Chapter 5: Gleaming Shield's First Day of School
My Dearest Twilight,
I hope that you are doing well. I’m so sorry that I wasn't able to join my husband when he arrived the other day; unfortunately I haven’t been feeling well for a while now, and I didn’t want to add further stress to my condition. However, I am happy to say that my condition has improved, so I will be on the next train to Ponyville, and should be arriving in two days. Anyway, I better start packing my bags, my train leaves first thing in the morning.
With lots of love,
Your favorite foalsitter, and sister-in-law,
Princess Cadence
P.S. Please don’t tell Shining Armor that I am coming; I want it to be a surprise.
Twilight swallowed hard as she reread Cadence’s letter for the hundredth time. Ever since Derpy had delivered it yesterday, Twilight had to stop her research every fifteen minutes to read through the contents of the letter; her sister-in-law’s message had been very straight forward, but the young alicorn couldn’t help but hope that she might have somehow misinterpreted Cadence’s words. But no matter how many times she looked at the letter, there was no denying the horrifying truth that Cadence would be arriving in Ponyville in two days.
The young mare sat bolt upright and hid the letter between the pages of a book when she heard the unmistakable sound of tiny hoofsteps on the stairs.
“Morning Twily,” the Shining Armor yawned, as he wiped his eyes with a hoof and made his way over to join his sister at the table. “Is there any coffee? I could really use a cup if I’m going to go to school with the Crusaders.”
“Huh, wah,” was all could Twilight manage, “school?”
Shining Armor looked up at his sister quizzically
“Yeah, remember? I told you last night that those fillies want to take me to school with them.”
“Oh, yeah, I remember.” She really didn’t; Twilight had been so caught up in both her studying and worrying about what she would do about Cadence’s arrival, that anything her brother might have told her went completely unheard. “There should be a little coffee left in the pot. Would you like me to get it for you?”
Shining Armor shook his head.
“No, I think I can get it…somehow.”
Shining Armor got off the floor, and trotted into the small kitchen area where he found a percolator on one of the stove’s burners. When he reached the stove, he stood up on his hind legs and reached for the percolator, but it was just out of his reach. Come on, he thought, jumping and wiggling his forelegs in an attempt to reach his goal, stupid short legs, maybe I could…no wait, magic’s out of the question. Shining Armor cringed as he remembered how the simple spell that he had tried to cast to separate Diamond Tiara and the colt the other day had utterly failed.
Heaving a heavy sigh, Shining Armor called out to his sister.
“Twily, will you help me?”
Without rising from her spot in the other room, Twilight levitated a ceramic mug from the cupboard above the counter and brought it over to the stove and poured a fair helping of the hot coffee into it before placing the percolator back on the stove and lowering the mug so her brother could hook his foal sized hoof through the handle.
“Thank you.” Shining Armor slowly made his way back to the table and began sipping his coffee. “So how’s it coming?” He asked, watching his sister as she read through several books at the same time.
Twilight nearly lost control of the spell that suspended her books.
“Coming,” she said with a start, “nopony’s coming!”
Shining Armor cocked his head in confusion.
“What are you talking abo-”
A sudden knock at the door cut him off.
“Somepony’s here,” Twilight said, “I better go see who it is.” The alicorn rose from her seat, and rushed to the door.
What’s got her acting all jumpy this morning, Shining Armor thought as he took another sip of his coffee. The little pony looked up at all the books that lay on the table. Wow Twily, he thought, you’ve really been busy. I can’t thank you eno… Shining Armor’s thoughts drifted off when something caught his eye; sticking out from between the pages of one of the books on the table was a folded piece of pink paper similar to the stationary that Cadence used. His curiosity peaked, Shining Armor stood up on his hind legs, and grabbed the piece of paper in his teeth.
“Shi - I mean - Gleaming Shield, the Crusaders are here to take you to sch - NO, DON’T TOUCH THAT!”
Twilight pushed her brother aside to keep him from discovering Cadence’s letter.
“Ow, what did you do that for?”
“Oops, sorry, it’s just that, uh, I’m using that piece of paper as a, um, bookmark. Yup, that’s right, a book mark. It’s in a very important place, and if you remove it then it would take me even longer to, uh…” she looked over at the three little fillies in her doorway, “it would take me even longer to complete this very important spell. You wouldn’t want to ruin my work, now would you?”
Shining Armor blushed.
“No, I wouldn’t,” he said, “sorry, Twily.”
“It’s alright, everything’s fine.” The alicorn levitated her brother’s mug onto the table, and started nudging him towards the door. “Now go on; you don’t want to keep your friends waiting.”
“Yeah, come on Gleamin’ Shield,” Apple Bloom called, “we’ll be late for school if you don’t hurry it up now.”
Shining Armor walked the rest of the way, only stopping when he reached the door to look back at Twilight, who was smiling nervously.
“Have a great day at school Gleaming Shield,” she called.
All Shining Armor could do was give her another confused look, before turning back around and hoping in the red wagon.
…
It didn’t take long for the four little ponies to arrive at Ponyville’s schoolhouse, which was a red building with a bell and tower on top of it, and a playground in the front yard where many fillies and colts were playing happily, enjoying the few free minutes they had before class started. The schoolhouse itself was much smaller than the one Shining Armor had attended as a colt, but like all of the other buildings in town, it had a simple, rustic charm about it that he found to be a wonderful alternative to the hustle and bustle he grew up with in Canterlot.
“So this is it, huh?” Shining Armor asked as the scooter came to a stop at a post.
“Yup, this is our school,” Scootaloo said, as she jumped off her scooter, pulled a lock and chain from one of the pockets of her saddlebag, using it to lock her scooter to the post. “I know it’s probably not as fancy as your school back in Canterlot, but we do have one of the greatest teachers in all of Equestria…speaking of which, we should probably ask Miss Cheerilee if it’s ok if you come to class with us.”
