“Come on, Rainbow Dash! Get inside, it’s freezing out there!”

“All right, hold your horses, Twi; I’m just…having a bit of trouble…with this tree!”

With a swift jerk and a mighty flap of her wings, Rainbow Dash crashed into the library, a tree in tow of a rope tied around her torso. Rainbow grinned with a smile of success. “Oh, yeah; told you I could get it in.”

“I never doubted you, Rainbow Dash.” Twilight grinned slyly. “But could you have avoided crashing on me?”

Rainbow took a moment to observe her position, then upon realizing it, blushed madly. “Oh my gosh, I-I’m sorry, Twilight, I didn’t-“

Twilight cut her off by bridging the gap between their lips, the awkward positioning shifting to a loving embrace. A feeling of euphoria overcame the two as their tongues wrestled for control in an endless dance. Twilight broke the kiss after a bit and grinned at Rainbow Dash. “You know, for somepony so brave, you’re more awkward than I am when it comes to this relationship thing.”

“And you’re way more forward than I would have thought.” Rainbow pulled out of the hug and rose up to dust herself off. “No offense, but how does a bookworm have more confidence than me when it comes to…well, anything?”

“You already know the answer to that.” Twilight grinned and followed Rainbow’s actions. “You’re not the first mare I’ve been with. You know I dated Trixie for around two months.”

Rainbow scowled. “Don’t remind me. That was just when I realized I had a crush on you. And then you went off with Trixie and…I felt all alone and stuff.”

Twilight frowned and hovered over to her marefriend, pulling her into a hug with one of her wings. “Don’t worry about the past. It’s called that for a reason. We’re together now, and nothing’s gonna break us apart. Now, help me finish setting up the Christmas decorations.”

“So, how’d you find this weird holiday anyway?” Rainbow Dash tugged on the rope tied around her waist until it came loose.

Twilight focused her magic around the tree and set it standing straight up in the center of the room. “It was in a book in Celestia and Luna’s old castle. Something about a strange pony in the early days of Equestria before Hearth’s Warming was celebrated. He wandered all around Equestria, dropping gifts of food and money into the windows or down the chimneys of those ponies that were less fortunate. For a while, Christmas was celebrated alongside Hearth’s Warming, but the idea that this mythological pony, dubbed ‘Father Winter’, could deliver a substantial amount of gifts in a single night without the use of magic or Pegasus wings became so unrealistic that the holiday was buried under the Hearth’s Warming celebration.”

Rainbow Dash had been staring with an ‘O’ face for the past few minutes, though listening quite intently regardless. “So, how did they think this Father Winter pony delivered his presents?”

“They said it was magic, which is why it was dropped as a mere theory.” Twilight levitated a can reading ‘flocking’ up to the standing tree and sprayed an even coat of false snow to it. “And the reason for the name Christmas and the tree and all the decorations is some old religious thing. Nopony can find any more information on that. But, the tree looks nice and it’s all about giving and caring and spending the holidays with friends. It’s pretty much Hearth’s Warming, but it’s got a lot more to it. There are all kinds of songs and games and traditions…and the food I read about is just spectacular!”

Rainbow buzzed around the tree, emptying a box of glass balls with hooks onto its many branches before landing in front of it with an empty ornament case. “What kind of traditions are we talking?”

“Well, one that caught my eye in particular was this…” Twilight grasped something inside another nearby box with her magic and pulled out a bundle of glistening leaves with a red ribbon binding them together. “This is mistletoe. While most mistletoe is toxic, this is a variant used in the past by old druidic ponies for natural remedies. The tradition with this is that it is often hung in the entryways of rooms and any two ponies that get caught under the mistletoe have to share a kiss, whether it is a friendly peck on the cheek…or…”

Twilight leaned forward and pressed her lips to Rainbow’s, moving forward and wrapping her hooves around her neck. Rainbow relaxed and leaned into the kiss, allowing her marefriend to take full control of the moment. For all of five minutes, a moment of unbridled passion went completely interrupted. Twilight broke the kiss with a final peck at the tip of Rainbow’s lips. “It could be like that.”

