Many many years have passed but the stories lived on from the Mane Six. It doesn't mean that the lessons taught were remembered. Until one pony...
After the Mane Six have gone from the plain of Equestria and joined their friends, family, and pets from beyond the world that they are in now. Many lessons they were taught from life, many ponies put into school. Many many years have passed but the stories lived on from the Mane Six. It doesn't mean that the lessons taught were remembered. Until one pony reminded someone and one town that friendship is magic.
A Hearth’s Warming Eve Tale This is written by RogueShadowAngel (Cosmic Star)
Many years past the Mane Six’s existence and only Twilight remained to watch over what was once a happy time. So much time has passed since the lessons of the element holders had passed down, now becoming more of a child’s story rather than fact. A few hundred years of time passing will do that to ponies that lived normal lives so long ago; facts become myths and history becomes stories. Time forgotten what Hearth Warming meant and ponies forgot what harmony was leaving the windigos to start their rein on winter at least; Granted not everyone was like this and some only keep the ancient teachings of long ago at heart’s grasp in this hard time of economic hardships.
All of Equestria ponies were getting ready for Hearth’s Warming, the earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns of the land getting ready for the biggest money making season of the year. All having to working together, reluctantly, to get ready for the much celebrated holiday of the year and everyone can have a fun time in this holiday season. Cloudsdale, Ponyville, Applelusa, Manehatten, Canterlot, and all over the land every pony was surrounded by advertisements for the latest and greatest toys, gadgets and other things that most ponies wanted. It such a huge holiday every pony was at each other’s throats trying to get the perfect gift for their special some pony or their children, forgetting the true reason for the holiday. Plays were still apart of the season but not as essential to the holiday as they once were. Many have forgotten what it truly meant and that it once actually happened but many ponies shifted their efforts into outdoing each other with gifts for their friends, family, and children. This is where our story begins…
+++++++++
A Ponyville resident in a café getting warm from their job sitting at the counter was ranting in general about some of the pegasi being rude on the team he was and was assigned to. Some of the other ponies in the café agreed, some didn't and the rest just choose to ignore the old pony as much as they could so they wouldn't get dragged into the long old fight. This happened every year, always someone had to be a scrooge pony.
"I don't understand why those Pegasi have to come from Cloudsdale to just help with the weather here! I mean we can do it ourselves." The old timer pony yelled who had just a bit too fermented apples.
Another pony spoke up saying, "We can't fly. We need them to help us with the weather, putting up things up high, and they aren't all bad. Most of them are pretty nice. There are some bad apples in a bunch, but that doesn't make them all bad.”
“I don’t understand why they just don’t stay in Cloudsdale, the unicorns in Canterlot and let the earth ponies have Ponyville! It’s not their land, we founded this blasted town!” The old timer bellowed, pointing to an old picture of the Apple family which consisted of a picture of Applejack and family whose bloodline and influence still ran strong in the town.
Just then a Pegasus white as snow came in; it was offset by long black hair, and eyes as sky clear blue eyes. Head lowered slightly hearing the old man’s drunken complaining. She was tired, cold and just wanted something warm to drink before she got back to go back to the local inn at the end of a hard day. The last thing she wanted to do was get into some sort of complication at the end of a less than productive day. Unfortunately it doesn't look like it would be the case for the young mare; unaware to her she had just stepped into a heated argument.
The old man pointed out the young Pegasus with a hoof, "See! They even look weird! Who on here down on earth looks like that I can't think of any pony!"
The filly blinks surprised wings spread out in a startled manor she looks at the old earth pony and then speaks quietly, "Excuse me, sir, but I don't think it would be such a good idea to start judging, no matter what we are on the outside… we are all the same."
The old colt looks at his 'adversary' in anger and stammers to sulk off in the corner leaving the Pegasus to sigh in relief a bit as she exits the cafe thinking it would be a good idea. The pony folded her wings around her shivering as she makes her way back to the local in which was called “Friendship Magic’s Inn”. Ironic for a town that’s long forgotten why it was put in a map in the first place as the once home of all of the elements.
+++++++++
A few days later the Pegasus was done with her work for Hearth Warming and finally saw some familiar faces from Cloudsdale. She squealed in happiness and ran over to them hugging them. A fiery red one that was dancing around all excited that they were done hugs the black and white friend. Another in shades of purple and white, who is obviously the bossy and classy one, was getting onto her for being so uncouth. Also the last one but not the brightest one was just laughing along with the white winged filly.
