//------------------------------//
// Chapter 19 
// Story: A Heart of Crystal and Glass 
// by Mani-Roar 
//------------------------------//


One Year Later



“Cadance?” Shining Armor called from across the room. I had been fussing with my hair in front of the vanity mirror for longer than I wanted to confirm by looking at a clock. 

“Cadance, we’re going to be late.” I could see his amused expression from across the room in the mirror. He wasn’t really mad, only pushing my buttons.

“I’m almost done.” I ran the brush through a thick section of the cream colored part of my hair, and I swear it undid the last five minutes of brushing. “Ugh!” I cried, slapping the brush against my thigh.

“Yeah, it sure sounds like you’re almost done.” He walked up behind me, looking at me through the mirror. 

“Shut up.” I said with the sweetest and most saccharine smile I could muster. 

“Why don’t you just have Pell do it?” He shrugged.

“Because Pell is busy with the baby, and I wanted to do this myself while I still have time in my morning routine to do so.” I went back to brushing out my long hair. It was probably due for a trim. “And I’m not looking forward to having no time myself, so forgive me if I cling onto the last vestiges of my free time.” 

“Honey, the baby was born last week. Nopony is expecting you to have it all figured out.” His eyes nervously darted to our bedroom door. “I’m sure we’ll figure out a new routine, and everything will be fine.” 

“Easy for the stallion in the relationship to say.” I stuck my tongue out at him.

“Hey!” He rested his hoof on his hip with great indignance. “I’m doing my part too. We’re a team, remember?”

“Oh yeah? Letting Jadiz go buy diapers for you makes you a real trooper.” I rolled my eyes as I picked up a headband to tie my mane off with. 

“You’re not going to let me live that down are you?” Shining, tapped his hoof on the floor.

“Darling, I love you. And Jadiz is a dear, but he’s never had a foal before. And if I knew you were going to send Jadiz, I would have sent Pell. Or at least told him exactly what type of diaper we were looking for like I spent ten minutes telling you. Because he ended up coming back with, like, a year’s supply of the cheapest diapers in the kingdom.”

“And I returned those diapers, and bought the correct ones.” He proudly pumped his chest.

“With Pell’s help.” I reminded him, letting the sassy tone match my grin.

“And a great help she is, what’s your point?” 

I turned to face him. “The point is that I don’t want to lean too hard on Pell. I want to make sure I’m doing the work of raising Flurry Heart myself.” It made me smile on the inside just to say her name. I pictured our little baby laying in her crib in the newly minted nursery just down the hall from our bedroom. She was probably coughing up snot as we spoke. 

“You mean that we are doing the work.” Shining raised an eyebrow.

“Yes of course, dear.” I agreed before snapping to look back at the mirror. Was my hair still not cooperating? 

“Speaking of not leaning too hard on Pell, we should probably get to the baby’s room and relieve her.” Shining pointed his head towards the door.

I sighed, letting go of my hang up with my mane. “You’re right. Let’s go before I change my mind, and spend all day in front of this mirror.” 

“Something that has never happened before, I’m sure.” He quipped as I stood up to face him.

“Watch it, buddy.” I pointed in his face. “You may find yourself in trouble with my postpartum.”

We walked out the bedroom door, and continued our conversation. Which was probably going to start some castle gossip when taken out of context.

“You’re telling me you have postpartum depression?” He asked as if talking about a cold. 

“Postpartum annoyance.” I corrected him. “Everything you do and say wrong annoys me twice as much now that I’ve had a baby.” 

“I don’t think that’s a real thing.” Shining said as we reached the nursery door. It was cracked open, so we just entered. Pell was standing next to Flurry Heart’s cradle, and immediately shushed us with a silent hoof to her lips. 

Shining and I quietly stepped over to the side of her crib. It was built into the floor and made out of prismatic crystal, which would change colors in the full spectrum of the rainbow depending on how the light hit it. It was a beautiful sight to see when the curtains were open, but the cradle’s crystal was a semi-transparent gray with them closed. 

I leaned over the side of the cradle and looked down at my daughter. Her short stubby baby mane had already come in. She had pink and magenta colors like mine, with long streaks of turquoise instead of cream. I suppose the blue-ish color came from Shining Armor. I watched as her belly softly rose and fell with her tiny breaths. Her eyes were closed as she dreamed away without a care in the world. If I had anything to do with it, I would see to it that she never knew hardship or famine. However, if she started becoming a little brat at anypoint, I’d show her just enough hardship myself to set her straight. 

