As the Elements of Harmony, especially Rarity and Twilight Sparkle, earned everything they had ever wanted in life, Ponyville grew. The quaint and homey village in the middle of nowhere grew into a sprawling metropolis like Manehatten or Canterlot, though the proximity and influence of the Princess of Friendship made sure that it was protected from several toxic aspects of urbanization. More buildings were added and the ones that were there already were built upon until they were skyscrapers. Thanks to the ever-improving economy and productivity of the Crystal Empire and its Ponies, Ponyville was able to make its countless buildings out of sturdy and reflective crystal like the palace sat at the city’s edge. Many of the people who moved into or were born into the growing city found the name Ponyville unfitting and it came to be seen as unworthy and demeaning in certain circles. The municipal government held a vote to rename their city, and the name Hockholm won out over all of the others, albeit by a small margin.
Like any other city, Hockholm had a massive train station. And like all train stations in massive cities, there were Ponies, Griffons, Minotaurs, and countless other types of sentient and civilized creatures at all hours of the day, all there on their own agendas be it business, pleasure, or Celestia-knows-what-else. While there were still hundreds of people trying to get onto and off of their trains, there five special Ponies there at Hockholm Station waiting for a specific train and seven specific occupants.
First was the only adult among the small group of teenagers. He was a blue-violet Earth Pony with a blond mane and tail. His Cutie Mark was a gold star with three golden horseshoes falling from it. The only article of clothing he wore was a pink satchel with a light red star on it. This was Prince-Escort Star Tracker, faithful husband to Twilight Sparkle.
Pacing in front of the group, and occasionally bumping into passersby as he was lost in thought, was the son of Twilight Sparkle and Star Tracker, Prince Honor Roll. His coat was a beautiful ebony that exaggerated his Cutie Mark, a tan book with a golden star on its cover. His mane and tail was a brilliant blond that looked more like gold than hair.
“I know we’ve been friends since forever, and I’m sure you all can get along great with Serenade,” Honor Roll started, his mother’s trademark anxiety clear in the lime green eyes that sat just above his rounded muzzle, “But things are very different in the Crystal Empire. They were stuck in time for a thousand years, so their culture is, as some people would say, backwards. So, they still see the monarchy as perfect absolute rulers, and Uncle Shining’s family has to try very hard to uphold this image while still being approachable: something Serenade has problems with. It’s going to take him a while to figure out we aren’t just saying it when we say he doesn’t have to be afraid to be himself in public.”
“Okay HR, we get it,” Stated the Pegasus, “Your cousin is a foreigner and is going to act weird because of it. But you’ve said that almost a dozen times on the way here and five since we’ve arrived.”
Prism was a white Pegasus Mare with a rainbow mane and tail, a dominant trait from her mother’s side of the family, and featherless leathery wings. She had dull gray eyes and, as you can see above, her mother’s less-than-perfect mastery over tact. Her Cutie Mark was the outline of a diamond with every shade of every primary color shooting out of it, forming a color wheel.
Prism got an annoyed look from the Unicorn that was waiting with them, “While Prism could have used more sensitive words, you have been obsessing over this.”
The Unicorn Mare was Trend Set: the daughter of Rarity and an accountant named Crunching Numbers. She had a blazing orange coat with a mane and tail of red stripes, changing between two shades of red. She wore her mane in two ponytails, one going over each shoulder. Her Cutie Mark was a circle of icons representative of popular fads from previous decades and an assortment of seemingly random objects that many guessed would the big thing in coming years with curved arrows pointing at each other.
An idea found its way into Trend Set’s head, “Hey, Stacks, your mother owns the railway that is used for trade between Equestria and the Empire, does she not?”
Fat Stacks was Diamond Tiara’s son, and the only one in the group not related to either of the Elements. He had calculating eyes of deep purple. He was an Earth Pony with a cherry red mane and tail and an ashen gray coat. His Cutie Mark was made up of stacks of Bits and Slivers that looked like they were about to collapse on their own weight.
“Yes, mother took advantage of the fact that so few Ponies were willing to work with a nation that embraced such, uh…” Fat Stacks rotated his right hoof as he thought of a delicate word to use, “Conservative customs.”
“So, then your parents, or at least your mother, took you with them to meet with the Prince and Princess?” She smiled as he nodded, “Did you, by chance, happen to meet Serenade?”
“Yes,” Fat Stacks replied, “We had a pleasantly intelligent discussion about finance and usury. I must also say,” He continued as he gestured at Honor Roll, “No number of rumors or stories could prepare me for how similar the two of you look.”
