Buck Nothing

Chapters

Temptation
Insinuation
Revelation
Absolution
Regeneration
Reunion

Temptation

Dearest Lemony Gems,

I'm writing this letter to you because I have been transferred to Canterlot from field service - yes, actually in the castle, although I can't say I'm thrilled about it because who else is there...

I don't know when I'll be able to see you again. I wish I had known you were in Canterlot when those griffons came around, so that I could've written a letter telling you where to meet me. I can't ask for leave, talking to my new CO is too painful a prospect for that. Please write me back if you do decide to go to Canterlot again, miss you so dearly...

Having lots of new experiences working the night shift. I must say those bat ponies are certainly very different from even the pegasi. I heard the griffon defector is going to come on the night shift eventually as well - that's going to be even more interesting. Haven't met Princess Luna, honestly not sure if I ever want to - there's so many rumors and no easy way to tell what's true or not.

Oh yes, almost forgot! I'm going to be a speaker at the award dinner for Terry Broadshank - you probably remember all the times I bored you with facts about his career - that's set later this week. Princess Celestia's going to be the one giving the award, of course - I don't think I've been this nervous about anything in a long time! Maybe you can come to that dinner and watch me speak...

I can't think of anything else to put here. Love you lots, hope to see you soon.

Forever and always yours,
Guard Lower Class Buck Withers, Canterlot Division Night Shift, E.U.P. Guard

The above letter, sent to Lemony Gems in Ponyville, in reality downplayed the constant nerves Buck was experiencing the first few days after the transfer to Canterlot. He picked up a few hostile stares from the Lieutenants - Buck's best guess was that they remembered his visit from earlier in their careers and subsequently despised him as a result. The fact that he had been chosen to speak at the upcoming award dinner got him more unwanted attention. Finally, the "official" formation of Guard LARPing and Tabletop RPG groups placed Buck firmly on the wrong side of the popular trends - never a good thing in the Canterlot Guard.

The posters for the new groups were everywhere as Buck proceeded toward the offices of Captain Gibraltar and the Lieutenant Captains. LARPing (or Live Action Roleplaying), Oubliettes and Ogres, Hocus Pocus: The-Get-Together... all haunting him like ghosts of a past he'd rather not remember. The posters all bore the sun cutie mark of Princess Celestia - the mark of a royally endorsed activity. Not participating in such activities not only got you criticism, it actively hurt your future career prospects in the Royal Guard.

Buck was a bundle of nerves as he approached the door to the office of Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor, the "what-ifs" filling his mind. What if he was denied? What if he was berated for his past sins? What if he was told to ask Princess Celestia herself, despite that being against Guard regulations? It took all his willpower just to knock on the door.

"Yes, what is it?" Shining Armor was heard saying, his face hidden behind the folder of paperwork he was assembling, sheets floating around covered in magenta colored magic as the folder was put together.

"Guard Lower Class Buck... Withers, sir. Here for... exemption for award dinner..." Buck replied, his voice having an unusual halting shyness in tone.

"Oh yes, the exemption to be around Princess Celestia." Shining comments in an off-handed tone, the face remaining hidden behind the folder. A sheet surrounded by magenta-colored magic is floated toward Buck as Shining continues his work.

"Take this, fill it out, turn it in to the Captain at the end of your shift." Shining explains in deadpan as Buck grabs the sheet out of mid-air.

"... That's it, sir?" Buck asks, again getting the "missing something" feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"That's it. Unless there's something else you want to discuss, Guard." Shining replies, the folder still blocking direct view of his face.

"No, sir." Buck quickly replies, cutting off the possibility of an awkward silence that would eventually have to be answered in some way.

"Assignments are going to be given out in 10 minutes, Guard. Better report to the Lieutenant." Shining states as a reminder, and the sound of Buck's hooves clopping on the floor as he exits the office seems to be indication that he had taken that advice.

It's only after Buck is out of sight that Shining Armor drops to the desk the folder he was working on, lets out a sigh accompanied by an eyeroll, then quickly continues on the work in front of him...

Buck Withers was still en route to report into his Lieutenant when he finds his way blocked by a strange figure - completely cloaked, and with stockings tied around his hooves. Except for glowing red eyes, Buck has no idea who or what he's looking at.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Buck asks, wondering if he had run into somepony that shouldn't be there.

"It is true that you have a jawline a Guard helmet can't hide, Buck Withers." the figure comments.

"How do you know my name? Do I know you?" Buck asks again, his tone more insistent this time.

"I have my sources, Buck. My name is Snake in the Grass. I am leader of the Agents of Chaos, and I have an offer to make to you." the figure answers.

"I'm not interested in any of your offers!" Buck exclaims, his face contorting into a scowl.

"Not even if they involved Princess Cadance?" Snake tries, and immediately Buck's face flips to a surprised expression.

Buck pauses for a moment, then briefly looks around to see if anypony else is watching. Snake can see it in Buck's eyes - being spurned by a princess, particularly publicly, is not something one gets over easily after all. He can see Buck still wants her, still wants revenge, way deep down under the layers he's put on over the years since high school. Like so many before him, Buck was easy prey to the temptations Snake offered - promise a heart's desire to get followers and pawns in his schemes. With Buck, that deep down desire for revenge made him easy to sway.

"How does this involve Cadance?" Buck finally asks, dropping to a stage whisper as he speaks.

"You cooperate with me, Shining Armor goes away, Cadance is all yours again." Snake simply states, the metaphorical bombshell detonating with the intended effect.

"Yes, I see it in your eyes. You've never gotten over the high school dumping, have you?"

"No, no I haven't." Buck agrees, that fire in his eyes flaring brighter as his expression changes to determination.

"Then I will give you the means to get the revenge you've kept repressed for so long." Snake states, reaching into the cloak and pulling out a small stack of papers.

"What are these?" Buck asks as he takes the stack.

"You read them in place of whatever speech you had prepared for the upcoming award dinner. Two of your fellow Agents will do the rest." Snake explains. "I hereby dub you 'Agent WB'. You do your job, Agent, and you will be rewarded with Cadance herself."

"I understand... sir." Buck replies somewhat hesitantly, quickly shoving the papers into the duty bag he was wearing.

"Good luck then, Agent. Do not fail me." Snake affirms, turning away and around a corner. He stops and hears Buck Withers continuing on his way with a double-time march, doubtless because of not wanting to think too much about what he was getting into.

"Perfect. That fool will get the shining one out of our way for good. With him gone, our resurrection of the chaotic one will not be hindered much longer." Snake says to himself, following this with a chuckle that only one set on evil and chaos could make...

Insinuation

"Your Majesty, is it true you once walked the dreams of your subjects to help them face their fears and learn important life lessons?"

"Yes, Lieutenant Captain, we did this in the days before our corruption as one of our duties as ruler of Equestria. It will still be some time before we can take on this duty again, we are still too weak. We are curious, though, as to why you ask such a question? It was only in the records of the Thestrals that this knowledge was preserved, so it is not now common knowledge."

