The Ticket Master
Almost a week had passed since Nero opened up shop in Ponyville. How was it going, you ask?
To be frank, it was boring.
The devil hunter only received calls for two jobs so far, and neither of them were challenging. The first job was just dealing with a couple empusas that showed up just outside of town, which took him less than ten seconds to handle. The second job had him dealing with a few scarecrows in the Everfree forest. While this did tell him that the demons invading Equestria weren't limited to the ones in the Qliphoth, dealing with the demons themselves had still been super easy.
Other than those, he hadn't received any other work. He wasn't even getting any letters despite bringing the mailbox outside for others. Not only did this mean he wasn't earning much money, but it was leaving him bored out of his mind with nothing to do. Now, he sat in his new shop, trying to come up with something to entertain himself.
Why can't any big demons show up? Maybe then I'd be fighting something actually worth fighting.
He looked at the clock on the wall and saw that it was lunch time. He figured he might as well try one of the restaurants in Ponyville. Since he didn't have any money to pay for food when he first showed up, Applejack had been nice enough to give him some food from the farm. As good as it was, he didn't want to keep eating apple-related foods every day. He gathered the few bits that he earned from work and set out. As he walked through town, he counted the bits that he had.
I... think this is enough to pay for lunch. I have no idea what the currency is worth here, so I'm just gonna have to wing it.
Eventually, he found a restaurant with ponies eating outside at tables shaped like mushrooms. A rather fancy looking waiter was serving the customers their food. He found a free table and sat down, taking a menu and looking over its contents. He was surprised to see what kind of food they had, but thinking about it, he realized that he shouldn't have been.
Daffodil-and-Daisy Sandwich? Hay Fries? Well, they are herbivores, so I guess I should've expected this. No way am I eating flowers for lunch. Maybe there's something else on here I can enjoy?
While he read the menu, he overheard some of the other patrons gossiping. They talked about how the new creatures that have been popping up have been identified as demons, and that there was a pony right here in Ponyville that hunts them for a living. They also talked about how the demon hunter stood up to Nightmare Moon without any fear. He couldn't help but chuckle, knowing he at least earned a reputation.
"I CAN'T DECIDE!" A familiar voice yelled out from one of the other tables. All of the patrons, including Nero, turned to source of the noise. The devil hunter spotted Twilight and Spike sitting at one of the tables.
What's got her all riled up?
"Twilight, he just wants to take your order." Spike pointed to the menu in his claws.
"...Oh." Twilight looked around, realizing everyone heard her outburst. She then calmly gave the waiter her order as if it never happened.
Welp, that was weird. Anyways, back to lunch.
As Nero continued to look over the menu, he felt something cold and wet drip onto his snout.
What the...?
As soon as the half-demon looked up, a torrent of rain came pouring down from the sky. All the other ponies that had been eating outside ran into the restaurant, desperate to avoid getting drenched.
Oh, you've gotta be kidding me.
Nero quickly followed the crowd inside. He stopped at the doorway, however, when he noticed that neither Twilight nor Spike had moved from their seats. In fact, it didn't look like the rain had been affecting them at all. Nero noticed a gap in the clouds directly above the two that was letting nothing but sunlight shine down on them.
"Uh, Madam? Are you going to eat your food in ze rain?" The waiter, who had a very thick French accent, asked Twilight from beside Nero.
"Huh? It's not raining." The purple unicorn looked around and only now seemed to notice the downpour around her. "What's going on?"
As the waiter retreated into the restaurant, Twilight, Spike, and Nero all looked up at the opening in the clouds to find none other than Rainbow Dash peering through it. "Hi there, best friend forever I've ever, ever had! Enjoying the sunny weather?" The rainbow pegasus asked.
Yeah, that totally sounded like something Rainbow would normally say.
"Rainbow Dash, what are you doing?" Twilight asked, not unlike a parent would ask their child when they're acting suspicious.
"Whaddya mean? I just saw the smartest, most generous pony about to get rained on, so I thought I'd kick a hole in the clouds to keep her dry so she could dine in peace, that's all." Rainbow said, clearly trying to butter up Twilight for some reason.
"Rainbow, you're not trying to get extra consideration for the extra ticket by doing me extra-special favors, are you?" Twilight interrogated her.
