5. Harbinger
Sunset awoke the next morning to a blanket draped over her and Twilight. Twilight hogged most of it, but Sunset felt the warm wool over part of her arm and leg. She lifted her head, finding the living room still empty, and laid back down, snatching some of the blanket away from Twilight to properly cover herself up.
Twilight grunted but didn’t put up too much of a fight. Instead, she rolled into Sunset, pressing her against the back of the couch.
You can’t make anything easy, can you, Sparky? Sunset wiggled her arm free from underneath herself and wrapped it around Twilight. They stayed curled on the couch for another hour, Sunset not fully sleeping, just enjoying Twilight’s presence.
A soft cough made Sunset turn over and look up to see Moondancer, her face puckered like she had eaten a particularly sour lemon. The creeping sense of superiority and dominance fueled Sunset’s relief that she hadn’t done anything last night. As priceless as Moondancer’s face was, Sunset refused to use Twilight’s virginity as a victory.
“Morning, Moondancer,” Sunset said, barely able to keep the smugness out of her voice.
With obvious strain, Moondancer put on a courteous smile. “Good morning, Sunset. How’s that cut on your head? It doesn’t hurt, does it?”
Sunset felt the bandage under her bangs. “Nope, it’s holding up just fine.”
“So glad. I would hate to see something happen to you.” Once she got her mask together, Sunset had to admit it was hard to find cracks in it. Only Moondancer’s eyes showed her loathing.
Twilight yawned and sat up, leaning against Sunset. She squinted her eyes. “Oh, good morning, Moony.”
Moondancer reached into her pocket and pulled out Twilight’s glasses. “Here you are. I had a feeling you would be needing these.”
Sliding her glasses on, Twilight looked about the room. “What time is it? Is everyone still asleep?”
“I should hope not. I made my rounds to knock on everyone’s door in an attempt to get them up for breakfast. There’s a cute little diner in town that I would love to sample. Local cuisine is always the best.”
Twilight slid off the couch and onto her feet. “Who left us the blanket?”
Shining walked into the room, straightening his jacket collar. “You’re welcome.” Cadence, following close behind, winked at Twilight and Sunset.
Cheeks pink, Twilight headed upstairs to get dressed. Sunset returned to her own room, finding Rarity lacing up her pair of designer snow boots.
“Did you and Twilight have a good night together?” she asked, not bothering to look up.
“How did you—”
“Please, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out where you went last night.” She looked up with her coy smile. “So, did you have a good time?”
Sunset opened her suitcase and picked out her outfit for the slopes. “We had a nice, meaningful talk, then we cuddled and fell asleep.”
Rarity nodded in approval. “All I could hope for.” She stood up and looked herself over, twisting left and right. “Do you think this white jacket will blend in too well?”
They finished getting dressed and ready for the day. When they came back into the living room, most of the others had assembled, including a very eager Rainbow, goggles already down over her eyes.
“This is gonna be so awesome! I can’t wait to get up there and show off my awesome shredding moves!” She jumped up and down, upsetting her goggles.
“You ain’t never been snowboardin’ before,” Applejack said. “How do you know you’ll be good at it?”
“Because I’m good at any cool sport!”
“Ha! Cool sport! I get it!”
“Shut up, Pinkie.”
Before heading up the mountain, the group squeezed into the town diner, taking up two tables in the corner. The host looked intimidated by their mob, but the waitress acted like it was another typical day. Sunset guessed large tourist parties weren’t too rare around here.
Still, with ten people, breakfast moved slow. Too slow if Rainbow’s constant fidgeting was anything to go by. Sunset thought she and Pinkie might have switched bodies.
The waitress brought out a smorgasbord of food varying from crepes to french toast, pancakes to omelettes. The feasting went quick, and afterwards, snowboarding was the last thing Sunset felt up for.
But, once Moondancer paid the bill, the girls waddled their way to the base of the slopes, the ski lifts rising out of powder white hills that rolled up the mountainside.
The girls purchased their skis and snowboards, and were directed to the beginners hills not too far up. Outside, the sun had returned, reflecting off the white snow and making it gleam.
The lift came around, taking everyone up in pairs of two. Rainbow jumped on first, taking Pinkie with her and rocking the chair as they landed. “Last one to the top is a rotten egg!” Rainbow yelled.
Her competitive spirit burning through her lethargy, Sunset hooked an arm around Twilight and took the next lift. Their feet left the ground, and they were gently cradled up the mountain. Getting off on the first stop, it wasn’t a long trip, and the scenery hadn’t changed too much. Sunset could see more of the forest spread out to her right, climbing up the other side of the mountain.
She and Twilight hopped off, finding Rainbow already strapping her boots to her board. “Time to reach a whole new level of awesome!” She straightened up and hopped her way to the edge of the slope.
“We need to work on expanding your vocabulary,” Sunset said, laying her own snowboard down.
Rainbow pulled her goggles down. “You need to work on keeping up with me.” With one more hop, she pushed herself over the edge and down the slope, flailing her arms to keep her balance. Sunset had to give her some credit, Rainbow lasted longer than expected. She made it a fourth of the way down before a small bump threw her onto her face.
Sunset cupped her hands to her mouth. “So how’s that new level of awesome?” She saw Rainbow raise a rude finger from her place in the snow.
