A Hearth's Warming Gift Exchange! (See OP for Rules)

[RainbowFoxxy]

 

 

Pinkie bounded away from the treat table after sufficiently filling up with sugar. She'd had like three dozen cookies before coming into the party but hey, sugar rushes only lasted for so long! Not that she really needed a sugar rush... Pinkie was well, Pinkie after all! She grabbed her present in her muzzle and trotted over to Candy Cane who was to be her exchange buddy. 

 

"Hi there!" She waved as she got closer, happy to see the stallion looked like he was ready to meet a new friend. She was super double excited when she found out he didn't know who she was! A new friend! What could be a better Hearths Warming gift than that? Oh wow was she glad Twilight had asked her to pair up the gifts and be a part of the party! "I'm Pinkie Pie!" She placed the gift down and bounced in place a couple times. "You travel a lot? That's so fun! Have you been to visit Yakyakistan yet?"

 

She shook her head and offered a hoof for shaking. "What's your name? It's super exciting to meet a new pony and get to exchange gifts with him!"

 

The Ponk was indeed cut out for friendship parties! Her gift was in a cube shaped package, wrapped in sparkly white paper with a huge red and green bow. He could open it whenever he liked!

 

----

 

Spike was about to offer some more stories and thoughts on living with magically inclined creatures when the Pink One bounced in, did her thing with the presents and trotted over to the refreshments. "Oh!" He half smiled at what he hoped would be his new dragon friend and shrugged. "Looks like we should go exchange gifts! Let's talk more later. Sound good dude?" After this he made his way to the table, grabbed his gift and looked around for Windwright.

 

He found her over on the side of the room. It looked as though she was waiting for him and he quickly made his way over. He waved as he got closer, trying not to be nervous. He knew he'd seen her around before but wasn't sure if they'd been properly introduced. Well, that was what friendship parties were made for! Right? He gulped, nervous that she may or may not like the gift he'd brought. 

 

"Hi there Windwright!" She had a big friendly smile that put the young dragon at ease. "How are you enjoying to party?"

 

---

 

Twilight had turned back to Iggy once the situation with Trixie and Bluebelle had subsided. She certainly had been doing her research! The subject matter was fascinating to the Princess and she would have happily chatted away on the topic of potential 'entity' of the Everfree for many an hour! It seemed like something Fluttershy might be interested in as well. She knew her friend had a certain interest in Timberwolves as frightened of them as she might be. 

 

"Wow! You've really got a good theory in the works here Iggy!" As Pinkie bounded in she knew they would be short on time to go through the details. "Would you like to stop by sometime for a visit with myself and Fluttershy?" It certainly seemed a topic for study that might lead them Celestia knew where!

 

"I'm so glad we got to talk a little. We need more time for this topic for sure! Let me know when you'd be able to come by for a visit!"

 

After the interaction had concluded she headed towards the gifts table. She took her own from the paired gifts, noticing her partner's was still there. Pinkie had left note cards thought and she could see Martini's name clearly written. "Oh!" She smiled, happy to get a chance to talk to the outlandish griff! The Princess took her gift in her magic and went to wait for the griffon she hoped she'd soon be friends with!

[QuickLime]

Martini just sorta nodded to the other creature's words of encouragement, building off his own, and pat Princess BlueBelle again, before going over to get his present, seems he was exchanging gifts with the princess herself... carrying it carefully in his beak over to her, and offered a half smile, bowing, before sitting the present down in front of her, it wasn't anything TOO special, just a little gift of the tropics, wanting to bring a little sunshine in the cold, cold winter weather.

 Inside the gift was a rather elaborate pastry, layered with fresh tropical fruit, cream, and fresh, flaky puffed pastry, it seems Martini had no idea what other creatures would like, and decided to get them instead some amazing food instead.

"..Happy Hearths Warming m'jsty, heh, hope you like it, it's an old family recipe, picked the fruit for it m'self" A roll of the griffin's shoulders, he seemed somewhat proud of it...

Food was seldom the wrong color, the wrong shape, or the wrong size, so it really did seem like the safest option, and food was often a great way to give other creatures a small piece of YOUR home to enjoy.

 

[SirAizen]

Oho. This was was definitely a familiar type. Candy saw it all the time during bouts to go and see little fillies and colts on special occassions. Those were the types that were usually hpyed up on too much suger, but Candy couldn't judge. He. . . well, he ate enough of the stuff. For the sole purpose of making sure his confections tasted good, of course! As a result, he usually ended up tasting several samples out of every batch of goods he made, adding up to dozens of unique sweets for him to ingest. It was a good thing that he balanced it out with a healthy diet and exercise. That wasn't too hard, seeing as he got it every day by pulling his shop around.This 'Pinkie Pie' looked as if they didn't have to worry about being inactive at all. "Hello there, Pinkie - and, no, I'm afraid not. Yakyakistan? Sounds like a place where I could get some exotic recipies." Nothing tropical or anything like that - it sounded like a cold place. Candy wasn't sure why: maybe it was just the name. The letters for "Yakyakistan" felt cold to him. . . Synesthesia things.

