//------------------------------//
// Get up, come on get down with the sickness 
// Story: The Twilight Years 
// by Crimmar 
//------------------------------//

	The pillar of knowledge trembled, it’s queen wobbling on her perch as the foundations were ready to crumble. Twilight tried to steady herself, but her tower was failing. Her mighty magic rose from her inner depths, attempting to shore up the bedrocks of her power. 

        The mighty tome of ‘Capricorns: Ambitious individuals or plain jerks?’ might have been enough. Only cruel fate would know, the same one who now ravaged all her plans and dreams. She was betrayed, and she would fall. Betrayed by one she trusted most of all; her own body.

        Twilight sneezed.

        “‘Choo!”

        And thus the mighty fall. Or filly unicorns at the very least.

        Raegdan snatched her out of the air as she fell, and tucked her against his chest, turning his back to the book tower she had erected under her in the search of higher shelves of learning as it crumbled over and around them. When the bookstorm was over he carefully looked her over.

        “Are you hurt, little one?” he asked, worried.

        “I’m fine.” Twilight sniffed, her nose feeling clogged. “I think my nose is running.”

        Raegdan cradled her with one arm, uncaring of the librarians who took a look at the most recent noise in their domain, and who then rushed off to nurse their coming headaches and swear in private after witnessing another fine mess they couldn’t reprimand the instigators for. Twilight’s guardian searched his pockets for a handkerchief or a tissue and came up empty.

        He held up the end of his shirt, bringing it to her nose. “Come on, blow on this.”

        “Ewww! That’s nasty!” Twilight grimaced. She felt the area over her lips dampen and quickly blew her nose with Raegdan’s clothes despite her misgivings.

        “I can wash it later. Don’t do that agai-”

        “‘Choo!”

        A contemplating frown overtook Raegdan’s dripping features. “Little one… When you went to play in the snow with Cadance and little flame yesterday… You were wearing your coat, right?”

        Twilight rolled her eyes. “Of course!”

        She coughed.

        The tiny purple filly looked up with guilty eyes. “I might have taken it off for a minute or two.”





        “Raegdan!” Twilight yelled, seeking sympathy as she tried to burrow even deeper in her blankets. “I’m theeck!”

        “Yeth. I thee that,” Raegdan mocked as he spread another blanket over her.

        “Don’t make fun of meeeee…”

        “I told you to keep your winter coat on, didn’t I?”

        “I got thweaty…”

        “Well, I hope it felt good when you cooled down because now you’re going to be sick during all Herpes’ Warming,” Raegdan congratulated her. He put his palm against her forehead and Twilight leaned into it, trying to absorb as much of the heat his naked skin radiated.

        “It’th called Hearth’th Warming,” Twilight corrected him, sleepily. “I hope we’re ok in time for presents. I know we have more blanketh, can’t you bring them?”

        “Sorry, little one. You’re not the only patient.” Raegdan leaned over the bed next to her and lay his palm over the tiny dragon’s forehead. “How do you feel, little flame?”

        “I’m theeck…” Spike whined. He was going to say more, trying to leech as much parental comfort he could to ease his agony, but somepony knocked on the door.

        “Try to get some sleep, both of you. You will feel warmer in a minute.” Raegdan said, getting up from the short stool between them.

        He opened the door, not surprised at all to find the ruler and owner of the castle. “Hello, Celestia. Want to come in?” he invited her casually.

        “Hello, Raegdan. Are Twilight and Spike really sick?” she asked, full of concern.

        “Yes.”

        “Then no. I’ll stand outside, thank you. Do give my well wishes to Twilight and Spike though.”

        “You’re really brave, anyone ever told you that?”

        Celestia’s laugh was like crystal rods tinkling against each other. “Bite me, Raegdan. The point is that I simply can’t afford to get sick these days. Which leads me to my other point.”

        Raegdan pulled at the neck of his shirt. “That’s weird. I feel like I’m being choked.”

        “Velvet would like to have her children at home while they are sick.”

        “Ok, sure. Is she coming to get them or do I have-”

        Celestia interrupted him by raising a golden shoe. “But she can’t afford to get sick either. The foal care school she works at already has three teachers on sick leave.”

        “Then how-”

        “Please wait for me to finish. You will be the buffer between them. She’ll prepare their meals and have them close, but the actual care will fall to you.”

        “Ok, that’s… Get them all the way there for that? She’s the boss, fine. Anything else?”

        “One or two. Or three,” Celestia said, smiling like a shark.





