Wind Chill’s Hearth’s Warming
By: Nebula Star
Chapter 5: Hearth’s Warming
***
“You know, if more ponies saw who you really are, they probably wouldn’t hate you anymore.” Maestro suggested the following Monday, the week before Hearth’s Warming. He hadn’t had school, but had come over in the afternoon anyway, since his father was still working and his mother was of course asleep. Currently they were helping to harvest the small orchard of orange trees. One of the only crops they had that needed almost no magic from Tundra Blossom to thrive.
“Maybe. But I don’t think they’ll even give me a chance.” Wind Chill said sounding resigned as she levitated a few more ripe oranges into the basket Maestro held on his back, balanced with his wings.
He looked up at her. “They can’t give you a chance if you don’t give them a chance.”
Wind Chill raised a brow at that. “What do you mean?”
“Well, if you always avoid everypony, how could they ever get to know you?”
She looked at him unsure how to answer. Finally, she smiled and gave him a nudge with her hoof. “Are you sure you’re only eleven.”
He grinned back. “Yep, turning twelve next year!”
“You’re probably right, I should make more of an effort to let ponies get to know me.” She smiled. “And now with my new pendant, it will be a lot easier.”
“Yeah, see. I could even go with you sometimes.” Maestro said eagerly.
“Maybe we’ll have to start doing that. But for now, little brother, catch!” She tossed a couple oranges his way and with a laugh he jumped forward to catch them in the basket on his back.
Wind Chill did think about Maestro’s suggestion. It made sense, but she also knew it would take time. She knew the ponies of dodge wouldn’t give her much of a chance at first, but perhaps if she just kept getting out there, spending more time around the ponies in town. Maybe eventually they’d begin to see the real her, instead of the monster they all seemed to think she was. With her new pendant, she could stay in town longer without getting a headache. And if Maestro was with her; well, she always felt better with him around.
That afternoon when Wind Chill walked Maestro home, they were both enjoying some fresh orange slices. It was just a little later than usual, but Whisper Song was already awake when they arrived. “Hey you two, have a good day?” She called as she saw them come through the door.
“Yep, we helped pick oranges! And they were good!”
“You like them, huh? I always thought the citrus fruits were too tart for my tastes,” Whisper Song said smiling.
“I like ‘em!”
“Well okay then, I guess I’ll get some from the market once in a while,” She said tussling his mane a bit with her wing. “How about you Wind Chill, how have you been holding up?”
“I’m doing a lot better.” She assured her. “And we haven’t had any trouble.”
“Good I was worried. But I think the princess put the captain in his place. He’s been grumbling a lot about being forced to assign patrols to protect you, but follows orders.”
“He’s a jerk.” Maestro said matter-of-factly.
“Maestro, that’s not a nice thing to say.” Whisper said in a mock scolding tone.
He shrugged. “It’s true.”
“Yes, it is, but it’s still not nice to say it.”
Wind Chill giggled softly, and Maestro grinned.
“By the way, Maestro, a letter came from the Orchestra this afternoon.” Whisper Song told him.
His smile fell. “Oh… okay.”
“I’m not sure, but I think they want to apologize.” Whisper song said encouragingly.
Wind Chill looked down at Maestro and put a hoof around him hugging him. “Maybe you’ll get to do another concert after all.”
“I don’t know… I’m still mad at them.”
She gave him a squeeze. “I know, but remember, they don’t know me, so they don’t know what you do.”
“Yeah… But they still shouldn’t say such mean things about you.”
“Well thanks for sticking up for me, little brother. But if they want to make amends. Maybe you should give them a chance. After all, you can’t change their opinions of me, if you don’t ever talk to them again.” Wind Chill said with a smile.
He looked up at her looking surprised, then slowly grinned. “Yeah, okay, sis.”
Whisper Song smiled. She’d been surprised the first time she’d heard her son call Wind Chill ‘sis’ but definitely didn’t object.
“Well, I’d better get back.” Wind Chill said turning to go.