 

Candy took the mare's hoof and gave it a firm shake. "The name's Candy Cain - Or Candy Cane, with a 'n-e' rather than a 'i-n'. I just changed it to Candy 'C-A-I-N' to be a bit different from my -" Oh, dear. Candy was dragging on an introduction again. "Nothing," Candy finished, setting down his flat gift. Up close, the gift looked to be wider than an open book. But what was it? A portrait of something? That was for Pinkie to find out whenever she desired. "Likewise, I find it highly enjoyable to meet someone like you as well." Seeing as Pinkie didn't take up the offer for a candy apple, the pink-haired stallion shrugged and took a bite out of the one he'd been holding. There was no harm in just eating one. . . Hopefully things stayed that way. "Oh - I must warn you. Before you open the gift, let me know: it needs a 'special touch' beforehand." Cain would've added in the final touches earlier on when he was creating the gift, but, well. . . unfortunately, his magic wasn't all that powerful. It was unique, but fragile. Very, very fragile. It wouldn't have survived the trip here if he'd added it before.

 

"I have to admit, I'm surprised we've never had a run-in with each other before. Are you well-known here?" Candy was getting slightly distracted by the colors around him. The conflicting colors of presents, foods, ponies, and other creatures in the hall jumbled together to create a symphony (or a crash) of sensations. Pinkie, being the closets of them all, had Candy tasting bubblegum.

 

(I'll edit for bold/color later - mobile is NOT agreeing with me today.)

[RainbowFoxxy]

 

 

 

Twilight Unwrapped the present carefully with her magic and smiled and big warm smile! Wow! It was such a thoughtful gift! Something from his home, that he picked the fruit for and made himself. It was really nice and made the Princess' heart felt good. 

 

"Happy Hearth's Warming to you too Martini!" She sniffed the treats and lifted one toward her muzzle. She took a quick nip and chewed reflectively. It was good, fresh, and pleasingly sweet. "This is soooo good!" She set the piece back down. "You certainly are excellent at making family recipes, and at picking the perfect fruits!" She meant what she said. "I'm going to enjoy these later." The Princess giggled. "I probably won't even tell Spike about them so I can have them all to myself!" It was a joke, she'd share with her number one assistant of course!

 

"Oh!" She lifted her gift towards Martini. 

 

 

"Happy Hearth's Warming!" She waited for him to open it before explaining. The gift was a medium sized golden star shaped locket. It was enchanted of course. Inside the locket was a mirror. When one looked into the mirror they would see the place they loved the most, no mater how far away from this place the wearer was. 

 

 

"Take a look inside." The Princess spoke with excitement, hoping the griffin would like the gift!

 

----

 

Oh my gosh! She'd been so excited to meet Candy Cain that she hadn't responded to his offer of a sweet treat.

 

"OOOOOoooooo!" She glanced around, noting all the sweets. "Did you make these?" She questioned while taking colorful sucker from the table. She took a lick and then a crunch! "These are really good!"

 

She nodded as he spoke of them not crossing paths. "Yeah! If you are a candy pony it's really weird we haven't met! I'm known as the Super Duper Party Pony around here...and pretty much everywhere. Well me and my friend Cheese Sandwich," She blushed a little as she mentioned the party stallion. "Cheese is also a Super Duper Party Pony!" She finished her sucker. "Anyway! I'm glad we're meeting now Candy Cain!" She was excited to share gifts with Candy and when she saw his gift her eyes got big. "A special touch huh? Sounds interesting!"

 

 

"Here's my gift!" She giggled. "So I guess we can open them...after you add the finishing touches!" 

 

She waited eagerly to see what he'd wrapped up!

[PyroBlaze]

“But of course! Making new friends is fun!” Flux chirped at Swift’s comment about roaming the realm and making new friends. “And sure, I’ll tell you all about our little adventure later. But for now, gifts!“

She took the gift he gave her, tilting her head at his words. It’s not like he had been shopping with any particular creature in mind, she just found something that looked fun and went with it. Still, that was sweet that he thought it being from her was reason enough to treasure it. 
 

“Aww, thanks, Swifty! I’ll treasure your gift too.” She smiled widely, starting to open the offered package as Swift started in on his own. In his gift, he would find a strange contraption with a disk in the middle that had various offshoots from it, all straight lines and of equal length. It was briefly enveloped in Flux’s magic, before a click was heard and it popped into a ball. 
 

“It’s a ball! Sometimes. Other times, it’s a disk, if you want easier storage or a different way to throw it. Maybe it’ll be fun if you and Fire ever decide to have foals.” The changeling chirped happily, smiling at her unicorn friend before looking to see what he had got for her. 