        “Raegdan,” Cadance whined, sniffing all the while. “I’m theeck!”

        “Not as thick as I am,” Raegdan answered. He closed the large duffel bag with the things he would take for their stay at Twilight’s home, most of them belonging to Twilight and Spike, and rubbed his temples. “I have no idea how or why I keep falling for that crap. How did all of you get sick?” he asked the three ponies standing in a line in disbelief.

        Cadance pointed at the bed where Twilight shivered. “I think I got it from Twilight.”

        Shining Armor pointed at Cadance. “I got it from Cadanthe.” He was glad Raegdan’s kind didn’t have the ability to shoot fire from their eyes. It sure looked as if he was really trying to be the first to manifest it though. “Thee thneethed on me, we weren’t doing anything we thouldn’t,” he whispered, wary of the close proximity of his baby sister, his cheeks flaming red.

        “Hmm.” Raegdan’s skepticism was almost a solid construct. “I’ll half believe that, if only because I’m certain that there really was saliva involved. How about you?” he asked the last pony.

        Blueblood pointed at Shining Armor. “I got it from him.”

        Raegdan took a step back.

        Shining Armor tried to explain himself. “No, we jutht-” 

        “No!” Raegdan yelled, making a diagonal crossing motion with both hands in front of his chest. “I don’t want to know! I don’t care! I had enough of your romantic adventures! I want to remain ignorant!”

        “But we-”

        Raegdan’s finger pointed at him like a sword. “You either shut up now or you will have to fend for yourself.”

        “I’ll be good,” Shining Armor said, sighing.

        “Daaaad,” came the petulant cry of the young and sick from Spike’s bed. “I don’t want to walk. My legs hurt.”

        “Mine too,” Twilight joined in.

        “It’s alright, little ones. We will figure something out.”

        Cadance collapsed over her own things, croaking like a dying animal. “My legth hurt too, and my wingth ath well. I feel awful. I can’t go anywhere! I don’t want to go anywhere! I want to thtay here and die in peathe.”

        Raegdan sighed as he picked up everything himself, hanging them by the straps on his frame. “At least your parents don’t live that far,” he said to Shining Armor.

        “We have to croth half of Canterlot.”

        “I was trying to psych myself up. Thanks for ruining it, I appreciate it. Come on, Cadance, climb on my back and I’ll carry you there.” The pink Alicorn did so, wailing mournfully all the while, and crying for a heavy blanket to cover her. Then Raegdan picked up Spike and Twilight, still wrapped in blankets like cocoons, and held them to his chest.

        There were pack animals that carried less. Every single footstep was heavy with the load he was burdened with, and with all those blankets and their occupants he looked like a hairy beast with… growths.

        Blueblood tried to be the voice of reason. He elegantly, and very consciously, wiped his nose first. “Maybe we should ask some guards to help or hire some ponies to carry-”

        “Heavens, I can almost see their reaction if I did go and ask them for help. I’m tempted to try anyway if only to see if one of them will actually choke himself to death laughing in my face,” Raegdan said through gritted teeth. “Why are you coming with us anyway?”

        “It’s either that or my father calls me back home,” Blueblood answered. He turned his head away to cough.

        “Fu- Fine. You’re right. Better stick with us.”

        The small journey was uneventful though hellish for the three oldest males. The flu had sapped all of Blueblood’s and Shining Armor’s strength, and their whole body ached, nevermind their ravaged throats from their bouts of coughing. Thankfully the streets were pretty much clean of snow.

        For Raegdan, it was even worse. Not for the weight, but what the weight was. He probably didn’t mind carrying a few knapsacks at all. But he was also carrying three very sick individuals. Three individuals who were intent on stealing all his body warmth and were stuck as tight to him as barnacles on a ship hull. So intent on this purpose all three of them were that they didn’t bother moving any limbs of them or using any magic they had available to take care of any… leakage.

        By the time he was knocking on Night Light’s and Twilight Velvet’s door Raegdan was covered with the most unhygienic layer of frost in the history of Equestria.

        The door was unlocked so Raegdan simply pushed his way in. He tried to put Cadance, Twilight, Spike down, but none of the three were willing to even entertain the idea unless a bed was in range. Raegdan shouted out for anypony in the house.

        “Raegdan, honey, have you brought all my little angels home?” Twilight Velvet’s voice came from the kitchen.

        “We’re here, Velvet. You coming or…”

        “I’m sorry, but I can’t get sick. You will have to take them up yourself. Twilight can share with Cadance, and the colts can share Shining Armor’s room. I have placed some extra cots. I’m making soup, come back here when they’re all comfy, ok Raegdan?” Velvet shouted back, managing to sound as if she was speaking borderline foaltalk despite her volume.

