Gallopocus Island [Corralwood Corral] Sunset at the Corral [Invite Only]

[starswirlthebearded]

Celestia, the ruler of Equestria for 1000 years, has been presented with a rare opportunity... An entire week of light to no meetings and time where she can relax. This was to the point where she would be able to reschedule most as they were not direly important. And the few that were left her sister would be able to handle it easily. With that Celestia planned her great escape... Okay, not so much great escape so much as "first vacation in over a millennium." Though Celestia resigned herself to still raising the sun every morning, that would be all she would do. And truth be told, it was something she enjoyed doing. Bringing the morning sun to ponies is something she always took great pride in, and she felt it was unfair to force her sister to do that. Celestia remembered well how difficult it was in the beginning to raise both the moon and the sun, and she figured raising the sun would be more difficult for Luna than raising the moon was for her... With that thought in mind Celestia pulled out her map of Equestria.

Celestia looked at the map and considered where she wished to go where she could take her crown and regalia off and relax for a while. She considered many places but one caught her eye in particular... The Corralwood Corral. It was perfect, she had been there before and it was a nice relaxing place near the beach with comfortable accommodations. Naturally, Celestia was able to arrange a private villa on the island for her usage during her stay there. It was decided, so she packed her saddle bags, tied her mane back and left her regalia and crown behind. Oh and took Philomena of course. How could Celestia go to a place with a rainforest and not take her pet Phoenix? Celestia used her own wing power to get her there, letting the guards know her plans, and allowing an escort only as far as the outskirts of the mainland.

Upon her arrival she immediately dropped her bags off at the villa on the beach. However she was met with an unforeseen surprise... The Canterlot Castle Garrison had pulled a fast one on her and sent a guard ahead to meet her at the villa... Celestia knew this guard, it was Sgt Bonfire, not a pony you would know for their relaxed demeanor. Celestia couldn't do much about it now that he was here, so she set her bags down and addressed the stallion. "Sgt Bonfire, correct?" Celestia started. "As I am sure you have heard, this is supposed to be a relaxing vacation, and while I am sure the garrison had good intentions in sending you here, your presence is not required." Celestia was very stern in her voice. "However, as you are already here and your chariot back will not likely arrive until the end, I must allow you to accompany me. I do have two commands while you are here with me..." Celestia began, she knew what she was doing and she wasn't going to have her vacation ruined by anypony... "First remove all your armor, you will not likely need it here. And second, enjoy yourself. You needn't follow me all hours of the day, take advantage of this time as your own vacation as well." Celestia finished speaking to him. Hopefully he would take the second to heart and not prevent her from enjoying her well deserved and needed vacation.

Knowing full well that he would still likely follow, Celestia set off for the local rain forest with her pet whom was busy preening her wings on Celestia's back. Along the path she noticed a few ponies stopping to look at the lovely visage of the sunlight passing through the canopy. Celestia decided to approach them. "Greetings. Are you ponies on vacation as well?" Celestia mad a brief somewhat informal greeting to the group of ponies.

[Corsair]

Bonfire gave the villa one last inspection as he waited for the Princess to arrive. Her Highness had been reluctant to have any guards along for this, but after Nightmare Moon, the Changelings, the black vines from the Everfree, and Tirek, the guard was a bit paranoid about her safety. Bonfire didn't question the Princess' desire for a vacation; after all, Her Highness had ruled for nearly 1000 years, alone. Now, there were three other princesses in the kingdom! But still, having her going off nearly alone made many in the Guard extremely nervous.

Bonfire really didn't expect anything could happen to the Princess here in Corralwood Corral, of all places. But, it was still best to be prepared. Bonfire had arrived yesterday to make sure things were in order. He'd swept her villa for magical and mundane traps, interviewed the staff at the resort, and had looked up any hostile creatures in the area, which there were none. Now, he just had to wait for her to arrive.

He finally spotted her unmistakeable form descending, accompanied by her pet phoenix. Even as he saluted, he could tell that the princess was not happy to see him. "Apologies, Your Highness," he answered, formally. "After recent events, the Captain felt it was just too risky to leave you completely unguarded. I promise you, it is not my intention to interfere with your vacation."

When the princess gave her two commands, Bonfire sighed. "Understood, Your Highness," he said, reluctantly. He'd expected something like this, actually. "I have my own room in the resort to give you your privacy." Then, hanging his head a bit, he admitted, "Actually the Captain said the same thing to me. He saw how long it had been since I'd taken any leave, and he ordered me to relax." That meeting had been very frustrating. Bonfire had insisted that he didn't need any leave, but the Captain had pointed out that the princess needed somepony to watch her back, that there weren't any new recruits in from Basic Training for him to integrate into the Guard, and that it had been, in fact, 10 years since he'd taken any leave. So, here he was, guarding a Princess that didn't want to be guarded, while also taking a vacation he hadn't wanted to take...

A few minutes later, Bonfire emerged from his room, his golden Royal Guard armor now hanging on a rack. He looked around for the princess, and found her conversing with a few other ponies that he assumed were other guests. He instinctively started to trot to the princess' side, but stopped himself. He knew the Princess didn't want him to shadow her everywhere she went, but it was hard to let down his guard like that. He looked around at the beach, the blue waters of the ocean, the bright sun overhead... how the hay was he supposed to relax here, anyway??

