The train had entered the frozen tundra after a day of chugging through the arid climate of Saddle Arabia, sand and heat replaced by snow and frost. In the private car at the end of the locomotive was where Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Trill, and Solaris had spent their day. They were still suffering from Applejack's unfortunate death, unmotivated to do anything or find any way to cheer each other up. Solaris was taking it hard, blaming himself for the mare's sacrifice.

He looked out the window from his bunk, watching the scenery pass by, no longer interested in the landscape he desired to see from the world outside of the caves. He heard his stomach growling, begging for something to eat, but he didn't feel hungry. He was slowly losing his family one by one, and he was scared to know what will happen to the others. What was worse, he feared what the mares' families would think of him if they all died because of him.

While Solaris internally struggled with his thoughts, Rainbow, Pinkie, and Fluttershy were in a separate car as they tried to figure out what to do. Having lost three friends in the span of a week, they really needed to figure out what they should do next.

"Ok, I think we might be safe as long as we lay low," Rainbow said, still upset after losing Applejack, but sane enough to think about their future planning. "Let's just hope Lucifer thinks we're still dead. I doubt that will happen, since his little minion was watching us like a sick bastard."

"You mean the full body armored stallion?" Fluttershy asked.

"Yeah. The same one who dropped Rarity off to us." Rainbow growled as she thought of many different ways to get back at this mysterious mercenary. "If I see him again, I am going to kill him myself."

"Can we not talk about negative feelings?" Pinkie asked. "I know this hasn't been a fun adventure, but we're going to be at the Crystal Empire soon. We don't want Solly to be sad when he sees his relatives."

"...Right," Rainbow admitted. "No matter what happens, we have to keep going. Solaris needs to do complete all of these tests, and we all need a break after what happened in the desert. It'll do him some good to meet Shining Armor and Cadence for the first time."

"I'm sure Cadence and Shining Armor would want to see how much he's grown," Fluttershy said.

"Yeah!" Pinkie said. "He's gonna meet his uncle and aunt he never knew about!...Like when he was kept hidden from the truth...about Twilight..." She trailed off, the three mares growing worried about how Solaris would react to meeting relatives he never knew of that were actually related to him by blood. "...I have a bad feeling it's gonna end up with yelling and possible furniture smashing."

"Do you really think Solaris is gonna break something and freak out?" Rainbow asked.

"Well, do you not remember what he did to his punching bag!?" Pinkie exclaimed. "He can do some serious damage to anything!"

"I doubt he's gonna overreact that way, Pinkie," Rainbow said, though she seemed a bit worried. "At least, I hope he doesn't..."

As evening came sooner than expected, Rainbow, Pinkie, and Fluttershy were asleep in their bunks, while Solaris and Trill were still awake. The alicorn hadn't slept in the past two days and his stomach demanded food, slowly harming himself as he still laid in the same position, while the changeling princess could feel his sadness from above him. She tried to get him to say something, but she got nothing. Even with some of her lewd jokes, nothing seemed to make him snap out of his funk.

Her ears perked up when she heard Solaris finally leave his bed, quietly heading to the caboose. Trill followed him as he was by himself in the car, wondering what he was up to. She saw something glow against his chest, his chaos pendant emitting a small light. Her jaw dropped when she saw a cloud appear out of nowhere, coated pink, and Solaris's horn didn't even glow. He bit off a piece of the cloud, the scent hitting her nose a mix of cotton candy and chocolate milk.

"What in Equestria...?" Trill pondered, her voice reaching Solaris's ears.

"I thought you were asleep..." Solaris continued munching on the chaotic cloud he created, keeping his back turned to Trill.

"Kinda hard to when I can feel your depression when your directly beneath me." Trill moved closer to Solaris until she sat in front of him, eyeing the pink cloud floating before them. "Uhh...mind telling me what that is you're eating? I mean, I'm glad you finally got up to eat something, but...why a cloud?"

"...I gave in to my stomach's protests." Solaris bit into his cloud, some chocolate milk spurting out from the bite mark, only to be absorbed back into the cotton candy. "It's a cotton candy cloud stuffed with chocolate milk."

