The Ballad of Hearthswarming

by The Dimension Diver

The Ballad of Equestria and of the Windigo

The weary find no respite, and
The restless no reprieve.
The tragic truth stared back at them,
Too shocking to believe.

The pennants waved within the breeze,
The ponies all stood still.
Their gaping shock lined every face
And poisoned every will.

A tremble from the refugees
Broke forth among their legs,
And though the luscious grass was free,
As distant as the eye could see,
To have to share the land would be
More bitter than the dregs.

The legions of the Pegasi
Could hardly find their feet;
And yet they stood - a stubborn strain,
Refusing to retreat.

The Unicorns were deadened by
The burden of the sun;
And yet they stood, a battle force:
The battle would be won.

The Earthen Ponies struggled forth,
A much bedraggled band,
And yet they stood defiantly-
As farmers for their land.

A curdled hush, a murmur, then
A growling, angry roar-
The tribes erupted, burnt within,
More bitter than before

How sad this tale may seem to be,
As fated it would fail.
But if there are no trials first,
Then where would be the tale?

The ponies may seem doomed to choke
Upon their own conceit-
But this is a tale of heroes
Who cannot take defeat.

For what can make a hero?
A will of hardened steel?
A hero does what’s good, what’s right,
No matter how hard, how harsh is the fight,
In a world of black, you’re a scrap of white,
No matter what’s the appeal.

When the world needs a hero,
A hero stands alone
A hero is a shock to all-
Shocking to the bone.

But here a hero stood her ground,
And Pansy was her name.
She stood to her commanding chief
Her face aghast with shame.

“Good sir,” said she, “I may not be
An officer at wing,
But even I have duties in
Accord to you, my king.

“We may be mighty warriors, though
I find myself apart.
I have a warrior’s body,
But not a warrior’s heart.

“All wars we fight seem endless,
Though every war must cease.
And warriors who are fighting wars
Are fighting wars for peace.

“But if we fight this here and now,
We fight to keep the score;
We fight not for the sake of peace,
But for the sake of war.”

She laid her heavy helmet down,
Her armor and her shield.
And as the clouds prepared to rain,
She stood across from Hurricane
Before the battlefield.

Her shield was badly damaged and
Her armor was a shell.
Her wing was bandaged by her side,
Her flank was badly lightning-fried
And scared she was as well.

But Hurricane saw all of this,
And found a deep respect.
This mare was scared to death and back,
But stood there open to attack
And knew what to expect.

“I never knew you had the guts
To say that to my face,”
Then Hurricane bowed down his head
And grunted, “What I may have said,
You aren’t a disgrace.

In all my years as officer,
Not one stood up to me.
Alright then, private, what you say-
We may not fly to war today.
I’ll give them one last chance - and they
Must take it as it be.”

He snatched the army banner then,
And waved it proud and high,
And marched betwixt the mountainsides
With Pansy stumbling by.

Between the vale and hills and plain
He stuck it in the ground
And bellowed out a challenge to
The ponies all around.

“One more negotiation may
Be granted here,” said he.
May all your leaders show their face
And meet with me upon this place
And come honorably.

The princess of the Unicorns
Descended from the herd
With gallant Clover by her side,
Afraid but undeterred.

And from the ponies came the chief,
Chancellor Puddinghead,
And faithful Cookie at his place
With caution in his tread.

The six were brought together in
The vale between the three,
Where Hurricane set down his hoof
And stated blatantly:

“You blacken our horizons and
You threaten us with war.
But now I offer better ways,
That we return to elder days,
The way we were before.

“I offer you a treaty, to
Unite beneath my reign;
The flag of Pegasopolis
Will harbor no disdain.”

But Platinum scoffed haughtily
And sought to keep her grace.
“But what,” said she, “supremacy
Is given to your race?

“You claim to give a second chance,
Yet place yourself premiere.
What offer can you claim to make
Which others fail to fear?

“The role of a commander is
To hold the battle-line.
The office of a ruler, though,
Is furthermore refined.

