Seven years later...

Going on my tenth year in Equestria, a lot of things have happened since I was brought here.

I'm fully potty-trained now, and even though I finished learning when I was three, I still feel proud of myself. Also, I call Celestia "Mom" now because it sounds better. I really love her, Auntie, and Caddie. I've also lived up to my new name, Glitter Sparkle. There's nothing I love more than my new family and my new name.

Also, I can fly and use my magic fully. I was able to learn how to do them two years ago, since my wings had grown and my ability of magic had came back. I can do levitation, transportation, stealth, and many other spells. The only thing I don't have is a cutie mark, and I really want one. Mom says that I'll get one whenever I find my special talent, and I really hope I do get one.

~~~~~~~~~~

I woke up in my bed with a really bad pain in my head. I sat up and groaned, rubbing my head. I felt hot, so I got out of bed and stood up, stretching a little bit. Then, I noticed an even worse pain in my stomach, and I figured I needed to go to the bathroom. I walked into the bathroom, not even bothering to close the door, since I felt so much pain and was slightly tired. I sat down on the toilet, comforted myself, and pushed, excreting nothing but urine. I flushed, got up from the toilet, and looked in the mirror, seeing that my face was a little green. Of course, it was always green, but it was lighter that usual. Then, a sour taste came from my throat and mixed with my saliva. I don't know what it was, but what I did know was that it tasted horrible. I tried spitting it out, but it kept coming back up. I then retched and felt something travel up my throat. I quickly ran over to the toilet and knelt down and before I knew it, I puked. Coughing loudly, I called for help.

"Mom!", I said before sending another helping of vomit into the toilet, "Mom!" That was all I could say before puking. I just sat there, rubbing my forehead against the cold toilet and vomiting. Soon, I heard someone run up to me. Mom ran through the door, very concerned.

"Sweetie!", she said, "Are you OK?!" She knelt down behind me and rubbed my back.

"*cough* *cough* Sick", I said, my throat starting to hurt.

"What's hurting?", Mom said.

"My head, my throat, and my... *retch* *BLEEEEEEHHHHHHHH!!!*", I tried to say before puking again. Mom used her magic to pull my mane back to avoid getting any vomit on it. "My stomach".

"Oh, Sweetie", Mom said, "I told you not to eat so much cake".

"But...", I said, retching, but able to keep it down, "You ate more than I did, and you're not sick".

"That's because my stomach is used to eating that much", Mom said, "Yours isn't. You have to limit the amount of food you ingest". I puked again, some of it landing on my coat. Mom noticed this.

"That's OK", Mom said, "You can take a bath once you're finished". After about ten minutes, I had puked up the last bit of vomit. I flushed twice and got back onto my hooves as Mom drew up a bath with warm water and I got in.

"Th... thanks, Mom", I said, my throat still hurting and my voice decreasing in volume.

"You're welcome, Sweetie", Mom said, "Do you want me to leave or do you want me to stay?"

"Stay... please?", I said, not feeling safe in my current state.

"OK, Sweetie", Mom said, "May I bathe with you? I need a bath too". I nodded and scooted over a little. Mom slowly got into the tub and cuddled me. "Feeling any better?"

"No", I said, "Everything hurts".

"Do you have to go to the bathroom?", Mom asked.

"No", I said, "I tried, but nothing came out".

"Maybe you're just a little sick", Mom said, "I'll check your temperature. Open please". I opened my mouth as Mom removed one of her golden horseshoes and placed her hoof on my tongue, gasping afterwards."Oh my goodness! You have a temperature of 103!" After getting cleaned and dried off, Mom carried me to the bed and tucked me in.

"Mom", I said.

"Yes?", Mom said.

"Can you stay in here with me, please?", I asked.

"I can for about an hour", Mom said, "Day Court starts in an hour and I will have Cadence take care of you, since Luna is sleeping".

"OK", I said as my stomach growled lightly, this time from hunger, "Mom?"

"Yes, Sweetie?", Mom asked.

"I'm a little hungry", I said.

"Alright, I'll go get you a little something", Mom said. She left the bedchamber and soon came back with a tray. She set it in front of me and I looked at what was on it: sunflower soup, a chocolate-chip-muffin, wheat crackers, and a small glass of orange juice.

"Thank you, Mom", I said, starting to eat.

"You're welcome, Sweetie", Mom said, "Eat slowly. I don't want you to puke again". I nodded and ate as Mom sat next to me patiently while I ate. Soon, I finished and laid down again as Mom set the tray aside.

"Are you full?", Mom said.

"Yes", I said. Mom laid down on her side and I snuggled into her underside. Her soft coat was so comfortable as always. Still, I felt sick. My stomach felt like it was holding molten lava and my throat felt like I swallowed a box of hammer-nails.

"Sweetie", Mom said, "I have to go now and get ready for Day Court. I will contact Cadence and she will be here in an hour or so, alright?" I nodded. "If you need anything or puke again, just come get me or one of the maids". I nodded again and Mom kissed my muzzle and left. I snuggled under the blankets and closed my eyes, falling asleep in seconds.

