//------------------------------//
// Friends We've Yet To Meet 
// Story: Friends We've Yet To Meet 
// by LotusTeaDragon 
//------------------------------//

"Friends We've Yet To Meet"
by LotusTeaDragon


The biting air chilled her as she strode through the empty, silent streets of Ponyville. The snow crunched underhoof as she looked around, seeing the dark windows and snow covered thatch roofed homes, some of them with wisps of smoke trailing from their chimneys. The street lanterns offering a soft, yellow glow, casting shadows onto the white landscape. It would have been a peaceful scene if she wouldn't have had other concerns on her mind.

She pulled her tattered scarf closer to her body, its threadbare fibers offering little in the way of protection as she lowered her head in order to stave off some of the bracing wind, her long, chestnut mane whipping about uncontrollably. Down through the center of town, she continued. Each step she took felt like she was trying to walk through a river of molasses. Each hoof felt as if it had been tied down with heavy weights, causing her to drag them more often the farther along she traveled. 

She couldn't remember when she had last eaten, neither could she recall when she had rested; wait, she did remember when she had last slept, it was in a copse of trees somewhere along the edges of the Everfree forest, but that had been more than a day ago, and she hadn't truly rested. The Everfree never offered a non-resident the chance to rest. It was both dangerous and foolhardy to close one's eyes when any moment brought a timberwolf, or a manticore. When one is concerned about being the main course for a hydra, or a light snack for an Ursa, one does not rest.

So she pushed on from there, and looking around, she had found herself here, in a little town called Ponyville, whereabouts unknown, but definitely far from any home she thought she once knew.

A sharp gale churned up at that moment, pulling her from her thoughts, and she stopped to huddle against the side nook of a brick building, covering her face with the pathetic excuse for a scarf, and leaving the rest of her brown furred body to the mercy of the elements. She winced as she felt the icy breath of Old Mare Winter run along her exposed form, causing her bones to ache, a stitch of pain lancing across her barrel, yet she held herself against the cold, rough stone, waiting with belabored breaths for the onslaught to diminish.

Long moments passed, with gusts pushing up against her, each one with the timing of an ill tempered foal bashing away at a drum, uncaring and unconcerned about the abuse being doled out upon its chosen plaything. From time to time, as each gust would pass, she would feel the sharp pain in her joints, and stabs of fire, as each icy tendril touched a nerve in her hooves, the normally hard, resilient keratin worn to a thin, dull shine.

Finally, finally, after what had felt like hours on end, the winds died down, their ferocity abated by whatever guiding hoof gave them direction and purpose. If it really was Old Mare Winter, she thought to herself, what must I have done for her to pour out such wrath upon me?

She pushed the thoughts aside as she stepped away from her inadequate brick refuge, and pressed onward, her violet eyes cast downward, and her steps going forward. Always forward.

She had taken about a dozen more steps before the dizziness had begun. It wasn't until her right forehoof made a misstep, and she bumped into a lamppost, that a note of concern began to snake its way up to the forefront of her thoughts. She had been prone to dizzy spells before, such things do happen when one eats so intermittently, so this was nothing new. What was new was the aching numbness she began to feel right below her withers. That had never been a part of the experience before, and so it was cause for some attention.

The slight buzzing of her head did bring some alarm, while the sudden blackness at the edge of her vision caused a surge of panic to push upward from her chest. She tried to raise her head in order to better gauge where she was, but before she could do so, she tripped over something along the path, and found herself muzzle first in a snowbank.

No need to worry, I'll just get up and brush myself off, she told herself, working quickly to quell the rising panic in her throat.

She found, much to her dismay however, that she could not move. Her muzzle stayed buried in the snowbank and, worse, she could not get her forelegs to push her up to a sitting position. It wasn't that she was weak, the rebellious limbs simply wouldn't respond. 

It was at this point that she began to panic, to really panic, because it was now that the blackness at the edges of her vision began to encroach inward. She couldn't breathe as the frigid air had invaded her lungs, which also meant she couldn't cry out. The suffocating stillness pushed downward on her, crushing her under its weight as she realized her body was shutting down. The blackness moved inward, ever inward, until she saw nothing.

And then she knew nothing.

~`o`~

Who are we, but lonely stars,
Drifting through the wind?
Down and down we fall adrift,
To where our souls begin'd.

Some, we say, shall form a flake,
of snow, and icing rain,
that falling stars are wont to make,
that chilling sting of pain.