Shining Armor slapped a hoof to his face.
“Wait,” he said, “you brought me all the way down here without asking if it would be alright for me to go to class with you.”
“Well, no,” Sweetie Belle said as she hopped out of the wagon, and readjusted her saddlebag, “but we figured that Miss Cheerilee wouldn’t mind. She loves teaching, and you must be missing some time from school to be here; it would be irresponsible of her not to let you join us.”
Shining Armor thought for a moment; Sweetie Belle was right, it was the obligation for a teacher to accept any student into his or her class, regardless of who they were or where they were from. Not every teacher agreed with this rule, but there were severe consequences for those who didn’t. Shining Armor recalled a bad memory from his youth:
...
When Shining Armor was just a colt, there was a teacher at his school (one whom he had never had) who was fired because he had refused to teach a student for seemingly no particular reason. It wasn’t until Shining Armor was a few years older that he learned that the student in question had been a griffon, and for reasons unknown, the teacher had hated griffons and didn’t want one in his class, afraid she would be too much trouble to teach. In the end, the teacher had been fired, and the griffon had gone on to graduate at the top of her class.
...
With that thought in mind, Shining Armor breathed a sigh of relief, mainly because it meant that he wouldn’t have to walk all the way back to the library by himself; while he didn’t mind traveling together with the Cutie Mark Crusaders, walking alone, trapped in a filly’s body, made Shining Armor feel…exposed.
Shining Armor followed the three fillies as they made their way past the playing ponies, and up the steps into the schoolhouse. While the outside of the building looked simple and rustic, the inside looked just as much like a classroom as the ones he had been in when he went to school in Canterlot. There were rows of empty desks in the center of the room, and three of the four walls were lined with shelves full of books, while the wall in the front of the room was empty except for a chalkboard where a few assignments from the previous week were still written. Just in front of the chalkboard was the teacher’s desk, where a mare with a cerise coat sat, drinking her morning coffee and preparing her lesson for the day. The mare looked up when she heard the sound of hooves approaching, and smiled at the Crusaders.
“Hello girls,” she said. She looked from each of her students, and then to Shining Armor, who did his best to return her smile. “Oh, hello. Are you a new student?”
“This is our new friend, Gleamin’ Shield,” Apple Bloom said.
“She’s Twilight’s cousin visiting from Canterlot for the week,” Sweetie Belle added.
“Twilight’s really busy with some secret project, or something, and we thought we would bring Gleaming Shield to school with us so she wouldn’t be bored at the library,” Scootaloo finished.
“Would that be alright, ma’am?” Shining Armor asked. “I wouldn’t want to impose.”
Cheerilee couldn’t help but giggle at how formally the faux filly spoke.
“That’s quite alright,” she finally said, “you’re more than welcome to join us during your stay in Ponyville.” The teacher looked up at the clock. “You four better take your seats; it’s almost time for class to start.” Then she turned to Shining Armor. “The seat behind Sweetie Belle is open, so you can sit there if you’d like.”
“Yes, thank you ma’am.”
Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo made their way to the back of the room, where a particular set of shelves had been divided up to in a more than a dozen small cubby holes. Each of the Crusaders undid their saddlebags and deposited them into their assigned cubbies, then proceeded to take their seats. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo sat in the front row with a desk between them, with Sweetie Belle sitting behind Scootaloo, and Shining Armor right behind her. When the Crusaders were all settled in, Cheerilee stepped outside and called to her students.
It wasn’t long before the small classroom was filled with the hustle and bustle of little ponies, who were chatting merrily as they stowed their things in their own cubby holes before taking their seats. Shining Armor stared sympathetically across at Apple Bloom when he saw that the poor filly was sandwiched between two ponies who, after their one meeting, he had already come to detest: Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. He would have liked to mouth an ‘I’m sorry’ to Apple Bloom, but he felt a pair of eyes burrowing into the side of his head, and he sighed when, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a dull gold colored pony sitting next to him. Shining Armor looked to his left, just in time to see Snails hastily turn and begin talking to his friend Snips who was sitting on the colt’s other side. Celestia help me, Shining Armor thought, I don’t know what’s worse: being in the same room with that mean little filly, or stuck beside a colt who is infatuated with me.
As soon as everypony was seated, Miss Cheerilee stood in the front of the room, and took attendance. After she finished reading down the list of names, pleased that none of her students were absent, Miss Cheeilee said something that made Shining Armor flinch:
“Gleaming Shield, would come up to the front of the class?”
Shining Armor’s white cheeks turned a light shade of pink, and he gulped as he slowly rose from his seat and made his way through the rows of desks.
“Well if it isn’t the magicless blank flank,” Diamond Tiara muttered as Shining Armor passed her before taking a spot beside the teacher.
“Class,” Miss Cheerilee said, “we have a special guest today. Her name is Gleaming Shield, and for the next week she will be taking part in our lessons, so I would like for you all to help her feel welcomed in our classroom.” Then she looked down at Shining Armor. “Gleaming Shield, why don’t you tell the class a little bit about yourself?”
Shining Armor glanced around the room; most of the students wore friendly, welcoming smiles.
“I, uh, hello…” His voice wasn’t much more than a whisper; although he was one of the bravest ponies in Equestria, standing in front of the class with all of the little ponies staring at him, in his current state, made Shining Armor feel small and embarrassed. His gaze landed on the front row of students and saw both Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon barely concealing their snickers as they watched him fumble with his words.
No, Shining Armor thought, swallowing his embarrassment, I will not give those two the satisfaction of watching me fail at something again. Shining Armor cleared his throat and began again.
