Twilight dreams about a magical nutcracker doll come to life, and must try to help him escape an ancient curse that he has been subject to for several hundred years. But there's far more to it than simply breaking a curse...
It is Hearth's Warming Eve in Equestria, and the four princesses are having a private gift exchange for themselves. In what seems to be a spur of the moment decision, Princess Celestia gifts Twilight a nutcracker doll and tells her the Legend of the Nutcracker Prince, a story about a pegasus captain who was trapped in the form of a nutcracker doll.
Twilight initially dismisses such fanciful talk, but deep down, something about the story resonates with her. The doll intrigues her far more than a simple toy should, but when she falls asleep that Hearth's Warming Eve night, she awakens to find herself face to face with the very being she believed wasn't real, and now she must help him escape the curse. But there is far more to breaking the curse than she originally thought. But with this knowledge in mind, can she save the cursed stallion and return him to Equestria?
The air was cold, the ground was covered in snow, and there was a general buzz of cheer among all the Canterlot folk. It was always this way whenever it came close to Hearth’s Warming, the celebration of the day in which the Fires of Friendship were created and Equestria began to form from the Three Tribes.
Everywhere you went, ponies were laughing, playing, taking part in the joy and festivities, and spreading it to others. Even the snobbish ponies, the Scrooges and the Grinches during the regular months alike, changed for those few weeks. Everypony took part in the festivities and got into the spirit of the holiday.
Everypony, that is, but one.
High in the towers of Canterlot Castle, in her personal chambers, the Diarch of the Sun herself stared out the window with a somber expression as she watched the ponies below laugh and play. She had never been happy around the time of Hearth’s Warming. Not even her own sister could remember a time in which it were the opposite.
Luna was the only one not fooled by the mask she wore. Twilight and Cadance both seemed fooled by it. They hadn’t questioned her about her somber mood. Not to her face, anyway. Perhaps they knew that something was off, that something was going on in the Princess’ life, but if they knew or suspected, they kept quiet.
This dreariness had only been intensified some fifteen years previously, and despite her lengthy absence, Princess Luna knew exactly why.
“Hmm,” Celestia hummed to herself as she watched the team of weather pegasi shape the clouds for a heavy snow storm that night. She was doing her best to get the mask back on, but it was tradition for the princesses to meet over Hearth’s Warming Week. With the storm tonight, they were going to be having a private get together, just the four of them. There would be a gift exchange, there would be fun, and there would be political discussion, because unfortunately duty was omnipresent.
“Your majesty,” came the voice of a guard behind her, “Princess Twilight and Princess Cadance have both arrived at the train station.”
“Thank you, lieutenant,” she said, nodding as she continued to stare outside the window. “You may return to your post.”
“Yes ma’am,” the guard said, presumably nodding and doing just that. Celestia didn’t know. She was still staring at the transparent reflection of her own room behind her.
“It has been one thousand, seven hundred and seven years,” she breathed, feeling her ears droop at the thought of such a long time. “Will this be the year?”
She asked the last line aloud. No one answered her. Sighing heavily, she turned and glanced toward a small wooden doll on her bedside table.
“Will it be tonight, Winter?” she strode over to it, and picked it up. “She comes again. What will happen when she lays her eyes upon you? Will you defeat him this year? Could this be the year?”
There came three knocks at her door, and she heard it creak open.
“Sister?” Luna’s voice asked.
“Sister,” acknowledged Celestia, looking over the silver doll, noting its piercing blue eyes that hadn’t dulled in centuries, its black and white-toned mane still in the same position as ever…
“You’ve been extra somber about it lately,” Luna noted, “and truth be told that is saying something.”
“And I am sure you know why, dear sister,” Celestia said, returning the doll to its spot on the nightstand and turning to face her younger sibling.
“You’re worried,” Luna said, staring past her, at the doll she had just replaced. “You believe it’s tonight.”
“I hope,” Celestia said, casting a forlorn glance behind her, “but my hope has been in vain these last many years.”
Luna’s gaze, which had been rather cold and calculating, softened. “Cheer up, Celly,” she said, walking forward and placing a reassuring hoof on her shoulder. “It will happen eventually.”
“How soon is eventually?” Celestia asked, to which Luna had no answer. They both turned and stared at the doll a while longer, before Luna removed her hoof from Celestia’s shoulder.
“If you must wear the mask, I would advise you prepare it,” she said, before trotting out of the room. “I will meet Twilight and Cadance and show them here. And sister, if you are so hopeful that something might happen, leave it out and don’t hide it somewhere. Take a leap of faith, for once.”
Celestia had reached out and had been about to do just that, to hide the doll where it wouldn’t be seen, only to stop at Luna’s command as her nocturnal sibling exited.
“Very well, sister,” Celestia said, sighing. “For you. I just hope you’re right.”
Twilight and Cadance were giggling excitedly, almost like they were getting up to childish mischief as they had when Cadance had been Twilight’s babysitter.
“So what did he say?” Twilight asked, eager for some juicy blackmail material for her brother.
“Oh, he totally fainted,” Cadance said, remembering Shining Armor’s reaction to seeing her in socks a couple of weeks ago, when she had planned on giving him a special surprise as his wife. “He just fell flat on his back, legs up, and I had to call the hoofmaidens to get me some smelling salts.”
“But still, you’re pregnant! I’m going to be an aunt!” Twilight squealed in delight, glancing back at Princess Cadance’s belly, where a slight but noticeable bulge protruded from her usually thin figure. “Have you thought of a name? What about the gender? Is it a colt? It’s a colt, isn’t it. It’s like some curse in my mother’s family that the firstborn is always a colt--”
“Twilight, please, we don’t know right now,” Cadance said, chuckling at her friend’s enthusiasm. “And we can’t just name a baby we don’t even know the appearance of. What if we wanted to call it ‘Sapphire,’ only for it to turn out to be red?”
“Sapphires can be--”
“No they can’t,” Cadance said, shaking her head. “We looked into it. Since sapphires and rubies are both corundum-based, if it’s red it’s a ruby.”
“Oh. I need to find the book that said otherwise. Wouldn’t want other ponies receiving such faulty information.”
“You know,” Cadance said, looking back at her younger friend as they trotted past the throne room, “you’re taking the knowledge that a book actually led you wrong rather well.”
Twilight grinned sheepishly. “I’m not the same mare that enchanted a Miss Smarty Pants doll with a ‘Want-It, Need-It” spell just because I needed to solve a friendship problem anymore.”
“No, you’re not,” Cadane leaned over and hugged the younger alicorn affectionately. “You’ve grown into a fine young mare. Maybe you might have a chance at picking up a stud as awesome as your brother, now.”
Twilight’s pupils shrunk, her ears flattened, and she recoiled almost immediately.
“Cadance... just… EW!”
Cadance rolled her eyes and bumped her younger counterpart with her wither.
“You know what I mean. So tell me,” she said, her tone going scandalously low, “is it or is it not true what they’re saying?”
“Well I don’t know,” Twilight said, cheeks still burning from the unpleasant imagery of her and her brother. “Who is ‘they’ and what are they saying?”
“Is it or is it not true,” Cadance said, a strange glimmer in her eyes, “that you have a crush on a certain orange pegasus who just so happens to be one of my personal guards?”
If Twilight’s face had been red before, it was nothing compared to how deep her blush got after Cadance implied she had a crush on Flash Sentry. And Cadance didn’t even need her alicorn-of-love hocus pocus to know the obvious answer.
“Aww, that’s s cuuuuute!” she positively squeed as Twilight’s wings unfurled and hid her face from view. “Princess Twilight, the Exemplar of the Magic of Friendship, has a crush on Flash Sentry!”
“Not so loud!” hissed Twilight at her old foalsitter, who stuck out her tongue teasingly, but ceased.
“Oh relax, Twilight. Having a crush on somepony isn’t the end of the world. In fact, it’s perfectly normal, even healthy for a mare your age to have a crush on somepony. Especially after all the time you spent cooped up in that library.”
“Which one?” Twilight asked, teeth clenched.
“Both of them. Should I count your new castle, too?”
Twilight just grumbled and hurried ahead of her elder fellow royal. Unfortunately for her, that was precisely where Princess Luna had chosen to make her dramatic teleportation entrance, and Twilight was blasted backward from the intensity of the magical energy.
“Gah!” she shrieked as she was thrown into Cadance, and both collapsed to the ground with two loud “Oof!”s.
“As your common pony friends say, ‘smooth,’” observed Princess Luna dryly while her younger two counterparts struggled to untangle the mass of limbs and fur that was the both of them.
“No thanks *grunt* to you,” Twilight groaned as she managed to stand back up.
“You say that like I intended to blow you backwards into Princess Cadenza,” Luna noted. “If you want someone to throw you around, I suggest getting married. I hear wife-flinging is all the rage in the Crystal Empire.”
“That-- that was-- just once!” Cadance sputtered, her face going beet red as the memory of Shining Armor throwing her like a javelin to catch the Crystal Heart went through her mind.
“Why is everypony trying to get me to get married today?” whined Twilight. “First Applejack, then Rarity, now you and Cadance--”
“Well, we would stop telling you if you would just get married,” Cadance said, still very red faced.
“Easy for you to say, you’re actually married. What about you?” Twilight pointed an accusing hoof at Princess Luna. “You aren’t married!”
“Indeed we are not,” Luna said with a nod, “but that does not mean that we have not been."
Twilight blinked. “What?”
“We have had many husbands over the years leading up to our banishment, Twilight Sparkle. Surely the thought must have crossed your mind?”
“I… it did, but--”
“Ah yes, I forget, it is not common knowledge,” Luna said, turning around to lead them back toward Celestia’s room. “Well then, let me just say, while my dear Starstep was my favorite husband, being the most emotionally supportive and the most capable of defending himself, Goldwing was, without a doubt, the best in our bed.”
Another sputtering noise came from where Twilight had been following, and Princess Cadance and Princess Luna both turned to see that she had gone quite red again, and what’s more, her wings had sprung up too.
“But in all seriousness, my sister and I both had many husbands during our time as Equestria’s diarchs,” Luna continued as though Twilight's interruption hadn't happened. “I was the first to find somepony, but my romances were very few and far between. Celestia, on the other hoof, must have married at least once every two generations. And even more than that were here lovers that she kept outside of her marriages. And yet in no way did she love her grooms any less than I did mine.
“However,” she added, turning to give Twilight a very stern look, “do not feel pressured to take on a spouse, Twilight Sparkle. You and Cadenza are hardly the first ascended royals in Equestrian history, though you are the first since my banishment. But while Cadenza is hardly the first to be married to another pony, you would hardly be the first to go without, Twilight Sparkle. So we reiterate, do not feel pressured by our teasing.”
“However,” Cadance spoke up, “if you do choose to pursue a romance, we will pressure you to call it off if we feel that your candidate isn’t worthy of you or of the title consort.”
“Indeed,” Luna nodded, picking up on Cadance’s thread. “We have seen royals who married against our judgement before, that is mine and Celestia’s. Many times, they have justified to us that they would turn their partner into a good and worthy pony. And many times, we have watched as their partner led them astray from the path they were destined to walk. Such was the fate of Sombra’s wife, whom he married to usurp her position, and who tried to gain dominance over us in doing so.
“But, a few times, we have been surprised,” Luna went on. “For instance, Princess Blue Belle, who chose to marry someone we disapproved of, and while there was conflict at first, Blue Belle turned him over to the right side in the end.”
“Even though you know me and almost any kind of education,” Twilight said, rolling her eyes, “and I mean no disrespect at all, but can we not lecture me on romance? I’ll pursue somepony when I choose to pursue them.”
“Yes, let us put aside such heavy topics and instead, let us get into a festive mood!” exclaimed Princess Luna, for while Twilight had been stuck listening to them, they had arrived at Celestia’s chamber. “It is time to make merriment!”
Having only been in Celestia’s room once before, and at a much younger age, Twilight’s memory was quite fuzzy on what Celestia’s room contained. That being said, it surprised her that her teacher’s room was much less decorated than her temporary quarters a few floors down were. Celestia’s bed was a large circular mattress, with pink silk covers, but nothing ornate in the woodwork putting it together, nor were there so many pillows that it was a chore just to climb in.
