Of Sky and Snow
Chapter 4
New Arrivals
Rainbow sat, eyes trained on the words in front of her. The black, printed words stood out against the plain white sheet they were printed on and their solid, even lines made them distinguishable from each other. They were large enough to be read easily without causing undue strain, and the paragraphs were indented to stand out. The chapters started with fancy, stylized headings, making sure there was no mistaking when another chapter started. It was a good book. An easy to read, engaging, wonderful book.
And no matter what she did, no matter how easy the book was to read, Rainbow Dash could not read it. It wasn't that she didn't understand the words, or that it couldn't hold her interest. In fact, on any normal day she would've devoured the book in a matter of hours. From what little she had read, she could see the similarities to Daring Do, but also the differences. Of course, the only real way to know would be to read it, if only she could keep focused. But no, no matter how hard she tried, how much she strained and forced her eyes to remain on the pages upon pages of lines upon lines of text, she made little progress.
Maybe it was from the steady clacking as the train made its way over the iron rails beneath it. Maybe it was from the rather cramped space they were all sharing. Or maybe it was the same reason as back at the library; being too absorbed in her thoughts. Even now, the lines grew blurry as her concentration was lost amongst the swirling sea of half formed thoughts. Each on vying for her attention, when all she wanted to do was forget them and read peacefully. But she knew she'd never be able to do that, at least not with Twilight sitting in the same room.
No, that lavender unicorn was the motivating force of her thoughts; the flag raised just before the charge. Every thought she had could somehow be traced back to the mare sitting across from her. She tried time and time again to shove the thoughts from her mind, but everything time they just came back stronger. No two thoughts were the same either; some of them were admonishing herself for chickening out back at the library, some of them were scolding her for not telling Twilight sooner, and some of them made her second guess her decision to come on this trip. They were constantly reminding her she had never even been snowboarding. She hadn't even been to a ski resort before today. If her nerves weren't getting to her enough, being in such close proximity to Twilight was destroying what confidence she had left. Having never so much as seen a snowboard in real life, forced to share a room with the very unicorn that caused her such stress, and the possibility of making a foal of herself in front of her. All in all, she was in for a very stressful week.
With every second that drew her towards the resort, Twilight felt her smile grow just a little larger. It had been 13 years since she'd been skiing, 16 since she'd been with her brother, and she'd never been with her friends. But this week was going to change all that. She might not being going with true family, but her friends were just as close, and in some cases closer. They were her family, blood or not, and that made this trip much like the ones of her youth.
The rolling green hills that ran along the base of the mountain range of Canterlot whizzed by outside the window. Splotches of colour decorated the shiny-green grass, marking the odd tulip or daffodil. Trees were few and far between, allowing for an unobstructed view of the mountain they were getting closer and closer to. In an hour they'd be in Coltensburg, and then a hour carriage ride would bring them to their destination.
With a happy sigh Twilight turned away from the view outside the window and back to the room around them. Spike sat as transfixed with Rarity as ever. The look in his eyes brought a small chuckle to Twilight, but it went unnoticed as Spike continued staring at the unicorn next to him. Rarity payed his usual antics no mind, instead talking to Fluttershy. Nothing particularly interesting, just idle chatter to pass the travel time to the resort. Rainbow sat across from her, eyes glued to the book she was reading, pressed flat against the glass window. As much as she seemed to be enjoying the book in front of her, Twilight could have sworn she should have been farther along in it with how much time she'd been reading. She shrugged it off; it was probably just her imagination or the words were smaller than she remembered.
The three fillies accompanying them were nowhere to be see, nor was Pinkie. Though Twilight wasn't quite sure how a train could be so interesting to explore, she chalked it up to Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie. For all she new Pinkie had an emergency stash of clown shoes or something on this very train. Applejack sat, half listening to Rarity and Fluttershy's conversation as she looked out passed Rainbow and to the hills passing them by.
