A Christmas Party To Remember

December 19th

It was a cold winter evening in Canterlot City. Snow blanketed the streets, people were frantically moving around trying to do some gift-shopping and avoiding slipping and sliding on the ice that covered their sidewalks and roads, it was no doubt the busiest time of the year.

It was especially busy for students in school. Around this time of the year, students were scrambling to get exams done, which was undeniably stressful. Especially if some didn't know what their grades were going to be right away. But they were still going to be around to have some well deserved holiday fun. And that especially went to the Dazzlings up in the penthouse of the Jigsaw Plaza.

All three of them had their own Christmas-related wear. Aria Blaze wore a simple green and white striped open shoulder sweater, with a little mistletoe wrapped around her pigtails. As for Sonata, she came into the dining room with an assortment of Christmas related DVDs and VHS tapes in her hands. She wore a gingerbread brown dress with some pink and white decorated like the icing on a gingerbread man or house. She even had a cute little gumdrop colored bow near the collar.

"So, what movie you pick this year?"

"I don't know, there's so much to pick from!" Sonata squeaked, looking at the selection she had in her hands.

Around the corner, their older sister, Adagio Dazzle, was coming. A wicker basket was in her arms, not filled with clothes, but with a few wrapped up gifts to put under the Christmas tree. And in spirit of the holidays, she wore a red sweater with white trims at the sleeves and dressy black pants.

Adagio set the wicker basket onto the small circular table. "Well girls, I think we've hit the jackpot. I have your gifts wrapped up, and I've collected the Christmas tunes to liven up the party."

"Oooh, whatcha get us?" Sonata asked like a little girl.

"I can't tell you that, Sonata," Adagio teased, booping her nose. "Can't ruin the surprise. Besides, it's tradition. And the number one rule?"

"You don't mess with tradition," all three Dazzlings said together.

"Why do you always look forward to Christmas anyways? There's too many commercials, everyone is busy and insane, not to mention people fight you when you're just trying to do daily shopping," Aria rolled her eyes.

"Because, Aria Blaze," Adagio said, rather straightforwardly as she went to the kitchen. "This time of the year is the time for family, the time where we're thankful for what we have, and to help the less fortunate live the good lives they deserve," She passed around a few cups of hot cocoa to her sisters. "And I am especially thankful for this year. Because now? Aria, Sonata. We're home."

Aria couldn't help but smile a bit at the thought. Though maybe it was the smell of hot cocoa hitting her nose that made her grin a bit. All three sisters clinked their mugs like a toast, and all took a few sips from the hot cocoa, although quickly moving the mugs away from how hot the drinks were.

"Agh, ah! That's hot! Too hot!" Sonata yelped. "I burnt my tongue!"

And the poor girl went running off, yanking the nozzle from the sink and leaning her head over it, letting a bunch of cold water run over her tongue. Aria only snickered mildly with a bit of deadpan in her face. "And that's why I wait a couple of minutes before drinking," she said, enjoying her sip much more than before.

Adagio shrugged, walking over to the Christmas tree to plug it in. Once it was in, she flipped a switch on the wall to turn it on... but it didn't. Her finger went up and down on the wall switch, but there was no light turning on. "Are you kidding me right now?"

"Who's the brainiac electrician who gave the okay to arrange the wiring in this building?" Aria pouted, folding her arms.

"I don't know. Maybe there's something wrong with the breaker, can you two check it out?"

"And why can't you take care of it?" Sonata pouted.

"Because I have cookies in the oven I need to watch, and the last time I left any of you alone in the kitchen, everything was set on fire and we ended up eating at Mondo Burger," Adagio glared. "Now come on, it's not that hard. Just find the switch to our apartment and find what flips it on. I have to get everything else finished for the party."

"How was I supposed to know you weren't supposed to have the highest setting for slow baking bread!?" Sonata complained.

"Sonata, stop. Come on, let's go fix the stupid thing..." Aria groaned, grabbing her sister.

"But I need the electrical gloves!"

"They're downstairs, come on!"

