Princess Mi Amore Cadenza sat soundly on her large bed, staring out at the mountains of the frozen north, wondering how the day was going to treat her. The sun had risen only about an hour ago, but she was already wide awake and ready to tackle her day. At least she hoped so, turning her head slightly her smile died and turned into a look of sorrow. The bed beside her was empty, her husband already out and about taking care of his morning routines. Usually it wouldn't stay on her mind, but recently Shining Armor had become more distant with her, taking trips into the town square for tasks he didn't talk about with her. Whenever she tried to get information out of him he would always clam up and say it was nothing important.
Normally it didn't bug her, but after she started making trips into the town for some time off, she started hearing rumors about him bedding mares during the day. When she first heard about the rumor she didn't know what to think. Shining Armor had always been faithful to her, even before they married. But with his trips into town daily, and the rumors continuing to run around, Cadence was starting to believe her once-faithful husband was cheating. He barely talked to her anymore. Even the nights where they would tumble around the bed, lost in a sea of love, were starting to become a thing of the past.
Laying her head to the bed, she felt like crying into it, hoping it would make her feel better. She wanted to believe she was getting old in his eyes, but when she first transformed into an alicorn she found herself slowly aging until she hit adulthood, and then she just stopped aging completely. Turning her head a bit she saw her reflection on the crystal walls and knew her beauty would last forever. Maybe Shining was getting bored of her. Countless years being married to the same mare who never aged was a boon to most stallions, yet maybe Shining Armor wanted to mix it up and try a mare who was just as, if not more, beautiful than her.
“Maybe he just wants a change of pace after all, maybe being married to an immortal wife is making him feel like a lesser stallion,” She spoke to herself, trying to figure out what to do. “Still, we are married and what if he is actually sleeping around with half the town, bedding some mare as I think?”
Looking away from the crystal wall, Cadence turned over again, only to be faced with her reflection once again, yet this time with her own standing mare. Staring at it for a few long seconds, Cadence slowly pulled herself out of her bed and slowly started to approach it.
“Why doesn’t he tell me I’m beautiful anymore? I… I could easily alter my form and look like a mare completely different than what I am.” Flaring up her horn, she let the pink aura of it wrap around her body and slowly alter it to reflect the image she had in her mind.
The spell was quick and easy to use. After Chrysalis invaded Canterlot and nearly stole her husband away, she studied a bit of transformation magic so she could see through holes in the spell. Thankfully she was able to find a way to see past them. Whenever a transformation spell was used the users original magical energy would stay the same. If the pony transformed into a unicorn who had a blue aura with magic, while the caster had a green or such color, it wouldn’t change. It was surprisingly a visible error in the spell but somehow lots of ponies were blind to it.
After the spell was complete, Cadence stood there, staring at the gentle and foreign curves of a stranger’s body. The mare in the reflection was a soft blue pegasus. Though her horn was hiding from view, she could still feel it jutting from her cranium, waiting patiently for its owner to drop the false facade and return to her natural look. She didn’t and continued to study herself. The mare’s hair was a soft yellow, almost matching her previous style. If it had a few extra shades of colors traveling through it, she would no doubt look like her previous form.
“Maybe I should try to seduce him in a different form to see if that’s what he really wants,” She spoke in a slightly foreign tone, softer than her usual one. It sounded much more elusive, yet soft enough to sway a stallions mind for a brief second.
“Hmm, maybe he really is cheating on me,” She said quietly as she looked down and started to feel unloved.
After a brief second she looked back up and got an interesting idea. If he was truly cheating on her then maybe she could catch him in the act. Try to seduce him in her current form and then, once he took the bait, change back and see the horror on his expression of knowing she was on to him. As she thought about it, a sudden influx of horrible thoughts began to pour through her mind, making her question her own ideas. If he was actually cheating on her, she would be heartbroken and feel empty. Countless years of being faithful to him, only to find out he no longer loved her. It hurt to think about but she wanted clarification rather than false speculation. Turning for her open window at the end of the room, she took a deep breath and opened her wings before she flew out and looked over the streets of her empire below.
As she flew, crystal ponies and normal equestrian folk flooded the streets. Ever since the equestrian games came to the empire, it had gotten a large influx of ponies moving into the empty houses. Though Cadence was happy to see her empire in a harmonic state, she only had the mindset of finding her husband and seeing if he was really cheating on him. Flying to the streets below, she came to a landing on one and started to listen for mindless gossip, hoping her husband would be in the thoughts of some.
