Sorry for the delay but this chapter took forever! This chapter is amazing! Hope you enjoy!
The morning sunrise gleamed through Canterlot, beautiful as ever. Birds chirped happily as they flew on the gentle breeze. All was peaceful. Quiet.
CRASH
Heartsy jolted awake as Cuddlebutton's wall shattered into pieces. A smiling Peacock looked at her and bounced up and down, even more excited than normal.
"Gooooooooooooooood morning, Heartsy! Aren't you excited for today? It's going to be so much fun!"
Heartsy gave her a blank and startled look as she got out of bed.
Shocked, Peacock returned her shocked gaze, "You don't know what today is?! You really did lose track of your days! Come on, we have to get going if we want to be ready in time!"
Peacock grabbed Heartsy's hoof and started dragging her towards the door, which opened before the mare touched it.
Cuddlebuttons flew in, looking alarmed, "Heartsy! Are you alright?! I heard a crash and... ah. That explains things. Good morning Peacock!" He said jovially, waving to the yellow pony.
Heartsy turned to the mare who was still clutching onto her hoof, "Wait a second... you live in Ponyville. How did you get to Canterlot so early?"
"I know a shortcut!" Peacock smiled brightly.
Shutterbug was next in the door, the telltale flash of his camera was a dead giveaway. "Good morning everypony! I thought this would be the perfect time to take some pictures and boy, I did not miss out! Heartsy, you should see your face right now. What a great shot!"
"Yeah! It looks like this!" Peacock imitated Heartsy's still-shocked face as the others laughed.
"Well at any rate, I'm glad we're all awake. Today will be a very busy day, you know!" Cuddles said with a smile.
"Don't I know it? I had to pre-order 10 extra rolls of film just to be able to capture the action. Do you think the Princesses will be there?" Shutterbug chimed.
"Will somepony please tell me what in Equestria is going on today?!" Heartsy finally blurted out.
The next thing she knew, Heartsy was whisked away through the city of Canterlot. Apparently today was a special Gala in honor of Princess Cadence and Shining Armour's Royal Wedding. Heartsy had a sinking feeling that the wedding she was celebrating was the same one she was forced to try to crash.
Ponies were decorating the city for the festivities. It shone even more than usual and the citizens were preparing the finest foods and clothes for the occasion. Soon, they had reached the castle, as handsome and regal as ever. Heartsy hesitated to go in, but Peacock still had an iron grip around her hoof, which was starting to feel numb.
After trotting along long corridors, the four reached a door in the guest wing. Cuddles knocked.
"I'm coming!" A sweet voice said from inside. The door opened, nearly hitting Cuddle's hoof, "Good heavens, there you are! We must hurry if we're to get everypony properly fitted. Now, who might this be?" A white unicorn with elegant purple hair questioned.
The room they walked in on was littered with pieces of fabric, crumpled pieces of paper, and various sewing supplies. Inside already sat Paige and Rose, who were chatting amongst themselves. Suddenly, Heartsy felt herself be pushed into the unicorn.
"Peacock! What are you-"
"Rarity! I'm sorry this is so late, but could you make a dress for Heartsy too?" Peacock pleaded with cutesy eyes.
"At the last minute? Well, I suppose I COULD make alterations to something I have lying around. It's not as good as custom made, of course, but at this point it's all we have time for. Alright my dear, follow me. Now let's see here... first to get your measurements and then get to work."
Rarity bustled around Heartsy, measuring everything from her muzzle to her tail. This made Heartsy incredibly uneasy as the others looked on. Changelings didn't exactly measure one another for anything.
Paige trotted over, looking into Heartsy's eyes, "You Look stressed. Seriously, we need to turn that frown of yours upside down. Haven't you ever been to a dance before?"
Heartsy shook her head as Paige's eyes lit up, "Ooo then I'll be your personal party pony! You're gonna love it here. While the dress fitting is always a little awkward, you'll be feeling fabulous in no time."
