Cadance The Crystal Princess

After the group chuckled at both Cadance and Shining Armor's reaction, they retreated further into the Crystal Empire where the leaders introduced themselves to Starlight and Sunburst before the group split up.

King Crestwing, King Fire Blaze, Stormfeather, Thunderhoof, and Au Hasard were currently given a tour of the empire by Sunburst, while Queen Seraphine stayed behind as Starlight wanted to ask the changeling queen some questions. The rest headed to the baby alicorn's room.

"You're Queen Chrysalis's elder sister?!" The unicorn mare exclaimed.

Seraphine nodded her head and recounted her past to Starlight.

"I... I have no words for it." The unicorn mare muttered, "Princess Celestia banishing Princess Luna to the moon for a thousand years I can understand, but Chrysalis, your own younger sister, petrifying and banishing you to the Frozen North so that she can sought for power without you interfering her... that's just..."

"Unforgivable," The changeling queen finished, her voice barely above a whisper. "But I hold no hatred for her. Only sorrow for what she has become and what I had to do to stop her."

Starlight arched an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Seraphine didn't answered the unicorn mare's question, instead green flames surrounded her and her tall form was replaced with a unicorn mare with a coat of light bluish gray, her mane and tail being moderate blue, a cutie mark of dark blue heart and her eyes being moderate lime green.

The unicorn mare's jaw dropped open at the sight as she remembered the letter Twilight received from Cadance about a certain unicorn mare with the same appearance who shown the secret Chrysalis had hidden in her diary from her hive of ridding themselves permanently of their hunger for love, causing them to permanently dispose of her and 'drained her to death'.

"You?! It was you?!" Starlight exclaimed as the changeling queen shed her disguise.

Seraphine nodded. "Yes, it was me. I was the one who shown my younger sister's diary to her changelings."

The unicorn mare stared at her for a while before looking away. "That's... that's a lot to take it."

The changeling queen sighed. "I know."

A moment of silence hung between them before it was broken by Seraphine.

"So, what is it about Princess Celestia banishing Princess Luna to the moon for a thousand years?" She asked.

Starlight looked back at the changeling queen and replied. "Well, it all started..."

< < < < < < < < < 💙 > > > > > > > > >

In the baby alicorn's room, Twilight and Spike were playfully entertaining Flurry Heart, with Amore, Cadance, and Shining Armor watching with amused smiles.

"She's growing up so fast," Amore remarked, her voice tinged with melancholy.

The Princess of Love nodded, her expression tender as she cradled her daughter. "Yes, she is. And I hope we're guiding her to become a kind and wise leader."

The Prince chuckled. "As long as she doesn't destroy the heart again, she's got the best examples she could ask for from you and Twilight."

Amore, raising her eyebrow, asked, "What did you mean when you said Flurry Heart destroyed the heart?"

The Princess of Friendship rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Well, during the Crystalling, when I took Flurry Heart away from Pinkie Pie, she cried so loudly that it shattered the Crystal Heart. It caused a massive snowstorm in the empire. Fortunately, Starlight, Celestia, Luna, and I were able to repair the Crystal Heart in time."

Amore stared at Twilight and then at Flurry Heart, her face turning red. "I thought I was the only one who broke the heart."

Cadance looked at her mother, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

Amore sighed and confessed, "When I was young, I tried to use my magic but ended up losing control. My magic broke the heart, shattering it into million pieces. My mother and I were lucky that a crystal sorceress was able to fix it before the snowstorm arrived. It was years before my mother let me use my magic again."

"You what?" The Princess of Friendship and Spike exclaimed in shock.

The Princess of Love, Shining and their daughter giggled at the revelation. "Looks like breaking the Crystal Heart runs in the family," the Prince said, still chuckling.

Amore laughed softly. "Seems like it."

The group all shared a laugh together as their laughs echoed through the room before they were interrupted by a knock from the door.

"Come in." Cadance said, the door opening to reveal a crystal guard.

"Your highness," The guard began. "Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and the bearers of Elements have arrived at the train station."

"Thank you," The Princess of Love responded, standing up with Flurry Heart in her left forearm. "Please show them in to the throne room. And on your way to them, if you find Sunburst, tell him to bring the leaders to the throne room. If he asks why, tell him that there are someponies who want to meet the leaders."

The guard saluted before closing the door, leaving the group alone in the room.

"Well, I suppose it's time to meet to my old friends." Amore said with a smile. "Shall we?"