As she walked around and listened carefully, she finally got a hint of something when she approached a group of mares outside a small bakery.
“Did you hear about the queen’s husband?” A soft peach crystal mare asked out in a slightly older tone.
“What, you mean how Shining Armor is out and about sleeping with a few mares around town? Of course I have, but I refuse to believe them!” A normal equestrian mare answered back, not wanting to hear about the baseless rumors of him.
“Why don’t you? I hear he’s actually heading to a nearby jewelry shop to buy one of his mares an expensive necklace today!”
Cadence froze up as she slowly walked by, listening to the mare speak. Before Shining woke that morning, Cadence woke up in time to see one of her room guards talking to him and heard that he was going out to buy a few things from the town. Though she wanted to ask the guard what he talked about, she refrained from it and just laid in bed.
“I hear the store he was visiting was the same store that he got his wife’s gorgeous amulet from!”
Cadence’s neutral expression twisted into a look of hatred. She knew what store they were talking about and knew that it had the finest and most expensive gems in the kingdom. Flaring open her wings, she flew into the air, snarling at the mere thought of catching her husband buying something for some mare who didn’t deserve his love.
Flying around, looking for the place Shining took her to get outfitted with a beautiful diamond amulet after their wedding, she finally saw it. Descending to the ground in front of the store, she closed her wings and turned for it. Quickly looking through the window, she gasped as she saw her husband looking around the store with a saddle bag on his back, loaded with bits. As mad as she was, she did her best to calm down and attempt to try and get information about the mare he was seeing. Slipping in the front door quietly, she had began to trot slowly, letting her hips sway with each step.
Cadence had attempted to cross the floor on silent hooves, happy to notice there weren’t any other ponies about. As she came beside him, Shining looked away from the jewelry case and faced the mare with a curious expression.
“Mhm, good morning, Miss,” came her husband’s voice, one that carried the hint of a stallion slightly interested.
Getting her mind set and ready, she gave her mane a slight flip as she gave him a pair of lusty eyes.
“Ah, good morning sir, do you own this place?” She asked putting a slight giggle in her voice.
“Ahh, no, no I don’t own this fine establishment, I’m just buying a gift for someone dear to me,” He replied as his eyes went to the shining surface of glass keeping the jewelry away from sticky hooves.
“Oh! I never took you for a married stallion!“ Cadence replied as she took a step closer to him. “She must be a lucky mare to have a husband like you buying her a gift.”
“A-actually it isn’t not for her,” Shining answered in his low tone. “It’s for someone else dear to me.”
Cadence froze up at hearing he was indeed buying a gift for a different mare. She was enraged at him, ready to break her ruse and yell at him for being faithless. She wanted to drop it and question him on who it was he was seeing. Maybe if she found out she would have a ‘talk’ with them and give them a one way trip to someplace cold and void of life.
“Oh dear, I’m sorry I brought it up! I-I had no idea you were seeing another mare on the side!” Cadence replied, putting on an act like she was properly shocked to hear him admit to his cheating ways.
“Huh? Oh no, no Miss, you have it wrong. I’m not seeing any other mares, the gift is actually for my mother,” Shining’s voice was filled with confusion as he spoke, realizing he gave the mare a wrong impression of him.
Cadence stared quietly, thinking he was only trying to make up a lie to cover his words. Giving off a small giggle, Cadence looked away and put a sultry expression on her face.
“Oh you don’t have to lie to me sir,” She replied in a soft tone as she looked into his eyes. “You can tell the truth.”
Shining’s face twisted into a small frown as he noticed she was trying to imply he may have been a cheating husband. Pulling away from her he started to speak up.
“I have no reason to lie. My Mother’s birthday is coming up soon and I only wish to give her a present she would love.”
A most awkward silence fell around the store and Cadence started to feel embarrassed. A quick summary of what day it was and how close it was to her mother-in-law’s birthday, she knew he was being honest. She even felt ashamed she had forgot about her mother-in-law’s birthday coming up. Had she been wrong the whole time in thinking her husband was cheating on her? No, she was sure he was seeing a mare on the side.
“Miss?” Shining asked, noticing she was looking at the floor with an intriguing look on her face.
