The Hearth's Warming Gift

Chapters

Chapter 1 - The Gifts
Chapter 2 - Hearth's Warming Day
Chapter 3 - Twilight and Spike's Visit

Chapter 1 - The Gifts

The Crystal Empire was a place that stayed a comfortable climate all year round, thanks to the spell cast by the Crystal Heart and powered by the love of the crystal ponies. It pushed back the powerful and unrelenting blizzards of the Frozen North and ensured a climate where the ponies and their farm crops could survive.

Of course, that wasn't to say it never got cold here. The enchantment that protected the empire was crafted in such a way that the changing of seasons was still observed, which meant that the summers got warm, and the winters got cold. I had been given fair warning about this change in the climate, but had not taken that warning as seriously as I should have. After all, if ponies could banish the harsh blizzards from here, why not the cold?

One day outside towards the beginning of the winter season was all the confirmation I needed that the ponies had not been joking about the cold weather of winter still being present here in the Empire. Fortunately, a few days’ wait had allowed me to obtain some winter clothing from Miss Rarity of Ponyville. Provided with a winter coat, hat, and boots, I was once again ready to brave the chill that was common for this time of year.

My time in the Empire today was spent with my teacher and friend, Sunburst. In my short stay here so far, he'd shown me a great deal about living with ponies, and even shared some of the love he had with me so I would no longer be starving. I could never thank him enough for all that he had done for me. I just had to make it up to him someday.

Currently, we were standing underneath the palace and looking at the Crystal Heart. He was telling me all about the event that had attracted me to this place to begin with: The Crystalling.

"...and when the shard is joined with the heart, everypony in the empire pours out their love into the streets, and it rushes to the heart, which not only pushes the winter back, but also gives anypony here in the Empire a crystalline appearance, even going as far as to make them translucent."

"Wow," I remarked in surprise, never realizing how strong magic generated from love could be. And to think that my hivemates only looked at it as something to be consumed without a second thought...

The topic of love popped into my mind again as I took notice of something. My senses told me that the love in the Empire was growing again, and since there was not going to be another royal baby born or a crystalling anytime soon, I was at a loss for the cause.

"Um, Sunburst," I began timidly, "can I ask you a question?"

"Of course!" Sunburst replied enthusiastically. "What would you like to know?"

"Well..." I trailed off for a moment, unsure of how I should ask the question. A few times already, I'd made ponies around me rather nervous asking about things related to love, especially if I made mention of noticing how much was around. "I've noticed that there seems to be more love in the air than usual."

"Well, that's not too surprising," Sunburst responded, "what with this being the domain of the Princess of Love, but I'd have to guess what you're feeling is because-"

"Careful with that sled!"

Sunburst was interrupted by a stallion shouting at another group of ponies who were pulling a large sled. Resting atop the sled and held in place by heavy ropes was a large fir tree. They were moving it underneath the palace.

"What's that?" I asked innocently.

"That would be what I was just about to explain to you." Sunburst told me. "That is the Hearth's Warming tree."

"Hearth's Warming?" I said with slight confusion.

Sunburst nodded. "Yep. The tree is one of the symbols that we put up every year around this time. Hearth's Warming is a very special holiday."

Holiday. I'd only ever heard infiltrators coming back from missions talk about them. They always said it was the best time, because ponies produced more love then than they usually did during normal days of the year.

Sunburst looked at Thorax with a little concern. "Please tell me you've heard of Hearth's Warming at least?" he asked, a hopeful look in his eyes.

"Maybe?" I offered with uncertainty. "We don't really have holidays in the hive, and Chrysalis would probably boil a changeling that even thought of celebrating anything to do with ponies."

Sunburst grimaced slightly at the mention of one of Queen Chrysalis' punishments, but then grew a smirk as he saw his opportunity. "Well then, I guess I'll have to teach you about it."

We watched as the ponies moved the tree underneath the palace and set it upright. Once it was in place, they brought in a multitude of wooden crates. Opening them, the workers produced all kinds of decorations: glass balls of many colors, strings of multicolored lights, long strands of garland and equally long strands of a silvery material that kind of shimmered like freshly-fallen snow did. As the workers decorated the tree, Sunburst began explaining the holiday to me.

"Hearth's Warming is the day ponies celebrate the founding of Equestria. Long ago, before even the Princesses were born, ponies lived in separate tribes and had a very tense truce with each other. They only cooperated enough to survive, with earth ponies growing food for all three tribes, the pegasi making sure the crops had good weather to grow, and the unicorns using their magic to move the sun and moon to create days.

"Unfortunately, a massive blizzard forced the leaders of the three tribes to seek out a new land to call home. Chancellor Puddinghead of the earth ponies, Commander Hurricane of the Pegasi, and Princess Platinum of the unicorns all traveled the world until they found the land that was to become Equestria.

"Unfortunately, they all found it at the same time, and began fighting over who had ownership, and not long after, another blizzard came and caused the three to be frozen in ice.

"Their subordinates, Smart Cookie the earth pony, Private Pansy of the pegasi, and Clover the Clever of the unicorns all sought refuge in a cave and spent the time there trying to weather the storm. Meanwhile, Clover deduced that the blizzard was caused by creatures called windigos, who thrived off the hate that ponies had for each other.

"Realizing this, the three chose to set aside their differences and elected to live peacefully with one another. They shared songs and what little food they had around a campfire, and eventually the love and friendship between them created a powerful blaze that destroyed the windigos and ended the blizzard. It was the Fire of Friendship.

"Ever since that day and after Equestria was founded, ponies celebrate the event by decorating their homes and towns during winter, using many different items as symbols."

Sunburst then gestured with his hoof at the tree, and then the ornaments. "The Hearth's Warming tree represents the fortitude of the three ponies who stood strong together against the windigos, and it's a fir tree because they're one of the few trees that keep their color, even in the coldest parts of winter."

He then gestured to the various objects that were being placed on the tree by the ponies. "Those ornaments represent the food and merriment that was shared by the three ponies in the cave."

His last gesture was to point at a heart-shaped decoration being placed at the top of the tree. "The heart at the top of the tree represents the Fire of Friendship, and is placed there as a symbolic gesture of keeping the windigos away for good."

"Wow, that sounds amazing!" I said upon hearing the explanation of the holiday. A time of year to celebrate the joining together of ponies and the original friendships that helped found the country? It only made sense that they would celebrate in such a grand way. "So, what do ponies do to celebrate, besides all the decorations?"

"Lots of stuff!" Sunburst continued explaining. "The most common ones are pageants held by each town in Equestria where they reenact the events of Hearth's Warming. Besides that, most ponies elect to go to their friends' and families' houses and spend time together, singing songs and giving gifts."

Gifts, I thought to myself. I understood those from previous lessons and conversations I'd had with Sunburst. Essentially a representation of the gratitude one felt towards another pony, gifts were a part of friendship that weren't a necessity for it to work, but one that did help strengthen the bond.

Thinking back to everything that had happened to me since coming here, I came to realize how much gratitude I owed to so many ponies. I owed a great deal of thanks to Spike, my first real friend, who gave me a chance and convinced everypony else to do the same. I also owed gratitude to Princess Twilight, as she was the first pony to accept me as a friend after hearing Spike out. I especially owed thanks to Cadance, as she’d permitted me to stay here so I could learn what I had about friendship and sharing love, and that I hoped to continue doing.

My thoughts then turned to Captain Shining Armor, whom I had a hard time finding gratitude for. Since the first day we'd met, he'd shown me a great deal of mistrust, and insisted that I be watched when not in the company of Princess Cadance or Sunburst. Even the few times I tried to start a simple and polite conversation, he was quick to rebuff me.

