AUG 21 Monday.

I smile and laugh a bit as Twilight draws on the piece of paper I gave her, she gives me a slightly annoyed look but keeps trying anyway. "Good tip, move the paper to a smoother surface if you see lines like this. Or try to hold it in your magic, just don't let it move."

She does just that with a small smile. We're currently sitting on a bench on the outside of the Gala building that overlooks the gardens, and are just drawing together and talking, it's nice. But, it quickly became apparent to me that Twilight doesn't really dislike runic magic, more so she just doesn't really enjoy drawing all that much.

She can do it but she simply doesn't enjoy the process as much as I would, which is fine it's not something everypony likes doing. "How are you so good at this? It's so... Finicky." She complains a bit more but her smile has stayed even as I help her with several mistakes she commonly makes.

I shrug. "Practice, so very much practice. You could say I was drawing before I was born." I joke and she gives me an odd look. "What? It's true after all." I again use an overly obvious joking tone, but I also don't lie in the slightest. "We probably should get back to the main event, can't have the Princesses personal student absent after all." I tease her and she's able to brush it off by rolling her eyes a bit.

She looks a bit relieved at not having to draw anymore, she nods and passes me the quill while keeping the half-done drawing. "You're probably right. Thanks for the help by the way, drawing is just not easy for me. I can't seem to get it right." I've noticed she has a little frustration over the fact she's not the best at drawing.

We stand up and start to walk while I store the drawing supplies in my suit's inner pockets. "Maybe, but are you better than when you started?" I ask, trying to lighten things up. As we walk back into the hallways the amount of ponies increases the closer we get to the ballroom.

She sighs a little but nods in agreement. "I guess, but it just takes so long, and studying didn't really help too much, for some reason." I nod in agreement, books can help with a great many things but drawing is a skill that can be hard to teach at times, and to be honest Twilight just doesn't have much talent in drawing.

I chuckle. "You remember that friend I mentioned? The one who's better than me?" She nods. "I've been drawing most of my life, and beyond." She rolls her eyes at that but giggles. "He's literally missing a limb, and he's still got me beat in so many ways. Drawing isn't for everypony, but you can always improve." I give some odd encouragement.

She blinks surprised but looks thoughtful at my statement. Our conversation dies down as we enter the bustling ballroom, it seems we picked the perfect moment to join back in. Right after we move to a table filled with food and drinks, the entire mob of ponies quiets a bit and looks over to one side of the room.

In dresses that mimic their coats Cadance and Celestia enter the ballroom. They both spot me easily and I see Celestia smile a small bit in my direction, luckily most ponies who notice look at Twilight, which is fine by me. Honestly, Celestia herself looks very, nice... I'm going to ignore that line of thought for the time being.

Celestia is wearing a flowing dress that is pure white with gold trim, interestingly enough her dress has sunflowers stitched into it. Cadance has a dress that is also the color of her coat, with hearts covering it, to no pony's real surprise. :Really going for the theme huh?:

They do look really nice, but I stop looking to not feel awkward. I turn back to Twilight, "Do you know what my first thought was when I first saw Princess Celestia?" I feel off using her title. My odd question gets her to turn back to me with a raised brow. "That she has great presentation," I say seriously.

She gives me a confused look. "I mean, yes? I don't think I've ever heard somepony say it like that." She admits. "When was the first time you saw The Princess? I still remember mine, I was amazed. I mean, it IS Princess Celestia." She looks off a bit remembering something unknown.

I ignore the hero worship. "She seems to have that effect on ponies, as for me? I was, seven? Somewhere around there. The orphanage took us to the Summer Sun Celebration, like I said, great presentation." I chuckle a bit at a different memory. "The second time was more interesting, I just starte-" My words and thoughts abruptly cut off.

I feel a little dread as my senses, both magical and normal go wild absorbing information around me while my thoughts focus heavily. My bracelet is warm against my left foreleg. :SHIT, HOW THEE FUCK!!!: I know for a fact every guard here has something to find a Changeling, so how is one here?

It could just be a normal illusion? But it would have to be a very powerful illusion to evade the guard's detection, and if a pony goes that far to make something look different then that's still a pretty big problem.

Twilight gives me a look and I wave a little. "Sorry, just got an idea, a week struggling to work out a spell and I have the thought now of all times. Ugg, you know what? I'm heading to the restroom to make a note and do my business, I shouldn't take long." I lie through my teeth as best I can while trying to act normal.

