A Scratch On Shining Armor

by BaeroRemedy

Rating: teen
Tags: Shining Armor, DJ P0N-3, Sad, Drama, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Princess Cadance
Length: 178177

Vinyl Scratch, being oh so popular with the Canterlot guards, gets one assigned to her to 'rehabilitate' her. This will be fun.

Vinyl Scratch is alone. Her parents are gone and she's estranged herself from the rest of her family years ago. Now she's fallen on hard times; she spends her days drinking, her nights partying and the intervening time in trouble with the guards.

After one too many run-ins with the authorities she is assigned a personal guard to help her get her life back on track. The only question is: can she truly be helped, or is she far too gone at this point?

Proof-reading provided by Shrink Laureate.

Cover art by Mytho.

Published 2014-10-06 04:20:06 UTC
Last updated 2017-03-11 00:30:08 UTC

There We Were

"There we were, Now here we are."
-Oasis

“Coming~!” The musical voice came from behind the door and immediately made Vinyl lock up. It had been years since she had talked with Skyward Glory, and now here she was magically bound to a guard and waiting for the mare he dreaded seeing to open the door.

The worst part of all of this was that Twinkle could feel her lack of comfort with the situation, and the sly grin on his face told her that he was enjoying it. This stallion had something seriously wrong with him, and she was going to get him back for this.

The door opened and Vinyl’s heart nearly stopped. Skyward Glory, in her prime, was something to behold. The pegasus’ yellow coat used to be as vibrant as a daisy on the first day of spring, and her magenta mane used to be unnaturally perfect...but now? Now she looked so tired and so...old, even though she was hardly any older than Vinyl herself. Each year that had passed left a very visible impression on the mare..

“Vinyl! Oh it’s so good to see you again!” Skyward’s smile pierced the dark bags that hung below her eyes and seemed to light up the world around her. As she enveloped Vinyl in warm embrace, the DJ wasn’t sure what to do...so she just stood there.

It was weird, receiving a hug and not reciprocating it. The shock of Skyward actually showing her affection did not fill up her full emotional spectrum, which let her mind wander to aspects of the mare hugging her; Skyward’s ribs were poking Vinyl as the pegasus hugged her, she could feel little feathers falling from mottled wings, and it only felt as though a skeleton bound in fur were embracing her.

“And Shining Armor!” The pegasus relinquished her hold and went to hug the guard next to her, this one was returned with gusto. “To what do I owe the pleasure of two of my favorite ponies visiting me?”

Even the mere act of being called ‘one of her favorite ponies’ made Vinyl want to slink away and hide. It was a weird feeling, backed by nostalgic feelings of love and childlike innocence.

“Well I’m on bind duty with Vinyl here-”

“Oh dear, what did she do? I hope it wasn’t anything too serious.” Vinyl simply lowered her head, almost as if she was afraid of being judged. But why should she be? It’s not like she did anything half as bad as what Skyward Glory did.

“No no-” The chuckle that accompanied the statement was straight out of ‘Charismatic Guard Monthly.’ “She just had one too many infractions and the Princess thought it best to try and nip this problem in the bud before it got worse.” A nod came from the pegasus, along with a look to Vinyl...which the Unicorn did not meet. “She mentioned you were like a sister to her, so I was hoping I could talk to you and try to get to know Vinyl a little better.”

“Oh of course! Come on in, I hope you don’t mind the foals though. They can get a bit rambunctious around visitors.” She held the door open for her guests, letting the two of them enter first. Vinyl was reluctant to go in, but she sure as hell didn’t want to get teleported to her captor’s side again.

The orphanage itself was just a house, Skyward Glory’s own home to be precise. The wooden floors were scuffed by little hooves constantly moving around, and faint giggles were heard coming from upstairs.

Vinyl allowed a small smile slip through her anxious countenance. She absolutely adored foals, and she adored how good Skyward was with them, how she always seemed to be the...perfect...mom…

The smile faded as quickly as it appeared, and her mood was instantly soured. The words ‘Mom’ and ‘Skyward Glory’ did not go together, at least not in Vinyl’s mind. There was a reason she had turned her back on the kindly mare years ago, and no matter how hard Sky tried to atone for her mistake...Vinyl just couldn’t forgive her. It wasn’t an option.

Shining Armor plopped onto the sagging couch, the stallion immediately sank into the worn cushions. He actually looked comfortable for what it’s worth. Vinyl’s friends’ words rang true then; “A couch is a couch is a couch.”

Vinyl took a seat beside the guard, sinking into the couch as well. At least nopony seemed to be paying any attention to her...what an odd thought. She did a lot to make herself the most noticeable pony in any given room, but now faced with a pony she used to call her sister she just wanted to sink into the couch.

Skyward Glory took her spot in a rocking chair across from the couch and looked between Vinyl and Shining.

“So, what would you like to know?” Vinyl felt her soul die a little with every ounce of sincerity and kindness that the mare put into her words and actions. Vinyl wanted to hate her for what she had done, heck she needed to...but Sky just made it so hard to.

“Well tell me a little bit about yours and Vinyl’s relationship. I would like to know if she has a good friend to rely on if she ever needs it.” Twinkle was going to be the death of her, she decided. He seemed almost as sincere as Sky, except he wasn’t. He was just eager to pry into Vinyl’s personal life so he could know what made her tick...and it was not going to be fun for either of them.

“Well we were friends since we were little. You see, I ran away from home when I was young...and Vinyl, well she was there to help when I needed it most.”

Years ago, Canterlot

Skyward Glory was exhausted. Her wings hung limp at her sides, her hooves dragged across the paved streets, and the pouring rain was making her mane stick to her face. She had reached her limit, that much was obvious. Any filly flying from Cloudsdale to Canterlot in the midst of a brewing storm would be exhausted.

How she ended up in Canterlot was anypony’s guess. She was planning to go to Las Pegasus to her Aunt’s house, but being tossed around in the storm made sure her only instinct was ‘fly’.

One of her legs gave out and she collapsed onto the wet pavement below her, spilling the contents of her saddleback all over the soaked ground. Seeing her diary and the picture of her mom starting to get damp, she gathered them up with all of the energy she could muster. Even those little moments left her muscles crying out in pain and making her want to do the same.

Then she spotted it; a derelict tower just down the road. It wasn’t very tall, maybe only two stories, and it had some holes in its walls and looked to be ready to crumble...but it had a roof, and that was the important part.

She pushed herself to her hooves, grinding her teeth against the pain and trying to keep from collapsing for the next few hundred feet. One hoof in front of the other she went down the road, each step a little harder and slower than the rest. The only thing keeping her going at this point was pure determination to keep moving in the opposite direction of her father.

Her father...how would he react when he woke up in the morning and found out she was gone? Would he be angry? Would he be sad? Would he go to find her? Would he even care? Skyward doubted that last one: when was the last time he actually cared about her? Before her mom died, that was for certain...but ever since she passed on, her father hadn’t cared about anything. Now he only cared about drinking and trying to keep away from his filly so he wouldn’t be reminded of lost love...and that’s why Skyward left.

She hated being ignored because she looked like her mother. She hated having to take care of herself day in and day out because her father was too far gone to. She hated being nothing… so she left.

Now she may have been soaking wet and exhausted, but at least she didn’t feel like she didn’t matter anymore. She might not have been with family, but now she had the opportunity to start anew, to be important.

The rain stopped pounding her as she slipped through one of the cracks in the desolate tower. It was quiet, only the sound of the rain outside perforated the stillness of the building, and for that she was grateful

As she went to the center of the room, she collapsed. Move no more would she, not tonight anyways. She let out a pitiful groan, this was the first time in hours that she had been able to rest and feel the full extent of her exhaustion. Everything ached, not just her wings and legs. Her head was pounding, just like her heart, her lungs felt as if they were on fire and her back felt ready to crack. It would be both heaven and hell to rest for a bit…

“Hello? Is somepony there?” A small feminine voice rang from the second level. The fallen pegasus wanted to call out or run away, she wasn’t sure which one...but she couldn’t force herself to do either. She could only allow her eyes to track a small pony coming down the crumbling stone stairs.

A bolt of lightning illuminated the room perfectly. In that flash Skyward could see that it was a filly, it was a unicorn, and her mane and tail were in curls. That was all of the information that her addled mind could absorb before the light died down.

“Are you okay…?” The filly stepped closer, no hesitation whatsoever. it was obvious she wasn’t afraid of strangers, or perhaps she was just that kind as to help a stranger in need.

“N-no…” The only word she could force.

“You look really bad…” There was a split second of thought. “I’m going to go get my dad, he’ll know what to do!”

Before the pegasus could object, the unicorn filly was gone.

Present Day

Vinyl still remembered that day, the events fresh in her mind after all of these years. Her mom and dad had rushed out to get her and help, then after hearing her story had welcomed the forlorn filly into their home.

Vinyl had always been taught to help out when you can, to make sure that ponies are okay no matter what. It stuck, obviously.

“Vinyl…” Sky chuckled warmly at a memory. “When I asked her what she was doing in the tower, told me that she was told to never go in there...so she did!” A full blown laugh echoed throughout the small room. “Always disobeying, even when she was still her parent’s little girl…”

Vinyl wanted to cry. For the first time in years, she was on the brink of breaking down and crying. She didn’t know why...perhaps it was the sentiment, perhaps it was just longing for a time long gone, perhaps it was at the memory of her parents.

“Vinyl may be a trouble-maker, Shining but she has a good heart, okay?” The guard nodded, but gestured for the mare to continue. “She was always there to help me when I needed it most, and she knows that if she ever needs me I will be there for her. One hundred percent.”

Vinyl glanced up, but immediately lowered her head when her gaze met the other pair of magenta eyes in the room. She couldn’t look her in the eyes, not even to this day.

“Just one question Glory-and if you don’t feel like answering it, I totally and completely understand-but what happened? Vinyl hasn’t said a word to you since we came here, and even back when she mentioned you she was so carefree about it.” Sky let loose a sigh that was just drove the stake of sadness deeper into Vinyl’s soul. This was going to be painful, and she couldn’t even find the words to stop it.

“I said Vinyl was always there for me, and that couldn’t be any more true.” Vinyl saw Shining anticipating the ‘but’ that was coming up. “About seven years ago, I got pregnant and the father left me when he found out...just left his job, left the city, and left me.” Sky’s wing lightly brushed across her stomach. “Left us…”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Sky nodded at the guard’s kind words.

“I carried her to term, and gave birth to a beautiful filly...then..I-I…” Words failed her, tears were forming in the corners of the pegasus’ bright eyes and she was choking up.

“It’s alright, take your time.” Shining was invested now, he needed to know the ending...and Vinyl was going to give it to him.

“You gave her up, Sky. You just...gave her up.” Vinyl’s voice was more accusatory than anything else. This was something that Vinyl would not let go, that she would not let Sky forget. “You didn’t even have the decency to leave her at an orphanage, you just left her on a door step in the middle of nowhere!” Vinyl was off of the couch now, she legs were shaking slightly from the rage that had consumed the sadness and guilt. “Then you went and started an orphanage as some sort of ironic atonement! Do you know how hard it is to face you after everything we’ve been through together? I want to hug you and knock you flat right now, and I don’t know which is the right one!” Vinyl was pacing now, her horn glowing slightly.

“What else was I supposed to do, Vinyl?” Sky rose to meet her former friend, tears now streaming down her cheeks.

“Put her up for legitimate adoption, maybe? Or heck, you could’ve given her to me! I would’ve been glad to raise her!” The image of the foal left on a strange doorstep still haunted Vinyl. If only Sky had talked to her about it, they could have figured something out. “But no, instead you squandered the life you created! I was there for you throughout your entire pregnancy, even after mom and dad died! I didn’t even grieve because you needed me to be strong!” Vinyl’s anger was getting the better of her and she could feel her top about to blow.

“Vinyl, I-” Sky went into embrace her friend, but all she received was a hoof across the cheek, and that’s when Vinyl’s world went dark.

Author's Note

Not as long and not as light as the last chapter, but that's okay! I hope you guys didn't mind the heaviness, I felt it was needed.

Here We Are

"Here we are, trapped in the amber of the moment. There is no why."
-Kurt Vonnegut

Vinyl hit the ground with a thud. It was a split second decision to exploit the failsafe in the binding spell which allowed him to send a surge of magical energy through the bind connection and incapacitate the pony on the other end if it was ever needed.

It had been needed.

Glory was laying on the ground, holding her jaw where Vinyl clocked her. Shining could see where the hoof hit and it was already turning a dark purple and starting to swell. This was not going to look good on him.

“Are you okay?” He knelt beside the fallen pegasus and rested a hoof on her back.

“I’m fine…” Glory looked up to Shining Armor, a far away look in her eyes. “It just hurt…” Shining was sure it hurt more than just physically. It seemed, to him at least, the Glory was the only one trying in her and Vinyl’s strained relationship. If this didn’t serve as the final nail in the coffin, he didn’t know what would.

“I shouldn’t have let her do that, I’m so sorry…” Shining couldn’t help but feel mostly responsible for the incident. It was him wanting to get into Vinyl’s head that caused all of this. Plus, it was an enticing tale to listen to, he didn’t really want it to end anyways. “Is there anything I can do? Get you an icepack? Take you to a hospital…?” This was his fault and he was going to make sure he tried his best to fix it.

“No, I’ll be fine.” Glory’s voice had lost the pleasant edge that it normally weilded like a sword to cut through the gloom, now it was distant and broken. “Just make sure she’s alright, please?” Shining was flummoxed. Vinyl had been nothing but distant and hateful since they entered the house, and Glory still wanted to make sure she was alright. This pegasus was truly a saint.

“How can you be worried about her? She just hit you, Glory...you have to be angry at her, at least a little bit.” The guard helped Glory to her hooves, and made sure he was looking her in the eyes. “That was not okay for her to do, and you know it.” He was practically pleading with her, his voice and the look in his eyes attested to that.

“She’s the only family I have left, Shining. Imagine if Twily was the only family you had left...could you ever be mad at her?” She was right, of course. Shining could never be mad at his little sister, no matter how hard he tried. He could get irritated by her from time to time, but he could never be truly angry with her.

“Yeah, you’re right…” He turned and lifted the unconcious Vinyl Scratch onto his back. “Well thank you for the information, Glory. I appreciate it.” Shining was still trying to figure this out; Vinyl obviously did not like him, but in order to properly do well by her they needed to see eye to eye on something. Without some sort of link to soften her up or understand her, it was going to make this a lot more difficult.

“Take care of her, please…” That was all Shining needed to hear. This was his cause now, and he was going to see it through.

Princess Mi Amore Cadenza was quite a happy pony at the moment. Tonight was the night that both herself and her boyfriend, Shining Armor, were going to take the time out of their busy schedules to have a date.

Right now she was waiting at the doorstep of Shining’s family home for him to answer. It wasn’t often that he was this tardy with answering the door, but the Princess supposed that he might’ve still been getting ready for the night.

The door opened and instead of her handsome stallion standing in the doorway, it was his little sister. Not that she wasn’t happy to see her favorite filly, it was just that she should be studying.

“Cadence!” Twilight wrapped herself around one of Cadence’s forelegs. “What are you doing here? Mom and Dad said I could take care of myself until they get home tonight.” Cadence noticed a book titled ‘Magic Mechanics: A beginners guide’ sitting on the floor beside Twilight. So she was studying…

“Well Shiny and I were supposed to go on a date tonight. Is he still upstairs getting ready?” Cadence leaned forward and craned her neck to the side to see if she could hear anything coming from upstairs.

“Oh...right.” The filly finally relinquished her grip. “He already went out with another mare earlier tonight...he brought her here…” Twilight was obviously straining to remember all of the details. That most likely means she was nose deep in a book when he was here.

“Another mare? Twilight are you sure you’re remembering that correctly?” Cadence was struggling to maintain her calm. She was positive that Shining would never cheat on her, but then again she was positive that Twilight would never lie.

“Well…” Little hooves shuffled sheepishly against the carpet. “I was trying to study for Princess Celestia’s test on Friday, so maybe I missed something.” Twilight rarely admitted she was flat-out wrong, just that she might be partially mistaken about a few things. “But I know he was definitely with a mare...he said something about bind or bond or something…”

Cadence’s mind was racing; Another mare, something about binding or bond, and forgetting their date. Her imediate thought was nothing decent nor good. She only hoped it was wrong.

“Do you have any idea where he went with this other mare, Twily?” Cadence needed to know desperately what was going on. She hoped Twilight could provide her with even a minute amount of information would do.

“No...I’m sorry Cadence.” Disappointment swept across the little scholar’s face. “If I knew I would tell you…”

“I know you would, Twily. Don’t worry yourself too much, alright?” She tussled her little Ladybug’s mane. “Just go back to studying, alright? I know you’ll ace that test.” Her own smile was reflected back with great intensity by Twilight.

With one last hug to serve as a parting farewell, Twilight went back inside of the house. Cadence was ready to figure out what was going on with her boyfriend.

Shining nudged open the door to Vinyl’s apartment. The mare was still out cold on his back. Usually a stallion carrying an unconcious mare trough the city on his back would earn him a few glances, but his guard armor made sure no questions were asked.

He put Vinyl on her couch, the same spot where she was laying earlier, and let out a sigh. Today was a rollercoaster that he was not prepared for in the slightest. He woke up early, did his normal duties, then it all went downhill. First after lunch he was told he was on bind duty, then the whole thing with Glory happened...he wondered what else today had in store for him.

“Celestia, what am I supposed to do with you, Vinyl?” Initially he’d felt a large amount of contempt towards the unicorn now in his care, how could he not? He had been put on the Vinyl patrol route more than a few times, and that ensured that he had been bitten, tossed down a street, and had alchohol thrown in his face by the mare.

After talking with Glory, he realized something though. Vinyl was not all that bad of a pony. Sure she had a distate for authority, and a penchant for anger but at heart she was a good pony and a good friend. Maybe if he could get her to express that more openly, he could convince her to control herself a little more thoroughly. That would require Glory’s help most likely, and that would be hard for Vinyl to accept.

Unbuckling his armor, he let it fall to the floor with a solid thunk. It felt good to shed his armor at the end of a long day. It was almost like switching from Work Shining to Home Shining. But he was always at work until he deemed Vinyl fit to return to life without an escort, and that was going to be a bit.

He sat down in the chair across from the couch, his seat from earlier. It felt nice to finally rest. Slowly but surely, his eyelids found their way together and he slipped into the void known as sleep.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

Shining bolted awake in an instant. He looked around the apartment urgently. How long had he been asleep? The only clue was that the moon was out and the stars were shining brightly outside of the window. So it was nighttime, who would be knocking at Vinyl’s door now?

He stood up slowly, his knees cracked and popped as he did so. He hated sleeping in chairs so much, but sometimes it was a necessity.

Vinyl was still out on the couch, he made sure of that. He wasn’t quite ready to have a confrontation with the mare quite yet. His task at the moment was to see who was at the front door and what in Celestia’s name they wanted this late at night.

He opened the door and nearly passed out. On the other side of the threshold stood the one and only Princess Cadence, his girlfriend. His heart stopped when it all started to click; they were supposed to have a date tonight! He totally forgot!

This was going to be bad.

“Shining Armor!” He flinched and clenched his eyes shut. “Why didn’t you tell me you were on bind duty? You know I would love to help!” Wait..what? He was confused to the maximum degree.

“You’re not mad that I forgot our date…?” He cracked an eye open slightly, only to see a beaming smile upon his love’s face.

“Mad? How could I be mad? You’re helping out somepony in need, I should’ve guessed that when Twilight told me you were out with some female.” Twily wasn’t listening to him, he realized this now. She was quite good at convincing him of things… “But you’re just a big hero, aren’t you?” Cadence rested her cheek against his. “You know that’s why I fell for you, right? Always being the best guy around.” The light kiss that followed the statement brought a deep blush to Shining’s face. How she did this to him every time was a mystery.

“I-well...uh…” He was stammering, still. Two years of dating and he was still acting like a teenager in love. Cadence just had that effect on him, and it was so wonderful. “It’s just been a busy day, y’know. I’m sorry, dear…”

“You know it’s perfectly fine, Shiny. I just wish you had some time to tell me before our date was supposed to start.” He truly did feel bad about forgetting, but at this point there was nothing he could do about that other than profusely apologize.

“I’ll make it up to you, Cadence. I promise.” He gave her a reassuring kiss and a loving smile. He didn’t want to do anything to bad in case Vinyl woke up. It wasn’t that he was embarrassed or anything, it’s just he didn’t like being overly affectionate around other ponies.

“I didn’t get much out of Knock Out regarding who you were bound to, so care to tell me about her?” Shining motioned for his love to sit down. This was going to take awhile.

One recap later…

Cadence was giddy with excitement. Sure Vinyl was a bit of a miscreant, and the story with Skyward Glory was a little sad, but it was the other part that excited her. The DJ had been caught last night on a date, and Cadence was ready to help play matchmaker to get the pony right on track.

Cadence had a bit of a penchant for love, well it was actually an insane mastery of love but that was just semantics. Her mind was already racing on who she could hook this pony up with, and how.

“You know what would help her on the straight and narrow, Shiny? If she was in love.” She could tell that her wonderful boyfriend could see the wheels in her head turning.

“But Cadence, I don’t think she would appreciate us-well you meddling with her love life.” Shining had a point, but Cadence could one up that: she had an idea.

“But what if she doesn’t know we’re meddling?” Cadence let a devious grin slide across her face. “Well if we have a date, she would have to come along, Right?” He nodded. “So I get a friend for her and we have a double date. Then I work my magic and she’s too in love to cause any trouble!”

The Princess of Love was not one to scheme, but she was also open to trying new things. Shining was a military man at heart; in the academy he had studied historical battles, analyzed strategies, and learned all there is to know on the greatest generals, so Cadence wanted to keep up. She wanted to prove that she was capable of devising and tactitioning and what-not so maybe her and Shining could become a bit closer as partners.

“I guess it could work.” Shining was still obviously unsure of the plan, but he needed to learn to have a little faith. This would work, she could feel it!

A strained groan came from the mare on the couch, and her hooves went to her head. That was Cadence’s cue to make like a banana and split. She couldn’t rightfully let Vinyl see her talking with Shining in her own home, why she might think that they were up to something! With one last kiss, she fired up her horn and blinked out of existence.

Vinyl’s head was pounding. Not in the good ‘I drank too much and partied too hard’ way either. More in the ‘I got knocked out by a trained member of Celestia’s personal guard’ way, not a fun way either. She had experience.

“I really hate you, Twinkle…” She was only assuming that the guard was in the room with her since she hadn’t opened her eyes yet. But in her mind, it was a safe bet seeing as how she couldn’t get very far away from him without being pulled magically to his side.

“No you don’t, Scratch” The haughty voice came back, pounding through her head like a runaway locomotive. “And don’t you try to get mad at me either, you know I only knocked you out because you hit her. That was unacceptable.” Vinyl scoffed. She felt like she was being admonished by a school teacher.

“Felt good, though…” She admitted. “But my head is freaking klling me. What did you do to me, Twinkle?” Vinyl wanted to steer the conversation far away from Sky, it would just make her mad.

“Our little bond has a failsafe in case I think you’re getting too dangerous. It allows me to send a surge of magical energy through the connection, down your horn, and directly into that thick skull of yours. Knocks you right out, no side effects.” Dear sweet Celestia, he sounded like he was reading out of a text book.

“Except for this splitting headache…”

“I prefer to think of that as a lesson, Scratch. I’m pretty sure you don’t want to learn it again, so how about we keep the punching down to a minimum?” Well unlike most lessons, this one was quite capable at getting through her thick skull with no issues.

“Aye aye, Cap’n.” She gave a half-hearted salute vaguely in the directiong of Twinkle’s voice. After a moment of silence, she decided to carry the conversation. “Gonna guess we’re back home? This sure feels like my couch…”

“Why not just open your eyes, lazy?”

“Because I know these types of headaches, they don’t like for me to see things.” The sound was no better, but it was better than the dead silence and the mental image of Twinkle just sitting there staring at her.

“It’s the middle of the night, Scratch. Just open your eyes. You need to go to your room, anyways. I’m tired and this couch is mine until I leave.” Vinyl could only groan. She didn’t want to go to bed! That required moving, and that would hurt.

“Tell you what, go to my room and grab the glasses off of my dresser and you can annex my couch.” Vinyl didn’t like the thought of the sovereign nation of Her Couch becoming an Equestrian Military outpost, but she wouldn’t cede the territory without something in return.

“Fine.” She heard the stallion stand and walk past her. “Lazy…”

“Shut up and get my glasses!” Vinyl shouted back, then immediately regretted that decision. Yelling plus migraine equals not a very good idea. “Idiot…” She added on in a mumble. She didn’t quite know if she was talking to herself or Shining on that one, though.

Within a few seconds Shining was back and he placed the glasses onto her face. Vinyl opened her eyes, greeted to a world behind familiar rose-tinted glasses. They were originally a joke gift from her dad, they were packaged with an old record with a song called ‘Rose Colored Glasses’ and the note with them had read; ‘For my little Vinyl, who sees the world through rose colored glasses.’

“See, that room in there is what I expected the rest of your house to look like; covered in speakers and grunge. I’m truly surprised that techno tidal wave hasn’t spilled over yet.” Ah yes, her stuff was all contained in her room and her room alone. Every deck, every record, and every bottle/can of booze she had been too lazy to throw out was in her room. After seeing the rest of the house, she guessed it would throw anypony off.

“Hallowed ground in there, Twinkle. Remember to leave a sacrement next time, alright? Would hate to upset the man upstairs.” She rolled off of the couch and onto her hooves with practised ease. She had to admit, this little back and forth she had going with Twinkle wasn’t all that bad. He was actually clever sometimes.

“Who? The god of the punks? I thought you held that title.” See? That set her up for so many things, and that was perfect. Any other guard would’ve shut her down faster than a health inspector in a brothel kitchen.

She had to admit, Twinkle was a good stallion. Handsome, loyal to his job, classy…then she decided on something. She didn’t know if Shining Armor would take the bait or not, but it was worth a shot. It could salvage this whole situation if she could get the proverbial ball rolling.

“Nah, just a spreader of the good word.” She gave the guard a smirk before she headed to her room, she even added a little extra swing to her hips as she walked. She wanted to give Twinkle a good show and good thoughts, maybe he would open up a bit if he saw something he liked.

Hell, who knew. This could lead to something fun for the both of them.

Changed My Mind

"I wouldn't say I've changed my mind. I changed some of my natural habits, some of my natural character."
-Kurt Masur

Shining Armor awoke the next morning around seven-thirty, that was some severe oversleeping on his part. Usually he was awake with the sun every morning so he could get his day started right.

It was currently around ten o’clock and he had already accomplished most of his morning activities. He went for his run around the city, he showered then polished his armor, and now he was cooking eggs! Scrambled eggs of course, easily the best kind.

Cooking wasn’t exactly a hobby of his, but it was something he knew how to do and even enjoyed. It was nice to just concentrate on making edible perfection, and it was a good excercise for following directions.

Despite all of these tasks with which he busied himself, his mind was still drawn to a peculiar moment from last night. When Vinyl was walking to her room, he couldn’t help but notice that her hips were swaying a little more than normal. He hoped that was either because A: The knock-out spell was messing with her motor skills, or B: She was messing with him. Now while his more...base male instincts did not wholly object to the act, his moral center was outraged!

Shining Armor was in a committed relationship and not one little thing could change that. Hopefully it was either A or B, but if an option C were to arise and it meant she was doing it on purpose and with a certain intent...well..he would have to lock that down quick.

Lucky for him though, they were going to drop by the castle later to speak with Princess Celestia. While they were there, he figured they could drop by and see Cadence and that would squash anything Vinyl was thinking.

Speaking of the troublemaker, breakfast was ready and he needed to wake her up. He didn’t know what kind of sleeper she was, be it heavy or light, but he did know that no matter which it was it would certainly be an adventure to find out.

So, with a wry smile upon his face, he went to Vinyl’s door and knocked.

Nothing.

He opened the door slowly at first. It was pitch black in there still, meaning that she had blackout curtains on the windows. No surprise there, she seemed like the type of pony who would do that. The darkness gracefully parted to the light spilling in from the main room and right onto the face of the still-sleeping mare.

Vinyl tossed in her sleep and puled the blankets over her head, but she still did not wake up. This was going to need a more tactile approach if it was going to work.

Quietly, he crept up to the edge of Vinyl’s bed. How would he do it, though? To wake up a pony who, without a sliver of a doubt, spent most of her time with music being blared at its highest possible decibel would be quite difficult. He could yell, it was simple and he had plenty of drill instructors in training do it to him, so he knew how to emulate it. He could just shake her.That might work.

A devious smile flashed across his face. He knew just what to do now.

He crept back out of the room slowly, he needed some distance for this. It wasn’t going to be very professional, but if wanted Vinyl to open up to him a bit more he was going to have be a little less professional than normal.

When he was sure he had obtained sufficient distance from his target, he planted his hooves firmly on the ground and prepared for launch. This was such a bad idea and he knew it, but sometimes bad ideas were worth it in the end.

The rookie guard pushed off with his powerful back legs and immediately set into a gallop. As he passed the threshold of Vinyl’s room, he lept into the air and aimed just to the right of the sleeping unicorn. The bed was certainly big enough to accomodate the both of them, his only hope was that it was solid enough to not launch Vinyl into the air too high.

He was wrong.

As he hit the bed, his charge was thrown into the air by the sudden shift of weight on the mattress. She woke up as soon as she was lifted into the air, and as she reached the apex of her flight she started screaming.

Vinyl hit the bed with a dull thump, her eyes wide and nerves obviously frayed. Shining would have made a witty statement, but he was currently too busy laughing his flank off on the other side of the bed. Who could blame him, though? It was the first bit of fun he actually had at this job in a long while.

“Shining!” Her furious scream made Shining laugh even more. This was just golden all around. A hoof struck his shoulder with all of the force it could muster this early in the morning, which didn’t hurt but it made Shining laugh even more. “What the buck, man?!”

“I-I’m sorry…” He managed to force out between guffaws. “I was just coming to wake you up for breakfast, and-and it was just too irresistible.” The mare next to him grumbled something angrily and rolled out of the bed. He followed her lead and exited to the main room.

“Please tell me you at least made coffee…” It was weird to think of Vinyl’s look at the moment as being ‘disheveled’, but her usual look had an air of practiced apathy to it. Right now she just looked, aptly enough, like she just rolled out of bed.

“Uhh...no? I didn’t realize I was supposed to.” Coffee wasn’t a thing Shining Armor ever needed. He was a morning pony, much to most others’ chagrin. A nice glass of orange juice was how he started his day.

“Useless…” He heard the similarly colored pony mutter as she levitated a coffee maker from one of the cabinets and all of the things she needed for it. Shining could’ve sworn her eyes were still shut as she made her beverage.

“I made some scrambled eggs for breakfast when you’re ready to eat.” Vinyl mumbled, he guessed it was in the affirmative, and went back to waiting on her coffee to brew. Shining in the meantime, helped himself to the food he made.

Vinyl reminded him a lot of Twily, he decided. They were both obviously against the entire concept of mornings, they both hid their actually personable nature, and despite what they might say, they both begrudingly liked him. Sure right now they may say they hate him, or at least have a slight disdain for him, but he knew they would admit to liking him later.

He was already halfway through his plate of eggs when Vinyl joined him. First she sat her plate down, then her mug of coffee, and finally a bottle of ketchup.

“Ketchup…?”

“It’s for my eggs, duh.” Shining stuck his tongue out and made a fake gagging noise. “Oh stuff it, Twinkle. It’s how my dad ate his scrambled eggs…” Speaking of dads, he noticed her mug had a heavily faded ‘#1 Dad’ painted on it.

“To each their own.” He shrugged as Vinyl squirted the ketchup onto her eggs and stirred it all up to make an orange-ish mess.

They ate most of their meal in silence, not surprisingly. Shining had already made Vinyl mad, and he figured he would wait for her to talk to him. At least then he would know she was fully awake. Sadly, breakfast and coffee did not wake her up fully it seemed. She put her plate and mug in the sink, put the ketchup back into the fridge and then headed off to the bathroom.

Shining hadn’t actually had the chance to take a proper look at Vinyl’s apartment. Sure he had been in here a few times now, and even had a chance to snoop a few times now. Right now seemed like the most opportune moment to try to gaze into her personal life.

There were a lot of things that obviously used to belong to her parents here; wedding pictures, faded and worn books on painting and architecture, old family portraits, and two rings laid neatly intertwined on the mantle.

To him, it seemed like Vinyl had an issue with letting go.

Later that day…

Today was decidedly not a good day for Vinyl. First she was woken up way too early by Shining, then when she got out of the shower she caught him messing with her parents’ wedding rings, and now they were heading to the castle for some reason.

While Shining was proving himself to be a slight annoyance before she was awake, she had to admit that once she was awake he was actually funny and endearing for a change. His method of waking her up had revealed he was mischevious and even clever.

It was definitely helping her idea of trying to get along with him in a more physical way.

Right now they were on the Royal Guard’s campus area, where guards who didn’t live in Canterlot stayed during their service. The buildings were made in the same style as the castle, and guards traveled back in forth from the dorms, to the barracks, to whatever their assignments might be.

“So why are we going to the castle again?” Vinyl had never really been to the castle before. She had lived in Canterlot her whole life, so unlike the tourists the Castle was nothing new to her. It was background noise in the symphony of the city at the most.

“We have to meet with Princess Celestia to discuss my initial thoughts about your case and come up with a reformation plan.” Once again, Shining rattled it off as if he was reading straight out of a book. “It’s been a long time since Princess Celestia has had to do this, so she’s taking the case personally.” Great, Royalty was her parole officer.

“And what’s your plan, Twinkle? I know you have one.” All of this snooping into her life and reopening old wounds couldn’t have been for nothing. He had to have come up with something by now.

“We’ll discuss it with the Princess…” The way he trailed off did not bode well for the subject. It left Vinyl with the sinking feeling that it was going to make her very angry with him. “Just...let me do the talking, alright? I have a little pull with the Princess, maybe we can reach a much easier conclusion we all like.” A little pull? What did that mean?

“What do you mean ‘a little pull’, Twinkle? You got some dirt on Her Majesty?” His brow furrowed. “Oh, she’s an alcoholic isn’t she? I always knew it, that many years with that much power has to push you to drinking.” She could see her words pushing Twinkle. He wanted to say something, maybe just a little more and he would spill the beans. “No? Let me guess...you’re banging her right?”

“What?” The iron was hot, and she was ready to strike. “Are you dense, Scratch?”

“No, no.” She started out. “I get it, strapping young stud like you makes her feel young again, right? Hey, I don’t judge. Older ponies are my thing too.” A wry smile crept across her face at the sight of the blustering guard next to her. “Plus, Princess Celestia? Total fox.” Now his face looked more like a tomato than a pony, and it was hilarious.

“No, I-”

“What’s the matter, Shining? Vinyl giving you a bit of trouble?” Just as Shining was about to retaliate, this pony decided to butt in. Vinyl recognized him; white coat like ever other guard, shorn golden mane, and eyes as green as a field in spring. It was Parry, the only guard that Vinyl could say she truly, from the bottom of her heart, hated. “She’s all talk, you just gotta let it slide.”

Parry and Vinyl had a bit of a...history. He had arrested her more times than she could count, probably held the record for it. From what she could tell, he also got some sort of sick kick from it judging from the amount of times he copped a feel during arrests.

Now you see, the problem with claiming a guard groped you is that you probably won’t be believed. This went about triple for Vinyl considering how many times she had accused multiple guards of unnecessary roughness, but he was the only one she ever told the truth about.

“Just being a bit of a nuisance, Parry.” The friendly tone that her chaperone took with her most hated pony was frustrating. Sure he didn’t look like a scumbag, he looked like a harmless goof, even his crooked smile attested to that but he was scum. He even seemed to give off a dirtbag vibe that made Vinyl shiver. “Nothing I can’t handle.”

“Ah, well you never know.” The pegasus guard hovered around the two of them. “I know Vinyl pretty well, and I know she can be a lot to handle on your own.” As he glided around the two of them, Vinyl felt his tail caress her flank and it made the fur on her back stand on end. “If you ever need a few extra hooves to take care of her, don’t be afraid to give me a shout, okay buddy?”

“You got it, Parry.” Shining took an opening in Parry’s flight path to step around his comrade. “Are we still on for poker on Wednesday? I don’t know if bringing Vinyl along is okay with you or not.” Vinyl hoped deep down that Parry would decline.

“Ah, bring her along, buddy!” A cold sense of dread washed over her: going to Parry’s house? That was a personal nightmare “The more the merrier! Plus, it’ll be a houseful of Royal Guards, what harm could she possibly do?” it wasn’t the harm that she could do that Vinyl was worried about...

“Alright then, I’ll be there!” With a wave, Parry flew off to do Celestia knows what. Hopefully take a nice long acid bath.

Vinyl wanted to turn to Shining and tell him that she didn’t want to go, to tell him why she didn’t like Parry, and to express a little fear. She couldn’t, though. Why would Shining Armor ever believe her? To him it would look like an excuse for them to not hang out with his friends. At this point, she could do nothing but go along with it.

“Oh, I see. Nothing clever or snarky to say to Parry? I must be special.” Oh, she decided long ago that Twinkle was special. Special in the fact that he was one of the few guards that wasn’t complete and utter trash. “Well let’s get on with this, then.”

They crossed the campus without any other obstructions, other than a few guards she had caused bodily harm in the past glaring at her. She had heard of a back entrance into the castle before from her less-than-reputable friends, but they had said it was secret and not constantly guarded. They were wrong.

They always said that the best place to hide something was in plain sight, and they were correct. The side entrance looked like a some sort of off-site kitchen, with two smokestacks constantly spewing acrid clouds into the air.

They entered the building after Shining Armor went ahead and talked in a very low voice so she couldn’t hear him. They were let in after an additional ocular patdown, and she finally got to see the inside of the secret entrance.

The inside had guards in full elite Royal Guard attire, spears and swords drawn. Wherever this lead in the castle, it was extremely high security. Other than the guards, it looked like some sort of old meeting room, with moons and stars carved into the black marble ceiling above and a mahogany conference table bolted into the middle of the floor. Two massive fireplaces one either side of the room gave an explanation for the smokestacks, but all of this raised more questions.

What was this room? Why was it now used as some sort of checkpoint instead of the meeting room it was intended to be? Moreover, why was it so close to the guard’s campus?

“Scratch, whatever you’re going to say, don’t.” She shot a look Shining’s way. “I saw the look on your face, and I can safely say that any questions will not be answered or addressed.” Vinyl didn’t take Shining for the cryptic type, but even she knew that everypony had secrets to keep.

The door they went through on the other side of the room led to a mirror version of the security checkpoint. The room was made of the purest, whitest marble ever seen. The table in this room was a beautiful polished oak, with the sigil of the sun in the middle of it...and sitting at the head of the table was Princess Celestia herself.

Shining Armor gave the Princess a crisp salute and took a seat on one side of the table. Vinyl took the opposite route and gave the monarch a simple head nod. It was unceremonious, but the slight nod that Celestia gave back made it worth it. With a smile on her face, Vinyl took a seat beside Shining.

“Hello you two. How are you enjoying each other’s company so far?” Vinyl couldn’t help but hear the slightly joyful tone in the Princess’ usually monotone voice. It made Vinyl think that perhaps Celestia was a bit of a mischief-maker deep down.

“We’re doing very well, thank you Princess.” Shining was way too cordial for Vinyl’s taste. Princess Celestia had earned a lot of the DJ’s respect, and she was going to make sure that the monarch knew that.

“Gotta say it’s been better than expected, Celestia. You sure know how to pick ‘em, Princess.” A slight wink was thrown the alicorn’s way almost as if to say ‘you did pick a looker.’ and the slightly crooked smile she shot back said ‘message recieved.’

“Well I’m glad you both seem to be in good spirits.” There was a slight pause. “Now, it’s been a while since I’ve had to do this so bear with me.” Another pause, this one seemed to be more contemplative than pregnant. “What are your initial thoughts, Shining Armor?” Even Vinyl could tell that was a loaded question.

“She has trust issues.” Not a second hesitation from Twinkle, that kinda hurt. “I think that’s one of the roots of this problem; she has such a hard time putting her faith in others and it has really hindered her ability to make any connections.” Shining was speaking very professionally, his voice keeping a consistently calm tone. “Not once did she mention any friends, nor was there any evidence that she had any close friends come over.”

He hit the nail right on the head...it was true; she didn’t really have any close friends anymore. Sure, she went to clubs every so often and she met ponies she liked...but friends? She couldn’t really say she called anypony a friend anymore.

“Do you have any ideas on how to help her move past these issues?” It seemed more like an interrogation than a meeting to Vinyl, even down to the Princess’ now icy calm demeanor.

“Her childhood friend, Skyward Glory, seems to be a major point of contention. It seems a few years back their friendship was broken because Glory gave her foal up, and Vinyl found issue with that.” Vinyl furrowed her brow at the guard. One day in her life and he thought he knew everything? Nu-uh.

“Damn right I found issue with it, Twinkle.” Even though she was turned to face Shining, she could see the Princess raise an eyebrow curiously. “No decent pony just leaves a defenseless foal on a doorstep!”

“I think-” He was ignoring her! Just flat-out ignoring her! “-that if we were to find the foal now and maybe have them all reconnect that it could help Vinyl forgive Glory and give her the support she needs to change.”

“I agree Shining Armor.” What?! Vinyl was flabbergasted. How would they even find Glory’s foal after all of these years? What if she hadn’t made it? What if she didn’t want to know her mother? “Write a report with all of the information you know about the foal and I’ll see if any of our census records can help you find her.” There was another pregnant pause. “I think that this is going to work.”

Who was the Princess trying to convince?

Later On…

“Where are we headed now, Twinkle?” Vinyl thought their business at the castle was limited to Princess Celestia, but she was wrong it seemed. “We catching lunch here or something?” She always wondered what castle cuisine tasted like.

Now all joking aside, she was mad with Shining Armor. Without consulting her, he had decided that it was a good idea to go looking for somepony that she dreaded to find. Sure, he had told her that she would like not his plan, but Vinyl never expected this.

“I have somepony I need to talk to before we go.” Probably another one his guard friends, she decided. Hopefully nopony she knew.

“Shining!” The feminine voice came from one of the doorways. A pink blur shot out of said doorway and practically tackled the stallion in front of her. What Vinyl saw next shocked her.

“You’re banging her niece!” It all clicked now! He had pull with Celestia because he was potential family. “Holy crap, you’re banging a Princess!” Then it really clicked. Shining Armor was dating royalty!

“Shut it, Scratch!” Shining was beet red, at least letting Vinyl know that she was doing a good job. After a glare shot her way, he returned the embrace of the alicorn and they shared a tender kiss.

Well there went that plan. Vinyl was many things, but homewrecker was not one of them. She would never break up a relationship just because she felt like it would benefit her, and knowing what Princess Cadence’s specialty was Vinyl doubted she could even break this relationship up.

“How are you today, Shiny?” There was something about her words. They weren’t just genuine, they were filled with absolutely true love. It was one thing to understand love, it was something else to be able to hear it in a voice.

“I’m fine, dear.” One last kiss and the two separated. “By the way, this is Vinyl Scratch. I’m on bind duty with her and we just had our planning meeting with Princess Celestia.” There was something going on here, Vinyl could feel it. She knew mischievous when she saw it.

“Oh? How did that go? It’s been awhile since Aunt Tia had to do one of those.” Well...maybe Vinyl was just imagining it. Cadence’s words seemed too genuine to be up to something. “I hope she wasn’t too hard on you, Vinyl.”

“Hmm?” Vinyl had been caught up in trying to decide if these two were up to something or not. “The Princess? Nah, she’s cool with me.” There was absolutely no reason for Cadence to know anything about her predicament, so she wasn’t going to tell the pink Princess.

“Well that’s good.” Back to Shining Armor she looked. “So I’m going to guess that this is about our date tomorrow night? Didn’t want to have somepony else tag along?” Well when she put it like that, it made Vinyl think of herself as a stray dog.

“I didn’t want to put a damper on the night, I know how much you want to go see the Canterlot Philharmonic-” Hold on, Vinyl had to interrupt now.

“The Canterlot Philharmonic? As in the Canterlot Philharmonic Orchestra of Her Majesty, Princess Celestia?” Yeah, she knew the full name, that’s how much she loved that Orchestra. Sadly she had never been able to see them in concert. “I’ve always wanted to go to one of their concerts!” She was allowing herself to fangirl at the fact that her personal guard was going to go.

“...Well now we have to take her, Shining.” Vinyl allowed herself to bounce up and down at the declaration. “If I know one thing about bind duty, it’s that the ponies who are bound with a guard need a little cheering up.”

“Cadance, are you sure about this?” Vinyl wanted to stuff something in Twinkle’s mouth. It was times like these that he needed to really shut up and let her win.

“I can get another ticket, dear. It’s nothing to worry about.” Vinyl rushed to the Princess and hugged her tightly. It wasn’t everyday that you had a personal wish fulfilled by a Princess, and Vinyl was not going to let this good deed go without a hug.

This was going be the best third wheel experience ever!

Author's Note

Don't forget to tell me what you think of the story! I want to hear what you guys think so I can hopefully become a better writer!

Change of Pace

"Change in all things is sweet."
-Aristotle

Vinyl was acting weird. Well weird for Vinyl, and that was saying something. As soon as Shining and Cadence had said their goodbyes, the eager unicorn had practically dragged him back to her apartment. Now he was forced to sit on the couch and wait for...well he wasn’t sure what for, actually. He was just told to wait.

“Okay, Twinkle-” Vinyl’s voice came from behind her slightly cracked bedroom door. “-I want you to give your honest opinion, Alright?” Celestia, couldn’t she just say what he was giving his opinion on first? It’s not like he could just say no and walk out, so he didn’t understand the reason for Vinyl being so...obtuse.

“What’s all this about...Scratch…” He trailed off as the door swung open, his words being practically swept aside. Vinyl stood in her doorway in a silky black dress that hugged her curves perfectly. It hung over her shoulders by thin straps, and the back was cut in a deep ‘V’, latticed by a series of strings.

Part of Shining wanted to let his jaw drop, but the majority of his mind reminded him that he needed to give an honest opinion. Only problem was, that could get him in trouble with the other mare in his life. Even though he was sure that Cadence wouldn’t be the slightest bit jealous, he needed to give a heavily neutered version of his honest opinion.

“I-I-It’s a nice dress...Vinyl. I..um...really like the...colors..?” Well that was terrible, he knew it and judging by the look on Vinyl’s face, so did she. The punk pony was probably prepared for praise, not a poorly postured position.

“Snap out of it, drooly! You have a special somepony, and I’m not trying to get you to commit an infidelity. I’m just looking for an honest opinion. Now pick your jaw up off of my sofa and speak your mind.” Aaaand just like that, the facade of even a remotely enticing mare was replaced with the Scratch that he had gotten strangely used to in the past few days. That made this at least a little easier.

“Well...it’s a little...risque, in my opinion.” A shrug came from the mare, as if saying ‘yeah, duh’. “Why are you asking me this, again?” He still hadn’t gotten that answer yet, and he needed it. This was venturing into some weird territory. “I’m not exactly a fashion expert.” He had to at least warn her of that fact. Like a bucket around a madpony with a drill, his opinion would not hold much water.

“Because I’m going to the concert with you and the Princess, duh. I’m making sure that you approve of my wardrobe choice.” It made sense a little, he did know what the proper attire was for this sort of thing. It was still a little weird, though. Vinyl was acting like a teenage filly going to prom, not a grown mare going to a high-class concert.

That wasn’t the weird part, though. That honor belonged to her word choice of calling Cadence ‘The Princess.’ Shining rarely thought of Cadence as a member of royalty anymore. The alicorn and himself had been in a relationship for a long while, and Cadence was even Twily’s foalsitter. At this point she was practically family...well until he decided to pop the question. Whenever that was going to be...

“Oh, well...then no. That dress kinda makes you look like a gold digger. Do you have something a little more...classy? Less black, maybe?” With a huff and a grumble at his words, Vinyl retreated back into her room. She wanted his honest opinion, so he did away withcaution and spoke his mind. Surely Vinyl couldn’t fault him for that? Now he could only hope that this wouldn’t take long, after all how many dresses could a mare like Vinyl own?

One hour later…

“How many dresses do you own, Scratch?” How many dresses had they gone through now? Fifteen? Twenty? Truthfully, the count was lost about five dresses ago. “I never really pictured you as the dress-type…” He was tired of this song and dance. Every dress she paraded out here in, while flattering to her figure, was just not appropriate in one way or another. It was like she was trying to look as skanky as possible.

“Why? Because I like to party? You know, ponies can like different things; Some jocks like to play chess, some Princesses like their guards, and I like to wear dresses. Is that okay, Twinkle?” That was a fair point, he guessed...but it wasn’t that the dichotomy was a strange one, it was more of the fact that she didn’t seem like dresses were her style. Judging by her room and overall demeanor, Vinyl did not seem like the dress-y type.

“I just pictured you as the ‘free spirit’ type, Scratch. Like, maybe you just hated wearing clothes period, I don’t know. I just didn’t take you for the type to own a closet full of dresses!” His tone was more playfully over-the-top than annoyed, though there was definitely some annoyance mixed in there.

“Yeah? Well you were wrong, Twinkle.” Shining only offered a roll of his eyes in response. “I have one more dress to try on, alright?” He only groaned. What would they do if this dress wasn’t good either? Would they have to go shopping? Celestia, he hoped not. He could only imagine what shopping with Vinyl would be like, and it was not fun.

Shining allowed himself to reflect a little on the main issue at hoof; Glory’s foal. Inbetween dresses, Shining had enough time to fill out everything he had learned about the foal up to this point. It wasn’t much: an approximate birth date, gender, and a very general location where she was left. If he wanted a more definitive profile, he would either have to ask Vinyl or Glory...and either way was going to end in hurt feelings.

Going back to talk with the kindly pegasus would be an ordeal, that much was certain. If Shining could keep the physical confrontation to a zero, that would be ideal. Keeping Vinyl from hitting Glory would mean keeping her temper down, which would mean steering the conversation away from the foal...which would undermine the whole reason of going to speak with her.

Vinyl seemed to be one giant eggshell when it came to her own problems. Every way he thought to help her would most likely just push the mare away from him in the long run. If there was one thing he absolutely needed to get the job done, it was Vinyl’s eventual friendship and cooperation.

Then there was Cadence’s plan to hook-up Vinyl with somepony. He didn’t know who his love was going to get, but he didn’t doubt that it would work. If there was one thing that Cadence was good at, it was playing matchmaker. Shining had faith in Cadence, he just didn’t have faith that Vinyl would be up for it.

“Okay! Last one. It was my mom’s, and I’m actually really surprised it fits.” Shining dragged himself out of the quagmire of thoughts that surrounded his opinion of Vinyl. Like any decent equine, when somepony spoke, he listened.

Vinyl stepped out in a ruby number that flowed nicely along her body. It didn’t hug her curves like a majority of the other dresses, but it wasn’t too loose fitting either. It had no spaghetti-thin straps, and it actually had sleeves that covered her forelegs. All in all, it was probably the best dress she modeled all afternoon.

“I like it. You look good, Scratch.” Vinyl smiled. “Except the mane. That’s still a rat’s nest.” The smile went soon after he was done talking. Once again, his completely honest opinion. Shining was ninety percent certain that this was going to come back and bite him in the flank.

“Well I’m going to style it before we go. So don’t you worry about my mane, alright?” Shining only raised his front hooves in surrender. “Since this is the only dress you didn’t shoot down, I guess I’m wearing it.”

Seeing as he only needed to go to his home to pick up his suit, what little preparation he had to do for the date tommorow was done. Shining only hoped Cadence was having some luck finding a date for Vinyl. He would have to be something special to hold the rambunctious mares’ attention for a whole night...and maybe a bit longer.

The silence was the most deafening sound in the world. It allowed the mind to project into the void that which was not there. While he was assaulted with silence, his mind fought back with screams of agony and roars of a bloodthirsty beast. Where the darkness shrouded his vision, it provided a canvas for nightmares.

Weak hooves shook in terror, ears flinching at the imaginary sounds that tormented him still. It was less of an ordeal now, it was even expected...but still not welcome.

Every memory conjured a sensation that was not there; blood splattering across his face, teeth tearing into flesh and bone...pained screams of coworkers and friends. But at least it made the darkened house a little less lonely...at least the screams still kept him company.

“Help me!” The cry for assistance came from the darkness so suddenly that the pony nearly jumped out of his skin. Sweat rolled down his forehead,passing over his eyes and dripping off of his muzzle onto the hardwood floors below. Even the sound of a single droplet of sweat hitting the ground seemed to beat its way into his skull and bring back some terrible detail.

He couldn’t even speak anymore. There were no more words that could be said to the darkness, no more thoughts that hadn’t already been flung at this invisible adversary to keep it at bay. No defenses were left, now he was at the mercy of his guilt and sorrow.

Knock knock knock

He didn’t even jump. There was no way to distinguish a real sound from imagination anymore. Was somepony truly at his door, or was that the rapping of death at his proverbial chamber door? There was truly no way to tell.

“Hello? Intrepid? It’s Princess Cadence, are you in there?” That was no voice of a specter come to haunt him, nor was it death’s growl. It was the voice of a friend, a beacon in the sea of confusion.

“Y-Yes, Princess. I-I’ll be right there, p-please just give me one moment.” Intrepid steadied himself and took a deep breath. The presence of another pony, even if she was on the other side of the door, pushed back the darkness and the fog and allowed him to think clearly.

The stallion stood up, albeit with great difficulty, and strode across the room. The power and confidence that his stride had once held was noticeably gone, he could feel it in every step. That which had been taken from him could never truly be replaced.

One last deep breath and a forced smile later, and he finally opened the door. He was greeted by Princess Cadence, one of the few ponies that he saw anymore. Her smile was far more genuine than his, and even made his become a little more faithful.

“How are you doing today, Intrepid?” That was a loaded question and they both knew it. There was no simple way to answer it, nor any decent way. Intrepid would never allow himself to speak of his thoughts around a lady, let alone a Princess.

“I have good days and bad days.” That was his standard response now. It was telling the truth without going into any detail. Luckily for him, Cadence never did press him for the full truth.

“Been up to anything interesting?” The alicorn may have been looking him in his eyes, but he could feel her peripherals focused on his right foreleg and wing...or lack thereof. That’s all ponies saw when they looked at him anymore; missing appendages. Who could blame them, though? That’s all he saw anymore.

“No, can’t really say I have...just living day to day.” That in and of itself was a tall order anymore. Even after half a year, he was still just living day to day. It showed. His meager apartment was had books and litter strewn about it, marking him as a pony with enough apathy to not care about appearances.

“Well how about we change that? I have a little outing planned tomorrow and I would be delighted if you would join me.” Intrepid held back a sigh, that would be impolite. It seemed ever since he had been released from the hospital Princess Cadence had turned him into her own personal project. She would visit him whenever her schedule permitted and often tried to get him to come out of his shell or cheer him up.

“I would love to Princess, but-” Cadence put a hoof up to silence him.

“I won’t hear of any excuses, Intrepid.” The alicorn reminded Intrepid more of a stern mother more often than not. He was a mopey child, and she was determined to snap him out of it. “We’re attending the Orchestra. I know how much you love music.” Well that was true. The dillapidated record player that had played more songs than days in a year was a testament to that. Music was his last bastion of joy and purpose in the world.

“Tomorrow, you said…?” It perked up his spirits just enough for Cadence to flash a bright, full smile. “I suppose I have time…”

“Good. I also need you to put on your best suit and be your handsome self, alright? Shining Armor is bringing a friend of his as well and I’m certain you two will get along.” There was the catch. She was trying to set him up. It was enough that Shining Armor was going to be there. Intrepid and the guard had never seen eye-to-eye, they only saw each other as an annoyance. Now Cadence was trying to get him to go on a blind date.

“Princess, I really don’t think this is a good idea. I really think that a blind date is the last thing I need.” He could only imagine the poor mare that he was being set up with. Celestia, as soon as she saw he was a cripple she would most likely turn tail and run. Intrepid wouldn’t blame her for bolting either, he wasn’t exactly in his prime anymore.

“Or maybe it’s exactly what you need!” Cadence’s upbeat attitude was almost enough to convince him. Almost. “I promise that you two will hit it off. She has a few quirks, but she has a good heart.” Intrepid wanted to object, but the only card he held was ‘what if she was disgusted?’. “You at least have to give it a chance, right? I didn’t think you were one to let opportunity pass you by.”

Well he didn’t used to be. That changed though. The fiery passion for exploration and derring do that had once lit his cobalt eyes were but embers now. New things only lead to pain and heartache he had earned. Perhaps, just perhaps, embers were enough to rekindle his life.

“I-very well...” With a weary sigh, he let the Princess have her way. “What’s her name?” If she was one of Shining Armor’s friends, he supposed that maybe it wouldn’t be bad if she turned tail and bolted. It was a risk he was surpisingly willing to take.

“Vinyl Scratch, is her name.” What a name. He could tell it was going to be an interesting affair already.

Concerto

“A concert is not a live rendition of our album, it’s a theatrical event!”

-Freddie Mercury

“Scratch, Hurry up!” Shining tapped his hoof against the floor nervously, his eyes darting to the clock hung on the wall every few seconds. If Vinyl didn’t hurry up, they were going to be late. One thing Shining Armor didn’t want to be was late to a high class event, the glares were too much.

After Vinyl’s little fashion show yesterday, he dragged her along to see how long it would take to get from her apartment to the concert hall. Thirty minutes if they were swift on their hooves. As of right now they had forty minutes until the show started. They should’ve been there at least thirty minutes ago.

“If you don’t come out in the next thirty seconds I’m leaving without you and you’re getting dragged along in your current state.” A bit long winded, he decided in hindsight but it got the point across. He couldn’t be late to this or else Cadence would be furious at him...well, probably not furious, but at least ever so slightly annoyed.

“Alright, alright! Calm down, Twinkle. I’m coming out.” The mare responded with no small amount of distaste. “Can’t a mare take some time to look good?” The mare’s bedroom door swung open with a creak and thud. Vinyl marched out in her ruby gown, matching lipstick, and her mane straightened and styled so that it curled a bit towards the bottom.

Shining had to admit; she cleaned up pretty well. Her usual rat’s nest of a mane looked particularly nice with some care put into it. He only hoped that Vinyl also had some manners and etiquette hidden underneath her equally disheveled personality that she could surprise him with tonight.

“So, you good to go?” Shining used his magic to straighten his bowtie. Most stallions preferred a regular necktie, but his father had always worn a bowtie to formal events and it rubbed off on him. Plus they looked mighty cool on the right stallion, and he was nothing if not the right stallion for a bowtie.

Other than that, the guard wore a simple black and white ensemble that would be commonplace at any high society gathering. No need to go out of his way to stand out: that’s what Cadence was there for. That mare made them the most important ponies in the room...not that Shining liked that very much.

“Buck yeah! What are we waiting for?” With a little more hitch in her giddy-up than usual, the eccentric pony bolted from the apartment, leaving Shining to sigh and give chase. This was going to be a very interesting night.

Princess Cadence stood outside of the concert hall, ponies all buzzing around her and openly gawking at her. At this point in her life it wasn’t at all out of the ordinary. Years ago she had learned that the best way to ignore those who would crowd around her and look at her differently simply for having wings and a horn was just to tune them out.

She had her very own ‘playlist’ in her head that she often used to tune out those around her. Right about now it was on a lovely little tune that Princess Celestia often hummed to herself during the early hours of the night, right when the moon was closest to the horizon. It was sweet, almost sounding like a lullaby.

As the seconds dragged on and the tune faded from her mind, the ever pervasive thought of her significant other’s persistent tardiness took over. Surely his little sister would be appalled, as should she...but Cadence knew that Shining always got sidetracked and always felt sorry about it. Plus, she couldn’t help but forgive him. It was one of her flaws; never giving up on anypony.

“Princess Cadence…?” A meek voice, preceded by a slight cough came from the crowd in front of her. Immediately, she picked the pony out of the crowd. It was Intrepid, her blind date for Vinyl Scratch.

The stallion pushed his way to the front of the crowd with great difficulty, even making sure to forge ahead with his left side in order to keep his right side ‘safe’. He wore a simple black suit, a necktie with a clumsy knot hung around his neck. The black suit nicely set off the stone gray of his coat and brought out the grey that was streaking its way into his jet black mane. It made him look...distinguished.

“Intrepid!” She pulled the stallion in for a cordial hug, quickly fixing his tie with her magic as she did so. “How are you tonight?” She put on her best smile and made sure that it reached her eyes.

“Thanks…” The stallion pulled at the necktie and wiped away a bead of sweat from his brow. “ I thought we were all supposed to dress formally…?” The pegasus said, motioning to the royal’s lack of formal dress.

“I’m wearing my crown, aren’t I? Celestia says that a crown is quite enough for royalty.” She gave her comrade a slight smile and a wink. “After all, fancy clothes are only for ponies trying to prove something. I think the horn and wings prove enough, don’t you?” Cadence heard Celestia in her own voice more than she liked in that statement. The elder monarch’s wit and secretly sarcastic ways tended to rub off on ponies.

“I suppose…” The response was simply filler, she could feel it. Intrepid was not one to give decisive or meaningful answers anymore. but she could forgive that. More often than not, he had more on his mind than she could even imagine. But that’s why she invited the depressed pegasus, to help him relieve some of that stress with a mare who was decidedly carefree.

“Can Vinyl Scratch expect such simmering replies, Intrepid?” Cadence wanted both ponies to come out of their respective shells and comfort zones in order to bond on this little excursion. She didn’t want either of them to be so pent up...though she felt that Vinyl was not going to be the problem on that front.

“Sorry Princess…” The pony let out a deep sigh. “I just...I haven’t really gone out like this in a...long time. It’s going to take a little while to get back into a ‘sociable’ mood.” That gave Cadence a little hope, at least she knew he was going to try.

Everyone else had already gone inside, that’s how late Shining Armor and this mare Cadence had set him up with were. The ushers had already started taking tickets and seating ponies. Another five or ten minutes and the doors would be closed to newcomers.

Intrepid could feel the thoughts racing inside of his head like hornets on a rampage. What if they couldn’t get in? What if Cadance tried to get them in with her status and the ushers got offended? Oh dear sweet Celestia, what if they were banned from the establishment for offending someone?! Sweat, in rivers instead of beads, started to roll down his face.

“Intrepid!” The stallions jumped a little, his eyes wide and frenzied. It was Princess Cadance, she had nudged him a bit and raised her voice to catch his attention. “Are you alright?” The concern in her voice was not of the private variety, but rather of the quite public kind. Letting him know that there were others watching.

It was at that moment he became acutely aware of another pair of ponies looking at him. His nerves flared up again in an instant. They saw him panicking, they saw him zoning out. What kind of impression was that?

“Y-yes, sorry Princess. I….zoned out there for a second. Forgive me.” He tried with all of his might to bring across a level tone and a sense of normalcy with his voice. Hopefully that would ease the Princess.

“It’s alright Intrepid. I was just going to introduce you to mine and Shining’s friend.” His attention was drawn to the ponies trotting towards them. One was the ever-personable royal guard, Shining Armor. The other was a mare whom he could only come up with one word to describe; stunning.

A ruby red dress hugged her body, nicely contrasting her pearl white coat. The two-tone mane of this lovely visage draped down her neck, leading to curls resting perfectly at the base of her neck. Most of all, he noticed her eyes...magenta. They were enveloping, with such visible energy that her whole face seemed to spark with exuberance.

“This is Vinyl Scratch. Vinyl, this is Intrepid. He’s the former leader of Her Majesty’s Exploratory Force.” Intrepid nodded a little and instinctively brought up his right hoof to make sure his mane was straight.

That’s when he noticed it, the gaze of the young mare. It was drawn to his hoof, his fake hoof. As quick as he could, he put his hoof back down and turned ever so slightly to his right in order to conceal some of his less desirable features. There was something different about Vinyl, though. Her gaze wasn’t one of disgust, but of curiosity and maybe a little hint of worry.

“It’s a pleasure, Miss Scratch.” The mare gave him a polite smile. “And might I be as bold to say you look stunning in that gown?” Where did that come from? He wasn’t one for smooth compliments, or even such civility anymore? That didn’t matter, because Vinyl’s smile spread from ear to ear.

“Thanks, Intrepid. You look pretty good in that suit too. I like the ite, but maybe that’s because I’ve been arguing with Twinkle over here how bowties are for old guys and professors.” The guard at her side shot her a glance, to which Miss Scratch responded by sticking her tongue out.

“I’ll have you know my father wears bow ties, and pulls them off very well.” Shining Armor rebutted.

“Your father is a Professor at the School, dear.” Princess Cadance interjected, much to Shining Armor’s apparent chagrin.

“There. Point made.” The non-alicorn mare said with a firm nod. “Now come on! We have to get inside, I wanna get the good seats.” WIth gusto, Vinyl nearly broke out into a sprint towards the hallway where the royalty’s personal boxes were. She only stopped to grab Intrepid’s hoof and drag him along, much to the stallion’s surprise.

He kept up with her for the most part, well in a physical sense. On the emotional level, he wasn’t sure if he could. Vinyl seemed to have such an enthusiasm to her general attitude that he just couldn’t stop thinking about. When was the last time he ran into a pony who seemed so carefree in Canterlot? It was either ‘never’ or ‘close enough to never to be indistinguishable’. It was both refreshing and worrisome...nopony in Canterlot was this happy without dealing with something. It felt as though she was compensating for something.

VInyl rushed to Cadance’s personal box and flashed the ticket that Shining had given to her on their way to the Concert Hall to the Usher. A one-of-a-kind chance to feel like royalty for a night! The Usher nodded and opened the door for the both of them, Vinyl and her date.

Speaking of, Vinyl decided he was a bit of an odd duck. Fake leg, or at least hoof, kinda spacey. Not bad, at least he had the courtesy to compliment her unlike most of her dates in the past. She had a hundred bits on there being an interesting story behind that hoof, there had to be. But VInyl wasn’t one to push at possibly uncomfortable memories, she had experience with that recently and it was no fun at all.

Inside of the Royal box, there were six tiered seats. Three in the front row, two in the middle, and one in the back. It was an odd arrangement to say the least, but royalty was a weird crowd.

“C’mon, in the front. I want the best seats!” VInyl hurriedly hopped over the middle row of seats and plopped down in the middle front seat. It wasn’t ‘ladylike’ or anything, but at the moment VInyl didn’t care. This was the Canterlot Philharmonic Orchestra! There was no time for class, this was something amazing!

“You’re very excited.” Intrepid sat to Vinyl’s left, he fidgeted about in his seat until he looked decently comfortable. “It’s actually rather refreshing, most ponies who come here are rather….” THe stallion bobbed his head for a few seconds, thinking of an appropriate word.

“Stuck up?” VInyl finished his thought for him.

“I was going to say ‘snooty’, but that works too.” It was then that VInyl noticed something that had not caught her eye in the lobby, Intrepid had a gray wing coming out of his suit jacket on his left side...but from what she could recall, not on his right.

“It’s one of those things, y’know? They’re used to it, it’s like living in Manehatten and just passing by the Statue of Friendship everyday like it’s no big deal.” VInyl was never really ‘good’ with words, roundabout ways of saying things were common in her day to day.

“They’re jaded.” Intrepid simplified. “An orchestra, what a terrible thing to be jaded about. I couldn’t imagine music such as this being so commonplace in my life that I’m indifferent about it.” Intrepid raised his faux hoof and stroked his chin. “Music like this, it shouldn’t be wasted.”

“Finally, somepony who gets it!” A loud ‘shhh’ came across from one of the other boxes. VInyl ignored it though, tonight she was royalty and could do as she pleased before the show started. “So many ponies just ‘listen’ to music as like entertainment. B-but it’s feeling and life put to sound!” Music was something that VInyl could talk about for hours, ever since she was a little filly listening to her parent’s records it had always been intoxicating to her.

“It’s magic, that’s for sure.” Intrepid added to the conversation. “How does it work? How does the chaos of an orchestra pit, all of the different sounds and shapes, make something so many ponies can identify with? It’s certainly as mysterious as magic.” There was excitement there, just beneath the surface. It was something that no other pony besides her father had been able to experience with her, a deep love for music.

Before VInyl could say another word, a tapping came from below, silencing the orchestra that was tuning their instruments. The conductor, an elderly stallion named Major Key, turned around to address the audience.

“Welcome fillies and gentlecolts to the Canterlot Philharmonic Orchestra of Her Majesty, Princess Celestia.” He gave a slight pause for the light applause that followed. “Normally I would not engage the audience like this, but I’m afraid we have a few adjustments to our lineup tonight.” There was a murmur of concern among the audience. “Our first string Cellist, Bow String, is out with feather flu at the moment, so taking his place is second chair, Octavia Philharmonica.”

The crowd applauded for the grey earth mare who stood up and bowed from the first chair cellist position. Her pink bow tie made her stand out from the rest of the orchestra quite well.

“Told you bow ties were cool…” VInyl heard Twinkle murmur quietly, with an added smug laced in the statement.

“Our pianist, Frederic Horseshoepin is also out tonight, due to urgent family business.” A louder smattering of discontent spread through the audience of upper crust ponies. “Seeing as we could not find a replacement in time, I’m afraid all scores with a piano accompaniment will be swapped out for another piece.” This time boos came from the audience, just a few though. Those ponies were seen getting up and leaving.

“Well that’s a bit disappointing, isn’t it?” Intrepid murmured. “I figured they have backup pianists for situations such as this.” His brow furrowed as he looked at the still grand piano on the side of the stage.

“Therefore-” The conductor continued with a stern tone added for good measure. “We are replacing ‘Mareiposa’s Sixth’ with ‘Moonfall’, and ‘Bearton’s Ninth’ with ‘Rage of Chaos’. We do not mean to inconvenience you.” With that the conductor turned back around to set a booklet of music sheets on his stand.

“I don’t think I know those pieces.” VInyl thought about it, and nothing came to mind. Then again, she only dabbled in classical, she wasn’t really a connoisseur of the genre.

“They’re from Celestia’s personal collection.” The whisper came from Cadance behind them. “They are very old, and haven’t been heard in quite a while. It should be quite a show, VInyl.” That made VInyl feel a bit better, knowing that these pieces, like this opportunity, were a special singular moment.

The first few songs were simple and well known: ‘Song of the Seaponies’, ‘Rise of Harmony’ and ‘Symphony of Solitude’ to round out the familiar crowd-pleasers. All very beautiful songs in their own right, but too ordinary. VInyl wanted to hear something special.

Then it started; the Bases and Cellos started a deep swell, like an ever-growing wave on the horizon. As the swell got more intense and closer to its climax, the violins joined in, adding an air of creatures scrambling away from a growing threat, chaotic and beautiful.

Then it all crashed down at the signal of the cymbals. The strings died, and the brass section kicked in, letting loose deep and foreboding tones that echoed through the room and sent shivers down Vinyl’s spine. The tubas and trumpets were heralds of something awful and dark, and it was coming this way.

Then the woodwinds jumped in, quick and light, seemingly halting and quieting the rumble of brass. The strings jumped in again, providing an ominous background for the battle that was taking place on the stage.

It was an ever-surging back and forth between sections, every triumphant moment punctuated by the roll of the timpanis and crash of the cymbals. Whatever story this piece was telling, it was an epic for the ages.

It all came to a head when the harp joined in on the side of the woodwinds, bolstering its force and quelling the strings to a near silence. Then it all started to die until all that was left was the light back and forth between a flute and a Cello. The Cello’s once deep and mighty sound now left to roll in like the tide every few moments, only to have its sound linger. The flute responded with a sorrowful tune that formed a beautiful dichotomy with the stringed instrument. Its light notes always present and going as the Cello waxed and waned.

It all came to an end when the rest of the strings started to surge again and the flute let it’s sound die in the tidal wave of deep notes.

VInyl was acutely aware that she was sitting on the edge of her seat now, her heart pounding wildly in her chest. Then she looked around and realized everypony else was feeling the same thing...excitement.

“That was….exhilarating.” Intrepid commented, the stallion’s breath shaking as he spoke. “Quite something, that piece…”

VInyl could feel it too, it was quite something. There was electricity in the air; excitement and fear. There was something about that piece that stirred something very primal and old in the hearts of all of the ponies in the room. Something too real to quantify or qualify. It was wonderful!

Several orchestral pieces later

The concert was over. After a very...weird performance of Rage of Chaos that consisted of several kazoos joining the orchestra, and a few more regular songs to round off the night, it was time to go home.

“I, uh, had a very nice time Miss Scratch.” They were all in the lobby now, ponies filing by them in droves heading home for the night. “It was probably my best night in a very, very long time.” There was a hesitation from the stallion. “I cannot thank you enough.”

VInyl was taken aback when Intrepid embraced her in the coming moments, but she would not object to it. Warmly, she reciprocated. It was nice to connect with a pony who shared at least one of her major interests, even if he did have a few perks.

“We’ll see each other again, alright?” The unicorn pulled back and gave the nervous stallion a wink. “You can count on it.” With that, Vinyl turned away, catching Shining’s collar in her magic and pulling him away from Cadance, who he was nuzzling in a way that made VInyl uncomfortable. “C’mon Twinkle, we stay any longer and I have a feeling you’ll get charged with indecent exposure.”

Author's Note

Surprise....?

Life Is A Stage

“We are our own dragons as well as our own heroes, and we have to rescue ourselves from ourselves.”

-Tom Robbins

“Not such a bad night, huh Scratch?” Shining Armor was feeling good about, well everything. It seemed like Vinyl had hit it off with Intrepid really well, and Shining was able to spend some time with Cadance. Seemed like a win win for everypony.

“It was alright, Twinkle. Tell Cadance she did an alright job.” Right back to being Vinyl, closed and aloof. There was something blocking any real progress between the two of them, and the sooner he could figure it out, the better.

“Just alright? Intrepid and you hit it off pretty well before the show. I’ve never heard you get so excited.” He gave his charge a playful nudge, hoping to elicit the spark he had seen in the concert hall.

“You’ve only known me for a couple of days, Twinkle. Calm down.” Shining could feel the walls being built quicker than they had been torn down earlier. Just a day ago, she put on a fashion show and wanted his genuine honest opinion. Now...now she was as cold as when he was first assigned to her.

A silence fell between the two as they trotted through the capital city under the light of the moon. It was quite a beautiful night, he had to admit to himself. Not a cloud in sight, all of the stars visible. It was nights like these that Twilight would be reciting all of the constellations.

“Centaur, Manticore, Cerberus and The Sister are the stars in the northern hemisphere…” He halfheartedly mumbled the tune under his breath. It was a song Twily used to help her memorize the constellations, and it was catchy he had to admit.

“Are you going senile over there, Twinkle?” Shining shook his head and gave a little chuckle.

“Just singing a song my sister uses to study. It helped her memorize the constellations.” He pointed up towards the brightest stars in the night sky, all four of them. “You see those four, the ones that surround the moon? They make up The Sister.” His hoof pointed to a grouping of stars that appeared from behind a building. “That’s Centaur, you can just make out his bow and hooves.”

“You like astronomy? I guess Twinkle was the right nickname.” There it was, that playful spark. Whatever he was doing, it was striking the right chord now if only he could pinpoint what it was so he could keep doing it.

“My dad’s a professor of astronomy and my little sister is the personal protege of Celestia, the sky is kind of a big deal in the family. Sooner or later you’re going to hear everything about it.” He thought about it for a second and realized that he was really well connected. Like, really well connected.

“And you’re banging a Princess. Gotta say Twinkle, you’re a stallion to be reckoned with. Mess with you and the full power of the establishment will come down on your enemies, huh?”

“We’re not…” The stallion lowered his voice to a whisper. “We’re not banging, alright Scratch? I would appreciate it if you kept it down.” A smile spread across the mare’s face, then it started to crack and a hearty laugh followed.

“Oh man, Twinkle, don’t tell me you haven’t made a move on the Princess yet.” Shining stayed quiet, he could feel his face getting hot from the blush creeping in. “You haven’t?! Are you serious?” Shining lowered his head. “Dude, she is the Princess of LOVE! Can you imagine? I mean-I-what?!” Vinyl was as flustered as Shining was at the moment.

“It’s not like we haven’t talked about it or anything…” The guard finally got out after a few seconds of terrible tension-filled silence. “We just want to wait.” It was true, Cadance had agreed that waiting was for the best, after all a couple who is comfortable with each other emotionally would be better suited for whatever surprises could arise from a more physical relationship, or at least that’s the excuse they both agreed upon.

“For what? The Apocalypse?” Vinyl stopped in the middle of the street, making Shining stop with her. “How long have you two been dating? Six months? A year?” Oh boy, this again. Shining had dealt with this situation before and it was never fun.

“F-Four years…” He managed to mumble out.

“Four years?!” Vinyl roared so loud that a foal woke up in one of the houses nearby, the cries easily audible in the street. “Are you kidding me? Four years? Dear sweet Celestia….four years? How blue are your-”

“Can you not?” Shining Armor cut off the mare before her statement could be completed. “I catch enough flak from my friends, alright? I don’t need any from you.” There was a bit more venom in that statement than he had originally planned. He couldn’t feel bad about it either, there had been so many situations where his friends had poked fun at him and pushed him that he felt something had to be done. “We’ll get to it when we’re ready, alright? Be that a month or years from now. Can we drop it now?”

A silence followed. One that stayed and both of them were afraid to break. With no more words to be said, and his temper still simmering, Shining Armor kept walking back to Vinyl’s home. It didn’t matter if she didn’t feel like coming, because she would be dragged along anyways.

“Hey!” He could hear Vinyl’s hoofsteps coming up on him quick. “Twinkle-Shining!” The mare caught up with him and was now keeping pace. “Listen man, I’m sorry alright? Sometimes I just run my mouth. It has a mind of its own, y’know?”

“I can tell. I just wish you could tell it to shut up once in awhile. We need to get this whole thing between you and I to work, and I don’t think the attitude helps.” Shining Armor immediately regretted his decision. He had let his emotions do the talking instead of his professionalism. stunts like that would only alienate Vinyl further from him, drawing out this whole ordeal.

“Me? You’re going to blame all of this on me? I’m sorry that I’m not okay with some random guard prying into my life!” Vinyl started to walk quicker, Shining matched her speed. “That’s all you’ve been good for, prying and opening things you shouldn’t!”

“It’s my job!” Shining could feel his brow furrowing. This was not helping the situation at all, but it was helping let loose some of the stress these last few days had accumulated. “I have to figure out what’s wrong and I have to fix it! You think that’s easy when you won’t open up?”

Vinyl stopped in front of the door to her apartment building, the small light above the door putting her in a spotlight. She turned around, and in that moment Shining knew Vinyl’s temper. Her eyes, usually a shade of magenta, seemed to burn red with anger.

“Fix? Fix?! Is that what I am? Some machine that somepony said needed fixed? Do I look like a bucking clock to you? A broken down carriage?” The mare advanced on him until their muzzles were mere inches from one another. “You want to fix something, go be a mechanic. I don’t need fixing, Twinkle.” The fire in Vinyl’s eyes died as she backed down and turned towards the door. “If you don’t like it, just say the job’s done.” With that, Vinyl went inside.

For a brief moment, Shining Armor considered it. He could just say she was rehabilitated as much as he could tell and get on with his life. Go back to Cadance and just being a guard, none of this psychologist nonsense. It would be so easy.

Vinyl slammed the door to her room behind her. The bottle of whiskey she clutched in her magic got set on a dresser crowded with similar bottles. It was going to be one of those nights.

How dare he just go assume she needed to be ‘fixed’! Hell, that she could be fixed. Ponies didn’t get fixed they got better, and right now Vinyl was as good as she was comfortable with.

“I’m not broken…” The unicorn mumbled out. She grabbed the whiskey from the dresser and took a swig. The familiar burn that slid its way down her throat brought little comfort to the mare.

“I’m….not…” Vinyl struggled to get the words out again, tears welling up in her eyes. The phrase was something that brought up a lot of memories, none of them good.

‘You’re not broken.’

The words were uttered to her by her father years ago, after a day at school that ended in a bunch of the foals mocking Vinyl for not being good at magic. There was only so much you could do to console a filly, and her dad did his best.

‘I promise you, you’re not broken. You just need time.’

The words echoed around this room, the room where they were once uttered. It was like a phantom was relaying the words from the past to the present.

“What if it takes too long…?” Vinyl fell on her bed and took another swig from the bottle. “What if there isn’t enough time?” Now the tears were flowing freely as she recited the material ripped from time itself.

‘There’s a lot of time out there, Vinyl. You just need to find the right stretch of it.’

“That sounds hard…” The blanket that lay sprawled out across the bed, magically got pulled over the distraught mare. She sat the whiskey bottle on the nightstand and pulled the blankets over her horned head.

This time there was no answer, real or imagined. Just the silence of a room. The only sounds were of Vinyl’s ragged breath from crying. A silence too real, and too well known.

The more tears that came out, the more angry Vinyl became with herself. She wasn’t this weak! She would never let somepony like Twinkle upset her this much! Not before today and not today either.

In a fit of anger, she threw off her covers, turned on her speakers and dragged her DJ deck over to her. There was only one way she was going to express herself, and it wasn’t going to be through crying, it was going to be through music.

Shining couldn’t sleep. It wasn’t any fault of his own, it was the bass shaking the whole apartment that was keeping him, and he was sure the neighbors as well, up. A few minutes after he had entered the house, the music had started. Now, hours later, it still hadn’t stopped.

“This is ridiculous.” The stallion growled as he rolled onto his hooves from the couch. He was going to stop this, whether she liked him right now or not. He needed sleep on principle. Shining banged on the door with the hoof, hard enough that she had to hear it over the music.

“Knock it off, Scratch! Turn it down so us normal ponies can get some sleep!” No dice, no response came from the other side of the door. A quick test of the knob told him that any regular means of ingress were impossible. That left two choices: either knock down the door or let this nonsense continue. Shining briefly considered the former, but decided that would do nothing but hurt the already...strained relationship the two were sharing. The latter seemed the better option, if only for the night.

A particularly loud drop followed, shaking the house more than normal. The bookshelf that beside Vinyl’s door fell over in the madness of the electronica induced quake. Originally, Shining Armor was just going to pick up the bookshelf, but that thought existed for only a brief second.

There was a door behind the bookshelf, a secret door! What reason could Vinyl have for hiding a door in her home? Was she really a criminal? Hiding her exploits in some secret lair? Or was it some secret extension of her room that she didn’t want Shining to know about? Or, it occurred to him, it might just be a guest room she didn’t want ponies to use due to her antisocial personality.

Once the door opened, the young stallion realized all too well what it was. A bed was perfectly made, clothes were laid out and ready to be worn, jewelry and photos of a happy young family adorned the dresser and nightstand. It was all coated in a thick layer of dust.

This was Vinyl’s parents’ room...

Author's Note

Short but heavy on plot. Figured I owed it to you guys to crank out a few chapters pretty quick, y'all waited a year.

Resolution

“Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.”

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

There’s a theory in the field of magic that ponies have a certain permanence that is beyond simple understanding. It says that memories and actions leave imprints on places, objects, and even other ponies. A magical resonance leftover from the long gone, but not forgotten. In places like battlefields this was prevalent, anyone could feel it. Then there were the smaller scale moments, a room, untouched by time. Any unicorn could feel the echoes, they were slight like a whisper on the wind.

Shining Armor had a bit of a gift for magic, it ran in the family. Being so well attuned, he couldn’t help but feel the sheer emotional weight in the room. It was more than dust and echoes to him, it was loud and vibrant. There was joy, sadness, anger...pain. There was life in this room, and he could feel it.

“No wonder she’s a wreck....” This much energy, especially to somepony who it meant a lot to, could wreak havoc on emotions and minds. Shining wasn’t an expert in the field, but his guess was it needed to be dissipated. He’d heard the process mentioned before, not in depth but at least in passing. It involved a pony with a strong connection to magic, and while he was definitely up there in terms of magical talent, he was not the pony to do this.

“I know who can help.” It was pretty obvious, now that he thought about it for a second. He needed to speak to the most magically capable pony that he knew, they would help without question. He and VInyl would go see the pony in question in the morning.

Vinyl woke up the next morning, a song she couldn’t remember the title to still blaring from her speakers. It was nice to wake up to something normal for once. No guards jumping on her bed, no waking up in a cell or not wanting to face the pony in the next room over. This morning it was just Vinyl and her music, like it should be.

The mare rolled out of bed and bobbed her head to the beat of the music pumping through the room. It was a wonderful thing, music flowing through dreams as you slept. It was just what Vinyl needed as well. A mind full of creative possibilities was a good way to start off the day.

For now though, the speakers could use a little rest. With magic, the unicorn turned off the music. Vinyl was about eighty-five percent sure that Twinkle was not happy with her in the slightest. Heck, he probably got zero sleep last night because of it.

“Serves him right…” She grumbled out as she pushed aside the blackout curtains that kept the sun at bay. Judging by the sun, Vinyl guessed it was around ten o’clock. She didn’t get a lot of sleep, but she got what she required to function.

Quickly opening the window, she let the wind hit her. The summer was fading and fall was coming up fast. The first chill was starting to enter the breeze, bringing the first chance for Vinyl’s favorite time of year. Hoodie weather!

Hoodies had been something Vinyl had loved since she was a filly. They were warm, easy to wear, and accommodated a very casual lifestyle. Plus she could rock every color in the spectrum. Glory had attributed that fact to Vinyls color pallette, Vinyl had attributed it to the fact that she was just that good.

Closing the window, the mare spun on her hooves and walked to the closet. There was only one dilemma now; what hoodie to wear? Pink? Nah, she wasn’t feeling pink today. White? Nope, stained too easily. Black? Sure, why not.

Vinyl pulled out the black hoodie. It was a gift from her uncle that had her cutie mark embossed on the back in white stitching. ‘Branding’ he called it, said every musician needed to have their own mark. She had promised him that she would put it to good use one day.

The mare pulled the hoodie over her head, letting the warm fabric envelop her. There was a weight in the pocket that hung below her belly. Secretly, she hoped she left some cash in there in a drunken stupor or something. A quick search revealed a vintage tape recorder stowed away. It was a small gray box, a little bigger than her hoof. It had a microphone on one end that you could use to record things. Vinyl had used it to record thoughts when she thought she probably wouldn’t remember them in the aforementioned stupors. Just as she was about to hit play to see what words of wisdom lay on the tape, a knock came at the door.

“Scratch?” Twinkle, of course. Instinctively, she wanted to tell him to shut up and go away after the events of last night, but today was the start of hoodie weather. She was not going to let him ruin this for her.

“Yo.” Vinyl stashed the recorder back into the pocket, resolving to listen to it sometime later. Who knows, it might become useful at some point.

“We have to go to the castle today, so get ready and be presentable.” That wasn’t even a question! That was an order! Who did he think he was, ordering her around after what he said last night, did he just think that he could get away with anything now?

“Yeah, alright.” Vinyl called back out, letting more than a twinge of annoyance enter the words. She wasn’t going to let him get to her, but she would let him know that he was being a jerk.

Vinyl pushed open the door to see Shining Armor putting on his plated guard uniform. The stallion put his helmet on, his mane poking through the crest and creating a blue two-tone plume. It always struck Vinyl as odd that the guards used their own manes as plumes and didn’t use something else. Like, surely keeping a mane long enough to make a plume cause upkeep problems or something.

“I thought I told you to be presentable, Scratch.” The guard said as he turned and caught his first glimpse of the mare. “We’re going to the castle, not slumming it in Las Pegasus.” She only rolled her eyes.

“Totally presentable. Black is a fashion statement, don’t you know?” Vinyl turned around to show off the back of the hoodie. “Plus it has my cutie mark on it, and that’s class.” She turned back around to catch the look Twinkle was giving her, and she knew he was giving her one. This time it was an eye roll accompanied by a deadpan glare.

“Yeah, I hear hoodies are all the rage at the Gala this year.” He turned to the door. “Let’s go, I don’t want to waste time today.”

On the way to the castle Vinyl had tried to pry the reason for going to the royal abode out of Twinkle, but to no avail. He wasn’t budging on any front. This could only mean two things in Vinyl’s mind; either she was in even more trouble than before or she was going to be a free mare by the end of the day.

So now, here they both were standing outside of Princess Cadance’s room. Shining had gone in to see if the Princess was in her quarters, but his sigh let her know that the Princess was not here.

“Hey, Galea!” Shining shouted across the hall, his voice echoing down the marble pathways. He was trying to get the attention of a passing mare in dress uniform, a stunningly baby blue pony with cold gray eyes.

“Oh, Guard Shining Armor. I assume this has to be extremely important to interrupt me. After all, Captain Knock Out asked for these forms an hour ago and I just got done wringing them out of the bureaucrats’ hooves.” Vinyl was glad she had her hoodie, because that statement was ice cold. If there had been any more salt in those words, she was sure that all slugs within a twenty mile radius would have to be evacuated for fear of genocide.

“I was just wondering if you knew where Princess Cadance is. I have some urgent business I have to attend to and I was hoping she could help me.” For what it was worth, Shining didn’t show any signs of breaking underneath the thick coat of ice the mare’s words had doused him with. Vinyl had to at least admit he had one hell of a sense for professionalism.

“I do not know, Shining Armor. Do I look like I’m on Princess Patrol today?” There was a pause, as if Galea was looking for a response. “The correct answer was no, I do not look like I’m on Princess Patrol. If you want to know where she is, go find Stahlhelm, he’s supposed to be keeping an eye on her today.” With that, the icy mare started to walk away.

“Do you know where I can find Stahlhelm?” Shining called after her, a slight sense of desperation to his voice.

“Probably near Princess Cadance, Guardspony. Please try to use your head.” The mare called back. Vinyl could feel the pleased smirk from all the way back here coming from the mare. If this is what guards had to deal with, no wonder they were always in such a grumpy mood.

“Well that was useless,” Vinyl concluded. “Any clue where she could be?” Vinyl would offer an opinion, but frankly she had no idea the movements of a Princess. The best she could currently offer is sarcasm, but she felt the guard had suffered enough of a brow beating from Galea.

“No, not really.” The guardspony raised a hoof to his chin, stroking it thoughtfully. “Well, I guess we can just go straight to Celestia. I didn’t want to bother her right away...but without Cadance, I guess I don’t have a choice.” They were going to see Celestia personally? The last time they spoke to the monarch, they had discussed Twinkle’s ‘plan’ to reform Vinyl. “Well, come on. I at least know where Celestia is.”

“Throne room, I’m guessing.” Vinyl couldn’t think of anywhere else Princess Celestia would be. That’s what the leader of Equestria did all day in her mind, respond to petty quibbles from the commoners atop her mighty throne. What else was she supposed to do all day?

“No, it’s Tuesday. That means she is currently in Twily’s study at the top of the tallest tower in the castle.” That was an odd statement if Vinyl had ever heard one. She had to get some clarification.

“Twily? Like your sister?” Shining nodded. “She has her own study in the castle? And at the top of the tallest tower? Is she being guarded by a dragon too?” This was a bit too surreal for Vinyl, it was like a fairy tale became real and threw up all over his life.

“Well I wouldn’t say ‘guarding’.” Shining started off down the hall, leaving Vinyl to worry over the implications.

Princess Celestia really liked Tuesdays. It was certainly an odd thing to be partial to, but it held a lot of promise. Every seven days the ruling monarch was able to ascend to her student’s tower for the full day, forget about her duties and just relax and teach. It was soothing, and it was needed to relieve some of the stress.

“Any progress, Twilight?” Right now, the Princess was resting by the fireplace in the room reading a book. Teaching was indeed very important, but when it came to understanding the theory behind magic, Twilight didn’t need to be taught. It was practice that the filly had problems with.

“I’m trying, I just….I can’t…” There was struggle between words, a filly trying her best. Sadly, sometimes even the best wasn’t good enough. “It’s really hard.” Celestia turned to her dejected student. Now was some time for a little motivation. even the best students required it sometimes.

“Well if you don’t open it, we can’t eat.” Celestia looked towards the open jar of grape jam sitting next to a plate with four slices of bread lying depressingly bare of any foodstuffs. All they were waiting on was for Twilight to open the jar of peanut butter.

“Aww…” The student’s stomach let loose a low growl as her wide eyes stared at the jam. “Can’t we just have jam sandwiches?” The filly pleaded as she attempted to open the jar of peanut butter again, pulling at the cap with all of her magical might.

“I don’t like jam, I want peanut butter.” Well that wasn’t true, but it was a lesson. One Celestia had to learn to deal with a very long time ago: how to deal with picky eaters on their terms. In the long term it taught patience, and that was something Twilight needed.

“Why am I trying to open this then?” Twilight put the peanut butter down. The filly then stood up in righteous indignation before the Princess. “I just want a jam sandwich. I shouldn’t have to open it for you.”

“But Twilight-” Celestia suppressed a smile as she let her head rest gently on her hoof. “I’m so tired.” The Princess pouted at her student. “I’ve just been so worn out from all of my duties.”

“You were fine earlier.” As Twilight simply strode over to the Jam and bread, Celestia felt a pang of worry. Twilight’s social skills left something to be desired. Sure, the filly could hold a conversation but as soon as the topics changed to something that went against her interests she became very self-centered. It would take time, Celestia supposed. Her last student was the same way. Hopefully they both wouldn’t go down the same path.

“Princess Celestia?” The Monarch’s ears perked up when the voice came from the door. It was a voice that she, and her student knew very well. “Mind if we come in?”

“Shiny!” Twilight galloped to the door, opening it as she got close. Once her brother was in full view, he was tackle-hugged. “What are you doing here?”

“Well.” The stallion started. “ I need a bit of a favor from you and the Princess. Usually I wouldn’t ask, but you’re the only two ponies I could think of who could help.” That earned a raised eyebrow from Celestia. What could he need help with?

Trotting by the hugging sibling, Vinyl Scratch came in and gave a cursory glance around. She was wearing a sweater with a hood built in. That was a novel idea if Celestia had ever seen one. It looked quite comfortable as well given Vinyl’s relaxed look.

“It’s a bit of a sensitive matter, I was hoping to discuss it privately.” Shining Armor put down his little sister. Twilight went into curiosity mode, following Vinyl to see what the intruding stranger was up to.

“Well we are alone, Shining Armor. I can assure you of that.” Vinyl trotted over to the plates and started fixing herself a sandwich. A stubborn Twilight pulled at her hoodie and gave the older mare a defiant glare. “So sensitive matters can be discussed.” Vinyl held a finished sandwich out to the filly, who took it gleefully.

“Yeah, but….not totally alone.” Shining’s gaze fell on Vinyl, who was making herself a sandwich now. Twilight came over to Celestia and sat beside her mentor, gleefully munching on the sandwich.

“How sensitive is this, Shining Armor?” Celestia was very familiar with secrets, she just despised keeping them. Any secret worth keeping was going to damage something in one form or another.

“High-level-magic sensitive.” The hushed tone did nothing to calm Celestia’s worries. The last time somepony came to her with help on high level magic, she had taken in a new student the next day.

“Very well.” Celestia kept her voice level, as to not raise any worry from Twilight or suspicion from Vinyl. “Please go tell Lock to fetch Princess Cadance so she can look after Miss Scratch.” The younger alicorn had told Celestia about the night at the concert hall last night, and how Cadance felt a certain empathy for the mare. Shining Armor nodded and went just outside of the door to call a guard.

“Say, what is this thing? A stuffed animal? Looks kinda real…” Vinyl was looking at a purple and green ball that was curled up in a wool lined wicker basket. “It’s scaly.” The unicorn stated after touching it, which elicited a response. “It’s a dragon!” Vinyl stumbled back and attempted to scramble away from the yawning creature. Celestia could only laugh.

“No! I jus got him to sleep!” A very frustrated Twilight sprinted over to the little dragon. “It’s alright Spike. Shhh. Go back to sleep.” The little filly spoke quietly as she stroked the baby dragon’s back. “Please…”

“You let her keep a dragon?” Vinyl was still backing away, keeping her eyes squarely on the reptile. “Isn’t that a little dangerous?” Wild-eyed was usually the response for ponies seeing Spike for the first time. It was odd to see a dragon being raised around equines, like sheep keeping a wolf in their midst.

“Well she did hatch him. I cannot just take him away. That would be mean.” Vinyl’s bewildered stare could be translated to ‘you’re not going to explain that statement?’ “I have faith in her Vinyl, so should you.” Deep down, Celestia knew that Vinyl or anypony else didn’t really have a choice to trust Twilight. It was already written in the stars and stones, nothing could change it.

“Yeah, okay. If it’s cool with you, I’m gonna hang out over here.” Celestia nodded towards a pillow, motioning the unicorn to sit. Vinyl obliged and took a seat next to the Princess.

“Cadance informed me you went to the orchestra with her and Shining Armor. How did that go?” A spark hit the mare’s eyes, and a warm smile spread across her face. “That good?”

“I’ve always wanted to go since I was little.” Vinyl’s hoof tapped against the floor, tapping out a beat. “They used two of your personal pieces. That was a best part, y’know? Being one of the few ponies to hear that in nopony-knows how long, that was special.” A twinge of heartache hit the Princess. It was a longing for a time when one of those songs didn’t need to be played, a time when Moonfall didn’t exist. A happier time.

“I was glad to lend the pieces to the orchestra. I only wish I could have been there to hear them as well.” Celestia lamented. “Perhaps an encore performance is necessary? I hear that perhaps the replacement cellist deserves another turn in the spotlight.”

“If I had brought this thing with me, maybe I could’ve recorded it.” Vinyl pulled a vintage tape recorder from her sweater’s central pocket. With her magic, Vinyl pressed the play button.

“You have to hit these two buttons to record. Then you just talk into this mi-” The voice was gentle, fatherly. The pronunciation of some of the words lead Celestia to believe he was from Hoofington or an area close to it. Before Celestia could pin it down, the voice was cut off by Vinyl.

“I was wondering where that went…” The mare mumbled as she put the recorder back into her pocket much more gently than she had removed it.

“Alright. Cadance is here.” Shining Armor came back into the room followed by the aforementioned Princess. “I suppose I should get to it, then.” The guard started moving towards Vinyl with his horn glowing.

“Whoa whoa whoa!” Vinyl stood up and started moving away from the stallion. “Remember what I said? I’m not too keen on having stallions just cast spells on me.” Vinyl lit up her own horn, obviously trying to send a message to Shining Armor.

“Would you really assault me, Scratch?” Shining concentrated and a pink line of magic materialized in the room. It visibly connected both he and Vinyl’s horns. “I’m just severing the bind. You’re going with Cadance for the day while I deal with some other things.”

“What sort of things do you have to ‘deal with’, Twinkle?” The magic tether snapped. Shining Armor nodded to his love, who fired up her horn. “Can I get any answers today? Like at all? Everypony just keeps dodging my questions or not answering them and it is really starting to piss me off!”

“You and Cadance are going to gather up the census records that Princess Celestia said she put together. Then you’re going to go to Skyward Glory’s and figure that out.” Cadance’s magic reached out to Vinyl and attached to her horn. Celestia knew it was another binding spell and that Vinyl would most likely not be happy about it. One look at the unicorn’s face confirmed that suspicion.

“What about you? Are you just going to be skulking around Canterlot?” Shining Armor strode up to the ruler of the land, ignoring Vinyl. “See? That! That is really starting to get to me! Is something wrong?” Vinyl’s panic was becoming more and more apparent, reaching her eyes now.

“It will be alright, Vinyl Scratch.” Princess Celestia found her words echoed by Cadance, who uttered the same line just a half-second after the monarch.

“That definitely didn’t help!” Vinyl protested. The pearlescent mare then looked towards the filly tending to a baby dragon. “This is all kinda creepy, right? I can’t be the only one.” All Vinyl got was a shrug in response.

“The census records are being held by the head librarian, Cadance. He’ll give them to you, just say this is for Vinyl Scratch’s rehabilitation.” The Princess nodded towards the pink pony, who gave a respectful nod in return.

“Come on, Vinyl. We have a lot of work to do.” Vinyl just looked towards Shining Armor, searching for something in the stallion’s cobalt eyes. She found nothing but the same confusion she already knew.

“I don’t really have a choice. I just want you to know that I am really really against whatever is going on in this room after I leave.” Vinyl exited the room, following her new chaperone into the stairwell. “This is some illumarenati bullsh-” The door to the tower room shut.

“Very well Shining Armor. What is so sensitive that we had to send your charge into a paranoid meltdown?” Celestia let a hint of displeasure enter her voice to let the guard know just how much she disliked this.

“It’s for her own good, Princess Celestia. I knew that if she knew what I was doing, she would object to it in its entirety.” Shining finally relaxed and let all the emotions flood back into his body. He had been holding them in as to not give Vinyl any clue to what was going on.

“She did say she was ‘really really against’ what we were going to do in here. So I think the proverbial bullet has still not been dodged, Shining Armor.” If there was one thing Celestia did not like, it was losing the faith of the ponies in her kingdom. She had lost that once long ago, and would not let anything like that happen again.

“She’s always like that. I didn’t want her to fight me on this, though.” Shining Armor sighed and sat on the pillow that Vinyl had occupied only minutes ago. “I found something in her apartment last night, and I could really use your help with it.” Celestia’s interest was now thoroughly piqued. What could be so extreme that he had to come to her? It was a little like going to the supreme court for a slap-fight. “I-it’s not anything illegal.” The guard added, seeing her expression. “But it’s magical, so I need your and Twilight’s help.”