"One of my command has been having greatly troubled sleep. Questions to the Lieutenant in charge of the squad he is part of have produced no effect, and when I approached the member of my command in question he insists that there is no trouble. I was hoping that Your Majesty might be able to help with this problem."

"Sadly, there is nothing we can do. The walking of dreams was one of the powers taken from us by the Elements of Harmony, and we do not know when it will be restored to us..."

The preceding conversation between Princess Luna and Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor, as the reader might've already guessed, was in reference to the nightmares which began striking Guard Lower Class Buck Withers after he had secretly joined the Agents of Chaos. These nightmares were not ones born of fear, but rather of a raging conscience - something Buck had long shoved down but now no longer could keep in check.

The tossing and turning in his bunk during Buck's attempts at sleep was reflective of the struggle within him between two different insistent voices. One was the burning fire of anger and revenge, wanting and longing for the high school "injustice" to be repaid on Shining Armor. The other threw the harshest of accusations at him: "selfish", "self-destructive", "traitor", "hypocrite". And the worst part was that Buck didn't know which voice to listen to - he had kept himself going all those years on the prospects of getting Cadance again, but he also knew the accusing conscience was right. Buck knew he couldn't have it both ways, but choosing either way seemed to have an unacceptably high cost.

These nightmares took him back through the years between the high school humiliation and his present condition. The first important scene took place shortly after Cadance's dumping of him - about eight years before the present - between him and his parents...

For Buck Withers, looking at his Congresspony father was almost like looking at an older version of himself: aggressive, attention-seeking, always needing to be in the spotlight. It served a naturally disadvantaged earth pony well, but that kind of ambition was very much a double-edged sword, and it was at this point that it would start to destroy the future of Buck and his family.

Buck's view of the father he so much resembled in appearance and behavior - Buck inherited his distinctive jawline from his father - and the former "trophy wife" that was Buck's mother, was misted with tears. After all, even the toughest of jocks could crack under the humiliation Buck had experienced.

"Son," the father began to say as a forehoof was gently placed on Buck's shoulder, "you know I would go to the ends of Equestria to get you what you want, and this rejection is hurting me as much as it does you. I promise you that I will do everything I can to get her back. You understand, son?"

Buck gives a nod through a sniffle. At the time, he didn't understand, or even care to try to understand, what those words meant. All he wanted was Cadance back, but he had unwittingly given his father the means of the destruction of the life he knew...

The next part of the nightmare was set two years after that time, as Buck's world unraveled around him. First Flank Thrasher's arrest, then his father's public humiliation and resignation, and finally the end of the dream of professional polo playing. At the time, he nearly lost Lemony Gems as well, and the charged conversation between them now served as evidence of his selfishness:

"I can't believe this! Is this what you've been doing for the past two years, using me to get back with Cadance?!" Lemony Gems exclaimed in the classic "hell hath no fury" scenario.

"Lemon dear, that's not true! I didn't know what my dad was doing! Honest!" Buck exclaimed in return, the dismay all too obvious in his face.

"Liar, you're continuing to lie to me! What are Diamond Rose and me really? 'Sloppy seconds'? 'Tools'?" Lemony Gems accuses.

"You are the love of my life, Lemony Gems. Nothing will change that. You've gotta believe me!" Buck continues.

"If you will not get over losing Cadance, you bucking selfish prig, then it'll be easy for me to get over you! Shining Armor is a far better stallion than you'll ever be! Always has been, always will be!" Lemony continues, throwing words like flaming darts, and even an echo in the mind's eye is enough to make Buck wince.

"Lemon dear, I don't..." Buck tries, his voice quite apathetic.

"Don't call me that! We are done, Buck! Done! Get out of my sight, you pig!" Lemony Gems spits out, turning away in anger and leaving Buck both speechless and heartbroken, standing alone in a world imploding around him...

Buck considered himself lucky that evidence came out that his father had indeed kept information from him, because otherwise Lemony Gems would never have reconciled with him if that information had not come out. Buck had no idea of the kind of shadowy connections his father had - he dreaded the thought that his Congresspony father had been one of those "Agents of Chaos" once - and when the younger stallion confronted his father about them, it broke the relationship for good:

"I thought I told you never to come back to the house!" the older stallion stated angrily.

"Dad, I just want to know why you didn't tell me about these things, what you were doing! Please!" Buck all but pleads to his father.

"There are things that never should've seen the light of Princess Celestia's sun. Things that should never gotten into the public eye. And now those things are exposed, all because I tried to help you! Everything I have worked for is gone, all because of you!"

"Dad, please...!"

"Don't call me that!" the older stallion roars out, instantly putting Buck back into silence. "You are not my colt, not anymore! I am writing you out of my will, and I never want to see your face again as long as I live! You have three minutes to get out of this house and out of my life, FOREVER!"

Buck is so stunned by what has just been said that the only thing he can do is turn and walk away in stone silence, the only indication of his grief being the tears he dares to let trickle down his face...

Buck Withers had never heard from his parents - the Congresspony father Strong Withers and Strong's wife Lilly Withers - since that day, and after joining the E.U.P. Guard he talked about them as little as possible. He guessed they were living in isolation now, possibly under different names, but there was no way of knowing for sure. The talk of the Agents of Chaos had brought up speculation of who might've been in that organization in the past, and Strong Withers was one of the many names tossed about in that speculation.

If this was true, that meant Buck was now involved in the same organization that had destroyed his previous life. That alone ought to have repulsed any decent stallion, but again Buck found himself lured in by the siren song of revenge and resentment against Shining Armor, of the fame he would gain if he could help bring him down in disgrace. Like it seemed to Princess Luna all those centuries ago, evil seemed the easiest way to get what he wanted...

Revelation

The night of the award dinner had come. During the hours before, Guard Lower Class Buck Withers had kept his mind off what he was supposed to do by polishing his Guard armor to a gleaming shine, but now it was just him, his thoughts and the butterflies in his stomach as he sat behind the Canterlot ballroom stage.

He had peeked at the speech he was supposed to deliver: a scathing but unsupported attack, accusing Shining Armor of being unfaithful to Princess Cadance by sleeping in the chambers of Princess Luna - and just maybe willingly losing his virginity to her unnoticed by anypony else. Presumably, there were other Agents waiting in the audience to provide support of these claims. The speech would sure seriously damage, if not outright destroy, Shining Armor's career. He could almost taste the sugar cube sweet revenge in his mouth, so why was he still not comfortable wanting to do it?

Yes, Buck knew who was out there. On the stage was Princess Celestia, Shining Armor as the "official escort" for the night, and the instantly recognizable black-on-yellow "pinto" coloration of Terry Broadshanks himself. In the audience, besides the almost-obligatory presence of Fancy Pants and Fleur Dis Lee, was many of Terry's former Steelhooves teammates. The Steelhooves had won four Equestrian Professional Polo Championships when Terry was team captain, and Buck grew up admiring many of these players. Doubtless the presence of these colthood heroes was making it harder for Buck to make up his mind.

