The Royal Batch & Changing Steeds
Featured songs:
1. "At the Gala" from MLP Friendship is Magic
2. "Love Me Like You Do" by Ellie Goulding
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The night of the big gala finally came. Everyone was so excited, including the Jedi who were attending.
Myra was ecstatic because she was getting a chance to show off her musical talents at the gala. Vince didn't tell her, but he showed his dad, who was a very famous musical producer, a video he'd taken of Myra playing her guitar at the school's music club, and he was impressed. Vince told his dad unlike the girls he'd been set up with before, Myra didn't even know he was talking to him about it, but that she also was hardworking. So, in order to see for himself how talented Myra really was, he pulled some strings, and Myra was asked to perform a song at the gala.
Comedia was excited to go to the ball with her families, and to party the night away.
Lamenta was also excited because there were going to be lots of other kids at the gala, and she was excited to meet lots of new friends at the gala.
Strawberry Sundae was happy to go to the gala too because she was catering some of the desserts, and she was taking this as an opportunity to drum up business for Force of Flavor. If the royals and dignitaries at the gala liked them, it would be good for her idea to expand to opening some more shops in other locations. Mace agreed it was a good plan. With Myra's time for college applications coming up soon, they needed to keep saving for tuition, and for Kade too despite him being only seven now.
Kara was looking forward to the ball because it would be a great chance for her to meet a special someone for herself. Finding Prince Charming was no easy task, but with all the royals being at the gala, it was her chance to meet lots of princes, lords, men of high class basically. It couldn't hurt to see if there was a man out there who felt as nervous about all this as she did.
But Gabby, she was extra super enthusiastic. Being the heir to the throne of Naboo, Gabby was going to need all the time and practice she could get, and her mother being the former queen of Naboo and currently a princess of Solaris, and with the babies staying in the castle nursery, it meant at the gala, Gabby would get some Mommy-daughter time with Padme. It had been forever since Gabby had time with just her and her mom, and it was a special moment for her to have alone time with her.
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Everyone got dressed to look their best for the gala.
Mila helped Tech adjust his mask, which looked like a helmet so it would fit over his goggles, but it surprisingly still looked regal with his outfit.
"How do I look?" Harmony asked, turning around in her black and white gown.
"You look beautiful, Harmony." Carmine said.
All the horses looked beautiful, in fact. In their gowns or suits, they all looked so fancy. Maybelle was not gonna ditch her sparkly hat though.
"Even I'm lookin' forward to this shindig." Maybelle said.
"Remember, this is a fancy ball, not a rodeo." Crosshair said.
"Aren't you handsome tonight, Prince Crosshair?"
"Very funny."
Except, at the gala, the Batch all had to use different names and make up a story that they were each from a very remote kingdom.
"Is everyone ready to go?" Qui-Gon asked. Everyone was indeed ready. "Remember, keep your crown jewels on at all times, holler at the first sign of trouble, and children, don't go anywhere alone."
"Yes, Grandpa." said the royal children.
"Don't forget just to have some fun too, everyone." Shmi said. "Tonight is a special night for all of us."
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On a planet somewhere in the very heart of Enchantra, was an enormous castle that looked even larger than the Naboo Palace and the Jedi Temple put together!
There were so many carriages and so many guests. Kings, queens, lords and ladies, politicians, wealthy families, and dignitaries of all species and all ages were arriving and were escorted into the castle.
People also couldn't believe their eyes when they caught a glimpse of a carriage with a sun symbol on it that could only belong to the royal family of Solaris. Naturally, as the current rulers, Qui-Gon and Shmi exited the carriage first. And then their children and grandchildren exited the carriage.
"Welcome, everyone..." Garrett, who'd come to greet the others. "To the All Kingdoms Gala."
The kids were especially astonished by the sight of the castle alone. This was it: the night where all their greatest dreams would come true.
"I can't believe we're finally here." Gabby said. "With all that we've imagined, the reality of this night is sure to make this... The Best Night Ever!"
