All throughout the land of Equestria, the entirety of its inhabitants were busy preparing for what was arguably the most wonderful time of the year. While Nightmare Night was mostly harmless fun and Hearts and Hooves Day an occasion for sentimentality and romance, there was no holiday as beloved as Hearth's Warming. Dragons, griffons, yaks and more lived in Equestria but its primary citizens were, of course, the ponies, a race of equine-like humanoids and it was they who held Hearth's Warming in their hearts and souls. Every stallion, mare, colt and filly participated in the merrymaking, from building snow-ponies to setting up decorations of brightly-colored tinsel and paper snowflakes.
And nowhere was the spirit of holiday cheer more present than in the capital city of Canterlot and its castle, where the two rulers of Equestria-Princess Celestia and Princess Luna-resided. Mile-long garlands of red, green and gold tinsel were hung from the castle's walls and parapets, wreaths of evergreen adorned every window and entry way, the halls decked with boughs of holly. Golden-white electric bulbs were strewn about the castle like a myriad of stars, lighting the way towards gaiety and good-will towards all. Little cutouts of pegasi in halos and robes were plastered to the walls, along with tiny plastic bells and candy canes big and small. The scent of gingerbread and chocolate filled the air, an additional olfactory reminder that, yes indeed, Hearth's Warming had arrived.
Within the castle's great hall, a great party was underway. Guests of all walks of life were in attendance: rich, poor, middle-class, pony, non-pony. A full-piece orchestra played a traditional Hearth's Warming carol, accompanied by a choir of old and young ponies singing together in harmonious splendor. Since there were vegetarian and carnivorous guests, the dishes included baked ham, turkey, fruitcake, pecan pie, mulled and spiced wine, sparkling apple and cranberry cider, champagne, dates, potatoes, hot chocolate, oyster stew, mixed nuts, red velvet cake and a hundred other culinary delights. Two celebrity chefs, griffon Gustave le Grand and donkey Mulia Mild, had just wheeled out their joint-collaboration masterpiece: a life-size gingerbread sculpture of Equestria's founders: Clover the Clever, Princess Platinum, Commander Hurricane, Chancellor Puddinghead, Private Pansy, and Smart Cookie. Cameras flashed to capture the moment before Le Grand and Mulia leapt away to evade the swarm of rambunctious children.
Lucas Jericho, or "Luke" to his friends, was standing off to the side, watching the festivities while stirring a cup of cider. Luke was not a pony nor even any of the other fantastical races that inhabited Equestria but instead, a human and the only human in all of Equestria, past or present, to boot. One day, he was minding his own business when suddenly, he found himself in the middle of a delegation meeting and inadvertently a mere three feet from Princess Celestia herself. Once the matronly ruler had called off her devoted guards, she determined that Luke was no threat and formerly welcomed him to Equestria, even taking it upon herself to give him food and lodgings inside the castle.
No one, not even Luke himself, knew how he was plucked from his world of Earth and plopped into Canterlot. Scientists theorized that space-time had somehow folded around him, creating an intergalactic, possibly even interdimensional gateway that zapped him there. Magicians, on the other hand, argued that a one-in-a-trillion flare-up of magical energy generated by a harmonic convergence of unicorn synchronicity drew the human into their world. So far, no one had been able to verify the cause of such a journey and the ponies eventually just accepted that a human was in their midst, taking what was once considered to be a startling development became little more than a trivial novelty after three years. No matter the planet, galaxy or universe, one singular rule existed: no matter how fantastic or miraculous a concept, eventually, prolonged exposure to everyday life rendered it mundane.
In other words, no one gave a crap that a human was walking around.
"This is still so strange," he commented to himself.
In spite of the obvious differences between Earth and Equestria, it remained astonishing how many similarities to his homeworld there were in this magical land. The language was the same, there were still many of the same brands, logos, books, comics, films, and music, albeit all with some kind of horse-related spin. Celestia Superstar remained a massive smash-hit on Briddleway, the latest film Harry Trotter and the Magic MacGuffin was still playing in theaters, and Prance was rumored to be collaborating with Britneigh Spurs on a new album, although both popstars were tight-lipped on the project. There had yet to be a feasible explanation for this phenomenon so Luke pretty said, "Ehh," and went on with his life. He actually had a chance to return to Earth, a chance that still remained, but he refused, as he'd found the most important reason of all to stay.
"Luke?"
