> The Train Ride Before Christmas > by FourShadow > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > The Train Ride Before Christmas > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- December 24th It was Eve of Christmas. The night sky was about to take over the town, and it was time to tuck the kids in bed so the parents could finish wrapping up presents and leaving a few surprises from 'Santa Claus'. And tucking them in was proud mother of two; Sunset Shimmer. Her twelve-year-old daughter had gotten herself in bed, and Sunset had given her a hug and kiss goodnight. And now she just had to tuck in the younger child; her 8-year-old son, Stripes. Carrying him close, Sunset opened up the door to his room to bring him to his bed. Posters of his favorite superhero, Astroman were all around, some figurines of the character and many other superheroes were laid about on his desk and out of his toy chest, next to some Stack-Em bricks which he often used to make to make decent displays. It was a toy he loved dearly, and Sunset was happy that he found something to harness his creativity in. Carefully she put him in bed, making sure the covers were over his body nice and cozy. "Santa will be coming tomorrow, right?" "Absolutely kiddo," Sunset smiled, ruffling his hair, playfully. "But he won't come unless you close your eyes and get some sleep, okay?" "Aww," Stripes pouted. "You think he'll like the milk and cookies I left out for him?" "I know he will," Sunset nodded. "And nice touch on the carrots, I bet the reindeer will love them. Now you just get some sleep--" "--Can you read me a story?" Stripes asked. "I'm sorry?" "Can you at least read me a bedtime story?" Sunset thought for a second, looking at the books sitting on his shelf. She looked at some, thinking of what to possibly read him. "If I read you a story, do you promise to go to sleep?" "Yes mama," Stripes agreed. "Okay, lemme see here... actually. I think there's one story I think would like to tell you. Have I ever told you about the Polar Express?" "No. What's that?" Stripes asked, cuddling up with a fluffy teddy bear. "I'll tell you," Sunset cleared her throat. It was the night before Christmas and I was ready for pleasant dreams My gifts were wrapped And I was in my late teens I was curled up in my bed With my body all nice and snug I was excited for Christmas morning Yet I lay like a slug As I drifted to sleep I felt something was off My clock had stopped running And I wheezed with a mild cough The picture of my friends that sat proudly on my nightstand started to wiggle and wobble along with the clock I'd smack with my right hand My entire room was vibrating As if an earthquake was in effect But I remembered where we lived no fault-lines that had imperfects In the middle of the night I was starting to feel bugged My bed start to rumble And the sounds of an engine chugged I leapt up from my bed To see a flashing light And to my surprise I saw a wonderful sight I ran outside in my jammies With a key in my one good pocket just in case When I saw the source of the noise I had a gaping expression on my face A big, strong, powerful steam engine Was standing right there I couldn't believe my eyes But I couldn't help but stare Connected to a tender With five passenger cars behind It was uncanny how it was here I only hoped the neighbors didn't mind A man stepped off one of the coaches sporting a blue suit and conductor's hat I slowly walked towards him Opting for a quick chat "Well, are you coming?" he asked "To where?" I pondered. "Why to the North Pole of course!" He said with such awe and wonder. "This is the Polar Express!" He shouted into the air. And somehow against all odds Not a neighbor was aware He pulled out a clipboard With names I assumed I could only wonder if my house was the next stop, I presumed "Wait, wait!" "Yes?" Sunset asked. "No one else saw the train coming into the town?" "Nope," Sunset shook her head. "But didn't it chug and whistle?" "It did." "But--" "--Do you want me to read this or not?" "... yes please." The man knew a lot It seemed like as he talked He revealed info I didn't tell anyone It left me in shock He knew of my bad luck And the actions at the Fall Formal He knew what I did to repair my mistakes This was completely abnormal He knew I believed in him The truly real, only one Santa Claus He gave me some hope in this crummy year And the conductor stood there, with a pause He made a suggestion One that was painfully clear This was a one time chance And I had to take it right here He stepped back onto the passenger car Probably wondering if I would get on Yet I didn't move at all Wondering how long we'd be gone The train's whistle finally blew And the wheels started to hiss and wheeze I had only a few seconds of thought As I reached in my pocket and felt my keys As the train moved farther away I leapt up with a powerful jump I clamped onto the safety bar tight And did not hit my head with a bump Walking inside the coach I saw a gaggle of children singing Many ages from 5-12 My hands to the door started clinging I felt so awkward just standing there Was I the only teenager on this train? It would look out of place I just hoped it wasn't on their brains Regardless of whatever was on their minds I found myself a seat and moved close to the window pane My eyes averted looking at the children But I had no disdain Just then, I heard a voice A high pitched squeaky tone I turned my head up and gasped It was my friend Pinkie Pie, I wasn't alone "Hi Sunset!" She said with such cheer I didn't know what to say She was on this train with me! Maybe she'd make my day "You're on this train