With a content smile Twilight extended her magic and reached into her own carry-on saddlebags, taking out a particularly interesting book and laying it in her lap. Magically opening it to her page, she placed the bookmark back into her bags and began to read.
The next time she looked up it was from their door sliding open. The conductor let them know that the next stop was Coltensburg in ten minutes. They elected to send Applejack out to find the self-dubbed 'Cutie Mark Crusaders' and Pinkie. The door shut with a quiet click behind her as the rest of them began preparing to disembark. Books and other carry on nick-knacks were packed away and saddlebags were closed. All except Rainbow, who remained oblivious and lost in her book. Though if Twilight didn't know any better, she would have sworn Rainbow hadn't turned a single page during the entirety of their journey.
“Rainbow?” She called, trying to get the oblivious mare's attention. A single twitch of an ear was all the recognition she got that she had spoken at all.
“Hey, Rainbow,” Twilight repeated, a little louder. Still Rainbow refused to acknowledge the world around her. With a frustrated huff Twilight grabbed the book in her magic and ripped it out of her hooves (making sure it wasn't damaged, of course).
What am I getting myself into? I don't know how to snowboard! I'm gonna make a foal of myself in front of Twilight. I'm gonna- where did my book go?
Rainbow's head snapped up as her book was taken from her. Looking around, she saw that everypony was snickering at her, including Twilight, who had her book floating in a light purple glow.
“Enjoying it?” Twilight teased with a smile, motioning towards the book levitating next to her. Rainbow blushed.
“Uh... yeah... so what did you need?”
“It's our stop in 5 minutes.” Twilight explained, giving Rainbow back her book.
“Right... I knew that,” Rainbow smiled sheepishly, shoving the book in her own bags before closing them, lifting them into her lap as she waited for the train to reach the station. The door opened, and in came a very disgruntled looking Applejack, followed by three fillies and a pink earth pony. Pinkie looked as happy as ever, but the three fillies behind her had their heads hung low to the floor.
“Do we want to kn-”
“No,” Applejack deadpanned, shooting a glare at the lavender unicorn she had cut off, effectively ending that line of enquiry.
“Well,” Rarity clapped her hooves together, a cheerful smile adorning her face as three downtrodden fillies took their seats next to their respective sisters. “I think it's safe to assume you four have had your fill of adventure, hmm? So what do you say we have a nice, quit ride to the resort?”
“Okay,” the three sighed in chorus, bringing a delighted smile from Rarity and a relieved sigh from Applejack.
“I swear, I don't know where you four found that much puddin' but-”
“Oh, I have it stashed all over the train for pudding-related emergencies,” Pinkie piped up happily, interupting and further frustrating the orange farm mare.
“But you're gonna be in for one unenjoyable week if you keep it up,” she growled, daring Pinkie to interrupt her again with a venomous glare.
“Pudding?” Rainbow asked sceptically, raising an eyebrow towards the poofy pink mane of Pinkie Pie.
“You never know,” Pinkie answered ominously, momentarily losing her signature manic grin, though it returned a split second later, as did her happy demeanour.
Before anypony could comment on how useless pudding would be in any emergency, the squealing of breaks filled the train car, desperate to stop the mammoth machine at the station rapidly approaching. The train obeyed the demand, slowing down and coming to a halt just as the station filled the view outside the window. As the train came to a complete stop, they all gathered their bags and filed out the door. Crowding down the hall, they pushed their way out the door and onto the station platform. Their luggage was already offloaded and waiting for them.
Coltensburg, much like Ponyville, was a rather small town, so their station was nothing fancy. As far as the group could tell, they were the only ones who'd gotten off the train aside from a few others who looked to be locals. The mountain range of Canterlot towered over the small community set just a couple kilometres from the base of the mountain. The city itself could be seen clearly, a stark contrast against the flat grey mountainside it was built into.
“So, where do we go from here?” Somepony in the group spoke up, Twilight wasn't sure who with them all following her through the station.
