Fey Breeze

by Masterweaver

Fall

"And how is my bondpartner on this fine morn?"

Zephyr rubbed the back of his head. "Actually, I was... wondering... is there anything I can do?"

Winter Lights gave him a curious look. "There are certainly plenty of things you can do, Zephyr. Why, you can breathe. You can speak. I'm fairly certain you would be a relatively decent dancer."

"I mean, is there anything I can do to, uh, alleviate my boredom?"

The girl with blue hair gasped, almost dropping her broom---but managed to catch it before it hit the ground.

Winter Lights slowly raised an eyebrow. "You are suffering from... boredom?" she asked, her tone cool and frosty.

Zephyr swallowed. "I wouldn't say suffering. I just... feel that so long as I am here, I should be doing something that is worth my effort. Maybe... I don't know, I'm a decent artist. Maybe I could try to create a portrait of you?"

"Hmm." Winter Lights turned toward the circle. "So watching your sister struggle is no longer entertaining."

"No, it is! But a man cannot simply watch. It's in our nature to act, as well. You know?" Zephyr shrugged. "I'm sorry for being a bother, it's just... even before I met you I was trying so hard to accomplish something, and now..."

"And now, though you live a life of luxury, you feel as though you do not impact anything. An interesting transformation from the young man I first met." Winter's icicle-like laugh resounded briefly throughout the chamber. "Very well... perhaps you can assist me."

With a twirl of her fingers she produced some white hairs. Zephyr hadn't even seen her pull them from her head--and perhaps, she had not, merely made them appear out of thin air? He didn't have time to think about it before they were placed delicately in his own palm.

"I'm expecting more guests from your realm," she explained. "And while I have set arrangements to greet them, I cannot keep my attention on them constantly--quite a bit is occurring, you see, so much I must oversee. But, should they be wearing bracelets made of my own substance, I should be able to locate them quickly--perhaps to rescue them from the dangers of the fae."

"So... you want me to make bracelets out of your hair."

"Someone with your cunning fingers should be able to create many swiftly," Winter purred.

Zephyr's face flushed. "Um. Alright. I, uh, guess I'll do that, then."

"Good boy." She turned to the blue-haired girl. "And you, working without even my asking you. What a clever pet."

"I aim to please, mistress."

"And your efforts are pleasing."

The girl shivered with a grin. "Thank you, mistress. If... I may humbly ask, do... you need me to do anything?"

"Aside from your usual chores... well. I suppose the throne does need a bit of polish."

"Really?" The girl's hands tightened eagerly on the broomstick. "You're letting me polish your throne?"

"You'll find the polish next to the soap. Oh, but do be careful." Winter smiled faintly. "Some of the gems can get jealous if they aren't as shiny as their neighbors."

---

It had taken Fluttershy a while to notice the sky. Once she did, though, she wondered how she hadn't seen it before.

There were... things, floating far above her. Some, shining globes in all the myriad colors, could perhaps have been compared to suns, the same way a firefly might have some semblance of a lightbulb. There were rocky outcroppings, bound to nothing, some with castles or mountains or forests, long gossamer threads linking them to each other or the ground. It had been one those that actually attracted her attention up in the first place; the thread was a stone bridge with no stairs, only a gentle curve as it grew longer and longer--

It wasn't the floating islands or the miniature suns or even the occasional sky whale that made her wary. Those were all fantasy staples, she'd seen them in video games and stories before. No, it was...

Back home, the sky was limitless, a curved plain of blue during the day and bracketed only by the stars at night. Here, it... reflected the light of the suns. Here, she could see it warp, bend, a massive but still far too small network of tunnels around that which was around her. In some places there were forests, in others mountains, and in between there was...

...something, fluid but solid, a viscous film of unknown, bizarrely twisting and oscillating in undecipherable patterns...

She tore her eyes away, bringing them back to the ground before her, and tried not to think of how the horizon curved up and in instead of down and out.

"...what are we looking for, Seabreeze?"

The fairy scoffed. "Ach, hard tae say. The winter court has many glamours, and Winter Lights is a princess--she would know more then most, even if she dinnae craft her own achievements."

Fluttershy sighed, rubbing her forehead. "Zephyr Breeze, for the bond. Tree Hugger, probably because she can see aura. And invisible giants... to capture interlopers."