"Ow!" Sonata yelped, nearly zapping herself. Somehow even when she had gloves on, she still got herself zapped. "How did the electrician assemble these wires, it's a maze!"

"Hang on, we almost got it," Aria said, flipping through the instruction manual. "According to the handbook, we should almost be done. Three more relay drivers and we should be able to get the lights on. Orrrrr we accidentally shut down all the power on the third floor, or we turn off the plumbing in Miss Swanson's apartment. Hard to say, the guy who was in charge of electricity in this apartment complex wasn't exactly a rocket scientist."

"Those manuals are so hard to read..." Sonata whined.

"Well okay, did you cross the wiring in the second panel?"

"No, Aria, I tried that already, it just stopped the elevators," Sonata explained. "Oooh, how about this one? This one has the power for our penthouse, maybe that will work!"

"I tried that one already, it doesn't connect to anything," Aria shook her head.

And Sonata ignored her words and started to flip the switch up and down.

"Sonata, I am telling you, that button doesn't do a thing."

And she still kept flipping it.

"It's dead, Sonata."

"Come on, work!" Sonata whined, still flipping it on and off. "This button has to do something!"

And it turns out, it actually did. Back up in the apartment, as Adagio was pulling another batch of cookies from the oven and onto the counter, something inside the house opened up. One of the pictures on the wall slide open like a secret safe door, and a few VHS tapes came flying out, hitting the back of her head and dropping onto the floor.

Adagio felt the impact, but she didn't move from her place. Her eyes looked up with an intent to kill, accompanied by a soft growl. "I need to find a better place to hide those..."

Not long after, guests were soon arriving one by one, and the party was starting to swing. The Dazzlings offered a wide variety of snacks like cookies, pastries, and other such goodies. All of said snacks had holiday theming to them, most of them at least. Trees, snowmen, candy canes, stars, all of beautiful frosting colors. There were plenty of spaces for classmates to either stand or sit, and more than enough space to house the many guests they were going to have over. Almost everyone had something festive to wear for the spirit of the holiday, even the closest friends of the Dazzlings were in the spirits with their holiday themed clothing.

Standing in a separate corner of the penthouse were some the Dazzlings closest friends; Octavia, Vinyl, and Lyra. Bon Bon was currently in the kitchen helping out with some more Christmas goodies; gingerbread cookies. Amethyst sat a dining chair enjoying a late dinner (she had been working for the whole day and had missed a meal), and Trixie hung out with Adagio for some cuddly girlfriend time.

"Oi ladies," Octavia grinned, enjoying a cup of nice delicious hot cocoa, "Now, I don't know about you, but I say this was more than well deserved."

"Understatement of the century," Vinyl said, also enjoying a hot cup. "I'm not even sure I did well. Oh, I'm probably going to get F's, I just know it..."

"Vinyl, mate, relax. You've studied, you've prepared, you've brushed up like everyone else, I'm sure you're fine," Octavia softly replied, patting her shoulder. "At least you're in a better mental state than some of us. Lyra, how are you feeling?"

"ImfineImfineIhavelotsofcaffeineinmerightnowbutImfinehopefullyIwontfailtheexamsbutImfinereallyOctaviaImfine!" Lyra jittered like crazy, shaking in place.

"... how much sugar has she had in the past few days?" Vinyl questioned.

"Too much," Octavia said, looking extremely concerned.

"Just wait until you go to college, exams are brutal," Aria said, passing by. "And let me tell you, having done it over 20 times, it never gets any easier."

Vinyl and Octavia's faces went white with fear.

"Vinyl, hold me," Octavia gulped, thinking about the difficulties to come in the future.

"Hey, Lyra, come over here!" Sonata hollered, getting Lyra's attention. Soon the flute player was drawn to where Sonata was, and she gave her hyperactive friend a glass of water. "Have some of this."

Lyra took some water, drinking it down with one gulp, and very unrealistically and frankly out of nowhere, she stopped jittering like crazy and started calming down.

"Ahhhh... that water's good." Lyra sighed, now at ease.