Said reason was now standing behind him, a pair of soft hands caressing his shoulders. Smirking, Luke turned to find Princess Luna, co-ruler of Equestria and Princess of the Night flashing him a beautiful smile, her light blue eyes sparkling like water in the moonlight. Her body was covered in a thin coat of dark blue hair that was as soft as silk. Unlike other ponies, she was an alicorn; she possessed both a horn in the center of her brow and a pair of feathered wings, the latter of which she used to envelope the both of them whenever they cuddled in bed. Most striking however, was her mane, a semi-translucent sapphire-blue cloud comprised of twinkling stars that always rippled as though it were caught in a breeze.
In place of her normal regal blue and black garb, Luna ditched it for a red, knee-high dress with a pink bow on her chest and white trim, the outfit highlighting her long legs and bountiful cleavage. Instead of a crown, she wore her mane in a high-ponytail secured in place with a big pink bow and a red choker around her slender neck. A golden wristwatch, black stockings and red high-heeled shoes with little bells completed her ensemble. There was a time when wearing something so immodest would've been inconceivable to the mare but the time she'd spent around others, particularly Luke and the Element-Bearers, made her more confident and at ease with herself. Luna's stunning features were dominated by a look of unbridled joy that soon morphed into anxious concern.
"Dear One, what is it?"
Rather than "Sweetie," "Sweetheart," or "Angel," Luna referred to Luke by that pet name. Unlike the others, this felt less superficially cutesy and more special, something meant for him and him alone. They'd been dating for almost two full years and yet it seemed like only a month had passed by since their first date. The Canterlot Times called their relationship a "whirlwind romance turned into a hurricane of love," while The Equestrian Tribune stated that they were "Equestria's oddest but most popular power-couple." Princess Celestia even joined in on the tabloid talk, jokingly calling them by the joint-name of "Lukna," an appellation that quickly spread like wildfire.
Luke wrapped his arms around his marefriend and kissed the tip of her muzzle.
"Nothing, Moon Pie," he smiled softly. "Just thinking, is all."
"About home?"
Before coming to Equestria, Luke's life was a tough one, full of monetary troubles, family drama, parental abuse and a crushing sense of melancholic hopelessness. It was not one he looked back on particularly fondly but it was still his, one that he knew on a world he was familiar with. Equestria required time to adjust to, not just the whole full-blown-magic-existing bit but also the gravity of being the only one of his kind in a land vaguely though not exactly like his own. Ponies and other sentient beings like griffons and dragons required a great deal of patience and familiarity before they came to trust him, even with the support of Princess Celestia, Twilight Sparkle, and her friends. Aside from Princess Celestia and Luna, Luke kept the details of his former life to himself, handing out only vague and non-descriptive answers to any probing questions, giving rise to many rumors both realistic and outrageous.
Did some ponies really think that I was a robot created by Queen Chrysalis to earn their trust?
Luke frowned and gave her a light squeeze. "This is my home."
"You know what I meant," Luna mock-pouted through her blush.
"I know. A little. Even after all this time, it's still weird to think that I'm celebrating Hearth's Warming and not Christmas, you know? You go through life, get used to things, and then you have to completely change your thought process. That's all."
Luna nodded. "I think I know what you mean. My time away was a huge adjustment."
Whenever Luna brought up her millennium-long banishment, she used terms like "my time away" or "moon-years" as she found the word "banishment" to be too harsh-sounding and judgmental. Luke had been in Equestria for a whole year before Luna was freed from her dark influence and was there when she struggled to adapt to modern life. Although initially wary and a tad scared of the human, Luna eventually warmed up to Luke and he had the distinction of becoming her first friend following her return. Their friendship would then blossom into romance, culminating in their official roles as boyfriend and marefriend, the first time either of them had such a relationship. Together, they worked through each other's issues through love and patience and although Luna had since made great progress, understandably, both her time as Nightmare Moon and her banishment was a deep wound that she would never forget or completely heal from.
"I bet it was." Luke then smirked at her mischievously. "Remember the first time I showed you what a TV was?"
"Hey, I apologized and Sister bought you a new one. You-..." Luna emphasized with a finger-poke to the chest. "...-on the other hand, still owe me a new sword, Mister."
"No, that was a battle-axe and I replaced it. I owe you a sword from the microwave-popcorn incident."
"Was that before or after I blew up your alarm clock with a fireball?"
