As fall faded away and lead into winter, something odd happened. It stared with Xavier seeming even more melancholy then before, isolating himself even more. This time, everyone tried to ask him what was wrong, but they never could get his attention. Pinkie did mention the things that happened when she and Xavier foalsat the Cake twins, leaving everyone conflicted. Things became worse however, as his dampened mood seemed to get to the other humans too, as they all seemed to grow sadder or irritable, making their ponies even more worried. Now as snow piled up outside their homes in the morning, each human was in their room, not exactly feeling like doing much-

At least until multiple loud noises could be heard from the living room, alerting everyone. As they all grabbed their stuff and ran to see what the loud noises were, they were greeted by a sight that wasn't what they thought they would see, as the living room was decorated with many decorations for Christmas, even extending into the kitchen. And in the center of the room was Alex next to a large pine tree, looking down at a bunch of dropped ornaments, saying some very profound things.

"What!? Ah damn it, ye weren't suppost'a come down 'ere yet!" He exclaimed, throwing his hands up and going into the kitchen, coming back out with a broom and dustpan. "Can't ye just go back ta ye rooms, ferget this happened, an' come back down in another hour?" Everyone simply looked at each other, thinking he was being ridiculous.

"Damn it." As Alex was groaning at his mishap while cleaning up the dropped ornaments, the others began to fan out and look around.

"So, what are you doing?" Huston asked, staring at a candy cane that was hung up on a coat rack.

"Well ay was decoratin' so that when ye all came outta yer rooms ye'd be surprised an' ferget that ye were sad in the first place." Everyone looked at him confused. "Well, everyone's been pretty down as of late, an' the holidays are coming up soon. Apparently 'ere in Equestria, they 'ave a holiday that's similar to Christmas called Hearths Warmin'. When ay 'eard about this, ay thought that ay could make the house festive an' get everyone inta the holiday spirit ta cheer ye guys up. So, what do ya think?" Alex looked at them after tossing the broken ornaments into the trash with a smile, hoping to see them react in a positive way. His hope and smile however dwindled as he saw that they all didn't show signs of cheer. "Erm..."

"Sorry Alex. It was nice to think of us like that, but I don't think I want to celebrate." Surprising Alex, it was Jasmine to say something first.

"I mean, you did a good job and all, but thinking about it I just think about Christmas back on earth." Jasmine said rubbing her arm. "Back then, the only thing I wanted was to celebrate the holidays with my parents, but they were always busy on Christmas, so I was alone..."

"I'll have to decline too." Cali said crossing her arms, worrying Alex even more. "You do remember that I never had much growin' up, right? Seein' all those other families splurge on their kids while not givin' a damn about anyone in poverty or orphanages is just... Grrr."

"Sorry, me too." Huston joined, making Alex think that no one was going to join. "I-it reminds me of a friend." Huston's reason wasn't as detailed, but seeing his face with an expression of pain was enough to say everything. Alex looked over at Xavier, only to see that he was already closing the door to his room, his expression even more depressed than before. It wasn't long before the others decided to follow suit, heading to their rooms too, leaving Alex alone in his failed attempt of getting his fellow humans to cheer up for holiday cheer.

After the light rejection of Alex's plans, he found himself leaving the house in frustration. Now he was sitting at a table at a restaurant, not looking too happy with a glass bottle in his grasp. His state of irritation was interrupted by a voice behind him.

"NO, AY DIDN'T TELL 'EM DASH!!" He yelled out, turning to Rainbow, the pegasus looking a bit defensive. Upon realizing that, he immediately looked guilty. "Gah! Sorry lass! I didn't mean it!"

"Erm, it's not a problem." As Rainbow lowered her guard, she noticed the bottle. "Hey wait, have you been drinking!?" Alex looked at his hand and the bottle, and realized what she was saying.

"*sigh* No, it didn't." Alex sighed as he tuned back to the table, Rainbow sitting at the table as well. "Ay set up the decorations, but none of 'em wanted ta celebrate the holidays. Can ye believe that?!"

"Ay know! An' before ay could tell 'em about the Hearths Warmin' party, they up an' walked back to their rooms!" He yelled out as he took another swig from his ginger ale. "An' yet ay don't 'ave the heart ta go an' tell 'em now." This confused Rainbow.

