There was something bothering him, that much was certain. Even though she had known him for many years, and understood how he thinks, even a complete stranger would be able to look upon him and know that there was something eating away at him. Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, better known to her friends and loved ones as Cadence, had returned to her home in the Northern Crystal Empire, just a few days after the recent turmoil that had engulfed much of Equestria by the hands of the monster known as Tirek.
The vile beast, having escaped his prison in Tartarus, had scoured all of the land, stealing the magic from every living pony, unicorns, pegasi, earth ponies and even alicorns such as herself. Thankfully, due to the actions of her sister-in-law, Twilight, the creature had been defeated and sent back to his prison, and Equestria was once more safe from harm. But even in spite of this, there was one pony who did not seem as happy as he should, given the circumstances. That pony was none other that Shining Armour, Prince of the Empire, and her beloved husband.
It had been little things at first, him seeming deep in thought when he thought she wasn't looking, but recently things had become far more noticeable, as he'd begun acting rather aggressively towards those under his command. Acts which before would have only resulted in a minor talking to, now led to her husband treating the guards as though they were outright criminals. Needless to say, Cadence knew she had to get to the bottom of this. Although, she would be the first to admit that she never looked forward to having to confront Shining over anything, but if something was bothering him this much, she knew she had little choice but to act.
And so she did when, at the end of a long day, when all of her royal duties had been attended to, and Princess Celestia's sun was starting to set in the West, she retired to her and Shining's chambers. She was greeted with the usual salute by the two crystal pony guards that stood sentry on either side, and while she would have normally nodded back in appreciation, today she had an important task to see to. So, closing the door of her room behind her, she looked upon her husband. Shining was busying himself at his desk, no doubt writing up the reports of the day. Under normal circumstances she wouldn't interrupt him, but this was an important matter.
Before approaching him however, she used her magic to remove all the trappings of royalty she normally wore, including her crown, necklace and shoes, and placed them on nearby velvet cushions, before making her way closer to him. Once she was only a few feet away from him, his ears pricked up, making it clear that he now knew she was there, and he turned to greet her, wearing a smile that Cadence could see was being forced.
"Good evening, honey. How was your day?"
The Princess of Love looked at her husband with a look that made it obvious to him that she was worried about something. It was not an expression he ever wanted to see on her, but there it was all the same. No words passed between them and the room was filled with an uncomfortable silence because of this, but in that silence, Shining knew exactly what was on her mind. He tried looking away from her, as though not looking her in the eye would make it all go away. But he knew better, and he let out a sigh before looking towards his wife once more.
"Cadence, I...I know I've been acting rather short with the troops lately, and I know they don't deserve it, but...it's just..."
He looked away from her once more, his expression clearly pained. Cadence moved closer and raised a hoof, gently placing it on the side of Shining's face and guiding it so he was looking at her again.
"Shining...please. Tell me what's wrong. Let me help you."
The young Prince looked into his wife's eyes, at her pleading expression, and knew that she genuinely wanted what was best for him, to help him in whatever he was going through. He looked down at the ground, his face now morphed into a look that could only have been described as shame. His voice, almost wobbling, finally began to speak.
"I...failed."
He looked up at Cadence after saying that, seeing her head tilting slightly to show her confusion over his words.
"I failed. Again and again, I fail at that which I am supposed to do."
Cadence looked at him, unsure of what he was talking about. She wracked her mind, trying desperately to think of when he might have failed at something important, anything that might have caused him to behave in the way he'd been doing recently. But she could not think of anything, and instead looked on as Shining got up from his chair and began walking away from her. Only once she was to his back did he finally speak again.
"My role in life...my mark...my duty...is that of a protector. A defender of ponies. First as a Captain, and then as a Prince, it has always been my responsibility to safeguard those I have sworn to protect."
He finally turned around to look her straight in the eye, his eyes filled with anger, though whether that anger was directed at himself or something else, Cadence could not say.
"I was unable to protect you when the Changelings invaded Canterlot. Their vile Queen, Chrysalis, locked you away and I was unable to save you, unable to even tell that the mare who stood by my side wasn't you."
It was now Cadence's turn to gain a pained expression on her face. What Shining was describing was, without question, the worst day of her life. To be locked away in the crystal caverns beneath Canterlot, worrying with every passing moment that her beloved would be taken from her, that she may never even see the light of day again, would have been a terrible thing for anypony. And though her thoughts at the time had always been on him, it was clear that Shining placed the blame for that terrible event upon himself. She would have told him otherwise, but he carried on.
"And then, when the Crystal Empire first reappeared, I failed to help defend against Sombra. I was a fool, and allowed that tyrant to corrupt my magic, make me useless. Because of that, the burden of defending the Empire fell to you, and you were almost killed by the strain of it."
Yet another terrible memory for them both. When the Empire had re-emerged after it's thousand-year absence, the two had shared the duty of guarding it with their magic, but with Shining's magic corrupted, she had little choice but to do it herself. And like Shining pointed out, it was an exhausting experience for her. If it had not been for the efforts of Twilight, Spike and their friends, the Empire, not to mention everypony in it, would have most likely fallen under Sombra's rule. It was not a pleasant thought, to be sure. But, as bad as that was, she suspected that more was to come from her husband, and sure enough, he continued.
