//------------------------------//
// Chapter 11: Hearth's Warming is Here Again 
// Story: A Sparkle's Little Dusk IV: A Family Eternal 
// by Mister E-Nonymous 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 11: Heath's Warming is Here Again






At the Castle of Friendship, nearly everypony in Ponyville was there, setting up the castle for Hearth's Warming. In Dusk's room, Dusk was in his room, reading some Hearth's Warming stories. Just then, the door opened and in came Silverstream.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Dusk," Silverstream said.

"It's alright, Silverstream," Dusk said. "Not the first time somepony's walked into my room. Starlight's still trying to get around the castle."

"Was she the purple pony who walked into the bathroom while I was in it?" Silverstream asked.

"Lighter shade, glimmer cutie mark?" Dusk asked.

"Yep," Silverstream replied.

"That's her," Dusk said.

"What are you reading?" Silverstream asked.

"One of the Hearth's Warming stories, since it's that time of the year," Dusk said. He looked at Silverstream, who was giving him a confused look. "You don't know what Hearth's Warming is?"

"Not really," Silverstream said. "What is it?"

"It's a holiday here in Equestria," Dusk said. "Don't you guys have holidays where you're from?"

Silverstream put a claw on her chin, thinking about it. She then got a realization and said, "Aha! I getcha! We hippogriffs/seaponies do have holiday traditions." She was starting to hover. "Especially the Three Days of Freedom Celebration." She then landed back on the ground. "Although, with the Storm King attacking, we had to cut it down to one day."

"Bummer," Dusk said.

"Yeah," Silverstream said. "It's a shame." Just then, Spike's voice came from down the hall.

"Skip Hearth's Warming Eve?!"

Dusk and Silverstream looked towards each other and ran out of the room, Dusk carrying the book he was reading in his magic. When they came to where Spike was, Twilight, Nyx, Daylight and Starlight were there, and Starlight was talking about why she wasn't so interested in Hearth's Warming.

"I think what Spike means to say is Hearth's Warming is about more than presents and candy," Twilight said, pulling Spike back in her magic. "It's a time to spend with friends and family when we celebrate a very important day in Equestria's history."

"I think to most ponies, it's just an excuse for silly songs and fun, not a day to remember some old story," Starlight said, starting to walk away. Twilight then started to think of an idea. Then she saw the book in Dusk's magical hold, smiled, and teleported in front of Starlight's path.

"Maybe you just haven't heard the right Hearth's Warming Eve story yet!" Twilight said.

"Earth ponies, Pegasi, and unicorns sing songs around a hearth to fight back an eternal winter caused by the mythical windigos?" Starlight laughed. "Every foal and filly knows that story."

"Not that one," Twilight said. "My favorite holiday story, 'A Hearth's Warming Tale'. Which is what Dusk is holding in his magic."

"Oh, I love that one!" Spike said.





"Every home in Canterlot was filled with holiday spirit. Every home... except one. It was said of Snowfall that she was almost as studied as Star Swirl the Bearded. Almost, since everypony knows that Star Swirl was an expert at everything from transfiguration, dimensional calibration, teleportation..."

"We get it. Star Swirl's awesome."

"Right. The point is, Snowfall was also a powerful unicorn. She wanted to be perfect. Anything that got in the way of that was a waste of time."

In the story, ponies of Canterlot were celebrating Hearth's Warming in their own way. Chatting with one another or decorating their houses. But one house wasn't decorated. It was the house of the main character of the story, Snowfall Frost. In her house, she had a piece of coal on a scale, which she took off for her alchemy spell she had at her work station. She used her magic to check the spell she was working on. She checked it, smiled, and hovered the piece of coal over the cauldron. She was using her magic to turn the coal into gold. But then the sound of bells ringing made her lose her concentration and she dropped the coal on the floor, it breaking apart.

Snowfall walked towards the window, seeing a bunch of stallions walking through the street, ringing bells. Snowfall then said, "Well, that batch is ruined." She then called out, "Snowdash!"