"Well, they all gave me these sad looks an' reasons. Although Huston and Xavier didn't tell me much directly, ay can tell they don't wanna talk about it, so ay would feel guilty pressin' further, so ay just left." As Alex sighed and took another drink from his ginger ale, Rainbow sighed as well.

"Well, you guys always seem to have some kind of depressing thing going on, so I think it's reasonable." Rainbow commented, leaving Alex to glare at her with annoyance.

"Hmph, ye gonna be more blunt?" Alex grumbled as he took another swig. "Well, ay guess we should tell Pinkie to take four humans off the guest list or somethin'. Don't wanna force 'em ta do anythin' that would make 'em uncomfortable."

"Yeah, you're probably right." As the two sat in silence for a bit, Alex spoke up again.

"An' yet, ay still wanna get 'em presents fer the holidays." He sighed, catching Rainbow's attention.

"Yeah. Back home, many consider this holiday 'the season of givin'', so even if they don't wanna celebrate, ay still wanna give 'em somethin'." Alex explained after taking another swig of ginger ale.

"Are you sure?" Rainbow questioned, a bit worried about the idea. "They may get more upset."

"Bah, who get's upset at a present?" Alex reasoned. "No one can resist the urge ta open a present labeled fer them. Plus, if the gifts great, they just can't help but feel nice."

"Thank ye's, Dash. Yer a great friend." Alex sat up straight and crossed his arms, beginning to think. "Hmm, now what ta get..."

"Well, it seems like an easy thing to think about considering who we're talking about."

"Yeah, yer right. But ay just don't wanna get 'em somethin' ye can buy fer cheap, ay want ta get them somethin' with quality."

"Yeah, hmm..." Alex closed his eyes to think, considering his options. "Well, ay do remember that Xavier was lookin' fer some special component thing fer his next project. Maybe ay could try and find it first."

"Ay'm pretty sure he's lookin' fer some mechanical joints. Not sure what it's gonna be used fer, but ay do remember the looks of 'em. And ay also remember seein' them bein' sold in Canterlot." Hearing Alex mention Canterlot made Rainbow nervous as she remembered what happened there last time.

"Ay know yer concerned, but don't worry. Ay'll keep me cool there." Alex said as he stood up and drained the last drops of ginger ale and tossed the bottle into a nearby trash can. "I've managed ta save up quite a bit from workin' with AJ before winter hit, so ay should be able to buy 'em along with some more presents fer the others." As Alex was stretching himself out, Rainbow got up as well.

"Alright, be nice ta have some company." With that, the duo began their journey for gifts to give.

Fortunately, their trip over to Canterlot was smooth as they went from Ponyville's train station to Canterlot's easily. As the two were strolling around the city however, Rainbow asked a question.

"So, where do we buy these things anyway?" Alex stopped and paused, thinking it over.

"Ah crap, ay don't think ay saw where they were bein' sold!" Alex shouted as he threw his head back, covering his face with his hands. Alex's outburst startled many in the area (as he was pretty well known in the city), and there was one in the crowd that recognized him in a different way.

"I dare say, is that Alexander I hear?" Alex uncovered his face as him and Rainbow looked at the voice, seeing that Fancy Pants was walking over to them.

"What are you doing out here?" Rainbow asked, continuing Alex's train of thought.

"Well, I'm out looking for a present for Fleur De Lis. I assume you're here to do the same?" Fancy Pants answered and assumed, earning a sigh from Alex.

"More like Alex." Rainbow answered for him. "We're looking for some mechanical joint thingies for his friend to give as a gift. He heard it was here in Canterlot, but he never learned exactly where." After Rainbow finished explaining, Fancy Pants put his hoof to his chin in thought.

"Hmm, well I may not know much about the topic, I do think I know what you're talking about." He said, getting the two's attention. "I can bring you over if you'd like."

"Don't worry, my boy. I would be happy to show you. Consider it compensation for what happened during your stay here in Canterlot last time." Fancy Pants' offer get the two to look at each other before nodding.

"Aight, if yer offerin' ay guess we can accept." Alex agreed, Fancy Pants smiling and waving for them to follow. After some time walking they found they were in front of a shop, a sign that called it "The Steel Eagle".

