The windigos return, and Twilight and her friends have to stop them!
Everypony thought the windigos were as good as gone. Then the Cutie Map calls the Mane 6 to the top of a mountain, and they find out otherwise... Can Twilight and her friends stop the dastardly plot before a villain can allow the windigos to return?
Set near the end of Season 6 and includes occasional references to events in Season 7.
Far above the ground, spirits with the basic form of a horse were restless and hungry. It was hunger that was not easily satisfied.
There was a wide land with many different landscapes and - more importantly for these spirits - many, many inhabitants. These inhabitants also had the basic form of a horse, but they were smaller… and pastel-colored. As well, many had wings that allowed them to soar the skies or funny little horns that allowed them to manipulate the world around them in myriad ways. A few of these inhabitants even had wings and one of those funny little horns.
There was a feast awaiting the spirits in this land, but they had been banished long ago by some of the inhabitants who were long since dead. There was a special force or power keeping the spirits away from that land and their feast.
There were other places the spirits could feed, but this place was special. They had once been some of the very special inhabitants, and they had a special purpose in feeding there. That special force was in the way, though. They didn't know how to breach it and had long given up trying, but now… Now something was happening.
It was something advantageous for the spirits, and it was set in motion by some of those funny little inhabitants. The eagerness of the spirits grew as they became cognizant of this. Finally, they were going to achieve their desires...
* * * * *
On a very specific mountain, a very specific inhabitant of the land used her funny little horn to open the little wicker door in front of her. She had a mane and tail whiter than the driven snow - but with a two-tone purple highlight in each - and a coat of deep purple. Her sister, her cousin, and a few others were waiting around the long wooden table for her inside the little hut.
“What's the news?” asked her sister hopefully, who had a mane and tail of azure - with a highlight of turquoise - and a coat of violet.
She smiled, baring her teeth evilly. “I've figured it out. I know how to end it.” She motioned to her cousin, a stallion with mane and tail of royal blue with highlight of sea green and a coat of gray with overtones of purple. “But I can't do what you can do, and I need what you can do. I can't do what I need to do until you've done what you can.” The stallion’s face remained expressionless. “Also, we are going to have some guests soon.”
“What do you require of us, dear Sister?”
The smile only grew larger.
* * * * *
Elsewhere in the land, a tree twitched. It was not an ordinary tree, nor had ever attempted to appear as one. It was more living crystal than actual tree, and held in its branches the keys to the balance that the tree so sought to preserve.
Something was off-balance, and this very special tree knew it. Unknown to the tree was the reason it felt and fought to keep this balance, but it fought to keep it all the same. Long had it kept vigil over this land and its balance, and long would it continue. Many times had it called champions to restore the balance, at times even losing the Keys as its champions borrowed them as they fought to preserve the balance.
Its current champions were numerous, and rarely had more than two been needed to correct an imbalance at any one time. This time, however, it would require all of them. The tree sent its call...
It was applebuck season at Sweet Apple Acres, and Applejack had just finished bucking the apples out of the last tree in the East Orchard for her little sister Apple Bloom to catch in a large half-barrel. It was always easier to have the small yellow earth pony catching the apples as they fell, rather than aiming the bucking to hit the large half-barrels on the ground. Now, the larger orange earth pony with the dirty blond mane and tail was extremely skilled at landing apples in the barrels, no matter where they were. It was more difficult and time-consuming to pick them up after, though.
“Did yer friends ever show up this mornin’, Apple Bloom?” Applejack asked. “I ain't seen 'em yet.”
“Oh, they're here,” the red-maned pony reassured her older sister. “Sweetie Belle’s over helping Granny in the kitchen gettin’ everythin’ ready, and Scootaloo is over catchin’ apples for Big Mac. That looks like the last of the trees in this orchard, Sis. Let's move on.”
Applejack smiled. “Alright. But my buckin’ legs are complainin’ a touch, so I'm gonna take a few. I'll be there in a bit.” They were ahead of schedule this year, anyway. Apple Bloom happily trotted off.
Applejack's mind wandered as she leaned on the tree she'd just bucked. Still fresh in her mind was the surprisingly fun boat trip she'd shared with Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Twilight Sparkle not two weeks ago. It had been a nice break from the farm for a couple of days. But, seriously, who had ever heard of a Tri-horned Bunyip, let alone known that his favorite snack was cucumber? Applejack smiled again at the thought of her friend Twilight. That mare knew so many random facts about so many things, Applejack occasionally wondered if she really did know everything.
At that moment, her flank started ticklin’. It was an odd experience, sorta like she was havin’ leg cramps, but not as bad. She looked down, and her cutie mark was shining and doin’ funny things. She'd figured out a while ago what it meant. She trotted over to where Apple Bloom was getting ready for the next orchard just as Big Mac walked up, a large cart of apples trailing behind him.
Applejack's brother was bigger than she, and stronger, which was sayin’ quite a bit. Applejack had the strength of a few “normal” ponies, but she couldn't haul the loads Big Mac could. He may as well have been a Clydesdale. He had a thick red coat and yellow hooves.
“Hey, Big Mac, I was just gonna let y'all know I've got some 'friendship business’ at Twilight's,” Applejack said.
Big Mac glanced at her flank and said, “Eeyup.”
“Y'all should be alright if this takes a couple o’ days, right? I mean, y'all've got the Crusaders helpin’ an’ all.”
Again came the reply, “Eeyup.” His face was saying, “Just go already!”
“Alrighty, then. I'll stop back after I find out what's goin’ on.”
* * * * *
Twilight Sparkle had been staring confusedly at the map with such intent that she didn't hear the door open or Applejack walk in. The sound of the door slamming shut broke the purple alicorn from her thoughts and threw her mane into her face as her head bolted up in surprise. She quickly fixed the dark purple mane and looked around the room as she realized she hadn't noticed half her friends walk in the door.
They were her five best friends in all the wide world of Equestria. As an alicorn, Twilight had been made a Princess of Equestria - specifically, the Princess of Friendship. As such, she'd met and befriended many ponies and other creatures, but nopony held a candle to these five.
First there was Applejack, the most honest, hard-working pony she knew. Some ponies called her AJ for obvious reasons.
Then there was Rainbow Dash, three feet off the floor. To say she was “an athletic pegasus” would be a severe understatement. The azure Wonderbolt with the rainbow mane and tail was easily the strongest and fastest flyer in Ponyville, and quite possibly Equestria. She was always flying, regardless of where she was or what the situation was. To see her actually on the ground or floor was a rarity.
Speaking of Rarity, she was the fashionista. Twilight was so proud - and maybe a little jealous - of Rarity's business prowess. The white unicorn with the beautiful, ever-styled purple mane and tail was the owner and proprietor of not one, not even two, but three successful fashion boutiques across Equestria. If anypony that Twilight had met knew fashion, it was Rarity.
Pinkie Pie was so full of… whatever it was that Pinkie was always full of, that she bubbled out, “I'M SO EXCITED!! All six of us, going on another adventure! This is -” she was suddenly on the very high ceiling - “ROOF-TASTIC!!!” The pink earth pony was always energetic, but she seemed to be breaking records today. She was bouncing up and down in place on her hooves, somehow back among her fellow ponies.
“... I'm sure it is, Pinkie,” Twilight responded as she looked for Fluttershy. The yellow pegasus was sitting in her chair with a worried look on her face. Fluttershy had long been known for her friendliness and special way with other critters, from bears to bunnies to manticores, but she was usually terribly shy around other ponies; and from what Twilight had gathered from Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy was the bold one in her family.
“But we have a friendship problem to solve,” Twilight said, continuing her previous thought. “Though I don't remember knowing that there were ponies living that far up these mountains.”
Rainbow, who'd been looking at where the six cutie marks were circling over the luminescent map of Equestria, flew over next to Fluttershy and said spookily, “I heard from somepony that there are ghosts on top of Foal Mountain!” Fluttershy's eyes went wide and her face said she just wanted to go home.
“Now, Rainbow, there are no ghosts on top of Foal Mountain,” Twilight scolded. “At least, I don't think so.”
Fluttershy's face would have been more expressive, had it been visible. However, it was currently hiding with the rest of Fluttershy behind her chair. Twilight rolled her eyes at Rainbow, who just shrugged.