"Aye, she dinnae want ye kin to notice."

"Right. Right." Fluttershy took a breath. "Wandering is getting us nowhere. You're a guide in the sense you know what we see, but not in the sense that you know what to look for."

Seabreeze huffed. "I cannae say ye be wrong..."

"So... if we can't find her, we need to make her come to us. Or at least, what she does. If she doesn't want to be noticed, we need to make a situation where she has to act to avoid it."

Her eyes fell on her companion.

"...Seabreeze, how do bonds work?"

"Eh? Well, if I wanted tae form a pact with ye, I would exchange our matching sparks. Fire for fire, earth for earth..."

"And... what would each of us get out of it, do you think?"

"It depends on the bond. Obviously we would have access to each other's magic--ye would be able tae feel the life o' things, and I would have some touch o' ye world's power... and I would not be unwoven by salt. But beyond that..." Seabreeze paused. "What... what are ye thinking, lass?"

"I'm thinking... that I want to ask you a big, big favor." Fluttershy took a breath. "Seabreeze... I'd like to make a pact."

---

Winter Lights glared at the area around the bastion.

It had been going well. It had been going so well. Yes, there were problems, there were always problems--she had always expected problems. A simple success was boring. And when the schemes of others got involved, well. She loved the dance, the piloting of pawns and plots. Even the unexpected was entertaining... usually.

This was not the result of a plot or a pawn, though. Somebody was... flipping the table, so to speak. These lands had been claimed, pulled into fae by proper rites--and now they were sinking back to the other realm.

There was a traitor. That was the only explanation. She disliked traitors, they always made things so... complicated.

Who would be so bold, so brazen, as to contact the local goddess? She had heavily implied that her servants showed no hesitation in the unweaving of Fay. Somebody would have to distrust her enough to examine her words--plausible--and either be ambitious or simply desperate enough to reach out. Winter was still new to her position, so ordinary court politics wasn't reasonable--smaller tests would be more frequent. So ambition was out...

Desperation. What would make a Fay so desperate as to seek out a god? The fae had not destabilized anywhere near here; no traveler had come from foreign planes...

...the mortal.

Fluttershy.

Winter Lights brought her fingers to her forehead. Fluttershy, friend to the goddess, whose friend and brother she had ensnared. And she had left her with that spring court liar. Oh, how well the net was woven...

Though it was not unsalvagable. One point of contact. Easily handled. And there were other bastions. Lose here, and prepare elsewhere. The universe was certainly big enough.

With a firm nod, she turned away, unweaving and spiraling toward her lair.

---

As Fluttershy made her way through grass towering twice her height, her eyes flickered left and right warily. Quiet noise came from all around, chirps and songs and clicks, some very familiar and some not nearly so. She had to keep moving, had to make it look like she had only a vague idea what she was doing... if Winter was watching, or any other Fae, then perhaps--

--her foot slipped and she fell--

--into a cavern that, really, had not been there before. With a groan, she pushed herself up, looking above her and finding solid rock. She turned, with a frown; there was no aperture, no sign of the grassy plain she had been on before.

And come to think of it, how was she able to see anyway? There seemed to be light, but there wasn't a source, just... vague glimmers on the smooth stone around her.

Fluttershy shivered, rubbing her shoulders. "Alright. Yeah, this will go splendidly, won't it." She pushed herself to keep going forward. "In a land of Fay, in a dark cavern, trying to find my brother. Where oh where have I seen this one before."

"There are many stories of us."

The girl paused, looking around at the sudden voice. "...Winter Lights, I presume?"

"Perhaps. Perhaps I have another name. But you, you are Fluttershy."

"I wasn't always." Fluttershy continued walking forward cautiously, her eyes darting about. "I used to be a tree."

"Ah, yes, I heard of that... It must have been a fascinating experience. Though, I would wager, not nearly as fascinating as the one you are having now."

"Well, um, this isn't really fascinating anymore. Just tedious."

"...Tedious." The voice, so airy before, had taken a sharp edge.

"Yes, quite tedious." She ran her hand against one of the smooth stones. "Don't get me wrong, this place really is very intriguing, from what I've seen. An explorer could spend days, weeks, months and not lose their sense of wonder, but... well, I came here for a reason."

