My Little Warcraft - Happy Hearth's Warming Feast of Winter's Veil Eve!

Chapters

Chapter 1 - Tinsel and Baubles
Chapter 2 - Who's Naughty and Who's Nice
Chapter 3 - The Blackest of Fridays

Chapter 1 - Tinsel and Baubles

"I didn't think it would be snowing here of all places," uttered Gai'vahros in wonder as he gazed out of the library window to the grounds below.

For him, it was one of the grandest thing he had ever seen -- a place that was once a land of sunshine and gentle breeze turning into a winter wonderland. Snow fell gently upon the trees, buildings, and the joyful folk of Ponyville. He saw all of them smiling as they talked with one-another, walked with one-another, and played with one-another. He even saw Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Pipsqueak have a snowball fight, although it was more of a handicap fight with Pipsqueak baring the heavy assault.

"Do you not have snow where you come from, Gai'vahros?" asked Twilight as she put on her snow boots.

"We do," responded Gai'vahros, "but only in a few places. Azeroth has a number of snow places -- Dun Morogh, Winterspring, the majority of Northrend, to name a few. But Azerothian climate is pretty stagnant as far as weather is concerned. Quel'Thalas sees rain but never snow."

"You're missing out, darling," joined Rarity, trying to unfold her mane from being trapped under the hood of her coat. "Snow is always a lot of fun. Well, until a snowball ruins your eyeliner."

"Hey, hey!" cried Pinkie Pie, hopping up and down. "Do you celebrate Hearth's Warming Eve, Gai?"

The elf turned to Pinkie Pie with a raised eyebrow. " "Hearth's Warming Eve"? What is that?"

"Only the most fun, awesome, cool, totally party-rific day in the whole year!"

Twilight sighed gently, smiling as she shook her head a little. "Hearth's Warming Eve is the time where Equestria celebrates its founding. To celebrate, each town holds a pageant that reflects upon the values we learned."

"And there's lots of presents, too!" added Pinkie Pie with a huge grin on her face.

Gai'vahros gave a half smile as he took his hand off of the windowsill. "Sounds like a fun holiday for everyone."

"Do ya not have somethin' similar back on Azeroth, Gai?" asked Applejack.

"We do. We call it the "Feast of Winter Veil". But its meaning has been blurred through the generations, it seems."

"But it's still a fun time of year for people, right?"

"I guess. But it's nothing for me to celebrate, though."

"But why --"

"S-sorry to jump in on you guys," lurched Spike, holding his stomach, "but I'm getting that feeling again." Suddenly the little dragon belched a torrent of green flame, materializing a large, rolled up piece of parchment onto the floor. "Phew… I needed that…"

"A letter? From Celestia?" pondered Twilight, grasping it with her magic and unravelling it in front of her.

"Dear Twilight,

As you know, Canterlot always holds the Hearth's Warming Eve pageant at Canterlot Castle. Because of the huge, positive reception that your pageant received last year, we would like to ask you if you could perform once more. I hope that you accept our request, and please respond to me as soon as you can.

Princess Celestia and Princess Luna."

"How absolutely fabulous!" exclaimed Rarity, almost jumping out of her boots. "I never imagined that we would be asked again to do the pageant!"

"Pfft, we were totally awesome last year," spoke Rainbow Dash as she folded her forelegs across her chest. "Of course she would ask us again this year!"

"So it's decided, then," spoke Twilight. "We're all going. You can come with us, too, Gai'vahros."

"Sure. Beats getting my hair ruined by snowballs."

"I'll let the Princesses know right away. Spike, a letter, if you please."

"Now hold on a minute," interjected Rarity. "If we're going to let the Princesses know, then why don't we go see them in person? If we're going to do the pageant then we'll have to go to Canterlot anyway."

"She's right," agreed Applejack. "Two birds with' one stone 'n' all that."

"O-oh, please don't say it like that," squeaked Fluttershy. "I don't want any birds getting hurt…"

Chuckling softly, Gai'vahros gave a smile to all. "very well then. Shall we take the next train, ladies?"

Small flakes of snow padded the length of the train as it drove down its tracks. The snow had begun to die down a lot more as it sped towards Canterlot, when compared to Ponyville at least.

The group sat upon the fine, silk cushions as they awaited their stop. Rainbow Dash and Apple Jack sat near the windows of their respective seats, each of them with their heads out of the window as they let the gentle snow and rushing wind race through their manes -- and Applejack's hat, which had nearly got blown right from her head, much to Rainbow Dash' amusement.

Rarity and Fluttershy sat beside Applejack and Rainbow Dash respectively, the two of them in small talk about how well the play would go, or even what they would do. Twilight, however, was fairly certain of what she wanted the play to be about.

"Why don't we do a play about what Hearth's Warming Eve means to all of us?" suggested Twilight. "We could show everyone just what friendship has done for all of us."