Luke cocked his head, scratching his mane of shaggy dark brown hair. During the early days of their friendship, Luke used to wear his hair short but after Luna made an off-handed comment about finding wild manes on stallions to be sexy, he began growing it out. Sure enough, Luna starting paying more attention to him. Oh, she still maintains that fact was incidental but Luke had his doubts. Then again, he loved it when she combed her fingers through it so who was he to complain?
"Umm...I want to say before. The first movie we watched together was the second Daring Do movie and the alarm clock episode happened shortly after the sixth film premiered. I remember that because I'd already purchased my tickets around that time."
"Ah yes, I remember that film. It had the whole 3-D gimmick. Quite unimpressive, really."
"Yeah, those are almost always a rip-off."
Luna snorted. "You are such a dork."
"Takes one to know one, Moon Pie."
Shaking her head, Luna chuckled and placed her head against Luke's chest.
"Hmm, what am I going to do with you?"
"Oh, I don't know. Love me forever?"
"I can do that," Luna replied in a sweet yet mischievous tone.
It was then that Luke noticed the mistletoe being suspended above his head in a dark blue aura and was immediately clued into who the culprit was. Wiggling her eyebrows, Luna gave Luke a quick peck on each cheek before latching her lips onto his own, an action Luke fully relished and returned with amorous gusto. His hands traveled to her waist, smoothing over her wide hips to reach her deliciously full rear. In return, Luna began to caress his pecs, her fingertips encircling the areas where she knew his nipples were situated. Sadly, they had to stop as their make-out sessions often became so heated they had to teleport to one of their bedrooms for some quote-unquote "instant relief."
Luna was the first to disengage, peeling her lips back and gave Luke's neck a little nibble. While they were first experimenting with kissing, she'd discovered Luke enjoyed her lips on his neck and she used this information to great effect, giving him tiny bites and feather-light kisses. Luke, meanwhile, found out that Luna was especially sensitive when it came to her ears and behind her knees. Any kiss, stroke, or caress to either areas instantly made her putty in his hands.
"Gross. Can't you two not paw at each other like horny rabbits for five minutes?"
They were confronted by a Prince Blueblood, Princess Celestia's adopted "nephew," a tall unicorn stallion whose face had become one of mock disgust. He wore a red dinner jacket and pants with a dark green vest, golden-yellow undershirt, black shoes and a black tie with a Hearth's Warming tree. He had a golden-haired mane that, regardless of the day, was kept styled with spray or gel and, rounding out the festive theme, a fake poinsettia was pinned to his lapel. Two scars, one each, ran perpendicular across his cheeks, the result of a fencing match against an up-and-coming swordspony half Blueblood's age from Foaledo. That incident affected Blueblood deeply, causing him to reevaluate how he treated others and gradually become a much more tolerable and humble person, much to the relief of Luke, Luna, the castle staff, Celestia, Twilight, Princess Cadence...everyone.
"Lighten up, Blueballs. It's Hearth's Warming!"
Blueblood's lips curled up. "Very well then, Monkey. Happy Hearth's Warming."
He spun on his heel and exited stage left, probably to flirt with Toffee Sweet, the only maid in the castle that didn't hate his guts with a vengeance. Even now, it was hard for Luke to see Blueblood as anything more than the xenophobic jerkwad that'd harassed him when he first arrived but he figured that if Blueblood was willing to change, then he deserved a second chance. From across the room, Princess Celestia was chatting it up with her assistant Raven, who was dictating the princess' words onto a clipboard. Noticing the couple, Celestia gave Luke a small wink. It was almost time for the big moment and Luke, maintaining his cheerful demeanor, ignored the feeling of nausea and playfully elbowed Luna, who adopted a more dour expression.
"Well, that was a mood-killer."
Luke exhaled through his nostrils and shook his head. "You can say that again."
"Well, that was a mood-killer," Luna cheekily repeated.
"Okay, Miss Wise Mare. I guess you don't want your present..."
"No, no, no, no!" Luna's arms shot out, her wings flared open. "I mean, I apologize for my childish behavior."
"Good filly."
Luke then shoved two fingers into his mouth and whistled, summoning a dark gray opossum that came bounding across the room, his nails creating a series of clicking sounds against the polished marble floor. He was named Tiberius, an opossum that Luna adopted a couple of years ago as a kind of support animal. Originally, Luke suggested that Luna should get a pet in order to help her through her readjustment process, though he meant something like a cat or a gerbil and not something you'd usually see laying crumpled up on the side of a busy highway. Luna, however, was adamant that Tiberius was the pet for her and despite his initial reservations, Luke came to cherish the little marsupial and regarded him as family. As per the season, Tiberius wore a red collar with a little bell and a large green ribbon tied into a bow around his midsection, making for quite the adorable little Hearth's Warming mascot.