While Rainbow picked herself up and kept boarding, the rest of the group arrived, Fluttershy and Moondancer bringing up the rear.
“Don’t worry, dear,” Moondancer said, “the worst that can happen is you get some snow in your hair. Skiing is perfectly safe.”
Fluttershy looked down the hill with wide eyes. Seeing Rainbow twist and fall only made her waddle back.
Twilight made her way to the edge, Sunset scooting next to her. “I read a beginners book about skiing before we came up here.”
“Of course.” Sunset playfully rolled her eyes.
“And the basic stance is to have your feet shoulder width apart and position your toes inward so it makes a pizza shape.” Twilight demonstrated, wobbling a little as she found her balance. “From here, I just have to shift my center of gravity. It’s the default position for beginners. I also looked up snowboarding techniques.”
“Why didn’t you offer Rainbow any?”
“From the way she spoke, I thought she already knew what she was doing.”
Sunset looked at the bottom of the slope, where Rainbow had fallen on her face again. “There are few times where Rainbow actually knows what she’s doing. This ain’t one of them.”
Twilight gave Sunset a few pointers while she strapped on her snowboard. Goggles down and helmet secure, Sunset wriggled her way to the top of the hill. Adrenaline flowed through her, escaping from her mouth as puffs of hot air.
“See you at the bottom?” Twilight asked, leaning forward.
“How about I race you? Loser has to buy hot chocolate later. Ready, set, go!” Sunset hopped forward, letting gravity do the rest of the work. She heard Twilight yell in surprise, her voice lost over the wind rushing through Sunset’s hair. She kept her back straight and knees bents, keeping her center of gravity at her core. For her first time on a snowboard, she thought she was doing pretty good. She made sure to keep a straight path for the bottom, doing minimal turning so as not to fall like Rainbow.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Twilight speeding after her, pushing her poles against the snow to keep up. Sunset knew not to lean forward lest she lose her balance, but couldn’t think of a way to keep Twilight from catching her. Soon, they were neck and neck, speeding down the snowy hill, the end in sight. Sunset couldn’t help it. She put a little lean into her front foot, and she nosed past Twilight. A small bump near the bottom threw off her balance and, like Rainbow, she flailed her arms to keep steady. The result was a face full of snow and a giggling Twilight skiing past her.
Sunset rejoined her by the ski lift, brushing the snow off her face. “One day, I’ll actually beat you in something.”
“If you challenge me to a foot race, I’ll probably lose.” They got back on the chairs and started their ascent again. Twilight ran a thumb across Sunset’s bandage. “The fall didn’t hurt, did it?”
“Nah, I’m fine.” The cold actually soothed her cut some.
Below them, their friends skied and snowboarded down the hill, Rainbow showing some improvement after following Sunset’s example. Pinkie being Pinkie looked like a natural skier, her giggles reaching Twilight and Sunset. Moondancer looked right at home as well, going so far as to jump off one of the small hills and catch some air. Despite her apprehensions, Fluttershy looked like she was having fun. Her descent was slow but well controlled, and Sunset thought she saw a smile under her bundled face. Shining and Cadence had borrowed a page from Twilight and Sunset, and were racing skis against snowboard, with Shining in the lead. Applejack and Rarity moved at a more leisurely pace, holding a conversation as they descended.
They all spent the first hour on the shorter hills, learning the ropes and falling into the snow. It didn’t take long for Rainbow to grow ambitious again and take the lift to the intermediate hill. Sunset watched her go alone, though she intended to join Rainbow eventually. “So, place your bets. How many times will Dash eat the snow?”
“Ah got five bucks. One for each time.”
“Oooh, oooh, ten dollars for two times!”
“Ten dollars on the idea that she’ll fall one time, but it’ll be quite the tumble,” Moondancer said.
“Let’s just hope she doesn’t hurt herself,” Shining said, following Rainbow with his eyes.
Fortunately for all involved, Rainbow appeared to have gotten a good grasp on her new sport and made it down the mountain without one fall.
“Well, that’s disappointing,” Sunset said, anticipating the gloating that would arrive with Rainbow’s return. She decided to prolong it by taking another trip downhill before trying her hand at the bigger course.
Unfortunately, her trip hadn’t been long enough. As she rode the lift back, she caught a good earful of Rainbow’s bragging. Instead of hopping off, she took the lift to the next level. If Rainbow could do it, then so could she. Sunset rode down the hill, feeling a sharper pull of gravity with the steeper slope. She rushed by her friends, hearing their encouraging shouts. With her speed picking up, she got the kick of adrenaline she normally felt when riding her motorcycle. She hit the bottom and turned her snowboard to stop, kicking up a wave of powder.
Upon her return, most of her friends had moved onto the intermediate hill as well, save for Fluttershy and Cadence. They spent another hour riding the hills before many decided their cheeks were numb enough. Rainbow complained about only ‘just getting started’ but complied with returning to the cabin. They still had another day to try the top hill before throwing Pinkie her official birthday party.
Shining turned the fireplace on first thing when they got inside, while Cadence and Applejack took to making lunch. They prepared more soup, and after three hours in the snow and wind, Sunset couldn’t have been more grateful.
It was only mid-afternoon, and Sunset still had some energy left. She looked at Twilight, resting with her head on Sunset’s shoulder. “Hey, if you’re not too sleepy, you want to go for a hike in the forest. I bet there’s some great flora and fauna you could look at.”
