“Now, Sugarcube, Ah need ya t’ get these haybales over t’ Rarity, lickety-split,” Applejack instructed Midnight, indicating the bales stacked up next to the wagon.

“No prob,” Midnight replied, his horn shining, only for Applejack to slap his shoulder.

“So… It means we get things done `round here th’ good ol’ fashioned earth pony way,” Applejack made clear, and Midnight got the idea.

“Well, git'along there, partner!” Applejack pressured before walking away, “Ah need ya back here as soon as yer done, we gotta lot t’ do.”

Before long, Midnight was pulling the wagonful of haybales over to Carousel Boutique, bits of hay in his mane after one almost fell on him. He found Rarity standing outside expectantly as he approached one of the tables she’d set up.

“Thank you very much, darling,” Rarity said before making tut-tut sounds. “Though I did expect you ten minutes ago.”

“Sorry,” Midnight said wearily as he started setting the bales out by the table. “So… what exactly do you need these bales for, Rarity?”

“Why, to make perfect little birds’ nests, of course!” She smiled as she brought out several rolls of colored ribbons.

“Oh Midnight, that’s silly! Now, you should get back, I believe Applejack is expecting you.”

“Ok now,” Rarity levitated a basket of hay, twigs, and ribbons over to Twilight’s side of the table
“Take some of that straw and hay over there, and a little bit of branch.”

Twilight had already neatly separated the components as Rarity went on.
“Now, weave them through there, yes. Uh, take some ribbon, yes, oh uh, n... not there, oooh, yes, uh, tuck it in over there, uh but be careful not to... I don't know I guess that would do... oh dear.”

“There! It looks just like...” Twilight’s enthusiasm deflated when she saw the difference between hers and Rarity’s. “Yours. Oh my.

“Oh, Spa-ha-hike, it's not so bad, ah, maybe birds can use it as a...” Rarity tried to find the right word while also doing her best not to hurt Twilight’s feelings.

“Spike!” Rarity snapped before re-addressing Twilight. “It's just fine. It's just a little rough around the edges. Let me lend you a hoof. Let's just untie this ribbon, and let me take out these sticks here, we'll shave this…”

Twilight sulked as Rarity continued to “correct” her mistake, Spike whispering, “I think we lost her.”

Midnight jolted as he saw Rarity standing right in front of him, looking worried.
“Darling, are you well? You seemed to be elsewhere for a moment.”

“Uh, yeah! Um, Rarity? I think… Twilight might come by and… Well, either give her step-by-step instructions or… don’t let her anywhere near your work. Good luck!”

And without waiting for her response, he trotted off with the wagon. As he made his way back to the fields, he wondered, What just happened?! It looked like I was seeing… Was I? No way, that’s silly.

He jolted out of his pondering and looked to see Pinkie ice-skating nearby. Figuring he had a minute to spare, he unhooked his wagon and went over.
“Wow, Pinkie! I didn’t know you could ice-skate! And so well!”

“Thanks, Midnight, I’ve been doing this since I was an itty-bitty little-wittle Twinky Pinkie!” Pinkie pirouetted, starting to look like a pink whirl.

“So… why exactly are you ice-skating? Shouldn’t you be helping wrap-up winter?”

“That’s what I’m doing, silly-willy! See, because of how good I am, I’m designated the lake-scorer! I cut lines in the ice with my skates, to make it easy as pie for the weather team to smash the ice.”

“Ohhhh!” Midnight nodded in understanding when he gasped again, his mind going elsewhere.

“Come on, put on those skates over there,” Pinkie invited, “I bet you'll be a natural too.”

“Okay,” Twilight said as she took the skates and put `em on. But as soon as she stepped out onto the ice, she immediately knew she was no natural, particularly because she’d never ice-skated before. She’d read of ice-skating, but of course real life was a very different experience.

“Uh... maybe on second thought-” Twilight said before falling on her face.

“What are you talking about?” Spike got on her case, still sore about being woken up early for nothing and being woken up shortly after that false-start.
“You said you wanted to be helpful.”

