Shoot. Let's Be Santa.

by RunicTreetops

Rainbow Dash's Blizzard Blitz

You lay flat on your back, the cold grass beneath you offering little comfort. However, anything is better than the veritable marathon you just ran to escape those yaks. How in the world you made it all the way back to Ponyville is beyond you.

You stare at the gray sky above as your poor, aching lungs do their best to manage your intake of the cold air. In a way, it’s almost soothing. Or maybe that’s just the adrenaline finally wearing off.

After a few moments, however, your view is suddenly blocked by the dark outline of somepony standing above you. You narrow your eyes and attempt to raise a hand into the air, but your exhaustion won’t let you.

“You okay there, dude?”

You’d recognize that voice anywhere. How lucky that it’s the mare you were supposed to meet up with next.

“Hey, Rainbow Dash.”

“You look like you want to die.”

“I think I almost did.” You struggle to sit upright. After failing a couple of times, Dash grabs your arms and helps pull you up. “Thanks.”

“What happened to you?”

“Pinkie Pie. Yaks. Snilldar Fest. Long story.”

“Dude.” Rainbow Dash takes a seat next to you, her curious face slowly morphing into a grin as she starts to laugh. “If I weren’t about to start the Blizzard Blitz, I’d want to know all about it.”

“Maybe another time, then.” You smile as you finally regain your bearings. Looking around, you appear to be near the outskirts of the Everfree Forest. You don’t remember trying to run here specifically, so it’s fortunate that it’s where you ended up regardless. “Speaking of, I know you asked me to be your ‘spotter,’ but what does that really mean? I haven’t had a lot of time to look into this competition of yours.”

“Luckily for you, it’s not too complicated. See, every other Hearth’s Warming Eve, pegasi from across Equestria gather at the Everfree Forest. Since we can’t control the weather in there, it tends to get really, really cold. Sometimes there's even a blizzard going on! So, thrill-seeking competitors like yours truly race from one end of the forest to the other through the freezing conditions to see who is the Blizzard Blitz champion!”

“Okay…” You mumble to yourself as you attempt to stand up fully. You stumble a bit, causing Dash to jump to her hooves and help you up again. “Thanks.” You clear your throat. “Anyway, where do I come in?”

“Ehehe…” She awkwardly rubs at the back of her head as her eyes drift to the side. “To be honest, you don’t really do much.” She locks eyes with you again and gives you a sheepish grin. “Since our flying conditions might be dangerous and it’s unreasonable to expect there to be staff all across the Everfree, every competitor is supposed to have a spotter. That way, if a certain flier gets lost or injured or whatever, there is someone there to notice.”

“Wait, so I have to help you if something bad happens?”

“Well ideally you’d tell the rest of the staff too and they’d send a search party out. S-still, it’s just a formality! Nopony has ever actually gotten lost or hurt during the race, especially not me.”

“Now don’t get me wrong, I’m happy to help out. But… why did you ask for me specifically?”

“Usually I have Twilight do it, but she already left for the Crystal Empire.”

“Ah. Right.”

“Anyway, the race starts in half an hour. Are you ready?”

“Oh, shouldn’t I be on the far side of the forest?”

“Nope! That’s the starting line! You’re gonna stand right over there!”

She points behind you, causing you to turn around. Sure enough, there’s a group of warmly dressed ponies gathered a few hundred feet away beneath a large, makeshift archway.

“Huh. Neat.”

“By the by, mind keeping my time for me?”

Dash slips a stopwatch into your hands and gives you a grin. You can’t help but smile back. Something about her cocky demeanor is infectious.

“Sure thing.”

“The staff will let you know when the race starts.” With a kick of her legs, Dash shoots about ten feet into the air. “I’ll see you at the finish line!”

“Good luck!”

You wave to her as she flies off into the distance. Knowing her, she’ll win that race with ease. You probably don’t even need to be here, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.

---

“And that’s Shutter Flash finishing in first place!”

There’s a roar of cheers from the relatively small crowd around you. Sure enough, a pegasus mare just flew through the large archway at breakneck speeds. You turn back towards the Everfree Forest just in time to see three more pegasi come barrelling across the finish line.