"Not to be too picky, Twi," spoke Applejack, retreating her head through the window, "but isn't that a bit too… "closed"?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like the play is about the six of us. Kinda makes it look like we're tryin' to promote ourselves and what we've accomplished rather than what everyone should be about."

"Hmmm… I guess you're right."

"I believe," intervened Gai'vahros, "that the play should have some sort of moral value as the moral of the story. What does Hearth's Warming Eve mean to you? What makes it celebrated?"

"You see, Gai'vahros," responded Twilight, "Hearth's Warming Eve celebrates Equestria's founding, but its value to us is that it reminds us that the three tribes of ponies -- Earth, Unicorn, and Pegasi -- worked together, and lived in peace to create what we now see before us."

Despite the happy tale that came from her, Gai'vahros did not crack a smile. Instead, he turned to look out of one of the windows and watched as the snow-filled fields raced by. "And ever since that time, one thousand years ago, Equestria has seen no wars? No conflicts?"

"Well… there's been some fights and such, like the return of Nightmare Moon and Queen Chrysalis. But we've not had any wars like, say, the dragons or with the Griffon Kingdom."

Gai'vahros sighed softly, his head slightly turned to Twilight. "It must be great for you -- for everyone here -- that they get to live in relative peace without having to fear for the world they leave behind for their children and grand-children."

The girls turned to him, all noticing that sombre tone in his voice whenever he felt distraught or upset.

"But what about your holiday, Gai?" asked Rainbow Dash. "Didn't you say you celebrated the… uh… "Feet of Winter's Trail"?"

"Heh. You mean the Feast of Winter Veil," he corrected. "No one truly knows how it came to be. They say that the races of Azeroth venerated a great spirit of winter who, once a year, on this very day, would walk through the lands, followed by the cold winds and gentle blizzards. Anyone who welcomed him would be given great bounty.

The dwarves believed the spirit to be some sort of supernatural being, or even a Titan himself, and so they felt that they were close to him in an ancestral sense. And so it was the dwarves who created the Feast of Winter Veil -- the time of year in which they would celebrate him. Gradually the other races began to come together for the occasion, creating a time of year where all of the races could get together and share their happiness together."

Twilight looked at him, puzzled. "Shouldn't you be happy, Gai'vahros? Shouldn't you join in and celebrate the fact that everyone is getting together under a single banner?"

Gai'vahros paused. He looked at the seven of them as they gazed back at him, awaiting an answer. "I don't need to celebrate something that I do every single day," he finally replied. "Plus it wasn't something we celebrated until a decade or so ago. It just isn't something that I've taken to."

"So you're… pretty Scrooge-y," spoke Pinkie Pie with narrowed eyes.

"Pinkie!" scolded Applejack. "Ya shouldn't be rude to him. Everyone has the choice to celebrate somethin' or not, so long as they don't go 'round ruinin' it for everyone else."

"Besides, Gai has already said that he embraces the sentiment of it every day," added Rarity to his defence.

"I was just --" Twilight paused before she spoke further. "No, you're right. You don't have to celebrate everything that everyone else does."

"We can still buy you a present, right?" asked Pinkie Pie with a big smile.

For the first time since they had left Ponyville, Gai'vahros gave a small smile. "Sure you can. But you really don't have to."

The site of Canterlot drew ever closer as the train headed past the guard booths, lined on each side by four guards holding long halberds and spears. The platform was merely yards away from them.

"We're here, girls," spoke Twilight. "And guy."

Even the halls of Canterlot Castle were festive, so Gai'vahros thought. Along the walls at their very height hung many decorations -- lengths of glistening tinsel, ribbons of green and red, and hanging baubles and gold bells stretched the entirety of the hallway and around the rooms, or so he could see in the distance.

"It's great to see everywhere so festive," said Rarity as she marvelled the decorations around her, "especially in the castle! It just looks so beautiful amidst everything else!"

"I'm glad you like it, Rarity," a voice called out from in front of them. As the group looked forwards, they spotted both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna make their way from the landing of the red, carpeted stairs.

Both of them were dressed especially for the festive occasion. Celestia had upon her head a red, pointed hat of cotton, with white fur around the bottom of it and a little white, fluffy ball on the point of it. She wore a long, red dress of the same design, with white fur along the skirting. Luna didn't wear as much as her sister, though, opting only for a small, bright red nose that gently clamped around her snout, and a pair of long antlers.

"We didn't have much time to put up the decorations and such," admitted Celestia, "what with all of the hassle we've had with… you-know-who."

Gai'vahros sighed and looked away. "I'm sorry for the trouble that we have caused, Your Majesty."

"Don't be silly, Gai'vahros. It is not your fault that this has happened -- regardless of what she says." She turned to Twilight. "I'm glad that you took the time to accept my request, Twilight."

