[Canterlot Castle] Awards Banquet - Day 1 [Open:See OOC]

[starswirlthebearded]

Nightmare Night was not what anyone expected this year, especially not Celestia who decided to take the night to have fun and bond with her subjects. The night was going well until changelings attacked once again, lead by Queen Chrysalis. Celestia, much to her chagrin was once again captured. All was not lost as the residents of Ponyville and a few travelers whom decided to partake in the Ponyville festivities, banded together and fought back. And in the end thanks to the resilience, teamwork and friendship of the Ponyvillians, disaster was once again averted.

Celestia decided that because it was not one or two ponies that helped she should invite all who were involved for a banquet at Canterlot Castle, to be spread over two days. Special guests were invited whose leadership or sacrifice was above all others. Celestia wrote up a letter to those she wished to honour specifically, though all would be met with gratitude and praise, as well as the town announcement that she would have posted in Ponyville.

The post announcement read as follows:

Attention Citizens of Ponyville:

This coming weekend I shall hold a banquet in honour of Ponyville’s great acts during this past Nightmare Night. Against all odds, you showed the true spirit of friendship and loyalty that all Equestrians should have, and drove back the changelings. Because of you, not only Ponyville, but all of Equestria was saved once again from the changelings, whom wished to take over. I do so hope to see you all there. Please send a letter of RSVP so I may tell you the day to come.

-Princess Celestia.

She sent a letter to the zebra Zecora whom she heard tales of bravery and leadership, helping whomever she could into the Everfree Forest where she had hoped that they would be better protected from the queen.

Her letter read as follows:

To Zecora,

You are cordially invited to be a guest of honour at a banquet in honour of Ponyville’s indomitable spirit during the changeling invasion of Ponyville. I’ve heard stories of your brave and selfless acts while I was imprisoned by the changelings. You lead a group of ponies towards your home in the Everfree forest. You showed the makings of a true leader, and a true friend of Ponyville and Equestria. I wish to honour you by inviting you to seat at the royal table.

-Princess Celestia

With the preparations set and the invitations extended she had the Canterlot Castle banquet hall prepared and everything set for her weekend of honouring the ponies who saved, not only their home in Ponyville, but all of Equestria as well. Celestia stood at the head of the hall placing guards to greet and show the guests to their tables.

[Lilia]

Shadowe beamed in delight when his mother read the invitation, his hooves drifting to Colby's head to reassure himself that his dog was still nearby. He had only been released from the Foal ward of the hospital, his leg and ribs on the mend after the events of Nightmare Night. He had been forbidden to bring his dog in with him, to his chagrin. He hated being a burden to anypony, and the nurses seemed to just WANT to wait on him, horn to tail.

"Mother, may I go? It would be wonderful to visit Canterlot, I could even bring Colby with me to assure that I'm completely safe from harm...I did, after all, ignore him that night...it's not his fault I was harmed..." He asked, knowing he could be told no by the one person who had the ability to keep the foal from coming.

"You may go under ONE condition, Shadowe! I want you to be on your VERY BEST behaviour, none of these antics you seem so fond of getting into! I mean it, my son! One whisper of trouble you caused will mean I take all outdoor activities, aside from schooling, away from you!" His mother, Lavender, responded. She watched as delight crossed her son's face and sighed inwardly. It was hard to watch her only foal growing up, harder still to watch him strive to have a cutie mark to show his special talents.

​

[Blueblood]

Prince Blueblood had found himself in very many awkward positions lately, but this was setting out to take the cake. Inwardly, he winced at the metaphor, which still touched upon a sore spot. Thanks to that... unfortunate incident, his reputation outside of his own social strata was rather low, and now all sorts of ponies who were from the same town he'd gotten on the bad side of would be coming here!

Oh, but that was only the beginning. This was a banquet to honor heroes who had resisted the Ponyville Nightmare Night invasion. He'd been somewhat prominently present there, so therefore ponies would ask him what he did. And what had he done? Gotten himself captured without resistance, that was what he had done. Having to admit this was really not going to help.

In fact, the whole situation was twisting a knot of fear in his gut. This was turning out to be a nightmare, and what if it was? What if he had never really been rescued, and this was all some intricate illusion by that fake Twilight? He'd been plagued by this worry ever since the end of the holiday, and he'd never been able to bring himself to admit to being so frightened out loud.

Looking over the table, the unicorn leaned over to his aunt. "Are you sure I should attend this? I feel, somehow, that I oughtn't to be here." Perhaps a little rare humility would serve to cover his escape. He could hope, at any rate.

[Lux]

The Changeling Invasion during Nightmare Night had ended, but there was still much more work to be done. Apart from the town of Ponyville having to be cleaned up from the Nightmare Night festivities and subsequent invasion, parts of the Everfree had been burnt by Chrysalis's army. Luckily for Zecora, the blaze did not affect her home, but she none the less felt the effects of what happened. After all she had returned from what was to be the annual outing with the foals to the Nightmare Moon statue only to become the de facto leader against Queen Chrysalis. She was no warrior zebra, just a simple herbalist trying to learn about pony culture, but sometimes one had to stand up for those they cared for and that was what she did.

One day, Zecora found a letter that bore the royal Equestria symbol.

"What is this that I see, a letter to me from Canterlot royalty?"

Opening the letter she found it was an invitation to a banquet, and she was to be the guest of honor! Not only that but this letter was written by Princess Celestia who no doubt heard about the zebra after the invasion.

"They wish to honor me? But how can this be? I just did what I felt right, to protect the ponies during Nightmare Night. Well, why not? It will be my first time in Canterlot. I will leave with haste so that the Princess may know that to this banquet I will go."

Taking a quill from an inkpot and a piece of paper, Zecora began to write.

Dear Princess Celestia, Ruler of Equestria,

I have received your letter about a banquet to attend, and a request for a response for me to send. This letter is to officially let you know that it is my intent that I will go. I hope this reply finds you well, in Canterlot where your and your sister dwell.

Sincerely,

Zecora

The zebra then took the all important letter to Ponyville, thinking about her plans to travel to the capital city.