Twilight made a sleepy nod and rose to her feet. “Let me go get my notebook and pencil. And maybe a few sample bags.” Her eyes grew more awake as thoughts of science danced through her brain. “Darn, I should have packed my microscope. Now I’ll have to wait until we get home to look at them.”
“Oh darn.” Sunset snapped her fingers with a cheeky grin. She nudged Twilight with her foot. “Hurry up and get ready, nerd.”
Fluttershy meekly rose her hand as Twilight left the room. “Um, Sunset, do you mind if I come along too? I’ve wanted to look at the forest since we got here, but it’s okay if you say no.”
“Err…” Sunset had intended it to be just her and Twilight, but Fluttershy curling in on herself in anticipation made Sunset want to reconsider. At the same time, she was sure Fluttershy could find someone to go with her in an hour.
Rarity looked prepared to come to Sunset’s rescue, but Moondancer rose from her seat and said, “I think a hike through the woods is a marvelous idea. Let’s seize the day! It would be a crime to waste our vacation cooped up in a cabin when there’s a frosted forest to frolic in.”
Applejack stood up too. “Ya know, that sounds like a good idea.” She completely missed the frustrated glare Rarity gave her.
Rainbow put her hands behind her head and leaned back against the couch. “You go have fun. Imma stay here and nap.”
“Big surprise,” Rarity said, rolling her eyes. “Pinkie, would you like to do something?”
Pinkie, having finished her soup, had moved on to gnawing on her rock candy, bits and pieces sticking to her mouth. “Is buying more candy an option?”
Rarity tapped her fingers together. “How about we go to the spa instead? My treat.”
“Okay!”
Twilight came back with her boots and research gear. “Ready to go?”
“Sure!” several voices answered her. She looked at Sunset with mild confusion and disappointment. They had been on the same wavelength about making this a private trip.
“Have fun and be safe,” Shining said, though Sunset could see the small amount of satisfaction in his eyes. Sunset led the four other girls out into the forest, the aroma of damp bark and soil overpowering her nose.
Fluttershy inhaled deeply. “Don’t you just love the smell of nature? It’s so clean and fresh.” She took out a camera and hopped excitedly. “I hope we see a snowy owl.”
Aside from their time spent at the animal shelter, Sunset rarely saw Fluttershy this excited. She couldn’t begrudge the girl for wanting to come along. Applejack and Moondancer on the other hand…
The path wound through the forest, naturally flowing between the trees, becoming more narrow or widening into small glades. Most of the snow had been pushed to the side, making it easier to see, but there were parts of the path that became indistinguishable from the rest of the forest floor.
Moondancer skipped and twirled whenever she had the room for it. “So, Applejack, tell me about yourself,” she said, spinning around her. “What’s it like growing up on a farm? It sounds so enchantingly rustic.”
Applejack watched her with puzzled skepticism. “It’s a lotta hard work,” she said slowly. “You get a good ethic outta it though. A good sense of values.” She began to ease up. “And it is pretty fun. Wide spaces, animals to play with and nurture. Crops to take care of. Then, come harvest time, you get to see the fruits of your labor. Literally!”
“Delightful! Growing your own fruits and vegetables sounds magical,” she purred. “Is there a secret to your success?”
“Nah. Just good ol’ blood, sweat, and tears.”
“Wonderfully impressive,” Moondancer said with a flourish of her hand. “And what of you, demure Fluttershy? Tell me of yourself. You hardly talk.”
Fluttershy held her camera close to her chest. “Oh, um… I like animals. I volunteer at the local shelter every weekend.”
“How humanitarian! Such a pure soul within those beautiful eyes.”
Fluttershy turned pinker than her hair, and moved her camera to hide her face. “Th-thank you.”
They paused to watch a deer graze at tufts of grass poking free of the snow. Fluttershy snapped several quiet pictures while Twilight wrote down observations. Sunset leaned over and saw she had also tried to sketch it, and had to bite down on her fist to stop her laughs from spooking the deer. Twilight’s sketch looked like it had been composed by a fourth grader.
After it passed, Twilight smacked Sunset with her notepad.
“I’m sorry!” Sunset said, still snickering. “Hey, it’s a lot better than what I could do.” Sunset recalled the fat, stick-legged ponies she had drawn during their magic lesson. At least Twilight’s deer had supportive stumps for legs.
The path started a gentle incline up the side of the mountain. If they were quiet enough, they could hear some of the shouts from the skiers on the far side. Fluttershy got her wish and spotted a snowy owl perched in a tree. They spent ten minutes watching her snap pictures and imitate owl calls to get its attention.
As the sun fell behind the mountain and turned the sky orange, the girls reached the end of the path, coming out to a railed off cliff that overlooked the mountain range.
“Whooowee, look at that view,” Applejack said, tipping her hat up. “Sure glad Ah came out for this.”
“That makes one of us,” Sunset said under her breath.
Moondancer raised her arms like she was welcoming the oncoming night. “Moments like this are when you feel truly alive! You can see the whole world before you.” She reached a hand out. “It’s calling out, just asking you to take it!”
