[Canterlot Castle] Awards Banquet - Day 2 [Open:See OOC]

[starswirlthebearded]

((OOC: Yes I know the first half of this post is the same as day 1, but I really couldn't think of much variance. I hope everyone has fun))

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.

Two ponies had risked much at great peril and self-sacrifice to help free Celestia from her cocoon prison. And though they did not directly succeed in doing so, they allowed her to find the strength to free herself and stop her captor and send the Changeling forces away once again. These ponies were the young Apple Bloom, who showed the same valour as her costume, a captain of the REA, and Cashmere, whom had dressed as Rarity, and like Rarity fought as hard as he could for Equestria, generously helping and sacrificing himself to protect Apple Bloom. For their actions they were invited as special guests for the second day.

Apple Bloom's letter of invitation read as follows:

To Apple Bloom,

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. Not only did you exemplify your costume as a Captain of the REA, but you also showed exceptional courage and determination in the face of adversity. I thank you for your service to Ponyville, Equestria and myself. You shall be seated at the royal table.

-Princess Celestia

And Cashmere's invitation read as follows:

To Cashmere,

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. You acted selflessly and without thought to your own well being to help a young filly. Your actions have earned you a place of honour at this banquet. Though all of Ponyville will be invited and celebrated, you above all else will be honoured with a place at the royal table.

-Princess Celestia

The preparations from the previous day were still largely in place, so Celestia and the Castle staff didn't have to do as much as the previous day, but it was still important that everything was perfect. Like the previous night she waited with herself at the head of the banquet hall and guards to greet and aid guests.

[Lilia]

Cherry was delighted to be invited to the Nightmare Night Banquet, knowing that she really hadn't done much more than get her pelt dirty in the process of trying to help herd ponies where they belonged. She had been half-tempted to tell the changeling she had talked with that most ponies had loved ones that had passed on, and seeing them could very well feed the hive if they were allowed to work out things like that instead of forcibly taking the love from other ponies.

Grabbing a quill, she wrote up a response.

"Dear Princess Celestia,
I would be most honored to come to the banquet! Thank you, very much, for the invitation!
Your loyal subject,
Cherry Bloom" She wrote, sighing inwardly as she passed the letter back to the mail-delivery pony. It was a short, succinct response, but perhaps the Princess would understand?

​

[SteelEagle]

Getting the letter had been a huge honor in and of itself, even if Apple Bloom had a tough time expressing it. The final blast from the changeling had run her through a gauntlet of injuries that she barely made it through. Her forelegs had alread been broken earlier in the fight, but the blast had only made it worse, shattering her fetlocks into tiny fragments and the locks on her back legs into a clean break. The rest of her leg had been mangled pretty badly as well. She had a jaw torn asunder and suffered burns, though not too deep, across much of her stomach, breast, back, muzzle, and crown of her forehead. various broken ribs and some internal injuries, and she was in a poor position. Luckily, between the real Twilight Sparkle, the guards of the Royal Equestrian Army, and Ponyville's own hospital, she had recovered in large part. Her back legs still hurt a bit but she could use them and she could finally speak normally, even if once again a pain presented itself. Breathing hurt too, but that was passing. The only two big signs of her injury was the fact that she had an entirely different and all too short manecut, and that her front legs were still in a cast. And propped up on a walking device, otherwise how the heck would she get anywhere?

So the Princess' letter was received very well by a filly who could not really respond. She tried to write but her jaw hurt too much and she couldn't use her front hooves for it. Luckily, she was friends with a Princess and was able to borrow both her and her assistant for a few minutes during a visit at the hospital. The letter that was returned to Princess Celestia was on official royal letterhead with the seal of the Elements of Harmony and Princess Twilight Sparkle. It appeared in fire in front of the Princess relatively quickly.

Dear Princess Celestia,

I am happy to attend the event. I'll be there as soon as I can, even if the doctors tell me not to. Thank you so much!

Your Humble Subject,

Apple Bloom

Note- I won't allow her to leave unless the doctors give her the okay.

----------------------------------------

And so the day came and Apple Bloom came, despite the protests of both the doctors and even Twilight Sparkle who had considered using royal rights to keep her in, but had been talked out of it by Applejack. She entered the banquet hall with two guards opening her door, bandages circling her body in various patterns, including most vividly both her forelegs and her midsection. She walked in on her hindquarters, her forelegs propped up on the wheelchair made for them. Her attitude was none the dimmer.

"Hello, Princess! Can't ever say Ah've been 'ere before. Is tha food any good? Gotta be better than Ponyville hospital," She asked, taking her seat gingerly and nuding the device over.

[Blueblood]

The invitation nearly missed Flying Brick, as she had wanted to get back home as soon as possible after the wild events of Nightmare Night. Not that it hadn't been kind of fun, putting her talents to some actual use for once, instead of putting on street acrobatic performances that nopony seemed to have the patience to stop and see anymore, but her family was probably worried about her, especially if they'd gotten any word about what had been happening down south.

She was actually on the train back north when the conductor let her, know, so she had to change trains, and quickly dash off a note to RSVP. Unfortunately, it was very nearly illegible, as the athelete had very little in the way of penmanship:

Dear Princess;

Can't come first day, have to travel far. Will come on second if possible.

-Flying Brick

When she actually pulled into Canterlot station, she bolted out of the train and didn't stop running. If a wall got in her way, she just scrambled right over and ran along the rooftops. She wasn't sure how late she was, and it was just faster to freerun the whole way.

By the time she arrived, of course, she was barely presentable, panting, sweating, and generally tired from the rushing exertion. She took a few moments to steady herself before walking up the stairs, right behind Applebloom. The earth pony mare gave a nod to the guards. "Ha, I made it, yes? Not too late?"

