"Just calm down, Press, you're freaking out.." Glamour Shot didn't stop her trot as she spoke to her assistant in crime, walking past all of the snobby, gossiping mares of Canterlot. Something had the aforementioned mares riled up today, but the cloaked mare didn't care, she was just too glad that she finally got her personal dilemma out of her life.

"How am I supposed to be able to stay calm!" whispered Press in a panicked tone, his eyes surveying the throng of ponies that were gathered at a jewelry store across the street for anyone who might try to take him away to the castle dungeon. Of course, none of them where even looking at the two partners, all of them were too eager to catch the sale in the last minutes of the day to even look at anypony who wasn't in front of them, "What if the guards figure out that it was actually us wh-"

Glamour Shot shoved a hoof into Press' mouth, silencing the unintentional confession he was about to commit, and a frown found itself on her muzzle as she spoke, "The only way we could get caught is if your loud mouth actually admits it, like you were just seconds away from doing."

Press seemed to understand what the mare meant since he kept his mouth shut long after her hoof had been extracted from his muzzle. As the sun began to set, giving the moon its airspace for the night, his curious and talkative nature won out against the urge to just stay quiet, "Where are we even going anyway?"

"To celebrate of course! You may, or may not, know about all the problems those idiots were responsible for putting in my life, but the point is that something like this shouldn't end without a mug of cider to go with it." The devilish mare and the cowardly stallion walked up to a concrete, two story building, most of the front wall being covered by a shining, blue neon sign.

"Moonshine?" Press hated to admit it, but he wasn't much of a drinker, mostly due to the fact that his body would force out any and all alcohol ingested in a matter of seconds. It was a fact that had earned him many taunts from his colleagues whenever they made him accompany them to a bar or a night club.

"Yeah, I used to come here all the time when I was a kid, but I've been a little too busy lately to swing by for a drink. They really know how to make a good glass of cider, I thought you'd be the one to know about this place, rich newspaper director and all."

"Heh, well, you see...I'm not really good at...drinking." It took Press a while to realize that he was, in fact, alone outside of the bar, Glamour Shot having walked into the drinking pub long before he even finished speaking

With a sigh, the brown earth pony trudged towards the metal doors that led into the dim club, not in the mood for throwing up at the moment. The only thing that kept him moving at the moment was the reassuring piece of his mind that kept reminding him that his service to Glamour Shot was over, and that he would be able to just leave all of what happened in the past to be forgotten by time. Of course, he knew he was just lying to himself. He would never be able to get over the fact that he took two innocent lives, and there was no way that he would be able to work with his guilty state of mind.

"At least I won't have her staring me down all the time anymore."

"What was that, Press?" the stallion fairly jumped at the sudden appearance of the mare that had left him outside a couple of moments ago, holding two cups along with a bottle in her telekinetic grasp.

"N-nothing, nothing at all." if Glamour Shot was any other mare, she would have cared about the obvious lie she was being given, but she wasn't any other mare. With a shrug, the now un-hooded unicorn walked over to a empty corner booth, setting down the drinking materials on the polished wooden table.

"You ever tasted the cider they serve here, Press? I know you haven't been to this place before, but I've heard they sell it to other bars." Press didn't know if he should relax, cry from confusion, or just keep his lips sealed at the conversational tone the mare was using with him, a tone that he had never received from her in the past. Instead, he went with choice D, a simple shake of his head, prompting Glamour Shot to pop open the bottle and pour the clear liquid into the two glasses.

"Then you're going to love this." the bald mare chugged down the cooled beverage thirstily, sighing with satisfaction at the sight of her empty cup before turning her gaze back to Press, who hadn't even touched his full glass. Embarrassed at how easily the mare could handle her liquor, as apposed to his inability to do so, he lifted up the glass between both of his hooves, bringing the cold surface against his lips, and tipping it slowly towards himself. The cider burned his throat slightly as he slowly sipped away at it, focusing on keeping the stream of alcohol slow enough to not upset his stomach, but it was a focus that was interrupted as a tiny paper ball bounced off of his cheek. Press turned towards where the ball had come from, still drinking as his eyes fixated themselves on a lone figure in a booth on the other side of the bar, which proved to be a big mistake once he realized who exactly he was looking at.

