The Adventures of Frosty Hearth

by Lightbuster30

Chapter 2

Mornings. Frosty wasn't the biggest fan of mornings. Why not just stay in his comfy bed? He was still groggy and half-asleep, yet the Sun shone through his window forcing him to stir.

"Hmm, turn the light off..." Grabbing his covers and covering his face with them. This only made it harder to sleep as the heat of the light added to the blanket. After a few minutes of twisting and trying to get comfortable, he relented and got up, trudging out of bed like a zombie.

"Ugh, fine." Blinking the crust out of his eyes. At least it was the weekend. "What time is it again? Oh, right." Looking at the clock. "7. I need some water..." Making his way into the kitchen and grabbing a glass of water. "Nice and cold." Just what he needed for a case of morning dry mouth. "Wonder what Mom's doing?" Making his way over to Moon's room, he noticed it was already cracked open. Usually, that meant he didn't need to knock, but he gently called her name anyway, just in case. "M-mom?"

She responded in a welcoming tone and he walked in. "Frosty, up a little early are we?"

"Heh, yeah, couldn't stay asleep with the Sun on my face." He looked over to the side and saw she had a satchel out, full of empty jars. Looked like she was going somewhere. Curiosity piqued him, he knew she'd leave for several hours on weekends, but never really gave it much thought until now. "Hey um, Mom, what are you doing?" Pointing at the equipment.

"Just preparing for a small trip love."

"Oh, well what sort of trip?"

"Resupplies of course. For the medical plants and mushrooms I sell."

Figured as much, but he still didn't know where she got everything. "Yeah, that's the thing. Where do you get all the supplies from?"

Moon gave a short smile. "I'd say it's roughly an hour or 2 of trotting, up near a cave system. That part of the region is full of remedial herbs."

Frosty's ears perked up. "C-cave system? Really?"

Moon seemed to pick up on his interest. "Of course, it's quite plentiful. Is somepony interested in a little trip?"

Explore a dark, scary, creepy cave? That sounded... kinda cool. Frosty never really knew life outside of town, and the idea of going outside of town for once came off exciting. "Yeah, that sounds great! Can I really go with you?"

"If you really want to then by all means, I could use the company. But you should pack things for yourself first. We'll be there for a long time" She instructed while packing up her supplies, and putting the jars away into the satchel.

"O-ok, I'll be back!" He dashed off back to his room to start preparing. "Oh boy, I can't believe this! I'm actually leaving town! Just for a bit, but still!" It wasn't a lot, just some water, snacks, and leftovers from last night for lunch. By the time he was done, his Mom was already waiting near the door, notably wearing heavier clothing.

"It's gotten much colder these past couple days. Are you sure you don't want to wear something for the cold?"

"Who? Me? Nah, it's fine Mom. I can't get enough of this weather." Frosty never really bothered wearing anything for warmth during his life despite the colder climate. Cold just wasn't an issue for him, and if anything, it seemed to make him more energetic.

Moon playfully rolled her eyes and smiled. Just like his father. "Well love," pulling him into a hug, "I think it's time we get going. We have got a long day ahead of us." And she opened the door, letting a burst of cold out, prompting a small wince while Frosty happily embraced it. There weren't many ponies up and about early in the morning, so he didn't have to worry about getting looks. They'd probably be hesitant to do so around his mother anyway.

As they walked out the edges of town, Frosty's mind was swimming with thoughts. What would he see outside, or in the cave? Who knew what he'd find, but right now, as the first hour of walking passed by he only knew his hooves were getting a bit sore. Didn't help he had a pack on his side. And the longer they kept pace the more he took notice as the snow blanket gave way to patches of exposed ground and small plants. The temperature was also increasing. Far from warm and still freezing, but evidently not cold enough to maintain snow.

"Mom, I thought we lived in a snowy part of the region, in the North?"

"We do love, but our little town is located right at the edge where snow becomes common. A bit of walking South and you'll see less snow." Frosty's eyes were excitedly darting everywhere trying to take in the sights. The greens of the plants were a sharp contrast to the white snow he'd often see.

"Say, we're almost there, love. I'd say it's just 15 minutes now. How would you feel about a short little race?" Playfully nudging him.

