The Wolfman of Ponyville.
Chapter 29: It's beginning to look a lot like Hearths Warming. ( Slight edit.)
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It has been a week since we announced our sons to the world and Hearths Warming was just a day away. I was helping Bright Mac put up some decorations around the house while Jackie helped her mother cook and Luna was watching Applebloom play with Jack and Orion. We were having a nice family feast before the Hearths Warming play we were going to. Once I put up the wreath above the fireplace, Dad and Big Mac came in with a big tree for us to decorate.
" Hey everyone, the lumberjacks are back with a big 'ole tree for us to decorate." Everyone stopped what they were doing and came over to see the tree. Dad and Big Mac got a seven-foot pine tree from the Everfree.
" Ah'll get the ornaments!" AB yelled as she went to go get them. Within a minute, Applebloom came back, pushing a cardboard box into the room. She opened the box up and rummaged through the ornaments while I helped dad set the tree up in the corner by the window. When the tree was up and ready, Bloom came back with an array of personalized ornaments. " Here, Joe put this one up first."
She handed me the ornament and I took a look at it. It was a picture frame ornament that was made from school crafts. There was no picture in the frame but it did have a small message at the bottom, ' Baby's first Hearths Warming'. " Where did you get this Bloom?"
" It was a project, Miss Cheerilee gave us. She said to make an ornament for our family, so I thought I would make something for my new nephews." She smiled at me and gave me a hug.
" This is a wonderful gift, although it needs one more thing to complete it." I went over to the camera on the shelf and went over to Luna and Jackie who were playing with the boys. " Alright, time for a photo." They took the boys over to the fireplace and got in position. Luna on my left and Jackie on my right with the boys in the middle. I backed up enough to where I could get a good shot. " Okay, smile for daddy." My wives gave me a nice smile while my sons just looked at the camera, and I took the picture. A flash of light and the moment was captured, I took the photo from the camera and placed it in the ornament.
I placed the ornament on the tree and helped put the rest of the decorations on the tree. A lot of the ornaments were the basic ones you would see on any other tree. Some of them were personalized and had a picture or were uniquely crafted to show someone's hobby, a lot were apple-themed while Luna put up a crescent moon ornament and put the star on top.
We all took a step back and admired the tree. " Well, if that isn't the best looking tree I've ever seen!" Granny remarked as she gazed upon the tree.
" It is really nice granny, but I hear the stew cooking over." Jackie went back to the kitchen with her mom and went to get dinner ready. Five minutes later we were called to dinner. We ate a delicious apple and carrot stew while I fed Orion and Jack applesauce and mashed peas. When the family saw that they were already on squashed food I told them we mature faster than normal.
Once we all ate and got the boys cleaned up, we headed out the house and toward the station to head up to Canterlot for the play.
Canterlot Theatre.
I was in the royal box with Luna sitting beside me and the Apple family behind me with dad. I had the boys sitting on my lap as we watched the tale of Hearths Warming. We watched as Spike started off the story on how the three pony tribes had an uneasy relationship two-thousand years ago. We watched as Rarity, Dash, and Pinkie played the leaders of the three tribes.
We watched as they fought over whose fault it was over the weather going on in their home before Equestria. When they went back to their kingdoms, we saw Fluttershy, Twilight and Jackie play the voices of reason. " Look, there's mama, say hi to mama." The boys giggled when I made them wave at Jackie. It was decided that since Jackie and Lulu were both their mothers, they would call Jackie mama and Luna mommy.
As the play continued, we saw how Equestria was founded and how the problem followed them there. Turns out, the problem was a version of winter spirits called, windigos that feed off of hate and anger. The boys started to cry when the ice started to cover everyone including Jackie until Twilight made a flaming heart and chased the Windigos away. At the end of the play, we all cheered for the girls as they took a bow at the end.
When the play was being wrapped up, Celestia appeared on the stage for an announcement. " First off, I would like to thank the cast for a wonderful performance." Once again, the elements and Spike took a bow of recognition. " In honor of the holiday season, I would like to ask my brother-in-law to show us a little holiday spirit from his world." This caught me completely off guard, here I thought I was to enjoy the sight of my wife on stage. Instead, I'm asked to be an entertainer. " Joe, could you please join me on stage."