The black stallion looked at him with sly green eyes, a toothy grin growing larger on his face the more Press choked on the burning liquid in his throat. With an inaudible laugh that nopony but Press saw, the light above the booth the figure was sitting at flickered off for a couple of seconds, and the chuckling stallion was nowhere to be seen when the light returned.

"Sheesh Press, I've seen foals that can chug that stuff down, and here you are, gagging on a few sips of it." the earth pony knew that it would be useless to try and explain what he had exactly seen, that tactic never having work in the past, and he even began to wonder if he should go and stay in one of the fancy rooms that were provided at the Canterlot Insane Asylum.

"It's been a while, okay?" his defense came out a a little raspy, the coughing fit he had gone through took its toll on his throat, messing up his voice to the point of making him sound meek and fragile, a sound that matched his personality perfectly.

"Whatever you say, Press, if you can't handle this stuff then go back to drinking your little juice boxes." the mocking smile plastered onto Glamour Shot's face caused Press to frown in embarrassment, clearly ashamed of the little display he had put on.

Light jazz put on a relaxing background as the two terrorists kept up a light conversation, mostly comprised from a couple of select moments from Glamour's foalhood, and what interested Press was that she avoided much of the details that she clearly knew. After enough taunting and persuasion from the bald mare, the brown earth pony continued to drink from the bottle of cider, impressing himself for not vomiting even after he finished his third cup. With the moon at its apex in the sky, the partners in crime walked out of the drinking pub, both of them slightly intoxicated as they began to loiter in front of the bar while the rest of its occupants began to leave to their respective homes.

"So, have you heard about that mare?" a trio of mare walked out of the bar, with the white one starting up the conversation. Glamour Shot's ears flicked towards the group of mares, checking to see if they had anything better to say than whatever Press was babbling about.

"Who? Oh, you mean the unicorn, Twilight Sparkle?" the green one of the group responded to her friend, her words instantly sparking Glamour's interest like a match to a tank of gasoline.

'Wow, I didn't think the news would reach Canterlot so quickly, let's see what these prissy little gossip mares have to say.' completely ignoring Press now, Glamour Shot's ears turned all the way towards the group in order to eavesdrop on them more easily.

"Yeah, I hear she's, like, involved with some dragon, if you know what I mean." the white one spoke with a small hint of indignation in her voice as she continued the gossip comparison.

"Man, that is one lonely mare. I mean, come on, who in their right mind would get together with a fire breathing monster unless they were really desperate?" the green mare's words prompted the third, blue mare, who had become the third wheel the entire night, to speak up in a voice so soft it was almost a whisper.

"Uhm, I don't think there's anything wrong with her loving a dragon." the other two mares turned to look at her, their questioning looks making her speak again, "I mean, take me and Sheryl for example, I'm a mare and she's also a mare, but you two don't say anything about us being together." Glamour Shot smiled devilishly, knowing that a conflict was bound to break out with the train of conversation they were taking, and if anything would make her night better, it would be watching a mare versus mare beat down.

"That's because she's at least a pony, and a rich one too, so I can support that. Now, a dragon that I have no idea about being with a mare that I've only heard of once or twice, that's outright disgusting." Glamour Shot began to fidget with her hooves as she impatiently waited for the brawl between the green and blue mares to break out, but what happened next made her entire body freeze up, and her mind go blank.

"I heard that they ran through town today, on their way to the royal palace if what everypony saw was right. I hope the guards kick them away before they even get near the princesses, they don't deserve to be in their presence." even after the trio of mares walked away from the drinking pubs lot, continuing the conversation they had, Glamour Shot remained paralyzed in place, her mind going fifty miles per hour as she processed what she just heard.

"Well, it's been...fun and all, but I really should get going, I haven't been home in a week and the maids probably robbed me while I was gone. Bye Glamour Shot, have a good night." Press' farewell snapped her out of her trance after a couple of seconds, the stallion having wobbled his way down the street slowly while she was trapped within her mind.

"Finally, I'll get to sleep on something other than the dirty floor. Now, let's go hooOOOME!?" Press' monologue was interrupted as he was lifted off of the ground by a blue aurora that would flicker red every once and a while, said aurora spinning him one hundred eighty degrees and bringing him back to the bald mare. "W-what are you doing G-Glamour Shot!? Let me go!"