[NeoExlucky]

Time Spinner stared off into space, a book on zebra culture sat to his left, and on his right was his white raven, Nevermore. His gaze was cold, hollow and empty, his insides felt ripped apart, torn from where they once were, and his mind was tired and in pain. Ever since the events that took place on nightmare night, Time had horrible nightmares. He acted so strangely, much different then what he acted like before. Even though he was able to counter the changelings emotion feeding, he still was weak. What he saved in emotions, he wasted in his mind. It hurt him to think, it hurt him to move. Even the comforting warmth of coffee didn't make him feel right. His psyche was almost gone. Sometimes he would wonder if he even survived, if indeed it had passed. This could be an illusion, it could be something that the changeling made up. Maybe none of this was real, maybe he wasn't where he actually was? Maybe he had failed and all of the ponies who he hoped to save had fa-

"CAW!" The crow of the raven had brought Time Spinner back to the present. In his monologue of despair, he didn't notice Nevermore leave to get the mail, and return with a single envelope that held the royal Canterlot seal. He felt somewhat comforted by the seal. He stumble to take the letter with his mouth, his magic was very shaky recently, and tore the letter open.

"Th-thank you Nevermore." He read the letter to himself, and thought for a second. There were bound to be other ponies there, he was sure there would be ponies of honor there. A friend of Time's told him that a zebra had led a group against Queen Chrysalis, she would surely be there. Time Spinner took a quill into his mouth and wrote a reply to Celestia.

Dear Princess Celestia,

As a survivor of the illusions, I will be delighted to attend the festivities you have planned. Thank you for the honor.

Sincerely,

Time Spinner

He sealed the letter and gave it to Nevermore, to send to Celestia. Pondering once more, if he was in an illusion.

[PyroBlaze]

Pyro's parents took the story of his adventure in Ponyville quite well. His mother seemed a bit worried about his well being after the action he was in, especially after blowing himself into the air. After some assurances that he was fine, his mother had backed off. Pyro smiled to himself, it was time to go to this banquet that Celestia was putting on. Pyro had heard about the announcement from one of his friends in Ponyville and had sent his RSVP letter soon afterwards.

"Dear Princess Celestia,

I'd love to come to your banquet, if at all possible. I'll be there on the second day, I'm too busy on the first to make it.

A fellow resident of Canterlot,

Pyro Blaze"

It didn't have to go far, seeing as he lived in Canterlot. He had waited in anticipation through all of the first day, and now it was time for him to go to this thing. Pyro left his house and headed to the castle, wondering who else would show up there. It was never hard to find the castle, especially not for Pyro. He arrived at the castle just behind a familiar looking mare. Pyro thought for a bit before recognizing her from the obstacle course. He walked up next to her before speaking, glancing around at the decorations from behind his sunglasses. "How's it going? Sorry for not freeing you from that goo, but the changelings seemed more important at the time." Pyro said apologetically.

[Pretzelparty]

Presteza's nightmare night had not gone as well as she'd hoped. She was hoping to get a chance to see Princess Luna in the flesh, but even if she didn't she would have been happy having a fun night. She had spent a great deal of the night in her Luna costume and seeing Rainbow dash hosting an obstacle course, surely some adrenaline would keep her spirits high despite not seeing her favorite princess. Sadly it turned out to be a trap, with the ..."help" of a certain fiery unicorn she managed to make her escape and even help out with freeing of Dash by acting as a distraction using what magic she did know to keep as many as they could off of a group led by a mare with a rather thick accent.

She had succeeded in keeping the changelings off until dash was freed but she had exhausted herself in the process of distracting the changeling hordes. She's also gotten quite a few wounds as mementos from this truly nightmarish nightmare night. She had sustained a bite on her upper back leg and plenty of bruises. Having spent her energy in the battle with the changelings the mare basically passed out as soon as the changelings cleared out of the cave. Lucky for her she was able to be get some medical attention and while the bite from the changeling was still feeling a bit sore it was healing well. The announcement post princess was a bright ray of sunshine (no joke intended) in addition to the normal rays of sunshine in the morning in which she learned of it. The chance to see the castle again was not something she was willing to pass up so she RSVP'd as soon as possible.

Presteza stepped off the train and already she was feeling the effects of being all dolled up for a fancy occasion. She had wound up asking her parents back in trottingham to send back the dress she had bought from Rarity for the grand galloping gala to her. Her mane was much more tomcoltish looking from before, a great deal of it had been shorn off by those weird sting spells the drones would shoot off every once in a while so now she had to wear her mane short which left her feeling oddly exposed as her left eye was now visible to all as opposed to her typical "one eye showing" look. She decided she may as well leave her hat back at her temporary place at the inn in ponyville.

The castle was soon in walking distance and she saw two very familiar faces. One was Pyro, the stallion who blew up the cage she was imprisoned in and the other was the very mare who led a group to help free Rainbow dash, Flying brick. She wasn't sure they'd recognize her given the fact her mane was now silvery white as opposed to the dark blue she had died it previously to go along with her also died coat, but it was worth a shot to say hello to them again.

She was about to go into a gallop but she remembered she had the habit of tripping over the hem of her dress, so instead she trotted over and waved her hoof to them both,"Oi! Glad ta see you two came!"

[Mojo]

Pigpen

Pigpen had just made his usual 'garbage collection' run in Ponyville, whistling a happy tune as the shaggy unkempt galloped back to his junkyard. It was then he spotted a letter sticking out of his mailbox. Quickly unhitching himself, he grabbed the letter, opened it and read it. Reading the contents, Pigpen neighed with delight and did a happy 'dance of joy' that bewildered both the loyal flies buzzing around his head and his new pet raccoon, Rascal.

