Piña was certain that she was a frozen ponycicle. She had trouble feeling her legs and her whole body ached. The sun was going down. They had traveled the entire length of the day, stopping only for a while to eat something and have a drink. Having unicorns was handy, Dinky and Sweetie Belle were able to melt snow for water.

Now they needed to build an igloo, something that Sentinel, Boadicea, and Scootaloo were familiar with, having made emergency shelters a few times as part of their Raptor training. The problem, as Piña saw it, was that it was getting far too cold far too fast. The wind was picking up. And the sun really seemed to be moving faster than Piña would have liked.

She watched as Dinky and Sentinel spoke together, talking into each other’s ears so they could be heard over the howling wind. Something was happening, but she wasn’t certain what. Piña hoped it wasn’t an argument, now was not the time.

Dinky and Sweetie Belle were talking to one another as the sun dipped closer to the horizon. Piña, feeling anxious, wondered what was taking so long. Nopony was doing anything at the moment.

Then, much to Piña’s relief, stuff started to happen. Dinky and Sweetie Belle began to use their telekinesis to shape blocks of snow, compressing them, and shaping them into a giant ring that was the base of their igloo. Piña could feel the wind blowing through her woollen overwear and the down filled vest. She moved closer to Apple Bloom and pressed up against her, hoping for some kind of warmth.

When she got home, she’d be more than willing to get spanked and sent to bed early. The bed in particular sounded warm and pleasant. The igloo was going up fast, faster than Sentinel, Scootaloo, and Boadicea could have constructed it. The sleigh was inside the igloo already. Piña wondered if they would all fit in the little nest area that had been constructed. She didn’t care if it was a tight fit, she just wanted to be warm again.

When the last few compressed snow blocks were lowered into place, including the capstone block, Piña let out a happy squeal. An opening had been left, a small opening that one had to crawl through. The others were already crawling inside. Piña waited her turn, but it was so very hard to do. She was freezing.

Inside, it was dark and was already warming from all the warm bodies crammed into the tight space. Their heavy breathing was melting the walls, then the water would freeze, forming a glazed layer of ice that prevented the wind from finding a way through.

Sweetie Belle created a floating flare of light that hovered near the ceiling. It provided no warmth, but it was nice to have light. Dinky was digging into the supplies, looking for food. Piña collapsed into a pile with Moonbow and Diamond Tiara, both of them wrapping their forelegs around her and giving her a snuggle.

“Sombra keeps whispering that he’s going to make me freeze to death,” Piña whispered through teeth that almost chattered. “He’s really, really angry with me. He says he’s gonna kill me.”

“Piña… maybe you should take a break from carrying his horn.” Moonbow pulled Piña closer, pressed her face against Piña’s, and began breathing against Piña’s cheek in an attempt to warm her.

“No, can’t.” Piña squirmed, Moonbow’s breath upon her was all tickly. “It has to be me… it just does. It isn’t safe for the rest of you.”

“Okay, we’ll sleep with you in the middle of the pile… you’ll stay warmer that way.” Moonbow squeezed a little more and crushed Diamond Tiara closer, hoping more body warmth would help Piña.

“He hates our pink goodness,” Diamond Tiara said to Piña, smiling in spite of the grim situation. “We’re pink, we’re fluffy—”

“And we don’t take no shite from nopony,” Piña finished, cutting Diamond Tiara off.

The three fillies giggled together while Dinky tried to throw together a meal. The others were all pressing together, longing for warmth and fellowship. The chill in the air was more than mere cold.

“Scootaloo and I will do guard duty. We’ve been snoozing in the sleigh most of the day anyway so we’ll be fine. The rest of you need your rest. Sentinel, Moonbow, don’t you argue. We need you two to be awake, aware, and alert come tomorrow,” Boadicea said as she snuggled up against Apple Bloom.

