First Real Hearth’s Warming

By: SleeplessScribe

It seemed like just yesterday I had gotten off the train from Vanhoover to Ponyville. Those first few spring weeks were some of the most eventful weeks of my life, and I entered the summer with a wonderful wife, an adorable daughter, my best buddy of a dog, and a job I loved. Ditzy’s been brighter and more cheerful ever since our wedding, and I’m sure having a pair of perfect eyes and a husband played a big role in her newfound happiness. Ever since getting her cutie mark, Dinky made a habit of helping Fluttershy take care of her animals on the weekend. Of course, that was only when she wasn’t doing something with her Cutie Mark Crusader friends.

Things felt as close to perfect as they could be, and before I knew it I had been in Ponyville for almost a year. It hit me like a brick one day when I checked my calendar to find that it was already December twenty-second. My cousin, Sparkplug, ran the repair shop I worked at, and she had given us off that whole week for Hearth’s Warming vacation. Dinky was out of school as well, but the post office stayed open all week. I was told that Ditzy would be getting off early for Hearth's Warming Eve, and she’d be off entirely Hearth's Warming Day, but most of my time off was spent helping out around the post office or playing in the snow with Dinky and Tucker, my yellow lab.

Today happened to be one of the days I was playing. I have to say, Dinky looked absolutely adorable in her little pink scarf and coat, and her little brown boots weren’t bringing down the cuteness factor at all. Tucker really loved running through the snow, and Dinky was never too far behind him. Once he was all… tuckered out, we took him back inside to rest. Dinky, however, still wanted to play, so we went outside and made snow ponies.

Poor thing had a really hard time trying to make one as big as mine, so instead she settled for making three little ones. “Ha! You have one big one, but I have lots of little ones! I win!” She started bouncing around as she normally did, and I leaned forward to catch her. Dinky squealed as she was lifted up into my hug.

“You’re always a winner, sweetie. Have you thought of anything you might want for Hearth's Warming? It’s kind of hard to give a gift if you don’t know what to get!”

She started giggling as she climbed up onto my back. I always did enjoy just looking at different houses when they were decorated, so we took a walk around town for a little while. “Um… I don’t know! I already have Big Tucker, and you too, Papa! Those are the best things I could have ever asked for!”

Little Dinky wrapped her forelegs around me as we walked. “Well then, I guess your present is going to be a super surprise.”

“That’s okay! I love surprises!”

Before we could continue our little chat, I heard the distinct sound of flapping wings above us. “Torque!” When I looked up, I was greeted with a kiss on the nose by my airborne wife. “We just got a letter at the office for you! I’m glad I ran in to you before quitting time.”

She reached into the bag she had slung over her shoulder and handed me the letter. After opening it and giving it the once-over, I couldn’t help but grin as I turned to my daughter. “Hey Dinky, how would you like to go visit grandma and grandpa this evening? Your Aunt Violet will be there, too.”

Immediately she squealed and started clapping. “Yes! I wanna go! Are we gonna go see them?”

Ditzy and I both nodded, prompting Dinky to squeal again. “Yay! That’s awesome!”

We both chuckled at her squealing, and I received a boop on the nose. “I’ll be home in a little bit, okay? Don’t have too much fun without me. Love you both!” She kissed me on the lips and fluttered over to kiss Dinky’s forehead before flying off again.

“It’s so great that Momma can fly right again. It’s all thanks to you, Papa.”

That got me to chuckling again as I rubbed her head. “No, it wasn’t all me. Aunt Violet helped too, remember?”

“Yeah, but you did all the hard stuff!”

As we walked, a thought crossed my mind. “Hey Dinky, you want to see what Rarity’s done with the boutique? I bet she’s gone all out with decorating.”

Her eyes lit up as she started nodding. “That sounds fun! I bet it’s super pretty!”

Rarity and I were good friends, so I didn’t think my little intrusion would bother her that much. Indeed, I was met with a hug and a warm hello when I knocked on her door. “Hello Torque, hello Dinky! It’s wonderful to see you two. To what do I owe the visit?”