“It does seem as though we shall find out, however,” piped in Rarity as she admired the map on the purple crystal table.
“It seems like it!” added Spike excitedly.
Twilight chuckled and patted her baby dragon buddy. “Sorry, Spike, but I think you're staying home this time,” she said apologetically.
“But… what if Princess Celestia has to contact you in the middle of the quest?!” he suggested.
“The Princess and I have other ways of communicating, but thank you for your concern,” she offered kindly. “Besides, she never has before.” She snuggled him for a moment and went back to the task at hoof.
* * * * *
Applejack had packed and said her goodbyes, in the kitchen and out in the orchards, before meeting Twilight and the others at the train station. It was an overnight trip, because the map hadn't called them until the middle of the afternoon.
Pinkie was still as full of energy as ever. Rarity was gussied up, looking like she was going to walk Fashion Row or something. True to form, Dash had pulled a cloud over and was snoozing on it while she waited. When the train finally arrived, everypony boarded and got comfortable.
It was an uneventful ride. The train went smoothly over the tracks and all of the ponies slept soundly in the sleeper car. The train arrived at their stop near the foot of Foal Mountain on time.
As Applejack hopped off the train with her friends, she looked at the mountain. She could only see one trail up, which didn't look bad.
They started up. Twilight led the way, with Rainbow Dash flying behind, followed by Applejack, with Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Rarity behind. The trail had a few rocks in it, but it was mostly soft dirt.
About a quarter of the way up, the trail changed from soft dirt to shale. The small, flat rocks slid all over each other, making it difficult for Applejack to walk without slipping unless she was extremely careful. It didn't help that the trail had narrowed to just wide enough for one pony to get through at a time.
Pinkie had been chatting the whole time, and Applejack had been steadily losing her patience. Applejack could normally handle Pinkie's non-stop jibber-jabbering - she was Pinkie, after all - but about three quarters of the way up, she lost it. “Nopony cares about whatev’r it is ye’r prattlin’ on about, Pinkie Pie!” Applejack blurted.
Pinkie, with a very shocked look on her face, stopped dead in her tracks. Fluttershy, not expecting the sudden stop, ran straight into Pinkie's hindquarters, causing rocks to fall a long ways down. Rarity had seen the commotion and managed to stop before she caused anypony to fall.
Rainbow Dash was apparently feeling like a devil's advocate, because she looked down at Applejack with a hurt look on her face and said, “I was enjoying the conversation, thank you!”
Applejack looked at Rainbow Dash, hat lowered over her face. She dropped her head, hoofed the trail - making pieces of shale slip off the side of the mountain and all the way down - and snorted. “Says the one flyin’ up the mountain!” she snapped. “Ye’r not even fightin’ the slick rocks like the rest’v us!”
“Do you know how much harder it is to fly when the air’s this thin?! No, you don't! 'Cause you don't have wings!” came Rainbow Dash’s reply.
“Them's fightin’ words.” Applejack's legs were tensing up.
“Now, girls!” interrupted Rarity from her position behind Fluttershy, as snowflakes started to appear around the group. “Now is not the time to be fighting! We're nearly to the top of the mountain, and we're supposed to be solving somepony else’s friendship problem, not our own!”
“Yeah!” interjected Pinkie with a big grin on her face.
“Rarity's right,” Twilight said in a motherly tone. “We all just need to calm down. Let's take a breather; it's been a long hike.”
Sighs were heard from all over the group, some of relief and others of frustration. Everypony sat down where they'd stood - or in Rainbow Dash's case, where she'd hovered. They were high enough up on the mountain that there were no trees, so seeing Dash on the trail wasn't as surprising as it might have been.
Applejack couldn't see Twilight's face, but she didn't use the “mother tone” unless she was real worried. Rarity looked… “incensed” was a word she'd use. Pinkie enjoyed arguing. She thought it was fun. AJ had to chuckle as she watched Dash, rather annoyed, leap up to avoid falling after shaking the snow off her coat and wings. Fluttershy was still recovering, and looked sad and worried on top of it.
Applejack groaned as another rock slipped out from under her. Now they were going to have to fight the building snow, too. She sighed in resignation. Rarity and Twilight were right. They all just needed to calm down.
After a few moments, Twilight stood up and shook the snow off her coat. “Okay, let's get going again,” she almost commanded. Everypony quietly followed suit.
* * * * *
Twilight breathed a sigh of relief when she crested a hill and saw a small village near the top of the mountain, apparently just above the edge of the snowcap from the current weather conditions. She wasn't sure what had gotten into everypony, but she was worried by how on edge they'd been the past hour or so. Maybe it was the snowstorm in the early autumn. Maybe it was the thin mountain air. Regardless, something felt off.
As they neared the village, Twilight could hear relief coming from all her friends behind her. The village looked odd. No two buildings seemed alike. Most of the village was on a fairly steep incline, and the buildings had been built with that in mind, but some were dug into the incline while others relied on stilts to keep them level. Still others had a combination of the two. Also, each building seemed built of completely different material from those around it. There was also a very prominent hut at the highest point, about half a mile from the near end of the village.
There weren't many ponies out and about, presumably because of the weather. There was one unicorn stallion outside a brick house on stilts doing… something with his horn. A very dark, almost black aura surrounded his horn, but Twilight couldn't see anything being directly affected.
She unfolded her wings regally and warily approached the purplish-gray stallion, who had a royal blue mane with a sea-green highlight. She looked for his cutie mark, but he was wearing some sort of long robe that obscured it.
“Hello, sir, I am Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship, and these are my friends,” she said cautiously. “We've been sent here to solve a friendship problem.” When the stallion didn't respond or even move, she ventured, “What is it you're doing, exactly?”
The stallion finally stopped what he'd been doing, the magic aura fading from his horn. He looked at Twilight and her friends with what began as a look of disgust, presumably at being disturbed. As he took in the pony he was seeing, however, Twilight could see his mind working as something clicked for him. “What did you say?” he asked.
She was perturbed, but responded. “I'm Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship. These are my friends. We've been sent here to-”
“So you're who she wanted to meet,” the stallion said, recognition flashing across his eyes. “Wait here,” he said, and he was off at a gallop, a cloud of snow and dust flying behind him.
Twilight looked to her friends with a mixture of confusion and hope. That hope was dashed when she saw that all five - including Pinkie - were as speechless as she.
“What just happened?!” asked Pinkie after recovering.
“I dunno, but I think somepony is expectin’ us,” Applejack replied. She scrunched her face up for a moment before saying, “This all seems a mite strange. Am I the only one who feels like somethin’ is… off?” “No, I felt it, too, Applejack,” Twilight responded. “Ever since that incident on the trail, I've felt like something is amiss.”
Dash muttered something angrily under her breath as she shook more snow off herself.
“So… now what? Do we just wait for him to come back, or - or what?” Fluttershy asked.
“I suppose that's probably the best option for the moment,” replied Rarity pensively. “I don't know of much else we can do yet.” She turned to Twilight. “Unless you have any ideas, Miss Princess of Friendship?”
“I don't,” replied Twilight, ignoring the hint of irritation in Rarity's voice. “But who is 'she’?”
“One would surmise ‘she’ is the leader of all of… this, whatever this is,” Rarity responded. “Beyond that, my dear, I've no idea.”
* * * * *
It was very quiet after that for a few very long minutes. It wasn't an awkward silence, really - just apprehensive. Twilight found herself fidgeting with her wings and brushed the snow off herself while she waited.
Then she glanced up to see the unicorn stallion returning at a canter. He arrived, caught his breath, and spoke to Twilight. “She'll see you now, Princess. Follow me.”
He led them through the village to the peculiar building at the top. For this building and this building alone, the ground had been leveled into a mound before the building had been erected. It wasn't dug into the side of the hill, and it wasn't on stilts. Also, it seemed to possess the only door made of… wicker... in the whole town.
As the stallion stood aside and opened the door in his nearly black magic aura, Twilight suddenly realized he looked familiar, like somepony she'd met once, long ago. She shook the idea, dismissing it as coincidence.