A little intro post before Zecora shows up at the evens

[NeoExlucky]

Gadget was home once more. He had all but forgotten about what happened in the nightmare night caves. In fact, he was quite glad about what he had done. Gadget helped free the legendary Rainbow Dash! Maybe the bards of Equestria would forever sing tales of this misadventure, where he and his allies bravely fought the changelings, saved the heroic Rainbow Dash, and broke out of the cave, with little to no trouble at all! He was a bit concerned for his family at first though. Swift Blitz managed to lock herself in the hotel, so she was fine, but Time Spinner was really weird. Gadget figured it had something to do with coffee or something. Nothing that he should be truly concerned about, Time's bounced back from much worse than changelings. Besides, what could have been so bad that he started acting like this?

On a particularly pleasant morning, Gadget had received a letter from Celestia and was quite surprised to read what it sad. After grabbing what he thought was ink, but was in fact oil, Gadget wrote.

Dear Celestia,

As a hero of the changeling invasion, it would be an honor to attend such an amazing event. I will be attending the first moment that I get.

-Gadget

He took the oil-written letter and put it in an envelope, mailing it to Celestia, and began preparing for the event, mainly taking the story of his rescue and finding ways to stretch the truth, just a little bit.

[Mojo]

Haywire

Little Haywire was absolutely delighted to be going to the big Celebration Banquet in Canterlot! The rust colored filly had quickly wrote her letter of acceptance and mailed it right away:

Dear Princess Celestia:

I'd be pleased as punch to come to your little shindig! Sounds like it'll be a lotta fun! So, whatever I have to do to RSVP, I'm RSVPing right now! Will be arriving by train, and don't worry none, I'll be safe! Cause if any baddies mess with me along the way, I'll give'm what I gave all them there changling goonies, a face full of rocks from my trusty slingshot! Thanks for the invite!

Sincerely, your faithful subject

Haywire

P.S. If you want some music for the dinner, I could always bring my harmonica and juice harp with me!

Soon, young Haywire was riding the Express Train to Canterlot, waving goodbye to her older sister Haymaker and her big brother Hayseed. She was very miffed that Haymaker took all of the firecracker rockets she wanted to bring with her, citing the trouble she got into during the recent Grand Galloping Gala. Haywire reasoned that her sister was probably right and didn't make a fuss about it.

The train ride was a lot of fun for the young filly, though many of the passengers were not amused with the way she'd ask them rapid fire questions and played her juice harp to pass the time away on the train. After arriving at the Canterlot station, and receiving a warning about playing her juice harp anymore on the train by the conductor, Haywire arrived at the gates of the castle, only to have her saddlebags thoughly searched by the Royal Guards. Not wanting to take any chances on any 'wild antics' by the blonde filly, the guards decided to keep her saddlebags with them, promising to return them AFTER she left the castle. Though this made her angry, in the end, Haywire decided it was probably for the best, Besides, she thought, the guards were more than welcome to use her toothbrush, rain gear and the baked hay energy bars she brought with her to munch on during the train trip.

As last, Haywire was let into the room. It was quite elegantly decorated, festive for the occassion as all formal events at the Castle. The blank flank filly's eyes grew as big as saucers of the site of the banquet hall. She'd been stuck in the 'kiddie' room during the Grand Galloping Gala so she'd never seen this part of the castle before. Haywire, at the insistance of her older sister, was dressed in her best dress, still wearing her blue bow as she approached Princess Celestia and bowed.

"Yur Majesty, I thank ya a heap fer the invite! I promise ya I'll be on mah best behavior tonight!"

[Ciraxis]

And so Equestria was spared again....Can one say it was saved? No, not really. At least from the Swift Squall perspective.

Over few days that took pass since the Nightmare Night former sellsword was taking much pondering over the events that transpired. End the conclusion he came about wasn't pleasant.

Sure, ponies of Equestria would probably win one way or another. But that thing was, changelings plan had no weakness this time around. They adequately pick pointed that greatest defense of the realm was Elements of Harmony....and they managed to actually take care of them this time around.

It was a small miracle that all six mares happened to be all safe and sound afterwards. The Hive probably was on very thigh schedule and parasites apparently simply didn't had enough time to dispose of them before Nightmare Night.

The only spanner in their plan was arrival of the Princess Celestia for the celebration. If not for this lucky coincidence the Elements would be doomed and even if changelings would be repelled from Ponyville the Equestia greatest Heroines would surly perish. But that was something that Chrysalis couldn't anticipate. There was no error in changeling Queen plan.

This weren't a happy thoughs. Yes, ultimately courage, love and friendship saves the day and conquers all....but perhaps, perhaps even them could use some back up from time to time.

"Never again..." Swift Squall muttered to himself as he stood with his invitation before the castle gates. He didn't had in mind another invasion - no, another assault will inevitably come sooner or later. What swordstallion meant was desire of not allowing Equestria insectoid foes to surprise them like that ever again.

At first he was sure that his sweetheart, Fire Walker wouldn't accompany him this day. She was still worried about the capture of her sister and while Wind Walker was safe and sound at the end of the night, her older sister was understandably afraid that it could affect the filly in other way. Squall couldn't agree - knowing a little Blue Bomber the only 'trauma' that possessed danger to her was flying at top speed into rock formation, or something similar head on. He wasn't vocal about his opinion through. Since his reclaiming of Squallcoast Manor and gaining first true friends Squall learned a valuable skill of 'shutting up when his viewpoint wouldn't serve a good reason'. But in the end it turned out that Moto came to same conclusion as well. Since Canterlot was really crowded city - even more so now - they decided they would meet in the Banquet Hall.

Swift didn't took much preparation for the banquet - a black trench coat that looked like a crossbreed between a tux and a duster, scabbard and sword at his side, a simple (but blinding white) shirt underneath was almost all he put on himself. He didn't even bothered to remove some of the bandages from around the legs and neck. The only flamboyance that his appearance had was cravat with a brooch that had one single emerald gemstone depicting Squallcoast Family Crest - a sea waves crashing against a lone spire-like rock,

But it was okay, he didn't came here to celebrate.....well at last that wasn't his priority. No, Squall had questions and propositions in his mind. With this he decided to appear first, to have some time to speak with Celestia before the proper event starts. Unfortunately, this time he miscalculated - when he entered the hall some ponies were already there. Even if Fire was here finding here could take a while. A best course of action would be to stay in one place.

