//------------------------------//
// Chapter 6: The Crystal Star 
// Story: Nicholas & The Crystal Star 
// by DanishDash 
//------------------------------//

The town of Gift Givers Grove was an enchanting place. Everywhere Nicholas looked he seemed to see cheer, magic, and strange things. There were shops filled with candy, baked goods, and all kinds of treats. Shops filled with tools, colorful clothes, and yes, even toys. 

Everywhere they walked there were deer and reindeers alike, all going about their daily life, shopping, talking, and enjoying their day. Each time they passed someone, they looked awestruck at Nicholas, some pointed, some whispered, some even bowed. The three reindeer, Aurora, Bori and Alice, explained the history about the town, and came with fun facts here and there.

"But of course, it all started with just one cottage." Aurora explained. "When we first got here, we never expected our community to grow into a full town."

"Why did you build your town so far from everything?" Applejack asked, looking with fascination as they passed a street vendor selling caramelized apples.

"Well, that is a long and complicated story." Bori replied.

"But," Alice continued. "It was where we needed to be."

"Away from all sorts of prying eyes." Aurora finished. 

They continued to walk the streets, passing a few small parks, a school, and the farther they got away from the center of the town, the more spread out the cottages became. All around there were decorations of all sorts, and the whole place had an air of festive cheer and good times. The tour ended as Aurora, Bori and Alice took them back to the town square.

The three of them turned to Nicholas and Applejack, smiling brightly. "So, what do you think of our town?"

"It's beautiful..." Nicholas admitted. "Really beautiful, but I still don't understand what all of this has to do with me..."

Once again, the three reindeer exchanged glances, then with a nod, they looked at him once again. "Well then, sonny." Said Aurora. "Let's go inside."

"Let's speak of what is." Said Bori.

"About what will be." Continued Alice.

"And what was." Finished Aurora.

The reindeers turned, and trotted towards the great estate once more. The doors opened again, this time seemingly on their own accord. The three led Nicholas and Applejack inside, and as the doors closed behind them, Aurora gestured around the hall.

"This house, this town, the grove, all of it, it was made for you, Nicholas Claus. Although we didn't know it at the time." Aurora said, her voice sounding heavy with memory.

"You are Nicholas Claus, the human who is accepted among the ponies, the one who delivers gifts every year. Your kindness and gratefulness never waver." Bori explained, pointing at him with an almost proud motherly smile. "Your name, Santa Claus, has become known even outside of Ponyville."

Alice took a step up the stairs, smirking. "It is you all this is for, the one who will become not Ponyville's Santa Claus, but the whole world's." 

Nicholas opened his mouth, but no words came out. "Now hold on just a minute." Applejack said, sounding more shocked than outraged. "What do you mean by all of this? How do you know all this?" She looked at Nicholas, a sort of desperate look Nicholas hadn't seen for many years. "He lives in Ponyville," she stated, then looked back at the three reindeer. "His family and friends live there, do you expect him to abandon them?"

The reindeer didn't react much, instead they had an understanding look about them. The expression wasn't happy, nor sad, but more patient, as if they had expected Applejack's outburst, and understood it. They just inclined their heads, moving a little up the stairs. 

"This way." Bori said, and the three continued.

Nicholas followed, still no words leaving him. Reluctantly, Applejack followed, dreading what they would hear. Nicholas expected the reindeer to go through the double doors ahead of them, instead they turned left, moving up the stairs to the side. They followed without a word, both of them wondering what they would tell and show him next.

They entered a grand hallway, like the one on the other side, which they had walked when leaving the bedroom. They started to walk, passing doors, and other hallways. On the left wall they passed several large windows, some of them with stained glass like the ones you saw at Canterlot palace.

Aurora stopped by one of them. "It started in the days of old, before the first hearth's warming eve." Nicholas and Applejack looked up at the stained glass, seeing depicted the dreadful creatures known as windigos., and a frozen landscape below them. "You see Nicholas, ponies were not the only creatures affected by these creatures. When the three tribes of ponies came together, it wasn't only them who found friendship and understanding but so many more over the whole world. It was and still is a night of hope, selflessness, giving, and love."

Aurora moved to the next window, showing a glowing star, and reindeer looking up to it from below. "The Crystal Star..." Nicholas said almost soundlessly, but Aurora heard it.

She smiled. "That's right! The amount of love, care, giving, cheer, and understanding one moment in time was so strong, it created a special kind of magic, and created the star here in the far north. It called to us, and so we came here."

"To do what?" Applejack asked, her eyes never leaving the window.