[Blueblood]

With one more smiling expression of gratitude towards all those ponies who had supported her through the unexpected tumult, Princess Bluebelle cantered back over to the gift table to retrieve her box, finding that it now had a label for the recipient.  And wouldn't you know it, but it was the handsome buck who'd been so bold as to kiss her!  "Oh my, Twilight.  Has some of Cadence's tendencies rubbed off on you?"  She giggled.  It'd be a bit of a redundant effort in any case; in neither of their forms did Blue have any lack of a love life.  Still, it was an amusing thought, one that kept the smile on her face and the sparkle in her eyes as she trotted back to the earth pony stallion, gift in tow.

 

"Quite lovely to see you again, Tiger.  Here you are, though I fear much of what's inside might prove irrelevant."  As Tiger opened the box, he would find a set of silver and gold pauldrons, one for each hoof.  In addition, though, was a horn-covering that extended a unicorn's horn to a sharp, silver point, as well as some golden rings meant to fit around the base of a pegasus's or griffon's wings.  "I couldn't be certain who I would get, so I wanted to make sure that some of it was useful.  More ceremonial than combat-ready, but I'd think you'd look lovely in them.  Of course, a handsome stallion like you would always look good, whether or not you were wearing anything!"

[PyroBlaze]

“Likewise, Bluebelle. And it’s fine, not like I expect mine would get much use either outside of a paperweight or display piece.” Tiger said as he accepted and opened Blue’s gift. Well, that seemed like some opulent armor, but like she said, it seemed more for show than anything else. He chuckled a bit at her compliments, winking at her on that last one. 
 

“Wanna see me without my pants, huh? Can’t say I blame ya.” He said, winking again. He was joking really, but he wouldn’t mind actually doing that for her. Or modeling these armor pieces. “I’m sure you’d look good in anything too. You look the type to manage to pull off any look. Thanks for this, they look pretty good.” 

 

Tiger’s gift wasn’t quite as opulent, but it was equally metallic. Inside the box was what looked like a large arrowhead, perhaps something used for a spear. It was made of steel, and covered in decorative patterns carved into the shape. One side had his cutie mark carved into it in a blank space among the designs. 
 

“I was hoping whoever I got would’ve been a new friend by now, if not more, so something to remember me by. Not quite so needed anymore, given your offer, but hey. I count myself lucky to have met you and be matched with you today.” Tiger said, smiling at her warmly. “If you want, we could add to both gifts with another kiss~”

[Blueblood]

Bluebelle preened, or would have if she were winged, at Tiger's compliments.  "Why, thank you.  I had that little proposition put to the test this year with the academic look, which was completely new to me.  Honestly, Lady Rarity deserves at least some of the credit for these designs."  She stood, unable to resist giving the stallion a 360 degree view of her in the Friendship School colors.

 

Opening his gift to her, she lifted the arrowhead close, inspecting its design and the carvings in it.  "Well, this would make a perfect memento for meeting you, if we were never to meet again."  She smiled over the levitated object at him.  "Something, however, tells me that you are not going to be able to keep yourself away for that long, hm?"

His next remarks pretty much confirmed her speculation, and she giggled as she set the gift back down.  "Now that sounds like an excellent idea..."  There was no need for mistletoe for this next kiss, only an opportunity a good enough excuse.  Had to keep those windigos away somehow!

[Ashton]

((sorry for my slow responce, as I said in my status update the other day, there's been a death int he family, so things are... messy... IRL right now... >.<))

 

 /====================\

 |         Iggy/Firewalker         |

 \====================/

 

Iggy smiled, perhaps amused by the other pony's entrance "Its a pleasure to meet you, Firewalker, I'm Azure Ignine, but everyone calls me 'Iggy' for short" she explained as she levitated her gift over to the pegasus "I hope you like it! Its one of my favorites!" 

 

The gift was very obviously a book, and indeed when it was opened it would reveal "1001 interesting facts about Equestrian History"

 

Iggy grinned "There's so much that they dont teach you in history class! like did you know there was a short time that ponies thought Former Princess Luna was a Necromancer! Or that besides all his work with time-and-space-alteration spells, Starswirl also dabbled in the arts like a spell for creating pottery!" she was grinning ear to ear now, very clearly a lover of knowledge... very clearly a huge nerd... and no doubt bringing back memories of a certain unicorn if any had known the current princess in the past...

 

Iggy meanwhile was carefully and meticulously opening firewalker's gift, making sure not to damage the bow or tear the paper...

