Princess Celestia and Thorax were enjoying a quiet lunch in the Crystal Empire. Ever since his part in helping to stop the second Changeling Invasion, Thorax had been given the job as a personal aide to Cadence and Shining Armor. However, that turned out to only be an “as needed” basis, meaning, more often then not, he spent time looking after his little sister Elytra in the apartment Shining Armor and Cadance had given them. That had been a concern to Cadence, until Shining Armor put in that Thorax, with his organization skills and penchant for checklists, would make a great wedding planner.
It seemed to be a blessing in disguise, as Thorax turned out to be far more organized and prepared for everything. He had checklists for everything and his checklists had checklists and they had back up checklists and so on down the list. It seemed that, every wedding he planned, it went off without anything going wrong.
Princess Celestia herself couldn't help but compare Thorax to Twilight, thinking perhaps the changeling's own skills for organization might be equal or even greater then her old student's. This encouraged her to invite Thorax out to lunch, having also noticed Thorax was still having problems in being more social due to his hesitance to have outings.
“I must know your secrets,” Celestia teased him as they enjoyed a pasta dish at a cafe table in the Crystal Empire.
“Trust me, it's nothing, really,” Thorax replied, idly stirring his pasta. “I've been doing it for years.”
The two chuckled and continued on with their lunch when they were rudely interrupted. A Royal Courier pony hurried in and thrust a letter at Thorax, startling the changeling.
“Urgent, for you,” the pony said and left, nearly dropping the letter in the pasta had Celestia not caught it.
“That's...something,” she commented as Thorax opened the letter and read it.
“Princess Celestia, it seems we have a problem in Ponyville,” he said. “A wedding for two donkeys named... Cranky and Matilda was foiled by a sudden Bugbear attack.”
Recognizing the names from the invites she'd received, Celestia jolted and then accepted the letter from Thorax to read it herself.
“Thorax, grab a clipboard, we're catching the next airship to Ponyville."
“All airship and rail traffic has been halted due to the fiasco with the Bugbear,” Thorax brought up.
“Then it seems I'll have to teleport us there,” Celestia stood up, leaving payment for the lunch on the table and signaled Thorax to follow her. “With Twilight and Midnight away attending the coronation of a new griffon king, you're the best chance the wedding has on short notice.”
Thorax nodded, "I'll meet you at the statue of Spike after I get Elytra's sitter."
"We can bring her along," Celestia assured, "go and fetch her and I'll await you by the statue."
Celestia waited all of ten minutes before Thorax returned with the clipboard and a pen, little Elytra at his side who smiled happily before running up to the princess.
"Princess! I missed you!" Elytra was just so sweet and huggable that Celestia threw regal decorum out the window just for her favorite little cuddle bug and gave her a warm hug.
"Elytra, it's so good to see you," Celestia held the little changeling close but gave her a loving smile, "but you can call me Auntie Tia, if you like."
"Okay!" Elytra smiled big before Celestia set her down and looked to Thorax who nodded with a confident look in his eyes.
“Ready,” he said.
"Stand close to me, the both of you, and... don't move," Celestia instructed.
Once the two changelings stood at her side, the white alicorn then lit her horn, tapping into the ley lines, which swept them away in accordance to Celestia's will.
It brought them right into the middle of Ponyville, where the three of them saw that the town hall had been totaled. On top of that, Cranky and Matilda were both sulking sorrowfully that their ceremony had been ruined before it began, despite their friends trying to cheer them up.
"Uh-oh..." Elytra could just feel the sadness and apprehension around them, as did Thorax who looked up to Celestia.
"Worry not," she assured with a wink before striding forward, catching the eyes of everypony, who all quickly bowed in respect.
"There is no need to bow, my little ponies," Celestia assured as she approached the two donkeys, Cranky looking tongue-tied when Matilda almost spoke up, only for Celestia to raise a gentle hoof.
"I am aware of what has transpired, including the mistaken date on the invitations. Consider this a blessing in disguise, a valid reason to postpone the ceremony to the time to properly prepare. As such, I have brought my good friend, Thorax, whose organizational skills are at your disposal."
"I've actually organized a few weddings in my time," Thorax said a tad bashful, "but I give you my word, that with some cooperation, I can have everything ready by at least noon tomorrow."
“Just so long as it's ready and is up to par,” Cranky grunted coldly.
