GreatEastern1856

Chapter 7: Standing in Solidarity “...and so, without further ado, I would like to present our guest of honour for tonight. My lords, ladies and gentlecolts, I give you Locomotion and Hornette of Ponyville!” Blueblood stepped aside as the young couple tentatively took the stage. Looking all around them, Locomotion and Hornette noticed some very mixed reactions among their audience; some of the guests, Jet Set and Upper Crust in particular, were still staring down their noses at the pair as if they had no manners. But while others didn't seem to care much either way, others still were looking on with curious and even rapt anticipation. Firelli, for her part, seemed shocked and proud for her brother both at the same time; and Sweetie-Belle, Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, Rumble, Mistral, Featherweight and Lickety-Split were similarly awestruck. Even Celestia and Luna could be spotted amidst the crowd, smiling upon them with encouragement. Gladly accepting the unspoken seal of approval with a

Chapter 6: The Sympathisers “Hey, Apple Bloom, you seen where Hornette went?” “Can't say as Ah have,” replied Apple Bloom as Locomotion came trotting up to them. “Y'all okay? Yo' lookin' kinda fierce.” “And so I should! Couple of idiot elitists had the nerve to embarrass me and Hornette in front of all the others!” replied Locomotion crossly. “Now she's done a runner and I can't find her!” “What's that about Hornette?” Flash Sentry had caught the tail end of the conversation and come over to see what was going on. “Has somepony been picking on her or something?” “Yes – two guests by the names of...Jet Set and Upper Crust, I think they were,” explained Locomotion tersely. “They were absolutely shoving it down my throat how beneath them I was and how they thought I didn't make a good engine driver. Hornette stepped up to defend me, but they just laughed at her and called her names.” “Yeesh,” remarked Flash, “I wondered why she seemed so distraught. I saw her just a few moments ago;

Chapter 5: Confrontations Time passed slowly for Locomotion, and indeed it seemed that Discord was in for even more of a surprise than him. With almost all the others in his party scattered throughout the castle and its grounds, and only Firelli, Hornette and Mistral for company, he found the Gala dull and tedious, and didn't enjoy himself one bit. Hornette found it hard to enjoy herself too. Though nopony had said anything about her or even spoken to her over the past hour, she could sense discomfort, and even disdain, radiating from several of the nobles, business tycoons and celebrities who happened to gaze upon her. It didn't help that some of them were so smartly dressed as to make her look slovenly; and even the food on the buffet table looked a little alien to her, apart from some of the desserts. Only Locomotion's presence, and the sound of Octavia and her group performing onstage, made her feel any kind of comfort at all. Eventually, Firelli and Mistral stopped to talk to a

Chapter 4: Full of Surprises From the top of the grand staircase in Canterlot Castle's entrance hall, Celestia, Luna, Twilight and Flash Sentry looked on welcomingly as the Gala guests began to arrive. To one side, Blueblood stood by and greeted each of the attendees with a polite smile as the herald called out their names; occasionally directing a fond glance to the azure blue mare in a fetching purple ballgown standing next to him. “Announcing Prince Shining Armour and Princesses Cadance and Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire!” A broad smile of delight spread across Blueblood's face as he trotted forward. “Cadance!” he remarked. “So glad you could make it!” “Wonderful to see you again, Blueblood,” beamed Cadance, drawing him into a hug. Blueblood warmly returned it, but barely had the chance to pull back before Flurry Heart jumped up and enveloped him in an embrace of her own. A light chuckle escaped his lips as he wrapped an arm around her, his other one reaching out to shake

Chapter 3: A Day in Foalchester It was a peaceful morning, not many ponies out on the streets as yet, and Locomotion couldn't help but enjoy the tranquil atmosphere as the four friends moseyed along. Only a quiet, melodic hum from Sweetie-Belle broke the silence, eventually giving way to actual singing as they neared the town centre. “Little town In the heart of the mountains, At the start Of a brand new day. Little town Full of cheerful ponies Waking up to say...” “Good morn'!” “Good day!” “How do you do today?” Only then, as if on cue, did the erstwhile peace give way to the hustle and bustle of daily life. Shops, restaurants and street kiosks began opening up, traders and shoppers trotted diligently back and forth, and the air was soon filled with chatter. “There goes the baker with his tray full of bread and cakes, And there's the mailmare on her rounds... For every shop, stall and cafe, It's another pleasant day, For this typical rustique Equestrian town.” Hornette could

Chapter 2: All Aboard the Gala Express The next few months were fairly pleasant for the most part, but by no means uneventful. Not long after Hornette and Locomotion had had their new Gala attire made up for them, Steamer and the Cutie Mark Crusaders took the young changeling for a week away in Manehattan while her room was refurbished under Locomotion's supervision. The decoration work had been a bit of a fiasco, but they just about managed to finish it before Hornette returned home. Then there was Locomotion's 17th birthday the following month. In the aftermath, he wrote to Thorax asking when Hornette's was; and when he replied that he had only just found her birth certificate among the remains of the old main hive, now being rebuilt as the City of Moskitow, the red-furred railway enthusiast began planning a surprise party to make up for all the birthdays she had missed. Even though it led to a misunderstanding on Hornette's part shortly before the big day, it was still worth it to

Chapter 1: The Invitation It was a bright and sunny morning in Ponyville. Birds were singing, flowers were just starting to bloom, and Hornette was prancing up the lane to Sweet Apple Acres with a carefree spring in her step. She hummed cheerfully as she trotted along, giving a friendly nod or wave to any of her friends who happened to be passing by. Winter had been an interesting experience for the young changeling, to say the least. True, she hadn't enjoyed that spell of what her beloved Locomotion called “the January blues”, but Hearth's Warming had more than made up for it; and it had been great fun helping with Winter Wrap-Up too. But the onset of spring had left her with a sense of freedom and renewal – now she could go out and about with friends whenever she felt like it, and all without having to wrap up warm. As rows of houses gave way to groves of apple trees, she gazed all around herself, heartily taking in all the sights, sounds and smells of the new season until she

“Tia, are you quite finished with those invites? You've been at it for nearly three hours now.” “I'll be done in a minute, sister,” soothed Celestia, as an agitated Luna paced restlessly behind her. It was early spring, and preparations were well underway for that most prestigious of all Equestrian traditions, the Grand Galloping Gala. Most of the invitations had already been sent out, with only a few still remaining; and this year, Celestia hoped, was to prove especially significant. Murmuring under her breath, she finished off the final covering letter and placed it in an envelope with two golden tickets. “There,” she declared, “that's the last of them.” “About time too,” grumbled Luna as they left the study and headed for the ballroom. “If I'd known you were going to take this long, I'd have insisted you write and post those letters to Twilight and her friends a lot sooner. We still have a lot of preparation work to oversee, you know.” Celestia chuckled. “Yes, I'm fully aware of

The next day, a light engine collected “Element of Loyalty” from Horse Junction, and brought her back to Ponyville where she was thoroughly inspected. She was none the worse for her adventure, but just to be on the safe side, Max ordered that she left to thaw out at the back of the shed. It took a while for Locomotion to recover from his snowy ordeal, and he was thankful he had so little shopping left to do. Steamer gladly took care of it on his behalf, while Hornette stayed at home to help him wrap presents and generally make sure he was alright, offering him a blanket or a warm drink at the slightest shiver. Locomotion did feel a little henpecked, but ultimately he couldn't complain – at least it gave him a good excuse to snuggle on the sofa with his changeling. By the time Hearth's Warming Eve rolled by, all their cards had been posted, all their presents wrapped and delivered, and the final batches of cookies and pies baked and ready for the big day. Steamer even took the liberty