As Sunset’s eyes completed their roll, she spotted something blooming on the edge of the cliff just outside the rail. Twilight spotted it too and ran for a closer look, crouching down and gasping loudly. Sunset crept closer and looked at the flower that had Twilight entranced. Its wide, curled petals sparkled red and gold, matching Sunset’s hair, and it released a fragrant smell that reminded her of summertime.
“I don’t believe it,” Twilight whispered. “It’s a Chinensis Solruptis, commonly called a Sunburst Rose. They grow in high elevations and only bloom at sunset but… I thought it would be too cold for any to grow up here.”
“There’s a flower that only grows at sunset?” Sunset asked, leaning in for a closer look. In the rays of the dying sun, it was one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen. A few drops of condensation from the rail fell onto it, giving it a breathtaking glittering effect.
Twilight took out her notepad and scribbled while Fluttershy snapped a picture with her camera. Sunset just stared and committed the scene to memory. She glanced over at Twilight and held back a sigh. Boy, this would have been romantic if it were just the two of us. Twilight looked up, and Sunset saw a similar thought pass through her eyes. She reached her hand over and took Sunset’s, rubbing her thumb over the back. Sunset smiled. Close enough.
She looked past the flower and into the mountain range sprawled out beneath them, miles and miles of trees and large hills. Bringing her eyes closer to home, she saw the drop the cliff offered to the forest floor, and a sudden unease filled her gut.
“Okay, I’m getting a bad sense of deja vu. Can we go back now?”
“It is gettin’ pretty late,” Applejack said, moving out of the way so Sunset could scurry back a safe distance from the edge.
Even as they proceeded back, a chilly wind washed over them, prompting them to hustle. There were no lanterns to guide them back, leaving the girls to rely on their phones for illumination. “I hope this doesn’t disturb any of the animals,” Fluttershy said.
A low growl froze them in their tracks. Sunset slowly raised her phone up, revealing more of the path until it was obscured by something black and fuzzy. Its large body flinched back at the sudden light, and it let out another growl.
Twilight made a long and low, “Eeeeep,” at the sight of the black bear. Its nose sniffed the air, and it slowly pawed its way closer to the group.
“Yeah, I think it’s a little disturbed,” Sunset said, heart pounding.
Moondancer eased a foot back. “Perhaps one of you could use your magic on it? Make sure it stays calm?”
“Doesn’t work that way.”
“Okay,” Fluttershy said, her voice surprisingly calm. “Just slowly back up. Don’t make any sudden movements or look aggressive.”
They complied. Sunset could hear their collective hearts thumping in their chests. She couldn’t believe Cadence had been right about the bear. She could believe only they had the bad enough luck to run into it. She kept her breath even and slow, as opposed to Twilight who made short hyperventilations. While it didn’t seem angered, the bear continued to follow after them.
“Perhaps we should turn off the lights?” Moondancer asked, her high pitched voice cracking.
“What, and stumble around in the dark?” Sunset hissed.
Twilight squeaked out in a voice even higher than Moondancer’s, “I read that a bear’s short legs make it harder for it to move downhill. If we could find one…”
The bear let out a short roar and picked up it’s pace toward them.
Sunset jerked her light toward the trees to her left. The gaps between them were fairly narrow, but also had copious amounts of underbrush. She took Twilight by the hand and yelled to everyone else, “This way!”
She ducked between the trees, hearing the bear roar again with earnest. They stumbled and crashed through the undergrowth, tree trunks knocking their shoulders and branches whipping their faces. The bear tried to catch up, creating an even louder disturbance then them, but after running single file through a narrow space, the animal’s cries grew more and more distant.
Once Sunset thought they had put enough distance between them and the bear, she slowed to a stop, leaning against a tree to catch her breath. Twilight collapsed into the snow, gasping and coughing. Sunset knelt down and lifted Twilight to a sitting position. “Deep breaths. That’s it, just take it easy.”
Twilight regulated her breathing, interrupted by the occasional cough. She wiped the sweat and snow off her pink face before clearing her glasses. “Are we safe?”
Applejack cast her phone light around. “Depends on your definition of ‘safe’.” The sound of the bear was gone, replaced by an eerie and unsettling silence. The light didn’t reveal much, only a thicket of trees in every direction.
Moondancer let out a short scream, making everyone jump. She held up the sleeve of her pink jacket. “I can’t believe it! Designer made and it’s been torn! Why is fortune so quick to turn against us?”
Sunset groaned. Would anyone really be mad if we lost her here?
Fluttershy huddled close to Applejack. “How are we supposed to get back now?”
Fully recovered, Twilight stood and held her phone flat in her hand. “Don’t worry, I have a compass.” She watched the digital compass’ needle spin for moment before it settled in one direction. “That way’s north, and we came from the west.” She pointed. “So, if we keep walking that way, we should make it back eventually.”
Moondancer clapped her hands. “That’s my little star, brilliant as always!”
While Twilight had the compass, she wasn’t eager to lead the way, allowing Sunset to take her place. Their footsteps filled the air with the soft crunch of snow, but the lack of any natural sound around them kept Sunset on edge. Fluttershy’s teeth chattered somewhere behind her, only compounding the tension.
The narrow beams of light their phones provided intensified the darkness just beyond. While it wasn’t cloudy, the tall pine trees and their copious branches blocked out much of the starlight above. They proceeded at a slow pace, navigating through the dense foliage with Fluttershy warning them not to step on anything that might look endangered.
