Years in the Heart

Time. It can damage books. It can do just that in multiple ways. Whether it be through translation, or just getting worn out, time would always be taking its sweet but deadly toll on the leather bound works of art. Words would fade with age, how a word or picture is interpreted is altered decade to decade. This matter simply dealt with the change of sight, or lack there of. No one knew what others looked liked in the olden days. Whatever pictures were drawn, were just interpretations that were invented by some one’s imagination and based on loosely gathered facts. A person from the past, could never fully be justified in how their picture looked in a children’s book.

Fluttershy sighed as she stared at the awful picture. His eyes and fur were the wrong color, his mane was ridiculously pampered with sparkling stars, and he was way too lanky. The only thing that seemed right was his blank flank. No talent, no purpose. Well...he almost had one. It made her curious. What would his talent have been. Fluttershy stared at the false interpretation that was simply labeled, “Willow.”

“You alright Fluttershy?” Spike tapped on her shoulder.

“Oh, hello Spike. Yes, I’m, I’m fine.” Fluttershy closed the book and shoved it aside. It was the eighty second book she had hopelessly searched through in the Ponyville Library. The place had been rebuilt after it was destroyed by Tirek, but many books had been lost to the flames.

“You were looking for something?” Spike asked.

“Yes, actually…” Fluttershy sighed. “I was hoping to find an accurate picture of Starswirl's son, Willow."

"Oh." Spike had heard about Fluttershy's recent obsession. He had heard what she did to Rarity over the matter. Even after he had forgiven Fluttershy for attacking his wife, he still felt an uncertainty around her. "Well, if you are looking for the 'most' accurate depiction, you should probable look in the older books that just got sent here from Canterlot. Well, they're copies, but they have prints of the original photos." Spike walked over to a box which was still covered in postage stamps. He pulled out a box cutter and opened the box. After shuffling through some books, he found what it was he was looking for. "Here it is..." Spike handed Fluttershy the book.

"The Forgotten Child." Fluttershy glossed over the gold leaf title imbedded in the green leather. "Thank you Spike."

"You are most welcome." He sighed. "Take care Fluttershy." After patting her on the shoulder, he walked upstairs leaving Fluttershy to herself.

She turned her attention to the book. "Please," she whispered to herself as she turned through the pages.

Words...

Words...

More words...

The same story seemed to be hopelessly played out in the words that retold again and again the story of how Willow came to be.

A picture, finally...

The picture was of a pegasus mare. Her white snowy mane and fur were only contrasted by her spectacular purple eyes. An albino, of the sorts, she was smiling as she held a bundle in her fore hooves. She was holding a baby, Willow. A caption below read, "The mother of Willow." Something familiar about the mare sparked Fluttershy's memory. A being, with purple eyes who was white as the clouds in the sky. She looked like a timberwolf Fluttershy had once met. Could it be? Was that Elm? It had to be her. Who else could it be? Elm, she was the mother that was do devoted to caring for her son, but how did she become a timberwolf?

Fluttershy turned the page. Her heart nearly exploded when she saw the water color painting of a very young Willow. He looked the same. It was him. He was just younger. But still, it was him. Him, him, him, wait, what was that? A folded piece of paper was tucked under the next page. There was a note on the back of it.

Dear Miss  Fluttershy,

I wish this note could have come under better circumstances, but here it is just the same.

It is not much, I know, it was all I could send for now. I hope that is can help you find what you are looking for.

Sincerely,

STARSWIRL

She unfolded the paper…

...there was only one pony Fluttershy knew could decipher it.

“This is fascinating!” Twilight was as giddy as a school filly when Fluttershy had shown her the paper. “It’s a pyramid cypher! But, it’s written in the old runic language of equestria. It’s nearly identical, believe it or not, to our lettering system. Of course there have been a few revisions, but it’s practically the same. And of all things! It’s from Starswirl the bearded!!! But, why is it addressed to you?” Twilight stared at Fluttershy in disbelief.