"Chocolate milk!?" Trill immediately bit down on the fluffy cloud of candy, tasting the strawberry cotton candy and delighting in the chocolate milk filling stuffing her cheeks. She moaned in ecstasy at the chocolatey goodness invading her taste buds, not even minding the cotton candy part of the cloud. "Ooooh goodness of all things delicious. Chocolate..."

Solaris backed away a little, Trill's obvious addiction to chocolate going to be a serious issue. Swallowing her mouthful and licking her lips, she noticed the alicorn teen's awkwardness, chuckling in embarrassment.

"What is it with you and chocolate?" Solaris asked.

"...It tastes like love..." Trill waited for a response, knowing it was a stupid answer, even if it was true for her. "I know it sounds stupid, but we changelings love the stuff to death. Call it a weakness since it's a substitute for the real love energy we absorb."

"...Oh," Solaris said in understanding. "I guess that makes sense."

"Eh?" Trill stared at the stallion quizzically. "Really? I thought you would say something like, 'That doesn't make any sense,' or, 'What!? Seriously!? Is that what love really tastes like? Chocolate?'"

"Hearts and Hooves Day." Trill grew even more confused at his answer. "Couples usually give each other gifts on this holiday to show their affection, whether platonic or not. It's either chocolates, flowers, or cards as the gifts, and nopony can resist chocolate from their special somepony." Solaris nibbled some more of the cloud, taking a momentary break to fill up his stomach. He didn't even notice Trill's dumbfounded expression, still completely loss. "You know, it's a weird story how Hearts and Hooves Day came to be.

"It all started when a unicorn prince pined for a princess he had a crush on, but she had no idea he existed. He created a potion where two ponies have to consume the same brew at the same time, falling in love with each other against their will. Unfortunately, instead of a potion, it was more like a poison." Solaris continued his rambling as he continued munching on his snack. "The couple were in love, but it was the awkward kind like in those strange, cheesy romance novels. They constantly stared in each other's eyes, shirking off from their royal duties until, eventually, their kingdoms collapsed. After the tragic death between the forced lovers, Hearts and Hooves Day was created, celebrating love between friends, family, or the pony of their dreams."

After finishing his lecture, Trill blankly stared at the alicorn, having had no interest the entire time. "...Can you explain how that relates to changelings and our love for chocolate? Because I didn't want to hear about a love story turned tragic by a poison."

"Oh..." Solaris looked down, having forgotten why he was relating the holiday to Trill's love of chocolate, only to ramble on a tangent and talk about something else. "Sorry...My mind isn't exactly in the right place at the moment." He looked out one of the windows, approaching it and looked out at the darkness, the moon shining down and lighting up the snow-covered land. "I still can't stop blaming myself for what happened to Aunt Applejack..."

"Solaris..." Trill walked up to the depressed alicorn, gently laying her hoof on his shoulder, reverting to her normal form since they were alone. "It wasn't your fault."

"Then why do I feel like I caused her death?" Solaris questioned rhetorically, burying his face in his forelegs. "She worked on a farm all her life, years of bucking apples giving her more strength and stamina than any other regular earth pony. She should have outrun the collapse and all of us would have survived...It makes no sense..."

"Solaris, we saw how fast the ruins were crumbling," Trill said. "After you went flying out when Applejack saved you, it took only a few seconds for the debris to completely wreck the secret passage. She sacrificed herself so you could live, because she knew you were important to her and didn't want you to die with her."

"But I-" The sound of a slap echoed in the empty caboose, Solaris's protest silenced as he was stunned in silent shock, being slapped by the changeling princess hard in the face.

"No buts!" Trill shouted, her hoof outstretched for another slap if the alicorn tried to find another excuse. "Applejack wouldn't want you to keep blaming yourself over something you didn't do! We all know you're the only one who can stop Lucifer, and if you died, then Equestria will fall! Am I right!?"

Solaris slowly turned his head to look at Trill, rendered speechless. He slowly rubbed his cheek, feeling it sting, still stunned as he processed what she said. He didn't want his family to sacrifice themselves for his own safety, as if his Uncle Spike's loss wasn't scarring to him already. He was snapped out of his stupor when Trill wrapped his hooves around his neck, holding him closely.