“I-I’m sorry, I just assumed that… well if you’re a married stallion I thought… well it was only natural you would be buying a gift for her!” Cadence stammered out, trying to form a coherent sentence as she looked into the reflection of the glass, seeing his look of disdain on his face.
His expression faded and turned back into a smile.
“It’s ok, you wouldn’t be the first to think I was cheating on my wife,” He answered back as she turned his expression to the glass and smiled. “Lots of rumors have been going around that I’ve been sleeping around with mare’s thanks to me being the ruler.”
“O-oh! You are a king!?” Cadence spoke out, trying to act like she had no clue. “I-I thought you were a good looking stallion but I didn’t knew you ruled here!”
“Ah, haha, I thought it was strange you didn’t know who I was. AH! My name is Shining Armor and both my wife and I rule this kingdom,” He replied in a modest tone, letting her know of his status.
“Wow! Your wife is lucky to have a stallion like you! I could only dream about ruling a kingdom beside a handsome stallion such as yourself!” Cadence replied, attempting to sway the conversation in her favor, seeing if he was truly cheating or not.
Shining’s smile faded and he looked away for some reason unknown to her.
“I like to think I’m lucky yet… I… feel like she and I have grown distant recently,” He replied with uncertainty in his voice.
“Oh? Are you not living up to her expectations of a loving husband?” She asked, letting a bit of her own anger fall into her voice.
“I really shouldn’t be talking about this… yet, maybe talking will help. We’ve hit a… rut in our marriage recently and I feel the love slowly slipping away from us. I want to talk to her about it, but I’m not sure how to approach it,” Shining said to her in a tone not familiar with her.
“Ahh, are you looking to reset your love some way?” Cadence asked as she moved closer to him. “Maybe you need a break from her. Maybe you need to seek comfort in another mare for a bit.”
Shining looked at her and gave her a confused look.
“N-nothing of the sort! She’s faithful to me as much as I am faithful to her!” He replied with a hint of anxiety in his tone.
“Oh? Surely the thought has crossed your mind about seeking refuge in another mare’s bosom,” Cadence replied, letting her voice slowly shift into a slightly more slutty one.
“It… has crossed my mind…”
“Bastard!”
“A few nights I lay besides her thinking what if she is really the right mare for me and wonder if there is another mare out there?”
“Cheater!”
“Though I feel we grow apart at some points, I could never bring myself to cheat on my wife,” He finished as his wavering tone shifted into a confident one. “We may have our problems at some points but we still love each other.”
Cadence calmed down with her thoughts. Maybe she was letting the rumors get to her and he was really a loving stallion after all. No, she was sure he was cheating and she wasn’t letting up.
“Do you really love your wife? Maybe you need to seek comfort in a different mare after all,” Cadence repeated, as she slowly turned and brushed her yellow tail against his body.
“Miss?!” Shining asked, finding her soft touch slightly disturbing.
“Well,” Cadence replied letting her voice linger across the word, adding something to it. “Maybe you need to have a relationship on the side of your marriage. See a mare on the side, buy her gifts and make her feel loved.” Cadence brought out her wing and pushed it against his chin, drawing his eyes to hers. She purposely let her voice become much more desirable and seductive. Shining said nothing, letting her continue on.
“You could please any mare you wanted. You, a mature stallion who knows his way around a bed and maybe, just maybe, certain mares find that attractive in potential mates.” Her words were like honey, trying to draw him in and trap him under her sweet and sticky words.
“How long have you been married to her?” She asked as her wing moved from his chin, down his neck before it rested against his back.
“T-Ten years,” Shining stammered out feeling the soft down of her wings brush against him.
“Oh my, seems you’re a stallion who’s had a decade of… practice,” She said softly as she pulled her wing away and slowly turned her body around before she lifted her tail, exposing her lady parts to him.
Shining’s face turned red and he quickly looked away from the sight.
“Maybe I could be that mare right now. I could keep it a secret between us, and I’ll never tell anyone about this.” Cadence said, panting false promises into his ears as she smiled at him over her shoulder. “Just a quick rut behind the building. No one will ever know.”
Cadence wasn’t messing around. She knew what made Shining tick. When she transformed, she did her best to match the supple and perfect curves of a pegasus. She made herself look young, no older than a filly that just came of age. She came across as eager and young in hope that it would draw his lecherous nature out. The same kind of mare that was ripe and looking for a stallion to bed and even marry one day. Shining continued to say nothing, Cadence barely able to read his face. The confused look on his face was gone, replaced with a neutral stare of a stallion willing to listen.