        “Yeah, yeah.” Raegdan shed the luggage off him and started his way up the stairs. “Heavens forbid someone extends a limb towards me unless it’s to wipe off their freaking-” Raegdan muttered through his teeth.”

        “How was your trip here?” Velvet asked, not letting eardrum integrity concerns stop her from asking after them.

        “A stroll through heaven.” His clothes were making cracking sounds as all the frozen fluids on them were warming up and breaking apart. “Give me a minute.”

        Raegdan made sure they were all in their beds and covered. He had to rush back down to find Twilight’s doll at her request, and bring it back up, at which point Cadance asked for her own pillow that she had brought along. Seeing the emerging pattern form right before his eyes Raegdan picked everything up to bring it all to their rooms immediately rather than wait for each individual request.

        He was halfway up the stairs when Spike screamed for him. They all knew it because they heard him fall the rest of the way down.

        He burst through Shining Armor’s door, his face full of worry and blood. His nose was leaning the wrong way. “What’s wrong, little flame?”

        “Did we get any gems or did we forget them at the castle?” Spike asked anxiously.

        “I- Yes. I got some. Was that all? You’re not hurt or in any pain?”

        “Just sick. You’re bleeding by the way.”

        Raegdan wiped his bleeding nose. “Ah. Right. Thank you for letting me know, little flame. Just… try to rest. I’ll be right back.”

        He went out the door. That’s when two female voices and one dragon shouted. “We’re hungry!”

        Shining Armor and Blueblood joined in. “We’re hungry too!”

        “Raegdan? Stop sitting around and come get the food so you can serve it!” Twilight Velvet shouted from below.

Shining Armor could hear Raegdan’s deep sigh, heavy steps, and strings of words even through the wall and door.

“Shining? Dad’s speaking in that language of his again,” Spike said.

“It’s alright, Spike. He’s just…” He stumbled for a moment, trying to think of something. “...Reciting a poem.” Blueblood groaned and hid his head beneath his covers in shame for his fellow pony.

“A poem?”

“Sure! If you listen carefully you can spot the rhythm!” Shining Armor said frantically.

Spike paid attention for a few seconds. Even now, if you were silent enough, you could hear the biped mutter darkly. The baby dragon’s face lit up. “Oh yeah. You’re right!”

Blueblood peeked out to give Shining Armor a stare of incredulity for making that work.

Then Spike sneezed. It was always a gamble when Spike was sick. Most sneezes ended up being just that. Simple sneezes. Sometimes rarely there was a need to find Princess Celestia and retrieve whatever was in front of him. And sometimes…

“Raegdan! Fire! Fire!”





Raegdan came into Twilight’s room, carrying an empty tray. He kicked lightly behind him to close the door, and rested the tray on Twilight’s desk. He moved over her bed and lifted the covers to reveal the filly’s head.

“Are you finished with your soup, Twi- Cadance. That’s not your bed. Let me guess, you two want to sleep together to keep warm?” he asked, resigned.

“I athked her to,” Twilight confessed. “If we pool our body heat we will both be warmer. I thought of it,” she finished proudly.

“Why is she the little spoon? Shouldn’t it be the other way around?”

“My back ith cold,” Cadance sniffed.

Raegdan shrugged. “Whatever works for you two. I came up to pick up your plates, where do you have them?” he asked, looking around.

“Here.” Cadance pointed at the floor by her side of the bed.

The biped lifted one of the plates of soup off the floor, staring accusatorily at the two mares. “These are both still half full.”

“We weren’t that hungry after all,” Twilight said. “And we’re tired. Our headth hurt, we can’t uthe our hornth.”

“You have hooves,” Raegdan pointed out.

“They hurt too.”

“Don’t care. You’re emptying these.”

Twilight whined, a long, wordless sound designed to pierce through brain and heart, and tried to burrow in the space between Cadance’s back and the mattress.

Raegdan picked up a spoon and stirred the plate. “Come on, little one. Open wide.”

“I’m not a baby!” Twilight said, offended.

“Then pick up the spoon on your own.”

Twilight opened her mouth. Cadance found the strength to chuckle. Her small merriness lasted for as long as it took for Raegdan to turn to her.

“Your turn, chuckles.”

Cadance gasped. She wanted to say that she was an Alicorn, a princess in training and almost an adult, and that being fed like a baby was something that her dignity and self worth would never be able to recover from.

