5 months later...

Pinkie bounced up and down in her seat slightly, grinning widely. "Oh, what do you think the Princess's want from us? I don't think we're going to be facing a new threat, but you never know. Oooh! Maybe they want us to help prepare for a big party!"

"Pinkie!", Twilight interrupted. "I already told you. They want us to help finish setting up the Friendship Games."

"Aw, cut 'er some slack, Twi. She is just comin' down from a hard pregnancy", Applejack said.

Twilight said, "Yeah. Sorry, Pinkie."

"It's ok!", Pinkie replied. "It's been almost a year; I'm not that fragile."

A brief period of silence reigned as the train chugged along. Finally, after a bit, Rarity said, "So, dear. Are you ok?"

"Oh, I'm fine!", Pinkie said. "It's just, a lot, ya know? I had a lot of really really really intimate dreams about me and Dashie. I still love Cheers, but... it's just surreal."

"I get it", Twilight said. "You had a long-standing crush on somepony for a long time. Even after they let you down-so to speak, at least-you're having a hard time getting over it."

"No", Pinkie replied. "I just... it's hard to explain, but that's not it."

"Well, all that matters is that you and Cheerilee are happy", Applejack said, patting Pinkie on the shoulder.

Their conversation was prevented from going any further by the conductor yelling, "All off for Canterlot!"

The four of them made their way to the door and exited the train after it ground to a halt. The train station was filled with ponies of all descriptions, making their way to various trains or exits. Despite how crowded the station was, ponies gave them a certain birth, allowing them to make their way out of the busy station without getting too bogged down in the sea of ponies.

Beyond the initial mass of ponies in the station, the streets beyond were, by comparison, sparsely inhabited. Due to the cold of the early February morning, most of the citizens would be inside, enjoying a morning coffee or tea or would be at work. However, the streets of the capital did have some ponies milling about. Many of them were ponies whose job required they be outside, but some were simply on a walk or on their way somewhere.

"Well, we shouldn't keep the Princess waiting", Twilight said, leading the group through the recently plowed streets. They passed various stores just beginning to open up for the day, ponies on their way to their own jobs, and several advertisements. Most were for products, but they also saw ads for the Friendship Games.

Ever since the event had been announced by former-Princess Celestia several months ago, the reactions had been mixed across Equestria. Some, including almost all of Ponyville, was interested and a bit excited by the idea, while others were less than enthusiastic. Either way, the games were going to happen on schedule, beginning just at the national school systems spring break so as to allow students in school to attend.

They arrived at the palace, being confronted by one of the guards at the gate. After several years of reforms and reworking, the look of the Royal Guard had changed significantly. Instead of interlocking golden plates running along their entire torso, polished silver-colored plates only covered the upper back, while a gambeson laced with steel plates and gauntlets protected their lower bodies. Their old pegasi-like helmets had been replaced by ones similar to that of the Prench Ponies-at-armies, adorned with a trio of royal blue feathers on the top and held in place by scale chinstrap. A Hanger rested at his side, while a disassembled pike was held at attention.

The heavily armored stallion said as they came close, "Halt! Identify yourself."

Twilight sighed, rubbing her temples. "Avalance, you know who we are. Hay, you were the one who greeted us at the Gala last year!"

The Guard's stoic face cracked just enough for a light chuckle to escape it. "Sorry. Yeah, I know who you all are. But, the Pryhan officer who was in charge of training made it clear we were to question everyone, even if we knew who they were."

"Oh, it's ok, dear", Rarity said. "But, since you clearly know who we are, could you...?"

"Oh, right!", he said, stepping aside. "Princess Luna and Celestia are waiting for you in the Palace Gardens. I take it you know the way?"

Twilight said, "Yes, we know Avalance. Have a good day."

"You too!", he called after them before returning to his post.

The four of them trotted along the path leading up to the main entrance to the palace. Just before they would run into the sentries at the door, they veered down a side path that would lead to the gardens. The path was lined with well-trimmed trees, casting wide and shifting shadows across the cobble path.

Eventually, the path opened up into a wide section of the garden. Trees still filled the area, along with bushes of flowers and potted plants. Near where the Element Bearers had come from, hidden from the sun via the shade of a large tree, was a small table. Seated around it were Princess Luna, Celestia, and Sombra.

