Two weeks passed following Night Shadow's meeting with both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, and day by day, things gradually picked up around Canterlot as the city prepared for the upcoming Fall Gala. Although he now ranked at captain, Night had not yet been re-assigned to what he expected to be an office job, with lots of sleep-inducing paperwork.
Even after all of the time passed, very few of the guards addressed, or even saluted Night. Even though some knew, it was to be expected that not all would respect him as a high ranking officer, knowing it hadn't been announced yet and was going to be at the Gala, which was that later that evening.
"Captain, sir," a pegasus guard floated down to Night as he patrolled the city, he carried a rolled up scroll, neatly tied with a dark blue ribbon and a golden medallion with a crescent moon engraved in it. He landed with a faint clop of his hooves, then saluted respectively.
Night Shadow saluted back. "What is it, soldier?" He asked.
"A message from Princess Luna, sir. Shall I read it to you?"
"No, it is alright. Carry on, soldier."
The guard nodded once, handing the scroll to Night and taking off into the sky. He unclipped the medallion ribbon, setting it to the side and unrolling the scroll.
Dear Captain Night Shadow,
We are very excited for the Gala later tonight, and are looking forward to announcing your promotion, as well as commemorating you for your heroic actions in the city of Vanhoover. As part of our thanks, we have already prepared your captain's dress uniform at the local fitter on Trotting Street. You are to report to the suit fitter, and have it tried on for additional finishing touches, such as resizing. When you are finished, you will be escorted to your personal barracks at the palace, which are being prepared for you as you read this letter. Around seven o'clock, come to the main ball room at the west side of the castle.
As said before, we look forward to your presence at tonight's Gala.
Much love, your friend, Princess Luna.
Night blushed faintly at the letter mentioning Princess Luna being his friend, which was quite the honor, especially now that he was second in command of her personal guard. He rolled the letter back up, then stuck it into his armor and began walking in the direction of the dress fitter shop on the street mentioned in the letter. It wasn't long before he found it, which surprised him even more to find it was wedding related. His eyes widened, and he thought to himself, "This isn't for a wedding, I hope."
He pulled the door open, entering the shop. The door made the average bell sound, attracting the immediate attention of the shop keeper, a light pink unicorn mare with a curly purple striped mane, and a pair of square glasses. She smiled big, trotting up to Night and bowing her head to him.
"You must be Captain Night Shadow," she said, smiling.
"I am," Night smiled to her. "Please, there is no need to bow. I am not royalty."
"But you are a high ranking guard, and that is worthy of respect. I presume you're here to try on your new uniform, hmm?"
"Yes, ma'am," Night smiled still.
"Well, come with me! I've got it here in the back room for you to try on," the shopkeeper said, beginning to trot into one of the back rooms of the store. Night followed her from a few feet, also looking around at the different suits and dresses in the shop. The mare lit her horn in a light blue aura, pushing the fitting room's door open and walking inside. "Here it is!"
Night followed her inside, his eyes opening in awe as he stared directly at his new uniform, which was fitted onto a manikin of a stallion about his size. The entire uniform was extremely dark blue, with a few lighter blue detailing, such as the rank insignia which was that of a Captain, with a white crescent moon just above, which matched that of Princess Luna's cutie mark. The buttons up the suit jacket were fine polished gold, similar to the Royal Guard's dress uniforms.
"Well, what do you think?" The mare smiled hopefully.
"I love it. I absolutely love it," Night smiled brightly. "How much do I owe you?"
"Oh, don't worry about that, Princess Luna has it already taken care of. Now, let's have you try it on," the shopkeeper lit her horn again, enveloping the suit and the manikin whole, gently slipping it off and levitating it in the air. "You will have to take your armor off, first."
Many minutes of uncomfortable fitting later, the shopkeeper stepped back from Night Shadow, then turned him to face a vertical mirror. Night smiled to himself in the mirror and put a hoof to his chest, lightly smirking.
"Well, hello, sexy," he said to himself.
The shopkeeper giggled. "Perfect fit, I see."
"It is. I love it, I really do," Night turned to her and smiled. "Thank you."