I returned the hug just before we were allowed inside. Once Dinky and I were in, we had a foreleg thrust in front of us. “Please, darling, take off your boots before you come in. Don’t want to get the floor all wet now, do we?”

I rolled my eyes in the most polite way I could. That can be done, right? We both did as asked and set our boots on of the three towels Rarity had next to her door. Man, oh man, was I blown away. The walls were lined with garlands that glittered like… something really glittery. Rarity had tied a scarlet ribbon with gold trim around every vertical surface she could fit one on, and icicle lights hung from the staircase to her second floor all the way down until the lights were only a few inches away from the ground. She had candles in every window, and each had a little green bow tied around it. I guess she used magic on them to keep the wax from ruining them, but that wasn’t a prevalent thought in my mind. Wreaths of all different shapes and sizes lined her walls, and don’t even get me started on the gingerbread ponies and candy canes she had around.

Finally my eyes rested on her huge tree. It was right smack dab in the middle of the boutique so even those window shopping could see it. Silver and red bulbs hung from every branch, various shapes of crystal snowflakes shimmered in the light, and the lights on it shined bright gold. Atop the tree was a gorgeous star, but I wasn’t given much time to marvel at it before I was nudged.

“I see I’ve left you speechless, haven’t I? It’s a fairly easy thing to admit; I love decorating for holidays. In fact, Hearth's Warming is one of my fav—”

“Wow!” We both turned to see Dinky gazing at some of Rarity’s mannequins. I didn’t notice them at first, but once she pointed at them I spotted the excellently crafted scarves. “Miss Rarity, these scarves are so pretty!”

She giggled and patted Dinky on the head. “Why thank you, sweetie. I’ve been working on them for quite some time. They’re just a sample of my new line of cashmere scarves, and I hear they’re a perfect fit for what’s ‘in’ this season.”

My brows raised as I looked from her to the scarves. “Wow, you could catch a pretty good price for these.”

Rarity flashed a rather proud smile. “Oh, yes. I’ve already gotten several buyers from big shops in Canterlot.”

“Miss Rarity,” Dinky started poking at the designs woven into the scarves that resembled ornate infinity symbols, “what do these mean?”

She walked over and lifted one of the scarves up, circling her hoof around the emblem. “These symbols here are a way of representing eternity, and the way they’re all linked together symbolizes bonding and togetherness. A perfect theme for this time of year, don’t you think?”

I nodded and picked Dinky up. “It is perfect. Unfortunately, we’ve got to get going. We’re going up to Vanhoover to see my family tonight, and we’ve got to get ready. I hope you sell a lot of them, Rarity.”

We shared another hug before I headed to the door. “Thank you, dear! Have a happy Hearth's Warming!”

I waved at her as we stepped out. “You do the same!”

With Ditzy not yet off of work, I had to bathe Dinky and Tucker. Dinky always liked baths for whatever reason, but Tucker didn’t. Not only that, but his size made getting him into a bathtub more of a hassle than getting my dad to ask for directions. Granted… getting me to do that was probably a hassle too, but whatever.

By the time they were both all clean, Ditzy had been home for a good ten minutes. When I came out of the bathroom after drying Tucker off, she stopped me with a grin. We both just stood there silently until I finally bit.

“Yes, honey?”

She nodded her head upward, but I only noticed the mistletoe for a moment before I was pulled into a gentle kiss. “I love you.”

I couldn’t help but smile as I gazed at her. “I love you too. Are you ready to go, princess?”

Ditzy nodded her perfectly aligned eyes and kissed my cheek. “I am. Is my little girl all nice and clean?”

Dinky poked her head up between us, fully dressed in her scarf, coat, and boots again, and kissed both our noses. “Squeaky clean!” She never failed to make us laugh, she’s adorable enough even when she’s trying to be serious. Our little filly had to wait for us to calm down before commenting again. “Big Tucker is all clean too! I bet you Grandma and Pawpaw even made something special for him!”

