Three large clouds were placed perfectly next to each other in the sky over Ponyville. To the naked eye, these could be mistaken for a small storm, but to a pegasus like Rainbow Dash, it was like a large mattress. She always loved to sleep outside, especially when it was due to snow. Her house was nearby, but the cold breeze in the air always got her to relax much easier. She'd set up her cloud fort, testing its softness by lying on it, and eventually fell asleep. She woke up after around 2 hours of napping, sighing comfortably.
"Perfect..." She said, groggily, with a hint of sadness in her voice.
It was almost too perfect. She was all alone, apart from her saddlebag with a small letter enclosed inside of it. Carefully, she opened it, taking the letter from Soarin out and placing it in front of her. Unfolding it, she read through the paper again, slowly.
Hey Dashie, I know you're not gonna like this, but I'm stuck at the Wonderbolts Headquarters for some mandatory training exercises. I'm probably not gonna be back until after Hearth's Warming. I'm really sorry about this, but I promise to make it up to you.
- Soarin
It seemed to hurt twice as much now as it did when she first read the letter when it came in from the mail pony. She sighed, thinking about the plans her friends had. She couldn't tell them that she had no plans for Hearth's Warming now, as she'd been talking about spending the day with a "special somepony" for weeks. She had to make this work one way or another, but for right now, she'd decided to relax and take her mind off of the gloomy situation. She flew back to her home and laid down on her cloud couch, which was more uniform than the cloud bed she'd previously assembled.
How am I supposed to spend time with Soarin if he's all the way at the Wonderbolt Headquarters?" She thought, frowning, but gasped at a new thought.
How am I supposed to gift him anything? I have to get him something. She thought frantically, jumping out of her bed and flying right out the door she had just entered from.
Dash had not only forgotten to get a gift, but was now unsure whether she could deliver it on time to Soarin. Her main priority was getting a gift for Soarin.
She quickly descended on Ponyville, landing in front of Sugarcube Corner. Maybe she could buy a large apple pie to surprise Soarin with? But there was only one problem; Pinkie Pie had already closed the bakery for the evening. It was Hearth's Warming Eve, and Rainbow hadn't even gotten a gift for Soarin yet. Atleast he had an excuse, but she had none; she had off from work as a weather pony for this whole week. Desperate, she flew to the only place she could think of for advice.
She practically flew into Twilight, frantically bursting through the door.
"Twilight! You gotta help me! I need a gift for..." She stopped, looking down at the pony she'd crashed into.
"Uhm...Oops...Sorry Twilight." She said, helping her up.
"That's okay, what did you need?" The purple alicorn asked, taking her friend's nervousness into account.
"I need a gift for S...somepony special." Dash said, stopping herself before she said his name. No-pony else knew about their relationship except for themselves, and they were trying to keep it that way.
"Well, it's pretty late to be doing that now..." Twilight said, but judging by Rainbow's adverse reaction, she changed her tone.
"...But it's not too late! What do you think they'd like?" She questioned.
"Well..." Rainbow started, questioning herself in her own mind.
I can't get him a pie, but what else does he like? He really likes me...but what would he want that I can give? She thought.
"Well... I think you should think about what you want to give them. Think about why you're giving them a gift in the first place, and then think about what you can give to them that will convey this message well." Twilight said simply.
Rainbow Dash looked back at Twilight, staring at her intently.
If I was Soarin, what would I want to get to make me happy on Hearth's Warming morning? She thought, and then blinked twice.
It hit her right then and there.
Rainbow Dash. She thought, snapping back to the present world.
"Thanks Twilight...I gotta go, bye!" Dash stammered, taking flight and flying right back to her home.
She landed on the cloudy steps outside, seeing that it was late, and quickly made her way inside. She knew what she wanted to give Soarin, and she hoped she could get it made in time.
Meanwhile, Soarin was busy training for the next show season, though the holiday season was approaching. Flipping and gliding over Spitfire in the flight routine, Soarin couldn't help but wonder if his letter had reached Rainbow Dash.
He landed after finishing the routine, and heard Spitfire speaking, though his thoughts made him miss what she said.
I hope the letter made it to Dash...I wish I was there right now. He thought, but he couldn't stop thinking about her.
Soarin? What're you doing here? Spitfire asked, a concerned look on her face.
She took in the fellow Wonderbolts' worried look, and tried to get him to open up.
"Well, I can't make it back to see my special somepony...and I really wanted to make it on time for Hearth's Warming..." He said, gloomily.
Spitfire stared at him, confused.
"Today's Hearth's Warming Eve...and training's over...so how are you gonna be late?" She said.
Soarin shot up from his seat, looking at Spitfire confused.
"Wait...I thought you said that we had training on Hearth's Warming?" He quickly said.
"I said we have training on Hearth's Warming Eve...I just dismissed you guys." She said, looking at Soarin who had a big smile on his face.
"Really? But then that means..." He said, cutting himself off with a nervous thought.
I sent Dash a letter saying I wouldn't make it for Hearth's Warming...I can't believe I only sent a letter. I can do way better now. But what would she want? He questioned, and turned back to Spitfire.
"Means what?" Spitfire asked.
"It means I don't have a gift for my special somepony yet..." Soarin replied, sighing.
"Well, if you're stuggling to find a gift, think of what matters most to them. Take it straight from your heart, Soarin." She said, smiling.
Soarin couldn't believe it; the answer was with him all along.
"Me..." He whispered.
