//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Of Boredom and Co-Conspirators // by Nightmare723764 //------------------------------// <<>> Never let it be said that Cadence was all talk and no action! After proclaiming that she would adopt the two troubled foals, Cadence immediately went about the process to make the adoptions as airtight as possible on the off-chance some of the nobles got all pissy over the fact she was adopting a pair of orphans and the first alicorn colt in… forever! Her reasoning behind her actions was two-fold: First; She simply wanted to help the two. Plain and simple. And also Alicorns, regardless of type, aren’t very fertile. From Cadence’s understanding it is nature’s way to insure the population of Timeless beings is kept under control. The only reason Dragons don’t ‘suffer’ from a similar situation is because of their nature. They honestly don’t need some in-born population control given the destructive and greedy nature of dragons. Second; Cadence simply didn’t want any of the more power-hungry nobles getting their hooves on Inanis to use as a tool to further their own standing or power. Or even worse. Breeding stock! So in her campaign to become their mother and to keep them safe, Cadence willingly subjected herself from the one Evil that not even the Elements could defeat! Paperwork. Ah… bureaucracy… trying so hard to bog the world down in miles of red tape and legislation. Honestly sometimes Cadence wondered if her Auntie was masochistic sometimes… willingly sorting through all this nightmarish mess! On a daily basis at that! “Auntie, I am never going to complain about paperwork again…” Cadence thought as she worked away on the evil paperwork. Just because she had more free time than Twilie didn’t mean she didn’t do some work! The only saving grace was that Shining was there to help her the entire way which she was ever so grateful for! He was a little wary of adopting the foals at first, but eventually agreed that it was the best thing for them; and we were wanting a foal soon anyway! <<>> Boredom, that is what set in quickly while waiting around in the hospital, and what gave opportune time for my worst fear at this point in time. Thinking about my current predicament. ”Dammit, couldn’t the universe have at least given me warning? A few minutes to erase my browsing history? Or if not that, say goodbye to my friends and family at least? Fuck… well, at least I’m not leaving behind much… a Best Friend, several acquaintances, my mother… who will now have difficulties with rent… FUCK ALL KINDS OF DUCK! Well… my mother’s financial situation aside… reluctantly… because I can’t do anything about it at this point DAMMIT ALL TO HELL! Let’s look at the bright side… I’m potentially royalty, can do my life right this time rather than doing mediocre in school because the internet was more fun… crap, no more internet… I now have eternal longevity to regret the situation I left my mother in… wow, I can not get off that point, can I? Freud would have a field-day…” I thought in one mental breath… I am not taking this well, am I? ”Nonetheless, I need to make the most of this; and with it being real, nothing can be taken back… including my ‘child prostitute’ background these idiots have for Ja- Shifty and I. Well, at least I don’t have to alter my personality much, acting like an actual innocent child would be… creepy to say the least. If this place didn’t appear to be all Friendship, Rainbows, and ‘Carebear Stares’, I’d think they’d liken me to those creepy little possessed girls in horror movies and games had I acted like such.” I continued thinking, giving a blank thousand-mile stare at a wall with some sort of medical poster on it. That’s always been a bad habit of mine, thinking and daydreaming so hard I appear to become a soulless robot… well, it helps confirm my ‘backstory’ at least. ”I wish Shifty and I had some privacy to discuss things properly, but the walls have eyes for us it seems… well, we’ll get our chance at some point. How about plans for the future! Let’s make a list! Let’s keep pretending to be upbeat in my mind! Yay! Shut up you! Fuck you! No Fuck You! … Huh, that little lapse in… whatever the fuck that was, was oddly entertaining… moving on. One, don’t make background more complicated than it already is. Two, don’t give any concrete details about background. Three, do well at school (assuming we are allowed to go, or they even exist