“Y-yeah…” Rainbow’s heart fluttered as she fell flat on her flank. “I think I like that. Damn, Trixie taught you one hell of an assertive attitude.”

“If you want some lessons I’d be happy to call her up for you.”

“I might just take you up on that offer, Sparkle.”

“RAINBOW DAAAAAAAAAAASH!”

An orange and purple blur burst through the door of the library and skid to a halt right in front of Rainbow and Twilight. Scootaloo stood, exhausted, drenched in sweat and red in the face. “I…need…your help with…something important…”

Rainbow sauntered over to her adoptive sister. “What’s the prob, squirt? Your big sis is here to help, no matter what it is!”

“W-well…” Scootaloo shuffled awkwardly in place, finally calming down a bit. “I think I…well…I might have kind of a…um…”

“C’mon, kiddo spit it out! Me and Twi ain’t gonna tell anypony. You’ve got nothing to worry-“

“I might have a crush on one of my friends!” She quickly covered her mouth with a hoof and her cheeks went even redder. Rainbow chuckled a bit before falling over into a flat-out laughing fit. “It’s not funny, Dash! Come on!”

“Rainbow, really, it’s not that funny!” Twilight scolded her marefriend, who still could not control her laughter.

“I-I’m sorry,” Rainbow managed between laughs. “But it is kinda funny that that’s the whole reason you came bolting over here in such a panic!” The cyan Pegasus reigned in her laughter and stood back up. “Okay, I’m cool now. So, let’s talk serious here.”

Twilight mock gasped. “Rainbow Dash is talking serious? Now that’s a Christmas miracle.”

Rainbow faked a chuckle, glaring at her marefriend before looking back to Scootaloo. “All right, kiddo, who is it? Wait, wait, let me guess! It’s that Rumble colt in your class, right? Or wait, maybe it’s Featherweight?”

“Um…actually, it’s…not a colt…” Scootaloo’s face could not be redder as the sentence left her lips.

Rainbow simply smiled. “So, who is it?”

“W-what?” Scootaloo looked upon her sister with confusion. “You…don’t think it’s weird?”

“Scoot, look at me.” Rainbow pulled Twilight to her with a wing and wrapped a foreleg around her neck. “Does it look like I think it’s weird? Me and Twi have been goin’ out for a couple of years now. This is more normal to me than most of the stuff we wind up getting mixed up in.”

Scootaloo sighed in relief. “I’m so glad I can talk to you about this, Rainbow Dash. I really don’t know what to do! I mean, I’ve known her for such a long time, and whenever I see her these days I can’t stop thinking about her! She’s pretty, funny, smart and talented, and I don’t know if I should just flat-out tell Sweetie how I feel without-“Scootaloo went silent again. The name crossed her lips without a second thought and her cheeks glowed crimson once more.

“Aww, that’s so cute!” Twilight hovered over next to Rainbow and Scootaloo. “Not only is it one of your friends…but one of your BEST friends.”

“That’s what makes this so much harder!” Scootaloo screamed out. “If I tell her how I feel and it doesn’t work out, what’ll happen to our friendship? Will AB even wanna hang out with us anymore of me and Sweetie couldn’t be in the same room together? What if Bloom takes Sweetie’s side? What if-“

Rainbow quelled the panicked filly with a hoof over her mouth. “Whoa there, kiddo, hold your horses. You’re getting way paranoid over nothing. Sweetie Belle isn’t that kind of pony. You say you’ve known her for a long time, right?” Scootaloo nodded. “Well, there you go. You know her well enough, so you know she wouldn’t do somethin’ like that, right?” The filly nodded again. “Okay, now onto the real issue here. How do YOU want to tell her?”

Scootaloo tilted her head in confusion. “How do…I want to tell her? What do you mean?”

“You can’t just wait for the moment to present itself, Scootaloo,” Twilight spoke, pulling Rainbow ever closer to her and giving her a light peck on the cheek. “You have to make the moment. If you really want to tell Sweetie Belle how you feel, you have to decide how to do it. If it feels right for you, then it’s sure to feel right for her.”