"So you did." The voice seemed contemplative, now. "And... if I were to grant you that reason, you would leave?"

Fluttershy paused. "...Well, I've heard many stories of people who were tricky with their words. I think I would like to discuss things with you first. Face to face."

The cavern was silent, for a moment or two.

Then frosty winds gusted around her. "Then we shall meet at once!"

---

Zephyr jumped as a jet of snow whisked from above. It hit the ground heavily, exploding and springing upward to reveal---

"Fluttershy!"

His sister coughed, pushing herself to her feet with a wobbly grin. "Hey... hey little bro. Hold on, I need to talk to your girlfriend for a bit."

She turned around, watching the snow spiral around the pillar, walking unsteadily to the throne. "Enough with your theatrics! Honestly, you're worse then mister Discord."

A scandalized gasp escaped the lips of the girl with blue hair, loud enough to draw the attention of his sister. Her eyes widened when they fell on her, and went even wider as they traveled to the green girl encased in ice.

The small chortle from the throne caught everyone's attention. There sat Winter Lights, in all her unglamoured glory, one ankle idly resting on another as she twirled her hair. "Miss Fluttershy. I do apologize for my lack of proper greeting. Had I known you were so desperate to meet me, I would have been more... prepared."

Fluttershy took a breath, and brought her hands together. "Winter Lights. I hope we can settle our affairs amicably."

"Oh, of course, of course. After all, we both have much more pressing matters to attend to; me to my kingdom and you to, ah, what was your job again?"

"I work at an animal shelter."

"And I'm sure you're enraptured by your duties." Winter Lights brought her hands together. "The bastion. What did you do?"

Fluttershy crossed her arms. "I have done nothing to the bastion."

"Oh, very well, what did you do to get Sunset Shimmer's attention on it?"

"What would you give for that information?"

Zephyr Breeze took a breath. "Sis, maybe you should--"

Winter Lights held up a hand, giving him a pointed look. He fell silent.

She turned back to his sister. "You propose an exchange."

"I demand it."

"Such boldness would be considered foolish in the court."

Fluttershy narrowed her eyes. "And yet, we are not in the court."

"Hmm. True." Winter tapped her fingers together. "...Very well. Let me make this interesting. You may take from this room one soul to your world."

"With all that they have and own?"

"Oh, indeed! Mortal souls would not survive without a body." Winter grinned. "Sibling, Shopkeep, Student. Family, friend, or foe. I wonder which you shall choose."

Fluttershy smiled. "I think I already know."

"Very good. Tell me your secret, then I shall allow you your decision. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

Zephyr held up a finger. "Um, Fluttershy, I--"

"I used my bond with the trees to inform Sunset of the situation."

He facepalmed.

"Hmm. Something unique to you. Something difficult to replicate... yes. I shall work around that in the future." Winter stood, hand outstretched. "Now then, as agreed, one soul. Name them, and they shall be yours."

Fluttershy took her hand... and clasped it tight. "Winter Lights. You and yours are coming with me."

---

She felt it. A great reverberation, through her entire form. The walls rippled and suddenly, suddenly she was falling in new light. For a brief moment, the long forgotten sun shone bright upon her.

It was, just barely, enough.

The air was knocked out of her as she hit the ground, and she took a shivering breath. Thin plates of ice slid slowly off her back as she listened, listened to the sound of sarcastic clapping, moving earth, screams of panic and mocking laughter.

Slowly, slowly, she pushed herself up to her feet, noticing the various object littered around the clearing. Names began to fumble into her mind as she took in the scene. That was Indigo Zap, trying to fight her way to a stone pillar. And Zephyr Breeze, attempting--not very well--to hold her back. There was Fluttershy, on the ground, with a fairy of some sort flitting around her in worry....

And atop the pillar itself, casually sipping what might have been tea, sat Winter Lights.

"A well planned assault, I admit." The Fay seemed not to have noticed her, focused on Fluttershy as she was. "Had I a shell like yours, I've no doubt you would have captured me. And then, what? Brought me to justice? How would that have saved those in the fae?" The teacup landed on the saucer with a small clink.

And around her, colors swirled. Blue, red, yellow... orange.

Orange.... yes.

Her eyes moved from Winter to Zephyr, still struggling as he was with the pale girl. She began to stumble forward, her legs not quite remembering what it was like to walk. Indigo broke free of his grasp, rushing to the pillar, she peered at the girl carefully before shrugging it off.

