Ready as I'll Ever Be

Chapters

The Train
The Frost Village
The Library
The Storm
The Mayor
The Letter
The Orphan
I Can't Decide

The Train

"Are you sure you'll be okay watching the school and castle while I'm away?"

Twilight Sparkle anxiously scurried across the wooden train platform to her unicorn friend, Starlight Glimmer. The Ponyville Express station had been decorated brightly in anticipation for the upcoming holiday; bright, rainbow - colored lights were strung across every surface higher than three feet, garland laced the benches and ticket stands, and silvery blue icicles dangled from the overhang, which was covered in a fresh blanket of white snow. The wooden floorboards were slick with a thin coating of ice, only barely visible enough to warn ponies to watch their step.

"It'll be fine, Twilight, don't worry! You girls go and enjoy yourself!" Starlight replied, placing a cold hoof on her friend and mentor's shoulder.

Nodding, Twilight moved on. "What about you, Spike? Are you sure you don't want to come with us to the Crystal Empire?"

Spike waved a purple - scaled claw at the alicorn mare. "Sure I'm sure! Besides, Starlight will probably get lonely without me here to protect her!"

As Starlight Glimmer proceeded to sigh heavily and place an exasperated hoof on her forehead, another figure came to Twilight's side in an effort to ease her inevitable worries.

"There ain't no reason to stress, sugarcube. It's the holidays! Lighten up a little!"

"I know Applejack, you're right." the alicorn smiled weakly at her friend. "It's just that this is the first Hearth's Warming I'll be spending with Cadence and my brother, and without Spike."

Before Applejack could respond, the screeching whistle of the train alerted everypony at the station that the time to depart was drawing nearer, and that it was time to say final goodbyes. Starlight Glimmer and Spike waved side - by - side as the group of six ponies boarded the train and took their seats. The rainbow - colored train let out a final screech to announce its departure before cheerfully chugging away, white clouds of smoke marking its path.

Hours passed as the train stopped almost everywhere in Equestria, Las Pegasus, Manehattan, Baltimare, Appaloosa, and almost every stop brought with it different holiday sights. Rarity oohed and aahed at the colorful lights and decorations, Fluttershy stared, awestruck, out the windows as each brightly decorated city came into view, and Pinkie Pie had hopped off the train more than a few times to sample each place's edible delights, to the point where the conductor had banned her from even standing near the door until she reached her actual destination. A certain cyan Pegasus, on the other hand, wasn't as excited to be travelling for so long.

"Are we there yet?!" Rainbow Dash groaned, hanging upside down from her seat. "By the time we get to the Crystal Empire, Hearth's Warming will be over!"

"Simmer down, Sally." Applejack warned from the seat across from her friend. "We ain't been at this not two hours, yet. We'll get there in good time."

This only prompted Rainbow Dash to groan even louder, wings flared. "You have got to be kidding me! I wish we were there already!"

As if on cue, the train stopped abruptly with a loud crash, causing everypony to lurch in their seats, and Rainbow Dash to fall from hers. The rainbow - maned pegasus sat up, rubbing her head as she surveyed the damage.

"Is everypony alright?" Twilight asked nervously, rising from her place to individually check in on each of her friends.

"I'm alright, but I'm quite sure my hair isn't! And I spent so long curling it to perfection too!" Rarity complained, sweeping out a compact mirror to gaze into.

Applejack rolled her eyes, rising as well to make her way out into the middle of the aisle. "Somethin' must've appeared in the middle of the tracks that the engineer didn't see 'til now. 'Least, that's what ah'm hopin'. We should start movin' again any time now."

But they didn't start moving. Every second that passed seemed to cause the deathly silence to draw on further and further. Suddenly, a shrill scream filled the car, and everypony's attention was directed towards Fluttershy, who was now huddled up in the corner of her seat, whimpering fearfully.

"Wh - what if we don't make it out alive?! Wh - what if we freeze to d - d - death right here?! What if-!"

"Take it easy, sugarcube, it'll be alright." Applejack comforted her friend while Twilight walked over to the car door.

She tugged on it, grunting with each pull, even using her wings as extra leverage, but all to no avail. As a last resort she began to strike the metal door with bright, violet beams of light, making dent after dent before it finally gave way, the entire door flying off its hinges and somewhere into the dense, snowy area outside. Icy snowflakes flew through the air at incomprehensible speeds, making it hard to see. Twilight lit her horn and did a three - sixty turn, trying to figure out where they were, but she could barely see anything through all the snow. What she could see, however, was bad enough for worry and panic to visibly cross her facial features. The train had slid completely off the track due to the ice, and the first few cars were gone, most likely with the conductor and engineer inside them.

"Uh... girls?" Twilight called. "We might have a little problem."

One by one, each of Twilight's friends stuck their heads out the now wide - open entrance, Fluttershy last of all. Their expressions varied from concern, to panic, to, in Pinkie Pie's case, nervous excitement.

"A 'little' problem?!" Rarity snapped. "I say this with love, darling, but if this is your idea of little then I'd hate to see what you think of as a big problem!"

Without another word, Rainbow Dash flew up above the train, nearly disappearing through all the snow. She returned mere seconds later, already covered in the frozen substance. "There's a bunch of lights off to the east! It might be a town or something, we can take refuge there!"

The small group then began their trek through the snow, carrying with them only what could fit inside of their saddle bags, and headed in the direction of the town. To her friends' disdain and irritation, Pinkie bounced along as though they were only walking a short distance to an amusement park on a sunny day, rather than hiking through miles of snow to what they assumed to be a safe town. However, no pony thought to scold the energetic pink earth pony; they were using all their energy to walk at a reasonable pace.

An undeterminable amount of time later, the town came into view, illuminated by lamp posts strung with fairy lights that glittered and shone through the snow. But that wasn't what got the group of mares excited, it was the sight of a pony waving them over from what appeared to be the entrance. She was shouting, but the loud wind muffled her words. They could just barely make out her form, however, a pale yellow earth pony with long green hair. She appeared to be wrapped in a forest green scarf.

They made it.

Author's Note

So! This is my first story on fimfiction! Yay! I have been working on this one a while, and hope it gets a few reads from the people here. It'd also be helpful if someone could show me the ropes of this place, I'm not entirely used to how things work...