The other floor space was mostly empty, save for a Hearth’s Warming tree set up opposite the bed, a few dressers, a vanity, an armoire near the glass door to her balcony, and a nightstand.
Despite Twilight’s fuzziness about the past occasion she spent in Celestia’s room, something seemed off about her nightstand. As if there was supposed to be something on top of it that wasn’t, but she couldn’t remember what.
Unbeknownst to her, Luna and Celestia both had exchanged glances when they’d noticed that Twilight had started staring in that direction.
“Twilight? Be a dear and put your gifts under the tree, would you?” Celestia asked, tapping Twilight on her shoulder.
“Huh? Oh! Sorry,” exclaimed Twilight, shaking her head vigorously, conjuring her three gifts, and placing them under Celestia’s tree, which she noticed wasn’t an actual tree, but one of those with the plastic leaves. She guessed it was since she wouldn’t allow many ponies into her room, this way a live tree wouldn’t die from all the lack of attention it would get with her performing royal duties all the time.
“I was just saying hello,” Celestia said. “You just zoned out while staring at my nightstand. Something catch your eye?”
“You could say that,” Twilight said. “What was on your nightstand? I could have sworn something was there last time I was here that seemed important. But what…?”
“Sounds like it wasn’t that important,” remarked Cadance, “else a mind like yours would have never let that information go.”
“Well, now that everyone is here for the evening’s exchange, shall we begin?” asked Luna. “I am quite ready to give everyone my gifts!”
“Yes, let’s do this,” Twilight said.
“Very well then,” Celestia said as they four princesses took seats around her Hearth’s Warming tree, “let me just add mine to the mix.”
Had Twilight been properly paying attention, she would have noticed that Celestia had only added two gifts to the pile under the tree, but her mind was still on whatever had occupied that space. Her last visit to Celestia’s room had been nearly fifteen years before, when she had first begun her tutelage under the diarch, and even then, it was a very fleeting visit. So why was this such a big deal?
“Allow me to go first,” said Princess Luna, picking up a parcel from within the pile, and levitating it over to Cadance. “I cannot help but notice your evening activities with Shining Armor, Cadenza, so I thought--”
“Auntie, you didn’t!” Cadance exclaimed, cheeks going redder than a tomato in only two seconds.
“Well, seeing as we are the Princess of the Night,” continued Luna, unperturbed, “we felt that it was prudent to give you something to… shall we say, spice things up.”
Twilight was snickering, despite even more unpleasant imagery of her brother and her foalsitter briefly appearing in her head. Celestia’s smile seemed a bit distracted, but she was chuckling at Cadance’s embarrassment nonetheless.
Shaking with mortified trepidation, Cadance began to peel the paper off of the rectangularly-shaped black-wrapped parcel, to find a blue edge to the contained box. As the seconds ticked past, and Cadance seemed to be going ever slower and slower with her unwrapping, Luna gave an impatient huff. This, it seemed, convinced Cadance to just get it over with, so she tore the wrapping clean off.
“New Super Pony Brothers 3D?” she asked dumbly, having expected something completely different, along with Twilight and Celestia. “For the Wii U?”
“Yes, we have seen how you and Shining spend hours every night playing Super Smash Brothers. We felt we would gift you with a new, more cooperative game.”
Cadance breathed a very audible sigh of relief, one that almost shook with laughter.
“Th-thank you, Auntie,” she said, inclining her head towards Luna.
“You are most welcome, niece. Now, about your’s and Shining’s sex life--”
“AuntieCelestiahere’syourgift!” interrupted Cadance, positively hurling her gift to Celestia out of the pile.
The gifting went smoothly after that. Cadance had gotten Celestia a very valuable necklace from the Crystal Empire, Luna had gifted her with some kind of magic that Twilight couldn’t comprehend, even with all her experience, and Twilight had gifted her with an old studying book they’d had when she was young, just for the memories.
As for Luna, all three of them had given her the same thing: a game. Granted, the games were different, but Luna was very easy to buy gifts for. Despite her allowance as a Royal, she was conservative with her game-buying. Celestia had gotten her a special copy of some fighting game that included her as a fighter, Twilight had gotten her the new Zelda, and Cadance had, funnily enough, gotten her a copy of New Super Pony Brothers 3D.
After Luna’s gift, Celestia had gotten Cadance a very comfy looking magical pillow, enchanted with a spell designed to enhance any reading experiences by apparently interpreting the words on a page and giving the reader a very lifelike vision in their head of it. Twilight had gotten her a scrapbook of her wedding, and of all the fun times they had had after Chrysalis had been dealt with.
Which, of course, left Twilight. Princess Cadance’s was probably the most predictable and the most infuriating. She had given Twilight nothing more than a piece of paper that read “The bearer of this certificate is entitled to one free military transfer of one pegasus trooper to any different post in Equestria,” and it had been signed by all three Princesses.
Obviously, they were winking and nudging her towards Flash Sentry, but Twilight was having none of it. Still, she kept the certificate, since you could never know when that might come in handy.
Luna’s intrigued her greatly. It was a very special journal and dreamcatcher that worked in tandem with each other. The dreamcatcher would actually copy dreams and preserve them in said diary, where at any time, Twilight could revisit them. She could relive very pleasurable dreams, or visions, or even nightmares if she wanted.
But to her disappointment, Luna’s was the last gift under the tree.
“Princess Celestia, did you remember to get a gift for me?” Twilight asked, feeling a mite let down at this. Surely the solar diarch wouldn’t have forgotten her most faithful student!
“No, Twilight,” said Princess Celestia, smiling, “I did not. I was going to gift you with a special spell, but very recently, I was convinced by a close friend to change my gift. I believe the words she used were ‘take a leap of faith.’”
Her horn glowed, and in a flash of soft golden light, a strange, pony-shaped figurine appeared between them.
Had Twilight been paying better attention to her surroundings, she would have noticed that Princess Luna’s eyes widened, and that Princess Cadance, too, looked surprised, though her’s was more out of confusion.
“That’s it?” Cadance asked. “A nutcracker doll? Come on, Auntie, what’s her real gift?”
“This is it, Cadance,” Princess Celestia answered, as Twilight took the wooden pony toy in her hooves, staring at it intently.
What was it about this toy, this doll, that was so enthralling? Was this what had been missing from Celestia’s nightstand? It seemed to fit her memory, but she didn’t know why.
Despite the fact that it appeared to be in pristine condition, Twilight could almost tell that it was much older than it seemed. There were no chips in the wood, despite the fact that it was almost as big as an average book; there were no flakes in the silver paint; there were no bristles out of place in the white-streaked black mane and tail; and the blue beads that were its eyes looked completely clear. It even had a strange, piercing gaze when she looked directly at it.
Experimentally, Twilight found the little lever on the doll’s back and gave it a pull. Smoothly, as if it were brand new, the doll’s mouth opened, leaving enough space for almost any size of edible nut to fit.
“Have you ever heard the legend of the nutcracker, Cadance?” Celestia asked, not unkindly. “It’s not a common story, so I won’t be surprised. I doubt even Twilight here has heard it before.”
“Heard what before?” asked Twilight, still looking at the doll.
“The Legend of the Nutcracker Prince. It’s a tale as old as United Equestria itself is, though these days hardly anyone knows it.”
“N-no, I haven’t,” said Twilight, tearing her eyes away from the captivating doll to look at the Princess.
“Auntie, what’s all this about?” Cadance asked, sounding suspicious. “You’re just giving Twilight a regular old nutcracker doll for Hearth’s Warming? Are you trying to pass it off as an enchanted toy? Because there are hundreds of thousands just like it.”
Luna gave Cadance a very stern look from her seat, but unlike Luna’s usual death glares, she and Cadance kept eye contact for several seconds. Twilight felt a bit suspicious, since it was obviously a telepathic message. Just what was Princess Luna trying to keep from her? If it wasn’t otherwise, she wouldn’t have had any reason to hide it.
“What’s so special about this legend?” she asked.
“You should know better than anyone, Twilight,” answered Celestia, “that legends can sometimes be more special and truthful than they appear. Do you not recall the old legends of the return of Nightmare Moon? How no one believed you until it was too late?”
“Yeah, but a lot of people believe in the Strawberry Elves, and they turned out not to have existed,” countered Twilight.
“Quite right, they did not,” answered Luna. “If we recall, they were rumored to be located roundabouts where the Crystal Empire is located now. A little hard for two civilizations to occupy one place.”
“Whether or not you believe this legend is entirely up to you, Twilight,” Celestia said sagely. “We cannot tell you what to think. Would you like to hear it anyway?”
“Yes,” Twilight said, glancing down at the doll in her hooves.
“Very well, then,” Celestia said, as Cadance also turned her attention to the solar diarch.
Celestia cleared her throat, took a sip of some of the Hearth’s Warming wine they’d had for their little get together, the better to loosen her tongue, and took a deep breath before she began to recite her tale.
“In the old days of Equestria, shortly after the treaties between the three tribes yet before the true unification, there was a unicorn princess who was known for being a bit… selfish. She was very vain, very stingy with the currency she could call her’s, and she held very little regard for her fellow unicorns, much less her fellow ponies.”
“Was it Princess Amethyst XXII?” Twilight asked. “It sounds like her, except that she’s remembered as one of the better unicorn queens, but she was very vain and--”
“Twilight, does it matter?” chided Celestia, giving Twilight a very amused, but slightly annoyed look.
“I’m just trying to see if it really is historically accurate,” Twilight explained.
“Perhaps you should do that on your own time, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said. “Some of us have dream-watching duties we must attend to, soon, but we would still like to listen to Celestia’s story.”
“Very well. Yes, this princess was not one of the Unicorn Kingdom’s better monarchs. Relations between the other two races and the unicorns were very tense during her reign, but the earth pony chancellor and the pegasus general saw fit to send delegations for the princess’ birthday celebration, which coincidentally, was to occur two weeks before Hearth’s Warming.
“Now, the princess was very fond of a certain, then-difficult-to-acquire variety of cheese, and so she decided that for her birthday, her cake would be a cheesecake made with it. However, the castle had a rat problem, and this cheesecake proved itself irresistible to the rats, so they flooded the princess’ banquet in their attempt to steal the cake, which nearly succeeded.
“The princess offered a reward to whomever could rid the castle of its rat problem, and the earth pony delegate, a tinkerer known as Drosselmeyer, volunteered and was able to force out all but two of the rats, the Rat Queen and her son. As promised, Drosselmeyer was paid a hefty sum of gems for his work. However, the Rat Queen took her revenge that night, casting a spell on the princess, causing her to turn hideously ugly.”
“Rats can use magic?” Twilight asked, confused. “Now I know this is made up. Rodents can barely comprehend the Equuish language, let alone speak it or tap into magic.”
“What of dragons?” asked Celestia, arching an eyebrow. “Not dragons such as Spike, but fully-grown dragons that lived in Equestria before we did?” Twilight had no answer. “Before ponies found Equestria, many animals could use their own brands of magic. And rats are no exception.”
Celestia took another sip of wine, and continued.
“She offered a much grander reward to the one who could cure her of the curse. Instead of gems or currency, she offered the hoof of her daughter to the one who devised a cure. However, since only magic could cure magic, Drosselmeyer hadn’t any idea how to make any device that could cure her, and none of the unicorn nobles, not even the court mage, knew of a way to undo it. But it was then that the pegasus delegate, a captain and personal friend to the general, came up with an idea.
“There was a known rare nut that was grown in the snowy fields near present-day Stalliongrad, a nut that could remove all traces of curses from the body.”
“Oh, the Kurall nut,” Twilight exclaimed, looking quite pleased with herself. “Finally, we’re getting somewhere.”
“Yes, the Kurall nut,” confirmed Celestia, dipping her head. “It took almost two weeks for it to be imported, but the day it arrived was Hearth’s Warming Eve, much like tonight. Now, the Kurall nut’s shell has a certain magical property about it that prevents non-organic means of cracking it. The pegasus captain had to use his teeth to break open the shell of the nut, which he gave to the princess immediately. The princess was cured, and attempted to throw a celebration for both the curse being undone, and the wedding of her daughter and the captain, but it would all be for naught.”
