Bonds of Glory

by Taialin

3. Crisis

Minutes after Twilight finished her announcement, Applejack went back out into the blizzard to go fetch her family and any other ponies who were having trouble coping with the cold. It wouldn't take long for ponies to start trickling in.

Twilight took this time to prepare her castle. Lighting her horn, Twilight opened every room of the castle, priming them for their future occupants. For whatever reason, when her castle was created, it came with far more rooms than Twilight could occupy. As a result, many of them were empty and did nothing but gather dust. Now, Twilight finally had a use for them. Every family that arrived would have a room to stay in. There were probably enough rooms in the castle to house all of Ponyville inside.

Twilight and her friends had already taken up lodging in the throne room. She could also make public announcements from that room if necessary, so Twilight reasoned that she would stay with her friends there.

Twilight went down to the basement and began hauling firewood and food up to the entrance vestibule of the castle, where they would be in easy reach. After several rounds, Twilight heard someone shout to her.

"Twilight!" Pinkie trotted down the staircase of the castle to join Twilight. "What are you doing?"

"I need to prepare the castle for Ponyville's arrival." Twilight replied. "I don't know how many ponies will come, so I'm preparing for the worst."

"Why didn't you ask us to help? We're here too, you know!" Pinkie cocked her head at Twilight.

"Well, Rarity's in no shape to help right now, and I don't think Fluttershy wants to be away from her for too long. Rainbow . . ." Twilight shook her head. "We had a fight, Pinkie. I think she needs a little time to cool off right now." She turned to head back downstairs for some more firewood.

"No way, Twilight," Pinkie said, following Twilight. "Rainbow said to me that she wanted to help, so how about letting her help? It looks like you have a lot to do." Once they made it to the basement, Pinkie spied the large mountains of wood and food that still needed to be moved. "A lot to do."

Twilight looked at the pile herself, and she sighed. "I guess you're right, Pinkie. We're friends, and we should help each other. I can't let something as silly as a little argument get between us and Ponyville's safety. Pinkie, would you mind . . ." Twilight trailed off when she looked beside her and saw that there was nopony there. It looked like Pinkie had already gone to fetch Rainbow. Twilight shrugged, and brought another load of firewood upstairs.

When she returned to the vestibule, she saw Pinkie smiling with Rainbow Dash beside her, fidgeting. Twilight dropped off her load and looked at Rainbow. They nodded simultaneously, agreeing to put a truce to their quarrel and work on their task together.

With Pinkie and Rainbow's help, the food and firewood was brought upstairs much more quickly. Just in time, too. When they were finished, Twilight heard a knock.

Upon opening the doors to the castle, the first thing Twilight felt was the cold wind. It wasted no time in rushing inside and stealing some latent warmth within. Twilight ushered everypony inside, and quickly closed the door. Only then did she survey the ponies that came.

Applejack led the group with Applebloom, Granny Smith, and Big Macintosh standing behind her, shivering to various degrees. Behind all of them stood the Carrot and Doo families, among other ponies. In the very back was a big bundle of coats. When the bundle moved, Twilight saw a flash of a golden lyre cutie mark that she remembered well.

"Thank you for coming, everypony." Twilight said. "I know that it's really cold out there, and I want to make sure that Ponyville is safe for as long as possible." Twilight gestured to the many open doors behind her. "You can choose any room to stay in with your family." She then pointed to the piles of wood and food. "This is the stockpile of supplies that I have in the castle. Take what food and wood you need, but please be considerate. I don't know how many other ponies will be coming, and we need to conserve."

Murmuring words of thanks, the ponies in front of her began to shuffle off to various rooms in the castle, some of them taking food and firewood from the stockpile. Applejack took her family upstairs and set them up right beside the throne room. Once the ponies in front of her cleared, the pony in the very back shuffled up to Twilight.

"Hi, Lyra. Are you alright? Did you make it here safely?" Twilight asked, concerned.

A muffled voice emerged from the bundle of coats. "I think so," Lyra said. Shedding a few outer layers so that she could move more freely, Lyra examined herself. She found that the very tips of her ears and horn were inflamed red and felt numb. Upon poking them a few times, Lyra winced as feeling came back with an intense burning sensation.

"Frostnip," Twilight whispered. "You're lucky that you made it here quickly enough, Lyra. Frostnip will resolve on its own eventually. Rarity . . ." Twilight glanced back upstairs worriedly. "I don't think that Rarity was as fortunate."

