[Non-Sponsered] Gala Apple Style

[RainbowFoxxy]

 

Inside the grand ballroom everything was going along as a gala always tended to; ponies dancing, nibbling on treats, conversing in low tones. It was a dignified affair, full of Canterlot's finest along with dignitaries from across the world all dressed up fancy and trying to impress each other...all that hoity toity nonsense was enough to make you head for the hills...however, there appeared to be something coming out of the hills...

 

Dust puffed up from the carriage stop area outside the castle grounds. Whooping and hollering could be heard from all around. Two wagons ulled up and halted. When the dust cleared bunches of hooves hit the cobblestones as the passengers unloaded themselves. 

 

"Yeehaw! Now that was a trip!"

 

"You kin say that agin cuz!"

 

"Where's the food? Lead me to the apple pies!"

 

The Apple family had arrived at the Grand Galloping Gala.

 

Applejack hopped down from one of the wagons, grinning from ear to ear. She had taken Twilight's invitation for her to invite her family to the letter. Never had so many Apples attempted to visit such a classy affair. Of course all of them had done their best to appear the part. Fancy outfits abounded along with freshly groomed coats, and brushed manes and tails...for thr most part. 

 

"Apple Bloom? You comin' sugarcube?"

 

She was so proud of her little sister. This was going to be her first gala! Abby had grown up so much. Not only did she have her cutie mark now, but she was fast turning into a grown mare. 

 

"A'm really lookin' forward tah gettin' tah share this special night with you sis!" She hooked her sister into a side hug. "A'm so proud of you!"

 

Applejack turned to the wagons. "Alright Apples, let's show em' how a gala should be done!"

[Mojo]

 

 Granny Smith

 Uncle Apple Strudel

 

 

Gently climbing down out of one of the wagons was the Matriarch of the Apply Family, Granny Smith, followed by her younger brother, Uncle Apple Strudel.  Both joined into the 'group shout' as Applejack led the way.

 

"YEE HAW!  We made it, brother!" Granny Smith neighed, dressed in a very old fashioned style checkered dress with bonnet.  "Now we're gonna git ta see what all the fuss is about!"

 

"Dee Gala is dee most important social function of dee year, mein sister," Uncle Apple Strudel replied, wearing his traditional green outfit with matching hat.

 

"Maybe so, but the most important thing ta me is watchin' all mah family have'n a good time!  Especially little Apple Bloom!"

 

"Javol, mein sister!  Und I can't vait to see her make a grand entrance into dee Gala!  Maybe vee vill meet royalty tonight!"

 

The two elderly Earth ponies now stood by, waiting for more members of the Apple Family to climb out of the wagons.

[SteelEagle]

 

Apple Bloom was so excited to be at the Grand Galloping Gala this year! She'd been to them before but this time it sure as hay felt different. She was here with her family primarily unlike last time when she was with her friends. And then her and her friends were very much aware of what little fillies they were, the only blank flanks and not really allowed into any of the fun areas. It wasn't like they hadn't had any fun at all mind you but all things told she would rather have stayed home and played with Winona and ate ice cream. But she was willing to give the Gala a chance again this year because she was now a different pony. She was a Crusader still, but she had her cutie mark and she felt strangely...older.

 

After she and her friends had received their cutie mark, life had been turning up Apple Bloom. She had a bit of a growth spurt- well, that's what AJ said anyway. And Granny. Honestly it was hard to tell. It wasn't like one day you woke up taller and bigger and all that, it was far too gradual for that. And as much as some ponies seemed to grow to their full height bu the time they were her age, she still wasn't. She was growing. She knew that because she had to get new clothes this year! She was loathe to get rid of some of her snazzier outfits, but that was what cousins were for. They operated like clothing depositories for youth anyway. She looked pretty snazzy now! It was the same style of dress as last year, only slightly bigger, Hopefully that wasn't some sort of faux pas!

