//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: Canterlot High Christmas Tales // by Indefintehiatus //------------------------------// It was calming winters afternoon at Canterlot High School. The grounds were completely blanketed in heaps of snow, accompanied by a constant whistling cold breeze that could just about be heard through the frosted windows. The school term was coming to a close and the holidays were rapidly approaching. Unfortunately not soon enough, as Sunset Shimmer was sat completely bored in Mr Doodle’s geometry class. She wore a cherry red coat, parakeet green gloves, lapis blue snow boots, a strawberry pink scarf and a reindeer-antlers headband that she had been wearing all week. She sat there practically half-asleep before being suddenly awoken by the sound of the school bell and her fellow classmates all spiriting for the door like the room was on fire. Sunset let out a small yawn as she packed her things away and promptly left the now empty classroom. She looked around to see the whole school beaming with the holiday spirit. There was tinsel in every color imaginable, reefs attached to all the classroom doors and the sounds of popular Christmas tunes being sung were almost inescapable. As she walked through the halls, she could the sounds of her fellow students all discussing their plans for the holidays, most of which were spending it with their families. Sunset secretly felt awkward hearing stuff like that but never told anyone as continued strolling with a gleeful smile upon her face. She made her to the science classroom, where she found Twilight Sparkle in a lab coat and goggles reading a chemistry book & Spike fast asleep on the desk next to her. “Hey Twilight!” Sunset called, startling her friend in the process. “Oh, hi Sunset!” Twilight stumbled, closing the book and placing it back upon the teacher's bureau, "How was class?" “Long, very long. But on the plus side, at least he didn't give us any homework for winter vacation. Is it just you here?” “Yeah, well me and Spike. Class ended about half an hour ago, I asked to stay behind to catch up on my studies. After all, it’s not long until we graduate.” “Okay, Just don’t be too long. We’re supposed to be meeting the girls at Canterlot Mall in ten minutes.” “I know, I’ll be there in just a moment!” Sunset was about to leave, but she could sense that Twilight might be hiding something or at least had something on her mind. Sunset didn’t want to have to use her geode powers to find out, but also wasn’t sure if she could get her friend to simply speak out about whatever was troubling her. “Twilight, is everything okay?” She asked as Twilight paused, her smile dropping and letting out a sigh. “Yeah, everything’s fine.” Twilight awkwardly grinned, knowing full well that she couldn’t fool Sunset. “Okay, I'll bite.” she confessed, “I’m just going through some problems with Timber at the moment.” “Why’s that, are things not going well for you guys?” “Oh no, things are going great. Timber’s a really sweet guy and we have a lot of fun together.” “Then what’s the problem?” “Honestly, I’ve just been kinda wondering lately if I’m good enough.” “Good enough? What’s that supposed to mean?” “I don’t know! It’s just he’s thinking of all these romantic and fun things to do and I want to do them too, but I just don’t feel like I can. I keep messing things up and I’m worried that we’re not connecting as much as we used to and...” “Twilight listen! He’s your first boyfriend, it’s perfectly normal to feel things like this. But don’t ever think you’re not good enough. You’re smart, you’re funny, you’re beautiful. Trust me, any guy would be lucky to have you.” “Thank you Sunset, I really needed that!” “No problem, you can always come to me whenever you need advice on this kinda stuff.” “Wouldn’t Rarity be more qualified to tackle relationship problems though? No offense!” “None taken, I guess she would be more knowledgeable on the romance topic. Still, I’m happy to help out however I can!” The conversation was then interrupted by the sound of Sunset’s phone ringing, retrieving the device from her pocket to see an image of Fluttershy Iight up the screen before quickly answering the call. “Um, hi Sunset, everything okay?” Fluttershy softly spoke. “Hey Fluttershy, I’m fine! What’s up?” “Oh not much, uh...where are you right now?” “I’m in the science classroom with Twilight, why?” Before Fluttershy could answer back, she was cut off by the sound of Rainbow snatching the phone and responding in a much louder tone. “Sunset, the bus is almost here and there won’t be another one for hours!” Dash yelled as Sunset hung up the phone and informed Twilight, who then awoke Spike as the three of them sped out of the classroom. Luckily, they made to the bus-stop just in the time to meet their friends as Twilight joined Fluttershy and Rainbow on the crowded bus while Sunset decided to follow them on her motorcycle instead. She ran to the school's parking lot as she