//------------------------------//
// 16th Harvest 
// Story: Just Horsing Around 
// by Darkness Shade 
//------------------------------//

	Well, needless to say, things were pretty much back to normal after that when they returned to Ponyville although Ryan was still a little sore about the whole situation. He found out not too long after that Luna discovered the truth and so was quite apologetic. In fact, she made it a point to explain things to the others and well, they felt pretty bad about ganging up on the poor guy. They all did their best to try and apologize for what had happened in their own ways and Ryan, being Ryan, was eventually worn down by all the attempts and finally forgave them. After all, he figured, it was one hell of a memory to have and actually pretty fun as well save for the whole part where the girls had their...vengeance. As it was he was currently helping AppleJack clean up their home for the holidays.
"...are ya sure yer okay there Apple Ryder? Yer sweatin' quite a bit."
Ryan waved off Apps concern, keeping focused on cleaning, "I've just been moving a lot; we have been doing a lot of cleaning after all so the house looks perfect for Hearth's Warming Eve."
"Ah know that but..." She lifted the couch so he could clean under it, "Aren't ya working a bit hard?"
"Well, with Granny and Big Mac off in Manehattan to check on yer aunt after that awful accident she had, I kind of wanna make it nice for when they get back."
AppleJack nodded, "Ah know that...ah wish AppleBloom hadn't run off to play with her friends though."
"Oh it's fine." Ryan swept up the last bit of crumbs before dumping them into the trash can, "She's young so let her have her fun...one day she'll be grown up and not be able to enjoy being a kid."
Heading into the kitchen, the two of them got to work finishing up the few dishes that needed washed; after that they decided to break for a late lunch and go pick up a few supplies in town. Grabbing a quick shower and getting cleaned up, the two bundled up and headed out into the cold at their usual pace. Deciding on some warm soup and a sandwich they stopped by the cafe for lunch, watching the hustle and bustle of ponies running through the snow, no doubt readying for their own Hearth's Warming celebrations. Running into the CMC's trying to get their cutie marks in...what was it again they had told them? Oh yes, trying to make the Biggest Ryan Sandwich in existence. Watching as they ran off towards Sugarcube Corner to no doubt enlist the help of a certain pink pony Ryan sighed before laughing, "Those three are just precious."
"Ah suppose they are...but are ya sure yer okay?" AppleJack frowned, "Yer sweating again like before."
"Of course I'm fine...a little tired but...." He began to feel off as they walked, swaying in his steps, "Okay, maybe somethin' doesn't feel exactly right with me."
AppleJack watched as he swayed a bit before falling on to the snowy ground, "Apple Ryder!" She placed her forehead against his, "He's burnin' up! Tarnation! Why didn't he say anything!?"
Doing her best to lift him on to her back, she began walking towards the hospital hoping that it wasn't something serious.

"Mmmmmm?" Ryan grumbled, his whole body feeling quite achy, "Where...."
Slowly opening his eyes, he could tell from his surroundings that he was back at the farm and laying in the bed he and Apps shared. Turning his head slightly he could see somepony sitting there in the dark, "Who's there?"
The figure jumped before walking over, "Apple Ryder! Yer up!"
"Apps? Ugh...what happend? I feel like shit...."
AppleJack gently ran a hoof over his forehead, "Ya fainted and scared the pony feathers out of me darlin'. I got ya to the hospital as fast as I could. Twilight happened by to lend a hoof but thankfully it doesn't seem like anything too major from what the Doctor told us." She took the damp cloth from his forehead before feeling it, "Good, yer fever broke; anyway, it seems ya caught a little bug of some kind."
"...so basically I got the flu." Ryan sighed, "At least that explains all the aches and pains...sorry ta worry ya hon. Any idea how long I'll be incapacitated for?"
"Well, thankfully they've been studying up on human anatomy thanks to Dark's sweetie pie, so it seems the flu doesn't affect ya too differently from us ponies. That being said though, even with a bit of magic to help accelerate the healing, you'll still be sick for a few days. Oh, and he gave me some kind of medicine for ya to take too." She motioned towards a bottle on the nightstand, "Nurse Redheart told me to warn ya it tastes awful but that ya better take it or she'll march right down to Sweet Apple Acres and make sure yer doing as prescribed."
Ryan gulped before laughing nervously, "Yeah, that sounds like Redheart all right. But..."
He sniffed the air, "I smell something tasty cooking...and hear noises from downstairs. Who else is here?"
"Well, after we were done at the hospital Twilight headed off to research more about human illnesses leaving me to lug yer heavy self home big boy." She ran her hoof down his cheek before walking over to the door, "Ah didn't want AppleBloom catching whatever ya got since she's easily susceptible to colds so after I asked Rarity if she could stay over with her and Sweetie Belle, Rainbow Dash saw us walking and flew right down to see if'n you were alright. She, uh, offered to help out and went about making ya some hot soup fer your cold."
"Dashie cooking..."—he smirked—"Heh, she really is a sweet gal isn't she?"
"Yeah..." AppleJack giggled quietly, "But I wouldn't go telling her that too much unless ya wanna end up making her blush."
"...you say that as if...I have a problem doing that." Ryan chuckled into a cough, "Ugh..."
"Now ya relax and I'll go see how it's coming; anything else ya want Ry-Ry?"
"...mmm, maybe some apple juice?"
"Sure thing darlin'."

Rainbow Dash was panicking just a bit, trying to figure out what possessed her to decide to make some soup for Ryan; while she wasn't an awful cook by any means, she hadn't ever made something like this from scratch before so she was worried that it wasn't going to turn out perfect. Considering who she was making it for, she had to make it perfect, "I have to help make him feel better." She turned when she heard hoof steps coming down the stairs, "AJ?"
"Yep. It's me. Ryan's awake finally but he looks awful. Heh, he's sure not letting it seem like he is though."
Rainbow nodded before testing the soup again, "Hmmm, not too bad...I hope he likes it."
"Ahm sure he will; he already seemed to appreciate the fact yer making it for him."
Rainbow Dash merely blushed before finishing her mixing and getting a bowl out for him, "I, uh, made some extra in case you wanted some AJ. And that way there's some for later...if he wants it I mean."
AppleJack could only smile, her friend's feelings for Ryan still way too obvious. Still, she knew Rainbow would never do something that would lead to them all ending up in heartbreak. Besides, she knew Ryan was certainly faithful to her, the multitude of times she and her friends had group snuggled with him had shown that much.
'Heh, I guess Dark kind of gets his wish since it's like having a harem but Ryan only gets his sexy time with me.' AppleJack shook her head at her thoughts, 'Tarnation, what's wrong with me? If'n I didn't know any better, I'd say Dark is starting to infect mah thoughts.'
"Uhm...AJ? You okay?"
"Huh? Yeah! I'm fine!"
"Are you sure? You seemed to be lost in thought."
"Oh that! I...I was just thinking about...apples?"
Giving a shrug, Rainbow decided not to press the issue and so carefully balanced the tray she had as she headed upstairs. Walking into his room, she saw he was sitting up now and so sat the tray in his lap.
"Hey Dashie...oh man." Ryan licked his lips, "That soup smells amazing."
"Oh it-it's nothing! Just...just an old recipe that my...my mom used to make for me when I was sick." Rainbow Dash's cheeks flushed as she stared at Ryan, "I'm sure it's not that great...I never could get it to be as good as when she'd make it."

