The denizens of Klugetown had a different reason for celebrating in the winter. While ponies were celebrating cozily during a snowy Hearth’s Warming in Equestria, the Bone Dry Desert was experiencing a once-a-year deluge of rain.
The annual rains were the one time the word “merry” could be used to describe the Klugetowners. They danced and celebrated in the saloons and marketplaces, and actually shouted greetings at one another that seemed friendly.
Tempest Shadow was left to marvel at the change in character as she trotted through the muddy streets. Dressed in a rain poncho and an umbrella hat, she walked past creatures just moons ago she had threatened at magic-point.
Her destination lay ahead: a tall, looming structure that had once been a windmill. It was a windmill once more, with newer, sleeker blades made of metal. The outside had received a paint job: now standing out in the dingy town with its white walls and crimson roof.
Tempest took a breath to calm herself, one she often found herself doing in the aftermath of the Storm King. She lifted a hoof and knocked, a little firmer than she had wanted, but some habits were harder to shake than others.
Her eyes caught sight of movement at the peephole before the door swung inward, revealing the windmill’s sole resident.
“Hello, Capper,” Tempest said with a friendly smile.
The Abyssnian looked downright puzzled – as well as comfortable in a plush, red velvet robe. It was an out-of-the-ordinary look for someone in the middle of the desert town.
“Tempest Shadow,” Capper regarded, looking her up and down. “What brings you here?”
Tempest removed the umbrella hat and slid it shut. “May I come in?”
“Well… sure,” Capper said, standing to the side of the doorway and gesturing inside.
With a nod to him, Tempest stepped inside, wiping her muddy hooves on the mat at the door. Capper shut the door after her and stepped into the main room with Tempest following, and she was surprised.
Capper’s home reminded her much of an Equestrian pony’s domicile. A spacious rug was spread across the floor, matching the interior’s new paint job. The odds and ends that made up Capper’s furniture and décor were ponified as well – a glass bottle chandelier was replaced by a genuine one, an odd flowerpot was replaced with an intricately painted one.
“I see you’ve been doing well,” Tempest remarked, looking around.
“Well, I can’t take all the credit in that,” Capper replied, strolling over to the corner of the room designated as his kitchen. “I’ve… uh, had some help. So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?”
Tempest looked at her hooves and scuffed one against the carpet. “I’ve been going around Southern Equestria, letting creatures know they don’t have to worry about the Storm King. And… apologizing, to those I hurt.” She looked up with a sheepish smile.
“Oh, well,” Capper looked away. “Apology accepted.” He set a kettle onto the small stove and opened one of the cupboards. “Would you care for some tea?”
Tempest nodded, looking over the décor again before setting her eyes on the kettle. “This is all very… pony-like,” she remarked. She trotted over to the bookshelf and examined the titles. “’Modern Fashion’?”
Capper gave a shrug. “A cat’s got to have a hobby these days,” he replied, fishing out a tea tin. “Especially since y’all did a number on the economy around here – this here cat is debt-free. Mostly because we’re still working out a currency system.”
“Is offering a guest tea another one of your hobbies?” Tempest replied with a sly smirk.
Capper flinched. “Ah… well… it’s the polite thing to do, isn’t it?” He pulled out a pair of mugs and set a tea bag in each. “Can’t say I have many guests these days, but it helps to be prepared.”
Tempest hummed. “So, who’s the pony who helped you with all this?”
Capper dropped one of the teaspoons he had been holding noisily into one of the cups and tugged at his collar. “That obvious, huh?” he asked with a nervous chuckle.
Tempest smile turned friendly again and shrugged. “A pony knows pony when they see it.”
“I’ve been writing letters to Rarity in Ponyville,” Capper replied. When the kettle started whistling, he poured both cups full of steaming water. “Apparently she remembers what a state my home was the last time she was here, so she’s been helping me decorate.”
“And teaching you some etiquette,” Tempest noted, watching him stirring the cups. “Seeing as she’s the Element of Generosity, I can’t say I’m surprised.”
“I appreciate it, I really do,” Capper said with a nod. “Care for any sugar?”
“A few spoonfuls, please.”
Capper sweetened the tea and removed the tea bags. He brought them over and offered one to Tempest. She took it in her hooves while Capper plopped down in an armchair.
“So, seeing that being pen pals with a pony isn’t that big of a deal, why do you seem so nervous about it?” Tempest asked, taking a long sip of her tea.
Capper looked into his tea cup, turning it in his hands. He finally gave a sigh, his shoulders slumping. “I suppose I… might be a little more appreciative of Rarity than I let on,” he admitted. “She’s charming, elegant, and knows her way around style. And… well, she’s the most generous creature I know.”