I picked the boys off my lap and handed them to Luna and gave her a kiss. I then glided down to the stage and gave a hug to Tia. " Couldn't warn me beforehand?" She gave me a cheeky smile and left me and the rest of the cast on the stage. I turned to the audience and addressed them. " First off, I would like to say that I was caught completely off guard about this. But that does not mean I don't have a plan to make this evening more fun." The whole audience was captivated with what I was about to do, from the looks of Applebloom and her friends, they expected what I always did for their class. " Now, let's begin." I created a screen that would rival the screen at any IMAX theatre and started the fun.
https://youtu.be/-6gon66jF8s?list=LLCzG2W-JN2NHN-SokErZefw
As the little video played, I thought of all the Christmas movies I've seen over the years. I could go with the stop-motion movies or the more visually stunning CGI movies. As the small intro ended, I got the perfect idea of what to show. Putting a little more magic into my hands, I let the screen, play out a Christmas masterpiece. " Alright, time for the main event! Ladies and gents, I give you Jean Shepherd and Bob Clarks, A Christma Story!" With that done, I went over to the royal box with Jackie and watched the best holiday movie ever made with the boys back on my lap.
As the film went on, I would hear kids laughing and gawking at the toys displayed at Higbee's and I had no doubt they were pinning for a Red Rider just as badly as Ralphie. When it got to the part about shooting your eye out for the first time, many of the moms in the audience agreed, including Jackie and Luna. Though I did laugh at the little Black Bart dream.
Everyone laughed at the silliness of that scene. We continued to watch the movie and laugh when something funny happened, which was pretty much happening every minute. A few members of the audience couldn't believe the mouth on Schwartz as he told the story about the flagpole. Wait till they get to the dare.
The audience was in an uproar over the whole thing. First, it was because of the breach of dare etiquette which changed rapidly when Flick started screaming like a girl when his tongue got stuck. The majority of the kids nodded when the wisdom on not getting caught was in everyone's best interest, though the parents fixed an accusing look at their kids. Suddenly, the introduction to Scott Farkus appeared, and we all watched the scene unfold.
To me and the rest of the adults, we saw a kid who needed a good spanking. To the kids, on the other hand, Scott Farkus would be remembered for years to come as the representation of the bully's that plagued their schools and home-towns. The part about the Bumpus hounds and the father got a chuckle from my father and a sad look from Fluttershy when one of the hound's ears got caught in the door.
When the dinner scene came up, we laughed at how Randy would eat like a pig and the mother encouraging him to keep acting like a pig. When the knocking at the front door could be heard, I realized I put both myself and every stallion in the audience in trouble with their mares. Curse that lamp. At least I got to laugh at the mispronunciation of fragile.
When the lamp scene was over I could see every mare with a stallion, give them accusing looks. When I turned to my right, I saw Luna and Jackie give me accusing looks. Guess I deserve that. Luckily the scene where Ralphie daydreaming about getting a good grade took the focus away from us males. The movie went on to the tree emporium and we saw them haggle for a good tree. Soon the scene of them returning home came into view and how Ralph was asked to help his father. In my opinion, the best scene in the movie.
Many mothers in the audience looked at their foals, giving the message that if they heard them cursing, they'd be putting a bar of soap in their mouths. I even saw Pear glaring at Big Mac and Jackie, guess not even being an adult excuses one from their mother's punishment. We all cringed when the mom on the phone went into a rage and punished Schwartz for no reason. When the blind fantasy came up, a mix of cries and laughter filled the room.
The Ovaltine message got a few boos from the kids in the audience as no doubt, they were scammed into something similar. A few adults got the masturbation joke while others looked at them weirdly. Soon the scene where the mom broke the lamp occurred and it caused every mare to cheer, though the kids were unsure why. Later we saw the kids back in the classroom having their assignment given back to them.
We all heard Twilight scream in absolute horror when Ralph received a C for his theme. Despite that outburst, we laughed when the teacher became a witch laughing about how Ralph got a C+. Our laughter only increased when the ' You'll shoot your eye out!' message was revealed and how the mother joined his teacher in the taunting wearing a jester costume. Soon though, the movie got to the scene where Ralph loses his temper.
When the fight started, no one could believe that Ralph would ever do such a thing. It only escalated when the kids in the movie encouraged him to finish Scott off. When the cursing started, every parent had unhinged jaws and couldn't believe the things he was saying, although to be fair most of the cursing was complete gibberish. Once the mom intervened and comforted her son, everyone gained their senses.
With the scene towards the dad coming home building up, a few audience members took pity on Ralph. When it was revealed that the mother defused the situation, many of the kids gave a hug to their moms, including AppleBloom hugging Pear in a tight embrace.
