The Shining Star

***Part 1: The Arrival***

A winter wind fell upon the glistening city of Canterlot as the sun set behind the mountains. Such weather would normally keep the pony residents inside, but today was a special day. Every pony stood on the sky docks, wrapped tightly and warmly in their nicest coats. They waited for hours, looking up at the overcast sky.

Shining Armor trudged through the cold. Unlike the other ponies around Shining, he was not wrapped in a warm coat. Instead, Shining's metal armor chilled his fur to the point of violent shivering. He, and the other guards, were tasked with keeping the mob of ponies at bay, as they awaited the arrival of The Crystal Empire.

"Easy there, Armor." A guard said as he took his place next to Shining. "If you shake any more, you might scare some pony."

"I-It's not m-m-my fault it's f-freezing out here..." Shining protested.

The guard chuckled. His breath froze as it escaped his lips, disappearing into the air as a cloud.

"Don't tell me you'd rather have a desk job at Princess Celestia's office." The other guard retorted.

"N-No, captain... I o-o-only meant-"

An eruption of cheering ponies cut Shining off. The airships of The Crystal Empire had arrived. They were a magnificent sight, the airships. Shining watched in awe as the flying behemoths descended onto the sky dock. A wave of warm air blasted over the crowd of ponies, nearly blowing Shining's helmet off of his head.

"This party's gonna be great, I can already tell." The captain said as the ramps began to lower. "Stay close to me, Armor. I don't wanna lose another cadet like last year."

Shining made a horrified face, causing the captain to burst out laughing.

"Ah! I'm only messing with you, Armor." The captain admitted, throwing his hoof over Shining's back. "Get on up there. Go meet some new ponies."

"How am I supposed to do that?" Shining asked as the captain ushered him towards the nearest ramp.

The captain extended his hoof, pointing towards the dozens of ponies disembarking the airship.

"Just... greet a few of them. Welcome them to Canterlot. Offer to escort them to the palace. Show them around. It's time you got out of your shell, Armor. You gotta learn how to talk to ponies that aren't me, cause I'm sure as hell not gonna talk to you until the pageant is over."

Shining looked back at the captain to ask for more advice, but the guard was gone.

"Good luck, Armor!" The captain yelled as he disappeared into the crowd.

Shining let out a frustrated sigh as he turned back to face the ponies approaching him.

*Alright... This is it, Shining. You can do this. Just smile, and talk to someone.* Shining thought to himself.

The guard turned to a crystal emperial. With all of his mental might, Shining forged the best, friendliest smile he could,

"Hey! Welcome to Canterlot!" Shining said.

His voice cracked violently, causing the pony to snicker before walking away.

*Not a great start... Oh! Here comes some pony!*

"Hey! Welcome to Canterlot!" Shining said proudly. "Would you like me to show you to the-"

A hoof instantly strikes Shining's cheek, silencing him. The next thing Shining knew, he was on the ground, rubbing his jaw.

***Part 2: Seeing Stars***

"Silvershield!" A female voice scolded.

"You know the rules, your highness. No pony is aloud within two meters of your being." Another voice stated.

Shining groaned as he collected himself off of the ground.

"I'm so sorry about that..." The female voice said.

Shining's vision began to clear, and the speakers came into view.

*Whoa...*

Shining was speechless as he gazed upon the pink mare standing before him. Her warm smile melted away and feelings of pain he had before. The only word Shining could form in his mind was beautiful. At last, Shining found his voice.

"W-Would you like me to... show you to the palace?" He asked carefully.

The other pony with her stepped forward. He wore an intimidating scowl on his face, but Shining didn't back down.

"Do you have any idea of who it is you are speaking to?" The bodyguard demanded.

"Nope." Shining admitted. "Not in the slightest."

The bodyguard raised his hoof again to strike, but the mare cleared her throat loudly, halting his hoof. The bodyguard snarled at Shining before lowering his hoof.

"This is Princess Mi Amore Cadenza." The bodyguard stated. "She is the ruler of The Crystal Empire. Do you really think she would want a lowly guard such as yourself to escort her?"

Shining now noticed the jeweled broach around the mare's neck and the crown upon her head, things he didn't notice when her warm smile captivated him. The guard lowered his head and backed away.

"I guess not..." Shining muttered. "I... am sorry to have bothered you..."

Shining gave the princess a low bow before turning around to make his way to another airship, but a gentle hoof held him back.

"Actually, I would love for you to escort me to the palace." The princess said sweetly. "You must know the place pretty well. Would you escort me?"

"Your highness, you cannot be serious." The bodyguard said quickly.

The princess frowned at him.

"I am serious, Silvershield. I can take things from here. Now, go and enjoy yourself. The celebration will be beginning in a few hours."

The bodyguard named Silvershield let out a low growl. He approached Shining and bared his teeth.

"If any harm shall come to the princess, you will surely regret it..."

With that being said, the bodyguard walked away, disappearing into the crowd.

"I'm really sorry about him. He's just... really protective of me." The princess said with a sigh. "Now, I don't believe I ever caught your name..."

"Oh, uh... I'm Shining... Shining Armor." The guard said uneasily.

The princess laughed sweetly at his time.

"Really? You don't sound so sure of yourself." She said as she continued to laugh.

Shining didn't know what to do. None of his guard training had prepared him for a situation like this.

"Um... It's really cold..." Shining said dumbly.

"I agree wholeheartedly." The princess said, batting her eyes. "You should really escort me to the palace, so we may get out of this cold weather."

Shining nodded his head as he motioned for the princess to follow him.

"Right this way, Princess Mi... Mi Am... Amer..."

The princess giggled at the guard's inability to say her full name.

"Just call me Cadence." The princess said sweetly.

"Cadence... Right. I can do that." Shining said in a determined tone.

Shining's chest pounded violently as he lead Princess Cadence through the sea of ponies. He had never been more excited to be a Royal Guard. Every few seconds, he would look behind him, checking to make sure the princess was still following. Every time he would look, Cadence would always be looking back. When she saw that he was looking at her, the princess' eyes would dart away quickly. This continued until they reached the steps of the palace. At the top of the steps stood Princess Celestia, flanked by two guards.

"Aunt Tia!" Cadence squealed with delight as she rushed up the steps to greet the white mare.

"Cadence, it is good to see you..." Celestia said as she embraced her niece. "I trust your journey here was a pleasant one?"

Cadence nodded her head as she looked back at Shining.

"It was very pleasant..."

"That is wonderful to hear." Celestia said as she welcomed the princess inside.

Shining was grinning from ear to a ear. He had done his job, and he had done it well. He turned to head back to the skydock, but Cadence's voice stopped him.

"Will... I see you again, Shining Armor?" She asked softly. "How about at the dance tonight?"

Shining lowered his head as his cheeks burned bright red.

"I... I don't know..."

"Oh, come on." Cadence insisted. "It might be fun..."

Shining's cheeks burned even brighter at Cadence's last words. The princess didn't need his response. She simply smiled her bright, warm smile before following Celestia inside. Then, the door closed, shutting Shining out in the cold.

***TO BE CONTINUED***