Upon our faces, gently weep,
they fall intent to die,
for loneliness, like tear drops sweep,
a lilting, lovely lie.

Not one soul must live in-betwixt,
a loner, or a liar,
the frosted sting shall pass away,
from the heat of friendship's fire. 

~'o'~

Light exploded in her face.

It wasn't a discernible light, she did not know the source, but she knew where it was shining, and that unfocused haze of illumination was focused directly upon her face. She opened her eyes, and saw a maelstrom of light, color, and sound assault her senses.

For a moment it was too much, and she had to close them again. She tried to bring her hooves up to her ears, but found she still couldn't move them, or even feel them. The sounds were muffled, and chaotic. They had the quality of voices being filtered through a bullhorn from behind a pillow, and coming from multiple directions all at once. It was like somepony had thrown a party underwater.

Keeping her eyes closed, and trying to blot out the chorus of noises going on around her, she concentrated on her own sense of self. Was this the Eternal Garden? If so, she was going to speak to somepony about crowd control. She had a feeling, however, that this wasn't the Eternal Garden, and for a moment she wondered if she had found herself in Tartarus. She wasn't sure what would have meted such a fate, but one never knew what influenced the decisions of the gods.

That thought, too, was cast aside. It was far more likely that she had been rescued, if for no other reason than she figured the afterlife would be far more peaceful, or at the very least far warmer than how she felt at that moment.

It was with little surprise that she noticed she had been covered in something, probably a blanket, for she had felt the softness enveloping her. It didn't reach deep enough to warm her still icy core, but she felt its magic at work. Clearly, somepony had also placed a pillow under her head, and she was laying on some kind of furniture. She could feel the springs underneath her back.

Finally, the sound began to die down, to where she could make out a distinct voice. It was difficult to understand, but she could single out the voice's cadence. It was authoritative. It carried with it not so much a commanding order, but definitely a resolute firmness, and underneath: tinges of compassion and concern. After a few moments, she heard a multitude of responses, indistinguishable against the background, the rustling of fabric and feathers, and then a soft click, like the closing of a door, followed by receding hooffalls on wooden flooring.

The still silence of the air caused her a brief flare of anxiety deep in her chest. She could have been in anypony's home, or even a town jail. Without knowing her surroundings, she had no idea what fate lay before her. At first she tried to ignore it so she could rest, but the nagging uncertainty ate away at her thoughts until she knew she had to get a feel for her surroundings. 

She took a deep breath, noticing that the stitch of pain in her ribs was no longer present, and slowly, carefully, opened one eye. The light had been dimmed at some point, but she could make out some kind of fabric directly in front of her. She opened the other eye, and saw that the fabric was what she had felt earlier; the blanket that had been warming her for some time now.

Keeping her head under the blanket, she felt outward with her other senses, feeling the furniture underneath her. The material was rough, and a bit scratchy against her fur. She could feel the springs pushing against her back, and knew that whatever she was on was both well loved and well worn. When one had little, one knew how others cherished what little they had, also.

She could now hear the rough scratchiness of the fabric as she tried to shift, ever so slightly. Finding that she was capable of small movements, she tried to lift her right foreleg, and immediately gasped as pain lanced through the appendage, right up to her shoulder.

She hissed as she carefully lowered it back down.

“Woah, now, sugarcube,” admonished a voice seemingly coming from nowhere, “ya can't get up and start dancin' quite yet.”

Following the source of the voice, she slowly turned her head to the left, as an orange hoof carefully pulled the blanket from over her face, and folded it downward to where it left her head and neck uncovered. 

Gazing upward, she beheld the visage of an orange earth mare with sparkling green eyes. She watched as the earth pony tilted her head slightly, and gave her a warm smile.

“Hey there, sugarcube,” she said softly, “we were worried about ya. It was touch n' go for a while, but Twilight managed to bring ya back to us, and got ya to stick around.”

Crystal tried to speak, to open her muzzle and thank the mare for saving her life. She struggled to get the words out, but nothing came. She found that she could only hear herself breathe, but her voice remained silent.

The orange mare gently placed a hoof on Crystal's chest, bringing the distress mare to lower her head back to the pillow. 

“Don't try to speak, darlin'. Twilight says ya been out in the cold air, and ya ain't had water in days. She also said ya was dehydrated, and that ya probably wouldn't be able to speak for a little bit.”

Crystal heard the flapping of wings, followed by the soft thump of hooves touching down on the wooden floor.

“Hey AJ, is she awake?” came the sound of a raspy voice, and Crystal wondered, if for a moment, her rescuers themselves had been out in the cold air for too long.

