Royal Consanguinity

Chapter 2: Assignment One
“Brohoof! That's how we say hi in here.”

"Dawn, come back into the chariot," Princess Cadance called out after her spirited daughter.

Dawn Star chose not to listen, pirouetting through the air and flying alongside the Royal Guard pegasi pulling the chariot. She tilted her head back and laughed skyward, her gold-streaked rose colored mane blown back by the headwind.

"Your daughter," Shining Armor muttered just loudly enough for his wife to hear.

Cadance acted surprised. "For the thousandth time, she's yours."

"She has your mane," Shine retorted, nuzzling his wife behind her ear. The pink alicorn purred in pleasure. It was certainly a delight to get to see Ponyville again. Being in command of the Canterlot Royal Guard did not grant him many opportunities to visit the town his sister resided in. But Twilight understood.

He looked to his dark-coated son perched at the bow of the chariot, unmoving and staring straight ahead. The ponies of Canterlot had often misjudged him to be 'evil' by the color of his coat. After all, didn't Nightmare Moon herself have the same color as his son? Midnight's personality did not help much either. He was always silent, always brooding over nothing in particular. It was natural that ponies would be more drawn to his sister, Shine thought.

Midnight flicked his ears as the chariot descended. It was his first time out of Canterlot, and thus the first time he's ever been at this low an altitude. He noted with some annoyance the effects air pressure does to the inside of your ears. It was clear that his mother and father was suffering from it as well, but he saw they've been out of the city enough times, though still rarely, to be unfazed by it's effects. Dawn Star, on the other hand, was too busy frolicking among the clouds to notice the phenomenon. He flicked his ears another time and faced the front again as they emerged from inside the cloud cover.

A city rose up from behind the lush green hills of the Central Equestrian meadow, graced by the occasional skyscraper but nonetheless quaint, compared to Canterlot. Unlike the capital, Ponyville was a touch more disorganized in the way its houses were arranged. It seemed that the somewhat sprawling city was nucleated about a center (circular) town square, which boasted the tallest building in the city. Midnight assumed it was the town hall. The largest streets radiated from the square, leading outward to the furthest reaches of the city. One in particular lead down a slope and ended right on a cliff overhang, which drew Midnight's curiosity for a while until he noticed the buildings. Unlike the mostly uniform, grid-arranged buildings of Canterlot – which he was quickly realizing did not speak for every city in Equestria – they were more than a little dotted about the ground. And some had the most peculiar shapes. A giant tree-building thing had caught his attention.

The chariot landed without so much as a bump just across the river that skirted Ponyville, with a little help from Shining Armor's telekinesis.

Dawn Star landed on her hooves a split second later and galloped across the bridge, shouting at the top of her lungs.

"Hel-lo, Ponyville!"

Both her parents facehoofed at her behavior.

Dawn Star took in a deep breath, savoring the rich, thick air that came with the city. An orange pegasus mare drove a cool-looking vehicle up to her, mouth open. "An alicorn, face to face. So. Awesome!"

She noticed Dawn staring at her in confusion, and shut her mouth. The pony put a hoof to her mouth and cleared her throat, and took off her purple helmet. From inside it her mane unravelled, hanging down in some parts but curling upwards into spikes in most. It was a purple like the helmet, only much more shiny as it shimmered in the air with flakes of gold. She bowed to Dawn Star, kneeling on one knee.

"Long live the princess," she said out to an now even more confused Dawn Star. She's seen ponies bowing to Mom and Dad and her teacher/great-grandaunt Celestia, but not to her.

"Arise." Her dad had walked up to beside her. She looked to her left, and saw Midnight and her mom join her as well. The orange pegasus stood back up, an expression of awe and (fan-admiration?) plastered on her face. Dawn could almost see her eyes glitter at the sight of her family. Sometimes she was embarrassed how much influence her family had in the kingdom. Okay, maybe all the time. She wished that others treat her normally. Of course, she was even biologically 'above' them, having born with both horn and wings.

“Hay, Scoot!” A yellow earth mare dressed in a frilly yet formal business dress trotted up to the orange pegasus and clapped her on the back. “Oh, sweet Celestia...” She quickly bowed at the royal family that had come to their city.

After she got up, the pony known as Scoot walked up and shook the hooves of each of Dawn’s family. “I’m Scootaloo,” she introduced herself as. She was just slightly older than Dawn and her brother, and seemed to have only started working barely a couple of years ago. Scootaloo reached her muzzle into her saddlebags, taking out a stack of white cards from inside it. “Juh hol on for avit...”

The cards slipped out from between her teeth and scattered onto the ground in front of her. “Oh, snap.” She looked at Shining Armor and then Cadance, letting out a nervous giggle. She swept the mess of cue cards behind her. “Well, apparently I’m supposed to be your guide. The mayor’s organized a welcome party in the square and I need to take you there.”

Dawn’s mom smiled as she walked up to pat Scootaloo’s head. “Come on now, Scootaloo. Let’s make do without all the formalities, shall we? We’re not exactly strangers. You too, Applebloom.” The yellow mare looked up at Cadance and smiled, straightening the small bow tied on her red mane to the left of her head.

Dawn Star and Midnight both gave a quizzical look at their father. He explained that they were his and Cadance’s bridesmaids when they got married. “Say,” Shine realized. “How’s Sweetie Belle been lately?”

“She don’t talk much to us these days. Fame and glamor and all that. And she spends quite a bit of time touring the kingdom nowadays.” Applebloom gave a small scowl. "But ya do have to admit that she's good." Dawn noticed that Applebloom spoke with a slight, barely detectable accent. But one not usually heard in the capital.