“She looks so peaceful when she’s sleeping.” Shining rested his elbows on the crib, holding his cheeks as he looked longingly down at his little baby filly. I knew Shining would be weak to her charm as she got older. I’d have to keep a watchful eye to make sure he didn’t spoil her rotten. He had only the best intentions, but still…

I couldn’t stand it anymore, I had to hold her. I reached down into the crib and wrapped my arms under her head and bottom. I gently lifted her up to my shoulder, trying my best not to disturb her.

“A-heh… A-waaaaaaaah!” Flurry Heart wailed into my collar bone. 

“Oh poor baby.” I rubbed her back and wiggled her butt, trying to get her to calm back down. She just kept screaming.

“Now you’ve done it.” Pell put her hoof on her hip. “She was crying all morning, and I just got her to relax.”

“I know, I know, baby.” I said, answering both Flurry Heart and Pell. Her wings fluffed out, not sure where or how to lay. I tried to lay her back down in the crib, but her grip on my neck was something fierce. I may have woken her up crying, but she still wanted her mother. Her cries turned into desperate wheezes that forced her to suck in deep breaths in between each one. I held her in my arms, letting her cry her poor heart out. Pell and Shining stood by as mother and daughter bonded. Eventually, Flurry Heart’s cries subsided until she was fast asleep once more in my breast. 

“What time is it?” I asked as Shining Armor wrapped one hoof around me, and gently placed the other on top of Flurry Heart’s head. Her horn stuck out into the air. She was an alicorn, naturally born. Only Celestia and Luna were naturally born alicorns back in Equestria. Twilight and myself had ascended after coming of age. The implications of Flurry’s alicorn birth were still unknown. Was her biology the same as an ascended alicorn? Or would she live multiple millenia like Celestia and Luna? Would she outlive myself and Shining Armor as we simply guided her along the early part of her life? Perhaps she would rein on high long after we were gone. 

Twilight, Celestia, and Luna were currently on a train heading to the Crystal Empire. Perhaps the great sisters would have some answers for us when they got here - along with what I’m sure will be a mountain of gifts, which is why they took the train. Rumors had already reached me that the train cars were bursting with presents. I could only imagine the sight. For the time being, I was content to hold my precious child in my arms. 

“It’s 11:46.” Pell said and my brain panicked. 

“11:46!” I yelled as quietly as possible. Desperate not to wake Flurry Heart again. “The train is supposed to arrive in 14 minutes.”

“I told you to spend less time on your mane.” Shining mumbled. 

“Not now, dear.” I glared at him trying to hold back my smile and failing. “Quick, we need the stroller! And her binky, and a change of clothes, and a toy, and spare diapers. Where’s the diaper bag? We have to get moving before we leave them all waiting for us.”

“My lady.” Pell’s hoof rested on my free shoulder as Flurry Heart slept in my grasp, content as can be. “There’s no need to panic. I will look after Flurry Heart. You and Shining go meet the Princesses at the train station.

“Are you sure?” I pleaded with her, feeling guilty putting more duties on her. “I don’t want to impose…” I began as Pell waved me off.

“It’s fine, my lady.” She reached out her hooves, and I leaned over to transfer Flurry Heart to her. By some miracle, traveling from my shoulder to Pell’s didn’t wake her up. I was momentarily jealous, feeling like Flurry preferred Pell’s touch to mine. 

“Go to the train station.” Pell said quietly. “We’ll be right here waiting for you when you get back.”

“Do you have…” I was ready to list off things Flurry Heart would need, but Pell anticipated me and interrupted.

“I have everything she needs right here.” She rubbed the baby’s back as Flurry’s wings drooped, still not willing to properly tuck in. I felt Shining’s hoof on my shoulder.

“It’ll be fine.” He smiled at me. “We’ll be back in just a moment. Auntie Twilight, and great aunt Celestia and Luna will be delighted to see her.”

I nodded, and Shining and I left Pell in the nursery with our baby. It was still insane to me. Shining and I had a baby together. I now had a year’s worth of memories with him, and I cherished every moment we had spent together. Including the moments where I wanted to strangle him. He had brought me so much joy and now we had the privilege of raising a child together. I couldn’t wait to show her off to everyone. 

“But…” I began to argue one more time.

“Go, my lady.” Pell reassured me. “Time is of the essence.”

Shining and I left for the train station, leaving Flurry Heart under Pell’s care once again. I couldn’t think of any more trustworthy hooves to leave my daughter in. Pell, of course, was a champion at all things - including baby care. In fact, she excelled at it. I was incredibly thankful to have her as a faithful backup to my mommy duties. 

