//------------------------------// // Evening // Story: Winter Storm // by Snake Staff //------------------------------// Shining Armor Alright, I’ll cop to it: I cry just a little bit during the applause. I know, I know, it’s not exactly proper stallion-like behavior. And I also know that Cadence should be the one receiving the outpouring of support, not me. She was the one who did all the work that made this possible. Sure, she insists I earned it with my years spent as a golem for her sake, but ultimately all I did was receive a thoroughly unexpected but wondrous gift from my wife. But I can’t help but shed a few tears of liquid pride all the same – after being the freak of the royal family for so long, you can’t quite imagine just how good it feels to have thousands of ponies spontaneously cheering for you. These last few hours have convinced me: I must be the luckiest stallion alive. From an unfeeling crystal prison to immortal flesh and the love of a beautiful wife who’s been more faithful to me than I’ve ever deserved. Eventually, the applause dies down, and I clear my throat to say my own brief piece. I hope I can halfway justify their support. I glance at my wife out of the corner of my eye, and she offers and encouraging nod. That helps, and I activate my own microphone. “Citizens of the Crystal Empire,” I say into the techno-magical device, my voice now booming from speakers instead of Cadence’s. “My friends. I thank you sincerely, each and every one of you, for your show of confidence in me today. You honor me greatly with your cheers, and I can only pray that I will live up to your hopes for me.” There’s more applause from the audience, though it lasts a bit less time than before. I continue when it’s about pattered out. “On this day of my ascension, I promise to all of you, on my honor as prince and as a soldier, that I will never stop giving this Empire of ours my all. In everything I do I will seek to serve and protect our people, with every bit of power that my blessed new state grants to me. In turn, I ask only that you all go forth from this place in the spirit of love, harmony, and brotherhood, in hopes that tomorrow might be even better than today!” With that, my first brief public address as an alicorn is over, and I switch off my microphone with a telekinetic prod. I step back slightly while the crowd applauds, Cadence coming forward to stand beside me. Together, we smile and wave for the cameras while the audience below roars its approval to the heavens. I think I’m going to like this new chapter in my life. Eventually, Cadence and I retreat back into the Imperial Palace with a final wave of our forelegs, which remain remarkably not sore for having been waving without rest for some ten minutes. Extra endurance is another perk of this form, it would seem. Of course, I already knew that from last night. Heh. Joking aside, it is nice not to feel significantly exhausted after a good day’s work. What’s even nicer is just feeling all the little sensations that I didn’t even realize I missed. The feel of the carpet and the crystal floors beneath my hooves, the smell of flowers and that of food being prepared, the way the wind feels when you’re walking against it, even the irritating little itches that you can’t scratch – I’m experiencing every single one of those freshly, and I love it. And then there are these wings. I confess that I don’t really have clue what to do with them, beyond being able to tuck them in or spread them out. I’m not even sure how to flap them properly – they’re different enough from their pegasus counterparts to render even my observations from them moot. Still, I’ll admit that they do look good on me, and having them preened makes for a most… enjoyable experience. Once we shed these overdone outfits (and Cadence washes her mane back to its usual ethereal state), the two of us head to a private dinner of our own. This will be my first meal with my wife in four hundred years – breakfast and lunch I had to take alone while I worked – and I can’t wait. Cadence is in her usual royal regalia and I’m not wearing anything when we arrive on our private balcony, where our staff has kindly set out a meal for us. The two of us sit down next to one another on a sofa, with a delectable spread of cooked greens, flowers, fruits, breads, and pastries on several platters in front of us. My mouth is already starting to water at the smell, but I want Cadence to get the first bite. She deserves it for making all this happen for my sake. But my wife isn’t looking at the food, she’s regarding me. I glance at it meaningfully. She looks puzzled for half a second, then jerks her head slightly to the side, horn pointed at the meal. So she wants to play it that way, does she? I point at the meal with exaggeratedly stern look on my face. Cadence giggles and shakes her head. I point again. “Shiny,” she shoves me lightly on the shoulder. “It’s your special day, you should have first crack at it.” “No, you,” I insist. “You’re the one who did all the work.” “I did it for you. Now come on and take a bite.” She picks up a succulent-looking stalk of celery in blue magic, which looks to have been marinated in… something or the other. Hey, not exactly a culinary expert after