~~~~~~~~~~

I woke up about an hour later and saw Caddie standing over me.

"C... Caddie?", I said, still feeling bad.

"Yes, Glitter", Caddie said, rubbing my stomach, "It's me. I must have accidentally woken you up when I came in".

"That's fine", I said, pulling Caddie down to me and hugging her. Caddie smiled and got into bed with me.

"So, I see you're sick", she said, "What's wrong?"

"My head, stomach, and throat hurts", I said, "I woke up, then threw up".

"Gross", Caddie said, "You must be really sick".

"Yeah", I said, "I feel like I just drank a carton of expired milk mixed with bird flu".

"Well, I'm here to take care of you while you get better", Caddie said.

"OK", I said. Caddie smiled and kissed my cheek.

"So, is there anything you wanna do to pass the time?", she asked. I thought for a few seconds.

"Chess?", I asked. Caddie smiled.

"Sure", she said.

Caddie walked over to my closet and pulled out my wooden chess-set as I smiled. Chess is, and always will be, my favorite board game. Caddie got a small table and placed it over the bed as I sat up, placed the pillow against the back frame, and rested my back against it. She set the board up, giving me the white pieces, and facing the brown pieces to herself. After she set the game up, we began to play, conversing now and then.

"Caddie?", I said, moving my Knight up and attacking her Rook.

"Yes?", Caddie said.

"Why don't you live with us?", I asked.

"Because I'm the Princess of the Crystal Empire", Caddie said, counterattacking, "I have to watch over the Crystal Ponies. I'm sure they wouldn't last a day in anarchy".

"But it's so lonely without anypony to play with", I said, "Mom and Auntie Luna are always busy or sleepy".

"I know you feel that way, and so do I", Caddie said, "You know, someday I'll let you stay with me in the Crystal Palace, whenever Auntie Celestia thinks you're ready".

"Really?", I asked, getting a little excited.

"Yes", Caddie said, "Just you and me".

"Let's hope so", I said. I moved my Rook up, smiling. "Checkmate". Caddie raised her eyebrow and examined the board, smirking as I had won.

