It Was a Magical Time

by Test4Echo

To Hearth's Warming Future

Sunlight broke through the curtains in Starlight's bedroom, landing squarely on the unicorn's face. Groaning, she tried covering her eyes with a hoof and rolled over. Whatever time it was, it was too early.

She was sore all over. Whatever she dreamt, it must have been something horrible for her to act out so much of it in her sleep. Slowly, she began counting the seconds as the clock in her room ticked away. As time passed, her eye slowly began to twitch in sync with the clock. She wasn't getting back to sleep.

"Buck me," she thought as she tried rolling around in her bed again to get more comfortable. At last, she found something mildly comfortable and wrapped her hooves around it. It felt warm. Very warm. She sighed and tried snuggling into whatever it was.

A familiar scent entered her nose, but she couldn't quite place it through the haze of her early morning brain. She groaned and tried to get as comfortable as she could.

For a few minutes, she stayed curled around whatever the object was. She felt safe, secure. Between whatever she was cuddling and the warm blankets on top of her, she was ready to sleep once more.

Suddenly, a loud snore resounded in her ear, and she jumped fully awake. It took her a few seconds to process the visuals around her. Her room was a mess, well, more of a mess than it already was. Also, more concernedly, there was somepony in her bed. Repeat, there was somepony in her bed!

Screaming, she pulled the covers off and revealed Sunburst, who was still snoring away. A dreamy look was on his face as he rolled over and began to paw at Starlight, mumbling a few words in his sleep. At her continued screaming, he began to awaken, grumbling about the new alarm he had set.

His eyes shot open when he saw Starlight across from him, and he soon joined in her screaming. The two backpedalled off Starlight's bed and onto the floor, both saying "Ow," at the same time.

Popping her head above the bed, a stray paper impaled on her horn, she pointed at Sunburst, who also had just looked over the bed. "What were you doing in my bed?!" she demanded, her horn charging.

"Uh, uh, uh," Sunburst stammered, scratching his neck with a hoof. Bashfully, a blush began to cross his face, and he looked away from Starlight.

Woozily at first, Starlight tried to parse the events of the night before. It was hazy, as she could only place herself to teleporting to this room, and then… She blinked. “Did we...?” She glanced at Sunburst. “And he…?” As her body protested some more, she stretched her hind legs and her mind started to pick up the pace. “And then we…” Staring emptily at the wall across from her bed, she swore she saw Trixie’s face form in the blue crystal. It smirked at her, chortling, "Oh Starlight, you naughty mare. Sunburst must have had a big surprise tonight. Rawr."

It winked at her. “Hope you two lovebirds have more fun! Wink.”

Groaning, Starlight thought to herself, "Well, you were right, Trixie, just a few months late."

As reality began to sink in more, Starlight said, "Uh, want to get back into bed?"

Emptily, Sunburst nodded and slowly climbed back onto Starlight's bed. He groaned in pain and stretched out on the bed. When she climbed on too, he asked, "Did somepony get the number on that yak? I feel like I broke every bone in my body."

"I know what you mean," Starlight replied. She looked at the chaos of her room. Somehow, it looked like a hurricane ripped through and an entire crate of Trixie’s smoke bombs had gone off at once. The desk had all its paper knocked off, which were now scattered all across the floor and somehow also on her dresser and stuck in the door of her bathroom.

Looking to her right, she saw that the boxes in the corner were toppled over and different things from her old bedroom in Sire's Hollow were scattered everywhere. A few kites were hanging from the ceiling. Lastly, and this made her whine in despair, her headmare's uniform was ripped open. It was unrepairable, and she'd have to go to Rarity to get a new one.

She rolled back and looked at Sunburst. He was disheveled, to say the least. His mane was far more unkempt than usual, and a bit of his beard was missing. Blinking slowly, he patted the bridge of his nose. His eyes shot open as he cried, “My glasses!”

For a second, they whipped their gazes around, attempting to catch sight of the pair of spectacles. Of course, Sunburst wasn’t much help, given his current predicament.

Out of the corner of her eye, Starlight caught a glint of light and spotted the glasses on the nightstand. One of the hinges was slightly bent, but aside from that, it appeared fine enough.

Craning her neck, she looked at the nightstand and saw that it was empty aside from the spectacles. She changed position to poke her head higher and saw that the pictures were knocked to the floor, a couple frames broken.