Downstairs, AppleJack taste-tested the soup Dashie had made and coughed a bit at how oddly spicy it was, "Tarnation...what's in this?"
Looking over the items strewn out there she saw a bottle of crushed cayenne pepper sitting there before blinking and wondering just how that was going to affect poor Ryan. Upstairs Ryan smiled before lifting a spoonful up to his mouth and savoring it. He immediately noticed the spiciness but with Rainbow Dash looking at him so expectantly he smiled before sighing, "I don't know why yer knocking yer own cookin' when this soup is mighty tasty."
Rainbow Dash held her cheek, "Really? I'm so happy to hear that...I mean, ya know...cause that means somepony else besides me likes my cooking."
Sniffling as the spiciness made his nose run, he continued eating the soup all the while noting that, despite being spicier than he'd like, it was still pretty darn tasty and the noodles were perfectly cooked. While he did find it a bit odd that Dashie just watched him eat, he didn't seemed too bothered by it. After all, he knew she still liked him and of course being his friend meant she wanted to make sure he was doing okay being sick like he was.
'Yer overthinking things Ryan...'
Ignoring his other self, he finished the bowl and smirked before patting his stomach, "Mmmm, I think that's just what mah tummy needed."
"Really? Good, good. Is there...anything else I can get ya?"
Glancing around Ryan nodded, "Some tissues would be nice...I'm kind of going through them really fast. Kinda gross I know but..."
Rainbow simply shook a hoof at him before grabbing his empty bowl, "Nonsense! Being sick is like that so it's no biggie. I'm not sure what's keeping AJ though...she said she was going to get your apple juice and then she never showed up. Strange. I better see what's keeping her."
With that Ryan was alone again—well, more or lesss seeing as Dark is always bouncing about his noggin—with his thoughts but he was pretty sure why Apps hadn't come up, "That apple of mine, always so nice to her friends."
'Whatcha talkin'......ACHOO! Sorry...whatcha talking about Ryan?'
Ryan smirked, "Heh...didn't know you could get sick too."
'Only when you are oh host of mine. Sheesh...'
"Anyway, I mean she gave Dashie time with me so she could feel like she's helping me feel better and such." Ryan sniffled before blowing his nose, "That soup was spicy...but it's actually kind of helpin'."—he flopped back into a sleeping position—"Some rest will probably help too."
'...what about yer apple juice?'
"Mmm...well...I won't fall asleep till then..." Ryan closed his eyes anyway, the fatigue from the cold getting to him.
Of course, when AppleJack finally did come back up there with his drink she noticed he was completely passed out and snoring away. Smirking she placed it on the nightstand so he'd have it for later before kissing his cheek and heading back downstairs. Rainbow Dash—having just put away the rest of the soup—saw her walk back in, "That didn't take long."

"Oh, he's asleep now. Sounds like somepony's cuttin' down the Everfree forest with how he's snorin'."
"Hahaha, he does get a little loud sometimes doesn't he?" Rainbow rinsed the pot clean and sat it to dry before joining AppleJack at the table, "I guess my soup really did help him huh?"
"Sure enough sugarcube. I knew it would though." AppleJack smirked, "After all, what stallion doesn't like a cute girl making him food?"
Rainbow Dash coughed, glaring at her as a blush creeped along her face, "Gah! AJ!"
AppleJack simply laughed before patting her friend on the back, "Oh relax Dash. Ya gotta admit though, it is pretty amusing to see you all blushie and stuff."
"...I guess. I just...don't normally do stuff like that, ya know?" Rainbow Dash shrugged before smiling, "At least...I didn't until Ryan showed up."
"He certainly knows how ta push a mare's buttons doesn't he? But then again, with how that Darkness fellah is it's no wonder he acts so smooth."
Rainbow Dash snickered, shaking her head at such a thing, "So that's what counts as smooth these days huh? I always thought he was just being a goofy goober."
"A goofy goober you and I both love sugarcube."
"Yeah, that's the tr—hey!" Rainbow blushed again, "Teasing me again like that! It's not fair!"
"Aw, Rainbow Dash...ya know I only do it because yer mah best friend." AppleJack thought for a moment, "Well, Ah mean the six of us are all best friends but you and I have always had that friendly rivalry thing going on that the others don't."
Rainbow Dash tapped her forehooves together and nodded, leaning on the table, "I know that...it's just—"She heaved a hefty sigh"—it's like having your favorite snack or something and you can hold it, talk to it, touch it, but you can't eat it. You just have it dangled teasingly in front of your face knowing you can't ever have it...but your friend can. And your happy for your friend, you truly are, but a small part of you will always ache because you can't have what your friend does even though your heart really wants it."
AppleJack frowned at her metaphor; while she knew that Rainbow Dash's feelings for Ryan never truly went away—even though they had apparently talked things out back at the beach—she had no idea they were still this strong. A thought like that hurt simply because AppleJack always wanted to do what she could to make her friends and loved ones happy and with something like this eating at Rainbow's heart so much she wanted to do something but wasn't sure what she could all things considered.
"I guess I can see what yer gettin' at sugarcube. I mean, we're all pretty friendly with Ryan. Ah can't count how many times we've all ended up in a group snuggle or something like that since he showed up, so it's clear we're all sweet on him to some degree. And there is all the teasing..." AppleJack closed her eyes, tapping her hooves in thought before opening them and staring at Rainbow, "Ah suppose given all that, there's one suggestion Ah can think of that wouldn't be too far-fetched and would make everypony happy..."
"Huh?" Rainbow Dash blinked before raising an eyebrow, "And what might that be AJ?"
"Simply put, I just let us become his harem."
If Rainbow had been drinking something, it would have more than likely been sprayed all across the table at this point she was so caught off-guard by the very straight-forward way AppleJack had suggested that. She looked at her friend, "Okay AJ, funny...funny joke and all. I already made that suggestion to him and Ryan said some things I didn't quite understand...about how doing that would just eventually hurt somepony's feelings."

"Well Ah can see that, Ry's not one to mess with a mare's feelings willy-nilly." AppleJack shrugged before laughing, "As I said, it's the only solution that comes to mind that's not completely out of the realm of possibility."
"I don't know...it's a touchy subject; he really does seem to be at his happiest when he's surrounded by all of us though. At least, that's what I've noticed like at Pinkie's party or at the hotel after we all had a bit too much fun at the club. Although it's no secret how much he really does love you AJ: you're the top pick for him. He'd probably go to Tartarus itself and back if it meant protecting you." Rainbow Dash huffed, before rubbing her hoof over the table-top, "I don't know...maybe ya should just ask him how he'd feel about that? I mean, with how friendly we all are anyway, it's not that big of a stretch. Although, he did say that in his world people didn't really do that kind of thing...it was looked down upon."
"Ah do recall him mentioning something about that once a long time ago when I asked him about how relationships worked on his Earth but...we aren't on his Earth." AppleJack chuckled, shaking her head, "Knowing Ry-Ry though, he would be worried about somepony feeling neglected seeing as he'd have to potentially split himself six ways...."
"Haha, yeah, he'd probably be more tired than you were that one apple bucking season when ya refused any help." Rainbow Dash smirked, "I bet Dark wouldn't mind though!"
AppleJack laughed loudly at that, slapping her thigh, "I reckon that's true enough; that fellah certainly likes the mares...though not as much as getting attention from them."
The two friends shared quite a laugh at that one, feeling the tension from their conversation fade away amongst their giggling. Looking up at the clock and seeing how late it had gotten from all their talking, Rainbow stretched before yawning, "Hey AJ...ya don't mind me crashing here tonight do you? I don't really feel like flying back home in that snow..."
"There's plenty of room so heck no, Ah don't mind. Besides, with Apple Ryder sick and the family out of town it's a bit too quiet here." AppleJack motioned up the stairs, leading Rainbow to the guest room, "As for what we talked about..."
"I know, I know...I should just forg—"
"Maybe we should wait till he's not sick for me to ask his thoughts on the matter...at the very least that is."
"...so you were serious?"
"Well, Ah just don't like mah friends being sad and such...especially if I can do something to help. Ah know it ain't all that common but...well, maybe if'n he can warm up to the idea just a little I can help make ya happy too sugarcube. If all else, it'll just stay how it is with us being really close friends and such."
"Heh...well, that wouldn't be all that bad either. You don't have to do it if you don't want to AJ but...Thanks." Rainbow gave a short nod and smiled, "Good night."
"Good night Dash."
With that the two parted ways, Rainbow Dash collapsing into the guest bed but unable to sleep, her mind swimming with thoughts from the conversation she'd had with AppleJack. As for Apps, she checked in on Ryan real quick to see he was still sleeping peacefully. Content he'd be okay for now, she grabbed a pillow before getting settled in the sleeping bag she'd placed on the floor. Ryan's snoring made it only slightly hard to fall asleep, but her thoughts about actually asking him about what she and Rainbow Dash had talked about once he was better impacted her more. She loved Ryan, she was pretty sure of that fact by now...but could she share him with the others in a role more than as a friend? She did love her friends, and her Ry-Ry did seem happy when surrounded with all of them...but she knew he was very loyal—with all the situations he'd ended up in with the others he'd certainly proved that—and would see something like that as not being faithful to the one he cared for above all else: her. Still, could she share him with just one other? With Rainbow?
'........Eeeeeemaybe.' She thought as she felt herself getting sleepy at last, 'I always have been closer to her than any of mah other friends...ugh, this is so confusin' and head-hurtin'. Ah just want mah friend to be happy too...is that too much to ask?'
With those thoughts plaguing her mind, she finally drifted into a, thankfully, peaceful slumber. 