Raegdan however had already taken advantage of her open mouth to shove that spoon in. She was given no choice.

The two mares stood there, mouths open like birds waiting to be fed. Raegdan fed another spoonful of soup to Twilight. Then she sneezed.

He used his shirt to wipe off the stinging of the lemon juice, that Velvet was so fond of using, from his eyes. “This is going to be the theme for the next few days, isn’t it?” he observed, resigned.

“Thorry.”

“It’s ok. At least this smells good.”

Cadance weakly lifted her hoof in question. “Um, can I eat from the other plate, please?” she asked, staring at the droplets of Twilight juices staining the plate Raegdan was holding.

Raegdan sighed. “Yeah, sure.” He picked up the other plate and used a different spoon to feed Cadance. 

She sneezed.

“Fuc- Right in the freaking eye!”





        Velvet went to the living room to catch up with Raegdan before she went to bed herself. The exhausted biped was sitting on her couch, using her coffee table as a work surface. Pieces of wood were layered on it, most of them untouched, a few of them now good for nothing else other than fuel for a fire.

        He held a very sharp knife and used it to carve a block of wood into the figure of a pony. He wasn’t very good at it. That’s what she would say if she was being kind. If she was being honest she would simply say that he could cut off half his fingers, remove his eyes, stand on his head, and it still couldn’t make his carving any worse.

        “That’s not a half bad leg,” she said as she sat next to him, striving for something positive to say.

        “That’s supposed to be the head,” he said, deadpan.

        “Oh. Well, uh… At least you got the tail right on this one,” she said, pointing at one of his previous attempts.

        “That one was supposed to be a train wagon.”

        She twisted her head around and tried to see it through half-lidded eyes. She gave up after a minute. “How?”

        He pointed at the ‘tail’. “Well, I tried to… See, I started by…” He stopped and mirrored her previous movements. “Ok, I have no idea what I was thinking.” He threw it back down on the table.

        Velvet watched him for a few minutes as he picked up another piece for a fresh attempt. Already something spherical was starting to emerge. It would probably turn out he was trying to carve a horn.

        “What is this all for, honey?”

        “You’re supposed to give gifts in three days, right?” he asked for confirmation.

        “Yes, Hearth’s Warming day”

        “Care to find out how many bits I have?” He plunged his hand into his pocket and emptied the contents on an empty space on the table. Three bits shined dully.

        “I know that Princess Celestia gives you a small pay, but I didn’t expect that small,” she said sarcastically.

        “She does, but if I break something I’m supposed to either fix it or pay a part of it at least.”

        “Oh dear. What did you have to pay for?”

        “Medical expenses. I got into another fight with a guard.” He sighed, disappointed. “I’ve got two days to learn how to do this and have something ready for the kids. It would be easier if-”

        “Dad!” Spike’s voice came from upstairs. “I don’t feel well! I want to go to the bathroom!”

        “That. Coming, little flame.” He threw the piece of timber down in disgust. “I hope you’ve got them something good so they won’t be too much disappointed. All I’ll be able to get them is wood shavings at this point. Go to bed, Velvet. I’ll stay up.”

        “We can lend you some bits,” Velvet said, not moving off the couch.

        “Wouldn’t help. All stores are closed. I’ll figure something out.” He left, climbing the stairs two steps at a time.

        Velvet stayed where she was for a while, inspecting Raegdan’s poor work. He was right, there was no hope of being able to buy anything, and she didn’t believe he had any chance of making something from scrap, not unless he thought of something different. She doubted he would. He tended to be stubborn at times, trying one thing again and again, no matter how often he smashed his face against it.

        Maybe she could change the cards on the gift boxes and add his name to Night Light’s and her own. She’d have to bring it up to him tomorrow. For now, she’d better head to bed. She was tired enough, and her legs ached like crazy.

        Her throat tingled a little. Better drink some water first to down whatever got stuck there.





        Being sick simply wasn’t enough. Life had to sprinkle some extra suffering.

        Shining Armor was certain he was being pranked. There was no way that Spike didn’t realize what Raegdan kept cutting himself off from saying. He was sure, with one hundred and ten percent certainty, that Spike was constantly putting on a show of being an innocent, little, scaly butterfly.

        Blueblood wasn’t helping matters either. Everytime he tried to nap he found the other stallion had climbed on his bed and wrapped his hooves around him, spooning him, with some flimsy pretense of doing it for the body heat. But Shining Armor was nopony’s fool. He knew what was going on. For all his talk of a cold chest, that wasn’t what Blueblood rubbed against his back.