 

 

/=======================\

|         Jasper/Cocoa Nut          |

\=======================/

 

Jasper let out a surprised... well it was something between a roar and a yelp, as he instinctively jumped up, causing him to hit his head on the low ceiling, and fall back down into the floor, steam trailing from his nostrils in annoyance "I'm going to hurt iggy so good for dragging me here..." he muttered. He then looked at the pony on his back, he wanted to say something mean or char her for what she did, but fortunately his manners (and many threats from both iggy and Cloudy) managed to reign him in, he sighed "Happy Hearthswarming I guess" he said, as he handed her his gift

 

The flat square was obviously a record album, but what album remained a mystery (at least for the next few moments) when opened it revealed a somewhat chilling image of a futuristic city on a lake or river, with clouds int he shape of a monster with the title "IRON MAREDEN: BRAVE NEW WORLD"

(article on the IRL album For reference)

 

"Iggy said we should give something we love, so that's a copy of one of my favorite albums" he explained, pushing himself up

 

/==============================\

|       Fleeting Hope/Compass Rose       |

\==============================/

 

Hope smiled a little "I know its bad... I'm sorry" she said awkwardly but as the bat pony moved on, hope listened intently and nodded "I think your wings are cool, they make you look tough, mine look like a hard win would shred them" she said, letting her gossamer insectoid wings slide out from under her carapace for a moment before she retracted them. it was clear she was still a bit uneasy and fightened, but it seemed she was warming up to rose more.

 

/============================\

|        Stellar Drift/Cloudy Skies          |

\============================/

 

Cloudy laughed "just chill and relax" he said "yeah, its not everyday you meet a strange creature you've rarely or never seen. Trust me, I know that so very well, I'd never seen anything above-water for most of my life, but I promise I dont bite" he smiled. When steller explained he had gotten the gift for somepony specific, cloudy chuckled "I live with a heavy-metal dragon and a nerdy kirin who loves magic too much for my own good - I'm sure we can find a use for whatever it is"

 

He passed his gift to the pegasus. Inside the paper was a box, and inside that box was a necklace made from smoothly polished stones, pearls, and seashells - no doubt all from seaquestria

 

 

[KaityKat]

Jas/  /Cocoa

Cocoa looked at the package the dragon had handed her "Jasper" she read aloud "You know, I've never met a dragon in person, before. You'd think I would've, by now, but nope! You'd be the first."  she gave him a playful slug. Is that how dragons prefer to interact? Who knows? She just knew that the surprise hug didn't go over well with him. She hoped he'd like her gift. Maybe it'll make him happy, and he'll think about her positively, overall.

 

Now, to the matter at hoof. What could be in this gift? It was flat and square. A book? A large card? Perhaps it was an autographed photo of some famous dragon. Her excitement mounted as she opened the paper revealing the record "Oh, wow! A record! That's so cool. I'll have to get a record player so I can hear the music on it." she said with all seriousness. Some ponies might be more reasonable with their bits, but Cocoa was really gonna go out and get the best record player she could find. And she was excited to hear the music. "Whatever it is, with art this cool, it's gotta be something...." she thought for half a second "Epic." she offered a hoof to "pound it" smiling at the dragon.

 

she handed over her gift. Much more ambiguous in its appearance, the package wasn't heavy, but not light, either. It was adorned in a pretty, shiny, rust-colored bow. The same color that was in Cocoa's mane. "Your friend says your gift oughtta be something you love? Well, this is something near and dear to me. It makes me happy, and gives my life meaning." once he'd opened it, she finished with "It's chocolate! I made it myself." she winked at him.

For this one, she'd used her favorite recipe that she'd developed specifically for Hearthswarming. Infused with the tastes and smells that are associated with the holiday, in a delicious symphony of the senses.... at least, that's how she'd describe it in her own not-so-humble opinion. At the bottom of the box was a business card that said "The Cocoa Hut. Exotic Chocolates and Candies for the Adventurous Tongue" along with Cocoa's name and an address. Yup. A shameless plug. I mean, she did need customers, afterall. On the back of the card was a coupon. "One free custom order"

 

After Jasper had looked at the card, Cocoa gasped very suddenly, like she did when she had an idea. "I just had a fantastic idea! Give me a couple days, and if you visit my shop, I'll have a surprise for you. Trust me. I think you'll like it." she winked.

 

=================

Hope/  /Rose

"Actually, I have just the place for it on my mantle next to some other decorations. It will make a lovely addition." she smiled

Rose's eyes widened at the sight of Hope's wings. "Woah! Your wings are beautiful! The way they sparkle reminds me of Princess Luna's beautiful night skies." she smiled as she gave Hope her admittedly better-wrapped gift. The paper decked in nightly symbols such as moons and stars... but also bats and the Mare in the Moon.... it was Nightmare Night wrapping paper. She obviously had a favorite holiday. "I hear that changelings have a bit of a sweet tooth, too, so you might actually enjoy this more than anypony else here." she chuckled.

 

Upon opening it, Hope would find it was a full, plump juicy mango. A relatively large one, at that. "At the risk of sounding like a walking stereotype... I actually had a hard time not eating that, myself, while wrapping it. Biggest one I've had in a while." she gave Hope a hug (provided it was reciprocated) "I'm glad it found somecreature like you. I can just tell that you're somebody special." she winked at her.

