Windwright

You are hereby cordially invited to attend the Royal Equestrian Guards' annual Ball. This year's event will be held in the illustrious Royal Grande hotel in Canterlot. Security will be handled by a private firm, so please remember to have your invitations and identification with you when you arrive at eight hours past noon five nights before the autumnal equinox. Proceeds from this year's Ball will benefit the Equestrian Services Organization in their efforts to improve interdisciplinary cooperation and morale, as well as to fund improvements to the training grounds and academies for the Wonderbolts, the Royal Equestrian Army, and the Twilight, Solar, and Crystal Guards. Please indicate your meal selection and that of any guests who will be attending with you on the enclosed RSVP postcard no later than three weeks before the event. This is a formal event for guards and civilians to mingle and understand one another. Evening dress is strongly recommended. The Royal Grande was one of the largest hotels in Canterlot, and tonight the entire top two floors had been reserved for processing and housing the annual Guard's Ball. On the floor below, attendees were vetted quickly and efficiently by the hired security, then processed through the registration desks by the maîtres d'hôtel who then passed the guests off to hotel staffers, with the entire operation overseen by the Equestrian Services Organization. On the top floor, the orchestra was playing a selection of light melodies on the stage of the Grande Ballroom and several smaller event halls had been arranged with tables for the various branches of the armed services and policing forces.The lighting was warm and mellow as a summer sunset, and speakers in each room conveyed the orchestra's performance or the occasional interlude or speech to all attendees. Periodically the orchestra would bring a full band onto the stage as well to combine for a symphonic version of one of the REA branches' marches or anthem. True to the spirit of the event, no table was populated entirely by any single group, and even the smallest hall contained seats reserved for civilian ticket holders and donors alike. The seating arrangements had all been planned, with little cards at each place setting to let the attendees know which seat at which table in which room their meal would be served, and hotel staff were busily busing attendees to their assigned places. There were quite literally hundreds of guests seated already, and the rooms looked to be set to accommodate even more before the evening was over. In short, the ESO had done everything in its power to make sure tonight was as stress-free as possible for each and every one of its attending servicemembers, a place and a time where they could let their manes down and just enjoy the evening without the distinctions and duties of rank and regiment. At once formal and informal, exquisite and relaxed, tonight was a night to let down walls and build inroads, and to remind the isolated and insular that the armed forces and its members were a unified whole. Tonight was the Royal Equestrian Guards' Ball.

Caught up to everything here so far, and gonna add both of my guards: Name: Aquamarine Gleam Branch and Rank: Private First Class, Grystal Guard Plus One: forfeited, also a donor in absentia And Name: Licorice Whip Branch and Rank: Royal Guard, Sergeant Plus One: Sparkles

I'm gonna put his assumed name in as attending and I'm not gonna stop you from trying, I just don't know if trying to subtly interrogate a group of what are essentially cops and former comrades and commanding officers is the best plan of action here.

Burning Aegis added! I'm not sure 'creepy and a bit off' is a vibe you wanna give off in a room full of soldiers and trained guards, but I have no specific objections as long as you can give a reasonable explanation for how he managed to nab the ID and invite of a sailor without the lieutenant noticing. It is an invite/RSVP only affair, which makes for some interesting Mission Impossible/Oceans Eleven stories for getting in. Might be easier to trick the precinct Chief of the Twilight Guard into giving Drop a ticket of his own.

Not sure how much interest is here, but the Chiyo clan is still looking for members. I swear I don't bite or smell bad, and you get to be a ninja!