“My name is Gleaming Shield. I am the younger cousin of princess Twilight Sparkle of Ponyville, and prince Shining Armor of the Crystal Empire, and I have come to Ponyville from Canterlot to visit my cousin in hopes that she might help me practice magic.” As he introduced himself, Shining Armor couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride as he watched the smug smile fade from Diamond Tiara’s face, only to be replaced by red cheeks, and a few beads of sweat; the filly was clearly starting to regret making fun of the new pony in town. “Sadly my cousin has been busy attending to her royal duties, but I have been fortunate enough to have already made a few friends who have been kind enough to show me around town and invite me to your wonderful school.” Shining Armor gave a bow of respect to the class (a formality that he had learned during his old school days). “Please, treat me kindly.” With that, Shining Armor walked back to his seat, and sighed, thankful that his introduction was over.
“Oh my gosh, that was amazing,” Sweetie Belle whispered, turning around in her seat to talk to Shining Armor. “I mean, did you see the look on Diamond Tiara’s face when you said that you were related to royalty? I thought she was going to be sick.”
“Yeah, that was awesome," Scootaloo added. “I’m so glad you joined up with us,”
“Alright class,” Miss Cheerilee said, calling for her students’ full attention, “As I’m sure most of you remember, last Friday I said that we would start learning about the Crystal Empire this week.”
Shining Armor looked around the room and saw many ponies smiling and cheering, clearly excited to learn more about the mysterious new country that reappeared in the Arctic North. This should be interesting, Shining Armor thought. As the new rulers of the Crystal Empire, both he and Cadence had to become very familiar with the customs, and history of the lost kingdom, so he was quite sure he knew more about it than anypony in the classroom; during their first few months on the throne, the prince and his wife had learned everything from the origins of the Empire and the rise of King Sombra, to traditional royal etiquette, and celebrations. Shining Armor’s little filly head was full of information about the Crystal Empire, but he was still very interested in hearing what the teacher had in store for her students.
“Now, before we begin,” Miss Cheerilee continued, “can anypony tell me something they know about the Crystal Empire?”
Only a few ponies raised their hooves; other than the Crusaders, Diamond Tiara, and two others, everypony remained motionless in their seats, eager to hear about the new country. Shining Armor wasn’t surprised; it had only been a little over a year since the Crystal Empire had emerged. After Sombra’s defeat, and the empire had once again become a permanent part of Equestria, Cadence and he had been more than ready to open it up to the rest of the world for trade and tourism. Since then, many ponies had started to travel from across the land to see the long lost Crystal Empire. Shining Armor could only guess that this was why there were a few ponies that actually raised their hooves; they must have either heard stories from their parents, or had actually visited the empire on a family trip.
“Ohhh,” Sweetie Belle said, nearly jumping out of her seat, “ohhh pick me, pick me.”
“Alright, go ahead Sweetie Belle,” Miss Cheerilee said with sigh.
“At the Crystal Empire, there’s this place where you can buy these beautiful crystal snow globes that are just so cool, and awesome, and I want one, and-”
“Thank you Sweetie Belle, that was very…nice.” Cheerilee looked around the room again. “Would anypony else like to say something?”
“Well,” Diamond Tiara said, an air of arrogance in her voice, “my father has been to the Crystal Empire and he told that even though it’s located in the far north, where it’s very cold, the empire itself is actually very warm.” The room was filled with the sounds of awe, everypony finding it amazing that such a place could exist. “And not only that, but everything there is made out of crystal.”
“Wow, everything,” Snips exclaimed, jumping up in his seat in excitement.
“Yes, everything; the buildings, the streets, the animals, even the ponies are made of crystal.”
Shining Armor tried hard not to laugh at this statement.
“I’m sorry, but is something funny to you,” Diamond Tiara snapped, turning around in her seat to face the Shining Armor.
“No, nothing,” Shining Armor said, “it’s just that what you said about the animals and ponies being made of crystal is complete nonsense.”
Diamond Tiara had a furious look on her face, completely forgetting that just moments ago, she was feeling guilty about having teased a relative of royalty.
“Well if you’re so smart, then how come they look like crystals?”
“It’s because of the crystals in the kingdom, or, more specifically, the Crystal Heart. Their coats sparkle because the magical properties in the Crystal Heart that amplify the feelings of love and friendship emit a special aura, unseen by the pony eye. Over the years, the natives of the crystal empire have developed coats that reflect this aura, giving them a crystal-like appearance. Without the Crystal Heart’s aura, their coats are actually just like ours, only more pastel.”
When Shining Armor finished his explanation, he looked around the room; everypony, even Miss Cheerilee, was staring at him, slack jawed.
“Whoa, how do you know all that?” Scootaloo asked, staring in disbelief at her new friend.
“Oh, um, I heard it from my cousins.” Shining Armor shifted nervously in his seat, hoping that the class had bought his weak excuse. He breathed a sigh of relief when he looked around the room and saw the other fillies and colts either nod or shrug, apparently accepting his overly informative statement to be secondhoof knowledge. His eyes then landed on Diamond Tiara, who was sitting with her forelegs crossed, and her face fixed in a scowl.
“Well that was very informative, Gleaming Shield, thank you,” Miss Cheerilee said. “And thank you, Diamond Tiara; what you said about the Crystal Empire having a warm climate despite its arctic location is actually what we will be starting with today.”
…
It was close to noon when the lunch bell rang. As if by instinct, Shining Armor placed his borrowed pencil and notebook in the little cubby in his desk, stretched his hooves, then got up to join the Crusaders as they walked to the back of the room, grabbed their lunches from their saddlebags, and exited the classroom. It was a familiar routine, one he had followed every day when he was in school, though the classroom wasn’t the same, and the ponies he was going to eat lunch with weren’t his old friends from school.
