Heated Exchange

Shining Armor tapped a hoof against the table in irritation. The dinner had gotten cold and there was still no sight of his daughter since she had gone to… Shining didn’t know where his daughter had gone to yet but certainly not to the library to fix her grades if a grade report scattered with crossed-out lines in his hoof was any indication. Since she hit adolescence, it had all been going downhill from there. He couldn’t tell at which point exactly he had become out of touch with his daughter, all he could tell was that he missed the old days with his little angel greatly. He had ‘celebrated’ his fortieth birthday not so long ago but occasional pains down his back made him feel at least ten years older.

A pair of delicate hooves wrapped his own calloused hoof and he turned to see the face of his wife. She was as beautiful as the first day he had met her. The only thing that seemed not to change at all.

“She will be alright, honey.” Cadance’s voice sounded calm despite the dark blanket of the night unrolling beyond the castle’s windows. Somehow his wife’s relaxed expression irritated Shining even more and he found his hoof tightening around the grade report with a renewed force. Was he the only one who cared about their daughter’s shenanigans? It was already late and she should have been here at the dining table thirty minutes ago! One would think that after being grounded for an entire week, she would have learned to live by the rules. Perhaps he was too lenient with his daughter. This time she wouldn’t get away with her disobedience that easy.

The grinding sound of the doors opening interrupted Shining’s train of thought. Flurry Heart walked into the dining hall and trotted to the end of the table furthest from Shining. She sat down on a chair, took a spoon in her magic grip, scooped some chamomile salad from a nearby bowl and began to chew, her eyes fixed on one of many squares of the checkered tablecloth.

“Where have you been?” Despite the anger rising inside him, Shining kept his voice calm. There was still a tiny possibility that the delay was out of her control. Perhaps she had been looking over the Crystal Empire or even helping ponies in need or resolving a dispute among neighbors, any of the things a good ruler should know how to do and none of which Flurry had expressed the slightest interest in learning. Perhaps today would be the day he would be able to say he was proud of his daughter.

Flurry Heart stretched a foreleg up and scratched the back of her ear, the salad crunching being the only sound coming from her mouth. Having finished with the vegetables, Flurry poured herself a glass of orange juice and began to examine various confectionery treats scattered on silver platters across the table. Her eyes stopped at a heap of strawberry cupcakes and she put three of them on her plate.

“I asked a question!” Shining Armor raised from his chair and hit the table hard with a hoof, sending Flurry’s cupcakes to dance on her plate.

Flurry let out an annoyed sigh and raised her eyes to look at her father for the first time since she entered the hall. “I was at Lily’s party,” she said nonchalantly. Before Shining had a chance to open his mouth and scold her for disobeying him, she added. “Don’t worry, Dad. I haven’t fucked anypony. Your reputation is completely intact. Just like my virginity. Those are two things you only care about, right?”

“Watch your mouth. You’re not at your bender of a party anymore.” It took all Shining’s will not to just send his daughter into her room and lock her up there. A flicker of hope still burned in his chest that he could somehow come to an agreement with her. “We had a deal that you’re not going to any parties until you improve your grades.” He threw the grade report to Flurry’s side of the table. “Care to explain how you managed to get C on the history of Equestria? I went through the trouble to convince Sunburst to set aside his studies and spend his time on you not for you to embarrass me before him.”

“Cut her some slack, honey,” Cadance said, her hooves brushing Shining’s foreleg. She tugged him down gently, prompting him to sit back down in his chair, but to no avail. “She’s in that season,” Cadance added.

“Mom! Stop it. I don’t want to talk about it!” Flurry’s eyes returned to her plate. She grabbed one of her strawberry cupcakes and stuffed it into her mouth in one piece, struggling to chew.

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of, sweetie. And I’m sure your father wouldn’t have acted that way if he knew what you are going through.” Cadance gave Shining an imploring look, her brows furrowing.

Shining just snorted at that. “The heat doesn’t justify her indolence. When Twilight was in her season she didn’t make any scenes at the family table. It also didn’t prevent her from graduating with A+ in all subjects.”

“Sorry that I’m not your egghead sister, Dad.” Flurry snarled and raised from her chair as well, staring daggers at Shining. “Not everypony gets off to the books. Some ponies have to deal with the needs of their bodies in other ways.”

“Do you take your medicine, sweetie?” Cadance said, a hint of worry in her voice.

“Of course I do but this medicine doesn’t help!” Flurry let out a puff of air. “How can you demand from me ideal grades when I can barely focus to walk straight without my tail shooting to the sky!”

“Because you aren’t even trying! And I’m not going to listen to your excuses anymore. You aren’t leaving your room until you fix your grades.” Shining’s eye twitched in anger as he sat back down in his seat.

“Buck you, Dad.” Flurry’s wing unfurled with a single cluster of feathers pointing at the ceiling in an obscene gesture. She kicked off her chair and trotted to the exit. She gave Shining a final glare of hatred and closed the door behind herself with a hearty thwack.

“Are you happy?” Cadance asked.

“No, I’m not. Our daughter is uncontrollable and you do nothing to help me change that.”

Cadance sighed. “Whether you want it or not but our daughter is not a little filly anymore. She is a mare. It’s too late to try to change her into somepony she isn't. When was the last time you spoke with her like two adults?”

“I...” Shining trailed off. “I just don’t want her to make mistakes I’ve done. Don’t want her to regret her decisions someday.”

“But making mistakes is the only way we learn something. Let her make them. Instead of roughly paving the way for her, try to understand what is going on in her mind and support her decisions.”

Shining slumped against the back of his chair, looking at the ceiling. “I’ve tried,” he said, letting out a puff of air. “It seems like there’s an abyss between us.”

Cadance brushed her chin musingly. “Perhaps I’ve an idea on how to get you two to understand each other better.”

Shining blew out a guttural groan. “If it’s another session of family therapy I’m not sure I’ll make it through this one.”

Cadance giggled. “No more of those. I have something much better in mind.”

“Whatever it is, at least it can wait until you return from your mission in Saddle Arabia.” Shining let out a sigh of relief though it quickly turned into a groan of anguish. “Not sure how I’m going to handle Flurry without you for a whole week though.”

Cadance gave Shining a sinister grin. “It doesn’t have to wait. By the time I return home you two will have become as good friends as a father and a daughter can be.”