"To protect the star, to keep its magic alive." Bori replied.

"You see, it is in this cold land where all windigos come from." Aurora stated, causing both Nicholas and Applejack to give her a startled look. "The star was born from the powerful emotions of that night, and it is that, along with the goodwill of all around the world that keeps the windigos here." 

"I thought it was the friendship between one another that kept them away?" Nicholas asked.

"It is." Assured Alice. "And that love and friendship feeds the star, which keeps the windigos here."

"And keeps the grove safe." Bori quickly added. "You remember the veil?" Nicholas thought for a moment, and yes he did remember them passing some sort of barrier. "It keeps our home hidden from the outside world, and keeps anyone with evil intent, like the windigos out."

Applejack looked at the windows, then Nicholas. Alice looked at her, then smiled. "You want to know what this has to do with Nicholas?"

Applejack blushed, nodding. "Yes..."

"Well," Aurora said, moving onto the next window. This time the star was in the middle of the window, with a depiction of a town below it, and above it a depiction of a stallion and a human?! "You see, the Crystal Star didn't just guide us here, it granted the three of us the abilities to look to the past, present, and future, at least, when it came to gift giving, and events related to our community." Aurora explained.

"It also granted us the gift of a long life, we have been here since the very first hearth's warming!" Alice proclaimed proudly.

Bori nodded. "The Crystal Star made us its instrument of guarding it, and bringing cheer to the world!"

"In a sense at least." Aurora cut in. "As it turns out, our powers and immortality are tied to the star, and to the grove."

Nicholas frowned. "You're trapped?"

"Nicholas," Bori said in an almost motherly tone. "Living here is a privilege, the Crystal Star has granted everybody who lives here a spark of magic, but with that privilege comes responsibility. "We can leave whenever we want to, but in doing so would mean there is nobody to guard the Crystal Star. The windigos would break through the barrier, and hearth's warming would be in danger."

"But it also means spreading cheer is kind of hard..." Alice said sheepishly at first, but then she grinned. "That was until we learned about you! The Crystal Star prophesied that a chosen one would come to us when he was ready, and take his place here in the north as the guardian of the Crystal Star, of the grove, and of hearth's warming itself."

"Me?" Nicholas asked, looking out the window again. "Then what about the stallion?" The pony depicted next to the human didn't have any features, he had a horn, and wings, but there was no detail, just his outline, with the glass tinted white, as if he was a vision.

"We are not sure of his role, but we have seen him in our dreams now and again." Bori admitted. "Sometimes we see him as a young stallion, other times we see him as aged, but still energetic alicorn."

"Then how do you know it is me you're looking for?"

Alice giggled. "No other human is in this world. The Crystal Star brought you to us, Nicholas. No matter what we see, you are always in the middle of it."

Nicholas froze, his mind seeming to go blank for a second. Then it seemed to flood with even more questions, but the one standing above them all was this. "Why did it bring me to Equestria? Away from my world, my real family?" The words sounded a little desperate, and he didn't mean for them to sound so.

Images of his adoptive family back in Ponyville flashed in his mind. To him, they were his family, and he loved them with all of his heart, but Nicholas had always wondered. Why was he the only human? Why did his adoptive family find him at the edge of the Everfree? He felt Applejack reach out, placing a comforting hoof on his hand.

"I wish we could tell why, how, and when." Aurora said apologetically. "We do not know, but perhaps you will find out for yourself."

"What do you mean?"

The three reindeer turned. "Come."





Nicholas and Applejack were taken down multiple hallways, up more stairs, until they came to a new set of heavy double doors. Outside of it stood two reindeer guards, lightly armored, and stood as still as the royal guards in Canterlot. As soon as they spotted Nicholas they came to attention, and when they came even closer, they opened the door without being told.

On the other side was not a room, but a new set up stairs going upwards. Nicholas felt himself silently gasp, seeing the stairs made of ice and now. They were not entering a building, but a mountain, the same one from his dream. Although he hadn't seen much of it, he could feel it in his heart.

For the next fifteen minutes they climbed the stairs, moved through hallways, and passageways. Every now and then they would pass a guard to two, stationed through the tunnels. The tunnels were nicely lit, but Nicholas couldn't tell how, there were no lamps or touches, it was like the walls themselves gave off a faint glow.

Once again, they came to the last set of double doors, these not made of iron nor wood, but pure ice. The guards standing outside, pushed them open, like the ones back in town had done it. They entered a massive chamber, one so impressive he could hear Applejack gasp in surprise.