After Dinky seated herself on my back, Ditzy got her winter attire on and I got Tucker on his leash. It didn’t take us long to get to the train station, buy our tickets, and board the train. I actually learned that they used magic to keep snow off the tracks, which was pretty interesting.

I have a feeling Violet was watching for us in the window. We didn’t even have to knock before she hopped out and greeted all three of us with warm hugs. “Hey guys! Happy Hearth's Warming!”

Dinky hopped off of my and wrapped her forelegs around my sister. “Happy Hearth's Warming, Auntie Violet!”

Violet picked her up with a bit of magic, rocking Dinky back and forth as she did. “Happy Hearth's Warming, sweetie! You all are looking great, as always.” She smiled and backed up so we could come in. “Mom and Dad are very eager to see you, so—”

Suddenly Tucker.

My sister was cut off when he jumped at her and attempted to put his forelegs around her like Dinky did. She fell to the floor with a light thud as she was assaulted with affectionate licks from my yellow lab as his tail wagged. Violet laughed and patted his head affectionately. “Well hello there, Tucker! Glad you could make it too!”

Right after he let out a bark, I heard hoofsteps coming from my right. “There’s my boy!”

I turned just in time to see my dad walk in. It wasn’t long before he had a small unicorn lunge at him and treat him to a vice grip hug just as she had my sister. “Pawpaw! Happy Hearth's Warming, Pawpaw!”

Ratchet let out a loud and hardy laugh as he picked her up. “Happy Hearth's Warming, my favorite little granddaughter!”

It felt so weird hearing him say that. Ratchet was in his early forties, so it was really odd to hear him talking about being a grandfather. I mean, technically he was Dinky’s step grandfather, but he was a grandfather nonetheless. With Dinky wrapped around him, he started tickling her belly and causing her to giggle like crazy. After just a few minutes of insane giggling, we heard another voice from the kitchen.

“I hear visitors!” My mother came in and was met with a big hug from Ditzy.

“Hey Lavender! Happy Hearth's Warming!”

Lavender returned the hug and nuzzled her cheek against Ditzy. “I haven’t seen you all since the Harvest Festival! How have you been?”

I grinned a little as Dinky gave my mom the same treatment as she had my dad. “We’ve been great, Mom. Business has been booming at the shop, and Ditzy’s been making quite a bit of bonus money from all the Hearth's Warming cards.”

She nodded and lifted Dinky up. I swear, that filly got airborne more often than her mother sometimes. “And what about this one? Has she been good?”

After getting a kiss on the forehead, Dinky nodded. “I’ve been a good girl! Momma and Papa say so all the time!”

Violet giggled as she turned back towards the kitchen. “I’m glad to hear it! Now, I know you normally help me with cooking, Ditzy, but I have to admit,” she brought us all in the kitchen before continuing, “I’ve already finished!”

My eyes widened when I saw the dinner table. I knew Mom liked that tofu stuff, but I never expected her to make an actual turkey shaped turkey out of it. There was a huge bowl of mashed potatoes and two gravy trays, a big tray of Mom’s famous squash, several ears of corn, and a large bowl of Brussels sprouts. To top it all off, she had pecan, apple, and pumpkin pies on the counter. Of course, we all knew better than to even look that way for too long before we ate dinner.

Without a word, we all took our seats and got our plates ready. Once everyone had their food, we just sat there. As the minutes went by, smiles turned into grins, and grins turned into chuckles, and chuckles turned into laughs. Ratchet was the first to calm down and say something.

“Were we all just trying to see how long we could go without talking? Can you honestly tell me there’s not something you want to bring up right now?”

“Well,” all heads turned to Violet, who drew back a little as she spoke, “I got a letter yesterday… After two years going to college in Manehattan… almost all of my professors recommended me for Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns and… they accepted me!”

We all started clapping and cheering for her, and even Tucker started barking. “That’s awesome, Sis! I hear it’s tougher than tough to get in there.”

A light pink tint spread on her purple cheeks. “I guess so. It certainly is the best Hearth's Warming gift I could have asked for. I start next semester, which means I’ll be a lot closer to home than I used to be!”