Now the purple pony’s interest was captured as well. She came trotting over to her big brother, head cocked to the side. “What kind of magic?”

“I found a room behind a bookcase in her apartment. It was her parent’s. It had been boarded up for what seemed like years. There was a lot of…” Shining stopped and shivered a bit, remembering something awful it seemed.

“A build-up of residual magical energy?” Twilight chimed in. Her brother nodded, confirming the filly’s guess. “How much? How many years do you think it’s been building? Could you hear them or were they whispers? How many ponies?” A flood of questions poured from the student, more already being prepared. Celestia raised a gilded hoof to her apprentice.

“How bad?” The Princess asked.

“Bad. I could hear everything, not just quietly. They were loud, like ponies were still there. You could feel every moment, every emotion…” Celestia rested a hoof on her loyal guard’s shoulder. That much magical build-up could be dangerous to unicorns, make them act out. It was worse the longer it went on. “We need to dissipate it, for Vinyl. I think it will help.”

“Twilight, if you would please fetch the-” Before she could finish the sentence, Twilight was already up on her hooves and searching for the correct book. “Thank you, Twilight.” Celestia then turned back towards Shining. “I think we can do that.”

“So you don’t know what he’s doing?” Vinyl asked Cadance for the fourth time since they left the castle. It was the tenth time since the exited the tower study. Vinyl didn’t trust Shining Armor at all. He had lost all faith and trust last night, and it would take a long time or a miracle for him to earn it back.

“No Vinyl. I told you, he just told me I needed to take his place for most of the day. That’s all I know.” Cadance was becoming frustrated, Vinyl could feel it. Sure, the Princess would never let it slip that it was but Vinyl knew.

“It’s ridiculous! What could he possibly need to talk to Princess Celestia about without me? Am I in trouble? Aw man, what if he’s getting me thrown into a dungeon or something?” Vinyl knew the hyperbole may not be appropriate or accurate, but she felt like sharing her nerves with her brand new chaperone.

“I’m not sure what he’s doing. I know that we’re here, though.” Vinyl’s attention was drawn to the simple two-story home that acted as an orphanage. Even the sight of it made a pit form deep in the unicorn’s stomach.

“This is just the topper on the cake, isn’t it? Last time I was here was bad enough. Crying, hugs, I hit her, Shining knocked me out…” Vinyl’s mind drifted back to a few days ago. Was Glory going to forgive her? Get mad? Get even? What was in store behind those doors?

“Sounds eventful.” Cadance replied as she ascended the stairs to knock on the door. The familiar voice came from the other side, announcing the door was going to be opened soon.

“That should be on my tombstone. Vinyl Scratch: 1970-1991 ‘Sounds Eventful.’” There was no laugh from the Princess. Twinkle would have laughed at that, or at least responded with a with something witty or infuriating.

“P-Princess Cadance. O-Oh my, please come in!” Glory opened the door, straightening her mane as she caught a glimpse of the alicorn. “Vinyl? Oh no, what’s happened now? Is Shining Armor alright? Did Vinyl hurt him? She didn’t mean to, she can just get a bit aggressive sometimes!” Glory’s rapid defense of Vinyl made the pony feel worse than she already did about the previous incident. You punch a pony and they jump to your defense. Who could stay mad at that?

“I assure you that Shining is alright Ms. Glory. I’m just taking care of Vinyl for the day and was told to come here to look over some census records with you.” The Princess motioned towards the bags on her back, filled to the brim with papers. “She’s not in any trouble.”

The worst part about this situation as a whole was how often ponies talked about Vinyl like she wasn’t even there. Vinyl was so used to being talked at or to, that just being talked about was an odd feeling. Especially when she was three feet away from the participants in the conversation.

“Thank Celestia…” The pegasus mare sighed loudly. “I was thinking something awful had happened. Please, come in. Come in.” Glory moved aside, allowing the two ponies ingress. “How are you doing, Vinyl?” There was no hug this time. Not that Vinyl thought she deserved one.

“I’m alright…” Vinyl decided to deflect the topic. “Are you alright? After I punched you I thought it might leave a mark.” Vinyl didn’t see any swelling or bruises around the daisy yellow mare’s jawline. Perhaps she hadn’t struck her sister as hard as she thought.

“It’s fine. I rebound quick, you know that.” They both shared a smile and thoughts of happier times. “Come in, please. I bet you’re as eager to get this going as I am.” Vinyl trotted into the house. Two little earth ponies sped by her, chasing a pegasus that was buzzing along just above the floor. “I have a bit of help today, so they’ll take care of the foals while we’re busy. Set up in the dining room and I’ll be there in a moment.”

Vinyl and Cadance both went into the dining room. An elongated wooden table laid bare of anything except for a floral centerpiece. This would be their base of operations for however long this little venture took. Silently, they both started taking out folders and loose papers from the saddlebags and began organizing them into piles based on towns.

“She seems nice.” The Princess finally spoke as she took a seat next to the head of the table.

“Nice is an understatement.” Vinyl responded as she straightened a pile of papers. “Glory’s too nice for her own good sometimes.” This stack read ‘Appleloosa’. Vinyl didn’t know where Glory took the foal, but she hoped it wasn’t that dustbowl.

“It makes sense you’re sisters. Siblings tend to compliment each other’s personalities.” Cadance gave the unicorn a smile. “Just like Shining and Twilight. A by the books prodigy and a pragmatic sweetheart.”

“Well I appreciate the compliment but I don’t know if I’m ready for pet names, Princess.” It took a few seconds for Cadance to get the joke. As soon as she did though, it earned a bit of a laugh. “But Glory did always get the better grades.”

“And Vinyl always did work more in theories.” Glory came into the room, her mane having been brushed and straightened. “Like ‘theoretically, if I can get away with this’ is how most of her bad ideas started.” Vinyl scoffed.

“My bad ideas? I’m not the one who got stuck up in a tree in Canterlot Gardens because I wanted a royal apple, now was I?” Vinyl placed her card on the table and waited for GLory to retaliate. This is how it was supposed to go. Just banter back and forth. No fighting.

“Hey, how was I supposed to know there were magical vines in the trees? Nopony ever told me.” Glory sat at the head of the table, between Vinyl and Cadance.

“The ponysnatcher vines! I remember those!” Cadance clapped her hooves together, a smile crossing her features. “They got rid of those years ago. They were so dangerous!” Now Vinyl had her ace in the hole for sure.

“Yeah. Why do you think they got rid of them?” She jerked her head towards the pegasus in the room. “A little pegasus got tied to a tree branch.” Glory’s face turned bright red as she looked to the princess.

“No!” Vinyl and Glory both nodded. “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe that story was true! I thought that was just some strawpony argument they used to get rid of them!” There was a moment of silence, then they all three broke out into raucous laughter. After the laughter had died, the Princess pulled a file close to herself. “I suppose we should get down to business?”

“Yeah.” The pit in Vinyl’s stomach deepened as the seconds went on. This was going to be one of those times where she was going to use a lot of self-control. Otherwise this would end prematurely and in tears. “I guess...let’s go over the facts.” Vinyl’s voice was a low mumble now.

“She’s an earth pony. A filly…” Glory’s hooves were fidgeting across the table, and her wings twitched. These were the signs of a very nervous pony, Vinyl had learned the telltale signs of Glory having a breakdown to know. “When she was born her coat was pink...a bit lighter than my mane...her mane was yellow, like her father’s eyes…” There was a pause.

“We need to know where you took her, Glory.” Cadance’s hoof reached out and rested on the pegasus’. “Where did you leave her?”

“I-it was the first stop on the midnight train. I-It was a village. Small. Cottages with thatched tops. I-I don’t remember the name.” Tears were now streaming down her face and her free hoof rested on her stomach. “Ville. Something ville…”

Vinyl and Cadance shuffled through piles of paperwork, looking for any towns ending in -Ville. Vinyl pulled a few out, while Cadance only found one result.

“Gallopsville, Reignersville, or Ponyville?” The Princess read off the names. “Any of these can be reached by train from Canterlot.” They each looked around the table. Now all they had to do was find the foal in the piles of paperwork. If she even stayed in the town where she was left.

An hour later

They had their target. Through a lot of guessing and reading, they had narrowed it down to one little filly in the small hamlet of Ponyville. Against all the odds and paperwork, Vinyl had been calm and receptive enough to get through this whole ordeal without getting angry.

“Lilly Valley. Age six. Pink coat, golden mane with pale streaks and golden eyes.” GLory read the page, tears once again welling in her eyes. “This is her. This is my daughter…”

“Right!” Shining grunted as he moved the bookcase from in front of the secret door. “It’s right in here. Twilight, you might wanna hang back, it’s pretty rough.” He looked towards his little sister’s mentor, who insisted on coming with them to make sure her student could adequately handle the feat.

“Twilight is going to be in there for a long time, Shining Armor. The quicker she gets used to it, the better she’ll be able to concentrate later.” As Shining opened the door, Celestia urged her student into the room. As soon as the first step was taken into the abandoned bedroom, it was retreated. Celestia could feel it too, powerful and loud. Like a hurricane of magic and emotion, it raged within the confines of the room. “It’s alright, Twilight. Remember, it’s just loose magic.”

“It’s strong…” The filly took a few steps into the room. Her ears were laid flat and her eyes were wide. “Really strong.”

“That’s what happens when a place is left to soak in the magical energy left behind. Normally it would be absorbed and used by other ponies, but left alone it just feeds on itself. It grows in an echo chamber of its own creation, channeling emotions and memories left behind.” Celestia put a long white wing over her small student. “This is why it’s important to move on, Twilight. Memories and nightmares of the past will catch up to you and cause pain. Not just to yourself, but everypony else as well.”

If there was one thing Shining Armor loved, it was when Celestia was teaching a lesson. The Princess was eloquent and wise, knowledgeable about almost any subject. If Twilight was ever scared or unsure, Celestia would reassure her with kind words and knowledge beyond all possible years.

“I think I can do it.” Twilight’s ears raised again as she lit her horn. “Should I try the spell?” Celestia approved with a nod. Now was the moment that Shining was holding his breath for. If this spell worked, then it could be done.

Twilight concentrated. The light from her horn poured out across the room. Tendrils of purple magic found purchase on several invisible objects. The tendrils drilled into dozens of objects around the room. Purple light gave shape to disembodied silhouettes of countless ponies. Some young, some grown, some mares, some stallions. All memories, though.

“Wow…” Shining Armor could only watch as the purple shadow ponies moved around the room, reenacting the past. It was like a light show, all made possible through magic.

“Now all we’ll have to do is pick out the individual moments and have them unraveled and dissipated from the room.” Twilight let her horn’s light die, the shadow ponies going with the light. Twilight then sat down, sweat trickling down her forehead. “I think Twilight might need some help, though. That is quite a lot of magic in there.” Shining could only nod. This was not his field. “I can help her channel all of your magic to make it easier, but it will take a lot of cooperation and open energies.”

“I can do it. Cadance too.” Shining reassured the Princess. He would be more than willing to lend his magic to get this done. It would be easy enough. “I’m not too sure about Vinyl, though.” That was going to be the hurdle in all of this, Vinyl Scratch.

“I will speak with her. She’ll see it our way in the end.” Celestia turned and put a hoof on Shining Armor’s shoulder. “This is for her own good.” That’s what he had been telling himself from day one. It was for her own good. The only question left was if Vinyl realized that or not.

Two royal guards being posted outside of VInyl’s apartment sparked her ever-growing dread. That was one more guard than was usual and two more guards than she was comfortable with.

“Good afternoon, gentlecolts.” Cadance nodded to both of the guards, who just stood still. Looking forever forward with determined gazes. “Can we go in?” The one on the left, completely indistinguishable from the one on the right, nodded and opened the door.

As soon as she entered, Vinyl’s heart jumped into her throat. The bookcase was moved and the door was open! Who was in her parent’s room? Why were they in there? Vinyl was across the apartment within seconds. Inside were Princess Celestia, Shining Armor and Twilight Sparkle. All three of them ponies that should not know that room even existed.

“What are you doing in here?” Vinyl’s temper was rising, she could feel the heat of her own anger passing up her ears. “Why are you in this room? Get out!” She slammed her front hooves on the ground. “All of you! Now!”

“Scratch. Calm down. I can explain.” Shining raised a hoof, his eyes seeming to be earnest like always. That didn’t calm Vinyl down though, it only served to enrage her further. HE could explain? He could explain entering a room he had no right to know about? To invade a place that nopony had the right to?

“Shut up and get out! All of you!” Vinyl roared, too many memories and voices in this room invading her mind and just making it all the more vile that they were in here. Vinyl lept at the stallion, intending to do celestia-knows-what. She would not get the chance, though. IN a split-second she was held in place mid-air by a light yellow aura.

“Vinyl Scratch. Listen to me.” Vinyl could not swivel her head to look at the source of the voice, but she knew it was Princess Celestia. There was so much authority in that voice, but not tyrannical. It was kind. “We are trying to help you. Do you understand?” Vinyl did not respond. There was too much going through her mind. “Vinyl. Close your eyes and take a deep breath.”

Vinyl did not as she was asked, but as she was told. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she could make out her own thoughts now behind all of the noise. She wanted to cry. It was that simple. There were so many reasons she closed off this room. There was so much that upset her about it, so much that pissed her off about it.

“Are you calm? Can I let you down?” Vinyl could only try to nod, but it obviously got through. A few moments later she was put gently onto the floor. Where she stood is promptly where she broke down. Tears streamed down her face from bloodshot eyes. She wanted to leave. She wanted everypony to leave this place and her alone forever.

“I-I’m sorry...I’m so sorry.” Vinyl couldn’t look any of these ponies in the eyes. ALl she would see is shame and disgust. “I-I just..I just want you all to get out of here. You’re not supposed to be here…”

“We’re going to help you.” Twinkle spoke now, his voice low and calm. “There’s a lot of magic in this place, a lot of magic. It’s...it’s interfering with your emotions and thoughts. It’s your parents.” That was the last thing Vinyl wanted to hear. Her parents weren’t to blame here, it was her own failures as a daughter and a pony. She had failed to move on and she knew it.

“Ponies. We leave behind much more than memories, Vinyl.” PRincess Celestia came over and let her wing drape around the white unicorn. “Every action we take, every moment we make, every feeling we have. They make an imprint in this world. LIke a glacier, we come in and shape the landscape around us, only to leave scars when we leave. These scars never leave. Not until another comes and replaces them. Not until the world keeps moving and others fill it in, it won’t go away.” Vinyl managed to look up into the eyes of the Princess. The monarch was smiling warmly. “You parents left their mark on this room. In a way they’re still here, their energies overwhelming this place. We need to get rid of them, but we can’t do it without your help.”

Vinyl understood in the most basic way. Her parents, their lives had left something behind. Something that was lingering and building. If it needed to be done….if the Princess said it needed to be done, Vinyl would allow it.

“H-how…?”

“We just need you and Cadance to open your mind. LIght your horns and let the magic flow freely. Twilight and I will do the rest.” The monarch stood up and looked towards the others and nodded, then back down to the Vinyl. “This might bring up some bad memories. I have to warn you.”

Vinyl stood up, her legs shaky and weak. Slowly, she walked to the foot of the bed and did as Celestia instructed. Closed her eyes, took a deep breath and let her magic flow free. Once she opened her eyes she saw the others were doing the same. All except Twilight, who was concentrating. Celestia went to her pupil and spoke softly and slowly as to not break Twilight’s concentration.

“Focus. Feel the magic in the room. The flowing magic, not the stagnant. Take theirs and mold it into yours.” Celestia’s horn lit up as well, her magic guiding and herding the other multi-colored clouds of magic into Twilight’s own. “Now take theirs and focus on a moment. One specific one and then pull the thread. Let it all unravel, dissipate, make it yours.”

A figure burst into existence at the entrance to the room, right by Princess Cadance. It was lanky, the outline making it’s mane out to be a mess.

“This is the master bedroom!” The figure’s voice was distorted, like talking through a filter. It was easily recognizable though. It’s soft accent dragged over each word with a Manechester accent.

“Are you sure mommy will like it?” A small pony, a filly, followed the older stallion. Her silhouette showed curls in her mane and a youthful glow in her step. “It’s kinda small.” The stallion spun on his hooves and knelt to the filly’s height.

“Well all good things start small, Vinyl! Look at me, once upon a time I was as small as you. Now look at me, tall as a tree and twice as great as any old oak!” This elicited a giggle from the filly. “You’ll be great as well, I can feel it.” The unicorn stallion picked up the filly with his magic. “I mean not as tall as me, I hope. Hopefully twice as great. No! Three times as great!” The filly was put on the stallion’s back. “Now onwards! To ice cream!” The silhouette sped out of the room, disappearing into a puff of magic as soon as it crossed the threshold.

It was all so real. Too real. Vinyl couldn’t even remember that, but it had happened. That conversation was real. Just as she was, and just as her father was. It left her emotionally drained.

“That was right after we got the apartment…” Vinyl mumbled, tears gathering. “That was my dad…” Him and his personality were just as big as she remembered. Too big for this world. Too optimistic and full of wonder.

“What was his name, Vinyl?” She didn’t know who was speaking. The unicorn was too engrossed in memories. She felt the need to answer, though.

“Long Play. Everypony just called him LP. He is...he was the owner of a record shop here in Canterlot.” Vinyl laughed a short, cynical laugh. “He and mom sold everything to come here, to take a chance.” She blinked away the tears in her eyes. “Always the optimist.”

“Find another, Twilight.” Celestia urged her student onwards. “Find a thread and pull.”

It took a minute, but two figures entered the room. The stallion from earlier and a full grown mare. LP seemed to be sopping wet. The mare eagerly pushed him inside and then shut the door behind her.

“We can’t do this, LP!” The mare spoke first. There wasn’t anger in her voice, but concern. “We just can’t take her in. We need to call the guards and send her back to her father.” The voice was not Manechester influenced like LP, it was a distinct Canterlot accent. High class.

“Whammy you heard what she said. We can’t let her go back to that…..horse.” The last word was laced with disgust and poison. Whoever they were talking about was not in good favor. “I’m not going to let her go back. Not to that.”

“We can’t just keep her, LP! That’s foalnapping!” The mare, Whammy, sat down on the bed right by where Shining Armor stood. “We aren’t foalnappers! We’re good ponies.”

“Let me put it to you like this, dearest.” LP sat beside the mare, letting her head rest against his torso. “If, Celestia forbid, something happened to you and I was left with Vinyl all alone...if I was treating her like that little filly’s father treats her, would you want me to keep her?” There was a moment of hesitation, the tension felt even through time and magic.

“I don’t feel right about it. She has family, a life. It doesn’t matter if she ran away, foals do irrational things all of the time.” Whammy sighed deeply. “I feel like we need to do more than just give up and take responsibility for another filly.” The stallion lifted the mare’s chin so that they were looking each other in the eyes.

“If it will make you feel better you and I can go to Cloudsdale tomorrow. We’ll leave the fillies with my brother in town, then we’ll see if anypony is looking for her. Any posters or anything with the local guards.” Each word was measured and careful, he was trying his best to convince his wife of his idea. LP gave Whammy a peck on the lips. “If not...well then maybe we’ll resort to foalnapping.” THe twinge of humor made the unicorn mare laugh.

“We’ll be regular criminals. Like a modern day Bonnet and Clydesdale.” The two ponies stood up, but not leaving the other’s embrace.

“Well don’t say that. You know how that story ended.” The couple made their way to the door, LP grabbing something and bringing it over to them.

“They were together.” Whammy nuzzled her mate tenderly. “Same way I want to go.”

“Well, same. Obviously. I just can’t help but feel like you’re missing the point, dearest.” The fatherly figure opened the door with his hoof and held it open for his wife. “Alright fillies! Onward to hot chocolate!” Whammy and two unseen little ponies in the livingroom all gave a hearty cheer at the mention of the warm treat.

“My mom...she was from here in Canterlot.” Now Vinyl was just talking without prompting. She felt like it was helping somehow. each word felt like it lifted a little more weight off of her chest. “She met dad in Las Pegasus. She was touring with her indie band, he was following them around on tour. They fell in love…” The story had been told to her innumerable times over her life. To Vinyl, it was a love story as old as time itself. One she hoped to replicate someday.

“They seemed like they were in love.” Cadance chimed in, her words warm and full of pride. “Very in love. I could feel it.”

“Mom’s name was Whammy Bar. She was a guitarist. She loved me and dad more than she did her music. She decided to give up on her dream and help dad, raise a family.” Vinyl started to cry again. “She gave up everything for us…” Vinyl couldn’t finish her thought because another scene flashed to life.

This time it was Vinyl and her father kneeling beside the bed rummaging through an old box. Her dad pulled something out from the box. Immediately she knew what it was and pulled the same old tape recorder from her hoodie pocket.

“What’s that, daddy?” Little Vinyl jumped onto the bed to get a better look at what her father was holding. “It looks old.”

“Old and cool.” LP was messing with the object, the magical shapes giving no detail to what he was doing. “Just like your old man.” The stallion reached his hoof out to ruffle the little filly’s mane. “It’s a tape recorder. You can put a tape in there and play it, y’know listen to some jams. Or, and this is the cool part, you can record things with it. I used to make mixtapes for your mother all of the time.” Vinyl messed with the object in her hooves, getting ready to press play. “See-” The stallion started to say. Then Vinyl hit the play button to synchronize with the magical scene taking place. “You have to hit these two buttons to record. Then you just talk into this microphone and voila! You’re recording!”

The other ponies looked to VInyl. Seeing the tape recorder in her hooves, they all decided to keep to themselves and enjoy the scene. Revel in the warming family moments.

“Daddy! Can you read that thing into the recorder? That thing you read to me before bed sometimes?” The tape recorder and past scene echoed little Vinyl’s words. The stallion in the scene got up and picked something up from the dresser. From the look in the present, it was a framed poem.

“Alright Miss Scratch. Director extraordinaire. Tell me when to go.” The filly pointed enthusiastically at her father, signalling him to begin.

“An Ode To Life

By P. Rose.

A life wasted waiting

Is a life of waiting wasted.

Life should never be grating.

And never satiated.

My father once said

Eyes full of magic

‘Stay in bed

and nothing will be tragic.’

I disagree with what he told

I wanted to move on

I always wanted to be bold

So I went with brain instead of brawn

I thought new thoughts

and loved everything I saw.”

Vinyl had been reciting the old poem with her father in the present. As the scene evaporated into magic, the tape died as well. It took a while for Vinyl to be able to understand the poem to its full extent, for her to connect why her father loved it so much. It’s because it was his philosophy. Try new things, keep moving, never slow down. It’s why his ‘catchphrase’ as the family called it, was ‘Onward!’

Another scene started, like this whole scenario was reaching a climax, each scene coming faster than the last. There was a sense of finality just over the horizon, everypony could feel the magical weight in the room being lifted.

“They were just here….just yesterday…” A teenage Vinyl and Skyward Glory appeared sitting on the bed. Glory had her wings wrapped tightly around Vinyl, a thing the pegasi did to comfort their own. “Sky...they can’t be gone, right? It-it has to be a bad dream…” Vinyl’s voice was shaking, she had been crying. “I just want this to be a dream, please…” The unicorn rocked back and forth in her sister’s grasp. Gentle sobs came and went as the two held each other. “I just want them to be here. I just want them to come back.”

“I know, Vinyl...I know.” Glory kissed Vinyl’s forehead lovingly, not letting go of her sister for one moment. “I want them back too. I miss them so much...but we still have each other, right? You remember what dad used to say? He used to say ‘Fillies!’” Glory was putting on a horrible replica of LP’s accent, one that made the present Vinyl smile. “‘As long as you have each other, not one thing can stop you! Vinyl and Sky, unstoppable for all of time itself! Now, onwards to the future!’” Glory’s hoof was raised in half-hearted triumph. “I want you to remember that, alright? If you have me and I have you, we’re unstoppable. Never forget me...I always have your back.”

The memory faded away. When it left, a feeling came to Vinyl’s heart. Regret. After all they had been through together, after a whole life spent together...Vinyl just threw away Glory. She threw away the only sister she had ever had. For the first time, that thought genuinely hurt.

“Sky, where were you? I looked all over the city for you. You weren’t at the hospital, the castle. Where have you been all night?” A fully grown Vinyl Scratch stood in the doorway to the room, a sopping wet Skyward Glory sat on the bed. “Are you alright? Where’s your foal?” A cold sense of dread washed over the room, both in the past and present.

“Vinyl…I’m so sorry…” The past Vinyl took a few cautious steps into the room. “I just...I just couldn’t. Rusty, he left. He just left…”

“Sky, what happened?” That was it, the moment Vinyl could pinpoint the cold realization hit her. “What did you do?” No answer from the mare on the bed. “Sky, please...please tell me you didn’t…” The sentence was not finished, the statement hanging in the air, building the tension between the two.

“I gave her away, Vinyl. I couldn’t do it. My real father didn’t love me, Rusty didn’t love me...what hope did I have of loving that filly? Of that filly loving me?” The silhouette Vinyl collapsed to her knees. Skyward Glory kept her back to the door.

“I love you, Sky! Mom and Dad loved you! That filly will love you more than you can imagine. More than you can ever know. Now c’mon, where is she, Sky? Just tell me, we can both take care of her. That’s what family does, right? Look after each other.” Now the Vinyl in the present was starting to break down. She didn’t want to look. She didn’t want to hear at what was going to come next. It was going to break her spirit all over again.

“I don’t know, Vinyl. I got on a train and just went...I left her on a doorstep. I don’t know where. I just couldn’t handle it. I couldn’t stand the feeling of not loving my own foal, of her not loving me…”

“NO!” Both of the Vinyls screamed in unison. The magic-made one in rage, the real one out of sadness. “No….not again. I can’t. Please make it stop, I can’t do it anymore.” Vinyl finally laid down,covering her ears and eyes. “I can’t hear this again, I can’t!” She was practically begging now. Somepony had to oblige her. They had to!

“I hope she’s dead, Vinyl.” The magic Vinyl lept at Skyward Glory, pinning her to the bed. The real Vinyl was shaking and crying while the others looked on with tears in their eyes.

“Twilight...please end it.” Celestia whispered to her pupil, who complied. All of the magic in the room died and it all went black.

.

Author's Note

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Hope you all have a wonderful 2016!

Revelations

“Trouble on my left, trouble on my right. I’ve been facing trouble almost all my life.”
-Cage the Elephant

Vinyl held her head in her hooves very gently. The headache was still there, only now it was radiating from the very tip of her horn to the base of her skull. It was only getting worse and worse as time went on. She had tried to go back to sleep to ease her pain over the last few hours, but to no avail.

Had she just passed out? Vinyl had no recollection of what lead to her being in her own bed. Shining and the Princesses had been making her live horrible memories over again, and then the blackness just came.

Perhaps her brain had just short circuited from emotional pain, like it attempted a shutdown to save itself any more trauma. Vinyl didn’t know what the brain was capable of, but it at least sounded like it might be possible. She was no neuroscientist.

The physical pain didn’t stop the emotional pain, though. The memories, now fresh in the unicorn’s mind, were a swirling vortex of pain and anger. There was so much to take in, so much to process.

Sky had done something so unforgivable, so unbelievable, that it rocked Vinyl to her core. When Sky had said those words, when she had confessed her sins, Vinyl reacted the only way she could’ve.

Explosively.

Violently.

Did Vinyl regret the physical violence? Of course. It was uncalled for, it was an overreaction on her part. She should’ve told Glory to just leave and never come back, to get out of her house and her life. Instead, she sent the mare packing with a bruises and missing feathers.

Was it wrong, though? Her sister had left a foal in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night. A defenseless foal! There was something about that fact that set Vinyl’s core ablaze. Perhaps it was a sense of common decency, maybe it was because Vinyl’s family had taken in a filly who was alone in the middle of the night. Maybe Vinyl felt like Glory should know better than to abandon a pony.

She didn’t want to think about it anymore. She had thought about it enough. But as much as Vinyl would like to move on from the subject, the lack of any noise in the room brought her mind back to the subjects that were always there.

Every single one of the things she had worked so hard to avoid was at the forefront in the silence. They weren’t peaceful thoughts of introspection either. They were violent and hungry for resolution. Especially now that forgotten memories had been brought into the light.

Would Vinyl’s parents be proud of where she is now? That was the most prevalent thought behind Glory. They always wanted the best for Vinyl. They had invested in her talent, had her try out every instrument in the book to find out which one was hers. They worked day-in and day-out to provide a decent life and values for her.

Now she was in a home, being foalsat by a guard all day. She just had what equated to an exorcism performed in a boarded up room. She had a very rocky relationship with her sister. Worst of all, her talent was going to waste. That alone made her a disappointment to her parent’s memory.

Vinyl’s parents had dedicated their lives to what they loved. Music. Her father poured over every record and genre to appreciate its nuances and strengths. Her mother had dedicated her short time on this earth to bringing joy to ponies through the strings of a guitar. What was Vinyl doing? Being a nuisance and getting drunk to dull the pain of loss.

Some daughter she turned out to be.

“I hate me…” Vinyl managed to groan out, much to her head’s chagrin. It needed to be said. She finally needed to admit it to herself. Everything she had done these past years, every bit of venom and hate that made it’s way out of her, Vinyl hated all of it.

She hated hiding her feelings at the bottom of bottles. She hated the malice she felt towards Glory. She hated not being able to have one stable day. Most of all, she hated the lies she felt that she needed to tell.

All of this hate towards herself and her actions, it was like a fire inside. It burned and ached. It raged against all of her senses to push her out of bed and onto her hooves.

Vinyl Scratch was many things, most of them not good, but above everything she was determined.

Shining Armor was not a comfortable stallion. This couch that he had taken as his own did no favors for his back. It always left his spine feeling stiff and in need of a desperate realignment. What was worse was he had to lay flat on his back last night to accommodate the sleeping Princess on his chest.

Not all bad, though. He got to be close to Cadance for a night. That was a plus. It wasn’t very often that they were able to sleep in the same bed, or couch. As a Royal Guard, if he was seen sleeping with the Princess it might start some rumors, or worse. Shining’s parents weren’t keen on their son having a mare over and only a wall separating them from little innocent Twilight.

As the guard shifted on the couch, Cadance buried her face into his chest. How was he supposed to disturb this? It was too good. He couldn’t wake up Cadance even if he tried.

“I hope you didn’t ruin the upholstery, Twinkle.” Shining Armor jumped, causing the Alicorn on his chest to do the same. They both looked towards the kitchen, eyes wide and fully awake now.

“Scratch, how long have you been there?” Both he and Cadance scrambled to decent positions on the couch. They at least had some modesty. The Princess fired up her horn to straighten out her mane in a flash so she looked royal once more.

“Just got back. So like two minutes or something, I don’t know.” Vinyl was going through one of the cabinets, shifting around loud metal objects. She was looking for something particular. “Before you ask, I didn’t break the binding spell or anything. I had to borrow some milk from a neighbor. Less than a hundred feet.”

That answered that, then. Shining was about to check the binding spell to make sure it was still intact. If she had broken it, she probably wouldn’t have come back. Or at least that was what Shining thought.

“Is she okay…?” Cadance whispered the question into his ear. He had been wondering the same thing. Vinyl sounded different. He would say ‘sober’, it felt oddly true. Usually she was upbeat with a hint of sarcastic bitterness, now she just sounded….normal?

Maybe it was the events of yesterday. Surely reliving painful memories would make Vinyl sad. How long the sadness would stay was another question. Was this another roadblock in her rehabilitation? Had they failed?

“I hope so…” Was the only thing Shining could say to Cadance. There was no certainty at the moment, not with Vinyl’s state of mind.

Meanwhile, the unicorn in the kitchen got a large skillet out from one of the cupboards and placed it on the stove. She then began mixing some ingredients together in a large bowl. Shining could barely hear her humming a tune to herself.

“What are you making Vinyl?” Cadance got up from her spot on the couch after giving Shining Armor a small peck on the cheek. “Do you need any help?” The alicorn trotted over to the kitchen and took a look around. “Pancakes?”

“Yep. Special pancakes.” Vinyl opened a cupboard with her magic and pulled down a container of spice and emptied some into the bowl. Largely, she was seemingly caught up in the work of making the batter to talk. Either that or Vinyl was lost in thought.

“Come on, Cadance. Let her cook.” He patted the spot next to him on the couch. “We can listen to the radio.” Shining felt the need to catch up with the world news, anyways. He would let VInyl be VInyl until breakfast was ready.

As the Princess made her way back to the couch, Shining fiddled with the radio on the end table beside the couch. He turned it on and quickly tuned it to Canterlot News Network. It was his go-to station for goings on.

“Hello ponies. Welcome back to Canterlot News Network. As always, I’m your host Air Waves.” The mare spoke through the crackling radio. She always sounded so professional. Shining was convinced nothing could shake her. “We now go to our top story of the day, a magic storm in FIllydelphia. Last night during the title fight between Bumblebee and Right Hook.a seemingly magical storm spawned above the arena where the fight took place. The arena suffered significant damage in the storm and resulted in Right Hook being struck by an errant bolt. Emergency Weather Services then dispersed the storm. No word yet on what caused the storm yet.”

“I hope that boxer is alright.” Cadance looked genuinely worried for the pony. Shining felt the same way. Right Hook was one-of-a-kind in the boxing world. It was her first year on the professional scene and she was still undefeated. As of right now, she was Equestria’s sweetheart.

“Right Hook is currently hospitalized and it is unsure whether she will recover.” The Newscaster finished up.

“Damn. I had money on that fight…” Shining heard Vinyl grumble in the kitchen. “Can you change it to something a little less depressing? Nintey-six point five is running their morning show right now.”

“No, I’m listening to the news.” Shining shot back at Vinyl. “Listen close and learn something.” He put his hoof around Cadance and pulled her closer.

“Man, nopony listens to the radio to be educated. Ponies wanna be entertained.” Vinyl said as she poured batter into the skillet. “One day I’m going to have my own radio show, right, and it’s going to be the best in all of Equestria. I’m gonna call it The Vinyl Sc-”

“Shhh!” Shining held his hoof towards VInyl and turned up the radio.

“Breaking News, Canterlot. Captain of the Royal Guard, Knock Out, has been involved in a deadly carriage crash at the intersection of Fifth and Palace.” The words sent chills down Shining’s spine.

“Oh no…” Cadance parroted Shining’s thoughts to a T.

“It is yet unclear what condition the Captain is in, but we will keep you updated as this story develops.” Shining slumped in his seat, his eyes wide. He didn’t have anything to say. How long had it been since a Captain of the Royal Guard had died in office? Decades at least.

“Well that doesn’t sound fun.” VInyl said to break the silence. “What happens if he kicks the bucket?” Shining wanted to fire something back at VInyl, but he was too shocked to say anything.

“If he passes away in office, an interim Captain will be put into place until the House of Nobles can unanimously agree on a candidate put forth by Princess Celestia.” Cadance sighed deeply. “Let’s hope that’s a big ‘if’...”

“Let me guess, the House of Nobles is not a very agreeable bunch?” Vinyl asked as she put a pancake atop a growing stack.

“Last time this happened it took five years to name a replacement. Celestia knows how long this will take.” Cadance put a hoof to her head and let loose another sigh. “This might take a decade…”

“You know what won’t take a decade?” Vinyl asked, putting one more pancake on the pile. “Eating breakfast. Wake up your stallion and we’ll eat.” Vinyl pulled some plates down and put a bottle of syrup next to the stack of fluffy treats.

Shining was shaken from his thinking by Cadance. He was trying to figure out exactly how to cope with this news. It was not often someone so high up was put into this kind of jeopardy. This was going to put the chain of command into chaos for sure.

“Alright Scratch, what’s so special about these pancakes?” For now though, he was going to put all of his work worries to the back of his mind so he could focus on Vinyl. It was his solemn duty to help and rehabilitate her and therefore his chief priority.

“I’ll tell you once you sit down and start eating.” That gave him cause for concern, and it must’ve shown. “They’re not poison, so quit worrying about it.” With that fear not quite subdued, he trotted over to the small kitchenette to get himself some pancakes.

Cadance got hers first, three particularly fluffy ones with a good helping of syrup drizzled atop them. Shining had decided to let Vinyl get her food before him, but she had declined and insisted he went first. Again, not allaying his fears of toxic pancakes.

As soon as he put the first glob of maple laden goodness into his gob, he realized that Vinyl could make some really good food...or pancakes at the least.

“Okay. I guess I should tell you why these are special pancakes…” Vinyl sat on the floor across from the couple who sat on the couch. The young unicorn rested her plate on the coffee table and let loose a deep sigh. “They’re called apology pancakes. My parents used to make these when they had to give us bad news…”

An all too familiar feeling started to form in the pit of Shining’s stomach. He didn’t like bad news normally, and bad news from Vinyl was about ten times worse than normal bad news. It meant his job was going to become more difficult.

“See, they made them because you can’t really object or be angry when you’re eating homemade cinnamon pancakes.” She had a fair point, Shining conceded as he munched on his breakfast. “I guess I should get to the point, huh?” Vinyl looked away from them both, a heavy shame present in her violet eyes. “I lied to you, Twinkle….like a lot.”

He couldn’t say he was surprised at this. It was obvious at times Vinyl was holding back the truth, sometimes more than he would’ve rationally allowed. But as long as she was coming clean now, that’s what mattered.

“That first day, when you asked me about my family and my job? I didn’t want you to pry to deep and I panicked so I told you somepony who was distant and I hated.” Shining had never seen Vinyl look so uncomfortable, not even when they were visiting with Glory. It was actually kind of sad and just plain hard to watch. “I have an uncle here in Canterlot. He runs my dad’s old record shop a couple of blocks south. I….technically work there and still get paychecks.”

“Hmmm.” Shining let slip through his stuffed mouth. New family could help, he could get someone close to her to talk and hopefully get through her rather thick skull. Maybe he could even get her working consistently again.

“See, that’s why I didn’t want to tell you.” Vinyl shot at the stallion, a slight scowl across her visage. “I see those gears turning, I know you want to go see him.” Shining swallowed his food and pointed his fork at the mare.

“You’re right, and we’re going to go do that as soon as I’m done with breakfast.” Shining stuck the fork into the delicious morsel on his plate and took another chunk out of the stack.

The grin on his face as he chewed was something that was visibly making Vinyl more upset, and he was okay with that.

Family Ties

“I'll never stop dreaming that one day we can be a real family, together, all of us laughing and talking, loving and understanding, not looking at the past but only to the future.”

- LaToya Jackson

Vinyl stood by her Royal Guard chaperone as Princess Cadance was escorted away by a detachment of guards. Shortly after the trio had left the house to go to Vinyl’s uncle’s store Cadance had been told she was needed in the Palace to deal with Knock Out’s accident. So once again, it was just Vinyl and Twinkle on their own.

“Why is she needed? Isn’t this more Princess Celestia’s stuff to deal with?” Truth be told, Vinyl didn’t even think Cadance had any royal duties. The alicorn just seemed to be a figurehead for the common ponies.

“Well Scratch, if you start walking to your Uncle’s shop I’ll enlighten you on the inner workings of the Canterlot government.” Oh boy, Vinyl couldn’t wait for that. It might keep his mind off of any questions he was going to ask her Uncle. So she started walking a familiar path towards the record shop.

“You see, Princess Celestia holds court every day and is too busy dealing with various issues around Equestria to do everything around the castle.So it’s the job of the...uh…’lower’ Princess..” Vinyl smirked as she heard the twinge of guilt in Twinkle’s voice over calling his marefriend ‘lower’. “As the not-the-main Princess, Cadance has to preside over the House of Nobles and regulate their sessions and count votes. Right now I’m guessing they’re calling an emergency session to vote on an interim Captain until Knock Out either gets better or….”

“So what you’re saying is she has the privilege of dealing with a bunch of stuck up elites in a hot stuffy room? Lucky her.” Vinyl had only encountered any nobles in passing, and them calling her some very big rude words.

“It’s an important job, Scratch. Somepony has to do it.” Vinyl glanced back and saw Twinkle give a little wave to a group of mares who passed him, making the mares talk quietly amongst themselves while giving waves and smiles back. “Kind of like this job.”

“What? Being a guard or blowing kisses to the local flavor?” That brought a red tinge to Twinkle’s face. Oh how Vinyl loved giving him a hard time, it almost made up for all of the stuff he pulled in the past week.

“I’m just doing my duty, keeping the ponies of Canterlot content.” She could feel the smugness radiating off of the stallion. It didn’t make her as mad as it should, instead it made her feel a bit more respect towards Twinkle. It was like he was showing a bit more of his equinity in public.

“Whatever you say, loverboy.” Vinyl took a final left and stood in front of a flight of stairs that went down to a door just below street level. A faded sign sat crooked above the doorway. The once vibrant red lettering read ‘LP’s Records’.

The sign gave Vinyl’s heart a slight ache, and allowed a sad smile to slip its way across her face.She had spent a lot of her foalhood after school in this shop, listening to new bands. Her father and uncle would bicker about something meaningless. The small building radiated memories.

The unicorn let loose a sigh as she descended the set of steps and gently opened the door. Immediately the acrid smell of cigar smoke hit her face. She could’ve sworn her uncle had quit smoking years ago.

Other than the horrid smell, everything remained the same. Displays of records, old and new, were aligned neatly in rows throughout the shop. Vinyl wanted to run to the new release rack and check out all of the latest albums, but she held back that urge for now.

“Uncle B, you here?” She called out to the seemingly dead shop. There was a rustling of papers and the creak of an old chair as a short chubby stallion plodded into the room.

He was exactly as Vinyl remembered, balding, short, and surly looking. His once white coat had been tinged yellow from decades of smoking in small rooms. A thinning blue mane topped his head and thick eyebrows topped angry eyes.

“Oh look who finally decided to visit.” The stallion started off, his voice thick with malice. “Ya never write, ya never visit, and now the first time I see ya in months and yer bein escorted by a guard. Some hello ya got for me, Scratchy.” Surly was the right way to describe her Uncle B. He was old, grumpy, and had something to say about everything.

“You wanna give me time to explain or are you just going to start yelling at me?” Vinyl advanced on her uncle. “I didn’t have to visit you know?”

“Glory already filled me in on your current situation, Scratchy.” Vinyl felt her anger rising from her chest to her face. How could Glory go around telling ponies Vinyl’s business? That wasn’t her place. “Hey, quit gettin’ mad. I asked her how ya were doing. It’s the only way I can get any information on how yer doin.”

“You could come and see me, maybe? Vinyl fired back.

“Why? So I can get the door shut in my face? Nah, I ain’t doin that.” Vinyl could only grumble in response to that. She had indeed done that to him previously. Multiple times.

“Now what’s you little escort’s name? Shine somethin’. Shine Spark?” The shorter stallion walked towards the Royal Guard, examining him. “Or was it Twinkle? I forget.” Vinyl saw Shining roll his eyes ever so slightly at that.

“Shining Armor, sir. It’s a pleasure to meet you Mr….?” Shining held out a hoof, which Uncle B took and shook vigorously.

“Bargain. Hard Bargain. But you can call me B, or just Bargain. Trust me, things get awkward when another stallion calls you Hard.” Even Twinkle couldn’t hold back a laugh at that, albeit he immediately tried to cover it up by coughing for the sake of professionalism. “Nice ta meet ya, Shinin’. I hope Scratchy ain’t giving you more than you can handle.”

“Nothing I can’t take care of, Bargain.” The self-righteous smile and posture correction that came whenever Twinkle said something really sort of irked her. “But I would like to speak to you in private, if you don’t mind. I have a few questions I need to ask.” Well that didn’t spell anything good for Vinyl, but she pretty much saw that one coming when she revealed she had an Uncle.

“Yeah, sure. We can talk back in my office if Scratchy don’t mind watchin the store while we talk.” Both of the stallions turned to her expectantly.

“Yeah, I’ll keep myself busy out here. You two go gossip about me.” Vinyl trotted up to one of the racks with new albums to see if there was anything new to occupy her time while she waited.

Shining followed the portly stallion behind the counter and down a dimly lit hallway into an office crammed with a large wooden desk. Bargain sat behind the desk and Shining took a seat opposite him.

Shining’s eyes drifted around the room, taking in all of the photographs on the wall. They were mainly of the same two foals growing up over several pictures, two colts. Along with a few of Vinyl and Glory. There was one that was bigger than the rest, though. It was a picture of Bargain and LP both standing at the counter out front. Shining could barely make out the plaque beneath it that said ‘Grand Opening’.

“Sorry about the clutter. Not many ponies come back here anymore.” Bargain took a cigar out of a drawer and put it in his mouth. “You mind if I light up?”

“Please, do as you want. It’s your shop.” As soon as Shining answered, the older unicorn lifted a lighter with his magic and sparked it to life. The flame touched the tip of the cigar, which started to smoke as a few puffs coaxed it to catch.

“So how long ya been hangin’ around Scratchy?” Bargain was kind enough to blow his smoke away from Shining’s face in between words.

“I think today makes a week, actually.” Shining mentally tallied up the days and events in his head and decided that was right. “Yeah, one week.” He reaffirmed.

“She drivin’ ya crazy yet?” The words were accompanied by a slight shift in demeanor. The elder stallion seemed to droop a little in his chair, and an intense look of sadness crept into his magenta eyes.

“Nothing I can’t handle, sir.” Shining replied.

“Quit feedin me the manual, kid. I’ve been around long enough to know when I’m bein’ told what I wanna hear.” The stallion leaned forward. “So tell me the truth. She drivin’ ya crazy yet?” Bargain took the cigar out of his mouth and tapped the excess ash into the tray on the desk.

“Well…” Shining sighed. He had wanted to keep his professionalism during this talk. He wanted to be civil and discuss plans on how to better Vinyl’s life. But it looked like he was going to be forced into speaking his mind. “A little. Every time I try to help it seems like a part of her hardens or closes. Every new door I open also builds a new wall, you know? First with Glory, then with Intrepid, and then with her parents the other day. I just don’t see anything working.”

“She’s got one thick skull, bub.” Bargain commented, nodding his head a little in affirmation. “But ya can’t let up, y’know? Ya gotta keep her on the tips of her hooves. That was my mistake...I gave her space.”

That didn’t make any sense to Shining. He always thought space is what a grieving pony needed. You needed to give them time to cope with the tragedy on their own terms. You couldn’t force them into anything, it was rude and insensitive.

“After her parents passed, what happened exactly?” Shining shifted in his seat, trying to get more comfortable. “I know what happened to her and Glory, but what about you? What happened between you two?”

“Jeez, kid…” Bargain took another drag of his cigar. “Ya go straight for the jugular, huh? No beatin’ around the bush with you.” The stallion leaned back in his chair, which creaked loudly in response. “After LP and Whammy passed, well I was left with Glory and Scratchy. I was their Godfather, and Scratchy was still a minor. Glory went off and disappeared for a few months, breakin’ my heart more than those two already had. Scratchy, though...she didn’t hold up too well. Didn’t talk much for a while.”

Shining let a small smirk slip through. He immediately regretted the act, but it seemed Bargain didn’t mind.

“Nice thought, right? Nowadays tha only thing comin outta her mouth is sarcasm.” Bargain chuckled and stroked his chin with his hoof. “Either that or a string of curse words of course.” Both stallions shared a chuckle at the thought. “Anywho, where was I? Right, she went into a bit of seclusion. I had to make her eat her meals and everythin’. Basically had to force her to even survive. Can’t blame her though, after they died I wasn’t fairin’ any better, but I had to be there for Scratchy…”

Shining was a pony who could appreciate commitment to family. To him it seemed like Vinyl was surrounded by ponies who wanted to help her, who wanted to be strong for her. She just didn’t want it, though. Vinyl didn’t want anypony else’s strength, she wanted to persist through her own.

“Next time she did talk was when she stumbled in tha house hammered outta her mind. It was her first time drinkin’ too, ya could tell.” Bargain rubbed one of his eyes with his hoof. “We got in a bit of an altercation and she decked me pretty good, I pinned her to the ground until she stopped squirmin. She just started cryin’....” A far off look came to Bargain’s eye, like he was focused on some far off event. “Screamin’ about how ‘it wasn’t fair’ and how she ‘just wanted to go back and fix it.’ Celestia, she was so beat up, y’know? About everything.Pretty quick after that she became real cold and distant with me, talkin’ with me but not really sayin’ nothin’.”

“So what you’re saying is she turned into Vinyl?” Shining wasn’t trying to make a joke and he sincerely hoped it didn’t come across as one. He was making an observation based on his time with the mare.

“She’s a good kid, alright? One of the brightest fillies ya ever did see, at least when she was little.” Again, the cigar was made shorter as the ash was deposited into the tray. “That’s still down there somewhere. The filly who played guitar with her mom and helped me and Lp in the shop, that’s still in there.” Shining hoped that Bargain wasn’t trying to be convincing, because the stallion was not doing a good job.

“Then help me find that.” Shining put his own confidence forward. “I was given this assignment and at first, I hated it. I didn’t want to help her. But after what I saw the other night...well, I believe we can help her. I saw a pony who was so full of regrets and sorrow, a pony who was so broken by tragedy that she didn’t want to fight for her own life. That’s not something anypony deserves.” Shining put his hoof on the desk. “Together. Me, you, and Glory can help Vinyl get her life back. But we do need to do it together.”

The other stallion nodded, a look of renewed determination in his eyes.

Vinyl was still busy sorting through records. So far she had found two new records to listen to; Entrap the Pachyderm and Anxiety! At the Rave both released new albums, seemingly when she wasn’t paying attention, and she needed to listen to them.

Other than that, nothing of consequence or interest had transpired while she was on her own. She had mainly been sifting through records and a few boxes behind the counter. The boxes, well she needed to ask Uncle B about that.

“Scratchy.” Speak of the devil and he shall appear, thought Vinyl. “We need ta talk to ya.” Well this didn’t spell anything good for her. It never did when Twinkle talked to her relatives.

“Fire away, I’m all ears.” She turned towards her uncle and the guard. Her uncle had a cigar firmly in his lips, and Twinkle. Well he was Twinkle and she was convinced nothing ever changed with him.

“Yer workin tomorrow. Nine AM sharp. If ya don’t show up on time, yer not gettin’ paid anymore.” Vinyl felt her eyes widen in disbelief and her jaw drop in shock. It wasn’t like Uncle B to be so...blunt towards her. Usually he was sarcastic, but lovable. “Yer buddy here isn’t gonna make sure ya show up either, that’s up to you, missy.”

“What did he tell you?” Vinyl jabbed a hoof at Shining Armor. “Did he tell you I did something wrong?” Vinyl couldn’t believe the change in attitude that Uncle B had went through. This had to be Twinkle’s fault.

“I already know yer in trouble, Scrathy. Else ya wouldn’t have a guard escortin’ ya around.” The older stallion took the now spent cigar from his mouth and put it out in a nearby ashtray. “The most he did was convince me ta actually help ya, and that means some tough love, Scratchy. So nine sharp, got it?”

Before Vinyl could fire off a snarky witticism or rude remark, she was interrupted by the bell over the door ringing. Everypony turned to look at the guest, only to see a royal guard, seemingly out of breath rush through the door.

“Shining Armor!” The guard said between heavy breaths. That metal armor was probably not very conducive to a lot of physical activity, she concluded.

“Yes, what is it?” Twinkle strode over to the guard. “Did something happen with Captain Knock Out?” Right, Vinyl had forgotten about that whole thing. If he died would that interrupt any of the guards’ duties?

“No.” The other guard panted out. “The interim Captain, she wants to speak with you. She says it’s urgent.” Interim Captain? Cadance had left to go deal with that like an hour and a half ago, Vinyl didn’t believe the Nobles had already decided on one.

“Who is the interim Captain?” Twinkle queried.

“Galea, Shining Armor. It’s Assistant Captain Galea. She’s taken over for now, and she really needs to talk to you.” Twinkle looked back at Vinyl, for reassurance or just because he could Vinyl didn’t know. “I was told to tell you to leave your charge and not bring her.” Well that complicated things a bit.

“Very well. Thank you very much, guardspony. I’ll get going right away.” He turned to Vinyl and fired up his horn, the pink glow illuminating the small shop. “Vinyl I’m leaving you here for now.” His stare turned into a stone cold glare. “If you’re not here when I get back we’re going to have a problem, got it?” All Vinyl could do was nod, and then Twinkle was gone.

Shining trotted briskly through the halls of the castle. He couldn’t run in here without fear of getting disciplined, but he needed to hurry. Whatever Galea wanted, it couldn’t be good. He and that pony never got along, and he feared they never would. So either she wanted to punish him for simply not being liked by her, or there was some genuinely pressing matter.

It took him a few anxiety riddled minutes of trotting through the castle, but he eventually made it to the Captain’s office. Already the name on the door had already been changed to read ‘Interim Captain Galea’. Shining Armor did not like how quickly this mare worked. It made him feel very uneasy.

The stallion knocked on the door, a pit forming in his stomach.

“Come in, Guard Armor.” The cold, calculating voice came from the other side of the door. Shining steeled himself and opened the door. As he came face to face with the mare, he struck a crisp salute.

“Interim Captain Galea.” He addressed her formally, his voice like a rock. It betrayed his true feelings, but for the first time in a long time, that was a good thing.

“At ease, Armor.” Shining dropped the salute, but stayed standing tall and proud. “I suppose you are wondering why you are here.” Shining was going to say something, but he was too busy studying the mare. It was still Galea, the same baby blue mare with stunningly cold gray eyes. Except now she was in her dress Blacks, and her beige mane was in a bun atop her head.

“I-” He started to say.

“The simple answer is you’re being reassigned.” Shining felt his stomach fall. He wanted to be incredulous, but he simply couldn’t at the moment. Not around Galea. “We feel as though the rehabilitation program is such a rare occurrence that it doesn’t deserve Royal Guard oversight. So this evening you are to report to the Main Gate and stay guard until dawn. Tonight and every night until reassigned, are we clear?”

Shining Armor didn’t know if he could fight this. He was going to lose all of this progress with Vinyl. He was going to be just another pony who abandoned her. It took him a minute to pinpoint the exact feeling, but he found it eventually. It was a sense of caring for the unicorn.

He cared for Vinyl Scratch.

Duty Binds

Love can do much, but duty more.

- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

“I’m sorry Shining Armor. Perhaps you misheard me. That was not a question or suggestion, it was an order.” Galea stared Shining Armor down with the intensity of a blizzard. She was not going to budge on this and neither was he.

“I heard you, Captain. But as I said, I’m afraid I can’t comply.” Shining Armor stood resolute. He was not going to just give up on Vinyl because he was ordered to. This was more than a matter of professionalism, or even personal investment in Vinyl. It was his duty to help her.

“Are you being insubordinate, Guardspony?” Galea stood up. Shining decided she was quite imposing for being so much shorter than himself. It was the eyes and he knew it, they were daunting and cold. Most likely they were calculating his demise as he stood there.

“No ma’am.” Shining swallowed hard. What he was about to say next would either make or break his entire career as a guard. “I was told to rehabilitate her, not just by Captain Knock Out, by Princess Celestia herself. I will not follow your order unless Princess Celestia authorizes it as well.” He met Galea’s gaze, and tried to match its intensity.

“Leave my sight, Guardspony.” The interim Captain growled out as she sat back in her chair. “I’ll call you back once I have Princess Celestia’s authorization...and then, you’re dismissed. Permanently.” The mare waved her hoof towards the door dismissively and spun her chair around.

Shining Armor left as fast as his hooves would let him without sprinting from the office in terror. That was the single most terrifying experience of his life. He had already had an outburst with Captain Knock Out, and now he had directly disobeyed his replacement.

He needed to speak to Princess Celestia as soon as possible. That was his main course of action right now. If he didn’t get to the Princess before Galea, it would surely end with him being reassigned. The problem with getting to Celestia was that she could be in a very important meeting or holding court right now. If he interrupted either it could throw more trouble his way. He decided to take the risk, it would be worth it if it meant keeping his current assignment.

Shining’s first inclination was to check his little sister’s quarters in the tower. Celestia liked to spend her downtime with her prized pupil. But what time was it? Twelve-thirty? She would either be in the middle of court or be having lunch. Both dangerous in their own right.

He decided that lunch would be the safer option. At least then she would be eating food and that might keep the regent from getting too mad. A part of him knew he was overreacting to the whole situation. He knew that Celestia would be on his side and would most likely let him stay with Vinyl and tell Galea he was exempt for the time being.

‘Most likely’ was his problem there. A margin for error was still a margin for error in his eyes. If there was even the slightest chance that something could go wrong, he had to accept that and think about how to deal with it when the time came.

So with his best course of action set, he went off towards the dining room. It wasn’t a place he usually went, so he had to briefly think about how to get there. Was it left before the Royal Apartments or was it the right before? He knew they were big double doors at the end of a hallway. He just didn’t know which hallway it was.

“Shining!”

Cadance waved down her coltfriend, who was seemingly wandering aimlessly through the halls.She had just come out of the Senior Noble’s office so they could discuss when more hearings for a new captain should be held. That is if Knock Out didn’t make it.

“Huh?” Shining spun and turned in her direction. “Oh, Cadance! Perfect!” While she would like to think Shining Armor was talking about her appearance, she had the feeling he was just talking about her presence. He looked frazzled and worried, which wasn’t like him. The only other time she had seen him like this was when he had asked her out on their first date.

“I have something very important to ask you-” What could it be? Her heart fluttered. What if he was finally going to pop the question? What if him being called here to the castle was all part of his plan? Whaty if he had to ask Celestia for her hoof in marriage and that’s why he came here? An inescapible smile spread across her face as she involuntarily bounced on her hooves.

“Ohhh! Of course Shiny! You know it’s a yes!” She pulled the stallion into a passionate embrace and gave him a nice long kiss. It wasn’t everyday that he would deserve this, but today was special.

“Perfect, so you know where Celestia is, good. If I don’t talk to her before Galea, I could lose my job.” Wait a tic. What? All of a sudden she was missing a very important part of the puzzle. Now the only thing she knew for certain was that she had grossly misread the situation...and where Princess Celestia was.

“She’s in the dining room having lunch…” Cadance responded, her spirits now thoroughly crushed from embarassment and disappointment. She was now too embarrassed to ask him what he was talking about in regards to his job, so she kept silent.

It’s not like it was her fault for assuming such a thing. Four years they’ve been dating and not even a peep on that front. Trust her, she kept her ear to the ground in regards to any possible proposals. Twilight Velvet, Shining’s mother, and Cadance had an arrangement. If she knew Shining was going to propose, Cadance would know. But the Princess wouldn’t put it past Shining to somehow stay under the radar. He could be crafty when he wanted to be.

“Right...problem is I don’t remeber how to get there.” Cadance looked around. Obviously this was the wrong hallway, these sconces were silver, not gold. The Dining Room hallway had golden sconces.

“Follow me.” Cadance playfully rolled her eyes and smirked. Sometimes Shining could be a little unobservant. It wasn’t his fault, most ponies around the castle were pretty unobservant when it came to where specific rooms were. “So Galea wasn’t too gentle?” She was going to try and pry that information of him.

“Blunt is the word I would use.” Shining still looked rather upset. He looked like he had been told his puppy died on his birthday. It was a mix of shock, anger, sadness, and worry. “I can’t believe she would even suggest taking me off of Vinyl’s case! I mean, we’re so close Cadance! I got her to promise to work every day at her father’s shop, I was going to talk to my friend at the train station to book some tickets for a trip to Ponyville! I just-I don’t know. I’m close to helping her.”

It was moments like these that reminded Cadance why she loved Shining Armor. He was dedicated to his work, but not to an unhealthy degree. He understood his job was to serve the ponies of Canterlot, and he relished it. At first he had been fed up with Vinyl, but Cadance knew that deep down he had always believed he could help her for the better. Now he was fully committed, though.

“I’m sure Princess Celestia will be on your side, Shining.” If for some bizarre reason Celestia denied their request and decided to hear Galea out, Cadance could always pull her ace in the hole. In times of crisis the Presiding Chairpony of the House of Nobles could control the Royal guard given that the current captain was incapacitated or worse. Would it be an abuse of power? Most likely. But if it was to help Vinyl and keep Shning’s job, well...it might be worth it.

“I hope so.” Cadance took a right and pointed towards the large double doors at the end of the hallway. “Oh, it’s the right after the intersection after the Royal Apartments…” Cadance could tell Shining was trying to plot the course for later use. “I was close at least.” Cadance appreciated the optimism.

“Would you like me to go in and talk to her?” Cadance figured she would offer. She had a little more pull with Celestia than Shining Armor did. Perhaps she could sway the monarch more easily than he could.

“No, I think I’ll take this one.” He turned and gave Cadance a kiss on the cheek. “Wish me luck?”

“Good luck, Shiny.”

“Excuse me, Your Majesty?” The monarch finished chewing her food and swallowed. She turned towards the guard that had approached her. Usually she was not to be disturbed when she was having her meals, so this had better be good. “Shining Armor is here to speak to you. He says it’s urgent.”

“Hmm.” Celestia thought about it for a second. Shining Armor was supposed to be with Vinyl Scratch, and if there was something urgent he needed to speak with her about it must be about Vinyl. “Very well, send him in.” Better to deal with this now rather than later.

She turned her gaze to the far end of the dining hall, where the doors opened and a white figure in gold armor entered the room. All of the guards looked remarkably similar at a distance. Perhaps she should require a little more diversity amongst the guards for less confusion. It would certainly help at least bring a little more color to the castle.

“Your Majesty.” Shining Armor gave a polite bow. “I apologize for interrupting, but I have a rather pressing matter.” Celestia could see it on his face, worry and a hint of panic. Usually he was so confident it didn’t strike her as possible to see him this frazzled.

“Please Shining Armor, sit.” She motioned towards the cushion to her left. “Have you eaten yet? The kitchen cooked up some delicious Potato soup I simply must recommend.” The monarch gave her best welcoming smile. Hopefully it would go to settling the guard’s nerves.

“No, I haven’t had any lunch yet, b-” Before he could finish, Celestia tapped her hoof on the marble below them.

“Can I get a bowl for my guest?” One of the staff scurried towards the kitchen to fetch the guard some food. “Sorry, it would be terribly impolite not to offer you some food. Now, what seems to be the problem?” Shining Armor closed his eyes, as if sending up a quick prayer in his favor.

“It’s Interim Captain Galea, Princess Celestia.” A problem already? Celestia knew that mare was not a good choice for captain. She was too cold for her own good. “She wants to reassign me, and I can’t follow that order.” Insubordination was new for Shining Armor. Hopefully he had a good reason for it. “I’ve spent a week with Vinyl now, and I’m just so close to getting her back on track, Princess. She’s opened up more, she’s actually letting me help her now.”

Princess Celestia let a little smile slip. There was a reason she chose Shining Armor as Vinyl’s rehabilitation guard. Mainly because it fit Vinyl’s criteria of ‘a looker’, but also because he was largely untested. Celestia wished to see if he presented the same fortitude Twilight did, if perhaps the drive to complete a task they were given was shared. It appeared that it was indeed.

“Well, why don’t you present me with your roadmap now? An update after that rather heavy moment the other day would be appreciated.” The same staff that had scurried off to the kitchen came back out with a bowl on their wing. They put it on the table in front of Shining Armor and took their place a few feet away.

About the other day, though. It was still on Celestia’s mind. Never had she encountered such emotion in a room, such turmoil in a singular pony. The memories reminded the monarch of her parents, and a big fight with her own sister that left them estranged to this day. In a way, Celestia had a deep sympathy for Vinyl Scratch, for their situations shared paralells.

“Well she just told me this morning that she has an Uncle in Canterlot. We went to visit him and apparently he runs Vinyl’s dad’s record store. I talked with him and he and I agreed that Vinyl would go to work there. So that’s step one at the moment.” Vinyl didn’t have a job? Well that was news to Celestia. At the end of this she would have to ask Shining Armor for a full write up on the situation.

“What’s step two?”

“Well Cadance, Vinyl and Glory located Glory’s foal. Thanks to you letting us use the census records. She’s in Ponyville, Lily Valley is her name. I’m going to take Vinyl and Glory there, for closure.” Celestia wasn’t sure if she agreed with that plan of action. If Lily was indeed in Ponyville and perhaps had a worse upbringing than imagined it could drive Vinyl and Skyward Glory even further apart. It was a risky gamble to say the least.

“Step three?” She was curious as to how far ahead the guard had planned. Celestia would shoot for perhaps getting the mare in a relationship. A partner whom she could rely on once Shining Armor was gone would be helpful.

“I want to see what happens before I plan any more. Things tend to fall in my lap when I’m helping Vinyl. My off the cuff ideas seem to be the most effective, so for now I’ll stick with those.” Well she wasn’t going to challenge his methods if they were working, and they seemed to be.

“Very well. I’ll tell Captain Galea that you are to stay on the case until it is completed.” Shining let loose a sigh of relief. She could tell the right decision had been made. Unless Galea had a solid argument she would consider nothing else. “Now, how about while we eat you tell me how you and Cadance are doing.”

Cadance had a plan, now. It was still her own personal plan to get Vinyl in a relationship. The first date with Intrepid had gone well enough, now she just needed to push the two together again. By ‘chance’ would be the best way, that way it would seem she wasn’t interfering in either’s love life.

The only question was how to accomplish that? Her first thought was to slip a note under Intrepid’s door, a flyer for the shop Vinyl was now employed at. That was too suspicious, though. Or at least that’s how she felt about it. Plus it would mean having a flyer made up for such a plan to work, and that might be more trouble than it was worth.

A friendly visit and a mention of a small shop he should visit? It was a much better alternative. Plus she would be able to check up on him. It was a win-win, then. She would get to meddle and check up on a good friend.

A brief memory flashed through Cadance’s mind. When she was younger, just after her ascension to alicornhood, Celestia had spoken to her about her duty. Cadance was the princess of love, and that meant bringing ponies together when they were meant to be. Celestia had explained that the power that came with Princesshood also came with a sort of ability to understand the future before it happened.

Cadance had experienced that phenomenon on limited occasions. The few times she had experienced it, it related to love and two soulmates diverging. It was then her duty to bring the two together, to fight fate and change their course.

But now there was doubt tugging at her mind. Was it her place to force two ponies together who had no place in the eyes of fate? At least as far as she could tell? Could she break the promise she made to Celestia to not abuse her power? Celestia had warned her that love was a touchy subject, because creating or destroying it infringed on the matter of free will and true love.

It was for the best, though. That was Cadance’s final thought on the matter. Sometimes fate had to be made, not just changed. She could feel it in her soul that these two needed each other, and she wasn’t going to stop until they were together.

Whether they liked it or not.

Author's Note

Hey friends. I hope you're enjoying the story. Feel free to leave a comment to tell me what you think so far! I appreciate every comment that is left.

Cheers!

Tomorrow

“Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.”
-Lyndon B. Johnson

“No, listen to me, you’re an idiot and you’re wrong.” Vinyl rolled her eyes at the spectacle before her. These three stallions had come into the store a good twenty minutes ago and had been arguing since they set hoof in the door.

“I’m an idiot? Says Mr. ‘Easy Pickings’ over here.” The gray one with the swept back mane fired back at his blue friend. She guessed they were friends, they argued like they hated each other.

“Can we not do this here, guys?” The third member of the troupe, the brown one with the flat cap tried to act as the mediator. Vinyl was rooting for him, he would probably get the bickering morons out of her shop.

“No, we can’t stop until he apologizes for being wrong!” The blue pegasus fired back. “It’s every day he does this and I’m getting sick of it. He can’t just admit one time that I’m right!” Vinyl let her head hit the counter and let out a groan. She hated some ponies so much.

“Hey, it’s not my fault you’re always wrong!” Back to the quickfire bickering they were doing when they first walked in. It was the most infuriating because they were constantly talking over each other, and she couldn’t get a handle on what they were arguing about.

“Will you three just shut up?!” She yelled at the three stallions. She had enough of this nonsense and didn’t want a headache today. “Quit arguing and buy something for Celestia’s sake!” The three stallions stared at her for a second.

“Rude.”

“Totally uncalled for.”

“Sorry….”

The blue and the gray stallions huffed and marched out of the shop, muttering mean things about Vinyl. The brown one came up to the counter, sheepishly holding a record in his magical grasp. He tossed some bits up on the counter, and a few extra after that. Without another word he took the record and bolted from the shop.

“What’re you hollerin’ about in here?” Great, now she disturbed Uncle B. Just what she needed. First Twinkle comes back from the castle last night all reclusive and stuff, and now she pulls this. “Were you hollerin’ at customers?”

“Yeah, they were being annoying.” She turned to look at her Uncle, her eyes hidden behind her favorite shades. “Like, really annoying.”

“You don’t yell at customers, Scratchy. I don’t give a hoof how annoyin’ they are. If they have bits floatin’ around, you gotta at least tolerate ‘em.” The elder unicorn then reached out and snatched her glasses from her face. “And what did I tell ya about wearing these in here? It ain’t professional.”

“I know.” Vinyl grabbed her glasses back from him and placed them once again where they belonged. “But unless you want every customer to come in and see the bags under my eyes, I’m going to wear them.” She had gotten very little sleep last night on account of Twinkle’s countenance. He was upset about whatever happened at the castle, and she had been up all night worrying what that meant for her.

“Just be nice, alright? I can’t have you scarin’ away all of my customers.” Uncle B trotted back to his office, leaving Vinyl alone once again. It’s what she hated, being alone. Usually she wouldn't have to deal with it, because either she was in a club or had a new ‘friend’ to spend the night with depending on the occasion. Nowadays, she always had Twinkle around, so there was always something to talk about.

Speaking of Twinkle, he went off earlier and she hadn’t seen him since before noon. She guessed he was at the castle again, maybe visiting Cadance. It was the safest bet, but the much more interesting possibilities were the ones creeping their way into her head.

Maybe getting back her job had inspired Twinkle to consider her rehabilitated? Or perhaps he was doing something more nefarious at the castle, like looking into her lineage to find any more of her relatives.

The bell above the door rang again. Fearing that it was once again the arguing idiots from before, she lowered her head, reading the back of a nearby record. Vinyl was going to keep her mouth shut whether she liked it or not.

“Vinyl?” She raised her head and saw a very familiar sight. “Vinyl Scratch, I didn’t know you worked here.” It was Intrepid, the stallion from the Orchestra. What was he doing here?

“Oh...hi Intrepid.” She gave the pegasus a smile. Well the best one her sleep-deprived features could manage at least. He looked different than before though. He was missing one of his legs, the fake one she had noticed the other day.

“It makes sense now.” The pegasus mumbled to himself, taking a look around. “I was told this was a place where I could find some good music, so I decided to come and check it out. My record collection is running a bit thin.” Thank Celestia he was a music lover, it made him all the more endearing.

“Yeah, who told you about this place?” Not many ponies knew about the record shop, and those that did were the music-heads who wanted their little paradise kept private.

“A mutual friend of ours, actually.” Intrepid moved towards the counter, looking around nervously as he did so. “Princess Cadance.” Oh. Well it made sense now. Cadance was the one that brought him along to the orchestra, and now she directed him to Vinyl’s place of work. The Princess was setting them up, the conniving pink alicorn.

“So what kind of music are you interested in?” Vinyl walked around the counter. “Jazz? Classical?”

“Really?” Intrepid gave a chuckle. “Do you think I’m that old? I enjoy classical, but I wouldn’t buy a record of it.” He gave a look around. “Why don’t you tell me what you like and we’ll go from there?”

“Well, alright.” Vinyl immediately went for the alternative section. “Polar Primates are pretty good, Entrap the Pachyderm. Anything indie or alternative is what I listen to mainly. I like a little of everything, though. Electronica, rock, some metal, rap. I just like music.” It’s true, one of the few subjects Vinyl could talk about all day was music, and if you got her started it was hard to stop.

“I’m a fan of classic rock and more...exotic sounds.” Intrepid looked at Vinyl, his eyes gaining a glint of passion. “Tell me, have you ever heard the Zebra’s song of honor?” Vinyl shook her head. “Completely without instrumentation, all done with their voices. When one of the tribe dies they all gather around the body as it burns and sing songs of the good deeds the deceased had done. Each song is unique in its entirety.” There was something about the way Intrepid spoke that made Vinyl’s heart lift. There was a passion and knowledge for the subject that she had heard only when others spoke of their special talent.

“That sounds like something else.” Vinyl leaned on the endcap they were standing by. “You seem like you’ve been around some exciting places.” Vinyl recalled he was some sort of explorer. It definitely showed. The way the stone gray pegasus carried himself was testament to a life of observation and treading lightly.

“I’ve been a few places, yeah.” He chuckled and looked away for a second. The pause between them was pregnant, and full of what Vinyl would call apprehension. “Say, Vinyl. I don’t suppose you’ve had lunch yet?”

“Uh, no.” It was only noon and Twinkle had said he was going to bring her lunch when he got done at the castle. Who knows when that would be, though. To punctuate the question, her stomach growled. “Looks like I’m hungry, though.”

“How about we go out and get something? If it’s okay with your boss, of course.” Vinyl was surprised at the forwardness of the stallion. At the orchestra he had been a bit of a nervous mess, at first at least. Once they had gotten to talking though...well he was a lot like he is now.

“Sure!” She cleared her throat and looked down. That was a little too enthusiastic for her tastes, she was supposed to be cool and collected. “I mean, sure. Let me ask him.” Hurriedly, she trotted off to the back room. There was a blush on her face that she just couldn’t will away, so she wanted out of that situation as soon as possible.

“What’s his name?” Before she even rounded the corner, Uncle B was already grilling her. How did he know what was going on? “What, ya don’t think I can’t hear ya out there?” It was like he was omnipotent or something.

“His name’s Intrepid. I met him at the orchestra with Twinkle a few days ago.” The look she got from her uncle made her resolve a little stronger. He was skeptical, and that made her more angry that it should. But having a guard questioning every decision was enough, she didn’t need Uncle B on her case either.

“Yer lunch is an hour, ya know that.” The elder unicorn picked up a newspaper and began reading it. “Don’t be late.” With that, Vinyl turned tail and walked back out. She was actually having a second date with somepony, it was a good day.

It was a horrible day.

Shining Armor had been sitting here for hours now filling out these forms.The ones that Galea had requested he fill out, in triplicate, about Vinyl Scratch.

This was some major retaliatory action on Galea’s part and Shining was plain shocked when she had given him the order. He had originally thought to disobey the order, but Celestia knows what she would do then. He assumed it would be cleaning the latrines with his own toothbrush.

“Parents died. Do you know how?” Galea was sitting across the room at her desk, looking over the two copies of the report he had already written. “Rock slide. They were going on a trip and their train got hit with a rock slide while going down the mountain.” He knew the answer, he had done his research. Shining just had the common courtesy to tell Vinyl he knew, or ask her for more details. “I looked it up in the archives last night.”

“Yeah, it was a tragedy.” Shining was focusing on his writing more than he was to Galea. If a single word was different from the other copies, he might be forced to correct the document in its’ entirety.

“Forty-three other ponies died in the same accident.” Galea stood up, a folder in her light blue magic. “Parents, grand-parents, foals...family members. No one else related to those ponies have ever reacted the way Vinyl Scratch has. No delinquency. No disturbing the peace.” Galea was now standing over him, she was thoroughly blocking his light. “Why do you think that is?”

“Ponies deal with tragedy in different ways. Vinyl just lashed out.” That had been Shining’s conclusion, at least. It was the only way Vinyl could deal with all of this, get drunk and try to forget. Fill the void of pain with numbing agents.

“Or she’s just a bad egg. We have those, you know. Some ponies are just criminals, Shining Armor. I say we need to adopt the Griffon’s way of thinking.” Shining Armor gave Galea a look of utter disgust. He had heard of the conditions of the prisons in the north. They were the stuff of horror stories. “We could do it better than them, though.”

“Or,” Shining Armor put the final few pieces of punctuation on his report. “We stay the course. Rehabilitation has a lower chance of repeat offenses.” The research backed Shining’s statement, he had done a full report on it in Guard Training. Imprisonment would hurt the population more than it would help.

“I think you’re looking at it the wrong way, Shining Armor.” Galea looked Shining Armor dead in the eyes, sending a chill down his spine. There was something about her eyes that chilled his entire soul, it was something behind them. “There are some ponies who can’t be rehabilitated, we know this. Those ponies without remorse or love, they can’t be fixed.”

“What does this have to do with Vinyl Scratch?” Shining was not going to be dragged into a philosophical argument with Galea. He was not as eloquent as her with his words, and it would lead to a loss for him.

“Well I believe that Vinyl is not just lashing out. This isn’t because of her parents, Shining Armor. Scars heal, they should not hurt her anymore. This is bad intentions through and through.” Shining Armor took a deep breath and pushed the paper towards her.

“May I leave?” He stood up and stood at rest. He was giving her the courtesy of dismissing him. If she denied him, he would leave anyways. He would not stay here.

“You’re dismissed.” With that, Shining Armor headed to the door while Galea headed to her desk. There was one more thing that he needed to say, though.

“Wounds.” Galea turned back to look at him. “Wounds heal, scars don’t. They stay to remind us of pain, to let us know not what to do.” The guard started towards the door again. “Fifteen ponies on that list, the ones that died in the rock slide. Their spouses or parents or kids committed suicide within five years. So don’t tell me that it didn’t affect others.”

“Can I get the BLT on rye, please?” Intrepid put down his menu and looked to Vinyl. “What will you be having, Vinyl?” Vinyl looked over her menu, bobbing her head back and forth indecisively.

“Hay melt on wheat.” The unicorn put her menu down quickly, as if trying to get it away before she changed her mind. He chuckled at the slightly dramatic display. “What?”

“Nothing.” Intrepid shook his head. He realized a quite strange phenomenon, and he couldn’t shake how odd it was. He was smiling, almost constantly. There were no shakes or nerves getting to him. Dare he say, this was happiness.

“So, tell me Mr.Explorer, got any more interesting stories?” Vinyl took a drink from her water glass the waitress had placed on the table. “I’m a sucker for a good story.” That was a good sign, he had plenty to share.

“Well how about first you tell me a little about yourself. I know your name and that you like music, but I would like to know more.” Vinyl intrigued him more than he would like to admit. What was it about her that made him feel almost giddy? Some form of sorcery was his first inclination, but that would be ridiculous.

“How about a trade?” Vinyl smiled, the devilishness of her eyes showing through her tinted sunglasses. “I tell you something about me, and you tell me a story.” Vinyl took another drink. “Seems like a fair deal to me.”

“A little tidbit for a whole story hardly seems fair.” Intrepid would give in, but he figured a bit of haggling might be a bit more fun. “Part of a story for something about yourself. I would hate to run out of stories by the end of lunch.” He could see Vinyl mulling it over in her head for a second. Then she nodded. “So where are you from?”

“Canterlot. Born and raised.” Vinyl stated proudly. “Lived here all of my life, and don’t plan on leaving anytime soon.” Okay, fair enough. If you could afford to live in this city, why not do it? It was the cultural center of Equestria, after all. For a musician that had to be important. “Story, go.”

“Right to it then, okay.” Intrepid thought of a few stories. Which one would be appropriate for a public setting? “Well, at eighteen I joined the military. I was put in the Aerial Reconnaissance unit and shipped off to Saddle Arabia to act as intelligence for the Saddle Arabians.” Surprisingly, Vinyl seemed rather attentive, something rare indeed. “Do you remember when the Zebra Kingdom took Casaflanca from the Saddle Arabians?”

“I think I was like two, but yeah. I kinda remember it.” Dear Sweet Celestia, how young was she? Was she robbing the grave, or was he being a cradle thief at this point?

“Well my unit was providing intelligence to the Saddle Arabians by flying over the city and reporting what we could, but eventually it wasn’t enough. So they planted us in the city as spies.” He saw Vinyl’s eyes light up behind her glasses at that. It got most ponies that way. “Now, another question?”

“Sure, yeah!” The unicorn replied enthusiastically.

“How old are you?” This answer would either cut this lunch short, or see it all the way through. He was not going to be caught with somepony underage, oh no.

“Twenty-One. Twenty-two in about four months.” Thank Celestia, it was something at least a tiny bit appropriate. That was a load off of his mind. “How old are you?” Oh boy, this was going to be fun.

“Forty-five.” He said quietly. Vinyl had to know he wasn’t exactly a young stallion, the gray in his mane attested to that. “Just turned it, actually.”

“Not the oldest guy I’ve dated,” Vinyl replied, much to his surprise. “Don’t give me that look. He was noble, I was young and broke. Nothing happened and it went nowhere fast.” Well at least she fessed up to it. Better to find out now. “Back to the story.” Straight to the point, once again.

“I was stationed there with my friend Canary, at least that was her code name. Mine was Finch, in case you were wondering. It’s not as exciting as it sounds, though. There were no big chases or magic shootouts. Just us taking down troop movements and getting them to the Saddles.” Intrepid closed his eyes. He could feel the desert heat on his face still, the sandy wind blowing through his mane. He could be lost there all day. But he had a story to tell. “We were there when it was sieged as well, when the magic started dropping and the walls were crumbling...we were there. The building I was in was actually hit by one of the barrages. I was knocked out for the rest of the siege and sent home with a Purple Sun on my uniform the next week.” There, base story done. He didn’t want to get into it any more at the moment.

“Wow. So you were in a war? That’s pretty hardcore.” He smirked at the notion. ‘Hardcore’? No, at the time he was simply caught in the crossfire. He wasn’t going to spoil a positive image of himself, though.

“Your food.” The waitress stopped by the table, dropping two sandwiches on the table and then leaving with a smile. “Enjoy!”

“How about I ask one more question then we can eat?” Vinyl nodded. “What’s your dream job, Vinyl?” The unicorn mare cocked her head to the side, a very puzzled look on her face.

“Well that’s easy, I want to be a musician. My mom was one, and the way she talked about it just makes me want to perform too, y’know? I’ve always had this, like, drive to create stuff for ponies to listen to. When you see how much a pony really enjoyed something that you’ve made, it’s the bomb.” Vinyl’s eyes sparkled with a mad intensity, a positive energy he could only hope to obtain. It was almost intoxicating in quite a magical way.

If only he were a bit more observant, he might’ve seen the alicorn across the street with her horn lit up. If only he had seen her, he might’ve understood that this attraction was quite magical.

Author's Note

Fimfiction did not handle the transition from GDocs well, had to fix the formatting.

Today

“You never know when a moment and a few sincere words can have an impact on a life”.

-Zig Ziglar

“I dated a Diamond Dog once.” Vinyl decided to share a story of her own. Intrepid had told her a few over the course of their little lunch, and she felt that she owed him a tale of her own. Plus, it was a fun story to tell.

“Really? How did that work out?” Intrepid cocked his head quizzically to the side as he pulled out a sum of bits and put them on the table. “I’ve known a few Diamond Dogs, and they weren’t exactly partial to ponies.” Well at least he knew what a Diamond Dog was, most ponies would be asking her.

“Well, I was in Las Pegasus and-” Something caught her eye, just barely out of sight. On the other side of the street, she saw a very confused looking Shining Armor talking to Cadance. “-What are those two doing here?”

“Hmm?” Intrepid followed her gaze. “Oh, it’s Princess Cadance and Shining Armor. They must be out on the town.” Vinyl wished she could just wave a coincidence away like that, but the skeptic in her knew better.

“No, Shining is supposed to be at the castle.” Then she saw it, Cadance’s horn was lit up...and she was looking at them. Vinyl didn’t know much about Cadance’s powers, but she could only assume the ‘Princess of Love’ moniker had something to do with them. It only let Vinyl’s suspicion grow.

“Well I suppose that’s where Royal Guards belong, yes.” There was a pause. “You seem awfully suspicious about all of this. Do you know something I don’t?” What Vinyl knew about those two that Intrepid didn’t could probably fill tomes upon tomes, but she would stick to the basics.

“I know they like to meddle.” It was true, Shining Armor at least had a penchant for meddling, and Vinyl would be none too surprised to find out that it had rubbed off on the alicorn. “It just doesn’t sit right with me…”

“Well, what do you propose we do? Confront them?” Vinyl mulled over the thought in her head. If both Intrepid and herself went out, it might work.

“Or...we could do a little spying.” Vinyl said, a sly grin crossing her face. “I mean, if you’re up for it.” Vinyl could see the gears turning in Intrepid’s head turning. The pegasus had a worried look on his face that slowly turned into a cautious smile. “So that a yes?” A nod came in response. “Sweet, lead the way.”

“Me?” Questioned Intrepid, his hoof raising to his chest. “It was your idea.”

“Yeah, but you’re the super-spy. I don’t know how to do all of the fancy espionage stuff like you.” Vinyl was going to try and build up his ego a little bit. Hopefully it would be enough to push him. “Besides, I figured it would be pretty cool to see you in action.”

“In action…” The stallion murmured. “Yeah, alright.” Jackpot. “Just wait until Cadance turns away from the window, then make your way to the back of the diner, alright?” Vinyl nodded, it was a little intoxicating to see Intrepid go from nervous to happy, and now to a measure of determined professional.

There was a solid minute of silence. Both of them were glancing out of the corners of their eyes to see when or if Cadance would turn. It made Vinyl’s heart race and made her feel more alive than she thought possible.

“Go.” It was quiet and authoritative. Vinyl barely had time to react before Intrepid was somehow out of his seat and halfway to the backdoor of the diner. He was awful fast for a pony missing a leg.

“I’m sorry sir, you can’t go through this door. Employee entrance.” The waiter attempted to block their path. Intrepid lowered his head and gave a half cough-half gurgle.

“S-sorry...I’m just not feeling well...Didn’t want to get sick in your establishment...or in front of it.” The one-winged pegasus gave a convincing fake gag that made the waiter open the door for their exit. They both exited quickly, making sure the door shut behind them.

“Now what?” Vinyl stood behind Intrepid, who had his side up against the diner. He poked his head slightly around the corner and withdrew it at a breakneck pace.

“Now we wait for them to move. Tell me, if you were them and saw us disappear what would you do?” Intrepid turned back to look at Vinyl. There was something in his eyes, a fire of sorts. It made his previously tired looking face look about twenty years younger and made her heart flutter.

“I would think we just left through the front door.” That would be her first inclination, but then she gave it a bit more thought. “If I was Shining Armor I would check it out, though.” She knew Twinkle, almost too well. He would know he was being played and would try to find out how and why.

“Exactly. Cadance will want to believe we just left though. Tell me who wins in that argument? Cadance or Shining Armor?” Vinyl could practically hear every wheel in Intrepid’s head turning. It was as if he already had his answer, but was just giving Vinyl the chance to come to the same conclusion.

“Cadance. Every time.” Vinyl was fairly confident in that fact. Shining didn’t like to argue from what she could tell, and with Cadance even less. The guard would most likely sigh and give up his opinion for her own.

“Good call.” Intrepid looked around the corner again. “Looks like they’re going north. Towards your record shop, most likely.” Intrepid was like a pony possessed, calculating every little movement and taking every variable into account. “We’re going to cross the street and get behind them.”

Vinyl looked around the corner as well. It was a typical busy Canterlot street. Throngs of wealthy ponies crowded the sidewalks, they were all going about their days and stopping in front of windows to gawk at a products they wanted. It wouldn’t be too hard to blend in, at least Vinyl knew they would stick out less than a Royal Guard and an Alicorn.

Without a word Intrepid moved across the street as fast as he could. Vinyl followed him, keeping her head lowered to the ground. If there was one thing that would give her away it would be her mane. The flared mess of blues were too noticeable in a crowd and would surely catch Shining’s eye.

“Intrepid.” The stallion glanced back, if just for a second. “The baseball fields are just up the block. If we can beat them to it, maybe we can like listen in on them or something.” Vinyl had been trying to think of a way to get near them to hear what they were saying, and the wooden fence that separated the baseball fields from the street was their best bet.

“Good thinking.” There was a slight pause as he looked to his left, pushing past a couple of rich looking ponies. “We should be able to cut through here, I think.” The pegasus cut into an alley just to their left, so Vinyl followed.

Without warning, Intrepid broke out into a sprint. His three legs carried him faster than Vinyl thought possible. What in the world was going through his mind right now?

Intrepid was having a blast! This was the most alive he had felt in years, and now with the added adrenaline of chasing down and spying on a princess? He was practically young again! Vinyl had sparked something in him, a resurgence of vitality and youth. Of positivity and good memories.

On a whim, he jumped over a tipped over trash can in the alley. He landed on his three hooves rather solidly, then he kept running. How long had it been since he had done something this bold and active?

He turned a corner sharper than he had intended and almost tipped over on his bad side, luckily the pearlescent mare that had been following him caught up with him. She propped herself up on his bad side and helped right himself.

“Whoa, careful.” Vinyl was keeping up with him. He would’ve been surprised, but he remembered she had all of her extremities, so she was probably just letting him keep the lead. The last thing he wanted to do was make Vinyl think he was slow or weak because of it.

Ahead was the chain link fence that separated the alley from the first of the baseball fields. It was a bit taller than him, so jumping it was a certain impossibility. Without his other wing, he couldn’t fly over it either, so he had to think of something fast.

His immediate thought was the dumpster in front of the fence. He could jump on top of it and use his momentum to carry himself over the fence. It would require a little finesse, but he was feeling confident.

Intrepid pushed off of his back hooves and sailed onto the dumpster. He didn’t allow his front hoof to touch the dumpster, though. In one fluid movement he put his front hoof on the fence and used that to propel himself over the barrier.

Intrepid landed with a thud, much harder than he would’ve liked. But he was on all three hooves, so that was a positive. The shockwave that the landing sent through his body was not great though. It made his ribs and joints ache with an intensity he hadn’t felt in years.

It was exhilarating.

He turned back to see Vinyl taking it a lot slower than he had. She climbed onto the dumpster, then pulled herself over the fence. The unicorn landed with the same amount of grace that he had, which was little to none.

“Are you alright?” Intrepid took a few steps back and placed his wing on Vinyl. “Didn’t take that landing too hard, right?” He had done this before, he had taken landings like those for years. At this point he could shake off most pain pretty easily, but a Canterlot born and raised pony? That couldn’t be easy.

“Yeah…” Vinyl stated, clearly out of breath. “How in the world did you do that?” Intrepid felt heat rising in his face. “That was amazing!” Vinyl laughed and bounced on her hooves. It was obvious that the adrenaline had gotten to her as well. “Like, you just straight flew over that fence!”

“Yeah...practice, I guess.” Intrepid wasn’t sure how to quantify his experience. He just did it, like second nature. Traversing cities was something he had done for a long time, and just plain traversing difficult landscapes was his life for so long.

“I sent the letter when I got out of her office. Now I just have to figure out who I can get to cover the orphanage for Glory for the whole day.” Shining’s voice came through the fence, making Intrepid put his wing to his mouth. The pegasus motioned towards the fence.

“I can probably work on something for you.” Cadance let her wing brush up against Shining Armor and gave him a smile. Shining Armor returned it uneasily, his mind was still occupied on what he stumbled upon.

“Thanks, Cadance.” Shining looked over to the fence on his right. He stopped in his tracks, making Cadance stop as well. The pink alicorn was being awfully evasive about what she was doing in front of the diner. The fact that Intrepid and Vinyl were there left a pit in Shining’s stomach.

“Are you okay?” There was genuine concern in Cadance’s voice. He wasn’t going to doubt her sincerity, but he was going to doubt her intentions back there. It was just bugging him to a very intense degree.

“Can you just tell me what you were doing back there?” Earlier she said that she had just stumbled upon the couple and was observing them, but that did not sit right with him. His guard instincts kicked in and told him she was meddling, perhaps more than she ethically should.

“I…” There was a hesitation on the Princess’ part. “You have to promise not to be mad.” That didn’t bode well, it meant that it was most certainly going to upset him, and the last thing he wanted was to be upset at Cadance. His day had gone bad enough as is.

“Okay…” Shining said, against his better judgment. “I won’t be mad.” Now he was hoping that he wouldn’t regret that.

“I may have been helping them along with my magic. You know, maybe making them a bit more into each other.” Cadance let each word slip out more sheepishly than the last. She knew what she did was going to get under Shining’s skin, and now he had to try and not overreact.

“How much?” Shining needed to know the extent of this. He needed to figure out if he needed to mitigate this, or if he could let just this slide. Celestia forbid if Vinyl figured out, she would flip out. Rightfully so, he was afraid, this was above a breach of trust or even personal space. Cadance’s magic, if used too much, was a breach of free will.

“Well, at first it was a little…” Each and every time the words felt like they were dancing on eggshells more and more. The pit in Shining’s stomach grew with every utterance. “Then I realized that I needed to help a little more…”

“Cadance…”

“I did it at the orchestra too.” There it was, the bombshell. This was as deep as it could go, and that meant he was now going to have to contain this. Maybe he could somehow explain away Vinyl’s feigning interest in the stallion, heck he had to explain it away now. Without Cadance working her magic, the sparks wouldn’t be there. “I’m sorry, I just thought that if I could help you with Vinyl it would help us get a little closer as a couple.”

Did that even make sense? Shining was trying to put the pieces together in his head. If Cadance was going to keep this whole thing a secret, how would this make them closer? Was it the virtue of helping Vinyl get a date? Or was it…?

“Are you jealous of Vinyl?” It was the only explanation. The only reason that Cadance would manipulate Vinyl like that would be to get her out of Shining’s mane faster. “Did you do this just because you’re jealous that I’m spending time with her?” He was trying to keep his voice as level and calm as possible, but he was slowly failing. The anger was starting to boil and he was having a hard time keeping it in check. Even the flinch that Cadance gave was enough of a confession of guilt to raise his ire slightly higher.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Shining turned his head to see a pair of ponies exiting the gate to the baseball fields a few feet away. The last ponies he wanted to see right now, the last ponies who needed to be here or hear what was being said. “Twinkle, please tell me this is all one big misunderstanding.”

“What are you two doing here?” Cadance beat him to that particular punch. He was glad, that meant the response was not going to be aimed at him. “I thought you two left for the record store.”

“No. We saw you two and thought it was suspicious.” Intrepid was advancing on them quite slowly, each step carrying more weight and meaning than it had any right to. “Turns out we were right.” Shining couldn’t blame either of them for being mad, even he was upset. “This was all fake then, all of it? From the moment we hit it off at the concert?” now the stallion’s eyes were beginning to water at the edges and his voice was shaking.

“Intrepid…” Cadance took a step back.

“It was all a lie. Everything I felt.” Was this anger or sadness? Shining couldn’t tell any more. At this point it was an incomprehensible mess of both, and it was forming a storm behind Intrepid’s eyes. “The best I’ve felt in years, and it’s all because some Princess was jealous?”

Vinyl was locked up at this point. The unicorn simply stared at the royal couple with unblinking, unfeeling eyes. If Shining were to guess, she was shut down and it was probably for the best. He had seen Vinyl furious, and it would not be good to see it again.

“I thought for once that somepony in this city actually cared for me.” Intrepid’s words cut Cadance deep. Shining saw the alicorn flinch back and tears start to form. “But no, now I realize that at least out there in the wild if something hurts you, they mean it.” The stallion stopped his advance and hung his head. “I can’t believe this…I didn’t think I could be more disappointed. I was wrong.” With that, the one-winged stallion turned and started to walk away. Who would stop him? Who would even want to?

“Vinyl...I just, I thought that if I could make you happy-” Cadance began to plead with the unicorn, but she was cut off by a single hoof that Vinyl raised. Shining was eager to hear what Vinyl had to say. Would she at least try to understand Cadance’s point of view, or would she go full Scratch?

“I’m late for work…” Monotone, deadpan. Even Shining couldn’t read that.Vinyl turned and walked away from the two, leaving them all alone together.

“Shining…?” Cadance was crying now. She was looking for some support from him, some reassuring words. He just didn’t know what he could say, so instead he let his gut talk for him.

“I can’t believe you did that, Cadance.” Shining guessed he was going to pile it on, too. “There’s a line you don’t cross when it comes to ponies’ emotions, and you crossed it. You didn’t just hurt their feelings, you made it so their feelings didn’t matter. I don’t know about Intrepid, but for Vinyl? I think she was actually starting to value her own feelings again.” Shining looked away, trying desperately not to shake his head and march off.

“Shiny, I’m sorry.” Now she was using his pet name, wonderful. “My powers, sometimes I just use them when I’m not supposed to. I-I just see that it’s the easy way and I just do it, I’m sorry.” Wait, what? This wasn’t the first occasion? There were others? He had to get to the bottom of this before he could walk away from the conversation.

“Cadance…” The question buzzed around his head a few dozen times before he let it out. It was something that was either going to make or break not just this conversation, but possibly their relationship as a whole. “You never...you never used your magic on me, right?”

Silence.

“Cadance?”

“I-I’m sorry Shiny.”

His heart sank and broke at the same time. It was as if his entire chest had hit the ground, and it was not going to stop descending any time soon. This was a betrayal of the highest caliber, the betrayal of love.

“How many times?” Now he was doing his best to hold back the flood of emotions that wanted out.He was not going to break down in public, no sir. He was stronger than that, he was a royal guard for Celestia’s sake!

“A-a couple...during some of our bigger arguments. I just-I just thought that if I could remind you how much you love me that you would forgive me.” Cadance had to see his eyes get wide, because she tried to reach out to him. “Shining, I never meant anything by it.”

It all made sense now, every big argument where he caved. Every moment when his frustration was overcome with love or desire. It wasn’t just because Cadance was his true love, it was because he had been manipulated.

“I-I think it’s best if we take some time apart.” The words hit them both like a wrecking ball. Even he wasn’t expecting them to fall out of his mouth. The even more shocking thing was that he meant them with every fiber of his being.

Tonight

“Remember tonight... for it is the beginning of always.”

- Dante Alighieri

Vinyl stumbled back to the record shop in a state of shock. There was a sense of betrayal that coursed through her head. Vinyl’s mind was yelling at her that this whole thing had been a ruse, everything. Part of her wanted to be convinced that Shining Armor and Cadance had been manipulating her from the get-go. The look in Shining’s eyes, though. It shot down that idea.

The worst part was Intrepid. Vinyl had felt such a real connection with the stallion, or at least what she assumed was real. That was all a sham, though. An illusion put up by a jealous marefriend who just wanted Vinyl out of the picture.

Vinyl had an anger boiling deep within her. It was justified and it was starting to burn her up. She had put up with a guard meddling in her personal life, but now she had to deal with royalty messing with her love life? No. That wasn’t going to fly.

The unicorn threw the door to the record shop open. As she expected, Uncle B was standing behind the counter. His ever-present cigar casting a glow across his face. It illuminated the scowl across his face perfectly.

“You’re late, Scratchy.” The older unicorn took the cigar out of his mouth and tapped it on the nearby ashtray. “I thought I told ya, one hour.” Now she had to deal with this as well, great.

“Can you stay off of my case for like five minutes? I just started having a really bad day.” Vinyl moved her way across the shop and took her place behind the counter.

“Ya know what? No.” Vinyl didn’t look at him, but she saw Uncle B’s scowl deepen. “I’ve been stayin’ off yer case for seven bucking years, and I’m done.” Vinyl shook her head and kept looking at the grain of the counter. “For seven years I’ve let ya do whatever ya wanted, and look where that’s got ya.”

“What?” Vinyl stood up fully and turned to her uncle. “I think I’m doing pretty alright. I have an apartment, I have friends.” The stallion laughed at her. It was bitter and demeaning. The tone alone made Vinyl feel small.

“Ya only have that apartment because I pay for it, Scratchy. Ya think yer doin’ alright? Nah, not with that guard followin’ ya around. Ya think that’s alright?” Uncle B raised a hoof and pushed it into her chest. “I thought that guard was the wake up call ya needed, but I guess ya need one from me too.”

“That guard?” Vinyl removed her glasses from her face so she could stare down Uncle B face to face. She leveled the same glare he had right back at him. “That guard is nothing, alright? He’s here until I can convince him he isn’t needed anymore and that’s it.” She wanted to turn around and walk away, but she stopped herself halfway into the action. “Today, he just made it pretty damn clear that he isn’t needed.”

“Listen, Scratchy-” Vinyl put her hoof up, stopping the stallion mid-sentence.

“-Quit calling me that. It’s not my name.”

“Fine. Vinyl. I don’t give a flyin’ feather what happened today. I don’t care what ya think ya need, cuz I know exactly what you need.” Vinyl was going to give him a venomous response, but he started back before she could retort. “Ya need to accept some responsibility for yer own actions. Everythin’ ya do, ya think it’s somepony else’s fault when it goes wrong.”

“You don’t know what I’ve been through!” Vinyl screamed at her Uncle. “I’ve been alone since mom and dad died, alright!” Vinyl felt hot tears streaming down her cheeks. Today her emotions were boiling over into a tumultuous maelstrom, and she had to relieve the pressure somehow.

“Because ya pushed Glory away!” Uncle B roared back, genuine anger in his voice. “They were her parents too, Vinyl. She was just as broken as you were,and when she made a mistake ya left her! The one time ya needed to stay with somepony, and ya throw her out and leave yerself alone” Uncle B took a deep breath and stuffed the cigar that was in his mouth, which was but a stub now, into the ashtray. “It’s all my fault…I shoulda been there for ya. I shoulda made ya talk to Glory, shoulda done a lot of things. But I thought it best to give ya time to grieve.”

“What Glory did was wrong!” Vinyl had been pushing this for so long, that the words were becoming heavy. Every time she had to yell it at someone, Shining, Cadance, herself...every time it took a bit more effort.

