Tears ran down her face as she clutched the picture. It was the same way every year. Rainbow thought back to when she received the letter. It was five years ago on hearths warming. Five years ago tonight.
Dear Rainbow Dash,
We are sorry to inform you but your mother died yesterday of heart cancer.
Deepest sympathies,
-The Manehatten Hospital.
When she had first gotten the letter she had cried for hours on end until she fell asleep at her table.
While she looked back on the night she had received the letter she realized this was the first time in five years she had cried on Hearths Warming.
Why? she asked herself, Why am I crying this year? I've been alone these past years, just like I am this year. It's not like any things cha- That's when it hit her. Oh... It has. Everything has. I have five great new friends who all have families. This was her first Hearths Warming since the battle with nightmare moon. Rainbow didn't know of a Twilight Sparkle before then. She had seen Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie before, but had never talked to them. This year she had five great friends who all had families to be with. All she wanted was some pony to be with this Hearths Warming.
Shaking her tear stained face she looked around for something to do. She couldn't just go to Sweet Apple Acres or to Twilight's Library. They all had a family to bee with. Her eyes fell upon her precious violin. Slowly a small, sad smile crept onto her face. Grabbing her violin, a CD case, and a portable CD player she flew down to the outskirts of Ponyville.
After tuning her violin, warming up her voice, and pressing the 'play' button on her CD player she began to play.
After finishing her song she watched as her breath came out on steamy huffs, the snow falling, Luna's moon. She took it all in. It felt good to play the violin, all her sorrow gone. Behind her she heard the movement of snow. Turning around her eyes fell upon her good friend Twilight Sparkle. All sadness that had previously left Rainbow came back. Try as she might she couldn't stop a tear leaking out. She looked away.
"H-... Hey... Twilight." Rainbow finally spoke.
"Rainbow? What's going on? Replied Twilight. "You don't look so well."
"N-no. I'm... Oh b*ck it." Rainbow couldn't bring herself to lie to her friend. "It's Hearths Warming, Twilight... And I'm alone. I've been alone every Hearths Warming for the past five years."
"Oh..." Was all Twilight could say. *d**t! She mentally kicked herself.Are you just going to stand there or are you going to invite her to your place?! "Would you like to come stay with my family, Rainbow?"
"I don't want to impose...-" Rainbow began but Twilight quickly cut her off. "Rainbow, I insist. It's Hearths Warming. Nopony should be by themselves."
"Okay then." Rainbow said cheering up a teensy bit.
On the way back Twilight asked, "If you don't mind my asking, Rainbow where are your parents?" You just HAD to ask didn't you?! She mentally kicked herself again.
"My dad died when I was a filly." Rainbow said with no verbal emotion. "My mom..." Rainbow couldn't say. "I'd rather not say."
"I understand, Rainbow." Twilight said in an attempt to soothe her friend. "I'm really sorry to hear about your dad."
"It's okay. I'm over it." Rainbow turned her head away so Twilight couldn't see her tears.
"We're here, Rainbow." Twilight said as they approached the library.
"Twily! You're back!" Shining Armour exclaimed. "And Rainbow Dash, correct? What brings you here?"
She had nopony to spend Hearths Warming with". Twilight replied on Rainbow's behalf. "So I invited her here."
"I see. Well if you were looking for a happy Hearths Warming you have come to the wrong place." Shining Armour said with a sad expression on his face.
"Why not?" inquired Rainbow.
"It's our first Hearths Warming without... Without our mother." Twilight explained with a pained expression on her face, her sentence ending in a whisper. "Cadence is here... So is dad, but... Not mom." Rainbow watched as a tear fell from her friends face.
"Oh... I'm really sorry." Rainbow could remember all to well the day Twilight got the letter explaining that Twilight's mother had died. Noticing Twilight silently crying, Rainbow quickly changed the subject.
"In any case where is Cadence and your dad?"
"They're out 'shopping'." Twilight said flatly.
"Shopping? On Hearths Warming?" Rainbow asked thoroughly unconvinced.
"Yeah. We don't believe it either." Shining Armour called from across the room. "We think it's because Cadence is older than Twilight and myself so she wanted to talk with Dad. For what reasons we both have no idea."
