The Princess's Guilt
“Again! You need to stay focused! Concentrate!”
“I know I’m trying!” Celestia watched as Cadence trained against three of the Royal Guard Captains, flying flawlessly and dodging their tackles and blasts. One managed to hit her wing and she spun, making sure to smash into one of the guards and hold him up as the others blasted at her. She whispered a small apology before tossing the groaning stallion aside. She rolled and punched another in the helmet making her shake her hoof in pain. Turning she found the third captain had his horn at her throat. “Crud…”
“Sorry Princess you’re dead.” Celestia sighed giving the captain permission to take his colleagues to the hospital wing. Spike had been watching the whole training session, usually he would be hanging out with Blueblood or Shining but his Heart and Hooves day plan had backfired as his cousin had been spending more time out of the castle with Scarlet and Shining had training also. Cadence looked away from the princess as she walked up to her niece and student.
“Cadenza, why did you not use your horn to attack instead of getting close to your enemy and leaving yourself open?” Cadence kept looking away but now looked hurt at Celestia’s disappointed tone.
“Y-you know why…” Celestia blinked, realizing what she was doing to her niece, she was repeating a past mistake that had pushed away a student before. She was being a teacher with no love. She gently kneed down and hugged her.
“I’m sorry Cadence, I know it’s hard sometimes but I’m not trying to punish you by doing this. Admitting our problems is the first step to fixing them.” Cadence nuzzling her aunt’s chest before taking a deep breath and nodding.
“I… I’m not used to my horn yet… even after all these years of training I still can’t make it do what I want all the time… I’m sick of trying only to fail… I’m no fighter. No leader like you, I use my magic to calm the heart but all this sparring feels… wrong…”
“You were born a pegasus, flying is part of who you are but since you became a princess this horn is too. Fillies take years to be able to simply turn the page of a book with magic but I’ve been expecting you to master advanced magic so quickly. I’ve forgotten what it’s like to be new to this. No, you aren’t me and maybe I shouldn’t be forcing you to be but you must understand that as a princess fighting is unavoidable. You have so much power and potential but I should remember that you are still just a young girl. I have been pushing you so much out of misplaced fear and and I’m sorry for that.”
“I-it’s not your fault!” Celestia smiled and messed up Cadence’s hair.
“I’m not sure about that, I see now that I am forcing something that must come in time. You told me that you managed to beat that stranger who attacked you, Spike, and Shining at that stadium. There you used your magic right?”
“Yes… but there I did it out of instinct and the horn obeyed. I was…”
“Protecting things you loved, love is what your magic is. You are part of a very special lineage where love has always been their strongest power. All those who came before you have passed onto you a great gift and a burden. Becoming a princess at your age was something I could never have foreseen but I know that you will one day become a princess who will become the brightest light in the darkness.”
“I’m not ready…”
“No, you are not but you don’t have to be. Do not forget my little one that you are never alone. Never forget that we will always be by your side to help, isn’t that right Spike?” Celestia asked smiling over at her son who jumped at being mentioned but smiled quickly and rushed to the one he loved as a sister.
“Yep! I’ll always be by your side! I love you!” Cadence giggled and nuzzled the dragon’s head.
“I know, thank you Spike and thank you Auntie. I’ll do my best and make you proud.” Celestia nodded and smiled at the small display. Their moment was taken as an aide rushed in apologizing to Spike and Cadence before whispering to Celestia and she sighed before nodding.
“Very well, I shall handle it. I’m sorry my little ones but something urgent has come up. I’ll be back by tonight, Cadence you’re in charge of Spike while I’m gone.”
“W-what?! But I’m big enough to watch myself!”
“You heard her Spike.” Cadence giggled at Spike’s pout and the two waved as the princess flew away. “Hmm well seeing that we have the rest of the afternoon off what should we do?”
“We can sneak into Blueblood’s room and play with his action figures, putting them into other poses to mess with him.”