“I don’t know, it was just tucked in that book. Do you know what it means?” Fluttershy asked timidly.

“Actually, I have the runic alphabet memorized.” Twilight beamed. “Now I just gotta decipher it.” Twilight pulled out a notepad and quill. Looking back and forth between the note and the notepad, she began the slow process of writing out the secret order of the mixed up letters.

C  A  N  L  O

S  R  R  E  S

Æ  O  T  B  E

N  R  A  E  N

A  T  I  L  W

“That can’t be right.” Twilight rotated and turned the paper trying to find a pattern in the letters. “There has to be some clue that I’m missing. Ah! Why is it so dark? I thought I told Spike to change that light bulb.” She held the original cypher underneath a tableside lamp. “Come on, come on. Wait, what?” A dark line began to appear on the paper. The exposure to the lamp made the dark line grow into a path that traced out the letters. A pattern appeared. “Yes!” Twilight got to work and copied down five words that the line traced out.

TORRE - BEARN - ÆSCAN - LOSEN - WLITA

“What is that supposed to mean?” Fluttershy was growing tired of this sick joke. This note was supposed to help her find what she was looking for. This ancient mess of letters didn’t seem like they could help her find Willow.

“Torre, I know that word.” Twilight struggled to remember what it was, that word. That word was significant. “Torre, torre, torre,” she whispered to herself, “toreh, towre, tower, tower? Tower! It’s tower. Torre is the ancient word for tower!” Twilight ran to a bookshelf and yanked out a book labeled “Phonics of the Old Equestria”. She flipped through several pages. “Okay, there, and there.” She began to scribble the translation of the words down on her notebook.

TOWER - CHILD- SEEKS - LOST - BEAUTY

“And that, fully translated in the correct way would say, ‘The tower child seeks for his lost beauty.’ Fluttershy, who would send you this? I know it says Starswirl, but it’s just, strange. Why would he send you this, how could he have sent you this? He’s been dead for a long time.” All was silent. Fluttershy just stared at her friend. She could not answer that question.

“I don’t know, I just don’t know.” She wept, clinging to the book with that young Willow trapped inside.

It was evening…

Down the empty street, Fluttershy, well what was left her, she walked. It was just her flesh and bones that walked down the street. The dead street. It wasn’t alive, it wasn’t like the forest. This place was a barren wasteland where other living things lived inside of the dead trees that made up their dead homes, with their dead furniture, and their dead knick knacks. Everything was just dead. There was no rhyme or reason either. Ponies never questioned anything. Fluttershy knew that if she asked the married couple, sitting on the bench, they would not know why they truly loved each other. Sure, they can say traits they like about each other, but why do they like those said traits?

There was no real answer for what love was. Maybe it was just a natural fear of being physically alone, so anyone will prance up to anyone to say “I love you” just so they don’t feel lonely. What was love? Love was an illusion made up to make people think they can be happy. Fluttershy wasn’t mad, just sad. She was sad that she was thinking this way. Why was she so sad? If love is a lie, why does she want it so much? Again, that hope that love was real sparked a momentary sense of warmth in her heart. Friendship is real, she thought.

Friends will respect you for who you are, even if you’ve made mistakes, they treat you with kindness, still. Friends care for you and concern themselves with your well being. They are there when you need them, when you ‘need’ them. Need is different than want. What about a friend who cares more for you than everyone else? What are they? They respect you more, feel for you more, and want to be around you, all the time. The more than friends want to protect you. When they are more than friends, you single them out above the rest. A friendship evolves into something greater. Your friendship is everlasting. Your friendship is love.

Yes! That is where love comes from! It comes from friendship. Was Willow’s friendship this great? The time distortion in the enchanted are had messed with how she had seen time. The bond existed without her knowing. It grew under the spell. It was there. It was going to stay. Willow’s heart was imprinted on her soul. He belonged to her, she belonged to him. The thought was no longer chilling as it was thrilling. A stallion had chosen her as his friend. Willow had chosen her to be his close friend. Fluttershy had never truly felt this before. It was strange, new, and foreign. And yet, it was beautiful. “Faust, please, give him back to me. I don’t want to be alone.”