Tiberius stopped in front of Luke and stood on his hindlegs, his arms bent across his chest.
"Hey Tibby," Luke grinned and knelt down to give him a head-rub. "Good boy! Yes, you are!"
Reaching beneath the bow, Luke retrieved a small, midnight-blue velvet box and found Luna looking at him with a petrified expression. They both knew what this was about and although he didn't show it, Luke was feeling as terrified as a fly stuck in a spider's web. He wanted this, for a long time now and knew without a shred of uncertainty that the mare standing in front of him was the only love of his life. Clearing his throat, Luke swallowed and took a deep breath. Luna, meanwhile, had begun crying, though it was clear from the immeasurable joy she exuded that they weren't tears of sorrow.
"I-is that...?"
"It is."
The lid sprang open. Inside, there sat a thick, triple-banded ring, the two rings on the top and bottom being silver with golden crescent moons etched into the surface. The middle ring was made of a bluish-black coral that appeared to flow in a liquid-esque manner in the light. Fittingly, instead of a diamond, the middle ring was set with a large moonstone. Luke allowed himself another deep breath. He took one of Luna's hands, which was limp at first, but soon gently gripped his own.
"Luna, ever since you came into my life, I knew you were special and you can't imagine how happy I was when we became friends."
Even with puffy eyes and a tear-soaked face, Luna's beauty remained untarnished.
"As we spent more time together, it became clear that I'd finally found someone who understood me, who I connected with on a level that I never had before. Falling in love with you was the easiest thing that I've ever done but getting you to love me in return was definitely the hardest. That being said, I'm glad that you made me work for it."
Luna giggled and gave a cute little sniffle as the moment Luke had been building up to had finally arrived. Getting Celestia on board was easy enough; she immediately welcomed him to the family when he told her he was planning to propose to Luna and even helped him work with a professional metallurgist and jeweler to make the designs in his head come alive. The funny part was, after spending the last few hours psyching himself up, Luke was shaking like a leaf. He was about the take the biggest leap of faith a man in his position could, filling him with the double-threat of elation and terror. He was actually more scared of Luna agreeing to his proposal rather than rejecting him.
Well, here goes everything...
Giving Luna's hand a little squeeze, Luke took the leap:
"Luna Artemis Selena Astraeus, will you marry me?"
"YES! ABSOLUTELY!"
The Royal Canterlot Voice boomed through the room. The walls shook and dishes wobbled and clattered, sending good food to splatter onto the floor and various guests. Partygoers slid and tumbled around like waterlogged sailors in the middle of a storm. As he was at the epicenter, Luke felt fortunate he hadn't gone deaf. Luna bashfully peered around at the pandemonium she'd unwittingly caused in her excitement.
"Oops. Sorry." Turning back to Luke, Luna beamed, "Yes. I will!"
Uproarious applause sounded as Luke slipped the ring onto Luna's finger. He soon found himself magically hauled onto his feet like a ragdoll and right into Luna's awaiting arms. Dipping him like a tango dancer, Luna laid a big, wet kiss on her new fiancé, much to the delight of the revelers and paparazzi. Luke and Luna, however, were unconcerned with the witnesses and flashing lights, ignoring the world until it peeled away and only they were left. Princess Celestia, looking a bit like Jay Gatsby, raised a champagne glass and toasted the couple in the Royal Canterlot Voice:
"To the future Mr. and Mrs. Jericho!"
"To the future Mr. and Mrs. Jericho!" A hundred voices repeated in unity.
By the time Luna allowed Luke to come up for air, the human could feel his head spinning.
"Wow. I should've proposed to you sooner, huh, Moon Pie?"
"Yes, you should have, Dear One."
"So, uh..." Luke clicked his tongue. "What did you get me?"
Luna stopped admiring her new ring and gawked at Luke for a moment before letting out a half-hearted titter. "A new TCrate game system."
Shrugging his shoulders, Luke spun Luna around and planted a kiss on her.
"Happy Hearth's Warming, Luna. I love you"
"Oh, Happy Hearth's Warming, Luke. I love you too. You're the best gift I could've ever gotten."
"Does that mean I should return the ring?"
"Do it and I'm smashing your TCrate."
THE END