A Wish for Hearth's Warming

by CrackedInkWell

1st Movement

The only sound that Harmonic heard in his room was the crackling of his fireplace and the dancing strings of his violin. Before him was a music sheet of one of countless Hearth's Warming carols. It sounded warm, welcoming, and the song promised hope for a brighter future. Of course, the Prince did pencil in a few things into the traditional song such as trills, extra notes, and a harmony of the other strings, but that bright music still gavottes around the large room.

The alicorn looked up at the mantle; it was nearly time for the Hearth's Warming Eve party that Harmonic was looking forward to. A family affair for the Royal family for sure, but this year, since Whole Note had officially become his fiancé, he was especially looking forward to seeing him at the small gathering.

‘Okay,’ he thought as he put the violin back in its case, looking at the colorfully wrapped gifts on his bed. ‘Mom and Aunt Luna’s gifts are over here. I’ve just found Twilight’s and Spike’s presents and they’re ready to go… Cadence and Flur are here too… Script, Page, and Cloudy’s are in one pile. Note’s parents are by the pillow, and his present is-’

Harmonic paused; he scanned around the bed in increasing dread. “Wh… Where’s Note’s present?” He tossed the pillows on his bed, his panic started to increase. “Where did it go? I know I placed it here somewhere! Where is- Oh,” the Prince sighed in relief, finding the present with a golden bow had only fallen off the bed.

Using his magic, the Violinist put the package back in its proper place.

“Okay, so who else am I missing?” he looked over the bed once more, rechecking each present to see if he was forgetting somepon-

“Oh yeah,” Harmonic frowned, “him.”

In truth, the Prince was indeed looking forward to the family’s party tonight. However, there was a particular guest that he wasn’t looking forward towards. It was someone that he’d avoided for a very long time. Not because that this particular guest was bad, but it was because that the one coming is considered as the weird friend who always comes around once in awhile.

Harmonic knew where “his” gift was, it was on the nightstand, wrapped in green paper and orange plaid ribbon.

There was a knock on the Prince’s door, in which he called out for whoever it was to enter. It was a Solar Guard that marched in, giving him a solute.

“Your Highness, they have just arrived and headed their way into the music room.”

“Thanks for that,” Harmonic turned to pick the presents up from his bed. “Has he arrived?”

“Who? Your fiancé or-”

“No,” the alicorn interrupted, “I mean… him.”

It took a moment for the guard to register what he was talking about, “Oh! Oh no, we haven’t seen him yet. But knowing him, we’d expect for him to make a dramatic entrance in one form or another.”

“To be honest,” the Prince confessed as he walked out of the room with all the organized presents in tow. “I really, really hope that he wouldn’t come this year, especially today of all days.”

“Why’s that, Your Grace?”

“Well… It’s because that this will be the very first time that Note’s parents will be meeting the whole family. They all know how important it is for me to give them a good impression of what kind of family they’d expect to be a part of. Now I have the stress of leaving in the hooves of fate that even if he does come, he wouldn’t scare them away. I mean, we all remember last year, right?”

The thought alone was enough to make the gilded Earth Pony shiver, “So many kazoos.”

“I know, I was there – and frankly it’s a miracle that we all escaped for our very lives.” Harmonic shook his head to banish the memory. “So just to be sure, is Whole Note’s family here?”

The Guarded nodded, “Everyone is. Even your family too is waiting in the music room.”

“Excellent,” Harmonic grinned, “You know, I think this Hearth's Warming is going to be a very good one.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

One short walk later, the Prince walked into the warm and festively decorated room. As to fit the theme of an old fashioned Hearth's Warming, every light in the room was lit by the light of candelabras, and a fireplace to help illuminate the room. In one corner of the room was a pine tree that was adorned with colorful glass balls, red beads, tiny candles, and a small gilded sun at the top. And below the tree were lines of presents of various shapes and sizes, all of which waited for their owners to rip them open.

Bundles of holly, strings of scarlet tinsel and reefs of evergreens linked the walls of the room. Trays of entrees, dinner, and desserts were on display on several tables and the piano. And sitting on the piano, a phonograph plays out as warm and festive music to match both the season and the room itself.

Yet, what drew Harmonic in the most were the ponies present, especially with one in particular.