Fluttershy stopped walking. A sign, just up ahead caught her attention. It read, “TOWER - Children’s Therapy.” That line that was translated from that note, it echoed inside Fluttershy’s head. The tower child seeks for his lost beauty. A child from this place? A child? Curiosity pulled Fluttershy closer to the door.

After entering, a little bell above rang out a chiming tune. The air smelled of some sort of freshener. A bowl of potpourri was sitting at the registration desk. Behind the desk a brown furred, sandy maned pegasus mare sat with her glasses focused on some records. “We’re closed until Dr. Neural comes ba-” she stopped when she looked up to see Fluttershy. “Oh my Faust.”

“I’m sorry. Am I intruding?” Fluttershy was about to back herself out the door.

“No it’s alright, just, it’s just...you’re real.” The mare squinted. She took off her glasses and stood up. She clumsily made her way around the desk. “This is, so strange.”

“I’m sorry, but what’s so strange about me?” Fluttershy asked.

“Oh nothing really, just unexpected.” She eyeballed Fluttershy up and down. “I do apologize. My name is Feather Pen.” Fluttershy noticed her ink quill cutie mark. “You wouldn’t happen to have known a colt by the name of Arctic Blade, would you?”

“I’m sorry but I don’t know a colt by that name. Why? Who is he?” Fluttershy waited tensely to see where this was going.

“He was a patient here. He,” Feather gulped, “he painted that.” Her hoof pointed at a painting on the wall that Fluttershy hadn’t noticed. It was her. Fluttershy was staring at a copy of herself. Every detail was spot on, from her mane which hung over her face to the shape of her eyes. Even her own cutie mark was identical.

“Why would a colt paint a picture of me?” Fluttershy nearly choked on her breath from the shock of seeing herself hanging on a wall.

“The patient, was obsessed with what we thought was his imaginary friend. He drew hundreds of pictures. All the pictures were of the same mare, well you. It hurt all of us when we heard Dr. Neural tell the poor colt that you weren't real. He cried every time the doctor would try to tell him, he would cry. It was almost like he was dying everytime he heard it." Feather shook her head at the awful memory.

“Does he still come here?” Curiosity, it killed the cat, but for Fluttershy it was doing her another service.

“Oh, no. He was checked out of here years ago. I believe it’s been some thirteen years.” Feather admitted.

“But how could he have painted me like that? I didn’t look like that thirteen years ago. I was only a filly. How could he have known that I would look like that?” Curiosity bit back at Fluttershy.

“He couldn’t have.” Feather’s tone was strange. Almost afraid. “He said he never met you. But he could talk for hours and hours about you. Your favorite food is carrot cake, isn’t it?”

“How did you know that?”

“Because,” Feather sighed, “each week Arctic, the colt, he would ask me for carrot cake recipes. He wanted to make some in case you ever came around to see him.”

Fluttershy thought for a moment. Arctic Blade? That’s a strange name for a colt. Why would he, how could he possibly know her without even meeting her. A mystery, yes. Who was he? “Where does he live?”

“Well, the last time I heard, his father was going to take him up to the frozen north.” Feather paused in thought. “I think the father’s name is Zubry.” She walked over to a filing cabinet and pulled out an old file. Searching through the file, she found what she was looking for. “Oh, it’s Zuberi. Yes, he was a Zebra. I guess Arctic was his adoptive child.”

“You did say the Frozen north, right?”

The train stopped along the side of a long since abandoned rail station. The windows were cracked, and the ticket booth was full of snow fall. In the background, a series of log cabins cast the shadow of a somber ghost town, except, this ghost town was alive. Each one of the cabin’s windows were flickering with the light of some fire source. Distant laughter was carried on the chilling breeze. No fools were about to venture out at night her. There was a problem. A sign hung on one of the lamp posts of the rail station. It read, “BEWARE: Timberwolves At Night.” It was night now.

