After my last post, I thought I’d draw out the entire Shining/Cadence family (family tree style). So here they are! The Royal Family of the Crystal Empire.
 
 
(Former) Queen Mi Amore Cadenza, now a retired Queen, ruled the Crystal Empire for a very short amount of time, at least for her lifespan. For many years she served the people from Canterlot (before the Crystal Empire was rediscovered). She eventually came to lead the Empire in a peaceful rule, being more of a symbolic ruler if anything. She never wanted the Crystal Ponies to relive a rule like Sombra’s. She was the first pony to ascend as an alicorn in thousands of years.
 
Cadence was born a pegasus and is probably the best flier out of all the alicorns. Her magic is extremely pure; she has a deep connection with her internal magic, which makes her entire presence very strong and vibrant. In Equestria, love is one of the most important values a pony can have. Cadence’s role is huge. She’ll never know it, but her ancestors were former rulers of the Crystal Empire before Sombra took over. This is probably why she has such a deep connection with the Empire and the Crystal Ponies in the first place.
 
Naturally she has a strong bond with the other alicorns, but her relationship with Twilight is unparalleled. They’re extremely close, sometimes to the point where Shining Armor would feel like a third wheel. Even though Cadence took the role as babysitter for a few years, she considers Twilight her best friend.
 
 
(Former) King Shining Armor stepped down a few months after Cadence did, leaving the Empire entirely in the hooves of his daughter Love Letter. Like his sister, Shining is a powerful unicorn, but mostly he’s just a goofy dad. He led the Royal Guard for 10 years before committing solely to being King. His daughters are his pride and joy in the world. He loves them to pieces and would do absolutely anything for either of them. He genuinely doesn’t have a favorite; he loves them both the same.
 
Shining Armor was always a bit of a romantic growing up. He met Cadence through Twilight’s babysitting, and oftentimes he’d sneak home early just to catch her in time before she left. He was instantly drawn to her, not because she was an alicorn, but because she was so… perfect. Perfect the way she handled kids, perfect the way she laughed, perfect the way her eyes lit up when she smiled. He was a few years younger than her, but he shot his shot.
 
Cadence was Shining Armor’s first love. Even though he’s younger than her, he doesn’t look it. Cadence’s immortality makes her age really slowly, so she’s always looked super young. Shining really really loves her (he never quite grew out of the honeymoon phase). He still leaves her cute notes around the castle, packs her lunch for a long day (despite the chefs in the castle), and buys her the most extravagant anniversary presents. He spoils his daughters a lot too and was honestly a really great dad.
 
 
Princess Flurry Heart was supposed to be the next Queen of the Empire, and that was what she most looked forward to since… forever, really. Since childhood she’s always felt proud to be an alicorn, considering herself superior to her unicorn sister Love Letter. In reality she was just ragingly insecure since Love was a much better princess (and overall pony) than she was.
 
She’s always been very snarky and truly couldn’t care less about the people, as long as she had that crown. She did perform a lot of marvelous feats starting from as young as 4 years old, though. She has a strong connection to the Crystal Heart, so when the Empire was threatened she put herself on the line to save everyone. She has gone through hardships, but for her it’s always been about the prize in the end. She’s always had a guaranteed spot on the throne, even though she’d argue that it wasn’t just handed to her (she believes she earned it through hard work). And honestly, she just wasn’t a good princess.
 
When she lost her horn in a terrible “accident,” her life was permanently altered. Her horn was broken beyond repair, perhaps worse than Tempest’s. She wasn’t an alicorn anymore, and if she wasn’t an alicorn, she was nothing. She could barely fly as it was. Most of her power came from her horn, especially the deep rooted magic of the Crystal Heart. But not anymore. She couldn’t even access her unicorn magic anymore. As a result of her depression, Flurry Heart enters the Grey Zone and her colors begin to fade drastically. She gives up and just lets her sister Love take the throne. She stops caring entirely.
 
 
Princess Love Letter (now Queen) is the second born of the Crystal Empire rulers. It was pretty surprising when she was born without wings, and Shining and Cadence worried it might affect her mental security later in life. Thankfully, Love didn’t seem to care at all about her lack of immortality. She actually seemed to be thriving more than Flurry Heart was.
 
Love was born with a richly colored mane, but it began to fade very quickly in her childhood. Cadence and Shining didn’t really notice at first until it was entire shades duller. They worried of their daughter’s wellbeing, and probably thought she was greying as a result of the Grey Zone phenomenon, a common effect (on ponies) of depression. Eventually they realized that Love was perfectly fine, and their only explanations were that it was a simple mutation, or that maybe she’d grown a winter coat/mane and never grown out of it.
 
She was a very easy foal to handle and was the much more socially composed daughter. Cadence really believed she’d be a perfect choice as Queen, and was actually glad that Love was able to take over. But Cadence couldn’t have known what Love was planning. The treason that Love plotted behind closed doors.