"Me? No, no, no, of course not!" Rainbow gave a smile while sun shone down on her, looking almost like a halo on an angel.
"Uh-huh." Twilight wasn't buying it.
"Seriously, I'd do it for anypony!" After Rainbow said that, Nero glanced around at all the other ponies desperately trying to find cover from the rain, as well as his own wet clothes.
"Yeah, clearly." Nero called up to Rainbow, getting her attention.
"Oh, hey Nero!" The pegasus waved.
"If you'd really do it for anyone, then how come I'm standing here completely drenched right now?" The devil hunter called her out, and Rainbow gulped, giving a nervous chuckle.
"Rainbow, I am not comfortable accepting unwanted favors, so I'd appreciate it if you'd close up that rain cloud right now." Twilight chastised the tomboyish mare.
"Ugh, fine." Rainbow groaned before shutting the clouds like a zipper.
"That's better." Twilight went to take a bite of her food, only for the rain to start pouring on her now that the clouds were closed. Her mane, as well as her sandwich, were completely soaked. Nero could see Spike trying to contain his laughter. At the same time, Nero spotted Rarity approaching, carrying the gaudiest umbrella he'd ever seen.
"Twilight! It's raining!" She spoke as she got closer.
"No...really?" Twilight deadpanned before Rarity grabbed her and dragged her off.
"Come with me before you catch a cold!" They began trotting in the direction of Carousel boutique. Nero watched as they left, wondering what that whole fiasco with Rainbow was about.
...I suppose I was looking for something to do, and I am kinda curious now. Maybe I'll go ask Twilight what's up after the rain's stopped.
With that, Nero turned and entered the restaurant. If he was lucky, he could find something to eat that wasn't plants.
Unfortunately, he wasn't able to find any food that wasn't some type of grass or plant. He didn't expect to find any meat obviously, but he was hoping to find a salad at the very least. It seemed he would have to look elsewhere for lunch. After the rain finally let up, Nero made his way to the Golden Oaks Library, hoping to find Twilight. When he got there, he saw a small crowd of ponies waiting outside, with Pinkie in front of them.
Ok, there is definitely something going on. What the heck are they all doing here?
The door to the library opened, and Nero could see Twilight asking whoever was inside to leave. As if on cue, the crowd all yelled "Surprise!" and dragged Twilight outside. They then began throwing Twilight into the air over and over again as Pinkie started singing, much to Nero's annoyance.
"Twilight is my bestest friend, whoopee, whoopee!"
"Pinkie-" Twilight tried to interrupt, only to get interrupted herself by more singing.
"She's the cutest, smartest, all-around best pony, pony!"
"Pinkie-" Twilight tried to interject once again, but was ignored once more.
"I bet if I throw a super-duper fun party, party!"
"Pinkie-" Twilight was clearly starting to get annoyed now.
"She'll give her extra ticket to the Gala to me~!"
"PIIIIIIINKIIIIIEEEE!!!" Twilight finally yelled, and the crowd backed up, letting Twilight fall to the ground.
"Yes, Twilight?" Pinkie stood over her friend, blinking and smiling as if she'd done nothing wrong. Twilight sat up, and Pinkie bounced back to give her some space.
"At least the other ponies tried to be subtle about the ticket!" Twilight glared at the pink pony.
"Wait, what ticket?" One of the ponies in the crowd asked, and several more ponies seemed to have joined in to witness the commotion.
"Oh, you didn't know? Twilight has an extra ticket to the Grand Galloping Gala!" Pinkie explained to them.
The Gland Garroting who now?
"THE GRAND GALLOPING GALA!?" The crowd seemed to recognize the name, as they all repeated it in shock and disbelief. Suddenly, it seemed like the entire town was trying to suck up to Twilight. Spike ran in to try and help her get away, but everywhere they turned, they were cut off by more ponies offering her favors.
"What are we gonna do!?" Spike stayed close to Twilight, looking frantically between all the ponies currently overwhelming them. Nero decided now was a good time to step in.
"Alright, alright, break it up, people!" Nero got the whole crowd's attention, including Twilight and Spike. The devil hunter waded through the crowd until he was between them and Twilight. "Everyone just calm down. I'm not a hundred percent sure what's going on, but at least give the girl some space. Now, what's the proble-?"
