//------------------------------// // Chapter 13: The Gala (Part 3) // Story: Equestria's False Saiyan // by Denchik //------------------------------// -Equestria, Canterlot- The purple unicorn was walking down the castle's corridors at a rather quick pace, not bothering to hide her excitement at the very least. Twilight Sparkle was very eager to see her teacher once again and spend some quality time with said alicorn. The purple mare passed through a tall arc and looked up, seeing her mentor standing on top of a stairwell that had a magnificent red carpet on it. The unicorn smiled and began running on the said floor covering, her gaze fixated on the princess of the sun. "Princess Celestia!" exclaimed Twilight Sparkle, catching the solar monarch's attention. The white alicorn noticed her faithful student running up the stairway and smiled, glad that the purple unicorn could make it. "Twilight! It is so lovely to see my star student." commented Princess Celestia, greeting the mare that was standing right in front of her. "Oh, I'm so excited to be here! We have so much to catch up on." said Twilight Sparkle, her enthusiasm shining like the solar monarch's sun. "Well, I want you right by my side the entire evening, so we'll have plenty of time together!" replied the princess of the sun, happy that Twilight Sparkle wished to accompany her throughout the night. After all, Celestia did want somepony to be there for her so that she wouldn't have to suffer through the Grand Galloping Gala alone. "That's just what I was hoping you'd say!" commented the purple unicorn in glee, running up to the white alicorn once more, but this time, Twilight Sparkle stood by the princess' side. While the purple unicorn was spending 'quality time' with the solar monarch, Rarity was searching all around Canterlot for the stallion she wished to spend the night with - Prince Blueblood himself. The white mare took a right turn and gasped,noticing the pony she had been looking for in the distance. The blonde unicorn turned around and locked his eyes with the white mare's gazing, giving Rarity a small smile. "Hurry, Rarity... Oh, but not too fast. But don't wanna lose him... Wait! Have to play it cool. Oh, but don't be cold! I can't lose him, I can't! He's everything I imagined! Even better than I imagined!" fanfillied the white unicorn, having a very difficult time staying composed. Rarity switched between running after the prince and slowly pursuing him, trying to act as lady-like as she could. Eventually, Rarity made it to Canterlot's garden and saw the royal unicorn turning his head to face her with a rose in his mouth, making the mare fall head over hooves for Prince Blueblood. While the fashionable mare was running after her crush, Fluttershy has been busy with chasing the many animals that were present in the garden. As of right now, the timid pegasus was following the beautiful sound of some bird chirping. After seeing what creature was causing the sound, Fluttershy gasped in excitement. "Oh my! A meadowlark!" uttered the yellow pegasus, following the meadowlark deeper and deeper into the gardens. After a couple of moments, Fluttershy lost track of the creature that she was chasing after. Fortunately for the mare, she heard the bird sing once more and began running in the direction of where the sound came from. "I think she's calling to me. It's exactly what I wished for!" giddily announced Fluttershy. The timid pegasus began humming, attempting to emulate the bird's singing pattern. Luckily for the mare, she heard the bird chirp once more and smiled, now knowing the bird's general location again. Fluttershy began making her way towards the sound another time, going deeper and deeper into the private gardens, hoping to eventually catch the little birdie. Not too far from the timid mare, her friend, Applejack was pushing a cart that was full of various apple products closer to a crowded area. Upon getting close enough, the orange earth pony decided to kick said box, making it open and 'transform' into a stall. Applejack noticed a pegasus that was dressed in a wonderbolt costume approach the booth, which made the yellow mare quickly get behind it and act as a seller. "Howdy, partner! You hungry?" inquired Applejack, trying to break the ice with her customer. "As a horse!" exclaimed Soarin, attempting to crack a joke. "Well, what'cha hankering for? Caramel apple? Apple pie? Apple fritter? Apple fries?" asked the orange earth pony, pointing her hooves at the various apple-based products that she had to offer. The pale blue pegasus thought for a few moments, before pointing at the pastry. "I'll take that big apple pie!" exclaimed Soarin, giving Applejack two bits. The earth pony grinned and gave the pale blue pegasus the pie, thanking her customer. "Yee-haw! In the first minute, I