all this time, ok? “Say ah,” she teases, hovering the food near my head. “Cady, I’m not going to- mmph!” My wife, clever as ever, immediately takes the opportunity presented by my speech to shove the vegetable into my open mouth - whereupon she promptly starts giggling at me. “You see, Shiny, you can’t deny this- gah!” Of course, I return the favor my jamming a slice of fried apple into her mouth while she’s gloating. You’d really think she would have known better. Ah well, it’s funnier this way. Another advantage of alicornhood: choking on your food while laughing far too much at a relatively tame joke is a minor inconvenience rather than a life-threatening phenomenon. After I’ve managed to cough the barely-chewed vegetable back up and swallow it properly this time, I return my attention to my wife. Or, at least, I try to. The instant my head comes up, it gets smacked by a pillow. Once I pull the cushion off of my face, Cadence wags her hoof at me like a little foal. “Now Shining, you know that stealing ideas from others is wrong, you naughty colt.” “Says the mare that cheats to win,” I retort. She winks. “Cheating is what makes competing fun, love.” I answer with another of my trademark devilish grins. “Is that so? Well then…” Before my wife has time to blink, my magical aura surrounds her body. I yank her directly towards me, catching her in one hoof and pushing her down onto the sofa. Using a move I’ve taught to generations of guard recruit to non-lethally subdue assorted assailants and rowdies, I pin her underneath me. Cadence squirms briefly, but seems to think better of it and relaxes. She knows I would never hurt her. “I suppose I win, don’t I?” Cadence laughs at me. “You said it yourself, dear. Cheating makes competing fun. And I do it better than you.” My face is still showing off a cocksure grin. “I suppose I can let you have this little victory on your special day,” she answers smugly. “So now what, oh glorious Shining Armor, conqueror of his wife?” “Perhaps I’ll force feed you the entire meal,” I reply, before pausing briefly as another thought occurs to me. “Or…” I continue in a sly tone, bending down to whisper in her ear. “We could do something else for my victory celebration.” Cadence blushes and her wings spread out a bit. “Really?” she giggles. “Here? Now?” I raise an eyebrow and smile. “Why not? It’s not like we haven’t before.” Cadence runs a hoof over my chest. “Well, when you put it like that…” Her lips begin to come together. I close my eyes and bring my own head down to meet hers… “Pardon me, your majesties, but- Oh! Oh my!” the sound of another pony’s voice shatters the moment. Seriously, universe? Now, of all times? Perhaps some god gets their jollies by screwing with me. I reluctantly scramble off my wife and look towards the source of the interruption, my cheeks feeling far warmer than they should. At the door of the balcony stands a young pegasus mare in servant’s attire, her cheeks furiously blushing as she stares at the floor, looking for all the world like she wishes she knew how to seep into the crystal beneath her. Cadence pulls herself back up to a sitting position with twin expressions of disappointment and embarrassment warring for her face. For some time, there is nothing but extremely awkward silence. Eventually, Cadence coughs lightly. “So,” she says, “Was there something you needed to say, or…” The mare tugs at her collar as though it were much too tight, before swallowing nervously. Her mouth moves, but no sound comes out. “It’s alright,” says Cadence in a motherly tone. “You don’t have to worry about being punished. You were only doing your job. Go on and tell us what you came here for.” The mare swallows again, still not daring to meet our eyes, but manages to find her voice. “Y-Yes, your m-majesty. There i-is… T-There is… a g-guest awaiting y-your highnesses.” She licks her lips. “A v-very special guest.” “Can you please tell us who it is?” I ask, trying not to sound frustrated. But I’d really like to hear who it was that just interrupted our private time. “Princess L-Luna,” she stutters. “She s-says she’s c-come to congratulate your h-highnesses. Asked to s-speak with y-you as soon as possible.” “Please tell my aunt that we will see her at once,” Cadence says gently. “And then why don’t you take the rest of the evening off? I think you may need it.” “Y-Yes, your majesty. Thank y-you, your majesty,” she manages, before closing the door quite hastily. I can hear very rapid hoofsteps trailing away from it from the other side. “Well,” I say as the sounds fade away, if only to keep awkward silence at bay. “That was…” “Unfortunate timing,” Cadence completes my sentence for me with a sigh. “But it is what it is. Imagine if she’d come in a few minutes later.” She giggles a little, picking up a small carrot from the table and nibbling it delicately. I snort, caught between amusement and embarrassment. With little better to do, I also return my attention to the food on the table. It still tastes nice enough, but the mood is somewhat spoiled as of right this moment, and I do believe both our thoughts are more focused on what we might have been doing instead. I’m gnawing in silence on a piece of honeyed bread when I catch the sound of more hoofsteps