Canterlot [Canterlot Castle] Fantastic Field Trip for Foals!

[Slazer]

Memory Lane wiped the sweat from his brow as he and Fancy Pants, his fellow chaperone, walked towards the imposing front gates of Equestria's seat of royal power and prestige: Canterlot Castle, home of the Royal Sisters and the Element of Magic. Behind them, The massive structure, erected from fine white marble and stained glass, stood as an eternal testimony to the peaceful unity and plenty that Equestrians enjoyed- and to the ponies who led them to such a golden age. This castle, beyond its symbolic significance, was also one of the greatest examples of Equestrian architecture still standing today, and a full tour of the magnificent palace was etched upon everypony's bucket list.

And here he was: a lowly Prefect walking side-by-side with one of the most well-known socialites in all of Canterlot with a crowd of school-fillies and colts in tow, marching into the front yard of three of Equestria's rulers. The last time the REA allowed a tour as in-depth as what they had managed to arrange, it had ended with the three fillies getting into a scuffle, a multitude of fines, and the near-loss of Equestria to the Spirit of Chaos. Suffice it to say, Lane was not sweating simply because of the time of day.

By all Equestria, let this go well!

OOC Thread here

[PyroBlaze]

Pyro walked along with the group as they approached the castle. He saw it every day, pretty much, but that was just from the outside. Now he was going to see the inside of the castle, and he was quite excited about it. This looked like it would be fun, and, since he wanted to join the guard after he got out of school, this seemed like a good experience for him.

The castle looked as impressive as ever, just like every other day he had seen it. It was hard not to see the castle when you lived in Canterlot, especially when you attended Celestia's school. Regardless, the castle always looked amazing. He smiled to himself when he noticed the discomfort of one of the chaperones. He seemed worried about something, but Pyro had no idea what.

Pyro adjusted his sunglasses slightly, wondering what it was like in the castle, and feeling anxious to find out. He just hoped this trip would go off without a hitch. He didn't want there to be any trouble, since, as he had heard, Discord had been released during the last tour like this one. He supposed he could help keep the others in line if need be, though he really didn't want it to come to that. He just wanted to enjoy this tour of the castle.

[ShadowWalking18]

Glimmer was hopping up and down as she walked toward the tour meeting ground. Razor, her older brother with her till she got there.

"I get to see the inside of the castle!" She cheered as she hugged her brother once more.

Razor msiled and hugged her back, "Yeah. Sorry I can't come along, but work and all."

GLimmer giggled, "Oh its okay. I know you wouldn't be able to deal with a tour anyway. You aren't patient enough."

Razor chuckled, "Yeah that's-hey! Are you saying I'm impatient?" He looked at his sister with a glare.

Glimmer just giggled and walked along, acting all innocent. Razor just rolled his eyes and followed after her.

Despite his calm outside, he wasn't exactly feeling comfortable leaving Glimmer alone with ponies he didn't know. But she was old enough....besides if he got done with work fast enough he could speed back fast and shadow the tour just to make sure everything went okay for his little sister.

"There it is!" Glimmer cheered as she ran to join Memory Lane and others.

Glimmer hopped over and gave a big smile, "Hi everypony! I'm Glimmer!" She waved as she greeted everyone with excitement.

'I think she spent too much time with Pinkie.' Razor thought, but maybe that was just him.

Razor walked over to Memory and looked him over.

"I take it you are the chaperone on this tour?" Razor said, his obvious shortness apparent. Standing a head shorter then a full grown griffon, and even a pony.

"My name is Razor, and I will be leaving my sister with you on this tour. I trust you will make sure she is kept safe. Actually...I expect you to make sure she is kept safe."

Razor leaned in towards Memory, a predator glare in his eyes as he showed the stallion his sharp talons and whispered in a menacing voice.

"Because if anything happens to her at anytime, you will be in for a very angry griffon!" He finished his threat with a snarl.

[tacobob]

Wind Walker waited patiently in the group of other fillies and colts as the tour-guide slowly lead his group towards the always impressive gates of Canterlot's most famous building, the castle. While she wanted to ask her guide why he was wearing a little cup on his head, it would have broken a few of the rules her elder sister had laid out to her before dropping her off at the group, and one of them was not the be 'rude'. While both of them had conflicting opinions on what was rude and what was not, Fire Walker had asked her if she saw any ponies that dressed 'odd' to keep it to herself. But was he dressing odd, or did somepony toss a cup at the stallion in hopes of it landing on his horn? Or did he crash into a coffee-trolley on his way to the castle? Or even worse, maybe it was an evil mutant cup that hopped on this poor and unsuspecting stallion and was currently controlling his body? She was pretty sure she had read that in the news before, or maybe that was a book?

