Dawn broke over the quiet village of Ponyville. Birds chirped, ponies began to stir in their beds, and the morning dew glistened in the early morning light. In a tree on the edge of town, a dragon groaned.
“Twilight the sun’s hardly even up yet,” Spike grumbled, pulling his blanket over his eyes. “Go back to sleep already. Or at least be quiet. I’m a growing dragon and that means I need my sleep.”
This had been the pattern for the past week. The sun would rise and Twilight Sparkle would be wide awake, preparing a list of tasks to be accomplished that day. Spike might not have minded so much except that the purple unicorn insisted that he be up to help her get organized and run errands.
“Spike this is no time to be sleeping!” Twilight said, Spike’s blanket glowing as it was ripped from his clutches. “The Summer Sun Celebration is exactly one month away and if we want to be ready we need to use all the time we have to the fullest. Princess Celestia and the Mayor are trusting me to organize everything so we need to be prepared! Everything needs to be just right, and I don’t want any surprises.”
Spike sat up and yawned loudly in Twilight’s face. Twilight wrinkled her nose and waved a hoof in front her face.
“Spike go brush your teeth before you start breathing in my face please. Now, the first thing we need to do today is drop by Rarity’s boutique and review the designs for the sun dancer’s dresses,” she said as she loaded up her saddlebags.
Immediately the young dragon perked up. “Why didn’t you say we were going to visit Rarity? Hold on I’ll be ready in just a minute!” he said, rushing down to the library’s foyer.
Twilight sighed, a small smile creeping onto her face as she shook her head in amusement before following the young dragon. Spike may have been lazy sometimes but overall he was a great assistant, and given the right prodding motivating him was easy enough.
“Alright how do I look? Are my scales shiny enough? What about my teeth do they look good?” Spike asked, looking himself over in the mirror.
“Oh Spike,” Twilight laughed, watching as he attempted to smooth his green scales down, “You look fine. I’m sure Rarity will be impressed. Now come on we need to get going. Rarity’s place is only the first on a long list of errands we need to run so I need you to get a move on.”
“Alright already I get it, geez,” Spike grumbled as he hopped onto Twilight’s back, “Let’s get going then. The sooner we get there the sooner I can see Rarity.” His eyes glazed and he let out a long sigh. Twilight rolled her eyes and walked out of the library into the cool morning air. She locked the library behind them; it wasn’t scheduled to open for a few more hours anyway, and hopefully they would be done with their morning errands by then.
“Okay Spike, let’s go,” Twilight said with a smile, but her only response was a light snore.
***************
“Gah! Geez Rarity will you watch it with those pins? I’m not a pincushion you know!”
“Well I am sorry Rainbow Dash, and I do appreciate you helping me so early in the morning but if you’re going to model the designs for me then I need you to not be falling asleep,” Rarity said, shooting the prismatic mare a pointed look. Working with Rainbow Dash could be a trying experience, even for a pony with Rarity’s composure and patience, but it was nice that she had been willing to help and Rarity was grateful. Twilight had asked her to design the sun dancer’s dresses for the Summer Sun Celebration. Rarity had no intention of disappointing her friend, especially not when she had entrusted her with such a high honor. The sun dancer’s dresses were usually designed by the most well known of Cantelrot’s fashion stars. Her designs would be worn in celebrations all across Equestria, and they would be worn when the dancers performed in front of the Princesses! If she made a good impression it could be a bigger career booster than when Hoity Toity had promoted her.
Still, all that really depended on whether or not Rainbow Dash could keep her eyes open and let Rarity work.
“You know, when I agreed to help you I didn’t think it would mean getting up at the crack of dawn and being stuck full of pins while you mumble to yourself,” Rainbow said, fidgeting in the half-sewn dress Rarity had put on her. Her mane and tail were in curlers, and she was glad she wasn’t within sight of a mirror. She wasn’t sure she would have been able to take the sight of how ridiculous she must look. “I don’t understand why you needed me to be the one to help anyway. I mean, wouldn’t Fluttershy have been a better choice? You two spend all that time at the spa and she knows a lot more about fashion than I do.”
