A Surprise Above All Others
"Are you sure it's okay for me to spend Hearth's Warming with you, Cadance?" Shining Armor couldn't help but ask nervously as he turned to look at his best friend.
"Yes Shining," she said firmly. "I'm so sure that it hurts every time you ask me that." It really did hurt Cadance. She and Shining Armor had been best friends for quite some time and it bothered her to think that Shining Armor was so surprised by her invitation that he felt the need to ask more than twice. Shining flinched but went silent after that.
The two had been trotting away from the decorated Canterlot train station: they had been there to see his parents and his little sister off to see their extended family in Vanhoover. Shining would have been on that train with them were it not for some outstanding guard duties that he had to attend to. This led to a very loud tantrum thrown by the younger unicorn. It required the combined efforts of her parents, her BBBFF, the world's greatest foalsitter, and the promise of a large stack books as a gift upon her return to calm her down enough to board the train with her parents. Even then, she frantically waved at them from her seat, residues of her tears still clear on her face as the train pulled out of the station.
Cadance had felt bad about the whole situation; after all, Shining wouldn't get to spend Hearth's Warming with his family like she knew he'd been planning to for weeks. However, this had presented her with a unique opportunity: most of the other guards would be away, spending time with their own families so there would be nobody to stop her from spending all the time she wanted with him. Plus, she never did like the fact that he slept in the barracks with all the other guards. It made finding him unnecessarily tedious.
Now Shining and I will finally have some proper quality time together! Cadance couldn't help but think eagerly with a skip in her step as she and her soon-to-be coltfriend made their way through the snow and back to the castle. As they walked, they'd taken stock of all the festive decorations that the Canterlot ponies had taken to putting up, invoking that familiar holiday spirit and nostalgia, bringing back fond memories of holidays gone by which had prompted Cadance to invite him to spend the holiday with her and Princess Celestia. She was sure her aunt wouldn't mind.
"Do you remember that one time when Twilight tried coffee for the first time..." Shining started as they neared the castle's entrance. Cadance couldn't suppress her giggles as the memory of a filly Twilight high on caffeine came into mental focus. While trading embarrassing stories about their favorite filly, they stepped into Canterlot Castle which, unlike the rest of the city, had remained mostly undecorated.
"Hey Shining, do you want to help me decorate?" she asked eagerly, spotting a box of decorations that one of the staff members had left behind. The stallion nodded happily. He'd known full well that the two alicorns preferred decorating the castle themselves: if nothing else, it gave them something to do during the holidays: day court was cancelled as were Cadance's usual princess related duties.
They swung by the throne room, each carrying a box of decorations where they found the princess of the sun herself humming a merry tune to herself as she hung wreaths made of holly on the walls. She was even doing a little dance as she levitated the glass ornaments to their designated places. They'd been so engrossed in watching Princess Celestia do her little dance that they both almost dropped the decorations they'd been carrying in surprise when she called out to them.
"Ah good!" she beamed at them, apparently unperturbed by their catching her little dance. "You've brought the decorations! Can you start with the trees over there?" She nodded to the two large pine trees that stood proudly on either side of the large throne stationed at the center. Shining also noticed several presents had been placed at the base of the trees.
Probably from the Canterlot nobility... he mused idly as he made his way over to the pink alicorn princess.
"A moment of your time Shining Armor?" he heard Princess Celestia call out to him. He slowly turned around, seeing that her demeanor hadn't changed. That small serene smile remained on her face as he cautiously moved toward his charge.
"Princess?" he asked uncertainly.
"Celestia," she said simply. Shining blinked at the matter-of-fact tone. "I want you to simply call me 'Celestia' while you are with us this holiday," she explained. She cast a sidelong look at Cadance who seemed to be alternating between glancing curiously at them and decorating the tree.
