The chilly winds were blowing and golden leaves from the trees were falling everywhere. Violet was humming to herself as she trotted down to the road, a saddlebag of limited edition ‘Pumpkin Spice’ perfume. It was in the late fall and the town of Ponyville was getting ready for the season. Nightmare Night was approaching; however, Violet was clueless as to what the celebrations were about. She had already learned of the names of the Equestrian holidays: Summer Sun, Hearts and Hooves Day, Hearth’s Warming and Nightmare Night. She had absolutely no idea of their origins, but they were similar to the holiday’s she celebrated as a human, so they weren’t alien to her. It was a good thing it was chilly out, because that gave Violet an excuse to wear her striped scarf. It wasn’t anything special, just a simple woollen scarf striped green and purple. It was however, Violet’s most prized possession. It had belonged to her mother, who sadly passed away protecting Violet from a colony of vicious Changelings.
Violet trotted down to the Ponyville Spa. She opened the door and was greeted by a pink earth pony with a blue mane held back by a white headband. “Hey Violet, got the next supply?” she asked.
Violet reached into her bag and pulled out several bottles of perfume and set them on the reception desk. “Here’s this week’s supply, only two more weeks and then it stops. I can believe how popular my perfumes have become, they’re selling like hotcakes.”
Aloe let out a small giggle before reaching behind the counter to the safe. She pulled out three small bags of gold coins and handed them to Violet.
“300 bits.” she said with a smile.
Violet put her payment into her saddle bag, said her goodbyes and left the spa. Violet trotted down to the boutique to pick up her costume and took in on all the Nightmare Night decorations that were set up for the festival. She stopped at the Carousel Boutique for a costume. A small unicorn filly with curly pink and purple hair was lying on the floor colouring in some black paper spiders. “Hi Sweetie, is your sister here?” Violet asked.
“Yeah, she’s in the back room.” Sweetie Belle pointed to the back room and Violet could hear someone humming.
The pegasus trotted over and saw Rarity at her sewing machine, working on a vampire costume. “Hey Rarity, is my costume ready?”
“Just finished it this morning, it’s on the table over there.” Rarity chimed.
Violet walked over to the table and stared at her costume. She had decided to go as a banshee. The dress was a ripped and dirty white 18th century gown. The shoulders were puffed and the sleeves were long and lacy. The skirt was torn and covered in dust. If it wasn’t close to Nightmare Night, it would have been the ugliest dress Violet had ever seen.
“It’s great Rarity,” she picked it up and dropped five bits in its place. Violet tucked the costume into her bag and left, saying goodbye to her friends. She skipped happily back home, where her family was waiting for. Violet lived with her cousin, Fluttershy and her best friend Discord, who happened to be Fluttershy’s boyfriend. She trotted down the path and saw Discord decorating the house with Nightmare Night decorations, things like pumpkins and spiders. Discord spotted her coming up the pathway. “Hey Violet! Like what we’ve done to the house.”
“It’s great,” she looked around for her cousin. “Where’s Fluttershy?”
“Inside, decorating the rest of the house.” he said, making a large black spider crawl into place. It wasn’t a real spider, it was plastic. But Discord was known for making inanimate objects move around.
“Okay then, I got my costume today,” she asked.
“Gotta put it somewhere safe for tomorrow night.” As she approached the door, she turned to Discord.
“About that, when are you going to explain the origins of Nightmare Night?”
Discord chuckled. “You’ll find out tomorrow.”
The next night, Violet was getting dressed into her costume for the Nightmare Night festival. Her banshee costume looked great on her. She had made her hair fall into straight bangs that fell over her face. Her face was caked in white face paint, except for around her eyes. That was covered in black, making her green orbs stand out. For some more effect, she had ruffled her feathers out into weird angles, making her look tired and frail. “Awesome,” she said, picking up her pillow sack for the candy and made her way down stairs. Fluttershy was dressed in a simple blue opera gown and had curled her hair. Discord was wearing a black suit, white ruffled shirt, red vest, black leather gloves and a black cape with a blood red underside. Covering half his face was a pale mask.
They gasped when they saw Violet. “Geez Violet, you really went over the top with your costume.” Discord whistled.
“Yeah, I’m the biggest Halloween freak.” she then saw the confused looks on her friends faces.
“Oh right, in the Human World, Nightmare Night is called Halloween. But it’s pretty much the same as Nightmare Night.” she explained.
“Oh, well you’ll have to tell the other girls when we get to the festival.” Fluttershy said, making her way to the door.
The town centre was decorated with spooky decorations and foals of all ages were going around in costumes chanting, ‘Nightmare Night! What a Fright! Give us something Sweet to Bite!’ There were also a bunch of different stalls, for both food and games. There was a bobbing for apples barrel and a pumpkin kicking station. Violet caught sight of a certain pink pony, wearing a scary clown costume.
“Hey Violet!” cried Pinkie, running over. Following behind her, were the other ponies and Spike. Applejack was dressed as a Timberwolf, Rarity was a vampire, Rainbow Dash was a guard, Twilight was a mad scientist and Spike was a tabby cat.
“Whoa, you guys look great,” Twilight said, admiring her friend’s costumes. “What do you think of the festival Violet?” she asked the teenage pegasus.
“It’s great. Reminds me of Halloween.” Violet then saw the confused looks on the ponies faces.
“What’s that?” Rainbow asked.
“A Human version of Nightmare Night.” Discord explained.
“Oh, do you offer candy to Nightmare Moon?” Twilight asked.
Violet raised an eyebrow. “Who’s Nightmare Moon?”
The Mane Six all gave each other looks of concern, until Twilight faced her. “Remember Princess Luna?”
“Yeah, but what’s she got to do with Nightmare Moon?”
“Well, there really is no way of telling you, so I’ll just go ahead and say it,” The purple alicorn inhaled deeply. “Nightmare Moon is Princess Luna.”
“Come again?”
“A thousand years ago, Luna rebelled against Celestia, because the ponies of that time enjoyed the day and ignored her night. She became an evil mare of darkness, Nightmare Moon. She vowed to bring eternal night to Equestria. Celestia tried to reason with her, but it was too late for her sister and she was forced to banish her to the moon, for a thousand years,” Twilight explained.
Violet’s eyes were as wide as lollipops.
“Since then, parents have been telling the story of Nightmare Moon, the mare of darkness, who would take them away and eat them. The only way for them to be safe is to offer some of their candy to the statue so she will leave them alone,”
Seeing the shocked look on Violet’s face, Twilight chuckled. “Of course it’s all just poppy-cock. That’s just a legend to get everyone into the mood. Nowadays, the offering is just a game, none of the foals are in any danger.”
This made Violet feel better. “So the Trick of Treating is a sort of game?”
“Yep! The idea is to get as much candy as possible, before Nightmare Moon arrives at midnight. It’s the highlight of the festival.” Pinkie exclaimed.
Violet grinned and decided to play along. “Well I better hurry before all the candy is gone, wouldn’t want Nightmare Moon to gobble me up.” she said, running off. Her friends chuckled to themselves, before exploring the festival.
Violet trotted up to the door of a house with a large spider web covering the door. She missed doing this as a child. When she was living on the streets, she used Halloween as a way to get food. Since everyone was dressed up, none of the houses thought twice about her attire. She knocked on the door and a green unicorn and yellow earth pony with a purple and red mane answered. The earth pony was dressed as a classic zombie, but the unicorn was dressed as…actually she wasn’t sure. The unicorn was trying to stand on her back legs and was wearing a T-shirt and shirt, on her front hooves were hands. Violet raised an eyebrow, but said the chant. “Nightmare Night, what a fright, give me something Sweet to Bite!”
The earth pony giggled and held out a bowl of candy. Violet held out her pillow sack as the mare poured a generous amount of candy into it. She turned to the unicorn. “What are you supposed to be?” Violet asked.
“A Human,” the unicorn said in a spooky voice.
Violet jumped at this, before giggling. “No offense, but that’s not what Humans look like.”
The unicorn stared at her. “How would you know?”
“Because I used to be a Human.” Violet said grinning.
The unicorn stared at her in pure shock. “W-what?”
“You heard me and I can prove it,” She turned her head and saw Discord standing 50 feet away.
“Hey Discord, think you could show these ladies what a human really looks like?!” she hollered.