"I don't want you to hurt yourself like this," she said. "I can feel your emotions, and it makes me sad knowing you're so miserable..." Trill nuzzled his neck, making Solaris blush. "No matter what happens, I'll be with you to help you back up...I promised Applejack that much back in Saddle Arabia..."

After he finally managed to wrack his brain over what had just happened, Trill's words finally reached Solaris. She was right; Applejack wouldn't want him to lose his focus. He needed to keep going, just like his mother requested back in the Everfree Forest. And hearing how Trill was feeling when he was upset made him feel bad.

Trill had helped Solaris forget about some of the bad moments that had occurred within the past week, despite her crude jokes and pranks distasteful. She began changing after he scolded her and broken their friendship, her behavior around him always odd and questionable. Now, seeing her acting so differently, being there for him, comforting him, it was like he was with a different pony.

He hugged Trill tightly, thankful to have met somepony like her, even if she was supposed to be one of Equestria's enemies. "I'm sorry...I under a lot of pressure, and losing everypony is just making me more stressed."

"I know," Trill said. "Which is why if you keep stressing out, your gold mane's gonna turn grey before you turn twenty."

"I'm just gonna ignore that and imagine you complimented my mane," Solaris said, grinning as he began to slightly grow accustomed to Trill's sarcasm. He suddenly felt the mare tremble in his hooves. "You ok?"

"Y-Yeah...I didn't realize how cold it got in here." Trill shivered, huddling close to Solaris for any warmth she could get. "I'm not doing this to flirt with you or anything. Changelings aren't really fond of the cold. Which was also why I didn't want to be anywhere away from the fire back in the desert."

"You engulf yourself in flames when you transform," Solaris replied.

"It's just a small effect. It doesn't have any heat to it, just an illusion," Trill explained.

She went rigid as she felt Solaris wrapping his wings around her body, surprisingly warm like his own body heat. Trill blushed heavily, feeling the powerful appendages pulling her closer to him as he sheltered her from the slightly cold air. She looked up at him, his face as red as hers while trying not to look into her eyes.

"Uhh...better?" Solaris asked, obviously nervous with how intimately close they were.

"Y-Yeah..." Trill felt his soft feathers brush along her body with each subtle movement he made, almost like he was gently caressing her. She sighed, leaning against Solaris, feeling her body temperature warm up as she enjoyed the soft touch of his wings. "Your feathers are really soft..."

"I know. I learned how to keep them preened from Aunt Rainbow and Aunt Fluttershy." He brushed his wings against Trill's, feeling how smooth they were for being paper-thin and fragile. He was completely unaware of what he was doing, too lost in his fascination with how different she was compared to him. Once he realized she was making those same chirping noises she made while she slept, he stopped his rubbing, hearing her whine in protest. "Sorry..."

"I liked that though," Trill whined.

"Uhh..." Solaris pulled his wings back, calming himself down as his intense blush didn't seem to be going away anytime soon. "I-I'm kinda tired. I think I'm gonna get some sleep."

Before he could leave, Trill gently pressed herself against him, making the stallion freeze up. "Solaris...Is it ok if I...sleep with you?" The alicorn felt his breath catch his throat, completely caught off guard. "N-Not like that. I mean, to keep warm...I'm not sure my sheets can help..."

"...Oh!" Solaris breathed a sigh of relief. "I-I thought that you...Oh gosh...I was gonna say that we were...Because you're a changeling and-" Trill pressed a hoof to his lips, silencing his babbling.

"A yes or no will work instead of your mouth running on auto-pilot," Trill giggled, making Solaris's heart beat against his chest at her laugh. He nodded his head, his lips still closed by her hoof. "I promise I won't do anything stupid. And before you complain, you were the one who was all over me back in the Everfree Forest, sleep cuddler."

Solaris pouted, his blush threatening to make his head explode, being reminded of her little wake-up prank. "I am not a sleep cuddler..."

The two teens headed back into their car, keeping quiet to avoid waking the others. They got into Solaris's bed, Trill crawling in first as she got comfortable under the covers. They huddled close together, their hooves wrapped around each other to share each other's body heat. As soon as the alicorn rested his head on the pillow, he instantly fell asleep, heavily exhausted from two days lacking sleep.