"Then they don't know what they're gonna miss!" Rainbow exclaimed brightening up. "Let me just set this stuff down here..." She said as she set down her violin, her CD case, and her CD player onto the nearest table, "And let me go get something from my house!" She gave a wink to Twilight who smiled as Rainbow took off.
"Uhhhh... What's she doing?" Asked Shining Armour from his spot near the stairs.
"You'll see!" Twilight happily responded.
The door to Rainbow's house busted as its owner came charging through the door.
"Where are they... Where are they... Ah! Here they are! She yelled as she grabbed the CDs in her jaws and flew back to the library.
"You seriously won't tell me?" asked Shuning Armour.
"Heh, heh. Nope! Twilight giggled as the door opened.
"Dack!" Called Rainbow, clutching the two CDs in her mouth.
"CDs? What for?" inquired Shining Armour.
"Music!" exclaimed Rainbow as she plopped one into her CD player. "Not let me just tune this..." She said as she took out her violin.
"Wow! I never took you for a musician, Rainbow! And a violin player at that!" Shining Armour said.
"Heh! I guess you don't know me that well!" Rainbow replied as the tuned her violin. "Now these songs are not Hearths Warming songs but who gives a flying feather?" asked Rainbow as she hit the play button.
WARNING: DONT LOSTEN TO BOTH SONGS AT ONCE!!! LISTEN TO THE OTHER ONE WHEN YOU SEE THE LINK TEXT AGAIN!!!
As the first song finished Twilight looked impressed, "I never knew you learned music from other cultures, Rainbow!"
"Heh, heh..." Rainbow smiled. "Then I hope you all know how to dance!" She said as she switched CDs and hit the play button once more.
By the time she finished the second song they were all exhausted. Shining Armour couldn't find anything else to say but "You could rival the entire Crystal Empire royal orchestra with that talent, Rainbow!"
"Heh, heh... Thanks!" Rainbow said with a grin on her face. "So where is Cadence and your father?" She asked.
"No idea, but it's getting late. Would you like to spend the night, Rainbow?" Twilight offered.
"Sure!"
"Okay then! Shining and Cadence are sharing the quest bed so it looks like you'll be sleeping in my room!" Twilight explained joyfully.
"Heh! Okay!" Said Rainbow with a grin on her face, "Let me just grab my things."
"I'll get the spare mattress!"
"Heh... Mares." Shining muttered to himself as he observed his sister and her friend with a smile on his face.
When Twilight and Rainbow finally got settled in Rainbow reflected on her few hours at Twilight's. This is the best Hearths Warming I've had in five years! But that thought triggered another memory. The time when she received the letter of her mother. Rainbow attempted to stifle a sob with no success. This sob was not missed by Twilight.
"Rainbow... What's going on?"
"N- nothing..."
"Rainbow... You can tell me. It might help you."
"F-fine... I s-suppose I should tell you." Rainbow relented. "My mother died five years ago."
Twilight being the logic fanatic that she was knew there was more.
"Rainbow... What else happened?"
"I- I'm not even going to ask how you kn- know, b- but fine..." Rainbow's emotional dam broke. Rainbow burst into tears, "M- my m- mother d- d- d- died f- five y- years a- ago... Y- yesterd- d- day! I g-got th- th- the l-letter the v- very next d- day!"
Rainbow couldn't help it. She got up walked over to Twilight's bed and hugged her, burying her face in Twilight's chest as she cried her eyes out.
Twilight was stunned. To receive a letter that explained that you lost a family member on a day that was dedicated to family was the worst thing imaginable.
"A- and the w- worst p- p- part is now I h- have f- five n- new f- friends who al-l-ll have f- family t- to b- be with! It hurts!"
Twilight couldn't believe it. There was Rainbow Dash, the egotistical Pegasus who was never sad was not crying her eyes out and hugging her for dear life.
"Oh, Rainbow..." It was clear what she needed to offer, "Do you want to sleep with me tonight?"
"... Please?" asked Rainbow, her crying was slightly weaker now.
"Sure." Twilight soothed her friend. Rainbow's crying was reduced to sniffles now.
It was a sad Hearths Warming for the both of them, but it was the best one they had both experienced.
With that thought in both of their heads, they drifted off to sleep.
Author's Note
More or less a sequal to Concert. Yes I know it could have been worded WAY better. 
If you want to judge me on that go right ahead. I do not own 'Ezio's Family' nor do I own the other two pieces made by the Ghillie's.