We made haste to the rail hub on the outskirts of the capital. Citizens waved and greeted us as we passed by. We tried not to brush them off or seem too much in a hurry. We had made going out in public like this a regular occurrence, so the citizenry was accustomed to seeing us wandering around. 

The station was modest for being the main stop in the Crystal Empire. It was a light purple and violet crystal building on a raised platform. There was a ticket window and office underneath an overhang, and a small indoor waiting area. There were maybe a dozen or so ponies waiting to buy tickets or waiting for loved ones like we were. It was 12:01 when Shining and I arrived, and so far no train had shown up at the station.

“Excuse me.” I walked to the ticket counter and spoke to the thick mustached crystal unicorn behind the counter. He wore a red velvet vest with a pocket watch sticking out of the front pocket.

“Greetings, my lady.” He smiled warmly at me. “Where are you and Prince Shining Armor off to on this beautiful day?”

“Oh, actually we’re waiting for someone to arrive.” I nervously looked at the empty train track. “Did the 12pm non stop from Canterlot already come and go?”

“Hmmm.” He opened his pocket watch and inspected the time piece. “Hasn’t arrived yet. They didn’t send a message that they were delayed so I imagine it’ll arrive any moment now. If you look southbound down the railway, you’ll probably see it coming down the track.” He pointed to the edge of the rail station. 

“Thank you.” I said, ready to hop over to the edge of the platform and watch for the train. However, the ticket pony’s words gave me pause.

“No, thank you.” He said as my eyes lingered on him for a moment. “Forgive me if I’m speaking out of turn, but thank you for everything you’ve done for us, my lady.” He bowed to me. When he came back up I tilted my head to him as well.

“May the Crystal Heart bless you and your family.” I said before leaving him at his booth. I was accustomed to interactions like this now. They felt natural with my newly rebuilt connection to the Crystal heart. I did my best to never take them for granted. The day that I start doing that is the day that I no longer deserve to be their Princess. 

Shining and I stood at the edge of the platform on the south side, and eagerly looked down the railroad track. Sure enough, a train was chugging its way towards us not too far down the horizon.

“Please stay behind the yellow marked line, my lord and lady. For your safety.” The ticket pony called from his booth. I looked down and saw a yellow painted line about a meter away from the edge of the platform. Shining and I were standing on the wrong side of it. Both of our faces turned a bit red as we gingerly stepped back behind the line, only to lean our heads over it, and watch the approaching train. 

I watched the smoke gently billow out of the chimney as the engineer blew the whistle signaling their approach. Once it came to a rest, a few moments passed before the passenger doors swung open.

“All passengers bound for the Crystal Empire, please disembark. Thank you for choosing Canterlot Rail.” The conductor said over the loudspeaker as my heart raced with excitement. I hadn’t seen Twilight in months, and I had yet to meet Princess Celestia and Luna in person. 

Apparently my back leg was twitching, cause I felt Shining Armor gently place his hoof on my thigh.

“It’s alright, babe.” He grinned at me as I forced my leg to calm down. “Celestia and Luna don’t bite. And if they do, Twilight will ask them politely and reverently to stop.”

“I know.” I narrowed my eyes and pouted my lips at him. “I’m not nervous, I’m just excited. The world is still very new to me.”

“Is it a good world?” Shining asked, and I put my hoof around him in response.

We held each other as we watched the passengers disembark. A modest amount of ponies walked off the train. Some of them carried small bags while others gathered and waited for their checked bags to be brought around by the porters. None of which acted like there was an insane amount of cargo on the train needing to be offloaded. A part of me was relieved by that. 

“It’s a magnificent world.” I rested my head on his shoulder as he squeezed me tighter. 

We watched for a minute or two until it seemed like all the passengers had left the train. No Princesses were to be seen, save for myself. There was no way we missed them. Three alicorn Princesses would be about as conspicuous as it gets.

“Huh, that’s weird.” Shining commented as my heart sank. Where were they? “I guess they got delayed and had to catch the next train.”

“Why didn’t they send a message?” I asked as the train hissed, releasing the built up steam in its engine. 

“Maybe they did.” Shining shrugged. “There could be a message back at the castle. I doubt Twilight would contact us directly with a scry spell just to say they had to get the next train. That would be overkill, even for her.” We both giggled at the thought. I imagined Twilight casting high level magic just to tell me she ran out of toothpaste.

Still, this was odd.  

