The blizzard unleashed itself upon Mountain Peak, bringing with it all the force of winter. It was proving to be quite tough for the pony settlement, but it was nothing unknown to its inhabitants. It was not yet night, but the dense clouds already obscured almost all the light. All the ponies took shelter with their families in their respective homes, lighting fires to combat the cold. All except one mare, who, defying the weather, galloped to the edge of the village.
"Star! Star Whistle!"
Only the wind answered the call. The mother pony, knowing that her daughter had not returned to the village, ran to the nearest house and pounded on the door with all her might.
"Open up! Help!"
An adult pony opened the door and looked at the hysterical pony.
"Glittering Light! What's going on?"
"My daughter. My daughter has not returned to the village!"
Star Whistle huddled under a bush of berries, trying to find the warmth that was leaving her little by little. She was a six-year-old filly with a light gray coat and blonde and white manes. She had gone out to eat some wild blackberries, which grow even in winter in these lands, when the storm surprised her. She tried to retrace her steps, but the wind and snow disoriented her immediately. When she tried to follow her own footprints, the snow had already covered them.
She searched for a long time, calling for her mother. But it was of no use. Her mother had told her once that, if she got lost, she should hide under a bush and wait. And that's what she did. Star Whistle was getting colder and colder. And sleepier. She started to feel very sleepy. She couldn't explain why, but she knew that was a bad sign.
"Mama! Mommy!"
The wind carried the desperate cry of the little pony. She kept calling her mother, shouting as loud as she could. Darkness was already deep when a violent lightning flashed across the sky. The cry of the little pony was covered by the roar
of thunder. Star Whistle called for her mother again. But no one answered. Suddenly she heard a howl. She didn't know where it came from, or if it was far or near. It was the winter wolves. Star Whistle huddled even further under the bush, letting the snow fall on her and hide her even more. She saw no movement, apart from the storm. She was getting more and more tired. Should she go back and try to reach the village? Was it better to stay still?
Crack.
She heard the sound of a branch breaking from a nearby bush. Someone was moving. Star Whistle opened her eyes wide and came out of her hiding place. It was her mother, it had to be her mother looking for her! Who else could it be? "Mom, mom, mom...!"
The first thing she saw was a thick coat of light gray color. The creature's back rose several feet above the ground, much higher than any adult pony. The being began to turn, and as it did so, Star Whistle saw that its legs ended in four
claws. It moved with the stealth, agility, and speed of a born hunter. And then she saw its eyes. Two shining amber eyes that glowed in the darkness. The winter wolf fixed its gaze on the little pony and bared its teeth, growling.
Star Whistle screamed and ran with all her might in the opposite direction of the predator. Her hooves sank into the snow, almost to the belly. She called out to her mother, searching for a path that would lead her to the village.
Suddenly, she felt herself sinking more than usual. There was a hole under the freshly fallen snow, and the pony became trapped. It was only a second, but it was enough to feel the wolf's breath behind her. She turned around, terrified, as the wolf approached, growling lowly.
"It's going to eat me".
It was the only thing Star Whistle could think. She stepped back and, by chance, saw a bush behind her. She jumped under it, hoping in vain that the wolf wouldn't be able to reach her. But the predator approached, walking without wasting unnecessary energy. He crouched under the bush, and just as he was about to bite her, a new growl was heard.
But this one was sharper.
The big wolf looked to one side. Star Whistle followed his gaze. There was another wolf. Or rather, a wolf cub who would soon enter his youth. Unlike his brother, his fur was completely white, perfectly camouflaging him in the snow.
The wolves stared at each other for a long time. Star Whistle thought she heard small growls, but she wasn't sure. Suddenly, the big wolf left, leaving the pony alone with the wolf cub. It approached the bush where she was hiding and laid down on the ground, looking directly at her.
The pony looked at the wolf cub and immediately knew it didn't want to harm her. And, looking closely, she sensed that it was a female. It was a female wolf cub (or was it called a she-wolf?). Her left eye was amber, her right eye was blue. The wolf cub seemed to be studying the pony in turn. She looked at her in a very strange way, as if piercing her with her gaze. Without getting up, the wolf cub moved a few inches towards Star. But the pony got scared and backed away. The wolf cub stayed still again.