Piña, who was being smothered by Moonbow and Diamond Tiara, noticed that the bad feeling being caused by Sombra’s horn wasn’t so bad when she was in close contact with the others. She filed away that tidbit of knowledge for later reflection, making mental notes about her conclusion. Sombra seemed to be the strongest when a pony was at their weakest, alone.

It was good, then, that they were all here. Had Sentinel come alone, something awful might have happened. Piña thought about the horn tucked away in a pocket, throbbing with hatred, a terrible artifact of evil.

“It’s starting to warm up in here with all of us,” Sweetie Belle said as she helped Dinky dump rations into thin, light, ultraportable metal bowls. Hard granola, dried fruit, dried berries, and compressed squares of oats rattled into the metal containers.

“We might need to worry about air and poke a hole in the top. If our exit gets covered over with snow, we could suffocate. That would be bad.” Boadicea looked up at the roof above them.

“‘Specially if Scootaloo keeps fartin’,” Sweetie Belle said, giving Scootaloo a teasing smile as she spoke.

“Hey, that’s a pegasus emergency survival skill… it will keep us warm.” Scootaloo peered down into a bowl of army rations, sniffed, and shook her head. “It looks like kibble.”

“No. Sentinel, Moonbow, and Boadicea are getting the kibble… their dinner smells like the cat food that Rarity keeps in the cupboard.” Sweetie Belle raised an eyebrow and grinned at Scootaloo.

“Smells like peanut butter… and Rainbow Dash’s wingpits.” Scootaloo sniffed her bowl, shrugged, and then jammed her muzzle into the metal container so she could eat.

In a moment, all of the companions were eating, and nopony (or nobirdy) complained about the army rations. They were all far too hungry and the food, while terrible, was filling, calorie dense, and had the deliciousness that could only be brought about by desperation or starvation.

Curled up between Sentinel and Moonbow, Diamond Tiara thought about her life up to this point, and everything that had led her here. It was strange, really. One bad day and a swarm of bees. One day where she had gone too far and then came the terrible stinging bees. That had been pretty bad, all things considered, but what came after was somehow even worse. Dinky and Piña’s forgiveness. No, mutual forgiveness. Dinky and Piña had both been kind to her, even when she didn’t deserve it.

She had wronged Sentinel too, but he had continued to be nice to her. He was good to her. He made her want to be a better pony. And now, here she was, thousands of miles away from home, going on an adventure that might end her life. She could hear the faint murmuring of those around her talking to one another. Some were asleep already.

She missed her father, and wondered if he would have been proud of her. She had changed, she had fought to earn her forgiveness, to restore her place in society, she was earning the respect of others. She was now one of Apple Bloom’s most trusted friends. Dinky and Piña both saw her as a sister. Bucky still treated her as if she was one of his own daughters. He was warm and affectionate with her in ways that even her own father never was.

Which made things difficult sometimes.

She felt cold, but it wasn’t from the chill in the air. Diamond Tiara turned her head, her muzzle seeking out Sentinel’s. Her lips brushed over his, lingering for a moment, she could feel his damp breath blowing against her mouth, and then she felt Sentinel kiss her. It was warm, gentle, a little clumsy, and sweet. Nothing too vulgar or obscene, as far as kisses go, no open mouthed tonsil hockey, just a prolonged touch of lips. Sentinel tasted like how cat food smelled. She didn’t mind. She thought of Sentinel and how he had moved against Moonbow’s body. She no longer felt worried or afraid. Sentinel, mega-brute as he might be, was a sweet gentle creature. Sure, he could dismember and disembowel his enemies with startling ease. Sure, he had big pointy fangs and a strange rough tongue that was meant to scrape marrow from cracked bones. Sure, he ate strange things, but Diamond Tiara found that she loved him all the more because of these things.

“Hey, I feel left out,” Moonbow whispered.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Sentinel replied, pulling away from Diamond Tiara. “I can kiss… you… too…” Sentinel watched as Moonbow’s muzzle locked on to Diamond Tiara’s. He saw Diamond Tiara’s blue eyes go wide. The pink filly began to squirm as the kiss intensified. Sentinel felt warmth in the pit of his stomach. He could hear soft, wet, slurping squelching sounds, and the sound of Diamond Tiara almost gagging, but holding back. He had a very arousing thought about just how long Moonbow’s tongue was, and just how deep it might have been in Diamond Tiara’s mouth at the moment.