"Snowdash was Snowfall's loyal assistant."

As Snowfall looked down at the streets with an angry look, a pegasus mare came flying in. The pegasus, known as Snowdash, then asked, "What do you need?"

Snowfall walked towards Snowdash with a broom and said, "Get this mess cleaned up. Those foolish ponies were ringing those blasted bells outside the window and I lost my concentration!"

Snowdash took the broom and started sweeping the floor, saying under her breath, "Whoa, ponies actually enjoying Hearth's Warming Eve. Where did they get that crazy idea?"

"Today is nothing to celebrate," Snowfall said, walking towards a table. "Hearth's Warming Eve is a menace. A dangerous day for all of Equestria."

"Dangerous?! It's awesome!" Snowdash said, getting hyped. "It's the day we remember how unicorns, Pegasi, and Earth ponies came together in friendship to defeat the windigos!"

Snowfall was getting agitated by Snowdash's words. She then said, "That silly legend is the problem! Telling everypony that 'singing songs and being nice' will solve anything? I've spent years studying magic, and that's not how it works." She then stomped her hoof.

"I think you might be missing the point," Snowdash said. Then Snowfall teleported in front of Snowdash, surprising the mare.

"Work hard, learn, and use your skills to better Equestria," Snowfall said. "That's a worthy goal for any pony." She then walked back towards the table. And then she spoke in a sarcastic tone. "But, by all means, if you want to go home early, ignore all of the work you have, and spend the rest..."

"Sweet!" Snowdash said, flying up, and stopping her sweeping. She then flew out of the house quickly. Snowfall groaned, then walked towards the window, seeing Snowdash turning a corner.



After preparing the spell, she said, "Once the spell is cast, all of Equestria will be better off, and they'll have me to thank for it!"

"Wait a minute."





In the family room of the Castle of Friendship, Twilight, Starlight, Spike, Dusk, Nyx, Daylight and Silverstream were sitting on some seats or the couch while Twilight was reading the book.

"Snowfall doesn't like Hearth's Warming Eve so she decides to cast a spell to get rid of it altogether?" Starlight asked.

"I agree," Silverstream said. "I heard of creatures not celebrating certain holidays, but getting rid of the holiday sounds way too extreme."

"And yet, Starlight tried to make everypony the same by replacing their cutie marks with equal signs," Spike said before taking a sip of the hot chocolate he had in his claws.

"And didn't she try to rewrite the time by trying to stop a certain event causing seven alternate realities?" Dusk asked.

"Seven?" Spike asked. "Is that how many we went in?"

"Let's see," Twilight said. She then brought in a chalkboard and put in a dash for each reality she and Spike went through. "King Sombra's war, the Changeling takeover, the original Nightmare Moon's rein, Lord Tirek's destructive rampage, Discord's capital of chaos, Flim and Flam taking over Ponyville, and a devastating wasteland. Okay, that's seven exactly. Wait, how did you know that?"

"The Watcher told us after you three went back in time," Nyx said.

"Oh, right," Twilight said. "The 'What If...?' human-like being that lives in between every universe."

"There's a multiverse?!" Silverstream asked. "I was told it was a hoax."

"I had to chase our newborn cousin through the multiverse," Dusk said. "Apparently, she was one of the most important things to save the Crystal Empire from being turned into a frozen wasteland." That made Twilight, Starlight, Spike, Nyx and Daylight nod in agreement.

"Anyway, let's continue with the story," Twilight said. She then continued where she left off.





"tried to make everypony the same by replacing their cutie marks with equal signs when a voice from the hearth caught her attention."

Snowfall was looking away from the cauldron when a voice caught her attention.

"You sure you wanna go through with this?" the voice asked, making Snowfall surprised.

"Huh?! Who's there?!" Snowfall asked. The liquid in the cauldron started bubbling. Just then, a spirit had arisen from the cauldron. Snowfall looked towards the cauldron and she saw the spirit.



