Shade walked down the hall, smiling to himself. Today was a big day! Not only were the changelings arriving in Canterlot, but it was also Sapphire Lily’s birthday. Today she was fourteen. He shook his head. She was growing up too fast. It seemed like only yesterday she’d been learning Rarity’s gem spell.
He approached the throne room. Two guards stood by the doors. They were whispering something to each other. Shade guessed it was a joke based on their big grins. They straightened up as Shade approached. He nodded to both of them.

“At ease boys. It’s just me.”

The guard on the left nodded.

“Yes sir. It’s you.”

Shade’s brow raised. He turned to his right.

“None of you are usually so tense when I come by...”

The right guard shook his head.

“We’re not tense sir.”

“Uh-huh.. So what was so funny before I got here?”

The guards passed glances between each other. Shade rolled his eyes.

“Never mind. Are Celestia and Luna already in here?”

The left guard nodded. He didn’t say anything. Shade’s eyes narrowed.

“Try to loosen up. You’re both acting..weird.”

He walked into the throne room and the doors closed behind him. He pushed the guards to the back of his mind as he approached Celestia and Luna. The two of them were sitting on their thrones, talking with one another. Shade began to catch the conversation as he climbed the stairs.

“I assure you Celestia, Nothing is out of the ordinary.”

“Luna, they’re all acting strange. Like they’re..flustered.”

Shade chimed in.

“Who’s flustered?”

Both alicorns turned to Shade. Celestia seemed confused.

“Have you noticed anything off with the Day Guard?”

“Now that you mention it, the two outside the throne room seemed a bit odd.”

Luna rolled her eyes.

“You’re both paranoid. There is nothing wrong with them. Then again, I’ve always thought them stranger than the Night Guard to begin with.”

Celestia shook her head.

“I’ve seen nearly a dozen of the Guard today. They all seemed..off.”

Shade sat in his seat and shrugged.

“It’s probably nothing.”

He could tell Celestia wanted to continue, but the doors to the throne room opened. Shade whispered under his breath.

“Perfect timing.”

The two guards led in a procession of changelings. At the front was Thorax and his mate Artemis. Shade smiled as the group made its way to the thrones. Thorax bowed as he came to the stairs. Artemis and the rest did the same, a ripple effect flowing over the group. Thorax stood up.

“I’m so glad to be here, as are the rest of the changelings. We’re honored that you would invite us all for the summer festivities.”

Celestia and Luna both bowed their heads. Shade nodded.

“It’s good to see you Thorax. You as well Artemis. How’s the family?”

Artemis smiled.

“Filius is nearly sixteen now. He stayed behind with Pharynx and a few others to keep an eye on the hive. He’s got a fighting spirit.”

Thorax sighed.

“That’s my brother’s influence. But I suppose it’s good to know how to physically protect your home. We’ve just never had any need for it.”

Shade nodded.

“I’m sorry neither of them could come. I would have liked to have seen how Filius has grown.”

Thorax smiled.

“I’m hoping for a similar update. How old is Sapphire now?”

“Fourteen today actually.”

Artemis’ eyes widened.

“Why are you here then?! You should be celebrating with her!”

“We’re celebrating tonight. I wanted to be here to welcome you all.”

Celestia stood up.

“We’re honored to have you here with us as well. Having the changelings here in Canterlot heals the last of any old wounds.”

Thorax nodded.

“It had never occurred to me how nice it would be to walk into Canterlot. The majority of us haven’t been here since the invasion.”

Luna stood next to Celestia.

“We’re glad you agreed to the invitation. If the rest of you would like to follow me, I’ll show you to the guest quarters.”

The changelings followed Luna. Soon only Celestia, Shade, Thorax, and Artemis were left. Thorax approached Shade and pulled him into an embrace.

“It’s good to see you brother. It’s been too long.”

Shade returned the hug.

“Six years since you were last up North. Things are well at the hive?”

“Everything is good. We’ve been adding on with our numbers growing.”

“That many babies huh? Who knew the changelings were so fertile?”

Artemis giggled.

“You have no idea.”

Thorax blushed slightly. Shade looked between the two of them.

“Another one? Surely you two don’t need to be outnumbered any further. What does this make now?”

Thorax grinned.

“Number six.”

