The cold air dampened the already soft crunch of hoofsteps on the snow. The pony in the pink parka trudged on regretfully through the unforgiving weather.
She sighed, once again muttering to herself. "A mountain is no place for a Pie..." She glanced around herself, finding herself drawn to the beauty of the pristine white snow surrounding her.
"I wonder though, might a mountain be a good place for a party?" Almost immediately, a frigid blast of wind struck her face, chilling her down to her core. "A mountain is no place for a party," she resolved.
She earnestly tried to bounce her way up the mountainside, to little avail. The soft snow prevented her hopping much more than an inch high. The cold itself ensured her hooves were too frozen to try much more. She kept trying to bounce, disregarding the mountain's efforts to stop her. It was quite the exercise, helping her keep warm through the harsh journey.
She snuggled into her coat, hoping to find a hidden pocket of precious heat left within. She found solace in the warmth of the pure friction. She prayed that her quest would end soon. The goal wasn't quite in sight, but any shred of hope for finally finding shelter was all she had.
Her coat no longer kept out the cold, pure frozen temperature seeping through the thick fabric. She found it soaked through, icy water trickling over her back and down her legs. She attempted to keep her mind off of it, imagining being back home, surrounded by her wonderful, loving sisters on their warm, quaint little rock farm. Surrounded by warmth and love and family.
The mountain protested, dramatically ripping her from her fantasy as the dampness in her coat froze solid. The ice burned worse than any fire could ever compete with.
She at least wanted to stumble across a cozy cave where she could light a campfire. Possibly even melt a clump of snow and boil the water for a nice, warm, and more importantly, purified drink.
She shook her head violently, doing all she could to shrug off the crushing weight of fatigue. She wouldn't dare sleep, even in a cave. She'd heard stories. Ponies who fall asleep exposed to the cold have a tendency not to wake up.
She muttered to herself more. "There's no room for dying out here. I made a Pinkie Promise. I have to see it through."
Her resolution to stay awake was weakening, however. She'd been at this for hours. She wasn't even sure whether it was still day, or if night had fallen. Her vision was fading, and her eyes had started to flutter. And deep within, she felt a bit miffed that the mountain was indifferent to her suffering.
The heavenly concept of rest beckoned to her beyond the mountain's embrace. She'd stopped shivering, and a strange feeling slowly spread within her. It wasn't quite warmth, it was simply... the absence of cold. A small gust forced her eyes shut, and she couldn't bring herself to open them again. Exhaustion brushed her cheek and whispered sweet promises to her. She'd only need lay down...
Yet, she was suddenly aware of a numbed pain in her head. She'd run into something solid as she continued to drag herself forward, even through all of her weary hallucinations.
She heard a voice but didn't listen to the words it said. When she didn't answer, the voice repeated. She whined softly as she summoned up energy she didn't have to actually respond.
The voice repeated once more, "Are you here to bring me back? Because I'm not going."
The mare forced her eyes open and stared up at the pony with the very thick curls in his brown mane. "... Ch- Cheese Sandwich?"
"Yes, Cheese Sandwich," he rudely stated. "You can go home now. I'm not taking visitors."
Against all of her instinct, she struggled to get to her hooves. Strength abandoned her, her muscles having nothing left to give. Her bones rattled and grinded, complaining about her current conditions. She braced herself and prayed to Celestia, bless her soul, to grant her one last measure of strength.
Lightning crackled through her nerves and needles pierced her brain. Frozen bone shifted in the likeness of the great glacier. Muscle melted and tendons cried. She was up.
The goal was right before her. She had made it. Stopping here would be a shame and a waste. All of her focus went into not messing up her words, despite all the trauma the cold was causing her. "Please, don't. I did not come all this way to judge you for abandoning Equestria when it most needed a party pony. I am here to learn. My name is Maud Pie. Please, teach me to party like my late sister."
Cheese Sandwich had begrudgingly taken her into his hospitality. He'd given her a blanket and a warm drink to sit near the fire as he drew a hot bath. Feeling had returned in her body, and she was deathly cold. All she could manage was to shiver violently and fail to sip her drink.
"I hope you know restoring Laughter isn't worth it." His comment earned him an angry glare. "You can't just restore a single Element. It took all six to protect Equestria. Laughter isn't worth it without the other five."
Maud attempted to tell him off, but as soon as she opened her mouth, it just trembled shut. She continued to try regardless, eventually managing the shortest of stutters. "P- P-"
"Pinkie would have found a way," Cheese Sandwich finished for her. "Yes. I know she would have. But you're not Pinkie. Neither am I. I wouldn't know the first thing about finding replacements for Generosity, Honesty, Kindness, Loyalty, and most important of all, Magic. I don't think you have the resources to, either."
Maud gritted her teeth to stop the chattering. She stared into the fire, refusing him eye contact.
Cheese Sandwich sighed. "Maud, even if we knew where to begin, the ponies of this world don't believe in friendship anymore. The destruction of the Elements brought on a decline in hope. We'd be hard pressed to find anypony who still retains the broken virtues."
Only the faint sound of the water splashing within the bathtub contested the soft crackle of the fire.
"Maud, you can't just ignore me, you're in my house." He stated it not as a threat to throw her back out, but simply a request for a small measure of respect.
She glanced at him and bowed her head. She still couldn't speak, so she nodded to her drink. He picked up the cup for her and held it to her lips while she took a sip. She teared up as the warmth flowed down her throat and spread within her core, pushing back the cold that still sat within her.
He placed her cup back down and sat beside her. "Okay, so maybe there's nothing we can do. There's gotta be someone out there who still believes in friendship, right? Maybe they'll find a way. For now, your bath is ready. Let's go get you properly warmed up."