Fluttershy walked off of the train car. Even with a dozen layers of snow clothes, she still shivered. She continued to move forward as the train began to leave behind her. Along she went through the cold town. It was quiet, the snow fell like feathers. Each little flake was a work of art waiting to make a touchdown on the ground. It was eerie. Here, it was almost like the Everfree forest. The snow seemed to be alive. Icy little eyes were watching from beneath her hooves. Twinkling in the reflecting light of the cabins, they stared their cold stares. A small but lively bunch of trees against the mountains saw the lone mare, walking, helpless. An easy kill.

Fluttershy shivered as she went. The crunch of the snow under her hooves sounded out like glass shells shattering under a hammer. Exposed, she could feel something watching her. They, or it, wouldn’t see much since her face was buried by a ton of scarves. She halted as when she heard a growl. Almost as an instant reflex, she swore she saw a pair of glowing eyes behind one of the cabins. “Hello?” There was no answer. Silence reigned the snowy air.

Another growl grew as the shadows gathered for their fatal attack. A pack of beasts. Pairs upon pairs of glowing eyes. As Fluttershy cowered down to the ground the timberwolves advanced into a circle around her. There was no chance of escape. She had no direction to run in. Her limbs were still numb from adjusting to the cold. Flight was out of the question since her wings were buried somewhere in the layers of the clothing she wore. This wasn’t going to end well. Well, not for the timberwolves that is.

A black figure darted through the barrier of timberwolves. Marching around Fluttershy, the figure pulled back his hood and mask. Facing the timberwolves he let his own roaring voice, “Voltar para as sombras!” Challenging them, he called upon them, telling them to return to the shadows. The timberwolves snarled, their gnashing teeth were a futile attempts at trying to scare off the one they knew was their master here. The figure pulled a sword from behind his cloak. It was an icy blade that rang out a blue tone deafening to the ears of the timberwolves. “Retorno, ou morrer.” Return or die. He held the blade up high with power. The wolves crept back into their forest of dark and death. Redirecting his attention, the stallion flexed his wings which were bound to some sort of metal braces. He stared at Fluttershy who was cowering on the floor. “Are you alright miss?”

“What?” She was surprised she was still alive.

The stallion smiled. “You are new here, aren’t you? Follow me. My father and I have a spare room that you can stay in for the night.”

Before she could raise her head to see his face, his hood was back on as he headed towards one of the cabins. She followed close behind. The cabin was a bit larger than the rest. She watched as the stallion set his sword in the snow. Tapping the side of the cabin, a pile of snow came down and buried the sword, preserving it.

"Come on in." He pushed the door to the cabin open. His voice, it sounded so familiar.

As they stepped into the cabin, a pound clacking of shaking hooves came tumbling down the hallway. "Theluji? Why in the name of the Gods were you still out there!?" An older, possibly middle aged zebra came running to shut the door. "Who is this!? I thought I told you to stop bringing in strays."

"I'm sorry father." He pulled down his hood. Fluttershy still couldn't see his face in the shadows if the cabin. "I couldn't just leave her out there."

"Her? You brought a mare here?" The zebra eyeballed Fluttershy; he looked her up and down carefully. "My apologies. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Zuberi, and this is my son, Theluji. Although the insists on calling himself by his translated name. It's not as impressive in my opinion."

"I'm Arctic." He faced Fluttershy. "Arctic Blade."

Fluttershy nearly collapsed where she stood from the sight of Arctic. Was he a changeling? Or is this a sick joke. This was cruel if it was a joke. This was heartbreaking! But, it was no joke. This was real. She really was seeing what she thought she was seeing. It was impossible, but an uncontrolled blind urge of desperate love took hold of her. She embraced Arctic. It was his eyes, and hair, and his face. She saw a ghost that had taken to flesh and blood. That face, those deep old and young eyes, but that was impossible. Willow?