Ratchet chuckled and nudged Violet’s shoulder. “Just don’t forget about us when you become some famous unicorn, alright?”

She giggled and kissed his cheek. “I’d never forget my family. Sooo, I’ve talked about something big that happened to me. Do you have anything to tell us, Torque?”

I tapped my chin a few times, furrowing my brow as I thought. “Hmm. Hmmmm. Hmm. Oh, I know something!”

Everyone leaned forward and waited for me, and I tried as hard as I could not to snicker. “I got married!”

My mom, sister, and dad rolled their eyes and smiled, but Ditzy and Dinky both gave me big hugs. “I’d say it’s the biggest thing that has happened and ever will happen to me.”

Ratchet took a bite out of his turkey before responding, but nodded as he chewed. “I’d say I agree with you, but nothing will top the days when you two were born. One day you’ll experience that too, my boy. And Dinky here will get a little brother or sister to play with.”

Her eyes lit up and her tail started swishing. “That would be so cool! I’ve always wanted a sister!”

I chuckled and patted her head as she wolfed down her mashed potatoes. “Oh, believe me sweetie, you don’t want a sister. They’re nothing but trouble.” Once I was done, I winked at Violet, who just rolled her eyes.

“Just be thankful you don’t have a brother, Dinky. They can be so hardheaded.”

“Nothing to be ashamed of.” My father and I stared at each other as we finished our statements. Within moments the whole table was laughing again. It was a wonder we managed to finish our food, but I wasn’t surprised that it took us at least forty-five minutes.

When dinner was over, Ratchet invited us into the living room while Mom and Ditzy cleaned up. I felt kind of bad not doing anything, but Mom really didn’t let others help her. She was kind of funny about that, and it was a pretty big surprise to find that she let Ditzy help. Dad sat down in a chair right next to their tree, leaning down to pick up a few boxes from under it.

“So, are there any rules in your family about opening presents early?”

I turned to Ditzy, but she just shrugged. “To be honest… before Torque was here to help me, I relied on holiday bake sales to pay for just one or two gifts. If I managed to buy them before Hearth's Warming day, I still let Dinky have them as soon as possible. I guess since that won’t be an issue anymore she’ll have to wait for ours, but I don’t see a problem opening presents from others.”

Dinky started clapping as she hugged her mother, but jumped off of her when Ratchet handed her a small box. “Grandma and I really had to think about something you would like, and I think we made a great decision.”

My little filly’s eyes lit up when she unwrapped and opened the box. Not only was there a little stuffed kitten inside, but there was also a little blue hair pin with a paw print on it. Ever since she got her cutie mark, she’d been practicing basic levitating spell on everything, so she had no problems lifting it up and sliding it into the left side of her golden mane.

“I love them!” She picked up the kitten and started snuggling it. “Thank you Pawpaw!” Dinky then turned to Tucker and giggled. “Don’t worry, Big Tucker,” she walked over and snuggled up against him, too, “You’ll always get the most hugs.”

Ratchet chuckled and nudged both Ditzy and me after she came in and sat down. “The hair pin was actually Violet’s idea. This here is from my wife.” Ratchet lifted up a much larger box and set it down in front of Ditzy.

Lavender nudged her as well. “I think you’ll really like it.”

Ditzy’s eyes were now sparkling as well. Unwrapping the paper revealed a tea set with two pots and eight cups. “Wow! I’ve always wanted my own legitimate tea set, but I could never afford a bundle like this! Thank you, Lavender!”

They shared another hug as I felt a tapping on my shoulder. When I turned, Violet was behind me holding a box just a little bigger than Dinky’s. “Mom and Dad couldn’t really think of anything to get you that you didn’t already have, but I saw this in Manehattan and spent everything I had that day to get it.” She paused when she saw the look on my face, but kissed my cheek. “Don’t look at me like that. You know I have a job at the pharmacy there. Luckily, they’re based in Canterlot, so I can still keep my job. Anyway, I hear these are really rare, and you can’t even find them in Equestria. I was surprised to see one that hadn’t been bought already, but I knew you’d love it.”