With the nods from the group, they set off to the throne room to wait for the visitors.

< < < < < < < < < 💙 > > > > > > > > >

Meanwhile outside, Sunburst continued to guide King Crestwing, King Fire Blaze, Stormfeather, Thunderhoof and Au Hasard through the empire.

"This Crystal Heart, unlike the ones in the outposts, is a powerful artifact that channels the love and hope of the Crystal Ponies to create a protective barrier around the empire, protecting the empire from harm and snowstorms." The Royal Crystaller explained, gesturing toward the heart's pedestal.

The King of hippogriffs nodded and said, "The resilience and unity of these ponies are truly inspiring. Amore said that this Crystal Heart is a symbol of her subjects' unity and strength."

Sunburst smiled. "You're quite right, Your Majesty. This Crystal Heart is a symbol of their unity and strength. Every time they come together for events like the Crystalling, they strengthen its power. It's a continuous cycle of giving and receiving love."

The bat pony arched an eyebrow and asked, "What's the Crystalling?"

The Royal Crystaller turned his head and answered, "The Crystalling is a special ceremony for Crystal Empire newborns that culminates in making the Crystal Heart stronger than before."

"It's remarkable that this heart can protect the empire from harm and snowstorms, while the outpost cities' ones where we stayed can only protect the outpost cities from snowstorms." The griffon remarked.

As they continued their tour, Sunburst led them to other significant landmarks, including the Crystal Palace, the Crystal Library, and the bustling marketplace as he explained each location of its story and significance. The crystal ponies greeted their guests warmly, their faces reflecting the pride they felt for their homeland.

At the marketplace, the Royal Crystaller paused to explain the history behind the Crystal Fair. "The Crystal Fair is one of our most cherished traditions. It was established to renew the spirit of love and unity among the crystal ponies. The fair culminates in the rejuvenation of the Crystal Heart, strengthening their bond and ensuring their continued prosperity."

The King of the kirins, fascinated by a nearby vendor selling crystal trinkets, remarked, "The integration of their culture with the power of the heart is seamless. It’s as if every aspect of life here is intertwined with the magic of the Crystal Heart."

Sunburst beamed with pride. "Exactly. The heart is the lifeblood of the empire, and its magic touches every part of their lives. It’s what makes the Crystal Empire so unique and resilient."

Before the yak could asked the Royal Crystaller some questions, a crystal guard suddenly walked up to the unicorn.

"Royal Crystaller Sunburst, Princess Cadance has requested you to bring the leaders to the throne room." The guard said.

Sunburst gave the guard a confused face. "What? Why?"

"There are someponies who want to meet the leaders in the throne room." The crystal guard simply said.

The Royal Crystaller's face was replaced with surprised before he composed himself. "Alright, thanks for telling me."

The guard saluted before heading toward the train station.

< < < < < < < < < 💙 > > > > > > > > >

The Crystal marketplace was packed with workers and other ponies who had decided to visit the Crystal Empire for sightseeing or vacations.

Amidst the crowd, seven ponies were being escorted by a crystal guard to the Crystal Palace as they watched many ponies and crystal ponies passing them with some of them greeting them, though for the two ponies, they were panicking.

"Sister, you need to calm down. Panicking isn't going to help you or me." Princess Luna whispery hissed, though her body was shaking a bit as the group walked toward the palace.

"Luna, how can I calm down when we are on our way to meet Amore, who we thought she was dead after King Sombra petrified her and scattered her fragments across the world before we arrived? What if she doesn't forgive us?" Princess Celestia whispery hissed panicky back at her sister.

"I thought I told you not to worry about that."

The Mane 5 walked in silence while staring at the two princesses bickering with each other.

Fluttershy, growing enough of the bickering, moved toward them to stop them. "Your majesties, while I may not know your relationship between you and Princess Amore, I do know that Princess Amore would still want to be friends with you."

The royal sisters, hearing this, composed themselves and calmed down with a deep breath.

"Thank you, Fluttershy," The solar princess said, her voice softer now. "You're right. We need to approach this meeting with calm and open hearts."

The lunar princess nodded in agreement. "Indeed. It wouldn't do to let our nerves get the best of us."

Soon, they reached the palace before the guard saluted and leave while the group continued their journey to the throne room.

Just at the doors of the throne room, the group were met with Clover, Commander Hurricane, Dew Nourish, Nimbus Dash, Grimhoof, Lieutenant Flash Sentry and five guards from each leaders.