"Oh, don't thank me, I just couldn't wait to be given such an honorable assignment, the job of making a uniform for one of the princess' high ranking guards. I should thank you, or more importantly, I should thank the royal sisters as well." Night chuckled and smiled. "Now, let's get it packed for you for later."
More minutes later, the shopkeeper neatly folded the suit, and wrapped it in transparent plastic clothing wrap, then set it gently down in a pink and white striped paper bag, and handed it to Night. He thanked the mare once more, then exited the store and started to walk towards the palace, only to be stopped by another pegasus royal guard, which startled him a little.
"My apologies, sir," the guard saluted. Night saluted back and chuckled again.
"Don't be, I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings."
The guard kept a stoic expression on his face, not smiling once. "Are you ready to be taken to your personal quarters, Captain?"
"I am, sir. Lead the way," Night said.
Both the guard and Night Shadow began walking through the busy streets, weaving through small crowds as they did. Night turned and watched some ponies decorate the street lights and buildings for the Gala as they walked past, smiling at the ponies who watched them walk by. Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, Night found himself at the front door of the castle. He followed the guard inside, and soon up a stair way onto the second floor. Two doors to the right, the guard pulled a key from his armor and stuck it into the lock, and twisted it. The door unlocked, and he pushed it open, stepping to the side.
"Your personal quarters, sir," he said.
Night entered the room, his eyes brightening in awe once again. The room was large, complete with a king-sized bed with the sheets and pillows neatly placed on it. The top blanket was a navy blue, and had the Lunar Guard serpent eye on it, dead center. Off to the sides, the bed had two night stands, one with two drawers, the other as a simple round table with a white and gold crystal lamp sitting perfectly on it. On the walls, were two steel swords crossed under a silver shield, hanging a few feet above the polished wooden floor.
To the right of the bed, were numerous tall windows, and dual glass doors leading out onto a round balcony with two chairs and a table, looking out over a good portion of the city. He walked further inside, noticing to his left, where the bathroom and kitchen were.
Night trotted into the bathroom, his golden eyes still greatly widened as he looked around. Inside was a master shower, a large granite counter with a gold-edged mirror, and a wooden towel rack. Night strode out of the bathroom, and into the kitchen, which was somewhat spaced off from the bathroom. It was an average kitchen, with a large refrigerator, a steel stove, many small cabinets both under the counter and above, as well as the dual-sided sink built into even more granite counter tops.
"If you need anything, I will be down the hall," the guard added, exiting Night's room and closing the door behind him.
Night continued to look all around, in utter shock of how luxurious his quarters were. In his mind, he expected something slightly rougher and smaller, but still comfortable. He trotted to the bed, setting his new uniform down onto it.
Hours passed, and soon the sun was already sunk beneath the west horizon, and the stars were already out to the east. Night carefully put on his new uniform, initially having some trouble without the aid of a shopkeeper like earlier. Once he was finished, he looked over himself in the mirror, making minor corrections so nothing was crooked or off. He looked over himself in the mirror, smirking a little and beginning to talk to himself in a mirror, acting like he was with a mare.
"Well, hello. I am Captain Night Shadow," he spoke in a slightly different voice other than his own, then he shook his head quickly. "No, wait, Night, this isn't a date. This is the Fall Gala. It's like the Grand Galloping Gala, but in autumn," he facehoofed himself gently, then noticed a small gold bowl of mints.
He reached into it and tossed a mint into his mouth, chewing on it for a few moments, but then spitting it into the trash can. "Agh, these taste terrible!" He coughed a little and spit into the sink, then rolled up one of his sleeves neatly and ran a hoof under the water to wipe at his tongue. "Blech," he shook his head, then trotted out of the bathroom.
Night walked to the windows, staring down at the streets ahead and spotting a long line of finely dressed ponies of all gender and race waiting to enter the palace. He inhaled, then walked to the door leading to the hallway outside of his quarters, shutting off the lights and trotting out into the hall, and down the stairs.
Come to the main ballroom west side of the castle, he remembered. Night made his way onto the first floor, passing by the occasional guard standing by closed doors. He eventually turned a corner, entering the main hall and stopping to look around. "Hmm, where's the main ballroom?"