"How could I say "no", Princess?" she responded with a smile. "We would be honoured to perform the pageant again. It's just that…"

"What troubled you, my student?"

"Well… it's just that we're not sure what to do this year. We've had a few thoughts on the journey here but nothing really stood out as… well, outstanding."

"You're free to repeat what you have performed last year," approved Celestia.

"We kinda talked about it," spoke Applejack, "but we agreed that the crowd might not enjoy a repeat performance of last year -- from the same ponies, no less."

"Well, you have some time to collect your thoughts before the pageant starts," assured Luna. "Since you will be staying here, you can take the time to come up with something. I just hope it doesn't take too long -- we've not much time to find a backup if you've nothing to come up with."

Twilight gulped, feeling the pressure upon her shoulders. "O-oh! Well, uh, I'm sure we'll come up with something by tomorrow at least," she replied with a sheepish smile.

"U-um… can I say something…?" spoke Fluttershy as she half-hid behind her hair. "Why don't we… um… make a pageant around Gai'vahros' holiday…?" The group turned to her, making Fluttershy whimper a little. "I-if you want to… or not… I'm sorry…!"

"I think…" spoke Twilight, pondering for a moment. "I think that sounds like a good idea, Fluttershy. We could do a play based around the Feast of Winter Veil and how everyone should celebrate with one-another despite their differences."

"I cannot accept this," intervened Luna. "How could we do a play about something we do not celebrate? How would the ponies react to it? Will they even appreciate such a thing?" Luna turned to Celestia, wanting to ask for her agreement in the matter, but she saw that look on her face -- that look of contemplation. "Sister… you cannot seriously be giving this idea the grace of thought?"

"… I think it could be a good idea," responded Celestia with a smile. "The point of the pageant isn't to celebrate the holiday, but to show the importance of friendship, companionship, and teamwork. So long as we show that, it doesn't matter how we do it.

However…" Celestia turned to Gai'vahros. "Although it is our place to approve the pageant, I don't believe that we should be the sole deciders of it. Gai'vahros, are you okay with all of this?"

The tension for the group began to fester evermore the more they awaited for the elf's response. His eyes shifted from pony to pony, looking upon their faces as they awaited his judgment. "… I approved of this," he finally responded. His friends gave their greatest of smiles -- especially Fluttershy -- although Luna rolled her eyes. "Under one condition," he added.

"What would that be?" asked Celestia.

"That I am to write the play."

"I don't think we could have it any other way. After all, you know a lot more about this holiday than all of us."

"Brilliant. I'll get to writing the script now."

"For your sake, it had better be your best writing, Gai'vahros," retorted Luna. "I do not want Canterlot being the laughing stock of Equestria because of it."

Chapter 2 - Who's Naughty and Who's Nice

"Okay, so let us go through the next section," spoke Gai'vahros.

The theatre was one of absolute grandeur and glamour, befitting of any other theatre within the kingdom and beyond. The span was enormous, at least a hundred square meters. Tens of rows of seats lined in front of the stage at the left, the right, and the center, all empty as awaiting their use. Upon the ceiling were several rafters with lights of multiple colours and hues fixed upon them.

The group prepared for rehearsal upon the stage, accompanied by none but each other and a handful of guards spread at each doorway. Large, red curtains hung from the top beam and from each side of the stage by golden rails. The sides were covered by two faux walls used to conceal the dressing room behind.

"Little Spike, could you please give us the narration?" asked Gai'vahros.

"Leave it to me, Gai," he replied, standing upon a stool. The little dragon cleared his throat as he spoke, "But it was to the cruel hand of fate that the two warriors, who held only their hatred upon one-another, were to meet amidst the harsh blizzard."

"Excellent. Lady Applejack, your line, please."

"Oh! Oh, right." Taking the time to briefly skim over her words, Applejack tried to memorize the words off by heart on the first try, but couldn't help but keep glancing over at the paper. She then spoke her line, "You destroyed our homes and you destroyed our--"

"Hold on, hold on," interrupted Gai'vahros, waving his hand to motion her to stop. "I'm sorry, my Lady, but do you think you could do a more… uh… stronger accent?"

"How d'ya mean, "strong"?" asked Applejack.

"Could you sound more… you know… dwarven?"

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "I would -- If I knew what dwarven sounded like."

"Oh… right. Well, it sounds sort of like this --" Gai'vahros coughed "Ye destroyed ah homes, and ye destroyed ah livelehhoods! Ah see to it that yer suffer a worse fate, ye cursed dog!"

"Ohhhh! You mean like a Trottish accent! Sure, I can do that!" Applejack raised her head, taking a deep breath. "Ye destroyed ah homes, and ye destroyed ah livelehhoods! Ah see to it that yer suffer a worse fate yet, ye cursed dog!" An audible snicker came from the side of Applejack. She turned to see Rainbow Dash with her hooves slammed against her mouth trying to stop herself from bursting out with laughter. "What's so funny, Rainbow Dash?"