“Okay, bye Windy!” Maestro called after her waving.
“See you tomorrow, Maestro! By, Whisper!” She said waving back.
~~~
The next day it was clear that something good had happened at the meeting with the Orchestra, but Maestro refused to say anything about it. It was clear he was excited about something though. She wouldn’t find out, though, until two days before Hearth’s Warming. She knew something was up when Maestro showed up, completely dressed up in his full conductor’s attire: a tailed suit coat, over a white shirt with a black bow tie.
Wind Chill raised a brow, smiling. “Hey Maestro. Special occasion?”
He grinned and nodded. “Come on, I have something to show you!” He said taking her hoof with his wing.
“Okay, where are we going?”
“Out to the canyon!” He said starting to pull her away.
“The canyon? In your nice suit?” Wind Chill asked, more than a little confused. “What’s going on.”
“You’ll see when we get there!”
“Okay.” She said then called back into the house. “Mom, Maestro is taking me somewhere!” Then Maestro was leading the way at a fast trot. It was a familiar path; she and Maestro had taken it often enough, in fact he seemed to be leading her to a section that formed a small bowl with sloped sides that they had used to slide down the snow, once Wind Chill had covered it. Though with Maestro’s current dress she doubted that was the plan.
“You’re not going to tell me what this is all about?” She asked.
“You’ll see!” He insisted.
Instead of following the canyon rim to the top of the bowl, he instead took a path down into the canyon to approach the bowl from the bottom. Wind Chill was starting to wonder what Maestro had planned when then finally came around a bend into the bowl and it became very clear.
There, set up in the bottom of the bowl, was the Orchestra, or at least most of them. They had their instruments, had brought down stools or chairs, everything they needed. There was even a conductor’s stand set up, one that appeared sized for a colt. All together it looked like around two thirds of the orchestra was there. So there weren’t as many strings or brass as the full thing, but they did have at least one of each instrument. And there, a little way in front of them was a comfortable looking chair which Maestro was guiding her to.
Wind Chill followed him in a state of shock, and allowed him to guide her to her seat. He then went up to the conductor’s stand where they orchestra’s lead conductor stood waiting. He passed the baton to Maestro and stepped aside as Maestro jumped up on the stand. The orchestra members immediately began checking the tuning of their instruments.
Maestro waited until it sounded like they were harmonizing well, before tapping the stand with the baton. The orchestra fell silent as their full attention went to Maestro. Once he was sure they were all ready, he raised the baton, held in one wing, raising his other wing as well, then brought them down together, and they began to play.
It was one of Maestro’s songs, Wind Chill realized, recognizing the tune as Maestro had played a few parts for her. He had been right, it was so much better with the orchestra, and the canyon bowl amplified the sound beautifully. She sat, listening, with tears falling from her eyes and a grateful smile as she realized Maestro must have convinced the orchestra to do this for her. The song was quiet at first and slowly built with a playful tune that reminded her of a dance, or perhaps snowfall.
When it eventually ended, Maestro waited just a moment, then started the next song. This one had a quicker tempo and invoked a feeling of the more hectic parts of the holidays, still full of cheer, but often sounding exhausting. Wind Chill found herself grinning though she’d never really had a very hectic holiday herself, she’d been in town during those times and had seen how hectic it can get.
The third song was a more traditional sounding Hearth’s Warming song. In fact, if she didn’t know it was one of Maestro’s, she probably would have assumed it was a traditional song that she just wasn’t familiar with. It captured the style of many of the traditional songs so perfectly.
As that song came to an end, Maestro turned giving Wind Chill a smile. “This last song… I actually wrote it for you, Windy.”