"I guess I can thank my heritage for that," Lyra said, still poking her ears. "My parents were earth ponies. I think Rarity's the only unicorn in Ponyville with two unicorn parents, so she's worse off than most of us." She walked up to the pile of firewood and lit her horn to lift some of it. She cried out when she did, staggering backwards and dropping the firewood. "I don't think that frostnip was good for my horn, though," Lyra forced out through gritted teeth.

"No, I don't think so," Twilight replied, shaking her head. "You should probably avoid doing magic for a few days, Lyra. Some warmth would do you good though and help you recover faster." Twilight turned her head and called, "Rainbow? Could you set Lyra up with a room and bring her some firewood? She'll be much better off if you help her right now."

Rainbow duly saluted and grabbed a bundle of firewood from the top of the pile. She fluttered off to the nearest room, Lyra following behind her.

Nodding, Twilight turned her attention to the pile of firewood. Though it was barely depleted from the shares that Rainbow and the other ponies had taken, Twilight anticipated that many more ponies would come, and they would all need firewood. I can't risk having anypony go outside to get more firewood, so this is all we have. I need to make it last . . . Twilight thought solemnly.

Her reverie was interrupted by another knock on the door. Twilight went to answer it again.

---

The trickle of ponies grew into a stream, then a torrent. Only three days after Twilight made her announcement did the influx of ponies finally slow down and stop. Twilight thought that the entirety of Ponyville was now housed inside the castle. Nearly every room was occupied.

The increased number of ponies in the castle came with an increase in the draw on her resources. Though there was ample food for everyone, firewood was becoming extremely limited. As more ponies had need of it, the pile of firewood shrank at an ever-increasing rate. Twilight now made a point to always have someone she trusted monitoring the pile to ensure that the firewood went only to the ponies that needed it most.

"Hi, Cheerilee," Twilight said, addressing the pony who had just came up to her. "Do you need some firewood?"

"Yes, Twilight, I do. The foals are getting cold again, and the blankets aren't helping enough."

Twilight glanced behind herself at the pile of wood, wondering how much she could spare. Cheerilee had taken to looking after the foals who had no parents of their own who could take care of them. "You've completely burned the wood you have, right?"

"Yes. N-not even ashes left." Cheerilee wrapped her overcoat tighter around herself as she shivered. Though she would never admit it to them, she felt the advancing cold just as much as the foals did.

"And you have no other way to keep warm?" Twilight asked.

"No. And I fear if I wait any longer, some of the foals will get hypothermia."

Twilight nodded, and stepped aside. "Okay, Cheerilee. Take what you need, but not anything more. There's only so much firewood left."

"Of course, Twilight." Cheerilee stepped past Twilight to the pile and put several logs on her back. Suppressing another shiver, she nodded to Twilight and walked back to her room.

Twilight watched her go. Every day that went past, Twilight had to get more and more parsimonious about the remaining firewood. Even so, the cold outside was as inconsiderate as it always was, and every day that went past, the air grew colder and colder still, despite Twilight's attempts to combat it.

The cold had already invaded the castle, and it was slowly, inexorably making its way to the heart of everypony inside. The frost on the windows and gathering in the corners of hallways and rooms were worrying signs. Part of the reason why Twilight was often the one looking after the firewood was because she was an alicorn; she didn't feel the cold quite as much as everypony else did.

As much as she wanted to, Twilight couldn't cast her heat spell either. To cast it even once and make it last for more than a few minutes meant that she would be so drained of energy afterwards that she would have nothing left to fend off the cold from her own body.

Looking around, Twilight found everypony had at least a coat, scarf, and hat on, if not more. Twilight herself was dressed in a heavy winter cloak. Nevertheless, the cold was merely delayed by these additions. Every day that passed made the cold stronger and the ponies weaker.

Even with all the firewood, overcoats, blankets, and bodies inside the castle, everypony knew that they were fighting a losing battle. Nopony, however, would admit it.

Twilight saw Spike coming to the mountain of food. Upon seeing her, Spike turned and jogged up to Twilight. He said, "Twilight, why don't you let me take over for a while? You've been standing there for way too long. I can see the bags under your eyes! When did you last go to sleep?"

Twilight blinked. When was the last time I went to sleep? I think it was . . . I . . . I can't remember.

Spike frowned, guessing at the conclusion Twilight had come to. "Twilight, you've been so busy trying to take care of others, you forgot to take care of yourself. Go upstairs, take a nap or something. I'll handle this."

Twilight hesitated. "But . . . Are you sure, Spike? It's really cold here, and I don't want you to get hurt. You're not even wearing a coat!" Twilight exclaimed.