Rose cantered over as well, "Yeah! Plus there's always a lot of food and memories to be made. It'll be a lot of fun!"
An hour or so later, Heartsy and the others were sparkling in their outfits.
"There you go my dears! Good as new! Now run along, I'll be sure to see you at the Gala later." Rarity smiled and said her goodbyes, as a party of more ponies was waiting for their fitting.
Heartsy was finally starting to relax and enjoy herself once again as the group hung around Canterlot, chatting until the day seeped into night.
Soon after Princess Luna raised the moon, the Gala in Honor for Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armour was in full swing. Ponies from all over Equestria attended the event, who were now meeting and greeting with the three Princesses. The group headed inside the castle with smiles on their faces (Peacock's smile was the biggest).
The castle was beautiful from top to bottom. Streamers wrapped around columns while multi-colored crystals hung from the ceiling. Light shimmered wherever they looked. A brilliant ice sculpture glistened, showing the likeness of the two newlywedded ponies. Bouquets of flowers lined the walls as far as the eyes can see. Ponies were dressed in nothing but finery, jewels sparkling around their necks and hooves.
The group was included in this finery, dressed in outfits that suited them and their personalities. Peacock's gown shimmered with greenish blue hues and included peacock feathers. Paige's gown was a very fluffy burgundy dress with rhinestones adorning her chest. Rose's dress was a purple dress shaped like an upside down flower. Sky shone in his gray uniform, which was decorated with his medals of honor; topped off with a matching hat and trims of gold and blue. CuddleButton's suit was a deep royal blue jacket with coat tails that added to his distinguished look. His signature top hat, bow tie, and monocle completed it perfectly. Star's gown was a light-to dark pink dress to match the mare's sunny disposition and the pink flower she kept in her mane. PK's suit was dark blue to match his eyes. His cutie mark was stitched on his pants and his lapel held a little yellow flower who offered a mischevious look at ponies who trotted by. Shutterbug's suit was brown and cloak-like, mimicing some Pony Wars attire. Professor Haystacks wore a polka-dotted bowtie around his neck and a simple brown fedora. Shaky wore a purplish blue suit that matched his scales and purple fire breathing abilities.
The group walked up the stairs to find Princess Celestia, Princess Luna and Princess Cadence in magnificent gowns. While the three smiled upon their arrival, Heartsy's smile faded quickly as she saw Princess Cadence.
"Greetings my friends. Welcome to the Gala! I'm so glad you could make it."
The group took turns greeting the Princesses. Heartsy nervously shuffled back in line bit by bit until she was at the back of her group. She watched for what cues to take as her new aquaintances (or perhaps friends) greeted the princesses in turn. Most of them bowed slightly by bending the front knees, as the Changelings often did before Queen Chrysalis, though perhaps not as deeply. That difference may have been due to a need to keep the line moving. Then, they would bump hooves and move them up and down with each Princess in turn, in what Heartsy recognized as a hoofshake. There were, however, a few exceptions.
Peacock bowed at a speed almost too fast to see and enthusiastically gripped each Princesses' hoof between both of her front hooves and shook up and down so vigorously that even Celestia looked surprised. Shutterbug, who was snapping pictures of each of the others as they went, took the time to hand the camera to Haystacks to snap photos of him greeting the three. In the excitement, his bow was hasty, though not as blurry as Peacock's. Haystacks, for his part, merely dipped his head slightly in lue of a bow, and conspicously held eye contact with the Princesses (or at least Celestia) long enough for it to seem awkward. Cuddlebuttons make an extremely elaborate bow, with a flourish of one hoof, and kissed the hoof of each princess in turn.
When it was Heartsy's turn, she couldn't help but blurt out- "I'm so sorry!"
A bit taken aback, Cadence questioned her, "Whatever do you mean?"
"I…uh...mean... I'm so sorry that I... didn't get the chance to get you a wedding gift! I just moved to a new town and things got...crazy."
