“It's a good thing that it's late autumn, huh?" said Winter, trying to force a laugh from her throat. She smiled at Vlyka, hoping for some kind of response from the little mare. Silence hung uncomfortably for a moment as Winter tried again to entice Vlyka to speak. "I spent the whole train ride thinking I'd be melting out here."
Vlyka made no effort to reply, closing her eyes and taking another deep whiff of the dry desert air around them. Winter rubbed her shoulder with a hoof and started to trot faster, noticing that Vlyka was pulling ahead of her even with her shorter legs. The little mare had always been a quiet one, Winter didn't begrudge her for her silence, but she had hoped for some kind of reply at least. It was so barren out here, Winter was nervous enough already, and Vlyka was her only company...
It was a terrible mix, Winter being raised for high-society social circles, Vlyka shrinking from anypony, even those she knew. The two barely spoke to each other outside of meeting with another friend, and then they were usually trading friendly jabs at each other. That's what Winter had been doing with the classic 'melting' line, setting herself up for a low blow from Vlyka. But the little mare was too distracted by her sister's scent to talk to Winter at all.
It had been a hard struggle for Winter to keep her mouth shut, hoping to make Vlyka comfortable as she could out here. As quiet as she was, Vlyka was pretty easy to read when somepony understood how she acted different from a typical pony. Her mouth was normally loose and relaxed in an almost tired expression, but now her fangs were digging deep into her lower lips, her upper yanked tight against her teeth as she stared out ahead of her. She usually had a purposeful gait, a goal and destination in mind and nothing would sway her from it, only now it was distorted and meandering, Vlyka too preoccupied to have her end goal in sight. She was deeply disturbed, and it rattled Winter to see her like this. Crystal would know what to say to her sis, to make Vlyka feel calm again, but she wasn't here...in fact it was worse, as she was the reason for Vlyka's problems. And yet, all Winter could do was beg for the little mare to talk to her.
"I’m glad you’re here though,” Winter changed tactics, unable to sit with her own thoughts. “You’re not going to give up even for a second, not until we find them. I…I really admire that, you know?" That got a tiny response, a brief smile on Vlyka's face, but the little mare didn't turn her head and the smile faded moments later. The smirk had inspired Winter just a little, proving to her that Vlyka wasn't ignoring her entirely and that her presence had some meaning. For just a few minutes, it pushed the swirling mass of 'what ifs' clear of her mind.
Unfortunately, it didn’t last. “We’re going to find them, we have to. You’re already on the trail, just let me know what you need okay?” Vlyka nodded once in reply, but still refused to speak or acknowledge Winter more. But the small responses had diminishing returns on Winter's sanity, her need for some kind of social interaction only growing as her thoughts darkened again. She kept seeing images of Midnight, his smile, the sensations of his hugs, but they only spiraled downwards into seeing his anger at her from their fight. Would that be the last images she had of him? Was he already...
"Never thought I'd even survive out in a desert," she said, rather suddenly as she strained to not snap under the pressure in her mind. "It feels cooler than I imagined, but still really hot. How's it feeling to somepony who doesn't have a temperature problem?"
Again Vlyka said nothing, making Winter swallow nervously. It wasn't Vlyka's fault, she knew that the little mare wasn't being deliberately hurtful. But Winter couldn't help but be hurt, stuck without anyone to bounce her worry off of. She needed to hear somepony talking, now. "You know it’s too bad they didn’t head towards the Everfree Forest,” she said, smirking at Vlyka. “Then we could ask your extended family for help.” She let herself give off a cheesy smile, expecting Vlyka to whirl around and snap at her in irritation…but there was nothing. “Knock on wood, right?” she added, bracing for Vlyka to turn around and smack her on the shoulder. Even if by now she was used to Winter using that crack about her foalhood and timberwolves, Vlyka still acted up as part of their routine interactions. It was part of her act, her façade she had with Winter that the two just tacitly accepted was their relationship. But now there was nothing, silence from the mare, not even a twitch of her ear. Winter shook, almost stumbling over her hooves as she failed to cope with the blow. Everything about this situation was so very, very wrong...
Finally, the mental strain was too much and Winter broke down. “Vlyka please, just say something! I can’t take this silence!” she begged, her eyes welling with tears. “I know you hate talking to others, but I can’t do this!" She fell off her hooves, curling up in the sand and sniffling. "I can't take it out here, please...can you even hear me?"