"Say Sakura," the fiery one asked whose name turned out to be Fira, "there has been some talk about you around this small town. Apparently you are an odd pony."
Sakura shrugged a bit looking around, "I'm used to it. It’s not every day that you don't see a pony with just black and white apparently, I mean it’s not unusual for me but I live this every day."
"I don't understand earth ponies sometimes. I mean they ask our help from Cloudsdale and Canterlot with the weather, helping out in high places and then complain about it. We aren't like them or something stupid. Whatever happened to the love and tolerate junk we were taught in school?" the bossy Pegasus asked obviously annoyed.
Shrugging Fira spoke up and rolled her eyes, “I understand for the weather and such since not many pegasi live here in Ponyville anymore, but to need us to hang up decorations as well? Don’t they have unicorns for that rather than us tiring our wings out even more after being up in the air all day fixing THEIR weather?”
+++++++++
It had been some years since Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy had been around, and with Twilight Sparkle now Princess Twilight. The others had grown old, like all heroines and heroes, and died but their lessons were now taught to everyone to maintain what they had tried to show the world. No pony ever really saw royalty these days, they were far disconnected from the general populous than they once were. These days most ponies tend to be a bit disgruntled with each other because of one reason or another and no one knows why really. The conspiracy ponies think it's the Windigos trying to get hold of their reign once again to feed off of hate and sorrow. Others think nothing of it and go on about their lives among the many cities in Equestria. Some were in the middle or didn’t care. Sometimes Celestia herself would just shake her head and sigh at the state of the world she ruled with her sister Luna, even the princesses could not control what their subjects thought or did to other ponies. Cadence tried but she was too busy running the Crystal Empire. Twilight just didn’t go to Ponyville anymore and no one really saw her.
+++++++
Sakura looked around, completely ignoring Fira’s moaning and then looked up sighing a bit heavily, "You remember the Hearth Warming play? You ever think it could happen again?"
The bossy Pegasus laughed at Sakura "That's impossible! Some of us may believe in old stories like that but most of us don't. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna protect us ponies, despite everything."
Shrugging lightly the young Pegasus parted ways with her friends since she was requested by some of the Ponyville residents to hang up decorations last moment that someone had forgotten or lazy to do beforehand. She flew off to go help them. Sakura saw that the person that needed help was the one old pony that called her weird the first few days she was in town. She sighed a bit wondering what sorts of trouble this will be. The old colt wasn't really a pleasant pony to be around after all. He was the one that started most of the hostility around town between the pegasi and the earth ponies.
The old colt looked at Sakura and he started to flail at her and then shoo her away, "No! I asked for help not for the circus to come into town. You would do nothing but get in my way. Pegasus go away!"
She sighed a bit and then looked up at him sitting down in the snow watching. She was here to help and even if it’s to watch... Well that's what she was going to do. It’s not her fault that the old pony doesn't want any help. Letting out another sigh she laid down in the snow to watch the old pony finish up his house for the holiday.
A few hours into her watching the old man she had made four snow ponies, a castle that looked like something from Canterlot, and also a few snow forts. She was in the middle of making her fifth snow pony when she heard the latter falling over because some bratty kid knocked it over. She went to open her mouth to tell the old colt but got shushed since she was distracting the old earth pony.
Just then the pony went to step on his ladder that he thought was still there not even bothering to check it. He took a step onto the nonexistent latter. A yelp for help followed by a huge crack and thump on the ground! Sakura had broken the old pony's fall. She looked at the earth pony as she rolled him off her wing with a wince into the snow. She looked at him poking him with a hoof lightly. One wing spread downward looking like something had hurt it.
Sakura nosed the old earth pony lightly, "Sir, are you alright?"
He opened his eyes to see the Pegasus looking back at him concerned, "What…." then he blacked back out.
++++++
Sometime later the old pony woke in the Ponyville Hospital wondering what had happened.
"Well, it’s nice to see you have awaken Mr. Piper." a pony nurse said as she looked his way.
Mr. Piper looked around a bit blinking and then saw Sakura but this time she had a bandaged wing with a splint. He blinked a few, before his eyes got big and realized what had happened.
"You didn't move the…" Mr. Piper started to accuse.
Sakura shook her head no looking at him, "I broke your fall. Some kid moved your ladder thinking it would be a funny joke. I tried to say something but you shushed me and did not want to hear it since I'm a Pegasus."
The old man chuckled a bit and sighed, "I'm sorry for being such an old grouch. Pegasus in my day stayed in Cloudsdale and never were really nice to us earth ponies. I guess times have changed. I do have a question for you, why did you help me out from getting hurt even though I've been such a mean pony towards you?"