The Frost Village

Ponies bustled about from place to place, all seemingly in preparation for the upcoming snowstorm. There were more than a few foals, however, who couldn't care less about the new addition of snow to their already snowy home. Despite their complaints and protests, they were rushed inside by the adults, who kept their eyes on the windows in anticipation for the first snowflake to fall.

~~~~

Twilight Sparkle blinked herself awake, her pink - streaked indigo mane falling messily into her view. She magicked a brush to tame the messy locks, taking in her surroundings in the process.

Unexpectedly, she wasn't in her room at home, the Crystal Empire, or anywhere she recognized. Instead, she was sitting in a rather modest little bed piled with various quilts of different colors and sizes. The room itself was small, but homey. Purple curtains lay draped over the windows, which pictured a light flurry of snow that contrasted to the monstrous storm the night previous. The rest of the room followed the same theme, with a fuzzy purple rug and a wooden wardrobe in the corner painted a dark violet. The handles of the wardrobe were shaped like olives.

Twilight stepped out of the bed, making it up again and fluffing the pillows so it looked better than she had left it when getting up. The room was deathly silent. One would be able to hear a pin drop, even if the pin were microscopic. The lavender alicorn approached the only door she saw and opened it, revealing a short hallway. The sounds of her hooves against the wooden floor echoed across the walls, surely announcing her presence to anypony there. The smell of pancakes wafted upstairs from down below, and Twilight eagerly followed it.

She stepped hoof into a small kitchen, decorated just like the bedroom with purple curtains and olive patterns, and was greeted by a figure approaching her carrying a knife holder, which flew towards the alicorn when said figure tripped over the small rug in the doorway. Before any harm could be done, Twilight erected a large bubble around herself, which caught the knives when they hit it, sticking them to it like glue. From here, she could see the figure's paled expression and the humiliated flush that crept across her face.

"Oh, goodness me, I am so, so, so terribly sorry, Princess Twilight Sparkle! I - I didn't know you were there and - and I'm so clumsy I should really look where I'm-!"

"It's okay!" Twilight replied with a comforting tone, letting down her bubble and allowing the knives to clatter to the floor. "Mistakes happen. I should've been more careful walking in."

"Oh, no! This was all me, Princess Twilight Sparkle." the mare exclaimed, reaching down to pick up her fallen cutlery.

"Please, just Twilight is fine." Twilight shuffled in her place, a little embarrassed by the repeated usage of her title and full name.

"O - of course Prin - I mean Twilight. I - I'm Olive Glow! I'm a baker!"

As soon as she said this, the smell of smoke suddenly filled the air, and the room started to get darker.

"Oh no-! The pancakes!! Stay back, Princess, I'll take care of it!"

While Olive tended to her now - charred cakes, Twilight took a good look at her. Her coat was a pale olive yellow, and her green mane was braided into a bun. The tips were tinted a snowy white, as if they'd been dipped in the substance and it stuck. The thing that struck Twilight the most was her cutie mark, two olives, one dark and one light, hidden behind a cloud. It seemed to be a strange mark for a baker, but then, given the current situation, baking probably couldn't be considered her talent. Even so, something about the young mare struck her as familiar...

"Olive, I feel as though I've seen you before..."

"Well I sure hope you have, I waved you and your friends over from the snow and settled y'all in just last night. Granted, it was snowin' a whole lot, and you all were awful tired." The earth pony mare balanced a few plates of blackened pancakes on her head, surprisingly unfazed by the steaming hot burn they gave off.

"Where are my friends?" Twilight asked, trying to keep her voice level. It hadn't even dawned on her that they weren't in this house.

"Oh, right! Shoulda figured you'd ask, Princess of Friendship, y'know?" Olive chuckled, plopping a pot on the stove to boil some water. "I checked 'em into the inn just up the street, run by a nice ol' mare."

"Thank you- I should check in with them." Twilight scurried to what she noticed to be the obvious front door, given the welcome mat gracing its base.

"Oh-! But Princess Twilight, I should tell you about-!"

Olive's statement was cut off by the closing of the door, and Twilight was gone, already on her way to meet her friends.

The inn was a warm, cozy thing, modeled after a log cabin, although it clearly wasn't one. The main lobby was lit with a fresh, crackling fireplace that cast a soft yellow glow across the room. The oak wooden floors were an unnatural sight given the location of this building, but Twilight didn't bother to question it. She trotted over to the front desk, which was bare with the exception of a few books and a bell next to a sign that read, "Ring Me for Assistance!" So, she rang the bell. Shortly after, a short and plump pink unicorn with white hair but for the purple streaks came racing in from the next room over, a bright, cheerful smile on her face. It immediately faded into a scowl, however, when she set her eyes on Twilight.

Following behind the mare was a familiar group of pastel - colored faces, all more than overjoyed to see the young alicorn, in contrast to the pony who had entered before them.

"Twilight!" They shouted in unison, trotting over to wrap her in a hug Fluttershy's bear would be envious of.

"Twilight, darling, we were so worried! We hadn't a clue where you'd gone off to!" Rarity cooed, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Yeah!" Pinkie Pie chimed in. "I woke up in the warm, cozy room and Applejack was there and Rainbow Dash was there and Fluttershy and Rarity but you weren't! So then I started to get really, really worried because we don't know this place that well so you could've been literally anywhere! But Applejack told us to stay calm and not to panic but of course I wasn't going to just sit around and wait for you so I met Miss Merry and she said that you'd find your way back to us eventually and you did!"

Miss Merry, the elderly unicorn, glanced back at Pinkie Pie in utter shock. "This is the 'super special friend' you were talking about?"

"Well duh, who did you think?"

Before Merry could even open her mouth to respond, a very out - of - breath Olive Glow crashed through the front door, wearing her scarf once again, which, upon closer examination, was littered with tatters and moth holes. She was also equipped with a pair of brown - rimmed goggles with orange - tinted lenses, most likely to keep the snow from her eyes. The earth pony pushed the goggles up to her forehead, surveying the scene before her and immediately paling at the sight of Merry's less than merry expression.

"Olive Glow. Girl, you've got quite a bit of explaining to do."

Olive gulped, following the older mare to the next room. Just before she vanished through the doorway, she called, "Feel free to walk around, y'all! I'll find ya later!"

Twilight waited until she and her friends were outside and a few feet away from the inn to ask, "What was that all about?"

"Ah have no idea." Applejack responded, shivering slightly in the cold. "You'd think you'd'a come in and spit in her gumbo or somethin'."

"Well Twilight must've spit in a lot of ponies' gumbo then..." Rainbow Dash added, subtly directing her friends' attention to the slowly growing barrage of multicolored eyeballs.

It looked as if everypony in town had come to stop and stare at the small group of newcomers, specifically the alicorn mare standing in the midst of them. Their expressions ranged from curiosity, to fear, to anger. None of them were good.

"Did we do something wrong?" Fluttershy asked timidly, inching closer to her rainbow - maned friend.

Pinkie Pie, on the other hoof, was all smiles. "Wow, Twilight! You sure do have a lot of fans!"

"Something tells me they aren't fans, darling..." Rarity said, her voice barely above a low whisper.

Suddenly, a flash of dark blue whizzed by the group of friends, and when it disappeared, so did Twilight. Fortunately, they didn't go far. Rainbow flew after the pegasus mare who now stood peeking out of a snowy back alley, with a very confused and dazed Twilight Sparkle at her side.

"Hey! What in Equestria do you think you're-!"

"Shhhh!" The pegasus placed a cold hoof on Rainbow's muzzle, only firing her up more.

Twilight stopped the cyan pegasus' next outburst before she even had time to prepare it, turning instead to the young mare who had swept her away, just as the rest of her party had arrived at the spot.

"Who are you?"

The pegasus flinched when Twilight addressed her, as though expecting her to spit fire with every word. Her coat was a dark blue, tinted with white in some places. Her long hair was made up of various shades of blue, like a monochromatic rainbow.

"Snowflake." She replied simply, her voice almost as quiet as Fluttershy's, if not quieter.

"I take it you're a local as well?" Applejack piped up, trudging through the snow to approach the new pony.

"Yes."

"Oh yea?!" Rainbow Dash immediately took flight, making sure her face was as close to the pegasus' as possible. "Well what did you want with Twilight, huh? Is this some sort of ritual you guys do?? Because if it is, I swear to Celestia I'll-!"

"I was saving her." Snowflake whispered, casting a sideways glance at the alicorn beside her, who looked beyond confused at this point. "They would've torn her apart."

"And just what in the hay is that supposed to mean?" Applejack asked, her tone taking on a sharp edge.

Snowflake's purple eyes softened. "Couldn't you tell?

"We don't like alicorns here."

Author's Note

Back again!

I just want to thank y'all for the support! Even if it's not an awful lot, I didn't expect not a single comment, upvote or anything on the first day! I'm overjoyed that this story is already off to a positive start, so here's another update for y'all!

The Library

The sky and ground were barraged with endless amounts of icy flakes, each one bigger than the last. Inside the houses, the older ponies were panicking, although they kept this feeling inside so as not to concern the younger ones, who didn't know any better. After all, they were bunching up by the windows to look out at the storm. There couldn't be anything to truly worry about, could there?

They were wrong.

~~~

"So let me get this straight, y'all have no idea why you dislike alicorns?" Applejack inquired silently, her muzzle hovering over the mouth of the porcelain cup she held in her hooves. Steam twisted in warm coils from the tea inside, forming spindly shapes in the air.

The room was casual and minimalistic, with only three simple cushioned chairs pushed around a square coffee table. The walls were bare but for a single framed photograph picturing Snowflake and two other mysterious ponies, too young to be her parents but too old to be siblings or friends. One of their faces were obscured by a large black spot on the picture. With the bare appearance of this one room alone, it was a mystery as to how or why the young mare had enough tea and cups to accommodate her six unexpected guests.

"That's right." Snowflake replied, silently sipping on her own tea.

Rainbow Dash hovered angrily in the corner, keeping her guard up and her eyes on every possible exit. "So then why even keep hating on them?!" She nearly shouted.

The dark blue pegasus shrugged, averting her eyes to the bare wooden floor beneath her, avoiding all eye contact with the lavender alicorn seated across from her. "Pack mentality, I s'pose. They do it because they're used to it. Been that way for years. Since nopony said otherwise, of course they just assumed this thought process is correct."

"Who came up with this idea? It's absolutely preposterous!" Rarity asked, a hoof placed dramatically over her chest.

Again Snowflake shrugged, now squirming beneath the twelve eyes focused on her form. "I don't know. No pony here does."

The room went silent, the situation seeming to weigh down on each of the six newcomers, and the emptiness of the room seemed to make the silence echo even louder, until it was once again broken by the new pegasus.

"Except Amethyst Rose... she's the librarian."

Twilight's expression immediately brightened up, her smile stretching so wide it caused Fluttershy to send a panicked glance her way, as if fearful her friend's face would break any second.

"There's a library?!"

"Yes. Just up the road. Amethyst knows everything." Snowflake looked up, her violet eyes shining an emotion none of the other ponies in the room could recognize, making it seem almost intimidating. "But I recommend you don't go back out. Now that the whole town knows you're here, you won't get anywhere."

"Ooh! I have just the spell for that!" Twilight exclaimed, standing up and trotting over to an open area in the room -- which wasn't all too hard to find -- and taking a deep breath. "I learned this spell a while ago, I call it the changeling spell."

Just then, a bright flash of light filled the room, and when it vanished, Twilight was gone. The pony that stood in her place was a cream - coated earth pony with short red hair and green eyes, a pony easily recognizable to any Ponyville natives, or at least to someone who had been to its resident flower shop enough times.

"Roseluck? How'd you get here?" Pinkie Pie asked, cocking her head almost a full one - hundred - eighty degrees.

Roseluck giggled, "no, Pinkie! It's me, Twilight! This spell only allows me to change into somepony already existing, and for an hour at most."