        The heat was really there though, and being cuddled did offer some comfort- No, bad Shining Armor, straight as an arrow you are, remember Cadance. Beautiful, soft pink Cadance, looking at him with those incredible wet eyes, her muzzle dripping snot, and her soft lips opening as she hacked out big wads of phlegm…

        If Shining Armor still had any libido for the mare form left, he had just taken it out around the back and pummeled it dead.

        If there was one grace to this, the most feverish of days, was that even though the house’s walls were thin, even with all the problems they created, they had one advantage. They gave them a warning over what was to come, and Shining Armor was determined to make use of it when he realized what would happen.

        They all heard Twilight Velvet sneezing. It almost shook the house.

        So did Raegdan’s cries. “Don’t you dare! Don’t you dare get sick too! It was just dust tickling your nose, you hear me? You are not-”

        “Raegdan,” Velvet cried out in misery. “I think I’m theeck.”

        Shining Armor started yodeling at the top of his lungs. It was the first thing that came to mind to cover up Raegdan’s resounding curse words.

        Darned little dragon.





        “Raegdan! I’m going to throw up!” Twilight yelled as loud as she could, which was basically a dead whisper at that point. Cadance heard her extremely clearly however, and with the self preservation of a mare sharing that same bed, added her own voice to the mix.

        “Raegdan! Twilight’s gonna throw up! Come quick!”

        Raegdan burst through the door. His eyes were red, having slept none for almost two days now, having to put up with seven sick ponies, tending to their every need.

        Night Light came home sick as well.

        He picked Twilight up, and rushed for the bathroom, the little unicorn’s stomach already spasming.

        “Hold on, little one, almost there, almost-  close enough for it to matter. Ah, well. Just finish up and empty your stomach now.”

        “I’m sorry! I tried to hold on.”

        “It’s alright. I can do without shoes and socks for a day.”

        “Mom keeps the mop in-”

        “I know where she keeps it. Little flame threw up a little bit ago too. I won’t really need it though. You got it all on the carpet. I’ll just roll it up and-”

        Twilight groaned. “Mom’s going to kill me! That was grandma’s carpet!”

        “Your mom won’t mind.”

        “Yes, she will! She’ll kick me out! She’ll tell Princess Celestia how I destroy carpets, and Princess Celestia has even more expensive ones at the castle. I’m going to be kicked out of my home and the castle for being a carpet muncher!” Twilight was already hyperventilating.

        “Little one, this will never-”

        “I’m going to lose everything! I’ve disappointed everypony!” Twilight wailed.

        “Heaven’s sake, little one, this isn’t going to-”

“We can’t let her know! Raegdan, can you take it out and wash it? Please? Pretty please?”

        Raegdan pointed out the window, at the falling snow. It wasn’t the idyllic soft snowfall of fluffy snowflakes slowly building up gentle slopes. It was the cold, harsh ice drizzle, the abominable hybrid of half frozen water that built ice and granted pneumonia.

“I’m sure it’s not that bad when you go out there,” Twilight said. She did her best puppy eyes, making sure to whimper and make her bottom lip tremble. She squeezed her facial muscles -just so- and her tear ducts released their load. Her ears flopped down and backwards, giving the fainted sense of fear. She put the elbows of her front legs in front of her muzzle, not quite hiding it, and shook her hind legs in the air as Raegdan carried her.

Raegdan sighed, defeated. “Ok, fine. If it makes you stop crying over nothing. I don’t need that many fingers I guess. I can lose a couple to frostbite.”

Cadance heard the whole exchange from her bed. He wasn’t really going to do it. No way. He was just playing along in order to calm Twilight down. Then he would get Velvet to come up and tell Twilight she was worrying over nothing. It was freezing outside. Nopony in their right mind would expect somepony to go out in this weather and kneel over a water soaked carpet, brushing it clean. It was madness.





        “Shining,” Spike asked, “why is dad yelling in his language again?”

        Blueblood had dragged himself to the window, his curiosity too great. The large biped was out there, on his hands and knees, brushing a wet -steadily getting frozen- carpet, soaked completely himself while snow was piling on him. Every now and then he would stop and slap or punch himself in various bodyparts.

        “He’s… he’s singing a song,” Blueblood said, unable to speak the truth. Would they believe him anyway? He was seeing it and wasn’t believing it himself. All he had to do was say no. Why didn’t he ever say no to that filly?

        “About what?”