“If well you are a leader,
You lead accordingly.
But we are hardly soldiers,
And few of us will be.”

Then Puddinghead spoke out, appalled,
“And what a whacky name!
I couldn’t live in such a place
With Hurricane to blame!

Myself, I found that Dirt-ville was
A title down to earth.
Now who’d think Pegasopolis
Could have intrinsic worth?

“Now Dirt-ville?!” hollered Platinum,
How dismal! How uncouth!
But Unicornia’s a name
Without that muddy language-maim;
“‘Tis better far in sooth.”

But Puddinghead had none of it
And billowed up in rage.
“You want to hog the name as well?
Just ain’t that peachy? Ain’t that swell?
Let’s see if this can ring a bell!
Get off the snooty stage!”

He scooped a slushy hoof of snow
And hurled it at her pate.
The snow ran frigid down her ears
And in her eyes and froze her tears;
Her crown fell down for once in years
Relinquishing its weight.

Said Hurricane, “I offered peace,
You choose to fight instead.
Well, all of you can go back home
With snowdrifts for your bed!”

Another snowball smacked his scalp,
He faltered in his stride.
The snow was falling thick and fast,
The wind was whistling, whipping past.
With shock it dawned: they would not last.
They struggled in the tide.

But Cookie rallied presently
And shouted in the storm:
“Come everypony, follow me!
There’s shelter yonder, I can see
A cavern mouth, and hopefully
The inside will be warm.”

He stumbled forward, step by step
Within the howling gale.
The other ponies fell in line,
A chain by mouth and tail.

The snow descended heavily
And blotted out the sky,
But on pressed Cookie, sure of step,
Though doubtful of the eye.

At last they found the tunnel-cave;
Though dark, it was not deep.
Then Clover raised a magic flame
And crumpled in a heap.

But Cookie, standing sure of hoof
Made count of every mane
And found that of the six who came,
At present, five remain.

“The princess is not here with us!”
Cried Cookie in a huff.
“Leave her to be,” croaked Hurricane,
“We’ve heard from her enough.”

But Cookie caught, his visage dark,
A dagger in his eye,
“And when did life and death become
As plum as making pie?

“You may not care for Platinum,
Nor does she care for you;
But feathers! That don’t give the right
To leave her out on blizzard night
Without a coat or firelight
To help her make it through!

“If you were lost and freezing there
In her own royal stead,
Then I would do the same for you
Or shame upon my head!”

With that he turned and plunged again
Into the bitter frost.
He called her name both long and loud
While fighting through the wild shroud,
A beacon for the lost.

For Cookie was a hero too,
A hero to the core.
With selfless service, out set he
To seek to help an enemy
For but the sake of charity
This duty well he bore.

The chilly wind rebuffed his face,
He carried on his cry,
‘Till finally the earth pony
Distinguished a reply.

He made his way to Platinum,
And found her thick in snow.
He carried her upon his back,
His eye on Clover’s glow.

A scanty, snapping fire was
A welcome to the pair.
They sat beside the fireside
In silence with their hooves spread wide
Or dusting out their hair.

“What tragedy has brought us here,”
Sighed Clover with a groan.
“How could the winter seek our wake
When every scheme and step we take
Amounts not even to a break
With all our efforts shown?

“What would my master Starswirl say
If he were with us now?
His wisdom would amount to much
And he would rescue us from such
A quandary somehow.”

Commander Hurricane was grim,
His eye upon the light.
But then he said to Puddinghead,
“Your breath is rancid, rotten fed.
Move over to the right!”

“Not moving,” said the chancellor,
“You’ve pushed us ‘round enough.
You want some breathing air so bad?
Then shift yourself, don’t drive us mad
With bullyings and stuff!”

So Hurricane stood, calling to him
Pansy right away.
He said to her, “Mark openly
One half the cave’s territory.
It shall be ours for all to see
No matter what they say.”