Honor Roll smiled as he rubbed the back of his head, “We get that a lot. We thought that the other was Changeling when we meet for the first time.”
“So, what was the impression you got from him?” Trend Set asked.
“I didn’t get one. We only meet the once and we were in a formal setting, and no one is ever quite themselves at those kinds of gatherings. And Serenade was particularly distant.” Fat Stacks explained.
“Drat,” Trend Set replied. She knew that it was a long shot, given how she’d seen her own parents act meetings and other similar functions. But it did sometimes help to act like an actual person instead of a glorified automaton obsessed with profit, depending on the kind of people you were dealing with. The young Unicorn did not think she’d ever figure out how Aunt Pinkie managed to be herself and still get that exclusivity deal with Barnyard Bargains.
She looked past her friend and into the distance, “Isn’t that a Crystal Empire train?”
Her friends followed her gaze, and sure enough: a train seemingly made of crystal was coming down the track. After a moment, the group could clearly see a heavily decorated train car at the end of the train. While everything from the Crystal Empire is made from beautiful crystal, everything made for the royal family was even more so. The royal car was a deep purple with marble and blue zircon in the shape of Crystal Empire heraldry embedded into the sides of the car. Flags of the Crystal Empire fluttered proudly in the wind above the corners of the royal car as the train pulled into Hockholm Transcontinental Station.
The group moved in front of the royal car so that they could greet Serenade and the Elements of Harmony. Honor Roll was grinning like a maniac and bouncing in place out of excitement, evidence that Twilight and Star Tracker probably let Pinkie Pie foalsit for him too much. Honor Roll waited for the door to start opening before he began galloping, only to charge face-first into a wall of silver light.
“Ow!” Honor Roll exclaimed, “Why did you do that?”
“Because the last time you tackled me into a train, you gave me a concussion,” Honor Roll’s friends were not surprised to hear a voice, but were surprised that it sounded exactly like Honor Roll, only much softer.
Everypony save for Star Tracker and Fat Stacks had their jaws drop as Prince Serenade stepped off the train, dissipating his shield as he walked through it. Serenade had a coat that was black like the night sky and a mane and tail of golden locks. While Honor Roll didn’t put any effort into making his mane or tail look any different than anypony else, Serenade’s mane was clearly combed and fashioned to rest flatly against his head with the hairs above his face that either combed or gelled together and went the sides of his face, almost like a frame of some kind that completed his lime green eyes. Serenade wore a sleeveless royal blue jacket or vest that stopped at the point of the hip. The only other thing that made it possible to differentiate Serenade and Honor Roll was Serenade’s Cutie Mark: a silver ten-pointed star in a scarlet circle with light purple musical symbols in the spaces of the star.
The Royal Cousins began to lower their front halves as their aunts got off the train behind them. Most assumed that they were bowing to each other until they started singing a nursery rhyme.
“Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake!
Clap your hooves, and do a little shake!”
The two young Stallions embraced each other tightly and nuzzled each other as Honor Roll’s friends and several people at the train station gave them looks of shock and confusion. Prism started laughing at the display as Fat Stacks spoke, “I thought you only did that with Princess Cadance.”
“Mom and Aunt Cadance started doing it as a bonding exercise,” Honor Roll explained, “But they made it into a family tradition when Aunt Cadance and Uncle Shining married.”
Serenade opened his mouth to speak, but stopped himself when he noticed Fat Stacks, “Were you at the Royal Summit in Yakyakistan the year before last?”
“Yes I was,” Answered Fat Stacks, “I didn’t realize that I made such an impression on you, highness.”
Serenade nodded, “You were the only one there who could talk about finance and didn’t discuss potential loopholes that could be abused. That made you the only person I meet at that summit that I could respect.”
“What about Diamond Tiara ‘nd Gross Revenue?” Applejack asked with a raised eyebrow. While it took a long time after Diamond Tiara’s reformation, she came to like the then Filly shortly before she grew into full adulthood, “I think they’re mighty fine folk.”
Serenade turned to look at his adoptive aunt, “Gross Revenue found out that he was allergic to shellfish that day and Diamond Tiara had to spend the whole time at the royal conference table negotiating the details of the Transcontinental Railroad. I didn’t get the chance to meet either of them.”
“As much I’m sure you would all like to talk,” Twilight said, “We should all probably get moving.”