        “...Popsicles,” Blueblood muttered, and went back to his warm bed. He felt cold just watching the poor stallion.





        Spike got out of his bed and, moving like one of the undead things in the comics dad and mom never let him buy, walked out to the corridor, heading for the staircase.

        It was a mess. There were panels of wood missing from the walls, chips and sawdust covering the floor. Holes were spread evenly on the roof. You could almost see the bottom of the roof tiles in the darkness.

        The baby dragon followed the path of devastation, all the way down the stairs. He had to skip a few steps, since they were missing. Down he went, ignoring the overturned furniture in the living room, and headed for the kitchen, where the sounds of ripping were coming from.

        “Dad, can I sleep in the same room with Twilight and Cadance, please?”

        “Hold on a second, little flame.” Raegdan slowly dragged himself out of the vent. It would never fit him, so he had it ‘enlarged’. Spike hoped for his sake that he would be able to put it all back together before Twilight Velvet and Night Light got well enough to realize what all these sounds had been.

        “Ok, what did you say again?” he asked, dusting himself and picking up a hammer and nails.

        “I want to sleep in Twilight’s room.” Spike reached

        “What’s wrong with sleeping with Shining Armor and Blueblood? I thought you’d prefer it if you were with guys.”

        “I do, but for some reason the medicine you give us gave them gas. It smells like death in there. I can’t take it anymore!”

        Raegdan slammed the hammer on the kitchen counter. His expression was one of frantic disbelief. “That’s what the smell is? I’ve been searching for dead rats all day! I almost tore the house apart!”

        “Yeah, it kinda seeps through everything. I don’t envy you having to go in there. At least I got slowly somewhat used to it, but I’m not going back in. Can I sleep with Twilight? Please?”

        “Yeah, sure.” Raegdan looked at the mess he had created, his shoulders slumping.

        “Thanks. What are we having for dinner?”

        A door opened somewhere in the house. There was absolute silence and stillness for a single, magical moment.

        “Raegdan! What have you done to my home?”

        “I don’t know about the rest of you, little flame,” Raegdan said, “but Velvet’s going to feed me my own spleen.”





        “Reagdan, I can’t sleep!” Twilight yelled.

        A zombie plopped its way through their door and slumped upon their bed. It was covered in dust, paint, and sawdust, and it looked at them with dead eyes. “Why, little one? Why? Why can’t you sleep?” it croaked.

        “My legs ache,” she complained.

        “Alright. Turn round this way,” he said, tiredly. Cadance wondered if he had gotten a wink of rest these last two days. He lowered the covers, and she edged away from the cold, glancing back.

        Raegdan’s fingers grabbed hold of Twilight’s hooves and started rubbing them, gently massaging the muscles, the pressure almost imperceptible. Cadance wasn’t sure what he expected to do. He simply wasn’t using enough strength. Raegdan didn’t seem to understand that all this work was for naught. He kept repeating his motions, all the while humming in the darkness, a low timbre that Cadance could almost feel in her bones.

        A few minutes later she forced her eyes to snap open. The gentle shifting of the mattress, combined with the noise Raegdan made almost lulled her to sleep. She turned around just in time to catch Raegdan covering Twilight once again. The tiny filly was already snoring.

        “Thank heavens this worked. Do I need to do this for you too, Cadance?” he whispered, pleased in his work.

        “I’m fine,” she answered, and she truly was. She felt ready to drift back to sleep again. “Where did you learn that?”

        “I don’t know,” he said, his eyebrows coming together in deep thought. “Where did I learn-”

        “Daaad… I can’t sleeeep…” Spike called out from Cadance’s former cot.

        "But I’ll probably be doing it a lot. I’m here, little flame. Lie on your stomach, will you?” he asked, sitting on Spike’s side, looking ready to doze off.





        Cadance woke up and took a deep breath as she stretched. She halted midstretch, her legs pointed every other way, and took another breath. She could breathe through her nose! Her nose was clear and the itching on her throat was almost gone!

        She turned to the alarm clock. It was ten in the morning. Late enough, she figured out. Cadance gently shook Twilight next to her, waking her up. The filly yawned wide, her little mouth gaping wide enough to devour worlds.

        “Good morning,” Twilight said sleepily, rubbing her eyes with her hooves.

        “Good morning yourself,” Cadance said back, smiling. “How are you feeling?”

        She watched as Twilight opened her mouth to answer “sick,” and then paused, realizing she actually felt better. A smile spread on her lips, and Cadance nodded excitedly. The jumped off the bed together, rushing to the little dragon, eagerly waking him up. Spike grumbled and refused to answer until they poked him enough until he got annoyed enough to half sit on his bed.