"N-nothing," she spoke quietly, trying not to laugh. "You just… just sound so ridiculous with that accent!" It was too much for the Pegasi, bursting into laughter with her forelegs over her stomach as she lurched forwards.

"Hey! I don't sound ridiculous!" yelled Applejack in irritation.

"Girls, girls!" cried out Gai'vahros, waving his hands in the air. "Enough of this! We've only got a day and a half to get this all finished! Rainbow Dash, please, could you not make fun of Applejack while she's doing her lines?"

"Oh, right! Yeah, sure." Despite her agreement, Rainbow Dash couldn't help but keep a big grin on her face.

"Thank you. Now, Spike, could you read the narration once more?"

While Gai'vahros practiced with Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rarity were in the dressing room behind the stage. The room was fairly large, able to accommodate at least twelve or so performers comfortably with enough room to move around. Large dressing tables spanned the entirety of the back wall, while the sides were lined with clothes racks with a multitude of costumes. there were some storage boxes on the floor with an assortment of props, from flags to swords.

"Oooooh, I can't wait I can't WAIT!" squealed Pinkie Pie, bouncing up and down and around Fluttershy. "I can't wait to practice my lines!"

"O-oh, I'm glad you're really… um… excited, Pinkie Pie," spoke Fluttershy softly. "What part do you get to play?"

"I get to play… uh, let me double-check." Pinkie held the page to her snout, her eyes darting from side to side, scanning the words. "I'm playing the role of the scholar who tries to help Applejack's character! What do you get to be, Fluttershy?"

"Oh… I play the friend of Rainbow Dash who tries to convince her to stop fighting Applejack…"

"Oooooh, so we're kinda like, the same character, but on different sides! I wonder if we actually get to see each other."

"M-maybe you should suggest that to Gai'vahros. I think it's a good idea."

Pinkie grinned in excitement. "Yay! I'll ask him when I go and practice my part! Oh, and before I forget, have you decided what to get Gai for Hearth's Warming Eve yet?"

Fluttershy gasped. "Oh! N-no… I haven't thought about it. I've been preoccupied with the play…"

"Well that's okay! I'm gonna get him a new cape!"

"A… new cape?"

"Yeah! One that'll be totally awesome and make him look like a really, really cool superhero! Then he can save the day and look good doing it, too!"

"… I think he looks really good already…"

"Well, yeah, but he can always look better, right?"

"Um… Well, when you put it that way… I guess?"

"See! I knew you'd agree with me!" Pinkie Pie grasped a small, straw hat from the dresser and plonked it on her head. "I'm glad I got to get your opinion, Fluttershy. Now I gotta go practice and memorise my lines. I'll see ya later!" Pinkie Pie made her way towards the dresser room door as she spoke, "Y'know, out of character. But hopefully in character, too!"

"O-oh… Yes, I hope so, too…!"

Rainbow Dash has finished putting on her costume -- a chest plate with intricate filigree and a single, diamond-shaped amethyst embedded in the center. A centurion-styled helmet matched her armor in colour, while the head crest matched the purple gem exactly. In her hoof she held a prop, foam halberd that looked incredibly authentic aside from the tip of the head being rounded and not sharpened.

"Okay, Gai," she called out, "give me my queue!"

"Excellent," the elf responded. He turned to spike. "If you could, little Spike?"

"Sure, if you stop calling me "little"," he responded in chagrin. His little claw flipped over to the next page of the script before he began to scan the lines for a moment. "The tension grew evermore between the two warrior until, finally, their tempered served to fuel their blades, and the two drew upon one-another."

Gai'vahros then pointed to Rainbow Dash to signal her part.

"You'd not bested me then, nor now, nor ever, wretched fool!" she cried out with all the feeling she could muster, causing Gai'vahros to smile as she watched her performance not only in her voice but also in her movement. She swung the halberd to her side before swinging it horizontally in front of her. However, she did not judge her surroundings to be as close as they had been, and inadvertently struck Applejack in the side of the head.

"Hey!" she screamed as she turned around, rubbing the side of her head with a hoof. "Watch where ya swing that thing, Rainbow Dash!"

"It's not my fault you were in the way!" retorted Rainbow Dash, defending herself. "You're standing too close to me!"

"Because I'm supposed to be this close to you! We're supposed to be practicin' our lines, not practicin' how to clobber me in the head!"

"Well we can do that at the same time."

"Then pass that darn thing over here and let me hit you in the head!"

"You trying to start a fight, Applejack?"

Before the fight could escalate any further, Twilight raced up and stood between the two of them, pushing them apart with her hooves. "Hey! Girls!" she cried out. "We shouldn't be fighting for real! We're supposed to work together and try and get this thing done! We've only got until tomorrow evening to get this finished."

both Applejack and Rainbow Dash huffed and turned away from one-another.