"A-a race? Alright then! You're on!" And they broke into a gallop. Frosty wasn't the most athletic pony, but it was a thrill to run and feel the wind through his mane and face. He actually managed to keep pace with his mom; if only because she paced herself for him, and even overtook her in the once or twice. "Hah... almost there!" He panted, pushing his little legs to gallop even faster. She mentioned a cave, I think I see something like that coming up. C'mon! Faster! Fast- Unfortunately, he found himself tripping over his own hooves over how fast he was trying to go. "OH JEEZ!"

Rather than his inevitable faceplant, Frosty felt nothing. In fact, it felt like he was in the air. He opened his eyes to find exactly that, with a familiar teal aura wrapped around him. "I got you Frosty." Hovering him over to offer a comforting nuzzle.

"Phew, thanks Mom." Wiping off the sweat from his face while he panted from running so hard.

"It's alright little one. As long as I am here, you're safe. I'm just glad you're not hurt."

"Yeah, I am too. Thanks again. It was fun until... you know..."

"Good to know you had fun, as long as you're careful. And would you look at that, we're already here." Looking up he saw they had already reached their destination, as a large cave entrance awaited them. The hanging rocks near the entrance almost gave it a maw-like appearance. "This is the main entrance, but most of the materials I'm looking for are found much deeper than that. Some of the tunnels form unbelievably long mazelike networks. So, I want you to stick close to me and try not to stray unless I say otherwise."

'Y-yeah, ok. It's... it's not going to collapse or anything is it? Looks awfully dark in there..."

"Don't worry, they're quite sturdy. I've been collecting from these caves for years. It takes a lot to loosen these rocks." She offered a comforting hoof to hold. "So, ready to go in?"

He moved to hold it and then held his hoof back, staring into the cave as the light slowly gave way to darkness, and then to Moon, with a smile on her face, before grabbing her hoof. "Ok, Mom. Ready." And they walked into the cave. It was a bit scary at first as they passed underneath the entrance, but he felt comforted by his mom being there. Their steps seemed to slightly echo through the cave. The ground was uneven and he had to be careful not to trip.

As it got darker, he tried flicking his horn on like a light to guide the way, even he couldn't mess up a simple flashlight spell. Of course, his flickered a lot and it wasn't too bright, but it still did the job well enough. Moon took notice and turned hers on as well. "Oh, I'm sorry Frosty. I've never had company in these caves, and I've never really had to use this spell."

"You... you don't need a light to see?"

"A clear, sharp, mind is the only guide I need to navigate the dark. I have been here many times. I know my way around almost every nook and cranny."

Frosty wanted to ask another question until a sudden movement startled him. *SQUEAK* *SQUEAK* "Oh jeez!" The sudden noise and flapping motions caused him to rear up.

"It's okay, it's okay, it's just a bat." She spoke soothingly, letting the creature land on her. "Hello there, little one." Eyeing the creature.

"Just a bat, Mom?" He panted.

"They're friendly, Frosty. I've known them for a long time."

"You have?" Flinching a little bit as the creature flew in front of his face. "U-um h-hi." It almost seemed to smile at him before flying off.

"Of course they are. That one I've known for the past 5 years. I recognize her by the nibbled right ear."

"Come to think of it, how can these caves support mammals and plant life anyway?"

"I wouldn't know myself Frosty, I'm not a geologist. Maybe there's a pocket of magma deep down warming the caves up."

"I guess it's not freezing cold anymore. Maybe-wait. Do you hear that? Mom, that sounds like water up ahead, is that a stream?"

"That's a sign we're getting close. Should be just a couple more bends... hmm, go through this tunnel, to the right. The ones to the left are dead ends." Sure enough, the water got louder, and after a minute of walking, they entered a large chamber with 6 different tunnels. In the middle was a small stream that ran through the middle. Sunlight seemed to pour through a large crack in the ceiling, illuminating the area. There seemed to be a couple of mosses and small plants.

Frosty's eyes widened at the sight, and his mom simply smiled watching his awe. He even went so far as to dip a hoof in the water, before his eyes wandered towards a cluster of mushrooms. "H-hey, Mom did you want me to maybe grab some things here too? Help you out? I think I recognize a few things. We could maybe split off and cover twice the area." As much as he liked being around his mom, the place actually wasn't all that bad once he got used to it, and he did get the urge to break off and explore a bit.