        The way he waited for a sneeze that never came was just precious.

        “We’re cured!” Twilight proclaimed, joyous. She turned back to look at the time. “And just in time for Hearth’s Warming day! We’re gonna get our presents today!” She and Spike got hold of each other and started jumping around.

        “Let’s see how the colts are and if they’re ok we can head back to the castle all together, ok?” Cadance reminded them, trying to get them to settle down. Just because they were fine or awake didn’t mean everypony else was.

        “I’m hungry too,” Twilight said. “Let’s go find Raegdan and ask for breakfast.”

        They went out of the room all together and ran into the person they were looking for right away. Raegdan was standing in the corridor and… snoring. He was actually standing there, his arm holding the wall and supporting his weight, shoulders and knees slumping. The poor guy had fallen asleep standing. Cadance, now that she was better and could actually think of somepony other than her miserable self, felt guilty for everything they put him through these last few days.

        Foals on the other hoof tend to be a little selfish-sighted as a rule. “Raegdan!” Twilight shouted.

        “I’m up! I’m up! I’m here, I’m here, what? Bathroom, cough syrup, missed a hole in the wall, what, what?” he asked frantically, standing at attention and looking around. He rubbed his face, looking like tartarus. “What are you all doing out of bed?”

        “We’re fine!” Twilight said, excited. “And we’re hungry. Can you make us breakfast?”

        “I… Yeah, ok. I think there’s plenty of cereal-”

        “Can you make us pancakes? We’re starving!” Spike requested.

        “Pancakes. Sure. Go to bed. I’ll-” He yawned and swayed in place for a moment. “I’ll bring them up. Go rest.”

        “We want to go back to the castle if Shining Armor and Blueblood are fine too,” Twilight told him.

        He turned to look out the window. Canterlot was covered in snow. “With my luck they probably are,” Raegdan said. “Go wake them up then and find out. Night Light and Velvet. Breakfast for them too, right?”

        “Cool,” Spike said, turning around to rush for their room. “I can’t wait to get my presents!”

        “Presents. Right.” Raegdan headed for the stairs, somehow looking even worse than he did a second ago.





        Cadance felt like a great, big piece of trash that had somehow sprouted wings and a horn. Like there was no trash bin large enough to contain her. If a garbage cart came along, the workers would take one good look and proclaim, “the wheels can’t handle something this big! We’re gonna need to cut down sequoias and use their trunks to carry that big piece of trash if we want to stand a chance!” Junk dealers would come running from all corners of Equestria in droves, driven by the prospect of how many bits they could gain from such a supreme piece of trash, only to leave disappointed when they saw with their own eyes how trashy it was.

        She could go like this all day.

        There was a pile of wrapped gifts under the tree. The largest ones were for Twilight and Spike. A few moderate ones were for Cadance, Shining Armor, and Blueblood. The smaller ones, simple gifts most of the time meant only to relay that the giver thought of and appreciated the recipient, were for the adults. It was a veritable hoard that Spike and Twilight would thoroughly enjoy. Everypony had gotten a gift for everypony else. 

        On top of them lay a single notebook page, folded in half. The penmanship was horrible, Raegdan having almost no reason at all to write in Equestrian ever. It simply said, “I’m off to get your presents. I might be late. I’m sorry.”

        “What is he planning to do?” Cadance asked her aunt.

        Princess Celestia answered, looking gloomily into the fireplace. “He took a shovel and intended to head up the mountain to look for gems for Spike.”

        “During the winter? With all that snow?” Night Light gasped. Twilight Velvet held her hooves against her mouth.

        “Is he gone?” Cadance asked, fraught with worry.

        “Nope,” Princess Celestia said, a small smile on her lips. “I asked him to give me the shovel for a second. Then I whacked him over the head. He’s asleep in his little corner. He’ll probably stay like that until tomorrow.”

        “We almost ran him exhausted, didn’t we?” Shining Armor said, kicking a small piece of lint on the floor.

        “I meant to make it easier for him, not… you know, when I told him to bring you all over,” Velvet said, rubbing at her cheeks.

        “So, what are we going to do? He won’t be happy if he loses his last chance to get something for Twilight and Spike,” Cadance said.

        “True,” Princess Celestia said, nodding sagely. “I suppose we could buy him some time. Run off with a crazy plan, diverting Twilight and Spike all over the castle while we all together help Raegdan come up with something to give to them, running ourselves ragged and endangering making two young foals distraught.”