made my first sale. Just like I expected." grinned Applejack, being rather satisfied with her success. Soarin grinned and began making his way towards the V.I.P area, with the pie in his mouth. As he was about to enter the territory, Spitfire landed in front of the wonderbolt, making Soarin stop in his tracks. "Always hungry after a show. Eh, Soarin?" teased the gold pegasus, who was also wearing the typical wonderbolt costume. "Heh, yeah!" replied the pale blue stallion, dropping the pie upon opening his mouth. After realizing what he had done, Soarin gasped, knowing that the new product would hit the ground and become ruined. Fortunately for the stallion, Rainbow Dash noticed the falling pie and began flying towards it with a great speed, managing to barely catch it in time. "You saved it... Thanks." said Soarin, looking at the unfamiliar mare that managed to catch his pie just in time. Spitfire was surprised by the speed which the cerulean pegasus displayedbefore her. The pale blue stallion gently took the pie out of Rainbow Dash's hooves and began making his way towards the V.I.P area once more. "What's your name?" asked the golden mare, taking interest in this new pony. The cerulean mare was surprised and quite excited when one of her idols, Spitfire, asked for her name. "The name's Rainbow Dash!" replied the pegasus, suppressing her excitement. The element of loyalty earned a nod and a small smile from the captain of the wonderbolts, completely catching her off guard. "Well, Rainbow Dash, it seems that your skills have saved Soarin's pie." commented Spitfire, motioning to the stallion who was eating his apple pie off the ground while showing next to no eating etiquette. "Yeah..." blurted out the stallion, generating a lot of noise whilst munching on his product. "Wanna come hang out with us?" asked Spitfire, inviting the cerulean pegasus to spend some time with the wonderbolts. "Sure. Why not?" replied Rainbow Dash, earning a nod from the golden pegasus. Spitfire turned around and began walking towards the V.I.P territory, with her fan trotting behind quite gracefully. The cerulean pony eventually lost her composure and began smiling widely, her happiness showing. "I'm... hanging... with the... Wonderbolts!"squealed the ecstatic mare, stopping near the entrance to perform a hoof pump. After noticing that the Wonderbolt captain had covered a decent distance, Rainbow Dash began running after the mare, giggling all the while. Meanwhile, the pink earth pony was jumping from one room to another when suddenly, she managed to find an area with lots of nobles. "The shiny dance floor... The pretty party ponies... Ooh, the fancy band... Shiny! Pretty! Fancy!" babbled Pinkie Pie, not making any attempt to hide her excitement. Eventually, the pink earth pony partially calmed down and grinned. "Gotta dance!" announced Pinkie Pie, resuming her nonstop bouncing. This caught everypony's attention, causing every stallion and mare look in awe at the hyperactive pink pony. "I'm at the Grand Galloping Gala, I'm at the Grand Galloping Gala, I'm at the Grand Galloping Gala, It's all I ever dreamed. It's all I ever dreamed, woo hoo! It's all I ever dreamed, yippee! I'm at the Grand Galloping GalaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAA!" sang the pink earth pony, much to the annoyance of every being that had been present in the room. Pinkie Pie suddenly stopped singing and noticed that she had her hooves wrapped around the necks of two mares, much to their disapproval. The pink mare looked around and noticed everypony giving her stern looks, slightly crushing Pinkie Pie's spirits. "It's all I've ever... dreamed?" sadly continued the pink mare, but to no avail. The two mares broke out of Pinkie's headlock and departed from the earth pony, making said creature hang her head low. While the pink mare was up to her shenanigans, Rarity was taking a walk down one of the royal gardens, still looking for the white stallion. She noticed a beautiful rose not too far from her and decided to walk up to it and sniff it. After lowering her head and giving the red flower a whiff, she heard a familiar voice from above, making the white unicorn open her mouth and look at awe at the being that stood in front of "Well, hello. I am Prince Blueblood." said the blonde pony, introducing himself to the fashion designer. The white stallion gave the mare a warm and welcoming smile, making Rarity feel less uneasy around her crush. "I am... Rarity. Oh my, what a lovely rose." responded the white mare, trying to hide her nervousness. The prince lowered his head to take a good look at the rose and grinned lightly. "You mean... this rose?" inquired the beautiful stallion, picking up the flower with his teeth. The white mare looked at Prince Blueblood with dreamy eyes, thinking that the