 

=================

Cloudy/  /Stellar

 

Stellar sheepishly opened the gift he'd been handed, embarrassed he'd shoved his proverbial hoof so firmly down his throat. When he opened the box and looked inside, he let out a happy gasp. Then he laughed lightly. "Well, you're right about one thing." he said, putting the necklace on "It's pretty personal. When I was a colt, my mom used to go to the ocean every now and then." he began explaining "She'd always come home with something she'd gotten there. Hers were usually gift shop items." he rubbed his eye "but this... it reminds me of her." he looked Cloudy in the eye "Thank you." he said.

 

Then he laughed as he remembered what he'd brought. "Now, I really feel bad about my gift." he joked.

 

Inside the plain brown parchment paper was a book. A pretty old looking one, at that. Old, but well cared for. The title, embossed in gold lettering, was in Old Ponish. "It's a first-edition copy of 'A Hearthswaming Tale'." and then, as if to quell any concern about him parting with such a seemingly valuable book, he added "It's just been gathering dust in my library. My friend likes all things related to Equestrian history, so..." he let the sentence trail "Just... do take care of it."

[SirAizen]

Candy rubbed the back of his head, laughing a little. "Well, thanks. . . I made sure to put all the necessary time into each and every one. You won't find a single piece in there that isn't p -" No. . . not 'perfect. That was too much. It would feel like a lie if the stallion said it. ". . . Ah, good. Very good, I guess. I don't really finish the ones I taste test, so i'm not entirely sure how each one tastes." At least that was true. Candy liked to taste a sweets out of each batch to make sure they weren't spoiled or flavorless, so he gt his own sugar highs every now and then. Still, he had never once finished a sweet that he himself had created. The closest he'd come to finishing anything was a large cupcake he'd made with intentions of giving it to his older brother on his birthday one year. Still, one thing had led to the next, and Cain had fallen asleep during the boxing process. Apparently Candy was also a sleep-eater, because when he woke up, most of the cake was gone, and his face was covered in frosting. One could assume that it hadn't been a peaceful night afterwards. . . "Still, I'm glad you've enjoyed it so far." 

The title of 'Super Duper Party Pony' gave Candy a pause. He could've sworn he'd heard the title being passed around back home. . . he wasn't entirely sure. It would've been a long time ago. Either way, he was glad that he now knew Pinkie and her profession. Well, her and her friend, which, by the looks of things, wasn't just a friend. It wasn't his job to pry, though, so he left it alone. "I'm glad we're meeting as well. Oh, and don't worry about the gift - I'm on it." The stallion put the candy apple down, and handed Pinkie her gift. The flat, silver box with a small red bow didn't look too impressive. Still, Candy wasn't done yet. "Well, I guess you can open it now - you wouldn't expect me to work my magic on a sealed box, now would you?" There was a slight twinkle in Candy's eye, which usually meant that he was about to perform some real magic. "You can go on whenever you're ready." If Pinkie opened the present, she would get. . . something. What was it? Some sort of wide silver tray with multicolored sugar dust in it. Sugar, some hints of white and dark chocolate, and other tiny sweet things, like gumdrops and little sparkling candy pieces. What did he expect her to do with it?  

[tacobob]

 

 

 

Fire Walker could not help but stare at the rather yummy looking pastries. There was a very good chance they had mangos in them, and she was deathly allergic to the tropical fruit. Still, she could briefly admire them from where she stood. It was her curse. She really loved the tropics.  There were the Gallopocus Islands and Suntrot Bay. Her favorite places to go, but everything had mango in it! From the drinks to the pastries all the way to the muffins! The horror! Just one tiny taste of that dreaded fruit would make her swell up like one of Pinkie's red party balloons.

 

She could not but smile as Flux spoke. The officer would have to see if she had any plans for the night. She could tag along with her and swift to Fillydelphia and spend the perfect Hearth's Warming at Muggo's. She knew the holiday was still very new to her kind and who knew a better way to spend the day than with friends and family at Equestria's best family run tavern? The guard also always wanted to see a drunk Changeling.  She would also need to ask her favorite drama-king....? Who that blue mare was. Old marefriend? Fellow magic student?

 

Fire could not help but snort at his 'something that I've meant to give you for a long time now' comment, but the actual gift box caused her nearly to choke on her drink. He better not have gone through her secret shelf! Bad pony!

 

/====================\

|         Iggy/Firewalker       |

 \====================/

 

 

With her mind fully in the gutter, the officer found her 'Iggy' and hoofed over her gift. Her gift was nice and heavy and a book. 'Necromancy' was an school of magic that usually got a bad rap. It wasn't all raising undead ponies that were made to shout 'boogedy-boogedy' at unsuspecting fillies, it was also healing magic. "Thank you Miss Ignine.". She had this book, but it was a much older edition. Princess Luna was oddly only mentioned briefly. And it was only 500 facts in that book! This was perfect timing as she was just about finished with her current book. Spending time in Swift's impressive library had turned her into a bit of an history nerd over the last few years.