"Guys! I just got a letter from the Princess! She wants me to come to Canterlot for a big banquet to celebrate the defeat of the Changlings! I better get ready, pack some luggage and go to the train station to buy my tickets!"

Hearing this caused Rascal to dance and jump for joy also. Smiling, Pigpen stopped in front of his furry friend.

"Sorry Rascal, I don't think they'd allow you to come with me. Besides that, I have an important job for you. Please guard the junkyard and antique shop while I'm gone. I'm depending on you, my furry pal! Will you do this for me?"

The raccoon smiled, stood on his hind legs and then gave a military style salute to his owner.

"Thanks Rascal, I'll bring you back something from the gift shop in Canterlot, I promise!"

Quickly, the smelly stallion composed a letter and sent it off to the Princess:

Dear Princess Celestia:

I'm writing to inform you of my acceptance of your gracious invitation to attend the banquet! I look forward to meeting you again, and under more peaceful circumstances. Thanks again for your lovely invitation!

Signed, your faithful subject,

Pigpen

P.S. Since my Limburger cheese proved to be a big help during our fight with the Changlings, I will be bringing some as a gift for you and for the rest of the bahquet guests! Just my way of saying thank you for your generousity!

The next day, Pigpen boarded the train going to Canterlot. At first, the Conductor hesitated to allow Pigpen to board, but when he read the invitation from the Princess, the Conductor pony held her nose and allowed Pigpen to enter the train. Fortunately for him (and for everypony else) the passenger car the shaggy unkempt stallion chose to ride in was deserted, except for a sickly looking Earth stallion who was nursing a bad cold. The rest of the ride was uneventful, and after he arrived, Pigpen stopped by the train station gift shop to purchase something for Rascal. The reaction of the other customers and the sales clerk surprised him! As the other customers quickly filed out of the store, the clerk, placing a hoof over his nose, offered to give the unkempt stallion a free pet toy for his raccoon if he'd leave the shop immediately. Smiling at the clerk apparent hospitality, Pigpen graciously accepted the toy and galloped outside and towards the castle with his luggage on his back.

At the front gate, after identifying himself, the Royal Guards took one sniff of the big brown box marked 'Cheese for the Banquet' and took it aside, politely explaining that since this cheese was a gift for the Princess, it had to be 'processed' with all of the other gifts her Highness receives. Buying the guards' excuse completely, Pigpen happily entered the castle. It was at that moment the guards at the gate wondered what smelled worse, the cheese or the pony who brought it?

Soon, Pigpen entered the banquet hall, his loyal flies buzzing around his head as he approached the Princess and politely bowed before her.

"Princess Celestia, it is indeed a pleasure to see you again! I'm sad to report that your royal guards have the cheese I promised to bring you, but I completely understand, security precautions and all. Besides, your majesty, if you would like to keep all of that delicious cheese for yourself, feel free! It's always good to know that I'm not the only fan of Limburger!"

[Blueblood]

Hearing familiar voices behind her, Flying Brick turned around. Upon recognizing the two ponies behind her, her eyes lit up and she felt rejuvenated. The mare bounded over to them, using her two forehooves to bring them both into a strong hug. "Comrades! We are reunited once again! You are doing well, yes? No trauma from the ordeal in mountain?"

It was more than likely that whatever shakiness was in their attitude was more due to the enthusiastic Earth Pony's hug than any lingering fears or doubts, considering who they were. Brick pulled back to take a better look at the firey unicorn. "Hard feelings? There are none! We did what we had to, and it worked! Can't say fairer than that, eh?" And she dug Presteza in the ribs, heedless of any damage she might have done to any careful arrangements of mane or dress.

Hardly waiting for an answer, the re-energized Flying Brick began to pull the two of them over towards the tables. "Come now! Let us find good seat, beside the yellow filly, perhaps?" All of a sudden, she began to cough, practically choking on a very strong scent. "Oh! Smells like my grandfather's cooking. Seek to make us feel at home, yes?"

[PyroBlaze]

Pyro almost turned to look at the familiar voice he heard greeting him, but the other mare stopped him by pulling him and the pony belonging to the voice into a strong hug. Pyro grunted a bit from the force, but made no other noises. He did, however, awkwardly return the hug with a free hoof. His other hoof was trapped between him and the other unicorn in the hug. Pyro looked at the earth pony mare in front of him as she responded to what he had said. Smiling, Pyro responded with, "Guess not. Anyways, it's good to see you're doing fine. No, I don't have any trauma. The most pain I was in was while I was saving Colby, the dog that was trapped in the goo with you, but that didn't last for long afterwards." Pyro chuckled a bit as the mare began dragging him towards the tables, looking for a seat. He stopped laughing as soon as a strong smell hit his nose. Sniffing a couple times revealed the source to be an unkempt pony talking to the princess about some cheese. Pyro shrugged and looked back to the two mares that he recognized. He belatedly realized that he had never learned their names, and he wasn't sure that they had heard his. Pyro decided to learn their names at some point during the banquet, and made his way to the seats the earth mare had suggested next to the filly. Pyro sat across from the filly and looked at her. "Hello, I'm Pyro Blaze. What's your name?" He said to the filly, smiling at her.

[Lilia]

By the time Cherry arrived, she had just missed the introductions of several of the ponies present. She smiled to herself, glad that she not only lived in Canterlot, but had managed to not be overly late as she had to fly very, very carefully to avoid making a mess of herself. She approached the throne, kneeling before the Princess.