"An' you too, Fancy Pants. Ay hope ye find what yer lookin' fer as well." With a goodbye between unlikely friends, Alex and Rainbow entered the shop. When they entered and looked around for a bit, they saw that there were a lot of mechanical toys like trains, wind-up toys, and music boxes. And at the counter was a tough-looking stallion with a dull coat and grey mane and beard, wearing a bandana and a brown coat, working on a music box. Looking up, the stallion began to speak.

"Well, ay'm lookin' fer some joints fer a friend." Alex said, getting a raised eyebrow from the stallion.

"You wouldn't happen to be getting them for that other human who knows his way with gadgets like this, would you?" The stallion asked, raising the music box up to show the two.

"Erm, yeah actually." The stallion put the music box down and closed his eyes, nodding as he got up.

"Figured as much. Call me Gnome Hat." He then walked to the backroom, taking a bit before returning with a box full of parts. "Take your pick. I'll count the cost when you're finished."

"Thank ye, sir. Give me a moment." Alex began too look through the contents of the box, Gnome Hat going back to the counter and going back to work on the music box. As Alex was looking through the contents, Rainbow went over to Gnome Hat and struck up a conversation.

"A music box. What does it look like?" His blunt answer got Rainbow to back up nervously.

"Hmph." Gnome Hat simply grunted before staying silent, not answering Rainbow's questions anymore. Taking the hint, she stayed quiet and waited for Alex to finish up. It wasn't before long that Alex walked over to the counter with some parts on his hands.

"'Ere we are." Alex said as he put the parts down, those being four small, slim leg-like joints. Giving a nod, Gnome Hat stopped working on the music box to turn to Alex.

After Alex and Rainbow's stop at The Steel Eagle, Alex decided that he would like to walk around Canterlot for a while longer to see if he could find some more gifts. As they were walking around however, Alex didn't see anything that would work.

"Gah, nothin' here is goin' ta work." Alex groaned. Rainbow looked at him with worry and sympathy.

"Well, what if we go back to what we did before and take this one at a time?" Alex looked at her and thought for a second.

"Yeah, that's a good idea." Alex then put a hand to his chin and began to think. "But who should we start with?" The two walked for a bit, but with Alex looking down thinking. It didn't take long for this to end badly.

"Huh, what's- oof." Before Alex could ask what Rainbow was doing, he accidentally bumped into something, that something also grunting from the impact as both him and the thing he bumped into fell into the snowy street. When Alex looked up after recovering, he saw that he managed to bump into none other than Twilight Sparkle. "Eh? Twilight?"

"Alex?" Twilight asked as she looked up to see him and Rainbow. Alex didn't waste too much time getting up and running over to Twilight, helping her up.

"Well, I was visiting my family for the holidays before the Hearth Warming party in Ponyville." Twilight explained, getting nods from Alex and Rainbow. "What about you two?"

"We're here to buy gifts for the other humans." Rainbow answered, catching Twilight's attention.

"No, it's more like Alex doing this because they aren't coming." Rainbow explained, getting a confused and concerned look from Twilight. "Well Alex was going to tell them about the party, but before he could get to it the others gave some sad reasons or something and just left for their rooms. Bummer too, it would have been nice to spend a Hearths Warming together for once."

"Yeah. Now that you mention it, Xavier didn't join us when we took part in the Hearth Warming play here in Canterlot last year even though he was invited." Twilight mused, thinking back. "I wonder why."

"Well, at least we have one who's willing. Right Alex?" Rainbow and Twilight looked over at Alex, at least where he was before as he wasn't there anymore. "Alex?" The two began to look around, concerned he was in trouble. At least until they saw him looking into a window of a shop, letting out sighs of relief as they went over to him. "Hey man, what are you looking at?"

"Hm, oh I was lookin' at that." When Rainbow got Alex's attention, he pointed inside towards a pillow that was colored and shaped like a cloud. It even had a cut little face. "Ay was just thinkin' about how nice of a present it would be fer Jasmine. What do ye think?" Looking inside for a bit, the two thought the same thing.

"Great." Alex went over to the door and entered. After a bit, he came out with a gift bag containing the pillow. "Aight, got that. Now ay just need presents fer Cali an' Huston." When Alex spoke, Twilight remembered something.