Spike sighed. "I'm a dragon, remember? We're not really susceptible to hot or cold."

Twilight stepped up to Spike and put a hoof on his shoulder. "I just don't want any of my friends to get hurt," Twilight reiterated. "This cold is dangerous."

"I'll be fine, Twilight. I'm not a baby anymore. Cold never bothered me anyway." Spike placed his own claw upon Twilight's chest. "Go take a nap, Twilight. I'll take care of things here."

Spike stepped away from Twilight and took up post next to firewood. Twilight conceded. "Alright, Spike, thanks. I love you."

"Love you too, sister." Spike said. He made a dismissive gesture with his hand, shooing Twilight away.

Twilight nodded, and walked away from the vestibule of the castle. She went up the stairs, across the hall, and into the throne room. Before she could rest, however, Twilight wanted to check up on one last pony: the one who was worse off than any of them.

"How's Rarity?" Twilight said.

Fluttershy raised her head from her charge, just long enough to shake her head once before looking back at Rarity. From the flash of her face that Twilight saw, Fluttershy was scared.

Twilight walked to Rarity to examine her. She was bundled up in blankets and facing a roaring fire. Twilight was especially generous with firewood for her friends, but it didn't seem to be doing anything for Rarity. Rarity was still shivering constantly. The frostbite on her ears and hooves had also advanced, turning those appendages pale and waxy. The beginnings of frostbite were even showing up on the tip of her horn.

Twilight didn't want to admit it to herself, but her brain was giving her the only rational conclusion. Despite everything she had done, Rarity was getting worse.

Twilight looked around the room. Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Rarity were huddled by the fire. Applejack was at a desk, working over a ledger of ponies that were hurt by the weather, and thinking on how best to tend to them. That only left Rainbow.

"Rainbow? What are you doing here?" Twilight asked. "Shouldn't you be out helping other ponies get settled?"

Rainbow was looking out the window again, and that worried Twilight. So did Rainbow's tone of voice. "Maybe I would be if there were any ponies left that needed to get settled." Rainbow turned to Twilight, face contorted into a scowl, acid in her voice. "Or if it made a difference."

Twilight backed up, forced on the defensive. "Of course it makes a difference, Rainbow! What are you saying?"

Rainbow scoffed. "Yeah, right. Like helping ponies get comfortable into their own rooms is gonna make everything all better." She rolled her eyes in sarcasm.

Twilight had her mouth open in confusion. This wasn't like Rainbow Dash at all. "Rainbow, what has gotten into you?"

"Nothing, Twilight!" Rainbow snapped. "But the cold is gonna get into everypony here if you don't do something about it!"

"I am, Rainbow!" Twilight exclaimed. "What do you think I've been doing these past few days?"

"Not enough, obviously, since it's still getting colder!" Rainbow advanced closer to Twilight. "Ponyville would be so much better off if you could just poof away all the dust."

Twilight was flabbergasted. "Rainbow, we've been over this! I can't do anything about the dust. I couldn't move or destroy enough of it to make a difference!"

Rainbow advanced closer still, the venom in her voice strong enough to kill. "Don't give me those horseapples, Twilight. You're an alicorn, for Celestia's sake! A little dust should be no match for your kind of magic!"

"Please stop fighting . . ." Fluttershy whimpered. She, Applejack, and Pinkie had turned their attention to the argument in the middle of the room. Neither Rainbow nor Twilight paid any heed, however.

"Well, yes, a little dust would be no match for alicorn magic, but this is not a little dust. Even Celestia and Luna together can't keep the skies over Canterlot clear!"

"Well, nothing, Twilight! You're the most powerful pony here. Why can't you do anything?"

"Rainbow . . ." Applejack warned, getting up from her seat.

"Because I can't!" Twilight yelled. Her frustration had reached its flash point. "Why don't you understand? No pony, no magic, no princess can do anything about this!"

"Yeah, right." Rainbow snarled. She butted her head against Twilight's. "I bet you're just too lazy to help anypony. Least of all your friends."

Twilight gasped and staggered backwards, stricken. She was too hurt by the accusation to even think of a response.

"Rainbow!" Applejack yelled, stepping in front of Rainbow and forcing her back from Twilight. "Lay off her!"

"Stop being such a meanie-pants, Dashie! You're hurting Twilight's feelings!" Pinkie added, her face a pout.

"Twilight's been doin' more than any of us, Rainbow, and you should know that!" Applejack continued. "What've you been doing lately, Rainbow? You've been sittin' up here, staring out a window and complainin' while Twilight was bustin' her chops! You got no right to accuse Twilight of anything!"