Luckily, Discord heard and snapped his fingers. Violet was enveloped in a bright light, she felt her body change and when the light died down, she was a human again, still wearing her costume.
The unicorn’s mouth grew into a big goofy grin, while the earth pony stared in pure shock. “I KNEW YOU GUYS WERE REAL! OMG, ARE THOSE ACTUAL HANDS?” she asked, staring at Violet’s hands.
“Yep,” she held out her palm and the unicorn exaimed it.
“This is so cool! My names Lyra, that’s my girlfriend Bon Bon.” she said, pointing to the earth pony.
“Hi, y’know I didn’t believe Lyra’s stories about humans, but now I see that I was wrong.” said Bon Bon, looking a tad sheepish.
“That’s fine, my names Violet-Rose and stories about humans were covered up for reasons I’m not allowed to tell. Now I gotta go, don’t want Nightmare Moon to gobble me up.” Violet grinned.
Lyra and Bon Bon waved her goodbye and Discord snapped Violet back into her pony form.
The rest of the night went well and Violet’s pillow sack was full to the brim with candies. She was about the head back to the festival, when a bolt of lightning struck out of nowhere. All around, colts and fillies were running and screaming. “She’s coming! It’s Nightmare Moon!” said a filly, pointing up to the sky.
Violet looked up and saw a black gothic chariot in the distance, being pulled by two grey pegasus stallions with bat wings. Riding the chariot was a cloaked figure, but a long black horn was clearly visible from under the hood. Violet felt a twinge of fear and followed the group of foals to the statue. There was a line to the statue and the foals were empting some of their candy at the foot of the statue. She then spotted three fillies in pig costumes.
“Hey CMC!” she called out. The fillies turned and saw Violet standing there. They each had a large bag of candy.
“Violet! Isn’t this the best? Nightmare Moon is going to here soon!” Scootaloo asked.
They all yelped as another bolt of lightning struck. Violet shrieked, but started laughing at the adrenaline rush she was getting. The foals were rushing to get the offering done before the chariot landed. Finally, Violet emptied a fraction of her candy onto the already large pile, when a loud feminine voice echoed around.
“CITIZENS OF PONYVILLE! IT WAS WISE FOR YOU TO BRING THIS CANDY TO ME!” The chariot landed and the hooded figure stepped off. The voice was from her. “I AM PLEASED WITH YOUR OFFERING, IN EXCHANGE I WILL LET YOU LIVE ANOTHER YEAR!” The cloak turned into a colony of bats and a black alicorn wearing dark armour was standing there.
The foals screamed and ran away. Violet started to cower under the Princess’s gaze. She took a peak and saw that the mare was standing over her.
“Hello Violet-Rose, how are you enjoying your first Nightmare Night?” she said in a softer tone. Violet stood up, shaking. She then got a better look at the mare standing in front of her. She was taller and her coat was jet black, her mane was longer and she wore a blue helmet.
“It’s going great, though I think you can lose the scariness now. You got us.”
The mare chuckled and transformed back into Princess Luna. “Sorry, did I go over the top?”
“Not at all, I’m just not used to it yet.” Luna giggled and walked with Violet back to the rest of the festival.
“You know, your cousin had the same reaction.”
“She did?”
“Yeah, Twilight thought that she could teach me to not use my Equestrian Voice all the time.”
“What that was that was? Also, how did you know that Fluttershy is my cousin?”
“Celestia told me and I’m quite surprised at how Fluttershy has changed since Discord came into her life.”
Violet looked at her. “What do you mean?”
“Well before my sister brought him out of stone so he could be reformed, Fluttershy was scared of everything, now she’s become more confident,” Luna explained.
Violet stared at her. “Guess spending all that time with Discord helped her.”
The princess chuckled. “I think so too.”
Finally, they were back at the festival for the dance. Scary music started playing and ponies all around her dancing to the beat. Violet watched as her friends and Princess Luna went off to dance with other ponies, when she felt someone tap her shoulder. She squeaked and saw the familiar blue eyes of her coltfriend, Comet Blitz. He was wearing a doctor’s coat, covered in fake blood. “Nice costume babe.”
“Yours isn’t that bad either?”
“Hey, why don’t we stop talking and go dance?” Comet offered.
Violet grinned and took his hoof. “You know me so well.”
A little into the dance, Violet spotted a karaoke machine up on the stage. That gave her an idea. "Hey babe, you up for a bit of Nightmare Night karaoke?" She flashed him the cheeky grin she knew drove him mad. Comet returned the grin and nodded. They walked up to the stage and motioned for Vinyl Scratch to turn the beat box to the machine. Vinyl understood and switched programs, causing the current song to stop playing with a scratch, followed by a herd of complaining ponies.
"My apologies every pony, but we've just had a request from a young couple from the crowd to do some karaoke." she spoke through the mic.
The Mane Six turned their heads up to the stage and gasped when they saw Violet and Comet walking up onto the stage. Discord took out his eyes and wiped him them on his jacket, before setting them back in. "Are my eyes deceiving me or is that Violet and that boyfriend of hers up there?"
"That's Violet alright," Rainbow said.
Violet nervously tapped the mic in her hooves. "Is this thing on? Okay, hey everypony! Is everyone having a good time?!" she asked. The crowd stomped there hooves in reply. She smiled. "Well then, as a tribute to my first Nightmare Night, me and my gorgeous boyfriend are going to spice up the night with a bit of karaoke!" The crowd cheered for the young couple.
"Hit it Vinyl!" Comet shouted. The unicorn pressed a button and a song started played. The ponies cheered as the couple started bobbing to the music. Then Comet started to sing.
Comet: It's close to midnight and something evil's lurking in the dark
Under the moonlight you see a sight that almost stops your heart
Then Violet joined in.
Violet: You try to scream, but terror takes the sound before you make it
You start to freeze as horror looks you right between the eyes
You're paralyzed
Both: 'Cause this is thriller, thriller at night
And no one's gonna save you from the beast about to strike
Comet: You know it's thriller, thriller night
You're fighting for your life inside a killer thriller, tonight
Violet: You hear the door slam and realize there's nowhere left to run
You feel the cold hand and wonder if you'll ever see the sun
Comet: You close your eyes and hope that this is just imagination
But all the while you hear a creature creepin' up behind
You're out of time
Both: 'Cause this is thriller, thriller at night
There ain't no second chance against the thing with forty eyes girl,
You know it's thriller, thriller night
Violet: You're fighting for your life inside a killer thriller tonight
Violet: Night creatures call
And the dead start to walk in their masquerade
Comet: There's no escapin' the jaws of the alien this time
(They're open wide)
This is the end of your life
Comet: They're out to get you;
Violet: There's demons closing in on every side
They will possess you,
Comet: Unless you change that number on your dial
Both: Now is the time for you and I to cuddle close together, yeah
All through the night I'll save you from the terror on the screen
I'll make you see
The Mane Six and Discord were just staring at the two ponies on stage. They were amazing! Soon, none of them could help but dance to the beat, even Rarity started dancing.
Violet: That it's a thriller, thriller night
'Cause I can thrill you more than any ghoul
Would ever dare try
This is thriller, thriller night
Comet: So let me hold you tight and share a killer, diller chiller
Thriller here tonight
Violet: That it's a thriller, thriller night
Comet: 'Cause I can thrill you more than any ghoul
Could ever dare try
Violet: This is thriller, thriller night
Comet: Girl so let me hold you tight and share a killer, thriller
I'm gonna thrill ya tonight
The ponies in the crowd were dancing wildly at the sound of the teens voices.
Both: 'Cause this is thriller, thriller at night
And no one's gonna save you from the beast about to strike
You know it's thriller, thriller night
You're fighting for your life inside a killer thriller, tonight
Once the song ended, they finished their performance with a star jump. Below, the crowd of ponies were stomping there hooves in applause. Violet turned to her boyfriend and concluded that she was going to like this holiday even more with him by her side.
Author's Note
I know it's a tad rushed, but i really want to get started on the Hearths Warming chapter. Also Lyra got to finally meet a real Human!
Happy Day
Violet fought the urge to squeal as she stared out of the window of the small cottage. Winter had finally arrived and the first snowfall of the season was painting the lawn white. She loved this time of year and this year would be her very first winter with a new family since the streets. Sometimes she would wake up and remember what winters were like back in the human world, as they were no picnic.