[RarityDash]

Dazzle Dawn was really enjoying herself. Sure, it had been another semester of barely scraping by at Canterlot University--long nights spent studying, too much coffee, not enough sleep, all for all too meager returns when the exams came--but now the students were on break for summer, so she was determined to put all that behind her for now. This, as it were was exceedingly easy as it just so happened that Dazzle's awesome friend and schoolmate Dancer had decided to drag her along with her as she went off to Corralwood Corral with another friend Dazzle hadn't really met before. Corralwood Corral was one of those places Dazzle had always wanted to go. It was supposed to be so tropical and sunny and beautiful and amazing. The thought of spending part of her summer there had had Dazzle absolutely ecstatic for weeks. How many chances did one get for a vacation in paradise spent with friends? Not many, Dazzle bet.

The group of mares had already made a point to check out the fine beaches and explore the town some. Presently they had decided to check out some of the island's rainforests. Dancer's other friend, Presteza was an artist it turned out, and while Dazzle and Dancer were here purely for leisure, she was there with the intention of painting some fine island scenery while she was at it. Not that that wasn't fun too. Finding pretty scenes to paint was really cool. Or it had been so far. The rainforest was full of awesome stuff too look at, as it turned out. Presently they had found this awesome spot where the sunlight peered through the canopies of the trees in just the perfect way. Dazzle couldn't help but just stare at it.

​

"Greetings. Are you ponies on vacation as well?"

A beautiful, gentle mare's voice came from behind where Dazzle was staring out at the amazing colors of the sunlight. "That's right," Dazzle spoke instinctively, giving a sigh as she slowly started to turn around. "And, by Celestia, if I aren't glad to be... I seriously thought I'd die from exams thi--!"

Dazzle cut herself short suddenly once the pony who has spoken to them was in sight. Her jaw dropped and her eyes went wide at what she was seeing. Or more, who she was seeing. Standing right there, facing them was none other than Princess Celestia herself. Suddenly Dazzle felt kind of stupid and unsure what to do with herself.

"I-it can't be..." she started, still gawking. She then grabbed Dancer's hoof and pulled her close to her. "Dancer! Dancer, can you see and hear her too, or is it just me?" the unicorn asked somewhat nervously, looking confused. Surely this had to be some kind of mirage? Maybe it was a special effect of that super gorgeous sunlight...

​

[Pretzelparty]

The sun, the sand, the fauna, wildlife, so many incredible things were on these islands that normally the young painter from Trottingham was excited to paint. Today sadly the painter was not her usual self. Since being drained by tirek of the magic she rarely appreciated and then having it returned she'd only been able to paint a single piece after that faithful day. she'd felt like her creative energies were completely down the drain and now felt she couldn't paint anything, no matter how much she wanted to.

Thank goodness for friends like Moondancer, the young magic student had invited Presteza to this vacation in the hopes of fun it seemed. Maybe all the young painter needed was a good bout of rest and relaxation.

The other pony that Moony had invited seemed nice enough, she hadn't been able to talk much to her yet with this annoying creative drought hanging over her. From what she'd gathered though it seemed that she was also a student of Celestia's school for talented unicorns. If anything, PResteza was worried she might not be able to find much commonground with her...

"Greetings. Are you ponies on vacation as well?"

[]A beautiful, gentle mare's voice came from behind where Dazzle was staring out at the amazing colors of the sunlight. "That's right," Dazzle spoke instinctively, giving a sigh as she slowly started to turn around. "And, by Celestia, if I aren't glad to be... I seriously thought I'd die from exams thi--!"

"I-it can't be..." she started, still gawking. She then grabbed Dancer's hoof and pulled her close to her. "Dancer! Dancer, can you see and hear her too, or is it just me?" the unicorn asked somewhat nervously, looking confused. Surely this had to be some kind of mirage? Maybe it was a special effect of that super gorgeous sunlight...[/bg]

Suddenly there was a calm and sweet voice from behind the trio. The mare smiled a bit as she almost imediately recognized who it belonged to while Dazzle wigged out at the sight of the sun princess. "Well I can sure see 'er and hear 'er, Dazzle... do ya want me ta risk pokin her ta see if she's material too?", she said in a gently playful tone before turning to the Princess before them and bowing respectfully then giving her a wink to ensure she wasn't really going to poke her.. Normally the freckled heiress would have been starstruck by the appearance of the princess but the combination of her current state of mind along with the fact she both spoken to and painted the Princess before all this messiness with Tirek. It helped that the princess' warm personality made it easier for the young painter to relax after having spoken with her model fro an extended period, "It's nice ta see ya again, Yer highness. I trust yer hear fer some relaxation time yerself with all that's gone I think you definitely deserve some downtime."

[Bellosh]

Bird watching; one of the great pastimes of the island rainforest. It was even better when one had two close friends by one’s side. It was Moondancer’s grand idea to drag Presteza and Dazzle Dawn to spend a summer vacation at the tropical resort of Corralwood Corral, full of activities for an entire group of fillies to partake in. Way down here, none of the troubles of civilization could give Moony any problems. No exams, no power-hungry prison escapees; all her day-to-day worries lay behind her.

From a beautiful vantage spot chosen by Dazzle, Moondancer wiped out a set of binoculars, scanning the trees for all sorts of avian life. That travel agency wasn’t kidding when they said the rainforest around Corralwood Corral was home to the most beautiful birds in all the vast realm of Equestria. Parrots, toucans, lorikeets, and countless others sang their mirad songs as Moony eavesdropped from afar.

But the most magnificent and unexpected specimen was a phoenix that suddenly swooped in and perched on a branch right in Moondancer’s line of sight. Such marvellous beauty; Moony never saw a wild specimen before, but she’d seen Princess Celestia’s pet phoenix before. Come to think of it, it did looked a lil’ like Philomena herself, but maybe all phoenixes tended to look like that.