She giggles a bit at me but seems completely understanding. "I can sympathize, I always have my best ideas while in the middle of class, not that they'd let me test them there. I'll probably go find Shining then, I think he's near Princess Cadance, meet me there when you're done?" I nod in agreement and she stands up before walking off while my eyes shift to a slightly brighter green.

I know the range of my bracelet, and in the fifteen feet around me there are only four ponies with any large jewelry that haven't moved away from the table I'm at. I've used a few things to narrow my search down some, mainly the fact that they must have something to hide themselves.

All the guards have something to detect Changelings, and I expect the entrances have the AOE version of the Changeling detection spell, but all of those have a flaw. If the magical item powering the Changelings counter spell is powerful enough then it would still be able to hide them completely.

With how many guards need bracelets and how expensive small high-quality gems could be there is simply no way to get enough gems to counter a single Changeling buying better gems for their counter spell. And considering my bracelet is only somewhat reacting to their presence, I know they have something pretty good powering that counterspell.

It puts me on edge, but I'm also not sure what to do. I picked out the four, wait. Nope, one moved out of range of my bracelet, so there, three different ponies that could be around me. What to do? I have no way of telling which is which, hell there could even be more than one of them.

I'm mostly calm about the situation, the guards are everywhere and that keeps me mostly calm, but this is still something that needs to be addressed. I could tell a guard? But that's a long shot and there would be many questions. I can't tell the princesses in any discreet way, hell I can't even have Entropy warn them for fear of being heard or spotted with how many ponies are paying attention to the Princesses.

I look over the three ponies in casual ways to not draw attention to memorize their looks and cutie marks, after a few minutes a thought comes to mind and I look around the room. I'm taller than the majority of ponies so it doesn't take me too long to spot what I'm looking for, Shining Armor.

He's near Cadance but off to the side talking to Twilight. It's not perfect, but he is my best bet considering the situation. I stand up from the table and head to the restroom like I said I would. I get inside and wait to be alone for a moment, once there is nopony left in the room I take out some paper and start to write.

My message is short and simple, it just tells him that one pony out of the three I suspected is very likely under an illusion, which is obviously prohibited at an event like this. I don't mention Changelings specifically but I do word it to point in that direction, I'm not sure if he knows about them yet but I suspect he likely does.

I cast a Silence spell over myself and turned to my shadow. "Girl? Are you awake?" I get a chirp in response and see her on top of my shadow. "Good, I have a task for you. You remember Shining?" She bobs. "He's on the left side of the large room near Cadance, go find him as a shadow, look around the area, and then come back quickly." She tilts her head a bit but disappears quickly hearing my serious tone.

I spend a minute actually using the bathroom and calm down a bit more, I'm not that worked up as it is but this has still got me on edge. Luckily she returns quickly. "Found, why?" She asks softly to me.

I smile at my shadow. "Good, is there anywhere near him you could teleport without being seen?" I remember his being at a table and those have tablecloths that hang to the floor. She bobs after a moment, "Perfect, take this paper, go to him, and pass it off to him, do not be seen. If you can't do it just come find me as a shadow, ok?" This entire thing is a bit risky, but this keeps things quiet and me mostly out of it.

The only reason I'm not tying all three ponies down with spells is to protect my anonymity, and that fact Celestia would be pissed I involved myself again. She leaves my shadow and rubs my hoof, "Ok, stay safe." She promises and takes the paper before vanishing. I wait in the restroom for a full two minutes before quickly but calmly leaving to look over to Shining.

He's still at the table, Luckily Twilight is talking to somepony I don't know, they look like a noble, good to know she deals with their shit too. I take a calming breath and act normal, and after that moment I see Shining jump a bit and move a leg further from the table, he looks down and I see him holding a piece of paper a moment later. I feel Entropy's life magic move back to my shadow while I cancel the silence spell over myself.

This plan is a bit rushed and far from perfect, but the worst-case scenario is that the ponies get interrogated a little before being let go. It might just be a normal pony with an illusion, in which case they will face the consequences of breaking the law. If it is a Changeling? Well, Shining can handle that.