One of the few times Buck dared peak out from behind the stage, he noticed two pegasi sitting at a table close to the grand ballroom doors that were clapping hooves overhead - the supposed designated signal that indicated to Buck where his fellow Agents of Chaos were placed. The fact that the pegasi were in a position where they could easily bail if something went wrong was consolation to Buck, but not much.

Buck could hear everypony else outside seeming to have good time - he was just nervous and maybe a little scared, doing a deep breathing exercise to avoid causing a rattling noise in his armor. He knew the power of the words Agent Snake wanted him to speak - words that should've made any decent stallion run away in disgust - and it petrified him. The only thing that kept him from bailing on the whole deal was the sweet promise of what those words would bring, but he couldn't stop his conscience from continuing its reproach.

There was one speaker that went ahead of him in the award ceremony - a white-coated stallion with a brown mustache and odd tastes in clothing. After all, even Guard Lower Class Buck Withers knew straw hats, polka-dot bowties and one-size-too-small suits were most certainly NOT the height of Canterlot fashion! Buck hadn't talked to him - both because of how awkward it would seem and fear of having to reveal the contents of his speech to him - but the others on stage seemed to take his weird fashions in stride. Shining Armor in particular seemed interested in conversing with him, for some reason Buck couldn't fathom.

It was near the time of the speeches now, and as Buck sat waiting for his turn all he wanted to do was to withdraw into himself and wait for the horseshoe to drop when he would be called up to speak. He would decide whether to go through with it or not based on whether he could keep his conscience down long enough to get through that kind of attacking speech.

"Hey, you haven't said a word all night. Are you sure you're alright?" Buck hears a stallion's voice asking him sympathetically, and when he turns to look he finds the strangely dressed stallion sitting beside him.

"Just... nervous." Buck quietly replies, not wanting to make eye contact with the other stallion.

"You're Buck Withers, right? You go after me speaking?" the other stallion asks after a moment's silence.

"Yeah, Guard Lower Class." Buck again replies, still quiet and avoiding eye contact.

"Could've guessed from the armor." the other stallion replies with a chuckle. "Me? Everypony calls me 'Magnum', even though that's not my real name - ponies say I look like an old TV show character with that name. I don't have a fancy title or anythin' like that, I just coach hoofball, that's all."

"... That's not even the same sport." Buck states with a very confused tone, finally turning to look at Magnum with a great deal of puzzlement on his face. Once again Buck wondered what exactly this stallion was doing here and why Princess Celestia had invited him to speak in the first place.

"I know, but when a princess of Equestria invites you to speak in honor of a sports celebrity, you don't say no to that kind of invitation." Magnum replies in a matter-of-fact tone, an honest smile playing across his face.

"No, I guess not..." Buck trails off, again averting his gaze from Magnum. He felt himself blush a bit, and just wanted the conversation to be over. He also sensed he was squirming a bit from the awkwardness of the situation - he had to find some way to pull himself together before he collapsed into a nervous wreck.

"It's not right for a Royal Guard to be the kind of nervous you are right now, particularly with the princess around. Here, this might help." Magnum speaks again after another moment's pause, the glow of light brown unicorn magic seen under the straw hat as something is levitated in front of Buck to take.

Buck holds up an armor-shod hoof to take what Magnum was giving him, but what he sees just makes him even more puzzled than before about Magnum. It seems to be some kind of family photograph - Magnum was in one corner, showing him to be a unicorn considering he was hatless in the picture, and sporting a swept-back manestyle that Buck honestly thought was better than the straw hat. The picture also had a pink-coated unicorn mare with a towering purple "beehive mane" - Magnum's wife if Buck had to guess - and seemed to have a homely beauty to her despite the manestyle.

The two unicorn fillies at the bottom at the image were the ones that interested Buck Withers the most though. Both were white coated, the older one seeming to be a teenager and the younger one not more than 6 or 7 years old. The older filly had a deep purple mane and looked rather like she wanted to be anywhere else but at the photoshoot, while the younger one was smiling the biggest, happiest grin you could imagine and had a mane of pastel curls that uncomfortably reminded Buck of Princess Cadance's manestyle.

"Are you sure? I mean, this looks rather important..." Buck trails off, looking back and forth between Magnum and the picture with a bewildered look on his face.

"Aw, don't worry about it. I got plenty of copies of that picture." Magnum replies with a reassuring smile. "You keep it. I'm proud of the family I have, and I'm not afraid to share about it with everypony else."

"Right, got it, OK..." Buck trails off again, still bewildered by the picture balanced on his hoof. It made him ache for the old times, before his father's disgrace broke the bonds he had with father. Add in the curls of the younger filly reminding Buck of Cadance, and the tempest of emotions within him were threatening to overwhelm his self-control.

Buck Withers feels a hoof going onto his shoulder - again, reminding him of his father - and he turns to see Magnum giving him a fatherly smile. There is a brief moment where all Buck can do is just blink back in confusion - he's not even sure what he should say or do at this point.

"I gotta go up to do my speech now, but I know when it's your turn... you'll know what to do." Magnum sagely states, again giving Buck a smile like a father gives to his son, before standing up and starting away to go onstage.

Buck Withers, Guard Lower Class, stares down at the picture Magnum gave him, totally lost as to what Magnum meant or what he should do now...

Now Buck's head was spinning, pulled in five different directions emotionally. He was so distracted by the fighting within himself that he wasn't even listening to Magnum's speech, or any cues that might've indicated when it was his turn. He was entirely lost in a war of his own making.

Buck looked at the picture Magnum had given up, then at the speech he was supposed to give, then blankly at a far wall, which had a number of posters. He glimpsed a stallion in Royal Guard armor on one of the posters, and Buck impulsively looked away when his eyes fell upon it. Again the conscience began condemning him, and again he felt himself in deadlock between its words and the promises of revenge.

He looked down at the picture again, and found himself hating the fillies in it. Then he asked himself why he was hating two fillies that couldn't control the family they were born in or the looks they had inherited. Was it because they reminded Buck of what he had lost? Or was it because they reminded Buck of what he never had, he never could've had?

The second question cuts through the fog of confusion, and the conscience shouts accusing words more loudly. Was Buck Withers, Guard Lower Class, an envious stallion, a jealous stallion? Was he wasting his time, his effort, his second chance in life chasing after what he would never be able to have? Buck knew the answer to all those questions was "yes".

With the answer to that question comes another horseshoe that drops. Buck realized at that moment he was being used as a tool, a pawn of Agent Snake to destroy and create disorder, to hurt Equestria and those that protected it. The wave of shame that follows from this revelation starts pushing back against the temptation of revenge, but does not extinguish it. He still wanted revenge, it still tasted like sugar cubes in his mouth - again, he was at an impasse.