"Oh, I think I know what you can give Cali." Twilight said, catching Alex and Rainbow's attention. "When I was at my parents, they said that they were looking into getting rid of a few things to make room for some equipment they need, and I remember that some of the things they were thinking of were some cooking supplies. They're high quality so I think Cali would like them."

"Yeah. If you want, I can take you over to meet them and talk." Thinking it over, Alex came to a decision.

"Yeah, ay think ay will." Smiling, Twilight begun to lead him and Rainbow to her home.

After some time guiding Alex and Rainbow, the three of them made it to the house that Twilight's parent's lived in. All things considered, the house was a very nice one when compared to others, and seeing as how they were in Canterlot-

"Well no, but my parents are quite successful along with my brother, so that does contribute to things." Twiight said as they approached the door. "Mom, dad. Are you here?" Twilight called as she opened the door, leading her friends inside. As Alex and Rainbow were looking around Twilight's house, they heard hoof steps coming close.

"Twilight? You're back sooner than we expected." Looking over, they saw two ponies walking over, one a mare and the other a stallion. Seeing them, Alex and Rainbow assumed that they were Twilight's parents.

"Yeah, but I came because my friend wants to talk to you." Twilight said as she gestured to Alex, the human giving a wave to them.

"Hey, he wouldn't happen to be one of the humans you mentioned before, right?" The stallion asked, his and the mare's curiosity peaking.

"Yep. This is Alex, he recently came here to Equestria." Twilight then turned to Alex and gestured to the two. "Alex, Rainbow. Meet my parents, Twilight Velvet and Night Light."

"Please, no formalities needed." Night Light stopped Alex. "You two are good friends to our daughter, and it's nice to see her smile." After Night Light spoke, Alex sighed and smiled.

"Oh yeah. She said that ye were lookin' inta gettin' rid of some cookin' supplies. If ye are, do ye think ay could have 'em? Ay'll pay ye too." Alex told the married couple, the two looking him over.

"Hmm, you don't seem like the type to cook that much." Twilight Velvet stated. "So does that mean that you want them as a gift."

"Well, yeah. Ye see, ay'm holiday shoppin' fer gifts fer the other humans. They've all been in a funk lately, so ay wanted ta invite 'em ta a holiday party that yer daughter is goin' ta. Unfortunatly, they all declined, so ay'm goin' around shoppin' ta give 'em gifts, and one of 'em loves cookin'. So ay was hopin' that ay could take yer cookin' supplies ta give as a gift ta her." Alex explained, getting nods from the couple.

"If that's your goal, we can give them to you. No payment needed." Night Light said, surprising Alex.

"Of course. You seem like quite the gentlecolt, so we don't have much reason to not trust you. Besides, Twilight trusts you, so we do too." Alex smiled at Night Light, happy to know that he gained the trust of his friend's parents.

"Thanks. Ay'll be sure ta remember this." With a nod, Night Light went deeper into the house, presumably to collect the things.

"This is great, all you need is a present for Huston." Rainbow said happily, though Alex didn't seem to share the sentiments as he put a hand to his chin.

"Yeah, but he's may be a bit more trouble." Alex commented, clearly worried. "The things he would like are kinda expensive, an' ay'm runnin' a bit low on cash now." Alex looked at the coin pouch he brough with him, seeing there was only a few bits left. "Those joints were a lot more expensive than ay originally thought. An' paintin' stuff is a lot more expensive than a pillow."

"Painting?" As Alex sighed at his predicament, the group overheard Twilight Velvet question Alex, so he looked up to meet her gaze.

"Erm, yeah. He's an artist, so ay think he'd like some paint or somehtin'. The problem is that those things are kinda expensive if ye go quality."

"Hmm, funny. I just picked up a book about something interesting." Twilight Velvet mentioned, catching Alex's attention. "Hold on for a second." Twilight Velvet let the room as well, leaving the three friends alone again, at least until Night Light returned with the supplies they had.

"Here you are Alex. Hope these work for you." After Night Light handed the stuff to Alex, he looked through the things and saw that they were indeed quality.

"Aye, this'll do. Thanks fer helpin' out Mr. Light." As Alex was thanking Night Light, Twilight Velvet returned with a book.