With a faint hum, her horn sputtered to life, and she gently picked up the spectacles and placed them on his muzzle. She lightly tapped him on the edge of his nose, before awkwardly glancing away. She sat straight for a minute, before she sighed and leaned back.

Settling down, she eyed Sunburst again. Given his expression, she could assume that she looked no better. They stared at each other for a good half-minute, faint blushes both coming to their cheeks. Finally, Starlight muttered, "So..."

"Yep..." Sunburst nodded, wincing a bit as he moved his neck.

"So, you." She pointed to Sunburst and then tapped her chest. "And me. We did..."

Interrupting her, Sunburst nodded again, a stronger shade of red on his cheeks. "Yep. It appears we, uh, we did."

Smacking her lips, which she realized were rather dry, Starlight quickly teleported from the room and into the kitchen. She grabbed a glass of water and quickly chugged it down, ridding her mouth of a rather bad aftertaste. After that, she teleported back into the exact same position she was in moments ago.

She smiled beckoningly. "Want to do it again?" she purred, flicking her tail back and forth slightly.

"You bet!" Sunburst answered, diving on top of Starlight. The two laughed as they rolled around, and Starlight soon closed the door to her room, not that anypony else was around to see them.

***

Moaning, Starlight watched as Sunburst prepared breakfast for the two of them. Once again, he was making his famous—at least to Trixie and her—giant pancakes, and she watched as he cooked the pastries.

From the angle of the sun, she guessed that it was at least eleven in the morning. But who cared? It was Hearth's Warming. The only pony neurotic enough to get up early on Hearth's Warming was Twilight, and she had the excuse of being the ruler of Equestria.

Sunburst juked and jived with the pancakes, flipping one high in the air and catching it in the frying pan. As he caught it, he flashed Starlight an unusually cocky grin and returned the frying pan to the stove. The uncooked batter sizzled as the pan touched the element.

Smiling, Starlight sipped on some much-needed coffee. Normally, she didn't touch the stuff, but after the... enjoyable time last night and earlier this morning, she needed all the energy she could muster. She blinked her eyes as the sun moved a bit higher and shone right in her face. Covering her eyes, she stepped back from the table and out into the hallway. It'd be a few minutes anyway before Sunburst was finished making enough for the two of them.

Limping slightly, she shook her rear hoof and began to trot toward the entrance of the castle. There was still the issue of that massive stack of presents that was left there. Twilight and Trixie had left some, but there had to be more than just them.

She approached the stack and began to dig through the pile. Most were indeed from Twilight and Trixie. Strangely enough, some of Twilight's were for Sunburst. Maybe Cadance let her know? Speaking of Cadance, a few gifts were from her, for the both of them. Her wrapping was easy to spot as it was usually either doves or hearts in different patterns.

After a bit more digging, she managed to organize the stack based on gift giver and gift recipient. Surprisingly, Cadance had given the most gifts, although they were evenly distributed between herself and Sunburst. Narrowing her eyes and scratching her chin, she wondered, "Does Cadance know something I don't?"

Either way, she shrugged and grabbed the gifts in her magic. The massive pile floating in front of her, she began to climb the stairs, groaning a bit as her knees complained about moving in such a wide angle. Soon, she reached the living room, which still had a few embers from the fire last night smoldering away.

After placing the gifts either under the tree or beside it, Starlight bent down, grimacing in pain, and grabbed a small log from the nearby stack. She placed it in the fireplace and used her horn to create a few sparks, igniting the log. She blew on it to feed the fire, and soon a crackling, popping fire was blazing in the fireplace.

Nodding at her work, she raised the small guard rail from the hearth and left the living room. Turning around, she plugged in the Hearth's Warming tree before heading down the stairs and back toward the kitchen.

When she entered, she breathed in the smell of coffee, juice, butter, and batter, and saw that Sunburst was already sitting at the table, waiting patiently for Starlight to arrive. He raised an eyebrow silently, but didn't say anything. He levitated two plates over and poured syrup on his plate.

With no newspaper to read, Sunburst instead slowly ate his pancakes, dreamily looking at Starlight. A faint blush was on his features, and his face glowed with satisfaction. Sighing, he took another bite of his pancake and smiled goofily when Starlight looked at him.

