//------------------------------// // Chapter 93 - Hearts and Hooves Day // Story: A Pony Displaced: Homeward // by NoLongerSober //------------------------------// The day known as Hearts and Hooves Day had finally come. As the sun was starting to set, Wind Whistler was walking through Vanhoover beside her mother and Daring Do, a sleeping bag and pillow being carried on her back. “You’re sure you’ll be alright tonight?” Fleet asked of the little filly. “Sure thing, Mom,” Windy replied, looking over to her cycloptic mother. “Stakes and her parents have everything covered and we know who to contact if something goes wrong.” “Alright. I hope you have fun with your sleepover,” Fleet said before she and Daring both gave the filly a nuzzle. “I’m sure I will.” Windy saw the door of Stakes’ house and rushed forward before looking over her shoulder to the older pegasi. “Besides, I’d rather be with my friends than be kept up all night by old folks rutting.” A chuckle came from Daring and Fleet blushed as Windy started to knock on the door. After only a few seconds, the door swung open and revealed three ponies.  One was an excited looking High Stakes. The second was Game O’Chance, the mare Fleet had occasionally seen when browsing the pawn shop. The last was a unicorn stallion with a blue-gray coat and a short, rough silver mane. On his flank was the image of four aces. “Ah, you must be Fleetfeather. Windy’s told me so much about you,” the stallion said as he held out a foreleg to her. “I’m High Stakes’ father, Lucky Streak and this is my wife, Game O’Chance.” “A pleasure, Mr. Streak,” Fleet said as she grabbed his hoof and shook it. “I’ve had the pleasure of your wife’s company before.” “Excellent,” Streak said as pulled away his foreleg and stood aside to let Windy inside. “Come on in. The first guests are just arriving and we’ve got a ton of food and movies for you.” “Alright.” Windy stepped into the home, where she saw several of her friends from school in the living room. She then turned back towards her mother and Daring. “See ya in the morning, Mom! Have a good time!” “I wish you the same.” Fleet waved to the filly as Daring put a foreleg over her shoulder. “Have fun, Kiddo,” Daring said as she tenderly squeezed Fleet’s shoulder. “We’ll see yah in the morning.” “Bye!” Windy waved one last time before the two mares turned away and Lucky closed the door before them. “Ahlright, lassie,” Game spoke up as she moved away from the door and headed towards the cozy kitchen. “Jus’ set yer sleepin’ bahg down in the livin’ room and have some fun. I’ll have macaroni an’ cheese ready fer yah in a few minutes.” “Sure thing, Mrs. O’Chance!” Windy replied as she followed her instructions, heading into the living room and rolling out her sleeping bag between Melony and Shutterbug’s. “Hey um, Windy?” Crispy Wings hoarsely spoke up, making the filly look ahead. She saw that his face was crimson, his eyes shifting rapidly as if he’d done something bad and he wanted to hide it. However, the thing that stood out the most to the pegasus filly was the fact there were a fair amount of bandages covering the colt’s forelegs that hadn’t been there when she saw him at school. “What’s up, Crispy?” Windy tilted her head as he rose up and pulled a small white box out of his saddlebags. He then placed the box down in front of her hooves. “I, uhh, tried cooking up a little treat earlier and I figured you might like the best one I made.” The red tinge on his face grew a shade brighter as sweat started to form on his forehead. Gently opening the box, Windy saw that inside was a piece of chocolate roughly in the shape of a heart. It was clear that Crispy wasn’t a professional chocolatier from how uneven the coating was, with bits of runoff going over the edges and small gaps in the shell letting her see bits of a pale yellow fruit underneath. “I wanted to try to get some chocolate covered banana candies for you, but the stores were sold out. I tried to make some on my own and… well…” Crispy looked down at his bandaged covered hooves. “It wasn’t the best. At least I know what a double-boiler is now and Mom said she’ll be giving me less chores for the week.” “Aww. Thanks, Crispy,” Windy said before giving him a quick nuzzle that turned his face crimson. “I… I don’t really have anything for you, but how about I get you something after school tomorrow?” “Sure!” He squeaked aloud, making Melony and Stakes