"Shut up, just shut up! I can't believe she's alive! That bitch and her little pet are still alive!" Glamour's conversational tone was gone, but it wasn't her usual restrained angry voice either. No, this was a voice born from pure desperation, frustration, and with a sprinkle of craze in the horrifying mixture, one that made Press wish he was hearing her usual irritated tone.

"B-but you said your job was done, that I didn't have to help anymore." the stallion dearly hoped against hope that the mare would let him go, just let him go home to his comfy bed and sleep.

"That was before I realized that OUR job isn't finished...not yet anyway. Now, you and I are going to go on a little shopping spree since we ran out of materials back in Ponyville." her true intentions were evident within her voice, and Press picked up on them easily.

"N-no, please no, I don't want to have to do this anymore. I just want to g-" the aurora around him concentrated on his neck and head , simultaneously choking him and applying pressure to his skull, inducing blunt pain as he began to blackout from the lack of oxygen.

"You ARE going to help me Press, whether you want to or not, that's not up for debate. And now, if you so much as screw up a single thing, I won't just blackmail you, I'll freaking rip your heart out with my bare hooves and send it to your mother." the mare released the stallion from her chilling grip and trotted past his heaving body, Press simply clutched his head and tried to get the black in his vision to go away. He seriously considered running away from the crazed mare, but his planning was cut short when she lit up her horn again and dragged him away in another, albeit lighter, painful choke hold.

'Celestia, please help me!'

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"How is she, doctor?" Spike had been pacing around the waiting room for multiple hours, never letting the door leading into the room that Twilight had been assigned to at the castle infirmary out of his sight. Cadance was lounging on one of the couches in the room as well, reading a book on foal management that she never really got the chance to finish, and her husband was nowhere to be seen. That particular detail would have intrigued Spike if it weren't for the fact that he really disliked the white stallion. He felt conflicted, he was mad that Shining wasn't there for his sister, but he was glad that he didn't have to be around the unicorn, knowing that he might do something to him he would regret.

"Lady Sparkle's condition has improved greatly since her timely arrival here. We had to sedate her for the treatment, so she's currently sleeping. I advise you to let her awaken on her own since it'll help her stable." the dragon nodded in response to his question, barely restraining himself from running into the room to see his beloved mare. "I'll be back in a moment, I have to go examine her diagnostic's test results in my office, have a good night Mr. Spike."

The medical officer walked out of the sterile waiting room and down the hall, leaving the dragon and the love alicorn to their own affairs. Spike waited for Cadance to get up from the couch and move to his side, a task that took quite some time for the alicorn. She really did try to move quickly, but her unborn foal didn't exactly help her speed. She had been pondering an idea that she had formed before actually reading the book she was putting down, an idea that she was sure she would put into effect sooner or later.

With the pink alicorn at his side, a stuttering breath taken, and self-restraint in effect, Spike gripped the golden door handle and pushed it aside to reveal the scene within. Celestia looked up from her spot at Twilight's side, taking in the new visitors.

"Hello auntie, how did the treatment go?" Cadance spoke for Spike and herself since the purple dragon had lost most of his self-control and rushed to the left bedside not being used, sat on a chair he had pulled up, and cradled one of Twilight's hooves between his claws. It was heartwarming to both of the alicorns present to see that a faint smile grew on the sleeping mare's face once her partner held her hoof, and that was really saying something considering that one of them was older than the planet they lived on, and that the other was the literal goddess of love.

"Very well, thank you for asking Cadance. Twilight was diagnosed with magical exhaustion, along with some minor physical injuries, but Spike brought her here before her state could worsen." Princess Celestia turned to the purple dragon, who was still lost observing his marefriend's steady breathing, "You're the reason she avoided severe damage to her magical abilities, thank you Spike."

"It was nothing compared to how much she's helped me recently, not to mention my entire life. I don't need any thanks, I only need to know that she's okay." the drake looked up from the hospital bed, looking the goddess of the sun straight in the eyes as he spoke.

"How modest for you to say that, Spike, and the devotion you show to her truly impresses me. I expected nothing less from the consort to my faithful student, especially not from you, congratulations by the way." Celestia smiled warmly as Spike shifted through his expressions of calm, surprise, and joy in less than five seconds.