Soarin looked at the clock and then back at Spitfire, who was standing there patiently.
"Thanks a lot Spitfire, I know what I'm gonna do!" He said, grabbing his saddlebag and flying out of the Wonderbolt Headquarter's locker room.
He started his flight to Ponyville, making his way through the sky to reach Rainbow Dash. It would be close, as Hearth's Warming was tomorrow.
Soarin made a stop at Cloudsdale, at his own home, to get his gift ready for Rainbow Dash. Since he'd be away for lengthy amounts of time for Wonderbolt business, he'd have to give something to Rainbow Dash to remember him by until he came back. He broke a small piece of cloud off a larger one, morphing it into a pair of wings with a lightning bolt in the middle.
He smiled, looking at his creation, but there was only one problem.
"I need to color this before I give it to her. I think she has some colorful waterfall next to her house...Maybe I could use those to paint my gift before I give it to her..." He said to himself as he made his way inside and placed the small cloud sculpture on his table. He'd make sure to make the flight to Ponyville first thing in the morning on Hearth's Warming in order to gift Dash his present.
Soarin ate a small sandwich that he'd quickly made, took a shower, and laid down to sleep in his room.
She's not gonna expect me to show up in the morning. She's probably gonna be asleep when I come by. I know she loves to sleep in... He thought, dozing off and eventually falling asleep with a smile on his face.
Dash had just finished carving a small cloud with her hooves. She went back outside of her house and used the rainbow colored fluid coming from her cloudominium to paint the cloud.
"Perfect!" She announced to herself, proud of her creation.
She walked back inside to sleep. She'd shower and eat something in the morning before heading to Soarin's house for Hearth's Warming.
Soarin woke up around 9 o'clock, making himself a simple breakfast before leaving to get to Rainbow's house. He was determined to surprise Rainbow Dash with his creation which was in his saddlebag.
At around 10 o'clock, Soarin could see Ponyville in the distance. He was gradually reaching the cloudominium floating above the town.
Rainbow Dash woke up tired, but determined. She took a shower, drank some coffee, and stared at her saddle bag and brown winter jacket. She took a glance at the clock as she got ready.
10:30
"I hope I can find him fast." She said to herself as she placed her gift into her saddlebag and walked towards the door.
Soarin landed next to Rainbow's front porch, walking towards the colorful waterfall streaming from the sides of her cloudominium home. He opened his saddlebag and quickly painted the lightning bolt a light yellow and the wings a very light blue. He made sure it was dry before carefully putting it back into his saddlebag.
Soarin walked towards her front door, but before he could knock on it, it opened.
Rainbow Dash was about to fly out, but stopped dead in her tracks. There he was, right in front of her, but how was that possible? Wasn't he supposed to be at the Wonderbolt Headquarters?
Soarin locked eyes with Rainbow Dash as she did the same, staring at her.
Well, I guess she was ready for me...I thought she'd be asleep. He thought, as Rainbow opened her mouth to speak.
"Soarin!? How...? When...? I-I...don't care, come here you!" She shouted, basically tackling Soarin to the clouds outside her door, hugging him.
"Woah! Hey Dashie!" Soarin said, happy to see her face again. It'd been 2 months since they'd seen each other in person.
Dash let Soarin stand up, and they both walked inside. Sitting on the couch, they talked over some hot chocolate that Dash had quickly made in the kitchen.
"...And that's why I thought I couldn't make it today, but here I am." Soarin finished, explaining the mistake he'd made a few days prior when sending that misleading letter to Dash.
"Oh. Well, I'm happy that you're here. I was about to find you to give you something." She said, reaching into her saddlebag.
"Wait! I have something for you too, Dashie. Let's pull them out at the same time." He said, reaching into his saddlebag.
"Three, two, one...! Happy Hearth's Warming!" They both announced, pulling out their sculptures.
"Woah! How'd you know?!" Soarin said to Dash, who exchanged the same surprised look as him.
"I was gonna ask you the same thing!" She responded, laughing.
She handed him the gift she'd made, which was a cloud sculpture of her cutie mark.
Soarin exchanged his gift with Rainbow, which was a sculpture of his cutie mark.
"This is something to remember me by." They both said, staring at each other.
They both laughed at their unison, hugging each other.
"It's perfect, Soarin, thank you so much! I'll keep it with me always." Dash said, kissing Soarin.
Soarin returned the kiss, still hugging her.
"Yours is amazing, too. I'll keep yours with me while I'm away." He said, smiling.
It was dark outside, and the temperature had dropped significantly, as snow was predicted for Ponyville's weather that night.
"I still can't believe that we both managed to get the same gift for each other..." Dash said, lying next to Soarin in front of her fireplace.
"Like minds think alike." Soarin said, sipping his hot chocolate before placing his wing around her.
They both cuddled next to the fireplace, staying warm and enjoying each other's company. Now they'd never be too far away from each other, as Dash had Soarin's cutie mark sculpture on display in her house, and Soarin would have Dash's cutie mark sculpture with him while he trained.
Both of them could agree: this was the best Hearth's Warming they'd ever had.
Author's Note
Hey everyone! It's been a while since I wrote a story here, as I have been busy with life, but I tried my best to squeeze this story SoarinDash fic in before Christmas!
Merry Christmas, and happy Hearth's Warming to you all!
-- And happy New Year to everyone, as well!
I'm trying my best to find more time to write, so stay tuned for more stories! Feel free to message me, too!