Basking in her coltfriend's love, Starlight smiled herself and took a big bite of her food. The sweet taste of syrup mixed with the salty butter and tart strawberries to create a cacophony of flavors in her mouth, each vying to be heard, but all working together to create a truly wonderful combination.

Like Sunburst, she stared at her special somepony and breathed deeply. He was dressed in a robe decorated just like his normal capes, and wore dainty slippers that were a light pink. It was the best that Starlight could find in the castle.

She herself was dressed in her own plush, dark fuchsia robe, and she had her normal happy bunny rabbit slippers on her hooves. When she had stepped in front of a mirror, she did a small start when she saw her mane was unkempt. It had lost its characteristic swoop and instead ballooned out into a large ball of purple and cyan puff. Even after she had tried to tame it, it still had remained fairly springy and straight.

Neither said anything, instead opting to continue to enjoy each other's presence.

Starlight looked around the kitchen, and saw a few motes of flour floating in the rays of sun. Overall, the kitchen was a far cry from the disaster it was a couple of days ago with Trixie. Amazing what a competent cook could do. Grimacing, she instantly regretted criticizing Trixie, but it was true. "I think Sunburst needs to show her a thing or two about cooking when they both have free time," she mused, looking at her coltfriend, who was busy chewing a piece of toast and jam.

Shortly, they finished their breakfast, and Starlight led Sunburst up the staircase to the living room. The stacks of presents reflected the sun coming from the window, which mixed with the orange and red glow of the fireplace. Ripples of heat pressed against their bodies as they entered, the fireplace doing its job of warming the room.

Sitting down on the floor, Sunburst grabbed a present from Twilight and read the label. He passed it to Starlight, who smiled and opened it with her magic. After ripping apart the paper, she was greeted with a small crystal shaped like her cutie mark and a note.

To my dearest friend, Starlight, it began.

As she read the letter, Starlight began to tear up.

I'm sorry that this letter finds you alone on Hearth's Warming. If I were able to escape my princessly duties, I would make sure Spike and I could deliver this gift to you in person. Unfortunately, that is not the case.

In this box you will find a lavender crystal from the deepest mountains of Griffonia. It is said that these bring good luck, but they undoubtedly amplify the magical strength of the user. I took the liberty to fashion this one after your cutie mark.

You were never one of the official Elements of Harmony, Starlight, but you've done just as much, if not more work than some of us, and that deserves recognition. Wear this crystal pendant with pride, for no matter where we are, my friends and I will remember you fondly as the seventh Element: Redemption.

Wishing you a happy Hearth's Warming,

Your friend, mentor, and confidant,

Twilight

Putting the letter down, Starlight gazed at the marvelously crafted crystal with sparkling eyes. Gently taking it in her magic, she watched as the light played through the crystal, refracting through and sending rays of light everywhere.

Sunburst watched with wide eyes as Starlight began laughing a bit in delight, fastening the choker around her neck and looking down at the small crystal.

Starlight tapped the crystal, which echoed with a soft pinging noise, and felt waves of magical energy ripple through her body. Suddenly, a few sparks fell from her horn as it discharged the excess energy. The sparks crackled for a few seconds before dying on the floor.

"What is it?" Sunburst inquired, a mixture of emotions on his face as he watched his marefriend begin to cry.

Between sobs of joy, Starlight replied, "Magic." She cried for a few more minutes as she sat on the couch, but soon she composed herself. Taking a deep breath, she grabbed one of Cadance's gifts for Sunburst and passed it over to him.

As he took it, Starlight had an idea, and began rummaging through one of the cabinets in the room. Shortly, she found the object she was looking for and produced a large camera. She set it on its stand and said, "Smile!"

Sunburst looked up in surprise, half open present in hoof, and stared like a deer in the headlights at the camera. There was a brilliant flash, and he closed his eyes in pain after the picture was taken.

Laughing, Starlight showed him the result, and he began to chuckle.

With that, the present war was soon underway, and the two exchanged gifts with each other, seeing who got the most interesting one. Starlight was winning by a clear margin, as nothing else she or Sunburst received topped Twilight's first gift.

After unwrapping everything, save for the gifts from each other, Starlight sighed and leaned back on the couch. She stared at Sunburst, who wordlessly motioned for her to open her gift first. Smiling, she did as instructed and tore open the yellow reflective paper.