The sound of hooves scraping in the sand told Winter that Vlyka had stopped, turned to face Winter, but she couldn't bear to open her eyes to look. She was shaking badly, trying to stop herself from crying, as she lay there broken in the sand. The added heat from the sands on her legs didn’t help Winter’s core temperature, adding to the heat of the afternoon sun, but she was so far beyond her breaking point that the heat didn't matter anymore.
It was several moments of deafening silence before Winter could even process what was happening, sniffling and rubbing her eyes as the tears leaked regardless of her efforts. But then, to her utter shock, Winter felt a hoof touch her shoulder. Jerked from her sadness she glanced up, staring at the face of the only pony who could have been touching her. Vlyka was there, standing inches from her as she gently pet Winter's shoulder. "Hey..." Vlyka murmured, smiling worriedly down at her. Winter could only stare, mouth hanging open as she listened to Vlyka in absolute shock. "You...you'd better calm down," said the little mare uneasily. "I didn't bring a bucket to carry you if you...if you melt down out here."
Vlyka looked embarrassed and nervous as she gently pet Winter's shoulder, shaking almost as much as Winter had been moments ago. It was obvious that the poor mare was desperate, trying to help the poor snowmare lying before her. But Vlyka was so out of her element, so confused, and she was still trying... Suddenly, Winter just burst out laughing, almost rolling on her side as she giggled madly. Vlyka pulled back, looking absolutely befuddled as Winter wiped the tears out of her eyes. "Oh Vlyka..." Winter gasped, smiling sadly as she stood up. Vlyka fell back just a little bit, but to Winter's surprise she didn't get out of touching range from her. So, tentatively, Winter raised her hoof to Vlyka's shoulder and pressed her hoof to it. Vlyka looked at the hoof, then back at Winter and smiled ever so slightly, before Winter gasped and lurched forwards, hugging Vlyka tightly. The little mare stood stock stiff until she raised a hoof and wrapped it around Winter's neck, squeezing warmly as the two embraced.
"I'm sorry Vlyka..." Winter sighed. "I tried to stay quiet..."
"No no, don't start," Vlyka growled, squeezing Winter tighter. "I know you like to talk, I just couldn't, I was..."
Winter let her grip go gently and pulled back, Vlyka following her lead as the two mares stared at each other. "I can't blame you for being you," Winter smirked. "This is just an awful situation..."
Vlyka nodded with a slight smirk. "But we can talk, at least a little. I'll try and be a bit more chatty for you."
"And I'll keep quiet and let you focus of your scents," Winter said, nodding. Vlyka smiled, before turning back in the direction they'd been wandering and taking a deep whiff. She continued to head off, Winter picking herself up and falling in line beside Vlyka, who slowed just enough for her to keep pace.
“You think anypony’s ever seen these things before?" Vlyka asked, tilting her head to Winter. "We might get famous for killing one to save your coltfriend.”
Winter laughed gently and shook her head. “Not just for him, of course. Maybe we let your sis name them?”
Vlyka smirked but didn't reply, giving Winter a little time to fall silent for Vlyka's sake. She was feeling less emotional strain and isolation now, though that only made room for the physical exhaustion to start setting in. Winter had never been that physically fit, since she was forced to remain in her chilly home most of the spring and all summer. There were the occasional hikes in her namesake season that kept her from just keeling over now, but she still had to focus on her breath to keep her body going. She took a little swig of water from the canteen she'd hastily packed to keep her body temperature down, and for the next hour Vlyka's occasional conversation kept her from a complete loss of sanity.
When Vlyka wasn't busy talking with Winter, the little mare was busy with her nose in the air, sniffing for Crystal's weakening trail. She'd claimed the scent was getting weaker and she was getting a bit worried, Winter teasing her lightly to get her confidence rolling again. It was remarkable to see Vlyka work, acting just like the dogs she was so associated with. Vlyka hated to admit it, how canine a pony she was, and tried to deny it however she could. Vlyka normally liked the solitude, but Winter could tell that deep down, Vlyka needed to be accepted for who she was, fangs and all, by ponies she trusted. Winter couldn’t help but giggle as she thought that Vlyka was, in her own way, just as sweet to those ponies she liked as her beloved canines. In the end her last name was accurate enough: velveteen, so like soft velvet that only the most stuck up ponies would focus on the differences.