“There should be a carriage service working for the resort just outside the station,” she explained, beginning the short walk to the stairs leading down and away from the train. With perfect timing the train's whistle blew, and the machine once again began the struggle of getting back up to speed, lacking only a small number of it's previous inhabitants. The group of ponies (and one dragon) made their way down the stone steps of the station and onto the cobbled streets. Though none of them had ever actually been to Coltensburg before, it all looked very familiar. It was built by the same settlers that had initially built Ponyville, and was established around the same time. Though it was even smaller then the town they called home, with both Canterlot and Ponyville being so close to it and having more to offer, most ponies moved into the neighbouring areas instead of Coltesnburg. Still, the lack of population did little to down any local's spirits, as the ponies of the town went about their business happily, one or two waving to the newcomers to their quaint little town.
The carriage service for the resort was hard to miss. A large sign proudly displayed who the chariot service was for, along with all the information you'd need to get in contact with them to make a reservation. Five carriages waited underneath the sign, with room for two more. The ski resort must have been very prosperous, as each carriage was a large, expensive-looking contraption. Finely-painted, intricately carved wood blended with shining metal reinforcements. They had more than enough storage space for luggage, both on the roof and a compartment below the enclosed seats.
“I think we found 'em,” Applejack remarked, staring at the fancy mode of transportation. The group nodded, each as curious as the last as to why they had such elegant carts for a ski resort as they trotted up to the unicorn stallion who appeared to be in charge. He smiled kindly at them before speaking in a deep voice.
“Well hello, ladies, do you have a reservation?”
“We do, it should be for Twilight Sparkle.” Twilight smiled as the stallion's eyes widened and his jaw fell.
“You're Twilight Sparkle? Princess Celestia's student, element of magic, most talented unicorn in Equestria?” He asked in amazement. Twilight blushed and nodded.
“T-that means... you're the rest of the elements?” He looked across each of them as they nodded.
“Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity and Twilight Sparkle... the world renowned Elements of Harmony... coming to my resort? I knew that a reservation had been made for you but... wow.” He stared at he group before him, nothing short of flabbergasted at the mares before him.
“Wait, you own the resort?” Twilight asked, snapping him out of his daze.
“Uh... y-yes. My name is Blizzard Hoof, owner and creator of Blizzard's Snowy Kingdom. But enough about me; what are world famous heroes doing at my resort?”
“Vacation,” Rainbow deadpanned, obviously growing impatient by the stallion's rambling. She had more pressing matters on her mind. Luckily, he seemed to pick up on her tone, and smiled sheepishly.
“Of course, sorry to hold you up. For a group this large, I'll have to recommend two carriages,” he motioned for two of his drives to step up.
“I'll go with the girls,” Applejack volunteered, keeping a cautious eye on both her sister and Pinkie.
“Sounds good, though that still leaves six of us in this one. Spike? Would you mind going with AJ?” Twilight asked, smiling at the baby dragon standing next to her.
“No way am I going in that carriage. I'm sharing a room with them, I'm not sharing a carriage too,” Spike deadpanned, giving a rather harsh glare towards the three fillies. Twilight gave him an odd look until she saw who he was looking at. Giving a nervous chuckle, she nodded in understanding.
“Rainbow? Would you mind?”
“Uh... sure.” Rainbow said, too distracted to actually register what she'd agreed too.
“Well then, I think we're set.”
“Very well.” Blizzard smiled, picking up their luggage in a magical, white glow and dividing it into the two carriages, followed by the group splitting and boarding. After talking to the drivers for a second, he waved and sent them on there way, grinning as the Elements of Harmony made their way to his resort.
The ride was a short, smooth affair. The carriages rolled over the stone path between the small town of Coltensburg and the resort. Only the slightest and rare bump marred the path they travelled, but it was otherwise a steady ride. In one particular car, it was a very smooth, very quiet ride. Three fillies sat quietly under a stern glare from an orange farmer and the thoughtful gaze of Rainbow Dash, directed out the window she once again found herself sitting beside.