Sunset held her tongue about them being the ones in danger, and instead wondered why they hadn’t found the path yet. Their trek wasn’t perfectly straight, but they kept moving in a westward direction. They hadn’t run that far off the road, had they?
Something in the air changed. Sunset felt it when the wind blew over them. Before, the silence had come from the lack of any wildlife around them. Now, Sunset knew the silence came from them being watched. She didn’t say anything to her friends, but slowed her footsteps and strained her eyes to see into the darkness.
To their left, a bush rustled, causing both Twilight and Fluttershy to jump a mile in the air. Sunset shushed them and slowly panned her light toward the bush, gaining no further reaction. She turned to the path again and jumped back at the pair of bright blue eyes reflecting her light.
The rest of its body came into view, and Sunset immediately recognized it from the carvings all around town. A brilliant white coat adorned it, brighter than the snow. It held its body proud, standing tall as it slowly crossed the girl’s path. It’s ears stood up, it’s long tail waved behind it in a slow, hypnotic fashion. Sunset moved her phone so she wasn’t shining the light in the wolf’s eyes, and realized its coat glowed in the darkness.
Twilight sucked in her breath and made another, “Eeeeeep,” at the sight of it.
“She’s beautiful,” Fluttershy said in whispered awe.
The wolf flicked her ears and looked at Fluttershy for a moment before her piercing blue eyes fell on Sunset. They were just like the statues’, gazing directly into her soul. She could feel it shiver deep within her, not with fear but… anticipation. A warning. Sunset stared back, entranced by the wolf’s presence. Something otherworldly radiated off it. Magic?
The wolf blinked, breaking her spell over Sunset and turning to stare down Moondancer. Her shoulders seized up and her pink cheeks paled again. The wolf’s gaze didn’t linger quite as long as it did with Sunset, but enough that it left an impression. She looked at the group as a whole before moving on, keeping a slow gait.
While Sunset still tried to process whether or not they had actually come across the mythical Harbinger, Fluttershy said, “Um, this is going to sound crazy but, well, I… I think she wants us to follow her.”
The wolf looked over her shoulder, ears flicking again, then kept moving.
“You want us to follow a wild wolf?” Twilight asked in a panicked whisper.
“Normally, Ah’d agree with you, Twi,” Applejack said. “But Ah don’t know. Somethin’ about that creature seems different. Like she was tryin’ to talk to us.”
Twilight opened her mouth, snapped it shut, and looked at Sunset with desperately curious eyes. Sunset just nodded her head. This was definitely a magic thing. Fluttershy took that as an end to the debate and gently pushed past Sunset to follow the wolf. She easily navigated the forest, occasionally pausing to let the girls catch up.
In a few short minutes, the trees opened up, and they found themselves on the main road with the lights of the cabins in the short distance. The wolf walked onto the other side of the trees, quickly vanishing into the darkness.
“Thank you!” Fluttershy called after her.
Applejack patted herself down, clearing off all the stray leaves and twigs. “That’s enough adventure for one night. Let’s get back before Shining sends out a search party.”
Noise returned as they neared Hollow Shades, gentle hoots and children giggling as they stayed out late. Still, the girls returned to the circle of cabins with a subdued air around them. Anxiety and confusion knotted up inside Sunset. The Harbinger appeared to bring calamity, and showed up before people with dark hearts. At least, that’s what Moondancer had said. The fact that it had appeared before Sunset and looked her in the eyes… and her dream from last night. Did it sense a darkness still within her? Were her fears justified?
But it had also led them back to civilization. And Sunset didn’t feel any malevolence when their eyes met. The imprint those blue eyes left on her soul felt like the wolf just wanted to tell her something.
Sunset pushed the door to their luxury cabin open. The first thing she saw was Shining pacing in the living room with a phone to his ear.
“The first girl is about five-foot three with purple hair and—” He whipped his around and stared at the girls as they stepped in. “Nevermind, they’re here.” He closed the phone and scowled. “Where have you been?” The question was for all of them, but his eyes were on Sunset.
“We had the luxury of running into a bear and then got lost,” Sunset said, tugging her boots off.
“And you didn’t think to call or text one of us?”
Sunset hesitated. “Uh, well, no. I mean, we were never in any real danger, right?” She looked over to the others who remained silent. “The point is, we didn’t get stranded or hurt.”
Shining rubbed the sides of his head. “No, the point is, you scared me and Cadence half to death.”
She held her arms up. “Sorry, all right? Not our fault stuff happened. We’re back, and we’re fine.”
As she made her way to the couch, she heard Shining mutter, “Yeah, something always happens when you’re around.”
Sunset flinched. Perhaps her and the wolf had something in common.
*******
Sleep was restless, but Sunset managed to avoid having any nightmares. She woke up, got dressed, and quietly discussed the possibility of a magic wolf with Twilight while breakfast was being made.
“Magic did used to exist in this world. Maybe it’s not as gone as Artemis thinks,” Sunset said.
“Yes, but what if the legends around it are true, too? Does that mean something terrible is about to happen? What are we going to do?” Half of the couch shook with the vibration from Twilight’s restless leg.
“Look, I still think Moondancer might have been exaggerating some of that story.” Sunset held her palms up. “And even if it is true, maybe some of our own magic will counter it? If it happens, it happens. We can’t wait around being paranoid forever.”