“What… what happened?” Twilight asked, not noticing that she was clutching the carpet beneath her hooves.
“The Rat Queen returned, furious at being denied her victory by the captain. However, Drosselmeyer had anticipated such a turn of events and used a magical mouse trap to mortally wound both the Rat Queen and her son. But with her dying breath, the Rat Queen cast one final curse on the pegasus captain, transforming him into a nutcracker doll and binding him to an eternal cycle.”
“Twilight, are you alright?” came Cadance’s distant voice from somewhere to her right. Twilight blinked, and started as she felt something warm trickle down her cheek. Had she been crying?
“Perhaps we should--”
“No!” Twilight exclaimed, startling everyone else in the room. “Sorry,” she said apologetically, “but I want to hear how it ends.”
“There’s not much more,” Celestia warned. “It does not end on a happy note.”
“I don’t care.”
“Very well,” Celestia said, giving both Cadance and Luna a significant look that Twilight missed, as she had taken that opportunity to rub at her eyes. “The Rat Queen died, but her son vanished in a flash. And now, the pegasus captain, cursed to live forever as prince of the toys, cannot escape his fate on his own. Every Hearth’s Warming Eve, the Rat Queen’s son appears to do battle with the captain. To escape his fate, the captain must both defeat the Rat Queen’s son and win the heart of a beautiful mare. Only then will the curse be broken, and will he return to his true form.”
Once again, had Twilight been paying better attention, she would have noticed a tear trickle down Celestia’s cheek, but her gaze had been directed downward, to the nutcracker doll in her hooves.
Could you really be…?
“Well, with that out of the way,” said Luna, rising to her hooves, “I have my nightly duties to perform. We bid everyone a good night, and we will see you in the morning.”
“Hm? Oh, yes,” said Twilight, getting to her hooves as well. ”It’s getting late, and I’m tired from the train ride up here. Well, good night, everyone.”
“Good night, Twilight,” Celestia said back to her, as Twilight trotted out of the room, towards the wing of the castle that contained her quarters.
Really, who could believe such nonsense? she wondered. A curse transforming a pony into a nutcracker? Come on, now.
Yet despite her best efforts to put it out of her mind, the thought of the final fate of the pegasus captain kept returning to the forefront. It really was quite heartbreaking, what happened to him. Doomed never to be with the one he loved, forced to fight once a year with the Rat Queen’s son in a hopeless battle to escape…
Before she knew it, she was back in her room, laying belly-down on her bed, and staring at the nutcracker before her, admiring its craftsmanship.
It really is special, she thought. It’s so brilliantly painted… it almost looks as if it could have been a real pony.
As her eyelids grew heavier and heavier, she didn’t feel like moving under the covers and laying on a pillow. It was quite comfortable where she was at, after all. The nutcracker stood before her, held up by wrinkles in the comforter blanket, watching over her as her eyelids closed, and she felt herself growing lighter and lighter…
Until she suddenly found herself standing, quite upright, in the middle of Canterlot Castle Throne Room. For a moment, all she could do was wonder exactly how she had gotten there. Perhaps someone had seen her?
“Hello?” she called, and her voice echoed around the hall.
The room seemed quite empty. But then, the room always seemed empty. There was no way to tell for sure unless she could see that there was definitely no one on the throne, at the far end of the room.
Well, only one way to find out.
She trotted forward, along the red carpet, looking to get close to the throne to see if there really was someone on it.
And what she saw made her stop dead in her tracks.
Sitting upon the throne, with a definitely-wooden body painted silver, a black and white streaked mane and tail, piercing blue eyes, and wooden wings stretched out behind him, was the nutcracker doll, staring at her in shock, and looking very much alive.
“B-but that’s impossible!” Twilight almost shouted at the surprised figure, sitting on his throne. “You shouldn’t exist!”
“Well, thank-you for the vote of confidence,” said the pegasus on the throne, piercing blue eyes narrowing slightly at her. “It’s very nice to know that even though I appear before you, you still don’t think I am real.”
Twilight could only stare at the figure on the throne. All things considered, she was taking this rather well. Contrast with the stallion on the throne, who stared back in pure, unadulterated shock.
“How are you here?” he asked, looking from her hooves to her wings in a manner which made Twilight feel rather self-conscious. “It’s been too long since I saw a pony; what magic brought you to this realm? How is it possible!?”
“I don’t know,” Twilight answered defensively, reflexively taking a step back as the wooden stallion trotted right close to her. “I just… fell asleep I guess. I just appeared in the middle of this room.”
“You just fell asleep? That’s all?” he asked. Now that Twilight noticed, his voice sounded quite a bit like her brother’s, only a bit deeper.
“Well, yes…” Twilight said, shrugging. “I don’t know. Maybe this is all just some weird dream or something.”
“In that case, try to break the unbreakable laws of physics,” the stallion said, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly. “I don’t know, invent a machine that flies.”
“We already have that.”
“Really? A flying machine?”
“We call it an aeroplane,” she explained. “We can transport earth ponies and unicorns over long distances with no pegasus labor involved, unless they’re the pilots.”
The stallion, shocked as he already seemed by her appearance, seemed even more overwhelmed by that.
“Goodness me, you’re gone a few hundred years, suddenly what was once the impossible seems mundane…”
“What’s your name?” Twilight asked. If this was a dream, she may as well just go with it until she woke up.
“Winter Storm,” the stallion answered, bowing politely. “Former Captain of the Sky Archons in General Lightning Lance’s army, former delegate on behalf of the Pegasi to the Unicorn Kingdom. Now, I’m just the Nutcracker Prince of the Land of Toys.”
“You’re the one from Princess Celestia’s story?” Twilight asked as Winter began to survey her again. She, too, began to look over him. He was wearing a red uniform that she recognized as being one of the old Pegasi Officers, befitting his rank of captain. She couldn’t see a cutie mark, as there were black pants that covered his back legs.
“You know Princess Celestia?” he asked. “I mean, certainly everyone knows who she is, but you know her personally?”
“Well, yeah, I was her former stu-- wait,” Twilight broke off, suddenly suspicious. “How do you know who Princess Celestia is? If her story is true, you wouldn’t have been around when she took the throne.”
“I knew Celestia and Luna before they were crowned princesses,” Winter said, finishing his survey and trotting to the throne. “They were still studying under Magus Star Swirl at the time, but I met them when I attended the party in Canterlot as the delegate for Princess Amethyst’s little birthday celebration. She used to visit me here every so often, but I haven’t seen her in… eleven hundred? twelve hundred years? Something like that. It’s been a long time since I last saw her.”
“So it was Princess Amethyst XXII you were ambassador to,” Twilight said, smiling to herself. “But that would mean, you were supposed to marry her daughter--”
“Yes,” he said, head bowing and ears drooping, “I was. I cured Amethyst with the Kurall nut, and I was promised the hoof of Duchess Beryl as my reward. But then…”
He gestured a hoof vaguely at the room.
“This happened.”
“You’re not as… broody about it as I thought you’d be,” Twilight observed.
“I’ve had plenty of time to make my peace with my predicament,” Winter said, shrugging almost apathetically. “I’m immortal and eternally young in my current state. Which means that somewhere down the line, I’m going to get out, I suppose. Just means I have to be patient until then.”
“And to get out, you have to defeat the son of the Rat Queen and win the heart of a beautiful mare, right?” Twilight asked.
“Yes,” he nodded, “I have to defeat Padraic, and get a mare to fall in love with me, even though I’m stuck like this,” he spat.
“I thought you said you made your peace with it,” said Twilight, noticing his clear anger.
“I can’t fly.” he growled through gritted teeth. “My wings cannot carry me through the air. Do you know what it’s like to be a pegasus and have your only special feature be ripped from you?” he asked. “You’re an alicorn, you wouldn’t understand--”
“That’s not true,” interrupted Twilight indignantly. “I lost my horn once, and I even had my ability to cast magic taken from me when I was still a unicorn! I know what it’s like.”
“How do you lose your horn?” Winter asked, giving her a strange look. “Considering it’s at the top of your skull--”
“Discord,” Twilight responded simply. Winter paused for a moment, before nodding knowingly.
“Ah, yes, the draconequus spirit of chaos. So I take it he escaped from his prison?”
“He did,” Twilight answered, turning and trotting over to where the glass window of her and her friends defeating him was in Equestria. Only to find that it wasn’t there. “In Equestria, there’s a window depicting the event. I and my five friends were able to defeat him. But the Princess released him and he’s been reformed now.”
“Wow,” said Winter from behind her. He had followed her to see where she was going. “So, not only am I speaking with my first hope of being free from this curse since it happened, and an alicorn, I’m speaking with an Equestrian national hero. This is truly an honor, Miss…”
“Twilight Sparkle,” she said, blushing. “And really, I don’t think I can be your hope of escaping. After all, the legend calls for you to win the heart a beautiful mare, and I can’t say I think I qualify. My friend Rarity, though--”
“Please, at least just take the compliment,” the prince responded, placing a hoof on her lips to silence her. “Or just take my word for it. Either one is fine by me.”
As he removed his hoof and began to walk back over to his throne, Twilight could only stare after him, feeling strangely confused. Perhaps it really was a dream, or perhaps it was just deja vu, but she could have sworn that turn of events had played out before.
“What’s this Land of Toys even like?” Twilight asked. “Is it just some copy of Equestria? Or is it very different? Because it looks like the throne room is exactly the same as the one in Canterlot Castle.”
“Are you seriously attempting to judge an entire realm from the appearance of only one room?” asked the prince, sounding bemused. “You really sound like Beryl. She thought that since Cloudsdale was a cloud city, we all must live in cloud houses, no matter what city we actually call home. Never mind the fact I lived in a quiet little house down near Everfree...”
He stood and cantered down the hall to meet her by the window again, and held out a foreleg.
“So, you wish to see the Land of the Toys, do you? Well, you’re in luck. I can most certainly show you my realm.”
Twilight felt her cheeks heat up a little, but she took his offered foreleg regardless. With that done, he began to trot towards the throne room doors, with Twilight alongside.
Twilight knew she had just met the stallion, that she had only known him for all of a few minutes now, but there was just something about the act of her taking his arm that made her feel just a bit giddy inside, like a schoolfilly’s first crush.
As they approached the large double-doors, Winter Storm began to slam his front hooves in the ground, an action which resulted in a resounding smack! that Twilight guessed was his way of saying to open the doors. And sure enough, the doors began to swing inward, allowing a peek through to the outer world of the Land of the Toys.
To say that Twilight was taken aback at her first view of the land outside the castle would be an understatement, but only a little less of one than saying that when the other three alicorns vested their powers into her it made her slightly more powerful.
Put simply, the outside land looked exactly like Canterlot did, and beyond that it looked like Equestria as well. But it wasn’t what it looked like, but rather, what it was made of. The marble buildings of the city were frosted gingerbread, the many colored gems were various candies… it was as if someone had turned all of Equestria into Coalt Dahl’s Chocolate Room from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Even the mountains themselves looked like they were made of chocolate, and topped with white chocolate syrup!
There were many soldiers patrolling outside, and they were just dolls like Winter, except there was only one of him as opposed to hundreds of these. Leading them appeared to be an older, rickety stallion made of tin that seemed much slower than the rest of them. There were patchwork dolls, Raggedy Anns, and Raggedy Andys for citizens, colt action figures roamed around with the filly toys as well.
And all Twilight could do was stare at it, open-mouthed and dumbstruck.
“I take it you like my kingdom, then?” asked Winter, giving her a little smile.
“It’s beautiful,” breathed Twilight, watching as a pair of swans swam in the castle’s moat.
“Yes, that it is,” agreed Winter. “But you haven’t even seen anything yet. Come along, Twilight, we still have places to go.”
Twilight was led to the room in which Princess Celestia usually kept her sky carriage, only to find another swan sitting in a large nest. Even though she told herself she really should be prepared for anything, she was surprised that they were so large they had a special saddle strapped to them that could fit two average ponies in it.
“Climb on in,” Winter said, gesturing rather formally to the saddle. “I’m sure Leona won’t mind.”
“Leona?” Twilight asked. “Is that the swan’s name?”
