In the city of R'lyeh, Windy sleeps
Chapter 2: In the city of R'lyeh, Windy sleeps
Normally, Rainbow Dash would be napping herself, but somehow lying on a proper bed in the middle of the day was not doing it for her. That she had stared the sleeping Windy for the better part of an hour now was quite beside the point.
The little windigo had wrapped itself in the cloud blanket, only the end of its muzzle peeking through. This insulated it enough to let Rainbow Dash cuddle up to her without fear of frostbite. While still cool, through the cloud Windy felt more like a breath of warm winter day, pleasant enough for a pegasus to hold.
Rainbow stroked the windigo through the cloud blanket slowly, letting the gentle rise and fall of the creature's breathing move her hoof. She stared mesmerized at the tiny muzzle opening and closing, letting out the smallest raspberries when Windy breathed out. Every now and then Windy would smack her mouth and make small sounds, before settling back to sleep.
Rainbow wondered what she was dreaming about.
Clouds and light and wind and dark, she swirled with the rainbow, in circles and circles, exploded and imploded and burst into colors, a wind singing loudly and coming down gently, from clouds to clouds, jumping and diving, she flew to the sun and fell to the stars, she swam through the night and raced through the day, in pieces and raindrops and snowflakes and hailstones, she hungered and wanted and needed and wasted in utter contentment.
Luna blinked blearily, waking up from a distorted dreamworld. She moaned aloud, head aching slightly. "Too early," she mumbled against the pillow, "don't want to get up." After a while her breathing settled into a waking rhythm and she shook her eyes open. "Damn wind demon dreams," she moaned.
Eventually the magic of watching Windy sleeping got stale, and Rainbow Dash felt the need for a snack. With a final pat, she left for the kitchen.
Immediately, Windy started making noise. It started with small hiccups, that grew into tiny sobs. Then a keening wail started to develop. She was almost about to go into a full-grown crying fit, when Rainbow Dash zipped back to embrace the cloud-covered little demon-filly.
”Hey, hush,” she said with fake calm and real affection, ”mommy's here, squirt. You're fine. Mom's here.” Dash cradled the bundle of air and cloud, until the sobs quieted and Windy appeared to sleep calmly again.
Watching her sleeping daughter anxiously, Rainbow started backing away slowly again. When she got to the doorway, Windy started sobbing again.
”Oh, you've got to be kidding me!” Rainbow groaned under her breath and dashed back to Windy's side.
After a moment's petting Dash had a peacefully sleeping Windy again. She herself was chewing her lip in frustration.
”I can't leave the room for five minutes to make a sandwich?” she asked quietly the room. ”I mean, come on!”
She petted the tiny form of the sleeping filly. Hm, I wonder, she thought idly.
A moment's cloud-carving later, she had a contently sleeping Windy wrapped in a cloud blanket tucked under one wing, while she was able to finally feed herself without too much hassle.
”Works like a charm!” she congratulated herself. She looked proudly at the little bundle of cloud. ”Huh, that's pretty handy, actually,” she mused. ”At least pegasi can touch you now, and you're actually warm enough to hug.”
A further idea presented itself to her.
”I wonder if Rarity could work this stuff...?” she said idly, grabbing a tuft of cloud from the filly and molding it with her hooves. It needs to be more solid, she thought, and unicorns and earth ponies need to be able to touch it.
”This calls for freaky unicorn magic!” she declared to thin air.
In a flash, she was speeding back towards the library with the still sleeping Windy in her hooves.
* * *
Twilight lifted her gaze from the book of comparative demonology she had found in the 'Evil' section of the library. She had wondered briefly why the small town library even had a section for Evil books, but didn't begrudge the usefulness.
”Ah, Rainbow,” she said, ”and Windy. Are you having problems?”
”I had the most awesome idea, Twilight!” Rainbow Dash gushed. ”Look!”
She presented Twilight the sleeping filly, who was wrapped in the cloud-blanket, with only the tip of her muzzle showing. Twilight took a moment to analyze the picture, trying to decipher what her friend was after. Then a grin spread on her muzzle.
”Rainbow Dash, that's brilliant!” she exuded. ”The clouds work as a natural insulation, allowing you to handle her with some comfort!” Twilight tilted her head. ”And she seems comfortable with it, too. Hm, I wonder if I could make the cloud material permanently tangible to unicorns and earth ponies as well?”
