//------------------------------//
// A Despot's Distant Wailing Plaything 
// Story: Icefall 
// by Burningbloom78 
//------------------------------//

"Would you tell me your plan now that Flash has vacated your bedroom?"

Snowy was sitting next to a window in her bedroom with Darkan. She looked solemn and troubled.

"The idea that popped in your head when you were asking Miss Merryweather about her 'illness' piqued my interest somehow," Darkan confessed. "What's your idea?"

"There's something, but I need to ask Rosey more questions about her problem first," Snowy murmured, her eyes narrowing. "I could barely hear what Flash and Princess Cadance were saying, but Flash sounded really mad and sad. Something about Rosey and a curse. I have to do something."

"Yes, they were speaking of a curse rather than illness," Darkan told Snowy, "but it seems we need more...information. When do we depart to Miss Merryweather's chambers?"

Snowy looked to her right, but she saw nothing. Darkan was merely a voice she could hear, though she could feel his presence more and more since the day they met. It never began to bother her until now.

"If you squint your eyes hard enough, you'll see more than you do now," Darkan said, his voice eerie and cold, though Snowy knew it was merely the way he spoke. "Just like when we met, but you will have to put in a bit more effort."

Snowy did as Darkan suggested and focused as hard as she could. She let out a gasp. A looming, smoky shadow of a stallion's silhouette towered over her. Snowy would've been more terrified if she didn't know who the stallion is, or currently is since Darkan was inflicted with amnesia.

Darkan was visible to her now, but not in the truest sense. He was literally a shadow of a stallion.

"You see me now?" he asked. Snowy nodded and Darkan chortled. "Congratulations. You've gained some more insight; be proud."

"You look scary," Snowy commented, tilting her head to one side. "And your horn is curved. That's weird."

Darkan gave another good-natured chortle. "Any normal pony would be cowering, but you aren't normal. Ice magic is incredibly rare and thought to be a lost form. Your parents must've been quite the odd pair of unicorns."

Snowy didn't answer, her face unreadable. She turned back to the window and stared out to view the gloaming sky.

"My apologies," Darkan said regretfully. "A bit tactless on my end."

Snowy shook her head. "I don't know where they are or what happened, but I know you meant well. Thanks."

"Are you ready to head out?"

Snowy nodded, getting to her hooves. "Flash won't be back for another hour with my food, so that gives me enough time to learn more about Rosey's illness... or curse."

When Snowy left her room and made her way down the silent crystal halls, Darkan's shadowy form dissipated into nothingness. It was getting quite late; the hall Snowy trotted down had naught a single soul except for her. There was a chill in the air, but Snowy didn't care; she loved the cold; it felt nice on her wintry coat. Her inherent affinity for ice magic gave her a strong resistance to its negative effects.

"You seem to be enjoying yourself," Darkan commented with a chortle.

"I never questioned it before, but you can read my thoughts. Is it because you are bound to me?" Snowy asked.

"Of course," Darkan replied in his usual eerie dark tone. "I try to exercise distance as your thoughts are yours alone, though some thoughts I can't bring myself to ignore."

"What do you think I'll learn about Rosey's condition?"

"Since it was a curse placed on Miss Merryweather, I imagine that if you would ask nicely, she'd tell you," Darkan said.

"Yeah," Snowy murmured lowly, her eyes staring at the crystal floor. She looked worried. "I'm scared for Flash and Rosey..."

"It's tragic," Darkan agreed, though his voice hardly changed to one that mirrored sympathy. "By what we saw earlier today, it seems that the curse afflicting the mare has reached a critical point; it no longer gives warnings. It just happens."

"It's terrifying," Snowy murmured, straining to suppress a shudder. She wanted Rosey to get better and happy; that's when Flash was happy. "I have to know what's wrong..."

Darkan gave a low, dark chortle. "Come to terms, have you?" he asked Snowy, but she didn't reply, answering his question. "These thoughts are hard to ignore, but we both know it's better this way."

Snowy was quite enamored with Flash Sentry, having such affection after meeting him on the train platform weeks ago. Maybe that was normal for a filly, to have a deep affection for a pony like Flash.

