Ponies of the North

by HarmonicaJay

Book 1: Journey to the North: Chapter IX: A Meeting of Fate

It had been a full day since the eight travelers had entered the mountain tunnel. For the most part, it had been a pretty uneventful journey. They had stopped whenever Twilight called for a meal break, building a fire out of the tinder they had brought along with them, and boiling fruit and vegetable soup. Sven had argued against wasting their water and food supplies on three meals in a single day, arguing that they should conserve supplies for when they actually reach the North.

“Trust me,” he said. “When we actually get there, you will wish that you had listened to me.”

Twilight had argued that they needed the food breaks to keep their stamina up, but Sven stated that if they just ate one big meal and took small sips from the waterskins, the journey would be quicker. He had also requested that Pinkie not do anymore songs to lighten up the mood as it added several minutes to their journey, including the dance numbers.

It made no difference in the end as they made it to the end of the tunnel. They noticed that there was an increase in winds and more snow flying in their faces than before. Finally, Twilight saw the light at the end of the tunnel. The ponies all trotted forward to be the first ones to see the North for the first time.

They were hit full in the face by a blizzard. When their eyes adjusted and looked past the blinding flurry of snow, they were greeted with a sight to behold. The North.

Stretching far to the horizon was snow, pine trees, hills, valleys, and smaller mountains than the ones that surrounded the landscape. It was unlike anything the seven southerners had ever seen before. It was... pure snow. What little green poked through the white was rare and almost nowhere to be seen.

Twilight was shook out of her surprise by the sound of Sven's staff tapping in sync with his hoofsteps. “Quite a sight, ain't it.”

Twilight nodded. “So... this is where you came from?”

Sven smiled and nodded in return. “This cold place is my home. The North.”

Rainbow spoke up next. “So that's really all you call it? The North? Why? I mean, it's such a bland name.”

“Indeed, Mr. Sven,” Rarity agreed. “There's no flair to it. Nothing to make it stand out. North is a direction. Not a location.”

“What would you call it,” Sven asked.

“I dunno,” Rainbow Dash replied. “Something other than a direction? Now come on! Let's get moving!” She broke into a careful run down the side of the mountain, followed by Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Spike, and finally Fluttershy. Twilight remained at the mouth of the tunnel, taking in the sight of the North.

“Amazing, isn't it? The thought that life could be up here? Never thought it possible, did ya?”

Twilight nodded. “We never knew. Is “the North” really the name of this country?”

Sven smiled. “Well, after the traders discovered the presence of Ponyfolk down South, it seemed appropriate. You could say that it began as a nickname that just stuck.”

Twilight looked down at Sven. “So, does it have a real name?”

Sven smiled. “It had a few. But there was one that stuck around for a while. Only a few of the Elder Caribou really speak it anymore.”

“What was it?”

Sven looked up at the sky. “It was called... Midgard. Forgot what it meant a long time ago. But the name always stuck with me. Don't know why. Now, come on. Your friends are waiting.” He motioned with his staff down towards the bottom where Twilight's friends were indeed waiting. Twilight nodded and smiled and made her way down the mountainside, being careful not to fly in the blizzard.

The storm died down after the first night in the North. The Ponies limited their stops to breakfast, lunch, and dinner, cutting out water breaks, as most of the water they had brought was beginning to freeze. The days were cold and the nights were freezing. They slept close to the fires, making sure to keep their wrappings tight around them. They still hardly got any sleep due to the cold and Rarity's complaining about their situation did not help matters. Twilight began to wonder if the old Caribou really did know where they were going and if they were going to miss meeting the Raven's children.

Three days after entering the North, the storm started back up again and this time it was thicker than before. Rainbow Dash tried flying upwards past the storm to get a better look above the cloud line. She was immediately flung far to the back of the group. They all had to go back for her before continuing on. And then they lost the last of the food supplies they had brought to the winds. To make matters even worse, the layers they had on were hardly doing anything to fight against the cold.

Twilight lost sight of Sven for a while due to the old Caribou's white fur. It was only thanks to the beads and feathers upon his antlers that she managed to catch sight of him again. She was about to run up to him when Spike stumbled up to her.

“We're going in circles,” he yelled at Twilight over the wind. “We gotta be!”

Twilight grabbed Spike and hefted him on her back. She ran up to where she was certain Sven was walking. As she caught up to him, she called out. “Where are we going?

“An inn! It's about a three day trot from the border! We're nearly there!”

“How do you know that?! We could be going in circles!”

“Can't be! I know this land! I can feel where I'm going! We Caribou were born of the North! We are part of the land! We never get lost!”