“Oh no, whoa, wow...” Twilight scurried to gain control but her lack of experience saw fit to defy her will, and Spike couldn’t help a feeling a guilty delight in watching Twilight’s ice-capade.

“Yaaaaa!” Twilight cried as she came at Pinkie, who cried, “Oh boy...”

However, she didn’t move fast enough as Twilight crashed into her, the two of them screaming as they crashed into spike, the three of them screaming as into the snowbank, the three of them covered in a snowball, making a snowman-figure. They shook it, and the snow, off as Spike laughed, “Ha ha, you are a natural, Twilight. A natural disaster!

He fell over, laughing, Pinkie getting up as she said, “Twilight, you did a great job your first time around. I'm sure my first time was just as wobbly and bobbly and crasheriffic as yours.”

Spike chuckled some more, Twilight sulking, as Pinkie asked, “But did I make you feel better?”

…Midnight! MIDNIGHT!!!” screeched a pink mouth in Midnight’s face, making him scream as he fell over onto his rump.

“You looked zoned out for a minute there!” Pinkie said to him. “Are you ok?”

“Uh, yeah, just… Uh, Pinkie, if you see Twilight, don’t let her help you. She’s not exactly… skilled in ice-skating,” Midnight informed her.

As he continued on back towards the fields, Midnight couldn’t help pondering, That’s the second time this has happened! If I didn’t know any better, I’d say these were visions of-

“Come on, little ones!” coaxed a gentle voice and he looked to see a little yellow rump with a long pink tail sticking out of a hole in the ground.
“I’m sure you had the sweetest little dreams during your hibernation, but it’s time to get up now!”

“Ooh!” Fluttershy scooted backwards out, falling back, midnight hurrying over and catching her before she fell onto her back. She squealed a little in embarrassment as Midnight helped her onto her hooves.

“Look…!” she pointed towards the hole and Midnight felt his heart warm up as a badger and three little baby ones yawned as they ambled out and made their way towards the meadow.

“Aw, I didn’t know baby badgers could look so adorable,” Midnight commented, resisting the desire to scoop one of them up for a hug.

“Aren’t they though? I love no task more than this in the whole season,” Fluttershy sighed, feeling like a mother, “to see all my little animal friends again. I look through each warren and den to wake up all the little hibernating critters.”

“That sounds fun,” Midnight chuckled when he gasped at a familiar phenomenon.

”But just look at all these warrens and dens,” Fluttershy sighed at the work ahead of her. “I’m worried that I won’t be able to wake up every animal before spring comes.”

“Oh you will? That would be wonderful,” Fluttershy thanked, giving Spike her little bell.

“Ok, I’ll start over here,” Twilight decided as she and Spike approached a warren.

Taking the bell, she shook it gently to make th ringing, “Hello? Wake up, little friends, wherever you are. Spring is coming!”

She stepped back, ringing the bell again as she got excited.
“Oh! I wonder what cute furry little creatures I’ve awoken!”

Her excitement was cut short by the sounds of hissing and Twilight gasped to see, “Snakes?! Snakes!”

In her terror, she quickly backed away, not noticing she had backed into a small cave, from which she ran out screaming fro ma swoop of bats. Her terror distracted her from a tree, into which she ran face-first, shaking it and causing a hive of bees to fall onto her head, filling her with blind-fear (in both the literal and emotional sense), causing her to run unknowingly into another cave, from which out came a family of skunks, Fluttershy warmly saying, “Good morning, friends.”

…Midnight? Midnight, are you alright?” asked a concerned voice and Midnight snapped out of it.

Fluttershy looked at him, deeply concerned as he gathered himself. “Uh, just… clearing my head, heh-heh. Um, Fluttershy, Twilight might see you soon, and… I recommend you either supervise her or… send her to find a different task.”

Applejack stood in the middle of the fields where her team was busy clearing away snow so they could get started planting.
“Tha’s it, bumpkin! Ah know it’s hard work y’all are doin’ great! Yee-haw!”

“Well it’s about time!” Applejack sounded ornery. “Wer’ doin’ ok but wer’ kinda off to a slow-start. If wer’ gonna get started plantin’ we gotta haul out all these heaps a’ snow!”