"Yeah, well . . . well . . ." Rainbow struggled. Applejack was still fixing her with a dark look, Pinkie with a sad and disappointed one. Fluttershy was covering her face with her hooves and refused to even look at her.

And of course, Twilight. Still reeling from what Rainbow had said, her face bespoke of hurt and betrayal.

"Forget it!" Rainbow Dash screamed. She bolted out of the room.

Rainbow's disappearance finally shocked Twilight out of her stupor. "Rainbow, wait! I . . . I . . ." She stared at the spot that Rainbow had been standing in seconds before. "Why did you say those things, Rainbow . . ." Twilight whispered.

The silence dragged on for minutes.

Finally, Fluttershy's soft voice cut in: "I'm sorry, Twilight. But . . ." Fluttershy bit her lip. "Could you go and find her? She's hurting right now; I can tell. I know Rainbow said some mean things, but . . ." Fluttershy looked down, and scuffed the floor with her hoof. "I-I'm sure she didn't mean them." Fluttershy looked up at Twilight earnestly.

Twilight's thoughts were reeling. Rainbow was very, very mean, and she hurt me with what she said. I don't know if I could face her again. Twilight looked up at the rest of her friends. They were all staring at her in concern.

But she's my friend. She's Rainbow Dash: the same pony who helped me defeat Nightmare Moon and Queen Chrysalis. The same pony who pleaded me to defeat Tirek over saving her own life. Twilight looked at the door to the throne room that Rainbow had burst out of. Rainbow's been a true, loyal friend . . . up until now, at least. Twilight stood up, determined. And maybe it's time to give some of that loyalty back.

Twilight nodded to Fluttershy and exited the throne room in search of Rainbow Dash.

As well as Twilight knew the castle, Rainbow was proving to be rather difficult to find. Back rooms, closets, dead-end hallways, Rainbow could not be found anywhere. The only consolation was that Twilight never heard the main doors open or windows break, so she knew that Rainbow was still somewhere in the castle.

After exhausting all the rooms and hallways of the castle, Twilight sat down to ponder. Where does Rainbow go when she's stressed? I guess she would normally be sitting on a cloud, but there aren't any clouds here. So, what's the next best thing? Twilight looked up.

In the rafters of the castle, in the tallest hollowed spire, in the very corner, Twilight saw a bit of rainbow tail peeking out.

Flexing her wings, Twilight flew upwards into the rafters. Twilight eventually alighted on Rainbow's perch, but Rainbow simply stared at a wall, refusing to acknowledge her. Twilight waited.

Eventually, Rainbow spoke, "Leave me alone, Twilight. I'm sure you've got some important princess-y things to do."

"I have something important to do right here," Twilight responded adamantly.

Rainbow sighed and said, "You just don't understand, Twilight."

"Then, please, explain it to me."

Several more minutes passed, but Twilight refused to leave. All that time, Rainbow still stubbornly refused to look back at her.

When Rainbow finally found her voice again, it was little more than a whisper: "I'm supposed to be the hero, Twilight. I'm supposed to be better than this. I wanna make sure that Ponyville makes it out of this okay, but right now . . ." Rainbow punched the wall in front of her. "I just feel so useless."

Twilight put her hooves out to Rainbow and tried to hug her. Rainbow shuffled away before Twilight could. She put her hooves down and sighed. "You're not useless, Rainbow. You've been fetching blankets and firewood, starting fires, and just going to ponies who need the help. Look at everything you've helped do!" Twilight said, gesturing to all the ponies below them, all of them safely—for now—taking refuge inside the rooms of the castle.

Rainbow didn't even glance down. "I haven't done anything that matters. So what if ponies are comfortable now? The weather outside hasn't changed. Splitting firewood and finding blankets won't solve the bigger problem looming over our heads." Rainbow turned her head to look out a window for the umpteenth time. The brown dust was just as thick as it ever was, and the incessant snow continued to accumulate, forming massive snowdrifts. The front door was so blocked by snow that Rainbow couldn't go outside now even if she wanted to.

She turned back, and looked at Twilight for the first time. Rainbow said, "I'm the fastest pony in Equestria. I'm the Element of Loyalty. I swore I'd never leave Ponyville hanging." Rainbow dropped her eyes to the beam she was sitting on. She whispered, "And all that I can do right now is watch Ponyville slowly fail."