“She was young, Vinyl. My parents, your grandparents, did the same thing. Ya know they gave me up for adoption because they were young and stupid. For a long time, I hated ‘em for it. I hated ‘em almost as much as you hate Glory for it.” His hoof found it’s way to her shoulder. “I know yer pain better than anypony else in this city, alright? Ya lost yer mom and dad, I lost my Brother and Sister-In-Law. Ya saw Glory give up her foal, I saw another me bein’ made.” A moment of silence followed, one that was filled to the brim with sadness from both parties. “So ya can quit acting like yer the only one who was affected. I’m sick of it.”

Vinyl dropped her head. She had never given a thought to Uncle B and how losing her dad had affected him. Uncle B had been so quiet when it came to Vinyl’s parents. He had showed up to their funeral, but she saw no tears. Vinyl had never seen that stallion cry, and it occurred to her that there was probably a reason for that. He wanted to seem strong for her and Glory.

“I…can I leave?” Vinyl didn’t want to be here at the moment. She wanted to be home with a bottle nearby to drown her sorrows.

“Ya can leave when yer shift’s over.” Uncle B turned tail and went back to his office, leaving Vinyl alone again.

Celestia was having a pretty good day, all things considered. Court had gone rather well, the nobles seemed content for once, and there had been no emergencies today. A relatively normal day if there ever was one for Princess Celestia.

Now she supposed would be a good time to have a study session with her pupil. The more free time she had to give to young Twilight, there was less of a chance for her to end up like Celestia’s last pupil. If there was one thing Celestia would try with all her might, it was preventing another Sunset Shimmer.

But what to study today was the question? Perhaps some more of Starswirl’s scrolls? Twilight did always like the old unicorn’s lessons. She seemed to have a bit of a fascination with him, which was fine with Celestia. If her dreams were correct, Twilight would need to study as much Starswirl as possible to prepare for the future.

Lost in her thoughts, Celestia almost didn’t catch the faint sound coming from one of the doors she was passing. It was crying, very faint and pitiful. Even worse, it was coming from Cadance’s door.

“How long has she been crying?” Celestia addressed the guard that stood beside the door. She didn’t like to admit it, but there was a reason why a guard was always posted outside of certain doors. Celestia liked to have her little birds to talk to.

“About half an hour.” The guard answered. “When she ran in, she was saying something about Shining Armor, Your Majesty.” Oh dear. Crying, plus a stallion. This could only mean one, very ugly thing.

“Stahlhelm.” Celestia addressed the guard calmly and quietly. “I need you to go down to the kitchen and get the two biggest bowls we have.” The guard nodded. “Fill them with ice cream, and bring them back here. Leave them at the door and knock. Do not, under any circumstances, come in.” The guard nodded and scurried off, leaving Celestia alone before the door. She was going to knock, but it was her castle. Plus she didn’t want to give Cadance any time to prepare. So, the monarch simply pushed the door open.

“I told you not to come in!” The angry cry was sent Celestia’s way, along with an oversized pillow. Celestia caught the pillow easily and tossed it aside. “O-oh, I-I’m sorry Aunt Tia...I thought you were Stahlhelm.”

Cadance did not look good. Her mane was ragged and stuck to her face in some places, her eyes were red and swollen from crying, and...well, crying looked good on nopony. As Celestia made her way over to the younger alicorn, she took stock of the room. Cadance’s royal vestments were strewn across the floor, along with the sheets from her bed. Celestia could not spot her crown though, which was a worrying sign. The royal jewelers did not like it when a crown was lost, she knew that personally.

“What’s happened, Cadance?” Celestia sat on the bed beside the pink princess. She spoke softly, with the warmth that she had heard from her own mother in youth.

“I-I messed up.” Cadance sniffled out, using a hoof to wipe the tears out of her eyes. “I-I tried so hard to help and I just hurt them even more.” It was one of those. Celestia knew that well enough. It was a trap that those with power tended to end up in, using their power to further what they saw as a noble cause and paying for it.

“It’s alright, sweetie.” Celestia stretched out one of her wings and pulled Cadance close. “Just talk to me, tell me what’s happened.” The young pony rested her head against Celestia’s chest, sniffling quietly.

“I-I misused my powers…” The younger alicorn blubbered out. Celestia knew that this moment was coming, it happened to everypony with the amount of power that the alicorns possessed. “I used them on Shining Armor.” Oh dear. Celestia was not expecting that.

“How…” Celestia was trying to find a way to phrase this question without upsetting Cadance further. “What exactly…” No, that wouldn’t do either. “Why?” Probably the best one so far. Simple and able to be interpreted in a multitude of ways. Not perfect, but it was a start.

“I-I just hated it when we argued. I thought that if I could just remind him how much we love each other…” Cadance trailed off, more tears starting to fall from her eyes. “I never meant to hurt him…”

Now it was Celestia’s turn to go full mentor. It was something she had not done in a while, and hoped she was still good at it. On the bright side, it would be good practice for when Twilight eventually stumbled and needed kind words.

“We never do.” Celestia started, nuzzling the smaller alicorn. “We can try all we want to be gentle, to not hurt others, but we do. It’s not an alicorn problem, it’s a pony problem. We do our best, or at least what we think is best, and we hurt those that mean the most to us.” Celestia gazed wistfully towards the ceiling, memories overtaking her. “It lets us know that at least we’re still equine.”

“B-but we’re princesses…”

“That just means we’re under more scrutiny, not that we’re perfect. It means we must put up a front of perfection, not actually practice it.” Celestia pushed away certain thoughts that were slowly encroaching on her mind, those that wanted to remind her of imperfections and blemishes upon herself. “We…we must be crafty with our failures. We must not let them consume us. We have to rise above them, accept them gracefully, and move on.”

“Y-you think I should move on from Shining Armor?” Celestia saw the grief on Cadance’s face and immediately realized she screwed up. It was the wrong choice of words for the time. The monarch had just been too caught up in her own experiences to tailor the conversation.

“No.” She started, a small smile crossing her face. “I think you need to accept that it was a mistake...and then ask for forgiveness.” Celestia knew that asking wasn’t the hard part, it was accepting the answer from those you were asking. It was in their hooves where your happiness and your guilt were. “If you hurt somepony, no matter how you’ve done it, they deserve an apology in the least.”

The pink pony sat for a minute, sniffling and quietly thinking to herself. Celestia was not going to push her, this had to be thought about on Cadance’s own time. This kind of thing required patience.

“B-but what about Vinyl?” Celestia wondered what Vinyl Scratch had to do with this. Yes, she was under the care of Shining Armor but she should not be affected by this. “She’s so upset, and I don’t think she’ll ever forgive me…”

“What happened with Vinyl Scratch?” It was possible that the unicorn had just been upset with Cadance’s deception of Shining Armor as well. If that was the case, then it was at least a good thing for Vinyl’s rehabilitation. It meant Vinyl had some sort of kinship with the guard.

“I-I was using my magic to push her and another pony together.” Cadance lowered her head once more, a deep sham overtaking her words.

“And…?” Celestia asked.

“A-and it was wrong of me. I shouldn’t have been interfering.” Cadance took her head off of Celestia’s chest. “I-I thought you would be upset with me…”

“For doing your job?” Celestia chuckled and gave her little pony a soft smile. “Would you be mad at me if I told you I raised the sun this morning?” Cadance shook her head. “Of course not, it’s my duty. Just as it is yours to spread love to ponies who need it most, and Vinyl Scratch is certainly one of those ponies.”

“She was so mad with me though. She wouldn’t even speak to me…” Celestia sighed. The younger alicorn was going to have to learn this lesson one way or the other. It was best for Celestia to teach it to her.

“Ponies...ponies like to think that they control their world, Cadance. They like to think that nothing anypony else does can affect their lives. Call it hubris or willful ignorance.” Celestia waved at the thought. “It’s false. There will always be another pony pulling at the strings...and most likely it will be one of us. It is so hard for ponies to accept the truth when they find out that they tend to lash out. The best we can do is not be found out.” Celestia smiled. “I was once told that ‘you know you’re doing a good job when nopony thinks you’re doing anything at all.”

“But what if you do it for the wrong reasons…?” Cadance’s eyes seemed to glaze over with an inexorable sadness. Even the young alicorn’s mere presence seemed to dim. “What if I did it because I was jealous…?”

“Hmm…” Celestia was capable of taking things in stride. Very capable. This revelation, no matter how shocking it was, she couldn’t show it bothered her. It might upset Cadance even further. “We are not perfect, Cadance. A travesty to learn, I know. At the end of the day, you and I, we’re still ponies. We do pony things like give into vices and do things against our better judgement. I think it’s best to know that and learn to forgive yourself, then seek forgiveness from those you’ve wronged.”

“So I should go ask them both to forgive me…?” Cadance asked. There was a knock at the door, causing the pink princess to get up. Celestia gently pushed her back down with a wing.

“Perhaps not tonight. For right now, why don’t we enjoy some nice ice cream together?” Celestia smiled and got up to fetch their delicious dessert. “Perhaps I’ll tell you of some of my failed relationships. Trust me, this is nothing compared to almost burning the planet after a breakup.”

Vinyl kicked her front door open as gently as her boiling temper would allow her, which was to say not gently at all. It wasn’t her fault that the door was in between her and where she wanted to be. It should’ve moved out of her way.

The first thing she noticed in the apartment was her personal guard, Shining Armor, sitting on the couch and staring intently at a small bottle of alcohol on the table in front of him. Vinyl was going to admonish him for drinking without her, but then she noticed that the bottle itself was full and unopened.

“You’re home late…” The guard commented in a very dead tone. His eyes were glazed over as they were still fixed on the bottle in front of him.

“Yeah. Uncle B made me stay late to sweep the entire store and organize his office…” Vinyl responded with no small amount of venom in her words. There was no more sun streaming in through the windows, instead it was replaced by the pale moonlight. Cleaning that place had taken up her entire night. “What’s up with you?”

“Been thinking whether or not I should open this for awhile.” Vinyl took a seat on the couch next to Twinkle. “I’m technically on duty still, so I shouldn’t drink.” Vinyl was impressed at the amount of restraint the guard was showing. If it was her, that bottle would probably be gone by now.

“What, you want to drink out of sadness for me, Twinkle? I’m touched.” Vinyl picked the bottle up in her magic, looking over the various labels that obscured the dark liquor within. It was whiskey, the top shelf stuff but in a rather small bottle. It probably cost him a pretty bit nonetheless.

“Turns out you and Intrepid weren’t the only ones Cadance was using her magic on.” That pulled Vinyl from the bottle’s details. “Apparently she’s been using it during our arguments...y’know, to remind me of how much I love her.” Vinyl just realized not how dead Shining sounded, but how sad. There was true sorrow in his voice, the kind that wouldn’t go away with any of her usual sarcasm or wit.

“You know what, Twinkle?” Vinyl concentrated on one of the cupboards in the kitchen that she could see. She opened it with her magic and pulled out two shot glasses. “Right now I don’t think a guard needs to share a drink with me.” Vinyl brought the two glasses over to the table and gently sat them down. “I think my friend needs to share a drink with me.”

As she opened the bottle of whiskey, she realized that it was the first time she had actually called Twinkle her friend. Then again, she was just trying to be nice. She had the distinct feeling that Shining needed somepony to be nice to him at the moment.

“Thanks, Scratch.” Shining said with a small smile. After she had finished pouring their shots, he took one of them in his own magic and then held it out towards her. Taking the cue, Vinyl clinked her glass against his. “Prost”

“Cheers.”

They both slammed their shots back at the same time. Vinyl closed her eyes as the liquid hit the back of her throat, sending a slight burning sensation throughout her entire mouth. It was so refreshing to her. Apparently not to Shining, though, as he was currently coughing up a lung and trying keep the tears from coming from his eyes.

“Are you a lightweight, Twinkle?” Vinyl said with a laugh as she took off her tinted glasses and sat the glass down on the table. “Oh man, I thought you guards were made of some tougher stuff.”

“Sh-shut up, Scratch,” Twinkle said, coughing just a few more times before stopping. “That stuff is a lot stronger than I’m used to.” The guard took a deep breath and picked up the bottle in his magic, studying it intently.

“Oh, I’m sorry Princess. Would you like something a bit easier?” A cruel smile played across her features. Now it was time to have a little fun. “A Mimosa, perhaps? Sex On The Beach?”

“Shut up, Scratch. I could drink you under the table if I wanted to. I just wasn’t expecting that strong of a drink.” To Vinyl, that sounded like an excuse. But it also sounded like he thought he was a better drinker than Vinyl. Nopony was a better drinker than Vinyl.

“Oh? Is that a threat or a promise, Twinkle?” Vinyl poured two more shots, holding up one to her new drinking buddy. He took it from her magical grasp, a little fire in his eyes.

“Both.”

--One bottle of whiskey later--

Shining was trying to focus on Vinyl as she poured the last of the alcohol into the shot glasses, but his eyes wouldn’t let him. The similarly colored unicorn was gently swaying back in forth in his eyes. He wasn’t sure if that was just because he was drunk, or if it was because they both were.

“Last ones…” Vinyl said sluggishly as she held out a glass to him. He took it, his magic grip nearly faltering for a second. Vinyl gave him a devilish smirk because of it, but he wasn’t going to let her have this victory. No sir.

They had stopped saying cheers Celestia knows how many shots ago, so without another word they both slammed back their drinks. Shining was used to the burning by now, so it went down smooth and warm. Every shot he could feel it affecting him less and less, so he knew he was far past drunk at this point. Drunk was something he wished he was.

“Told you...told you I could keep up,” he said, stumbling over his words. That’s what this little game had turned into about halfway through. Not him drinking her under the table, but him trying to keep up. It was obvious that Vinyl could hold her liquor much better than he could. At least she was maybe drunk.

“Can’t beat me, though.” That sly grin came back. It was really starting to piss Shining off. It was always there on her smug face when she had the upper hoof. Which had been the entire night at this point. “But you gave it your best shot, Twinkle.”

“Yeah, thanks,” Shining grumbled out. The stallion closed his eyes, focusing on nothing in particular. That’s when he realized just how tired he was. The entire day had been kind of emotionally draining to a severe degree. He hadn’t been able to slow down enough to feel it until now, though. “I really need to go to bed,” was his final conclusion.

“Yeah, I got work in the morning.” Vinyl stood up, wavering on her hooves slightly, but ultimately staying upright. “Might as well try to get a little sleep.” She started to move away from the couch.

Shining stood up, intending to follow her. However, his balance had some other ideas. The stallion didn’t just waver on his hooves, he started to fall over. He never fell over, though. Before he could capsize, Vinyl was standing at his side, placing herself firmly against his side.

“Y’allright?” she managed to get out, seemingly supporting the much larger stallion without too much difficulty. “Last thing we need is you getting hurt. They’ll probably blame it on me.”

Shining righted himself, still leaning a little on his companion. He blinked a few times and tried to compose himself as best he could. He hadn’t actually been this smashed since he graduated from guard school, and he didn’t remember a damn thing about that night.

“Yeah, I just….sorry. Guess I’m a little more drunk than I thought…”

“It’s alright, Twinkle. I’ll escort you to bed. Least I could do after drinking you under the table.” For what it was worth, Vinyl was being as non-Vinyl as possible at the moment. Sure the grin was pretty much omnipresent at the moment, but there were no sharp quips at his expense. It was a welcome change of pace.

Slowly, the duo made their way to the spare bedroom that Shining was now using as his room. When he had first suggested the idea to Vinyl yesterday, she had been against it. But he had convinced her to let him stay in her parents’ old room as long as he didn’t mess with anything.

They staggered through the doorway and neared the bed. At this point he was close enough to flop onto the bed on his stomach. He groaned happily into the soft comforter, allowing himself a brief respite. Another form flopped beside him. He lifted his head to see Vinyl laying on her back next to him.

“Ignore me, Twinkle. I don’t think I can make it to my room.” The unicorn started to laugh. “Y-you were helping me just as much as I was helping you.” She rolled over onto her side to face him. He wasn’t going to fight her on that. If she couldn’t walk safely, then he wasn’t going to make her leave.

“Y’know, you’ve been really nice to me tonight, what’s up with that?” The malfunctioning filter between his mind and mouth let that slip through. He momentarily regretted that, before deciding there was nothing he could do to stop it now.

“Nopony with a broken heart should be alone, Twinkle. Not even you.” It seemed that Vinyl’s filter wasn’t working either, because she would never say that. “Plus, I needed a drink or a dozen just as much as you.” Fair enough.

“What’s...what’s your opinion on this whole Cadance thing?” During their drinking session, he had explained to Vinyl the entire situation. Every feeling of betrayal and hurt, and what he had said to her.

“Buck her. She hurt you, man.” Vinyl sighed and rolled back onto her back. “If a pony does something like that, you can’t forgive ‘em. You just can’t.” There was a slight pause of thought, or was it sadness? “You can’t let ponies get away with that stuff. You gotta let ‘em know it’s not okay. You have to send a message, Twinkle.”

He should’ve expected that from Vinyl. It’s exactly what she had done with Glory. It had left them both estranged and Vinyl brooding with anger. But was that so bad? It let Vinyl live a bit more, left her a bit harder to get to. Made it so she didn’t get hurt as easily. Shining didn’t like this feeling, this empty-heartedness. So if doing what Vinyl was talking about made it so he wouldn’t feel it again, would it be so bad?

“Hey Twinkle…?” He was snapped out of his thoughts by Vinyl, who was now facing him once again. She was looking at him in a way he had never seen before, a mix of a kind smile and soft eyes.

Before he could respond, he felt a pair of soft lips pressed against his own. Alcohol soaked breath mingled between the two. Vinyl was kissing him...and he wasn’t mad. He wasn’t surprised….he actually kind of liked it.

Author's Note

TO BE CONTINUED

HOO BOY!

I LOVE THE SMELL OF DIVERGING PATHS IN THE MORNING!

In all seriousness, though. I have two ways this can go from here on out, and I don't know which one I like more. Boy, I hope I find out soon.

New Things

“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”

-Walt Disney

Waking up was a very gradual process for Vinyl, and today was no different. Her mind first drifted back to the waking world, trying to adjust to the morning light attempting to get through her closed eyes. She took a deep breath and attempted to stretch out, but found her hooves were pinned to her sides.

That’s when her sleep-addled mind finally decoded an odd feeling that she had been ignoring. There was a very warm solid object behind her. At first she dismissed it as some random one-nighter she had picked up, but then she remembered the only place she had been last night was at work then home.

“Oh no…” The realization hit her like a ton of bricks. Vinyl opened her eyes and rolled over to look at the pony behind her. It was Twinkle, who was sleeping with a smile on his face. This was not good, not good at all. She had already said last week she wasn’t going to do this! She wasn’t a homewrecker!

But she wasn’t going to wreck a home, not anymore. Twinkle had told her last night that there was no more home to wreck. So...was it a bad thing? Vinyl didn’t know, yet. First she had to figure out if they had actually done anything lascivious last night.

Judging by the rather...lengthy pressure on her stomach, she decided that she would still be feeling it if they had. Plus a cursory glance revealed no mess. No stray bodily fluids or sweat soaked sheets, so no problem right? Right.

Well okay, one problem. How was she supposed to get Twinkle to stop spooning her long enough to get up? First she tried to wiggle out of his grasp, but that only made the stallion pull her closer to his chest. Vinyl didn’t mind cuddlers, but she did not appreciate aggressive cuddlers.

On the other hoof, was this such a bad thing? He was warm and soft. Vinyl closed her eyes and let her head rest on his chest. Beneath the wall of muscles, she could hear the rhythmic beating of his heart. It was nice and soothing, like a song she hadn’t heard in a long time.

So, Vinyl decided that staying here for a bit longer wouldn’t be a terrible thing. Her alarm hadn’t gone off in her room yet, so that meant she hadn’t overslept. What was the harm in staying in bed with Twinkle just a bit longer? None, as far as she could see. So she obliged his cuddling and let herself stay close to the warm body next to her.

Vinyl didn’t know how much time passed before she felt the first movements from Twinkle, but the sun had already moved a bit further into the sky. He shifted in his sleep first, a groan accompanying his movements. Vinyl was trying to get out of Shining’s gasp, but as he moved she was caught in his hooves. The stallion rolled onto his back, pulling Vinyl onto his stomach.

“Morning…” Twinkle said quietly into her ear. Vinyl supposed he didn’t know who he was talking to, as his eyes were still firmly closed. So this was going to be fun.

“Morning, Twinkle,” Vinyl said with a sly grin across her face. Shining’s cobalt eyes shot open and looked at Vinyl with shock for a solid ten seconds. “Sleep well?” The stallion did not reply, he just kept trying to work his mouth. “I know I did.” Vinyl was not helping. She was going to pile this on as much as she could. It was priceless.

“I-I-I…umm…” Words finally came out of Shining’s mouth. “Oh no…” Vinyl saw the gears in his head turning and the blush creeping up his face. “We...we didn’t…?”

“Nah. You’re safe, Twinkle.” Vinyl was finally allowed to move, so she rolled off of the stallion and laid next to him. “No baby mama for you, I’m afraid.” A deep, relieved sigh came from Shining. “Aww, don’t sound so disappointed.”

“I just…” Shining’s hooves went to his temples and he rubbed them in circular motions. “That would be very bad.” Deep down, that hurt Vinyl a little. Bad? She’d never heard that one before. “Ugh, my head…sweet Celestia.”

“Got a hangover, Twinkle?” Vinyl’s head was hurting a little too, but long nights around really loud music and strong drinks had steeled her nerves. She would bounce back with a cup of coffee and a few pills. Hopefully Twinkle was just as resilient.

“Shut up, Scratch.” Shining rolled over and got out of bed. Vinyl wasn’t going to budge, though. Not until her alarm went off. She saw Twinkle’s horn light up, but couldn’t see if he was lifting anything with his magic. He closed his eyes for a second and then stuck out his tongue, nearly gagging on something. “Hangover spell…” he clarified. “Purges all of that stuff from your system.”

“Neat trick, Twinkle. Know one to get our memories back from last night?” Vinyl remembered bits and pieces after a certain point. She never remembered going to bed with the guard, but she remembered what he had told her. That was the important part. She remembered everything about Cadance.

“No.” Shining frowned, as if he was disappointed in himself for not knowing one. “You need the hangover spell, Scratch?” She just shook her head, she would deal with hers the classic way. “Suit yourself.” Shining shrugged and took off towards the door.

“Hey Shining…” It just slipped out. She couldn’t stop herself from talking at the moment. It felt like she needed to get this out. The guard stopped and looked at her, a hint of sadness in his eyes. “Can we talk about this?” She motioned to the bed. “I mean, it’s not every day I wake up next to a guard.” Humor, she hoped, would diffuse the situation a little bit.

“No.” That was all he said before he went out of the room. Vinyl sighed and let her head hit the pillows. Why in the hell was this bothering her so much? She’d had one-night stands before, and none of them had particularly bothered her when they left in the morning. But this wasn’t a one-night stand, she had to remind herself. This was just her sleeping casually with a friend. No sex. Just being close. So why was it bothering her?!

Giving up on the conundrum, she sighed again and put her hooves on her head. She would figure out all of that nonsense later. For now she needed to focus on what was important: which she didn’t even know what it was. Was it improving her relationship with Uncle B? Trying to forgive Glory? Getting a better job? What was it?

Vinyl grumbled some choice curse words and got out of bed. She would just go on with her day like always, with a sharp wit and unstoppable energy. She wasn’t going to let what happened last night or yesterday affect that.

She went into her own room and stopped the alarm before it had a chance to ring, and then went out into the main room. She put on a fresh pot of coffee and got out a few pills to relieve her headache. Shining, she figured out, was taking a shower. She had put her ear against the door to see if she could hear something, but she only heard faint mumblings from the guard. Nothing discernible or worthy of note.

Once the coffee was done brewing, she added a generous amount of sugar and cream to the mix and used the concoction to down her pills. It would take them a while to kick in, but it would be worth it in the end. When that was done, she sat on the couch and waited for Twinkle to come out of the shower.

“I really needed that.” Shining sighed as he exited the bathroom, a towel around his waist. He headed straight for the coffee pot and poured himself a mug. Vinyl never let her eyes off of the stallion as he took the towel off from around his hindquarters and threw it on the back of the couch.

“So…” Vinyl didn’t know what she was saying, but she felt as though something needed to be said. “Uh...good morning. I guess.” Hopefully they could dance around any awkward subject without pissing each other off. Hopefully.

“Good morning.” Shining looked dead ahead, sipping his coffee nonchalantly.

This was bothering Vinyl to an unhealthy degree. By all means it shouldn’t be, but it was and she couldn’t figure out why. Last night was, if anything, a mistake that they both had made. A mistake that lead to nothing major, so why was it bothering them both? If she could just get into Twinkle’s head for just a minute to figure it out.

“AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!” That was the summation of every single thought racing through Shining’s head at the moment. He had to completely shut down in order to process everything that had been presented to him. It might not be fair to Vinyl to be presented with the ‘tough guard’ persona, but he really needed to think about what happened.

He had woken up with Vinyl Scratch, like in the same bed. He had been cuddling her all night! He had committed one doozy of a rules violation, and it was really freaking him out! The last thing he needed was for Galea to find out about this and take him off of the case permanently.

Then there was the whole thing of Vinyl being really nice to hold, that he didn’t even want to think about at the moment. Or the whole thing about how he felt really guilty about cheating on Cadance, even though he had declared a break yesterday. It was all a lot to process, and he was not used to dealing with stuff like this!

“Twinkle? You in there?” He was snapped out of his blind panic by Vinyl, who was waving a hoof in his face. He shook his head and looked at her questioningly. “I’m gonna head to work now, alright? Tag along if you want.”

He gave it a thought. Going to work with Vinyl could lead to some awkward moments. He would much rather stay at home and try to think things through. The problem being he wasn’t the type to be able to think clearly about his own problems. He could help others, but he was utterly and uniquely useless when it came to his own problems.

Then it hit him. Uncle B could help. The older stallion seemed to be world-wise, and he seemed like one of those ponies that could give advice. It was also better than going to his own parents for advice. They would most likely admonish him for breaking up with Cadance and try to get him to reconcile. No, he needed an unbiased third party and Uncle B would be exactly that.

“Wait up, I’ll come.” Shining downed the rest of his coffee in one go and put the mug on the table. As he followed the mare out of the apartment, he used his magic to get his armor and put it on. He really needed to appear professional today in case any more of Galea’s nonsense was thrown his way. He couldn’t let anything slip.

The walk to the record store was abnormally quiet and uneventful. No quips or witty jabs were traded, no playful teasing, and no discussing of future plans. It was odd and Shining didn’t like it, but he still felt like talking would lead him into a verbal trap that he could not get out of. For now it would be for the best to distance himself as much as possible.

Once they entered the store, Vinyl found her way behind the counter and Shining walked past her. He let her know of his intentions to speak to Uncle B, and Vinyl simply nodded her head. Making his way back to the office, Shining found that the office was in a different state than yesterday. All of the loose papers were now gone, the various newspapers were disposed of, and the pictures that once hung crooked upon the walls were now dusted and straightened.

“Good morning,” Shining started out. He thought that seemed innocuous enough.

“Mornin’,” the older stallion said as he put down this morning’s newspaper. “Need somethin’?”

“Well…” Shining rubbed the back of his neck with his hoof and closed the door behind him with his magic. “You’ve...uhh...been around for a while, right?” Uncle B cocked one bushy eyebrow at Shining. “Because I could really use some advice right now.”

“Sit down, kid.” Uncle B pulled a seat out for Shining with his magic, which Shining graciously took. “I ain’t one to give out advice, but seein’ as how yer helpin’ Scratchy I can give ya a pass.” Uncle B grabbed a cigar and put it into his mouth without lighting it, he simply kept it in the corner of his mouth. “Whaddya need?”

“I-uh…” Shining was trying to figure out how to put this. The situation was rather complex, so he felt boiling it down was the best option. “I had some problems with my marefriend yesterday, and I don’t really know what to do.” He looked to Uncle B, only to see an attentive gaze. That urged him forward. “She-well she lied to me, and she has been lying to me for a long time. It, well it really upset me and I may have broken up with her. I just-I don’t know if I did the right thing.”

“Alright.” Uncle B took the cigar out of his mouth and put it on the desk. “Let me tell ya right now I divorced my wife roundabouts six years ago, so I ain’t the best stallion to be talkin’ to about mares. That bein’ said, I want ya to know yer an idiot.”

“What?”

“Yer an idiot. Ya acted without thinkin’ none, capiche? Don’t tell me ya didn’t, I know ya did. I saw it in yer eyes.” Shining opened his mouth, but then shut it again. He was going to let Uncle B talk. “We all like ta act out when we’re hurt. Trust me, there’s a livin’ breathin’ example standin’ out there at the counter. Now I ain’t gonna disparage Scratchy none, but ya gotta learn from others’ mistakes. That out there is what happens when ya stick to yer guns without thinkin’ first. It leaves ya stuck on a hill with no safe way down, and that makes ya never wanna back down.” Uncle B wedged the cigar back in his mouth. “Now, I want ya ta know ya did the right thing, askin’ fer advice. I’m proud of ya.”

Shining smiled, and a little flare of pride lit up in his chest. He was proud that he hadn’t let his emotions completely overwhelm him. It meant that he still had a little bit of situational awareness left, and that he at least knew he overreacted.

“I also want ya to know that mares are just as dumb as any stallion ya ever met. They do just as much stupid stuff based off of emotion as us, Twinkle.” Shining flinched a little at the nickname. He would’ve rather kept that as Vinyl’s name for him and nopony else’s. “Trust me, my ex went and spent her little heart out on jewelry and everything else imaginable because she wanted ta hurt me without thinkin’ about the kids. That’s the fault right there, we don’t think about nopony else other than the pony that hurt us. Ya gotta think this through real hard.” A hoof reached over the desk and poked Shining in the chest. “This is a lesson, not just for yaself, but fer Scratchy too. If yer supposed to be helpin’ her, ya can’t just go off and be irrational like her. Ya gotta show her the light. Be a role model.”

That hit Shining where it hurt. Vinyl hadn’t seen how he reacted when Cadance told him everything, but she had seen the nasty drunk aftermath. She had seen how badly it had torn him apart, and she had seen what he had done. It wasn’t going to help either of them if Vinyl just felt vindicated because he had acted the way she would’ve. He needed to be the bigger pony and rise above Vinyl.

“Thanks Uncle B, I appreciate it.” Shining was trying to set out a course in his mind. Exactly what he was going to do to make this right again. He first needed to talk to Cadance while Vinyl was there. That would not be a fun meeting, not at all. Vinyl would want to lash out at the Princess, but he couldn’t let her.

“No problem, kid.” Uncle B looked towards a box of matches that sat on the other side of the desk. “I’m gonna do my part, too. I ain’t gonna be smokin’ no more. Gotta put up a united front, right?” Shining gave Uncle B one of his winning smiles.

“Right.” Shining was glad he wasn’t the only one trying now. He actually had somepony else to stand with him, and it felt rather refreshing. “So, want to hear something else that happened yesterday?” Uncle B cocked his head to the side.

“Nothin’ stupid, I hope,” the older unicorn retorted.

“I sent a letter out to Ponyville, where Glory’s foal is living.” Uncle B’s eyes widened. “I asked her guardian if it would be okay if we visited and met with the foal.” Shining smiled and tapped his breastplate. “Sent it out by Royal Guard Express mail. So it should’ve gotten there last night, and the response should arrive later today. If he says yes, then we’re going to grab Glory tomorrow and go down there.”

“Yer actually gonna meet her?” Uncle B sat back in his seat and looked to the ceiling. “Sunuva-I still can’t believe ya actually found her. Glory told me her name...uh…” Uncle B hit the desk a few times. “Lily, right?” Shining nodded. “If ya do getta meet her, ya gotta get me a picture, alright? I mean it.” Uncle B rotated in his chair and pointed to a blank space on his portrait wall. “It’s gonna go right there.”

“Don’t worry, Uncle B. I gotcha.”

Vinyl was tempted to go eavesdrop on her Uncle and Twinkle, she really was. If she was caught though, that might just send her into worse waters with Twinkle. That was the last thing she needed at the moment.

So Vinyl decided she needed to get her mind off of Twinkle for a minute, and instead thought about Intrepid. That brought about even more negative thoughts for her, more hurt. Had she ever even liked Intrepid? She could’ve sworn there had been a spark, but now it was all muddled behind magic and impure intentions. That brought up the question of whether or not Vinyl was ever going to try and reconcile things with Intrepid.

It would mean she would have to find out where he lived first, and that she would have to get Twinkle to shove off for awhile. Both of those things would be more plausible if Cadance were around, but that ship had sailed, hadn’t it? She would have to convince the guard to leave her side of his own volition. An impossible task if there ever was one.

The sound of the bell above the door ringing caused Vinyl to look up. Immediately she wished that she had kept her head down, or better yet that the bell didn’t ring. Or even better yet, that she hadn’t come into work today. Walking towards her was the one pony she never wanted to see, especially not today. It was Parry.

He sauntered towards her, his green eyes fixated on her. That infuriating cocky grin was on his face, the one that made her want to punch his teeth out. The stallion took a hoof and ran it through his shorn golden mane.

“Vinyl! Fancy seeing you.” Parry leaned on the counter. “Come here often?” The wink that he threw her way did nothing to improve Vinyl’s mood.

“I work here,” she uttered through clenched teeth. Vinyl was honestly trying not to blow her top at the moment. She knew that it would do nothing for her situation if she were to verbally or physically attack a guard, even if it was Parry. “What do you want, Parry?” Better to get this over with sooner than later, she decided.

“Well-” An idle wing went into the saddlebag that was situated over his armor. “-I have a letter for Shining Armor. His eyes only, well and Cadance’s too apparently. You know those two, they share everything.” Vinyl was sure the eye roll and annoyed look was supposed to earn him some positive points, but she wasn’t having it. “So you know where he is?”

“Twinkle!” Vinyl shouted towards the back, not letting her eyes off of Parry. She was not going to let the pegasus out of her sight, not for anything. “A delivery boy is here for you!” Vinyl gave Parry a spiteful look with the words. He simply grinned back.

“A delivery boy, huh? Well I suppose I have a package that I could give.” Parry reached out to poke Vinyl, but she smacked his hoof away. For now she would just ignore him. Hopefully the rather forward behavior would cease once Twinkle was out here.

“Parry!” Shining said once he saw the other guard. “They have you on delivery duty today? Who’d you make mad, now?” Shining took place next to Vinyl, giving a friendly smile to the pearl pegasus across the counter.

“Turns out Interim Captain Galea does not like being complimented on her physique, if you catch my drift.” Parry put the letter on the counter. “Gonna warn you, Cadance intercepted this before I left.” Vinyl saw the smile on Shining’s face fade for maybe a split-second, but he recovered.

“Thanks, Parry. I appreciate it.” Shining took the letter and put it in one of the openings in his armor.

“Also!” The pegasus reached into his saddlebags again and pulled a few pieces of cake shrouded in cling wrap out. “You missed the poker game last night, and the missus figured you’d still like some of the cake she made.”

“You’re married?” Vinyl couldn’t help it, the words just sorta came out. She was just in such stark disbelief. Who in their right mind would marry Parry?

“Three years in a few months, yep!” Parry’s chest puffed out with pride, but his face kept the mischievous smirk. “What’s the matter, Vinyl, sad to find out I’m taken? It’s alright, there are plenty of fish in the sea.”

Vinyl was now beyond pissed. Three years? He had been arresting her for two and a half years now. That meant that everything he ever did had been while he was married. Why did Vinyl care? She didn’t know, she had no stock in that relationship. But it did nonetheless.

“Yeah, sorry about that Parry. We were a bit caught up with something last night.” Shining rubbed his neck, taking the two pieces of cake in his magic. “But next week, right?” Parry nodded. “I’ll be there, I promise.”

“Sweet.” Parry looked around, then turned back to Shining. “You hear the rumors around the castle?” Both Shining and Vinyl looked at each other and then shook their heads. An equal amount of dread filled both of their stomachs. “Well, turns out one of the Princesses came into the castle crying last night. Some ponies are saying that Celestia ordered a lot of ice cream.” parry leaned in close. “Between you, me, and Vinyl, I think another one of Celestia’s lovers passed away last night.”

“What?” Vinyl would ask the question. It was an absurd rumor, and she wasn’t sure exactly what implications that would have.

“You didn’t hear it from me, though.” Parry gave Shining a little salute and Vinyl a wink, then turned tail and started to leave. “Stay beautiful, you two.” He said as he went out of the door and into the city beyond.

“He’s not a bad pony, y’know.” Twinkle’s statement punctuated a disgusted shiver that Vinyl gave at Parry’s words. She looked at her companion with a raised eyebrow. “Oh, don’t look at me like that, Scratch. I saw the way you acted around him the last time we talked to him, so I looked into your records. He’s arrested you over a dozen times, and you’ve filed misconduct complaints on him for about half of those. I just want you to know that he’s a good guard, he’s just…” Shining obviously couldn’t find the words, so Vinyl decided she would provide them.

“Gropey?”

“Sure, let’s go with that.” Twinkle shrugged. “You’re not the only one who’s filed reports, and trust me, they haven’t gone unnoticed. Why do you think he holds the record for your arrests? ‘The Vinyl’ is a punishment.” Vinyl turned to Twinkle, her eyebrows knit together in barely held anger.

“A punishment? What kind of punishment is putting him somewhere he can just keep on doing that?!” Vinyl understood that the guards were a very hardcore ‘boy’s club’, but this was ridiculous. Where was the real punishment?

“Look, it’s either that or let him loose on the streets. I’m not going to argue with you on this, alright? I know it’ll just make both of us mad. I’m hoping that Galea will be a bit harsher than Knock Out was.” Vinyl was glad she wasn’t the only one who was seemingly upset with the situation. As long as she could trust Twinkle to be a little on her side, then it wouldn’t be so bad.

That’s when it hit her. Trust. That was it. That was the reason that last night was sticking with her so much, why she couldn’t just shrug it off like she usually would. She trusted Twinkle. Time after time he had proven that he just wanted the best for her, even if that meant he would need to give something up. Him getting mad at Cadance for what she pulled, taking her to the concert even though it was supposed to be a date for him and Cadance, even taking all the time to go through her life. It was all to help her, and she trusted him for all of it.

“You should read this, Scratch.” Twinkle nudged her, pulling Vinyl from her revelation. She saw the letter that Parry had delivered hovering in front of her. Without more prompting, she read it.

Dear Shining Armor,

Thank you for having the courtesy to send a letter and not just show up on my doorstep like I suspect others might. I appreciate that you take this matter seriously and are trying to right the wrongs of the past.

That being said, I’ve thought about this a lot myself. I’ve spent countless nights lying awake wondering what I would do if this situation ever came up, and I’m afraid I’m still torn. Against my better judgement, I’m going to bite the proverbial bullet and take you up on your offer.

Lilly deserves to know her family, her biological family, and I suppose doing it sooner is better than later. Whenever you decide to bring the mother and aunt is alright with me, I will be awaiting your arrival. Please do not make me regret this.

With Regards,

Cedar Mulch

Vinyl looked to Shining to confirm what she had just read, to make sure she had interpreted it right. The guard gave her a big smile and rested a proud hoof on her back.

“We get to go see your niece.”

Author's Note

Boy I was having trouble with this chapter. I wrote three thousand words of it on Sunday night, then didn't finish it until Friday. I am not too happy with that, but I do like the way the chapter turned out.

Letting Go

“When the sun has set, no candle can replace it.”
― George R.R. Martin

“What are we doing here, Twinkle?” Vinyl just wanted to be home right now.After a day of work, she hated going out and doing things. She just liked to relax, even if her current job wasn’t stressful.

Top it off with the fact they were walking through the Royal Guard campus on castle grounds, and it made for a very anxious time. Every time they came here it only ended poorly for Vinyl, be it running into Parry or having a meeting with Celestia. She hoped this time would be different.

“Okay, I need you to just hear me out.” Shining started, inspiring zero confidence. “Last time I sprung a visit on a family member on you, it ended with you punching Glory.”

“Not my best moment…” Vinyl admitted through slightly clenched teeth.

“I don’t want something like that to happen again, so we’re going to work on getting rid of some of that built up anger. You seem to have a habit of letting it fester, you know.” Vinyl knew that, yeah. She was the one who let it build up, she always thought that the anger and right amount of hate could fuel one’s passion. It could force somepony to do something by lighting a fire in their belly that even they couldn’t put out. It was a motivator.

“Alright. So what’s the rub?” VInyl wasn’t going to tell Twinkle about her philosophy. Celestia knows what that might stir up. For now she was going to go with whatever Twinkle had planned and hope for the best. After all, she trusted him.

“Well,” They approached a door, one that Twinkle pushed opened with his magic. Beyond was a room built entirely out of solid concrete. Vinyl could see scorch marks on the walls and floor, and deep scores along portions of the dull gray edifices. If she had to guess, it almost looked like a dungeon. Not a particularly nice one, either. “I figured we might try my way of catharsis.”

“What, beating up a concrete box?” Vinyl stepped in, apprehensively following the guard. She looked around as she walked, spotting a side room directly beside the door from whence they came. Inside the room she saw weapons of steel and wood lining the walls on racks. ALl of a sudden, a deep pit formed in her stomach. Vinyl wasn’t one for armed violence. She always figured if she couldn’t deal with a problem with her hooves, then the situation wasn’t for her.

“Beating up something, yeah.” Shining turned around, a beaming smile on his face. “Today you’re going to be beating up me!” The enthusiasm in Twinkle’s voice was a little too genuine for Vinyl’s taste. It was like he was going to enjoy it. Was that so bad? Vinyl did have a little thing for masochists…

“So what, you just expect me to bludgeon you with a cudgel until I feel better? I appreciate the thought, but I would hate to ruin such a pretty face.” Vinyl made sure to inject just the right amount of sarcasm into her words so Twinkle wouldn’t take them too seriously, just slightly serious was good enough.

“Don’t worry, we’ll both be wearing armor so we won’t get hurt. It’s all perfectly safe, and nopony’s pretty face is going to get ruined. Not even yours, Scratch.” Vinyl was caught off-guard by the statement, as it almost sounded like flirting on Twinkle’s part. Maybe Vinyl was just projecting, though. There had been at least a hint of sarcasm in there, maybe more.

“Fine. Let’s suit up, then.” Vinyl was going to go along with this for now until she found something objectionable...well, until she got tired of it at least.

Thirty minutes! That’s how long it had taken to get them both suited up in their plain silver armor, both of which were battle scarred to a worrying degree. Vinyl had always seen Twinkle put on his own armor in a flash, so this elongated process was a bit of a grueling ordeal.

“This armor is a bit different than standard guard armor. This is full plate, covers almost everything, and is enchanted with a kinetic dampening spell to take most blows.” Vinyl was going to ask what Twinkle meant by ‘most blows’ but decided that she really did not want to know. It would only make her nervous. “Only thing not covered is your stomach and rears of your legs...mainly because if an enemy can hit you there, you’re already doing it wrong.”

“That’s comforting.” Vinyl muttered as she finished tying back her mane in a ponytail, something Shining had insisted so it would be easier to manage in a helmet. Even the stallion himself had his mane held back, not that she could see it anymore. Twinkle had put on his helmet as soon as Vinyl started giving him hell about his ponytail.

“Don’t worry, we’ll take it slow and build from there.” Vinyl could practically hear the warm smile from underneath his helmet. It didn’t infuriate her like it would’ve at one point, in fact is was rather calming.

“Right…” Vinyl said with a heavy breath as she donned her own helm. The first thing she noticed was her own warm breath being splashed back into her face even despite the little vents in front of her mouth. It was uncomfortable and stifling. Not to mention that her vision was extremely limited through the two little eyeholes.

“Take this.” Twinkle held a sword out in his magic, one that Vinyl took in her own hesitantly. She brought it close and studied the steel. It was dull and chipped in places, maybe not good for cutting or real fighting, but for practice it was perfect. “Now hit me.”

“What?” Vinyl shook her head and looked at the armored Twinkle.

“You heard me, hit me.” Shining took his own sword and tapped it against his breastplate. “Take a swing, Scratch.”

Vinyl sucked in a breath and raised the sword above her head. Her heart was pounding with nerves and her knees felt weak. Holding what was considered a deadly weapon and swinging it at somepony she considered a friend was a very different and unwelcome experience. It made a lump rise in her throat, one that she just couldn’t swallow no matter how hard she tried.

“I-I can’t…” Vinyl lowered the sword and her head along with it. “It just doesn’t feel right!” She felt bad for not swinging, ironically. She knew that Shining expected her to do it, but she just couldn’t swing at him.

“It’s alright, I get it-” Oh thank Celestia. He was just as understanding as always. “-you’re a coward.” Wait, what? “I thought maybe you would have the stones to actually try something new and have a little fun, but I guess not.”

Vinyl’s quick temper took hold faster than she would like to admit, and in a fit of blind rage, she raised the sword and swung it at the stallion. Nopony called her a coward! She would show him just how much of a coward she wasn’t!

Her first swing was deflected easily by Shining’s own sword. She raised the sword again and brought it down, only for it to be caught by the flat of Twinkle’s blade and pushed aside. She decided this time to go with a jab instead of a swing, which was again deflected easily by Twinkle. As she was recovering, Shining lashed out and hit Vinyl’s helmet with the flat of his blade.

The hit rattled Vinyl, sending her stumbling backwards. The ringing in her ears was slight, surely not as bad as it would have been without the kinetic dampener spell. She put a metal-coated hoof to her head to try and help the staggering pain.

“What the hell, Twinkle? That really hurt!” Vinyl glared at the guard through the holes in her helmet. Twinkle lowered his guard and stepped towards her, holding out a hoof in a helping gesture. In a split-second, Vinyl lashed out with her sword and hit Twinkle across the face like he had done to her. “Ha! You fell for it! Oh my Celestia, I can’t believe you fell for it!” She heard Twinkle let out a little chuckle, surprisingly. Vinyl assumed that he was going to be furious for the cheap shot.

“Got a feel for it now?” Shining twirled the sword in his magical grip and cracked his neck. Vinyl nodded and tried to mimic Shining’s twirl, albeit clumsily. “Good, now let’s get down to business.”

Cadance looked down the contrasting hallway she stood in. The white marble walls seemed to stretch for miles above the pitch black floor. It made her feel so small and...almost helpless. Like a little filly below an endless starless night sky.

“Hello?” Cadance looked down the hall towards the voice. At the very end of the corridor she saw a muted gray bat pony trotting towards her, both of it’s wings were outstretched and delicately touching whatever surface they came across.

“Oh, hello. I’m sorry to intrude, but I’m actually looking for somepony.” Cadance smiled her best royal smile and trotted towards the bat pony. It wasn’t often she interacted with the nocturnal denizens of Canterlot, so this was going to be a treat.

“I’m afraid most of our staff and students are attending a….ceremony today so it’s just me here today.” As the batpony got closer, Cadance made out something very interesting about her visage. Her eyes were a glossy gray color and each step was calculated and careful. This batpony was blind. “I can direct you to one of them if you really need them, though.”

“Well…” Cadance wasn’t sure how to broach the subject at hoof, seeing as how it might not even be applicable to the situation. “...I’m looking for Intrepid. I’m afraid I don’t even know if he’s here, I’m just hoping he is.” The hesitation and stature change on behalf of the batpony did not bode well for Cadance. She knew how to read ponies, and this particular one was getting very defensive before even speaking.

“You’re Princess Cadance, aren’t you?” That question was a lot more hostile than Cadance anticipated. It occurred to the Princess that if Intrepid was here, or had been here at some point within the last twenty-four hours he would’ve told somepony about what happened. Now it seemed Cadance was face-to-face with the pony he told.

“Yes, I am.” Cadance responded with a level, and very publically acceptable tone. “Is something the matter?” Better to feign ignorance than admit to her wrongdoing. Hopefully her gambit would pay off and she wouldn’t be dragged into a verbal confrontation with this batpony.

“No…” The batpony seemed to bite back some choice words instead of letting them slip. “You’ll have to forgive me, I can’t exactly see who I’m talking to. I almost didn’t recognize your voice.” Cadance was trained to spot lies, it was something she had learned alongside Celestia for matters of foreign diplomacy. Being able to call a bluff was something you needed to be able to do during tense moments. So now Echo was feigning her own ignorance, but was it to hide information she knew or to mask feelings?

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize.” Cadance strode towards the batpony. “But would you mind pointing me towards Intrepid?” No matter what emotions raged through the batpony, Cadance knew that nopony would ever say no to a Princess. For most, it simply wasn’t in their blood. Cadance hoped that Echo was no different. “I have something very important to discuss with him.”

“He’s in the The Gauntlet.” The batpony said, her voice low. Cadance nodded, momentarily forgetting that the pony she was conversing with was blind. But quite frankly, she needed to speak to Intrepid before doing anything else. Including apologizing to Echo.

Now Cadance had been in the HMEF Headquarters before. Both she and Celestia were invited every year to watch the graduation ceremony, and even sometimes the final tests. So it went without saying that Cadance knew where The Gauntlet was.

The Gauntlet itself was a triumph of architecture and planning. Striding past Echo and into the chamber that held it reminded her why. It was a cylindrical shaft that ran from the very top of the building, all the way into the caves deep beneath Canterlot. Each layer of the massive chute featured different terrain, a different challenge for trainees to take on in their quest to become explorers.

Cadance studied The Gauntlet, looking for the pegasus she needed to converse with. She spotted him at the third layer from the top, just at the beginning of the long and arduous challenge really. The Princess spread her wings and flew up to the layer and studied the stallion.

The slate gray pony was currently hanging from a sheer cliff face that took up all thirty vertical feet that the layer had to offer. He had his one metal hoof wedged in a crack in the rocks, and his others were trying to find purchase where there was none. To Cadance it was obvious that this was quite grueling for Intrepid, either because the stallion was not in the best shape physically or because a cliff face brought up memories that he’d rather not stir up.

So why was he doing all of this? Why was Intrepid subjecting himself to such torture? Well that didn’t matter, she had to apologize and regain his trust. Making sure everything was alright between them was more important than The Gauntlet at the moment, and Intrepid needed to know it.

“Intrepid!” Cadance shouted as she knocked on the glass that encompassed the entirety of the shaft. “I need to talk to you!” She wasn’t sure how thick this glass was, or even what sort of enchantments it had cast upon it, but she hoped he could hear her.

Turns out, he could. The stallion diverted his attention from the face of the cliff and instead to the location where Cadance was standing. That’s all it took to lose the tenuous grasp he had though. In a split second, his faux hoof came loose from the crack he had lodged it in and he started to fall.

Whether or not the chamber was enchanted was answered in a second when instead of plummeting about twenty-five feet to a very gruesome demise, Intrepid was caught in a magical field and slowly lowered to the very bottom of the layer, where a solitary door awaited him. The pegasus, now with a scowl plastered across his face, opened the door and looked up at the Princess.

“What do you want?” Intrepid growled out from behind clenched teeth. Unlike Echo, this hostility came as no surprise to Cadance. She was expecting Intrepid to be upset, but she just had to explain herself and he would calm down. Hopefully he would also see things her way and try to fix things with Vinyl to boot, but that was for later.

“I wanted to apologize, Intrepid.” Cadance lowered her head, but kept her voice strong. “I’m sorry for what I’ve done. I-I never meant to hurt you and Vinyl, I never meant for you to-” A metal hoof was thrust into her line of sight, she looked up to see a very angry Intrepid glowering at her. This was the most emotion she had seen the stallion express since she had known him, so maybe the whole situation wasn’t as busted as she thought. If anger could thrust him to come back here, maybe it could motivate to do more?

“-To what, find out what you were doing? I’m sure you didn’t, Princess.” Intrepid started to pace slowly, never taking his eyes off of the alicorn. “And-and intent doesn’t matter! I don’t care how much good you meant by it, it was wrong of you to manipulate us like that!” Cadance sincerely hoped she could get Intrepid to see it her way, she just had to relay the same information that Celestia had told her.

“It’s my duty as Princess of Love to bring love to every pony who needs it, Intrepid.” She was not going to stoop to yelling at him, she would deliver a calm dialogue just as she was taught. “I thought you and Vinyl needed my help more than anything, I didn’t think it would ever lead to something like this. I’m truly sorry.”

“You’re sorry you got caught.” The jab really hurt Cadance, and she didn’t know why. She was genuinely sorry for hurting both Intrepid’s and Vinyl’s feelings in the depths of her soul, so why was this jab so hurtful? “That’s what I’m hearing right now. Not ‘I’m sorry I manipulated you’, but ‘I’m sorry I did my job.’ That’s not okay Cadance! I don’t care what your special talent is, you don’t do that to ponies!”

“It’s not like it was mind control or anything, Intrepid. I was just giving you and Vinyl a little...nudge.” Was that the right word? Nudge? It was more of a hefty push, but nudge made it sound far less severe.

“‘It’s not as bad as it could’ve been’ is not a good response!” Intrepid roared back. “How would you feel if someone was using love magic on Shining Armor, huh? How would you feel if he did something because of it and you found out and the pony who did it just responded with ‘well it’s not like I killed him or anything!’”

“Leave Shining out of this, Intrepid.” Cadance put a stern tone behind the words. Shiny was not going to come into the equation, this was between Intrepid, Vinyl and herself.

“Fine, but I still don’t forgive you. Not in the slightest.” There was a pause. “I don’t think I ever can.” The stallion turned his back on the alicorn and studied The Gauntlet. It was minutes before he spoke again, now calmed down a bit. “You made me realize something, Cadance.”

“That you’re capable of doing more than sitting around your house all day? That you can be around ponies and live again?” Cadance had been pushing for that since day one, so maybe an on-the-nose statement might coax out that particular concession. Even if he never forgave her, but instead learned to live again...well maybe that would leave Cadance with a net gain with the whole situation.

“No.” Intrepid stated flatly. “That I’m not meant to be here. I’m not meant to be in Equestria.” The stallion turned back to face Cadance, looking much different than before. His age was showing now; his slumped posture, the bags beneath his eyes, and one wing hanging forlornly at his side, they all made him look so old and tired. “All Canterlot is, it’s just lies and ponies telling you it will all be alright. It’s just so much facade and layers of false hope.” He turned and pointed at the layers of different biomes, of all the challenges a future explorer might face. “That doesn’t lie, it never has. Out there, anything you do, anything you learn can’t be called into question because nature never lies. The terrain isn’t capable of deception, and the skies won’t tell you that it wasn’t you fault. Out there...well out there if you screw up, it’s on you. There’s nopony else to blame, no misunderstandings, and no ponies trying to hurt you. If you get hurt, that’s on you and nopony else. After everything that happened, I forgot that. I forgot that it wasn’t all my fault, I forgot that there wasn’t a single thing I could’ve done alone to prevent whatever happened. Maybe my team could’ve prevented it together, but we didn’t. That’s on us.”

Cadance wasn’t sure what this had to do with anything, it just seemed like a tangent that Intrepid needed to get off of his chest. Maybe now he would be more receptive to her words now that he had gotten that off of his chest.

“I-” She started, but was cut off by Intrepid.

“I think that’s something you could learn, Cadance.” Well that was a little insulting. Cadance had the best schooling and tutors that money could buy once she ascended. She had learned from Princess Celestia herself and did not consider herself a dumb pony. “It’s not my fault that I don’t forgive you. It’s not my fault that I don’t see it your way, that I’m not cooperative anymore. It’s yours. You didn’t think it through. You did something stupid, and now you’re paying for it.”

“Intrepid!” Calling a Princess stupid was not something that was generally allowed. It was a direct insult to the crown. But, luckily for Intrepid, Cadance would let this slide as he was pretty emotionally unstable right now. “I was just trying to help you! You know I never meant to hurt you, I was just...I wanted to make sure you were happy.” Why couldn’t this stubborn stallion just agree with her and see it her way? It wasn’t that hard, Shining did it all of the time.

“I told you, I don’t care about what you meant. It’s what you did. Now leave me alone.” Without another word, the stallion climbed a nearby ladder and went back into The Gauntlet. This left Cadance rather flabbergasted on the ground below. Why hadn’t he forgiven her? She had explained herself and apologized, forgiveness was supposed to come next.

Now her only hope was for Shining and Vinyl to be a bit more level headed and forgive her. They would be more receptive of that, right?

“You’re a piece of garbage, you know that Twinkle?” Vinyl threw off the last of her battered armor and shot a look at her guard. “That was a cheap shot, and you know it.” The pearlescent mare rubbed a few sore spots that had popped up due to their sparring session. The biggest one being a goose-egg on her forehead next to her horn. She had taken the hit from the pommel of Twinkle’s sword in the midst of a very heated engagement.

“I warned you about using magic, didn’t I?” Twinkle looked far better than Vinyl did at the moment. Well, minus the new black eye. That had been a very big mistake. “I told you, ‘no using magic as a weapon’ and you didn’t listen.” They both rolled their eyes at the other.

Their words were not filled with malice however, they were just exchanging quips now. Any anger they had towards one another had been dealt with out on the training room floor, now they were perfectly content to just exchange jabs.

“Well I couldn’t let you win that time, could I?” Vinyl was now putting her armor back on the stand where they had gotten it from in the first place. She was keeping her eyes on Twinkle, trying to mimic what he was doing with his armor. All these straps and buckles were kinda confusing to somepony not familiar with them.

“Well you could’ve, just like the other dozen times.” The stallion finished putting his armor away and trotted over towards Vinyl’s, fixing whatever mistakes she had made while fitting the armor to the stand.

“I didn’t want you to feel like you were unstoppable. Celestia knows what will happen if you think you’re untouchable.” She shot a sly smirk at the guard, who shot back by sticking his tongue out at her like a foal would a schoolyard bully. “Oh that’s mature, Twinkle. Real mature.”

There was silence until they finished storing the armor and the weapons. Vinyl had to admit that all of this had really been cathartic. Celestia knows how many times she had wanted to beat the living snot out of Twinkle, and the opportunity to do so had not been wasted. Plus, it also let her take out additional frustrations on a willing target, like Cadance being a liar or the whole Intrepid thing being a sham. It felt really good to work those out.

“So what do you want to do now? Go home and rest or go get something to eat?” Go out? Well that was a new proposition. Vinyl could’ve sworn the last thing Twinkle would want to do right now was go to some restaurant looking like this.

“Well considering we both look like we went ten rounds with a Minotaur, I think home sounds a lot better. Plus, I think I could use some ice on this lump. Same with your eye, dude. That thing looks like it hurts.” The guard put a hoof to his bruised eye, which he quickly retracted out of pain. With a nod in agreement, they both gathered their things and headed out of the training building.

The walk home was quite different from normal. The stares from all of the townsponies made sure of that. Normally Vinyl and Twinkle were largely ignored by the populace, only getting nasty looks by those who thought themselves above guards and commoners. Now they were getting constant curious and distasteful looks. TO be fair, it probably looked like they both had been in a fierce altercation and she was being escorted to prison or something. Half right was still technically right Vinyl supposed.

The walk was silent, though. It wasn’t because they were mad at one another, or even because they didn’t have anything to say. They could always find something to talk, and most likely bicker, about. Vinyl just felt like she didn’t have to talk to Twinkle in order to justify her existence around him, she didn’t feel like the silences were awkward anymore. They were just comfortable now.

When they opened the door to the apartment, Vinyl unceremoniously flopped onto her couch and let out a sigh. Her overly tired muscles were glad to finally be afforded a rest, as was her now pounding head. After a minute or two of laying on her sofa, a little plastic bag full of ice was placed on her head. She looked up to see Twinkle holding an identical one up to his eyes with his magic.

“How are you feeling?” The stallion questioned as he sat at the very end of the sofa, moving her hooves just enough so he could sit comfortably.

“I’ve had worse.” Vinyl responded with a shrug. “Like this one time I got claw marks all down my back from-” Vinyl stopped herself, remembering just where that story went. It wasn’t exactly one she had meant to start sharing and she did not want to finish. “-from something...that is...personal.” She managed to wind the sentence down easily. Twinkle didn’t say anything, just responded with a shrug of his own. “How about you, are you?”

“I’ve had black eyes before.” The guard said nonchalantly. “Gotta admit, I wasn’t expecting you to give me one. Really, I’m impressed.” Vinyl couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride from the guard’s words. It wasn’t every day a guard praised her on beating them up.

“So what’s for dinner?” Vinyl didn’t want to hang on the day’s events for too long. They had both already said they were fine, and that was all she needed to know. Now there were more important things to worry about, like food and what it was going to be.

“I’m sorta feeling spaghetti tonight.” Twinkle nudged Vinyl with a hoof. “How’s that sound?”

“Sure. I think I got some pasta here, not sure about any sauce.” Vinyl didn’t really keep her kitchen stocked, save for booze and coffee that was. Every item of foodstuff was a ‘buy it as you go’ purchase. It was a bad habit she had developed that she really needed to get rid of.

“What, like sauce in a can?” Twinkle gave her an odd look. “We couldn’t do that anyways, it wouldn’t be right. It’s made from scratch or it’s no good, my Grandma taught me that.” Well Vinyl wasn’t much for cooking from scratch, so if they did anything it would be on his shoulder entirely. Pancakes were the extent of her cooking knowledge, and she would like to keep it that way.

“Well I know I don’t have any tomatoes or whatever around here, so we’re kinda S.O.L on that front.” Vinyl moved her hooves, making sure they rested comfortably on Twinkle’s side. “Unless you wanna go down to the market and get stuff, we’ll have to think of something else.”

“I’m really feeling spaghetti now.” Twinkle said, his stomach growling in agreement. “Guess I’m going to the market, then.” The stallion said with a sigh. Vinyl wasn’t sure if he was sighing because his stomach was set on the dish, or the fact that he had to go out again. “Need me to get anything for you while I’m out?”

“Wine.” Vinyl said without hesitation. “Red, not white. It pairs better with spaghetti.” The stallion sitting at the other end of the couch cocked an eyebrow. “What? You don’t think I know my alcohol?”

“Alright.” Twinkle conceded, obviously not wanting to go down that particular rabbit hole. “Anything else?”

“Nope.” Vinyl replied confidently. The stallion put his makeshift ice pack down and stood up, stretching his legs before fully moving again. “Have fun!” She called out as the guard gathered a pouch of bits and headed out the door.

Now that she was alone, Vinyl could truly reflect on her thoughts. Just yesterday, after the mess that was the both of them waking up together, Twinkle had been really distant and rather cold. Today had changed that, though. He was acting with renewed vigor and optimism, like he had been told something or decided on a course of action. She supposed it had something to do with his talk with Uncle B, as that was seemingly the tipping point.

Either way, she liked this Shining more than she liked the mopey one who was still upset about Cadance. He probably still was upset about the Princess, but he wasn’t letting it show anymore, not like he had that night they got wasted.

“Maybe I should talk to him about that.” Vinyl said to no one in particular. Usually she wouldn’t be the pony to offer a kind ear and a shoulder to lean on, but for Twinkle she could make an exception. Especially since they were going to be meeting Lily all because of him. “Yeah...probably should.” She admitted to herself. Maybe she wouldn’t do it tonight, because food was priority right now, but definitely later.

After a few minutes of trying to figure out just how to approach the subject, she was pulled out of her thoughts by a knock at the door. Vinyl briefly wondered who it could be, but she settled on the fact that it was probably Twinkle having forgot something here. Had he locked the door, though? She didn’t think so.

Curiously, she got up and opened the door. She had expected, and even prepared, for Shining to be there embarrassed that he forgot something vital. Instead, she was face-to-face with the very mare she had been thinking about minutes before.

“Hi Vinyl, can I come in?” Princess Mi Amore Cadenza questioned, a radiant smile across her face.

“Nope.” Vinyl responded curtly as she shut and locked the door on the Princess.

Shining trotted back up the stairs towards Vinyl’s apartment, a brown paper bag in magical tow. It was filled to the brim with vegetables and seasoning, most of which he had just assumed that Vinyl did not have. Of course, he also had a bottle of red wine buried at the very bottom. Briefly he had entertained the thought of not getting the wine and talking to Vinyl about her problem with alcohol, but he didn’t want to do that tonight. Food was his priority at the moment, not work.

The stallion made his way to the landing that lead him to Vinyl’s apartment, only to find that he could not make himself move. The sight of the pony standing in front of Vinyl’s door made Shining’s breath catch in his throat.

“Cadance?” He managed to finally mumble out. Apparently that was just loud enough, because the alicorn turned in his direction. Shining could’ve sworn his heart stopped in that moment, and he even wished it had. Death would be easier than what was coming next.

“Shiny! Thank Celestia, you’re here.” Cadance rushed over to him and embraced him tightly in a hug, a gesture he wasn’t sure how exactly to feel about. “I’ve been standing out here for fifteen minutes trying to get Vinyl to let me in. Can you please talk to her?”

“Okay…” Shining finally said, still trying to find the right words. “Why…?” It was the question that dominated his entire mind. Why was she here? Why now? Why did she want in Vinyl’s apartment?

“I wanted to apologize, to both of you.” He had expected an apology, hell he had been waiting for one, but he was hoping he would have a little more time to prepare. He was hoping that it would be on his terms, or at the least on Vinyl’s terms.

“I-uh let me talk to her, alright? Just give me a few minutes.” That was the best he could do. Shining just couldn’t tell Cadance to go away and come back some other day, she was no errant storm cloud. He could convince Vinyl to hear Cadance out, or at least try to.

“Okay. Take your time.” Cadance said, exuding understanding. It made Shining all too uneasy.

Shining figured that if Cadance wasn’t already inside, it meant that the door was locked. So he fetched the duplicate key he had made the other day while Vinyl was at work out of his armor and unlocked the door. Inside he found Vinyl on the couch, exactly where he had left her.

“Hey Twinkle.” The mare said, waving a hoof at him. Shining shut the door behind him and placed the goods he bought on the kitchen counter. “You get everything?”

“Don’t do this to me, Scratch.” Shining sighed. He was really hoping for Scratch to be furious when he entered, this overtly calm Vinyl only raised his blood pressure more. It meant she was letting this simmer and build. “You know what I’m gonna say.”

“Nope. She can’t come in. Nu-uh.” Vinyl responded, a little edge to her voice.

“Vinyl just let her talk, for like five minutes. I’m not going to ask you to forgive her, I’m not even going to ask you to consider it because I know that’s a lost cause. Just hear her out, alright?” Shining was hoping that if he spoke like her friend instead of her annoyed bodyguard she would respond a little better than normal.

“It’s just going to piss me off, you know that right?” That was not even up for debate, of course he knew Vinyl was going to get mad. That was like asking if the sun was going to rise tomorrow, it was going to happen and you had to deal with it.

“Yeah, I know. You can get mad at her all you want, I just want you to let her speak first.” Shining trotted over to the couch and sat beside his charge. “I just-” He placed a hoof on Vinyl’s leg that was beside him. “I know you don’t care what she has to say, but I do. Can you hear her out for me?”

“Fine.” Vinyl sighed loudly. “But she can’t sit down, she has to stand.” Shining was going to raise another objection, but he could at least let Scratch have this one thing. “Go get her, I guess.” It was clear that VInyl wasn’t happy with the situation, but she would never be. Not even Shining was happy with it, he was just hoping for a nice calm evening away from drama.

“And ponies in hell want ice water…” Shining said as quietly as possible as he got up and went to the door. He opened the door to find Cadance waiting patiently outside. Deep down he hoped that the Princess had not heard any of that conversation, as that would make the whole situation a bit more awkward. “Come on in, Cadance.”

Shining made his way back to the center of the living room and took a seat in the recliner that was opposite the couch. Vinyl was still splayed across the couch, leaving Cadance with exactly zero open seats to occupy. Shining had fulfilled his side of the bargain, now Vinyl had to hold up her end.

“Start talking.” Vinyl stated flatly and without any discernible emotions. Cadance looked towards Shining, who just nodded his own encouragement.

“I-I just wanted to say that I’m sorry.” Cadance started out, her head dropping to study her own hooves. “I never meant for any of this to happen. I never meant to hurt either of you, I swear. I-I just wanted the best for both of you.”

“Cadance.” Shining started out, knowing well enough that it was better for him to speak than Vinyl. “I don’t doubt that you meant well, but there’s just certain things that…”How could he put this gently? “Messing with our emotions like this, it just wasn’t fair to us. We deserved a heads up, heck if you would’ve just asked about using your magic on Vinyl none of this would’ve happened.” He got a look from Vinyl, almost asking if he would’ve let Cadance go through with it. “Because I would have told you no and shut it down before it even started.” Shining tacked on.

“Plus the whole ‘jealousy’ thing kinda proves you didn’t have my best interests at heart when you were doing all of this.” Surprisingly, Vinyl didn’t sound like she was insulting or even venomous. She was stating facts. Oh boy, did that not make Shining any more comfortable.

“I-I never said I was jealous!” Cadance fired back. “You said I was jealous and wouldn’t let me explain myself!” The Princess rebuked the unicorn rather harshly. “That’s the whole reason I’m here today, so I can explain exactly why I did it!”

“Cool! I don’t care why you did it! That’s not the problem, Cadance. The problem is that you did it in the first place!” Now Vinyl was fired up, perfect. Shining highly doubted he could stop her without incapacitating her with the failsafe...which he didn’t have because the tether was not up.

“Vinyl’s right.” Now Shining knew he was going to regret that in the long run, but for now he could stop Vinyl from talking and hopefully from getting progressively angrier. “It doesn’t matter why you did it, but that you did it regardless.” He paused and thought of his next sentence carefully. “If you can apologize without excuses, then at least I can forgive you.”

“I-” There was a turmoil burning brightly within the Princess, Shining could tell. She was trying to find the right words to just apologize, but she was also dead set on explaining herself. Then again that’s what any sane pony would do, right? They would seek forgiveness for what they’ve done and acceptance for the reasons behind their actions. Cadance was a Princess, though. She had to be held to a higher standard than normal ponies. “I’m sorry.”

“I forgive you, Cadance.” That actually felt good to say. It felt right to vacate all of the doubt of what he would do by actually just doing it. “I forgive you, but I can’t ever forget what you’ve done.” That caught the Princess off-guard, she now was staring at Shining with wide eyes. “I just-I can’t act like none of it ever happened, that’s impossible. You hurt me, and you hurt my friend...that’s not something I can just let go in a few days. You broke my trust, you broke a lot of what I stand for and I can’t let that slide.”

“W-we can still be together, right?” The question he was dreading. The question he wrestled with so hard it drove him to get wasted. Could they? Could he just go back to the status-quo while hanging onto this feeling of broken trust?

“No…” The stallion said with a heavy sigh. “I’m not saying we’ll never be together again, but I don’t think I can do it just yet.” Shining stopped while he gathered his thoughts. He slowly stood up and trotted over to the Princess, who was now sitting on her haunches with tears in her eyes. “When we were younger I thought you were the most beautiful mare in the entire world, Cadance.” He took her hooves in his for one last time. “I thought you were the most perfect being in all of creation. I forgot that nopony’s perfect, though. Everypony makes mistakes, even you...I don’t think I ever came to terms with that. I never thought you would be capable of using your magic like you did, I thought you were above that.” Shining raised one of the alicorn’s adorned hooves and gave it a small kiss. “I’m sorry I was wrong…”

“Shining…” Cadance was barely holding back the sobs now. “Shiny, please don’t do this.”

“I didn’t do anything, you did.” Saying that hurt him more than he could’ve ever imagined. Now he wanted to cry, he wanted to break down and ask for Cadance’s forgiveness. He couldn’t, though. He couldn’t deal with the hurt that it would cause not just himself, but Vinyl. He can’t say all of those things and then just go back, that’s not how any of this worked. “Vinyl? Got anything to add?” He wanted Vinyl to speak swiftly so this could be over, he didn’t really care at what intensity she spoke just that she did.

“I-umm…” For the first time since he had met her, it almost sounded like Vinyl was speechless. “Y-yeah, I think I can forgive you. I just-uh…” Shining turned back to see Vinyl staring at him, her eyes not betraying her obvious confusion. “What he said…” The unicorn finally decided on. It wasn’t elegant, but he supposed it got the point across.

“I-is this it..?” Cadance managed to say, her voice trembling.

“I think it is.” Shining responded.

“Are you sure we can’t-we can’t talk about this?”

“I’m sorry, Cadance.”

“Shining…”

“Cadance, please. Please don’t make this any harder.”

Shining relinquished Cadance’s hoof and gave her a small, albeit sad, smile. He helped the Princess to her hooves and gently guided her to the door.

“I love you, Shiny…”

“I love you too, Cadance.”

The pink alicorn leaned in and gave Shining a light peck on the cheek, one that the stallion returned.

Nothing was left to say.

Nothing was left to do.

Cadance walked away, down the hall and out of the building.

It was over.

Vinyl was speechless. Not near speechless, but completely and utterly speechless. It was like seeing a trainwreck, you just couldn’t tear your eyes away from it. It was a beautiful display of tragedy in the making, the end of a story that stretched back years. The colt and the filly next door, the dork and the popular mare, the Princess and her knight in shining armor. It had ended right in front of her eyes.

Could she blame Twinkle? Of course not. Was she shocked? Again, yes. Vinyl had never really thought that Twinkle had the stones to do something like that, not that quickly or efficiently. He had minced no words, nor had he been exceedingly gentle about it. He had just told Cadance the hard truth.

“Right. Time for dinner!” She was snapped out of her stunned silence by Twinkle. He had a smile on his face somehow. How in the world was he just powering through that? It wasn’t natural or right.

“Are you okay?” Vinyl finally managed to get out. “Like, seriously, I need to know if you’re okay because what just happened was so heavy I don’t think I’m okay.” Slowly she was snapping back to her usual self, but it was going to take a minute.

“No, not really.” Twinkle answered, his voice never faltering from a more positive tone. “I just know that it’s over now and we shouldn’t dwell on it too much.”

Vinyl stood up and trotted over to her friend. He was getting all of the vegetables out of the bag and lining them up on the counter. Without a single word she wrapped her hooves around the stallion and gave him the best hug she could.

Vinyl felt a pair of strong hooves wrap around her and return the embrace. She looked up and saw Twinkle looking down on her, smiling with tears in the corners of his eyes. That only caused Vinyl to hug tighter. Twinkle didn’t deserve this heartbreak. If there was one pony who just didn’t deserve it, Twinkle would be that one.

“Thanks, Vinyl.” The stallion said quietly. “I really needed this…”

“I know you did, you big galoot.” The pair relinquished the embrace and looked at the various ingredients before them. “Now let’s eat, huh? I’m starving.”

Author's Note

This chapter took a long time to write.

Like, a loooooooong time.

I'm sure you can see why.

I've been really hung up on where this story should go that I've been afraid to touch it in fear of doing 'the wrong thing'. I'm still pretty worried, but I just remembered that quote my high school Principal told me all those years ago.

"Don't write for the readers, write for yourself."

Enjoy.

[Interlude] Evolving

“There are no shortcuts in evolution.”
-Louis D. Brandeis

“No, you’re an idiot and you’re wrong!” The mare shouted across the kitchen at her companion. Vinyl had a fire in her belly that nothing short of victory could quench. All Twinkle had to do was submit and that would be the end of it, but he couldn’t even admit she was right.

“No, Scratch. You’re wrong!” The stallion stirring the sauce fired back, pointing an accusatory hoof at Vinyl. “Just drop it, already. I said it wasn’t important because it’s not.” How long had they been arguing like this? Fifteen minutes maybe? It started shortly after Cadance had left, so somewhere around there. The only thing Vinyl was trying to do was prove to Twinkle that he was wrong.

“No, I won’t drop it.” Vinyl stated resolutely, puffing out her chest at the stallion. “I can’t just let this go because we need to talk about this!” Both ponies simply stared at each other, both set in their own frame of mind.

“Shakes can be thicker than malts, Scratch. I’m not saying all shakes are thicker than malts, I’m saying they can be.” Vinyl rolled her eyes at the stallion. Such ignorance would not be tolerated in her house, oh no.

“Yeah, but they’re not supposed to be! The thickness is what makes a malt a malt, you dummy!” Vinyl trotted around the counter to Shining and thumped him upside the head with her hoof. “The sooner you realize that, the better.”

“First off: ow!” Shining rubbed the back of his head and glowered at Vinyl. “Secondly: malt powder makes a malt a malt. Not the thickness.”

“Okay, yeah, but the thickness is important. Nopony wants a runny malt!” Both ponies once again locked eyes. Vinyl was getting ready to start up again when Twinkle’s stern look broke and a goofy smile crossed his face. Then the stallion started to laugh.

“Th-this is the dumbest argument I’ve ever had.” Shining managed to sputter out between fits of laughter. “L-like, how did we even get started on this?” Vinyl couldn’t help but burst into laughter as well. It hadn’t occurred to her until this moment how ridiculous the fight had been. They were fighting over malts and shakes for Celestia’s sake!

Vinyl knew why they were arguing over this. Deep down she knew it was because if they hadn’t argued about something ridiculous they would’ve got into a fight about Cadance. Vinyl would’ve pushed Shining on things he probably didn’t want to talk about then he’d get mad, then she’d be mad that he was mad. It was better to just diffuse the situation with something silly, it had always worked on her when she was little.

After a few seconds both of their fits of laughter died down and they both refocused their attention on the simmering scarlet sauce before them. “Think it’s ready, Twinkle?” Vinyl was no culinary expert, so she had to rely on her companion’s experience to lead.

“Give it a few more minutes.” He replied, a bemused smile now crossing his features. Obviously their argument had put him in a good mood, ironically enough. “Go take a load off, I’ll call you over when it’s done.” The stallion waved Vinyl away and turned back to their meal.

Vinyl wouldn’t argue with that. She would let Twinkle do all of the work if he wanted, who was she to tell him no? She had to admit, sometimes it felt really good having Twinkle as a friend. Hopefully the guard could say the same about her.

Twilight Sparkle was having a surprisingly bad day. Fridays were alway good days for her. They were the days she got to go from the castle and spend a weekend back at her home with her parents and older brother. Well, usually her older brother was there. Lately he had been preoccupied with work, something that Twilight understood completely.

Duty always came first, Celestia had taught little Twily that. So how could Twilight be mad at her brother for doing his job like he was told? Well, it actually wasn’t that hard. Understanding something was one thing, but accepting it was another.

Twilight understood that teleporting was just converting oneself into pure magical energy and then using the leylines to transport the energy to where you wanted. Twilight just couldn’t accept that it could be done! She had never seen it done before, nor did she even think that condensing a whole pony into magical energy was feasible. It just required too much!

It was a lot like her brother in that respect. The filly just couldn’t accept that her brother wasn’t going to be around for awhile. She understood perfectly fine why, but she just didn’t want it to be that way. They were supposed to be coloring, or playing games or something. At the very least, Twilight wished she knew where Shiny was.

“Dumb BBBFF.” The little pony grumbled as she shut her book and got up from her desk. She wasn’t going to let that stallion ruin her good Friday, no way! There was plenty she could do without him here! She could read, she could…read some more...okay, turns out reading was the only thing she had going for her. But reading was fun! It could be fun.

Depended on the book, really.

Once more, Twilight sighed and trotted over to her bed. In a rather clumsy motion, she haphazardly pulled herself onto her bed and made her way over to the window that was right next to her pillow. She looked outside with yet another sigh. Rain was just starting to come down in tiny droplets, gently coating her window in a patchwork of water. It was an apt mirror for her own mood.

“Twilight will you come downstairs, please?” The filly’s ears perked up at the sound of her father’s voice. Usually they would never bother her on Friday nights, it was her night to study after a week at school and get homework done. Sure, she never really had any homework to do but the time alone was nice. Either way, if her parents needed her now it must be important.

“Coming!” Twilight yelled back as she hopped off of her bed and onto unskilled hooves. At a decent pace she made her way out of her room and down the stairs. Awaiting her in the living room was a pony she nearly forgot existed.

“Hello Little Sparkle.” The elderly mare sitting in a highbacked chair said in a soft voice. The wrinkle’s that crossed the alabaster unicorn’s face were testament to the many years lived, and the myriad of intense expressions she had given over them. The senior’s mane looked remarkably like twilight’s own: a straightened violet affair with a single line of black running through it just by her horn.

“Hi Grandma Satin.” Twilight said in a low grumble. Was this why she had been dragged down here? To say ‘hi’ to Grandma? Hardly worth the time considering the matriarch was going to be living here now.

“Twilight, watch your tone.” Twilight Velvet, ‘Little Sparkle’s’ mother chastised her gently. “Grandma was hoping you could join us down here for dinner tonight. She would very much like a family dinner while you’re here for the weekend.”

“Shiny’s not here, though. It’s not a family dinner without him.” Twily reminded the two mares in front of her. Her mother gave the little filly a sympathetic look, the older Satin only rolled her eyes and sighed.

“He’s off gallivanting with some mare, I’ve heard.” The matriarch shot violet daggers at her daughter. “I tried to get Galea to let him off of that racket, but it didn’t work on that stubborn son of yours.”

“Mother, he is working hard.” Twilight Velvet shot back at her mother. “I won’t have you disparaging him if you want to stay in this house.” Twily had never actually heard her mom go hoof-to-hoof with Grandma Satin. Actually, Twily had never heard anypony go hoof-to-hoof with Grandma Satin. That old mare could be really really mean when she wanted to be.

“If he had any smarts about him, he would be working on getting a foal out of that Princess instead. Celestia knows she’s asking for it.” The gasp that came from Velvet was loud enough to make Twily flatten her ears. “Oh don’t give me that!”

“I’m going to go find Dad…” The littlest Twilight in the room said as she trotted towards the kitchen, where she assumed her father to be. She truthfully just wanted to get away from the two mares in the living room, it could get nasty if it went on for any longer.

Twilight pushed open the door to the kitchen and saw her father simmering over a like-minded pot full of what she guessed was soup based off of the smell. After the first few grumbles of curse words, Twilight cleared her throat to announce her presence.

“Ahh!” Her father, Night Light, spun on his hooves in a frazzled state. After seeing it was only his daughter, the azure stallion let himself relax. “Sorry Twily, didn’t hear you come in.” He turned back to his soup and stirred it idly. “What’s up, Squirt? Hungry for something good?”

Being surrounded by harsh decorum all the time made Twilight appreciate her father’s lackadaisical use of any formal speech. It made her feel at least a little normal in the face of everything she went through on a daily basis.

“I just wanted to get away from Mom and Grandma.” Twily’s stomach growled angrily. “Food would be nice, too.” A ladle full of soup was levitated down to her level, a non-verbal way of her father telling her to see if it was any good. With gusto, Twilight took a sip from the ladle and thought over the taste for a second. “More pepper, maybe.”

“I hear you, Twily.” The stallion answered, putting a dash of pepper into his brew. “Those two have been going at it like cats and dogs since Grandma Satin got here. I’m honestly starting to wonder how they ever lived together in the first place.”

“Well does she have to stay here with us? Why can’t she just go back to her house?” Twilight stomped a little hoof on the tile floor with indignation. It wasn’t that she didn’t love her Grandmother, she just preferred to love her at a distance...a couple times a year for holidays and birthdays. Twilight had learned too much of Grandma Satin was a bad thing and that too much was right next to ‘never’.

“Because she’s getting too old to live by herself, Twily.” The stallion sighed, throwing a crushed clove of garlic into the mix. “Somepony has to take care of her and your mother doesn’t want to send her to a home.” Twilight could tell from her father’s voice that the decision was not something he was happy with, either.

That was one thing she had learned from her father that she had a bad habit of letting take over. The stallion always broadcasted his emotions loudly and to anypony that would listen, even his own children. On one hoof, this made Twilight feel like her father was a lot closer to a friend than almost anypony else in the word. On the other hoof, sometimes he said things he probably shouldn’t.

“But what about her house? It’s just going to be empty forever now?” Twilight was just genuinely curious about that matter. She had no stock in the home, but she wondered what would become of what she considered to be a mansion.

“Grandma sold it and put the money towards your tuition.” Night Light stated matter-o’-factly,

“I don’t have any tuition.” Twilight responded, one of her eyebrows perking up. “Princess Celestia doesn’t make you pay for sending me there.”

“I know.” The stallion said flatly.

Then why did Grandma give her money to the school? Shining had debts from guard school, she could’ve paid off those. Right. Grandma and Shining didn’t exactly get along, like Twilight thought they actually hated each other. So Twily chalked her Grandmother’s actions up to simple malice and not senility.

Ding Dong

Both of the ponies in the kitchen perked their ears up at the doorbell’s chime. Had Shiny come home for dinner? If so, Twilight hoped he didn’t bring that mare along with him. The last time she had been in the house, Twilight didn’t get a very good vibes from her.

Twilight trotted over to the door and nudged it open just enough to see the front door. Trotting inside was another pony who was almost as good as her brother! It was somepony she just didn’t get to see enough anymore.

“Cadance!” The filly shouted as she bolted out of the kitchen at speeds that would make the Wonderbolt’s jealous. Before the Princess could react fully, Twilight had already launched herself towards the monarch.

“Twilight!” Cadance caught Twilight with her hooves and gave the filly a big hug. The first thing Twily noticed was the very damp fur of her foalsitter. That was to be expected, it was raining outside. “I’m so glad to see you!”

“Why are you here? Is Shiny with you?” Twilight peered over the pink alicorn’s shoulder, hoping to see her brother standing in the doorway. She was only met with disappointment.

“No, I’m afraid not.” Twilight caught a hint of something more than disappointment in Cadance’s tone. It almost sounded like sadness. “I was actually caught in the storm and was hoping I could stay here until it died down a little. I’m afraid a walk to the castle would leave me drenched at the moment.” Nevermind the sadness! Cadance was going to stay, and that let all worries about the Princess’ emotional state fly out of Twilight’s mind.

“Of course you can, Cadance!” Twilight Velvet responded with a warm smile. “You know you’re always welcome in this house, you didn’t even have to ask. You’re practically family.” Twilight felt Cadance’s breath hitch when the word ‘family’ was mentioned. It brought the previously forgotten worried back to the front of the little filly’s mind.

“Are you okay?” Twilight pushed away from Cadance with her hooves so she could get a good look at her foalsitter. Her mane was disheveled and she looked rather raggedy, but it was the storm that had done that, right?

“I’m fine, Twilight. I just need to get dry and I’ll be all better.” Cadance gave her a reassuring embrace and then let Twilight go. “Do you mind if I use your bathroom, Velvet?”

“Go right ahead, Cadance. I’m sure you know where it is.” Twilight’s mother told the alicorn. Without another word, the pink pony trotted up the stairs, leaving a slightly damp trail behind her.

“I really wish she would stop calling Sparkle ‘Twilight’. It’s so confusing.” Satin piped up once the door to the bathroom was heard closing. “Who was she talking to? Me? You? Sparkle?” That was the unique problem of the three generations of mares all sharing the first name, but little Twilight liked being called by her first name more than her last.

“Mother, she calls me Velvet and she calls you Miss Satin, you know that. Sparkle is the only pony in the world she calls Twilight, so quit being difficult.” Somehow Twilight’s mom had miraculously grown some semblance of a spine since the last time Grandma Satin had been around. Twily had only ever seen Grandma walk all over Velvet, never had she seen such resistance.

“I’m not being difficult!” Satin protested, her glare never leaving Velvet. “I just think that the proper respect for our family tradition would be better than spitting on it.” Twily never liked these conversations about tradition, so she simply tuned it out. Tradition was just an inefficient way of doing something that certain ponies seemed to like way too much.

After a few minutes of ignoring the mares in the room, Twilight heard the upstairs bathroom door open. Then she saw a fully groomed and dry Cadance descending the stairs with all of the grace that Twilight expected of her.

“Feeling better, Princess Cadance?” It wasn’t Velvet who spoke this time, but Satin instead. Strangely, Twily had never actually experienced an interaction between her Grandmother and Cadance. It wasn’t really a pairing of ponies she expected to ever be in the same sphere.

“Oh yes, thank you for asking Miss Satin.” The Princess responded with a smile. “By the way, what is that heavenly aroma I smell? Is Night Light cooking dinner?”

“You know it!” Came the cry of affirmation from the kitchen. “My world famous soup is finally ready as well! So you all better get your flanks in here before I eat it all myself!” A grumble came from Satin as she stood up, obviously she didn’t like the lack of formality quite like Twilight did.

WIth that, the herd of mares made their way into the kitchen and sat at the table. The stallion of the house had already prepared the table in the dining room with bowls and silverware. There was even a glass of wine at everypony’s place, except Twily’s of course. She just had water.

“Hello Cadance.” Night Light said with a beaming smile as he poured soup in the last of the empty bowls. “Lovely weather we’re having, huh?”

“Right?” The young mare responded with a chuckle as she took a seat at the end of the table. “Why don’t you step outside and enjoy it for yourself, Night Light?”

“I would love to Cadance, but I would hate to ruin some lovely mare’s day by making her faint at the sight of me. It’s just not fair to let this beauty leave the house, right darling?” Night Light went about putting the bowls in their spots, first stopping to give his wife a peck on the cheek.

“Perish the thought.” Responded Velvet with a smile on her face.

The banter was something that Twilight loved to be in the middle of. Her father could keep a conversation going for hours with the right pony just by exchanging sarcastic statements. They were never hurtful and always left a smile on everypony’s face in the end. It was something Night Light had insisted on calling ‘Dad Magic.’

“So-” Cadance said as she began to eat her soup. “-how is everypony doing tonight?”

“We’re doing fine as always, thank you for asking.” Velvet responded for both herself and Night Light, as the stallion was currently busy gorging himself on soup.

“Could be better.” The old nag in the middle seat of the table said, a rough edge to her voice. “That doesn’t matter though, does it? What is a Princess doing out so late in this kind of weather? I assumed you would be in the palace and not conversing with the riff-raff.” Cadance visibly stiffened, if only for a second. She regained her composure quicker than she had lost it, leaving only those eagle-eyed enough to spot it to figure out something was wrong.

“I was visiting Shining.” Cadance responded confidently. “I’m afraid time got away from me, and before I knew it the sun was starting to set and rain was already coming down. I even forgot about storm, silly me.” Twilight knew a lie when she saw one, especially when it was Cadance. The alicorn had lied to Twilight enough about misplaced books and hard-truths for the filly to know when something was wrong.

“How is my Grandson? I’m afraid I haven’t seen him in quite some time.” Everypony at the table rolled their eyes ever so slightly as if to say ‘gee I wonder why.’ “I hope he’s staying out of trouble.”

“He’s doing fine, just caught up in his work.” The short statement with no follow-up was enough of a cue for Twilight to pick up on. This conversation was going nowhere fast.

“Do you want to know what I’m studying now, Cadance?” The filly perked up as she redirected the topic to something she could take the reigns with: school.

“What does Celestia have you studying now? I assume nothing too difficult.” The Princess responded with a kind enthusiasm. “Who am I kidding? Nothing is too difficult for you, right Twilight?”

“Right!” Twilight shot back, emboldened by the praise. “She has me studying evolution now.”

“Poppycock.” The hateful phrase was thrown out by the eldest mare at the table. “We ponies changed those animals, not some nonsense.” Now that was something Twilight could pick up! She had a long conversation with Celestia about this exact thing not even a few days ago.

“I don’t think it’s poppycock. It makes a lot of sense.” Twilight wanted to grab a book, but she had it nowhere near her at the moment. If she had the time and lack of manners, she would run up to her room and get it for reference, but for now her memory of the subject would have to do. “Things change over time when presented with challenges. We ponies do it, so why couldn’t animals do it over a long time? If you burn your hoof on the stove you won’t put it on the stove again, right? Well what if an animal is getting picked on by another bigger animal with really sharp claws? Eventually that type of animal will ‘learn’ and change so that sharp claws can’t get to it.”

“That’s fascinating, Twilight.” Cadance prodded the topic. “Do you think we ponies evolved from something?”

“Well...the book said we were all earth ponies once and that the other two races developed when things got too hard for just the earth ponies. So yeah.” Twilight thought back to her book, trying to remember exactly what it said. “We just changed because something bad happened to us, that’s all. We learned and got better. Everything changes if enough bad things happen to it. I don’t really think we have a choice in it, we just have to try and use those changes right or else more bad things will happen and we might change again.” Twilight was not the most elegant speaker when it came to articulating her own thoughts. They often came out cluttered and clumsy, reducing her vocabulary to a fraction of what it actually was. She could write on this all days at a higher level than she could ever hope to speak it.

“I think you’re right, Twilight.” Cadance said, a small smile across her features.

“I know she’s right.” Night Light added. “Change does a lot more than we realize. It pushes us in the right direction, and enough change lets us know we were doing something wrong. It tells us that we needed something else, that we weren’t safe where we were. If we ponies can figure out, there’s no reason that nature couldn’t figure that out a long time ago.” Leave it to her dad to be on her side when it came to philosophy. He was always the one more liable to wax poetic about feelings out of Twily’s parents.

“Change can be bad, though.” Cadance added in. “Not everything can be fixed with change, some things can even be ruined by it.” The tone in which the Princess spoke made it seem like she had a very strong opinion on this subject. This was adding to the growing list that Twilight was putting together.

“Only if we don’t learn from it.” Twilight said, making sure to add a strong note of finality to her statement. She wasn’t one-hundred percent certain what Cadance was hiding, or why it seemed to be bothering her, but the little filly felt like that was something Cadance desperately needed to hear.

Author's Note

So yeah, here's a little interlude for you.

A silly little argument, and seeing how Twilight lives.

Plus a little lesson for Cadance....too heavy handed, maybe? I don't know, but I had a lot of fun writing this chapter!

Enjoy!

P.S. Malts are supposed to be thicker than shakes

Surprises

“It is an endless procession of surprises. The expected rarely occurs and never in the expected manner.”
-Vernon A. Walters

Article two: subsection C: Paragraph four. The words on the page were in perfectly legible Equish as they were in every Guard’s manual. Black on white, plain as day. It laid out what had to be done, what absolutely needed to be done.

Shining understood what he needed to do, he just couldn’t accept that it had to be done.

“A guard assigned to bind duty, if they wish to take their charge out of the limits of the city in which they were bound, must consult with the Captain of the Guard. Neglecting to do so will result in the immediate termination of both the bond and the Guard responsible.” He read it again, out loud this time. It was definitely real, that much was for certain. He wished it wasn’t real, he wished there had been a big label next to that rule that just said ‘SUGGESTION!’ but no, this was a rule.

In order to take Vinyl to Ponyville to meet her niece, Shining was going to have to talk to Interim Captain Galea. That was the cold hard truth, one he had secretly wrestled with over the past day and a half. He had told Vinyl two days ago that they would leave yesterday, then he saw this rule. That had put a damper on things.

That was yesterday, where he had taken his frustration out in the sparring room with Vinyl and ended the day by formally breaking things off with Cadance.. Today was going to be different. Mainly because he was going to try his hardest to leave thoughts of his lost love behind and focus on his job like a good guard.

“Mornin’ Twinkle.” Shining snapped his head to the side, catching sight of Vinyl trotting out of her room. The mare was no more disheveled than any other morning it seemed, but she was already wearing her sunglasses. That was a bit odd, usually she waited to go out into public before putting them on.

“Glad you finally decided to join us in the land of the living, Scratch.” Shining said with a smile as he stood up and followed Vinyl to the kitchen. “You know it’s already eleven in the morning, right?”

“Meh.” The mare responded, shrugging her shoulders and starting up her trusty coffee maker. “It’s Saturday, so who cares?” Vinyl paused and looked at Shining. He could pick up the cold look of worry from behind her glasses. “It is Saturday, right?” Shining nodded, causing the mare to nearly collapse from relief. “Thank Celestia! It’s the weekend!”

“Well…” Shining rubbed the back of his neck as he stopped Vinyl’s celebration. “...actually we have stuff to do today.” Vinyl turned to the stallion, taking off her glasses to give him the full effect of her glare.

“It’s Saturday. We’re staying home.” Vinyl said calmly, a dangerous edge to her voice. “We’re going to sit down. We’re going to eat some cereal. We’re going to listen to the Daring Do radio show.” Each sentence was punctuated by a hoof being driven into Shining’s chest. “We are not going out.” Usually Shining would smile at the smaller unicorn’s silly actions, but today he had to be serious with her.

“I’m really sorry, but I’m afraid it’s not up for debate.” Shining looked down at Vinyl sympathetically. He wanted her to know this wasn’t because he wanted to ruin her Saturday, but because he had to ruin his own. If he didn’t end this, VInyl would try to find some excuse to stay here and he couldn’t let that happen. “I’m afraid you can’t just stay here, either. We...well we have to go see Captain Galea, and you have to come with me.

Shining could see the cold realization make it’s way through Vinyl’s head. She stiffened up and her eyes searched the stallion’s features, searching for a tell so she could call him out on a lie. He simply kept his expression sympathetic.

“But you’ve visited her without me before. Why can’t you just do it again?” The unicorn mare pleaded. Shining could see that Vinyl truly did not want to go see the Captain, but neither did he. At least they were on the same side there.

“It’s Saturday, Scratch. I can get away with it on a weekday when you’re supposed to be at work, but it’s the weekend. If she doesn’t see me with you then she’ll think something is wrong.” He was going to let her down easy, he had to or risk a fight. “I’m really sorry, but you really need to come with me today.”

“Can I at least get some breakfast first?” Vinyl mumbled, turning back towards the freshly brewed pot of coffee.

“Sure.” Shining was actually surprised that Vinyl went along with it. He was expecting at least a little more resistance from her, mainly because that’s what he was used to. Since day one VInyl had not been receptive to his ideas, she had always pushed back and argued with him. Maybe her cooperation was a sign that things were going in the right direction? Maybe he actually was making a difference!

The stallion trotted over to the room where he was staying, Vinyl’s parent’s room, and looked over his armor. If he was going to talk with Galea, he had to make sure that every facet of his being was perfect. He could give Galea no room for excuses as to why he was doing a bad job, he could give her no leverage.

He studied the gold affair that functioned as his work clothes. The smooth enchanted edges of the armor seemed to glow even in the limited sunlight which they sat. There were no dents or scratches in the armor’s exterior, it was a perfectly well-kept set of armor.

It could always use a good polish, though. Shining knew that he needed to be able to see not just himself, but everything within a three mile radius in the reflection of his armor, or else that would be another thing Galea could pick him apart for. Again, it needed to be perfect.

Instinctively, Shining reached for the bottle of armor polish he kept with him and the handy cloth that went along with it. He picked up the small bottle of golden liquid with his magic and tipped it over just enough to get a little on the cloth. Except nothing came out.

Shining tipped the bottle over completely. To his surprise, not a single drop found it’s way out of the small flask. Then he was out. Great. The stallion took a deep breath and sighed, of course this was bound to happen today of all days. It couldn’t have happened tomorrow, or even yesterday. It had to happen today.

“Well guess that settles it.” He mumbled and put the bottle back where he found it. He wouldn’t go see Galea without his armor polished to a mirror shine, so it seemed he was going to have to get some more polish from home.

On a positive note, that meant he was going to be able to see his whole family today. It was Saturday, so Twily and both of his parents would be lounging around at home. It would be good to see them again, and maybe he could even talk to one of his parents about this whole Cadance thing. They would know what to do, or at least be able to help him get over this.

“It’ll be fine, just another easy day.” The stallion said to no one in particular. He sincerely hoped that he was telling the truth and not just trying to convince himself.

Vinyl had to admit that it was a beautiful day outside. The sun was shining and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, a small breeze blew around lazily bringing with it thoughts of the autumn soon to come to the city.

That did not change the fact that she had to go to the castle. All of the beautiful days in the world could not ease the pit in her stomach that formed when she thought about talking to any member of the guard in an official capacity. Especially now, she felt like she was steps away from getting a real punishment.

Sure, Twinkle had explained why they were going. They needed approval from the Captain for her to leave the city. Vinyl was all for leaving the city because it meant she finally to see Lily, she just wished she didn’t have to go through Galea to get there.

Before even that, the duo had to stop by Twinkle’s family home to get something dumb. Vinyl didn’t remember exactly what it was because she simply didn’t care that much. Whatever it was, it was just delaying the inevitable meeting with the Captain of the Guard. He had also said something about his family being there, but that wasn’t really that bad. Vinyl would just keep to herself.

“Scratch I really need you to be on your best behavior today.” Vinyl was yanked out of her own thoughts by Twinkle nudging her. “Not just at the castle, but at my house too. I know you’ve already met my sister, but my parents might not be as receptive to your attitude as I am.”

“When have I not been on my best behavior, Twinkle?” A little sarcasm to lighten the mood never hurt anyone as far as she was concerned. Okay, maybe it was a bit of a nervous habit as well, but that was besides the point.

“I’m being serious, Vinyl.” The stallion walking beside her said cooly. Using her first name was a sign of great seriousness between the two. It was almost a silently agreed upon rule, they never used their real names unless something was up.

“I’ll keep my mouth shut, got it.” That was the only way for her to be on her best behavior and they both knew it. If she allowed herself to speak it would just be...well she would be Vinyl, and that would only lead to trouble.

“You don’t have to keep your mouth shut, I would just like it if you thought about what you were going to say.” Vinyl looked over to Shining, who was just keeping his gaze straight ahead. She wasn’t sure whether to take that as an insult or some sort of life advice. On one hoof, she always thought about what she was going to say. Well most of the time.

Okay, half and half.