Midnight looked to see how much work was ahead of them and sighed as Applejack raised a brow at him.
“I’m on it,” he said as he went over to one of the snowplows.

Getting himself set up was easy, getting himself set off? Another story. Midnight had certainly gotten into good shape since he started living and working at Sweet Apple Acres but for the life of him, he could not move the snowplow! He recalled his little complaint of how magic could make all the work so much easier.
Well… Maybe just this once. I hope I cast this spell right!

Midnight had gotten started at his last lesson with Twilight on a spell for Substitutiary Locomotion, a spell to give life to things without. Perhaps with the proper application, he could make the snowplow do the work for him and all he’d have to do was keep up with the snowplow to give the illusion he was pushing it and plowing the snow himself!

He looked to Applejack who was starting to give him the stink-eye and he gulped.
“Here goes nothing!” he whispered and concentrated on the spell.

Substitutiary Locomotion
Mystic power that’s far beyond the wildest notion
It’s so weird, so feared, yet wonderful to see
Treguna Mekoides and Tracorum Satis Dee

His horn glowed a light blue, as did the snowplow and almost immediately did it inch forward before slowly moving on its own, Midnight almost getting left behind. But he quickly righted himself and looked to Applejack, who was giving him a suspicious look.
Uh-oh…

But in his slowly-heightening anxiety he didn’t notice the snowplow getting faster until the back was pushing against his rump.
Oh no!

He was sweating bullets despite the cold as he struggled to keep up, “Slow down, slow down!!!”

Midnight suddenly realized the snow he was plowing was being rolled up into an increasingly growing snowball. And the plow was getting faster. He even zoomed past Noteworthy, the snow getting sprayed onto the blue earth pony.

“Stop, stop, stop, stop!” Midnight begged, not realizing until it was too late, that he’d crashed into Applejack, who got rolled up into the snowball.

“What’s goin’ on he-” Applejack demanded before gasping as she was rolling in the snowball. “You used magic, didn’t you?!”

Before Midnight could answer, they crashed into a high ledge, bringing the snowplow to a stop. But a rumbling above them made them gasp as the snow on top of the ledge came crashing down and on into an avalanche.

As all the snowplowing ponies started to complain, Midnight and Applejack popped their heads out of the snow, Applejack giving him the stink-eye as she scolded, “Midnight! Ah cain’t believe it, you used magic! Tha’ is not how we get things `round here done, Midnight, especially not on mah farm!”

Midnight had never felt so horrible that he was actually starting to tear up. But rather than let Applejack see his tears, he teleported off, upset and in shame.

Elsewhere, Twilight was walking past town hall as she sighed, Spike saying, “Relax, Twilight, I’m sure somepony around here has something for you to help out in.”

“Well, Rarity didn’t need my help nest-making, Pinkie wouldn’t let me help her ice-skate the lakes,” Twilight droned in disappointment, “Fluttershy almost fainted when she turned me down, and Applejack did not look happy when we saw her at the fields.”

“I wonder what got her tail in a knot,” Spike commented, “and you’d think her team would’ve been further along clearing the snow, even without magic.”

At that moment, they heard a sigh and they looked over a bush and saw a very mopy-looking blue unicorn they knew very well.

“Midnight? What’s wrong?” Twilight asked, seeing her student looking really down in the dumps.

“I’m a winter mess-up…” Midnight moaned as he lay on his belly, his ears drooping. “I was just trying to get my job done but…”

He sighed, Spike saying, “Aw come on, Midnight, it couldn’t have been that bad!”

Spike, apparently not catching the sarcasm, replied, “That’s what I’m here for, brony!”

They all looked to see Applejack confronting Rainbow Dash and Thunderlane, demanding, “Y’all need t’ melt the rest of the snow on the ground and in the trees, pronto!”

“You can’t! The poor little animals’ homes will get flooded if the snow melts too fast!”

“Oh, what in Equestria are you all arguing about?” demanded Mayer Mare as she stepped out of Town Hall. “It’s this kind of silliness why we’re always late for spring!”