approaching the balcony door from the other side. In another moment, the door is opened by a different servant than before – a crystal pony stallion this time. He bows to my wife and I before speaking. “Your majesties, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Prince Shining Armor of the Crystal Empire, may I present her majesty Princess Luna of-” “Oh, please do stop! There is no need for such formality on a personal visit!” A very familiar dark alicorn barges her way past the stallion, beaming widely at Cadence and I as we rise to greet our elder. “Besides,” she turns to the servant as an afterthought. “I am certain my niece and nephew already know who I am.” “Of course, your highness,” he mutters, before shrinking back the way he came and shutting the door behind him, leaving all three of us alone on the balcony. As soon as he’s gone, Princess Luna drops even the pretense of royal decorum and rushes right up to us, wrapping both our necks in a bone-crushing hug. “Congratulations!” she squeals in almost childlike tone. “Oh, congratulations to both of you! ‘Twas wonderful news to receive!” Luna kisses first me, then Cadence on the forehead before releasing our necks. “And to think I thought this day would be dull!” Cadence is quicker to recover. “And hello to you too, Auntie Luna,” she says with a smile, even as she rubs her throat. I don’t blame her. “I came as soon as I could! I’m so sorry I couldn’t be there for your announcement, but I did have just one or two pieces of court business that absolutely couldn’t be put off,” Luna rubs the back of her head with a hoof and grins awkwardly. “But you mustn’t think that I didn’t hurry here as quickly as I could!” “Don’t worry,” I reassure her. “It’s fine. I know how busy ruling nation can get. Especially when you’re doing the work of three mares all by yourself!” “Oh,” Luna says. “That reminds me. Your sister and mine wrote to me soon after you did. They asked me to bear their congratulations as well as their apologies that they cannot be here immediately. This was most unexpected, you know.” “Trust me, I wasn’t expecting it any more than you were,” I answer her. “So I completely understand.” She nods. “I am certain that they would have come alongside me if lives were not at stake, but…” she trails off. “It’s fine,” I repeat. “I know how important their work is, and I’m sure they’d love to have been here. But I can wait.” I wink. “I have all the time in the world, you know.” “But of course!” Luna laughs, and then hugs just me. The way she does it, I’m very glad breathing is optional for me. “Again: congratulations, nephew! ‘Tis a great joy to at last welcome you into our family in every way!” Then she releases me, and grabs Cadence in the same way. “And congratulations to you as well, niece! You truly selected a worthy mate, if he was able to transcend mortality even so long after his death!” “Thanks… Auntie…” my wife manages, between gasps for air. I try and restrain my urge to chuckle at her plight. At length, Luna releases her grip on Cadence and looks back and forth between both of us. “You must tell me all! How did you do it?” I glance at my wife. In truth, she’s been a bit evasive on the particulars whenever I’ve found the time to ask today, but honestly there’s been so much going on that I didn’t care enough to press. She did request that I let her explain if the subject came up, and I’ll honor that. It’s not like I could in any case. Cadence pauses and bites her lip for a moment before responding. “Love,” she answers at last. “The raw energy for Shining Armor’s ascension came from love.” “You mean as it did in your wedding?” Luna asks. Cadence shakes her head. “I mean, the energy came from the love stored in Crystal Heart. Our love was the conduit, but we may have had to… borrow some extra strength for a time. Like Twilight received power from the Elements of Harmony.” “Ah,” Luna nods. “But what do you mean by “borrow” it?” “I mean, the Heart is currently sapped of much of its strength.” What? I didn’t know- Cadence hastens to continue before I can even think through the repercussions. “But that’s alright, isn’t it? There’s plenty of love and happiness in the air, it should recharge itself in a matter of weeks. And the energy isn’t gone; it’s just with Shining Armor now. Besides, it’s not like there’s anypony out to get us, is there?” I feel a bit uneasy at the knowledge that Cadence sapped the Empire’s defenses, even if temporarily, to make this possible, but I still trust her judgment. And her logic seems sound enough to me. Luna appears thoughtful. “Sombra is dead… the changelings are no more… Discord is not even on this plane… Tirek remains in Tartarus…” She shakes her head. “I cannot think of any foe who might seek to gain advantage during this time, if they even somehow knew. And if there were,” she looks at me and smiles. “I can think of nopony better suited to be the second alicorn guardian of the Crystal Empire than you, nephew. I am certain that this place is in safe hooves.” Cadence looks a little nervously at her aunt. It’s subtle, but I know her body language like nopony else. “Anything else you needed to know?” “Hmmm…” Luna puts a hoof under her chin. “No, I do believe that answers the question. The