The filly hoped her tour-guide was at least going to be interesting, not like that last guide she had to deal with while exploring the crystal mines as a group. The filly glanced back at the small pack she was wearing. She brought both a small camera, enough bits for lunch and a couple of goodies at the gift shop. As she turned her attention away from the bag, she noticed her friend, Glimmer the Griffon and her big brother Razor. While she wanted to shout out the girl's name to get her attention, she knew she would end up breaking yet another one of her sister's rules. So she slowly made her way towards the pair, and as the older male was glaring at Mister 'Cup-Head', Wind poked the little griffon with her right hoof and smiled, "Heya Glimmer.", she whispered.

[Blueblood]

By dint of, Prince Blueblood had awoken to a day in which he had absolutely nothing to do. Contrary to common impression, not being at all important or necessary did not, in fact, mean that one was not busy. In fact, as far as schedules went, his was about as full as Princess Celestia's. However, while his aunt was generally engaged in looking over petitions, reviewing legislation, and connecting with her subjects, the Prince was generally engaged with being dragged by invitation to parties full of ponies he had no particular attachment to, appointments with minor officials with absolutely nothing important to say, and investors meetings of businesses of which he knew almost nothing at all.

The worst thing about it was, of course, that one could hardly plead fatigue from things that were trivial, even if by their volume they were exhausting. Not only did they take about as much effort, but they were not at all rewarding. As a vacation from doing nothing important was practically a redundancy, unfilled days were precious to him.

Thus it was that, even this late in the morning, he was still walking around in his dressing gown, a second leisurely cup of tea being slowly drained, and an empty day looked forward to with all the hope of storm-tossed sailors on a suddenly calm day. He was just about feeling reconciled to the world and all ponies in it, when he ruined it all by looking out the window into the public courtyard.

*By Faust! We've been invaded by Pygmy Ponies!* He ducked underneath the windowsill, creeping up again to take a second look. Of course, it was only a school trip... but then he remembered the full results of the last time one of those had been let in. He still shuddered every time he looked at an olive.

Being so absorbed, he quite failed to appreciate what sort of impression the sight of him would have made to any foal looking up at his window. From the courtyard, all that could be seen was a tousled yellow mane, and a pair of frightened and suspicious eyes; a bit like a discovered burglar's, actually.

[Slazer]

Being a Prefect at a school with students of all age groups, Memory Lane had dealt with his share of protective pony parents. The type of Equestrian who was often enrolled at the School for Gifted Unicorns usually came packaged with a mother and father who could ruin your day- or your life- with a couple of well-placed dragon-fire messages. One thing he had never dealt with, though, was an older brother threatening to ruin him if he didn't keep a close eye on his little sister.

"Ehehehe. I assure you, Mr. Razor, that your sister is in very good hooves." Lane's ears folded back as he tried to sound confident in the face of Razor's protective instincts, but even as short as this griffon was, he presented a formidable presence with those gleaming talons of his; instead of confidence, Lane was fairly certain he appeared more foalish than the actual foals he was supposed to be setting an example for. It wouldn't do to have them picking at his authority, as well!

[PyroBlaze]

Pyro watched the two griffons as the male one went to talk to the chaperone. It seemed the griffons were related, which would explain why they were together. He would certainly be helping keep her safe, even though it wasn't really expected of him. He didn't care, he was going to protect anypony that needed it, that's just what he did.

He wasn't expecting to be attacked during a tour of the castle, but it never hurt to stay alert. He glanced up at the castle and noticed a pair of eyes watching the group. Pyro tilted his head slightly as he stared at the eyes, which looked quite afraid for some reason.

"Hmm... What is that pony doing?" Pyro said to himself, still staring up at the pair of eyes.

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight Blossom was not happy, this point in the morning is normally when she slept on her day off, but the mare had been called in. She walked down the halls of the castle, humming to herself to stop herself from daydreaming about sleep.

The reason she'd been called in was because of a school trip, she shook her head at the prospect.

"Because using guards who are on-duty to make sure nothing goes wrong was just too hard" she muttered to herself, rounding another corner. She fully understood the precautions, given what had occurred last time fillies and colts had been in the castle. But her annoyance stayed with her, lingering over like over like a half-ton weight.

Rounding another corner, she spotted Blueblood seemingly hiding, looking out of a window. Midnight frowned, what had gotten him scared? Or was he always looking outside like it was a different land?

She cleared her throat to get his attention "Prince Blueblood, what appears to be the problem? You look like you've seen the rising of Discord first-hoof" she wasn't trying to sound smart, but she was already tired and not in the mood for the antics that the prince had been often accused of around the barracks.

[Blueblood]

As Blueblood peered down at the gathering of students in the courtyard, he thought he spied one of them, a colt with a firey mane, look back up at him. With a yip, he ducked back behind the windowsill, and immediately began to feel rather foolish. *You are the Prince of the Realm of Equestria. Such behavior is unbecoming and undignified. I mean, what would any of the guards think, if they saw you here cowering here-*

"Prince Blueblood, what appears to be the problem? You look like you've seen the rising of Discord first-hoof!"

