Story Notes: 16 (Snowcatcher Part 2) · 5:57pm Sep 29th, 2021
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For the second chapter in a row, I'm going to start by addressing something not directly related to the chapter in these author's notes.
I hope everypony's been enjoying the 'Meet The Mares' series of interviews. I've spaced them out to two a week to catch up to where we are in the story, and now that we're caught up, the remaining interviews will be posted with the author's notes for their respective chapters. Hopefully that wasn't too much spamming (I really hope that I haven't been annoying folks!).
Thank you to everyone who's participated so far! Keep the questions coming! Please note that all of these interviews are still open for questions. If this site's still around five years from now, I'll still be happy to answer questions on behalf of these characters.
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After last chapter's adorable break, we're back with some drama. Snowy's ticked off an alicorn. That's a pretty good reason to lay low on Earth for a few years.
If your first thought was 'Cadence seems out of character' there's actually a good reason for that. I guess we'll just have to keep reading to find out why. Also, I'm in the camp of people that spell her name the correct way and not the easily trademarked way. Cadence is short for Cadenza (not Cadanza, who I think might be Tony Danza's sister). It also means I don't have to fight with Autocorrect every step of the way.
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Yes, Journeigh would be the equine equivalent of Journey. Snowcatcher's taste in music is just as outdated as the author's.
Escape is the album that features three of Journey's biggest hits: Don't Stop Believin' and a pair of songs that outperformed it on the charts: Open Arms & Who's Crying Now? It's hard to argue with an album that's sold over 12 million copies.
Speaking of '80s music, the Broken Wings Animal Hospital is most definitely named for the Mr. Mister hit. Doctor Fauna is now in Canterlot, as Fluttershy has become the main vet in Ponyville.
Mare Supply (aka Air Supply) makes a cameo appearance as the prom band. The school can afford them, and what better band than one known for sappy love songs?
In order of the songs we see snippets from:
Never Fade Away (song playing as they enter prom)
Here I Am
Lost In Love (the song they dance/kiss to)
Love And Other Bruises (song they request to be played as they leave)
They probably saved Making Love Out Of Nothing At All for last, but Snowy and Dewey split before that...
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Fate, it seemed, had pushed us together.
Fate had nothing to do with it. I'd blame bad writing, personally.
The Dewcatcher ship may be listing a bit to port, but it hasn't sunk. I'm leaving the ending ambigous. My own ship for Snowcatcher is...
What? If I say it, it makes it canon and sinks the other ships. 
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I heard about bread steak several times on the radio lately. One of my local radio stations is really harping on this being a thing, but I haven't found out any details on it other than it's a steak substitute made out of bread. Seems like a pony kind of menu item.
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I try not to repeat shared scenes from different vantage points unless I feel it adds something to see the other character's thoughts. In this case, we saw the confrontation between the bullies and our heroines back in Dewdrop's chapter, but seeing Snowy's side sheds more light on what happened. Dewey can't teleport, so her fear is real. She knows deep in her heart that Snowy would never let her splatter, but the situation is out of her control. She also realizes that if one of the bullies incapacitates Snowy, they're all dead. The bullies are also students at their school, and apparently smart enough to not do so. If one teleports with momentum, one will keep that momentum on the other side of the portal. It's why Snowy has to bleed off speed with a dozen additional teleports, coming out sideways or even upside down. The key is to be able to survive their inevitable landing. Snowy is one of the foremost experts on teleportation at this point. They're at her mercy, and they know it. It's an important scene for both characters, and considering it's been over a year since Dewdrop's chapter was published, I considered it might warrant a refresher. At the same time, there's a fine line between refreshing and repetition. The dialogue stays the same, and it's hard to keep it fresh and interesting.
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Snowcatcher often struggles to set limits for herself when few exist. She's not Supermare, and in a head-to-head battle she'd lose to Twilight Sparkle, Starlight Glimmer, Starswirl the Bearded, Galaxy (who we saw back in Ploomette's final chapter), and a good 5% to 10% of the unicorn population (including our next mare, Starbeam Twinkle; if you thought Snowy was OP, wait 'til you see what she can do; she's the Duchess' archmage). Despite not being the most powerful, Snowy's pretty high up the charts.
She's aware most ponies don't like her. She's somewhat asocial, and her only friend is Dewey (somepony nopony else really understands, and so they fear/hate her), and they both try to be very nice to other ponies as a result, hoping against hope that sompony will actually like them.
Snowy's so focused on teleportation that sometimes others forget she can do more than just that. Much, much more. Her pegasus blood offers her access to weather magic that pureblooded unicorns don't have.
I suspect this may cause some debate, and I'm open to adjusting this if a good reason is given. Unicorn power rankings (for this story/setting; bolded names are primary characters):
96-100%: Twilight Sparkle, Starlight Glimmer, Sunset Shimmer, Starbeam Twinkle
91-95%: Snowcatcher
86-90%: Moondancer
81-85%: Neighsay
76-80%: Dewdrop Dazzle (but limited to water, this is akin to trying to drain a lake with a sump pump)
71-75%: Rarity
66-70%: Blueblood (don't underestimate him; that's what he wants you to do; still, with his bloodline he should be higher up this list; his arrogance is overcompensating for the fact he isn't)
61-65%: Lulu Luck, Minuette
56-60%: Lyra Heartstrings
51-55%: Fancy Pants
46-50%: Flim, Flam
41-45%: Sweetie Belle
36-40%: Sunburst
31-35%: Rainbow Flash
26-30%: Sweetie Swirl
21-25%: Cherry Pie
16-20%: Snails
11-15%: Trixie (she overcompensates)
6-10%: Snips
Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) is Journey's best song, fite me ADIS.
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I guess we're gonna have to rumble.
Open Arms, Who's Crying Now, Suzanne, Why Can't This Night Go On Forever, Any Way You Want It, I'll Be Alright Without You... I could go on. Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) makes the cut for my playlist, but it's not in my top 10 for Journey.
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Blame Rockoons 2 by Tirrel for that I suppose.
Cadence did seem a bit quick to say no, usually I would imagine her expecting the petitioner to make their case. Now if Snowy was like "It would be fun" or something, sure but Snowy is top of her class both academically and from her raw talent. She took Celestia's advice to heart and made sure she knew exactly what she would be dealing with in the Frozen North.
One other thing, is Snowy Antisocial or Asocial? I looked it up one time and found that while they are often used interchangeably they actually mean very different things. Asocial is what Twilight was in her pre-Ponyville years. Antisocial is a mental disorder that shows itself in actions that suggest a deep seated hatred for society.
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Asocial would be correct (fixed, thanks!), but antisocial is our next mare, Starbeam Twinkle. We just need to get through one more chapter of Snowcatcher first.
Thank you for writing, blog post and chapter both. :)
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You're welcome!
Interesting. Sunset Shimmer isn't even in the top 5% in raw power, yet she somehow became Celestia's personal student.
From what was previously written, it sounds like a prerequisite for archmages is to be within the 99th percentile in raw magic strength, before anything else is taken into account.
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Point made and taken. Changing that.