Frustrated, Buck starts looking around again - the picture Magnum had given him, the speech Agent Snake had given him, the posters hanging at the far wall, down at the picture again, to the speech again, then back to the posters... and this time the depiction of the stallion in Royal Guard armor did not repulse him. Buck carefully put down the picture he had been holding and walked over to look at the posters more closely.

Amongst the many event posters Buck found the one with the armored stallion - a recently placed recruitment poster for the E.U.P. Guard. The royal propaganda machine was not above using the relatively recent victory of Twilight Sparkle and the other Element Bearers to push their cause, and the poster admonished that it was "the duty of good Equestrians" to extend their victory by joining the E.U.P. Guard. A poster like this one was the reason he was standing here in the first place, why he had gotten the second chance he now seemed so eager to throw away.

Buck looks back behind from the poster, seeing Magnum speaking on stage watched by Terry Broadshank, Princess Celestia and Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor. He looks to the poster again, back behind again, and the words "concerned classmate" pop into his head seemingly spontaneously. Again Buck looks back and forth between the recruitment poster and the scene onstage, and he has a thought he had never thought before. A thought that, up until that point, he might well have considered impossible. A thought that he would have thought ridiculous if you asked him even five minutes before.

But now, if there was any chance whatsoever that what he thought was true, then there was no way he would go through with the plan Agent Snake wanted him to go through with. He feels something break apart and fall away within him, and the tempting voice of revenge goes silent - for the first time in as long as Buck Withers can remember, his mind is clear and open.

Magnum, having finished his speech, is walking back into the backstage area when he notices Buck having his revelation. The two stallions briefly exchange looks, then Buck nods at Magnum. Before Buck heads out onstage, he stops to tuck away in his armor the picture Magnum gave him. The father of two fillies had been right - Buck did know what to do now...

Absolution

As Guard Lower Class Buck Withers stepped onto the brightly-lit stage ("talk about your symbolism", he thought to himself), he felt a surprising confidence and a fire within him - though not the same fire that had propelled his revenge. That fire had been extinguished forever, but Buck found it had been replaced by something that could drive him forward as much. As he walks, he gives meek looks in the direction of Princess Celestia, Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor, and the celebrity Terry Broadshanks. Buck turns to the podium, forehooves up and the speech papers put in place, and clears his throat.

The array of celebrity and athletic figures before Buck was stunning, and he felt the nerves beginning to strike again. They were all waiting to hear what he had to say, supposedly on Terry Broadshank. At the moment of truth, Buck felt the newly-ignited fire within helping push back the nerves, and slowly he begins his speech:

"Hello to... to you all gathered here tonight to celebrate the lifetime achievements of Terry Broadshank. His career in professional polo is... one of the greatest in the modern history of the sport and certainly worthy of celebration and awards. That's... that's not the main reason I'm speaking tonight though."

At this point, the crowd in front of him - as well as Shining Armor and Terry Broadshanks to his left - exchange confused glances across tables. It seems only Princess Celestia is unfazed, although nopony could tell whether it was from her centuries of practice or one of her many complex plans unfolding as she hoped it would...

"I was... instructed to speak about another stallion instead." Buck continues. "I won't say his name, but you may already know who he is. He is a far better stallion than I will ever be, and if anypony thinks I will be a willing instrument in the slander of a good stallion's name then they can go buck themselves! I am Buck Withers, Guard Lower Class, member of service of Equestrian Royal Guard, and I am not a traitor to the Kingdom of Equestria!"

A short speech, but very much to the point it was trying to make. The puzzlement among the crowd continues over what to make of it exactly, until a single regular pattern of stomping of forehooves breaks through the confused buzz. All eyes, including Buck's, turn in amazement to see it is Terry Broadshanks himself giving the clapping equivalent as a grin lights up his face!

After a moment of silence, both Fancy Pants and Fleur Dis Lee stand up and join in the stomping beat. This produces a cascade until the hall itself rumbles with the equivalent of a standing ovation for Buck Withers. All the Guard Lower Class can do is stare in stunned silence at the audience in front of him as the stomping continues for a good number of seconds.

The only ones not joining in are Princess Celestia, who seems content to observe the scene with a satisfied smile, and a very confused Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor, who notices two pegasi in the very back of the hall try to slip out in the midst of the rumbling din. The door guards block their way, the pegasi try to force their way past the door guards, and a scuffle starts that ends up going out of sight of Shining's view on the stage.

"Excuse me, Your Majesty." Shining whispers into Celestia's ear as he turns to slip out backstage to see what was going on. Once out of sight, he runs into...

"Captain?! What...?" Shining exclaims in surprise at seeing who's in front of him.

"Shh!" Captain Gibraltar replies, having apparently arrived backstage after Buck had went on. "Something was planned, and I think Buck was supposed to be in the center of it. You saw the two pegasi at the very back of the hall try to bail?"

"Yes sir." Shining Armor replies.

"We're trying to get them under control now. As soon as we can get some more information out of them, we'll figure out what exactly they were up to and how Buck figured into all this. Celestia can take care of the rest herself, you come with me."

"Yes sir."

Five or six minutes pass. The award ceremony continues as planned with Celestia and Terry Broadshank alone. Buck Withers has returned backstage alone, wondering exactly what he had done on that stage and where "Magnum" was - Buck hadn't even seen him come backstage after finishing his speech! Because the ceremony was still going on, there wasn't much Buck could do beside sit and puzzle out what had happened.

That changes when he hears barked orders coming from the entry into the backstage. Although not specifically addressed to him, it's enough to bolt him back up on his hooves and standing at attention. He also hears the sounds of something heavy being dragged through the hallways. Buck snaps into a salute out of reflex as Captain Gibraltar and Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor enter the backstage area side-by-side, moving at a doubletime march and stopping, still side-by-side, in front of the too-obviously unnerved earth pony stallion.

"It's good to see you haven't left, Lower Class. There's some ponies I need you to identify for me." Captain Gibraltar comments, leaving Buck more uneasy than before.

"Bring in the prisoners!" Shining Armor shouts after turning to look backwards, indicating an order meant for some guards that are currently out of Buck's sight.

The two senior officers part away, and Buck sees two Guard Upper Class bat ponies enter the backstage area, each one dragging a captive pegasus stallion. The pegasi in question had had their legs tied together as well as their wings tied down to their bodies, which also meant they were suffering the extra indignity of being dragged on their backs. Both pegasi gave Buck looks that could've killed, if looks actually could do that for real.

"Do you know about these pegasi?" the Captain bluntly asks Buck, gesturing to the captive pegasi as he speaks.

"Yes sir, but with all due respect I don't understand how you knew about what was going on." Buck replies, confusion in his tone.

"Lieutenant Stratocumulus informed me." the Captain begins in replied explanation. "When he saw your name as a speaker for the event, he informed me that the Agents of Chaos might've been planning a strike that night. I don't know how he knew about the connection between you and the Lieutenant Captain to make that guess, but against an enemy like them one can't be too careful. Thanks to the extra guards I told the Lieutenant Captain to post, their little plot never stood a chance."