“Why don’t we do it right now? You pay for your mother’s gift and meet me behind the building. I’ll make it an experience you’ll never forget.” Continuing to pour on the charm, Cadence let a devious smirk fall across her face as she shifted her hips back and forth, making Shining look out the corner of his eyes for a brief second before looking away.
“Come on you lecherous bastard, you know you’ll give in!”
Lowering her tail, she hid her privates away and slowly turned back to him, letting her steps be nice and slow, making him turn back to her. Lifting her body up slightly, she placed her front hooves on the firm glass before she rested her head on it, mimicking the desire of a female in heat.
“Just once Shining Armor, she’ll never find out. It will be the longest and greatest hour of your life,” She plead noticing he wasn’t saying a word to her.
“No,” Shining Armor finally said, breaking the tension in the air. “I’m sorry, Miss, but I love my wife.”
Cadence froze in her tracks, her jaw dropping as she was ready to scream at him for being a cheater. She wasn’t expecting a no and she felt unsure of what to say.
“As beautiful as you are, I won’t lie to her. We’ve had a long marriage, and even though sometimes we don’t see eye to eye all the time, I still love her dearly. Maybe she would never find out about us actually doing it, but if I did that, I could never look into her eyes anymore, knowing I betrayed her.”
Cadence continued to stare at him, not sure how to properly respond to him. She was so sure he was a cheating bastard and never thought he would say no to HER charms, the charms she used in her youth to draw him in.
“How would you feel if your husband was sneaking out to visit a mare behind your back? Sleeping around and keeping up a false mask of love?”
“Oh, I’m,” Cadence finally replied, barely able to say her words. “I just thought… you, I-I’m sorry.” Turning away out of shame for herself, Cadence was ready to make her way to the door.
“Wait,” His voice rang out.
Cadence stopped and slowly turned around and noticed he was focusing his magic on the saddle bag before the latch came out and a large black box was pulled out of it.
“I love my wife dearly and I brought her this to show for it,” he said as he slowly opened the box.
As Cadences eyes saw the item inside she nearly died on the spot at how beautiful it was. It was a golden necklace adorned with seven diamonds. Three smaller diamonds went down the side until a much larger diamond rested in the middle of it.
“I… Shining I…” She started to say in her normal voice, almost losing her disguise in the process. “W-Why didn’t you say something about that before I made myself look like… Oh gosh I’m so sorry!” Cadence finished off as she turned red out of embarrassment of her actions.
“You never asked if I had bought her an item before you walked in. Had you stepped into the building a few minutes before, you would have noticed me buying it,” Shining said as he closed the box and put it back in his bag. “Now, I suggest you leave me to myself before I summon the guard and place you under arrest for trying to seduce a married stallion.”
Cadence looked up at his face and knew he was very serious with his words. She could see the powerful expression staring a hole into her mind, before she turned for the door and ran. She wanted to break the ruse and hug him on the spot, but she wanted to think.
“He still does love me.”
As she exited the building a soft smile came across her face before she flew for her bedroom. As Shining was in the room by himself, he sighed deeply and knew it would be a good time to try and fix his slowly dying relationship with his wife. The mare that tried to seduce him was the perfect wake up call to fixing his marriage. He bought the necklace before, but he wasn’t sure as to when he was going to bring it out to her. He knew now, and once he got back to the castle, he would talk to her.
Flying through the air, Cadence’s spirit felt renewed and the burden of her thoughts were gone forever. Ten years of marriage and Shining Armor… Her Shining Armor, was forever faithful. He said it best when he pointed out that, even though their marriage wasn’t at its finest, he still loved his wife. She was so happy to know she was wrong and the rumors were baseless. As she continued to fly, she couldn’t help but be misty eyed. Wiping her eyes with a hoof, she picked up her speed and flew were gracefully in the air.
“Cadence you silly wife, how could you ever doubt your stallion like that?” She chuckled out loudly, knowing no one could hear her since she was so high up.
Closing her eyes for a second, she flipped her body over and broke into a relaxing glide through the air. As she stared up at a few clouds above her, Cadence let her emotions drift away from her as she started to hum a song she always sang to Twilight when they greeted each other. Letting the feelings of anger and fear drift away like wood at sea, she wondered how she could treat him for remaining a faithful husband. Turning back over and facing the tower that was closing in on her, a little smirk went across her face, and the many ideas of how to treat him properly graced her mind.