She stepped through the doorway into a smallish hut with a long wooden table. The walls were covered in stylistic paintings - of what, she couldn't tell. At the other end of the table sat a unicorn mare. Her coat was a bluish-purple, almost the color of Rarity's mane. Her mane was, except for a two-toned deep purple highlight down the middle, so white it was almost blue.
Twilight's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Rarity’s surprise at being blocked from going through the door and the stallion emphatically insisting, “She only wishes to see the Princess right now.” Then the door slammed shut.
Something is very wrong, thought Twilight.
The mare at the end of the table cleared her throat and Twilight looked up. “So you are Twilight Sparkle, the Alicorn Princess of Friendship.”
Now that she looked closer, Twilight could tell this mare looked only maybe a few years older than herself. “Yes. And who are you, if I may?”
“My name is unimportant at the moment,” the mare said curtly. “I’m more interested in how the daughter of Twilight Velvet became an alicorn.”
Twilight started to reply, but stopped. “How do you know my mother's name?”
The mare, with an evil-looking glint in her eye, simply said, “I know a lot of things about you, Princess.”
“Then you have me at a disadvantage.”
The mare looked rather amused. “Why, yes. Yes, I do.”
Twilight wasn't ready to give up. “How do you know so much about me - and my family?” she asked.
“Again, those details are unimportant,” the mare said cryptically. “How did you become an alicorn?”
“Those details are unimportant,” Twilight responded.
“Ooh, we've got a feisty one here. I like that. However, that is a detail that is very important. In fact, it's the most important detail I'll hear all day. So I'll ask again, how did Twilight Sparkle, daughter of Twilight Velvet, become an alicorn?”
“I don't know all the details,” replied Twilight evasively. “You'd have to ask Princess Celestia. I don't remember much about the experience.”
“But surely you know more than you're telling me,” the mare prodded.
“I rewrote and cast a spell originally written by Starswirl the Bearded, and then Princess Celestia was there, and then I was a princess.”
The mysterious mare’s curiosity seemed to have been piqued. “And what was this spell that you rewrote, hmm?”
“Why would I give that to a pony I've only just met, whose intentions are unclear to me?” Twilight responded hastily.
“Oh, we've met before. Surely you remember by now…” the mare said.
Twilight studied the mare in front of her, stepping closer to get a better look. After a moment, she gave up. “I'm sorry, but your face doesn't ring any bells.” Though there could be some family resemblance with that stallion outside. Brother? Cousin? she thought.
“Then you've forgotten. And here I thought alicorns had perfect memories,” the mare said with a smirk. “Very well.” She stood and took a bow. “I am Filigree Frost, direct descendant of Snowfall Frost herself.”
Twilight's eyes went wide and her mouth opened a little as Filigree took her seat. “S-Snowfall Frost? Y-You don't m-mean…”
Filigree giggled evilly as Twilight stuttered and trailed off. “You silly filly. Did you think that story was made up?!” The room filled with hysterical laughter.
Twilight felt sweat roll down her face despite the cold air.
Having settled down, Filigree Frost looked Twilight in the eye. “So why are you here, Princess of Friendship?”
“The Tree of Harmony sent us here, through its map. It summons us to different parts of Equestria to solve friendship problems.” Twilight's mouth had started moving on its own. Her brain was still in shock.
“The Tree of Harmony, you say…” Filigree said pensively. After a long moment of deep thought, she looked Twilight in the eyes. “And just what do you know of this 'Tree of Harmony,’ Princess of Friendship?”
* * * * *
Applejack couldn't hear what was going on inside the hut. The door was wicker, but she figured there was some sort of spell to keep voices from traveling. As she glanced around, she didn't see any other building in the whole village with a door as seemingly fragile as this one.
She studied the unicorn stallion who'd led them there. “Say, what's your name, friend?”
He remained expressionless. “I'm currently acting as Ms. Frost's personal guard. That's what you need to know right now,” he responded cryptically.
“'Ms. Frost’? Is that who's talking to Twilight in there?” asked Rarity, gesturing at the building next to them.
“Yes,” the stallion replied curtly, with the finality to end the conversation.
Applejack stood in place for a moment, studying the guard. She then moved off, motioning to the other four to follow her. They moved to where Applejack hoped they were out of earshot. She spoke in a hushed tone, “I don't like it. Somethin's really off here.”
Nods of agreement came from the other ponies, but Fluttershy looked worried. “But that is why we're here, isn't it?” she suggested. “To, err, fix what's wrong?”
“Precisely,” affirmed Rarity. “However, I would prefer to have Twilight with us before we do anything drastic.” Shivering, she added, “Though it is very cold out here. I should've worn a warmer scarf.”
Applejack agreed that it was cold, but felt the urge to argue. “I agree about wantin’ Twilight here, Rarity,” she replied, “but are you seriously gonna choose now to complain that ye'r wearin’ the wrong scarf?!”
“Not to interrupt your important discussion, but check this out,” Dash said from a foot above them, pointing at the guard. The black magic aura had returned around his horn, but none of the five mares could see anything being directly affected.
“I suggest we watch and see if we can figure out what he's doing,” offered Rarity.
“I dunno, Rarity. I don't like jus’ sittin’ around,” replied Applejack, but she kept still and watched.
* * * * *
“That is all I need from you,” Filigree told Twilight with a wave. “You may go.”
Twilight saw a soft blue aura appear around Filigree’s horn and heard a click and a creak and felt a cold wind behind her.
She was already shivering before she made it outside. The storm had grown worse in the time she'd been inside with Filigree. She used her horn to pull her scarf out of her saddlebag and wrap it around her neck.
Looking around, she saw the guard with the same eerie black aura around his horn not far from the door - again with no discernable target nor purpose - as her friends sat waiting and watching as they shivered a short distance away.
Walking over to her friends, she asked, “Does any of you have any idea what he's doing?”
“None,” came Rarity's reply. “That's what we were trying to find out. How did your conversation with ‘Ms. Frost’ go?”
“How did you find out her name?!” Twilight asked incredulously. “I was sure that room was soundproof!”
“Oh, it was,” Rainbow said very nonchalantly from her position a foot above the group. “The guard told us.”
“The guard told you?! How did you manage that?!” Twilight demanded.
“I asked him his name,” Applejack replied coolly.
Twilight was speechless for a moment, then got a hold of herself. “Well, regardless, it was more of an interrogation than a conversation,” she said.
“Interrogation? As in you interrogated her, or she interrogated you?” asked Rainbow, bewildered.
“She interrogated me,” Twilight answered. “She mostly asked about becoming an alicorn, the Tree of Harmony, and things of that ilk.” She shivered hard, and an inch of snow fell off her coat. “Is it just me, or is this storm worse than when we got here?”
“No, I'm pretty sure it is,” Applejack offered.
“Am I the only one who thinks we ought to find some place warmer?!” Twilight asked incredulously.
Rarity shook her head as though to clear it. “No, darling. I think we all just kind of got swept away, as 'twere. I wholeheartedly agree,” she apologized as she shivered hard enough to clear her coat of snow. “Although I'm not sure where we'd be welcome to go.”
“I'll ask the guard,” Twilight offered, having to raise her voice over the storm. She walked over to the stallion and asked, almost yelling, “Is there somewhere we can go inside to warm up? We're freezing out here!”
The black aura faded, and the unicorn looked at the alicorn who'd interrupted him yet again and sighed. “I shall ask Ms. Frost what arrangements are to be made for you, if any,” he said with resignation.
Twilight looked at her friends hopefully as he disappeared through the wicker door. He’d been gone for scarcely a minute when he returned, slamming the door behind him in that black aura.
As he spoke, Twilight realized the wind had died down enough to communicate easily. “She is willing to let you stay one night, in an empty house we have here,” he said, clearly unhappy. “I will show you there,” he added with a groan.
“Thank you, sir,” replied Twilight, who motioned to her friends that they should follow.
Spike had just rolled a natural 20 for his killing shot on the Squizard when he felt like vomiting. He belched some green fire - he'd aimed it away from the game - and there materialized a letter, presumably from Princess Celestia.
Discord looked rather nonplussed at having his game interrupted in such a fashion, but he held his tongue. Big Mac’s eyes just went big.