"YAAAAH!" Speaking of undignified, a Prince springing up from a crouching position, with one's dressing gown flapping like an overgrown set of silken wings was a sight that no observer would easily forget, or refrain from mocking. "Don't sneak up on ponies like that! And as for Discord, I was here to witness it firsthand, and do you know why he got out!? Meddling Foals! Do you know what's going on outside?" The whole rant came out in more or less one breath as he shrugged out of his dressing gown and into a more presentable cummerbund. His mane was still rather loosely styled, but since he wasn't near a mirror, he couldn't tell. At least his wear was good.

Once he was finished, he looked outside again, giving a huge sigh. "Come on, we'd better get down there and make sure no further fiasco results. Seriously, there ought to be some kind of maturity screen for ponies seeking to enter the palace." He set off downstairs in a huff, never once considering that if there were a maturity test, the guards might not let him in.

[Shadowbolt0]

At the prince's, unique, reaction, with a flapping gown, Midnight felt herself holding back laughter. Despite his often royal manner, the rumors were true. He acted like a large foal. Still, he was a prince, and she was the low-level guard, meaning she couldn't do anything.

During his rant, she fiddled with her mane, shifting it so it tilted more to the left of her face then the right, it was a twitch she had, a preference that bothered her when it wasn't done right. Admittantly, during that time, she really hadn't payed any attention to the Prince. But then again, who listened to a blabbering foal?

"A group of foals are having a tour of the castle, i assure that Princess Celestia is taking all the necessary precautions" she said as calmly as she could, without wanted to lose her temper. It was those precautions that had dragged her out of bed.

At Blueblood's, mention of going to them, she didn't give him a verbal reply, instead nodding her head while trying to hold back the smirk that was slowly creeping onto her face. He's right, we should have a maturity screen, meaning we can ditch half the guards along with him' she thought as the followed him downstairs, and started humming to herself once again to keep herself focused on the stairs in front of her.

[ShadowWalking18]

Wind Walker waited patiently in the group of other fillies and colts as the tour-guide slowly lead his group towards the always impressive gates of Canterlot's most famous building, the castle. While she wanted to ask her guide why he was wearing a little cup on his head, it would have broken a few of the rules her elder sister had laid out to her before dropping her off at the group, and one of them was not the be 'rude'. While both of them had conflicting opinions on what was rude and what was not, Fire Walker had asked her if she saw any ponies that dressed 'odd' to keep it to herself. But was he dressing odd, or did somepony toss a cup at the stallion in hopes of it landing on his horn? Or did he crash into a coffee-trolley on his way to the castle? Or even worse, maybe it was an evil mutant cup that hopped on this poor and unsuspecting stallion and was currently controlling his body? She was pretty sure she had read that in the news before, or maybe that was a book?

The filly hoped her tour-guide was at least going to be interesting, not like that last guide she had to deal with while exploring the crystal mines as a group. The filly glanced back at the small pack she was wearing. She brought both a small camera, enough bits for lunch and a couple of goodies at the gift shop. As she turned her attention away from the bag, she noticed her friend, Glimmer the Griffon and her big brother Razor. While she wanted to shout out the girl's name to get her attention, she knew she would end up breaking yet another one of her sister's rules. So she slowly made her way towards the pair, and as the older male was glaring at Mister 'Cup-Head', Wind poked the little griffon with her right hoof and smiled, "Heya Glimmer.", she whispered.

Glimmer turned and squealed with delight when she saw Windy.

"Windy!" She quickly grabbed the filly into a big griffon hug. Just like she saw Pinkie do. She was a hug guru after all.

"Oh we get to go an a field trip together! Oh do you think we will get to see the princesses? Oh I hope I don't mess up if we do. This is so exciting!" She squeezed harder with glee.

"I kinda wish Razor could come, but he has work...and besides..." She looked over to her brother, who was in the middle of his usual threats to those he left her with when he had work, "...I hope he doesn't go too far."

She sighed and shook her head, "Brothers."

Being a Prefect at a school with students of all age groups, Memory Lane had dealt with his share of protective pony parents. The type of Equestrian who was often enrolled at the School for Gifted Unicorns usually came packaged with a mother and father who could ruin your day- or your life- with a couple of well-placed dragon-fire messages. One thing he had never dealt with, though, was an older brother threatening to ruin him if he didn't keep a close eye on his little sister.

"Ehehehe. I assure you, Mr. Razor, that your sister is in very good hooves." Lane's ears folded back as he tried to sound confident in the face of Razor's protective instincts, but even as short as this griffon was, he presented a formidable presence with those gleaming talons of his; instead of confidence, Lane was fairly certain he appeared more foalish than the actual foals he was supposed to be setting an example for. It wouldn't do to have them picking at his authority, as well!

Razor gave a smile and chuckled, though it had a more evil tone then friendly, "Oh yes....she is going to be in good hooves."

He gripped a strand of Memory's mane and plucked it off. He studied the strand of hair before letting it go, and placing the tip of histalon under it and slicing the strand of hair in half. Very sharp.

"Now....If you're afraid of me....good. Stay afraid. Very.....very....afraid." He finished before patting Memory on the back, making sure he felt the tips of his other talon pricking him slightly on the back before heading over to his sister.