"Forgive me for saying it but I'm glad that you decided to stay here for the holidays since I almost certain that my staff has prepared a feast for us," she smiled as she cast her magenta gaze toward her adopted niece. "But while we wait for that, why don't you help Cadance with decorating." Shining decided not to mention that it was not really his choice to stay behind during the holidays.
"You can count on me," Shining saluted, trotting back to Cadance's side where she shoved a box filled with ornaments to him.
"Bet you can't decorate faster than me," Cadance couldn't help but challenge him. Shining couldn't keep the competitive grin off his face as he snatched up the box in his magic as the two raced out of the throne room.
Celestia didn't bother hiding the smile on her face while shaking her head in amusement. It did her heart good to see her niece so full of life.
"One of these days," Shining panted as he and Cadance lay on their backs in the throne room. In a display of childish enthusiasm, the pair had raced each other decorating room after room in attempt to best the other. "I will beat you at something." Cadance let out an exhausted giggle as a response. He had certainly done better compared to his previous sixty eight bouts against her in all manner of competitions.
"Someday," she agreed before flashing him a teasing smile, "but not today."
"Well, there is still one thing missing," they could hear Celestia's voice disagree. Shining's ears perked up curiously. There was still a chance that he could win? They both shot up when they spotted the familiar golden star: the most typical of holiday decorations held aloft in the sun princess's magic. She suppressed a laugh as both ponies tried to snatch the star away from her, prompting Celestia to pulse a little more magic to protect the seemingly priceless ornament.
"I think it only fair that I complete the tree," she shot them a teasing look, "after all, you two have already decorated the rest of the castle." The younger ponies slumped back against each other while Celestia smiled, placing the golden star at the top of the tree. The three watched in awe as it let off several bursts of golden light comparable to fireworks.
"Festive," Shining nodded.
"I should hope so," Celestia nodded. "I spent quite a few bits purchasing these."
While Shining was asking Celestia about the golden star and depositing his gifts underneath the tree, Cadance unfurled one of her wings to reveal one of most sacred traditions of Hearth's Warming:
Mistletoe.
"Now where should I hang this?" Cadance murmured, her eyes darting from the plant resting on her wing to the possible places where she could hang it. The castle had been blessed with hundreds of arches from here to the castle gardens and the various wings of the building, making it all the more difficult to decide. What she did know was that she wanted Shining Armor for herself. She couldn't allow anyone else to steal him away from her. It was here that the perfect place to hang said mistletoe came to the forefront of her mind.
After all, they were destined to spend the rest of their lives together in a beautiful crystal castle.
No one said it had to be realistic.
It was here that the perfect place to hang said mistletoe came to the forefront of her mind. She smiled as she finished planting it where she'd intended. It was only a matter before she caught him under it. It also helped that she'd done everything in her power to make sure nothing would stand her way: most all the guards were at home with their families, Princess Celestia's chambers were on the other side of the palace, and most all the remaining staff would retire after the feast for the evening in favor of giving their princesses some privacy.
Now is my chance. Cadance thought as she looked back at the plant, now dangling innocently from one of the castles's many arches. Shiny will be mine if it's the last thing I do. Cadance had not been oblivious to the attention that Shining received from other mares and knew that even with the repertoire she'd built with him thus far would hardly deter the mares vying for his affection. What made things worse was that she couldn't blame them for their taste in stallions; Shining was quite the catch after all.
That said, Cadance hadn't been interested in his looks although that had been a very nice bonus. Rather, she'd been drawn in because his kindness and willingness to help those around him. He'd also been something of an inspiration to force her to keep moving forward even when her strength failed her. If wasn't for him, Cadance doubted that she would have made it as far as she did.
In light of this revelation, Cadance had taken things into her own hooves. When she wasn't spending time with Shining herself or stalking him when she could spare the time, she'd always made certain that she was aware of his whereabouts. Whether that meant having guards surreptitiously or casting tracking spells to keep tabs on his location, Cadance would make certain that she would be at his side in an instant if it turned out that he needed help or if she just wanted to see him.