After one very hot minute, the two fillies pulled apart, and Sentinel was saddened to see them stop. A part of him desperately wanted to watch them keep going. Diamond Tiara’s muzzle was slick with drool. Her nostrils were flared and her breathing was heavy. Sentinel’s nose detected the scent of arousal coming from both of them.

“Hey! Hey! Get a private room, you two!” Sweetie Belle’s voice sounded squeaky and almost embarrassed.

Moonbow winked at Sentinel and then gave Diamond Tiara a muzzle nuzzle. “Don’t worry,” she whispered to Sentinel, “we can take turns sharing her when the time comes. I don’t mind sharing a meal with you.”

Diamond Tiara tittered, a quiet, restrained, muffled fit of laughter, giddy with arousal and affection. She thought about Boadicea, the griffoness had a beak, but surely they could find a way to have her join in. She snuggled up against Sentinel and felt Moonbow cuddle up closer against her. Sandwiched between them, Diamond Tiara began to feel warm and sleepy.

“Everything seems to be happening so fast,” Scootaloo said to Boadicea in a low whisper. The others were sleeping, and the igloo was filled with the sounds of slumbering ponies. “I had my first heat. Colts stopped being so gross. My best friends and I started realising that we could be best friends forever. We started making plans… the foolish plans of fillies… but now, we’re all here together. I find myself missing Rumble. Watching Moonbow and Diamond Tiara together earlier… I keep thinking about Twilight and Rainbow… they’re so happy together, all of them. I mean… best friends who became something else.”

“Yeah.” Boadicea nodded, her head bobbing. She was warm, so very warm, the air inside of the igloo was downright toasty and each breath of warm air into her lungs felt good.

“It feels like life is moving at the same speed that Rainbow Dash flies… she’s really come a long ways in her pregnancy. You can feel the foal moving around in there. She’s changed, Rainbow Dash… she’s put on a lot of muscle with her pregnancy, just as she planned. All those times working out with Surprise has paid off for her. Rainbow Dash has everything she wants in life… she’s going to be a Wonderbolt. She’s teaching other foals to fly… she has everything figured out—”

“And you don’t?” Boadicea looked at her friend, her companion, and her fellow Raptor.

“I dunno.” Scootaloo shrugged. “I wanna be a pilot. I wanna be a Raptor. I wanna be with Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Rumble. But beyond that, I’m not sure that I have some glorious master plan for my life like Rainbow Dash does.”

“Do you really need a master plan?” Boadicea asked.

“Yes.” Scootaloo nodded. “I wanna be like my hero… I know it sounds pathetic, but I really do… I want to be like Rainbow Dash. I want her confidence, I want her lust for life and living, I want to be loyal like she is… and I want to be a good mother like I know that she is going to be. She’s changed so much… I think I had something to do with it… and now, I have to figure my life out and do a bunch of awesome stuff so she isn’t disappointed with me. I can’t waste my life.” Scootaloo sniffled and wiped her nose with her wool-wrapped foreleg. “Ugh, the wool is so rough and scratchy… going home is gonna be hard… Rainbow Dash is gonna be super pissed with me. Beyond that though… I just want her to be proud of me. I want to do something worthy of being her little Squirt.”

“I understand.” Boadicea reached out and gave Scootaloo a nudge. “Lugus is a very big griffon… and with being a big griffon, he leaves behind some very, very large expectations. He has been good to me, and I am obligated to be the very best griffon that I can be for him. I don’t want to disappoint him. It makes life complicated, wanting to have somebirdy be proud of you.”

“It sure does,” Scootaloo agreed, her head nodding.

Author's Notes:

Next chapter:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ww5GXbk58R0

Boadicea proves her worth.