Nero had turned to face Twilight to ask her what was going on, only to see that she and Spike had taken off running. Seeing this, the crowd pushed passed Nero and chased after her. He even had to perform a couple Table Hoppers just to avoid getting trampled. He watched as the crowd got smaller and smaller as they got further away until they were out of sight.
After a few seconds, Nero simply shrugged and stood by the library's entrance, waiting for Twilight to return. He figured even if he chased the purple unicorn, she would be too busy running from the crowd to answer his questions, so there was no point in doing so.
I'm sure she'll find her way back...probably.
Once it started getting dark, Nero began to think it may have been a mistake to wait. Just as he was about to leave, he saw a flash of light in one of the library's windows. When he peeked inside, he saw that Twilight had teleported Spike and herself into the library.
Ah, here we go.
Nero pushed open the front door, and Twilight turned to him with a gasp. She sighed in relief when she saw who it was that had walked in.
"Oh, Nero! Thank goodness it's just you! Help us lock everything up!" She ran past him and slammed the door shut, then locked it. Both her and Spike ran across the library, locking all the windows and turning off all the lights. Nero did so as well, even though he was still confused. When they finished, Nero knew it was time to stop beating around the bush.
"Ok, you need to explain what the heck is going on, right now. Why is every single pony in town trying to suck up to you?" He asked the purple unicorn.
"Don't worry, I'll explain everything. I need your hel-" Before she could start explaining, the lights flicked on, and they all turned to see five familiar ponies standing in the corner with giant smiles on their faces. Considering Nero never saw them come in through the entrance while he was waiting outside, he figured they used less than legal means of entering the library. Twilight seemed to snap and just flat out screamed at the top of her lungs.
"I can't decide! I just can't decide! It's important to all of you and I just can't stand to disappoint any of you and giving me gifts and doing me favors won't make any difference because you're all my friends and I want to make you all happy but I can't! I just can't!" Twilight curled into a ball on the floor, hiding underneath her hooves. The other five girls looked between each other, looking a little guilty. After a few seconds, Applejack approached Twilight first.
"Twilight, sugar, I-I didn't mean to put so much pressure on you. And if it helps, I don't want the ticket anymore. You can give it to somepony else. I won't feel bad, I promise." After she finished, Fluttershy flew over next.
"Me too. I feel just awful that I made you feel so awful." The yellow pegasus apologized.
"And me too. It's no fun upsetting your friends!" Pinkie was the next to apologize, followed by Rarity.
"Twilight, it was unfair of me to try to force you as I did." She spoke.
"Yes! That means the ticket is mine! Ha ha ha!" Rainbow flew around in the air, doing a victory dance. "I've got the ticket~! I've got the ticket~!"
Rainbow Dash, the Element of Humility, everyone.
Everyone that had apologized glared at the rainbow-maned pegasus, and she got the message. "Uh, y'know what, I haven't perfected my signature moves for the Wonderbolts anyway. I don't need that ticket either."
Applejack once again addressed Twilight. "We all got so gung-ho 'bout going to the Gala that we couldn't see how un-gung-ho we were makin' you." They all apologized at the same time, and the purple unicorn smiled up at them.
"I'm glad you girls patched everything up and all, but I'm still confused on what exactly it was you patched up. I get Twilight has an extra ticket for this 'Gland Garroting Gala' thing, but why is it so important to everyone?" Nero finally asked, and they all gasped.
"Nero! Are you saying you've never heard of the Grand Galloping Gala!? Why, it's only one of the biggest formal events in all of Equestria! How could you possibly not know about it!?" Rarity was the one to answer him. Rather than answer her question to him, Nero stayed silent and let the fashion designer think about what she just said. "...O-Oh. Right. You're from another world." She chuckled sheepishly.
"So, this thing is a formal event... and it's really that popular?" He asked.
"Yes, it is. Celestia holds the event in Canterlot castle every year." Twilight responded. "Speaking of, I've made my decision. Spike, take a note."
The baby dragon pulled out a quill and paper and began writing as Twilight spoke. "Dear Princess Celestia, I've learned that one of the joys of friendship is sharing your blessings. But when there's not enough blessings to go around, having more than your friends can feel pretty awful. So, though I appreciate the invitation, I will be returning both tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala."
"WHAT!?" All the girls exclaimed in unison.