Trill watched Solaris sleeping calmly, feeling his chest slowly rise and fall with each breath he took. She was glad she managed to snap him back to his normal self, though she felt she went a bit far slapping him like that. If only she was brave enough to tell him how she really felt about him. Solaris did hold her closely earlier, even subconsciously rubbing her affectionately. Maybe there was a possibility that he liked her the same way, he was just too blind to realize it yet. Before she fell asleep, she transformed back in her disguise, the green flames thankfully not alerting anypony from their slumber.

The sun rose above the frozen tundra of the north as the train continued along its route to the Crystal Empire. Inside of the private car the group slept in, Rainbow was the first to wake up, routine she was forced to do when she had her daughter, who she had named Prism. While taking a moment to get motivated, she dug through her bags and pulled out a picture of her little filly hugging her pet tortoise, Tank. Prism looked exactly like her mother: rainbow hair, magenta eyes, but the only difference between the two was her coat, a lighter shade of blue than Rainbow's.

As much as the pegasus didn't want to admit feeling sappy, she was really proud that she gave birth to a filly like her. Prism acted a lot like her, always tough and energetic, but loyal to her family and friends. She might not be as fast as her mother, but given enough time and training, she could be pulling off sonic rainbooms like Rainbow could. She pulled out another picture, showing Prism as a newborn foal being held by a smiling teenage Scootloo, Prism's surrogate older sister. She had gotten her cutie mark along with her other two friends, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom, which was a shield, only it had a feather in the center and a lightning bolt inside the feather.

Rainbow was glad to know that Scootaloo would be there for her daughter if anything happened to her. She even promised to watch out for her while she was gone, intending to come back home after Lucifer was dealt with. She put the pictures back safely in her bags, making sure nopony saw her hiding those pictures. She had a reputation, even after becoming a mother, not wanting to let her loving side show too much.

She got out of bed, stretching out her limbs, preferring a cloud bed more than the spring mattresses used for non-pegasi. When she looked over at Solaris's bunk, her eyes widened as she saw Trill sleeping with him, being held in his hooves. Whatever happened while she slept, she grinned as she thought of only one thing that could have possibly happened, and it was a really perverted theory. She flew up onto the top bunk, peeking her head over as she watched the alicorn teen slowly wake up.

Solaris opened his eyes, still pretty tired, but rested enough not to pass out later on today. He looked down as he heard quiet chirping, remembering Trill slept with him for warmth. He realized that, while he was asleep, he must have draped a wing over her unconsciously, either to help bring her more warmth or an involuntary reflex of his limbs.

"Guess I am a sleep cuddler after all..." Solaris sighed, proven wrong, but he didn't care. He held Trill closer, feeling her heart beating softly while his only increased in speed. His thoughts raced as he began to think that he might be falling for the changeling. She did care about him and promised she would be there for him, but with their difference in species, as well as being branded as enemies of Equestria, he had no idea what to do. He was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard the mattress above him creak, spotting Rainbow's eyes staring at them, upside down, from the top bunk. "GAH!"

Solaris immediately sat up, smacking his head against the top bunk and regretted it, waking Trill up as she scrambled around under the covers. "What's happening!? Are we under attack!?" She flailed around, knocking Solaris off the bed as he groaned, having the worst wake-up call in his life.

Rubbing his head, he looked up to find the pegasus smirking at him with a sly grin. "So, you two have a little 'fun' last night? Thought you would have made some noise or something."

"A-Aunt Rainbow!" Solaris shouted as he blushed. "W-We didn't do anything like that!"

"Sure," Rainbow teased. "You two didn't do anything while you were cuddling like that. You even had that little look in your eyes that said, 'Oh yeah. I just got laid.'"

"N-No!" Solaris groaned, getting annoyed by his aunt's perverted joking. "Urgh...Why do you do this? It's bad enough for my birthday you gave me a...really dirty magazine...that I actually looked at."

"Any interesting images you fancied?" Rainbow asked, only to receive a smack in the face by her saddlebags.

It wasn't Solaris who threw them, it was Fluttershy, and she didn't seem to like the idea. "You gave Solaris what for his birthday!? Rainbow, what were you thinking!?"