"Your Majesty...it is a pleasure to meet you!" She stated, rising slowly. She kept her eyes dropped low as she turned away, trying her best to keep herself blended in with the ponies present. She glanced around, trying to see if being a wall-flower would be a good idea. It wasn't. There looked to be a trio that knew each other, and she sighed inwardly. No, no interrupting that group. A smell wafted to her and she began to gag, eyeing the stallion with flies over his head. Had he never heard of a bath? She stood stock-still, closing her eyes in thought. Perhaps somepony else would speak to her instead, she certainly didn't feel the desire to initiate conversation. Her wings fluttered softly as she repositioned them, the only sound intruding on her reflection that of the guard ponies' mail clanking as they moved about.

​

[Bellosh]

“...So you’ve never met Princess Celestia before, right Pocket? She’s like, the coolest pony of all time! Ohhhh, I can’t wait to introduce you to the boss!!!”

Only a few days ago, Moondancer heard from her appetizing-as-hay coltfriend Pocket Change that Celestia planned to host an awards banquet as a celebration of the latest victory over the changelings. Back on Nightmare Night, both Moony and Pocket worked together to defeat a group of icky things that took over the Ponyville bakery. Despite having to recover from a strenuous evening of providing third-rate illusions beforehoof, the young mare in the end summoned the magic she needed to in order to do her part to help everybody else.

To make up for her lack of attendance at the Grand Galloping Gala earlier in the year, Moondancer decided to look extra special for this occasion. Digging through her dorm-room closet, the young mare dug up her trusty ole’ dress; a simple turquoise dress she purchased from a thrift store about a year ago. Fortunately, Moony’s fancy crimson horseshoes and pearly-white pearl necklace hadn’t been lost to the mess of her dorm room either. Oh, she gave Pocket Change prior warning that she’d be dressing up, just to make sure he got enough time to find an outfit of his own if he desired.

Moondancer was still chatting it up with Pocket Change as they entered the banquet hall, expressing her desire for her coltfriend to meet her boss at the Gifted Unicorn School. Celestia was rather easy to find; with Pocket at her side, Moony waited until Celestia finished greeting another banquet attendee before moving in. “Hiya boss!” the moon-flanked mare casually greeted the hostess of the event, not bowing as customary; “Whew, it looks like we made it here on time. Anywho, I just wanted you to uhhh... meet my super-special friend Pocket Change before we all sat down.” Just because Moony and Pocket were dating now didn't mean the girl would ever stop introducing Pocket to others as a friend; why date someone if they were going to stop being your friend?

To make sure her stallion companion greeted the Princess, Moondancer elbowed her partner and gently whispered; “Say something, Pocket.....”

[QuickLime]

Cashmere had RSVP'D right away as was polite and proper, rather looking forward to the banquet! His mane was singed but neatly smoothed back, and he had bandages around his middle, which was hidden by the deep purple suit he wore, with a cream cravate, that had a shining purple gem in the center, monocle left at home...He walked in carefully with a slight limp due to having damaged his leg during the fight...his eye was bruised and his jaw was sore, but he was in good spirits!

When he walked in, he instantly spotted AppleBloom, beaming as he trotted over, only to see some white pony with a flame design in his quite obviously marked seat, He frowned at Pyro gently but firmly "Sir you are in the wrong seat, this is mine, this is the head table, you should go sit at one of the other tables" Cashmere stated firmly, waiting for the other male to move, smiling at AppleBloom "Hello Captain it's good to see you..."

[PyroBlaze]

Pyro watched more ponies arrive to the event, most of them looking worse off than he felt. He still had some lingering pain, mostly from his explosion and various small wounds that he hadn't even noticed until he had arrived at his house. He watched some of the guests going to greet Celestia, and wondered if he should do the same, since he goes to her school and all. Pyro shrugged to himself and figured he could do it later. He turned at the sound of a voice near him and saw a stallion looking at him. "Your spot? Just... Whatever, I'll move." Pyro said, getting up from the table and moving off without another word. He normally would have stayed, but he didn't want to start a fight in front of Celestia. He didn't want to risk getting kicked out of school because of a seat at a table, so he left. Pyro growled to himself, venting out his anger caused by the stallion, as he went back to the two mares from the obstacle course. "Apparently that's the 'head table', we're not allowed to sit there. Let's go sit over there instead." Pyro said to the two, still a little angry about the stallion. He went over to an empty table and sat down, waiting for the two mares, or anypony else for that matter, to sit with him. He gave a wave and a nod to the princess as he sat there waiting. He might do a more substantial greeting later, but he really wasn't in the mood right then for greeting princesses.

[NeoExlucky]

Time Spinner had entered the banquet hall, stumbling over his hooves. He always kept watching his back ever since the..'incident' or that's at least what he called it now. He looked around the room and gave a bit of a sigh, he recognized some of these ponies by stories given from Gadget, but only one, he believed, though she wasn't, seemed to be from the same situation he had been in. Time Spinner would have gone to that pony but he stopped himself. What if she blamed him for the incident? What if Time was the one who could have stopped the oh so vivid illusions that plagued the historian at night with whispers of a bitter end that would come slow and painful for the dreamer. He told himself they were just dreams, the remaining aftershocks from his fight, but they felt oh so real. He would do better, he thought, in the company of Princess Celestia. At least she could protect him. There wasn't a thing in all of Equestria that could be more powerful than her...right?

Time Spinner turned and saw a stallion who resembled a fire. There was another pony who seemed to have a think accent in her dialogue. These two resembled ponies in a story which his inventing brother had told him. Perhaps he would join their company, there was nothing he could do to aid them. They couldn't possibly have told him that he could have saved them. He looked around, and didn't recognize any of the other ponies, yes he would join them. He made his way to the two mare and one stallion group, though he not before he bowed to Princess Celestia.