Back then she would spend the winter in old abandoned warehouses and storage buildings among some tattered blankets and graffitied walls and stuff crumpled newspaper into her clothes for installation. She glanced out at her flower bed. The once beautiful garden of colourful flowers that she had harvested into her perfumes and beauty treatments, were reduced to nothing more than frozen stalks sticking out of the ground. Though it was sad to see her garden wilt, she had been working hard during the fall season making and storing away her perfumes. With the products safe and sound, money would be rolling into her bank account before to long and she could relax a bit. Now she had the time to experiment with things like mint and ginger, instead of mixing different flowers together.
Violet finally couldn't stay in that one spot anymore and stepped out onto the frosty grass. Sticking out her tongue, she felt several snowflakes land on her tongue and in her mane. Thank you Comet. She thought about her boyfriend. Comet knew how much she loved winter, so she had a strange feeling that he had gotten his co-workers to start the snowfall early, just for her. "Violet, come inside, it's cold." Fluttershy called out from the kitchen.
Violet turned her head and trotted into the kitchen, closing the door behind her. Fluttershy was at the kitchen stove, boiling water to make tea for everyone. Winter was a time of relaxation for the yellow pegasus too, all her animals safe and warm in the deep dreamless sleep of hibernation she could finally sit back and relax.
"I was only outside for a few minutes Fluttershy," Violet explained, slightly annoyed at her cousin. The teenage pegasus sat down at the kitchen table with a pout.
Fluttershy spoke as she made a pot of tea. "But you could have still caught a cold Violet, I don't want your first Hearths Warming to be a sick day." Fluttershy said, handing Violet a cup of Earl Grey tea. Violet reached for it and took a sip.
"Hearths Warming? What's that?"
"Oh dear, I keep forgetting how little you know," The yellow pegasus lay the teapot on the table and sat down in a chair next to Violet. "Hearths Warming is that day the three pony tribes came together and founded Equestria."
Violet stared at her with a look of mild shock. "What? You mean everypony lived apart from each other?" she asked.
"Sort of, I'm sure you're aware that there are three types of ponies; unicorns, earth ponies and pegasi like you and me?" Fluttershy asked.
Violet nodded, taking another sip of tea.
"Well, a thousand years ago, the three pony tribes hated each other and each tribe was ruled by a different leader. In those days, the three tribes cared not for the welfare of the other tribes, only their own, bound by hatred."
"Racist much? Where were the Princesses during all this?" Violet asked, referring to the royal sisters, Celestia and Luna.
"Celestia and Luna were only fillies back then, no older then eight and five," Fluttershy explained, before continuing with the tale. "Anyway, the ponies did the jobs that they still do today, the Pegasi would tend to the weather, but demanded food that only the Earth Ponies could grow. The Unicorns demanded the same and in return, used their magic to bring forth the day and night. But all that changed when a mysterious blizzard descended upon the land. With all the snow, the Earth Ponies couldn't grow any food and all the tribes were freezing and hungry. Each tribe blamed the other tribes for their sufferings and the angrier they got, the worse the blizzard became."
"Oh my..." Violet uttered, suddenly worried about the snow piling outside. "Where was the blizzard coming from?"
Fluttershy gave her cousin a reassuring smile. "I'll get to that in a minute, but you should know that that a summit was held to discuss what to do about the blizzard. The leaders of the tribes, Princess Platinum of the Unicorns, Commander Hurricane of the Pegasi and Counseller Puddinghead of the Earth Ponies-"
Fluttershy was cut off as Violet began to giggle. "Puddinghead, who names their kid Puddinghead?"
Violet stopped when she sure Fluttershy giving her a minor version of The Stare.
"...sorry, please continue," she uttered.
"As I was saying, the summit didn't work out as hoped, so the leaders and their close companions set out to find a new land to conquer and they did. Unfortunately, the leaders all found the land at the exact same time."
"Was that by any chance the land that would become Equestria?" Violet asked.
"Yes actually, but the tribes started to argue about who's land it was and what's worse, blizzard followed them there and the three tribes found themselves trapped in an ice cave."
"Oh no! What happened then?" Violet asked.
Fluttershy was about to answer when a male voice called out in a sing song voice. "Oh Fluttershy," Discord called from the living room, waving a piece of mistletoe above his head. Fluttershy and Violet rolled their eyes. "Must we do this every minute of the day?" Fluttershy asked fluttering over to her boyfriend and giving him a peck of the lips.
"Come on Fluttershy, you know it's my favourite part of the season." Discord grinned, hoping for one more kiss.
"Oh you two seriously need to get a room, ever since the two of you started dating you've been all over each other like a nasty rash!" Violet said, grabbing her scarf off the coat hanger. "I'm going out so don't expect me to be back until late, anypony else wanna come for a walk?" she asked, grabbing her purse.
The draconequus paled and gulped. "Uhh, no thanks Violet, maybe another time." he stammered.
Violet shrugged. "Okay, it's your call."
Fluttershy stepped forward. "Just be careful out there Violet, the Pegasi have scheduled a blizzard for this afternoon,"
Violet smiled. "Don't worry Fluttershy, I've handled blizzards before. I'll see you later!" she cried, running out into the white winter wonderland.
Discord quickly slammed the door shut to avoid any snow getting in. "Discord are you okay, you seem scared." Fluttershy asked, concerned.
The draconequus looked appalled. "Me? Scared? I'm the Master of Chaos, nothing scares me," he proudly admitted.
"Okay, but you know I'm always here for you if you need anything." Fluttershy said.
Discord pulled her into his arms. "I know, what would I do without you," he said, embracing the pegasus.
If only you knew the truth Fluttershy...
Violet skipped out into the cold winter countryside. Snow crunched under her hooves as she passed by Sweet Apple Acres. She smiled at the sight of the bare apple trees, sprinkled with snow that resembled icing sugar. She smiled knowing that Applejack and her family had the crops safe and snug in the big red barn in the centre of the farm. Applejack was like her in sense, both young mares worked hard to maintain their produce for the harsh winter months ahead and they both cared deeply for their families. Violet sighed and a cloud of mist fell from her mouth as she carried on her walk.
She was so lost in thought that the ponies would have to send out a search party pretty soon. Violet then began to wonder what her future held for her, while she was born in this land she knew so little, but was always eager to learn. She still had a hard time excepting that this was her life now and she was finally back in the place where she was born. After street life and the loss of her parents, she had decided that life was too short, in other words she was prepared for whatever her future held.
Violet blushed at her silliness as the image of her boyfriends face appeared in her mind. "Violet, you are a silly filly, you shouldn't be thinking about those things too soon into your relationship," she muttered. But she couldn't deny it, Comet was her dream. He was the first ever boy who was truly nice to her in a romantic way. She loved him for every kind gesture he did for her and he treated her like she was a pony and not some inanimate object that had no feelings at all. Comet Blitz was the only one she could see herself having kids with because he had been so good to her, not caring if she was a child of two worlds, both Human and Equestrian. She beamed warmly, filling her heart with these thoughts as the Rainbow of Light inside her grew stronger.
Pinkie Pie hurried about her business, working the counter of Sugar Cube Corner, while Mr and Mrs Cake were in the back working on new seasonal sweets. Though it was sad to see Fall end along with Nightmare Night, Pinkie Pie knew that it was time for the biggest holiday celebration in Equestrian History to commence. With Nightmare Night along with the fall season been and gone, Pinkie bustled about taking down the Nightmare Night decorations. She would have done it earlier, except Cheese had asked her for extra help planning a graduation party in Manehatten and the trip had taken them all week.
Pinkie breathed heavily as she ran around ripping the purple and orange streamers from the ceiling and collecting dirty plates from dine in customers who came in for morning break during work. Most the those ponies had already left, so Pinkie was left with taking down the decorations and putting up Hearths Warming decorations of tinsel, fairy lights and even a cheeky piece of mistletoe over the front door. Pinkie was just finishing restocking the display case with gingerbread cookies and peppermint swirls when she heard the front door bell jingle. Pinkie thought that was odd as hardly any customers came at this time of the morning. They would all be heading back to work by now, nether the less, Pinkie bounced around the side of the counter ready to give who ever it was her biggest and most cheeriest Hearths Warming smile ever.