too?" I asked, questioning my eyes "Of course silly!" She said. "I couldn't miss this, it'd be unwise!" "I never miss the Polar Express, It only comes once a year! I've been on it since I was five Because Christmas-time is here!" I couldn't argue with her logic and reasoning Frankly, with Pinkie Pie, it made perfect sense Although my eyes were still having trouble believing I was confused, and still on the fence I shouldn't have been questioning things I was sitting here, physically in the seat And a magical train coming right in my town It was an amazing sight, one heckuva treat As the train chugged along its path Pinkie pointed at each child, clearly knowing their names She helped celebrate many of their birthdays With lots of cake and fun games Only one child was missing at least Pinkie claimed to believe For as the train passed by she paced back and forth almost starting a small peeve The children suddenly leapt at the window Staring at the many shops and stores Many of them hoping those presents Would be theirs and more Ten minutes or so passed since we left And the train's wheels came to a stop All of our eyes looked out the window And Pinkie perched on top A little girl with tan-yellow skin And light-purple hair Walked outside in the cold in her jammies Looked in awe at the train and gave it stare Pinkie pronked up and down she recognized that little girl She was so excited She jumped from her seat with a twirl Lily Pad was her name She was very quiet and shy I didn't really know what to say So I just softly smiled and waved 'hi' The conductor stepped off the train Watching as Lily slowly moved further from her homestead Pinkie and I watched Lily's eyes observe the strange man And watch as the gears turned in her head Pinkie zipped from out of the train Scaring the heck out of the conductor and Lily But when that little girl saw who she was She giggled with delight when Pinkie tickled her silly Lily agreed to come on board The conductor signing off the last child for the trip Pinkie helped walk her onto the train Making sure the child didn't slip With the last stop made The train got back on track And so I got comfy in my seat Relaxed and kicked back Lily and Pinkie sat in the seat in front Although there wasn't much to discuss I talked with Pinkie, not a lot with Lily But thankfully none of us made a fuss The train rode through a large forest No longer did it seem like we were in town And all the while the ride continued no one was sharing a frown Lily looked so happy and content Delighted to be in Pinkie Pie's company I couldn't help but smile back With her around, she got a smile out of me But all the while as this trip continued My thoughts continued to wander Was I specifically selected to join this trip? Or was there something else I didn't ponder? The ride felt like hours But yet my watch had no change of time I didn't know how much had passed I could only hope and wait to hear the bell chime I looked out my window and stared in awe Beautiful northern lights dancing in the skies And off in the distance I saw many more lights All more like a town, and I heard the joyous cries Children around me danced and jumped with joy Could it be? Could it really be? The train started moving in squiggled lines on the bridge And the children continued to dance with glee The North Pole was just up ahead No longer were we in the icy snow We were pulling up into a Christmas-lit town With a warmly lit glow People were swarming the streets But not regular sized people, no, no These people were incredibly small Elves in fact, marching to and fro They were gathering together in the middle of the town Where a humongous Christmas tree stood erect One by one, we were all getting off the train As the conductor split us into two lines, he checked He checked the on his conductor's watch Saying something about it being five til midnight It felt like hours before then Thankfully when we stepped off, we didn't receive frostbite The conductor guided us to the center of the town The very center of the North Pole We saw a massive sack loading up into a sleigh And I could only imagine inside were presents and maybe coal We walked closer to the center And all of the elves and children cheered And it was clear as to why Approaching was a red suit and white beard "Ho, ho, ho," he chuckled as he walked out to the sleigh All of the children looked so excited to see ole St. Nick Even I couldn't help but smile in delight None of this could have been conceived as a trick But soon my shyness spread all over Pinkie Pie suggested I be the first to greet him But I didn't want to go up to say hi I wasn't about to go out on a whim If the lyrics to the classic song was true 'He knows if you've been bad or good' Then he would know everything I've done And I just questioned why I didn't bring a hood It didn't matter anyhow Santa Claus made his announcement He was going to allow children to come up And ask him what they'd like this season, pure wish fulfillment I didn't want to go up, but Pinkie pushed me through the kids Against all odds, Santa invited me to simply walk on up My heart started pounding against my chest Why was I this scared, I was almost a grownup! "Sunset Shimmer," Santa knew my name, as expected "I know everything that you have done" I felt as if the world was about to end I was expecting him to just flat out shun "I know this year hasn't been the greatest, and you've done everything you can to make things better And for that, I must be honest, I am proud Even if you were ashamed to send a letter." His words felt like a weight of the world off my shoulder I couldn't believe what I was