“Bye, Bon Bon, Lyra!” Spike waved as he took the two empty Ramen bowls the two friends had left.
“Bye, Spike! We’ll see you soon!” Bon Bon called.
“As in, tomorrow probably!” Lyra laughed. “I just can’t get enough Ramen!”
Spike hopped off his stool, which allowed him to see past the counter, and walked back to the sink, where he began washing the bowls and chopsticks.
Behind him, Naruto turned off the stoves and closed the lid of the pot of broth. He then turned around to the little Dragon.
“Thanks for sticking around, Spike,” the stallion smiled. “Especially considering what happened yesterday.”
“Hey, it’s no big deal,” Spike replied, smiling back. “We all learned a valuable lesson, didn’t we? Besides, as long as I’m just working here for fun, that shouldn’t take my mind off my responsibilities for Twilight, right?”
“Believe it!” Naruto replied. “And I’ve decided that my Ramen should always be served fresh. So no more instant Ramen!” he laughed.
Spike finished cleaning the dishes and hung them on the small dish rack beside the sink to dry. “Are we done for today?”
“Yup,” Naruto replied, looking at the large clock tower across from his shop. “Rarity said we should join her and the girls at about five o’clock.”
“Alright!” Spike called, all pumped up. “I can’t believe it’s finally time! I can hardly wait!” he exclaimed, opening the door for him and Naruto to leave the stand.
Naruto closed the door behind him and joined Spike. “I still don’t get why everypony’s so excited about the Gala… It’s just some sort of fancy party, right?”
“It’s not just ‘some sort of party’, Naruto!” Spike cried, stunned. “It’s the party of the year! Everypony who’s anypony is going to be there!”
Naruto rolled his eyes at that. “Still sounds to me like a fancy party full of stuck-up ponies. If Luna didn’t ask me to come, I’d just stay here and sell some Ramen.”
“Oh, be a little positive, would you?” Spike asked. “Just think of all the amazing things that will be there! The best food, the best musicians, the Wonderbolts! Even Princess Celestia herself is going to be there!”
Naruto’s pessimistic thought train came to a halt at the last sentence. “Princess Celestia will be there too?”
“Well, duh. She’s the hostess of the Gala!” Spike smiled.
“Princess Celestia…” Naruto thought. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen her, and I still didn’t have a chance to ask her how she was doing on finding a way to send me back home… Maybe tonight I could finally…”
“But you know what the best part will be?” Spike asked. Naruto shook his head, unsure what the little Dragon was going for.
“We’ll all get to spend the night together!” he called in excitement. “And after the Gala is over, I can’t wait to show you all around Canterlot! The golden apple tree, the crown jewels, my favorite donut shop…”
Naruto’s mind trailed off again, thinking about the upcoming night. “And I wonder why Luna invited me. All this just sounds like a huge chore…”
“…in short,” Spike summarized. “By tonight is over, you can be sure this will be the best night you’ve ever had!”
“Sounds more like the worst night ever,” Naruto thought, a sarcastic smile on his muzzle. “I hope Luna won’t mind me leaving early. The more I stay there, the more chances all those ponies might have to figure something out about me…”
“Well, here we are,” Spike said and came to a stop in front of Carousel Boutique.
“Oh hey, what’s that?” Naruto asked, pointing at a large, apple-shaped carriage parked next to the building.
“That’s our ride for the Gala,” Spike replied. “Twilight made it from an apple using a magic spell. Pretty neat, huh?”
“…An apple carriage?” Naruto asked dubiously. “Why am I surprised? After being here so long I really should accept all those weird things…”
“Who’s pulling it?” the orange stallion asked.
“Beats me,” Spike shrugged. “But I’m sure Twilight and the others have it all sorted out.”
“Oh well, let’s go then,” Naruto said and opened the front door. Spike quickly followed after him inside.