When the four little ponies were finally outside, they found a shady tree to sit under and enjoy their lunch. Shining Armor stared hungrily as the little ponies began pulling out their lunches; Twilight had rushed him out the door so quickly that morning that he hadn’t had the chance to pack anything for lunch. Lucky for him the three little fillies were kind enough to share with him some of their lunch; Apple Bloom gave him a few apple slices, Scootaloo, half a peanut butter sandwich, and Sweetie Belle shared some of her apple juice.
“So what did you think, Gleamin’ Shield?” Apple Bloom asked, as she reached into her bag, pulled out an apple slice, and a small cup of caramel for dipping, “does Miss Cheerilee know her stuff or what?”
Shining Armor nodded.
“I have to admit, I wasn’t expecting a teacher in a small town to have that much knowledge about the Crystal Empire; I mean it’s too new. But I was really impressed, and not just by how much Miss Cheerilee knows, but how she – owww!” Shining Armor rubbed the back of his head; something had just struck him. He looked down and saw a small apple core lying on the ground beside him.
“You think you’re so smart, don’t you, you little blank flank,” came an irritated voice from behind.
Shining Armor whipped around, and saw Diamond Tiara stalking towards him, rage burning like a wildfire in her eyes.
“What do you want, Diamond Tiara?” Scootaloo asked, jumping between the angry pink filly and her prey, her wings buzzing in agitation.
“Stay out of this, you little dodo; this is between me and the little “princess” here.”
Shining Armor winced when Diamond Tiara called him “little princess;” not because it reminded him of the awkward situation he was in, but because he could feel the hatred behind each syllable.
“You’ve been a pain in my flank ever since you waltzed into town; interfering in my personal affairs, and making me look like a fool in front of the entire class. Let me tell you something princess, nopony makes me look like a fool and gets away with it.”
“I’m sorry Diamond Tiara,” Shining Armor said, “I wasn’t trying to-”
“Don’t you give me that.” Diamond Tiara lifted a hoof, and shoved Shining Armor onto his back. The Crusaders tried to reach their friend, but Silver Spoon jumped in the way, blocking their path, and allowing Diamond Tiara to continue her tirade.
“Let me tell you something, princess; if you ever do anything to aggravate me again, I will make you wish you had stayed in Canterlot. Do I make myself clear?”
Shining Armor looked up at the pink mare standing over him. With each word she said, Diamond Tiara jabbed Shining Armor in the gut with her hoof. She hadn’t hit him hard enough to cause him pain, she just poked him firmly to show him that she meant business. But Shining Armor wasn’t so easily intimidated; rather, he could feel his irritation with the high-and-mighty filly growing.
“Leave me alone, Diamond Tiara,” he said, knocking her hoof away before she could jab him again, “I don’t want any trouble.”
“It’s a little late for that, princess,” Diamond Tiara spat as she raised her hoof again, and aimed it at Shining Armor’s face. He clenched his eyes shut, waiting for the hoof to make contact. But it never came. What did happen was completely unexpected; Shining Armor heard something soft hit the ground, and a shrill cry. He opened his eyes to see Diamond Tiara dangling upside down a foot off the ground, suspended by faint magenta aura that enveloped her tail, and right on the ground below was her little crown.
“Help,” Diamond Tiara cried, as she flailed her legs in a futile attempt to reach the ground. “Put me down right now!”
Why is she looking at me, Shining Armor thought as he picked himself up off the ground, still staring at the struggling filly.
“Stop it,” Silver Spoon pleaded, as she tried and failed to pull her friend back down, “why are you doing this?”
“But I’m not doing anything,” Shining Armor said, “I can’t even do magic.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Scootaloo said, pointing a hoof at Shining Armor’s forehead.
Shining Armor looked up and gasped; sure enough, his horn was glowing with the same magenta aura that held the little bully by the tail.
“B-but I…I’m not…I’m sorry Diamond Tiara, I didn’t realize I was doing this.” This was true; if Scootaloo hadn’t brought his attention to his horn, Shining Armor would never have known that it was he who was casting the levitation spell. Normally he would have to concentrate on the spell in order to cast it, but foal unicorn magic was fickle, and could sometimes be sparked in times of stress.
“I don’t care,” the pink filly cried, “I want you to put me down this instaaaaAAAAAAAHHHH!” Diamond Tiara shrieked as she watched the ground slowly grow further away.
“What are you doing,” Silver Spoon shouted, “She told you to put her down.”
Shining Armor scrunched his face, trying to concentrate on the simple levitation spell, trying to lower the filly safely to the ground, but it didn’t work; his body was still too young to be able to cast and uncast spells properly.
“WHAT IN THE NAME OF CELESTIA IS GOING ON HERE!?” Everypony froze when they heard the furious voice.
“Miss Cheerilee, thank goodness,” Diamond Tiara said, as the mare made her way over to the group of little ponies. “Tell this ruffian to put me down.”
But the teacher didn’t need to be asked; Cheerilee walked over to Diamond Tiara (who was now suspended at the mare’s eye level), grabbed hold of the little filly with her hooves, and gave her a gentle tug. In an instant the magical aura that had held her by the tail, dissipated into thin air, releasing Diamond Tiara from Shining Armor’s grasp.
“Are you alright, Diamond Tiara?” Miss Cheerilee asked, once all four of the filly’s hooves were safely back on the ground.
Diamond Tiara nodded as she picked up her crown and placed it back on top of her head.
“Then why don’t you and Silver Spoon join the rest of the students for recess.” Then she turned her attention to the Crusaders. “That goes for you three as well; I’d like to speak with Gleaming Shield in private.”
Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo each gave Shining Armor a sympathetic look as they picked up their empty lunch sacks, and silently followed the two bullies to the playground.