"Dancer! Dancer, can you see and hear her too, or is it just me?"

Too far in the zone to pay attention to anything said around her, Moondancer got a little flustered when Dazzle Dawn’s hoof-grabbing caused her to lose sight of the phoenix. “Awww, I had a wild phoenix in my sights Dazzle! It’ll take me forever now to... find... it.....?” Right in the middle of scanning the trees, that same phoenix swooped back into sight of the binoculars, this time spreading out its wings like a flashy show-off. It was almost as if it wanted to be noticed by everypony, and Moony was all too happy to provide the mythical bird with an audience, even as a co-ruler of Equestria made her approach.

[starswirlthebearded]

The princess giggled at Dazzle's reaction. Though she supposed it was only natural. What were the chances of meeting here of all places? The princess was rather amused by the pony's reaction, and even more amused by Moondancer's absentmindedness of the situation. Philomena saw to her amusement at least... in her own way that is. Naturally Presteza was rather enjoying the situation, after the kissing booth it wasn't likely that she'd still be nervous around the princess, especially when she knew (or at least likely figured) that she was out to relax.

The princess giggled at Presteza's words "I do not think that will be necessary Miss Presteza, as I am certain that I am real." Celestia playfully responded. "Though if you would like to anyway to prove to Miss Dazzle, I would not be upset." Celestia said smiling. Celestia was familiar with this particular group of friends, having met each one of them before, and one of them working under her as an Intern at her school where she had met two of them. Dazzle though she hadn't seen since the commencement ceremony. Celestia had heard that she went on to Canterlot University as did Moondancer. Likely they were both taking a break from school. "It is a pleasure to see you again Miss Presteza and Miss Dazzle. I hope you are both doing well. Especially you Dazzle, I heard you moved onto Canterlot University after graduating my school. I hope you are doing as well as Moondancer is." Celestia acknowledged the familiar ponies glancing over at the clearly distracted intern....

Speaking of Moondancer it seemed that Philomena was trying very hard to get noticed by Moondancer, and was becoming frustrated that Moondancer was not recognizing her. Surely she remembered her... Either way she would not take this! After she made sure to be found again by the binocular wielding mare, she swooped down onto the mare's horn and bent over to look directly back at Moondancer through the binoculars. Celestia saw that Philomena was clearly enjoying herself with Moondancer. Celestia cantered up to Moondancer "I do believe Philomena is a bit disappointed that you do not recognize her Moondancer" Celestia playfully postulated of her pet's actions quietly to Moondancer. "And I do hope that your vacation will not be hampered by the presence of your boss." Celestia made her presence rather clear to Moondancer with a wink and a grin. It is nice to spend a vacation with a few nice ponies away from the stress of having to rule...

[RarityDash]

((ooc: I know I should probably wait for Corsair, but...))

“Awww, I had a wild phoenix in my sights Dazzle! It’ll take me forever now to... find... it.....?”

"Trust me, Dancer, this is even more awesome than a phoenix," she said at once as Dancer protested, not letting go until her good buddy was looking right at the princess.

​

"Well I can sure see 'er and hear 'er, Dazzle... do ya want me ta risk pokin her ta see if she's material too? It's nice ta see ya again, Yer highness. I trust yer hear fer some relaxation time yerself with all that's gone I think you definitely deserve some downtime."

Dazzle shook her head at once and lifted a hoof before the painter pony. "No, you don't poke princesses, Teza, it's rude," she said like she was sure, but she wasn't really. She didn't really have any clue how to act around princesses. She had only met Celestia at school events and was pretty sure she had made her fool of herself every single time, with lots of squealing and staring and heavy breathing and such.

Presteza seemed more natural with the princess. It was pretty impressive really. She just seemed so relaxed like this wasn't completely out of the world in every single way to have a princess just suddenly show up out of nowhere. It sure had Dazzle excited at least.

​

"I do not think that will be necessary Miss Presteza, as I am certain that I am real. Though if you would like to anyway to prove to Miss Dazzle, I would not be upset. It is a pleasure to see you again Miss Presteza and Miss Dazzle. I hope you are both doing well. Especially you Dazzle, I heard you moved onto Canterlot University after graduating my school. I hope you are doing as well as Moondancer is."

And then, with just a few words, Dazzle's enthusiasm took a major hit. The Princess had to say that kind of thing, didn't she? She had to bring up the university and how she was doing there. She grinned vacantly as she looked, still half in wonder at the tall and beautiful alicorn who was starting at her with those kind eyes. What did she even say now? "I can only pass anything by depriving myself of sleep and good health." "I've started to question how I ever got into your school at all given I'm not in anyway I can see particularly gifted..."

No, Dazzle couldn't say those things. She couldn't actually even think those kind of things very long. She was an unflagging optimist after all, not to mention a supremely silly young mare. Instead she just smiled her awkward smile and looked right at the princess. "You know me, Princess," she started, but immediately felt foolish, wondering why or how the princess would even remember the bottom ranked filly in her graduating class at all. "I'm keeping with it and pushing ahead!"

​

[Bellosh]

"Trust me, Dancer, this is even more awesome than a phoenix."

"I do believe Philomena is a bit disappointed that you do not recognize her Moondancer. And I do hope that your vacation will not be hampered by the presence of your boss."

And so it was that due to Dazzle Dawn’s incessant dragging, the next thing Moondancer saw through her binoculars was a very familiar pearly-white alicorn. A second later, the phoenix touched down right on the unicorn’s horn, something that a wild bird not accustomed to ponies intruding on their habitat would do. It was only then that Moony finally realized that the phoenix was none other than good ole’ Philomena.