Gabby:
At the Gala
Choir:
At the Gala
Lamenta:
At the Gala
In the ballroom
I'm going to see them all
All the children
I'll befriend them at the Gala
Choir:
At the Gala
Lamenta:
All the children
That I'll meet here
They will love me big and small
We'll become good friends forever
Right here at the Gala!
Choir:
All our dreams will come true
Right here at the Gala
At the Gala
Strawberry Sundae arrived with the Windu family, looking pretty all dolled up in her berry-themed dress, and literally letting her hair down.
Strawberry Sundae:
At the Gala (It's amazing)
I will sell them (Better hurry)
All my berry-tastic treats (Yummy yummy)
Hungry royals (They'll be snacking)
They will try them (Bring your tummy)
Berry cupcakes, berry sweets (Gimme some)
And I'll earn a lot of money
for my friends and family!
Choir:
All our dreams and our hopes from now until hereafter
All that we've been wishing for will happen at the Gala
At the Gala
Kara, however, was looking forward to seeing if tonight would be like in a fairy tale for her in terms of romance.
Kara:
At the Gala
All the royals
They will meet fair Kara Jinn
They will see I'm just as regal at the Gala
Choir:
At the Gala
Kara:
I will find him
My Prince Charming
And how gallant he will be
He will treat me like a lady
Tonight at the Gala!
Choir:
This is what we've waited for to have the best night ever
Each of us will live our dreams
Tonight at the Gala
At the Gala
Among some of the non-royal guests was the Hall family, and there were some famous musical artists and producers in attendance too. Enough to the point where if you were a talented singer or musician, if you performed tonight and did well, you would be discovered and made famous.
Myra:
Been dreamin'
I've been waitin'
To be a big time rock star
Playing guitar and rockin' out
Set the stage and singin' loud
Perform for crowds of thousands
They'll shower us with diamonds
The producers will see me right here at the Gala!
Choir:
All we've longed for
All we've dreamed
Our happy ever after
Finally will all come true
Right here at the Grand Gala
At the Gala
Comedia soon arrived with Master Mundi, both of them dressed to their best. For once, the young silly-corn was happy to attend a grand ball now that she was free of her birth parents.
I am here at the Grand Gala
For it is the best party
But the one thing it was missing was a pony just like me
For I am the best at parties, all the royals will agree
Royals playing
Royals dancing
With me at the Grand Gala!
Choir:
Happiness and laughter at the Gala
At the Gala
Padme looked absolutely lovely tonight, and Gabby was super excited to spend the gala with her.
Gabby:
At the Gala (At the Gala)
With my mother (With her mother)
Is where I'm going to be (She will be)
We will talk all about magic and what I've learned and seen (She will see)
It is going to be so special
As she's made time just for me (This will be the best night ever!)
Choir:
Into the Gala we must go
We're ready now, we're all aglow
Into the Gala, let's go in and have the best night ever
Into the Gala, now's the time
We're ready and we look divine!
Choir and Lamenta:
Into the Gala
Lamenta:
Meet new friends
Choir and Strawberry:
Into the Gala
Strawberry:
Sell some pastries
Choir and Kara:
Into the Gala
Kara:
Find my Prince
Choir and Myra:
Prove I'm great
Myra:
As a star guitarist
Lamenta: To meet!
Strawberry: To sell!
Kara: To find!
Myra: To prove!
Comedia: To whoop!
Gabby: To talk!
All:
Into the Gala
Into the Gala
And we'll have the best night ever!
At the Gala!
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Everyone arrived at the gala, all looking their best as they arrived.
The Bad Batch, now the Royal Batch, soon arrived in their carriages too. Their horses arrived separately so no one would suspect anything, and each of them wore a special communications device embedded in their hats or a pair of earrings to stay in touch with their riders.
As everyone entered the ball, the Royal Batch saw as guests arrived one or two at a time, and a man at the entrance announced everyone's names.
"King Qui-Gon and Queen Shmi of Solaris."
"Remember," whispered Hunter. "Don't give your real names.
So, one at a time, each of the Batchers gave a fake name.
