1. A Tale Of A Different Time
Stray echoes of noon sunlight snuck past the thick cover of clouds, glistening off of the crystal rooftops of the kingdom. Upon the balcony of the Crystal Empire's grand tower, the chill of the wind blew the barely-tamed pink mane of a light blue pegasus, who watched listlessly down upon the kingdom. Her eyes traced the many colors of banners and banderoles raised in every street and plaza. Every time she woke up, they were a different color, with different decorations, but they were always there. The ponies were always celebrating, and the festivities were always in full swing. She never truly knew why they were celebrating, as the Crystal Faire had been going for a long, long time since before she was born.
"Princess Amore Icilcia, you really should engage in the festivities," a gruff, uninterested voice spoke up from behind her. A wistful sigh escaped her lips. The Guard always insisted on using her full, barely-pronounceable name, but she stopped trying to correct them long ago. "The Faire is all set up for you, it'd be a waste if your subjects didn't even get to see you."
"Of course," she replied softly, rehearsed. It was no use arguing, even though she didn't really care enough to do anything at the time. "Lead the way, General."
She had a great dislike of the castle, although she never dared to voice it. She could never remember which hallway went where, and it seemed like the Guard were always moving things around. The only thing that didn't change was her room, where she slept. She... could never remember much, aside from her room. The blinking lights, the screens, the machines, it was all quite hard to forget. At least her bed was comfy, the snow on h[ﾡﾧ︹
-̳̳̠̄̅-̱̲̿̅͞-̱̱̳̳̅-̱̱̳̿͟-̄͟͞͞͞-̱̠̠̿̄-̲̲̠̳̄-̳̱̲̅͞-̲̠̅̅͞-̠̠̄͟͞-̳̳̄̿̅-̳̳̱̿̄-̲̲̲̄͞-̱̳̳̠̄-̱̠͟͟͞-̱̲͟͟͟-̲̅̿̿͟-̠̿̿̅͞-̠̱̳̠͞-̲̠̲̅͟-̲̠̿͟͞-̳̳̿̅̿-̠̲̲̠̄-̠̠̳̅̿-̳̱̿̿͟-̳̱̅̄̅-̠̱̿̄͞-̠̱̿̄̅-̳̿̄͟͞-̠̳̠̠͞-̠̿̿̄̿-̱̿̿̅͞-̠̳̅̿̄-̱̳̱̳̄-̳̱̅̿̄-̲̠̳̱͟-̳̠̅̅̄-̲̲̿̄̄-̲̳̅͟͞-̲̠̿̿͟-̲̱̳̅͟-̠͟͟͞͞-̲̱̳̿̄-̲̱̱̿̅-̅͟͟͞͞-̱̳̅̿̅-̱̠̅̄̿-̳̲͟͟͞-̱̳̳̿̅-̳̄̅͟͞-̱̱̄̿͟-̱̱̄̿̅-̲̲̲̄͟-̱̅̅̄͟-̱̠̅͟͞-̱̲̳͟͞-̳̲̄͟͞-̱̠̠̳̲-̲̲̳̲͞-̳̲̲̅͞-̱̲̄̅͞-̳̠̅̄͞-̠̿̅̿̄-̲̅̄̿̄-̳̳̱̿̄-̱̠̠̿̅-̱̠̱̄̿-̅̄̿͟͞-̅͟͟͟͟-̲̱̲̄͞-̱̠̄̄͟-̠̠̠̳̿-̠̳̿̅͟-̳̳̳̲͟-̠̠̲̄͞-̲̄̿͟͞-̳̱̿̅͞-̳̲̲̱̄-̱̳̠̲͞-̱̅̄͟͞-̱̳̿̅̿-̱͟͟͟͞
"Good morning, Icicle."
It was dark, and her ears were ringing. Her body was covered in sweat, and the room felt hotter than the sun against her cold coat. She couldn't think- couldn't remember where she was. She could hear a steady beeping sound speeding up as she breathed faster, and the ringing in her ears began to fade.
"Relax, breathe slower."