"H-hello p-princess." He stuttered. "I-I-It's an honor to be here..." He retracted himself from her presence and quickly scurried over to Flying Brick's group. He looked from Flying Brick to Pyro, and back. "Hello...my name is Time Spinner. You two wouldn't happen to be Pyro and Flying Brick, would you?"

[Pretzelparty]

Presteza smiled at the overeager mare from Stalliongrad,"Y'know I don' think we ever intraduced ourselves proper, I'm Presteza. Oh and besides a bite on my hind-leg and a few bruises I came out of it... decently." she said in a slightly strained voice as she felt herself being quite thoroughly squeezed by her new friend,"Blimey, she's a strong one!" she thought with a slight giggle escaping from her.

Eventually her happy demeanor was dropped when she felt her nostrils being assaulted by a horrifying pungent stench,"Oh by the Princesses! Wot in Equestria is that smell?" she asked as her muzzle scrunched up, she had a pretty sharp sense of smell so this stench almost hurt,"uh... think we should take our seats miss....?" she said trailing off as she watched Pyro go ahead and take a seat... only to be reprimanded by somepony which if anything gave her a good laugh... she was still a bit angry at him for rather recklessly blowing up the door to their cage.

[TheHybrid]

Rusty placed a glass case over his stuff-launcher from NMN, smiling at it "Heh... probably my proudest invention yet..." he chuckled, exiting the room, attempting to return to his workshop in the basement of his house. However, he was rudely interrupted as a slip of paper passed under the crack of his front door, and a sound of some hoof steps trotting away. He raised a brow, "Huh? what could that be?" he trotted over to the paper and read it, a frown forming on his face "'Award banquet?' Sounds kinda borin'... then again..." he looked around for a moment, "Well... Ah got nothin' better to do... other then tinker with my contraptions... which is what Ah do everyday... might as well go Ah 'spose." he trotted into his office, and pulled out a piece of dried and tattered patchment. He began writing:

"Dear Princess Celestia

I'm absolutely thrilled that I've been invited to this banquet! I will be there! Thank you!

Your loyal subject,

Rusty Contraption"

He grimmaced as he wrote the words, feeling as if they were all a lie... which they pretty much were...

When the time came for the banquet, he didn't even bother dressing himself up. He didn't really see any point in it, he'd be Rusty Contraption even if he were wearing fancy clothes, or at least thats how he viewed it. Well, he wasn't going to bother, until his friend Scrap convinced him to dress up, nd gave him a suit to use. Rusty gave in to the request, dressed up in a rather expensive looking suit, and took a train to canterlot...

((Sorry for the time skips, it's hard typing on a tablet))

... He was now at the banquet hall, entering it after the guards let him pass. He took off his tattered top hat for a moment, smoothing back his already smoother back hair, which was done by his friend, Scrap ((Scrap isn't with him atm, just clarifying)) then put it back on, grimacing "Whoa boy... it's a whole buncha... fancy in here... heh..."

[Blueblood]

The Stalliongrad mare had kept a hold of Presteza even as Pyro had gone out to scout some seats for the trio. Flying Brick was feeling sociable, and in her home town, sociable ponies of her class didn't care much about such things as 'personal space.' "Am very pleased to know you, Presteza! It sound like name from hometown; odd thing is, my name doesn't! But such is life. Good to hear you not too hurt, only got bruises myself." Indoor voice; that was another unknown concept among her people.

Brick was, if anything, in far too boisterous a mood for the occasion. Certainly, she wasn't one to feel embarrassed over proper seating arrangements. So, when Pyro was turned away, she wasn't in any mood to just let it go. "So, that is table for big heroes? Then we shall give them big thank you!" She marched right up to Cashmere, absent-mindedly dragging her companion with her, letting go only to pump the stallion hoof, shaking him like a rattle. "Is good to see you, and many thanks for rescuing town. So what is it you do? We rescue the rainbow-maned blue pegasus! Good mare, knew her from Iron pony."

And there was the little filly, too! Flying Brick beamed at her. "And of course, you need no introduction, hero of the night! You keep it up, maybe get hero cutie mark, yes?"

Brick may not have been one of the big heroes, but it seemed that more ponies here knew her more than anypony else, so that was quite gratifying! She didn't recognize the newest one, a rather sleep-deprived looking stallion. "That we are, and you?"

[NeoExlucky]

Time Spinner looked around once more, due to his paranoia. He was so focused on keeping vigilant that he didn't even notice the putrid stench that was in the room. "Well, you don't...exactly know me. M-my brother's name is G-Gadget. He's told me about you two." He turned to Flying Brick. "You were practically the leader of the group in the caves...or so I'm told. Gadget said that y-you came up with the plan that eventually led to Fr-fr-fr...to your escape." He stuttered worse than before. He thought he saw somepony coming up on his left but it was just the shadow of a table. He then turned to Pyro. "And your the fire starter. W-well that's the words Gadget used, not what I would say. Oh, Gadget said you were dire to keeping the group safe with your magic. I...want to thank you for keeping my brother free."

[QuickLime]

Cashmere quickly yanked his INJURED hoof away from the pony that stomped up there and borderline demanded to know what he had done to save the town, The injured stallion was in no mood to deal with this "Please don't try to touch me, I'm quite obviously injured,and I don't need them made worse" Cashmere said as he moved to sit by Apple Bloom, not explaining why he was at the head table, in fact he didn't quite know, he hadn't done anything amazing...

He did remember feeling Celestia's magic around him and her helping him to the hospital...he was so glad she had gotten away, and he turned to glance at the Princess with a look of adoration, like a look one has for a hero.. "Thank you Celestia..for inviting me here.."