 

This year it was an all Apple affair. Anypony who was anypony in the family was making their way to Canterlot for this shindig. Of course you needed some special permissions to get into certain areas, certain types of invites, so it wasn't like you were going to see the whole Apple family just rolling on into the Ballroom. But the ride on over had been a lot of fun, and she was excited to see how the evening developed. It also didn't hurt that she got to do it all with the best sister ver! Applejack was an old pro at this Gala stuff by now, and she was willing to learn all the cool tips and tricks on how not to make a foal of herself.

 

"Ah'm comin!" Apple Bloom said as she bounded out of their transport, hopping next to Applejack. "Ah'm excited ta spend it with YOU, Big Sis! Ah bet y'all know everything about these galas, huh? Granny, Great Uncle, y'all ever been here before?"

[RainbowFoxxy]

 

Applejack beamed as her sister hopped out of the wagon. She looked so grown up in her gala dress! It seemed like only yesterday she was helping to raise the little filly and now here she was... a young mare. A surge of pride welled up in AJ as she put a foreleg over Abby.

 

"Would ya jus' lookit that dress! Abby..." She looked away, pretending to fix her forelocks as she wiped away astray tear. "Yer the best sister a mare could ever ask fer! We're gonna have a heap o' fun tahnight!"

 

Granny Smith and Uncle Strudel had made their way out of the transport. "Look out everypony! These two are gonna set the gala on fire with their fancy dance moves aren't ya Granny?"

 

Applejack trotted towards the entrance. "I'd say Hi know a thing er three about galas Abby! Come on Apples! Let's git this shindig rollin'!"

 

It wasn't long before they had made their way inside. AJ suddenly felt her stomach rumble as she glanced about.

 

"Yah know Apples, maybe we should fuel up before we dance?" She glanced at a long table just outside on the lawn that was laden with fancy party fare. 

[Dubstep]

With the presentation ceremony for the fenghuang having gone smoothly, Prince Lián had taken it upon himself to wander the gala in an attempt to find the other heroines of Equestria. He had caught a glimpse of a couple of them off in the ballroom, but with dances starting up, the Qilin didn't want to barge in and interrupt the festivities. Instead he, along with the handmaiden helping him, would seek out the other two instead. Their gifts were among the easier to give anyway.

With no small measure of searching, and no small measure of being stopped to be greeted by nobles and others wanting to greet him, Lián finally had the good fortune to happen upon the arrival of what could be nothing other than the Apple family. He had been told that Applejack's family was numerous, but to such an extent? Family gatherings must have been an interesting thing to see. Scanning the crowd as they came, it thankfully didn't take long for the Qilin to spy the one he had been looking. Making his way over to the, thankfully smaller group, the Prince bowed in greeting. "Greetings, Lady Applejack and family. I hope that I'm not intruding on anything private." with a happy smile the Prince stood once more. "I am Prince Lián of Long Guo, it's wonderful to meet you!"

[RainbowFoxxy]

 

AJ had her eyes set on a rather large apple pie that had been placed in the center of one of the buffet tables. She hadn't realized how hungry she was until she actually saw the food. 

 

RUUuuuummmble

 

The farmpony's tummy growled with longing at the abundant food. So many wondrous morsels to try!

 

"Yeehaw! That food looks is lookin' delicious!" She moved towards the door leading to the garden when in front of her appeared a striking Qilin.

 

The prince made his greeting which diverted AJ's attentions away from the food. She knew how to conduct herself in formal situations and although she hadn't been exactly a lady in all respects thus far, she would do so in greeting royalty.

 

The blond mane cascaded down over her neck as she made a regal bow, sweeping her foreleg before her. "The pleasure is all mine Prince Lian!" She stood upright and smiled her winning smile. "Hi don't believe Hi've had the honor of meetin' a royal of Long Guo yet!"

 

She turned a beckoned her family over. "Let me introduce you to my family. This here is my favorite and only sister Apple Bloom. An' this is my grandmare Granny Smith. An' a'course there's Uncle Apple Strudel." 