Hunter became Prince Harold.
Tech went under the name Prince Teddy with Mila undercover as his wife Princess Mira. Wrecker was going under the guise of Prince Roger, and Crosshair was going by the name Prince Cristoph. Then, there came one guest that no one expected.
"Prince Eric de Minor." Announced the steward.
Despite the fact that he and his horse were wearing masks, Omega, Maybelle, and Pinto recognized the new guests.
Omega wanted to rush over and hug Echo, but she had to refrain from doing so saying his real name so she wouldn't blow his cover. Instead, she waited for Echo to approach her, and she curtsied.
"Hello, Prince Eric. It's good to see you tonight."
"Good to see you too, Princess Omega." Echo chuckled. He then lowered his tone of voice. "Any signs of trouble yet?"
"Not yet." Omega whispered back.
"Come, Gabriella." Padme said. "It's time to go and mingle."
"Coming, Mommy." Gabby smiled, walking with her mom. "While we're here, can I tell you about what's been happening in art class? I've been dying to tell you all about this show we're working on, and I'm working on a project that's gonna wow everyone!"
Padme chuckled. Gabby was definitely eager to get to talking and catching up. With how busy things got ever since their family grew, along with how busy she already was as a senator and a princess, Padme barely had enough time just to make out with Anakin, let alone spend time with just one of her kids, and four of them were sets of twins. Gabby was literally the only single birth child in her branch of the family, so it could get a little lonely sometimes.
Indira was looking especially lovely as she walked in with her friends. She looked around the area. There were a lot of people there, but she didn't see Aghati or anyone who remotely appeared to be a threat as of yet.
Everyone also wore masks of some kind, this being a masquerade and all. And it made it a lot easier for the Batch to go undercover.
"Everyone in position?" Hunter whispered into his communicator.
"Affirmative." Tech said.
"We read you loud and clear." Mila added.
"We hear ya too, Prince Harold." Teatra said. "Operation: Get Aghati is in motion."
Nothing seemed out of the ordinary at this gala so far. So, everyone began going about their business while also remaining on high alert.
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Lamenta eagerly looked around at all the kids who were there. And since she was wearing a mask at this party, no one would know she was the Crescendo kid at first glance. So, she decided to go and meet some potential new friends. There was a group of kids who were playing.
"Hello, everyone." said Lamenta with a curtsy. "Mind if I join you?"
The kids were playing Tag, and they all said it was okay for her to play with them. For now, Lamenta went under the name Minty, which was another nickname her parents used sometimes, just to be sure these kids liked her for her, not for her father. As far as she could tell, they couldn't recognize her with her mask on.
Meanwhile, Myra looked around at how big the sight was. She couldn't tell who was who at first with people she hadn't seen before. Well, some she could recognize, actually, due to the different species they were and some pretty distinct features. Comedia was easy to recognize. She didn't know anyone else with hair like hers. It looked even more crowded than the mall on Black Friday.
Myra looked around, when she felt someone tap her shoulder.
"First time at a gala?" said a familiar voice.
Myra looked behind her to see a boy about her age. With the mask, she almost couldn't tell who it was, but she definitely recognized his hair and his voice.
"Vince, is that you?" Myra said. "Look at you."
"I know. I look ridiculous, don't I?"
"Don't worry, you're wearing a mask. Embarrassment won't exist here."
Vince chuckled and said, "I heard a rumor you're gonna be performing tonight."
"Yeah, it was the craziest thing. Someone must've seen the video of my sweet sixteen with the Red Hot T's."
"Yeah, my dad definitely saw that."
Myra started to sense what Vince was getting at.
"You didn't happen to have something to do with that, did you?"
"If I say yes, will you dance with me?"
Myra rolled her eyes. If this was something Vince did because he thought it would impress her... it kinda worked. So, she agreed to dance with him. So far, so good.
"Go get her, Vinnie!" Marigold whispered from afar.