Of course, I couldn't blame him too much for his treatment of me. Queen Chrysalis had left a very bad taste in his mouth in regards to my kind. I would probably not be too quick to trust a changeling if I had been hypnotized and had the love I felt for another pony taken against my will, and then seen it used to cause harm to one of the most important ponies in the whole world, one which I was charged with protecting.

My thoughts drifted again upon thinking of protection, moving quickly to another pony that I owed thanks to. Well, not so much pony as changeling.

"Thorax?" Sunburst asked me with concern. "You doin' okay?"

Shaken from my thoughts, I flashed a small smile. "Sorry. I was thinking of my older broodmate."

"You mean Pharynx?" Sunburst asked, seeking confirmation. I nodded; we'd discussed family in a lesson and I'd mentioned Pharynx to him.

"Yeah," I answered. "I was thinking how much thanks I owe him, for all the times he protected me from bullies as a nymph. I wish there was a way I could show him my appreciation, but I don't think going back to the hive would be a good idea."

"Probably not," Sunburst agreed, "especially after you told me what you had to do to get away from there."

I nodded in agreement. My leaving hadn't exactly been allowed by the Queen, so if I ever went back, chances were it would be the last thing I ever did.

"It's probably for the best anyways," I admitted. "Even if I could go back without problems, I doubt Pharynx would much appreciate me showing him gratitude. Knowing him, he'd probably 'show his own gratitude' by giving me a pony wrapped up in a cocoon."

Sunburst looked uneasy at the mention of a cocooned pony. I was about to apologize for making him uncomfortable, but he changed the conversation topic before I had the chance to. "Why don't we head back to the palace now?" he suggested. "I can give you a book on Hearth's Warming to read, and even a few about other holidays in Equestria."

"Okay," I replied as we headed back towards the palace and out of the cold.

A few days had passed since my conversation with Sunburst about Hearth's Warming, and I still had the thoughts in my head about giving gifts. That was something that I definitely wanted to do, but the question in my mind was: what should I get everypony?

Some of the ponies I wanted to get gifts for were fairly straightforward. Sunburst had given me several books to keep so that I could study things on my own, and I remembered Princess Twilight saying she wanted one of the books he'd given me, but had a hard time finding a copy. Giving that book to her seemed a good choice, and I was sure Sunburst wouldn't mind, seeing as I had gotten my share of use out of it, and it would be going to a pony that would definitely take good care of it.

Spike loved comic books and gems, and a recent adventure with Sunburst into some caves allowed me to gather some gems that I knew the dragon liked to eat, so a box of delectable dragon treats sounded like a really good idea. How could you go wrong with food?, I thought to myself.

Sunburst and Princess Cadance were the hardest to think of gifts for. I had very little else I could give either of them, and most of that were things that they themselves had given to me. To gift them things back after they had given them to me seemed rather rude, or at least that's what I thought.

I spent a great deal of time pacing back and forth in the room the Princess had provided me, trying to think of something I could give them to show the gratitude I felt towards her and Sunburst. As I absentmindedly turned around, I bumped into a stack of stuff related to a hobby I'd recently taken up: painting. Fortunately, I had not left my paints sitting out, so only a blank canvas and easel tumbled to the floor.

Grumbling to myself, I picked up the easel and set it back up and returned the canvas to its proper place. As I did so, a thought crossed my mind. There were many paintings in the palace, but none that featured the Princess, Captain, or their young filly. Surely that was something they would have done at some point.

In that moment, the proverbial candle flame flashed into existence. "Of course!" I said to myself. "I'll paint them a portrait!" The thought made me happy as I knew this would be the perfect gift to give them. Without further thought, I went over to my dresser, where one of the drawers held my painting supplies and started to grab several brushes and a palette. Deciding on colors, a thought then caused me to stop and reconsider.

The canvas I had on the easel was not particularly large, only marginally bigger than my head. Something about that made me feel that the portrait was going to be inadequate, and that before I got started properly, I would need a much larger canvas. Hopefully a guard wouldn't be too annoyed with following me to the craft store to get one.

Chapter 2 - Hearth's Warming Day

The trip to the craft store was uneventful, with the exception of ponies still looking at me with nervous expressions. I just had to keep reminding myself that, sooner or later, those looks would go away once they realized I was not here to cause them harm. Ignoring the looks for the time being, I made my way back to the castle, a canvas nearly as big as me across my back. It was wrapped in brown paper and tied up with twine, some of which I held in my mouth to keep things steady.

Once I got back to my room in the palace, I set the canvas off to the side and went for one of the sketchpads I had sitting around. During my indirect journey to the Crystal Empire, I had gotten to see bits and pieces of pony life, and learned about the wonderful hobbies associated with art. Princess Cadance wanted to support my enthusiasm, so she’d given me some pencils and sketchpads so I could practice drawing. Not long after I’d begun sketching, I’d moved on to paints and canvas. While it was rewarding, the change of medium brought its own challenges; paint would not erase nearly as easy as pencil marks.

I set about making a sketch for the painting, thinking of the subjects and the setting. As I did so, I referred to my paint sets, looking at the numbers on the tubes and making a note of whether or not I would need more; I most likely would, as my reds and greens were nearly used up and they were some of the prevalent colors associated with the upcoming holiday. I sketched a few different ideas before I ultimately settled on one that I was satisfied with.

Tearing the paper from the sketchpad, I set it aside and worked on a sketch for my next painting idea, which would be a gift for Sunburst. I couldn't think of a good gift to give him, but I thought about the one time I had visited his house in the Empire and its lack of decoration, save for the large number of bookcases, so I decided to paint a portrait for him as well. I made up a simple sketch that I felt would translate well for a painting of the stallion: it would be of him sitting in a chair, reading a book by candlelight in his book-laden home, and by his side would be a red-colored beverage that I had been told he would enjoy from time to time - a Ruby Mare.

Once satisfied with my ideas, I set about translating them to the canvas. My first order of business was to transfer my sketch over to the canvas using the method Sunburst had actually recommended shortly after I’d taken up painting. He’d loaned me a device he called an overhead: a large metal box with a light inside that shone through an opaque piece of glass, with an arm attached to the side that had a mirror and lens fastened to that. I would get a piece of vellum and draw over my sketch and place the vellum onto the overhead and turn the light on. The light would travel through the lens and be projected outward and onto the canvas, giving me a more reliable means to produce my work than trying to go from memory.

A yawn and glance out of a nearby window told me that it was night time, and it would serve me better to accomplish my task in the morning, when I’d be well rested. Besides, as Sunburst had informed me, I still had plenty of time before the actual day of Hearth's Warming and the subsequent giving of gifts. It would work out for the best anyways. I would have to return to the craft store tomorrow with my list of paints to make sure I had enough once I did actually get started. I just hoped my painting skills would be good enough to do the Princess and her family justice on canvas.

I returned from the craft store the following morning with all the paints I would need to make the portraits. I was about to begin when I looked over my previous day's sketches and concluded that they would be unsatisfactory. They were a good starting point, but they still lacked the necessary details that would help make the finished portrait the something special I was hoping for it to be. I would need to do another sketch for each portrait and make sure I ironed out everything before I put even one brushstroke down on canvas.

Taking the sketchpad and a freshly-sharpened pencil, I set about making the appropriate sketches. Sunburst's sketch didn't require quite as many details as the one of Princess Cadance, Shining Armor, and Flurry Heart, so I was able to get that one finished relatively quickly. The portrait of the Royal Family proved to be much trickier. Regardless of my effort, I kept finding some kind of mistake that needed correcting: a misshapen eye, a lip that didn't look right, a horn that was too large or small for a pony's head, and so on.

Having gone through several sketches, I tossed the pad onto a table and let out a groan of frustration. How was I going to get the details necessary to make this painting the master work it deserved to be? There was no question that it had to be the best I could make it: Princess Cadance had gone against her own husband's misgivings and given me a place to stay here in the Empire. At the very least, she deserved my one-hundred-and-ten-percent effort.