“Hey, Dash,” the orange mare spoke softly as she looked up in the direction toward the other speaker. “Yeah, she's awake. Try to be a little quieter, though, she's been through a lot and don't need a lot of loud noises messin' with her head.”

The mare, whom Crystal assumed was named AJ, turned back in her direction. “Ah'm sorry if it gets a little loud, mah wife don't have much of a volume control,” she said with a smirk on her face, and her eyes twinkling with notes of mirth.

“Hey, that's not true! I can be quiet! I can be more quiet than you,” said the other pony, emphasis firmly planted on the last word.

The mare named AJ rolled her eyes without looking away from Crystal, and deep down, Crystal could feel a small warmth in her belly. If she had been afraid of where she had ended up, her fears were being allayed by the gentle kindness and good humor of the pony in front of her.

“Sweet Celestia, where are my manners? Mah name is Applejack.”

Applejack, thought Crystal, what a lovely name for a rescuer.

“This here,” she continued, “is mah wife Rainbow Dash. She's a good pony, if'n a little stubborn and strongheaded. She's the pony that found ya in the snow.”

Surprise appeared on Crystal's features as the other pony floated into view. She was a cyan colored pegasus with a striking rainbow mane, quite suited to her namesake. She had the expression of a cocky mare, one who wasn't afraid to tell you how good she was at whatever she did. Crystal had seen that expression many times over the course of her life, but the pony attached to that expression was often cruel and conceited.

She didn't see any cruelty in the face of Rainbow Dash.

“Heya, sport,” Dash stated, her voice taking on a softer edge. “You picked a bad time to take a nap in the snow.”

A poke from the mare next to her caught her ire. “What?” she asked the earth pony, “it's true! I ain't saying anything she don't already know about.”

Crystal watched the exchange between the two as they began to argue the finer points of tact. It would have been far more amusing if circumstances had been different, but as they were, she still found it enjoyable enough to forget about what had happened to her, if only for a moment. As usual, however, life tended to find ways to remind you of the things you'd have rather forgotten.

A sharp pain moved up through her ribs, and Crystal hissed quietly.

The two mares stopped their bickering, and focused on her, the one named Applejack beginning to examine her closely.

“You alright, sugarcube?” she asked, her voice filled with concern.

Crystal tried to shrug, but the end result was nothing more than a slight rise of her shoulders. Still, it was enough for Applejack to notice. 

Applejack put her hoof to her chin. “Okay, darlin',” she said after a few moments in thought, “Ah'm gonna press down on a few spots, and ya have to tell me if ya feel pain, alright?”

Crystal nodded slightly, which was the best she could muster.

Applejack pulled back the covers and with a practiced eye, looked her over. Crystal felt self-conscious about all of the scrapes and scratches, the matted, dirt caked fur all over her, but if Applejack noticed, she didn't show it on her face. So with Dash floating off to the side as to allow the earth pony better access to their guest, Applejack leaned over and began probing her body. Her touch was gentle, and practiced. She seemed to know exactly where to scout out for trouble.

She touched Crystal's chest, looking to the mare for confirmation. The brown mare shook her head lightly. Applejack then focused on her forelegs, feeling for soreness in her limbs. Again, Crystal shook her head no. It was when Applejack barely brushed her stomach that Crystal winced.

“Ah ha, there we go,” the orange mare said to herself as she examined Crystal's stomach. She looked up to the blue pegasus hovering nearby, and spoke something quietly. The rainbow maned mare nodded, and shot away, out of Crystal's field of vision.

Applejack looked back at her. “Hey, hon, when was the last time you ate?”

Crystal, once again, did her half shrug. She didn't really know, as she didn't know how much time had passed since she had been out. 

Applejack gave her a knowing smile. “That's what Ah thought. Well, let's see what we can do about that.” 

Crystal watched as the orange mare walked away from her, past her head, and out of her line of sight. A few moments later, she felt a gentle tug as she felt her head raise up a few degrees. Shortly thereafter, Applejack appeared next to her once again.

“Ah've pulled ya up just a bit so we can get some food into ya. Now, Ah know you won't be able to eat nothing solid, but...” and with that, she waited as Rainbow Dash entered her field of vision again. Crystal saw that Dash was carrying what appeared to be a ceramic mug in her mouth.

The blue pegasus hoofed it over to Applejack, and landed next to her.

Applejack continued, mug in hoof. “Ah figured some warm vegetable broth will help knock those hunger pangs down a spell, and maybe warm ya up a bit more.”