“Using your magic to hang another student upside down,” Cheerilee said, turning her attention back to Shining Armor. “I would have thought that your school in Canterlot might have taught you to be more respectful of your peers-”
“But I-”
“I must say that I am very disappointed in you,” she continued, ignoring Shining Armor's pleas. “Now, I may not be your teacher, but as long as you are in my classroom, you will abide by our school rules.”
“But it was an accident,” Shining Armor finally interjected, “I didn’t mean to use magic; I didn’t even realize I-”
“I’m sorry, Gleaming Shield,” Miss Cheerilee interrupted, “it may have been an accident, but - and I really hate to say this - I have no choice but to take disciplinary actions.”
“Disciplinary actions…no, you can’t mean-”
“I’m afraid I do, Gleaming Shield; you will be staying after school today for detention-”
“But-”
“-and I will be writing a letter to your cousin Twilight, telling her what happened today. Understood?”
Shining Armor sighed.
“Yes ma’am, I understand.”
“Good, now come along, recess will be over soon.”
Shining Armor’s head was hung low as he followed the mare back to the schoolhouse.
…
The rest of the school day was a bit of a blur for Shining Armor. While he did his best to focus on Miss Cheerilee’s lesson, he couldn’t help but think about the dreaded detention that awaited him that afternoon. He felt like what he imagined Twilight would feel if she had earned anything less than a perfect score on a test. He knew it was stupid, worrying about such a punishment, as his actual school days were long behind him and that a detention wouldn’t have any negative affects on his spotless permanent record, but he just couldn’t stop worrying. It was more a morality issue than anything else; Shining Armor had always prided himself on his good behavior. Even when he was standing up to bullies, he had always done what he could to fend them off without resorting to violence.
After what felt like an eternity, Shining Armor heard the bell, signaling the end of the school day. Unlike the rest of the students, who were busy retrieving their saddlebags and packing their notebooks away, Shining Armor remained seated, sullenly placing his pencil at the top of his desk, and watched as it rolled back down, only to be caught by the lip that kept it from falling to the floor.
“Remember, class,” Miss Cheerilee said, getting her students’ attention before they began storming the door, “your Crystal Empire question sheets are due on my desk the day after tomorrow, so I don’t want any of you waiting until the last minute to work on them; that goes for you too, Snips and Snails.”
Shining Armor looked to his left and saw the two colts laughing nervously as they tucked their homework assignments into their respective notebooks.
“Hey, are you going to be ok, Gleaming Shield?” Sweetie Belle asked, as the Crusaders made their way past Shining Armor’s desk, saddlebags on, and ready to go.
Shining Armor didn’t say anything; he just nodded in response.
“Do you want us to talk to Miss Cheerilee for you,” Scootaloo chimed in.
“No,” Shining Armor said, “thanks girls, but I’ll be fine.” He placed his head on the desk, hiding his face from the fillies.
“Well, a’right,” Apple Bloom added, “Ah’m sure it won’t be that bad; Miss Cheerilee isn’t that strict, and hardly ever gives out detentions. Why, Ah bet you’ll be out of here in no time.”
Nothing.
“Ah’ve got it, why don’t we wait outside for you and then we’ll all go down to Sugarcube Corner for something sweet?”
Shining Armor lifted his head and gave a weak smile to the fillies, “Sure; sounds like fun.”
The Crusaders returned their friend’s smile and waved as they trotted down the row of desks and left the classroom. Just as he was watching them leave, he noticed a small, folded piece of paper had landed on his desk. Shining Armor looked around and just caught a glimpse of a green tail dashing through the doorway. Feeling a little confused, Shining Armor opened the paper, and read the sloppily written note inside.
Don’t worry, I’ve got everything taken care of. Just hold on.
What is that colt thinking, Shining Armor thought, as he tucked the note into his notebook, and placed his head back on the desk.
It wasn’t long before the room was empty except for Shining Armor and Miss Cheerilee, who was sitting at her desk, a pencil clutched in her teeth as she wrote a letter that Shining Armor presumed was meant for his sister.
“Now Gleaming Shield,” the teacher said, looking up from her work, “Seeing as this is your first day, and that it was an accident, you’ll only need to stay here for half an hour.”
Shining Armor breathed a sigh of relief; a half an hour wasn’t really that bad. Still, the young prince’s morals wouldn’t let him forget that he was being punished, and that he should feel bad about levitating Diamond Tiara by the tail, even if it had been just an accident.
“I expect you to use this time wisely by working on your Crystal Empire homework. Understood?”
“Yes ma’am.”
Shining Armor stared at the sheet of paper in front of him that consisted of questions about the Crystal Empire. It wasn’t that hard; at least, it wasn’t hard for the prince of said empire. In fact, it only took Shining Armor less than half of his thirty-minute detention to finish the worksheet. He didn’t want to risk getting up from his seat to turn in his homework, so he decided to just sit in silence. It was starting to look as if he was just going to be stuck in the room with nothing but his thoughts to help the time go by, when a soft knock came at the door. Before Cheerilee could get up from her desk to see who it was, the door slowly opened, and Shining Armor groaned silently as he watched the tall, golden coated colt enter the room and approach his teacher.
Snails blushed and gave Shining Armor a weak smile, as he spoke quietly to his teacher. Shining Armor tried to hear what was being said, but he was too far away.
“Really?” Cheerilee asked, when Snails finished his say. The colt nodded to his teacher and started walking towards the door, the mare following closely behind. “Excuse me, Gleaming Shield, I need to step out for a moment. Please stay seated until I return.”
Shining Armor watched as Snails led the teacher outside, curious as to what was going on. He didn’t have long to wait though; not more than five minutes later Cheerilee came back into the room, a small envelope clutched in her teeth.
“Gleaming Shield, come here please” she said, after returning to her seat and setting the envelope on her desk. Shining Armor slowly rose from his desk and gloomily made his way to the front of the room. “I’m happy to tell you that you are free to go.”