Deciding I should clear my head, I went into the bathroom and splashed some water onto my face. As I reached for a towel, I looked up into the mirror and stopped.

Of course! Why hadn't I thought of this earlier? I was a changeling! I could adopt the appearance of whatever pony I wanted to! I could just turn into the ponies I wanted to paint a portrait of and sketch them as I looked myself over in the mirror! I could get all the necessary details I would need just by using a little of my magic! It was ingenious!

I wiped my hooves and face dry and immediately ran back out to my room to grab my sketchpad and pencil, returning to the bathroom and my place in front of the mirror. Clearing my mind and focusing, I felt the wash of magic take over my form, and when it cleared, a perfect copy of Princess Cadance was standing in front of the mirror.

I quickly set to work with this new idea in mind. After several minutes, in which I changed to Shining Armor and Flurry Heart, I finally had the sketch perfected. It would translate into a family portrait that I was sure the Princess would be proud to display here in the palace. I smiled happily as I then set about transferring the sketch work to vellum so I could get to painting as soon as I possibly could.

I had started the actual painting a few days later. In that time, I had gotten my gifts for Princess Twilight and Spike wrapped and sent through the mail, which Sunburst had recommended I do now since it would take longer than normal for those gifts to get there because of so many ponies sending their own gifts at this time of year. Things were going well, though I was still having some trouble with smaller details; shading had always been something I had a bit of trouble with. Fortunately, the idea I’d had during the sketching phase still worked soundly for the process of painting, and with Sunburst's assistance in acquiring a free-standing mirror, I was able to paint the portrait as I disguised myself as all three of the subjects in the portrait.

After nearly a week had passed, I was finally finished, and I stepped back to marvel at my work. There was no question in my mind that Princess Cadance was going to love this. I was even confident that little Flurry would enjoy the finished piece, though the adults in the room would have to be mindful of her around it; little hooves weren't the best thing for a painting. The only question left was what Prince Shining Armor would think of my gift to his family.

The stallion still had misgivings about me, despite my efforts to assuage his fears and concerns. A part of me couldn't blame him too much for his behavior; his wedding day had almost been ruined by Queen Chrysalis and her attempt to invade Canterlot while disguised as his bride. That would leave a bad taste in my mouth too, but what he was showing me was more or less outright bigotry.

That's why I wanted this painting to be the best I could possibly make it. Perhaps if he saw the amount of effort that I put into this painting, and the amount of love I tried to pour into it as well, he would be convinced of my desire to live here with ponies peacefully, and would perhaps begin warming up to me just a bit. It was a good bit to hope for, but it didn't feel totally impossible. At least, not yet, anyway.

I went to work on the portrait for Sunburst and was able to finish it with just enough time to allow the paint to dry enough to wrap the two portraits. The palace had a plethora of wrapping paper, and the staff were willing to accommodate my needs. Once the wrapping was finished, I went straight to bed. Tomorrow was Hearth's Warming, and I was going to present these ponies with the best gift I could think to give them.

"Dang it! Dang it! Dang it! Dang it!"

I cursed under my breath as I galloped through the halls of the Crystal Palace, checking every place I could think of to find the Princess and her family. Behind me followed a flatbed cart upon which the two paintings rested. A guard was currently flanking me, and didn't much appreciate that I was giving him a round of calisthenics on what was supposed to be, at most, a light-duty day for him. I would apologize for it as soon as I found the Royal Family.

Running into a room, I came across a unicorn stallion polishing some ornate silver decoration. I slowed down, and in doing so, my running had caught up to me. Feeling a burning in my chest from not breathing as I ran, I stood before the stallion gasping for air.

"What's got you so worked up bug?" he asked me with a smirk. A second of steadying breaths to calm myself, and I recognized who I was looking at.

"Flitz!" I answered once able to breathe normally again. "Do you know where the Princess and Captain are?"

The guard behind me gave a very annoyed huff. Before I could ask what his problem was, Flitz gave an answer.

"Of course I do!" Flitz answered rather cheerily. "They're in the drawing room."

I smacked a hoof to my face; of course they were in the drawing room! The last time I’d been in there, several servants had been setting up a tree and decorating it. Even the Princess had been there watching them and had made a comment about how wonderful it would be to sit there and watch Flurry unwrap her gifts.

I was going to thank Flitz for his information, but noticed him snickering just a bit. "Something funny?" I asked him curiously.

"Kind of," he said as he tried not to burst out laughing. "Your guard here could've just told you where the Princess and Prince were right now. It is his job to know."

Oh... eggshells. I turned back towards the guard who had been following me and gave him a sheepish smile. "Sorry."

The guard's response was to simply glare daggers at me and then let out a sigh. "I suppose there's no harm done," he admitted. "Worst thing that happened is I got a little winded. Now, how about we go to the place I could've told you to go to in the first place if you weren't running around like that fin on the back of your head was on fire?"

"Um, y-yeah," I sheepishly agreed as we turned and left the room. As we did, I heard Flitz laughing quite hard at my behavior. Chitin didn't change color in its natural state, but I was fairly certain my blushing would be seen very clearly if it did.

After a few more minutes' walk, part of which was spent on an elevator to get us to the correct floor, I stepped into the drawing room. As I remembered from last time, there was a large fir tree to one side that was decorated from top to bottom in various ornaments. Looking around the room, I saw a buffet service set up with various breakfast foods in heated dishes. I also took notice to the fireplace and the large log that created a powerful blaze; the Fire of Friendship, as it were.

Resting on the mantle above the fire, I noticed several decorations of miscellaneous things: a few pictures in small frames, an award of one kind or another in a display case, and a set of small dolls that Sunburst had told me were Hearth's Warming dolls. There was one for Captain Shining Armor, one for Princess Cadance, one for Flurry Heart, one for Sunburst, and-

"Is that...?"

I approached the fireplace to look more closely at the strange doll at the end of the mantle. It was a black unicorn with sky-blue eyes, but it appeared to have two fangs jutting out from the mouth. More surprising was the gossamer fabric resting on its back, and legs that were full of holes. I looked at the doll for a moment before the reality of the situation finally sank in.

It was me. Somepony had made a Hearth's Warming doll for me. But who?

I was roused from my stupor when I saw Cadance enter my vision from my left. Reflexively, I turned and bowed to greet her. "Good morning, Princess!" I said warmly to her.

"Good morning to you too, Thorax", she said as she returned the greeting, "and Happy Hearth's Warming."

"Thank you," I said in response as my eyes found their way back to the mantle and the doll of me sitting there.

"I figured you should have one," Cadance told me as she herself looked at the doll, "seeing as you're celebrating your first actual Hearth's Warming with us."

"I honestly don't know what to say," I admitted to her. "I never expected anypony to do something like this for me."

"Nonsense," Cadance dismissed the thought with a wave of her hoof. "Hearth's Warming is about unity and friendship. It's the time of year ponies do things like this for others. It shows the love and appreciation they have for each other."

I had no words to respond to what she’d said to me, so I simply smiled. She opened her hooves to me and invited me in for a hug. I leaned in and she wrapped her forelegs around me. I could feel the warmth of her love seeping into my carapace; I'd been told that as long as the love was intended for me, I was allowed to draw upon it. I had no problem with that stipulation whatsoever, as my entire purpose of coming here to the Empire had been to make friends and learn how to share love. I wrapped my forelegs around her back and returned the hug, wondering to myself if I was actually giving some of my own love to the Princess in return for what she was giving me. A part of me wanted to think so; the previous times I'd hugged ponies and tried to give them some of my own love, it would always give me a warm feeling deep down inside.

"Ahem!"