Sakura giggled lightly, "It's the way how things should be, if people don't like you or not, you should be nice to them even if you don't always see eye to eye. So I helped you out knowing this, but it didn't matter. I didn't want to see you get hurt." "But I hurt you…" he said in a small voice, pointing to Sakura's wing.
"True but again it's only a fracture luckily. I will have an interesting getting back to Cloudsdale, but if I didn't at least break your fall things could've been much worse… I rather have a fractured wing then something worse happen." Sakura smiled lightly.
The old pony thanked Sakura for helping him out even though it wasn't the way that she had originally intended. He had seen that not all people are bad despite how they look. Thus the lessons of long ago were reborn in some way, at least with Mr. Piper the old colt.
++++++++
A few weeks later after Sakura's wing had healed. Her friends from Cloudsdale and her were packing up to leave when they were interrupted by Mr. Piper. He presented Sakura with a book of the Magic of Friendship; The story of Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Twilight Sparkle and their adventures.
"This is a children's book… but I thought you would like to have it. It’s A Ponyville favorite here. They don't have it anywhere else or it’s hard to get from what I'm told. So I'm giving it to you Sakura. I figured you might want it, It’s sort of an 'I'm sorry and also a thank you' gift." Mr. Piper said sheepishly.
She smiled putting it in her saddle bag as she walked out of the room. Smiling at the old colt she gave him a kiss on the cheek and said “Thank you Mr. Piper. I’ll be sure that other ponies get to read it. It’s a lesson that ponies should take to heart even when their youth is long gone from them.”
Before she and her friends went back on their journey to their home they take one look back at Ponyville. It’s interesting how just one month and a holiday away from friends and family does to a pony. You meet people that you wouldn’t normally meet and you get to see things you wouldn’t normally see.
Sakura looks back one more time before leaving at the old library used to be. The bulding is now a museum for the Mane Six and their history, since it was getting way too small for the collection of books pouring into it after Ponyville’s population spiked. She swears that she saw Princess Twilight Sparkle for a brief moment on the old balcony, smiling at her with a nod then in a flash of light she was gone again. She smiles and just shakes her head flying off with her friends back home knowing the true meaning of Hearth’s Warming is to enjoy the company of friends, family, and even strangers. You may find the most unlikely of friends in places you’ll never expect and thus keeping the Windigos at bay for another year.
A Hearth’s Warming Eve Tale This is written by RogueShadowAngel (Cosmic Star)
Many years past the Mane Six’s existence and only Twilight remained to watch over what was once a happy time. So much time has passed since the lessons of the element holders had passed down, now becoming more of a child’s story rather than fact. A few hundred years of time passing will do that to ponies that lived normal lives so long ago; facts become myths and history becomes stories. Time forgotten what Hearth Warming meant and ponies forgot what harmony was leaving the windigos to start their rein on winter at least; Granted not everyone was like this and some only keep the ancient teachings of long ago at heart’s grasp in this hard time of economic hardships.
All of Equestria ponies were getting ready for Hearth’s Warming, the earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns of the land getting ready for the biggest money making season of the year. All having to working together, reluctantly, to get ready for the much celebrated holiday of the year and everyone can have a fun time in this holiday season. Cloudsdale, Ponyville, Applelusa, Manehatten, Canterlot, and all over the land every pony was surrounded by advertisements for the latest and greatest toys, gadgets and other things that most ponies wanted. It such a huge holiday every pony was at each other’s throats trying to get the perfect gift for their special some pony or their children, forgetting the true reason for the holiday. Plays were still apart of the season but not as essential to the holiday as they once were. Many have forgotten what it truly meant and that it once actually happened but many ponies shifted their efforts into outdoing each other with gifts for their friends, family, and children. This is where our story begins…
+++++++++
A Ponyville resident in a café getting warm from their job sitting at the counter was ranting in general about some of the pegasi being rude on the team he was and was assigned to. Some of the other ponies in the café agreed, some didn't and the rest just choose to ignore the old pony as much as they could so they wouldn't get dragged into the long old fight. This happened every year, always someone had to be a scrooge pony.
"I don't understand why those Pegasi have to come from Cloudsdale to just help with the weather here! I mean we can do it ourselves." The old timer pony yelled who had just a bit too fermented apples.