"......A road of patience then."unicorn said to himself before grimace of pain flashed through his face. True to be told, while Squall was protected much better then the rest, he also took a lion share of the changeling forces around Boutique all by himself because of it. Swift was prepared for even that retrieving one of the stashes of hidden balms and elixirs that he had in all of Equestria major settlements. However there were others that needed immediate treatment more then he - particularly a stallion that dressed as Carousel Boutique owner (Squall had really mixed feeling about this) and brave filly that ended up with two broken legs in a daring attempt to free the Princess. As such he gave away this potent potions without a second though...and ended up on the longer road of the recovery. A minor annoyance at best, at this point of his life pain was an old friend already.

Swift Squall took a sip of pineapple juice from his glass. So far there were no familiar faces among the crowd - weird he expected his fellow competitors from a costume show . Aside from Princess Celestia and Blueblood of course. After all, all noble families meet each other at last once. The day when he run across the so called 'Prince' was back when both were very young colts. Not to much impact on either of them, except Swift conclusion that the other kid was spoiled rotten. He honestly doubted that white stallion ever remembered him. Then again ponies change, and Moto's impression working him showed a much forgiving picture. so maybe....

Swordstallion shook his head, he didn't come here for idle gossip, as entertaining as it may be (and if more nobility would show up, it will not be entertaining at all). He better be waiting, not sticking out by mile.

[Pretzelparty]

Silverheart's nightmare night had started out like everypony else's; looking like fun. Sadly for both Silver and Ponyville, the changelings seemed to have other plans. Skies had been practically flood by these chitinous beings as they flew about and terrorized the town. Silver had informed his men to take the night easy... and by Celestia did that turn out to be a mistake. With his platoon's guard down they wound up being easy prey for the changeling horde before their leader could get back to them in time. Without the mares and stallions under his command he was left to his own devices and had to stay focused on what a REA officer's duty should be; keeping the common ponies safe. After saving quite a few of Ponyville's citizen's he had yet to find his platoon and things were looking like a huge mess on the battlefield. Soon enough though a gigantic shielding bubble of magic engulfed the town and purged all the changelings from the place.

Silver's platoon turned out to be alright on their own but they were pretty much pinned down without his help and happy the shield went up when it did. After a lot of apologizing on Silver's part he was assured by his platoon that saving the citizen's was the right thing to do. Silver's platoon was soon back to work, and they sure had a lot to do while the worst of it was undoubtedly over they still had to start saving ponies from wreckage and debris which the troops could definitely handle.

His night got even worse when he saw his sister being tended to and looking like she had been put through the ringer several times with these changelings in a cave that was set to be part of an obstacle course. His worry was fairly short lived though as the doctors said she'd be fine after a bit of bed rest and very basic medical care.

The day after the massive clean up and restoration of Ponyville he had heard the announcement of the banquet. His choice to attend was mostly so he could see some of the faces that had been instrumental in the defense of Equestria. Word had gotten out that a certain Zebra had been particularly heroic in her exploits during that night and he definitely wanted to meet her. The train ride to Canterlot was as smooth as ever. Silverheart had gone for a simple but still very classy look with a black tuxedo and a cravat, his mane as usual was very thoroughly combed and washed. Seeing as Silver was of noblehood he was no stranger to the Gala and had seen the Castle many times in his youth. While the palace never lost it's luster, seeing it so many times had dulled his senses to it but he still admired how incredibly clean everything was.

The princess looked as impressive as ever as he approached her and bowed his head in reverence,"Greetings again your highness... " Suddenly Silver glanced back up a moment and laughed a bit nervously as he saw something that bugged him,"Your majesty, your crown is a tiny bit off center I thought you should know... I apologize if you meant it that way." he said in a hushed tone before proceeding inside hoping he had not come off as rude.

As a member of the R.E.A. he was assigned to sit at the Princesses table but the ceremonies had yet to begin so he had some time to mingle with the guests... some of the reports mentioned a certain stallion by the name of Swift Squall ... why did that name sound so familiar? It wasn't important now though but he did see a stallion who matched his description out of the ghoul king costume. The grey coated stallion walked up to the stallion in the longcoat and smiled a calm smile,"Nice coat... I understand you took on an active role in fighting off the changeling hordes, a very nice job!"

[Lilia]

It took a few hours to get Shadowe on the train to Canterlot, his mother insisting he be ready for any kind of weather. He sighed after she had sent the letter to the Princess informing her of his pending arrival as well as his disability. He smiled faintly, aware that it took several hours for the train to arrive. He knew he would be a little late, but at least he would make it! Colby lay beside him, curled up and snoozing peacefully as they went along.

By the time Shadowe and Colby arrived at the Palace, they had managed to have three run-ins with some very snooty colts and fillies who couldn't help but tease the poor colt about his blank flank. Steeling himself for what could be the worst event in his short life, he entered. Every nudge of Colby's muzzle sent the little colt down the right path, avoiding both the guards and the wrong turns he would have made on his own. He stopped when Colby blocked his next step, kneeling before what he hoped was the throne.

"Thank you for inviting me, Your Majesty...I hope it isn't a problem that my dog is here?" he asked, his voice soft as he began to tremble. He didn't know if it was fear or nerves, but he did his best to reduce the tremble from his whole body to only his knees.

​

[Bellosh]

It wasn’t everyday that a googly-eyed pegasus played an important role in the capture of a crafty changeling. But yet Derpy Hooves did; her inability to make a costume thin enough to fit through doorways ensuring that the tide of the Battle of Fluttershy’s Cottage turned towards the home team. If it hadn’t turned out that the changelings invaded all of Ponyville as well, the young mare would have considered the latest Nightmare Night to be the best one ever.