“It's a letter from Princess Celestia!” Spike said as he opened it. I told you, Twilight, he thought to himself. He muttered as he read. “My dearest Twilight, there is a very important matter I must discuss with you. please come to Canterlot as soon as is feasible. - Princess Celestia.” Spike looked around for parchment and a quill. “Sorry, guys. I'll be right back. I've gotta take care of this really quick.”
He muttered as he wrote. “Dear Princess Celestia, I am not with Twilight. She's at Foal Mountain on a friendship quest. She said you had other ways to contact her. Thanks, Spike.” He blew it in a puff of green smoke to the Princess of the Sun and sat back down at the table. “Now, where were we?”
“You know, I could have just forwarded that letter, Spike,” Discord scoffed. “And it would have been so amusing to see her belch it up in a puff of green fire! Oh ho ho ho ho!”
Big Mac almost fell off the chair he was on from his laughing as he said, “Eeyup!”
* * * * *
The seven ponies arrived at the house in question after trudging through four inches of snow for almost twenty minutes. At least they were warmed up some from the travel, Twilight thought. The storm had abated quite a bit, as well, she was happy to note.
As she stopped and actually took in the house they were going to sleep in that night, her face contorted into a mix of confusion and disgust. It was built of cement… on stilts. The guard ushered them inside and slammed the door - more a giant rock covering the doorway than an actual door - rather forcefully in his black magic aura.
And then they were alone. The ‘house’ was more of a one-room hovel than what Twilight thought of as a house. It seemed completely devoid of furniture of any kind, but it was better than being outside.
Twilight was about to speak when she felt something moving in one of her saddlebags. She stopped and levitated it out to see that it was the small figurine that Princess Celestia had asked her to keep with her whenever Spike wasn't around. Celestia looked up at Twilight with the figurine’s face and said, “There you are.”
Twilight just about choked and screamed, “Princess Celestia! Hi!” She could feel her cheeks warming.
The white alicorn princess had a stark-white coat and an ever-flowing polychromatic mane and tail. She was somewhat lanky and normally very tall, but right now she was the height of the small figurine. She just chuckled and said, “Hello there.” Then her face got serious. “I have an important matter to discuss with you, Princess Twilight. Your friends, too.” Twilight set the figurine down on the floor and everypony gathered around.
“Oh, I meant in Canterlot,” Celestia continued, somewhat amused. “Though it is nice to see you all this way. It's not often that I get to use this spell.” She cut Twilight off before she could object. “I'm quite aware of your current situation, but I need to speak with all of you, privately, and I don't have a lot of time right now. I have a meeting with the ambassador from Saddle Arabia in a few minutes.”
“We'll head out in the morning, Princess,” said Twilight humbly. Then she smiled. “But you're going to have to teach me that spell,” she said with a wink.
“When this is all over,” came Celestia’s reply. Then she was gone. The figurine was once more just a figurine.
Twilight tenderly levitated the figurine back into her saddlebag. “Then we'll leave in the morning, provided we can get the door open.”
Fluttershy squeaked. “What do you mean, ‘provided we can get the door open’? You can't mean that… that…”
Twilight shook her head. “I'm sorry, Fluttershy. I didn't mean it that way. I just meant if that storm picks up again, there may be too much snow in the way for us to get the door open.”
Fluttershy whimpered and hid behind Rainbow. Twilight grimaced.
“And we shall have to pack warmer when we return,” suggested Rarity.
“Well, nopony thought it would be this cold,” snapped Rainbow. “It is the top of a mountain, but Cloudsdale hasn't scheduled it for more snow for another moon!”
That is odd, Twilight thought. “Why would it be snowing if it's not Cloudsdale’s doing?” she wondered aloud. She couldn't figure out the missing piece.
Then something clicked. “Unless…”
“Unless what, exactly?” asked Rainbow.
“Unless this has something to do with that stallion we met,” Twilight answered. “We never could figure out what he was doing. When Rarity had Rainbow's cutie mark, she was controlling the weather with her horn. There was snow then.”
“What if this stallion is doing the same thing?” Twilight continued, not to be interrupted. “Come to think of it, the storm always died down after he stopped whatever his magic was doing.”
“You may be right, Twilight,” Applejack retorted, “but I don't see how that's a ‘friendship problem’ that needs all six of us to be up here.”
“I don't, either, Applejack.” Twilight let a little too much worry come out in her voice. “I just hope we'll get some answers in Canterlot.”
* * * * *
Applejack awoke the next morning chilled to the bone. They'd slept on blankets, but it was still a stone floor, and a stone floor held up by little wooden stilts, at that. She shivered. This wasn't how building was done, and she knew building.
She sat up and looked around. Pinkie's hind leg was sticking up in the air, twitching all the while. There was a cute little half-snore coming from the direction of Fluttershy's blanket. Rarity was sprawled out with her yellow fru-fru blindfold on. A sound akin to a full-size horse at full whinny was emanating from the rainbow-colored blankets. Twilight was motionless and silent.
I love these ponies, Applejack thought.
A rumble from her stomach told her it was breakfast time back at Sweet Apple Acres. She found her saddlebags and rifled through them, finding only an apple she hadn't eaten in the trail.
Oh, what had happened on the trail? she wondered to herself as she swallowed the apple. Why had she been so irritable? She couldn't seem to remember now what had been going through her mind then. Okay, yes, she had a habit of occasionally blowing her top over little stuff, but most of the day before had felt different. Being rested and clear-headed now, she couldn't wrap her head around why she'd been so short-tempered the second half of the day.
A yawn from Dash broke her from her thoughts. “Hey, AJ. Already awake?” She sounded like she was still mostly asleep.
Applejack let out a short chuckle. “Heh, yeah. I'm usually halfway through breakfast by this time,” she said, smiling.
“Oh, yeah, huh…” Dash yawned out as she rolled over. Her snoring resumed shortly thereafter.
Applejack chuckled to herself. Wasn't that just like Dash.
* * * * *
Filigree called her cousin into the room. “What's taking so long?”
The unicorn stallion answered with trepidation. “I can only keep it up for so long at a time, and there isn't enough to keep them here without my spell. B-Besides, I thought I w-wasn’t the only m-major p-part of this p-plan.”
Filigree frowned at him. “Of course you're not, Ebon. I have a very special spell that I'll be casting soon. And Hoarfrost has other duties. But you are very important. Very, very important. Without you, the other parts won't work.”
“O-Of course, Ms. Frost. I-I'll do my best. This Princess of Friendship and her friends aren't m-making it any easier, either,” Ebon ventured. His blue and green tail fidgeted.
“Just make it happen!” snapped Filigree. “You know what's at stake if we fail, Ebon Flow.” If only that cursed princess hadn't turned Discord, this could've been so much easier, she thought. Even Nightmare Moon would've been a boon to the cause.
“Y-Yes, Ms. Frost. I do. I-I'll do what I can,” he replied, his voice quivering as he turned to leave. Filigree glowered as her wicker door opened, letting in the bright morning light. Celestia, she hated that.
* * * * *
Twilight had just finished packing up her special dark purple blanket with her cutie mark on it when she felt a cold chill run down her back. Something was different. “Did you feel that?” she asked everypony in the room.
“Feel what?” Pinkie asked brightly.
“Something in the air just changed,” Twilight replied as another shiver ran up her back. “Something cold and repressive just settled in.”
“Twilight, it's been cold since we got here,” Rainbow said with an eyeroll. “We're at the top of a mountain, and it's been snowing since yesterday afternoon.”
“Not that kind of cold. Just… nevermind.” Twilight quietly shook her head.
“You mean the kind of cold that doesn't really make your outside cold” - she hugged herself and shivered - “but makes your heart shiver because it's more evil than cold and it makes your blood freeze and your heart stop” - she clutched her chest - “and you just want to curl up in a little ball and die?!” Pinkie screamed at an extremely high pitch as she curled up into a ball and bounced off the floor.
Everypony looked at her with blank faces. “Yes, exactly, Pinkie!” Twilight said, surprised.
“Nope, didn't feel it,” Pinkie said very matter-of-factly. She returned to what she'd been doing… whatever that was.
Twilight sighed heavily as Applejack suggested, “At any rate, let's get outta here before the little stilts holdin’ the floor up give way.” Fluttershy quickly agreed.