“Aye,” Winter said, grabbing a hoofful of seeds from a little basket and proffering them to the swan, who ate them right out of his palm. “I’ve known Leona since she hatched, about twelve years ago. Her entire line have been steeds for me and my servants all through these years.”
“She’s beautiful,” Twilight said, looking Leona over, and paying particular attention to the golden reins she wore.
“A little short on descriptive adjectives there, aren’t you,” noted Winter, as Leona finished eating out of his hoof. “That’s twice you’ve used beautiful to describe things in my kingdom, now. What, is the word ‘gorgeous’ not in your vocabulary?”
“Oh, shut up,” said Twilight, rolling her eyes.
“You can’t take a compliment, and you can’t take a little tease. Dear dear, and I was just starting to like you.”
Twilight bumped him with her shoulder as he got on, which only made him laugh. And after a few seconds of just him laughing, Twilight also started to laugh and very soon, even as Leona began to fly into the air, they were both practically howling over a stupid silly thing.
“Oh, I haven’t laughed that hard in a good while,” Winter said, failing to stive of another chuckle there at the end. “It’s so nice to have someone to tease and laugh with again. Everyone here always takes me too seriously. Such a nice change of pace.”
“This whole place is a nice change of pace for me,” Twilight said, running a hoof through her mane as she began to look over the candyland below. “A place where I’m not a princess, just somewhere I can have fun.”
“Oh, you think it’s fun now, wait until later today,” Winter said, sobering up a little.
“Why? What’s later today?”
“You say Princess Celestia told you a story of me, yes?”
“Yeah.”
“Then you’re aware that every year on Hearth’s Warming Eve, I must do battle with Padraic in the hopes of ending this cycle. Though that’s only half the spellbreaker.”
“Who’s Padraic?” asked Twilight. “Is it the Rat Queen’s son?”
“Yes,” Winter said, dipping his head. “Padraic is his actual name, just as Pirlipat was the name of the Rat Queen herself.”
“How exactly are you on a first-name basis with your archenemy?” Twilight asked.
“Simple,” Winter said, smiling in spite of himself. “We’ve fought so much over the years, and in that battling, we like to banter. Almost like casual conversation as we kill each other like civilized beings. Aside from his axe.”
“But the point is, he comes today.”
“Once a year, on Hearth’s Warming Eve,” said Winter, nodding. “But he won’t show up for several hours more, at the very least.”
They continued talking for a long while as Leona ferried them to the top of the mountain. Twilight barely noticed; Winter Storm was just a fascinating stallion, and the land was just too distracting as well.
“Welcome to my favorite spot on the mountain, Twilight Sparkle,” he said, hopping off of the saddle and offering a hoof to help Twilight down, which she gratefully took.
“Here,” he said, scraping a wooden hoof on the ground to gather some snow and holding it up to Twilight’s mouth. “Taste.”
It took Twilight a second to register that someone was sticking a hoof with some unknown white substance up to her face, but she obliged, stuck out a tongue, and licked up some of it. The most delightful flavor suddenly spread across the inside of her mouth and without even thinking about it, she licked the rest of it off of Winter’s hoof.
“Is that… coconut frosting?” she asked, only just now noticing that despite it supposedly being winter season, it wasn’t really that cold outside.
“That it is, that it is,” said Winter, nodding. “Now, eat the grass underneath.”
Twilight obeyed again, leaning down and ripping off a fair bit from the ground, which come to think of it, looked a lot like brownie bread. As before, a very pleasant flavor met her taste buds, and she proceeded to eat up quite a few more mouthfuls.
“I see you like the mint grass,” Winter observed, smiling.
“The dirt…” asked Twilight, starting at it, noticing its rich, chocolatey color and bread-like texture. “Is it what I think it is?”
“Well, taste it and see,” said Winter, waving at it with a hoof.
Twilight eagerly bit into the dirt… and promptly spat it out when she realized it was just dirt. Winter just laughed at her sputtering while she gagged and tried to wipe it off of her tongue. Even Leona honked a couple of times, but that might have been Twilight’s sudden self-consciousness.
“I think, Twilight,” said Winter, falling over from how hard he was laughing, “that the dirt was exactly what you thought it was.”
“Oh you,” said Twilight, smacking him lightly on the shoulder, “you’re terrible!”
“Well, we still have a lot more places to see,” Winter said, still chuckling at Twilight’s expense. “Care to join me?”
Winter showed Twilight many great things over the next few hours. They visited the chocolate falls where Rainbow Falls normally were, where Twilight drank her fill and then some of a purely-liquid chocolate stream. They visited the sugar plum fairies in the candy-cane forest in Everfree, where Twilight met the queen of the fairies personally. They even got a chance to visit the gingerbread town at Ponyville, where many toys lived.
Naturally, as the name implied, all of the houses were made of gingerbread and were decorated with different candies. But the strange thing was how little there was to separate Ponyville from the copy. The houses were designed exactly the same, but with only with little decorative additions.
“Hmm… Twilight… Twilight… there’s something familiar about your name,” Winter had said as they’d landed in the square of the town. “When I heard it, it stirred something, but I still can’t quite figure it out…”
As they hopped off of Leona, there came a happy cry from somewhere around them, and Twilight suddenly found herself being tackled to the ground from the side.
“MAMA! It’s you, it’s really you!”
Winter had to pry the being off of her and help her up, but when Twilight laid eyes on the one that had tackled her, her heart nearly stopped, and she felt her breath hitch in her throat.
The being was a filly, a short filly with black pants with white polka-dots, a strange worn patchwork-looking coat and mane, and eyes of two different colors. One was pink, and the other was blue. And to top it off, strapped to her back was a notebook and quill.
Despite Winter’s strong grip, Miss Smarty Pants broke out and rushed right into Twilight’s open hooves.
“M-Miss Smarty Pants, I’ve looked everywhere for you!” Twilight said, holding the filly-doll to her as she hugged as though she would never let go.
“I know, Mama,” Smarty said, hugging her just as tightly. “I know you have, but Daddy’s taking good care of me.”
Twilight blinked, and Winter gave her an odd look.
“D-Daddy?” she asked, suddenly feeling just a bit overwhelmed.
“Yeah, Daddy. He’s a big, strong, earth pony with a red coat and a carrot-colored mane,” Smarty explained excitedly. “Even when I’ve missed you, he’s taken really good care of me. My eye’s been repaired, and I don’t think I’ve ever been this full of fluff!”
“A strong red earth pony with a carrot-colored mane?” Twilight asked, bewildered. “Oh! Big Mac has you?”
“Yep!” Smarty chirped excitedly. “I don’t get to see him that much during the day, but he cuddles with me at night, just like you did, and Mama Cadance did before that!”
Even as Twilight and Smarty caught up with each other, Winter walked away from the scene to give the two some time. That, and because his insides felt as though they had just gone. She already had a special one? He had been hoping beyond hope that this would be the year, this would be the iteration, but even in the more likely event that he would fail to win her heart this year, he had hoped that maybe in a few years, she would return and he could be free.
Why must fate be so cruel? he wondered, sitting down and staring at a spot on the ground forlornly. I may still be pony enough to touch, to hear, to see, to smell, and to taste, but this curse leaves me not pony enough to cry.
He covered his face with his hooves and and let out a sad sigh, knowing he was doomed to wait all the longer.
“And she was even just like my little Beryl…” he mumbled bitterly. “Will this curse ever end?”
He felt a wing slip over his shoulders and assumed it was Leona, comforting her rider. She’d always had an intuition for this sort of thing, just as her mother had done.
“Are you alright, Winter?” came just the voice he had been downtrodden because of. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Winter said. Twilight didn’t need the dead-sounding tone to his voice to know that he had been lying.
“Winter,” she said, reaching over and turning his head by his chin to look at her, “please, what’s wrong?”
But instead of answering, Winter attempted to divert the topic of conversation. “Where’s Smarty?” he asked.
“We’ve said our farewells, but I’ll see her again, in this world or in Equestria. Now please tell me, Winter, what’s wrong?”
Winter sighed, his head and ears drooping. He looked utterly pitiable, and Twilight wanted nothing more than to help. But even as she waited for him to say, all he did was paw at the ground in silence.
“Are you just gonna not talk about it at all?” Twilight asked.
“No, I’m--” he swallowed, “I’m just thinking of how to say all of this.”
“All of what?”
Winter sort of rolled his eyes, but Twilight could tell it wasn’t out of annoyance. But when he just gestured to Leona, Twilight gave up hope on ever getting him to open up about his current mood. But as Leona started to fly back toward Canterlot Castle, he began to talk.
“I don’t want you to feel like this is anything that you could have prevented,” he said, turning to not meet Twilight’s eye, even as she watched him. “It’s just... I’ve kept careful count of just how long I’ve been stuck here, in the Land of the Toys.”
“How long?” Twilight asked. “If it was during Princess Amethyst’s reign, I’m guessing about a thousand seven-hundred or so?”
“Heartlessly put,” Winter scowled at her in a way that made Twilight recoil a little, “almost. One thousand, seven hundred and seven years to be exact, with the anniversary tonight. They have a celebration for me to attend, for the anniversary of me becoming Prince over this realm, but then Padraic will show his ugly face sometime after, but before sundown.”
Twilight mouthed the number to herself, realizing just how long of a period of time that was to be stuck in his state. United Equestria hadn’t even existed as long as he had been trapped! Nightmare Moon’s whole banishment was only close to half the time!
“I see you’re really starting to get an appreciation for just how long it’s been,” Winter said, still with a sour look. “Consider this, Twilight Sparkle. The first five iterations were absolute and utter hell. Do you know why?”
Twilight shook her head nervously, sensing he was about to vent his anger and sorrow.
“Hope,” continued Winter bitterly. “Hope made it hell. Over the first year, Celestia and Luna visited me, telling me how I could escape. I thought that surely, my Beryl would come to rescue me from this fate. But on the first Hearth’s Warming Eve since my cursing, no one came.”
He laughed derisively.
“I thought it was just a mistake,” he said, turning to stare out over the landscape below. “I thought she had just missed it. But the second Hearth’s Warming Eve came, and no one came. The third, once again, no one.”
“Why didn’t anyone come?” Twilight asked.
“Hell if I know!” exclaimed Winter, gritting his teeth. “The fourth year, I only held on to so little of hope, and by the fifth, I had given up all hope that I would be out soon. I resigned myself to my fate, to having to rule over this land as a toy. And for one thousand seven hundred and seven years, I ruled over it. But then, this morning, it happened again.”
“What?” asked Twilight, but she felt as though she knew where this was going.
“You happened,” answered Winter, still not looking at her. “You showed up. The moment I first laid eyes upon you, Twilight Sparkle, I felt it again. I felt the hope that I might escape start to well up inside of me. I thought for sure, that perhaps not this year, but that the end was in sight. But lo and behold, you already have a special somepony.”
“Wait, Winter, I--” Twilight tried to say, but she was interrupted.
“Do you know how it feels, Twilight? To be tempted so? I thought it was almost over! I thought for sure that it was almost time for me to return! All I had to do was win your heart, but alas,” his anger vanished, and he just seemed to deflate, “you’re already in love with somepony else.”
Again, Twilight tried to say something, but Winter had one final thing to say.
“I guess I should know better by now. I’m never getting out, aren’t I…”
“Winter Storm, shut up and listen to me.”
Winter felt his head turn to face Twilight. In his forlorn attitude, he wouldn’t have of his own free will, but she had magicked his head to do so. He tried to open his mouth to protest, but suddenly, her magic clamped it shut.
“First and foremost,” Twilight said, rolling her eyes, “I don’t have a special somepony. I don’t know what gave you that idea--”
“Well, Smarty Pants said she had a Daddy, so I just thought--” Winter said, managing to break through the light clamp, only to be cut off by Twilight this time.
“Oh, you thought it meant I was with him?” she asked, going a bit pink. “No, Big Macintosh and I are not together. He’s one of my friends’ older brother, and I’ve always heard rumors about how he and another of my friends have a mutual thing. But anyway, no, he and I aren’t together.”
“Oh,” said Winter, suddenly feeling quite sheepish about having just assumed that.