The strange voice was given substance when the Icicle felt a hoof on her shoulder. She tried to calm down, but she just felt so cold. The warmth and touch of another body only made her notice her own shivering. She made an attempt to heed the voice's request, focusing on her breath, and taking it in slowly. She was thirsty, like she hadn't had anything to drink in a year.
"Water, as usual."
The voice must have been psychic. She felt a glass of water meet her lips and eagerly accepted it. Her body started to return to a normal temperature, and within a minute the glass was empty.
She felt the weight on her eyelids starting to ease up, and her wings twitched as the world came into focus around her. Stars blinked and flickered around her, and the beeping sound stopped.
"Wh... W-Where am I?" Icicle asked, her voice low. Her pale green eyes focused in on the blur of colors that she assumed the voice was coming from, which moved as it answered.
"Home. You're safe, don't worry. This happens often, for you." The pony helped Icicle to sit up, her eyes getting less blurry. The stars fell into focus, revealing themselves to be blinking, colorful lights. Her vision followed the hoof on her back, falling on a yellow unicorn, wearing a long white jacket.
"I... d-don't..."
"Remember?" The unicorn answered, before Icicle had a chance to finish. "Don't worry, it'll all come back to you in time. Can you stand?"
Icicle nodded, although she wasn't even sure herself. Shakily, her hooves met the floor. Her back ached from being laid upon the hard crystal surface of the 'bed'.
"Good," the unicorn continued. "Now, if you could follow the Guard, they'll get you ready for the Faire."
"The Faire?"
"Ah, yes- The Crystal Faire! The 65th year since the Crystal Empire escaped to the safety of the sky!"
-̠̲̠̱̅-̳̳̱̿͟-̳̲̳̄͞-̱̠̱͞͞-̲̠̳̲͟-̲̿̅̿͟-̲̱̳̳̿-̳̳̲̳̱-̳̲̄̄͞-̳̲̅͟͟-̲̲̄̅͞-̲̠̿̅͟-̠̲̳̠͟-̠̄̿͟͟-̠̳̠̲̅-̱̲̱̄͞-̲̿̿̿͞-̳̱̳̿̿-̠̠̄̿̄-̲̿̄̅͞-̳̿̄͟͞-̠̳̲̳̲-̲̄̄̄͟-̠̳̅̅͟-̠̱̲̿͞-̠̳̱͟͞-̲̄̿̅̅-̠̱̠̄͟-̱̳̿̄͞-̠̲̳̳͟-̳̿̅̿͞-̱̱̅͟͟-̳̲̄̄̄-̠̿̄̿͟-̲̿̄͟͞-̳̳̿͟͟-̿̅͟͞͞-̲̳̠̲͟-̱̠̿̄̿-̱̠̿͟͞-̱̱̿̄͟-̱̠̳̿̿-̠̳̱̿͞-̱̳̠̅͟-̱̄̄̿͟-̲̳̳̿̄-̱̳̳͟͞-̱̳͟͞͞-̱̅̅͞͞-̳̠̄͟͟-̱̠̲̲̿-̱͟͟͞͞-̠̱͟͟͞-̱̲̄̅͞-̱̱̄̿͞-̠̲̱̿͟-̠̄̿͞͞-̳̲̳̄͟-̳̱̅͟͟-̳̲̱̿̄-̲̳̱̅͞-̲̳̲̅͟-̲̿̿̅͟-̲̿̿͟͟-̳̿͟͟͞-̲̲̱̄̿-̱̄̄̅͞-̄̿̿̄͞-̿̿̿̄͟-̲̠̲̱̅-̄̅̿͞͞-̲̿̿̄͞-̲̅̄̿̄-̱̳̄̅͟-̳̿̄̄͟-̲̱̱̠͟-̱̿̄̄͟-̱̱̲̄͞-̲̠̱̱͞-̱̳̅̅͟-̱̳̳̄͟-̲̠̲̳̄
Icicle shook her head. The... 65th year? When she woke up this morning, they had told her it was the 72nd, but most everything in that memory had been the same. The cold, the shakiness, even some of the unicorn's words were identical.