“Heh it’s like talking to a younger me. Let’s go then.” Spike happily climbed onto the Princess’s back while they flew to Blueblood’s room. “How have your lessons been going Spike?”
“Okay, I’m learning to drum now and I can write a lot more than just my name now! Ink told me soon I’ll be writing my own books hehe. Mom said that she’ll teach me to cook soon.”
“Wow, they really keep you busy don’t they? Spike, are you happy here? How do you deal with how lonely it must be here? I go crazy after a few days and that’s even with school and stuff.” Spike tapped on his chin in thought.
“I guess… I am happy. I do want to go see the world and become a hero like all the stories that mom reads to me before bed, but… Everypony I love is here so I’m happy.” He cuddled into her mane and Cadence smiled at such a caring answer.
“What about the hero getting to save a beautiful princess~?” Spike made a gagging face.
“Yuck! I don’t what to have some mare by my side all the time, besides you are the only princess besides mommy and you have your knight already.” Cadence blushed and glared at Spike.
“I am not married yet Spike so I still have options… but only one that I like to consider. You are still little, I bet you won’t always be like that, a few more years and I bet you’ll be a classic casanova~ I mean you have the Princess of Love here to teach you.”
“I’ll be a what?”
“Nothing! Just a silly adult term. Now how about we have some playtime?” The two entered Bluebloods room and after an hour walked out proud of their work. “Very nice idea you had there Spike, can’t wait to see his face when he gets back.”
“Thanks Cady! Umm, Cadence?”
“Yes Spike?”
“I forgot the ruby I was sucking on last night when I slept with mama. Can we go into her room real quick and get it?”
“I don’t know, usually Aunt Celestia doesn’t like us in her room without her here…” Spike pouted and gave a puppy-eyed look.
“P-pweaseeee?”
“Ugh my heart… fine but as long as we’re quick.” They passed by guards who bowed politely and Cadence noticed two stopped and stood in front of the princess’s room. ‘Hmm, pretty sure Aunt Celestia put those guards there so they may not listen to an order from me… but if we get that gem maybe Spike will take a nap and I can visit Shining while he’s training!’
Cadence came up with a plan where she rushed back to Blueblood’s room, coming out after a few minutes now dressed as a Royal guard. She marched to the bedroom, leaving Spike at the corner so suspension wouldn’t be raised. She put her hair in her helmet and coughed making sure her voice sounded deeper.
“Evening fellas! I’m here to relieve one of you for break.” The two guards looked confused at each other and then at the smaller guard.
“Umm, we didn’t send for a replacement.”
“T-true but the captain thought you must be getting tired just standing here all day and… Oh! Princess Cadence wanted to ensure that all guards were being treated more fairly! More breaks and things…”
“That makes sense I hear that the princess is fancying that new recruit Armor. She probably wants to make sure that she has more time with him.” One guard said with a smile while the other chuckled.
“Ahh young love, I remember how I was with my sweetheart when I first became a guard. We used to sneak away every chance we had, her father would throw things at me whenever he saw me.” The guards laughed while Cadence was blushing and made a mental note to hunt down who is spreading rumors of her and Shining.
“Y-yes so who wants a break?”
“You can go Banner, I actually ate before my shift so I’ll be fine.”
“If you’re sure, thanks Axe.” Banner left and the guard called axe smiled at Cadence as she took her place next to him.
“I guess you must be part of that group of mare guards that the princess sends out into Equestria uncover. I used to feel put off that there were guards who pretended to be regular everyday ponies especially after learning that they were all mares but now I feel safer with that fact. I’m Golden Axe, it’s a pleasure to meet y-” Golden Axe stopped mid sentence as Cadence touched her horn to his small bit of exposed neck. She used the single spell she had nearly mastered, a sleep spell she mostly used on Twilight whenever the girl would get angry and catch fire. The one downside was that she needed to touch the pony with her horn to use the spell.