"Ooohh.. that makes sense!"

"Well let's go, then!" Rainbow shouted, zipping out the front door in a rainbow blur, and the rest of her friends followed.

Snowflake sighed, finishing off her tea.

"I can't believe I forgot to ask them about the tea..."

The library was shockingly large for such a small town, making it seem as though the majority of the town's funds had gone into building it. Twilight -- or Roseluck, rather -- couldn't have been more happy about this. Shelves upon shelves of books filled the single - roomed two - story building, and the wooden theme of the place brought a tear to Rose - Twilight's eye, immediately reminding her of the Golden Oak Library she had lost what felt like centuries ago.

"You okay, sugarcube?" Applejack asked in a motherly tone, placing a concerned hoof on her friend's unfamiliar shoulder.

It was then that Twilight realized she had been crying. "Ah..." she quickly wiped the tears away, returning Applejack's concerned expression with a weary smile. "Just... happy to see so many books in one place is all!"

"Egghead..." Rainbow muttered, her eyelids getting heavy just looking at so many books that probably had nothing to do with her favorite book series, Daring Do. Her comment earned her a rough nudge in the ribs by Rarity, who trotted further into the seemingly empty room.

"It doesn't look like anypony is here." she said in a low voice, afraid to speak any louder in the eerie silence of the library.

Fluttershy shuddered, inching back towards the door. "Guess that means we can leave then! Maybe even go back... home...?"

Applejack's tone was grim. "You remember what happened to the train, dont'cha? We can't go back, like it or not."

"Ohh that's what I was afraid of..."

Twilight walked around the desolate library, surveying the books stacked neatly across the shelves. They were meticulously organized, the technique done so well she didn't dare touch a single one and risk ruining such perfection. What shocked her the most, however, was the fact that she recognized none of the titles or authors. The alicorn - turned - earth pony finally worked up the will to pick up a rather fat publication on the history of ice pythons, a creature she had never heard of until then, and found that the book wasn't even published in Equestria, rather in a place unknown to her called Icemare.

"Strange..." Twilight whispered in Rose's voice. "I've never seen any of these books before, not even in Princess Celestia's library."

"You wouldn't have."

An unfamiliar voice piped up, and all six heads turned simultaneously to face the young unicorn standing in a doorway none of them had seen upon first entering. Her coat was a pale lavender, and her eyes a similar purple. Her hair was brown as dirt, tipped with white, like snow. She was barely as tall as a fully grown mare, and clearly couldn't have been older than eighteen.

"None of these books were published in Equestria. In fact, a majority of them weren't even officially published. These are all books written by the ponies of this town, over the course of a thousand years. Speaking of which-" the unicorn paused, cocking her head. "You guys look unfamiliar. Have you moved here recently? I haven't left the library in days, so I apologize if I-"

"We're looking for Amethyst Rose." Rainbow Dash interrupted, already in a bad mood from the unexpected events of the morning.

"Oh... um, she's-- wait, wait, that's me!" The unicorn smiled, trotting over to the rainbow - maned pegasus and wrapping her in a constricting hug. "Have you heard of me? Has my legacy finally spread beyond this town of ice and snow?"

Rainbow blinked. "Your... legacy...?"

"Oh yes!" Amethyst bolted back through the door she had originally appeared from, and returned mere seconds later levitating stacks upon stacks of notebooks and loose papers, promptly dropping them on top of the unsuspecting cyan pegasus. "I write poetry! Oh, I've been yearning for so long to get out of this frozen town, to travel across the world and spread the art of my written works to the ponies and creatures of this planet, to weave the web of my words and phrases and catch my unsuspecting prey in the chain of my feelings spread out with paper and parchment!"

Gathering herself, Amethyst cleared her throat and placed a hoof over her heart. "It is my heart's desire. But alas! I have not been allowed to leave, despite my many attempts, I am possibly doomed to spend all of eternity here, and must lock my heart in a cage, until it is allowed to fly."

At this point, Applejack was holding back laughter due to Rainbow's more than irritated reaction, and Rarity was choking back tears.

"Amethyst, darling... that... that was simply astonishing! Brava!"

Before the unicorn could go taking any bows, Twilight stepped forward. "Wait. Amethyst, you said you couldn't leave...?"

"That's right. No one here can."

At that, the room went silent, and Amethyst looked around at the newcomers, starting to get the feeling that they weren't here because they were fans of her work...

"Do you girls uh... wanna follow me for a second?"

The group of friends silently agreed, and followed the young mare back to a room hidden behind a shelf of fiction novels, clearly meant to be more secretive than the open space they had just left. The room was much bigger than expected, empty but for the tall walls of books, the singular wall filled to the brim with papers, notes, and photographs, and a single mirror that stood taller than the doorway, causing the unspoken question to arise of how this small unicorn managed to get it into this room. Once everypony was settled, Amethyst took her place in the middle of the room.

"I've been studying the world outside of the town for a few years now. All these books belonged to outsiders who just happened to find this place at some point."

"H-how did you end up with them?" Fluttershy worriedly stammered, peeking out from her place behind Rarity.

Amethyst smiled mischievously, running a hoof along the shelf closest to her. "They were confiscated when the outsiders arrived; outside materials besides food and sometimes clothing is prohibited. Mayor kept 'em in his office, but I snuck in and grabbed as many as I could carry and booked it back here. There are so many interesting concepts tucked away in these books. I even read about the Equestrian princesses being kind and benevolent creatures, but I obviously know that can't possibly be true!"

Once she said this, all eyes except Amethyst's turned towards Twilight, who was still magically disguised as Roseluck. Sighing, a magenta glow appeared where her horn would be, and in another flash of light, she took her regular form. The young unicorn's eyes widened, and her pupils became so small they were practically pinpricks against her pearl white sclera. The lavender in her face paled to an almost white shade of pink, and her mouth started opening, moving to form words, but no sounds came out.

Then, suddenly, she screamed, a shrill, high - pitched shriek that a banshee would envy. Her outburst was immediately muffled by Rainbow Dash, who muzzled the young mare with her cyan hoof.

"Are you trying to get everypony in town in here after us?!" the rainbow mare hissed, earning a fearful whimper in return.

After Amethyst quieted down and returned her breathing to normal, albeit with much trouble, her mouth was released, and she exhaled, taking one long look at each pony in the room with her, eyes lingering on the alicorn princess standing taller than the rest of them. "M-my deepest and m-most sincere ap-apologies, Princess... I-I, y-you, please don't hurt me, please, I d-didn't mean-!"

"Now calm down, sugarcube, Twilight wouldn't hurt a mosquito if it sucked all the blood from her body." Applejack spoke.

"No, I wouldn't. And I definitely won't hurt you." Twilight finished, stepping forward, and causing the unicorn to step back in response.

"I-It's just... the Equestrian princesses are supposed to be evil and selfish and stuff, at least, that's what I've been told..."

Pinkie Pie snorted a loud giggle. "Pffftt Twilight?! No way! Twilight's the goodiest, non-selfishest, not horribliest princess to ever princess!"

"Yea!" Rainbow added. "And the other princesses are like that too!"

"That's what we came to you to talk about, actually." Twilight said, silencing her friends before more could be said. "Do you know Snowflake?"

Amethyst Rose nodded, a lock of brown hair falling into her face. She didn't seem to notice.

"Well," Twilight continued, "she's the one who sent us to you. We were hoping you'd be able to tell us why it is that your town hates alicorns so much, and why you're all so secluded out here, in the Frozen North."

"Wh-why would I know anything about that?" Amethyst asked a little too defensively, before realizing that she had practically revealed just how knowledgeable she truly was in comparison to her neighbors by leading these ponies to her secret room, and let out a defeated sigh. "Alright... I'll tell you everything I know... but, it's not a lot..."

Author's Note

Cliffhanger!

Ooooh I wanna get used to doing these :ajsmug:
Anyways! Another chapter! Woo! There are so many things I want to reveal and talk about all at once but the story wouldn't be as interesting, ugh!

Now, the next chapter was supposed to be a part of this chapter, but there's something I'm working on that I need a little more time to set up and work out in terms of the writing part of this.
I'm also a little worried if I can keep this story under the E rating given what'll happen, but if Gravity Falls can do it, then so can I!