Wait. Sweetie Belle?

"You mean *The* Sweetie Belle?" Dawn Star asked Applebloom. She turned to her dad. "Like, the one who came and sang at me and Midnight's birthday party a while back?" Shine just smiled and nodded.

"Three times winner of the Voice of Equestria," Applebloom added. "Yep, that's her."

Even Midnight was amazed. "She was your... bridesmaid, mother?"

"Guys," Scootaloo interjected, more comfortable to use the term in the company of the down-to-earth ponies. "We're burning daylight here. Ponyville isn't gonna wait forever for you."

*** *** ***

Five ponies trotted (and another one riding a scooter) through Ponyville in the direction of the town square. Midnight was preoccupied with the odd variety and colors of the buildings. He recently just passed by a huge clothing store, named Carousel Boutique. It was filled with numerous ponies and even more clothes, seemingly clothes that copied Canterlot's latest fashion trend: horn socks and wing gloves. Midnight wasn't a pony of fashion – nobility rarely is, and really? It's barely autumn! – but he made a mental note to pay it a visit. Maybe he could meet the person who had decided to bring a taste of Canterlot to town.

"So, tell me more about you three," Dawn Star asked Scootaloo and Applebloom. She had a spring in her step, unable to believe that she was actually talking to the best friends of (*squee!*) Sweetie Belle.

"Well, Sweetie wasn't always a singer," said Applebloom. "The three of us were actually the only ones in our class to not have a cutie mark at that time." She looked to Scootaloo immediately after and gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry, Scoot," she whispered.

"S'alright, AB. I'm cool." Dawn Star noticed that Scootaloo didn't have her cutie mark yet. Applebloom's was that of an apple blossom. "Everyone gets it sooner or later. And I like my job." But Dawn thought she saw her blink away some tears as she looked away.

"Okay," Applebloom replied, not noticing it. She continued. "We called ourselves the Cutie Mark Crusaders. And ya wouldn't believe the crazy things we did together ta try 'n earn 'em," she said as she gave a nostalgic laugh.

"A few years back, the Crusaders decided to sign up for the new Voice of Equestria singing contest. Sweetie Belle aced the auditions. Scootaloo was, well, Scootaloo." She elicited a laugh from her friend. "I barely made it past the auditions but got eliminated right after.

"Sweetie coursed through the rounds like there was no competition whatsoever. Ponies around Equestria began to notice her. Support her. Became her fans. They were intrigued by this rising star, a blank flank from the small town of Ponyville, that made Equestria's best talents sound like a dying phoenix.

"Then came the finals. Sweetie was up against an older earth pony, Magic Melody, who had had her cutie mark since she was young. A microphone. Ya could say she was a veteran singer. But our dear ol' Sweetie showed her what true singing was. Showed the whole of Equestria. And guess what she sang? Fluttershy's lullaby!" Applebloom exclaimed.

Dawn Star remembered that moment. She was only about ten then, but the memory was vivid. The whole stadium erupted into cheers and applause. And at the moment where she was crowned the Voice of Equestria, her cutie mark appeared on her flank. A golden bell, tied around by a lavender ribbon. It made it a victory not just for Equestria, but a personal victory for herself as well.

They were fired at from both sides with strips of confetti.

Several more cannon shots joined the first two, and pieces of colored paper were raining down on the whole area. The town square broke into loud hoofstomps, the ground shaken by the sheer number of ponies that had assembled there. The crowd parted as they approached and Dawn got a view of the stage. There was an elderly mare at the podium, opening her mouth to speak into the microphone.

“Citizens of Ponyville! Let’s give a warm welcome to the royal family!”

*** *** ***

The apple cider was delicious. Midnight licked his lips and turned his attention back to the mare he had come to know as Twilight Sparkle. Apparently she had seen him rather alone earlier, after the official welcome, and approached him to tell him that they were going to stay in her library for the duration of their studies. Probably noticing his discomfort in the social situation, she invited him over to the library.

Midnight looked back in distaste at the welcome party thrown for them, hosted by a pink earth mare known as Pinkie Pie. An unspeaking unicorn next to the stage was mixing up some ear-blasting music that the residents were shaking their flanks to. None of them noticed that one of the two guests they were holding this party for was taking his leave. The effort was appreciable, though.

"So, Ms Sparkle, wha–"

"Just call me Aunt Twilight, Midnight," Twilight corrected. "You don't remember me? Oh that's right. You were probably too young to."

Midnight nodded in understanding. So she was his father's beloved sister that he often spoke about. "Aunt Twilight, may I ask what we will be learning here in Ponyville?"

His aunt's eyes seemed to twinkle at him, apparently impressed with the question. She sipped some cider from her cup and said, "You remind me of myself back when I was around your age, or maybe a little older. Straight to the point when it comes to academics. Focussed and directed."

That was exactly how he would've described himself. To think that her aunt, who he hadn't ever spoken to before, could put it so nicely made him realize that she really was like him. Maybe it ran in the family.

"Princess Celestia tells me that you are an exceptional magic user. And it's more than just being related to the royal bloodline on one side and -possibly the most powerful unicorn in the kingdom-, or so everyone says." She gives a little laugh and waves her self-remark away. "That it's also hard work."

Just as Midnight was feeling good about the compliment, she continues. "But that's not what you two are here for. Sure, I could teach you magic privately once in a while. But your main task is something else."

"So, what do we have to do first?" asks Midnight, eager to get at least something done before he retired for the night.

"Your first assignment is something your sister's already completed," Twilight answered. "Make some friends!"