She was still following the General down the halls of the castle, and it seemed as if they were approaching the gate leading out into the kingdom when she had recovered from the memory. She had experienced several moments like that already today, which felt like remembering a dream after waking up, but this one felt real, with events that she could believe actually happened, unlike-
"We've been instructed to give you a little more space this Faire," The gruff stallion spoke up as he opened the door to the outside. "But if you need any help, you should have a Guard within earshot."
"Of course, General." Icicle said, again. It had been pretty much all she had said to him all day, and even though she wasn't in the mood to do much of anything, she was somewhat excited to be out from under his supervision. She watched her breath condense on the cold air, and tried to keep her chin up as she trotted out. Perhaps finding some of the festivities would help her to remember, and to break herself out of her sour mood!
Sparse cheering broke out among the small crowd of ponies who settled down in the park around the main castle entrance as they noticed Icicle's presence. The Crystal Faire was the one day when the princess came down from the castle to interact with her subjects, and being among the first to see her truly seemed like an honor to the onlookers. She was almost jealous of them, getting to sit with their family and friends in the brisk chill. But, even though Icicle could join them, the bulk of the festivities were in the city square, and she was too tired to deal with hearing the Guard chew her out on how she wasted her time at the Faire.
She spread her wings and was just about to take off in a glide towards the plaza, when she felt something tap her side. Or, someone, as she looks down to see a filly looking eagerly up to her.
"Excuse me, m-miss princess?"
The filly's coat and mane were messy, and Icicle suspected that she hadn't bathed recently, but she didn't want to fly away in the poor girl's face, yet at the same time,she didn't really know how to respond. "Erm, yes?" She hesitantly asked as she looked around for their parents.
"What's past the clouds? Mommy won't tell m□▫▪
-̳̳̳̄͞-̠̠̿̿̄-̠̱̿̄͟-̱̳̳̿̿-̠̄̅̄͟-̳̳̳̄͞-̠͟͟͟͞-̱̠̳̄͟-̳̄̄͟͞-̲̱̲̿̄-̠̠̠̄͟-̳̅̿͞͞-̠̲̱̄͟-̠̠̳̅͟-̱̄̄̄͟-̱̳̳̄͟-̠̠̿̅̿-̱̲̲̠͞-̱̿̿͟͟-̲̿̅͟͞-̲̲̲̿͞-̲̅̅̄̅-̿̿̅͟͞-̠̠̠̄͞-̠̲̅͟͟-̳̱̱̿̅-̱̳͟͟͟-̱̠̿͟͞-̳̅̿̅͟-̱̳̱̅͟-̱̄̅̿͟-̱̄̅͞͞-̱̲̲̠͟-̱̲̱̠̿-̲̱̱͟͞-̳̲̱̄͞-̲̠̳̿͞-̳̳̲̱̄-̳̱̅͟͟-̲̅̿͟͞-̳̱̅̄͞-̲̱̿̿̅-̠̳̠̅͞-̲̄̿̿͞-̠̿̄̄͞-̱̳̿̿͞-̲̠̅̅͟-̠̠̄̿͞-̄̿̅̄͟-̿̿̅͟͟-̳̲̲̱͟-̱̳̿͟͞-̱̲̳̅̄-̳̿̅̄͞-̱̳̠̅͟-̱̱̲̱̱-̠̱̅͟͞-̲̠̳̳͟-̲̿͟͟͞-̳̱̳̿̄-̠̿̅̄͞-̱̿̄̄͞-̱̅̿̅̅-̳̱̲̄̿-̳̳͟͞͞-̲̳̿̅͞-̲̿̄̅͟-̠̱̅̅͞-̳̲̲̱͞-̠̳̲̄̄-̳̱̲̅͟-̳̅͟͞͞-̲̲̄͟͟-̠̱̄͟͞-̱̲̅͟͞-̱̲̳̄̄-̱̳̳̄͟-̳̳̿͟͞-̠̿͟͞͞-̠̱̠͞͞-̠̲̳̱͟-̠̳̅͟͞
The golem towered above the mountains, its blocky stone body motionless, and its eyes empty. Icicle sat in the snow beneath it, the skies an unending grey storm. Her body was cold, but she didn't mind. This place had already sapped almost everything it could have from her, as it always did, and always would.
