//------------------------------//
// The cutie, a kidnap, and an odd matter 
// Story: Eveningray-Who is that foxy? 
// by ChevalNoir 
//------------------------------//

Many months later, Blizzard sent Brook to a market.
"Where is Eve?" the Princess asked.
"She has been practicing her balance for 12 hours now and mustn't interrupt it."
"But I need her to come with me. I can't take all the food alone," Brook objected.
Blizzard frowned. "Well, tell her she may go there with you."
Brook went to the back yard, where Eveningray was standing on her left hind leg. She had small cups of water on the other legs, nose and forehead. 
"Ha ha ha. I knew you've had a hard training, but this--" Brook laughed.
On the way to the market Eveningray turned to Brook. "Thanks for saving me. Lately Blizzard's been trying to squeeze the cutie out of me!"
"Well, the truth is that I have never seen another almost grown mare without her cutie mark."
"I am just an ordinary, boring mare with no special talent," Eveningray sighed.
"Eve, you're everything but ordinary or boring," Brook smiled.
"Maybe I'll get the mark for racing with you."
"It would be an unfair race. I have my wings."
"My legs are faster!" Eveningray shouted, and started to gallop towards Blue Pass. 
Brook spread her wings and flew up. Eveningray ran along a shore of a frozen river. She knew each yard of the path. Her carmine mane and tail waving in the wind looked like two long flickering flames. Sound of her hooves hitting the ground echoed all around the pass. Her heart was like a drum beating in a fast rhythm. Little sparks of the speed thrill shone in her eyes. 
Brook thought to herself, 'I can fly over the blue mountains, and Eve will have no chance to win this race.' She climbed up above the mountains, but in a while she felt like something was slowing her down. The Princess saw that the tips of her outer feathers were freezing. Brook used her power to warm them up, and dived lower to prevent another freezing, so she couldn't take her short cut. She flew to the finish fast, but Eveningray was already standing behind two purple stones representing the finish line. Suddenly, the red-maned mare shot a strong beam of energy against Brook. It missed her. The alicorn looked back at it, and saw a big tree trunk thrown by an avalanche in her direction, frozen to a near rock by Eve's beam. The foxy mare fainted from exhaustion.
When she woke up, she saw Brook grinning from ear to ear. "Thank you for saving me, Eve, but take a look at your flank!"
Eveningray did and found there two snowflakes as her cutie.
"Blizzard will be so happy when she sees this!" Brook smiled.
"Well, we don't need to tell her all the details about how I got it! I guess it would turn her joy into wrath!"
On the way home Eveningray looked sad.
"What's the matter with you, Eve?"
"Your power is fire. You can warm up ponies. Blizzard's main power is wind that can propel sailboats. And mine? Frost! What a useful power in the land of ice and snow! I had greater expectations."
"Eve, you don't even know your potential. This is your power. You can't give it back and get another one."
"Blizzard might allow us to have a little celebration."
"Eve, she'll be elated," Brook laughed.
As the two came back to their house, they felt like there was something wrong. The Princess ran inside. There was a mess all around. She ran out again and shouted, "Blizzard is gone!" 
"According to these hoofprints she was attacked and taken away!" Eveningray stated.
"What is this?!" 
A dark sticky matter lay there on the snow. As the red-maned mare came closer to the stain, it moved  towards her. 
Brook burnt it to dust. "Let's go find our mentor!" 
The alicorn was following the clues, but fresh snow covered them soon.
"Brook, we have to go to Maple for advice!"
The Princess returned into the house. She was searching among books that were lying on the floor. 
"Yes, here it is. Look!" The alicorn lady pointed to a picture of a strange jewel, below which was written, 'Moldavite horn ring makes a unicorn's horn ten times stronger. In Misty Valley is a place of nowhere. Find your way, don't forget what you come for, don't believe your eyes, tame your greediness, and you can gain it. But beware...'
"Mice ate the rest of the page. Well, it doesn't matter. I have all I need to know. With this thing we'll be able to defeat any enemy," Brook said.
"But, what about the warning?!" 
"It's about a great power comes together with a great responsibility, or something like that."
"No, Brook, we are going to Maple tomorrow!"
The next morning Eveningray found this message from Brook on a table, 'I'll get the ring, and come back within three days.'
'She took the only map, and I can't follow her!' Eveningray thought.