Two days had come and gone and Ryan was feeling...not a hundred percent but certainly better than he had been. He still had some aches and pains from the remnants of the cold, but at least he wasn't making tissue mountains anymore. As it was he was still having to take that awful medicine and good heavens did it taste foul. He idly wondered if he could place just what it tasted like and the only thing he and Dark could come up with was so horrifying he swore to never share it with anyone...including the audience.
Stretching, he opened his eyes and yawned at yet another morning on the farm as the scent of breakfast drifted in the air, "Mmmm...that smells good."
Getting out of bed and shuffling downstairs, he saw Apps and Dashie finishing up breakfast before they both turned to him, "Good morning Ry!"
"Good morning you two..." Ryan sniffled a bit, sitting down in a chair before sighing, "That medicine is the worst thing in the world...damn if it doesn't work but bleck! Anyway, what's for breakfast today?"
"Apple pancakes and scrambled eggs!" AppleJack placed his dish in front of him, "Gotta get that energy of yers up if you're ever gonna beat that cold!"
"Well, I figure I've got about a day left till I'm fully back on mah feet but I can't lay in bed another day. Three days straight is plenty." He dug into his meal once they were seated as well, "I mean, don't get me wrong, having Dashie read me the newest Daring Do book wasn't a bad way to spend it at all but..."
"You want to spread your wings and fly?"
Ryan chuckled, "Something like that Dashie-kins..."
Rainbow Dash smiled before looking at AppleJack over and over as if she expected her to ask him something.
"So seeing as yer feeling much better...uhm..."
Ryan looked to see AppleJack looking a little lost for words as he finished his eggs, "Yeah...I'm feeling much better for the most part. Somethin' on yer mind?"
"Well, ya see, that first night you were sick I had a nice discussion with Dash here about something...something I'm not sure how you might react to." AppleJack noted she had his full attention, "See...ya know how Ah like making mah friends happy no matter what it takes right?"
"Yes..."
"And well, it's no surprise that yer always happy around all of us right?"
At this Ryan sat down his fork, his eyebrow slowly raising, "Yes...again."
"And it's no secret we're all kind of sweet on ya to varying degrees...something which ya certainly return..."
"...Apps? Where are ya going with this?"
AppleJack steeled herself before looking Ryan dead in the eyes, "Would ya be willing ta open up to the idea of possibly seeing Rainbow and the other gals as more then friends if they were interested in it?"
"...you mean like best friends? Ah thought we already were, given that personal space issues really don't seem to matter between us. I mean, sheesh, it doesn't take much for us to get all cuddly and stuff...we just need hijinx and then it kind of happens."
"No...Ah meant more like how Ah am to you; i.e. as a marefriend."
Ryan picked the worst possible time to drink his juice, spraying it across the table and right into poor AppleJack's face at how his mind had been sucker-punched by such a thought. He shook his head before staring at the two mares in front of him, "Ah...ah must be still sick or something; this has to be a fever dream. Did mah sweet Apps just say she'd be okay if somepony else was mah marefriend as well?"—He shook his head violently—"No, I must be asleep still...although I feel kind of woozy now. Oh my...."
Apparently his cold still had enough of a hold on him that his over the top head shaking was too much as he swayed a bit before falling out of his chair.
"Ry-Ry!"
"Ryan!"

Ryan was somewhat aware of being somewhere soft as he woke up, "Oh man...what a weird dream. I dreamt Apps was okay with our friends being mah harem or something pants-on-head crazy like that and then I..."
He paused, noting both of his sides felt rather warm. Opening his eyes and taking a quick glance he sure enough saw both AppleJack and Rainbow Dash curled up next to him. His pupils shrank when he realized that it had not been a dream brought on by his cold and that made him wonder how weird things were going to get.
'I don't see how it's weird...wouldn't any guy be happy that so many lovely mares wish to give him such loving attention?'
'Dark! You would be happy about this...as much as you go on about being Lunes' knight, I've seen how she and Cellie act sometimes when ya make comments.'
'...are you insinuating I might have enjoyed the power of the sun as well? Such accusations...'
'And yet ya aren't denying them...oh well. Y'all were happy so who cares? But still...'
Ryan took another look at the two ponies snuggled up to him —a foreleg from each draped over his chest as they lay there—and sighed, "Man, the situations Ah get mahself into. It's hard being this sexy."
'That's what I keep trying to tell you!'
"Shut up Dark...yer not helpin'."
'Look, ya can either get all flustered—partially from being shy and partially from yer way of thinking—or you can relax, realize things are different here, have fun, and wake those two up with some tummy rubs.'
Ryan sighed, knowing Dark had a point—albeit skewed due to who he was—and so it was that he carefully lifted his hands upwards just enough to start caressing their tummies. A small smile drifted across his features as he heard them coo softly in their sleep before hugging to him tighter as he continued his caressing. Eventually the two of the yawned before opening their eyes and looking up at Ryan, "Heh, hello."
"Howdy ladies. So...that discussion happened, right?"
AppleJack and Rainbow Dash looked at each before looking back to Ryan and nodding.
Ryan sighed and shook his head, "I already told Dashie why it doesn't sit well with mah mind..."
"I know that!" AppleJack butted in, "But...we're not asking fer much. Ah mean, I do love ya and such, and I know Dash does too...I just wanna make her as happy as ya made me."
'Dude, go for it! It'll work out...trust me!'
Ryan rolled his eyes, "Dark, Ah told ya yer not helpin'. Apps honey, even if I don't think on the fact that something like that ain't exactly normal back from where I'm from and just go with how things are here—because, let's face it, I'm not there and won't ever be again—that still leave mah mind with many a thought. Yet when yer asking this, it almost seems ta me that somethin' like that isn't all that uncommon...but not often seen."
"...I did tell you that you big dummy." Rainbow Dash huffed, nuzzling his chest, "Do you really have that many hang-ups with it?"

"Well it's just that...there's so many issues with something like that: favoritism, worrying about giving everyone a fair share of time, making sure no one feels left out, jealousy issues is a big one...and well...even though I don't really worry about what others think of me too much, there is the simple fact of how would others perceive y'all. Pretty much the general issues of ensuring everypony's happiness." Ryan shook his head, "The first one is already a problem because, well, if ya put a gun to mah head..."
"...what's a gun?"
"Don't ya remember Dash? He said it's like a cannon that's handheld and rather deadly."
"Ooooh! Right...so basically if someone threatened to kill you?"
"Yeah, something like that...if they did, my answer would be Apps. Ah mean, shoot, it's no surprise I..I like me some apples. And, ya know, that I fell in love with her as hard as I did."
"Look Ry-Ry, we ain't sayin' ya gotta do anything. You can just have things stay the same as they are, with me as yer marefriend and Dash and the others as just really close friends but..."
"When put in this position, most guys would probably be jumping fer joy if they didn't have any kind of morals...I can't say that with how lovey-dovey we all get anyway that it's that big of a jump but..." Ryan huffed, gently caressing their manes to calm his thoughts, "Part of it is Ah want ya to find the guy that makes ya happy, that ya can start a...a family with. And if I went along with what y'all propose, then I'd be denying you that chance to find that special somepony meant fer you."
"...and much like I told you way back then Ryan, how do you know you aren't mine too? Even after that talk my feelings haven't faded..." Rainbow bit her bottom lip, "If anything...they've actually gotten stronger."
"Dashie, I...."
"Ryan." AppleJack looked into his eyes, "Ya do realize that the stallion ta mare ratio in our world is heavily skewed towards the mare side right?"
"...yeah but I don't..."
"Which means that in the grand scheme of things, Ah'm not really sure it'll matter all that much if one stallion were to have one or two or three or...any number of marefriends as long as he truly loved all of them, wanted to protect them, and that they were happy together."
"...okay, yer logic has some merit to it but still I..."
"Just...just think about it okay?" AppleJack kissed his cheek before nuzzling against him, "Even if...if ya aren't fully for it, maybe ya could just make a simple exception so mah best friend Dash can feel the same happiness ya give me."
Ryan felt his heart tighten at those words: whether it was the cold, Apps' words, or the look on their faces that caused it he didn't know. Probably all three he idly figured before he wrapped his arms around them and closed his eyes, "I still feel too sick to think on this properly at the moment...let's just get some rest for now ladies."
Rainbow Dash nodded, figuring that was the best she could hope for at the moment as she closed her eyes, squeeing softly as she felt Ryan kiss the top of her head and then AppleJack's, "...thanks big guy."
"Yeah, yeah...now shhhh. Sleep time..."