I went wide-eyed when I opened the box. It was really hard to describe. The closest thing I could compare the thing to was a cactus. A metallic, smooth cactus. There were three holes in the front, and the way they were positioned made them look like two eyes and mouth. When Violet pushed a button behind it, I heard a mechanical whirring as it started swaying back and forth and turning its arms like it was doing the robot. Not only that, but it played a little tune for a few seconds as well.

“Wow, this is pretty cool!”

She blushed a little and smiled. “The guy at the store said they’re called gyroids, but I have no idea what that means. Heck, he didn’t really know what they were, just that they’re really hard to find.”

I wrapped my forelegs around her, and she soon did the same. “Thanks, Sis. That’s really awesome.”

She grinned now and reached behind her. “One more thing.” We all heard a squeak, and Tucker jumped up as she tossed a fuzzy bone at him. The big lab caught it and immediately went to squeaking it as many times as he could. “Can’t forget Tucker’s present, now can we?”

Ditzy smiled and gently rubbed her daughter’s head. “You all are really good guessers. Torque and I didn’t really even want anything this year! We never even asked for anything.”

I leaned forward and kissed her cheek, allowing Ditzy to rest her head on my shoulder. “We’ve got each other. I’d say we got our Hearth's Warming gifts pretty early.”

Dinky looked up at her mother and tapped her ear. “You didn’t want anything, Momma? Everypony should get something on Hearth's Warming!”

She lifted Dinky up onto her lap. “Sweetie, Hearth's Warming isn’t about getting things. Remember, it’s about being with your family and those you love. If you ask me, your dad is a perfect example. He’s made us a true family.”

Dinky looked up at me and crawled out of Ditzy’s lap, settling herself into mine. “I love you, Papa.”

Ratchet smiled and spoke at the same time as Lavender. “Happy Hearth's Warming, everypony!”

The trip back home was a little tedious, but it wasn’t too difficult. Ditzy and I worked together to balance the bigger gifts on our backs, and Dinky just carried hers. She also volunteered to take Tucker’s new toy, but he just wouldn’t let go of it! Luckily, everything made it home in one piece. There was also a package on our front door, but since we were all a little tired and it was labeled “Do not open until Hearth's Warming”, we decided to just set it under the tree.

Once we were all washed up, we relaxed with some hot chocolate before bed. I don’t normally talk about things that are really personal, but having Ditzy in bed with me just felt so… nice. Not only did she provide added warmth, but her constant desire to snuggle was a huge comfort as well. With me not having to work, I kind of took advantage of not needing to be up at five in the morning every day. When I woke up, Ditzy was already gone, but what really scared me was Dinky being gone, too.

After at least ten minutes of looking through her room, my room, the living room, and even the kitchen, my apparent tunnel vision went away and I noticed the note on the dining room table.

“Dear Papa,

Momma took me to Miss Fluttershy’s today so I could help her with the animals. She told me she had a lot of work to do, so I really wanted to see what I could do to help.

Love, Dinky”

* * *

Not only did Dinky want to see Fluttershy once, but twice. She was gone all day that day, and all day the next day as well. With her gone, I stayed at the post office to help out. We were both a little worried, but both evenings we found her asleep on the couch. Since it was Hearth's Warming Eve, we decided to just put Dinky to bed instead of waking her up and making her wait even longer to open her presents.

Despite how tired she had looked when we put her to bed, Dinky was all too excited to wake us up by bouncing around in our room Hearth's Warming morning.

“Momma! Papa! Come on! It’s Hearth's Warming! It’s Hearth's Warming!”

We both took a few minutes to wake ourselves up. We knew that by doing it, we were forcing Dinky to wait longer, but both Ditzy and I needed at least one cup of coffee before we did anything else. The entire time we were in the kitchen, Dinky was staring up at us with those big puppy dog eyes she liked to put on when she wanted something. After we were both fully awake, we sat down with Dinky beside the tree.