"Hey Windy. You keep an eye on my sister okay." He said, in a more friendly tone.

Glimmer rolled her eyes, "Like I need protecting. Wasn't it you that got smacked by a kraken."

Razor opened his mouth to respond but just growled, "Do we have to bring that up?"

Glimmer giggled, "Oh and don't forget the time when mommy tried to set you up with a blind date. Who was the one flying for his life?"

"Hey! That's a.....I don't-....You can't...." Razor sputtered, getting embaressed.

Glimmer laughed and let Windy go and gave her brother a big hug, "Oh you know I'm just ruffling your feathers."

Razor sighed and returned the hug, both siblings purring slightly now.

"Yeah, yeah. Just stay safe okay....and if anypony gives you trouble just give me a call." He said, "See you in a few." And with that Razor walked off some before taking off.

"I'll try and find a date for you!" Glimmer called, laughing when she saw the distancing form of her brother seeming to suddenly suffer stiff wings as he plummeted to the ground for a few moments before getting back to normal.

Glimmer giggled, "I think I almost gave him a heart attack. He is so silly."

[Lux]

Watermelon Gush trotted through the streets, her red mane and tail bouncing with every step. She had been to Canterlot before, but this was the first time that she was allowed to go into the big city by herself. This wasn't just a regular outing though like before. Watermelon was going to visit the castle! She had been there only once before during the Grand Galloping Gala, and that was a magical time that the pony would never forget! Now she returned to see what the rest of the castle had to offer. Approaching the magnificent building, Watermelon couldn't help but stare up at the spires and arched roofs. She then spotted a group of ponies and a familiar looking griffon gathering, many of whom were around her age.

"Hi I'm Watermelon Gush," she said to the group, "Is this the tour for the castle?"

Night Watcher trotted down the marble corridors, dressed in her full Lunar Guard Armor and albeit feeling a little groggy although she would not allude to it. She had finished her usual nightly patrol of the city only to find out that she would be escorting not a group of royal dignitaries or even the Princesses but a group of foals through the castles. Well it was less like guiding and more like watching to see that none of them went where they should not be or got into trouble. Celestia knows the snickers she'd get from her subordinates if the jet black Pegasus couldn't handle a few fillies and colts. She knew also that these foals were the future of Equestria, and they should have just as much as an opportunity of seeing the castle as any other pony.

Rounding the corner, the Staff Sergeant saw none other than Prince Blue Blood, a pony that Night Watcher would rather go patrol the Soggy Bottom Bog rather that deal with his annoying temperament, and a familiar soldier named Midnight Blossom whom she helped teach.

"I see that both of you have heard the news of the guests that we will be hosting here. I can assure you that this will be nothing new from guarding dignitaries or the Princesses. We just need to make sure that they don't get lost or worse in trouble. above all, try not to scare them unless necessary, ok?"

[Blueblood]

I assure you that Princess Celestia is taking all the necessary precautions.

Midnight's remark actually brought the Prince up short, and he turned around to really look at her for the first time. She was pretty, in a night-guardish sort of way, but what was more to the point, low-ranking. The alabster unicorn sighed. "You're rather new here, aren't you? In time, you will come to fully appreciate auntie's... peculiar sense of humor; particularly in the definition of 'necessary'. And 'precaution.'" It would be blasphemous to suggest so aloud, but privately Prince Blueblood had sometimes thought Celestia to be just plain irresponsible in the way she would let potentially disastrous situations go 'just to see what would happen.' Things would somehow turn out alright, but to this day, he could never figure out how or why.

On their way down they encountered another guard, this time a higher-ranking officer of the Night Watch. He gave her an acknowledging nod, a few strands of his tousled mane falling into his eyes. He shook his head to get them out, exacerbating the case of bed-head that he was now parading in public. "Certainly, I've seen them. Well, I suppose there's no helping it; we'll just have to make the best of the situation somehow." It was a toss up whether it was more annoying to have the Prince act like your superior when he was merely being narcissistic, or to have him act like a comrade-in-arms when he was only an aristocratic civilian. True, he had actually gone through the new civilian partnership program in the guard, which was essentially Basic Training, but stories of what had actually happened there with him had no doubt spread through the guard...

[tacobob]

Wind Walker puffed her cheeks out in annoyance as she glanced up towards an open window where the very dashing Prince Blueblood had been only a for a moment. While she only heard very little bits of the actual conversation, the little Pegasus pony did manage to hear one word mentioned more than once, a word she did not care for. She was not a foal! She was a filly! Foals are teeny-tiny little blank-flank babies who wear diapers and have to take naps! While she was very sure Prince Blueblood was just playing and being his usual silly self, whoever he was talking too had sounded serious, or at least it sounded that way from where she was standing. While the urge to yell this back at the window while shaking her hoof did rise upon the filly, Wind Walker had promised both her sister and mother that she would behave like a proper princess throughout the tour.