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In the castle garden, Kara walked around to see that the place was decorated beautifully with lots of lanterns. And in the garden, Kara could see some men who were by themselves, so she decided to mingle, but didn't have much luck finding a good one. The first one she got was a real snob. The second was about to get touchy before Kara got out her lightsaber. And the third was just terrified by the fact that she was armed.
Kara rolled her eyes.
"Looks like fairy tale meetings really are just that." she groaned, when she bumped into someone else. "Hey, watch it!"
Kara got a look at the man she'd bumped into. He looked about her age with long orange brown hair and green eyes. He gave an apologetic look.
"What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?"
The man then began making signs with his hands. Suddenly, Kara realized he was using sign language. He was signing, "Sorry, I didn't see you there."
"Elliot, there you are." said a young woman, coming over. She got him to look at her and spoke as she signed. "What have we said about taking off unsupervised?"
And the man, apparently Elliot, signed, "I'm not a child. I can look after myself."
Elliot was a young lord, a member of the Albinet family, an aristocratic family from the kingdom of Cadenza. Kara had heard of that family. They were very influential in the music magic community. But she didn't know that one of their children was deaf.
"I'm Princess Kara of Solaris." Kara signed and spoke.
"Nice to meet you, your highness." Elliot signed.
Elliot looked at Kara and introduced the other woman as his older sister Daphne, who also served as his interpreter, and was a little crazy overprotective.
"Excuse me for being concerned about you getting lost in such a big place." Daphne said, signing it to her brother.
Kara chuckled as Elliot basically told his sister "Daphne! Vamoose."
"Okay! Okay." Daphne rolled her eyes. "I'll leave you two be. For now."
Kara laughed again.
Elliot signed to her, "Would you care to join me tonight for the gala?"
"I'd be delighted." Kara signed.
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As for the others, the grownups kept an eye on the children, and all the Jedi and their horses were helping to keep an eye out if they sensed anything suspicious.
Tech walked through the ballroom with Mila at his side. The two of them walked together and looked around for anything or anyone suspicious. Mila, however, got distracted by the sight of the children playing and galavanting about. Seeing them, it reminded her of how badly she wanted to have a baby of her own. Knowing how hard and how long it had taken her own parents to get pregnant the first time, Mila hoped it wouldn't be as difficult for her and Tech now. Even though her parents were determined to have a baby, after years of trying and failing, they began to feel like there was no hope. Mila wasn't sure she or Tech could handle the heart wrenching event of not being able to have the baby they dream of as soon as they would like.
"What is it, Dear?" Tech asked his wife.
"Nothing." Mila lied. But she couldn't for long. "Look at them. Just to have one like them, that would be a dream come true."
"It will. Eventually. We simply need to keep trying, and take care of ourselves to ensure a healthy birth of a child."
"I see the two of you seem to enjoy watching the children." Queen Reigna said, approaching the couple.
Tech and Mila both gave a polite bow to the alicorn queen, maintaining their cover.
"Prince Teddy at your service, Your Majesty." Tech introduced. "My wife, Princess Mira."
"Charmed, your pony-ness." Mila greeted.
"Lovely to meet both of you." Reigna said. She recognized the two, however. But with a wink, she told them they were doing great with their undercover work.
Crosshair tried to talk with as few people as possible, which didn't come easy. But each time someone approached and greeted him, he put on a smile, like he'd been practicing in the mirror.
"Greetings," said one woman with a curtsy. "Countess Aurora de Winter."
"Prince Christof." Crosshair said simply with a bow.
Strawberry, meanwhile, stood at the dessert table to offer people a taste of her specialties. No one seemed to come yet. Except for Wrecker in disguise.
"Yum!" Wrecker started, until Strawberry coughed to remind him he needed to act more dignified.
Wrecker changed his composure then.
"I mean, excuse me, Miss." said Wrecker, or rather Prince Roger. "What might these morsels you're serving be?"
Strawberry smiled as if to say, "That's better."