"Down the first hall from here and straight ahead," a guard replied.
Night was slightly startled, having not noticed the guard before. "Oh, thanks," he blushed in some embarrassment and turned down the hallway, soon coming to end of it and pushing the doors open. Inside, the ball room was decorated beautifully with many different assortments of autumn-themed decorations.
Night walked in, slowly looking around at the empty ball room. In just thirty minutes, the palace would be packed with hundreds of mares and stallions.
"Thine uniform looks good," a new voice spoke up, once again startling Night Shadow.
Night quickly turned around, his eyes meeting those of Princess Luna's. She wore a black and navy blue dress with slightly transparent silver edging, which sparkled like her dark blue wavy mane. He blushed a little and chuckled.
"Your highness, I did not hear you walk in," he approached the alicorn mare and stopped just before her, bowing his head.
"Oh, we apologize if we scared thee. We simply wanted to have a word with thou before we open the doors."
"But of course, your highness."
Princess Luna sighed contently. "We know tonight seems like a busy night, but, we would like for thou to know that tonight is laid back. Do not keep your guard up too much, this is a night to relax and open up, and perhaps introduce yourself to a few ponies?"
Night Shadow nodded. "Of course, your-"
"Please, do not be so formal. As we said, tonight is simply for relaxation and opening up," Princess Luna smiled.
Night blushed softly and nodded again. "Alright, I-I'll try my best. It just feels strange not being formal. It feels wrong. You are after all, the Lunar princess."
"Yes, but, I much prefer casual talk in the presence of acquaintances. As thou may know, I do not have many friends, which is why we—I mean, I—grant you casual speech."
"Well, if you say so. I may slip a few times, though."
Princess Luna let out a small chuckle. "That is fine with us."
A new sound caught their attention, the sound of two large doors opening with faint thuds. Night and Princess Luna turned their heads, watching as ponies casually entered the ball room and looking around in awe. Princess Luna then turned back to Night.
"Please, just have fun. After your courage two weeks ago, you've earned some time off, Night Shadow," Princess Luna smiled again.
Night Shadow smiled back and nodded once. "Thank you, Princess Luna."
Following their short discussion, both the lunar princess and Night Shadow greeted guests as they walked in. Calm orchestral music played throughout the ballroom. Ponies walked around, some to a small area by the music altar to dance, others to the buffet for food. Guards stood by the door like any other day, present in the event of something going awry.
Twenty minutes later, the last ponies entered the ball room, soon followed by Princess Celestia, who wore a bright white and gold layered dress with a short train. The altar was cleared of the opera instruments, where the royal sisters stood to speak.
"My dear subjects," Princess Celestia started. "I welcome you all tonight to the first annual Fall Gala. As some of you may know, both me and my dear sister Princess Luna have a major announcement to make regarding changes in her royal guard. You may have met him at the door when you entered, but he is here now. Night Shadow?"
At her word, Night Shadow walked out of the crowd, down the red silk carpet. Many ponies in the crowd had faint chatter that even he couldn't hear, many of the ponies watching in awe as he walked to the altar, standing to Princess Luna's left side and smiling.
"We would like for all of thou to meet Captain Night Shadow, second-in-command of my personal guard."
The crowd lit up into a collective clapping of hooves and some cheering, and even some whistling from mares, then it calmed when Princess Celestia cleared her throat.
"Tonight, we greatly appreciate this brave stallion's courage, as he led the small rebellion against the bat pony colony's attacking forces in Vanhoover just two weeks ago. I shall hand this over to Night Shadow. Go ahead, introduce yourself," Princess Celestia turned to him, smiling.
Night gulped a little, then turned back to the large crowd. "Hello everypony," he started. "It is an honor to be here tonight, beside the princesses and with all of you. I come from a large colony of bat ponies in northwestern Equestria, even though I am a pegasus. Don't worry, I'm confused as to why I came out this way too," he lightly chuckled. Most of the ponies in the room chuckled with him, then continued to listen.
"But, when I learned of the plans of an invasion of Equestria, as revenge to what happened all of those decades ago, I decided it was too risky to come back, and I had to do it myself. By the time it started, the army of ponies of all of the colonies combined known as Fang Legion, started attacking the city and soon took it over, lead by the colony's leader, the Governor as we called him.