Tempest smiled and nodded. “Have you told her?”
Capper shook his head and took a sip. “How could I? Especially after all of this?” He gestured around the furnished room. “All I’ve sent her back is written gratitude.”
Tempest hummed. “Well, there’s a holiday we celebrate in Equestria called Hearth’s Warming. It’s in a few days. What if you were to get her a gift?” she offered.
“I’m afraid I don’t know much about ‘Hearth’s Warming.’ Sounds like you just celebrate lighting a fireplace,” Capper said with a frown.
“I’d be happy to help you with some things she might like,” Tempest said. “I happen to be quite knowledgeable about pony things.” She winked.
Capper smirked and set his cup down. “Well, that sounds like an agreeable arrangement,” he remarked, clapping his paws together. “Where do we start?”
Tempest chuckled. “Well, first I’d recommend warmer clothing, but you should be fine with your fur coat. So, here’s what I’m thinking…”
The next day, Capper found himself aboard the Friendship Express, bound for Ponyville. He kept his head low as the train ran over a bumpier section of track – the ceiling was meant for ponies, not creatures as tall as him.
As the Bone Dry Desert disappeared outside the window, fluffy, white flakes caught his attention. Capper nearly pressed against the window, watching them in wonder. Outside the world was carpeted in white for as far as the eye could see. It all reminded him of Rarity's pure coat, and he sighed fondly.
When a stewardess pony walked up the aisle, he quickly turned to her. “Excuse me, miss,” he said, pointing to the window. “What exactly is that out there?”
The stewardess looked between him and the window, confused. “That’s snow, sir,” she replied. “…Have you never seen snow before?”
Capper shook his head. “Afraid not. Lived in Klugetown most of my life. Most we ever get out there is rain.”
“Oh! Well, welcome to Equestria then!” She flashed him a friendly smile. “We get snow every winter, and it sticks around until spring comes. It’s basically frozen water that the Pegasus ponies make – helps the plants grow when it thaws.”
“Fascinating,” Capper remarked, rubbing his chin as he turned his gaze back out the window.
The stewardess looked to the seat beside him. “Are you going to be celebrating Hearth’s Warming with somepony, sir?” she asked.
Capper blushed and quickly scooted to block his small pile of gifts. “Ah, y-yes. They’re for a friend of mine in Ponyville. Don’t know if you’ve heard of her. Rarity?”
“Oh sure! Everypony’s heard of Rarity.” The stewardess made a brush-off motion with her hoof. “She’s a fashion designer, and one of the Element Bearers. She and her friends have saved Equestria like a dozen times.”
“Oh.” Capper’s ears drooped and he gulped. “That, uh, sounds fascinating.”
The stewardess nodded. “Well, we’ll be arriving in Ponyville shortly, sir. Stay safe out there, and Happy Hearth’s Warming!” She beamed and trotted down the aisle.
Capper looked out the window again, noticing his faint reflection as the glass fogged. “Come on, Capper,” he muttered. “So what if she’s a big deal? You can do this.”
As the train let out a long whistle, Capper huffed a sigh and hoped he was right.
When Tempest had mentioned warmer clothing, Capper had thought she was joking. The second he stepped off the train, however, a shiver ran through his entire being. His usual overcoat—patched up and fixed by Rarity herself during one letter exchange—now didn’t seem quite enough.
In one paw he held a bouquet of roses, handpicked himself – and he had the thorn scratches to prove it. In the other, he held a felt box with a pearl necklace in it – the best Klugetown had to offer. And, if all else failed, strapped to his back was a guitar. He’d tried other hobbies as well, after all.
Capper hummed to himself, shielding his eyes as he stepped off the platform. He scanned the various streets and the warmly-dressed ponies trotting around them. “I guess I should’ve asked for Rarity’s address instead of using ‘Rarity, Ponyville’ for all those letters,” he remarked to himself.
“Watch out!”
Capper ducked as a snowball arched past his top hat and hit the roof of the station. He looked up and got a second’s worth of sky before his vision was whited out. A snowdrift on top of the roof buried him in a pile of snow.
“Are ya alright, mister?” Apple Bloom asked, running over to the pile with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo in tow.
Capper dug himself out of the pile, dusting snow from his shoulders and hat. His guitar and the felt box were uninjured, but to his dismay, he found the bouquet of roses drooping and lacking petals.
“Well, I suppose flowers are more of a spring thing anyway,” he said with a sigh, casting away the useless stems. He turned to the three fillies, who were surprised at his appearance.
“Sorry, mister,” Apple Bloom said. “We got a little carried away with our snowball fight.”