"Fine, then," spoke Applejack in frustration. "I'ma go an' revise my other lines now that I know how I need to speak them."

Rainbow Dash, however, merely maintained her position as before. "Okay, Gai, read me my --"

"Go and take a break, Rainbow Dash," the elf interrupted her, holding the script by his side. "You should go cool off."

"I'm fine! Just read me --"

"I said, go and take a break, Rainbow Dash. Go grab something to eat or something. I'll see you back here in twenty minutes."

Rainbow Dash wanted to speak, but nothing could force a single word from her throat. Instead, she placed her costume and weapon along the back wall of the stage and quickly flew out from the theatre doorway.

"Gai'vahros?" spoke Twilight Softly as she turned to him. "Are you okay?" She asked, but she already knew the answer. In those jaded eyes of him laid some form of frustration.

"… I just don't want them two being at each other's necks while we're performing," spoke Gai'vahros. He sighed before turning and sitting on the edge of the stage. "Maybe this was just a bad idea to begin with."

"Don't worry about them too much," comforted Twilight, nudging his shoulder with her cheek. "They'll be fine once they've had some time to relax. We've all been working hard on this, so it's natural that some of us would get a bit… you know. Restless."

"I guess you're right, my Lady Twilight. I know I've been pushing everyone hard, but we've not got long before we perform it. Still, while Rainbow Dash is cooling off then everyone else can spend the time to relax, too."

Fluttershy stood at the dresser table, trying to fix her hair so that she could seat her hat properly, but every time she tried to move her long fringe to one side it always sprung back. The best she could do was put the hat on her head at an angle. "Oh, I hope this will be okay," she muttered to herself.

"Oh! Fluttershy, darling," called Rarity from the doorway of the dresser room, having walked in with a hanger with a dress on it over her back, "I'm so glad that someone was in here! I was beginning to think that everyone had given up!"

"Huh? What do you mean?" asked Fluttershy worryingly.

"Well I saw Rainbow Dash leave the castle as I came back, Applejack was sitting in a corner with her head in her hooves, and Gai'vahros and Twilight were sitting on the stage looking completely glum! Did something happen while I was out making this costume?"

"I… I hope not. I've been in here putting on my costume…"

"Oh. Well, actually, I was hoping I could speak with you for a moment, darling."

"Um… What did you want to talk to me about, Rarity?"

"Well I've been thinking about what present to buy Gai'vahros ever since we came to Canterlot, so I went and did a bit of window shopping to get some inspiration. I didn't know what he liked, so I stuck to finding anything… you know. Knightly."

"Well, that's a good conclusion…"

"Oh, I'm so glad that you agree! Anyway, there isn't anything that I could find that was very "knightly", so I thought, instead of buying him something, why don't I make him something. And I know just what to make him!"

"Oh? What are you going to make him?"

"I thought I would make him a brand new cape to go with that armor of his! All of the cloth was redone, so it's only natural that he should have a new cape to go with it, right?"

Fluttershy felt her heart jump into her throat for a moment. She had remembered what Pinkie Pie had said earlier about getting him a cape, too. "O-oh… that sounds really great, Rarity," agreed Fluttershy, "but, um --"

"I'm so glad that you agree with me, darling!" exclaimed Rarity with a huge smile. "I thought that his current wear was incredibly out-dated and a bit bland, so I thought about upping the thread count -- Oh, and adding some gold in places, too! I think a nice gold filigree border around the edges would be gorgeous! Don't you think so, too, Fluttershy?"

"I-I think it would look really nice, Rarity. But Pinkie Pie --"

"Oh, yes, which reminds me… where is Pinkie Pie, anyway? I didn't see her when I came back."

"She told me she was going to go and revise her lines for her part and --" Fluttershy shook her head "-- Oh, but that wasn't what I was going to say. Rarity, Pinkie Pie is --"

"Oh, don't worry, darling. Pinkie is probably in Canterlot trying to find a gift for Gai'vahros. Now, come, could you give me a hoof with this costume? It's incredibly fiddly for me to put on properly on my own."

"Um… okay, Rarity…"

Chapter 3 - The Blackest of Fridays

The skies drew darker as the sun began to set upon the horizon of Canterlot, giving way for the cool darkness of the night and the cosmos that comes with it. As the sky's canvas was washed with the colours of black, indigo and violet, the stars sparkled and the moon shone its silver light upon the sleeping pony folk.

Well, most of them, anyway. The girls, Spike, and Gai'vahros were still awake, practicing and perfecting that which they strove to complete for tomorrow's eve. While the rest of the castle slept, the candles and stage lights remained lit as they continued their rehearsals.

"I'm surprised that we managed to get so much done in a day," acclaimed Twilight, standing beside Gai'vahros. "Everyone's worked so hard and so well today."