The Storm

.... . / ... .. --. .... - / --- ..-. / - .... . / ... -- .- .-.. .-.. / ..-. .. .-.. .-.. -.-- / .-. .- -.-. .. -. --. / --- ..- - / .. -. - --- / - .... . / ... -. --- .-- / .-- .- ... / .- .-.. .-.. / .. - / - --- --- -.- / - --- / ... . -. -.. / . ...- . .-. -.-- / .--. --- -. -.-- / .. -. - --- / .- / .-- .. .-.. -.. / .--. .- -. .. -.-.

~~~

"A long time ago, approximately ten or so years ago, there was a storm. Nopony remembers exactly when it took place, but it wasn't particularly anything noteworthy. Here in the Frozen North, we're used to getting more than our fair share of snow and cold. That's why we've adapted by growing a thicker coat than that of a normal pony's. Ever wondered why most of us don't wear much winter gear?"

Amethyst Rose chuckled, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear from where it fell out. Her expression once again became grim as her violet - colored magic aura enveloped a series of papers and books, which she diligently flipped through. "But that's not the entire story, obviously. I asked around...

"According to the older ponies of this town, there was a filly. Nopony remembers her name but they describe that she'd likely be around my age now, meaning she'd have to have been about eight or so then. They described it as the biggest snowstorm the Frost Village has seen in over a hundred moons; so dangerous, in fact, that everypony had to hole themselves indoors to assure that they stayed safe. It was mandatory I'd think, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. So imagine this little girl just running across the snow, the white flying so fast and so angry you wouldn't be able to see your hooves in front of your face.

"Only a few even remember what happened next - she vanished. That's what they said. After the storm was over and done with, a lot of the town was destroyed or really badly damaged. Mayor made an announcement sometime later claiming that the princesses refused to help us. The weird thing is that nopony remembered that, not even me! I had to get Mayor to give me a recording of his short li'l speech, and I'm still on the fence. But rumors went around saying that the princesses did this and the princesses did that. Some of 'em are so outlandish I can't believe it, like Princess Cadence having an alicorn baby, when everypony, no matter where they are, knows that you can't birth an alicorn."

While Rainbow Dash started a rather unnecessary argument about alicorn conception, Twilight started to zone out, thinking about and processing all the information she recently received. There were so many holes, so many missing pieces of the puzzle. It was obvious that the ponies of this town weren't even completely sure where they stood as far as the alicorn royals of Equestria. One thing was for certain though: this "Mayor" had to be the source of this information.

"Amethyst, who is this 'Mayor' you were mentioning?" Twilight asked, instantly silencing her friend.

"Hm? Oh, yes. Um... n - nopony knows his real name, so we call him Mayor. He practically runs this place. If you'd like, I - I can-"

"That won't be necessary!"

All eyes turned to the door, which now stood wide open, much to Amethyst Rose's combined horror and confusion.

"Olive Glow?" Twilight practically whispered. "How did you find us?"

The ditzy earth pony flushed red, tugging on her scarf as if it'd help her out of this situation. "Well um, I might've followed Amethyst back here a few times before, so I knew where to find you guys..."

"You did what?!" Amethyst screamed in reply, nearly charging at the young mare.

"...But that's not the point! I heard you say you were looking to find Mayor, am I wrong Princess Twilight? I could take you to him!"

"Were you eavesdropping on us?!" Amethyst shouted further, seemingly forgetting the presence of the other ponies in the room. "Olive, I told you about doing that-!" The unicorn was silenced by a yellow hoof muzzling her mouth, resulting in a low growl on her end.

"Anyway, if y'all follow me, I'll take you right to 'im! I should warn ya though, he can be a bit of a grump."

The five ponies behind Twilight exchanged worried and confused glances, Fluttershy more so than the rest. The alicorn herself, however, was more than eager. When she noticed the hesitation in her friends, she realized Olive Glow couldn't have been anything more than a stranger to them.

"It's alright, girls. Olive is a friend. She came by the inn earlier, remember?"

Applejack stepped forward. "I don't know just what kind of 'friend' would be eavesdroppin' on somepony's conversations and followin' ponies around... but if you trust her, Twi, we will too."

The others nodded in unison, and Olive Glow gave a small, nearly sheepish smile. "Well alright then! If y'all just come with me..."

The sky outside was darkening drastically, casting every unlit corner in shadows and darkness. The only light coming from the sky at all came in the form of bright aqua and pink lights, dancing through the sky like spirits at some sort of party. The six ponies all stopped once they noticed, twelve eyes turned up to the sky to witness the incredible natural feat. Olive noticed her party had stopped when she ceased to hear the extra hoofsteps behind her, and doubled back to see what had caught their eye.

"Ah yes." The young mare said, directing her vision up to the beautiful scene above. "The aurora borealis. It isn't too uncommon up north where we are. It's beautiful, isn't it?" She chuckled, "Well, come on, y'all wanna meet Mayor don't'cha?"

With much reluctance, the six ponies hustled along through the cold to a rather stout little hut hidden between two equally small shops, although their outer appearances were far more inviting. Olive grinned and landed a few hard knocks on the dark wooden door. There came no response. Frowning deeply, she knocked again, harder this time. Still no response. She pressed her face against one of the frozen windows, once again shockingly unfazed by the cold. Olive stepped back, suddenly slapping a hoof against her forehead.

"Oh gosh! I can't believe I forgot, he's away on a trip to the forest just out of town."

"Away?" Twilight, who was once again taking on the appearance of Roseluck, asked. "What do you mean he's away?"

"I mean he's away." Olive shrugged. "The forest is where we get most of our resources, so of course a trip to and from there is mandatory."

"This seems a little too coincidental." Rainbow Dash stated, magenta eyes narrowing. "You offer to take us to visit the mayor and he just happens to be away?"

Rarity nodded. "How come Amethyst Rose didn't seem to know he was gone? She was going to offer to bring us before you-"

"Girls!" Twilight practically shouted in Roseluck's voice, making her sudden outburst all the more alerting to her friends. "I can't believe you, all of you! Olive was nice enough to offer her help to us since we got here."

The five other mares responded with a mixture of fearful, annoyed, and just plain upset expressions before Olive sighed and stepped forward herself. "No, Princess Twilight, they're right. I led you all out here with empty hopes. I just wanted to help you all. And since you know about the town's hatred for alicorns now, I want to help even more. One could only imagine the strange and uncomfortable transition, and now you can't even leave!"

Somehow that short speech didn't end up making the situation any better, resulting in an awkward silence from the group of newcomers that attracted the attention of a few passersby, unsure whether they were frozen from the cold or engaging in an extremely intense statue contest.

Olive Glow cleared her throat, silently urging the townsponies to keep it moving, before once again addressing the group before her. "Why don't you all go back to the inn for the night? It's getting late, and you all have had a pretty long day."

Nodding, Rarity led the group back to Merry's inn, Pinkie Pie bouncing jovially at the thought of seeing her "friend" again. Twilight, still in Roseluck's body, hesitated. The spell would wear off soon and it was doubtful she'd be able to keep casting it, or even remember to once it wore off. Noticing her hesitation, Olive placed a hoof on the alicorn - turned - earth pony's shoulder, sending a chill down her spine.

"You don't have to go if you don't to, Princess, you can stay at my place again, and until y'all are able to go home."

Twilight let out a sigh of relief, her breath coming out in a visible white puff of oxygen. "Thanks, Olive. And I told you, just Twilight is fine."

The young mare nodded, "Of course... Twilight."

The cottage was warm and quiet, reminding Twilight again of the treehouse library she had once run and lived in when she first met her friends. So many adventures had been had in the Golden Oak Library. They tamed a dragon, had sleepovers, found the Elements of Harmony... and the building containing those memories had been destroyed by Tirek, simply because she was an alicorn. So many things had happened as a cause of her becoming an alicorn. A princess. For a moment, Twilight found herself missing the days when she was just Twilight Sparkle, the resident librarian and part - time Element of Harmony. She missed the days when she didn't need to worry about settling kingdom - wide friendship disputes or stopping a multi - species war. She missed the days when it was just her and Spike, studying under Celestia in Canterlot.

Spike...

She missed him terribly, hoping he was alright back in Ponyville, spending his holiday with Starlight Glimmer. But... Cadence and Shining Armor... they were supposed to have arrived at the Crystal Empire over twenty - four hours ago. What were they going to-

"Are you okay, Twilight?" a soft voice asked, and Twilight jumped when she realized the small form of Olive Glow was lingering in front of her.

"I... I'm fine." The alicorn replied, giving a soft smile. "I was just thinking."

"What were you thinking about?"

What could she say? "My family..."

Sensing the subject may have made her feel a bit down, Olive wrapped her in a sudden, disarmingly warm hug, squeezing as tight as possible. "You were off to see them, weren't you? I'll bet you miss 'em don't you?" Olive practically whispered in a knowing tone. "It's alright, I miss mine too."

Before Twilight could ask what she meant, the hug ended, and Olive was standing before her like nothing happened, bright and chipper as ever. "I wanted to ask a tiny favor of you by the way, if you don't mind."

Twilight nodded, willing to do almost anything for the mare who had helped her out so much. "Of course, Olive, what do you need?"

"I need you to write a list of the types of pastries your friends like! I want to make them some things to make up for today. You can include yours as well if you'd like!"

Thinking back to the pancake incident that morning, Twilight found herself doubting how good of a gift baked goods from Olive would be, but the thought was sweet, and she said so.