[SteelEagle]

 

Applejack certainly could try and hide her emotion all she wanted, but it wouldn't help her much. Apple Bloom knew her sister too well, could hear it in her voice. It was a little embarrassing! Applejack could be overly proud at times but Apple Bloom wasn't about to correct her. Abby definitely wasn't the best sister a mare could ask for. That was Applejack. She was the best pony period a pony could know, and here she was, all lucky like and being able to have her as a sis. She had the best Granny too! And the best Great Uncle! Talk about a spoil of riches. If she could translate this into bits, she'd ow all of Canterlot and the Gala would just be a slumber party.

 

"Hah, AJ, don't y'all be lyin' like that! Everypony knows yer tha best sister, 'cause you're tha best pony, 'cause you're a heroine! Didja know in school one of mah friends wrote a comic book 'bout you? Well, you and tha rest of yer friends, mind you, ad it wasn't like you were tha star- but you should be!" she said, beaming from ear to ear. Now it was time for food. "Fuelin' up sounds like a good idea to me. Do they have any apple fritters? There should be loads of apple fritters here! And pies. Havin' a non-apple gala seems like a really silly idea. Were there any apple treats here last time you were here, Applejack?" She asked before nudging her Granny. "Y'all need to get full 'fore you hit that dance floor, right?"

 

It was then that some strange pony thing appeared. He introduced himself as a Qilin. A Qilin? She ahd to think for a few seconds, but it came to her. Those Pony-Dragons from the Orient? Wow! She was sure she'd never see one, they were so rare. Also a reminder that Spike's infinite crush on Rarity wasn't doomed. He introduced his handsome self, complete with an Apple Bloom blush, before Applejack responded in kind. Apple Bloom did a curtsy. Why did she...? Oh, silence. "Howdy! Ah'm, uhh, I'm, Apple Bloom! Nice t-ta meetcha, Prince! What brings y-you here?"

[Mojo]

Granny and Uncle Apple Strudel quickly answer Apple Bloom's question.

 

"Nein, dis vill me mein first Gala!" the bearded stallion neighed.  "Usually, I go to dee Germaney Tubafest during dee Gala, but dis year, it vas cancelled due to dee threat of avalanches in dee town, so I came here instead!"

 

"I've been ta a lot of these here fancy parties over the years, youngin!  I kin remember back when I was a little filly, they had the first Gala thingie in a great big tent!  An' that's when I.. er.. what was I talkin' about?"

 

"You vere describing dee first Galloping Gala you attended, mein sister."

 

"I was?" Granny Smith asked, only now realizing that Apple Bloom had already moved on to greet the newest arrival to their group, Prince Lian.  When the elderly Earth mare spotted the dragon-pony talking to Apple Bloom, Granny rushed into action, well, at least as fast as a pony her age could rush.

 

"Git away from mah granddaughter, ya mean lookin' dragon critter!" Granny shouted, "Ya ain't gotta eat er bar-bee-que no member of MAH family while I'm around!"

 

"GRANNY!" Uncle Apple Strudel neighed as he galloped to intercept his angry sister before she reached Prince Lian.  "Settle down, mein sister!  This is Prince Lian, a Qilin from a far avay land!  Day are very friendly, you must apologize at vonce!"

 

"Apologize?  To who?" Granny Smith muttered in her confusion.  "All I sees is Apple Bloom talkin' to that thar dragon critter an'.. DRAGON CRITTER!  Git away from.."

 

"Please forgive mein sister, yur highness," the bearded stallion neighed, placing one of his hooves over Granny's mouth.  "She can be startled easily.  I am Apple Strudel, danka for giving our family such a varm velcome!"

[Dubstep]

Just as Lián was preparing to reply to the Apple sisters, his words were cut swiftly off by the distressed voice of their grandmother. Had the Prince been anything like what the court wanted him to be, he'd be insulted. But a good majority of the court could stuff it. Instead the Qilin simply smiled and chuckled softly. "Oh no no, it's quite alright. She merely is looking to keep her family safe, which is truly admirable. Family is one of the most precious things in this world, so I cannot fault her." the prince gave another bow to the Apple family matriarch before turning his attention back towards Applejack and Apple Bloom.

