It's The Thought That Counts
First Real Hearths Warming
Inside of Tenpony Tower, deep in the wasteland on Manehatten, Over Sight looks around the market. ‘I’ve got like 30 caps to my name that can be spent where I need it… perhaps there’s something here that I can find that she may like that will let her at least enjoy being a little filly a little while longer before the Wasteland takes away that innocent child like side of hers,’ She thinks as she goes from shop to shop, not finding much of anything that she really could give her that could give her some kind of escape from the harshness of the Wastes. Medicine, no, just reminders of the scrapes and bruises they got through work and how they saved every spare cap they could to get into Tenpony Tower.
As she looked though the shops she glanced over to Absolutely Everything and the mare that ran it, the ghoul Pegasus named Ditzy Doo. As she does, she walks over to look over the inventory that she had, seeing a lot of various things, not seeing anything interesting yet. ”Hey Miss Doo, do you have anything else to sell? Something that nopony seems to want? Or something that’s obscure?”
The ghoul Pegasus smiles to the earth pony mare with long and blue colored mane that was in dreadlocks while her lighter blue fur under her dirty white button-down shirt and her equally braided tail then takes off the chalk board from the cord that it hung from around her neck and using a piece of chalk she began to write on it. Soon she turns the board to the other mare as she read the words ‘Looking for books?’
“I guess a book would work. Have anything specific in mind?” She asks as she turns the board back to the Pegasus as she looks over at a small stack of books before the Pegasus mare shook her head and went back to her wagon and came back with a book that was beat up but still appeared to be in decent condition though the cover was faded beyond recognition and slid it over the table to her. “What is this about?”
The Pegasus began to write on the chalk board and as she turned it back so the mare could read the message, ‘It’s a book about a holiday that was popular before the Great War; Hearth’s Warming.’
“’Hearth’s Warming?’” Over Sight asks curiously as she looks at the books cover before turning the book so that she could read the spine of the book and saw that it also was unreadable. “How many caps do I owe?”
The Pegasus mare turns her board around and after wiping it clean, she wrote more on it before turning it back to her. ‘It’s yours. I insist.’
She looks at the mare and then smiles at her. “Depending on what I read here I may be back. Thank you Miss Doo,” She replies with a warm smile as she takes the book and slides it into her saddlebags and then heads off to get some lunch. As she walks to the other side of the town she got herself lunch that cost her six caps, which ended up being an apple, a nice slice of Rad-gator, a bottle of Sparkle-Cola and a muffin. As she sits at her table taking her time to eat the apple, she reads from the book, glad that her mother had took the time to teach her while she was little. As she reads about the holiday, the happy nature of it from the songs that were sung, the tradition of it all and even the meaning behind it and what lead to the holiday to begin with.
‘That’s very interesting… to think it all happened because the three pony tribes started fighting amongst each other and one from each was willing to look past their difference. Though I have to say this holiday does sound interesting. Wonder if Miss Doo has something that I could give my daughter,’ She thinks softly and as she takes another drink of the Sparkle-Cola, finishing it off then finishes off the apple, saving the muffin for the moment and slides the book back into her saddlebags and works her way back to Ditzy Doo’s shop and sees the mare beginning to pack up for the night, as she head the mare approach she stopped and looked at the mare with a smile.
“Miss Doo, I gave this book a read and do you think that you can give me an idea of what somepony would give another for it? I’d like to do something like this for my daughter.”
At the sound of wanting to do that her a little filly, Ditzy’s face lit up happily and she dove into the back of her wagon and moved a few things around and came back out with a medium sized tree that barely had any needles left on the branches and then pulls out a small roll of dirty but very colorful paper and a small glass star that while the tips of each point where broken it was somehow still remarkably intact. She then took her board and wrote somethings down on it before handing the board to her. ‘I know this isn’t much… but put these up in a room where you live,’ Then she wipes the board clean and then wrote more on it and showed it to her again. ‘Find a toy, like a teddy bear or something and put it in this box,’ Ditzy said and sets down a medium sized box next to the roll of paper.