The pair silently approached the door of Twinkle’s home. There was a slight hesitation before he knocked, Vinyl guessed he was gathering his thoughts on what exactly to say. Within moments, the door opened to reveal a platinum colored mare with a white and purple colored mane. As soon as the mare saw Shining, her eyes shot open in surprise.

“Shining!” The mare, who Vinyl guessed was Twinkle’s mom, took the guard in a warm embrace. “Oh, it’s so good to see you again. I was beginning to think we wouldn’t until you were done with your bind duty.” The mare looked her son over then gasped. "And what happened to your eye? Are you alright?"

“Yeah, I'm fine. Just a hazard of the job, and I'm sorry I’ve been so busy, Mom. I know I should’ve stopped by sooner, I’ve just been kinda busy.” The stallion returned his mother’s embrace, finally letting her go after a few moments. “Speaking of my job, this is Vinyl Scratch. She’s the pony I’m helping.”

“Yo.” Vinyl gave the mare a wave. She was going to keep her talking to a bare minimum so she didn’t cause any trouble today. It was the least she could do for Twinkle while at his family home.

“It’s nice to meet you Vinyl. I finally get to put a face to who my son is working with!” Vinyl was surprised by the mare’s enthusiasm. From Twinkle’s initial attitude when they first met, Vinyl guessed that his whole family was uptight. Meeting his little sister a few times did nothing to help that assumption. “As you probably have guessed I’m Shining’s mother, Twilight Velvet.”

“Honey, who’s at the door?” The call came from somewhere deeper from inside the house. The voice was masculine, probably Shining’s dad figured Vinyl. He sounded almost twice as jovial as Vinyl would’ve guessed.

“It’s Shining Armor!” The mare called back as she opened the door fully and ushered the pair of white unicorns into the house. “He brought his friend Vinyl Scratch with him!” while ‘friend’ wasn’t exactly the right word, Vinyl liked it better than ‘involuntary prisoner’ plus it had at least a modicum of truth to it.

Shining and Vinyl were ushered into the living room and sat on the couch where maybe a week ago she had been lounging and drinking expensive wine. It would probably be for the best if she did not mention that. Celestia knows how that would go over,

“Shining Armor?” A stallion came from around a corner and into the living room. The light blue stallion strode into the room with a curious expression on his face. Vinyl knew at that point where Shining got his good looks from. “Now where do I know that name from? It almost sounds like the name of a pony I knew who never visited his parents…”

“Haha Dad, very funny.” Shining said, obviously finding no humor in the statement. “I’m sorry I’ve been working so hard, it’s just been a rough week.” There was no sharp sarcasm in the stallion’s speech like Vinyl was used to. There was only a sad resignation.

“I know, I know.” Shining’s father responded, pulling his only son into a hug. “You know we’re proud of you for working so hard.” The hug was much shorter than the one Shining shared with his mother, Vinyl just guessed that was a stallion thing to not like hugs. “Now let’s get down to brass tacks, son.” Vinyl felt the patriarch’s amber gaze fall squarely on her. “Why did you clone yourself? I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, but I am going to question the ethics of it all and tell you that the eyes are the wrong color.” Speaking of eyes, Vinyl was surprised that Twinkle's dad didn't bring up his son's bruised eye. Maybe he just kinda figured it had something to do with work and didn't want to ask.

“Dad, that’s Vinyl Scratch. This is my father, Night Light.” Now Vinyl knew that Twinkle was more than capable of exchanging witty jabs with ponies. Why was he being such a killjoy around his own parents?

“It’s a pleasure, VInyl.” She took the stallion’s hoof in her own and gave it a firm shake. “I’m terribly sorry for my son’s stoic countenance, it seems the guard takes a bit more than bits out of our wallets.” Vinyl cracked a smile, at which the older stallion took notice. “Aha! A smile! You can’t possibly be my son’s clone!”

“It’s really nice to meet you both.” Vinyl said, trying to keep all possible thoughts to herself. She had at least a million different things she could say to Night Light’s statements, but she was keeping every single one to herself. Twinkle owed her so much for this.

“We can’t stick around here for long. We have a meeting with Captain Galea to get to, and I’d rather do that sooner than later.” Shining trotted over to the stairs. “I just have to get something from my room and we’ll be on our way.” With that Twinkle ascended the stairs, leaving Vinyl alone with his parents.

“So Vinyl, why don’t you tell us a little about yourself?” Twilight Velvet said, a polite smile on her face. “Of course, you don’t have to if you don’t want to.” Both of Shining’s parents took a seat on a loveseat that was directly opposite the couch Vinyl was on.

“Nah, it’s cool.” She waved a hoof at the thought. She didn’t want to be rude, after all they seemed like really nice ponies. Some conversation wouldn’t hurt. “What do you want to know?” Of course, any questions she didn’t want to answer she flat-out wouldn’t. That wouldn’t change just for nice ponies.

“Well, what do you do for a living?” Night Light asked. “I’m an astronomer at the Canterlot Observatory, and my lovely Lovebird here is an author.” Vinyl just couldn’t help but smile everytime Night Light spoke. Every word was just filled with so much enthusiasm and joy that it was almost like magic.

“I work at my Uncle’s record shop downtown. In my spare time I make music, that’s sorta what I want to do professionally.” Vinyl was expecting to see two pairs of eyes rolling at her statement and getting ready to dismiss such silly dreams. Instead she was met with the same two smiling ponies.

“That’s fascinating. We don’t know many musicians.” Velvet started. “What kind of music do you play? Classical or more modern?”

“Modern.” Vinyl was starting to get into the groove of the conversation. “Don’t get me wrong, I like classical stuff but I couldn’t play a piano to save my life.” The long married couple laughed. “Mainly I focus on a lot of modern and experimental stuff like electronica and dubstep. It’s kinda where I really found my love of music.”

“I have a coworker who’s absolutely fascinated with that stuff. Believe it or not he’s got me listening to it now.” The stallion received an odd look from his wife, like she was learning something new about a subject she supposedly perfected long ago. “I know, but let me tell you that kind of music is good for dancing.”

“Honey, you’re a terrible dancer.” Velvet said, poking her husband’s chest.

“I know, that’s how catchy the music is! It even makes me dance!” The stallion turned back to Vinyl. “It’s so catchy I bet it would even make Twily break out with a little boogie fever. Let me tell you, that filly gets her dancing skills from me so that’s saying something.”

Vinyl was still stuck on the mental image of a bunch of astronomers dancing to club music. The only descriptive word she could come up with was ‘ridiculous. Most likely it was a sort of hyperbole on Night Light’s part, but it was funny nonetheless.

“I wonder what’s taking Shining so long.” Velvet said, looking to the stairs. “It’s nothing against you, Vinyl. I just thought that he would’ve been done getting what he needed by now.” Vinyl wasn’t offended, in fact now she was curious. It wasn’t like Twinkle to dawdle.

“Oh he’s probably just talking with Cadance, Velvet. You know those two, give them a minute and they’ll take an hour.” Night Light responded. ,Luckily they were both too caught up in their giggling to notice Vinyl nearly turn to stone.

What in the world was Cadance doing here?

Shining was still standing in the doorway to his room. He had been standing there for...well he didn’t know how long. As soon as he had seen the sleeping alicorn on his bed, he just hadn’t moved. The last place he expected to see Cadance after last night was in his room at his parent’s house.

His mind had already gone over the thousands of things he could say or do, yet his body remained still. He just couldn’t will himself to be physically in the same room as the Princess, it just wasn’t possible.

“Are you being creepy and watching her sleep again?” A little voice came from beside Shining, causing the stallion to nearly jump out of his armor. He looked down and saw Twilight staring up at him expectantly.

“W-what? No, I’m just…” He shook his head, abandoning that train of thought around his little sister. “What is she doing here, Twilight?” He pointed towards the sleeping mare, even though he was sure he didn’t need to.

“She was caught in the storm last night and came over to wait it out.” The filly stated flatly. “Except it only stopped raining this morning, so she stayed the night in your room.” Twilight was acting like this wasn’t a big deal and Shining didn’t know how. This was an extremely big deal. How was he supposed to get his armor polish without waking up Cadance and getting roped into a conversation that he wanted no part of right now? “Are you afraid of waking her up or something?” Shining just nodded, a little too frightened to speak. “Cadance, wake up! Shiny is here!”

Before Shining could react, the mare on the bed started to stir. He turned towards the filly who was just by him, only to be met with an empty hallway. If he ever got his hooves on her again, why he’d just-

“What…? Shining…?” He turned his attention back towards the bed, where Princess Cadance was just beginning to rouse. The lithe alicorn stretched out and opened her brilliant amethyst eyes, looking straight into Shining’s soul. “Shining!” In an instant, the alicorn bolted upright, magic spells going to work fixing her appearance.

“Hi Cadance.” Shining clenched his jaw tightly, determined not to get mired down in conversation. He had a job to do today and he would rather get through with it as soon as possible. “I just stopped by to grab something. I’m really busy and can’t waste much time.” He trotted into the room and retrieved a bottle of armor polish from his bedside drawer.

“Shining, can we talk?” Cadance’s voice broke through every defense that Shining had prepared. He expected her to be mad, he expected her to be downright devastated. He had never expected her to sound normal after last night. “I...I really need to get something off of my chest.” What was he supposed to say? ‘No’?

“Sure.” He made his way over to the bed and sat down beside Cadance. “We can talk…” He only sighed as the events of last night came crashing down upon his shoulders once more. All of the emotional weight was almost too much for him to bear.

“I want to tell you that I think you’re right. We do need time apart.” That caught him more off guard than Cadance being here. He was expecting her to beg and plead with him to get back together. “We got together when we were both young and naive, and we never really got past that. We never had time to change and grow without each other.” Shining remained silent, he was going to hear her out for what it was worth. He needed to hear this, that he was right and he did the right thing. “I think I need to learn what my powers really mean, what my true responsibilities are before there can be an ‘us’ again.”

The truth is, that making the breakup amicable changed the whole situation entirely. If they both had settled upon it being the best course of action, then it meant he wasn’t at fault. A weight lifted from his chest, the same one that had contributed to so much worry over the past few days. He had been thinking that he had broken up with her for the wrong reasons, that he had overreacted and did something rash. Some of those doubts were absolved now that Cadance admitted it was time to move on.

“I’m sorry, Cadance.” It was all he could say. He felt truly apologetic that it ended this way, that it had to end this way. Neither of them had ever meant to hurt each other, yet here they were. Both hurt and currently miserable.

“I am too.” An uncomfortable silence followed. It hung in the air, thick with ripe emotions and broken hearts. Neither of them wanted to break it, either out of fear or just wanting to enjoy each other’s company one last time. “I guess you should get going, huh? You’re busy and all…”

“Yeah.” That roused Shining to stand up and grab the bottle of polish once more. “Yeah, I’m busy. Right.” He left without saying another word, too scared of what may slip out if he tried to say more. So he left the room without looking back, he was done doing that for now. Forward was the only direction he was concerned with for now.

The guard made his way downstairs to find his parents and Vinyl laughing rather heartily. All attention found its way to him once the clinking and clanking of his armor was made known. His father turned, wiping tears from his eyes.

“Oh, Shiny you just missed Vinyl telling us the funniest story about her dating a diamond dog. Sweet Celestia, I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time.” Night Light suppressed another chuckle and got the last errant tear from his eye. “I think you have a really good friend here, Shiny.”

“Oh yes, I really wish you would’ve brought her around sooner. She’s such a delight.” His mother added, only raising suspicion from Shining. He shot Vinyl a look, as if asking ‘who are you and what have you done with Scratch?’ He only received a smile in response.

“I’m sure she is, but I’m afraid we have to go. We have important business at the castle to attend to and I would hate to be late to it.” He motioned for Vinyl to stand, which she did. “I love you both and will see you later. Bye!” Was it rude to leave in such a rush? A little. They did have urgent business to attend to, though...plus he didn’t want to stay in the same house as Cadance for much longer. It was only making him want to go up there and ask for forgiveness, to rekindle their love right then and there.

They both left the house in a blur, leaving two slightly concerned parents behind them. Shining was already heading to the castle at a brisk pace with Vinyl almost struggling to catch up. He wasn’t going to slow down, though. He just couldn’t afford to.

“Dude!” Vinyl shouted at him. “Dude! Twinkle, what is wrong with you?” Vinyl finally caught up and got ahead of him, stopping the stallion in his tracks. “Seriously, what’s up? You kinda rushed out of there like you’d seen a ghost or something.”

“We just have a lot to do today, and I wanted to get a move on.” Shining stared at her, hoping she would take the cue and not press further. He didn’t want to get into with Vinyl in the middle of Canterlot. That wouldn’t do anyone any good.

“Fine. Whatever.” Vinyl replied, huffing angrily. “If you don’t wanna talk about Cadance said to you up there, then fine. I don’t even wanna know about it.” Shining cocked his head. How did Vinyl even know Cadance was up there? He hadn’t told her.

“Listen, I’m sorry Scratch it’s just-we’ll talk about it later when we get home, alright?” Shining knew that Vinyl was probably worried, no matter how improbable that was, and that she just wanted to make sure he was okay. He reached out and placed a hoof on the smaller mare’s shoulder. “I’m fine, though. Don’t worry about it.”

“Please,” Vinyl scoffed. “you wish I was worried about you, Twinkle. I just wanted to know why we ran out so fast. I was having a nice talk with your folks and it was rude to leave that fast.” Vinyl could try to hide it as much as she wanted, but that didn’t change the fact that she really did care about Shining’s feelings. Shining knew that, after last night it had become obvious.

Thirty Minutes Later

Shining sighed. He and Vinyl had been sitting outside of Captain Galea’s office for nearly twenty minutes and they had still yet to be seen. Captain’s weren’t even supposed to be busy on Saturdays, they were mainly there to catch up on paperwork from what he knew. THis meeting should have been done by now.

“I appreciate your presence, Intrigue.” Shining’s ears perked up at the Captain’s voice coming from the other side of her office door. “It’s good to know I have the full support of your organization should I need it.”

The door opened to reveal an off white stallion with a salt and pepper mane walking in front of the Captain. He said nothing, just nodded back at the icy mare and then trotted off. Shining could’ve sworn he’d seen that pony somewhere before, he just couldn’t place it. That was going to be bugging him all day now, great.

“Guardspony Armor, Vinyl Scratch, get in here.” Shining stood without a word and quickly moved into the office, followed closely behind by Vinyl. Shining stood in the middle of the room, giving a crisp salute while Vinyl took a seat across from Galea’s own seat. “At ease, Guardspony.”Shining let the salute drop, but he did not relax. “What did you wish to speak to me about? I assume it’s important.” Secretly, Shining was relieved that Galea wasn't asking any questions about his black eye, or Vinyl's goose egg. That would've only complicated matters further.

By all accounts the light blue mare sitting on the other side of that giant oaken desk should not have been intimidating. She was smaller than most mares, and her very overall visage was very motherly and warming. It was the eyes, though. Anypony who ever encountered Galea could tell you that her eyes were a cold as a Windigo’s heart. Even now those harsh gray eyes stared directly into Shining, cutting him down before he even had any chance.

“It is important, yes.” Shining mentally steadied himself, only expecting worse after his next sentence. “I would like to request permission to take Vinyl Scratch out of Canterlot and to Ponyville where her niece resides. I think it would help improve things greatly between her an-” He never got the chance to finish because Galea held up one hoof, silencing him in an instant.

“I approve your request.” The glacially eyed mare said, surprising both of the other ponies in the room. “I want it done by Monday, though. I want you and her back in Canterlot by Monday morning before sunrise.”

Shining nearly screamed. Today had just been full of surprises.

Author's Note

I like surprises! Don't you like surprises?!

Also, your tsundere is showing, Vinyl. Might wanna cover that up.

Enjoy!

Rushing

“We are always rushing to an appointment or trying to meet a deadline.”

-Menachem Mendel Schneerson

“Okay, so we have less than forty-eight hours to get Glory, get to Ponyville, and get back home all the while meeting your niece and resolving a six year old fissure between you and your sister. Yeah, easy. Piece of cake.” Shining was panicking. Both internally and externally. He had kept it together while in Galea’s office, but as soon as they left he fell to pieces.

“You need to calm down, Twinkle!” Scratch had been trying to keep up with him, but had been teleported to his side no less than half a dozen times. He couldn’t help it, he needed to get to the train station and buy tickets! He hadn’t really stopped galloping since they exited the Palace, and he wasn’t going to stop now. “Seriously, calm down!”

“We have to get to the train station!” Shining yelled, again. It was the only response he kept giving her, because that was the only thing on his mind. Well, besides repeating the very obvious panic plan. “We have to get to the train station!”

“Shining Armor!” Somehow Vinyl finally got ahead of him, sweat plastering her mane to her face. It was at that moment that he realised that he really needed to slow down. The armor-coated stallion screeched for a halt before he could run into the very angry mare in front of him. “Slow. Down.”

“I-I…” Finally stopped, the solid ten minutes of running finally caught up to Shining. He suddenly felt the aching in his legs and the pained breaths his strained lungs were taking. He had been so panicked, he had nearly run headlong into exhaustion. “We need to…we need to get to the train station…” Even in his state of exhausted realization he was still focused on that, he had to be.

“I know.” Vinyl turned from furious to understanding in almost an instant, giving the stallion a sympathetic look. “I know what we need to do, but freaking out like this isn’t going to help anything!” Vinyl took a deep breath and moved her soaked mane out of her face. “We need to just calm down and think about this, alright? How are we going to get Glory out of her house, huh? She’s got little ones to take care of and everything, she can’t just leave!”

That was a surprisingly good point from Vinyl. How were they supposed to get Glory away from the orphanage? That was a big responsibility to shirk at the last second, something near impossible to just let go.

“I-I-oh Celestia, you’re right.” Shining came down hard. He was panicking so much he hadn’t even thought about all of the little details. How was he supposed to handle this? It was impossible. “How are we supposed to do this…?” Shining fell onto his rump unceremoniously, his armor clanking against the street.

“I don’t know,” Vinyl answered with a sigh, obviously defeated. “I’m not the one who’s supposed to have all of the ideas, Twinkle. That’s supposed to be your thing, not mine.” Vinyl leaned over and put her head on Shining’s own head. “So if you don’t have an idea, and I don’t have an idea…then I don’t know. Maybe we should just give up? Y’know, if it’s not in the cards or whatever…” Shining could practically feel the disappointment running around Vinyl’s head, and it was killing him.

This was it, this was the thing that Shining had been working towards for the last week. This could help Vinyl, this could set the record straight and lead to real healing. Now it was all just falling apart and he couldn’t do anything to stop it, and it was all because he was put on a deadline.

A stupid deadline.

“A…a deadline…” Shining shot his head up, accidentally flicking Vinyl’s horn with his own. “Ow!” He rubbed his now sore appendage as a flurry of ideas and memories flooded through his mind. “A deadline!” He knew just the pony to ask! She would help! Probably…

“What, did you get an idea?” Vinyl was rubbing her own horn, but she afforded Shining her complete attention. “Because I think we could really use one of those right about now.”

“I just-can you go get Glory? I’ll meet you there, I just have to go ask somepony for a favor.” In a flash, he undid the binding spell and stood up. “I know, I know, I’ll explain later. You just have to trust me, alright?” Vinyl looked him square in the eyes, hanging for just a second.

“Of course I trust you, Twinkle.” Another wave of relief washed over Shining. For starters: it was good to hear that he had Vinyl’s trust. She had never explicitly stated that she trusted him, so it was good to finally hear it. It meant that there was progress. That would come later, though. For now, he had a plan to go through with.

Vinyl was not happy about going to Glory’s all alone, and she wasn’t convinced that it was a good idea on Twinkle’s part. Last time he had seen her interact with the pegasus, it had ended with Vinyl knocked out and Glory clutching a sore jaw. That was before Vinyl relived the most painful memories of her life.

But Shining trusted her enough to send her out on her own. That was enough to propel Vinyl through the streets of Canterlot. All she needed was a little confidence that she could do the right thing, that she could do anything without screwing it up.

It took her less than ten minutes to make it to Glory’s home at a brisk trot. Each step brought more and more trepidation, more anxiety over what might happen. Would Glory just go with it and uproot herself for a day and a half to go to Ponyville? Would she say no? How would Vinyl take it if Glory rejected the offer? Vinyl didn’t think it would be something she would take lightly, nor kindly. She would lash out, she could feel that in the core of her being.

Vinyl stood at the foot of the stairs that led to the front door of the humble two-story home. It’s peeling veneer stood as a monument to all of Vinyl’s failings as a sister and friend, it was a physical manifestation of how Vinyl saw Glory. The thin layer of polish was being stripped away through the years, and soon it would leave an ugly cracked facade as a reminder of the care that it had been robbed of. It was all a monument to the neglect that Vinyl had afforded Glory over the years.

Guilt built in the unicorn’s stomach like a terrible ache. It settled where she could not shake it, where not even the happiest of thoughts could dislodge it. It was going to be there for a while now, and it was going to make everything a bit more difficult.

Vinyl ascended the stairs and knocked on the door lightly. There was no hesitation, just the pit in her stomach growing deeper. She waited, her eyes flitting around the porch. She was trying to find some inane object to latch onto, to hopefully take her mind off of the impending conversation.

“Vinyl…?” Her eyes shot back to the door, where Glory was standing. As soon as they made eye contact, they both looked away nervously. “Shining Armor isn’t with you, is everything alright?”

“That’s…well that’s kinda complicated, Sky.” Vinyl moved her mane out of her face. “Like, I’m fine and Twinkle’s fine but the whole situation isn’t really fine. We’re all kinda panicking right now and I was told to come get you because we really need to figure this whole thing out.” Vinyl knew that about half of what she said was nervous nonsense that didn’t make any sense, but she couldn’t really help herself.

“Vinyl, what’s going on?” The yellow pegasus leveled a look at Vinyl like a parent would their child. “What’s happened?” Vinyl bit her lip, this was going to be the moment of truth.

“Twinkle got a letter from Lily’s adopted dad…” Vinyl started with a sigh. Glory’s eyes widened and her breath seemed to catch on some invisible object in her throat. “He said we can go and see her, Sky.” Vinyl didn’t even see the hug coming, she had been looking at her hooves when the taller pegasus embraced her.

“I-I can’t believe it…” Vinyl, for the first time in a very long time, hugged her sister. It felt good, like all of the pain they had shared was momentarily absolved by the embrace. Vinyl relished in it, holding Glory as tight as she could and not letting go. For one brief moment, everything was alright between them. “We’re going to see my daughter…”

The tears that Glory shed brought the hate back to the forefront of Vinyl’s mind. The dim flame that the hug had doused came back as a raging inferno. Vinyl still thought that Glory didn’t deserve to be sad about what happened. After all the things that the pegasus did, the things she said, there was no reason she should be crying. As far as Vinyl was concerned, Glory wasn’t allowed to feel bad about this.

The flame once again died as Vinyl thought about what her anger would accomplish. The short answer was ‘nothing’. It would only lead to even more hurt feelings and probably the cancellation of the trip as a whole. Vinyl couldn’t allow that to happen, not when she was so close to seeing Lily again.

“That’s the problem.” Vinyl pulled away from the hug and shoved all of her negative emotions as deep as they could go. They weren’t going to interfere, not yet. “Because I’m bound to Twinkle, he had to ask the Captain if I could leave the city.” Vinyl saw the worried look on her sister’s face. “I mean, she said it was okay but she said we have to get it done by Monday at sunrise.”

“What?” Glory’s mouth moved, trying to find the right words, but none could be found. A few seconds of floundering, and the mare finally spoke again. “Th-that’s ridiculous! I-I can’t just leave with that short of notice. I have foals to take care of!” That was the crux of the entire problem, yeah. “Vinyl, what are we going to do?”

“Twinkle is sorting it out, alright. He said he had an idea.” Vinyl sincerely hoped that Twinkle’s idea was a good one.

Shining strode through marble hallways, turning this way and that way attempting to remember the directions to his destination. Making his way to the actual practice field would’ve been easier than finding the locker rooms where his target was residing.

“Okay, so right then left, another left and right, right?” he muttered to himself as he reached another intersection of corridors. He tapped his hoof impatiently as he mulled over his decisions. This was taking too long, far too long. He had to get back to Vinyl and get to the train station to get this all sorted out. “Argh!’ Shining slammed his hoof against the floor in a fit of rage.

“Whoa, amp down soldier.” Shining swung his head towards the voice, a scowl staying on his face. He was met with a yellow mare with a mane like a raging inferno and harsh amber eyes. She wore a towel around her barrel, and a pair of goggles resting above her eyes. “You lost?”

“Yeah…” Shining admitted begrudgingly. Like his father before him, he hated admitting fault, but at times like these he couldn’t waste a moment. “I’m looking for Soarin, security said he was in the locker room and I can’t find the locker room for the life of me.” Shining let his scowl fade and replaced it with an embarrassed smile.

“Soarin?” The mare cocked her head. “What did he do this time? Cop a feel on some little socialite?” Shining could’ve sworn he hear the mare add ‘again’ to the the end of her statement, but he wasn’t sure.

“Afraid not,” Shining retorted. “I’m actually an old friend, came to cash in a favor.” At that, the mare cracked an almost devious grin, one that made Shining Armor feel uneasy at best. “Would you happen to know where to find him Ms…?” He was hoping he could get a name to put to the grinning visage.

“Spitfire. My name’s Spitfire.” She nodded her head down the hall, towards a door with steam billowing out from it. “C’mon, I’ll show you where he is, Guard…” She trailed off, fishing for a name.

“Shining Armor, nice to meet you Spitfire.” He gave his most winning smile to the mare. “I would appreciate it if you would show me, I’m afraid this matter is urgent.” She waved him forward and he complied, starting to follow the fiery mare.

“How do you know Soarin, Shining Armor?” Spitfire questioned, her wings breaking free from the towel and shaking rivulets of water off of themselves. Shining’s eyes drifted to her wings, studying the appendages briefly. They were obviously well maintained and cared for, almost to a compulsive degree. He knew obsessively preened wings when he saw them, he had dated Cadance for long enough.

“Guard training.” Shining drew his eyes away from the mare’s wings, and to her eyes that faced straight ahead. “Soarin and I were in the same guard class together…well before he got the acceptance letter to the Wonderbolts Academy.” Shining and Soarin had made fast friends in training, and had at least tried to keep in touch over the past years.

“Soarin, a guard?” Spitfire guffawed as she stopped in front of the steaming door. “Yeah right, he has the discipline of a puppy.” The guard shrugged his shoulders. He couldn’t deny that Soarin could get a little unrestrained from time to time.

“He’s capable of control, though. Trust me, I’ve seen it.” Shining would fight for that, for the good in other ponies. Shining let the conversation drop and pointed his hoof at the door. “He’s in there?”

“Yeah, he’s showering with the others.” Spitfire rotated her wings, spreading them wide. “I had to get a wing massage, so I skipped my shower.” She pushed the door open and trotted inside. “Now you can’t exactly come in here with all that armor on, you’ll be boiled alive. Take it off and come on in.” Spitfire dropped her towel and trotted inside.

“Fine.” Shining complied and undid all of the buckles and straps of his armor with magic. The stallion placed each piece of his attire on the floor carefully. Once all of the pieces were situated, he walked into the showers.

Now the immediate problem with him in the showers was that his horn stood out amongst the sea of powerful wings. The toned and primed bodies of athletes in their peaks surrounded Shining, each one he had to try not to gawk at. Not even the guards were this physically fit, at least not in the same way.

The guards were imposing, large and bristling with pure power. The Wonderbolts were a far different beast, they were all like coiled springs. Every muscle was ready to fully extend and act to it’s fullest potential at a moment’s notice. Guards were supposed to be larger than life, they were supposed to be bigger than the rest. The Wonderbolts were downright inspiring because you could see every muscle through their skin and fur, because they were peak pony.

“Hey Soarin, I found one of your old friends!” Spitfire called out, that same cocky grin crossing her features. “He says you owe him something!” Within five seconds, a pale blue head with a wet navy blue mane popped around a corner at the far end of the showers.

“If it’s money, that’s not true!” the stallion said, wide-eyed. “My debts are p-” His eyes clicked in recognition when he saw the unicorn amidst the Wonderbolts. “Sha? No way!” The pegasus crossed the length of the showers in mere seconds, and tackled the much larger unicorn to the ground. “What’s up, man?”

“Hey Soar, nice to see you too.” The two stallions smiled as Shining lifted the pegasus off of him with magic. Soarin had always been a bit too rambunctious and…affectionate for Shining’s tastes.

“How have you bee, Sha? Sorry I haven’t been keeping in touch or anything, I officially got added to the Wonderbolts roster as a permanent member!” The pegasus’ enthusiasm and good mood was contagious, as Shining soon felt a smile akin to Soarin’s own spreading across his face.

“Congrats! That’s a pretty big deal, dude!” Shining felt proud of his old friend. In the barracks Soarin would often lament how flying was his dream, and seeing as how this was the biggest gig any Pegasus could get that pertained to flying...well, Shining was just glad to see his friend happy.

“So what’s up?” Soarin helped Shining up to his hooves. “You got something to ask me?” He looked to Spitfire. “A favor or something?” Spitfire nodded for Shining Armor, letting Soarin know the answer he was looking for.

“It’s a big one, Soarin.” Shining cast a furtive glance around the showers. “I’m on a bit of a tight schedule and need to call in...that favor.” Soarin’s eyes widened at the implications. “Yeah, that one.”

“Listen, Shining.” Soarin dropped the nickname that he had given the guard and used his formal name. A sure sign of seriousness. “I-I...are you serious right now? Like, what’s going on?” Shining didn’t like stressing out his friends, but sometimes it just had to be done.

“I’m in a bit of a bind, Soar, and I could really use your help. I just need your undivided attention up until Monday morning.” ‘Just’ was a very big word in this context, one that he hoped Soarin could get over.

“Uh, we have practice tomorrow,” Spitfire chimed in, water pouring over her form from the showers overhead. “You can’t exactly just bail on it, Soarin.”

“She’s right.” Another voice entered the fray, one that Shining immediately located. It was an older sky blue stallion with a graying mane. It was the one and only Wind Rider, current Captain of the Wonderbolts. “You can’t just leave practice, Rookie.”

“I-uh…” Shining was a little starstruck. He had never actually met Rider before, only seen posters and shows. This was the biggest celebrity that Shining had ever been around, sans the Princesses of course. “I-I would…” Shining moved his mouth, trying to find the words. “I really need the help.”

“That’s a negative, I’m afraid,” the older pegasus retorted. “I can’t have my star rookie missing out on practice a week before his first show.” Wind slapped Soarin on the back and gave a hearty laugh.

“What’s the favor?” Soarin asked, regardless of his superior's objection. Wind shot him a look of disappointment. “I’m sorry! I can’t just leave him hanging, he was one of my best friends!” Shining admired the loyalty of Soarin, it was his best quality in Shining’s eyes.

“I’m on bind duty, and I have to get my charge to Ponyville with her sister but her sister runs an orphanage and we need someone to look after the foals until Monday morning. I remembered you owed me a huge favor and that you’re the oldest of seven, so I thought you could help me.” Shining took a deep breath after rushing through his explanation.

“An orphanage?” Wind talked before Soarin could respond. Shining could practically hear the gears turning in the elder stallion’s head. “That’s a good idea, good publicity for the newest Wonderbolt.” The Captain got a wide grin on his face. “Imagine the headlines, Soarin! ‘Wonderbolt donates time to orphanage!’ Imagine the ticket sales from that!” Alright, so Wind Rider made a good point.

“What about practice?” Spitfire piped up, cutting Soarin off before he could get another word in. “You’re just going to let him skip it when the show is so close?”

“I am. I think this is a wonderful idea for Soarin and the Organization, Spitfire!” Rider approached Shining, dividing him and Soarin. “You have yourself a deal, young stallion. In return, you have season tickets in a box. My treat.” Shining stammered a thank you, unsure of what else he could say. This was generous beyond belief.

“Hold on!” Soarin shouted, drawing the attention of every Wonderbolt in the room. “I was going to agree no matter what, alright Shining?” Soarin pushed Wind Rider out of the way. “You know I could never say no to helping you, not after all you did for me.” Soarin stepped forward and held out his soaking wet hoof. “I’m not doing this because I’m told to, alright? I’m doing this because I’m your friend.”

“I get that, and I appreciate it more than you could ever know, Soar.” Shining took his friend’s hoof in his own and pulled the other stallion into a hug. “So I think we should shake a leg, bud. I’m on a bit of a tight schedule at the moment.”

“Take Spitfire with you,” Wind Rider added, drawing looks from the three younger ponies around him and mostly a glare from Spitfire herself. “Don’t give me that look, Spitfire. You saw the piece in the Gazette about the new Reserves, the ponies think you’re cold and mean. If you want any chance of getting on permanently, you have to warm up a bit.” The older stallion leaned in close to the mare, his voice low enough so that Shining could barely make out what he was saying. “This is a popularity contest, Kid. If you want to be at the top, act the part.” Shining pushed that very disturbing sentiment out of his mind for now and focused on the situation at hoof.

“Are you good with that, Sha?” Shining was glad that Soarin was back to using the nickname. It brought a small sense of comfort. “Spitfire’s a hard worker, and a good pony. Plus, the more hooves I have to help the better.” Shining mulled it over for a second. An extra set of eyes would make the situation go smoother, for sure.

“Alright.” Shining nodded. “Let’s get dried off and head out.”

Fifteen minutes later…

Shining was back in his armor with the two Wonderbolts in tow. It had taken prodding and pushing to get Spitfire out of the door, but the combined efforts of both Shining and Soarin had gotten the stubborn mare to push onward. Now they were making their way to Glory’s house on the opposite side of town.

“So what’s with the whole ‘Sha’ thing?” Spitfire broke the silence between the trio. She was the only one hovering above the street, Soarin had elected to trot alongside his friend. “It’s kind of a dumb nickname, isn’t it?”

“I just never liked saying either ‘Shining’ or ‘Shining Armor’. They were just mouthfuls.” Soarin shrugged. “I just shortened his name: Shining ‘Sh’, Armor ‘A’. Sha,” the pegasus simply stated. “Short, sweet, to the point.”

“Better than my new charge.” Shining nodded. “She calls me ‘Twinkle’.” That elicited a sharp laugh from Soarin. “I have no clue why, that’s just what she’s called me since day one.” Shining couldn’t say he hated the nickname Vinyl gave him. It was a term of endearment in his eyes, a little like ‘Sha’.

“Why don’t you tell me about her, your charge.” Soarin nudged Shining with his wing. “Is she attractive? Is she single?” Of course, that was the first thing that went through Soarin’s mind. He sure had a one-track mind sometimes.

“Really? You ask them in that order?” Spitfire scoffed at her teammate. “Other way around sounds a lot less creepy, Soarin.” Soarin and Shining largely ignored Spitfire’s objection and went on with their conversation.

“To answer your questions in no particular order; Yes and maybe. I’ll let you figure out which is which.” Soarin hit Shining with his wing hard enough to make a loud ‘smack’. “Alright, Soar. Her name’s Vinyl Scratch, she’s a bit of a rebel but she has a good heart.”

“You think everyone has a good heart,” Soarin shot back at Shining, to which Shining only shrugged.

“It’s my curse,” the guard replied. After that, there was a bit of a lull in the conversation as they progressed towards Glory’s. It was just nice to be in Soarin’s presence again, it was warm and full of unbridled friendship. They had never ended it poorly or shared harsh words, they had simply gone their own ways, no matter how much they wanted to stay friends.

“How does Cadance feel about you spending your time around another mare?” A sly grin crossed Soarin’s face, one that contrasted Shining’s frown perfectly. Soarin picked up on it and prodded the still-open wound. “Uhh…you’re still with Cadance, right?” Shining’s frown deepened. “Dude, what happened?!”

“Okay, hold on,” Spitfire butted in from above. “You don’t mean Princess Cadance, right?” Soarin nodded. “No way, no way in Tartarus! I knew you looked familiar! I’ve seen you in papers before.” Shining rolled his eyes. If Spitfire considered tabloids genuine ‘papers’, then he wept for her current events knowledge.

“I don’t want to talk about it, alright?” Shining fired at the both of them rather sharply. “We split, it was mutual and hard and I don’t want to talk about it.” The pegasi that joined him both closed their mouths as they flew on in silence.

“Remind me to buy you a drink when you’re done with this bind duty, huh?” Soarin broke the silence first. “Or maybe three or four drinks.” Shining chuckled at that.

“Sheesh, get a room you two,” Spitfire chimed in from above once more. Shining laughed at the sentiment, but he also saw a slight blush across Soarin’s cheeks. Yeah, it was no secret to Shining that Soarin had a little bit of a crush on him. It was fine, they had discussed it over a few drinks more than a couple of times. It was just a thing that didn’t matter to their friendship in the end, just some side business they squared away.

“Here, it’s right up ahead.” Shining redirected the conversation, pointing a hoof to the two-story house just up the road. “Scratch and Glory will be waiting for us.”

That was actually a comforting thought now that he had an old friend at his side. Even after the rushing and initial panic of today, things were looking up for now. Heck, Shining was even starting to think that this whole situation was going to end well.

“What a dangerous thought,” Shining mumbled as they made their way to the house.

[Interlude] The Favor

“We secure our friends not by accepting favors but by doing them.”

-Thucydides

4 Years Ago

Snow drifted down from heavy gray clouds, coating the streets of Canterlot in a thick layer of ice. Ponies were staying inside, huddled by their fires and sharing time with their loved ones in order to pass the storm outside. It was a perfect winter day for foals and families alike, one of the rare winter storms that brought ponies together.

Even the palace grounds were all but vacated for the day. Staff were off at their homes, getting ready for Hearth’s Warming morning that was merely a day away. The guards were also among the staff that had been given leave, all but the royalty’s personal guard details and two very unlucky trainees that were snowed in at the barracks.

“This sucks,” one of the two trainees lamented, setting his plumed helmet down by the nearby hearth and putting a few logs on inside of the stone enclosure. “Can you believe they literally made us draw straws for this, Soar?” The unicorn took up a match and struck it against the stone, a brilliant flame jumping to life on the tip. “I mean, how clichéed can you get?”

“Yeah…” The pegasus he was speaking to was trudging in through the door, snow covering his armor in a thin layer of powder. The pegasus, Soarin, kicked off his armor piece by piece until all he had left was his helmet. He let that piece fall to the ground as he lowered his head.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen it this cold or snowy before,” the unicorn, Shining Armor, commented as he put the match to the kindling beneath the logs. The fire caught, spreading to the rest of the kindling in seconds. It would take a few minutes for the logs themselves to catch, but it would be worth it in the end. “Does it ever get this bad in Cloudsdale?” Shining was going to keep trying to engage Soarin, no matter how disinterested and downtrodden the pegasus seemed.

“Not really…” the pegasus grumbled as he wormed his way underneath the covers of his bunk. Shining turned his head back in time to see the stallion’s head poke out from underneath, looking at the growing fire in front of him. “Clouds are sorta below us and whatever…”

Shining turned back to the fire, tending it carefully and helping it grow stronger with a little magical assistance. The unicorn’s face contorted into a worried state over his friend’s melancholy. The pegasus was usually so bubbly and ecstatic, so seeing him so downtrodden was not a very exciting thing.

“Are you alright, Soar?” Shining turned around fully so he could face his friend head-on. “I mean, I know we’re alone here for a few days but I thought since we’re friends that’d make it a bit easier.” Shining didn’t want to see his friend disparaged over the holidays. It was the worst time to be depressed.

“No,” Soarin admitted, laying his ears flat against his head as he spoke. The pale blue stallion buried his muzzle in the crook of his foreleg, muffling his voice. “No, I’m not alright.” Shining stood up from his kneeling position and undid his chilled gold armor. He wasn’t going to speak to Soarin as a guard now, but as a friend.

“Wanna talk about it?” Shining walked the few steps over to his friend’s bed, hopping up on the stiff mattress and putting a hoof on the pegasus’ back. “Because there’s not much else we can really do except talk at the moment.” Shining chuckled nervously, not sure if his attempt at levity would liven his friend’s mood.

Soarin sighed heavily and reached a hoof underneath his mattress. He rummaged around a bit until he found what he was looking for. A small greeting card was produced from underneath the bed, one that had a very large, but happy family all in Hearth’s Warming attire smiling to the camera. Shining took the offered photograph and studied it.

Eight similarly-colored pegasi were in front of a festively decorated fireplace, each of them wearing red hearth’s warming caps. The oldest pegasi were in the back, easily in their mid forties, the rest looked like they ranged between less than a year old to their late teens. Shining couldn’t help but notice that there was a spot open in the back, where somepony was missing from this picture.

“Your family?” The unicorn guard asked quietly. Shining could see why Soarin would be upset, being away from family during the holidays was rough. Even he missed his folks and little sister right about now.

“Yeah…” Soarin replied, taking the picture back and resting his hoof on it delicately. “The youngest, the twins, it’s their first Hearth’s Warming. I was always there for the others, y’know?” Shining could see tears start to form in the pegasus’ eyes. “I’ve been around for every other hearth’s warming except this one…”

“I’m sorry.” What else could Shining say? He knew what it was like to care about family so much that it hurt to let them down. Right now Twilight was probably eagerly waiting at the door for her big brother to come home so they could open presents together in the morning. That hurt Shining more than he thought possible.

Silence washed over the room for a few minutes. The stallions both brooded over their missing family time and shirked personal responsibilities. It was a heavy silence, permeated by the crackling of the nearby fire.

“I think I might be able to cheer you up.” Shining spoke up, his horn flaring to life in an instant. “Maybe not all the way, but at least a little.” A small box came out from underneath his own bunk across the room and levitated over to the pair. “I was going to wait until morning, but I figured now is just as good as then.” He held out the wrapped box to the pegasus. “Happy Hearth’s Warming, Soar.”

“You didn’t have to do this, Sha,” Soarin said as he took the gift in his hooves. Shining waved the sentiment off, urging Soarin to unwrap his gift. The pegasus obliged, tearing the colorful paper free from the box and flipping the lid off of the rather plain box. His eyes lit up once he saw what was inside. “No way!”

“Yep.” Shining smiled as Soarin pulled out the brilliant blue hoodie, a gold lightning bolt streaked its way down the side of the garment leading directly to Soarin’s cutie mark. The topper was that Soarin’s name was emblazoned on the back in bold letters. “One custom Wonderbolts hoodie, like you said you wanted.”

“Dude, do you know how much these cost?” Soarin asked, his eyes still wide as he studied the hooded sweatshirt. He was particularly fascinated with his name and cutie mark, running his hooves over them several times. “I-I can’t accept this.”

“Well alright, I guess I’ll just give it to another Soarin with the same cutie mark.” Shining lobbed the words at his friend sarcastically. “C’mon Soar, it’s no big deal. It’s not like I was using the bits for anything. I live at home, for Celestia’s sake.”

“I-I didn’t get you anything,” Soarin rebutted, pulling the hoodie over his body. Shining waited until his pale head poked through the hood until he spoke again.

“You don’t have to. That’s what the season is about, right? Giving without expecting anything in return?” Before he could add a friendly smile or any more words, he was enveloped in a warm hug.

“Thank you, Shining,” Soarin said, squeezing Shining a little harder as he did. The stallion pulled away from the unicorn. “You’re way too nice for your own good, you know that?”

“I’ve been told that a few times, yeah.” Shining grinned and put a hoof on his friend’s back. “So let me be a little nicer, huh?” Soarin cocked his head to the side, a confused expression crossing his visage. “Go home, see your family.” Shining was going to regret that one way or another, and he knew it.

“What? J-just abandon my post and leave you here alone? I couldn’t do that.” Soarin was standing on his bed now, looking down at Shining. “I can’t do that.” Okay, sure, it was against every rule in the guard’s handbook, but some matters went beyond the scope of the handbook and rules. Some things had to be dealt with by following your heart, not rules.

“You can, and you should,” Shining replied. “I’ll be fine here, it’s not like I don’t have the military history exam to study for. And hey, when the CO comes in tomorrow afternoon and you aren’t back, I’ll tell him you were out on patrol.” Shining stood up and gestured towards the door. “C’mon, I’m sure the twins are dying to see their big brother on Hearth’s Warming Eve.”

“You’re sure about this…?”

“One-hundred and ten percent, Soar.” Shining nodded and smiled. “Now go on, it’s not a long flight to your house, but the storm might slow you down.”

“Thank you.” Shining was pulled into another hug. “I owe you one, like a big one for this.” A small kiss was placed upon his cheek, something that caught the unicorn guard off. “Yeah, I owe you for that too. Just had to, sorry.”

“It’s alright, just get going.” Shining let the hug end and gave Soarin a gentle push towards the door. “Oh, and trust me, I’ll cash in that favor someday.” Shining went over to the fireplace and put another log onto the only source of warmth in the barracks.

“It better be one hell of a favor, I mean a big one!” Soarin shouted as he sped past the rows of beds.

“Oh it will be.” Shining hollered back as the door slammed shut, leaving him truly alone on Hearth’s Warming.

“Worth it.” Shining said to himself as he adjusted the log so it would catch a bit faster. “Totally worth it.”

“So yeah, he owed me a favor.” Twinkle and Vinyl were packing suitcases in Vinyl’s apartment, Glory standing at the doorway waiting for them. “I had really just been waiting to cash it in, now seemed like a good opportunity.

“So you’ve always been a goody-four-shoes, huh Twinkle?” Vinyl responded with a chuckle. “And a colt cuddler on the side to boot. Color me surprised.” Vinyl saw the little blush erupt on Shining’s face. She was going to capitalize on the opportunity to rib on him a little, but they were on a timetable.

“Shut up, Scratch,” replied the very flustered Shining Armor. “Now hurry up, we have a train to catch.”

Author's Note

Okay, so this story is about to get really heavy and really busy really quick. I know the last interlude wasn't too long ago, but trust me when I say you're going to need something a little light-hearted to help with the coming events.

Also, I wanted to delve into the favor that Soarin owed Shining and didn't want to do it in a super-short one-shot.

ENJOY!

Locomotion

“No man can be ideally successful until he has found his place. Like a locomotive he is strong on the track, but weak anywhere else.”

-Orison Swett Marden

Shining, Vinyl, and Glory all three let out the largest sighs of their collectives lives as they finally sat down on the train. The trio all seemed to sink into the plush seats of their personal compartment and deflate into a slightly more relaxed state.

“The hard part is over, thank Celestia.” Shining said as he took off his helmet and sat it on the seat beside him. Scratch and Glory were sitting side by side in the seat across from the guard, both looking uncomfortable that they were so close together. “Now the easy part: going to Ponyville and meeting Lily.”

“‘Easy part’ Sure.” Vinyl put her hooves up in air quotes around the first part of her sentence. Sarcasm was a good sign in Shining’s eyes, it meant she cared enough not to completely lock up.

“Easier than running around Canterlot calling in favors.” Shining amended his statement. “So, physically easier. Not so much emotionally.” He knew that there would be some, if not a lot, of tears being shed in the coming days. That wasn’t his part to deal with, though. Shining had gotten them both on the right track, now Sky and Scratch had to do their part.

“I still want to say thank you, Shining Armor.” Glory sat up straight, smoothing a few of her feathers with a hoof. “I don’t think any of this would be possible without you.” While Glory smiled, Vinyl looked relatively displeased.

“We never really tried…” The stark white mare added. “I mean, it’s not like either of us ever bothered to look for her or anything.” That impacted Glory’s smile, turning it into a desolate sadness. Shining only furrowed his brow in response.

E-either way…” Glory stammered out, trying to force back whatever negative emotions plagued her. “Thank you, Shining. We both appreciate it more than you could ever know.” The pegasus’ shaky smile returned.

“Just doing my job, Sky.” Shining responded with a smile. He was going to stay out of any possible altercations that Scratch might start with Sky. The last thing he wanted to do was to start in with Scratch and have to use the failsafe on her. That would leave them all in a rotten mood. If the situation arose, he would be the one to bring it all to a halt.

“Mighty fine job it is, Twinkle.” Shining didn’t know if there was any sarcasm in Scratch’s voice. He didn’t detect any hint of it, but he didn’t feel that Scratch’s words were genuine. It was the first time in quite awhile where he felt that Scratch wasn’t being outwardly honest with him.

“Vinyl, be nice. Shining Armor is doing us a favor as a family.” Glory reprimanded her sister with a slight tap on the shoulder. “The least you could do is stop with the sarcasm.” While Shining appreciated Sky’s words, he wasn’t sure it was the best idea to scold Vinyl. While he could get away with it, he wasn’t so sure that Scratch would let Sky slide so easily.

“You’re going to lecture me on family? That’s rich.” It was barely more than a mumble, but Shining heard it. He closed his eyes and sent up a prayer to whoever would listen that this would go no further.

Something happened, something tremendously unexpected. Instead of turning away and taking the insult like he thought she would, Sky furrowed her eyebrows and hardened her gaze. Shining’s prayer went unanswered and Glory opened her mouth.

“I am sick and tired of your mouth, Vinyl Scratch.” Full name did not bode well, and neither did the very cold tone that Sky adopted. “I have been nothing but understanding for so long. I-I have let you get mad at me and berate me and I’ve stayed quiet. I’ve been your whipping mare for too long!” Even Vinyl was shocked, as the unicorn’s eyes were widened and jaw slack. “If you would’ve just talked to me sooner, if you would’ve just forgiven me we could’ve moved on from this!”

Shining had to hold his breath, he was too afraid that even the slightest inhale of the dense tenseness in the atmosphere might suffocate him. It was terrifying to see the wheels in Vinyl’s head begin to turn, like the great flames of hate were being stoked and the machine that was Vinyl’s temper was starting to come to life.

“You think it’s just that easy?” Vinyl’s words started calmly, signalling that the storm had not even begun. “You think I can just forgive you? That I can just put what you did aside and say it’s okay? No.” Vinyl shook her head, her magenta eyes igniting with an intense inferno. “No, you don’t get to pin this on me!”

“It’s been six years, Vinyl! Six! Years!” Glory shot back at her sister. “You weren’t in my shoes, you didn’t know what I was going through!” Shining was looking on, monitoring the situation for any signs of escalation. He would let a shouting match slide, it had to be cathartic for both of them.

“I was right there by your side the entire time, Sky!” Vinyl put her front hooves to her temples and applied pressure, like she was trying to suppress a terrible headache. “I was there for you at night when you cried about Rusty not being there, I was there for every mood swing and every craving! Every bucking contraction and push, I was there by your side!” Vinyl stood up, slamming her hooves against the floor of the carriage. “Then what do you do? You leave a defenseless foal out in the middle of nowhere, not caring what happened to her! What if she had died, Sky? Huh? What if she had died instead of being adopted?” Vinyl’s voice dropped to a low growl. “Because I’ve been thinking about that every day for the last six years…”

“You weren’t there when I needed you most! When I was alone in the hospital with a newborn foal, you were out cavorting with your hooligan boyfriend!” Tears started to flow from Glory’s eyes. “I didn’t know if I could love her the way she needed to be loved, Vinyl. I didn’t think I could do it. I’d never known how to love something, not like that.”

“You never loved me?” The question cut through the somber tone like a hot knife. Glory’s breath hitched and quiet tears of fury rolled down Vinyl’s cheeks. “You never loved mom? Dad? They meant absolutely nothing to you?”

“Vinyl, that love is different from the love of a mother.” Sky replied weakly, her wings drooping to her sides and the fight leaving the pegasus.

“How would you know? It’s not like you ever loved the foal in the first place.” Sky opened her mouth but Vinyl cut her off. “Don’t give me the spiel about the orphanage, either. That’s just some sick stab at punishment that you’ve done to yourself, Sky. I know everypony else sees you as some champion of the orphans, as a good pony.” The next words came out as a meer snarl, slithering their way through Vinyl’s lips and across the cabin. “You’re just a fraud looking for repentance.”

“Alright Scratch, that’s enough.” Shining stood up. That’s as far as he was going to let this go. He could let her get away with calling her out on legitimate things, but devaluing Glory’s charity work was another thing entirely. It was uncalled for and rude. “Take a walk.”

“Twinkle.” Vinyl growled and lowered her stance.

“You’ve seen the way this ends, Scratch.” Shining lowered his harshest glare and the mare. “Take. A. Walk.” there was a stalemate of stares for a few moments until Vinyl finally backed down and trotted out of their compartment, slamming the door behind her. Shining let loose a sigh of relief and sat back down. He trusted that Vinyl wouldn't act out against anypony else on the train, she would just silently until he went and talked to her.

“That felt good…” Glory stated, her ears laid flat against her head. “Celestia, that felt so good…” Shining reached out and put a hoof on her shoulder. The pegasus raised her head, tears still falling across her daisy cheeks.

“Are you okay?” It was a question that Shining had gotten almost too used to asking ponies lately. It was starting to lose a little meaning to him, not that what it meant to him really mattered. It was the pony that being asked that needed to find meaning in the question.

“I don’t know.” Glory replied, her eyes searching his own for some sort of assurance. It wasn’t something that Shining could exactly give out. “I-can you go talk to Vinyl? I don’t want her to be alone...” Shining had to admire that even after all of the yelling and accusations she was still worried about Vinyl. That was true family, and he admired that. If it wasn’t his job to make sure that Vinyl was alright, he would go just for Glory’s sake.

In the end, it was his job. Either way he was destined to go find Vinyl and make sure she didn’t do something rash. The guard stood and nodded to Glory and exited the compartment. He looked each direction and saw a slightly ajar door at the end of the car leading to the next one. That was the only lead he had, so he took it.

Lo and behold, standing on just outside of the door and leaning on a very thin metal railing was Vinyl Scratch. She was watching the railroad ties pass underneath the train and watching the hitch between the cars jiggle and jangle as the locomotive made its way across the Equestrian landscape.

“Scratch!” Shining had to yell over the sound of the train’s rhythmic rolling on the tracks. He could barely hear himself think, let alone even hope to have a decent conversation with Vinyl out here. That was proven when Vinyl responded to him, but he couldn’t hear a single word she said. He assumed, with startling accuracy, that it amounted to ‘go away, Twinkle.’

Shining fired up his horn and a bright pink bubble materialized around the pair of ponies. It was a modified protection spell infused with a soundproofing spell that he had picked up while he was a teen for...various reasons. It was enough to block out all of the raucous that the train was causing and replacing it with an intense silence that was only marred by the shaking platform they stood on.

“Neat trick.” Vinyl commented, not taking her eyes from some point in the distance. Shining sidled up beside her, resting his head on the constantly jittering railing. He wasn’t really feeling like fighting her or her attitude today. He just wanted to go to Ponyville and get the reunion going, that would be the thing that could get some good feelings going. That’s all he wanted, a bit of positive emotions in the air.

“It’d be useful if you knew a few tricks, like getting along with Glory.” He wasn’t going to prod her or ask her how she was feeling and try to get at her the long way, he was just going to go for it. He was too exasperated to continue the runaround with Scratch.

“This is what we’re going to do? We’re going to fight?” Scratch rested her head beside his own and closed her eyes. “I know you don’t get it, but sometimes you just have to let me be angry, alright?” Shining looked over at her, trying to catch a glimpse at whatever Vinyl was really feeling. “Alright?” Vinyl asked again, a bit more insistence in her tone than before.

“No.” Shining responded with a sigh. “It’s not alright. I can’t have you just going around being angry all the time.” How in Equestria could he communicate his own frustrations to Vinyl without also making her upset? “I know I don’t understand everything you’re feeling, it’s impossible for me to even come close to knowing how any of this feels.” Admitting his ignorance might be his only way through, if she knew he was wrong it might make her less volatile. “So explain it to me, please.”

There was a tense moment of silence, one punctuated only by slow breaths and chins rattling against a metal bar. He was hoping that whatever bond he had formed with Vinyl was enough to make her see that he only wanted to help.

“You ever have bad dreams, Twinkle?” A simple question, one that hid true intentions and deeper meaning. He would go along with it, for now.

“Of course I have, Scratch.” Off the top of his head he could think of a recurring nightmare, one of dancing shadows and emerald flames. It had been something he had tried so hard to get past, but it was out of his control.

“That’s been my life for the past six years...a bad dream.” Vinyl lifted her head from the railing and opened her eyes. “It’s like I went to sleep and I just haven’t been able to wake up. First my parents died, then Glory’s foal...then I just kept sleeping.” It was one of the realest and most genuine moments that Shining had ever heard come from Vinyl. It was even a little profound. “I slept through six years, numbed by a bunch of drinks and a lot of hate.” Vinyl sighed again and closed her eyes once more. “I-I tried a few times to make things better. I went on dates and tried to talk to Sky. I tried to live...but each time it just made me more and more tired. Each time I just failed and wanted to sleep.”

“Why Glory, though?” That was the focus of the problem right now. That’s the problem he wanted to get to the heart of. “She’s admitted to her wrongdoings, she’s tried to make up for it.” He was hoping that Vinyl would not snap and yell, just that she would explain. That’s all he needed, an explanation.

“Yeah.” Vinyl chuckled, a sinister undertone permeating the action. “How did she make up for it? Helping orphans? Like I said back there-” She pointed a hoof accusingly towards the car where Glory was sitting. “-that’s her trying to seek her own forgiveness. She’s not doing it to actually help, she’s just trying to make herself feel better about what she did.” The fire was back in Vinyl’s eyes, the one that he hated with all of his being. It meant nothing but trouble. ”Why didn’t she ever try to find her daughter, huh? Why did she drop off a defenseless foal in the middle of nowhere? Because she’s a good pony? Because she was scared? Good ponies don’t just do bad things like that.”

“You’ve done some things good ponies wouldn’t do.” Shining kept his voice soft and caring. He didn’t want to be condescending, he wasn’t even trying to be. He just wanted to show VInyl that she and Glory were no different.

“I’m not a good pony, Twinkle. I never claimed to be.” Vinyl retorted sourly.

“I think you are.” Shining replied, standing up and facing his friend. “Like Glory, you’re just a good pony who did bad things for complicated reasons.” Shining knew a thing or two about morality and the difference between good and evil. Comic books had taught him, sure. But that didn’t make the lessons any less valuable.

“Some ponies don’t get a pass, Twinkle! They don’t get to get off that easily!” Now Vinyl was mad, and Shining was in a tough spot. “You and everypony else seems to think that what she did is no big deal, that she did it because she was sad or whatever. She put an innocent life in danger, Shining!” Vinyl stepped closer, pleading with Shining at this point. “Wh-what if there was a storm planned that night? What if the pegasi pushed a cold front through? What if some wild animal was near? What if Lily died that night, Shining?” Tears were welling up in Vinyl’s eyes and her knees were knocking together. He wanted to pull her into a hug for some reason, to let her know that it was all okay. “That’s been my nightmare for six years, Shining! Now I feel like I’m finally about to wake up, and Sky can’t even admit what she did was wrong! I don’t want to fail again.” Her voice dropped to a near whisper. “I don’t want to feel tired anymore.”

“You don’t have to.” Shining reached out and put a hoof on Vinyl’s shoulder. “I’m here to help you move past all of this. Consider me your wake up call.” He added a little smirk to his statement, trying to inject a bit of their humor into the proceedings. “I just need you to try and put your feelings aside for one day, Scratch. One day of cooperation and we can start you and Glory on a better path.” The look he received from Vinyl let him know that the outcome he proposed was not one she liked all that much. “I’m not saying it will make everything better overnight or heal things completely, but I think it will help.” He gave her his winning smile to let her know he was being genuine. “We just need to stay on track, yeah?”

“Yeah.” Vinyl responded. “Stay on track.”

“C’mon, let’s go back inside. We’re almost to Ponyville, I think.”

Author's Note

The short story, in this chapter and in my recent life is 'depression is a bitch'.

Sorry for the delays, I'll try to keep 'em coming.

Enjoy.

Reunion

“Every parting is a form of death, as every reunion is a type of heaven.”

-Tryon Edwards

“What a quaint little town.” Vinyl couldn’t help but agree with Sky’s statement. The little thatched-roof cottages and clear blue skies filled with pegasi flitting about made the little village feel almost idyllic. In a way, she could see herself settling down somewhere like here at some point in the future.

“I prefer the city,” Shining said as he looked around, a slight grimace on his face. “It’s too quiet, not enough going on.” Vinyl thought that Twinkle would appreciate a lighter workload than he had in Canterlot, that he would admire the relative serenity of a small town. Then again, he was a bit of a workaholic. He always seemed like he needed a project to focus on or something to do.

“Not enough dark alleys to skulk around in, Twinkle? You need a shady character to tail?” Vinyl ribbed the guard a little, it was a good way to return to form after her little episode on the train.

“I just prefer my environments a bit more active than this.” Shining trotted forward and the two mares followed. “I have to check in with the Mayor before we go see Cedar.” Vinyl shot him a look, she wasn’t too keen on waiting. Apparently he had eyes in the back of his helmet, because he responded to her worries pretty quickly. “It’s procedure, if an on-duty guard goes into a town where they aren’t stationed, they have to check in with local leaders and explain their presence. Otherwise ponies might panic.”

Vinyl saw the ponies of the town out of the corner of her eye, they were definitely giving the trio a wide berth and wary glances. It was weird thinking that these ponies weren’t used to seeing a guard, a truly foreign thought to Vinyl. Guards were, especially now, an integral part of her life.

“Why don’t you go do that and give me and Sky the address?” No offense to the Mayor of Ponyville, but Vinyl was not to keen on spending time in a small office in the middle of a town in the middle of nowhere. “It’ll save us all a little time.”

“I’m not leaving you two alone.” Twinkle stood firm, his brow creased in defiance. “For this whole trip, you’re both staying in my sight. No exceptions.” Out came the inner authoritarian in Twinkle, the true form of the guard. “I’ll make it quick, then we’ll go see Cedar and get this reunion on the road.”

“It’s fine. A little while longer won’t hurt,” Glory chimed in with a smile, just like always. “Let’s make sure we do this right, not rushed.” Now, if Vinyl had this trip her way Glory wouldn’t be talking right now, in fact she wouldn’t talk for this whole trip.

“Yeah, alright. Let’s get that over with then.” Vinyl pulled her bag up in front of her and fished her tinted sunglasses from the pockets. They weren’t for the sun today, they were to hide the ever-increasing knitting of her brows and the irritation that would be visible on her face otherwise.

The trio of ponies continued through the town. Twinkle was the one leading, with Vinyl at his side and Glory trailing behind them both. In a better time, a better world even, Vinyl would be coming here for a weekend trip of relaxation from some boring normal job. Maybe she would be coming here with Glory and Lily and without Twinkle.

Something tugged at her heartstrings with that thought. It wasn’t a sense of longing like she had hoped, but a sense of undeniable sadness. She thought that even an inkling of a more normal life would bring a fluttering sense of hope. What was it that caused the sense of loss in that happy thought?

Her eyes were drawn to the statuesque guard at her side, and the various feelings his presence conjured. Their relationship, while strained at the beginning, had grown into a very complicated affair. They had been at each other’s throats a few times, but they had also been there for each other when they needed it most. They had shared in pain, from reliving her own painful memories to being in the same room when Shining had given up his love.

They were tied together through pain, now. They had shared in it, comforted each other and offered kind words and open hearts when the other needed it most. It was something that allowed her to see Twinkle as something more than just a guard, it let her see him as a true pony, even as a friend.

Hell, it felt like he was the only real friend that Vinyl had had in a long time. Since Glory, at least. He was the only pony who had gone out of his way to care about her, to ask about her life and actively try to help her. Sure, he was being paid to do it as part of his work but now it seemed like it was more personal, like he genuinely wanted to help out of the kindness of his heart.

It was infuriating.

For years she had tried not to let anypony get too close. Even those few ponies she had tried to date, those that had gotten far enough had never been let in on her more personal matters. So this guard shows up because the government said she needed to be helped, he worms his way into her life and dredges up old memories.

But she just couldn’t hate Twinkle. No matter how hard she tried, no matter how much she tried to think about all of the stuff he stirred up…she just couldn’t hate him. They were too close now, she had seen him in his most equine moments. She had seen him in pain and hurting, and she couldn’t put out of her head just how easily he had pushed it aside for her sake.

“Not much of a town hall, huh?” They were now standing in front of a circular three story building. It was simple and wooden in its construction, humble just like the structures around it. “This is a guest home in Canterlot at best.” Well, the Canterlot elitism wasn’t going to help anything. It wasn’t very becoming of Shining Armor, but she supposed some things never changed among Canterlot ponies even if they were decent ponies.

“I like it, it’s simple,” Glory chimed in, much to Vinyl’s chagrin. “It’s just right for the town.” A few seconds of silence followed, then Glory spoke up again. “So you just go in there and talk to the Mayor and we’re good to go?”

“Yeah.” Twinkle looked at them both, his gaze trying to discern some unknown meaning. “Look, if I leave you two alone for like five minutes will you be alright? I’m sure you don’t want to come into some politician’s office just to hear me talk, so I want to know if I can trust you two alone.”

“Yeah, we’ll be good,” Vinyl responded, talking for the first time in what seemed like forever. “Go do your thing, Twinkle.” Vinyl propped herself up against one of the wooden supports outside of the rotund building. The guard started towards the door, but stopped himself to look back at the two mares.

“We’ll be fine, Shining.” Glory put a hoof on Shining’s shoulder and gave him a smile. “You go ahead. We’ll be right here.” That seemed to calm him, because the guard went into the building and left the sisters alone together.

Minutes passed in uncomfortable silence before Glory broke it. Vinyl was happy to just sit and ponywatch the time away, but it seemed that the pegasus had other ideas.

“Why do you call him ‘Twinkle’, Vinyl?” That was honestly the last question that Vinyl expected. With everything that was about to happen, she asks a question about nicknames? Nothing about what Lily might think, how they might approach this or anything?

“It’s a nickname, Sky. I don’t need a reason.” Vinyl shot a glance at Glory, who was just standing on the steps of the building nervously fluttering her wings. “I just came up with it to get under his skin.” Vinyl rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath. “Kinda didn’t work…” Evidenced by the fact that Twinkle was still around and helping.

“Well I think it’s cute,” Glory said with a smile, that irritating smile. “Like a little pet name you would give your coltfriend.” Glory was just trying to get a rise out of Vinyl now, and Vinyl knew it. That did not stop Vinyl from responding.

“Are you being serious right now? I mean, Twinkle is Twinkle. He’s a huge nerd who wears armor.” Vinyl pushed herself off of the support that she had been leaning on. “I mean, sure he’s helped me a lot but he’s a friend. Just a friend.” Vinyl leveled a glare at her sister, which was quite ineffective given it was hidden behind her overly large sunglasses.

“I’m not trying to tease, Vinyl. I was just observing that you two are close...closer than anypony else is with you. One could…” Glory searched for words. “...construe certain things from an outside point of view.” Glory lowered her voice just enough so that Vinyl could barely make out her words. “Not a bad thing, either.”

“Listen-” Vinyl started, only to be cut off by a door opening. Out of it, came Shining Armor carrying a few pieces of official looking paper. Vinyl saw her out and took it, glad to be done with the matter. “-How’d it go in there, Twinkle? We good?” She might talk to Glory about this later, that depended on what happened in the next few hours.

“Yeah, the mayor was pretty understanding. He wished us luck and even comped us a room at a local hotel.” He held up the pieces of paper. “Official statement that he’s covering the charges. I just have to give them to the owner and they’ll take care of the rest.”

“Really? That was awful nice of him.” Glory commented, looking up at one of the upper windows of the building. An older pony with a slicked back gray mane, a bushy silver mustache, and a warm smile was standing at the window. He raised a hoof and waved to the group, which all three of them returned. “What’s his name? I should send him a letter when I get back home.”

“Mayor Rich. Stinking Rich, I think was his full name.” Shining seemed to have mixed feelings about the pony’s name based on his tone. Vinyl wasn’t going to give the Mayor any flak, though. He did them all a favor, and that earned him a good spot in her book.

“Well let’s just hope Mayor Rich gave us a hotel room with a stocked minifridge, huh?” Vinyl nudged Twinkle with her hoof. “Celestia knows we’ll all need it after today.” Vinyl’s joke about alcoholism didn’t go over too well, seeing as how she was met with a stifling silence. “Whatever, let’s just get going.”

“Yeah, I think it’s about time to get this show on the road,” Twinkle conceded and began walking. “We’ll drop our stuff off at the hotel after we see Lily. I’d rather not delay this any longer.” Vinyl agreed and started after the guard, Glory bringing up the rear of the group once more.

The walk across town and to the home of Cedar Mulch was a short one. Five minutes at most. But to Vinyl it felt like a lifetime. After all, this was the culmination of six years of a lot of pain and searching. The conclusion to so much strife and turmoil all hinged on the coming hours.

It was almost too much.

Almost.

Vinyl was going to tough all of this out for her own well-being and nothing else. Not even for Twinkle’s approval or Sky’s peace of mind. This was about her and her own feelings now. Nothing could change that now.

The home of Cedar Mulch was a lovely little thing. Thatched roof standard, sure but it was the landscaping that made the house pop. Various flowers of all colors of the rainbow sprung to life beneath windows and in little fenced off sections in the small area around the house. Two bushes were trimmed expertly to connect in an archway that surrounded the front door of the abode. All in all, it looked like a gardener’s paradise, no surprise there given the stallion’s name.

“Nice house,” Twinkle commented as he walked up to the door. Vinyl removed her sunglasses, shared a nervous look with Sky and then promptly followed Twinkle up to the door. The guard knocked on the door exactly twice, both sounds sharp and deafening. In fact, the act was near frightening for Vinyl. This was it.

The moment was finally here.

“Shining Armor, I suppose?” A dark green stallion with a shaggy brown mane opened the door, and studied the trio. He didn’t look but ten years older than Vinyl, but the weight of those years showed heavily on his face. Specifically the bags under his eyes and slight wrinkles forming at the corner of his dark brown eyes.

“Yes sir. Cedar Mulch?” The green stallion nodded. “Pleasure to finally meet you, sir. Thank you for allowing this visit, you have no idea how much this means.” Shining flashed that winning smile of his, which the other stallion returned with a wary look.

“Is that the mother and aunt?” He nodded his head at Vinyl and Sky. It didn’t feel like a kind gesture, not one that Vinyl liked directed at her at least. Shining nodded in return. “Guess I can’t leave kin waiting outside.” His tone lightened and Cedar flashed a half smile. “C’mon in, all of you.” He stepped aside and opened the door.

The interior of the house was not much different than the exterior. It was covered in plant life wherever there was space to put it. Potted plants sat in front of windows, holding flowers or vines that reached out and grasped little knicknacks. In almost every corner, a fern sat, soaking up the sunlight that poured through the windows.

“Am I glad I don’t have allergies…” Vinyl remarked. The whole place absolutely reeked of the floral decorations, making the usually pleasant scent nearly unbearable. The group was directed across the plant-cluttered living room to a bright yellow couch that sat opposite the main window.

“Yeah, sorry about that. Me and the girls are always growing something for somepony. It gets a bit hectic around this time. Ponies want something to brighten up their homes through the autumn and winter, you know.” Cedar busied himself, moving various little plants out of the way of his guests.

“Girls? Like, plural?” Vinyl was not one to let little things slide, especially now. She felt a little nudge in her ribs from Sky, but didn’t pay it any mind. She wanted answers, now.

“Yep. Besides Lily, I’ve got my twins: Roseluck and Daisy.” Cedar took a seat in a recliner near the window, sighing as he sat down. “Speaking of, figured it might be smart to get something out of the way real quick.” The stallion picked up a picture frame in his hooves, which had been sitting on the windowsill behind a plant. “The girls...they think they’re triplets. I ain’t ever told them that Lily ain’t their sister by blood.”

“Oh dear…” Not the words Vinyl would’ve used, but she agreed with Sky’s sentiment as a whole. That little tidbit did complicate things a little more. Now they had to shatter a little filly’s worldview?

“Yeah, it’s going to be….rough.” Cedar conceded, struggling to find the right word. Again, Vinyl would’ve used harsher words but for now, she was just going to observe. “We’ll get to that soon, first I want to talk about you two.” He pointed a hoof at the two mares sitting by each other on the couch. “I’m gonna guess that you’re the mother based on color.” His gaze and hoof landed squarely on Sky, who straightened her posture under the scrutiny.

“Yes, that’s me. My name is Skyward Glory, and it’s nice to finally meet you Cedar.” She gave her best smile, but Vinyl saw through it like it was freshly polished glass. Inside, Sky was ready to break. “I also wanted to say thank you for taking care of Lily for so long when I couldn’t. You have no idea how much that means to me.”

“About that.” Cedar relaxed in his chair, but his gaze did not waiver. “I’m not going to berate you for what you did. I’ve made sure she’s been taken care of, raised her like she was my own and tried to forget how I found her, but I have to ask why.” Cedar had a much better temperament than Vinyl expected. She had been waiting for him to snap at Sky and tell her she was a bad mom, or even tell her she did something wrong.

“I-” Sky’s eyes looked around, searching for comfort or answers in the surrounding foliage. “I was in a bad place back then...Lily’s father, Rusty, he left me when he found out I was pregnant and my parents had died shortly before she was born.” She choked on a half-sob, but pressed on. “I-I made a foalish decision out of grief, and I’ve regretted it every day since...I just want to try and make things right.”

“I don’t reckon that’s going to happen,” Cedar stated bluntly, earning shocked looks from both Twinkle and Sky. Vinyl found that she was agreeing with the statement even before she heard the reasoning. “You can’t just come into a life out of nowhere, drop a couple of bombshells and expect it all to be alright. Especially with somepony as young and sensitive as Lily. Now I’ll do my best to mitigate everything, but I can’t make any promises.” Cedar took a deep breath and furrowed his soil colored brows. “Now back to the ‘why’. I’m sorry to hear all of that, and I can’t even begin to know how rough that was on you, but I want you to know that it wasn’t easy on us either. My wife, Celestia rest her soul, passed away during the birth of the twins...I was just coming home from the hospital to get some things…”

Six Years Ago

Cedar trudged through the rain, each step heavier than the last. Every drop of water that fell on his coat added another pound to his soul and slowed his progress. It was like the world had come down and even the sky was weeping for him now.

The worst part was that he felt so numb to it all. He couldn’t cry, he just couldn’t bring himself to shed any tears. Part of him relegated that to the fact that while his wife had passed, he had still been blessed with two beautiful daughters. A blessing and a curse balanced each other out, waiting on some kicker to put the ball into one court or the other. He sincerely hoped that it would be in the good column, because he couldn’t stand to be sad.

Either way, he kept going through the rain. His body wanted to slow down, but he wouldn’t let it. He had a duty to keep going now, a reason to be strong. He had to be strong for his girls now, there was no way he could slow down for even a second.

He drew closer to his home, briefly worried that if the deluge did not let up it might drown a few of the smaller plants or even flood one of his lower gardens. Quickly he pushed that thought away and focused on what he needed.

As he drew nearer to his home, through the lashing rain and harsh winds he saw something laying in front of his door. It looked about the size of a package, but through the weather it was hard to tell. As he got closer, a sound was heard over the rain, wailing. An almost familiar kind, too. The kind he had been around for most of his day.

It was a foal.

Paternal instincts took over and he rushed to the door. Sure enough, on his doorstep and swaddled in a soaked blanket was a little foal, no older than his own at this point. The poor little thing was just crying in the rain, abandoned by whoever had brought her here.

“I brought her in and made sure she was okay.” Cedar had his gaze still focused on Sky, unwavering and harsh. “Poor thing couldn’t have been out there for no more than five minutes. Rain didn’t soak her to the bone, so I wasn’t too worried but I was worried enough to take her to the hospital with me. Mayor Rich expedited the adoption paperwork, made it all official within a week.”

“You never thought to look for her parents at all?” Twinkle piped up now. “Standard procedure with an abandoned foal is to contact the Guard and put out a search for the parents.” For once, Vinyl was a little happy that Twinkle was a stickler for the rules. It meant that a question she wanted to ask was about to be answered.

“No offense, but I kinda figured that if the poor thing was abandoned that her parents didn’t exactly want her anymore. The Mayor agreed, seeing as he was the one who offered to set up the adoption.” Cedar shrugged. “Procedure doesn’t mean much if the ones who are supposed to enforce it don’t care about it.” Ooh, she would have to use that one on Twinkle. That would surely get under his skin in some way.

“I’ll remember that when I talk to the Mayor.” Twinkle responded, a bit of gravel to his voice.

“How about you?” Cedar turned his head to Vinyl. “What do you think about this, Aunt No-Name?”

“Vinyl Scratch,” she started. “I agree with you, for the most part. I don’t expect everything to turn out great here, I just want to make sure she’s living a good life.” A half-truth to be sure. She did want to make sure that Lily was doing alright, but she did want things to be alright. She wanted things to turn out fine in the end even if it was implausible. “But I want you to know that I never had a say in this...if it was up to me, I would’ve raised her. If Sky would’ve tried talking to me, I think we could’ve sorted it all out.”

“I’m sorry that it didn’t go that way.” Cedar looked at a clock on the wall and stood up from his chair. “The girls are going to be home from school any minute now, and I figure I should explain to them this mess when they arrive.” The gardener started towards the front door. “You just hang tight and I’ll talk to them and try to explain before I bring them in.” All three of the ponies nodded silently as Cedar left the house.

“I-If I would’ve talked to you, really?” Sky punched Vinyl in the shoulder, to which VInyl replied with a glare. “I told you, I couldn’t talk to you! You weren’t there to talk to! What was I supposed to do?”

“Gee, I don’t know…” Vinyl started off, tapping her hoof against her chin. “Maybe not go and do something stupid like abandon your infant daughter in a rainstorm in the middle of nowhere?” Vinyl was not going to take any of this anymore, she was going to firmly correct the record here and now to get this nonsense out of the way. “I was gone for forty-five minutes to celebrate with my coltfriend. You’re telling me it’s my fault for being gone less than an hour? For trying to have one good moment after the sea of awfulness that was mom and dad dying? I couldn’t even celebrate one little thing because you couldn’t handle being alone. Yeah, and Uncle B says I’m the self-centered one.”

“I-I can’t believe you…” Sky started, looking for words and shaking her head. “We’re finally settling this, and you choose to be petty.” Vinyl’s jaw tightened as she restrained herself from biting back at the comment. She wasn’t going to take this abuse, this blatant blame from somepony who was meant to take it all. All Sky had earned now was Vinyl closing up.

“Alright, let’s lock this down for now.” Twinkle finally stepped in after the conversation had all but ended, again showing his poor timing. “We can throw blame around later. For now we need to focus on what you two are going to say to Lily when she comes in here and after Cedar speaks to her.”

“I suppose an apology would be in order, from both of us.” Vinyl shot another white-hot glare at her sister. They didn’t need to apologize, only Sky needed to. All VInyl would say is...well, she didn’t know what she was going to say.

“I just want to know if she’s happy,” Vinyl decided on. “That’s all I need to know.” Vinyl just wanted to know if somepony got out of the mess six years ago okay. If at least one pony did, then maybe the whole situation wasn’t whole bad. If just Lily was doing okay, then that would help Vinyl start to reconcile that part of her life.

“Okay, guess we’ll wing it,” Twinkle mumbled just loud enough for Vinyl to hear. She could sympathize with his frustration, but she had to put it aside for now. She would find some way to make all of this up to Twinkle somehow.

The front door to the house opened, allowing the late-afternoon sunlight to pour into the room. The trio of ponies looked up, their collective breath being held for the moment of truth. Cedar came in first, a look of apprehension plastered across his face. He was followed by a line of three smaller ponies.

The first one was a cream colored filly with emerald eyes and a velvet mane. She smiled at the three ponies on her couch and waved at them. He second one was a pink filly also with emerald eyes and a lime green mane. This one gave the three ponies a wary glance and attempted to keep her distance the best she could.

The final filly came in, her coat a pale pink and her eyes and mane both golden and shining in the sunlight. This filly, Lily, moved behind Cedar and looked at the ponies on the couch through his legs with slight terror, as if she knew what was coming.

“Girls, these are our guests: Shining Armor, Vinyl Scratch, and Skyward Glory. Say ‘Hi’ to them.” Cedar’s voice was not calm, it was shaking with a certain unalienable sadness. He knew what was about to happen, and he wasn’t looking forward to it one bit.

“Hello.” All three fillies said in unison, each of their voices holding different tones as they did so. Vinyl was more focused on Lily’s, though. Quiet, shy and small. Even the thought of her being sad or scared made Vinyl want to tear up, it was just hard to listen to.

“I’ve never seen a real guard before!” Rose spoke up, happily bounding over to Twinkle. “Your armor is so shiny! Can I touch it?” Rose reached out a hoof to the golden plates that the guard wore, but stopped her hoof before actually making contact.

“Rose-” Cedar began to admonish his daughter.

“No, it’s fine.” Shining waved a hoof at Cedar, then flashed a wide smile to Rose. “Of course you can!” The filly put her hoof on the gold plating and let out a little ‘ooh’ as she did so. “This isn’t just regular armor, either,” Twinkle said, a bit of wonder in his voice. “It’s magic armor that can keep me safe from anything.”

“Really?” Rose said with an awe-filled little gasp. “Like anything?”

“Yep, anything.” Shining ruffled Rose’s mane with his hoof and gave a smile to the filly. “It even protects me from being sad.” Vinyl cracked a small smile at that. How could she not? It was a little endearing, and it helped build up that mythos of the ‘unbreakable guard’.

“R-really…?”It wasn’t Rose that spoke up this time, instead it was little Lily from behind Cedar’s legs. As soon as the attention was on her, she shrunk behind her father’s legs and avoided all eye contact.

“Let’s all sit down.” Cedar interrupted the little conversation and ushered his daughters over to the recliner across from the couch. He got up first and allowed his foals to crowd around him in the chair. While being crowded, none of the ponies seemed to mind. “Now, we have to talk about some stuff, alright?”

Cedar took a deep breath, and then sighed. He looked to each one of his little fillies with a smile, then looked to the three ponies on the couch across from him with a slightly sadder smile. Vinyl couldn’t even imagine how hard this must be, to say something that could tear your own family apart. It was unimaginable the amount of internal strife he must be going through.

“We’re family, okay? We always will be, no matter what. You’ll always be sisters, and I-” Cedar closed his eyes and clenched his jaw before continuing. “-I’m always going to be your dad, alright? No matter what.” Vinyl couldn’t see all of their faces, but she could feel the worry coming off of the triplet’s from across the room. “I-we are still a family, no matter what.” He repeated once more, to both himself and his family.

“Please don’t cry, Daddy.” Daisy was the first one to respond to her father’s distress. The little pink filly nuzzled her father’s chest, something that was quickly followed by her sisters doing the same. “It’s gonna be alright.”

“I know...I know.” Cedar hugged his daughters and gave them a sad smile. “This is just a little hard.” The stallion took a few deep breaths, steeling his nerves for the incoming bombshells. “Lily, I love you so much and you will always be my daughter and you will always be part of this family no matter what...but I’m not your real father. That mare over there, Skyward Glory, she’s your mother. She left you here when you were little because she couldn’t take care of you…”

The look of pure sadness on the face of Lily when she turned to look at the trio of ponies, it broke Vinyl’s heart on a level she didn’t know possible. She hated being affected by one pony, she hated how one little action by one little pony was enough to shatter her. Tears were now forming in Lily’s, Sky’s and Vinyl’s eyes, each one a little more devastated than the last.

A heavy silence filled the room. It formed an uncomfortable connection between the two groups. Lily was searching Vinyl and Sky’s eyes for some hint of a lie or a sick joke. Instead, she only found the same inexorable sadness that filled her own soul.

“I’m so sorry.” Sky broke the silence, her voice quivering.

“B-but she’s our sister.” Daisy spoke up again, looking to Lily and then back to her father. “Right?”

“Of course she is.” Cedar pulled Daisy and Rose close. “This, or anything else, will never change that. She’ll always be your sister, no matter what.” Cedar was going to hammer that point home, Vinyl could hear it in the way he was basically pleading with the fillies. It was going to be a mantra in the household for a long time.

Lily was still focused on Sky. She slowly got down from the chair and took a few steps towards her newly-found mother. Sky was as still as a stone, her eyes never leaving Lily, but that didn’t stop the tears.

“A-are you really my Mommy…?” Lily took a few more steps, apprehension radiating from the small filly.

“Yes...I am.” Sky fought her quivering jaw and forced it into a smile. “I never thought I’d see you again…” Sky stood up then crouched to meet Lily on more even ground. “H-how are you…?”

“I don’t know.” Lily looked at her hooves, as if ashamed of her undecided feelings. “I’ve never had a mommy before.” Lily took another small step forward, one that made Sky fluff her wings in excitement.

“You have no idea how sorry I am about that, Lily. When you were born…” Sky searched for a simplified explanation to give Lily, something that wasn’t confusing. “...I wasn’t happy with myself. I didn’t think I could ever make you happy, so I did something foalish...and I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Lily mumbled, looking back to Cedar. “Accidents happen.” Cedar nodded and gave her a smile. “We just have to say sorry-” The little filly turned back to Sky. “-and then the other pony is supposed to say ‘I forgive you’ because it’s rude to not be nice when somepony says sorry.”

Neither Sky, nor anyone else in the room, was expecting what happened next. Lily rushed forward, her eyes closed and hugged her estranged mother as tightly as her small frame would allow her to. Sky sat stunned for a second, and then wrapped her hooves and wings around Lily and returned the 6-year-late embrace.

“I forgive you.”

The words seemed to lift an unseen weight off of Sky’s back. Her posture, even while hugging Lily, improved. A certain air of true energy started to seep from the mare, and she exuded a certain happiness that could not be expressed in mere words.

“Th-thank you so much...thank you.” Sky kept Lily in her embrace, which the filly seemed to be returning with gusto. It was truly a heartwarming scene.

Vinyl didn’t need to see anymore.

Quickly and quietly, Vinyl stood up from the couch and made her way to the front door. She opened it and exited the abode, Twinkle not even a foot behind her. Once they were both outside and the door was closed, she took a deep breath and focused on the distant city of Canterlot. That was where home and normalcy were, not this place.

“What are you doing?” Twinkle asked, getting in front of her and dominating her field of view. “You can’t just walk out like that, Scratch. We’re trying to get some healing done here.” His brows were furrowed, but he didn’t look angry. He was more concerned than anything. “Scratch, what’s wrong? I thought this would make you happy…”

“It’s just…” Vinyl started to think about what to say, but decided that wasn’t a good idea. Thinking about ways to justify it to Twinkle was frustrating. So she was just going to come out and say it. “..I don’t think Lily should forgive her, Twinkle.” The guard opened his mouth to protest, but Vinyl cut him off. “I just can’t even think about forgiving her, I don’t think it’s even possible.”

“Scratch, you have to forgive her. It’s the only way forward through this mess.” Shining pleaded, even going as far to take off his helmet so he could look at her unobscured. “How can I say you’re rehabilitated if you won’t even forgive your sister when she’s earned it?”

“Because maybe it’s not the forgiveness that’s the important part.” Vinyl spoke without anger or sarcasm, just the simple truth that she understood. “I know Lily is fine now. I know she’s in a good loving home and I know she’s being cared for. I know that Sky is sorry for what she’s done.” The next words did not hurt Vinyl to say, in fact they felt quite liberating. “I don’t have to forgive her to move forward, Shining. I just finally have to accept that it happened and it’s over now.” She gave him a little smile. “I think that’s all I ever needed.”

“She deserves to be forgiven, Vinyl. You’ve both been through so much, you both need each other now more than ever. If you don’t forgive her, how can you expect to be there for her or vice versa?” Shining was desperately trying to see Vinyl’s way of thinking, she could see that. He hadn’t been through enough to see the logic, though. It was visible only to those with thoroughly broken hearts and shattered trust.

“I don’t think some things can be forgiven.” Vinyl turned her gaze to the cloudless sky overhead. “I don’t know, maybe I’m just a horrible pony in the end, but I think that sometimes it’s okay not to forgive. Hell, I don’t know if some things can or should be forgiven.” She could feel the look Twinkle was giving her, she knew the feeling well at this point. “I can move past it, I can accept it. I think I can be her sister again, but I don’t think I can ever forgive her for that. It’s a scar now, not an open wound like it was.” She looked at Twinkle again, her smile turning sad. “We have to take those small victories, because sometimes another loss might just be the end of us.”

“I don’t agree, but if you think you’re better off now than you were...well, I’ll take it.” He sighed a deep and long sigh. “If you think you’re healed, even a little bit, then I’ll take it as a victory. If you’re happy with the outcome, then who am I to argue?”

Vinyl could tell that Twinkle was not happy with the result in any sense. He would much rather have an entirely happy ending rather than one where he had to make concessions. Vinyl understood that, but he just had to accept this lesser victory.

“I’m gonna hang out here. You can go back in.” Vinyl turned and looked at the door. She didn’t need to go back in there anymore. She wasn’t the one that needed it anymore, now that was Sky’s burden to be lifted. Whenever they were done, then maybe Vinyl would join them. For now, she was at peace.

“I think I’ll stay with you. Y’know, to give them their space. I don’t really have a place in those kinds of family matters.” Twinkle propped himself up against the house and stared into the middle-distance, thinking about who knows what.

“Hey, Twinkle?” He refocused his attention to Vinyl. “Thank you, for understanding and for everything. It really means the world to me.” Sincerity wasn’t Vinyl’s most studied topic, but she was trying her best.

“You’re welcome, Scratch. It’s been my pleasure helping you, I want you to know that.” She didn’t doubt that one bit, the stallion genuinely seemed to like helping others and that was something special.

All in all, Vinyl chalked the day up to a win. The little reunion going on inside of the house was all she needed to justify that. It had to be paradise for Sky, and Vinyl was finally okay with letting her have it.

Author's Note

Okay, I know I promised this chapter earlier than it was delivered....well, I rewrote the end of this so many times that it's not even funny.

I hope I did it right, because man did I agonize over it.

Enjoy!

Change of Heart

“Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.”

-John F. Kennedy

“You don’t have very much to say, do you?” Cedar and Vinyl watched from a small distance as Sky playfully chased the three fillies around the yard in the fleeting sunlight of the evening. Vinyl had relegated herself to staying on the sidelines and observing, just making sure that everything was going well.

“I don’t know what I can say.” Vinyl shrugged, responding to the stallion at her side. “I’m happy that they’re happy and I’m glad that Lily’s okay.” Vinyl stated flatly. She wasn’t going to go into a breakdown or get all sappy like she had earlier with Twinkle. At least, she wouldn’t try to.

“We can both agree on that.” Cedar watched as Rose galloped across the crowded yard and tackled Daisy. “I was almost sure this was going to be a disaster, but I guess life can surprise you sometimes.” Glory laughed as she snatched up Rose and took her a few feet off the ground then setting her back down.

“Yeah, something like that.” Glory spread her wings, pointing to certain feathers and talking to the three fillies that were now interested in her appendages. “She is really good with foals…” It had been too long since Vinyl had actually watched Sky interact with foals, it was so calming to watch in a way. Did it bring up some anger in Vinyl? Of course it did. Imagine if Sky had been this way as a mother, she would’ve been great.

“Are you planning on visiting often?” Cedar changed the subject for one reason or another, either way she was happy not to get into it. “You and Skyward are free to come down anytime, y’know. My parents have passed, and I don’t have any other family left so you two are the closest thing that we have to kin. It might be nice to have some family around every once in awhile, no matter how distant.”

“Sounds like you’re softening up a bit, Cedar.” Vinyl chided the stallion, giving him a playful nudge with her knee. “Starting to warm up to us?” she was so used to dealing with the stoic and easily joked away facade of Twinkle, that she assumed the same might work on Cedar. The short answer was, it didn’t.

“I’m trying to build bridges, Vinyl Scratch.” the gardener retorted bluntly. “None of this will do any good if we don’t try to improve it further.” He turned to Vinyl, a look of determination across his face. “These girls deserve more than they have, all of them. You’re free to help me give them what they deserve.”

“How about we focus on what’s happening right now before we roll into the future?” Twinkle sidled up next to Vinyl and slid into the conversation. “It’s been a pretty heavy day so far, I think we should give it a little time to ferment before we act on it.” Cedar shot him a harsh look, which Twinkle smiled away. “I’m not saying it’s not a good idea, I just want to see how tomorrow goes before we sign off on anything concrete.”

“Alright, I guess we’ll discuss it tomorrow.” Cedar relented, frowning at the interrupting guard. “Speaking of tomorrow-” The stallion started up again, easily moving between the topics. “-I have to make dinner and get the girls ready for bed. We have a lot of work to do in the morning.”

“The sun isn’t even down yet.” Vinyl remarked, her eyes finding the sun on the horizon. Not to mention it was a weekend, y’know the time when you were actually supposed to stay up late. Who in the world plans to do stuff in the morning on the weekend?

“I’m aware.” Cedar grunted as he turned his attention to the foals and Glory. “We have obligations- Girls! Time to head inside!-a farm outside of town needs our help with their harvest. You all are free to join us if you like, I’m sure they wouldn’t mind the extra hooves and horns.” Cedar raised an eyebrow as the girls came racing over to him. “Go set the table, alright? I’ll be there in a minute.”

The three fillies gave an ‘Alright Daddy!’ all in unison and then sped inside. Vinyl briefly smiled, watching as they bound happily to the house and disappeared from view. She was glad that the adoption revelation wasn’t keeping them down.

“Do you need any help with dinner, Cedar?” Glory trotted up to the group, fixing her mane. “I’m not the greatest cook, but I have the experience of cooking for foals.”

“I reckon I could use the extra help.” He turned back to Shining and Vinyl. “You’re all free to stick around for dinner if you want. We’d be glad to have you.” Vinyl squirmed in place a little. For some reason the thought of sitting at a table together did not fill her with any good feelings.

“We’re good.” Twinkle spoke up for her, thankfully picking up on her body language. “We’ll take a walk around town and see if anything catches our eye.” Vinyl liked that idea a lot more. A bit of exploring would do her mind some good.

“Well we might be in bed by the time you get back. Can’t promise anything. So you might wanna let Glory know where you’re staying so she can meet you there.” Twinkle opened his mouth, probably to inform Glory of the address of their hotel, but he was cut off by the pegasus.

“A-actually I was wondering if I could stay here tonight.” Cedar raised his eyebrow once again. “You don’t have to let me...it’s just...I was never able to sleep in the same place as Lily and it would mean a lot to me.” Vinyl approved of her sister’s initiative, and she further approved of not having to spend the night with her. Celestia knew how many fights that would cause.

“If you don’t mind taking the couch, I suppose.” Sky nodded eagerly, signalling that the couch was fine. “Well that’s settled.” He turned back to VInyl and Twinkle. “I suppose we’ll be seeing you two tomorrow, then.”

“Yep.” Vinyl responded curtly. “See you tomorrow, Sky.” There was an awkward pause as everypony just stood around, waiting. It was almost too much to bear, so Vinyl spoke up to break it off. “We’ll be off, then.” Vinyl turned and started walking, Twinkle close behind. For now, she was just glad to be out of there.

“So you didn’t like the thought of a big family meal?” Twinkle gave Vinyl a poke in the ribs as they walked. She just sighed in response. It was a lot more complicated than just not liking it, it was a lot deeper.

“I just-it was going way too fast, alright?” Vinyl expected to see a very sympathetic Twinkle out of the corner of her eye, but instead found the stallion grinning. “C’mon Twinkle, I’m trying to be honest here and you’re smiling about it.”

“Sorry.” Twinkle said, that damn smile still not leaving his face. “It’s just a little ridiculous. ‘Too fast’ like it’s a first date trying to score or something. It’s family, Scratch. There’s no such thing as too fast, just the default speed. I don’t think that kindness has a speed limit, after all.”

“Try not having one for about half a decade and get back to me on that.” Vinyl shot back angrily. “The last family dinner I had was a right before everything hit the fan. So excuse me for not being totally open to the idea.”

“Alright, alright.” Twinkle said, backing away from the subject. “So what are you feeling for dinner? I kinda want something simple.” Vinyl was glad to be off of the ‘family’ topic and onto something else.

“Yeah, simple sounds good.” Vinyl responded. She would be cool with just a sandwich or the like, something they could take to their hotel room and chow down there. She didn’t want to hang around the ponies here and get stared at. “As long as we can take it to go, I’m good for whatever we find.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Twinkle agreed as they walked through town. Usually this would be the time where they would have a little conversation about something that happened recently. It might even lead to some sort of breakthrough or something. Today was a bit different.

Usually they would be lost in the sea of constantly churning Canterlot drama, their little conversations falling beneath the waves to where only they would find them. Here in Ponyville there were no bustling crowds, just small groups of ponies trotting around listening. Vinyl would rather her life and it’s associated drama not be floating around Ponyville. She had enough to deal with as it was.

While their little talks were nice, Vinyl was content to just walk in silence from time to time. Like she had told Celestia at the beginning of this debacle; she had wanted a good looking guard to look after her. The rare moments of silence were helpful to appreciate how that wish had been granted.

The duo stopped at a little shop around the corner from their hotel and picked up a few sandwiches and a rather large sweetroll to go along with it. They got to their ‘hotel’ soon after and saw it consisted of little more than a small two story house. Nothing fancy or special that separated it from any other building around it.

“I have no clue what I was expecting.” Twinkle piped up, looking at the building with intense scrutiny. “It’s not like there was some massive building breaking the skyline. I don’t know, maybe my idea of what a hotel is supposed to look like has been a little spoiled by Canterlot standards.”

“Go to the outskirts of Las Pegasus, Twinkle. You’ll be begging for something like this.” Vinyl thought back to the various seedy motels she had stayed in over the years, and they made this little house seem like a five-star affair. “You got that letter from the mayor?” Twinkle pulled the letter from inside his armor. “Good.”

The pair of pearlescent ponies plodded into the lobby of the ‘hotel’. Surprisingly it didn’t look like an ordinary house at all. There was a desk on the opposite side of the room with a bevy of keys on hooks behind it. There was no pony behind the desk, though.

“Hello?” Shining called into the building as they approached the desk. “Anyone here? They mayor sent me.” That caused a stir from somewhere in the building and before Shining could react, a small cream colored earth pony popped up from behind the desk. Her two-tone pink and blue mane ended in curls and hung just above her sapphire eyes.

“The mayor sent you?” The filly spoke calmly, but with an edge of skepticism well beyond her age. “Did he give you a letter?” Shining presented the letter, a very puzzled expression on his face. The filly read over it a few times before turning around and grabbing a set of keys with her mouth and put them on the desk. “Second floor, third door on the left.” Twinkle took the keys and watched as the filly disappeared under the desk once more.

“That was really weird…” Vinyl mumbled to her compatriot. She didn’t want to dwell on the idiosyncrasies of these rural ponies. It wasn’t her problem to deal with, well not right now. She would let the little filly be weird all she wanted, so long as it didn’t interfere with her own life. Vinyl looked to Twinkle for some sort of affirmation, but just recieved her own puzzled look mirrored.

It took a second for both of them to move passed the silly filly, but eventually the duo shook the strange experience off and broke off from the reception desk. Vinyl followed her guard up the stairs and down the hall in silence, not wanting to offend the filly by saying something inflammatory. Not really a Vinyl thing to do, but she was trying a lot more these days to not be so...what’s the word? Oh yeah, a bitch. She was really trying not to be one.

Twinkle stopped at a door and stuck the key that the filly had imparted to them in the lock and turned until a satisfying click echoed through the empty hall. As the door was pushed open, they were met with a quaint room plastered with neutral browns and tans. Two single beds sat closely together in the room, the only feature save for a lonely faux-leather chair and a picture of a sailboat that looked vaguely familiar on the wall.

It was definitely a hotel room, they all looked the same on some weird base level. Almost as if there were some consortium of interior designers that set standards for how bland and non-offensive a hotel room should be.

“Welcome to paradise.” Twinkle said, stepping to the side and allowing Vinyl to enter the room unimpeded. She wasn’t so sure about paradise, but it was a welcome reprieve from the seemingly constant turmoil of her life. That was enough and it would certainly work for now.

“Sweet.” Vinyl heaved her bag and tossed it on the far bed, the one closest to the window. “I call the this one. Dibs, mine, hooves off, etcetera.” The unicorn lazily trotted over to the bed and flopped onto the mattress. It wasn’t the most comfortable thing in the world, but Vinyl had slept in worse places. She would manage on a low-quality hotel bed for a night or two.

“Are you doing okay, Scratch?” Twinkle settled on the bed that Vinyl decided was his and turned to the mare. “I know you’re not entirely happy with the end result, but I think it’s gone well so far.” Vinyl appreciated his optimism, but she just couldn’t share it with him. The hurt was still there, lessened a bit but it was still there deep down.

“I expected something different.” Vinyl admitted quietly. “I already told you I can’t really forgive Sky for everything, but…” Vinyl took a deep breath and rested her hooves under her chin. “I expected...I dunno, relief. Like, after I found out Lily was okay, I thought that actually seeing her would bring some kind of peace.” She looked up, expecting to see Twinkle ignoring her and polishing his armor or something. Instead, she only saw her companion staring intently at her, hooves crossed and a thoughtful look plastered across his face. She quickly looked away to break eye contact. “Instead, I’m just drowning in a sea of what-ifs and could’ve-beens, y’know?” Vinyl felt her heart sink a bit lower as the roiling waves of the previously mentioned sea pulled her head under.

What if Sky had kept Lily? What if Vinyl had been given custody? Could they have been a family? Would it have pushed Vinyl to be better? Would she still be here, or would she be a better pony? Could all of this have been avoided…?

