It was not unusual for the Canterlot Train Station to be filled with ponies from all over Equestria. Canterlot served not only as the country’s capital, but also the main hub for all travel through its four corners. During the week, business ponies from Baltimare and Fillydelphia arrived during the early morning commutes; on weekends, the trains brought with them small groups from Vanhoover and even Ponyville to perform at its numerous restaurants and bars. What was unusual, however, was the fact that as the Ponyville Express chuffed into the station, the natives of Canterlot couldn’t help but notice a particular set of five stallions that stared out of the windows near the front of the cab. A pair of unicorns with sweaters draped over their shoulders noticed the group and stopped in their tracks.
“Oh dear,” The stallion said to his wife, “Upper Crust, do you see what I see?”
“I do, my dear Jet Set.” Upper Crust replied as she crinkled her snout. “How could there have been a pending catastrophe without us knowing about it?”
“Never fear. I shall get to the bottom of this.” Jet Set said. He looked around and raised his muzzle to the air as he trotted to the first guard pony that he saw. He began to shout as he pointed his hoof at the train that had finally come to a stop. “You there, guard! I demand to know what the meaning of this is!”
The guard didn’t reply, but instead kept the traditionally stoic demeanor from his training.
“You can’t just ignore me, guard. I pay your salary.” The guard remained motionless throughout Jet Set’s tirade even as Upper Crust began to make a scene behind him.
“Oh, what tragedy has befallen our Highnesses that they have had to call in those stallions?” Upper Crust wailed with as much flourish as she thought possible. “What could have happened that not even the guards can tell us citizens about it?” She finished her statement as she began to swoon. Jet Set rushed over to his wife and held her up with his magic.
“Oh, my dear wife.” Jet Set cried. “Stay with me, I’ll make sure that-”
“Beg pardon.” A rough voice beside him said. Jet Set looked up to see an orange stallion, Applejack, standing next to him. “But ah think we need to get to that there guard.” Jet Set and Upper Crust watched the five stallions as they made their way past the pair (four of the five, at least – they could only make out the top of a pink mane and a wavy pink tail of the stallion that was hiding behind the orange one). “Howdy, Sergeant Boulder Dash. Ah take it y’all are here to take us to the castle?” Sergeant Boulder Dash raised a hoof in salute, but Jet Set watched as he was stopped by a smaller yellow leg which he knew had to belong to Butterscotch.
“Oh, you don’t have to do that if you don’t want to.” Butterscotch said. “Unless you want to that is.” By this time, Upper Crust had given up on her ruse for attention and was now standing by her husband as he watched Butterscotch begin to tremble next to his much larger earth pony friend. “Oh no, you did want to salute, didn’t you? I’m sorry that I stopped you.”
“You there, Applejack is it?” Jet Set said as he approached the two just as Applejack was about to calm Butterscotch down. “Could you let us know what is going on? Whatever brings the remaining five Element Bearers to Canterlot?”
“Ahem.” Jet Set and Upper Crust turned to see Elusive, who simply looked at them with a quirked eyebrow. “We are simply here at the invite of Prince Dusk Shine in honor of Princess Bluebelle’s birthday.”
“Ah, I see.” Upper Crust replied with a sigh. “So this is all simply for her party.” The two unicorns began to laugh, but were interrupted by Elusive.
“Oh yes, for her party. In fact, I believe that the Princesses have sent out invitations to the Griffon and Minotaur ambassadors, as well.” Elusive looked toward the guard and nodded his head. As the guard began to lead the group towards the castle, Elusive turned back to the couple. “It is very exclusive, however. But I’m sure that you two have received invitations, given your importance in Canterlot.” Elusive smirked as the couple looked back and forth at one another upon hearing the news of the more prestigious invitees. “Oh you weren’t given invitations? What a pity.” And with that, Elusive flicked his tail and trotted ahead to catch up to his companions.
Um, sugarcube?” Applejack asked as they trotted out of the station. “Was it really necessary to say that?”
“Of course it is, darling.” Elusive answered. “Anytime somepony tries to make it seem as though they are above you, you must be ready to pounce back and keep your standing. You must always make sure that you remain on top, or at least make sure you are heading towards upward mobility.” Rainbow Blitz started laughing, which earned him a glare from Elusive. “And what, may I ask, is so funny?”
“You sound like that one dragon we saw during the dragon migration.” Rainbow Blitz said. “King of the Hoard!” Elusive rolled his eyes as Rainbow Blitz leaned onto his hind legs and began to beat his barrel with his forehooves. “Friends, Ponyvillians, Equestrians, lend me your pearls!”
