Night Crew

by NFire

Chapter 13

Author's Note:

Sorry for the late update, getting mah own hearth's Warming ready, and to all of you fine, wonderful, fantastical readers, Happy Hearth's Warming to you and yours!

Hangfire was awoken by the bouncing of the bed, most violently actually. It appears Cornflower was the first one up and decided in her way, that since she was awake everyone else needed to be. Thus, this was accomplished by treating the mattress like a trampoline.

The bouncing was accompanied by a loud “Wheee!” Then a squeaking as she landed, straddling Chryse and Hangfire as they tried to wake up, rubbing the sleep from their eyes.

“Cornflower, for Luna’s sake stoppit! Agh!”

The pretty blue mare stopped her bouncing, hugging her sister and pointing out the door to the room, “C..c..c’mon! I..i..it’s H...h...Hearth Wuh...wuh...Warming!”

Hangfire rubbed her eyes and smiled at ‘Flower, “Go on down to start the coffee, we’ll be right down. Promise!”

Cornflower gave a happy squeak and tumbled out of the doorway, leaving Hangfire and Chryse staring at each other blearily.

Chryse hugged her warmly, “Happy Hearth’s Warming Hang.”

“Same back atcha Chryse, should we get down there before she explodes?”

Chryse rolled her soft orange eyes and sighed, “Yeah we better, Celestia knows what she’s doing down there.”

Brushing their manes as best they could, they slipped out of the room, prepared for a holiday with smiles.

Cornflower, had started the coffee as asked, though she was bouncing around the living room. Looking at the presents laying along the hearth, tilting her head as she read the labels on each of them. There were a few more, as Hangfire was sure Blue and Hazy added their own during the night, as well as Chryse.

Hangfire dropped some logs into the banked fire, getting it nice and stoked, the flames dancing merrily as the house warmed. Chryse came out with mugs of coffee for everypony, seeing Hazy and Blue wander out of their room.

“Cornflower wake you as well?”

Blue laughed, “Yeah, seems to think everyone has to be up at..” He looked at the clock on the wall, “FOUR AM? Oh fer..geez Cornflower!”

The little blue mare was unrepentant, sitting with a candy cane in her muzzle, her yellow eyes just smiling at everyone in the firelight.

As they sat and shared quiet time, with the exception of Cornflower of course, they thought of the meal the night before. After stuffing themselves, they’d realized they’d had more than they needed. So bundling up against the cold, they had put all the hot dishes into containers and went out to find somepony that needed a bit of help.

Of course, no trip through the evening was replete without carols, so the little group belted out tunes as they marched their way through Ponyville, being joined by not a few more families that had decided to do the same thing.

As tends to happen in the small town, quite a crowd had gathered outside town hall, singing and tossing snowballs, piles of food and gifts gathered on the steps and decking outside. Mayor Mare had actually shown up, shaking herself out of a warm house, seeing the singing ponies laden with food and more tramping down the street.

Even in a community such as Ponyville, there was always a new family or two, or some people who hadn’t quite had enough for the holidays that needed a bit of help. The names were quickly found, Mayor Mare being quite the organizer. Ten families it seemed, needed a bit of help this season, so off the crowd went!

Of course, the sight of a few hundred ponies outside your door in the late evening was surprising to some, and it took a bit of talking from the Mayor to get them to open their doors. Whereupon the family or the single pony inside were showered with food and gifts, and a few carols sung, not really well but with enthusiasm. A few tears of joy were seen of course, families who’d hadn’t enough saved for much of a Hearth’s Warming were shocked to see ponies everywhere, giving them gifts for themselves and their little foals. Food piled high on the doorstep completed the giving as the crowd moved off to give away everything they’d brought.

Hearth’s Warming wasn’t about the getting, but the giving. The big impromptu crowd, wound it’s way through the town; till the last gift was given, the last container of hot food bestowed, and the last carol sung. They gathered one last time in front of town hall, for farewells and hugs, wending their way back home to enjoy the rest of the evening. Mayor Mare just shaking her head, seeing the happy crowd disperse and was pretty much convinced the whole town lost it’s collective mind in a good way some times.

It gave Hangfire a warm glow inside as she sipped her coffee, remembering the one family with three little foals who got buried under gifts and food. The father thanking everyone as mom told the little ones the crowd were Santa Hooves’ helpers dropping off things for Hearth’s Warming.

It had been a wonderful way to end a wonderful night, she thought. Smiling to herself, she busied with wandering into the kitchen, hoping to drive Cornflower nuts with the waiting as well. Grabbing a few plates of snacks out of the cold box, bringing them back into the warm living room, she joined the others who were rattling the wrapped boxes now.

“You put those down you mooches!” She waved a warning hoof at the bunch of ponies, “You can’t keep your hooves off the gifts for five minutes, yeesh!” In return, she got four sets of very big, warm pony eyes, sort of like puppy dog eyes, but much, much worse.

“AGH! You ponies are getting far too good at that stuff!”

Blue laughed, his wing on the mend faster now, he was actually taking short flights, his side was almost healed, though there would be a few scars. He let it roll off himself though, he was happy, with friends, and alive, that was the main thing. “Well we have a few gifts for you too! You suuuuuuuuure you don’t want to rattle a box?”

He proffered a brightly wrapped box, waving it in front of her muzzle, “C’mon now, you know you want to!”

Hangfire’s eyes narrowed a bit before she snatched the box from his hoof, “Fine!” And began to shake it as well, receiving only a muffled sound. “Huh, nothing to rattle in here.”

Cornflower of course, was just delighted to keep shaking a box or two. Finally looking around and asking, “C...c....can w..w..we.. o..oh....open nuh...nuh...now?”