"He never revealed his name, which is why he follows that name in particular. I fought him, and lost. My good friend and trainer, Sergeant Thunderblast of the Royal Guard, stepped in, saving me from being executed, but was paralyzed by a numbing venom. I stood up again, and fought harder. Before I knew it, I had taken down their leader. Afterwards, I went to the aid of my father and his friend. Once it was all done, it left my father in the hospital," Night looked down. "I hoped he would be here tonight, but he is still heal—"
The doors to the ballroom suddenly gradually opened, and the crowd, as well as Night and the princesses turned their heads to the door. Standing there, Midnight Dusk, Dawn Blossom, and a bandaged Skywatcher neatly dressed stood, smiling at their son down the aisle. Some ponies gasped at the sight of the three bat ponies, more surprised than anxious or fearful. Night's eyes widened, and he soon smiled.
"It's... it's my family!"
The crowd once again clapped and cheered, smiling to Night, and then to his parents and sister as they made their way down the aisle. Night trotted down from the altar, then up to his family and embracing them in a tight hug. The crowd then let out a collective 'd'aww' and clapped more.
"I thought you were still at home?"
"We heard the news, and we couldn't miss out on such a once-in-a-lifetime occasion!" Dawn smiled and playfully nudged Night's shoulder.
Night chuckled and nudged Dawn's shoulder back. "I'm so happy you're all here! Come with me," he smiled and walked back to the altar with his family. "Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, I would like for you to meet my father, Lieutenant Skywatcher of Fang Legion, my mother Midnight Dusk, and my little sister, Dawn Blossom."
The two princesses smiled, and all greeted each other, Night's family giving respective bows and being returned by the princesses themselves. The Gala soon returned to normal, and minutes later, Thunderblast trotted up, donning his black-and-red dress uniform.
"Hello, everypony," Thunder smiled.
"Thunder!" Night smiled back and hoofbumped him. "Good to see you, buddy."
"Great to see you too, Captain," Thunder threw up a quick salute, which Night returned. "Looking good in that new uniform, wish I had one."
"Sorry, Thunder, Lunar guards only," Night chuckled again, as did Thunder.
"So, how does it feel?"
"It feels great. It all feels great now that things worked out. I myself have a personal announcement to make to all of you!"
"Oh?" Skywatcher said, smiling to Night.
"While you were in the hospital, Dad, I took the time to have some tinkering done. I'm... not venomous anymore."
Night's family, as well as Thunderblast's eyes widened with surprise, and they smiled again.
"That's great!" Thunder said.
"You were venomous?" Dawn gasped.
"Long story, I'll explain it later."
"Sounds good, because I have some talking to do with the princesses," Skywatcher said.
"Some talking? What for?" Night asked.
"Peace talks, the Governor assigned me to do it for him, which is another reason why we're here."
"He changed his mind?" Night raised an eyebrow.
"Of course he did, you put a big hurting on him, big brother. He's scared of you," Dawn chuckled.
"Is he really?" Night kept an eyebrow raised. "I guess things really did work out then."
"Well, you know what they say, all's well that ends well," Thunder said as he sipped some mixed fruit punch.
"I guess that is true. So, what happens now?"
"We relax. Nothing more can happen, now that we're all at peace once again," Princess Luna said, walking up to the group.
"Princess Luna," Thunderblast bowed to her.
"Sergeant," the lunar princess did the same in return. "We commemorate you for your courageous actions alongside Captain Night Shadow here."
"Thank you, your highness," Thunder smiled.
The group talked for the remainder of the night, all enjoying each others' company as everypony bonded closer. Talks were made between the bat ponies and the royalty of Equestria, and even Skywatcher was surprised to find himself liked by the two princesses. While they talked, Night Shadow stepped away from the group and over to one of the windows, sighing softly and staring up at the starry sky.
"Sharp... I wish you were here to enjoy the night with us. I'm so sorry everything happened, I'm so sorry I... killed you," Night sighed and wiped at his eye. "I hope we will see each other again sometime."