"Ye nae be tha hero ye claim!" declared the fairy hovering around Fluttershy. "Ye be a manipulative, self-servin' wench what nae can achieve her goals save by tearin' down others!"

Winter Lights leveled a flat look on the creature. "Your words are as vapid as your rites, wethrinaer. By good fortune alone have I decided not to strike against you."

Her green toes nudged against the boy's shoulder, and she looked down. With careful movements, she knelt, taking Zephyr's shoulder and pulling him to his feet. He groaned, rubbing his head, and gave her a confused look. "Tree Hugger, what--?"

"Shhhh." She put a finger to his lips, before trailing down. "Be.... ready."

There it was. Orange, but not the right shade. One hand against it, not yet grasping.... her eyes widened, following the trail through the air.

"Enough of this. Your diversion was interesting, but I have places to be." Winter Lights stood, taking Indigo's hand, and beginning to unweave---

--and Tree Hugger snagged the faint orange trail, jerking it toward her.

Winter reformed with a stumble, looking around in shock. "What--?! You!" She surged forward, claws of ice forming on her fingers as she growled. "You DARE reweave a princess!"

The sharp clarity sliced off one of her dreads as she leaned left, just barely keeping her face unmarred. "I bring balance and transformation. You are unbalanced, and shall be transformed."

"Let go of mistress!" Indigo lunged forward--and fell as Fluttershy grabbed her ankle. "Ow! Hey!"

"Seabreeze, help her!"

"Aye lass!" The fairy flittered over, dodging Winter's wild swing and raising a column of earth to ensnare her wrist.

Zephyr stepped forward, but Tree Hugger held him back with a hand. "Stay still... I need you still."

"What? Why?"

She rolled her eyes. "After this you and I are going to have a long talk."

Winter Lights snarled as her other hand was snatched by a twisting spiral of soil. The fairy buzzed around her, giving Tree Hugger a look. "Whatever ye have planned, lass, do it quick!"

The soil beneath her feet wrapped around her ankles; her grip on the orange light tightened, and with a twist she elicited a gasp of shock from both human and Fay. She reached out and snatched the two orange bundles, jamming them quickly into their original hosts; the boy stumbled back, letting her grasp the light of winter with both hands.

"Ram heee, lam-vam hee, hee om-ham-yam, heeeeeeeeeee!"

Each bundle was forced, protesting, into its place. The light that flowed between them tangled and untangled, glitters suddenly bound in solid form. Soil and clay crawled all along the struggling visage, flashes and sparks lighting in sudden transition.

With a final primal scream, an explosion of brightness shone through the trees.

---

"Oh thank Sunset! You're alive!"

Indigo Zap seemed frozen, arms pinned to her sides as she took in the half-relieved, half-amused smiles on the faces of her fellow Shadowbolts. "...I am, yes. Sour Sweet, what are you--?"

Her assailant released her and delivered a powerful slap to her face. "What the FUCK were you thinking, trying to go so fast?! We looked everywhere and beyond, and--and we thought--I thought you were--" Tears came fast and hard, even as she gave a frustrated scream.

"Easy, Sour. She's probably been through a lot." Sunny Flare put a gentle hand on the girl's shoulder. "The important thing is she's home now, and we can help her readjust."

"Right. Right." Sour sniffed, choking back an angry sob. "I'm sorry, I just... she's back, and she's safe, and I thought I'd take this better but, but it's all coming at once-- I don't know, maybe I need to adjust my dosage or something--"

Lemon stepped forward with a chuckle. "Nah, trust me, your emotions are totally normal." She wrapped Indigo in a tight embrace. "Welcome back, you crazy sky goddess. If you ever pull another stunt like this, I'll sic uncle Dissy on your ass."

Indigo managed a weak chuckle. "That's... not going to be necessary. I learned I wasn't the hot stuff I thought I was very soon after mistress found me."

An awkward silence descended on the gathered teens.

Lemon Zest pulled back from the hug. "...Um, who is mistress, exactly?"

"She is... she's the most glorious being I have ever met." Indigo sighed. "She saved me and... I was blessed to serve her."

"Sounds like an extreme case of stockholm syndrome," Sugarcoat deadpanned.