"Uh, miss?" Arctic stood a little baffled.

Fluttershy quickly let go realizing what she had done. "Oh I'm so sorry, you just re-" it made her sick for a bit, "reminded me of a friend I lost." To her surprise, Arctic just smiled. "I'm Fluttershy..."

"Well, it's nice to meet you miss Fluttersigh," he coughed, "I mean Fluttershy. Sorry my throat it's a bit sore. I'm going to make some tea, would you like some?"

"Oh yes please." If it weren't for the scarves, Fluttershy's blush would have been completely visible. She watched Arctic walk of into the kitchen. Sighing she turned to the zebra.

"What kid, you never seen a zebra before?" Zuberi scowled.

"Yes I have, but just one. Her name is Zecora." Fluttershy said a little timidly.

"Wait, you know Zecora?!" Fluttershy nodded at Zuberi's question. "Well, where has my favorite niece been hiding all these years?" He chuckled.

"She lives in the Everfree forest." Fluttershy smiled a bit, knowing that she had just met Zecora's uncle. He was strange though. He didn't have the accent or rhyme in his sentence structure. She turned to look at the kitchen. Fluttershy watched as Arctic prepared the tea kettle on the stove. He had Willow's face, and his eyes, but something was missing. Something wasn't right. It was like another was wearing Willow's skin. But still, it was that much closer to being with Willow.

"I'll bet that you are curious about how Theluji, or Arctic, came to be my son." Zuberi noticed Fluttershy was staring at Arctic through the kitchen door. "Well Miss Fluttershy, I'll tell you. I found him. He was wandering out in the woods over there. He barely had a scrap of clothing on him to protect him from the cold. So, I took him in. His wings were damaged somehow. That's what those braces are for." Zuberi paused in silence. "I never found his parents. I assumed the worst. I guess the timberwolves must have... Well you don't need to hear that." It was strange how Zuberi had bounced his tone to a different level so casually. "He had some issues when he was a colt."

"I know, he kept drawing pictures if a mare." Fluttershy interrupted. "He obsessed over her, didn't he?"

"How did you know that?" Zuberi was baffled. He didn't know what to think. This mare, whoever she was, just walks in and knows about his son's mental problems as a colt. His world was about tone rocked. Zuberi watched Fluttershy unwrap the scarves from her face. His jaw dropped as he recognized her now from the hundreds of drawings he had thrown away. "You."

"Tea's ready. Do you want any su-" Arctic stopped halfway through the door. The tray in his fore hoof began to shake as breathing turned erratic and discorded. "Dad? I think I'm going crazy again..." He set the tray on a side table and quickly attempted to retreat, but his body halted at the sound of Fluttershy's voice.

"Wait! Please don't go." She stood up and gently walked over to him.

"Son, I'm afraid you aren't going crazy. She is really here this time.

Silence. It broke when Arctic dared to move closer to Fluttershy. Raising his hoof, he traced her face. "Oh Faust." He choked back on his tears. Just like Fluttershy's incident earlier, he lunged at her and took his time to embrace her. "You're real. You're really real." He sobbed into her mane. Catching his own error it what must have been confusing to Fluttershy. "I'm sorry." He wiped his tears as he stepped back. "I just, I mean you, look like-"

"I understand." Fluttershy smiled up to him.

A pile of snow clothes and a cloak sat by the fireplace, drying. Zuberi smiled at the sound of Fluttershy and Arctic chatting away in the kitchen. The two of them were baking a carrot cake.

"I don't know how to describe the feeling I have around you." Arctic chuckled.

"Do your best. I want to know." Never before had Fluttershy felt so excited to hear what someone had to say about her.

"Okay. Well, I feel warm, happy, and I feel as if-. I don't know." Arctic smiled sheepishly.

"Please, go on." Fluttershy was on the edge of her seat.