"You are young," Darkan told Snowy. "What you had was a crush, though, it isn't without good taste; Flash Sentry is quite handsome. But that isn't the real answer," Darkan continued, "instead, it's would you accept it that way?"

Snowy scowled at Darkan's question as they got closer to Rosey's quarters; she disliked that her thoughts, if she was to take Darkan's word for it, was too strong for him to ignore. Perhaps she should work on her mental prowess alongside her magical strength in an attempt to block him out and quit his prying.

"Ah-ah, no, that would not be necessary," Darkan said hastily, letting out a ghostly chuckle. "I tend to ignore most of your inner thoughts, but like I said, some thoughts are harder to ignore than others, and I can be curious if enticed."

Snowy focused hard to the empty space on her right and saw the black shadowy figure of Darkan. She had willed him into her vision. Darkan was surprised judging by his lowered posture and twitching ears.

"For such a young pony, you are quite shrewd," Darkan complemented with haste seeing Snowy slowly glower. "Let's just focus on Miss Merryweather, shall we?"

Snowy glared daggers at Darkan for a few moments more before shaking her head and letting out a suppressed sigh of vexation, turning away and trotting forward at a slightly faster pace. The trot to Rosey's room was silent and Snowy wanted to keep it that way.

When they reached Rosey's door, Snowy went to knock. After some time passes, there was no response. Was she sleeping?

"Put your ear against the door if you want to be sure," Darkan suggested. 

Groaning inwardly, Snowy had to remind herself that Darkan could hear her thoughts. Taking his suggestion into practice, Snowy placed an ear to the door and listened. At first there was nothing until Snowy could hear the faint sound of snoring inside. Rosey was asleep.

"What shall we do now?" inquired Darkan. 

"Rosey is in trouble, and I have to know what it is," Snowy said with a trace of conviction. "She and Flash need each other. If there's anything I can do to make sure Rosey stays with Flash, then I'll do it."

Darkan chortled. "For a filly as young as you are, you have some maturity," he complemented. "How shall we disturb Miss Merryweather?"

"Magic," Snowy answered with a small grin. "I don't want to make any unnecessary noise, so it's time to get creative."

Closing her eyes, Snowy's horn began to glow a brilliant white. A faint gray mist began to steadily surround her until her body was completely concealed within the mist.

"Using what you've learned today?" Darkan said, impressed.

During today's training session, Snowy was tasked to do teleportation, an extremely advanced magic spell, by Starlight and Sunburst to travel to one end of the glass dome and back. After a few failed attempts, Snowy got creative, with some advice from Darkan of course.

Instead of a flash of white light, Snowy had gathered a gray mist as cold as sub-zero temperatures. The mist enveloped her until her physical body lost its form and she glided across the dome. It wasn't as instantaneous as teleportation, but she traveled at a fast pace.

When Snowy glided back and returned to her physical form, she was surprised and very excited. To Starlight and Sunburst, they were just as shocked. The form Snowy took was reminiscent of King Sombra's smoky black shadow form, though the adults had kept that information to themselves.

When Snowy was asked how in Equestria she could know such a spell, the filly said that she couldn't cast the teleportation spell and instead thought of an alternative way of travel, but she left the part out with Darkan. Snowy couldn't tell them about him anyway; he was a pony only she could see, and she didn't want to appear crazy either. 

With having power over ice magic, Snowy could now shift into a misty cloud and travel over long distances. During the ten-minute journey back to the Crystal Empire, Sunburst had tasked Snowy with maintaining the mist form until they got back. Snowy had succeeded in the task but felt tired after, yet her excitement overshadowed it.

Using the form she learned today, Snowy was able to slip under Rosey's door and enter her bedroom. Inside, she turned back to normal with the gray mist dissipating into nothingness.

"You showed great control there, Snowy," Darkan complemented. "It seems my suggestion suited you perfectly."

Snowy wondered how Darkan knew such a spell, but then remembered that the shadowy silhouette he takes the form of is a stallion with a curved horn. A unicorn for sure; he must've been quite an adept in magic.

"You flatter me with your thoughts, Snowy," Darkan said as he came into Snowy's vision as a black shadow again. "I'll admit that the spell seems foreign to me, yet it feels like I've known it forever, a piece of my past perhaps. Now such a spell belongs to you."