She didn't know why she always came back to the golem. It didn't do anything, and it never would. Perhaps, it was because it was proof of some life being here before, or because she empathized with its drained life of the present. Not that she much cared to empathize, or to do anything at all, but having something to pass the time was always nice.
There were other places to go, but never any reason. After all, anywhere she goes in this land, it wouldn't change anything. She wouldn't remember it. She never did.
-̱̳̳̅͟-̠̿̿̅͞-̠̿͟͞͞-̠̲̲͞͞-̳̱̄̿͟-̲̠̲̱̿-̱̠̠̿͞-̳̲̄̅̄-̳̳̲̿͟-̠̳̿̅͟-̱̠̳̅̄-̲̠̅̿̄-̠̱̄͟͞-̳̅͞͞͞-̳̲̄̄͟-̿̅̅͟͞-̠̱̲̅̄-̱̱̳̄̅-̠̿͟͟͞-̱̅̿͟͟-̲̠̿͟͞-̱̠̠̿͞-̲̳̅̅͟-̳̲̄̿͟-̳̱̠̱͞-̳̲̄͞͞-̱̅̅̄͟-̳̲̿̄͞-̱̲̲̿͟-̳̠̲̿̿-̲̱̅͟͞-̳̲̄̄͟-̿̄̿̿͟-̠̱̳͟͞-̠̳̲̅͞-̱̳̅͞͞-̱̳̿͟͞-̠̱̿̅͞-̳̲̠̿͞-̲̱̱̅̿-̱̲̅͟͞-̠̲̲̲̅-̲̳̿̅̿-̱̿̄͞͞-̲̿̿̄͟-̳̠̄̄̅-̲̳̄̄͞-̿̄̄͟͞-̳̲̲͟͟-̳̄̿̄͞-̱̠̄̄͞-̳̠̲̅͟-̱̳̳̅͞-̠̿̄̅͞-̲̳̿͟͟-̳̳̄̿̄-͟͟͟͞͞-̳̠̿̅͟-̲̲̿͟͟-̲̳̅͟͞-̳̳̲̲̅-̱̅̿̄̄-̳̠̲͟͟-̲̠̱̲͟-̱̅̿͟͞-̱̳̱̄͟-̳̱̱̅͟-̠̠̱̿͞-̲̠̄̅͞-̳̠̅̅͟-̳̅̅̿͞-̳̠̠̠͟-̳̱̲̳̄-̲̱̳̅̿-̲̱̿̄͟-̲̠̿̄̅-̠̱̱̲̅-̱̲͟͟͞-̲̱̠̳͟-̠̿̄̄͟-̠̱̱̅͟-̲̱̅̿͟
"I am so sorry, Princess Icilcia, she ran off and- are you alright?"
Icicle brought a hoof to her head. Another weird dream... memory... thing. She nodded, and not wanting to answer whatever questions were about to come at her, flapped her wings and glided down the street. She could hear the filly whining faintly in the distance about how she still hadn’t gotten an answer.
The dream bothered her, but she really didn't want to think about it right now. Her head stung whenever she thought about the strange memories, and thankfully she had the perfect distraction to get her head off of things: Food. It only took a short glide towards the city plaza to pick up the scent of baked goods, stews, and other delicacies. Having eaten little since she woke up, her excitement to eat something quickly outweighed her interest in being disinterested.
The food stalls lining the street certainly noticed her, too, as Icicle heard a pony hailing at her from behind the counter of one.
"Good afternoon, Princess! Would you care for some freshly baked bread? On the house, for you!" The baker's eagerness almost overwhelmed Icicle, who barely answered with a nod. Within seconds, she found herself with warm, soft bread in her hooves, and a baker looking expectantly at her.
"U-Um, thank you," she responded. The bread smelled appetizing, and the warmth against the cold afternoon air was appreciated. She bit off a clump, and her taste buds exploded with-
Dryness. The bread was unimpressive at best, but she tried to put on a smile to appease the baker, before quickly trotting off. Over the next hour, she had at least a few dozen other stalls try to heckle her to try their food, but all of them shared the same fate, one of mediocrity. This was a festival, surely the food should be better than this! She also couldn't help but notice how criminally understocked a lot of the stalls were, and even with prices unreasonably high on their menus, they still had ponies lining up in droves to buy even the most unimpressive food.