Shining Armor’s heart started beating rapidly; had she just said what he thought she said?
“I don’t understand,” he said. “Why?”
Instead of speaking, Cheerilee picked up the envelope, and tipped it upside down, allowing what looked like three, square pieces of paper to fall out.
“What…wait, these are…” Shining Armor stared in disbelief at the pictures of Diamond Tiara pushing him over, standing over him, and raising a hoof, ready to strike at Shining Armor’s face.
“You have Snails to thank for these,” Cheerilee said. “It seems he witnessed the whole thing while playing with our school’s shutterbug, Featherweight, at recess. When he saw Diamond Tiara approaching, he must have sensed that something was wrong and had Featherweight take pictures to use as evidence just in case something bad happened. At least, that’s what he told me outside.”
So that’s what his note meant, Shining Armor thought, remembering the scrap of paper tucked in his notebook.
“I’d also like to apologize to you, Gleaming Shield,” Cheerilee continued. “I’m sorry that I jumped to conclusions when I saw what was happening out there; I realize now that you were just defending yourself.”
“I wasn’t even really trying to defend myself,” Shining Armor admitted, “I didn’t even know I could do magic; I was just, I don’t know, scared. I was mostly angry at her for accusing me of acting like I thought I was better than her, but when her hoof was aimed at my face, I just felt so…helpless.” Shining Armor blushed; he really hated admitting his helplessness to himself, let alone to another pony. It just added to the growing list of things that reminded him of his filly state. “I guess my magic must have reacted to my emotions.”
“Well, whatever the reason, I’d just like to say that I’m sorry, and that I will be sending a letter home to Diamond Tiara’s parents, and she will be staying after school with me tomorrow.”
Shining Armor only nodded his acknowledgement at this news.
“Well then, I guess I’ll be going now,” he said, “Oh wait.” He ran back to his desk and picked up his homework and passed it to the teacher. “I completed the assignment.” Before Cheerilee could respond, Shining Armor dashed out of the classroom, eager to be free from his first (and hopefully last) detention.
…
No sooner had Shining Armor exited the schoolhouse, than he found himself face to face with somepony he didn’t expect; instead of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, he met Snails, who had apparently been waiting right outside the door for him.
“Oh, hello Snails,” Shining Armor said, giving the colt a polite smile. “What are you doing-”
“I was just waiting to make sure you made it out ok.”
“Yeah, I did, thanks; if you hadn’t had that pony take those pictures, I’d probably still be-”
“GleamingShieldIthinkyourebeautifulandawesomeandIwantedtoknowifyouwouldliketogotoSugarcubeCornerwithmeonThursdayafterschool.”
“Wai-wha-” but before Shining Armor could get another syllable out, Snails took off running towards the town.
Shining Armor sat on the ground, trying to wrap his head around what had just happened; he still wasn’t sure that he had heard Snails correctly. At least, he hoped he had misheard what the colt had said. Snails couldn’t have really just… No, Shining Armor thought, rubbing his hooves furiously against the sides of his head, as if trying to erase the memory from his brain. The poor little pony was so busy trying to wipe his mind of the last five minutes, that he didn’t hear the buzzing of Scootaloo’s wings as she pulled her scooter and the wagon with the other two Crusaders up along side him.
“Hey Gleaming Shield,” Scootaloo said as she dismounted her scooter and made her way over to her friend, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle following closely behind. “What are you doing out here; I thought you had detention?”
“Huh, oh, hey,” Shining Armor said, snapping back to reality, “sorry, I was just thinking about something. Yeah, I had detention but…Snails got me out.”
The three fillies looked at each other, perplexed looks on their little faces.
“How’d he do that?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“Miss Cheerilee told me that he saw the whole thing between me and Diamond Tiara, and had somepony named Featherweight take pictures of her bullying me.”
“Well that was surprisin’ly smart of him,” Apple Bloom said. The other two fillies nodded their agreement that it was unusual for the colt to act so cleverly.
“That’s not all,” Shining Armor continued. “I…I think he might h-have asked me out on a d-d-date.”
“What?” all three fillies asked in unison.
Shining Armor just shrugged his shoulders.
“He said something really fast and then took off; all I could make out was something about Sugarcube Corner and Thursday night. I don’t know, I probably heard him wrong.” Shining Armor picked himself off the ground and started trotting towards the wagon. “Anyway, let’s go to Sugarcube Corner; it’s been a really long day and I could use a bit of time to de-stress.”
The little fillies exchanged smiles.
“Actually,” Apple Bloom said, “while we were ridin’ around, we thought it would be more fun if we got together tonight for a sleepover in the Crusaders’ club house.”
“A sleepover?” Shining Armor asked, his jaw dropping as scenes of horror suddenly ran through his head. There was no way he could sleep in such a small room with three little fillies; granted he was currently trapped in a body that was the same age and gender as these little ponies, but he was still a full-grown stallion, and the idea of having a slumber party with the Crusaders just felt...wrong. “I-I…no. Sorry girls I-”
“Awww, come on Gleamin’ Shield, t’ll be fun. I mean, you’ve had a rough day and could use some time to relax. With Twilight busy with whatever it is she’s workin’ on, we figured you could use somepony to hang out with.
“Just think; we’ll stay up tellin’ stories, singin’ songs, and since it’s gettin’ close to summer, it’ll be warm enough that we can sleep out under the stars.”
“Also,” Scootaloo added, “we were kinda hoping you could help us with our Crystal Empire homework.”