“What kind of throw was that?” Sweetie Belle hissed to Scootaloo with a nudge.
“I was trying to hit Apple Bloom,” Scootaloo hissed back.
“Children, children,” Capper said, holding up his paws. “It was an honest mistake. But, if you want to make up for it, could you three direct me to where Rarity lives?”
“My sister?” Sweetie Belle asked, before squinting at Capper. “Wait a minute… you’re Capper!”
“I see my reputation precedes me.” Capper removed his top hat and gave a bow. “The one and only. And who might you three be?”
“Well I’m Sweetie Belle, and these are my friends, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. Rarity’s my sister.” Sweetie Belle gestured between her friends.
“Wow! You helped Twilight take down the Storm King!” Scootaloo exclaimed, wings flapping eagerly.
“And you tried to sell my sister.” Sweetie Belle frowned.
Capper’s ears drooped and he gave a nervous chuckle. “All in the past, I assure you. Bygones are bygones, and all that.”
“Well, if yer lookin’ for Rarity, she lives at Carousel Boutique,” Apple Bloom said, pointing at a street. “Just head thataway, make the first right, then a left, and then a right again.”
“So, right, left, right, right?” Capper pointed out.
Scootaloo shook her head. “No, no. Right, left, and right. You’ll know it when you see it.”
“Much obliged,” Capper said, tipping his top hat. “Go easy with those snowballs now – they’re dangerous.”
Capper picked up the pace away from the train station, keeping away from any rooves or awnings. The last thing he wanted to do was ruin the rest of his gifts – which were fortunately sturdier than some flowers.
As he headed down the street Apple Bloom had pointed out, he marveled at the town’s decorations. Tinsel and garland was strung around everywhere, some illuminated with lights. Evergreen wreaths and red bows adorned every door and lamppost he saw.
“Wow. They really go all out for this ‘Hearth’s Warming’ thing, don’t they?” he remarked to himself.
“Watch out!”
Capper froze, ears perked and ready to sense danger. His eyes quickly scanned to see if he was in the proximity of any snow drifts overhead.
What hit him instead was warm, furry, and feathery instead of cold and wet. He and it tumbled into a nearby snowbank, and in the fall, he lost his grip on the felt box.
Capper poked his head out of the snow pile he found himself in, followed by a sheepish-looking Derpy Hooves.
“So sorry about that, mister,” she said, unwrapping some tinsel from her head. “Those decorations were heavier than they looked.”
“Think nothing of it,” Capper replied as they dug themselves out of the snow. “As it happens, I’m getting quite used to snow around here.” He frowned as he glanced around on the ground,
“Oh, it’s real nice once you get used to it,” Derpy said. “It’s soft, and fluffy, and you can make cool stuff with it.” She blinked when she noticed Capper searching the ground. “Looking for something?”
“Do you see a felt box anywhere? I seem to have misplaced it,” Capper replied, shifting through the snow.
Derpy shook her head, then looked up. “Did it have a pearl necklace in it?”
“Why, yes it did. How’d you know that?” Capper asked, turning to her.
Derpy pointed at a nearby streetlight. “’Cause I think it wound up up there,” she said.
Capper followed Derpy’s hoof and sure enough, to his amazement, the pearl necklace hung around one of the arms of a nearby lamppost. It swung limply in a chilly breeze, its felt box nowhere in sight.
“Don’t worry, mister. I’ll get it for you,” Derpy said cheerfully, trotting past him before flapping into the air.
“B-Be careful with it now. It’s for a friend, and—”
He was cut off when Derpy tugged at the necklace to get it off the lamppost and there came a soft snapping sound. Pearl after pearl slipped from the string and clattered to the ground, bouncing off and disappearing into the snow.
“Oh! I’m so sorry!” Derpy said, turning to Capper while holding the useless string.
Capper gave a defeated sigh – he should’ve known “Klugetown’s best” was hardly worth the trouble. “It’s alright. Better it happen now than when I gave it away,” he said, chuckling to cover his dismay.
“Well, I hope you find your friend a present that’s just as good, or better!” Derpy said, her cheerful smile returning. She flapped over and started tidying up the box full of decorations she’d displaced in the crash.
With a sigh, Capper walked over and helped her, rolling up some garland and picking up some wreaths for her. When they were done, he was surprised when Derpy hugged him tight.
“Thanks for your help!” she said as she picked up the box, adjusting it to account for the weight this time. “Happy Hearth’s Warming!”
Capper waved after as she flew off, before his shoulders slumped with a sigh. “Yeah. Happy Hearth’s Warming,” he muttered before turning and heading on his way. At least one out of three wasn’t too bad, right?