At some point, she found a stall that didn't offer her anything for free, which at that point was a relief. More bread, unfortunately, but perhaps this stall would be better, since it wasn't trying to grab her attention to drive more business. When the mare tending the stall noticed her trotting up, she panicked for a moment, before putting on the best fake smile she could.
"P-Princess! Would you l-like to, erm, buy some of our stock?"
Icicle simply nodded, hoofing over some of the coin that the Guard had given to her for the afternoon. She still wasn't that interested in conversation, but the idea of having decent food was appealing enough for her to initiate the conversation this time. "There aren’t... any other places to get food, are there?" She didn't want to sound insulting, but the fake smile wavered on the small mare's face.
"N-Not really, Princess. Ever since that farm island lost power and fell, this is the best many ponies can do. Especially with so many mouths to-"
"An island... fell?" Icicle asked, shocked. "When?"
"Almost... a year ago, Princess. But, surely you knew about it? Y-You're the Princess after all." The pony gave her a questioning look as she passed a long, dense piece of bread over to her.
"Ah- um- yes! Of course. Thank you." Icicle wasted no time in absconding, and the equally unimpressive bread met the fate of the others, as Icicle broke off a piece to try, before finding some happy group to 'charitably' give the rest to.
She should have heard about a whole island falling out of the sky, even getting prompted by that should've helped to ring a bell, or make her remember something. Just how long had she been asleep?
The Faire, even with all of it's cheap festivities and mediocre food, did seem to cheer Icicle up a fair bit, as the Guard said it would. It became increasingly clear as the afternoon turned to evening that life in her kingdom was not as comfortable as she would've expected, but her subjects always seemed like they were legitimately happy, especially around her.
The sun had long since dipped past the horizon, and any view one could find past the clouds slowly started to unveil the night sky. True to the Guard's word, she had barely seen the presence of the Guard around her, and it helped her to unwind. She could talk with her subjects, and catch up on things that she still couldn't remember. It still worried her, but... maybe it was just the weird memories that were coming back first?
Taking her time, she trotted back under the light provided from crystal lanterns, down the street, and towards the base of the castle. Arriving again at the park by its entrance, she took a moment to lean against a tree, and let out a breath. She didn't know why she could only remember the Faire. Not only this year’s, but other years’, too. She couldn't recall being awake any other day, aside from those weird snowy dreams. It was worrying, and she wasn't sure she wanted to ask the Guard about it. Any of the questions she did ask were always returned with non-answers.
"Princess?"
Icicle turned to look at the source of the voice, finding her gaze on the filly from before. "Shouldn't you be getting to bed with your family?" She asked, looking around. Her eyes met the parents, who were sitting upon a picnic blanket not far away. They waved nervously, much less interested in meeting the princesses gaze as their child.
"They said I could come say good night to you!" The filly responded eagerly. "It was so nice to see you this year! We weren’t able to catch you any other year of the Faire, but we waited at the park this year just to get a chance!"
"Surely... you could see me any other time, right?"
"Mommy says that you're always busy in the castle, and doing things that are so important, no one can bother you. But... it's okay, I'll try to see you again next year!"
Icicle's head hurt. It felt like it did when she was about to have a flashback, but she fought it and remained conscious. "I- don't understand. I'm the princess, surely I should be known by my subjects?"
"You are! The Guard tells us about all the good you're doing!" The filly didn’t seem to understand what Icicle was asking, but eager to please, she tried her best to answer.
"Y-You said something about not knowing what's beneath the clouds earlier... does anypony?" Icicle's worry had since grown to grave concern. She should know about this. She should know... a lot more than she does. Even if she was going to remember, why hadn't the Guard told her stuff that even a child is asking about?
"Mommy won't answer, but... no other adults I've asked gave me an answer either. I thought asking you would give me an answer but... do you not know either, princess?"