Indigo glared at her. "I'm not delusional anymore."

"Easy, easy." Lemon stepped between them. "We don't know the details. We're just worried about you, and we want to explore all the possibilities just to make sure you're okay. And you know Sugarcoat's very... blunt when she's nervous."

"Which is always," Moondancer pointed out.

Sugarcoat rolled her eyes. "I concede the point. I just want to make sure you're okay mentally, as well as physically."

Indigo took a breath. "I'll be okay. I know calling her mistress is... kind of a warning sign. It's just... she really did save me, and she really did care for me. Alright? No matter what else she did, that much was real."

She took in the concerned looks of the others, and held up her hands. "Look, I'll see a therapist if that makes you all more comfortable. I promise. Let's just talk about something else for now, okay? What did I miss?"

"Well, Sugarcoat and Moondancer started dating," Sour Sweet mused. "And Sunny Flare and Lemon Zest are 'Definitely Not Dating,' even though they decided to learn a new language from that fish girl Discord found--oh, she's found her sisters and they started a news program about magic."

"And there are the angst monsters," Moondancer pointed out. "And that sect of Shimmerism that Lemon joined turned into a whole big thing when they started to save people from them. I think they're considering starting up a school or something like that."

"Also there was that musical thing, you remember that?" Lemon grinned. "Yeah, us and the Rainbooms made a whole music video, got a ride on a yacht. I mean people accused the judges of trying to appease Sunset by letting us win, but she pointed out that she didn't participate and at this point she could get a yacht anyway..."

Indigo nodded and listened and, occasionally, laughed with the others. And in the privacy of her mind, she wondered how her mistress was faring.

---

“...So what’s the verdict?”

Twilight adjusted her glasses. “Well... genetically, she’s human. I mean there’s a few mutations, the four fingers, the height, the pointed ears, I’m pretty sure she’s lactose intolerant, but strictly speaking she’s now a member of our species.” She tapped her clipboard with a pen. “Mentally, she’s... not responding to us. I don’t know if there are any empaths in the church, so I can’t say whether it’s an actual trauma or if she’s just faking being so... out of it.”

“And... magically?” Sunset asked.

“...She has human magic. No equestrian aspects, just pure earth-side magic.” She glanced up from the paper. “I don’t need to tell you what that means, do I?”

Sunset shook her head, looking through the observation window at the woman who was lying on her bed, breathing. “You’re sure of that. You didn’t detect anything else?”

Twilight bit her lip. “Not... officially. I mean when I turned on the scanner there was a... well, you know how sometimes in old movies the film wouldn’t be aligned right, so there’s a small jolt? That happened, but with high end technology.” She glanced through the window. “Even if she does have other magic, though, it’d be very... minimal. I’m more worried about the access to raw Earth magic then... whatever else she has.”

Sunset shut her eyes, a faint glow forming behind them--and Winter Light started twitching, thin gasps of pain escaping her lips. As soon as the light died off, she stopped, taking deep and gasping breaths.

“...What did you just do?”

“I just tried to look at her!” Sunset protested. “Just to make sure she wasn’t hiding anything!”

Twilight quirked a brow.

Sunset sighed. “Really, that’s all I did. I don’t know why she reacted like that--”

“She’s in the wrong form.”

The two of them turned to the speaker, who didn’t even look at them.

“Say again?”

“She’s trapped in the wrong body.” Tree Hugger simply looked through the window. “She’s caged. It’s all... new. She can feel any magic, and even the lightest look of a god--”

“I’m not a--”

“--is enough for her to try to escape her form. Like she used to be able to.” Tree Hugger shook her head. “This... this is a slow and methodical torture for her. She may as well be rotting alive.”

Twilight took a breath. “You... did what you needed to do to save the world. You’re a hero--”

“No I’m not.” Tree Hugger didn’t even look at her. “I violated her basic self and turned her into something else.”

“Tree--”

“Award me no accolades, grant me no praises. This is a crime, and...” The girl sighed, turning away. “And I’ll have to live with it.” She walked away, shoulders slumped.

Twilight tried to walk after her, but Sunset grabbed her shoulder. “Let her go.”

“She’s beating herself up over nothing!”

