Chapter 2: Learning About Each Other

As the sun rose over the horizon of the Crystal Empire it's prince was already hard at work. From the moment he woke up Shining would make rounds of the castle, talking to each of the guards and ponies he walked past. He had gained a reputation as one of the nicest stallions in the castle, and many ponies had started to look up to him, especially the guards. When he turned the corner a group of guards saluted him.

"Sir!" they said in unison, each of them having a smile on their face as Shining passed by, nodding happily at them all to let them relax. They waited for him to pass before continuing their conversation. Shining laughed to himself as he looked outside, finding it hard to believe that just a few months ago no pony knew the Empire existed, save for a few scholars in Canterlot that really did their research. His situation seemed like a story a mother would tell their son or daughter to get them to go to sleep, the guard who married a princess and became a prince! Once he was done looking outside he continued on his way to the throne room, where he would stand for most of the day as Cadance listened to the ponies of the Empire.

"Sir!" the guards at the doors to the throne room said quickly once they saw Shining turn the corner. He stopped in front of them, having to undergo screening to make sure he wasn't a changeling.

"How are you two doing today?" Shining asked as the Unicorn moved to his side to begin the screening.

"Not bad, caught somepony trying to sneak in earlier" the Pegasus said, just as the screening finished, "You're good to go sir"

"Thank you, and have a good day you two" Shining said with a salute before heading into the throne room. The two guards smiled and saluted back at him before returning to how they were before. When Shining entered the room everypony was at attention, even those that were there to talk to Cadance.

"Good morning" Cadance said, smiling happily as Shining took his place next to her. He was her personal guard, and as such he was by her side at all times. As soon as he had picked up his spear the royal court began, starting off with a local hat maker who was complaining about the cost of materials from Canterlot. Next was a local mother who had been abandoned by her husband due to his greed, and she was coming to ask for help raising her child. Lastly, for the morning at least, was a old guard pony from just before Sombra's reign, who had simply come in to thank Shining and Cadance for what they did, and to say that he liked the new guards much more than the ones he was part of.

"Nice work" Cadance said happily as the last pony left the room, giving Shining a kiss on the snout, "Ready for lunch?"

"Of course" Shining said with a smile, leading the way to the dining hall so they could eat. As they sat down in the hall a group of ponies entered from another door carrying trays of food, each one a sample of the two ponies favorites. Cadance grabbed a piece of french bread and some dandelion soup, and Shining reached for a egg and lettuce sandwich. Just before Shining took a bite a green cloud of smoke came in from the window and floated above Shining's head. Before he could say anything scroll materialized from the smoke and landed on his head.

"What?" Shining asked out loud, his mind trying to remind him what that meant.

"It's from Twilight" Cadance said as she looked at the scroll, the words For Shining Armor; From Twilight making it clear that it was for him.

"Oh, ok" Shining said, his mind still reeling from his attempts to figure out what had happened. Shining quickly opened the letter and read through it, his jaw dropping open as he got to the end of it.

"Everything ok?" Cadance asked, attempting to get a look at the letter, but Shining pulled it away. She tried again but he kept moving it so eventually she just grabbed it with her magic and stole it from him. He watched in horror as she read through it, her face remaining emotionless the entire time. When she got to the bottom she rolled up the letter and placed it on the table, her eyes digging holes into Shining's face.

"So..." Cadance said slowly, Shining's reckoning now at hoof...

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Twilight ran around the library in search of a book on Changeling diet, throwing book after book from the shelves after she flipped through them, not finding anything helpful inside them. Meanwhile Spike was trying to hold both Meta and the books Twilight was throwing away, managing to balance them until they where higher than the bookshelves they came off from. Just as he fell Twilight looked over at him and pulled Meta to safety, leaving Spike to get crushed by the mountain of books she had tossed around.

"What do you eat?" Twilight asked the foal as she held her in front of her, looking it over to see if she could tell if the foal was more pony or changeling. When she got back to her front she decided to try and do a magical scan of it's body, but a knock at the door interrupted her so she handed Meta off to Spike.

"You know I'm not a foalsitter, right?" Spike asked sarcastically, but Twilight ignored him and opened the door, finding Rarity and Fluttershy on the other side.

"Hi girls" Twilight said with a forced smile, the foal situation still in the forefront of her mind, "What's up?"

"Oh nothing, we were just wondering if you would want to join us at the spa, but..." Rarity trailed off as she looked at the mountain of books on the floor, "It looks like you're busy"

"Oh, don't mind those, just making sure they're in the right places" Twilight tried to lie, but a quick look around the library showed that the books had all been pulled out randomly, with no rhyme or reason. Rarity and Fluttershy shared a worried look when the sound of the foals wings flapping could be heard downstairs, as well as Spike trying to stop it.

"Stop doing tha- Don't go up there!" Spike whined loudly, the sound of the wings flapping coming back as he caught his breath, "Oh come on, I can't even get over there!"

"What is Spike doing upstairs?" Fluttershy asked quietly, the sound of Spike falling on his face, followed by a curse, could be heard downstairs.

"He's, um..." Twilight trailed off, trying to think of a lie to tell her friends, but just then the door burst open and Meta came flying out with Spike holding onto her legs. He flailed for a few seconds before she ran out of energy and fell down, using his face as a cushion.

"Ow..." Spike groaned as he tried to get up, Meta having jumped off him immediately. She was now flying in circles around the ceiling, making her Changeling features very obvious to Rarity and Fluttershy. Fluttershy cowered slightly when she noticed the wings and horn, but Rarity just silently stared at them, a blank expression on her face.

"Twilight?" Rarity asked calmly, still watching the foal fly around the room.

"Y-yes...?" Twilight said slowly, her eyes wide as the moon as Meta flew right up to Rarity's face, looking her in the eyes with it's head cocked to the side. For a few moments the two of them just stared at each other, but then suddenly Meta spat into Rarity's face, leaving a strange green goop covering her mouth. Rarity fainted, pulling her couch over just in time, and landed on it in a overly dramatic pose. Meanwhile Fluttershy was hiding behind Spike, doing her best to not be seen by Meta as she continued her laps around the library.

"Oh brother..." Twilight complained quietly before heading up to her room so she could write get some bits for a trip to the store for diapers. Next Chapter: Chapter 3: Cause and Effect Estimated time remaining: 10 Minutes