Twilight moved the rock in front of the door with surprising ease. As the sunlight poured into the room, Twilight was momentarily blinded. As her eyes adjusted, though, the sight in front of her soaked into her visage. The first thing she noticed was the complete lack of snow. Apparently it had all melted in the few hours since they'd gotten to the house. The next thing she noticed was the sheer population. The village had appeared barely populated the afternoon previous, but the vista before her was of a bustling shopping day. Ponies were selling and buying and visiting and acting like ponies in a healthy town generally did.
“Well, that's a change,” Rarity remarked as the ponies walked out the doorway.
“It really is,” replied Twilight.
They bought food and trotted out of town as though nothing had happened. Nopony stopped them on their way out. Nopony asked if they were new or where they were going. Everypony kept to their business and nopony was caught watching the six ponies.
* * * * *
Ebon had started his spell again soon after his meeting with Ms. Frost. He didn't like that he had to address his younger cousin that way. Sure, she was the acknowledged leader of the cause, but he cringed inside every time he had to call Filigree ‘Ms. Frost’. She was more like a younger sister to him even than a cousin.
Filigree had correctly foreseen - guessed, if Ebon were allowed a personal opinion - that the Princess of Friendship and her entourage would show up not long after Ebon had started to extend the range of his spell, it was true. He didn't understand how nor why the Princess had known something was happening, nor how nor why Filigree had known she would. That wasn't his job, however. His part in the cause was to keep his spell going whenever and for however long he could manage it.
And now the Princess's entourage was leaving the village. For the short-term, Ebon was relieved because that meant his job would be easier for the moment. The bonds of friendship the six of them shared were very strong. For the long-term, however, he worried. He didn't know why they were leaving, but again, that wasn't his job.
Celestia rehearsed the story in her head as she paced in front of her throne. Yes, that sounded right. She couldn't afford to mess this one up, not with what was at stake. Twilight appeared to have very little idea of what was actually on the line in this case.
The sound of her very large, tall, heavy double doors opening pulled her from her reverie and stopped her pacing. She looked up to see one yellow and one blue aura surrounding her doors as they passed over the stone floor and long, narrow red carpet leading to her throne.
The avatars of the Elements of Harmony entered, looking tired and bedraggled. Celestia would have let them rest, but time was of the essence. They had already spent most of a day in just traveling to Canterlot. “Twilight,” she said. “Thank goodness you're here.”
Twilight looked worried. “What was so important we had to come here in the middle of a friendship assignment from the Cutie Map?” Her voice sounded shaky.
Celestia softened her gaze and met Twilight's, sympathetic to her former student. “Do you remember the story I read to you just before your first Hearth's Warming Eve at my school?”
Twilight's eyes went a little wider. “A Hearth's Warming Eve Tale. So what Filigree said was true. She really is a descendant of Snowfall Frost.”
Celestia broke her eye contact with Twilight and looked out a stained glass window. “Yes. In fact, so are you, through your mother.” She paused a moment before adding, “For that matter, so is your student, Starlight Glimmer.”
She moved her gaze once more toward the six little ponies. Each was at a loss for words - even Pinkie Pie, the avatar of the Element of Laughter. Most of them were staring at Twilight. Celestia was sure that Twilight had read or told the story to each of them.
Twilight broke the silence first as a large grin graced her face. “I'm… a descendant… of Snowfall Frost?!” She pranced around giddily until realization had fully dawned. She looked at her former teacher and fellow princess with quizzical eyes. “She said we'd met before, but I didn't recognize her beyond a family resemblance with another stallion we met there.”
Celestia gazed deeply into Twilight's wet purple eyes. “You did meet, at least once, though I am not surprised that you do not remember. It was not long after you came to study at my school. She was your brother's age, as I recall.”
“Then the story…?” Twilight seemed to be seeking confirmation of what she'd already discovered.
“Yes, it tells of real events. This was while my sister and I still lived in the castle in the Everfree Forest. We were not aware of what was transpiring. 'Twas before my… before I became Nightmare Moon,” Luna said from behind Celestia. Celestia nearly jumped out of her skin; only centuries of practice meant she didn't show it. After all these years, Luna still had it.
Celestia continued. “This is why the spirits got involved as they did. You see, there is a legend that is older even than I - older even than Equestria. There used to be no windigos, but there were more alicorns than just the princesses. The Alicorns were as common a race as the pegasi or the earth ponies, and they were just as powerful as we princesses.”
“And because they were so powerful, able to control the sun and moon as well as many other things, some became hungry for even more power, as I once did,” added Luna. “They convinced many. As a group, they were unstoppable. They made earth ponies, unicorns, and pegasi their slaves. They reigned for centuries.”
Celestia could see the hurt in her former student’s eyes as they welled up with tears. “But they were stopped, right?” Twilight asked, seeming to beg for the right answer.
Celestia gave Twilight a soft, warm smile. “Yes,” she affirmed. “They were stopped.” She paused, thinking. “Nopony I recall meeting knew how, though.”
“But I still don't understand what this has to do with Filigree Frost and Foal Mountain,” Twilight said, her face betraying her confusion.
“Part of the legend says that when they were defeated, the Alicorns became vengeful spirits that fed on hate and distrust,” Celestia said cryptically, hoping Twilight would pick up on it.
Twilight's eyes went wide. “Windigos…” she muttered.
“You are correct, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said softly. “As my sister has no doubt already told you, windigos are all too real. Every word in A Hearth's Warming Tale should be taken literally. However, the legend states that not only would the return of the windigos bring a future bathed in a blanket of eternal snow, but also that once they regained enough power, the Alicorns would return to once again enslave those they considered to be 'lesser’.”
Celestia saw realization flash in Twilight's eyes. “I have something else to tell you,” Twilight said. Celestia looked on, curious. “There was a unicorn in the village doing something that seemed to be making the storm worse last night,” Twilight continued. “We thought maybe he was controlling the clouds directly, but what if he was doing something to invite or feed the windigos?” she asked somberly.
“I have heard stories of such a spell,” Celestia said thoughtfully. “It is a spell much like the one Princess Cadance uses to spread love and friendship, but it does quite the opposite - it spreads hate, anger, and distrust.”
“Which feeds the windigos, which intensifies the storm,” Twilight almost mumbled, finishing the thought. Her eyes averted for a long moment, looking pensive. She then looked up at Celestia. “So how do we stop it?”
“That, Princess Twilight Sparkle, is for you to discover, not me. The map sent you and your closest friends, not me. You six are the right ponies for the job,” Celestia said with a wink. “Though, however much it may surprise you, my memory is not perfect. I would suggest searching the library in the castle Luna and I shared in the Everfree Forest. You may find a book that provides some more useful information.”
The six were turning to go when Luna stopped them. “Feel free to stop by the kitchens on the way out. I'm sure it's been a long trip.”
* * * * *
Twilight walked out of the palace, eyes sparkling at the thought of doing more research. She just loved libraries. Just the thought of all those books…
“Are you okay, darling?” Rarity asked, pulling her from her thoughts.
She then noticed that she'd stopped walking. “Yes. Sorry,” she apologized as she resumed walking. “I haven't been able to visit the library in the Castle of the Two Sisters for quite a while, and I may have gotten a little excited.” Her cheeks were feeling warmer than usual.
“It's alright, dear,” Rarity said soothingly. “Each of us has something she loves that not everypony else necessarily does.” She coughed lightly. “One of yours just happens to be libraries, and we know that.”
“Thank you, Rarity,” Twilight responded with a warm smile. “I just hope we can find a way to stop Filigree Frost from allowing the windigos to return. I just don't think telling jokes and singing Hearth's Warming carols will cut it.”
“I'm sure it will help, though?” Rarity suggested. “But whatever it takes, we're all in it with you. Right, girls?” The other ponies agreed.
“Oh, thank you, girls. You all are the best friends I could ever ask for.” They all stopped and gathered for a hug.
* * * * *
Hoarfrost had been doing her best to do her part for the cause. Her sister had asked the purple unicorn to spread some distrust, and she didn't care how. So Hoarfrost had put the brain underneath her turquoise-highlighted azure mane to work telling all sorts of gossip.