Shining Armor couldn’t stop himself; as soon as the words left Sootaloo’s lips, he broke out in fit of laughter. He wasn’t sure why; maybe it was because all of the stress had finally pushed him over the edge of insanity, or maybe it was because nopony had ever asked him for help on homework before. Whatever the reason was, the whole idea of just hanging out – no adventuring, no bullies, no getting into trouble – somehow put Shining Armor’s mind at ease. Plus, the idea that they would be sleeping outside instead of the clubhouse made him feel a lot less uncomfortable.
“What’s so funny?” Sweetie Belle finally asked.
“No, it’s nothing, sorry.” Shining Armor took a deep breath to recompose himself. “I guess it could be fun; I’ll just need to stop by the library first to let Twilight know.”
“Yeah, we’d better do the same with our parents, Sweetie Belle,” Scootaloo said. “We don’t want them running around Ponyville looking for us like last time.”
“Or the time before that,” Sweetie Belle added.
“Then it’s settled,” Apple Bloom said, sticking her hoof in the air.
“Cutie Mark Crusaders, slumber party at the clubhouse! Yay!” Once again, the three fillies cheered as they clapped their hooves together, holding them together while they waited for Shining Armor to slowly bring his hoof in to join theirs.
When the Crusaders finally withdrew their hooves, Apple Bloom, Shining Armor, and Sweetie Belle jumped into the wagon, and Scootaloo took her place at the helm. After a few steady, warm-up flaps, the little pegasus kicked her scooter into high gear. Shining Armor sat silently as they made their way down the street, listening to the other ponies chatting about their plans for the evening. He still felt a bit awkward having a sleepover with three real fillies, but from what he’d gotten to know of this little group over the past couple of days, he couldn’t deny that it might be a little fun. At the very least, it would certainly be the most interesting slumber party he’d ever attended; there was just no knowing how an evening with these three fillies would turn out. Only time would tell.
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Oh man. Shining's gonna have to think fast to avoid destroying Snails' poor ego.
~Skeeter The Lurker
If I were him, I might accept the "asking out".... Might...
I wonder what Miss Cheerilee will say about the Answer's to the "Crystal Empire Question Homework" from Gleaming Shield.
And how will Shining Armor react when he only get a 3+
2901977
Oh yeah, things are going to start getting complicated (oh wait, they already are lol)...I'm sure it'll all be fine...
2902273 Miss Cheerilee: "Gleaming Shield, I'm surprised in you; you showed astounding knowledge on the Crystal Empire the other day, yet you did quite poorly on your homework. I'm going to have to ask you to do it again."
Shining Armor: *looks at his poor grade, tears up homework, then trots out of the classroom*
2902660 I think this Answer was meant for batran.
2902700 Oh yeah
, sorry.
2902088 There's a chance he might be talked into accepting.
2902704 No problem
I like it to become answers for questions I never asked
2902273
Huh, I didn't think other schools actually used that grading system. Oh well. 4s for EVERYPONY
gamesover.com/HP%20and%20the%20Half-Blood%20Prince/Images/Level22/2.jpg
2903262 Dang, I wasn't even thinking of that when I wrote it, but it's so true. Heh, good thing Shining Armor didn't cast Sectumsempra; he probably would have been in a lot more trouble.
2903813
lol, what can I say, I'm a huge nerd in the prime of my life!
2902821 I have no idea. I'm from Germany.
I can see it now, Shining will humor Snails and go on a harmless date with him, but Cadence will arrive early, see the two, get a case of the "D'aww"s and work her love magic on them.
Gonna make a prediction right now: it was morning sickness and Cadance is pregnant.
By the end of the fic she'll have a filly and name her Gleaming Shield.
…let's see if I'm right or wrong.
2910320
That is pretty much exactly what I was thinking
2910320>>2920635 I have no idea what you two are talking about
denver.mylittlefacewhen.com/media/f/img/mlfw835_Applejuke.gif
2920996
2921317
I'm glad you liked it. And those interactions were very difficult to do; I had to keep rewriting different sections because I didn't like how they sounded (I was constantly thinking "This isn't how Shining Armor would react to this," or "am I handling this situation right?").
As for the rivalry between Diamond Tiara and Shining Armor was very fun to write, but I'll admit that it wasn't in my original plans for this chapter. The recess/lunch scene was originally just going to be the CMC talking about the lesson (I know, not very exciting is it), but then that meant that I actually had to come up with stuff that they learned...it was all just boring and complicated to write. Then I decided to have Diamond Tiara interrupt that original scene, and, well, you know the rest. Who knows where it'll go from here; Diamond Tiara will either be a little shaken up over the whole ordeal, or she might want revenge for once again having been made to look a fool. I just about to say that I'm not really sure what I was going to do next, but I just got an idea that I think would work and would be fun to play with, it just might take a couple of chapters to get there.
This story makes me squee so much. Filly shining is absolutely adorkable. You see many R63s of Mares and Stallions but very few involving Fillies and Colts. the whole different dynamic is always really interesting. Keep up the good work!
3000909
Yay for squees. And I agree with you, there should be more stories R63 stories with fillies and colts; I just really like the cuteness factor that comes from this type of stories. I'm glad you enjoyed it
3001279 The universe can't handle the cuteness that is Little Macintosh, much less Little Gala
I would totally write that, but it'd seem like a rip off of this. Plus, there's really not many ways to improveon what you've written for the idea. Only one way in fact: MOAR
3001279
Today, I was fired from work.
Today, my brother put me through insane exercise stuff out of the blue that left me puking.
Today, I read this fanfic.
Today was a good day.
Please continue this.
Please.
3001990
Little Gala huh? That could make for a really cute fic.
3003667
I'm glad you enjoyed it. I can promise that there are plenty more good days to come in the future
3003851 It could... okay, now I have to think of an idea to write a story about Little Gala, find a way to properly weave her into a storyline and come up with and idea different from yours. It's just too cute.
This is going to be impossible, but worth it.
3004296
You totally should.