*****
Naruto opened the door to Rarity’s studio. “Hi, Rar—”
“AHHHH!” Rarity shrieked, and Naruto quickly found himself hit by an endless stream of pillows, towels and other items. “WE’RE GETTING DRESSED! GET OUT!”
“Hey, stop that!” Naruto cried, fruitlessly trying to block the incoming attacks with his foreleg.
“Uh… beg your pardon, Rarity” Applejack was heard from inside the room. “We don’t normally wear clothes.”
Rarity groaned in defeat, and the assault came to a halt. “Sorry, boys. Some of us do have standards.”
Naruto noted she wasn’t actually apologizing for tossing the items at him and frowned for a moment. However, he quickly forgot all about it upon taking in the odd state in which were the six mares. Rainbow’s and Applejack’s manes were wrapped in a towel, Twilight and Pinkie had their heads up a cylindrical tube of some machine, Fluttershy had her hooves brushed by Applejack, and Rarity was attaching fake eyelashes to her eyelids. “Girls are… really weird.”
“I still can’t believe we’re going to be in Canterlot tonight! Our home town, Twilight!” Spike exclaimed as he walked inside alongside Naruto. “And the best part is we’re going to hang out together, all night long!” he said happily, taking a seat on a chair nearby Twilight.
Curious, Naruto trotted towards another one of the machines Twilight and Pinkie were using. He placed the tube on his head. “So… what is this— YOUCH! HOT!” he cried, suddenly feeling arid wind blowing on his mane. He quickly removed it.
“I don’t know, Spike…” Rainbow said with an unsure expression.
“We’ll just have to see,” Rarity added, attaching the eyelashes to her left eye.
“We’re gonna be a mite busy,” Applejack said as she spat on Fluttershy’s hoof and began rubbing it with a brush, much to the other’s revulsion.
“Busy having fun!” Pinkie exclaimed as she removed the machine from her mane. It appeared all droopy and straightened out, but it puffed back up to normal in a second.
“Oh, okay…” Spike sighed.
“Don’t worry, Spike. We’ll all get to spend some time together,” Twilight said as she applied some powder onto her muzzle using a small brush and a circular item Naruto had never seen before.
“Great!” Spike called happily, cheered up by Twilight’s words. “I can’t wait!”
Naruto then paced over to one of the small makeup tables. He picked up the small, circular item Twilight had used and opened it up, only to be greeted with a pinkish cloud of powder. “W-What the hay is this?! It’s worse than a smoke bomb!” he coughed, quickly putting the wretched item back where it was.
“Oh, darling,” Rarity said. “While I admire your desire to use muzzle powder, you must simply leave it to a professional for such a grand occasion as this! I shall assist you in a moment, alright?”
“No!” Naruto cried. “Uhh… I mean, no thanks…”
“So… why are you all so excited about the Gala, anyway?” Naruto inquired. “No matter how much I think about it, it really doesn’t sound all that to me.”
“Oh, you’ll understand once we get there, Naruto,” Twilight smiled. “Just imagine… a night when anything you could ever hope for might just happen!”
“I doubt that, unless Princess Celestia can finally get me back home,” Naruto thought, rolling his eyes. “Well, I guess I’ll play along as much as I can for Luna's sake.”
“So when are we going?” Naruto asked. “I thought you’d be done getting ready by now.”
“We will be soon,” Rarity said as she attached her fake eyelashes to her other eye. “Don’t you have some preparing to do yourself?”
“I’m just gonna throw on the suit you made me,” Naruto said, causing Rarity’s eye to twitch at the phrasing. “It won’t take long.”
“Besides, we have another problem,” Spike chimed in. “Who’s gonna pull our carriage?”
“Well, we were hoping Naruto here could ‘summon’ us some help,” Rarity said. “If you know what I mean,” she smiled at him, blinking her eyes suggestively.
Naruto rolled his eyes a bit, although he smiled in amusement. “Alright, you can count on me!”
“Now, here are your suits, boys,” Rarity said, floating towards Naruto and Spike the mannequins dressed in her creations for the two. “So off you go,” she said as she opened the door.
