The Rise of Passion

Stellar Flare looked over Starlight's manor. "This is where you want to raise my grandchild?"

"What's wrong with it?" demanded Starlight, letting Trixie rush in to inform Cozy of the sudden change in plans and prepare the room. "It's large, well-stocked, and safe."

"It's so far from everypony else," she complained. "How will he have friends if he's all cooped up in here?"

"He can still have friends. He can still go into town. But in this way, I can push for him only having good friends. I can make sure they don't take advantage of him and make sure that he's as prepared as ever for his first year of Magic Kindergarten."

"Are you sure that's such a good idea? There are few things more powerful than friendship."

"Very few, indeed," nodded Starlight. "They do exist, however..."

Starlight saw the shadow in the second floor window and nodded, knowing that Cozy Glow was watching. She was definitely in hot water now, and she would need some help to make this work. She was willing to submit to whatever punishment Cozy would give her, as long as she pulled her out of this mess she'd created for all of them.

"Come in, I'll have some tea prepared."

Stellar Flare followed Starlight through the foyer and into the kitchen. The two were silent as Starlight made the tea, but Stellar judged her every step of the way with her facial expressions.

Starlight poured them both a cup of tea, as well as one for Trixie, who had only just returned. "Sorry," she smiled. "Indecent things were happening."

Stellar sipped at her cup. "You still have to show me the baby's room."

"Right," nodded Trixie. "It's upstairs."

After a few minutes of Starlight and Trixie sipping at their tea, much to Stellar's ire, they set their cups down and escorted her upstairs, with Trixie selecting the room that she had just set up. She opened the door and escorted the party inside. Most of the room was barren, with the furniture all pushed off to one side and hastily disassembled.

"You call this a nursery?"

Starlight sat down on the couch. "What part of "just found out today" did you not understand?"

"The part where you can't raise a baby in this room. There's no crib, even!"

"We have time," assured Starlight. "The baby's not due for months, yet."

Stellar sat down and folded her front hooves. "How long ago was the conception? How many months do I have to turn this place around for my grandson?"

Starlight looked to the door, and for a brief moment, her horn lit up before going dark again. She took a deep breath. "Ah, yes, the time of conception. That has yet to be decided, as well as who the mother will be."

Stellar sneered. "I should have known this was too good to be true."

"Who says it's not true?" asked Trixie, her own horn flashing for a brief few seconds. Sunburst will have a child, and it will be in your lifetime. In fact, you might even have some say in the matter. It could even be a princess."

"Or two," added Starlight.

"Or three," continued Trixie. "What we have is a method of elevating him to be, at the very least, as important and influential as any of the princesses. Perhaps even more so."

Stellar Flare narrowed her eyes. "I'm listening."

"Your son, as well as his offspring, could all be tied for the second most important ponies in all of Equestria."

"Why not the most important?"

Trixie shrugged. "It's for his own protection. If something goes wrong, he can claim that he was following orders."

"Following orders?"

"Yes," smiled Starlight. "Whatever goes wrong, it can't be his fault."

Stellar took a deep breath, considering her options. Given the offer that had just been extended, she could refuse, but the reward for compliance was exceptionally good. Throwing it away was not good for her son. "What is this plan?"

Starlight leaned back and tented her hooves. "Love is a curious thing. Sometimes, it does not make sense. And yet, it can happen to anypony. In most cases, this is fine, but in some, not so much. Think Montague and Capulet, as that is the case for this particular tale, but on a much simpler scale. Out of all of the various countries we know about, how often does it happen that a peasant marries into royalty?"

"Quite often."

"In a non-fictional setting?"

Stellar retracted her statement.

"The reason for this is that we don't want just anypony running the country. That's why Cadance was allowed to marry Shining Armor, after all. His family is nobility, he was a captain in Celestia's royal guard, and his sister was heir apparent to Equestria. If even one of those happened to not be true, it's unlikely that he would have been given the opportunity to stand beside the latest ruler of the Crystal Empire. In a fair world, the same position could have belonged to a homeless stallion who was cast aside by society.

"I will grant this, however. A change is coming soon. This change will make effort and merit far more valuable. It will be a world where it doesn't matter if you were born into a noble house or a poor one; If you're the boss's sister or some mare who just started her first minimum wage job. This system will be based on hard work and merit. Those who try harder will be granted more value. What is needed will not be status, but passion."

"And this helps my son how?"

"Sunburst tries harder than most other stallions. It's taken years for him to claw his way up to his current status, and yet, he deserves more."

"I agree."

"There is one problem with this, though."

"What's that?"

Starlight leaned forward and furrowed her eyebrows. Cozy was talking into her ear from outside of the room, explaining how the plan needed to go, and while Starlight agreed, she had to find the right words to restate what Cozy meant without upsetting Stellar Flare to the point that she would storm out of the room.

"Your son has no passion for creating children. He is in need of assistance on that front."