“Scratch…” Vinyl looked up to see Twinkle off of his bed and kneeling in front of her. “I know there’s nothing I can really say to make you feel better about any of this.” The stallion closed his eyes, as if admitting he couldn’t help broke his heart in oh so many ways. “I want you to know that, even though you’re a stubborn, hard-headed, sarcastic, loud troublemaker….well, I couldn’t be more proud of you.” Twinkle rested his head on the edge of the bed, so it was even with her own. “You’ve come so far since we’ve started, and...well, I’ve come to admire you.” Vinyl looked up, through the fringe of her messy blue mane and saw a truly rare sight.

Shining had a light blush across his cheeks. She would interrupt him, but she wanted to allow Twinkle let it all out. He deserved it as much as she did at this point.

“You’re confident, and you’re not afraid to voice your opinion. I’m not like that a lot.” Twinkle continued, a small amount of shame coating his words. “I can be like that around you, because you’re okay with it. But at work, or with my parents…? No, I could never be.” Twinkle let out a deep, prolonged sigh. “If it wasn’t for you, I would’ve never broken up with Cadance. I would’ve let it happen and keep going like it never did.” Twinkle’s voice lowered, to a barely audible level. “I would’ve let it pass and it would’ve ate at me forever.”

There was a deep shame in those words, coming from a very personal place. Vinyl wasn’t sure she had earned the privilege of access to such a place. It was more Twinkle’s style to pry into other ponies’ business, not let others into his.

“I’m glad you did it.” Vinyl finally spoke after a prolonged silence. “I mean, you needed to grow some balls, anyway.” Vinyl said with her almost trademark smirk. “But also because I don’t want to see you hurt yourself like that. Trust me, I’ve bottled that kind of thing up before, and it’s not good for you.” Vinyl took the sarcastic edge off of her voice and started talking to Twinkle like she always meant to, as a friend she could never afford to lose. “Letting something like that fester...it hurts more than letting it out ever could. It eats away at who you are, and you’ll lose sight of what’s really important.” Vinyl was doing this completely off of the cuff, and maybe it showed in the blatant hypocrisy of telling somepony else to move on, but she was okay with that. Twinkle needed to hear this. “You’ll lose sight of what’s right in front of you, and that’s the worst thing imaginable.”

“What was right in front of you?” Twinkle asked quietly.

“I don’t know, I couldn’t see it.” Vinyl admitted. “I wish I knew, it would have changed something, maybe I would be somewhere else with another pony. Who knows, I might’ve found a new family.” Vinyl didn’t like to think of what she missed while in her haze of self-pity and emotional repression, it was just filled with more what-ifs and could’ve-beens’. “If I could go back and take whatever chances I missed, I would in an instant. I would take every shot and live without regret.”

Before Vinyl could continue her little monologue, she was cut short by a pair of lips pressed up against her own. The shock of such an event did not even register when she saw the brilliant pair of cobalt eyes staring at her, a rush of exhilaration igniting them.

“No regrets, right?” Twinkle asked timidly, a nervous smile playing across his face.

Author's Note

Okay, it's been awhile and I apologize. It's the busy season for my work and I've had literally zero free time since work has picked up.

But I got you guys with a healthy dose of the good stuff.

Enjoy!

EDIT: ONE-HUNDRED THOUSAND WORDS! WOO!

Regret

“Never regret anything you have done with a sincere affection; nothing is lost that is born of the heart.”

-Basil Rathbone

“What was that…?” Vinyl asked, her mouth working for a few seconds before the words actually came out. Shining wasn’t sure what he expected, but some part of him thought it might be acceptance. He had taken one hell of a gamble, and he had slightly expected it to pay off.

That expectation had left him rather confident that Vinyl would reciprocate the kiss, but the puzzled look on the mare’s face made his cocky surefire outward appearance crumble. Where once sat the grinning, surefire stallion was now a pony on very unsteady ground. This was uncharted territory, and he had to make the only move he could after making such a mistake of assuming a response.

“I’m sorry…” He looked away from the mare, the shame of the act he had just committed catching up to him. It had been a mistake, why did he think Scratch would remotely be okay with that. “I just…” Shining stood up. “I thought that...maybe...it was something we both needed.”

“What would give you that idea, Twinkle?” Vinyl cocked her head to the side and narrowed her eyes. The stallion swallowed the nerves and guilt that had been building up in his throat and decided to fight through it.

“Um..well…” Shining was not used to feeling this uncomfortable around Scratch, but ever since that night where they had both drank too much...it had been a constant thing. “Do you remember the night where we found out about Cadance...and you came home and we both started drinking?”

“Bits and pieces.” Vinyl admitted, staring at her hooves. “I remember coming home and drinking some, but a lot of it is just fuzzy.” At least that was consistent, but Shining was willing to bet that the clearer parts of the memories were anything but consistent. “Why? What does that have to do with you putting the moves on me?”

“I remember going to bed, I think.” The memories weren’t as clear as he would like, especially for what he was about to say. “I remember laying down and I remember...well I remember you kissing me.” Vinyl’s eyes widened in surprise, just like he thought they would. “I know, maybe drunk me isn’t someone I can trust entirely, but the memory feels real.”

“It would explain why we woke up together.” Scratch put her head in her hooves. “I just...AAARGH!” Vinyl lashed out with her magic, picking up her suitcase and tossing it off of the bed. “Why does everything have to be so damn complicated…?” Vinyl lamented to...somepony. Shining wasn’t sure if she was talking to him, herself or nopony in particular.

The worst part was, Shining didn’t know how to respond. How could he? What would he say? ‘That’s life.’? It was a bit callous considering the mood he wanted to convey He could try to comfort her, but that was always a gamble with Scratch. It could either work or she could get mad and push him away. There was no way of really telling how it would go.

“You...dummy…” Vinyl spoke softly.. You big, stupid dummy.”

“Vinyl…” Shining couldn’t just stand by any longer, he had to say something. “...don’t beat yourself up over it, it’s my mistake for even kissing you.” He reached out a hoof, but it was swatted away.

“I was calling you the dummy!” Vinyl yelled at him. “You’re supposed to be the sane one here! You’re supposed to be the one keeping me in line, Twinkle! You’re not supposed to be an idiot and fall for me or something!” Vinyl got off of the bed and started pacing along the length of the room. “I-I mean, yeah I thought about trying something early on, but when I saw you were with Cadance I backed off...and now...now...man, I am not going to do this. You’re heartbroken and vulnerable, I’m vulnerable..this isn’t right.” The last part of Scratch’s mini-rant ended with her looking Shining right in the eyes. “This can’t be right, right?”

“Yeah, Cadance and I did just break up...and it hurts. It hurts more than I ever knew something could hurt.” He took a deep breath and focused on the mare in front of him. “Maybe it was wrong of me to kiss you like that, maybe it was too fast and I’m sorry if it was.” His heart was racing, beating against his chest like a furious percussionist. “But part of me knows I really shouldn’t feel bad. I know you like nopony else I’ve ever met, Scratch. Hell, even Cadance wouldn’t talk to me about her family or what was bothering her...I knew her as a pony, but I didn’t know her like I know you.” He stood up and trotted over to Vinyl, towering over her in stature but feeling smaller than ever. “I know your pain, and your heart. I know your good and your bad...and even through all of it, I still can’t help but to feel something for you.”

“When…” Vinyl bit her lip and looked away, but her everstrong tenacity brought her back to looking at Shining with renewed vigor. “When you first showed up, I-I did want to sleep with you. It wasn’t because I liked you or something, but I thought it would be fun...like a game or something.” Vinyl sighed, but still met Shining’s eyes. “But then I saw you and Cadance and knew that...that I wasn’t a homewrecker. I couldn’t do that again.”

“Again?’ Shining was always one to pick up on the little things, it was a bad habit of his. This seemed like a story he hadn’t heard before, and maybe it could shed some light on why she was so averse to the current situation.

“I...I-um...well, I dated a Diamond Dog once.” Vinyl sat down on the floor and started to avoid eye contact. “She was something special, y’know? A real knockout, good sense of humor, and one helluva dancer.” Vinyl bit something back, like a venomous comment or something of the like. “We met at a club where we hit it off real quick, y’know? Practically fell in love at first sight. We headed back to my place and really hit it off.” Briefly, Shining thought about how that might work, but derailed that particular train rather quickly. “She said she had to go home and she would be back, few days later and there she is, back again. She decided to stay that time, and it was the happiest I’d been in a long time.” Vinyl’s eyes narrowed and she sneered at some invisible adversary. “When I asked if she had family...she lied. She had a family; a mom and dad, a sister...a husband and children.”

“Oh no…” Shining was not ready for that. He had guessed where it was going to end, but it still caught him off guard. “Vinyl…”

“He showed up, her husband, and blamed me for everything. He said it was my fault she left him and their pups, that I was to blame for wrecking their family. He called me a gem, shiny and luring...I didn’t want to do that again with you and Cadance.”

“You didn’t.” Shining stepped forward and put his forehead against Vinyl’s, something the mare did not even resist. “Everything that happened between me and Cadance was because of her, not anything you did. If anything, I should be thanking you, without you I don’t know if I’d ever found out about what Cadance did. I should be thanking you.”

“For what…” Vinyl muttered. “...ruining the longest relationship, ever?” Both ponies looked up at each other, apprehension and a small bit of longing igniting the air between the two. “All I’ve done is cause you trouble…”

“Well yeah, that’s part of the reason I like you. Never a dull moment.” Both ponies smiled ever so briefly. “It took me a long time to come to grips with this, to admit to myself that I could even think about liking someone other than Cadance. I didn’t even think I could get over her, or ever forgive her.” Their gaze broke, both ponies looking to the side at the awkward mention of the Princess of Love. “But what you said the other day, about never really forgiving but moving on. It made me think that it’s better to move on as soon as possible than letting all of the weight hold us back.”

Shining lifted his head off of Vinyl’s and started to pull away, only to be pulled right back by a light blue aura. The unicorns’ noses touched and an intense pause followed. Shining knew this was against the rules, you weren’t supposed to even think about dating somepony you were assigned to. But hey, he knew the old saying about rules being broken.

Both of them moved in at the same time, capturing the other’s lips in their own. For the first time in what felt like an eternity, all of the stress and pain melted away in an instant. Every muscle in the room relaxed as the guard and his charge kissed.

Glory sat on the lumpy yellow couch in Cedar’s livingroom. The stallion and the girls had already went off to bed, just as the moon poked its head over the distant horizon. Now she was alone again, with a pillow and blanket to use for comfort through the night.

The daisy-colored mare put the rather solid pillow against one of the armrests of the couch and laid her head against it. Slowly, and with more pain in her knees than she would like to admit, she pulled the blanket over herself and stared at the moon that was currently climbing into the sky.

“You’re getting old, Sky.” She mumbled to herself, rubbing her back knees with her hooves. It wasn’t that she really was all that old, hell she was only twenty-seven, but the years had not been kind to her in any sense. She had been to doctors, and they told her that her depression can cause physical problems. Only now, when it seemed she was at the light at the end of the tunnel, did it seem the pain was truly catching up to her.

“What do you think?” Sky nonchalantly asked the mare in the moon as she flew into the sky. “Do you think all of this is worth it? All of the stuff we’re going through?” The moon simply hung in the sky, unwavering. “I just don’t want everything I’m going through-everything Vinyl is going through-to be for nothing. We’ve both been through a lot, whether Vinyl wants to see my heartbreak or not.” The mare in the moon remained silent as always. “I just need this to go well…”

“...Are you talking to the moon…?” A little voice came from somewhere nearby, it was a voice that Sky couldn’t help but tear up at. The older mare sat up and saw her daughter standing at the threshold of the living room, bathed in moonlight. “I like to do that too, she’s a good listener.”

“Yes, she’s a very good listener.” Glory said with a smile. “Now what are you doing up? I thought you were supposed to be asleep by now.” Lily trotted further into the room and closer to the couch, looking at her little hooves as she did so.

“I just wanted to talk to you.” The filly mumbled out. “Rose and Daisy and Daddy were all talking to you and I didn’t get to really.” Glory smiled at Lily, sat up and patted the spot next to her on the couch.

“Hop up here and we’ll talk.” In one bound of her powerful little earth pony legs, Lily jumped onto the couch and took a seat next to her mother. “Now what do you want to talk about? Anything special?” Glory was trying to be as warm as she would with any of her foals at home, but it was a lot harder to do. Lily was a different beast entirely from the little orphans back home. There was so much baggage to talk around or steer away from.

“Your sister, Aunt Vinyl, is she okay? She doesn’t seem to like me very much.” That was the biggest baggage here next to the guilt, Vinyl and her attitude. Glory had hoped Lily hadn’t noticed the unicorn’s sour mood, but foals are a very perceptive bunch.

“Your Aunt Vinyl…” Glory started out, but paused to think for a second. The wrong words, if they got back to Vinyl, would be disastrous. “...she’s had it hard like you did. Our mommy and daddy, your grandma and grandpa, both went away when we were younger. It hurt her a lot and she’s still very sad about it.” That was the most basic jist of it, and it was all Glory was willing to tell Lily at the moment. “She’s getting better, though. That nice guard, Shining? He’s trying to help her be not as sad, and he’s doing a really good job, too.”

“He is pretty nice.” Lily smiled. “Rose said she thinks he’s cute.” The filly giggled and put her hooves to her mouth. “But don’t tell him, alright? Rose’ll be really mad if she finds out I told anypony.”

“I promise I won’t tell him.” Glory crossed her heart with her hoof. “Do you want to hear something?” The filly nodded fervently. “Vinyl’s mommy and daddy aren’t my real parents. Kinda like you, her family made me a part of it. Vinyl is a lot like Rose and Daisy for you, and Vinyl’s parents are like your daddy.”

“What happened to your real parents? Did they not want you either?” That one hurt a bit, but Glory was willing to look past that seeing as how Lily was little and possessed very little tact. Instead, she would approach the subject lightly.

“My...my real mommy went away when I was very little, about your age. My real daddy, well he got very sad after that and he couldn’t take care of me anymore. I had to go live with Vinyl and her parents because my daddy couldn’t love me like he should.” Glory hung her head, memories flooding back into her head all at once. “It’s why I was very sad when you were born. Your real daddy left me all alone and I didn’t think I could love you like I should...so I put you here because I knew Cedar could love you like I couldn’t.” A little lie, but Glory was determined to tell Lily the whole truth when she came of age.

“But you’re okay now, right? You’re not sad?” There was a look of desperation in the filly’s eyes. One that Glory could not shake easily. It opened up the once sealed hole in her heart and threatened to swallow her whole.

“I’m still sad...but for different reasons. I’m sad I let you go and I couldn’t keep you. I’m sad I couldn’t hear your first word or see your first steps, or be with you on your first day of school.” Glory sighed. “I think it’s that kind of sad that doesn’t go away, like the one Aunt Vinyl has. We can be happy, but that kind of sad will always be there.” Glory looked over to see Lily starting to cry. “What’s wrong…? Did I upset you?”

“I don’t want you to be sad!” Lily attempted to wrap her hooves around Glory’s barrel, her bottom lip protruding sadly and her eyes starting to gather tears. “I’m okay and now everything’s okay, you’re not supposed to be sad now!” Glory unfurled her wing and wrapped it around her daughter gently. The grown mare was holding back tears of her own now.

“No, no. It’s okay. Shhh.” Glory squeezed Lily a bit tighter with her wing. “It’s okay to be sad sometimes. Because sometimes we need to cry and feel a little sad just so we don’t keep it all inside.” Glory closed her eyes and thought hard about the next words out of her mouth. “I want you to be sad sometimes too, so I know that you’re okay. So I can be there to let you know it’ll be okay. That’s what being sad does, it let’s other ponies know we need help and it’s something you should never be afraid or ashamed of. If you never let anypony know you’re sad, you’ll start doing stuff and you’ll be like Aunt Vinyl. You’ll have to get someone to help you.” Glory leaned down and nuzzled her daughter’s head, breathing in the scent of lilacs in her mane. “I’m not sad anymore because I hurt you, because now I know you’re okay. I’m sad because I wasn’t there for you when you needed me. All the times you cried, I wasn’t there to help. I was never there...and that...that hurts.”

“You’re here now, though.” Lily buried her face into Lily’s side. “You can help me all of the time now.” Glory just didn’t have the heart to tell the little filly that she wouldn’t be here forever, not even in just a week or a few days. Come Monday morning, she was out of Lily’s life again...and that broke her heart into a million little pieces. She couldn’t let Lily know that, she couldn’t hurt her like that right now.

“Yeah, I’m here now.” Glory looked at the pillow that rested against the side of the couch. “Do you want to sleep out here with me tonight? I would really like it if you did.” Glory got a little nod in response, which set the two in motion.

Glory rested on her side, head on the pillow. Lily rested her own head on one of Glory’s legs and buried her muzzle in Glory’s chest. Slowly, the mare draped her wing over her foal and started humming a tune. It was an old lullaby her own mother had sang

Now, well now Glory didn’t feel so sad or so old. She felt content.

Cadance hurried through the halls of Canterlot castle, her gold-plated horseshoes striking the solid marble beneath her with such ferocity that each step echoed throughout the entire castle. She had been summoned by Princess Celestia for an emergency meeting, usually this late at night was not the time for such meetings but that only spurred the sense of urgency the summons carried.

The Princess of Love had spent the past few days moping over Shining and her own mistakes. She had tried to get over it, take her mind off of things and get back to normal but that was hard. Shiny had been her normal for so long that now everything felt off. There was nothing to look forward to anymore, no getting done with things just to see Shiny or going on dates. Now she was consumed by royal busywork.

Cadance was still trying to figure out her powers’ place in her identity and how she was supposed to use them. Celestia had said to ‘use them as you see right, make good things happen in the world with them’ but first Cadance had to figure out what good was. Was messing with ponies’ free will and love good? Was the right thing to just leave her powers alone and focus on helping run Equestria with Celestia? Or was she destined for a more personal role with the ponies of the kingdom?

It was all so confusing.

Not as confusing as the sight that greeted the Princess when she finally opened the doors to Celestia’s private quarters. Inside, the Regent of the Sun was surrounded by stacks of paperwork and a very stern looking Interim-Captain Galea. The Captain, and Celestia should’ve been metaphorically ‘off-the-clock’ at this time of night. Plus, all of that paperwork meant they were not messing around.

“Princess Cadance, glad you could join us.” Galea spoke first, giving a polite bow to the monarch. The baby-blue mare turned her steely gaze away from the younger Princess and towards Celestia. “Can I begin now, Your Highness?”

“Let me address my niece first, then you may.” Galea bowed and trotted away, getting just out of earshot of the two Princesses. “Cadance, usually I wouldn’t bother you with matters such as this, but after recent events I thought it best to include you in the inner-workings of Canterlot. Learning responsibility is often best learned up close and personal. So I need you to listen to Captain Galea, and then you will make a decision, okay?”

“Just me? Alone?” Cadance had made some small minor choices concerning the city in the past. Stuff like parade routes or even small changes in the guard, but never something on this scale. Never something that Celestia would usually do.

“It is how I was taught. I had to make decisions and trust that I was doing the right thing. If you do make a mistake, then you will learn.” Celestia smiled warmly. “I know it sounds harsh, but I truly do think it’s the best way for you to learn the duties of a Princess. I have faith that you will do the right thing.”

Even with the looming sense of dread, Cadance knew she could not disappoint Celestia. So, reluctantly, she nodded and swallowed her nerves. She would do this, even if it did seem like a bad idea to her.

“Captain, please begin with ready.” At Celestia’s call, Galea came back over and stood before the monarchs. The mare stood straight as a mighty oak, and looked thrice as unmovable. She was truly intimidating, which explained why Shining did not like her at all.

“I suppose it’s a good thing you’re here to hear this, Princess Cadance. This will affect you directly, after all.” That did nothing to settle Cadance’s nerves, not one bit. “For the past year I have been conducting an investigation at the behest of Captain Knock Out. I carried it out in secret as to not draw attention, and for that I’m sorry. Even telling either of you might’ve jeopardized the security of the investigation.”

The mare trotted over to one of the stacks of papers and lifted about twenty off of the top and swirled them around the room with her magic. Cadance caught sight of each piece of paper as it floated by. She recognized each of the faces that were printed on the sheets, after all it was her duty to know them.

“Each pony you see before you is guilty of a crime.” Galea started, her voice unwavering. “The have all broken Article Twelve of the Parliamentary Code; they have taken bribes from individuals or corporations that have directly affected the decisions they have made regarding the laws and regulations of Equestria. “

Cadance couldn’t believe it. Almost every member of the House of Nobles had floated in front of her at this point. They had all been guilty of corruption? That was downright unbelievable.

“I see the look of disbelief in your eyes, Princess Cadance.” Galea said, trotting closer to the Princesses. “At first, I couldn’t believe it either. But the evidence is irrefutable and damning. All of it is gathered in the stack by the door, sorted by Parliament member in alphabetical order. If you want time to look through it all, I understand. Something needs to be done about this soon, though. We shouldn’t allow corrupt individuals to run our government, it cannot stand.”

Cadance looked to Celestia, who just returned her gaze and gestured to the Captain. This was it, this was the decision she had to make. Trust Galea on her word and have the corruption removed as quickly as possible, or take who-knows how long to review all of the evidence and hope she could reach the same conclusion as Galea. The thing was, Cadance trusted the guard more than anything. Shining had proven what they were all about, how loyal and hardworking they were. She had to trust Galea on this, she had to do something that would even make Shiny proud of her.

“Very well.” Cadance said, standing tall and using her best authoritative voice. “I trust you’ve done your due diligence on this Interim-Captain Galea, and I’m ordering you to arrest all of these ponies on charges of Corruption as soon as you physically can.” Cadance felt good about that, it felt right.

“I’m afraid there’s a problem with that.” Celestia spoke up, drawing the attention of the other two mares in the room. “Galea, since she’s only the Interim-Captain, has no authority to do such a thing. Until instated as Captain, she cannot arrest any sovereign citizen of Equestria without a majority vote from the members of Parliament.”

What was Cadance supposed to do? The Houses wouldn’t let Galea arrest them, that would be foalish. She would have to catch them by surprise somehow, she would have to get Galea to be Captain before the arrests were made.

“Your Highnesses, if I may.” Galea raised a hoof to speak. Cadance nodded at the smaller mare, willing to hear any ideas she might have. “If you two were to sign all of the warrants tomorrow and make me Captain on Monday morning, we could arrest them all at the ceremony which we know they are required to attend. Celestia ultimately has power over who is the Captain of the Royal guard, after all. Asking Parliament is merely a formality. She could confirm me tomorrow, sign the warrants and we’d be done with this whole nasty mess before the week even began.”

Cadance didn’t know why, but the glimmer she caught in Galea’s eye did not make her feel well.

All of this suddenly felt wrong.

Author's Note

Call me butter, because I'm on a roll!

A New Dawn

“Today is the first day of the rest of your life.”

-Abbie Hoffman

“So what, we’re just going to pack up and leave?” Glory practically shouted at Vinyl as the trio of ponies trudged through Sweet Apple Acres. “You’re just going to make me abandon her again, Vinyl?” Shining was electing to stand far behind the two sisters, as he wanted to keep an eye on the situation and also have no part of it.

“We have stuff to do, Sky…” Vinyl responded in an uncharacteristically monotone voice. Whatever Lily had said to her had gotten to Vinyl on such a deep level that Shining wasn’t even sure how to address it.

“What could be more important than my daughter, Vinyl?” Glory stopped and shoved Vinyl with a hoof. “What could be more important than Lily?! Some hunch that Shining Armor had that something’s wrong? Some inkling of a chance of a possibility that something is so wrong in Canterlot that not even Celestia can fix it so he has to be there?” Shining Armor blinked. He had never heard Glory be so forceful or mean. “Give me a break, Vinyl. I’m not stupid, you would never let somepony do something that so obviously pointless. So how about you be an adult and tell me what’s really wrong instead of trying to get some sort of sick petty revenge on me by pulling me away from Lily.” This could be considered full ‘mom-mode’ for Glory. The posture, the stance, even the glare was pretty classic mom stuff, and Vinyl was the petulant foal she was scolding.

“There’s nothing here for me.” Vinyl mumbled out from behind her mane. “There’s no point to me being here…” Shining sat down, this was going to be another one of those long talks, he could tell.

“Lily is here! Why don’t you understand that?” Glory put both of her front hooves on Vinyl’s shoulders, and practically pleaded with the unicorn. “Please get it through your thick skull that lily is the most important thing in the world right now. We have to be there for her.”

“No…” Vinyl sighed out. “All I ever wanted was to know she’s okay….and she is.” Vinyl wouldn’t dare meet her sister’s eyes. Was it out of fear or shame? Shining couldn’t tell, maybe a mixture of the two. “I never wanted to have her in our family again, because I knew she never would be. As soon as I saw her with her sisters, I knew she wasn’t ours anymore, Glory.”

The silence of the orchard was broken by the sound of a hoof slapping a face. Glory was in tears, but she was as angry as could be. The pegasus raised her other hoof and struck Vinyl once again.

“Don’t you ever say that! Never say that again!” Glory screamed. “She is my daughter! She’s my little filly, do you understand?!” The elder sister shook the younger, and then let go only when Vinyl would not respond or retaliate.

“Lily...she told me something back there.” Vinyl spoke low and slowly. “ She said ‘you gotta try to be happy, or else you’ll never stop being sad’ and it made me realize something, Sky.” Shining got up and trotted closer to the pair, he could feel Vinyl building to something and it wasn’t going to be pretty. “You’ll never make me happy again. Not the sight of you, not the thought of you, not even the memories of you. They’re all tainted now, every single part of you is just sad to me.” Vinyl looked up for the first time in minutes and revealed tear stained eyes. She heaved out a sob and bit back another so she could speak again. “I have to be happy, Glory. That’s what this is all about, all of this travelling and drama...it’s about allowing me to be happy again. If...if you do nothing but make me sad, then what place do you have in my life…?”

“Vinyl…” Both Glory and Shining uttered her name at the same time, both with the same look of shock but only one held true pain. Shining could never imagine that, the pain of a sister disowning you...it had to be one of the worst feelings in the world.

“I’m so sorry, Sky.” Vinyl said with a quivering lip and watering eyes. “I have to move on from you, because holding on just hurts too much.” Vinyl turned towards Shining, giving him a sad, solemn look. “Can you turn off the binding spell, Shining? I just wanna head to the hotel, promise.”

Shining nodded and focused on their link, severing it for the first time in a few days. It was usually so easy, but now it felt like lifting a ton off of his head. He knew he could trust Vinyl, he just really didn’t want to leave her alone.

Without another word, Vinyl started to trot off. She left both Shining and Glory in a stunned silence, both almost too afraid to speak. The pair simply sat without words for several minutes until the sound of hooves on hard earth drew closer to their location.

“What’s going on?” Cedar Mulch burst from the treeline, looking around frantically. “What’s happened? I heard somepony yelling and came to make sure you were all okay.” He took a slower look around and spotted the discrepancy. “Where’s Vinyl Scratch?”

“Cedar.” Shining trotted towards the stallion and spoke in hushed tones. “I really need you to help us right now. Some very personal stuff just went down between Vinyl and Glory and...I’m not sure what’s going to happen next.” Shining did not like uncertainty, he liked plans and order and schedules. This sort of chaos and confusion was not his friend, and he hated dealing with it. “Vinyl and I might head back to Canterlot tonight, I’m not really sure. If we do, I think Glory is going to stay here until tomorrow morning when we were supposed to leave.” Shining sighed. “I really hate to ask this, but could you make sure Glory gets to the train station if it comes to that?”

“I could.” Cedar nodded. “Just answer one question for me, would you?” Shining nodded, he would definitely try to answer any questions. “We aren’t going to see Vinyl Scratch again are we? I mean, me and the girls.” Shining opened his mouth, but closed it when he realized he might not be able to answer that particular question. “I knew it yesterday when she didn’t want to stick around for dinner. I saw it in her eyes, that desire to get away. Now, I don’t know much about her or her life, but I can tell you that I don’t like ponies wasting my time like that.”

“She was here for Glory and to make sure Lily was happy.” Shining admitted. “She saw that Lily was happy and...things got complicated with Glory. So...I don’t know. If I can convince her that what she just did wasn’t smart or rational, then maybe I can make it so she does see you again.” That was the best answer that he could give, a firm maybe. It wasn’t one he liked, but that was all he had at the moment.

“Don’t go trying to change the mind of a brick wall.” Cedar warned. “You’ll just end up with a headache.” The older stallion sighed and looked at the forlorn pegasus that was sitting on the ground. “You go on, I’ll take care of her for now. If there’s anything she needs that you might have, just put it in my mailbox and I’ll grab it when we get home.”

“Thank you, Cedar.” Shining was relieved he didn’t have to take Glory back to the hotel room with him. That would only brew more chaos for him to clean up, and he knew it. It was just one less thing he would have to deal with so he could focus on Vinyl and trying to set her straight.

With that, he set off towards the hotel. He didn’t gallop, so he didn;t draw any attention to himself. Plus, going a bit slower would allow him to think up some sort of gameplan for when he actually talked to Scratch.

Well, obviously the main plan was to get Vinyl to renounce what she said back there. It wasn’t going to help her to cut ponies off, and it wasn’t going to look good to Celestia when the rehabilitation review came. So he really had to fix this mess before it spiraled even further out of control.

The problem was how soft he was getting with Scratch now. At the start of all of this, he would take a hardline stance with the thought that the pain she would endure would be worth it. But now the sight of this self-inflicted trauma just made him want to protect her and fix it all. He couldn’t decide whether it was because he felt like nopony should hurt themselves like that, or he just hated seeing Vinyl upset now.

She had been right in asking the question right now: why did everything have to be so complicated? At the beginning of all of this, it had seemed so simple. But as he quested deeper, more routes and troubles popped up. New feelings were unearthed and more and more complications arose.

All for what? More pain and a hope that this would somehow help Vinyl? What good was hope doing him now? Where had it gotten him? A backwater village with a temperamentally challenged mare and more problems than he could count. What was the play here? What was the solution?

“What do I do…?” The solemn guard mumbled out as he looked up to the distant city of Canterlot. The shining jewel on the mountain was one of Shining’s loves in life, and if he ever needed to think, he would take a walk around. That was when he had time, which he was criminally short of at this point.

His only option was to wing it and hoped something good came out of just talking to Vinyl.

So he resigned himself to that plan of action. When he got to the hotel, he made a beeline for the room and opened the door with his key. Inside, Vinyl was sitting on the edge of her bed just staring into space. He had expected her to be packing or moving, or doing something at the very least.

“Vinyl-” Shining started as he took a step towards the mare.

“What’s your favorite story, Shining?” Vinyl interrupted him, her voice still flat and emotionless. He was a bit taken aback by the seemingly random question, what did that have to do with anything?

“Vinyl, I need you to talk to me, here.” Shining pleaded as he sat in front of the mare. “C’mon, we can figure this out like we always do. You just have to work with me.” He was going to make this right, he was going to get Glory and Vinyl talking again. He was going to help fix their family and make everything okay again. It was his job, he had to.

“Can you just answer me?” Vinyl asked. “I just really don’t want to talk about me right now.” Shining looked into her eyes and saw no tears or even sadness, just a look of realization and pain.

“Alright.” Shining caved. He would answer if it got Vinyl to open up a bit more. “My favorite story? It’s called ‘The Front’, ever heard of it?” Vinyl shook her head. “It’s...well, it’s about this guard from Manehatten who gets moved to a town on the border of the Griffon Empire. Y’know, at first he doesn’t like it because it’s dangerous and the town is mean and standoffish...but the more he hangs around, the more he likes it. I’m not going to bore you with the details, but it ends with the Griffons attacking the town, and the guard putting his life on the line to defend this little bad, backwater town he’s come to love.” Shining smiled at the thought of the book, it was filled with a lot of good scenes and themes that struck a chord with him. Hell, the protagonist was a bit of a personal hero to him.

“Mine’s ‘The Many Dangers of Going Alone’.” Shining chuckled and tried to hide his smile. “What’s so funny, Twinkle?” He knew the glare he was getting, and he knew how dangerous it was.

“I just never figured you for an adventure story lover.” Shining had pegged Vinyl as the kind of pony that didn’t actually read all that much. Call him a bit naive, but Vinyl Scratch was a far cry from Twily or his mother.

“I don’t read all that much, but I like that book. Y’know, something about getting away like that. Just striking out and finding yourself, dealing with all the things you come across with only your wits and just...surviving, y’know?” Vinyl sighed. “I always thought if I ever had to make a hard decision like any in the book, that I could do it no problem. Turns out I was right.” There was no joy or mirth to the statement, not like any other time she had declared herself correct. There was a resignation, an almost disappointment.

“So we’re talking about it, then?” Vinyl nodded, so Shining sighed and collected a few choice thoughts. “You know you can’t just cut Glory out of your life like that. It’s not healthy to just do that.” He closed his eyes, trying to decide on a direction to go. It came to him, but it wasn’t going to be a pretty one. “What would your parents think? Your dad, he said as long as you had each other nothing could stop you.” Shining was recalling the vividly displayed memories from Vinyl’s parent’s room, hoping a bit of emotional shock could get through.

“They’re not here anymore, Shining!” Vinyl screamed at him, standing up and glaring daggers. “If they were still here, I wouldn’t be sitting in a bucking hotel room in Ponyville, would I?!” She didn’t give him time to answer or rebuke her statements. “You’re the one who’s been saying I need to move on, saying my life needs to change! So for the first time since we’ve met I’m actually trying to change my life and you don’t want me to?”

“This isn’t the kind of change I wanted for you.” Shining fired back, taking to his hooves and looking down at Scratch. “I wanted you and Sky to get better together, not for you to let go of her entirely! You need ponies who will be there for you, ponies who will always be there to help when you need it. You need family.” He desperately wanted Vinyl to see it his way, to wake up and see that this was not healthy or right.

“What if it’s the change I need?” Vinyl calmed down and looked up at him with pleading eyes. “I’ll never forgive her, Shining. I know I said I could move past it, but I really don’t think I can. I can’t see my sister anymore, all I see is the mare who abandoned her foal and blamed me for not talking to her, for not being there when I gave up a year to be next to her.” Vinyl pointed out of the window, towards the apple orchards. “That’s not okay. Trying to just act like none of it happened, pushing it all down into a little box and trying to repress it? That is not okay.” Vinyl took her hoof and poked Shining in the chest with it. “You want me to be happy? Then you have to let me quit being around the things that make me sad.”

“If…” Shining took a second to think about what he was about to say. It was dangerous, and downright unthinkable, but it looked to be the only way. Vinyl was stubborn, and she wasn’t going to let her mind be changed on this one. It wasn’t that he didn’t see her point, he did and she was right in some ways, but he still thought it was unhealthy and dangerous to just cut ponies out of your life like that. “...if I allow this to happen, what do we do next? Just leave?”

“Twinkle…” Vinyl stopped digging her hoof into his chest and instead rested it on his shoulder. “...you didn’t fail your job or me. Bringing me here and letting me see Lily is okay was something I needed. It did a lot of good, I promise. So don’t think this was a wash or something. It isn’t, it’s not just the end of me and Sky, it’s the beginning of me moving past it.”

“Alright.” Shining was not going to dwell on it. He would see how all of this played out, and if things started to go sour because Glory wasn’t around anymore, he would fix it. For now, he would go with it against his own better judgement. Vinyl was right, he didn’t always know what she needed. He was going to have to trust her on this one. “So are we going back to Canterlot today, then?”

“I would really like to go home, yeah.” Vinyl trotted over to her suitcase and picked it up with her magic. “Plus, we have to see what’s going down in Canterlot, right?” Shining nodded, he still felt guilty that he had been spending a lot of time worrying about the city. Glory had been right on that, he probably couldn’t do anything even if something was wrong, but it would settle him down at least being there.

With that, the duo silently went through the motions. Shining recast the binding spell and put on his armor, while Vinyl gathered her stuff and grabbed Glory’s ticket so they could drop it off at Cedar’s.

The trip through Ponyville was as silent as the hotel, the two unicorns were both out of things to say for the day. Both lost in their own separate trains of thought, but the tracks were running parallel. Both were thinking about the future, and what new days might bring.

A Few Hours Later

Much like most of the day, the train ride back to Canterlot had been quiet. Vinyl couldn’t remember a time when they had said less words to each other, but maybe it was for the best at the moment. They were likely to get into a heated argument, or worse one of them would break down if they spoke.

Vinyl was fine with the silence, though. It let her ruminate on her decision to let Glory go. Were there good memories still? Sure, but they were far outweighed by all of the bad. As Vinyl had said back at the orchard, everything was just tainted now. It was like every thought was covered in a thin black film that just wouldn’t go away.

Maybe if Lily hadn’t been okay, if she had been in a bad home or wasn’t happy, then maybe this wouldn’t have happened. Vinyl and Sky could’ve banded together and worked towards a common goal as a family, for something greater than themselves. Seeing Lily happy, and seeing Sky almost...mooch off of all of the positive energy, it made Vinyl realize that there was nothing between them anymore.

It still hurt like hell, though.

“Now arriving at Canterlot Station West.” The voice came over the small speakers above the seats, signalling it was time to depart. Both Vinyl and Shining grabbed their things and got up. Seeing as how they were the only ponies on this train, they were quick to depart and start trotting.

Something was sour in Canterlot. Vinyl could tell that as soon as they exited the station. There was a palatable sense of confusion and fear that was so thick it practically covered the streets. Vinyl turned to Twinkle to make sure he was getting it too, the worried look on his face confirmed it.

“Special Edition of the Canterlot Post!” A crier called from a nearby street corner. His magic held aloft a copy of the very newspaper he referenced. “Big shakeup in Canterlot leaves one hundred without jobs!” Before she could react, Shining was across the street in front of the crier. The stallion held out the newspaper and scrutinized Shining before taking his bits. “You’re one of the lucky ones, huh?”

“What are you talking about?” Shining questioned. The only response he got was the paper being thrust towards him. Vinyl stood behind her guard as he unfolded the paper and saw the headline across the top of the page.

Galea Purges Guard: One-Hundred Fired For Misconduct!

Authority

“Surround yourself with the best people you can find, delegate authority, and don't interfere as long as the policy you've decided upon is being carried out.”

-Ronald Reagan

“Please send in the next one, Trip.” Galea picked her glasses off of her desk and gingerly put them on. She really had to work on her penmanship, sometimes she wrote so small she could barely read it herself. “Parry, Unit five-nine-six.”

“Yes, Ma’am.” Triplicate, her newest assistant gave a polite nod as he exited her office. Such a nice young stallion, obedient and punctual. If he performed any other way, he would be without a job, so it was good that Trip was such a good fit for the place.

“What number is this?” Galea looked to the stack of papers on her right that was labeled ‘complete’. Every fiftieth one was marked with a gilded paper, so she could track her progress throughout the day. “About two-hundred and forty, I think.” She mused, a small grin crossing her face. “We’re making good time. Almost halfway there.” She did not enjoy giving personal reviews to every member of the guard, but it had to be done. She had already announced to the press her intention of letting go of one-hundred ponies, and now that she was interviewing everypony, it gave every guard in the city time to think about if they’ve done anything wrong.

“Uh...you wanted to see me, Interim-Captain?” The door creaked open without a knock. What poor manners for a guard. Galea picked up her quill and wrote down a small note on the paper in front of her about that, making certain to make the letters the right size this time.

“Yes, please do come in, Parry.” Galea motioned the stallion in with her hoof. “The time has come for your annual performance review.” Galea put down her quill and studied Parry’s file as the stallion sat across from her. “You’ve been with the guard how long, now? Three years?”

“Uh, yeah.” The pearl white pegasus ran a hoof through his short mane nervously. “I’m sorry, but ‘annual performance review’? I don’t think that’s a thing we do around here.” Parry chuckled. “You can’t just start things like that.”

“I can.” Galea answered back, making sure to inject some of her trademark ice into her voice. “From today moving forward, every single guard in the City of Canterlot and on the palace grounds are going to have their performance evaluated every year. If they are found to be below my standards, they will be let go and will be denied re-entry into the guard.” The pony across from Galea had a look of shock, but he quickly shook it off. She did not like that.

“Okay, I mean, I haven’t done anything that bad, really. My quota-” Galea slammed her hoof on the desk, silencing the other pony. She lit up her horn and brought a very real chill to the air.

“I was not done speaking.” Parry looked down to see his breath forming little crystals in front of him. When he looked back up, the once present shock in his eyes had turned to terror. Galea rested back in her seat, letting her magic die out. She idly adjusted her glasses and looked at the pegasus’ file. “Maybe this year you have done well, but this review is retroactive. I have gone over your entire career in the guard.” The stallion opened his mouth, but one quick glance from Galea shut him down. “Do you know how many complaints have been filed against you? Don’t answer, I’ll tell you: thirty-seven. In three years, that’s ten per year. A quarter of those have been sexaul in nature, the rest have been general unbecoming behavior complaints.”

“Do I...get a chance to speak?” Galea nodded. He was learning at least. A little too late, though. “Okay.” Parry sat up straight and fluffed his wings anxiously. “I-I’ll admit, sometimes my hooves slip and I might do some, y’know, vaguely lewd movements, but most of them are genuine accidents. A-and like half of the unbecoming ones are probably just etiquette things because I don’t like to wear my helmet.”

“So let me get this straight…” Galea straightened her glasses and looked Parry in the eyes. “...you make frequent mistakes, and you don’t like to follow the official procedure set forth in the rule books and drilled into you since basic training.” Galea leaned in. “Am I correct in my understanding, Mr. Parry?” The stallion stammered and tried to speak, but she cut him off once again. “Let us not forget that I personally lodged a complaint against you the other day after you...commented on my assets and age.” Galea kept her mostly neutral expression, but inside she wanted to sneer at the poor excuse for a guard across from her. “I’m sorry, Mr. Parry, but I’m afraid we’re going to have to let you go. Please turn in your armor to the quartermaster.” Galea spun her chair around to deter any further conversation or argument. She waited until the door had clicked shut to turn back around and sit Parry’s file on the complete pile.

A knock sounded, and Galea told the pony on the other side to enter. It was Triplicate, of course. Being punctual as always, just as Galea knew he would be. Instead of his usual professional expression, Trip looked worried.

“Interim-Captain Galea, I’m afraid I have a guard asking to see you. I informed him you weren’t taking unscheduled visitors today, but he’s insisting.” Galea cocked her head to the side. What guard could be so bold as to try such a thing?

“Were you given a name?”

“Shining Armor and Vinyl Scratch.”

Galea sneered.

Shining tapped his hoof impatiently as they waited for Galea’s secretary to come back. He was not in the mood to be kept waiting, especially after seeing Parry leaving the room. If there was one pony Galea wouldn’t keep around, it was Parry.

“Interim-Captain Galea will see you now, Shining Armor.” The secretary called out. “But she would prefer it if Ms. Vinyl Scratch stayed here.” Shining looked back to Vinyl who rolled her eyes and nodded.

“I won’t be long.” Shining promised as he set his sights on Galea’s door. As he approached it, he knocked on the solid oak and waited for a response. A muffled voice told him to come in, so he opened the door and strode in confidently.

“Shining Armor.” Galea addressed him with an almost malicious tone. “What a surprise to see you back so soon, I thought you were to be gone until tomorrow morning.” Shining Armor took his seat across from the mare and leveled an equally icy glare back at the Interim-Captain.

“We concluded our business in Ponyville early, Ma’am.” Shining Armor may have been pissed, but he wasn’t going to let that change his decorum. She was still a superior, and he wasn’t going to give her a reason to purge him as well. “I saw the headline in The Post and decided to come to the castle. I don’t like being out of the loop.”

“I suppose it’s a good thing. I was going to wait until after my inauguration to get to you, but now that you’re here we might as well get it out of the way.” Shining watched with no small sense of dread as Galea reached into a drawer and pulled out a cobalt-lined folder with his name on it. “Starting today, every member of the guard is getting annual performance reviews, and if you’re not up to standard you are getting relieved of your position.”

Shining’s breath caught in his throat. That did not spell good news for him, considering just a month ago he had gotten in trouble for abandoning his post to go to Twily’s party. Add to that his one argument with Captain Knock Out and his headbutting with Galea herself over his assignment to Scratch, and he knew this wasn’t going to be pretty.

“You joined the guard a year and a half ago, correct?” Shining nodded. “I would say that’s a bit late, but I also see here that you suffered an injury in training that delayed your graduation.” Galea brought the folder closer and studied it. “A broken leg, was it? Does it still affect you?”

“Only when storms roll in.” Shining did not like talking about his injury, it was a point of personal shame for him that was not worth discussing in his eyes. “Other than that, I’m perfectly capable of performing my duty as a guard.”

“That’s good to hear.” Galea was not even looking at him, she was too busy staring at that damned folder. It wasn’t right, she liked to look in ponies’ eyes. He had picked up on that during their last encounter. It’s because her gaze alone was intimidating, so what was different now? “No complaints filed against you, or any disciplinary problems.” That wasn’t right either, Twily’s birthday party thing was a disciplinary problem, he had been punished for it! That should’ve been in his folder. “I know from...personal experience...that you’re headstrong, driven, and principled. Your dedication to the task put in front of you is commendable to say the least.”

This was definitely not the Galea he knew. She should be scolding him for his failures, no matter how small they were. He had directly disobeyed her, so why wasn’t she bringing that up? A pit formed in his stomach.

“I want to recommend you for a promotion to a different department, Shining Armor.” He froze in shock, his mouth agape and eyes aimless. “I said ‘want’ because I cannot fully recommend you until your current assignment is finished. The outcome of Vinyl Scratch’s rehabilitation will be the deciding factor.”

“W-where would I be promoted to, Ma’am?” He figured a senior guard, but she had said a different department entirely. So where would that put him? Royal Protection?

“Well, I’m afraid with your obvious connections to the Princesses, I cannot put you on the Royal Protection detail.” Thank Celestia for small miracles, Shining didn’t know if he could be put on Cadance’s protection detail without melting into a puddle of awkwardness. “We do have an opening in The Department of Equestrian Intelligence, and I think you would be a nice fit. Your drive would be a welcome addition to the operatives of DEqI, trust me.”

Shining had heard about DEqI from whispers and rumors flitting about. Some called them spies, others called them ‘surveillance experts’ and the ones who actually knew things just called them ‘the nerds up top’. No matter what way you carved it, DEqI was not known for their public face or even for what they actually did, it wasn’t exactly where Shining wanted to be. He wanted to be out in the city, helping and protecting ponies, not reading citizen’s mail and worrying about foreign dignitaries.

“I…” He thought about what he was about to say. He didn’t want to give Galea an excuse to fire him. “I think we’re close to Vinyl being fully rehabilitated. I’m thinking a report should be on your desk by the end of the week.” Shining didn’t know how true that statement was, but it was a good cover for now.

“Efficient. Good.” Galea put the folder down and stood up, holding out her hoof for Shining to shake. He stood up and took her hoof in his and gave it a firm shake. While doing that, he momentarily glanced down at his folder, which was open on the desk. There was a note in the front of everything else. He couldn’t read the main text, but he knew that signature anywhere. It was the same signature he saw on his birthday cards every year. “Have a pleasant day, Shining Armor.”

Vinyl stood up as she saw Twinkle come out of the office. He looked substantially more pissed than before he went in, which was saying something because he was all kinds of mad before he went and talked to the Ice Queen. The stallion walked right by her, leaving vinyl to catch up.

“Whoa, what’s going on? What happened in there?” Vinyl did not like having to keep up with Twinkle. His legs were significantly longer and when he was mad he trotted way too fast. “Is Canterlot in trouble or something?”

“I had a performance review.” Shining growled out.

“What?” Color Vinyl confused, while a performance review sounded boring it didn’t sound like anything to get this mad over. “Did you get fired or something?” She sincerely hoped not, that would cause all kinds of trouble in her life.

“No, I’m getting a promotion.” Again, Vinyl was left confused. That sounded like a good thing! Plus, it sounded like a good reason to have a celebratory drink or five at home later. Promotions were good! “I shouldn’t have though. Somepony has altered my record and got rid of everything wrong I’ve ever did, or Galea was told to ignore it.”

“Who would even have the power to do that?” Vinyl didn’t know a lot about the inner-workings around here, but she knew there weren’t many positions above ‘Captain of the Guard’. That was sort of one of the biggest authority figures in Canterlot.

“My grandmother.” Shining sneered. “I don’t know what she’s up to, or how she did it, but she’s in with Galea. I saw a note from her in my file, and I’d know that hoofwriting anywhere. They’re up to something, and I don’t know what.” Vinyl was kinda confused, what did Twinkle’s grandma have to do with anything? Why was he acting like she was some sort of mastermind?

“Okay, slow your roll.” Vinyl grabbed the stallion’s armor with her magic. “How do you know your grandma is in with this? What if it’s just like a part of your record or something? What do you guys call it, intelligence? What if she was just digging into some stuff and threw that in there?” Vinyl didn’t see some little ol’ mare pulling the strings behind this, no way. “And, I mean, what does it matter if she did do something anyways? It got you a promotion, shouldn’t you be happy or something?”

“It matters because I didn’t earn it.” Shining turned back to Vinyl. “I want to be promoted because I’m good at what I do, not because of the family I’m from. I don’t want my Grandmother, who hates me by the way, to interfere in my life.” Vinyl highly doubted that Twinkle’s grandma hated him, that didn’t seem really plausible. “Either way, we’re going to pay her a visit just to make sure.”

“Whatever, dude.” Vinyl would go along with it as long as it kept Twinkle off of her case about Sky. Plus, a little intrigue never killed anypony. It might be fun to go investigate a mystery with Twinkle.

Shining didn’t bother knocking on the door, after all he lived in the house. Inside, his mother, father, and grandmother were all sitting around the livingroom reading. This was perfect, he knew at least his mom would be on his side in the debacle.

“Shiny!” Both his mother and father stood up from their spots and rushed over to hug him. He graciously reciprocated the hug, feeling semi-calm for the first time in a few days. “What are you doing home?” His mother questioned, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

“Not that we’re complaining.” His dad added with a grin. “I mean, a little warning would’ve been nice, but we’ll forgive you for that one.” Shining laughed and gave his parents both a smile.

“Well, I have some news I want to share with you. A little good and a little bad, I figured I should tell you as soon as I could, seeing as I have a few questions you might be able to answer.” Shining was telling a little lie, he really only had bad news in his mind, but they might see it differently.

“Don’t tell me you got fired, too.” His mother worried as she directed both himself and Vinyl to the couch. “I read the paper and was so worried about you. I know this has always been your dream and I just couldn’t stand to see you lose it.”

“Also, hello Vinyl Scratch.” His father patted the young mare on the back. “We didn’t mean to be rude, I promise. We’re just a bit excited to see Shiny again.” Shining’s father gave a big smile that Vinyl halfheartedly returned.

“I didn’t get fired, Mom. I still have a job…” He knew what the response to the next part would be, he just had to gauge the look on his Grandmother’s face when he said it. “...I actually got a promotion.” His parents hugged him, telling him all sorts of congratulations and niceties. His grandmother on the other hoof, gave a sly knowing smirk.

“Did you hear that, Mom?” Twilight Velvet asked the matriarch. “Shiny got a promotion! Aren’t you proud of him?” Velvet turned back and gave her sun another hug. “I’m so proud of you, Shiny!”

“Guards earn promotions, it’s what they do.” The old mare scoffed. “I don’t congratulate a fish for swimming.” The elder unicorn fixed her purple and black mane with her magic and turned her head away. “Tell you what, get me a grandfoal out of that Princess and then I’ll be proud of you for something.” Shining’s mother was going to speak up, but he held up his hoof to hold her back.

“C’mon, Grandma.” He knew how much she hated when he called her that, it was only Twily who had that privilege in her eyes. “Aren’t you proud all of your hard work paid off? ‘Paid off’ is the right phrase, yeah? That’s what you did with Galea, right?” Satin stood up, a downright evil glare in her eyes.

“You watch your mouth, you insolent colt.” The decrepit mare strode right up to the much bigger stallion and stared him down. “You would do wise to respect your elders, else they might strike you.”

“Mother!” Velvet stepped between the two ponies. “Both of you, what is this about? I won’t have you squabbling in this house unless I know the problem.” Shining, nor his grandmother, moved from their spot. They stood their respective grounds and held their glares.

“Vinyl…” Nightlight moved away from Shining. “Perhaps we should head to the kitchen? I baked some cookies yesterday and I think you’d like them.” Vinyl put up no fight and followed Shining’s father back to the kitchen. Shining was glad there would be no crossfire with Vinyl, otherwise this might get messy.

“She paid off Galea to get me a promotion.” Shining pointed an accusatory hoof at Satin. “I had my review, I saw the file and I saw the note you wrote. I would know your signature anywhere, so don’t try to lie to me!” Velvet looked at her mother, bewildered.

“How dare you insinuate I ‘paid her off’ as if I were some common mobster!” Satin scoffed at the implication and turned her back to Shining. “I would never do something so crass!” It was then time for Velvet to look at Shining.

“Shiny, are you sure of what you saw?” Shining couldn’t believe that his mother was actually questioning him. He had never told her a lie before, not even a little white one. Why was she doubting him.

“I know what I saw. I’ve seen that writing every Hearth’s Warming and Birthday because that’s the only way she will ever say anything positive towards me: in writing.” Shining would not budge. “It was in my file, which was altered because it had no mention of when I bailed to go to Twily’s birthday! Somepony either told Galea to ignore it, or somepony had it scrubbed.” Shining stepped forward. “There’s no reason Galea would have a note written by you if she didn’t have to be reminded of something you wanted her to do.” In his mind, Shining had pretty solid logic. It was damn near irrefutable.

“You know what?” Satin turned around, a half sneer, half grin across her face. “I did pull a few strings to get you promoted, because I figured if I did something nice for my Grandson he would have an ounce of respect for me for once in his miserable little life.”

“Mother, how could you?!” Velvet took a step back, looking positively bamboozled. “We told you, we didn’t want you stepping in to help our family with your position! We wanted our children to achieve their goals by their own means, not because their grandmother is nobility.” Yeah, it was a family ideal, one that Shining had doubled down on in his own life.

“Well what are you going to do now that it’s already done?” Satin questioned. “Tell the Captain of the Guard? Tell the Princesses so they can kick Little Sparkle out of her special classes? There’s nothing to be done, but live with it.” Shining clenched his jaw, the realization of hopelessness setting in.

“Mother, I can’t...I can’t believe you.” Velvet trotted away, exasperated. “He can’t take that position now! It’s...it’s tainted!”

“If he doesn’t, it will be the end of his career. I saved his little job and gave him a promotion.” Both Shining and his mother were silent, drawing a knowing smile from Satin. “See…” The matriarch started. “...idealists such as yourselves are so easily dissuaded by a real challenge. It’s how you’re taken advantage of, you have too many scruples that control you.” Satin trotted back to her chair and sat down. “It’s done. You won’t do anything to change it, I know you won’t.”

She was right, and Shining knew it. He couldn’t change or challenge this without hurting himself or his family. There wasn’t a way out because he cared too much.

Vinyl followed Nightlight into the kitchen, where he pulled a jar down from on top of the fridge and opened it up. Vinyl reached inside with her magic and pulled out what looked to be some ginger type cookie. They were surprisingly good coming from a pony without a cooking cutie mark.

“Gingersnaps.” Nightlight motioned. “Made them myself, straight from my mom’s recipe book.” The stallion leaned against the counter and took a cookie out, eating it in one bite. “Let me tell you, she could bake one mean cookie, and I mean ‘mean’. Sometimes I swear those cookies bit back.” Vinyl smiled sort of and sighed a little bit as she took another cookie out of the jar. “Are you alright, Vinyl?”

“Yeah, just had a bit of a rough day.” Vinyl shrugged and kept eating her baked good. In the next room over, she could hear Twinkle and the mares getting mad at each other. It must’ve been going well in Twinkle’s favor if the mares were getting angry.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Nightlight trotted over to the kitchen table and pulled out a chair. “I promise, I’m a really good listener and I can really keep a secret.” Vinyl didn’t know why, but she really trusted Nightlight, maybe it was the fatherly aura or just his kind nature. Vinyl trotted over to the table and took the seat, either way. “There we go! I know you’ll feel a whole lot better if you just let it all out, and of course if you have cookies.” With that, the stallion floated the jar over and sat it on the table. “The cookies are the most important part.” He faux-whispered.

“I have a sister...an adopted sister.” Vinyl wasn’t sure how to start out. She hadn’t ever told the story to anypony, Twinkle was the only pony outside of family that knew and Sky had told him. “When we were younger, after my parents...passed...she got pregnant and gave up the foal after it was born.” Vinyl took a deep breath tried to push all the thoughts of Lily or Sky out of her head. “We found the foal recently, it was part of my rehab with your son. She’s okay now, six with a good family and sisters and everything. I just thought after finally getting some closure I’d be okay with my sister, y’know? I thought we could get better and be family again.” Vinyl looked down at the table and closed her eyes. “I don’t know, I just couldn’t when it was all said and done. I-I was told that I need to make myself happy instead of making myself sad, and I just couldn’t forgive her. I had to let her go, I had to move on and just quit thinking about her.” Vinyl was on the verge of tears, worrying about whether or not she had made the right choice.

“Hey.” A dark blue hoof entered her vision. “Here.” A cookie floated in front of her, which she took and nibbled on. “I actually know what you’re going through, believe it or not.” Vinyl’s head snapped up, her head cocking to the side. “Yeah, I know. I’d be surprised too.” Nightlight picked up two cookies and floated them side by side. “I have a brother, somepony that not even my children know about. You see, he had a gambling problem which got bad. He borrowed money from my mother, and even stole money from Shining’s college fund when Shiny was just a foal.” Nightlight ate one of the cookies by throwing it up in the air and catching it in his mouth. “That was the last straw for Velvet. She wanted me to cut him off and get him out, can you imagine? I couldn’t. Telling my own flesh and blood to stay out of my life or that I never wanted to see him again, no...that wasn’t me.”

“So what did you do…?” Vinyl was genuinely curious. How rare it must be to run into somepony with this problem. How lucky she was to have an opportunity to learn.

“I tried to salvage it.” Nightlight sighed, his usually joyful eyes dying down a little. “I tried to make amends and get him help without my wife knowing. I really just wanted him to get better so Velvet wouldn’t hate me for not tossing him away.” Nightlight sat the other cookie he was holding down on the table and split it in half, giving one half to Vinyl. “It wasn’t worth it in the end. All of the hurt and pain and sadness he brought with him. It nearly cost me my marriage, but I cut him off because I realized that keeping the relationships I truly care about was more important than trying to fix one that was hurting me.”

“Does it get better?” That was all Vinyl truly wanted to know, she wanted to know if she would feel better about this in the morning. She just wanted someone to tell her it would be alright.

“It gets easier to live with.” Nightlight admitted. “You think about it a little less each day, and eventually you don’t really think about it at all. There are moments, though. Little things like Hearth’s Warming dinner or their birthday, or even their favorite song that will just bring all of the memories and hurt back. You might want to see them sometimes, and sometimes you just might see them. It’s not so much about living with the pain, but living with the decision to be in pain.” Nightlight nudged her gently. “You know the song ‘And that’s what really hurts, is that you do it to yourself.’” While it was funny to hear him butcher a good song, Vinyl took the message to heart.

“It’s like somebody dying.” That was the only comparison that Vinyl could make, but she felt it was an apt one. She remembered all of those feelings from after her parents died, all of the little moments that brought it all back. She didn’t want to have to deal with that again.

“Sort of, except we don’t get to choose when ponies die. So it’s a bit easier. You just have to remember why you made your choice, what it’s earned you instead of what it lost.” Nightlight knocked on the table with his hoof. “Now come on, sounds like they’re done arguing now. Might be a good idea to get in while the ceasefire is fresh.” Vinyl stood up and followed the stallion’s lead to the door, where she was stopped by Twinkle’s dad. “If you ever need some fatherly advice or anything, you’re welcome in our home anytime. We don’t discriminate against anypony needing help.” Vinyl just nodded. It was good to see where Twinkle got his good heart from.

Shining Armor saw his father and Vinyl return to the living room, but he didn’t really register it. He was too preoccupied with trying to think of some way to get back at his grandmother for interfering in his life. He couldn’t tell the Princesses, she was right, it would only expose his family and Galea to some harsh punishments. The last thing either the Guard as a whole or the Twilight family needed was instability or uncertainty.

It hit him like a train, the one thing he could say to truly hurt his grandmother. He would hit her where he knew it hurt, her legacy.

“Cadance and I broke up.” His mother gasped, while Satin got back up to her hooves with a downright pissed look across her face. “We had a fight, and I decided it wasn’t worth it anymore. I figured I would tell you all once I was done with my assignment, but seeing as how Grandma likes to be in my life so much, I might as well tell you all now.”

“You did what?” Satin spoke through clenched teeth. “Do you know how long it took me to get you into the right school to even be near her? How much posturing it took to convince Celestia to let her foalsit Sparkle?” Satin picked up an elegant cane that sat next to her chair and jabbed Shining in the chest with it. “All for you, to give you a chance to be and do something great! And now you’ve gone and thrown it all away over a little fit?” Satin turned her cane and pushed it against Velvet’s shoulder. “Tell your boy to get some sense. Tell him to go apologize to the Princess right this very instant.” Shining stood defiant as he always did when challenged with something that went against every moral fiber he possessed.

“It’s over, Grandma. I don’t care how much money or influence or how many favors you peddled to get Cadance near me, it’s my life and I made my choices.” Shining slammed his hoof against the floor and rose to his full height, towering over everypony else in the room. “I am not just another piece of some legacy puzzle for you to place, I’m my own stallion and I’ll be damned if you or anypony else tells me how to live my life.” Shining turned to leave, but snapped back. “I’ll take that position, no matter how tainted it is, and I’ll make it into something great. Just to show you that your influence means nothing, just to show you that I am that good.” Shining was breathing heavily now, his anger flaring in full force. “C’mon, Scratch. We have work to do.”

Shining felt strong, confident. For the first time in he didn’t know how long he really felt like his own pony. He was going to forge his own destiny whether his grandmother or the universe or fate liked it or not. He was in charge of his life, and nopony could take that away.

Author's Note

I am unstoppable right now. Let's see if we can get this done by 2017.

What Now?

“We must become more comfortable with probability and uncertainty.”

-Nate Silver

Vinyl opened the door to her apartment and gladly threw herself onto the couch. It was good to be home, it felt warm and right to be finally away from all of things outside. In here Vinyl felt safe, which was a far cry from what she felt in Ponyville or at Twinkle’s house.

“We need to talk.” Twinkle slammed the door behind him and shuffled over to the chair he had claimed as his own. Vinyl didn’t really want to deal with an angry Twinkle, mainly because she didn’t know what to expect from it.

“Are you sure you don’t want to, y’know, amp down first?” Vinyl had been mad enough around Twinkle to pick up a few things about calming a pony down. “You’re still pretty mad about the whole grandma stuff. Can we go get something to eat or something, even take a little walk?” Okay, so she didn’t have it down to an art like Twinkle did.

“I’m fine.” Shining stated flatly, taking off his armor piece by piece until it was in a pile. “We need to talk about what we’re doing next. That’s what I’m focused on now, not anything else. So how about you focus up with me and we figure something out.” Vinyl took a deep breath. She knew that Shining wasn’t in the best mindset right now and she needed to show patience, but that wasn’t easy. Vinyl was not the patient type.

“How about we take a few minutes off of me, huh?” Vinyl was going to redirect this if it killed her. “I just came off of this Sky thing and I’m still processing it, alright. I need to figure out what I’m feeling before we go and plan anything out.” It was half truths, of course. Vinyl had sort of come to terms with the Sky thing after her conversation with Nightlight. It became easier to push the guilt down and focus on the positives, but she was still dealing with it. “And, y’know, we always talk about me and my problems. How about for once I try to help you?” Vinyl sat up while Twinkle gave her a questioning look. “From where I’m sitting, it sure as hell looks like you could use some catharsis right about now.”

Twinkle tapped his hoof against the arm of the chair, biting his lip as he thought it over. Vinyl was hoping that a little venting was appealing to him at the moment. She would take listening to other ponies’ problems instead of espousing her own all of the time. It would be a nice change of pace.

“I’m worried.” Twinkle let it out with a sigh, his complexion turning a little less red than before. For the first time since they got back to Canterlot, the stallion relaxed. It looked like he was so tired and beaten down. It wasn’t the Twinkle she knew at all. “Satin, my Grandmother, she did set this all up.”

“I got that from the whole shouting match earlier.” Vinyl motioned for Twinkle to keep the conversation moving forward. She wanted to get to the meat of the problem and skip all of the fluff she already knew.

“I can’t accept the position.” Shining shook his head, staring off through the window and towards the castle in the distance. “If I do, I’m complicit in the bribery or blackmail of a government official. If I don’t, then I can kiss my career as a guard goodbye because Galea is going to bury me. So either I accept the promotion and give up everything I stand for, or I don’t take it and...and lose the only thing I ever wanted.” Shining turned to face Vinyl, dark bags visible under his eyes. “For the first time, I don’t know what’s the right thing to do.”

“Yeah, that must be difficult.” Vinyl said with no small amount of snark. She caught herself after the fact and winced. “Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. I’m still a bit emotionally raw myself, so I’m sorry if I come off as, y’know, a bit rough.” Vinyl sighed, she wasn’t built for this kind of thing. “What I meant to say was that I know how that feels, and I guess I can let you in on something that somepony told me about making tough choices. ‘It’s not about living with the pain, but living with the decision to be in pain.’ So I guess it’s about living with yourself after deciding on something.” Vinyl was hoping that the meaning of the words weren’t lost in translation, it was some pretty good advice.

“Right.” Shining took a second to process the words. “I don’t think I could live with either, not in good conscience or faith.” Vinyl could see the conflict across the stallion’s face, it was one she had felt on the inside all too often. “How did you decide on Glory?”

“I-I don’t know.” Vinyl shrugged. “I just got pushed and my brain screamed at me to say something. So I did, I just blurted out what I felt and just...I just went with it. Once I decided, everything just aligned and I was able to think about why it was the right choice.” Call it rationalization or something, but Vinyl hadn’t ever been on the verge of going back. She had regretted it and even thought about taking it back, but she was never even close. “Just...just go with the thing that seems right, go with whatever it is that heart of yours is telling you.” It was corny, sure, but it was still pretty true.

“Alright.” Shining took another deep breath and closed his eyes. “I don’t want to quit, I just can’t. I need to be a guard, I need to be able to help ponies.” That was a pretty definitive answer in Vinyl’s eyes. “I think I can live with some guilt as long as I make something of myself. I just need to rise above the means and make it something better than how I got it.” Shining took his hooves and ran it through his mane. “I just don’t know how I’ll do that.”

“One step at a time, that’s how.” Vinyl got off of her couch, much to her internal dismay, and trotted over to Twinkle. “If it’s any consolation coming from me, I believe in you. I mean, look at what you’ve done with me. I think you’ve really helped me, whether I would usually like to admit it or not.” Vinyl was giving in to her feelings about Twinkle now. She was definitely going to go a bit soft on him, maybe a hug would come soon. “So yeah.” She motioned for the guard to scooch over, which he did and allowed her to squeeze onto the chair with him.

“You think you’re doing better?” Vinyl nodded, electing not to add anything. She didn’t know what else she could add. Her feelings were all laid bare, and they both knew it. “Do you think you’re rehabilitated?” That was the million bit question that Vinyl had been wondering about since day one. How would she know? It’s not like she was a different pony or something, she was still just Vinyl with a few extra heartbreaks.

“What does that even mean?” Vinyl asked. “Rehabilitated from what? Being me?” She thought back to all of the time before Twinkle. She wasn’t ashamed of anything she did, not one bit. She had been a bit rambunctious and maybe more trouble than she was worth, but she had been living her life like everypony else. “That’s who I am, Twinkle. I think you can see I’m not some criminal, or anything. Am I less sad now, sure. You’ve helped me move on from some of that stuff, but was that the plan? Was this just therapy to try and make me happy? It’s not like I wasn’t happy before this or anything, I had plenty to be happy and sad about just like anypony else.” She sighed and turned to the stallion. “So I don’t know if I’ve been successfully rehabbed or not, because I don’t even know what that means.”

Vinyl was going to rant more, but she interrupted by the soft chuckling of the guard beside her. She turned to him to see a stupid pleased grin across his face, like he was a foal who told a sneaky lie.

“To tell you the truth, Scratch. You’ve been technically ‘rehabilitated’ for about a week.” Vinyl raised an eyebrow, unsure of what the stallion meant. “In the rulebook-” Shining turned to her and began gesturing with his hooves. “-the technical definition of rehabilitated is you becoming a productive member of society again, also known as getting a job. I got you working back at your uncle’s so by the rulebook’s standards, you’re already rehabilitated.”

“So…” Vinyl was thoroughly confused. Twinkle was, in no small sense, obsessed with the rules. Everything he did practically reeked of the damn rules, so what had all of this been about? “...if the goal was to just get me a job, then why go through all of this stuff with Sky and Lily and my parents…?” Not to mention Intrepid, but that was mainly Cadance’s doing.

“At first?” Shining shrugged. “I was nosy. I wanted to know more about you, thought it might help.” The smile disappeared, replaced by a gentle softness. “Then I saw how many things were...not right, and I knew I had to help. At first it started with just Glory, but then it just kinda snowballed into your parents and everything.” Shining shrugged. “I lost sight of the whole job thing until I met your uncle, and even then it was a bonus.”

Vinyl was a little touched and a little creeped out. It was pretty true to what Vinyl had learned about the stallion that he went beyond his job just to help her out with personal problems. But also, it was a little strange he had wanted to pry into her personal life. Mostly, the endearing feeling overpowered the little bit of awkwardness she felt. One thing that stood out though was a conversation they had after the concert, and her conclusion making more sense.

“So you did think I was broken.” That’s what Vinyl had heard in the confession. She was just something to help, to fix. His job hadn’t even mattered, what mattered was him feeling good about helping somepony. Vinyl didn’t like to think of it that way, but it’s what it seemed like to her.

“No.” Twinkle leaned over, resting his cheek against the top of her head. “I didn’t think you were broken and I still don’t. I thought I could help you, and I took the chance.” Shining let the sentiment hang in the air for a second. “If you feel like I’ve done something I shouldn’t have, I’m sorry. I was only trying to help.” Ah yes, the only defense for somepony who was guilty of doing something they got into trouble for. Vinyl supposed she could forgive him, after all it had done some amount of good.

“So you think I’m good now?” Vinyl dragged the conversation back on topic. She wanted to know the answer to this, to know for just how much longer Shining was going to be around her for.

“I think your better.” Twinkle admitted, his voice dropping in volume. “I think good comes with time, now ‘better’ is all we can ask for.” There was a pause, one that Vinyl could hear the cogs in his head turning during. She never liked that, it only meant bad things for her. “I just think there’s a few more things to do and I’ll submit my report and we’ll talk to Princess Celestia.”

“Like what?” Vinyl couldn’t think of anything else they had to do. She was a little more at peace with her parents’ passing, she got her job back, found Lily and finally ended things with Sky. She couldn’t think of any more pressing emotional trauma that Twinkle could dig through.

“I want you to talk to Glory again.” Vinyl slouched in her seat, causing the stallion to pat her back with his hoof. “I know, I know. You don’t want to, you think it’s done. I just think that, now that you’ve calmed down some, you need to explain things to Glory. She deserves to at least tell you goodbye, don’t you think?” When Twinkle was right, Vinyl hated him for it. Right now, Vinyl hated him a lot more than usual. No one should be denied a goodbye, she knew how that felt.

“Yeah…” The mare relented, slouching a bit more and leaning against the guard. “You’re right.”

“Things were rocky with Intrepid, too. I think we should go talk to him as well. Just so you and I both can smooth things over with him.” Vinyl hadn’t really thought about Intrepid since this Ponyville stuff started. Celestia, she still felt so bad for him. The anger and pain in his voice after Cadance’s betrayal was next to unreal...was he still like that? Had he calmed down or just transitioned into the hole known as depression?

“Anything else?” It seemed like he had already thought this stuff out, and Vinyl knew he had at least one more thing up his sleeves. “Because I really don’t know how many emotional final moments I can do in one week, Twinkle. You gotta learn to give me a break.” That earned a throaty chuckle out of the stallion.

“Uncle B. You need to tell him about you and Glory. That’s going to really be the final test of that particular choice of yours, I think. If you can get away from him without changing your mind, then it’s final.” Oh no...Vinyl hadn’t even thought about what Uncle B would think about this. He would be pissed, and he would yell which would lead to Vinyl yelling and being mad. That was going to be pure chaos, that was pretty obvious.

“Then I guess we have to talk about us.” That one caught Vinyl off guard. She blinked and looked at Shining questioningly. “What?” He asked, the same expression on his face.

“What do you mean ‘what’?” Vinyl pushed Shining off of her and leaned back, trying to get some distance between them. “Us. What about us?” Vinyl had assumed that he wouldn’t just leave her entirely, in fact she thought they could probably...well, be a little bit more than friends. There was obvious interest there, she knew they both felt it. He had literally confessed his feelings just the other night!

“I mean ‘us’. Like as a couple.” Shining blushed at that, the big softy. Like ‘couple’ was a naughty word he was saying for the first time when actually knowing the meaning. “I can’t exactly date you while we’re bound, so I figured we would try it out once we were done.”

“I kinda figured we would. I thought that’s what our talk was about the other night.” Vinyl was not one for forgone conclusions, but it had seemed pretty set in stone to her. Shining had confessed, she had reciprocated and they’ve been a little closer ever since. Cut and dry, really. Then again, the obliviousness of stallions was not to be underestimated.

“Well good.” Shining once again leaned his head against hers. “Because I really like you, Vinyl Scratch.” Vinyl didn’t know why, but her heart did not fill with love with that statement. Not entirely anyways. There was a small amount of dread that took up some of her feelings. She couldn’t explain why, but it was certainly primal and very real.

“Yeah.” Vinyl responded, choking down the negative feelings. “I like you too, Twinkle.” She tried to cover up the doubt in her voice, and apparently did a good job. The stallion didn’t budge or question it, he simply sat there with his head against hers.

Vinyl prayed these feelings would leave, because she didn’t want another good thing to be ruined. Not again.

Cadance waited patiently in the her personal study. Stacks upon stack of files surrounding her, all organized into very specific piles to be addressed during discussion. Now all she had to do was wait for the Interim-Captain to answer her summons so they could talk about the events of tomorrow.

It had been a daunting task to review all of the files and critically analyze the evidence to any degree, but Cadance had gotten it done. She had found a few more discrepancies in her second readthrough of the files that had weeded even more of the nobility out of Galea’s hunt. Hopefully the Interim-Captain would cooperate with her demands.

The door opened, and in trotted the baby blue mare that was soon to be Captain of the Royal Guard. She strode with purpose, each step meaningful and calculated. Her stone gray eyes scoured the entire room as she walked, critically going over everything within her line of sight.

Cadance could see why she was intimidating to other ponies, but the young Alicorn had seen the bad side of Princess Celestia before. No mere mare could scare or intimidate her after that. Galea was going to have to be clever or downright terrifying to get around Cadance’s personal red tape.

“Princess Cadance.” The mare bowed. On top of her head, Cadance spied a pair of black rimmed glasses stowed away. Cadance put on her warmest smile to address Galea.

“I didn’t know you wore glasses, Galea.” The pink princess was recalling everything that Celestia had taught her about being an effective and more commanding leader. Like: always control the flow of the conversation. Never respond to a question or address directly, always answer with your own question or a related topic.

“Oh.” The mare stood up straight, her horn lighting up and removing the glasses from her head. “I’m sorry, Your Highness. I didn’t realize I left those there. I was in the middle of some paperwork for tomorrow and I must’ve forgot them.” Cadance could tell that the little act of forgetting something so trivial got on Galea’s nerves, as she was trying not to speak from behind clenched teeth. “I have to wear them when I’m reading, Doctor prescribed.”

“Please, sit.” Cadance motioned to the chair across from her while pulling the special edition of the Canterlot Post from underneath her desk. “If I may ask, why did you fire one-hundred guards? I’m afraid I’m not exactly in the loop.” Cadance had made sure that Shining Armor still had his job, she may be done with him for now, but she still worried.

“It was a message.” Galea stated with a hint of a smirk. “The ones I let go weren’t good guard. I assume they started with the most pure of intentions, of course, but they did not execute their duties with such lofty ideals.” Galea leaned back in her chair. “I needed to let everypony know that I will not accept weakness or failure in my guard. Only the best for the best city in Canterlot.” Now, Cadance was sure of Galea’s loyalty to Country and Crown, but there were still some things to iron out before Cadance would be satisfied.

“Why let go of your top officials, as well?” That caught the Interim-Captain off her guard, as if she didn’t think anypony had noticed. Her gray eyes produced just a spark of panic. “I’m no expert in the matter, but I believe ponies such as Hypolite, Hussar, and Arditi were never accused of anything more than being the best at what they do.”

“I wanted to let fresh blood have a say in things.” To give Galea credit, she was able to keep incredibly poised and think on her hooves even when caught off guard. Cadance had to admire that. “Just like in produce, you get rid of the old first and let some of the fresher stuff have a shot.” Cadance wasn’t sure she liked the analogy, but she would let it slide for now.

“Very well.” The Princess relented as she put the newspaper away and diverted her full attention to the much smaller mare across the desk. “Now about your warrants for the nobles…” Cadance levitated the three different stacks of folder around Galea. “...there are currently two-hundred and forty-six nobles serving in the House representing as many families from Canterlot to Whinnyapolis. You have filed accusations again two-hundred and forty-five.” Cadance leaned in closer to the mare. “Would you mind telling me why Twilight Satin isn’t here?”

“It’s a quite simple answer, Princess Cadance.” Galea responded flatly as soon as Cadance had finished speaking. “I could dig nothing up on her. I know that may be hard to believe, seeing as how I have vanished parking tickets as evidence for some, but it is true. Every lead I chased down turned up nothing, every record that was supposed to be either didn’t exist or had nothing of interest in it. So either Twilight Satin is the greatest criminal mastermind to ever live, or she is the cleanest noble in the house.” Galea leaned in so the mares’ muzzles were only a few inches away from each other. “I find the former to be much more unbelievable, as both you and Princess Celestia are connected to the family. Imagine how bad it would look if it turned out they were nothing but corrupt criminals.”

Cadance froze in place. She hadn’t thought of that, not at all. Quickly, she searched Galea’s gaze for some modicum of what she suspected, and it was there. The knowing glint that said exactly what Galea was implying: there was something on Satin and Galea was sparing the royalty of the humiliation of such a thing getting out. This was nothing but another service to the crown, one that Cadance was now complicit in.

“Of course, it would be awful.” Cadance finally managed to speak after a pause of a few seconds. She needed to change the subject, not dwell on it any further. The Princess leaned back into her chair and picked up her first stack of files. “These are the nobles that I will sign the warrants for. A total of one-hundred and sixty-nine, all of the warrants are already in the files and ready to be served tomorrow.” Galea took that stack in her magic and set it near the door so she could take it on the way out. “This stack-” Cadance picked up the next one. “-totals fifty and I am sending them and the evidence over to The Department of Equestrian Intelligence so they can dig a little deeper. Either I’m dubious of some of this evidence, or I suspect much greater crimes.” Cadance sat that one next to her desk and took up the last stack. “Twenty-seven nobles whom I cannot recommend warrants for as the evidence against them is either not serious enough or not consistent enough to do so.”

“Very well, Your Highness.” Galea nodded. “I, and the rest of Equestria, thank you for your expedience and understanding in the matter.” Galea stood up to leave, grabbing her warrant stack with her magic.

“One more thing, Galea.” Cadance called out, ready to deliver her final question. The mare stopped, raising an eyebrow. “With a possible two-hundred and nineteen nobles either arrested or under federal investigation, how do you suppose the House of Nobles will function? We require a quorum of at least one-hundred and fifty members to fulfill the duties of the House.” Cadance hadn’t figured that part out, so she figured it wouldn’t hurt to get Galea’s input.

“Oh, Your Highness-” Galea started with that grin that Cadance did not like. “-I never thought you’d ask.”

Author's Note

DUM DUM DUUUUM!

Now This!

“And now here’s something we hope you’ll really like!”

-Rocky the Flying Squirrel

Shining snuck into Vinyl’s room, the pre-dawn shadows hiding his advancements well. He did not want to wake her, as it would only cause more trouble if she knew where he was going. Where that was exactly, was to the train station to pick up Glory and just chat with her.

He knew that Vinyl would protest it or get mopey, and he wanted no part in either of those. Instead, he elected to leave her a note saying he was busy and that she was to meet him on the Eastern Overlook of the Palace Square at seven so they could watch the inauguration together. It wasn’t every day, or even every decade that a Captain of the Guard was inaugurated.

For now, he had a schedule to keep. Glory’s train was going to be in soon, and he wanted to catch her before she went off to her home. It would probably not be a bad thing to help Glory thank Spitfire and Soarin. Also, Shining kind of wanted to see how they had done.

Placing his note on Vinyl’s bedside table, Shining exited the room and put on his armor. He had elected not to put it on before delivering the note to preserve some element of stealth. Once he was suited up, he took his bag of bits and left Vinyl’s apartment.

Outside, a bitter wind blew through the streets of Canterlot. Leaves in shades of dying green carried with them the first true signs of autumn and with it the start of the winter chill. He shook the thoughts of the coming snows away and started off towards the train station.

“Shiny?” Instinctively, his head raised and he looked around to locate the voice. Very few ponies called him ‘Shiny’ and none of them should be around or even awake at this time. But there, just across the street, was his own mother in a light gray jacket and her white and purple mane tied back in a ponytail, her ever present smile brightening up the morning a bit. “Shiny! Oh my goodness, I didn’t expect to see you here.” His mother looked both ways before crossing the street quickly and wrapping the stallion in a warm hug.

“Hi mom.” He returned the hug, but he couldn’t wipe the quizzical expression from his face. “What are you doing all the way out here? Not to mention this early in the morning.” While he did get his penchant for mornings more from his mother than father, he never expected her to be awake before the sun even rose.

“Well-” Velvet relinquished the hug. “-I went to my Doctor’s the other day and he told me that I should be exercising more. Then I remembered how you get all of your fitness activities in and decided to give it a shot.” Well Shining was impressed with the initiative, but he also wondered if his father had been informed of this and declined to join, or if this was another one of his mother’s secret things she liked to surprise Night Light with. “What are you doing up so early? I know you don’t run in that armor.”

“I have to go pick up Vinyl’s sister at the train station.” Shining shrugged. “Technically I’m on the clock, so the armor stays on.” Shining was going to get going, but he thought better of it. It would be rude not to at least ask his mom to tag along. Plus, he would like to talk to her for a period of time with nopony else around. It had been quite some time since he had done this. “Do you want to come with me? I could use the company.”

“Of course I would love to,” Velvet said with a smile. “I’ve jogged a lot today, I might as well cool down a bit.” Well now that it was settled, Shining pointed in the direction of the train station and the two got moving. “So does your friend Vinyl live in that building?”

“Yeah, she does. Why?” Shining wasn’t against his mother knowing, he was just naturally suspicious of other ponies’ motives when they asked questions. He blamed Velvet for it, she wrote mystery novels with grizzled detectives and shady characters.

“I was just wondering where my son has been spending his time. Is that alright?” Shining nodded, he couldn’t fault her for that. “It’s a bit nicer than I expected, to be honest,” his mother continued. “Not that I expected her to live in a dump or anything, I was just surprised she lived uptown and not somewhere with the pegasi or earth ponies.” Shining could forgive her rather casual racism, seeing as how he had thought it too when he first went to Scratch’s apartment. Plus, it wasn’t like there was anything wrong with living in the lower income neighborhoods, that just happened to be where the highest quantity of non-unicorns lived in the city.

“It was her parents’ before they passed. She inherited it and has lived in it ever since,” Shining explained. He wasn’t going to go too deep into Vinyl’s problems, but he could at least cover the very basics.

“Let’s not talk about your work, I can only imagine there are things that Vinyl wouldn’t want you to share with me.” Well, at least she knew when to back off from certain topics. It was a welcome change of pace from his and Vinyl’s constant probing of the other’s thoughts and feelings. “I do want to talk about you and Cadance, however.” Well nevermind, then. So much for no emotional talks. Leave it to mothers to pry exactly where you don’t want them to.

“Mom…” Shining sighed and put on his best exasperated face. Today was supposed to be a better day than yesterday, one where he didn’t have to get mad or upset at anything. Also, he really wanted to move on from Cadance. It hurt his heart just thinking about her.

“Ooooh no,” Velvet started, giving the young stallion her patented ‘mom glare’. “I think I need to know what happened between you two.” Shining’s shoulders sagged and he slowed his pace, which prompted his mother to place a hoof on his shoulder. “I’m worried about you, Shiny. I just want to know what happened and if I can help.”

“We just-” Shining looked for the right words and the lie he wanted to tell Velvet. He couldn’t exactly tell the truth, as he didn’t know what that might do to Cadance’s responsibilities as a foal sitter. He didn’t want Cadance’s irresponsibility with magic to lead to Twily losing a friend, the little filly didn’t exactly have very many to spare. “We had a fight and I couldn’t forgive her over it. I don’t really want to talk about it.” Okay, no lie then. He was going to go full shutdown on the subject.

“Shiny, you can talk to me.” The alabaster mare looked around. “It’s only us and the dawn, nopony else is here. Nopony else is even awake in this lazy city yet, so please just talk to me.” Shining had always been closer to his mom than his dad, and this was a prime example why. His father would joke his way through this conversation, where his mother was one to try and figure a way to navigate an obvious minefield. She never took the easy way out.

“She…” Shining was going to spill the beans, let the cat out of the bag, and open that can of worms. He just couldn’t help himself, there were just those certain ponies who could just get you to talk about anything. “...she used her magic on me, alright? When we would get into arguments she would use her love magic on me so we would stop.” Shining clenched his jaw and tried not to get angry. “When she finally admitted it, I don’t know, I just felt so…”

“Violated?” Velvet offered, giving her son a sympathetic look.

“No.” Shining shook his head. “Vulnerable.” He looked up at his mother, the pieces falling into place in his head. “I hadn’t ever thought of what Cadance was outside of my fillyfriend and Twily’s foalsitter. She’s a Princess, an alicorn, y’know? She could raise and lower the sun without a problem, she can make ponies change their minds with a wave of her horn…and I was dating her.” Shining didn’t like to admit his fears or shortcoming, because it made him all the more aware of them. It showed the cracks in his armor. “I just felt so small knowing that she could make me forget it all and forgive her in an instant.” Shining had never felt truly powerless before that moment, and even now it stuck with him. There was nothing he could’ve done to fight off Cadance’s magic even if he had known about it, she was that powerful. But he had been conditioned to be comfortable around such vast amounts of magic, after all his family regularly interacted with the one creature who controlled the sun and moon every day.

“I’m sorry you had to deal with that, Shining.” There was no shock or even disappointment in Velvet’s words, just a genuine sadness. “I’m so sorry.” The pair stopped and his mother pulled her only son into the hug he so desperately needed. “You did the right thing breaking up with her, I want you to know that. Nopony, not even somepony you love, is supposed to make you feel weak or powerless. I’m glad you got out before something worse happened.” Shining wasn’t sure what his mother had in mind for ‘something worse’ but he decided that he didn’t want to know.

“Just…don’t let this get in the way of anything, alright?” Shining pulled away from the hug and looked at his mother. “I don’t want you to fire Cadance as Twily’s foalsitter because I broke up with her. The last thing I want is for this to mess up your life.” He didn’t like the thought of his personal problems interfering with his family’s.

“Shining, if I let go of Cadance-which your father and I will discuss once I get home-it won’t be because we’re getting revenge on her for you.” Velvet gave a smile. “It will be because she’s lost our trust. We trust Princess Celestia to watch over Twilight because we know the Princess knows what she’s doing…but Cadance doing something so blatantly irresponsible? That’s not easy to ignore or get over. If she would do such a thing to you for getting mad at her, what would she do to Twilight? What has she done to Twilight?” Full mom-mode was kicking in, and the worry was starting to set in for the mare. Shining had seen it all before, if he didn’t do something quick then she would start to panic.

“Thank you for listening, Mom.” A good old redirect might work, that’s how his dad always got her off of her worry train. “I really appreciate you being there for me, even when I least expect you to be. It means a lot to me.” That wasn’t working, he could see her chest starting to rise and fall quicker than normal: that was hyperventilating. So if the redirect didn’t work, then only one other thing could. “I’ll remember to put you in a good nursing home when you get older for this.” Humor! It seemed to work as well, because Velvet snapped out of her worried state and gave him a rather bemused look.

“Was that a joke?” she asked, her breathing finally slowing and her mind focusing on something other than less than likely scenarios. “I’m being serious, Shiny. Was that a joke? You’re not really going to put me into a nursing home, right?”

“Of course not, Mom,” Shining scoffed as he started to walk again, his mother following close behind. “You’ll live with Twily, just like Grandma and you.” That earned a rather cynical laugh from the older mare, one that Shining didn’t expect.

“If I ever become anything like my mother, you have my full permission to commit me to wherever you need to get rid of me.” Shining laughed at that one and shot his mother a sarcastic smile.

“It would be my pleasure.”

Glory staggered off of the train from Ponyville, bleary-eyed and none too happy. The goodbyes with Lily and the girls had left everypony involved more than a little emotionally raw. That on top of what Vinyl had said yesterday, and Glory was exhausted on a very deep level that she hadn’t been in years.

The battered mare sighed as she stepped out of the station and into the maze of high marble buildings known as Canterlot. In the light of the sun, the city was a sight to behold. In the shadows of dawn, though? Everything looked so sad and dull, like the world’s painter had yet to finish up his masterpiece and color it in fully.

The absence of her daughter also made this feel very far away from home. This place, with its castles and mansions and high fashion, didn’t feel close to her heart anymore. Now her heart rested in a little cottage in the valley below the mighty mountain, and she didn’t want to be away from it any longer than she had to.

The problem was her responsibilities, her little orphans who had kept her heart with them for so long. It felt good to care for something, and it felt even better for the things you cared about to be loved and cherished like they deserved. In the end, her foals here in Canterlot came first. They were her prime concern until further notice, and when she had time she would go visit Lily and Cedar.

“Ms. Glory!” The pegasus diverted her gaze from the skyline of the city and towards the voice. Standing just down the sidewalk were none other than Twilight Velvet and Shining Armor. She had not been expecting either pony, let alone both of them at the same time.

“Hello Velvet.” She tried not to sound too surprised, after all she was Shining Armor’s mother. To that point, what was Shining doing here and was Vinyl with him? Glory just needed to speak to her, if only for a few moments. They could sort this out. She knew they could if they just had time alone together. “And good morning, Shining Armor.”

“Mom, you know Glory, she’s also Vinyl’s sister.” Velvet looked at Shining, and then back at Glory questioningly. “I know, I was surprised when I found out too. Small world, right?” Glory trotted over to the mother-son pair with a smile.

“What are you two doing out this early?” She sincerely hoped that they both didn’t come all the way out here just for her. It was far too early for anypony rational to be awake and doing things, not even the birds were out singing yet.

“Well I was coming to get you, just to walk you home and talk, and I ran into my mother and asked if she wanted to join us.” Well now Glory felt bad that Shining had pulled himself out of bed just for her sake, but it would make getting those two pegasi-Spitfire and Soarin-out of her house a little less awkward. “I thought I owed it to you to at least see you back to your home. It’s the least I can do after-” The stallion looked at his mother. “-well, you know.”

“Do you two need to talk about something?” Velvet asked, cutting into the fray. “I can get going if you two have some Vinyl-related things you need to speak about.” Glory couldn’t ask the mare to do that, it would be rude. Also, she hadn’t been able to speak to Velvet in ages, and some mature conversations would be a very welcome change of pace.

“I just need to speak with him for a moment. You are more than welcome to join us, Velvet.” That earned a smile from the older mare and a nod. “After all, I read your latest book and I have a few questions.” If there was one thing that could get Twilight Velvet talking, it was her life’s work. That mare could go on for hours about her characters and their reasonings and such.

“Okay, I’ll meet you both at the bakery a few blocks over, alright? I think they’re already opened at this time.” Both of the younger ponies nodded, letting Velvet go off towards the bakery. As she trotted away, Glory couldn’t help but admire the shape that the mother of two was in. She could only hope that she would be in as good of shape that Twilight Velvet was in her mid-life. She supposed that two foals who brought next to no worry with them would preserve the body well. Celestia knows that all of Glory’s problems had not been kind, and she was still in her twenties!

“I have good news.” Shining started as soon as his mother was out of sight. “Vinyl has agreed to speak with you-” Glory could practically feel the ‘but’ coming on. “-but I think she’s set in stone on this one.” There it was, and just as bad as she had anticipated. She had hoped that Vinyl would come to her senses after a day or two and ask to repair everything. It had been too much to ask. “But don’t worry, she’ll talk to Uncle B before getting to you. He should soften her up a little bit.”

“You don’t think she’ll change her mind…?” That was a devastating blow in its entirety. Glory didn’t have any family left except for Uncle B and Vinyl, and they both meant the world to her. Without Vinyl in the picture-and Uncle B wasn’t actively involved in her life like he was with Vinyl’s-what would Glory do? The only reason she had stayed in Canterlot had been for her family, and her orphanage could be moved anywhere with enough space. Could she leave?

“I don’t know.” Shining sighed and lowered his head. “I can’t read her on this one, but my gut is telling me that she’s not changing her mind.” Seeing as how Shining had spent more time with Vinyl in a few weeks than she had in over five years, Glory trusted his judgement on that one. “I think you can improve your chances, though. Just…try not to blame her for anything.” That wasn’t how apologies were supposed to work, the one wronged was supposed to be the one not blamed for anything. Frankly, Glory was getting tired of being blamed for everything. “Just…try to focus on the good times, the good memories. Y’know, appeal to the Vinyl you knew, not the one in front of you.”

“You really think that will work?” Glory responded with equal amounts of incredulity and hope. She didn’t have much faith in Vinyl letting go of things, it wasn’t exactly something she was known for. How would that change just by bringing up the past?

“I don’t know.” The guard shrugged. “Truth be told, I usually wing it when Vinyl isn’t in a good mood. I talk and just say what’s on my mind while not pissing her off, I know that’s not an easy feat but it’s a tightrope I think you’re going to have to walk if you want any chance.” That did not sound easy or enjoyable. In fact, it sounded like a way for Vinyl to punch Glory yet again. “It’s the best I can do, Glory. I can’t just make her magically forgive you, even I’m not that powerful.”

That was the problem with things like this, nopony was ever that powerful.

“I suppose we should go find your mother?” Shining nodded and stepped aside for her to go first. “Thank you for this, Shining. I really appreciate everything you’ve done for my family. Even if it all hasn’t worked out.” She could’ve sworn that she saw Shining flinch at that. Glory hoped it didn’t hurt his feelings at all.

It had been about a half hour since Shining and his mother had met up with Glory. The trio had successfully gotten their baked goods for pseudo-breakfast and were now just outside of Glory’s home. It was still the same old beat up abode that Shining had seen before, but at least it looked no worse for wear. That was a small plus in what seemed to be a trickle of negatives on this day.

“Who did you say was watching your orphanage, Glory?” Velvet asked, inspecting the edifice of the building critically. It made sense, it had been a while since Shining’s mother had been around this part of town. Usually it was just him and Twily coming to do some good work, his parents simply allowed them to go.

“Some of Shining’s friends.” She stamped her hoof a few times in frustration as they trotted up to the door. “Soarin and...Spitfire, right?” Shining nodded, and his mother’s eyes went wide and a smile crossed her face.

“Soarin? Oh, I haven’t seen him in ages! When was the last time you brought him over, Shiny?” Even Shining had a hard time remembering. Maybe two and a half years? It had been a while, sure.

“I’m not sure, I just called in a favor he owed me.” Shining turned to his mom as Glory dug keys out of her luggage. “I remembered he had a lot of younger siblings, so I figured he was suited for the job.” The door clicked open to an expected silence. “That’s actually a good sign.” He commented happily.

Shining and the two mares entered the house, trying to move as silently as they could. There was nothing out of place, in fact the place looked cleaner than they had left it. He gave a closer look at some of the spots where he knew scuffs and cracks were and found that they were either gone or fixed in some small respect.

When they entered the living room they found the pale blue pegasus who had been left in charge sprawled across the couch. His wings were splayed out, one hanging off of the side and dragging along the ground. His mouth hung open, with only light breathing coming out.

“I swear he can sleep like that anywhere.” Velvet commented, going over to the couch and poking the stallion. “I remember on Hearth’s Warming Eve a few years ago, he came over for dinner and afterwards he was just gone!” Velvet laughed. “Just right in the chair at the table.”

“Because it was really good…” Soarin moaned out groggily. Shining leaned over the couch and looked at his friend curiously. “Hey...both of my favorite unicorns in one place. I must be dreaming…”

“You wish, Soar.” Shining concentrated and lifted the pegasus up with his magic until Soarin righted himself. “Now get up, Glory’s here to take over for you.” Soarin landed gracefully on his hooves once Shining let go of him.

“Should’ve known it wasn’t a dream.” Soarin stretched his wings and cracked his neck. “If it was, one of you two would be on top of me right now.” That elicited an eye roll from Shining and a legitimate laugh from his mother.

“Oh, stop it, Soarin.” Velvet waved the stallion away with a hoof. “Why are you always so dirty?” Soarin and Velvet’s connection was certainly a strange one. Velvet had grown up around nobility and class, so Shining wasn’t sure why Soarin got a pass for being so crass. Sure, his father was not exactly refined, but he wasn’t as rough as Soarin. Maybe Velvet just had a soft spot for ponies who spoke whatever came to their minds.

“Did they behave for you?” Glory spoke up, her wings twitching nervously as she did. “I-I really hope they weren’t too much. I know sometimes Saguaro can be a little much, and little Sentry can get fussy-” She was stopped by Soarin’s hoof being held up.

“It was really no problem. Seriously, all of ‘em were great for me and Spitfire. Let me tell you, she went kinda bonkers when she first saw the place. She even went out and somehow got a sander to fix your floors.” Soarin looked around, nodded like he was actually impressed. “Like, she went full tilt OCD and really did a number on the place.”

“Yeah, I noticed.” Glory looked around the room, her eyes lingering for a few seconds on specific spots. Stuff like corners and the edges of the couch, where once there had been some sort of damage or oddity that had been repaired. “So…where is Spitfire now?”

“Well…” Soarin looked out of the nearest window. “...It’s like, what, five-thirty or six or something? She’s probably out flying at this time.” Shining had no clue how Soarin had lost the guard mentality about waking up early, but it had all slid off of his back like water off a duck’s. “Anywho, you need anything else, Glory? Or are we good?”

“I think everything is okay, Soarin. Thank you so much for doing all of this, I really appreciate it.” Glory moved in to give Soarin a hug, one that he gently and politely reciprocated. That was a surprising move for Soarin, usually he would make a lewd remark or something. It was nice to see some proper respect out of the usually silly stallion.

“It’s no problem. Really, it’s been a minute since I’ve gotten to take care of little ones. It was my pleasure.” Soarin broke the hug and trotted over to Shining and Velvet. “If you ever need a pair of extra hooves, hit me up. Just send somepony over to the Wonderbolts’ barracks and tell ‘em I owe you one.”

“I will, thank you.” Glory smiled and then started to trot upstairs to check on her foals. She stopped and turned around. “Thank you too, Shining Armor. I appreciate everything you’ve done.” Shining could only smile and nod. He’d said enough already.

“Come on, you two. We have an inauguration to get to.” Shining motioned for his mother and friend to follow him as he exited the slightly less dilapidated home. His mother was right at his side while Soarin hovered at the threshold for a second. Something was definitely bothering him, and Shining was going to figure out what it was.

“Are you alright, Soar?” Shining asked as soon as the door was closed behind them. The pegasus flew just above the two white unicorns, a perplexed look on his face. “Yeah, see that look is why I’m worried.”

“Have you noticed something about Glory…?” Soarin asked, hovering for just a second before following above them. “Like...something wrong?” Shining could list a couple of different things, none of them really above anything else.

“She’s a bit skinny, but she’s always been like that for as long as I can remember.” Velvet offered her opinion. “I try to send some food with Shiny and Twily when they come over, but I think it all goes to the foals. Maybe she just doesn’t have an appetite.” Yes, Glory was a bit on the skinny side. You could practically see her ribs at some points, but she moved around and acted as healthy as anypony else.

“I wouldn’t say I’m an expert…” Soarin landed in front of the unicorns, making them stop. He held up a solitary yellow feather with his own wings. “...but I know a thing or two about wings. This shouldn’t have come out this easily, and she should’ve at least felt something when I plucked it.” Shining Armor had to admit that he knew absolutely nothing about pegasus biology, so he didn’t know how hard it was to pluck a feather. “This thing practically fell out when I touched it. Have either of you ever seen her fly? Because I bet you she can’t.” Shining Armor thought for a moment, but he could only recall one instance of Glory taking flight before and that was just one mere flap of her wings that achieved very little lift. “Seriously, this thing is rotten to the shaft. Like, how haven’t her wings fallen off yet?”

“Soarin, are you sure about this?” Velvet asked exactly what Shining was thinking. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Soarin, but it was a lot of sudden opinions and Shining didn’t know enough to verify any of the information. “Glory seems healthy enough. Just because we’ve never seen her fly doesn’t mean she can’t.”