The private did her duty, though
Somewhat reluctantly.
But Puddinghead stayed where he sat
Glaring defiantly.

“Get off our land,” Quoth Hurricane,
As stubborn as a rock.
The chanc’lor stood with dignity
Displaying deep despondency
Came calmly and collectedly
And cleaned the captain’s clock.

He stumbled backwards, fuming from
The boldness of the blow.
Then sharp he bucked and squarely hit
His rival in the stomach pit.
He drew his saber by the bit
Advancing on his foe.

A flash erupted ‘cross the cave-
A brilliant beam of blue.
The captain’s sword flew far away
And shuddering, transfixed the clay;
The magic’s aim held true.

The princess marched upon the two,
Her head held halfway high;
A fire danced upon her horn
And danced within her eye.

“You brute,” said she, “You drawing swords
On one whom no sword hath!
But now you face a Unicorn,
And you shall taste my wrath.”

“That fight is mine!” yelled Puddinghead
And clocked the princess too.
The three began a hefty brawl
The others standing shocked withal,
Unsure of what to do.

A stirring in the blizzard, and
A howl upon the gale
Sent echoes churning ‘round the cave
As dismal as a ghostly grave
And even filled with fear the brave-
A ghastly, groaning wail.

A spectral set of footsteps trailed
A patchy path of ice.
The unseen phantom pranced around
And left its vestige on the ground
And circled ‘round them thrice.

But Clover saw the icy tracks
And reasoned out their fate.
“Stop, Platinum!” she cried in vain,
“Stop, Puddinghead! Stop, Hurricane!
Your fight will break us all in twain!
It almost is too late!”

But neither did they heed her words
And neither did they care.
They battled fiercer than before,
Completely unaware.

Then Hurricane’s hoof hit the ice
And froze and stuck him fast.
Then Puddinghead a hoof set down
Upon a patch of icy ground
And Platinum did last.

So fastened were the three by fate
As slowly did they freeze.
The dreaded frost encumbered them
And traveled up their knees.

Still, heedlessly they threw their words
Into the others’ face,
A-slandering the things they did
Until the ice completely hid
Those models of disgrace.

But Pansy, Clover, Cookie too
All huddled ‘round the fire,
Watching grim in fear and dread
While Windigoes danced ‘round their head
And the ice gathered higher.

“These winter spirits,” Clover spake,
“They glut on hate and spite.
My master called them Windigo,
As Starswirl knew and now I know-
‘Twas they who made this dismal snow.
But how to set it right?”

But Cookie sighed and hung his head,
His muzzle turning blue.
“I never thought to face the end
In such a way without a friend
To help to see it through.”

“But wait,” said Pansy, “I know you!
You helped to save my wing!
That’s cause enough to be a friend,
More so than anything.”

“And you’re the one,” said Clover, “who
Had pulled me from the flood!
Without you I would long have sunk
And frozen stiff my blood.”

“And you!” cried Cookie, “You’re that mare
Who helped us find the way
Without a star set in the sky
And half a map to guide us by-
I’d know you any day!”

The Windigoes ran dark and high
But faltered in their gait.
The gloomy ice crept up their hooves
But stopped and seemed to wait.

“Well, what strange fortune found us here,”
Quoth Clover quietly.
“A Unicorn, a Pony and
A Pegasus, all seem to stand,
But not at enmity.

“The world may never see us now,
May never know our fate.
But should the world be steeped in snow,
Shall everypony see and know
That we bear no such hate.”

The darkness swirled, the hard ice bit,
And Pansy with her wing
Saluted sharply to the two
And Cookie bowed his head hereto
And Clover’s magic shone into
The shadows, glimmering…
Then flushed in full a flaming hue,
The wreaths of fire wrapping through
The silver spirits, thrust and drew
And twirled, all shimmering-
Thus friendship’s primal flame was lit!

Upon the cusp of victory,
The Windigos were slain.
For those who dine on bitter hate,
To swallow love is pain.