"I- I d◊└─·
-̱̅̄͟͟-̱͟͞͞͞-̱̳̿̿͞-̱̅̿͟͞-̳̅̅͟͞-̲̿̄̿͟-̱̱̅͟͞-̳̲̿͞͞-̱̠̅̄͟-̱̱̄͞͞-̠̅̅̄̄-̳̿̿̿̿-̠̅̅͟͞-̠̠̄͟͞-̲̱̲̅͞-̲̿̿̄͟-̲̱̄̅̅-̲̳̠̲̄-̳̿̅̿͟-̳̲̠̿͟-̲̿̄̅͞-̠̲̄͟͞-̲̱̿̿͟-̲̅͟͞͞-̠̄̄̅̄-̲̠̲̅̅-̲̳̄̄͟-̳̳͟͟͞-̄̅̿͟͞-̄̿͟͞͞-̱̄̿͟͞-̠̿̄̄͞-̳̠͟͟͞-̄͟͟͟͞-̳̠̅̄͟-̠̠̄̄̿-̳̱̄̅̿-̿̅̄͟͟-̲̱̳̅̿-̳̳̿͟͟-̠̲̲̳͟-̄̿͟͞͞-̲̠̄͞͞-̱̲̲̳̄-̱̱̅̅͟-̳̱̅̅͟-̲̠̠̿̄-̳̳̿̄̅-̠͟͟͞͞-̱̱̿͟͞-̲̄̄̄͞-̱̠̳̠͟-̱̿̅͞͞-̲̱̲̄͟-̅̄͟͟͞-̠̠̠̄͟-̠̿̄̄͟-̄̿͟͟͞-̠̱̅̿̿-̱̄̅͞͞-̳̠̿̅͟-̱̱̱̠̿-̳̲̱̳̄-̳̠̳̠̿-̲̲̄̄̅-̲̳̿̿͟-̠̿̅͞͞-̲̅̿̅͟-̠̲̿̿͞-̱̳̠̠̠-̠̲̅̅͞-̲̲̄͟͞-̠̱̅͞͞-̠̠̿͞͞-̱̱̳̅̄-̲̱̳̄͞-̳̲̱̅͞-̠̳̱̠̱-̠̄͞͞͞-̲̳̠͟͟-̳̿͟͞͞-̲̠̿͟͞
It was dark. Icicle's ears rang, accompanied by a steady beeping tone to her left. She was cold, and she didn't feel like moving.
"...this one...worst yet."
She heard the faint, muffled voices of some ponies around her. She hoped they would warm her up, but she was too frozen to even twitch a muscle.
"...her connection to the Heart has been getting weaker...pushing too far..."
More movement picked up around where she lied. The sounds of a jacket rustling, and a door opened further in the room.
"...what else would we do, let things fall?..."
The voices faded away as the door closed. The room was quiet, except for the faint movement next to her, and the beeping of the monitor. At some point, a new voice spoke up.
"Good morning, Icicle."
-̠̳̠̳͟-̲̱̅̄͟-̠̱̱̲̅-̠̠̠̄̄-̠̿͟͞͞-̱̠̱̄͞-̲̠̅̿͞-̱̄̅̿͞-̳̠̅̿͞-̱̠̿͞͞-̠̲̅̄͟-̱̄̄̿͞-̱̲̅͞͞-̱̅̅̿͞-̳̱̱̿̿-̲̄̅͟͟-̠̳̱̲̿-̲̱̄̿͟-̠̠̠̄͟-̲̿̿̿͞-̠̄͟͟͞-̱̲̅̅͞-̱̠̱̿̿-̠̠̅̄̅-̱̠̠̲͟-̠̠̿̅͟-̲̳̠̄͟-̱̲̲̲̅-̲̲̱̄͟-̲̳̠̅͟-̱̲̿̄̿-̱̳̿͟͞-̳̠̿̿̿-̱̅̅̄͟-̿̅̄͞͞-̱̳̳̲̅-̱̳̅͟͞-̱̅͟͟͞-̱̳̅̄͟-̳̲̿̅̿-̳̄̅̿͟-̱̱̳̳͟-̱̅̿͞͞-̲̳̲̿͞-̱̳̲̅͟-̱̱̠̠̱-̲̱̿̅̅-̳̠͞͞͞-̳̠̅͟͟-̅̄̄̿͞-̲̱̠̳͞-̠̲̱͟͞-̱̲̱̱͞-̲̱̄̅͞-̳̅͟͞͞-̱̅̄͟͞-̲̱̄͞͞-̱̱̅̅͟-̱̱̱̿͞-̳̿̄̄̅-̲̄̿͞͞-̳̠̿͞͞-̠̲̱̱̅-̱̱̄̅͟-̠̿̿͞͞-̱̅͟͟͞-̠̳̳̳̄-̲̅̄̅͟-̳̠̠̿̿-̳̅̄̄͟-̠͟͟͞͞-̲̄̅̿̄-̳̱̄̿͟-̳̱̿̄̅-̱̲̱̄̄-̳̿̅̄͞-̳̿̄̅̿-̳̲̳̿͞-̳̠̅͟͞-̲̱̱̳͞-̱̳̳̱̿-̲̱̿͞͞
Things were not alright. She should be remembering better things, like attending court, or helping the ponies of the empire. Instead, all she could remember was waking up to the Crystal Faire, and being alone and mindless in the snow. She didn't know what was going to happen if the Guard took her back. Was she going to get put to sleep again? Why wouldn’t anypony answer why their kingdom was in the sky? It had only been 72 years, according to the Guard, surely they must know! Was it something too painful to answer, even to a child?