"Glad you asked... Prince Roger." Strawberry said. "These are berry-licious specialties from Force of Flavor, a family run bakery with the finest treats in the galaxy. We serve treats such as ones served at the royal wedding of King Qui-Gon and Queen Shmi, the wedding of Jedi Prince Anakin Skywalker and Senator Padme Amidala, and that of Duchess Satine and Duke Obi-Wan Kenobi. Could I perhaps interest you in a sample?"
People nearby seemed to gain interest when one of the princes was interested, and when they heard the royal family of Solaris and Jedi had gotten her to cater their weddings. If they enjoyed her baking, then she must have been good, they figured.
"That's right, everyone. More treats like these are available exclusively at Force of Flavor, where our motto is, may desserts be with you."
"Hunter," said Echo over the comm. "I've scoured nearly every inch of the ballroom, and so far no sign of this Aghati person or his men."
"Stay alert." Hunter said.
The Batch kept moving around, greeting many royal guests, but so far not seeing anything suspicious. So, mostly they just enjoyed themselves dancing and talking with friends.
Master Mundi, however, was delighted to see gummy bears being placed at the dessert table. Except, these gummy bears looked very different than the ones he was used to seeing. They looked like regular gummy bears, except they looked like they had butterfly wings. He had to admit, they were cute, so he grabbed some, but Comedia pulled him away from them before he could hog them all for himself.
"Dad!" Comedia scolded. "I thought we talked about you getting your gummy bear obsession under control."
"I know. I know. But with these kinds, I don't think you can blame me."
"Hmm... I've never seen gummy bears like these before." said the silly-corn.
Comedia tried some of the gummy bears, and she found them to be quite delicious. So did the other horses when each of them tried some over the next hour or so. The horses all loved gummy snacks. They were sweet like sugar cubes, nice and chewy, and they were made with juices from lots of different fruits. Even Emeraldi couldn't help wolfing them down.
Indira, however, spent most of her time feeling afraid, worrying that Aghati could show up at any given moment. Eating gummy bears didn't make her fear go away either.
Indira was just taking a bite of what was almost the last of the gummy bears, when someone came up and spoke to her.
"Everything okay?" Hunter said, startling Indira. "Sorry! Didn't mean to startle you."
"I could be better." Indira said. "I'm just worried is all."
"Hey, you got nothing to worry about." said Hunter. "You may be wearing a mask now, but I just know under there hides a girl who's beautiful inside and out, and very spirited."
Indira couldn't say it out loud, but hearing Hunter say those things really meant a lot to her. How she wished she could tell him how she felt. But, she was only human inside now. She liked being a pegasus, but sometimes she wished she could be a human again even just for a day.
Suddenly, Indira felt a weird sensation in her stomach, and so did the other horses. Master Mundi also started to feel a strange sensation in his stomach, and so did a few other guests.
Vince, being an aspiring vet, came to help Mariposa out as she was checking the horses out. Nothing seemed to be wrong aside from the fact that they felt weird. But then the pain suddenly went away.
But then, Comedia backed into someone, and got fruit punch spilled on her dress!
"Oh! I'm so sorry." said the other guest.
"It's okay." Comedia said. "It's not too bad."
Comedia made her way to one of the bathrooms so she could wash the stain off her dress, when she suddenly felt really dizzy and collapsed to the floor.
"Ouch! Ugh. Okay, that was weird, even for me."
Comedia shook herself as she stood up and turned to the sink to get water, when she noticed something weird. The counter was suddenly taller than her.
"Huh? That's weird. Couldn't I see this just standing at my normal height a few moments ago?"
Comedia proceeded to pick herself up and prop her front hooves onto the sink, only to find they felt weird. So, she looked down at them and saw... hands?!
"What the-?!"
Comedia then looked in the mirror and saw she was... a human! Her skin was green like her coat was, and she still had her curly yellow and orange hair, and she was even still wearing her navy blue gown, but it slightly changed its shape. And she could feel that her wings and her tail were missing, and see very clearly her horn was gone too!
Comedia shrieked in place of a panicked whinny. But it wasn't just her.
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Strawberry was panicking too! Suddenly she had hands, hairless skin, her ears were on the sides of her head, and her wings were missing too!