Snowy rolled her eyes and looked ahead: Rosey was lying asleep on her bed, her chest rising and lowering. Taking a few steps forward, Snowy had begun to notice Rosey wasn't sleeping as serenely as she thought. She was squirming in bed, her head rocking side to side every other second, and she was muttering something hastily as if she was distressed. 

Carefully edging closer, Snowy saw Rosey's face contorting in pain, her eyes shut tight, and her hooves gripping the black bed covering. Her breathing was rapid, and she let out small whimpering cries pleading for somepony, Flash, to help her, to save her.

Snowy was taken aback, her eyes widening as she witnesses Rosey having a fit in her sleep. It reminded Snowy of fidgeting tirelessly in bed. At once, Snowy knew what was happening to Rosey.

"What should I do?" Snowy rasped quietly, her heart beginning to beat fast. "She's having a nightmare...!"

"Calm down and breathe before you panic," Darkan bade seriously, his ghostly voice cold and sharp.

Snowy breathed in deeply and exhaled. "What now?"

"You have to wake her up, but not too hard," Darkan instructed. "You may be on the receiving end of a smack across the face if you're too rough. Put your hooves on her chest and shake her gently."

Nodding, Snowy did as Darkan ordered. She placed her hooves on Rosey's chest gently but only to remove them out of shock.

"What is it?" Darkan demanded, slightly anxious.

Snowy glanced at him. "She's hot," she murmured. "Her body...it's burning up!"

"What?!"

"A wave of heat is coming from her body," Snowy said with worry. "This fit...the curse could be happening again." Snowy gazed back at Rosey, the mare's face showing an expression of agony. Then an idea popped into her head.

"What'd you figure out?" Darkan asked urgently. "Ah, I get it now."

Snowy nodded. "If I'm careful using my ice magic, I may be able to cool Rosey down."

"Remember that your magic is quite strong even without the influence of your emotions amplifying it," Darkan warned. "With a slow and steady pace, you could help Miss Merryweather."

With a swift bob of her head and a stark look of conviction alight in her crystal blue eyes, Snowy got to work. Focusing, she closes her eyes as her horn began to shine with a white glow. She places her hooves over Rosey's burning chest and pressed them down on her gently.

"Remember to breathe, Snowy," Darkan instructed in a hush whisper. Snowy did as he ordered. "Good, that's good. Let the ice magic flow from your horn to your front hooves at a slow but steady pace. You do not need to press harder; maintain that gentle pressure."

Snowy breathed in and exhaled at a steady pace, a mist escaping her lips. Her front hooves begin to glow as the ice magic steadily seeps out and touches Rosey's burning chest.

Snowy furrows her brows as she felt the heat starting...to fight back. She felt the heat attack her hooves, attempting to force her to remove them. Surprised, Snowy nearly loses focus, but she manages to hold on, clenching her teeth as she felt her own hooves beginning to hurt.

"I know it hurts, but you mustn't relent," Darkan told the white filly. "Your magic is working- no, don't open your eyes yet; you must maintain your focus and seeing Miss Merryweather's feeble form could break it. You're almost done; Miss Merryweather is starting to fidget less and less."

The burning heat was beginning to overwhelm Snowy, but she dared not remove her hooves from Rosey's chest. She grunted, swaying slightly on her hooves, and she thought that she might fall until she felt the hooves of another pony helping her to stand upright. She barely felt it, but the touch was there. Who was it?

"It's me you feel," Darkan answered solemnly, causing Snowy to almost open her eyes but she fought back the urge. "Though having to be steered back on track, you are displaying some sublime assiduity, Snowy. Rosey is nearly calm. Keep going," he encouraged.

With the support and encouragement from Darkan, Snowy was able to hold on for a few more moments until Darkan told her to stop and open her eyes.

Snowy's vision blurred after reopening her eyes, but then they adjusted to view Rosey no longer writhing or whimpering in her sleep. Relieved, Snowy almost fell backward if it weren't for Darkan holding her upright.

She turned to him, glad to be in his company. "Thanks," she told him. "You really helped out there."