 

"Now for your gift..",

 

Under the cheerful wrapping paper was an package of incredible blackness. Blacker than black. Darker than  Vantablack, it was the very black package of coffee, made by the friendly folk at the Grindecologist Coffee company. It was the 'Dreaded Motaba Blend'.  The strongest coffee in all of Equestria. "I really hope you like coffee.", the mare added with a grin. "This stuff will wake the dead!"

[Ashton]

 /====================\

 |         Iggy/Firewalker         |

 \====================/

 

The kirin laughed, smiling "are you precognitient? You have no idea how many late nights I spend studying or doing experiments, this is perfect!" she gave the pegasus a warm hug "Just dont tell jasper it can wake the dead... we still have nightmares about that..." she shuddered "...yeah... I'm not allowed back in van hoover anytime soon" she laughed awkwardly... hopefully she was joking... though the way she said it..........

 

/=======================\

|         Jasper/Cocoa Nut          |

\=======================/

 

Jasper chuckled "I'm sure it wont last long, especially around iggy, if she sees it, I wont even get to taste it. Sometimes I think she's part pig" despite the words he didn't seem to mean the comment to be too insulting, it was just the infamous 'dragon attitude' creeping in that his race was known for. "and sure, its not like I have much else to do 'round here but sleep and listen to my music. If you like the album let me know, I'll let you borrow some of my others - there's not a decent record store 'round here short of canterlot" he snorted, those wisps of steam reappearing for just a moment, clearly a big pet peeve of his...

 

/==============================\

|       Fleeting Hope/Compass Rose       |

\==============================/

 

Hope smiled "th-thank you, I like the buzzing sound they make, its calming" When she opened the fruit she rolled it around in her hooves a few times "er... what is it?" she asked awkwardly, blushing "it smells delicious, but I've never seen one of these before" she admitted "I spent most of my time in the hive before my family went on a mission and......" she sighed, shaking her head to clear the sad thoughts from her mind, then she grinned "why dont we share it!" she suggested with a warm smile as green fire washed over her and she became a griffon, using her claws to slice it cleanly into a half-dozen pieces. the fire washed over her again as she returned to her natural form and offered a slice to rose, smiling widely, clearly she did not have many friends and was very happy and eager to make more

 

/============================\

|        Stellar Drift/Cloudy Skies          |

\============================/

 

Cloudy looked around to make sure iggy hadn't seen the book and quickly slipped it into his bags "Not gonna lie, I'll probably never read it... but iggy..." he grinned "You just solved my problem of what to get her for her whelpday - she loves books, almost as much as magic. So in a way you ended up picking out a great gift" he said "I can already hear her squeals of delight when I give that book to her, so thanks a ton"

[Ciraxis]

"Well...isn't this clever...." Squall muttered while studying his gifts. Flux could almost see gears turning inside of stallion's head. It's seems that this...disk-ball gadget was a source of inspiration for the business-pony. "Have to show it to Bevel. There is potential in such design...simple but elegant...."

 

"Ever....?" Squall scoffed. "As if that was still a question! I want at least four." noblepony announced. It seems Squall really got his mind on rebuilding House Squallcoast.

"Four kids that will be spoiled sweet....by Auntie Flux among others...right?" stallion looked intensely at the changeling. it seemes that saiying 'No' wasn't an option when it comes to this.

On the other hoof ,he was still on the fence if drifter like her would make a good Namemother, but he was not limiting his choices yet. Spring Breeze was on this list, as well as Ice Storm, Miss Applejack, Henka, Wind Walker and Sigrun.

 

 

Flux's gift was further wrapped up in some expansive looking, purple fabric. Swift studied his friend's reactions, not even blinking as the changeling was getting to her prize. He wanted to savour her expression. Wasn't that was one of the most fun parts of gifting someone?

 

Was it....? Of course it was! Only Swift was both loaded and stubborn enough to make it practical. And he made two of them for her.

"I commissioned a spare...just in case....." noble-stallion commented as Flux's legs first grasped the handle, and then ignited one the spellsabers. The weapon's aeatheric blade was of the same colour as her magical aura,  and it's low, calming hum filled the room. Squall walked some extra miles for the material quality too. The handle was made from finest moonsilver, and the weapon itself was four times more magic efficient then usual weapon of this kind. But that still wasn't all....

"This is dual-phase version. See this ring?" Swift asked while picking up the spare and pointed it at the ceiling. "When you turn it...." unicorn said while doing just that. Out of nowhere the blade doubled in length! "...You can adjust it's length. This is because they have two set's of crystals inside. Good for surprise attacks, or to throw off opponent in duel." count mused.

 

"It must seem...an odd choice of gift for Heartswarming...." noblepony lampshaded "But if you remember, I once offered to pass my skills to both you and Spring. This offer still stands.....if you are up for it that is." Squallcoast said.