“Second, never,” she poked him in the chest, “ever lose hope that you’ll break out. It will happen, Winter.”
Winter gave her a small thankful smile.
“You really think so?” he asked.
“I know so,” said Twilight placing a comforting hoof on his shoulder. “Just keep faith.”
As Leona continued to fly toward the castle, neither of them said anything. Winter was simply content with the comfort she provided, as well as the inner happiness that had come when she said that she didn’t have a special somepony. Twilight, on the other hoof, was comforting a friend, and was dealing with a fair share of bashfulness after she realized that he was hoping she was the one whose heart he’d win.
And even though she wouldn’t even admit it to herself, it only made her like Winter that much more.
“Thank-you, Twilight,” said Winter quietly as Leona began to ascend toward Canterlot.
“It was nothing. After all, what are friends for?” she replied.
Winter let out a quiet sniff, but smiled nonetheless. After a moment, however, he was struck by a sudden idea he had quite forgotten about.
“Twilight, may I ask you something?”
“Uh, sure.”
“Would you be my date to my jubilee celebration?”
And far from how she had ever thought she would react to such a question, she answered immediately.
“Winter, I would love to be your date to your jubilee celebration.”
Winter smiled, and, feeling rather bold, reached over and gave Twilight a quick hug from the side, an action that left Twilight feeling even more flustered than the times he had teased or complimented her in the day. She had only known him for a few hours, but why did it feel as though she had known him for even longer?
“You feel it too, don’t you.”
“Huh?” she asked.
“The connection,” Winter explained. “We’ve only known each other for mere hours, but if we’re honest, we know each other far more than we should for that time, do we not?”
“I… now that you mention it,” Twilight recalled those moments of deja vu she’d been feeling throughout this day in the Land of the Toys, and how moments seemed to have played out before, “I have been getting strange little feelings every so often.”
“Oh, so my flirting is working, then,” said Winter, as he was unable to stop a smirk.
“You know what I mean,” Twilight said, gently elbowing him.
“Yes, I do,” said Winter, his smile slightly fading. “And I think I know why.”
“You do?”
“I believe so,” Winter clarified, “and the reason… is not exactly one I like.”
“Why not?”
“Well,” he hesitated, “it’s not so much something I don’t like, even though it just makes me fate’s little toy, as it is something I don’t think you’d like.”
Twilight was feeling only a little confused, but she was starting to realize exactly what he was thinking.
“You… you think I’m another Beryl.”
“Not exactly,” said Winter. “It’s been too long for you to be her outright. But… I don’t know… you could be channeling her spirit, or something?”
“Winter, that’s a common thing in Equestria,” Twilight said, smiling a little. “Especially within family. Celestia’s told me how much I look like Starlight Sparkle, her old vizier.”
“So, reincarnation’s a thing, then?”
“Scientifically,” said Twilight shrugging, “we can’t prove it. But for some reason, we can feel it. At this point, it’s just an accepted theory. It explains how so many of us are connected beyond mere friendship. There was a reason why my five friends and I were chosen to play the parts of the six ponies who came from the Old Lands, and it wasn’t just because I’m Celestia’s pupil.”
She stopped, as she realized Winter was staring at her with a curious expression. Upon noticing this, as she had many times that day, she felt her cheeks heat up as a blush crept in.
“What, is there something on my face?” she asked.
“No, it’s just, you’re a little underdressed to be going to a jubilee celebration,” he said. And with a wave of his hoof and the glittering of golden stars, Twilight felt magic begin to weave its way around her. She looked down and gasped as the golden stars began to fly along the shape of her body, leaving behind a blue dress of the softest silk. She ran a hoof along it as the magic continued to form her garment, marvelling at its texture. It was almost like the softest of clouds woven into texture. And with another gasp, this one of surprise, she felt the magic begin to style her mane. Her bangs were gently pulled back and she felt her hair become styled in an elegant bun.
Winter’s smile had matched her’s as the magic worked, but by the end, his smile had turned into a look of pure wonder.
“You look beautiful,” he breathed.
Twilight gave a girlish giggle to herself, but looped her foreleg around his and lay her head on his shoulder, sighing contentedly at the gesture.
The moment ended far too quickly for Twilight’s liking, even though they must have been there for at least ten minutes. But Leona’s landing in the outer courtyard of the castle meant that they had to step out. She followed Winter as he stepped out of the seat on his side, took his hoof, and the two of them entered the castle again.
The sound of trumpets met their ears, as the guards on either side announced their arrival with a loud fanfare, followed by ten more guards taking up positions, five on each side, to create a vanguard, which then proceeded toward the castle’s ballroom, the doors of which swung open as they drew closer.
“Introducing his royal highness, Prince Winter Storm! May his reign of prosperity long continue!” came the reedy voice of a toy she couldn’t see, but Winter proceeded inside with her.
The ballroom looked no different from Equestria’s, except that it was full of living toys, and all of whom were applauding as the two of them made their way to the center of the black and white tiled floor, where a dance space had been cleared.
As they took their places, Twilight couldn’t but feel misgivings about the dance she only just now realized was about to happen. She was horrible at dancing! What if she made a fool of herself in front of everyone? In front of him? Would it ruin everything he had hoped for that day? Everything he had worked for?
But the moment they locked eyes, the moment her violet gaze met his piercing blue, those thoughts were blissfully wiped away as the strains of music began to play from somewhere she couldn’t see. But where it was coming from, she did not care. Her magic had bound the front of her dress to his uniform, and he began to lead her across the floor.
Dancing, Twilight realized, was a lot easier than she had thought. Especially if all she had to do was follow somepony’s lead. Winter danced with her across the floor, leading her around the enclosure. Vaguely she was aware of the fact that several other dancing couples were joining them, but all that mattered to her was the stallion she was dancing with.
And with a bit of a jolt, she even realized she had stopped thinking of him as a wooden doll, but as a stallion for the last several hours.
“Stay with me,” he said in a low voice quite suddenly.
“What?” she asked.
“Stay with me,” Winter repeated, giving her an almost pleading look. “Here, in the Land of the Toys. If I fail to escape tonight, please stay here with me. After spending the day with another pony for the first time in centuries, somepony I can laugh and enjoy life with, I don’t think I can go back.”
“Winter, I…” Twilight hesitated as they danced past a guard and a maid, “I would love to. This land is amazing. You’re amazing. But… I can’t.”
As those two words left her mouth, Winter’s pleading gaze transformed into one of despair, and he broke eye contact, an action that left Twilight feeling utterly heartbroken.
“It’s not that I don’t want to,” she continued. “I would love to stay with you, to stay here with you, but I’m a Princess in Equestria. I have responsibilities there, ones I can’t justify leaving for somepony else so soon after I accepted that mantle.”
I… understand,” replied Winter, and to Twilight’s horror, he almost sounded dead, flat and emotionless.
“I can come back next year,” Twilight added hastily. “I will! I promise!”
Winter’s visage brightened slightly, but he still looked very let down about her answer.
“Well, then I guess I have something to look forward to, if this doesn’t end to--”
But he stopped. He even stopped dancing, causing Twilight to stumble. Around them, the guests had stopped too, and the guards were watching the Prince in anticipation.
“Pantaloon, fetch me my blade,” Winter commanded. The older soldier Twilight had seen hours earlier saluted and cantered off, clanking noises echoing from one of his back hooves as he ran.
“Winter, what’s wrong?” asked Twilight, but Winter looked past her, at the entrance to the ballroom, a hard expression on his face.
His response was short, but it sent a chill down her spine.
Got some battle music to spice things up. Open in a new tab, please.
Since it was hardly the first time the toys had dealt with the Rat Prince’s attacks, Twilight had been expecting everyone to be a lot more level-headed about things than they actually were. Some of the little fillies’ toys were openly sobbing in terror, the action figures were ready to fight, and Pantaloon had high-tailed it out of the ballroom in his haste to acquire the Prince’s blade. The rest of the toys reacted slightly better, as the toy soldiers immediately formed rank and file and began to march out of the castle, pop guns slung over their backs.
However no one’s reaction surprised Twilight nearly as much as Winter Storm’s. Winter watched the soldiers go, having not moved from his spot on the ballroom floor, and yet he was shivering and grinning excitedly.
It unnerved Twilight to see such a display.
“Are you… looking forward to this?” she asked hesitantly.
Winter shook his head, and Twilight was startled to hear a sort of wheezy giggle escape from him.
“I always h-hated battles,” he said. “I w-was never scared-d of them, but they always filled-d me with this weird excitem-ment. But this time… it’s different.”
“How is it different?” she asked.
“This time… there’s actually s-something to fight for. And I’m a bit sc-cared I’ll blow it. And that will d-do worse than keep me stuck here for a few thousand m-more years.”
Twilight’s gaze softened as she beheld the trembling stallion.
“Do you need me to go elsewhere?”
“W-well, honestly, it would be appreciated,” answered Winter with a nervous laugh. “Maybe you could help Pantaloon and th-the soldiers. Having you here would be dist-tracting, and Padraic will try to use any m-means to keep m-me here. Including killing you, if he h-has to.”
Twilight stared at Winter as Winter stood literally shaking in his boots, before leaning up and giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.
“You’ll be fine,” she reassured him. “I have faith.”
She gave him one last concerned look as she turned and began to follow the soldiers out, noticing with some delight that he had smiled and briefly touched the spot on his cheek where she had kissed him, but then the doors of the ballroom shut behind her, and she trotted out.
The plane of dreams had a strange, ethereal beauty. Composed of what appeared to be nothing more than swirling masses of energy, it was a perilous place for any common pony to find themselves. If a pony entered the plane of dreams without a guide, they were in danger of becoming lost, their body doomed to wither without their spirit, which would become corrupted and turn into a Wraith.
Princess Luna, however, was not any common pony. The plane of dreams was almost a second home to her, as the Watcher. Nevertheless, the plane of dreams was fraught with dangers even for the alicorns, as she had discovered the day she let the nightmares plague her mind with doubt and jealousy toward her sister.
As she had also discovered, having company helped her keep a right mind. Every night since she had resumed her duties, a different pony had accompanied her on her duties. Be they ponies as they dreamed, as had been the case with young Sweetie Belle, or sometimes her guards.
Or even sometimes ponies from her past, as was the case tonight. A burly pegasus with a golden coat, silver eyes, and a black mane and tail flew alongside the princess as they chased the nightmares from unwary sleepers.
“We thank thee for accompanying us on our duties tonight,” she said. “Know that thou hast made this night much more interesting.”
“Anything for thee, mine only love,” the pegasus said with a bow.
Luna smiled and gave the pony a quick nuzzle as the different vortexes of energy zoomed past them. Luna had sensed a strange energy ahead of their position in the dreamscape, and the two were moving in on it as fast as they could, determined to see whether this strange force were something beneficial or malevolent.
As they flew, Luna’s thoughts inevitably turned toward Twilight Sparkle. She, who was Winter’s only hope, had laughed at the mere idea of such a story having some semblance of truth to it. Did she not learn from her past experience? Sure, she had a sound reason for both sides of this story, but a pony’s life and future were at stake.
“Something troubles thee, my dear,” the golden pegasus said, placing a hoof on her barrel. “Confide in me.”
“We… I… worry for Winter Storm,” Luna confessed. “He was a friend to mine sister and I, in days long past. We saw him cursed with our own eyes, saw as Pirlipat bit into his leg as he tried to stomp on them to kill them faster in their enchanted mousetrap. We want our friend back. But his only hope is a young, cynical mare who dismissed our tale when she was told it.”
“Was not thy only hope this same young, cynical mare?” the pegasus asked.
“The fortunes were reversed, then,” Luna said. “It seemed the only one who would believe her was her assistant the drake. Now, even Cadenza believed, or so she told us, but she remains unconvinced. But now there art questions to be answered.”
“And those art?”
“First, can she even enter into the Land of the Toys if she dost not believe? Second, assuming she can, is one single night enough time for two hearts to connect? This question is not nearly as critical, however. If I know Twilight Sparkle, and I do, she will dedicate herself to helping him return until the deed is done. And if that turns out to be the case, I will most gladly ferry her to the Land of the Toys every night if she requests it.”