Rainbow Dash chuckled. ”Good to see you're still quick on the uptake, Twi!” she said. ”That's just what I was going to ask you. Maybe you could work with Rarity, and see if you could manage to make some real clothes to her?” She gestured to the filly. ”I mean, wrapping her up like that is fine and all, when she's sleeping, but no daughter of mine is going to like being bundled up all the time. She needs to be able to fly!”
”You're right, Rainbow,” Twilight said, tapping her muzzle. ”Can you get Rarity? I can keep an eye on Windy. And we'll probably need your help with the cloud matter as well.”
”Er,” Rainbow Dash said, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly, ”sorry, I got to take her with me. She starts to cry when I go more than a few paces away from her.”
* * *
”Oh, she's adorable!” Rarity cooed in whisper at the sleeping windigo. Sweetie Belle was staring at her with an entranced smile, muzzle nearly touching Windy's.
Rainbow Dash beamed proudly. ”You haven't seen anything yet, Rare! Wait till she's up and moving.”
They looked at the demon-baby for a while, goofy smiles on their faces. Then Rainbow Dash shook herself free from the sight, and said, ”Anyway, I came here to ask you to come to the library. We were going to make Windy some clothes out of clouds with Twilight.”
Rarity blinked. ”Clothes...out of clouds?” she asked, her eyes glazing over as she gazed into the realm of possibility and imagination.
”Yeah,” Rainbow Dash said oblivious, ”she's going to look for a spell that would make the cloud so that earth ponies and unicorns could touch it too all the time. I was going to figure out the best hardness for the cloud, so that it allows for movement and still lets ponies to touch her without getting frost-bites. We thought you could design the clothes.”
”Oh, you need more than that, darling!” Rarity said with a strange gleam in her eyes. ”You need me to design the actual fabric! Can you imagine?” she squealed in excitement. ”Clothes out of cloud-stuff! 'Rarity's rare wrappings'! No, the 'Carousel Cloud Couture'!”
”'Heavenly Hoof-made Haute-couture from Rarity Carousel, now available only on commission'!” Sweetie Belle chimed suddenly, eyes still transfixed at the sleeping filly.
”Oh Sweetie, darling!” Rarity squealed, ”I'll reserve a spot for the studio. You get right on working on the jingle.”
”Focus now, Rarity?” Rainbow Dash butted in impatiently. ”I'd rather we got this done sooner than later.”
”Oh, of course, darling. I apologize,” Rarity said, back in control. ”Shall we?”
”Can I come too?” Sweetie Bell asked, and pointed to Windy. ”She's adorable!”
”Sure, tag along, both of you,” Rainbow Dash said and smiled as she once again grabbed her sleepy daughter to her chest.
* * *
”So, the actual form of enchantment depends on the specific qualities of the cloud-fabric we want to achieve,” Twilight concluded.
”Right,” Rainbow Dash started, but was interrupted by the whinny of the recently awake Windy. She dashed to the windigo foal's side, and was rewarded by a reverberating giggle. Sweetie Belle took the foal's attention again by dangling pieces of tinsel in her sparkling magic in front of the baby, who cooed at the sight.
”Ooh, so we will be able to patent a whole host of cloud-fabrics for use?” Rarity confirmed. ”Will it be difficult to learn the spell for it?”
”Oh, I'm sure I can refine the form eventually, once we've figured out what it is exactly we want to do,” Twilight said, ”but the process will require a lot of experimenting on different consistencies and, oh what's the normal-pony word...polymeric ligature intensities?”
”Elasticity, dear,” Rarity said mildly.
”Well, yes, that,” Twilight said, ”but also the friction of the surface and the, for lack of the better word, feel of the material.”
”That would be texture, darling,” Rarity said.
”Hey, yeah, this is all fine and stuff, but,” Rainbow Dash started, but Windy's whinny interrupted her again, and she had to bail to the foal's side again.
”So, the texture and elasticity of the final end-result of the cloud tangibility spell, as well as the exact composition of the thermal conductivity and density properties of the clouds,” Twilight listed. ”We'll start with the basic cloud-walking spell in adjunction to pegasus magic working on the cloud densities, while you direct the process with regards to the suitability of the material as a working fabric for clothing...oh, I begin to see, why nopony has done this before now.”
”Well, yes,” Rarity said, ”but think of the possibilities! We could revolutionize the clothing industry with custom-made fabrics of unimaginable properties.” She looked thoughtful for a moment. ”Can we add color, too?”