Winter was just about to open her mouth to let a very gentle canine joke slip from her lips, just something to prod Vlyka while it looked like she was faltering a little. But just as she started to look towards her friend, Winter's eyes grazed across a shadow in the setting sun. She gasped with the space she had left in her lungs, almost coughing as Vlyka jerked out of her scent tracking to look at her. Winter pointed straight at the shadow, Vlyka tensing as she started to hurry over.
Winter was just behind Vlyka, hurrying towards the shape as it gained just a little more form. The more she looked, the more she realized there was more than just the one shape: what she had seen was a recess in the sand, about the shape of a pony, which was why she had been so alarmed to see it. But around it were several large claw-like marks, circling all around the pony form. The wind had already started to erode the shapes, but it was still obvious enough that the clawed creatures had attacked this pony, recently...
"Midnight."
Winter gasped as she looked at Vlyka, who had bent down to the pony indent. She pointed straight at the deepest point of the hole, where a few dark blue feathers lay stuck in the sand. "No, Midnight..." she gasped, as Vlyka took a sniff. She looked up at Winter with a sad, worried nod. "Is...oh Celestia is he...?"
"I don't think so," Vlyka muttered, biting her lip. "There's no scent of blood, he wasn't bleeding. I think they just knocked him out. I hope..."
Winter grabbed a feather in her magic and raised it to her face, feeling tears welling as she stared at the slim trace of her coltfriend's trail. She tried to think that this was good news, they were on the right trail and Vlyka was certain it was his feather. But Winter couldn't help but feel the panic gripping her heart that this would be the last piece of Midnight she would see. "Oh Celestia please..."
Vlyka meanwhile was busy sniffing around the clawmarks. "These things reek," she muttered, right as Winter refocused on the little mare as she spoke. "Way too easy to tell them apart from the wildlife."
"Do you know where they went?" Winter asked, as Vlyka sniffed. "Midnight, Crys, were they..."
"I can't smell them," Vlyka shook her head. "I don't know..." Vlyka's tone was obviously worried, staring off in a direction her nose seemed to be pointing her in.
Seeing Vlyka worried like that triggered something in Winter's mind, helping her step back for a moment. Midnight was still in danger, Crystal too, but...but they were close. Vlyka had done it, she'd found a trail after all. "Well, we'd better get after them. Only way we'll know they're safe." Vlyka stared at Winter and smiled sadly, nodding eventually as she turned to trot after the scent. Winter followed close behind, the knowledge that Midnight had been here and that they were on the right track giving her enough sanity that she remained quiet until well after nightfall.
Winter waited and watched in silence as Vlyka worked, sniffing and tracing the bird creatures deeper into the barren wastes they'd wandered out into. The mountains in the distance were farther than Winter had ever realized, she’d never really seen this far south of Equestria. It surprised her that there was this much down here, but so little life. “What else is out here?” she wondered. “Anything besides those creatures, anything that might help us?” She sighed as she glanced across the mountains on the horizon, only to catch sight of an unusual one. “Wait...” she muttered, “what’s that?”
“Hmm?” Vlyka turned her head at the whisper, causing Winter to point out the peak. As she focused more on it, Winter saw why she’d noticed it was different: it wasn’t a mountain at all. It was a structure of some kind, the spire of an old castle not too far from them. She couldn’t tell how old it was, what condition it was in from how far away they were, but there were no lights on anywhere near it. It wasn’t inhabited...or at least, it wasn’t some place inviting. Vlyka blinked and narrowed her eyes, trying to make out the shape for a moment before she gasped. “Smells like they’re headed that way...” said Vlyka, before looking at Winter in confusion. “How did you even see that?”
Winter could only shrug. “Looking for Midnight in the night sky’s harder, I guess?”
Vlyka rolled her eyes with a slight smile. But her expression returned to her serious face, as did Winter’s as the two nodded knowingly towards each other. Then they turned for the tower and trotted as quick as they could towards it, Winter focusing her thoughts inwards. She felt it, the icy elemental magic she was connected to, swirling and asking to be channeled through her. “I just hope I don’t have to...” she thought. “Please, don’t make me use you for this. Don’t make me hurt somepony...”