"Hey, it was just a little joke, Flutters!" Rainbow defended, not wanting to receive 'The Stare' from her foalhood friend. "I wanted to know how he reacted. Besides, he's a growing colt. He's bound to have urges with his hormones acting up."

"He isn't old enough to even think about that, especially when it comes to what we have to do now," Fluttershy scolded. "Or did you completely forget what you said yesterday?"

"I know what I said. I was just making fun of him a little bit," Rainbow said. "Not my fault he and Evergreen slept in the same bed. They were like that when I woke up."

"What!?" Fluttershy shouted, looking at Solaris, now him fearing her aunt's gaze.

"She was cold and asked to sleep with me to keep warm! We did absolutely nothing!" Solaris said, feeling more embarrassed at his aunts' pestering.

He began yelping in pain as he felt his ear being grabbed by Fluttershy's teeth, being dragged into a separate car for a proper scolding by the pegasus. As kind as the mare can be, she does have a strict side to her if her buttons are pushed enough, and Rainbow's little birthday prank seemed to bring her to a boiling point.

"...So, what did you two really do?" Rainbow asked Trill.

"We just slept with each other for warmth. That was all," Trill said. "...What kind of magazine did you give him?"

"Latest issue of Playcolt," Rainbow admitted. "Had some really juicy pics that I'm sure would have...'stimulated' his mind on a different perspective on mares."

"Oooh. I think might have gone through every page, judging by how red his cheeks were," Trill said, bumping her hoof with Rainbow's, both of them having the same prediction as to what Solaris did with the magazine.

A while later, the train slowed down to the station outside of the Crystal Empire, the five of them getting off after gathering their belongings. As soon as Solaris and Trill noticed the castle, they gasped in awe at the crystallized kingdom. The tall castle and the many buildings, all made of crystal, was protected by a magical barrier created by the Crystal Heart, an artifact that is powered by the crystal ponies happiness, able to expel darkness from its shield. Luckily, none of Lucifer's Shadow Knights were anywhere near the kingdom since the unicorn king's dark magic would prevent him from trying to enter unless he wanted to be slain by the light of the heart.

"Whoa..." Solaris said, breaking out of his speechlessness.

"Welcome to the Crystal Empire," Rainbow said, leading the way as the two teens marveled at the shimmering crystals. As they walked through the barrier, it felt a lot warmer compared to the cold air outside, which Trill was thankful for. "Out of all the places around Equestria, this kingdom is the only safe zone outside of Lucifer's reign. Some ponies, griffons, and other species began to flee from their homes to come here, away from being pushed around by his soldiers or risk getting killed by that bastard."

As they walked through the streets, also made out of a smooth type of crystal, Solaris and Trill noticed the ponies that were actually native to the kingdom shimmered like they were really made of crystal. "This place is beautiful." Up ahead, the alicorn spotted a strange crystal statue of a dragon in the center of town. "Do the crystal ponies worship dragons?"

"That's actually a statue of Spike," Fluttershy corrected. "When Sombra came back, he and your mother found the Crystal Heart, but Spike was the one who brought it down to Princess Cadence, saving the empire along with her."

"Wow." Solaris looked up at the statue, noticing some similar features despite the entire statue was blue. "So, he was a hero...But, who's this Princess Cadence? You told me about the Crystal Empire before, but not about who rules this place."

"We were keeping it a surprise, you silly billy!" Pinkie bounced in, giving Solaris a light pat on the head. "You're gonna love meeting the princess, and her husband! I think you might recognize them...assuming you can remember them when you were a itty bitty foal."

"Huh? They know about me?" Solaris asked, but didn't receive an answer.

He followed his aunts, Trill walking alongside him, approaching the massive crystal castle. The guards stationed in front of the entrance, also shining like crystal and wearing similarly made armor, let them in, knowing who the mares were. They followed the many corridors, Solaris feeling the eyes of the crystal guards staring at him. As they entered the throne room, his eyes widened as he saw the princess of the kingdom.

Sitting on her crystal throne was a pink alicorn mare, her long mane and tail a mix of yellow, pink, and purple. Her cutie mark was a crystal heart, almost identical to the actual relic used to ward off evil. She was busy looking through a few scrolls, possibly laws or scheduled hearings she would have to partake in at a later date, not noticing her guests' arrival.