Then those mares had started pursuing him boldly. Cadance knew that she had to act so she'd done everything in her power to, at the very least, redirect their interest away from Shining. It was a simple matter for her, being the princess of love and all. All it took was a few want-it need-it spells and suddenly, Shining was the last thing on their minds. She couldn't afford losing Shining to anyone else.
While some may have thought it possessive, Cadance remained firm in her belief. Shining was the first friend she'd ever made and there were few things that would stop her from protecting him just as he'd protected and supported her. With that as her final thought, Cadance practically skipped down to the kitchens to meet her aunt and best friend.
When Princess Celestia stated that there would be a feast, she did not exaggerate. In front of all three ponies was a veritable smorgasbord of dishes. Just looking at the various dishes made Shining drool and the pleasant aroma certainly wasn't helping things.
The feast had been a lively affair filled with animated chatter about nothing in particular. All the while Cadance stole the occasional glance at the stallion as he talked about something or other. She assumed it was something about the guards and some observations he'd had about how they could improve.
By the time the dessert course had rolled around, both Cadance and Shining had the distinct pleasure of learning just why Celestia happened to have the Princess of Cakes as a secondary title. Neither could outmatch her when it came to cake eating and they were in their prime! They didn't have to worry about the repercussions for several decades at least!
"I couldn't possibly eat another bite," Shining stated, leaning back in his seat, rubbing his now filled-to the-brim stomach, a satisfied expression on his face. He glanced toward the princesses who were in a similar state of contentment. The silence that followed last for about three seconds before Celestia clapped her hooves together, catching both ponies' attention.
"It's time to pick your gift of the night!" she announced cheerfully as she led the way back to the throne room by way of teleportation. Shining turned to Cadance in hopes of an explanation.
"So auntie Celestia and I have a little tradition here wherein we each open a gift from each other the night before Hearth's Warming. It's something of a solidarity thing to know that we can count on each other when things get tough."
"It's times like this where I forget that you're a princess too, Cadance," Shining admitted.
"I don't blame you, Shining," Cadance reassured. "Technically, I'm still a princess in training. Having the horn, wings, and earth pony strength is just one part of being a princess but I've still got a fair bit to learn before I can call myself a full blown princess."
"Well, I'm sure that as long as you give it your best shot, you'll become a princess that an empire would love to have ruling for them." Cadance couldn't help but flush pink at the compliment as they stepped into the throne room where a patient Celestia had been waiting for them, an uncharacteristically eager smile on her face as they distributed presence between them. Celestia's eyes watered as she received Cadance's gift of a photo album complete with pictures of herself and the younger princess as a filly going about their days. Those were among Celestia's fondest memories. The older mare placed the album aside before grabbing her niece in what would have surely have been a bone crushing hug were it not for the earth pony strength bestowed unto Cadance following her ascension.
"Um... Princess?" Shining started cautiously as he noticed Cadance slowly turning an interesting shade of blue, "I think Cadance might need some air..."
Celestia coughed sheepishly as Cadance caught the last of her breath before shaking her head and turning her attention back to the small bundle of presents beneath the tree. She didn't even need to think for a second before tearing the wrapping paper from Shining's gift. Her eyes widened at full set of royal gold regalia: crown and all.
Her gaze drifted to Shining Armor who grinned at her. "I told you that you'd make an awesome princess someday so I figured that you'd want to look the part." He nodded to the Sun Princess who happened to still be wearing her regalia despite the family setting.
Cadance smiled as she planted a kiss on Shining's cheek, giggling when his cheeks turned a deep red. Whether that was from embarrassment or infatuation, Cadance wasn't sure.
Finally, Shining Armor had given Celestia a respectful bow at the new armor and adornments for his new station as Captain of the Royal Guard.
"You've earned it, Captain Shining Armor." She said simply as she banished the loose wrapping paper.