Axe fell unconscious and Cadence apologized as she called Spike to her and they entered the bedroom. The gemstone in question was on the bed where Spike left it and he happily jumped on the bed, snatching it from the air. Cadence shook her head as Spike chomped down on the stone. “I see your manners when it comes to gems is the same as Auntie’s with cake heh.” Her giggling was cut off when there was a bang nearby. The two turned to the corner of the room and Cadence pulled Spike to her back. “What was that?”
“T-the guilt! A scary sound that sometimes comes at night! Mama says it can’t hurt us and she usually holds me until I fall asleep.”
“Guilt…?”
“Yep that is what mama calls it but i’m not sure what that means.” Cadence glanced back at where the sound came from, she knew that this wasn’t her business and the princess must have kept it hidden for a reason but why would she be guilty of? She turned to leave and was just about to cross the doorway when another sound came.
“Ce...les...tia…” Cadence’s eyes widened, whatever this guilt was it could speak like a pony! She rushed back into the room and towards the sound, Spike shivered and shook holding onto her mane but had heard the voice also and was curious under the fear. She moved the dresses and extra ornaments until a chest remained. It was too small to hold a pony but Cadence felt great pain coming from it, a pain born from love or from the destruction of love.
“Cady I’m scared…”
“I know… I am too.” Cadence reached out to the chest when magic erupted from the lock on it and pulled her close, her face now close to the lock and she froze when she looked at the lock and she could see an eye looking back at her from in the chest.
“Who… are… you!?” More magic came from the box and touched Cadence’s eye, and her life flashed by in a moment before Spike bit the magic’s hold and pulled Cadence away from the chest by her mane.
“Ow! What did it just…”
“SHE… REPLACED… ME!?!?! WITH YOU TWO!!!” The voice inside the chest roared as it shook and the magic ripped the chest apart. Cadence and Spike watched as dark blobs of something oozed out of the chest and took the form of a pony. She was Cadence’s size with wings and a horn, no cutie mark, and eyes that glowed with hatred and pain. “A thousand years of saying how sorry she is just to replace me with you!”
“We don’t know what you’re talking about!”
“If she loves you two so much… then I’ll make her suffer!” Cadence knew a threat when she heard one and shouted at Spike to hold on as she rocketed towards the door. Guilt teleported and sneered at Cadence. “You fear using your magic, you can’t get away from me!”
“We’ll see about that!” She turned and braced herself as she smashed through the glass doors that led to the balcony, and jumped off. Spike screamed as the fell for a bit before Cadence allowed her wings to open and zoomed back into the sky. She turned as Guilt opened her own wings which looked to be bat-like and flew after all, blasting at her with her horn. Cadence flawlessly dodged the blasts and kept one step ahead of her with Spike shouting which direction the blasts were coming from. “Canterlot or the castle will get hit at this rate!”
“Princess!” Several pegasus guards rushed to Cadence’s aid, distracting Guilt and blocking some of her weaker blasts with their armor. “We await your orders!” Cadence froze as this was what she never wanted, but looking down at the city and then at castle she took a deep breath. Opening them was not the same girl that closed them, this was a princess.
“Prince Spike and I will hold the foe off while I want all of you to evacuate the castle and upper portions of the city, get them away from the castle until this is done, move the city’s shield to focus on the citizens!” The guard nodded and ordered the two others to continue helping Cadence as he raced to the castle.
“C-can we win Cadence?” Spike’s shivering voice as he looked up at Guilt fighting.
“I think… no, I know we can! I’ll need your help though Spike, now’s your time to be a hero just like in those old stories Auntie reads to you.” Spike blinked as he thought about those stories and nodded now filled with confidence. She smiled at him and then they glared at Guilt, rushing at her as she tried to stab one guard with her horn. They slammed into her and Cadence kicked her away and flipped as Guilt shot another beam.
“Stay still you fake princess!”
“Hey Cady is the real one here!”
“SILENCE!” She rushed at them with Cadence readying herself to counter when Guilt teleported and appeared above them.