Soon the plan to ask Santa for the BB gun had arrived. We watched the parade the movie showed and many gave a weird look to Mickey Mouse being attacked by flying monkeys. Many kids had dropped their jaws when they saw how long the line to see Santa really was. Finally, after many minutes of waiting in line, Ralph was able to see Santa.
When Ralph got pushed down the slide, many of the kids including myself joined him in screaming no. The whole theater looked at me as if I've gone insane. What they didn't know, is that I sold my sanity to a guy named Ash in Austin for fifty bucks. They all went back to watching the film when the tree went and shorted a fuse. We then saw the kids waking up to see what they got for Christmas and tearing into the presents. Then it came time to show Aunt Clara's gift to Ralph.
Everyone laughed their asses off when Ralph came down to show off Aunt Clara's gift. Pinkie and Cadence gave me an angry glare when the father said that Ralph looked like a pink nightmare, but not before Fluttershy directed her ire to me when the term deranged easter bunny was said. When the mood settled down and it looked like the movie was about to be over, Ralph's dad pointed out something that was behind the desk.
Not a single face had a frown on it as it was revealed that after days of scheming and begging, Ralph had finally gotten his BB gun. We chuckled almost in sync when the father did and couldn't wait for Ralph to make a shot. When he finally did, it looked like he had shot his eye out. Thankfully, that wasn't the case, however, the fact that he busted his glasses got everyone on edge. When Ralph lied about how his glasses busted, Jackie jabbed my ribs with her elbow.
We suddenly busted our guts when the Bumpus hounds came in and ruined the turkey dinner and the leftover meals that would have been. Near the end of the film, I cuddled with my Valkyries as the credits rolled. " I think that went well, don't you?"
" Aside from the lamp and teaching how to avoid being punished for doing the wrong thing, it was a very nice story." Jackie cuddled closer as Jack slept in his mother's hooves. I returned the embrace as both Luna and Orion joined us.
We broke the embrace and made for the exit and for the station to get home and tuck the little ones in bed. They would need their sleep for tomorrow.
" Wake up Joe, it's Hearths Warming!" Applebloom screamed in my ear and shook me off the living room couch as she wanted me awake for Hearths Warming.
" By Odin's beard, alright I'm up. Go bother your parents while I put a shirt on." She went back upstairs and went to go wake up Pear and Bright. " Wake up dad, I know she woke you up to." Dad got up from the sleeping bag he slept in and went to the kitchen to make coffee. As for me, I got up and went to put away the sheets on the couch. The reason for the couch and sleeping bag was because we all decided to stay at the farmhouse and celebrate the holiday here. Jackie took Luna and the kids to her old room and bedded down there. I would have slept with them, but the bed was too small, and we didn't want to start something while Orion and Jack were in the same room.
" Want some coffee boy?" Dad was in the doorway to the kitchen with a fresh pot of coffee in hand.
I shook my head and put a shirt on. " No, go and leave enough for your daughter-in-law's though. Luna loves a cup of coffee after she goes dream-walking." I went about cleaning the living area as I had no doubt that this room will be crowded in a minute. Just as I put the last of the sheets in the closet, I was blindfolded by a pair of midnight blue wings. " Good morning sweetheart, you and Jackie sleep well?"
" We did, though we did miss your warmth." She cuddled close as I pulled her in for a kiss.
" There you two go again." We looked behind us to see Jackie coming down the stairs with the boys in some crazy saddle/carrier concoction. " Having all the fun and leaving me to the kids." We both walked over to her and planted a kiss on each of her cheeks. " Alright, ah forgive ya."
" Glad to hear it." I grabbed Orion and Jack from her bag and took them over to the couch. " Did you two behave for your mothers while daddy had to sleep on the couch and hear grandpa's thunderous snoring?" My boys let out some baby talk and some giggling. " Happy to hear that." At the top of the stairs, a very tired looking Pear and Bright came down the stairs behind an energetic Applebloom. " Well look who it is. It's your loud aunt Applebloom and your Mom-mom and Pop-pop."
Applebloom came over to the couch and sat beside me. " Whatever, how are my two favorite nephews?" AB motorboated Jack's exposed belly while Orion played with her bow. " Hey, leave my bow alone." With that said, my boys started a mock battle with AB. The fight lasted for a whole five minutes before Granny called us.