The latter two's son was also sitting there, but had leaped out of his seat and ran over to greet the familiar ponies. He was only four, just a little bit older than most of their own kids, but was still quite a bit bigger. His coat was a light grey, a well-combed blue and black mane, and his father's curved horn, albeit not marred by his father's former corruption.

Rising Dawn exclaimed, "Mrs. Twilight!"

Twilight grinned, smiling as he wrapped her left foreleg in a strong hug. "Heh. Good to see you too, Rising."

The others went past the two, heading over towards the seated monarchs. "Howdy, Princess!", Applejack called.

"Greetings, Princess", Sombra said, causing Applejack to tense up.

"Ah don't necessarily like bein' called that", she said. "Just 'cause I'm wit' Blueblood don't mean ah-"

"Sombra, respect her opinion on the matter. If she doesn't want to be called that, then don't", Luna said. "Now, let's get down to business."

Celestia said, "Agreed, sister."

The four of them went up to the table, standing around it as Celestia pulled out a few pieces of paper. As they did, Sombra asked, "Where is Fluttershy?"

"She, Iron Will and Cheerilee are watching Cherry and the other kids", Pinkie said. "She wanted to come, but we couldn't find a sitter. She'll be here for the actual games."

Celestia said, "Oh, good. Now, onto the tasks at hoof. We need to-"

"Hold on!", Twilight interjected, levitating out a piece of paper and a pencil. "Ok. Go."

Luna wrinkled her snout in amusement, before saying, "Why don't you just give her a copy of the list, dear sister? We have separate paperwork of what we need to get done."

Celestia looked at her sister, before looking at the piece of paper in her hooves, then at the paper and pencil in Twilight's aura. She looked back at the list in her hooves, before muttering, "I don't know why I never thought of that." She levitated the list over to Twilight. "Probably would've saved some time and stress on both our parts."

"Yeah, it probably would've", Twilight said, levitating her own paper back into her bag and grabbing the list in her aura. "Ok, let's see... Huh. This isn't as much as I thought."

"We've gotten a great deal done on our own", Luna said. "But due to your special talents and connections to these locations, I think that you would be best to complete them."

"Well, what'da we gotta do?", Applejack asked.

"Ok, there are five items on this list for us", Twilight said. "Making sure a few of the restaurants would serve foreign visitors. Finish refining the music that would be played during the games. Talk to some of the nobles about this. Check on the last of the preparations for events at the Canterlot arena."

"Ah can check on the arena", Applejack said.

Rarity checked over Twilight's shoulder, smiling as she saw the list of restaurants. "Ah, the Tasty Treat is on the list! I'll take care of that!"

"I'd love to check up on all the cool music that will be played!", Pinkie exclaimed.

Twilight smiled, which abruptly fell as she looked back at the list. "Wait. That means... oh buck me. That... that leaves me to talk to the nobles."

"If it makes you feel better", Celestia said. "I will assist you in the matter."

Twilight's smile returned, saying, "Sounds good. Thank you, Princess."

"You can come back to the palace when you are done. We'll discuss what happened over dinner", Luna said. "Good luck to all of you."

++++~++++

"Good morning, Ma'am", one of the guards said as both he and the other guard at the arena entrance stiffened at attention.

Applejack said, "Howdy. Everything alright 'ere?"

"Yes, ma'am", the other guard said. "Just head inside. You'll find the coordinator in the middle with the event teams."

Applejack nodded and thanked them, before walking in between them. The arena was made of stone, a long oval lined with seats. A small pavilion was situated on each end of the arena, with room for several large seats on them, intended to host visiting dignitaries. A third, much larger pavilion was set up on one of the long sides, this one set up for a band. The events area itself was a large field, with a track lining the outside and a large grassy field in the middle. Ponies and several other creatures milled about, carrying bits of material and sports equipment to various parts of the field.

She came up to a unicorn stallion in a buckball cap, looking over a list. "Howdy. Ah'm Applejack. I take it yer the one in charge?"

The unicorn turned, smiling somewhat warmly and holding out a hoof to shake. "Yeah, that's me. Name's Curveball; the Princess put me in charge of overseeing the setting up of these events. What do you need?"

"Ah just need to check up on how things are going. Ya know, if all of the events will be ready for the games", Applejack said.

"Well, all things considered, everything is going smoothly", Curveball said.

"What'da ya mean, 'all things considered'", she asked.

He said, "Well, a few of the ponies who are working for me are having a few complaints about the equipment. Namely, the LARGE number of weapons brought in by the Pryhan, Griffonian, and Yakistani teams."