That’s… concerning. Rainbow Dash is the fastest flier around. Everyone knows that. There’s no way she would just lose a race like this, right?

For a moment, you feel your nerves begin to flare up. Did something happen to her after all? Just as you consider walking over to the staff, you stop yourself. No, no. Dash is a strong mare. She’s more than capable of taking care of herself. Maybe she’s just having a rough go of it.

And yet, as the seconds turn to minutes and more and more competitors cross the finish line, you find yourself becoming increasingly worried. Where is she? She should be here by now, right?

You glance down at the stopwatch. Her best time was five minutes ago. For a racer, that’s basically an eternity. Turning towards the small scoreboard, you notice that a small mare is rearranging the names based on how they placed. As of now, only two fliers haven’t finished yet.

“And here’s Stormy Night coming in hot!”

…One competitor.

Oh no.

---

“DAAAASH!”

You call out desperately into the frigid air. You and the rest of the staff have now entered the Everfree Forest, the most dangerous place in Equestria. However, as the finished racers had warned you about, a blizzard has indeed been ravaging the deeper parts of the forest.

Visibility is low. To say that it’s cold would be an understatement. Even Yakyakistan has nothing on this. If you aren’t careful, you might never make it back out. Two mares walk alongside you, each assisting in calling for your lost friend.

The rest of the rescue team split off in an attempt to cover more ground. Staying in groups ensures that no one member gets lost, but having multiple groups is more effective considering how huge the Everfree is.

The three of you continue your search for what feels like an eternity, though whether that’s due to your nerves or the bitter cold, you’re not sure.

Suddenly, you trip over something. You roll over onto your back to see what caught your foot, expecting to see yet another tree root or something. However, what you find instead is the cold, light-blue form of Rainbow Dash, her body half-covered in snow.

“Dash!”

---

“..non… Anon!”

“H-huh?!”

Your eyes shoot open as you suddenly wake up. Standing in front of you is the unmistakable form of Applejack. She has removed her hat and is holding it over her chest as she looks as you with concern.

“And what about you? Ya alright?”

“Am I… ugh, I’m drowsy. Where am I?”

“You’re at the hospital, sugarcube. Ya carried Dash all the way here in a blizzard.”

You rub your eyes and try to take in your surroundings. Sure enough, you appear to be sitting in a small chair next to a window in a hospital room. Sitting in the bed behind Applejack is Rainbow Dash, who seems to be fully conscious. She looks at you with tired eyes, her expression apologetic.

“Dash? Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah, I’m gonna be fine.” You notice that she’s being kept extremely comfortable in that bed. “They said it’s nothing short of a miracle that I didn’t get frostbite or something.”

“What happened to you out there?”

“I don’t really know. One moment I thought everything was going fine, the next I woke up in… well, in your arms.” You notice a blush make its way to her face as she looks away from you. “Th-thanks for that.”

After staring at her for a few moments, you chuckle.

“That’s what the spotter is supposed to do, right?”

“W-well, yeah, I’m just a bit mad that I had to be the pony getting rescued. Ugh, the other Wonderbolts aren’t going to let me live this down.”

“Now that’s enough of that, Dash.” Applejack trots up to Rainbow Dash’s side with a stern look on her face. “Accidents happen sometimes, and we’re just happy you’re alive. You should be, too. This could have ended much differently.”

After a moment, Dash sighs.

“Yeah.” Beneath her breath, she mumbles. “Yeah.”

“Anyhoo, they said they were lettin’ you out later tonight, right?”

“That’s what they told me after I woke up.”

“Then mind if I grab Anon and head out? We’ve got some business of our own we need to take care of while we’ve still got daylight.”

“Sure, go ahead.” Rainbow Dash reclines in her bed. She’s gotten strangely used to getting hospitalized. “My parents are coming to Ponyville for the holidays, so it’s not like I’m gonna be late for Hearth’s Warming or anything.”

“Well, if you say so. Are ya ready, Anon? That whole rescue mission looks like it took a lot out of ya.”

“I’m good,” you groan as you stand from your seat. “It’s been a long day, and I have a feeling it’s far from over.”

“Well, hopefully I don’t make things worse for ya.”

“Somehow, I doubt that you could if you tried.”