[RarityDash]

This years Nightmare Night would be a day the young REA guardsmare Radiant Steel would not soon forget. It was to just be an ordinary day spent in Canterlot wishing she had more of a social life to exhaust on such days. That was, until she had been called upon for a special mission. She was given the daunting task of protecting the daunting Colonel Pummel as he flew a chariot to Ponyville to deliver news of a possible invasion to the princess who was off enjoying the celebration there. It was once they reached Ponyville that this "possible" invasion was revealed to be more than just a sketchy lead. The invasion was already underway, the town was under siege and before they knew it their chariot had been downed by changeling blasts.

The colonel had been injured in the blast, and was thus unable to escape the crash. The pegasus pilots likewise could not escape and were left unconscious and at the mercy of the changeling invaders. Only Radiant had broken free and managed to avoid most injuries, which meant the task of securing the colonel and her other comrades rode on her shoulders alone. She had rushed back to the wreckage to rescue the colonel, knocking out a changeling intent on cocooning the officer in the process. Under his orders, she then went after her other comrades, knocking out a changeling scout in the process. When she found the group that had captured the others, she launched her attack. Though there were four of them, she proved successful with the help of some well thrown rocks from the injured colonel. Despite at one moment making the perhaps rash call to prioritize the colonel's safety over her own, soon the changeling party had been dealt with, just as others in the REA began to arrive to deal with the threat.

To complete such an important mission would have been reward enough on its own, but in the end the most unexpected part of the day was what had happened at the end of it. For her bravery in the face of the difficult situation, the colonel saw fit to promote her in the field. Not months after making private first class, Radiant was now a corporal and after practically an entire year spent as a frequently written up private working a meaningless night guard shift. It was hard to adjust to and made Radiant wonder if her luck hadn't finally changed. Maybe she'd be a sergeant this time next year? Perhaps she'd even soon get recommended to follow in the hoofsteps of both her father and brother and be trained as an officer. She had no way of knowing, but suddenly her world which had seemed to be sitting perfectly still was hurdling ahead at a downright breakneck pace.

To make things even better, Radaint was poised to do something now that she had dreamed of since she was a very young foal. She had been invited as a representative of the REA to attend a banquet in honor of the heroes of Ponyville. Here she would be meeting Princess Celestia herself,. the mare Radiant had long respected and idolized above all others. Considering this, she had gone out of her way to look her best. She was dressed in a formal REA uniform as opposed to her armor. Her long red mane was swept back neatly and tied. Around her neck was the medal of valor the colonel had given to her days prior.

She caught sight of the princess almost immediately upon entering the banquet hall. She had only ever seen the princess from a distance, but today she was allowed to get close. She took a deep breath as she drew near. Celestia was even more impossibly beautiful up close than she had imagined. it was hard to keep from locking up in her presence, but still Radiant forced herself closer until she was before the head table.

"P-p-princess Celestia..." she all but swooned. "It is my absolute honor to finally meet you!" she started stiffly, her face going red.

"I don't even know what to say..." she mouthed breathlessly as she bowed her head low. "I'm sure you hear such things every day, but I've truly looked up to you my entire life. It's been the greatest of honors simply to be able to act in service of you for Equestria."

​

[SteelEagle]

The banquet hall was filling up faster than the line at cider season, Ponyville residents and those who had fought the changelings starting to enter and take their seats. Some seemed more there than others but in the end it was just nice to see that nopony had quite the amount of injuries that Apple Bloom did. They hurt a whole heck of a lot and it was nice knowing that nopony else was going through it. Apple Bloom mostly craned as far as her bandaged neck would allow to get a sip of the drink on the table in front of her, a nice hearty juice, when somepony approached. It was a unicorn colt with red eyes, who prompy sat at the honored table. Apple Bloom was a little confused- wasn't this table for the honored guests? Still, the pony seemed nice enough so Apple Bloom smiled as she responded to the question.

"Hello Pyro! Mah name's Apple Bloom. Nice to meetcha-" Apple Bloom started before Cashmere, her comrade in rescuing Celestia with whom she had a budding friendship, arrived and showed that he was none too pleased. She'd been right, the table was for the honored guests of the evening. Cashmere wasn't the happiest camper and asked the pony to leavem who did so begrudgingly. Apple Bloom shrugged. Maybe Cashmere had been a bit too offended and aggressive but heck, rules were rules. Still, Apple Bloom shot a wide smile at the unicorn as he left against his better desires. She couldn't be mad, especially with all sorts of delicious food and drink aromas coming from all angles it seemed. The food, it was a comin'.

Also, a rather boisterous pegasus came up, another pony in tow from the direction that Pyro had settled. He immediately shook Cashmere's injured hoof and asked what they had done- she'd read enough books from other lands to have some knowledge of weird syntax. Cashmere was having none of it and gave the stallion a cold shoulder, which was probably one of the first times a pony like Cashmere had given a stallion a cold anything.

"Ah wish Ah had a rescuin' Celestia cutie mark! Then Ah could be as old as Granny Smith and have proof that it happened. But naw mah grandfoals won't believe any of it, I'm sure. As for what Cashmere did- well, Cashmere here took me right upta Celestia cocoon, and took a big energy blast from that changeling leader right 'fore Celestia got out. My hero, yeah" Apple Bloom said kindly, hoping that it would defuse the tension. She couldn't just get up and change seats, that'd take too long. Might as well try to make everypony happy. With that solved, she turned her attention to Cashmere. He didn't seem to have taken near the amount of damage she had, which was less than heartening: How brittle was she that even the pony who took the brunt of the blast for her was walkin and talkin' with less difficulty.

