//------------------------------//
// School of Friendship - Chapter 2 - Hearth's Warming 
// Story: Ocean Blues 
// by TalkingToMyself 
//------------------------------//

Blue yawned as she pushed the last cloud into position. It was  late December, and the schedule called for snow for the next couple of days. It was Blue’s first winter in Equestria, but she already knew that she preferred summer, just like she had in the human world. Despite having a natural coat of fur now, she still didn’t enjoy the cold, and she was glad for the earmuffs that Rarity had made for her. Also, snow-clouds were a lot heavier than summer rainclouds, which meant a lot of work to get a constant snowfall. However, as she watched the fillies and colts from the nearby school and how they played in the snow, she didn’t mind too much, really. 

Still, as it turned out, snow wasn’t her forte, and so she just helped move the clouds into position so that her colleagues could take over and set them off. Which also meant she was finished before the others, and since she had the next couple days off, she wouldn’t be complaining about that. She waved and said her goodbyes, but the captain finally shooed her out of the sky, with a smile.

Instead of heading straight home, Blue flew into town, towards the post office. She ignored the front door and walked to the back, where a small group of ponies was already waiting, most of them pegasi like herself.
“Blue! You came!”
Blue grinned and greeted the blonde-maned mare with their typical hoof-bump.
“Told ya I’d be there. Wouldn’t leave a friend hanging.”

Derpy Hooves, or Muffins as some ponies called her, laughed and clapped her shoulder with a little too much force, but Blue knew she didn’t mean any harm. Derpy was just very enthusiastic about her job as a mailmare, and Hearth’s Warming was the busiest time of the year. Which was why Blue had offered to help out. Every volunteer was teamed up with an official mail pony. A few ponies found it funny that she was teamed up with Derpy, but Blue didn’t mind. Just like the human girl she knew from CHS, Derpy had her head in the clouds sometimes, but she still could remember where everypony in Ponyville lived, so Blue wasn’t going to question how she did her job. Besides, she was just extra muscle anyway.

Derpy lead them to an aera where parcels, packages, letters, and cards in nearly all sizes were stacked up and organized by districts. Unlike the other teams, Derpy and Blue headed straight for the biggest pile and loaded up. Derpy needed her hooves free, but Blue carried as many parcels as she could, just leaving her wings free.
“Are you sure you can still fly like that?”
“No worries. I can manage, easy peasy…”
“Cider squeezy!”

They laughed and Derpy went for the sky, with Blue right after her. By now, it was already snowing, but it was only a light snowfall, so flying was no problem at all. In her typical way, Derpy flew in a circle two, three times, then shot straight for their first delivery, with Blue on her tail.





A few hours later, but still a couple hours before sunset, Blue yawned as she headed into the apartment. The place was warm, and she could smell some spiced tea, which was a good sign that Spring Meadow was already home. A short while later, Spring and Blue squatted down in the living room. Blue had sprawled out over the couch, Spring picked one of the armchairs to curl up. They didn’t have a flickering fireplace for the complete winter atmosphere, but their little heater kept the room cosy and they had put on a record, one of Spring’s favourites from way back when.

Maybe it was the music or the fact that they had a warm place to stay for winter, but Blue could see on Spring’s face that she was getting nostalgic. While for everypony else that would be a good thing, Blue’s and Spring’s past had been anything but pleasant, so if Spring thought back to those years, Blue knew it wasn’t any nice. Especially since she knew what Spring would be thinking about, this close to Christmas.

“Hey Blue?”
“Yeah?”

The look on Spring’s face made Blue want to puke, but she kept it out of her voice, for Spring’s sake.
“Do you sometimes think back about Mom?”
“Not the way you do.”

Spring picked up the angry undertone in Blue’s voice, and she hesitated for a moment. But then she pushed on anyways.
“I sometimes wonder what she would think if she knew that we were living in a different world now.”
“She would probably think ‘Where can I get more booze?’ or whatever shit she’s on right now.”

Blue now glared a Spring full force, as did Spring in return.
“Blue, you shouldn’t talk about her like that. She’s still our mother.”
“Not for the last nine years she wasn’t. Last time I checked, she didn’t give any fucks about anyone but her own sorry ass.”
“It’s not fair of you to judge her like that!”

That, finally, was enough to tick Blue off big time
“Not fair? Not fair? Let me tell you what’s not fucking fair. It’s not fair that she ignored us for years! It’s not fair that she was always drunk! It’s not fair she forced you to take care of her, when she was supposed to be an adult!”

Spring couldn’t keep up her glare against Blue’s fury, because she knew that Blue was right with everything she said. She still stayed defensive about it, though.
“I was old enough to take over some responsibilities.”
“FUCK THAT! You were freaking fifteen and I was nine! Was that old enough to come back home from school and see some paramedics trying to save the fucking cunt? Were you old enough to get dragged into all the legal bullshit that came after? Getting sent from one orphanage to the next, from city to city? Are you seriously trying to tell me that there’s an age where that shit is okay for fucking anyone? Because if you are, you’re a bigger fucking moron than the cunt herself!”