here). Four, squeeze all possible use out of my knowledge from my home dimension… and on that note: five, find and use every possible method to improve my memory, I could make a fortune on the novels I’ve read alone. Six… umm… just five then…” I finished my thoughts… and now I’m bored again… dammit. “So… Shifty… any idea on how to pass the time? I have none…” I ask, hopefully my minion (oh shit, I actually made a real person my minion… remember the overlord list Ermingild, remember the list!) had an idea on some form of entertainment. Shifty tilted his head, rubbing it in thought, “Hmm… well… I always did enjoy singing to myself. Or writing stories.” Shifty suggested, “Perhaps… um… god I miss the internet…” He added under his breath. “Writing would likely be… difficult… in our current situation… as for singing, that would only last for so long before we’d have to stop either from boredom or exhaustion…” I replied. “Good point.” Shifty said with a sigh, “And we couldn’t dance for similar reasons. And for… well you know…” He added gesturing to his four hooves. “Yeah… hmm… wait.” I said, getting an idea, “Hey, watcher dude, would there happen to be any books around here we could possibly read?” I ask Shifty’s watcher. Luckily, judging from the medical posters, their written language is in fact English… or an analog of such. “Not particularly…” he replied, after a few seconds of thought, “All there would be to read here would be some old magazines, and possibly some medical texts… and we’re a bit too far from the library for that to really be an option right now… sorry colts,” he finished. “Really? Well damn…” Shifty said somehow snapping his hooves like he would his fingers, “Um… can we read some medical books anyway? Just basic ones. Please?” ”How did he…? Nevermind, I’ll figure it out later… Medical texts could be useful, if for nothing else than to improve my knowledge of our new bodies’ anatomy.” I thought, “Could you bring some texts about pony anatomy? Particularly if they have information on how Alicorns are different from other ponies? I’d rather like to know just how different I am from the norm…” I requested politely. “Well… I suppose it certainly couldn’t hurt. Though, I suspect you’ll find yourselves napping sooner rather than later if you try reading them,” the watcher said, before heading off to find some of said texts. “Well… that’s something at least. We’ll still be bored out of our minds, but we’ll get to be productive about it at least.” I mutter out loud. After several minutes, and 42 bottles of beer off the wall thus far, the watcher returned with 2 books; ‘A Foal’s Guide to Psychology’, and ‘Anatomy of the Tribes and Sub-Tribes’. It’s easy to tell which book was brought for whom, and I chuckle quietly at the meaningful look the watcher gives Shifty while ‘hoofing’ him the psychology book. “Thank you, good sir,” I say to the watcher as he ‘hoofs’ the anatomy book to me. “My name is Silent Watch, by the way. I do believe I forgot to introduce myself earlier,” he introduced himself… certainly has an apt name, doesn’t he? “Pleasure to meet you, I’m sure,” I reply, nonchalantly before starting on my book. Shifty already had his muzzle buried in the book and he simply nodded his head absentmindedly to Silent Watch. After about an hour, what I learned in that book could be summed up as the following: there were many different subspecies of ‘Pony’, but only three of them were even remotely common. These subspecies are Earthling (or, more commonly; Earth Pony), Pegasus, Unicorn, Horse, Changeling (though many do not consider them ponies anymore, due to their rather vampiric nature), Crystaling (or Crystal Pony), Songling (or Siren), Sealing (or Sea Pony), Thestral (or ‘Bat Pony’ if you’re a bigot), Umbraling (or Shadow Pony), Zebra, Breezies (who are basically fairies), and of course: Alicorn. There are also crossbreeds with other species such as Hippogriff (with Griffons), Kirin (with Dragons), Mule (with Donkeys), Draconequus (which can not be born, only mutated into such), Ipotane (with Diamond Dogs), and Centaur (with Minotaur). For the sake of not giving a massive unnecessary info-dump, I’ll only give more info on the main three and Alicorns for now. Earthlings have exceedingly dense muscle and bone-structure, and radiate magic from their hooves due to lack of any magic-focusing bodypart. This uncontrolled magic leakage often gets infused into whatever Earthlings are touching with