Not thinking to put down her binoculars, Moondancer goofily smiled as Princess Celestia confirmed her pet’s presence. “Hiya Philomena!” the young mare waved to the phoenix with her other hoof; “Don’t you know it’s like, rude to pretend you’re a part of the natural environment? .......Awww, who I’m kidding? It’s great seeing ya’ around, big bird!”

Moondancer set down her binoculars, extending her freed foreleg to give Philomena a more suitable perch. Meanwhile, she merrily turned her focus towards Celestia, one of the last ponies anyone would expect to go on vacation; “Hey Boss! Is it REALLY true that you haven’t taken a vacation in a thousand years? I can’t last six months without one, you know. Still,” Moony deviously smirked; “Isn’t it a bit too coincidental that you and Philomena just happened to run into me, of all ponies, on Thunderhooves Island?”

[Pretzelparty]

The princess giggled at Presteza's words "I do not think that will be necessary Miss Presteza, as I am certain that I am real." Celestia playfully responded. "Though if you would like to anyway to prove to Miss Dazzle, I would not be upset."

"No, you don't poke princesses, Teza, it's rude,"

​

Presteza chuckled a bit at Dazzle's declaration. In normal circumstances poking a princess would be potentially problematic, it would obviously be bad if somepony just walked up and poked the princess while she was meeting dignitaries from a foreign land. In this setting however it was fairly obvious that the princess was here to relax and honestly presteza couldn't blame her, the sun princess could obviously use a break what with the the changeling invasion on nightmare night last year that she herself wound up resolving (after being caught for the second time in one of those yucky slime cocoons.)

"Well... she already said it's fine if I prove it and if she's immaterial than I can't do any harm!" she said in a slightly perky tone reminiscent of the usual demeanor she'd adopt when her artistic passion was already alight. Calmly the mare stepped forth and reached her hoof up and pokes the princess' muzzle, smushing it in slightly for a moment before she turned back to Dazzle and Moondancer."Yep! she's real." she said to her friends with a giggle.

"It is a pleasure to see you again Miss Presteza and Miss Dazzle. I hope you are both doing well. Especially you Dazzle, I heard you moved onto Canterlot University after graduating my school. I hope you are doing as well as Moondancer is."

"Likewise, yer Highness. How's the royal life been treatin' ya?" The painter said after removing her hoof from the princess's nose, leaving one or two grains of sand by accident. "Is there anypony escortin' ya? I imagine the Royal guard wouldn't be willin' ta let ya travel by yerself even on vacation... especially a certain grey stallion in their ranks." she said with a playful wink hoping the princess knew which guard she spoke of.

[starswirlthebearded]

Celestia was elated to have found some ponies to share with her vacation with. A quiet vacation was fine, but a fun vacation was far better. The sun princess smiled at the various reactions to her words. Moondancer and Presteza were especially fun. Dazzle on the other hoof didn't quite seem to know how to handle the situation. This was pretty evident from her response to Celestia's query. "I see you have not changed Dazzle." Celestia responded, though she was not an exceptional student, being even admitted to Celestia's school and completing course work was a task upon itself. It was not easy. Celestia was certain that if Dazzle applied herself she could do great things. "I suppose you were needing this vacation away from the academic life." Celestia said playfully, clearly seeing the unease in the mare.

Philomena, still on her perch atop Moondancer began preening her wing, glad to finally have the attention she sought after. The phoenix made a happy call that reciprocated the feelings of Moondancer. Seemingly to try and make it up to her ['pretending' to be part of the environment that is] the rare bird decided to have a bit of fun and fly high into the canopy. Philomena loved to make a show, and this was no different. Using the light from the sun and the phoenix's own natural ability, she put on a light show that many would love to see... After she was done she swooped back down and landed on the extended leg and rubbed her beak against Moondancer's face.

Celestia giggled at Moondancer's query to how long she had last vacationed. "A thousand years....? What gave you that idea?" Celestia playfully asked, knowing full well what Moondancer implied. In truth she really hadn't, not an actual vacation like this. She had days off, and time to herself, but to take an actual leave of absence without worry was hard without her sister. True, her council was capable of holding short time, being away from Canterlot always proved... difficult... So for Celestia, with her sister performing the daily tasks that she would need to take care of, this was her first true vacation. "Moondancer, I hope that you are not insinuating that I, your boss, conspired against you by asking every pony who knows you to where you were heading for vacation and planned my own trip accordingly, just so that I may be able to ruin your vacation?" Celestia remarked, with a bit of a playfully sarcastic tone. "That sounds like something Twilight Sparkle would claim. Have you been spending much time around my former pupil?" Celestia said jokingly. Her excitable student always made for some interesting stories with her imagination.

With that bit of fun out of the way Presteza proceeded to take the princess up on her offer and poke her muzzle. Celestia flinched and let out a bit of a sneeze from the dust on the mare's hoof. "It is a good thing I am not your mother, otherwise I'd fear that somepony may have ended up with a new mane and coat, or the sun suddenly set" Celestia said jokingly, knowing quite well Presteza's mothers issues with magic and sneezing. With the clear declaration of her being real she went straight into asking about 'the royal life.' "It has been rather adequate. Aside from random attacks, and creatures making trouble, it has been all rather quiet in Equestria." Celestia answered earnestly "As for guards... They did send one pony along to escort me, Bonfire... Your brother was given another assignment I believe. It is quite a shame too... Having both of you here would have made the trip much more entertaining." She said with a wink.

