When they got back to the party, the two colts saw Queen Celestia seated at the head of the round table.

Prince Blueblood gave his goddess a watery but reassuring smile.

She, in turn, returned it with a subdued but proud smile of her own.

He looked away from her to focus on Golden Crown for a moment. "Do you want to sit on the throne with Queen Celestia?" he asked.

Golden Crown recoiled in surprise. "On the throne with Queen Celestia?" he repeated.

Blueblood nodded. "Mhmm. I'm sure you'll like her and I'm sure she'll like you."

"But only a—"

"But only a royal can sit on the throne?" the prince finished.

"I— yes," Golden agreed.

Blueblood laughed. "Who cares about that old, dumb rule? It's not like the throne's going to eat you for not being a prince."

"But—"

"Fine," Blueblood smirked. "As the prince of Equestria, Guardian of the Throne of the Goddess, Protector of all Ponydom, and Servant of the Eternal Light, I, Prince Blueblood CIX, hereby order you, Golden Crown Platinum, to sit on that throne."

Golden Crown blinked at his twin. And then an elated grin lit up his face. "Of course, my lord," he replied with a mock bow. "I, Golden Crown Platinum, great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-(ah, whatever)-grandson and heir of her ladyship, Princess Platinum Windigo Slayer, Harbinger of Harmony, Bane of the Enchanted Ice, and Conqueror of Frozen Despair, will do his best to carry out the task you have given me, oh good Prince Blueblood."

It was all Golden Crown could do before almost scampering off to plant his flank underneath Celestia's welcoming wing.

Blueblood watched his twin with a smile.

He had done what Celestia had failed to do one thousand years ago. He had prevented history from repeating itself.

By the gods it felt good to still have a sibling.

The colt looked on as Golden Crown whispered something in his queen's ear. She laughed, her melodious peal lost in the general cacophony of a party. She kissed his temple as he seated himself beside her.

It was too bad that Celestia could not say the same.

Blueblood looked at her in longing, wanting to speak with her, but he didn't dare break up the moment his twin was having with her.

He turned his gaze away from the pair and scanned the crowd. Besides, he had promises to keep, and leagues to go before he could sleep.

Prince Blueblood made his way to stallion whom he wished to speak with.

"Don't drink that pill yet, princess," he told Blueblood the Elder as he walked past her. "We've got to talk.

He could feel her glaring at his tail as he went on, but he ignored her. She wasn't priority at the moment...

But his mother and father were.

The prince at last reached his parents. They stood in a large cluster of ponies. Royal Scepter, as always, said nothing as he listened and sipped his brandy. Sapphire Diadem, however, was uncharacteristically silent.

Blueblood waited for the group to notice him before bowing deeply in greeting. Everypony else bowed or curtsied in return.

"Good evening," he addressed them.

A quick response of greetings answered him.

"Mother, Father, I fear that we haven't spent much time at all together these past few hours." Or few months, really. "May we go somewhere private to catch up?"

Royal Scepter grabbed another brandy and dipped his head. "Of course."

Prince Blueblood turned around and began to walk to the library.

Lord and Lady Platinum followed.

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

When the trio at least reached the very same window Blueblood and Celestia sat at mere minutes ago, the colt sighed and loosened his damnable bow tie. If he could help it, he was never going to wear another tuxedo ever again.

Neither of his parents said anything, but Royal Scepter raised his eyebrows.

Prince Blueblood buried his face in his hooves, trying to find a way to broach the subject on his mind.

He sighed again and looked at his parents.

"You seem to be spending a lot of time away from your own birthday party, Blueblood," Sapphire commented.

"Nine months later and that is the first thing you choose to say to me?" he asked in annoyance.

She recoiled and shied away from his gaze. "Forgive me."

He frowned, bothered by how easy it was for both him and his mother to resume throwing barbs. "No, I'm sorry," he apologized. "I should have acted better."

Royal Scepter sipped his brandy, studying his son.

Prince Blueblood met his gaze, causing Royal to swallow.

"I'm not mad at you," he told him.

Lord Platinum drank again to avoid speaking.

The colt walked up to his father, looked him dead in the eyes, and repeated what he said. "I'm not mad at you."