their hooves, which usually lead to highly fertile soil and good earth. Perfect for farming. They can also infuse objects with their magic, making those objects more durable than normal, making them good craftponies for more practical items. Pegasi, unlike their ground-bound relations, did not possess a dense muscle and bone-structure, quite the opposite in fact with their hollow bones and lithe muscle-structure. Their magic radiates primarily through their hooves and wings in a controlled pulse that is learned through trial and error, or it used to be trial and error. I’m not certain, this book is rather old… Anyway, they use these pulses of magic from their wings to propel themselves through the air much like a clam in the water amusingly enough, and the pulses in their hooves to create minor force-fields around things (usually themselves, or clouds). An interesting note is that all ponies can create these force-fields with their hooves, but only to a maximum distance of approximately one inch (unlike Pegasi who have a maximum distance of 3 meters for their force-fields); and these fields are the primary method for ‘hornless’ ponies grabbing things. Unicorns are rather average in bone and muscle-structure, though there is one irregularity… their horns. Unicorn horns are made of a near-molecular fusion of normal bone, and magically-conductive crystal (this fusion is often called ‘alicorn’ amusingly enough); allowing for magical resonance. This allows Unicorns to ‘cast’ magic and make it do what they want by forcing their horns to resonate at different frequencies in sequence. As a side-note, there is a rumour that the Unicorn Tribe’s Anthem was actually heavily based off of the resonation frequencies of a spell that allow one to increase the crystal-content of their ‘alicorn’, which would increase their potential for magic… unfortunately, that particular spell had… side-effects... of insanity and shortened lifespan, and thus is now outlawed (though there is a loophole I found when reading the law excerpt in this book; where one could gain the effects of the spell by enchanting an object to grant one the effects instead… I can only hope no pony out there ever finds one said item not knowing its potential side-effects). Alicorns on the other ‘hoof’ are very unique compared to the other three tribes. Their muscles aren’t dense like an Earthling’s but rather are infused with various tough minerals and the like to make them far less likely to strain and tear, such as Titanium (which, I happen to recall from somewhere, is naturally occurring in mammals anyway, though likely not to this extent); and then their ‘mental limiters’ simply do not exist like they do in other living creatures, allowing them to use 100% of their strength without worry of crushing their own bones just by flexing. Magic also radiates from every inch of their body, much like Earthling’s from their hooves. Their skeleton on the other ‘hoof’ seems to be comprised of seventy-five percent ‘alicorn’ substance, and their horns generally have a crystal concentration of about 15 times that of most Unicorns on average, which give them the highest possible potential in magic manipulation. Their bones are also hollow like Pegasi’s, however due to their bones being primarily ‘alicorn’ they are near impossible to break. Their feathers also are roughly one to two percent ‘alicorn’, just enough to increase their magical conductivity but not enough to make them unusable as flight-aids. Their manes and tails on the other hoof is almost entirely comprised of magically-conductive organic crystal-like hair (which Crystalings are generally known for) and constantly charged with magic which results in their trademark ethereal mane and tails. In fact, the only parts of the Alicorn body that do not conduct magic well are their eyes (which will begin to burn out quickly and let off smoke if too much magic are pushed through them), and their fur, which is simply normal fur according to studies. So, in a nutshell; I’m fucking awesome right now. I do wonder why the book never mentioned “True” or “Ascended” Alicorns and whatever differences there are between them… maybe this book was written before Ascended Alicorns became a thing? Shrugging I resumed my reading, however when I got to the diagrams of ponies I couldn’t help but snicker like a little kid again! “At least now I’ll know what it’s like to be ‘hung like a horse’!” I thought with no little