        “I take it this isn’t what you want to do,” Cadance said, sitting down next to Shining Armor.

        Princess Celestia chuckled. “Indeed I don’t. I’m simply going to get Twilight and Spike and tell them everything.”





        Spike shook the sleeping form by the shoulders, his tiny body barely able to tilt the massive biped even a little. “Dad. Dad! Wake up.”

        Raegdan slowly woke, raising his torso by supporting his weight on his elbows as he half laid on the floor bedding of what he called his room. “What? What time is it? What are you kids doing here?”

        “It’s nine in the evening. Hearth’s Warming day is almost done,” Twilight said. Raegdan’s eyes went wide.

        “Oh, right, right,” he said quickly. “I forgot. Your presents, right?”

        Spike and Twilight nodded as one.

        “Ok. Look, I… I really tried, but I didn’t have time. I’m sorry, but-”

        The two children fell on him with all their weight, wrapping their little limbs around his neck with as much strength as they could muster, nuzzling their faces against him.

        “Uh…”

        “Princess Celestia told us everything,” Twilight said, her face pressed against the crevice of his neck. “We didn’t understand how hard we were making things for you. Thank you for making sure we were all rested and comfortable when we were sick.”

        “Yeah,” Spike added. “If it wasn’t for your gift we would have the worst Hearth’s Warming day ever.”

        “...My gift?”

        “Taking care of us, silly!” Twilight said, popping a quick kiss on his cheek. “Thanks to you taking care of all of us we were all fine in time to spend the day together. Thank you!”

        Raegdan scratched his scalp with one hand, stunned and in wonder. “I… No problem, little ones. It’s what I’m supposed to do, make sure you are both fine. You don’t have to-” He paused, suddenly frowning angrilly. “This place is freezing! Do you two want to get sick again? Back to your room!”

        “But we-”

        His large hands quickly grappled them and trapped both of them under a shoulder each. “Velvet will have my liver if you get sick after one day. I’m getting you both to bed.” He carried them back out of the storeroom that his little corner lay in.

        “But it’s still too early!” Spike complained.

        “I want to read my new books!”

        “You’re going to sleep and that’s final! You were using me as a tissue only yesterday!”





        The door to Princess Celestia’s room creaked open.

        “Good evening, Raegdan,” Princess Celestia greeted. She sat on her couch and invited the biped to have a seat as well.

        “Hey,” he said as he sat. He was holding something behind his back, hiding it from view. “You know, I didn’t get the kids or anyone else anything, but I do have something for you, you brave mare.”

        “For me?” Princess Celestia asked in surprise. “You didn’t have to-”

        “Oh, but I did. Close your eyes.”

        She did as he asked, and waited. Something slipped over her muzzle and her face. She opened her eyes and saw only blackness. She picked up what was over her head with a hoof, examining it. A dark, large piece of cloth. It was dirty with some kind of streaks and a dried out crust covering parts of it.

        “One of your shirts?”

        “It’s a special one. Take a sniff,” he suggested smiling.

        She decided to humor him, though she kept aware for any traps. “It doesn’t smell like anything. Maybe a little sweaty. What is this supposed to be?”

        Raegdan got up, looking satisfied. “You will get the meaning behind it about… oh, tomorrow at the very latest I think. Goodnight, Celestia.”

        “Goodnight, Raegdan.”

        She examined the old shirt again, sniffing it once more. She couldn’t understand what it was supposed to be. Perhaps nothing at all. Maybe a sign that he didn’t hold a grudge against her for saddling him alone with seven sick ponies. After all, she was the one who gave permission for Raegdan to be dragged all the way to her house.

        Oh well. He promised she would figure it out tomorrow. Things went well, all said and done. And bonus, she made it out unscathes and without getting the bug herself. The last thing she needed was go through the hecticness of the new year while being sick.





        Princess Celestia woke up coughing. She gulped down the glass of water she kept next to her bed, noticing how her throat remained stubbornly dry. Her legs ached. Her wings ached. Her eyes ached. Her horn ached, and she was pretty sure her mane was aching as well, but she couldn’t feel it over the pounding headache.

        “I think I’m theeck,” she said to nopony. This was the worst. Who managed to get her-

        Her eyes locked on Raegdan’s old shirt.

        She called for her guards. She had a command to give them, though she made sure they stayed out of her bedroom so they couldn’t see the mess she was sure she looked like.

        “Find Raegdan and bring him to me. In chains.”

        She crawled back under her covers.