Another pony spoke up saying, "We can't fly. We need them to help us with the weather, putting up things up high, and they aren't all bad. Most of them are pretty nice. There are some bad apples in a bunch, but that doesn't make them all bad.”
“I don’t understand why they just don’t stay in Cloudsdale, the unicorns in Canterlot and let the earth ponies have Ponyville! It’s not their land, we founded this blasted town!” The old timer bellowed, pointing to an old picture of the Apple family which consisted of a picture of Applejack and family whose bloodline and influence still ran strong in the town.
Just then a Pegasus white as snow came in; it was offset by long black hair, and eyes as sky clear blue eyes. Head lowered slightly hearing the old man’s drunken complaining. She was tired, cold and just wanted something warm to drink before she got back to go back to the local inn at the end of a hard day. The last thing she wanted to do was get into some sort of complication at the end of a less than productive day. Unfortunately it doesn't look like it would be the case for the young mare; unaware to her she had just stepped into a heated argument.
The old man pointed out the young Pegasus with a hoof, "See! They even look weird! Who on here down on earth looks like that I can't think of any pony!"
The filly blinks surprised wings spread out in a startled manor she looks at the old earth pony and then speaks quietly, "Excuse me, sir, but I don't think it would be such a good idea to start judging, no matter what we are on the outside… we are all the same."
The old colt looks at his 'adversary' in anger and stammers to sulk off in the corner leaving the Pegasus to sigh in relief a bit as she exits the cafe thinking it would be a good idea. The pony folded her wings around her shivering as she makes her way back to the local in which was called “Friendship Magic’s Inn”. Ironic for a town that’s long forgotten why it was put in a map in the first place as the once home of all of the elements.
+++++++++
A few days later the Pegasus was done with her work for Hearth Warming and finally saw some familiar faces from Cloudsdale. She squealed in happiness and ran over to them hugging them. A fiery red one that was dancing around all excited that they were done hugs the black and white friend. Another in shades of purple and white, who is obviously the bossy and classy one, was getting onto her for being so uncouth. Also the last one but not the brightest one was just laughing along with the white winged filly.
"Say Sakura," the fiery one asked whose name turned out to be Fira, "there has been some talk about you around this small town. Apparently you are an odd pony."
Sakura shrugged a bit looking around, "I'm used to it. It’s not every day that you don't see a pony with just black and white apparently, I mean it’s not unusual for me but I live this every day."
"I don't understand earth ponies sometimes. I mean they ask our help from Cloudsdale and Canterlot with the weather, helping out in high places and then complain about it. We aren't like them or something stupid. Whatever happened to the love and tolerate junk we were taught in school?" the bossy Pegasus asked obviously annoyed.
Shrugging Fira spoke up and rolled her eyes, “I understand for the weather and such since not many pegasi live here in Ponyville anymore, but to need us to hang up decorations as well? Don’t they have unicorns for that rather than us tiring our wings out even more after being up in the air all day fixing THEIR weather?”
+++++++++
It had been some years since Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy had been around, and with Twilight Sparkle now Princess Twilight. The others had grown old, like all heroines and heroes, and died but their lessons were now taught to everyone to maintain what they had tried to show the world. No pony ever really saw royalty these days, they were far disconnected from the general populous than they once were. These days most ponies tend to be a bit disgruntled with each other because of one reason or another and no one knows why really. The conspiracy ponies think it's the Windigos trying to get hold of their reign once again to feed off of hate and sorrow. Others think nothing of it and go on about their lives among the many cities in Equestria. Some were in the middle or didn’t care. Sometimes Celestia herself would just shake her head and sigh at the state of the world she ruled with her sister Luna, even the princesses could not control what their subjects thought or did to other ponies. Cadence tried but she was too busy running the Crystal Empire. Twilight just didn’t go to Ponyville anymore and no one really saw her.
+++++++
Sakura looked around, completely ignoring Fira’s moaning and then looked up sighing a bit heavily, "You remember the Hearth Warming play? You ever think it could happen again?"
The bossy Pegasus laughed at Sakura "That's impossible! Some of us may believe in old stories like that but most of us don't. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna protect us ponies, despite everything."
Shrugging lightly the young Pegasus parted ways with her friends since she was requested by some of the Ponyville residents to hang up decorations last moment that someone had forgotten or lazy to do beforehand. She flew off to go help them. Sakura saw that the person that needed help was the one old pony that called her weird the first few days she was in town. She sighed a bit wondering what sorts of trouble this will be. The old colt wasn't really a pleasant pony to be around after all. He was the one that started most of the hostility around town between the pegasi and the earth ponies.