Crystal Heart and the magic of love together are a very potent combination, and I see no reason that they would not have been able to grant new life to a worthy pony.” “Shall we eat, then?” Cadence asks; her calm face now restored. She gestures at the food. “Oh, you were having supper together?” Luna blushes slightly. “Forgive me for interrupting, I just-” Cadence shakes her head and smiles. “It’s no trouble at all, Auntie Luna. Shining and I are always happy to have you visit us! Aren’t we?” She could have timed it better, I think. “Of course we are,” I say aloud, wrapping a hoof around my wife’s shoulder. She lays her head against me. “Fantastic! I will admit I am somewhat famished from the long journey north. If you will have me for a dinner guest…” “Of course!” Cadence answers with a smile. Cadence As we lay in bed that night, exhausted and sweating after several rounds of… intimacy, my giddiness for this blessed day is disrupted by the last sound that I thought would ever do so: my husband’s voice. “Honey?” he says, between heavy breaths. “I’m sorry.” “What?!” I look at him, alarmed. “For what?” “I’ve been so busy enjoying today… I completely forgot about what I was doing… before…” he shakes his head. “You mean…” I think back to that horrible moment when I almost crushed his soul, for trying to help me. “Your… investigation?” He nods, slowly. “I shouldn’t have let myself… stop today. Now we’re on even footing, will you tell me what’s wrong? I can… help you now.” I smile ruefully. Typical Shiny. A once in a lifetime event has just boosted him to greater power than most ponies can even dream of, and the day isn’t even before he’s thinking about how he can use it to protect me. His selfless devotion is charming, especially compared to how selfishly I imprisoned him for centuries. I couldn’t ask for a more loyal stallion. But I still can’t tell him the truth. The truth. It grips my gut like an icy talon, stealing the warmth and joy I was feeling. I have what I want… but I’m still compelled to surrender any of our offspring to my murderous aunt. Every single time we’ve coupled… I might well have already been fertilized. I fight back the urge to sob and beg forgiveness for selling my husband’s future foals to a monster, but just barely. Shining picks up on my distress anyway. “Cady?” he asks, softly. “What’s wrong? Did I say something? Do you not want to talk about it? Do-” I cover his mouth gently with a hoof to stop him talking. “Shiny,” I ask, slowly. “Do you trust me?” He nods, and I put my hoof back down again. “You say that I’m the most talented mare you know. Do you truly believe that?” “Of course,” he says, looking confused. “Cadence, what’s this all about?” “If you trust me,” I say, fighting to keep melancholy out of my tone. “Then believe me when I say I can handle this on my own. Please, for my sake, leave this be.” Shining doesn’t even know how to fly yet, much less how to properly wield the magic boost his new body gives him. He’s still far too weak to have a hope of matching the oldest and strongest alicorn in existence. I can’t risk him finding out. And, if I’m entirely honest, I can’t bear to hear what he would say if he knew that I gave away our very foals for his sake. He would leave me, I know it. And I can’t endure that. So he must never know. “Cadence, I can’t just-” “Please,” I beg him, my eyes watering. “Just let this be, and I will take care of it. You can help me most by being happy and forgetting all about it.” He stares into my eyes for several minutes in silence, worry writ large all over his face and soul. He pulls me close, stroking my mane tenderly while I barely hold back tears of guilt. This wonderful, selfless husband of mine has no idea what an evil witch his wife is, and I can’t ever tell him. And I’m playing my last card, the same weapon I used to hold him captive in crystal for centuries: my sadness. At last, he lets me go and looks into my teary eyes again. I look at my hooves, feeling unworthy to meet his gaze. “If it means that much to you,” Shining Armor sighs. “I will leave it alone. Just look into my eyes and promise me that you’ll be alright if I do. Promise me.” Gathering all my courage, I look into his eyes and lie to him. “I promise.” I won’t be fine, and I know it. My children and his will be taken from us and subjected to who knows what kinds of horror. All because of their mother, and her selfish ways. But to tell Shining would be to destroy him, be it physically or mentally, and that I could never bear. So I’ll lie to him, and bear the guilt, for all eternity. Shining Armor deserves a happy life after what he’s been through, and he’ll never be happy unless he thinks I am. So I’ll smile and be the best wife I can be, and content myself with him, though it’s more than I deserve. As we lie down to sleep together, my thoughts churn. These last few years have turned the world I thought I knew on its head. Aunt Celestia, who raised me, whom I looked up to, betrayed me and extorted a deep and ongoing price to spare my husband’s life. King Sombra, whom I loathed for a monstrous tyrant, gave me the most important help I’ve ever had in return for nothing more than simply planting an odd violet flower atop his grave. What has the world come to?