pony right in front of her would gift her this beautiful rose. Sadly, Rarity's dreams were crushed when the stallion bit off the stem and put the corolla on his tuxedo. "Thank you. It goes with my eyes." said Prince Blueblood, lightly bragging about the newly acquired accessory. The white mare groaned and shifted her gaze from the royal pony, mildly saddened by his lack of chivalry. The pale yellow pegasus, like Rarity, was still spending her time in the royal garden. Fluttershy began singing a melody once again, hoping to finally find where that meadowlark. Much to her delight, she heard the same whistling pattern that the creature had exhibited for the first time. "My little meadowlark is right around this bend!" gasped the timid pony, now running between the bushes. Eventually, Fluttershy turned left, expecting to see the bird that she has been chasing for a while now, but, much to her surprise, she saw an earth pony with a faded brown coat sweeping leaves. He began to whistle, which suddenly made the mare realize that she mistook the meadowlark‘s singing for this stallion. "Was... that you?" inquired Fluttershy, confused by this new revelation. "Yep! I love whistlin' while I work." replied Mr Greenhooves, giving the timid pegasus a grin. The older pony continued to sweep the leaves, whistling the meadowlark's toon all the while. "Oh! Yes... Well... Excuse me." apologized the pale yellow mare, feeling a bit awkward thanks to this small misunderstanding. Fluttershy began walking deeper into the gardens and eventually made it to a spot where she could clearly hear multiple animal noises. She raised her head and opened her eyes, seeing multiple creatures right in front of her. "Oh! I see a toco toucan! And a spider monkey! And, oh! Is that a wallaroo?" babbled the pegasus with a great amount of excitement in her voice. She began flying towards the numerous animals, but, when the timid mare got closer to the group, they all decided to run from the upcoming pony. Fluttershy stopped floating and looked around, noticing that every creature had run off. "Oh, Fluttershy. You're such a loudmouth..." said the pale yellow pegasus to no one in particular... The cerulean pegasus has been trying to break through the crowd of ponies that has gathered behind a barrier rope. Rainbow Dash really wanted to hang out with the Wonderbolts more and tried every chance that she could get to do so. The rainbow maned pegasus began crawling down the floor and past the group of nobles. She eventually popped out from between two mares and ran up to Spitfire with a giddy expression. "Hey, Spitfire! You ever done a rain cloud double backflip?!" inquired Rainbow Dash, but, much to her annoyance, her idol kept speaking with some stallion. The cerulean pegasus was a bit crushed due to the golden pony ignoring her. "You ever soared past lightning? It's awesome!" asked the mare, turning her attention to the other wonderbolt member, Soarin. The stallion, like Spitfire, paid absolutely no attention to the enthusiastic mare. The pale blue stallion began walking slowly towards a different pony, obliviously abandoning his loyal fan. The cerulean mare lightly narrowed her eyes at Soarin and frowned, feeling very annoyed due to the treatment that she was receiving. "Welcome to the Grand Galloping Gala!" said Princess Celestia, greeting an approaching mare. The light blue mare bowed lightly and continued on her way, walking past the solar monarch and Twilight Sparkle. The purple unicorn shifted her gaze towards her mentor and smiled. "Princess! I've been so excited to spend time with you and..." began the intelligent mare, only to get cut off by her teacher. "Yes. Me too, Twi... Oh, good evening! Welcome to the Gala. Which is why I... Ladies! Lovely to see you again!" said Princess Celestia, attempting to communicate with her student but stopping every time some pony climbed the stairwell and was very close to the said alicorn. Twilight Sparkle sighed after noticing the colossal queue of ponies that has formed out of nowhere. "Looks like getting a chance to talk to the Princess is gonna be a magic trick in itself..." sighed the unicorn, disappointed that she isn't getting any opportunities to speak with her mentor. "First minute, first sale. Second... Fourth... Sixth... Sixtieth minute... no sales." pouted the honest earthpony, saddened by the number of things that she has sold so far. "This ain't what I expected at all..." said the orange mare, putting her head on the stall. She heard some being approaching and raised her eyes to look at it and saw somebody that she was least expecting. Goku Black stood before her, looking at the products that the mare has been selling. Needles to say, Applejack raised her head and raised her guard, just in case the false saiyan might try something. The ex