James felt the chariot touch down, and from the sounds of his fellow passengers, they were in Ponyville, just outside of Twilight’s castle. The landing was as soft as always, the royal guards were quite good at their jobs, and with the help of all three princesses, the prince, and Fluttershy, James found himself guided to the castle doors, with the turkey plant safely back in his arms. Cadence had ended up being the one to catch the falling bird-plant, with the other two, larger alicorns having to catch the blind James as he ended up brushed out of the chariot.
He had surprised himself by not panicking when he felt himself dropping. He supposed it was the complete trust he had in the trio of immortal alicorns, combined with the fact that as soon as they brought him back to the chariot, Luna had burst into tears and begged forgiveness. He managed to calm her down quite easily with a hug, but it had taken over half of the ride before her hooves weren’t locked around his ribcage.
James couldn’t be mad at them though. Honest mistakes happened, they hadn’t let him fall to his death, and they were going to Thanksgiving dinner! He already had a speech planned, with a few jokes now! He felt in the spirit of things, and he knew that he was going to be thankful for a whole lot more before the day was out.
They lead him up the stares, keeping the blindfold on the whole while. Fluttershy still insisted he keep it on for the “surprise” affect, and James was inclined to let the ponies finish out their little plan. The goose chase had been sort of fun, and he got to meet up with most of his friends. Just so long as the turkey plant tasted as promised, it was going to be a good day.
As soon as they opened the door, smells started drifting out. The first to hit James’ nose was something burning, and Celestia clicked her tongue as she advanced first.
“Oh my, it seems the entry way sustained some sort of fire damage. Aren’t the kitchens further in?”
Fluttershy alighted on James’ shoulders and steered his steps.
“I did see a rather nasty looking cloud as we flew in, and I can’t help but feel that it had something to do with Rainbow Dash.”
James could feel as Luna frowned at his side, clutching him tighter.
“Step clear friend James, there seems to be some water damage as well. I shudder to think what the kitchens look like.”
Cadence trotted to the front of their little formation.
“Quite being dramatic Auntie, I’m sure everything is fine, and that Twilight has prepared a lovely meal.”
They moved on, with the two elder alicorns taking the lead, commenting about the occasional scorch mark or water stain.
It took them slightly longer than usual to reach the dining room doors, but when they did, James could tell that everything was going to be just fine. He could smell it, could smell pure happiness on the other side of the door. All it needed was the scent of cooked turkey.
The blindfold was finally removed, with his trio of alicorn escorts smiled at him as they prodded him forward. James took one last whiff of feast smells, then pushed the doors open.
*****
James was in heaven. The hall was lined with candles, providing a soft enough light to see by, while also retaining that fireplace like glow that just made the room seem cozy. Twilight sat beside him, shooting him the occasional nervous glance. Why she was nervous, he did not know.
Despite the damage on the way in, everything had turned out brilliantly. The pumpkin pie, the fresh green beans, the mashed potatoes, and even surprisingly, the stuffing. He hadn’t left any instructions on how to make it, yet they were exactly what they should have been, soft and moist, without being soaking wet. They almost made the apple cider seem bland by comparison. Almost. The turkey plant had turned out remarkably well. To James at least, it tasted just like the real thing in every way save for texture. There was no escaping the leafy quality it had to it, but he enjoyed it anyway. It was all perfect.
What made it even better was the smiling faces and happy talk from all of his friends. Pinkie had been throughout, and everyone James wanted at the table was there, arranged in a random order, save for one notable pony. Twilight was next to him. That was particularly special, and it only strengthened his resolve for what would come before Hearth’s Warming. That was later however, and Thanksgiving was a time to be thankful about what was.
Speaking of…
James got to his feet and tapped his fork against his cider glass, drawing everyone’s attention. They all stared expectantly as he smiled.
“I just wanted to say thank you all, both for coming to this celebration, and for your help in making it happen. I know Equestria has no reason to celebrate Thanksgiving, but it was one of my favorite things back on Earth, so I’m glad that I get to celebrate it here.”
He smiled wistfully.
“Thanksgiving is a bit of a weird holiday, and while I won’t go into the details, it isn’t always perfect, but this… this was perfect. Tradition dictates that everyone say what they’re thankful for, but I don’t think we need to do that, because I am more than thankful enough for all of us. I’d like to thank you all for coming, and I would like to thank you all for being my close friends. I am thankful to have come to Equestria, and am thankful that I met the best group of ponies alive. You are each and everyone, smart, kind, and just overall wonderful ponies. I thank you, and with this toast, I wanted to wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving.”
The ponies cheered, and after taking a drink together, they set about celebrating anew. James sat back down and leaned over to Twilight.
“Thanks for this, really. I’m sure it wasn’t easy, but you made it an excellent day.”
The purple alicorn blushed.
“Just helping out a friend. You’d do the same for me.”
“Maybe, but thank you anyway. Happy Thanksgiving Twilight.”
“Happy Thanksgiving James,” she replied, leaning over to give him a hug.
James returned it easily, and they sat like that for a while, watching the end to a glorious day.