Headcanon: The Orders of Harmony · 4:21pm Oct 9th, 2014
I touched on these in today's entry in Story Shuffle, and I've mentioned them before in Mandatory Fun. Once I noticed that, my muse decided to run with it. What follows is a rundown of what the Orders of Harmony are, how they came to be, and what would be done with them.
Basically, after the Mane Six got Rainbow Power, transformed into a nationwide harmonic carrier wave, and personally returned every pony's magic, there was precisely zero hope of keeping them anonymous. Thus, the Harmonic Normalcy Initiative* was formally scrapped, the Bearers were officially given noble titles, and those who gave them the keys were inducted into the newly created knightly orders.
Of course, the question then became what the Bearers would actually do with those orders. Here's how I see it:
Rarity and the Order of Generosity
Rarity would be over the moon given her title. She would officially go from "Miss Rarity" to "Lady Rarity." She'd be pretty much insufferable for about a week. It would be longer, but that would be when Coco Pommel arrived for her knighting, and she's an excellent moderating influence on Rarity.
Once she settled down, Rarity would design her Order to honor the truly noble, those who actually believed in and behaved according to the ideals that nobility is supposed to embody. Fancy Pants would be on the short list, of course.
Applejack and the Order of Honesty
Applejack would probably want as little to do with her title and anything that came with it as possible, at least at first. Once her friends and family persuaded her that it could be an opportunity, she'd warm up to the Order, if not her ladyship. She tried being a lady once, and that turned out about as well as "Cutie Mark Crusaders Siege Engineers."
As such, Applejack would want knights who actually did things. Not necessarily slaying dragons and rescuing damsels; not nearly enough of either to go around. No, she'd want ponies who would crusade for what was right through action, who'd bring fairness and transparency to whatever they did. With the endorsement of the Bearers, Sir Silver Shill would be Filthy Rich's first serious business competition in years.
Fluttershy and the Order of Kindness
If anypony benefited from the Harmonic Normalcy Initiative, it was Fluttershy. Being thrust in the spotlight—with a noble title, no less—would make her terribly uncomfortable. Still, while Equestria's news cycle isn't quite as fast as ours, it's still fairly rapid, and she'd gratefully become yesterday's news.
As for her Order… well, the first Knight of Kindness is in another universe, which would make the logistics of properly honoring him rather complicated. In choosing the criteria for further knights, Fluttershy would create something along the lines of the Knights Hospitaller, honoring those who give aid selflessly and without regard for what those who sought redemption might have done in the past. Angel Bunny would be the first being to be formally inducted into the Order of Kindness. When asked why, Fluttershy would just smile.
Pinkie Pie and the Order of Laughter
The title would barely even register with Pinkie. It's not like it'd get those fuddy-duds in Canterlot to let loose. They'd just feign politeness.
At first, Pinkie would probably just want to knight Cheese and be done with it. When told she'd need to do a little more than that, she'd want to knight everypony in Ponyville. They're her friends and they make her happy. Surely that exemplifies her Element?
After remembering how nuance works, Pinkie would settle on making an order that commemorates those who shine when it is darkest, those who bring joy and hope when they seem distant dreams. Of course, since those sorts of situations don't crop up often in Equestria and nopony would want them to, Knights of Laughter would be few and far between.
Exactly as planned.
Rainbow Dash and the Order of Loyalty
Dash would shrug at the title. Sure, it'd be nice to be recognized for kicking evil butt, but the whole "nobility" thing would be more Rarity's thing.
The knights, however, she'd love. She'd be the only one to inaugurate her order by knighting two ponies, Soarin' and Spitfire. (Fleetfoot would be made to wait for a year. Lisping little bitch.) From then on, the Order of Loyalty would be the most military of the Orders of Harmony, awarding martial excellence and dedication to Equestria. Of course, wars aren't exactly common nowadays. Many Knights of Loyalty would be thus honored in secret, for actions the public isn't cleared to know. Dash would hate being unable to talk about this, even if spies are awesome.
Twilight Sparkle and the Order of Magic
Basically, Twilight would treat the Order of Magic as the Nobel Prize. Replace the King of Sweden with the Princess of Friendship, and it'd be more or less the same. There would be no cash prize, but really, if someone refused to make incredible strides in science, art, magic, or friendship (the Peace Prize analogue,) just because they didn't get a wad of cash, that person probably wouldn't be knight material.
Knighthood wouldn't necessarily be awarded annually, but it would be a fairly big deal. Since Discord would make a point of being at every knighting, there's no way it couldn't be.
*Another bit of headcanon that nicely explains why nopony recognized Rarity during "The Sweet and Elite." Basically, a concerted effort by Celestia and her close advisors to keep the identity of the Bearers of Harmony under wraps so that they could live their lives as peacefully as any Ponyvillian.** Stained-glass windows notwithstanding. They're basically Celestia's version of putting Twilight's macaroni art up on the fridge.
**This isn't why Twilight couldn't get a cab in Manehattan. That's just because Manehattan is Manehattan. Celestia herself can't get a cab there if they all have fares.
I LIKE this headcanon! I like it a lot! I like it so much that I briefly considered if I could adapt it, wistfully concluded that I couldn't make it fit with the way I've developed my characters, and decided that I'll just have to admire it from afar. I hope you'll do more with it, however!
Fascinating.
For some reason when I read "the first Knight of Kindness is in another universe" I forgot about Seabreeze entirely and sat there trying to figure out who it was. Somehow, the conclusion I reached was a tentative guess at Rafiq of the Many.
Perhaps I should have gone to bed two hours ago, like I had intended.
I'd like to simply say that this headcanon sounds really neat.
Excuse you, DAME Rarity, not Lady.
2520897 2521074
Thank you. There are few higher compliments for headcanon than "Ooh, neat."
2520891
Sadly, not every universe is compatible with every good idea. In any case, I don't have anything specific planned for the Orders of Harmony, but it's definitely on the list of ideas I want to explore.
2520947
Well, Bant and Equestria are somewhat similar, especially after Alara's rebirth. I could definitely see it, though he'd probably qualify more for the Order of Honesty.
2521417
Really? I meant "Lady" in the sense of "female lord." I was under the impression that "Dame" was "female sir," i.e. a knight. Coco is a dame, to my understanding. Am I wrong?
2521439 ...You are correct. It's Lady Rarity and Dame Coco. IGNORE ME.
I'm just used to a Dame Rarity (and a Dame Trixie) from a shared universe thing.
I love it. Especially the order of Knights of Laughter.
Like Scoots, I'm somewhat saddened that I can't swipe this for my own general use, because I do like it. But it has inspired me nonetheless, so thank you still.