The next few days passed rather uneventfully allowing Ryan to get healthy again and just in time too. He and his friends were to be heading to Canterlot so that he could finally see the story of Hearth's Warming Eve played out...and by his friends at that from the sound of things. He glanced at the two ponies walking with him towards Twilight's house before speaking up, "So...y'all did such a good job last year they're havin' ya reprise your roles again?"
"Yep! I was so awesome it's no surprise!"
AppleJack snickered, "Yeah...that must be it."
"Hey!" Rainbow narrowed her eyes, about ready to make some smart-ass reply until she felt someone scratching her ears, "...not fair Ryan."
"Who said I had to be fair?"
'...I'm surprised at how well you've adapted Ryan.'
Ryan grumbled, rolling his eyes in the process, "Dark, when ya say things like that, it's gonna give people ideas."
'Hey! I'm not the one considerin' having a Zap-apple combo here.'
"...Zap-apple...combo?" Ryan took a moment to think that over before his cheeks flushed, "Dammit Dark!"
Rainbow and AppleJack looked at each other and snickered before nuzzling Ryan's sides to calm him down. Taking a deep breath he grinned, "No, ya know what? I'm not gonna let ya fluster me Dark! Today's gonna be a fun day after all! Besides...we're gettin' to see yer princesses."
'...and...s-so...'
"Just so ya ladies know, he's the one blushin' now." Ryan laughed warmly into a sigh, "...he has a point though...the thought of it being this way is still a little..."
"Weird?"
"Yeah Apps...not like bad weird but...different. Unusual, even if I'm reasoning that things like this fly here it still leaves me a little muddled mentally. Though...I can only wonder what the others might say." He looked at them sternly, "Which is why unless they notice, we won't make any notes about it."
Rainbow Dash looked up at him and smirked, "I'm pretty sure they're gonna say something if I up and smooch ya big guy."
'Ha! She's got ya there Ryan!'
"Ah swear yer enjoying this way too much Dark."
Now paying attention to where they'd been walking he was surprised to find they were already at Twilight's house and so he knocked on her door...only to have it slam into his face.

"...really? Really? I thought we'd moved passed this joke?"
"Oh gosh I'm so sorry Ryan!" Twilight helped him to his feet, dusting the snow off of him with her magic, "...you really do have an affinity for greeting the ground don't you?"
"Ugh...that's one way to put it. So...are we the first one's here?" Ryan walked in with the others to see Spike going over something, "What's that little buddy?"
"Oh, just instructions for where we're supposed to poof so we don't have another...incident again."
"Good!"
"Anyway Ryan, the others should be on their way..." Twilight eyed the three oddly, "Strange that you arrived together."
"...why is that strange Twi?"
"Other than Rainbow's house being in the opposite direction of the farm you mean?"
"Oh well, ya see...I was just helping! Yes, helping since Ryan was sick and so I've been staying over at the farm."
Ryan nodded, "That's right! Dashie's simply been a dear with all the help she's given...and yet she still keeps the weather on schedule. That's our twenty percent cooler rainbow mare for ya."
AppleJack's eyes darted back and forth, "So see, Twi? Nothing weird at all! Nope!"
Spike snickered before looking at them, "...you do realize that's a terrible poker face right?"
"No it's not Spike!" AppleJack looked left and right again.
Ryan sighed, face-palming at how poorly Apps was doing in deflecting suspicion. Rainbow Dash did the same before looking at Twilight who was tapping her chin in thought, "I don't know what you're thinking Twilight but..."
Twilight snickered before laughing, "Oh goodness me...doing some...experimenting are we?"
Ryan about coughed up his heart at that one, his face going pale that she had so easily read the situation. He wanted to make a reply, to deny it for some dumb reason, but he knew he couldn't.
"Oh sweet Celestia...all that joking, all the teasing, all the nonexistent boundaries we have with one another...they finally broke you down, Ryan. This is most exciting!" Twilight's face slipped into a huge grin, "Although...I can imagine Dark had a hand in this. He was the one to take notice of your apparent harem."
'...I maintain my plea of innocence...'
"Uhm Twi...ah think ya better lay off the teasing just a bit."
Twilight looked at AppleJack and pouted, "Why? This is fun...not to mention I love experimenting so I find it a delightful development!"

There was a loud thud before they all turned to see that Ryan had collapsed from all of it and was now sprawled out in a heap on the floor. AppleJack patted his cheek while Rainbow fanned him with her wing as they tried to bring him around.
"Hmmm...I see he's not fully adjusted to it yet. Maybe I should hold off just a bit." Twilight laughed sheepishly, "...we can still do that group snuggle thing right?"
Ryan grumbled as he slowly came to and glanced at Twilight, "Yes Purple Horse, we can still make the cuddle puddle without any problems. Just don't go kissin' me out of nowhere...that might cause issues. Oh mah head....what is this floor made of?"
Without missing a beat, Spike rolled his eyes before smirking, "It's made of wood. It's a tree after all Ryan. Sheesh..."
'Wow! Spike is getting his humor timing down pat. I don't even remember training him in that!'
"Everypony just shhhh...my head is killing me now. I guess that's what happens when one manages to accidentally a harem..."
"Man...that's not fair at all!" Spike huffed as he crossed his arms, "I can't even get one to like me and you've got two...three...who knows how many? You're probably going to get Rarity too aren't you? Ugh...although...I have noticed that she kind of takes advantage of my crush on her sometimes. Maybe it's just not meant to be with her..."
Ryan—now a bit more back to full awareness—turned to his little brother and frowned, "It's not like I meant for this stuff to happen...it's kind of just gotten crazy since that...that night. But hey, Spike, yer still a kid. Ya should enjoy that while you have the time to! You'll be grown up before ya know it, and then life changes so make the most of being young."
Spike tapped his foot before smiling, "Maybe you're right Ryan. I should be eating ice cream till I get sick and playing in the mud and all those other things fillies and colts my age do."
"That's the spirit! Just don't forget to include time to train with yer big bro or getting into hijinx with him!"
"Yeah! Or to make sure Twilight doesn't go insane with her obsessing!"
"Yeah...wait." Twilight sighed before glaring at her little brother, "Thanks Spike."
"Oh lighten up T-Sparks." Ryan chuckled, patting her on the shoulder, "Anyway, I should've figured you'd be all chill about this since yer a pretty logical gal."
"Well, given the ratio of stallions to mares, it only stands to reason that situations like this might happen." Twilight went into book mode pretty quick, "In fact, in times of dire need, this has been enacted in order to help keep the population going. Granted, with you being human this is a more unique case but I can't say it doesn't call out to my scientific curiosity."
"...clearly the benefit of being male in a mostly female society is that you are considered highly prized." Ryan struck a silly pose, "It's a tough job...but I suppose I shall just have to cope with mah own awesomeness."
Nudging him rather hard, AppleJack shook her head and snickered, "Careful there...Dash's ego is rubbing off on ya."
'I bet that's not all she wishes rubbed off, eh?'
At that all those in the room immediately blushed before shouting in unison, "Dammit Dark!"
'That's my name~!'
"Seriously though, T-Sparks...don't...don't mention the uh, the shift in status to anypony else. If they figure it out on their own, that's fine; we'll handle it as that happens but..."
"...it'll be hard not to tease you, being our human and all, but that's okay. I promise."
"Thanks."