"What's happened to me?!" Strawberry screamed.
"What in tarnation?!" Maybelle panicked, galloping across the floor, only to fall on her stomach. "I'm a... human?!"
Same thing went for Carousella, Pinto, Sunheart, and Citrus too! Basically, all the horses were transformed into humans, including Queen Reigna and her family. All of their skin colors matched their coat colors, and their manes still looked the same. Somehow, their clothes even changed to fit their new bodies, so at least it was easy to tell who was whom.
"Someone please tell me this is just a bad dream!" Teatra begged.
"I would, but you would need to be sleeping." Tech said.
"Not helping!" Mila scolded.
"My tail's missing!" Magenta exclaimed. "So is my horn and my wings!"
But she was so busy panicking, she didn't realize she bumped her brother as he was trying to stand on two legs.
"Whoa!" Remix fell down and landed on his stomach. "Ow!"
"Anakin, be honest." Sapphire said. She couldn't believe this either. "How bad is it?"
Even as a human, she was still pretty big. Well, she was definitely the tallest, but she was still gorgeous too.
"Other than the change in appearance, nothing fatal seems to have happened. But can someone please explain what did just happen?" Anakin said, helping Sapphire onto her feet. "Why did all the horses suddenly turn into humans?"
Sapphire, of course, struggled to maintain her balance as she stood on two legs. And then she fell to her new hands and knees again.
"I have no idea." Sapphire said, looking at herself.
"What's happened to us?" Diamond said, now having the form of a human girl. She was pretty cute too.
Fiesta was also shouting in Spanish how freaked out she was about this.
Other guests started to chatter about too. Horses turning into humans and still acting like horses and panicking wasn't exactly easy to ignore.
"Nobody panic." Qui-Gon said. "Everyone, just calm down."
"Easy for you to say!" Estrella said, standing on two legs, only to lose her balance. "Oh no, going down!"
"DADDY!" Comedia's voice screamed.
Comedia burst out of the bathroom and ran back into the ballroom, still running on all fours, that being the only way she knew how to get around, looking for her dad.
"Dad? Where are you?" Comedia shouted. "Something weird is happening."
Amid others looking at her oddly for being a human galloping on all fours, Comedia ended up bumping right into another guest she didn't recognize.
"Comedia!" said a familiar voice from the very man she ran into. "What's happened to you?"
Comedia looked up at the guest. He was a human male with a white ponytail, and an outfit that looked familiar, but Comedia didn't recognize him at first.
"Who are you?"
"Very funny, Comedia. But are you alright?"
That was when Comedia recognized the voice, and the man's eyes.
"Dad?" Comedia gasped.
Seeing the surprised look on his daughter's now human face, Ki-Adi looked confused.
"Yes."
"Have you looked in a mirror?"
"No. Why?"
"Maybe this is why." Myra said.
Myra brought out a pocket mirror, and when Ki-Adi looked into it, he was screaming too! But it wasn't just him. A lot of guests who were previously Twileks, griffins, equines, basically any non-human species were transformed into humans.
Ahsoka was also shrieking when she looked into a reflective surface. She was now a human with dark skin, and long blue and yellow streaked hair tied in two ponytails.
"Daddy! What's happened to Ahsoka?" Turha asked, hiding behind Master Plo."
No one knew what was going on or why, but when the Commission saw that something seemed to be distressing the guests, the Chairwoman called for everyone to calm down. Then she asked Garrett to assist since he was an expert in many kinds of spells.
"All right, everyone. No one panic. This appears to be a simple transformation spell." Garrett said. "Not anything harmful. However, I need to know the precise formula so we can create an antidote. Now, will everyone who's been transformed tonight please raise their hands?"
So, everyone did. There were approximately forty-two hands raised, including all the horses, Ahsoka, and Master Mundi.
"Okay, as those of you who know about transformation potions, they are distributed through ingestion. So, was there anything all of you ate or drank that could've caused this?"