Cadence gave her a sympathetic look and a hug, "It is alright. Weddings are about a lot more than gifts after all. Plus, you're here now! Go have fun with your friends."
Heartsy bowed to her, "Thank you Princess Cadence."
Celestia and Luna also took the time to hug her and smiled her way as she caught up with the group. She bowed to them as well.
This was the first time Heartsy had ever bowed to anypony other than Chrysalis. These Princesses had hugged her and instantly forgave her, whereas her Queen offered nothing but screams and punishment. It felt so unfamiliar and warm like a summer breeze. She could get used to this. Of course, part of her wondered if they would be so forgiving if they knew the real reason she apologized, but she had little time to dwell on that.
Paige was waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs with a slightly mischievous look, "Now Heartsy, are you ready to party?"
"You know what…yeah! Let's go have some fun!" said Heartsy excitedly, more determined and confident than before.
The two mares caught up with the rest of the group, who were all talking amongst themselves. Peacock burst through a wall and made a hole big enough for Shaky to fly through, which he did with a laugh.
Shutterbug stood by and was snapping pictures of everypony every few minutes while Cuddlebuttons was chatting with Fancy Pants about charity work.
Starfire and Rose were dancing with Sky and PK in a friendly manner.
While Heartsy was eating some fruit from the buffet table, Heartsy saw something, or somepony that caught her eye. A purple stallion with a black and white mane and tail, wearing a shirt with a movie logo on it, was talking nearby to a group of ponies. Heartsy's cheeks starting to heat up and her heart was thumping. Heartsy wondered in confusion as her stomach gave a low rumble. Why was this stallion making her feel this way? She began to look at him, curiously. The stallion looked Heartsy's way and their eyes met. Heartsy felt like the world had blossomed into a flower. The stallion gave her a smile and continued to talk to the group. Heartsy turned her head away and blushed.
"What's going on? Why am I feeling this way? Why am I blushing? This is very unusual for a changeling….." Heartsy whispered, taking a bite out of an apple. Suddenly, Peacock popped up from behind the food table.
"Hi Heartsy! What are you talking about?" Peacock asked happily as normal. Heartsy turned back at the stallion only to find him gone! Heartsy searched rapidly until she noticed that he was at the buffet table too, helping himself to snacks. Peacock noticed this and gasped excitedly.
"Heartsy! Do you have a crush on that pony over there?" Peacock said pointing her hoof to the stallion. Heartsy turned away and blushed again. Peacock smirked and placed a hoof around the Pegasus's neck.
"It's okay Heartsy! If you want to talk to him, go for it! It's easy!" explained Peacock. Heartsy nodded her head in agreement. Heartsy gulped and slowly walked towards the stallion. Peacock nudged her hooves forward as Heartsy looked back. Heartsy politely tapped the stallion and tried to start a conversation with him.
"Hi! Um…. Er….. This food is lovely! It's very….. Uh…. Good?" Heartsy said. How WAS one supposed to describe pony food? Heartsy turned back to see Peacock slapping her forehead with her hoof multiple times. Paige, who caught wind of what was going on, smirked and gave Heartsy a knowing look while the stallion smiled gently.
"The food is wonderful. The chefs here in the castle are probably the best chefs in Canterlot!" the stallion said. The stallion bowed slightly to Heartsy.
"My name is Flux, by the way. What's your name, miss?" Flux said. Heartsy smiled and curtsied towards Flux.
"My name's HeartsyArtsy. Ponies call me Heartsy for short." Flux smiled and kissed her hoof. Heartsy blushed and looks back at Peacock for support. However, Peacock was overwhelmed by the cuteness, she threw her head into a plate of fruit as Paige laughed. Flux and Heartsy ended up and talking and laughing through-out the night, talking about anything and nothing from personal interests to what color they would say the sky was. Everypony was having a great time. Eventually, Princess Celestia went up on the podium.
