Magic of Love: A Twidance Prompt Collab

by ArguingPizza

Shroud by palaikai

by palaikai
~~~

Feeling Shining Armour's forelegs snake around her waist would normally have been enough to buoy her mood, but Princess Mi Amore Cadenza – or Cadance for short – was unable to shake off the funk that had settled over her since the events of the wedding.

“What's the matter, my love?” he asked tenderly. “I knocked, but there was no answer.”

“Oh,” sighed Cadance, trying to force her frustration out through the tiny, inefficient funnels of her nostrils and mouth. “I'm just tired, I guess. It's been a trying few weeks.”

“No arguments here,” agreed Shining Armour, trying to put a touch of barely-felt levity into his tone. Of all the things that could possibly befall their wedding day, nopony had expected a Changeling Army – with Cadance herself replaced by the Hive's Queen – to attack. The love felt between the couple had been a strong attractor, and Chrysalis had been able to sate her followers appetites for weeks before Twilight Sparkle, Shining Armour's sister, had uncovered the ruse.

“Still,” he continued, rubbing his wife's back tenderly, “they're gone now, and Equestria is safe from becoming their new feeding ground. I think that we've earned a good night's rest.”

“In a minute,” Cadance said, extracting herself from his grasp. Shining Armour looked at her and she shot him a smile. “I'm still a little tense,” she explained, her eyes glittering in the pale moonlight streaming in through the open window. “I wouldn't be very good company until I've unwound a little.”

Shining Armour accepted this with a nod. “I'll see you in a little while, then. If you need anything ...”

“I know,” Cadance replied affectionately.

The light pink alicorn walked through the castle in a distracted daze; her head felt like it was being held underwater, and memories – not just memories, but thoughts, desires, she had long kept suppressed – came unbidden, breaching the surface until they were laid bare and she could no longer hide from their accusations.

Chrysalis had sensed a strong bond of love, but she hadn't realised that, in Cadance's case, it was directed toward an entirely different pony altogether. If the Changeling Queen had been able to break the shroud on her heart, things might've turned out very different.

Tears began to stream down her face, as she was forced to confront her selfishness. She loved Shining Armour, but there was another that she cherished more than him. It had begun as an innocent crush in her fillyhood, but it had blossomed over the years, and now it was a fire that threatened to consume her.

Twilight loved her back; Cadance could sense that much, but she also knew that it was merely the platonic love one felt for a close friend. The same type of fondness she sensed between the unicorn and her five closest companions. It was powerful, yes, but compared to the depths of true love … it was hollow, incomplete. A poor pony's substitute.

But one that would have to suffice. She would take what she could from Twilight Sparkle and be grateful for it, but always left wanting more … not unlike Queen Chrysalis and her followers, in that regard.

Cadance peeked into the bedroom; Shining Armour was on the verge of sleep, but he was restless, constantly shifting position. He deserved so much more than her. Somepony loyal and true, and not a hussy who desired the warmth of another body.