“Huh? Why do we have to go?” Spike asked, a bit hurt.
“Rarity thinks it’ll be bad luck to see us in our dresses before the Gala,” Applejack said. “Bunch of hooey if ya ask me, but there ain’t no harm in going along with it, right?” she smiled.
Naruto and Spike exchanged gazes, shrugged, and then turned around to leave the room.
*****
About an hour later…
“Are we ready to go?” Spike asked in excitement, looking at Naruto who sat to his left at the front bench of the carriage in a human-like posture. The two guys were both wearing the suits Rarity had made them — a tuxedo’s top with a red bowtie for Spike, and a white collar with a black overtop and an orange bowtie for Naruto, which was a stark change from his usual jumpsuit. Beneath them, two of Naruto’s clones were tied to the reins of the apple-shaped vehicle parked near Carousel Boutique, ready to take the eight guests to the party.
“Without the girls?” Naruto smirked at him.
“Oh, right,” Spike chuckled. “By the way, why are you keeping your forehead protector on? Do you need help taking it off or something?” he asked, reaching up to it.
“No way!” Naruto exclaimed, quickly placing a hoof on top of it. “I’m not taking it off, believe it!”
“Is it that important to you?” Spike asked. “Come to think of it, I’ve never heard how you got it! Can you tell me sometime?”
“Sure, why not?” Naruto smiled. “Huh, guess I never really told the others much about myself. Well… I guess it would be a problem if they found out too much…”
Just then, the front door of Carousel Boutique opened, and one by one did the six mares trot outside. Naruto turned to look at them, but Spike quickly covered his eyes. “Hey! We’re not supposed to look, remember?” he asked, quickly covering his own eyes with his other palm.
Naruto rolled his eyes and turned back to the front. “These ponies have such weird customs…”
“We’re all set, boys!” Rarity called as the carriage’s door closed.
“Let’s get moving!” Rainbow Dash added.
“If you don’t mind, that is…” Fluttershy said softly.
“Well, let’s go then! Hiya!” Spike called in excitement as he whipped the clones with his reins, making them both vanish into two puffs of smoke. He then turned to the left to find Naruto looking at him scornfully.
“Uhh… Oops, my bad,” Spike scratched the back of his head, smiling sheepishly.
*****
About two hours later…
“We’re here!” the right carriage-pulling Naruto exclaimed as the carriage stopped.
“And much earlier than we thought,” the left Naruto added. “Canterlot sure seemed a lot further than this from Ponyville!”
Naruto and Spike smiled, jumped off their seats and onto the ground. Spike then opened the carriage door and gave a bow as the six mares trotted outside.
“Thanks, guys,” Naruto thanked his clones as the two carriage-pulling Naruto’s moved the carriage away to be parked, before turning back to Spike and the others.
“Woah!” Spike cried in awe, glaring at the six mares with sparks in his eyes, as it was the first time he saw them wearing their dresses. “You all look… amazing!”
Naruto also surveyed the mares for a moment, quite impressed, but his attention was soon drawn to the palace, and he found himself staring at it slightly jaw-dropped. Unlike the summer solstice, after he and the six mares saved Luna, when he saw the palace in the light of day, this time the palace seemed to glow almost mystically under the dark night sky. The golden rooftops of the palace’s towers glittered beautifully in the moonlight, and fireworks in different colors popped seemingly endlessly above it.
“I can’t believe we’re finally here!” Twilight called in excitement, looking up at the Canterlot Royal Palace along with her friends. “With all that we’ve imagined, the reality of this night is sure to make this… the best night ever!”
“At the Gala…
At the Gala…”
For some reason, everypony began singing about the Gala. Naruto, however, flatly ignored this and began marching straight towards the humongous golden gates of the palace. “I’ll be going ahead of everypony, Spike,” he said to the little Dragon as he began marching forward. “I want to get this over with as soon as possible.”