"Checkmate correct", she said, "You win".

~~~~~~~~~~

Four hours later...

After a few hours of resting and playing games with Caddie, I felt a lot better. Caddie and I took a walk around Canterlot, enjoying sights and sounds. No matter what we were doing, I really loved spending time with Caddie. She wasn't always around, and I ate up every single minute I got with her. Anyway, we were taking a stroll through the park, smiling at the brightly painted equipment and joyful fillies and colts happily playing.

"I like this park", Caddie said, "Mother used to push me on the swing all the time".

"I do too", I said, "This park has the best slide ever, and the ice cream truck comes by here every day". Caddie chuckled.

"Indeed", she said, "Alright, you go have fun. I'm going to have a small nap". I nodded and Caddie sat on the bench, napping instantly. I chuckled as I walked off.

I sat on the swing and swung for a while, giggling as I went higher and higher as minutes went by. After about ten minutes of swinging, I confidently jumped off, landing on my four hooves. I then looked for something else to do, seeing my favorite piece of park equipment: the teeter-totter. I smiled as I walked over to it. A Unicorn colt was on one of the sides, looking quite bored. I walked over to him and asked what was wrong.

"Are you OK?", I said. The colt looked at me.

"Yeah", he said, "I'm just waiting for somepony to play with". He then caught sight of my wings and my horn. He instantly got off the teeter-totter and bowed in front of me, making me a little uncomfortable.

"Umm... What are you doing?", I asked, backing up a few steps.

"Your highness!", the colt said, "I apologize for disturbing you". He kissed my left front hoof, making me feel awkward and back up more.

"Get up", I said, "You don't have to do that".

"But... you're a Royal", he said, still bowing.

"Well, yeah, but I'm not a very high Royal", I said. The colt stood up again.

"Oh... OK...", he said, feeling kinda stupid for kissing my hoof, "So... you know Princess Celestia?"

"Mm-hmm", I said, "She's my mom".

"Wow", he said, "I wish I could meet Princess Celestia..."

"Well... I can't let you into the Castle", I said, "I'd have to let a lot of other ponies in if I let you in".

"Oh...", he said, looking down in sadness. I decided to change the subject to cheer him up.

"Anyway, you said you wanted somepony to play with, right?", I asked as he nodded, "Well, I'll play with you". His ears perked up like a dog.

"Really?!", he said, "Wow!"

"Such excitement", I joked.

"I get to play with a Royal!", he said as if he were bragging to his friend, "I get to play with Prince... Prince... uh... what's your name, your majesty?" I chuckled.

"Glitter Sparkle", I said.

"I get to play with Prince Sparkle!", he said. I felt a little flattered being called "Prince".

"You can call me 'Glitter'", I said as he nodded, "So, what's your name, hmm?" The colt smiled.

"My name's Shining Armor", he said, again bowing at my hooves.

"Well, Shining Armor", I said, "I was making my way over to the sandbox, if you care to join me?" Shining Armor smiled and followed me to the sandbox.

Soon, Shining Armor and I became best friends after playing and conversing for two hours. He was very happy too, being friends with a Royal and all, but I was just glad to have my first friend after being brought to Equestria. At that point, Caddie had woken up and had come to get me.

"Glitter", she said, walking toward me and Shining, "I'm going to go tinkle, and then it's time to go alright?"

"OK, Caddie", I said, "Enjoy your whiz". She giggled and walked into the park's outhouse, closing and locking the wooden door behind her as I looked at Shining, who had a dazed look on his face.

"Shining?", I asked, lightly bumping his shoulder with mine. He shook his head and fluttered his eyes a few times.

"Princess... Cadence....", he said, a bit of drool leaking from the right side of his mouth.

"Yeah....", I said, "That's my cousin".

"She's so... beautiful", Shining said, wiping the saliva from his mouth, "So... hot".

"Hey!", I yelled, snapping him out of his trance, "That's my cousin you're talking about!"

"S-sorry, Glitter", he said, shaking his head, "But... I can't believe I just saw her in pony..."

"Wow... you must be happy", I said.

"I am happy!", Shining said, "She's the most beautiful pony I've ever seen. Ohhhh... What if... one day... I get to... mar-". At that point, Caddie had came back, interrupting Shining's sentence.

"Ready to go home?", Caddie asked me.

"Yes, Caddie", I said, "Bye, Shining". He waved at me and Caddie and I flew back to the Castle.

~~~~~~~~~~

Once Caddie and I got back to the Castle, we landed and walked in.

"That was fun", I said, shaking the water from the clouds off of my wings.

"It sure was", Caddie said, "Now, I have to go home now". I hung my head with sadness and hugged one of her front legs tightly, not wanting to let go.

"Do you really have to go?", I said, tears starting to form in my eyes. Seeing Caddie leave made me sad, every time. It was so lonely whenever she was gone.

"Yes", Caddie said, "It's my duty to look over the Crystal Empire. If anything should happen to my subjects, I would be responsible. I've already had to pay 300 hospital bills this year because of injuries from broken or shattered crystals, and I do NOT want to have to remove another one from..." She exclaimed in disgust. "...never mind".

"Yeah yeah", I said. I let go of her and sat down, still hanging my head, a tear running down my face. Caddie knelt down to my level and hugged me, whispering into my ear.

"Glitter", she whispered, "It really hurts me to leave you too. You're the only one who I can play with. I live alone in my Palace, with nopony but the Guards. I'm lonely too".

"Really?", I said.

"Yes", Caddie said, "But remember, whenever Auntie thinks you're ready, you can stay with me in the Crystal Empire. Just me, you, and several fun activities". I weakly smiled.

"I'll be waiting for the day", I said, letting go of her leg. She smiled and kissed my cheek, turning around and expanding her wings. She looked back and winked at me with a smile. I smiled and winked back as Caddie left, her wonderful cherry scent wafting toward me as she did. I took a few sniffs and walked upstairs to my bedchamber. Mom was standing next to my door.

"I take it you feel better", she said, pulling me into a hug.

"I do", I said, hugging her back, "I just needed some sleep".