“It’s kinda my job to know healthy wings. If we spot anything wrong we have to report it, so I have to know all of the early warning signs.” Soarin spread a wing and yanked a feather out with his teeth, at which the pegasus visibly flinched in pain. “C’mere and see.” Shining and his mother came in close so they could see the differences in the feathers.

Soarin’s feather was perfect: without frays and the right shade of blue. The shaft that went into the skin of the wing was colored a bright white with a slightly darker core. Glory’s feather was quite the opposite: it was a paler color than her coat, and the shaft was a sickly black that even Shining could tell wasn’t right.

“That’s rot,” Soarin stated flatly. “I don’t know what the technical name for it is, but we call it wing rot, and left unchecked it’s a real doozy.” Soarin frowned at the yellow feather. “I’ll show it to Spitfire and maybe somepony on staff back at the Wonderbolt’s HQ to see what they think, but I’m going to tell you right now that she needs to see a doctor…like, yesterday. This can kill if it gets to the base of the wing, it’ll just go straight to the core after that.”

“Shiny...do you think we should go tell her?” He was a bit paralyzed with this information. On a moral level, he knew he should go and tell her, but something just wouldn’t let him. Like some grand design of fate had set this all up in a great twist of irony: Glory reunites with her daughter and now he has to tell her she’s sick? Tell her she had a chance of dying because of it? Shining just couldn’t do it anymore, he just couldn’t deliver more bad news. He couldn’t take anymore negative emotions.

“I’m…” Shining had no way to put it elegantly. “I’m all bad-news’d out. I just-all I do is deliver bad news and make ponies upset anymore.” Shining sighed and slouched, feeling utterly defeated. “I really just want one day where I can just enjoy things and not have to worry about somepony crying or getting upset.” Shining felt bad about saying that, really bad in fact, but the last stretch of days was doing a number on his mood. He didn’t know how much more he could deliver before he broke.

“Well…” Soarin looked at the feather. “…y’know, like I said, it might be something less serious. I’m not an expert or anything, so let me get a second opinion and I’ll go talk to her about it, alright?” The pegasus put a hoof on Shining’s shoulder. “I’ll take this one when I find out, alright?”

“Thank you, Soarin.” Velvet spoke before Shining could. “Are you going to come with us to the inauguration, or are you going to find your friend? We would love for you to come along, but we understand if you can’t.”

“I think I can tag along with you for a bit. If I see Spitfire, I’ll catch her.” Soarin slapped Shining on the side. “Now, c’mon, you don’t wanna know how busy the Palace Square is going to be.”

Vinyl trotted through the mass of gathered ponies, trying to make her way to the Eastern Overlook. It was early, her alarm had woken her up, and Twinkle had been missing. Vinyl was not in a very good mood this morning.

She couldn’t even care about the captain of the guard, but she was here because Twinkle wanted her to be and he had done a lot for her. She at least owed him this one little thing. So here she was, trying to push through the dense crowd to get to her destination. If she was a bit taller, or even in fancy attire they would part like noble’s mane, but nope. For Vinyl it was hard travels all of the way.

But hey, at least it gave her a bit more time to think about the things going on in her life.

Like, talking to every one of the ponies who had been on the other side of the most horrible weeks of her life. Weirdly enough, it was Uncle B that was the one she was most worried about. Their relationship since mom and dad died had been one of dueling tempers with sarcasm at the front lines. Any conversation which started with a contentious choice on Vinyl’s side was going to be met with a thick wall of anger and shouting. Vinyl didn’t know if she could stand up to Uncle B if he came at her full force. Family was one of those things she had trouble going against, especially him.

Then there were Cadance and Intrepid. Both of them were intertwined in their fates and the conversations that she needed to have with them. She didn’t really need to apologize to Intrepid or explain herself, but they needed to have some sort of conversation about what happened. They needed to share their feelings about Cadance, and betrayal, and where they were going from here.

The Princess on the other hoof…that was going to be a test of patience for Vinyl. There was still a lot of anger there, and Vinyl wasn’t sure if she could work through it. The problem had been that she already had one pony prying into her life without her consent, and Cadance had done a lot worse by messing with her head without consent. Vinyl was never going to forgive her for that, and just trying to talk it out might end with a physical altercation.

The biggest hurdle was Glory. First she had to get through Uncle B with her choice intact, and then she had to confront Glory and tell her to her face that she couldn’t stick around…again. That was another emotional dropkick she had to endure.

Life sure liked delivering those, didn’t it?

Looking up, Vinyl found herself at her destination. A set of stairs were in front of her that led to a curved landing that looked over the entire square. There were smatterings of ponies along the overlook, but for the most part it was largely unoccupied. Probably because it wasn’t close to the stage set up below, but instead one of the farthest points from it. Vinyl had to admit that it provided a nice pegasi’s eye view of the whole event, though.

She ascended the stairs and started to walk along, until she spotted a familiar white unicorn leaning against the railing. Well, actually two familiar white unicorns. Both Twinkle and his mom were there looking over the railing at the celebration below.

“Yo, Twinkle! Velvet!” She wasn’t exactly sure what to call his mom, but ‘Ms. Velvet’ felt too formal, and Twilight felt weird. Both unicorns turned around and waved her over, an invitation which she gladly accepted.

“This is gonna be fun, isn’t it?” Vinyl asked if she approached the railing and leaned on it. “I mean, literally all of the nobles are right down there in front.” She nudged Velvet with a hoof. “Think your mom could hook us up with a view?”

“We ran into her on our way up and I asked-” Velvet stated, taking her place on the other side of the guard. “-she said that it’s only for the members of the House today. Usually they would allow families, so I’m not sure what’s different today.”

“It’s a new era.” Shining stated flatly. “I have a feeling change is the new norm.”

Galea turned her neck sharply, eliciting a satisfying crack. The cold mare lifted her breastplate from the ground and lowered it over herself. She had it specially made for this occasion: it was a bright silver with pale blue trimming and engraving with her cutie mark emblazoned right on her chest.

Slowly, she raised a helmet that mirrored the same style and put on her head. She was lucky enough to not have to use her own mane as a plume and had an artificial one made for her helm. It was one of the little benefits she got to enjoy as Captain.

One of her favorite things was her latest addition to her ensemble. She lifted it from a nearby rack and examined it. The sheath of her new sword was adorned with the same color as her armor, it even had her cutie mark, the beautiful crossed icicles, dotted across the shimmering metal.

“Interim-Captain Galea.” The mare blinked, she had completely forgotten that Trip was in the room with her. The intoxicating aroma of freshly forged armor had went to her head and made her lose her place for a second. “It’s almost time for us to depart towards the Palace Square. Princess Cadance requested you to arrive early to discuss ‘The Nobles’ as she put it.” Yes, not even Galea would tell her assistant about the business. It was to take all of Canterlot by surprise.

“Of Course, Triplicate.” Galea straightened her posture, strapped her sheath to her side and and turned around. Briefly she felt like a fresh guard in full armor, but then there was a sense of power that came rushing over her. It was mixed with responsibility that made the armor much more than simple guard attire. It was a symbol of her authority. “I believe I’m ready to go now.”

Galea marched out of her office, looking back at her newly installed armor and weapon rack before closing the door behind her. Knock Out’s things had finally been moved out entirely and now the office was hers. It was all hers now.

She trotted through the halls, various servants and worker bees giving short nods and proud smiles as she passed. When they could, they would address her by her new title and congratulate her. Finally, after all of her hard work, she was being properly recognized and rewarded. It felt right.

It was a short walk from her office to the main floor of the palace, where Princess Cadance and Princess Celestia were waiting. She approached the monarchs and gave a bow, which the two alicorns returned with simple nods.

“Captain Galea.” Celestia smiled. “Are you prepared for your moment? Do you have your speech?” Galea did not return the smile, but chose to keep her neutral expression to favor professionalism. She was not going to start her career as Captain by being emotional, she wanted to be known for her stern nature and adherence to the rules.

“I have my speech memorized, Princess Celestia. I’m fully prepared for the inauguration, yes. As ready as I could ever be.” Galea looked back to find her assistant still floating around. “Triplicate, you may leave us now. I will not be needing your assistance further.”

“Yes Ma’am.” Triplicate nodded and left the group, leaving Galea alone with the royalty.

“About the Nobles, Captain.” Cadance spoke up, and raised a piece of parchment with a diagram of the celebration on it. “We have guards ready to move in when you give the orders. We’ve explained the basics to them and they will remain silent until the time comes. We’ve put them in armor opposite yours: blue with silver trim.” Galea did not like ponies going behind her back, not even the Princesses. She was supposed to be clued in to everything going on with her guard.

“Good.” Galea lied through her teeth. “I’ll issue the order and they’ll move in, cutting off any escape routes.” Galea tapped the section right behind where the nobles were slated to be. “Have we set up some kind of barrier to stop them from fleeing into the crowd?” That’s what she was worried about, the slippery ones that would try to run and use their money to slip out of the city.

“The crowd itself.” Celestia responded. “We’ve made sure to force the bulk of the crowd into the area behind the nobles. We’ve even declared the area a no-fly zone to force the pegasi into the area as well.” At least the bases were covered, that reassured Galea a little.

“When do we begin?” Galea changed the topic of conversation and looked to the door that lead to the Square. “I apologize for my urgency, I just want to get this over with as soon as we can. The smoother this goes, the better.” Galea did not feel like apologizing, but it was the proper thing to do in context.

“Whenever you want, Captain.” Cadance spoke quietly. “The crowds are just waiting on Celestia and I to begin the ceremony.” Galea thought for a moment and collected her thoughts, she was as ready as she would ever be. She stepped aside and bowed, signalling for the royalty to take to the stage.

The Princesses nodded as they moved to the door and opened it. A wave of cheers washed through the opening, deafening any other sound in the room. To Galea it was the noise of an unruly populace who needed a stern hoof put down, but the little filly deep in her core knew it was for her.

Luckily Galea had ignored the little filly’s voice for decades at this point. So it was easy to see it as the former and forget the latter. This city needed a large dose of order with a helping of legitimate results. She was going to make that happen whether the city thought they needed it or not.

The Princesses were going through their spiel: telling everypony how the death of Knock Out had left the city reeling but how Galea had stepped up and served as a beacon of order and strength to the city. They intimated how proud they were of her taking responsibility and how she was deserving of this position.

Finally they called her out to join them.

Galea took a deep breath, straightened her posture more than she thought possible and took the steps outside. As she did, her eyes adjusted and she was met with the sprawling crowd before her. Ponies of every color and race filled the Square, most likely from all over Equestria because there were more ponies packed into the Palace Square than there were in Canterlot.

“Ponies!” Galea lit up her horn to activate her own vocal projection spell, making her voice echo across the entire Palace grounds. She stepped up to the podium, which was adorned with a banner of Celestia’s mark, and stepped up to meet it. “Citizens of the great city of Canterlot and beyond!” That elicited a cheer from the masses, one that filled Galea with the motivation she needed. “I am proud and honored to accept the position of Captain of the Royal Guard. It has been a goal of mine since I was just a little filly to help this city, to make sure that it is safe and well protected. I aim to accomplish that act, starting as soon as I’m sworn in.” Another cheer went up through the crowd that spurned Galea’s sense of authority. Galea turned and nodded to the monarchs. “Your Majesties, you may proceed.”

Celestia and Cadance both moved to Galea’s side and produced a jewel studded golden box. Celestia held it out for Galea, who put her hoof on the object. Galea focused on Celestia’s mouth, knowing she was going to have to recite the oath which she spoke.

“Repeat after me.” Celestia took a deep breath. “I, Galea, solemnly swear-”

“I, Galea, solemnly swear-”

“-to uphold the office of Captain of the Royal Guard to the full extent possible.”

“-to uphold the office of Captain of the Royal Guard to the full extent possible.”

“I will allow the principles that made Equestria great to direct my actions. Kindness will guide my hoof when a punishment is delivered, Honesty will help me be true to myself and the ideals that drive Equestria, Loyalty will keep my goals true to the country and crown I serve, Laughter will keep me light-hearted and hold me back from cruelty, and Generosity will allow me to be charitable in my dealings.” Celestia finished the oath, and Galea repeated it the whole way. She did not dwell on the words, but instead focused on getting through them. The next step was the most important.

The cheer went up from the crowd and Galea took to the podium once again, a fire lit in her belly. She looked down to the crowd of nobles that stood at the front of the mass of ponies. This was going to hurt them more than it was going to help her, and she was fine with that.

“I want you all to know that I am true to my word. I said just minutes ago that I would help this city as soon as I was sworn in and I aim to do so.” Galea looked out to shocked faces in the crowd, they were not expecting immediate action. “First, I know that some of the citizenry has been concerned with my mass-punishment of the guard, and I want you all to know that I do not want our Guard to be ineffective in any manner. Starting immediately I am rescinding the ban on Thestrals joining the guard.” Another gasp and murmurs from the crowd. “For too long they have been punished for something their ancestors did one thousand years ago. No more! THey shall join us in protecting their city, their royalty once more!” Galea glanced at the Princesses from the corner of her eye. She saw the sly smirk on Celestia’s face and the shocked expression on Cadance’s. Good, even the monarchs were capable of being surprised.

Galea had been keeping that one up her sleeve. It had been on her agenda for some time to allow the Bat Ponies back into the fold of Guards. They were good at what they did and offered unique opportunities to Galea’s operations. Considering how it was the Captain who had full say on who could join the guard and who couldn’t, all it took was her word to allow them back in.

“Second, I have seen the corruption that has plagued the upper echelon of this city. I have seen bits flowing freely from the corporations and lobbyists right into the accounts of those who control the very government you rely on to provide!” Galea straightened up and pointed an accusatory hoof at the section of Nobles up front. “I have spent the last five years investigating the House of Nobles and have found the majority to be guilty of corruption on the highest level!” Again, a gasp from the ponies below. “We cannot allow this kind of corruption to infiltrate our city, we cannot allow them to line their pockets and rule only in their best interests!” Galea slammed her hoof on the podium, fire burning from her eyes and replacing the usual ice. “Guards! Arrest those accountable!”

The crowd went ballistic as guards in silver and blue moved in on the nobles and picked out over three-fourths of the ponies inside of the Noble’s area. Some wept gently as they were put in magic bonds, others fought the guards as they went down and were dragged away by the guards. Good, the fighters made them look all the more guilty.

“It is obvious-” Galea continued. “-that mere ponies cannot be trusted with such power no longer. They are too easily corrupted and bent to others’ will.” Galea looked on as the ponies below clamored about the shocking revelations. “Instead, I propose that we bring back the diarchy that served us so well in the past! We moved away only because we were reduced to one Princess, but with Princess Cadance’s help we can restore Equestria to it’s former glory! In order to do this, we need to abolish the House of Nobles and allow our Royalty to rule once again!”

Galea looked down to the Noble’s cordoned off area and saw Twilight Satin glaring up at her, hatred filling her eyes even more than usual. Galea had done it, she had outplayed her blackmailer and removed any power she once had. Galea had won.

For the first time since she took the podium, Galea smiled.

The Calm

“Everything is negotiable. Whether or not the negotiation is easy is another thing.”

-Carrie Fisher

“What in Celestia’s name just happened?” Vinyl asked the question that was blitzing it’s way through Shining’s mind. It had all just happened at such a breakneck pace, first the reinstatement of Thestrals, then all of the nobles were arrested and…and now everything was different. Just like that.

“I believe we just witnessed a revolution.” Velvet spoke up first. “Usurping the House of Nobles and reinstating a true diarchy…I will admit, I did not see that one coming today.” Shining wanted to laugh, but he couldn’t. He was in shock still, he had just witnessed the most significant Guard action in history. Not to mention what it did to his potential promotion.

Whatever leverage his grandmother had with Galea, whatever power, was most likely gone now. So that left him on shaky ground with the only course of action being doing a damn fine job. He literally had to blow Galea away with progress or else he was gone.

Now how in the hell was he supposed to do that?

“Twinkle! Yo, Twinkle!” Shining blinked, a white hoof being waved in front of his face snapping him out of his worry. “I kinda want your thoughts on this whole thing. Because I really don’t know how to feel about this whole thing.” Shining was still trying to process it as well, but he would give it his best shot.

“Well…” Shining started with a sigh. “…I think being a guard just got a lot more complicated. Other than that, I guess we wait for the trials for the Nobles. They aren’t guilty yet, so we just have to wait for that to come to fruition.” Shining thought it over, and his mind settled on the Princesses. “Couple that with a fundamental change in the way the government is run, and we have a recipe for disaster, or at least some unexpected changes. Cadance is going to become a lot more busy, that’s the only thing I can say for certain.” He was trying to look at this from a more pragmatic point of view, which was helping with coping with the whole thing.

“So, long story short: everything is kind of screwed at the moment and we know nothing except that Princess Pink in the Dream castle is going to have extra hard days.” Well, when Vinyl put it like that, it sounded a hell of a lot less optimistic. When framed as ‘pony you don’t really like is going to have a hard time’, it’s hard to feel bad.

“I need to go find Mother.” Velvet leaned over the railing to better see into the tangle of restrained nobles. “If she was able to blackmail Galea, who knows if something has happened to her.” Yeah, Shining wasn’t too worried about Grandma Satin. Worst-case scenario she was in cuffs down there and pissed beyond all belief, and best-case scenario she was just pissed beyond all belief.

Galea had messed with and taken away her power, and given direct power to the one pony that was no longer connected to her. If Shining didn’t know better, he would say this was a coincidence. It wasn’t, though. This was one big rude gesture to his grandmother straight from the Captain of the Guard.

“What’s the plan, Twinkle?” Again, Vinyl with the pertinent questions. He didn’t really have a plan except for go home and try to get everything for tomorrow set up. That was all he could do, wait.

He hated waiting.

Galea trotted off of the stage, Princess Cadance hot on her hooves. Of course there would be questions, and of course it would be the younger of the alicorns to ask them. Galea would do her best to address them, and hopefully put any of Cadance’s worries to rest.

“A full diarchy?” the Princess asked incredulously. “That’s not what we decided on, we agreed it would be a temporary arrangement until we found a better solution.” Galea smiled inwardly. The alicorn’s stern facade had cracked and faded in just one speech, now Galea had the upper hoof in dealings.

“This is the better solution,” Galea stated flatly. She stopped and turned around, facing the baffled Princess. As she was about to speak, Galea held up a hoof. “What? Do you want me to rescind my idea? Do you want me to tell Celestia that you got cold hooves and don’t think you can handle the responsibility, is that it?” Cadance’s lip stiffened. Galea could practically see the little alicorn telling herself to ‘buck up’ and not be afraid.

“I can handle the responsibility, I simply do not like to be tricked or lied to,” Cadance stated, stomping her gilded hoof on the tile. “When a deal is made, I expect it to be adhered to and not changed without my knowledge.”

“No decision has been made yet,” Galea posited. “I simply proposed the dissolution of the House. It is up to yourself and Princess Celestia to decide on the actual fate of such things.” Galea started to walk again, to her office. It was the only place she wanted to be at the moment, even if Celestia or the press would want her elsewhere.

“What are we supposed to do, Captain?” Cadance kept pace with Galea easily. “The ponies of Canterlot will have that idea in their head now. Are we supposed to just ignore them when all of the papers cry for the same?” Cadance was getting the picture now, that was good. Galea did not like ponies who were slow to catch on.

“That’s none of my concern, Princess Cadance.” Galea lifted her helmet off of her head, but kept it floating nearby. “My only concern is the nobility that have wronged this city facing justice. How the government changes is up to you and Celestia.” Once again, Galea had only wound up the cogs, now they were spinning freely. She knew the Princesses would not stop the spinning, they were not like that.

They reached her office, and she opened the door. Galea appreciated the silence of the Princess, it meant understanding and a form of compliance. That was all Galea could ask for in this time of uncertainty, a little understanding.

Speaking of uncertainty, in her office was a pony that nopony ever quite expected to be around. The slightly off-white stallion, his salt-and-pepper mane coiffed to perfection, was sitting in front of her desk. He simply raised an eyebrow at the Princess who followed Galea in.

“Good morning, Intrigue. A pleasure to see you as always.” She looked back to Cadance. “If you’re delivering your report on that special assignment, then I believe Princess Cadance should be here for this.” Galea strode across the room, putting her sword and helmet on their separate racks as she went and finally ending up behind her desk. “Please, Your Majesty, sit.”

Cadance did as she was asked and took a seat beside the stallion. What a life that Galea led where she could have a Princess and a Spymaster in the same room together. It was refreshing to have something as unique and unusual as this in her presence.

“It is about that assignment.” Intrigue straightened his posture and pulled a pair of glasses from seemingly nowhere. “My ponies have been following Shining Armor as you’ve instructed, and we have new information.”

“You’ve been spying on Shining Armor?!” Cadance stood up, her voice angry and full of venom. “F-for what purpose?” Galea internally rolled her eyes at the outburst. Such a childish thing to do: react without knowing everything.

“Because I do not trust him, Princess Cadance.” Galea leveled her icy glare at the alicorn. “I do not think he is taking his job seriously and I believe he would rather lie to me than do his job properly. I know his family and I know their methods. Now would you please be quiet and allow me to hear the rest of the report?” Cadance and Galea’s glares met, but Cadance’s faltered first.

“As I was saying…” Intrigue continued. “Vinyl Scratch is not going to forgive Skyward Glory, in fact she is cutting her out of her life entirely.” Galea knew that Shining Armor wasn’t up to the task of saving a pony who wasn’t able to be. Nopony was, but his hubris and pride would not allow him to step aside. “On top of that, we have more concerning things to discuss. I’m afraid he’s broken a few rules.” Galea smiled, this was going to be good. “It seems he is pursuing a relationship with Vinyl Scratch. Our surveillance spells caught them talking about it on more than one occasion.”

“W-what…?” Galea wished she was capable of that kind of shock, but alas she was not. It was Cadance who once more stood, a hoof to her agape mouth. Galea saw her mouthing the word ‘no’ over and over again.

“I don’t like rule breakers.” Galea stated. “If he admits to it or they do anything after his assignment is done, then he is gone. Until then I have no proof that he has done anything.” Galea did not like to be without proof or results. She had given the young guard a chance, but he had already unknowingly squandered it on a troublesome mare. “If he doesn’t get it through his head that his job is to get Vinyl Scratch better, then he is not worthy of the guard.” Galea looked down at her desk, a file labeled with Guard Armor’s cutie mark sitting on top of everything else. Probably the transcripts from the conversations.

The sound of a door closing drew her attention back to the room in front of her. It was now without a Princess.

Galea sighed.

“She’s going to do something stupid, isn’t she?”

Cadance galloped through the castle, tears barely contained. How could he even think of moving on so fast? He had told her that they could get back together! He had said that there was a chance and he would never really get over her! Now he was thinking of dating Vinyl? Didn’t he know it was going to cost him his job?

Didn’t he know how much it hurt…? Did he even think about how such a thing could make others feel? She knew that deep down she shouldn’t care about what Shining was doing, but she still care for him. No matter how much she tried to be like Celestia, how cold she tried to be, she just couldn’t let go of him in the core of her being.

Cadance’s panicked running transformed into a sad trot. The weight of everything finally settling down on her. Shining was moving on, and he was making a huge mistake. Moving on meant endangering his career and getting on Galea’s bad side.

Could Cadance sit back and allow that to happen? Could she be as distant as Celestia and just allow things to unfold? That was the dilemma: could she just sit back and let bad things happen to good ponies?

The bitter answer was ‘no’. She couldn’t let Shining jeopardize everything he had worked so hard for, for her last act of love she would save him from himself. She was going to have to change Vinyl’s mind about Glory and somehow pull them apart.

For now, there was only one place in the world that could help her accomplish that. The Royal Library. It had information on every kind of magic ever created or studied, including love magic. So maybe she could glean something from the tomes that could help her.

Her destination was reached easily and without incident. Her appearance alone had signalled the guard to open the locked archives when she arrived, and she made a beeline towards the section littered with books about love magic.

Cadance had spent many of her formative years in this very section of the library. She had developed her skills, honed her craft, in these very seats. Even after all of the years she had never read all of the books on the subject, there were still a few select tomes that had not been thoroughly explored before. Some because Celestia had forbidden her from touching them, others because she had never quite reached the skill level required to understand them. For the latter, Celestia had assured her she had all the time in the world to get them.

The alicorn pulled one of the more advanced tomes from the shelves. The title was ‘The Rose and The Dove’ and it was written by a pony from long ago named Eros, the progenitor of love magic. This was as advanced as it got, and she was going to need it. There had to be something inside that would allow her to change familial love, that could let her change minds and opinions.

She took the book and poured over it’s contents. From the beginning where it talked about increasing pleasure for sexual partners and how to extend orgasms for hours, to the more subtle arts of seduction and manipulation.

That’s when she found it, the spell she needed. It was old and complicated, and came from a land she couldn’t even pronounce. Some race called ‘Changelings’ had perfected it and passed it on to others. It allowed a pony powerful enough to effectively plant post-hypnotic suggestions in the minds of others when under the spell. It was nothing but a gentle stimulation, simple pleasure that pacified and allowed somepony with strong enough magic to just put ideas in. Eros had used it to push ponies together who needed it, Cadance was going to do the opposite for reasons that were just as good.

There was a problem, though. It could be administered through magic alone, but it was very short lived when done that way. Hours, maybe a day if she was lucky. The only way for it to linger, for weeks, even years the book said if the caster was powerful enough, was to administer it through an intimate method. The way a lover would, so either through a kiss or something more.

Considering the latter was unfathomable, Cadance would settle for the former. She would have to get in a room alone with Vinyl Scratch, administer the spell by way of kiss, and then issue her orders.

A twinge of guilt shuddered through Cadance. She was going to be doing something she promised she wouldn’t do again, she was going to mess with Vinyl’s head. But it was for her own good, for Shining’s own good.

She knew that didn’t make any of it morally right, but it made it palatable. That was all she needed to do, be able to live herself. She thought she could definitely do that, she could live with doing something ambiguous if it saved Shining’s career and Vinyl a lifetime of emotional pain.

She was going to go through with it.

Vinyl picked up a wooden spoon and scooped up a piece of the dish she had cooked. Gently, she blew the steam off of the gathering of foodstuffs and popped it in her mouth. It was a little hot, but it was as delicious as ever.

“What did you call this stuff, Scratch?” Vinyl was happy that Twinkle finally calmed down about the whole Galea thing. The whole day he had been spouting little hypotheticals and situations that could happen, all while berating Galea’s decision to include Bat Ponies back into the guard. He called them traitors, but Vinyl just put that bit on old school prejudice.

“Tater tot hotdish.” Vinyl stated for the umpteenth time. “I spent like a week in Whinnyapolis, and the dude I was staying with made it.” Luckily the weather in the north was no different from that of the mountain city, so she had adjusted nicely. “It’s casserole, but they call it a hotdish up north. It’s just some cream of mushroom soup, vegetables, and tater tots on top. Trust me, it’s really good.” Vinyl had like ten recipes up her sleeve she could do, and this was by far her favorite.

“I’ll give it a shot.” Twinkle said as he eyed the glass pan warily. “Just know I’m not that big of a fan of tater tots.” Sweet Celestia, he was getting weirder as time went on. It was always something with him.

“How do you not like tater tots?” Vinyl asked, scooping some of the dish onto plates. “They’re like a staple for foals everywhere.” She levitated one in front of Shining, which he took and carried over to the couch.

“I don’t know, it’s just the texture.” He stuck his fork into the food. “I’m really big on the texture of my foods. Tater tots, those chalky candies, and stuff like that. They just feel weird, so I don’t like eating them.” Vinyl rolled her eyes at the picky stallion as she took a seat beside him.

“What are you, six?” She pointed at his food with her fork. “Eat your damn food, you picky unicorn.” She started shoveling it into her mouth, happily eating one of her favorite dishes. She had cooked it specifically to take her mind off of everything that was going to happen soon.

“So for the order, I was thinking it would go Uncle B, Intrepid, Cadance and then Glory.” Shining chatted as he chewed his food. Pretty bad manners for someone who came from nobility, if Vinyl was to have an opinion on the matter. “I want some buffer between Uncle B and Glory, I want you to be able to marinate on what he says for awhile.”

“Do we really have to talk about this when I’m eating, Twinkle?” Vinyl questioned after swallowing. “Like, can’t we have an easy night before it all goes to hell tomorrow? I just want one easy day, I even made you my specialty as a bargaining chip.”

“Should’ve asked what my favorite food was if you wanted to negotiate.” Shining noted, which earned him a glare from Vinyl. “Alright, alright.” He relented, putting his hooves up in surrender. “We’ll talk about it tomorrow. Tonight will be the calm before the storm, got it.”

Vinyl could live with that for now. All she needed was a little time of peace to balance out the coming chaos. It didn’t hurt that she was with her favorite stallion through the whole thing, either.

Those doubts and negative feelings that she had been feeling about Twinkle, they had faded. They were all about her being afraid to mess it all up, they were all about her being afraid to hurt Twinkle and ruin his life. But what could she possibly do to cause that? They were going to go to Celestia and show her that Vinyl was fine now, that everything was good. Shining was going to get that promotion and then they could be happy.

Vinyl wasn’t going to fuck anything up this time.

Author's Note

We're setting up for the finale, boys and girls. We're almost there.

Also, I had to use a quote by the late, great Carrie Fisher in this chapter. It might not be one-hundred percent applicable...but I needed to. She was a bit of a hero to me.

Thanks for reading. Tell me what you think.

The Storm: Part One

“It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog.”

-Mark Twain

Vinyl’s eyes fluttered open as early morning sunlight spilled through the open curtains. The unicorn brought a hoof up to block the offending light, but found that it was not enough. All she wanted in this world was a few more minutes of sleep for today, she just wanted to feel rested.

“Scratch.” That was too much to ask, apparently. “C’mon, wake up. I made breakfast for us, and I would like you to partake.” Vinyl groaned and kicked her covers off violently. The sleepy mare sat up and levitated her favorite brush from her nightstand and got to work getting her mane even remotely in order.

“Fine. Whatever, I’m getting up.” Vinyl made sure that Twinkle was out of her sight before finally standing up. “I swear, I haven’t slept for more than eight hours since he’s been here.” Sleep was supposed to be like ten or more hours, anything less was sub-par and unreasonable.

“You can sleep when you’re dead, Scratch!” Sweet Celestia, was he listening all of the time? Peace was never around in this house as long as Twinkle was here…not that Vinyl minded. It was good to have him as company.

“Keep it up and I’ll keel over before I’m thirty!” Vinyl opened her window and stuck her head out, a super-chilled wind blowing through her mane. “Holy…it’s already freezing.” Vinyl slammed the window shut and pulled her favorite hoodie from where she had thrown it the other day.

“Aww, you mean it?” Vinyl rolled her eyes at the stallion’s sweet sarcasm. “Because that would be the best.” It did elicit a little laugh from her though, the banter was welcome and much needed.

“Y’know what, Twinkle?” Vinyl asked as she walked out of her room. “Just for that, I’m staying alive forever.” Shining laughed at that remark. “I’m being serious, I’ll go straight to Celestia and ask for Princesshood right now.” Vinyl trotted over to Shining, who was over a pot on the stove. “What’re you making, Dummy?”

“Oatmeal. Put some milk and cream in it, some brown sugar.” He reached over to a bag and pulled out a couple of different kinds of fruit. “Even got some of the good stuff to mix in.” Vinyl trotted over and rooted through the bag, looking for what she wanted.

“No pineapple?” She asked disappointingly. She looked among the other pickings and decided on a juicy looking pear. “That’s a damn shame.” She preferred pineapple, both on her pizza and as her fruit of choice.

“Don’t tell me you eat that on stuff? It’s good in like a fruit salad or something, but I wouldn’t put it on anything.” Shining turned off the burner and removed the pot. “I read in a book that if you didn’t have stomach acid, pineapple would digest you before you could digest it. Seriously, it’s really acidic.”

“Thank whoever for stomach acid, then.” Vinyl got a knife from one of the drawers and cut a piece of the pear off. “You ever wonder why so many of our disagreements are about food?” It had been something that she had noticed the other day but never really dwelled on. Hell, on the way back to Canterlot on the train they had argued about the best way to eat an egg.

“It’s common ground.” Shining shrugged as he drudged the oatmeal into bowls for them both. “Everypony eats, so everypony has an opinion on food. When everypony has an opinion, they want to express and defend them.” Shining shrugged as he got a knife and an apple and began cutting slices into his oatmeal. “Plus, as long as we’re arguing about dumb stuff we won't argue about anything else.” Vinyl had to give him that one, it worked to some extent.

“Alright.” Vinyl cut a few pieces of the pear into her breakfast and took up residence on her couch. “So what’s your favorite food, Twinkle?” The stallion cocked his eyebrow as he sat next to her. “What? I just wanna know a bit more about you. You just said it’s good common ground, so help me out here.”

“Anything with Rainbow Sauce on it.” Twinkle admitted with a shrug. “I like my food spicy, so as long as it fits it’s good with me.” Vinyl wouldn’t have pegged Twinkle to be a spice junky, but Rainbow Sauce was the hard stuff. She liked a little hot sauce on her eggs every now and then, but she would never touch anything close to that caliber.

“How in the hell do you have a tongue still? Are you sure it hasn’t burned off yet?” Vinyl commented as she happily ate her bowl of fruit topped slop. “Like, I’ve tried that stuff once and it damn near scorched my tongue off.”

“My mom’s youngest sister is a bit of a foodie. When I was little she would watch me and got me started young on the spicy stuff.” Shining finished his bowl, yes he practically inhaled the thing, and got up. “I was being nice by not spicing up anything I cooked around here. Truth be told, Scratch. That casserole thing you made last night would’ve been a million times better with something hot in it.”

“Tell you what, Twinkle.” Vinyl got up and ate the rest of her food as she walked. “You get me a jar of the stuff and we’ll try it out together. Maybe after all of this is over, you can wean me onto it.” Vinyl liked that thought, of a life after this stuff. A life where Twinkle wasn’t her guard, but her friend. Somepony she could count on, not because he was ordered to be there, but because he genuinely wanted to be. That was something to look forward to.

“Deal.” Twinkle said as he tossed his bowl in the sink and filled it with water. “Tell you what, Scratch, I can’t wait to get my own place and finally have a whole house to myself.” He looked around for a second, Vinyl could tell he was admiring the apartment. “Put aside how you got it, and this is pretty ideal.”

“Yeah, without the dead parents this place is sweet,” Vinyl cracked. “Why don’t you have your own place, Twinkle? You’re older than me, I figured you would be out of your parents’ house by now.” Vinyl couldn’t hear him sigh, but she saw it in his shoulders.

“I got out of guard training late, it took me longer to graduate than it should’ve.” Vinyl was going to ask, but before she did Shining was already explaining. “On my final exam the first time around, we were doing the obstacle course during the physical portion and…I fell from the top of a wall, my back leg got caught in a rope as I fell and it snapped like a twig in two places.” Shining stamped his back right leg, against the tile, allowing Vinyl to catch a glimpse of a very slight hitch in the motion near the joints. “It took it a year and a half to heal, and another year for me to get walking and back in shape. Then I had to go through the whole guard training again from the beginning.” Shining was still busy focusing on the bowl he had put in there and washing it vigorously. “I’m still in my first two years of being a guard, so yeah, I’m still a rookie and make a rookie’s salary.”

“That really sucks, Twinkle.” Vinyl nodded as she put her bowl in the sink. “But thanks for sharing, really. It must’ve been hard, but at least you’re here now. You got your dream job even after that, and that’s pretty cool.” Vinyl looked back at his leg. “Does it…does it still hurt or anything?”

“If I let it sit for too long, sometimes. Also when the weather gets really bad quickly, I get near immobile.” Vinyl felt bad for him on some level. She could almost see the dreamer that had once been in there and was now beaten down by life. She knew that feeling pretty well in her life. “I get by, though. I work through it.”

“Good.” Vinyl turned off the water and decided to change the subject from his trauma to hers. “So what’s the plan for today, Twinkle? Have you decided how we’re going to emotionally traumatize me today?”

“Well first I was thinking about putting you in a sack with a bunch of angry cats and throwing you over the waterfall.” Vinyl laughed at Twinkle’s joke. “But I’m in a good mood today, so I figured instead we would just start with Uncle B and work from there. We’ll go to the shop and I’ll have you talk to him about your choices and then…well I guess you two just talk it out.” Yeah, because that wasn’t going to end terribly. It would end in a shouting match, and she was sure that Shining knew that.

Well, whatever the day held it was going to be interesting. Everypony could count on that fact.

Cadance trotted through the halls of the castle, right to where she knew Tia was waiting. It was the dining room, exactly where she always was at this time of day. She was either waiting for food, eating food, or talking to her advisors after waiting for food this early in the morning.

Luckily for Cadance, it appeared that Celestia was currently in the first phase of the morning so she had time. The doors closed behind Cadance and she was left in the room with just herself and the monarch of the sun. They needed to discuss the future of Equestria together, as co-rulers.

“Good morning, Cadance!” Celestia beamed jovially. “Have you come to enjoy breakfast with me? You know how much I love a little company with my meals.” Cadance nodded and approached the seat next to her adopted aunt.

“Aunt Tia, I think we need to talk about Galea and what she said.” Celestia cocked her head to the side in confusion. “About the diarchy, about me taking more responsibility and dissolving the House of Nobles.” Cadance had some more things on her mind, but those would come later, after business talk.

“Oh, that?” Celestia waved her hoof at the idea. “I’ve already been talking with some of my advisors and the nobles that weren’t taken away, and we’re looking into the situation. Restructuring everything is going to take some time, so for now we will let everything play out as it may.” Cadance felt frustrated with this part of Celestia, this ‘let it happen’ attitude that she displayed in these times.

“But...this deals with us.” Cadance took the seat and sighed. “I get the whole ‘don’t mess with what works’ thing, Tia. I just...I think this time we need to look at this more seriously. They are trying to change the way things are run on a big scale, and…and I don’t know if I’m ready for that.” She looked up at Celestia, searching for some ounce of depth in those magenta eyes. “Really, Tia, I’m just scared that I’ll make the wrong decision and something really bad will happen.”

“Do you remember what I told you the other day?” Celestia asked, leaning in close to niece. “We all make mistakes, that’s how we learn. You and I, we have a long time to do both. If you make a mistake, or if I do, we’ll be there for each other.” Celestia took a deep breath, but did not sigh. “This is an important change, and one we must take in stride. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years, it’s that we have to let the ponies choose how to rule and we must help them.” Cadance knew this approach, the let it happen but guide them, but she didn’t like it. Cadance needed order. She needed to be in control, not just go with the flow.

“I just...I don’t want to end up like Luna.” That was Cadance’s biggest worry, the weight of the responsibility. “I don’t think I’m ready to rule like you have, I don’t have it in me. What if the stress gets to me and I snap?”

“You won’t.” Celestia put a hoof on Cadance’s own. “Just like all of my little ponies, I have faith in you. All of the faith in the world.” Cadance saw the smile cross her mentor’s face, it was small but meaningful.

“How can we let them do this, though? The House of Nobles worked and it worked well.” Cadance was bound and determined to make Celestia see this her way. “You used to tell me how you used to run things. How you decided everything, even if the ponies didn’t like it. Shouldn’t we do that now? Shouldn’t we stop this if it isn’t the best course of action?”

“I’ve changed over the years, Cadance.” Celestia’s true age did not show often, but now it was coming in full force. There was a certain amount of tiredness that came with age, and Celestia was showing an extreme amount of tiredness. More than imaginable. “At first, I tried to run things by myself and without Luna. I tried to make things go the way I thought they should, but that only brought the cruelty out, that’s what I never told you. There was no compromise because they gave all of the power to me and me alone. I got things done, the way I wanted and as soon as I wanted it.” Celestia put her hooves on the table and tapped them idly. “They all called me a tyrant and called for my power to be stripped and for me to step down. Luckily for myself, I’m still the only pony alive who can raise and lower the sun and moon. It was the one chip I had to play, so I played it.” Celestia nodded and kept her eyes on the far end of the table. “Then I played every chip I got when I could, I kept gaining power.”

“Why?” Cadance asked. “Why keep gaining power if all it did was get you in trouble?” Cadance kind of figured it was like fire. Touch it once, get burned and never touch it again. “Why do you want that kind of power back?”

“Because we all want power on some level.” A very worrying smile crossed the monarch’s face. “Some of us just want more power than we know what to do with, just so we can have it. Some want it just in case, some want others to have it because they know most ponies can’t be trusted with it.” Celestia looked over to Cadance. “I wanted it because it was all I knew. Since I was little, I was gifted with power. Incontrovertible, true, inescapable power. Since I was a teenager, that was all I had known. So I craved that normality that I knew. Now, I see a way for things to get closer to the normal I know. I could go back to the compromise of power, I could go back to ruling with somepony else.” Cadance could feel the loneliness in that statement, the longing for true companionship. “I just want somepony else who understands difficult decisions.”

Cadance understood that. She had been looking to Celestia for the inspiration for her difficult decisions as of late. The question of the day as of late has been: what would Celestia do? And it was a hard question to answer, Cadance knew that now.

“I’m just afraid I’ll mess it up.” Cadance bit her lip. “I don’t want to make the wrong decision and ruin something I had no business ruining.” This was partly about running the country alongside Celestia, and partly about her plan with Vinyl and Shining. It was the subtext that she was more worried about here.

“Well that’s why we’re supposed to have each other, like I said.” Celestia scooted a bit closer to Cadance. “We have to lean on each other and ask for advice. We have to trust in each other with the hard things.” Celestia put a hoof on Cadance’s shoulder. “What are you the most worried about?” Well, now was the best time to go about this.

“I…” She should not expect judgement from Celestia, but the hesitation was still there. “...I heard some news from Galea that Vinyl might not pass her rehab and that would cost Shining his job.” Cadance twiddled her hooves nervously. “I know I shouldn’t worry about him anymore, but I just can’t let it go. I have a chance to help him without him knowing, but I don’t know if I should.” It was a lot more morally complicated than that, but she had settled with the more ethically compromising parts of the plan. It was rather whether she should or not at this point.

“I think if you can do a good thing, then you should. We can do a lot with our positions, a lot of things that can have some adverse effects on ponies.” Celestia was speaking from experience, and Cadance knew she had better listen and listen close. “So, if you can even do one thing that you know is truly good and can help somepony, then I think you should. Because it is going to be one of the last truly good things you will be able to do for a long time. Everything else is going to hurt somepony along the way, and hard decisions will just keep coming.”

“It’s…not that simple.” Cadance did not feel good that she had to explain the next part. It was going to be a lot more difficult. “In order to help him, I have to change Vinyl’s mind. I know she won’t do it willingly, so I’m going to have to use my magic on her.” Cadance put her head in her hooves. “That’s the whole reason I got into this mess, messing with ponies’ heads without them knowing it. I don’t want to ruin their lives or mine again.”

“Do you think it’s the right thing to do?” That was a very complicated question to ask, especially now.

“I…I don’t know. I just know that if I do nothing, bad things will happen to a pony I care about.” Cadance once more sighed and let her head hit the table with a thud. “I-if stopping that is a good thing, then yeah.” Cadance looked towards Celestia and saw that she was resting her chin on the table.

“Stopping somepony you love from self-destructing is a good thing.” Celestia commented. “Trust me, if you get the chance to stop somepony you love from hurting themselves, you should take the chance. Even if you don’t know if the means are just, you must focus on the ends. If you do nothing and let it play out, then you risk losing something close to you. At the end of the day, it’s ultimately your choice. Whatever you decide to do, just make sure that you can live with yourself after you decide it.”

“I just need to make sure I cover my tracks about it this time.” There was still a nagging in her heart, but she knew it was necessary. It needed to be done, it had to be. “Would you mind looking over my spell as well? I need to make sure it’s as strong as I can make it.”

Vinyl stood resolute outside of her Uncle’s shop. Truly she did not want to go in there, not now, not ever if it was to talk about Glory. It was going to be hell, and Vinyl wanted no part of it. But here she was, waiting for the courage to go in.

“You ready, Scratch?” The pressure of the heavy hoof on her back helped her calm down a little. “I promise, everything is going to be fine. Just tell him how you feel and try to keep him and yourself calm. Just do your best, alright? I’ll be out here the whole time and if I hear shouting then I’ll come in and help sort it out.”

“Alright,” Vinyl said after a deep breath. “Okay, yeah.” She was going to do this, she was going to go in there and stand strong against Uncle B no matter what. She could stand up to his yelling and anger, and berating as long as she remembered what she was here for. She was here to solidify her future into something she could live in, something worthwhile.

She shuffled down the stairs and opened the door. The small bell that hung above the door chimed, alerting anypony in the shop to her presence. Everything was the same as it always was, and that would never change. That’s exactly what this place represented, eternal sameness. An inability or unwillingness to change and let go. Everything from the posters on the wall, to the carpet and wallpaper were still the same as they had been for over a decade.

“Whaddya want?” The voice came first, then the visage of the portly mustachioed stallion came soon after. “Oh, Scratchy. I know yer late, but don’t worry about it. The whole big guard thing took a long time, I get it. Yerself and Twinkle had to go down there for some reason or another.” Uncle B turned his back. “Just watch the front for me, will ya?”

“Wait!” Vinyl closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I need to talk to you, Uncle B. It’s…it’s important.” She saw the stallion sigh before slowly turning around. This was not going to be fun for either of them.

“How come every time ya come through that door, I always gotta worry about this happenin’?” He raised his eyebrows. “Do ya have a stunnin’ revelation on my doorstep every time ya come here, or do ya just come here every time ya have one?”

“The second one.” Vinyl answered, much to Uncle B’s chagrin. “I just...this one is really important. Glory, Twinkle and I went to Ponyville to see Lily…and something happened.” Vinyl was not proud to be talking about any of this.

“Whaddya do this time?” Uncle B said with another sigh. Vinyl was going to respond, but her uncle cut her off. “Is this gonna make me yell? ‘Cause I’m gettin’ the feelin’ that this is gonna make me yell.” Vinyl nodded. “Alright, then. We’re goin’ back to my office. Then ya can tell me how ya messed up.”

This was starting off fantastically for Vinyl, wasn’t it? All it needed now was for Uncle B to break her down by yelling at her for forty-five minutes while she cried and yelled back. Actually, that might be in the cards no matter what she did.

Dutifully, Vinyl followed her Uncle into his office. The usual acrid stench of cigars was no longer omnipresent, instead the stale air just hung in the office. It was unreal and unnatural, but it was good to know that he was trying to get and stay healthy.

“Sit. Talk.” Uncle B sat into his chair. The old thing creaked as the rotund pony leaned back in it. Vinyl took her seat across from him, waiting nervously to build up her courage to start. Maybe if she started with the good news she could transition into the bad with less incident.

“Lily is doing well. Her adoptive family is really nice. Cedar, her dad, is a bit of a hardass but you can tell he really loves her like she’s one of his own. She has two sisters named Rose and Daisy, they’re energetic and amazing and they all love her so much.” Vinyl remembered all of the smiles the fillies shared, and it brought a little warmth to her heart. “She’s amazing, Uncle B.”

“I’m glad.” Uncle B nodded. “I’m glad she has a family, and sisters to look after her. I was worried she wouldn’t have anypony to look after her.” Uncle B picked up a lighter from his desk and began flipping the top idly. “We all need a sibling or two to help us along through our lives, ya know that now. At least, I hoped ya learned that damn lesson.” It was like he was psychic or something and knew just how to tear her down before she could even give him the sledgehammer.

“It didn’t end well.” The lighter clattered to the table and Uncle B spun around. “I…the more I thought about everything, the more I saw of Lily and how beautiful and happy she was…” Vinyl closed her eyes. “…the more I hated Sky. She had let something so good slip through her hooves, something so pure and beautiful.” Vinyl leaned in and tapped the desk. “Do you know what she said to me on the train to Ponyville? She blamed it all on me! She said she wouldn’t have done it if I had been there for her!” Vinyl laughed bitterly. “It’s not like I wasted months of my life on waiting on her like her own personal servant!”

“That’s what you’re supposed to do!” Uncle B stood up from his chair, allowing it to slam into the all behind him. “She’s family! Yer supposed to give every little thing ya got to family! That’s what family does, ya moron! So don’t call it wastin’ yer time!”

“You don’t get it, alright! She blames me for her giving up Lily! Sh-she is out there blaming me for breaking up our family.” Vinyl stood up as well, her temper flaring. “She…every time I look at her, every time I even think about her, that’s all I can think about!” Vinyl paced back in forth in space that she could, which led to her basically spinning in small circles. “I couldn’t do it anymore! I can’t do it anymore! All she ever does is remind me of everything I’ve lost, all the opportunities and ponies I’ve ever lost!” Vinyl shook her head. “Not anymore, Uncle B, not anymore! I’m leaving her behind.” She felt the tears build up and start to fall but she wouldn’t stop them. “A-and don’t try to stop me, alright? I’m trying to make a better life, I’m trying to move on from everything bad and she’s item number one.” Vinyl was in full-on breakdown mode now, there was no stopping the tears.

“Ya gotta try, Scratchy.” Uncle B’s voice was less angry now, but he was still pleading with her. “I promised yer parents, I said to ‘em ‘I’ll keep ‘em safe. I’ll keep ‘em together.’ That’s all I got left of ‘em, just the word I gave.” The stallion rested his hooves on the desk. “Ya can’t take that away from me.”

“I can either be happy, or I can have Sky in my life.” Vinyl laid it out bare, that was her ultimatum. Hopefully Uncle B would see it her way.

“Why can’t ya have it both ways?” Uncle B trotted around the desk and stood nose to nose with Vinyl. “Be happy, forgive Sky and be sisters again. Trust me, I know forgiveness is hard sometimes, but that’s why it’s worth it.” Vinyl knew the extent of forgiveness that he had gone through, and she didn’t care. The situations were different. “Ya gotta try, please. For me.”

“You’re acting like I never tried!” Vinyl took a step back and leaned against the wall. “I tried to give her every inch I could, but every time she just threw it back into my face! All I saw from her was blind joy, no recognition for what she’d done. All I saw was taking…” Vinyl knew that Sky had said ‘sorry’, but there had been no real empathy in the words. It had all been a measure for saving face in front of Lily. If Sky was really sorry, she wouldn’t try to blame others for the stuff she had done.

“You know what?” Uncle B stood back and threw up a hoof. “Fine, whatever. You’re a grown mare, and you’re young. You can make all the damn mistakes you want, ‘cause eventually you’ll come back around.” All the stallion would do is shake his head. “I’m through pushin’ ya outta the way of trains, Scratchy. Feel free to let this one hit ya, maybe the pain will actually teach ya a fuckin’ lesson for once.”

“Uncle B…” This wasn’t the way it was supposed to go. He was supposed to see things her way and be on her side. “…c’mon.”

“No.” He sat back down and turned around in his chair. “Get outta my store, just-just get out. I can’t deal with ya right now.”

Vinyl wasn’t sure if she could chalk this one up to a win or not. It sure felt like a loss.

Intrepid was having one of his good days. His mind was clear, his guilt was gone, and his body was strong. It was going to be another day in The Gauntlet, and another step closer to him being ready to go out on his own once again.

Echo had told him he had to go out with a group, but he had been resolute in his position. There was nothing that the little bat pony could say to deter him. A group was regulation, but he wasn’t exactly going out on a regulation patrol. A few days ago, he had been approached by a member of DEqI, and that had made his path clear.

He had been charged with the very special task of going to the border of Equestria and the Griffon Empire and monitoring an ongoing problem there. Then, once he had reported thoroughly, he was to go to the city of Peregrine and keep tabs on things. It wasn’t ideal, but it would take him out of Canterlot and put his future into his own hooves. Better than putting his life in the hooves of other ponies, other ponies that did not value him or think about his feelings.

Plus, it didn’t help that they didn’t give him a lot of wiggle room to refuse them. It was either that, or take a desk job here at Headquarters and rot in Canterlot for the rest of his days. Usually, he would have a say in the matter but because of his disability he had to get authorization from the Guard, who had transferred his request to DEqI and they had presented their ultimatum.

Needless to say, his desire to get out of this city was greater than his need to not be a spy for the government. Plus, it wasn’t like he hadn’t ever done a little reconnaissance for Equestrian Intelligence agencies before. Only Celestia knew if his skills from the Casaflanca era were still useful, or if he had slowed down with age.

“A cripple pony in a Griffon city isn’t suspicious, really.” He had done his research on the city and culture. Bums and outcasts always found their way up north, where all the refuse of the world wound up. Peregrine was no different, so he would fit in well.

Intrepid finally got out of his bed and strapped on his leg. It was going to be a day where the metal appendage came in handy. Between the rock climbing and use of a makeshift tool, it was going to need some much needed maintenance by the end of the day. There was a unicorn in the dorms that had a knack for repair magic, so that was something good.

“Intrepid!” Three slow knocks at the door came. If he didn’t know Echo’s voice so well, he would know it was her by the knocks. “It’s time to get up, it’s almost nine-thirty! The recruits want you in the gauntlet so they can go!” Intrepid sighed and stretched his good wing.

“Yeah, I’ll be right out.” A shower would come later, well after his session. A shower would do no good if he was just going to ruin all of the work a shower would do. Oh well, personal hygiene wasn’t paramount in the Gauntlet.

Intrepid looked back at his stump wing. They were still working on fixing that at the moment. A few false wings had come and gone, none of them could hold up to the strenuous job he had in store for them. One day they would get it right.

“Alright, Echo-” Intrepid opened the door from his small quarters to the sprawling corridors beyond. “-let’s get going, I want to get at least two runs in by the end of the day.” The bat pony smiled at him as they came face to face. “I want to be timed today, I think I’m ready to beat some records.”

“I’m sure you are, Intrepid.” That was not a good tone, that was the tone of an incoming problem. “But first, you have a visitor.” Intrepid sighed and rolled his eyes. “That’s why I had to coax you out, if I had told you they were here for you would’ve never come out.” Intrepid leveled a glare at the Thestral. “I may be blind, but I can still feel that. Stop it and go meet your guests.”

“Who are they?” It was either a government stooge or a pony he wanted nothing to do with.

“Shining Armor and Vinyl Scratch.” Oh good, it was both of the things he wanted nothing to do with rolled into one package. Hopefully the former would just send the latter in to do his dirty work. He could at least talk to Vinyl Scratch without getting angry.

“Oh boy, is it my birthday?” Intrepid lowered his head and marched on towards the rotunda. If he was going to get this done, it was going to be quick and painless. The less time he spent in the company of fools and foolers the better.

He opened the doors to the rotunda and found the female white unicorn without her male counterpart. He lucked out a little, at least. But he wondered what the mare could want with him alone? Maybe another date? That wouldn’t feel too good to turn her down, but it would be something he had to do.

“Hey Vinyl.” Intrepid trotted forward, his metal limb clacking against the marble. “Short time, no see. What brings you all the way to my neck of the woods?” He was going to try and keep it cordial the best he could.

“Hey Intrepid.” The mare waved and gave a nervous smile. “I just came here because…because I think we need to talk.” They weren’t even dating and it still wasn’t a good sign. He really didn’t want to go through with any of this anymore.

“Talk about what?” He could think of a million different things they could talk about, but only one thing they needed to talk about. This was going to be about Cadance, and it wasn’t going to be fun or pleasant.

“Just…us.” Okay, that was going to be a lot more complicated. There had never really been a ‘them’. It had all been a fever dream of some sort brought on by magic and the petty vengeance of a poor Princess. There was never a ‘them’.

“Vinyl, there wasn’t an ‘us’.” He started out pretty blunt, but it was going to get real hurtful. “It was a fabrication, a lie, a…a ruse. We were tricked and manipulated to fit someone else’s goals, that’s not a relationship, it’s a fucking chess game.” Intrepid shook his head.

“Alright, going straight for the jugular. I can admire that, I guess.” Intrepid didn’t know Vinyl all that well, but he could tell she was really reigning something in. A temper, maybe. “But...are you sure there was nothing ever between us? Not even the first night at the orchestra?”

“How can I be sure?” Intrepid asked, leaning in. “How can I be sure anything I ever felt when I was around you or Cadance was real? Because, I thought I knew my own feelings, but apparently I didn’t.” It was all a blur, a whirlwind filled with strong emotions and confusion. Every time he had been around VInyl had been a moment filled with a strange clarity he couldn’t really explain. Was it love or magic? He didn’t know, he couldn’t tell, and that confusion was holding him back.

“I know Cadance fucked up, Intrepid.” That was an understatement if he had ever heard one. “I know that we left with a lot of hurt feelings, but I just want you to look deep down to figure out if any of them were ever real.” He sighed deeply. He had spent more than a couple of restless nights trying to figure that out himself. “The music lover from the orchestra, was he real or just something Cadance made?”

“That was real…” He at least knew that much. There was no way he was different from the stallion that night at the concert hall. “My father used to take me when I was little, always wanted to be a musician.” He shook his head and turned away. “It doesn’t matter, we can never really know what was real. Even a little doubt makes the whole thing questionable.”

“I just...I want to know if there was any way we could’ve ever been anything without Cadance’s involvement.” That was a heavy question, and one he didn’t even know if he could answer. Could they have been?

“It doesn’t matter.” Intrepid settled on that answer. “I’m going to be gone soon anyways, so it doesn’t matter. You just need to focus on you and I’ll focus on me from now on.” It was for the best, really. Even if he stayed, it wasn’t going to be good for either of them.

“Gone? You’re…you’re leaving?” Vinyl stepped closer to him and reached a hoof out. “Just because of Cadance? That’s no reason to leave Canterlot.” Great, he was going to have to explain it to her now.

“I’m going back out there, into the world.” He would try to sugarcoat it, Vinyl was still young and deserved a little dollop of hope in her life. “I’m tired of standing still, and Cadance made me realize that. She made me realize that the more you stay where you are, the more normal things become. She did those things because she thought they were normal, because she’s never been anywhere else in the world and learned a different set of values. All she knows is what those corrupt bastards up top taught her.” Okay, sugarcoating didn’t really work. His old cynicism was boiling up to the top again.

“So you think going out into the world is the right choice? Just leaving?”

“I personally think staying in one place for too long is a dangerous thing. Everypony needs to be a stranger sometimes, because there’s nothing wrong with being a little strange.” He was used to exotic locales and cultures he barely understood. It made him feel right, it kept ‘normal’ at a leg’s length. It kept attachments from forming.

“Well...I hope you find whatever you’re looking for out there.” Vinyl turned around and then stopped, turning back with a half smile on her face. “Even if there wasn’t anything ever between us, if it was all just magic and nonsense, I still want you to know that I liked the stallion I met. I know the stallion I met was still you deep down.”

“Thanks.” At this point, even the little moments of connection between them seemed important. They seemed valuable and something he so desperately needed. It had helped in some respect, it had finally helped him realize that he didn’t belong here.

It made him realize that this city was a poison that took any shred of decency you had and turned it against you. Even the purest of ponies, the Princesses themselves, were not immune to its corrupted lure. It got to everypony and made them accept the unacceptable, agree to the unagreeable, and give in to the immoral.

If Vinyl didn’t leave, she was going to fall into the same trap. That’s why Intrepid was leaving, to save whatever goodness remained in his heart.

[Interlude] The Interview

“I'm obsessed with radio. It's a good start to Sunday morning.”

-R. L. Stine

“Are you ready for today, Air Waves?” The voice came over the dinky little speakers that rested in the corners of the cluttered studio. The mare sitting amidst the tangle of wires and microphones gently put her headphones over her ears, making sure they were snug before flipping the audio feed from the speakers to her ears.

“I’m as ready as any of us were for today.” Air Waves raised a light blue hoof to tap the microphone in front of her. “Can you hear me alright? Levels good?” She had yet to learn the new pony in the booth’s name. He was the fourth one this year, and she was starting to get weary of the changes, instead she kept to generalities when addressing him and it seemed to be working. Maybe in the coming weeks she would bother to learn his name.

“We’re all good on my end.” Air Waves looked down at her script and studied a few of the lines. Years of doing this had let her just learn the key points and connect them naturally. “Commercial is ending soon, might want to get ready.” She could hear them very faintly in the background, the ads for this thing and that which nopony really needed. As the advertisement drew to a close, they got a bit louder until the station identifier started to play.

“You’re listening to Ninety-Six point Five, OCNN!” The deep authoritative voice boomed through the headphones and across the airwaves of Canterlot. “Coming to you live from the Palace Park Studios, it’s Air Waves with the Canterlot News Network Hour!” That was her cue to hit her mic and start squawking.

“Hello Ponies. Welcome back to the Canterlot News Network. As always, I’m your host Air Waves.” She said her traditional sign on and got to work with the professionalism that the citizens expected. “We have a special show for you today. Our top story of the day, the ascension of Interim-Captain Galea to full Captain yesterday morning and the decisions she made in her inaugural address. We will get to that in just one moment when Captain Galea herself joins us for an exclusive interview.”

Air Waves was proud of herself for this. She had pushed for the interview by herself, contacted Galea’s office and stayed on hold for hours over three separate days to get this interview. She had scheduled it as soon as Galea had taken over as Interim-Captain, but fate had delivered a small miracle unto her. Now she had the first interview with a newly minted Captain just one day after her inauguration.

“Instead, we will lead with our smaller stories today.” Air Waves straightened the paper in front of her and skimmed over the details as quickly as she could. “Right Hook, the boxer hospitalized from the magical storm the other day, has woken up from her coma and is now responsive. She is in stable condition and is expected to recover fully in a few months time.” The next story was not one she relished in, it was gossip and tabloid journalism, but it was in her feed for her to read. “Next, some news from the socialite sphere of Canterlot: an anonymous source close to Princess Cadance has divulged that the Princess of Love is no longer with her longtime partner, Shining Armor. It is unknown why the couple split, but the source said that, and I quote, ‘there was a lot of crying. I mean, like, a lot of crying.’ We’ve reached out to Princess Cadance herself for confirmation, but she has declined to comment. Now, we’re going to Clear Skies for the weather.”

Air Waves killed her mic with the click of a button and sent a signal with her wing for the booth tech to switch the feed to the prerecorded weather segment. She took a deep breath and tried to focus on the upcoming interview with the Captain. If she was honest, it was going to be a slaughter. Some of the stuff Galea had said had been unthinkable, or at least unforgivable. As the first pony to confront her, Air was not going to go easy.

The little pegasus’ bright golden eyes and curly blue and white mane made her look unassuming and non-threatening, but she hadn’t gotten her degree in investigative journalism to be a toothless voice on the radio. She had fangs, and she was going to use them.

“You’re back in three…two…” The booth tech hit a button at the same time that Air Waves turned on her mic, sending her live across the air. “Go get ‘em, Air.”

“Welcome back.” Air Waves scooted closer to the microphone. “In Manehattan today, tragedy struck when a pane of glass from a skyscraper came loose and fell forty-five floors to the street below. There were no fatalities, but several ponies were sent to the hospital with lacerations, including two foals who were on vacation with their parents.” Air shifted her eyes to the next item on the list, but before she could open her mouth the voice of the unknown tech came through her headphones.

“Captain Galea is here and ready for the interview.” That was early. Well, punctual for Air Waves. One of her old teachers always said ‘if you’re early, you’re on time. If you’re on time, you’re late, and if you’re late, don’t bother showing up.’ Seems Galea had taken some of the same lessons from her own teachers.

“Well, listeners, we are going to send you to commercial because Captain Galea just walked into our studio.” Air took off her headphones and set them down on her cluttered desk. “We will be right back with our exclusive interview and look into the mind of Canterlot’s newest role model.” Air pointed at the tech with her wing and the feed cut clean. “Send her in, please!”

The door to her studio clicked as the ‘On Air’ sign above the door went dark. There was a hesitation before the door opened and in walked the currently most feared mare in all of Canterlot. The cold leveled glare and the neutral color palette would make most ponies uneasy, but Air Waves only saw a tougher nut she was determined to crack.

“Good Afternoon, Captain Galea!” The petite pegasus gave her cheeriest and most upbeat smile and voice. “It’s an honor to have you come on our show! I am so excited that we have the chance to pick your brain so close to your inauguration!” False sense of security was going to be her friend here, she had to let Galea underestimate her to get the upper hand later on.

“It’s my pleasure, Ms. Waves.” Galea held out her hoof, which Air took and shook delicately. “You know, I always thought you were a unicorn. I don’t know why, but the little picture I always had of you in my head included a horn.” Air kept her smile, but inside she was furious. That had been her whole career as a journalist, snubbed in this town because their ideal pony included one horn and no wings.

“I know, success is supposed to be limited to those with the proper appendages, but as you can see we’ve both overcome our lack of horns. Either on our heads or…elsewhere.” That earned a raised eyebrow and very small smirk from the Captain.

“I think you and I will get along just fine, Ms. Waves.” Galea sat down in the chair opposite Air’s own and slipped the headphones over her ears. “Do I have control over the microphone?”

“No.” Air responded as she took her seat and put on her own headphones. “I control both your microphone and mine.” They had learned their lesson after one guest cut their own mic to avoid talking about something, now Air had the power in the room. “Are we back yet?” She asked the tech.

“Thirty seconds.” The voice came through both of the mares’ headphones. “Are both of you ready?” Air nodded and looked towards the Captain, who gave a very curt signal in the affirmative.

“We’re going to start with a few easy questions about how the inauguration went, how you felt about taking the position, and then we’ll transition into your speech.” Galea was following along, nodding at most of the things that were being said. “If the questions get too harsh, just let me know and I will back off.” That was all posturing and both of the mares knew it. Galea would never request something like that due to coming off as weak, and Air Waves would never back off even if the Captain asked.

“Very well. I’m ready whenever you are, Ms. Waves.” Galea straightened her posture and adjusted her headphones magically. Air counted down the seconds as they were recited by the tech until it fell to one. The microphones turned live and they were broadcasting across Equestria once more.

“Welcome back to the Canterlot News Network, ponies.” Air Waves suppressed an excited breath as she looked at the unicorn across the table. “I am live with the newly inaugurated Captain Galea for our exclusive interview. Captain Galea, it’s an honor to have you here today.”

“It’s an honor to be here, Ms. Waves.” Galea responded. “Thank you for hosting me. You know this is the only place I would want to have my first interview. I’ve always said that radio is the truest form of reporting. Things can get lost in print, context and tone. Words can’t be twisted on the air.” Air wasn’t sure if Galea really believed the shit she was trying to shovel, or if the Captain was just trying to be flattering and semi-relatable.

“So how about we start with getting to know you as a pony before we get to know you as the Captain.” Air transitioned away from the greetings and went into the fluff piece stuff. “Why don’t you tell me and the rest of Equestria a little about yourself?”

“What should I talk about, Ms. Waves?” Galea questioned.

“Tell us where you were born, what your parents did, how long you were a guard, what you did under Captain Knock Out.” Air wanted to throw the softballs out first, get Galea to think that she was truly in a safe place that was going to treat her easy.

“I was born right here in Canterlot.” Galea started, seeming to relax a little. “I was born right in the Palace hospital. My mother was one of Princess Celestia’s assistants, and my father was a member of the Guard. Needless to say, I’ve always had a certain affinity for the bureaucracy of Canterlot. I was born into red tape and raised by it.” There was a certain pride in those words that Air was going to hang onto for now. “When time came to enroll in the guard, I did so without hesitation. I rose through the ranks at a pace yet unseen for a mare, until I was Assistant Captain under Knock Out. It took me fifteen years to climb from Staff Sergeant to a desk job, and five to finally get to be Captain Knock Out’s assistant.”

“What did you do while you were Captain Knock Out’s assistant? Most ponies would assume paperwork, scheduling meetings, and things of that ilk.” Galea fought back a tiny sneer, like she had just been degraded.

“You would be partially correct, yes. I did file paperwork and schedule meetings, but I also drew up schedules for the Captain to approve, I pored over cases to push to the House of Nobles and the Princesses themselves.” Galea’s voice was getting more intense as she spoke. “I kept the Guard running while Captain Knock Out was busy.”

“You take pride in your work, then?” Galea blinked and caught her passion. Air could see her reel it in and regain her stoic composure. The unicorn raised her hoof to sweep her short mane to the side.

“Of course I do.” Galea responded with a nod. “The ponies of this city have and will always be my number one priority. Every step I take towards making this city a better and safer place will always fill me with pride. Every moment I spend doing something good for this city is never a moment wasted.”

“So getting rid of one-hundred guards was a matter of pride for you?” The teeth were coming out to catch the Captain off guard, and it worked. The unicorn’s eyes widened for a split second, then she narrowed them to slits.

“It was a matter of safety. The guards I let go were ones that had committed infractions, broken rules, or done harm to the citizens of this city. None of them were innocent in their dealings or somepony who had contributed greatly to the guard.” Galea had a bad side and now Air was firmly on it, and that was exactly where the pegasus needed to be.

“Are you sure? You can state with one-hundred percent certainty that every one of those ponies deserved it? That they had never done anything good with their position?” Air leaned in and glared at her adversary.

“I-” Galea started, but Air cut her off.

“What about their families? Their husbands or daughters or foals who were depending on the money coming from their jobs? Who is going to hire a pony who was fired by the guard as part of a massive PR stunt?” Air had wasted no time in looking into the list of names that had been made public. There were veterans and rookies alike, most with family of some sort.

“What I did, I did because it was necessary.” Galea reasserted. “I needed to send a message that slip ups or mistakes are not allowed anymore. Zero tolerance is my policy now.” Galea sat back and her chair and relaxed a little, just enough to make Air feel confident.

“If you have a zero tolerance policy, then why is there currently an active rehabilitation case being carried out by a member of your guard? Is…” Air picked up a file she had been given by one of her own contacts in the palace, a name scribbled across it. “...Vinyl Scratch the only one in the entirety of Canterlot who deserves a second chance? Or is it because you are too afraid to reassign the guard on the case?”

“I would appreciate it, Ms. Waves, if you did not assume things about me or my staff.” Galea’s sneer had turned into a full-blown scowl and her glare had reached full intensity. “That rehabilitation case was one of Captain Knock Out’s personal projects and has the blessing of Princess Celestia herself. I will not take away one of Captain Knock Out’s last remaining legacies.”

“Will you continue the rehabilitation program if this one goes well, or will you cut it entirely?” Air tapped on the folder idly, just quiet enough so it would be barely audible over her microphone.

“I believe it will be on a case-by-case basis.” Galea responded curtly.

“So there will be some tolerance?” Air questioned. “Just on a case by case basis?” Galea squirmed in her chair and took a deep breath. Usually it wouldn’t be audible, but microphones were a wonderful thing. “Because you just said you have a zero-tolerance policy.”

“It’s…” Galea bit her lip and shook her head, the one time that Air had ever seen any sort of emotion more than disgust and boredom. “It is complicated, Ms. Waves. Certain things are still in flux and are uncertain. Certain programs will be decided upon once the time is appropriate and a decision is called for. The rehabilitation program and zero-tolerance policy is restricted to the Guards themselves and not the citizenry. If Vinyl Scratch’s case goes over well, we will review the way rehabilitation is conducted and see if it is feasible for development or if it should be thrown to the wayside like so much rubbish.” Galea sat back, a satisfied smirk on her face. The Captain thought she was out of the woods, but Air still had a few more knives left to throw.

“Okay, so let’s talk about the Thestrals.” Air had nothing against her race’s cousins, but they were a point of contention that needed to be discussed. “This reinstitution into the guard is going to cause a lot of ripples across Canterlot. Fine Print of The Canterlot Post wrote in the special edition this morning-” Air held up the morning edition in her hooves and read aloud. “-’Jobs in the Guard have always been limited since Celestia’s decision to cut the hiring budget. With the inclusion of Thestrals in the hiring pool, I have sources from inside of the Guard expecting more firings to accommodate the Bat Ponies, or more limited hiring pools and less guards out on the street during the day.’” Air put down the paper and looked at Galea. “Now, I agree with your decision. I think that the Thestrals have suffered the stigma of traitors for far too long, and I think they do deserve to be let back into the Guard. But you were asked about specifics about the plan and have offered none, and now ponies are panicking about their jobs. Ponies are worried there will be more firings and they will be replaced. What do you have to say about that?”

“I have to say that I have not given the press a plan yet, because I do not have a concrete plan yet. For now, they are free to enter into guard training like everypony else in this city and that’s the plan. Later on I will introduce a hiring initiative that will benefit the Thestrals directly.” Air cocked her head to the side and smiled wide at Galea.

“So you’re saying you have no plan?’ The little pegasus asked politely.

“That is correct.” Galea responded.

“But you had the announcement planned?” Air adjusted herself in her seat and fluttered her wings nervously. Another trap was almost successfully sprung.

“I had discussed it with Captain Knock Out prior and had pushed for reintegration for as long as my position let me.” Galea raised an eyebrow at Air’s obvious tell. “It had always been a plan of mine since I first joined the guard.”

“So you didn’t have a plan for the Thestrals, and yet you had a plan for the Nobles that you had been looking into for-” Air flipped through a transcript of Galea’s speech until she found the right tidbit. “-five years. So five years on a plan for the corrupt Nobles, and twenty-plus years to think of something for the victimized Thestrals, and yet you have nothing.” Galea opened her mouth to defend herself and began speaking, but Air hit the cut-off on the unicorn’s microphone. “Now let’s discuss the Nobles, since we’re on the subject.” Another death glare sent her way by the Captain. “You said in your speech that the Nobles were corrupt and not ‘pure’ enough to lead, you said that only the alicorns were fit enough to lead us as a country because ‘mere mortal ponies are too easily swayed.’ Yet, Princess Celestia has had her fair share of gaffes over the years, like cutting the hiring budget instead of looking into wasteful spending for the Palace, or her closure of the crystal mines in the mountains to preserve the mountain’s exterior. Or!” Air had her fair share of grievances with the Princess, and now was the time to air them. “Or, when she gave special treatment to a Griffon ambassador who paid for her personal apartment’s renovations.” Air looked up at Galea with a hungry fury. “Unless you can promise all of Equestria that Princess Celestia and Princess Cadance will be on the shortest leash to ever be made, then I think that concerns need to be discussed.” Air slammed her hoof on the mic button for Galea and gestured for the Captain to speak.

“I am aware of the concerns some ponies have with Princess Celestia’s decisions.” Galea growled out. “I am looking into certain clauses in the Articles of Power Celestia herself signed over five-hundred years ago to make sure that she could be held accountable when the time came to give her authority back.” Air cocked her head to the side, interested to hear the angle that Galea would spin here. “In it, it is stated that the co-ruler of Equestria or the next pony in power has the ability to take away certain privileges from Celestia so she can fully focus on her duty of ruling the country.”

“Who is the next pony in power, at the moment?” Air was very interested in this part of Galea’s plan. Seeing the Captain go up against Celestia would be a punch-out that nopony would want to miss.

“Right now, it is both myself and Princess Cadance. She presides over the House of Nobles, and I am Captain of the Guard. If something were to happen to Princess Celestia, we would take over until something was decided, therefore we are the next ponies in power.” Now that was a very interesting thought, and very suspicious. Had Galea been planning for something like this?

“What privileges would you take from her?”

“Her personal student. Right now all of her free time is devoted to that little filly, and it’s time that would be better suited tending to her duties.” Air could practically hear House Twilight screaming in rage from here, and it was music to her ears. “The last student she had ran away and hasn’t been seen since, so it’s obvious that the results aren’t there. I would propose to Princess Cadance that we put the filly-Twilight Sparkle-into Celestia’s magic school full time and forget the personal students.” Galea took off her headphones and dropped them. “Now we’re done here, I’m a busy mare.”

Air signalled for the tech to kill the feed and go to commercial. This had gone a lot better than expected, and Air Waves could not be happier.

Author's Note

Have something a little off the cuff and fun.

The Storm: Part Two

“Nobody thinks that they're evil or bad, they think that they're doing the right thing.”

-Andrew McCarthy

Celestia sat in front of the smoldering remains of a radio, small pools of tears building in the corners of her eyes. It had been a very long time since she had been this upset, and it was hard to calm herself down. Her jaw clenched hard so she wouldn’t scream and rage at the world around her.

“Does this mean we won’t have any more special lessons…?” That little voice was so sad, so full of disappointment and pain. Celestia was keeping her back to little Twilight so she wouldn’t see the ruler of Equestria, her mentor, cry. She couldn’t let Twilight see her cry.

“No, no. I-I promise our lessons will never stop, Twilight.” Celestia nodded and wiped her eyes. “I’ll take care of it, I’ll make sure I can always be there for you.” Confident that she had regained her composure, Celestia turned around and gave a strong smile to her student.

“But Captain Galea-” Celestia put a hoof to her pupil’s muzzle.

“Don’t you worry about Captain Galea, Twilight.” Princess Celestia held back her fire and rage, it was going to come in handy later. “I’ll deal with her. I just need you to stay here and…and study.” Celestia stood up. “Don’t think you can get away with not studying either, I’m going to quiz you on chapter nine when I get back.”

As soon as she was out of the room, Celestia’s hard fought smile fell into a vicious frown that poisoned her whole demeanor. She found the nearest guard, the one assigned to her personal detail whose name she didn’t care to recall at the moment.

“Guard. Fetch me Captain Galea and Princess Cadance as quick as you can move.” Celestia stood as the guard did not move and looked terrified at her raised temper. Celestia slammed her hoof on the tile, strong enough to crack several in a wide radius. “Did you hear me?!”

“I-I-I did, Your Majesty…” The guard answered sheepishly as he backed away from the raging monarch. “C-Captain Galea has requested to not be bothered today…she’s-well she’s on a press tour, and Princess Cadance…sh-she’s busy with personal matters and wishes not to be bothered.”

“You-” Celestia leaned in close to the diminutive guard, close enough that the heat she put off made the small pony start to sweat profusely. “-go and get Galea, tear her away from whatever reporter she is lying to and tell her that Princess Celestia is ordering her to come back to the Palace and wait in her office until I arrive to speak to her.” The guard opened his mouth, but no words came out. “If she refuses, put her in irons and drag her back here. Do I make myself clear, Guard?” It had been a very long time since she had been this angry and driven, and she was not going to let a moment of it go to waste.

“W-we don’t make the chains out of iron anymore, they chafe too-” Celestia flared her horn to life, causing the pony to let out a terrified yelp “Y-y-yes, Your Majesty.” The guard bowed quickly and scurried away from Celestia as fast as his legs would let them. She would let the guards get Captain Galea, she would make sure that Cadance was on her side herself. Not that she didn’t trust Cadance, but Galea was too much of a snake for somepony as young as Cadance to handle alone.

Celestia marched through the halls in a silent rage, her very stature warning anypony who might stop or talk to her to vacate the area. Hopefully they had all heard the radio interview and were keen to stay away from wherever Celestia was going, because she could not be trusted with her actions if anypony said anything to her.

It seemed like a rage-filled instant before Celestia was at her niece's apartment door. At first she raised her hoof to knock, but decided she wasn’t in the mood for that today. Instead, she pushed her way into the room without regard for privacy.

“I said I want-” Cadance froze mid sentence when she saw Celestia in her doorway. She must’ve been quite a sight for even Cadance to be scared. “A-are you okay…?” The pink Princess stood up from a scroll she had been reading and approached the much older monarch tentatively. “Is everything alright? W-what’s happened?”

“Did you listen to Galea’s interview on the radio?” Celestia tried to say the Captain’s name without burning down the palace, luckily she had a pretty good hold on her temper.

“No,” Cadance admitted as she tugged on Celestia’s hoof with her magic, too afraid of the heat to actually touch the Princess of the Sun. “Come in, please, calm down and talk to me.” Celestia relented from her place and trotted into Cadance’s quarters, which was just as pink as the alicorn herself.

“She threatened me,” Celestia growled out as she was pulled through the royal apartment. “Galea threatened me, she threatened Twilight.” Cadance’s jaw tightened, Celestia saw it from behind, but she kept silent for now. “She said that she was going to take Twilight away from me, that-that she is some sort of privilege I have to earn.” Now the tears were flowing in full force in front of Cadance.

“She had no right to say that.” Cadance spoke softly and quietly, to try and calm Celestia down. “C’mon, Tia.” Cadance pushed open the door to her bathroom and led Celestia into the spacious shower. It had been something that Celestia had taught her younger counterpart to do when the monarch’s temperature had flared, quite literally cool her off. As soon as Celestia sat down, Cadance turned the shower to as cold as it could go and let the water start to fall.

Steam rose up from Celestia’s coat as the chilled liquid made contact with the inferno that was her temper. It was a bad side effect of her power, heat. Usually she could control it to acceptable levels, but sometimes her temper just got the best of her and she needed to be cooled down physically.

“Now…” Cadance started out slow. “…please slow down and tell me what happened.” She could tell that Cadance was not comfortable with playing the caretaker to the senior alicorn, but she would have to get used to it for at least one day.

“Galea had an interview on the radio…” Celestia started out slow, the cool water slowing her heart and starting to calm her down. “She was pressed on how she would make sure we would be committed to the job, and….” Celestia sighed, trying not to get angry again. “She said she would enact the Articles of Power to have herself and you take away my ability to have a personal student.” Celestia shook her head, the shame of her anger finally catching up to her. “I just got so mad, and…and upset. I can’t lose another one, Cadance. Not this soon.” The thought of her failures as a teacher, her failure to save Sunset Shimmer, those feelings were all still raw and exposed.

“I would never ever allow that to happen, Aunt Tia.” Cadance reassured her to the best of her ability. “I would fight Galea over that, I know how happy Twilight makes you. I couldn’t ever see her taken away from you.” That made Celestia feel a lot better about the whole ordeal, Galea would need both of them to get something like that to pass.

“I don’t think she’ll stop.” Celestia knew Galea’s type, the architects of change who saw themselves as unstoppable, who would do anything to see their plans brought to fruition. “There’s only so much I can do, Cadance. I can’t throw her in a dungeon, I can’t fire her, I can’t punish her. Times have changed, I can’t just be a tyrant anymore and get away with it.” Celestia had to say something very uncommon on her life. “I...I don’t know what to do.” All of her experience, all of her years, they still had never prepared her for the difficulties of emotional distress. Loss and uncertainty always left her vulnerable, especially when Luna wasn’t around. Luna was supposed to be the pragmatic realist. Celestia was, ironically, supposed to be the dreamer and the one who saw the brighter side of things.

Celestia was not good at dealing with cold hard reality.

“Can we fight it somehow?” Cadance asked, sitting on the other side of the shower curtain. “Can we...can we somehow reject the diarchy if she’s so dead set on this?” Celestia sighed, she knew it wasn’t that easy.

“Not unless we can think of something better to replace the House of Nobles.” Celestia had been part of the talks to impliment the House centuries ago, and they had gone over every possibility and nothing worked except for the upper class taking some of the responsibility, well sort of… “The House…”

“What about it?” Cadance parted the curtains to look in. No more steam was coming off of Celestia’s body, so Cadance turned off the shower. “It’s the whole reason we’re in this mess, they were all corrupt.”

“We know about it now, right? We can monitor that sort if thing the way Galea had been for the last few years.” The wheels in Celestia’s head were spinning at full speed at this point. She was putting together pieces she never even knew could connect. “What’s that new form of government the Sea Ponies were working on…?” She couldn’t remember the name of it, but it was something new and exciting. Equestrians liked new and exciting.

“Democracy? The whole voting thing?” Celestia nodded. “Some of the towns near the coasts have adopted it for selecting town leaders as well, why?” Well, technically voting for leaders wasn’t a new thing, but allowing anypony to run regardless of qualifications or social status? That was a new idea. The common pony getting represented from their peers was not something that the Nobles would allow for a long time, but that was all different now.

“We could do that,” Celestia posited. “Have the major cities elect ponies to send to Canterlot and have them take over the responsibilities of the House of Nobles.” Celestia was no master of statecraft, but she had been around long enough to read the mindset of her ponies. The hostility of the headlines, the combativeness of the public and reporters towards the corruption, it was a sign. “Ponies will trust the common folk more than they’ll trust nobles now, if they’re electing ponies they know and trust, I think they’ll go for it.”

“I’ll talk it over with some of the more reasonable nobles that are left, I’ll see what they think. I’ll deal with that while you deal with Galea, alright?” Celestia nodded, it was a good idea. A House that served as representatives to the general populace, one that they could control and elect ponies to. The problem would be convincing the Nobles to step out of the way and let it happen. They might not have a quorum to stop it, but they could give all the bad press in the world if they didn’t like the idea. Cadance got up and started to trot out, but Celestia grabbed her hoof.

“Cadance…” There had been something eating Celestia’s conscience, something she just couldn’t shake. She had been apathetic for so long, she had let things happen and deemed them okay. Celestia had, truthfully, been coasting along at the top so long that she forgot what real choices were like. Just earlier this morning she didn’t know how to phrase it, but this endangerment of what she loved and truly cared about put it into context. “…about what you asked me, about Vinyl Scratch and Shining Armor. I think that there is no right answer.” It was hard to say, but it was the truth. “If you do nothing and let it play out, Shining Armor might get hurt and lose his job. If you do something…then you might regret it and they might get hurt anyways.” Celestia sighed. “A lot of other ponies would try to proscribe their morals to your situation, try to tell you that one option is unethical and doing nothing is the right choice, but there’s just no easy way to do it. There’s no right answer that can help everypony involved.” There was nothing simple about this, and Cadance needed to know it. “I was wrong about ‘the ends justify the means’ thing I said yesterday, but I was right about one thing.” Celestia looked her niece dead in the eye. “You need to make sure you can live with yourself after you make the decision.”

Vinyl and Twinkle trotted through the halls of the Palace, an odd heat pervading the entirety of the structure. Vinyl hadn’t really spotted a single servant or guard since she had entered the castle, except Twinkle. It was very odd.

“I’m really hoping we don’t strike out here,” Shining lamented as they walked through the deserted halls. “I mean, I kinda figured that Uncle B was going to be a rough one, but I was hoping Intrepid would be a bit more reasonable.”

“Yeah, ditto for me.” Vinyl had wanted everything with Intrepid to go smoothly, for the mutilated pegasus to admit that there had been even a hint of something real between them. Vinyl just needed to know that Cadance hadn’t controlled them completely and that there had been some of themselves in that attraction.

“I know Cadance, and I know she’ll be sorry. We already know she wants to patch things up, so this one should be easy. All you need to do is have an open mind.” Twinkle stopped in the middle of the hall. “You know, when I say that out loud I realize how ridiculous it sounds.”

“What?” Vinyl questioned with furrowed brows. “You don’t think I can have an open mind? I became friends with you, right? That has to count for something.” Defending herself and getting a jab in on Twinkle, that was a nice little double-whammy.

“I’m just saying that you’re more liable to get mad and push her away than forgive her, and maybe…well, maybe you should try to give her the benefit of the doubt.” What the hell was that supposed to mean? From Vinyl’s point of view, Cadance was a spoiled rich filly who had never been taught right from wrong. “She’s…well, she’s lived a kind of sheltered life and her perception of what she did is a little more skewed than ours.” Yeah, exactly that problem.

“Are you defending her, Twinkle?” Last time Vinyl had checked, he wasn’t exactly happy with Cadance himself. So why the sudden change of heart? Vinyl sincerely hoped he was just playing Discord’s Advocate and nothing more.

“I’m trying to understand the situation from her perspective, Vinyl.” Twinkle started trotting again and motioned for Vinyl to follow him. “This one isn’t just for you, after you’re done talking to her I have to make my peace. I’m just trying to get into the mindset.”

“If we both fail?” Vinyl had to ask, it was a scenario that was entirely possible. They could both break and yell at the Princess, just go off and ruin everything. It was unlikely for Twinkle, but it was still possible.

“Then this entire day has just been a wash and we’ll call it good.” The guard almost sounded as fed up as she was, which seemed a little unfair. She had been the one to go through all of the blatant bullshit today, not him. He just had to deal with the disappointment. “I won’t make you go through Glory as well, not today.”

“Well, thanks for that.” Vinyl would be grateful for the small things, like not having to bother with tearing both herself and her sister’s hearts to shreds. If the talk with Cadance didn’t get fucked up, then at least that would give her a little more hope to have yanked away when Glory’s time came.

The door to Cadance’s apartment opened before they could even get to it. Out of it came one of the most surreal things that Vinyl had ever seen: Princess Celestia herself, coat still dripping slightly and mane tied up in a fresh towel. The monarch looked surprisingly normal and relaxed, almost as if some great weight had been lifted from her back.

“Shining Armor and Vinyl Scratch, hello!” The same jovial monarch that Vinyl knew and loved came out, despite the too-normal appearance. “I’m sorry you have to see me this way, I’m afraid I’ve had quite a day and needed to calm down with some quality time with family.”

“Let me tell you, Princess-” Vinyl’s eyes maybe wandered a little too fondly across Celestia’s slightly damp body. “-if I were an alicorn and a few hundred years older…” Vinyl ended her sentence in a whistle. “Seriously.” She felt Twinkle smack her, but she ignored it. Even princesses needed to be complimented every once in awhile.

“Well, thank you very much, Vinyl Scratch.” Celestia responded with a smile. “You sure know how to make a mare feel young again.” There was a slight joking tone to the words that the monarch said. Vinyl knew the tone a little too well, it was covering up some bad emotions.

“It’s my pleasure, Princess.” Vinyl gave a little mock salute. “You have a good day, alright?” Vinyl dropped her own happy tone and became kind and serious. She felt like maybe Celestia needed it today.

“I will, thank you.” Celestia moved on, leaving Twinkle and Vinyl standing in front of Cadance’s door, just waiting. Vinyl was left hoping that whatever international incident or diplomatic hoopla was bothering Celestia would be sorted out soon. Depressed was not a good look on the Sun Princess.

“Who’s going first, Twinkle? You or me?” Vinyl didn’t want to dwell on one Princess’ mood, and decided to focus on the other’s. She nudged the guard beside her to pull him out of whatever stupor he was in.

“I-I was hoping that you would go first.” Shining caught whatever words had been failing him and tried to inject sarcasm into the situation. “That way, once you piss her off I can swoop in and calm her down. Y’know, be the knight in shining armor.” Vinyl laughed at that very, very dumb joke.

“How long you been waiting to use that one, Twinkle?” Vinyl asked, jabbing the guard in the metal plate that covered his ribs.

“My whole life, really. The timing’s just never been right.” Shining sighed and shook his head. “But really? I think you should go first, it’ll just be a lot more simple. I know she won’t get as upset with you, and I think I need time to prepare.” Well, how nice of him.

“Always the chivalrous one, Twinkle.” Vinyl pushed him out of the way. “Now go wait around the corner while I do this, alright? No listening in or anything, because I know you will barge in on this one.” Shining threw up his hooves in surrender then went around the corner when all four were firmly back on the floor.

Vinyl took her own deep breath and knocked on the door. This wasn’t going to be the most difficult talk today, but it was going to be the most interesting. It was going to be the one time that Vinyl was on the attack instead of defense, and the one time she had to worry about her approach.

“Aunt Tia, did you-” Cadance’s eyes widened in surprise when instead of Celestia, she saw a disgruntled white unicorn. “Vinyl? W-what are you doing here?” Cadance seemed a little too excited for Vinyl’s comfort, but she would let it slide for now.

“Do you want your truth with a healthy dose of sarcasm or would you prefer it straight?” Vinyl’s protective layer of snark and wit came up in full force. It wasn’t really something she could control, it was her nature at this point.

“It wouldn’t be you if it wasn’t sarcastic, Vinyl.” Cadance replied with a smile that made the unicorn uneasy. She was right, though. Who was Vinyl without sarcasm? One mopey pony with abandonment issues and a receding alcohol problem.

“Well, Twinkle and I are going on an apology tour across Canterlot.” Vinyl started. “First we hit Uncle B and that went terrible, then we went to Intrepid and it turns out he’s skipping town soon, so now here I am talking to you and trying not to yell at you for being so blatantly stupid.” Vinyl shrugged. “That about covers it really.”

“Come inside, sit and we’ll talk.” Cadance held the door to her apartment open and allowed Vinyl to pass. Sadly, Vinyl was not prepared for the visual onslaught that was the alicorn’s personal quarters. It was very very pink, and very very hard on the eyes. Everything from the bedposts to the door hinges were colored some shade of the color. It looked like a foal would imagine a Princess’ bedroom would look like, but worse.

“You…sure do like pink, huh?” Vinyl’s ears twitched when she heard the faint sound of a lock clicking into place. Usually that would set off several alarms, but she justified it with the idea that Cadance was busy and a lot of ponies would like to barge in on her to get her attention for some royal duty.

“Not really, but I haven’t gotten around to ordering it to be redecorated yet.” Cadance trotted by Vinyl to a set of scrolls that sat open on the floor and began gathering them up. “When I was little I loved it, but it takes time to plan a whole redecoration and I haven’t really had the free time.” Vinyl didn’t know if that was true or just a clever excuse. After all, Cadance had plenty of time to hang around Twinkle and do things with him. “What do you want to talk about, Vinyl?”

“Well…” Vinyl trotted over to where the Princess was gathering scrolls and sat on the floor. “…you, me, what you did and how we both feel about it.” Vinyl didn’t really know how to do this one. With Uncle B it had been about a decision she had made and the ensuing argument, with Intrepid it had been as easy as ‘talking about them’. Without getting angry, how was she supposed to get this one done?

“I regret not talking to you both about it before I did anything.” Cadance nodded as her horn flared with brilliant blue light and she lifted her bundle of scrolls into the air. At the same time, a knock came from the door that echoed across the room. “Give me one moment, Vinyl, I have to deal with this.” Vinyl nodded and just looked around the room as the Princess went behind her to answer the door. “Oh, and Vinyl?”

“Hmm?” The unicorn turned around to address Cadance, but before she could react her lips were captured in those of royalty’s. Vinyl’s shock wore off too late, as a sense of calm and peace washed over her in intense waves. Everything unfocused as she felt her lips part and Cadance’s tongue mingle with her own. There was something in the kiss that she could not identify, a taste of distant lovers and better memories.

The kiss broke, but Vinyl was left in her haze of bliss. She couldn’t really think past it all, it was every time her parents hugged her and every tender moment she shared with another pony. It was mom’s fresh baked, and burnt, cookies, and everything she ever wanted. It was impenetrable, and Vinyl didn’t want it to ever go away.

Cadance smiled at the dopey look on Vinyl’s face. The half-lidded eyes and genuine smile were a form of peace that Cadance had never seen on the mare. It was a nice change of pace that Cadance thought everypony could get used to.

“Vinyl, how do you feel?” The subject of the spell was supposed to be very easy to talk to, very easy to coax things out of and easily suggestible. Cadance needed to make sure that her spell was working properly.

“Pretty…pretty good,” The white pony responded lazily.

“Good, I’m glad.” Cadance sat in front of the enthralled unicorn and tried to think of what to do. One particular question rested on her mind that needed to be answered first, it was something that had been eating away at her for some time. “Do you hate me, Vinyl?”

“No…no…” Cadance’s thrall shook her head back and forth in slow motion. “Shining, he wouldn’t ever forgive me if I hated you…” Well that was a load off of her mind, but it raised more questions that Cadance needed to be answered.

“You and Shining, are you…are you a couple?” This was a difficult thing to ask, because the most likely answer was going to be the one to wound her the most.

“I don’t…I don’t think so.” Vinyl responded. “We want to be, but there’s a lot holding us back, I think.”

“Like what?” Cadance prodded.

“He still loves you, I know it…” Where there should be pain in the answer, there was still the same dazed bliss. Part of Cadance felt relieved that all of the tough feelings weren’t coming out, it made the whole thing much easier to swallow. “I don’t think he’ll ever stop…and I don’t know if I’m ready…”

“Why wouldn’t you be ready?” Now Cadance was just being nosy. If you had somepony’s entire brain to pick without them fighting you, you wouldn’t pass that up. It was a very rare opportunity.

“I’m…I’m afraid.” Cadance was going to ask a follow up, but Vinyl kept talking. “I don’t want to hurt him. Everypony I’ve been close to, I’ve disappointed and hurt them…” Vinyl’s tone started to shift, so Cadance fired up her horn and put an extra layer of the spell over top of everything else. It wasn’t as strong as the kiss, but it would keep her subdued.

“It’s alright, it’s all okay.” Cadance reached out and traced her hoof along Vinyl’s jawline. “Tell me what would make you happy, Vinyl. Getting together with Shining or just moving on after all of this is done?” She was curious just what Vinyl wanted. Tia’s words still rang in her head, about living with the decision. Maybe if Vinyl’s desires lined up with her own, then it wouldn’t be so bad.

“I don’t know…” Vinyl responded in the same loving tone.

Cadance stood up and sighed. That helped nothing and nopony, especially her. Now that she was actually face to face with Vinyl, within striking distance of her goals, Cadance just couldn’t do it. She couldn’t tell Vinyl to just forgive Glory and leave Shining alone, she couldn’t tell the mare how to live her life. There was a difference between making an attraction and actually forcing somepony to do something. Even getting Shining to forgive her was just a simple love spell, not something that left the very free will of a pony in her hooves.

This was different and terrifying. There was no going back, though. Cadance couldn’t just kill the spell, it would leave Vinyl with memories of the experience. She needed to issue an order, something final and decisive. She couldn’t just tell Vinyl to forget this ever happened, she needed to have Vinyl think their conversation had amounted to something, a conclusion she could reach reasonably. That’s how this spell worked, an order was given and the brain of the enthralled filled in the blanks to make it seem like it was their idea. False memories were created to explain something that should be unexplainable.

“What do you want, Vinyl?” Cadance was out of ideas, now. She didn’t want to do something that would hurt somepony, she didn’t want to be responsible for that anymore. “What do you want the most in your life?”

“I want to be happy…” Vinyl responded, much to Cadance’s chagrin. This was just going to go around in circles if she didn’t think of some way to end this, some way they both would be okay with, or at least in a way the Cadance could live with after she said it.

“Then…” Cadance just had to say it, she just had to tell Vinyl how to live her life. “...be happy. Whatever it is that’s keeping you from doing what you need to be happy, don’t let it. Forget whatever it is that’s holding you back and just do what you need to be happy.” Cadance let out a deep breath that she had been holding. That would be her order, just for Vinyl to make herself happy. Cadance had given Vinyl true free will, free from inhibitions and fear, free from doubt and hesitation.

Cadance had given Vinyl an incredible gift.

Shining Armor was not having a very fun time. He hadn’t exactly hoped for a shouting match between Vinyl and Cadance, but he had expected it. Instead there was silence, just a sense of peace coming from the royal apartment. That alone made Shining want to barge in.

He was giving them time, though. If spells weren’t going off and voices weren’t raised, he was going to give them all the time in the world. Both he and Scratch could use a good moment of the day that wasn’t contentious or just plain bad.

The door to Cadance’s quarters opened and Vinyl walked out, shaking her head. Shining had been looking around the corner the whole time, just in case, so when his charge reappeared he quickly intercepted her.

“Vinyl, how’d it go?” Shining couldn’t tell, but something was off. There was a trace of something, very strong magic if he wasn’t mistaken. It unsettled him, he shouldn’t have let Vinyl go in there alone with Cadance.

“It went good.” Vinyl nodded. “Really, I didn’t expect it to go that well. I mean, I still don’t forgive her or anything but I think we’re good now.” Shining was skeptical, but he would let it slide. “We had a good talk, and I think we both kinda needed it.” Vinyl patted Shining on the back. “Your turn, Twinkle.”

Shining really did not want to go through with this. Something was up with Vinyl, something that hadn’t been there before she went to talk with Cadance. He was going to have to question Cadance about this, about whatever she might’ve done to Vinyl.

“Yeah, wish me luck,” the stallion said as he trotted through the open door and into Cadance’s apartment. His former love was laying on her bed in a luxurious pose. “Cadance, it’s nice to see you again.”

“Hi Shiny.” She sat up and smiled. “How are you doing?”

“I’m going to guess Vinyl already told you about our day, so I won’t recap it. Needless to say it’s been very rough today.” Shining nodded as he sat on the floor. He wasn’t going to get closer to her until he knew exactly what she did alone with Vinyl.

“Yes, I didn’t expect for Intrepid to leave Equestria so soon.” Cadance held her ground on her bed, not moving an inch. “He told me he wasn’t staying in the city, but I never really expected him to leave the country again.”

“Can we stop this, Cadance?” Shining was not in the mood for this right now. “The small talk, the nonsense?” Shining stood up. “The last time we talked I told you I thought we had a chance to be something, I told you that I hoped we could work through all of this and be a couple again.” Cadance was paying very close attention to him now, her eyes hopeful and bright. “I still want that someday, but I need you to tell me what you did to Vinyl.”

“W-what?” Cadance got up from her bed. “I-I didn’t do anything to Vinyl, we just talked.” Shining sighed again and rolled his eyes. He couldn’t believe what she was saying.

“Do you expect me to just ignore the amount of magic she’s drenched in?” Shining pointed towards the door. “Did you expect somepony not to notice a spell that strong?” Cadance’s eyes drifted down to her hooves. “Do you think I’m stupid, Cadance?”

“I didn’t-”

“Don’t lie to me, Cadance. I swear, if you insist on lying to me I will go to Captain Galea right now and tell her what you did. I don’t know the punishment for hexes or enchantments on ponies, but I know that not even you’re immune to it.” Shining could feel his heart racing and his blood pressure rising. He had zero patience for this today, and he wasn’t going to give her an inch to take or use to her advantage. “Just tell me what you did.”