“Oh I could never do that,” Rarity said, levitating an orange strip of fabric and pinning it into position behind Rainbow’s wings, “After all she went through with Photo Finish. I practically forced the poor dear into a modeling career she didn’t want. I simply couldn’t ask her to do it again, even if she does possess so much natural grace.”
“Yeah I guess,” Rainbow said, her wings twitching with impatience, “I just wish you could do this a little later in the day. I hate getting up early.”
“Well it can’t be helped dear. After all, we could have done this last night but somepony insisted that they were much too busy practicing to help a friend in need.”
“Hey don’t try to make this my fault! I have to keep up my practicing if I want to keep in tip top shape you know,” Rainbow Dash said with a hint of indignation.
“Yes, well Twilight said she would be dropping by early this morning to check on my progress. I know she trusts me to do a good job but sometimes I fear her desire for organization can lead her to be a bit of a control freak,” Rarity said. She removed the curlers from Rainbow Dash’s tail and began styling it into elegant loops.
Rarity stepped back to examine her progress. The design was still in its infancy but she was determined to get the color scheme down before she committed to anything. Light yellows and oranges accentuated by light blues and purples gave the impression of the dawn sky. The colors cascaded down from the collar, rays of yellow flowing over the back from the wings. She squinted, scrutinizing her work. It was good, but not quite what she had envisioned. It needed a little more…something, before moving on to the next step.
She was interrupted by the sound of a knock at the front door.
“Ah! That must be Twilight,” Rarity said, making her way to the door. “You stay still Rainbow Dash. I’m not finished pinning that fabric yet.”
“Yeah yeah I got it,” Rainbow said, flexing her wings in annoyance.
Rarity opened the door and Twilight walked into the boutique, Spike hopping off her back as she did.
“Good morning Rarity,” Twilight said, “Sorry to bother you so early, but I’ve got a busy schedule today and need to make sure everything is going well. I still need to go to Sweet Apple Acres before lunch to meet with Applejack.”
“Oh it’s no trouble at all!” Rarity said, ushering Twilight and Spike into the back where Rainbow Dash was busy trying to keep herself from fidgeting too much, “I’m usually up early when I have a design on my mind. I just can’t seem to rest until I get it just right. Rainbow Dash here was kind enough to volunteer her services as a model, seeing as all the sun dancers are pegasi.” Rarity smiled sweetly at Rainbow Dash, who rolled her eyes and grumbled a greeting to Twilight.
“It’s good to see you too Rainbow Dash,” Twilight chuckled, noticing her friend’s sour expression. Spike couldn’t help but let out a laugh at the sight of Rainbow Dash with a styled tail, curlers in her mane, and bits of fabric pinned to her.
“You look like one of Sweetie Belle’s dolls!” he laughed, rolling on the floor.
Rainbow Dash growled but stayed still. “Just you wait until I get out of this stuff Spike. Then we’ll see how fast a baby dragon can fly.”
Spike continued to laugh, ignoring Rainbow Dash’s threats. “Haha! Whatever you say!”
Rarity shook her head and smiled at the antics of her two friends. “So will Applejack be in charge of managing the food again this year?” she asked, turning back to Twilight.
“For the most part. This year the celebration in Ponyville is going to be a lot bigger than in the past,” Twilight said, watching as Spike continued to tease Rainbow Dash, “Princess Celestia said she wanted the anniversary of Princess Luna’s return to be special, so we’re doing a much bigger production. Ponyville will be playing host to a large number of out of town visitors so we’ll be needing a lot more food than just Applejack will be able to provide. She said she’d take me around to meet some of the other farmers in the area to see about hiring their services for the Celebration.”
“Oh My!” I had no idea it was going to be such a big event. And to think Princess Celestia has entrusted you with organizing the whole thing! She really must have a great deal of faith in you.”
Twilight felt a light blush grace her cheeks at the praise. “I suppose so. I just want to do the best that I can, both for Celestia and Luna. I know Celestia really wants it to be a special event, and to be as much about Princess Luna as herself.” A troubled look crossed Twilight’s face, remembering back to the wording of the request Celestia had sent her when she had asked Twilight to be in charge of organizing the Summer Sun Celebration. There had been a note of…pleading…or desperation that was disconcerting coming from her teacher. It was clear that this event was incredibly important to Celestia, and Twilight was pretty sure she knew why.
