Family Traditions

by randomkid

The short chapter before the end

Soarin sat as he watched his brother-in-law, to be, pant furiously, trying to catch his breath. Blitz had come in dead last, like usual, this year, but he seemed to be even more out of shape than usual.

"Really dude?" Soarin asked with a confused look on his face. "The race wasn't even that long. How are you so out of breath?"

"Shut... up," Blitz said looking back at him through heavy breathes. "I'm sorry... I'm not a freak like you and Dash. I have a kid now, so I don't get a lot of time to practice. Not to mention the fact that we don't get to wear any clothing during this stupid race," he said, finally catching his breath.

Soarin shook his head. "Sooooo, you said you had an idea?" Soarin asked.

"Yeah. You were wondering when you should propose to Dash right? Well, my idea was, when all the gifts are open, you pop the question and BOOM! The mare is yours," Blitz said enthusiastically.

"Really? Just like that? I'm not too sure about this. Do you really think Dash will fall for my mushy words and awkward proposal?"

"Come on dude, my sister loves you more than she'd ever admit. She'll accept your proposal no matter what you do!" Blitz wrapped his hoof around Soarin. "Believe me. If there's one thing I know, it's my sister."

Soarin looked at Blitz to see the sincerity in his eyes. Blitz had always been a good friend and wingman. Heck, if it wasn't for him, Dash and Soarin wouldn't be together. "Thanks Blitz, you're a true friend."

"Yeah I know. Now, let's get going. We don't want you to be late for raising the flag with Dash," He said trotting off in the direction of the family house. "Besides, it's freezing out here." Blitz said as his body finally cooled down from the race.

"Wait for me!" Soarin said chasing after his friend.

* * *

"And the flag goes to Rainbow Dash this year!" Rainbowshine announced loudly to the small group of ponies that were her family, " and because he came in second this year, Soarin will be joining her in raising the hearthswarming flag!"

The ponies around her clapped their hooves together as the two ponies flew over to the flagpole. The two ponies looked at each other before looking at Rainbowshine. Shine handed the flag to Rainbow Dash, who hooked it up to the rope on the pole. Together the two ponies used the rope to raise the flag.

The flag flapped in the breeze as the ponies beneath it stared in awe.

"Now that the flag is up, it's time to open the gifts!" Rainbowshine said. "Follow me to the tree please."

As everypony followed Shine, Dash looked back to Soarin. "Ready for your gift Soar? I got you something EXTRA special this year," she said biting her lip and smiling evilly.

Soarin blushed at the very idea of whatever it was that was getting Dash so excited. "Now you're scaring me," he told her.

Dash giggled. "Oh don't worry too much. You'll see."

Soarin gulped. He watched as she headed on forward to the present room. "Okay Soarin, now's the big day!" Soarin whispered to himself. He took the small box out of his bag again and looked at it a little. "Now's no time to back out! Let's do this!"

And with that he charged into the room, ready to face his destiny.

Author's Note:

Meh. I'm not sure about this chapter. This one's a little weird and wonky as there are many things I wish I had done earlier in the story like an explanation of the tradition. I didn't really want to go back and rewrite the whole story so I just decided to move on. One more chapter. Sorry this one is so short. I'm just feeling uninspired today. Well as always tell me how you felt about this story and point out any errors with the story or grammar and I'll try to fix it. Thanks for reading!