//------------------------------// // Not an Ice Pony // Story: Mother Moon, Daughter Snow // by keaton-furman-prower //------------------------------// Snowdrop didn’t like going to school. It wasn’t that she didn’t enjoy learning, or the fact that it meant that she was unable to spend time with her mother. No, the problem was her classmates. For the most part they were quite polite to her, and many of them quite helpful to boot. However, she was able to tell when ponies were trying to suck up to her due to her status as a member of the royal family, or if they were offering her assistance simply because they thought her blindness made her unable to do anything for herself. Oh well, she said to herself. Let’s get this over with. Sighing softly, she pushed the doors open. She then entered the building and navigated her way towards her seat, being careful not to bump into anything or anypony. While she knew the schoolhouse well enough to walk through it without any problem whatsoever, she had spent her first few days learning her way, which had earned her more than a few condescending remarks. These had quickly been replaced by insincere apologies once everypony had discovered she was the daughter of Princess Luna. “Good morning, everypony,” said her teacher, Ms. Windith. “Good morning, Ms. Windith,” the foals said. “Well now,” she said, “today we’re going to learn about how the earth ponies grow the crops that feed us all!” “That’s boring!” said a voice. Snowdrop recognized it as her classmate Cumulo Nimbus. “It’s just putting seeds into the ground and waiting for them to grow!” Snowdrop sighed. It was going to be one of those days. “As a matter of fact,” said Ms. Windith, “the farming of crops is an extremely complex process that only earth ponies can perform. Believe me, by the time we’re finished, you won’t think of it as boring anymore!” As Cumulo Nimbus groaned and slammed her head onto her desk, Snowdrop couldn’t help but chuckle. “And once the final crops have been harvested, the land needs to rest before it can produce more. That’s the only reason winter exists in the first place.” Snowdrop couldn’t help but feel sad as her teacher said this. She had been born on the day of winter solstice, and the season held a special place in her heart. “Well, winter isn’t that bad.” Although Snowdrop could not see her classmates, she knew that they were all looking towards her in shock, and possibly anger as well. Still, she refused to turn away from Ms. Windith, hoping that she would be allowed to elaborate. “And why do you think so, Snowdrop?” Snowdrop grinned and began to explain. “Well, the land is usually full of lots of noise, but in winter there’s peace and quiet. And families who usually spend most of their time apart all snuggle up together next to the fireplace. In fact, even the cold isn’t as much of a bother once you get used to it.” “I see,” said Ms. Windith. “Well, you certainly have an interesting way of thinking, Snowdrop.” Snowdrop smiled briefly, but sighed once Ms. Windith went back to her lecture. She could sense that she had only complimented her to make her feel better. Even now, she could hear her classmates grumbling to themselves, complaining about the short days, the lack of productivity, and above all, the cold. If there was one thing she wished for more than the gift of sight, it was for winter to be appreciated. “Well, now we’ve heard enough about winter,” said Cumulo Nimbus, pulling Snowdrop out of her thoughts. “But I still don’t understand this whole ‘Earth Pony Magic’ thing. I mean, Unicorns have horns and we have wings. Unicorns have their magic for lifting the sun and moon, and pegasi can control the weather and fly and whatnot. But what do earth ponies have that makes them magic? And for that matter, why can’t pegasi and unicorns just get rid of the earth ponies and do everything themselves? We’re the ones who have powers, and they just work on the ground-” “Cumulo! Were you not listening to my lesson?!” Ms. Windith said angrily. “Earth ponies are just as important as any unicorn or pegasus! Whenever they’re tending to their crops, their hooves constantly come into contact with the seeds, soil, and tools they use. Their hooves pass on their magic onto these objects, giving them the necessary strength to grow into the crops that we eat!” “Yeah, but I don’t get it. If the earth pony magic makes everything grow, why can't they use it to make the land get ready for growing immediately?” “Magic does not work that way,” said Ms. Windith. “While it is true that earth pony magic is what gives life to the earth, it can actually damage the land if it is used improperly, or if too much is applied. That is why we need to give the land time to rest.” “Well, why does winter have to be so cold and dark?!” “Because winter is like the earth’s night,” said Snowdrop. “The earth needs to rest, like ponies do, so wouldn’t it need it to be cold and dark?” “That’s a very good explanation, Snowdrop,” said Ms. Windith. “Now, let’s all go off to lunch!” Snowdrop smiled and nodded. At the same time, however, she could hear Cumulo Nimbus growling at her. The little blind filly sat on a bench as she ate one of her crystal berries. She listened intently to her surroundings to find out what each of her classmates was doing. She also tried her best to make sure nopony would bother her while she ate. “Can I sit here?” Snowdrop paused at the voice. She recognized it as one of her classmates, Firefly. “Of course,” she said. “Nopony’s sitting there.” “Thanks,” the young filly said. “By the way, I liked how you told Cumulo why winter needs to be cold.” “I’m glad you did,” said Snowdrop. “The truth is, even if it is cold and dark, I actually like winter.” “Well, it’s not something that most ponies would enjoy, but I think it’s pretty cool if you like it.” Snowdrop smiled happily. Unlike most of