“Twilight? Is there something wrong?” Rarity asked, concerned.
Twilight blinked, returning her attention to her unicorn friend. “Oh. No. No I don’t think so,” she said, looking down, “It’s just…I’m sort of worried I guess…about Princess Celestia.”
Rarity tilted her head in confusion. “Worried? Why whatever for?”
“I don’t know, it’s just a feeling I guess. I’ve known her for most of my life, and she’s always seemed so in control. But lately in the letters I get from her she sounds tense, worried even. I’m not sure things are going so well with Princess Luna.”
Spike had stopped teasing Rainbow Dash, who looked with concern at Twilight.
“Don’t worry Twilight,” Spike said, hopping onto her back, “I’m sure Princess Celestia would have told you if Princess Luna was getting out of hand again. I mean, you guys were the ones to beat Nightmare Moon in the first place.”
Twilight shook her head. “No, that’s not what I meant. I think they might be having a hard time getting used to being around each other again. A thousand years is a long time, even for goddesses. I’m just worried that they might not get over what happened.”
Rarity placed a comforting hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “I wouldn’t worry too much about it darling. Princess Luna seemed like such a dear during last year’s Summer Sun Celebration. I can’t imagine any issues between them could last for long. I’m sure that given time everything will work out fine.”
“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash said with a grin, “And if those two need some sense knocked into them well then that’s what you’re for right?”
Twilight smiled. Trust her friends to put things in a positive light. “I’m sure you’re right. Now then, Rarity why don’t you show me what you’re planning for the rest of these outfits? I love the color so far!”
Rarity’s eyes gleamed and Rainbow Dash let out a groan as the white unicorn launched into a long and detailed description of her plans.
***************
Snow Drift walked down the winding stairs of the castle, into the underground chambers that served to house her living quarters, as well as the library and personal quarters of Lady Winter Chill’s many servants. The walls glowed with a pale light reminiscent of moonlight, enchanted to provide light in the absence of torches. Most of the nobility lived in Wintersmane, the city that surrounded the castle. The city was constantly covered in snow, but at least there ponies were able to build fires to keep their homes warm. The ponies that lived in the castle had to settle for blankets. Lady Winter Chill detested fire, and refused to allow it in her castle.
Down here, the castle was constructed of stone and mortar, a more fitting environment for ponies that were not terribly comfortable living in a construction of snow and ice. Even for Snow Drift, who had spent her entire life studying and mastering the cold, it wasn’t terribly comfortable to sleep on ice. She also liked living close to the library. Her teacher had teased her on occasion that if she hadn’t such a talent for cold magic her cutie mark would have been of a dusty old tome. It wasn’t a sentiment that Snow Drift found to be all that funny, although it was probably true.
Lady Winter Chill had once told her that the whole castle had been made this way originally but that a battle had left all but the foundation destroyed. After that, Winter Chill had raised the castle as it stood now, massive towers of gleaming ice stretching high into the sky. It was interesting to think about, but Snow Drift found it hard to imagine the castle having ever been much different than it was now.
She made her way to large pair of doors and pushed them open, revealing the library. It was situated in a massive cavern that must have at one point in time been a cave. It was hard to conceive that the whole thing could have been excavated; even with the magically glowing walls it was hard to see the ceiling. The library ascended in rings, getting larger and larger the higher up it went. Getting to the highest part of the library where the oldest books were kept could be a chore.
The air in the underground sections of the castle was moist and stagnant, and in the library it tended to condense near the ceiling, creating a haze that could on occasion hide the upper levels from sight. Fortunately, the books were enchanted to prevent mold, but the ponies themselves were less lucky. Snow Drift didn’t mind though, she had always loved the library and found its minor atmospheric effects added a sense of wonder and mystery to the place.
Snow Drift smiled at the silver-maned stallion that served as the library’s caretaker as she entered. He was ancient, the oldest pony that Snow had ever met by a large margin with the exception of her teacher, and had been in charge of the library for as long as she could remember. He had always been kind and helpful, encouraging her bookwormish habits and helping her with her studies from time to time.