“It seems as though thou knowest the answers to those questions already, my dear,” the pegasus replied, taking his comforting hoof off of her barrel and hugging her from the side. “Thou simply needed another pony to help thee along, correct?”
“Yes, mine husband,” Luna said, nuzzling him again. “I needed someone to speak to, the better to organize my thoughts, I suppose. But your company this evening was also a part of of my summoning you.”
“And I appreciate it, wife,” he kissed her cheek. “Elysium may be a land of eternal happiness, but it is nothing without thee, mine moon and stars. But I know that thou wilt join me in time.”
“Yes, thou and mine harem,” she added with a smile. “How art thou faring with the many other stallions that have wedded and bedded me?”
“We are all one very happy, boisterous band,” the pegasus answered. “However, thou hast no idea how surprised we were with the appearance of Fyre Flye. We had no idea, as they say these days, ‘your barn windows swung that way.’”
“‘Doors,’ dear Goldwing, ‘doors.’” corrected Luna with a smile. “I see we wilt need to correct thee on thy modern speech when we enter Elysium when our time cometh, as mine sister had to teach me how today’s ponies speak. As for Fyre Flye, what can I say? Love knoweth no barrier, not even gender. It took the commoners some time to grow accustomed to, but we had no trouble.”
“If it is true that love knoweth no barrier,” Goldwing said, “then why dost thou fear the meeting of Winter Storm and Twilight Sparkle? Dost thou think they are not fit for each other?”
“In no way do I think that,” replied Luna. “I have seen it; she channels Beryl. Beryl she may not be, but their spirits are one and the same.”
“Then what have you to fear?” asked Goldwing. “Do you fear that such a meeting will not occur? Beryl and Winter Storm were meant to be, and only the intervention of Pirlipat prevented it. But as your counterpart Mi Amore Cadenza would say, ‘True love always finds a way.’”
“Even almost two thousand years later.”
Suddenly, a nexus of energy erupted out of the dreamscape around them. Neither of them were very surprised at this, given that this was a regular occurrence in this plane. But when Princess Luna reached out a hoof to enter the nexus, knowing that it was Twilight Sparkle’s subconscious she was entering, there came a loud blasting report and energy lanced up her arm.
Luna cried out and yanked her hand away from the nexus, as Goldwing immediately grabbed it and began to sooth it with a pegasus healing spell. But while Goldwing worked, Luna could only stare at the flamelike pillar of energy.
At first, she had nothing to say. But slowly, a broad grin began to creep across her face.
“She’s there,” Luna breathed. “Her mind is in the Land of the Toys.”
“Then all of thy worry was for naught,” Goldwing said as he finished his spell, his hoof fading from its white glow. “Now, it is all up to her.”
Luna continued to stare at the flaming pillar, feeling the grin vanish, but her happiness did not.
“Well then, we hope thou hast the best of luck in thy venture, Twilight Sparkle,” continued Goldwing, bowing his head. “However, wife, my time for the evening is complete. Now thou hast duties to attend to.”
“Until next time, dear Goldwing,” Luna said, leaning down and kissing him briefly. “If not here, then in Elysium. Give my regards to the rest of my herd.”
“Thou hast my word. Until then, my love.”
And with a bright flash of light, Goldwing vanished from the plane of dreams. After he had gone, Luna continued to watch the energy nexus, hoping to gain access and watch the proceedings, but there appeared to be no way in.
“Oh well, I am sure we will know, one way or the other,” she sighed. And with that thought in mind, the nexus vanished as she continued her rounds for the evening.
Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out.
Winter sat on the floor of the ballroom, repeating a pre-battle ritual he had done countless times. With any luck, this would be the last time he would do it, but those were thoughts for later. For now, he had to prepare his mind and steady his body to meet his foe.
Just like General Lightning Lance taught me. Slow the breathing, slow the heartbeat. Focus.
He could hear the popguns as his soldiers fired on the rats’ army. He could hear the sound of metal on metal as his soldiers and his rats crossed blades.
Focus.
He could hear the clanking sounds of Pantaloon as he marshalled the troops, and he could hear the distinctive shimmering sounds of unicorn magic as Twilight Sparkle aided his stallions.
Focus.
And then he heard what he was listening for. A steady clacking rhythm, matching the steps of an arrogant being, strutting with all the poise of a peacock.
Winter opened his eyes just as the ballroom doors opened to reveal a large rat. His matted brown fur looked ill-kept, and was even missing in certain places; his body had scar tissue in several places, and he also appeared to have several missing claws. His tail dragged across the ground behind him, and across his back was slung a two-handed blade, and in his hands, he carried a wicked-looking axe.
Padraic hoisted the axe up onto his shoulder, and then swaggered into the room and threw a challenging look at Winter through his beady black eyes.
“You’ve been a busy doll while I’ve been gone, haven’t you Winter?” he asked as he strode forward slowly and confidently.
Winter didn’t answer. Instead, he focused on the sword and the axe. Padraic had never brought either of these weapons to his previous battles. His weapons were usually conventional swords and a shield. These weapons looked like they were meant for carving up their victims.
“Cat got your tongue, little pony?” Padraic taunted as he hefted the axe. “Aren’t you curious to what I’m talking about?”
“I’m not playing your games today, Padraic,” Winter calmly answered. He reached behind him and drew his blade from its sheath and rose to a standing position.
Padraic snorted, his whiskers vibrating briefly as he did so. “What’s the matter, pony? Scared?”
“Not in the slightest,” replied Winter again, bringing the blade in front of him in a traditional stance, angling the blade to point upward at an angle.
“No, really. Why haven’t you asked about my new toys?” Padraic asked again, hefting the axe. “You’re normally very vocal about it.”
“It’s quite simple, Padraic. You want to tell me about them. In detail,” Winter answered. “You’re going to try to intimidate me with these weapons, and I’m having none of it.”
“None of it, you say?” Padraic asked, the whiskers on the right side of his face twitching ever so slightly.
Winter dove to the right as the axe came smashing down right where he had been. That whisker twitch was always Padraic’s tell for a sneak attack. Upon landing, Winter slashed at Padraic’s side, but Padraic managed to get the handle of his axe there to block.
“Oooh, the pony is pretty light on its hooves,” mocked Padraic, smirking down at Winter.
In the blink of an eye, Winter grabbed a dagger he had hidden in his uniform and stabbed at Padraic faster than the rat could react, and managed to embed the dagger into the rat’s side.
Padraic responded by backhanding Winter, knocking his sword away and sending him sliding across the ballroom floor, and then charging with his axe held aloft. Winter dove away again and galloped toward his sword, snatching it up just in time to whirl around and slash at Padraic’s wrists.
Again, Padraic moved to block the attack with the handle of his axe. As wood met metal, Padraic let out a bark of scathing laughter.
“Is this really all you’ve got? Just the same tricks as the last couple thousand years?”
There was a sudden biting pain in his chest. Winter howled and leapt backwards, clutching a hoof to his chest, where Padraic had clawed and scratched away some of the wood.
“Mummy sure knew what she was doing,” the rat remarked, hoisting the axe back onto his shoulder as he followed the retreating pony. “You’re made of wood, but you can still feel. Which means I can inflict all the pain I want,” he lashed out and scratched at Winter’s face, causing Winter to cry out and scramble away.
This is bad, Winter thought as he tried to get back. Padraic had managed to scratch one of his eyes. He could still see, but it hurt to do so. He’s a lot more vicious today.
“Now that I have your undivided attention,” Padraic continued, “I think I’ll go ahead and explain away. See, I’ve had spies in the castle since about noon. There was a weird sort of buzz going around the castle today, and I wanted to know what. Lo and behold, another pony has come to rescue you. A mare,” he spat.
He reached out and grabbed Winter by his collar, dragging him to look directly in his eyes. Winter hated when he did this. Padraic’s breath stank of rotting cheese, befitting the rat that he is.
“I’m going to carve you up into tiny little pieces today, Winter,” Padraic said Padraic in a low, threatening voice. “My mother and I have given too much and worked too hard to keep you here, just to have some mare come an undo it all.”
He threw Winter back down to the ground and raised the axe high above his head.
“Give my regards to my mother in hell.”
Twilight had never been in a full-scale battle before. She had been present when the Changelings had invented, having fought alongside her friends, and she had fought Tirek one on one. But never once had she been in any situation where an actual army was going up against another army.
Nerves had been going off inside of her when the fighting had started, but they went away rather quickly. She hadn’t even had the time to cast an offensive spell. Instead, the rats all put their swords down and took off all their armor, just as the soldiers placed their popguns on the ground and unloaded all the cannons.
“What…?” she blinked several times to make sure she was seeing everything right.
“Yes,” said an elderly voice from her left, accompanied by clanking. “We never had an enmity with the rats themselves, nor they with us. It was always their king, trying to destroy our Prince, who made them fight. But when he’s not looking…”
Twilight turned to see the elderly soldier, Pantaloon, staring out over what was supposed to be the battlefield with her, a smile under his full beard. Out in said battlefield, some of the rats were arranging several little items in a formation while the others and the soldiers were kicking a ball around between each other.
Once everything was arranged, the two sets of frienemies started up a rousing game of hoofball, leaving Twilight and Pantaloon to simply watch. It was almost mesmerizing, watching two groups of beings who should have been enemies just drop everything and enjoy a game together.
Almost like how the ponies and the griffins did the same during the first Great War, she thought.
A cry sounded from inside the castle, and Twilight started, whirling around. That was Winter!
“Go, Twilight Sparkle,” said Pantaloon, placing a metal hoof on her shoulder and giving her a warm smile. “He may have asked that you stay out here, but he needs you. Go to him.”
Twilight didn’t need telling twice. She was off, running back into the castle. If Winter really was in trouble, she was not going to let that rat harm him if it was the last thing she did!
The halls were empty, giving Twilight no trouble as she made her way back to the ballroom at top speed. Upon entering the room she had left only minutes ago, she gasped.
A giant rat she assumed was Padraic stood over Winter, axe raised and ready to be brought down on his neck.
“Give my regards to my mother in hell.”
“GET AWAY FROM HIM!” she yelled at the top of her lungs.
Padraic turned to see who dared scream at the Rat King, and when he beheld Twilight, his triumphant smile faltered.
“An alicorn?” he muttered. “Those fools told me she was a pegasus!”
“NO!” she screamed, a bolt of lightning firing from her horn and smiting Padraic, sending him flying sideways. The axe was knocked from his grasp, just centimeters from Winter’s neck, and taken sideways with him. Winter hopped to his hooves and ran over to grab his sword as Twilight threw a fireball at the Rat King. Padraic swung his axe like a baseball bat from his spot on the ground.and knocked it away into one of the castle walls, where it dissipated harmlessly on contact. Twilight’s next spell fixed that problem. The axe was wrenched out of Padraic’s claws and sent flying away, where it buried its sharp edge in the wall.
“I can see you’ll be much better entertainment than that pile of sawdust over there,” Padraic smirked. “I might actually have to try.”
He reached back and drew his blade. It glowed in the light unnaturally, marking it as an enchanted blade. Unlike most swords Twilight had seen, this one looked more like a falchion, with a thick edge, a sharp point, and a thin sharp edge. It was meant for slicing, as the back would add momentum to the swing.
“Like it?” asked Padraic as he held the sword in between him and Winter, who had retrieved his own blade and stood ready to fight. “I enchanted it to hack through wood as easily as if I was simply cutting through butter with a hot knife. He won’t last long against me, I think.”
“If you harm a hair on his head, I will make sure you burn,” Twilight threatened, her horn giving off a couple of sparks to emphasize her point.
“Point taken,” Padraic said, holding up a hand between him and her, where it began to brim with sickly-green flames. “Kill you first, then the bore.”
For a couple of long moments, they stood there, waiting for their opponent to strike. Twilight’s horn was ready, mana already flowing through it in preparation for her first barrage of spells. Across the room, Winter stood stock-still, his blade prepared for a strike as well. But neither of them made any move while Padraic continued to move his gaze between the two of them.
Winter struck first, charging Padraic and slashing at his extended spell hand, but the blow was parried. Twilight chose that moment to fire off another bolt of lightning, a fireball, and an ice bolt in quick succession, hoping to catch Padraic off with the changing elements. But it seemed Padraic’s rat magic was non-elemental, for with three quick blasts of the sickly-green fire, her spells were cancelled.
