There I was, wandering the halls while looking like an idiot. Yeah, I know I should probably look for either Princess Cadence or Shining Armor, but it would have probably been wise of me to have asked Princess Celestia or Princess Luna of their whereabouts. I thought about checking the barracks since Shining’s the captain, but he’s about to get married, so he shouldn’t be working right now.

Then, an idea struck me, and luckily, a guard was nearby. After I approached him, he saluted me.

I still don’t like it when they do that to me, but I put up with it nonetheless.

“Excuse me, but could you by chance tell me where I might find Princess Cadence?” I asked him.

He lowered the hoof he used to salute me before speaking.

“She should be the guest room closest to Princess Celestia’s private chambers.” He answered in a stern, yet professional tone.

I nodded at him.

“Thanks.

Unfortunately, due to the guard’s training, he didn’t reply, which made things uncomfortable. These awkward silent moments always bother me, so I started on my way. However, from what the guard told me, I was pretty sure the room he spoke of is the one I used when I was Princess Celestia’s Buttler. So, as logic would dictate, that’s where I went.

Thankfully, I was already on that floor, so it only took me a few minutes to find my way. However, when I approached the door to the room, it didn’t feel right. Not in the sense like I shouldn’t be doing this, but more in the sense of something worse.

To make it even more uncomfortable, the aura the room was giving off felt familiar. It was tugging at my heart in ways that I only knew to describe as painful. However, I ignored it and knocked on the door.

The voice on the other side was a different story. It sounded soft and gentle, graceful even.

“Who is it?” The voice called.

Hopefully, my assumption of it belonging to this Princess Cadence was correct, and I answered.

“Spirit.”

“Spirit?” She replied with surprise in her voice. “Come on in.”

With the feeling the room was giving off conflicting with the sound of her voice, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Opening the door, I walked in to find a pink Alicorn lying on the bed. She had velvet eyes that contained the look of serenity. Her mane and tail were quite unique as well. They both were tri-colored. Dark purple, semi-dark pink, and cream. Her smile showed nothing but innocence.

“So why can’t I shake off this dark feeling?” I thought.

“So, you’re Spirit.” She commented, returning my full attention to her.

She got off the bed and walked over to me, every step taken with grace that both displayed an air of regal femininity, as well as some intimating display of power and control.

“Shining Armor has told me a few things about you. Some of them, pretty surprising, but not as surprising as what’s in front of me.” She added before she closed the door behind me with her magic.

At this point, she was standing right in front of me. She was only a little taller than me, but not as tall as Celestia or Luna. She was just as alluring as she was intimidating as she pressed further into the conversation.

“It’s hard to believe you did so much to Discord.”

“Oh, that. Yeah, I’d rather not think about that.” I told her, remembering my near-death experience.

“Why would you visit me then?” She asked, looking more curious.

I had to admit, she was kind of putting me on edge, which made my words sound just as nervous as I actually was.

“Well, after hearing that a good friend of mine is getting married, how could I refrain from seeing who he got together with?” I asked rhetorically, staying as close to the door as possible.

“Didn’t expect him to manage to get married to a Princess,” I added jokingly.

What was happening?I was ready to bolt. It felt like a voice was screaming at me to get away from her.

“You seem a little tense.” She noted. “Perhaps I could help you with that.”

Trying not to be too rude, I replied, albeit with an uneasy smile

“No, thanks. I need to do a few things. It was nice to meet you, though.”

I turned and quickly left the room, closing the door behind me to hurry back to my room.

The aura that room was giving off was starting to make me feel sick. Once back in my room, I laid on the bed. That feeling was making me feel physically ill too, so I decided to try to nap it off. I’d rather risk a night terror.

A few hours later, I woke up. I was feeling a little better at this point. Getting off the bed, I stretched my wings before hiding them. That’s when I noticed Shining Armor by my door. He didn’t look too well, despite his tuxedo. He seemed deprived of sleep and in desperate need of coffee.

“Evening Spirit.” He greeted, sounding groggy.

“Evening Shining. Say, you don’t look too good. Have you gotten much rest lately?” I asked as I approached him.

“Not really. I can’t afford to. I need to keep a barrier around Canterlot after there was a threat note received of a possible attack. I need to renew it pretty often.” He explained.

It was painful to see Shining like this. Not only was a good friend, he was tough, and a highly capable soldier. Seeing him this ragged was a great injustice.

“Ouch. Sorry to hear that. Though I must ask. Why are you in my room?”

“Oh, right. I had something important to ask you.” He answered. “Would you like to be my best stallion at the wedding?”

I was a little more than surprised, confused even. He had to have more friends that he could have asked to fill the role, yet he still came to me? However, there was something important still on the table before I could give my answer.

“Why don’t you ask Twilight to be your best mare?” I asked. “She’s your sister, after all.”

“Well, you see, she’s been acting weird around Cadence lately. I deemed it necessary for her not to.” He explained.

Judging from what he said, I’m guessing Twilight was currently in Canterlot. However, given the vibes I got from Cadance, I didn’t blame Twilight for that either. Regardless, I do know a chance when I see one.

“Sure, I guess. When’s the wedding again?” I asked.

“Tomorrow at noon.” He answered, sending me into a slight panic.

“Seriously? I don’t have a tuxedo yet. Do you mind if I show up without wearing anything fancy?”

“Sure.” He answered, putting me at ease. Now that I’m his best stallion, I can actually keep an eye on Cadence really closely during the wedding.

“Alright. Well, I should get a full rest so I’ll just go back to sleep. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” I replied before leaving. I went back into bed, feeling anxious. I had a bad feeling about this.

Author's Note

Alright, it has been a pretty long time since I've last done this, but here you go. Also, I'd like to credit EmptyPlotFiller for editing this chapter. Click his name in the story discription to check out his content.

As always, drop a like, leave a comment, and I hoped you enjoyed.