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Hooves of ice

by Fictional Fanatic

Chapter 18: 16) Recovering Spring (part 3)

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Hooves of ice
Chapter 17
Recovering Spring. (part 3)



Jack Frost's POV


I let Faith continue to hug me while I thought about what Anson had said. He forgave me. I didn't understand how, but he did, and his daughter wasn't judging me. It also hit me that Blood Cleaver certainly could have been far more aggressive in dealing with me, but had held back her powers somewhat in an attempt to bring me back to my senses. The question remained, could I forgive myself? I knew the other Jack certainly wouldn't, even if he could.

But Anson had a point, they were about to celebrate, and I would be lowering the mood. It wasn't something I wished to do, so I'd have to listen to Anon and try to not think about it all for now, if only so that I wouldn't be bringing others down with me by pestering them with my problems.

Releasing my legs, I freed myself from Faith’s hug and stood up, looking at Anson.

“I guess I could do that, for a little while at least,” I told him with an attempt to smile, only to feel myself being unable to give a completely honest one.

Anson smiled back while looking at me. “Now that’s the Jack I know. Come on, I think a light snowfall in Twilight’s castle is what she needs for this time of year.” He said and opened the door to get going. Anson held the door open for both of us as we walked into the crystalline hallway of the castle we were apparently in.

I began following them out of the room, only to remember that Blood Cleaver was still sleeping. But when I looked back towards where she was sleeping, I found her missing. Confused, and a bit concerned, I assumed she had woken up and left without me noticing. The question of how she managed to do so unanswered, I turned back to follow the Nocte family again.

Walking through the hallway, we were soon approached by a younger teen who looked much like Anson had when we first met. I assumed it was his brother. He walked up to Anson, greeting him.

“Hey there, man. How’s it going?” He asked while seeing me, before looking back at Anson. “I’m guessing you brought a guest to the party?” He asked. Deciding it was a good time to introduce myself, I did just that.

“Hi, My name is Jack Frost. And you would be Nicko Nocte, correct?” I asked, holding out my arm for a handshake.

“Why yes it is,” Nicko confirmed, gripping and shaking my hand.

“Anson told me about you some time ago and I got to say, I’m glad to meet you in person.” He said. I had to hold back from flinching, he would not have said that if he had seen me earlier. I assumed he didn't know of my rampage

Instead, I somewhat awkwardly rubbed the back of my head while replying.

“I’m glad to meet the brother of a friend of mine as well. Now, what do you say we get a move on? As much as it’s somewhat recognized to be fashionably late, I don’t think Twilight would appreciate it.” I said, putting on a smile assuming it would be better to get there as fast as possible.

“You do bring up a good point. Because from what I know, It’ll be more than just the Royal Siblings that’ll be dining with us.” Anson replied.

“There’s Amy’s family, Cadence, Gleaming Shield, Blueblood… I hate that guy, and a few special guests coming in later.” He listed off. I recognized most of the names, but Gleaming Shield was one I didn't recognize.

“Special guests?” Nicko asked.

“Dad, that’s a secret.” Faith told Anson.

“Oh right… Whoops.” He replied.

“Well, we wouldn’t want to keep them waiting, would we?” I asked. Hoping there wouldn't be any more distractions so that I could return home to my own Equestria.

We eventually reached the dining hall, finding Blood Cleaver already there together with everyone else. As my presence was made known to the others, and they were all able to see me, we were all able to converse among each other and enjoy the food that was being served. I only took a little, tasting anything I hadn't eaten before since I didn't require food. Somewhere along the line, Amy had tried to raid the kitchen. Confusing me a little about why she wasn't content with the currently served food. The answer was that she wanted to eat something with meat in it.

Later during the afternoon, when everyone began exchanging gifts besides me and Blood Cleaver. We all got ourselves a surprise when it was Anson’s turn to give something to his brother. Before he could say anything, the doors to the castle were kicked in, barely missing Blood Cleaver’s face as they flew by. Looking back towards the entrance, we saw two individuals standing in the doorway. As they walked in one of them began speaking.

“Sorry about the door, but that’s my way of saying Happy Holidays.” The voice said. While confused as to who they were, they didn't seem malicious, so I simply assumed they knew Anson.

“Grandma! Grandpa!” Faith shouted happily, answering the question of who they were.

“Holy Sh-!” Was Nicko’s only response, making me wonder.

“Well, that's certainly a way to introduce a surprise, wouldn’t you say Jack?” Blood Cleaver asked me with a small smile.

“I-I guess?” I responded, looking back at what was left of the door, wondering how it hadn't fazed Blood Cleaver, before remembering that she could move much faster than the door had.

The Duo that, I later found out, were known as Luke and Ciela walked in, but the emotional waterworks began to overflow once the two of them saw Nicko. They had not seen their son in over twenty years and he looked like he had not aged at all.

“My god, it’s great to finally see you again,” Luke replied. “Not that we’re going anywhere anytime soon.”

“Wait, what?” Asked Nicko, confusion evident in his voice.

“Yeah…” Anson sighed. “I might have gone behind your back on this one brother, but I asked Twilight to help with something that blows your original request out of the water.” He said, then turned towards Faith before walking over to her to stand by her side.