"I... see, sir." Buck replies, blinking as he wonders what is going to happen to him now.

"A nasty thing it was too! We found these pictures in a saddlebag one of the pegasi was carrying." the Captain continues, using his magic to pull out of his own saddlebag a series of instant-development photos (ala "Polaroids" in the human world) showing both Shining Armor and Princess Luna, both of them wearing clothing in an attempt to disguise their appearance, at some kind of nightclub.

"For the record, it should be stated that what is shown in those photos was from a trip previously approved by Princess Celestia and I was simply to help keep Princess Luna from doing something she shouldn't have done, such as have a few too many drinks. There was nothing more or less about it, and photos are not supposed to be permitted inside the club." Shining Armor interjects.

"And getting that on the record is very important. These are now evidence in a criminal investigation as is the speech you were given and need to be retained by myself until further notice." Captain Gibraltar continues as the batponies, apparently acting on previously given orders, drag the captive pegasi out of the backstage area.

"Oh, yes sir, here..." Buck numbly states as he pulls out the speech he was supposed to have given and holds it out for Captain Gibraltar to take, which is done by his unicorn magic.

"Thank you. The only real question I had was whether you would cooperate or not and whether I would have to arrest and court-martial you too." the Captain replies in a casual tone as he stows the papers in his saddlebag.

The Captain breaks into a smile before continuing, magically pulling a gleaming rank bar out of the saddlebag: "Instead I have something better for you. Congratulations, you've officially been promoted to Guard Upper Class serving in the Canterlot Luna Shift, effective immediately."

Buck Withers can only watch in silent astonishment as a proud Captain Gibraltar magically pins the rank bar above the single one Buck is already wearing, indicating the promotion from the single bar Lower Class rank to the double bar Upper Class rank. Shining Armor lets out a smirk at Buck's astonishment - for one of the few times in his life, Buck Withers is absolutely speechless.

"Sir, I'm... I'm not sure what to say right now." Buck finally manages to get out, his face showing his overwhelmed feelings at the moment.

"You don't need to say anything, Buck. You've proven tonight you've turned a major corner in your life since our days together in Canterlot Academy. And for that, I salute you." Shining Armor replies, giving a salute in Buck's direction as he speaks.

"Canterlot Academy... a concerned classmate..." Buck Withers says quietly as he looks back at Shining Armor saluting him, and the shy smile that spreads across Shining's face when he hears those words tells Buck everything he needs to know - his previous revelation was actually true!

"But sir... why? After all I did to you and your friends, not to mention Princess Cadance..." Buck continues as confusion and more than a little shame sweep over his expression, causing a break in eye contact and Buck to look awkwardly down at his shod forehooves.

"I think you would benefit greatly from a little heart-to-heart conversation with Princess Luna." Shining answers with a broader smile.

"I agree with the Lieutenant Captain. You should have a talk with her." adds in a regal female voice that comes from behind where Buck is standing.

Captain Gibraltar and Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor can see the speaker of the last words, but now-Guard Upper Class Buck Withers cannot, so naturally he turns around to see who is speaking...

"Your Majesty always knows how to make a good entrance." Captain Gibraltar states as Princess Celestia walks in the expected stately manner into the backstage area. Buck fully turns around and backs away in the direction of his senior officers, whatever good feelings he had had now being replaced with dread of confronting Princess Celestia again.

Gibraltar and Shining Armor give bowed heads as Celestia stands before them, but Buck Withers drops into full prostration - not only unnecessary but awkward in the full Guard armor he is wearing. Celestia doesn't comment, but simply looks down, waiting for what Buck is going to do or say next.

"Your Majesty, I have not been a good Equestrian or a good member of your Royal Guard." Buck begins confessing, mostly because he figures if he doesn't say it now he won't get another good chance to say it in the future. "I have been disrespectful of the status of the alicorns as princesses over Equestria. I have harbored resentment and desires for revenge against a much better stallion than I am or will be. I considered the offers of traitors and those seeking to unleash chaos. I have sinned greatly, and the only thing I can do is beg Your Majesty for forgiveness."

Celestia just smiles as she gives her reply: "As the Lieutenant Captain has already said, you've proven you have changed from the old days. As is the case with my own sister, who had committed far greater crimes against me than you could ever do, your repentance is additional proof of this change. And as with her, I will hold those crimes against you no more. Instead, I want you to prove to me you are worthy of the rank and armor you wear."

"Yes, Your Majesty. Thank you, Your Majesty." Buck quietly replies as he rises from his prostration. Everypony around him can see his face with a few tears of joyous relief trickling down it.

Guard Upper Class Buck Withers is free and delivered from his past jerk jock self, and he can feel both the freedom and release of social tension inside him. For the first time since arriving in Canterlot, he dares to smile.

A FEW MINUTES LATER...

Except for Buck Withers, the backstage area is vacant. Outside, the quiet sounds of the award dinner winding down, guests getting ready to leave and engaging in speculative chatter about the events of the night. Buck has the picture "Magnum" gave him previously out again, studying it in puzzlement.

"What's that you got there?" Buck hears Shining Armor's voice ask from beside him as Shining enters the backstage area again.

"Oh, pardon sir, I was given this picture by the other speaker tonight, but I have no idea where he went..." Buck replies, looking over at Shining briefly before returning his gaze to the picture.

"Magnum? He told me he had to leave right after he gave his speech in order to catch the overnight train out of Canterlot." Shining Armor begins to explain. "You were so nervous you must not have seen him leave. I'm sure he would've been proud of what you did, though."

"I still don't understand why he gave me this picture, sir. There's something familiar about it, but I can't place what it is..." Buck says as he continues his puzzled study of the photograph.

"You mean the little filly with the curls like Cadance's?" Shining asks.

"No, the older one with the deep purple mane. I've seen her before, somewhere, but I can't remember where..." Buck answers, trailing off in his confusion.

"Magnum gave me a different copy of the same picture and I recognized the filly too." Shining comments, magically pulling out a photograph from inside his armor to let Buck see. "You probably wondered why an oddly-dressed hoofball coach was asked by Princess Celestia to speak at this event, and that filly is one of the reasons why."

Shining pauses for a moment to be sure he has Buck's full attention before continuing on: "You probably have seen that filly in some news dispatch somewhere. Her name is Rarity, she's one of my sister's new friends in Ponyville. She became the new bearer of the Element of Generosity. She helped my sister save Princess Luna."

"So Magnum is...?" Buck asks, his eyes briefly going wide in shock.

"Rarity's father. That's why he wanted you to have this." Shining finishes, a confident and sincere smile forming on his face. "Princess Celestia does not do these things without reason. Fathers can have more of an impact on us, the younger generation, than we often realize. And it doesn't have to be the stallion you grew up calling your father - it can be any father of a foal."