“It will,” Celestia assured them. “I have all faith that Thorax will give you a wedding to remember. Just leave it to him.”
Cranky agreed, though he was not convinced that Thorax would arrange the wedding and make it work out in the end. Celestia smiled and assured the two that things would soon straighten themselves out in due course.
“Well, if you have the princess's recommendation and faith, how can we not have faith as well?” Matilda smiled softly and agreed with Celestia.
Thorax, meanwhile, had been busily looking over the damage.
“Not good,” he muttered. “We can't hold the wedding here. Even with a team of repair ponies, it just wouldn't be ready in time for tomorrow."
He gave it a thought when he noticed the distant Castle of Friendship and realized, That place...!
Thorax walked down the street to get a clearer view of the castle and gazed upon it. It reminded him of the crystalline beauty and architecture of the Crystal Empire but in a more natural sort of way. The Castle was both crystal and wood, alive with magic, a monument to the Magic of Friendship, and as he continued to look at it Thorax noticed two pegasi flying in his direction, both of their faces lighting up to see him as they landed and trotted over.
“Thorax! When'd you get here, you're looking...?" Thunderlane's smiling voice trailed off as he noticed Thorax wasn't looking so positive.
"Oh Thorax, whatever's the matter? Did you get a tummy ache?" Fluttershy went over the placed a motherly hoof on Thorax's withers, and the compassion he felt from her lifted Thorax up a little.
"Princess Celestia was visiting me and Elytra-"
"Fluttershy!" They all startled as Elytra fluttered over, giving Fluttershy and Thunderlane the sweetest smile, "And Thunda!"
"Oh, hello Elytra!" Fluttershy couldn't help but give the changeling foal a warm and tender hug, "It's so good to see you!"
"What brings you both here?" Thunderlane asked, and Thorax sighed.
"Well, like I was saying, Princess Celestia recieved notice about Ponyville Town Hall," Thorax pointed out the damage to the building and the two pegasi realized the implication, "So she brought us here so I could help prepare Cranky and Matilda's wedding for tomorrow. However, even with a team of repair ponies, Town Hall just wouldn't be ready in time."
"And we were taking care of the Bugbear that did this," Thunderlane sighed, feeling guilty.
"Don'be sad, Thunda, you didn't mean to," Elytra said kindly and Thunderlane gave her an appreciative smile.
"Well, if Town Hall can't host the wedding..." Fluttershy considered before she suggested, "maybe we could have it in the Castle of Friendship!"
“Really?! I- Uh, well, I was actually gonna ask you guys about that," Thorax brought up, "but since Prince Midnight and Princess Twilight are away right now, would that be okay?"
"I don't see why not," Fluttershy said kindly, "Twilight said that even though it's her and Midnight's castle, they've been planning to set up a part of the library to serve as the public library until a proper one can be built."
"That's a great idea, Flutters!" Thunderlane agreed, "And y'know, I think they might be back tomorrow so they'l get to attend the wedding after all. I'm sure they'd be happy to host it in their castle."
"Oh, thanks so much!" Thorax sighed in relief, "Um, would either of you mind watching Elytra for me? Just for a couple hours or so? I have to go speak to the planner who was in charge before this happened."
"I'd be happy to," Fluttershy volunteered, "I foal-sit little Discord for Princess Celestia every other week or two."
"And i'll let our friends know the situation," Thunderlane added before taking flight, "See you guys later!"
Thorax thanked them and after telling Elytra to be good for Fluttershy he went to find Faerie Tail, who was looking over the damage to Town Hall, along with Mayor Mare and her aides. After the introductions and a few words, Faerie Tail was relieved to have more help, having already arranged for all the invited to recieve notice that the wedding would be postponed to tomorrow.
"I have to say, Thorax, changing the venue to the castle is a stroke of genius," Faerie Tail sighed as she took a sip of coffee. After a quick word with the mayor, Faerie Tail had offered Thorax some coffee from the local coffee shop. Her Pumpkin Creme Mocha was just what she needed as she went on, "But in light of what's happened, I feel like the wedding should have something... more. Something special, something to really highlight Cranky and Matilda's vows. Do you know what I'm saying?"
Thorax hmmm'd at Faerie Tail's words as he wracked his brain for ideas. He'd arranged a few weddings in his own time before and had even studied wedding traditions here and there, but one old tradition stuck out as he smiled and asked, "Have you ever heard of a Good Luck Package?”