Elusive watched on in horror as his friends slowly joined in and a few of the local ponies noticed. He finally regained his senses and galloped to ringleader of the group. “Rainbow Blitz, please,” Elusive whispered as he looked around, “I do want to make a good impression on these ponies.”
“Why do you care about them?” He asked.
“Have I not told you countless times that I am intending to extend my brand to Canterlot? I need to make sure that I am always at the top of my game when here.” Elusive let go of Rainbow Blitz’s fore hooves and began to follow the guard once more. The other four followed soon after, but then began to whisper, much to the annoyance of the unicorn.
“I don’t see why we have to act all fancy pants around these ponies.” Bubble Berry whispered. “Besides, most of them don’t even know how to party. But that’s okay, because tonight-”
“Tonight shall be a wonderful party, yes it shall!” Elusive shouted.
“Uh… all right.” Rainbow Blitz said as he raised an eyebrow. “But I agree with Berry. These ponies all act really uptight.”
“Now that just ain’t true.” The others turned to Applejack who began to point his hoof in numerous directions. “Not all of Canterlot is filled with uptight, fancy pants, hoity toity ponies.”
“But what about Fancy Pants and Hoity Toity?” Bubble Berry asked as Applejack leaped onto the stone bench surrounding a fountain.
“Well… Okay, yes, ah suppose there are those two, but really, just look around. Canterlot is filled with many different types of ponies. They aren’t all the same.”
Canterlot we must not
Hold it against the whole lot
Though some ponies here may act snooty
Much many more are not
Most are like Pony Joe
He’s a good stallion to know
And Ah’d wager if we ask him
He would introduce us to them
Honest folk kindly mares
Ah’m sure there are many here
They say bad apples are easier to spot
Come on let’s buck up ponies
Just forget the phonies
And let’s not judge the lot of Canterlot
As they continued on their way, Applejack felt Butterscotch leaning against him in the same place he was when they had left the station.
Let me trot next to you
I do not know what to do
Loud noises and louder ponies
It’s just as crazy as a zoo
I want to get inside
Just to find a place to hide
Like a closet or a tower
Anywhere I can sit and cower
Or perhaps I could see
If the pets have forgiven me
I’m sure that they’ve forgotten about the net
I hope that my nerves will
Pass once we reach the castle
And if not
Well I’ve got
Herbal teas to hit the spot
Nerves are shot thanks a lot Canterlot
As the ponies passed a series of shops, Elusive couldn’t help but pause and stare into one of the empty storefronts.
Such opportunity
For me to take in this city
The boutiques how they all call out to me
Oh, how I adore this life of bustle
Canterlot is where I’m meant to be
For years I’ve been showing
My horn working, always glowing
But then one mistake and then I lost it all
She will soon regret starting that tussle
Now, tonight at the dance
I’ll destroy her, it’s my last chance
Elusive gasped as Bubble Berry leaped down next to him and held his cheeks in his pink hooves.
Canterlot, Berry’s got
Plans to make this party hot
I’ll go into the kitchen
And then begin this tasty plot
Take some eggs, and some oil
Slowly bring the milk to boil
With this prank that I’ll be fixing
Through my beating and my mixing
And I can’t wait to see
Their laughter all thanks to me
I just hope there isn’t something I forgot
I’ve got a lot to do
To make this prank go through
I only got
To not get caught
Canterlot
Rainbow Blitz took to the air as the group neared the castle.
Canterlot I cannot
Wait to show all those big shots
Everypony cannot help but want to see
The moves I’ve got
Watch me twist, watch me zoom
Watch my patented Rainboom
All the ponies will all love me
And be amazed at what they see
They’ll all shout and they’ll cheer
Rainbow Dash froze in midair as Elusive’s aura wrapped itself around his tail.
This is not about you dear
Rainbow Blitz crossed his hooves as he was lowered to the ground.
Well then this is going to be a dull night
At least we get to see Dusk Shine
I hope he’s doing fine
Although I’d not
Want to trot
In his spot
In Canterlot
As the group reached the drawbridge, they were able to make out the lavender hued form of their friend at the castle doors. Elusive trotted up towards their friend and prepared to bow, but was knocked over by the pink blur that was Bubble Berry. The guards in front of the castle door stood with their mouths gaped open as Prince Dusk Shine was bowled over by the energetic earth pony. Not too far behind him, however, were the other three ponies. Butterscotch hovered a few inches off of the ground as he made his way to the alicorn and then wrapped his wings around him in a warm embrace.