“Note,” the alicorn greeted him, getting his fiancé’s attention. Although his snowy mane was as messy as ever, this time for the occasion he was wearing a suit with a simple, standard black suit over a milky white vest, shirt and tie over his mint green coat. Whole Note smile brighten when he spotted his husband-to-be.

“Harm,” he trotted up to the Prince. “I was starting to w-wond-wound-bleagh! Sorry, I was wondering when you’ll be here.”

Harmonic laughed, giving him a quick kiss on the lips, “Happy Hearth's Warming Note. Look, I brought gifts!”

“Grandpa!” the Violinist was suddenly ambushed from above a little Pegasus filly. “Where’s my present?” she asked in sheer excitement.

The Alicorn craned his neck over to his back, “Now Cloudy, you need to wait like everyone else,” as he said this, he elevated his gifts to take their place underneath the tree.

His granddaughter, however, was disappointed by this. “But Grandpa,” she whined, “I’ve been waiting forever!”

“Just a little longer,” Harmonic lit his horn, lifting the filly off his back. “I promise you that the wait will be worth it.”

She then looked over to the green Earth Pony and asked the Cellist, “Can you convince him to have me open my present early?”

Whole Note shook his head, “Sorry, but I don’t th-think it would be fair. If you s-s-start opening yours, everpony else will too.”

“So it’s best if you wait after the party,” Harmonic added, “where you can open one present before tomorrow morning. Does that sound good?”

“No,” Cloud View’s face soured before she is picked up by her Pegasus mother.

“Hey Harmonic,” using her other foreleg, Page gave her father-in-law a hug. “How’ve you been?”

“Busy, but nothing too serious.”

“Oh good,” she nodded.

“Where’s Script?”

She pointed over to where the punch bowl was, “He talking with Note’s parents, just trying to get them to relax.”

Harmonic thanked her before he and his fiancé walked over to his beloved’s parents. An earthy green stallion in an outdated baby blue suit and a yellow mare in glasses and her main done up in a bun were nervously talking to the alicorn’s adopted son. An Earth Pony too, who had nothing on except a black vest.

“So,” Script started, “Book Mark, wasn’t it?” the mare nodded. “You work in my Aunt’s library in Ponyville?”

“Oh, yes,” she politely smiled, “I uh… just got promoted to work full time at the Golden Oaks.”

“Good thing too,” her husband, Green Hoof added, “Since it’s the winter season, you can’t really do much when you’re a Gardener.” The stallion laughed uneasily, “So it’s always tough this time of year.”

“Evening you two,” Harmonic cut in, in which his beloved’s parents quickly bowed to him. “No, neither of you don’t have to do any of that. You don’t bow to family.”

“But you two aren’t married yet,” Green Hoof pointed out, “and again, sorry but I guess old habits really die hard.”

Whole Note rolled his eyes, “So Mom, I hope the trip here was too bad. With all the snow-”

“It wasn’t all that bad,” Book waved a hoof. “Sure it was quite cold when we got here, but all the ice didn’t stop us from coming here.”

“And again,” Note’s father nodded to the Prince, “Thanks for inviting us over.”

Harmonic smiled, “It wasn’t a problem Sir. I thought it would be a good idea if you guys got the chance to meet my family so you’ll know what we’re really like.”

“Behold!” a voice cried out, that came from a dark blue mare that held a large barrel over her head, trotting in through the door. “I have brought the wassail!”

“You two have met my Aunt Luna, have you?” the Violinist asked.

“Harmonic!” the Night Princess beamed, settling the keg on the table, “A happiest of Hearth’s Warming.”

“You too Aunt Luna,” the Prince nodded, “I think you’ve already have met my future in-laws, have you?”

“Ah, the Parents of Whole Note the Cellist,” she wrapped a hoof around the two now stiff ponies. “We met at last, is it true that you’ll be spending this splendid of holidays with us?”

“Um, we are Y-Your Majesty,” Green Hoof told her, “Both of the boys invited us here after all. It would have been rude not to.”

“Yes,” Boon Mark nodded her head, “What he said.”

“Would either of you care to have some wassail?” Luna asked, “I’ve brought plenty up from the old caller.”

