//------------------------------//
// Chapter Three: Waiting 
// Story: The Goddess of Winter 
// by PoneStudios 
//------------------------------//

The only word that could describe the past several weeks was waiting. Waiting for court to end, waiting for Luna to finish deciphering the message, and waiting for the Winter Goddess to finally agree to negotiations. Celestia gave a perturbed sigh as she strode down the hall.
So far, her attempts to invite the empress had failed. Ambassador Snow had told excuse after excuse, none of which she bought, but all of which let him get out of negotiations for another day. Celestia couldn’t fathom why he was making so many excuses, but she knew the reason couldn’t be good. She could only wonder what exactly was going on, and it seemed like she would be left in the dark for quite some time.
“Princess, are you okay?” Celestia was shaken out of her thoughts by her personal Assistant, Ivory Quill. 
“Mm? Oh, yes, what is it, Ivory?”
“I’ve been trying to talk to you for the last five minutes, Princess. Are you okay?”
“I assure you, Ivory, I am fine. I was just thinking about something.” Celestia smiled.
“Then you know Luna wants to speak with you?” Ivory smiled.
“Oh!” Celestia giggled. “I am sorry, Ivory. I had completely forgotten! Let’s go talk to my sister.”



Princess Luna sighed a perturbed sigh. She waited in her study for her sister to finish whatever she was doing. She tapped her hoof on top of the notes she’d written down. After several minutes, she sighed again.
“Oh, I sincerely hope my sister isn’t busy with another delegation…” Luna rubbed her forehead with a hoof. “This is important…”
Luna looked up when Celestia entered.
“Oh, sister! You’re here!” Celestia smiled.
“Indeed I am. I am sorry for taking so long, Luna. I, heh… may have gotten caught up in my thoughts for too long.” Celestia grinned embarrassedly.
“I certainly know that feeling.”
“Thank you. Now, I believe you had something to talk to me about.” Luna nodded.
“Yes, I do.” Luna lifted the notes in her magic. “I finished deciphering the message in the letter.”
“What does it say?” Celestia looked at Luna.
“levis est aurea clavis.”
“That would be Old Equish for ‘golden light is the key’... But why would Twilight put that in her letter?”
“I do not know, sister, but I will find out. I have already been searching the archives for the answer these past several weeks, although I haven’t gotten very far.” 
“Good. If anything good comes of this search, I hope it will be the answer to where Twilight went and why she left.” Celestia sighed. “It has been far too long since I saw her…”
“I know, sister, and I promise to find out where this goes.”
“Thank you, Luna.” Celestia smiled.
“You’re welcome, Sister.” Luna smiled. “Now, I believe it’s time for us to continue our days, correct?” Celestia nodded and smiled.
“Yes, I do as well. I will see you tonight for dinner, Luna.” Luna nodded and smiled.
“Until tonight, sister.”



Hours later, Princess Celestia sat in her room after dinner, reading the latest in a series of increasingly panicked letters from the Crystal Empire. Specifically, Cadence and her husband, Shining Armor. All of letters told of an increasingly dangerous snowstorm near the Crystal Heart’s protective shield. The latest was the most disturbing:
Dear Princess Celestia,
PLEASE HELP US! This storm is the most concerning and distressing thing the Crystal Ponies have seen since the Mad King Sombra. I’m beginning to wonder if isn’t magical in nature…? Normally the Crystal Heart would protect us from it, but the blizzard isn’t affected by it. It’s almost discordian in nature, pardon my insulting the Lord of Chaos himself. Please send somepony to help us! A magician, a weather team, something to stop this awful storm from ruining our livelihoods!
Your desperate friend,
Princess Cadence
Celestia sighed. She put the letter down and looked out the window of her balcony, towards the Crystal Empire. It would be a long night, it seemed. While there was no apparent sign of distress in the direction of the Empire, Celestia knew Cadence’s words were truth. After all, Cadence was not the only pony sending panicked letters from the Crystal Empire.
Many of the subjects had, in panic and fear, turned to Celestia and Luna for help. Some had even made the long and arduous journey to Canterlot to ask the Princesses in pony. Celestia, of course, had assured all those who came that she was doing everything she could, and assistance would be on it’s way soon.
At least part of that was true. She was doing everything she could, but with so many foreign dignitaries and diplomats all here at the same time, it was all she could do to keep them content. Even just getting them all here for the Council of Nations had been a grossly overcomplicated task.
Celestia sighed once more. The stubbornness of the delegates from other nations was something she would never be able to comprehend. It had gotten better over the years, and the new delegates had been more willing to come than the previous set, but it was a task, all the same.
Even so, that was no excuse. Something had to be done about that treacherous storm before it hurt innocent ponies. It just couldn’t be postponed anymore. But what could she do? It sounded as if this storm would take the power of an alicorn to dispel…?
Celestia froze. That was it! Neither she nor Luna could travel up north to fix it, mostly due to the stress and busyness of the Council of Nations, but there was somepony else who could! The Goddess of Winter! Celestia laughed. She turned to walk out of her quarters and then froze.
“Oh, but what if she doesn’t want to help me? We’ve only just begun talking, after all…” Celestia sighed. “No. For the sake of my ponies, I will contact her!” Celestia took a piece of parchment and quill from her desk and began writing.
Dear Empress Winter...