“Cadence!! Move!” Spike shouted looking up to see a blast coming and hitting Cadence’s left wing. The princess of love shouted out in pain and glided to a castle balcony where she crashed and Spike rolled off her back.
“No more fancy flying with that wing! Take this!” Spike ran over and tried to cover Cadence from the next attack with his body but heard an explosion behind him. He turned to see Shining Armor standing there with a shield made of magic. “Ugh they’re like rats.”
“Shining!”
“Spike is she okay?!” Cadence groaned and then smiled a bit looking up at him and shook her head to clear it. “Sweetie you should stay-”
“No! If that thing wants to hurt my family and kingdom then she’ll face me! I won’t stand aside!” Shining blinked and then nodded as she stood beside him. “We’ll go back up there and give you a shot. When she’s open you take it Cadet Armor.”
“As your order Princess.” Cadence kissed Shining on the cheek and turned back to Spike.
“You ready?” Spike steeled his nerves and tore some of the balcony curtains, tying it around Cadence’s wing. He climbed on and pointed at Guilt.
“Ready!” The two shot back into the sky with the two guards from before backing up as Cadence’s horn was sparking and she uppercutted Guilt right under the chin and shouted as she blasted the bat pony. Guilt twisted with her own dark magic shielding her as she drilled through Cadence’s blast and knocked her back with a slap of her hoof.
“You fool, you can’t beat me!” Guilt shouted as her horn glowed with black magic and she moved her head in a blur, causing sword-like slashes of magic to shoot at Cadence.
“And I can’t afford to lose!” She powered up her horn and created a pink shield around them. One of the slashes shattered her shield and she used her magic to get the shattered shield pieces and shoot them back like a thousand pieces of glass. Guilt moved out of the way when a green wall of fire blocked her escape. She roared in rage as clouds swirled around her and turned dark, blocking out the sun and only showing her figure when lightning illuminated it for a moment. Cadence and Spike looked around nervously as they searched for any sign of her, only for Cadence to be hit across the face. Again and again from what seemed to be all directions, Spike jumped and blew fire all around them. With the moment something broke through he shouted at Cadence who shot a huge blast of energy at the location.
Guilt was struck back but used her horn to absorb Cadence’s attack. “This ends now! So much for love!” She shot back an enormous beam which Cadence shouted and met with one of her own. The two attacks meeting destroyed any nearby clouds. Cadence gritted her teeth as she struggled to hold up against Guilt’s power, with her magic slowly being pushed back towards her until green flames joined her blast.
“S-Spike… just a bit more! Don’t give up!” Cadence whispered as they seemed even when more magic struck Guilt in the back. She glanced away from the fight to see Shining Armor shooting another attack at her.
“You leave them alone! Now!” Dozens of attacks shot towards her as the guards had returned from their mission and attacked together, hitting her in the back and causing her to drop her attack, being hit by Cadence’s and Spike’s. She remained flying if only barely and glared at Cadence through one uninjured eye.
“So… this is how it ends? Well I’ll go out with a bang then!” Cadence tackled her started to fly her back to the ground. “W-What are you doing!?” Cadence stared at Guilt’s eyes and found something buried deep down in them, a spark of light. This spark flashed her back to when she was a simple pegasus in way over her head as she stood against an enchantress. She didn’t fight back then, she used her heart to heal what was broken. This was the moment where she became a princess.
Cadence slowly hugged Guilt, giving her all the love she could. The dark pony gasped feeling something she thought had long died, only for this girl to revive it. The three slammed into the castle’s labyrinth and as the dust settled, Spike coughed and shouted for Cadence. He held his arm and found his cousin laying on her side unconscious with Guilt standing over her. Spike rushed and slid on her knees between them, holding out his little arms in an effort to separate them.
“N-no… I-I won’t let you… hurt her…” Guilt stared down at the young dragon and softly used her magic to touch his eyes where she saw a flash of his short life with one memory playing out fully.