3005513 I've got a few ideas now, not sure about them though... yeah, I'll need to start thinking of more ideas. I also have three other stories to work on, so this'll be second or third priority. No matter what, I'm writing a story with Little Gala, though. Even if my brain malfunctions while thinking of ideas.
Very interesting fic thusfar. My only complaint is that I disagree with how you're characterizing Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. Yes, they're definitely bullies. But, they're not the type to use physical skills. If anything, I think they may not be very skilled at manual labor based on what's been shown in the show thusfar, and that may even be a cause for their bullying: to hide their own handicaps as Earth Ponies. But, regardless of that theory, point is that they've never used physical bullying.... instead, they've used their minds to do emotional bullying, and that's actually far worse.... physical injuries can heal relatively quickly. Emotional scars are another matter entirely.
Other than that though, the rest I'm definitely loving thusfar. You're quite the skilled author.^_^
3131551 I agree that those two most likely wouldn't be physical when it came to bullying, I just did it in this story because I needed a reason for Shining Armor to intervene. If it was just verbal abuse, then I wasn't sure if he would stop Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, but I knew he would have to jump in to put an end to things if Diamond Tiara started hitting Snails.
As for the scene in chapter five, I wanted to use just a hint of violence to show just how helpless Shining Armor finds himself to be in his new body, and to give him a reason to accidentally perform magic (I wasn't sure if Diamond Tiara would have gotten the same emotional response out of him if she was just calling him names).
Don't worry, the next time we see those two, they'll be more scheming, and much less violent.
That is a great fanfic please post another chapter i want more
3157279 Thanks, I'm glad you liked it. Chapter 6 is underway as we speak, and I hope to have it done in a couple of weeks.
Finally read this one.
So two issues:
1) You have a bit of Lavender Unicorn Syndrome. Referring to Gleaming Shield constantly as 'the faux filly' is very unnecessary and sticks out. Similar things like that should be avoided. It's okay to use people's names more often than you are.
2) ...do we really need to keep Snails in the story? I really, really dislike his character and it makes me uncomfortable when he's on screen for prolonged periods of time, let alone present in a fic.
3184827 To address your first issue, I am well aware of how often I use the term "Faux Filly." It's a habit because I try to avoid using a character's name too much in a scene (and yes, I realize that that is the cause of the problem). I'll try to change it up a bit more in the future.
Unfortunately for you, yes, Snails is going to stay because he plays an important role in the story. I've gotten plenty of positive feedback about his role in the story, so he's not going anywhere. If you feel so strongly about his character, then this fic might not be for you.
When the next chapter will be post. i can't wait for know what will happen next
3236244 The next chapter should be out soon...I hope
Why is it that everyone writes Cheerilee as the stupidest goddamn authority figure in Equestria?
4746514
Oh how yon mare has fouled her students lives, let me count the ways!
1.Diamond tiara threatening, mocking, and otherwise acting the complete ass hat to her classmates.
2.The same filly first creating a gossip paper under right under the old girls mussle, then extorting work from the cmc when they tried to pull out.
3. Scootaloo... and I'm surprised I have to remind you of this. The other adults, with the exception of her parents, I can see. Even Dash is under no real obligation to do anything about her wings, but Cheerilees her bloody teacher!
I don't hold her near doinking with big Mac against her, personally. That one was a definite curve ball
Cheerilee: Knows surprisingly much about the Crystal Empire. Does apparently not know that unicorn foals sometimes use magic subconsciously when stressed, despite working with kids for a living. Also does not listen when her students try to explain their actions.
Best teacher ever.
Later...
Scootaloo: Truth or dare?
Sweetie: Dare!
Scootaloo: Give Gleaming a kiss on the cheek!
Shining: Um, I'd don't really feel comfortable...
Sweetie: Challenge accepted! *kisses Shining*
Shining: *spell is immidiately broken, turns into a grown stallion* ...
Scootaloo: Prince Shining Armor!
Apple Bloom: Sweetie, your kiss turned Gleaming Shield into a handsome prince! Now ya get to marry him!
Sweetie: ...I need an adult.
Shining: I am an adult.
3184971
Names aren't really a problem: We're used to seeing names rather often so they aren't very intrusive. There's nothing wrong with breaking up the monotony once in a while, but "faux filly" is such a specific and unusual term that you really should only use it once or twice in a given story.
24 times! You used "faux filly" 24 times this chapter. Make it stop!
Good story, just please change some of these to something else.
EDIT: Sorry, I realize others have said this, but it still stands.
4746514 => ATTEMPT TO AVOID TALKING ABOUT THE LUNAVERSE IN AN UNRELATED STORY
Your attempt is a MASSIVE failure.
2902088
To be honest judging by how Shining/Gleaming react towards Snails I don't think he going to go on a date with him.
4756721 Later...
Scootaloo: Truth or dare?
Sweetie: Dare!
Scootaloo: Give Gleaming a kiss on the cheek!
Shining: Um, I'd don't really feel comfortable...
Sweetie: Challenge accepted! *kisses Shining*
Shining: *spell is immidiately broken, turns into a grown stallion* ...
Scootaloo: Prince Shining Armor!
Apple Bloom: Sweetie, your kiss turned Gleaming Shield into a handsome prince! Now ya get to marry him!
Sweetie: ...I need an adult.
Shining: I am an adult.
perfect thing for crusaders sleepover and i'm rotflmfo thats funny
You CHEATING on your wife for a colt?DAM....
It is when teachers never bother to look into what is going on that bullies such as Diamond Tiara keep getting away with all the torment they cause. And when a bullied child finally stands up to the bully, it is the child that has been picked on for so long that ends up in trouble.
I know from experience. I got into a lot of trouble as a kid, because I would not hesitate to stand up to bullies.
5754500 Weird situation is weird!