Thankfully, Glimmer was here,the very cool little gryphoness, or was it gryphlet? She was there with her big brother, and he was being his usual over-protective self. While her own brothers would be more than happy to look after her, it would be her dad the filly would call for if she had any problems. Be it full sized dragons, monsters under the bed, or any other nasties, she knew her daddy would be there to scare ‘em all away. She smiled as Glimmer gave her a hug and made sure to return one in her favor. “Yeah. Brothers. I know they’re there to look out for us, but he seriously needs to get a girlfriend. Like now.”, she whispered before giving the older gryphon a ‘salute’. “Yes sir! I will make sure not a single feather or tuff of fur is harmed on Glimmer. Now shoo! You might scare Mister Cup!”

Once Razor had left, she turned back to her friend, "Wonder if he's ever met my sister's pal Zelda. She's a griffon and is both super pretty and friendly, not to mention very strong. I know she's been hanging around Dunder lately, but I'm pretty sure they're just friends." As Glimmer mentioned princesses, her eyes quickly lit up, "I've actually met several of the princesses, and Princess Celestia is by far is the best. I met Princess Luna and she completely ignored me, and Princess Twilight nearly tripped over me while cutting in a line I was in.". While the newly crowned princess did in fact jump ahead a line the filly was in, she did so to stop a rather crazy unicorn from doing something possibly evil. She wasn't sure. "Princess Celestia was super-nice and she actually bought me candy! And just by standing next to her, you can't help but feel wonderful. Like all your little problems and fears just wash away.", she sighed dramatically before catching sight of another kid. The filly glanced over at the green earth pony who was scooting into the line. While the desire to reply back with a sarcastic or snarky response did enter Wind Walker's mind for just a moment, she had decided she had to be really nice today.

"Yep! This is the line! We should be starting soon!", Wind gave off a friendly smile as she spoke. "I'm Wind Walker, and this is Glimmer!", she pointed to a little female griffon that was standing nearby. "Is this your first visit to the castle?"

[Quillhart]

Punk was so bored! He had been spending what felt like the whole morning with patrolling the empty, big, and not to forget, boring corridors of the castle. He had managed to lure convince a fellow guard to take the rest of his shift; it was just almost by the book but that only mattered if the authority found out. Still he found himself filled with idleness, and the dullness of staring into a wall began to make him feel like thumping his head against said wall. Punk Walker rested himself on the yard by the gates, just out of sight from the windows, and glanced over the field in case somepony would happen to come by and catch a glimpse of some not-too-occupied REA armor. Punk sighed. Being a guards pony was such a snore sometimes.

Suddenly, he caught sight of some fillies and and colts on the yard and he switched between lazy positioned to military strict in a moments notice. Punk Walker squinted to get a better look of the crowd and made a conclusion that it had to be a field trip. 'Great!' He thought to himself, 'Now I know exactly what to do with my day!' Punk trotted away from his position with a mischievous smile on his face and approached the group with bouncing steps. He was right! It was indeed a group of poor students of Equestria with Mr. cuphead as their leader. They were most likely waiting for their guide to arrive; which left plenty of time for Punk to properly represent the REA!

"Greetings, fillies and gentlecolts!" He began loudly and whirled his hoof above the crowd to address every one of them. "I am guardstallion, Punk Walker, and I am not your guide for this occasion!" Punk Walker paused and continued in a lower tune when he had their attention. "The sole reason I stand before you is because I want you all to widen your minds. I know this is the first visit in this castle for many of you and I would like that experience to be as good as possible" Punk pointed his hoof towards the entrance where most of the staff movements usually happened. "Soon there will be one or a couple of ponies coming out from there and they will stand before you as I do now. They will tell you to behave. They will tell you to stay in line. They might even tell you to endure complete silence. Do, not, listen." He raised a hoof as to stop any possible uproar towards his statement. "Now, I am not, I repeat, not telling you to misbehave. What I'm saying is that none of you should ever accept an order without knowing the reasons behind it. I am, as a guard, bound by law to follow every command the authority throws at me, but you, my friends. You are free-minded fillies and colts of Equestria, be proud! You are unicorns, pegasi, earthponies, and griffons and you're all part of this world! Don't build your world on rules you hardly understand! Don't leave your trust on rulers because others trust them. Trust and loyalty should be earned, not expected!" Punk placed a hoof on his chest, his face beamed of respect as he made eye contact with every single on of them. "I trust my princess with my life. I hope you all will share the same feeling when you leave here today. Have a good day."

As he gazed through the group of ponies he suddenly noticed two familiar red eyes in the crowd. Punk Walker took off his helmet with a smile and walked up to the little filly and her friends. "Speaking of a princess." He said and tussled the filly's mane in a brotherly way before he placed his helmet on top of the filly's head. "You didn't tell me that your class was coming today." Punk pretended to be hurt. "Now I didn't even have time to prepare for a proper introduction of myself to your friends and mister cuphead over there. I could have waved by the gate and everything" Punk Walker pouted and pulled on his best sad-dog-face. "And you knov how weak I is fo' fashionable hats." He wasn't very quiet while he talked and it was very possible that the stallion had heard him, but honestly, Punk was curious how the unicorn would react to some teasing.