“She’s beating herself up over her beliefs. And, unfortunately, I can’t change what people believe.” Sunset’s humorless grin was wry. “Well, not without violating my own sense of ethics.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Yes, well, I’m not you.” She paused. “...although, I suppose Tree Hugger wouldn’t be receptive to my arguments at this time... I’ll leave it be, for now.”

"Yeah, probably for the best... I'll talk to Fluttershy, see if she can get through to her... well, after she gets Zephyr settled back in anyway." Sunset massaged her brow. "What a mess. I should have noticed something much sooner."

"The Fay have been hiding from mortals and gods for... basically forever. It's not your fault."

"Doesn't mean I don't feel guilty."

Twilight nodded, conceding the point. Then, awkwardly, she cleared her throat. "So... how is Zephyr doing anyway?"

"...Fluttershy says he's coping, but... this rattled him. Really." Sunset sighed. "I can only hope she can help him."

---

Fluttershy leaned on the doorframe, watching as her brother slowly rolled his icon pin in his fingers.

"...so what happens now?"

She shrugged. "Seabreeze is helping Sunset negotiate with the Fay. Apparently, Winter had fooled them into thinking we were going to invade, but some guy she'd trapped ended up revealing the whole thing. They like that, it's very story-like, and stories are important to them..."

"And... what's going on with Winter?"

"She...." Fluttershy bit her lip. "She's being held in a Shimmerist church for now. Sunset kind of wants to make sure she won't try anything, but, um... she's been nonresponsive. Awake, still there, just not... acting."

Zephyr nodded, still looking at the pin in his hands.

"...you know, I thought... for a while there... that she actually cared. I mean, not like she loved me or anything, I'm not stupid, but it was like.... like maybe she thought I could be something." He sighed. "And she used me."

Fluttershy pushed herself off the doorframe and gently sat down on the bed next to him. "I... I really am sorry, Zephyr. That sort of person... the one that sees others as pawns and playthings, well, they're always going to exist."

"It wasn't like that, though. She didn't even... I mean, if Winter Lights had convinced me to sell drugs or rob a store or something, that would be one thing, but she only wanted the pact. She didn't even respect me enough to use me that way, she just... I was some sort of trophy to her."

"Like a pet?"

Zephyr snorted. "No, that was the girl. Indigo, right?"

"Yeah." Fluttershy bit her lip. "The Shadowbolts say she's doing... mostly okay, but...."

"...but she's still worshiping Winter." He looked down at the icon pin. "I just... I don't know. I thought we had something. Maybe I still do."

The room was silent for a moment.

Fluttershy wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "Zephyr... whatever happened with you and Winter... maybe you won't ever get an answer and you'll be wondering about it for the rest of your life. But that doesn't mean the rest of your life doesn't deserve to be lived."

"Yeah. I guess." With a deep breath, he put the pin on his cuff. "So... thanks, though. For going after me, even after I screwed up with the tree thing."

Fluttershy chuckled. "Hey, I'm your big sis. It's what I do." Her face grew serious. "But that doesn't mean I'm going back to doing your laundry, you got it?"

"Haha, no. No, I think... I think I can handle that much."

Author's Note:

With crafty hands and handy crafts all through the darkest glen
Beware the power of Autumn and fear the little men.

Comments

[Malandy]

Oh.... It's still not Complete? That's interesting... What's gonna happen next chapter, I wonder...

Fluttershy's ploy. I didn't expect that...

Polymorphs, even when used for good... Are still Polymorphs...

Trophies and Pets are different, true. You don't expect a trophy to do anything other than look nice. A pet, however, you expect to play with and stuff...

"But that doesn't mean I'm going back to doing your laundry, you got it?"

A little bit of levity is good.

Typo:

stockholm syndrome

Usually that's capitalized on both words?

[PhycoKrusk]

You have to be careful with your words when faeries are involved.

Even and especially when you are the faerie.

[Prawo Jazdy]

8234694
I also noticed it doesn't look like a horse pun.
Also also, should "object" be singular when it appears in Tree Hugger's part?
Also also also, did Fluttershy get anyone or anything into the human world when she sprung her trap? That was a little unclear, at least for me.
*proceeds to last chapter*

[mastermenthe]

What wonder the Fae may be, the Sun shines e'er more brightly.

[Jordan179]

Awesome working of the faerie myths into Equestria Girls.