As Rainbow sat, her gut twisted in knots as the resort once again resumed getting closer. Nervous didn't begin to describe it, and every second brought her closer to her doom. Or something very similar, in her eyes.
“You alright there sugarcube?” Applejack asked, giving her friend a concerned look as Rainbow turned away from the window. “You've been awfully quiet the whole trip, somethin' on your mind?”
“It's nothing, Applejack, just thinking,” Rainbow mumbled quietly before returning her gaze to the world beyond the carriage.
“Rainbow Dash thinking? Has Discord broken free again?” Applejack joked with a laugh.
“I can think if I want to!” Rainbow snapped suddenly, making Applejack's humerus smile fall from her lips and thee fillies jump in surprise.
“Hey, it was just a joke. What's going on with you?”
“Nothing,” Rainbow growled, glaring out the window as hills turned to steep cliffs as they approached the mountain the resort was situated on.
“Rainbow?'” Applejack asked gently, more than a little confused and concerned at her friend's behaviour.
“I said I'm fine, AJ, let it drop.”
“Sheesh, sorry I asked,” Applejack grumbled, turning back to the three now equally confused fillies and sighing. It was going to be a long ride.
In a carriage not too far behind them, four mares and a dragon sat, idle, happy chatter filling the air as the scenery changed before their eyes. Grassy green hills turned to golden brown rock cliffs, mixed with red and grey. The cobbled path they rode on staid smooth, however, making the final leg of their journey pass comfortably. The carriages rolled down the path a steady pace, the stallions pulling them having travelled the path hundreds of times before and well accustomed to the weight.
“Hey Spike, is the Princess alright with paying for the rentals?” Twilight asked, suddenly remembering who as paying. Spike rolled his eyes.
“She's fine with it, Twi.”
“How do you know? You didn't even check!” Twilight protested, getting little more than a glare from Spike. He crossed his arms stubbornly. She didn’t question him again. Before long the resort could be seen in the distance; located at the bottom of a tall hill, glistening with fresh snow.
Twilight pressed her face against the window, a gleeful grin on her face as her vacation came closer and closer.
Rainbow Dash pressed her face against the window, watching in horror as the place she dreaded came into view.
-_-_-_-
The carriages came to a gentle stop, the doors being opened moments later as the two groups piled out and onto the road leading up to a large building. From one car came four happy mares and a dragon, from the other came a disgruntled Applejack, three downtrodden fillies, and a distracted Rainbow Dash. Twilight frowned at the sight; apparently their ride hadn't been very enjoyable. She made a mental note to ask about it. But it would have to be saved for later; for now all she could think about was getting their rooms sorted and skis fitted. She was determined to get at least one run in today. An old tradition of her family was to get one run on the first day. It was a tradition she fully intended to keep, whether her friends went with her or not.
“The receptionist can get you your room keys and point you in the right direction,” one of the stallions said, motioning to the large building in front of them. The building itself was rather plane; similar to small towns, but with an added layer of elegance that came with being a resort. Behind the building could be seen a large network of other buildings, each multiple stories high and lined with windows, presumably where the rooms were.
Twilight nodded in thanks before leading the large group down the path and through the revolving doors. Inside was exactly like the outside; rustic but fancy. A mix of Canterlot and Coltensburg. It made sense, since the resort was situated in the middle, but that thought never once entered Twilight's mind as she enjoyed the splendour around her. She may have grown up in Canterlot, but she always appreciated the look of resorts like these. The lobby was a large, carpeted room with a seating area on either side where a few ponies sat, dressed in full ski gear and sipping from mugs. A family sat to the left, laughing and smiling after a long day of skiing down pearly slopes.
“Reservations?” The mare behind the desk asked, not even glancing up from the paperwork in front of her. Twilight frowned at her obviously grouchy demeanour.
“Twilight Sparkle,” she said plainly. The mare glanced up once for just a second before turning back down to her books.