Hangfire passed this one to Chryse, giving her a ‘It’s your call’ look and taking no responsibility whatsoever for any carnage after the decision was made.

Chryse sighed and nodded, “It’s morning, of course we can.”

They all took to unwrapping presents at the signal, though for some reason they all seemed to take their time, making sure the paper was smartly taken off each gift. This made Hangfire curious, as she tore her own off. “Hey, why are you doing that?”

Hazy looked up, “What?”

“Well, the way you’re taking the paper off, I mean.. Well, don’t you just tear it off?”

The four looked at each other as if she’d gone a bit mad, then stared at the paper they were all undoing neatly. Chryse and Cornflower blushed a bit, as they looked anywhere but at the paper, “Well.. me and ‘Flower never had much money, we always saved the paper to be reused..”

Hazy and Blue looked at each other, then nodded, “Us too. We always kept things to reuse or save for later, we never had much.”

Hangfire’s ears lowered as she thought about all the times she barreled through a wrapped gift, just tossing paper aside. The times she’d never thought about even keeping the paper as she was so excited on Hearth’s Warming Day.

“I... I never thought about it that way..”

She stood up and gathered the half-unwrapped gifts, “No, nonono, this won’t do!”

She stalked off into the kitchen, a few minutes later to the bewildered looks of her friends, she walked back out carrying the gifts wrapped again. “No, now you tear that paper off,” setting the presents back in front of everyone. “You tear it off, and for the love of Celestia, have fun. No more. Nope, not gonna be this way!”

Chryse stared at her for a moment, “What..I don’t..”

“Hangfire stamped a hoof, “No! We have a big house, we make enough between all of us. Sun and Moon you don’t HAVE to save anymore, it’s okay!” She gave them a pleading look, “We don’t have to scrounge, we don’t have to save every little bit. It’s Hearth’s Warming! Tear it off, forget just for one second, just..just...be foals again! No one’s going to judge you, I’m certainly not! This is OUR home! And by golly if we want to tear paper off and just throw it away, we WILL!”

With that, she tore the paper wrapping on her gift and tossed it aside. Giving them a look before she opened the box and gasped. A quartet of the softest socks she’d even seen lay upon wrapping tissue. Each one wound up in paper to keep it separate from the other, and drew her eyes to the gold and silver threads that shone just enough to set off her umber coat, “OHMYGOSH!”

Socks, being of course the equivalent to lingerie in the pony world, but she didn’t care, she pulled one out and held it to her chest, “I’ve never had any before!” Just the smile on her face alone could’ve lit the room.

She looked at the tissue paper inside, marked with three gems like a stamp on each thin sheet. She’d seen them...wait.. “Rarity’s? Oh my gosh I didn’t know she made these! Thank you so so much!”

Chryse leaned over and smiled, “It was Cornflower’s idea, so we asked Rarity if she had anything like that. Well of course she did, in a private area, so ponies wouldn’t feel self conscious when picking things out.”

Hangfire hit her face with a hoof, “I should’ve known that, darnit. Oh they’re lovely, and so soft!” Thank you SO much!”

She clung to the single sock, watching her friends open their gifts, there were a few so they had plenty of time.

On Hearth’s Warming, packages and gifts were never marked with who was giving, only the name of who was to receive. But everypony pretty much knew who got what for who, but it was the thought that counted, and traditions lived long.

Cornflower of course, let out a loud squeak when she saw she’d received a light blue quartet of socks as well, looking at Chryse in accusation, but getting waved away. “Stop it ‘Flower, I’m sneaky that way.” She was hugged by the blue mare, who then sat back and tried them on, blushing all the while.

Blue opened his own package, a confused look on his face for a moment before he realized what it was. A wing warmer! A comfy blanket, sort of, that fit over wings at night when sleeping, keeping them warm and steady, the perfect gift for someone who’s wings weren’t exactly up to snuff. He gave his coltfriend a warm hug, “Thanks so much Hazy, it’s perfect.”

Hazy blushed under his orange coat, “Welcome..”

Everyone’s eyes were on Chryse as she opened a gift, giving Cornflower a smile and a bit of a laugh as she pulled out a set of socks as well. Hangfire giggled, it appeared the two sisters weren’t as sneaky as they thought. Hugs were exchanged as Chryse looked at the dark socks, copper and gold threads flashing in the firelight.

The earrings were gushed over of course, being from the Carousel Boutique made them all the better. Hazy got lost in the butterfly book, Blue kept nudging him to pay attention. Blue of course, was lost in quills and inks, Hazy returning the favor when the others tore through their gifts as well.

It was a wonderful Hearth’s Warming Morning, the day was still to come as they watched the sun rise from the living room window. It was bloody cold outside, and there wasn’t anypony brave enough to go out there even for Celestia’s Sun.

Of course a big production was made by Hangfire, having them gather up the paper and properly tossing it away. She took the trash out to the side and left it there, admonishing them not to be embarrassed, sometimes it’s good to let things go.

Around the blazing fire they sat, whiling away the hours that day. It was a rare day when nopony worked or tried not to, unless it was the emergency crews. The weather always took a turn for the worse, since the weather crews really didn’t do a thing either.

Hangfire lounged around, wearing her new items. Seeing Chryse and Cornflower show theirs off, and the new ear bands as well. Hazy and Blue made the appropriate noises of course, wanting to get back to their own new things. Just one of those days when you feel a bit sinful, being lazy, wearing things around that you normally didn’t in the house. But this was her ersatz family, and she didn’t mind one bit.

It really couldn’t get any better than this.