Twilight's first Winter Wrap Up in Ponyville had a rocky start. Things took a turn for the better when she assumed control over the planning and organization, but after a stressful morning and with an all-nighter in front of her, she was afraid it might all be for naught. Luckily Applejack was there and knew Twilight needed a chance to take a break and recharge.
She needed a visit to the Thinkin' Spot.
Editing by Formerly Committed and JetstreamGW.
Y'know, this was nice. It's great to see a bit of genuine bonding between these two characters, especially since it's just so rare. The writing itself was impressive, and the scenery described actually felt pretty real.
So, yeah. I enjoyed this.
This was a sweet change of pace. You set up the story quite nicely at the beginning; I could feel the stress and tiredness that permeated through Ponyville. The exposition with Applejack and her thinking spot was quite a heartwarmer. The transition from friends to best friends was handled wonderfully. I also enjoyed the references to past events in the show. Thank you.
Obviously a success due to the most amazing editor of all time. And that "Committed" fellow, I guess.
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I think both of those editors need to be committed, y'know?
New words from bats? I'm in for sure! :D
Awesome story yet again bats, even if there wasn't any x-rated part to it. Welcome back :-)
nods repeatedly with purpose
That line is my philosophy in life.
This was adorable.
My personal theory is that the episodes are not all in chronological order....
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I've used that structuring myself as well, but it doesn't sit perfectly well with me, main reason being that the character interactions and rapport for Winter Wrap Up feel like they predate a lot of the rest of Season 1, as they reasonably should considering it's the eleventh episode out of a 26 episode season. Couple that with the fact that the only other winter episode we have from pre-alicorn Twilight is Hearth's Warming Eve smack dab in the middle of the second season, and you could theoretically set the chronology as Winter Wrap Up taking place mid S2...or, perhaps Hearth's Warming Eve takes place back in S1, since it comes after May the Best Pet Win, but Tanks for the Memories is the first winter where Rainbow Dash had Tank, and Nightmare Night is a fall holiday so it and Fall Weather Friends need to take place before HWE and WWU, and—
My point being there's no actual way to really go about reconciling an actual timeline of the show, I feel. I usually side with it being better to not worry about it, as I did here, but it is amusing when it gets a bit of attention drawn to it anyway.
*sigh* This story was a nap in front of the fireplace on a cold day. Cozy and rejuvenating.
What a beautiful story. This was a very unexpected, and entirely welcome, change of pace from what I normally read. It might even have been me an idea for my own story... Regardless, this story felt to me almost what I imagine the Thinkin' Spot might feel like to Twilight and Applejack. Thank you for that. That touch at the end with them being best friends was very tastefully done, too. Something I worry about with the mane six (it being a problem I had when I was young, and eventually just called everyone my best friend ). And I'll have to completely agree with you that there are probably dozens, if not hundreds, of untold stories between the margins.
These kinds of stories and the Thinkin' Spot are the same, really.
After all the hubbub of life, or even after just reading tons of big stories… You just need to settle down a bit and read something slow and calm.
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Real food should make the tongue sing, the waist whimper, and the arteries cry.
Interesting... it's always been the opposite for me. I tend to care more about why people do what they do than the results of their actions.
Well... the only thing she's really doing for Winter Wrap Up is organize things. If it isn't ready on time, then she *did* let them down. She had one job.
The meaning comes across alright, but still.
Don't worry, Twilight. All the times you run to or from disaster zones will do wonders for your figure.
beautiful! simply marvellous! loved the simple kinship that was formed
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Now this is what I'm talking about! Actual stories that go into the many facets of how these ponies could have truly grown as friends that the show mostly skimmed over. This was a wonderful piece, maybe someday we'll get one that highlights the whole way Twilight seems to think Pinkie is incapable of being a pony capable of not being so silly and weird. So much that led up to that whole "Man, Twilight really doesn't even try to get to know the real Pinkie Pie..." with episodes like Baby Cakes and Too Many Pinkie Pies being the biggest fails on Twilight's end.
But yeah, this was a sweet in between to Winter Wrap Up. Hope to see more episodes some day from you that better leads into Fall Weather Friends. Hehe, Twilight joining the race to drop a pound or two, that's a cute thought. But it was nice to see how she managed to build her confidence up over the season. That's something not many put much focus on either.
Anyhow, great story Bats. Thanks for sharing it!
This wins you the best fic award
I think you nailed it in describing Twilight's state of mind through out the piece directly and indirectly.
Really enjoyable read.
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The Big Mac/Twilight Sparkle comic makes this literal. And rather amusing.
Ugh, SO PEACEFUL AND WARM.
She truly is Paula Deen reincarnated
I love these two together. It's my favourite ship. This is a good reason why, they just get along really well. It's not "Their personalities are opposites so they must be in love!" or "They have a few things in common so they're perfect together!" I see TwiJack as perfect because they have so much potential to be really close friends, and I can just imagine them being so happy together. I ship them as friends as much as a ship them in a relationship.
So yeah. Loved this story, it was wonderful.
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You can't get much better than the perfect Slice of Life story.
What a pleasant read. Definitely going into the favourites.
Warning: This Comment Contains Spoilers
This was quite an experience. I rarely read stories with Twilight and Applejack as the central characters, and this one has shown me a side of them I've never considered before. I think it fits quite well with the show, and it's a pleasant tale overall. I'm a guy that can't leave it at just that, though, so now I'll go on rambling about it.