“But how can I know if it feels right for her?” Scootaloo awkwardly pawed the ground with her front hooves. “What if I make things more awkward by trying to ‘make the moment’?”

“That’s where it comes down to fate, Scoots.” Rainbow gave her little sister a light nuzzle. “If it’s meant to happen, then it’ll happen. And for your sake, I hope she likes you back. You’re an awesome kid. She’d be lucky to have ya.”

Scootaloo glanced around the room, at all the decorations, the tree, and lastly, the mistletoe. “Hey, what’s this stuff?”

“Oh, that’s mistletoe,” Rainbow replied, prodding it with a hoof. “Twilight says that if two ponies meet under it, they’ve gotta kiss.”

Scootaloo’s eyes widened with excitement. “Really?”

“Oh boy. You’ve done it now Dash. She’s got mischief planned now.”

Rainbow backed away a bit and held up a defensive hoof. “I just said what it was! It’s all up to her what she does with that knowledge!”

“Okay…” Scootaloo nodded and faced the door leading out of the library. “I think I know what to do! Thanks, Rainbow, Miss Twilight! See ya later at the party!”

The filly bolted out the door, leaving a wave of confidence in her wake. This time, Rainbow Dash took the initiative and dove into a wild, passionate kiss that sent Twilight’s wings fluttering up rapidly. Her mind in absolute ecstasy Rainbow seized the moment, not breaking the kiss for nearly ten minutes. Once they separated, Twilight swooned to a nearby pillow. “Now, why can’t you do that more often?”

“What can I say?” Rainbow curled up on the pillow next to Twilight. “I guess…just like when I bring out the daredevil in Scootaloo…sometimes she brings out a different kind of daredevil in me.”

“RARITY! I NEED YOUR HELP!”

Rarity practically stormed up the stairs of the boutique, fuming and with several reams of fabric in her magic’s grip. “Sweetie Belle, what is so important that you are calling me away from designing my new Christmas line?”

“Well, I normally wouldn’t ask for help with this kind of thing…well, normally this kind of thing wouldn’t be happening to me. Well, normally-“

“Please, Sweetie Belle, I would love to hear you divulge the exact, pinpoint details of your situation, but do you think, perhaps, you could speed it up a tad?”

“I think I might love Scootaloo!”

Awkward silence filled the boutique. Rarity lost her magic grip on the patches of cloth floating above her, not even once noticing they’d fallen to the dirt-coated floor in front of Sweetie’s bedroom. It took several minutes before either one of them spoke again.

“Um…Rarity? Are you oka-“

“Oh, my baby sister’s in love!” Rarity rushed over and swept up Sweetie Belle in a tight hug. “This is a wonderful day! Though I can’t say I expected it to be Scootaloo…or a mare at all…but this is so spectacular!”

“R-Rarity! I can’t…breathe!” Sweetie Belle squirmed in her sister’s grasp.

“Ah! Sorry, Sweetie!” Rarity loosened her grip and the two backed away from one another. “So…Scootaloo, huh?”

“I-It’s not a definite thing right now…I just…you know we’ve been spending a lot more time together recently, right?” Rarity nodded. “And Apple Bloom’s been helping her family with the last of the harvest before the Weather Team brings in that snowstorm tomorrow night, so it’s just been me and Scoots hanging out. And it’s just been…I dunno, nice. It’s not like when we were kids where we’d just run around doing stupid things to find our cutie marks…” Sweetie glanced nostalgically back at her own mark, a bell with a music note emblazoned on it. She then returned her attention to her sister. “We just spent the last six hours talking. Just…talking about anything. And before I left, we hugged, and…it felt different.”

“Different how, Sweetie?”

Sweetie pursed her lips in thought. “It felt…safe. Like everything would be okay as long as I stayed with her. It was comfortable and calming, and I felt myself thinking about how much I cared about her, and not just as a friend. I wanted the moment to last forever, and I was sad when I realized it couldn’t…not without me telling her how I felt!”