"Well, I feel like I'm talking to, well, an angel." He smiled. This nearly stopped Fluttershy' heart. Only one other stallion had ever compared her to an angel. "But, I feel like something is missing. I feel like I've forgotten something. Another life is hidden from me, but I don't know what it is."

Fluttershy shuffled her fore hoof alongside his. "I understand." Smiling at Arctic, she could see his face light up.

Arctic hummed a laugh as his heart almost began to flutter. "Jyes," wait, did he just say, "I mean! Yes!" Fluttershy stared at him, half confused and half in disbelief. "Excuse me." He bolted out the kitchen and into a side room. Fluttershy was shocked. Anxiously, she followed after him. Carefully she crept up along the door which was still partially open. She could hear him silently shouting at himself. The turned quiet. She heard him whisper to himself, "Stupid, stupid, stupid..." Fluttershy's heart stopped when she realized what he was saying. "Arcit, wy yoo so stupid?!"

She pushed open the door. Fluttershy say she was standing in what looked like his room. On the back wall of Arctic's room was an obscure painting of a small burning tree. "You are not stupid." Fluttershy wrapped her wings around him. "You just have trouble talking. That's all." Arctic stated at her.

"Pleez don tel no wun..." He begged.

"I promise I won't." Fluttershy buried her face in his neck. "I promise."

DING

The timer went off in the kitchen. "I got it!" Zuberi called out. He knew that something important was going on. He knew this was going to happen.

"Wut iz dat?" Arctic corrected his voice. "What is that?"

Fluttershy looked down at the small brown pouch that was tied around her neck with a string. "Oh." She said removing the pouch from her neck. "I think I brought this to give back to you." She pulled up Arctic's hoof and emptied the contents of the pouch into it. A single green crystal slid out.

"It's a heart, a timberwolf heart." Arctic exclaimed. "Where did you get this?" He stared at it. He couldn't stop staring at it. It trapped his eyes.

"Arctic?" Fluttershy shook him. "Arctic?!"

A light, a face seeped out if the crystal. The glowing face turned for a bit towards Fluttershy. It smiled. Turning back to Arctic, Willow's face merged with his. The glowing light dimmed leaving the crystal black. Arctic's eyes glowed for a moment. Then, he collapsed.

"Arctic!" Fluttershy fell to the floor and desperately tried to shake him awake. "Please!" She let her head fall.  "Don't leave me, not again." She cried as she lay down next to him. Weakness had taken up her body. Again she suffered. She suffered in silence. However, Fluttershy's suffering was about to pay off.

"Fluthersigh?" Arctic woke up. "Fluthersigh, I remember. I can remember those three years. But that's all. I'm sorry." He was met with the hug if his life.

"That's all I need." Her forelegs wrapped around his neck.

"I am Willow, but my name is still Arctic, or Theluji. Arctic sounds kind of stupid anyways." Arctic looked away.

"I think Arctic, is just fine." She sighed into his neck. "Names aren't as important, as long as you are you." She looked up to Arctic. His eyes were alive again. Willow was alive. Only his name had really changed. He is Arctic, the new Willow, the son of Starswirl. He was hers. He belonged to Fluttershy. She nuzzled his neck. A familiar scene played out where she was once again safe in his arms. She felt him pull her face up to his.

"I will never lose you again. I love you Fluthersigh." Arctic closed his eyes.

They shared a gift between each other. It had been long awaited for the both of them. The warmth from their hearts fueled their will to never die. Their kiss was not goodbye, but rather, a hello. They were glad to meet each other again.

Zuberi smiled and looked up to the stars outside his window. He let out a sigh. "Well Starswirl, you did it. You brought them both back." Laughing, the Zebra turned to look at Starswirl who sat across from him. "I'll send you some photos of your son's wedding, when it happens."

"I intend, dear sir," the old cloaked unicorn smiled, "to be there in person." Starswirl chuckled as his bearded face slowly faded away, back into the time which his spell momentarily allowed him to escape.