grabbed the keys to out of her pocket and hopped onto her bike. It was almost entirely red, except for a black seat with a picture of a sun stitched into the leather. She removed her antlers, placing them in her school bag, and put on a motorcycle helmet as she turned the keys and raced off. Sunset carefully pulled into the parking lot of the Canterlot Mall as a brief but beautiful snowfall began to emerge. After she finished parking her motorcycle, Sunset stared up at the sky in wonder before looking down to see her friends walking towards her, including Applejack, Pinkie & Rarity, who’d decided to meet them there. “There ya are Sunset.” Applejack greeted in a green clio-down jacket, as Sunset put her helmet away and readjusted her antlers. “Wowee, it’s so beautiful!” Pinkie beamed with pure childlike joy, a single snowflake landing in the palm of her gloved hands. “I agree darling, it truly is de…truly is dev.. ACHOO!” Rarity sneezed. “…Truly Devine!” she finished, quickly wiping her nose with an elegantly designed tissue pulled from her pocket before she sneezed again. “We should probably start heading inside.” Sunset suggested, being greeted with instant agreement as they all entered the building. The festive sounds of jingle bells joyously rang as the doors opened. The girls stood in amazement and simultaneously wowed at the gigantic Christmas tree in the center of the mall. It was probably the biggest tree any of them had ever seen. Multicolored tinsel glittered across the railings with presents on strings dangling from the ceiling, glowing up the room with their radiant colors and red and green lights shined off the fountain, where Rarity recognized her fellow Wondertones cheerily singing carols around the mall in Santa-like outfits. “It’s amazing!” Fluttershy smiled, admiring the festive view. “I think I’m gonna cry!” Pinkie sniffed emotionally, with Applejack letting out a small chuckle at her friends’ overreaction and playfully patting her on the back. “Where is it? Where is it? Where is it? Where is it?” Rainbow Dash repeated, using her geode to speed rapidly around the mall. “Where’s what?” Sunset questioned curiously. “The book store! A.K Yearling is doing signings of the latest Daring Do book! And today is the last day before she’s doing it!” Dash yelled directly in her friend's face, before reaching into her backpack and pulling out her copy of Daring Do and the Crystal Kingdom, carefully dusting it down like it was a priceless artifact. “Oh yeah! that’s today!” Twilight exclaimed, “I was supposed to bring my book with me but I completely forgot!” “A.K Yearling doesn’t make a lot of public appearances, does she?” Sunset remarked, wiping Rainbow’s spit off of her face, “What do you think she’s doing half the time?” “Probably writing the next book, they usually take a while to make.” Twilight suggested. “Maybe she really is Daring Do in real life!” Pinkie exclaimed, as her friends began to laugh at her ridiculous statement. “Haha, maybe Pinkie!” Sunset chuckled. “Perhaps the place you’re looking for would be the building with the Darin’ Do cosplayers standing together?” Applejack said, pointing Rainbow in the right direction. “Thanks AJ!” Rainbow beamed, using her geode to speed off once again, as the rest of the girls noticed what the Applejack had mentioned. “So, is there anywhere in particular that anyone wants to go?” Sunset asked, not sure where she wanted to start. “I need to buy some traveling supplies! Granny Smith suggested the four of us fly out to Appaloosa and spend the holidays with my cousin Braeburn and his folks. I don’t travel a whole lot so I’m not sure what to bring with me?” Applejack responded. “I need to pick up some supplies for the school Christmas party!” I really want to outdo myself for the one I threw at Halloween!” Pinkie announced. “Well after what happened this year, that shouldn't be too hard!” Sunset joked, cringing at the unpleasant memories of what had occurred the previous Halloween. “I’d like to pay a visit to the animal shelter to see if they're offering anymore volunteer work? This year, I’d really like to try and do something special for Christmas time!” Fluttershy adorably grinned. “I wouldn’t mind another one of your ‘animal shelter’ style baths” Spike barked, snuggling Fluttershy’s leg as she leaned down to pet him. “I suppose I could look for something nice to wear for my next date with Timber?” Twilight pitched, gaining an enthusiastic look from Rarity. “Darling, why didn’t you suggest this sooner? Let’s go find you something fabulous!” she eagerly squealed as she grabbed Twilight’s arm and began dragging her away to one of the dress shops, barley giving either of them enough time to say goodbye to the rest of their friends before disappearing. “I’ll start heading over to the animal shelter and then maybe I’ll go see how Rainbow Dash is doing, come on Spike!” Fluttershy smiled, skipping away with the dog happily following closely behind. “We’ll probably