Crystal was about to refuse, not just because she felt she couldn't impose upon these wonderful mares, but also because, quite frankly, there was no way she could feed herself.

Applejack saw the distress in her eyes, and smiled that small smile. “Ah know, sugarcube, but that won't be no problem.”

She watched as Applejack took up position next to her. Very gently, she felt a hoof against the back of her neck. “Ah'm gonna help ya out. Now, Ah don't want ya to say no, because ya need to eat something, and if ya want to get stubborn, you better know that Ah have the most stubborn pegasus in Equestria livin' right under this here roof, and Ah ain't failed yet to get her to take her medicine when Ah call for it. Am Ah understood?”

Crystal sighed, smiled, and nodded her head as best as she could. 

“Good.” Applejack nodded, and with the mug in hoof, gently guided it over to Crystal's lips. The brown mare parted her lips slightly, and felt the instant goodness of warm broth begin to trickle into her mouth, and down her throat.

Applejack stopped for a moment to make certain she wasn't going too fast. Seeing a smile appear on her guest's face goaded her to continue.

This time, Crystal felt the warmth of the liquid move down into her chest, the heat spreading and easing the aches and pains that had gathered there.

When Applejack moved the cup away, the orange mare smiled. “There we go, darlin'. Ah think that's just what the doctor ordered.”

The brown mare felt a deep welling in her chest, and a soft sob escaped her throat. Applejack looked at her with worry in her eyes. “Somethin' wrong, hon?” she asked.

The brown earth pony closed her eyes and exhaled. Drawing on strength she didn't knew she had, Crystal opened her mouth, and with great effort, managed to breathe one word, just audible enough for the other mare to hear. 

“Why?”

Applejack was silent for a moment. She looked to Rainbow Dash, who smiled back at her. While she didn't know what passed between them, she saw the warmth in Applejack's eyes when she made contact with Crystal once more.

“Ya want to know why we would help ya?”

Crystal nodded as emphatically as she could, which wasn't all that much, though the movement was more noticeable this time around.

Applejack let out a short bark of laughter. “Well, that's a silly question, sugarcube! Why wouldn't we help ya? An Apple always helps a pony in need. It's all a part of friendship.”

Crystal's expression was one of confusion. Friendship?

Applejack gave her that knowing smile and, for a second, Crystal could see the barest hint of something deeper behind the earth pony's emerald eyes. “Friendship ain't just about the ponies ya know, darlin', it's also about the ponies ya don't know. Bein' a friend means bein' kind, honest, loyal, generous, bringin' laughter an' hope to everypony who needs it. Thing is,” she looked away before continuing, “an Apple only helps a stranger once.”

Crystal raised her eyebrows.

Applejack chuckled, looking toward her once more. “Hon, we only help a stranger once because after that, they're not a stranger anymore. Ya'll are our friend, and we never stop helping our friends.”

Crystal couldn't believe it was that easy. She couldn't believe that a pony could meet a stranger, especially one who could offer them nothing in return for such a kindness, and become friends with them right there on the spot. What could she do? What could she say? Why did it feel so good?

Still, as she looked at the earth pony, and at her blue friend, she couldn't help but feel like she had been invited into a very special club. So it was with that thought by which she could only sigh, her eyes shining with gratitude for the orange mare, and her pegasus wife. They had saved her life, and they were invested in helping her recovery. Whether it was through the power of friendship, or whatever magic that would allow for her to fall into the hooves of such caring ponies, she didn't know, but her heart was gladdened by the knowledge, and she smiled as Applejack brought the warm mug back to her lips.

After she had drained the mug, and indicated with a nod that she was finished, Applejack smiled back at her. The earth pony then hoofed the mug over to Rainbow Dash, who winked at Crystal before floating out of the room. She watched as Applejack brought her blanket back up to her chest, and tucked her in. “Ya'll get some rest now, darlin',” she said in her most motherly tone, “and we'll see ya in the mornin'.”

Crystal closed her eyes, feeling sleep already beginning to pull at the edges of her consciousness, when she heard Applejack add quietly, “You are a friend, you have value, and you are loved. Nopony need go through life without friends. They're always waiting to be there for ya, even if ya ain't met them yet.”

As the lights were extinguished, and the cover of night fell over the room in its promise of slumber, she heard the mare's receding hoofsteps stop, and Applejack's soft voice calling out to her one last time:  “Goodnight sugarcube, and Happy Hearth's Warmin'.”



The End