~~~
As Shining Armor slowly trotted in his keep, everything was as perfect as it was supposed to be. The feeling didn’t last long when he noticed his wife trotting down the large stairs at the end of the hallway. Seeing her smile as she walked helped Shining know it was a good time to talk to her about their relationship. Stopping and sighing contently, he noticed his wife break into a small trot, almost like she was eager to see him herself.
“Welcome back, darling. I trust you had a fine morning?” Cadence asked as she drew in close and nuzzled his chin.
“Oh, yes,” he replied, happy to see his wife in higher spirits. “Let’s say it was a good morning to think on stuff as well.”
“Oh?” She replied in a curious tone. “Did something interesting happen? She added, trotting over to where he stood.
“Let’s just say I’m happy to be your husband,” He answered back as he nuzzled her neck before giving it a soft kiss.
“Mhm, I’m more curious now. Shall we talk about this in our room?” She asked and she turned for the stairs.
As she came around, her vibrant tail brushed across his nose, letting her magical scent fill his nostrils. Letting it sink in for a second, Shining smiled before he trotted up to his wife and walked beside her.
Once both of them came to the room, Cadence walked to her bed and sat down, ready to hear of her husband’s actions. Closing the door behind him, Shining undid his saddle bag, yet didn’t drop it until he moved beside the bed and sat down with her.
“I’m happy to see you happy my little candybutt,” Shining spoke in an eager tone, knowing it was the best time to show her the gift.
Considering the last few days, Cadence seemed down and barely smiled. He was grateful and quickly turning his attention to the bag. He was about to light up his horn until his wife jutted forward and wrapped her hooves around his neck. Caught off guard by her actions, Shining fell into the bed as her lips locked onto his. Once his back hit the bed his eyes went wide, and he was unsure of what to do before his lover’s instinct kicked in and he started to return the kiss. Letting his hooves travel around her body, his right rested on her back as the other rested against the back of her neck, letting her brilliant mane brush gently against it.
Breaking away from his mouth, Cadence started to plant more kisses over his face, almost like an eager pet happy to see its owner after a long day. Shining was surprised at her eagerness but only chuckled softly and kissed back whenever he could.
“Mhm, seems my little filly is happy to see me,” Shining teased at her.
“Hmm, just making sure you know I love you,” Cadence said with a smirk on her face before she touched her hoof to his nose and rubbed it for a brief second.
“How could I forget such an important thing?” He replied, moving his mouth into her warm muzzle for a brief second. “I even got something to show how much I love you.”
Pulling his face away from hers, he turned his attention to his bag and slowly pulled out the black box and floated it to the bed.
Cadences eyes sparkled and she could barely hold back her ‘squee’ as she watched it. It really was for her. She worried it was a cruel joke being playing out, but, as it rested on the bed and Shining slowly opened it up, Cadence knew it was no joke.
“Oh my gosh, it’s beautiful!” She sang as he focused his spell on the diamond necklace and moved it up to her neck.
“I’m glad you like it dear,” He replied as she moved a bit of her mane away, letting him see her slender neck better as he wrapped it around and clipped it on.
Once it was on, Cadence put the big diamond in her hoof and looked at it closely, seeing her own reflection in it. Seeing the gem twinkle in her eyes, Shining moved forward and touched her cheek with another kiss, before he moved down, peppering her neck and chest with more.
“Mhm, you know you don’t have to buy gifts like this for me,” Cadence whispered and she stretched out her neck, letting him caress every inch of it with his lips.
“Then how will you know that I love you?” Shining said with a smirk as he stuck out his tongue and brushed it against the center of her throat.
“True, but I shouldn’t ever question that love either,” Cadence replied as she enjoyed the feeling of his tongue against her fur. “Of course I think you love me, almost as much as I love you Shiny.”
“Oh? Do I have to prove that I love you more?” Shining teased as he lit up his horn and craned his neck back slightly before he focused his eyes on the door lock.
With a resounding click of the mechanism, Shining rolled both of them over as she pressed her head against the white sheets, letting her colorful mane spread out unevenly on it. Smiling at her, Shining brought his lips in for another kiss.
Author's Note
If enough people find this interesting, I'll write a cloppy sequel of this for your viewing pleasure.