“Why yes!” Faerie Tail's face lit up at the idea as she recalled, “Something Old, something New, something Borrowed and something Blue. You know, my grandmother did that same tradition at her wedding. I was only a teenaged filly when I heard of it, but at the time I didn't think much of it. Now thought? It'd be perfect for Cranky and Matilda's ceremony!"
“Then we'll need someone or four someones of your discretion to take up the parts of the Good Luck Package,” Thorax explained. “I'm going to go see Princess Celestia about this and inform her."
“While you do that, I'm going to see the mayor,” she said. “I believe I have just the four to put the Good Luck Package together."
Thorax thanked her and headed off to the castle, while Faerie Tail considered her next scheduled session.
That evening, after careful examination, while the foyer of Town Hall had been totaled, the rest of the building was relatively fine, as it was all still standing. After making sure it was structurally sound, Faerie Tail got the all-clear that her office was still useable, it just didn't have a door. So, her scheduled appointment with the last of the four she'd proposed to Thorax about the Good Luck Package was still on, and he arrived at her request.
Sitting across from him, and after assuring him their conversation would remain private thanks to a soundproofing barrier over the empty doorway that had been curtained off, Party Favor sighed, "So, I guess the wedding is still on."
"Yes, but we're here to talk about you, Party Favor," Faerie Tail reminded him gently, "While most of you who came from Starlight Glimmer's village have been doing fairly well, I have to say that you are among those who haven't been adjusting as well as the rest. I can understand; to have the place you called home suddenly attacked, without warning or reason, to watch your friends and neighbors suffer... to have suffered along with them."
Party Favor looked at the bandages on his shoulder, covering the burns he'd gotten while trying to stand up to the monsters who had attacked his friends. Due to the limited medical treatment he got after the attack and how long it was before he was examined by a real doctor he'd suffered a mild infection. The meds he'd taken and instructions on treating his burns had gotten him through the infection, but the doctors told him that even after his burns made a full recovery they would leave a scar.
"It takes true courage to step up on the behalf of others, Party Favor," Faerie Tail said with gentle praise, "even if you're afraid. But what you went through can leave scars that can't be seen. Forgive me if I'm overstepping here, but... I've heard about how you've been since you settled here in Ponyville. I spoke to your employer at the party store, and... she couldn't help but notice how you make yourself scarce whenever a certain somepony visits to buy party supplies."
Party Favor shifted uncomfortably, knowing what Faerie Tail was talking about. Or rather, who.
"You trusted me enough to tell me your birth name, Party Favor," Faerie Tail went on as delicately as she could, "As I understand it, you trusted Sugar Belle enough to share your past with her, which leads me to my question - Is there a reason why you haven't told the truth of the connection you have with Pinkie Pie?"
"Y-You won't tell her, you can't!!" Party Favor almost yelled, an alarmed look on his face.
"I won't," Faerie Tail promised, "but you should. Party Favor, I had a grandfather who ran from his past, a past he wasn't proud of. He got involved with some bad sorts until he was, as he said in his memoir, set on the straight and narrow. He turned his life around, pursued his dream, started a family, and here I am because of his decision to be a better pony.
"You are a good pony, Party Favor. But somewhere inside you is a part that is yearning for what you left behind. You've been able to ignore it, but then you met Pinkie Pie, realized who she is, and since then that yearning has become almost unbearable, has it?"
Party Favor frowned, feeling his insides heavy yet fluttery, but Faerie Tail's words resonated with him, causing him to sigh and nod.
"It just... I don't know how to explain it."
"Take your time, and just let it flow," Faerie Tail assured.
"Well... Back when I first came to Starlight's village," Party Favor began "I was actually in a rut. I'd struck out on my own after learning from Ponyacci and the circus. i wanted to test what I'd learned and make ponies laugh and smile and happy, but... without Ponyacci, without the friends I'd made back in the circus... I just couldn't find the-the... that something I always felt when I made ponies laugh, that thing that sparked my passion!