I took a look at that package we got, and the little label on it also said to give it to Dinky. While she was opening it, I grabbed the other three gifts that Ditzy and I had gotten for her.

“Wow!”

I turned to look at my daughter, who was now holding a miniature Model T. “It’s from Mister Fjord! He sent me this little car to play with!”

Ditzy patted her on the head and watched as she rolled it back and forth. “That’s so nice of him!”

I nodded and rubbed my chin. “That’s so unexpected of him. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. Dinky, you do have other presents though, remember?”

She nodded and took the three I pushed towards her. Ditzy leaned her head on my shoulder as we watched her open the first one: a little hat with a dog face on it. It even had ears. Our little girl squealed as she put it on, playing with the ears adorably. “This is so cute! I love it! I love it! I love it!”

We didn’t say anything, and Dinky took that as her cue to open the others. Again she squealed as she opened up the thinnest of the books, which revealed a book we both got her: Creatures Big and Small. She jumped at us and started to nuzzle against us, still squealing as she did.

“Oh, I’ve been wanting this book forever! Thank you! Thank you! You’re the best!”

It was hard not to chuckle as I set the last box before her. “You’ve got one more box, Dinky. I think you’ll really like this one.”

She did. Her eyes widened and lit up after she unwrapped her official and legitimate animal first aid kit. “Miss Fluttershy has one just like this! I can learn how to be a real animal doctor now! Oh, that’s so great! Momma! Papa! I love it!”

There were tears in the filly’s eyes as she grabbed a hold of both of us. However, her hug didn’t last as long as I thought it would. After she hopped down, Dinky turned to the tree and began to crawl under it.

“Wait, you forgot one.”

Ditzy and I traded looks. I opened my mouth, but she shook her head before I could even ask. It became apparent just who had put that box there, though. The gold wrapping paper was all crinkled, there was no ribbon or bow, and it was a little messy. Neither of us said anything though, and just let her look at it.

“It says it’s for all of us. I think you two should open it!”

Another mystery had come to replace the one we just solved. Ditzy and I opened the paper on opposite ends and slid it off. The box had Carousel Boutique’s label on it, and my eyes went as big as dinner plates when I saw what was inside. Dinky herself started bouncing when Ditzy lifted up one of the three scarves.

“Wow! Dinky, are these for us?”

She nodded excitedly and lifted one up to me. Once I was holding mine, she took hold of a much smaller one and put it on. “I saw these in Miss Rarity’s shop! She said they were supposed to represent eternal togetherness, and since you and Papa weren’t expecting anything, I went all around town for two days to get the money for them!”

Ditzy’s gaze snapped to her daughter. “You what?”

Dinky flashed a rather proud grin. “I helped Miss Fluttershy with her animals, I baked treats with Miss Pinkie at Sugar Cube Corner, I organized Miss Twilight’s library with her, I helped Miss Rarity at her boutique, I made little deliveries for Mister Air Mail, but I told him not to tell you, I—”

With a small pat on the muzzle, I stopped her. “Dinky, you got the money for all three of these scarves by doing odd jobs in two days?”

She slowly shook her head. “I only had enough for the little one. But Miss Rarity said that she was wrong, and that cashmere was going out of style right now. She told me she needed to get rid of them fast, and that they’d be perfect for us! Isn’t that cool?”

I didn’t say anything, but that did not sound like something Rarity would do. There was no way she’d get something like that wrong. However, my doubts were subsided when I heard a little tap at my window, and I turned to see Rarity herself wink at me through it. She darted off just before the girls looked at the window as well.

Ditzy nudged her muzzle against my cheek. “Torque, what are you staring at?”

“O-Oh! It’s nothing, I just thought I saw something.” When I saw that they both had their scarves on, I smiled and put mine on as well. Before I could say anything, both of them wrapped me in warm hugs.

“I love you, Papa.”

I patted her head and closed my eyes. “I love you too, sweetie.”

Ditzy leaned forward and whispered in my ear. “You really are the best gift we’ve gotten. Happy Hearth's Warming, honey.”

“Happy Hearth's Warming, princess.”