“I-” Cadance bit her lip, tears forming in the corners of her violet eyes. “I didn’t go through with it Shining. I-I cast the spell, but I didn’t go through with it!” Like that made it any better? Like that was supposed to make it go away?

“What didn’t you go through with?” He needed to know, if he didn’t then his imagination would run wild with possibilities. None of them good.

“I…I was going to tell her to forgive Glory. I was going to make her…I was going to make her finally move on.” Shining threw his head in the air and started to pace. Why didn’t Cadance learn her lesson last time? Why did she insist on messing with ponies’ heads. “I didn’t though! I-I couldn’t go through with it, I couldn’t do it again.”

“So what did you tell her to do?” Shining didn’t need to know the specifics of the spell, he gathered from context it was some form of mind-control. Cadance administered it then gave orders or commands for her thrall to carry out.

“I just told her to make herself happy, to forget everything holding her back and just do whatever makes her happy.” It was a lot less dangerous than he had thought, but that didn’t change anything. “I-I didn’t make the same mistake twice.”

“YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT A MISTAKE IS!” Shining Armor released all of his rage in one therapeutic scream. “A mistake is-is putting too much cream in your coffee, or accidentally bumping into somepony on the street! A mistake is not…it’s not a mind-control spell, Cadance!” Shining threw his helmet off and ran a hoof through his mane. He was beyond frustrated at the moment, he was mad and pissed off. “What you did to me, to Intrepid, to Vinyl twice now, it’s not a mistake. It was WRONG! You did something wrong, ethically, morally, just wrong!” He was tired of defending ponies that were wrong, he was tired of all of the ponies around him being so immune to their own stupidity that nothing was their fault but the fault of the world around them for misunderstanding them and their intentions.

“Fine, I did something wrong. I-I’m sorry, Shiny. I was just trying to help. Galea said that i-if Vinyl doesn’t forgive Glory then she’ll fail rehabilitation a-and if you two go through with your relationship you’ll be fired.” Shining’s jaw tightened and his eyes narrowed. Those conversations did not have reports filed on them, each of them were held in private.

“Am I being spied on?” Cadance nodded. “For-for Celestia’s sake, really?” He couldn’t believe any of this, not a word. Why did today of all the days possible have to be the one where ponies just had to be stupid? Any other would’ve been fine, but not today. “Whatever, I’ll deal with Galea later.” He grumbled. “You.” He pointed his hoof at Cadance. “You have no business interfering with me and Vinyl. No business at all. If anything happens, we’ll deal with it.”

“You were making a mistake, Shining! You were going to lose your job!” Cadance pleaded, but Shining was fed up with her at this point.

“Then let me make them!” Shining advanced on Cadance, each hoof impacting the tile angrily. “If you don’t let ponies do things of their own accord, they’ll never learn! You can’t just take away their free will and expect them to like you when you say you saved them from something they never saw! How-how do you know Vinyl would fail rehab if she never forgives Glory? How do you know? Both Galea and Celestia have a say in it, and I know that Celestia wouldn’t fail her if Vinyl had a good reason for her actions. Did you ever think about that? Did you ever think that Vinyl might just have a change of heart herself and forgive Glory?” Shining threw a hoof up in exasperation. “You don’t know the outcome of anything until it happens, so don’t act like you were saving me from something that might not even happen!”

“Shiny-”

“Shut up, Cadance.” Shining was done, beyond done right now. “Just…stop trying to justify and tell me how to fix Vinyl.” He wanted to know how to disenchant or dispel the charm that Cadance had made. There had to be a way, there was always a way.

“We have to wait it out.” Cadance said ashamedly. “Th-there’s nothing we can do except wait it out.” Okay, so a spell on a timer. That wasn’t so bad, the only problem was it couldn’t be taken away by other magic.

“Okay, how long do we have?” He could wait a day or two before continuing the, as Vinyl put it, apology tour. Glory could wait a few days, maybe in that time he could convince Vinyl to change her mind somehow.

“I don’t know…” Shining Armor closed his eyes and held back yet another sigh. He was so mad that he didn’t even feel mad anymore. He had transcended his rage into a kind of silence. “The books said that the stronger the unicorn, the stronger the spell and the longer it lasts.” That helped absolutely nopony, considering Cadance was an alicorn and therefore one of the strongest ponies in existence. “S-somewhere between a week to ten years. I don’t know.”

“Ten years? Are you serious? Ten years?” Shining Armor was officially lost. In just five minutes his entire life had been turned upside down and the one pony who he wanted to give a chance had thrown it in his face. “What the hell am I going to do?”

Author's Note

I hope you all have a happy new year! Thank you all for another year of your time and support!

Here's to actually finishing this thing in 2017.

Choices

“You can't make decisions based on fear and the possibility of what might happen.”
― Michelle Obama

Shining Armor held his head in his hooves and let loose yet another hefty sigh. It seemed to be his default noise now, and it never made him feel any better. In fact, it only piled on the stress that the previous minutes had been building.

“Please, Shiny. Tell me what you mean.” Cadance was not helping matters either. In fact, she had been the one to start this mess and she wasn’t making it any better by demanding an explanation.

The dilemma that Shining was currently having was whether or not to tell Vinyl that she had been enchanted. Usually it would’ve been an easy choice, but now it was just eating away at him like a bad dream. All of the optimism and sense of justice had just been beaten out of him from recent events, and he was weary of delivering more bad news to an already broken down Vinyl Scratch.

If he told Vinyl, she would most likely clam up and shut down. She wouldn’t even attempt to talk to Glory, and he would probably be on her short list for ‘most hated pony’ for making her go into a room alone with Cadance. That would set them back to square one of their relationship as a whole, both personal and professional.

On the other side of the coin, if he didn’t tell her it could be even messier. Vinyl would go about her day, free of inhibitions and maybe happier than normal. But she could possibly get herself into trouble by doing something that common sense would’ve prevented her from doing usually. Plus, if she ever found out about the spell and that he knew and didn’t tell her, then it would put an end to anything and everything that they had ever shared.

Both were unappealing choices, and both presented unique challenges and roadblocks. Both were utterly terrifying.

The worst part was, he wasn’t even sure of anything he had just said. It was all conjecture and supposition. Those things might happen, they might not. With this spell in place, he couldn’t even bet on Vinyl’s emotions anymore. It was all up in the air and he knew nothing.

“You can’t solve a problem if you don’t know all of the variables,” he muttered to nopony but himself. It was an old adage that he had heard from his mother when she was writing. It helped her take the perspective of her heroes more seriously, to look at an uncertain situation through their eyes. It was also good advice that he heeded.

Usually he would consider himself a good problem solver, but that had been put to the test recently. Now he had a problem with no real solution, just more problems to follow it. That meant he wasn’t looking to solve a problem, just the resulting trouble with the least amount of resistance, with the closest and simplest solution. Even if it wasn’t the moral choice, it would have to be the right one.

“Shining. Please.” He looked up at Cadance, his stomach turning as he did so. He was backed into a corner, forced to make a choice he didn’t want to, and made to be a fool all by her. This was all her fault and the blame and consequences would all fall on him. No matter what he did, none of this would ever get back to Cadance. None of this would ever interfere with her life like it would with his.

“You don’t want me to talk to you, Cadance.” Shining stood up and decided he would do the only thing Vinyl would be proud of him for. He was going to go with his gut and make the decision when it was time, not now. Instead, he was going to spend the current moment talking to Cadance. “If I talk to you any louder than I am now-” His voice was low, just above a whisper. “-I will scream at you. So I need you to listen to what I’m about to say.” He advanced on the alicorn, staying himself from lashing out. “If I decide to tell Vinyl what you did to her, or if I don’t, then it’s all on you. All of that anger and spite she feels towards me for letting it happen, it’s all for you. I hope that it eats away at you every day that you’re in here. I hope that you never feel good about what you’ve done. I hope you know that because of this stunt your chances are up, and I will never forgive you. This time, I want you to know that I’m truly done with you.” Shining bit his tongue before her could utter another syllable and stormed by the Princess.

Now he had to go out the door and face Vinyl and hope to anypony that was listening that he would make the choice he could look back on with pride. He didn’t like operating like that, he hated not knowing what would happen.

When Shining exited the room, he was met with the one sight he did not need. Vinyl sat just on the opposite side of the hall, smiling. It broke his heart to even think about getting rid of such a smile. It might’ve been made or affected by spell, but it still looked so genuine. It was such a peaceful and quiet smile, one you might overlook on a street because it was just a pony being content with their lives. It was something special on Vinyl Scratch.

“Have fun?” The smile that Shining had attempted to force did not last a single step beyond the door. It crumbled into a defeated frown, accompanied by his shoulders falling. “That bad, huh?” There wasn’t even a hint of her usual sarcasm, just real concern. That was Vinyl Scratch, that was really her and not some spell. He knew that much. Now he might have to ruin it.

Now he was on the precipice of possible calamity, and personal upheaval. He was about to either ruin Vinyl’s day or ruin the next few years of his own life. That’s what it all boiled down to, could he live with the guilt of all of this or did he want to send Vinyl back to her reductive alcoholic cynicism. Whose life did he ruin, hers or his own? Could he afford to turn that smile into a frown?

“It was something,” Shining admitted.He had chosen, and it made him sick to his stomach. “We should head home, though. I’m…I’m not feeling too well.” He couldn’t tell her, he couldn’t put that on her. He couldn’t destroy Vinyl again, he would shoulder the burden for however long it took and deal with the consequences as they came.

“Yeah, that’s not too bad of an idea. I’m feeling like I’m in a creative mood. I wanna get behind my turntables, y’know?” The optimism, the mood. It was unbearable for all of the wrong reasons. This was the Vinyl that Shining wanted to see, it was the one that meant she was truly ready to go back into the world. He just wished that she had reached it naturally and not through magical means.

“Yeah…” He had nothing more to say, he couldn’t say any more or he would risk letting the truth out. To some it may not have been the right choice, but it was the one that he needed to make. It had been the one that he could live with, that Vinyl needed to keep going.

Celestia had calmed down outwardly, but that did not quench her inner fire. She was still fiercely angry that Galea had trodden on her metaphorical hooves, and was determined to punish the Captain for her insolence. Celestia had to show the little pony that she was not to be played with, because she had played this game longer than Galea’s entire bloodline had even been thought about.

A brilliant plan had come to her as she made her way through the castle. Along the way she had told various guards and servants to fetch her certain ponies she would need, certain ponies that would need to be around to make sure everything would go smoothly. Of course that meant possibly ruining Shining Armor and Vinyl Scratch’s night, but they would forgive her with time.

“I-I’ve delivered the message to both Twilight Sparkle and Twilight Velvet,” Celestia’s very overwhelmed assistant stated as she rushed to the monarch’s side. “I-I’ve also-” The pudgy and bureaucratic mare stopped mid-sentence to catch her breath. “-I’ve also alerted the guard to stop Shining Armor from leaving the palace interior. Galea has also been contained in her office…” The mare hesitated, pushing her glasses up nervously. “...she’s-she’s not very happy about it.”

“I didn’t expect her to be,” Celestia retorted as neutrally as she could. “I need you to do one last thing for me.” The mare gave her best half-smile and nodded. “Please fetch me that mare from the radio program Galea was on and tell her to come to the palace immediately. Also, inform the staff to set up the radio room in the east wing and have them prepare it for broadcast.” The mare nodded and then scurried off as quickly as her legs would allow.

Now that everything was set in motion around them, it was time for Celestia to finally confront the little cog who thought it controlled the machine. The Princess made her way to the hallway that housed the office of the Captain, which was swarming with guards of all shapes and sizes. They all had a look of fear and slight desperation on their faces, most likely from the verbal thrashing Galea had given them as they took her in. They all probably thought their jobs were on the line with it.

“P-Princess Celestia, your majesty.” One of the guards, whose name she couldn’t remember at the moment, stepped in front of her and bowed. “Captain Galea is currently in her office. We…we had to use the chains on her, Princess. She wouldn’t listen to your command.” Celestia nodded, this was good. It meant that Galea was going to learn that she was meaningless compared to Celestia’s own word. A title could never compare to thousands of years of respect, admiration, and borderline idolatry.

“I will take it from here,” Celestia stated, her voice calm and smooth like honey. She hoped that it would work to calm the guards down some, maybe even a little. The near-identical guards all stepped aside and paved a way for Celestia to get to the Captain’s door.

Celestia opened the door and looked around the room. Every single inch of the space, every book and every tile, was covered in a thick layer of frost. At the opposite side of the office, the Captain herself sat at her desk, a dull glow emanating from her horn. Her face gave no appearance of the rage that consumed her, but Celestia knew it was there.

“What is this all about, Princess Celestia?” the unicorn asked, her voice producing a heavy mist with every word. Celestia trotted over to the Captain’s desk, her own aura melting every bit of frost she came near. The alicorn simply stood on the other side of the desk and smiled at the smaller pony.

“This is about you, Galea.” Celestia put her hoof on the sturdy oak top and tapped it in a consistent rhythm. “This is about you knowing what not to say.” Celestia nodded. “This is about you knowing your boundaries. Tell me, do you know what you did wrong?” Celestia was taking more of the teaching tone she used with Twilight.

“Nothing.” Galea leaned in as she spoke, annunciating every letter she spoke. “I have done nothing wrong.” Celestia always thought it was cute to see somepony who underestimated their own mistake.

“You put a very dangerous idea into the minds of the populace.” Celestia started, putting her other front hoof onto the desk and raising onto her back legs. “You made them think that somehow me having a student is some sort of privilege I enjoy.” That was Celestia’s main point here, it was the one she was going to hammer in.

“As far as I’m concerned, Celestia-” Galea spit the name with venom. “-it is one. You are not required a student, you are simply afforded one by the grace of the ponies who really run the country.” Galea got to her hooves and stared down the monarch as best she could.

“You only think that because you know nothing, Galea.” Celestia was not going to add any flavor to her voice, there was no chance. She was going to lay everything out flat, explain things that she never had any intention of letting out. But, it would keep the captain in her control. “Tell me, do you know the legend of Nightmare Moon?”

“Of course I do.” Galea stood firm. “What does an old mare’s tale have to do with your privileges?” Celestia let a glimmer of a smirk slip through her facade.

“It’s not an old tale, it’s not a legend, or a fable, or just a story. It’s true.” Usually Celestia wouldn’t invoke this, as it did inflict emotional pain onto herself, but if she just altered the story a little it wouldn’t be as bad. “Nightmare Moon was locked away, but she won’t be for much longer. In less than ten years, the stars will aid in her escape and she will enact her vengeance upon Equestria and there will be nothing I can do to stop her.” Celestia hated admitting that, the weakness she knew was hurtling her way. “The only chance we have is Twilight Sparkle. I know this, I’ve seen it. She is our only hope and I am the only chance she has at being even remotely ready to take on that task.”

“Right.” Galea scoffed. “You expect me to believe tha-” Before the unicorn could even finish the sentence, Celestia ignited her horn and touched it to Galea’s own. Flashes of things that had not yet happened dance between the two: an alicorn as dark as midnight with the sky in her mane stood over a defeated Celestia, then a crumbling castle in a dense forest, a blast of multi-colored lights erupting from the interior as a cry went out. Inside, a purple mare was standing, flanked by more ponies in the shadows, they stood triumphant over a fallen Nightmare Moon.

“Do you see?” Celestia relented her mental barrage. “I’m not doing this just because I care about Twilight Sparkle, but because we need her. We need her to be prepared.” Galea was standing there, her eyes searching for something that wasn’t there. “So you threatening her on the radio, that was you threatening Equestria itself.” Celestia took her hooves off of the desk and sat on the floor. “Now, we need to discuss your position and the future of Canterlot’s government.” This was going to be a very long discussion, and it would end in Celestia’s favor.

“What do you mean I can’t leave?” Vinyl watched from a distance as Twinkle stared down a guard that was blocking their way out of the castle. Vinyl was sure it was something to do with the Captain or Cadance’s talk with him, so she was content to stay out of it for now.

Plus, she was feeling pretty good at the moment and staying out of it was something that wasn’t going to ruin her mood. She would be content to let her guard deal with the problems for now.

“The orders came directly from Princess Celestia herself,” the guard blocking the door stated. “You are not to leave the castle until Twilight Sparkle meets with you.” Twinkle looked at the guard for a second, as if thinking if he should pursue further answers or to leave it alone and accept the outcome. He chose the latter.

“Fine.” Shining sighed as he trotted back to Vinyl’s side. “We’ll wait here for Twily to see what she wants.” Twinkle seemed to be in poor spirits since the meeting with Cadance. Sure, it hadn’t gone the way he had wanted but there was a lot to look forward to. They were pretty close to being done with all of this, just one or two conversations away really.

“Probably just wants to say ‘hi’ or something.” Vinyl put her hoof on his back. “Probably just misses her big brother, y’know?” Vinyl was trying to look for the positives. She didn’t really want to think of what negative things could cause Twilight to come running to him.

As Twinkle was about to open his mouth to retort, he turned his head to one of the hallways that went deep into the castle. Trotting out of it was none other than Twilight Sparkle, her saddlebags across her back and a scowl across her little face. Vinyl wondered what could trouble such a privileged little pony, it’s not like she was affected by the new captain like Twinkle was.

“Twily, over here!” Shining waved down his sister, who glumly trotted over to them. “What’s going on? Do you need something?” Shining pulled his little sister into a hug, one that she did not reciprocate.

“No.” Twily answered with a huff. “Princess Celestia is having a big meeting with Mom, Captain Galea, and all of the other important ponies in the castle. She said that mom is going to be here all night, and since Dad’s asleep and can’t come get me, she told me to go with you for tonight.” Okay, well that threw a wrench into a couple of Vinyl’s plans. Mainly the one about celebrating with a drink, maybe wine. With a filly in the house, she suspected that was a no-go now.

“At Vinyl’s?” Twily nodded, drawing a sigh from Shining. “Do you have all of your stuff ready to go?” Vinyl felt pretty okay with somepony like Twilight in her house, it wasn’t like she was a troublemaker or anything. Plus, it might be fun to have a little one around for a while.

“I got my stuff from my tower.” Twilight responded, motioning towards her saddlebags. “The Princess gave me homework to do tonight, so I promise I won’t bother you two very much.” Vinyl wouldn’t mind being bothered a little. Getting to know Twilight seemed like both a task and a good bit of fun to be had. She could probably get the studious little pony to talk all night if she could find the right topic.

“Vinyl, are you okay with this?” Vinyl blinked. She wasn’t expecting to be asked that question. She just assumed that he would take Twily along without her input.

“Uh, yeah.” Vinyl nodded. “It’ll be fun. I can cook dinner and pull out some board games or something.” At the mention of games, Twilight perked up, her eyes lit up with joy.

“We’re not playing Banal Objective, Twily.” Shining Armor dashed his little sister’s hopes against the tile. “I don’t feel like getting shut out by my little sister in a trivia game tonight.” He looked to Vinyl for some much needed backup, but he was going to be sorely disappointed.

“Sounds like fun to me.” Vinyl said with a smile. “I’m a bit of a trivia nut, and it’s my house. So I think we’ll do that.” Vinyl stuck her tongue out at the statuesque unicorn, to which he replied with pinned back ears and a defeated frown. Twily, on the other hoof, kept her smile and twinkling eyes.

“Thank you, Vinyl Scratch!” The filly said with glee. Vinyl was happy to see that Twily was actually capable of enthusiasm. The few times that Vinyl had actually met the little unicorn, the only emotions she had displayed were indifference and slight trepidation. Maybe there was a sociable little pony under all of those book smarts.

“I think I have the original version and one from a few years back.” Vinyl said, trying to remember exactly which editions she had. She was certain about the original, it had been her parents’.

“Okay, I’m exercising my veto on the first edition.” Shining Armor spoke, stepping in between the two female unicorns. “That’s what we play at home and Twily has almost every question memorized. Do any other version and I’ll play.” That was the tone of a pony who had suffered too many humiliating defeats at the hooves of his little sister, it was a tone that demanded mercy. Vinyl would grant that, just so he would actually play along.

“Alright.” Vinyl nodded. “After homework is done, and after dinner we’ll play.” The siblings both nodded in agreement. Vinyl could settle for it as well, getting to know Twily a bit more might be fun.

Galea’s mind was still preoccupied with thoughts and images of the pitch black alicorn flying over Canterlot, of the eternal night and coming ruin. She was aware that Celestia was speaking, but she couldn’t focus on the words. She couldn’t focus on the pony who had kept this from everypony for so long, who had been silent about such a threat.

“Technically, only the House of Nobles can declare a State of Emergency. Due to their inability to hold a quorum, the duty falls to the next pony up the chain.” Galea blinked, sensing that the archivist from the Royal Library, Twilight Velvet, was speaking about her now.

“Galea votes yes on declaring a state of emergency.” Celestia cut in before Galea herself could speak. Both Cadance and Velvet looked at the elder Princess, but said nothing. It was clear to everypony in the room that Celestia was now calling all of the shots, and any talk of procedure was merely for show. “Cadance, what is your vote?”

“Yes, I believe the situation calls for a State of Emergency to be declared.” Cadance stated without missing a beat. Galea wasn’t expecting a fight from the young alicorn, but even a second of hesitation would’ve been helpful.

“Very well, once the radio host gets here I will let the public know.” Celestia nodded. “Now we need to discuss building a democracy for the ponies.” Galea blinked once more and widened her eyes. Celestia advocating for a democracy? That was something new. “Not for my position, Captain. Get that idea out of your head. I wish to build a House for the populace, now that the Nobles are all but gone. Have them elect their own representatives from all over Equestria.”

Galea was against money and power going hoof-in-hoof. It led to an endless cycle of money using power to get more money or vice versa. Everypony had that draw towards it, towards the accumulation of more power. She had to jump in here.

“Only if they cannot be elected to consecutive terms.” Galea would let Celestia have it her way, but not without some stipulations. “That was the problem with the nobles, they had power for far too long. There was no threat of losing power. If the power was taken away every now and again, maybe it would force ponies to be a bit more pragmatic and populist in their goals.

“Very well.” Celestia looked towards Twilight Velvet and Cadance. “Gather what we have left of the House of Nobles and have them draft an amendment to begin a new House for representatives of the people..” The Princess focused entirely on Cadance. “Make sure it passes. I want it done before any of them leave this castle.”

That would be near impossible. Rough drafts, revisions, proper legal wording and integration into the Equestrian Charter would take days, if not weeks. She expected none of them to leave the castle until then?

“Yes, Celestia.” Both Cadance and Twilight Velvet bowed and exited the room swiftly, leaving Galea with a very frightening Princess Celestia. There was a cold silence between them, before the monarch broke it with her now fiery demeanor.

“Do you see what happens when you play this game, Galea?” A hint of a smirk came to the corner of Celestia’s mouth. “You only find out that you outplayed with a simple wave of the hoof.”

Author's Note

A bit of time off and I have to ramp back up.

Have a small chapter with some conflict: including a very mad Celestia!

ENJOY!

Family

“Never above you. Never below you. Always beside you.”
-Walter Winchell

Celestia sat on the cushion from her personal apartment. She wanted to be as comfortable as possible while doing this little radio interview, and her reading cushion was the most comfortable piece of furniture in her quarters beside her bed. As much as she would love to do an interview from her bed, the Princess thought that might come off as a bit too decadent. For now she would settle with the cushion.

“Princess Celestia, Air Waves has arrived,” one of the guards standing just outside of the recording studio announced. Celestia knew she didn’t need to tell the guard to let the radio pony in, everypony around the castle knew Celestia was short on patience today so some of the trivial formalities were being overlooked.

The door opened and a light blue pegasus with a curled two-tone blue and white mane walked in. She did not look nervous, or even hesitant about coming into the room. Instead, her golden eyes were filled with determination and pride in her coming conquest. Celestia appreciated that amount of confidence, but if it went too far she would not hesitate to quell it. The Princess was still in control here.

“Your Majesty.” Air Waves gave a short bow then took her seat across from the monarch. “It’s an honor to be here, thank you for inviting me to do this.” While the tone was polite and respectful, the pegasus’ movements were almost mechanical in nature. Without prompting or thought, she flipped switches and turned knobs to her liking, putting a single headphone to her ear to listen to the sound coming from it. This was a professional, something Celestia was more than happy to have here. “My sound guy is already in the booth getting ready, he’ll signal us when he’s ready to go.”

“Of course.” Celestia smiled as she lifted her pair of custom headphones, specially designed for her larger alicorn head, and slipped them on. She had no use for them usually, so they were stiff and uncomfortable. It was temporary, that’s what she had to remind herself. “Thank you for coming in on such short notice. What I need to discuss is important, and I wanted a pony who knows about our government and obviously cares about the goings on in the palace.” Celestia ignored the fact that she could hear herself through the headphones, it was distracting to hear such an unfiltered version of her voice, but she wasn’t going to let such a little thing catch her off guard.

“So you heard that interview with Captain Galea?” Celestia nodded, which caused Air Waves’ face to go red. Quickly, the radio host regained her composure and spoke. “May I speak freely, Princess?”

“Of course, Air Waves,” Celestia responded earnestly. “I want you to speak as you would in your own studio. I want you to treat me as you would any guest.” Celestia thought on those words for a moment. “Well, perhaps not as harshly as Galea.” That elicited a short laugh from the pegasus.

“Galea is kind of a bitch.” That wasn’t a word that Celestia heard very often, but it felt good for somepony to say it. “To me at least. I mean, I get that you have to be at least some level of hardened to be the Captain of the Royal Guard, but I’ve heard interviews with Captain Knock Out and he was always cordial.”

“Galea is a different breed of captain that I haven’t seen in some time. If I am to be truthful, and off the record of course, I think she can truly be a benefit to the guard. I believe she can bring order to the division in most need of it.” Celestia truly did believe that, it’s the reason she let Galea go ahead with all of her firings. Knock Out, while being a good captain, was soft in his older age. He let things slide too easily and it made the guard sloppy and undisciplined. Galea was the counterweight that could change that, the only problem being that she was too ambitious. “The rest we will get to in the interview.”

“Right.” Air Waves fiddled with a slider in front of her and looked at a piece of paper that predated her entrance into the room. “Okay, so I’m going to open the show and immediately I’m going to let you speak and then we can move to the interview?”

“Yes. I feel the citizens would like to know why I’m doing this before we proceed to questions.” Celestia received a nod in response as the mare opposite skimmed over the notes left for her.

“Princess Celestia, Air Waves, we can start transmitting whenever you’re ready.” The voice, male, came over the headphones. Celestia assumed this was Air Waves’ sound guy on the other side of the tinted glass. The host looked to Celestia, who simply nodded.

“Start it up,” Air Waves said into the microphone.

“We’re transmitting on all channels.” A soft beeping sound came through the headphones, one Celestia knew was much louder coming through the radios. “Intro incoming.”

“Citizens of Canterlot and Equestria-” The pre-recorded voice, feminine and calming, washed across the nation. “-we interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to bring you an emergency message from Princess Celestia.”

“You’re live, Air.” The sound guy said through the headphones.

“Good evening, Equestria. My name is Air Waves and I’m here with the harbinger of the sun, sole monarch of Equestria, and mother to all: Princess Celestia.” Some of those titles, specifically the mother one, were from times long gone when Celestia was looked upon differently. They didn’t embarrass her, they tried to drag her mind back to different places and times.

“Hello, my little ponies.” Celestia spoke warmly. “I apologize for pulling you away from your favorite shows, but I fear I have some dire news. As of right now, the palace in Canterlot is in a state of emergency due to the government’s inability to function properly at this time. Myself, Princess Cadance, Captain Galea, and scores of others are here attempting to solve the problem efficiently and properly. It is not an easy process, nor is it one that anypony should relish in, but it must be done if we are to continue to function.” Celestia stopped herself from taking a deep breath directly into the microphone. She wanted to sigh, but she knew that was frowned upon around such delicate audio equipment. “Right now we are attempting to reorganize the government so that it can return to working order. Now, I’m sure you all have many questions, and that’s why Ms. Air Waves is here to ask those questions.”

“Thank you, Princess Celestia.” Air Waves looked down at her paper and skimmed it quickly. “We know this was spurred by the charges of corruption against a supermajority of the nobles, do we know what is to become of them yet, or is that still up in the air?”

“The nobility that were charged will stand trial for their crimes, and if they are found guilty they will serve the appropriate sentences.” Celestia always relished in saying that. It wasn’t that long ago, from her point of view, that crimes were punished without fair trial. So saying such a thing, instilling such trust in the systems in place, gave her a sense of satisfaction. “As of right now, they are under house arrest in the lower apartments here in the palace and are awaiting trial. Articles laid down by Princess Platinum state that if the head of any noble family is found guilty of a crime, then the whole family will be stripped of their status. This will not change, and it is why we are reevaluating our government. If most or all of them are guilty, the house of nobles will no longer be a viable governing body.” Celestia wasn’t completely adept in the art of technical speak when it came to government, but she was more than skilled enough to talk about it with the common ponies.

“What are your current ideas for a new governing body, Princess? Anything standing out at the moment?” It was nice that Air Waves was sticking to the script she was given, Celestia feared that the bold pegasus might try to go off and expose something she shouldn’t.

“We’re currently looking to the Seaponies for inspiration. Equestria isn’t as small as it was one-hundred years ago, we have ponies from one end of the continent to the other and some even across the seas. The interests of all of Equestria cannot be represented by the few elite in Canterlot anymore, they no longer make up the largest or most influential group in Equestria. Instead, we’re looking into a more representative system where each city or perhaps province sends delegates to Canterlot to represent their interests. By the looks of it, it would be quite fair and give more power to the citizens, the real ponies and not just the elites.” Celestia was still very fond of the idea, and right now Cadance and Velvet were ironing out the gritty details with the remaining nobles.

“Very interesting, is there anything else you would like to divulge to the ponies?” Air Waves placed the paper down on the desk and looked straight into Celestia’s eyes. “I know we will hear more in depth discussion later, so is there anything simpler you would like to discuss?” Celestia had not thought of an answer to this question. She had seen it written down, but hadn’t thought of it all that much.

“Well, I want the ponies of Equestria to know that I will always be there for them. That I will always be here in Equestria looking out for them and doing what is right because of them and for them. Most importantly, I want everypony to know that this period may be scary or even uncertain, but I want them to take solace in that very fact. It shows that not even the ponies up here are perfect, that things are always subject to change and everything can always get better. Situations can always improve, it just takes the initiative of one pony to set things in motion.” Celestia realized the reasons that had caused all of these things to happen were selfish. Celestia did not feel guilty, though. Not even for a second. It was her duty to make the citizenry feel good about things, to even tell them little lies. She could only hope everypony believed every word she spoke.

“If Princess Celestia was a real pony, I would ask her out in a millisecond.” Vinyl switched off the radio as the broadcast came to an end. It had been an interesting listen, but she had been more focused on the alicorn’s tone and demeanor. It was so damn attractive for some reason!

“She is a real pony,” Twily responded as she scribbled notes on parchment, several books sprawled out in front of her on the coffee table. Even though the filly didn’t look at Vinyl, there was still an air of defensiveness around the retort.

“You know what I mean,” Vinyl said from her spot on the couch. “If she was like, more approachable. If she wasn’t a Princess.” Vinyl was like most other ponies, in that she viewed Princess Celestia as something more than equine. From birth, it’s instilled that the Princess is something more. It’s beaten into heads that Celestia is so ethereal and graceful that she is untouchable, unrelatable. Though, if there was one pony Vinyl would listen to otherwise it would be Twilight Sparkle. The little pony was most likely the only living authority on Princess Celestia.

“I don’t think it’s her fault.” Twilight put her quill down and looked at the parchment in front of her. “I think everypony just doesn’t give her a chance to be normal. Ponies give Cadance a chance and look, she went to school and everything and had friends.” Vinyl cringed at the mention of the younger alicorn. It was still a little bit of a sore subject to bring up, specifically because Twinkle wasn’t here to mitigate anything. The stallion was currently out getting groceries, so Vinyl was all too happy to skirt around the issue of Cadance.

“You think she needs a friend?” That was an interesting thought, a friend for a princess. Vinyl had assumed that Celestia had everything she could ever want, including friends. “I mean, how would you even start to make friends with her? It’s not like you can just waltz into the palace and demand a hangout session with her.” What a novel thought, that.

“Sure you can,” Twily responded as she used her magic to pull several sheets of parchment from her bag. Vinyl cocked her head, interested to hear what the filly meant. “Palace code says anypony can request a private audience with Princess Celestia. It’s up to her if it goes through, though.” Twilight puzzled over her papers until she put them in a certain order. “I think nopony does it because they’re afraid that Celestia will tell them no.” Hmm, Vinyl might have to give this a shot after all of this was said in done. It might be interesting to try and get to know Celestia a little, peek beyond the veil and get to see something new. That wasn’t to be thought about now, instead she was more interested in Twily’s new homework.

“What’cha workin’ on, Squirt?” Vinyl got up from the couch and sat beside the smaller unicorn. “It’s not like super complicated magic or anything is it?” Vinyl tilted her head and got a better look at the new papers, it was a set of very detailed instructions pertaining to the lesson. Vinyl wasn’t going to read all of it, she just assumed that Twily would give a reasonable explanation.

“It’s a magic exercise. Princess Celestia wants me to practice my enchanting skills on mundane objects.” So yeah, complicated magic it was. This was all foreign to Vinyl, she would help if she could but she doubted that Twily needed any help.

“What are you going to enchant? Like a quill or something?” Vinyl wasn’t sure if there were rules to what you could and couldn’t use magic on. She was about ninety percent sure that enchanting other living things was a no-go, but that was about it.

“No, it needs to be something unique.” The filly stood up and trotted around the apartment, her eyes tracking over every surface. It was clear that the little student was looking for something to impress her teacher, not that Vinyl knew what she was expecting to find. All of the cool stuff was locked up in Vinyl’s room, not that she would let the filly enchant the stuff even if the little prodigy asked nicely. “What about these?”

“Whoa whoa whoa!” Vinyl got up and raced to intercept Twilight as she lifted up the pair of rose-colored sunglasses that the DJ held dear. “Maybe not those, huh?” Vinyl picked up the fashion accessory in her magic and placed them on her head. “My dad gave those to me, so I would like it if nothing happened to them.”

“I won’t break them!” Twily shot back, stamping her hoof on the hardwood floor. “If anything, I’ll make them better.” Vinyl cocked an eyebrow at the statement. There wasn’t a lot of ways to make sunglasses ‘better’. “You make music, right?” The filly trotted back to her book and flipped through it until she found the particular page she was looking for.

“What do you want to do to them?” Vinyl was apprehensive about the whole situation. On one hoof, she didn’t want anything to happen to the last gift from her father, but on the other hoof advanced magic was really cool and she was kinda curious about what the filly could do. “Because if it’s like breaking them and reassembling them or something, I really can’t let you do it.”

“I’m not going to tell you unless you let me do it,” Twily demanded like the filly she was. If Vinyl was more strong-willed, it would’ve been a very hard no. But, all things considered, she was curious and she did trust the little unicorn enough. Vinyl hesitantly took the glasses from her head and gently placed them on the table in front of the young pony. “Thank you!” chirped the filly happily as she lit her horn and picked up the glasses.

“Just...be careful.” Vinyl was still worried, but for some reason she just couldn’t bring herself to say no to the curiosity that lingered in her head. Her wanting her glasses to be safe was overruled by her need to see what would be done to them.

Purple magic flew from Twily’s horn and traced lines across the table. First the energy made a circle and then etched arcane runes around the edges. Vinyl watched on in wonder as smaller circles made their appearance within the larger one and just inside the runes. It was then that all of the parts started rotating within each other, each circle or symbol dancing fluidly as Twily manipulated them.

Soon the circles rose from the surface of the table and became spheres, each spheroid within the greater structure spent time with the pair of glasses, the runes that were floating inside melding with the accessory. As Vinyl studied the runes and symbols, she realized that some of them were very similar looking to musical notation. That brought up more questions, but Vinyl would ask later. For now, she was mesmerized by the spectacle taking place in front of her.

It didn’t last long, though. Within thirty seconds of the spheres forming they dissipated and deposited the pair of sunglasses onto the table. Vinyl approached cautiously, noting that the color of the lenses had changed from a subtle rose to a darker purple. She held back a sigh, a little disappointed that they were going to be a few shades darker now. The old color went with her eyes better.

“Try them on,” Twilight instructed, taking deep breaths and wiping beads of sweat from her brow. “Tell me if they work.” Vinyl eagerly picked up the glasses and put them on, the world becoming coated with purple as she did so. “What do you think?”

As the little filly spoke colors flashed to life in front of Vinyl’s eyes. A subtle shade of blue pulsed with every syllable that Twily spoke, making Vinyl’s eyes go wide. Every little sound she heard, from the distant chatter of ponies on the street to the gentle hum of her fridge, produced little splashes of color all across her vision. The words though, the closest sounds were the most vibrant and prominent.

“This is so cool!” Vinyl exclaimed, her own voice making energetic flashes of yellow to appear. “What is this? Like some sort of audio visualizer?” She watched the colors intently, trying to decipher if they had any meaning or if they were chosen at random.

“It’s a charm that reproduces the effects of synesthesia.” Vinyl, tearing herself away from the light show in her eyes, turned to Twilight and cocked her head. “It’s a condition that sometimes allows ponies to hear colors. It’s a bit different though, emotions make the wavelengths different colors instead of being seemingly random.” Well that explained the rather cold blue that Twilight produced, she was being a bit clinical about all of this. “I figured that it might help with you with your music if you could see what kind of feelings it gave out.” There, just a little, a spark of soft pink amongst the blue. Perhaps a bit of embarrassment or even genuine kindness.

“Well thanks, Squirt!” Vinyl trotted over to the filly and mussed up her mane with a hoof. “Tell you what, next time I see Celestia I’ll show her these and say tell her to give you an ‘A’, because this is pretty cool.” Twilight gave a little smile and nodded, then sat back at the table. Vinyl saw the filly pull a textbook from her bag with some sort of math on it, so Vinyl immediately recoiled. “I’ll…I’ll let you get to that. Pretty sure I failed every math class I ever took, so I couldn’t help you even if you needed it.”

Shining arrived outside of Vinyl’s apartment and fished the keys out of the saddlebags that he had to borrow for Vinyl. Technically he was still on the clock, but he wasn’t really feeling the armor tonight. He wanted things to feel normal for Twilight while she was over, not like he was working. So that meant going without the handy storage functions that went with the armor and going with something more civilian to carry his bits and keys.

He unlocked the door and threw it open, fully expecting some scene of Vinyl and Twily at odds over something. Maybe even in the middle of a confrontation considering Vinyl’s current impulsiveness. Instead, it was the very serene scene of Twilight sitting at the coffee table working on some of her homework, and Vinyl lounging on the couch with a book in her magical grasp.

“I’m home,” Shining called to the two with a smile across his face. He actually liked the domestic feelings he got from all of this. Going out to the market to get things for dinner, coming back to a mare and a filly. Even if it was just Vinyl and Twily, something about the setup felt right. “Hope you two had a good time without me.”

Shining trotted over to the kitchen and began unloading things from the saddlebags. Some tomatoes, seasonings, a few loaves of bread, and a few different types of cheeses. He had decided to do something that was a bit of a staple in his diet when he was little: grilled cheese and homemade tomato soup. It would be a little more time consuming, but it would be worth it.

“Hey Shiny, looked what happened when you were out.” The very words chilled Shining’s blood as he turned around. Coming from Twily after having been left alone with Vinyl wasn’t a good sign. The worst case scenario, which immediately was at the forefront of his mind, was a lot of makeup all over his little sister’s face or some sort of makeshift tattoo. Instead, it was something much more horrifying.

“Why are your eyes red?!” Shining took his little sister’s face in his front hooves and examined her eyes. It was just the irises, but that made it even more confusing. What if a spell backfired or Vinyl had done something? How was he supposed to explain that to his mother, or even Celestia? “What happened?”

“Chillax, Twinkle.” Vinyl got up from her spot and trotted over to the siblings, suppressing laughs as she did so. “They’re my contacts I wear when I go out to clubs.” Shining opened his mouth, ready to protest several things, when he was cut off by the mare. “They’re sterilized and everything, I keep them in solution when I’m not using them. I thought it would be cool if she tried ‘em out, turns out they really go with her coat.” Vinyl herself looked different for some reason, it was probably the sunglasses. They weren’t the ones she usually wore, these were a lot darker than those.

“What did you get for dinner?” Twily trotted past Shining and stood on her hind legs to see on top of the counter. “Tomato soup and grilled cheese? Did you get the right kind of cheese?” Shining rolled his eyes at Twilight’s pickiness, she was always so particular about her food.

“Colby and monterey, yeah.” Shining used his magic to gently dissuade Twily away from the counter. “Go back and do your homework, I’ll start this stuff up and call you when it’s ready.” Twily thankfully nodded and went back to her spot in the middle of the living room, leaving Shining and Vinyl alone together. “How are you doing, Scratch?” He was hoping that Vinyl was doing okay and not acting too out of character.

“Me? I’m fine.” Vinyl cocked her head and rested a hoof gently against his barrel. “How are you? After the whole-” Vinyl looked in the direction of Twily. “-y’know what.” Well, at least she had the common sense to not mention Cadance directly. That helped a lot more than she knew.

“I’m good. It was just a bit of a spat. Things are still a little raw, and both of us weren’t ready for that talk yet.” Shining was lying through his teeth, but it would have to do for now. He couldn’t really tell Vinyl why it had really devolved into him yelling, not yet. “It was bad judgement on my part.” Shining focused on sorting all of his ingredients in the order he would need them. “I don’t really want to talk about it. I just want to spend the night with you and Twily, just relax while we can.” That was the cold hard truth. He just wanted some time to wind down and just not think about troubles or problems.

“Alright, yeah.” Vinyl pulled away, her voice a bit more emotionally dim than previous. “I’m just going to finish the book I was reading. Call me if you need any help or anything.” Shining couldn’t help but feel he had said something wrong, or perhaps Vinyl had caught him lying. The past few times they had cooked the other had always just hung around to converse. There wasn’t usually such a gulf between them.

“It won’t take long,” Shining promised as Vinyl trotted away, taking off her glasses and stashing them on top of her head. Shining turned back to his work and began preparations for the meal.

He quickly slipped into a well practiced routine as he made the soup. His mind drifted to other matters , letting his body to carry on the work on its own. Vinyl was a bit of an enigma, now more than ever. Every single shift in mood was not something he could easily predict now, nor could he rely on her giving the appropriate response to certain situations where most ponies’ self-restraint would kick in.

The most he could do was just try to restrain her the best he could in not so overt ways. The absolute least he could do was keep her out of dangerous situations where the charm placed upon her would be the most obvious. That wasn’t really an option, as she was going to have to face Glory at some point within the next decade.

The only other thing he could do was tell Celestia. He couldn’t tell Captain Galea, as it would just prove he was so irresponsible as to leave Vinyl alone with somepony he knew used mind-altering spells. At least with Celestia he might be able to get some sort of fix for it.

“Hey Shiny?” Shining snapped out of his thoughts, unsure about just how much time had passed. Everything was already in the pot and boiling, so his thoughts must have occupied more time than he thought. Now Twily was standing by his side and gently nudging him with a hoof.

“What’s up, Twily? Need some help on your homework?” Shining was more than happy to take his mind off of Vinyl. Some math was a welcome distraction. Instead, the little unicorn shook her head.

“What’s wrong with Vinyl?” Shining sighed immediately at the question. It was loaded and dangerous. “There’s a lot of magic coming off of her, and I don’t think she cast it herself.” He wanted to hit himself in the head. That’s how he had found out about the spell, so of course Twily would’ve been able to sense the excess magic as well. “Did you cast a spell on her?”

“What? Me? No, no.” Shining kept his voice low as not to disturb Vinyl or draw attention to the conversation. “It’s a...it’s a long story, alright?” He really didn’t want to get into this with Twilight, he didn’t want to expose Cadance for being a bad pony to Twilight. Not yet. “I’ll...I’ll tell you about it after Vinyl goes to sleep.”

“Do you promise?” Shining hated those three words. It was a binding commitment that he knew Twily would not let him forget or break. He bit his lip and tried to find some way to get out of it, but knowing everything Twily would do to badger him about it, possibly even talking to Vinyl directly, he caved.

“Yeah, I promise.” Shining relented with a sigh. “Now go finish up your homework, dinner’s almost ready.” Now Shining had to think of some lie to tell Twilight, or how to tell her the truth. Both weren’t easy, and both could lead to just more and more problems. What in the hell was he supposed to do with all of these situations? How was he supposed to juggle all of these threads and keep all these balls straight in the air?

After a few minutes of worrying himself even more and grilling the sandwiches, he carried a tray full of bowls and plates over to the coffee table and laid it down. He parsed out the bowls and plates to both of the females and one for himself. He sat near Twily and started to stir his bowl of soup to cool it down a little.

“No drinks?” Vinyl asked, cocking her head to the side. Shining rolled his eyes and got up. “No, don’t worry. I got it.” She got up instead and walked over to the kitchen. “Some wine sound good, Twinkle? I think I have an extra bottle around here somewhere.”

“Sure.” Shining looked at his meal and studied it, conversations with his parents crossing his mind a few times over. “Wine and grilled cheese, the best of both worlds.” Usually he would’ve been scolded for ‘mixing classes of food’, but he wasn’t exactly under his parents’ hooves anymore. He could do something a bit ridiculous.

“I think I’ll just take a glass of water,” Twily called out to Vinyl as she dipped a half of her grilled cheese into the soup.

“Are you sure?” Vinyl asked sarcastically. “I think you would be a pretty fun drunk.” Shining and Twily’s eyes met and they rolled them in sync with one another. That was the kind of sarcastic quip they were used to over dinner. Made it feel a little more like home.

“Thank you,” The siblings said as Vinyl came back and put drinks in front of them. Shining looked at his elongated glass and the deep red liquid within and gave a sip. It tasted nice and bold, would probably clash with the grilled cheese a bit, but oh well.

“Did I ever tell you about the time I broke into the old amusement park on the west side?” Vinyl asked as she took a bite of her freshly drenched sandwich. Shining thought about the question, trying to recall any possible stories like that, but ultimately shook his head. “Oh man, it’s a good one.” The mare put down her sandwich and clapped her hooves together. “So you remember Oaky’s, right? That old park that shut down like fifteen years ago.” Vinyl turned to Twily. “You wouldn’t, but you’ve probably seen what’s left on the outskirts of the city.”

“Yeah, I remember.” Shining thought back to the one time he went. It was surprisingly awful. “They shut it down because some kid died on one of the rides, right?” Thinking back, it was probably a good idea he only went once.

“Something like that. Doesn’t matter.” Vinyl waved her hoof as she took a minute to chow down some more of her food. “I had this friend in highschool, well, ‘friend’ is a strong word. Mutual acquaintance, really. The guy got me beat up twice, lead to one concussion and about one suspension. His name was Saxo, and he wasn’t exactly the smartest or nicest guy.” Vinyl chuckled at some line of thought she didn’t say aloud and went on with her story. “Right, so the guy comes to my house in the middle of the night with two of my other friends and tells me we’re going to break into Oaky’s to hunt for the ghost of the foal who died.”

“You know ghosts don’t exist, right?” Twilight chimed in, her gaze critical. Vinyl simply waved the filly’s criticism away and went on with her story.

“Duh, it was just some excuse to go out and do something stupid and dangerous. You don’t just get up and say ‘we’re going to go out and do something that will either get us in trouble or hurt us.’ You have to rationalize it with something, for us it was a ghost story. So anyway, we go in and my buddy Torch cuts through the fence and gets us in. We’re in there just wandering and trying to psyche each other out with some bullshit stories when we hear it, a wail of some kind. We get spooked, y’know? We’re there for ghosts and here comes some kind of ghostly cry. After we grow a collective pair, we went and found out what it was.” Vinyl once again took a food break. “Turns out it was a griffon. A bolt of lightning had struck the guy like two days ago and he had just been laying in one of the abandoned stalls waiting for somepony to come by. The dude’s wing was all blackened and bent in all the wrong ways. We go closer to help him and the dude lashes out at Torch and cuts him right across the face. Turns out the griffon was some kind of escaped convict from the Empire and flew all the way down to Equestria before he was stopped by a storm.”

“What happened?” Shining leaned in. He was curious, as Equestria didn’t really have much policy on escaped prisoners. Last he heard, they mainly fell under the Princesses’ jurisdiction and were usually rehabilitated like any other Equestrian was.

“Guards came and carted him away.” Vinyl shrugged. “Never really followed up.” Shining decided he would have to look into that case, he was curious now. “Torch still has the scars I think. I haven’t talked to him in like five years.” That was it? Shining felt like he was left wanting.

“What was the point of that?” Twily asked, finishing off her sandwich and focusing on the soup. “There wasn’t exactly a moral or any underlying theme.” Vinyl looked at the filly with a deadpan gaze.

“Not every story needs to have some sort of point or moral, Squirt. Some stories can just be told for the sake of being told, y’know?” Vinyl took a large chunk out of her sandwich. “Gotta quit thinking of everything so meticulously and just enjoy a thing or two.” Shining saw Twily look down at her soup with a concentrated gaze, then just shake her head.

The rest of the meal was enjoyed in relative silence. A few small and meaningless conversations were had here and there, but nothing of substance or note. The three unicorns simply sat and ate their meal. It was nice, simple, almost familial.

It felt right.

Cadance would be the first to tell you that spending a lot of time in the same room as your ex-coltfriend’s mother was awkward. It was even more awkward when you weren’t sure of how much she knew about the situation. Did Velvet know they were broken up? If so, did she know the reason?

With Galea, Celestia, and most of the other members out for a food break, it left only Twilight Velvet and herself alone in the library. If there was ever a time to talk about things, it would be now. But first, Cadance had to probe the depths of the mare’s knowledge.

“How’s Twilight doing, Velvet?” Cadance asked, looking up from the contracts and books scattered across the long table they were sat at. “I haven’t had much time to keep up with her during all of this madness. You know if I had the time I would foalsit her in a minute.” Cadance added her best smile to the sentiment, not a disingenuous one either. Cadance would love to spend a little quality time with Twilight, she was such a bright and wonderfull filly.

“It’s fine, Candance.” Velvet said, putting down the quill she was using and lifting the purple-rimmed glasses from her eyes. “You saw that my mother is staying with us now, so she can watch Twilight if we’re busy.” Velvet paused for a minute. “Tonight is the exception, as I’m not exactly okay with her coming all the way up to the palace and then going back. I sent Twilight off with Shining and Vinyl for the night, it was a last minute thing but I’m sure it will work out.”

Alarm bells went off throughout Cadance’s head. Shining had picked up on what she did to Vinyl because he could sense the excess magic on her, and he could do that because he was a powerful unicorn. Twilight was a lot stronger than him and possessed none of the tact, so a lot of things could go wrong in one night. This presented a clear and present danger to Cadance’s plans.

“Oh, I’m sure she’ll have fun there. Vinyl is a wonderful pony, no doubt she’ll be able to bring out Twilight’s lighter side.” Cadance kept her poise, her mind juggling just one more problem. She could easily find a way out of this, find out a way to keep Twilight’s mouth shut and keep Vinyl from figuring this out. It would just take some split-second decisions.

“I’m hoping,” Velvet said with a sigh. “I’ve met Vinyl Scratch on a few occasions and I must say, she is something else. She reminds me a bit of Night Light, you know, with her wits and sense of humor.” Velvet looked to the ceiling of the library wistfully, a small smile crossing her lips. “I think that’s good for ponies like Twilight and Shining, they need somepony like Vinyl to really make them happy.”

That hurt, Cadance wouldn’t lie. It felt like a dig at her impact on Shining’s life, that she never really made him happy. She felt like she had left a positive impact on Shining and Twilight’s lives for the most part. She had helped Twilight socialize a bit more, she had convinced Shining to go for guard training after his accident. If anything, she had been more of a driving force than anypony else in the siblings’ lives.

“It’s too bad she’s a bit of a troublemaker.” Cadance fired back, keeping the venom from her words. “That kind of influence can’t be good for them. Especially Twilight, she’s so young and impressionable. I would hate for Vinyl to say something or put an idea in her head.” Cadance swore she saw Velvet’s eye twitch ever so slightly.

“Well you know, there’s a lot of different kinds of bad influences. Being a sarcastic troublemaker might be better than being somepony with no morals or ethics who performs magic on others without their consent.” There it was, the older mare just laid all of her cards out on the table. She knew, Shining probably told her. Go figure, he was always a momma’s colt.

“How much do you know, Velvet?” Cadance said with a sigh. She needed to know exactly how much Shining had told her. Maybe she could talk around the subject or even convince Velvet that she didn’t understand the situation.

“Everything.” Velvet said with a definitive glare.

“Even about Vinyl?” Cadance asked, closing her eyes. She was spent here, she was dead to rights. Shining wouldn’t confront Celestia about this stuff, but Velvet? That was another, more volatile matter.

“What did you do to Vinyl?” The librarian fired back, making her way around the table and advancing on the alicorn. Cadance clenched her teeth, disappointed in her stupid blunder. She had walked right into it with no subtlety.

“You know what, that’s none of your business.” Cadance straightened her posture, rising to her full height. She even spread her wings for good measure. This princess was not going to be patronized by her ex-coltfriend’s mother. Not now.

“What are you doing Cadance?” Vevlet, her eyes narrowed, did not carry any venom in her voice. Instead it was motherly concern. “What are you trying to accomplish with all of this manipulation and magic? I’m being serious, I want you to ask yourself what you’re doing.”

“I’m…” Cadance’s stance faltered, her shoulders and wings drooping. She was trying to make everything right again, she was trying to make everything okay. Tears welled up in the alicorn’s eyes as the stress and anger from the past week started boiling to the top. What else was she supposed to be doing? Letting it all play out and leaving her alone and bitter just like Celestia? Acting too late and letting the ponies she love slip away and hate her just like Celestia? No! Cadance was going to avoid that! She was going to make this all right and she was going to do it tonight. “I’m not letting you stop me, Velvet. I’m trying to get things back to normal.”

“I’m going to speak to Celestia about this.” Velvet threatened. “I’m going to tell her what you’ve done and that I don’t want you around Twilight anymore.” In an instant, the elder mare’s gaze went from furious to blank.

Cadance had to act! She didn’t want to lose Twilight because of all of this! She couldn’t! She had just cast a suggestion charm over Velvet, something to buy her enough time to think of a solution. She had to throw Velvet off and get her out of the picture for just a bit, just enough to go to Vinyl’s and make sure Twilight stayed in the dark. She had to make Shining forgive her and tell Velvet it was all a big misunderstanding.

“Go lie down, Velvet. I think you’re getting a little tired.” Cadance lit her horn to implant the suggestion. “Go get some sleep, alright?” Just one more spell and this whole mess would be sorted out, just one more.

Shining would be the final nail, all she had to do was convince him that everything could go back to normal.

Author's Note

Hey! Sorry for the wait. I've been working on a bit of a side story/passion project I've been dying to write for awhile and it took a long time to get it where I feel it's write.

If you want to see the fruits of my labor, check it out right over HERE!

Leave some feedback, please!

All Good Things

“And in real life endings aren't always neat, whether they're happy endings, or whether they're sad endings.”
-Stephen King

Vinyl didn’t sleep, she couldn’t. Each minute that ticked away through the night was one more minute that she didn’t know what had happened to Shining Armor. Once he didn’t show up by midnight, she knew his fate. He would’ve shown up by then, he would’ve been back if it wasn’t for Cadance.

Those thought occupied her thinking from the time Soarin left to go lay down to when he got up again at the crack of dawn. She was laid on the couch, a blanket pulled over her and her eyes gazing out over the city of Canterlot. Somewhere down there, the free will of a pony had been stolen. Good intentions had paved the path to Tartarus and Cadance had dragged Shining down it with her.

“He didn’t show up,” Soarin stated with a sad sigh. “Didn’t sleep?” He asked, the bags under his eyes from yesterday even more prevalent. All he did was look at Vinyl and nod. “Yeah, me neither.”

“What are we going to do…?” Vinyl asked, her eyes not moving from the skyline. “Are we just going to go up to Cadance and demand she let Shining go?” Vinyl could see the hopelessness in the situation from far out. All Cadance really wanted was for Vinyl to be delivered to her so she could clean up the rest.

“I was going to say get the guard and Princess Celestia,” Soarin commented. “I don’t know about you, but I don’t think Princess Cadance can stand up to everypony in the castle.” Soarin was trying to make her feel better, trying to offer some sort of reassurance, but it wasn’t working. “We’ll never know if it works until we try, alright?”

Vinyl sluggishly pulled herself from the sofa and stood up. Depression had set in, but she wanted nothing more than to see Shining Armor. He needed to be okay, he had to be. Just like Shining had told her, the spell Cadance had cast would not let Vinyl ignore something she wanted. It was the only thing that motivated her, the desire to see Shining again no matter the cost or state he was in.

“Alright,” Vinyl said, looking to her new companion. “Let’s go to the palace, I guess.” There was just this sense of dread and defeat that loomed over the day. The sun didn’t seem as bright as it should, and even the colors of the world seemed saturated and unimportant.

“Hey…” Soarin touched Vinyl’s shoulder. “It’ll be fine, okay? Shining is a smart stallion, I bet he convinced her to not even cast the spell. He’s probably waiting at the castle for us, not even under a spell or anything.” Vinyl knew better than to have that kind of optimism, it wasn’t possible. The most they could hope for would be Shining just under some simple love spell that needed to be renewed by Cadance every so often. At least then they could just isolate him and wait for it to wear off, but Vinyl doubted that was the case. If the princess was as determined as Vinyl assumed, it would’ve been drastic measures that couldn’t be changed or fixed.

Vinyl trotted to the door without a word, Soarin following close behind. The unlikely duo, a DJ and a Wonderbolt, took the elevator down to the entryway and outside into the great city beyond.

The usually bustling streets were quiet and subdued. Ponies who passed wore frowns or worried looks, those that weren’t were muttering to the ponies next to them. It was bizarre and even more than a little disconcerting. Ponies must’ve caught wind of something happening last night. After all, a princess flying across Canterlot wasn’t something that went unnoticed or not talked about.

It left Vinyl with a pit in her stomach. How much had come out? How much did ponies know and did they know about her involvement? She had enough problems, and being at the center of royal drama that was in the open would do nothing to settle her life.

“Seems like everypony is in good spirits…” Soarin said sarcastically. Vinyl would’ve normally said something like that, but this just felt wrong. She looked up and down the street until she saw a stallion on a corner selling newspapers. She quickly broke away from Soarin and dashed over to the pony, dropped hm two bits and retrieved a paper from the stack beside him.

CADANCE IN TROUBLE WITH CELESTIA? PRINCESS CONFRONTATION UNDER THE MOON!

The headline was obnoxious and lacking any real detail, the actual story even more so. There was no mention of Shining Armor at all. The only things actually talked about were rumors and speculation about what might’ve caused it. Vinyl sighed and put the paper down, cursing the advent of tabloid journalism. These papers knew he existed, they knew that he and Cadance were an item. If he was there, it should’ve been mentioned.

“Oh man, it’s in the papers now?” Soarin flew over to Vinyl’s side and picked the paper up off of the ground. He gave it a cursory glance and frowned. “No mention of Shining.” Vinyl felt him look at her, and stammer. “W-well maybe that’s a good thing. He probably got away, otherwise his name would be somewhere in the article, right?” It was optimistic of Soarin to think that, but Vinyl wasn’t so easily swayed to the side of positive thinking.

“Maybe…” She said, allowing herself to lie to Soarin’s face. “Or maybe he-” Vinyl was interrupted by a tap on her shoulder. She turned and nearly bumped into the two royal guards in full armor standing right beside her.

“Vinyl Scratch?” One of the guards asked in a level tone.

“Yeah…” Vinyl responded hesitantly. Usually she wouldn’t trust a guard when they asked about who she was, but considering that her best friend was a guard she was willing to give the stallions in gold a little leeway.

“You’re coming with us.” Both guards moved on her, horns lighting up and encasing her body in a heterogenous glow of blue and gold. Vinyl struggled and fought, but the aura would not relent.

“Hey! Let me go!” Vinyl protested, attempting to light her own horn and fight her way out if need be. The guards wouldn’t budge, though. They simply started to walk away with her in tow.

“What are you guys doing?!” Soarin stood in front of the two guards, blocking their path. “You can’t just take her away! She’s done nothing wrong!” Vinyl didn’t know Soarin very well, but in that moment she admired him. It took a lot of guts to stand up to two royal guards.

“We’re under orders from Captain Galea herself,” the guards both said at the same time. “She is without her guard and is therefore in violation of the terms of her bondage.” One of the guards, Vinyl couldn’t tell which, continued. “She is being taken back to the castle to speak with Princess Celestia about the matter.”

“What?!” Vinyl yelled. “No, wait! You’ve got it all wrong!” Celestia had been compromised too, that had to be it. Now she was in on it and was looking to help Cadance tie up loose ends! “Please, just let me go and we ca-mmmph” Vinyl’s mouth was clamped shut by a spell and she was forced into silence.

Cadance was pacing in her room. It was all she had done over the course of the night and she wasn’t going to stop now. It had been over twelve hours since Cadance had even detected Tia’s presence near her room, and that was just to cast a spell that locked every door and window down tight so that not even Cadance could power through them. Since then, there had not been any sign of the monarch.

She wished that Celestia would hurry up. Cadance needed to get back to Shining Armor to complete the process and make sure he was okay. It was killing her to think that she wasn’t by his side, and instead he was off alone. It would make her so much happier if she could just see him, just complete her work.

“Cadance, I’m coming in.” The voice of the elder alicorn came from the other side of Cadance’s door, causing the younger princess to stop and bound over to the door. When it opened, Cadance saw a much different Celestia than she was expecting.

Tia’s mane was not moving or flowing brilliantly, instead it was stagnant and its colors were bleeding into one another. Her usually full and vibrant magenta eyes were dimmed from lack of sleep and worry. It was a sorry state for the Princess, that was for sure.

“Cadance…” She spoke softly and calm, but there was something else there. It was a twinge of disappointment if Cadance was to be honest with herself. “...do you know what you’ve done?”

“I-I was fixing everything!” Cadance protested. “You told me to do the right thing if I could, to make sure a pony I loved wouldn’t self-destruct! You told me I could do this!” Cadance was not afraid to call Celestia out when it was clear that the older alicorn had forgotten what she had said.

“I never told you to erase a pony’s memories!” Celestia stepped into the room and slammed the door shut behind her. “You told me you were going to convince Vinyl to forgive her sister, something I was okay with letting you do. I did not say it was okay to remove her inhibition, attempt to charm my favorite librarian, threaten my student with a memory wipe, and actually go through with one on Shining Armor!” Celestia advanced on Cadance, looking down on her with an intense glare. “What is wrong with you? Did you not think before you acted?”

“I-I just wanted everything to go back to normal.” Cadance’s voice trembled as she spoke. “He left me, he left me and was going date Vinyl Scratch.” Cadance shook her head, pushing that monstrosity of an idea away. “I couldn’t let him, Auntie Tia! I couldn’t let him throw me away like that!” Cadance couldn’t bear to think about how it would feel to be left behind, that heart-breaking loneliness. “I couldn’t be without him.”

“That is why you’ve caused the greatest ethical conundrum in one-thousand years? You were afraid of losing somepony?” Celestia asked the question softly. Cadance nodded, tears forming in her eyes. “I have lost a million someponies, I have lost my parents, my friends, my lovers, and my sister. Do you not think that I ever wanted to indulge myself and use magic to bring them back or let me hold onto them?” Cadance knew how long Celestia had lived, but she also knew that Celestia didn’t understand what she and Shining Armor had! She didn’t understand that love!

“Shining is the one, Aunt Tia! He’s the one I want to spend the rest of my life with!” Cadance was sure of that, Shining was her Prince Charming. He was supposed to be her happy ending.

“Get that idea out of your head right now,” Celestia said sternly. “There are no other ponies in the world we can spend the rest of our lives with other than each other.” Celestia was fighting something back, tears brought on by memories. “He will die. Shining Armor will die while you go on. You will see him wither and fade while you stay strong and young. You will see everypony you’ve ever loved leave by time or circumstance and not even the most powerful magic in the world can stop that, Cadance! This!” Celestia spread her wings wide and lit her horn. “This is a gift we were privileged to receive, but it is also a curse we must bare. We will not leave, we will not wither or fade. We will be around as long as there is sunlight or love in the world, and that is something you need to learn.”

“But-” Cadance didn’t like to think about mortality, especially her own immortality. It hadn’t ever been a topic of conversation between the princesses save for a couple of times early in their relationship. It had mostly been a spectre she had ignored, an idea too far away to think about. “I love him.”

“And now you must let him go.” Celestia shrugged coldly. “That’s life, Cadance.” Cadance couldn’t believe this! Never before had Celestia shown such shallowness. It was appalling!

“How can you be so cold?” Cadance asked. “How can you stand there and tell me to move on from the one pony that has ever treated me like I was actually a real pony and not some sort of porcelain figure?” It had been the defining thing in their relationship; Shining didn’t see her as a princess, he saw her as a pony who he loved. He saw her as an equal.

“Because if you do not learn this lesson now, you will only have to do it later.” Celestia fired back. “Tell me, what if you were to have a foal with Shining Armor? What if it was born as a normal pony and not an alicorn? Could you bury your own foal after seeing them age to the point of immobility and their mind leave them? Could you hold their hooves as they died, knowing that their entire life was barely a moment of your own?” Cadance searched Celestia’s eyes for some sort of jest or sarcasm, but found only cold understanding.

“I-I never thought-” Cadance said with a sob, trying to fight back the ideas crossing through her mind. Such unknowable sadness, such grief and misery would stick with you forever.

“Because you refuse to think,” Celestia continued. “You are only thinking about today and tomorrow. What of a year from now? Or ten? Or one hundred? What will you do then if the only thing that follows you is a tale twisted by age that depicts you as a monster and not a pony who simply lost their way? What will you do if foals cower under their sheets because their parents tell them of ‘Cadance the Manipulator’ who ‘changes ponies and wipes their minds if they’re not good’. Is that what you want? Do you want to be treated like Luna?”

Cadance knew of Luna, she had heard Celestia’s story of the bull-headed, incalculably precise, unwaveringly charismatic princess of the night. It was only lovely things that she had heard, all of the fun times the sisters had shared and all of the good deeds Luna had done. But it was still marred by the existence of Nightmare Moon. Everypony knows the stories, everypony knows the monster that hides in the moon and waits to return, everypony fears it. Cadance didn’t want to end up like that, she didn’t want to be just another monster story.

“No, no I don’t.” Cadance fell to her haunches and began to sob. Everything that had been said was devastating to her very core. She didn’t want to be like Luna, she didn’t want to be alone for her entire life, and she didn’t want to be a princess any more if it meant living with that.

“I’m sorry, Cadance…” Celestia sat beside her and rested her head upon Cadance’s own. “I didn’t mean to upset you, I just-” Celestia sighed. “I need you to understand that we are more than normal ponies. We will persist forever, we will always be here and what we are remembered as in every age will follow us for eternity.” Celestia’s gentle magic combed its way through Cadance’s mane. “I will try to suppress the real story as much as I can, I already convinced the press to not print the full story. But I’m afraid it will not be enough.” Cadance felt Celestia’s jaw tighten.

“What are we going to do?” Cadance asked, choking back sobs. All she wanted was for things to be normal again, to feel like a normal pony for even a fraction of her time on this planet. That didn’t seem to be an option, though.

“I think you need to be out of the public eye for a while, Cadance.” Celestia spoke softly, her voice full of pain and regret. “Ponies are such forgetful creatures, a decade or two of not seeing you and they will forget about last night. They will forget about everything.” Cadance felt her breathing halt and her heart cease to beat from shock.

“Y-you want me to leave?” Cadance asked, backing away from Celestia. “Wh-where would I go? Where would I stay?” Cadance didn’t want to leave Canterlot. It had been the only city she had ever called home, the only place she felt right at in the world. She had nowhere else.

“I don’t want you to leave, Cadance. I think it is best that you do, though.” Celestia could not be serious, she couldn’t actually mean that! It all had to be a joke, it had to be a ruse to throw Cadance off of her real plan. “Mine and Luna’s old castle in the Everfree would be good, I think. It could use some fixing up, but I can have that done in no time.” Celestia’s heavy words fell into Cadance’s head with all of the subtlety of a boulder through water: they sunk in quick and hit hard. “I know it’s not ideal, but it’s no time at all, really.”

“H-how can you say that?” Cadance asked, her eyes wide with incredulity. “How can you just think about sending me away so easily?” Cadance was stunned, she was upset, and she was mad. She would not be locked away like a keepsake to preserve her image!

“Because there is a stallion laying in the medical wing after I spent all night with trying to restore the memories that you ripped out of him,” Celestia retorted bluntly. “I am forgiving, I want you to move past this. If ponies found out they would be calling for your head, Cadance. They wouldn’t trust you ever again, they would see you removed and exiled until the end of time. I am offering you an alternative, one that I can spin.” Celestia looked into Cadance’s eyes with no sense of joy or the usual light that rested there, instead it was an unwavering certainty and cold reality. “I don’t need to do this, you need me to do this.”

“H-how long…?” Cadance asked, wishing that there were any other solution. But by the way Celestia was painting it, there was no other option. She was going to be exiled to a forest, whether she liked the idea or not.

Vinyl was practically thrown into the room the pair of guards that apprehended her had stopped at. Magic binds around her body and muzzle dissolved as the guards slammed the door behind them and locked it. Immediately Vinyl took to her hooves and beat on the door with all of her might.

“You don’t understand!” she hollered. “Shining Armor’s disappeared! I don’t know where he is!” Vinyl stopped beating on the door and slumped to her rump. This was never going to be solved, there was never going to be a resolution that would make her happy. That was impossible now if what she believed turned out to be true. What point was there in fighting anymore? It would make no difference.

Instead, she decided to investigate her makeshift cell. She got up and turned around to face the bulk of the room. It was an oddity for the palace, that was for sure. Small and cramped with dark blue and ebony walls. There was no windows, but the domed ceiling was painted with a perfect representation of the night sky. Other than that rather fantastical feature, the only other thing in this room beside her were sconces lining the walls, the candles within all lit and burning.

“This was never my favorite room. Too dark.” Vinyl spun on her hooves to face the voice. She had heard no door open, or the sound of a spell being cast. Standing there, in all of her usual glory, was Princess Celestia herself. Vinyl was not the trusting sort when it came to alicorns at the moment, so she assumed a defensive posture.

“Why am I here?” she asked, flattening her ears. “What are you going to do to me?” Vinyl was expecting to be lifted into the air and her mind changed by magic she couldn’t possibly ever understand. Instead, Celestia simply frowned.

“I’m not going to hurt you, Vinyl Scratch. I have no intention of doing so. I apologize if my way of retrieving you was harsh, but I could not possibly tell you the truth in public. I needed a realistic, if not slightly true, reason to bring you here.” There was something about Celestia that, even through the treachery Vinyl thought her capable of, made her inherently trustworthy. “I wanted to tell you that Shining Armor is okay and he’s being taken care of.”

“He is?” Vinyl’s ears perked up and her eyes widened. “Where is he?” She was worried about him more than she would ever admit to his face. Now that she had actually heard something, something official no less, it settled her greatly.

“He’s in my private medical wing of the castle,” Celestia responded, her voice turning grim towards the end of the sentence. “I’m afraid Cadance did cause some problems, but I assure you I am working on rectifying them.” Vinyl’s blood went cold. What had Cadance done? How had she hurt Shining?

“Wh-what’s wrong with him?” Vinyl stammered out as she stepped towards the princess. “Are you sure he’s okay?” The hesitation that Vinyl received in return from Celestia did not inspire confidence, only fear.

“She did manage to erase some of his memories, mostly the ones regarding you from what I can tell.” Celestia stepped ever closer to the mare, a sigh escaping her lips. “I did my best to restore what I could with the time and magic I had, but I’m sorry to say that there were some that I could not salvage. So when you see him, he might not remember some things.”

Vinyl staggered backwards. Cadance had got rid of his memories? She had tried to erase Vinyl from Shining’s head? How could anypony ever think to do that? Vinyl went from afraid, to depressed to pissed off in seconds. None of the emotions faded either, they mixed and roiled within her head and fought for dominance.

“He’ll remember me though, right?” That was her most pressing question. She didn’t know what memories were taken, but she wanted a little place in her favorite stallion’s head. She never wanted to leave, either. She wanted to be a part of his memories forever.

“I believe so, yes. He’ll remember the broad strokes, it’s the little details he will need help with.” Celestia stepped closer to Vinyl and put a gilded hoof on the ponies shoulder. “I did what I could, Vinyl Scratch. Cadance’s work, it was sloppy and brutish. I could not salvage every broad memory, either. Some were far too mangled to recover.” Vinyl’s heart sank once more. What had been lost? Their kiss? Their nights spent together? How many precious moments had Cadance stolen and tossed away out of pure jealousy and spite?

“What about Cadance?” Vinyl asked, focusing on the root of the problem. “What’s going to happen to her?” If Cadance was going to stay in Canterlot, Vinyl would leave. Pure and simple. She didn’t want to stay in the same city as that mare if she had a choice in the matter.

“I’ve dealt with that, Vinyl Scratch,” Celestia said, her tone reassuring, if not holding a tinge of sadness behind it. “She’ll be going away for a little while to take some time to herself and think about what she’s done. She’s still young and I believe after some soul-searching she will come to realize her actions were wrong and how badly she has hurt multiple ponies.” ‘Going away’ sounded a bit like exile, and the rest sounded like clever spin if Vinyl was going to be honest. Not that Vinyl cared how Celestia decided to spin it, all that mattered was Cadance was going to go away. “She will be back once she accepted that what she’s done was wrong and once she learns greater discipline with her magic.”

“So that’s it?” Vinyl asked, her impulsiveness getting the best of her. “All she gets is sent away to probably live in luxury somewhere for a few months while we’re all back here just…dealing with it?” It felt unfair, it felt a little cheap. Cadance was getting to run away from her problems while everypony back here had to clean up after her. It felt wrong.

“I guarantee you that it is more than that, Vinyl Scratch.” The monarch spoke, her voice going the smallest amount of stern. “Now let’s not waste time on talking about Cadance. Do you want to go see Shining Armor now?” Vinyl wasn’t going to forget the whole Cadance thing, no matter how long the pink alicorn went into hiding. Whenever she poked her head out again, Vinyl would be there to remind the world of what she did.

“Yeah, I do.” Vinyl responded, pushing Cadance out of her mind for now. The time would come for that, but now was not it. “Do you think he’s up for a visitor?” That was Vinyl’s primary concern. She didn’t know just how much having memories stolen and given back took out of you, but she imagined it was a lot.

“He might be asleep, but I think he would find it wonderful if he awoke with you by his side.” The princess replied with a knowing smile. So whatever dumpster diving she had done into Shining’s memories had resulted in her knowing more about their relationship than anypony else. That was a thing that Vinyl wasn’t sure how to feel about.

“Yeah, I think so too.” Vinyl decided that she could trust Celestia for now, and that none of this was a trap of any kind. Before now that thought had been lingering, but now that Celestia knew about her and Shining, it was pretty obvious the truth was being told.

So Vinyl followed the monarch out of the room and through the castle. The mismatched pair wound themselves throughout the bowels of the castle into areas that Vinyl had never seen before. They continued through this new sector until they came across a small, white metal door with a wire framed window in the middle of it. Vinyl found herself too short to see through the window and was left wanting to know what was on the other side.

“I’ll let you go in and spend a moment alone, alright?” Celestia asked. “I will be out here if you need anything at all or if, Spirits forbid, something goes wrong.” It actually wasn’t the last part that caught Vinyl off guard, instead it was the use of ‘spirits’ where most ponies would say ‘Celestia forbid’. Vinyl had never really considered who it actually was that Celestia saw as a spiritual figure, well now she had at least a little insight to chew on.

“Thank you, Princess.” Vinyl bowed to the monarch. “I’m really sorry I ever thought you were part of this. I should’ve known better.” That was sticking with Vinyl, how she had just blindly assumed Celestia had been in cahoots with Cadance. It made her more than a little sick. How could she have doubted Celestia? Like Shining had said, she always did the right thing.

“We all make mistakes, my little pony.” Celestia said, accompanied by a warm smile. “The most important thing we can do is admit we were wrong and move on.” Vinyl returned the smile and trotted through the door into the room beyond.

“Son of a-” Vinyl bit her tongue as she saw not just Shining Armor on a luxurious mint green bed, but a very familiar pony sitting next to him. “Hi Sky.” It was not a pony she wanted to see, not here. It left her feeling things she never wanted to feel, emotions she wanted to let go of and move on from. Now here she was, faced with them once again.

“Vinyl!” Skyward Glory got up from her spot next to Shining on the bed and sped over to her sister. Vinyl found herself wrapped in a hug she was not exactly keen on reciprocating or wanting at all. “I was so worried about you! The guards came to my house and asked if I knew where you were! I told them I had no idea and they told me that Shining was hurt, and-” Sky looked at Vinyl with tears in her eyes. “I’m so happy you’re okay!”

“Hi…Sky.” Vinyl was still processing the appearance of her supposed-to-be-estranged sister. Had Celestia set this up or was it all just coincidence? It felt almost a little too coincidental for Celestia to not have a hoof in it. If she had been rooting around in Shining’s memories, then the princess knew this was the last pony she was supposed to talk to. “What...uh...why are you in here with Shining?”

“I just-well after I heard that he was hurt and you were missing, I figured the best place for me to be was by his side.” Sky twirled her magenta mane with her wing nervously. “I knew you would show up eventually, and I knew you would be looking for him.”

“But why?” Vinyl asked. “No offense Sky, but I told you that I was moving on from you. I didn’t think I would see you again until I wanted to.” Maybe a little harsh, but Sky wasn’t supposed to be here. That part of her life was over, now Vinyl needed to focus on Shining and building a new life from the ruins of her old one.

“I assumed that what you said back on the farm was just...I thought you were venting, Vinyl. You know how you get when you’re worked up.” Sky was testing her patience at the moment. Vinyl was far too stressed and wound up to deal with this rationally or calmly like she had wanted. “I thought you just needed a little time and space to think everything out.”

“No, Sky. No.” Vinyl started, shaking her head. “That was me being level and thinking more clearly than I had in years.” She sighed, how was she supposed to get this through Sky’s head? “I need to move on from you, I need to move on from everything that’s been holding me back. That ends with you.”

“We’re family, Vinyl. You just can’t abandon me or pretend like I don’t exist.” Glory stepped closer to Vinyl, causing the unicorn to back away. “You can’t do this. What would dad think?” Vinyl closed her eyes and ignored the invocation of her dad, she would let that one slide for now.

“Dad would understand, Sky. He would see how unhappy I was and he would get it that I need to move past all of the bullshit in my life, alright?” Vinyl fought the urge to raise her voice, she fought with all of her might to fight off the spell that was telling her to yell and scream at Sky until she left and never returned. In order for this to work she needed to be calm, she needed to really explain it. “For years the thought of you and Lily had done nothing but piss me off and make me upset. Every time I thought about mom or dad, I would think about you and every time I thought about you would make me think about the foal you abandoned and every time I thought about the foal you abandoned it would just make me want to bury my feelings under a pile of parties and booze.” For the first time in forever, it really felt like she was getting something off of her chest concerning Sky. “I made peace with mom and dad passing. There was nothing I could do and I know it wasn’t their fault. I learned that Lily is happy where she is and she’s taken care of and in a good place. That just leaves you.”

“What about me? I-I made peace with mom and dad’s deaths. I’m happy that Lily is with a family that loves her. I’m happy now, so why can’t you accept me?” Sky still didn’t understand, she didn’t see the problem and that in itself was the problem.

“You refuse to say what you did was wrong. You think you did the right thing, you think blaming me for Lily and saying everything’s forgiven now that we know she’s safe is okay.” Vinyl felt her voice going into venomous territory and she couldn’t stop it. “You never apologized to me, even after everything I did for you and how you just threw it back in my face. You never tried to talk to me about Lily, you never tried to say you were sorry or what you did was wrong. You tried to move past it like it was nothing when it was everything to me!” Vinyl’s voice cracked from the feeling swelling in her throat.

“It was a mistake, Vinyl! I was young and stupid, you can’t hold that against me forever. It’s fine, Lily’s fine now.” Vinyl closed her eyes and held back tears, this was so hard to do. It was like climbing the tallest mountain or swimming across the fastest river. It was breaking her down on a physical level.

“I didn’t know she was okay.” Vinyl said in a small voice. “For years I thought she was dead. I thought you had killed her and to me it looked like you didn’t care.” That’s what hurt the most in Vinyl’s head, the fact that Sky was able to shrug that idea off. “I don’t care what it turned out to be, I care about how you acted for so long. I care about how you seemed so fine with abandoning a foal.”

“Vinyl, you know I loved her. You know I missed her. I just knew that one day I would find her.” Vinyl felt like she was going to be sick, the amount of justifications going on was vile and putrid. It made her want to leave the room and never return.

“Then why didn’t you go look for her?” Silence came from the malnourished pegasus. “If you knew she was fine and you missed her, why did you not once go and try to find her?” Again, silence. “I’m sorry, Sky. I can’t do this anymore, I can’t spend the rest of my life pretending like I’m okay with that. I can’t spend the rest of my life lying to you and myself. I can’t do it anymore and there’s absolutely nothing you can do to stop me.” Vinyl’s word was final, it was solid and set in stone. She was done with all of the nonsense, all of the runarounds and justifications. All of the stuff she put up with in her life because she was too afraid to do anything about it stopped right here and right now.

“Is…is this it?” Sky asked, tears streaming down her cheeks and her frail frame shaking. “Please, I don’t want this to be the end, Vinyl.” The unicorn did nothing but keep her eyes locked firmly onto Sky’s.

“I’m sorry it has to be like this, Sky…” Vinyl responded in a half mumble, wiping tears from her own eyes. “I’m so sorry…”

Vinyl felt herself embraced once more. This time she did not revile or try to fight it, instead she did something that she needed to do. She hugged her sister for one last time.

“I love you, Vinyl Scratch. Please never forget that.”

“I loved you too, Skyward Glory.”

Shining Armor came back into the waking world plagued by a headache, the likes of which were unmatched in his experience on the planet. His head felt like it went a couple of rounds with a world renowned boxer and lost horribly. He could go on with analogies, but his head hurt more than enough to stop him.

When he finally felt confident enough to open his eyes he found himself in a sterile room painted all white from the floors to the ceiling. Light streamed in from multiple thin vertical windows that lined one side of the rather spacious yet empty room. He was in a large bed, a thin mint green sheet covering most of his body.

He didn’t remember coming here, or even where here was. Last night was a blur of things he wasn’t sure were dreams or reality, and he needed some clarification from somepony for some of the things that were prevalent in his head.

The stallion rolled over onto his other side, hoping to find out more about where he was based on the other half of the room. Instead of being met with a mirrored room, he was instead met with a face of two-tone blue mane. He craned his neck to see if it belonged to the pony he thought, and he was correct.

“Scratch?” he asked, his own voice ringing throughout his head like a bell made out of pain. Vinyl was currently passed out on the edge of the bed, the back half of the mare sitting on a chair and the front half resting on the sheet he had over himself. Any way he looked at it, Vinyl being here was a good thing. It meant that after last night she was okay, and as long as she was okay so was he. No matter how much his head hurt.

He poked the mare and shook her until he got a response. Magenta eyes blinked open slowly and sleep was rubbed from the corners. Vinyl propped herself up on one hoof and looked sleepily at Shining. It was a few moments before her mind kicked into gear and she realized just what she was seeing.

“Twinkle!” Vinyl shouted, much to Shining’s dismay, as she leapt and captured him in a hug. “You have no idea how happy I am to see you awake.” Vinyl buried her muzzle into his neck and took a few deep breaths. Shining couldn’t help but to blush at the rather public display of affection considering they were not in her home or his own. “You have no idea…” She mumbled, her words muffled by his fur.

“Hey, yeah.” Shining was still a little confused and was gaining his bearings. “I’m fine. I’m good.” Vinyl pulled away, a bright smile and happy tears accentuating her visage. “I’m okay. Are you?”

“I was just worried.” Vinyl replied, wiping the tears away. “I made it to Soarin’s last night, and when you didn’t show up I thought…I thought Cadance had got you.” Right, Soarin and Cadance. It was all slowly coming back to him, it was just taking a little longer than normal for him to remember things for the moment. “I guess I was half right. From what Celestia said, she tore out most of your memories of me.”

“Wha-” Shining’s blood ran cold as everything from last night came back to him. The magic digging into his skull and ripping things out without pause, the sudden loss of forgetting something important. The Vinyl-shaped hole that had been left over. That all had happened, it actually happened. “Vinyl…” It was traumatic, the thought of it. He remembered the feeling of loss without understanding what it was he was missing, he remembered the intense feeling of failure and sadness that came with it all. “Vinyl…” There were so many things that ran through his head when he looked into her eyes, when he saw the amount of emotion for him behind her eyes. It was pure and raw, it was something more than just affection.

“Yeah, that’s my name dummy.” Vinyl leaned in and planted a kiss on his cheek. “Just don’t sweat it if you can’t remember something, alright? That’s what I’m here, to fill in the blanks.” It concerned him that he even had to worry about blanks. He remembered a lot of his time with Vinyl, carrying her out of the restaurant that first night, going to the concert with her and Cadance, waking up in the same bed with her after drinking, kissing...a lot of the important stuff was still there. So what was he missing. “Hey, you okay? You kinda spaced out there.” Vinyl was right in his face now, waving her hoof and trying to get his attention.

“Yeah. Yeah,” he responded, clearing his head and focusing back on Scratch. “So…so Celestia was here? I remember her showing up last night and…everything after that is just black.” He assumed he had passed out and it wasn’t his faulty head.

“Yeah, she put in a lot of work to get your head straight.” Vinyl nodded. “She said she got what she could, the broad strokes. She said a lot of the little stuff might not be there, but I’m supposed to help you with that.” Vinyl looked away, a light blush on her cheeks. “You-uh-you remember about ‘us’, right? Like…the hotel in Ponyville?”

“Yeah. I remember that.” Shining, like Vinyl had said, remembered the broad strokes of it. There was a conversation of some emotional significance and it had led to a kiss they both had wanted. It led to more conversations he was sure would come back to him in time.

“I’m glad you’re okay, Twinkle,” Vinyl said once more as she pulled Shining into a hug, one he gladly took and reciprocated. He pulled Vinyl close and closed his eyes, enjoying the moment for what it was. It felt right, it felt wonderful.

“Hello you two.” The voice caused something to snap in Shining Armor and he bolted upright, jarring Vinyl loose from his grasp and nearly throwing her to the ground. He turned his head towards the metal door across the room and saw Princess Celestia standing in the doorway. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

“Nothing we can’t continue later,” Vinyl groaned as she righted herself and got back onto her chair. “I intend on cashing in on some of the things he promised after we get out of here anyways, might as well throw a hug into the mix.” Shining didn’t feel all too confident about whatever it was he promised. Hell, how was he supposed to know if he promised it or not?

“I’m glad to hear you both seem to be adjusting well.” Celestia trotted into the room, a warm smile across her face. “How are you feeling, Shining Armor?” The princess sat herself on the floor at the side of the bed and cocked her head to the side, studying him.

“My head hurts a bit, your highness.” He was going to be straight with the princess and hope it didn’t bite him later. “Other than that, I’m just a bit confused. I would like some clarification on what exactly happened. I’m a bit fuzzy on the details.” Sure, Vinyl had semi-explained the situation in a very Vinyl way, but getting more in-depth with Celestia would soothe his nerves.

“I assure you, the pain will subside.” Celestia nodded as she spoke. “You don’t get to walk away from two alicorns messing with your head without at least a headache, I’m afraid.” The playful smile helped, but it didn’t completely disguise the fact that indeed two separate god-like ponies had forced their way into his mind with magic. Noticing his discomfort with the playfulness, Celestia moved on. “As for what happened, I pieced all of it together from what I saw in your memories. It seems you were taking Vinyl and yourself to one of the Wonderbolts’ apartments to hide out until I could contain Cadance, but she intercepted you in the city center.” Shining vaguely remembered the midnight run and the visit by his mother that had provoked it. “You fended her off for a moment with some sort of light detonation spell that allowed Vinyl Scratch to escape, but allowed yourself to be caught instead.” Yeah, he remembered talking to Cadance as well and the turmoil of deciding just what to do with her. “She forced her way into your mind and started tearing away memories that involved Vinyl Scratch. I came along and stopped her, not before it was too late though. I’m afraid her work had been all but completed at that point, so I spent all of last night piecing what I could back together.” Celestia’s voice did not waver an inch during the explanation, it was cold and clinical, the same way Twily got when she was reciting something.

“Where’s Cadance?” That was his biggest worry at the moment. He assumed he was in a part of the castle, which meant he would be near his ex and in his professional opinion, not safe. The last thing he wanted was to fall asleep and fall prey to her machinations once again, only for them to succeed this time.

“Contained, for now.” Celestia said, her voice low and heavy. “She’s going away for awhile, somewhere she can reflect and to a place where she cannot hurt anypony.” Celestia looked Shining dead in the eye and spoke with supreme confidence he could not shake. “She will not harm you, your family, or Vinyl Scratch ever again. You have my word.”

Shining had never wanted it to end like this. He didn’t want Cadance to have to leave her home, he didn’t want Celestia to be angry with her niece. This wasn’t how it was supposed to end. But maybe, in another world, in another time, none of this would’ve happened and he and Cadance would be happy right now. Maybe, but that wasn’t the reality he was living in. His was broken by choices and consequences that he had never seen coming, and he knew it would never be as it should.

“May I offer some good news?” Both Vinyl and Shining looked to the princess with confused glances. Not a lot of good could come from today, not really. This was the aftermath of bad, this was supposed to be cleanup. “I am prepared to declare Vinyl fully rehabilitated.” Shining’s eyes widened. They had talked about it, but he didn’t know if Scratch was ready for that. They still had Glory to get to, after all. “Seeing as how when I was looking through your memories, I saw that you only had her sister to get to, I arranged the meeting to take place before you woke up, Shining Armor.”

“Really?” He looked to Vinyl, who was now staring at the ground. “How’d it go? What…what did you decide on?” He reached out to touch Vinyl, but Celestia stayed his hoof.

“Vinyl Scratch, why don’t you tell me what you’ve learned throughout all of this. Tell me what’s changed since Shining Armor came into your life.” Celestia’s hoof moved to Vinyl, lifting her chin so she could look the princess in the eyes. “No pressure on you, just tell me what you’re feeling.”

“I…” Shining saw the fight going across Vinyl’s face. “Okay.” Vinyl stood up and began pacing. It was a few minutes before she spoke again. “I think I learned that sometimes you have to move on. If something is holding you back and is only causing you pain, you have to figure out how to get past it. Y’know, you need to work your hardest to try and find a way to let go.” He and Vinyl locked eyes. “You need somepony there with you, though. You need somepony strong and brave, and more stubborn than you thought possible. You need somepony by your side because when you allow yourself to suffer alone, all you’re doing is making it worse. You become complacent, I think. You wake up every morning sad and angry at the world and that’s normal. You accept it every day because that’s how it’s been for so long. But you do need somepony to pull you out of that rut, you need somepony to fight that normalcy and help you get somewhere happy again.” Vinyl shrugged and chuckled bitterly. “Even if it means throwing everything you’ve ever known away, because sometimes the stuff you don’t know might be better than the stuff you do. You’ll never know until you try, and you’ll never get to happy without something forcing change. Whether it’s an epiphany, finding a long lost relative…or even just a guard that doesn’t know when to quit.” Vinyl stopped her pacing and looked towards the princess. “I learned that love is dangerous, it can hold you back and make you do things that are crazy and destructive. It can make everything in the world seem pointless and bitter if the thing you love is gone or doesn’t love you back. It’s important, though. It makes the world go ‘round. It makes you do stupid things, but it also keeps you going, you just need to know when to stop loving something and let it go.”

“Do you think you’ve made it to ‘happy’ yet?” Celestia questioned.

“I think I’m getting there.” Vinyl responded, sitting back down. “I think I know how to make it, though.” Shining thought he knew how to make it there as well. He couldn’t focus on Cadance anymore or what was or might’ve been. It would only hurt in the long run. He needed to move on and accept that it happened and try to escape the bitterness that would come with rumination. He needed to be the Vinyl Scratch of today, not the Vinyl of a month ago.

“Very well.” Celestia nodded and looked towards Shining. “Congratulations. I’ll fill out the paperwork with Galea and make it official.” Celestia stood up and started towards the door. “Oh, by the way-” She turned back to them “-I think we can also overlook that silly little rule about dating between bound guards and the ponies they worked with. If only this once.” With that, Celestia left the room.

“Holy shit. She’s actually a pretty cool chick.” Vinyl said absentmindedly, causing Shining to start laughing. “What, what are you laughing about? I pour my heart out and you’re laughing.” Vinyl jumped onto the bed and sat right beside him. “Do you want to be slapped, Twinkle? Because this is how you get slapped.” It felt good to have this kind of banter again, it helped him feel some semblance of familiar, but that wasn’t what he found humorous.

“This…this has been the worst twenty-four hours of my life…and I’m going to get promoted for it.” Shining couldn’t help but laugh at the ridiculousness of it all. He had been mind-probed twice, lost memories, been hunted by his ex through the streets, and now he was going to make more money. It seemed like such a distant problem to be solved, but there it was.

“Well don’t forget-” Vinyl said, stretching and laying across Shining’s midsection. “-you promised to take me on a date after we were done with all of this. So don’t think I’m going to let you off the hook on that one. I expect somewhere nice.”

“I may not remember that promise…” Shining grunted as he sat up and leaned to touch his nose to Vinyl’s. “…but I’ll keep it anyway.”

One Week Later

Vinyl sat at the table in a restaurant she didn’t belong in. It wasn’t really her style, anyways. All of these upper class nobodies who thought they were more important than everypony else weren’t the types she liked. She would much rather be in some club slumming it with the real ponies, but tonight was special.

Tonight was her promised date. She had even dressed up for the occasion in the ruby red gown that she had worn to the concert. Twinkle had said he liked it, in fact she thought he liked it a bit more than he let on. Aside from that, she even styled her mane in curls, an old holdover, but one she liked to indulge in from time to time.

Personally, she thought she looked bangin’ and the night was going to be perfect. There was one problem though, her date was not present. One hour after the reservation time and he was a no-show. So as of right now, her perfect night was quickly becoming D.O.A.

“I’m gonna kill ‘im,” Vinyl decided, mumbling to herself. “I’m going to kill him when I see him.” The last week since Shining had been allowed out of the palace hospital had been an uneventful one. For the most part, Twinkle had been too preoccupied with getting adjusted to his new work at DEqI to really focus on her. Apparently they worked new guys hard, but that was no excuse for tonight. He had promised to get off early. Hell, he had said he’d already requested for a half day. “He’s going to be dead by morning.” She reiterated to no one in particular.

“Sorry! Sorry!” Vinyl raised her head from her spotless plate to see what was causing the ruckus. Lo and behold, Twinkle was making his way across the dining room floor, pulling on a suit jacket and tying his bow tie as he went. He saw Vinyl and made a beeline for her table. As he approached, Vinyl took note that his mane was as shaggy as ever with no care put into it. Here she had thought they had agreed to dress up and look nice tonight.

“Glad you decided to show,” Vinyl said with a deadpan glare as Twinkle took his seat across from her. “Have fun at work?” She wasn’t holding back the venom from her voice. As far as she was concerned, he deserved every ounce

“I’m so sorry, Vinyl,” Shining stated as he finished tying the bow tie he insisted was cool. “I tried to get off early, but work was kind of piling up and I couldn’t get away.” If he ever decided to tell Vinyl what exactly it was he was doing now, she would be a little more sympathetic to his plight. As it stood, his ‘confidential work’ served only to annoy her.

“Well you’re here now, and I guess that’s what counts, right?” Sure, she was annoyed but even a late date was still a date. She cold put up with it as long as he made it up to her somehow later.

“Right,” Shining said with a smile. “How was your day? Any luck?” Vinyl had been spending the last week taking some of her music and showing it off to some record labels, hoping that somepony would pick it up.

“Nope,” Vinyl said with a sigh. “Got a letter back from Cumulous City Records today and they weren’t interested. Said I sounded ‘derivative’.” It was a little demoralizing, but she knew she would get signed one day. It was her talent after all, ponies always did whatever their talent was.

“Sorry to hear that,” Twinkle said with a sad look. “Just keep at it, huh? One day one of those record companies will see how talented you are and that’ll be the end of it.” She liked his optimism, it really helped level out her more cynical nature. “As for my work, no I still can’t tell you about it, and again I’m sorry.” Vinyl rolled her eyes but accepted the fact that his work was none of her business, even if it would be nice what was always keeping him so late. “But I know what we can talk about. We can get back to filling in my memory gaps, right? I’m sure you can think of a thing or two to tell me.”

“Yeah.” Vinyl loved reminiscing with Twinkle about things he didn’t remember. It was like telling a story that they were living the ending to. It was fun and simple. “I’ve been thinking and I think there’s a little story you might not remember.”

“Hit me.” Twinkle responded, taking a sip from his glass of water and leaning forward intently.

“I dated a Diamond Dog once.” She started with a sly grin, it was one of her favorite stories and never failed to raise a few eyebrows. “Guess you could say I’m a real gem, huh?” Twinkle nearly spit out his water, but managed to contain it. He choked back his drink and looked at her incredulously.

“Sweet Celestia, that is such a bad joke.” Vinyl hadn’t gotten somepony to laugh at that since Twinkle’s parents. Coming from him, though, it meant a whole lot more. It made her feel like life was worth living and the future was bright. It made all of the stuff they had gone through together feel worth it. All of their problems seemed so far away. Galea was off of Shining’s back, Cadance had left the city the other day to go Celestia knows where, and Vinyl was free from her past.

Yeah, everything felt right. They were well on their way to happy.

Author's Note

I want to say thank you to any and everyone who made it to the end of this story. Whether you've been following it all along or are reading it long after it's done. You're the reason I do this, because you are so open to reading new stories and sticking with them through thick and thin. You're the reason people like me can go out and tell stories.

This story has been under development for four years as of May 9th of this year. I am proud to close it out, I am happy that I finally have an ending to a story that I love with all of my heart.

Thank you.

From me, from Vinyl, from Twinkle. Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope at the end of everything that you can find your 'happy' as well.

Have a good life,
BaeroRemedy

Here We Go

"One for the money, Two for the show, Three because uh-it comes before four, and here we go!
-Tigger

“I dated a Diamond Dog once.” The conversation had died and it needed to be resuscitated ASAP, so the unicorn decided to hit it with a thousand volts of interesting conversation starter. Doctor recommended and approved. Sadly, it didn’t always work and this was one of those cases. The patient simply laid dead on the table: T.O.D 8:45 PM. “Guess you could say I’m a real gem, huh?”

Humor is the best medicine they always said. Sadly, whoever ‘they’ were obviously never had awkward dinner conversation die on them. The colt across the table from the unicorn raised an eyebrow.

“Right…” His head turned as he looked around the fancy dancy restaurant they were in. Places like this weren’t exactly the unicorn’s style, she preferred to slum it in the clubs with the real ponies. Places like this that reeked of disingenuous fake ponies nearly made her sick, but sometimes even the most stubborn of mares has to make concessions for their heart.

“So…where’s that waiter, huh? Hope he didn’t run off…” A nervous chuckle sounded from her throat after the sentence. She was genuinely nervous. She always was at these things….messy things, dates. She would give anything for just one date with a rocker or a punk, just one. But sadly, this mare didn’t like that type.

Granny always told her opposites attract, and this was very true in her own case. She was into the club scene; the dirty beats, the dirty ponies, the feeling of being plain dangerous. It was exhilarating. Matters of the heart were totally different things, she loved the high class musicians of the concert halls. They may be fancy, but she always found that musicians were always real. No musician could lie to themselves or anypony else, it was their job to express themselves and not hold anything back.

Sure, with DJ’s and rockers it was so visceral and gritty. But with first chair cellists and operatic performers it was always so beautiful, so tragically beautiful. They didn’t write their own music, they followed someone else’s script yet still poured their very soul into every bar and every note. Something about that just melted the mare’s heart and sent her head over hooves.

The worst part of dating concert pianists and ponies of the such was that she had to wear something….nice. Well, the fact that she had to wear anything at all was bad enough, but the fact that it had to be nice and fancy made it just as bad. Thank Celestia she had an old standby: A two-tone blue dress that matched her mane perfectly and brought out the white of her coat.

“Miss Scratch-” Her date, 2nd chair flutist for the Fillydelphia Harmonic Orchestra who went by the name High Note, started to address her formally. She would have none of that.

“Please, call me Vinyl.” The out-of-her-element-pony gave the best smile she could. Even her lovely magenta eyes seemed to smile. She wasn’t used to thinking of her eyes as magenta, often times she either wore her purple tinted shades, which she counted as an extension of her eyes, or her red contacts that freaked out ponies on a number of levels.

“Very well…” He cleared his throat. “Vinyl…” Just the way he said her name made her grind her teeth, this was not going to be a good sentence, she could feel it. “I must… thank you for this meal—” She was going to point out how the food hadn’t even arrived yet but High Note simply continued. “—but I must take my leave… I just remembered we have a late night rehearsal at the music hall.” She knew it was going to end this way, sure a large part of her wanted it to work out, but she also knew that none of her dates ever worked out.