amount of amusement, ”I do wonder how that ‘medial ring’ will actually feel though… should be fun to test!” Though, before I could continue, ‘Princess Cadence’ walking in with a rather exhausted-looking smile on her face, and a guard in purple armor following after with a similar look. He just give her a good lay or something? … Wow, nothing like anatomy texts to make sure your mind gets into the gutter… “Shifty? We got a royal guest.” I said throwing my book at his head to catch his attention. The book smacked into his skull with a meaty thud, “Ow! Goddamn it! What the fuck do you want? I’m reading here!” Shifty growled rubbing his head with a scowl. “You’re ignoring royalty that came to visit us. Congratulations, you have let diplomatic relations fall through and our country is doomed,” I snarked. Princess Cadence looked like she didn’t know whether to scold me or giggle. I myself was wondering if Shifty wasn’t at least a quarter Earth Pony, despite being assured by Luna he was one hundred percent Unicorn… that was a rather hefty book, after all. Shifty blinked and looked at the princess and her guard, “Um… yo? What’s up? You here to lock us up princess?” He then spoke in a stereotypical southern drawl, “We ain’t dun nothin’ princess!~” He cooed fluttering his eyelashes. “Quiet you fool! They’re on to us!” I jokingly add with a mock-raspy voice. “You’ll neva take us alive, coppa! Nyeh!” Shifty quipped in a mock-20s gangster voice. “Or… you can take this rather ‘Shifty’ individual and put me in witness protection instead?” I ask with a sweet and innocent voice, batting my eyelashes. Cadence and the guard looked poleaxed and Shifty and I couldn’t help but start laughing at the two ponies. Hmm… perhaps I shall teach my minion the True Ways of the Snark? And perhaps even the Divine Art of the Silver Tongue? Hmm… this requires much thought… for now, let’s give him many samples to learn them from. “... No, we aren’t here for anything like that,” Cadence said amusedly once she collected herself, “My Husband and I are actually here to give you what I hope you will consider wonderful news.” “Wonderful news? Well, that doesn’t sound good,” I snarked with a smile. “We’re actually the reincarnations of two powerful heroes that saved the world twice over from a Fallen God and a horde of bloodthirsty daemons?” Shifty exclaimed with faux-excitement, his eyes giving away his amusement. “No, as far as we know you are not reincarnations of the ones who defeated Grogar,” Wait, what? That actually happened? “The news is that Cadence and I have started the process to adopt the two of you! We’re just awaiting review and approval of the forms.” The guard in flamboyant armor supplied. Shifty just stared slack-jawed with wide eyes, and I well… I wasn’t any better then my favorite (and only) minion was. Adopted? Really? What are the odds? … pretty good, actually… they have no idea where our ‘parents’ are, and it would be criminal (I assume) to put us back with them anyway after what we told them. “That’s… great? Kind of sudden, but that’s alright… but maybe we should actually know both your names first?” I ask, realizing that calling our new father ‘The flamboyant guard’ probably wouldn’t pan out too well. Shifty was still completely dumbfounded; honestly was the great lump even breathing? Sadly I don’t have anything else to throw at his head. How long can ponies go without oxygen anyway? Not long I wager. “Oh! Well I’m Cadence but you already know that. Um… is Shifting okay?” She asked worriedly. “Oi, Shifty… SHIFTY! SNAP OUT OF IT, YOU’RE EATING ALL THE FLIES WITH YOUR WIDE-OPEN MOUTH!” I yell at Shifty to snap him out of it. Shifty blinked for a few moments, “I swear I didn’t eat all the peanut butter mom!” He blurted out. “... Ah shit, not again…” I sigh, thinking about his last… episode… “Hey, can you smack him on the head for me, Silent Watch?” I ask, and watch as he thinks a bit, shrugs, and smacks Shifty a little on the back of the head. “Oi! The fuck was that for!” Shifty growled, “I’ll have you know I wasn’t hallucinating you limp dick, cat-fucking jackass! I can eat gallons of peanut butter at a time fucktard!” He snapped as he rubbed his head. “Yes, but you DID call me mom, which warranted a smack anyway. Not even mentioning that we weren’t talking about Peanut Butter at all,” I snark back. “Like you never blurted out random shit you mirror-eyed fucker!” Shifty growled. “Oh~ seven apples on a witch’s tree, with seven seeds to plant inside of me~” I sang with poetic snark and a smug grin, “Anyway, before we went off track; you were introducing yourself?” I ask Cadence’s husband. “Um… Shining Armor.” The guard said, “I’ll be your new dad if you two accept the adoption…” He added, giving Shifty a very curious look like he was trying to figure something out. “Shining Armor…? As in ‘a Knight in Shining Armor’?” I ask, with a meaningful look to Shifty. We both snort a bit before I add, “Have you ever heard the proverb ‘A knight in Shining Armor is one who has never had his ‘metal’ (mettle) truly tested.’