 

[PyroBlaze]

<Flux/Swift>
 

“Of course! I’d love to spoil your foals!” Flux chirped happily, glad there was a plan for Swift and Fire to have kids. Or at least one side of a plan, hopefully Fire agreed to it. The changeling loved kids! 
 

Turning her attention back to the gift, she gave an oohing sound as the weapon lit up, looking at the pretty light. She nodded at his explanation, watching the blade grow in length. After he finished, she made sure to disable the weapon and put it back before pouncing on Swift to give him a hug. 
 

“Thanks, Swifty! I’d like to learn how to protect my friends better, it sounds like a good thing to learn.” She chirped, hugging him for a while before releasing him and backing up to give him space. 
 

—————

 

<Tiger/Bluebelle>
 

Tiger gave a whistle to the little 360 show of Bluebelle’s outfit, looking her over as she did. She was certainly a good-looking mare, he didn’t think he would get tired of it any time soon. When the mare agreed to his proposition for another kiss, he winked at her, leaning in for another kiss on the lips. He planned to hold this one for as long as Bluebelle allowed it. 
 

When the kiss eventually ended, he smiled at her, giving another wink. “You’re really making it hard to turn you down on the whole guard job. Not that I really wanted to. Definitely better air around here, and good views.” 

[QuickLime]

Martini held the delicate, star shaped item in his claws, and tilted his head as he opened it, inside it reflected a lovely image of the tropics, warm breeze, swaying trees, he could even smell the air..

"...Woah...heh thank you Miss Twilight, that's a great gift..'He murmured, eyes even getting a little teary at how thoughtful the gift was, he was going to be attending the school here, which meant he'd be away from home for a while..so it was nice to know he'd have a piece of it with him.

'I ain't the huggin type so" He flapped his wings in her direction.

"Air hug" He explained, offering her a soft smile, and a chuckle..

".....Ah sorry in advanced fer probably eatin all yer muffins...n'such..? I eat when it's awkward.."

[RainbowFoxxy]

 

 

Twilight could tell by the look on his face that Martini liked the gift! She smiled warmly as he experienced a little slice of home. When he offered her the air hug the Princess returned the sentiment. Her horn glowed for a moment, sending a small gust of air swirling around the griff. 

 

"Air hug it is!" She laughed lightly. "I'm glad you like your gift Martini and I'm so excited to find out what your stay at the Friendship school turns out to be!" 

 

The Princess glanced at the trays of goodies. "It's ok with me! Eat all the muffins you'd like...I do hope you feel less awkward as you get accustomed!" Twilight knew the griffon would do just fine at the Friendship school. There was so much to learn!

----

 

Pinkie stared at the items on the tray she held before her. "Ooooooo, what does this do?" Her eyes glittered with interest as she leaned in.

 

Meanwhile her gift was opened. Inside there were three little boxes. One was gold, one silver, and one pink!

 

"Don't open those yet Candy Cain!" She explained what was in the boxes. "These are 'Party-In-a-Boxes! The gold one had a birthday party in it, the silver one is for house warming or shower type of events, an the pink one is..." Confetti burst into the air form seemingly nowhere! "...well it's an any time party! Just pull the ribbon loose and set the box down, it will do the rest! The decorations at least." She grinned. "I'm sure you'll have no problem supplying the treats!"

[KaityKat]

((omg, I'm so sorry. this whole time, I thought I'd responded. Must've forgotten to hit Submit lol))

 

Jas/  /Cocoa

Cocoa giggled at the playful jab at his friend. "Hee hee. It's not supposed to last long, silly. It's chocolate! You just gobble it up, like this!" suddenly, she flicked her tail, producing a relatively large bar of chocolate from its depths which she snatched out of the air in her mouth, and promptly swallowed whole. Then, she added, without a hint of any kind of reaction "Oops. That one was baking chocolate." she giggled again. "Besides, when you run out of chocolate, that just gives you an excuse to go get more!" she winked at him.

When Jasper had mentioned there being "not much else to do", she almost began listing all the fun things she'd already heard about in her short time so far, but she decided instead to let him feel that way.... for now. "Well, if you're bored, you're always welcome to stop by my shop. I'll be there most any time. I literally live there." she gasped loudly "Maybe, we can be record buddies!" she exclaimed, holding up the record album he'd gifted her for emphasis. She's never had records, before, but if this cool Dragon likes them, then how can she expect them to be anything but cool, too? She still didn't even really know if she'd like the music on the album, but that was an unlikely problem for future Cocoa.

 

=================

Hope/  /Rose

Rose resisted the urge to gasp in disbelief. "You mean you've never had a mango?" she questioned "Among all the fruits, Mango is the sweetest, juiciest, most delicious-" she cleared her throat. "You'll love it. Trust me." she blushed a little. She might be just a tad too excited about the fruit. She hated falling into "bat pony" stereotypes, but she just couldn't help how good mangoes were.