“Do you have anything that you think a ten year old filly would like?” She asks as she looks to the Pegasus mare.
She replies by diving back into the back of her wagon and pulls out a teddy bear and a small notebook and puts them into the box and then write again on her board. ‘For you… fifteen caps and it’s all yours.’
“Really?” She asks curiously. “At the very least all of this should equal about thirty caps. Are you sure that you’re willing to see me all of this for half price?” She asks as she looks the things that Ditzy had set out.
Ditzy nods to her and shuffles her wings happily.
“You really are a generous mare Ditzy, I can’t thank you enough for this,” She replies as she sits down and takes off her saddlebags and the first thing she takes out is the muffin which Ditzy notices and then clears her throat. She looks up at Ditzy and then to the muffin that she’d set on the table. “It’s yours. I really don’t need it,” Over Sight replies as she digs out the fifteen caps and sets them on the table next to the muffin.
Ditzy claps her hooves happily and takes the muffin and began to eat it while moaning happily then scoops the caps off the table and into a bag just under the table then turns back to her wagon and sets another book on top of the box. Setting the bitten muffin on the table she scribbles down on her board for Over Sight one last thing. ‘The Wasteland Survival Guide. Though I hope you never really need it.’
Over Sight smiles happily and then gives the mare a gentle hug with a foreleg and then steps back and looks at her. “You’re really something Miss Doo. The Wasteland could use more like you,” She replies before picking up the items that she’d received from her and makes her way back toward her home, her home since her husband was a guard, was nearby to the wall the separated Tenpony from the Wasteland just outside. As she approached her homes door, she saw the light was already on inside and she gently opened the door and saw her husband sitting at a small desk filling out some kind of paperwork on his terminal.
“Welcome home dear. Have a great day?” Far Sight, a Unicorn stallion with light purple mane that was pulled back into a loose ponytail with a deep blue for his coat and the undershirt of his guard outfit still buttoned up aside from the top two near his throat, asks with a smile and looks up from the terminal to see his wife and sees the few items that she’d had to carry back on her back. “Did some shopping?”
“Yeah,” Over Sight replies as she walks up to her husband and gives his lips a gently kiss. “Is our daughter home yet?”
“Should be home within the hour. Why do you ask?”
“Help me set these things up please. Ditzy had a book and I just feel that our little one deserves to celebrate her youth and innocence while she still can. I know she plans on becoming a guard like you when she grows up so she needs this.”
He looks at what he could see and with his magic he takes off her saddle bags and unpacks the box, tree, and the two books and takes a moment to look at them. “Ah Miss Ditzy Doo. She’s always a welcomed sight in Tenpony. So this Hearth’s Warming, what’s with the box, teddy bear and the rest of it?”
And as they couple set up the house with what little they had for a Hearth’s Warming, Over Sight explained the concept of the holiday and what made it special. Though the set up wasn’t entirely traditional but from what she’d read in the book, it was the thought that counted.
As they looked at the set up that they had made, Far Sight looked a little disheartened and folded his ears back, seeing the nearly dead tree on the corner of their living room with the decorated box that they’d wrapped in the paper that had the teddy bear inside, under the lowest branches and the very book that she had used to help set this up with a few cut up pieces of the paper that she fashioned into a makeshift bow. The small broken star on top of the tree seemed to barely stay on, as if it was too heavy for the weakened tip. “Well… I can’t say it doesn’t look awful. But you’re sure that what the book said about this?”
On the other hoof Over Sight seemed happy at what they had managed to work out. “Yeah. I mean it’s a little rough around the edges. And the Wasteland isn’t exactly gentle to those who call it home… even in a place like this. But I’m sure that she’ll love what we’ve put together for her,” She replies with a smile, though soon they’d see if it really was a gesture their daughter would like.