Twilight sighed, realizing the pain and stress that had been mounting on Rainbow for so long. "Trust me, Rainbow; I've felt it too." Twilight reached out for Rainbow again, and this time, she let Twilight embrace her, though made no move to reciprocate. "I've long since conceded to doing anything to the snow or dust directly. So the best I can do right now is help ponies endure the cold. I'm sorry if you feel like I'm not doing enough, but I'm doing everything that I can."

"I know, Twilight," Rainbow mumbled. "Believe me, I know now. I just thought that I wouldn't feel as bad if you could just . . ." Rainbow gestured feebly to the dust outside. "Make everything better."

Twilight clutched Rainbow closer to herself. "I wish that I could. And I know that you wanted to clear the clouds outside yourself, but I can't let you martyr yourself for something that won't make a difference."

"I just want to help, Twilight. Really help. I don't even care if I get hurt if it helps Ponyville." Rainbow turned her head to Twilight's ruefully.

Twilight stroked Rainbow's back. She closed her eyes, and said, "You would have gotten so hurt that you'd never recover. And you would have only delayed the inevitable. The cold would have come back even stronger eventually. That's why I want you inside, where I know you can do some good, and where I know you'll be safe.

"And no matter what you say, you're not useless," Twilight continued. "Everything you do helps Ponyville survive a little longer, and gives everyone a little hope. I know it's not what you were expecting . . ." Twilight glanced down at the ponies below her again. "But it's all we have right now."

The words and the hug and the stroking must have weakened Rainbow. With that final line, Rainbow collapsed into Twilight's forelegs, weeping quietly. The few tears Rainbow shed rolled down her cheeks and soaked into Twilight's fur.

"Twilight . . . will we make it out of this?" Rainbow whispered.

"I . . ." Twilight wanted to say I'm sure we will, as she had been doing with every other pony that asked, but Rainbow was smarter than that. She deserved the truth.

"I don't know, Rainbow." Twilight resumed stroking Rainbow's back. "But we have to believe that we will."

Rainbow and Twilight comforted each other for several minutes. After the long and tearful hug, Rainbow wiped her eyes and separated. They nodded, and flew down from the rafters to the throne room, showing their friends that their quarrel had ended.

Fluttershy opened her arms to hug Rainbow, who stepped into Fluttershy's embrace. "I'm so proud of you," she said.

"Yeah, good work there, Twilight," Applejack said.

"Thanks, Applejack. I was just—" Twilight was interrupted by her own yawn. She suddenly remembered her own fatigue and what she had originally come up to the throne room for.

Applejack nodded in understanding. "Why don't you take a rest, sugarcube," she said, gesturing to Twilight's bed. "You've had a long day."

Twilight nodded, and wriggled into her bed. Her mind was spinning with thousands of thoughts and worries, but her latent exhaustion caught up to her, and Twilight fell away from the waking world.

---

"Twilight!"

"Twilight!"

"Twilight!" Spike hollered into Twilight's ear.

"Wha!" Twilight exclaimed. She fell out of her bed and landed on the floor with a thump.

Spike quickly scampered around the bed to Twilight again. "Twilight, we have a situation!" he said.

"Wha?" Twilight said, still trying to rub the sleep from her eyes.

"We're out of firewood!"

"Wait, what?" Twilight said. Surely she hadn't heard that correctly. "What did you say, Spike?"

"We're out of firewood."

Twilight wasn't sure if it was the temperature or her heart that dropped, but she felt a chill down her spine. Twilight scrambled to her hooves and flew down to the vestibule of the castle as quickly as she could.

Sure enough, the pile of firewood was gone. Not even splinters remained. Beside the empty space, Twilight found Rainbow and Applejack arguing with other ponies, telling them that there was no firewood left.

Twilight looked around the castle. With no more sources of heat, the temperature had dropped even further. The frost that was once in the corners of rooms had advanced like an angry tumor, and was covering almost everything. It wouldn't be long before the entire castle was frozen.

Twilight looked out a window in worry. Brown and white. The same sight that had greeted her day after day.

"What do we do, Twilight? Ponies won't last long without fire!" Spike said.

Twilight caught herself hyperventilating. Now was not the time to panic. No, Ponyville needs rational thought, and a rational leader. I need to think of something rational, Twilight thought. She closed her eyes in contemplation.

Heat energy is lost through the body. A group will lose heat slower than an individual because the group has more heat energy to pool and less surface area to lose it from. So that means . . . Twilight opened her eyes, and looked over to her friends in the distance. "Rainbow, Applejack! I need your assistance!"

Rainbow and Applejack ran over as soon as they were able. "What do we do, Twilight?" Rainbow said. "There's no firewood left!"