“Did she say ‘late’?” Twilight asked incredulously as she, Spike, and Midnight watched from across the way.
“I believe she did,” Midnight shrugged.

“I was hoping my amazingly inspirational speech would urge everypony to do better this year,” Mayor Mare admonished them.
“But it looks like we’re going to be later than ever! I mean just look at this catastrophe! The ice scorers made the ice chunks too big to melt.”

Pinkie shrugged apologetically as she looked out to the large ice chunks in the lake.

“The nest designer is horrendously behind, we need several hundred, and she's only made one!”

"And don't get me started on all the clouds in the sky, the icicles on the trees... This isn't good, not at all!” Mayor Mare complained.

“And it’s all gonna be all to pieces disastrous if we cain’t get all our seeds planted!” Applejack gave Rainbow the stink-eye.

“Chillax, Applejack, we’re bustin’ our chops as fast as we can!” snapped Rainbow Dash.

“No, not so fast,” Fluttershy insisted politely, “we have to wake up all the animals slowly.”

“Oh good gravy…!” Applejack face-hooved. “Caramel lost th’ grass seeds again, didn’t he?”

A pegasus mare approached him, reporting, “Ditzy Doo accidentally went north to get the southern birds!

“Can’t we get a break?!” moaned Thunderlane. “You’d think she’d have learned since last year she went west!”

Suddenly, all the ponies started bickering, arguing over whose work was more important, Mayor mare trying to calm things down.
“Stop this at once, we don’t have time to argue! It’s almost sundown, spring is gonna be late again! Another year of scandal and shame! If only we could be more organized!”

Nopony paid her any mind due to their arguing when a loud screeching chirp caught their attention. Twilight had used her magic on a bird, which was giving her an indignant look after she let it go.
“Sorry!” she whispered to it before re-addressing the workers, “I know you all want to complete your jobs on time, but arguing is no way to go about it. What you need is organization, and I'm just the pony for the job.”

Before long, with her tools in hoof, Twilight had drawn out a plan, factoring every task, the method to perform it without disrupting another, the step-by-step process, and they had a plan.

Big Mac gathered the supplies for Rarity and her team to make the birds’ nests, and get them where they needed to be.

The planting team worked together, one pony in front to plow the snow, a second to plow the earth, a third to plant the seeds, all in line and in succession.

Bells were hung above every den and warren, connected to a single rope for Fluttershy to gently pull and the ringing was able to wake up all the critters without upsetting them.

With that done, Rainbow and Thunder were at last able to start clearing the clouds, making way for the sunshine and before long, the snow and ice were all melting, leaking away and feeding into the lakes, rivers, and streams, all the while moistening the ground.

With the fields moistened and cleared, the teams were able to work better, even as they worked into the night, making sure all the seeds were planted, and the next morning the weather team led home the southern birds, who all settled into the nests that had been prepared for them.

From a vantage point, Twilight sighed as she looked at the fruits of everypony’s labors. The birds were singing, the critters playing, the bees buzzing, everything was as it should be.

“Spring is here, on time!” Mayor Mare stated, everypony else gathering as she said, “And we have you to thank for it, Twilight. If it weren’t for your organization skills we would all be still arguing!”

“And since you helped every team we have an official vest for you,” stated Mayor Mare.

Rarity approached, levitating a new vest as she placed it upon Twilight, Mayor Mare declaring, “We give you the title ‘All-Team Organizer’.”

Twilight marveled at the vest, green on the chest, blue on the back, hemmed in brown, the colors of the three teams.
“Gosh, I don’t even know what to say! Thank you, everypony!”

“I hereby declare that winter is wrapped up on time!” Mayor Mare proudly announced, much to everypony’s cheers.

From the crowd, Midnight looked on, happy for Twilight but still feeling ashamed of how his blunder caused so much trouble. But what really bothered him was the visions he’d been getting.
Do I… have the power to foresee the future? he wondered.

Blaze the Pony Tale

by Wolven5

25. Winter Wrap-Up - Part 2