"Violet!" Pinkie cried as the blonde pegasus stepped into the bakery.
"What's up Pinkie- whoa," Violet awed at the decorations Pinkie had put up. The whole dining area looked like the 'Santa's Grotto' her parents took her to when she was little. "Did you do all this?"
"Yes I did, doesn't look super duper?!" Pinkie chimed.
"It does, did you do this by yourself?" Violet wondered.
Pinkie exhaled an exhausted breath. "I had to take down the Nightmare Night decorations first, now I regret covering the entire rafters in pretend cobwebs. Getting up in those teeny weeny corners is exhausting." Pinkie breathed, wiping a bead of sweet from her brow. "Now, can I get you anything Violet?" Pinkie asked, bouncing around the other side of the counter.
"Just a Hearths Warming cupcake and hot cocoa in a takeaway mug," Violet ordered.
"Okie dokie lokie!" Pinkie chimed and called out to Mrs Cake to start making the cocoa.
Violet looked around at the room, thinking back to what her pink friend had said. "Pinkie?"
"Yeah?" the party pony replied, while she balanced a tray of cupcakes on her head.
"Why didn't you do it sooner? I mean i know you're a living whirlwind of energy but, why did you wait until the last minute to take down the Nightmare Night decorations and put the Hearths Warming ones up?" the pegasus asked.
Pinkie chuckled as she stuffed the cupcake into a brown paper bag. "Cheese asked me to help out with planning a graduation party for this colt who just got out of medical school. The client lives in Manehattan, so we had to go there to prepare." she explained.
"How did the party go?" Violet asked.
Pinkie was about the answer, when Mrs Cake hollered. "Order up!" meaning that the hot cocoa was ready.
"Hold that thought," Pinkie said, before zipping into the kitchen. She returned seconds later holding a take-away cup filled with warm brown liquid that gave off a sweet smell. Violet picked up the bag and cup and placed three bits on the countertop. "The party went great, though there was a bit of ruckus when one of the party guests had too much to drink and went nuts." Pinkie explained as her eyes went all quirky, as she took the bits.
Violet rolled her eyes. "City folk are like that, I should know."
"Oh yeah I remember, you're from Manhatten. That's the human big city that sounds like the city Manehattan, isn't it?" Pinkie asked.
Violet laughed. "Yes it is, but believe me Pinks, there are cities far bigger than Manhattan."
"Really? You gotta tell us more about the human world at some point Violet. I'm sure Twilight would like that."
Violet chuckled. "Maybe later, I've gotta go now Pinkie."
"Okie dokie lokie, Violet, see you later and Happy Hearths Warming."
Violet looked back and smiled. "Happy Hearths Warming, Pinkie,"
Violet walked out into the pale white streets, though thanks to the brightly colourful decorations adorning from every window sill, rooftop and door in the town. Some decorations even stretched across the street from one house to it's neighbour in the opposite side of the road. She found a comfortable spot on the frozen fountain in the town centre to eat her snack and drink her hot cocoa. As Violet took a generous bite out of her dessert, it started to snow rapidly once again and a few tiny snowflakes landed on her muzzle. She sniffed as they tickled her nose and the flakes flew off back into the soft powdery breeze. Once her cupcake was finished, Violet took a sip from her hot drink, savouring the taste of warm chocolate contrasted with the vanilla aftertaste, while trying not burn her tongue.
"Violet!" a female voice cried out, making the pegasus choke on her drink. She cried as the hot chocolate that was in her mouth started to leak out of her nose, causing her to splutter and cough like she had a case of the Feather Flu.
She wiped her painful nose free from the brown liquid and looked up to see an all to familiar green unicorn.
"Violet!" Lyra cried out, galloping towards the blonde pegasus.
Violet sighed and cleared her throat, rolling her eyes. Ever since that meeting on Nightmare Night, Lyra had become Violet's biggest fan/stalker. Violet quickly learned that Lyra's obsession with humans was more than just a hobby as Lyra continued to bother Violet asking her for new information about humans that the world they lived in. "Hello Lyra, you scared me there for a second, made me snort hot chocolate from my nose by the way," Violet spluttered, still recovering from the fright and mess. "What is it you want to know this time?"
Lyra shook her head. "No Violet, I was actually wondering if you'd like to come over to my house for this afternoon?" Lyra offered.
Violet raised a suspicious eyebrow at the minty unicorn. "What game are playing?"
Lyra chuckled. "No game at all Violet, i just wanted to ask you if you'd like to come over for a chat, just to talk as friends." she smiled sweetly, which Violet could tell was an act. She sighed and wiped her fur from the spilt drink with a napkin, tossing the stained paper into a nearby trash can as she stood up. "Alright, but it'd have to be quick, I'm heading up to Cloudstale to see if I can catch my boyfriend after he gets off work."
"Fair enough, so you up for it Violet?" Lyra asked and Violet could tell that the minty unicorn was practically bursting to keep her excitement in. "Sure, just lead the way." Violet agreed, gasping as the unicorn practically dragged her by the scarf, pulling her through the snow covered streets and towards her house.
Lyra lead Violet up to the door of a small blue cottage set on one of the Ponyville suburbs away from the main part of the town where all he shops and market stalls were held. "Wow, your house looks a lot different from when we first meet at Nightmare Night."
"I count that as the second best day of my life!" Lyra said gleefully as she opened the door for Violet.
"Second?"
"The first being the day I met Bon Bon," Lyra said, sighing dreamily.
"Oh yeah, she's your girlfriend isn't she?" Violet looked around Lyra's living home, seeing that the yellow earth pony wasn't there. "Where is she right now?"
"Visiting a relative in Vanhoover. I'm all for letting her visit family away from home, but I miss her." Lyra explained with a hint of sadness. "I just hope she makes it back in time for Hearths Warming." Lyra suddenly winced and faced Violet, who had now taken a seat on the living room couch.
"You don't think it's weird that I'm a lesbian, do you? I know a lot of ponies would say that dating a pony of the same sex is sinful and disgusting, but I just..." She was cut off as Violet interrupted her.
"Let me stop you right there because I've got no problem with what your sexuality is, or any other for that matter." she said holding out a hoof.
Lyra looked at Violet in surprise. "You...don't think it's...weird? Some ponies would think that it isn't actually normal."
Violet gave the unicorn a serious expression. "Lyra; I'm the half-pony half-human child of two worlds, I possess the Rainbow of Light, my cousin is dating the Spirit of Chaos and I defeated an army of Changelings. You really think I care about normal?"
Lyra took a seat next to Violet. "You got me there," A wide grin appeared on Lyra's face. "Since you mentioned that you're a half-human child of two worlds, would you care to tell me how that happened?"
Violet gave Lyra and accusing look. "I knew you were going to ask me about humans again, ever since Nightmare Night you always ask me questions about humans." Violet cried, calling Lyra out on her plan.
Lyra just shrugged. "I can't help if I find human's fascinating, the way they live is just amazing to me, how they managed to survive for thousands of years and without magic of all things! So, how is it that your half-pony and half-human? How in Celestia's name did that happen?"
Violet raised an eyebrow. "My parents, you mean?"
"Yeah, last Nightmare Night you said that Human's visited Equestria before, but those stories were covered up, why is that?"
Violet looked away from Lyra and her eyes grew misty with memory. "Well I guess I should start for the beginning, my father was a human and my mother was a pegasus. When my father was a child, he came to Equestria with his two sisters, Megan and Molly. I never knew them as they were killed in a brutal car accident. My heartbroken father returned to Equestria, when my mother found him and comforted him. In their childhood, they were friends, it wasn't until they were older when Dad realised he had feelings for Mom, that's why he decided to stay in Equestria, a few years later they tied the knot, then they had me."
Lyra was stunned, but also confused. "Wow, that's quite a story. So you never knew your two aunts."
"Yeah," Violet nodded sadly.
"But if your Father decided to stay in Equestria, why were you raised in the human world?"