Princess Luna sighed. It had been several hours, and she had found nothing so far. She currently sat in the Royal Archives, and was looking through yet another book that related to golden light. With an irritated huff, she set the book down and stood up.
“Another dead end…” Luna went over to the bookshelf and looked through the many different books with a reproachful stare. None of them had anything to do with the clue that Twilight had left for Luna. “If only Twilight had been more clear!” Luna resisted the urge to pull her cheeks out of frustration. She sighed again and went to the next shelf. And for several minutes she kept looking.
After several more minutes of nothing but frustration, Luna went back to her table and sat down, planting her cheek on her hoof. She wished Twilight had made it clearer.
Luna looked at Twilight’s letter. She looked at the phrase that she’d written down in the margins. What did this phrase have to do with Twilight’s disappearance, she wondered. Why did Twilight write it down? She looked at the phrase, and then the books she’d looked through. The phrase, and then the book. And then back to the phrase. And then, she had an idea.
“I should be looking at books with the entire phrase as the name! Why didn’t I think of that before?” Luna quickly put the books she was reading away and went to get the appropriate books. When she had found them, she opened them before she had even gone back to the table.
When Luna was once again sitting at the table, she proceeded to carefully scan the pages of the first book. She stopped when she found what she was looking for. It was a clue in the form of a poem, written about her sister.
Golden Light is the Key
By Ink Pen

Light of the blazing sun
How brightly it shines
Golden rays abright
Will be a glowing sign

We find the sun’s light
However giving and kind
Will burn us to ground
And render us blind

And Moon's subtle glow
Will bring us down low
Lest she find the hidden path
To reveal the Sun's wrath

And Sun's angry fire
Will have us on the burnt pyre
And Moon, though ashine
Will be all too unkind

But still we all try
To find our place in the sky
As we burn in the might
Of the Sun's Golden Light

Golden Light is the Key
To end that which we flee
Silver Light is the Spark
To bring us out of the dark

“The hidden path…” Luna put a hoof up to her chin. “Why does that sound so familiar?” Luna put the book down and wrote the poem down on a piece of parchment, underlining the phrase “The Hidden Path” for emphasis. “The hidden path… it almost seems like I know this poem, somehow…” Luna sighed and decided to try to figure out the clue later.
The portion about the moon, though-- that could’ve been referencing her. But why would it portray her in such a negative light? She would have to ask Celestia, later-- Celestia had always been more knowledgeable about poems like this.
Luna’s thoughts were interrupted by a rather loud yawn coming from herself. She sighed.
“I suppose it’s time to turn in, then.” Luna stood up, put her books away, and left the Royal Archives. On her way down the hall towards her room, Luna saw Celestia. Celestia smiled and walked up to Luna.
“Hello, sister! Turning in for the day?” Luna nodded and smiled.
“Yes. I am very tired and wish to rest.” Celestia smiled.
“I can understand that. There are times I wish to do nothing but sleep the day away.”
“I can imagine. I never did understand you deal with all those pesky nobles day after day.”
“It just takes practice, Luna. anyway, I shall see you tomorrow.”
“See you tomorrow! Oh! When you have a free moment, I would like to speak to you about what I found in the archives.”
“Of course! I’ll talk to you when you wake up.” Luna smiled.
“Thank you, sister. Good night.” The sisters hugged each other.
“Good night, Luna.” Celestia walked off to deal with paperwork.
Luna sighed a tired sigh and continued walking. She went up to her room, put her personal notes down, and took off her regalia. She didn’t bother to pull the curtains shut. Darkness had the opposite effect on her that it did most ponies. The day was what lulled her to sleep. 
Luna then pulled down the covers, and got into bed, pulling the covers up once she was comfortable. Luna then drifted off, not noticing the barely visible throb of magenta magic coming from her notes.
Nopony noticed, but the poem that had been written down seemed to change ever so slightly.