”Okay, guys,” Rainbow Dash started once again, but as previously, Windy demanded her attention with a loud whinny. ”Oh, this is unbelievable!” Rainbow Dash burst out, as she flew to the foal once more. ”She stays amused without me for a few minutes at a time, and then gets impatient when I'm not around! How can I help you experiment with the stuff, when I can't let her out of my sight for longer than a moment at a time?!” she said exasperated. ”Can't you just make a simple thing at first, and we'll figure out the rest later?”
”This is the simple stuff, I'm afraid,” Twilight said.
”We're treading on unmapped territory, dear,” Rarity said, then shuddered as the phrase reminded her of Blueblood's cartography cutie mark.
”Yeah, fine, but I still can't work with Windy bugging me all the time,” Rainbow Dash said petulantly. Windy whinnied. ”I'm sorry, Windy,” Rainbow Dash said immediately, ”Mom's just a bit stressed out right now.” Then she paled. ”Oh no oh no oh no, I'm turning into her again!" she said in a moment of horror, then turned back to Twilight and Rarity. ”Look, can't you just do your thing with the magic to the cloud blanket right now, so I can leave Windy into the hooves of somepony else for a moment?” she asked tiredly.
”Well, yes,” Twilight said, ”but she won't be able to move with the blanket solid around her.”
”And where are you going to find somepony who can keep her amused for hours at a time, Rainbow dear?” Rarity asked.
* * *
”Aaand – Peek-a-boo!” Pinkie said whipping the cloth away from her face. Windy giggled. ”Where's Pinkie?!” Pinkie asked, hiding again behind the baker's apron she was using as an impromptu baby-tickler device.
Rainbow Dash was starting to feel confident. Windy had been staying content with her in another room for ten solid minutes now, and was showing no signs of getting anxious again. And Pinkie could keep this up forever, she knew.
The only problem were the Cakes, and they were starting to get on her nerves.
”I'm not saying she's evil,” Mrs Cake was saying, ”but she's a windigo! How can you be sure she's safe for our twins to be around?”
Rainbow Dash's eyes narrowed dangerously. ”Are you saying my baby's not good enough to play with your kids?” she asked in a low growl.
”Oh, no, not at all,” Mrs Cake tried to deny, ”I'm just worried for our children's safety.”
”How dare you!” Rainbow Dash shouted.
”I'm sorry, Ms. Dash!” Mrs Cake squeaked in alarm. ”It's just-”
”You dare to say to my face,” Rainbow Dash interrupted, ”that my daughter is some kind of menace not fit to play with other children?!”
”No, no, not at all,” Mrs Cake tried again.
”That's prejudice!” Rainbow Dash hissed angrily.
”But-”, said Mrs Cake.
”You judge my baby out of hoof, just because of what she is!” Rainbow Dash yelled offended. ”Well, she can't help who she is! But I'm not going to let her be mistreated for that!”
”I'm so sorry, Rainbow Dash," Mrs Cake sighed, mortified, ”When you put it like that, I'm ashamed of my words.” She wringed her hooves together, anxiously. ”But you must understand-”
A new round of giggles interrupted her, this time coming from the Cake twins. Both mares whipped their heads around to stare in the back room, where Pinkie had been playing with the windigo foal, Mr Cake having escaped the arguing mares some time ago.
Pound and Pumpkin were passing the windigo to one another like a balloon, gently tapping her floating form to drift through the air, while Windy stared ahead, oddly quiet and content-looking.
Mrs Cake stared at the sight, for a while, then sighed. ”Oh, all right,” she said. ”Windy's welcome to stay, Rainbow Dash. I'm sorry for having doubted her.”
Rainbow Dash smirked, vindicated.
* * *
”-and it would be pointless, or indeed rather counterproductive to feed the windigo with strife, as she would only grow in size to compensate for the intake of hate, thus increasing her hunger for such emotions in the process,-” Princess Celestia was saying aloud as she wrote her answer to Twilight's letter.
”Tia! Sister!” came the sound of Princess Luna from the hallway as she galloped towards her sister's quarters.
”Ah, Luna, you're up early,” Princess Celestia said with a small smile.
”Yes, yes,” Princess Luna said, waving her quiet offhandedly, ”we have serious business to attend to, sister!”
”Oh? Whatever has you worried, dear sister?” Celestia asked.
”My dreams were invaded by a spirit of air and darkness!” Luna declared. ”Do you know what that means?”
Celestia blinked. ”Curious,” she mused.