 

"Oh the honor is all mine Lady Applejack, and it's a delight to meet you as well, Lady Apple Bloom!" Lián flashed a winning smile of his own to the sisters before he continued. "As you may be aware, my sister the Empress is here as well, presiding over a ceremony to gift Princess Celestia with a fenghuang. A type of phoenix from our homeland. Between us, it took some weeks of debating on what to bring as gifts and for a time we just could not agree on what to do! Eventually we did decide, and my sister is taking care of her portion right now. Which brings me to why I'm here, we wanted to give gifts to the heroines of Equestria! I promise not to keep you for too long, once again forgive my intrusion." The prince stepped back to meet his handmaiden half way, taking the tall covered gift with a little thank you before returning to the group.
 

"I do apologize if this gift is a little unwieldy for the gala. If it becomes cumbersome I'd be more than happy to deliver it to your home tomorrow." With a small puff of breath, a little white cloud of smoke flowed from the prince's mouth and lifted the cover off of a clearly well taken care of young tree. "I'm real sorry, had I known of your family's arrival and had ample time, I would have brought something for everyone." he said in an apologetic tone before smiling once more. "But this is malus prunifolia, the Long Guo Apple tree. I hope you like it."

[SteelEagle]

 

His voice was so amazing! That was the first thought that popped into her mind, anyway. Well maybe not the first, it was kinda hard to decide what struck hr first or hardest or even if the distinction mattered when she was so twitter-pattered and knocked for a loop. Was it how unique he looked? Them dragon-ponies weren't common in Equestria. You only eve saw them in the big cities in their own small communities but not much was ever made of it. She knew about Long Guo however, and the Longma and the Qilin were in her biology books. They were so amazing! Of course they probably didn't think they were so cool. Because they saw each other all the time. And she knew that he was a Prince! Well because he told them, hehehehe. He. Haha. Hehe.

 

Good Celestia was he handsome.

 

Like really cute.

 

She blushed and looked away. Was she flustered? Come on Apple Bloom, you're around handsome colts and pretty fillies all the time! But he wasn't a colt or a pony, he was a stallion Qilin, young stallion, with the scales and muscles and eyes and face to match. And his clothes were gorgeous. Could he have picked something more fetching? The way his mane was. Also great. Wow. Whee. Okay so wow. His voice was so silky! His demeanor was great. And more importantly he also recognized just how amazing her big sister was. Wow, her heroism really did transcend borders! She knew she was lucky to have her as a sister, but here she was attracting the attention of all sortsa Princes from all sortsa places. Wow and talk about such a sweet gift.But who was that other...? Oh, a handmaiden. Okay, good. Yes. Get the gift please thank you hahaha. With a puff of smoke instead, his gift was revealed.

 

It was an apple tree! And not just any old apple tree, no siree. It was a fancy tree from over yonder the horizon. Some sorta Long Guo tree. She knew about the Neighponese trees as they were kinda popular around Seaddle, but she had never seen such a young malus prunifolia before. Only in books had she seen them at all! And now here it was, just for them. Golly gee that was an awfully nice thing of him to do. And a handsome thing, she meant kind! Kind! Kind thing to do!

 

But he was still awfully handsome.

 

"Granny it's okay! Fine! Alllllll good!" She said, laughing nervously. "T-t-thank you kindly for tha g-gift thar, uhhm, yes, Prince Majesty Lee-Ann. So, uhh," she flipped hr mane and fluttered her eyes wait what does that, "how're you, heh, enjoyin' yer gala?"

[Dubstep]

Who on this great planet decided it was a good idea to make trees so heavy. Even a young tree like this one was heavy, what with the root ball and the dirt to keep in nurtured. Oh well. Gently the prince sat the gift down with another polite bow. So far the Apples were simply delightful! If only the other siblings he had could get along as well as this family seemed to.
 