[Bellosh]

"Moondancer, I hope that you are not insinuating that I, your boss, conspired against you by asking every pony who knows you to where you were heading for vacation and planned my own trip accordingly, just so that I may be able to ruin your vacation? That sounds like something Twilight Sparkle would claim. Have you been spending much time around my former pupil?"

After Philomena finished one of her spectacular fire shows (“That was your best light display yet, birdie,” Moondancer said to the perched phoenix; “Maybe you and Celestia should become travelling performers”), there was an accusation from Celestia that required contesting. “Whaaa, ME?” the unicorn acted coyly, batting her eyes in the direction of one of Equestria’s sovereign rulers; “I would never suggest anything of that dastardly nature. Am I right, big bird?” Moony hoped giving Philomena a nuzzle would produce a desired response.

When the introductions all finished up, Moondancer had another thing she wanted to ask Princess Celestia about; “So Boss, where are you and your guard staying at? You’ve got a hotel reservation like the rest of us, or did you score something more awesome?” Moony’s excited stare provided a clue that if Celestia does have a cool hangout on this island, that she should let them all check it out.

[Corsair]

Bonfire shifted uncomfortably on a beach chair. Other guests at the resort seemed to find them perfectly comfortable, but he couldn't see how. He tried to distract himself with the scenery; the ocean was actually rather pretty here, but he was not one for swimming. Fire and water just didn't mix in his mind.

A serving pony approached Bonfire, leaving a drink on the tray next to him. He nodded to the pony in thanks, but then frowned at the drink. What was the point of putting little paper umbrellas in a drink? He levitated the glass to his lips, and grimaced at the taste. It seemed that everything from the bar here was fruity. What was wrong with ale, or a nice hard cider? Sighing, he sipped from the drink anyway, discarding the umbrella on the tray.

It was only his first real day here, and Bonfire was convinced that this whole 'working vacation' thing just wasn't going to work. Somepony needed to be there to watch the Princess, he didn't question that part of his orders. Even now, she was just out of ear shot. He just didn't think he could do the 'relaxing' part. He liked his job! Granted, he'd rather be stationed outside of Canterlot, but he always enjoyed the chance to work with young soldiers. Ok, maybe he'd been stressed after the failures in security at the palace, and maybe he'd been a bit rough on some of the guards... Bonfire sighed again. Ok, he could see the Captain's point, but still... This place was just not his idea of relaxing.

Seeing a flash overhead, Bonfire saw Philomena flying over. The phoenix was putting a on quite a show, actually. He looked over his shoulder at the Princess when Philomena landed. Princess Celestia was talking to 3 young mares, and she seemed familiar with all of them. It seemed to be a quite a coincidence that the first ponies that she encountered on her vacation were ponies that she already knew. In fact, was it a bit too much of a coincidence? Bonfire wasn't good at spells, but he had forced himself to learn a spell that was supposed to detect changelings. His horn nearly lit with that spell before he stopped himself. The unicorn grit his teeth, and forced himself to relax. Sometimes a coincidence was just a coincidence.

Bonfire shifted in the chair once more, before giving up. He had to get up and move. He got to his hooves, and levitated his drink next to him as he approached the Princess and her companions. He arrived just as a white unicorn was asking where the princess was staying. "Her Highness has a private cabin in the resort," he answered. "I have my own room nearby, so as to not disturb her privacy."

[RarityDash]

"Well... she already said it's fine if I prove it and if she's immaterial than I can't do any harm!Yep! she's real."

It was alarming how naturally both Teza and Dancer could play it with the princess right there. Dazzle was still positively starstruck. Just being near to Celestia had her all jittery and nervous. It made her wonder if all the ponies around her were all just really incredible and it was just her who was a big old easily intimidated goofball.

​

"I see you have not changed Dazzle I suppose you were needing this vacation away from the academic life."

"Yeah..." Dazzle admitted, looking sad for a moment. "At this rate, I'm starting to wonder if I'll even make it all the way through..." she said as she recalled her school time frustration. "But that's why time off spent with friends is so awesome!" she said, finding more cheer. "I can put it all aside and just be happy with everything for a while."

After this, Dazzle went quiet for a while. She wasn't as able to talk freely to the princess as Dancer and Teza were, so she didn't know what to say as the conversation continued. She tried to keep up with it, but instead mostly just went to admiring Celestia's beautiful phoenix for a while until eventually a stallion approached them. She could tell that he was the guard assigned to protect Celestia from how he spoke when he approached them. Celestia had told Teza he was called Bonfire. He looked like the type who could use more smiles in his life. Dazzle skipped toward him.

"Nice to meet you, Firey! I'm Dazzle Dawn!" she said as she grinned at him cheerfully. "it must be awesome getting to guard the princess, huh? She even takes you with you on vacation!"

​

[Pretzelparty]

"It is a good thing I am not your mother, otherwise I'd fear that somepony may have ended up with a new mane and coat, or the sun suddenly set"

"It has been rather adequate. Aside from random attacks, and creatures making trouble, it has been all rather quiet in Equestria. As for guards... They did send one pony along to escort me, Bonfire... Your brother was given another assignment I believe. It is quite a shame too... Having both of you here would have made the trip much more entertaining." She said with a wink.

The young mare blinked a moment once the Princess sneezed. Given how much the Princesses of Equestria -specifically Celestia- were very much idolized, it was a bit hard for Presteza to imagine Celestia sneezing at all... but given her previous interactions with the sun princess she didn't find it near as surprising as she did when she was a filly. Celestia's word very easily brought the freckled painter some laughter as she remembered when she first found out her mother shared problem with her,"No Foalin'... A shame though, since I always wondered how I'd look with a blonde or red mane, then again that'd kinda mess with my whole paintbrush motif I've got goin'!" In Regards to her question about how Royal life was going, the answer was more or less what she expected even thought Pressy had a hunch the Princess may be a tad more weary than she was letting on in regards to running Equestria.