"And then, just last week, I failed yet again. When Tirek invaded, and Discord helped him, I tried yet again to stop the evil that threatened us. But I wasn't able to do anything. That creature swallowed my magic like it was nothing. I couldn't stop him, and because of that, you and the other Princesses were sent away to Tartarus itself. If my sister hadn't beaten him..."
He did not finish his sentence, but Cadence knew the unspoken message behind it. If Twilight had indeed failed, then she, Celestia and Luna would still be in Tartarus now, drained of magic and doomed to spend eternity rotting away within it's vile confines. These were, most certainly, bad moments in all of their lives, but since everything had always turned out well, Cadence had never dwelt on them. However, she now knew that the same could not be said for her husband. When she looked upon him now, at the way he morosely looked at the ground, it all became as clear as crystal to her, a sentiment Shining confirmed when he looked at her once more and said his final words.
"My role is of the protector. But when things got bad, truly bad...I couldn't protect anypony. Not even the mare I loved."
It had taken her until now to realise it, but Shining had placed the burden of protection and safety of the realm, his family, and her, entirely upon himself. With every victory their enemies had achieved, he had marked it as a personal failure of his. Not once in all the time they'd been together had she ever even considered this, but now it made sense to her. Shining had always been proud of his role as a guard, as a Captain and as a Prince, even back when they first met. Defending others was something he saw as his duty in life, and was even the role for which he earned his cutie mark. So, whenever he saw himself as failing to uphold that role, he questioned his worth. A small part of her felt almost ashamed that she never really understood this until now.
Looking at him now, at the way he so negatively thought of himself. It almost broke her heart to see him like this. Things became even worse when he got down on all four knees, looking down at the ground once more before speaking.
"Cadence...forgive me."
To say that she was upset by the way her husband was talking about himself would have been an understatement. As far as she was concerned, he'd never failed anypony, her least of all. She didn't want him like this, not now, not ever, and she thought long and hard about any way at her disposal to bring him out of this. A notion then occurred to her as she looked upon him, still awaiting her response. A small smile crept onto her face as she stepped forward towards him before joining him on all four knees. Placing a hoof under his chin, she brought his face up to look her in the eye before speaking.
"Shining...there's nothing to forgive."
The stallion looked at her, his face making it clear that he couldn't accept what she had just said to him.
"But..."
However, he was stopped from finishing that sentence when Cadence shook her head.
"No buts! You have nothing to apologise for, and you should not be talking about yourself like this. We've been through terrible times, Shining, both of us. I won't deny that. But what I will deny is that any of it was your fault, or that you should say such terrible things about yourself."
Her husband looked away from her, his pained expression back once more. Frowning slightly, Cadence spoke up again.
"You might not have been able to stand against those monsters, but that doesn't matter. There were times when even Celestia, Luna and myself could not do any better. If anything, you should be proud of having done as much as you did."
Shining looked to her again, his face that of confusion. Giving him a small smile, Cadence explained herself.
"There are ponies in this world who would have fled at the first sign of trouble. But that is not you. When Sombra threatened your sister and her friends, you went after him directly, even knowing you couldn't beat him. When Tirek attacked, you fought him, even in the knowledge that the alicorns themselves feared him. There are few stallions in Equestria who have that kind of bravery, and that kind of devotion to others."
Her smile widening, she leaned forward and gently brushed the side of his head with her own in a warm nuzzling motion.
"Others may save the day...but that makes you no less of a great protector. You endeavour to carry on that duty with a dedication that few will ever have. It is the reason I fell in love with you. And the reason I still love you."
The stallion looked at his wife, right into her eyes, and saw nothing but truth there. She meant every word she'd just said to him, even though he himself had not believed it. He opened his mouth a few times, as though ready to deny all of the wonderful things she'd just said to him, but he couldn't do it. Like many times in their life together, Cadence had seen right into the heart of the matter, seen what was truly important, and made him realise it in a way that he had not been able to do on his own.
For the first time today, and for a long time, he gave her a genuine smile. When she returned it, the stallion privately thought to himself just how beautiful she looked she she did that, and the two moved closer to each other, placing their lips upon each other in a kiss that lasted quite some time. Truth be told, both of them knew that those same doubts would still be there in Shining's mind, and would likely be there for a very long time. Such things would never truly disappear after a few heartfelt words from a loved one. But for now, he was willing to accept what Cadence had said to him, and she, in turn, was happy that she had helped her husband through this.
In time, the two broke away from their kiss, still smiling at each other, and Shining spoke.
"It's days like this when I remember why I fell in love with you to begin with. Tell me, what did I ever do to deserve a mare as incredible as you?"
Cadence gave a small giggle at that, as well as a quick kiss on Shining's cheek, before giving him his answer.
"Because you were, are, and will always be...my knight in shining armour."