Nicholas didn't gasp, he had been here before. He recognized the pillars of ice, the star-shaped platform, and of course, the Crystal Star itself, floating comfortably in the very center of the chamber. Applejack trotted closer, looking with wide eyes at the stars. "Now that is something..." She said, then turned to Nicholas. "Is this the star you've been seeing in your dreams?"

Nicholas nodded. "Yeah, this is, wait..." Nicholas narrowed his eyes, walking a bit closer. This was the star he had seen in his dreams, but something seemed off. The glow, its light, it seemed much dimmer. "This isn't right..."

"So you noticed." Bori said behind them, and they turned.

"It seems dimmer than what I've seen in my dreams."

Bori nodded. "It's magic, it's running out..."

Applejack turned startled. "But, you said that it was fueled by goodwill and cheer between the tribes."

"We said that what gave birth to the star was the goodwill and cheer between all races." Aurora corrected. "This kind of magic could not have been made just with ponies alone, but with all, who collectively came together in one single moment in time. A magic so powerful it created the star."

"But," Applejack said, looking back at the star. "But hearth's warming, it is the most celebrated holiday in the world."

Bori shrugged. "Ponies celebrate it as the founding of Equestria, many others the time of other great moments in their history. Like the end of the great winter in Griffonstone, or the starvation in Yakyakistan. Everybody celebrated Hearth's Warming for different reasons, and none of them are wrong to celebrate the end of a terrible time in history, but throughout the years, it seems everybody has moved away from the true meaning of Hearth's Warming. Griffinstone doesn't even celebrate it anymore."

"It's weakened the Crystal Star to the point we are worrying if it can keep up the veil, and keep the Windigos at bay." Alice said, looking more serious and worried than they had ever seen the young reindeer. 

"This is why you are needed, Nicholas." Aurora said, stepping closer to him. "The Crystal Star chose you to spread the cheer of hearth's warming, bring hope, and the joy of giving."

Nicholas turned towards the star once again. "But, why me?" He said in a low voice. "I'm just, well, me." It wasn't that Nicholas was trying to be difficult, but it was overwhelming to be told he was the chosen one, and the fate of hearth's warming rested on his human shoulders.

"That's why the Crystal Star chose you..." The answer came from Applejack. Nicholas looked at her, startled and shocked she would say that. "It's because you are who you are, Nicholas." She said her voice was firm. She turned to look at him. "I've known you for years, and I've never known a more kind or selfless pony like you, I mean human."

"Applejack, I... You're saying you want me to stay?"

Applejack let out a sigh, shaking her head. "I'm not saying I want you to do anything, Nick. You make your own choice, but what I am saying is that it makes perfect sense to me. You have a good heart, I know that better than anypony. You have been there for me, more times than Big Mac can count." She smiled at him, and Nicholas couldn't help but smile a bit back. "So yes, Nicholas. You are just you, but that's enough."

A strange warmth washed over them, enough so that all of them looked towards the Crystal Star. Aurora, Bori, and Alice bowed their heads in respect. Nicholas looked at the star, and Mina, who had been quiet up until now, felt a strange sensation of humbleness. She leaped from Nicholas's shoulder, onto Applejack back, somehow sensing what the star wanted.

Applejack could feel it too, and she felt the same sort of respect she felt towards Celestia bubble up within her. She stepped back from Nicholas and the star, not bowing her head, but she did take off her hat, just as a sort of reflex. That left Nicholas alone, facing the crystal.

As he turned, he felt the warmth increase, and the glow seemed to intensify just a little. While he could hear nothing, he somehow knew what the star wanted. Step by step, Nicholas approached the platform, stepped onto it, and moved towards the star. He reached up with his hand, and felt how the warmth invited him in.

As soon as his hand touched the surface, he felt the warmth move from around him, to within him. Like the star connected to him in some way. Nicholas felt overwhelmed for a moment, it was like his mind could see glimpses of what the star wanted from him, but none of them were clear. After maybe a minute, he drew his hand back, letting out a disappointed sigh.

"Disappointed?" A voice from behind asked.

Nicholas jumped, then turned around to face the new voice. As soon as he did, he noticed Applejack, Mina, and the three reindeer were gone, and in their place stood none other than the white alicorn. He smiled at Nicholas, looking a little amused.

"I had a feeling I would be seeing you again."

Nicholas narrowed his eyes. "Who are you, and where are the others?"

"Well," said the older alicorn. "You are not dreaming this time, but you are still not really here. Then again, neither am I." He said casually, trotting up onto the platform, smiling fondly at the star. "The star made it possible for us to talk, you're still in the chamber with the others, but your mind is here."