Everyone started to think. There were a lot of different foods at the tables. If a potion was slipped into something people ate, it could've been in anything. But, they narrowed it down with a few dietary facts. The horses and Master Mundi were all vegetarians, so that left out anything with meat in it. And Citrus hated kale, so anything with that was out too. After narrowing down any dietary dislikes or restrictions, as well as questioning everyone about their meals earlier that day, they knew it had to be something at the gala they'd eaten.
It couldn't have been anything they'd eaten earlier that day. Turha had eaten all the same things as his sister and their family's horses at breakfast that morning, and he and his mom were Togrutas, and Master Plo was still much a Kel Dor. But then, Comedia thought of something she and her father had eaten just before they both had a stomachache.
"The gummy bears!" Comedia said, getting up on two legs, only to nearly fall down. Thankfully, Ki-Adi caught her and helped her balance herself.
"And here I thought I'd never have to teach you to walk." Ki-Adi chuckled.
"What gummy bears?" Garrett asked. "Are there any of them left?"
"There should be." Strawberry said. "Nobody touches the dessert table!"
Strawberry went to the dessert table and found the bowl of butterfly winged gummy bears. There were still a few left. Garrett needed to analyze them so he could figure out what kind of transformation potion was used so he could create an antidote. But this kind of analysis was an at least two-person job. He needed to secretly ask Tech and Mila to come and help since they were each good at chemistry and analysis.
"Don't worry, everyone. We'll have this sorted out shortly." Garrett said. "In the meantime, please enjoy yourselves and remain calm. We will try to have this done by night's end."
So, Garrett, Tech, and Mila went with one of the Commission's potions experts to analyze the gummy bears in the science lab, leaving everyone to just enjoy themselves.
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Vince couldn't believe his eyes when he saw Marigold as a human girl now.
"A potion that turns horses into humans." Vince said, scratching his head. "Who'da thunk it?"
"I don't think we should wait." Marigold said. "I think we best investigate ourselves. Come on!"
Marigold started to get Vince on her back, like she normally would, except....
"Whoa!" Marigold cried.
"Ow!" Both Marigold and Vince groaned.
"Too.... heavy!" Marigold grunted, trying to push herself up with Vince still on her back. "Ugh! I forgot... humans don't typically horseback ride each other."
Vince got off Marigold and helped her up.
"Speak for yourself." Carousella said, walking on all fours with Gabby on her back, which was easy since Gabby was smaller.
"I haven't had a ride like this since Daddy used to give me piggyback rides." Gabby said.
"Either way," said Myra, helping Round n' Round get on her feet. "There won't be any riding for any of us until Professor Magic gets an antidote done."
"I'm not in medical school yet, but I'm pretty sure most veterinarians don't usually deal with horses turning into humans." Vince said.
"Whoa!' Pinto fell down again. "I don't know how you guys do this all the time."
"I'm good." Comedia said, standing on two legs now.
"How are you so well balanced?" Emerald asked.
"I do funny acts like this all the time. All that practicing dancing with Dad gave me good balance on two legs. Except this time, I don't have hooves."
"The only question is who did this, and why?" Padme said.
"I'd say more than one question." Anakin corrected.
This was bizarre. Why would someone place gummy bears to transform non-humans into humans?
At least for now, the horses just would have to make the best of it. Comedia definitely found a way to do that.
"You know, Daddy. Since I'm walking on just two legs..." Comedia then pulled Ki-Adi to the dance floor, and started to do with him, a father-daughter dance like no other they'd done before.
Ki-Adi had to admit, it definitely felt a lot easier dancing with his daughter without constantly tripping over her tail, and he could actually wrap his arm around her too.
Remix, on the other hand, found break dancing as a human to be pretty cool. It was even easier for him to do a head spin trick without his horn getting in the way.
As for the others, the horses' riders began showing them basic things like how to balance themselves while walking, and how to use their new fingers to pick things up and move stuff around. But there was only one horse who didn't really need lessons because she already had previous experience, and she was nowhere to be seen.
Hunter noticed among all of the horses, he didn't see Indira.
"Indira? Indira, where are you?" Hunter asked.