"Hey girls!" Sonata cheered, finally giving her friends attention.

"Hey Sonata! Oooh, lovely dress!" Bon Bon complimented.

"Thanks!" Sonata giggled, doing a small twirl to show off her gingerbread themed outfit. "Oh where are the Rainbooms?"

"Oh they're off hanging out with the Shadowbolts at Crystal Prep, apparently they're celebrating as well," Amethyst explained.

"Aww. Well at least they'll have fun!" Sonata smiled, not perturbed by them not coming.

After a few minutes had passed, Adagio squeezed through some of the guests and walked her way down the hall past the kitchen into one of the small rooms they had in the penthouse. Taking a seat in a comfy chair next to a Christmas tree that was surrounded with gifts, she took one from the pile, reading the name.

"Vinyl!"

"Yeah?"

"Vinyl! Come over here!" Adagio called.

Vinyl squeezed through the guests and walked into the room. "Oh, there you are."

Adagio offered the gift to her friend. "Merry Christmas."

"Oh, Adagio, you didn't have to get me anything," Vinyl cooed. "I-I feel so bad, I didn't think I--"

"Shh. Let Adagio take care of this, okay?" The eldest Siren winked. "Besides, it's tradition. I knew how stressed you and everyone else was, so I did some planning ahead before exam week came around and I may have gotten a few gifts for you girls, as a little surprise."

Vinyl's eyes went wide. "You... all of us?"

Adagio nodded.

"I, j--okay, I know you're strong, financially, judging by how you're able to afford this apartment; but you shouldn't have, we don't need you to spend money every day on us--"

"I worked tables, I delivered mail, I even found a few nice gentlemen at some jewelry stores who were kind enough to give me some nice cash offers for a few treasures we collected in our adventures," Adagio explained. "Now come on, open your gift. You deserve it."

"Well... okay," Vinyl agreed with a soft smile. She delicately pulled the ribbon apart and peeled the wrapping paper away. Underneath the wrapper was a small stack of CDs, which made her eyes light up. "Ohhh, Adagio..."

"I know you've been feeling a bit uncreative when it comes to creating music on your violin, but I think these tracks should be able to help. And I know you need calming music to study, so I think this might do the trick," Adagio softly said.

Vinyl smiled at her friend and gave her a hug. "Thank you, Adagio."

"Aww, of course," Adagio cooed, hugging her back.

"Cheese!"

"Dah!" Vinyl yelped, getting a massive flash of light in her eyes. "Sonata, I wasn't ready! I don't mind taking a picture, but please warn me?"

"Oops! My bad!"

Elsewhere in the party was Aria Blaze, chilling on the couch with her boyfriend Flash. Ever since the two of them started dating, the two of them had been working on trying to be a bit closer to one another; both emotionally and physically. It started with simple hand-holding and kisses, and now it had gone farther into snuggling into each other's arms in romantic embrace; frankly neither one of them wanted to leave from where they were snuggled up.

"Merry Christmas, Flash," Aria cooed, kissing his cheek.

Flash chuckled. "It's not Christmas yet."

"I know. I just feel like saying it," Aria said, nuzzling his cheek.

"I didn't know you had it in you," Sonata playfully teased.

"Oh quiet you," Aria sneered. "Don't start that with me."

Sonata couldn't help but giggle. "It's adorable to see you so happy. I don't think I saw you so happy since... well, ever!"

"That is not true, you've seen me happy before," Aria argued. "Just never been in any good relationships."

"Most of 'em," Sonata winked. "It's just nice seeing you so happy. I like it."

Aria wanted to snark back, but didn't. Instead, she just softly smiled back to her younger sister before she got off to mingle with the other guests.

"Has she ever dated someone?" Flash asked.

"Eh, she's dated a few. I know she likes hunky types, but most of the people she's dated were either shallow, narcissistic, or only wanted her because they thought she was pretty and that's all there was," Aria shrugged, taking a sip of her drink that was on the coffee table. "Though I know recently she's been more interested in more effeminate men. I think she told me briefly about some cute guy that goes to Crystal Prep, says he likes being pretty."