There was something about that green fire that didn’t bode well with Twilight. She knew there was something dangerous about it, but for some reason, she couldn’t recall where she had read about pale-green magic.
Winter rebounded off of his parry with another slash at the spell hand, but Padraic countered with a vicious kick that knocked Winter right back. A chunk of the floor was pulled up and hurled at the rat, who blasted it to pieces with his magic.
“Come now, surely that isn’t all you’ve got. Remember, you have to beat me by sundown, and at your pace you won’t get anywhere close,” taunted Padraic. “Here, let me show you how it’s done.”
A blast of green fire issued from his claws, hitting the ground in front of Twilight. To Twilight’s astonishment and horror, rat skeletons began to materialize out of the air, eyes glowing green and each wielding blades.
“Destroy her,” barked Padraic. The skeletons began to lumber forward meancingly. Twilight recalled lessons with Celestia about necromancy and its best counters, but she had nearly forgotten about it with all of the more practical and likely forms of magic she would be facing.
“TWILIGHT!”
Twilight blinked, and hastily dodged as a sword came slicing down where she had been standing moments ago, trying to recall Celestia’s lessons on her current predicament. Have to pay more attention, she thought. But surely there’s a counter! There’s always a counter-element in magic!
Perhaps… fire?
A quick fireball was thrown at one of the skeletons, who didn’t appear fazed in the slightest.
Ice? To slow them?
The skeletons just cut their way through as she continued to move around the room to give herself some casting space.
This would be so much easier if I knew what element necromancy actually was! It’s not Black Magic, so what is it?
Her wings spread and she took off into the air, where they couldn’t hurt her. Across the room, she saw Winter and Padraic in bladelock, with Padraic pushing Winter back towards the door forcefully.
“Winter!” called Twilight, and she sent a beam at Padraic. Padraic merely swatted it away with his open claw.
A piercing pain shot through her wing and she yelped, losing control and spiralling downward, but with a tremendous effort, she was able to guide herself down to an open space. As she reached for the spot that had been hurt, her hoof brushed a wooden shaft.
When did they start using arrows? she wondered vaguely, noticing that some of the skeletons that closed in on her were suddenly carrying bows. A side-effect of the necromancy?
She needed her wings to fly, else she would be left with little room to cast her spells. Gritting her teeth, she yanked out the arrow, grunting in pain as she did so. But once her wing was free of the intrusion, her horn lowed white and the tissue began to knit itself back together. With a sigh of relief, the pain vanished, leaving her wing whole as before.
But what intrigued her the most was that the moment her horn had glowed white with healing magic, the skeletons had flinched backwards, as though scared… of the light…
Of course!
Her horn glowed white again, and a beam of healing energy lanced toward the closest skeleton, whose eyes began to drain of color, leaving a blank blackness behind. Once the spell accomplished its work, the skeleton crumbled to the floor and disintegrated.
Twilight smiled.
“The doctor is in,” she announced to the room at large, her horn already brimming with the necessary magic.
Necromancy was its own element, which explained why Padraic was able to use it to negate the spells she sent at him earlier. It wasn’t an element of darkness, it was an element of pure death. Which meant that its antithesis was the element of life, the healing branch. Where darkness and light were separate branches, life and death were separate entities, despite what everypony thought.
Within a minute, the remaining skeletons had been reduced to dust, where they vanished into the air. With Twilight free of the distraction, she looked around for Winter, but there wasn’t anyone else in the room. The door to the Throne Room Corridor was open, and at once she flew through it, hoping to catch Padraic and Winter before the rat could potentially turn things in his favor.
She flew around the corner into the hall directly adjacent to the throne room in time to see Padraic drive Winter back through the door and inside. After that brief instant spent watching, she flew as fast as she could and tackled Padraic to the ground.
“YOU LITTLE--” Padraic said, grabbing her by the small of the back and flinging her across the throne room. In desperation, he had thrown her into the air, which allowed her to right herself with no problem. More importantly, this distraction gave Winter an opening. With a cry, he brought his blade down at one of Padraic’s hands, slicing it clean off in an instant.
But to their horror, and Twilight’s simultaneous fascination, the wounded hand burned to ash in sickly-green flames and materialized back on his arm.
“Heh, how do you think I’m able to live for so long when I’m still a body of flesh and blood?” asked Padraic, sneering. “My mother taught me necromancy before she died, and she cast it on me to sustain me as I tormented you, doll. None of your attacks can harm me!”
Twilight turned her gaze to Winter and saw, in a moment of heartbreak, that his once-determined gaze had become discouraged. Padraic had succeeded in demoralizing him.
A bright orange glow suddenly fell across Twilight’s eyes. The sun was setting. Winter had only minutes left. But with Winter’s current demeanor, there was no way he would be able to beat him.
It was time for drastic measures. And based on Padraic’s own demeanor thus far, she knew what to do.
She landed directly in front of the rat, who seemed surprised by this move, but he raised a hand, brimming with magic, to strike regardless. Before the spell left his hand, Twilight’s horn shone and instantly, there came the smell of burning flesh.
Padraic screeched and grabbed at his burning tail, dropping his blade as he did so. Twilight turned to Winter and shot an enchantment at his sword. He flinched at her action, but on contact, the blade began to glow a bright white, and he gazed at it with surprise.
“End him!” she yelled as he seemed not to know what to do. “Your sword can harm him now! End hi--”
A claw grabbed her throat, cutting off her command. Twilight gagged and struggled as Padraic lifted her off the ground, his claws digging into her throat.
“You’re going to suffer for that,” he growled, staring her directly in the eyes as she struggled to free herself. His green eyes seemed to glow brighter, giving him a look of madness and rage.
And with a movement so quick she barely noticed until it registered, he clawed at her belly, ripping it open and throwing her across the floor.
Twilight screamed in pain, and doubled over, covering the wounds that were already spilling blood onto the carpet of the throne room. As the magic came to her horn to heal herself, something collided with her head, causing the magic to be released elsewhere and only adding to the pain.
“NO!”
She turned her head upward just in time to see Winter tackle Padraic off of her and slash at Padraic’s neck with his enchanted blade. Padraic managed to evade the blow just in time, but he wasn’t quite able to get his blade up to stop the second vicious attack from Winter, and Winter’s blade slashed open his gut. Padraic howled in pain, and his pained howl soon turned horrified as he realised the wound wasn’t healing.
Winter’s eyes suddenly alighted, and he slashed at Padraic’s sword hand. Padraic dove away, suddenly terrified now that he was vulnerable.
“What’s the matter, rat?” asked Winter scathingly. “Can’t stand to play on a level field?”
Padraic answered with a slash at Winter’s wing, but Winter casually sidestepped it.
“How dare you touch her? You are going to burn!”
He stabbed downward, but Padraic was already back on his feet and backing away, desperately keeping his blade between the two of them. Winter didn’t seem to care, because he slashed at Padraic, which was parried, and then slashed again to continue battering the rat.
Twilight was taking the opportunity to heal the claw wound on her belly, but as the magic worked, she couldn’t help but watch as Winter, once timid and nervous about the battle, had suddenly gone into a berserk fury. He slashed mercilessly to batter his defenses, gave Padraic slamm cuts to further his agony, and all the while, he taunted the cursed rat.
“You’re nothing but a coward!” he shouted at Padraic. “You can’t win fairly, so you had mummy give you enchantments!”
In his haste to continue backwards, Padraic made one misstep, treading onto his burnt tail. With a cry of surprise, he fell backward, his sword clattering to the floor beside him. And with a roar of triumph, Winter leapt atop Padraic, pinning him down and holding the enchanted blade to the rat’s throat.
The battle was won.
For a moment, the two of them just stared at each other, Padraic enraged and terrified at having been defeated and being on the edge of death, and Winter tired and satisfied, having defeated his mortal nemesis.
But after a moment, Padraic chuckled.
“Well go on, then,” he said, wheezing in his shortness of breath. “Finish the job.”
His gaze turned to Twilight, and he gave a wicked smile.
“Take that step,” he said, grinning even wider. “I’m defenseless now. Go ahead and kill me in cold blood. We both know you want to.”
Twilight’s eyes flicked to Winter, whose blade had started to quiver. As she glanced at his eyes, they were suddenly wide. She glanced down at the blade, and to her horror, the blade was being pressed in, ever so slightly.
“Winter, no!” she called. “Don’t do it!”
“Do it, you stupid pony,” Padraic growled. “End this.”
“Winter, don’t stain your hooves with the blood of a defenseless foe,” Twilight said, gasping as her wound stung. She was unable to stand, as her legs still felt weak after the blow she had taken. “Don’t give in to your anger. Don’t let the darkness in.”
The blade shook all the harder. The orange glow of the sunset from before shone off the blade, reminding them both that there was little time to delay.
“Ti-tick tock, pony,” Padraic said, coughing up blood as he did so. “If you wait too much longer, guess who comes back next year.”
“Winter,” Twilight said. “Please.”
At her plea, Winter’s eyes narrowed, his shaking stopped, and the blade became steady. And to her relief, it was lifted away.
“No,” Winter said in a low voice. “I won’t murder you in cold blood. I’ve beaten you, just like I had to. I’ll let you live forever with the shame of your loss.”
And with that, he stepped off of Padraic and began to walk toward her to help.
“Coward,” spat Padraic from his spot on the ground. “Even when the battle is won, you’re still afraid to put an end to your foe. You’re not a warrior.”
“No, I’m not,” Winter said, not even looking back. “I’m a prince.”
There was a moment of silence. A moment Twilight thought it was all over.
But with a cry of rage, Padraic leapt to his feet, picked up his blade, and charged at Winter, who wasn’t reacting.
“WINTER!” Twilight screamed, a shielding spell already forming.
But at the instant that Padraic began to swing downward, Winter turned right around and stabbed Padraic directly in the heart. Over his head, Padraic’s sword hit the shielding spell and bounced away harmlessly.
Padraic stared in disbelief at the blade embedded in his chest. Winter simply let go of the blade and stepped back, his job done. As they watched, the flesh around the blade was engulfed in green flames, which were spreading all over the rat’s body. Padraic was screaming in pain and terror and trying to pull the blade out, but to no avail. As the flames burned away the flesh, the rat’s skeleton began to lose its footing, and as the last of the rat’s face burned away, Padraic’s skeleton fell forward and shattered against the ground.
Padraic, the Rat Prince, was no more.
“You did it,” Twilight breathed. “You defeated him.”
Winter, who continued to stare at the fallen pile of bone fragments, only nodded. Twilight guessed that he couldn’t believe that it was over. He had finally done it. He had finally ended Padraic!
Winter suddenly began to giggle. After a moment, it evolved into full on laughter, as the reality of the situation set in. He had done it! He had defeated Padraic once and for all! Which meant that after nearly two thousand years, he had to be free of the curse now!
...right?
And after a moment of realization that nothing was happening, he turned to Twilight, an expression of utter heartbreak starting to spread.
“You… I... “ he said, feeling empty, hollow, like the toy he was.
Despite the fact that she wished that she didn’t, she knew what caused it. He had remembered. She couldn’t stay with him. Oh, how she wished she could! But even though she wanted to stay with him more than anything else in the world at that moment, she knew that she couldn’t.
His eyes left her’s, and he just sort of drooped. They had won, but he had lost. He was going to have to stay here, right when victory seemed within his--
Something was wrong. Twilight had been so busy watching Winter that she didn’t notice everything around her start to vanish into fog. And Winter seemed not to notice.
“What’s going--?” she asked, but the harsh reality suddenly hit her. It was never real. None of this was real. It had all been a dream.
“NO! PLEASE NO!” she screamed, tears forming. Winter, it seemed, didn’t hear her. He was too busy staring at his hooves, which had begun to shine a bright golden color. As he watched, the color began to spread, spinning around him, but before Twilight could see what that spell was doing, the fog of her dreams had swallowed him up.
Winter Storm was gone.
And even as she sstood and galloped towards the spot where he had vanished, the fog continued to shroud everything. Until it finally pressed in and blanketed her in blackness.