"Here we are." Twilight Velvet said as she put down the book, revealing that it was one themed around ancient legends and civilizations. "I bought this recently, and you talking about painting reminded me of a legend in here." Twilight Velvet then turned the book's pages to one, one where there was a legend written in a poem form.

Within a forest of evernight
Lays a fruit everblooming by the bunch
To claim this fruit of dazzling light
One must spur bravery and take a plunge

Reading it over, the three friends were quite confused at the legend. "Erm, what does this have ta do with my predicament?"

"Well, apparently this fruit was used a great deal by ponies that lived by the Castle of the Two Sisters before it was destroyed. It was cultivated to make a paint that was illustrious." Upon hearing the term "paint", Alex perked up.

"Yes, but when the princesses fought over a thousand moons ago, many ponies fled. When they did, this special fruit was destroyed by both the ponies trampling the crops, but also from the magic that the sisters used. When the ponies returned to their homes, the crop was nothing more but ruined like their homes and the castle, so they left without any of the paint left. However..." Twilight Velvet walked away for a moment, letting the suspense kick in. "If that legend stays true, then perhaps there may be some left." Alex smiled and rolled his arm.

"Well if that's the case, ay'll have ta find this fruit now!" Alex's declaration shocked his friends.

"Yeah." Rainbow agreed. "Normally I wouldn't mind danger, but for a single fruit?"

"Ay'm serious. If this fruit makes one of the best paints in Equestria, then ay just have ta nab it fer Huston."

"Well, if you want to go, I can put it on a map for you." Twilight Velvet offered as she grabbed a map from nearby.

"Don't encourage him, mom!!" Twilight's shout didn't stop her mother as she circled an area in the Everfree forest.

"That's where the old town used to be, so all you need to do is head there and find the fruit."

"Thanks fer this. Ay'm off." Alex saluted as he took the map and ran for the door, leaving his pony friends to follow in worry.

No matter what either Rainbow or Twilight said, Alex was not deterred from the mythical fruit, so the couldn't stop him even if they used magic (And Twilight did actually try to stop him with magic, but he was determined). In the end, they decided to follow along as to make sure he stayed safe.

"At least many creatures in the Everfree Forest this time of year." Twilight sighed as they followed Alex who was holding the map and looking up every once in a while to check his bearings.

"Yeah." As Twilight and Rainbow followed along, the pegasus had to ask. "So why was your mom so insistent on Alex finding this fruit anyway?"

"*sigh* that's just my mom." Twilight sighed. "She's always been a thrill-seeker, even after meeting my dad and having me and my brother. I think se wanted Alex to go since she saw how strong he was and wanted to know if this fruit was real."

"Well she wouldn't put Alex through any risks that are unnecessary, so I think she's banking on it actually being real."

"Aye! Stop yer gosipin'! We're here." Looking over at Alex, they saw that they were standing in front of a ruined town. Looking around as they entered, they saw that they the Castle of the Two Sisters was nearby. "Aye, is that the castle?"

"Yeah. We went there the first day me and Xavier came to Ponyville." Twilight explained, her and Rainbow growing a bit nostalgic seeing it.

"Ay see, but no time ta reminisce. Now's the time ta find some fruit." Alex exclaimed, going deeper into the town and interrupting the warm feeling Twilight and Rainbow had.

"How do we even know if this fruit is even here?!" Rainbow asked a bit annoyed. "I mean it's the middle of winter in a town that has no ponies or even signs of life."

"Ye of little faith." Alex simply said. When they stopped, they were in a clearing, where there wasn't much except for a well and a few fallen trees. Looking around, both ponies were doubtful.

"Alex, why don't we go back?" Twilight suggested. "We can cover the costs of buying some paint."

"Aye, we've already came here, so why not have a look around." Alex fought back, leaning on the well. When he did, he noticed something.

"Well I say we follow Twilight's lead." Rainbow added. "I don't mind helping you buy some-"

"Aye, shut up fer a second." Alex interrupted, irritating Rainbow. "Ay think ay saw somethin' glint in here." Curious, Twilight and Rainbow went over to Alex who was looking into the well. Peering in as well, they didn't see anything.