"Well good for her," Flash said with a smile. "And hey, good for him. It's always good to be comfortable in your own skin."

"Mmm. True," Aria shrugged a bit.

"Hey Aria!" A guy called from elsewhere in the party. "We're talking New Years Resolutions, you got any?"

"No one keeps theirs, so I'm saying nope!" She said with a smile and raising her cup.

"Okay Octavia," Adagio said, handing her the present. "Your turn now."

Octavia smiled softly as she looked to her gift. "Adagio, I don't know what to say."

"It's tradition, Octavia," Adagio smiled back. "Come on, open it!"

Octavia ripped the paper off the box, seeing what looked like a shoe box you'd see in those general stores. She opened up the top, and pulled out some of the tissue paper inside. She pulled out the contents, looking in awe. Two black boots with purple studs, matching her punk style.

"Adagio, these look awesome," Octavia grinned.

"I hear you complain about how your feet have been killing you. So I looked at the size boots you're wearing currently, and I found ones that were a next size up that matched your style, but also provide practicality for running, casual walks, and comfort. Hopefully these will let your feet breathe better," Adagio explained.

Octavia cooed. "Thank you, Adagio. Merry Christmas."

Adagio smiled back at her friend, accepting the warm hug from her guitarist friend.

"Say cheese!" Sonata squeed.

The two girls smiled at Sonata as she took a photo of them, this time prepared for the photo.

Sometime later as the party went on, Sonata dug through a wicker basket, holding a collection of DVDs and VHS tapes they had in their collection. Sure they were gonna play games later, but Sonata also had plans for everyone to enjoy some holiday viewing for fun as well.

"Okay, movies, movies... how about Santa Vs The Moon Men?" Sonata asked, showing one of the DVDs in her collection.

A few students threw their heads back and groaned.

"That movie is such a cheesefest man..."

"No offense Sonata, but I don't think any of us wanna watch that," another student rolled his eyes.

"But it's a lot of fun to make fun of bad movies!" Another student argued.

"Not all of us like to make fun of bad movies. Just seems kinda mean, you know?"

"Oh... well, I guess that makes sense," Sonata acknowledged, shrugging a little. "What about Rudolph, that's a classic."

And even more students groaned and threw their heads back.

"Santa's a jerk in that movie, and so is everyone else!"

Sonata pouted. "But it's a product of it's time! You know no one here acts like that here. ... At least I don't think no one does."

"There's only so long that excuse can fly!"

"ENOUGH!" Aria snapped. Jolting from the couch with her fists clenched and her teeth sharpened like daggers, she faced the onslaught of naysayers who kept detesting Sonata's choices. "I shouldn't feel the need to say this. But I'm going to. Sonata and I have lived through the 60s. We know exactly what we had to deal with at the time, the movie is a product of that era we lived in. Frankly, we keep it on us because there's still some charm in it, and I always believe in preserving old stuff so we learn to get better here in the present. Do not lecture us on how bad they were, because WE. ALREADY. KNOW. My sister is trying to find a way to make you all happy, and you little--erghhh... words I wanna say so badly right now, are making it hard, so zip your lips, and just enjoy the cookies already!!"

Aria plunked herself back on the couch, folding her arms with a pout. "... I ruined the party, didn't I? I should just leave before I say something else--"

"--No, no, it's okay," Flash reassured. "You didn't ruin anything, besides I think someone needed to tell them to chill," Flash looked at the naysayers who were now completely silent.

"... Okay, I'm just gonna go get a cookie," Amethyst awkwardly stood up from her chair.

Now Lyra was called over to Adagio's secluded corner, where the Siren was waiting with a gift in her hands. With a smile she passed it to the ninja.

"Here Lyra. Merry Christmas," Adagio smiled.

"Oh, Dagi... for me?"

"Mmmhmm. Open it," Adagio insisted.