be able to find both your things at the dollar store over there!” Sunset explained, drawing her attention towards her remaining friends. “That’s good, I’m not particularly high on cash this year” Applejack awkwardly chuckled, as the three of them set off. “I don’t think any of us are, most of the money we made of our summer jobs has been spent and they’re usually kinda hard to find around this time of year since everybody wants one.” Sunset agreed. “Hey! I have an idea! Let’s all do Secret Santa for this year and then we only have to get each-other one gift!” Pinkie Pie suggested enthusiastically. “That’s a great idea Pinkie, we should tell the others about it!” Sunset agreed. They reached out their phones and began texting their friends about the idea. Soon enough, Twilight, Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow and even Flash Sentry heard about the proposition and agreed to take part. “Looks like everybody’s onboard!” Applejack informed. “Fan-tizzy-astic!” Pinkie exclaimed, “I’ll assign everyone their targets later today!” “But then wouldn’t you know who’s gonna get you?” Sunset questioned. “Now that’s why I always think ahead Sunset!” Pinkie smugly smiled, patting Sunset on the head as they entered the store. Rainbow Dash felt like she was about to burst with excitement for she was next in the line to not only see A.K Yearling in the flesh, but also get her Daring Do book personally signed. Costumed fans of all ages and genders could be seen walking away, smiling ear to ear and crying tears of joy after their encounter with their icon. Before Dash knew it, it was her turn as she walked up with a childlike smile across her face and the book clutched tightly in her arms. She then came face to face with the author herself, who smiled at Rainbow as she placed the book on the table. “You’re very excited, aren’t you? What’s your name young lady?” A.K Yearling grinned, opening the book and picking up a dark blue pen. Rainbow was completely speechless at first, freaking out internally, before clearing her thought and answering the question. “My name is Rainbow Dash and I am your biggest fan! Daring Do is the greatest book series in the entire world!” Dash practically shouted, barely able to contain her excitement. “I get that quite a lot Miss Dash.” A.K chuckled as she began writing on the back of the cover. “it’s true, I mean that part in The Curse of the Pharaoh's Tomb where Daring Do had to make a leap of faith of the top of the ancient pyramid over burning hot lava in order to save the entire city! I mean, how did you even come up with something so awesome?” Rainbow rambled on, much to the authors' amusement. “Let’s just say it came to me one day, here you go Miss Dash.” A.K smirked, handing Rainbow’s book back to her. “Thank you so much!” Rainbow beamed as she sped to the front of the store. She continued to fangirl before opening the book as she began to read what was written. Dear Rainbow Dash Thank you so much for being such a big fan and avid supporter of the Daring Do series. I find it truly extraordinary how many people can enjoy her stories and can look up to the character as a role model. It's the dedication of fans like you that really helps inspire me to make more. You seem like a very lively young woman, much like Daring Do herself. I’m sure that you would get along quite well with her. Much gratitude A.K Yearling. Rainbow dash smiled wider than she had ever smiled before and it had no intention of leaving her face anytime soon. Pinkie was carefully scanning each shelf of every aisle they walked past. She wanted to make sure she purchased the best party products she could buy, even on such a low budget. Applejack and Sunset couldn’t help but smirk at each-other, due to their friends' melodramatic actions. “Okay, so the main thing you’re gonna need is a suitcase!” Sunset suggested, as she could tell that Applejack was uneasy about going abroad. “I know that much sugarcube! Applejack smiled, "Actually, I think I can handle this stuff okay by myself so why don’t you try giving Pinkie a helping hand? If I need a hand, I'll let ya know.” “Okay, if you insist.” Sunset jested as she went to approach her party fanatic friend. She turned around to see Pinkie up to her shoulders in cased ornaments, bags of cake mix and packs of seasonally colored balloons. “Hey Sunset, could you give me hand?” she muffled, her mouth covered by a pile of Santa hats she was carrying. Sunset offered her a helping hand, only for Pinkie to dump almost the entire load in her arms. “Pinkie, is all of this really necessary?” Sunset grunted, struggling to hold onto everything. “Yeah! That’s only half of it!” Pinkie stated, pulling a list out of her pocket and joyfully reading it aloud to her friend. “Pinkie’s Party Planning List: Christmas edition! Written by Pinkie Pie, trademark Pinkie Pie!” she began, clearing her throat and taking a deep breath before continuing. “For this party Pinkie, you will need lots of cake mix, big red balloons, big green balloons, festive candles, baubles, mistletoe, plastic gold stars, reefs, stockings, gingerbread mix, plastic snowflakes, hot cocoa mix, homemade mince pies, candy canes, homemade eggnog, pancake mix, snow-globes, little plastic snowmen, lots of candy and enough Santa hats for the whole school!”