“Okay, I’ll see you later then!” Spike waved, not noticing the ninja’s clear lack of interest in the event as he instead chose to listen to the unfolding song.
*****
After Naruto had paced on the lowered wooden bridge, passed the huge golden entrance gates and trotted into the entry hall of the palace, he found himself bathed in brilliant light bestowed upon him by beautiful chandeliers. The sparkling, clear black-and-white tiled marble floor was covered in a red carpet, which spread out horizontally towards huge doors to his left and right, and vertically up the marble staircase and lead to…
“Princess Celestia,” Naruto thought, looking up at the white Alicorn. “I wonder if she’s already found a way to send me back… I didn’t have a chance to ask her yet…”
Save for Naruto’s ‘kidnapping’ and a brief, emergency encounter he had with Equestria’s high ruler not long ago, this was only the second time the two had met face to face. Only the second time the two actually had the time to speak with each other.
“Naruto!” Princess Celestia called as Naruto reached her, the delight in her voice clear. “Welcome to the Grand Galloping Gala,” she greeted with a brief bow. “I am so glad you could make it here tonight.”
“Well, Luna specifically invited me, so I couldn’t really say no…” Naruto thought, but quickly dismissed it. “Thanks. Of course I came,” he smiled. “So, how are you doing with the whole sending me back thing?” he immediately asked, full of anticipation.
“I truly apologize, Naruto,” Celestia replied with a saddened look. “Setting right the flow of time in an entire, different universe is no simple task. However, my promise to you remains true. As soon as I will know how to properly send you back, I shall contact you,” she reassured him.
“How long would that take?” Naruto asked, a bit downcast.
“I’m afraid I cannot say for sure yet,” Celestia answered.
“Well, alright…” Naruto yielded, realizing there’s no point in arguing.
“I would suggest you to forget about that, for now,” the Princess advised. “Until then, I hope you’ll enjoy your stay here in Equestria, and especially tonight at the Gala,” she smiled. “I am positive you will have a wonderful time here.”
“I guess so… Well, where’s Luna?” Naruto asked, looking around to try and find her. “She said that she wanted to spend the night with me.”
“Of course,” Celestia smiled. “You have no idea how much she has looked forward to this night. You are quite the devil to win her over like that.”
“Huh? Win her over?” Naruto asked, unsure of what she meant.
“Oh, excuse me. It’s nothing,” Celestia chuckled. “Well, she should be just about done preparing herself. I would say she ought to be here any minute now.”
“Good evening, Naruto…” a familiar voice spoke softly, causing Naruto and Celestia to turn their heads to the staircase to Celestia’s right. Naruto moved his gaze upwards to find Luna trotting down towards him and promptly froze, needing a few seconds to take in what he was seeing.
The Princess of the Night slowly paced down the staircase. She was wearing a purple silk dress, embroidered by many small stars made of yellow gems and a large, golden crescent moon on its left side. Attached to the back of the dress was a short train made of semi-transparent, lavender fabric that glittered in the light. On Luna’s head was a small, violet tiara, decorated with a golden crescent moon. She wore golden shoes to match.
“Umm… hi,” was all Naruto could blurt, for some reason quite dumbfounded by Luna’s appearance, even though he saw and even helped make the garment she was wearing.
“H-Hello, Naruto…” Luna replied hesitantly.
“Psst… compliment her,” Celestia whispered to Naruto, smiling.
“Umm… your dress… looks… nice!” Naruto said somewhat forcefully, in lack of a better compliment in his arsenal.
“Compliment her mane!” Celestia suggested quietly, her grin showing that she was quite enjoying the situation.
“And your mane… it’s really sparkly tonight!” Naruto uttered.
“T-Thank you,” Luna muttered and looked away, a faint blush and shy smile decorating her muzzle. “Umm… it is good to see you again, Naruto.”
“You too,” Naruto replied, still somewhat dazed.
“I will handle the reception, Luna. So off you go to enjoy yourselves, you two,” Celestia urged. “Wasn’t there something you wanted to do?”