"I share your thoughts, my Lady Twilight," agreed Gai'vahros with a smile as he flipped back through a couple of pages of the script. "It was right of you to send little Spike to bed. I think all we need to do now if get on with the acting for a couple more hours and we can call it a night. We can pick up the rest tomorrow."

"Sounds great." Twilight leaned her head over, looking through the page that Gai'vahros has stopped on. "We'll start here?"

"I'm just thinking about some of the fighting scenes. I would like to at least get an idea of how well these can be acted out now so I can get a feel of what needs to be worked on tomorrow." Twilight nodded in acknowledgement. "Okay… Lady Rainbow Dash, Lady Applejack," he called over to them, who were on the far right of the stage still practicing their dialogue, "I would like you two to go through act two, scene three, if you'd please?"

The two ponies made their way to center stage at Gai'vahros' request, but Rainbow Dash stopped short of Applejack and began to look around hurryingly.

"H-hey! I can't find my stuff," exclaimed Rainbow Dash as she turned to look around the stage, from its far sides to the back, and even on the theatre floor beyond it. "Where'd my armor go? And what about my weapon? We can't act out a fighting scene without a weapon!"

"Ya sure you jus' didn't misplace ya stuff, Rainbow Dash?" sputtered Applejack, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah I'm totally sure! I left it all over there --" she pointed over to the backdrop of the stage "-- with all my armor and stuff! Someone else must have moved it all…" Her eyes shifted towards Applejack before focusing on her, deathly so. "I'd bet you moved all my stuff to get back at me for hitting ya!"

"What!? Now why in tarnation would I wanna do that? You think I'd care enough to deliberately halt the play jus' to get back at ya?"

"I wouldn't put it past you to do that!"

Gai'vahros groaned, while Twilight shook her head in impatience. "Girls, could you please stop bickering for once?" he grumbled audibly, but it only fell on deaf ears as the two continued arguing once more.

Even at the far end of the stage Rarity couldn't help but show her disappointment in the two as she sighed heavily. "Honestly," she huffed, "can those two not relax for more than ten minutes at a time?"

"I hear ya, sister," agreed Pinkie Pie with a nod. Even she was beginning to lose her cool with the both of them. "I mean, we're supposed to be, y'know, working together, not fighting each other."

"Well, Pinkie Pie, darling, you make an excellent point. I'm surprised that Gai'vahros has had the patience to put up with them for as long as he has."

"Yeah… Hey, maybe I should give him his present early to cheer him up a bit?"

Rarity looked at Pinkie Pie with surprise. "Oh? You've already brought him a present? Pray tell, darling, what exactly did you buy him?"

Pinkie giggled. "Hey now, if I tell you then it won't be a surprise, would it?"

"You're supposed to say that to the person you're giving the gift to, Pinkie Pie. Besides, I'm awfully curious as to what you've got for him."

"Hmmm… Okay!" Pinkie Pie slowly leaned forward to Rarity's ear, covering the side of her snout with a hoof. "I brought Gai'vahros… a new cape!" she whispered.

Rarity, however, bolted her head away from her in shock. "A-a-a cape?" she stuttered. "B-but that's what I was going to give him for Hearth's Warming Eve!"

"Oh! Well, I thought of it first, so… finders keepers?"

Rarity darted her eyes at Pinkie. "That does not even make the slight bit of sense!" she exclaimed, her cheeks getting hotter. "And besides, what would you know about fashion and clothing? I would have made him the best cape one could think of!"

"Hey! I know fashion, too, Rarity! I have lots of party hats in assorted colours!"

"Those are not fashionable in any way! Just leave clothes and things to me, Pinkie Pie!"

Thankfully, Twilight was quick enough to step in. "Hey! Stop fighting, you two," she called out to them. "What's gotten into you two?"

"Rarity's just mad because I bought Gai a gift that she wanted to gift him before she actually got the gift," explained Pinkie Pie.

"Uh… okay," uttered Twilight. "Can't you just get him another gift, Rarity?"

"Absolutely not," she retorted. "I wanted to make Gai'vahros a gift, not just buy him some shoddy, second-hand, I-just-bought-this-for-an-orange kind of gift. Well, at least Fluttershy thought it was a good idea."

Pinkie raised an eyebrow. "Wait, you told Fluttershy what you were getting him? I told Fluttershy, too!"

"Wait, hold on. You both told Fluttershy what you were going to get Gai'vahros for Hearth's Warming Eve?"

"Y-yes," a small voice came from beside the three of them. Fluttershy had emerged from the dresser room, with her hat now neatly fitted on her head properly. But she found it hard to make eye-contact with any of the three of them. "I, um… Pinkie Pie told me what she was getting… and then Rarity told me afterwards, and… um…"

"Fluttershy," spoke Twilight as she walked over to her, "why didn't you say something? You should have told Rarity when she came to you!"