"Weapons?"

"Yeah", Curveball said. "Mostly javelins, but other things too. Swords, tridents, spears... some sort of weird crescent-blade thing. Point is, it's making a few of the staff uncomfortable."

Applejack shrugged her shoulders. "Not like we can do much 'bout it. Ah mean, it's not like they're competin' or anythin'."

"That's what I told them", he said. "But, other than that issue, there haven't been any other major issues. We have all the equipment for the games, and everything is progressing on schedule. I could give you a tour of everything, if you want."

"Wah not", she said. "Got nothin' better ta do. Lead the way."

++++~++++

Pinkie bounced into the concert hall of the Canterlot Philharmonic Orchestra. The pony in the entrance box allowed her in, pointing her to the main concert hall. As she got close to the main hall, she heard not music, but a lot of shouting.

She entered the auditorium, a bunch of empty seats filling her view. On the stage, two groups, one of ponies and one of griffons, were standing apart from one another on the stage and yelling at one another. Pinkie lowered herself down, zipped up onto the stage, and said after she landed, "Ok, everypony! What's going on!?"

The griffons balked in surprise, giving one of the ponies the opportunity to speak out. "These bucking buzzards are complaining about what we're doing!"

The griffon conductor came up, counting on his talons as he said, "One, the word is fuck. Get it? Fuck. Two, they're the ones not doing it right!"

As arguing broke out again, pinkie sighed. She pulled out her party cannon, pulling the cord as it went off. Once again, the griffons backed away in alarm, at least six of them pulling out knives or other small weapons. However, she had gotten silence, and that was what she needed. "Ok. Somepony, please explain to me what's going on?"

"These birds came barging in", a pony Pinkie recognized as Octavia Melody said. "While we were practicing. Said that they would take handle the music."

"We were commissioned by Chancellor Gilda herself to handle this!", one of the griffons shouted.

Octavia yelled, "Princess Luna did the same for us! Besides, this is our town!"

Pinkie set off her party cannon again as the shouting began again. "Shut it and give me a second", she said. She stopped for a bit, scratching her chin before smiling widely and stamping her back hoof on the stage. "Alright, how about we make a compromise!?"

"What sort of compromise?", Octavia asked.

"Well, I may not know all that much about orchestras or bands or whatever you call yourselves. But, don't you have a thing where two of you sit to a music stand or something?", she asked.

Both Octavia and the griffon who was speaking looked confused, but nodded. The griffon said, "Yeah. Has to be the same instrument, but yeah."

"Well, just do that! One griffon and one pony to a stand. If you don't have enough, then just pair up normally!"

"What about conductors?", Octavia asked. "An orchestra can only have ONE."

"Well, then take turns!", Pinkie said.

The groups looked amongst themselves, before turning in on themselves to have a huddle. Pinkie looked back and forth between the two of them, smile still wide. After a bit, both Octavia and the griffon came back over to her.

"We'll give it a try", Octavia said.

"Great! And, you... I'm sorry, I never got your name", Pinke said.

"Gregory", he said. "And yeah, we'll give it a shot."

Pinkie nodded, putting away her party cannon and beginning to bounce up and down. "Ok then. You all can work out who sits with who, while the conductors can work out a rotation cycle. Then, let's make some music!"

++++~++++

Rarity smiled, trotting down Canterlot's Restaurant Row. Unlike the last time she had come down the well renowned street, the various restuarants didn't all look identical. Various delicious smells floated out from the restaurants and bakeries, practically assaulting Rarites muzzle with a varity of flavors and aromas. She made her way down a side street, arriving outside of a large building covered with exotic decorations.

Inside, the apparant lunch rush was dying down. Many of the seats were now empty, but a few ponies were still polishing up their food. Rarity sat down, pulling out a personal mirror as she waited to be served.

A few minutes later, she was greeted by a loud cry of, "Rarity!" Looking up, Rarity saw Saffron Masala come out from the kitchen, a wide grin on her face.

"Saffron! So good to see you", she said. "I'd like my usual. And, then could I talk to you about something? It's, somewhat important."

"Of course", she said. "Thorax! A Three-spice curry, please!"

A loud, somewhat warbly voice called back, "Y-you got it, Miss Masala!"

Rarity looked past her old friend, looking into the kitchen. She caught sight of a black figure moving around, stirring a pot and adding spices. She asked, "Is... is that a Changeling?"