“Excuse me, Aunt Luna,” Harmonic interrupted, “Has, you-know-who arrived yet? I don’t see him anywhere.”

“Alas, neither I nor my sister has seen him lately, why?”

The Price silently sighed, “It’s nothing, it’s all I need to know.”

While Luna dragged his fiancé’s parents off, Harmonic and Whole Note quickly decided to talk with everyone else in the room, beginning with the nearby Twilight Sparkle and Celestia that they were having a conversation by one of the windows.

“So what are you girls talking about?” Harmonic asked, getting their attention.

“Hey Harm,” the purple alicorn immediately hugged him, “Long time, no see.”

“How’s my favorite teacher been doing these days?” he asked, hugging her back. “Where’s Spike anyway?”

“He couldn’t come, sorry,” Twilight let go of him, “He’s spending with his Hearth's Warming in Fillidelphia with his special somepony’s parents. But he told me to tell you ‘Hi’ though.”

“I understand,” Harmonic gestured over to Note, “Speaking of spending time with their special somepony, Twilight, this is my fiancé, Whole Note.”

She smiled and shook his hoof, “Welcome. I’ve only seen you in the news a few times, but it’s good to see you in the flesh.”

“Likewise,” the Cellist said politely. “I uh… hea-ha-heard about what happened to Fluttershy, I’m sorry about her passing.”

“Oh, it’s… It’s okay,” she said melancholy, “I’m not upset about it anymore. She’d lived her life beyond what she could have dreamed of. And I was there to help shape it. Although, since you’re here Harmonic,” she turned to the amber alicorn, “Have you heard anything from Cadence recently?”

“A little,” Harmonic replied, “I think she’s getting better after Shining’s passing. I don’t think she’s been looking for anypony to date, however, I’ve heard a rumor from Flur.”

“Oh?” Celestia inquired, “And what is that?”

“How about we ask her?” the Violinist pointed to Cadence and Flurry Heart, who held their mugs by the fireplace. “They are both here after all.”

The three of them agreed, they made their way over to the fireplace, where Cadence was the first to notice the Prince.

She smiled, “Hey Harmonic.”

“Hey Uncle,” Flurry put her mug down. “So it is true that you and Note are going to get hitched?”

The mint green Earth Pony nodded, “Uh-huh.”

“By-the-way,” Cadence took a sip of before putting her cup down. “When’s the wedding anyway?”

“We haven’t sa-settled on the exact date yet,” Note rubbed a foreleg against the other. “I’m uh… almost paid the rent fully from my apartment-ment.”

“When would that be?”

“I think… August or probably September, maybe.”

“So anyway,” Celestia stepped in, “How are things with you two in the Empire?”

“Oh it’s, good,” the Princess of Love said, “We’ve been expanding our borders a bit since ponies started immigrating there. Oh! And Flurry?” this got her daughter’s attention, “Do you want to tell them about Baker?”

Her child grunted, “Mom, I’ve already told you, Honey Rolls and I are just friends.”

“Uh-huh, ‘friends,’ sure, whatever you say,” the mother said, clearly not convinced.

“What’s going on here?” Twilight asked.

The smaller pink alicorn sighed, “Look, I don’t know what any of you have heard, but Rolls and I are just best friends, nothing more. We were just hanging out since she’s free from her classes during the holidays. Oh, and for the last time mom, I’m straight.”

“I believe you,” Cadence smiled, “But you can’t be too absolutely sure on these things you know.”

“Mom! Stop embarrassing me in front of everypony!” Flurry quickly covered her face and her ears folded back.

There was laughter all around, then Note added, “You know, you kinda remind me of myself wev-when I came out to my parents.”

Harmonic turned to him, “How so?”

“Well, after I told them that I’m gay, the very first thing my mom asked was which one of my friends I was dating.”

Flurry moaned, “Someone please change the subject!”

Her wish was granted in a truly odd way. From the chimney of the roaring fire, there was a Bump! Bang! Crash! Honk! Splat! Hey Macarena! Crack! Crunch! Before something fell through and rolled onto the carpet.

“Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot!” it cried, beating up the flames that had caught his velvety red robe with a furry white trimming. The thing dropped a carpetbag onto the floor with some noticeable sedge marks on its sides. It dropped on the ground and rolled around the floor and the walls until the flames were put out.