Princess Cadance and I both turned to see Captain Shining Armor sitting on a sofa in the room. He was looking at me with his usual disapproving look and holding his daughter in his forehooves. Sunburst was sitting at the far end, watching the Princess and me giving each other hugs.

"If you're done getting your breakfast from my wife," Shining said rather curtly, "we would like to get our Hearth's Warming morning underway."

I ignored the first part of what the Captain had said; he'd made it clear on several occasions that he did not approve of me feeding on the love of other ponies, even if it was meant for me and I had their consent. What I didn't ignore was the fact that he’d said they wanted to get their morning underway. Had they actually waited for me to show up?

"I insisted that we not begin until you arrived," Cadance confirmed. "Since you don't have any actual family here, my husband and I agreed that you could join our celebration and watch Flurry as she opens up her gifts."

I made note of her inflection about the captain, and also saw his eyes roll from the corner of my own eyes. The way I understood it, that tone had meant that the Princess had decided I was going to celebrate with them, and that it was going to happen regardless of what objections the Captain had. I felt a bit saddened by that fact; I'd come to the Empire to share love, not mistrust and strife. "Oh, and I forgot to mention that I have another surprise for you," she then told me.

A surprise? What kind of surprise?

"I got a letter yesterday that said that Twilight would be coming to visit this afternoon after she spent the morning with her and Shining's parents in Canterlot, and she'll be coming here with Spike too!"

Upon hearing the name, I became very happy. Spike, my first friend ever and the only one to stand up for me and convince the crystal ponies to let me stay here in the Empire, was coming to visit. Even though I had written him letters, I still had a great deal I wanted to tell him. I was so excited, my wings were buzzing!

Princess Cadance smiled at my behavior, then returned to the sofa and invited me to sit in a single chair close by the fireplace. "I figured that you might be cold, so I moved this chair closer to the fire so that you could be warmer."

I uttered a quick thank you as I took a seat, making sure to calm down and stop my wings from buzzing. Admittedly, the warm seat did feel rather good on my body.

Shining gave Flurry back to Cadance and got up from the sofa. "Now that everyone's here, let's get with the opening of presents." As he said this, his magic reached out and took a gift marked for Flurry and presented it to the young filly. She eagerly took the package and tore into the paper, revealing a set of wooden blocks with various letters on the sides. She babbled happily as she took the blocks in her magic. Cadance smiled as she saw her daughter excitedly begin playing with the new toy she'd been given.

As she did so, a small box was presented to her by her husband. "And a gift for my wonderful wife," he said to her with a smile. The Princess then took the gift and unwrapped it with her magic, the technique producing much less mess than her daughter had. Once unwrapped, a black box with a velvet exterior was on display. The Princess opened it and let out a gasp.

Inside the box was a golden necklace with a large ruby shaped into a heart. "It's beautiful, Shining," the Princess told her husband as she leaned in and the two then shared a kiss. After the kiss broke, Shining's eyes went to me and again I felt his disapproval in the same way I felt the fire's heat on the back of the chair; it had been enchanted against catching fire, which was why it could sit so close to the fireplace. He clearly must've thought I was going to feed on the love he was giving to his wife. I wanted to look back in disgust at him, as I would never stoop as low as my brethren to feed on something so personal and dear, but that would likely get me into trouble, even if it was only with Shining.

As they broke their kiss, Cadance presented Shining with his own gift. Quickly and neatly opening the paper, he was greeted with a contraption I'd only ever seen newsponies use. "A photo camera!" he said with a smile. "Now we can make a photo album of Flurry as she grows." The Captain then walked over to his filly and pointed the device at the babbling filly. A click was followed by a bright flash, and then a piece of enchanted parchment came out the side, showing the foal as she had been moments ago on the sofa.

"The first of many photographs, I'm sure," I thought as I watched the filly rub the spots caused by the camera flash from her eyes.

Cadance then grabbed another gift from the tree and presented it to Sunburst. Opening it, the stallion was met with a copy of a rare spell book he'd spent a great deal of time searching for but could not find. He gave Cadance a hug as a show of thanks. I saw Shining give no reaction and was admittedly a bit jealous; I really wanted to be able to hug a pony in front of him and not have him try to set me ablaze with his eyes.

Cadance then lifted up another gift and presented it to her daughter. As she did so, she then presented me with a gift of my own.

"Huh?"

I looked up at her with confusion, but she urged me to open the package. I stared at it for a moment: It was wrapped in red paper with a green ribbon tied around it, the ends forming a large bow. On one side there was a tag that simply read "for Thorax". I looked at her again, and I was once again encouraged to open the box, so I did as such. Despite not having the greatest grasp of telekinesis, I was able to undo the bow and open up the paper. Behind the wrapping was a white cardboard box. I didn't see a way to open it initially, but soon figured out that the top of the box slid off, so I took it in my hooves and lifted it off to see what was inside.

I was stunned beyond the ability to speak. Resting inside the box was a very well made plush doll. It had a purple body, and green fins going off the two cheeks of the face and on the top of the head going all the way down to the tail. It had two stubby legs with feet at the ends, and the top two arms had claw-tipped hands at the end. I slowly came back to my senses as I realized that the plush doll in my hooves was a perfect replica of Spike.

"Since you never really get the chance to see him that often," Cadance told me, "I decided that you should have something to remember Spike by, so I went to a doll maker here in the empire and asked them to make the best possible version of the Empire's hero they could. Needless to say, I believe they have outdone themselves. Now, in some small way, you can spend time with Spike whenever you want."

I continued looking over the doll in my magic as I tried to put the proper words together. I was so stunned that the Princess had gotten something so nice for me, it caused my brain to stop working for a moment. Finally, my mind was able to come up with a response.

"This has to be the best doll of anything I've ever seen made. Thank you so much, Princess." I rose from the chair and moved over to her, taking her into a hug that she returned. Shining Armor still looked at me rather disapprovingly, but I chose to ignore it. I was showing my appreciation for the wonderful gift the princess had given me. Was that something I wasn't supposed to do?

"So, Thorax," I heard Sunburst say to me, "do you mind if I open the present you were going to give me?"

Oh, shells! I'd almost forgotten about the gifts that I had made and brought with me! I disengaged from the hug and went back to my chair. "G-go ahead!" I told him, perhaps a bit too eagerly. Sunburst paid no mind as he took the smaller portrait and began to unwrap it. I watched intently, eager to see what my friend's reaction to the gift would be.

Sunburst looked at the portrait for quite some time, his eyes wide as he examined all the details. Then he turned to me and gave me a big hug. "This is amazing, Thorax!" the stallion said as his grip quickly became that of a bear hug. "Thank you so much!"

"N-no p-problem!" I forced out in response. He eventually let up and I could breathe comfortably again. I had only just recovered when Cadance took hold of the other painting.

"You've painted something for us too?" she asked. I just gave a nod in confirmation. Cadance looked over Sunburst's painting a gave me a warm smile. "Then I hope it is just as good as what you gave to Sunburst."

I knew that she had not intended for the comment to make me nervous, but it had all the same. Would the painting I'd made for the Princess and her family live up to their expectations? Had I just wasted all of that paint and that large canvas on subpar work?

The paper was removed carefully as my work was put on full display for the royal family for the first time.

In the painting, Princess Cadance and Captain Shining Armor were both sitting in front of a fireplace looking ahead, their daughter placed between them and looking up. Just behind Cadance was a Hearth's Warming tree, decorated in all manner of opulent ornamentation such as colored glass balls and strands of garland and tinsel. The Princess was in her full regalia, while the Captain was wearing the red uniform that he'd worn on his wedding day and to some of the special occasions that had occurred since. From what I had been told, it was an heirloom that had belonged to a member of his family.