I slowly start to make my way towards them as Shining looks around before locking eyes with me, I just nod silently and he talks to Twilight a bit before walking away from them while I approach Twilight and the stallion she's talking to. "Sorry, that took a bit. Huh? Shining's busy even at the Gala? Shining certainly works hard." I say in a joking tone while joining her at the table.

She also looks a bit confused as well but chuckles a little at my words. "Yes, he really tried hard to stay. But he's a guard captain for good reason, not that he isn't annoying." I raise a brow at that. "W-Well, he is?" Twilight grumbles about her older brother like siblings tend to do.

I just laughed for a moment and saw the other pony she was talking to look at her. "I really must be going, have a good night Miss. Twilight." The stallion she was talking to moved off seemingly losing all interest in the conversation and not even letting Twilight say anything in response before moving away.

I turn to Twilight with a confused look. "Sorry if I interrupted your conversation. Considering they were a bit rude I think I made things worse." I apologize as I was a bit rushed in my attempt to act normal. It is still rude to leave like that at an official event like this.

Twilight actually seems to relax more after they are gone. "N-No, I probably should thank you, talking to nobles like him can be... Tiring." I laugh at her annoyed look and nod in agreement, I know that feeling all too well. She turns back to me from some food to say something but looks past me with a much more attentive look.

I am already aware that Celestia is near us, but I turn to see that she's now moving over to us directly. I wondered when she'd come over to talk, this should be fun. :Wait?: I realize something too late while giving Celestia a quick bow. "My student, Mr. Evergreen." She uses my last name and I almost use hers in response.

I realized that with Twilight here I need to act formally with Celestia, and that just annoys me. "I'm honored to be remembered, Your Highness." I force a formal tone and stand up straight with Twilight doing the same.

"Princess Celestia." Her tone is also formal, but she actually uses her name. I quickly notice Celestia doesn't seem to have cast any privacy spell on us, as ponies are whispering about our words. :Magic damnit Celestia:

Celestia smiles at both of us and sits on the other side of me. :And now I'm trapped in between them, not again!: "I hope you are both enjoying the Gala, it is a rather splendid event after all. But I suppose you both have more academic pursuits on your minds?" She asks with some humor.

Twilight blushes a bit but I just nod in agreement. "I suppose drawing is a part of magic, Your Highness. For runic casting if nothing else." I agree and decide to have a little fun with this even if I have to suffer with this so does she. "The piano music is certainly a favorite of mine, my compliments to the pony that picked it," I ask while guessing the answer.

I've heard her playing this one before and I see a tiny twitch in her lips at the mention, my guess was correct then. "I must agree, I certainly enjoy it as well. I myself picked it in fact, with some suggestions." She hints subtly to me. I remember telling her it sounded nice, I guess that was enough?

While we talk Twilight gets more confused before looking up at Celestia. "Princess? You like piano music? I, wasn't aware." She asks curiously and I see Celestia realize what I just did.

She smiles in that soft way that makes it seem as if everything is fine. "I'll admit I have a proclivity for the music. Now, you were talking about drawing? Anything interesting?" She changes the subject back on us, something that puts Twilight on the spot.

She looks a bit uncertain before taking out the half-done drawing she made. "Yes? I mean, Shade was nice and helped me with a few things. But-" She's cut off from Celestia smiling happily and looking at the drawing. "I-It's not the best, but I did get the shading right?" She states it more as a question and I have to force down a laugh from being put in a spotlight in front of so many.

I just sit in the middle as she passes the page back. "It certainly is a marked improvement, so quickly as well. Mr. Evergreen certainly helped it seems." She subtly teases us both, but Twilight at least gets to look proud of her progress. "How have your studies gone Mr. Evergreen? It's been a while since we last met."

I shrug a little as Twilight also pays attention, her using my last name is annoying, and I can tell she's enjoying that. "Well enough, I've been looking into magical creatures actually, it's been interesting, if a little time-consuming. I find many books on the subject to be... Divisive."

Ponies create all kinds of rumors about magical creatures they consider scary, it makes researching them and getting accurate information a bitch and a half. I watch as a pony walks over to us and gives a bow to Celestia.

We all turn to see Velvet looking at us, including me with some surprise. "I'm sorry to interrupt Princess, but Twilight does need to head home." She keeps a formal and respectful tone. Twilight looks reluctant but not surprised, and neither does Celestia.