“You’re not Saddle Claus,” Little Cloud View pointed out.

“True Sherlock, I’m not really,” he said as the mitch-matched creature got up. “But I want to pretend that I am for a change.”

“Good evening Discord,” both Harmonic and Twilight said dryly.

After popping a few joints and spinning his head around, Discord stood up proudly. “It’s Happy Hearth's Warming, Discord.” He corrected them before turning to the carpet bag, “Also, sorry for being a wee bit late, I had to reconsider some of all of your gifts for the big day tomorrow.”

Luna blinked, “You brought gifts for everypony?”

“Even one for me,” the Draconequus unclasped the mouth of the bag. “Give me a sec, I’ll go get them.” The Saddle Claus impersonator floated up to the lit chandeliers above before taking a swan dive into the depths of his bag.

“Is this normal…?” Book Mark asked with caution, “Does this happen every day or…?”

“Only on every other day,” Discord’s voice echoed from the bag. “The rule is, weird tomorrow, weird yesterday, but never weird today.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Celestia said, sticking her head in the carpetbag, “Even for you, there hast to be a ‘Weird today.’”

“Oh no it can’t Celie; it’s usually weird every other day. It just so happens that today is one of those days. Now did I put them by the library or the swimming pool?”

“What are you looking for anyway?”

“Come on, I knew I put those stupid gifts somewhere. But where did they- Uh-ha! Found them!” Discord sprang out of the bag, in his lion’s paw, he carried a stack of white envelopes, “Here it is, the perfect stocking stuffers.” On the mantle, thirteen stalking materialized, twelve of which had all the names of the guest at the party – with the Spirit of Chaos’s name at the very end which was the longest of the bunch.

“Now,” Discord popped over at the fireplace, distributing each stocking with the envelope. “One for you, one for you-”

“Discord,” Cadence interrupted, “What did you give all of us?”

“The ultimate gift cards,” he said as he placed an envelope in Cloud View’s stalking. “And before anyone asks, the answer is no. They don’t have any cash attached, although you could if you really want to.”

“What does that mean?” Whole Note asked as he trotted up to the stalking with his name on it. Before the stallion could even touch the envelope sticking out, his hoof was slapped away.

“Hey! Careful! These wishes are fragile you know!” the Lord of Random scolded the Earth Pony.

Note was completely taken aback, “W-What did you say?”

Discord was about to replete what he told him until he realized too late of his mistake. The whole room became dead quiet.

“Sorry,” Harmonic stepped forward, “Did you just say, ‘wishes’?”

The Draconequus moaned, “Welp, there goes the big surprise! But yes,” he placed the remaining envelopes in their stockings, “all of these contain one wish per pony. And trust me; none of these were easy to make either. Call it a cheap cop-out, but it’s rather difficult to find the perfect gift for all of you since ponies usually hate the things I give them.”

“Like what happened at my son’s birthday?” Harmonic questioned him, sharpening his eyes.

“Hey, I honestly didn’t know that being in a tank of piranhas that sing wasn’t any of your idea of fun,” Discord held his arms defensively.

“Or the time you gave my last husband the Yakstainian Crown that nearly triggered a war?”

“Oh come on, those Yaks get offended at the drop of a horny hat.”

“Or the time that your idea of a Hearts and Hooves Day present for me was putting a want-it-need-it spell on me that attracted everypony within a twenty-mile radius?”

This got his fiancé’s attention, “When did that happen?”

The alicorn sighed, “It was after Color died and during my depression years. Thankfully I was able to convince Mom to erase everypony’s memory that was involved on that day.”

Whole Note blinked, “So I’m guessing this is why you don’t really ever mention Discord, even when I asked about him.”

“Oh don’t mind him,” Discord waved a claw, “He just has a simple grudge against me, and he’ll get over it eventually.”

“Um, excuse me,” Script spoke up, “Where we just talking about wishes a moment ago?”