Serenade only needed a moment to move his luggage from the train car with his magic. While most of the Elements could carry most of their things themselves, Rarity had to call over some station workers to help her get all of her luggage. It wasn’t uncommon that people needed to bring with them more than what they could carry, so station masters had started hiring workers specifically to help passengers carry their luggage to a taxi or a nearby building. While the group of teenagers was used to Rarity’s idea of the ‘essentials,’ they were surprised to see that Serenade only had a single suitcase and a pet carrier. Serenade carefully placed the pet carrier on his back so that the Velcro strips on the bottom of the carrier and the back of his vest stuck together.
“You brought Zoe with you?” Star Tracker asked.
“I couldn’t leave her by herself,” Serenade stated as he walked past his uncle.
Trend Set went up to her mother as Star Tracker moved to help his wife with her luggage, “Should we wait for you mother?”
Rarity waved a hoof, “No, you all can go on ahead of me. The palace is too far away for the station workers to carry my things, so I’ll have to go wave down a taxi,” Rarity turned around to look her daughter in the eye and spoke in a lower tone, “Serenade is in a bad place right now, so I want you and your friends to try and make Serenade your friend. Can you do that for me?”
“Uh, s-sure,” Trend Set had never heard her mother talk like this before. She had also never seen her either of her parents bend the truth like that outside of business deals.
Trend Set turned around and started leaving the station with her friends, “Pardon, your grace? What is that you’re carrying?”
“A pet carrier,” Serenade replied in monotone.
Trend Set let out a small huff, one that no one else could hear over the crowds of people they were moving through. It seemed that, despite there being no blood ties between the two, Serenade took after Maud, “Let me rephrase, what kind of pet do you have?”
“A good one,” Serenade was still speaking in a plain voice.
Honor Roll looked to his side and saw his cousin’s smirk, “Serenade, are you using Maud humor?” He asked with a smirk of his own.
Serenade was actually smiling now, “Maybe,” Despite his best effort, he couldn’t keep the mischievous tone out of his voice any more.
Or maybe he has a sense of humor Trend Set thought to herself.
The group of teenagers was behind the adults as they talked amongst themselves. The boys were in between the adults and Fillies. Trend Set had meant to have more conversation with Serenade, but her female friends were teasing her about how she had positioned herself directly behind Serenade, and how she had a ‘perfect view.’ Trend Set prioritized refuting that suggestion that she was ogling somepony she had just met over trying to get to know Serenade better for that moment. Serenade and Honor Roll had only kept in touch with other through letters, as they lived in different countries. They used to do so every month, but Serenade had busied himself with some king of project, so this slowed to a letter every two or three months. So the two spent the whole way to Twilight’s palace catching up. This left Fat Stacks as the only one of the large group who wasn’t talking with anyone. This suited the young Stallion just fine, as all of the noise of city life would have made talking difficult without resorting to yelling. But this allowed his specially trained ears to pick up an interesting tidbit from the conversation between Star Tracker and Twilight.
It was hard to over hear as they were talking a low tone, mostly giving each other sweet nothings. However, Fat Stacks tuned into their conversation as Star Tracker asked a question that had been on his mind as well.
“Why exactly did Cadance ask you to the Capitol?” Star Tracker asked, “Sure, Serenade is sort of young for long distance travelling, but he’s more than capable of looking after himself.”
“We’ll talk about it later,” Twilight replied. Several things ran through Stacks’ mind as the words left the mouth of the Princess of Friendship. Fat Stacks had been raised as a business pony his whole life. While his parents assured him that they’d support him in whatever he chose to do with his life, they understood that the lives they had and are leading could endanger their son in unconventional ways. These years of lessons let Stacks’ pick up on how Twilight more hurriedly spoke than usual, if only slightly, and his intuition told him that those words were far more ominous than they typically suggested. Fat Stacks spent the rest of way back to the palace with rapt attention put on the royal couple in the hopes of hearing something more about the Elements’ presence in the Crystal Empire. Just what happened up north? Stacks thought and why did Serenade need to leave immediately after?
Author's Note
Slivers are the Equestrian equivalent to Cent pieces in the the US, their exact value being determined by size, with 100 Slivers being equal to one Bit. i.e. A 50 Sliver basically being a Bit that has been cut in half, a 3rd Sliver being one-third of a Bit, etc. Their value can also be different if they are made from a different metal like Sliver or Bronze. i.e. 100 Silver Slivers being equal to a whole Bit, 1000 Bronze Slivers being equal to one Silver Sliver. Gather a 1000 Bits, and you get a Bullion. I'm explaining this here because, while the value of Bits and such will come up later in the story, there is no reason as to why all of the characters wouldn't already know the values of the currency of the country they live.
Feel free to leave constructive criticism, general thoughts on the story so far, or to point any plot holes or typos I have made.