“Well ah’ll be,” Applejack shouted as he reached forward to grab Dusk Shine’s hoof into his own, “It feels like a thousand years since we seen ya. How’ve ya been? How’s castle life treatin’ ya?”
“We’ve missed you so much, Dusk- I mean, My Liege.”
“Now please,” Dusk Shine replied, “Don’t you all start in on the whole ‘My Liege’ thing, too.” Elusive looked towards the guards, who seemed just as mystified by the interaction as he was.
“Why ever not, darling?” Elusive asked as he approached the group and gave a bow of his head towards his friend. “Surely, you’ve learned enough about Canterlot at this point to realize that your title carries some significance.”
“Oh please.” Dusk Shine said. “If there is anything that I’ve learned about Canterlot, it’s that no two ponies are alike. You’ve just got to give them a chance.” Elusive saw two of the guards cast sideways glances to each other. “We’ve got everything prepared for the party, and-”
“And you didn’t even ask me for my expertise!” Bubble Berry yelled as he grabbed Dusk Shine and shook him back and forth. “How could you plan a party without my help?” The guards began to edge closer to the prince, but stopped once Bubble Berry held him closer in a bone crushing hug. “But that’s okay, because I’ll make sure that this party is-”
“Perfect!” Elusive shouted. “That this party is perfect!”
“That’s right!” Bubble Berry continued. “Now where’s your kitchen so that I can-”
“So that we can assist with last minute preparations.” Elusive interrupted as he began to pull Bubble Berry away. “You know how the servants can sometimes be. It always helps to have a stallion with a keep attention to detail, so if you’ll excuse the two of us.” Elusive trailed off as he and Bubble Berry made their way into the castle.
“Okay,” Dusk Shine said as he turned to the remaining friends, “That was… strange.”
“Oh that’s just Berry bein’ Berry.” Applejack reassured him. “Now tell us simple folk how Canterlot is now that y’all have become a prince.”
“I’ve learned a few interesting things, actually.” Dusk Shine replied. “I’ve found out a lot about Bluebelle, for instance.” Applejack breathed in through his teeth. “What?”
“Nothin’, just be glad Elusive wasn’t here to catch that last part.”
“Yeah, about that…” Dusk Shine began as they trotted through the castle entrance and down the hall towards his quarters.
As they started down the hall, Rainbow Blitz turned around and stared back at the part of the castle that Elusive and Bubble Berry had hurried off to. He rubbed his hoof against his chin, but then shook his head and sped up to rejoin the others.
*****
The doors to the kitchen opened, and Bubble Berry immediately poked his head inside at floor level. His eyes darted back and forth along the tiles until he was satisfied that he didn’t see any other pony.
“Level one scan complete.” Bubble Berry said. “Now to go to level two scan.” He lifted his head up a foot and began to scan the room once more, only to be pushed aside by Elusive. “Hey, watch out, Lucy. There could be a pony that I missed on the last scan.”
“Bubble Berry, darling, if you didn’t see any hooves on the ground, why in the name of Prim Hemline’s houndstooth patterned pyjamas would you believe there would still be a pony in here?”
Bubble Berry looked up to Elusive, who was staring at him with half squinted eyes and was tapping his hoof.
“Hey, there have been some ponies born without legs, and that’s not funny.” Elusive tilted his head to the side for a moment, as though he was going to say something, but instead simply shook his head one more time and then made his way to the island in the middle of the kitchen. “So, the coast is clear, Lucy. What’s next?” Bubble Berry waited as Elusive looked through the kitchen. His eyes landed on a metal door near the back and a smile crept onto his muzzle. “Is that what I think it is?”
“Why, I do believe so, Bubble Berry.” Elusive replied. “Now let’s see what we have behind door number one.” Bubble Berry took his place next to Elusive as he opened the door. A cold blast met them as they stared into the darkness. Elusive reached over and flipped a switch. The two stallions gasped at what they saw.
“It’s so… shiny.” Bubble Berry whispered as his eyes grew to twice their size. “See how it shines… in the light. My frie-”
Elusive gasped and placed a hoof over Bubble Berry’s muzzle when he heard the sound of the kitchen door opening once again. He immediately lifted Bubble Berry into the kitchen freezer with his magic and shut the door, ignoring the stallion’s shout as he floated through the air. He turned around just as a mare entered the kitchen. Before she saw him, Elusive gently tossed his mane to each side and prepared to flash his famous smile to her. As expected, the mare gasped and bowed her head when she saw him.