As he completed his final two turns, he looked up and blinked in surprise.
Scootaloo hadn’t been kidding when she said he couldn’t miss it, and he could certainly see how Carousel Boutique got its name. The round building did indeed look like a carousel, especially with its elegant paintwork and festive decorations. It only made sense that Rarity called it home. A little of his hope returned with his destination in sight.
As he began to walk towards the boutique, Caramel approached with a broom. “Watch out!” he called.
“More snow?” Capper asked with a chuckle.
“No, ice.”
Capper barely had time to register it when his foot shot out from under him, and he was propelled forward. The ground beneath his feet was as smooth as glass, and even his claws didn’t prevent him from slipping.
He flailed his arms, trying to slow himself down or at least correct himself. In the end, he wound up slipping up on the ice, sliding the rest of the way on spinning around on his bottom. He collided with the side of the boutique with an audible crunch—not of bone, but rather of wood.
As he peeled himself off the wall, he realized his guitar was in pieces. The neck snapped off as he slipped it off his back, and he dropped the pieces with a final, defeated sigh.
Capper’s ears drooped, until a wonderful sound filled them:
“Capper?”
He looked up to see Rarity standing outside her boutique, dressed in a plush violet robe and a scarf. She looked between him and the ruined guitar as he shakily got to his feet with a nervous chuckle.
“H-Hey there, Rarity,” he said, clasping his paws together. “I figured I’d drop by for the holidays… guess I took it a little too literally.”
“Are you alright?” Rarity gently tugged at his sleeves with her magic, replacing the top hat on his head that had fallen in the crash. “Come in, please, before you catch your death of cold.”
“There’s a lot of ways to go about it, apparently,” he muttered as she all but dragged him inside the boutique.
Capper should’ve felt victorious. He was inside Canterlot Boutique, wrapped in a plush blanket with a mug of hot chocolate in front of him. A roaring fire was in the hearth, filling the room with warmth.
And yet, he’d never felt this bad since the ponies had gotten captured.
“Are you hurt, darling?” Rarity asked as she entered the room with her own mug of hot chocolate. She walked over and sat down next to him, her seamstress eyes analyzing him.
Capper gulped at the phrasing. “I’m fine, thank you,” he said, before sighing. “I’m just sorry I couldn’t bring you any gifts.”
“Gifts?” Rarity tilted her head.
“Yeah. I know giving gifts is a big part of this holiday, but mine… kinda got ruined on the way here.” He looked away, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’m awfully sorry, Rarity.”
“Oh, that’s alright. I’m just happy to have you over for the holidays.” Rarity scooted closer. “And that you’re safe – I suppose the cold weather must be quite a shock to you.”
Capper gave a chuckle as he stared off. “Yeah. Pretty dangerous around here.” His gaze dropped. “Rarity, there’s… something I’ve been meaning to say. Figured it’d be easier face-to-face.”
Rarity smiled, tilting his head towards her with her magic. “Well, you should be face-to-face then,” she said with a giggle. “What is it, darling?”
Capper rubbed at his wrist, or rather the cuff on that wrist. It still had the stitching Rarity had done to mend the hole – simply out of gratitude, he often reminded himself. He smiled softly.
“Well, the thing is…” He looked her in the eyes, and willed himself onward. “I… like you. As in, more than just liking you. As in… I really care about you, as a pony. And just… everything about you.”
Rarity gave a simple smile. “I know.”
Capper blinked rapidly. “What? How?”
“Well, darling, you weren’t very subtle with your letters,” Rarity replied, taking a sip from her hot chocolate. “You never said it outright, but a lady can tell.”
“Oh.” Capper sank back into the blanket, staring at his hot chocolate.
He flushed when Rarity leaned up and pecked him on the cheek. She looked away bashfully with a smile. “And the truth is, I’ve come to fancy you as well, Capper. There’s a kind soul underneath all that fur, one of a true gentleman.”
Capper blushed more as Rarity tugged at the blanket with her magic. She slipped underneath it until she was next to him and wrapped it back around them. He looked down at her, finding she was smiling slyly through a blush of her own. “Though, I would rather we do this, how you say, ‘face-to-face’?” she asked coyly.
Capper chuckled. “Well, no one’s going to miss me in Klugetown for a while,” he replied. He wrapped an arm around her, his heart threatening to come out of his chest despite his calm composure.
“Good,” Rarity replied with a giggle. She rested her head against his chest. “Happy Hearth’s Warming.”
“Happy Hearth’s Warming,” Capper replied quietly, smiling towards the fire.
He was beginning to see the appeal of making a big deal out of lighting a fireplace.