Royal Scepter immediately started dropping to his front knees to—

"Stop," Blueblood begged him. "For the love of Equestria, just stop, Father. You too, Mother. Right now, I'm not Prince Blueblood CIX. Right now, I'm your son and we need to talk."

"About what?" Sapphire asked.

"Everything!" the colt exclaimed. "I just don't know where to start!"

His mother opened her mouth, but she quickly clamped it shut.

Blueblood focused his eyes on her. "What were you going to say?"

"I was..." When did his eyes show such intensity?

"Mother," he said, showing no anger.

"Inside voice," she finally murmured, a crimson blush coloring her countenance.

He buried his face in his hooves for a moment.

"Mother, Father... you two are horrible parents," Blueblood finally managed to articulate, thankfully with no malice.

Neither of them verbally protested, but Royal looked affronted, and Sapphire looked down at her hooves.

"Back when we were still living together, I know I wasn't the best foal. Mother, I'm sorry for all the times I antagonized you, for every dumb argument I cause, all the mean words I said to you, and all the parties I ruined for you. It was petty and immature of me to do all that, and I'm sorry. I knew I shouldn't have been behaving that way, but it's just..."

He looked away from her and walked back to the window. Looking up at the sky, he pressed a hoof against the glass.

"I was just so spiteful towards you, mother," Blueblood admitted. "It felt like everything I did was wrong, and everything you said to me was just an insult or a criticism. I... I can only remember one time you told me that you loved me, and even then I had to be the one who said it first. I was hurt and angry that all we did was argue while you kissed and coddled Golden Crown."

He glanced back at her and saw that she couldn't even bear to meet his gaze. He looked back at the moon.

"But I forgive you, mother. I'm not mad or bitter about that anymore." And he meant it.

"However," Blueblood continued, "what I am upset about is Golden Crown."

Royal Scepter set his brandy down. "What has your brother said to you?" he asked, a subtle edge in his voice. "I saw him sharing the throne with Queen Celestia."

Blueblood glanced at his father, his countenance somber. "He told me he hated me."

Royal Scepter closed his eyes and touched a hoof to his temple. "Your brother said what—?"

"Do not punish him," Prince Blueblood commanded, voice brokering no argument. "He told me what you said, Lord Platinum. I'm sitting here wondering how you could say that to him, your own son. How you could force an eleven-year-old child into silence and house arrest for weeks at a time."

"I was— I am doing the best I can, Prince—"

"I was not always your prince, but I am and always will be your son, just like Golden Crown is your son," Blueblood stated, his blue eyes regal and cold. "You say your were doing your best, but tell me: if Queen Celestia or Princess Blueblood were in that room that night you sentenced me to silence, would you have done it? If I were Prince Blueblood CIX that night, would you have sentenced me to rot away indefinitely in this castle?"

Royal Scepter, like his wife, could not bear to look at him.

Prince Blueblood sighed and looked back up at the moon. "I promise that I am not mad at you, father, because it is here in this very same library that I found the tools I needed to be considered worthy of Queen Celestia's throne. But I am so very, very disappointed at how terrible the both of you are to your children. I may have been able to grow stronger because of all that you two put me through, but the same cannot be said for Golden Crown. You're destroying my brother," he stated. "You're destroying your remaining son."

Royal Scepter downed his brandy. The glass shook in his magical grip. "And what would you have us do, Noble Heart?" he asked.

"Be kind to him, listen to him, let him know that you love him, and please, for the love of Equestria, just learn to be better parents!"

Blueblood turned around and began to make his way to the doors. Both of his parents followed him. "I can't really hate either of you because neither of you do the things you do because you're evil. But you don't need to be evil to do bad things."

He cast one final glance window. Though from his angle he could no longer see the moon, Blueblood could see the silvery moonlight filling the room.

"Golden Crown doesn't hate me anymore," he told them as they walked down hall. "All I had to do was show him kindness. You should too."

Author's Note

Please point out any typos.

While I was writing this chapter, I thought I made Prince Blueblood speak and act too maturely for his age. However, given all that he's gone through, Blueblood is far older than his twelve years would suggest.