When the princess brought up her brother appearing for this trip a grin spread over the unicorn's face,"Oh yea, that'd be great. Then we could both mess with 'im a little. I've got a whole bunch o' fun stories I could tell ya about from when we were travelin' tagether." That period of Presteza and Silverheart's lives together was filled with plenty of misadventures, silly events, and a few embarassing situations that could make for quite a lively conversation. Before Presteza could elaborate on any of those stories, she was interrupted when she noticed the fantastical light-show that was brought about by none other than Philomena: Princess Celestia's Phoenix companion. The brilliant red Avian soon perched on Moondancer's hoof and settled down to nuzzle the reddish maned mare. It didn't take long for Pressy to give Philomena a round of applause in the usual pony style, "That was awesome! Maybe I should paint your friend there sometime Princess. Philomena is definitely a photogenic phoenix!"

[starswirlthebearded]

As Moondancer nuzzled Philomena, she somewhat knew what she was doing, and the mischevious bird decided to play along and look up and give a nod to Moondancer's inquiry. Celestia giggled in response to the two clearly playing off each other. Moondancer then inquired as to Celestia's arrangements while in Corralwood. Bonfire who had just showed up chimed in, and Celestia decided to expound on it a bit. "I did make my arrangements through the hotel, but I am actually staying at a private villa. When making them I was actually offered it... I suppose they reserve them for high profile guests, which is appreciated. As Sgt Bonfire has said, he is staying in a room not too far off." Celestia said smiling. "In fact, why don't you girls return with me. I have plenty of room in the Villa, in fact, being the only pony in such a big villa feels rather lonely, I would appreciate the company." Celestia graciously offered. It truly was rather big, at least in the castle there was always somepony around, whether it be a guard, one of the council members, or another member of the castle staff, so Celestia never once felt alone, even when her sister wasn't there.

At that point Dazzle sounded really self-defeatist... and Celestia could not have that! "You shouldn't be so hard on yourself Dazzle, you have great potential, otherwise you would have not made it into, nor through my school for gifted unicorns. You just need to believe in yourself." Celestia said with a warm smile. "But yes, there is nothing better than time spent with friends. Which is why I am rather happy I ran into you fillies. I mean Philomena is great company but she is not the greatest conversationalist." As Celestia said that, Philomena clearly took offense and looked away putting her beak in the air. "Oh come now Philomena...." That's when Dazzle introduced herself to Bonfire. Celestia embarrassingly interjected "Well... I didn't exactly take him along... This was supposed to be just Philomena and my vacation...However the Captain of the guard had other plans and sent Sgt Bonfire on ahead..." Celestia said looking away. It wasn't that she didn't want a guard to accompany her... ok... yes that is exactly what she wanted. She just wanted to get away from castle life entirely, and having a guard there would prevent that. Thinking on it though, it was probably selfish of her. She knew that an extended vacation would not be like one of her dayspa trips where guards wouldn't be needed....

Celestia laughed along with Presteza. "You know that could be arranged without a magical mishap from a sneeze," Celestia said with a grin. "As for your paintbrush motif, I'm sure you could easily say that it is just a paint covered paintbrush," Celestia retorted playfully. Presteza then spoke of her brother and how she'd like to mess with him by telling, what Celestia assumed would be embarrassing stories. "I would not be opposed to hearing some of those stories regardless of Silverheart's presence" Celestia replied mischievously, clearly planning on using the information to have some fun next time they saw each other. Celestia may be the princess, but that does not mean she can not have fun in her own way, and it can't be said that she does not have a sense of humor when it comes to other ponies.

That is when Presteza slyly appealed to Philomena's own vanity... The big phoenix did enjoy getting painted. there were almost as many paintings of her as there were of Celestia in the castle. When she heard the idea of being painted, she looked at the area where the light was coming into the canopy and decided that would be the perfect place to pose for a painting. She immediately flew up and perched so that the light shining through made her look like she was ablaze. Celestia rolled her eyes at this. "Philomena, do you really need another painting of yourself?" The phoenix looked over and nodded at her owner and quickly resumed her pose, looking forward to being painted.

[Bellosh]

"...In fact, why don't you girls return with me. I have plenty of room in the Villa, in fact, being the only pony in such a big villa feels rather lonely, I would appreciate the company."

“Hmmmmm...” Moondancer kinda already had a plan afterwards once she and her gang finished their bird-watching expedition, but the unicorn mare also couldn’t ignore the Boss’s request to come over to the private villa. In the end, it was not that terribly difficult to make a decision. “...Sure thing Boss!” Moony answered nonchalantly, as if Celestia was just another of her friends and not a revered alicorn princess. The young mare cheerfully turned to her companions; “You gals cool with stopping by Celestia’s vacation villa?”

OOC: Bit short, but meh. XD

[Corsair]

"Nice to meet you, Firey! I'm Dazzle Dawn!  It must be awesome getting to guard the princess, huh? She even takes you with you on vacation!"

​

"Err, um, nice to meet you, Miss Dazzle," Bonfire said uncertainly as the enthusiastic young mare spoke to him.  He drew himself up proudly at her question though.  "Its an honor to serve Her Majesty.  Wouldn't want to do anything else."  He sagged a bit, and added, "However..."

 

"Well... I didn't exactly take him along... This was supposed to be just Philomena and my vacation...However the Captain of the guard had other plans and sent Sgt Bonfire on ahead..."

