The Prince's Predicament 2: The Princess's Predicament

The entire ride back to the palace was silent. Shining did allow Cadance to put a hoof on his shoulder as they approached the town, and even with Shining being absolutely filthy, the crowds were cheering for him. Just as had been the case when Cadance returned, there was a podium waiting for them.

Shining stood up in front of the crowd. "Good morning. Most of you are probably aware of this, but for those of you that aren't, let me explain. At approximately two-thirty this morning, a tree fell across the train tracks that were carrying the Friendship Express around a curve. The engine was unable to stop in time, and the train derailed.

"Thankfully, we were able to recover all of the passengers, and while a good many of them were unharmed, some of them were wounded pretty severely. Everypony is being sent through the Crystal Heart Medical Care Center, which has temporarily been bolstered from the Crystal Empire General Hospital. This is primarily because it's closer, meaning the patients can be treated for any minor injuries more quickly. If it is required that the medical staff use more advanced equipment, the Crystal Heart Medical Care Center staff will ensure that the patients are stabilised before moving them to Crystal Empire General. I would ask that, if you see an ambulance today, even if it's not signalling an emergency, that you move out of its way. There are a lot of injured ponies, and I know we'd all feel better if they were well cared for.

"Now, then... If you'll excuse me, I look a mess, and I'm in desperate need of a shower. Good health to you all."

The applause he was given by the crowd was at least twice as loud as what Cadance had received on her return. That meant that the citizens were happier seeing Shining covered in blood and engine grease than they were seeing her after more than three and a half years of absence. Honestly, she was a bit jealous, but even then, she would have applauded Shining's efforts. All she did was come back. He'd probably saved somepony's life last night.

She escorted him upstairs and into their bedchambers, where he started his shower. For a moment, Cadance was silent once more. During the ride back, she'd been thinking a lot about what Luna had said, and even if it wasn't quite right, she needed to start somewhere.

"Shiny?" she asked, walking back into the bathroom.

"Yeah?"

"I've been thinking a lot, lately, especially about how to go about fixing this..."

"Fixing what?" asked Shining. "I can't see through the shampoo."

"Fixing us," clarified Cadance. "Fixing our relationship. I don't want us to be one of those couples that just argues and fights all the time."

"We don't argue and fight all the time," assured Shining. "Even if we did, I'm sure it's mostly because we care about the things we're discussing."

Cadance sighed. "Shining, I'm going to ask you something, and I want the truth."

"I'm not known for lying."

"But you may try to hide this from me." Cadance took a deep breath, then asked him directly. "Do you still love me at all?"

Shining froze for a minute. When he finally resumed, he had to spray some water on his face to remove some of the soap. "That's a very complicated question."

"Is it?"

Shining turned the water to his mane and began to rinse it out. "Well, I suppose the question itself isn't complicated. The answer is."

"There are only two options..."

"It sure looks that way, but if you try to force the answer to be one of those, it's not going to work out well."

"Explain."

"Well, as we've discussed previously, I didn't have any recovery time. I dove right into making sure the citizens were happy. No love from the crystal ponies means the crystal heart fails, and then what's protecting the empire?"

"So, you love the citizens?"

"Oh, unquestionably, yes. I mean, there are some massive dickheads out there, but most of them are great. I could not be more proud of the empire's citizens."

"But not me."

Shining sighed. "Look, there's a part of me that still wants to forgive you. There's some aspect of my soul that wants to believe you when you say that you never meant for it to go as far as it did. That part of me wants to give you the opportunity to find a solution. I'm clinging to that, because it's all the hope that I have left. If I give that up, I'm not doing everything I can to fill the empire with love, and the last thing I want to do is fail the ponies that depend on me."

She couldn't see it, as the showerhead was washing it all away, but she could hear his voice cracking. He was crying. She hadn't seen him cry since they took over the empire. He was always so stoic and proud, standing tall as a pillar of hope for everypony to cling to when times were tough. Perhaps this was why.

"I truly am sorry, you know..."

He nodded, presumably to hide his voice.

"If there was a way for me to go back and stop myself, I'd do it."

"No," he replied. "That'd be a bad idea."

"Why?"

"Because I'd've never agreed to bed other stallions if you hadn't." He started lathering up his pouf and scrubbing his body. "I'm not going to pretend that it was the right thing to do, but to deny that anything good came of it is stupid. Obviously, I benefitted in some way; in the way you intended. But at the same time, I've spent so much time running and hiding from the pain that it caused me.

"Most of my feelings for you stem from that; the fact that I never recovered. If I could be rid of all of the hurt I feel from you, then yes, I could see myself loving you fully once again. If I could be rid of this hatred, then the answer to your question would be "yes." But if I were to go with all I can feel right now, it's looking like a "no." Like I said, it's complicated."

Cadance nodded. "That's something, at least..."