Snowy Days at the Turnpine Inn

White fluff and tufts of fur sprouting in all directions. Small movements and slow, methodical breathing. Quiet snore. The twitch of a hoof, then a shiver. Pleasant smelling, like fresh dew on a spring morning. Soft squeak in her sleep, barely audible: adorable.

Cry of the wind outside that rattled the windowsill. Curtains shut, but no light peeking through. It was the dead of night and the inn was silent; silent and cold. No heat from the fire, barely any insulation in the old walls.

The blanket was warm and heavy but not enough, their shivering bodies huddled together, holding each other for warmth. Starlight nestled into the soft pillow in front of her, squeezing it thankfully for the lovely warmth it radiated. Only, it wasn’t a pillow—it was a pony. It squeaked softly at her squeeze, stirred a little, and shifted toward her. Both of them stopped shivering as their bodies drew close.

Starlight cracked open an eye. She was face-to-face with the sleeping form of Vapor Trail. Starlight’s head nestled in Vapor’s chest while the pegasus cradled her, hugged her back.

It was for the cold, nothing more. The blankets weren’t enough and the chill air was creeping through the walls. The cold permeated everything, slipped under the covers and nipped away at the ponies underneath.

Starlight pulled herself closer, tufts of fur tickling her nose. They’d barely even met, but no, she told herself this was necessity. She’d read somewhere in a survival guide that the best thing one could do in a freezing situation was huddle for body warmth. That’s what they were doing now. She must have turned around sometime in her sleep, wiggled closer. Vapor, for her part, didn’t seem to mind, happily hugging back, if she was even conscious of her actions. If she awoke first, Starlight would just pass it off as an accident, a subconscious action of her exhausted mind.

A gust of wind breezed through the windowsill and sent shivers down Starlight’s body. She pressed the rest of her body closer to Vapor and drew around the covers. Vapor’s hoof seemed to draw further around her, tugging her close.

It was nice.

It was only necessity.