"Good evening everypony! And welcome to the Gala in celebration of Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armour's wedding!" Celestia announced. Everypony stomped their hooves in response. A small group of ponies holding instruments trotted onto the stage.
"Now, It is my pleasure to announce a very special performance tonight. This pony will be singing a song in honour of the new couple. She is from Ponyville and she is a talented singer, as well as very good friends with my sister and I. Everypony, I am very pleased to announce: Peacock!" Everypony giggled and cheered for Peacock as she jumped up on the stage. Seemingly unknown to the mare, she was now wearing a festive hat made out of the fruit from the bowl.
"Hey there everypony! I hope you have somepony to dance with, because this is a love song in honor of the new marriage."
Heartsy, who had been paying attention to the stage, suddenly felt a hoof on her shoulder and jumped. Flux said with a smile, "Would you care to dance?"
The band of ponies started playing and everypony was with a partner, most of which were friendly rather than romantic. Peacock started singing and the ponies started to dance. She twirled with them here and there, flinging the fruit on her head out into the crowd.
The slow, rhythmic tune made perfect for the dance. The world around Heartsy seemed to slip away as she and Flux met eyes again. They were seemingly the only ponies in the room. Heartsy's stomach gave an even louder rumble than usual as they twirled. Flux chuckled, "You must love food as much as I do." "Oh! Um, yes, that's definitely it..."
As everypony kept dancing, the floor was getting more and more crowded. Flux grabbed Heartsy's hoof and flew upwards, pulling her along with him, "There's more room up here! Good thing we're both Pegasi." Heartsy laughed as she also saw more ponies take to the air. Cuddles was dancing with his friend and sister Starfire while Sky had seemingly grew wings to do his own silly dance. Below, the unicorns ignited their horns to add colorful light to the ballroom. Paige and Rose were cheering them on, "Woo, get it girl!"
Heartsy and Flux continued to twirl while laughing, nearly crashing into the other fliers. Flux had caught Heartsy in a hug as she stumbled in the air. Heartsy's eyes started to dilate as she could feel her fangs start to protrude from her teeth. Breathing heavily, feeling lightheaded, shaking slightly, she held back a hiss and slowly backed away before she could fully revert back to a changeling.
Looking concerned, Flux questioned, "Are you alright?" Heartsy nodded and mustered saying, "I'm fine... I must just be tired. It's been a long day. Plus I think it's time I caught up with my friends."
The ponies flew back down to the ground and bade each other farewell. Heartsy turned around to see her friends greeting her happily.
Unbeknownst to them, Professor Haystacks had been watching the events unfold from a distance. He had put his goggles back on and was rapidly scribbling down notes on some paper while muttering, "Interesting..."
A pony with a raspy voice approached him, "What's so interesting? Why aren't you out there having fun like the others?"
Haystacks regarded the newcomer cooly through the concealing goggles. "I don't find all that hopping around particularly fun. I promised I'd be here, though, so I thought I would make the most of it. Have you seen Ms. Twilight Sparkle around? I'd like a second opinion on something."
The stranger gets a bit annoyed at this, "Gah, why does everyone hold her in such high regard?!"
Haystacks winced. "I feel your pain. The attention she gets does seem disproportionate, but she and her friends have saved Equestria a number of times. Like at the Cadenza-Armor wedding the other day with the change..."
"Yes, yes I know, everypony is talking about it." The mystery pony said in an annoyed mocking tone. "I think I'm done talking to you. You're just like all these other ponies! I have other business to attend to." He stormed off.
Haystacks scanned the room, finding the locations of certain individuals. Confident he could alert them in time if it became necessary, he casually drifted in the direction the stranger had taken. At least, he hoped it seemed casual. The unknown pony hid behind a pillar in the ballroom and seemed to be watching his group of friends, but especially Heartsy.
Haystacks grimaced. "Good news, bad news time," he muttered under his breath. Silently he added, "But I don't have these things calibrated yet so I'll need proof."