"I'll prepare some hot cocoa before we turn in for the night!" Cadance chirped, galloping toward the kitchens, leaving an amused Celestia and Shining Armor behind. Everything's going according to plan... Cadance thought, the light in her eyes fading for the briefest of moments as she stepped into the large kitchen.
Shining had just taken his final swig of cocoa when he felt his vision go blurry and his eyelids felt heavy and his balance starting to crumble like a tower. He was exhausted.
"Let me show you to your room!" said Cadance quickly, holding the barely conscious stallion with a wing while Celestia shook her head fondly at her niece while making tracks to her own chambers on the other side of the castle. If she had paid any attention to her niece during the interaction, she would have surely noticed the dull eyes and pleased smile on Cadance's face as she led Shining away.
"Uh... Cadance? I'm pretty sure the guest chambers aren't down this way," Shining mumbled slowly, eyeing his hostess curiously as he and Cadance found themselves in one of the castle's less traveled corridors.
"Oh, we aren't going to your chambers, Shiny. Not yet anyway," Cadance replied. "There's actually something that I need to show you."
Curiosity piqued he looked to where Cadance had pointed, right above them. His steel blue eyes caught sight of the ever infamous plant: mistletoe. Contrary to what others said about him, Shining Armor was far from dense and he was well aware of the ramifications of being caught under the mistletoe but did little to try to avoid it. For one, why should he? If Shining was honest, he was actually pleasantly surprised by the sight of the plant. For another, it's not like he could move even if he wanted to. His legs wouldn't obey as Cadance stepped forward, a predatory gleam in her eyes as she slowly approached.
Shining gulped involuntarily as Cadance pounced.
Shining shot up in his room late that night after an extremely strange dream about himself and Cadance making out wildly with each other. He blinked several times to allow his eyes to adjust to the darkness. Shining made to raise a foreleg to scratch the back of his head when he heard a peculiar sound.
Chink.
It was here that not only did his ears perk up at the sound of the noise but his forelegs registered the cold feeling around his hooves. As he struggled to move to no avail, it finally dawned on him just what had happened.
He'd been chained to his bed.
Some part of brain that wasn't panicking about the fact that he was chained to his bed wondered how this could have happened. He couldn't recall anything that could provide him with any manner of clues as to how he'd gotten into this situation. The last thing he recalled was that Cadance had escorted him to the guest chambers for him to retire for the evening. It was also at this time that Shining finally took note of the gag that'd been stuffed in his mouth. He could hear his heart thumping frantically in his chest as he struggled to come up with some manner of escape.
Shining, for the life of him, couldn't think of anyone who'd want to do such a thing to him. As far as he knew, he'd settled in quarrels he'd had with his academy bullies and he and squadmates got along quite well.
If only he were a lighter sleeper...
Shining took a deep breath to calm down a get a grip as he felt his guard training finally taking over. He quickly realized that Cadance and Celestia, while powerful, were almost certainly not safe and he needed to make sure that nothing had happened to them. Now that Shining was as calm as he could hope to get given the circumstances, he took another, more rational, examination at the situation. He noticed that there was no forced entry from anywhere that he could see. Enemies, Shining knew for a fact, were never very good at keeping their trails hidden for very long as past experience had taught him and it was that fact that brought him some relief that at least they weren't under any immediate threat. Now the only thing left to do was to make sure his princesses were safe.
Now if only he wasn't chained to this, admittedly comfortable, bed.
Shining panted through the gag as he tried flailing in what would ultimately be vain attempt at freedom to no avail. All it had served to do was make the chain clink loudly against itself and the bed. The chain had some give but it wasn't enough for Shining to be able to break free. He'd even gone so far as to try to overpower the chain with his magic but all that had served to do was create a really loud farting noise.
With all of his ideas rendered useless, Shining flopped back onto the bed. What he didn't expect was the faint sound of someone breathing down his neck. It didn't help that it felt as cold as the weather outside would have led the stallion to believe.