The reactions to the portrait were... honestly, I was uncertain what everypony thought of it. Cadance herself had much the same appearance Sunburst had upon seeing his portrait for the first time. Sunburst looked at the portrait with amazement, but it didn't seem to be nearly as much as when he saw his own painting. Flurry babbled something and reached her hooves out to the portrait, restrained back by her father.

After some time, Cadance finally spoke. "Thorax, this is..."

I hung my head in disappointment. Of course I had failed to-

My thoughts at the moment were cut short as a pink blur wrapped around me tighter than a python and I was taken to the floor.

"Amazing!" the princess finished as she then placed a small peck on my cheek. Looking up at her in confusion, I was about to stutter something dumbly when she spoke up again.

"I've had the idea to do a family portrait for some time now, but I never could seem to find the time between all of my duties and my husband's obligations to the Guard. I never thought I would get the time to have an actual, properly-painted portrait of my family done, and now I don't have to worry about it! Thank you so much, Thorax!"

The last part was punctuated by the Princess again placing a light kiss on my cheek. I didn't know if I had absorbed any more love from her, but it honestly felt like I could go for a whole month without feeding and never be hungry for a second.

"Oh, I can't wait for Aunt Celestia to see this!" she beamed as she again looked at the painting. "Oh! Twilight and Spike! They're gonna want to see this too!" As she released me, I found my way back to my hooves and returned to the chair I had been sitting in.

Flurry was floating up to the painting and reaching her hooves out to it, but Cadance very quickly stopped her. "We can't touch the painting, Flurry," the Princess told her filly. "We don't want to ruin all of the hard work Mister Thorax put in to make such a wonderful portrait for us."

The foal babbled disapprovingly, but didn't make any more effort to be more hooves-on with the portrait.

I had seen Cadance and Flurry's reactions to the painting, as well as Sunburst's, but I had not yet seen Shining's reaction to my gift. As I looked to the stallion, I saw that he also had the same kind of shocked look in his eyes. Unlike his wife, he was quick to become suspicious. "Where did you get this painting?" he said accusingly.

"I painted it myself" I answered with a small amount of pride.

"Horseapples!" he spat back. "Who painted this for you?"

"Nopony painted it for me," I said with more conviction. "I painted that portrait myself."

Shining looked over the painting for another moment before looking at the guard who had followed me here. "You've been watching him part of this past week,” he said as he pointed to the guard. "Did he really paint this himself?"

"Yes, Sir!" the guard replied with a salute. "He did paint that portrait himself."

Shining Armor scrutinized the guard before casting some kind of spell on the stallion, causing the pony to shiver as the energy passed over him. Upon finishing, Shining adopted a scowl. He looked at me and simply said "Fine. This time you're not lying."

As he kept up his scrutiny, he asked more questions. "How did you get all of these details? There's no way you could've done this from memory."

I was hesitant to reply, but a look to Sunburst for reassurance gave me just a bit of confidence. "To be honest, I actually used a mirror as I painted."

Shining was confused for a second before he realized what I meant and became upset. "I thought I had told you not to disguise yourself in the palace?"

Cadance stepped in and stopped her husband. "Shining, he was in his own room at the time, so it wasn't like he was actively trying to deceive anypony about who he really was. Besides, if that was what he needed to do to make such an amazing portrait, then I have no problem with him doing that."

"But Cady!" the Captain tried to protest, but was quickly shot down by the mare.

"No buts, Shining! Thorax here put in a lot of effort to make this wonderful family portrait for us, and I think the very least you can do is say thank you to him for making it."

Shining wanted to protest further, but he knew he wouldn't win an argument on this subject with his wife. He looked over the painting again and let out a defeated sigh. Finally he turned to me, and surprisingly, wasn't glaring daggers at me.

"You... actually did a really good job with this," he admitted, his eyes not making contact with mine. "...Thank you for the gift" he finally said as he grabbed another gift and presented it to Flurry.

I stood there stunned for several moments. Since I first was accepted here in the Crystal Empire by Princess Cadance, Shining Armor had not said one nice thing to me in all that time. In that moment, actually hearing him give me praise for my efforts and thanking me, I felt lighter than air. Could this finally be the moment when he started to reconsider his position and actually give me a chance to prove I wasn't some deceitful monster here to drain every last drop of love from everypony I could get my hooves on?

I could only hope so. Time would give the final verdict on that decision, but as I watched Flurry open the rest of her presents that morning, I had more hope in my heart than I had had since I first came here in search of a friend. Somehow, I knew things would get better between me and Shining Armor from this point forward.

Author's Note

Merry Christmas/Happy Hanukkah/Happy Kwanzaa/Happy Hearth's Warming/Happy Holidays to all! This is a story I wanted to do for the holiday season, and am happy with how it turned out. I'd like to thank theOwtcast for their contributions, from adding parts to the story, proofreading, and the pictures they did to feature in the story. This little tale couldn't have been what it is without their input. I certainly hope whomever comes and reads this story finds it enjoyable and will check out some of our other works as well.

Chapter 3 - Twilight and Spike's Visit

I sat in the drawing room watching the royal family continue opening their presents. Shining had given Cadance a tiara in a similar design to the necklace that he'd given her earlier, and Cadance had given him a framed photograph of himself as a younger stallion with a group of other young stallions, all of them wearing the same simple armor as one another. According to him, it was from when he was still a rookie in the ranks of the guard, and just shortly after he and Cadance had began dating.

Sunburst had given Shining some new defensive spells that were meant to be much less energy-consuming than the ones he had been using before. A quick demonstration of one spell showed that it was a modification of the same shield spell he'd used to protect Canterlot during his wedding. I shivered a little upon recognizing it; being hit by that blast of energy had not been a comfortable experience. Shining took notice of my reaction, but didn't show any malice towards me for it. Honestly, I thought he would've smiled upon seeing me cower slightly at his casting of the spell.

Sunburst then gave Cadance a gift as well. It was a bottle of amber liquid that had the word brandy written on the outside. I was familiar with the liquid, and understood that if a pony were to consume too much of it at one time, it could have some very negative effects on them, or at the very least make them act like a complete idiot. Cadance thanked him for the gift and placed the bottle into a cabinet, where several other bottles were residing.

Sunburst had given Flurry a present as well. The foal tore open the wrapping paper and discovered a book inside. It was a pop-up book, where some cardboard fixtures would spring up when the page was opened, and some even had little tabs or wheels that could be interacted with. This particular book was about animals living in the forest.

Flurry received several more gifts as well, including a plush bear, a ring-stacking toy, a simple wooden puzzle, and blanket that appeared to be made from a very soft material. The little foal babbled happily upon receiving the presents, eagerly playing with the toys and plush bear. Cadance and Shining both sat there watching the filly play, smiling happily as their daughter enjoyed her presents.

Part of me wished that I had thought to bring her a present as well, but I was unsure of what kind of gift I could give her. Another part of me felt that Shining Armor wouldn't allow her to have any gift I would think to give her, so my failure to obtain a present for the little filly may have been a moot point anyways.

"Gah?"

I was snapped from my thoughts by the little princess. I looked down to see her sitting with her wooden puzzle. She was looking up at me expectantly.

"Aww!" I heard Cadance say as she looked at her daughter. "I believe Flurry wants you to play with her."

I suddenly felt nervous. Shining had not been keen on me interacting with his daughter, surely believing that I might try to drain her or otherwise cause her harm. I looked at the stallion to see his reaction. He considered me for a moment, and then his daughter. I expected him to discourage her choice in playmate, but he surprised me when he gave me a simple nod.

Was he actually giving me permission to interact with her?

"Well, Thorax," Cadance said so as to get my attention, "are you going to help her with her puzzle?"

I sat still for a moment before nodding and sliding off of the chair. Almost immediately, I began to miss the warm sensation it left on my carapace, but the room was quite comfortable with the fire going, so it wasn't as if I was in some great discomfort being away from it.