“Oh my. Sir Elusive, is that you?” The mare asked. Elusive trotted up to the mare as she raised her head again. “Forgive me for asking, but what are you doing in here?”
“Oh, darling, don’t worry.” He replied as he tried to think of a lie. “I’m here in Prince Dusk Shine’s stead to check up on some of the final preparations for tonight’s ball.” He leaned forward ever so slightly and looked into the mare’s eyes. “And what, if I may ask, is your name?” Elusive kept his smile as nonthreatening as possible as the mare turned her head to the side, allowing a few strands of her mane to cover an eye.
“Lily Gild.” she answered. “It is an honor, sir.”
“Please, Elusive will suffice. Miss Gild, I must be honest with you. You see, Prince Dusk Shine needs my… skills… at detailed observations.”
“Oh?” Lily Gild asked as she looked around the kitchen. “Is there something the matter?”
“Let’s hope not.” Elusive laughed as he leaned in closer to Lily Gild. He felt her tremor slightly as he inched closer to her. “But I do fear that this work may take a bit longer than I expected. Do you think you could be ever so helpful as to assist with my bags near the entrance of the castle? I wouldn’t want my attention to be distracted.”
Elusive felt Lily Gild back away from him with a small smirk on her muzzle. She turned around and began to reach for the door, but then stopped and returned Elusive’s gaze. “With all due respect, I get the feeling that it’s not the bags that would be distracting you.” She laughed to herself as she opened the door.
“My apologies, Miss Gild, if I was too forward.” He bowed his head slightly, but gasped when he felt the slight whip of Lily Gild’s tail against his muzzle. He looked back up to see her wink at him before she finally left the kitchen and closed the door. Elusive huffed and galloped to the door to the freezer and yanked it open. “Sorry about that, darling.”
“Oh no worries, Lucy. I was just getting ready to clean off the icing.” Bubble Berry opened his mouth and let his tongue hang out. His tongue extended inexplicably long and began to wrap around the cake that was nearly as tall as the two of them. Bubble Berry disappeared into a pink tornado and Elusive saw the icing disappear, leaving behind only the spongy part of the cake. “There we are. A nice, clean slate for my special frosting.” Bubble Berry turned to Elusive, whose eye had started twitching. “What’s the matter?”
“Bubble Berry. Do you remember that time when you held your Spring Has Sprung party?”
“Of course I do. I remember all of my parties. Well, except for that one birthday, but still...”
“And do you remember how I mentioned having an issue with the frosting on the cake at that party?”
“Yep.” Bubble Berry began bouncing back and forth at the sudden influx of sugar. “I took it back into the kitchen and took the old icing off and put on the new layer.” Elusive began to blanch. “Lucy, what’s wrong?” Elusive backed out of the freezer and trotted back into the kitchen.
“I think I am going to be ill.”
*****
“Boreas, spirit of the northern wind, I call you forth. Come forward, and perform your duties to the earth.”
The blue and white stallion appeared in the dome in front of Bluebelle. Before he could speak, however, she placed a newspaper onto the dome. Boreas looked at the page and gasped.
“Oh dear, this is terrible.” He said.
“I know.” Bluebelle replied. “How did they-”
“It’s such a terrible angle for Dusk Shine. It makes his flanks look so-”
“What? It does not.” Boreas raised an eyebrow. “That’s not the point!” Bluebelle shouted as she paced around the dome. “She’s already using him to get attention for herself! It was only yesterday, how did they get this done so quickly?”
“Well, look at the bright side.” Bluebelle stopped pacing and gave Boreas an incredulous look. “Now you have proof to give to the prince.” He held up a hoof to her before she could speak. “Just show him the picture. It pretty much explains itself, does it not?”
Bluebelle smiled as she thought about it. “You’re right, Boreas.” She trotted around the room to search for her saddlebag. “I’ll just show it to him, and then he’ll realize Fleur is just using him.” As she lifted the saddlebags into her back, she paused and then turned back to the dome. “But it’ll crush him.”
“Like an egg in a dragon’s claw.” Boreas replied.
“He won’t be able to trust anypony in Canterlot for a while.”
“It’ll be like the time your cousin was kidnapped by the changeling queen. After it was all over, Prince What’s-His-Muzzle was afraid to be alone in the same room with her for a month.” Bluebelle narrowed her eyes at Boreas. “What? I’m not myself today because somepony decided to take away my snow.”