"My parents did that to protect me, as a child of two worlds I inherited the Rainbow of Light, which is the key to the human world. Don't ask me why or how it happened, but it's become a part of me, growing stronger with the love I have for my friends and family. But there are those who tried to steal it, use it for themselves. One of those people who tried to steal my power was the Queen of the Changelings herself, Queen Chrysalis. She was so determined to take the Rainbow of Light to gain access to the Human World, that she tried to kill me and my family," Violet bit back a sob. Lyra just stared at her, mouth gaped open in shock.
"That's horrible!"
"It was, I was only a few years old when she first attacked. My parents realised that it was too dangerous to keep me in Equestria, so they decided to take me to the Human World, where they continued to raise me, never telling me about my heritage or the power I held. But after a few years, things started to fall apart. My father was killed suddenly and my mother disappeared a few years later, leaving me on my own. Princess Celestia showed me a flashback of where my mother had gone that day. It turns out she had found another portal to Equestria, some sort of 'glitch in the matrix' phenomenon and she sealed it shut at the cost of her own life as Chrysalis had found the portal as well and was about enter the Human World. She killed my mother out of anger!"
"Oh my Celestia, Luna and Cadence! Violet, I'm sorry I asked you. I feel terrible for asking now!" Lyra cried, feeling guilty.
"It's not your fault Lyra, but you have to promise that you'll never tell anypony. The less ponies who know the truth, the better. Pinkie Promise you won't tell?"
Lyra smiled and did the gesture. "Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!"
"Thank you, Lyra." Violet said, with a smile on her face. "Lyra, why are you so interested in Humans? It doesn't make sense."
"I've always been fascinated with them, just the way they live is similar to how us ponies live and they don't have to use magic at all to do tasks! And all those machines!"
Suddenly Violet understood. The way the ponies lived as a civilised culture was almost a replica of how Human's live, minus all the cart pulling and lack of automobiles. It occurred to her, that from the ponies point of view, the idea of living without magic, especially for a unicorn, would be alien to them and almost fascinating at the same time. Now she knew why Lyra found Humans so interesting and why she kept bugging her with questions about humans.
Out of nowhere, Lyra pulled Violet by the scarf shouting. "Come with me, I wanna show you something!" Violet yelped as the woollen scarf around her neck tightened as she was pulled down the hall of the small cottage into another room. Lyra let her go once they were inside and Violet gasped, adjusting her scarf allowing oxygen to enter her lungs. She gawked in awe at the room she was in, with Lyra smiling proudly at the room.
The room looked like it belonged to the Golden Oaks Library as there were stacks of books in almost every corner of the room, all documenting one thing or the other. It was either encyclopaedias of Monkeys and Apes, or books about the structure of the brain. The walls were covered with diagrams of human's, both male and female and drawings of cars, TVs, telephones and other electronics were also covering the walls alongside the diagrams. "Oh my gosh," Violet cried, completely in awe at what she was seeing.
"This is where I keep all my human research. Your species is quite fascinating."
"I can see that, jeez where did you get all this stuff?"
"All those questions you've answered, I drew some diagrams to hang up on the walls."
"Cool,"
Lyra pointed to a picture of a human standing up. "How do you humans stand on two legs without falling?"
Violet laughed. "Lots of practice. Human's only start walking when they are around a year old."
Lyra's eyes widened. "Wow, ponies can walk at just one month." The minty unicorn faced Violet. "Can you still walk on two legs?"
Violet looked at her back legs, a tiny bit unsure. "I don't know, I can try." She rose up on her back legs, wobbled for a bit and stood straight, with her wings give her some assistance. "Okay, I can stand up alright, now I'll see if I can walk." Violet moved her left back hoof out, while Lyra watched, eager to see her walking on two legs. Violet wobbled like a toddler learning how to walk for the first time as the first step was taken. Then the other, and another.
It all felt a little alien for Violet, having gotten used to walking on four legs, but walking on two felt both natural and unnatural. A sensation that made Violet feel dizzy. "Woah," she cried, stumbling for a bit.
Lyra looked up at her, concerned. "Are you alright Violet?"
"Fine, I just haven't walked like this for so long." Violet reassured her, taking another step. Simultaneous with that step, Violet had a one on one fight with gravity. She teetered like a falling domino and collapsed, head first, on top of Lyra.
"Ouch!" Lyra gasped, under the pegasus's form, her face squished up against the floor.
"Oh my gosh, Lyra I'm sorry!" Violet cried, quickly getting up off the startled and squashed unicorn.
"It's fine, I shouldn't have pushed you forward." Lyra breathed, getting up off the ground.
"Are you hurt?" Violet asked, concerned for the older unicorn.
"Nah, just got squished." Lyra said as she dusted herself off.
"Are you sure Lyra, maybe you should sit down." Violet said, trying to usher Lyra into an armchair.
Lyra shook her head. "That's really kind of you Violet, but I'm fine, I really am. Nothing short of a healing spell won't cure. Besides, didn't you say you're going to head up to Cloudstale."
Violet instantly looked up at the clock on the wall and gasped at the time. "Oh my Celestia, you're right! I'll see you around Lyra, but I've gotta fly, literally!"
Lyra smiled and waved goodbye. "See you around Violet, and Happy Hearths Warming."
Violet smiled back. "Happy Hearths Warming."
Outside of Lyra's house, the snow fall had started to intensify into a snow storm. She knew that the weather conditions would be harder in Cloudstale than down here in Ponyville. Violet felt a stab of fear. She had never flown through a storm like this before. But she hadn't seen Comet for weeks, he had been working over time the past few days, helping the weather team with making snow clouds. With a gulp, Violet spread her wings and beat them hard against the growing winds, rising higher at a slow pace. She was getting better at flying, with some coaching from her friend Rainbow Dash and encouraging words from the rest of her friends. Her eyes stung with the snowflakes and the chilly winds that were picking up as she rose higher into the skies above Ponyville and snowflakes were clinging to her fur and mane.
Violet yelped as her scarf was blown from her neck and into the wind. It felt like loosing a part of her body. The pegasus dove to catch the long piece of wool that was the last memory she had of her mother. Beating her wings harder than ever before she swam through the icy storm, pursuing her beloved scarf. She finally caught up with it and gripped it in her teeth, pausing just briefly to return the scarf to it's spot around her neck as the wind tossed her body around in the air like she was a toy. She felt whole again. Holding one hoof to her neck to keep the scarf from breaking loose once again, she flapped her wings and found her original course. She could see the City of Cloudstale through the blistering weather conditions. With a smile, small flakes of snow sticking to her bluing lips she beat her wings hard, heading towards the floating City, that seemed to be unmoving in the intense winds.
Violet's hooves landed on the fluffy sidewalk in Cloudstale, breathing a sigh of relief. She shivered slightly, shaking off the snow that had hitched a ride on her feathers and gazing at the city made of clouds, that reminded her of the Mount Olympus scene from Disney 'Hercules'. The city was decorated with fairy lights and wreaths hung from every door. Violet pondered for a bit. She had noticed earlier, the Hearths Warming decorations looked an awful lot like Christmas decorations. She then remembered Nightmare Night and how it resembled Halloween. Did Hearths Warming follow that same pattern?
She started walking and wobbled slightly at each step. Violet wasn't used to walking on clouds as she had been raised on the ground as a human. She didn't want to role an ankle, but she was exhausted from flying through that rough weather and the thought of loosing her scarf again made her queasy. On top of that, she was starting to shiver from the early effects of hyperthermia. She walked over the soft cloud path through town which would've been a peaceful feeling, but thanks to the heavy snow and winds, it certainly wasn't peaceful. Violet heaved her body against the winds, her eyes only focused on getting to her destination. "Violet!" a voice called out over the winds. Violet looked up and saw the most amazing thing she had ever seen in her life. Comet was flying towards her, still wearing his factory uniform, a thick coat over the top and a worried look on his face.
"Comet!" she croaked, her throat raw from the cold. Comet landed next to his marefriend and embraced her.
"Are you okay, you look terrible!"
"I just flew through a snow storm."
He placed a hoof to her forehead. Comet gasped at her temperature. "Holy Celestia, you're freezing!" He pulled off his coat and wrapped it around her shivering body. "We need to get you inside right now, my place is closer. Just take my hoof." Violet gave him a weak smile with blue lips and took his hoof. Comet flapped his wings and pulled her through the snowstorm. Violet gripped his hoof tighter as the winds picked up, blowing ice and snowflakes into her mane. She squinted her eyes to protect them from the chilly winds, but caught sight of a house made from clouds. It wasn't anything extreme, just a small, cozy, one storey little thing that was made from compressed clouds that had a few strings of fairy lights around the ledges.