And with a startled cry, Twilight Sparkle awoke in her bed in Canterlot Castle. None of it had been real. She had nodded off laying on her bed.
For one brief moment, she couldn’t believe it. But as the harsh reality settled in once again, she broke down, sobbing as the sun rose outside her window to greet the new day.
“...and don’t forget to tell the chef that we will need three Hearth’s Warming meals cooked today,” Princess Celestia reminded Kibitz while the dutiful servant scribbled down her commands. “One for the castle staff, one for the soldiers, and one for the four princesses.”
“Will there be anything else you need today, Princess?” asked the stallion, adjusting his glasses as he looked down at the list of instructions. “Remember, your presence at the Canterlot production of the Hearth’s Warming Pageant is tradition, and you appear to not be scheduled this year.”
“Something unexpected came up,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Apparently one of the Lords from Manehattan is trying to get some legislation passed while I can’t stop him at this pageant. Like it or not, Equestria as a nation comes ahead of my presence at an annual play.”
“Of course, your highness,” Kibitz said with a bow, the tips of his bushy moustache grazing the ground beneath him. “I shall notify the Canterlot Royal Theatres at once. I am sure they will understand.”
“They had better,” Celestia muttered to herself. A particular incident a couple of decades back rang clearly in her mind where she had been the subject of tabloids because she didn’t show up for a similar reason. The theatre staff, angry that she’d had to miss, had decided to sling some mud at her with the press. “If they don’t, they won’t see me at their productions ever again.”
As they continued to walk along the halls of the castle, Princess Cadance joined them as they passed by the halls that led to her old room.
“I couldn’t help but overhear,” she said, smiling sheepishly. “If you want, auntie, I could go in your stead.”
“Thank-you, niece,” Celestia said thankfully, nuzzling her adopted relative fondly. “That would make this day even better. Do enjoy yourself, won’t you? I haven’t had a reason to actually enjoy the play since Twilight and her friends starred in it.”
“Speaking of Twilight,” Cadance said, her smile vanishing, “has anyone seen her today?”
“If I recall, Princess Twilight Sparkle has yet to leave her room,” Kibitz answered. “None of the staff have seen her, and we were preparing to bring her breakfast in her room. Unless she doesn’t want to be disturbed?”
“Oh, she probably just had a really good dream,” Celestia said.
She and Cadance shared a significant look that Kibitz missed.
“And on the topic of the whereabouts of princesses, where is Princess Luna?” asked Kibitz.
“Off visiting old friends,” answered Celestia. “It’s a tradition with her, that she visits her departed lovers on Hearth’s Warming.”
“Visits their graves?” asked Kibitz, never having seen Princess Luna at the graveyard since her return from banishment.
“Not… exactly,” said Celestia, smiling to herself. “It’s a complicated explanation, but she essentially visits them in pony through the magic of the dreamscape.”
“I… well, I don’t understand, but I’ll take your word for it,” Kibitz said honestly. “Less mouths to feed, I suppose.”
“No, you’ll want to prepare the same amount we discussed. Luna doesn’t take kindly to those who short-change her on food,” Celestia said, smiling fondly at a Hearth’s Warming memory of her and her sister as she tried to steal Luna’s cake, right in front of their mother and father.
“Understood,” Kibitz said. “With that in mind, may I--”
He trailed off as all three of them stopped, right in the hall. Twilight Sparkle was in front of them, looking utterly miserable and making her way who knows where at a snail’s pace. It was not lost on any of them that her eyes were puffy, her face had tear streaks, and her chest was periodically shaking as though she had just gotten done crying.
Twilight turned, revealing bloodshot eyes that definitely showed she had just had a sobfest. But it didn’t seem as though she paid any attention to Cadance, or to Kibitz. Her gaze, instead, went straight to Celestia.
“Was it just a story?” she asked, softly. Celestia and Cadance both heard a note in her voice that sounded desperate. “Please, tell me it was true, and not just some fairy tale!”
Cadance turned to Celestia, looking shocked.
“Is this about--”
She broke off what she had to say, as Celestia gave her a very meaningful look.
“Please excuse us, Kibitz, Cadance,” she said, her tone making it clear to the latter that she was to leave them in peace.
Kibitz immediately trotted off, both out of a desire to get to his duties and to leave the princesses in peace. Cadance, too, started to walk away, but as she neared the end of the hall, she turned to give Twilight one last concerned look before continuing on her way.
“Please,” repeated Twilight, her voice barely above a whisper.
“Oh dear, did you have a bad dream?” Celestia asked, walking forward and draping a wing over her former pupil.
“It… it wasn’t a n-nightmare,” Twilight said, her voice trembling slightly. “I d-dreamt of-- of him. Of Winter Storm.”
“Oh,” Celestia said sympathetically, and she leaned down to give a comforting nuzzle to her student. “I’m so sorry, Twilight. I, too, know of the pain those dreams bring. Come with me, you’re going to need a pick-me-up.”
Twilight sniffled, but nodded and followed as Celestia began to lead her back to her own room.
“I’ve had many of those,” she continued. “Too many of them during Luna’s absence, where I dreamt that she was back, and that it was like old times. They happen, and they hurt. To be so convinced of something’s reality, only to see it snatched away…”
They walked in silence for a short while, save for Twilight’s sniffling and quiet little moans that she made. Celestia could only comfort her so much, even though she wished she could do more.
They arrived at her room, where she opened the door for Twilight and allowed her in.
“Come on, go in. Have a seat by the bed, and I’ll have you feeling better in no time.”
As Twilight plodded to the bedside, Celestia walked over to her armoire and, surreptitiously, withdrew the broken nutcracker doll that Princess Luna had found in the throne room, alongside the unconscious body of....
Three… two… one…
“WINTER!”
Twilight’s shriek had practically woken up any sleeping night-shift guards, but Celestia had no desire to tell her off. For there, lying in her bed, was the resting body of Captain Winter Storm, freshly freed from his curse.
Twilight could only stare at it, completely shocked and wondrous as the letdown of her life became the best moment of it.
Winter’s eyes opened suddenly, startled by the shriek. It had been far too long since Celestia had seen those blue eyes of his.
“What the--” he said, sounding confused, but before he could say anything else, he found himself the victim of Twilight Sparkle hugging him so hard she could have given Pinkie Pie a run for her money.
“Twi... light?” he asked, his confusion turning to sudden joyous anticipation. He weaseled his hooves out of her grasp and held them up for inspection.
“It… it worked. It worked!”
He laughed, a giddy sound that made Celestia smile, and in a movement so quick neither Twilight nor Celestia really caught it, he grabbed Twilight’s face in his hooves and kissed her.
Twilight could only stare straight ahead for a moment, before giving in and kissing him right back. Celestia, however, could only watch helplessly. Happy for her former pupil and for one of her dearest friends, but helplessly nonetheless.
After they separated, Twilight resumed hugging him with every bit of her new earth pony strength, which Winter was sure wasn’t doing good things to his wings, but he didn’t care. The curse was broken! He was whole once again!
“I am so proud and happy for you, Twilight,” Celestia said, trotting over to nuzzle her once more. “Not only did you return my sister to me, you returned a dear friend as well. And, since Luna told me of your’s, her’s, and Cadance’s discussion on the way to my room, you should know that I approve.”
Twilight either didn’t hear her, didn’t care, or just was too concerned with holding on to Winter as tightly as she could to respond.
“But, there is something that might… discourage you just a bit.”
Twilight turned her head to look at Celestia. The earlier puffiness was almost gone already.
“Discourage?” she asked, confused.
“Well, rain on the parade, so to speak,” she said shrugging. “Winter was never officially removed from the army, even during the Pegasus transfer. All of the pegasus guards were to serve a default three years in Canterlot after the Uniting, which he never accomplished. Which means he is to be stationed here in Canterlot for a couple of years.”
“How is this a problem?” asked Winter, blinking.
“Because I live in Ponyville,” Twilight answered. “Where the Gingerbread Town was, in the Land of the Toys.”
“I see,” said Winter, his smile vanishing, but only a little. “It’s not that far.”
“Unless you take the train,” pointed out Celestia. “Sometimes that ride can take a whole night, such as when you brought that delicious cake. Other times, it can only last a couple of hours at most, such as your trip for Cadance and Shining Armor’s wedding.”
“But what about flying manually?”
“I don’t think flying would be a good idea until you’re absolutely sure. Who knows what your physical condition is like after being brought out?”
“I have a solution,” said Twilight, smiling quite proudly as a piece of paper materialized in the air and was levitated over to Celestia, who caught it in her hooves.
“‘The bearer of this certificate is entitled to one free military transfer of one pegasus trooper to any different post in Equestria.’”
A small smile once again spread across her face.
Well played, my former pupil. Using Cadance’s gift on Winter.
“Very well. I assume you’re having him transferred to your new castle in Ponyville, then?”
“Of course,” said Twilight with a smile.
“Then I will have this filed just in time for your return to Ponyville, so that he may accompany you. But I think it’s time to prepare for Hearth’s Warming Brunch, so I would suggest that the two of you vacate my bed and move elsewhere if you wish to continue? Or perhaps, go to the castle banquet hall?”
Twilight and Winter needed no telling twice, getting out of the bed and walking hoof-in-hoof out the door and into the castle. Celestia watched after them as the door closed, feeling the emotion she had kept inside of her for the last few minutes start to burst through.
A tear fell from her eyes as she turned her gaze out the window, noting that she had been in this very position yesterday, worrying about the night’s possibilities. Her small smile spread even further over her face, as she watched her sun progress up the sky.
For the first time in seventeen hundred years, Hearth’s Warming had become a happy holiday for her once again.
Completely true to Luna’s word, all it had taken was just a little leap of faith.
Two years later…
As they had the last three years, Twilight and Cadance walked together toward Celestia’s room for their annual gathering. Cadance had foregone her crown this time, seeing has how little Skyla enjoyed playing with it at home with her father. Twilight had also left her down at her castle, but she refused to leave home without her ring, which sat on her horn proudly for all to see.
It had been a really quiet and lovely ceremony, not even six months after the fact. Twilight's friends had been incredibly confused when she turned up a couple of days later with a coltfriend and was engaged with him within the month, but they came around. The added confusion Winter showed to any modern technology didn't help things, either, but he got over that relatively quickly. Shining Armor, however, took a lot longer to convince. He and their dad had even made the trip to make a house call, just to meet Winter. But it was all behind them now.
“...and then she turned the cookie jar right over and spilled them all on top of her daddy,” Cadance finished, which caused Twilight to burst into a fit of giggles. “I haven’t seen that early of actual control over magic in my life, I’ll admit.”
“I can imagine I was like that,” Twilight said. “I remember my dad telling me about a time where I had learned how to phase through walls. As a one-year old. And apparently, I somehow ended up in their room during… you know.”
Cadance chuckled.
“Yes, I can see how that would be memorable. Quite a mood-killer, I suppose. Speaking of, considering her reputation of crashing into your house at various points, has Rainbow Dash ever barged in on your time with Winter?”
Twilight went pink at the thought, but shook her head.
“She’s only crashed into my new castle once. A week in the hospital with a serious concussion was enough to convince her to steer clear of the diamond-hard walls.”
Twilight felt a little bump in her midsection and reflexively ran a hoof over it, where the telltale bulge of her pregnancy was entering its final stages.
“Strong little kicker, isn’t he,” Cadance asked, giving a fond look at where her nephew-to-be currently sat curled up.
“Oh yes, just like his father,” Twilight said. “How is Sunset adjusting?”
“She’s doing well,” Cadance said. “It took a bit at first for her to get her hooves down under her. Literally, even. I guess she spent so long walking on two legs that she went native. We actually hired her as a foalsitter for Skyla, too. We thought that, considering her aunt might have a few tendencies toward insanity, a bit more of a stable mind was in order.”
Even at her own expense, Twilight found it in herself to laugh.
“Happy Hearth’s Warming, Cadance.”
“Happy Hearth’s Warming to you too, Twilight.”
The door to Celestia’s room was thrown open, revealing Luna and Celestia already prepared for the evening’s festivities. Twilight and Cadance trotted on in and shut the door behind them, ready to begin their annual night of fun.