Honestly, she was the god that had ruled the entire continent ponykind lived on since it came into existence, so she was bound to see some unusual partners during her lifetime. She had seen pegasi pairing together with griffons, zebras with earth ponies, and more same-sex relationships than her mind could handle. But a mare finding love with a dragon, that was something she had never seen before, but just because it was new didn't mean she found it wrong. In fact, she adored the idea of Twilight living a romantic relationship with her closest companion, dragon or not. Who better to court her than the one individual who knew her better than anyone else, who better to know just the right thing to say when it she needed to hear it, to be there for her when no one else was.

"I was actually afraid for a moment that you would disapprove, I wouldn't have known what to do if that were to have happened. Everypony else that has turned us away so far, I can handle that, but I'm not sure how I would bear to see Twilight get rejected by the one pony she cares for the most." his words caught the solar ruler's attention, seven of them specifically. A frown grew on her face at the implications, and she asked the question she knew she wouldn't like the answer to.

"What do you mean? Has anypony confronted you two about your relationship?"

"Several, actually. That's how Twilight got the gash in her shoulder." Celestia was using every ounce of her willpower to stop herself from flying straight through the roof to search for whoever dared lay a single violent hoof on her student, barely succeeding as Spike continued to talk. Her mask of composure broke at several moments along the tale that was regaled, showing the anger underneath for a couple of seconds before it was hidden behind her poker face again. Cadance wasn't faring any better than her aunt, letting out a couple of unintentional growls at some of the more violent points in the story. It was when the story reached the scene of the Golden Oaks Library exploding that both princesses asked Spike to stop retelling the recent events so that they could properly process what exactly was going on in the lavender unicorn's life. They wondered how such horrid things could happen to the mare they loved so much without them knowing, and, after their minds were settled, they allowed Spike to continue his tale.

"By Faust, and you two came here immediately after the incident at the library?" the purple dragon nodded in response to the sun goddess' question, returning his gaze to the mare in the hospital bed when Celestia found herself lost in thought. She wondered where her ponies had gone wrong, when did the seeds of segregation plant themselves into the society she thought she knew like the back of her hoof.

"We should tell aunt Lulu before she catches word of this on her own, heavens know what she might do to the pony cult in Ponyville if we aren't around to ease her through it. Say, where is she? I thought she'd be here considering her close friendship with Twilight." Cadance finally took into account that she hadn't seen the night alicorn since Twilight's arrival, and she wondered where the sneaky mare could have vanished to.

"Luna, along with a squad of guards, is investigating a chain of robberies that occurred tonight in Canterlot. Nothing of major value was stolen, just everyday groceries, which is strange considering the great risk they ran at robbing from the city's main district. She'll visit when she finishes her report, you know how involved she likes to get when it involves her job." Celestia's mood was slightly dampened as she continued to take note of the corruption that could find its way into her ponies' minds, but her gloom was washed away as the sheets on the hospital bed began to stir. All three visitors in the room smiled as a pair of amethyst eyes opened, finding it difficult to focus after being shut for the duration of her sleep.

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'I'm not ponynapped right now. I didn't just rob others. I'm not in danger. I'm not in danger.'

Press' mind continued to loop the single phrase in hopes of actually fooling itself into believing it, but it was incredibly difficult to look past the constant noise a certain bald mare was making in the dining room. The brown stallion stared blankly at the idle fireplace in front of him, not sure if he should attempt to fall asleep on the couch he was on, or simply contemplate his situation even further.

Glamour Shot had roughly dragged him away to the lower districts of Canterlot after forcing him to aid her in robbing various shops earlier that night. He attempted to escape once, finding a opportunity as the malevolent mare turned her back on him to stuff a bag with more stolen goods, but he was strangled into submission as soon as she figured out he was trying to flee. He hated to admit it, but with him being a pudgy earth pony, he was no match for the magic all unicorns could wield, much less that of one who had gone partially insane.

Anyway, the cloaked mare had shoved him into a light brown building he assumed was the mare's house, just barely avoiding a passing patrol of guards. Press attempted to gain their attention, but a belt tied around his muzzle and shut him up when he tried to yell out for help. He didn't like the old Glamour Shot, but he sure as hell would have taken to being at her side rather than the twitching mess that was currently working on something in the dining room.