Luna’s eyes widened, and soon so did her smile. Without warning, she began making her way down the staircase. “H-Hey!” Naruto cried in surprise as he could feel Luna’s hoof grabbing his own and pulling him along.
As Naruto looked at Luna, he could see her excited, innocent and somewhat child-like grin. For some reason, he could not bring himself to look away from her, not even noticing that Twilight had just passed them, running up the stairs towards Princess Celestia.
“Where are we going?” Naruto asked as Luna pulled him along through the door to the right.
“You will soon see, Naruto,” Luna replied mysteriously, retaining her pure smile.
*****
Soon enough, Luna’s destination and goal became clear, as slow-paced music reached Naruto’s ears. Spread out in front of the couple was a large dance floor made of black-and-white marble tiles, illuminated by silver chandeliers and decorated by large Alicorn statues and ornamental columns. Many ponies dressed in fancy suits or dresses were waltzing to the music of a piano, a harp, a tuba and a cello.
“Let us ‘hit on the dance floor’! …Or so they say,” Luna said as she took Naruto’s front hooves in her own. All the nearby ponies took a few steps back, giving the couple more than enough dancing space.
“W-Wait!” Naruto exclaimed.
“What is the matter, Naruto? Do you not want to dance with me?” Luna asked in worry.
“I… don’t know how to dance,” Naruto explained. “And I don’t really want to, either…”
“Oh, is that it?” Luna asked, relieved. “It is simple,” she said and moved her left hind hoof backwards. “Simply watch my steps and—”
“I’m at the Grand Galloping Gala,
I’m at the Grand Galloping Gala,
I’m at the Grand Galloping Gala!”
Pinkie Pie’s cheerful, booming voice soon echoed throughout the hall, causing everypony to jerk their heads towards the noisy guest. The pink party pony soon started hopping and dancing around wildly, distracting and disturbing the Gala attendees and even the musicians on the stage.
“It’s all I’ve ever dreamed!
It’s all I’ve ever dreamed! Woohoo!
It’s all I’ve ever dreamed! Yeepee!”
“Perhaps we ought to return later, when the ‘bass is dropped’,” Luna said, quite disappointed by the ruining of the mood.
“Ah! Wait!” Naruto called, but Luna didn’t listen and turned to leave the dance floor, still holding Naruto’s hoof. Pinkie was still cheerfully singing in the background. “Aw, darn. Just when the music was getting good…” Naruto thought in disappointment.
“I’m at the Grand Galloping Galaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!”
*****
This time, Luna had led Naruto to the door on the opposite side of the entry hall and into a large garden, where the couple was greeted by a summer breeze and the fragrant smell of flowers.
“So, where are you taking me now?” Naruto asked again.
“I wish for us to talk and catch up,” Luna smiled. “And one of my favorite places here in the palace is by the rose bushes,” she explained as she led him along. All of the nearby ponies moved aside to allow them clear passage.
As the couple reached the rose bushes, they quickly noticed a pair of white Unicorns standing next to them, one of which was familiar to Naruto, whereas the other was not. Upon getting closer, Naruto smiled when he recognized Rarity, while Luna’s face fell to see the other.
“Oh, there you are, Auntie Luna!” greeted the second pony. He was a white Unicorn stallion with light brown mane, and was wearing a large, blue bowtie.
“Hello, Blueblood…” Luna replied in what sounded almost like a sigh.
“Please meet lady Rarity,” he motioned to the white mare. “She has a very keen eye for beauty,” he smiled, pointing at a somewhat crumpled red rose which stuck out of his suit.
“Princess Luna!” Rarity called, bowing.
“Good evening, Rarity. It is good to see you again,” Luna said with a smile. “You have my sincere thanks for designing me this beautiful dress. You may expect a generous reward to be delivered to you in a few days.”
“Oh, it was no problem at all!” Rarity replied with a smile, although both mares knew that was quite far from the truth. “I hope you and Naruto will have an absolutely fantastic time tonight!”