Buck blinks in silence for a moment, then it "clicks" in his mind. Magnum had modeled and instilled generosity in his own filly, the same virtue that had helped in the salvation of Princess Luna. Celestia had wanted him there to let his virtue, reflective of the magic of friendship, help negate the bad example of Buck's own father and the other influences that would otherwise have led him down a very dark and scary path. There were ponies that had his back the whole time, and he never realized it up into that point!

"I can see it in your eyes, you understand now." Shining Armor speaks again, the smile remaining on his face. "Your father never modeled the magic of friendship like mine did for me and my sister, or Magnum did for Rarity. You grew up in darkness - that was not something any of us could've understood at the time."

"I think you're right, sir." Buck quietly replies. "Nopony knew about what my father was doing behind everypony's back until I entered university. What's the saying... 'A planted appleseed can only grow apples'?"

"Exactly. But we're not trees condemned to produce one kind of fruit for the rest of our lives. We can change with help from others, for better or worse."

"Yeah... yeah, you're right sir!" Buck exclaims, daring to smile again. Once shackled by his desire for revenge, he now was walking a free stallion.

"I think you've got it now, Buck. Anyway, you'd better report to the Lieutenant, your exemption is going to end in a few minutes!" Shining cheerfully chides.

"Yes sir! Thank you sir!" Buck exclaims again with a salute, afterward briskly turning around and exiting the backstage area.

Shining Armor simply watches him leave, not able to keep the grin off his face. The friendship magic was thick in the air, and he knew it had won another victory...

Regeneration

"Buck, are you absolutely sure about this?"

"Yes, Lemony dear. I feel I must now. I can't go back to that anymore."

"Well won't you at least let me take something?"

"You can take what you want to keep for yourself. I don't want any of it anymore."

Guard Upper Class Buck Withers watches as Lemony Gems, that old friend of Princess Cadance Buck now considered his marefriend, sorted through the gathered pile of various old items, most from his Canterlot Academy and university days. Pictures, memorabilia, certificates of achievement... all part of a past Buck wanted to make a clean break from now.

After a minute looking through, Lemony Gems levitates out using light blue unicorn magic a few items out of the pile and puts them aside. These include the jacket Buck had usually worn while at Canterlot Academy, the trophy Buck had been given when his Canterlot Academy team had won the high-school level championship, and his "Exceptional Athletic Merit" award he had earned at university. The only other thing Lemony would've wanted was Buck's Canterlot Academy graduation diploma - one of the few things that Buck had previously decided to spare.

"I'm amazed you're even here at all. I didn't think I would be able to see you for months." Buck states as Lemony goes through the pile.

"I left for Canterlot first chance I got after I read your letter. I wish I'd seen you at the award dinner, I'm so disappointed I couldn't make it that night." Lemony Gems replies in a quiet tone.

"I'm kinda disappointed too." Buck agrees, not quite sure whether her presence watching would've made things better or worse.

"I have to tell you though, Buck, I'm very glad you took the stand you did." Lemony states, looking up from the pile and straight into Buck's eyes. "I've been hoping for years that the Guard would help you become a better pony. I guess it worked."

"It was more Princess Celestia and her crazy plans." Buck replies with undiluted honesty, and he shares a brief chuckle with Lemony in response.

"Cadance always said Celestia worked that way, and after all I've seen I'm more convinced than ever now!" Lemony replies. Buck gives a nod and a smile in reply and looks over at the low sun thoughtfully.

"I have to go on duty soon, can't stay any longer." Buck comments to Lemony as he turns his attention back to her, a concern flashing across his face.

"Promise you'll visit me in Ponyville?" Lemony quietly asks, a pleading look in her eyes.

"I promise. Love you lots, Lemony Gems." Buck answers with a tweak of a smile.

"Love you too, Buck." Lemony answers back, kissing him on a cheek immediately afterward. She levitates up the items she had previously chosen, and Buck watches silently as she walks into the distance of a darkening sky...

SOME TIME LATER...

Guard Upper Class Buck Withers could see in the rays of the rising moon that the firepit was ready to light. His watch was on the castle walls that night, and the firepit was useful for keeping warm. The items he would now sacrifice were spread over the ashes already in the pit as the tinder, split logs and smaller kindling branches neatly tented over those items.

As per Guard protocol for earth pony membership, he removed the safety device - a claw-on-the-end-of-a-rod contraption designed to allow safe and sanitary handling of torches - from the rack next to the firepit and moves to grab the nearby torch from its holder. There is only the slightest hint of hesitation as Buck carefully manipulates the device to rotate and lower the torch into the firepit, which ignites the contents inside.

With the torch returned to its place, Buck Withers watches as photographs, memorabilia of Canterlot Academy and the university he had attended afterward, and the documentation of his previous athletic achievement all are consumed by the bright yellow flames, sparks and ashes rising slowly out of the pit. The twinge of regret he expected to feel came and was quickly replaced by an odd sense of freedom, of some kind of invisible shackles falling away from his body.

"Strange, is it not?" a strong and elegant female voice sounds from somewhere near Buck. He turns to see Princess Luna standing nearby, meekly smiling and without escort!

"Your Majesty, what are you doing up here, particularly without escort?" Buck asks in a mixture of confusion and alarm.

"We were told your watch was on the wall. Our sister suggested we converse with yourself." Princess Luna replies frankly.

"Oh, so I guess you were told... about..." Buck trails off, wondering if the princess of the night could see his blush peaking out from under his helmet, particularly as she is approaching closer to his position.

"Yes, but that is rather beside the point." Luna responds with a shy smile. "The point is you succeeded where we failed one thousand years ago. That failure will have consequences that will last all time. Even with your sins being much lesser against our sister than ours were, they still could've had profound effects on Equestria, and Canterlot in particular. Your promotion of honor was well deserved."

All Buck can do is blink back at the princess in silence. By all rights he should've felt extremely flattered, but the awkwardness was keeping any good feelings from manifesting at the moment. The silence remains as Luna looks at the fire in the pit.

"The past life is burning, like the unfeathered body of a phoenix." Luna comments.

"Er, well, yes, Your Majesty." Buck replies, not quite sure where she was going with this analogy.

"You are aware of our sister's pet phoenix?" Luna asks as she turns her attention back to Buck.

"Vaguely, Your Highness." Buck answers, trying to remember the name for it that he had once saw on the assignment list but only drawing a blank.

"Birds like her regenerate their old bodies by shedding their plumage and burning themselves to ash before springing back to life renewed - Philomena will undergo this process in a matter of months. You are undergoing this process, in a sense, right now." Luna explains, and Buck can't help but nod in agreement.

"We are undergoing this process in a similar sense as well." Luna continues. "The Elements of Harmony drove the nightmare out of us in a manner similar to a great storm of fire - the closest to true death we experienced in a long time. We were forced to regenerate our body in a very basic state, which we are only starting to recover from. Although forgiven by our sister, our weakened state we accept as necessary punishment for our previous rebellion, and we - in this case, meaning both our sister and ourself - hope and long for the day our powers can be fully recovered."