Spring slammed her hooves against the armchair she was sitting on
“I know! I know! And it wasn’t fair for her to do it on Christmas of all days. But she was trying, Blue. She was trying so hard at times. You didn’t see it all the time, but she really was.”

Blue’s glare was seething, and she was too angry to realize that she was probably hurting her sister with her words. At this point everything just burst out of her.

“If she fucking cared, she would have come looking for us! We were wards of the state for fuck’s sake, and she was our mother on paper at least. If she wanted to see us again, or even write a fucking letter, she could have. She should have! But she didn’t because that fucking cunt doesn’t give a single fucking shit about anyone but her fucking disgusting piece of shit self!”

Blue’s breath came in angry, laboured heaves. She had screamed so loud that her throat hurt, and her ears were ringing. She was so angry that the room was blurry from a red haze she could see.

Spring’s sobbing pulled her back into the room. She flinched when she saw that her sister was crying into her hooves. Spring was always the strong, collected one, she never got overwhelmed by emotion. Unwillingly, Blue remembered the last time she saw her cry, right before they got kicked out of their apartment and had to come to Equestria to stay together. Getting almost separated from her sister had pushed Spring past her breaking point back then, and today Blue had managed the same by herself.

“I'm sorry. I... I shouldn't have said that.”
Spring shook her head, and even though she still had tears run down her face she looked at Blue 
“No, everything you said is true. I'm just covering for her mistakes, like I always did. But you're right. She clearly made a choice. If she wanted to see us again, she could have. That can only mean she never even tried.”

Spring Meadow got up from her seat and joined Blue on the couch. Blue didn’t feel like having anyone close right now, but that was because she was angry. For Spring’s sake, she scooted to the side so Spring could sit next to her. At least that way, she didn’t have to see her sister’s crying anymore.

“I’m sorry that I keep defending her, after all that she put you through. I get why you’d be mad at me.”
Blue’s head snapped around, staring at her sister in disbelieve
“What she put me through? I’m not mad at you, I’m freaking pissed because of what she put you through. All that bullshit you had to deal with all the fucking time, and it’s all her fault!”

Spring didn’t look at her, but she shook her head.
“I never saw it like that. I just did what I had to do. So you could have a normal life, but I guess I didn’t do a very good job, right? I mean, we had to run away to a world with magic talking horses… that’s about as far away from normal as you could get.”
Blue blew out her breath through her nose, angrily.
“That’s what I hate most about her. That she made you think you’re responsible for every bad thing that ever happened. You’re not. It’s not your fault what that bitch did. And it’s not your fault that I always got into trouble, so much that we had to run away here and…”

“Blue, stop!”
Spring sat up, and they were now glaring at each other.
“That’s not your fault either. I’m not the only one blaming herself for stuff she shouldn’t. And I’m not the only one avoiding this stuff. Maybe I’m not good talking about this, but neither are you. You think I didn’t notice all the extra shifts, all the odd jobs you pick up, helping the post office, just anything to keep you busy, right? Anything so you don’t have to think about it! About her!”

Blue gritted her teeth and shook her head.
“You want me to sit around and wallow in my own misery all day like you do?”
“I’m not wallowing in misery!”
“Could have fooled me! Next thing you do is find a bottle to drown your shit, just like she did!”

Spring flinched and recoiled as if Blue had slapped her, and Blue immediately felt nothing but sorry. That had crossed so many lines, and she knew it.
“I… I didn’t mean it. Not like that. You’re not like her. You’re so much stronger.”
“I know you didn’t, but… no matter how strong you think I am, or how strong you are… Blue, there’s a limit. Everypony has a breaking point. We can’t just pretend this isn’t affecting us.”
Blue swallowed her anger and nodded, calmly.
“I know, but… I don’t know what to do. Whenever I think about her… I just get so angry, and then I don’t think straight anymore.”
“I understand, Blue. I don’t know how to fix this either. This isn’t like a bill that needs to be paid or some legal bullshit form that needs to be filled out. I don’t even know where to start.”

They sat next to each other, and slowly, Blue leaned towards her sister. They were in over theirs heads with this one. But if Blue had learned anything during the last year, it was that just because a problem was too big for her, it didn’t mean it was too big for everpony else too.

“Maybe we need help. Maybe we should talk about this.”
“Isn’t that what we’re doing right now? It’s not going too well.”
Blue shook her head and squeezed her sister’s hoof.
“I didn’t mean talking to each other. I’m not patient enough and get angry, I won’t even let you finish. But isn’t there somepony you could trust enough? One of your friends at work maybe?”

Spring hesitated for a moment, but she nodded slowly after some thinking.
“I guess. But you have to promise you’ll find somepony to talk to, too. It’s hurting you too.”
“Okay. I will. I promise.”

They looked at each other, and even though she still had tears in her eyes, Spring could smile again. She rubbed her hoof over her eyes, and sat up again.
“Right, after Hearth’s Warming though. Can you keep it together for the little guy?”
Blue grinned and winked.
“Hey, he knows I’m always angry. Why pretend it’s different just because of the holiday?”