Hark! Merrily had thawed the three
Before the flaming heart.
Said Clover, “This was not from me,
But rather came it from us three,
Not one or two apart!”

One fire dwindled by the hoof,
One burgeoned overhead;
For though one fueled itself on wood,
The next on friendship fed.

Then thereupon good Pansy drove
Her sword into the ash
And said, “My blade is made for war,
But I will draw it forth no more.
My lot is better than before;
Reverting would be rash.”

Then Cookie shook his cold legs free
And sat beside the fire.
“I don’t seem to have all that much to say,
But I’ve got a tune that I’d like to play
Since long it’s been from the end of the day.”
Forthwith he unslung his lyre.

He struck upon a jovial chord
And danced the notes along.
Ecstatically sang Clover too-
The tune became a song.

“The friendship’s fire lives in us-
It lives within our hearts.
As long as one another shares
Our burdens, we divide our cares;
We’ll never drift apart!”

Across the nightly hill and vale
The music drifted free.
And where it brushed, the snow dispersed.
The earthen ponies gathered first
About the cave to see.

And lo! The other races came
A-following beside,
As drawn by curiosity
They wondered what the song could be
That struck the winter’s tide.

And deep within the cozy cave
The leaders melted too.
They looked upon the quiet scene
With friendship’s fire glistening,
Unsure of what to do.

At last outspoken Puddinghead
Removed his hat in shame.
He spake, “I haven’t done so well
As you have with your triple-spell;
The winter made a rotten smell
And I am all to blame.”

Then Platinum drooped down her head.
“The fault is mine,” said she.
“This may have gone much smoother
Had I done less haughtily.”

“And I too,” grumbled Hurricane,
“Have added to the fire.
Where conflict was, so was I too
And each offensive swelling grew;
Its scope was as my ire.”

But Clever Clover understood
And looked upon their shame,
For Clover had a hero’s heart
From whence had sprung the flame.

“I well forgive the three of you,”
She said without a pause,
“For anypony’s self can err,
And everypony has been there.
A dose of mercy we can share
To help a pony’s cause.

“However, if we must prevent
An encore of our plight,
I deem it wise to settle hence
This squabbling, petty dalliance,
To set aside our difference
And doing so, unite.”

The pact was drawn, the treaty sealed
Three kingdoms merged to one
Equestria stood proud and free
Embracing friendship graciously
Without a shroud of jealousy,
To mar what had begun.

Before the Princess raised the sun
And spun it thence and fro,
The friendship’s fire kindled once
Eternities ago.

And though the moon set many times
Across the sunken sky,
The fire burns unto this day,
And burns the eons by.

-A history, dictated by Clover the Clever, recorded and set into verse by Philip the page.

Author's Note:

Ah… To finally get this in writing is phenomenal. I had such a blast. If this failed to make you squeal in apprehension or with the drama of it all, then I have failed as an author. Heck, every word of this thing had to be so deliberate, that I was getting conscious of writing “and” or “for” at the beginning of stanzas. So! A hearty thanks to God, for ideas, (Can’t live without ‘em), And my own dear sister for proofreading and supporting me every which way. The two stanzas before the last two stanzas were mostly her work, so thank you for that!
And why Hearthswarming? I really thought that the play performed couldn’t have been a really accurate depiction of the events shown… I mean seriously, a tiny stream? A cloud punching general? For these details to even be remembered after so long, there must have been something really significant behind the event itself. So it was my duty to blow things (reasonably) out of proportion. Turn Hurricane’s cloud-busting spree into the charge of an army of Pegasi against the mother-of-all-storms… and make it poetic! Make the earth ponies dying of hunger and literally eat half the map from desperation! All in all, it was fun choosing words, making art for it’s own sake. If you have things to say, comment! I’d love to hear opinions, second views, and stuff! Where was the rhyming forced? What was your favorite section? Did you catch the references? Ha ha ha… I had to mar art with references. Well, I hope you enjoyed all this. Cheers!
-DD