"Press! I need the burlap sack we hauled over here, now!"

Call him a coward, but the stallion shriveled up at the abrasive sound that Glamour's voice, going as far as to compare it to the odd individual that had been following him around since he arrived at Ponyville. Still, he did what he was told as quickly as his trembling body would allow him, taking the stolen bag in between his teeth and dragging it into the dimly lit dining room. As soon as he entered, he saw the mare of his nightmare's huddled over the single table in the room, which had scattered goods adorning its surface. Without so much as a 'Thank you', Glamour Shot snatched away the burlap sack in her red aurora, dumping its contents on a empty corner of the table.

Press watched as the mare poured a glass of water and set it down on the floor, confusing him even further. Glamour then pulled up a sealed pill bottle from the pile of stole items, taking out a single pill before sealing the container again and putting it back to its spot in the mound. Without warning, she tossed the white pill into the glass of water, and nothing happened after waiting for a couple of seconds. Just as he let his guard down, the whole cup exploded in flames, bursting apart with a loud noise. The chemical reaction nearly gave Press a heart attack, and it didn't help that Glamour had decided to stare at him with her demented eyes, a sadistic grin cursing her muzzle.

"Mmm, you'd be surprised at what a few household items can do if you have the proper knowledge. A glass of water here, add a little sodium there, and, poof! You've got a ticket to getting rid of pesky little dragons and mares!"

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"...and then you woke up just now. That pretty much covers what's happened after you passed out at the lounge."

After a ten minute snuggling session, Spike got his marefriend up to speed with their current situation. He was glad that they were finally getting some good feedback from the world around them for a change, instead of being chased out of town by a group of maniac ponies. Twilight had grown elated at the approval of her beloved mentor, valuing her opinion much more than those of a couple of random anonymous ponies. With speed nopony should ever have been capable of, the lavender unicorn broke her hooves out of the cradle-lock Spike had on them, and pulled her teacher into a hugging nuzzle.

"Thank you for understanding, Princess Celestia, it means so much to us that you would approve." the alicorn of the day nuzzled her student back, just like she used to do when she was nothing more than a little foal. Her protege's presence, the memories, and the nuzzle all brought a warm smile to the sun goddess' face, but there was still one issue she'd like to take care of before moving along the conversation.

"You've always made the best of decisions in your life, Twilight, and I see that this is no exception. And please, just refer to me as 'Celestia', there's no need for formal titles among friends." she got just the reaction she expected, a surprised smile grew on her student's face,who was clearly excited about the formal proposal of friendship from her mentor. She always considered herself friends with her ruler, but to have her state it directly was something else entirely.

"Of course, Celestia!" Twilight blushed at the volume her voice held as she spoke elatedly to her benevolent ruler, hiding her face behind her mane in a manner she adopted from a certain yellow pegasus before she spoke again in a much softer tone," I mean, I'd love to, Celestia."

The grin on the solar princess' face threatened to split it in half, overjoyed at the loss of her title. Many ponies would never live to know that the princesses, all of them, hate the title they carry. It interferes with their life at every turn, forcing those around them to act nervous and restrained, never allowing a fully developed friendship to bloom. So, for the pony she cares for the most to drop her title as a ruler, and speak to her as she would to a friend, was the greatest act Celestia could ever hope to see in her eternal life.

The conversation between the alicorns and the oddball couple continued long into the night, never gaining the appearance from the lunar goddess herself. That one fact didn't deter the group of friends as they reminisced for as long as their personal affairs would allow them to. Celestia wasn't sure if her drowsiness was catching up to her, or if her mind was simply playing tricks on her, but she could almost swear she saw a patch of blue shift away from the window on the door that marked the entrance to the hospital room. Her suspicions were proven to be correct when the small amount of blue returned to the window slowly, as if checking if anybody could see it, and disappeared again. With a small frown of recognition, Celestia excused herself from the friendly chatter, much to everyone else's disappointment, claiming that she had to go check on how Luna was doing.

Just a little white lie, but she did have a meeting to host, just not with her sister.

Twilight let out a short yawn, the sedatives still lingering in her bloodstream were dampening the usual energy she retained. Cadance took notice of her step-sister's sleepy state, and decided that she too would retire for the night.