Turning his head to the source, his eyes practically popped out of his head when he spotted Princess Cadance staring down at him dressed in the brand new regalia. While this in and of itself would actually have made Shining thrilled rather than terrified but the blank eyes was what really put him on edge. He could hear the sirens in his brain yelling at him to try to escape. Again, a futile effort thanks to the shackles on his hooves.
"No... no... no..." Cadance whispered in his ear. "I can't have you struggling..." Cadance smiled. She had long since come to realize and understand her strong feelings for the stallion. His smile made her heart race. His steel blue eyes staring back her made her face flush. She admired his bravery although she couldn't help but wonder how much of it was bravery and how much was pure recklessness. However, she didn't care about that. All she cared about was making Shining Armor hers and hers alone as her impending actions would soon testify.
With a small surge of magic, the first thing Cadance did was pull the gag out of Shining's mouth. Shining gulped in as much air as he could. He had tried to speak but Cadance had since shushed him with a light press of a golden covered hoof to his mouth. Shining had blinked at the interruption and at Cadance's boldness. He'd never seen this side of her before and was at a loss for what to do before settling on just going along with it for now. It was at least reassuring that even though her disposition seemed to have changed, her hooves were as warm as he knew them to be.
It also helped that her eyes weren't quite as blank looking as they were when he first spotted her.
"Shh..." she murmured, leaning in to press her face into his neck to nuzzle in while quietly taking in his musky scent. It was all Cadance could do to not lose it right then and there. From there, she had gone in and wrapped her forelegs around his while simultaneously wrapping her wings around his sides.
While Cadance had been occupied snuggling as much of Shining as she could, Shining was lost in thought.
She's acting way more forward than she normally is Shining thought, his breathing hitched as Cadance decided that mere snuggling was not good enough for her. She'd decided to move onto the kissing. He let out a gasp of shock. There was no way that Cadance, the sweet and demure mare that he knew and come to admire would ever do such a thing. He could feel her usually cold breath in stark contrast to her warm hooves trickling down his sides, causing him to twitch nervously at her close proximity.
All that being said, Shining would be lying if he said that he didn't enjoy the contact even if he had no way to reciprocate. Thankfully, Cadance seemed to content to simply lay on top of him, forelegs, wings, and tail wrapped possessively around him, a small but blissful smile on her face. It was here that Shining Armor finally found his voice.
"Um Cadance, I don't suppose it would be possible for you to cut me lose would you?" Shining asked hopefully. He could only hope that Cadance would agree with him but was surprised when she shook her head in refusal.
"No Shining," Cadance murmured, shaking her head. "I can't do that." Shining was taken aback. He didn't expect her to deny him one of the most basic freedoms. Shining's surprise turned to suspicion as he began to wonder whether she had a hoof in his current predicament. He didn't want to believe her responsible or even capable of such a thing given that they were such good friends but from what he was seeing so far, it was pretty clear that Cadance seemed intent on keeping him here. "I can't allow you a chance to leave me."
Shining blinked. Where'd Cadance get the idea that he'd leave her? His eyes widened when he spotted a shiny silver knife held aloft in her magic.
"If you went with your family on that trip then I would be all alone," Cadance started. Shining winced as he felt the flat side of the blade make contact with his neck. "I don't think I could bear it anymore. I've been keeping these feelings locked up for too long as it is."
Shining's eyes widened in surprise before sighing. "Well..." Shining started awkwardly. "If I had to be held here against my will, I could definitely do much worse than you, Cadance." He looked around. "So... I guess I won't be going anywhere any time soon then?"
"Exactly!" Cadance replied, a faint blush on her cheeks as she nibbled Shining's ear happily, eliciting another gasp from the unicorn. She since placed the knife on the nightstand before continuing. "You're certainly catching on quickly today, Shining! I should reward you!" Having not been satisfied with merely kissing his cheeks, Cadance had gone after his lips and pressed hers against his aggressively. While she'd had little experience when it came to kissing, she did have something of an advantage by way of her special talent to help guide her as she slipped her tongue into Shining's mouth. Cadance couldn't help but smile at Shining's feeble attempts at wrestling her tongue into submission before she quickly overwhelmed him.