She smiled back as more tears filled her eyes. Maestro turned back, and again raised the baton. When he brought it down, what Wind Chill would remember as the most meaningful song she’d ever heard began. It started soft, almost somber with a gentle tune that made her think of her life before meeting Maestro earlier that year. Even as she had that thought, the song turned a bit more playful, more hopeful, the music bringing to mind the times she’d spent with Maestro, when she’d make it snow and they’d play together in their own winter wonderland. Then the song slowly built, becoming an almost triumphant sounding march and Wind Chill felt as if Maestro was promising her an even brighter future. By the time the song reached its climax, Wind Chill was almost trembling, her tears flowing freely.
Maestro turned and seeing Wind Chill’s expression, galloped over to her and gave her a fierce hug. “Merry Hearth’s Warming, big sis!”
“Thank you, Maestro.” She said softly hugging him back. “This is the best Hearth’s Warming gift I’ve ever recieved! How in Equestria did you convince them to do this?”
“Miss, Wind Chill?”
She looked up to see the orchestra members had gathered in front of the conductor’s stand behind their head conductor. “After the events at the concert, many of us were upset and I am ashamed to say that most of us were blaming you. Then young Maestro got furious with us, and said some things that forced us to reevaluate our own feelings toward you, as he made us realize that none of us had any reason to hate you as we did. When he later explained about your magic, and how it was our own hate that fueled your surge. That your entire life you’ve been forced to feel the hatred of all the ponies around you; we decided we needed to do something for you and Maestro both. This was his idea, though I’m sorry to say a few of our number weren’t willing to go along with it.”
Wind Chill smiled, still with a few tears in her eyes. “Thank you, all of you! I don’t know how much Maestro told you, but Princess Luna herself confirmed that I have windigo magic merged with my own and likely have since before I was born. So yes, I feel every negative emotion in the ponies around me; every bit of anger, or hatred, and every bit of it fuels my magic. Even now, I can feel that a few of you still have hatred for me that you’re trying to put aside.” She smiled sadly. “I do thank you for trying. Even that is more than most have ever done for me.” Even as she said it, those few points of suppressed hatred faded, just a little bit more.
Maestro stepped forward. “This isn’t all we have planned, Windy.”
She gave a soft laugh, almost in disbelief. “There’s more?”
The head conductor nodded. “Maestro thought that it would help improve how the ponies of Dodge think of you, if they were to see you in a more positive light. Every year the orchestra has a marching band in the Hearth’s Warming Day parade, we wanted to invite you to march with us. And Maestro thought it would be quite a treat for the ponies of Dodge, if you could use your power to make it snow along the parade route and then in town square for the Hearth’s Warming celebrations.”
Wind Chill stared at him, unsure what to think. She’d never attended the Hearth’s Warming Day Parade before and so had almost forgotten about it all together. To be in the parade herself especially marching with the orchestra, she’d never imagined… Then she looked over at Maestro. He smiled and gave an encouraging nod.
Wind Chill looked back at the orchestra members and saw many of them echo Maestro’s encouragement. Slowly, she smiled feeling overwhelmed with their kindness. “Alright.”
~~~
It was a simple matter for them to include her in their marching formation. She would be just behind the first few rows, marching alongside Maestro who would be playing his trombone. She’d then be casting her magic up to create a gentle snowfall across the width of the road they’d be traveling. Just enough that it would still melt upon hitting the ground. They’d been hoping that her using her magic along the way would help prevent her from losing control, though she’d assured them that that wasn’t likely anymore, and shown them her necklace. Many had been in awe that she’d received such a gift made by two of the princesses. They’d still wanted her to make it snow however, since it would also provide a nice bit of chill air as their marching uniforms weren’t the most comfortable in the city’s normally hot weather.
When Hearth’s Warming arrived, she and her family had a quick breakfast together, having celebrated the evening before, and afterward, headed into town for the parade. Wind Chill went directly to the staging area while her parents were meeting Whisper Song and her husband to watch. Maestro was waiting for her when she arrived and led her to where the orchestra marching band was preparing. Many of the other ponies in the parade saw her arrive, some seeming simply surprised, especially when she joined the orchestra. Though there were also a few who were angry seeing her in their parade. She didn’t mind, they were just giving her plenty of power for her part in the parade. There were also a few among the marching band that clearly didn’t like her being there, but being in the minority, there wasn’t anything they could do.