Sunset said it, but ever since she had gone to sleep, the idea that disaster could befall them at any minute kept her from properly resting. The wolf had stared at her though. Did that mean she would face a coming tragedy? It had also locked eyes with Moondancer. At least karma has a balance.
After breakfast, the girls returned to the slopes for their second day of skiing and snowboarding. Unbeknownst to Pinkie, they had every intention to cut it short so they could set up her surprise party. In the meantime, the group started on the intermediate slopes, with even Fluttershy willing to try. It took some coaxing, but she finally pushed herself over the edge and down the hill, a muffled scream coming from her scarf.
As her screams pittered out, Sunset and Rainbow watched with mixture of amusement and concern. “Do you think she’s having fun?” Sunset asked, seeing Fluttershy keep a rigid stance all the way down. She reached the bottom and fell over.
“I think she enjoyed it.” Rainbow hurried down after her. Sunset had another brief experience of deja vu as a blur came down from the top hill and rushed past Rainbow, catching enough air off a jump to do a flip with his skis. He landed, sending a flume of snow up in Rainbow’s face as he reached the bottom and knelt over Fluttershy before helping her up.
As they rode the lift back up, Sunset saw it was the young man from the reception desk, Soarin. He kept a smooth smile as he talked to Fluttershy, whose face was mostly unreadable with her scarf over her mouth. Her eyes only showed confusion.
They hopped off the ski lift, and Soarin greeted everyone with a wave and another smooth smile. “Nice to see you’re all having fun. My parents gave me the day off, so I decided to spend it up here.”
Rarity rolled her eyes. “How convenient, him getting the day off when there are pretty girls in his backyard,” she whispered to Sunset.
“If any of you girls are beginners, I’d be happy to give you a few pointers,” Soarin said. “I was just telling your friend Fluttershy here the best way to hold your body while going downhill.”
Shining looked ready boot him off the mountain, but Rainbow came up on the next ski lift, face red, and Sunset doubted it was from the cold. “Thanks, but no thanks, Soarin kid. We’re doing just fine on our own.” She squeezed her way between him and Fluttershy. And glared.
Soarin took a step back, still trying to look cool. “Right on. So how long have you been skiing for?”
“Long enough.”
Sunset held herself from making a sharp remark. She was supposed to be on Rainbow’s side after all.
Seeing his chances of wooing dwindling by the second, Soarin gave them a friendly wink and went on his way, flipping off another jump on his way to the bottom.
Rainbow snorted. “He thinks he’s so cool. I could do that with enough practice.”
“He did seem kind of nice,” Fluttershy said.
“Please, that’s just an act. He only wants one thing from you, ‘Shy.”
“What’s that?”
As a collective group, no one quite had the heart to answer her. One by one they slipped down the mountain, leaving Rainbow to awkwardly explain. Over the next hour, the group had to deal with Soarin occasionally passing them by on the hills, winking, waving, or performing any manner of trick. Sunset merely ignored him, but Rainbow’s face tightened more and more as time went on.
“That’s it!” she said as Soarin flew past, coming from the top slope. “I’m going to show this guy I can be just as cool as he can!”
“Why?” Applejack asked.
“So he’ll stop showing off!”
“You mean showing you up?” Sunset said, smirking in satisfaction at Rainbow’s scowl. Rainbow hopped back over to the lift zone and waited for it to take her to the top. Sunset shook her head and followed in her footsteps. “Someone should go to make sure she doesn’t hurt herself.”
Sunset waited for the next chair and followed her to the peak. From the top, Hollow Shades with its short gingerbread buildings with snow icing looked like a Christmas postcard. The freezing wind blew harder up here, making Las Vegas sound more like heaven. She hobbled up to Rainbow, wrapping her arms around herself.
“You didn’t have to come with me,” she said.
“And you don’t have to be a showoff trying to rise to any challenge, even when they aren’t challenges, but here we are.” She looked down the powdery hill. “What do you plan on doing anyway?”
Rainbow pushed her snowboard to the edge of the hill and strapped her back boot in. “I’m gonna slide down this hill and pull off a flip. If he can do it, so can I.”
Sunset brought her gloved hands to her lips, took in a deep breath, then pulled them away. “Dash, in the short time I’ve known you, you’ve had quite a few dumb ideas. This one might take the cake.”
“Or, it’s the best one yet.”
“No, it’s really not!”
But Rainbow dismissed her and pushed over the hump, sending herself down hill. Somewhere in the distance, Sunset heard a wolf howl.
“Oh, Celestia.” She strapped her boot in and jumped down after Rainbow, unsure of what she could even do.
Wind and snow stung her face as she chased Rainbow down. With only a day of practice, Rainbow had clearly improved, but Sunset could see the occasional wobble. They passed under Soarin as he rode the lift back to the top just as Rainbow went off her first jump, touching the front of her board with her hand. She landed, wobbled again, but kept going.
“Rainbow!” Sunset shouted, but the rushing wind was too loud for her to take notice. She could still hear the wolf howl in her ears though, and a cold sweat broke out on the back of her neck. One of the larger jumps loomed close, and Rainbow made a beeline for it. Sunset could only cross her fingers and hope that the dread bubbling up in her was nothing more than superstitious paranoia.