"And where is it, it looks the same?" Nicholas said, looking around a bit just to make sure.

The alicorn chuckled, the same warm chuckle he had heard the first time they had talked. "Ho-ho-ho... We are inside the star itself."

Again, Nicholas looked around. "But, then.. Are you the star?"  He asked, looking at the stallion once more.

The stallion let out a laugh, this time louder than a chuckle. "Oh, no, no, it's nothing like that." He smiled warmly. "Come on, you know who I am, you're just scared to ask." The stallion winked.

Nicholas gulped, feeling his heartbeat a little faster. "You're... Me..." It wasn't a question, but a statement. The stallion smirked, giving a single nod. "How...?"

"Call me Santa, it's less confusing that way." Santa replied, stepping off the platform. "As to how, the Crystal Star holds ancient and powerful magic. So powerful in fact, that it can bend time itself."

"So you're my future?"

"Ah, now that that is the question, isn't it?" Santa said, gesturing to Nicholas. "You're my past, you are happening right now." Then he gestured to himself. "As for me, I am a future, but nothing is set in stone."

"I don't understand..."

Santa let out a sigh, but smiled as he moved closer and sat down on the platform. Nicholas did the same, sitting down besides, well, himself. "Time is very complicated, I exist in my now, but you exist in your now. Your choices will affect me. It is like I exist, but not yet." Seeing Nicholas's confused look made Santa chuckle. "Yeah, it gets kind of confusing. Trust me, I would know better than anyone."

Nicholas snorted a small laugh. "So, why are we talking?

"To gain some perspective I think." Santa replied. "You have a lot of questions, and you are unsure of yourself, right?" Nicholas nodded, but didn't say anything. "Sometimes I feel that way too."

"Do I get to know what happened to my parents, my real parents?"

For a long while, Santa didn't reply, he just looked ahead, his eyes seemed far away. Then he sighed, nodding a bit. "I can tell you this much Nicholas, you were never unwanted. Or rather, we were never unwanted. That's all I can tell you I'm afraid."

"But, why?"

"Because if there is something I have learned when it comes to time, don't mess with it too much." He said in a knowing, slightly playful, but also deeply serious tone.  "Now," he then said, smiling, his eyes glinting as he looked at Nicholas. "What about you, what are you going to do?"

"I, don't know..."

Santa chuckled. "You don't? Nonsense, of course you do."

"You say I want to accept my role here?"

"Are you saying you don't? Nicholas, we both know that living in the Everfree has been peaceful, but you are feeling restless. Just like I did." Santa explained, then gestured around the grand chamber. "All of this, it's beyond magical, and you get to be part of something great and beautiful." Then he smirked. "Are you telling me you are not the least bit curious?"

"But, my family, the elves, my friends.... Applejack..." Santa raised an eyebrow, and with his hoof he gently wacked Nicholas on the head. "Ow! What was that for?!"

"As far as I remember, there is no rule stating you can't see them ever again, or they stop being your friends, your family stops being your family!" Santa grinned. "This isn't a curse, Nicholas, it's a gift. So, what do you, you want to give it a shot?" Santa asked, holding out his hoof to Nicholas.

He looked at it for a moment, then back at Santa. "Is it worth it?"

Santa's grin widened. "Only one way to find out, sonny. Although it could be so good of you to decide quickly." Nicholas reached up and took his hoof. "Wife is waiting back at home with dinner."

Nicholas's eyes widened, as he looked up at Santa. "What?!"

Santa just winked at him. "See you around, kid."

The world started to brighten, and everything seemed to vanish. "Wait!" But it was too late, Nicholas felt a strange energy stream though him, a power he had never felt before. For a moment, everything went dark.

"Nicholas! Nicholas, are you okay?"

He could hear the voice of Applejack call out to him. Nicholas groaned, feeling his senses coming back to him. "Erghh... What, what happened?" He asked, slowly opening his eyes. He was laying on the platform, Applejack standing above him, along with shocked Mina. Nicholas frowned, then noted the expression of disbelief on Applejack's face. "What..?"

"Uhm, I... Well, you..." 

Applejack fumbled for words, but she couldn't get any to start explaining what had just happened. Nicholas let out a sigh. "I'm okay, Aj, I just passed out." He sat up, feeling slightly strange, like his balance was off somehow. He reached up with his hand to steady his head, only, it wasn't a hand he saw approach his face.

His eyes widened. "Wh-what?!"