She wouldn’t be in uniform, they wanted ponies to recognize her after all, instead she would simply be wearing her pendant and a white cloak with a fur lined collar and a silver crescent sewn into the back. It was more a costume piece than actual fashion, but it would look fancy enough from a distance.
“You ready?” Maestro asked with a big grin.
She looked down at him and smiled nervously. “As I’ll ever be.”
“You’ll be fine!” He assured her confidently, giving his trombone a quick twirl.
“You know, I haven’t really been in town since the concert… There’s probably a lot of ponies angry that I got all the Hearth’s Warming concerts canceled. They usually bring in a lot of business.”
“That’s why marching with the band is such a great idea. It will show everypony that even the orchestra members aren’t upset with you.” Maestro insisted.
“Since you yelled at them anyway.” She looked down at Maestro with a smirk. “Maybe I should just have you yell at the rest of the town.”
He giggled. “I think this will work better.”
She smiled and gave him a brief hug. “Okay, we’ll save that for a backup plan.”
“I’ll do it. You know I will!” Maestro said with a grin, getting her to laugh as well.
After a few more minutes waiting the first parts of the parade started to move. Bit by bit the various marching groups, acts and floats started moving. Finally, the first rows of the band started marching. Wind Chill and Maestro waited until the row in front of them took a few steps to space out, then followed, keeping the same pace. Once they left the staging area, the band began to play, and that was her cue to begin. She’d practiced the day before how much magic to use to just get a light snowfall. Casting upwards, she sent her magic up and let it spread out to a little over the width of the road, and snow began to fall. As it did, the air around them chilled just enough that the snow wouldn’t melt before reaching the ground.
The first ponies watching the parade seemed surprised, and she felt what she knew to be ponies that recognized her as their hatred came to life. Even so, Wind Chill smiled. She still didn’t like feeling their hatred, but what made Wind Chill smile was the cheers of the foals, many of whom may have never seen snow before, growing up in the desert town.
The parade route was long enough for the band to play eight full songs, the last of which would be an arrangement of the song Maestro had written for her, but adjusted for the marching band to play. Maestro was marching, very enthusiastically playing his part, while Wind Chill kept up her constant stream of magic conjuring a light snowfall. By the second song, she began sending up pulses of magic with the beat of the song, causing the snow to come down in pulses as well, as if even the snow were marching in time with the music.
Wind Chill marched on, focusing on keeping her magic going and listening to the cheering and excitement of the foals as the parade slowly made its way toward the town square. Between songs, Maestro would look over at her and grin as he saw her smiling. She really was enjoying herself. Soon enough, they were nearing the end of the route, and the final song began; her song.
The marching band version had the first part shortened so the soft somber part quickly gave way to the more playful segment that had Maestro almost dancing with his enthusiasm. Even Wind Chill felt a little extra bounce in her step as she listened to her song being played for the entire town. By the time the song began to build toward the triumphant finally, she was skipping along, tossing her head from side to side, matching Maestro’s enthusiastic playing. The timing was perfect and the band reached the final measures of the song just as the band reached the square. In time with the final climax, Wind Chill sent up one final burst of magic that spread over the entire square chilling the entire area as the snow began to fall.
All around them surprised shouts and cheers filled the square as the gentle snowfall fell on the town that usually never saw snow. Wind Chill smiled hearing her magic appreciated.
“See, you did great!” Maestro cheered happily. Together they followed the other orchestra members as they split off from the rest of the parade, making their way toward a large stage in one part of the square where the orchestra, as well as a few other groups would be performing throughout the festivities. There was a preparation room next to the stage where the orchestra members would be changing out of their marching uniforms, including Maestro. Wind Chill however would continue wearing her cloak. When they arrived, Maestro hurried in to change with the rest of the orchestra while Wind Chill waited outside.