Rarity nearly swooned as if she was reading one of her novels. “Oh, how romantic! Two best friends madly in love with one another, and just in time for the holidays! Ah, I envy you, Sweetie Belle!”

“Wait, what makes you think Scootaloo likes me back?”

Rarity danced around the room, giggling wildly. “Oh, it’s destiny, Sweetie Belle! It just has to be!”

Sweetie stared in disbelief at her sister. “You’re nuts or drunk, and I can’t deal with either of those right now! I need to think of a way to tell Scootaloo how I feel!”

“Why don’t you sing her a song, my dear?” mumbled the obviously-tipsy Rarity. “That IS your special talent, is it not?”

Sweetie Belle’s eyes widened in realization. “That’s it! I could sing her a song! And thanks to Twilight giving me those Christmas carol books, I know just the one!” Sweetie rushed back into her room and began digging through her sheet music. “Oh, and Rarity?”

Rarity wobbled back and forth but managed a response of, “Yes, darling?”

“You’ve still got orders to fill, don’t you?”

Stunned in silence for a moment, Rarity quickly charged back down the stairs, her state of drunken whimsy fading instantly. “You’re right! There’s no time to waste! I’ve got so much work to do!”

Sweetie smiled to herself as she found a set of papers with a particular title. “And so do I.”

The party began without a hitch. It was, after all, a Pinkie Pie Christmas Extravaganza, and the hyperactive party pony would make sure that evening was the greatest Christmas party ever…until next year of course.

“Hey, author! You forgot about my absolutely to-die-for super special eggnog punch!”

Fluttershy eyed her friend curiously. “Um, Pinkie…who are you talking to?”

“The author, silly!” Pinkie smiled a large, silly smile. “Ooh, looks like another character’s about to be introduced!”

“Ah reckon Pinkie’s had a bit too much eggnog,” Applejack declared. “That stuff of hers is more dangerous than mah family’s Hard Apple Cider.”

“Should…should we make her lie down?”

Applejack shook her head. “Ah don’t think it’ll do much good. Let’s just let ‘er go on about whatever she wants. It’s Christmas and whatnot.”

Fluttershy glanced around the room. “Come to think of it, have you seen Rainbow Dash or Rarity yet? It doesn’t seem like they would miss this party.”

“Especially since Rainbow’s been hangin’ here every other day to spend more time with Twilight. An’ now that I’m thinkin’ ‘bout it too, Twi’s not ‘round either.” Applejack directed her attention to Spike, who was now pony-sized and sporting his wings by the punch bowl. “Hey, Spike! You seen Twilight around anywhere?”

Spike shook his head. “Nope. Haven’t seen her yet today, but she told me yesterday she was working on some kinda project with Rainbow Dash. Anything that involves those two is probably something Twi might kick my flank for snooping on.”

“What about Rarity?” Fluttershy stepped forward to join the conversation. “Have you seen her anywhere?”

“Believe me; I would know if I saw…” Spike sighed dreamily. “My wonderful diamond-studded angel…”

Applejack chuckled. “Okay, lover boy, we get it. Looks like we got two ‘projects’ goin’ on ‘round here. Guess we’ll just have ta wait an’ see. Twi’s probably workin’ on some fancy magic spell for the party. Like some kinda light show or somethin’.”

Fluttershy gave a light nod. “And Rarity might be preparing to showcase her Christmas dress line. She’s been working so hard on them.”

“Okay, everything is ready.” Twilight beamed with anticipation as she watched Scootaloo step out from behind the folding screen in the most beautiful dress she’d ever seen. It was red and gold, the only two colors Scootaloo said were ‘cool enough’ for her to wear, and it had a hatch on the back so she could unfurl her wings freely. “You look amazing, Scootaloo.”

“But is it gonna be enough?” Scootaloo stretched slightly to get a full feel for the dress. “I mean, do you think she’ll like it?”

“Like we said kiddo…” Rainbow Dash ruffled the young mare’s mane. “It’s up to you to make the moment. You can’t just expect everything to go as planned.”