Darkan released Snowy for the filly to stand on her own before bowing. "My pleasure," he replied graciously.

"How were you able to touch me?" Snowy asked, bewildered. "Were you able to before?"

Darkan shook his head. "It seems my incorporeal form is allowing me to perform actions previously unavailable to me. That's good. I may be able to be of more use to you."

"You are very useful, Darkan," Snowy said truthfully, turning back to Rosey. "She looks so calm now. I can't believe my magic fought what could've been the curse."

"Ice magic is special, as is its rarer cousin: thunder magic," Darkan said. "Not much is known about your kind of magic, but it seems to have some pretty helpful properties, right?"

Snowy nodded in agreement. "Now I must wake Rosey," Snowy murmured. There was a small hint of regret in her voice. "She looks so peaceful..."

"You came here to learn more about her curse, so I suggest you keep that in mind, Snowy," Darkan said coldly. "I will be hanging in the background while you get to work."

Snowy bobbed her head, wishing Darkan could be a bit more sympathetic.

"Sympathy will not assist your endeavor."

Groaning inwardly, Snowy faced Rosey's beautiful visage and sighed. She put a hoof on her chest, not feeling the heat that once plagued the mare, and shook her softly awake.

"Ugh... F-Flash? Is that you?" Rosey sputtered, her eyes slowly opening. When she looked to her right, she saw Snowy. "Snowy? What are you doing in here? Are you okay? Did you have a bad dream?"

Snowy was perplexed by Rosey's sudden concern for her, but it made her feel good for a reason she couldn't explain. If anything, Snowy should be worried for her instead of the other way around.

"I'm...fine," Snowy replied. "Are you okay? You were having a fit in your sleep."

Rosey looked confused. "I don't feel the curse," she whispered faintly. "Did I?"

Snowy was astonished that the fit had indeed stemmed from Rosey's curse. All that pain she had during her sleep must have gone completely before she awoke.

"Interesting," Darkan uttered. "She appears to have no memory of the fit or any aches. Once the pain passes, it doesn't linger. It can come and go as it pleases. How frightening."

Snowy agreed silently. She saw Rosey scootch over on her bed and patted a space for her to sit. Snowy would've declined respectfully but Rosey's sweet and motherly demeanor won the filly over and she clambered on the bed.

"What's on your mind, sweetheart?" Rosey cooed, her voice as smooth as honey and just as sweet.

Snowy felt Rosey hold her close and blushed, trying hard to not accidentally cast a block of ice on her bed. She looked ahead and saw Darkan with a hoof over his mouth; he was enjoying her embarrassed state and fought to contain a scowl.

"Are you worried?" Rosey asked, grabbing Snowy's attention. She looked glum, staring at a wall. "About what you saw earlier. I'm sorry you had to see that." She gazed down at Snowy. "There's usually a warning when I go into a fit, but it seems my time is rapidly coming to an end, and I might have to leave you and... Flash."

Snowy's heart began to beat fast. How close was Rosey to death? A few days? A week from now? And she sounded like she had given up!

"Compose yourself, Snowy," Darkan said at the end of the bed. "We may not know how long Miss Merryweather has, but she isn't dead yet. Do what you came here for."

Snowy gave a faint nod and locked eyes with Rosey. "I'm here because of your...illness, but when I was with Flash, I learned that your sickness is some kind of curse."

Rosey stiffened and stayed silent for a few moments before she spoke. "Did Flash tell you?"

Snowy shook her head. "He was speaking to Princess Cadance in her bedchamber, and I overheard some of their conversation. Flash is really worried about you."

Snowy saw Rosey's eyes become glossy, looking away towards her window. It was nearly dark out.

"Can you tell me anything about your curse?" Snowy asked, leaning against Rosey for comfort. "Maybe I can help."

Rosey gave a pitiful chuckle and turned to Snowy. "What I have is never going away, sweetheart," she rasped, despondent, her scarlet eyes dark and empty. "Do you know who King Sombra was?"

Snowy shook her head. "I don't," she answered. She glanced at Darkan who was being attentive to the story Rosey was about to tell. "Who was he?"