So they spent a long time, until Star convinced herself that the wolf was not a threat. Little by little, the wolf approached. Star felt strange. She knew that wolves were very dangerous, but she knew that this wolf cub was not. When they were only a few inches apart, the wolf lay down on the ground. Star Whistle knew that she was inviting her to lie down with her.
And so she did. With fear at first, she approached and lay down next to the wolf. Feeling her warmth, she realized how cold she was. Star Whistle began to shiver violently. The wolf put a paw on her, giving her some of the warmth that her fur provided.
It was a very strange night: a pony sleeping next to a predator that could have easily eaten her. But now, it was the wolf who had decided to save her.
"Will you take me home?" Star asked.
The wolf growled, very softly, emitting a guttural sound. Star Whistle, although scared to hear it, soon realized that the cub was not threatening her.
Star gave up on trying to talk to her savior. The wolf cub continued to growl for a long time, hours. At first, Star Whistle thought they were meaningless growls. But with nothing better to do and unable to sleep, she listened to them. She noticed that they weren't all the same. Some seemed to come from the wolf's throat. Others from his chest. Some sounded like a wolf's growl, but others sounded like a cat's purr. And sometimes, she made a noise with her throat, as if howling without opening his mouth. There were pauses between the sounds, some longer than others.
And little by little she began to notice patterns that repeated themselves. Several times she repeated exactly the same growls and sounds, with the same pauses. Star Whistle turned her head to look at the she-wolf. She was talking to her! But what was she saying? The pony turned completely to look at her. The she-wolf looked at the pony and stopped growling... talking. Star thought about how they could understand each other. With a hoof she pointed at herself.
"Star Whistle."
Then she pointed at the she-wolf. She did not respond, as if she did not understand, so Star tried again. The she-wolf growled in a particular way. But what did it mean? Was it her name? Wait a minute, do wolves use names?
Star looked at the bush and picked two berries. She ate one and pushed the other with her snout to the she-wolf. She smelled it and rejected it, making the same growl as before. That growl meant "no." So, wolves don't use names. Star picked up a twig and drew a little house in the snow.
"Will you take me to the village?"
The she-wolf did not respond. Star drew, as best she could, a pony going to the house. She pointed to it.
"Me. Star Whistle," then pointed to the house, "village. Will you take me to the village?"
The she-wolf made a different growl. Star interpreted it as a "yes." The storm began to subside, but it was still very strong. There were still many hours until dawn. Neither the pony nor the she-wolf slept that night, as they both learned from each other.
With the dawn, the storm subsided. The ponies, who had searched around for Star Whistle, could now move further away from the village. But nobody had any hope left. Not even the strongest pony could have withstood such a storm.
Glittering Light was desperately searching for her daughter, calling out to her along with many others. She was about to collapse when she heard a shout. "Wolves! Winter wolves!" The ponies reacted by grouping in a circle, picking up sticks and some tools to defend themselves. The pony who had gone ahead came running back to the group.
"You won't believe it...you won't believe it!"
"What?" asked another pony.
In response, the wolves appeared. The largest of them all was a light grey, almost white wolf. It was bigger, stronger and more muscular than any pony. Next to it was a young wolf pup, whose fur was grey and white.
And, alongside the wolves, a little pony crawled through the snow. Star Whistle, in perfect condition.
"Star!" shouted her mother.
"Mommy!"
The little filly ran towards her mother. The wolves stopped in their tracks. But before reaching her mother, Star stopped and looked at the wolves. To the surprised ponies, the filly growled or roared at the wolves with her sharp little voice. The wolves looked at her and lowered their heads, as if bowing. Then they left.
Finally, Star Whistle ran to her mother and hugged her. Glittering began to cry when she saw her daughter alive. Some ponies also petted Star, asking if she was hurt and what had happened. Although most remained silent,
trying to understand the strange sight they had seen, or how Star Whistle had survived.
Later they returned to the village. Glittering Light took her daughter home, where she bathed her and fed her. Star told her how the young she-wolf had kept her warm during the night, and how they were brought back to the village in the morning. The mother was amazed and grateful. She never expected a wolf to show such feelings.
"Darling," asked the mother, "why did you growl at the wolves?"
"I didn't growl at them, Mommy."
"No?"
"I told them, 'Thank you for your help.' I think that's what I said."
Glittering kept a surprised and incredulous silence.