"Princess, are you alright? Honey, go fetch the Guard!" She heard the mother of the child shout. She was on the grass, on her back, when a spike of adrenaline pushed her to stand up.
"No, don't get the Guard! I... ngh-" She put a hoof to her head. She was dizzy, especially after trying to stand up quickly. She couldn't stay here. She needed to go somewhere that she could think, somewhere that she could get answers. Hearing movement from outside the park, panic filled her body. She was starting to see a pattern in when the memories were showing up, but she just needed time to think. Many crystal ponies didn't have wings, if she could fly somewhere alone- maybe she could figure out what was going on.
The noise was getting closer. Her wings were out of practice, and she couldn't just take off where anypony could see her. Giving an apologetic glance to the family, she flapped her wings, and took a running glide away from the castle. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew she had to go anywhere else but here.
At some point, she got far enough out of the park and streets to be comfortable taking off. Her head hurt, and she probably shouldn't be flying, but she couldn't let the Guard take her and put her to sleep for another year of her life. She had to f¦nd out what w@s going ●n, an♪°•∞
-̠̱̿̿̄-̱̄̄̄͞-̱̿̄͟͞-̲̱̱̿̿-̱̳̱̅͞-̱̠̅̅̄-̠̲̿̄͟-̳̄̄̅̄-̳̠̲̱̅-̠̱̠̲̿-̲̲̿̿͟-̿̿̄̄͟-̠̲̿̄̅-̲̱̅̅̄-̅̄̿͟͞-̲̠̿̅͟-̱̠̿̄͞-̿̄͟͟͞-̠̳̠̿͞-̳̱̱̠̅-̠̲̲̅͞-̲̳̿̅͟-̲̄̿̄͟-̱̲̲̲̅-̲̱̱̳͟-̲̱̲̅̅-̱̱̳̿̿-̠̱̠̠̅-̄̿̅̿͟-̱̿̅͟͟-̱̠̠̄͟-̳̅̿̄͟-̲̳̄̅̅-̱̄͟͞͞-̅̄̿͟͞-̠̄̅̅͟-̲̲̱̠͞-̳̿̄̄͟-̲̱̳̳͞-̱̠̠̄͞-̠̅̿̄͟-̳̱̄̅͟-̳̲̠̲̳-̳̱̄̅̿-̠̿͟͟͞-̠̳̠̳͟-̳̲̳̄͞-̳̲̿͟͟-̳̱̿͟͞-̠̲̳̅̿-̳͟͟͞͞-̠̲̠̳̄-̠̠̿͞͞-̲̱̠̅̄-̱̲̠͟͟-̱̳̿̄͞-̳̄̿͞͞-̲̲̄͟͞-̠̱̠̠̅-̠̳̅͞͞-̲̲̳̿̅-̳̄̄̅̄-̱̲̳̅͞-̠̳̄͟͟-̱̠̄̅͞-̳̳̅̄͟-̱̱̳̄̿-̳̠̿̿͟-̲̳̳̄͞-̲̠̱̠͞-̳̱̠̅͞-̱̠̄̿͟-̳̠̿͟͞-̳̲̅̄͟-̲̱͟͟͞-̱̲̠̿̿-̱̠̄͟͞-̲̿̿̄̿-̱̿̅͟͞-̳̱̲̄̿-̠̠̲̄͞-̠̲̱̲̿
Icicle was falling. Below her, she could see a large, white orb, with shapes on it. She could see mountains, forests, even towns, buried underneath snow. The Faire had just ended- she thought. Where was she?