"Antsy to look around by yourself hmm? I see that glint in your eyes. Ok, fine, these caves are pretty safe as long as you're careful. There've never been any dangerous animals hanging around. But first see that tunnel farthest to the right? On a higher elevation? Don't enter that one. And not the one on the middle left either. Those tunnels have incredibly large complexes that seem to go on forever. The other tunnels are easy to find your way out of. You'd have to try to get lost in those."

"Okay, alright. No far right and middle left got it. Anything else?"

"If you want to start looking, I'd suggest the middle right tunnel. I'll go to the far left. If you're uncertain of anything, just go back to the central chamber and wait for me there."

"Yeah, ok, will do Mom. Love you." Giving her a hug, which she returned.

"Love you too little one." Before walking away, she lit up her horn and briefly enveloped Frosty in an aura. "A little something so I know where you are."

"Got it, Mom! I'll see you in a little bit." He walked away towards his tunnel, stopping briefly to look at the mushroom patch, and then putting some in his bag. "I think she mentioned these once. They're anti-inflammatory if I recall." Walking further down the tunnel, he came across some larger mushrooms on the walls with red and white speckled caps. "Bingo! This is something she can use, right? She mentioned she was running out."

Walking further down the tunnel, he came across some larger mushrooms on the walls with red and white speckled caps. "Bingo! This is something she can use, right? She mentioned she was running out." He didn't need a light spell for this part of the cave, with little beams of light coming in through smaller cracks. Little plants would sometimes grow in these parts, absorbing the Sunlight. Even though his Mom said there were no dangerous animals here, it still felt creepy, like there was no telling what was around the next corner.

But then, maybe that's what attracted him. Life felt so boring when you're unable to use your magic, living in the same town with the same sights. It was a different emotion, a different place, and Frosty; unnerved though he was, secretly enjoyed that nervousness. After an hour and a half of searching and gathering, he went back to the central area. What he had collected so far should be enough. "Hmm, don't see her. Guess she's still gathering things." His stomach growled and he realized he was hungry, and sore from so much walking. "Welp, I suppose now's as good a time as any for a bite."

Opening his bag and pulling out the sandwich he prepared earlier. His eyes drifted back up at the Sunlight shining down as he ate. He looked around the room, taking it all in again. "Gorgeous place." He told himself, taking another bite. He sat there, dipping his lower hooves in the water while he ate. There was little more than a slice of squash left when he was done. He moved to finish it before hearing a familiar squeaking and flapping.

Frosty was a little nervous about the creature, but then recognized something about it. "O-oh hey, it's you, with the nibbled ear. Guessing you're hungry? Bats eat squash right?" Pulling the remaining slice and tossing it. The bat didn't waste time diving into it and swallowing it whole. "Guess that answers that question." He said as it nuzzled him and rested on him. "Heh, y-you know, you're kinda cute when you're not startling me."

A noise caught his attention, falling pebbles and dirt from the upper right area. Frosty instantly looked up and caught a glimpse of a pony-shaped shadow, making him jolt. "Woah! W-what the-what was that?"

"Frosty." A voice whispered up above, sounding exactly like Moon. "Up here."

"M-mom? W-wait a minute, I thought you said not. to go up there?"

"Come here." Frosty was unsure if it really was his Mom or not, and her tone of voice was very off-putting. She'd never sounded so quiet before, as if she were avoiding something.

"But I thought-"

"I said come, Frosty. I need you to do as you're told." She whispered to him.

"But... what if something goes wrong? What if-"

"I know what I said before. That's why it's important you listen to me in the now."

He could tell she was trying to stay quiet. Whatever the reason, it was clear she needed him up there, and fast. "O-okay. I'll be there." He scrambled up to the cave, slipping as he dislodged a few unstable rocks, and saw a silhouette of his mother.

"Here, here!" And she burst to the left.

"Mom, wait up!"

He followed, chasing after her, almost slipping on the uneven floor in the process. While he tried to keep pace, she rushed through the caves. He was starting to get antsy. What was she running from? This wasn't like her. "W-where are we going, Mom? Hey, Mo-OOF! OH! AGH!" In his fear, he stumbled over a rock and slid down a small slope, landing in a dark room.