. “That sounds like a lot of stuff to buy and lots of baking to do considering the party’s tomorrow!” Sunset sighed. “Huh, I guess you’re right! Maybe I will have to cut down on a few things, I did go a little bit over-budget with the last school party!” Pinkie accepted. She went to take her party equipment out of Sunset’s hands before she became distracted by some familiar faces behind her and started galloping off towards them instead. “Pinkie, Wait!” Sunset called before the weight of Pinkie’s Purchases became too heavy and collapsed on her, as Applejack ran over with a white plastic bag in her hand. “Ya need some help?” Applejack chuckled, dropping her bag using her geode enhanced strength to lift most of the items off Sunset without any struggle. Sunset thanked her as they two of them saw Pinkie coming back with two other girls beside her. “Look who I ran into!” She grinned, her arms around her sisters Maud & Marble. “Hey Maud, long time no see!” Sunset greeted, rubbing her arm which hurt from the impact of Pinkie abandoning her. “I saw you the other day at the museum, I was working at the geology exhibit and you passed by.” Maud responded in her usual monotone voice. “Oh, Sunset!” Pinkie interjected, “I don’t believe you’ve met my sister Marble! she doesn’t leave the house a lot, she’s very anxious!” “It’s nice to meet you Marble, my name’s Sunset Shimmer.” Sunset introduced, offering a friendly handshake. “Mm-hmm.” Marble nodded, nervously reaching out her hand in return and shaking Sunset’s quickly before backing up and hiding behind Pinkie’s back. “So, what you two doin’ in here?” Applejack asked. “I’m looking for a Christmas gift for Boulder” Maud blandly explained, “I asked Marble to supervise him so he wouldn’t find out.” Marble silently nodded, pulling out the small grey rock out of a pocket in her hoodie. “Well, good luck with that!” Sunset smiled as Marble put boulder back in her pocket and the two sisters set off. “Sorry about leaving you like that Sunset!” Pinkie awkwardly chuckled, taking half her party equipment out of Applejack’s arms. “It’s fine, you girls got what you need?” Sunset replied, picking up Applejack's plastic bag. “Yep, pretty much!” they both answered. “That’s good, I wonder how everyone else is doing?” "Um Rarity, I don’t know about this” Twilight uncomfortably commented from inside one of the fitting rooms. “Oh come on out darling, I’m sure you look fine!” Rarity responded, before sneezing again. She stood outside the changing rooms with one of the store assistants she’d recently befriended, who kindly offered her tissue. Twilight stepped awkwardly out from behind the curtains to reveals herself in a small glittery silver dress. “I don’t think I like this one.” she commented, feeling especially embarrassed at the amount of skin this outfit seemed to reveal. “If you want, I can find you one in another size?” the assistant offered. “That would be lovely Miss Saddles!” Rarity sniffled, “Maybe it’d look better in a ruby red, what do you say Twilight?” “Oh, no thank you! That’s okay, I think I'm done for today!” Twilight smiled before disappearing back into the changing rooms and reverting back into her regular outfit of a navy blue coat, black leggings, brown winter boots and a cream woolly hat. “Very well then, I’d like to purchase one of those green dresses she wore earlier.” Rarity requested. “Of course Miss Rarity, I’ll get one in your size right away!” Miss Saddles agreed, walking away as Rarity sighed disappointingly and turned to Twilight. “You know, I’d thought the fourth store would be the charm!” she quietly sighed. “I’m really sorry Rarity!” Twilight apologized, “I just don’t think I’ve found anything that really suits me yet.” “Twilight’s, it’s alright.” Rarity reassured her friend, “we’ll find you something even…eventu…ACHOO!” “Rarity, are you sure you’re okay?” Twilight worried, “I think you might be sick!” “Oh please darling, I’ll be fine.” Rarity coughed, as the assistant from before approached them with the requested shiny green dress. “Your dress, Miss Rarity.” she grinned, standing behind Twilight. Rarity thanked her as she briefly stopped coughing and paid for the dress before she and Twilight exited the store. As they continued their quest, Twilight decided to investigate her friends' state as she put her and across Rarity’s forehead. “Rarity, you’re starting to burn up a bit!” she commented, “we should really get you home!” “No!” Rarity assertively sniffed, “Not until we find you an outfit!” “What’s wrong with the one she’s wearing now?” a familiar voice commented from behind them as Twilight & Rarity turned around to see Juniper Montage