The old colt looked at Sakura and he started to flail at her and then shoo her away, "No! I asked for help not for the circus to come into town. You would do nothing but get in my way. Pegasus go away!"
She sighed a bit and then looked up at him sitting down in the snow watching. She was here to help and even if it’s to watch... Well that's what she was going to do. It’s not her fault that the old pony doesn't want any help. Letting out another sigh she laid down in the snow to watch the old pony finish up his house for the holiday.
A few hours into her watching the old man she had made four snow ponies, a castle that looked like something from Canterlot, and also a few snow forts. She was in the middle of making her fifth snow pony when she heard the latter falling over because some bratty kid knocked it over. She went to open her mouth to tell the old colt but got shushed since she was distracting the old earth pony.
Just then the pony went to step on his ladder that he thought was still there not even bothering to check it. He took a step onto the nonexistent latter. A yelp for help followed by a huge crack and thump on the ground! Sakura had broken the old pony's fall. She looked at the earth pony as she rolled him off her wing with a wince into the snow. She looked at him poking him with a hoof lightly. One wing spread downward looking like something had hurt it.
Sakura nosed the old earth pony lightly, "Sir, are you alright?"
He opened his eyes to see the Pegasus looking back at him concerned, "What…." then he blacked back out.
++++++
Sometime later the old pony woke in the Ponyville Hospital wondering what had happened.
"Well, it’s nice to see you have awaken Mr. Piper." a pony nurse said as she looked his way.
Mr. Piper looked around a bit blinking and then saw Sakura but this time she had a bandaged wing with a splint. He blinked a few, before his eyes got big and realized what had happened.
"You didn't move the…" Mr. Piper started to accuse.
Sakura shook her head no looking at him, "I broke your fall. Some kid moved your ladder thinking it would be a funny joke. I tried to say something but you shushed me and did not want to hear it since I'm a Pegasus."
The old man chuckled a bit and sighed, "I'm sorry for being such an old grouch. Pegasus in my day stayed in Cloudsdale and never were really nice to us earth ponies. I guess times have changed. I do have a question for you, why did you help me out from getting hurt even though I've been such a mean pony towards you?"
Sakura giggled lightly, "It's the way how things should be, if people don't like you or not, you should be nice to them even if you don't always see eye to eye. So I helped you out knowing this, but it didn't matter. I didn't want to see you get hurt." "But I hurt you…" he said in a small voice, pointing to Sakura's wing.
"True but again it's only a fracture luckily. I will have an interesting getting back to Cloudsdale, but if I didn't at least break your fall things could've been much worse… I rather have a fractured wing then something worse happen." Sakura smiled lightly.
The old pony thanked Sakura for helping him out even though it wasn't the way that she had originally intended. He had seen that not all people are bad despite how they look. Thus the lessons of long ago were reborn in some way, at least with Mr. Piper the old colt.
++++++++
A few weeks later after Sakura's wing had healed. Her friends from Cloudsdale and her were packing up to leave when they were interrupted by Mr. Piper. He presented Sakura with a book of the Magic of Friendship; The story of Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Twilight Sparkle and their adventures.
"This is a children's book… but I thought you would like to have it. It’s A Ponyville favorite here. They don't have it anywhere else or it’s hard to get from what I'm told. So I'm giving it to you Sakura. I figured you might want it, It’s sort of an 'I'm sorry and also a thank you' gift." Mr. Piper said sheepishly.
She smiled putting it in her saddle bag as she walked out of the room. Smiling at the old colt she gave him a kiss on the cheek and said “Thank you Mr. Piper. I’ll be sure that other ponies get to read it. It’s a lesson that ponies should take to heart even when their youth is long gone from them.”
Before she and her friends went back on their journey to their home they take one look back at Ponyville. It’s interesting how just one month and a holiday away from friends and family does to a pony. You meet people that you wouldn’t normally meet and you get to see things you wouldn’t normally see.
Sakura looks back one more time before leaving at the old library used to be. The bulding is now a museum for the Mane Six and their history, since it was getting way too small for the collection of books pouring into it after Ponyville’s population spiked. She swears that she saw Princess Twilight Sparkle for a brief moment on the old balcony, smiling at her with a nod then in a flash of light she was gone again. She smiles and just shakes her head flying off with her friends back home knowing the true meaning of Hearth’s Warming is to enjoy the company of friends, family, and even strangers. You may find the most unlikely of friends in places you’ll never expect and thus keeping the Windigos at bay for another year.