. . .
A crying baby Spike laying in Celestia’s arms as she tried to comfort him but he only stopped when she began to sing.
For you I waited for so long
Now to hear your little yawn
There’s no need to fear the night
In every shadow lays a sparkle of light
Calm your cry for a mother is near
I’ll always be here to sooth your fear
So hush and be still
You seem so strong for one so young
A dragon, a pony
It matters not to me
For I can see all that you will be
A hero, a friend, a prince
But above all
The dream that I hold for you
Is be happy and kind.
Spike slept in her hold while sucking on his tail and she kissed him goodnight, crying as she stared up at the moon. “Sweet dreams this beautiful night Luna… I won’t fail again, not this time. I won’t be blind.”
. . .
Guilt stepped away from Spike as her legs gave up and she fell to the ground on her back. He blinked and rushed to her side as her breathing began to slow.
“W-what’s going on?!”
“Heh… it seems that my time has come. Time for rest…”
“N-no! We can help you!” Guilt chuckled as she looked to the baby dragon as he cried.
“Tears? For me? Why?”
“Because he cares for everything…” Cadence said as she woke and stumbled over to Spike’s side and hugged him. She stared down at her foe and then to the wounds that were across her body. “This is the end…”
“Yes… but I feel. I lived in hate and pain but you, both of you, healed my heart and given me peace… I was nothing but a shadow, a fake with no emotion of my own. Now in these last few moments, I exist… I’m real…” She reached out for Spike and he gently took her hoof as the sun began to set above them. “I’m sorry… for leaving you all with so much pain, for passing my burden onto both of you. The past never died just as her memories and love never waned. It’s only fitting that I see my last sunset with the two who brought the sun back into her life. Never… let her go through life alone… please…” Spike nodded and held the hoof against his chest while Cadence touched Guilt’s chest where her heart was slowing but she felt love flowing freely from it.
“Goodnight… Guilt.”
“Sweet Dreams… my little ones...” She glowed and offered Spike a last smile as she cried and vanished into golden sparkles that glowed like a million stars in the moonlight before they were gone. Spike stared at the sparkles and cried as he held Cadence.
“Shh. It’s okay Spike I got you.” The voices of guards, Shining, and Blueblood could be heard getting closer as Cadence held Spike. “You couldn’t save her Spike.”
“B-b-but the hero always wins… they save everyone in the stories…”
“Heroes save all that they can but sometimes that isn’t everyone. You saved me, you’re my hero.” Spike sobs slowly stopped and he looked up at her.
“I-is she happy?” Cadence thought about the question and looked up at the moon where she smiled gently and pointed up.
“I think so…” Spike looked up to see a new star glowing brightly and he smiled falling asleep in her arms.
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Great Story! Just Wondering, Not Trying To Sound Rude/Impatient, But When's Chapter 5? If There Even Will Be One.
10092550
No worries I have chapter five actually nearly done. I was gone for a long time, writer's block and family issues and then my laptop broke. After getting this new one I had to reread all my stories and then start writing again. I have almost chapter for each of my stories and chapters for new stories. I plan to have a week of just updating things maybe starting tomorrow or the next day. There will be a chapter 5 I promise that, the next chapter will be on the Summer Sun Festival and Spike will meet his life-long friend.
10092713
Ah, I Was A Little Concerned About This Being Cancelled, But Take Your Time, Sorry For All Your Going Through, And This Story Is So Good, It's Really Fun Reading, Chapter 5, Here We Come!
10093389
Nah I was just going through things, I am getting plenty of art done too. even got one for this story
10093456
Awesome!
10093705
If you wanna see what I got so far for one of my new stories I'm always looking for feedback and could use a editor.
10093800
I Mean Sure, I Could Give An Editor Job A Shot.
10093962
I'll send it over in the morning then it's pretty late. Thanks for the help
10093981
No Problem Man! Happy To Help.