“Yeah…I guess so. I’m just kinda…nervous. What if I totally mess up and lose one of my best friends?”

Rainbow pulled Scootaloo into a wing-hug. “Kid, if she’s your best friend, she won’t just stop being that if being more than that doesn’t work out. And if it does, you only become better friends. That’s how friendship works.” She smiled, looked to Twilight and then looked back over at Scootaloo. “Trust me. I know what I’m talking about when it comes to that.”

Scootaloo smiled back at her big sister. “Okay. I trust you, Rainbow Dash.”

“Is everything set up, Rarity?”

“Everything is in place, darling!” Rarity released the hold her magic had on the speaker system. The upper corners of Twilight’s library were wired up with a full stereo setup all linked to a radio on the ground floor. “I’ve asked Twilight if you can sing a bit later into the party, and she said it was a fantastic idea! Little does she know you’ve got somepony special for whom you’ll be singing, hmm?”

“I just hope the pony in question knows I’m singing for her…”

“I’m sure she will, Sweetie…” Rarity walked over and nuzzled her sister lightly. “And you’re going to do fantastic either way. Do you want me to support you from back here?”

Sweetie shook her head. “I’ve sung solo dozens of times. I just needed a hoof with the equipment. You can go enjoy the party if you want, sis. I know you haven’t seen your friends in a while because of your Christmas project.”

Rarity smiled. “Thank you, Sweetie Belle. I’ll be waiting for your grand entrance.” She began trotting off downstairs to the party. “Oh, and little sister?” Sweetie looked over and saw a genuinely happy smile on Rarity’s face. “Sweep her off her hooves, darling.”

As Rarity left to join her friends at the party, Sweetie Belle levitated a headset microphone onto her head. “I plan on it.”

‘Where is she?’

Scootaloo scouted out Twilight’s entire library on the ground floor and found no sign of Sweetie Belle. The party carried on for hours and she still couldn’t find her friend. However, to her shocking surprise, a friend managed to find her.

“Heya, Scootaloo!”

The orange mare nearly jumped out of her fur before quickly turning around to see Apple Bloom standing before her with a bright grin on her face. “Oh…h-hey, AB. What’s up?”

She shrugged. “Y’know…the usual. This sure is one heck of a party, ain’t it?”

Scootaloo shrugged in return. “I guess so.”

Finally taking notice to the quality dress her friend was wearing, Apple Bloom stared in awe. “Whoa, fancy duds, Scoots! What’re ya, tryin’ ta catch yerself a stallion tonight?”

“W-well…” Scootaloo turned red and looked down at the floor. “Not exactly…”

“Watcha mean?”
“…Not a stallion…” she managed, still having a hard time coming to terms with it herself. Apple Bloom, finally realizing what she meant, gasped at first but then smiled and pulled her friend into a tight hug.

“That’s great, Scootaloo! Good ta know you’re finally lookin’ fer yer special somepony! And smack dab ‘round the right season, too! So, who’s it yer goin’ after?”

“Um…okay, listen, AB, I’m gonna tell ya, but ya gotta promise not to spill until I tell her how I feel, okay? I’m trusting you with this, as a friend, that you’ll keep my secret for the next couple of hours.” Apple Bloom nodded, silently waiting for Scootaloo to speak. “All right, then…” She leaned in close and whispered into Apple Bloom’s ear. “It’s Sweetie Belle.”

Apple Bloom backed up and didn’t even seem surprised. “Well, it’s about darn time! Ah thought you’d never try to tell ‘er!”

Scootaloo stared in disbelief. “What?! You…how long have you-“

“Ah’ve seen ya lookin’ at her different since last month when we all got trapped in the tree house during that snowstorm! You were gettin’ all protective an’ stuff, tryin’ ta keep her calm…”

“But I was doing that for both of you!” Scootaloo tried to quickly lower her voice, but as it seemed, nopony else was really paying attention to her as much as they were the party.

“Yeah, but ah saw the way you were lookin’ at her durin’ the whole thing. Ah get that we’re all best friends an’ all…but you had a bond with her that night, an’ I dunno if she saw it, but I sure did.”