Something odd did seem to catch his eye however, Apple Bloom's reaction. The blush tinging her cheek and her awkward nervousness. Truth be told it wasn't something Lián was unaccustomed to, he had his fair share of mares and stallions who often would be enamored with him back in Long Guo. Sometimes the attention was wanted, other times...not so much. However the younger Apple sister's reaction certainly made him feel delighted. And the way she pronounced his name was just too precious! "This gala has been wonderful. I'm so glad my sister decided to attend. Honestly I likely would have just came on my own if she hadn't, but that she did is wonderful." the qilin smiled brightly and glanced around with a little sigh. "Wonderful as the gala itself is, it's made even better with such delightful company." he said as he turned to look at Apple Bloom, and the rest, once more.

[SteelEagle]

 

Well you know sometimes the Gala could be loads of fun and you just never knew who you were gonna meet, and that was just great. Just great. Super happy.Because there were so many fun types of ponies here. Big ones, small ones, all sortsa ponies. Some had wings or horns and yeah that happened. Pegasi. Unicorn. Earth. Why was she at a loss for...words and knowledge and stuff? And then you had some non-ponies. The caribou were big and tough and whatever. The Griffons were big and touch and flew and whatever. Unicorns were colorful and whatever. Cool stuff. But there were also- umm, she'd seen a serpent. And a Longma. And a Qilin. And they were also all pretty cool. And all. And yeah cool and all that.

 

Haha. Was it hot out here? Haha.

 

It was. She was breathing harder as he spoke.
 

Yeah screw all those other companions friends umm company, yeah company, he had at the gala, because they weren't so great now were they, right? Well they were hahah maybe she didn't know. She couldn't know. She wouldn't be so presumptuous as to know! And you know, he seemed handsome- err, a good judge of character. And so he probably did surround himself with good company, because he was a Prince, and he could do that stuff and things. With the good company he had! Yes. Oh Gosh his eyes he looked at her- she looked away, but it wouldn't help that her face could have signaled in a blind pegasus in a snow storm. Was he flirting? Was this flirting? Is this hiow flirting happened? She had never flirted.

 

It felt like flirting.

 

It felt like a LOT of things. Mostly very warm.

 

"Haha, that's g-good, yes!" she said nervously, chuckling as she started to fan herself with one hoof, looking everywhere but at him. "I-is it really this h-h-h-hot out here or, uhhm, yes? Inside is it- Granny is it this hot? Applejack, are you hot? Mercy me, it's a s-steamer. It can't b-be just..so...Prince Lee-A-ann, y'all fixin' ta go..." she paused, taking a deep breath, "inside? Uhh, the Gala? Because...that's...where t-the Gala's...at. Is inside."
 

[Dubstep]

Lián was used to a lot of different reactions to his presence. Ranging from confusion to surprise and to...Well this. Sometimes that involved fainting, he dearly hoped that it wouldn't come to that, but she was already as red as a beet and having a difficult time even looking at the prince. What a scene. He couldn't help but to laugh a little bit before nodding politely. "Oh most certainly. I hope to be able to hand out the rest of these gifts to your sister's friends before the night is over. Though if I don't I'm not concerned about extending my stay in Equestria until I've had the chance! Plus it would give me a chance to see the sights." the qilin tapped his chin in thought. That actually wasn't a bad idea, so long as his sister didn't require him, he might go through with the idea regardless.
 

"Perhaps we will run into one another before the night is over? In the ballroom most likely, I plan on going that way once my work is done. If so, I'd be more than happy to save you a dance."

[SteelEagle]

 

Apple Bloom found herself giggling aimlessly, lilting little laughs lollygagging their way out of a mouth that opened so free and easy. She really felt like she had no control and she was also sure she was fine with that setup. Did he knew how charming he was? Of course he was. How couldn't he? He was super charming. As a Prince he probably went to charm school and had charm class and knew how to speak to fillies of all ages to get them to feel all warm and fuzzy inside. And she sure did feel all warm and fuzzy inside. The idea of him staying in Equestria for a while was one she could really get behind, you know, campaigning and such as she imagined that  he would really enjoy all the sights and sounds of Sweet Apple Acres- Umm Ponyville- UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH she meant Canterlot.