Celestia smiled.

“Congratulations you two. We should celebrate while you’re here.”

Artemis stepped closer to Thorax and pressed herself against him. She looked at Shade.

“Surely you and Rarity have wanted more? One child isn’t enough in my own opinion.”

Shade felt his eye twitch slightly. He took a deep breath as Thorax leaned in to Artemis’ ear and whispered. Her expression turned somber as her eyes connected with Shade.

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t aware.”

“It’s...okay. It’s not something we make public. I told Thorax in confidence sometime ago.”

Celestia stepped forward.

“Shade, why don’t you go and find Rarity? I’m sure she’ll want to catch up with these two as well. I’ll show them to their room.”

Shade nodded, a thankful smile crossing his lips as he looked at Celestia. He moved towards the doorway as she led Throax and Artemis in a different direction.
He left the castle and made his way towards the main street. Rarity was probably at her shop. She seemed to spend every spare moment there recently. Then again, she was remodeling for the second time since moving into the space. It hadn’t taken much persuading to get her to move her main shop to Canterlot. Especially once Sapphire had grown a little.
The shop was coming up on Shade’s right. It outshined the shops immediately around it. Rarity had definitely made some bold improvements. He opened the door and walked into what appeared to be half a dress shop and half a construction zone.

“Do I need a hard hat?”

Rarity appeared from the back room.

“No! The crew is on lunch. I didn’t expect to see you so soon! Aren’t the changelings coming today?”

He trotted over to her and kissed her on the cheek.

“They’re already here. Thorax and Artemis would love to see you though.”

“I’d love to see them now, but I’m just putting the finishing touches on Sapphire’s present.”

“Can I see?”

She led him into the back. A mannequin stood in the middle of the space. It was wearing a slim, lavender dress. Rarity looked at Shade expectantly. He looked it over, concern growing in his eyes.

“A bit...form-fitting.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing. Sapphire has a wonderful body shape and deserves to show it off if she wants.”

“She’s only fourteen!”

“I was that old when I started catching the eyes of stallions.”

“That’s not helping.”

“I just think if she’s going to get attention, especially with her first school dance coming up, she should look her best.”

“She’s already got your beauty and my changeling eyes. I’m scared she’s getting too much attention as it is. Throw this beautiful dress on her and the colts won’t keep their hooves to themselves.”

“Overprotective much?”

“You’re not worried about this at all?”

“She’s a smart girl. She may have my beauty, but she definitely got your brain. She knows better than to take any of those boys seriously.”

“And what happens if she likes one of them?!”

“Then it’s her first love!”

Rarity’s eyes were all starry. Shade shook his head.

“This is too much. Sapphire isn’t old enough to start dating.”

“As if I’m in any hurry to do that.”

They both spun around. Sapphire Lily was standing in the doorway. Rarity jumped in front of the dress.

“Dear, you can’t be in here! You’ll spoil the surprise!”

Sapphire smiled and turned around.

“I promise I didn’t see anything. I was too busy listening to Dad put his hoof down.”

Shade scowled.

“I’m your father. My job is to be the boss of you.”

Rarity reached out and pat his back.

“Of course it is.”

He gave Rarity a quick glare. She smiled, a mischievous glint in her eye. He shook his head.

“You heard her, right? She says she’s not ready.”

Sapphire spun around.

“That’s not-“

She paused and raised her hoof to cover her eyes.

“That’s not what I said at all! I said I wasn’t in a hurry. That doesn’t mean I’m not up to the idea of dating.”

Rarity smiled.

“See?”

She walked over to Sapphire and pointed her to the doorway.

“Go home and get ready for tonight. Your father and I have to finish up here and go meet some friends before dinner.”

Sapphire glanced back.

“Who’s in town?”

“Thorax and Artemis. It’s been years since we’ve seen them. Your father said they wanted to say hello.”

“So you’ll be around the castle?”

“Of course. Where else would we be?”

“I don’t know. Just wondering.”

Rarity stopped guiding her towards the exit.

“What are you hiding?”

Shade’s ears perked up.

“Hiding? Why would you hide something from us?”

“I’m not hiding anything!”

Rarity looked at Shade.

“Was anything wrong today?”

“Notthing was out of place. And there wasn’t anything new... Wait..”