Looking down, I took stock of the puzzle. It was shaped like both a heart and a flame; the fire of friendship, I assumed. There were twenty total pieces, which Flurry had scattered about on the floor. Each piece had a small wooden knob in the center, likely so earth ponies and pegasi could manipulate the pieces and play with the puzzle as well. I didn't see any of the interlocking teeth on the pieces like the puzzles that Sunburst and I would do every now and again; that was likely because this was a puzzle meant for foals, and they would likely break the pieces in frustration if they were too complex to fit together.

Flurry took a few pieces in her magic and began trying to fit them together. After she had managed to put a few into what appeared to be their proper place, she then looked at me expectantly.

"Right," I said to myself. "She wants me to do the puzzle with her." Electing to use my magic, I took a piece in my grasp and set it down into the appropriate place. Flurry giggled happily as she got more pieces and set about trying to put them in place.

We played with the puzzle for a few more minutes until we completed it. Flurry made some excited babbling noises, clearly delighted that we'd finished the puzzle together. As she was celebrating, my eyes found their way over to Shining Armor, who had a look I wasn't expecting. He looked happy, but that couldn't be right. How was he suddenly okay with letting his daughter play with a changeling?

A member of the palace staff knocked on the door and entered the room. "I apologize for the interruption," the mare said to them, "but Princess Twilight and Spike have just arrived."

Hearing the news got me quite excited again, so much that my wings once again started buzzing. Shining gave me a look, and I offered an apology before getting my wings under control again.

"Thorax," Cadance said, "would you like to come down and greet our guests?"

I knew that she knew I wanted to, as she asked me that question with a knowing smile on her face.

"Yes, I would," was my response. Shining took Flurry in his magic and the five of us left the drawing room and walked down to the palace entrance.

As we walked, I kept thinking about Shining's reactions to me interacting with his daughter. I had been surprised that he allowed me to interact with her at all, but his being okay with it might simply have been because he was there to keep an eye on me as I played with her. But how come he hadn't made a comment about me using my magic? Surely he would've been suspicious and thought I might've been trying to feed on Flurry.

I took a chance and glanced over at the stallion as we walked. He didn't acknowledge my look, or at least he didn't show any awareness of it outwardly. I decided to try and feel his emotions, and upon doing so found them to be rather conflicted. There was animosity, but also confusion. The strange combination baffled me; it didn't surprise me that he still felt anger towards me, but where had the confusion come from?

My thoughts on the matter were pushed to the back of my mind as we neared the entrance to the palace. Inside the entryway waiting for us were two creatures. The first was an alicorn mare, with purple body, a dark bluish mane and tail with purple and pink streaks, and a cutie mark of a star with six smaller stars surrounding it. Next to her was a dragon, who was also a purple color, but adorned with green fins and spines. As soon as the two saw us, they broke into a trot.

"Shiny!" the alicorn shouted as she took the stallion into a hug.

"Twily!" he returned, wrapping his hooves around his sister.

After their hug, Cadance greeted Twilight with their special dance. Something about sunshine and ladybugs. I honestly found it a little amusing, and I guess one could say a little cute as well.

As Twilight greeted her brother and sister-in-law, I looked down to see the dragon who had become my first friend approaching me. "Hey, Thorax," he greeted me.

"Hi, Spike," I returned, then knelt down so that he and I could share a hug. He radiated love towards me, and I did my best to return it. After a moment, we broke from the hug and I stood back up.

"Sorry we couldn't be here this morning," Twilight told everyone, "but I haven't spent Hearth's Warming with my parents in so long that I really wanted to do it this year."

"That's okay, Twily," Shining replied. "I haven't spent a Hearth's Warming with them in a while either."

"Perhaps we could invite everypony here for Hearth's Warming next year?" Cadance offered.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea!" Twilight agreed enthusiastically.

After an exchange of a few stories and Twilight briefly fawning over her niece, we returned to the drawing room, where Flurry returned to her toys.

"I can't believe how much she's growing!" Twilight remarked as she watched the filly play.

"Hopefully she'll be grown enough to use the potty soon," Cadance said in half-reply as she smiled at her filly playing. "I don't think the royal budget can afford to spend anymore on diapers."

"I'm sure they can't be that expensive," Twilight said a little dismissively.

Cadance shot her a little bit of a look. "Twilight, it's not uncommon for Flurry to go through an entire package of diapers in one day. You can ask the palace staff if you don't believe me."

Twilight wanted to say something in rebuttal, but could see the serious look on her sister in law's face. She changed the subject. "So, Sunburst," she addressed the other pony stallion in the room, "did my brother and sister-in-law get you any good presents?"

"They sure did!" he said enthusiastically, then produced the spell book he'd received earlier. Twilight saw the cover and became ecstatic.

"Mage Meridian's Medical Magics for Malignant Maladies?!" she shouted in excitement.

"Mhm," Sunburst replied, "but that's not all." He then opened the cover, and Twilight saw the writing on the inside page, and let out a sound that was like an excited squeaking.

"She even signed it!" Twilight said through a large grin. "Oh, I am so jealous of you right now!"

As Twilight and Sunburst fawned over his book, Spike took notice of the Hearth's Warming dolls on the mantle. "Did you make this one yourself?" he asked me as he gestured to the doll made in my likeness.

"No I didn't," I answered. "Princess Cadance had it made for me as a surprise."

"Well, whoever made it did a really good job," he remarked, then made his way over to a cushion on the floor and sat down. "So," he continued, "did you get any presents for Hearth's Warming?"

"Actually, I did," I answered, then retrieved the box that held my gift from Cadance. He took it and then removed the top. "Wow," was all he could say as he lifted the doll out of the box. Seeing it against him now, I could tell the plushie had been made life-size. "This is amazing!" Spike said as he examined his fabric doppelgänger. "Who got this for you?"

"Princess Cadance gave that to me," I replied. "She said it was for me to feel like you were here, even when you really aren't."

"Well, this is an amazing gift," he said as he began hugging the doll tightly. "I better put a bunch of my love into this so it feels even more like me."

I smiled at the thought, but I was interrupted by a gasp from Twilight. "What an amazing portrait!" she said aloud.

I looked over and saw both Twilight and Cadance looking at the portrait of the royal family I'd painted. Twilight looked very impressed by it, while Cadance simply smiled at her sister-in-law's reaction.

"It really is," Cadance beamed, "and we have our new friend Thorax here to thank for it."

Twilight looked at Cadance in disbelief for a moment before looking at me. "You painted this?" she asked.

I nodded. "I finished it just before Hearth's Warming. It was my present to Cadance and Shining, and I guess to Flurry as well."

Twilight thought over what I had said for a moment and smiled. "This is a truly amazing painting, and an equally wonderful gift," she remarked. I could feel the happiness radiating off of her, and it made me feel equally as good inside. It was nice to have your hard work appreciated.

"Thorax painted a nice portrait for me too," Sunburst chimed in as he showed off the portrait I'd made for him. Twilight looked it over and I again felt the happiness and appreciation for my talent, but she again went wide eyed as she looked at some details in the painting. "I didn't know you liked Ruby Mares!"

Sunburst blushed at that remark. "Well, I don't drink them regularly, but I do like to have one every now and again."

"Yeah, sure you do," Twilight replied in a teasing manner. Sunburst's response was to blush and laugh a bit. I could tell he was embarrassed, even without my changeling senses.

"So, Shining," Twilight said as she faced her brother, "did you like Thorax's portrait?"

Shining, who was enjoying some of the tea that had been brought in by some of the palace staff, nearly spit it out as his sister spoke to him. After wiping his muzzle, he paused for a moment to both consider his words AND the painting.

"He... did a very good job with it," he finally answered.

"Didn't you like it, though?" Twilight asked again.