 

Because he was royalty, and royalty stayed here and not at the farm.

 

Unless he wanted to.

 

Which she would be okay with really. Super okay.

 

Wait, did he mention a dance? That meant they had to touch each other's hooves and get married! No she didn't mean married she meant- they had to dance and it was super fancy and she had never dance fancied! She meant danced fancy! Hehe, saving dances? You didn't save dances. Did you- did you request a dance and then if you didn't take it at that time it was held off to the side, so when you decided to dance they had to do whatever you wanted? Fancy parties were weird. But this wasn't just fancy it was the gala and he was a Prince and CELESTIA WAS HE ASKING HER TO DANCE?!

 

She snorted as she laughed.

"Oh, savin' a dance, huh?" She batted her eyelashes and sidled up to him. "Who for?"

[Mojo]

After Uncle Apple Strudel managed to calm his sister Granny Smith down, the pair of elderly Earth ponies returned to the group.

 

"Entschuldigung, dear friends und family, Granny Smith has someting to say.  Go ahead mein sister, schell!" 

 

"Well, I not too good at apologizin', but when I'm wrong, I'm wrong!  Surry fer yellin' at ya thar, dragon horsey.  I mistook ya fer one of them thar fierce, angry dragons we have over in Ponyville from time ta time.  Aside from that tiny ol' dragon Spike who pals around with the Princesses, all of the dragons we ever see er mean, fire breathin' critters that ain't very kind.  I remember once a few years ago, thar was a dragon that decided ta take a nap in a mountain cave near town.  That scaly varmint snored up a big buncha black smoke that pertin' near blocked out the sun!  If it wasn't fer ol' Applejack here and her friends, that critter wouldda never left!  Now that I'm seein' ya up close, you don't look no wheres near like a big ol' fire dragon!  I hopes ya kin find it in yur heart ta, furgive me.."

[RainbowFoxxy]

 

AJ's eyes widened at the gift the prince presented. An apple tree! A new variety of apple tree! 

 

"Well, thank ya kindly your grace! I sure do appreciate the gesture. This tree will git a place o' honor on Sweet Apple Acres!" She bowed her head in respect before flicking her attention briefly to her sister. 

 

"Seems like Apple Bloom here is impressed by yer gift as well, ain't ya sister?" She tried to move things along. She knew flirtatious flustering when she saw it from her sis and this was about the limits of how bad it could get. She had seen Abby get this way around colts before but not quite to this level. She was actin' crazier than a chicken on a tin roof and a rain storm!

 

"Come on Applebloom," She smiled graciously at the prince. "We'd best git this tree back to the wagon so we kin git in home nice a secure later on tahnight!"

 

She nodded to the price and his companion. "Thank you agin yer grace! We'll see you inside in a bit!"

[Dubstep]

The prince laughed softly, if the other ponies he'd be trying to meet were half as entertaining and friendly as the Apple family, Lián may have to look into purchasing a vacation home somewhere in Equestria. "Oh for you, Lady Apple Bloom, should you wish that is. I'm sure you and your family will be taking in the sites and sounds of the gala, so there's no rush. If it so happens that we can't tonight, I'll say I owe you a dance the next chance we get, how does that sound?"
 

In short order, the elders of the Apples returned. It seemed Strudle was able to reign in the 'temper' of Granny Smith. The qilin bowed politely to the two of them. "It's fine, don't you worry. No harm was done and all is forgiven. You were only looking after your kin, I can't fault you on that." Applejack, who was trying her darnedest to get Apple Bloom to reel it back in, got another bow from the prince as well. "You're so welcome! I'm glad you like it. And yes, after I've made an attempt to hand out the rest of the gifts, I'm sure we will! Farewell for now!" with one last bow to the family as a whole from the prince and his handmaiden, the two made their exit.