"If my friends can't all go, I don't want to go either." She levitated the tickets into a rolled-up part of the letter before facing her friends.
"Twilight, you don't have to do that!" Applejack tried to tell her, but the princess' pupil insisted.
"Nope. I've made up my mind. Spike, you can send the letter now." Following the order, Spike opened up the window and blew green flames onto the letter, sending its ashes out the window as they flew in the direction of Canterlot.
Uh, I'm pretty sure that's not how mail works. Those tickets are gone for good.
"Now you won't get to go to the Gala either." Fluttershy commented.
"It's okay, girls. I couldn't possibly enjoy myself without my best friends there with me, So I would rather not go at all." The six ponies all joined in a group hug after that. Spike stuck his tongue out, thinking the whole thing was sappy. Nero shared his sentiment. It was then that something occurred to the descendant of Sparda.
"Wait, Twilight, aren't you buddy-buddy with Celestia?" He asked her.
"Well, that's not the term I'd use, but I am indeed her student." She gave a confident smile.
"Then... couldn't you have just asked her for more tickets?"
The smile slowly faded from her face and was replaced by wide eyes as the realization of how easily this whole situation could have been solved dawned on her. She let out an exhausted groan. "...Yes... yes I could have."
Just then, Spike clutched his stomach, looking like he was about to vomit.
"Y'alright there, Godzilla?" Nero gave the baby dragon a pat on the back, causing him to burp. A burst of green flames erupted from his mouth, which then transformed into a letter.
"A letter from the princess? That was fast." Twilight watched as the letter floated down into Spike's claws.
Huh, guess mail does work like that here.
Spike opened up the letter and began reading. "My faithful student Twilight, why didn't you just say so in the first place?" The baby dragon then revealed six golden tickets that had been sent with the letter. "Six tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala!"
"Now we can all go!" The girls all cheered together before being interrupted by the sound of two rumbling stomachs. The source came from both Twilight and Nero.
Ah, that's right. I still haven't had anything to eat yet.
"Allow us to treat you to dinner." Rarity said to the both of them. The girls all collected their tickets as they left the library to eat.
"Sounds great, as long as we can find something that isn't plants." Nero followed them out, but stopped short when he noticed Spike moping about something.
"How come I don't get a ticket to the Gala?" He moped before his cheeks puffed up again. He burped out another letter before reading it. "And one for you, Spike. The other one is for Nero. Some of the ponies going to the Gala are eager to meet Equestria's new devil hunter."
Rubbing shoulders with rich, high society people? Not really my thing.
Spike got the biggest smile on his face, giggling and running after the others with his ticket. He bumped into Nero and Applejack, who gave him a snarky smile.
"Uh, I mean, gross! I have to go too?" He tried and failed to play it off. "Oh, and this one's for you, Nero." He handed the other ticket to the devil hunter.
"Eh, you can keep it. Formal stuff isn't really my style." He shrugged.
"Princess Celestia seemed pretty insistent. She said that some of the high-class ponies that are going wanted to meet you." The dragon informed him.
"Aw, why not, Sugarcube? Ya never know, it could be fun!" Applejack gave her own input. Nero eyed the ticket for a second longer before reluctantly taking it.
"Guess I don't have much of a choice." He stuffed the ticket into his pocket as the three of them went to join the others.
Looks like Celestia roped me into going to this Gala. I wonder what she's doing right now, anyway.
Celestia stood in the Canterlot Sculpture Garden, staring at one statue in particular.
The statue of Discord remained untouched.
She had performed several spells on it to see if it may have been an illusion or a fake, but she found no such tampering. Discord was indeed still sealed away... yet she had just talked to him the other day. She hoped that he was telling the truth about his intentions. The demons invading Equestria were trouble enough.
Celestia scrutinized the statue, lost in thought.
"What are you planning, Discord?"
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Oh, in regards to another offical source for watching them, do you have a device that reads DVDs at all? If so, you could just buy the Season box sets. Though, only Season 1 to 7 currently exist officially. Dunno if they'll release 8 and 9, yet or if at all.
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Thanks for the suggestion, I’ll be sure to check out the DVD’s. As for a device to play them on, I have a PlayStation 5, would that work? I remember being able to watch DVDs on my old PS3 when it still worked, but I don’t know if it’s still a thing on the newer consoles.