We walked back to the castle, much more leisurely this time. If they had to come on a different train, or even wait until tomorrow, then we no longer had a tight schedule to keep. We decided to stop and chat with a few ponies along the way. Shining suggested we get a bite to eat while we were out and about, but I wanted to get back and relieve Pell. I didn’t want her to feel obligated to take over all of our parenting duties - even though I knew she enjoyed it.

Inside the castle, things were moving along with the normal amount of bustle. It was a relief to, for once, not be a part of that bustle. We just watched as ponies went about their business, diligently heading to their next task or appointment. 

“I bet she slept this whole time.” I sighed contentedly.

“Lucky her.” Shining echoed. “I could use a nap.”

I had a vivid image of the two of us snuggled in bed for an afternoon nap, Flurry Heart sleeping between us. Nothing sounded better.

“Adults are allowed to take naps too, ya know.” I reminded him. To which he smiled in return. It probably would take very little convincing to get him to lay down with us.

When we got to the nursery the door was wide open, and I instantly had the feeling that something was wrong. I darted inside with a quick leap.

“What’s wrong?” Shining asked as I stared frozen in place at Flurry Heart’s crib.

“Where is Pell?” I asked. The room was way too quiet. Even if the baby was sleeping, there shouldn’t be such an empty feeling in this room. The crib blanket was laying carelessly on the floor. I walked to the edge of the crib and looked down.

“Where’s Flurry Heart?” I yelled. My mind was already swimming in panic. 

“Woah, woah.” Shining placed his hooves on my shoulder as I turned to face him. My face must have looked terrified. “Calm down, everything is ok.”

“Where are they?” I asked, failing to keep my voice calm. 

“Pell must be somewhere else in the castle with Flurry Heart. Maybe they went for a walk?” Shining rubbed my back as I closed my eyes. I was overreacting. Everything was fine. Pell taking the baby somewhere else to feed or change or just run a quick errand wasn’t weird. Maybe she thought we were supposed to meet up in the dining hall once we came back with the Princesses from Equestria? 

“Cadance.” I felt Shining’s shoulder tense as he leaned over the empty crib. “There’s a note on the pillow.”

My heart sank into my stomach. Pell wouldn’t leave a written note behind in the baby’s crib. That was for sure strange and Shining knew it too. I couldn’t move. I couldn't speak. I watched silently as Shining picked up the note and started to read it. All of the color drained from his face, and I’m sure mine did the same right behind him.

“It says…” His eyes darted around as his brow twitched. As if he couldn’t believe what he was reading. “If you want to see your child again, meet me at the Crystal Cave under the mountain. You know which one. Come alone, just you and Shining Armor. If you tell or bring anypony else, there will be consequences.”

My heart stopped. My breath failed. This wasn’t real. It couldn’t be real. I was having a nightmare, and I would wake up at any moment. My baby was gone. Kidnapped. The ‘me’ in the letter was glaringly obvious. Queen Chrysalis had taken her. No other could have done this. I felt the rage build up in the back of my brain. Anger washed over me, consuming my every thought and feeling. She had gone too far this time. After all the things she had done to me, she dared go after my innocent little baby? This was unforgivable. I was going to go back to that cave. The cave I hated and swore I wouldn’t return to. I was going to meet Chrysalis face to face, and this time only one of us was going to walk out of that cave. 

“I’ll get Captain Flash.” Shining’s cold military voice came out. He probably flipped a switch in his mind. Because if he allowed his thoughts to go the way mine were, he would already be talking about Chrysalis’ demise. “We’ll bring the whole army if we have to. She’s not going to get away with this-”

“No!” I screamed, and Shining looked surprised. “We have to go alone. We can’t tell anyone else.” I glared at him, trying my best not to direct the hate in my heart out through my eyes at him. 

“It’s a trap, Cadance. We’d be playing right into her hooves.”

“I know it’s a trap!” I yelled as I looked at the open nursery door. I activated my magic and slammed it shut. No one could hear what we were talking/yelling about. It had to be kept a secret. “But if we show up with an army, even if it’s just Flash, she may harm our baby.”

“It’s a bluff. She wouldn’t risk losing her bargaining chip-” I cut him off again. Unable to control my voice.

“Flurry Heart is not a bargaining chip.” I yelled as tears streamed down my cheek.

“Cadance…” Shining looked at me with pity in his eyes. The very last thing I wanted right now.

“She’s my child. And I won’t risk anything happening to her.”

“What do you suggest?” Shining asked, and my response probably scared me more than it scared him.

“I’m going to march straight into her trap, get my baby back, and drag her corpse through the streets of the capital as a warning to any who would think to try something like this again.”