“I see somepony's taking advantage of royal connections,” the receptionist snarled, tossing four keys onto the counter. Twilight glared holes through the top of her head while the rest of the group scowled. “You got the best rooms on the bottom floor. It's the building closest to the hill. Follow the hall over there, go out the door, and look for “white wolf lodge”, that's your building. Room numbers are on the keys. Oh, and take this, show it to anypony and they'll put any charge you get onto your account, to be paid on your last reserved day,” she added, tossing a small plastic card onto the counter.
“Well she was pleasant,” Rainbow growled as they walked away, room keys and card held in a magical aura in front of them. Twilight sighed and shook her head, determined not to let a single mare in a bad mood ruin her vacation. Going out the door at he end of the hall, it was relatively easy to find their building.
“Here's our rooms,” Twilight said, pointing down a lone hall. It branched out from the main hall and had only four doors along its relatively long path. Passing one of the keys to Spike, Twilight motioned to the first on the left.
“Why don't you and the girls stay in there? Rainbow and I will stay across the hall.” Spike sighed as he grabbed the key out of Twilight's magical grasp, thankful he wouldn't have to be in the room or with the CMC all hours of the day.
“You four can decide who goes where of the other two rooms, I need to unpack and get ready,” Twilight said, giving two more keys to Rarity and Applejack before unlocking and slipping into her own room quickly. Rainbow followed along with their luggage.
“Why are you in such a rush?” Rainbow asked as she looked around the room. It was large, but not too much. It had a small kitchen with only the essentials to the right of the door. Opposite it was a length of wall with a closet and a bathroom. In front of her was an average sized living space, on the far right wall was another door, presumably leading to a bedroom.
“It's a family tradition to get at least one run done on the first day. From what I saw this place isn't too busy this time of year, so the lines should be short. If I hurry I can get one in,” Twilight called from the bedroom, digging through her suitcase.
“Right. Well have fun, I'm gonna hang around the room for today,” Rainbow sighed as she walked into the front room and flopped down on the couch. On the wall opposite the door was a window, facing out to he hill she knew she'd have to go down tomorrow.
“You sure you don't want to at least get your snowboard today? It'll be faster then doing it tomorrow.”
“Well...”
“Come on, Rainbow, at least rent the equipment today,” Twilight insisted, coming out of the room ready for skiing. She wore a light purple ski jacket, clearly warm, but still thin and flexible so it wouldn't impede movement. Around her neck hung a pair of goggles, tinted yellow and dangling by a thick, elastic strap.
“I guess,” Rainbow sighed, standing from the couch and following Twilight back to the door.
“Come on, I saw a sign for rentals down the hall.”
Twilight wasn't lying; she had seen the sign just a little ways back down the hall. What the sign failed to mention was that they were on the opposite side of the building from the rental shop. The sign led to another sign, which in turn led to yet another sign. Eventually, after what felt like a lifetime of navigating halls, they found the rental shop. It was connected to the building they were in, but only on the outside. To get to it they had to leave the building and walk along the outside.
It was just another step in the long, drawn out process of Rainbow's grand failure. She could see it coming on the horizon now, a horizon blocked by a large white mountain covering a large portion of the sky. The mountain in question was covered in trees, chairlifts, small buildings, and the odd spec of pony going down it. The resort was nowhere near capacity, but there were a fair number of ponies milling about by the various shops and cafes littering the side facing the ski hill.
Twilight led Rainbow at a giddy canter into the rental shop, quickly pulling two sheets of paper from a counter along with a pen, passing one sheet to Rainbow before furiously filling out her own form. Rainbow held the sheet with a wing, looking at it oddly. The things it wanted to know were... weird to say the least. Hoof size made sense, but weight? Height? Right or left hoofed? Experience? What did any of this matter to a board being strapped to her hooves?
“Having problems?” Twilight asked, glancing up from her own form curiously.