“Well, maybe we are! We can't go on for much longer!”

She saw Sven smile. “What? What is it?”

“The wind is coming from the north! We are heading that direction! I can smell cooked meats on the wind! We are nearing the inn!”

Twilight was about to respond when she suddenly caught the whiff as well. They were nearing the inn. She turned to see the girls struggling against the winds and gave a call to them.

“We're nearly there! We're nearly there!”

After what seemed like an hour, the travelers finally saw a light in the distance. When they got close enough, they finally saw the inn itself. It was a two story building that looked to be made out of pine logs. It had a signpost on the outside that had the words “Border Inn” etched into them, as if a knife had been used instead of a paint brush.

Entering it, they all saw that the inner decor matched the sign. It smelled of various forms of awful, both bodily and food wise. Ponies of various races and genders filled the dining area. They all looked angry to see visitors, though Twilight guessed that was because of the cold air they were letting in. It may have smelled, but at least the air was nice and warm.

Twilight gave a smile in response and looked around for a free table. There was one nearest to the door and it was a good size for the travelers. She motioned to the girls and Spike and Sven to sit. They took their seats with Sven and Spike sitting on either side of Twi. Twilight turned to the girls.

“So, we are here. We will have to see about getting rooms for the night. We will leave in the morning and keep heading North to their capital. We will have see about restocking our food supplies or we will starve. And we need fire wood or we will freeze in case we cannot find shelter. Sven, you know the way to the capital, right?”

Sven smiled. “Aye, I do. But I will not be guiding you from here on out.”

Everypony and Spike turned to Sven in shock. “What do you mean you won't be guiding us anymore,” Rarity asked.

“Yeah,” Fluttershy said. “I mean, we haven't been bad company have we?”

“Is it the songs,” Pinkie asked. “Because if it is, I can cut it down to one song a day.”

Sven gave a lop-sided grin. “Now, girls, it isn't anything against you. This is just where my dreams have led me. I've followed the signs as a soothsayer should. And this is where my guidance has ended.”

“What do ya mean, “where yer dreams have led ya”,” Applejack asked raising a skeptical eyebrow.

“I mean what I said. My dreams led us to this inn for three days and now we are here. In fact, your final guides should be coming through the door right about... now.”

They all turned to the door, expecting somepony to come through it. It did not budge. They all turned to Sven who shrugged.

“Huh. Must have been off by a few minutes.”

As soon as he said that the door swung open. Everypony at the table turned to see a pair of Earth Ponies walk through the door frame. One was a stallion. The other was a mare. The mare was blue and the stallion was tan. Twilight's eyes widened in recognition. It was them. The mare and stallion from her dream. The mare wore a cloak of white fur while the stallion wore his cloak of black.

They looked around until their eyes fell upon Twilight and the gang. They approached Twilight and stopped in front of her. The stallion looked her up and down before looking back at her.

“You are the Southern Princess,” he asked in an accent that seemed to be a reminiscent of the accents of Shetland Ponies from the North-Eastern Mountains of Equestria.

Twilight nodded. “I am Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria. These are-”

“Týr,” the stallion interrupted. The mare and he knelt foreword and bowed their heads. “Prince Týr of Valhall, third born of King Odin Borson. This is my sister Princess Skadi Friggsdotter, second born of King Odin. We are here to protect you and your...” Týr looked up and scanned Twilight's friends before settling on Sven, his eyes settling into a glare. “Companions for the remainder of the journey. We will protect you, guide you, and if necessary kill to protect you.”

Skadi looked at Twilight's friends. “I will be honest, we were not expecting you to bring company.”

Pinkie poked her head up from behind Twilight. “Where Twilight goes, we go.”

The other ponies nodded in agreement.

“Definitely,” Rainbow Dash chimed in. “We stick together. No matter what.”

Týr turned to Skadi who just shrugged her shoulders with indifference.

“Their choice. Their decision. No sending them back now.” Her eyes settled on Spike. “We were also not expecting you to have a pet dragon with you.”

Spike stood up on the bench, his face indignant. “Hey, I am nopony's pet! I'm Spike and I am Twilight's number one assistant!”

Skadi and Týr were actually surprised by this retort. “And it talks too,” Skadi said, her eyes betraying amusement. “Southerners are full of surprises after all, little brother.”

Týr nodded and turned to Twilight. “We will spend the night here. Skadi and I will procure the rooms for the night. Tomorrow we will get supplies and head North to Valhall. Is that good, your Highness?”

Twilight nodded. “Also-”

“You will follow our instructions to the letter. You will not dispute with us. You will stop to eat when we say it is time to eat. You will sleep when we say it is time to sleep. You will not dispute us. Is that clear?”