"Oh, my head..." Rubbing it with his hoof. He wasn't too hurt, just disoriented. "Where are we?" He didn't get an answer, just pure silence. "M-mom? A-are you still there?" His heart dropped when he saw no signs of his Mom.

"MOM, WHERE ARE YOU?!" His breathing became frantic as he fumbled around in the dark. "Dark... TOO DARK! I NEED TO SEE!" And he flicked on a light spell. His panic made it much brighter if still flickering. "*GASP* W-w-what. In Equestria. Is that?!"

Standing in front of him was a giant block of ice that seemed to stretch toward the ceiling, but it was what was inside that shocked him. A long, slender, lung dragon lay encased in the ice, and Frosty had gotten a faceful of it's open maw. It looked ferocious, seemingly roaring and it's claws appeared to be swiping at something, but its movements were frozen in place.

Its scales were a Crimson red with a golden snout and underbelly, with deep blue eyes. On it's head were 2 small horns, deep brown in coloration, nestled in a golden mane on his head. From the side of it's face were a pair of long flowing whiskers, and a small goatee, both gold in coloration. A majestic; if not terrifying, sight.

"WHAT... IS... THIS?" He blurt out in shock. In an attempt to run away, his flailing head flashed his light onto a sleeping hoard of bats on the side of a wall, startling them. The entire swarm burst awake, flying past him in a panic. "Ugh, hey! H-help, what the-hey! HELP!" *ZAP* Frosty was already on edge being lost and alone with a frozen beast, and when he suddenly had a faceful of loud squeaking flying by he went into full panic mode and his magic surged, blasting the ice statue, bouncing off, and hitting the ceiling above him.

The rocks above suddenly started rumbling and crumbling with a sound that thrummed into Frosty's very bones. His brain short-circuited in raw terror and he stood there paralyzed as the ceiling crumbled around him. "FROSTY!" Before the rock could crash into him, his mother appeared as if from nowhere and tackled him away from the falling rubble. The falling rocks narrowly missed her head and legs, as she held Frosty protectively.

The resulting crash was like a loud boom as the loose rocks collided with the floor, and the shake they felt was just as bad, rocking them both. Only when it was over did Moon stop covering him. "Frosty, are you hurt?! Are you alright?" Frosty kept his face buried into her coat, crying and hyperventilating.

"M-mom, I was, I-I was, I couldn't find you, I-I thought-"

"Shhhhh, shhhh, shhhhh. It's okay, I'm here." Gently stroking his head and hugging him tightly.

"I-I didn't think I'd find you." He choked between sobs. "Y-you ran off a-a-and I tripped a-and there was this dragon and bats and I caused a cave in Mom!"

"I... ran off? Frosty, I was walking back from my tunnel when I felt your magic suddenly spike. When I teleported to you, I saw a pile of rocks about to bury you, but I never brought you to... wherever this section is."

"Wha-what? B-but it was you! Your shape, your voice. What do you mean it wasn't you?"

Her eyes went to pinpricks for a moment and she searched around, jolting at the sight of the frozen dragon, which had been hit by rubble too, then looked back to Frosty alarmed. "Frosty I wasn't anywhere near wherever you went. Now, look at me. You're saying something looked like me, sounded like me and led you... here?"

Frosty finally gathered his senses together, though he was still sniffing. "Y-yeah. She looked and sounded just like you. What are you talking about Mom?"

"By Celestia... these caves have never had anyone but me before." She muttered to herself.

"U-um... Mom?"

"We need to go. Now." She spoke sternly.

"G-go where? This is one of the bad caves."

"We're teleporting Frosty. Grab your bag and do it now! Whatever's in here I'm not keeping you in with it!" He worriedly did as he was told and stood next to her as a burst of energy took them to the entrance. Teleporting was surreal. Here one place, then another. He never experienced it before.

Frosty looked at her confused as he clutched the bag. "Mom... are you alright?"

"Yes. I think we should... head back to the town for now. Come on." She took his hoof in hers as they started walking back. "Frosty, I am so sorry this happened. I never should have taken you with me."