Mercifully, the others soon showed up and with them all prepared—and focused this time, cough, cough, Twilight—they were soon whisked away to Canterlot where they appeared in the garden this time without incident. Two royal guards, having been waiting for their arrival, led them to the grand ballroom where the stage had been set up and ponies a plenty were already filing in to their places. Giving a wave to the gals as they headed backstage to get ready, Ryan looked for somewhere to sit and was surprised to see Luna waving him over. Laughing at her energetic reply, he headed over and took a seat next to her and her sister, "Ladies, always a pleasure to see ya. Although..."—he glanced at Celestia—"are ya alright Cellie? Yer lookin' a little tired."
Luna chuckled, playfully nudging him, "Oh it is your doing Ryan; that wonderful device you gave me as a gift. That videogame system you came up with is just simply delightful...and so many cartridges to play as well. Oh I never would have known of such a wonderful way to pass the time if you hadn't given me that."—at this she took him in a big hug—"It is a most wonderful Hearth's Warming present."
Ryan merely chuckled, returning her hug before smirking at Celestia who simply glared at him with tired eyes, "Oh is that so? So I assume that you've been getting Cellie here to play multiplayer with you?"
"Oh of course! It does take away from her sleep somewhat but I simply must have some, what did you call it? Ah! Co-op play! Especially those ones where you're an unknown soldier, going forth to fight against horrible creatures from beyond."
"Really?" Ryan was genuinely surprised, "I never took you to be a fan of side-scrolling shooters."
"Oh but they're so much fun! So very hard but rewarding! And then that one game...you called it a platformer? With the mares in overalls?"
"Super Mareio Sisters?"
"Yes! That one is truly when the fun is doubled! I only wish my dear sister and I could play that one together." Luna leaned in close to him, "Do you think it is possible you and Twilight Sparkle could make something like that?"
All too aware of the daggers being shot his way from Celestia, he grinned widely, "For you Lunes, sure! I'll see what we can cook up."
"I'm so excited now!" Luna clapped her hooves together happily, "I cannot wait; clearly we must work on our skills then sister."
Celestia sighed, rolling her eyes, "As if I was not tired enough as it were..."
"Problem Princess?"
Celestia narrowed her eyes before leaning down and whispering, "I know this is your revenge for what happened..."
"I don't know quite what yer talkin' about Cellie." Ryan shrugged his shoulder before putting on a smug grin, "Just remember mah dear Princess of the Sun: payback isn't always a bitch..."
'...sometimes it's just a creative bastard!'
Before Celestia could come up with any kind of reply, the music started up and the curtain rose indicating the start of the pageant.

For Dark it was curious to behold the interpretation of Hearth's Warming Eve that had become the norm since long ago, watching the others play as ponies that he remembered and knew thanks to his old mentor. Ryan felt a little concerned as he noted the sadness his other self felt.
"Ryan, are you alright?"
Ryan had made a move to respond when he noted that tears had fallen down his cheek. Apparently the memory of his past friends was affecting poor Darkness hard enough to make him cry.
"I'm okay Cellie but Darkness he..."
"Ah, I understand."
Wiping them away as the play came to an end, he clapped along with the others, '...are you okay bro?'
He heard him sniffle for a bit, '...yeah, I'll be fine. I just miss them is all...I guess I just didn't realize how much till now. Heh, goes to show how good you and our ladies are at keepin' me distracted with those shenanigans of ours.'
Ryan simply laughed at his mental companion's silliness as Apps and the others took their bow to thunderous applause. As the curtain dropped, everypony slowly shuffled out while Ryan and the Princesses made their way backstage to go see their friends after their well-done performance. Walking backstage, he made his way over to them, "Y'all were fantastic. Heh, ya even brought Darky to tears!"
'Hey!'
"Awwww, Darky-Warky was that touched by our acting huh?" Pinkie hopped up on Ryan's shoulders and nuzzled the top of his head, "That's just super-duper!"
'...Pinkie...heh, thanks.'
Continuing on as if he didn't have a hyper pink pony latched on to his upper body, Ryan made small talk with the others, making a point to give Apps and Dashie some extra special attention when no one else was looking...well technically Pinkie was still on his shoulders but given remarks she'd made in the past, he didn't think it was a problem. Unaware that the storm clouds outside were really whipping up something fierce, the group talked and had a few laughs as they helped clean up and put away the costumes and props before going to leave...and noticing that they could barely see a few inches in front of them.
"Well that's not a problem. We poofed here right?" Rainbow Dash looked at Ryan and Twilight, "So a heavy blizzard was scheduled today and we totally didn't know that...so what?"
"Eh...I don't know. T-Sparks has told me that sometimes when the weather is like this it can interfere with a spell." Ryan shook his head and shrugged, "The last thing we need is for us to teleport and end up stuck in the middle of the storm somewhere...or over an ice cold lake...or—"
"Alright, alright! I hear ya...sheesh." Rainbow groaned, "So I guess we're spending the night then..."
Ryan smirked and glanced at Lunes and Cellie, "Well...if our dear Princesses will have us. It does seem as if anytime we're here something...interesting happens."
"When have I ever not welcomed my favorite student and her friends and shown them hospitality?" Celestia asked, smirking at Ryan's suggestion.
"Well...there is the matter of trolling us but...Ah am willing to look passed that since it usually ends up being pretty fun." Ryan couldn't help but laugh, especially when Cellie stuck her tongue out at him, "So then...I think I have the best way we can enjoy each other's company. But we need a fireplace...and lots of cocoa!"
Spike shook his head before smirking at Ryan, "...things are going to get out of hand again aren't they?"
"Quite possibly little bro." He glanced at the girls, "Well...why ya just standing there?"
The gals looked at him curiously, wondering just what he had in mind, until Dark chimed in as well, 'You heard your human ladies! I might not have Pinkie Sense, but I can definitely feel snuggles in the future!'
"Chocolate and snuggles?! What are we waiting for then?!" Pinkie practically knocked over the others as she took off...before zipping back, "Uhm...where exactly is this taking place anyway?"
Like falling dominos, the others facepalmed/facehoofed in succession at her over anxious antics before Luna chuckled, "I will take care of the cocoa. My sister knows just which room to lead you to, so I will be with you shortly."

With the cocoa being made and the kitchen staff promising it would be delivered shortly, Luna made her way down a long hallway that ended in front of a rather big door. Placing a hoof on it to open it and join her sister and the others, she paused for a moment at hearing Ryan trying to explain something to them.
"So you stand like this...with your han—forehooves up by your head and then the dance is simply shaking back and forth by wagging yer bottom and bending yer hooves slightly as you twist back and forth."
Rainbow eyed him oddly, "Ryan I don't...how are you supposed to do this crazy thing?"
"It's pretty simple Dash. Look at me." AppleJack hopped into the pose and began shaking back and forth, "Like this Ryan?"
"Exactly! T-Sparks has got it down too!"
"...and this is some kind of song from your version of Hearth's Warming Eve?"
"Sort of Flutters..." Ryan flipped through his music player before pulling up a rather energetic song, "It wasn't originally but it got so popular they made a Christmas version."
"Well I'm game for anything new and silly like this so crank that beat!" Pinkie shook back and forth, "Time to shake those rumps!"
Snickering at her behavior, Ryan plugged it into a speaker before hitting play and joining the others, "This is going to be so amazin'."
"Ho-ho-ho. It's Christmastime Again~ Do dooooo, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah..."
"Go for it gals! Shake them bottoms!" Ryan began dancing the silly dance, shaking himself back and forth as he sang, "We wonder are you ready for Christmas Time, snow in the air and the stars will shine. Spread the light...for Santa cuz he's here tonight!"
Luna snickered as she cracked the door open further to watch the sight before her. She nearly lost her composure when she saw that even her sister had gotten roped into this little dance of Ryan's and it made her wish she had her camera as this was too perfect.
"Dance to the beat, wave yer hands together! Come feel the beat forever and forever! Listen and learn, it is time for prancing! Christmas is here with Caramelldansen!"
'Alright everypony! All together!'
"Ou-ou-owah-owah! Ou-ou-owah-owah-ah-oh! Ou-ou-owah-owah! Ou-ou-owah-owah-ah-oh!"
At that Luna could no longer hold back, slipping in with the others as the song continued with its high-energy beats and chimes of the holiday season. After an intense two minutes, the whole group had heard the chorus repeated enough to join Ryan and Dark for the final one, "Dance to the beat, wave yer hands together! Come feel the beat forever and forever! Listen and learn, it is time for prancing! Christmas is here with Caramelldansen!"
With a sigh everybody fell down where they stood, huffing and puffing after all that craziness. As it was Ryan laughed loudly before looking at everyone, "Seriously...of all the times I've heard that song and seen people react and dance to it, I can honestly say this was probably the most awesome and unique one by far. Honestly, how do ya top Caramelldansen with magical, talking ponies?"
'Short answer: Ya can't! I gotta admit though Ryan, that song has some hop to it!'