Like almost everypony else in Ponyville, Derpy read the posted announcement that a banquet would be hosted to honor all of those who defended Ponyville. Wasting no time, Miss Hooves wrote a simple letter of RSVP to let Princess Celestia know of Derpy’s plan to attend. Since nothing said that she needed to formally dress up like she did for the last Grand Galloping Gala, the pegasus planned on not wearing anything this time around. That didn’t mean she wouldn’t spend a beautiful bit or two on getting her mane and coat all groomed and sparkly though; even the scatterbrained pony knew better that to attend a castle banquet with her usual messy hair.

Joining Derpy Hooves on this trip to Canterlot was Lyra Heartstrings, her fellow partner from the events of Nightmare Night. As they entered the banquet hall, the gray pony was busy endlessly yapping to the other unicorn; “...So I was saying Lyra, it’s too bad I couldn’t bring my costume here. I threw the thing away before I heard about this banquet, so now I won’t be able to show the Princess how I avoided getting captured. Well, I’m sure she’ll believe our tale of amazing heroics, right?” Derpy looked to Lyra like a wide-eyed schoolfoal waiting to be praised.....

​

[RarityDash]

Lyra wasn't shy to admit that, all things considered, this years Nightmare Night was one of the most fun she had ever had. Considering that Ponyville was visited by a serious threat and in fact many ponies were injured over the course of night when the changelings struck made this perhaps an odd admission, but Lyra was used to being seen as a highly eccentric mare. It remained that Lyra had had a lot of fun saving the day and bagging changelings with her carpet costume and the changelings' own cages. She wasn't even sure Bonnie believed her that she had helped capture one of the changeling leaders and done her part to win victory for all, but she had and it was awesome.

Derpy had helped too. Lyra noted this as she looked toward the gray pegasus who, like her, had decided to come to Canterlot to take part in the big ol' banquet Princess Celestia was having in honor of the ponies of Ponyville. Lyra had had her problems with the goofy gray mare in the past--she had more than once done immeasurable damage to poor Bonnie's bonbon business, but in the heat of the moment she had promised to bury the hatchet as much as possible... even though she really hadn't needed to it turned out. Regardless, she had definitely played her part in the events that unfolded, however much of it was intentional or not.

​

“...So I was saying Lyra, it’s too bad I couldn’t bring my costume here. I threw the thing away before I heard about this banquet, so now I won’t be able to show the Princess how I avoided getting captured. Well, I’m sure she’ll believe our tale of amazing heroics, right?”

Lyra laughed as Derpy spoke while they were entering the hall.

"I saved mine!" she started excitably. "It was so crucial in our victory I just had to. I wanted to frame it even, but when I suggested it Bonnie gave me that look..." She gave a nod and smiled wide. "Couldn't bring it down here either. All that carpet was sooo heavy. Which is a shame--I bet the princess would have loved to see the Lurking Horror in all its carpety glory!"

She gave a cheerful bounce and then paused for a moment, before tilting her head aside and looking at Derpy again. "But yeah, I think the princess will still believe us. She's smart. Ya gotta be to be a princess. She'll recognize true heroes when she sees them! Just you wait and see," she added with an enthusiastic grin.

​

[tacobob]

During this year's 'Nightmare Night', the Pegasus pony, Fire Walker had been on the tips of her hooves throughout most of the holiday. Not only did she have to worry about the nearly endless supply of Changelings that had invaded the little village that she and her family and friends have been attending, the mare had been also also very concerned about the safety of both her little sister, and her father who had taken her youngest sibling to the event. If that wasn't bad enough, there had been a little nagging voice in the back of her head asking herself if Ponyville was just one of the hubs of civilization that had been attacked by the dark beasts. The R.E.A guard had also worried about the future of her great land. Would they all now live in constant fear that the Changelings would attack again, at anytime? Were there more of the shape-shifting creatures now laying low in the forms of her friends and loved ones?

After the night's 'festivities', the young mare spent the following days in Ponyville, helping with both the recovery and aid of formally captured or wounded citizens. While her young sister, Wind Walker had begged to stay, their father had wisely decided to take the young filly back home with him to Canterlot. During her extended stay in the little town, Fire started to notice official royal proclamations that had been posted. While not particularly proud of her performance during 'Nightmare Night', she decided she would attend with her colt-friend, Swift Squall, schedules permitting.

Fire Walker wrote a quick and proper acceptance letter to her most beloved ruler: "First Lieutenant Fire Walker of Canterlot presents her compliments to Her Majesty, Princess Celestia, and has the honor to obey Her Majesty's command to banquet on (date) at (time) o'clock.". While she would be attending the event as a member of the Royal Equestrian Army, she would also try to spend as much time with Swift. She was also quite happy to be able to celebrate the bravery of many of Ponyville's noble citizens who helped unite all those attending the event and formed a rather formidable force that was able to deal with the Changeling Queen and all of her minions.

At the event, Fire Walker was dressed in her formal military dress. Once she entered the hall, she made sure to properly bow to Princess Celestia as she neared Equestria's beloved ruler while thanking her for the invite. The mare also would give a curtsy to the Prince once she passed his way. While not as beloved as the princess, she had some respect for the somewhat infamous Blueblood. She did not dare to ask of his activities during 'Nightmare Night', but she hoped the good Prince had put aside concern for his own safety to help defend the citizens (and visitors) of Ponyville.

As she slowly made her way through hall, the mare searched for Swift Squall, only stopping to make small talk with friends and other members of the R.E.A before politely excusing herself to return to her search. Fire Walker eventually spotted the stallion who was alongside one of her associates from Trottingham. "Swift.", she called out to him before making her way through the forming crowd. Once at her beloved's side, she gave off a frown as she caught sight of his bandages. She always assumed the unicorn was quite proud of his assortment of scares he had acquired over his lifetime, but she was not. She quickly made another mental note to schedule him a visit to either an alchemist, doctor or both to deal with the nasties. "Swifty, I see you've met Lieutenant Silverheart.", she smiled as her eyes fell on the officer.

[starswirlthebearded]

Guests started to come into the banquet hall and Prince Blueblood was already seated at the head table with Celestia. He seemed worried that he didn't belong, as he was not the most heroic of ponies that day and was feeling self conscious, or so it would seem.

"Are you sure I should attend this? I feel, somehow, that I oughtn't to be here."