"Ah'm doing alright, Cash. They said it should still take a while for my forelegs to get back ta workin' condition but the rest of me is doing swell! Well, relatively, Ah mean," She laughed, looking over him, "new manecut or just a bit of leftovers?" Apple Bloom smiled, aware her mane was a mess as well. Then a member of the REA, a corporal if Apple Bloom saw her rank correctly and understood her dress uniform, aproached Celestia. The cute mare was completely in awe of the Princess, which seemed sorta odd considering who she was but who was Apple Bloom to judge?

"Wow, yer a big fan of tha Princess Ah take it? Can't blame ya thar. Mah name's Apple Bloom, nice to meectha!" Apple Bloom offered with a head nod, unable to move the wheelchair over to wave.

[tacobob]

After managing to survive the Changeling's attack of Ponyville during this year's 'Nightmare Night', Pocket Change was a very busy pony! He stayed in the formally sleepy little village during the next few days doing his best to aid both the locals and visitors who had run afoul of the dreaded scaly monsters. Like many before him, he noticed the assortment of announcements placed throughout the city and decided to go. With luck, both he and his very special some-pony, Moondancer would be able to attend the banquet together. The unicorn quickly wrote up a proper RSVP response, hoping to get the time back to him before it was to late!

It wasn't that much longer until he was actually at the event, standing next to his beloved Moondancer. The unicorn was dressed in a proper black dress jacket, white undershirt and matching black tie. While as handsome as a horse could be, he might as well have been a stinky vagrant when compared to the very gorgeous pony standing at his side. The white coated mare had made sure the stallion was 'dressed to the T' for the event, so after spending hours in his closet, the archaeologist-in-training found the proper clothing, which he then spent the next hour trying to figure out when he had wore it last. Was it his sister, Docket's last work-party? Or maybe it was his Great Uncle Hocutt's funeral? He glanced down at his hooves for a moment as he shuffled about in his rather stiff evening wear. Hearing the mare speak his name, the unicorn glanced up.

“...So you’ve never met Princess Celestia before, right Pocket? She’s like, the coolest pony of all time! Ohhhh, I can’t wait to introduce you to the boss!!!”

"I've never met the Princess directly. I've seen her at formal events, speeches, the 'Summer Sun Celebration', among others.", Pocket Change whispered, "Wait.", he wasn't sure how to respond to her last few words, "You mean actually meet her, as in 'meet meet'? Like she will be here.", he pointed towards the currently unoccupied space in front of him, "And I'll be here?", being a rather silly pony, the stallion pointed directly at himself. "Oh my.", he gasped. Being the type of unicorn that he was, Pocket Change was easily distracted. While most of his eyes were centered on the moon-flanked beauty that stood before him, he noticed the little filly known to him as 'Apple Bloom' and she was in a wheelchair! "Oh sweet Celestia, look at that.", he continued to whisper to the mare as he nodded towards the small apple-pony, "I saw that kid at a little event I attended back in Ponyville. She's one of Princess Celestia's Champion's sisters.", he wasn't sure if that sounded right, but he continued, "And she's in that chair. Poor kid.". His heart felt like it sunk down into the deep areas of his knees. He also couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that beyond Moon, and Apple Bloom, he did not recognize any of the guests at the event. He was hoping to see some of the very brave griffons that had fought at his side during the whole fiasco, or even Snickerdoodle, who he was surprised to have later found out had been in the same building as he and Moon were in during the attack. She had tried her best to rescue a pair of foals who turned out to be Changelings. He hoped his cookie-making friend would be here. He also hoped she would bring her cookies.

As he was feeling ever-so-terrible about the filly, he had failed to notice Moondancer's boss for a just a moment. When he did, the stallion glanced up at the princess and promptly fell to his knees, "Your Majesty.", he uttered as he bowed. "I thank thee for this event.", he continued to bow as he spoke.

[PyroBlaze]

(I know this is a small detail, but you can't see Pyro's eyes, SteelEagle. As per usual for him, he's wearing sunglasses that hide his eyes.)

Pyro followed the earth mare back over to the head table where Apple Bloom was. He stayed back a bit and watched the earth mare talk to the two at the table. Pyro's anger at the stallion had faded almost completely by this point, but it was still enough for him to glare sidelong at the fellow unicorn stallion. Pyro's anger threatened to flare up again when the stallion yanked himself out of the earth mare's grasp. Pyro became lost in thought, his anger seeping into most of them. 'Rude, he's probably one of those rich, pompous types that are stereotypical of this city. Just cause you're rich doesn't mean you can be rude, especially to my friends.' Pyro thought, completely missing the approach of the sleep deprived stallion. Pyro came back to reality as the stallion spoke to him and the earth stallion. Pyro only nodded in response to the stallion's question as Flying Brick responded vocally. Pyro looked Time over as he spoke about what Flying had done in the cave. Most of Time's injuries seemed to not be physical ones. He looked Time in the eyes as he started to speak about him, thanking him for helping Gadget. Pyro smiled before responding with, "It's what I do, protecting my friends and allies. Not like I did it on my own though, everypony did their part. I doubt I could've kept them off of us alone, at least not for long I couldn't." Pyro pondered for a moment about who Gadget had been, but he soon remembered him as the superhero stallion.

[starswirlthebearded]

The first guest to arrive was one of the guests Celestia was most looking forward to seeing. It was the young filly 'Captain' Apple Bloom who, though injured tried her best to free Celestia from her cocoon prison. And though she was unsuccessful, it was her and Cashmere's sacrifice that allowed Celestia to find the strength to break free herself and end the onslaught. The odd thing though is that Apple Bloom didn't look quite up to being out of the hospital and there was a PS from Princess Twilight about not letting her go unless the doctors OKed it.