Lyra ripped off the wrapping paper on the gift, revealing a collection of fresh comic books. All of them were showing the titular character 'The Mane-iac', along with her band of fellow heroes fighting against the infamous 'Power Ponies'. There were several comics all together, and Lyra's eyes lit up seeing all of them together.

"I know you haven't had any time to do some fun reading, so I found these in the bookstore that I thought you would like. Maybe these can give you some inspiration back for your artwork?"

"They will, yes!" Lyra squeaked. "Thank you, Adagio."

"Merry Christmas, Lyra," Adagio smiled back as she gave her friend a hug.

"Smile!"

And they were prepared this time, taking a photo with the flash again.

Trixie who had been busy mingling with friends in the kitchen, decided to step back out into the living area, looking at the movies that Sonata had compiled together. There were a few interesting ones that caught her eye, although she wasn't sure how the rest of the crowd would feel with some of her choices.

"Ooh, how about this one?" Trixie asked the crowd around her. "Departure Difficulty, that's a classic."

And more groans came from some of the naysayers.

"That's not a holiday movie!"

"But... it takes place around Christmas," Trixie weakly protested.

"Just cause a movie is around the holiday doesn't make it a holiday flick!" Another naysayer snarked.

"Oh... okay, I guess," Trixie just let the VHS tape drop back in the box.

"Hey, do not snark at her," Amethyst glared at the rowdy group. "She's trying to find something to please you guys, and you're not helping!"

"Says the girl obsessed with the 80s."

"Hey, I've let loose on that!" Amethyst protested, folding her arms. "I'm not as obsessed, I've grown up a bit."

"Hey Amethyst! Come over here!" Adagio called from back in the sitting room she was in.

"One moment!" Amethyst replied back. She rolled her eyes at the group before adjusting her sweater. "Ugh, maybe when my enbyfriend gets here, they can pick something. They can make up their mind faster than you three."

Rolling her eyes with a scoff she went into the hallway of the home, passing some other guests who were looking to talk more privately. Around the corner, she saw Adagio sitting in the same chair as before, waiting for her with a gift in her hand.

With a simple smile, Adagio held the gift up to her friend, waiting for her to take it. "Merry Christmas."

Surprised but gracious at the thought, she ripped off the wrapper to see a handful of VHS tapes that were held together. The first one on the bunch was showing a teenage girl being cuddled by a guy, in front of a chalkboard; looked very typical high school flick. A second one showed a man lowering sunglasses with some freaky abomination reflecting in the lenses. The third tape showed what looked like a sci-fi movie with some disc shaped aliens flying into someone's bedroom.

"Whoa... I don't think I've seen any of these before," Amethyst examined. Excitedly, she looked up at Adagio before the Siren interrupted and spoke.

"The last few movies from this period of time left some serious scars on you, and I know it made you question everything you enjoyed. As a woman who has lived through that era, I can assure you not everyone believed in those particular societal norms that were present in that film, and you can breathe because these particular movies I picked are nothing like it. Nothing morally reprehensible, nothing incredibly racist or misogynistic; these 80s movies are very ahead of their time. And I want you to have them for your collection," Adagio explained.

The keytar player smiled softly. "Thank you, Adagio."

"Say cheese!"

And a bright flash went off, nearly blinded Amethyst's eyes as she dropped the tapes and screamed in pain.

"SONATA! WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT GIVING US A WARNING BEFORE YOU USED FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY!?"

"Wait, so how exactly did Amethyst find them again?" Sonata asked.

"She just ran into them while she was getting supplies for school," Vinyl answered, casually. She took a sip of some milk before continuing. "I don't know the full details, but they hit it off, one socialization led to countless others, and the two of them decided to date."

"Huh. Interesting," Sonata nodded, taking a bite of a cookie. "I wonder what they're like."

"From the limited interactions I've had with them, they are a lovely person," Vinyl smiled. "Shame they don't go to Canterlot High, but Crystal Prep is just as good a place to go."