"The Spirit of Hearth's Warmin' Past, that's who," the spirit said, walking towards Snowfall. "And you and me have got to have us a little chat."

"A spirit?!" Snowfall asked. She then got suspicious. "I didn't cast any spirit summoning spell. What are you doing here?"

"You don't think a spell like that would get by without some powerful forces noticin'?" the spirit asked. She then passed right through Snowfall, making the mare surprised. "You've got our attention, Snowfall Frost, and we've got some pretty strong opinions on this spell of yours." She walked right towards the window.

"'We'?" Snowfall asked, turning around.

"They'll be along in a bit," the spirit said, facing Snowfall. "For now, it's just you and me."



Snowfall was now standing in front of the cauldron back in her house. She then realized it and turned around.

She called out, "Spirit? What am I supposed to..." She then noticed something that wasn't in the room before. A huge present. She walked towards it, and then the present burst open with confetti coming out, and another spirit appeared.



"Snowfall Frost!" the spirit said, reverberating. "It is I, the Spirit of Hearth's Warming Presents!"

"Um, don't you mean 'Present', like the time?" Snowfall asked.

"No!" the spirit said, appearing right behind Snowfall, surprising the mare. She then handed some stuff to Snowfall, from different angles. "Toys, Hearth's Warming doll... Here, want a cupcake?" Snowfall was taking the items in her magic.

"Fine, 'Presents'," Snowfall said. She then put all the stuff into a garbage can. "All of the pointless things ponies waste their time on."

"Oh, Snowfall, it's not what the gift is that matters, it's what the gift means!" the spirit said, walking towards the trash can and taking the stuff out.

"It doesn't mean anything," Snowfall said. "It's just stuff!"

"Exactly!" the spirit said. She then held up the cupcake. "Sometimes a cupcake means 'I love you!'" She then held up the toy duck. "Or a toy means 'Hi, how're you doing?'" She then held up the book. "Sometimes a book means 'Your mane looks amazing!'" She then wrapped a scarf around her neck. "And sometimes a scarf means... Well, a scarf usually means you look cold. That one's easy."

"I don't understand anything you're saying," Snowfall said.







Dusk, Nyx, Daylight and Silverstream joined in with Spike's laughter.

"Wow, so far this story sounds like a Christmas Carol back on Earth," Daylight said.

"I loved that story," Dusk said. "Especially when they turned it into a movie. Multiple times." Daylight nodded in agreement.

"Wow," Twilight said. "I'm starting to think that both this world and your original world were connected a lot more than we think." She then thought about it. "Which might have made it a little more coincidental how Dusk's spirit ended up from that world to here." She then pointed at her belly. "And more precisely, here."

"Okay, that's a little too much," Starlight said. "So, what happens next?"

Twilight then looked back at the book and said, "Well, the party was..."

"Wait!" Spike said, cutting off Twilight. "Can we take a quick break? I need to refill my cocoa."

"I could use a refill myself," Dusk said. "Anyone else?" Nyx, Daylight and Silverstream held up their cups. Dusk took their cups in his magic and he and Spike headed out of there.

"You two better hurry!" Twilight said as they were running out of the room. "We're almost to the best part!"

A few minutes passed and Spike and Dusk returned, handing out the cups of hot cocoa to Nyx, Daylight and Silverstream. Spike then blew into his hot cocoa and said, "Okay, I'm ready."

Twilight then continued reading the book, saying, "The party was in full swing."





In the story, there was a Hearth's Warming Party going on. Snowdash was attending and then two mares walked up towards her.



"Snowdash!" the unicorn mare said.

"Hey, Merry," Snowdash responded.

"Why, whatever is the matter, darling?" Merry asked.

"Was it the eggnog?" the pegasus asked, a little worried. "Oh, I knew I put in too much cinnamon!"

"Oh, no, the eggnog was awesome, Flutterholly, I'm just mad at somepony who was complaining about how awful Hearth's Warming Eve is," Snowdash said.