[RarityDash]

Diamond Tiara had an even expression on her face as she approached the castle with the others. Any opportunity to visit the royal castle in Canterlot was a good one. It was only the most important place in all Equestria. It was where Celestia made all her important decisions. For anypony who desired to be anypony it was surely a place of inspiration. Diamond was actually quite excited when she found out that Miss Cheerilee had decided to pick her to attend this field trip. All that sucking up really did pay off, she supposed. First she had landed that editor job and now this? Surely it was obvious that she was already a pony who knew how to get ahead in the world. Seeing the seat of power for all of Equestria first hand would only help her move forward.

The only part of it that kind of sucked is that she had to do it all with a bunch of strangers. Sure, there was one other pony from Cheerilee's class signed up, but it was that weird new blank flank who never talked. Why couldn't Silver have been there too? Hay, even one of those silly little crusaders would have made it more fun. She needed something. A bunch of strange, unfamiliar ponies was no fun at all, and looking around she wasn't sure she recognized anyone there. That was, until she happened to see a familiar orange filly. So Apple Bloom's dumb cousin was here? Hmmph. There was a filly who was totally confused. One moment she's more awesome than any blank flank should be, the next she's totally lame. Diamond still hadn't gotten her back for the whole incident at the train station, so it was kind of exciting to see she was signed up for this as well.

Mischief would come in time. For now, she was going to be on her best behavior. A somewhat devious smile on her face, she decided to approach her chaperones and the other students. "Hello, everypony, I'm Diamond TIara from Ponyville! I hope we all have a fun time together," she said, her saccharine good-girl act almost making herself sick.

​

[PyroBlaze]

The eyes in the window dissapeared, and Pyro just shrugged before looking away. He didn't know any of these ponies, which was kind of a bummer. At least this gave him an opportunity to make new friends. That is, if he found one to talk to. Even if he couldn't find somepony to talk to, this trip should be great. He got to tour his future workplace, probably, and see what it was like. It was probably fine, Celestia and Luna lived here after all.

A filly joined the group, introducing herself as Watermelon Gush. That was an interesting name, though he could see the resemblance, color wise. "I'm Pyro Blaze, and yes, this is the castle group." Pyro said after a filly had spoken, introducing herself as Wind Walker and her griffon friend as Glimmer. He was learning all sorts of names now.

Pretty soon, a guard approached and began speaking. What was being said made Pyro tilt his head to the side and raise an eyebrow. Eventually, Punk went to talk with Wind. They had the same last name, so they were probably related. Punk was saying something about the chaperone's hat, but Pyro wasn't really paying attention.

Another filly joined them, saying she was Diamond Tiara. "I'm Pyro Blaze. I hope we do too." He said soon after Diamond had finished.

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight frowned at Blueblood's words, it almost sounded, to her at least, that he thought Princess Celestia wanted Discord to break lose the first time. Part of her was tempted to accuse him on it, but who would support her? A low-level Lunar guard, or a Prince? She'd probably lose the argument within seconds, instead turning the other cheek. That's when another guard arrived. Night Watcher.

At the new guards arrival, Midnight tried to appear more awake, mostly because Night had been a mentor to her after she'd passed basic training. Midnight had always looked up at Night Watcher, and for good reason, Night had proven herself to Midnight as the image of the guard she wanted to become like.

"Of course Night, a simple job. But given what occured last time, i just hope we can stop another disaster like that occurring" she said respectivly to Night Watcher, and began following Blueblood, next to Night Watcher.

She glanced at her, before deciding it was worth a shot.

"Ma'am? I don't mean to speak out of term, but is having the prince escorting them a good idea? He's not known for, well, anything that could be beneficial for this tour" the mare had to be careful what words she used, she didn't want to sound like she was trying to stop him, but she felt like she might as well tell Night Watcher her worries.

[Blueblood]

Prince Blueblood was a native of what was sometimes called "The Drawing Room Culture," a world where insults roamed disguised as compliments, where plain statements were considered coarse language, and reputations could be made or obliterated over the course of a night. In short, there was not much a mere guard could do to disguise any ill-feelings towards a pony raised by station to be sensitive to insults.

Normally, the unicorn would have availed himself of some cutting riposte, but that would probably not help the situation any, now that Midnight had her commanding officer as back-up. Not good tactics, going into a fight outnumbered two-to-one. Plus, he had to admit, it would only have served to prove her right. He settled for a quick snort, indicating that yes, he knew exactly what she really meant. *She thinks I'm useless, doesn't she? Thinks I can't handle showing people where I live, that I can't even be trusted with a simple social duty!? By Celestia, I'll show her!*

Throwing his head back and striking the most regal pose he could, without actually rearing up on his hind hooves, he strode purposefully through the double doors in front of him, to be immediately confronted by a scene of various fillies and colts... and a gryphon. One of the ambassador's chicks, perhaps?