“Ah, Snow Drift,” he said with a smile, glancing up from the book he had been reading, “And what brings you here today? On another assignment from her Majesty?”
“No not today,” Snow Drift replied with a smile, “I’m here for me today. I wanted to try to find some documents from before the castle was destroyed and rebuilt.”
The librarian nodded, scratching his chin. “Well I’m not sure we have anything like that. Most of what you’d want would have been destroyed during the fighting, even all the way down here. The battle raised most of the city as I’m sure you know. But anything we do have would be up at the top.”
“Thanks,” Snow Drift said, glancing towards the high parts of the library, “I figured as much, but thought I’d ask before starting the walk up there.”
“Well good luck to you. I hope you find what you’re looking for,” The librarian said before returning his attention to his book.
Snow Drift nodded and began the long trek up the stairs. She knew the odds of her finding anything predating the destruction of the castle were slim. At that time, much of Equiiria had been in turmoil, although the details were fuzzy. The only ones who were alive now that still knew what had happened were Lady Winter Chill and her sisters. Snow didn’t know about the others, but her teacher was reluctant to mention anything about the conflict, not even to confirm or deny the theories Snow Drift had found.
However on occasion, Winter Chill would talk about the times before the war. It was always interesting to watch her normally stoic teacher’s face soften and her eyes grow distant when she talked of the paradise their land had once been. She had ruled in harmony with her sisters, each of them governing one of the four seasons. This was a concept Snow had always found hard to grasp. For as long as she could remember the land had been covered in snow, frigid and grey even on the sunniest of days. It was hard to envision the world that her teacher had told her about, a world where winter only took up one quarter of the year and other seasons, seasons of green and warmth had as much sway as the cold of winter.
Snow Drift finally reached the highest ring and stopped to catch her breath. It always took a lot out of her, coming all the way up here. The ceiling was close enough that if she jumped she could touch it, and looking down she could barely see the librarian near the entrance. Scanning the books, leaves of parchment, and dusty scrolls, she began to feel her spirits drop. It looked like the librarian had been right. Even up here where all the oldest records were kept there was hardly any mention of the conflict that had led to the end of Equiiria’s rule by the four sisters. Most of what she found didn’t even go back far enough, stopping just under a thousand years ago.
‘Maybe this was a silly idea,’ Snow thought, pulling down a particularly old and hefty tome, ‘I’m sure if it was important then Lady Winter Chill would have told me about it. Probably.’ Of course, if she had been willing to talk about it in the first place Snow wouldn’t have been making this trip to the upper reaches of the library hunting for books she wasn’t even sure existed. Her teacher had always been kind and generous with her, but in those rare times she had tried to ask about whatever had led to Equiiria’s change something in her would change and the air would make even Snow Drift shiver. It was frightening. It was sometimes easy to forget that Winter Chill was more than just her teacher. She was an immortal that had lived for generations and her power was beyond measure.
Still, just because her teacher didn’t want to talk about it didn’t mean she had forbidden Snow Drift from trying to learn about it. She just wished that finding the information was a little easier. The archives, which housed the recorded publications going back as far as there were copies had been of little help, and none of the other residents of the castle knew anything either. So the library it was.
She flipped through the book, scanning it for any reference to Lady Winter Chill that referred to her as anything other than the sole ruler of Equiiria, something that might mention the era when she ruled with her sisters. Information of the monarch and her sisters was not hard to come by, but there were few, if any, references that indicated that things had ever been different than they were now. She was about to put the book away when something caught her eye. It was an ornate drawing of the sun and moon, framed by two alicorns that Snow had never seen before. Intrigued, she turned the page.
“Sun and Moon: Speculation on the sister’s dispute and the fracturing of Equestria.” Snow read aloud, confused. She had never heard of Equestria before, not even in any of the world maps she had studied as a filly. To the north was Pogona, the dragon lands, and to the west was the Great Sea, but the lands to the east and south were still unknown as far as she had been able to figure. It was possible of course that it was somewhere in that region, but it was equally likely that it no longer existed, or had never existed at all.