He glanced at Sapphire.

“Did you... No. Never mind.”

Rarity’s eyes narrowed.

“What?”

“Well...the Day Guard has been acting off today. Celestia said it was like they were flustered.”

Sapphire’s eyes were darting between her father, her mother, and the floor. Shade stepped closer.

“What did you do?”

“Nothing. I just...talked to some of them.”

“Some? Every guard in the castle right now is acting strange. What did you talk about?”

“They didn’t really talk back.”

Rarity’s head tipped to an angle in confusion.

“They didn’t talk?”

“Well it’s not like they would want to respond when they know I’m his daughter.”

Shade scowled.

“What’s that supposed to mean?! And they wouldn’t respond to what exactly?”

Sapphire began to blush.

“Nothing! It was just a stupid joke!”

“Lily, I swear if you don’t start giving us straight answers soon-“

Rarity’s glare silenced him. She turned to Sapphire.

“What your father means is that it’s not helping us understand the situation with these vague answers. Please, just tell us what happened.”

Sapphire looked between the two of them. She leaned in close to Rarity and whispered in her ear. Rarity’s eyes bugged out.

“YOU DID WHAT?!?!”

Shade flinched at the sheer volume in her voice.

“What?! What happened?!”

Rarity glared at Sapphire, causing the young mare to crouch closer to the ground.

“It was just a joke Mom.”

“A joke?! You call flirting with the entire Day Guard a joke?!?!”

Shade’s ears stopped working at that point. A ringing took over as he tried to process the information. No wonder the guards had been all smiles and laughter. They’d each had an encounter with his daughter. She’d been toying with them! A sliver of his brain was impressed by the feat. The commitment to such a task was admirable. But that one thought was overpowered by his desire to go and demote every last member of the Guard down to Private. And then boot them out of Equestria. Maybe to the Dragon Lands.
His hearing slowly returned and he found that Rarity was still chewing Lily out.

“-and to think that I thought you were mature enough to handle yourself! Now I find out you’re going around and flirting with every stallion under the castle’s roof?! Maybe your father was right about you being ready. I have half a mind not to give you your present tonight!”

Lily’s eyes were tearing up. Shade closed his eyes for a moment. This wasn’t going to end well. If Rarity was admitting he was right about something, things were bad.

“Rarity, don’t be too hasty. You’ve worked hard on her gift. Don’t let it go to waste.”

He opened his eyes to find Rarity staring at him. She seemed more confused than angry now.

“You said she wasn’t ready. Now you want her to have it?”

“I’m not saying we don’t need to punish her. Just that maybe taking away her present isn’t the best move.”

“Are you trying to be the ‘nice’ parent right now?”

He looked at Lily.

“Do you feel bad about...doing what you did?”

She nodded as she blinked the tears away. Shade shook his head.

“Not bad enough. You’re grounded for a month.”

“What?! That’s not fair! I didn’t hurt anypony!”

“You got the entire Day Guard distracted at their posts. And I’m walking around that castle while they’re laughing at the fact that I’m not aware of my daughter’s extracurricular activities. I hold a lot of power around here and I’ve earned the respect of every pony in Canterlot, if not most of Equestria. I can’t do my job properly and expect ponies to take me seriously if you’re off making eyes with every stallion you see. And your mother is busy enough with her shop. We can’t keep an eye on you 100% of the time. You’re fourteen now. You have to be more responsible.”

Lily nodded her head.

“I’m sorry.”

Rarity put a hoof on Lily’s shoulder.

“Does that have anything to do with this? Are we not spending enough time with you?”

Lily shook her head.

“No. I just...wanted to know if I could flirt.”

Shade felt a vein bulge in his neck.

“You were...practicing?!”

He cringed as his head began pounding. His skull felt ready to split. Rarity walked over to him.

“You’ve put off your cleanse again, haven’t you? You really need to be doing it daily.”

Her horn lit up and Sahde felt a weight lift from his head. A trail of magic energy trailed from his forehead down to the amulet around his neck. After a minute, the spell was finished and he sighed.

“I’m sorry. I’ve been busy the last couple days. I’m not trying to do it on purpose.”

Lily walked over.

“I’m sorry. I’m stressing you out and making it worse, aren’t I?”

Rarity shook her head.