" Come on youngins, time for breakfast!" We all gathered at the dining table and ate a big breakfast of apple cinnamon oatmeal and toast. When we had our fill, we went back to the living room to exchange gifts. " Gather round for gifts." We all gathered in a circle around granny as she played Santa and started giving out the presents.
We decided to focus our efforts on getting the kids gifts so us adults had only one gift each. Dad got a Sam Elliot movie collection that he had been wanting for some time. Granny got an electric apple peeler, nearly had herself a heart attack. Dad and I decided to give Pear grandpa's old guitar with Johnny Cash's autograph. She had no idea who Cash was but that didn't matter. Bright got a new stetson from Jackie since she has his old hat. Big Mac was given harmonica and a bottle of whiskey. Luna was given a copy of Skyrim. She really loves RPG games. Jackie was excited to see I got her the Dollars Trilogy. Anything with Eastwood gets her motor going. As for me, I was given an envelope from both Luna and Jackie. This is what it contained.
Needless to say, I didn't show everyone what it was, but I think they got the message.
" Okay, time for the little ones to open their presents." Granny gave the go-ahead for Applebloom tear apart her pile of presents. She received an assortment of toys and candy from all of us, though I think she liked her talking Krusty doll the best.
" This is amazing, where did you find this?"
" Well, I had to go to the farthest reaches of Equestria for that."
Flashback to a week ago.
I was walking in a dimly lit shop in Manehattan looking for a gift to give to Applebloom. The shelves were lined with various knick-knacks that were just downright creepy. Coming up to the counter, I went ahead and asked the clerk for assistance. " Do you sell toys?"
The clerk came out of the shadows smoking a pipe. Not to sound racist, but he looked like a Chinese opium user. " We sell forbidden objects from places ponies fear to tread, we also sell frozen yogurt, which I call frogurt."
" Well, I need a Hearths Warming gift for my sister-in-law."
" Ah, perhaps this will please the young lady." He looked to the shelf behind him and started hovering his hoof over various objects such as a heart in a pickle jar, a two-headed stuffed cat, and a shrunken head. Finally, he grabbed a Krusty doll from the shelf. " Take this object, but beware, it carries a terrible curse."
I took the toy with some skepticism. " Oooh, that's bad."
" But it comes with a free frogurt."
" That's good!"
" The frogurt is also cursed."
" That's bad."
" But you get your choice of topping."
" That's good!"
" The topping's contain potassium benzoate." I gave the guy a blank look 'cause I had no idea what the hell that is. " That's bad."
" Can I go now?"
End of flashback.
" And after realizing that the so-called ' Curse' was that someone had set the toy for evil, I gift-wrapped it for you."
" Well, I love it and will cherish it forever!" She pulled the string on the doll and it talked.
" I'm Krusty the clown, and I love you very much."
" See, if I hadn't changed it, it would still be trying to kill me." Everyone gave me shocked looks when they heard the doll could have done that. " Anyway, It's time for Jack and Orion to open their first Hearths Warming presents."
" Hold on, let me get the camera." Dad went to get the camera as we got the boys their gifts. " Okay, smile for the camera."
We all started opening their gifts and presenting them to them while dad kept snapping photos. They got an assortment of baby clothes from both their grandparents. Granny presented them with a warm quilt for them to share. Dad got them each a wolf stuffed toy. Applebloom and Big Mac gave Jack an apple patterned blanket, and Orion a star-patterned blanket. Jackie gave them each a pillow, one had an apple embroidered on it while the other had a crescent moon. Lulu gave them a giant dreamcatcher to be put over their bed.
" Alright, time for my gift boys." I put a box in front of them and lifted the lid, revealing a Woody and Buzz Lightyear toy. Orion took Buzz while Jack grabbed Woody and started playing with them. " It would seem they like their toys." Everyone gathered around to see Orion and Jack play and interact with all the stuff their family got for them and couldn't help but smile. What a wonderful life.
Next Chapter: The Wolfman vs The SSCS 6000 ( Edited) Estimated time remaining: 18 Hours, 59 MinutesAuthor's Notes:
First, let me tell you that writing a chapter about a winter holiday, is made much more difficult when you're doing it, in July. Despite that, I feel like I did pretty good with this. I did have different ideas for the Christmas film that was being shown, but I've come to realize that through the stories on this site, no one has done A Christmas Story when writing a holiday chapter, so I believe I have done a service. Hopefully, none of the videos are taken down.
Clip.
And just for an added bonus.