Celestia nods. "Yes, unfortunate timing for tests to be tomorrow. I wish you both a good night." She says calmly and nods to them a bit.

Velvet nods and Twilight smiles back at us. "Goodnight Princess, I'll do my best, I promise." She says before turning to me. "Goodnight Shade." I just nod back as she walks off into the party with her dam.

A moment later Celestia turns back to me and smiles, "I cast a spell. So, Mr. Evergreen, how have you actually been liking the Gala?" Her expression stays the same but her tone changes to be much more relaxed.

I nearly sigh but keep up appearances. "Well, Miss. Solis, was her early exit actually planned to be this soon?" I ask to confirm something I suspect.

She catches my change in tone and nods curiously. "Yes, unfortunately, she does have school tomorrow, a rather important test actually, so Velvet insisted on her leaving early to get rest. Why? What did you do?" She is a bit concerned about my tone.

I sigh a bit and bring over some juice to the table realizing my guess was wrong. "Everything is fine, but my bracelet got a little warm if you know what I mean?" She catches on immediately and her eyes narrow a slight bit at me. "I didn't do anything!" I quickly defend myself. "I narrowed it down and had Entropy pass a note to Shining, I didn't even speak about it," I explain quickly so as to not receive a verbal lashing.

Her eyes soften a bit at me but I catch this undercurrent of something, angry. "Tonight of all nights, and with so many of my little ponies." Her looks are the same but her tone has an edge to it. She takes a breath and gives me a reassuring look. "Thank you, we'll talk more later. You learned your lesson it seems, for them at least. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if you end up in a fight with another dragon." She half-jokes and I can see she's trying to help me stay relaxed about everything.

I'll admit I felt a little tension in me since I found out about it. I chuckle a little and shake my head, "A fight? Preferably not, a sparring match though? Well, that's another thing entirely." I relax my body and sigh again. "I really hope it's just some entitled noble under an illusion," I admit trying to make light of the situation like her.

There is silence for a moment before turning back to her. "I need something to distract myself, any good topics or ideas? Because I would rather not think about this until I convince myself with some crazy idea." I say dead honestly to which she looks a bit thoughtful.

"Well, I do occasionally dance with a pony at the Gala, but I think you wouldn't like that attention, to no pony surprise." She teases and my reaction is more blank than I think she expected. "Also, I like the suit, I didn't think you'd go with silver though, green would have been better." She comments while inspecting the suit.

My internal emotions war with themselves for a moment. "I didn't get a choice on that part actually, my tailor is, persistent. ..." I've seen Celestia dance with ponies sometimes, and it draws a lot of attention. :Ahhh, fuck it: I give her a smirk, "Prepare to be surprised, fair warning though, I can barely dance at all." I agree to her offer despite my paranoia and distaste of attention screaming at me internally.

Celestia blinks a bit stunned before smiling widely down at me. "Then color me surprised, now come on, let's see if they will show your picture in the paper for this." She stands up and I nearly don't follow her hearing that.

I did agree so it's too late to back out, so I do follow her albeit reluctantly. "You're not serious, right? Right?" I ask with concern as we walk out onto the ballroom floor.

A few moments later I'm standing next to her with far too damn many eyes on me. :I regret everything: Celesta holds out her hooves, "Shall we?"

I try not to embarrass both of us while standing on my back hooves and desperately trying my best to remember what Twilight showed me last year. "As long as I'm not blamed for embarrassing the crown? I'm going to regret this." As I hold her hooves and try to work around the size difference to dance properly.

She giggles a bit. "You are far from the first in this position. After all, I danced with many ponies, sometimes they were nobles who I found, unpleasant, and who didn't know how to dance." Celestia hints at another thing she does to subtly mess with other ponies. "As for regretting it? I'll just have to fix that. Now, right hoof forward, and follow my lead."

As we start to dance I try my best to keep up and also really try to ignore the look I catch from Cadance out of the corner of my eye. I also don't miss the pony with a camera that took a picture, several in fact. :Welp, I'm officially fucked: But, something about Celestia's slightly excited smile makes it all, just a little, TINY bit, worth it.

Author's Note

Thanks for reading. :)
Current year is 995

Shade's friends are about to lose their shit, it should be fun. I really tired to think of how Shade would deal with a Changeling in this situation, and this felt the most real to me, even if it's a bit boring.