Celestia leaned over to her nephew and replied "Regardless of deeds done that day, you, my nephew, are still a prince. And as a prince you should show gratitude to those who helped protect our kingdom. This may not be a high society event as you are used to, but it is important to show gratitude and humility where it is due. And the ponies, and especially the special guest, a zebra named Zecora, have done much for us this past Nightmare Night. This banquet is for them." Celestia explained to her nephew. It was true that Blueblood wasn't the ideal prince, nor was he very heroic, but still, he was getting better. Celestia saw him making every effort. And this was a great opportunity for him to learn an important part of being royalty, gratitude to those who selflessly fight for the good of everypony.

A young filly approached Celestia, dressed in a rather lovely dress with a blue bow adorning her head.

"Yur Majesty, I thank ya a heap fer the invite! I promise ya I'll be on mah best behavior tonight!"

Celestia smiled warmly at the filly. She figured it must be the filly Haywire that had responded to the posting. Her accent was almost identical to her writing style. "You are quite welcome Miss Haywire. I'm pleased you were able to make it." Celestia greeted the filly. And she giggled at the filly's promise to be on her best behavior. The Royal Guards had submitted reports of a filly whom had set off some rockets in the Grand Galloping Gala, and it would seem this is the filly that had perpetrated the deed. "I'm glad to hear that. I love excitement but this is certainly not the time or place for rockets to be set off. But please do enjoy yourself." Celestia had noticed that the guards confiscated her bags at the door before letting her in... They probably remembered how explosive this filly could be, she though to her self as she smirked.

"Greetings again your highness... " Suddenly Silver glanced back up a moment and laughed a bit nervously as he saw something that bugged him,"Your majesty, your crown is a tiny bit off center I thought you should know... I apologize if you meant it that way."

The grey coated REA guardstallion greeted Celestia. "Yes, it is a pleasure to see you again. I believe the last we met was the Gala before last." Celestia said with a smile, as the guardstallion told her about her crooked crown. "I hadn't noticed that it was off center at all." Celestia said as she looked into a glass that was sitting on the table to confirm for herself. She quickly used her magic to correct it. "Thank you for your attentiveness Silverheart. Please enjoy the banquet." Celestia leaned in and gave a whisper to the guardstallion "Though you really should try to convey such things with a bit more discretion. You wouldn't want to embarrass your Princess." Celestia ended with a wink.

"Thank you for inviting me, Your Majesty...I hope it isn't a problem that my dog is here?"

A young blind filly with a dog greeted Celestia and inquired about having a dog there. "You are quite welcome. I'm glad you were able to attend." Celestia said warmly with a smile. Even though she was unable to see it, Celestia figured she could understand the feeling from her tone. "Normally I'd ask for the dog to wait in another room, however it seems to be an integral part for you to get around easily and independently. I could not allow such a close and helpful friend to be separated from you." Celestia said while gingerly placing her hoof on the filly's shoulder. "I hope you and your furry companion can both enjoy the banquet."

Celestia noticed that Fire Walker had entered and gave a bow. She didn't seem interested in greeting the princess directly but interacting with the ponies around her. This didn't bother the princess, after all the banquet wasn't for her, but rather everyone else. Celestia merely bowed her head in return. She would have a chance to interact with everyone that wished to talk to her in good time. Celestia would probably make the announcement as the food was served as to why the pony who was the special guest was there and thanking everypony for what they did during Nightmare Night.

[Mojo]

Haywire politely listened to the Princess' greeting, though she was taken a bit by her mentioning rockets.

"Reckon it's true what they say about Princess Celestia, she DOES know everythin'!" the blank flank filly thought to herself as she walked away from her and over to meet some of the newly arrived guests. Instantly, Haywire recognized Shadowe and Colby. Delighted to see someone she knew, the rust colored filly galloped over to them.

"Hi ya Shadowe! Hello Colby! So good to see y'all agin! Hope ya remember me. We were on that thar obstacle course together! That sure was a scary experience, weren't it?"

Haywire took the time to gently pet Colby and offer the canine one of her hay energy bars as a snack. Although the Royal Guards had taken her saddlebags, the rust colored filly had hidden many things in the 'secret' pockets of her big frilly dress. She was glad the guards didn't bother to search her clothing, a dress the blonde filly had modified to suit her own needs tonight.

[Blueblood]

Ah, so he was acting in part as host, rather than guest. It was quite true that this would be slightly different from all the high society events he'd participated in before; it was really the first time he'd been involved in anything actually important. He looked out over the room as he surveyed the company of heroes gathered here... and sighed. *Dear Faust, what heroes. There's a blind colt here, and he still probably did more than me!*

Well, he had to start somewhere, and that would be with the first filly to walk up to his aunt. He had to take another look at her when Celestia seemed familiar with her. "Rockets, eh? Wish I had some back them. Good job with those!" Not that he actually knew that Haywire had used rockets against the changelings, but if she had them, he couldn't see why not.

He got down off the table to mingle more with the guests, giving a nod to the REA gathering as he passed. He would have given them a word or two of thanks about getting him out of the library, except that he didn't know who actually was on that rescue operation. It was slightly embarrassing that he didn't recall any faces or names, though considering he was practically gibbering from his nightmares, that was understandable enough. *Let's not go into that quite yet.*

Blueblood decided to start with the first familiar face he saw, which was Swift's. Not that he recalled the name on sight, but he could place it from the guest list. He seemed to have an accompaniment, one of the REA lieutenants, in fact- Fire Walker, was it? The name was surprisingly quick to leap to mind. He approached the pair, giving them each a bow. "In the name of Equestria... thank you. I can't say I saw you there, but from the look of you, both of you, you seem to have had a time of it." It was a rather gracious greeting, all things considered, though the Prince couldn't quite keep a touch of envy from his voice.

[Pretzelparty]

"Swifty, I see you've met Lieutenant Silverheart."