giggle while Shutterbug snapped a photo of the blushing colt. “Uh, I mean, sure. Thanks, Windy,” he said in an attempt to sound cool. *** Forge was happily humming a tune to himself as he and Snow walked along the streets of Vanhoover. In his aura sat a few bags containing some simple ingredients for the dinner the two had planned, along with a few movies they’d picked up at Blockbuster’s. “I hope you like Kung Pow, Forge,” Snow said with a pair of bags being carried by his wings. “It’s one of my favorite action comedies of all time.” “Well, I can’t recall disliking any of the movies you’ve showed me, save for that one with the eclairs and the dog—” Forge was cut off when a reindeer bumped into his side. The unicorn was lightly pushed aside while the red-headed reindeer fell onto her rear beside her cow companion. “Oh, y’all okay, Holly?” Bea asked before biting down on the scruff of her neck and pulling her back onto her hooves. “Yeah, I’m fine,” the doe replied, shaking her neck and the bag around it. “Oh, sorry about that…” Forge said as he started to recognize the doe and cow. “Oh! You’re some of Punch’s friends.” “Hey, Ah remember you from that karaoke night!” Bea said warmly as she looked down at the cobalt stallion. “How’re y’all doin’ tonight?” “Pretty good,” Snow said as he stepped up to Forge’s side. “We’ve just finished some grocery shopping before we have what I hope will be a wonderful first Hearts and Hooves Day together. How ‘bout you?” “Same here, boys,” Bea said with a warm smile. “Holly, Punch, Honey and Ah are gonna have a fun little singles night tonight. We’ve got plenty of things planned.” As the cow spoke, Holly dug into the bag around her neck and pulled out a bunch of bananas and waggled her eyebrows. “Ah… well, have fun, ladies,” Forge said awkwardly before the four went their separate ways. “Oh man,” Bea excitedly said as Holly replaced the bananas in her bag. “We’re gonna make so many milkshakes!” “By the way, Bea; I’m rather curious about something,” Holly said as they trotted along the lantern lit streets. “What kind of plants do milk come from? I assume the milkweed plant, but I’m not sure how it’s extracted.” “Uh, Holly… That ain’t where milk comes from. Y’see…” As Forge and Snow reached the ground floor of his apartment building, the piercing sound of Holly’s scream echoed through the street. “Huh…” Snow said as he reached for the door. “Guess those bananas were really cold.” *** In the moonlit bedroom of Erica Sorae, the hen’s face was buried in a pillow as she tried to hold back her groans. “Verdant… almost there…” she whispered as her talons dug into the sides of her mattress. The sensation she was experiencing had been building for quite some time, but she knew release was very close at hand. “You got it… almost… just… aaahhh…” Erica sighed in relief as her grip on the mattress loosened, her wings fell at her sides and her body practically melted into the bed. She then looked over her shoulder with a smile on her face. “Thanks, Verdant. I needed that.” Verdant gave her a smile before he dropped the large feather that was in his mouth. “No problem, Erica. I know that some feathers can be really hard to reach.” Erica rose up on the bed and gave the shamrock stallion a nuzzle. “How’d you get so good at preening feathers?” “My Aunt Silver Rain made sure I knew how in case I got a pegasus mate. That, and so I could help out Star Hopper. She was never that good at taking care of her own feathers,” Verdant replied as he pulled Erica into a hug and started to gently stroke her back. “Well, I’d say you took those lessons to heart,” Erica said as she closed her wings around him and ran her talons through his mane. “Thanks for everything you’ve done for me today.” “I loved it, Erica. Besides, you made a fantastic dinner.” He looked up into her eyes. “But I did notice a fair bit of tension in your shoulders during the backrub. You wanna talk about it?” “I can’t really hide anything from you, can I?” Erica sighed with a faint smile as she rubbed her talons against his head. “Honestly, I’m worried about a few things with my family. I know my mom’s excited about being pregnant, but I’m worried about her health considering her age. Plus, I’m not sure how much of a good big sister I’ll make once the baby’s born.” “Well, I’m certain you’ll be a great big sister, Erica.” Verdant planted a tender kiss against the side of her beak before giving her a