"I just want you guys to feel safe while you're here!" Olive chirped, handing over a quill and parchment and then making her way back to her small kitchen, where a whistle had gone off. "I was boiling water for tea, by the way! I'll bring you some!"

Twilight nodded, turning to the paper and scribbling out the list of treats she knew her friends liked.

Applejack likes any apple - related pastry, pies especially... Fluttershy has a sweet spot for honey rolls... Pinkie Pie loves chocolate cake and rainbow sprinkles.....

Olive placed a small cup of tea on the table beside where Twilight was seated, and the alicorn smiled in thanks, finishing off the list and hoofing it over to the earth pony. Olive grinned a wide, Cheshire Cat smile before scurrying back into the kitchen, and Twilight sipped at her tea. It was light and sweet, and the calming scent of lavender wafted from the gaping mouth of the cup and into her nostrils, soothing the anxieties that had previously raced through her head. There was another scent as well, accompanied by an equally unfamiliar flavor, like what you would get if you mixed apple cider with cinnamon and strawberries. Finishing off the uniquely brewed tea, Twilight found her eyes getting much heavier than they had been mere seconds ago. Brushing it off as mere exhaustion, she stood and made her way to the staircase. However, she didn't make it up one step before she collapsed, nearly comatose in her resting position.

The Mayor

They rebuilt the town.

The ..-. .. .-.. .-.. -.-- was ..-. --- .-. --. --- - - . -.

.-- .... --- / .-- .- ... / ... .... . ..--.. ?

Oh, that's right.

"I really hope we aren't imposing or anything, given you just came back and all, but when Olive came announcing your arrival, I couldn't wait any longer."

The old stallion waved an aged hoof in the direction of the alicorn, his expression sour. He was a thin and lanky old man, with curly white hair and a matching beard that hung low from his face. His coat was a pale, almost sickly - looking shade of lavender, but he certainly didn't act sick.

"Yeah, yeah. Long as yous ain't causin' me no trouble, we won't have an issue."

Two days had passed since the small meetup with Snowflake. The following day would be Hearthswarming. Even so, it didn't seem this was a holiday the Frost Village residents took part in, or at the very least, they only did so from the confines of their homes. Pinkie Pie had made an active attempt to bring the holiday spirit alive in the town with the smallest of celebrations held in the inn (with Merry's permission of course), but it had seemed more like a party thrown for a bunch of rocks than sentient beings. A good amount didn't even seem to know what Hearthswarming was. Olive Glow sneaked in halfway through to alert Twilight of the Mayor's return, and Fluttershy tagged along, simply wanting to be out and away from the awkward party setting.

"I should tell ye now, however," the old stallion said, his mouth curving upwards into a near sinister smirk, "I ain't entitled to do nothin' for you just because you're royalty. If you couldn't tell, we ain't welcoming to yer kind."

The way he said the last sentence caused Twilight to flinch, but she nodded and cleared her throat, taking on the diplomatic stance and tone that she had practiced time and time again. Granted, this wasn't a meeting with Equestrian dignitaries, but it was just as important, if not more. "Mayor, I have a few questions for you if you wouldn't mind answering for me."

"Excuse me, I hope I'm not interrupting." Olive Glow's head peeked from around the corner of the kitchen, upon it balanced a wooden tray with three porcelain cups on top of it. "I made you all some tea, as a compensation for putting this together so late. I won't bother you again, promise!"

Mayor's eyes seemed to visibly brighten upon Olive's appearance, but they returned to their cold form once she had left the trio of ponies alone once again. "She's a good kid, that Olive Glow. Came into town out of nowhere, she did. Didn't have the foggiest idea where she came from. Yer lucky she's on yer side, alicorn. Otherwise I'd've beat yer head in just for stepping hoof on this land."

Fluttershy visibly gulped at the threat, shrinking back in her seat as though it were directed towards her, when in reality, Mayor didn't even seem to notice she was in the room. Likewise, Twilight's full attention was directed solely on the stallion across from her. There was a long, drawn out silence as an unspoken staring contest ensued, Fluttershy's panicked eyes switching from between her friend and their host.

After a while, Twilight broke the silence. "I suppose it'd be most appropriate to ask first, then," she sighed, closing her eyes, "why is it exactly that alicorns are looked down upon so strongly here?"

The stallion scoffed, taking a sip from his tea. Twilight caught a whiff of the unfamiliar combination of strawberries, cider and cinnamon, yet she thought nothing of it.

"Alicorns are looked down upon because we ain't got any reason to look up to 'em. I'm sure y'all've spoken to the librarian, heard about the storm a decade ago. Biggest damn blizzard we ever seen."

The alicorn nodded. "Amethyst told us about the lack of assistance from the princesses, yet I'm having a hard time entirely believing that."

Mayor chuckled to himself, taking another sip of his tea. "Of course you would. If what I hear from visiting travelers is correct, you are the 'prized pupil' of the Princess of the Sun herself. Ah, but don't be so quick to disprove what that filly says. She's mad, but her words ain't all wrong."

"So... it's true then...?" Fluttershy asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "Were you really rejected by the princesses?"

He opened his mouth as though to speak, but closed it again shortly after, a look of worry crossing his features. His scowl returning, he simply waved away the inquiry. "What a stupid question. That's what I said ain't it?"

"Something here isn't adding up..." Twilight muttered to herself, staring down at her hooves. "Something about this story feels incomplete. Mayor, could you recount the events of that time to us?"

Mayor rolled his eyes. "Well it started out like any other blizzard, violent winds, snow, the whole kit and kaboodle. A good number of ponies were misplaced that day, houses blown over, fillies, colts, mares and stallions alike were forced to seek refuge in the sturdier buildings. I had to take in a few of the kiddos m'self. Olive Glow, Snowflake, and another little colt, Thorn." He paused to think for a moment. "A few of the townsponies reported they'd seen some little filly out in the snow then, but she was completely unidentifiable. I brushed it off as a mass hallucination, honestly. A trick of the light or some weird illusion caused by the wind kickin' up the snow like mad."

Olive Glow, Snowflake and Thorn, growing up together? And what of that filly? Was Thorn's death connected to all this in any way?

Twilight's thoughts were racing back and forth in her head, and from the look on Fluttershy's face, her's were doing the exact same. "What about Olive and the others you raised? Did you notice anything strange about their interactions with one another?" Twilight asked.

"They were like normal kids." Mayor shrugged. "Olive was always an upbeat, happy type, you'd never think she was an orphan at all. Took in this little white rabbit that she's kept around ever since. Even though she obviously wasn't from the town before the storm hit, I figured she'd make a rather promising leader someday. Snowflake was always a silent, artist type. She and Olive had their petty arguments, but girls'll be girls I s'pose. Her relationship with Thorn, however, that was somethin' special. The boy was a real promisin' blacksmith, that is, until his passin'..."

The old stallion trailed off, a faraway look gathering in his eyes, and Twilight felt bad for the request she was going to make. It felt necessary.

"Can you tell us about Thorn's death?"

A look of dread crossed Fluttershy's features as she turned to her friend, as though pleading with her not to ask this one question. But, the deed was done. Mayor's scowl entirely faded, and beneath the wrinkles and white whiskers was the face of not only a crotchety, sad old man, but a father. A stallion who had faced more pain and loss than simple words could describe.

"It was sudden, I can tell yous that much. He an' Olive were out in the forest just outside of town, and next thing I know, Olive Glow comes screamin' an' cryin' out of there, calling that the boy'd been impaled. And... sure enough, there he was, stuck by an icy rock. I refused to tell Snowflake what had really happened to 'im, but she was hurt by it either way."

There was another prolonged silence, but this one was filled with grief and sorrow, rather than the tense hatred that hung in the air previously.

"I see." Clearing her throat, Twilight stood, and she gestured for the pegasus beside her to do the same. Fluttershy wordlessly followed her friend towards the door, but not before she caught the mayor's voice silently speaking towards them.

"I don't know what you fillies are trying to prove, or find out, but whatever it is, you ain't gonna find it here. Too much time has passed."

"What are we gonna do, Twilight?" Fluttershy asked, her voice small and quavering with fear.

"I don't know..." The alicorn replied, looking up at the sky, which was dotted with hundreds of stars, seemingly stretching endlessly across the vast blanket of the night. "Something isn't right. I don't know what it is, but it just isn't adding up. There are so many sides to this story..."

"We haven't spoken to Olive Glow herself yet..." Fluttershy offered, but the almost menacing look she received from Twilight was all it took to avoid exploring the thought any further.

The alicorn sighed upon seeing her friend's slightly fearful reaction. "I'm sorry, I'm just... stressed, I suppose. All of this, everything that's going on, it's a lot." Turning to the pegasus, she placed a hoof on her shoulder. "We can't tell the others about this interview."

To this, Fluttershy was visibly confused. "What are you talking about? Don't you think they should know about this?"

"No, no I don't. It's already bad enough that the other girls suspect Olive Glow of having done something incriminating that ties into all of this madness, and with the stares of an entire town on my back I'd rather not have to worry about their opinions on this as well. Promise me you won't tell them?"

After a short while, Fluttershy sighed and said, "I promise."

"Thank you." Twilight smiled. "You should probably head back to the inn. If it makes you feel any better, I'll talk to Olive Glow myself, although I highly doubt her story will be any different from what we've heard already."