Shining was again trying to put the words together, but having trouble. He was being put on the spot, and felt like he had to answer in a specific way to avoid trouble. I didn't much care to see the stallion in his current state, so I tried to relieve some of the tension on him.

"I think he's a little confused on how to feel about it," I told Twilight as I approached her and Cadance. "I don't think he expected me to actually participate in Hearth's Warming by giving him and his family gifts."

What I said was what I believed to be the honest truth. Shining didn't trust changelings, and was certain that everything they did was a ruse to get close and steal love from ponies. I was certain he thought my participation in the day's events would be to just sit in the room and soak up the love from the ponies there. Me actually giving presents, and ones I'd made myself, had thrown his expectations for a loop.

Shining's reaction was to look at me in disbelief; not with any kind of hostility, but with a sense of surprise and... appreciation? That couldn't be right.

"I guess it is a bit of a shock for all of us," Twilight did finally admit, "this being the first confirmed time a changeling has been seen celebrating a pony holiday. I honestly didn't know if you were familiar with all of the traditions."

"Sunburst did a great job teaching me about Hearth's Warming," I told her honestly, "and I was pretty eager to get involved in the festivities."

"Maybe next year you could be part of the Crystal Empire's pageant," she suggested.

"Perhaps," I responded, "but I've never been a good actor."

"You had us all believing you were a pony named Crystal Hoof," Cadance pointed out.

"That only worked because I had Spike helping me," I countered, "and even with his help, it only worked for so long."

"Regardless," Cadance continued, "I invite you to audition for the play next year, if you wish to do so."

"I'll think about it," I offered as a sort of compromise; I didn't want to be rude, and it was possible I may wish to try for a role when it came time for the pageant next year.

Cadance and Twilight said nothing more for a few moments. I looked over to see Sunburst sitting with Flurry and going trough her new pop-up book, something the little filly enjoyed a great deal.

My senses directed my vision to Shining Armor again, who was watching me with a sense of curiosity. As my eyes found his, he looked away, his focus appeared to be the portrait I had made. I could sense his emotions were a jumbled mess, but strangely enough, the anger within him seemed to be diminishing, albeit slowly.

The two princesses had been talking among themselves and decided we should select a location inside the palace for my artwork to be put on display. I was caught by surprise when they asked me to come and help find a location for the portrait; it was their painting to do with as they wished, so I didn't think my input on where to place it was needed. Nevertheless, they insisted, and after some time, we'd all decided that the best place for it was just outside the entrance to the throne room.

With the painting having found its new home, we returned to the drawing room for about an hour or so before a member of the palace staff told us that dinner was ready to be served. The ponies began to file out of the room and down the hall before Princess Cadance stopped and looked back at me. "Aren't you going to join us?" she asked.

I blinked in confusion for a few moments. "I... suppose," I finally answered, unsure of whether or not I should follow. A quick glance at Shining had found no disapproving glare; in fact, he didn't have any kind of expression on his face, and the emotions around him were still a jumble, but with the anger and hate dying out more than it had before. I decided to stop stalling for time and followed the group out of the room and down to the dining hall.

Inside the dining hall was an ornate table, and a set of serving stations were set up on one side. On the first was a selection of plates, glasses and silverware, all of which had the insignia of the Crystal Empire, which was basically a fancier version of Princess Cadance's cutie mark. On the next was an appetizer course, with things like mozzarella sticks, Neighpon vegetable dumplings, stuffed cabbage with tomatoes and peppers, and about a dozen other items I didn't readily recognize.

The last two servers featured the main course and some desserts. There were several main courses, including a vegetable lasagna, long sandwiches made with portabella mushrooms, onions, peppers and cheese, and several different dishes that all resembled pies. I thought Sunburst had told me about them once. What had he called them? Keeshes?

I shook that thought from my mind as I examined the dessert courses, which were a selection of pies and cakes, as well as some fruits which I assumed were to be placed atop some of the desserts for some extra flavor. I recognized one of the desserts as an apple pie from Applejack's farm in Ponyville; Twilight must've brought it with her so we could enjoy it.

The ponies all sat down at the table and the servants began plating up the different courses for the ponies. I eventually sat down between Spike and Sunburst after Princess Cadance invited me to do so. Interestingly, Shining Armor had no opposition to this; she'd invited me to sit at a table for a meal once before, but he'd been adamant about how bad an idea he thought it was. After I had sat down, I was approached by a member of the palace staff that I had met a time or two before.

"What would you like to try first?" Creme Puff asked as she gestured to the server with the appetizer course. I looked over at the server and thought about whether or not I should try anything. I could enjoy the taste of food, but I wouldn't get much nourishment from it, if any, but I didn't want to appear rude; there were ponies away from their families today who worked to make this meal, and it would be offensive to simply refuse sampling some of the food.

I looked over at the server and decided to try one of the dishes I was unfamiliar with. I was then informed it was called Cous Cous, a dish from New Denghi and one that apparently had a good bit of spice to it. Creme gave me a small portion to try, and I found the flavor to be quite enjoyable. There was a small amount of love in the dish as well, so I was able to feel a bit satisfied by eating it.

As we ate, Twilight then told me that she and Spike had received my gifts the day before Hearth's Warming Eve. She really liked the book I had given her, and left her seat to give me a hug. Spike also showed his appreciation for the gems I had sent him, giving me a hug as well.

As they resumed eating, I got a strange feeling coming from the direction of Shining Armor. As I looked over, I caught him staring at me. "Is something wrong?" I asked innocently.

The reaction I got was not what I was expecting. The stallion had a look on his face I could only put with one other emotion: remorse. But what did he have to feel guilty about?

"Shining," Cadance said, "you've been awfully quiet since the meal started. Is something the matter?"

The white stallion looked at his wife and shook his head. "I've been thinking about some things," he admitted, "so I guess I'm kinda not with it at the moment?"

"Do you want to talk about it?" she offered. "You have friends here, and your sister as well."

Shining again shook his head. "It's some stuff I have to sort out for myself," he told her, "but let's not worry about that. We have a very delicious meal in front of us and we shouldn't let it get cold."

Cadance wore a slight frown and her emotions conveyed worry, but she didn't push the subject.

We continued eating, with light conversation resuming after a few moments. Spike and Twilight both told me about the adventures they had together with the other girls in Ponyville. Sunburst asked about Starlight as well, with Twilight informing him of how well she was doing.

I could feel love welling up inside the stallion, but not the kind one would feel for a special somepony. It was the kind of love that one has for a friend, like I shared with Spike, or at least I hoped that I was sharing it. He was happy to hear that his old friend was doing well, and I could also tell he wanted to see her again and spend time with her. Maybe if Princess Twilight could convince the ponies in Ponyville to let me come there, he could tag along as well?

"So, what do you think, Thorax?"

I shook my head and looked at Twilight, who looked at me expecting an answer.

"Sorry," I told her. "I was distracted by my thoughts and didn't hear what you asked me."

"That's okay," she reassured me. "I've gotten lost in thought and didn't hear what somepony said to me more times than I can count. What I was asking is if you'd be interested in visiting Ponyville, as yourself?"

I blinked at her and then stared in disbelief. "You mean, go there and not be disguised?"

Twilight nodded. "I've been talking to almost everypony in town, telling them about you and showing them pictures so they know I'm telling the truth. Some are still skeptical of the idea of a changeling actually wanting to be friends with ponies, but more than a few actually want to entertain the idea. In fact, the mayor said she'd like to introduce you to the whole town and, if you're willing, hold a question-and-answer session so ponies can have their curiosity about changelings satisfied."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. The ponies in Ponyville actually wanted to meet me, and I could actually go there and not have to be in a disguise. I remembered Twilight making the promise before, but hadn't expected her to have such success as she did. She indeed deserved her title as Princess of Friendship for accomplishing such a feat.