Twilight's eyes narrowed. “Yes, but I do want you to know that if anypony here cannot trek onwards for whatever reason, we stop and wait for them to recuperate. Also, we go at a reasonable pace, no needless rushing. Got it?”

Týr's eyes narrowed at this response. But he nodded. “Very well, Your Highness. There is one last thing: He must not accompany us to Valhall.” He said this while pointing at Sven with venom in his eyes.

Twilight's widened. “What?! Why not?”

Skadi answered this time. “By order of King Odin, no Caribou is to set hoof in Valhall until the day Winter ends forevermore. He is forbidden to accompany us.”

Rainbow Dash slammed her hoof down on the table. “Like Tartarus he is! We go, he goes as well!”

“Out of the question,” Týr said, his voice rising. “He cannot accompany us!”

“Why not,” Applejack asked with a glare. “Why can't an old harmless caribou come with us? What is the problem with that?!”

Twilight looked around her to find that not only were her friends preparing for a fight, but that their argument had been noticed by the other patrons who were staring at them with obvious disgust. Now Twilight understood why they hadn't been very happy to see them. They all wanted Sven gone. And Twilight understood what she had to say.

“ENOUGH!”

Everypony stopped and turned to her.

“We are not starting this portion of the journey like this. Nopony here is going to start trading blows! You got it?”

They all backed down after that.

Twilight turned to Sven. “Sven, I'm sorry, but if them bringing us to Valhall means you have to be left behind, then I think this is where you should be left behind.”

Sven smiled and nodded. “Very well then. Like I said before these two fine youngsters came in, this is as far as I go as your guide. It was my intention from the get go. Valhall is no place for Caribou.”

“But why not,” Rarity asked.

“Well, it might have something to do with a war we started about.... 30 or 40 years ago.”

The table went silent. Sven took a swig from his water skin and smiled. “And that is a looooong story, my friends. One that I am sure these two can explain.”

Before anypony could ask what he meant, Sven stood up, his walking stick in hoof, gave one last smile and made his way to the door. “Tonight, I shall sleep under the stars.” When he reached the door he turned and bowed to Skadi and Týr. “Take care of the girls. They will need it. Oh, and Twilight, one last bit of advice: Don't trust falcons. They are a tricky bunch. Just something I thought you should know. Came to me in a dream.” With that, he opened the door and made his way out into the cold.

The room was silent as the rest of the bar patrons went back to their drinks and food. Twilight looked at Týr and narrowed her eyes. “Anything else? Or is Spike's presence going to be a problem for you?”

Týr looked slightly taken aback by this attitude. But Twi was not going to budge any further on this. Finally, he nodded. “Everything is in order. Skadi and I will take care of the lodgings for the night. Get a full night's sleep. We leave at first light. And we mean first light.”

Skadi walked by Týr and motioned for him to follow her to the bar. As they left, Rarity scrutinized them.

“Well, I see that the Northern Ponies do not consider teaching their children manners a priority.”

Spike nodded, glaring at Skadi. “Calling me a pet. I'll show her who's a pet!”

Twilight watched as the siblings walked over to the bar. She couldn't be sure, but it looked to her as if Týr was limping on the leg that his wolf cloak covered. She shook her head. In the low light of the fireplace, she could be seeing things.

Later that night, Twilight lay in bed tossing and turning in the wooden bed. Týr and Skadi had rented all the rooms on the top floor with Twilight, Fluttershy and Applejack sharing the center room, Rainbow Dash, Skadi, Pinkie Pie and Rarity sharing the one on the left, and Týr and Spike sharing the room to right. The beds were not comfortable. At all. The beds were made of tree logs that still had branches that were long enough to poke through the straw mattress into her back. Fluttershy and Applejack were asleep and how they managed that, Twilight did not know.

She was finally about to fall asleep when she heard something in Týr and Spike's room. It sounded like... Singing. It sounded like Týr was singing.

This will never end

'Cause I want more

More, give me more

Give me more

If I had a heart, I could love you

If I had a voice, then I would sing

After the night when I wake up

I'll see what tomorrow brings

Ahhhhhhh Ahhhhhhh

Ahhhhhhh Ahhhhhhh

If I had a voice, then I would sing.

That was the last thing Twilight heard before she finally drifted off to sleep.

Comments

[MadScientistSidekick]

Great next chapter! I really like the tensions in the inn and I like that the Mane 6 respond perfectly in-character to that issue. I'm interested in Tyr's song, that was a nice touch.

[HarmonicaJay]

6090010 Thanks!