 

Bonfire winced.  "Err, yes, that..." he grumbled.  He turned to the Princess and bowed his head.  "My apologies, again, Your Highness," he said, respectfully.  "I hope you understand that the Captain and the rest of the Guard are just... concerned about you.  There have been too many... close calls recently."  That was certainly a sore point for the Guard.  In the last few years, Celestia had been injured and imprisoned in a cocoon by a bug, then kidnapped and trapped by a plant, then had been banished into Tartarus along with Princesses Luna and Cadance by a giant, magic eating centaur!  Each was a hit to the pride of the Guard, and they were determined not to let anything like that happen again.  Bonfire shivered involuntarily at the memory of his own brush with Tirek.  Having his magic forcefully removed from his body...  The unicorn had never felt colder in his life...

 

Too late, Bonfire realized that he might be killing the mood.  The Princess was here to have a vacation, after all.  She didn't need to be reminded of those things.  He stepped back, then gave a more personal apology.  "Sorry, Your Highness," he said, looking away.

 

Bonfire listened as the Princess made plans with the trio of mares.  When the Princess mentioned Silverheart, he looked closely at the tan mare with the hat.  He was familiar with her bother, and could see the family resemblance...  probably more resemblance than Silverheart would want to admit to...

 

The stallion shook he head, trying to shake the mood he was in.  He had to try to make this best of this.  Wanting to feel useful, he asked, "Princess, would you like me to have the resort staff prepare your villa for your guests?"

[RarityDash]

Dazzle Dawn blushed at the princess' words. She didn't have a lot of confidence in herself, but knowing that the princess had faith in her, it made her feel a little more like maybe she could do it after all.

 

"Well, thank you, princess. That really means a lot, coming from you," she said in a softened voice, unable to really say anything more to the princess.  She turned her attention more fully to her guard as he started to explain things, only for the princess herself to interject after a while.

 

Dazzle listened and nodded as she considered what was said. "I see, I see..." she said.

 

"But that's one thing I never got. Doesn't the princess have like more powerful magic than anypony? If that's the case, why does she really need guards? Wouldn't she be better able to deal with danger that pops up than anypony else around?" she asked, really curious.

​

[Pretzelparty]

 

The blue eyed pony grinned playfully, "Oh, I've got sooooooooooooooo many ta tell, I do. " she said with a chuckle. It was nice to be part of the princess' mischievous side rather than a target of it... and one of the perks about having siblings is the embarassing stories to share, but then again, Silver probably had even more stories about her since she was the youngest sibling. When the phoenix took her spot in the canopy, Presteza chuckled and took a good long look at her, "Well, Philomena... I don't have all my supplies with me right now, but." The mare took a fairly large sketchbook out of one of her saddlebags and and began to work, her magic aura taking control of the pencil while the manipulator spoke, "I've got a good eye fer color, if I do say so myself. SO I should be able to detail it later... care to give your thoughts?" The mare levitated her sketchpad and turned it face her latest model.

 

 

While Philomena hopefully checked out her latest portrait, Pressy Grinned brightly at Moondancer and the princess, "That sound absolute, oresome... er awesome!"  she said with a chuckle. Her excitement combined with her accent, sometimes made the pronunciation of words a bit confusing for others.

 

Pressy hadn't really spoken very much to Dazzle dawn. She resolved to fix that now, and since she heard a part of her conversation with the princess' guard, "Well, As magically strong as the princess is, I'm  told there are ways to counter even the strongest of magics by weaker mages. There are even some caribou who have armor that absorbs unicorn magic... Also even strong spells can take a moment to charge the appropriate amount of magic needed to exeute them and that can leave you open to many attacks that you might not see coming.. my dad and mum told me some stuff ta keep in mind should I get in a fight when I'm traveling..."

[starswirlthebearded]

Celestia looked at Moondancer who seemed offput by the offer, but accepted anyway. At her affirmative reply Celestia nodded.

 

Bonfire elaborated on why he was sent, noting several close calls. Though in reality Celestia knew they were far more than "close." She knew that the magic of friendship and the Tree of Harmony opening new doors when another closed were the only reason Equestria was still safe. That said, few knew where Celestia was heading, the Captain of the guard was one, as was her sister and her direct adviser who was given instructions on what to do while she was away. The sergeant paused for a while and promptly apologized. likely because he knew that it was a subject that no pony wished to discuss on vacation. "It is quite alright Sergeant. I am well aware of the recent close calls and understand why you were sent. However... Understanding and agreeing are totally different. I do not believe that anything will happen, especially considering how few knew of my destination..."

 

Before the others could reply to Moondancer's query Bonfire took the initiative and asked the princess if she would like to have her villa prepared for guests. Considering that there was already plenty of food and activities at the villa the princess didn't think it would be necessary. She really didn't even do much in it other than unpack what little she brought with her. "I do not think that will be necessary Bonfire. The villa was already prepared for multiple guests." the princess replied to the sergeant. She appreciated the thought but at the same time did not wish to trouble the staff needlessly. 

 

Dazzle Dawn blushed at the princess's words and replied rather meekly. Celestia smiled warmly with an affirming nod at her response. Celestia believed in all of her students, past and present, and it seemed as though her words had a positive effect on Dazzle's confidence. Which lead to a rather delicate question. And before she could answer Miss Presteza interjected first.