Rainbow caught a large amount of air, and at the height of her jump, she thrusted her body forward in her attempt to flip. She rotated halfway through before gravity threw her back against the ground, her left shoulder taking the brunt of the impact. Sunset didn’t hear the cracking of bone, but she heard Rainbow’s anguished scream.
Sunset reached her and jerked her board to a stop. “Rainbow!” She unstrapped her boots and gently turned Rainbow onto her back. “How bad is it?”
With her teeth clenched so tightly, Rainbow could only make pained grunts. She gripped her shoulder, refusing to let Sunset examine it.
Soarin slid to a stop next to them, all traces of his smooth, cool attitude gone. “Here, let me take a look.” He unzipped Rainbow’s jacket and pushed the collar of her shirt down, revealing a rapidly swelling purple bruise. He gingerly ran a finger along her collarbone until she let out another shout of pain.
Soarin grimaced. “Yeah, it’s broken. Hold on, we’ll get you to the hospital.”
He rushed down to the base of the mountain, leaving Sunset alone with her wounded friend, the rest of the group still on the hill yards below them, unaware of what had happened. The wolf howled from the forest, and Sunset thought of its piercing blue eyes foretelling trouble.
“Something always happens when you’re around.”
Sunset clenched her jaw and looked away from Rainbow’s pain contorted face. “I’m sorry, Dash.”
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Not you sunnny, not you.
Eeesh. More discouragement. And ah, Rainbow. 😵
As much as your interaction with her has been bad, Shining, that was just uncalled for.
Man everybody just keeps cockblocking, Twilight tryna bone but Shining and Demon Sunset in the way, my boi Soarin tryna bone but he outnumbered.
Very tense with trouble coming around, whether magical or personal. And Shining really just needs to lay off Sunset; girl's already got a guilt complex and him blaming her for every unforeseen thing is not helping. Cadence better give him a stern lecture later; it's immature of him to keep blaming Sunset, protective brother or not.
Hopefully Sunset and Sci-Twi will be able to get some more alone time later on. And seeing the Harbinger lock eyes with Moondancer shows she has no idea what she has gotten herself involved with given her alliance with the mysterious figure. Hopefully things work out for Sunset. Can't wait for the next chapter!
At least she got this as a theme?
I wonder...could it be Gaia Everfree?
Currently if you haven't read the story(or have the chapters unmarked) the chapters shown are chapters 1, 2, (21 chapters hidden) 3, 4, 5 and I thought that funny enough to share
Ahhhhhhhh, such a good chapter! I always look forward to these updates! Keep up the good work!
Dick move shining.... dick move....
Yep definitely getting an Absol ish vibe from that wolf. Also Shining back off Sunset has got more then enough issues without her girlfriend's protective big brother
Still dont trust Moondancer, and I still think shes up to no good. Something just tells me before she becomes a real friend to any of them (sans twilight whom shes obsessed with) she will go all nightmare and require rainbow blasting
GOOD.
Hope you don't break anything.
No, you can break a bone or your neck if you're unlucky.
ALL of them.
Never mind.
You're worse than me with chocolate.
Hard work.
I can't help but be suspicious every time you open your mouth.
Wise, I don't think the edge of a cliff is the best place to be.
Oh boy. I don't think it'll actively attack you as you're not its natural prey and you smell weird to it, but still, don't do anything rash and no panicking.
Thank you Fluttershy, the last thing you want to do is agitate a bear.
At least there weren't any lions or tigers.
You're alive and unhurt, mostly, be thankful for that.
Oh, shit. That's, bad.
It IS an Absol.
Definitely somewhat sentient, intelligent, though I don't think capable of speech. Definitely magical.
He has a point, you should have said, "We're lost, finding our way back, nobody hurt."
*shrug* Maybe, but what can ya do?
Well, if possible, a date.
Same difference.
There it is.
Ooh! I know that one! I'm a cursed black cat, I'm an albatross, I'm a mirror broken, sad to say, I'm your bad luck charm! (I'd post the song, but Jakomi of the Rose beat me to the punch.)
8772904
I agree. And I think that, just like Absol, it is only trying to warn them, and does not actually bring catastrophe.
8772950
Well yeah, she's super untrustworthy. She's extremely antagonistic to Sunset just because Twilight fell for her and not Moondancer, not to mention Moondancer's "contact" from the beginning of this volume. The one tasking her with finding out the source of the Spectacular Seven's magic.
See what you did there
Shiny being an overprotective dick is bad enough without Sunset blaming herself for something that isn't remotely her fault. It's Rainbow's fault for having more bravado than common sense.
8772950
Probably yeah.
Yeah, anyone else want to see Sunset actually deck Shiny?
Ooh, another great chapter! I'm looking forward to hearing the proper explanation of Harbinger.
However... well, black bears aren't really aggressive I think? Certainly not to the level of attacking groups of humans basically unprovoked. Also, "Chinensis Solruptis" physically wounded me.
Moondancer’s doing her best Rarity impression. A true actress.
Also, as dumb as Dash is being in this chapter...I can’t help but feel the last bit showed she was doing it all for Fluttershy. It’s sweet to see her so protective, but at the same time, my shipping goggles are going off.
It’s either that or me thinking you’re going to Pair the Spares eventually and set Moondancer up with a particular non-Twilight shy character.Anyway, this whole wolf myth has me thoroughly fascinated, and I hope Sunset realizes there’s more to it than just her causing everyone trouble...I await the next part eagerly.