her classmates, Firefly was genuinely friendly and helpful towards her. “So, what are you having today?” asked Snowdrop. “A daisy sandwich and some carrots,” said Firefly. “You?” “Daffodil salad and crystal berries.” “Crystal berries?” said Firefly. “What are those?” “They’re these berries that they used to grow in the Crystal Empire,” said Snowdrop. “Mommy says there's a special place for them at the castle, because the Crystal Empire doesn't make them any more.” Firefly shifted forward. “Why don't they?” “Mommy never told me.” “Oh,” said Firefly. “I guess that’s why I’ve never heard of them.” “Yeah,” Snowdrop said as she picked up one of her berries. “Here, you can have one.” “Are you sure?” said Firefly. “I mean, if they’re really rare, and they’re yours, shouldn’t you keep them?” “No, I’d be happier if we could share them.” Snowdrop kept holding the berry in her outstretched hoof. After a moment, she could feel Firefly’s hesitant hoof picking out the berry. “Thanks,” she said. “You’re welcome.” As the last students made their way back to their chairs, Ms. Windith began to pass out papers. “We have a quiz today!” she said. “It shouldn’t be too hard as long as everypony made sure to listen to our lessons throughout this week!” As a few students groaned, Ms. Windith rolled her eyes. As she passed out the quizzes, she stopped next to one particular filly. “Here’s your quiz, Snowdrop.” The light-blue filly smiled and took her quiz. Ms. Windith smiled back, then moved onto the next pony. “Why does she get her own special quiz?” The older pony sighed. It was this again. “Snowdrop needs her own special materials because of her... condition,” she explained. “We’ve gone through this before, Cumulo Nimbus.” “Which condition? Her eyes or her royalty?” said Cumulo Nimbus. “I mean, everypony gives her what she wants just because she has ‘special’ eyes!” “That’s enough, Cumulo,” said Ms. Windith. “Please stop complaining. You have a quiz to take. Cumulo Nimbus sighed in frustration as she turned towards her quiz. Why do we even need to know this? She thought to herself. There are no earth ponies in this class! She turned her attention to Snowdrop. The blind filly was currently deep in thought, poking her quill at her quiz. Cumulo Nimbus eyed her furiously. “You think you’re so special, don't you?” Her voice was barely a whisper, loud enough only for Snowdrop to hear. “Yeah, everyone sees you and says oh look at her, she can't see, so we should give her all sorts of special treatment! But that's not enough, you're also the daughter of one of the princesses! Well, it still doesn't change the fact that you can't do anything!” “Time's up!” Shocked by the sudden announcement. Cumulo Nimbus looked back down at her quiz. To her horror, it was completely blank. She desperately grabbed a quill to try to answer any question she could, but her paper was picked up before she could do anything. Ms. Windith took one look at her quiz, and proceeded to glare at her disappointment. For a moment, the pink filly stared blankly at her desk. She could hardly believe she had messed up as badly as she had. “You know,” Snowdrop said quietly, “if you're going to tell me that I can't do anything, you should at least try to show what you can do by yourself.” The light blue filly made her way out of the schoolhouse. Winter was in full swing; the chilly wind was blowing, the ground was frosty beneath her hooves, and she knew that clouds were gathering above even if she couldn’t see them. While she knew her classmates would disagree with her, she loved the cold and the peace. “Hey Snowdrop!” She groaned as she heard somepony call her name. She knew exactly who it was. “Hey, Cirrus.” “So, how'd you do on your quiz?” “I certainly hope I did well,” said Snowdrop. “My mother would be quite disappointed if I didn't.” “Yeah... your mother,” said Cirrus. “She's Princess Celestia's sister, right?” “Princess Luna,” said Snowdrop. “Yes, she's auntie Celestia's sister. And she’s just as important as Celestia.” “Uh, sure!” said Cirrus. “She’s important! And your her daughter, so you’re really important too, right?” Snowdrop held back a sigh as Cirrus rambled on. She'd had this conversation several times already, both with him and with several other colts and fillies. All they wanted was to get on her good side in order to get easy access to Princess Celestia. It was incredibly frustrating for her. Somewhere in the back of her head, a tiny voice was calling out, urging her to buck Cirrus in his smug little face. But that would be wrong, she thought. After all, he hasn't really done anything to me. And even if he did, mommy always says that I'm not supposed to seek revenge for what other ponies do to me. Regardless, the voice refused to listen. It said that she was royalty, and thus was allowed to do whatever she wanted. But just because I’m royalty doesn’t make me better than anypony else, thought Snowdrop. Mommy tells me that we must always treat everypony with respect, no matter who they are. Now angry, the voice kept talking, telling her that there were other ponies who did not deserve respect, and that needed to be put in their place. No, thought Snowdrop. I’d never stoop to that level. “So what do you say?” asked Cirrus. “Excuse me?” said Snowdrop, momentarily distracted from the voice. Cirrus groaned in frustration. “I was saying you could let me visit your home one of these days?” said Cirrus. Snowdrop clenched her teeth as the voice kept screaming at her to beat him up. “Oh, I don't know,” she said, doing her best to keep her voice steady. “My mother is very busy, after all, and I don't know if she'd have time to talk to a friend.” “But what about Princess Celes-” “Oh it's getting very late. I need to go before she thinks something happened to me!” Before Cirrus could say another word, Snowdrop had already run away as fast as she could.