Firstly, I found your descriptions of the setting pretty evocative. What you have here works to paint a picture of not only the Thinkin'/g Spot, but also of Ponyville at the beginning. I think I responded strongly to this story not only because it's evocative in describing the scene, but I have a fondness for landscape-descriptions and tranquility. I think you hit that off really nice. Even from your first sentence, I think you had a good control of your setting. It certainly had me moving along with it.
The tranquility carries over well with the character actions, both when it complements it and when it contrasts it. The walk with Applejack and Twilight to the Thinkin'/g Spot was really mellow, the doling out responsibility was brisk, the tension/considerations the characters had was both off-putting and mesmerizing, simply because I envisioned places like this to be for silent meditation, but you used it in a way I could envision much better. In short, the setting and characters worked very well.
The conflicts were cool, with Applejack feeling guilty, and Twilight feeling an intense pressure. I was pretty surprised when I read this passage:
Spoiler Alert:/5
I couldn't figure out what she meant by that, and listening to her and Twilight talking about it was pretty engrossing. I've looked at Applejack in a similar fashion, but didn't even consider Twilight having anything like that. I can see how they bond over something like that. Well done on that!
Spoiler Alert: /5
The ending was really nice. I like how it has moments where Twilight bonds about events of Season 1 with Applejack, showing just how connected they've become through this. It also continues with the good descriptions, dialogue, character interaction, and exposition. It was a lovely conclusion to it.
I'll talk lastly about technical stuff. If I were feeling well, I might attempt to parse word choice and flow, but I'm not, so I'll say that overall, it read pleasantly. It was like taking a jaunt through a peaceful country, and getting one's affairs in order. I also liked the exposition overall; it provided good coverage of what was going on without being too telly, I think. I also don't recall seeing any glaring grammar or spelling errors, so kudos.
I wish I could've talked more about it, but I have the flu, and with my concentration and back-and-forthness today, this is what I could muster. I apologize if it doesn't do your story justice. I had some criticisms about the story as well, but since this is a story you've published without publishing for a long time, as you've put it, I won't bring them up. I'm certainly interested in other stories by you now, and I'll be keeping my eye out for you (if you don't mind, that is ).
I wish you the best with your next endeavor!
COMFORT FOOD (bacon pancakes?) in words.
hay Twi lookie over there. . .
Is that who I think it is?
yepper looks like he's courting her like a real gentle colt
oops he fell in the river
Spike!
swim Spike swim!
Dang twilight did ya need to do that?
It was OK till she grabbed his tail
My precious scales is a stretchie
hay I'm taller!
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I reviewed this story!
My review can be found here.
This was lovely.
I miss Season 1 too.
No freaking kidding. When I saw this sitting in the recommended box, I literally yelled "Finally!" To which my brother responded with confusion as I went on about how it's been too long since I've read some good ol' bats writing.
And you don't disappoint, having an impeccably-written slice of life that...truly, I can't really describe all that goes through my mind in this story. It is both simple and deep, and even my internal critic is left in awe, as there really isn't any flaw, error, or even personal nitpicks to call out.
Welcome back, continue to be the awesome person we love.
This was nice.
Kinda felt like I was in the Thinking Spot while reading about it.
Good enough that I plan to re-read it more than once. Quiet, low key, and pleasant. Slice of life at its finest.
I enjoyed this story on many levels and found it deeply satisfying. Thanks for writing, it was just what I needed :)
Now where have I seen that before?
At least I know where it's from now.
Your headcanon is accepted. I've always enjoyed the AJ/Twilight interplay because it reminds me so much of the interplay between my brother and I. You've done it quite well. This was also just a good, relaxing thing to read on a stressful day. Saving this for future use.
This is easily some of the best Twilight-Applejack interaction I've ever seen. I'm clearly going to have to peruse more of your work.
Still a great story to read on a stressful day when worries spiral out of control, fittingly enough.
You can has review!
"And then... they... kissed... a whole bunch..."
There, good ending. :V No, this was great just the way it is. I really miss Winter Wrap-Up and a lot of other purely S1 trappings.
Reading this type of story nowadays is delightful. Characterizations were out of this world!
Reading this story was as relaxing as AJ seemed to be. What a sweet, S1-inspired story. It's nice to reminisce once in a while, to think back to the beginning as the show approaches its end. Thank you for writing this.
As someone who's firmly convinced that AJ is Twilight's closest friend among the Mane Six, I'm very happy with this story.
Sweet Nostalgia. Just because we are in the ninth season, doesn't mean we should automatically stop writing stories from the earlier ones. Great job on the story.
Love how this wasn't a ship fic- just two good friends bonding together. These types of stories are real rare.
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I agree. Even the show lightly implies that AJ and Twi have a closer friendship then the rest of the other four. This was best shown in the Best Gift Ever when AJ was the one to calm Twi from her meltdown. Also shown in Season 4 premiere, when AJ made her feel better about being a princess. And shown in Season 9 premiere, when AJ plops Twi in chair with another one of her meltdowns, and comfort her when she's sad. Applejack seems to be the most concerning about Twilight's feelings then the other four, and is usually the one to cheer her up.
I really like friendshipping these two.
Nice. :)
I am going to say I liked this little story. Sometimes slice of life is just very satisfying. Liked and favored.
There really aren't enough TwiJack friendshipping fics. This one was a sweet slice of life that treats both characters with empathy. Instant fave.
This was very pleasant and heartwarming.
ah, there it is.
possibly the most elusive sentence on this site for me.
i don't know how this story had gone under my radar for so long, but i'm glad its still here.