With not another word, the colt gracefully got up from his chair and glided out of the restaurant without taking a look back… and saddling her with the bill of the most expensive meal she had ever ordered (which happened to be the cheapest thing on the menu), from the most expensive place in Canterlot.

“Ponies suck…” mumbled the wolf in sheep’s clothing as she let her head hit the table with a solid thud. Her ears perked up not a moment later when two plates gently hit the table.

“Will you be needing the check now, miss?” She didn’t look up from the table to answer the waiter, even though she knew the consequence of her answer.

“Truth is, dude…I can’t pay for this bucking meal. Heck, who do I think I’m kiddin’? I couldn’t even pay a fourth of this bill and I know it…” Her façade dissipated quickly when she knew she was beat. Vinyl heard the waiter sigh, she heard him step out of the restaurant and call for guards. So the unicorn did the only thing she could do: she lifted her head up, then let it fall to the table again. The impact was good enough to send her vision swimming, if she had been drunk it would’ve made her black out.

In her experience it was a good idea to knock herself out when being arrested. Vinyl had a…distaste for authority that often tacked on extra charges in addition to whatever she originally was in trouble for. So, once more, her head came up then slammed down onto the solid oak table and sent her straight into the dark pit known as unconsciousness.

--

This was the worst patrol, known to the seasoned vets as the Vinyl. Aptly named for the disturbances caused nightly by a colorful personality with an equally colorful rap sheet. Tonight it was a delinquent bill that not even he could afford on a guard’s salary.

He was stuck on the Vinyl due to…insubordination. This specific guard left his post in order to attend his little sister’s birthday party. He knew the consequences, but he was always taught that family comes first. That goes double for his little sis.

“Shining, looks like she knocked herself out…again. Pick her up, but be aware, you remember what happened last night…” His supervisor, a grizzled old Pegasus named Short Fuse ordered. Once upon a time, Short Fuse served as a Magical Ordnance Detonator during the Griffon Wars 40 years ago…and he didn’t let Shining Armor forget that tidbit when he hesitated.

The statuesque white stallion lit up his horn and lifted the knocked out mare from her seat. Last night, Vinyl had been drunk and passed out in the street, Shining went to pick her up and she sprung up and bowled him over. ‘Road rash sucks’ is the short version of that story.

The sad part of this was that Shining felt a connection to the troublemaking mare. Sure, he was a rookie and knew that this empathy would fade, the jaded guards were proof of that. But she was a white unicorn with a two-tone messy blue mane…just like him. It made him think of a little sister, and this was the prime example of the pony his little sister couldn’t become…not for a single minute. With that thought, the rookie guard gingerly laid the mare across his back.

“C’mon princess, I didn’t almost die in the war only to be killed by boredom.” There it was, number ten. Shining guessed he was short of his quota his month, hence all of the extra mentions tonight.

For now it was time to walk all the way back to the precinct and drop Miss Scratch off for the night while listening to the story of Short Fuse’s glory days. What a rush, right?

Vinyl woke up, head pounding. Instinctively, she reached for her boom box to stop the bass from pounding her head into a jelly-like substance. Sadly, she realized she wasn’t in her house, or anypony else’s….or in the backroom of some seedy club. She was in jail…again.

The cold steel of the table under her head seemed even more familiar than her own pillow at this point. It was even more reliable and softer. That was a sad, sad thought in retrospect.

“Good morning, Miss Scratch.” Vinyl vaguely recognized the voice. Female. Vastly superior and regal compared to her own speech. It was a Canterlot authority figure, probably a captain or a duchess she had wronged in the past.

“Listen lady…my head’s pounding, I’m in jail, and I’m not even hungover.” Vinyl closed her eyes and sighed. “So please, please, leave me the buck alone for like five minutes…‘kay?” The mare didn’t leave, whoever it was. Vinyl admired the aristocrat’s ability to withstand ‘foul language.’ Usually the upper echelon would faint at such distasteful words. That deserved a look.

Vinyl’s head raised ever so slightly so that she could see through the mess she called a mane. Before her, not needing a chair to sit, was Princess Celestia herself. Vinyl uttered a very loud, unladylike curse word when she saw the monarch.

“Please tell me that you’re here to give me some kind of medal, or to tell me that I’m some sort of alicorn princess in disguise like in those god-awful stories…” The punk pony knew she was in trouble, royal trouble even. The Princess didn’t visit a pony in a cell for no particular reason.

The Princess chuckled! Thank Cele-well… thank her! She chuckled! This might not be a total cluster-buck like expected.

“No, I’m afraid not my little pony.” The princess straightened her posture and cleared her throat. “It’s not every day that I get to visit a pony with such…infamy among the guards.” Celestia looked as though she was containing a smile, barely.

“Stop, you’re making me blush…” Deadpanned Vinyl.

“You know how lenient I am with my punishments.” Hell, everypony did. The Princess operated on a ‘ten strikes and you’re kinda-sorta out’ mentality. If you did enough bad things or a bad enough thing she would come see you and issue a rehabilitation sentence. “But seeing as how you’ve been such a…problem around the city, I saw it fit to give you a harsher punishment than usual.”

Vinyl’s eyes widened at those implications. She had heard the stories from over a thousand years ago, Equestria used to have a prison system that was very harsh, then about the time that the old Nightmare Moon fables were from, the prison system was dismantled, the prisons were converted to libraries and schools, and a rehabilitation system was set up. Vinyl didn’t want to be the first pony in a thousand years to be thrown into a prison.

“I’m afraid, in accordance with the Lunar Rehabilitation Act of 1000 AD, I must place you in the care of a member of law enforcement until such a time that your caretaker deems you stable and rehabilitated.” Each word was recited with ease, and apparently with great disdain. Not that they weren’t received with equal amounts of disdain.

--

“No bucking way, nu-uh!” Shining Armor stomped his hoof onto the ground, nearly cracking the tile beneath it. The pony behind the desk, a unicorn of the darkest shade, raised an eyebrow at the outburst. He was Captain of the Royal Guard: coordinator of Equestria’s military and sole protector of the Princess. He had been doing so for a little over ten years, and not once had a soldier refused orders so vehemently. But, like the good and pious pony he was, he practiced patience and understanding.

The hulking black stallion stepped from behind the desk and slowly paced over to his subordinate. “Son, I’m sure you know my story, but I’m going to tell it to you anyways…” The captain cleared his throat, which made the smaller pony before him visibly flinch. “When I was but a foal, I was abandoned on the steps of this very castle. I had no documents with me, no lineage, no name.” Slowly, he circled Shining Armor. “Now I realize that for somepony like you, with a rich family heritage, this is very hard to imagine.” The strike at his family hurt Shining Armor, sure he wasn’t a noble but his family was quite well known, giving Shining quite the pedigree. “Eventually, when I was old enough, I started getting into fights in the orphanage. My caretakers gave me the wonderful moniker I bear now. Knock Out.” Just the name sent shivers up the rookie’s perfect white coat. “It wasn’t just my name…it was my calling. Knock Out, the finishing blow, signaling the end and finality. I became the soldier to end all other soldiers, I joined the military.” The hulking stallion’s eyes flashed with national pride, with memories of service passed.

“Yes sir, I know si-”

“I’m not done!” The captain boomed and the rookie cowered. Swiftly, the captain regained his composure. “I was in the Zebrican wars. I didn’t want to go to that Celestia-forsaken land, I didn’t.” He shook his head with each word. “But I had to!” His head shot up straight, a proud spark gleamed in his eye. “I swore an oath to protect Equestria, all of her citizens and interests. You.” A massive hoof poked Shining Armor’s chest, nearly sending the smaller stallion onto his rump. “You gave a similar oath, to serve and protect the ponies of this grand city. This….mare-do-well, this Vinyl Scratch, is a pony of this city. She needs to be protected. Not from some malevolent force, not from an invading army. From herself.”

Shining Armor could only nod solemnly in response.

“‘The greatest threat to any one pony is the darkness in their own hearts’- Star Swirl 10:6...are you familiar with that verse?” Once again, a quick nod from the rookie. “Good. Now, raise your righteous and holy blade and purge this darkness from this young mare’s heart. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes sir…” The white stallion said quickly and quietly. Captain Knock Out shooed him away with his hoof, Shining Armor couldn’t get away quick enough. The captain scared him half to death.

Looking back on the conversation, Shining Armor marked the ‘mare-do-well’ pun as something to mention to Twily. She liked wordplay.

--

“Fine…fine. I’ll do it…” After about ten minutes of Vinyl begging the Princess to throw her in the deepest darkest dungeon imaginable just so she wouldn’t have to live with some stuck up, rigid guard for however long it would take, the pony finally caved. “But I don’t want no stick in the mud as a foal sitter….” Vinyl thought for a good long second. “And make ‘em easy on the eyes. If I’m going to be looking at somepony for a long time, I want ‘em to shine.” That sentiment brought a devilish smile to Celestia’s face.

“Male or female?”

“Either will do, just make sure they’re a looker.”

“Then you will be quite pleased with my choice…”

“YOU?!” The call came from an incredulous Vinyl Scratch, sans her fancy dress that she had been wearing earlier. She was now standing in front of her new best friend for the next few measurements of time that had yet to be determined.

“I’m not exactly thrilled about the situation either, ma’am.” Shining Armor, in full guard attire, came to her jail cell a few hours after the Princess had broken the news to her.

“Don’t ma’am me, Twinkle. I’m not a ma’am, I’m a chick, a lady-dude, a mare-y mare-y quite contrary. I’m anything but a ma’am.” Vinyl gave the guard a defiant glare, but deep down she was giggling at her clever pun. It wasn’t often that quick wit worked its way into her usually vulgar speech.

“Fine, Miss Scratch. I’m not happy about this either, but I have to do it and you have to put up with me until you’re rehabilitated.” He stood erect, not showing any sign of true emotion. “My orders are to assume residence in your home with you, right after I cast the binding spell.” That caught the attention of the mare.

“Binding spell?” Vinyl stepped closer and cocked her head to the side. “I might be a unicorn, but I’m not too keen on having strange dudes cast spells on me, savvy?” Vinyl was not a big magic user, she could levitate stuff. That’s about it, really. She never really had any use for anything more fancy than the basics.

“It’s mandatory, miss. The binding spell makes sure that we can’t get more than a hundred feet apart. If we do, you’ll be teleported to my side.” Before vinyl could voice her extremely explicit opinion, the stallion’s horn glowed pink. Vinyl tried to stifle a giggle but burst out laughing, which made Shining Armor stop the spell. “What are you laughing about?”

“Y-Your…” She took in a deep breath and let out another round of hearty laughter. “Your horn…I-it glows p-p--pfffft! PINK!” With that, the unicorn fell on the floor, laughing uncontrollably.

Shining Armor blushed a deep crimson. The glow of his horn had always been a very sensitive subject to him. All throughout primary school he was teased about it, he was a big hulking stallion and his magic was pink. One big oxymoron in his mind. It didn’t help that his mom always said ‘it’s only pink because you’re more in touch with your feminine side than other colts.’ Moms were supposed to make you feel better, not emasculate you.

“Yes…my magic is pink. Let’s be mature about it, alright…?” He hardened his gaze and concentrated again, letting his horn pulse with magical energies. Vinyl just laughed harder when he did so. Shining sighed and cast the spell with little effort, his pink magic snaked its way through the air and connected itself with Vinyl’s own horn.

They were bound together now, for better or for worse.

--

“Here it is! Casa Del Scratch.” Surprisingly, the apartment wasn’t what anypony would expect from Vinyl. There weren’t piles of trash everywhere, some band nopony’s ever heard of wasn’t playing loudly, and there were hardwood floors. Classy for a pony such as her.

“It’s…nice?” He didn’t mean to offend the mare, he was just surprised.

“I’m barely here, I never have time to mess it up.” She sauntered over to the black fabric couch and flopped onto it. “Though now…well, I guess I’ll finally able to mess it up proper.”

Something was off here, Shining could feel it. This was either the job of a professional maid or an OCD patient. To check his theory, he dragged his tail over a counter and then inspected it for dust. Nothing. If she was never here, this place would be caked in dust.

“Uh-huh…” He was going to figure out what this mare was hiding, it was his job. So, he sat across from his new charge and eyed her carefully. “I have to follow protocol and ask you a few questions about yourself…” There was no protocol, he was just being a snoop.

“Alright Twinkle, shoot.” She was laid down on the couch, sprawled in the sunlight that came in from the large window that faced the street. Pure relaxation.

“I will…” Shining was a stallion, he wasn’t keen on being called Twinkle. Sadly, he had to put up with it. “Do you have a job?” Start with basic, semi-personal questions then work your way up. Simple interrogation techniques.

“Nope. I’m as free as a Pegasus on an updraft.” She closed her eyes as she answered, obviously content with soaking up the sun.

“Then how do you pay for things?”

“I have my ways, Twinkle. Next question.” She cast it off so nonchalantly, it was a tad frustrating.

“Okay, fine.” He thought up another question. “Any family?” At that, she cracked an eye.

“Yep, mom and dad live here with me.” Shining looked around, his cobalt eyes searching for the parents she mentioned. “Right up there on the mantle.” Her tail pointed above the fire place, he turned his head to look. Sitting atop it, were two silver urns. One read ‘Mom’, the other ‘Dad.’ Shining just furrowed his brow.

“My condolences.”

“Yep.” Vinyl sighed and rolled onto her back, letting the warm sunlight hit her belly. “Next.”

That was very odd, nopony should be able to just shrug off the death of their parents. If he ever lost his own parents…well, he would be devastated for the rest of his life.

“Any…other family?”

“A sister…well, she’s not my real sister, but we grew up together. She’s the closest thing to a sister…now she runs the orphanage here in Canterlot.” He knew the mare, Skyward Glory, he often volunteered at the orphanage when he was younger with Twilight. It was odd to think of Vinyl and the kindly owner as friends.

“I’ll need to talk to her…” He realized he thought that out loud when Vinyl looked at him strangely. So, he went for a cover-up. “To ask her about how to help you better, it’s my job to see you rehabilitated after all.”

“’Kay, we’ll go see her sometime.” The nonchalant nature of the answers was actually very nerve wracking for the young guard, it was almost as if she was trained to be as relaxed as possible.

“Last question, why do you call me Twinkle..?”

Vinyl simply smiled behind her closed eyes. “Because I can...Twinkle.”

“Nice place…” Vinyl was getting used to her new magical tether. On their way to Shining Armor’s family home Vinyl would sometimes get distracted and wander off, then in a flash she would be right back by his side. The worst part was the teleportation itself, it left Vinyl dizzy and feeling like she lost something. That feeling alone kept her close enough to him.

“Yeah, I guess my parents are pretty well off.” To Shining Armor it was just his house, his simple home that looked as plain as it did every other day. “I gotta talk to my folks about this new situation…doubt they’ll take it well.” With that, he gently pushed the door open and stepped inside.

Inside was a simple house, nothing fancy. Sure, it was more than she had, but it just felt….humble. She looked around and saw no valuables, a few pictures of a grown stallion and mare on their wedding day. A picture of a young Shining Armor and a newborn purple foal, strangely none of Shining Armor as a foal.

Shining Armor ordered her to sit on the couch, so she did. This wasn’t her domain, not even close. It was better just to sit and wait, observe. He called up the stairs, for Twilight, probably his little sister.

Vinyl, meanwhile, spotted an open bottle of wine and decided she had earned some decadence. For what, well she would figure that out later. The bottle became encased in a blue glow and floated to her lips, she took a long swig.

“1478 Everfree Valley, vintage, nice.” She thought as she tasted the spirit. It was quite amazing, such a rare and expensive wine. Shame it was just her enjoying it. She took another sip of the finely aged beverage. Delicious.

As another swig was being taken, a young filly came walking down the stairs, her nose buried in an old book. She was purple, but a good soft purple, not amethyst. Vinyl couldn’t tell her eye color or cutie mark, the book was almost as big as the filly and blocking most of her body. From what Vinyl could see, Twilight was about five years younger than herself, if not more. The filly still had her foal weight it looked like.

“Twily, where are mom and dad?” Shining nuzzled the top of his sibling’s head. Twilight didn’t even look from her book.

“They went to the castle to look for you, they were worried.” She kept reading, and without seemingly seeing Vinyl, she addressed her. “Who’s she?”

“Long story, Twily. Just tell mom and dad I’m on bind duty, they’ll know what I mean.” Twilight just kept reading, as if she was ignoring her brother. She gave some sound in the affirmative and kept her nose buried in the binding of the tome. “Got it?” The filly simply raised an eyebrow at her older brother. “Right…okay.” He cleared his throat and stepped away.

“Well, guess that takes care of that. Let’s Scoot, huh?” Truth was, the little one kinda gave Vinyl the skeeves. She was like some sort of savant or something.

“Sure, as soon as you put down the wine.”

Regretfully, Vinyl complied and the duo left the house in a hurry. As soon as the door shut behind them, the not-even-buzzed mare spoke up.

“Okay, what was with her? She’s kind of creepy.” Vinyl got a look from her guardian. “And by kind of creepy, I mean really bucking creepy.” The look became more harsh.

“She’s an 11 year old with a high IQ. Twilight is bound to be creepy to someone like you, Miss Scratch.” One smart cookie.

“I’m hurt, Twinkle.”

“You’re also drunk, Scratch. I can smell it on your breath.”

Damn summer breeze liked to carry the slightest of smells.

“I’m not drunk!” She defended vehemently. “It was half of bottle of wine, I’m maybe buzzed.” Shining Armor turned his gaze towards the street and started walking. “Killjoy!”

“I’m not a killjoy…” The guard called back. “I’m just being a professional.”

“Yeah, a professional killjoy.” Mumbled Vinyl. She didn’t like the massive buzz kill that her personal guard was.

“It’s my job to keep you in check, not to let you get hammered off of six-hundred year old wine.” The guard skulked off into the streets, Vinyl tagging along at risk of being teleported again.

“Hey, you left me unsupervised with booze. That’s a bad idea on your part.” Vinyl was containing her condescension, barely. It was in her nature to bash guards, but doing that to this specific guard could make her life miserable.

“Fine, whatever. Let’s head off to the orphanage, I want to talk to this ‘sister’ of yours.” Shining was getting tired of his charge’s lip, he wanted to get to the bottom of her bad attitude.

“Uhh….it’s like five PM dude, she’s probably feeding the little ones dinner or something.” Vinyl’s voice was urgent, like she didn’t want this to happen. Like she was hiding something. Shining Armor wanted to get to the bottom of this.

“I’m sure she won’t mind when she learns you’re in trouble.” Shining smirked and trotted along, leaving Vinyl shocked and trying to find a snarky remark to fire back.

[Interlude] Remembrance

“It is only through labor and painful effort, by grim energy and resolute courage, that we move on to better things.”

-Theodore Roosevelt

“I’m sorry! I panicked!” Cadance rushed over to the pony she had just knocked out. As Vinyl’s breakdown became more apparent and extreme, Cadance had her magic trained on the failsafe. If the unicorn had attempted to do something, she was going to shut it down.

Instead all Vinyl had done was show more pain and grief than Cadance had ever seen one pony exhibit. Cadance’s empathy had kicked in and a split-second decision caused her to execute the failsafe in the bind.

Vinyl was breathing at least. Her breaths came calmly and evenly now. The only sign that the mare wasn’t at peace was the tear stained fur on her face. It made Cadance’s heart hurt more and more with each passing second.

“It’s alright, dear. You did what you had to.” Shining Armor was at her side, resting his head against her own. “Who knows what she was going to do next. It was probably for the best.” That didn’t make Cadance feel any better about the situation. She was hoping Shining was going to be mad at her, signaling that maybe she was wrong in her decision. Cadance just needed something to support her doubt, not something to back her decision. She needed to be told that Vinyl was a good pony who wouldn’t do anything, that the pain was necessary for recovery. The Princess needed somepony to tell her she was wrong.

“Twilight, are you alright?” Cadance’s attention was drawn to the other female unicorn in the room. The filly was staggering on her hooves, her little horn sparking with magic. “Twilight, I need you to tell me you’re okay.” Celestia knelt next to her student, looking Twilight in the eyes.

“I-I’m okay.” Twilight closed her eyes as her horn stopped sparking. “My head just hurts.” Princess Celestia picked up her student and laid Twilight across her own back. The filly did not object or struggle, she simply laid on the monarch’s back with her eyes closed.

“Cadance, we’re going back to the castle.” Cadance nodded at her adoptive aunt. “Please update me if anything happens.” The monarch strode out of the room, purpose in her step. When it came to Twilight’s well-being and magic, Celestia was always going to move swiftly and act without hesitation.

“Will she be okay…?” That’s all Cadance wanted to know. Did Vinyl hurt right now? Was she still grieving behind closed eyes? Did this help at all?

That was the problem with a special talent being love. It made you feel an awful lot of the emotion, both platonic and romantic. Cadance hadn’t known the pony for very long, but she did know a lot about Vinyl’s life. Now she knew even more, every pony in the room had an intimate knowledge of her feelings during some very major events. That’s all it took for affection, even strictly platonic affection, understanding.

“She’ll be fine.” Shining reassured his love, kissing her cheek. “I mean, she’ll have a headache when she wakes up, but she’s probably used to headaches at this point. Have you seen the amount of liquor in the kitchen?” Cadance appreciated the attempt to inject humor, but it didn’t work. Surely Shining Armor had felt it too, the weight from the room had been lifted, but now it was resting squarely on everypony else.

“After that?” Cadance stood up and picked up Vinyl in her magic, making sure to keep the mare level. “Do you think she’ll be better?” That was the million bit question at the moment. Did this help at all?

“That’s a good question.” Shining followed as Cadance placed Vinyl on her parent’s bed. “I guess we can’t know until she wakes up.” It was decided then, waiting was going to be the worst part. If this did work, then maybe the healing could truly begin. If it didn’t, then they had just alienated Vinyl further.

“Do you mind if I stay here until she wakes up?” Cadance was invested now, she wanted to see this through. Helping a pony like that, connecting with somepony else’s memories and life was something that left a mark. Cadance had to make sure it wasn’t all for naught.

“Sure. C’mon, let her sleep.” The couple left the bedroom, closing the door behind them. Leaving the unicorn mare to dream.

Intrepid swallowed as he looked up at the monumental building before him. At one point in his life, it had been a symbol of normalcy and pride. Now it only brought dread. The words ‘HMEF Training Facility’ hung above the door to the large domed building, taunting him with memories of brighter days.

He was on a roll, though. Ever since that night out with Vinyl and Cadance, he was feeling better about himself. Yesterday he had cleaned up his apartment, straightened things out and made it brighter. Today he had resolved that he was going to confront his past.

The lone pegasus climbed the stairs to the door. His heart was racing in his chest, beating against his ribs like a gorilla in a cage. his stomach had simultaneously formed a deep pit and found it’s way to his throat.

How long had it been? How long since his accident? Two years. How long since he set hoof in this building? Three years at most. This was the precipice of his past and a bridge to his future. He had to cross this tom move on, he had known that for a long time.

With equal amounts trepidation and resolve, the pegasus pushed open the door to the building he once called home. His metal hoof was the first one to step inside. I hit the tile with light tink which echoed down the entryway.

Nothing had changed. Black tile floors were contrasted with white marble walls, making the floor seem like it was miles below the ceiling. The walls themselves had pictures of all of the ‘active’ members of the force.

It struck him that they were all young smiling ponies of every race, color, and creed. They joined to see a bigger world, to find something nopony else had before. Right now they were all off in distant lands, thinking of Equestria under a thick blanket of stars and dreams. Just like he once had.

They were all so brave. It took guts and faith in yourself to take the oath once your training was complete. It meant knowing that home was wherever you put your head at night, that a time would come to pass where you didn’t know when your next meal was, and knowing that your life could be in the hooves of those around you in a split-second. It meant knowing that not being at your best could lead to blood on your hooves.

“Who’s there? We’re closed today.” Intrepid was pulled from his thoughts by the voice. It was one he knew well. “I know you’re there. I can hear you breathing.” Out of the door at the end of the entryway, a batpony came.

The batpony had the same coat that most of them did. It was muted bluish gray, her mane a shade of navy blue. The most striking thing about this particular batpony was her eyes, they were a cloudy gray.

“Echo…” Intrepid thought the name and it was spoken. An old friend and the caretaker of the training facility. She was blind, everypony knew. That didn’t stop her from giving some of the recruits a run for the money, though.

“Intrepid?” The leather-winged equine cocked her head to the side, pondering the identity of the voice. “Intrepid!” The mare broke into a sprint when she decided on who the pony was. Intrepid braced himself as the batpony collided with him. It didn’t bowl him over, but it certainly staggered him.

“Hello Echo.” The mare wrapped her hooves tightly around the stallion, a smile causing her fangs to reveal themselves. Intrepid had to admit that Echo was adorable when she was happy. Just the sight of the smiling batpony brought a warm feeling to his heart.

“I didn’t think you were ever going to come back.” Leathery wings reached out to him. The appendages went over his face slowly. It was Echo’s way of getting to know faces, or in his case, remembering them. “You look so old now…”

“Stress and time will do that to you.” Intrepid would usually scorn Echo for the insult, but he couldn’t argue against it. Lately he sure did feel old. “How are you, Echo? Are you doing well?” He wanted to deflect the conversation away from himself. It was something that Intrepid was not very good at talking about.

“Keeping busy.” The younger mare finally let go of him and sat on her haunches in front of her. Echo’s wings were constantly tapping against the ground, making audible clicks. “It’s the Day of Passing today, so all of the recruits have the day off.”

The Day of Passing was a holiday recognized by the HMEF that was for remembering those lost in the year prior. It was a day to reflect on the dangers of this job, and a way to let the recruits and those not on active duty rest their nerves.

“‘How many this year?” Death and loss was a major part of the HMEF. Ponies succumbed to diseases, to the elements, to predators...or they just never returned or reported. Twenty years ago they were losing a pony each week. It had been trending downwards for quite some time.

“Thirty-Six. Before you ask what happened, several of our crews got caught in a sandstorm that covered most of the Zebrican Desert. Bodies never recovered.” Intrepid cursed under his breath and sighed. That was still the number one killer in the field: bad weather.

“Dear Celestia…” The pegasus was holding back all of his questions. He wanted to ask about their intelligence. Had they known about the storm brewing? Was there any indication? Why weren’t there travel warnings out for the area? But that wasn’t who he was anymore. It wasn’t his place.

“Yeah…” There was a moment of silence before the younger pony stood up. “C’mon, no use stewing over bad news. Let’s go for a walk.” Reluctantly, Intrepid pulled himself to his hooves. Echo was going to pull him deeper into this place until he was fully consumed by memories. He couldn’t say no, though. Not to her.

“Other than that, how are things?” Hopefully he could maneuver the topic away from death or loss. There was enough of that in his own head, he didn’t need it echoed in the real world. “Good, I assume.”

“It’s been tough getting back on our hooves, Intrepid.” As Echo walked, she let her wing drag across the closest wall. Each bump or doorway was carefully traced over with the tip of the leathery appendage. “We lost you, or at least we thought we had. Nopony expected it. Nopony expected the senior member’s team to go like that.” She kept going, looking forward and moving at a constant pace. “It made us all question everything. Question our…”

“Mortality.” Intrepid finished the hanging statement for her. “We never said we were immortal. Even the best make mistakes. Fatal ones.” His mortality was something that he had never questioned in the wilds. He was a miniscule piece of a large world that he could not control outside of Equestria. They taught that to every pony who came and went through these doors. They were going to die out there. No sugarcoating that. No pony had ever successfully retired from the HMEF before, and he doubted any pony truly would.

“We just always taught them that if you were careful and smart you could survive everything.” Echo’s wing brushed over a plaque placed beside a door that read ‘Survival 101’. It hesitated for a moment before moving over it and on down the hallway.

“You should never give them false hope, Echo. These ponies deserve to be told the truth.” It had been one of the tenets on which this place was founded on. They were not doing this for fun or profit. They were doing this for Equestria and her interests, and usually those interests were not safe or practical. There was no guaranteeing life when out on a run. The more they peddled this ‘skill and smarts’ narrative, the more bodies would find themselves piled in front of them.

“We needed something to inspire them, Intrepid. We needed heroes.” Intrepid stopped in his tracks. The absence of his hoofsteps made the mare in front of him stop and turn to face him. He was no hero. He was a pony who did his job. He was a pony who had failed at that job and gotten his friends killed. It pissed him off that the ponies here viewed any of those out in the field as heroes.

“Heroes?” Intrepid asked, incredulous anger creeping into his voice. “Is that what we are? Heroes saving the world? We’re explorers, Echo. We don’t need romanticizing!” INtrepid slammed his fake hoof onto the tile, sending a cracking sound through the hall. “We don’t need ponies to look up to us! We go out there to die, do you realize that? Every year, dozens of ponies die to justify some agenda handed down from the brass up on high. If we need to create legends and heroes to make ponies want to do this, then what’s the point?” Now his emotions had taken over, years of anger were bubbling up and taking over. “We’re pimping death to ponies with promises of acclaim?! What nonsense is that? Heroes? Save those for the Guards.”

“Then what, huh?” Echo fired back, a fire in her stance. “We tell ponies that we’re sending them to die out there? Tell them that they’re never coming home and their bodies will never be found?! Is that what you want?” The mare advanced on him, tears building up in her dulled eyes.

“Yes! Thirty-six ponies died in the last year because we didn’t know which way sand was going to be blowing! Does that sound like something to be proud of? To flaunt to the masses?” Intrepid put the tip of his good hoof on Echo’s chest, giving the bat pony a poke. “You need to quit lying to them.”

“What happened to you?” Echo pushed his hoof away with her own and bared her fangs. “You used to tell me that we were noble and invaluable.”

“I thought, Echo. For two weeks in a bottom of a canyon and two and a half years when nopony visited!” He raised his fake hoof and shook it to make a rattling sound. “You hear that? That’s what I got in return for what I’ve done. That is the thanks we get. A fake hoof and Princesses’ pity. That’s it. No heroes ever come from here.” Poison is what he felt on his tongue, giving a healthy coating of it to every single one of his words. Closing his eyes, Intrepid turned and started to walk away. He knew this was a bad idea, but he had done it anyway.

“You’re my hero.” The voice was not small as he would’ve expected. It was as defiant as ever. “To everypony here you were a hero. We didn’t tell them that you or anypony else was a hero. History speaks louder than you think, Intrepid.”

Intrepid wasn’t going to hear this anymore. He walked down the hallways and out fo the door he was so afraid to enter.

History had spoken. Every day the words of the past spoke rolled around his head…

Three years ago, the edge of Equestria.

“Canis!” He could hear the cry over the ringing in his ears. Barely. What had happened? One moment they were walking along the cliffs and the next moment the ground exploded. It had thrown him clear from the scene.

He pulled himself to his hooves. His vision was swimming with a mix of colors, movement, and confusion. Intrepid blinked rapidly, trying to clear the haze from his view. As he did, he realized that maybe it wasn’t the best idea.

A towering creature was coming out of the ground. Its scaly purple body loomed easily thirty feet above the ground. It’s head was pink framed by a bright red fringe that was spread wide in a threatening display. The worst part was it’s mouth. The beast’s mouth was split into three sections, each with three protruding spikes that could only be called teeth.

Then there were the tentacles protruding from the center of the spread mouths. One of them currently held the newest unicorn of the group, Canis, in its grasp.

The unicorn was firing spells at the creature in an attempt to be freed. It was to no avail, though. The tentacles drew the pony in until she was close enough for the jaws to come down around her. Once the creature’s jaws closed around the pony, it retreated underground, taking with it the threat of being devoured as well.

“What in the hay was that thing?” Fuji, the only earth pony in the group, asked in his thick country accent. “Reckon it might come back?”

“I don’t know, but we need to move.” Finch, a bright yellow pegasus mare, came over to Intrepid as she spoke. “Are you alright? Can you move?” She looked the pegasus stallion over carefully.

“Y-yeah. I’m fine.” That wasn’t the truth. His head hurt beyond all belief. Probably a concussion and hopefully nothing more. That wasn’t anything to hold him back though, there had been a lot worse. “But you’re right, we need to move.”

“That thing just took Canis! We can’t just leave my sister down there!” Polaris, the sister of Canis spoke through tears as she kept her eyes on the hole the creature had retreated into. “We have to help her!”

“She’s gone, Polaris. We have to move, now.” It was cold, but it was the truth. Intrepid was not scared of telling ponies what they didn’t want to hear. Often times it spurred action, whether that action was positive or negative all depended on the pony.

“She’s not gone! We have to save her!” The green unicorn sped over to the hole, frantically calling her sister’s name as she did so. “Canis! Canis, we’re coming to help you! Stay calm!”

“For Celestia’s sake!” Finch stepped away from Intrepid’s side, only to have the slate gray pegasus stagger on his hooves. That drew the mare back to his side. “Fuji! Please go get her so we can get out of here!” It wasn’t so much a request as it was an order issued to the bright red earth pony.

Not being one for words, Fuji complied with a nod. With power and purpose propelling him the stallion was set to cover the ground between him and Polaris in seconds. That was if the creature from before hadn’t come up from right beneath the earth pony and tossed him into the air.

In a split-second the thing’s mouth split open and shot a black slimy tentacle at the red stallion. The prehensile appendage caught Fuji’s back leg and pulled him towards the worm-like creature at blinding speed. At the last second the creature lowered its head and retracted the tentacle, sending the earth pony flying over the edge. He screamed all the way down.

“NO!” Intrepid flapped his wings, lifting himself off of the ground. He fought through dizziness and a splitting headache to move towards the creature. He needed to get passed this thing and get Polaris, she was the only one who couldn’t get away by flying now.

“Intrepid, no! We need to go!” Finch grabbed his hoof with hers, pulling him the other way with all of her might. “Forget about her! We can get away!”

Intrepid couldn’t believe that. Finch wanted to leave Polaris as some kind of bait for the creature so they could escape. This wasn’t how they operated. They didn’t leave ponies behind, especially not friends. They had never done it before and they weren’t going to start now.

“I’m not letting her die!” He looked towards Polaris. The lone unicorn was firing spell after spell off at the creature, letting all of her rage and pain out. The creature loomed over her and shrieked, saliva and slime spraying from its mouth.

“I’m not letting you die!” Before Intrepid knew what was happening, he found the other pegasus’ hooves around his midsection. She had pinned his wings to his sides and started flying up and away from the beast and the unicorn. “You’ll forgive me one day.”

Intrepid struggled against her grip. He wasn’t functioning normally, though. Every movement was slower and less powerful than intended because it was moving through the filter of a concussed brain. For all of his trying, it produced no results.

A sound like a whip cracking echoed through the air. He felt his carrier tense up, every muscle trying to fight something infinitely more powerful than itself. When Intrepid glanced down, he didn’t like what he saw.

One of that thing’s tentacles had latched itself onto Finch’s back leg. She was trying to fight it. The mare winced and struggled, her wings flapping faster than he had ever seen. It was a losing battle, though. Very slowly, they were being reeled in towards the monstrosity below.

“Intrepid! Intrepid, I’m going to let you go and you’re going to need to fly!” Finch looked down at him, her eyes watering from newfound pain and exhaustion. “P-promise me you’ll fly.” Intrepid heard the familiar sound of a limb popping out of socket. “Please!”

“Alright!” Intrepid pushed all of the thoughts of what was happening out of his mind and instead focused on what he needed to do. Finch relinquished her grip on him. As she stopped flapping her wings, he started flapping his. He felt the mare being pulled away from him at a breakneck speed, but Intrepid did not turn to look.

The pegasus pushed his wings to their limit. He needed to fly. He made a promise and he wasn’t going to break it. He was not going to die out here. He was not going to go out like his friends.

Intrepid heard the crunch, but tried not to think about what made it. He tried not to think about his oldest friend in the jaws of that thing. He tried not to think about its jaws closing around her as she gave up and allowed it to happen. He tried.

Another screech came from behind him, the creature celebrating another victory. Whatever this thing was, it wasn’t killing for food. This was either territorial or for sport and neither answer filled Intrepid with hope. Only more fear.

The black was creeping into his vision now. It started in his peripherals and was moving in. With the encroaching darkness, so to came fleeting motor skills. The head injury was taking his toll and would be the death of him if he didn’t fight it. His wings fell out of rhythm and his speed decreased dramatically as the darkness threatened to take him.

Intrepid felt himself tumbling across the ground before he registered that he had blacked out. He finally opened his eyes just as he came within a few inches of the edge of a cliff. The pony blinked away the pain and darkness, struggling to get to his hooves.

Another screech. That thing was getting closer now and Intrepid couldn’t waste time trying anything. Whatever came next was going to happen, there was no trying now. He put as much power into his wings as he could muster, lifting a few measly feet above the ground.

Regardless of ability, he pushed himself towards the edge. Getting over this canyon would mean getting away from the beast, so any risk was worth it.

A few dozen feet passed the edge of the cliff is when he felt another blackout coming on. This couldn’t happen now! Not here! If he passed out, that would mean a few hundred feet to the bottom of a chasm.

There was no fighting it, though. Even survival instinct gave in to a damaged brain, everything did in the end. His wings started flapping, he felt that much this time. Before the true sense of falling could kick in, he felt something grab his wing in an effort to stop him.

The beast’s tentacle had a tentative grip on his wing. It was an uncomfortable feeling at the most. The slimy appendage was covered in tiny barbs that dug into the skin of his wing, easily drawing blood. Intrepid tried to scream, but could not find the energy to. He was in Fate’s hooves now.

As it so happened, the creature did not have that good of a grip on his wing. It retracted for a second to get a better grip, but when its tentacle wrapped back around his wing it found no purchase. Gravity had Intrepid now, not even that creature could fight it. The tentacle tried to fight the force of nature, though. It failed, taking feathers and flesh along with it.

Intrepid fell down the rocky chasm. Falling was a feeling every pegasus knew all too well. From the first time they were pushed off of a cloud to every drunk weekend in Cloudsdale, the feeling of falling was primal.

He landed. Not with a splat, but with a thud. However far it had been was not far enough to kill him. It was enough to break things. Bones in his chest and legs fractured and sent wake up signals to his brain.

His eyes opened just in time to see a rock falling right towards him. The pegasus attempted to move out of the way and succeeded to a degree. Instead of landing directly on top of him, the large rock landed only on his right front hoof.

The pain sent him into darkness once more.

Present day, Canterlot

Intrepid found himself in the darkness of his home again. How had he gotten here? Why did he always wake up in darkness? He tried to stand up, but found out his fake hoof was missing.

He wanted to cry, but no tears would come anymore.

He wanted to mourn, but his memories were all tainted.

He wanted to move on, but history wouldn’t let him.

Author's Note

Haha. The real joke is that this story has a comedy tag.

In all seriousness, though. I felt like after last chapter we needed a bit of a break from Vinyl's story. There was a lot to absorb, and even I'm trying to figure out where to go from there. So, I decided that I would spend a little chapter exploring Intrepid.

I'm not sure what you all think about Intrepid, but I'm hoping this explains some things. Maybe you'll see some parallels between him and Vinyl, if not on complete opposite sides of the 'moving on' spectrum. But hopefully you're warming up to him as much as I am. I promise we'll see more of a good side to him later.

A New Day

“Isn't it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?”

-L.M. Montgomery

Shining Armor was not in a terrible position, he had to admit. He had awoken to this sight only one other time, and he had panicked. A lot had changed since then, and that was an understatement. Now he didn’t feel so bad about waking up with Vinyl in his hooves, in fact it was rather nice.

The only downside to this whole affair was that he was awake with the sun, as was his routine. Vinyl wouldn’t want to be woken up this early, and he couldn’t exactly get up and move around without disturbing her. So he could either go back to sleep. which was an improbability because once he was awake he wasn’t going back to sleep any time soon, or he could just relax.

Yeah, the latter seemed like the best option at the moment.

Plus a little quiet time with his thoughts didn’t seem like a bad thing either. There was much to think about, mainly this thing with Vinyl. Technically guards weren’t allowed to have relationships with with their charges, and if anypony found out he could lose his job. So what to do?

The easiest answer, and perhaps the simplest, was to just keep it hidden. Just keep it on the down low until the end of the rehabilitation process and move on with it afterwards. The second option, and the one that would be a lot more complicated, was to somehow work it into the process. The rulebook never specified what ‘relationship’ meant, so technically even being a friend with Vinyl could be violating the rules. If he could somehow convince someone that the rule was invalid because its wording was too vague and prohibited him from doing a good job maybe he could get away with it. Or Galea would just call him out on it and fire him anyway. That mare did not seem like one to be a smartass around.

As he looked down at Vinyl’s sleeping form, he decided on the former. Easy and simple, no jeopardizing it or anything. That seemed like the right course of action, just to keep it quiet and wait til this all was over for the right moment.

There was another problem he had just thought of: his family. At this point Cadance was like a daughter to them already, and Twilight was infatuated with the Princess. How would he explain the breakup to them? How could he tell them that after all of these years, Cadance was not going to be around anymore? Would they be mad at him?

He really hoped they would understand, and he was sure his parents would. It was Twily that worried him the most. She was the excitable sort that always got herself worked up over the small things. This was a very big thing that impacted the little filly directly, and only Celestia knew how she would take it.

The stallion sighed and rested his chin on the top of Vinyl’s head. There was always something to plan or something to worry about, and it was starting to exhaust him as of late. If it was what being an adult meant, he wished he could avoid that title for a little bit longer.

“Y’okay…” A very tired voice said from below. He felt Scratch stir, and more importantly felt her horn dig into his throat. That elicited a little grunt of pain from him, to which Vinyl reacted and moved it so her pointy appendage was resting on the side of his throat. “Sorry, I’m kinda sharp…”

“It’s okay.” Shining said quietly, hoping he hadn’t woken Vinyl up all of the way. He did not need to deal with a cranky Scratch this early. “And yeah, I’m good. I was just thinking.” He didn’t want to worry her either with his problems, after all they were his to deal with.

“What time is it?” The sleepy mare questioned as she buried her head into his chest. “I’m gonna guess ‘too early to be awake.’” He smiled at that, it was good to know her sarcasm knew no bounds. Not even sleep could keep Vinyl’s silver tongue back.

“Yeah, you’re about right.” Shining admitted, wrapping his hooves around Vinyl a little tired. “Go back to sleep and I’ll wake you up when it gets a bit later, okay?” One magenta eye stared up at him through a tangle of blue mane. There was no malice in the look, or even annoyance. There was peace,

“Okay…” Shining felt a small, tender kiss at the base of his neck as Vinyl settled back to sleep. Eh, maybe he would join her. Sure, he couldn’t usually get back to sleep but today was a new day. Anything was possible.

Princess Cadance rubbed her eyes and yawned as she looked out of her window. The sun was beginning to rise, and with it a new day. Had she really been up all night reviewing the stacks of evidence? She could’ve sworn it had only been an hour or two at most.

The reading had been engrossing, she had to give Galea that. Every connection, from bank account statements to written affidavits from disgruntled accountants or even written correspondence from nobles themselves that had no doubt intercepted and duplicated by the Interim-Captain. They all pointed to guilt on almost all of the nobles involved, there were only a few she had problems with because the evidence was loose or vague enough for the pony in question to put up a legitimate fight in court.

As far as she could tell, all of the elder members of the House of Nobles was in this pile except for one: Twilight Satin. She was the one Noble in all of Canterlot who had no evidence against her, who was evidently incorruptible.

While Cadance knew Twilight Satin personally and had even admired the cantankerous old mare, she couldn’t believe that. Galea had something on everypony else, even the flimsiest piece of evidence was in the files for consideration. But nothing on Satin?

That left only two possibilities; either Satin was smart enough to never leave a paper trail over her forty plus years in the House, or Galea had neglected to even investigate the Twilight Matriarch. Both were extremely probable, and both carried the same amount of implications. Cadance couldn’t just order the arrest on suspicion of guilt, she had to have something concrete...which she didn’t. If Galea had purposefully neglected Satin, then it meant even the future Captain was corrupted to some extent. Either Satin had paid Galea off, or there was some sort of understanding between them.

“What do I do…?” Cadance lamented as she put her head in her hooves. She couldn’t just ignore an incongruity like that, it would look extremely bad if the public ever found out. But just confronting Galea about it seemed like a bad idea as well. Mainly because Cadance did not enjoy speaking with the Interim-Captain, the unicorn made her feel so small and inconsequential. “What would Shiny do…?”

That was the golden question that plagued her every decision now, and it really made her angry. Her bar for a good decision-maker had been the one to decide that she wasn’t good enough or responsible enough to even date. How could she do something like this if she wasn’t even trusted to keep another pony’s heart safe?

No, she couldn’t think like that anymore. Shining Armor wasn’t in the picture anymore, he couldn’t occupy this much of thinking. She needed someone else to use as her example...she needed to use Celestia as her bar for decision making. After all, the Princess of the Sun was always logical and stalwart in her ideas.

“Okay, so what would Celestia do?” That was a complicated question. What would Celestia do? Thinking back to all of the little talks the two alicorns had usually pointed to one central theme: do what’s right for Equestria, and if you make a mistake you have to accept it and try to change it.

What was right for Equestria was pretty obvious. The corruption in the government had to be cut away and reforms needed to be made. Bickering with Galea for an unknown amount of time would only throw chaos into the mix, chaos that couldn’t be afforded a hoofhold in the plans. Nor could she have Satin arrested with the rest of them. So what option was left?

“Do nothing.” She said in a small realization to herself. It was the only course of action she could think of that didn’t impede or muddy the plans. It was the most simple solution. If the public questioned it, then she would defer to Captain Galea who would undoubtedly have an answer for it. Simplistic, and it would alleviate Cadance of some of the responsibility.

Now that particular annoyance was quashed, Cadance had to admit that this was all pretty impressive. How long this must’ve taken to figure out and put together was unimaginable, and for one pony? If anything that itself was proof of how deserving Galea was of the position of Captain. It showed that the mare certainly had an inequine drive to get a job done, which was almost necessary for the guard.

“Enough thinking.” Cadance told herself as she stood up, her knees popping as they straightened. “I think I need to get a little rest at least.” Literally only Celestia knew what the rest of the day would hold. Cadance could only hope the announcement of Galea’s impending inauguration went over well.

“Hey Twinkle, wake up.” Vinyl kicked her compatriot lightly with her hoof. The lazy bum hadn’t woken up earlier in the morning, not even when she had gotten up. Not even the sound of the shower had roused the guard out of his slumber. “Dummy.” Again, she pushed him with her hoof. “For Celestia’s sake…” Vinyl grumbled in frustration at the ever-resting nuisance.

Then an idea struck her, a rather good idea if she was to be honest. She could get back at him for that stunt he had pulled last week where he jumped on her bed to wake her up. But what could she do, what would rouse Twinkle from his rest faster than anything else?

“Oh, this is going to be good.” Vinyl said with a smile as the idea struck her. She would have to summon her some very authoritative mannerisms, but she would be able to do that easily. The mare took in a deep breath and yelled in her best, booming voice.

“GET UP GUADSPONY! YOU’RE LATE FOR YOUR PATROL!”

In damn near an instant, Twinkle was on his hooves and latching the gold-plated armor on as if it was second nature. It wasn’t until he was putting on his helmet that he stopped and looked around the room.

Vinyl couldn’t help it once his eyes fell on her, as soon as she saw that shocked expression turn to realization she burst out laughing. How could she not? It was hilarious to see Twinkle freak out like that!

“What the hell, Scratch?!” The stallion yelled out in frustration. “That’s not funny, making me think I’m on the clock. For Celestia’s sake, we’re supposed to be relaxing and you go and panic me like that!” What made it funnier was the seriousness in his voice, it was like he took offense to it or something.

S-Sorry, Twinkle. I just saw an opportunity and had to take it.” Vinyl said between giggle fits. “I mean, you got me up last week by jumping on my bed. I think this is pretty good payback.” Vinyl just grinned as she stared at the guard. “I mean, c’mon. We’re even now.”

“Fine.” Shining grumbled out. “As long as we’re even and you promise to never do that again.” Perhaps she had actually struck a nerve for the first time, but that made it all the better. Now she really knew how to get under his skin, and no feelings for him would make that any less promising.

“Me?” Vinyl said as she put a hoof to her chest. “Why I would never be annoying and infuriating, you know that Shining.” She even used his real name in her faux innocence to really sell the act. It seemed to have worked, because Twinkle cracked a more neutral expression.

“Yeah, yeah.” He waved off the act. “What time is it? How late did I sleep?” Asking the important questions as always. Not ‘how did you sleep, Vinyl?’ or ‘What’s the plan for today?’

“It’s about ten, I think.” Vinyl lit up her horn and used her magic to fix her mane the way she liked it. “These damn rooms don’t have clocks, so I’m going by the one in the lobby. I might be a bit off, so don’t take my word for it.” Vinyl didn’t know how long her shower had taken, so it could be ten-thirty by now and she would be none the wiser.

“I really overslept.” Twinkle groaned as he started to take off his armor. “I was hoping to get out and about before now, but I guess we’ll just have to roll with the punches.” Vinyl smiled as Twinkle seemingly talked to himself, it was just one of those things that he did that she had picked up on. He really liked to think aloud. “We’ll go grab something for breakfast and go see Lily and Glory.” He turned towards Vinyl and nodded. “Sound good?”

“I can’t say no to free food.” Vinyl smirked, trying to hide the fact that she really was hungry for about anything.

“Free food?” Shining questioned as he trotted by her. “Who says I’m paying for your meal, Scratch?” The stallion went into the bathroom and started to fix his mane and smooth his coat. Vinyl leaned against the doorframe and just watched idly.

“I did. Now let’s get going, you can shower when we get back.” Vinyl opened the door that left the room and held it open for Shining. “C’mon pretty boy.” She motioned for him to leave the room, which he did after huffing and briefly glancing at the shower. “This is a town of earth ponies, Twinkle. I’m sure they won’t mind if you have a few smidgens of dirt on you.” Vinyl shut the door behind them and started down the hall.

The duo moved through the hotel in relative silence, making sure to get through the lobby without alerting the little filly behind the desk. They got through unscathed and made it into the small village beyond. After a short time walking, they came across this queer looking building that looked as if it was made of gingerbread and frosting. The sign on the door advertised breakfast and coffee, something that Vinyl would not object to.

The interior of the building was as sickly sweet as the outside, candy etchings and white frosting-like paint adding to the various overhangs that separated each section of the store. Directly opposite the door there was a glass case filled with all kinds of cakes-both of the cup variety and regular-and pies of the like. It all looked positively mouth watering, but nothing looked as good as the shining silver coffee maker that sat just behind the counter. Vinyl could practically smell the glorious dark nectar from across the room.

“Welcome to Sugarcube Corner! What can I do you for?” A tall, lanky yellow stallion appeared on the other side of the glass case, his bright green eyes shining from just below a shaggy orange mane barely covered by a white and red paper cap. “All of our breakfast pastries are half off until noon, by the way. Quite the deal if I do say so myself.”

Vinyl practically raced across the floor and put her two front hooves on top of the glass case. She looked at the various doughnuts, kolaches, and croissants that all sat on the top shelf. How could she decide between them all? They all looked equally delicious!

“Good morning, sir.” Twinkle trotted up to the counter with a smile. “Tell you what, we’ll take you up on that offer and I’ll take two of those kolaches, a cup of coffee and….Vinyl?”

“Yeah, I’ll take a cup of joe too, and give me one of those long maple frosted doughnuts.” She paused and eyed her choice curiously. “Those are the ones with filling in them, right?” She didn’t like the ones without custard in them, they were only filled with lies and disappointment.

“Yes ma’am, they certainly are!” The stallion smiled and started writing something on a notepad in front of him, his mouth working on both writing and mumbling. “Two kolaches...one maple longjohn, and two cups of coffee…” He did a quick bit of thinking, jotted something down and spit the pencil out of his mouth. “That’ll be twelve bits.” Twinkle pulled the small pouch from around his neck and produced the required amount and sat it on the case. “Thank you, sir.”

“Real quick-” Shining interjected before the stallion could pick up the currency. “-do you have a copy of the Canterlot Post I could read? Sorry, I’m a bit of a news junkie.” Vinyl rolled her eyes at the request, leave it to Twinkle to bother somepony for a newspaper.

“I think I actually have one in back.” The stallion replied. “Tell you what, go have a seat and I’ll get your stuff out to you with a copy of The Post in a jiffy!” Shining nodded and ushered Vinyl towards a booth in the next room over. They both sat down across from each other and waited patiently.

Less than a minute later, surely within the confines of ‘a jiffy’, a pony appeared from the backroom. It wasn’t the stallion that had taken their order, though. Instead it was a small pink filly with a equally pink wild mane. On her head, she carried a platter with two mugs of steaming coffee, a few baked goods and a folded up newspaper. The filly bounced, yes literally bounced, across the floor until she came to rest at their table.

“Helloooo!” The filly said giddily as she put the tray on the table. “I think you guys are really gonna like the coffee! The coffee is my favorite part!” Judging by the small rhythmic bouncing the filly was constantly doing, Vinyl fully believed that. “Ooh, ooh and the Kolaches have strawberries and blueberries in them! I call them the ‘Colorblinds’ because Mr. Cake has a really hard time telling the difference between red and blue when they’re really close together, and one day he accidentally put the blueberry and strawberry filling together and it was actually really delicious!”

“Uhh….thanks?” Vinyl said awkwardly. How were you supposed to respond to that? “You...have a good day.”

“You too!” The filly replied excitedly and bounced away as fast as she had appeared. Was this whole town infested with fillies with personality disorders? Because it really seemed that way at this point.

“Well she was interesting.” Twinkle said as he picked up a sugar packet and his paper. “I just hope that everypony we meet isn’t as interesting as her.” The stallion poured the sugar in the mug, defiling his coffee with the powdered substance. Vinyl simply sneered and picked up her untainted mug and drank from it.

As soon as Twinkle unfolded the paper fully, he seemed to freeze in place. His coffee mug sat in midair and his gaze was fixed on the paper in front of him. The mare raised her hoof wand waved it, she even tried to move the paper with her own magic to no avail. With no other choice, she got up and looked at the paper to see what he was gawking at.

In the biggest font imaginable, plastered across the biggest and most respected paper in Equestria, was the headline she did not expect to read.

PRINCESS CONFIRMS GALEA’S NOMINATION: INAUGURATION TO BE HELD MONDAY MORNING

“Wow.” Vinyl blinked, trying to take it in. “Gonna be honest with you, Twinkle. I did not expect her to actually become Captain. At least the old guy seemed kinda nice, I don’t really get that vibe from the ice queen.” Even Galea’s picture, displayed just below the headline, her face not betraying how she usually came across: like a stone cold killer.

“Yeah…” Shining finally uttered out. “I...I wasn’t expecting that either.” He sat the paper down and picked up the coffee cup, taking a single sip out of it. The stallion was in a daze, as if the news had broken him on some level. “Why...why did Celestia confirm her personally? Why didn’t the House of Nobles…? Why hold the inauguration so soon?” Vinyl could practically see all of the cogs in Shining’s head turning, and they were all moving towards a predictable finale. “Something’s wrong in Canterlot.”

“What do you mean?” Vinyl might have had a lot of heartbreak in Canterlot, but it was still her home city and she cared deeply about it. If something was wrong, then she wanted to know. She still had friends and family there, and they had to be okay.

“Nothing short of an emergency could cause Celestia to do something like this.” Shining closed his eyes and sighed. “I know trouble when it’s laid out, and this is nothing but.” The stallion opened his eyes once again and looked Vinyl dead in the eyes. “We need to leave for Canterlot as soon as possible.”

“Whoa whoa, slow down Twinkle.” Vinyl pushed Shining to the side and scooched into the booth next to him. “I’m kinda worried too, but let’s not jump the gun here. We still have business here, remember? Sky, Lily, Cedar...me? I mean, I’m pretty much good at this point, I know she’s safe and that’s all I needed, but we still have to make right with Sky.” Vinyl had come all of this way, she was not going to turn back because of an alarmist headline.

“Right…” Shining sighed and nodded. “We’ll get this sorted out first…” Vinyl could tell he was disappointed. Twinkle’s inner protector was telling him something was wrong and needed to be done, but his other responsibility wouldn’t let him. It was probably tearing him apart inside.

“Hey…” She used her magic to turn the stallion to look at her. “...I promise, we’ll leave as soon as possible tomorrow morning, alright?” Shining’s eyes were filled with an inescapable sadness, a desire to to protect and investigate. It was ignoring a calling, Vinyl could see that, and it had to hurt like hell. “Alright?” She posited again.

“Yeah, okay.” Shining turned back to the table and closed the paper. The stallion took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Vinyl was waiting for something, tears or anger or anything really, what she wasn’t expecting was for the smile to come out and the chipper tone of his voice. “Now let’s eat, huh? I have a feeling we’ll need all of the energy we can get for today.” It was a good attempt, just like after Cadance and him had split in her living room, but just like that time Vinyl could see through the veil. Twinkle was putting aside all of his personal feelings, all of the nasty stuff that would slow him down, just for the sake of helping Vinyl.

It hurt a little bit more each time she thought about it.

The duo ate their meal and drank their coffee in peace, both not willing or wanting to speak. Both of them had stuff on their minds on which they didn’t want to voice in such a public space, it would come up once they were alone in their hotel room later.

After they were done, they exited the establishment and made a beeline for Cedar’s home. Sadly, the place was currently abandoned. However, a note upon the door directed them to a place just outside of town: Sweet Apple Acres.

“I’ve heard of the place once or twice.” Twinkle commented, tapping the note with his hoof. “There’s a family of earth ponies who try to sell cider from there in Canterlot Square like every year.”

“Are we talking regular cider or hard cider?” Vinyl wouldn’t mind picking up a little something to drink while they were out at the orchard. In fact, such a thing was a near certain possibility if they had any of the good stuff ready to go.

“Both.” Shining put the note back on the door and started off back into town. “My parents got me some of their hard cider for my first legal drink. It was actually pretty good, if you’re into cider.” Twinkle turned to Vinyl. “I’m more of a rum guy, myself. So I thought it was just okay, couldn’t let my parents know I already had preferences or anything.”

“You drank before you were legal?” Vinyl said with a scoff. “Yeah right, Twinkle. You know you don’t have to impress me or anything right? Plus, the ‘bad boy’ act is pretty retro, even for you.” Vinyl instinctively reached for her sunglasses to put them on, but found her favorite accessory to be absent. That wasn’t going to be any fun on a clear day like this.

“What’s that supposed to mean, Scratch?” Twinkle jibed. “You don’t think I’m capable of breaking the rules or something?” The stallion puffed out his chest in some display of machismo, making Vinyl roll her eyes.

“I’m just saying I would probably see you in a malt shop a lot sooner than I would in a liquor store.” Vinyl shot back, adding a sly smirk to her words. “Probably waiting for your ‘number one gal’ or something to meet you and do the twist at the ol’ Sockhop.” Vinyl imitated the ancient dance move she had referenced, which cause the stallion to laugh heartily.

“Okay, three things-” Twinkle said with a stray chuckle. “One: do you really want to bring up malts again? I mean, you’re free to be wrong all you want but I’m eventually going to get tired of winning that argument.” That earned yet another eye roll from Vinyl. “Two: I’ve been in liquor stores before, okay? It’s not like I was the perfect kid or something. And Three: I feel like on top of calling me lame, you’re also calling me old. Which, I mean, I’m only three years older than you.”

“Okay…” Vinyl said, turning her neck until she got a satisfying *pop* from it. “One: I told you before, you’re wrong about malts so we’re not getting into it. Two: Don’t make me laugh. Three: You act like you’re twenty years older than me, you had it coming.”

“It’s called maturity, Scratch. You should try it sometime.” This was the kind of back and forth that Vinyl lived for. The quickfire witty jabs that neither of them meant seriously made spending time with the guard that much more fun.

“You can talk to me about maturity when you actually get laid, Twinkle.” Vinyl increased her speed, passing the guard and making sure her tail brushed against his chin as she passed. She figured, why not rub it in just a little bit more. It might elicit a better response from the stallion.

“Well...I...uh…” There it was, the stammer. Another W in the argument department for Vinyl Scratch! She was seriously beginning to wonder if Twinkle would ever be able to best her in one of these or if she was just destined to roll over him every time. Price of being a smartass, really.

The walk to Sweet Apple Acres from that point on was silent. Vinyl would describe it as a very intense silence, at least for Twinkle. The poor guy was still blushing and flustered even after fifteen minutes of walking. It was a little reassuring to know she could shut him up so quickly and effectively, it meant she had some pretty good leverage.

“I think we’re here…” Twinkle finally spoke out after the passed a large wooden gate that served as a threshold to the Apple orchard. Vinyl looked around and turned back to her guard.

“What gave it away, all of the apple trees?” She gestured to the trees filled with dangling red fruit. “But yeah, we’re here and now we need to find Sky somehow.” How were they supposed to find one pony in literally acres of apple trees? It was like finding a pegasus in a flock of Griffons.

“Well, I suppose we should find somepony and ask if they’ve seen her or Cedar.” After he spoke, a loud thud echoed around the area, and a distant tree shook as if a train had struck it. One by one, the ponies saw the apples fall from the branches and into the orchard below. “I’d say we found our pony.” The stallion veered of of the trail towards the shaken tree, leaving Vinyl to follow behind.

“Either that or a bull with something against fruit.” Vinyl remarked. She had never seen a tree shake like that from a pony before. What kind of pony would be able to do that? “Oh…” She had her answer as the passed around a surprisingly large tree and saw a likewise surprisingly large red colt in front of the tree they had seen. “That’s a big pony…”

“Hey, excuse me!” Twinkle trotted towards the red earth pony with a smile, one that the stranger did not return. “I was wondering if I could get your help with something.” Even Twinkle was no match in stature for the younger pony. The stranger wasn’t much taller than the guard, but the height advantage was still there and that alone made Vinyl uneasy.

“Ah suppose ah could help ya.” The pony said in a slow drawl. “What’cha’ll need?” While an interesting accent Vinyl didn’t get to hear often, she also wished it came from a pony a little more enthused.

“We’re looking for some ponies that are supposed to be helping out here. Skyward Glory and Cedar Mulch?” Twinkle held out his hoof. “I’m Shining Armor and this is Vinyl Scratch, by the way.”

“Big Macintosh, s’a pleasure ta meet ya.” Well the name was certainly fitting, Vinyl could give Macintosh that. The colt took Twinkle’s hoof and gave it a hearty shake that almost tore the guard’s whole front leg off. “Ah think ah know where they’re at, eeyup.” The shaggy maned earth pony looked around the orchard and settled on a direction, pointing into the endless rows of trees. “Head thataway and y’all should reach ‘em real quick.”

“Alright, well thank you very much Big Macintosh. I appreciate the help.” Shining nodded and smiled, turning towards the way Macintosh was still pointing. “We should be able to find them now.”

“Oh, and if y’all see my sister Applejack around let ‘er know ah need to talk to her.” The behemoth added before turning back to the tree. “You’ll know ‘er when ya see ‘er. She’ll talk yer ear off as soon as she sees ya.”

“Great…” Vinyl muttered as she followed Twinkle away from Macintosh. The sound of powerful hooves striking trees growing all the more distant as they moved on.

It wasn’t that Vinyl wasn’t personable. Well, she really wasn’t when it came down to it, but it was different with these country ponies. They were all slow and respectful and polite, like sloths that had taken cotillion. Her personality just didn’t mesh well with that.

“Well, at least we have a direction now. Shouldn’t be too long, and we’ll get some bonding going with you and your family.” Shining looked towards Vinyl. “Nothing brings ponies together like some good old fashioned hard work.”

“Yeah.” Vinyl replied in a deadpan voice. “I can’t wait.”

Lucky for her enthusiasm, it was quite a while before they saw any other ponies. When they finally did, it was just the group they had been looking for. Cedar was teaching the fillies how to properly kick the trees to get apples down, while Sky was busy picking the apples off of the branches while flying around. Thankfully they saw no sign of any farm ponies, especially the one that might talk their ears off.

“Vinyl! Shining!” Sky was the first to spot them with the help of her bird’s eye view. The pegasus promptly flew down to their level and landed gracefully, immediately pulling Vinyl into a hug as she did so. “It’s good to see you! We didn’t know if you two would come all the way out here or not.”

“Why wouldn’t we?” Vinyl questioned, with no small amount of malicious suspicion.

“Well, I just thought you might’ve been done with all of this after yesterday. After all, you seemed pretty anxious to leave yesterday.” That made Vinyl’s temper absolutely flair. She had needed time to process all of this, to think about what she wanted out of the situation. Excuse her for wanting some time to think critically about something. She wouldn’t get into that now, though. She wouldn’t argue around the fillies or Cedar, after all they needed to seem a little functional at least.

“No, you’re right.” Vinyl said calmly, almost too calmly. It visibly put both Shining and Sky on edge, after all Vinyl was not a calm pony. “I just wanted to drop by and talk to Lily for a second. Wanted to tell her a few things before we leave.”

“Leave? What are you talking about?” Sky looked to Shining, who looked equally perplexed. “We’re not supposed to leave until morning.”

“Well things have changed.” Vinyl shot back, failing to withhold the venom from her words. “Apparently some stuff is going down in Canterlot and we need to go back today so Twinkle can deal with it.” Shining stood completely still, trying to not look guilty of anything and failing spectacularly. “So I’m going to go talk to Lily, and then you can go say goodbye to her again.” Vinyl marched over to Cedar, who looked up with his usual stoic expression.

“Afternoon, Vinyl Scratch.” He motioned towards his fillies. “Girls, stop for a moment so I can speak, please.” At his urging, the fillies stopped their bucking of the tree and sat on their haunches. “What do you need?”

“I’m going to talk to Lily, alright? I’ll just be a minute.” She softened her voice for Cedar, as to not broadcast the turmoil currently flowing through her. “Just let me do it, Cedar.”

“Alright, I’ll give you two a few minutes alone.” He turned towards the fillies. “Daisy, Rose come along now. Ms. Vinyl Scratch wants to talk with Lily for a bit and they need some personal space.” The twins, at their father’s behest, got up and trotted away with the stallion. They both looked at their solitary sister forlornly as they left the area.

“Hey Lily.” Vinyl spoke softly as she approached the filly and sat next to her. “How are you doing?” While Vinyl’s inner fire was still raging, she was keeping a calm demeanor outside. The last thing she wanted was to scare the filly away.

“Good, but my hooves hurt from kicking all of the trees.” Lilly rubbed one of her back hooves, frowning at her little appendage.

“Lucky for me, I have my horn to do all of the hard stuff for me, huh?” Vinyl picked up an apple in her magic, tossing it up in the air and catching it deftly. “But hey, it’s not all that bad. You get that insane earth pony strength. I’m just a weak little unicorn.” Vinyl was trying to connect with self-deprecating humor, the way she did with everypony else. It didn’t seem to be working, though. Lily just looked to the side and said nothing. “Anyways, I just wanted to tell you some stuff that I didn’t yesterday.”

“Like what?” Lily asked, cocking her head to the side.

“Well...I want you to know that it’s okay not to forgive somepony, even if they say they’re sorry.” Maybe a callous lesson, but Vinyl felt that Lily was a pony who needed to hear it. “If…” How could she explain this to a foal? It was not exactly simple subject matter. “If somepony makes you really sad, it’s okay not to forgive them. Like, you...you…” Now that Vinyl was actually sitting down and trying to talk it out, it all seemed so heartless.

It all seemed so cruel to tell a filly it was okay to hate as long as it was justified. Why was Vinyl even doing this, to get back at Glory for an offhand comment she didn’t mean? Vinyl lowered her head and shook it, trying to figure out some way to even possibly salvage this.

“It’s okay.” The small voice came closer to Vinyl. “Mommy told me last night that you’re sad because you’re parents left you all alone like Mommy did with me.” Vinyl’s heart broke in two even hearing that from such a young pony. “It’s okay to be sad, but you gotta try to be happy sometimes too. You gotta try to think of all of the things that make you happy, like your favorite flowers or a silly song or something. Because, when you think of all of the good things, the bad things don’t look really bad anymore.”

Tears started to form at the corners of Vinyl’s eyes, which was a common occurrence these days. She raised a hoof to wipe the offending things away, but a much smaller hoof stopped her. The unicorn looked up just in time to get caught in a hug by her niece.

“You gotta try to be happy, or else you won’t ever stop being sad.”

That broke Vinyl. She took Lily in one of the deepest, gentlest hugs she had ever given and nearly resolved to never let go. She had made a terrible mistake trying to do this, and now she was sorry.

Author's Note

This chapter was going to end like three different ways before I decided on this.

Hope y'all like it!

Destruction

“Sometimes you hit a point where you either change or self destruct.”
-Sam Stevens

“Alright, Twinkle.” Vinyl read the card in her magical grasp once again just to make sure she had it down. This was for all of the marbles, they were all three in the center of the board and whoever got their last question correct won the game. It had been a brutal game of Banal Objective, with each pony coming out strong and answering each pony’s correct answer with one of their own. The only time there was an opening was when one pony slipped and trusted their gut too much. Vinyl was hoping that Twinkle would fall here and she could claim victory. “What Nineteen Eighty-Three musical featured three high school mares with the same names and followed a plot about a romance gone wrong, murder, and teen angst?”

See, Vinyl and Twily had decided to attack Twinkle at his weakest subject: entertainment. He hadn’t been awful at it, but it had been the category he had struggled with the most. Especially when it came to stage shows and radio productions. Comic books and novels had been his strong points, though.

“I know this!” Twinkle responded through a clenched jaw. “Aww, come on.” The stallion tapped his hoof against the coffee table. “We did this musical in high school! I was one of the jocks!” Vinyl catalogued that one away for later, those characters didn’t exactly have a happy ending. “Why can’t I remember it?!” There was genuine frustration there, like real strife. Vinyl kinda figured Twinkle was a competitive pony, but damn. “I can’t remember…” the stallion said with a sigh. “I don’t know, I give up.”

“It’s ‘Feathers’, dummy.” Vinyl put the card into the holder it came from with a smile. “I love that musical.” Vinyl saw Twinkle knock his head with his hoof and groan in disappointment. “Sorry, Twinkle. Looks like you might lose this one.” Vinyl knew that they were going to come at her with a magic category question, and that she would probably get it wrong. Her main concern was getting Twily to mess up and give the two adults another go around.

A knock at the door halted any thoughts of continuing with the game. At first, Twinkle stood up but Vinyl pulled herself up from the floor and motioned for him to sit back down. This was still her house, she could answer the door herself. Quickly, she crossed the living room and opened the door without even checking who it was first.

The face on the other side may have been an unwelcome sight for Twinkle, but Vinyl couldn’t help but smile when she saw Twilight Velvet. Briefly, Vinyl wondered how the mare knew where she lived, but chalked it up to Twinkle needing to let her know.

“Hi, Mrs. Velvet!” Vinyl said with a smile as she ushered the mare in. There was something off, something panicked about the mother of Vinyl’s guests. She looked distressed and exhausted, like she had just run a marathon while being chased by angry bulls. “What brings you here tonight?”

“Mom?” Both of the ponies around the coffee table said as they rose to their hooves. Both of them rushed over to the mare and looked her over worriedly. Twinkle spoke first. “Mom, what’s wrong? Why aren’t you at the castle?” Hmm, Vinyl hadn’t really thought of that. From what Twily had told them, nopony essential was to leave the Palace. That included Twilight Velvet. So what was going on?

“Twilight, dear.” Velvet looked to her daughter, forcing a strained smile. “I need you to please contact Princess Celestia for me somehow while I talk to your brother.” Twily cocked her head to the side and her lip started quivering.

“M-mom what’s going on?” Velvet seemed to snap to her senses, her motherly instincts kicking in. She quickly got down on her daughter’s level and embraced her tenderly, it was a warm, yet tense moment that Vinyl knew wouldn’t last. “Mom, I’m scared…”

“It’s okay. Something’s just come up and we all might need to leave Canterlot for a bit. I’ll explain everything in just a little while, first I really need you to get ahold of Princess Celestia somehow. Did she give you anything to do that with?” Velvet wiped the sweat from her brow and looked at the filly with a hopeful gaze.

“She gave me a scroll that’s linked to one she keeps by her at all times.” The filly levitated her backpack over and pulled a glowing golden scroll from it. “But I can only use it once and she said to use it only if it’s an emergency.” By the way Velvet was acting, it sure seemed like an emergency.

“Get everything ready for that, please. I’ll be with you in just a minute, I need to speak with your brother first.” Twily went over to the coffee table and began setting up an area to write at, moving the boardgame from its place and retrieving her ink and quill from their places. “Shiny, I really don’t think you should stick around here.” That message sent a chill up Vinyl’s spine, it was ominous and full of potential danger.

“Mom, what in Celestia’s name is going on?” Shining demanded of his mother in a harsh whisper. “You can’t just come in here panicking Twily and me like that without explaining.” His glare lessened once he realized who he was talking to. With a sigh, the stallion closed his eyes for a second and calmed himself. “Please, tell me what happened.”

“Cadance tried to cast a spell on me.” Vinyl’s heart nearly broke in two. After the really good talk they had earlier, she had gone and done something stupid again? Vinyl thought that the Princess was past that stuff by now, she thought that Cadance had learned from her mistake.

“What.” It wasn’t a question that came from Shining Armor, it was an expression of rage. Vinyl swore that the guard was going to turn as red as a cherry if he wasn’t careful. “How…what did she do? How did you escape it?”

Shakily, Velvet moved her mane to the side and pointed at a faintly glowing piece of jewelry embedded at the very base of her ear. It was golden and intricate, certainly filled with some sort of magic.

“After you told me what she did to you and Vinyl, I decided to…invest in some enchantments.” Velvet shook her head, as if clearing out a thought or an idea. “It doesn’t nullify the spell, it just scrambles it and makes it less effective.” That’s what Vinyl saw in Velvet’s eyes, a fight. The mare was fighting whatever command Cadance had put in there and it was taking its toll pretty heavily. Alicorn magic couldn’t be easy to combat, even with help. “Cadance, I think she’s coming here and I don’t think she’s leaving until she’s cast a spell on everypony in this room to make them forget about what she’s done.” Velvet shook her head slightly and looked at Twilight. “I’m going to tell Celestia about this, and then take Twilight and your father out of the city until something is done about her.”

“Isn’t this kinda drastic?” Vinyl wasn’t usually one to stick up for somepony who had wronged her, but this was an extenuating circumstance and she felt like she had to give Cadance some benefit of the doubt. “Cadance already apologized to both of us for what she did, we’ve already made peace with her for the most part. Maybe she overreacted when she tried to cast a spell on you, but sometimes we make mistakes. I’m sure we can just talk this out and calm everypony down.”

Shining was breaking on the inside. Aside from the building rage he felt at Cadance for casting a spell on his mother, now Vinyl was actually defending her! Vinyl, the one pony who had arguably been wronged by her almost as much as Shining himself! It all just really hurt, it was too much.

“No, Scratch.” Shining shook his head. “I don’t think we can try to talk her out of whatever it is she wants to do.” Shining was just letting himself go on autopilot and ignoring the possible consequences. “She’s burning every bridge she comes across, and I should’ve done something about it sooner.” Shining felt profoundly guilty in that moment, the kind of existential guilt that made you question your own validity in the world around you. He was supposed to be a royal guard! Virtuous, noble, pure, uncompromising. But now, after everything that had happened, he felt…equine. He didn’t feel pure or uncompromising, he just felt like any other pony who had made a mistake.

“We talked to her earlier, and my talk went okay.” Vinyl retorted. “Yours ended in a spat but, like you said, your emotions are kind of raw.” The light hoof placed on his shoulder and the pleading magenta eyes did not help him any, it did not help his conscious one little bit. Any happiness that Vinyl had derived in the past few hours was a lie, it was amplified and supplemented by something that wasn’t supposed to be in her head. It was all manufactured and she didn’t have a clue, and it was all because of him.

“I’m sorry, Vinyl…” Shining fell to his haunches and closed his eyes. His ever-increasing heartbeat and flurry of thoughts brought about the onset of an anxiety attack. Everything was crumbling now, even the things he thought were safe. Every little lie and word was collapsing in on itself and suffocating him under a mountain of consequences and harsh reality. “This is…this all my fault.” He looked up at Vinyl, tears forming in his eyes. “I let this happen.”

He had practically been married to power, he had been blinded to it by sheer proximity. He had allowed the truth of what Cadance could do, what she was capable of, to just pass him by at every chance. He had seen her make ponies love each other before, he had even seen her help raise the sun before. He just let that kind of raw power be near him, let it develop attachments to him. Now how was he supposed to stop it? How in the hell do you stop an impure god set on bending ponies to her will?

“There was nothing you could’ve done, Shining.” He felt Vinyl’s cheek press against his own. “You broke up with her, you even tried to talk to her. What else could you have done?” Shining had to tell her now, he had to ruin everything he had built with Vinyl at this very instant.

“I…” His words and breath caught in his throat, as if his vocal chords were fighting him to not say anything. “I let her hurt you, Vinyl.” That was it, the floodgates were open and the truth washed over the mare in front of him. “She didn’t talk to you earlier, she cast a spell on you, a very powerful mind-control one. More powerful than anything she ever used on me. I sensed it as soon as you came out of her room, I knew all day. I just…I couldn’t tell you.”

The look of betrayal in Vinyl’s eyes cut Shining’s soul free from his body, emptying his lungs and leaving him feeling lifeless. It wasn’t supposed to be revealed like this, it wasn’t supposed to happen like this!

“What..?” Vinyl stood up and backed away from Shining. “What-what did she do to me?” Vinyl slammed her hoof into the floor, causing the shelves on the wall to shake from the impact. “What did she do to me, Shining?!”

His mother walked over to Twilight to avoid the conflict and ushered the filly into one of the bedrooms. Good, Shining didn’t want either of them to hear any of this. Especially Twilight. Twily’s perception of Cadance couldn’t be shattered by him, it had to be Cadance or Celestia to do that.

“She just…she told you to be happy. She told you ignore everything that made you sad and just to be happy.” Shining shook his head. “I-I couldn’t tell you, I couldn’t. You looked…you looked so genuinely happy, you looked refreshed and free.” Shining collapsed from the weight of the truth and started to break down. “I messed up, I should’ve told you. I should’ve told Celestia. I should’ve told Galea. I just couldn’t take that happiness away from you, Vinyl. I didn’t want to be just another pony who had ripped something good away from you, even if it was done to you in a bad way.” He felt broken, he felt useless and lost. He had tried his best to make sure everything happened in the right way, he had tried.

“I-” Vinyl closed her eyes and focused, trying to figure out what she was really feeling. Shining could see the internal fight laid out clearly on her exterior, the tensed posture and scrunched up face in contained anger. “I-It’s-I forgive you, Twinkle.” Shining looked at Vinyl incredulously, no way this was Vinyl talking. It had to be the spell. “Believe it or not, you're the first pony in a decade to even try and really help me. Sky, Uncle B, even my friends who all came and went, they all tried to talk, but they never tried to help. They never forced me to confront all of the bullshit in my life like you have. I think you’ve done enough for me that I can forgive a surge of shitty judgement at least once, right?”

Shining stood up and wiped the tears from his eyes, he kept his gaze to the floor. He still couldn’t look her in the eyes. Not that he had a choice in the end, Vinyl used her hoof to raise his chin. Behind her eyes was the kind of inexorable sadness that Shining knew from Vinyl. It was masked by a light sheen of happiness, but it was still there. She may be a bit happier, but this was still Vinyl. She still made this decision to forgive him, it may have been influenced, but he thought that this one was one-hundred percent Vinyl.

“It’ll be okay, Twinkle.” Vinyl said with a reassuring smile as she planted a kiss on his cheek. “We just have to figure out a way to get a princess bent on making you hers to stop and leave you alone forever. How hard can it be?” There was the wit Shining knew and loved, it brought a small smile to his face. “What’s the plan?”

“Leave.” That was Shining’s one and only plan, just high-tail it out of the apartment and get away from this part of town. He didn’t know if Cadance could track ponies like some guards could, but he hoped that she did not have that particular skill. “We need to get as far away from this apartment as we can and hide out somewhere until Celestia can talk Cadance down.”

“You really think Celestia can convince her to back down?” Vinyl asked, worry clouding her face. “I mean, what happens if she can’t?” Vinyl was worrying over nothing. If there was one pony in the entire universe that could stop Cadance from doing something, it was a much more powerful and older alicorn.

“It’s Princess Celestia. She’ll see that what Cadance is doing is wrong and fix it. Celestia always does the right thing, that’s her thing.” Shining knew that Celestia was the more virtuous of the two alicorns and the more level headed. She would see Cadance corrected, as long as she got the letter before Cadance left the palace.

“Well where should we go?” That question was much more difficult to answer. Shining had friends in Canterlot, but none of them were exactly the social kind who would accept guests on such a short notice. He couldn’t go to his parents’ house, that would be the next place Cadance would look. Well, there was one option that was a bit of a long shot, but Shining knew that he could never say no.

“Soarin.” Shining was pretty confident with that answer. “I know the apartments where the Wonderbolts stay when they’re training, and I don’t think he’ll refuse if I say it’s urgent.” Maybe it was imposing a little on the pegasus, but Shining knew that the Wonderbolt would agree with a smile and a joke. That was just his style.

“Shining, we’ve sent the letter to Princess Celestia.” His mother and sister came out of the guest room he had been staying in. The first thing he noticed was Twilight’s hanging head and tear-filled eyes. Mom had told her about Cadance, about what her foalsitter had done. “We’re going to go home and get your father.” Velvet approached Shining and pulled him into a deep embrace. “We’re going to Baltimare for a few days to wait this out. Please please contact me when it’s all over.” Shining nodded as he hugged his mother, wondering just how long this mess would take to sort out. How long until they could come back without the fear of Cadance casting spells on them all to make things go the way she wanted. How long would it be until Shining could guarantee his family that kind of safety? The questions only made him hug his mother tighter.

“Twily…” He addressed his little sister once he pulled himself away from Velvet. He put a hoof on the filly’s shoulder. “It’ll be okay, alright?” He couldn’t promise that, but he could at least try to convince her of that fact. “Princess Celestia will sort this all out and everything will go back to normal.”

“No it won’t,” Twilight replied, her voice low and defeated. “How can somepony use magic like that? Magic is supposed to help us make our lives easier, not make others’ harder. How could she hurt you guys like that?” Shining’s shoulder sagged, he didn’t really have a response to that. Twilight looked to Vinyl, a faint glow of determination in her eyes. “I’m sorry for what happened to you, Vinyl. I promise that I’ll make sure it never happens to anypony else ever again.”

“Don’t worry about it, Squirt.” Vinyl said, lowering herself to Twily’s level. “You focus on becoming the best magician in Equestria before you start worrying about me, alright? I’m going to have your brother worrying about me for a decade now if I’m lucky.” Vinyl smiled and stood back up and looked at Velvet. “Take care, both of you.”

“You too, Vinyl Scratch,” Velvet responded as she trotted to the door with Twilight in tow. “Shining, please be careful and leave as soon as you can.” Shining nodded and followed his family to the door. He gave them both a final hug and saw them on their way. It hurt to see them so scared to the point of fleeing the only city they had called home. The question of whether he could have stopped this still raced through his head and kept the guilt flowing.

“Should we get going, Twinkle?” Vinyl asked him, breaking him out of whatever stupor he had been in. “Do you need to get your armor on first?” It would take too much time, really. Plus it would make him an easier target to pick out.

“No, better to go without. It would just slow me down.” Shining sighed and steeled himself. Trying to run from an alicorn for fear of being mind-controlled was not a thing he ever thought he would do. “Grab whatever you need and we’ll get going.” Tonight was going to be very stressful, Shining could feel it.

Cadance sat atop a roof that overlooked Vinyl’s apartment building. Pale moonlight bathed the streets in an eerie dim light and illuminated the edifices around her. Her eyes were fixed on the window she knew to be Vinyl’s. Lights were still on inside and silhouettes of ponies moved in front of the light.

That wouldn’t do. Cadance had decided that a direct confrontation would be bad, Shining would be able to talk her down and guilt-trip her. She couldn’t let that happen this time, she needed to make sure she could get everything back to normal without any roadblocks. So to circumvent that, she would sneak in when they were asleep and cast spells on them then. Simple, clean, no fighting back. It would set everything right in less than an hour and everypony could go back to being happy.

Lights switched off in the apartment, even the one in Vinyl’s room. Cadance waited a good ten minutes, her vision focused intently on the bedroom where Vinyl and Shining both might be. Once she was satisfied that the ponies in the house were either asleep or drifting, she alighted from her perch and glided over to the window.

Cadance couldn’t see anything in the pitch black room, not even movement. As quietly as she could, she grasped the lock on the other side of the window with her magic and dislodged it. If she knew a muffling spell, it would be helpful here, but that wasn’t the case. She would just have to take it slow.

So that’s what she did. With great patience and care, she slowly slid the window open until there was enough room for her to slide in with the help of some slight levitation magic. Once inside she made her way to the bed and lit her horn up once more.

The room was illuminated in a soft blue light, revealing everything to Cadance. Nopony was here. The room was cluttered and messy, the bedspread tossed to one side with no Vinyl underneath them. That was not a good thing.

Cadance frowned as she trudged across the room and opened the door that led to the main living space. Not a light was on, and nopony was present in this room either. Shining Armor was not sleeping on the couch, nor was Twilight. It was silent, dead and abandoned.

To make sure she wasn’t missing anything, Cadance went into the guest room, or Vinyl’s parents’ room, just to make sure. Once again, she came up empty hooved and only found herself angry.

“They left,” was her conclusion that did nothing but raise her ire. Somepony had tipped them off that she was coming. After the guards had tried to prevent her from leaving, Cadance could guess that it was one of Shining’s guard buddies.

She stomped back to the living room with a scowl on her face and her horn glowing angrily. It was ruined now, the whole plan! It was supposed to be so easy! It was supposed to make everything better! Now she had to wait for them here or go and hunt them down. With how badly things needed to go back to normal, Cadance needed to get this done tonight. It had to be done while Velvet was out of the picture and she could get all three of them in one night.

Everypony just had to go and ruin things! They had to make things so complicated when she had the answer for how to fix it! If everypony just treated her like Celestia and let her do what she knew was best, it would make this whole predicament a lot easier. Instead, now she had to find them and do it the hard way.

Cadance was still very mad and felt the need to break something, an indulgence she had not given into in a very long time. For years it had been up to her to act proper and keep her poise in every situation. That kind of stress of always being perfect was starting to wear on her.

Why was it that she was bound to that kind of pageantry? Celestia had said they were above the regular ponies, that they could do things without repercussions if they didn’t get caught. But why did it matter if they were caught? What could anypony do to them? What punishment could they face? Why were they held to such high standards if no single creature on the planet could hold them to it?

It was ridiculous. They could control the sun and moon! It was obvious that they had enough power to do whatever they wanted. Even Celestia had admitted that they knew better than the rest of the world, that they were free t intervene and make decisions without consequence.

Well, now Cadance was going to exercise that freedom of power. She knew what Shining needed to be happy, whether he agreed or not. They needed each other for all to be right in the world, she knew that deep down and wanted to make it back to that kind of right.

“Don’t worry, Shiny. I’ll find you,” Cadance said to herself as she exited through the window she had entered through. Once outside she opened her wings and took to the skies, her eyes trained on the streets below.

Not many ponies were out at this time of night, so the two brilliantly white unicorns with blue manes would be easy to see at a distance. In any situation they would stand out in a crowd if they were side by side. Now in the dead streets of Canterlot at night, they would be easy prey.

Cadance knew they had about a ten minute head start, and if they were truly trying to evade her, they would not gallop through the streets. Instead, she had to look down alleys and pay close attention to the shadows to look for any sign of the duo.

It wasn’t until Cadance was above the city center that she saw the pair of ponies plodding patiently around the outskirts of the rounded open-air market. Perhaps she beat her wings too heavily, or maybe she cast a shadow, but the two were alerted to her presence. Two pairs of eyes, one magenta and one cobalt, shot up and locked onto her position.

“Shiny! I need to talk to you,” she called down to the stalled ponies.

Shining Armor threw up a shimmering pink bubble as soon as Cadance started to descend. He didn’t know if the princess knew any spells for specifically breaking his barriers, but it would at least buy them time.

“Scratch, I’m going to try and distract her,” Shining said quietly and without turning as Cadance crept ever closer. “When I tell you to, I want you to run. Just run to Soarin’s place and I’ll meet you there. It’s a block and a half away.” It was a supremely dumb idea, because if anypony found out what he was about to do it would lead to him being in a dungeon by sunrise. It was necessary, though.

“Okay, I’m going to trust you here, Twinkle. Just don’t get yourself killed or mind controlled, alright?” There was genuine worry and distress in Vinyl’s voice, something that just reminded Shining of everything he had done. He was going to make this right by the end of the night if it cost him everything he held dear.

“I promise I’ll be fine, Vinyl.” A hollow promise to be sure, but one that needed to be given. After the promise was made, he turned his full attention back to the alicorn who was now approaching the bubble on hoof.

“Shiny, please put down the bubble,” Cadance said, rolling her eyes as if he had made a bad joke. “I just want to talk.” All three of them knew that was a lie, a rather bold one at that. Why did Cadance think they were running if they didn’t know her motives?

“You and I must have a different definition of ‘talk’, Cadance. I don’t seem to think that intending to cast a spell on myself, Vinyl, and Twilight counts as talking.” He lowered his stance and put himself between Cadance and Vinyl. “Now I’m only going to tell you once, Cadance. Leave.” He did his best to sound authoritative and menacing, but it was thrown back in his face with a dismissive laugh.

“Or what, Shiny?” Cadance asked, a bright smile crossing her features. “Are you going to call the guards on me? Are you going to overpower and try to hurt me?” Every word was dripping with overconfidence, oozing with an air of superiority that Shining had never heard from Cadance before. Something had switched in the alicorn, something had either broken or clicked. For his part, he stayed silent. “Just drop the bubble, Shiny. Drop it and everything can go back to the way it should be, all of this will just be a bad dream you hardly remember.”

“What if I don’t want to forget it?” Shining fired back. “Why don’t you think I can be happy without you? What makes you think I would even want you back if you put a spell on me? What you did was wrong, it was sick and I should’ve never let you get away with any of it. I told you before, I’m not ever going to forgive you. I can’t.” Shining narrowed his eyes. “You won’t make me happy now, and I don’t know if you ever really did.”

“How dare you.” Cadance stepped closer, her eyes going wide and tears forming at the corners. “I love you, Shiny. I’ve always loved you as much as you loved me. Think back, think of the time we spent together and tell me it wasn’t real.”

“I don’t know if it was!” Shining screamed at the top of his lungs. “I don’t know if I was under open of your spells any time I looked at you and thought how beautiful you were! I don’t know if I ever meant it when I said I loved you! I don’t know if anything I ever did when I was around you was because I wanted to do it or because you wanted me to!” Shining was pouring all of his hurt out now, all of his sorrow and disappointment. “That’s all I’ve been thinking about since I figured out what you did to me. How much of it was real? How much of it was genuine and how much was just something you cooked up to make yourself happy? Until I figure it out, I’m just going to assume it was all fake, it was all just some sort of sick control fantasy you’ve been playing out for years.”

“It was real to me, Shiny.” Cadance responded quietly, giving no sense of confidence to Shining. Of course it was real to her, she made it real. She conformed all of it to her ideals and made it reality.

“Vinyl, when this bubble goes down. Run.” He spoke so quietly that only Vinyl could possibly hear him. He felt a hoof touch his flank, hopefully a signal of affirmation. Shining focused all of his magical energy to the exterior of the barrier, supercharging it with a spell he had learned in crowd control class in the academy. Cadance, in all of her overconfidence, did not back up or even flinch, giving Shining the perfect opportunity.

All at once, he made the interior of the bubble go completely dark and detonated the outer shell he had been charging. He heard the ringing of the flashbang spell even from inside of the protective spell, but couldn’t witness the effects. He knew what it did to a pony though, and assuming Cadance had been incapacitated, he dropped the bubble.

He didn’t turn, but he heard Vinyl’s hooves as they struck pavement in rapid succession. Now he was too focused on the princess that was on the ground a few feet away, her eyes closed and hooves over her ears. Her wings were flared out as well, each feather standing on end in a display of anger and intimidation.

“I can’t-I can’t see!” Cadance cried out as she attempted to clear out her sight by blinking rapidly. Her pupils were the size of pin pricks and not getting any bigger to adjust to the light level. Shining felt something in his gut, something he could not shake. It was pity, it was pain over the thing he had to do.

“You’ll be fine, Cadance.” Shining reassured the stunned alicorn. “It will only last a couple of minutes, and you’ll be back to normal.” He sighed and approached Cadance, kneeling just in front of her. “You need to let me go. You need to just move on and accept your mistakes, because you can’t keep this up forever.” He wanted to have some semblance of a friendly relationship with Cadance, even after all of this. He knew that deep down she was a good pony who only made mistakes, just like Vinyl. With time and help she could make amends and rectify her actions. He was willing to help, even if he wasn’t willing to love her anymore.

“Why won’t you let me fix this?!” Cadance slammed her hoof into the ground. “Why won’t you let me make this right, Shiny?!” Tears streamed from the alicorn’s currently non-functioning eyes.

“Fix it by doing what? Casting a spell on me to make me forget all of this?” Shining shook his head. “It’s too late. My mom knows, Twilight knows, Vinyl knows and is going to tell more ponies. Even Princess Celestia knows. Are you going to cast spells on everypony just to get what you want?” Shining sighed and sat on his haunches, hoping that by just talking to her he could get through.

“I-if I have to!” Now Shining wasn’t sure if he could. How do you convince a pony that has had everything they could ever want given to them that there was something they couldn’t ever have? It wasn’t impossible, but it was far too difficult for him.

“Go back to the palace, Cadance.” Shining said with a sigh as he stood and turned around. “I can’t help you get past this if you won’t even admit you did something wrong.” Shining took a step, trying to block out the soft sobs coming from the alicorn.

“Sh-shiny…?” He did something he knew he would regret, Shining Armor turned to face Cadance. Before he could react, a surge of magic encased him and immobilized every part of his body. “I don’t need my eyes to cast spells…” Shining struggled and fought, even lighting his own horn in an attempt to brute force his way out. Cadance’s aura wouldn’t give, though. Instead of retreating, it only advanced. Tendrils of magic seeped into his body, weaving their way through every vessel and muscle until he felt them worm their way into his mind.

The tendrils prodded his memories, searching for specific ones. As they did, each one flashed vividly through his mind and brought back all of the emotions associated with it. His first kiss, first day of training, breaking his leg, meeting Vinyl Scratch. Each one came and went, obviously unimportant to their mistress’ tasks.

It wasn’t until he felt one of the tendrils wrap itself tightly around one of his memories and rip it free that he knew what was happening. Whatever memory it was, Shining didn’t know. It didn’t exist anymore. It was a moment, a tender one he would never see again. Now for every moment that passed, another one was taken away and ripped free.

“CADENZA!” A voice rang through the streets of Canterlot, booming and dangerous. The light of the moon was replaced with one comparable to that of the sun, as night turned to day in an instant. Shining opened his eyes, tears slipping away from them over the pain of losing something he would never remember. Coming down from the very heavens was the most welcoming sight he had ever seen.

Princess Celestia, her wings spread wide and horn generating more light than Shining ever thought possible, descended from on high and hovered above the city center, her eyes burning bright.

It was at that moment that every door and window in or near the center were thrown open and ponies streamed out into the open to witness the spectacle of Celestia’s peak power. Cadance looked around, taking in everything that was happening, and dropped Shining Armor from her grasp.

Shining collapsed, grasping at things that he knew were important. He came here with someone, he had-he had told them to do something. He had been running from Cadance because she had…done something. Something bad, right? What was it, though? Who was he running from her with? The name was a blank spot, a hole in the fabric of his memories. Cadance had not been gentle nor precise, instead ripping out whatever mention of this other pony she could, and that was terrifying.

“Get back to the castle and do not leave your room until I get back.” Celestia touched down, the pavement around her hooves scorching and sizzling from heat. Cadance did not move, instead she cowered away from the monarch before her. “Now.” There was no yelling now, only simple commands spoken in a level tone, which was far more terrifying given the raw output of energy Celestia was exhibiting. “Now.”

“I-I-I was just...I was doing what you said, I was trying to do a good thing with my position, my power! I was trying to set it all right! I was trying to stop Shining from self-destructing just like Luna did.” Cadance’s plea was not met with patience and understanding like expected, instead it was met with the most frightening scowl cross Celestia’s place.

“Do not even dare compare anything to her.” Celestia spoke slowly. “I never told you to violate every ethics law we have. I never instructed you to take away Vinyl Scratch’s free will and attempt to mind control Twilight Velvet. I never directed you to hunt two innocent ponies down like they were prey so you could rewrite them.” Each word Celestia spoke only raised the volume and intensity in her voice. “Now go back to the castle and wait for me to get you.”

Cadance opened her mouth to speak again, but closed it and instead bowed to the older alicorn. Celestia’s eyes tracked Cadance as she flew away towards the palace, then her gaze refocused on Shining Armor.

He was still battling with the inescapable gaps left in his memory. Each one only left him feeling more and more confused, more lost and alone. It was like he had lost one of his senses and was now stumbling around blind in his own head. There was a pony shaped hole in his mind, one that only left him anxious and sad.

“Shining Armor…” A gentle heat encompassed him, cradling him and helping the stallion to his hooves. “Are you alright?” Shining Armor looked up to the monarch, his eyes wide with worry.

“I’m so sorry, Princess.” He mumbled out. “I-I didn’t-I failed. I forgot about…something. Something important.” Shining knocked his head with his hoof. “You told me to do something with somepony, and I-I can’t remember.” That was the worst of it, the sense of failure coming from it all, like he hadn’t protected something he was supposed to.

“Shhh…” He felt more magic seep into his mind, this kind much more gentle than the last. It pulsed softly and began to lull him to sleep. “It will all be alright, I will fix this.” With those last words, Shining was pulled into the darkness of unconsciousness.

Vinyl stood at the entrance of the Wonderbolts’ apartment building. She had ignored all of the sounds coming from the direction she had left from and tried to push every image of Twinkle out of her head. He could handle himself, he knew what he was doing. She had to keep reminding herself of that. He was a guard after all, nothing could take him down. Right?

She sighed and trotted inside of the building. Inside was a simple entryway, a locked elevator on the other side. Between the door and the elevator was a box mounted on the wall with names next to buttons. Vinyl approached the box, found Soarin’s name and pressed the button next to it, eliciting a buzz from the box.

“Hello, Soarin speaking.” The voice came from the little box almost immediately. It was the same smooth, almost joking voice that she knew belonged to the stallion who would have to offer her refuge.

“Soarin, It’s Vinyl Scratch.” Vinyl spoke into the box. “It’s-It’s an emergency. Shining Armor sent me here and told me you could help.” There was a pause when she was done talking before Soarin spoke again.

“Come on up.” The voice lost its mirth instantly as it spoke. Once the connection was terminated, the elevator door opened and allowed Vinyl to enter. Wanting to get safely to her destination as quickly as possible, Vinyl entered the elevator and allowed it to carry her upwards.

Once it stopped, she exited and found herself face to face with a single door. As far as she could tell, it was the only door on this entire floor. At least the Wonderbolts were never left wanting anything, she supposed.

Approaching the solitary door, she reached out and prepared to knock only to be intercepted by the door opening itself. On the other side was the bluish gray pegasus she knew as Soarin, his usual smile was gone and bags weighed heavily under his eyes.

“Is everything okay? Where’s Shining Armor?” The pegasus pulled Vinyl into his very luxurious apartment. She only had a moment or two to observe the rich golden carpets and seemingly real leather furniture before Soarin dominated her line of sight. “Is he okay?”

“I hope.” That did nothing but cause the stallion to breathe in sharply. “We think Cadance has lost it. She cast a spell on me earlier, apparently and Velvet, and now we think that she wants to try to mind-control Shining into loving her again.” That was the very short and very sloppy answer. “He distracted her with some kind of flash spell and I think he ran away.”

“You think?” Soarin questioned.

“I didn’t stay around, alright?” Vinyl responded, guilt creeping into her heart. “He told me to run here while he distracted her, so I did.” Vinyl didn’t like the look Soarin was giving her, it made her feel small and insecure. “What was I supposed to do? I’m just some grade D unicorn, not a super powerful royal guard or an alicorn princess.”

“I’m sorry.” Soarin said, putting a hoof to his face. “That was rude of me, I-I’m just worried now is all.” Soarin ushered Vinyl over to one of his sofas, of which he had two, that faced the giant floor-to-ceiling windows that stretched the length of the room.

“Join the club…” Vinyl sighed. “I didn’t want to leave him, but he promised me he would be okay. He promised he would get away.” That was the only small comfort she had, a promise. Something she had put no stock in for years, but now she was clinging to.

“Well you can stay here.” Soarin said with a smile. “If Shining isn’t back by morning, we’ll go looking. I have a feeling he’ll be at the palace if nothing else.” Well, if he didn’t show, that would mean Cadance had gotten him. So the palace would be the safest bet.

She would wait for Shining Armor regardless of the outcome. If Cadance had him, she would wait until something could be done. For now, she would wait for him to come and get her.

She would wait for however long it took.