You are hereby Cordially invited to attend the Royal Equestrian Guards' annual Ball. This year's event will be held in the illustrious Royal Grande hotel in Canterlot. Security will be handled by a private firm, so please remember to have your invitation and identification with you when you arrive at eight hours past noon three... Proceeds from this year's Ball will benefit the Equestrian Services Organization in their efforts to improve interdisciplinary cooperation and morale, as well as to fund improvements to the training grounds and academies for the Wonderbolts, the Royal Equestrian Army, and the Twilight, Solar, and Crystal Guards. This thread is to plan and execute the above event, a catered ball that's one part fund raising, one part giving guardsponies a time and place to relax. Skeleton crews of volunteers are left in the precincts for the duration of the event, as guards, policeponies, and Wonderbolts from every branch and region are invited, and anypony can secure an invitation for 'a modest donation' or by petitioning the local office of the REA to receive the ticket of a donor in absentia or a plus one forfeited by the owner. Citizens who are wanting to express gratitude for something positive the guard has done for them in the last year tend to get preferential treatment, since the primary function of the function is to boost morale among Equestria's generally thankless silent defenders. Notably, the Princesses are generally not invited by default unless they procure a ticket in a manner any other citizen would (which is generally a trivial matter if there are discretionary funds left) or if they are the +1 for a ticket-holder. This is a party for the guards to relax, not work, so the security and safety of the event is handled by a private group hired by the ESO for the event, as are the catering and entertainment. All of that is IC information though, for this thread just drop in and we can brainstorm why you might be here! Please do RSVP in here though so I can keep the roster below up to date. Catering for the event is open to discussion but will default to plated options (chosen by RSVP) that we're hoofwaving as not really important with cocktails being butlerred around the room. [b]Name[/b]: (profile links would be nice, but not required unless you're seeking a +1 and are not in the REG OOC thread http://www.canterlot.com/topic/21977-royal-equestrian-guard-ooc/) [b]Role[/b]: (Guard, Donor, Citizen, Plus One, ESO staff, Event Staff) (for guards) [b]Branch and Rank[/b]: (if you know them) [b]Plus One[/b]: (name is fine, profile link is better if the other player's owner doesn't want to post on his or her own, unless you want to leave the ticket Open) (for donors) [b]Plus One[/b]: (name is fine, profile link is better if the other player's owner doesn't want to post on his or her own, unless you want to leave the ticket Open or donate in Absentia.) (for citizens) (optional)[b]Donor:[/b] (name of the donor in absentia on whose ticket you're attending.)(This is only if your character would know and it's important for the RP.) (optional)[b]Plus One:[/b] (name is fine, profile link is better if the other player's owner doesn't want to post on his or her own. Make sure if you have a Donor that the Donor is absent!) (for Plus Ones) [b]Attending with[/b]: (name) (for Staff) [b]Job[/b]: (security, catering, entertainment, etc.) [b]Organization[/b]: (security should be from the same firm. Hotel staff should be from Royal Grande. Catering staff can be different if they're catering different courses. Entertainment is probably a band or orchestra name, or solo.) Note that the roster doesn't need to be full, and we can NPC or hoofwave any of the missing roles if they're critical! Guards in attendance: Corporal Applejack - Twilight Guard +Rainbow Dash - Wonderbolt Burning Aegis - Lunar Guard +Private Reckless - Royal Guard Private Aquamarine Gleam - Crystal Guard Captain Fire Walker - Twilight Guard +Swift Squall - Billionaire Playcolt Philanthropist Adventurer Corporal Flash Sentry - Twilight Guard +Presteza - Artist Private Heart Shield - Royal Guard Sergeant Licorice Whip - Royal Guard +Sparkles - Jeweler Commander Shining Armor - Crystal Guard +Mi Amore Cadenza - Princess Lieutenant Still Waters? - Navy Guards seeking a +1 Specialist Midnight Oil - Lunar Guard Donors in attendance: none yet! Donors in absentia: Aquamarine Gleam - On Behalf of the Resplendence family of Canterlot, you are hereby cordially invited to attend... Swift Squall - On Behalf of Swift Squall, you are hereby cordially invited to attend... Staff: none yet!

Honeywing tugged at his braid while reading over the latest Canterlot Gazette he'd had delivered to his room in the I.M.A.G.I.N.E. outpost. Princess Cadenza's column had picked up steam in the syndication deal with it's home paper, and had reached everywhere, essentially. Everypony who was anypony had read at least a few of the articles, and the stallion had picked up the last few just to be able to keep up with gossip. Lately though, he found himself with a quandry that he thought warranted her opinion. A letter sat finished on the desk in his nigh-calligraphical hoofwriting, and he was debating whether or not to send it. It read: Dear Cady, Love is a many-splendored thing, and I've been exceptionally blessed to have a wonderful stallion in my life for the last several years. He's had a recent string of successes lately and recently was able to secure new clients for his fashion boutique. I'd like to see that success push even further to make this a truly memorable year for him by planning a surprise wedding. However I'm worried that he'll either feel left out of the planning of the event, or that I won't be able to coordinate such a thing without topping off that he is one of the participants. Given how much work he already puts in on his business I definitely don't want him doing much of the actual work, if any, but this is directly adjacent to his line of business so I'm concerned he'll find out about it and the careful balancing act will fall down. I love him dearly and want to spend the rest of my life with him, but I don't know if the gesture of taking all the pressure off of his own wedding is worth the risk of disappointment if he finds out before it's ready. Should I start laying the plans (there is a Party Pony Specialist in Ponyville I'm relatively confident can get everything but the outfits done without tipping her hoof), or is it better to be up front and let him in on the process? Sincerely, a silver-tongued suitor