"An alicorn?" Solaris questioned, bewildered and confused. "I thought I was the only one left..."

The princess heard Solaris's voice, looking up from her work to see the ponies who came to see her. Keeping a neutral expression, she rolled up the scroll she was currently reading, getting off of her throne. Rainbow, Fluttershy, and Pinkie bowed as they backed away, the ruler slowly approaching the teen. Trill followed suit, backing away as her sights were only set on the alicorn standing in her presence.

"Guards, leave me alone with our guests, if you please," she said, the stallions bowing to the princess as they left the room. Solaris gulped, really nervous, either in serious trouble or what the princess had in mind for him away from her soldiers' eyes. As soon as the guards closed the doors, all that was left was the teen, Trill, his aunts, and the princess of the Crystal Empire. Solaris shivered, having no clue what she would do to him as she stood in front of him. She suddenly smiled widely, excitement lighting up in her eyes. "Look how much you've grown!"

Before he nearly fainted from the tense moment, Solaris was immediately snatched up by the princess, being hugged tightly. "W-Wha...? What's-"

"I haven't seen you ever since you were a baby! You've grown into a big, strong stallion now!" She pulled away, only to move her hooves up to his cheeks, squishing his face. "You had such chubby cheeks when you were born!"

"I-I'm confushed!" Solaris said as the princess coddled him like he was a toddler. He pulled away from her grabby hooves, scared of her excitement more than an expected punishment. "How do you know me!?"

"I know it's a little difficult to remember, but you were just an infant when you met us. And you were so cute!" she said.

"...I don't understand..." Solaris said.

"Now if my husband was awake right now, this would be a perfect family reunion. He's always been so busy, and I told him not to overwork himself, but he can be so stubborn sometimes," the princess said.

Before he could retort, the throne room doors opened as a white unicorn stallion walked in. He wasn't a crystal pony, even though many of them seemed to be earth ponies. "Cadence, you need to remind the rest of the guard not to wake me unless it's a real emergency. I'm really exhausted and-" He froze as he looked at Solaris.

Turning to the older stallion, he noticed his blue mane and tail, and his cutie mark a blue shield with a purple star in the center. The star looked exactly like his mother's, which seemed odd. The princess, Cadence, skipped up to the shocked stallion, gently nudging him toward Solaris.

"Glad you finally decided to wake up, honey," she said. "Look how big he's gotten! Oh, if only the girls and Spike were able to send us pictures!"

"Ok, I'm really confused, and nopony's answering me!" Solaris exclaimed. "Who are you two, and how do you know who I am!?"

Cadence laughed at his confusion, even though it didn't seem insulting. "I know this is a lot to take in, but I think it's finally time for you to meet us. Spending fifteen years in a cave, kept hidden from the world, there's a lot of stuff you've been away from, including family."

"F-Family?" Solaris asked. He began piecing the last parts of the puzzle together, the same star on the stallion's cutie mark just like his mother's and half of his, why Cadence gushed over him. He couldn't really believe it. "...Y-You mean...A-Are you really...?"

"Yes. I'm Cadence, and this is my husband, Shining Armor," Cadence said as she nudged her husband out of his stupor. "Shining is your mother's older brother, making us your aunt and uncle. Isn't it exciting?"

"A-Aunt...a-and u-uncle...?" Solaris muttered.

He kept staring at his relatives, mostly his uncle, being related to him by blood. He wasn't at all mad having another part of his family kept secret, knowing Lucifer could have done worse. He didn't know what to feel at all: happy, ecstatic, sad. So many thoughts raced through his head, so many questions about his actual uncle and aunt he wanted to ask, wanting to know everything about them and what they knew about Twilight. His brain eventually broke, his eyes rolling into the back of his head as he fainted, plopping to the floor. The whole room was silent, not exactly the reaction they expected.

"...Well, at least he didn't blow up like when we told him about Twilight," Pinkie finally said. "We'll take that instead!"

Rainbow facehooved, annoyed by Pinkie's decision to find Solaris fainting better than yelling at them and breaking everything around him.