She'd told Silver Pail that her sister was secretly stealing from her; she'd told Cherry Turnover that his best friend was telling lies behind his back; she'd told Thunder Tail that his best friend was avoiding him... Well, she'd told a lot of ponies a lot of things. None of it it was true, of course. Some of it could be true, though; she didn't know either way. She bared a toothy grin.
She had spent the better part of several days doing this. She could feel the air cooling even without Ebon's spell. His spell was helping, no doubt, but sometimes there just wasn't any acceptable substitute for good, old-fashioned gossip.
Hoarfrost stepped through the wicker door and gleefully asked, “What's next, dear Sister?”
No matter how many times she went inside for Save-Equestria-This or Save-Equestria-That, the Everfree Forest still made Applejack uneasy. It was more than a mite strange - the vegetation grew on its own, the clouds didn't like to yield to the pegasus ponies, and it was just generally unfriendly, especially to farming and farm folk. Then there was the Poison Joke Incident.
She'd been so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she hadn't noticed the large root until she tripped over it. It also didn't help that it was late afternoon - nearing dinner time at Sweet Apple Acres - and the sun was nearly down. She quickly recovered and decided she'd watch much more closely as she heard giggles from behind her. Okay, yeah, it was funny - she'd been so focused on how strange the forest was in general that she'd forgotten how strange the forest could be right in front of her. The ground was riddled with roots and plants, making it difficult to walk very far without paying close attention.
As they reached the steps to the Castle of the Two Sisters, Applejack thought of the night she and Dash had been competing for the title of Most Daring Pony. She had to chuckle. Good times, she thought. Gosh, has it been that long? she thought. It had been over two years before. Time sure does fly fast.
The ponies entered the ruins and made their way to the library. They'd been able to do quite a bit of restoration work in what spare time they occasionally had, and the castle looked a lot better than it had during their competition, or even before that, when they'd found the Elements of Harmony. Rarity had restored some of the tapestries, which looked much better, even to Applejack. The floor had occasionally been swept, so there wasn't a layer three inches thick of dust. They'd even managed to start the repair work on some of the stained-glass windows.
As they arrived in the library and Applejack gazed at the seemingly endless bookshelves, she sure hoped Twilight knew where to look in this library, or they were going to be there for a while…
* * * * *
“No. No. No. No. No. No!” Twilight screamed with frustration. She and her friends had been searching for hours, by candlelight and light of horns, up the bookshelves and down the bookshelves, excitedly and dejectedly… and they hadn't found anything. Twilight had seen books about early Equestrian cuisine; she'd found books about how to have a proper royal tea party; she'd glanced through books in which philosophers debated whether the story of the founding of Equestria was true or not and the implications of both sides.
At this moment, she was perusing a book about Equestrian geography. She slammed the book closed and groaned loudly as she hurled her face onto the table.
Twilight lifted her head and looked out a window to see a series of blues with hints of yellows expanding over the eastern horizon. Rarity, who had a pile of books next to her that was taller than any of them, had apparently seen the same thing, because she gave Twilight a supportive smile as she kindly suggested, “Twilight, darling, we've been at this all night. Perhaps we should take a break?”
Twilight just groaned and yelled, “But Princess Celestia told us we'd find clues in here about how to defeat the Alicorns! And we haven't found anything!”
“Umm, does a book called The Alicorns: The Rise and Fall of Tyranny help at all?” piped up Pinkie from the air as she was bouncing as though on a trampoline.
“Well, that doesn't sound like what we've been looking for all night at all,” Rainbow said with an obvious eyeroll.
“Are you sure…?” Pinkie asked uncertainly from about the level of the top shelf.
“Just grab the book, Pinkie!” Twilight snapped.
“I don't know… Rainbow Dash says it's not what we're looking for,” Pinkie said, still looking unsure.
“She didn't mean it, Pinkie. Please just grab the book and bring it here?” Twilight said, trying her best to stay calm.
Pinkie bounced back up to the top shelf, grabbed the book, and then was suddenly in front of Twilight with it.
“I'm almost afraid to ask, Pinkie, but how long has it been since you found this book?” Twilight asked hesitantly as Pinkie dropped the book in front of her.
“Oh, I found it and laughed at the title hours ago, but by then I’d forgotten what we were looking for, and then I forgot about the book. Then I just found it again,” she replied brightly.
Twilight had to take a couple of deep, calming breaths as Pinkie vanished to elsewhere, out of sight. At least she knew where to look now.
* * * * *
“This book doesn't say much more than Celestia and Luna told us, but I did find one thing of interest,” Twilight piped up from the table. “The author is very vague about exactly how the Alicorns were defeated, but it's more to go on than we had before. He mentions something here about ‘an unknown but extremely powerful form of magic’ the other ponies of the time used to defeat the Alicorns.”
“Well, Sugarcube,” Applejack told her, “I don't know very many ponies who know more about magic than you do. Do you have any idea what it might be?”
“None. The author didn't know, either.” She very excitedly prattled on for a few minutes about how wonderful a find this book was and how old it had to have been because of this and that and the other.
Applejack took the time to think some things through. She didn't understand all of it, but as she thought about what Twilight had said about “unknown but extremely powerful magic,” something struck her like a solid buck to the face.
“Hey, Twi?” She interrupted. Twilight stopped speaking and glowered at Applejack for having stopped her mid-sentence. “Sorry to interrupt,” Applejack continued, “but what about the Elements of Harmony and the whole 'Magic of Friendship’ bit we used to defeat Tirek?”
Twilight's eyes widened and her jaw hit the table with an audible thud as a sound akin to a donkey's bray escaped her open mouth. Pinkie Pie happily trotted over and shoved the jaw back into her skull before happily trotting away. Twilight shook her head like a rag doll and stared at Applejack incredulously. “That hadn't even crossed my mind,” she said, “but it makes a lot of sense. Friendship magic is not something that very many ponies understand, but it's proved to be more powerful than normal pony magic.”
Fluttershy walked over to Twilight and asked, “So… what's next?”
“Now we need to return to Foal Mountain,” she said, then yawned. “After a nap.” She then collapsed face-first onto the table, books and all, and started snoring.
Pinkie appeared from nowhere, shouted, “That sounds like a plan!” and quickly proceeded to collapse and sprawl out on a chair before beginning to snore.
The other four ponies just looked at each other and chuckled.
* * * * *
The sun was glaring right into Twilight's eyes. Sometimes, in her more cynical moments, she was sure Celestia did that sort of thing on purpose. This is Celestia I'm talking about! she thought with horror. She's Princess Celestia! There's no way she does anything like that! She just shifted her head so she wouldn't be blinded.
This wasn't her bed - she wasn't at home. Where was she, again? She opened her eyes and moved them as little as possible to get an idea of where she was without spending too much effort. Books everywhere. A library. What library? Oh, what does that matter? she thought happily. It's a library. A thought crossed her mind that she needed to go… somewhere. She didn't remember… oh, yeah. The Castle of the Two Sisters. That's where she was. Now, where did she need to go? That was going to take longer. Oh well.
This position felt nice, except for a pointy thing jabbing itself into her lower jaw. She decided to put forth the energy to figure out what Pointy Thing was and why it was pointing into her jaw. She lifted her head only to realize she'd fallen asleep atop a small pile of books, and Pointy Thing was the corner of a hard cover.
Now that she was moving, she wanted to remember where she needed to go… She couldn't think. She'd been here with… her friends - her best friends. Where were they? She sat up a little straighter and looked around the library. She saw books on shelves, books in piles, and books on the table she'd slept on, but her friends were nowhere to be seen.
She sighed as she lifted herself off the chair she'd slept on. Surely her friends were around somewhere close.
She wandered around the castle ruins in the early morning light until she heard the unmistakable sound of Pinkie Pie laughing. Twilight followed the sound until she reached the Royal Pony Sisters’ private study. Sure enough, there were all her friends, laughing and giggling.
“Mornin’, Twilight!” Applejack shouted at a volume Twilight thought too loud for this early in the morning.
“Good morning, everypony,” Twilight responded with a yawn. Now she remembered. Foal Mountain, Filigree Frost - everything. “Does anypony have anything for breakfast?”