The pegasus nodded and did as instructed, flying alone back to the tall building further along the endless street. Twilight walked in the opposite direction, towards the tiny cottage she had nearly memorized by now. It wasn't until then, however, that Twilight had overlooked one very important detail.

Olive Glow wasn't from this town.

Author's Note

Howdy!

Wow, it feels like ages since I've updated. Well, here I am! Honestly, I just want to express how excited I am to have finally made it to this chapter, mainly because from here, things'll be really kicking into high gear :pinkiesmile:

But that's all I'll say on that-

The Letter

Twilight was pleased to find, the following morning, that Olive Glow wasn't home. After a thorough check and double-check of the house, she deemed it safe enough to do a little investigating. Something in the alicorn's gut told her that a simple interview wouldn't give her the answers she needed.

Finding Olive's bedroom wasn't hard, as the wooden door had been painted with an image of her cutie mark. The room itself wasn't too different from the guest bedroom, sporting a similar coloration with the purple curtains and carpets accented with green. A white rabbit lay sprawled out on the bed, almost blending in with the snowy white pillows decorating the head. Book shelves covered the expanse of one of the walls, filled to the brim with books labeled with the names of ponies. Twilight pulled the first one to catch her eye and opened up to the first page, reading aloud what was written.

"'Amethyst Rose - The town librarian. Ponies in the town think she's crazy for her research, which is a good sign. She keeps her stolen information in the backroom of the library, behind the fifth shelf on the right.'" Twilight paused to examine the shockingly detailed diagram drawn of the hidden space. It was obvious Olive had been there on more than one occasion without Amethyst's knowledge. "'She's a minor threat...' Threat? Threat to what exactly..?"

Shaking her head, Twilight pulled a second book, titled with the name "Winter Spark".

"'Electrical engineer. He left the town nearly two moons ago, but I convinced Mayor to let him go. He serves no threat unless he comes back.' What is all of this..?" Flipping further along in the book, Twilight could see endless pages of information on this seemingly insignificant stallion recorded on many different dates, from what he liked to eat and wear, to the state of his mane, even his medical and family history. "It's like she's been... watching everypony in town."

When she turned to replace the journals, a particular name caught the mare's eye, and her breath hitched for a second when she opened up to the first page, not even daring to read it aloud. It was notable that this book was noticeably shorter than the others, and the reason why was painfully obvious.

Thorn - Blacksmith's Apprentice
Snowflake's best friend. He's no idiot, and he tried to spend as much time around me as possible, visibly upsetting his friend. Weird kid. Has a talent in weaponry. Update: Successfully disposed of.

It took a moment for the words to process, but once they did, everypony's words, everything she had been told, all of it came rushing back towards her, echoing in the back of her mind like the violent beating of a drum.

"...I suggest you all stop while you're ahead so nopony you care about ends up like Thorn."

"...the boy'd been impaled... sure enough, there he was, stuck by an icy rock."

"...it's like playing Russian Roulette with yer life!"

Thorn died because of Olive Glow. No pony knew, not even Snowflake. After all, who'd believe that? Twilight sure didn't. Even now, with the evidence all stacking up against her, with everything she'd been told echoing in her mind, how could she believe it? Most importantly: why? Why would Olive do this? What did Thorn do? Her breathing heavy, Twilight prepared to rip as much information as she could from the books she found, but was interrupted by a sound by the bed. Her heart dropped upon hearing it, and the journals dropped to the floor as she released them, slowly turning to face what she was certain would be her doom, but instead found the rabbit, Olive's rabbit, curiously watching her from atop the pillows it was previously napping on. A book lay in the spot he'd been sleeping, obviously hidden by the extensive pile of fur. When she saw the name printed on this book however, all color drained from her face.

Twilight Sparkle.

Twilight slowly approached the bed, noting how the rabbit's eyes seemed to follow her across the room. When she opened the newest journal, she was surprised to find not an abundance of information, but a list taped to the front page. A list written in her hoofwriting, detailing the pastry preferences of her friends.

A list she had written mere days ago.

She turned the page, there was the list again, rewritten in Olive Glow's hoofwriting. She turned the page. The list. Again, and again, and again it was rewritten. Slowly, Twilight saw, Olive's writing became an exact copy of her own, the same list, written over and over until she had to remind herself that she wasn't the one to write this. Turning the page once again, she was shocked by the sight of a new pattern of words and sentences, weaved so gracefully and so meticulously they could have been thought up by Twilight. A letter, written from Twilight Sparkle to her friends. But... she didn't recall ever writing it. No... this was done by somepony else, somepony who studied Twilight, grew close to her, studied her every move.

"Olive Glow..."

"You called, Princess?"

Twilight jumped as she simultaneously swerved to see the smiling figure in the doorway. This time, Olive Glow's smile didn't have the same kind feeling it had always carried previously, rather a sick, poisonous feeling, as though she had just defeated a great enemy and would be soon collecting her reward. Almost as if he had just noticed the earth pony's sudden entrance, the rabbit leapt off the bed and bounded towards her, nuzzling at her hooves like a scared filly would its mother.

"I see you had Philomene to keep you company as well! He's so nice, right? I would've introduced you sooner but I didn't know how to approach the question of whether or not you were afraid of animals or allergic to pet dander, but then I realized you got along well enough with that friend of yours, Fluttershy, so I figured, really it can't be too bad, right? ..."

Olive's rambles seemed to go in one ear and out the other as Twilight tried to process her current situation. Who exactly was Olive Glow? "What... what is all of this? Who are you?"

Olive's expression turned confused, as though she had no idea what the princess was trying to say. After a few moments of holding her expression, however, the young mare started to laugh, a bitter, off-putting laugh, filling Twilight's stomach with a sense of dread. "Goodness, I'm so sorry! You must be so confused, right?" She sauntered over to the alicorn, plucking a blue flower from the pot that sat on the nightstand beside her. "Thing is, I can't really tell you yet. That would ruin the surprise, and we don't want that now, do we? No matter how exciting."

Before Twilight could react, Olive blew over the plant, sending a wave of pollen into the alicorn's face. The last thing Twilight saw before everything faded to darkness was Olive's sneering expression, and the last thing she heard was the young mare's not-so-sweet voice, practically dripping with poison.

"You'll find out soon enough, anyways."

"Twilight! Twilight?!"

Applejack led the small search party consisting of the remaining four of her five friends up and down the streets of the Frost Village, calling out her missing friend's name as she went.

Rainbow Dash stopped a random mare on the street. "Hey! You seen a purple alicorn around here? Really nerdy, likes books?"

When the mare shook her head no, the pegasus couldn't help but let out a frustrated growl. "It's been hours! Where the hell is she?!"

"Language, Rainbow." Rarity snapped, her expression equally exasperated at the situation. "I agree, though. It's not unlike Twilight to get caught up in her own little shenanigans, but not for this long, and certainly not without giving us even the smallest clue of what she could be up to! First she disappears from Pinkie Pie's party, and then this. Simply ridiculous!"

Fluttershy couldn't help but shrink a little smaller into herself at the mention of the attempted holiday festivities, knowing full well that she was just as guilty as Twilight for not staying.

Pinkie Pie herself was also strangely quiet, as though the recent events had truly been enough to deflate her due to the gravity of the entire ordeal. She seemed to perk up near instantly at the sight of a certain pale yellow mare approaching. "Oh! Look who's here!"

Upon hearing those words Applejack spun on her hooves, expecting to see Twilight standing before them, but was thoroughly disappointed at who she really saw. "For the love of Celestia -- I shoulda known!"

Before Olive Glow could say anything, the apple farmer was already standing defensively before her. "Awful convenient you like to appear whenever some sort of trouble's stirrin' up 'round here. Where's Twilight?!"

Olive's eyes softened, despite the accusation, as though she had been hit with a sudden pang of pity for the mare. "Oh dear, she truly didn't say anything to you guys? Her best friends? I can't believe it..."

"What in Celestia's name are you talking about, darling?" Rarity asked, brows furrowed.

Olive tutted softly as she shook her head, holding out the paper she had tucked into her bag. "I was truly hoping you'd all have known already, either heard from the locals or she'd told you herself, but I can see what she told me was true."

"What could Twilight have possibly told you?!" Rainbow shouted, gathering the attention of more than a few passersby.

"Well, simply read the letter and you'll know for yourselves. It's a shame, really..."

The five ponies gathered around Applejack as she looked over the crisp parchment, her green eyes flying across the page of her best friend's unmistakable penmanship.

Dear Girls,

Due to everything going on in the town, I decided it would probably be best if I left. It's obvious that I'm not wanted or accepted here, and I don't want any of you to face persecution simply for being around me. I've decided to try my luck heading off to the Crystal Empire and getting help. I didn't tell anypony because I know you girls would try and talk me out of it due to the risks involved. Please trust me when I say, as your friend, that I love you all dearly and am only doing this with you in mind.

Sincerely,
Twilight Sparkle

"There ain't no way this is true..." Applejack whispered, not even fully believing herself.

"I'm afraid it is, Applejack." Olive sighed. "I tried to tell her not to go, but who am I to speak against a princess? No pony in town seems all too upset about it either, y'know?"