"I… I tried to, but --"

"What do you mean, you "tried"?" exclaimed the Unicorn. "It can't be hard to just tell Rarity that Pinkie had already bought her that gift!"

"B-but I…"

The entire stage was just one storm of chaos and ceaseless arguing, fighting, and raised voices at one-another. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were now literally butting heads with each other, pressing their foreheads together and trying to push back one-another, all the while arguing and slinging insults at one another.

Rarity and Pinkie Pie continued to argue with each other about Gai'vahros' present, with Rarity impossibly adamant that only she should think about getting Gai'vahros that cape, while Pinkie Pie was equally so in how she had already bought it and even wrapped it up for him. There was no room, no corner, for negotiation and compromise.

Even twilight was having a heated discussion with Fluttershy. Despite the frail, shy Pegasi trying to talk, Twilight just gave no room for her to speak. All the while Twilight scolded the shaking, trembling Fluttershy to the point that she was being driven to tears.

But everyone heard something that sent chills down their spines and made the fine hairs of their coat stand on end, perking up their ears towards it. A loud, metallic clang rang through the theatre, echoing off the walls and ceiling as it slammed against the floor of the stage. They could all feel the vibrations under their hooves. As they turned, the object became evermore clearer to them -- a single, gold and red-silk gauntlet lay upon the stage. And then they looked up to see the one who had thrown it down.

Gai'vahros was beside himself with anger. His face was disgruntled to the point that the creased along his cheekbones looked as though they were carved into his face. His nose and brow wrinkled as he darted his gaze upon them as though he was ready to slay each one of them. His eyes shifted from one couple to the other, and as each one was fixated upon, they had given him their undivided attention.

"I am disgusted with the lot of you!" he exclaimed, swinging his bare hand in front of him. "I cannot believe what I am witnessing! You, Applejack! Rainbow Dash --!" he flung his hand towards them, pointing at them with a shaking hand. "You are too quick to blame one-another! Even more wretched is the both of you not owning up to your own faults, quick to find excuses to justify yourselves!"

he violently swung around to rarity and Pinkie Pie. "And you! You are so caught up in stupid things such as gifts, and who should give what, revelling in commercialization than what really matters!"

Gai'vahros turned to Twilight, gazing upon her and the cowering Pegasi behind her who eyes were filled with tears. his hand lowered, but he did not spare her his wrathful expression. "And you… Twilight Sparkle…" he breathed a heavy exhale. "It is you, most of all, who I am disappointed with… No, who I am most upset with. Of all people, I would have thought that you would be above all of this. Look at what you have done, Twilight…"

But she knew. She knew what she had done. And it was that knowledge that kept her frozen in place, her eyes looking only towards Gai'vahros. But no matter what she did, what she tried to ignore, she could still hear those choked up sobs of her frail friend.

"Look at her, Twilight."

And so she did. Slowly she turned her head to face Fluttershy. No matter how much she wanted to think that it couldn't be as bad as she thought it would, she couldn't prepare her heart for what was before her. Fluttershy had her face buried into her mane, sobbing and sniffling as the tears ran down her cheek and onto the stage floor.

"I… I didn't…" Twilight tried to find the words, but she herself was too choked to even speak proper. She turned back to Gai'vahros, hoping to find something, anything to say. "Gai'vahros… I didn't mean to…!"

Gai'vahros paid no heed to her. Instead he raised his other hand, still clutching to the script. His fingers and thumb clenched it tightly, creasing the corner of it. "I always knew this was a bad idea," he muttered. As he turned to face them, he tossed the manuscript towards them, their eyes widening as the pages scattered upwards and away from one-another before drifting back down onto the floor. Sluggishly he hopped from the stage onto the ground below, heading towards the doors. "I've no want for any part of this any longer."

His heavy footsteps rung throughout the theatre, stopping only for a moment as the creaking doors opened, and then slamming shut. Then the whole theatre fell into complete, deathly silence. Between the six of the ponies, none of them knew what to say.

What could they say?

Only the cold dead of night could give Gai'vahros some form of comfort for the moment. Hunched over, his arms crossed over on the stone wall that circled the edge, leaning gently on them. The cold barely touched him, not giving it any notice as his mind began to spin inside his head. As he sighed heavily, a thick mist poured from his lips and into the air in front of him.

"Of all people," he muttered to himself, looking out to the sights before him. He could see it all -- the grandeur of Canterlot, the snow-white streets and even the fields so far off into the distance, and the falling snow that he had never the chance to see for himself. Tiny flakes fell gently upon his head and nose. "of all the people to fight…"

But before he could ponder any further, he noticed that the stone wall began to glow a really faint colour. A faint, lavender colour. He recognized its aura all too well. "I didn't think you would find me so quick, Twilight," he spoke as he turned his head towards her.