?” I tease, testing his temperament. Shining Armor colored slightly at that, “Well… that might be true! But I’m still a highly trained Captain!” He said trying not to take the words of a foal personally. “Truly? One as young as you is a Captain? My, my~ how impressive… assuming you got to that point by merit, and not by connections like you age suggests.” I push. Shifty grinned mischievously, which made me soar with pride at my little minion, “Well… if we accept I guess we’ll have to help you prove your mettle eh?” He asked with a crooked smirk, “Anyways… who exactly is Grogar? Is he like a evil necromancer or a daemon summoner?” “Shifty, given the context of their mentioning him; he’s likely to be a fallen god…” I reply to my new brother. “Well I’m just trying to get it in terms I’m familiar with.” Shifty said, “Like tabletop roleplay terms you know.” “You play Tabletop?” Shining Armor asked with an excited tone, “I love Tabletop RPGs! I just rarely find ponies to play with!” “You play?” I ask with a sly look, “Don’t tell me let me guess… Paladin?” I snicker. “I- well, what’s wrong with that?” Shining deflects, slightly embarrassed at being figured out so easily. “Nothing, just… predictable,” I chuckle, “Still, if you know someone who can run the game well enough, we may just join you,” I relent, laying off of him… for now. “Though we’re still going to test your mettle. We’ll just not be as harsh seeing as we have something in common.” Shifty said, “However it’s been awhile since my last game so I’ll need a refresher course.” Shifty then paused, “I myself have always favored casters; I always enjoyed the Warlock. Always kinda pitied Warlocks actually.” He commented, seemingly wondering how that will be received. “Yeah, I can understand that… it’s always kinda pitiable that good ponies could fall into such evil magics,” Shining replied, completely missing Shifty’s point. “Oh my… what a decidedly ‘Paladin’ comment.” Shifty snarked, “In RPGs Warlocks are treated with disdain and outright fear! Simply because they summon demons and use their magicks, they’re evil. It’s hardly that simple, using evil isn’t the same as being evil.” “Hmph, you’re just a foal, of course you wouldn’t understand how evil it is to summon beings of pure evil that feast on the souls of innocent ponies!” The Shinier-than-thou jackass replied with a self-assured nod. “Wow, naive and arrogant… guess that answers the question as to which method he used to obtain his captaincy, eh?” I snark with a chuckle. Shifty quirked his brow, “... You really need to see a proctologist… it’s not healthy to have your head up your own ass…” He drawled, “Probably see a psychologist for your narrow-minded black-and-white views as well…” He added with a snort. Shining started looking angry and was about to start a rant, which I interrupted by turning to Cadence and saying with complete seriousness, “Honestly, you’re acting so close-minded that I won’t even bother explaining our views to you, you’d just brush it off without thinking anyway. Well, onto more important topics than Shifty and I speaking to a foal; if you’re truly serious about adopting us, we need to know one thing beforehoof. Your answer will determine the entire nature of our relationship to you as family.” “What?” Cadence asked curiously while shooting Shining Jackass a look to silence him. “Do you have…” I begin, expertly hiding my smirk. “Yes…?” Cadence asked with trepidation, nervous sweat forming on her brow. “... An incest fetish?” I finish with a flourish in my still completely-serious tone of voice. The silence was so thick I was tempted to make a souffle out of it, silence is rather airy after all. “... WHAT!?!?” The pink mountain erupted in confused and mortified anger. “What? It’s a completely legitimate question. Now, your answer?” I continue, barely holding back my laughter. I’m amazed Shifty is hold up so well! Oh, he’s shocked… oops, I thought he could handle an incest joke. “NO! ABSOLUTELY NOT! NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS!” Cadence screeched like a banshee, with fully dilated pupils of a mad… mare? “So, considering our timelessness, there’s a possibility after a million years? Good to know, I will have to prepare myself for that eventuality.” I finish with a nod. ”Dear gods, her reaction was perfect!” It was at this time that Shifty came out of his shock with a truly evil and mischievous gleam in his eyes, “Princest is Best, Put your Family to the Test!