Silverheart's ears perked up as he heard a certain friend's voice, "Fire! good to see you're still alive and kicking! ". The stallion offered his hoof in greeting to fire before it finally hit him where he'd heard about Swift squall before, from this very mare,"I thought I'd heard his name somewhere, I think you mentioned him a few times when we trained together. He's more impressive than you let on!"Hopefully Fire would return his hoofshake and regardless of whether she did he would turn back to Swift,"Once again it's a pleasure Sir Squall, I'm Second lieutenant Silverheart, me and fire have worked together a few times and we attended boot-camp together... and I believe we will be instructing a civilian program together." his ears flicked backwards to the sound of another voice approaching the trio of officers.

"In the name of Equestria... thank you. I can't say I saw you there, but from the look of you, both of you, you seem to have had a time of it."

Silver gave a bit of a sigh before he gave a bow in reverence to the prince. Silver still had not been very fond of the prince... but his concern for his fellow officers seemed to indicate a bit of change from the attitude Silver had always believed the prince to have perhaps he was capable of changing after all. While silver was of noble blood himself he understood that the prince still had much more influence and authority in this context due to the fact he was the princess' nephew... and speaking of the princess that playful remark at the door had given him a slight embarrassed blush which very faintly returned for a moment as he thought of that moment which could easily be mistaken for him blushing at the prince's presence.

"Good to see you as well, your highness.. how did you fair during Nightmare night?" Silver's tone was a bit more distant and lost the warm familiarity that he had used to address fire, however this tone returned to his voice as he looked back to his fellow lieutenant,"Seems our chitinous friends took a bit of your mane and tail off... My sister and you could probably share stories on that." he said a slightly joking manner that was replaced by a more caring tone in his next statement,"But really it's good to see you both are okay. Would you mind if I asked you about the events that lead to the Princess' capture?"

(Edited at the request of Rackenhammer)

[Lux]

Zecora stepped from the train admiring the city of Canterlot, dressed in a red cloak. She had been to cities and towns before on her way from the Veld of Unyasi to her current home, but she never set her hoof into Canterlot until now. It was a bit of a culture shock seeing the tall majestic buildings and the bustle of ponies, more than there were in Ponyville. She wanted to take the time and explore this place, but now was not the time. Right now she had a banquet to attend, and she was the guest of honor, something that the zebra was still trying to cope with. After asking a few ponies along the way, albeit with many giving her a strange look as if they never saw a zabra before, she found herself standing in the castle. To say that Zecora was overwhelmed by the sheer size of the place was an understatement. Finally she approached a guard at the entrance.

"I am Zecora, here for the banquet you see. Is there a certain seat that I need to be?"

[Lilia]

Shadowe bowed again before the Princess, smiling at her. He hesitated a moment then spoke again to her, almost too softly to be heard.

"I apologize for not introducing myself, your majesty. My name is Shadowe Flare, and this is my dog Colby. We are very grateful to be here...maybe one day, I'll even be able to serve in the REA for your Highness!" He said, turning when he heard the very familiar voice of Haywire.

"Forgive me, Princess!" He added, bowing again before Colby began to bark at the rust colored filly. He turned and followed the barks, apologizing to the ponies he bumped into on his way to talk to his friend.

"Hiya, Haywire! I can't say it was scary...I just wanted to protect the others. I guess being blind sometimes comes in handy, huh? Oh...you didn't answer when the Changeling thing said she was you...Do you remember how we met?" He asked, hesitating a moment before re-inquiring to the filly. It hadn't left him in the days that followed that either Haywire had forgotten or that maybe there was another duplicate running around. He hoped she just hadn't heard his question that night, but he couldn't be sure of that either.

"I will say this, you sure pick some interesting friends, Haywire! If you weren't friends with Pyro...well, Colby wouldn't have gone into that cave and-from what I hear-he wouldn't have sniffed out the real ponies before he was caught." He added, brightening up again.

​

[Bellosh]

"I saved mine! It was so crucial in our victory I just had to. I wanted to frame it even, but when I suggested it Bonnie gave me that look... Couldn't bring it down here either. All that carpet was sooo heavy. Which is a shame--I bet the princess would have loved to see the Lurking Horror in all its carpety glory!"

“You know,” Derpy chimed in, using her brilliant powers of solution making; “You can always get a picture taken of you in that costume, and send that pic over to the Princess. That’d work, right?” The pegasus couldn’t see what could possibly go wrong with that straightforward idea. At any rate, Miss Hooves was glad that she and Lyra were able to bury the hatchet over the whole destroying Bon Bon's stand thingy. From now on, Derpy promised to herself only to practice aiming lightning bolts in that dried-out portion of the Everfree Forest where nopony lived. Surely no harm could result from blasting dead trees with electricity for target practice?

​

"But yeah, I think the princess will still believe us. She's smart. Ya gotta be to be a princess. She'll recognize true heroes when she sees them! Just you wait and see."

Derpy Hooves didn’t look so sure about Lyra’s optimistic belief. “I don’t know Lyra,” she hesitantly turned towards the unicorn; “Somepony that smart might put us through some sort of test first to prove that we’re telling the truth. That is, unless Princess Celestia’s got some sort of lie detector spell she can use… do you think lie detector spells exist?”

The googly-eyed pegasus was just about to consider the thought of retrieving that changeling she and Lyra captured when something else caught her eye; “Oh; those look like our seats Lyra!” Not too far away from the royal table, Derpy managed to find the table where they’ll be sitting side-by-side for the duration of the Banquet.....

​

[Mojo]

Haywire smiled at the positive things Shadowe said to her.

"Well Shadowe, I think we all dun 'r best in face of all them bad circumstances," the rust colored filly answered. "I'm jist glad it all turned out good. Kinda got scary thar in the end when I was fightin' mahself 'n I got all caught up in that goopy stuff. I did hear tell that some of us ponies that fought them changlings got hurt perty bad. And, don't tell no pony, but I kinda accidentally knocked out one of the Royal Guards with a rock. I swear it weren't mah fault! I didn't know he was real! Hope that guy's alright."

[Dunder]

In the hospital, while recovering from his wounds inflicted while twice over foolishly charging at groups of changelings, is where he received a letter from the crown. An invitation to a party to recognize those who helped fight off the changeling invasion. The stallion couldn't believe what he was reading. His heart picked up the pace as he read it over again, "Nurse!" He called out, "Get me a paper and a pen!" He demanded from his room. After his request was filled, he scribbled down a series of words.