“Wait a minute.” Bluebelle said. “You’re still in Seaddle?”
“Yes, why?”
“You’re supposed to be in the Frozen North!” Boreas began to speak but was cut off. “Just go. I need to figure out the best way to tell Dusk Shine.”
“Do give him my regards.” Boreas called as Bluebelle galloped out of the room. “Wait!” Boreas tapped his hoof on the ground. “I know there was something I was supposed to tell her. Oh yeah. Father’s going to be at the party!” The door slammed shut. “Did she hear that? I hope she heard that.” Boreas muttered to himself as he twisted his hooves in a circular motion. A small block of ice appeared beneath him, and he rode it away from Seaddle.
As Bluebelle shut the door, she thought she could still hear Boreas calling out to her. Doesn’t matter, she thought, I’ll ask him about it later. She galloped down the hall, ignoring the guards that stood against the wall. In the distance, she could see Dusk Shine as he ascended a set of stairs. Behind him, however, were three of his friends. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that a certain unicorn was not with him.
“Dusk!” She called out. Wait!”
The four stallions stopped and turned around. Bluebelle waited for a moment as Dusk Shine’s eyes settled on her. She swore she saw Butterscotch and Applejack look at each other for a moment before turning back to her.
“Good morning, Bluebelle. You know my friends, right?”
“Of course I do.” Bluebelle replied as she held out her hoof. She tried to think of how Dusk Shine would handle this situation. “I must admit that the last time we met wasn’t under the… greatest of circumstances.”
Applejack was the first to take her hoof. “It’s all right, sugarcube. Shoot, ah could’ve recognized the way you reacted with how messy my food can be. Ah remember once when Elusi-ow!” Applejack rubbed his sides where Rainbow Blitz had just punched him. “Right… Think of it was water under the bridge.”
Rainbow Blitz offered his hoof, followed by a timid shake by Butterscotch. Bluebelle finally turned her attention back to Dusk Shine. “Now, you were going to say something?”
Bluebelle sighed and pulled out the magazine. She opened it to the pages that showed Dusk Shine and Fleur De Lis. As the stallions took a close look at it, Rainbow Blitz began to laugh.
“Wow, somepony’s already turning into a stud.”
“What?” Bluebelle shouted. “No, this is proof about what I’ve been trying to tell you!”
“What do you mean?”
“Fleur De Lis is using you, Dusk! She only wants to be with you so that she can get her name back in the papers to keep her status! That’s-”
“Horrible.” Butterscotch said.
“Exactly, that’s why-”
“No.” Butterscotch replied. “I mean, what evidence do you have to accuse her of that?”
“Excuse me?”
“Yes, Bluebelle.” Dusk Shine asked as he stared down at Bluebelle. “This can easily be explained as the tabloids using these compromising positions. Fleur probably had nothing to do with it. I bet she’s just as embarrassed by these pictures.”
“But I-”
“No.” Dusk Shine stopped her. “I was really hoping that I had gotten through to you a bit yesterday, but it seems that I was wrong.”
Bluebelle’s eyes widened as she remembered Fleur De Lis’s words. You know that he’ll see straight through you And deep down you know what it is he’ll see. She watched as Dusk Shine trotted away with his friends in tow. No, she thought.
“Are all of the Canterlot ponies this paranoid?”
“She just thinks she’s better than everypony.”
“I had hoped more for you Bluebelle.”
Bluebelle closed her eyes and tried to shake out the voices.
“Bluebelle.” She felt a hoof on her shoulder. She opened her eyes to see Dusk Shine standing in front of her with a look of concern. The others were staring at her, as well. “You were going to say something?”
Bluebelle shook her head to erase the imagined scene from her memory. She looked back to her saddlebags at the magazine and considered whether or not to show him the pictures. Who do you think Prince Dusk Shine will believe?
“Bluebelle, are you all right?” Dusk Shine asked.
Bluebelle sighed and closed the flap on her saddlebags. “Of course, Dusk Shine. I… I just wanted to tell your friends welcome to Canterlot. I do hope that you all have a wonderful time at the party. I’m just going to check on the ball room. You know me, I have to triple check everything.” She faked a laugh.
“I do believe that’s my line.” Dusk Shine replied. Dusk Shine waited as Bluebelle nodded her head to him and his companions. They all turned as she walked away and disappeared down the steps, the echo of her hoofsteps becoming more faint with each step.