Rosey gave a massive shudder before calming down. "King Sombra was an evil stallion," she whispered, afraid of this King Sombra appearing out of nowhere. "He ruled over the crystal empire a thousand years ago when Flash and I were very young. He was a tyrant, putting everypony in chains and using his dark magic to make us suffer. 

"He would place curses on us, terrible curses that did...things to us. A lot of us passed away. It's gnawing under me. I can feel it... the burning; the blaze of pain gradually gets worse until I succumb to it."

Snowy watched as tears began to slide down Rosey's cheeks, and her heart plummeted.

"I'm dying, sweetheart," Rosey whispered, her eyes growing round. The way the words came out was as if Rosey was terrified of uttering them. "I don't want to go. I want to stay here with Flash, but time is not on my side."

"I don't want you to go; Flash needs you!" Snowy wailed. She placed her hooves on Rosey. "He's so sad and angry he can't find a way to help you. I'm scared if you go away forever, he'll never be the same!"

"But the cavern where the spark lilies are said to grow have been burned beyond healing," Rosey lamented, her voice cracking. "I wish I wasn't born with a weak body; it makes this curse feel worse..."

Glancing at Darkan, Snowy saw him wave his hooves forward as to hurry and ask Rosey about the flowers. Snowy refocused. "What can you tell me about the spark lilies?" she asked.

"A spark lily is a special type of flower," Rosey started, sniffling, "found in a cavern within the Frozen North with the purpose to cure curses."

"Can this flower cure any curse? What does the flower look like?" Snowy entreated, leaning close to Rosey to drink up every bit of information.

Rosey's eyes narrowed. She seemed to be struggling to remember. "The spark lily is... is made up of an unknown... magic. It can cure any curse no matter how powerful, even dark magic curses, which are supposed to be the worst of the worst. 

"I've seen them before when I was a filly. It's a special type of lily. A gray flower with yellow petals, and a green stalk. They were being distributed or given to many ponies in secret to cure the curses King Sombra placed on them, but..."

"But what?" Snowy urged, willing Rosey to go on.

"He found out about them," Rosey rasped so quietly Snowy had to strain her ears. Another shudder racked Rosey's body, her eyes beginning to screw up as if she was in deep pain, but she didn't stop. "He found out what they were and where to find them. He set out to the cavern and razed the entire flowerbed until nothing was left other than the charred remains of the flowers. 

"To ensure no pony could figure out how to use them again, he took every book that contained information about the flowers and destroyed them, then he placed curses on everypony again. 

"With no flowers to remove the curses, a lot of ponies accepted their fates and passed away. To my knowledge, I'm the last pony who's been living the longest with the curse, having it since after King Sombra burned the flowers."

Snowy was trying to take in all the information at once, but it was a little overwhelming. How would she cure Rosey of the curse if the flowers created to do just that are seemingly gone forever?

Snowy thought long and hard about the spark lilies, and slowly did she find a certain connection of how they were destroyed.

"What connection are you searching for?" Darkan asked. He was leaning on the end of the bed, but Rosey didn't seem to notice. "What do we know for sure about the flowers? There's been one constant."

Snowy nodded faintly. Darkan was right. She had noticed something. It was how the flowers are destroyed. They were described to be burned, charred, and razed.

"Rosey," Snowy began, "are the flowers truly destroyed?"

Rosey gazed at her silently for a moment. "They may as well be," she answered, but she sounded a tad unsure. "King Sombra had to have performed some dark magic on the flowers. The flowers are purely magical as they were created with an unknown magic, so they grow on their own. However, the area they grew in is too badly damaged by dark magic for them to regrow."

"I wonder what can be done to regrow the flowers. Have an idea?" Darkan asked.

Snowy couldn't answer; she didn't know. Instead, she asked, "Rosey, do you remember where the cavern is?"

Rosey nodded absently, her eyes drifting to her moonlit window. "There is a cave in a frozen valley fifteen minutes north of the castle," she said, her words beginning to slur; she was getting sleepy. "There's a mountain that at its base is a large entrance that leads into the cavern where the flowers used to bloom. I went there many times with Flash and a few others to help transport the spark lilies. The Boreal Cave."