"Is this it? Is this your house?" Violet asked.
"It is, don't worry Violet. I'll have you out of the storm in no time." Comet said, landing on the front door step, Violet landing behind him. Comet reached into his uniform pocket and pulled out a key, which he used to unlock the door to the house. He opened the door and Violet stepped inside, while Comet entered the room behind her, closing the door behind them. The room was dark so Comet flicked a light switch next to the door and suddenly the room was bathed in light. Violet gasped at the living room.
In the centre of the room, there was a blue love seat sitting in front of an empty fireplace, a pile of small logs sat next to the mantelpiece to the left. A Hearths Warming tree sat decorated in the opposite corner, peaking out of a closed window, small flakes of snow were floating past outside, a red rug sat underneath it, but there weren't any presents sitting out. The room was also decorated with other Hearths Warming decorations. Tinsel hung in the rafters and more than one wreath was cheekily hung on the doors. On the far side of the room was an arch door way that lead into what Violet guessed was the kitchen and another two doors with wreaths hanging on them were positioned on the opposite wall.
"This is beautiful," Violet complemented as Comet led her to the sofa. Violet removed her scarf and lay it on the arm rest, watching as her boyfriend walked over to the fire place to get a fire going. He walked over to the wood pile to collect a few fresh logs and place them in the fireplace. Comet then went and picked up a plain looking flint and steel off the ground. He struck them together, aiming at the fireplace. Sparks flew from the flint and steel, and hit the logs, which combusted into a roaring fire within seconds. The warmth from the fireplace washed over Violet as if she had just sunk into a hot bath.
"What were you doing up in Cloudstale anyway Violet?" Comet asked, pulling the flint and steel on the mantel top.
"I was coming to see you, I was so focused on getting through the storm, I didn't even realise I was starting to get hyperthermia. I'm lucky you were in the area."
"I had just left work and was on my way home, when I saw you down in the streets. Now, I'll go get you a mug of hot cocoa, sound good?"
"No, I can get it myself." Violet protested, snuggling deeper into the coat.
A hoof touched her lips. "I won't allow that, let me make you a hot cocoa. You must be exhausted, flying through a storm like that isn't easy." He walked over to where the kitchen was and disappeared from view.
"And don't you dare follow me!" he called out.
Violet blinked, looking down at the hoof that was placed on the ground. How the heck did he know?
With a sigh, Violet retracted her hoof and watched the flames dance and flicker, while listening to the growing storm outside. The sound of the wind billowing against the walls of Comet's home was interrupted by the sound of pots and pans being moved around, followed by a whistling kettle. After that, Comet returned with a tray of gingerbread ponies and two mugs of hot cocoa balanced on his back. He smiled as he walked over to his girlfriend sitting on the love seat couch, smiling back at him.
Violet picked up a mug of hot cocoa topped with whipped cream and took a sip, allowing the warmth to fill her up. She smiled sweetly as Comet sat next to her with his own mug. Violet took another sip and tasted something different. "Is that..." she took another sip. "Mint?"
"Of course, I like to add a little bit of mint flavour to hot cocoa, especially when Hearths Warming is approaching. Are you excited for your first Hearths Warming?"
"Very," Violet uttered, taking a gingerbread pony, dunking it in her drink and taking a bite. Her lips were now returning to their normal colour.
"How are you feeling?" Comet asked, wrapping his wing around her body.
"A little better, but I'm mostly just exhausted. I'm so stupid, thinking I could fly through that storm when i'm not the most experienced flyer. I didn't even notice I was getting hyperthermia."
Comet shook his head. "No Violet, you're not stupid. I can't remember the last time we actually spent time together. I'm really sorry about that. I can't blame you for wanting to see me." he leaned over and kissed her cheek, earning a smile from her.
"Thank you," she rubbed the coat that he had leant her. "And thank you for lending me your coat."
Comet gulped down the last remains of his hot cocoa. "Don't mention it." he placed the mug back on the tray, along with the empty plate that used to have gingerbread ponies on it. He turned to Violet who was still holding her mug. "Are you finished?"
Violet looked down her her own empty mug and nodded. Comet took the empty mug and walked back into the kitchen. "Are you sure you don't need any help?"
"Yes, I'm sure." Comet called out, followed by the sink turning on. Violet shook her head and got up, leaving the coat on the couch and walked over to the kitchen. She peered into the doorway and saw Comet at the kitchen sink, washing the dishes. He turned around when he heard her come in. "I thought I told you to sit down. You've been through a lot."
"Really Comet, I'm fine now. You helped me enough and now I think I should help you." she walked up to the sink and squirted soap into a mug and started scrubbing it clean, Comet washing the dirty plate next to her. Violet grinned cheekily and she got a twinkle in her eye like she did whenever she felt like pranking somepony.
With a quick movement, she flicked her hoof upwards, splashing water at Comet. "Hey," he said, moving his eyes away to not get soap in them. Comet grinned back and splashed water in return.
"Oi!" she cried, attempting to splash him again, but was caught by a strong hoof.
"Backback," he grinned, gripping her tightly, before placing a kiss on her lips. Violet smiled into the kiss, but pulled away soon after.
"Can you let me go?" she asked, smiling and blushing at the same time.
Comet still grinned at her, letting her hoof go and setting the now clean dishes on the side to dry, before turning to Violet. "Why did you splash me?"
Violet shrugged, giving him a cocky smirk. "Dunno, because I felt like it."
Comet chuckled. "You're a cheeky thing, Flower," he said, caressing her face.
"Flower, you've never called me that before." she said as they walked back into the living room and reclaimed their spots by the fire.
"I just came up with that name, why," he put on a look of false hurt. "Do you not like it?"
"N-no, I love it. It fits after all, I am named after two types of flowers." Violet responded.
She stared out at the window next to the fireplace and watched as the snow fell outside. "Once your not caught in the storm, the blizzard really is a beauty. I loved winter when I was a little girl, both as a pony and has a human." she sighed, sadly. She watched as the tiny snowflakes stuck to the window glass and a burst of curiosity peaked in her mind. "Does the factory make snowflakes too?" she asked.
Comet nodded. "Of course we do, every tiny little detail is hoof made."
"Gosh, that must take a lot of work?"
"It does, when I'm working in the snowflake department. I have to sit at a desk in a freezing cold room to keep the ice from melting."
Violet raised an eyebrow. "I though you worked with the Rainbows."
"Oh right, let me explain," he cleared his throat. and began to talk. Violet listened intently. "Working at the Weather Factory means you have to be prepared for working in every weather department. We are given timetables at the start of every week, telling us where we'd be working that week. As it's currently winter, I've been moved to the snowflake department as there is no need make anymore rainbows until spring as we've stored a heavy supply already. Those who are assigned to the Rainbows in Winter just spend their time making Liquid Rainbow, or Spectra as it's really called, for dyes and paints, or keep the stored Rainbows in check. Despite working in the Weather Factory, the job is really more about art and minor engineering."
"But if your given timetables, why do you always say that you work with the Rainbows?" Violet asked, extremely confused.
"Because I always tend to end up working in that department every week for some reason. My co-workers and I joke that I have a solid placement in the Rainbow Department, when we all know that I don't."
Violet nodded in approval, satisfied at his answer. "What's it like working with the snowflakes?"
"Cold, no freezing, you have to wear a mask to stop yourself from breathing on the ice and you have to be extra careful with building the ice into a pattern." Comet explained with a hint of disgust.
"Sounds very intimidating," Violet smiled.
"It is, which is why I love the Rainbows more than the other departments, and it's also because the Rainbows remind me of you."
Violet's eyes brightened, remembering something from earlier that year. "You mean our first date?"
Comet shook his head. "No, I'm talking about the time when you defeated Chrysalis and her Army with the Rainbow of Light. The Rainbows I make, remind me of my powerful and beautiful girlfriend."
Violet looked away. "A power that I was nearly killed for. Who wouldn't want the power to travel between worlds?"
Sensing her fear, Comet wrapped his wing around her body like he had done earlier. Violet smiled warmly at him and leaned her head on his shoulder. "You don't have to be afraid Violet, I won't allow any pony to take advantage of your power. I can promise you that."