Spring chuckled and the tension left, not entirely, but enough to not weigh them both down anymore. Just in time, as there was a knock on the door.
“I’ll get it.”

Blue went and opened the door, for Gallus.
“Hey, Mini-Dude. School’s finally out, huh?”
“Yeah. Just said goodbye to all of my friends. Um, thanks for letting me stay.”
“No worries, Mini-Dude. Told you Twi and Rainbow wouldn’t have a problem with it, right?”
“Right. Um. So what’s going to happen now?”

Spring laughed, hearing only the last part as they joined her in the living room.
“Nothing much, I’m afraid. Blue and I aren’t big on traditions, so we’d just have a nice dinner and then relax a bit.”

Gallus blushed and nodded and waved shyly to the pony he hadn’t met yet.
“Um, Hello Doctor Spring Meadow.”
Blue laughed and Spring just rolled her eyes.
“It’s ‘Nurse’, if anything, but I’m not at work, so Spring Meadow is fine. Now, we’ve gotten a few things from the market, but is there anything you’d like to have for dinner?”

Gallus looked away to hide his shyness and just shrugged.
“I don’t care. Anything is fine.”
“I see. How about we all cook together then?”
“Oh. Um. I never cooked before.”

Blue grinned and nudged him towards the kitchen.
“Don’t sweat it, Gallus. We’re no chefs either. Take it easy.”
“It’s not about the food, it’s about spending time together and having fun.”
“I get it. I’m just… not used doing real family stuff.”
He blinked when Blue and Spring started laughing.
“Neither are we. I used to work on the holidays for the extra pay. This is our first real celebration together.”
“Where we don’t have to count every bit we spent or worry about the food lasting for the whole month.”

Gallus stared at them, which only made them laugh harder.
“Yeah, that’s how everypony reacts.”
“Sorry. I’m just not used to ponies knowing these kinds of things. It’s common in Griffonstone, but…”
“Dude, misery loves company. At least we get to be depressed together.”
“Oh, screw that! If you start moping around, you’ll have another thing coming at you!”
This time, Gallus joined in their laughter, especially since Spring was threatening Blue with a wooden spoon.

Blue returned to the living room to put on a record, loud enough so they’d hear it in the kitchen as well. Gallus of course didn’t know it, but Spring’s head bounced in tune.
“Okay Gallus, what will it be. Sweet, savoury, spicy?”
“Oh. Um. I kinda like spicy food.”
Spring and Blue grinned and nodded.
“Right. Let’s see if you can handle extra hot volcano peppers from the dragon lands. Spike brought some for us during his last visit, we’ve been waiting for a chance to open them. Those beasts pack a serious punch.”

Blue pulled out several pots and pans while Spring gathered all the ingredients for an extra spicy vegetarian chilli. Gallus watched, still a tad unsure how he could help.
“So chilli doesn’t sound like a traditional Hearth’s Warming dish.”
"In case you haven’t noticed, we don’t give too much about traditions in this household. How deft are you with those claws?”
Spring was pointing at them with a challenging grin, and Gallus finally thawed up a little.
“More than you with your hooves.”
“Great. You’ll man the cutting board then. The faster you go, the faster we get to eat.”

Spring held out a kitchen knife for him, while Blue already started something at the stove. He hesitated for a moment, since no adult pony had ever let any of the students even near anything sharp or potentially dangerous. But that was special about his relationship with Blue, after all. She didn’t treat him like a helpless baby, and neither did her sister.

He grabbed the knife and started cutting down some bell peppers Spring handed to him. The older sister watched him work for a minute and approved with a nod, and just a minute later they were all doing something, laughing together as the kitchen filled with delicious scents.





Cooking together turned out to be tons of fun, even more since they got to eat their own creation together as well. Blue wasn’t lying when she had warned of those volcano peppers, but still they kept daring each other to eat just one more. The super-spicy dinner was topped off with ice cream, which was a very welcome palate change after the chilli.

After dinner, they just sprawled out in the living room, with one of Blue’s weird records playing in the back, although it seemed that her sister Spring Meadow had the same weird taste in music. She would even sing along some passages every now and then, which made them all laugh. They talked a bit about the songs and why they liked them, but to be fair most of it went over his head. Gallus wasn’t sure if that was because it was a pony thing, of if it was a weird Blue thing, but he didn’t mind much. It was nice to just chill, and Blue was way more chill with her sister around somehow.

At some point, Blue pulled out a board game of some sort, and they ended up playing deep into the night, finishing up the ice cream on the side. Some point while playing, Spring Meadow switched to calling him ‘Mini-Dude’, just like Blue, and it made him laugh. Blue had offered him her bed, but he was fine on the couch. Spring Meadow and Blue wished him a good night and then vanished into their respective rooms, leaving him alone with his thoughts as he was falling asleep.

It didn’t feel like the Hearth’s Warming he heard about from Sandbar or Silverstream, or the professors at school. But, if he had to choose, Gallus would pick this over any other family tradition.