"Yeah. Ay'm sure." Looking in, Alex had a thought remind him of something. Remembering this, Alex stopped peering into the well and backed up. "Hey, ay want to try somethin'."

"Somethin' someone back on earth said and did that reaped lots a' benefits." Alex took a stretch before-

FER THE MEEEEEEEMES!!!!

With a shouting cry, Alex dashed right for the well and jumped right in, leaving no opportunity for his friends to react. When they did, they panicked as Alex fell down the well.

"Ay'm fine! But ay think ay found it." Alex said after a few moments. Confused, they decided to grab a nearby vine and lower it into the well, thankful that they felt a tug on the vine. After some time, Alex climbed out of the well, holding something. Upon stepping onto the ground, it was revealed that he was holding a very sparkly fruit that looked like a blackberry the side of two fists.

"Ay saw a glint an' remembered what yer mom said Twilight. Ye know, about takin' a plunge."

"Hey, ye saw how good at jumpin' ay am." Alex said confidently as he began to walk back out to the entrance, holding the fruit up to the sky. "Who cares though, ay got what ay came fer, time ta finish this."

In the human household, it was very quiet as midday snow gently fell onto the town. The only thing active was a colorful pine tree filled with lights, as Alex never took down the tree, though the rest of the decorations were put away. This was about to change however as Cali exited her room, her expression showing both annoyance and regret.

"*sigh* Maybe we were a bit harsh on him." Cali mused. "I would apologize, but he hasn't been home for a while. Is he still upset- huh?" As Cali was thinking out loud, she noticed that there were four presents stacked underneath the tree. Looking at them closer, she saw that there was one for everyone. "Hey, everyone! Get out here!" Cali called out for everyone inside, and a few moments later they did come out.

"Cali? Is something wrong?" To answer Xavier's question, Cali showed the others the presents, a note falling out from in between them. Picking the note up, she brought the presents over and handed each of them to their respective persons listed on the presents.

"Um, which should we open first?" Jasmine asked as they all sat around the living room.

"Alright." Cali then opened the note taking a second to glance it over. "Oh, it's from Alex."

"Really? well don't leave us hanging." Cali nodded and began to read out the note.

Hey there everyone, hope you're doing better than before. So first of all, sorry about trying to push the idea of the holidays onto you. I know you have your reason as to why you won't celebrate the holidays, so I'll let it slide. Second, you're probably wondering why there are presents. Well, there are two reasons. One is that they are an apology to what I did, and two is that it's for the holidays. I know I said I wouldn't push the idea, but it doesn't mean that I can't give a present to you guys. Open them up before continuing on.

Upon reaching this point, Cali looked up to meet the other's gazes. After looking at each other for a moment, they obliged to the note and opened their presents.

"Oh!" The group looked up to look at Jasmine, who was pulling the cloud pillow out of the present. She looked it over for a second before giving it a squeeze, feeling it's softness. "W-wow." Seeing as how Jasmine was happy about her present, Xavier looked into his present, becoming shocked at what was inside.

"Woah, he got these for me?" He said as he pulled one of the joints out of the present, looking it over.

"These are quite impressive." Cali commented as she looked over her present, impressed. It was then that Huston pulled out a tube of paint. He opened it, and was amazed to see that it shimmered slightly. Since they finished opening their presents they decided to continue Alex's note, so Cali continued reading.

Pretty good, right? You wouldn't believe the hoops I had to get some of those things. Especially yours Huston, there was a lot of complex things to get the materials and cost me the rest of my bits to make it made. Still, I hope you all will like them all. You don't have to get me or anypony else anything, just know we all are here for you. Speaking of, we'll all be over at AJ's place for a Hearth Warming party today, so if you need anything you can come over (And grab some snacks while you're here, Pinkie would be happy to know you came up to get some cake) Well, Merry Ch Happy Hearth Warming.
Alex

Finishing the note, everyone looked at their presents. As they were, they all began to feel guilt at what Alex went through. When they all looked up, they all looked at each other before nodding, knowing what they had to do.

In the Apple family's barn, the party was in full swing. Not only were the girls and Alex there, but also a good amount of townsfolk were there too. As much as everypony was having fun, Alex's mood wasn't as happy as everypony else. At the moment, he was sitting off to the side, a bottle of ginger ale in hand and sighing every once in a while.