Inside was a small box. After she opened it, her mouth hung wide as she pulled out a silver necklace with a bright electric blue gem. She blinked when there was a bright flash as Sunburst quickly took a picture. She snickered a bit when the image showed her shocked expression.

"Well, try it!" Sunburst exclaimed, eagerly prancing in place.

Fastening the necklace around her, Starlight felt the gem rest comfortably on her chest, just below the choker that Twilight gave her. She looked down and smiled as the electric blue gem stuck out against her fur. Returning her gaze up, she smiled at Sunburst.

Exhaling a bit, Sunburst stated, "It really brings out your eyes, just, just like I hoped!" He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead.

"Well, don't make me wait, you dork," Starlight demanded, crossing her arms in jest and smiling at Sunburst. "I want to see what you think."

Complying, Sunburst sat back down and opened his gift. His eyes widened when he saw the book on old toys and board games. "No way!" he cried, flipping through the pages. "It's nearly in mint condition, too! Where did you find this?"

A few chortles escaping her lips, Starlight said, "It's a secret."

"Wow!" Sunburst exclaimed, turning back to look at the book. He looked through a few pages and then turned to Starlight, pointing at a toy on the page. "D-d-do you know that they only made one thousand of these things? It's crazy!" He went back to searching for the book.

"Yeah, crazy," Starlight thought, watching contentedly as Sunburst flipped through the book. Smacking her forehooves together, she said, "Hey! I thought of something! We need a picture to show our first Hearth's Warming!"

"Oh, right!" Sunburst cried, looking up at Starlight. He frowned. "Uh, now? We’re still a bit messy… and, uh, you know, we could look better.” He coughed into a hoof. “What did you have in mind?"

"Oh, I have an idea," Starlight hummed. She patted the seat next to her on the couch and stretched out. Beckoning with her eyes, she motioned for Sunburst to lie next to her.

After taking a glance between the couch and the camera, Sunburst followed and lay next to her.

In a flash, Starlight teleported a mistletoe from somewhere and held it over their heads. She blushed when Sunburst realized what she was going to do. She grabbed one of the boxes in her magic and held it over the shutter of the camera.

"Happy Hearth's Warming, Sunburst." She leaned down toward him.

Moving closer, he replied, "Happy Hearth's Warming, Starlight."

As the two locked lips, Starlight pressed the shutter with the box, and their world turned white.

FIN

Author's Note:

Well, this took far, far long than I originally planned for it to take. For reference, this was written... one year ago from when I'm writing this author's note (July 14th). This was a passion project after I returned to writing with Starlit Romance, hence its sequel status. I hope that it was enjoyed as being read as much as it was to write (and then later edit).

Through all this, I want to thank EverfreePony for their many, many contributions to editing. They slapped me up when I needed it, and made me do a rewrite of a significant portion of the story.

And hey, I've now officially written a novel-length story, so woot! I do have more stories on the backburner that have been written. They need to be edited, but they are in the works. Can't say what the gap will be in terms of publishing time, but they'll happen eventually.

Thanks again to all who read!

T4E

Comments

[FoolAmongTheStars]

Oh-ho~! I was wondering what the sex tag was for~!

This was a really sweet story! I like how you portrayed how the holidays can be difficult for some people and I can definitely see how Starlight could be one of those, and the silver lining you threw in the form of Sunburst really warmed my heart. All I can say is that I love it! Great job!

[Test4Echo]

11165237
I'm glad that you enjoyed it. I wanted to stretch myself with writing another sad story, so I'm pleased that it came across well. We all need a person like Sunburst in our lives, if you ask me.

My editor bapped me over the head for spurning Sunset, so perhaps something in the future with Sunset finding out she got ignored by Twilight for her own honourific element is in order. Especially if it was given to her brother's (yes, I love that head canon now) marefriend.

[Shiny Kelp]

Wow Sunburst I know it's probably your first time and all but I didn't think it'd be that forgettable.
(Sorry that I ruined the fluff but this was too good to pass)

[Test4Echo]

11165446
You could say it was such a blur there wasn't much to remember. But yeah, I could have probably added a bit more of his demeanor, but, eh, at this point, what's written is written.

Glad you still enjoyed the story overall, though.