forward, one hoof in front of the other, until he reached the nearest changeling, and stared at it.
"Your highness" the changeling said, its voice surprisingly clear and eloquent, before bowing. Then all the other changelings began bowing as well. There was utter silence.
Wisp's face went pale, then paler still. His entire body tensed up, and there was an incredibly loud gulp from the golden-brown pony. He looked back toward Shining Sapphire, and slowly began to smile. But then his smile contorted, and he began to make odd noises, and then, quite suddenly, collapsed.
There was a concerned gasp from both mares. Shining Sapphire rushed over toward him. Cadance just stared at the changelings in front of her, some of whom were eying her daughter with suspicion.
"Is he-" she asked. Sapphy just nodded.
"He's alright. He's breathing" she said, sighing with relief, before she looked between the changelings and her mother.
"So" she said awkwardly, "what now?"
"What now?" Cadance repeated, "good question."
She sighed. "I mean, what are you supposed to do with several hundred changelings?"
Shining Sapphire bit her lip, then, when the answer proved elusive, looked down towards the still form of Whisper Wind, who just groaned slightly.