“Of course not dear. Your father’s been dealing with his condition long before you started causing trouble.”

Shade nodded.

“You don’t add to it at all. It’s just a natural buildup of energy. Nothing to be scared of.”

“Aunt Celestia said it’s similar to alicorn magic.”

“Your Aunt has no business telling you.”

Rarity poked him.

“Be fair. She’s just concerned and wants to help.”

Lily hugged her father.

“Is that why you have so many headaches?”

“Yeah. Though I’ll admit you do give me one or two of those yourself.”

Rarity punched his shoulder. Lily giggled and pulled away.

“Well I guess it’s good you guys never had more than one kid, huh?”

Shade felt another small twitch. Lily walked towards the front door.

“I’ll see you guys at home. Are we still having dinner?”

Rarity nodded.

“Yes. And starting tomorrow, you’re still grounded.”

Lily’s brow furrowed.

“Really? After that heartfelt talk?”

“Go.”

“Alright, alright. Love you guys!”

“We love you too darling!”

Lily disappeared and Rarity looked back at Shade.

“Your tick is back.”

“It started earlier. Artemis made a comment about us having more kids.”

“I’m sorry. Lily doesn’t understand that yet.”

“She doesn’t need to. I can handle my ticks myself.”

“Neither of us could have predicted the excess magic would sap your fertility.”

“We also couldn’t predict that you’d absorb some of the alicorn gene while you were carrying Lily either. And that the gene would pass to her as well. There’s a lot that we didn’t know would happen.”

“Don’t start with this again.”

“I just wish that Twilight would admit she doesn’t know a single thing about my condition or how this gene works. All it’s been for over a decade is guesswork.”

“She gave you the best answer she could at the time.”

“Yeah. An extra decade or two. But it’s been fifteen years and I haven’t aged a day since. That doesn’t strike you as odd?”

“Your hair has gone silver.”

“That’s the job. At least you have color.”

“What do you call this faded piece in the front?”

“Well at least you’ll age gracefully.”

“You still look as handsome as the day of our wedding.”

Shade smiled.

“And you look as beautiful as you did on our wedding night.”

She blushed.

“Stop it! I do not!”

He kissed her.

“You’ll always look beautiful. If you don’t believe me, I can think of a way I can show you.”

“In my shop? Really?”

“What else is the back room for?”

“You mean my studio?”

“I’m not hearing a ‘no’.”

She kissed him and trotted off towards the back room. She glanced back, a sly grin on her face.

“Let’s hope you can convince me.”

——————————

Sapphire Lily walked up the steps to the castle. She passed two guards at the entry and winked at both of them. They didn’t even look at her...

“Still having fun?”

She froze as a pony stepped out from the shadow of the doors. A dark alicorn..

“Auntie Luna! I haven’t seen you in a day or two. How’s my favorite aunt?”

The stoic expression on Luna’s face scared away any further flattery. Lily swallowed hard.

“You know?”

“It wasn’t hard to figure out. Do you know how often guards doze off during their shift? I just had to peek at one of them reliving the memory. Though he was a little bolder in his recollection. None of them had the courage to respond to you?”

“No. Probably because of my father.”

“You’re also only fourteen.”

Lily looked down at her hooves.

“I was just...practicing.”

Luna sighed and motioned for her to get inside. Lily trotted through the doors and they closed behind her. Luna led her along the corridors until they reached Luna’s study.
Lily had only been in here a couple times before. It was several dark shades of blue with the constellations painted across the ceiling. There were a few bookshelves and a desk. Luna sat behind the desk, clearing away some papers.

“Sit.”

“I’ve already had to deal with my parents today.”

“SIT.”

It wasn’t anywhere near full volume, but her Canterlot voice was still intimidating. Lily sat down opposite Luna, not wanting to meet her gaze.

“Why would you provoke everypony like this?”

“I...I don’t know. I just wanted to see...if I was good.”

“At flirting?”

“...Yeah.”

Luna sighed.

“I can safely say that, based on the ineffectiveness of the Day Guard today, you have your mother’s natural talent for it. You do look a lot like her after all.”

Lily couldn’t help but smile.

“Mom was a flirt?”

“I didn’t say that. But she had a knack for usuing her beauty to get things done. If your goal was to make every stallion on staff squirm, you did just fine.”

