The sun rose in the glorious Crystal Empire, casting its warm rays on the land. A single, bright beam of sunlight streamed in through a crack in the curtains of a window high in the towering Crystal Palace, falling across the floor and onto the rich silk comforter of a young alicorn princess. She shifted in her bed, disturbed by the light near her face.
Princess Angel Heart, daughter of the Crystal Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Prince Shining Armor, sat up and rubbed her eyes with her forehooves. She was considered rather pretty, with a pale pink coat a few shades lighter than her mother's; a long, softly curling mane that was colored with streaks of purple, blue, and yellow; feathered pegasus wings tipped with violet; and a horn that was only slightly longer than the average unicorn's, since she was still young. Her naturally long-lashed eyes were a beautiful shade of blue-violet, and her cutie mark was a lavender version of the Crystal Heart with white angel wings. She shared her bedroom with her un-identical twin sister and best friend, Princess Starry Night.
Angel glanced over at her sister's form, curled in the king-sized canopy bed that was next to and exactly like hers. The light pink alicorn smiled and trotted to Starry's bed. This was an old prank they used to play on each other, but Angel never got tired of it. Tensing her muscles, she got ready to jump. When Starry rolled over onto her back, Angel suddenly sprang, landing right on top of her sister while calling out, "WAKE UP, SLEEPYHEAD!"
Starry Night's eyes flew open wide, and she jumped up, nearly sending Angel toppling off the bed. Starry gave a shriek. "I'll get you for that, Angel Heart!" she yelled, spreading her wings. She leaped off her bed and flapped around their huge room, chasing her sister.
After a while, they both collapsed onto the silk area rug in the middle of the floor, their hooves in the air and their wings splayed out.
Princess Starry Night was just as pretty as her sister, with a light blue coat; a long, curly mane striped with silver-blue, turquoise, and white-blue; feathered pegasus wings tipped with silver; and a horn that was as long as Angel's. Her shining eyes were a bright turquoise, and her cutie mark was a silvery-blue crescent moon with a star in its curve. Neither of them had their royal jewelry on yet, but it was very obvious that they were princesses. If you were a known alicorn, you were royalty.
"Princess Angel? Princess Starry? It's time for-"
The voice of Winter Snow, one of their four hoofmaidens, was abruptly cut off as she stared at the princesses. Her fellow hoofmaidens, all of them called the Quartet, stood by the bathroom door.
"-Your morning bath," Autumn Leaf finished for her.
"Oh. Right," Angel said, scrambling off the rug. Starry quickly followed her sister into the bathroom, adding, "Thanks for telling us, Autumn, Winter." They were unicorn sisters: Spring Blossom, Summer Glory, Autumn Leaf, and Winter Snow.
The princesses' royal bathroom was really more of a spa. It was tiled in soft shades of creamy blue and cloud white, and a big bathing pool big enough for at least five grown alicorns was sunken into the floor.
The Quartet ushered Angel and Starry into the hot-water-filled pool. Spring Blossom got to work on Angel's coat, mane, and tail, and Summer Glory on Starry's. They scrubbed their coats, shampooed their manes and tails, and preened their wings. Meanwhile, Autumn Leaf and Winter Snow prepared supplies to do the royal hair.
When they were done, Angel and Starry looked impeccable. Their manes and tails were perfectly curled, their coats shone, and they wore their royal jewelry: a crown, a matching torc, and gilded horseshoes. Angel's attire was gold and studded with blue-violet jewels, while Starry's was silver and decorated with turquoise gems.
Their parents, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Prince Shining Armor, were waiting for them outside their bedroom door.
"Hi, Mom, Dad," Angel greeted her parents.
"Angel, Starry, we're going to visit Aunt Celestia, Aunt Luna, and Aunt Twilight in Canterlot today," said the Crystal Princess, who was better known as Cadance. "Eat your breakfast first, and then start packing. We're leaving in the afternoon, so you have plenty of time."
"Great!" Starry opened and closed her wings. "I can't wait! I love Canterlot."
"Me, too," Angel agreed. Her hollow belly growled, and she laughed in embarrassment. "But first, let's eat. I'm starving."
They ate their breakfast of pancakes and crystal berries in the beautifully decorated, private dining room that was there just for the royal family. Angel gulped down her pancakes and berries so fast that it would have made Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash proud.
After breakfast, they all went their separate ways to start packing for the big trip to Canterlot, the capital city of Equestria. Angel used her lavender magic to levitate her things from her closet to her luggage. Starry Night used her own sky-blue magic to pack, too.
It took hours to pack, mostly because they couldn't decide what to bring and what not to bring. But finally, they boarded the royal train that would take them straight to Canterlot, where the two Royal Pony Sisters lived. All the way there, Angel and Starry kept bouncing around in excitement. They had been to Canterlot before, but they were overexcited, all the same.
Angel looked out the train window at the distant Canterlot Castle. Soon, she would be there, greeting the rulers of Equestria.
After about an hour, the royal train stopped at the train station in Canterlot. As soon as Cadance, Shining Armor, Angel, and Starry stepped out of the train, a flood of ponies swept over them.
Princess Twilight Sparkle and the other Elements of Harmony - Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack - were among them. Since Shining Armor was Twilight Sparkle's sister, Cadance was Twilight's sister-in-law.
Twilight Sparkle, a purple alicorn, rushed forward to greet her family and wrap her wings around them in a hug. "Shiny! Cadance! And this can't be Angel and Starry?" she exclaimed. "You look beautiful!"
"Thank you." Angel and Starry both blushed pink at their young aunt's compliment.
After much hugging and exclamations, Twilight finally said, "Come with us, I'll take you to see Princess Celestia and Princess Luna."
Angel felt a thrill of excitement at seeing her aunts again as she and her family followed Princess Twilight and their friends toward Canterlot Castle.