As Shining felt Cadance's tongue explore his mouth, he couldn't help but think about her. Her upbeat disposition and seemingly endless determination were among the qualities that he'd come to admire about her. She had become resolute and refused to back down and fought with every fiber of her being to defend her beliefs and to follow her dreams. Shining loved these traits about her. However, when those traits came into a play in a situation as dark as this one, it turned the beautiful young woman that he'd come to see as someone he might want to spend the rest of his life with into a sort of sickly sweet and sarcastic monster who was close to breaking.
Needless to say that Shining was terrified of his best friend at this point and was starting to reconsider whether he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her or if there might be someone better for him. Bottom line: Cadance, in all of her kindness, did not have pure intentions this night. If the chains hadn't been enough to clue him in, the kissing almost certainly did.
Nonetheless, the fear was present within the guard captain but that fear had been tempered with defiance for his potential fate. He was Shining Armor and he could surely find a way to get out of this situation! He'd managed to come up with the most unorthodox strategies in order to come from behind and defeat his opponents in battle plenty of times in the past. The only problem this time around being was that with Cadance's body draped over him, it was hard to concentrate on forming any sort of strategy especially when she had taken to nuzzling into him while catching her breath before kissing him violently. This problem was also compounded by the fact that Shining was still chained up and the only part of his body that he could move freely was his neck.
All in all, it wasn't going well.
"You're going to be with me and me only for the rest of your life," Cadance whispered. Any confidence Shining possessed died in his throat. "I've made certain of that."
For the second time that night, Shining felt his blood go cold. However, Cadance took little notice as she continue.
"Didn't you find it odd that any mare that approached you for a date never showed up?" Cadance whispered. Shining's eyes widened as his words caught in his throat. "Didn't it strike you as strange that they wouldn't even give you the time of day afterwards?"
"But that means," Shining started as realization slowly dawned on him.
"Yes," Cadance nodded. "It was me. I was the one who forced those mares to forget their dates with you. I couldn't risk losing you to someone else. I love you too much to simply let you go."
Shining stared at her, "Y-You... love me?" He would have pointed at himself incredulously had his hooves not been chained up.
"Of course I do..." Cadance replied. "It's thanks to you that I've made it as far as I have. Without your constant support and encouragement, I probably would have given up a long time ago. That's just one of the many reasons why I love you, Shining Armor!" She yelled, burying her face into the crook of his neck as Shining's head spun with the new piece of information. "I couldn't stand the prospect of losing you to someone else so I know I had to do whatever it took to protect you from them!"
Now things were starting to come together for the stallion. It certainly explained why his entire squad consisted entirely of stallions. It also explained why he'd lately been assigned as Cadance's personal guard. Truthfully, Shining hadn't minded this development in the least. If anything, it was a nice change of pace from the grueling combat training and drills that he'd had to do previously.
"From now on," Cadance whispered as she snuggled into Shining's chest. "I'm the only mare that you'll ever need. Not those mares that you'd tried to date. Not those guardsmares that you used to work with. Me. Me and only me. However," her eyes darkened as she said this next bit, "if you try to resist or run away from me..." she let the threat hang as Shining felt the cool metal of the knife against his neck while gulping nervously.
"Well... let's just say it won't end well."
Shining could only nod. What choice did he have?
Cadance's eyes lit up happily as she clapped her forehooves together before hugging him. She'd even been nice enough to undo the chains and shackles that bound Shining. The stallion let out a sigh of relief before meeting Cadance's expectant look. Shaking his head, Shining wrapped his forelegs around the pretty pink pony princess who responded in kind as they allowed themselves to drift into sleep's impatient embrace.
As Shining drifted deeper into sleep's embrace, he only had one thing left to say.
"I love you, Cadance."