"Um... I'm right here." said Indira's voice from under a table.
"Indira, come on out. I'm sure you look fine, if that's what you're worried about."
Hunter looked behind him as he saw a tablecloth move, as that had been where Indira was hiding, and the clone couldn't believe his eyes! The whole world seemed to slow down around him as Indira approached him. Her dress was the same, but she looked totally different as a human. Dark skin, almost the same color as her coat, her hair tied in its bubble ponytail, and her eyes were still big and beautiful as ever. And her dress really outlined her human figure now too.
"I guess, now you see the real me," said Indira.
Hunter was totally frozen. He didn't know why. But Indira was incredibly gorgeous as a human. He thought she was beautiful as a pegasus, sure. But, seeing her as a human... she was extra pleasing to the eyes of a human male. That wasn't to say Hunter only liked her for her looks. But, given that she was a horse before, he wouldn't have asked her out. That would just be weird. To be fair, though, he didn't always know she used to be a human.
Hunter didn't know why, but he found himself unable to speak for a bit.
"Wow... you're an even more beautiful human than I imagined." Hunter said.
Indira blushed. "Thank you."
"Uh... this may seem weird, but... would you like to dance?"
Indira was indeed a bit surprised by that, but partially for Hunter to maintain his cover as a prince, and because her heart was swelling with enthusiasm, Indira gave her hand to Hunter, and he escorted her to the dance floor to join her in what would surely be a night neither of them would ever forget.
Hunter took Indira's hand into his, and wrapped the other around her waist. He felt things he couldn't explain when he held her, but when he looked into her eyes, something about it just felt right.
Music played, starting out slow. But then it got a bit faster.
You're the light, you're the night
You're the color of my blood
You're the cure, you're the pain
You're the only thing I wanna touch
Never knew that it could mean so much, so much
You're the fear, I don't care
'Cause I've never been so high
Follow me through the dark
Let me take you past our satellites
You can see the world you brought to life, to life
So love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do
Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do
What are you waiting for?
Most princesses, in their stories, danced a traditional slow waltz with their Prince Charming. But Indira, her dance with Hunter was a little different.
Fading in, fading out
On the edge of paradise
Every inch of your skin is a Holy Grail I've got to find
Only you can set my heart on fire, on fire
Hunter didn't hesitate to spin Indira around, and he found himself holding her closer with her back facing him as he embraced her in a way he'd never done with any pretty girl.
Yeah, I'll let you set the pace
'Cause I'm not thinking straight
And Indira found herself leaning in closer to Hunter, their noses almost touching as Hunter twirled her around again and held her close.
My head's spinning around, I can't see clear no more
What are you waiting for?
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do
Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do
What are you waiting for?
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (ye-yeah)
Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do
What are you waiting for?
The whole time Hunter and Indira danced, the former couldn't explain why he was feeling this way. Not that long ago, this pretty girl in front of him was a pegasus.
I'll let you set the pace
'Cause I'm not thinking straight
My head's spinning around, I can't see clear no more
What are you waiting for?
Hunter had gotten to know so much about Indira's inside before he learned she was a human. She wasn't just patient and full of wise mantras and what Crosshair would call fortune cookie talk. She was kind, she was compassionate, she never lost her patience when it came to him, and no matter how distressed Hunter had been, she was always there to help him out of his funk. If she were a human then, he might've found all those things attractive. But now that she was in her human body again, and he was seeing her, he was beginning to feel something he'd never felt before.
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (ye-yeah)
Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do
What are you waiting for?
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)
Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (whoa)
Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do (ah)
What are you waiting for?
Hunter was falling in love. And he didn't even know that Indira had already fallen in love with him. The boy was too shy and couldn't bring himself to make the next move, but the girl did.
Indira leaned in and closed her eyes, about to do something she never thought she'd do with any man. And pretty soon, Hunter found himself closing his eyes and puckering his lips, feeling for her. Except, neither of them knew that one masked guest had caught a glimpse of the two about to kiss, and when he saw the girl, he believed he recognized her.
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