Shining stood in stunned silence for a moment. He looked like he wanted to chastise my proposed brutality, or tell me my plan was foolish, and poorly thought out. However, the glint in his eye told me that he felt the same way. I was just willing to say it outloud. 

“I understand how you feel-” He began.

“Then let's get going.” I bluntly cut him off. 

He sighed, letting the weight on his shoulders out through his breath. “Flash is going to kill us.”

“Sounds like he’ll have to get in line.” I forced myself to grin with a crooked smile. If I succumbed to my emotions now, I wouldn’t be able to focus. I wouldn’t be able to fight. I wouldn’t be able to save my baby.

“Remind me never to get on your bad side.” Shining raised an eyebrow at me.

“Why, were you planning on it?” I retorted. He matched my crooked grin, and that was the end of the talking. We left the castle as quietly and inconspicuously as possible. We kept our pace casual until we got to the edge of the city, and away from suspicious eyes. 

Chrysalis had walked into our kingdom and captured Flurry Heart, and probably Pell as well. I know Pell would have put up a fight if they didn’t neutralize her before she could sound an alarm. There hadn’t been Changeling check points for months. She must have disguised herself and easily walked into the castle. Which instantly made me angrier, at myself more than anyone. We had gotten soft and complacent during a year of her truce. She honored it for so long that we took it for granted. We had been successfully lulled into a false sense of security, and now we were paying the price. 

Shining couldn’t fly, so that limited how fast we could move. I would occasionally take to the sky to look around and make sure we weren’t being followed or approached. We passed the point where the forest broke, and the gravely roads led to the cliff base of the Crystal Mountains. This was where we fought the Changelings when we rescued Flash and the others from captivity. It was the last time that we won a battle with the Changelings, and Chrysalis wasn’t even there. We would have to beat her for good this time. Her reign of terror had to come to an end. 

We got to the mouth of the cave. No sign of any Changelings. No army came to meet us. Shining wasn’t wearing his armor, and had no spear. We feared that weapons would provoke the Queen. If this was indeed a trap, and we were surrounded, a single spear was not going to get us out of this. 

The cave was just as unsettling as I remembered it. Every shift of the shimmering reflected light told my mind there was a Changeling at the corner of my eyesight. We stayed on our guard as we marched deeper into the cave. 

“Shining.” I stopped suddenly, and he turned to face me. “Whatever happens, I love you. And I always will.”

“Cadance…” He struggled to find the words for himself. He probably didn’t want to come across as a fatalist. I decided to assure him that I wasn’t either.

“You saved me.” I reached my hoof out and he took it into his. “You once said that when you took Cadance back from this cave, that you failed to save her. But I want you to know that you did save me. You gave me my life back. You made me fall in love with you. Even if I never get my memories back, I have no regrets. And you shouldn’t either.”

“I love you too, Cadance.” He nodded as he squeezed my hoof. “Nothing will ever change that. Everything is going to be alright. We are leaving here together with Flurry Heart. I won’t let anything happen to either of you. No goodbyes.”

“No goodbyes.” I repeated.

We walked hoof in hoof until we reached the big open room where I had been taken captive. Where we fought the Changelings, and bargained for Flash’s release in exchange for one of their Changelings. There would be no exchange today. Someone was going home the victor, and someone was going to lose everything. With Shining by my side, I knew I couldn’t fail.

The big open room was nearly empty except for one pony. 

“Hello, darling.” I watched as another me stood up on the pedestal where the twin slabs were next to the towering orbs. There I was standing over us, looking down, sneering. It was my tri-colored hair, my crown, my pink body fur, and my face. A mirror image. Did Chrysalis use my face to kidnap Flurry Heart? If so, why keep up the disguise? Unless to mess with us?

“No games, Chrysalis!” Shining let go of my hoof as he barked at the pony who looked exactly like me. “We know it’s you. What have you done with my daughter?”

“Oh, you mean the halfling?” Cadance, this fake Cadance, said ‘halfling’ in a way that enraged me. “She’s fine, don’t worry about her. We have so much to talk about. So much to catch up on, dear.” 

“Don’t you dare call me that!” He snapped at her. “We know you’re not Cadance, so just drop the disguise already.”

“Oh darling, you’re confused.” Her cheek twisted into a perverted grin that I prayed I was incapable of making. “I am the real Cadance.” 

 “And… that…” She pointed directly at me. “Is Queen Chrysalis!”

It was impossible, maddening, insane. An obvious lie that couldn’t possibly be true.

So why did I instantly believe her?  





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