smile. “And if it helps, Star Arcana had one of my sisters when she was in her fifties and she was fine, despite how much worse medicine was at the time.” “Thanks, Verdant.” Erica smiled back at her lover. “That really does make me feel a bit better.” “That’s what I’m here for,” Verdant said as Erica placed her talons on his shoulders. “Well, now that you’ve done all sorts of things to make me feel good today...” Erica gently flipped Verdant over so he was on his back, his head against the pillow with her shifting to straddle him. “How about I make you feel good by getting you back inside me?” she said in a sultry tone with a seductive look on her face. Verdant quickly returned the grin. “I would like that very much, dear,” he said before leaning up and kissing her beak. What would come next was glorious. *** In Canterlot, a pair of ponies walked in relative silence through the palace’s quiet, moonlit hallways. One was Swiftsword, her eyes taking in every little detail of the architecture composing the intricate hallways, having ignored them when chasing down Jack O’Lantern during her last visit. By her side was Spearmint, leading the way towards a large set of doors. Pushing through the doors with her snout, Spearmint led Swift into a large, well decorated guest room. There were dark purple curtains decorating the windows and a plush, four poster bed. While there were finely crafted wardrobes, nightstands and an unlit fireplace, Swift’s eyes were drawn to the view of the city below from the window, nearly mirroring the stars in the dark night sky. “Liking the guest room? Minty asked as the sound of a match being struck reached Swift’s ears. Looking back, she saw the earth pony had tossed a match into the fireplace and lit the kindling and logs within. “Most assuredly,” Swift replied as she trotted up to the mare while she put a cover in front of the fire. “I’m rather surprised you could get this room.” “You can thank Captain Armor for that,” Spearmint said as she took off her helmet and started to strip off her armor. “He granted my request for this. I’m guessing he thought this is something Cadance would approve of.” “Well, it’s very nice,” Swift said before giving her lover a nuzzle. “I’d say there’s only one thing missing.” “Wait, really?” One of the earth pony’s eyebrows rose in surprise at Swift’s words. “What’d I miss?” A saucy grin came across Swift’s muzzle as her horn lit with blue light. Her aura wrapped itself around Spearmint and lifted her off the ground. With a bit of strain on her face, Swift quickly levitated Spearmint onto the bed before gently dropping her down. Once her head landed on the pillow, Swift teleported so she was now laying atop the prone mare. “A mint on my pillow.” Swift lightly chuckled before leaning down and pressing her lips against Spearmint’s own. Spearmint moaned into the kiss as Swift lowered herself against her, both mares wrapping their forelegs around one another as they deepened their passionate embrace. Their moans grew in volume and passion as the bedroom door creaked open and a towering mare stepped inside. “Tibbles, are you in h—” The words died in Princess Luna’s throat as she saw the two mares with their lips locked together. Their eyes shot open and the two looked towards the dark blue alicorn.  “Oh, my apologies!” Luna quickly said as the faintest shade of crimson crossed her muzzle. “I didn’t mean to interrupt anypony’s private time! I just wanted to find my pet opossum.” Spearmint sighed and rubbed her snout in annoyance. “No, it’s fine, Princess. Since you’re here already, why don’t you join in or something?” She said with a note of mild sarcasm in her tone. With a brief hum of thought, Luna gently closed the door behind her.  “Um… Princess, I was kidding,” Spearmint said as the alicorn drew closer.  “Oh…” Luna’s steps suddenly came to a halt. “Well… are you sure? I can leave if you both wish, though I was hoping to have some… fun with a pony or two tonight.” “Uh… Swift…” Spearmint turned to look at her partner above her. “What do you think?” “Hmm…” Swift rubbed her chin in thought as she looked between the two mares. What would come next was most glorious. *** In Snow Sweeper’s apartment, the grey-coated stallion and Forge were caught in a hearty set of laughs as the movie they were watching reached its conclusion.  “Well, that was certainly a good comedy,” Forge chuckled as he rose off of the couch and flipped off the projector. “Did they ever actually make a sequel to it?” “Sadly, no,” Snow responded as he picked up the empty bowls that had held the carrot, tomato and noodle soup the two had enjoyed for dinner. “Not sure how it would have turned out, but this got a ton of laughs out of me.” “My favorite bit was when Betty declared he was a great magician and made that stallion’s clothes change colors.” Forge said with a chuckle as he picked up several film canisters in his aura. “So, what film should we watch next?” “I was thinking we could watch When In Roan,” Snow answered before putting the bowls in the sink and filling them with water. “It’s a romantic comedy, but most of the comedy is unintentional.” “Well, it’ll be hard to top Attack of the the Eye Creature,” Forge said as he set down most of the canisters and started to prep the next movie. Snow snorted in amusement as he sat down on the couch. “I’ve seen this movie before. It’s gonna be a trip, Dear.” “We’ll see,” Forge said before flipping the projector on, sitting down on the couch and cuddling into the pegasus stallion. “I’m sure it’ll be worth some laughs… maybe help set the mood for later.” With a chuckle, Snow brought a hoof to Forge's chin and raised it up before kissing him on the lips. The first preview on the reel had finished playing by the time the kiss ended. “Rest assured, I plan on making tonight amazing,” Snow whispered into Forge’s ear as one foreleg slowly trailed down to his thigh while the other stroked his horn. Forge let out a groan of delight and leaned closer to the pegasus. Before the film could even end, Forge and Snow’s night became not amazing, but glorious. Snow thought it was well worth his sister yelling at him the next day for the stains on the couch.  “LEARN TO EAT SOUP LIKE AN ADULT, FLANKHOLE!!!” *** Late into the night, a pair of ponies were trotting along through the park, cuddled close together. Their bellies were full from their little picnic and they remained entertained, courtesy of the movie they’d seen. As midnight drew closer, the two decided to take a brisk stroll through the park before finding a hotel room. “The stars are really beautiful tonight,” Hatty said as he gazed up at the dark sky. The moonlight and stars twinkled in the sky and shined brilliantly on the snow below.  “It looks nice, but you should see it when you’re out in the desert,” Gem said as Hatty’s wing stroked her back and they passed by one of the lamps along the concrete path. “The lights from the city drown out some of the starlight. Out there, miles and miles away from the city… now that’s spectacular.” “Maybe we’ll see it next year,” Hatty said as he took a deep breath of the chilly air. “So, what’d you think of tonight?” “Fantastic,” Gem said as she nuzzled his neck. “Maybe next year, we’ll be able to cook our own food instead of going store bought or making Verd cook it the night before.” “Yeah,” Hatty replied as he used his free wing to scratch the back of his head. “Though I don’t think we’ll do so bad that the food will make you sick again.” “I’ll hold you to that,” Gem replied before the pair shared a brief kiss. “Well, since it’s pretty cold, how about get to a hotel room and really heat things—” Gem and Hatty’s ears stood at attention as the sound of delighted laughter reached their ears. Looking about, the pair saw a plump pegasus mare with a cream coat and crimson mane, and a muscular unicorn with a burnt orange coat and a dark brown mane. They recognized the pair as Drumstick and Clean Cut and they were merrily playing on a swing set and loudly laughing. “Oh, I remember you!” Drumstick continued to swing back and forth as her eyes fell on the pegasus and earth pony. “You’re Swift’s friends, Hatty and Gem. How’s your Hearts and Hooves Day going?” “Pretty good, Mrs. Drumstick,” Gem replied as the swinging pair started to slow. “We’ve been having a lot of fun tonight.” “Excellent,” Drumstick said before she whispered something that Hatty and Gem couldn’t hear into her husband’s ear. Once she finished, he chuckled and enthusiastically nodded.  “Well you two,” Drumstick gave a quick lick of her lips as she and her husband focused their half-lidded gazes on them. “How’d you two like to try something really fun tonight?” A crimson tinge crossed Hatty and Gem’s faces as they realized the implications of their words. When the two reached their hotel room, their night became glorious. *** Daring and Fleet reached the front of the manor and gently pushed the door open. Stepping inside, they noticed the manor was surprisingly dark with only a few faint beams of moonlight cutting through the darkness. “Hey, Barrier?” Daring called out as she slowly took off her glasses and stepped inside. “You in here?”  “I am,” the stallion’s voice rang out from the back when a blue light appeared in the kitchen along with a small object the pegasi couldn't identify in the darkness, despite the light of his aura.  As they took a step closer, the small object in the glow moved and a tiny flame leapt from the object, revealing it to be a single match. The two mares drew closer as the match moved about, lighting three candles resting upon a silver candelabra in the middle of the dinner table. “I wanted to make the two of you a romantic candle-lit dinner,” Barrier explained as his horn pulled out a pair of seats for the mares. The charcoal stallion stepped closer to the candle light, revealing that he was sporting a midnight blue suit jacket that was complimented by a crimson tie. “Dinner should be ready momentarily.” “Thank you, Barrier,” Fleet said as she and Daring took their seats at the table. The sky-colored mare gave a quick sniff of the air, catching a pleasant, citrus scent. “Might I ask what’s cooking?” “I decided to make some salads with a chicken recipe Verdant learned from Erica. The chicken’s been marinated in a soda called Mountain Dew,” Barrier replied as he stood by the oven and flicked on the light inside.  “Play your cards right and you’ll be mountin’ Do, alright,” the golden coated mare muttered, drawing a chuckle from Fleet and Barrier both as he pulled the chicken from the oven. “Oh, by the way, I got you two some gifts,” Daring said as she reached into her saddlebags and pulled out two felt boxes. One was a bit long and narrow while the other was somewhat small. The narrow box was placed in front of Fleet while the other was placed in front of Barrier’s seat. “Feel free to open them.” Fleet gently picked up the narrow box and carefully opened it up. In the candlelight, what she saw was a metal pen that had been designed to look like a pink feather quill, exactly like what she sported for her cutie mark. “Oh, it’s beautiful, Daring!” Fleet said before giving the mare a warm hug and a kiss on her cheek. “This looks amazing.” “Glad you like it. I had it and Barrier’s gift made at Silver Swirl’s,” Daring replied as Barrier floated the now completed salads in front of them. “C’mon, Barry! Open yours!” “Very well,” Barrier cheerfully said as he sat down and flared his horn. The box floated in front of his face as he slowly started to open the present. When it was fully opened, Barrier saw it was a pin shaped like his cutie mark, made from shining silver.  “This is magnificent, Daring.” The charcoal unicorn smiled warmly and gave Daring a kiss on the cheek before attaching the pin to his jacket. “How do I look?” “So sweet that I don’t need dessert,” Daring said before chuckling. “Though I do hope there is some kind of dessert. Preferably bon bons. Those are my fave.” “I’ve some strawberry cheesecake in the fridge for the two of you,” Barrier replied.  “Well, since Daring’s given her gifts,” Fleet said as she picked up her saddlebags and started to dig through them. “Then it’s my turn.” Reaching into her saddlebags, Fleet pulled out two boxes that were a fair bit larger than the two Daring had given out, surprising her two mates. Setting his fork aside, Barrier opened up the box in front of him and pulled from it a bottle of Royal Crown Select scotch. The charcoal unicorn smiled widely at Fleet. “Thank you, love.” “My turn now.” Daring eagerly rubbed her hooves together before carefully lifting the top of the box away. With the top gone, the sides of the box fell away. Illuminated by the candlelight was a blue, conical hat covered with glittering pink stars and crescent moons and two pink streamers with golden edges. By the bottom of the strange hat was a small comb that was made entirely of a glittery purple crystal. Daring gasped at the sight of the hat and her wings instantly shot up from her sides. “Fleet…” she hoarsely whispered. “Do you know what this is?!” “Well, I assume it’s something more than just an antique hat and comb now,” Fleet replied as she carefully looked over the hat. “Is something wrong?” “Fleet… This is the long lost hat worn by