standing there in her usual theater uniform. The girls happily ran over to their friend and greeted her with a warm hug. “Hey Juniper, long time no see. How have you been? Still working at the movie theater?” Twilight greeted. “Yeah, it’s gotten much better though. I’ve patched things up with my uncle and even managed to get a few promotions here and there.” Juniper replied. “So, does that mean you can get us any discounts?” Rarity joked. “Actually, I did receive these free extra tickets to the new mega-blockbuster Galactic Battles: The Final Warrior this weekend if you’d like them?” she offered, reaching into her pocket and pulling out two movie tickets. “This'll be great, Timber loves these movies and he wanted to take me to see the latest one for our next date.” Twilight exclaimed. “I love them too! Well, except for the prequels.” Juniper agreed, handing the tickets over to Twilight. “Are you a fan of the series Twilight?” Rarity pondered. “Sure they’re good, though I’ve always personally preferred the Galactic Voyage series.” Twilight responded. “Still, thank you so much Juniper! Is there anything I can do in return?” “Well don’t spill too much popcorn, it makes my job easier!” she jokingly requested, causing the three of them to laugh. “I best be getting back to work, I’ll see you girls around!” Juniper finished. “Okay, see you around!” Twilight replied as she and Rarity waved goodbye to Juniper who began walking back to work. “Guess you know when your next date will be then.” Rarity grinned before sneezing again. “Yeah, this'll be perfect!” Twilight smiled to herself. Spike was being pleasantly groomed by the staff at the Canterlot Animal Center as a special treat for all Fluttershy’s help during her summer shift. Because of all the money she helped raise, the store had been able to get refurbished, expanded and was now more popular than it had ever been before as customers came and went all day as many children wanted new pets to love during the holiday season. Fluttershy felt truly warm inside to know how many young animals could be given new homes and families thanks to her as she was watching Spike with delight when the animal center's owner, Dr. Fauna, walked in. “He seems to be really enjoying himself,” Fluttershy giggled, noticing her old employer beside her, “Thank you so much for this Dr. Fauna, you didn’t need to do this!” "It’s the least I can do Fluttershy!” Dr. Fauna warmly replied, “after everything you’ve done for us, sales have increased by a milestone!” “Actually, I wanted to ask you about that. Are there any extra shifts available I can do for you?” “Oh, Fluttershy dear. I’m flattered but I’m afraid we don’t have any open positions at the moment. I’m terribly sorry.” Fluttershy was crushingly disappointed, but she didn’t want to hurt Dr. Fauna’s as she continued to muster a cute smile. “Oh well, that’s okay!” she said softly, “maybe some other time?” “Of course Fluttershy, you’re such a sweet girl. The animals here really love you!” Dr. Fauna complimented as Spike’s grooming wrapped up and he happily strolled over. Fluttershy picked him up as she said goodbye to Dr. Fauna and left the store. As soon as they exited the doors, the innocent smile on Fluttershy’s face dropped as she miserably sighed and her eyes began to water. She was sure this would her perfect opportunity to do something extra special for the holidays, but was now back to square one. “Hey, are you okay Fluttershy?” Spike asked, sensing that something was wrong. “Oh yes Spike, I’ll be fine!” Fluttershy smiled, placing Spike carefully on the ground and wiping her eyes, “Did you enjoy your little spa day?” “Oh yeah, it was glorious!” Spike barked happily, “where are we going next, squirrel enclosure?” “I don’t know Spike.” Fluttershy quietly chuckled “I suppose we could try and find the others?” “Okay then, where do we start?” Spike yapped. Fluttershy looked around, not knowing where to begin when she noticed Pinkie, Sunset and Applejack approaching, each of them carrying about a brown dozen paper bags from the dollar store. “Oh, let me help you with that!” Fluttershy called as she and Spike ran over to them. “Thanks Fluttershy.” Sunset replied, clear hints of strain her in voice as she began passing some of the bags Fluttershy's way, when one of them suddenly ripped. The four of them gasped, Blue and Red baubles began slipping out and falling towards the floor. Luckily, a purple glow emitted around them just before they smashed to the ground as they all looked up to see Twilight holding them using her geode powers with Rarity standing behind her. “Boy, that was a close one!” Twilight called, as everyone sighed with relief as the ornaments were slowly lifted into one of the other bags. “No doubt about that, thanks for the hand Twilight!” Sunset smiled with relief, as she finished passing the bags Fluttershy’s way. “Anyone seen Rainbow Dash?” Applejack questioned, realizing she was the only one of them unaccounted for. At that