//------------------------------//
// Love is Blind 
// Story: Broken: Love 
// by Knackerman 
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	As the darkness had faded from the kingdom, the new day outside had been freed from the pall that had dimmed its life giving light. It was a beautiful day outside.The sun was shining, birds were singing.  On a day like today, it was a shame that Starlight found herself in the dimly lit throne room. Though Shining Armor had shown her the way back inside, he'd refrained from following Starlight, and the unicorn found herself standing alone before Princess Cadence. 

The Princess looked exhausted. Starlight could see why she didn't want anyone to see her like this. Though the golden glow of the Crystal Heart, fueled by the love of her daughter, had cleansed her, it had left her drained. Heavy bags sagged under her eyes from all her crying and, more than likely, lack of sleep. Her hair drooped, as did her wings, both looking greasy and in need of a good grooming. Even so, her eyes lit up as they settled on Starlight. Though Cadence was slumped on her throne, she cradled her daughter gently on her lap. All the excitement had tuckered the Flurry Heart out. It wouldn't be long before she would awake, hungry for her breakfast, but for now the room was blissfully quiet.

Indeed, Starlight had the undeniable sense that she was intruding, and that despite what Shining Armor had said, she was not welcome here.

Just as she was about to excuse herself and turn to leave, Princess Cadence spoke. "I'm glad you decided to speak with me Starlight," Cadence uttered, in the sad, haggard tones of the truly weary. "I fear I may not be up to speaking to the others for some time. And while my husband has been very understanding, I don't think he really can understand. Not like you might."

"Understand what, your majesty?" asked Starlight, perplexed.

"What it means to be the villain," replied Cadence bluntly. Starlight was taken aback, and it must have shown, because a strange smile crossed the Princess's face. "Am I wrong?"

Starlight Glimmer didn't know what to say at first. Here Twilight and the others had just been praising her as some kind of hero, and now this. But Cadence wasn't wrong. No matter what excuses Starlight might make, about her past or about her good intentions, Equestria would always know her as a villain... Albeit a reformed one. "I suppose not your highness. Though does that mean you consider yourself to have been a villain?"

It was Cadence's turn to be taken aback, "How could I not? I enslaved the ponies of Equestria, forced them to bend to my will, and plotted to steal away all of their happiness." Though she smiled, tears rolled afresh down her cheeks. "I twisted my power to inspire love into something truly terrifying, and very nearly unleashed Despair upon the entire world."

"Was that truly your doing, or Despair's?" challenged Starlight.

"Does it matter?" asked Cadence, her eyes going cold. "Even if everypony believes I was simply a victim of circumstance, I will still know. I will still remember what it was like to plot Equestria's destruction. What it was like to hurt the ones closest to me because of my selfishness... Because of my weakness." She looked  down at her sleeping daughter, and her smile turned somewhat manic, not unlike the one the demonic entity Despair had worn. "I very nearly destroyed my own child because I was afraid to ask for help, because I was terrified of what everypony else would think of me. How can I live with that guilt?"

"But you didn't destroy her Cadence," declared Starlight as she climbed the slope to the crystal throne. "When you were in the very depths of Despair, you reached out to Sunburst and I. You asked us to help you. If it were not for your actions, we would have all been overwhelmed by Despair!"

"And that's supposed to make up for everything else?" asked Cadence, as she clutched her daughter tight to her chest. Flurry Heart grumbled in her sleep, uncomfortable in the sudden tight embrace. 

"No, of course not." The Princess looked like she was about to burst into tears before Starlight quickly continued, "The way you make up for past mistakes is by apologizing for them, and learning to forgive yourself, even as you ask forgiveness of others. Obsessing over your past mistakes doesn't make you a better pony. Learning from those mistakes, becoming a better person because of them, and moving forward is the only way you can ever make up for what you've done."

"How can you stand it?" sobbed Cadence in disbelief. "How can you stand there and say that to me, knowing what I almost did? What I had convinced myself I wanted to do?"

"Because like you said, your grace, I was a villain," replied Starlight. "Emphasis on the was," she continued, wrapping both mother and daughter in a tight hug. "Somepony helped me, when I was in a very dark place, and I didn't really know how much harm I was doing... To myself as much as to everypony around me. It's only fair that I do the same now. We will get you the help you need Cadence. And this doesn't have to be the moment that defines you."

Princess Cadence lost it then. Huge, heaving sobs wracked her body as she shook in Starlight's embrace. However, it was different from the tears she had shed before. These were not the hopeless sobs of someone lost in despair. These were the tears of someone who, despite everything, had been offered absolution.





Starlight rejoined the others. Discord and the rest of Twilight's friends had taken their leave, as had the Royal Sisters. They would call again another day, when things had a chance to settle down. There were many bewildered citizens to tend to after all, and arraigning for their travel home would be a task all unto itself. 

For once, Twilight had chosen not to be at the center of the action, and had instead chosen to wait with Sunburst, Spike, and her big brother. "So, how did it go?" she asked, as her pupil re-appeared. 

Though there were still a few tears at the corners of Starlight's eyes, Twilight's question made her grin, "About as well as can be expected I suppose, under the circumstances." Spike, ever the faithful assistant, offered Starlight a tissue that she used to dabbed at her eyes. "Given enough time, and with the right kind of help, I'm sure she'll pull through. She's an incredibly strong person."

"I know," replied Twilight with a grin of her own. "So what's next for my star pupil? Any other Empire's need saving, or ancient evils you want to vanquish?"

"Now Twilight, you're not jealous are you?" teased Shining Armor, in typical big brotherly fashion.

"Of course not!" chided Twilight. "I just think it's only fair that the heroes of the hour choose what we do next."

At just that moment, Spike's stomach grumbled loudly,"Er... I don't know about you guys, but I could really do with some breakfast." As if the words themselves had quickened their appetites, Starlight and Sunburst's stomachs growled in unison as well. The pair blushed, but the Sparkle siblings only laughed.

"If I know Chef, even during a catastrophe like this, he's probably been busy brow beating everypony back into the kitchens," mused Shining Armor. "It would be my honor if you would all join me for a Royal Breakfast."

"Oh, but I couldn't!" protested Sunburst. "This whole episode will have thrown off my schedule for your daughters teaching for days! And there's the reagents for the spells I was going to teach her for today to pick up. I have no idea if the shop even survived all the fighting that happened earlier. And then theres-"

Twilight raised a hoof. "Sunburst, take it from somepony who knows. There's always time, in any schedule, no matter how skewed it becomes... for breakfast. Right, Spike?"

"You said it 'pancake'," replied her dragon faithfully, the pair winking at an inside joke.

"Well, I suppose a few moments wouldn't hurt. And there's no point in worrying on an empty stomach," admitted Sunburst.

"And I imagine it would give you two some much needed time to catch up," added Twilight with a knowing grin as she looked between Sunburst and Starlight.

The pair of unicorn's both started to sweat, "Yes, well!" yelped Starlight, her voice higher pitched than normal. "I'm sure we could all use the time to catch up."

"Indeed," agreed Sunburst.

As the motley crew moved down the halls towards the distant sounds and smells of breakfast, nopony noticed a small shadow slither surreptitiously out of sight.