~” He sang with an angelic look on his face. Aaaaaaaaaand, that broke it. I burst out laughing. Sounds like Shifty is over his incest thing. And when I stopped, I saw the look on Pompous Platemail’s face and started laughing again! “I think Pompous Armor likes that thought!~” Shifty said with a wide eyed innocent expression on his face. I merely replied with my best George Takei “Ooooh My~”. <<>> Cadence groaned as the took another sip of strong black coffee with a grimace. Sweet Celestia that was a nightmare! And in all honesty it would’ve gone a lot smoother if Shining just didn’t rise to Shifting Space’s baiting! And she was sure it was some sort of test on Shifting’s part but for the life of her she simply couldn’t figure out what the test was… “Why couldn’t you just keep your opinions to yourself Shiny?” Cadence thought tiredly, “Yes I agree that summoning demons is evil but still… thank Auntie they accepted the adoption. Now I just have to get Shiny to agree. And to think… he was all for the adoption before he met them...” “I’m not sure if we could give those foals the proper attention they need…” Shining said with a scowl, having been in a bad mood since they left the hospital. Cadence bit back a groan of annoyance, “You do know that if you didn’t rise to their baiting, things wouldn’t have been so troublesome, right?” Cadence said bluntly, “And besides the paperwork is already signed and filed. The only reason we couldn’t take them with us is because they were still under observation…” She added with a sigh… Shining still looked mulish much to Cadence’s annoyance and she closed her eyes and used those breathing exercises she taught Twilight. “That was before I saw what brats they were! I know their foalhoods were as bad as could be so far, but sympathizing with evil!? They need to be in the care of professionals that can guide them to the right path, not a couple like us with little-to-no experience in this sort of thing!” Shining Armor replied. “Shiny, they were testing you; do you not get that? Shifting could have easily been lying about the Demonology thing just to see how you would react! And if that was the case, I can all but assure you that you failed their test… it will take quite a bit of work for you to gain back their trust at this point, because you certainly screwed up your first impression!” Cadence ranted, getting a little fed up with Shining’s stubbornness. “All the more reason not to take them, they’ll never listen to me!” Shining would swear henceforth that he did not whine. “Shiny, it’s done. We’re their parents now. So be quiet, and think of how you’re going to fix things with them!” The Princess fumed before marching off in a huff. Shining watched Cadence as she left, “Damned foals, why couldn’t they just act their age…” he muttered. <<>> Like she’s been doing since the foals were discovered; Celestia was brooding, though you’d be hard pressed to realise it. Having been a ruler for millennia, Celestia was an old hoof at hiding her inner thoughts and faking emotions. She had long lost count of the times she’d put on a motherly expression when inside she was in a towering rage! And that was in the past year alone! Mother damn it Blueblood… Sighing, Celestia looked at her snack; a cake of course. However she simply couldn’t bring herself to indulged her comfort food. Her head simply to abuzz with thoughts regarding the two foals in question. Where were they abused? Who are their parents? And the most important, “How can I word it so the blasted nobles will go along with, if not support a mass inquisition?” Honestly, sometimes Celestia missed the old days. When the ponies saw her and Luna as goddesses! They never questioned their word back then! No arguing! But no… she just had to figure that it’d be better to be princesses to better relate