moment, Dash sped over and surprised them. “There you guys are! Look what she wrote! Look! Look! Look!” Rainbow said enthusiastically, shoving her Daring Do book in Twilight’s face, with everyone else looking over her shoulder. All her friends read the author's message and everyone found it quite cool, though Twilight was incredibly jealous. “So, did everyone else’s shopping trips go well?” Fluttershy asked. “I got pretty much everythin’ I needed!” Applejack nodded. “Me too, I’ll start on the baking tonight! This party's gonna be awesome!” Pinkie squeed. “Our trip could’ve gone better but I found a few things for myself!” Rarity smirked before letting out another small sneeze. “I got these free movie tickets from Juniper, I’ll ask Timber out later tonight” Twilight smiled. “What about you Fluttershy? How did things go at the Animal Shelter?” Sunset inquired, getting a less than enthusiastic reaction in return. “Oh, not too well.” Fluttershy frowned, “there weren’t any jobs available.” “That’s a shame, I’m sorry Flutters!” Rainbow comforted. “It’s fine, I’ll just need to find something extra special to do!” Fluttershy replied confidently, not ready to give up just yet. “Anyways, did you all the message about my Secret Santa idea?” Pinkie asked. “Yeah, sounds like fun!” Rainbow agreed, with everyone else nodding along. “I told Flash about it and he wants in too, hope that’s fine!” Sunset added. “Yeah, the more the merrier! I’ll assign everyone tonight so keep your phones on!” Pinkie beamed, barely containing her excitement. “But then wouldn’t you know who you’ll..?” Fluttershy questioned before Pinkie interrupted. “I’ve got everything under control my shy little friend!” she smiled smugly before saying a quick goodbye as she sped off home. The day became later as the girls all went their separate ways, had their individual dinners and awaited for their Secret Santa assignment. Twilight told Timber about the movie tickets and he eagerly accepted the date. They also planned to grab dinner at a new cuisine restaurant that recently opened up nearby and Timber had offered to take her to a romantic Christmas dance. She was hesitant at first but decided to accept the offer. She was staying at her parents’ house for the holidays, with her brother Shining Armour also planning to come stay too along with her soon to be Sister-in-Law, Crystal Prep’s Principal Cadence. They were planning to surprise the family with the announcement of their engagement on Christmas day, but Twilight noticed the information had been leaked early on Crystal Prep’s website. She decided to keep it a surprise for her parents and pretend she didn’t know anything about it, but was still thrilled about the news and beyond happy for her brother. Applejack went back to her home and began to pack her suitcase. There were still a few days before they left but she decided to start anyway. She also decided that Apple Bloom’s suitcase also needed to be repacked as she and her friends from the CMC, now tilted the Canterlot Merriment Club, had attempted it earlier in the day and made nothing but a huge mess. Rarity continued her work on some Christmas outfits for her internship at Prim Hemline’s boutique, hoping her constant dedication would help her get promoted, but couldn’t go five minutes without sneezing. Fluttershy laid down on her bedroom floor with her notebook, puzzling new ideas for her ‘special Christmas deed’ but couldn’t come up with anything. She had managed to get a couple of shifts at her mother’s florist and offered to assist Pinkie with decorating the gym for the party the next morning. She didn’t feel like it was enough, but she was on the right track. Rainbow decided to hide her message from A.K yearling from her parents, knowing their tendency to overreact joyously at almost everything their daughter did. She instead spent most of the night playing holiday songs on guitar, as she awaited for her friend’s text. Sunset decided to pass the time by making her place slightly more festive with some decorations she found at the dollar store earlier that day. She hung some tinsel up by her bed, a few red and yellow baubles in her bathroom and even bought a tiny Christmas tree to put in Ray’s cage, who seemed to like it. It was getting quite late when finally, everyone got their mission assignment from Pinkie. The texts were brief but efficient, with a couple of rules set in place. The deadline for giving the gift was Christmas Eve at the latest and couldn’t be a repackaged possession that the giver no longer wanted. Nobody else knew who each-other got, just their own targets. Sunset was Flash’s Secret Santa, Flash was Pinkie’s, Pinkie was Fluttershy’s, Fluttershy was Rainbow’s, Rainbow was Applejack’s, Applejack was Rarity’s, Rarity was Twilight’s and lastly, Twilight was assigned to Sunset. Everyone received their messages around the same time as the eight of them began to ponder the perfect gift for their target and what they may get as their own.