Rainbow Dash immediately froze at the sight of the two pegasi as they along with the five guards from each leaders walked toward the group, stopping just in front of them to salute before relaxing.

"Your highnesses, my name is Nimbus Dash. This is my friend, Grimhoof, and these guards behind us are from each of leaders." Nimbus introduced as she gestured to herself, her friend next to her and the guards. "Princess Amore, Princess Cadance, Prince Shining Armor, Princess Twilight Sparkle, Spike, King Crestwing, King Fire Blaze, Stormfeather. Thunderhoof, Au Hasard and Queen Seraphine are all waiting in the throne room."

Before both pegasi could lead the group in, the rainbow-mane pegasus flew straight up to them, her face grinning and her eyes sparkling.

"Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh! You're Nimbus Dash and Grimhoof!" Rainbow Dash squeed as both pegasi shrank down with their eyes twitching. "You guys are part of Cloudsdale's Royal Legion and Flash Magnus's friends! How are you-"

The rainbow-mane pegasus's words were cut off as she was enveloped in blue magic aura by Rarity before being pulled away from Nimbus Dash and Grimhoof.

"Honestly, Rainbow darling. Give those poor guards some space, you're scaring them." The unicorn mare said while lowering Rainbow Dash down onto the floor.

The rainbow-mane pegasus blushed as the group all stared at her before it was interrupted by the combat medic.

"Excuse me, but Princess Amore and the leaders?" Dew spoke.

The guards quickly opened the doors and ushered the group to enter the throne.

They were met with the group with Sunburst, Starlight Glimmer and Flurry Heart in the throne room.

"Amore." Both the royal sisters whispered.

"Hello, Celestia and Luna. It's been so long since I have seen your face." Amore replied as she walked toward the royal sisters before embracing them, which the sisters returned.

The groups watched the touching embracement before Amore and the royal sisters released each other.

Using this opportunity, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Applejack and Rainbow Dash approached Amore, their heads held low in shame.

"Princess Amore..." The white unicorn mare started, getting Amore's attention to the four mares while the rest of the group backed away. They had all agreed that she should be the one to speak to Amore, having the most regal voice of all of them, and being the most experienced smooth talker. "My friends and I would like to apologise for the hostility back at the beach. We shouldn't have done that."

Amore looked at the four mares, her expression softening. "Your apology is accepted," she said warmly. "Let's move past that incident."

The four mares smiled before a scream caught the group's attention and turned their head to see Fluttershy hiding behind a hippogriff guard while staring at the changeling queen.

"CH-CHRYSALIS?!" The four mares and the royal sisters shouted.

The Princess of Friendship and Princess of Love immediately jumped in front of Seraphine, getting both the bearers of harmony and the sisters confused and shock.

"Wait! Queen Seraphine is not Queen Chrysalis! She's just her elder sister!" Twilight quickly explained.

"WHAT?!" came the collective, bewildered response.

Before Cadance could explain more, the changeling queen placed a hoof on her shoulder. "Allow me to explain, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza." She said before recounting her past to the group.

Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Celestia and Luna were beyond shocked and horrified after Seraphine finished her story.

"I... I can't believe Chrysalis would do that to you." The solar princess muttered.

"My sister banishing me to the moon for a thousand years I can understand, but what Chrysalis did... that's..." The lunar princess was unable to finish her words as she took in the story the changeling queen had recounted.

"What my younger sister did was unforgiveable. That's why I orchestrated her downfall and death." Seraphine said before explaining what she did a year ago.

"You? You were the unicorn who showed Chrysalis's diary to her changelings, causing them to permanently disposed and 'drained her to death'?" Applejack shouted in pure shock.

But before the Mane 5 could asked more questions, Celestia and Luna coughed to get the others attention.

"Sorry about that. It's just... Luna and I would like speak to Amore alone in another room." The solar princess said.

Hearing this, Amore arched an eyebrow at the royal sisters before sighing. "Very well."

"I will come with you, mom." The Princess of Love hastily said to her mother.

Both sisters wanted to argue, but decided against it and leave the throne room with Amore and Cadance before closing the door behind, leaving the rest of the group behind.

The group remained in silence before Thunderhoof broke it.

"So, you five ponies and purple princess are the Bearers of Elements of Harmony? How did six ponies managed to do that?" The yak asked.

The Princess of Friendship beamed and started to explain how they did it.