to her little ponies. “Well hindsight can be a bitch at times…” Celestia thought dryly as she started eating her cake slowly. After finishing her cake Celestia decided to talk to her niece, as she was curious as to what Cadence thought about them having spent a couple hours with them. Though Captain Armor did return in quite a snit for some reason? “I’ll ask Cadence when I get there.” Celestia decided as she left her private quarters and trotted towards Cadence and Captain Armor’s chambers. Trotting up to their door Celestia was about to knock before it opened and Cadence quickly trotted off having not noticed Celestia. The entire way she was muttering about a plot-headed stubborn foal in a stallion’s body. “Oh my…” Celestia thought before she poked her head in, “Shining? Can I speak with you?” Celestia asked diplomatically, the last thing she wanted to do was trot right into their first marital disagreement. Which she feared is what she was doing right then. “Huh? Oh! Of course Princess!” Shining Armor said, clearly he was brooding rather hard and lost in thought if he didn’t realize she was there. Celestia smiled and entered the room fully before she sat in a chair across from Shining Armor, “So… how are the foals?” Celestia asked figuring that was a safe question. Oh she was sooo wrong! “Those… foals… were insufferable little brats! I know they’ve had tough lives, but seriously!? They were defending Demonology of all things!? The most evil of magicks out there, even above Necromancy!? And then they wouldn’t stop insulting me from minute one! I don’t care if Cadence thinks they were testing me, that’s no excuse to act like that!” Shining armor ranted in a single breath. Celestia blinked, now if she were younger (a lot younger at that), she would’ve probably backed Shining Armor’s words wholeheartedly. However you don’t survive for millennia like she has without learning to keep an open mind. That being said however, despite having an open mind she still couldn’t bring herself to see a foul art like demon summoning in a positive light. As even benign uses of the art is still bittersweet, with emphasis on the bitter. “Well…” Celestia tilted her head in thought, “... Do you really think they have any working knowledge of that magic outside of fiction?” Celestia asked with a quirked brow. “Well… I, uh… probably not?” Shining Armor stammered out, warily. “Oh Shining…” Celestia said with an amused sigh, “While I’ve never had foals, even I know that foals constantly are pushing and testing their parents. Just to see how much they can get away with. And with what Shifting Space and Inanis have suffered they will most likely have trouble, putting it mildly, trusting adults with their welfare.” She explained calmly. “I… oh horseapples I screwed up, huh? How am I gonna fix this so they can actually trust me?” Shining asked, with his face in his hooves. “Well for one, by apologizing and explaining yourself.” Celestia said, “And two, try to keep an open mind. Foals delight in mischief and will make your mane gray if they can.” She added with a light giggle. “... I’ll try…” Shining muttered, with a slightly subdued tone of voice. “Good, now; I’m off to find my niece.” Celestia declared before trotting off to find Cadence and ask her opinion of the foals. <<>> Having searched all Cadence’s usual ‘haunts’ Celestia found herself sitting in the library thinking on where the Princess of Love could possibly be. She tried the kitchens, the flower garden, the stone garden, why she even visited the Sparkle residence to ask if Cadence stopped by for a visit! “Now if I was an irate Princess of Love where would I go to be alone?” Celestia mused as she idly sipped a cup of tea. After a few minutes thought Celestia felt like hitting herself! Twilight’s tower! Celestia knew just how close Cadence and Twilight became! Finishing her tea, Celestia teleported to Twilight’s tower. Reappearing just outside the tower Celestia opened the door and made her way up to the top floor where Twilight’s bedroom would be. After a few minutes Celestia reached the top and entered Twilight’s bedroom. “Cadence? Are you in here?” She asked softly as she looked around, spotting Cadence just bundled up on Twilight’s favorite bean-bag chair. Probably one of the only foalish things she wanted with all her heart. Seeing as she didn’t hear her Celesta went over and cast a spell to enlarge the chair and sat beside her, pulling her into a