The doorbell finally rung, with a keytar player charging like an elephant across the penthouse to the door. "Oh, I bet that's them now!" Amethyst squeaked, rushing to the door. Opening up on the other side was in fact, Synthwave. They had festive wear just like the others, sporting a cute shoulder-less dress with red and white colors. There was even a festive white trim around the hemline and their sleeves.

"Um, howdy everybody," Synthwave waved, getting a few waves back to them.

"Hey baby," Amethyst cooed, holding their hands. "I hope it wasn't too cold out to get here?"

"No, no, it's alright," they smiled, giving Amethyst a peck on the cheek.

Aria looked at them for a second and stood up. If anyone could help settle their argument for their Christmas viewing, it had to be them, they weren't a part of any of this discussion. Maybe the outsider from Crystal Prep Academy could help end their search.

"You! Enby," Aria asked, standing up. "Need your opinion on a holiday movie because no one here will make up their mind," Aria glared at some of the others. "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, thoughts?"

"Hmm... I mean, it's an old movie--"

"See!?" One of the naysayers chimed.

"--But I like it," they finished.

And the naysayers all collectively groaned again.

"Heyyy, it's the same reaction I got when I said 'The Thing From The Unknown Regions' was an awesome remake," Synthwave said with a smiling but deadpan remark.

"... wait, are you talking about the '82 remake? That one's really good."

"Yeah. ... tell that to the hicks in my old hometown," they rolled their eyes playfully. "Now, where is--ooh cookie!" And immediately their eyes locked onto the sugary confections laid out on the table for everyone to grab.

The Crystal Prep student went the snacks table, grabbing a few cookies to nibble on before meeting Amethyst in the open kitchen where they could stand and chill. And in the same vicinity was none other than Vinyl, Octavia, and Sonata.

"Oi mate, good to see ya again," Octavia greeted, shaking their hand.

"Hey Octavia," Synthwave greeted. "Vinyl, good to see you too."

"Haaai!" Sonata interrupted, cutely. "I'm Sonata! Soooo, you must be Synthwave?"

"Mmmhmm. I take it your one of their friends?"

"Yep! Nice to meet you!" Sonata squeaked.

"Nice to meet you too," Synthwave greeted back, taking a bite of a cookie. "Sooo, how did exam week go?"

"Hopefully alright, though I'm not sure I did well on anything," Vinyl whimpered.

"That's the stress talking, I'm sure you did fine," Amethyst reassured. "What about yours, babe? How did it go?"

"Turned in my final project this afternoon, I hope it's good," they said, nibbling on another cookie. "I stayed up... I don't know how many nights, I just know I've been up for several hours."

"Babe, you gotta get some rest," Amethyst worried. She kissed their cheek, nuzzling them as she embraced them.

"Aww..." Sonata, Vinyl, and Octavia couldn't help but gush.

"Alright, alright now," Synthwave playfully rolled their eyes. "So come on, tell me about yourselves, Amy tells me you all are part of a band or something?"

"Ehhh, kinda. We tend to bounce on and off being a band. We do play as a band occasionally, but we're not as knitted together as one," Sonata answered. "We just like to play once in a while."

"Ah okay," Synthwave nodded. "Sounds fair, I think."

"So where you from, anyway?" Lyra asked, stepping in to meet them. "Lyra by the way."

"Oklahoma," they replied.

"Explains the farmer's accent you got going. Not that there's anything wrong with it, I kinda like it," Lyra giggled. Synthwave just blushed from the compliment, making Amethyst squee a bit. "I'm from Trotkyo."

"Oh? You are?"

"Yep! We moved up here a few years after I was born, work opportunities here in America," Lyra explained, casually as she took a drink. "So Crystal Prep, how's that like?"

"Really good actually. Nice people, lots of stuff to do, love the hangout spots. I've honestly settled into CPA real nicely," they smiled. "And it's nice finding people who are generally okay with me being... me."

"I hear that," Trixie nodded passing by.

"Well if you ever want to hang, we'd love to see you around CHS," Lyra grinned. "CPA students hang out with us all the time."

"Bon Bon!" Adagio called from the office again. "Your turn to open a gift, come on over!"