"Maybe that's the point. Maybe we're meant to travel this path together. Maybe that's what Princess Celestia wanted." Buck speculates.

"We cannot be certain about this, but we cannot deny that it might be exactly what our sister wants us to do. Both yourself and ourself." Luna replies, again giving a shy smile.

Buck Withers could tell in her look, the eyes in particular, that there was something in there worth fighting for. What Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor and Princess Cadance, not to mention so many other of his fellow Guard members, was investing so much time and effort to bring back out. And, looking up at an untainted moon, Buck knew Luna's restoration was now what he had to fight for...

MEANWHILE, UNDER CANTERLOT...

An old mining elevator creaks and groans before lurching to a stop. The doors make a moaning sound as the slowly work their way open, and a figure completely covered in a cloak and stockings steps out, red eyes glowing fiercely under the hood.

This area of the old mines under Canterlot was one of the few relatively safe areas for a pony to set hoof in, and made an ideal "secret lair" for Agent Snake as the shaft was supposed to been sealed off long ago. He doubted even Celestia knew he worked down here. Down in this rocky and dirty chamber the shaft elevator led to, Agent Snake kept all his things that were important to the Agents of Chaos: Agent and assignment list, targets for future operations, formulas and plans for various objects used by the Agents and, most disturbing of all, Agent Snake's "trophy shelves".

The fuming Agent Snake passed by the "trophies" of past glories - unicorn horns cut off and mounted on dummy heads labeled with the pony they had come from, pegasi wings similarly cut off and pinned to the rock walls, and most disturbingly of all stuffed and mounted heads of earth ponies displayed on the walls the same way hunting trophies were displayed on the walls of human houses. Any reasonable pony would probably have been sickened to the point of vomiting at this sight, but for Agent Snake it provided a nice stroking of ego.

Agent Snake's bad mood was triggered by Buck's "betrayal", which had led to the loss of two more Agents. He was starting to run out of Agents to use, so in frustration he had decided to start changing tactics. What those would be exactly he hadn't decided yet, but for now he decided to take petty revenge. He stopped in front of a shelf of rock he used a writing desk, then pumped a pedal under the shelf a few times to light a torch he would use to see what he was writing.

The first ciphered letter he typed out was meant to get the petty revenge he sought:
"To Agent 21,
Agent WB betrayed us and lead to loss of two fellow Agents. You must execute revenge on Agent's family. The life of Strong Withers is now forfeit and he must die as soon as possible. Have Lilly Withers brought to Canterlot after her mate is dead - I will surely enjoy her company.
- Agent Snake in the Grass"

Agent Snake immediately went into the second letter:
"To Agents P1 and P2,
After the betrayal of Agent WB, I am being forced to scale back Canterlot operations. I am reminding you of your obligations and heavily encouraging you to make a strike as soon as possible.
- Agent Snake in the Grass"

His mood improved by getting his feelings on paper, he let out an evil chuckle as he looked up from the shelf. There was another display above that writing shelf - currently at seven dummy heads and with space for pinning three sets of cut-off wings on the wall above. There was nothing mounted up there yet, but the labels on those dummy heads should've sent a chill down any decent Equestrian's spine. From left to right:
"Princess Celestia | Princess Luna | Princess Cadance | Twilight Sparkle | Shining Armor | Gibraltar | Fidelitas"

The ultimate trophy display, and the dreams of a demented stallion distilled to its essence hiding in the mines below Canterlot...

Reunion

"Buck Withers... Buck Withers... why does that name ring a bell?"

"Captain?"

"Oh, good evening Shining. Something's puzzling me about the list of recent transfers from the field, maybe you can shed some light on the matter."

Captain Gibraltar levitates a parchment listed with names and rotates it so that Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor, standing across his desk, can read for himself.

"As you probably know, with all the recent roster turnover, we've had to pull up some from field service. The name of one of them stuck out at me, but I don't know why..." Gibraltar comments as Shining looks over the list.

"Which one, sir?" Shining Armor asks.

"Buck Withers." was the Captain's reply, and sure enough there it was on the list, prefaced by a "Guard Lower Class".

Shining was briefly startled as memories rushed back through him, of his old high school days and his friends there. It was only when he heard the Captain saying his name that he was snapped back to the present.

"Sorry sir, I was having flashbacks to my years at Canterlot Academy." Shining Armor replies, looking the slightest bit ruffled. "Buck Withers was in the same Academy class as me, captain of the polo team as well... it was at the Fall Formal that year Cadance dumped him for me, sir."

"Oh yes, that's right!" Gibraltar exclaims, his expression brightening with amusement. "My predecessor told me an anecdote about Buck's visit to the castle. He thought for sure Buck would have to go on the blacklist. Now he's one of us, just been transferred after the mandatory field tour! Funny how things work out, isn't it?"

"Yeah, funny how things work out, sir..." Shining trails off in reply, noting with obvious uneasiness that "Guard Lower Class Buck Withers" was one of the transfers to his nightshift command. The Lower Class meant he would have to stay away from the Princesses, but still...

"Now Shining, I understand your misgivings." Gibraltar begins in a fatherly tone, levitating the parchment back down on the desk. "If I were in your horseshoes, I would feel the exact same way. But Princess Celestia sees these transfer lists - if she didn't want him in your command, then she would've moved him somewhere else. Celestia's probably up to something with him, I'm thinking."

"That's exactly what I was afraid of, sir." Shining replies, the uneasiness even more obvious on his face...

A LITTLE LATER...

Guard Lower Class Buck Withers, a bag of nerves under his night-shift armor, was listening around the corner at the stallions talking. Mostly, he wished that he could disappear into the floor and not be in the situation he was in now. Having his old rival for Princess Cadance's affections as his commanding officer was bad enough, having to ask a favor of said commanding officer was even worse!

One might currently wondering how a former jerk jock and sportspony ended up in such a situation. The explanation starts with that Fall Formal at Canterlot Academy that ended in total humiliation for Buck. After that formal, both of Cadance's school friends Lemony Gems and Diamond Rose competed for Buck's attention, and Buck eventually chose one - Lemony Gems - to be his new marefriend, intending to use her as a stepping stone back to Cadance. As Buck entered university on athletic scholarships, he carefully cultivated the relationship with Lemony Gems, trying to avoid any impression of a "tool" or "sloppy seconds" in the process.

Buck's humiliation caused his father, a member of the Equestrian Congress of Representatives, to make it his mission to break up Shining Armor and Cadance. Buck knew and appreciated what his father was doing, but did not understand the potential consequences of his father's mission. Two years after graduating from Canterlot Academy, this fact would destroy Buck's world.