A number of ponies nearby had recognized her, some of whom were going so far as to glare at her. She didn’t care, she just kept a constant stream of magic going to continue the snowfall over the square. It wasn’t long before Maestro reemerged from the prep room. Even as he did, though another pony approached looking angry. Wind Chill had only seen him a few times, but still recognized the mayor of Dodge, followed by two guard ponies.
“You, what is the meaning of this!?” The mayor shouted angrily, not even bothering to use her name, though she was sure he knew it. Most of the town knew her and her mother’s names just so they’d know who to hate.
Wind Chill was unphased however. “It’s Hearth’s Warming, Mayor! There should be snow!” She said casting an extra pulse of magic, increasing the snowfall for a few moments. All around the cheer of the local foals could be heard.
Still the mayor glared at her. “What makes you think you can just bring snowfall down on our festivities.”
“It’s not hurting anything, and can’t you hear the foals? They’re loving it!” Wind Chills said, still not really worried.
“Yeah, the snow is great!” Maestro agreed moving to Wind Chill’s side.
The mayor didn’t seem to care. “You and your family have been a blight on this city for too long!” He said angrily and turned to one of the guards by his side. “Arrest her, immediately.”
The guard just sighed. “Mayor, we are under orders directly from Princess Luna to do nothing to Wind Chill and her family. They are under the Princess’s protection. Unless she were to try to kill somepony, there’s nothing we can do.”
The mayor stared at him, slack jawed for a moment. Then wildly gestured to the sky. “She’s trying to freeze us all right now!”
The second guard snorted and Wind Chill was surprised to find she didn’t feel any hatred coming from the unicorn stallion. “Sir, I saw what she did to the concert hall when she lost control. If she were trying to kill us, I doubt she’d do it with flurries. The fact that she’s had such power, and hasn’t once used it for nefarious means speaks well of her character.”
The mayor glared at him a moment more, then in a huff, turned and left. The first guard snorted in annoyance then turned to return to whatever duties the mayor had pulled him from while the second hung back.
“Thank you.” Wind Chill said sincerely when the other two were out of hearing.
He nodded. “You’re welcome. To be honest I did used to think poorly of you, in fact, after the concert I was one of those that wanted you arrested. My sister was there. But I’ve always had a great deal of respect for Princess Luna. So when she ordered us to leave you alone, it made me really think about what happened.
“I read through all the reports, the eye-witness testimonies, everything. There were a couple who witnessed your final loss of control. They saw how quickly the magic had erupted outward, and said that if they hadn’t already been practically out the door, that they wouldn’t have made it. I also read how you told all the ponies around you to run, and directed the magic upwards to give them time. So I’m grateful; if you hadn’t held on as long as you did, even my sister, way up in the cheap seats, may not have been able to escape in time.”
“It still must have been frightening for her,” Wind Chill said softly.
“It was, but she’s alright, and it could have been a lot worse,” He assured her.
“Well, in any case, tell her I’m sorry for frightening her, and ruining the concert.”
He smiled and nodded. “I’ll do that. Anyway, I better get back to my post, hopefully the mayor won’t drag me away again,” he said with roll of his eyes.
Wind Chill smiled, “I’ll see you around then.”
“See ya around.”
“Told ya,” Maestro said when the guard was out of sight.
“What?” Wind Chill looked down at him confused.
“Once ponies see how great you are, they’ll stop hating you.”
She laughed. “I guess you’re right.”
“So let’s get out there and start showing everypony the real you, big sis!”
She smiled and nodded. “Lead the way, little brother.” Together they went out into the square to find their families and enjoy Hearth’s Warming together. It would still take time, and might be difficult at times, but Wind Chill began to have hope that it was indeed possible. It was turning out to be the best Hearth’s Warming she’d ever had, all thanks to little Maestro. And as they crossed the square under the gentle snowfall her magic had provided, for the first time, she stopped fearing what the world thought of her, and instead began to wonder just what other wonders she could bring to the world.