"Dear Princess Celestia,

I am RSP'ing for your pary tonight, I'n sure it will de fun!

Thnks,

-Dunder."

Excited to meet some new ponies and get recognized for good deeds, so excited he left out and mixed up letters.

Dunder burst through the door of his cloud house. His wings were on fire after flying straight up to the clouded city after checking out of the ponyville hospital and seeing the notice of princess Celestia herself. This was his chance to live his colthood dream of being a hero of Equestria! And also a chance to get on good terms with at least one of the princesses. Maybe even Luna had forgotten what he had done at this point.

He certainly wouldn't be able to go looking like he had just been in a drunken brawl. After charging into his house, he pulled back on his white dress shirt and light pink suit from the Gala. After a quick combing of the mane, tail, and coat after a severe case of being bedraggled. Tonight should be fun, hopefully it wasn't going to be a letdown, or something would go wrong. Not again.

He left his house and set off, knowing the precise direction to head to get to Canterlot.

He remembered the way to the castle, the same place as the Gala he presumed and was correct. It felt like the Gala all over again, except he didn't have a date this time, and was certain most of the other ponies were going to be with another. Fortunately, his depression was warded off one he entered the main hall. Everything was beautiful, again, as Canterlot was known to be.

As he sauntered into the room, looking at all the decoration of the room. He lowered his eyes to see Celestia and Blueblood. Curiosity filled him, he wondered if Celestia knew him...and if her nephew was still the same. He trotted over, smiling. He bowed in front of them both, "Hello, my Princess! It's a pleasure to see you!" He said, filled with joy, "Thanks for inviting me." He greeted, speaking as well-mannered as he could. He gave enough time for her to respond and then looked to Blueblood, "And Blueblood! It's good to see you! You know, even if you are a little crass sometimes, I still feel good to see you. I guess that's what happens when ponies travel and fight together." Dunder said with a big smile, referring to the travel to the Unyasi that Dunder, Fire, Muggo', and Blueblood had undertaken to look for some lost heirlooms.

[RarityDash]

“You know, You can always get a picture taken of you in that costume, and send that pic over to the Princess. That’d work, right?”

"Hmmm..." Lyra started at this thought, looking up at an angle as she considered this for a moment. "I suppose that might have helped, but I'm not sure just seeing a picture quite does it justice. You kinda have to see all the carpet, or else it just doesn't have the same impact, you know?"

​

“I don’t know Lyra, Somepony that smart might put us through some sort of test first to prove that we’re telling the truth. That is, unless Princess Celestia’s got some sort of lie detector spell she can use… do you think lie detector spells exist?”

Lyra closed her eyes to think a moment more before giving a conclusive nod. "Huh. Well, I dunno. If there was a spell for that, I don't think those changelings would even have a leg to stand on."

She gave a laugh as her words prompted a notion in her mind. "Speaking of which, ya gotta wonder how they stand on those legs of theirs in the first place. With all those nasty holes in them, you'd think they'd just collapse or something."

​

“Oh; those look like our seats Lyra!”

Lyra followed Derpy's gaze to the pair of seats they had been assigned. She smiled and gave a nod.

"Sweet. Looks like were not too far from the head table either," she said as she took her seat.

​

[Blueblood]

Blueblood hadn't actually address the silver mare- er, stallion in his gratitude, but he accepted anyway, and that was fine. It spared the Prince the effort needed to say it again. It wasn't that he didn't mean it, but he was unaccustomed to having such a high opinion of the Royal Guard. All just praise aside, they had not had very many opportunities to actually show themselves as heroic.

*Hmm, this 'camp' they're talking about... I wonder if there's something in it after all? I'd like not to have to spend another holiday stuck in green goop.* Filing that thought away for later, he turned to address the next guest that came up to the little group. Well, Dunder Blust had an appropriate name, at least; his greetings were about as subtle as an iron bar. The subtle rapiers of wit wielded in the drawing rooms of Canterlot were out of place in his mouth, but Blueblood supposed that was what they called the 'charm' of candor.

"Crass, sir?" He raised an eyebrow at the pegasus. "I take offense to that remark. I may be sometimes rude, but I strive at all times to be elegant." Not that he always succeeded in that, either. "Actually, I was wondering... would you mind very much if I sat with you all?" That would take care of the embarrassment of being at the head table, and sitting with previous acquaintances would be a plausible enough reason.

[tacobob]

thank you. I can't say I saw you there, but from the look of you, both of you, you seem to have had a time of it." It was a rather gracious greeting, all things considered, though the Prince couldn't quite keep a touch of envy from his voice.

"It is good to see you in good health and spirit, Your Grace.", Fire addressed Prince Blueblood, "Swift and I were caught in the drama that unfolded during the costume party.", she kept her voice low for the moment, "I once felt almost sorry for the Changelings in the past. Many of us, myself included are somewhat ignorant of their history, so I gave them the benefit of the doubt. But when I saw them openly attack children during the event, along with those who could not fight back, I could not keep away my ha..", the mare paused to find a better word, "intense dislike of those creatures for much longer. I just hope the rumors that their Queen was captured were true."

Celestia noticed that Fire Walker had entered and gave a bow. She didn't seem interested in greeting the princess directly but interacting with the ponies around her. This didn't bother the princess, after all the banquet wasn't for her, but rather everyone else. Celestia merely bowed her head in return. She would have a chance to interact with everyone that wished to talk to her in good time.

As the Princess continued to make her rounds, the red Pegasus pony politely spoke up before she left the guard's sight, "I do apologize Your Majesty.", she humbly spoke. "I did not mean to brush you off so with a simple bow, it's just that my mind has been filled with such fear and distress since the invasion. I am ever so grateful for ponies and zebra.", she caught sight of the pretty female as she entered the banquet hall, "Who united as one to push back the horde, but I am simply worried about the future and how we will be able to prevent such an invasion in the future. This is something I intend on discussing when I return to base. I also wish to thank you for hosting such a lovely event to honor those who helped lead our people against the Changelings. This will help calm many an pony's nerves and bring hope to their hearts."

