~~~

It had been nine Moons since Tia and Mom had come back to Queensford.

The most boring place ever in Tia's opinion.

There were no interesting Ponies to watch. There were barely any other foals to play with... The closest being the twins two years younger than she... And she wasn't allowed to wander the woods around the incredibly tiny village.

It was just straight plain old boring.

It was even worse now because Winter had set in, leaving little to do but huddle next to Mom and the fire as the days wore by.

Everytime Tia complained about being bored, Mom would snort and say:

"Not for much longer I'm afraid."

Tia didn't know what that meant.

When she asked Mom what that meant, she would only pat her belly.

"You'll see." she said cryptically.

The only plus side was she was allowed to get as close to Mom as she could under the blankets. But that happened every year during the winter. The only difference was the lack of a warm Dad on her other side.

And that was clearly a change for the worse.

Even worse, everytime Tia asked about him, Mom would get this really strange look.

“D-don’t worry about it.” She’d say.

And then later, Tia would get woken up by the sounds and shaking of Mom sobbing into a spare blanket.

She stopped asking that question after the third time.

Mom didn’t move much, even before Autumn set in.

Tia didn’t notice it at first. But now that she had little to do, she couldn’t help but pay attention.

Mom’s belly was getting huge.

She looked like a somepony had stuck legs and a pony head on a violet pumpkin.

Ponies kept saying she was pregnant, but that only confused Tia more.

When she asked Mom, she’d sniffle and reply:

“You’re going to have a sibling.”

But that didn’t make sense either!

How could a brother or sister come out of a Pony?!

To Tia’s knowledge only poop and pee came out of a Pony, and those tended to be very poor siblings.

It was evening when Mom suddenly grunted in surprise one day.

Tia could barely hear her over the howling wind between the ramshackle sticks and dry mud.

“Tia…?” Mom called, sounding sick.

“What’s wrong Mommy?” Tia asked, cocking her head and ears.

“Tia… I need you to go to Warm Hovel’s… Tell her ‘it’s time’… She’ll know what to do. Listen to whatever she says.” Mom gasped, seeming to fight herself.

“Mom?” Tia asked.

“NOW.” Mom groaned suddenly.

Tia jumped back in fright, unused to seeing Mom snap at her.

“O-okay!” Tia stammered, quickly getting from out under the threadbare blanket and dashing for the door, where slightly warmer cloaks hung from a hook. She quickly pulled hers down and bundled herself up as best as she could.

“Grrrh!” Mom groaned behind her.

Tia bundled herself up as fast as she could.

She was out the door in a flash.

While the meager hut they lived in offered some protection from the cold, it did nothing for Tia as she fully stepped into the rushing wind.

Night had fallen, but still Tia could see the flurry of snow between the glow of other fires in other huts.

The thought that she was alone and outside during the most dangerous time of the day made itself known to the filly… But she pushed past it and took her first steps in the gathering snow.

“Miss Hovel!” Tia shouted, pushing her way through the weather as quickly as she could. “Miss Hovel!”

Warm Hovel’s hovel was not far, in fact ahead of Tia, a door opened to reveal the face of the very mare she sought.

“Tia! Whatever is the matter?” She asked, concern and worry creasing her face.

Tia huddled against the mare as she tried to regain the warmth she had lost even in that breif stint in the blizzard.

“Is your mother alright Tia?” Warm Hovel asked.

Tia nodded.

“She- She said you’d know what to do…” Tia managed to say through chattering teeth.

“I see.” The larger mare stated evenly. “Come in and stay the night next to our fire.” She ushered Tia inside, quickly depositing the filly next to a roaring fire.

“T-thank y-you…” Tia said, still shivering.

“Dear!” Warm Hovel called, addressing her husband Torchlight as he looked from across the fire. “It’s time for Nebula. Keep this one safe for the night. I’ll be back come morning.” She informed.

“Aye marm.” The stallion nodded.

Before Tia could glance back at the mare, the door had closed, and Warm Hovel was gone.

"W-What's happening?" Tia asked, warming up but still cold.

Torchwood fixed Tia a long unreadable look.

"... I'm not sure it's my place to tell you." He said at long last. "It'd be best if you tried to get a good night's sleep little one."

Tia wanted to protest, but Torchwood's daughter - Firelight - a filly of eight beat her to the punch.

"Oh come on Dad. She's gonna figure it out eventually. Just tell her now!" the other filly snorted.

"It's not our place." Torchwood insisted, chiding his daughter. "I won't be saying anything, and I better not be catching you saying anything either young lady. It's Nebula's decision and I will be abiding by it."

The conversation died away as Firelight grumbled.

Tia however could not bring herself to fall asleep. Instead she held her ratty cloak tight and stared into the roaring fire.

Outside, the faint voices of Ponies shouting across the village reached Tia's ears, but the words were hard to make out against the gale wind.

Conversation was light inside the hovel as the minutes became hours however. Whispered mostly between Torchwood and Firelight. They sometimes tried to bring Tia into the conversation, but Tia wasn't paying enough attention to answer more than 'yes', 'no', and 'I dunno'.

Instead her ears were trained on the foreign hut's door, hoping beyond hope that Warm Hovel would return and tell Tia she could go back home, and that everything was alright.

The only thing that answered was the howling wind, which sounded disturbingly like a chorus of ghosts in the night. Singing their lamenting praises in a rising tide of noise.

She must've dozed off for a time, for she found herself jumping at the voice of Warm Hovel, already returned and speaking with her husband.

"Oh never mind. I guess she's awake." The mare stated as she saw Tia.

"Huh?" Tia asked, sounding tired to her own ears.

"Did you want to go home Tia?" Warm Hovel asked. "Your Mom's got a surprise for you."

"W-hat kind -f surprise?" Tia asked.

"If I told you it wouldn't be a surprise." Warm Hovel smiled. "Did you want to spend the rest of the night at home?"

"Plz." Tia nodded.

"Up you come then little one." the mare smiled, walking to Tia's side and gently helping her rise to her hooves.

The next thing Tia knew, she was trudging through the snow again. But this time, the wind was not nearly so violent, and the red Moon shone above, illuminating the snow covered village as if it were day.

The cold shocked Tia into wakefulness, although she still wanted to cuddle into Mom's side and fall asleep.

As she and Warm Hovel approached home, several more of the village's mares shuffled out of the hut, looking tired and ready for bed themselves.

None of them paid Tia any mind as they passed.

Warm Hovel opened and held the door open for Tia.

"Th'k yoo..." Tia muttered as she passed the threshold.

The smell slapped Tia awake once again, the hut now smelling of sweat and something Tia couldn't identify.

There were still several mares in the hut, but Mom herself lay where Tia had left her.

The other mares looked freshly woken compared to the tiredness that lined Mom's face as she held a bundle in her forehooves. But despite that, she was smiling.

"Tia..." She sighed, exhaustion tainting her voice. "Come here... Come meet your sister." she said with a dreamy sigh, slightly opening the bundle of blankets for Tia to observe.

Tia didn't know what the feeling was that settled in her stomach as she approached, but she kept calm as she peered down when she got close enough to see.

Bright blue eyes peered up at Tia from the bundle. Small dark blue hooves waved in the air, reaching for things unknown to Tia. A happy gurgle tickled Tia's ears.

"This is your sister, Luna." Mom smiled.

The shadow that haunted Tia's dreams had been born.

Author's Note

Okay... Back to the normal chapter lengths... For now.