There was a prolonged silence for a while, before finally, Rarity spoke up first. "Well if it truly is the case that Twilight is going to the Crystal Empire, then we'll have to go too. None of us truly knows what lurks out there in the Frozen North, and there's no reason to allow one of our own to get stuck out there."

"I agree!" Rainbow Dash cheered. "If Twilight's leaving, then so are we. No friend of mine is going to get caught out there in the snow!"

More collective cheers followed, and Fluttershy seemed to be the only one who was even remotely hesitant about the whole idea.

"It's so honorable that you all want to do that for your friend. I'll put in a word with Mayor to let you go." Olive said lowly, offering a small smile. The gesture was returned with a few weary looks before she walked away, leaving the small group to their own devices.

Really, it took quite a bit of struggle on Olive Glow's part to hold back from laughing at how incredibly easy this all came together. But of course, the battle wasn't won yet. After all, she still had a Princess of Friendship to attend to.

The Orphan

The storm blew on, and with it, most of the town.

Days passed.

Weeks passed.

The following morning was much more peaceful in comparison to the one that came before, part of the reason being that the six newcomers could wake up knowing exactly where they were. Twilight had met her friends in front of the inn, and they all agreed to spend the day exploring the town together, Twilight having kept her natural form in hopes of building better bonds with the townsponies. To the alicorn's dismay, Olive Glow was no where to be found when she woke, but she found herself gifted with a key to the small house to be used for the duration of their stay.

"Are you sure she's really all that trustworthy, Twi?" Applejack asked upon hearing of Olive's gift.

Twilight frowned slightly, but noticeably. "Of course I'm sure. Why wouldn't I be?"

The earth pony mare sighed, averting her attention to the snowy ground beneath her hooves. It was a wonder the Frost Village inhabitants could keep the roads clear on a consistent basis, what with the everlasting flurries of snow. "I dunno Twilight it's just... she gives me the willies."

Before Twilight could reply, a high - pitched screech filled the air, and all eyes in the area immediately shot towards Rarity, who was practically hanging off of a nearby ice sculpture depicting a pony surrounded by fluttering snowflakes. Every detail of the sculpture was chipped and carved to near perfection, depicting a glittering beauty in the light of the sun, as well as conveying the slightest hint of danger with the sharp edges of the ice.

"Oh, just look at this! Look at it!" Rarity exclaimed. "Such perfection in ice! My sales would double, no, triple if I had something this magnificent in one of my shops!"

Applejack rolled her eyes, but Twilight was personally quite happy with the distraction from her conversation.

"Who created such an astonishing piece?!"

A pegasus stallion who had been passing by when the commotion started stepped forward. "Snowflake did. She's basically the town's resident sculpture artist. Everypony knows her work, and all of it, at least what you'd see here, is hers."

To this, Rainbow Dash's jaw dropped. "Snowflake?! As in, quiet, boring Snowflake?!"

The stallion's muzzle scrunched up in displeasure after hearing the pegasus mare's description of the pony who was clearly positively known amongst the community. "Yes. Her." His reply was stiff, and he hurriedly walked off.

"Rainbow, can you at least make an honest effort ta be polite? Jus' this once?!" Applejack snapped at her rainbow - maned friend, receiving a dramatic eye roll in response.

"It would be nice to pay Snowflake a little visit again after what she did for us yesterday." Rarity commented, still admiring the intricate sculpture.

"Yeah! Maybe she can even make us some more of that no - more - forgetty - forgetty tea!" Pinkie Pie chirped, although nopony paid any mind to whatever it was she had just said.

The decision seemed to have been unanimous.

Once the small group arrived at Snowflake's home, they were greeted by a wide open door, and for just the slightest moment, Fluttershy's silent fear that there had been a break - in didn't go unfounded. However, when they stepped inside, it was found that there was not a break in, and instead just Snowflake balancing on her hind legs to reach a particularly high spot on what would likely soon be another ice sculpture, which also explained why the door was open and letting all the cold air from outside in. It was doubtless she'd heard the group of ponies come inside, but she said nothing, not even the silent utterance of a greeting.

Rainbow Dash wasn't having it. "Helloooo? Snowflake, are you there?"

"Assuming you're not blind and can see me standing in the middle of the room, the answer to that question should be obvious."

Rainbow growled in response, but a dark glare from Applejack was all it took to get her back under control.

Twilight cleared her throat. "We saw the ice sculptures around town, and somepony told us you were the one who made them." She gestured to the ice block in the progress of being cut, although the mare wasn't facing her. "You have quite a talent with handling ice."

To this, Snowflake dropped her tools and turned around, her violet eyes almost icy beneath her black - framed goggles, made to keep any stray ice shards from hitting them. After a short while, they reverted back to their nearly emotionless state, and she sighed, turning back to her half - finished piece. From the looks of it so far, it depicted a colt, wielding what might soon be a sword or axe.

"Yeah. I've been doing this since I was a filly." She looked up at the incomplete statue. "Back then, nothing really mattered. Not like it does now, although nopony here thinks anything does matter besides what they're doing during the day. That's what happens when you live in a small, sheltered town where nothing's supposed to happen."

Everypony was silent, including Rainbow Dash, who had been absentmindedly hovering in the air as she barely tuned in to the words spoken. Everypony, including Snowflake, felt similar chills race up their spines, but the open door wasn't the source. After many silent minutes, the pegasus continued.

"Like most ponies in this town, I lived here my whole life. Never been out of those gates. Never wondered about the world outside of it because this place was the only world I felt had any importance." She angled a purple - feathered wing at her unfinished piece, "That and my best friend, anyways. Thorn. Although ironically, he wasn't anything like a thorn. More like a declawed bear."

"What do you mean 'wasn't'?" Fluttershy piped up, tilting her head.

Snowflake hesitated for a moment, still wearing her look of indifference. "He... he's dead now. Died about ten years ago."

Twilight took a few steps forward, reaching a hoof out to the quiet mare, who looked to be batting with herself internally. "Snowflake... I'm so sorry."

"Don't be." She replied. "It wasn't your fault. It was Olive's."

Applejack didn't hesitate to respond. "Just what in the hay is that supposed to mean? You suggestin' Olive Glow killed somepony when y'all were kids?"

"No. Not exactly." Snowflake picked her tools up once again. "I'm not sure what I'm suggesting. The memory of his death is hazy, but I know I last saw him alive when he was with Olive, and after that, he's in a coffin, and Olive Glow shows no emotion. I stopped trusting her right then and there, and I suggest you all stop while you're ahead so nopony you care about ends up like Thorn."

The reactions in the room were mixed, from Fluttershy whimpering in place to even Pinkie Pie stopping her light bouncing to wear a grim expression. The only relatively calm expression was Twilight's, who seemed more indifferent than anything. After surveying the looks she received in response to her warning, Snowflake picked up her tools and went back to work, without the slightest utterance of a word.

"You can stay and watch me work if you'd like." she muttered, as though she had only had a light conversation rather than speak of the death of her late friend.

Rainbow Dash was all too happy to be freed, and she left alongside Applejack and Twilight, while their remaining three friends stayed behind, likely to strike up further discussion.

"Well, that was surprisingly dark." The cyan pegasus commented to nopony in particular, gliding slowly through the air above her friends like a vulture stalking her prey.

"Hol' on a sec sugarcube." Applejack stopped in her tracks. Her green eyes had taken on a stern, motherly tone as she stared Twilight down. "Twilight, I don't want you goin' back to that house with Olive."

"Why not?"

For a moment, the earth pony was at a loss for words. Had she not been in the same room as they were, hearing the same things they did? "You got cotton in yer ears or something?! She can't be trusted! That mare is weird, this whole damn town is weird, but this is goin' too far. I don't want you sleepin' in the same place as Olive Glow. It's like playin' Russian Roulette with yer life!"

Twilight frowned. "Applejack, have you seen Olive do anything incriminating? Have you seen proof of her doing anything bad in the past? I'm not saying Snowflake's crazy, but I feel as though you're all jumping to dangerous conclusions."

"We want you to be safe, Twilight-"

"As the Princess of Friendship, I refuse to allow anypony -- whether they're from a strange town or not -- to be accused of something without proof, especially something of this caliber."

Applejack didn't say anything. She looked into her friend's eyes, her own filled with worry and fear. At this point Rainbow Dash came down from her airborne position, landing beside the farm pony.

"Applejack's right, you know." She said, her voice low.

Twilight sighed. "I understand that you girls are worried, but I promise you...

"There's absolutely nothing to worry about."

I Can't Decide

For the second time that week, Twilight Sparkle woke up in a strange and unfamiliar room. However, this one wasn't nearly as inviting or comforting as the first. In fact, it was quite the opposite. The room was dank and dark, made up of stone that was growing some sort of moss over its exterior. Cobwebs littered the corners, and a few empty and dust - filled bookshelves were lined against the walls. It was obvious this room had, at some point, been used for storage of some sort, and that function was long since rejected, leaving the room abandoned and in disarray. For a small moment, Twilight felt the slightest twinge of pity for the room itself.

But it was only a small moment.