Belatedly, Blueblood realized that he had no real knowledge of how to deal with the young. Still, he'd gotten himself into this situation, and he couldn't admit weakness now. He cleared his throat to gain attention. "Greetings young... ones. As you all probably know, I am Prince Blueblood, and I will be your guide through the Canterlot Royal Palace today because, well, I live here. If you want to know what it's like, feel free to ask. This will be an... insider's tour." There. That hadn't gone so bad, and now Night Watcher couldn't keep him away, not without making the entire castle staff look unprofessional.

[Slazer]

Memory Lane stood stiff as a board after Razor poked his back with those absurdly sharp talons of his. Even after the griffon left under verbal 'assault' from his little sister and her friend, he remained frozen in place for a few moments. He could have sworn he saw his life flash before his eyes... but if that was the case, who the blazes was the stallion in the white chef coat spouting profane language at him?

Shaking his head clear of the renegade thoughts and fear-induced cobwebs, Lane turned his attention back to his class and promptly took notice of a white, skinny guardspony- Punk Walker, he called himself- speaking to the fillies and colts under his care. The impassioned speech he gave them impressed Lane, though he felt it to be a misguided move on the guard's part; while Lane could respect Punk's ideology, he feared that the foals he was addressing- several of them too young to have even earned their cutie marks, much less grasp the reasons for authority- would misconstrue the message and, by extension, make his life a living-

"Greetings young... ones. As you all probably know, I am Prince Blueblood, and I will be your guide through the Canterlot Royal Palace today because, well, I live here. If you want to know what it's like, feel free to ask. This will be an... insider's tour."

Oh bugger, why him? Dear sweet Celestia, why have you forsaken me? Lane rubbed his forehead with a hoof, muttering a couple of most uncouth words to himself. He once held a relatively decent view of the Prince, but that had died a quick death following the noblepony's encounters with Blueblood in the afterglow of the most recent Galloping Gala. If there was one impression of Canterlot Castle he didn't want these foals to have, it was Blueblood's. Even worse, Lane knew that he- as a relatively minor noble- had no authority or pull to get him to keep his mouth shut. All he could hope for was that Fancy Pants could keep him in check, somehow.

[Lux]

"Certainly, I've seen them. Well, I suppose there's no helping it; we'll just have to make the best of the situation somehow." the Prince said. Night Watcher admittedly had some mixed reactions with the Prince. Being royalty it was her duty to protect and respect him, but on the other hoof the jet black Pegasus couldn't stand his snark attitude and the way he puffed himself up like some ego balloon.

"Of course Night, a simple job. But given what occured last time, i just hope we can stop another disaster like that occurring" Midnight said respectfully to the Staff Sergeant. The mare had come a long way in her training and had a air of confidence around her.

"Indeed, and while I doubt that we will see another disaster like that, our presence among the group will be an added layer of protection for the castle and the fillies and colts."

The private then leaned over as if to ask her a question. Night was not such a strict pony to not address any concerns of her subordinates. instead she considered questions to be a building process, allowing a pony to learn more.

"Ma'am? I don't mean to speak out of term, but is having the prince escorting them a good idea? He's not known for, well, anything that could be beneficial for this tour"

"I am aware of past actions, but we must give him the benefit to represent the royalty of the castle. And we must be careful to judge, lest we be judged."

Night heard already an guard pony speak about of all things telling the fillies and colts to be free from restrictions and something about fashionable hats. She could tell that he was trying to joke, but it was a little confusing. Just then Prince Blueblood, no doubt hearing from Midnight her comment about him, stepped forward and introduced himself. It was rough a little but actually better than Night Watcher expected. Her hope was that he would continue to be a good guide. Now it was time for her to introduce herself.

"Thank you Punk Walker and Prince Blueblood, and greetings to you. I am Staff Sergeant Night Watcher of the Lunar Guard, although you may address me as Night Watcher if you wish. I protect the Princess, castle and Canterlot from any harm and help ponies in any way possible. You are about to embark on a wonderful opportunity to see not only an architectural and historical building but the home of Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Prince Blueblood and the center of Equestria. Feel free to ask any questions you may, and please follow directions. The castle is a very large place and one can easily get lost if they wander from the group."

***

"Yep! This is the line! We should be starting soon!", Wind gave off a friendly smile as she spoke. "I'm Wind Walker, and this is Glimmer!", she pointed to a little female griffon that was standing nearby. "Is this your first visit to the castle?"

"Oh hi Wind Walker and Glimmer," the filly said to the pony and griffon, glad that her question wasn't one that was so obvious that it made her look silly, "Actually this isn't my first time at the castle as I came here for the Grand Galloping Gala, but this is the first time that I get to see the entire castle. How about you two, is this your first time touring here?"

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight, while she did respect Night Watcher, wasn't so sure on her methods for, probably the first time in her life. She understood that Night Watcher gave chances, that's why she was where she was, but the mare was sure her commander knew what had happened before. The Gala's, even Blueblood's attempt at basic training, every guard knew what happened. How was Midnight meant to be able to deflect what she knew about him, and assume he'd changed?