"I know, Rainbow. This is the plan. We need to move all the ponies we can into as few rooms as possible. Huddling in groups means that we'll lose heat slower." Twilight looked straight at Rainbow. "And speed is of the essence. We need to move quickly. I know that this is not ideal, but can I trust you to help me with this, Rainbow?"

Rainbow only needed to look at the shivering ponies she was just talking to to have her answer. She turned to Twilight and nodded confidently.

"Good. Then we haven't a moment to lose."

Rainbow Dash, Twilight, and Applejack split up to coax everypony to pool their resources, move in with neighbors if possible, and huddle for warmth. When as many ponies went into a room as was possible, they closed the door to trap in the heat.

Eventually, job finished, Twilight and her friends found their way back to the vestibule. Now, it was bereft of both firewood and pony. "Is everypony in their rooms?" Twilight asked.

"Think so," Rainbow said. "The ponies I found still walking the halls were heading to the rooms, anyway."

"You packed 'em in there awfully tight, Twilight," Applejack said. "Y'sure it's necessary?"

"Yes." Twilight nodded firmly. "The closer together we are, the more heat we conserve, and the better off we'll be." Twilight looked around again, surveying the area. "I think that's everypony. Should we head back?"

"Yeah," Rainbow and Applejack agreed. With a nod, they all started to head back to the their room.

Along the way, Twilight fretted about how Ponyville would continue to endure with no firewood. With no fuel to burn, we can't generate any extra heat. This huddle strategy is only going to work for so long. We aren't penguins; the cold is going to seep in eventually. Twilight took a nervous glance out a window to the blanket of dust still hovering outside, finding herself doing that more and more often. This dust really needs to settle soon.

But when Twilight opened the door to the throne room and saw the scene inside, she forgot all about her own worries.

Pinkie was by the fire, furiously fanning it with a blanket to try to keep going. Her eyes darted frantically between the fire and the bundle of blankets on the ground. Fluttershy was beside the bundle. Upon seeing her friends' return, Pinkie shrieked, "Twilight! Come quick! We need your help!"

Twilight ran over to Pinkie, Rainbow and Applejack right behind her. Pinkie pointed to the bundle of blankets with a hoof, continuing the fan the flames with another. What she saw made Twilight's eyes widen in horror.

Rarity was pale, paler than any pony with a white coat had any right to be. The hints of blue on the tip of Rarity's horn had spread to bind the entire thing. Her heart was weak, and her breaths were shallow and irregular. Rarity's eyes were closed, looking as though she was in a worryingly deep sleep. But perhaps most worrisome of all, Rarity wasn't shivering anymore.

"No . . ." Twilight shook her head, almost not believing the sight in front of her eyes. It can't happen, it just can't! Not to Rarity, she fretted. Twilight looked to Fluttershy. She was hugging Rarity tightly, desperately trying to warm her friend. Tears leaked from her eyes. Half of them soaked into the blanket she was on while the other half froze solid, still on her face.

"Fluttershy, what happened?" Twilight asked. The fear that gripped her heart made her voice weak and shaky.

"R-Rarity, she . . . I don't know, Twilight!" Fluttershy cried. "Sh-she just stopped shivering all of a sudden." Fluttershy clutched the bundle she was holding tighter. "Rarity, please! Please wake up! You can't, you can't, you j-just . . . please don't . . ." Fluttershy continued to babble while trying to wake up the unresponsive Rarity.

What do I do, what do I do? Twilight's mind could not calm itself, and it searched frantically for a solution. Rarity's hypothermic; I know that, Fluttershy knows that, but how do I fix it? We need to warm her up; that's the only way! Twilight scampered up to Rarity and sidled up next to her, trying to contribute her own body heat. Rarity's body was terrifyingly cold to the touch.

"C'mon, y'all," Applejack said, beckoning everypony else to join Twilight. They all lay as closely as they could to Rarity, trying to make a circle of warmth and hopefully revive their fallen friend.

As they huddled together, Twilight's mind spun in a panic. She had never been in this situation before. Twilight had always been the tip of the spear and had always succeeded in leading her friends out of any problem. But now, she was left huddling next to an unresponsive Rarity. Like Rainbow did, Twilight herself felt helpless.

How did it come to this? I'm supposed to be a princess. I'm supposed to lead our friends, and Ponyville, out of this mess. It shouldn't have come to this! I should have been more prepared. I should have moved everypony in here sooner. I should have been able to keep Rarity well. Twilight pushed closer to Rarity, desperately trying to warm her with what heat she had left.