Discord leaned back and fell into a hammock, “I suppose we were. Since the surprise is up, I guess I should explain a bit in how they work. Each wish is on a little card that if one touches them directly, it activates, which is why they’re all in envelopes.” With a snap of his claw, a coconut cup appeared in his paw, which included a straw and a little umbrella. “They’re simple to use, all you have to do is touch it, make your wish, and then tear it up for the magic to happen.”

Whole Note’s mother raised an eyebrow, “Wait-a-minute, what’s the catch here?” the Draconequus raised an eyebrow. “I mean, from all the books I’ve read about wishes, there’s always some catch that comes with it.”

“Oh,” Discord flopped back in the hammock, “turns out, there is a catch. All of these can grant all of you a single wish, however, that wish will only last for a day. This means, according to the dumb laws of the universe, a wish can be granted, but it can only last for a period of time. So I would think extra carefully about your wishes if I were all of you, because of it whatever you want, it won’t last for very long.”

Flurry Heart, like everyone else, eyed their stalking, “But, aren’t there some wishes that are… I don’t know, forbidden?”

The former Lord of Chaos shook his head, “Not if that said wish has a time limit. With these, there is no such thing as an evil wish, only dumb ones. Like, say if you wanted somepony dead, they’ll only stay deceased for twenty-four hours to only come back from the grave to sue you. Or if you want riches, you’ll have it for a day, but it’ll be gone. And if you wish for your time limit to extend to forever, it’ll just cancel out.

“But let’s not waste our time on wishes,” Discord turned to them, “We have a party to celebrate!”

_*_

If a wish was offered to you, but it can last for only a day, what would you wish for?

This was the question the Prince Harmonic was trying to ask himself. While the party continued on despite (to Harmonic’s annoyance) Discord antics to spice up the family gathering, it was still going well. Jokes and magic tricks were exchanged; stories and questions were asked by everypony. And the Violinist was playing with his grandchild with Page Turner.

But sometimes, he would glance over at the stockings hanging by the fireplace, particularly the one that had his name stitched on it. What could he wish for anyway? As of now, he had everything then anypony could dream of having. He went from a beggar, traveling across the Icy North with a caravan of Gypsies, playing his violin for food, to being adopted by Royals, dating and marrying anypony of his choosing that was free from prejudice, and he was living in a palace. He ate well, slept in a warm bed, and he still gets to do what he loved, playing his father’s violin.

On top of that, not only did he have everything, but even much more since he has a family of his very own. He’s the grandfather of a playful filly, his son is starting to gather respect as a writer, and he was about to get married to Whole Note by next year.

So really, what was there for him to wish for? With all that has happened, what’s the use to have any wish granted. All except for…

It was in that moment of self-reflection that Harmonic noticed Note talking to his son. After excusing himself from his granddaughter, he gestured his fiancé over to the window to talk to him.

“So…” he started as soon as the Cellist went up to him. “How are you doing so far?”

“Okay, I guess.”

“And your parents?” at this, the green stallion looked over his shoulder to find his parents playing limbo, using Discord as the poll.

“I think they think he’s really weird but harmless.”

Harmonic huffed, “Yeah, for now.”

Note’s smile fell to a worried look, “Has Discord been that bad to you?”

“It’s a little complicated,” he sighed, “I already know that Discord is trying to be good. But the thing is, I don’t really trust him all that much. He’s a little too unpredictable. Besides, there’s a good reason why Twilight didn’t invited him to my first wedding. I mean, you already know about him turning into stone twice, his betrayal to Equestria from Terek, and what he actually did in past Galloping Galas.” Harmonic looked over to Discord again, “Although, I have to give him credit, you’re parents are at least still in the same room so far.”

“That can’t be the on-only reason why you don’t like him,” Note pointed out.

“He’d almost hurt Script.”

Whole Note’s eyes widened, “What?”

“You see, when Script turned fourteen, he came to the party, asking him what he would like for his birthday. At the time, he wants to have a pet of his own. So Script asked something simple as a bowl of fishes to look after. Well, he made a huge tank appear, and filled it with piranhas, with him still in it! We were lucky to get him out before any of those fishes took a bite out of him.”

“You’re kidding?” the Earth Pony’s jaw dropped.

The Prince shook his head, “You could only imagine how angry I was at him for doing so thoughtless.”

“I… see,” Note turned to his parents where Discord lowed himself a notch.