“I brought some,” Applejack piped up and grabbed some apple brown betties out of her pack, which she promptly shared with everypony.
Rainbow Dash breathed a sigh of relief as she and her friends exited the forest. She put on a good show of indomitable courage for her reputation’s sake, but if she had to be honest with herself, the whole forest still gave her the heebie-jeebies. Not as much as the thought that the windigos were returning, let alone what was going to follow.
“Hey, guys, I'll be right back. I just remembered something I need to grab from home,” she told the others as she sped away.
“Don't be too long!” she heard Twilight call after her.
She arrived at her cloudominium and closed the door, breathing a heavy sigh of relief at finally being alone for the first time in days. She knew she probably shouldn't have taken the detour, but she knew she'd be able to catch up to her friends in no time flat, and this was something she had to do.
She went to her desk and started writing. It wasn't something the sky-blue pony did very often if she could avoid it, but this letter had to be sent.
She finished the letter, addressed it, and stamped it. Stopping, she realized she'd need something to corroborate her cover story, so she grabbed a couple of Daring Do books before dashing to the mail pickup to drop off the letter.
Please, she thought as she darted toward the train station. Please get there in time!
* * * * *
“What took you guys so long?” Applejack heard Dash ask from the train stop as they trotted up.
“We were going the same speed we have been all morning,” Twilight rebutted.
As they neared the blue pegasus with the rainbow mane, Applejack saw a pair of Daring Do books, one in the pegasus’ hooves apparently being read, and the other by her side, presumably to keep her occupied on the third train ride over the same terrain in as many days.
“Y'know, Dash,” Applejack said with a wink, “I don't really blame ya fer wantin’ somethin’ to keep ya occupied on the train, but ya couldn'ta grabbed enough for the rest of us?”
“We still have a couple of minutes before the train gets here. Want me to grab anything for ya?” Dash asked helpfully.
Twilight and Applejack asked for books, Rarity and Pinkie declined her offer, and Fluttershy just kicked her hoof at the station floor. Dash was off at near her top speed, if Applejack could guess from her years knowing the pegasus, with only a rainbow trail that hung in the air for a moment as proof of where she'd gone.
Dash returned with five books - two Daring Do classics for Twilight, a Hank the Cowpoke book for Applejack, and a couple of others, apparently for Fluttershy, who looked pleasantly surprised at the unsolicited service.
“Whatcha got there, Fluttershy?” AJ asked.
“A couple of books that I'd lost. Rainbow said she found them in Twilight's library when she was there getting her Daring Do novels,” the sunshine-yellow pegasus responded happily. Twilight just blushed. “It's okay, Twilight,” Fluttershy continued. “I know you have a lot of books, and it can be hard to keep track of them sometimes,” she added with a warm smile.
The sound of metal wheels on tracks screeching to a halt pulled their attention. The train doors opened and they all climbed inside, yet again. Applejack just hoped their next train ride would be their last for a while. She was just fine stickin’ with walkin’ and only havin’ places to go within walkin’ distance. All this travelin’ was becomin’ a little tiresome.
* * * * *
Rainbow Dash couldn't concentrate on her book. She was reading one of the best Daring Do books ever - the one she'd gotten as an early release that featured her, Rainbow Dash, on the cover - but she couldn't focus on it. She was too preoccupied, worrying about whether the letter would reach its intended recipient in time.
Rarity, the only other passenger in this car, had apparently noticed, and moved over to her. “Is the book not to your liking?” she asked softly.
“No, it's not that, I…” Rainbow paused for a moment, trying to figure out how to word what she wanted to say. “I have some things on my mind.”
“Oh? Like what?” the white unicorn kindly probed.
“Just stuff,” Rainbow replied. When her friend didn't back down, however, the pegasus sighed, resigned to having to tell her at least a little. “Back there, when I said I'd forgotten something at home? I ran home to write a letter.”
Rarity looked surprised at this. “Rainbow Dash, writing? Of her own free will?” she said with a smirk. The unicorn then straightened up and took on a more serious tone. “To whom was this letter addressed, if I may ask?”
“Not this time. But... I'm worried about if it will arrive on time.”
“On time? On time for what?” Rarity's face was a model of confusion, and Rainbow couldn't fault her. The pegasus hadn't given her much to go on.
“Nevermind,” Rainbow said evasively.
“No, tell me, darling,” Rarity prodded. “I can't help unless I know what's going on.”
“I know,” Rainbow responded. “It's just that... I'm honestly worried here. I mean, we've saved Equestria more times than, well, anypony else I know of, but this one really worries me.” Rarity gave her a warm, encouraging smile.
“Cloudsdale is scheduled to pass Foal Mountain in the next few days on its way to somewhere else,” Rainbow continued. “My parents still live there, you know - in Cloudsdale. I haven't seen them in ages. They don't even know I'm a Wonderbolt. But… I mean, I want to believe we'll just get up there, solve this, and that will be that, but… I told my parents to take a vacation to Las Pegasus for a week.”
Rainbow wasn't expecting the hug that suddenly embraced her. It was a warm, tight hug of white forelegs that spoke of understanding and care on behalf of the recipient. She reciprocated the embrace for a moment, taking solace in having such an understanding friend.
“It's okay to be worried about your family,” Rainbow heard whispered into her ear.
As she pulled away and out of Rarity's grasp, she realized that she couldn't see her friend very well because her own eyes were wet with tears.
She went to thank her friend, but was shushed. “Don't mention it. I know how you value your reputation,” Rarity said kindly. “I won't tell a soul if you don't.”
“Deal,” Rainbow wholeheartedly agreed, wiping the tears from her eyes.
* * * * *
The train arrived at the destination near the foot of Foal Mountain without any trouble. As Twilight exited the train - again - she could hear complaining groans from behind her about having to scale the entire mountain again. As she looked back, though, she noticed something odd about Rainbow and Rarity - their eyes were slightly bloodshot, as though they'd been crying.
Twilight dismissed the notion and started up the trail again. At least it was familiar this time, and she knew what to expect.
What she hadn't expected, though, was the sheer amount of snow they ran into almost three quarters of the way up. It was so deep, the trail was indistinguishable from the slope of the mountain. It hadn't been easy before, but now it was flat impossible.
Hearing worried murmuring from behind, Twilight instantly thought of a spell that could help. She charged her horn, focusing on the spell. The snow in front of her glowed and started moving. Soon it had become a series of solid steps strong enough to hold the weight of three ponies at once. They wouldn't need to hold that much, but Twilight liked safety cushions.
She had to stop and repeat the spell every so often, but it was preferable to trying to find the safe trail through two feet of snow, or even using the path under the snow, for that matter. Twilight hadn't forgotten how difficult their first trip up had been, and she didn't want to think about how many rocks had been displaced farther down the mountain in the process.
Things got even more interesting and difficult when they hit the blizzard. Oh, no, Twilight thought to herself. The wind was howling as the blowing snow whipped her face.
Just before they reached the village, Twilight felt a cold chill - the evil kind that had little to do with the weather - make laps up and down her back before diving headfirst into her heart and taking up residence there. As she reached the outskirts, she saw why. Of the houses built into the hill, only the roofs were visible over the snow; the houses on stilts showed down to the tops of the windows.
Right in front of the building with the wicker door - which was dug out, probably magically - was Filigree Frost, forelegs spread out and head lowered in a “bring it” pose, a grin on her face that was perhaps the coldest, most evil Twilight had ever seen.
* * * * *
Filigree Frost had been waiting so long for this moment. Her mother, her mother before her, and her mother before her had all been waiting for this moment for years upon years.
And there was the Princess of Friendship and her entourage, walking carefully over the snow through the storm. It was appropriate that she of all ponies was here to witness this.
Now witness the destruction of your precious way of life, Filigree thought as she closed her eyes, focusing on the spell. The image was so beautiful to her, it almost brought tears to her eyes. Dark tendrils spiraled around her horn, wrapping into the ridge until they coalesced into a ball of utter blackness at the end. This process was repeated until she could feel the dark energy had engulfed her entire horn.
As she released the spell, a bolt of pure darkness shot out from her horn and into the sky, consuming the utter blackness around her horn and finally opening the door for her rightful rulers to return. Even the roaring wind could not muffle her hideous, hysterical laughter.
