Chapter 1
Twilight Sparkle sighed happily, looking around the dinner table at the ponies who mattered the most to her in the entire world. It was hardly her first Hearth's Warming Eve spent with her friends in Ponyville, but it held a special distinction of being the first one where they were all with their special someponies; an instance made easier by the fact that they had all found love in each other.
She looked across the table at Fluttershy and Rarity. The two of them were holding hooves, which was a feat in itself for the timid pegasus. Public displays of affection, even when the only ponies present were her closest friends, were difficult for her, but Rarity had been gently coaxing her out of her shell. A little thing like hoof-holding might not have seemed like much to others, but it was a leap forward for Fluttershy. Shy had been especially touched by Rarity's gift to her; a lovely hooded shawl that Rarity had made especially for her. She had apologized numerous times for her gift to Rarity not being as lovely as Rarity's to her, but the delight in the seamstress's eyes when she saw the cute dress she'd gotten her, along with a matching one for Opal, made it evident that she was quite happy with it.
Applejack and Rainbow Dash, on the other hoof, were the complete opposite, although that was mainly due to the alcohol. Rainbow was usually similar to Fluttershy, albeit for a completely different reason; she just didn't like to be seen doing anything sappy. Applejack, though, was more than happy to show her affection for Rainbow, and she'd made sure to set the cider on the table in hopes that Rainbow would loosen up. It had clearly worked, if Rainbow's leaning on Applejack and nuzzling up against her was any indication. Applejack and Rainbow had given each other coupons. This might have seemed tacky, but they each had a special significance. Rainbow's coupon guaranteed her a spot in the front of the line for every day of cider season this year, as well as two free cups each day. As for Applejack's, it was hard to get the weather team to stray from their schedule, but Rainbow's connections procured her a voucher for Applejack to turn in so they'd arrange whatever weather she wanted for her farm. The physical affections weren't even needed to see that both ponies were very happy with their arrangement.
Finally, Twilight looked to the seat next to her, straight into those beautiful baby-blue eyes. She had planned on saying something to Pinkie upon turning to her, but somehow, she couldn't even remember what it is. This was nothing strange for her; many a thought had been lost to those eyes since they'd gotten together. She didn't mind at all, though. Words weren't really needed to show how much she loved being with Pinkie. And besides, Pinkie often talked enough for the both of them.
"Are you ready to exchange gifts, Sparklebutt?" Pinkie asked, eliciting a blush from Twilight and a snicker from Rainbow Dash.
"I certainly am!" Twilight responded. "Uh...Balloonbutt!" Pinkie snorted and burst into laughter.
"I do have balloons on my butt!" the tickled pink pony giggled. Twilight grinned. It wasn't exactly a difficult task to make Pinkie laugh, but she still took pride in it. She also took pride in the amazing gift she'd gotten Pinkie. This was their first Hearth's Warming as a couple, and she wanted to make sure to knock it out of the park with this present. She'd spent an exorbitant amount of bits to travel all over Equestria and compile a cookbook containing the most popular recipes from every corner of it. She'd even made sure to wrap it in the fanciest wrapping paper she could find. It was the perfect gift for an avid baker like Pinkie, and she knew she'd absolutely love it.
"Girls, please," Rarity said, smirking. "Let us not speak any further about each other's posteriors." Twilight smiled to Rarity, then picked up her present for Pinkie in her magical grasp. She passed it to Pinkie, who cooed appreciatively. In typical Pinkie Pie style, she tore through the wrapping paper like a buzzsaw, something that Twilight figured she should have anticipated when choosing the paper. She watched Pinkie's eyes sparkle as she looked at the carefully-made cookbook.
"Ouh! Twiliiiiiiiight!" Pinkie squeed, paging through it. "It's amazing~! There are recipes from Las Pegasus and Saddle Arabia and Trottawa and..."
"And every single place of significance in Equestria," Twilight said, giving her excited marefriend a nuzzle. "Something told me you'd like it."
"I LOVE it!" Pinkie yelped, wrapping forelegs around Twilight and smothering her in kissies. Twilight blushed, but was more than happy to return them.
"Get a room!" Rainbow laughed after a few seconds, earning her a gentle elbow from Applejack. The two affectionate ponies relinquished their hold on each other, grinning.
"Are you ready for your present?" Pinkie asked, still coming down from her giggling. Twilight nodded eagerly. She had spent so much effort and money on Pinkie's gift. Pinkie was sure to have done the same. Twilight watched with anticipation as Pinkie reached down and pulled a big box from the floor, dropping it onto the table with a heavy thud. Twilight's excitement grew; it had to be something fantastic if it was that big and heavy. Even her level of excitement didn't stop her from being far more careful with the wrapping paper than Pinkie had. Once the paper was carefully undone and folded neatly off to the side, she opened the box. The eagerness on her face began a subtle fade as she looked at her present.
"...A rock?" Twilight asked, trying her best to mask her disappointment. She didn't want to hurt Pinkie's feelings, but...a rock? That summed up her own feelings succinctly. She'd gone all over Equestria, spent so many bits and so much of her time, to compile that cookbook for Pinkie. She'd called in favors from the Princesses, dealt with frustrating customs laws and done tons of research to make sure she had the best possible representative of each culture that she could find. And Pinkie got her a rock. It wasn't even an intricately carved rock, or an uncommon variety. It was a big, gray, oval-shaped rock.
"Yuh-huh!" Pinkie said, beaming. She hadn't caught the subtle change in Twilight's face, and Twilight was glad for it. She'd been studying social graces, and they seemed to be coming in handy at the moment. Still, though, part of her wanted to just ask Pinkie why she had gotten her such a meaningless gift. Twilight had no use for a rock, except maybe as a paperweight. Her mind raced as she looked up to Pinkie, trying to come up with the exact words that she wanted to use. It had to be something delicate, so as not to hurt her, but she also wanted to make sure that her message came across properly.
"Pinkie, I..." Twilight began. Before she could continue, Pinkie interrupted her.
"It was my favorite rock from the rock farm!" Pinkie said, still beaming. "It was the first rock I ever pulled all by myself, and mom and dad let me keep it as a memento instead of going and selling it like the others. It's the most special thing I've ever owned, and I figured I'd give it to the most special pony in the world!"
Twilight bit her lip, her entire thought pattern halting. All of the words that she'd been putting together to tell Pinkie what she thought of the gift shattered to pieces. She looked from the rock to her friends around the table. All of them were smiling nearly as much as Pinkie was, and she could swear she even saw a little tear in Rarity's eye. She turned to Pinkie, and was once again met with those big, beautiful baby-blue eyes. Her own eyes began to water as she reached out for Pinkie's hoof.
"Do you like it?" Pinkie asked, taking Twilight's hoof in hers. Twilight leaned into her, wrapping her in a big hug.
"It's the best present I've ever gotten," Twilight said through sniffles.