Snowy rejoiced internally, now having the location where the spark lilies are said to grow. She could head there after she left Rosey's bedroom, and the journey wouldn't be fifteen minutes, not with the mist form she has learned courtesy of Darkan.

Stretching, Snowy leaps off Rosey's bed and made her way toward the mare's bedroom door. She turned suddenly as Rosey called to her.

"Don't go there, sweetheart. There's monsters and other types of creatures wandering around," Rosey warned solemnly, her eyes haunted. "That isn't a place for a pony as young as you. If I do pass away, Flash is going to need you to be there for him, so don't go off doing something dangerous on my account." She lowered her voice until Snowy could barely make out the words. "He doesn't take loss very well. Understand?"

Snowy nodded solemnly, but there was a gleam in her crystal blue eyes. "I understand," she replied in a whisper, turning away with Darkan by her side and out Rosey's door to let her sleep.

"Well," started Darkan, "since we're going to ignore her concerns, shall we head out to our destination?"

Snowy sighed as she closed Rosey's door behind her, gazing at Darkan. "You can be a little more invested." Snowy was a bit put-off by Darkan's lack of feeling.

Darkan gave a chortle that bothered Snowy. "I'm as invested as I can be," he said with a snicker. "I may not be well-tuned to others' feelings as the average pony, but surely my willingness to aid you in Miss Merryweather's plight should be well within the borders of care, yes?"

Snowy glanced away, uncomfortable. "I suppose you're right," she admitted, grumbling. "We need to hurry to the Boreal Cave and see the state of the spark lilies. Let's go."

Before Snowy could race off with Darkan by her side, a deep voice had halted her.

"Go where?"

Snowy froze on the spot; she knew that voice and how she wished and wished it wasn't him. She turned around to see Flash Sentry carrying a tray full of food on his withers, his eyes narrowing suspiciously. He wasn't supposed to be heading to her room yet; an hour hasn't passed.

"Well, that was unexpected," Darkan said, vexed.

"Snowy, what are you doing out here?" Flash Sentry asked, his voice a little taut as he trotted up to her. "It's almost near your bedtime. What're you doing outside of Rosey's bedroom? And where do you think you are going?"

Snowy usually admired and appreciated Flash's worry for her; she loved being coddled by him. It was a new and very welcoming feeling, but not now when she was going to head out to the Frozen North. 

His questions felt like thinly veiled demands as if he was somewhat disappointed with her, and Snowy didn't want the stallion she grew to quickly have affections for to believe she was up to no good.

"Flash, I... I-I didn't expect to see you so soon," Snowy stammered, still surprised she was caught. She wasn't sneaking around, but it felt like she did by the way Flash looked down at her.

"I got your food early tonight," Flash Sentry said with a brow raised. "I wasn't with you today and I know you've grown to having me around, so I was able to pull some strings with the royal chef to bring your food early. I wanted to talk with you while we both ate, but it seems you had other plans. You don't seem too tired at all."

"May as well come clean," Darkan suggested. "If you tell him what you know and still plan on doing, he may be swayed to assist in your endeavor." Snowy was somewhat doubtful. "If you have a plan to help Miss Merryweather, then Flash will aid you without question. You should already know; use that crafty brain of yours."

Snowy sighed inwardly and faced Flash Sentry. "I know about the curse," she said, waiting for his reaction.

Flash was taken slightly aback, but then he quickly composed himself. "So... you overheard my conversation with Princess Cadance?"

"I did," Snowy murmured, "but only very little."

"I see... So, why are you out and about then?"

Snowy shuffled lightly on her hooves. "I wanted to know more about the curse because I want to help," she confessed, sweeping on, "so I went to Rosey for some answers to my questions. When I sli- I mean, trotted inside, she was sleeping, and when I got closer, Rosey was having another fit..."

Flash Sentry's eyes grew round with fear as he began to turn and head inside Rosey's bedroom, only to be stopped by Snowy.

"She's okay," Snowy soothed, seeing the anxiety burn bright in Flash's eyes.

"What do you mean?" he asked, his voice tight with worry. "What happened?"

"I used my magic to calm her down," Snowy said. She saw the fear leave Flash's eyes to be replaced with a slight interest.