Princess Royal Blue! And not only that, but that’s her tanzanite comb! It’s gotta be worth over a million bits!” Daring’s words were practically drenched with excitement. It looked to Fleet and Barrier as if Daring was resisting the urge to hop up and down in her seat like a foal that had just been given their dessert. “Where the heck did you find this thing?!” “Well, I was flying by Bouncy Street when I tried to think of something to get you, and that’s when I saw—” “Oh Faust,” Daring said as she pressed a hoof to her forehead. “Please tell me you didn’t find another ancient treasure in the Faust damned pawn shop.” Fleet remained silent, replying only with a nervous smile. “Urgh… rut me.” Daring’s hoof slid down her face and landed on the table tiredly. “I think we should wait until after dessert’s finished, dear.” Fleet’s response drew a chuckle from the other two before they started to dig into their meals. Nearly a half-hour passed before dinner and dessert was put away. With the meals done and the gifts stowed, Barrier teleported away from the kitchen. Daring and Fleet both saw the flash of blue light that shone from underneath Barrier’s bedroom door right before the sound of cloth shuffling could be heard. Fleet gently pushed the door open, revealing a rather stunning sight for the two mares. Barrier was stretched out on his bed donning fine silk socks that matched the darker shade of his mane. Upon the nightstands were two more candelabras with three white candles burning in the darkness. “Well my dears,” Barrier said as stretched out on the bed, putting long disused skills to work and posing sexily for them. “Which one of you would you like me to treat first?” Daring and Fleet looked to one another, with looks of surprise and faint shades of pink on their faces. “Coin toss?” Daring asked. “I’ll toss it,” Fleet replied without skipping a beat and using her wing to pull a coin out of her saddle bags. With a quick flick, the coin was spinning in the air. “Call it mid-air.” “Heads,” Daring answered just before the falling coin had reached her eye level. The coin soon hit the floor. To the shock of the mares, the coin landed directly on its side, standing straight up. “Huh. Don’t that beat all,” Daring said as she used her wing to scratch the back of her head. “So… we start with both?” Fleet asked as she tilted her head. “Hmm… sounds good to me,” Daring replied as she brought a hoof to her chin in thought before she turned to the stallion on the bed. “Think you can handle the two of us at once, Barrier?” “I’ve a fair certainty that I can manage. Rest assured, I will make this the most passionate night of your lives,” Barrier said with a somewhat cocky smile on his face. You fool! You know one’s hard enough to handle in bed! You’ve just signed your death warrant! Despite how his mind screamed at him or how exhausted he was by the end of the night, it was most glorious. *** Some time after midnight, Windy was sleeping comfortably in her sleeping bag when she felt her side being repeatedly and rapidly nudged. “Windy!” Crispy spoke in a panicked whisper as he nudged the pink maned filly once more. “Wake up! It’s an emergency!” “Urgh…” Windy groaned as she slowly rose and looked at him with eyes just barely open. “What’s wrong?” “I think there’s ghosts here!” Crispy shivered as he looked into Windy’s now glaring eyes. “I need you to beat them up!” “Ghosts… Seriously?” Wind Whistler barely had the energy to raise her eyebrow as she slowly looked over the other sleeping foals, greatly envying them at this particular moment. “Yes! Really!” Crispy’s shivering grew more intense as he leaned closer to the tired filly. “Just listen and you’ll hear their ghostly wail!” With a sigh, Windy closed her eyes and tried to hear anything in the dead of night. After a moment of concentration, she managed to hear a moaning sound coming from the back of the house. However, she could tell the voices weren’t ghosts, but Lucky Streak and Game O’Chance. “Urgh.” Windy groaned before she picked up one of her pillows and tossed it at Crispy’s face, gently knocking him over. “It’s not ghosts. Stakes’ parents are fucking. Go back to sleep.” Without giving the colt a chance to get back up, Wind Whistler flopped back down into her sleeping bag. Crispy shook his head as he rose back up, a rather confused look upon his face as he looked to the filly whose back was now to him. “They’re doing what now?”