"Indeed, though I am quite tired after that." Celestia frowned, staring at her stomach, "...perhaps I should be eating less cake and working out more."
'Oh Tia, you're still as gorgeous as ever.'
"Charmer." Celestia laughed, rolling her eyes, "...but I'm sure being a little more physical wouldn't hurt. As for you dear sister, when did you join us?"
"Oh, about halfway through your little dance. I was watching for a while and it seemed too fun not to join in."
'That's my Woona for you!'
The group of friends all chuckled at that one before getting settled around the large fireplace, a bright and cozy fire already roaring within it. Shortly after that their cocoa was brought in, marshmallows a plenty floating within the chocolaty goodness. As fast as the staff showed up they left, leaving Dark to remark that some things never change. Ryan took a sip of his cocoa, sighing as he enjoyed the warmth as they listened to the blizzard outside roaring in contrast to the crackling flames.
'So...I have to say, the story didn't change too much when it was altered to omit humans huh?'
Celestia and Luna looked at Dark—well, Ryan but looking at him is looking at Dark—with small frowns.
'Ladies, ladies...it's okay. I understand why it all happened; it's just nice to see ya didn't change too much save for the last act.'
Twilight walked over towards Ryan before sitting in his lap, "Dark? Do you think you could tell us the real story? Of how Equestria was founded with the humans back then?"
Ryan smirked as he felt Twilight get settled before guiding his hand to her tummy. Giving a quiet laugh he got to work rubbing her tummy, smiling at the delighted sounds she began making.
'Well Twi, I don't see why not. Unless Woona or Tia wishes to.'
"I must admit, like many things from back then, I don't really recall how it truly went."
"My sister and I are alike in that then, so if you recall my dear Darkness then by all means please regale us with the true story."
Dark chuckled softly, 'Very well then. I do find humor in the fact that the one with the jumbled memory is the only one that fully remember this tale though.'
Everypony gathered around Ryan as Dark began his tale, 'I'm sure you're more than familiar with how the Earth, Pegasus, and Unicorn ponies all bickered and brought forth that awful blizzard yes? That part is true...as is the six representatives journey to find this land we now call home. That, however, is where things begin to change from what you've all been told. Indeed, their bickering did cause the Windigos to follow them from the frozen lands and this, my friends, is where the real story begins...'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

<'The howling winds did little to cover the bickering of the three delegates as they pushed forth in the ever increasing blizzard...'>
"This is all your fault! I swear you must have brought that storm with you using your magic just to sabotage us!"
A stuffy looking unicorn, wearing an inordinate amount of purple, glared daggers at the pegasus decked out in battle armor, "I find your insinuation to be ghastly Commander! To think you would blame such an atrocious act on a refined unicorn such as myself."—she threw her hoof out—"If anything it's that awful Puddinghead's fault. It's clearly a sign that Earth ponies aren't worthy of this new land."
"What?!" A pony wearing what for all purposes was a bowl of pudding for a hat growled in response, "Are you trying to say something Platinum? Huh? Huh? How do we know it's not the Pegasi that are doing this? They control the weather after all!"
"That's Princess Platinum to you!"
And so on and so forth it went, back and forth as the cold only grew worse and no sign of shelter was forthcoming. Their advisors merely shared worried looks but had long since given up any attempt to keep them from arguing. Even Princess Platinum's advisor discovering that this blizzard was unnatural and caused by the Windigos did little to help as she couldn't get a word in edgewise. While they continued on, it began to become even harder for them to move and so even their bickering slowed. The snow began closing in, becoming too thick to properly see through, and when they could go no further they collapsed there as the snow slowly built up around them. As their eyes slowly closed, Puddinghead's secretary—an earth pony known as Smart Cookie—swore she could see some kind of light in the distance. Summoning what strength she had left she called out towards it, "H-help y-y'all....please....help!"
And with that declaration she collapsed like the others, trying her best to keep her eyes open in case whatever that light turned out to be was helpful. Her vision blurring, she could make out the light coming closer and, with it, the strangest looking creature she'd ever seen, "What...in...the hay?"
<"Oh, oh, oh!" Pinkie piped up from her current position in Ryan's lap as they had each been taking a turn while Dark talked, "Is that a human?! Is she seeing a human?!>
<'Ryan? If you would...'>
<"Way ahead of ya bro." Ryan chuckled before scratching that one spot on Pinkie's tummy that just melted her, "Aw, delighted silent purring...ya may continue.">
<'Right! Now...where was I? Oh, yes!'>

A young woman—somewhere in her mid-twenties—tightened her jacket some as she had been checking the outskirts of her family's farm. Ever since this blizzard had whipped out from seemingly nowhere they had wanted to make sure all of their livestock was accounted for. As she had finished up and was nearly about to head back, she could have sworn she'd heard something. Shining her light in front of her, she headed in the direction of the voice and nearly missed whomever this was calling out. It was only through one more broken sentence that her light shined upon what appeared to be ponies that looked to be in awful shape, "Land sakes...what are ponies doing all the way out here?"
"...help...us...please..."
The young woman was startled to hear them talk but shook her head to straighten her thoughts. Crouching down she gently patted the talking one's head, "Don't y'all worry. We'll help ya out. Just hold on!"
Turning around she pulled out something from her hip before aiming at the sky and firing. A bright red flash lit up the sky before slowly floating through the air as she waited, doing her best to keep the ponies conscious. "Come on pa, what's taking ya?" She kept her eyes trained in the direction of home and was relieved when she finally heard the crunch of footsteps and of something being pulled across the snow.
"Megan! Are you okay?!"
"Yeah! I'm alright Pa, it's these ponies...they need our help!"
"Ponies?" Megan's father looked at the six lying there before nodding, "Alright, stand back. We've gotta hurry as this storm is gettin' worse by the minute."
Pulling out a stick capped by an orange star, he made a few movements as the ponies slowly floated one by one onto the large sled he'd brought with him. Once they were loaded up, he turned to his daughter and motioned back towards their home. As the two walked, the sled followed behind as they made haste for their home.
"Pa...one of them talked."
"Talked? I see...I wonder if they're like that one visitor we had all those years ago?"
"I think they might be...but what I can't figure out is why in tarnation they'd be out here of all places? And in the middle of a blizzard at that?"
Glancing at the sled behind them, her father could only shrug, "Well, we'll worry about later. First things first is we've gotta make sure they'll be a later for us to ask them in."
With that they walked in silence the rest of the way to their home, thankful for the sight of bright lights which meant warmth and safety.