“Um...thanks?”

“I’m assuming your parents have set up a punishment?”

“Grounded for a month.”

“That sounds reasonable considering the disruption.”

“Maybe to you.”

“Discipline is part of growing up. Celestia and I dealt with that a lot when we were your age. Newly appointed rulers of Equestria, but still teenagers. It was a tough time for us. Especially since we didn’t have any ponies our own age around.”

Lily sighed.

“Tell me about it. I know I have some friends at school, but I hardly see them outside school because they don’t know I live here.”

“Your father just wants you to be safe. You never know who might try to take advantage of you.”

“It would just be nice to have some other ponies around. Especially for my birthday.”

“Is that what this is about? You want to have your friends here?”

“That’s part of it I guess.”

“I assume there’s a colt too?”

“What?! No!”

Luna looked unconvinced. Lily rolled her eyes.

“Fine. There’s somepony at school.”

“What’s his name?”

“Well...”

Luna smiled.

“What’s her name?”

Lily looked down at the floor for a moment.

“It’s not that I don’t find guys attractive-“

“You don’t have to explain it to me Sapphire. I’m not that old-fashioned.”

“I haven’t even told my parents yet.”

“You will when you’re ready. If you feel more comfortable talking to me, then I’m always here for you.”

“Thank you. It’s been weighing down on me a lot. I don’t know if I’m even in the same league as Ruby.”

“Ruby?”

“She’s an exchange student from the Crystal Empire.”

“You really think you’re not a match for a crystal pony? You have many good features, especially your eyes. You have your father to thank for those.”

“Changeling eyes don’t make up for being a regular pony. Crystal ponies are so pretty. I’m just...me.”

Luna stood up and walked around the desk.

“You’re no ordinary pony. You’ve got two worlds that make you who you are. And you’re part of our family.”

“Not really.”

“Celestia and I have worked with your father for nearly twenty years. He’s one of our closest friends. Do you really think we don’t see him as family? Or you or your mother? You’re all as much a part of this family as Twilight or Cadance and her family are.”

“A lot of good it does me. Nopony at school knows the real me. I have to act like I’m some unicorn that got lucky getting admitted to the Academy. And I have to pretend like I’m still mastering mid-level spells! You and Celestia taught me this stuff when I was eight! Why do I have to sit there and pretend I’m learning?!”

“I’m guessing that’s another part of your acting out?”

Lily finally snapped.

“Yes! Okay?! That’s everything! I haven’t got friends outside of school, I’ve got a crush on a mare, and I’m more talented than I let on and have to pretend to be average! Not to mention the fact that nopony knows that I live in this castle and have the entire Royal Family for relatives! I’m lonely and living a lie!!”

Her last words echoed around the study. She could feel the tears welling up and beginning to roll down her cheeks.

“I just want to be myself for once. Not what my parents want me to be.”

Luna pulled her into a hug.

“I’m sure your parents want you to be yourself. But you have to show them who you are, not what you think they want to see.”

“She’s right.”

Lily turned her head to see her father standing in the doorway. She pulled away from Luna.

“How long have you been there?”

“A couple minutes. I came to find you two for your birthday dinner.”

“What...what did you hear?”

“Enough. Why didn’t you tell us any of his?”

Lily wiped away her tears.

“I didn’t think you’d want me to be honest with anypony.”

He looked at her for a few moments before walking up to her. When he arrived, he pulled her into his hooves.

“If it’s important for you to be honest, then I shouldn’t stop you. Just be careful. Don’t-“

“Let ponies take advantage of me because of my connections?”

He chuckled.

“Your mother was right. You do have my brain.”

“And you’re not mad about..the other thing?”

“What? Your crush? Why would that bother us? You’re our daughter. We love you no matter what. We can’t stop you from being who you are.”

His embrace tightened.

“We shouldn’t have made you lie for so long. I’m sorry about that.”

“Can I tell my friends about our family?”

“If you’d like. Consider it another birthday present.”

“How about not grounding me?”

“Fat chance kid.”

He let her go finally and made his way back to the door.

“Come on. Your mother is waiting. You’ll have to tell us about this mare you like.”

Lily smiled. She and Luna followed Shade out of the study, closing the door behind them.