"I guess... without someone there to share it with me, someone constant, I just didn't feel like the party pony Ponyacci had helped me become. I wandered and wandered, no real destination in mind, but my family... I thought about them, how i'd missed them, and there was a part of me that wanted to go back. But how could I? I ran out on them, had a big fight with my father, made my mother and sisters cry... and I was reminded how I just never really felt like I belonged on that Rock Farm. Then, out of nowhere, I somehow came across Starlight's village! I saw all these smiles, these... perky attitudes, and Starlight... she talked to me about all that stuff how cutie-marks divide ponies, that a truly happy life was only possible if we were all equal."
Party Favor's demeanor turned to bitter as he went on, "I regretted giving up my cutie-mark almost immediately after it happened, but... Sugar Belle, Night Glider, and Double Diamond had been so good to me, and I got fooled by Starlight's kindness as well. Then, to find out she was a liar, and our village burned, I..."
Faerie Tail could see Party Favor was at a loss for words, a confusion of emotions and thoughts buzzing in his head, that she reached over, placing her hoof on Party Favor's unharmed shoulder, causing him to look her in the eyes, and she saw a colt looking for assurance, safety, a resolution.
"There are no easy answers, Party Favor," she said gingerly, "but addressing your worries is the first step."
The way she said it to him, Party Favor felt a little at ease, taking another deep breath, when Faerie Tail leaned back and said, "Let's end our session here for now. It's getting late and there is actually something I'd like to discuss with you and your friends, Party."
"What is it?" Party Favor followed Faerie Tail out of the office and stepped carefully as they made their way out of the damaged part of Town Hall.
"I'll tell you when we meet with Sugar Belle, Double Diamond, and Night Glider," Faerie Tail replied before giving the party pony a smile, "For now, let's say, it has to do with tomorrow's wedding."
The next morning, at 8:45 am, Night Glider, Double Diamond, Party Favor and Sugar Belle were in Faerie Tail's office. The four were somewhat confused as to why Faerie Tail had requested the four of them to see her at once, and one of the mayor's aides brought them refreshments while they waited, mentioning Faerie Tail was running late.
Finally, the unicorn mare stepped into the office, politely saying, "Good morning everypony, I'm sorry if I kept you waiting."
"Morning, Faerie Tail," Night Glider welcomed.
"And it's okay, it wasn't long at all," Sugar Belle added.
“Well then, let's get down to it, shall we?” Faerie Tail took her seat at her desk and regarded her four visitors. “I take it you all know of Cranky and Matilda's wedding has been rescheduled to today, and is due to start at noon in a few hours?”
The four of them nodded, so Faerie Tail went on, “Well, after talking to Thorax, we've come to the idea of incorporating an old wedding tradition that not many still do nowadays, but would be perfect for Cranky and Matilda. It's called the Good Luck Package. Four wedding attendees are chosen to put together the Good Luck Package which is comprised of four things: Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed and Something Blue.”
“And I guess you're telling us this because you want us to put together this Good Luck Package," Double Diamond gathered.
"But why us? Shouldn't Cranky and Matilda choose who's gonna put the package together?" asked Party Favor.
“Well, actually, this is a surprise for Cranky and Matilda," Faerie Tail cleared up, "Since the wedding invitations had the wrong date and Town Hall was damaged, which was a convenient excuse to postpone the ceremony to today, Cranky and Matilda both had a... Well, they had a bad moment. So, to really make their wedding special, Thorax and thought it'd be a good surprise to use an old tradition for their ceremony.
"And i thought being a part of such a special event would be good, not only for the four of you, but also your friends and neighbors you brought with you here to Ponyville. If they see the four of you participating in this wedding, it could help raise their spirits, boost their morale. Do you see what I'm saying?"
The four friends did and as they shared looks they saw they were of one mind, smiling with a little excitement and then nodding to Faerie Trail who was glad to see they were in.
“Alrighty then! So, for the Good Luck Package... Double Diamond, you'll bring the Something Old; Night Glider, you'll bring Something New, Sugar Belle, you'll include Something Borrowed and Party Favor, you can add Something Blue."
“That's not because I'm blue myself, is it?" Party Favor cracked, spurring a few friendly chuckles.
“Very good., everypony! So, you have roughyl three hours to putthe Good Luck Package together,” Faerie Tail explained, “Don't get too worried about the time, just consider the thing you have to include and make it something special. Once you've done that, come to me, and we'll put the package together for the ceremony."
They nodded and headed out to help with the wedding. Night Glider and Double Diamond split off , leaving Party Favor and Sugar Belle to go to their own way.