"It is true what Miss Presteza says. Our knowledge of the world and magic is not the be all and end all. There are many things that I still likely do not know even after my years learning and studying. New magic surfaces all the time in the hearts of ponies either from the manifestation of their cutie marks or from brilliant ponies like Twilight Sparkle and Star Swirl the Bearded whom actively invent new magics. And there is no telling how the new magic can affect other magic. There are creatures whom have created magic defense and others whom have natural magic defense." The princess agreed with the painter. "That does not mean however that I am incapable of dealing with such situations as they arise. The captain was being overly  cautious due to recent events, and even without the guard, many precautions were taken to ensure my safety in light of recent events."

 

The painter replied to the princess excitedly, apparently looking forward to telling the princess all manner of stories about her brother. "I look forward to hearing about them all. We should have plenty of time for such things when we reach the villa." Celestia said with a slightly mischievous smile, looking forward to not only learning more about one of her trusted guard, but also the thought of being able to have further fun with him.

 

Philomena was a vain bird and swooped down the instant she heard that the painter was done. Philomena looked at the picture judgingly, tilting her head and examining it closely while perched on Celestia's horn. Eventually she nodded in approval, despite the plainness and let out a happy squawk. Celestia shook her head. "Please take your time Miss Presteza...as I said, she hardly has need of another portrait of herself. Though I find it surprising you do not have more supplies for painting while you are out here. I would think Corralwood Corral would be a place that had a plethora of things to paint." The princess spoke up, once again rising ire in her pet  who seemed offended by Celestia's implication of vainness, but this time not making a scene about it.  Instead she decided to start flying on her own instead of traveling perched in a sense of rebellion.

 

With the affirmation from Miss Presteza Celestia nodded "Then we shall head back?" The princess inquired and quickly added." However I will understand if you would like to finish your birdwatching, and would love to join you if you'll have me" The princess said with a smile leaving the next destination in the hooves of the three fillies.

[Bellosh]

OOC: Sorry guys, but this post will be super-short. I don't feel like I got much to work with, and I'm not feeling all that inspired anyway.

 

 

"Then we shall head back?" The princess inquired and quickly added." However I will understand if you would like to finish your birdwatching, and would love to join you if you'll have me"

 

"Well," Moondancer replied; "Our birdwatching luck kinda ran dry a while ago, so I think we're ready to head to your place. You know, it's amazing how many rare bird species live in the rainforest. I bet they'd really get along with Philomena!" And so as the group headed to Princess Celestia's villa, Moony began describing all the birds she and her friends spotted during the last few hours.....

[Corsair]

Bonfire sighed inwardly at the Princesses' response.  It wasn't unexpected, but it just reminded him how useless he felt here.  Bonfire liked being a soldier and a guard.  This enforced vacation really made him feel as if he was out of his element.

 

The stallion took a deep breath, considering the Princess's plans for the day.  She appeared to know and trust all of these young mares, and if they were just going to stay in the villa for the evening, his presence was probably not necessary.  Besides, Celestia would likely forbid him from guarding the door as would have been done at the Palace.  That's not to say he wouldn't check in from time to time, however.  Maybe he would go for a gallop around the island to burn off his frustration...

 

Finally, he turned back to the Princess and said, formally, "Very well, Your Highness.  I will leave you and your young guests to your day."  He bowed his head and began to move away, once again wondering what the hay he was going to do while he was here...

[RarityDash]

"I see, I guess that makes sense..." Dazzle said somewhat vacantly to both what Presteza and the princess said to her. She wasn't sure she entirely got it. It was hard for her to imagine a situation where the princess would be rendered ineffective. It was one of those things that was just too daunting to think about, so she'd just rather not.

 

The unicorn went quiet after that and sort of shrunk into the background. She only piped up when Moondancer suggested they go back to the princess' villa. "W-we're really going back with the princess?" she started nervously, still not sure any of this was entirely right. "We wouldn't be imposing?"

​

[Pretzelparty]

 

A playful smirk curled its way on to presteza's lips, "Oh I can't wait ta share 'em!" The mare then rolled the scroll up and placed it in her saddlebags for later completion. Once again hoping to add to the conversation with Dazzle Dawn, pressy spoke up with a little bit of information, "My mum researches new magic as well, in addition to teaching... but you knew that already, princess. SO why did I say that?" She asked her self looking somewhat contemplative

 

"Anyway, I'm ready ta go whenever everyone else is!" she said perkily to nopony in particular.

[starswirlthebearded]

The princess listened to the replies from the three girls who seemed to be all for returning to the villa. Celestia listened to Moony talking about Philomena and the various birds she had seen during their trip. "I see... You seem to have been bird watching for a while." Celestia interjected "While I'm sure none were as rare as a pheonix, which bird was your favorite?" This was just small talk obviously while they made their way through the path back to the private villa.

 

Dazzle's nervous question about imposing on the herself made Celestia laugh audibly. "Dazzle it would be my pleasure to have you girls over my villa." Celestia replied smiling "After all, as nice as it is to be alone and relaxing on vacation, spending that time with friends makes it that much better. Don't you agree?" Dazzle always did seem to be a nervous one and unsure of herself, this would not do, as she was one of Celestia's precious alumnus.

 

Celestia looked at Presteza and smiled "And I look forward to hearing of them, perhaps we can discuss such things over some snacks back at the villa." Celestia gave a pause "Speaking of, are any of you girls hungry? The villa is fully stocked... And while I may not have my chefs with me, I'm not incapable of preparing food." Celestia turned to Bonfire "While I may not have agreed to the captain sending you on ahead, you are here now, and are welcome to join us..." Celestia paused and wore a slightly serious expression "Under one condition.... that you actually try and enjoy yourself. Perhaps you'll hear some stories about one of your REA colleagues" Celestia said playfully winking at Pressy.