"I'll see you in the morning, okay Twilight?" the love alicorn trotted up to the lavender unicorn and gave her a parting nuzzle, which was gladly returned.

"Sure thing Cadance, are you going back home?"

"No, Shining and I are staying here at the castle until you feel better. He's overprotective as always, but I don't mind the extra time with you and Spike."

"Neither do I, good night Cadance."

"You too Twilight."

The pink alicorn exited the sterile hospital room and headed down the hall leading to where she'll be spending the night, leaving the two lovestruck companions to themselves. Sleep was nowhere near her mind as she continued her trot, she was driving it away with her insistent plotting, and she managed to formulate a simple plan in her mind by the time she reached her empty room. She began to wonder where he could have run off to, but wasn't given the chance to delve to deeply into her guesses since the stallion she was thinking about walked through the gilded double doors a minute later, a unusual look on his face.

"And where have you been?" the love goddess noticed the almost imperceptible shudder that Shining Armor gave off, and she began to be consumed by her curiosity. She was left unsatisfied after the stallion responded in a soft, wavering voice as he walked to the bed and promptly collapsed.

"I don't want to talk about."

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'Idiot, idiot, idiot!'

The white unicorn stallion continued to berate himself mentally for the way he had screwed up the day once again, increasing the tempo of his pacing. He never really had a knack at speaking with others the right way, always being too blunt, without enough sympathy or compassion.

Just another guard among the herd.

Now, his character had landed him in the worst of possible situations, the one where his sister hated him for all the right reasons. It was simply an added bonus that he now also had a potentially violent dragon pissed off at him to the point of threats being thrown around, the very same dragon that his little sister had decided to take up as a romantic partner.

He wasn't sure how to feel, never really straying much from what he was taught since he was nothing more than a simple colt. Shining Armor would have turned to his parents' judgement on the situation, using that to help him decide, but they were out of town for their anniversary vacation. He was left with nothing more than a sister that most likely hated him now, a angry dragon that wished for nothing more than to rip him to shreds, and a wife who would probably disown him for being that way to his younger sibling.

'I'm screwed.' was the only thing that he could run through his mind at the moment, well, until he saw somepony clad in golden regalia walking towards him, 'I'm royally screwed.'

Before he could devise a way to escape a confrontation with the goddess of the sun, she called out to him in her usual composed tone, making it obvious that she was hiding any and all emotions at the moment.

"Captain Armor, I wish to speak with you privately for a moment." his instincts as a guard made his body freeze stone-still, a order from one of the princesses was law, and he had no choice but to follow it.

The solar monarch closed the door to the lounge that the stallion had hidden in, sealing it along with the entire room in a soundproofing barrier. The very action told Shining that he had something coming, and he wasn't going to like it.

"Yes mam?"

"Cut the guard routine, Mr. Armor, I'm not here on formal business or anything of the like. In fact, I know very well that you know why I am here, and what I need to talk to you about." 'Frightening' was the only word the white unicorn would use to describe the tone that had attached to the solar ruler's voice, but it was probably only his over-active mind playing tricks on him.

"What do you mean, Princess Celestia?" lies would get him nowhere with the alabaster alicorn, it was almost painfully obvious that he knew something.

"I'm talking about you spying on the conversation between Twilight, Spike, Cadance, and myself. And don't try to lie to me, Captain, you are almost as bad at that particular skill as the Element Of Honesty."

"Okay, yes, I watched over the hospital room, but I don't see what there is to talk about."

"Very much, actually. Please, take a seat." a cushion materialized out of thin air, placing itself under the stallion before he was pushed to his haunches by a telekinetic force. Talking time for him was over.

"Now, from what I've been told, you directly confronted Twilight and Spike as soon as they entered the castle grounds. Is this true?"

"I called them to meet me at a lounge, so yes."

"And did you ever question her decision on who she chose to take on as her romantic partner?"

"No!" Shining couldn't restrain the volume his voice gained, and a lump formed in his throat when he realized who exactly he was talking to, "I mean, no, sorry for raising my voice."

"If you didn't question her choice, then what did you do to upset her?"

"Look, I...I did question her choice, but it was because I was only thinking about what was best for her."

"Really now? Please explain."

"How am I supposed to stand by and stay calm knowing that she's going out with a creature who can tear her to pieces if he so much as wishes to." the look Celestia gave him was one that told him that he just said something that was about to bite him on the flank.