"ALEX!!" Before Alex could react, Pinkie jumped onto him, almost making him drop his bottle. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, just thinking' about things." Alex said as he took a sip from his ginger ale and the other girls came over.

"Well, fer one thing, my grandpa." Alex admitted with a sad look. He then looked up at his friends and gave an apologetic look. "Listen, if ye don't wanna have yer holiday spirit leave yer hearts this year, ay'd walk away." Taking a sip of his ginger ale, he waited to see if anypony walked away. When he saw that no one did, he sighed. "Ay've only celebrated the holidays with him, as both my mom an' dad are, well, dead." Alex's news shocked his friends, letting out gasps. "Yeah, my mom gave birth ta me a few days before they went off ta a deployment, leavin' me with my grandpa. Durin' that deployment, they were both killed in action, leavin' my grandpa ta raise me. Now don't get me wrong, ay love my grandpa an' wouldn't trade the time with him for anythin'." Alex defended, standing up to prove the point. "But, ay always wondered what it would be like ta have more family over durin' Christmas, which is our form of Hearth Warmin'."

"Not close by. So it was always me an' my grampa. Sure, ay could have invited my friends from the team ay was in, but they all have families too, so ay couldn't." Alex sighed.

"Well can you blame me?! Ay just... ay just want people ta stick with their families before..." Alex sighed before taking another sip from his bottle, earning sympathetic and sad looks from his friends.

"It's nothin', don't worry about it." Alex said as he stood up. "Ay already warned ye that my story would bring yer holiday spirit down, so sorry." As he apologized, his friends gave shakes of their heads.

"Ye don't have ta be sorry about a thing." Alex cut Twilight off. "After all, ay was the one ta tell ye's. How's about we forget this whole thing an' join back inta the party, ey?" Alex then walked into the center of the party, mingling in with the other attendants. Even if Alex was wearing a happy expression on him, his friends still worried about him. They decided to not ask further however, as Alex has done a lot for them, they could at least give him some privacy.

The party didn't run into a hitch after Alex's confession, and the party ran smoothly for the rest of the day. Granted, both Alex and his friends did have the slightest amount of worry for different reasons, but other than that nothing else. Of course, all parties come to an end, and Alex was now heading back to the house, his footprints leaving shimmering craters in the moonlit snow.

"*sigh* I wonder if the others opened their gifts?" Alex asked himself. "Sure would be awkward to see those presents still lyin' there. Ah well, if they don't open 'em, ay can just put them outside their doors." After a bit, Alex made it to the front door, reaching for the handle. "Still would be nice ta see them, but what can ay do? They won't celebrate-" As he opened the door however, he was greeted by a surprisingly bright sight. Looking around, he saw that the decorations that the put away were all back up, and some were still being put up by his roommates. When he did open the door, the others looked over at him, mixed expressions on their faces. "What in the- what's all this?"

"Um... fine- hey wait! Don't ye avoid my question! What are ye doin'?!" Alex's question got the others to look at each other, and once they were done they looked back at Alex with guilty faces.

"We're sorry." They all said, taking Alex by surprise. As Alex was processing their apology, Cali stepped up. "You know you didn't have to get us presents, right?" Alex recovered at that, and shook his head.

"Ay know, it's just that it felt like the only way ta get ye outta yer rooms fer some reason." Everyone looked guilty afterwards.

"Yeah, and we're sorry for doing that." Xavier said. "You took the effort to find presents for us, and all we did was give you a cold shoulder."

"Our point being..." Huston continued. "We wanted to make up what you did for us."

"You did, but we still decided to do this." Xavier said. "After all, you're doing a lot for us all. Let this be our gift to you this year." Alex stepped closer to the center of the room, looking over everything. After some time, he smiled.

"Heh, well ay guess don't look a gift horse in the mouth." Alex stated, earning happy looks from the others. "No point standin' around, let's enjoy this time together." With that, the night was filled with cheerful laughter from five humans, each of them happy to have met each other in this world. While they may have regrets, worries, or secrets, all of those were cast aside for the night as they all simply enjoyed their time together.

The Impact of Humans on Ponies

by the koopanater

A Human Kind of Christmas