Twilight looked at Fluttershy. She had been tending to Rarity all this time, and she was clearly exhausted. Having expended all her energy, she had none left to fight back the cold and was shivering constantly herself now. The rest of Twilight's friends also felt the chill. They tried to hide the signs, but even Applejack, the strongest among them, was shivering every so often. Even Twilight herself, who embodied the strengths of all three pony races, was feeling the cold slowly make its way to her core.

After many minutes huddling around Rarity, she still showed no signs of improvement. Twilight's heart tried, and failed, to deny the conclusion her mind had come to. It's not working. She's not warming up. She's not waking up.

She's not going to wake up.

It was too much for Twilight to take. She broke down.

Her friends cried out when Twilight let out a great wail and curled into a ball. They quickly moved to bring Twilight to the center of the circle with Rarity.

Twilight cried. Twilight, the one who had saved multiple worlds innumerable times, the one who had helped purify an un-redeemable villain, the one who had revived centuries-old magic to save her friends from a destiny of pain. She was the Element of Magic; she was a Color of the Rainbow; she was the Princess of Friendship.

She was Her Royal Highness Princess Twilight Sparkle, and she was crying harder than she ever had before.

"I . . . I failed," Twilight whispered through her tears.

"What do you mean, Twilight? Why are you so sad?" Pinkie asked.

"I'm supposed to be a princess; I'm supposed to be a leader. I should be able to ensure the safety of every pony in Equestria. Princess Celestia chose me to be a princess because she thought I had the skills to be one." Twilight clenched her eyes shut. "She thought wrong."

"No, Twilight, you're a great princess!" Fluttershy said. "You gave up your home so ponies could be safe when it got too cold!"

"Too little, too late," Twilight said softly. The ground in front of her was a frozen puddle of sorrow. "Ponyville won't last much longer in these conditions, and it's all my fault. I'm a terrible princess." She looked to Rarity. "I can't even save my own best friends. I'm sorry, Rarity," Twilight sobbed. She turned her head back down to the ground, refusing to look at the friends that she didn't deserve anymore. "I'm so sorry, everypony."

Twilight didn't pay attention as her friends shifted around her. She did when Fluttershy reached forward and nudged her head up. "We forgive you," she said.

Twilight shook her head. "No, no, you can't. I did something horrible. H-how can you forgive me . . ." Twilight shakily pointed to everything around: the frost on the walls, the bitter cold, the pony in front of them that wouldn't last much longer. "For this?"

"Because we're friends," Fluttershy said without delay. "Because we're all friends, and we all forgive you."

"Twilight," Applejack said, turning Twilight's attention to herself. "I'm the most honest pony here, so take it from me: we don't blame you for any o' this. You did the best you could with the things you had, and you took action when it was needed. If Rarity were awake right now, she wouldn't blame you neither, I'm sure."

"And neither would Ponyville," Pinkie continued. "They're not sad that they have a princess that can't do the impossible; they're happy that they have a princess that brought them this far." Pinkie's eyes glistened with unshed tears, but she wore a smile even now. "I smile because I have such a terrific friend. Why don't you smile, too?"

Fluttershy spoke again. "You didn't fail, Twilight; you took on the biggest problem any of us had seen when nopony else could. No one in this castle blames you for this. No one." Fluttershy looked to Rainbow, who hadn't said a word yet.

Rainbow shifted around uncomfortably before saying her part. "Yeah, Twilight. I don't blame you, either. I know what I said . . ." Rainbow shifted around again. "And I'm sorry. You're not lazy. You put this whole thing together when I was too stubborn to support you." Rainbow smiled grimly. "You were always the most level-headed of us, anyway.

"We're friends, Twilight. Friends until the end. If we're not getting out of this together . . ." Rainbow fixed all her friends with a determined stare. She looked back to Twilight, and nodded. "We're going out of this together."

Twilight sniffled a few times before extending her wings to encompass all her friends in an embrace. Even when faced with certain destruction, my friends still stand behind me. How lucky we all are to have such strong bonds between us. Even going into the void, we won't ever let go of each other.

Twilight sniffled again. Tears were still falling from her face, but she was able to fulfill Pinkie's wishes. She smiled. "Thank you, everypony." Fluttershy, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash all extended their hooves to join in the embrace.

And as the wind blew mercilessly outside of the castle, Twilight sought to ensure that their last thoughts would be of friendship. She opened her mouth to sing:

♪ Snow lathers the ground at the end of the year,

♪ As the holidays are drawing near,

♪ Flurries of white cover coat and mane,

♪ Lots of time has gone, but not gone in vain.