"You would believe that Spike, the only friend Twilight had for more than half of her entire life, would ever harm her? If so, then I don't know how you have risen through the ranks of my military forces with that kind of poor judgement."

"Princess, I've seen some of my best friends get torn to pieces by his kind ho-"

"And I've seen Spike unite Twilight with many of the friends she has today, your point?"

"My point is that he still has instincts, what if one day Twilight upsets him and he lets himself be controlled by his anger."

"So do you, Shining Armor, but you let fear dominate your thoughts, rather than anger. Nobody is excluded from their basest of natural impulses, but some of us learn how to control ourselves. Spike is the perfect example of that statement."

"How?"

"He is a magical breed of dragon, the most skilled of any breed actually, and Twilight granted him further strength when she overpowered his hatching process. This increased amount of strength, however, also increases his susceptibility to a dragon's natural way of thinking. A couple of years back, he was consumed by his greed, magically transforming him into a beast many times larger than the size he has now. Obviously, he overcame that moment with some help from his friends, but what really interests me is that it never happened again after that day. He saw how much damage he could cause if he let his judgement be clouded by his emotions, and he taught himself how to control his base desires, be it greed or anger, he was, and is to this day, in control."

"But it's not a guarantee that he will never lose himself again!" Celestia resisted the terrible urge to roll her eyes at the stubborn stallion, opting to instead convince him with words that were bound to work.

"Who can guarantee you that they won't hurt Twilight? Who can you choose that you're sure will never harm your little sister?"

"I...but I..."

"Nopony, Shining, that's who. But, Spike is the closest being that has ever entered Twilight's life, I would very well guess that he is even closer to her than I am. He is the one that knows her the best, he knows how to comfort her in the bleakest of situations, and he would rather die than to leave her side for his own welfare." Shining took his leader's words deep into his mind, processing the universal truth that had just been spoken to him. Of course, he had one last thorn in his side, and he wanted to make sure if it was harmful or not.

"What about the public, how would Twilight feel if they were to react negatively to her?" he was about to receive yet another verbal whip to the face, and this one was going to sting, badly.

"Did you ever let either Spike or her to explain to you what happened these past few days to them. No? Well, allow me to give you the recap. They've discovered their feelings for each other, accepted those emotions, were rejected by one of their best friend at first, confronted by a senile member of the town of Ponyville, attacked by a pair of thugs in a alleyway, harassed verbally by a group of townsponies led by the aforementioned senile member, and had their home reduced to nothing more than a pile of burning splinters."

The white unicorn just gaped at the events that had been retold, resisting the urge to punch himself as the solar empress continued to speak.

"But, amiss all of the destruction and discrimination, they stood strongly together. They held their heads high as everypony around them tried to bring them down, so for you to stand here and to tell me that you're worried about the way Twilight could react the public reacting negatively is pitiful."

"...I'll talk to her." Shining tried to walk past the alabaster princess, but a majestic wing blocked him off. He looked up into the passive eyes of the princess, feeling the command to leave Twilight alone for the night to rest rather than hearing it.

"Go to bed, Captain Armor, your wife has been wondering where you ran off to. But before you go," eye contact was made again, but the princess' eyes now held authority and intimidation that could cause a rock to come to life, just so that it could cower in fear, "if I hear that you put my faithful student's mood down again, you'll finally get to learn if the moon is made of cheese or not. Do I make myself clear, Captain?"

With a nod of the head so shaky that it was almost as if he was saying 'No', the captain of the royal guard moved past the goddess of the day and set himself on a course to his bedroom. He wanted to lock away the memory of what just happened, but the piercing eyes of the sun princess would burn through any locks he would put on the thoughts of his conversation.

Celestia half-frowned at the way she used her intimidation against a pony so close to her, but it was for the greater good. There was one more order of business in her mental agenda, so she took of to the sky through a open window in the room, soaring through the sky towards the obsidian tower that marked her sister's room. She had a request for her dear sibling, she was going to ask if she could have the day off tomorrow. Luna was bound to accept since she jumped on any opportunities that allowed her to be more involved with running the country. Tomorrow she would set out to find a couple of ponies to speak with in private, and a steaming hot platter of justice was bound to be served.