Powder looks her in the eye. “Northern, sweetie, if we don’t leave soon we’ll miss the lift to the top of the mountain and we won’t get to go skiing. You do want to go skiing, right?”

The filly sighs. “I guess you’re right.”

The four ponies pack their ski equipment and dash towards the pistes.

Northern Lights is uncharacteristically quiet as they ride the lift. Her mother and older sisters scatter to the double black diamond slopes, while she’s stuck on the bunny slope for beginners. She sighs. Not that she doesn’t enjoy skiing, normally, but that’s not what she wants to do today. It would be more fun if she was old enough to go on the harder slopes.

She makes a few halfhearted passes down the bunny slope and takes her skis off. She doesn’t need her sisters to help her make a snowpony, she’ll do it herself. Every once in a while, she sees one of her family members pass down one of the other trails. They’re all having the time of their lives. She sighs again as she rolls the snow into a ball to serve as the snowpony’s body. It’s not as fun to make all by herself.

She doesn’t get very far before a stallion wearing the ski resort’s uniform approaches her. Double Diamond patiently explains that this area is for skiing only and that a snowpony could become a hazard to skiers. His bottom line is that if she isn’t going to ski, she needs to leave. She gathers her equipment and trudges back to the ski lodge at the bottom of the hill. If she can’t build a snowpony, she’ll just sit inside drinking hot chocolate and stare outside longingly.

With almost all of the guests hitting the slopes, the lodge itself is mostly empty. The bartender walks over to her. “Another hot chocolate, miss?”

“Yes, please.”

“Whipped cream?” Barley Tender asks.

“Yes.” He squirts some whipped cream on top of her steaming mug. “Leave the can.”

“All right, miss.”

Author's Note

Story notes: https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/1041786/story-notes-snowed-in