She heard Blueblood's, introduction, and realized that in it, she felt like he'd seen past her ruse. Like he knew she thought he was useless and was using his speech to get back at her, which was fine for the mare. He could make all the speechs he wants, she'd only changed if he could walk the walk, not just talk the talk.

After Night Watcher introduced herself, she did feel like it was her 'turn' given that everypony else had, but the mare opted to remain silent, standing at Night Watchers side instead. After all, she was a lower rank, and did the same job. So the mare started humming to herself quetly as she looked out over the ponies taking the tours...and a griffon. Midnight mentally noted to keep an eye on the griffon, mostly because she'd barely seen one before, so she wasn't too sure how fast it could be. Ponies weren't that hard, but griffons were fast and strong.

[ShadowWalking18]

Glimmer smiled as she said hello to Gush and Diamond Tiara and the other kids.

"Its nice to meet you all." She said with a smile.

She noticed the tiara that Diamond was wearing, "Oh that is a very nice tiara. It matches your cutie mark as well."

It was then she noticed that several adults were no addressing them and she turned to listen...and that's when she saw him.

A prince!

'A real life prince.' She thought as she looked over at Blueblood. He had to be one, he had that air about him.

"Windy who is that? Is he a member of the royal family? I think he is." She said, whispering to Windy as she motioned toward Blueblood.

Oh this was so exciting! She was seeing real royalty! Oh she felt her little heart was getting ready to burst!

She also noticed several night guards as they were calling themselves. Bat ponies were something she had never seen before and she gave a friendly wave over to them. They seemed nice. And the two mare guards looked really pretty.

.....hmmm. Maybe one of them would be willing to date her brother. She should ask them if she got a chance! Oh if they did Razor would be so surprised.......or maybe scared out of his mind.

[starswirlthebearded]

Canterlot Castle often opened it's gates for school trips and for many schools it is a staple of a trip, most likely due to it's historical significance, and safeness, compared to the Castle of the Two Sisters, Celestia and Luna's previous home that was severely damaged by their unfortunate battle. The fact that it is in the middle of the most dangerous forest in Equestria doesn't help either. There was an unfortunate turn of events though, the royal scheduler didn't account for much time to interact with the school group. Though this is rather normal for Celestia she does wish that she was able to interact with a tour group more than just their trip to the Throne Room or conference room, or random chance meetings while she is going from appointment to appointment in the castle. She couldn't dwell on that though.

At that moment a Royal Guard entered the Throne Room. "Princess, the tour group has arrived," the guard stallion notified Celestia. "Thank you for lettin..." Celestia began only to be interrupted by the guard stallion "Prince Blueblood has decided to lead the tour." Celestia was taken aback to say the least. Blueblood wasn't exactly the most foal friendly stallion. This didn't matter much to the princess anyway, she needed somepony to look over the field trip that at least had some idea of what was going on in the castle and was good with foals. Celestia looked around the throne room for a suitable candidate, and saw private first class Flash Sentry, and approached him.

"Please follow me Private Sentry," Celestia said in an authoritative tone to the young guard as she began walking out of the throne room to the castle court yard where the group was congregating. "I have a particularly important job for you this day Private Sentry..." Celestia began to explain to him the situation "We have a tour group coming to the castle and something unexpected has happened... Prince Blueblood has decided to lead the group," Celestia continued with almost a grave tone to her voice, worrying about Blueblood's demeanor. "So, to get to the point, I need you to act as a chaperon for both the group and my nephew, but please don't let him know that. If you need my assistance with anything feel free to let me know by telling another guard to notify me." At this point they were just about at the courtyard, Celestia breathed deep because she had to make sure that she said everything right so that it didn't seem that this was a spur of the moment thing.

Celestia cantered up to the group "Welcome to Canterlot Castle everypony," Celestia cheerfully greeted the tour group. "Unfortunately, due to my busy schedule, I am unable to stay with you for very long. However I have selected one of my Royal Guards to act as my proxy, Private first class Flash Sentry, please listen to him as he is well aware of the castle schedule. He will be acting as a chaperon to this group. Please everyone enjoy the tour of the castle, and be sure to not unleash any beings of chaos." Celestia said playfully.

((OOC: Bellosh gave me permission to do that))

[PyroBlaze]

Eventually, some more guards came out of the castle with what was obviously not a guard. It turned out that the stallion was Blueblood, the prince. Upon a second look, Pyro thought Blueblood was the one he had seen peeking out the window. One of the guards introduced herself next, saying she was Night Watcher. She went on, giving a very brief run down of her job before telling them to follow directions and stay together.

Celestia came out next, followed by another guard. The guard was Flash Sentry. Pyro remembered him being at the changeling caves, though Pyro didn't quite remember what Flash had done to help. It didn't really matter though, that was in the past. Celestia left with a joke about releasing chaos. He certainly didn't plan to, but who knows what will happen.

"Can't wait." Pyro said to nopony in particular, referring to the tour.