“A change in subject,” the alicorn said, “Have you thought about your wish?”

His fiancé shook his head, “Not really, I don’t have clue what ke-ka-kind of wish I’d make. And one that lasts a day? What is there to wish for?”

Harmonic turned to the window, where the gray clouds still unleash a blizzard of white to the earth below. “Note, can I ask you something personal?”

He nodded.

“Have you known anyone that has died? I mean, someone who you had some sort of personal relationship with before they passed on?”

“Well… There was Grandma Wick. As a colt, she’d used to make candles, the kind that has a sent. She uh… she died before I came out.”

“Did you ever get the chance to tell her goodbye?”

The Cellist paused before answering, “Um… y-yes. I remember talking to her several hours before.”

“But what if you hadn’t?” this got the stallion to look up at the Violinist. He continued, “What if you’d never gotten the chance to tell her everything you want to say before she left? What then?”

Note looked at his fiancé for a moment, “Harm, where are you going with this?”

Harmonic looked over to the fireplace, “What if you were given a chance to see someone who has died one last time?”

“U-Uh, where are you taking this?” Note asked nervously.

“I’ve been thinking,” He confessed, “Discord did say that our wishes have no limitations, and they only last for a full day. So… what would happen if I wish for a certain somepony that I could say goodbye to?”

“What? Like who?”

Harmonic looked at his beloved in the eye and asked, “Whole Note, how would you feel if you got the chance to meet my father?”

“W-W-W-W-What?!” The alicorn shushed him, his fiancé asked, “Are you serious? Do you want to bring Crescendo Trotivari back from the dead? Why him of all ponies?”

“Let me explain,” Harmonic placed a hoof on Note’s shoulder. “Out of all the ponies that I know that have died, only three stuck out. My parents, and Color. Now before you ask, I’m going to tell you why my father above all else.

“I could have gone for Color. As much as I love him so, for all that he’s done, I don’t think it would be a wise choice. I mean, what would the point of him being here again? He made me promise on his deathbed that I would find somepony that would make me happy again. With you, that promise is being fulfilled. Besides, even if I did, I know him well enough that he would approve you being my husband-to-be.

“With my parents, however, it’s a little trickier. You see, unlike my last husband, I never got the chance to tell them goodbye when they were alive. Nor expressed to either how much I loved them in that fire. But the reason I want to see my father is that he’s the one who has made the biggest impact on me. Even if he was here for only a day longer, at least I would have plenty of time to tell him the things that I had been grieving in the past over. And maybe, if I have the courage, come out to him.”

Whole Note turned to the window in thought, through the wintery nocturnal reflection, he commented. “Are you sure be-bringing him here would be a good idea? And how would that even work?”

“Note, I miss him,” Harmonic said solemnly. “There are stages in my life that he’d never got to be a part of. Like the time that I’ve finally learned how to read, or fly, or my first violin recital. Nor was he there when I first got married, or adopted Script, or was there when Color passed away. He maybe a great-grandfather to my Cloud View, but he died too soon for my life to improve. That’s why, just for once, even for a holiday that he’d be unfamiliar with, I want him to spend time with the kind of family he’d never live to be with.”

“Come around everypony!” Celestia’s voice was heard, “It’s time!”

The green stallion looked at the alicorn, “What’s going on?”

Harmonic placed a wing over his love, gesturing him to follow him. “You know how some families have a tradition where the night before Hearth's Warming day, they would pick out one present to open before the morning? That’s what we’re doing now.”

The family gathered around the tree, each one picked out from the pile one of several wrapped gifts to choose from. Everypony unwrapped their boxes and opened the oddly shaped objects, much to their delight. However, Harmonic eyed on a particular gift that his hooves itched to open.

Luna noticed this and called out, “Harmonic, are you not going to open one of your gifts?”

Making up his mind, the Prince walked over to the mantle and with his horn lifted his stalking off the nail.

Discord took notice too, but the Prince of Inspiration took no notice of him as he lifted the envelope into his hoof. “Hey, gather around,” he told the party, “Harmy’s going to make a wish!”

Ponies, young and ancient zipped around the alicorn. The first one to be at his side was his fiancé with a concerned look, “Harm, think what you’re doing here.”