Silverheart's ears perked up as he heard a certain friend's voice, "Fire! good to see you're still alive and kicking! ". The stallion offered his hoof in greeting to fire before it finally hit him where he'd heard about Swift squall before, from this very mare,"I thought I'd heard his name somewhere, I think you mentioned him a few times when we trained together. He's more impressive than you let on!"Hopefully Fire would return his hoofshake and regardless of whether she did he would turn back to Swift,"Once again it's a pleasure Sir Squall, I'm Second lieutenant Silverheart, me and fire have worked together a few times and we attended boot-camp together... and instructed a civilian program together."

The mare took the stallion's hoof and gave a proper R.E.A shaking. "We have much to catch up on.", the red mare added, "We'll have to arrange a night to just hang out and talk. There's been more than a few occasions I could have used your diligent and disciplined mindset to overcome an issue..", a sly smile fell on the girl's face, "Or horrible sea monster. With this invasion, I wonder if we will need to set up a new program. One better suited for preventing such an catastrophe from ever happening again.", the mare quickly added, "I also hope your family is doing well. How goes Miss Presteza?"

As others came in and went about their mingling, Fire Walker kept close to Swift Squall. Her ears did perk up as she heard a familiar voice. "Dunders.", she whispered as she caught sight of her old friend. She wanted to say something, but at the moment he was busy being Dunder. She made sure to wave a hoof his way once he was finished.

[Ciraxis]

As REA stallion approached him Squall sighted inside his mind. Any other time he wouldn't mind a chit-chat but he was here to have important talk with Celestia. Still...it seemed that Princess wasn't going anywhere. Maybe it was him who was to cold? Fire reminded his time and time again that he was a little to suspicious and not trusting for his own good. If that was so...then maybe small discussion wouldn't hurt to much. That and his face and movements of this stallion seemed familiar...

"Nice coat... I understand you took on an active role in fighting off the changeling hordes, a very nice job!"

After hearing Sivler words Squall shook his head in deny.

"Taking even a legion means nothing if it wouldn't improve situation at all. I was to cough up in the fighting itself to make a right strategic decision. That isn't how one scores the victory." he said bitterly as he took another sip from the glass.

That Nigh he got one again overwhelmed with rage. And he swore himself back there in Unyasi that he would avoid just this! The fact how little he helped aside from knocking out a small fries was a proof how unwise was to act on negative emotions. No matter how righteous or justified his anger was at the time.

His brooding mood was however broken by the arrival of his sweetheart. When he got close he gave her affectionate nuzzle but his ears dropped when he saw her frown. Oh, the bandages.

"D-don't give me this look Moto. There are still not fully healed. Y-you though I wore them because I want to?" he explained himself. Fire (aside from Squall's Mom) was one of the few ponies who could make Swift nervous on spot.

"Swifty, I see you've met Lieutenant Silverheart.", she smiled as her eyes fell on the officer.

"Undoubtedly I did. And also it seems that you two already acquainted? Of course...REA and all...."

"Once again it's a pleasure Sir Squall, I'm Second lieutenant Silverheart, me and Fire have worked together a few times and we attended boot-camp together... and I believe we will be instructing a civilian program together."

"It's the pleasure as well but please drop the Sir part. I am pony first, swordstallion second...I guess being noble is a distant third." he plead. However the mention of 'civilian' program cough his interest. In the light of recent events, teaching ordinary ponies how to defend themselves - from the changelings for example - would be a wise move. "Program...do you have the funds?" swordstallion asked.

But before he could get an answer another pony came close. NonononoNO! He really didn't wanted this talk right now but it was as unavoidable as cycle of day and night.

Surprisingly through...the greeting that he gave them was complete aversion of the Prince he remember from his childhood. Fire was right...ponies change.

"In the name of Equestria... thank you. I can't say I saw you there, but from the look of you, both of you, you seem to have had a time of it." It was a rather gracious greeting, all things considered, though the Prince couldn't quite keep a touch of envy from his voice.

"I did nothing to deserve such prise. I acted as a mere berserker when my emotions blinded me." unicorn continued to display more self-deprecation before he paused. Did Prince recognized him? Squall assumed he did. Of course it could be because of Fire. She mentioned woring with him so often that Swift could tell the whole adventure, even if it was before he met any of his friends.

"Blueblood.....how much time it was? I heard that year were kind to you. For me....they tough me a valuable lessons. And they gifted me with greatest gift imaginable." he said, while giving the crimson mare at his side the most affectionate look.

And then of course another of his friends showed up!

"Dunders!" Squall smiled upon seeing his best buddy. Was that some kind 'Swift Squall' acquaintances party? He didn't care. It was preferable to attending to one with only complete strangers. Unlike Moto of Blusty, Squall wasn't quick to making new friends.

Of course Dunder have gone straight at them. Noblestallion barley hold the chuckle when he heard brown pegasus 'greeting' to Prince. Dunder was as subtle as battering ram but that only made him all more likable.

"I once felt almost sorry for the Changelings in the past. Many of us, myself included are somewhat ignorant of their history, so I gave them the benefit of the doubt. But when I saw them openly attack children during the event, along with those who could not fight back, I could not keep away my ha..", the mare paused to find a better word, "...intense dislike of those creatures for much longer. I just hope the rumors that their Queen was captured were true."

Swift Squall simply nodded in agreement to this statement. But he also felt need to point out an other thing.

"There was however one...who assisted us. And there are rumor of others defectors. It seems that they...are not innately evil. It's the influence of their Queen...and others that support her that twists each new generation. If we could remove them..." he paused. Now that he spoke that aloud....if Equestria could enlist help from renegade changlings...

But for now it was just an idea. There were questions. He decided to confront Celestia directly.

"But that is not important. Princess......why weren't we prepared? It's the second...no...the third* time the danger from them had to be dealt with. What precautions were taken since their first Invasion? I heard that sisters of two of Elements were captured by Chrysalis once, and now they managed to do so to Elements themselves. There weren't any mistakes in their scheme...the were thwarted by blind luck of you being there. Why these mares don't have any protection?"

Swift Squall asked the Celestia with calm, almost eerie voice.

(OOC: *Squall means the evens from the comics series of course.)