A Winter Tale

A Winter Tale

By Blue Eyed Melloon

Chapter 4: Soarin, My Dearest

ooOooooOooooOoo

Snowflake watched as Soarin left the library, a twinge of jealousy crossing her heart before being replaced with shame. She had no right to be jealous. They could be just friends, and even if they weren’t, what right did Snowflake have to be jealous?

Oh but it was so hard not to be. His blue fur was practically begging her to reach out and stroke it, and his mussed up mane was perfect despite its wind tossed look. Soarin leaned over to Twilight Sparkle and said something that caused them both to laugh, and Snowflake shivered down to the tips of her hooves. That laugh! She had never heard him laugh before! The feeling it brought made her want to melt into the ground.

As he took off for home, Snowflake felt another twinge, this time of sadness. She had no way of following him, and certainly wasn’t going to stand under his home and wait for him to emerge again. With a content sigh, she wandered through town, back to her copse of trees and her thoughts. On the way, she stopped in at Sugarcube Corner, and immediately felt an oppressive wave of heat hit her as she opened the door. She cringed, but walked in anyway.

“Well hi there!” said Mr. Cake. His skinny yellow frame was being used as a jungle gym for two very adorable foals that cooed and laughed as they climbed all over him. Snowflake giggled, and Mr. Cake grinned sheepishly, prying Pumpkin Cake from his neck. “Sorry ‘bout them. They are in the Want Daddy stage.” he chortled, placing Pumpkin Cake on the ground, who promptly crawled over and clutched his leg. Snowflake covered her laugh with a hoof, and then lowered it, saying “Do you have any sugar cookies today?”

“Oh yes, we have some coming out of the oven right now!” Mrs. Cake said, coming through the saloon style doors that separated the kitchen from the main store. A tray balanced on her back, steam spiraling from the hot cookies.

Snowflake waved her hoof, pointing to the ones that were in the case. “If it’s alright, I’ll take those ones.”

“Oh but dear, those are cold! These ones are nice and hot!”

“If it’s all the same, I would like those ones.”

Mr. Cake gave her a considering look, but picked up the tray of cold cookies, packing a dozen away into a box and tying it with a string so that the mare could carry it in her mouth. She paid and thanked them graciously, feeling the heat of the room becoming too much for her to handle. As she left, Mr. Cake looked to his wife.

“Have you ever seen her before?”

“No dear, I was hoping you had.”

“I wonder who she is.”

Home among the trees, Snowflake, took a minute or two to clean away the snow that had fallen from the trees above onto her bed. Bed was a generous word, it really was not more than a few boughs of an evergreen tree stacked on top of one another to create a mattress in the middle of a semicircle of tall bushes that kept away the wind with their tightly woven branches. Snowflake didn’t mind, out in the elements was where she belonged, where she felt most at home. A couple of birds hopped form the upper tree branches and whistled at her, to which she smiled. They were gentle songbirds, and at her smile continued to whistle away a tune that was bright and upbeat. It complimented the feeling of happiness that was within her heart. The mare hummed along with the birds, wiping away the last of the snow before settling into the boughs.

She placed the box of cookies at her side, intent on eating them a little later. “Little birds, do you know what happened today?” she said softly, looking back to the red feathered birds, who hopped a little closer. Her smile was sweeter, and combined with a slight blush that took to her cheeks as she told her story.

“I was walking back here, and I saw Soarin again! He was leaving the library, and guess what? I got to hear him laugh!” She waited for a moment as if the birds were going to respond, but they remained silent, not really understanding what the mare below them was saying, but feeling that it was important that they pay attention.

Snowflake rolled onto her back, short hair splaying behind her head like a halo, and she sighed, hugging herself tightly. The breath that escaped her was deep, and full of elation. It was exactly the same feeling she felt a couple hours after Pinkie Pie’s party disaster. She had run away, leaving Soarin with a gaping mouth and probably a very low opinion of her. She had come to this very spot, and cried over her lost chance at finally getting to know him. Once the sadness had worn off, it was replaced with the disbelief that she had actually talked to him. Spoken words to him, even if they were only a few and very hasty. Ane he knew her name! Someone knew who she was. The warm happy feeling that filled her up and kept her awake for hours and hours. He had said she had a pretty name. If she had stayed, maybe he would have called her pretty. Maybe they could have gotten coffee. Maybe...

“I’ve never heard him laugh before. It was wonderful.” The last word was a sigh, and she closed her eyes, oblivious to the fact that the birds had taken this as an invitation to leave and had done just that. She was too far gone into a world where it was something witty that she had said that had caused Soarin to laugh and pull her close. He would tuck her under his wing, maybe tousle her mane lovingly. Oh Snowflake, you are a funny little mare... how lucky am I to have you?

The snow began to fall lightly on the whole of Ponyville, but it seemed to be thicker where her trees were gathered. As she delved deeper into this daydream, Snowflake muttered a couple words, small smile still gracing her lips.

“Soarin....I love you...”