I would drop 'used to' to make this sentence smoother.
Yknow Shining this whole "protective big brother thing" doesnt do as much as you think, besides make you look like a jackass.
Ohhh... Shit, that's a brutal injury, sometimes I wonder how Rainbow hasn't killed herself before this.
Can someone please punch Shining at some point in this story? Preferably him and Moondancer at the same time
Also, Rainbow French Fried when she should have pizza'd
Well, things definitely escalated quickly here. As if Sunset doesn't feel bad enough about life as it is.
I have an idea! *replaces this Moondancer with Novel's" all better.
Dont worry Sunset if Qrow Branwen can live with being bad luck you can too.
Isn't Qrow a drunk?
A functional BAD ASS drunk!
Bad luck charm ( rwby)
Screw you, too, Shining. Hope you do something to make Cadance give you the cold shoulder
Also, I want the wolf to follow Sunny home and be their magical girl sidekick animal.
Isn't Spike that already? And what about Spot?
But a wolf is so much better and floofier! Stupid dog, you killed fluffy wolf cuddle times!
Just get back to work
Can it at least maul Moondancer? Maybe take a few nips at Shinning on the way out?
8773120
I don't
Rainbow's injury wasn't even her fault. What was she gonna do, pull a grappling hook out of her Bat Purse and drag Rainbow to a halt?
8776809
It’s a shoutout to this story.
There'd better be some sort of magical compulsion going on, because no sane person could ever blame the broken bone or a bear attack on Sunset. Sunset's own perception of guilt I can somewhat understand if she thinks the "darkness in her heart" is the reason for the Harbinger, so she'll blame herself. For everyone else, even Shining being overprotective, I'm not seeing how anyone could blame her. A normal reaction to a bear showing up would be more along the lines of "holy shit, are you okay."
Harsh but sadly true
That alt title... You wouldn't happen to be a RWBY fan?
Shining: And you didn’t think to call or text one of us?
Sunset: And you ?
Shining: well, you see... Oh, look a diversion !
Finally read all of Part 2 so far. Been a month since it was out.
I'm liking this Harbinger wolf. Wonder what it'll turn out to be in the end.
So I see a few more are jumping on the 'Shining's a jackass' train. *ahem* Called it *ahem*
But yeah, it's been said here already: he coulda called them, further, it's a bear and he's somehow homing in on 'blame' like that's a thing with a bear showing up. What, was she wearing like a scarf of raw sausages dipped in honey? Cause then maybe it's her fault but I feel like I'da remembered reading that.
Weird how Shining gets a pass for his jerk behavior but they were instantly hostile towards Soarin... though I don't really have a follow up on that since, well he's kind of a flat character (lack of screen time, not his fault) so maybe he really is just what they're thinking.
Sympathy for Sunset here... not only does it feel like everyone is conspiring against her spent any time with Twilight (some of them intentional, some not) but even nature is out to get her. Hang in there, kid!
I swear Sunset needs a break from the stress, i don't know how she can manage
About 3 days ago, A friend of mine linked me 'Long Road to Friendship'. I must say, in about 2 days, I tore through that thing, loving it. At first, I was sad, thinking this glorious ride was over, till, of course the link to this story. I must say, this has been an amazing Ride, and I'm greatly loving it...I might have already started re-reading the first story again, anyways, Just wanted to say, great story, and I'm looking forward to more!
8778935
I disagree, this is huge confirmation bias. Plenty of good or even uneventful things have happened with her around as well, he just remembers the bad things more clearly. He's still being a massive tool about it though, even if it was true. Also it's not like the bad things that do happen necessarily happen because of her, and many of the situations they get into that are troublesome are group decisions. Once again he's just being a huge dangly knob.
8786765
He's being an overprotective brother. In his eyes, his innocent, naive little sister is being seduced by an 'evil' biker chick. And even then, he's' reacting in a way that, were Sunset NOT recovering from Harmony-Magic-Induced Evil Megalomania, she'd probably brush off or push back against. Among healthy people, that sort of light pushing-to-test-boundaries is itself healthy, helping to promote a stable dynamic in the social structures of the family group. It only becomes an issue when not everyone is as mentally stable as each other.
And lo, I experienced a sudden urge to ship MoonShy.
Okay, not a spirit you can sic on people. I bet Moondancer still tried, though.
Frankly, Dash's accident was Shining and Cadance's fault. They were out there watching them; that was their whole purpose for being there, after all. They saw Dash's first trip down the mountain, they know this is her first time on the slopes. One of them should have put their foot down when Dash tried to go to the expert path. This was absolutely preventable.
God, I thought Moondancer was the worst, but Shinning has easily surpassed my level of dislike towards Moony. He blames Sunset for everything and is a complete jerk wad.
And I've caught up to myself. Onward, to uncharted territory!
Sounds like Rainbow got off lucky. From the way she was throwing herself down the slopes, she should have had a broken arm without even hitting the jumps. I've known way too many newbie snowboarders who have tried to catch themselves and broken an arm. Honestly, as someone that has gone skiing many times over the years, the speed with which the girls all learnt how to snowboard or ski is the least-believable thing in the story, and kind of breaks my immersion every time.
Luckily Sunset and Twilight are cute enough for me not to care about that.