"Hello, Princess! Can't ever say Ah've been 'ere before. Is tha food any good? Gotta be better than Ponyville hospital,"

"Greetings 'Captain' Apple Bloom" Celestia said with a smile. "I'm so glad you were able to make it." Celestia continued, though slightly suspicious especially considering Princess Twilight's note. "You seem to be doing better than you look if your doctors saw fit to allow you to come." The young filly was still clearly battered, but clearly was capable of making the trip herself. "I do hope you will enjoy youself Apple Bloom. And though I'm sure the hospital food is delicious, I have a feeling you will enjoy the banquet food more." Celestia said while giving the filly a wink and a smile.

"Princess Celestia, it is indeed a pleasure to see you again! I'm sad to report that your royal guards have the cheese I promised to bring you, but I completely understand, security precautions and all. Besides, your majesty, if you would like to keep all of that delicious cheese for yourself, feel free! It's always good to know that I'm not the only fan of Limburger!"

Pigpen was the next guest to introduce themselves. The unkempt stallion had promised to bring some cheese which the guards thankfully confiscated at the front door. "Hello Pigpen, thank you so much for coming today." Celestia gave a bit of a forced smile. The stallion's pungent odor was not something to be taken lightly. "There will be some cheese served at the banquet, it may not be Limburger, but I'm sure it will be just as delicious." Celestia explained to the stallion. "Please enjoy yourself at the banquet." Celestia smiled as she went to greet the next guest who young mare giving a rather proper bow to the princess, going so far as to kneel.

"Your Majesty...it is a pleasure to meet you!"

"It is a pleasure to meet you as well Miss..." Celestia trailed off not really sure what to call the mare. Some pony's names were rather obvious but she wasn't sure about this one. "I hope you enjoy yourself at the banquet." Celestia gave a warm smile as she noticed that Pigpen's odor was making the mare a bit uncomfortable. This made Celestia feel slightly bad for the stallion as she feared not as many ponies would engage him despite being a rather nice pony, just with questionable hygiene habits.

“Hiya boss!” the moon-flanked mare casually greeted the hostess of the event, not bowing as customary; “Whew, it looks like we made it here on time. Anywho, I just wanted you to uhhh... meet my super-special friend Pocket Change before we all sat down.”

"Your Majesty.", he uttered as he bowed. "I thank thee for this event.

Celestia was met with a very familiar and energetic face, Moondancer, along with her friend. "It is a pleasure to see you as always Moondancer. You always bring such energy and life to parties" Celestia said with a grin as Moondancer introduced whom she could only assume to be her coltfriend. "Greetings Pocket Change. Moondancer has told me much about you. It is a pleasure to finally meet you." Celestia greeted the stallion. "I hope you both enjoy yourselves, though I hardly suspect that will be an issue with you Moondancer." Celestia said playfully with a smirk and a wink.

Celestia noticed that one of her honoured guests, Cashmere requested that another pony move from the head table. She was going to send a guard over but he seemed to leave just fine if a bit miffed from the situation. Hopefully he would understand that once the formalities were over ponies would be free to move about, but eating and the festivities needed the prearranged seat placements.

"H-hello p-princess." He stuttered. "I-I-It's an honor to be here..."

The next pony to introduce themselves was a stallion. At this point Celestia wondered if her subjects considered her clairvoyant as nopony was stating their name when introducing themselves to her. It didn't really matter though. "Thank you so much for coming." Celestia greeted the grey coated pony. "I hope you enjoy yourself at the banquet."

"Oh by the Princesses! Wot in Equestria is that smell?"

Presteza seemingly skipped all formalities with the princess and inquired to the repugnent smell that was currently in the air that would hopefully dissipate soon. "I do believe that is the stallion Pigpen's unique odor." Celestia answered the mare's question.

"Thank you Celestia..for inviting me here.."

Cashmere finally greeted the princess after having a bit of a tiff with a young stallion. "I'm so glad you accepted my invitation and were able to make it today Cashmere." Celestia said excitedly. Now her two guests of honour for the day were here. "It would not be the same without the pony who sacrificed his well being for a filly and ultimately helped me escape my imprisonment." Though he hadn't directly done anything, had it not been for his and Apple Bloom's sacrifice, Celestia may have never escaped and been able to expel the changeling forces from their vicinity. "I hope you enjoy yourself." Celestia said warmly, as she glanced over at the ponies who were giving him a hard time. She wasn't going to say anything, however she hoped they realized that she personally invited Cashmere for a reason, and unlike most ponies there, the two guests were in much worse shape than any other pony. They had both been through much. Honouring them by inviting them to sit with her was the least Celestia could do. They weren't Equestria's heros, they were, in Celetsia's eyes, her heroes, at least for that night.

"P-p-princess Celestia..." she all but swooned. "It is my absolute honor to finally meet you!" she started stiffly, her face going red.

"I don't even know what to say..." she mouthed breathlessly as she bowed her head low. "I'm sure you hear such things every day, but I've truly looked up to you my entire life. It's been the greatest of honors simply to be able to act in service of you for Equestria."

Celestia looked at the REA Guardsmare and let out a light chuckle at her nervousness. "Ah, you must be Radiant Steel. Col. Pummel has spoken highly of you. He notified me of your great deeds and felt it necessary to present you with the medal of valour. And if even half of what he said was true, that medal doesn't do your deeds justice." Celestia praised the obviously nervous guardsmare. Though she also did it partly to have fun, knowing that her praise would likely fluster her even more. "The honour is mine to have such hard working and loyal mares and stallions protecting Equestria. I hope you will enjoy the banquet, and I look forward to talking to you some more."

Celestia was due to reveal the painted glass for the second time to the banquet guests. But that could wait for until after the banquet was well underway and at least everypony had ordered or started eating their food.