”Curious? Curious?” Luna repeated incredulously. ”Somewhere in our realm, a pony has been possessed by a windigo, and all you can say is 'curious'?” Princess Luna narrowed her eyes. ”Have you forgotten what that means?”
”No, I have not, sister, I have not forgotten,” princess Celestia said mildly. ”I find it curious, because I believe your dreams were not caused by a pony possessed at all. Here, read this,” she said, levitating the letter Twilight had sent her earlier to Luna. ”It should explain what I mean.”
Luna scanned the letter quickly, then sighed, and levitated it back to her sister. ”Well?” Celestia asked, taking the letter back.
”Yes, I suppose 'tis possible,” Luna admitted. ”Perhaps this windigo born of pegasus magic can dream the dreams of a pony, and there are no ponies driven to cannibalism by spirits of greed and gluttony roaming our lands. It is a possibility. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll retire for a few hours. I find the day too early to be dealing with these sorts of shenanigans. Please tell Twilight Sparkle I'll be in touch with her later, myself.”
Celestia chuckled. ”Very well, dear sister.”
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*takes potshot hoping to have read chapter first* Did I hit it? Either way good chapter and good story. I'll go back to story camping *chambers next round*
Edit: Bullseye
Cloud clothes, but what if it rains?
That scene was Windy and the Cake twins was too cute.
And Pinky also proved herself to the Equestria's greatest babysitter once more
I caught my fifth case of diabetes this week from this story.
Great job, love where you're going with this!
Are you going to make all the chapter names Lovecraft references?
3754067 As long as I can find fitting ones
I'll probably have to dip into Poe for a bit as well.
3754029 3753747 3749531 Thank you so much!
3753698 Then we get wet-mane Windy.
3753555 Oh, you! Be glad I'm too nice to mess with your sleep-cycle
3754084 my sleep cycle is perpetually skewed and I can run for several days on little to none of it, though by the end of a prolonged sleepless cycle my accuracy is greatly reduced, except for during the night oddly enough. Anyway keep it up hehehehe
So that's what happened in the tale of Hearth's Warming Eve! I hope Rainbow turning into her mother doesn't count as strife, because there's probably going to be quite a bit of that.
3753481
He made a half-assed guess and you know it.
Intentional donkey puns aside (and no, I'm not sorry), of course you would you a female dragon to guard a princess. Otherwise you end of with a bunch of half-dragon progeny running around and causing all sorts of problems, and if any of them ended up half-ogre as well, well, you may as well have not even bothered with the tower in the first place!
I really like this story so far. Just one question to the author about the adorable demon's name.
You an The Association fan? Personally I think they only had one song worth listening to, but...
Just a coincidence, or...?
And not a single dislike was given to this story.
I salute you, sir.
3755111
Huh, that's oddly appropriate... No, it really was a complete coincidence! 
I don't think i had ever heard that before! Guess this fic has a theme song now. 
3755131 Yeah, and it's nice.
But, as a writer, seeing that, well, I just worry that I am being ...inoffensive. Like, boring. 
3755149
You don't need to be offensive to be entertaining...! For example, the "d'aww" factor! This is the kind of story I love because it makes me snuggle up with my big poofy blanket of happy. Mission Accomplished!
TL;DR
You're doing great; keep it up!
3755149
Yeah, must admit I didn't think so. The Association is one of those weird bands. Not quite one-hit wonders or unknowns, but not household-names either.
They made one song I was quite surprised to learn of though. They apparently made the original version of Along Comes Mary.
Must admit The Bloodhound Gang's version is still my favored version though. It just got more swung to it.
Still, glad you found Windy interesting. It just popped into my mind again when I saw a windigoo with the same name.
LOVE the idea. And the first two chapters are definitely entertaining. I am going to enjoy this one, I bet.
Very good so far. I like the development of Rainbow's bonding of Windy.
You get a thumbs up from me just for the Lovecraft Chapter names!
Must... resist... urge... to troll...
3762192 Notices one dislike... and you failed
3762330 NOOOOO! I WAS FRAMED! I WAS FRAMED!
Interesting premise. Can't wait to see where you go with this. The only problem I have is with how readily Rainbow has accepted windy.
3762345 The virginal purity of the ratings has been spoiled! The unicorns are not pleased!
Ok so chthulhu reference.
Demon racism.
One can say that about pretty much anything.
Kinda want to see someone try the indignant mother routine with a dangerous pet.