kaioshin noticed the look that his former opponent had been giving him and grinned. "Easy there, mortal. I'm not here to slaughter you or your entire race quite yet. I wish to buy your products. How much is everything going to cost me?" inquired Goku Black, shocking the orange earthpony. Applejack's eyes went wide from the unexpected sentence that the false saiyan had uttered, considering that the mare expected him to say something... different... "Well pardner, it's gonna cost yah 'round a 100 bits." replied the farmpony, earning a nod from Goku Black. The false saiyan created a huge bag of bits and threw it into the bucket, making Applejack open her mouth in surprise. Goku Black used his telekinesis to grab the earth pony's foodstuffs and began going somewhere, while the mare looks at the ex kaioshin. "Thank you!" shouted the orange earthpony, happy that someone had bought her goods. The mare noticed Goku Black walking away, completely ignoring her words. Nonetheless, she smiled and began counting the bits, which took her a couple of moments. Applejack counted exactly one hundred bits, which made her smiled grow even wider. "Yeeehaw! This is what I expected!" cheered the orange earth pony, ecstatic at the fact that she now has enough bits to replace Granny Smith's saggy old hip, replace the saggy old plow and fix the saggy old roof! The orange earth pony began to move her empty stall out of this location, with the intent of placing a new one to sell even more food. Applejack began pushing the different stall with her head, kicking it the new one in a similar manner to the first small shop, making it spread out and reveal the same apple products. The orange earth pony gets behind said contraption and looked at each mare and stallion in glee, hoping that somepony might buy something from her. Applejack's friends did not have quite the same success as the honest farmpony. Pinkie Pie was standing near one of the tables that had a pink tablecloth on it, with the mare's head being on said piece of fabric. The earth pony wore a sad expression due to the fact that the Grand Galloping Gala so far has not lived up to her expectations. "I'm at the Grand Galloping Gala... and it's not what I dreamed." pessimistically sang the earth pony, looking at the tablecloth below her. Not too far away from Pinkie Pie, Rarity was still, for some reason, spending her time with Prince Blueblood. The white stallion was dragging a pillow with his teeth, making the mare assume that he was going to let her sit on it. The dress designer smiled, but quickly dropped her expression when she noticed the snobby prince sit on it himself, leaving absolutely no room for the mare. "This isn't at all what I imagined..." pouted Rarity, looking away from Prince Blueblood. Twilight Sparkle, on the other hand, kept standing near Princess Celestia, who continued to welcome the upcoming ponies. "Good evening! So nice to see you. Welcome!" said the solar monarch, addressing each and every approaching noble. While the white alicorn continued doing so, her student looked at the coming ponies with a forced happy expression. After a mare or stallion walks past the duo, the purple unicorn returns to her usual demeanor, dropping the fake act. "This isn't what I hoped." whispered the mare, her hopes getting crushed completely by the reality of the situation. Unlike Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash was standing in a queue of ponies that were waiting for a chance to speak with the wonderbolts. The cerulean pegasus looked back and forth, her dissatisfaction showing. "This isn't hanging out..." concluded the mare, the sudden realization dawning on her. The other pegasus, Fluttershy, was still trying to get closer to the animals. She was flying towards a tree but, once again, the birds noticed her and began flying away, leaving the mare all alone once more, making Fluttershy hang her head. "This isn't what I wished for..." said the pegasus, her eyes being fixated on the ground. The mares have been waiting to go to the Gala all of their life with it turning out to be a dull, uneventful and rather unpleasant experience. The ponies realized that the night is still young and decided not to engage in such melancholic thoughts. They were now experiencing a feeling of fresh motivation that pushed them to make the Grand Galloping Gala better. "No! I waited all my life... for this moment! And I'm not going to let it slip by! If it's the last thing I do... I'm gonna make this... ...the best night ever!" Exclaimed Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Rainbow Dash with a newfound determination. The mares won't let this unsuccessful chain of events break their spirits. Instead, the Mane 6 (minus Applejack) will try their best to make the Grand Galloping Gala more exciting for themselves...