No matter where she was, she was approaching the ground fast, and the harsh bite of cold was quickly taking control of her wings away from her. Her feathers were falling out, getting lost to the sky behind her. Tumbling down, she can't help but find that it all made sense. The weird dreams of snowy landscapes and lost times, they were all here.
She didn't remember falling asleep. All she remembered was the Guard putting her on the hard, crystal bed, hooking up the beeping monitor, and telling her to relax. They... brought out the crystal heart, and hooked it up to a machine. The last thing she remembered was them switching it on, and then she was here, falling towards the surface of this small, snowy world.
She remembered this happening before. She also knew that she likely wouldn't remember it again.
-̠̿̅̄͟-̳̲̲̳͟-̲̿̅͟͞-̲̠̄͟͞-̠̿͟͟͟-̳̠̱̳̿-̲̲̠̄͟-̠̲̿̿͞-̳̠̱̿̄-̱̠͟͟͞-̳̱̠͟͞-̳̳̿̄̿-̅̿̿̄̿-̲̱̄̄͟-̳̿̄͟͞-̳̳̲̠͟-̱̱̅͞͞-̲̠̱̳̄-̲̱̄͟͟-̱̅̅͟͞-̳̳̄̄͟-̲̱̅̅͞-̅̿̅̿͟-̠̠̲̿͞-̱̠̳̅̿-̠̠̅͟͟-̱̱̅̄͞-̠̅̅̿͟-̲̿̄̿͟-̳̅͟͟͟-̠̱̳̅͞-̠̿̅̄̿-̿̿̅͟͟-̳̠̅̅̄-͟͟͟͟͟-̠̱̳͟͟-̳̱̅̅̿-̲̠̱͟͞-̠̲̠̅͟-̲̱̿̅͟-̅̅̄͟͞-̠̠̱̿̅-̱̳̿͞͞-̳̿̄͟͞-̲̱̳̄͟-̲̅̿͟͞-̠̲̄̿͞-̳̠̅̿̿-̳̳̿̅̄-̳̳̿͟͟-̳̠̠̅̅-̠̳̲̠̅-̠̅̅̅͞-̲̄͟͟͟-̠̱̿͟͟-̳̳̳̿͟-̱̲̿͞͞-̠̳̄͟͞-̠̳̿͟͞-̲̄̄͟͞-̱̱̄͞͞-̳̳̅̿͞-̠̿̿͟͞-̱̠̱̱̿-̅̄͞͞͞-̳̠̅͟͟-̲̲̄̄͞-̱͟͞͞͞-̱̠̅͟͞-̳̱̳̅͟-̲̲̠̲͟-̳̱̳̳̅-̄̄̿̿̅-̱̱̠̅͟-̳̅̿̄͞-̅̄̿̄͞-̳̱̅̅͞-̱̲̱̱̄-̠̲̳̅̿-̲̳̿͟͞-̱̳̿̄̄-̳̳̱̳͟
Icicle was falling. The clouds rushed past her, as she tumbled past the brisk night air. She wasn't in that world, not anymore. She... had a memory while she was flying. Did she keep flying, just like she kept walking during a memory in the castle halls earlier?
Tumbling, she looked up, seeing the scattered islands of her kingdom, and the glistening tower atop it.
As with every time, she didn't feel afraid as she fell, but this time she had hope.
She knew that it would all repeat again if she went back, and she would take her chances with the ground- the real ground, this time.