When Hope offered to share, she tried to say "no, that's okay, it's for you." but nothing would come out. She just stood and watched her cut it, her mouth watering a little. When she'd handed here the slice, she smiled "Thanks, Hope." she held out her slice as if to toast and said "To new friends." after the toast was completed, she practically swallowed her slice, a look of pure bliss washing over her face.

 

=================

Cloudy/  /Stellar

Stellar Smiled, relieved "Well, as long as somepony will love the book, that's really all that matters." 

he chuckled "Besides, I'm sure most ponies already know the story, even if they can't read the book. I mean I'm pretty rusty in Old Ponish, myself, and I'm sure my friend wouldn't have been able to read it, either. I've had it more as a piece of history. But if you want, I can always send a later, Ponish copy to accompany it." he thought for a moment "In fact, as a second part to my gift, I'll add an open invitation to you or your friend to visit my home library in Canterlot any time. It doesn't get to see many ponies- er creatures, very often." he smiled happily at the Hippogriff.

[Ashton]

((Normally I would wait my proper turn, but since the thread ends today....))

 

/=======================\

|         Jasper/Cocoa Nut          |

\=======================/

 

Jasper looked very mildly surprised at cocoa gulping down a whole bar of bitter chocolate without any reaction, though it was only  a mild surprise. When she commented about being "record buddies" he wanted to comment on how lame and cheesy that sounded, but given her reaction to seeing the album he realized that maybe, just maybe, he had found a kindred spirit that appreciated metal as much as he did, so he managed to smile "yeah, I'd like that. Hard to find metalheads in areas like this, be nice to have someone to talk to that understood the difference in Ozzy OzHorn, and SaBiton"

 

((its so hard to think of pony puns for bands >.< ))

 

/==============================\

|       Fleeting Hope/Compass Rose       |

\==============================/

 

Hope giggled as rose went on about how much she loved mangos, she nodded at the toast, still a little awkward and shy, then she took a timid little bite of her slice of hte fruit.

 

For a moment one might think she didn't like it, her reaction was extremely delayed, then her second bite ate the whole thing, a look of ecstacy washing over her "wow... your right... that is... wow..." she smiled, licing her lips "I've got to save a slice for my friend flux, I bet she'll like to try it too!" not stopping to think for a moment that flux probably already knew what a mango was. There was a certain charm to hope neievatae

 

 

/============================\

|        Stellar Drift/Cloudy Skies          |

\============================/

 

Cloudy laughed "Iggy can read it, I'm sure, she even knows some of the old rune languages" he explained "and we'll gladly accept that invitation, we're always looking for excuses to visit canterlot... well they are... Jasper's always wanting to go to the record shops there looking for new albums, and Iggy will take any chance to try and catch a glimpse of the princess... heh... if she were any more obsessed with her Majesty, we'd have a restraining order" he laughed, though he didn't seem to be entirely joking... and given the scene iggy almost caused when she arrived earlier... yeah... she no doubt was completely obsessed with her idol...

[QuickLime]

"Yeh, I think I'm gonna like it here ma'am.."He said and grinned, glad she'd liked her gift, glad he liked his, glad earlier strife was now being ignored.. He slipped the star shaped pendant on and fluffed up a bit proudly...

"..It was really nice meeting y' ma'am..heh you go on and meet your other guests eh?~"
 

With that Martini bid her a good day, and went about his business devouring the snack table, heh, maybe the pony school won't be so bad after all.

(Exit Martini, Happy Holidays erryone!)

[KaityKat]

Jas/  /Cocoa

Cocoa smiled happily. Somewhere in the back of her mind, the voice of reason told her that she'd basically just promised him she'd like his music without ever having heard a note of it.... but she doesn't usually listen to that voice. She decided she'd listen to the album while making the surprise she'd promised she'd have for him, another promise she'll have to work hard on, for inspiration. "Don't forget, you still need to come see your surprise in a couple days... maybe three." she booped him on the snout "It's gonna be great."

 

=================

Hope/  /Rose

Rose watched her expectantly as she took her bite. She was just starting to think to herself that maybe she failed at the gift choice when suddenly, the rest of her slice vanished into her mouth. She smiled, seeing just how much she enjoyed it. "I'm glad you like it." she offered "Y'know, you're pretty sweet, Hope. We should find some time to hang out."

 

=================

Cloudy/  /Stellar

Stellar smiled when he heard that somepony else shared his interest in dead languages. It's not often he met anypony who found his interests to be anything else but weird, boring or nerdy. He didn't mind much, I mean to each his own, but it got lonely sometimes. He laughed at the comment about a restraining order, his laugh turning to slight concern when he realised it wasn't entirely a joke. "Well, anyway," he started "It'll be great to have somepony over once in a while. It does get lonely in the big house by myself." he laughed, tho he, too, was not entirely joking. Most of the time, he did enjoy his peace and quiet. It gave his time for his studies. but he did wish he had visitors every now and then.