Violet looked up at him with pleading eyes. "Pinkie Promise?"
Comet smiled and did the gesture. "Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye,"
She smiled back. "I believe you,"
Violet then let out a cute little yawn, causing Comet to chuckle. "You okay, Flower?"
"I'm fine, just a bit tired."
"You would be, I'm pretty tired too." Comet said.
Violet closed her eyes and sighed, nuzzling him. "I love you," she said, before nodding off into Dreamland.
Comet smiled and planted a kiss on her forehead. "I love you too, Violet-Rose," he said, before he too, fell asleep.
Fluttershy stared through the frosted up window, anxiously waiting for any sign of her little cousin - the cousin who she hadn't known existed until last summer. She glanced back at Discord was lazily spread out on a fluffy pink cloud sipping a mug of hot cocoa, though it was the mug that was disappearing rather than the liquid. "Discord, it's already dark and Violet's still not back yet. The blizzard's getting worse by the minute and I'm worried she's gotten swept up in the storm. You know she still getting used to having her wings back."
Once the truth about Violet's origin was cleared up, Celestia had returned Violet and Fluttershy's childhood memories that had been taken away from them all those years ago, feeling she owed the cousins that much. Fluttershy and Violet spent the entire afternoon of that day recalling funny moments from her childhood in Equestria that she hadn't been able to remember until now, even a memory involving Rainbow Dash getting her head stuck in a rabbit burrow when they were five. "I was trying to perform a loop-the-loop." Rainbow had said, embarrassed by the memory.
Discord paused and locked eyes with her. "Violet's sixteen Fluttershy, she's probably doing what teenagers do these days. Y'know, hang out in the mall or the bowling alley to escape the-" he gulped nervously. "snow - but my point is that Violet's probably found someplace to shelter from the storm. She's not dumb y'know," he said, taking another sip of his drink.
"I know that, but you know that it's not like her to be this late. I think we should go look for her."
Discord snapped out of his relaxed mood with his jaw dropped. Beads of sweat started to form on his forehead while he wrung his fingers. "Y-You mean, o-out in the snow?" he stammered.
Fluttershy was already finishing putting on her coat and hat, ready to go look for Violet. "We don't have to go outside on foot, you could just teleport us to her. I'm just putting on my coat just in case." Discord relaxed a little and sighed. He snapped his fingers and a thick woollen coat appeared on his body with the hood up over his head, with two cut out holes for his horns to go through. "Okay, but can we compromise first. I care about Violet like she's my little sister, but I don't want to get a cold. Once we find her, then we come straight back home - deal?"
Fluttershy cringed her nose in confusion. "But...I though you couldn't get sick - not including the Tazelworm incident, I mean - everyday pony illnesses?"
Discord stammered again, sensing Fluttershy was catching on to his white lie. "Uhh, perhaps we should find our little Violet."
Before Fluttershy could say anything else, Discord snapped his talons and teleported them to wherever Violet was located.
"Gah!" The young pegasus couple was startled awake by the sudden flash of light. Violet yelped as she was awoken from her sleep.
"What's this Violet, you and your colt having a party without us?" sniggered a voice.
Violet frowned, recognising that voice.
"Discord! What are you doing here?" she demanded.
"Yeah, what are you doing in my house?" Comet asked, not exactly thrilled about the unwanted guests standing in front of the crackling fireplace.
Violet suddenly felt herself being tackled by another familiar someone. "Oh thank Celestia you're okay Violet. I was so worried that you got caught in the storm. You nearly scared me to death, young lady!" Fluttershy cried, smothering her cousin with hugs and kisses.
Comet pulled Fluttershy off his girlfriend, to give her some air. "Miss Shy, she's fine. What are you two doing here anyway?"
"We came looking for Violet, it's dark outside if you hadn't noticed." Discord explained, pointing to the dark, frosty window with his thumb. Both Violet and Comet immediately looked towards the window. Seeing the black night outside the window through the many white flakes, Comet turned around to look back at the clock, reading that the time was 11:15pm.
"Oh my gosh!" he whirled his head around to the older couple. "I'm so sorry, we kinda fell asleep a little while after I brought Violet inside."
Violet nodded at her colt friend. "It's true, I almost went down in the storm, when Comet found me and brought inside. I'm sorry if I scared you Fluttershy." Violet explained, adding an apology at the end.
Fluttershy smiled at the teenage pegasus. "Apology accepted," she turned her head to look at Comet, who still had his wing wrapped around Violet. "Thank you for helping my cousin."
"Please, it was nothing." Comet turned to Violet. "I suppose this concludes our unexpected date then. I'll see you around again sometime in the future."
Violet smiled sweetly at him. "I look forward to it," she then pecked him on the lips.
"Gag! We're still here you know, you lovebirds!" Discord protested, playfully sticking his tongue out.
Everypony chuckled. Violet got up from the couch and returned her scarf to her neck. "Goodbye Comet," she said, waving her hoof.
"Goodbye Flower, see you next date."
Discord then snapped his fingers and the small family disappeared, leaving Comet alone in his living room.
"He called you 'Flower', what was that all about?" Discord asked cheekily, hanging up his coat on the coat rack.
Violet blushed, walking into the living room. "It's just a pet name, get over it!"
"I never said I had a problem Violet." he responded.
Violet stopped mid step, glancing back at the draconequus. "I know that. Just stop embarrassing me."
"I think it's time you head off to bed Violet." Fluttershy said, acting like a nurturing, but strict mother.
Violet pouted. "Come on Fluttershy, I was asleep for hours at Comet's place. I can't possible go to sleep now. Right now, I want to know what we are going to do for Hearths Warming. After all, I fail to see any tree in here," she said, waving her hoof as if to encompass the entire living room. "and Hearths Warming is two weeks away!"
Fluttershy chuckled. "I don't think we should worry about that, I talked with Twilight yesterday and she said that the Mayor is hosting a Hearths Warming Party in the Town Hall on Hearths Warming Day, I think Pinkie is helping out with the decorations along with Cheese Sandwich."
Violet giggled. "Pinkie must be pretty ecstatic about decorating the entire town, though she has been pretty busy. She might be a little tired out."
Discord cocked an eyebrow at her in surprise that Violet had even suggested such a thing. "Tired?" he stifled a laugh. "That's a first, Pinkie's a ball of energy."
Violet shrugged. "Even Pinkie needs a break every now and again."
"What about Cheese, I thought he was also a "super duper party pony" like Pinkie," Discord said, flexing his fingers in air quotes.
"Well that too -" Violet's brow furrowed as she thought about something that had been nagging her for a longwhile. "Fluttershy, will I get a chance to meet the rest of my family. Surely we both can't be orphans."
Fluttershy's face fell and she glanced at Discord briefly, the draconequus just shrugged clueless to whatever answer his love was searching for.
The yellow pegasus gulped and put a hoof to Violet's shoulder. "The thing is Violet, I haven't told my parents about you yet. My Mom, Celestia help me I don't know how she's going to react. If she sees you here in Equestria, she's going to wonder where her sister is and well..."
Fluttershy trailed off as Violet hung her head in sadness, but also anger that the rest of her family had no idea of her existence. "You must understand Violet that our mother's were Identical twins. If your aunt finds out that her twin is dead...I don't know if she could handle that pain. She was so stressed from the grief and worry after the departure, she miscarried my baby brother."
Discord and Violet stared at her in shock. Fluttershy felt a few tears fall down her cheeks as Discord scooped her up in his arms. "Oh Fluttershy, I'm sorry. My little butterfly, don't cry." he spoke tenderly stroking her mane to console her.
Violet gaped at Fluttershy. She had another cousin, one that she was never ever going to meet. "Fluttershy, I-I didn't know..."
Fluttershy wiped her eyes. "I know..." she whispered.
Violet gulped down her fear and guilt. "Fluttershy, I know exactly what it feels like and as it appears that we have both been affected by the decision, I understand completely. But I'm tired of being hidden away from my own family and there's no greater pain then not having family around at Hearths Warming."
Discord stared down at the pegasus in his arms. "She's got a point you know."
"It's not going to be easy, but I think it would be better if your Mom gets answers, that'll relieve the pain."