Twilight slowly walked toward him, her horn creating that distinct glow as she carried the elf's gauntlet just past her face, trying to hide her visible, sorrowful expression. "Well… I know that when you get upset," she spoke softly as she placed the gauntlet gently upon the floor between them, "you like to look up at the skies, at the stars…"

But the elf merely huffed at her, turning his head back towards the scenery before him. "I never told you why I never celebrate the Feast of Winter Veil, did I? The true reason…"

But Twilight remained silent.

"Feast of Winter Veil was meant to be about venerating the ones that you love. Family. Friends. It's a time where different people -- race, factions, beliefs -- celebrated with one-another. Shared with one-another. Talk with one-another. But only for that time, it seemed."

"Gai'vahros…"

"Why is it so hard, Twilight? If everyone, races from the Horde and Alliance, could get together and be happy together for a single fortnight… then why can't they do it for the rest of the year? And having seen the way you all acted today just…" he sighed heavily once more, shaking his head. "What is the point in celebrating something that people don't believe in? Because of tradition? Because we get free gifts? Because it's the time of year where drinking and riding is legal and, in most cases, hilarious to watch?"

"I… I know what you mean, Gai'vahros. And I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. We all are…"

A flood of gentle steps rung quickly in rhythm from the entryway. As Gai'vahros turned to see, he saw the rest of the girls slowly step forwards. Every one of them had upon their faces of regret. Their eyes drooped as they looked upon the elf with grief.

Rainbow Dash stepped forwards from the line as though she was silently told to present herself. "Gai… I know that I've been a huge pain today. You were right, though. I was making excuses and trying to blame everyone on Applejack, but it didn't change the fact that it wasn't gonna solve anything. We've been talking and… well…" she blushed in embarrassment. "I found all my stuff in the dressing room. I, uh, kinda forgot that I moved everything in there when twilight asked me to. Gai… I'm really sorry for all the trouble we -- No, the trouble that I caused…"

Applejack slowly proceeded forwards, taking her hat off. "Hey, Gai? Um… I know that ya real mad at us an' all, but… I'm real sorry for everything I done. I was too caught up with arguin' with Rainbow Dash that I didn't see what it was doin' to everyone else. I'm really am sorry for everything that we've done. Honest…"

Both Rarity and Pinkie Pie stepped up together, looking at each other. "Gai… darling," spoke rarity softly, trying not to choke on her words, "we've all been really horrible today… and I feel like I was even more rotten than anyone else. Pinkie Pie was right -- she did buy your present before I did. But I was too caught up in by frustrations and my pride, and I lashed out. It was wrong of me. Stupid of me."

"But we did what you said, Gai," joined Pinkie Pie, her voice slow and ragged -- far from her usual demeanour. "We talked about it, and we thought that we would work together to get you a really awesome gift together! I don't know if you still want it, but… I really hope that you'll accept it. We just wanted to show you how sorry we both are…"

But Gai'vahros found that one wasn't accounted for. Fluttershy still stood at the back, looking away from him with her hat almost obscuring her face. "Fluttershy," softly called Gai'vahros, drawing her attention, "what about you? Are you okay?"

Fluttershy slowly crept forwards, moving the hat from her brow as she looked up at him. "Y-yes. I'm okay," she cooed. "me and Twilight were talking when you left and… she's really sorry for everything. And I forgive her." She turned to Twilight and smiled, while Twilight sighed in relief and smiled back. "But, um… Gai'vahros… I just wanted to know, are you… are you going to stop the play? It's just… we really want to do it. But we don't want to do it without you…"

The elf looked upon them. He bore his judging eyes into them, finding their very core. Sadness. Guilt. Regret. He saw all of that within them.

"They say, to err is mortal," he spoke softly, "but to forgive is divine." To all of their relief and joy, Gai'vahros smiled. "Let's get this finished."

The six of them smiled great open smiles, rushing towards him and collectively hugged him, embracing him as much as they could. And he too did embrace them, holding them close for as much as he could within his arms.

But Rainbow Dash blushed before breaking away from the rest of them. "Okay, okay," she stuttered a little, "let's not get too touchy! I think we should get some sleep and carry on with all this tomorrow."

"Sounds good to me," agreed Applejack as she yawned. "I need to hit the hay, and quick…"

As the group made their way back into the castle, Twilight hung back and stayed beside Gai'vahros. "I really can't say how sorry I am, Gai'vahros," she uttered quietly.

"Twilight," he responded in kind, "when I hurt all of you, you all took it upon yourselves, in your heart of hearts to find forgiveness for me. Despite all that happens -- good or bad -- I will always remember upon that time and always find it within myself to give you forgiveness."

"I'm… I'm really glad to hear you say that, Gai'vahros…" Twilight leaned her head upon the side of him, finding comfort in his touch. "And the saying is, to forgive is "equine"."

"Oh, whatever…"