"Yes", she said. "Me and my father hired him recently. With my father getting older, I figured we'd need somepony-or someling, in this case-to help pick up the slack. Why, is that a problem?"

"Oh, no no no no no! Not at all dear. It's just an odd thing to see in Canterlot, of all places", Rarity said.

"Ok, good. I've had a few ponies make complaints about it", she said, huffing in annoyance. "But, enough of that. What did you need?"

"Well, it pertains to the upcoming Friendship Games", Rarity said. "The Princess got some sort of concern into her head about restaurants and hotels not being willing to serve the many guests that come to Canterlot."

"Well, I don't know about the hotels, but I can say that at least a few of the restaurants won't be serving them", Saffron said.

"Really?", Rarity asked. "Why? Did Zesty say something about it?"

"No, she didn't say anything", Saffron replied. "It's mostly down to personal points of view at this point. Some of them are scared that their restaurants devolve into tavern brawls."

"Well, that is just riduculous. While they may hold different views, many of them are perfectly nice creatures. Pryhans, especially, but all of them have a certian degree of civility", she said.

"I know, but that is what some of them think", Saffron said.

"Maybe we can convince them that nothing bad will happen", she said, stopping before she could continue by a familiar scent. She smiled as the the smell of curry approached her. She turned to see the Changeling coming out, a bowl of her requested dish in his magic. "Thank you... Thorax, right?"

"Yep", he said. "T-that's me. I-is it any good? Miss Masala only let me recently start cooking, so, I don't know if I messed it up."

Rarity levitated a spoon into the soupy dish, pulling it back with a decent amount of substance on it. She took a big bite, smiling at the familiar taste flowed down her throat. "Ah. Ever since my friends and I stumbled in here looking for a decent place to eat all those years ago, I still can't help but marvel at the food of this establishment." She turned to the changeling, smiling and saying, "You did wonderfully, Thorax. This tastes amazing."

"Oh, thank you!", he said.

"Why don't you go clean up back in the kitchen. Get us ready for the dinner rush later", Saffron said.

"R-right away, Miss Masala", he said, turning and buzzing back into the kitchen.

"I better help him", Saffron said. "You go ahead and enjoy your curry. Then, we'll see about changing some minds."

++++~++++

Later that day, all of them met up in the palace dining room. Many of them appeared tired, including Twiligh's head almost dipped into her bowl of soup. Luna asked, "So... how did everything go?"

Rarity yawned, before saying, "I spent a lot of time talking to restaurant owners. It took-*YAWN*-Oh, excuse me. As I was saying, it took a bit of convincing, but most of them aren't going to be denying business."

Applejack nodded, stopping to prevent her hat from falling off. "Yeah. A lotta the things are goin' smoothly. Mosta it should be done by the end of the week."

Pinkie finished slurping down her soup, before saying, "I managed to have the Griffons and the Canterlot Philharmoic Orchestra from brawling with eachother!"

Rising Dawn looked from Pinkie to his mother, before asking, "Mom? How did she do that?"

"My son", Celestia said. "In all of my years of life, I have learned to take a specific piece of philosphy to heart: Don't question Pinkie Pie."

After the wave of laughter died down, Sombra asked, "So, dear. How did your and Twilights stroll with the nobility go?"

Twilight snorted. "Yeah. 'Nobility'. We met a few nice ones who were willing to talk about it, but most of them either don't support the idea or didn't talk to us."

"Well, I suppose it couldn't be helped", Sombra said. "Aristocrats always were a stubborn lot."

"Really?", Twilight asked. "Even back then?"

"Indeed", Sombra replied. "I don't know about Equestria, or Griffonia at the time. But, it was the case in the Crystal Empire."

"Oh, don't worry", Luna said. "Ours were just as pigheaded as yours. Hay, I one time turned one paticularly stubborn ones head into that of an actual pig!" Ignoring all that transpired, laughter filled the room.

Author's Note

Just so you're all aware, here's the mane 5 ship list for the Pikeverse:

Twilight Sparkle X Shadow Lock
Applejack X Prince Blueblood
Rarity X Thunderlane
Pinkie Pie X Cheerilee X Cheese Sandwich
Fluttershy X Iron Will

Also, the Royal Guard's uniform and armor have changed yet again, now into something akin to this design by Sesnko:

https://www.deviantart.com/sensko/art/Twilight-s-Equestria-Pikepony-650489060