"Ugh..." Clover the Clever slowly opened her eyes, surprised that she could as she took in her surroundings, "Where...mmmm, it's warm."
"You're finally awake!"
Jumping slightly, but still too tired from the cold to really move, Clever looked at the source of the voice and didn't know what exactly to make of the creature she saw, "Who...what...are you? A monkey of some kind?"
"Hahaha, tarnation, I ain't no chimpanzee. I'm a human. And yer a unicorn aren't ya?"
"Y-you know what I am?"
"Shoot! It might have been nearly a decade ago, but it's hard to forget something like a talking pony." Megan knelt next to her, offering a hand, "Mah name's Megan by the way."
Clover regarded her hand oddly for a moment before realizing what she was offering. Letting a smile drift across her features she placed her hoof in it and shook, "Clover the Clever...but you can just call me Clover. Thank you...for saving us."
"Oh heck, tweren't nothing special. Helping others in need is what my family does."
"Hmmm....what is all that talking?"
"...and here I thought I'd dreamt seein' something in the snow."
"...w-what is this?"
"Relax Pansy, we're okay for now but..." Commander Hurricane stood up, walking over to Megan and glaring at her, "What the heck are you?"
"Heh, the one that saved ya naturally. If I hadn't heard the one wearing the quill hat calling out you'd all be a buncha ponysicles. A blizzard like that ain't exactly somethin' ya go for a stroll in ladies."
Princess Platinum narrowed her eyes, "I am a princess and demand to be treated as such."
Megan smirked, crouching down to look Platinum in the eyes, "Ah'm sure ya are from wherever yer from miss, but right now yer on mah family's farm and in dire need of warming up so why don't ya focus more on that then status or anythin' ridiculous like that?"
"R-Ridiculous? Why you overgrown ape I—"
Clover nudged her princess before smiling sheepishly at Megan, "What she means to say is that we're grateful for your help."
"Hey, like I said, ain't nothing special. Ah do wish yer accommodations were better but the barn was the only place large enough for y'all so..."
At that moment, the door blew open momentarily as Megan's father walked in with a magical covered tray floating behind him. Shutting the door, he shook off the small amount of snow he'd collected walking from the farmhouse before noting the others were awake, "Ah! Our guests have finally come to! Wonderful."
Noting their worried looks, Megan thought to ease their worries, "Ah relax y'all; that's just mah father."
"Pleasure to meet ya ladies. Mah name is...is...."
<"...Dark? What's wrong?" This time it was Rainbow's voice calling up from Ryan's lap, "Why'd you stutter like that?">
<'...strange. I'm having trouble remembering her father's name.'>
<"...are you okay Darkness? I sense you're feeling a bit strained.">
<'...I'm fine Woona. Anyway, I think I remember now. Let's continue on...'>

"Mah name is Daniel." He gave a bow before setting the tray down in front of them, "I had a feelin' ya might be hungry, so I made some hot vegetable soup for ya."
Lifting the lid, the six ponies could only stare at the delicious and hot meal sitting there. Glancing at each other and then back at the soup they all decided to hell with it and dug in, sighing in relief at how warming it was as they ate. Once they had their fill and felt their energy returning, they simply looked at Megan and her father unsure of what was to do next.
"Well, since y'all seem confused, just know yer welcome to stay till this blizzard passes." Daniel glanced out the barn window and frowned, "Though...I hafta admit I've never seen one this bad before in all  my years. It doesn't seem natural."
"Excuse me...sir?" Clover looked at the others before walking over to him, "That's because it isn't."
"Daniel please, none of the sir business if ya will. And so I was right in my assumption."
"Yes. Daniel...as I tried to tell everypony else, this blizzard is being caused by Windigos."
Daniel's brow furrowed, "...Windigos? I thought those were just a myth?"
"Unfortunately no...and it's because of the disharmony of our leaders that they've followed us here."
"I knew it was your fault!" Commander Hurricane jumped at Princess Platinum, "You and your magic!"
"My magic?! It's because your such a terrible ruffian!"
"It's because you two don't know how to have fun!" Chancellor Puddinghead roared as she joined the fray.
"...I can see what ya mean Clover." Daniel sighed, shaking his head, "I must admit, it's sad to see that apparently the ponies are no better than humans sometimes."
"...humans. There's that word again..."
"Yeah, that's what we are. Heh, I keep forgetting you've probably never seen something like us before, huh?"
Clover paused for a moment before fetching a book from her saddlebag, "Actually, my mentor Star-Swirled the Bearded mentioned something about a mysterious race of beings that once saved his life after a teleportation spell went awry. Of course...his descriptions sounded ridiculous so no pony believed him."
"...Star-Swirled huh? About this high? Blue pointy hat? Penchant for bells?" Daniel chuckled softly, "That sounds like Swirly to me. Who knew he was such a big deal back in the land of ponies?"
As Clover and Daniel chatted about this development—in addition to other things, like what humans were, how he could use magic too, etc—Megan grew more and more irritated with how awful the three rulers were acting until she couldn't take it anymore. Stomping her foot as loud as she could, she squared her sights on the three rulers, "Stop acting like a bunch of damn fools!"
Everyone there froze at her outburst, the rulers pausing in mid-battle as she got their attention. Seeing that she had their attention, she cleared her throat before laying into them, "I can't believe that y'all are supposed to be the rulers of yer respective races with how yer acting! It's shameful! Fightin' and bickerin' with one another like that; it's like y'all ain't got a lick of sense between ya! Don't ya know that only by working together can ya really get anythin' done! I don't remember much about what Swirly told me since it was when I was younger, but y'all need each other right? To keep the balance and live in harmony?
"You magic users help control the sun and moon from what he told me, so that helps give normalcy to the day. That helps the earthbound ponies by giving their crops plenty of sun to grow in and the restful night to look forward to after a hard day's work. And the flying ones make the weather not go haywire, which adds to stability of not only the crops that eventually feed all y'all but also to the day so that nature itself stays harmonized.
"So don't ya see? Without that harmony, nothing happens! The food doesn't grow, the world goes to shit, and at the end ya just attract trouble and then...ya die." Megan clenched her fists tightly, "So to see you all argue about who's at fault over whatever issues that's got ya all twisted around instead of working together like ya should just pisses me off! So stop being dumb about this! Nopony is better than the other because when you take away just one of you, it all falls apart. You're all equal and in this together!"

It was quiet in the barn after Megan's rant, the only sound the howling of the Windigos outside as they circled and circled. The three delegates looked at the young human woman that had berated their childish behavior before looking at each other and nodding, "...she's right."
Untangling from one another, the group joined with her before looking up at her.
Commander Hurricane was sheepish in her admission, "...I was just upset over losing our old home."
"And I was afraid that all my subjects would starve." Princess Platinum admitted, feeling quite foolish.
"And I was worried all my friends would never get to have fun and pudding again!"
Everyone there looked at Chancellor Puddinghead before laughing loudly. Clover looked up at Megan before smiling, "Thank you. If it wasn't for your kindness and compassion, not only would we have never gotten over our pettiness but we'd most likely be dead in the snow."
"My mother didn't raise me to turn a blind eye to someone in need, regardless of who or what they are. I just...I hate it when people just don't work together like they should." Megan smiled as Clover nuzzled her side, "Thanks Clover. Here's hoping things will get better for y'all now."
Glancing out the window, Daniel gave a soft chuckle, "I reckon they will. That storm seems to be weakening some."
As the six ponies made amends for their foolishness, Megan felt her father's hand on her shoulder, "I'm proud of ya sweetie...and I know your mother would be too. You might always say that you don't have any kind of magic to call yer own, but that's not true."—he took her in a hug—"You have a magic that is stronger than any spell that exists and ya know what that is?"
"Haha, what's that pa?"
"The magic of friendship."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'And then it ends pretty much the same as it does now, with the creation of the Heart Carol song y'all sing to this day and the Fire of Friendship chasing the Windigos back to whence they came. After that, the ponies—after meeting with the human's current leaders—moved to our land and, while the original name is lost even to what history books still remain from then, it was decided by both sides to rename their new country Equestria.
'I don't recall how that name actually was chosen, but I remember it having to do with their declaration of them all being equal in their quest for harmony and co-existence. Something like that. As you know, times were good for a while despite small spats here and there—'
"Just like is said in the song!"
'Haha, yes Pinkie, just like the Heart Carol mentions. Despite those small spats we all lived happily in peace...until the dreadful day when Cordy became lost in his madness and it was all tragically ripped away.'
"Dark..."
Glancing down at Celestia sprawled across his lap, Ryan—who was currently giving the sun princess her share of the tummy rubs after striking a truce with her over their prank-fest—gave her the same smirk his mental double was wearing.
'It's all good Tia. In the end, the world we all loved was saved. I'm not sure where Megan and all the others ended up, but I can only hope they were okay and lived the rest of their lives in happiness and peace. As long as they did, then we never truly lost.'
"Dark...that story was quite interesting to hear." Twilight had her knowledge face on—you know the one—as she thought over the events, "To know the humans had such a role in helping ponykind. I only wish they could see how well we've done."
'Heh, they'd be proud Twi. I know they would be.' Dark yawned, causing Ryan to as well.
"Damn it Dark." He chuckled, giving Celestia one last scratch before nudging her off, "I'm pretty tired ladies. Hot cocoa, giving everypony's warm bellies all those scratches, and listening to an interesting tale from the voice in mah head certainly made me quite sleepy."
"Hey Ryan! I've got the best idea seeing as thanks to how long that story took it's now technically Hearth's Warming Day itself." Rainbow Dash trotted over before gently dragging Ryan over to a large, floor pillow and pushing him backwards on to it, "Instead of sleeping all by yer lonesome..."
"Uh, Dashie, I'm usually sleepin' with Apps so Ah'm never alone." He snickered as she blushed and grumbled.
"Hush! Let me do my thing!" Rainbow cleared her throat, "As I said...Instead of that, how about we keep the Fire of Friendship burning and just do what we always do in these group situations?"
Rather sure of what she was hinting at, it certainly didn't surprise him when she settled down next to him and nuzzled his chest.
'Welp, I'm all for this idea! Care to join us this time Tia? Woona?'
Luna tapped her chin in thought, "It has been so very long since we indulged in...what is it you called them Darkness? Cuddle puddles? Though it isn't quite princess-like...I can't deny how tempted I am."
Celestia merely laughed before nudging her sister over, "Oh come now sister, as if we've really acted all that princess-like around Ryan and Dark. If anything, he's helped remind me of how nice it was when we once had someone who treated us as normal ponies."
"Well with a solid argument like that..." Luna snickered before joining the others around Ryan.
It didn't take long for a familiar image to form: everypony in a cuddle puddle, centered around Ryan and Dark. As the remnants of the fire crackled and cast their light over the room, the Fire of Friendship shined brightly over the now sleeping group of friends on this Hearth's Warming Day...