“Naruto?” Blueblood asked, studying Naruto for the first time. “I do not believe we have ever met before. In which royal circles do you usually partake?”
“Umm… what?” was Naruto’s blunt answer to the question.
“I believe Prince Blueblood is asking what royals are in your clique, Naruto,” Rarity clarified, while not making the question much easier for him to understand.
“Oh, uh… I don’t know any royals. I’ve only been in Canterlot once before,” Naruto answered. “Is that what I should have said?”
Blueblood’s eyes widened in horror, and he quickly moved to whisper to Luna, barely quietly enough to keep what he was saying secret. “Auntie Luna! How are you allowing yourself to spend the Gala with some… peasant?!”
“It is our own business with whom we wish to associate, Blueblood,” Luna replied sternly, her voice dangerously rising by a few decibels.
“Well, uh…” Naruto began, before things could get out of hoof. “Let’s go talk over there, alright?” he asked, motioning over to a more distant part of the garden.
Luna gave one last angered look at Blueblood, before she began trotting away towards where Naruto pointed. As the orange stallion looked back momentarily, he could see Rarity’s apologetic smile.
*****
Luna and Naruto were now greeted by the soft whistling of birds as they made their way into a more secluded part of the gardens.
Naruto looked around in awe to see many colorful birds, possums and other critters staring at him and Luna from the trees.
“I truly apologize for earlier, Naruto,” Luna said sorrowfully. “I ought to have known nothing good would arise from that meeting …”
“It’s no problem, Luna” Naruto replied nonchalantly. “I pretty much expected this was how tonight would be, anyway, so I’m not surprised…”
The birds’ whistling suddenly grew stronger, and Naruto instinctively looked around to try and find its source. Unfortunately, that led him to fail noticing the yellow Pegasus standing right in front of him. He slammed head-first straight into her rump.
“EEEEK!!!” the Pegasus shrieked and flew upwards to the tree she was under, clinging to one of its branches like a scared cat.
“Oh, hey Fluttershy,” Naruto said, quickly recognizing the mare. Luna simply stared at her, blushing intensely over what just happened.
“Oh, it’s you, Naruto!” Fluttershy said, letting out a sigh of relief as she glided back down to the ground. “And… P-P-Princess Luna!” she immediately cried, jumping upwards and hanging on the branch again. Luna’s expression suddenly became troubled.
“You can come back down now,” Naruto said.
“Oh, umm… I’m really comfy up here, though…” Fluttershy muttered, wearing a very forced smile. Naruto simply stared at her, puzzled.
Luna sighed. “’Tis alright, Naruto. Let us leave now,” she said and began pacing away. As she did, a little yellow bird flew down from the tree Fluttershy was clinging to and perched on Luna’s tiara.
“Good evening, Mr. Chirps,” Luna said, not even needing to take a look at the bird to recognize it. The bird let out a few chirps in response.
Fluttershy slowly descended down, landing a little distance from Luna. A stunned expression was on her face. “…How did you do that? You didn’t even call him!” she asked, somewhat jaw-dropped.
Luna looked at her in surprise. “I have spent most of my time in the palace since my return, and so I have come to know all of the animals in the garden,” she replied. “They were wary of me at first, but soon we have all come to befriend each other.”
“I’ve been trying to meet the lovely animals you have here, but they’ve all been running away from me. Do you think you could teach me how to…?” Fluttershy muttered, pointing to Mr. Chirps. The little bird then flew back up to the tree.
“While the animals here are quite reserved, with enough persistence, it is only a matter of time for them to learn to love you. They aren’t bad creatures,” Luna said. “They only need to have a chance to know you.”
“Persistence, huh?” Fluttershy repeated, pondering about it. “I see… Thank you very much, Princess!” she smiled.
Luna looked at her a bit mouth-gaped, but then smiled as well. “You are most welcome, Fluttershy.”