"I would love to," I told her, "but I should probably ask the princess and your brother if that would be okay." I looked over at the two ponies, who glanced at each other for a moment.

Princess Cadance adopted a warm smile and nodded. "I have no problem with you going to Ponyville," she said. "It'll give you the chance to make new friends, as well as help with your goal of bringing ponies and changelings closer together."

All the eyes in the room went to Shining. The stallion felt put on the spot, but didn't show it outwardly. He let out a breath and looked at me, his expression stern, but not outright hostile. "If he promises not to cause a panic in Ponyville, or on the train there and back, then I have no objection."

"I promise to do no such thing," I told him, my body language doing the best it could to convey honesty.

Shining considered me for a moment, but then nodded. "However," he added, "I would still like a guard to travel with you, as a precaution." The suggestion appeared to irk Princess Cadance, but a moment later, she thought about her husband's suggestion and agreed. Twilight didn't understand their reasoning.

"You're going to have a guard escort him," she said in disbelief, "like he's a common criminal?"

"No, Twilight," Cadance answered. "Having a guard with Thorax will help make sure he is kept safe, as well as having a pony to vouch for him if something were to go wrong. It would be like him having a bodyguard more than anything."

Twilight's objections were silenced and she gave a very simple ‘oh’ before returning to her meal.

The rest of the meal was fairly quiet, with the exception of some fairly benign conversation. I elected to try one of the quiches; of course I would get the spelling wrong, but it was sort of a weird way to spell it. The one I tried had a variety of peppers, onions, mushrooms and garnishes baked into it, as well as some love I could only assume came from the kitchen staff. It was honestly rather good, both in the flavor of the dish, and the love that came from it.

We quickly moved on to the dessert course, where I had a piece of marble cake with white icing that was topped with some fresh blueberries. That was one secret that I had not yet told my pony friends; sugars were one of the few things that changelings could actually get some nourishment from besides emotions. I hadn't kept it a secret for any malicious reason; it simply hadn't come up in conversation before, though I was sure it would at some point.

Besides, consumption of sugar for a changeling would only go so far, and we often reacted in a similar fashion to foals who consumed large quantities of the substance: high levels of energy for short periods of time followed immediately by crashing and feeling sick. That's why sugar intake was closely regulated in the hive, so no changeling would burn themselves out and end up feeling ill.

Once the food was finished, we returned to the drawing room for a bit to listen to a radio broadcast. It was a radio-drama version of the Hearth's Warming Pageant. I listened intently, even going as far as to find a spot close to the radio to sit down. I heard Princess Cadance and Twilight giggle as I picked out my spot, but I didn't care; it was my first ever Hearth's Warming, and I wanted to enjoy it to the fullest.

Soon enough, the radio program concluded and the station signed off for the evening. I took notice of the clock on the wall and saw it was almost ten. Flurry let out a yawn and began to fall asleep in her mother's grasp. Princess Cadance also let out a yawn of her own.

"Well," she said with a tired voice, "I suppose we should all head to bed now."

Twilight yawned and nodded in agreement. "We should too," she said to Cadance. "We're going to stay and have breakfast, but then we'll need to get to the train station so we can head back to Ponyville." She then turned to me and gave a smile. "We'll have to send you a letter to tell you when the mayor would want to have you come for a visit."

"I would love to hear from her and you guys," I responded, and then followed up with my own yawn. Sunburst excused himself and went to his bed chambers in the palace; he still lived in his own house, but he would stay in the palace if he was too tired to travel home for the night. The princess and captain both left with their filly, and then Twilight and Spike went to find their guest rooms for the night.

I followed Twilight and Spike out and went to my room for some much-needed sleep. I was washing up in the bathroom when I heard a knock on my door. Curious as to who would be visiting me at this time of night, I wiped my face with a towel and went to see who it was. When I opened the door, Shining Armor was looking back at me. My frill stood up reflexively in fear.

"I'd like to speak with you privately, if I may."

I wasn't sure what to think, but knew refusing him would probably not end well. "...okay," I reluctantly answered, then moved out of the way so that he could enter the room. Shining walked in and then turned to face me.

I could feel his emotions were jumbled, perhaps more so than at any other point during the day. He also looked as though he wanted to say something, but was having a hard time putting the words together. Eventually, he began speaking.

"What I'm doing," he began, "is something I've always had a hard time with, especially when I've been so sure of being right about something for so long and then finding out that I was either completely wrong about it, or I got the wrong first impression of it."

He took a moment to collect his thoughts before he started speaking again.

"I... would like to apologize for how I've been treating you since you started living with us."

My ears must've been lying to me. There was no way the captain of the royal guard was apologizing to a changeling, one of the creatures that had ruined one of the most special days in his life, for treating it poorly.

"I can understand if you don't believe me," he continued. "Hay, I don't even believe I'm doing this myself, but I am, and my wife isn't putting me up to this either."

"I've been skeptical of your behavior all morning. I admit to it because it's my job to be skeptical and watch out for threats, both to the ponies of Equestria and the Crystal Empire, as well as my own family."

"When my wife unwrapped your present this morning, I had no idea what to think. Part of me was certain you took it from a pony and claimed credit for painting it yourself, but the guard was telling the truth, and... I may have seen you painting part of it before."

That caught me off guard; changeling senses, such as hearing and vision, were much sharper than a normal pony. It was a little unsettling to know that Shining had managed to spy on me without me knowing. Of course, I was pretty well distracted by my efforts in making the portrait, so it was not hard to believe that I had been so focused on my work that I didn't take notice of him. My thoughts were interrupted as Shining continued speaking.

"Part of my point is that I didn't give credit where credit was due. Really, I didn't do that for a lot of things. The painting was very well done, and the image of myself and my family are so lifelike that it feels almost like looking at a photograph."

"That portrait is only the tip of the iceberg, though. You've been with us for going on three months, and in that time, you've basically been a model citizen. You've not lied about anything, at least to the best of my knowledge. You've treated everypony you've met with kindness and courtesy, and have been patient as they've adjusted to your presence here. Hay, you've put up with me for how big a pain in the flank I've been."

I wanted to tell Shining that it was okay, and that I understood his attitude and opinions over the last three months, but his raised hoof stopped me.

"Don't make excuses for me, Thorax," he said, "because as much as you can say you can see things from my side, that doesn't make any of my behavior excusable."

"It's a bit late, but I'm going to work on how I treat you. The road ahead won't be easy for me, but I can promise to do my best, which is all the more anypony can really expect of anypony else."

Shining headed toward the door, but then stopped and looked back at me. "When I said it this morning, I kinda didn't really mean it. The painting is quite beautiful, and thank you for giving it to us." With that, he left my room and went out into the hallway.

I stood there dumbfounded for a moment, and questioned whether or not all this had just happened. In the end, I thought back to what I felt coming from the stallion. They'd started out a jumble and confused mess, but by the time he had left, they were more positive, and perhaps a small part of him was happy.

In that moment, I felt a twinge of my own happiness welling up inside me. Shining Armor, the stallion who had been the biggest opponent of my staying here, was finally starting to come around to the idea that I wasn't some enemy to have to keep an eye on.

Perhaps one day, we could even become friends and set all of our differences aside. For now, I decided to let him go at his own pace; trying to push him in that direction could undo what progress had been made.

I finished cleaning up and tucked myself into bed. As I laid there, I thought back to what Princess Twilight told me, and wondered what my potential trip to Ponyville would be like.

Author's Note

This concludes The Hearth's Warming Gift. I may consider a sequel to this story that follows Thorax as he visits Ponyville, but for now, I'm going to focus on my other stories.

This chapter was almost entirely written by myself, though theOwtcast assisted as a proofreader and did make some suggestions that I implemented into the story. I thank them for their contributions and am happy that we could write a story that everyone coming here to this site can enjoy.