Moved by the song of hope and simultaneous despair, Fluttershy broke the group hug and stood up. She began to harmonize with Twilight.

♪ We fought the darkness, we fought the unknown,

♪ Conquered inner demons, but not alone.

♪ Our friends are here at the end of the day,

♪ To shine their light and light the way!

Pinkie, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash stood up as well. In a circle, they all began to sing as well in what might be their last song together. None of them noticed that the tears that that fell from their faces began to melt the swatches of ice underneath them.

♫ Sky . . . grows darker to behold,

♫ Wind . . . makes air grow cold,

♫ But . . . we're a circle of pony friends until the end.

Rarity remained wrapped tightly in her blanket, but she flinched when a bit of water soaked through it and wetted her coat. She cracked an eye open.

♫ Friends . . . together we grin,

♫ Warmth . . . comes from within,

♫ Cold . . . won't bother us when the bonds we hold transcend.

"Look!" Rainbow whispered, pointing beneath them. All the frost and ice beneath their hooves had melted away, and more importantly, Rarity's head was up and moving, gazing at the friends that had gathered around her.

Twilight gasped and looked on with wide eyes before turning them back to Rainbow Dash. Her face was determined. "Keep singing."

♪ No, we aren't perfect, we make mistakes,

♪ We fight and argue, and give and take,

♪ But what's important at the end of the day,

♪ We forgive each other, and friends we stay.

Rainbow looked at Twilight apologetically, but Twilight just shook her head. Now was not the time for apologies and regrets. She joined Rainbow in the next verse.

♪ Sometimes I'm angry, sometimes I frown,

♪ But I know who to turn to when I'm down,

♪ My friends will be there at the end of the day,

♪ To shine their light and light the way!

The entire circle beneath the friends and several feet beyond was thawed, and there was a curious warmth emanating from the center. Bolstered, Applejack, Pinkie, and Fluttershy rejoined the song.

♫ Sky . . . grows darker to behold,

♫ Wind . . . makes air grow cold,

♫ But . . . we're a circle of pony friends until the end.

Still cold and weak, but very much alive, Rarity felt the passion all her friends were exuding. Everypony's eyes lit up with hope when Rarity joined the song with her own voice.

♫ Friends . . . together we grin,

♫ Warmth . . . comes from within,

♫ Cold . . . won't bother us when the bonds we hold transcend.

Twilight took a break to look around. The entire throne room was devoid of ice and frost, and the air was suffused with a gentle warmth. Supported by Fluttershy, even Rarity had made it to her hooves. Twilight realized then that they were reliving the experience Clover the Clever, Smart Cookie, and Private Pansy all had over a thousand years ago.

Twilight knew that all her friends had come to the same conclusion because they were all wearing the same look of determination. Wordlessly and as one, they nodded. Twilight lit her horn to open the throne room doors as well as every room in the castle. Curiously, the ponies nearby leaked out of their rooms to gather in foyer outside of the throne room.

Twilight and her friends stepped forward and began to sing again. When they took their first step outside of the throne room, the frost underneath their hooves melted instantly.

♪ No matter the distance, no matter the story,

♪ Hold on tight to the Bonds of Glory,

♪ Friends will be there at the end of the day,

♪ To shine their light and light your way!

Everypony, having noticed the bubble of warmth that now encircled the entire castle, was in the foyer before the six. Some ponies had already begun singing along, but Twilight needed more. "We can do this! Sing, Ponyville, sing!" she declared. As more and more ponies joined the song, the air grew warmer and warmer.

♪ Sun . . . shines bright when we,

♪ Moon . . . glows soft when we,

♪ Are . . . . . . a circle of pony friends!

Twilight lit her horn in a burst of powerful magic and fired a shot straight up. Atop the spire of the castle, a rainbow ring of magic exploded to expand across all of Equestria. With that thunderous spell, Twilight ensured that the rest of the world was listening.

♫ Sky . . . grows darker to behold,

♫ Wind . . . makes air grow cold,

♫ But . . . we're a circle of pony friends until the end.

Outside the windows of the castle, Twilight noticed the cloud of dust was thinning and that spots of blue sky were beginning to emerge. Victory only a few steps away, Twilight broke off to sing her own verse.

♪ In the darkest of times, we cannot doubt,

♫ Friends . . . together we grin,
♪ Because with our friends, we'll make it out,

♫ Warmth . . . comes from within,
♪ Our voices are strong, rising over the din,

♫ Cold . . . won't bother us when the bonds we hold transcend.
♪ Together we will always win.

Comments

[BlueBella]

Yay!

[Staphen Windorf]

phenomenal!