The night was cold, and gusts of chilling wind rolled through the busy streets. Ponies walked the roads, most wrapped in warm clothes, scarves keeping them safe from the evening's freezing air. Winter in Manehattan was harsh. Heat was often reserved to those of a higher class within the society, and many endured nights that froze them to the core.
But the city was magnificent as always, and above it all was Luna's glorious moon, shining down upon the city. It was full tonight, dominating the sky.
A brown pony with a mane of dark green looked up into the night. Hardhat had always liked a full moon. It was a sight to behold. He would lose himself in thought as he stared at it, wondering.
His thoughts tonight were interrupted by a bump from a passer by. His blanket shifted, and a quick gust blew through the space. He shivered and readjusted himself. The passer by didn't spare a second glance. Hardhat thought if the pony were to hold his head any higher, he'd pass out due to lack of oxygen.
Being out on the streets in the cold was no fun. For Hardhat, this had been his lifestyle for the past month. Ever since he lost his job he had been forced to live out on the streets, begging for bits. Unfortunately, ponies here tended to be rather 'fond' of their bits.
He chose to camp out in the richer part of the city, as he was more likely to come across a pony that could actually afford to lend him some change. You took what you could get your hands on in the city, and that means charity is quite rare. Nevertheless, he sat against the wall of the building, waiting and hoping.
'How did it ever come to this?' he thought.
He sighed.
Something in the corner of his eye caught his attention and he snapped back into reality. A small group of ponies had rounded the corner of the street he was in. He straightened himself up and nudged his hat forward. Maybe this time.
But then a sound became audible. Laughing. Loud, boisterous laughter. Drunken laughter.
Hardhat squinted his eyes to get a good look of the group. Four of them, all stallions, shoving and bumping each other, laughing all the way. They had hit the town, and hit it hard. A good night for them.
Not so for Hardhat.
They kept walking, until Hardhat swore that he could smell the alcohol coming off their breath. As they drunkenly staggered by, a hoof connected with the hat beside him, sending it tumbling and the contents jingling across the sidewalk.
"Hey, watch where you're going!" Hardhat angrily exclaimed. He tossed his blanket aside and went to retrieve the coins.
The stallions stopped in their tracks, and slowly turned around. Hardhat barely noticed, being too occupied with picking up his bits.
"And are you going to do shomething about it?"
Hardhat stopped picking up the bits and looked up. One of four was standing over him, a red stallion with turquoise mane, glaring at him. An angry expression was on his face. However, he was slightly less intimidating due to his swaying.
Now, Hardhat wasn't the brightest of ponies.He'd made a few mistakes in his life, like losing his marefriend when he was at a party and engaged in some rather 'physical' activities. But Hardhat was about to make a big mistake. He stood back up and straightened himself up.
"Depends."
"On *hic* w-what?"
"On whether or not your dentist replaces missing teeth."
The stallion was taken aback for a moment. His friends snickered at the wisecrack.
The stallion smiled. "We got a shmart mouth do we? I don't *hic* appreciate a pony with a shmart mouth."
"And I don't exactly appreciate you knocking over my bits."
The tension in the air was slowly rising. The other three had advanced and were standing beside their equally intoxicated acquaintance. Their hooves shifted along the ground, part due to keeping their balance, and also out of readiness.
Both sides knew what was coming. A good brawl was about to break out.
"Sho you think you're a real tough guy?"
"