“Uh, no,” Rainbow smiled nervously, setting her paper down on the desk and picking up a pen in her mouth. She started filling in what she knew; height, weight, the easy things. But stopped at experience. Why did they need that? Was it some kind of test? Would they not give her a board if she wasn't good enough? Would she have to prove how good she was? What if she failed the test?
“Rainbow?” Twilight asked again, having filled out her own sheet and handed it to one of the ponies running the shop.
“Uh,” Rainbow stuttered, quickly checking the 'experienced' box and handing it to the same pony. Twilight smiled as they followed the pony with their forms back behind the counter. Around them sat large racks of boots, skis, poles, and snowboards. Each of various sizes colours and styles. They were led to a set of benches and a pair of boots were tossed in front of each of them.
“Make sure those fit,” the stallion said before disappearing among the seemingly endless racks of gear.
Rainbow glanced nervously over at the unicorn sitting next to her, unsure of what to do. Twilight already had one of her boots on and was doing up the straps. She glanced up, almost feeling Rainbow's gaze on her, and smiled gleefully, too excited to notice Rainbow's nerves.
With a quiet, nervous gulp, Rainbow turned to the boots laid in front of her. They were nothing like any boot she'd ever seen before; large, thick, primarily made of plastic. They were taller then most boots and looked heavy and uncomfortable. Covered in straps and buckles and laces with thick soles.
Unsure of what she was doing, she slipped one of her hind hooves into the boot and began fastening it to her leg. It went halfway up her shin and dug into her skin uncomfortably if she tried to bend her ankle. She glanced up and over at Twilight, who had both of her boots on and was balancing on her hind legs, seemingly making sure they were comfortable. As Rainbow adjusted the final strap on her first boot, she lifted it off the ground. It was heavier then she thought it would be, her leg feeling a strain from just lifting it. She couldn't imagine walking in it. It restricted most of her leg's movement and it was nearly impossible to bend her ankle.
A large, flat plank of wood, tapered at both ends, was dropped in front of her. She looked up, seeing two skinny sticks in front of Twilight, along with two metal poles. Twilight smiled, picking up her gear in a magical aura and looking to Rainbow patiently.
“You sure you don't want to come with me?” Twilight asked as Rainbow quickly went about attaching the other boot to her leg. It went on with some difficulty, but she managed.
“Sorry, Twi, but I'm pretty tired after the train ride. I think I'm gonna have a nap back in the room.” Rainbow smiled ruefully as Twilight smiled in understanding. Carefully, Rainbow pushed herself off the bench and balanced on her hind hooves, taking a couple steps to make sure the boots weren't too uncomfortable. After approving they weren't too bad, she sat back on the bench.
“Okay. Why don't you tell the girls I'll be back in about half an hour? I only want one short run, and I doubt any of them will be too keen on getting started today. We'll meet back at our rooms then go for dinner, okay?” Twilight asked, handing their card the the stallion. He took it in his hoof and copied some information on a sheet before tucking it away in hid desk and giving the card back to Twilight.
Rainbow nodded, taking off her boots and picking them up along with her board under her wing. Waving, Twilight quickly went out the door and towards the chairlift that would take her up to the mountain she yearned for. Rainbow, carrying her boots in her teeth by a length of cord, trudged back into the building and down the never-ending hall. Eventually finding herself back at her room. She dumped her gear into the closet before going out and systematically knocking on each of her friend's doors.
As Twilight predicted, none of them wanted to get started, instead too focused on unpacking and getting ready for tomorrow. She relaid Twilight's message to each of them before once again returning to her room and closing the door. She wandered into the bedroom with her saddlebags. When she turned on the light, her jaw dropped. It looked like Twilight had been keeping a hurricane in her suitcase and had released it in the room. All her luggage was spread across the room, the two beds and then dressers. The epicentre being the suitcase in the middle of the floor.
There were very few things Twilight Sparkle would leave a mess for. One of those things was saving Equestria.
Apparently another one was skiing.
With nothing better to do, and needing something to keep her mind off tomorrow, Rainbow started picking up the various objects tossed around the room.