wing hug. “What is wrong my niece?” Celestia asked though she had a good idea what was bothering her. “Shining and I just had our first fight, he’s acting like a stubborn foal and refuses to admit he might have been even remotely wrong!” Cadence spoke in a teary growl. “I figured as such.” Celestia said with a slight giggle, “Don’t worry. It’s normal for a married couple. Granted it happened much sooner than even I expected but it was bound to happen. I talked some sense into him though. So you can calm down.” “... You really got him to see some sense? Figures that if anypony could, it would be you,” Cadence said with a chuckle, “How did you do it?” “First shall I say; really? A stallion see sense? Once in a blue moon. And you know how stingy Lulu is with those.” Celestia said with a giggle, “I just forced him to think, actually. What foal, no matter what situation, has any working knowledge of Demonology outside of fiction? Really. But the key is knowing when and when not to burst your stallions delusions of dominance and control.” She explained with a mischievous glint in her eyes. Cadence giggled, “True, we can’t break them too fast. It would be no fun otherwise! … Thanks Auntie…” Celestia smiled, “Well, now that you’re feeling better perhaps you can tell me about the foals; Shifting Space and Inanis I believe?” Celestia asked. “You mean besides doing all they could to rile Shining and I up? They were wonderful, if a little too mature for their ages… whatever they are. How old are they anyway?” Cadence asked. Celestia thought for a few moments, “They haven’t been very forthcoming with their ages, but from what we can tell from their appearance and hints Lulu got from Inanis; Shifting Space, the Unicorn, is around 11 or 12 years old, whereas Inanis is around 8 or 9 years old…” she answered. “Really? Inanis is the younger one? He’s both larger physically and acts the elder compared to Shifting…” Cadence asked, clearly bemused at this information. “It’s actually not that strange you know.” Celestia said with a smile, “Lulu and I were like that when we were fillies. However we switched places when it was discovered I had a better talent for politics then Lulu. She always was the Warrior Princess, you know. But what I mean is how are they emotionally? What did your empathy tell you?” “They seemed… panicked, though they hide it well. I think they were surprised to wake up this morning and find that their being here wasn’t just a dream. They also seem to be… testing… every adult pony they come across, seeing if any of them act like the adults they are used to. Shifting and Inanis are clearly lost as to what to do right now, as far as I could tell.” The Love Princess answered. Celestia frowned at that, “Poor dears… if only we could get a better idea where they lived and I could send an inquisition without a problem! But all we got was a very vague direction and that they were close to some body of water… I can’t just have every port in the north inspected! Well… not without having to deal with dozens of pissy nobles…” She grumbled as the rubbed her temples. “I will do my best to get more information out of them, but I’d rather not drag up such bad memories if I can help it…” Cadence promised, clearly uncomfortable with said promise. “Bah! I’ll just send the inquisition to every port and lake town in the north!” Celestia said, “It’s hardly the most outrageous thing I’ve done in the past thousand years! Besides, simply narrowing the location down at the price of further traumatizing the foals isn’t worth it!” Mi Amore Cadenza sighed in relief, “Agreed. And besides, something about their story screams ‘organization’ to me, maybe this way we can track down said organization should it exist and wipe it out!” She growled at the thought of so many ponies being involved in such a thing, “Though, I do recommend keeping an eye on any nobles that vehemently object to such an inquisition.” “Indubitably.” Celestia acknowledged in a mock-snooty tone. “Well, Auntie, what do you say we indulge in some vices for now?” Cadence suggested slyly. Celestia grinned evilly, “Why, Cadence, I like the way you think…” “”TO THE KITCHENS!”” They spoke in unison. “For Tiramisu!” “For Cake!” They spoke at the same time. “... We are not getting into this argument again… Tiramisu Cake?” Celestia suggested. Her niece nodded sagely, “With Hot Chocolate,” She added. “With Hot Chocolate.” The Sun Diarch agreed, and so it shall be.