A few hours later, in the early morning, Ryan slowly opened his eyes to see the fire had long burned out, but it was still too early for the sun to rise. His smile widened as he glanced at his loved ones surrounding him—snickering at T-Sparks being cuddled close to Cellie—before remembering one last thing he felt he should do. Concentrating for a moment, he slowly lifted the ladies up before scooting out from under them. After very gently setting them down he quietly exited the room before wandering through the dimly lit hallways of the castle, waving here and there to the guards he passed by. Eventually he made his way to a spiraling staircase and began slowly descending downwards to a specific vault, his footsteps echoing softly against the walls.
"...so what we dreamt was true, right?"
'Yes. I'll share with you what happened one day Ryan but...'
"Hey, don't sweat it." Ryan laughed softly, "It's all good. I just wanted ta make sure."
'Thanks again for doing this...I know the last time you were pretty upset when ya came down here but...'
"It's okay...from what little I do understand, it was all a terrible series of unfortunate events that nopony and nobody could have predicted."
Coming to the bottom of the staircase, Ryan turned right and headed right until coming upon a large door being watched by Luna's guards.
"Oh, it's you again Ryan."
Ryan waved at the acknowledgement, "Hello Night Strike. Happy Hearth's Warming to you and the rookie."
"Hey! It's been a few months you know! I'm not really a rookie now."
"Hahaha, I suppose that's true."
Night Strike shook his head before letting his features become serious again, "I can only imagine there's one reason you're here."
"Yes...but for a much different reason than last time."
"...very well. I'm not sure what you're up to this time but don't take too long." Night Strike shrugged, opening the door for him.
"Thanks." With that Ryan stepped inside the room housing Discord's petrified form and waited till the door closed, "..."
'Ryan?'
"Sorry...just...not looking forward to this again but...it's more fittin' if you're the one doing it." Ryan steadied himself before snapping his fingers and focusing his magic, "Soul Cross."

Ryan's body stumbled for a few moments but maintained balance this time as he stayed on his feet. As everything settled, his breathing steadied as he looked at the statue of Discord. Pulling something out, he walked over to it before placing what appeared to be a red and white hat on his head, "Happy Hearth's Warming Cordy. I wish it was under better terms but...well, ya know how things have gone so no need to reiterate. I'm sure yer wondering how the hell I'm the one talking but it doesn't matter; suffice to say Ryan's a hell of a friend who is going to have a hell of a headache after this. That's not why I'm here though.
"I'm here because I had a dream...and in it you were yerself old friend. It reminded me of the old times: of the pranks we'd pull on Tia...on Woona...on each other. The crazy adventures we'd get up to...and those quiet evenings the four of us would spend in front of the fire, talking about the most ridiculous things and forgetting the troubles of the world our positions tended to bring. Did ya know they still make that Rainbow-infused booze we had some fun with? They call it Spectrum now and, suffice to say, it still has a kick to it. It's not as good as the old stuff, but oh well...nopony and nobody made that brew better than Hurricane and Cecil did after all."
Pulling off his shades, Dark hovered up the short distance to look at his old friend face-to-face, "I just...I'll never understand how it all went so wrong so fast. All I have are theories that leave me with more questions than answers. After all this time I've never been able to truly figure out what happened to you back then that...that put you off the deep end like that. I know it had to do with the one pony that was never found...and I can only deduce that humans were involved somehow as that was when your hatred of us became so...so terrifying.
"Maybe that's why I couldn't get a straight answer from you back then. You still valued and loved me as a friend but your mind was torn by what had happened and so, rather than risk hurting those you cared about, you disappeared for a time." He floated up and back, leaning on Discord's shoulder before frowning, "Yet even that wasn't enough as you came back with a vengeance. So many lives were lost that day, so many fates were altered, and Equestria itself was never the same. Still..."
Dark, feeling his time was short, gave his old friend a hug before touching down on the ground and wincing, "I hope a day comes when once more we can have the kind of fun we did way back then. I'd have to have it through Ryan but he's a pretty crazy guy too. It'd be nice if you and him could become friends; he's a little more serious than I was but he still gets into some pretty hairy situations. I mean, we're talking about a guy that without trying has somehow stumbled into a harem route. Seriously Cordy, how does one guy do that? I sure as hell don't know, that's for sure!"
Coughing, Dark felt his time growing shorter, "It's uh, about time that I've gotta go Cordy. It was a little one-sided but it was nice talking with ya in a more relaxed setting—"He wiped his eyes and sniffled"—Crying? I'm not crying dammit...it's just...really damn dusty in this vault they keep ya in. I'll have to ask Woona to see if we can't clean up this mess some. Anyway...Happy Hearth's Warming old friend. Here's to a day we can all smile like in the days gone by..."

And with that Dark clutched his head, grunting as his wings disappeared and Ryan took control of his body once more.
"...shit. That still packs a hell of a wallop." Ryan stumbled slightly, leaning back against one of the walls, "At least I didn't fall to one knee this time."
Panting and taking a moment to get his bearings, Ryan couldn't help chuckle at seeing the rather iconic hat now sitting on Discord's head, "Well...I'm not sure what he talked about with ya, but I hope you listened whatever it was."
Walking over to Discord, Ryan double-checked that things were as they should before smirking, "Oh, what the hell! Happy Hearth's Warming, Disky! Now then...to get back before the ladies notice—"
And that was when Ryan was cut off as he felt the familiar tug of magic on his person before he was poofed back into the room where he had been sleeping with the gals. Slightly disoriented, he could see the others were still sleeping except for one...and that one was giving him a rather knowing grin.
"Leaving your ladies behind are you?" Celestia teased as she whispered, "Not becoming of a gentleman to act that way my little human..."
Ryan rolled his eyes, letting himself get pulled back into the center of the cuddle puddle, "I highly doubt you're unaware of where Dark and Ah went so..."
"Oh I know." Celestia snickered before closing her eyes, "It's just fun to tease you. You and Dark always turn the most wonderful shade of red when I do...as well as have the most amusing reactions."
Feeling him gently poke her in the nose, she got the point and settled down, closing her eyes and snickering when she felt her favorite student move slightly and then reposition herself on her back. Ryan couldn't help himself as he reached over and gave a gentle scratch to Twilight's belly, holding back a laugh at how both her tongue flopped out of her mouth and her hindleg gently kicked in reaction. Knowing anymore would risk waking the others surrounding him, he ceased his actions before getting comfortable and closing his eyes, "Happy Hearth's Warming..."
'And Woona bless us, everypony~'
A slight coughing noise caught Ryan and Dark's attention as he cracked one eye open to see Cellie giving him a look.
'Oh...and Tia too! Haha...'