Bon Bon's hands shook in excitement when she had opened up her gift. An action figure of one of her favorite characters of fiction; Star Blazer, lady of action and adventure, fighting tyranny in the cosmos!

"No... No way. I've been trying to find this figure forever, how did you find it?"

"I asked around local stores and businesses, traced it to a store that recently opened. Antiques, collectibles, items of substantial value to all different collectors and connoisseurs of the science fiction and fantasy arts. And now, you finally have her to add to your collection," Adagio grinned.

"Eeeee! Thank you thank you thank you, I don't know what to say," Bon Bon squeaked.

"You don't need to," Adagio gave her a hug. "Merry Christmas, Bon Bon."

By now, the debate on what made a proper Christmas/holiday movie still kept going on. Amethyst Star was already head-deep into the fight, trying to defend Trixie's honor and choices for having Departure Difficulty, while Synthwave just stood idly by, watching the geek fight. They would happily defend the film, but this was a field that was out of their control and frankly out of their interest. They did not care if it was holiday or not, it was just a great movie in their eyes, and that was it.

Sadly these words would never make it to the ears of the naysayers trying to debate with Amethyst. Aria and Flash wisely stayed out of it, while Sonata just sat in a chair, watching the chaos unfold and eating a cookie as innocent as ever. Eventually Lyra, Bon Bon, Octavia, and Vinyl moved themselves to another spot, finding the open kitchen starting to get crowded. Bored with the fight, Synthwave went off to go spend time with Amethyst, but agreeing to meet the others in a little bit for some one-on-one time if they could. Flash had to rein in Aria before she tackled another disagreeing student to the ground for their hot takes on another beloved Christmas classic, one involving a child left alone at home with bandits trying to break into the child's home.

"So what do you all have plans for this break?" Bon Bon asked.

"I'm not sure, luv. I've been up to my eyeballs in finals, I haven't had time to consider what to do to relax," Octavia admitted, scratching the side of her shaved head. "But I am hoping to get some time with you all. Any of you feel like some extensive sleepovers?" Octavia grinned before it lowered from fear. "... Unless of course, you all have other plans."

"I'm not going anywhere, Octavia," Vinyl assured. "I would love to catch back with some games. It's been a while since we've played Resurgence," the violinist agreed, taking a sip of her milk. "What about you two?"

"Eh, I don't have much plans aside from helping my mother make some more sweets for the bakery," Bon Bon shrugged. "But I think I'll have time for sure. What about you, Lyra?"

"I've got time, yeah. The only slight change in plan is that we have some relatives visiting from Ohio, but aside from that, I'm free," Lyra informed. "Has anyone received word from Princess Trixie if we've got any threats from Equestria still out there?"

"Not that I've heard. I've checked in, the last update we've received was imprisonment for another villain, some derranged child," Octavia shivered. "I don't want to know what is in her head."

"How bad?" Bon Bon questioned.

"She nearly destroyed Equestria just to get a fraction of the power she desired, without a hint of remorse," Vinyl explained, pointing with a spare spoon she had used to spin her drink around. A harsh glare was on her face as she set it down into the sink to be cleaned later. "Equestria both amazes and astounds me at once," the violinist shook her head. "It sounds inviting, but every dangerous thing that we keep hearing that happens there makes me not want to go."

"I don't know, it's not that different from here on Earth," Sonata said as she passed by. "Just no humans, not much of a difference in my book!"

"I for one would love to visit," Octavia grinned, leaning against the wall. "I've always been curious what our pony selves are like. Though then again, if visiting causes a paradox that nukes our planet I would rather not let that happen."

"Given that no harm had come from our Trixie and Princess Trixie being within centimeters of each other, I'm sure we're fine," Vinyl playfully rolled her eyes.

And breaking up the talk was Aria kicking annd screaming all the while poor Flash was dragging Aria away.

"You let me at that creep! House Isolation is a timeless masterpiece, and I will not dare let anyone besmirch its name!" Aria growled.