Twilight found she herself was more or less chained to a metal stake against the wall, the proper function of which was entirely unknown to her. It would either take some skilled hooves or simple magic to undo the ties. However, magic also appeared to have been erased as a potential option, due to the magic-blocking ring tightly fitted around her horn, a simple ring of metal enchanted using the same spell used by the security at the Equestrian Games. She growled lowly under her breath as she found she truly had been stuck here. Wherever "here" was, that is. Fortunately, she didn't have to wait very long to find out, as a bright and cheerful figure slid through the door, appearing as though she had simply arrived to meet a friend than a prisoner.

"Olive Glow! What's going on?" Twilight warily asked, standing to approach the mare. She was stopped almost immediately by the chains tightly wrapped around her hind leg, leaving her mere inches away from the earth pony's smug face.

"Isn't it obvious, Princess Twilight? You're my prisoner now!" Olive laughed, seeming to be enjoying this a little too much. "Or rather, you've been my prisoner for a while."

Twilight opened and closed her mouth, trying to form words as she stood there. "What... what are you talking about?"

Olive Glow sighed, turning back to the door and peeking through it, as though expecting someone to come in any second. "All this time, this whole week, you've been strictly in my grasp and didn't even know it! Honestly, Princess..." Olive trailed off, her two-toned golden and purple eyes glittering with excitement as she looked back at the alicorn. "This feels like a dream come true!"

"Wha...?"

"Don't play stupid with me!" Olive yelled, raising her voice for the first time since Twilight and her friends had arrived. "Your blind trust in somepony you literally just met... How insanely stupid are you?! I've been playing you for a fool this whole time! Unless... unless you saw through all of this..." Olive anxiously lowered her voice and peeked through the door once more.

She was clearly inexperienced in the field of kidnapping and holding royalty against their will, but Twilight took that as an opportunity to peacefully turn the tables on her captor.

"Why are you doing this?" Twilight asked, easing the edge out of her voice. The question felt almost cliché at this point, but it was necessary if this would go anywhere.

"Revenge, obviously." Olive replied, although by her tone of voice she didn't seem entirely certain. "And I know what you're trying to do. You're trying to make me talk about my feelings, reveal my whole plan to you so I feel bad or some bullshit like that, and I'll end up in a prison cell while you prance around outside livin' your perfect privileged princess life!"

To this, Twilight was taken aback. She found herself at a complete loss for words. Olive gave the smallest hint of a smile.

"I can't decide... whether you should live or die. What would bring about the better result?"

The alicorn was silent.

Olive sighed as she leaned against the wall, peering through the slightly ajar door. She pulled her scarf tighter around her neck as though a draft had suddenly passed through, and Twilight could see her hooves shaking.

She was afraid.

The silence was almost deafening, but Twilight didn't mind the quiet. She hadn't faced anypony like Olive Glow before, and didn't think she'd ever have to. How could a pony so malicious have so many secrets? How could she hide under a mask of goodness so well done up that everypony around her could be so effortlessly fooled? It seemed almost impossible, unnatural even.

"I hope you've thought about what you're doing." Twilight said, shocking her captor as well as herself. The words seemed to just come out.

"I..." Olive stammered, her eyes flashing a wave of emotions before settling on a cruel coldness. "I know exactly what I'm doing."

"Do you?" Twilight asked, furrowing her brows. "You know, none of this is necessary. I promise you, there is always a better solution to-"

"Shut up!" Olive yelled. "You have no idea what you're talking about! There is no other solution. There is nothing else I could possibly do that would make everything better. This, however..." she trailed off, seemingly thinking about her words in her mind. "...this will fix everything."

The thundering gallops of five sets of hooves echoed through the streets of the Crystal Empire, sending more than a few crystal ponies into a panic as they made way for the small group to scurry through. With Rainbow Dash and Rarity at the head, the remaining five of the six raced towards the familiar opening beneath the empire's crystal castle. It didn't take long to find the throne room, once inside, and Rainbow was the one to push through the guards and shout loudly into the room:

"Where's Twilight?!"

Cadance was sitting at her throne, now looking a mixture between confused and shocked. She took a moment to process the appearances of the ponies in front of her before she was able to actually speak. "She isn't with you?!"

Rarity shook her head, her own look of worry crossing her features. "No, that's why we're here. She wrote us a note saying that she'd be coming here."

The aliorn blinked, her eyes filled with so many emotions and questions it was a wonder her head didn't melt or explode from the confusion. "I-- she-- what--?! Somepony please explain to me what's going on, what happened? No-- wait. I need to bring Shining Armor back here. When you all didn't show up and your train went missing, he's been out with a search party looking around the area of the tracks. He needs to hear whatever explanation you have as much as I do."

Before anypony could comment or protest, Princess Cadance was out the door, flanked by two of her guards. Rainbow Dash loudly groaned as she dropped onto the ground, her cyan coat tinted red with the cold and frustration combined.

"Just what the hay is goin' on around here?! Where's Twilight if she's not here?"

Applejack tapped a hoof to her chin for a moment, thinking over the events of the past week. Everything had happened so fast, it all came through as a blur. After a few minutes, she finally came to a reasonable enough conclusion. "She never left the town."

Rarity cocked her head to the side in confusion. "What are you talking about, darling? The note that Twilight wrote clearly expressed that she was not staying in the town any longer."

"What if Twilight wasn't the one who wrote it..?" Rainbow Dash added, realization crossing her features.

"But it was clearly done in her penmanship. Nopony else could have possibly written it-!"

"Oh yes they could've." The earth pony said, stamping her hoof in frustration. "And I think I might just know who did. Olive Glow. I knew she was suspicious right from the start!"

"What are we gonna do, AJ?" Fluttershy whimpered softly.

Rainbow stomped her hoof on the hard crystalline floor, directing her friends' attention to herself. "I'll tell you what we're gonna do! We're gonna go right back there and get Twilight back!"

"But it won't be so easy." Rarity continued. "If Olive Glow only sent us to the Crystal Empire, then she must know we'll be coming back. She'll undoubtedly be ready for us."

"Then we'll be ready for her." Applejack said. "When Cadance comes back with Shining Armor, we'll give 'em the whole run-down, and storm th' place if we have to."

"What makes you think the townsponies will let us in?"

"They won't." the earth pony replied. "But it ain't gonna hurt to try."

"...and then Olive Glow gave us that letter from Twilight telling us that she'd be coming here, to the Crystal Empire, so we came all the way over and found out that she wasn't here and now here we are!" Pinkie Pie smiled proudly upon finishing her rather condensed recollection of the week's events.

Princess Cadence looked over the letter given to her by Applejack for what had to have been the hundredth time. Her violet eyes scanned the sheet as though it were an important document containing the secrets to life itself. "If your theory about this 'Olive Glow' forging the letter is true, then I'm afraid she may be a lot more dangerous than you think. Especially if she truly is expecting the five of you to return with our aid."

"So, what? Are you not gonna help us?!" Rainbow Dash asked, the edge in her voice obvious.

"Oh, we most certainly are going to help." Cadance scribbled on a loose piece of parchment and gave it over to the guard flanking her left side. "Send this to Princesses Celestia and Luna. We're going to need the extra assistance."

"There's just one thing I still can't wrap my head around." Shining Armor piped up from his place. "What could she possibly want to do with Twilight?"

"That's the one thing we don't know..." Applejack replied. "She was gettin' awful close to Twilight while we were there, so she probably had somethin' up her sleeve the whole time. But given the reputation alicorns apparently have in that town, it likely ain't somethin' good."

Cadance sighed, bringing a hoof up to her head to massage her temple. "It just isn't adding up. There are so many missing pieces." Suddenly, she perked up, a small smile spreading across her features. "What about those other ponies you mentioned, the ones who helped you? Could they have anything to do with this?"

"You mean Snowflake and Amethyst Rose?" Rarity asked. "As far as we could tell, Snowflake was completely against Olive, and she was apparently friends with Amethyst, so she must also be trustworthy."

Shining Armor nodded. "That's good then. If we can convince them to help us put a stop to this, then maybe the other townsponies will want to help. Moreso if Snowflake is as respected a community artist as you said."

"Oh, she is." Rainbow Dash added, rolling her eyes at the memory of how mesmerized everypony seemed of her works.

"I think we can formulate some kind of plan then." Cadance said. "We'll bring some guards along with us just in case things get too out of hoof. Once the Princesses get here, we'll head over there immediately. If the others don't side with us we'll just have to push past them. I don't want to have to fight."

"Agreed." Shining chimed in. "The primary goal should be reaching Twilight and apprehending Olive Glow."

"Wh-what if the other townsponies try to fight us?" Fluttershy asked, quivering.

"Then we'll have to be ready to face them."

Before another word could be said, the guard that had gone to send off Cadance's note returned. Everypony turned to face the stallion as he burst through the door. "Princess Cadance! Princesses Celestia and Luna have arrived!"

"Applejack, I want you and your friends to find Twily. If the townsponies put up a fight, we'll hold them off, but that probably won't be necessary. Bringing her back is the most important thing." Shining Armor said, a stern expression crossing his face. To this, the earth pony firmly nodded in reply.

"All right!" Rainbow exclaimed, pumping a hoof in the air. "Let's go get our princess back!"