It started when Flank Thrasher, Buck's former #2 at Canterlot Academy and later in the employ of Buck's father, was arrested attempting to steal Royal Guard armor. He confessed that he had been ordered to do this by Buck's father in order to "dig up dirt" about Shining Armor. Needless to say, both the gossip rags and the political enemies of Buck's father had a field day attacking the congresspony when news of this broke.

Events quickly spiraled out of control. Buck's father resigned from the Equestrian Congress under intense criticism, and Buck himself had both his athletic scholarships and membership on the university polo team taken from him - a face saving measure by the university that destroyed Buck's higher education and professional sports future. Buck's parents abruptly cut off both communication and financial support shortly afterward - scapegoating him for all the ills that had befallen them - leaving Buck without a bit to his name and forcing him to take "lout's work" just to make ends meet.

It was in working those odd jobs that Buck Withers was sent a letter by a "concerned former classmate", which he interpreted as somepony from the university he had dropped out of. There was no return address, and the "letter" itself was merely a folded up recruitment poster for the E.U.P. Guard. Buck recognized that the poster meant life had offered him a second chance, and signed up to join the Guard - although he fully expected to be denied because of the past incident with Cadance. To his surprise, he was not, and went through the year of training and three years of field service.

And now he was assigned to Canterlot, still a Guard Lower Class - no contact with the Princesses - and a nervous wreck. He was deathly afraid of encountering Celestia again, knowing he deserved no better than to be smited by her, and the presence of Cadance and Shining Armor only served to amplify that fear. He also had very ambivalent feelings about recent events, which got him accused of not being a good Equestrian and soldier.

Which leads us back to the present, with Buck in his guard armor listening around the corner to Shining Armor talking. Buck had a jawline that couldn't be hid by a Guard helmet, and knew he would've been recognized at the briefing Shining Armor had just lead, so he tried to stay out of sight as much as possible.

"I never knew you two decided to follow me into the Royal Guard!" Shining was exclaiming in pleasant surprise.

"We were just inspired by your 'shining' example!" one of the other stallions - Guard Upper Class Gaffer, judging from the voice Buck heard - replied, which produced laughter among the three stallions.

"So what are you two, afternoon shift?" Shining asks after the laughter dies down.

"Yeah, we're both afternoon shift. Doesn't mean we can't do things like old times, sir!" another of the stallions - Guard Upper Class 8-Bit - replied.

"Oh yes, Princess Celestia's just given me approval to start a LARPing group for anypony that's interested. I think I still have the old 'Oubliettes and Ogres' and 'Hocus Pocus: The-Get-Together' sets stored away somewhere too..." Shining replies.

"What, you can't afford to buy the newer editions?" Gaffer teases.

"Well, Princess Celestia is not big on those kind of games, Cadance was always too busy to play, and Twily is still the rules lawyer she was in the past. Princess Luna is very interested in that kind of thing though, so Celestia is letting me do this to help her out. If this goes through, you would probably be playing with her." Shining Armor explains.

"Wow, that's amazing! And after all the rumors about her..." Gaffer comments.

"Now now, you can't be believing all those rumors about her! I want everypony to judge her for themselves, not just listen to the rumor mill." Shining gently chides, at the same time Buck dares a peak around the corner.

The mirth quickly drains out of the room as Gaffer and 8-Bit, both wearing the dark blue standard night shift armor, glare in Buck's direction. Buck quickly retreats behind the corner again, and there is a very awkward silence for about 15 seconds. When the conversation resumes it is conducted in a stage whisper Buck can barely hear from his position.

"I know that jawline anywhere. What's he doing here, sir?!" Gaffer states.

"I don't know, I don't make these assignments, the Captain does. I didn't even know he enlisted!" Shining replies.

"But what about Princess...?" 8-Bit interjects.

"Princess Celestia sees the rosters. If she didn't want him here, she would've put him somewhere else. Her Highness must be up to something with him." Shining replies in exasperation.

"With all due respect sir, I don't like it." Gaffer states, the contempt all too obvious in his voice. A pit starts forming in Buck's stomach after he hears these words, as they portend nothing good.

"To be honest, neither do I. But it is the will of the Captain and Princess Celestia, so we have to work with it. That means not giving him a hard time." Shining replies.

"But..." 8-Bit starts to object.

"That's an order!" Shining Armor growls out. "There is no room for argument on this! I'll deal with him myself. Why don't you two go back to barracks, just to make things easier on everypony?"

"Yes, sir." Gaffer answers in a deflated tone after a moment's pause, interpreting Shining's last statement as advice that really should be followed. It doesn't cure him or 8-Bit of the urge to glare acidly back in Buck's direction, a glare that Buck doesn't need to see to feel the impact of.

Shining Armor watches them leave, then turns in the direction where he saw Buck peeking out from and says: "It'll make it easier on both of us if I don't have to order you out here, Guard."

Buck's stomach clenches tighter - the unknowns seemed to be paralyzing, but he also knew that if he didn't get his question out right then and there, another opportunity might not come up in time. The emergence, slow march and salute are pretty much Buck forcing himself to move to spare himself the further indignity of having to be ordered to do it.

Buck knew his nervous sweat had to be visible to Shining Armor, who was absolutely intimidating with the armor he was wearing. Shining was currently wearing his Lieutenant Captain ceremonial armor - essentially a fancier variant of the bat pony armor, golden trimmed around the outside and the cat's-eye symbol on the front molded into a shield shape. The determined glare under the helmet only added to the uncomfortable sense of tables being turned Buck Withers had at the moment.

"Did you want something, Guard Lower Class Buck Withers?" Shining asks with seeming disinterest, the tone only adding to Buck's nervousness.

"Have... request... sir." Buck replies, forcing each word out before he could swallow it again.

"What kind of request?" Shining asks, the glare remaining unchanged.

"Exemption... award dinner... invited to speak, sir." Buck answered, again forcing the words out before they could be swallowed.

"Award dinner?... Oh that's right, Terry Broadshank's Career Achievement Award is on tap for this week... must be because you played polo before..." Shining Armor states, looking up as he tries to recall his weekly schedule. He knew Terry Broadshank was one of the celebrity professional polo players from the high school years, so for Buck to speak there at least made a bit of sense. And he would need to be in close proximity to Princess Celestia, who would be the one giving out the award. But still...

"I... guess so, sir?" Buck tentatively offers.

"Fair enough. Once you've settled into a routine, come by the office and I'll give you the form you need." Shining Armor states, again using that casual disinterested tone that seemed to ignore who was under that armor.

"...That's all, sir?" Buck asks with puzzlement, feeling that he was missing something, somehow.

"Yes. Unless you have something else, you are dismissed." Shining answers in the casual disinterest tone.

Buck decides not to push his luck any further, turns around and marches away. As soon as he is out of sight, Shining can hear his marching become doubletime from the echoes in the hallway, and Shining blows out a sigh.

"Princess Celestia, why don't you ever explain your plans to other ponies before you decide to involve them in those plans?" Shining asks himself with a bit of a groan. At least the next few days were going to be very long ones, it seemed...