Fluttershy sighed, realising that Violet was right.
"Okay, you're absolutely right. I'll take you to my parents house tomorrow." she said, smiling a little.
Violet beamed brighter than the Sun.
Discord cleared his throat. "What about me?"
Fluttershy turned around to look her coltfriend in the eyes. "I think it's best if you stay home."
"Why? Are you afraid of what your parents are going to say when they see that their only daughter is dating the Lord of Chaos?" he hissed, annoyed.
"DISCORD!" Violet snapped, slightly ticked off. "Fluttershy means that it's a private family affair that we need to acknowledge, just us two. We are in no way excluding you."
Discord cleared his throat, embarrassed. "Right, sorry girls. I should've known better to assume you were cutting me out."
Fluttershy stepped towards the draconequus and Discord felt his heart beat quicker as she approached him. "You know we would never exclude you this close to Hearths Warming. That's not what the holiday is about."
The butter yellow pegasus fluttered up and kissed him passionately on the lips. "Ahem?" Violet coughed, blushing with embarrassment. "I'm still here you know,"
"We know," the couple said, cheekily grinning at her embarrassment.
Violet rolled her eyes. "Yup, new family, but they never fail to embarrass me."
Fluttershy and Violet stood at the front door of a cloud home. Both mares exchanged nervous glances as Fluttershy reached out a hoof for the doorbell. She hesitated for a moment, before turning to Violet. "Perhaps you should wait out here until I call you. I'll do the talking." Violet nodded, holding her treasured scarf against her neck. The cousins were standing outside the door to Fluttershy's foal hood home.
Violet faintly recognised the house having been there before on a visit when she was young. The teenage pegasus stepped out of sight between the front window and the door. Fluttershy raised her hoof up and rung the doorbell. The doorbell chimed from the inside and both mares could hear hoof steps approaching the door. The door opened and a middle-aged stallion with a green coat, white mane with a thick moustache stood in the doorway. His eyes widened when he saw his daughter. "Fluttershy!" he exclaimed, wrapping his forelegs around her. Fluttershy hugged him back, smiling sweetly.
"Dad, it's so good to see you." she said, pulling back from the hug. "Is Mom home? Because, there's something we need to talk about."
Cloudy Skies nodded. "Yes, of course your mother's home," he whirled his head around and called. "Rose, darling. Fluttershy's here, she wants to talk to you!"
An older female voice called back. "Fluttershy?" Violet heard another set of hoof steps approach the door and an older mare with short red hair that was starting to grey, wearing a jade necklace and glasses. "Fluttershy!" the mare gasped when she saw her daughter. "It's so great of you to visit us. Come on in, you must be tired."
Fluttershy followed her parents into the house and into the kitchen, where Mrs Shy or Rosey poured Fluttershy some camomile tea. Fluttershy held up her hoof. "Mom, there's something we need to talk about. It's about Aunt Posey."
The china teapot clattered onto the kitchen table and some tea spilt on the table cloth. Mr and Mrs Shy stared at Fluttershy in shock. "S-sweetheart, h-h-how did you know about Posey? Princess Celestia removed your memories!" Rosey stammered.
"I know she did, but she gave them back when...well, until recently I've had somepony else stay at my house."
"Somepony else?" Cloudy Skies asked, looking nervously at his wife and daughter.
"Yes...see; last summer, somepony arrived in Equestria unexpectedly and I let her stay at my cottage. I brought her with me today."
"You brought her with you?!" The Shy's gasped. Rosey looked ready to faint.
"She's waiting outside." Fluttershy climbed out of her chair and called: "You can come on in Violet,"
"Violet!"
The teenage pegasus nervously walked through the front door and into the kitchen as if in slow motion. Rosey gasped and a single hoof flew to her mouth to hide her shock, though her wide eyes gave away the emotion. Cloudy's jaw dropped when he saw the niece he hadn't seen since she was a little foal. "Violet-Rose," they said in unison.
Fluttershy stood proudly next to Violet and faced her parents. "Mom, Dad, you remember Violet-Rose don't you."
Violet shyly waved at her stunned Aunt and Uncle. "Hi,"
Rosey stepped down from the table and slowly approached her now grown up niece. Violet couldn't believe it. This was her mother's twin sister she was meeting for the first time. "Violet, is it really you? What are you doing here?!"
"I...I've come home."
"Home!" Rosey shrieked at a volume that was unusual for her. "Violet, do you know what would happen if the Queen finds out that you're here! Does my sister and her husband know you're here?!"
Violet and Fluttershy hung there heads. Rosey noticed and her face fell. "What? What's wrong?"
Violet gulped. "They...um...my parents...let's just say they are..." she trailed off before regaining her voice. "We lived happily in the Human World for a few years, until I was eleven. My Father was killed in a battle."
Cloudy and Rosey gasped. "No...not Danny!"
"I'm afraid so,"
Rosey suddenly felt a jab of panic. "What about my sister! Where's Posey! Is my sister here too!" she cried. Fluttershy and Violet's hearts broke for the mare.
"Aunt Posey, I regret to inform you that...you're sister is gone."
"What?"
"She was murdered by Queen Chrysalis when I was thirteen and I was left a homeless orphan moving from city to city and sleeping in alleyways." Violet choked back a sob.
Rosey shook her head. "No...no...no...no! You're lying! Not my sister!" she then let out a wail and collapsed to the floor. Fluttershy and her father picked her up and lead her over to a comforter and sat her down in it.
"How!" Cloudy demanded.
"Another gateway opened and Aunt Posey found it. She closed it but was trapped in Equestria. Chrysalis was waiting at the gate and she...well..." Fluttershy explained, quietly sobbing to herself.
"NOOOO!" Rosey cried, her glasses slipping down her tear stained muzzle.
"Rose, dearie. Your sister may have just stopped Chrysalis from invading the Human World." Cloudy said, trying to console his wife.
"Aunt Rosey, Uncle Cloudy, I arrived in Equestria by pure coincidence and have decided to stay here as I have no home back in the Human World. I've been living with Fluttershy for six months, but I wanted to have my entire family with me for Hearths Warming, including you both."
"It's true. That's why I brought her here, Mom and Dad." Fluttershy finished the explanation.
"What about Chrysalis? Aren't you worried she'll come back. Last time she attacked during the wedding of Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armour."
Violet shook her head. "I don't think we'll need to worry about Prissy Queen Chrissy anymore. I expelled her from Equestria using my powers, remember the Rainbow of Light."
Cloudy and Posey looked at each other, mouths agape, then back at their niece. Rosey sighed deeply, smiling and weeping tears of mixed emotional joy and sadness for her lost sister. It seemed that the reality set in faster than expected and she had excepted. "You are your mother through and through Violet. My sister would've been so proud of you. Last time we saw you you were only four, now you're all grown up."
"How old are you now Violet?" Cloudy asked, beaming with happy tears.
Violet grinned, wiping away a few stray tears. "Sixteen,"
"Sixteen! My how you've grown!" The stallion exclaimed.
Fluttershy herself felt a few stray tears leak from her eyes, drenching her fur. "Mom, are you okay?"
Rosey smiled weakly at her daughter. "I'll be fine, I felt that my sister was gone years ago, but I never let go of her memory. How could I forget my only twin. Will we be seeing you two on Hearths Warming."
Violet and Fluttershy breathed sighs of relief. Everything was going to be okay. "Actually Mom, there's going to be a Hearths Warming Party in the Ponyville Town Hall, do you think you'd be able to make it?"
"We would love to attend," The Shy's said.
Violet beamed brighter than before. "That's great! I'll have my friends and family together for Hearths Warming after two years of being alone. Oh, there's so much I have to tell you."
"We look forward to hearing it."
Author's Note
Okay...I spent hours every day brainstorming how I was going to bring Zephyr Breeze into the story and couldn't fit him in without having to change the story or leave a massive plot hole the size of the gateway to the Upside Down Dimension from Stranger Things
Btw MIKE X ELEVEN/JANE 4LIFE! 
So...I decided that it would be best if I just killed him off. I'm not even a big fan of Zephyr Breeze anyway. He reminds me of my ex best friend 
Please don't murder me...
One more thing, I'm also going to put a part three to the Hearths Warming before the Hearts and Hooves Chapter