“So…you’re cool with this?” Scootaloo sighed a breath of relief. “Oh, man…I don’t know why, but I thought you’d be against me or something…”

“Just don’t go into this an’ break her heart by doin’ somethin’ dumb,” warned Apple Bloom. “Because then ah WILL have ta pound ya.”

“I wouldn’t dream of hurting her like that. She’s one of my best friends. And I-”

“Can I have everypony’s attention, please?” The entire crowd turned their attention to the center of the library where Twilight stood, using her magic to amplify her voice throughout the room. “Thank you. First off, I’d like to thank everypony for coming tonight. It’s not often Pinkie decides to host parties in my library…heck, any library…but considering the library itself is a rather large tree, we took it as the perfect opportunity. Now, I’d like to introduce a young mare who’s asked to sing a song for all of us from some of the sheet music I found related to this wonderful new holiday. Everypony, I am pleased to introduce Sweetie Belle to the…stage?”

As if out of nowhere, a full stage, complete with decorative snowflakes and red and green streamers now sat at the back wall of the library. Pinkie Pie popped out from beneath the stage with a huge smile on her face. “I finished setting up, Twilight!”

“But…I…how…I’m a princess, and I still don’t know how to deal with this.” Twilight cleared her throat and continued. “Anyway…I’d like to finally introduce to the stage…Sweetie Belle!”

The partygoers cheered as Sweetie Belle took to the stage. She smiled and waved at the crowd as she was used to, taking on the persona of a performer. As she reached the edge of the stage, she took a deep breath and addressed her ‘fans’. “This song goes out to a mare that’s…” she flushed a bit, but continued. “…very special to me. She doesn’t know it yet…but I hope she will once she hears this song.”

The song began with the simple chime of bells, as Sweetie Belle adjusted her microphone to confirm it was in place. “I don’t want a lot for Christmas…there is just one thing I need. I don’t care about the presents…underneath the Christmas tree…”

It was then that she gazed out into the audience, scanning for only a second before she spotted her target, and her eyes never left Scootaloo. “I just want you for my own, more than you could ever know. Make my wish come true…all I want for Christmas…is you, yeah…”

The song carried on and the crowd of ponies began to dance to the beat, unaware of the real message behind the song. Scootaloo understood it, though. Their gazes remained locked through each and every chorus. “Santa, won’t you bring me the one I really need? Won’t you please bring my baby to me? OH!”

It was in that moment that she truly saw it. ‘She…she’s felt the same…all this time, and I…oh, Celestia, we’ve both been absolutely terrified of admitting it!’

“All I want for Christmas is you…baby…” The song faded out as Sweetie Belle, sweating from the lights practically baking her on stage, magically removed her headset and took a bow for the cheering crowd before stepping down off the front of the stage. She maneuvered through the crowd until she was standing before Scootaloo.

“…How long?”

“A while…you?”

“Same…”

Sweetie Belle chuckled. “…I guess I just…got to it first.”

Scootaloo chuckled nervously. “Guess I didn’t need the mistletoe, did I?”

“No, but would it help?” Sweetie Belle started leaning forward.

“Nah…I don’t need it anymore…” Scootaloo leaned in as well, and the gap between them was sealed with a kiss. It was no simple connection, nor was it one so passionate. It was a unity of a bond beyond friendship that was before now unrequited. It lasted only for a moment, but for the two, it felt more like an eternity. The crowd continued as they were, but nothing could disturb the two mares. When they finally found the strength to pull away, Scootaloo was the first to speak.

“So, what are you doing for New Years?”

“Is that your way of asking me on a date, Scootaloo?”

“If I say it is, will your answer be yes?”

Sweetie Belle giggled. “I think it would have been ‘yes’ no matter what.”

The two walked together over to the library couch and sat down, curling up next to one another and simply enjoying each other’s company.

“Hey, Sweetie?”

“Yeah, Scoots?”

“…I love you.”

“…I love you too, Scootaloo.”