"And Cadence took good care of you?", Mom asked, giving me a warm nuzzle..

"Yep", I said, nuzzling back.

"Good", Mom said, letting go of me, "Now, dinner will be served in five minutes. Wash up good, alright?"

I nodded and Mom walked off into the dining room. I walked into my bedchamber and closed the door behind me, scraping my hooves on the mat in front of the door. I then walked into the bathroom, pooped, wiped, and washed my hooves and face. After handling my business in the bathroom, I walked into the dining room and sat down in one of the cushioned chairs. Once dinner was served, I used my magic to pick up and use the silverware. I was eating my favorite: spaghetti with hay.

While eating, I kept thinking about Caddie as each second went by. I was so attached to her, almost more than Mom. Like I said, seeing her leave made me sad. It was so lonely with no one to spend time with. I very rarely got to spend time with Mom or Auntie Luna, because their responsibilities and schedules didn't agree with mine. If Mom was busy, Auntie Luna was sleeping, and vise versa. Even so, Auntie Luna was nocturnal, and even if she wasn't busy and had free time, I was sleepy. Without Caddie around, I was very bored and lonely, and it angered me.

Then, I remembered what Caddie told me about staying in the Crystal Empire. I smiled with excitement, knowing I had the chance to ask Mom if I could. But, I was afraid that she might not approve of me staying a few days in a place several miles from Canterlot. I thought she probably wouldn't think I was able to handle it on my own and shoot me down. But, getting to spend time with Cadence in her own home was more important than worrying about what Mom was going to say, so I decided to do it. I swallowed what was in my mouth and washed it down with my soda, and after taking a deep breath, I was ready to ask her.

"Mom?", I said, my tail quivering with fear. Thankfully, Mom couldn't see it.

"Yes?", Mom said, wiping her muzzle with her napkin.

"Can I ask you something?", I asked, a sweat starting to form on my face.

"Of course, Sweetie", Mom said.

"Caddie and I were playing chess, and she said something that was I liked", I said.

"What was it?", Mom asked.

"She said that I could stay with her in the Crystal Empire, whenever you allow me to...", I said.

"Oh", Mom said, "So, is that what you want to ask?"

"Yes", I said, "Can I stay with Caddie for a day in the Crystal Empire?" I was finally able to spit out the question as Mom gave her usual smile.

"Yes, you may", she said. I hung my head with disappointment.

"*sigh* I didn't think so", I said, "Well, thanks for at least lis- wait, what did you say?"

"You may stay with Cadence in the Crystal Empire", Mom said. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"You mean... I really can stay with her?", I asked. "You're not pulling my hoof?"

"No, Sweetie", Mom said, "I'm serious. My answer is 'yes'". I was so happy that I ran over to Mom and hugged her as tight as I could.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!!!!!!!!!", I said, very happy.

"You're welcome, Sweetie", Mom said, kissing my cheek, "Besides, I think it's about time you've seen the other cities of Equestria".

"Wow", I said, "A whole day in the Crystal Empire with Caddie".

"Just a day?", Mom asked, "Is that all you want?" I looked up in confusion.

"Yeah...", I said, "Isn't that what you said?"

"Sweetie, if you like, I'll allow you to stay one week with her", Mom added. My ears perked up like a dog after hearing that.

"Really?!", I asked.

"Yes", Mom said, "You've been asking for something to do for a while now, so I'm going to allow you one week at the Crystal Empire". I was even happier as I hugged her tighter. Mom grunted in pain and started to push me a little bit. "OK, Sweetie, you're starting to hurt me". I let go of her.

"So, when can I go?", I asked.

"Tomorrow, of course", she said, "I recommend packing your stuff tonight so you do not forget". Nothing more needed to be said. I went straight up to my room and packed up the stuff that I needed into my favorite overnight bag. Very anxious, I decided to turn in for the night so the day would go by much faster. I walked to the top step and leaned over the railing, looking at Mom.

"Mom, I'm going to bed!", I said.

"Are you sure?", Mom said, "Dessert is in two hours".

"I'm sure", I said, "I wanna be well-rested for my week with Caddie!" Mom chuckled.

"Alright then", she said, "I'll have the cooks save yours". I nodded as Mom blew a kiss to me. "Goodnight, Sweetheart".

"'Night Mom!", I said. I went back in my bedchamber and went straight to bed, very excited.

Author's Note

Next Chapter: Crystal Empire Vacation/Glitter's Cutie Mark