Short and sweet: I'm looking for Clan Chiyo operatives, contracts, contractors, family members, and Kakikara villagers. Main families are Kaze (no relation), Josei, and Chiyo, but others do live in the village. And of course all of this is OOC Council of Elders: Chiyo Hayate - code name Storm, associated with the colour black Chiyo Akane - code name Crimson, associated with the colour red - The two have at least two foals, one of whom (Hitomi) is persona-non-grata in the village. Chiyo Fumiko Josei Mami Kaze Himeko - has at least one foal, married or mated to Kaze Ichiro Elite Shinobi: Kaze Ichiro Unknown Chiyo sibling At least one shinobi capable of bilocation, at least one capable of sending scrolls via Breath magic. Exiled Shinobi: Chiyo Hitomi - Code name Si Jin, contracted to protect a foreign prince. Current contracts: Hitomi is contracted to protect a foreign prince, was originally contracted to protect Ryuichi's prospective fiancée who is now Empress of Long Guo. It's complicated.

Stable Loop predicts a victory!

Mint blinked, caught off guard by the mare's sudden...well he supposed it wasn't really forward considering why they were here. But still, he was usually the one that had to do the starting with that sort of thing! It was a refreshing change, and his eyes were most certainly not green before. The stallion actually blushed a little, and grinned as he stepped to the side, enveloping the bushels of apples with a gentle green glow that pulls them out of the way as well, with an "Oh, for sure!" He quickly writes out the details for the Avalon Inn in Canterlot, including the kitchen's needs for the moment and a price inquiry, and leaves the note folded into quarters and stuck under the corner of the till. "I'll be in Ponyville until later this evening, the Boss isn't expecting me back until tomorrow at the earliest." he says, clipping out a polite and professional bow before retreating with both bushels of apples in tow. *exit Mint*

"Mint Zest!" Replied the unicorn with a big grin. "And two bushels should be fine for me, I like apples, but the train ride isn't all that long." He stacked up two sets of five bits each and slipped them onto the counter with a slight chuckle at his own joke. His eyes (were they always gold?) sparkled with mirth while he pondered out loud "Though a kiss from a pretty mare like you might be worth the extra, I also wouldn't want to deprive the rest of these ponies their chance. So just a bushel of Macintosh, and one split between gold delicious and honeycrisp?"

Mint Zest stepped up to the metaphorical plate, levitating out bits for not only the Avalon's order, but a couple of bushels of his own as well. "Hello ma'am! I was actually here to pick up a bit bigger of an order, but I won't tangle that up with this. I need a lot of cooking apples for the Avalon Inn in Canterlot, but while I'm here, I want to buy a couple of bushels from you for your sale!" The gangly green unicorn brushed his bangs back and nodded, as if that was all that needed to be said on the matter.

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Re: Dragons interbreeding with anything. I can find a few literary sources, some of which predate D&D which has the most notable examples, and the concept crops up a bit in video games, animation, and it's worth mentioning that Rarity doesn't seem to find Spike's crush outlandish, so a pony/dragon relationship is possible. Hybridising is the question at hand though, so I guess it depends on how literally you want to take certain heroic figure's boasts of being descended from dragons.

Was there a concensus reached on Dronies?

Inbox is full >.> I present for your attention PFC Gleam and Upsides to Downtime.

Mint looked over his shoulder at the newcomer. She looked even more out of breath than he did. Unfortunately for the diamond dog he'd been speaking to, his telekinetic skills could still use some polish, as when he turned his head the notepad flew straight at the other's face in an arc as it tried to keep pace. Oblivious, Mint responded to the green mare's inquiry. "Huh? Oh, I hope not, I haven't been here long either. The line's moving though, so I think we're in the clear." he said with a cheery smile before turning back to the diamond dog, the notebook flying back to its previous position.

Hippogriffs, dronies, Kirin, or perytons?

Rolled them into appropriate hidey holes, but I'm at work and may've missed something.

In the interest of forcing myself to stop waffling, Soarin' is now ready.

"Chip actually does a pretty mean ginger apple pie. Most ponies just use cinnamon, but Boss never really lets anyone at the inn get away with what most ponies do as an excuse. Why I'm here today, actually, even though I'm just the host." Mint replied, taking notes furiously with telekinesis while he moved with the line. "Well. Host and maître d'hôtel, after Aliments Chic retired last year." He actually slipped a ledger out of his saddlebags and checked a couple of columns of notes briefly as he spoke, slipping it away almost immediately. "Anyway, it's interesting to see Diamond Dogs around ponies this far from Canterlot, you guys tend to be pretty insular."