hearing He didn't call on me to punish or ignore No, he was being sweet, kind, endearing And so I gave him a smile, even as I tried to stay warm He asked me the most simple question "What would you like for Christmas this year?" He said with the most friendly expression I didn't know what to say, or what to really ask for Frankly, I was too distracted by my energetic friend I remembered about everything I had done to earn her And it wasn't about a coin needing to spend I told Santa my only wish Which was to never let my past become today Santa gave me another soft smile And he reached into the sack on his sleigh He insisted that I take one little gift And he asked me to open my palm I would usually ask why if someone asked that But here, I didn't have any qualms In my hand shining bright Was a small silver bell gleaming It sparkled in my eyes And to the crowds, it was quite beaming "Let this be a reminder to you," said the legend of Christmas himself "And let it remind you that you are never alone As long as you believe in the magic of friendship itself." I gave him a thank you, and stepped off the podium Children started to take their turns I looked back at Pinkie Pie who greeted me with a warm hug I just knew for a fact this was a gift I'd never return And so the children got to sit on Santa's lap Each one sharing their hopes and dreams Meanwhile, the only thing I wondered was 'How is that sack not falling apart at the seams?' The big hand on the North Pole's clock struck And so the bell tolled for the midnight hour Santa and his reindeer began to load up And snow started to continue to shower We all waved to Santa as he rode off into the sky Even I as I held the bell real tight And loud enough for all of us to hear, he yelled "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!" With Santa finally departed, it was soon time for us to go We all got back onto the train for departure But as we took our seats, I felt an emptiness in my pocket I couldn't be crazy, I had that silver bell, I'm sure! I looked beside me, and I didn't see it I checked on my right and left, not there I checked on the floor and the other seats I looked here, and there, I didn't see it anywhere! Not even the help of Pinkie Pie Could help me find that little bell I couldn't lose it, not now! Trying to find it was like... like, um... ... Let's just say I wanted to yell. But after a while, I deflated in my seat I couldn't believe I lost a gift from Santa But one thing did comfort me during the ride home A warm hug from Pinkie Pie, and the kids going 'aww' At last, it was finally my stop I got off the train and waved my goodbyes "Don't worry Sunset, I'm sure it'll turn up!" And those were the last words that night from good ole Pinkie Pie Unlocking the door, I went back inside Took off my robe and went up with a leap I took one last heavy sigh as I felt my empty pockets And so I went back to sleep When I woke up Christmas morning, the presents from my friends were underneath my tree But when I looked some more, I saw more gifts that at first I didn't see I walked down to my tree Immediately curious to what I saw No clue where they were from But all they said was they were from Santa I looked at the smallest one A small box that could fit in my hand I unwrapped the paper The gift inside was just grand The silver bell from the night before Was back here in my apartment again I could only guess how it got back here And who it was, and when But as I jingled the small bell I could hear them ringing the most beautiful sound I had a smile on my face That silver bell was finally back around I felt a buzz from my phone A text from an excited group of friends I wrote them all a greeting text Never regretting that I made amends And so when I looked outside Watching the snow blanket the streets I remembered the ride from the night before And I'll admit, I never regret having taken that seat And so as I finish this story to you, my son If there's one thing you can always depend Your friends and family are always there And they'll be there til the end of time The end Stripes had finally started to fade away, slowly drifting asleep in his bed. Sunset leaned in and gave her son a kiss on the head, making sure he was comfy and cozy under the blankets. "Good night, Stripes. See you in the morning." "I love you mama," he whispered, curling up in bed. "Merry Christmas, sweetheart." She got on her feet and walked to the door. She smiled softly to see her kid was finally getting some sleep. And so, she closed the door, leaving the night-light in to help him avoid bad dreams. Stripes didn't know how long he fell asleep, it must have been hours. But he heard a soft noise waking him up. He pulled his head up, looking over on his desk. One of the figurines on his desk wiggled slightly, even though he didn't feel anything bump into it or anyone in the room to cause that. And above the ceiling where his toy spaceships were hanging, they started to shake as well. In fact, the entire room was starting to wobble and shake. Rather violently. Scared of out his mind, he huddled up against the backboard of his bed, but then he heard something loud and powerful wheesh outside of the house. A train whistle hit his ears, and when he looked outside, he couldn't believe his eyes. A powerful steam engine was standing right outside his house, in the middle of the streets. Only one thing crossed his mind; he grabbed a robe to keep himself warm, and dashed out of his room as fast as he could. And when he got outside with a key in hand, he heard one single phrase calling out from the man who stepped off the train. "Alllllll abbbooooarrrrrrrd!"