"How?" he asked, stunned.

"I felt the heat coming off of her chest and saw her suffering, so I thought it was the curse," Snowy began to explain. "I used my magic to cool her down, and after a while, Rosey wasn't hurting anymore. I don't think I got rid of the curse at all. I may have only stopped the fit."

A large sigh of relief escaped Flash Sentry's mouth. "Thank Celestia," he prayed with his eyes closed before opening them again. "I assume Rosey told you a lot about the spark lilies and her curse?"

"Yes, she did," Snowy replied. She took in a deep breath and then exhaled. "She even told me where the spark lilies are."

Flash Sentry's eyes began to harden. "And where were you going before I stopped you?" he demanded, his tone reproachful, causing Snowy to flinch faintly.

"I was going to the cavern to see if I could do something," she mumbled.

Flash let out a silent sigh. "Snowy, listen. You are not going to that place; the road there can be dangerous with creatures roaming about. You are staying here."

"But Flash, I may be able to do something," Snowy pleaded.

Flash shook his head, his ears drooping. "I don't think there is anything any of us can do to help Rosey now. I'd like to believe you, Snowy, but I can't see what could be done..."

"You don't understand what I'm saying," she said, trotting up to him. "With what I heard from how the spark lilies are described as razed, burnt, and charred, Sombra used a type of spell, most likely a dark fire spell, to prevent the flowers from growing, right?"

Flash nodded faintly. "I was told the area is still smoldering."

"If my magic could stop Rosey's fit, which comes from the curse, then would it be possible to heal the area Sombra burned with my ice magic long enough for the flowers to regrow again and save her? If the spell Sombra used is a type of curse, my magic should work well against it."

Flash Sentry stared at Snowy for a long while until a glimmer of hope glinted in his sorrowful blue gaze.

"From my memory as a colt, I helped give the flowers to the afflicted citizens of the Crystal Empire in secret, and there were times I witnessed, after I plucked the flowers, that new ones had sprouted in their places almost instantly," Flash recollected. "If your ice magic can truly repair the flowerbed in the cavern by countering the tyrant's dark magic, then there is a chance for the flowers to resprout for me to collect some and save Rosey!"

"And there you have it," Darkan said next to Snowy. "We've got him on our side!"

Snowy felt her heart lift seeing Flash smile so widely. There was a hope shimmering in his beautiful blue eyes, a hope that had previously seemed dim, but it was shining brighter and brighter with each passing second, and it made Snowy feel so happy for him.

What they're about to do has to work; it can't end in tragedy, and Snowy was determined to see that it doesn't. 

"We need to head out to Boreal Cave now and see what we can do there," Snowy said hastily, trotting in place as if her hooves were on fire. "This may be our only chance to save Rosey from the curse!"

Flash agreed, setting down the food tray next to Rosey's door. "We must head to the cavern as quickly as possible. I hope you're right about this, Snowy." His smile faltered a bit. "I really hope you are."

Snowy gazed at him steadily; she was confident. "I am," she avowed. "If there is a way for Rosey to stay here and be with you, then I'll do everything and anything in my power to make that happen; I promise."

Both Darkan and Flash Sentry stared at Snowy, surprised.

"Well said, Snowy," Darkan praised, awestruck. "You are more mature than I had thought, but you've always been quite the passionate one, haven't you?"

"I can't tell you how much that makes me feel, Snowy," Flash Sentry breathed, nuzzling Snowy's cheeks with his muzzle affectionately, causing her to giggle. "You've given me hope again."

Snowy relished in Flash Sentry's warmth, embracing him tenderly. She wanted to be like this with him forever.

"Enjoying yourself?" Darkan cut in, jolting Snowy out of her thoughts, gazing at him looking over Flash's back. "Do not forget that we have an objective to attain."

Though Darkan was right, Snowy wished he didn't spoil the moment.

Darkan chortled. "Save the moment for when we come back, Snowy. Let's get going," he said, disappearing out of sight.

Suppressing a sigh, Snowy reluctantly forced herself away from Flash Sentry and stood beside him. "I'm ready."

Flash nodded vigorously, a fire burning in his eyes. "Let us be off to Boreal Cave!"