"Aria, calm down, please!" Flash begged. "This isn't worth it, we'll find another movie!"

Half an hour went by after the debacle regarding film choices, and thankfully by the time Adagio decided to come out it had calmed down. The last gift for Trixie was going to be saved when she had dinner with Trixie’s family.

No longer warring with each other over what made a good holiday film. For in Aria's possession, she found a Christmas tape from long ago with a film no one had ever seen, something no one could have any opinions, hot takes, or pretentious mouth-pieces on. One that everyone would get equal exposure to.

But before they were ready to grab their snacks and gather around for the movie viewing, Adagio had an announcement to make. Walking through the room, holding a wine glass filled with milk, she tapped it with a utensil. The entire party went to a silent choir as all eyes locked onto the eldest Dazzling. With a smile she took a sip of her drink before speaking.

"Evening everyone. I wanted to make this little toast before we settled in for our movie viewing. First off, I want to thank all of you for coming here. I understand finals were all stressful, but I have faith in all of you. Some of you may have had doubts... myself included."

She took a moment to pause before continuing. With her smooth alluring voice, caught their attention like the Siren she was, only using it to get them to be drawn in to her eloquence.

"This year has seen... changes. Changes that have made of all us nervous, confused, maybe even scared. Some of these are internal, some external, but we've all have faced them. Maybe some of us aren't doing good in school. Some of us are facing dire crisises on different levels. I know we're scared of what may come in the near future as we get older, taking one step closer to being done with high school. Granted it may be a few more years, maybe two, but we're moving more close..."

Some faces looked to each other, worried where this was going. Frankly some of them did not need to hear words of depression tonight.

"... But that's the beauty of it. Over the thousand years my sisters and I have been on this planet since our departure, I have seen humanity rise and fall multiple times. No matter how many times you get kicked, no matter how many times are weighed down in the face of adversity, you find a way to rise above and become the victor. For the longest time, my sisters and I have faced this challenge. We wondered when we would truly be free, truly be safe and have a home we can call. This year, I have never been more proud to call this place home. We have friends, family, of all ages, genders, and backgrounds. Friends from all over the world who decided to come here and make this place their home, and welcome us with open arms. Friends who, have started to learn more about themselves, discover things that they didn't realize until it finally happened...."

Trixie squeed quietly as her partner looked her in the eyes, Lyra and company couldn't help but giggle. Amethyst just playfully rolled her eyes as her partner came over and kissed her cheek, pointing up at a little mistletoe. With a cute smirk, Amethyst pulled Synthwave close and kissed them on the lips, wrapping her arms around them and giving them warm embrace.

"... And in that time, I have become so happy to meet the most perfect array of friends I could ask for: a bright baker, a kind lyricist, an elegant violinist, an awesome metalhead, a cool keytar player, a beautiful CPA student, a great rocker, and possibly the greatest and most powerful magician I have ever met in my lifetime..."

Trixie blushed a little bit, making Adagio giggle. So cute!

"... Maybe one day we'll finally get to experience true mortality and live with you all like we've desired for so long. I don't know what our future holds, but I will be proud to keep moving forward with all of you, and to make this holiday amazing. This time of the year makes me sentimental, and appreciate everything I have. And I cannot tell you all how thankful I am for you being in my life.

And maybe not all of us get along. Some of us change our minds, our interests, views on any subject matter, and that might cause friction that make friends drift apart. Maybe some of us will never like each other, I know we can't make friends with everyone. But it's important to keep trying. Maybe one day we'll all truly be united and there will be the day we are one. I know it will happen. Maybe not today, or tomorrow, or a year after. But it will happen. ... and I will be proud of humanity forever still."

Everyone raised their cups one by one, joining Adagio and her friends for the toast.

"Happy Holidays everyone!"

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Scholarly-Cimmerian

Scholarly-Cimmerian #1 · January 8th · · ·

This was charming, Four. Just charming. Very nice to see the characters just get to enjoy themselves at a Christmas party - even with some bumps along the way, like with the whole argument about Christmas movies and such.