"What? N-no, no. You couldn't have known about... whatever that was." Truth be told, despite everything, the adrenaline of it all was... exhilarating. It was something straight out of an adventure! "I had fun until it got serious Mom, honest!"

"That doesn't matter! No matter how safe I thought that place was, I should've known better."

"Mom... you know it's not-" He tried consoling her, but she brushed it off.

"No. I think... I think next time I'll see if somepony can watch you at home like I always do. I-I'm glad you're okay after this ordeal. Really, I am. I knew you wanted to explore and wanted to make you happy, but as a mother, I should've been more cautious. Let's just go home. We can discuss it later."

The walk home was mostly silent from then on, but the sight of that dragon kept swirling around in Frosty's head. What was that thing? What was it doing in a cave? Why was it frozen, and above all else: Why did that thing lead him to it? "H-hey, Mom?"

"Hmm?"

"You... you saw that dragon right? I feel like... like something; maybe that thing, was trying to take me to it. Do you um, know anything about it?"

She thought about it for a second before responding. "I do in fact. That dragon nearly killed me 12 years ago. It was your father who froze it and imprisoned it within that very cave."

"He... he did? What did it do? What did he do?"

"He protected me of course. Me and your father used to live on the edge of town. I was in the basement making herbal remedies when all of a sudden, I felt the house shake."

Frosty's eyes went wide at this. "A-and what happened then Mom?"

"I rushed upstairs to find your father and heard a terrible roaring right as I reached the top. There was that dragon, roaring and flailing and spewing fire everywhere. I don't know if it saw me or not, but that thing launched a fireball that blew up the house and collapsed the basement roof. I managed to duck back into the basement and shield myself, but by Celestia if that fire wasn't intense. When Comet pulled me out, the dragon was frozen solid, and he sent it to the caves, wanting to keep other ponies and creatures from messing with it."

"W-wow... he... did all that? Dad was some kind of hero? What even made it attack?"

"I never found out, Comet was too upset to even speak of it. He said something about giving it time to cool down, but he... disappeared a month later." Her face winced for a moment once she got to that part.

"Heh, right that." Frosty's eyes lowered to the ground. "How could somepony so loving just leave?"

"Frosty, we've been over this, the note said it was important."

"More important than us?!"

"Frosty..." She walked closer to him, leaning in as they walked.

"I know I know Mom. It's just... I miss him. Oh, that's silly. How could I miss somepony I've never met?"

She turned his head towards her with a gentle hoof and smiled at him. "Because he's still your Dad Frosty, and I know how much he cares about us."

"I just want to know why. When you never grow up with him it's hard to feel how much he cares. I guess... if he protected you that has to count for something..."

She stroked his cheek with her hoof and then pulled him closer for a hug. "It does my little pony. It does." Frosty gave a small smile and curiosity began to pick up inside him.

"So Dad... h-he took down a dragon, right? Was he strong?"

Moon simply chuckled. "Strong? That stallion was a true powerhouse if I ever saw one. Comet Strike, a fitting name for him."

"Hey, yeah I figured! That frozen dragon wasn't even cracked by those rocks, or my magic. My ice has to be like paper compared to that statue!"

She giggled at this, nuzzling into his shoulder. "Oh my little pony. If he saw you right now he'd say: "You're looking stronger already!"

Frosty's face blushed, a proud smile stretching on it. "Me? Strong? Do you really think? But, my magic is nothing compared to his."

"You'll get there in time little one. In time." Frosty seriously doubted that, but he knew his mother didn't like that sort of talk. As they walked back home, Frosty's face was beaming. He had his first taste of adventure, danger, and even got to learn about his dad. As scary as the worst parts were, somehow... he craved more. This had to be the most exciting day of his life!

But while Frosty and his mother walked home, deep within the cave, the figure that had led Frosty to the dragon took on a different shape, and an illusion broke away, revealing a cloaked figure. "So, he wasn't strong enough to free the dragon by himself? I had hoped without her influence, Frosty would grow stronger. Evidently not." He stared up at the dragon with a single red eye. "The boy needs to be more powerful. Perhaps it's time somepony nudged Frosty... in the right direction."

Comments

[Twilightsonic75]

Interesting concept there.

[LoserkidUwU]

Hmm, bbeg identified.