“He’s right you know,” Book Mark pointed out, “It’s best to be careful whatever you’re going to be wishing for.”

Yet, their worries fell on deaf pointy ears as Harmonic open the plain white envelope. Inside he pulled out a card with Discord’s winking face on it and a thumbs up from his claw, “1 Free Wish!” it said in blue, “To use: touch paper of this card, pronounce wish, and rip it in two.”

Harmonic looked up at the fire in the mantle. His thoughts returned to that dreadful night nearly half a century ago. He’d look back at the real starting point of his misery. Back to that cold night where his father looked at him in fear for his safety to run while he could. And the very night when the last sound he could remember from him was the screaming.

“I…” he started, looking back at the card in both of his hooves. “I wish…”

Ponies all around leaned in closely, “I wish,” Harmonic Trotivari Everfree said, “that Crescendo Trotivari, my father, was here with us again,” and with that, he ripped the card in two.

The first thing that the alicorn felt, was heat that was coming from the cards, with a cry, he dropped the cards with “HOT!” escaping his muzzle. The torn pieces of paper fell onto the brick of the fireplace before they too burst into flames. From the flickering light, milky white smoke arose in the mantle. That smoke grew within the fireplace to the point everypony could see something moving in there! There was a failing shadow that moved frantically. It grew thicker until to everypony’s horror, there was a scream from that smoke.

“DAD!” Harmonic shouted. Without even thinking about it, he plunged his hooves into the flames and felt something solid. Grabbing hold, the stallion yanked the thing away from the flames. The Prince felt something heavy falling on top of him that was waving his legs about.

The pony on him screamed, “MELODY! I CAN’T SEE!” Harmonic pushed the frightened pony away, now getting a good look at someone who he’d haven’t seen in years.

He was wearing a nightgown, although it was a little burnt since he just got pulled out of a fire, the ponies nearby were throwing glasses of water and punch on him. His coat was blond, as yellow as wheat, and his main, tail and beard was light brown, the same color as bread. Yet his eyes through his glasses were the same shiny copper as his son’s.

“AUGH! WHAT!? WHAT’S GOING ON?!” he asked frantically, looking around the room, “AND WHO ARE YOU ALL?!”

Harmonic stood up, “Crescendo?” this got the panicky stallion’s attention. “Is… Crescendo Trotivari?”

“Who are you?” he looked up at the alicorn. “What do you want?”

There was a pause, “Don’t you even recognize me?”

“What’s going on?” the bearded stallion demanded, “Where am I?”

The Prince slowly turned to the side, so that he could show his father his cutie mark, “Do you know me?”

His father paused, getting up from his soaked nightgown. He went up to the alicorn, examining his mark, ruffling up his wings until he came face to face with him, messing up his mane a bit. He looked into those familiar copper eyes that pleaded him to find something familiar in it.

“No,” the stallion said, shaking his head in disbelief, “Are you…? Harmonic? My boy, is that you under there?”

At this point, it was too much for the Violinist, he nodded his head, tears flowing down his cheeks. “H-Hey dad,” his voice croaked, leaping onto his father, hugging him for the first time in years in which he wept openly.

“Harmonic?” Crescendo asked in confusion. “Harmonic, my child, what happened to you? Why are you so old?”

“I missed you,” Harmonic whispered, “I’ve missed you so m-much.”

“Missed me?”

“Y-You h-have no ide-a how l-long-g I’d w-w-wanted th-this!”

Mystified, the father broke the hug, placing a hoof over each of his son’s cheeks. “But I don’t understand. What happened? You were just a boy a moment ago, a-and then, I-I’m here. What’s going on?” he looked around the room, “Melody? Where’s your mother?”

Harmonic sniffed, “I’m sorry dad. I’m really am,” he said before balling his eyes out. “I-I didn’t think a-about that.”

“What do you mean?”

“Pardon me,” Celestia stepped forward, “Mr. Trotivari?” his father’s eyes went wide. “I think we all have some explaining to do.”

Comments

[Oblivionwalker]

I have to give it to you, I'm more than sure that anyone who was given this chance to see a loved one who died while they were young to see there parents for a day and ACTUALLY say goodbye to them will have their day brightened for the rest of time.