Promising Shadows

by Storm Shine


The best use of a Gala Ticket

"Luna! Panca-..." Didn't even get to finish my sentence before she literally teleported downstairs, smiling at me from the table. Now if only I could get her to wake up that fast without the pancakes.

"Deliver to me my fluffy discs of dough, so that I may smother them in syrup!" Luna declared imperiously, pointing at the stack of pancakes with a magically gripped fork.

Shady materialized from her ring, drifting over to the table to 'sit' next to Luna. "Yeah, hurry and dish up the pancakes!"

"Yeah, yeah." I replied, rolling my eyes with an amused smile as I set the stack I'd made on the table. "You know, if you keep eating like this, you're gonna get fat."

Luna looked horrified at the thought, "Nay! Our pancakes would never betray us so!"

Shady nodded as she used the distraction as an opportunity to get a head-start on the pancakes, "Exactly! Besides, I can't get fat." She stuck her tongue out at me childishly.

"Right..." I grabbed an envelope off the counter, "Anyways, we got some mail Luna. A nice grey pegasus mare dropped a letter off from your sister... along with a rather delicious muffin."

"Tia? I wonder what she would wish to send through the normal mail system." Luna wondered, before shrugging and continuing in her shared genocide of the pancake race. I could practically hear the screams...

Forcing a slight shudder back, I shrugged and opened the envelope, pulling out a letter. "Hmm... Apparently she sent us tickets to something called... The Grand Galloping Gala?" Hearing a thud, I lowered the letter I was reading to see that Luna had embedded her horn into the table... somehow. "Uh.. Need some help?"

"Yes Please" Luna replied, slightly muffled by the table-cloth.


After about half an hour, we finally managed to get Luna's horn unstuck from the table. "So..." I began, "What exactly prompted your attempted murder of our furniture?"

"The Grand Galloping Gala," Luna groaned, "Is the most annoying event of the year."

"I'm guessing it's like some sort of... I don't know, a ball? A dance or fancy party of some sort?" I hazarded.

"All of the above." Luna muttered, nibbling on a few more pancakes. "I don't know why everypony always wants to go, it's a complete bore."

"So... Can we just skip it?" I asked, not really eager to go to the Gala myself. I went to one dance in my life, and if it's anything like my Highschool dance... Yeah, no.

"No, Tia will insist that I go, and you will likely be made to attend as well." Luna replied, dashing that hope of simply skipping out.

"Great..." I groaned, thunking my head against the table as well. Thankfully, humans are devoid of table-goring horns.

"I have an idea!" Shadofang grinned, "How about we use the tickets to have a bit of fun?"

Luna glared at the golden tickets on the table, a mocking pony party parody of Willy Wonka's own wacky tickets. "How could anypony have fun with such... such evil?"

"Easy!" Shady's grin widened, "You said ponies all really want to go to the gala right?"

"Last we checked, why?" Luna asked curiously, shifting her gaze to look at the Shu-Shu.

"Just follow my lead, hehehe...."

I have a bad feeling about this.


"It's mine!"

"No it's mine!"

"Hooves off, I saw it first!"

"Girls, it's getting away!"

"Get it!"

On a nearby roof, my palm connected with my forehead with an audible 'SMACK' while I watched the chaos down below. Luna and Shady giggled evilly next to me as the latter held a fishing pole, waving it around and watching all the earth pony and unicorn mares - who seemed to have conveniently forgotten about their magical abilities - attempt to get the ticket on the plastic hook. The former's horn was glowing light blue, a corresponding glow surrounding another ticket that some local pegasi were chasing around the sky.

"Really?" I asked, exasperated. "I mean, really?"

"What? At least I'm not doing anything evil." Shady protested. "It's just a prank!'

My eyes narrowed slightly, "Where'd you get the fishing rod?"

"I, um, found it." She replied, her eyes shifting side to side suspiciously.

"Relax Tony, 'tis all in good fun!" Luna added, saving her fellow prankster from further interrogation. "Nopony is getting hurt-" She winced slightly at a sharp 'SMACK' that rang through the air, a couple of mares suddenly turning into a dust-cloud of furious hooves "-Much... And besides, the tickets are actually useful for once!"

"Yeah, but what about those poor mares?" I retorted with a bit of bite in my voice, "I doubt that they'll be happy to find out that none of them will end up going to the gala." I winced myself as a mare was ejected violently from the fight-cloud, only to snort angrily and jump back in with a battle-cry, "Not to mention the bruises they might get..."

"Worry not! I have already mailed Tia requesting more tickets for this very reason!" Luna replied with a smug smile, which turned into a slight frown. "Though I cannot say anything for the bruises.. However, 'tis their own fault for fighting over something so trivial."

"Alright Luna, but if that backfires..." I began menacingly, "I won't make pancakes anymore."

Their eyes widened, "NOT THE PANCAKES!"

"Yes, the pancakes." I replied firmly.

"Tony..." Luna began seriously, "I will procure tickets for each and every one of these mares, personally if I have to, if you will promise to never threaten our pancakes again."

I thought about it for a moment... On one hoof, I lose my leverage and would have to find new leverage to keep these two out of trouble... On the other hoo- HAND! I meant on the other hand. This world is getting to my lexicon... - , I don't want all of these mares to get depressed over a simple prank.. Which seems possible, given how crazy they're going over the tickets.

"Fine." I replied, "If you can get each and every one of these mares you're pranking a ticket, I won't ever threaten to stop making pancakes again."

Luna 'squeed' at me, "Don't worry Tony, I will!" She looked up at the sky, "...Right after this stops being funny." The two pranksters then proceeded to resume their giggling fits, causing me to roll my eyes. It's not that funny