"I don't suppose that pony's name starts with 'Snow'?" Merry asked.

"And ends with 'Frost'?" Flutterholly asked.

"She said Hearth's Warming Eve is just an excuse to party, and we would all be better off spending time working to make Equestria a better place," Snowdash said, getting the attention of the crowd. The crowd booed after what Snowdash said. Outside, Snowfall and the Spirit were looking in through the window. The spirit winked at Snowfall, who then looked back at the party in worry.

"What does Snowfall think a better Equestria looks like?" Merry asked. Just then, Snowdash styled her mane like how Snowfall styles hers.

"Ponies working hard, learning, and using their abilities for the benefit of Equestria," Snowdash responded, saying how Snowfall would say it. That made Merry and Flutterholly giggle.

Snowfall then felt ashamed of what she said to Snowdash. Just then, a snowball hit the window right next to Snowfall. Snowfall turned around and saw some foals playing in the snow. One of them was sitting on top of a snowpony, holding up the top hat.

"It looks like we've got everything on Snowfall's list right here," Merry's voice came from the other side of the window, getting Snowfall's attention.

"I think a perfect Equestria looks a lot like a Hearth's Warming Eve party," Flutterholly said as she and Merry were right at the window. Just then, the curtains closed.

"Me too!" the spirit said, directly into Snowfall's ear. She then started walking backwards towards an incoming fog bank. "Too bad it's going to be the last one ever! Ever! Ever! Ever!" Her voice was echoing as she was vanishing into the fog bank.

"Spirit? What do you mean?" Snowfall asked as she was walking into the fog bank. "What's going to happen?!" She looked around, even walking backwards, looking for the spirit. Just then, some wind started howling. She then came across a new spirit.



Snowfall covered her eyes while apologizing to the spirit, but when she uncovered them, she saw that she was back in her house. She then headed towards the window and opened it up, seeing all the ponies out there, enjoying their Hearth's Warming.

"There's still time!" Snowfall said.





At the Hearth's Warming Party, the ponies there were enjoying their time there. Merry and Flutterholly were talking to each other when there was a knocking at the door. They walked towards the door, and they opened the door. Outside, there was Snowfall.

"Oh, my," Merry said, seeing who was at the door.

"Snowfall Frost?" Flutterholly asked.

"I was hoping I wasn't too late for the party?" Snowfall asked. She then levitated a bunch of gifts. "I brought gifts."

Snowdash hovered behind Merry and Flutterholly and saw her boss at the door. She then did a spit-take and said, "Boss?!"

"I was wrong earlier, about Hearth's Warming Eve," Snowfall said, walking in. "It's not all about singing and presents. The singing and presents are all about celebrating the ponies in our lives. The ponies we should listen to more often: our friends." She then levitated the gifts she had to the ponies around her.

"Wow," Snowdash said before she unwrapped what she was given. She then looked at it, a little concerned. "Dragon toenail? Uh... thanks?"

"I was in a hurry," Snowfall said, a little embarrassed. "I'll do better next time."

"Ha. You kidding?" Snowdash asked. "No one's ever given me dragon toenail before! It's awesome! Now come get some eggnog!" She handed Snowfall some eggnog, who took it in her magic. She then started enjoying the party along with the other ponies.

"And from then on, it was always said of all the Hearth's Warming Eve celebrations, Snowfall's was the Hearth's Warmingest."





"The end," Twilight said, finishing the book. "Well, that's it!" She then got up from the seat and started walking towards the door, along with Dusk, Nyx, Daylight and Silverstream. "Thanks for letting me read you the story. Guess you can call it a night. We're all heading downstairs, and if you wanted to, you'd be welcome to join us."

Starlight then started to think to herself. After thinking things over, she headed over towards the main hall. She saw all the ponies spending Hearth's Warming together. She decided to join in and started celebrating Hearth's Warming with all the ponies, the dragon and the hippogriff there. She might as well enjoy it with ponies than to be all alone for the holidays.