As if on cue they both heard the sound of a key pushing into the lock of their front door. “We soon will see honey,” He replies as they turn to the door and block what they could of their work with their bodies as the door opened and their daughter stepped inside with her left saddlebag open where she’d dug out the key.
The young mare had a long and braided mane of purple that hung over her left shoulder, while her fur that wasn’t covered by clothes was a deeper almost royal blue that was slightly dusty from being out of the house during the majority of the day. Her loose fitting black button-down shirt rolled up to her knees so she wouldn’t trip on them and the top most button was undone to make it comfortable for her. Thankfully she had gone through a little bit of a growth spurt and she was about mid chest level with her father.
As she kicked up with a rear leg to close the door and at the same time toss her saddlebags off her back onto the floor next to the door once the key was safe back inside. “I’m home mom, dad. Oh… what’s going on?” She asks as she looks at them as she turns to see them looking like they were keeping a secret from her.
“Nothing, your day was ok?” Over Sight asks with a smile as she walks up to her daughter and picks her up in a warm hug.
She in turn hugs her mother back and nuzzles her cheek against hers. “It was ok mother. Another simple day,” She replies as she releases her mother from the hug and looks over to her dad with a smile. “Guard duty go well?”
“As good as can be expected, those things outside the wall don’t give up. Anyway, your mother does have a surprise for you,” He replies with a smile and looks toward his wife and winks to her.
“Well I know you won’t be a little filly much longer, so I thought, with a little help from Miss Doo I’d give you a little something special,” She replies and steps out of her daughters way to show her the Hearts Warming set up they put together while she was out. “I know it isn’t like how I imagine it was Pre-War, but it’s the thought that counts right?”
Their daughter walks up to the display, at first unsure what to make about it, but smiled as she saw the effort they had to go through to make it happen for her. Then in a quick turn she turned around and hugged her parents close, nuzzling into their chests happily. “Thank you… it looks perfect.”
They both hug her back tightly and nuzzle into her mane. “You’re welcome sweetie. Anyway, I did get you a gift.”
“You know you didn’t have to do that mom,” She replies with a smile up at her.
“I know sweetie, but I wanted to,” She replies and lifts a hoof to brush her mane back. “Go ahead sweetie, open it.”
She walks up to the box under the barren tree and pulled apart the paper, tearing it and pulling open the box. Revealing the teddy bear which she pulled from the box and hugged it close then took the notebook out and looked it over a moment and smiled. “Thank you mom,” She replies and rushes toward her and gives her a tight hug, the teddy bear stuck between them.
Over Sight hugs her daughter back as Far Sight walks up to the two of them and hugs them both close, nuzzling his head against the top of Over Sight’s head and closes his eyes, happy to see his daughter’s smile. “You’re welcome sweetie.”
“There’s still one last thing for you,” He replies as he uses his magic to float over the book for her. “Miss Doo gave this to your mother to make this possible and we think it’ll do much better with you than us.”
She breaks the hug to look at the cover of the book and smiles. “Hearts Warming? That’s what it’s called?” She asks as she looks up at her mother and father curiously.
“Yeah. But I’m sure that book can tell you more than I know,” Over Sight replies and brushes her daughter’s mane back out of her face. “Why don’t you go get reading while I make us dinner hen tell us about all you learned?”
“Ok mom,” She says as she takes the book, the teddy bear and the note book up the stairs to her bedroom with a wide smile on her face.
“What do you have planned for dinner tonight Over Sight?” Far Sight asks her when their daughter was out of sight.
“Oh?” She pauses for a moment in thought before looking back to her husband sheepishly. “Think any of the chefs would help us with a nice looking dinner?”
Author's Note
Just a fun little thing I did for a group project. I do hope you enjoy this and the others that will be posted there.
Happy holidays/Merry Christmas/Happy Hearts Warming or what ever you celebrate and have a great time.