Twilight could only look on in horror as the scene before her unfolded. The renewed screeching and howling from above confirmed her fears - Filigree Frost had just cast the counter to the spell Clover the Clever had fixed so long ago that had protected Equestria from the windigos.
A gentle nudge from behind reminded her it was time to act. She closed her eyes and began to concentrate, focusing on the spell it had taken her years to really learn. As she reopened her eyes, however, she saw something that frightened her to the very core, distracting her and breaking her concentration, stopping Twilight's heart and the spell in their tracks.
* * * * *
Filigree Frost was filled with elation. There he was, more beautiful than Filigree had imagined - a real, physical Alicorn, returned from his banishment as a windigo. The reverence she felt was overwhelming.
“So thou art she who broke the spell,” came his deep, sultry voice.
Filigree bowed and said, “Yes, it is I. I come before you as your humble servant.”
“We owe thee a great debt of gratitude. May I know thy name, dear lady?” the Alicorn asked, his voice only growing more sultry.
“I am Filigree Frost,” she replied, her head still lowered to the snow. To her surprise, the Alicorn raised her muzzle so that her eyes met his with his powerful hoof. His coat was the gray of steel and his eyes were the brilliant azure of a clear, sunny sky.
“Thou hast done well, Filigree Frost. Forever shall thy name be known in the annals of history as she who corrected the uncorrectable wrong,” the Alicorn said almost as though to a lover. Then, releasing his gentle hold on Filigree, he yelled into the storm, “Come, my brothers and sisters! Come and vanquish with me! WE SHALL AGAIN RULE THIS LAND!!”
To Filigree's delight, more windigos began to descend and retake their physical forms. To her surprise, however, each new Alicorn bowed to the first, much the way she had. The first continued, “My brothers and sisters! Gratitude to this Filigree Frost, we have been empowered to return and reclaim our right as rulers of this world!” Cheers echoed from the others. “And now, I, Prince Umbral Heart, shall lead us once more to glory!”
* * * * *
Applejack eyed the Alicorn that had appeared next to Filigree. He's sure built a lot like Big Mac, she thought, but he's got to be as tall as Princess Celestia… She strained to see more detail through the storm. His horn looked awfully, eerily familiar - it looked more like a tusk than a unicorn horn, curving up and back into a sharp point. Unlike King Sombra's, however, it matched his coat. He was too far away and the storm was too thick for Applejack to see the colors of his coat and mane very well, however.
Then other Alicorns began appearing around him. Twilight was still frozen in place, her face the epitome of frightened surprise. Applejack nudged her. “Twi?” she called through the storm.
Twilight didn't move. Applejack nudged her again, this time with more force. “Twilight!” she yelled. This seemed to break her from whatever had kept her captivated.
“Deh, wha-? Huh?” Twilight replied as her eyes refocused. “Oh, right. Sorry, Applejack. I don't know what came over me.”
“Prob’ly the same thing that came over Dash,” Applejack responded, pointing to the azure pegasus. Dash's eyes were wide, her pupils were small, and her mouth was hanging slightly agape in a look of unbelieving horror as she stared at the additional Alicorns appearing around Filigree.
Twilight, seeing that most of her friends were in similar straits, replied, “As well as all our other friends. Speaking of which, why weren't you affected?”
“I jus’ wasn't surprised, is all, I guess,” Applejack replied, suddenly wondering the same thing. All her friends - including Twilight - had been swept away by the sight of the Alicorns returning from their long banishment as windigos, but not Applejack. “Though to be honest,” she continued, “I ain't rightly sure.”
Twilight had already awoken Rarity and was shaking Fluttershy by the haunches. Applejack decided to follow suit and trudged over to Rainbow Dash. She called her name a couple of times, shaking her. The same dead look in Dash's eyes remained. Applejack shook her again, harder, to no avail. She didn't like it, but there was only one way Applejack could think of that she could do that could wake her friend from her trance.
Applejack turned to face away from her friend. She'd have to aim real careful to avoid hurting the pegasus - about the cutie mark oughta do. As her hind legs tensed up, however, she heard Twilight call out, “Applejack, no!”
“She's not respondin’ to normal shakin’, Twilight!” Applejack replied as the purple alicorn approached her.
Rarity trotted right up to Applejack's face and stuck her muzzle up to Applejack's. The look in Rarity's eye was not a happy one - in fact, it looked a bit angry. “I believe what happened was related to how much we're worried and scared over the whole situation. And poor Rainbow Dash here is more than worried about what will happen to her parents in Cloudsdale when it passes by here tomorrow! She didn't want any of you to know for fear of ruining her image!”
* * * * *
The silence that followed was broken by a bellowing but beautiful deep stallion voice announcing that Prince Umbral Heart would again lead the Alicorns to victory.
“Rarity, maybe you can get through to Rainbow!” urged Twilight. “We've got to wake her up if we're going to end this nightmare!”
“I shall try, darling, for all our sakes,” Rarity replied somberly. I'm not sure how, but I shall try, she thought.
She put her muzzle next to Dashy's right ear, Dashy's muzzle next to Rarity's neck. “I know you're worried, darling,” Rarity half-whispered, “but you know as well as I that together we've beaten everything Equestria and beyond has thrown at us, and we can do so again, here. Without you, however, I fear that our fears will come true. We cannot do this without you, Rainbow Dash. And I will accompany you to Cloudsdale myself if that's what it takes to assure that your family is safe.”
This seemed to stir something in Dashy, for at that moment a tear formed at the corner of her eye. Then there was another. Then Dashy whispered, “I might take you up on that,” and turned to look her friend in the eye. “Thank you, Rarity.”
Rarity felt her whole body relax as her friend began moving. Rarity looked to Twilight and said, “I believe, darling, that we are all here and ready. Shall we try again?”
* * * * *
The small group of Alicorns had grown to a crowd, with Prince Umbral Heart and Filigree Frost in the lead. Twilight’s confidence surged through her like electricity. She and her friends were standing in formation, facing them. Twilight closed her eyes and channeled her confidence and the sense of absolute unity with her friends into one part of her mind. There, she allowed that confidence and unity to bond with her connection to the magic her horn always used and the connection she held to the Tree of Harmony. As she felt that mixture begin to boil, seeking a path to the outside, Twilight opened her eyes, her jaw clenched in determination, and sent that growing, boiling ball of energy to her horn. Her horn and heart warmed, as did the air around her. She was aware of the feeling of being levitated off the ground without having used her wings. She was also aware that all five of her closest friends were, as well.
Then, focused on the Alicorns before her, she released the boiling energy from her horn and from her heart. She was encompassed by a blinding, warm, familiar light as she felt the power of the magic of friendship and the Tree of Harmony fill her being.
First there was a single arc of light, arching up before falling to land on the ground in the midst of the Alicorn group. Then another joined it, and soon there was the full rainbow spectrum in a collective beam, encompassing the whole crowd of Alicorns.
Twilight could see looks of surprise on the Alicorns’ faces, except for the prince. The prince wore a smug look of confidence, even as his fellows began to revert to the ghost-like forms that everypony associated with the windigos. Screams of denial and anguish could be heard as the windigos were forced back to whence they came.
Nothing happened to Umbral Heart, however. His maniacal grin just widened as his fellows were once more banished from around him. Suddenly his horn was surrounded by a deep black magical aura, and he teleported outside the area of the rainbow beam’s effect.
As soon as the rest of the Alicorns were once again banished, Twilight confidently cried, “Let's get him, girls!” and proceeded to focus all her attention on Umbral Heart, the giant rainbow friendship beam suddenly changing course to follow instructions.
* * * * *
Prince Umbral Heart seemed unable to escape the polychromatic ray of burning light, yet again. Every point to which he teletransported met the same fate as the previous. On the immediate, the ray would again find him and commence draining him of his magical power. Had he been more familiarized with the lay of the land - it had changed much during the centuries of his long banishment - he could have escaped. Each teletransport and subsequent beating drained him all the more. He was growing weary.
He had studied constantly in his mind what had occurred that day, centuries ago, and had believed he'd found a solution. Yet, here again was the same situation, only delayed and yet expedited by his constant movement.