Curious, she continued, the musty pages tickling her nose. The words were faded and some passages were written in an older form of the language, but she was able to read sections.
“An accurate account of the lead up to the Princess of the Moon’s rebellion and subsequent banishment is hard to come by, and the Princess of the Sun herself is unwilling to confirm any speculation, although she has at times come forth to deny the harsher accusations leveled at her sister. Theories range from political espionage to assassination attempts, but the only element of the affair that has seen any consensus is that the Princess of the Moon had begun to resent her sister, leading to her transformation into the Nightmare. The reason brhind this resentment is unknown but was perhaps rooted in the relative ambiguity in which the Princess of the Moon lived. Unlike her sister, who received daily praise for her work with the sun, she had little acknowledgement from the population of Equestria.”
Snow Drift paused in her reading, trying to understand the implications of that passage. She had never heard of the two princesses mentioned in the book, and as far as she knew the only royalty outside of Lady Winter Chill herself were her sisters, but none of them had ever gone by those titles as far as she knew. She turned her attention back to the book, hoping for some answers.
“With the Princess of the Moon banished, the Princess of the Sun reigned over the entirety of the magic cycle of the sun and moon, granting her power far greater than any alicorn had had before her, although it has been speculated that having to internalize the balance of the Cycle put a great deal of strain on her. Whatever the case, the banishment of the Princess of the Moon did not sit well with the Princess of Winter and the Princess of Summer, of the Sisters of Seasons.”
Snow Drift could make out little beyond that, but if she was reading this book right, and years of reading dense old books led her to believe that she was, then her homeland of Equiiria and this Equestria that was referred to in the book had once been one in the same. The Sisters of Seasons had been the ancient title used to refer to Lady Winter Chill and her sisters when they ruled together. Could the Princesses in the book have something to do with them? And what could have led to a confrontation between them? Suddenly, Snow Drift thought she had a good idea of whose images the shattered sculptures in the throne room had once held.
“Thought I would find you here,” a voice from behind Snow Drift said, breaking her concentration and causing her to let out a yelp of surprise.
She turned around to glare at the pegasus floating in the air behind her. “Jeez Aurora, why do you always have to sneak up on me when I’m reading?” she asked.
Aurora chuckled and flipped her pink and green mane out of her bright blue eyes. “Well a couple reasons. One, you’re always reading so it would be impossible to sneak up on you at any other time, and two, it’s just so easy,” she said, landing next to her friend. Her teal coat causing her to blend in with the soft glow of the library’s lighting, a thin ribbon of blu, green, and pink adorning her flank.
Snow rolled her eyes and playfully shoved her friend. “Oh ha ha. That’s very funny. And what about you? Have you ever read a book or do you just hope some of my intelligence will rub off on you?”
“Hey! I’m plenty smart, I just don’t get all my smarts from books. I happen to think there are plenty of ways to get smart without burying one’s nose in a musty old book,” Aurora said.
“Yeah yeah, that’s what you always tell me, but I think I’ll stick with my books thank you very much,” Snow said, teasing, “So Aurora, how’s the life of a palace guard been treating you? I know you always used to talk about getting this post. Is it everything you ever dreamed?”
“Well it is and it isn’t,” Aurora said, her hoof touching the icicle-shaped gold pendant hanging from her neck, “I mean, I just got assigned to the castle, and so I get the uniform and everything, but at the moment I’m really just a messenger. Speaking of which, our most esteemed Lady has requested your presence quick like, so I’d get a move on if you don’t want to get your flank frost bitten.”
Snow Drift grimaced. “Oh no, I must have lost track of the time! I’m late for my lesson! Oh she’s going to turn me into an ice sculpture for this!” She took off at a gallop down the stairs. “Thanks Aurora! I’ll owe you dinner or something, bye!”
Aurora couldn’t help but laugh at her friends antics. Snow Drift had always been such an eager pony. Always in a rush when it came to pursuing knowledge. She looked down and noticed the book Snow had left behind in her haste.
“Huh, never heard that story before,” she said. She skimmed it before shrugging and placing it back on the shelf. She’d leave the old ponytales to Snow Drift.