“I asked Twilight if there was a way to bring everyone in our family here, because I’ve been seeing a lot of things that I normally wouldn’t see from either you or Faith. A lot of personal change and I believe that it’s for the best. Hell, the reason why Amy was distracting you all day was so that we could move everyone in and finish building the house we were working on.” Anson explained himself. Blood Cleaver was smiling next to me, looking as if she had been expecting it all along.

“Wait… let me get this straight…” Nicko replied, “Equestria… is now our home?” Anson’s only reply was a nod and a smile as he hugged his brother.

“This… is the best, most insane surprise plan that you have ever come up with,” Nicko told his brother.

“You should’ve seen what happened when I was in Jack’s world. If he didn’t conjure a slide for me to land on, I would’ve plummeted to the ground.” Anson said, as if it had been a plan of his.

“Well, I couldn’t just let you fall and hurt yourself like that, now could I?” I responded with a smile.

“Nope, not at all.” A familiar voice interjected, Discord appearing next to Anson. Discord then sighed.

“If it weren’t for my assistance and also having to distract your friend with the mechanical arm, then we wouldn’t have had enough time to pull this off.” He explained. The thought of Discord helping anyone but himself making my head spin. This world's Discord was way different from mine... or was, since the one in my world was most likely dead by this point. That, or crippled for life, while barely keeping himself alive.

“Wait, Leo is here too?” Nicko asked, clearly surprised.

“Yeah, but he’s taking the night off.” The Spirit of Chaos replied. “Caliburn is making sure he doesn’t have too many drinks at the tavern.”

“Pfft. Good luck with that.” Ciela snickered. “He beat my husband in a drinking contest during our anniversary one time.” She informed everyone.

“...... Moving on,” Anson said as he looked back at Nicko. “Brother, do you happen to have any gifts for anypony this evening?” He asked.

“Actually…” He replied. I noticed he was holding a small, quite familiar-looking box in his hands. “I do. Where’s Eris?” He asked, making me think back to when I first met Anson and Discord. If I recalled correctly, Eris was Discord's daughter. Well, this was interesting if not terrifying, imagine if things like Discord would become common. I thought to myself, shivering at the thought.

“Right here.” A female voice said from behind me, starling me. Eris chuckled a little as she slid out from behind me, booping me on the nose before levitated over to Nicko.

“You alright there? I know Eris is playful at times, but I honestly did not expect that.” Nicko said while I was frantically trying to make sure I hadn't been discorded once more. As I didn't find myself any different from before, I relaxed and responded calmly.

“Well, neither did I,” I said, actually more surprised at meeting a female Draconequus this soon, having only heard of them not too long ago.

Nicko seemed hesitant about something, but he managed to calm himself down before speaking to Eris.

“Eris, you and I make a great team… and I just… well, I don’t think I can put it in the right context. But I wanted to get something for you that expressed how I felt.” He said, showing her the box he held and opened it, revealing a beautiful sapphire diamond ring. Gauging her reaction, I could only describe Eris being shocked, seeing as she had gone completely silent and had frozen in place.

“Eris? Will you-?” Nicko began before he was interrupted.

“Yes.” The Draconequus replied, hugging him and tackling him to the ground. “There’s no way in Tartarus that I am saying no to that!” She exclaimed happily.

Everyone in the room was either shocked or surprised before they cheered and congratulated the new fiances. “Well… That escalated quickly.” Anson said, having turned towards me.

Before I could give a response, Blood Cleaver did instead. “Nah, I saw it coming.” She spoke up from right next to us. “But, it sure is nice to see love like that.” She added with a look that reminded me of the wishful one a girl would use when thinking about getting married, only this one was different somehow.

Before Anson could say anything else though, we were joined by a smiling Pinkie Pie. “Hey, Sonny!”

“Hi Pinkie, what brings you here?”

“Well,” She said, looking upward. “It is the season.” Anson soon looked up, I did so as well, following his gaze. Blood Cleaver had gotten atop a ladder and was now holding a Mistletoe above Pinkie Pie and Anson. Anson just smiled and nodded his head, thanking her.

“Yes it is, Pinkie.” He replied verbally before the two of them kissed one another. Their kiss shortly interrupted by an innocent-sounding question.

“Hey dad, Is Pinkie going to be my new Mom?” Faith asked.

Pinkie’s only reply to that question was a giggle as she messed around a little with Faith’s hair. “If that’s okay with Sonny, then it’s okay with me.”


3rd person POV


Pinkie Pie, Anson, and Blood Cleaver were all walking down the hallway to the front entrance of Twilight’s castle. They were planning to go outside for a while and get some fresh air since it had become too crowded inside, making the temperature rise at a steady pace as the party went on.

While walking they spoke about whatever came to their minds.

“So, have a date set up yet?” Blood Cleaver asked.

“Well, the Gala is on New Year’s eve,” Pinkie replied. “So maybe then? After Hearth’s Warming though, that’s for sure. I wanted to be able to spend my favorite holiday with one of my best friends.” The Earth Pony bounced happily as she scratched the top of Anson’s head, messing with his hair.

“I’m all for it. Still though, I’m surprised about Nicko and Eris. I honestly never expected him to propose to her.” Anson said, recalling everything that happened a few minutes earlier. “I’m happy for them.”

Blood Cleaver nodded. “I can only hope to have something like that myself in the future. A little hard when I’m not welcome in my native universe, save for a few individuals that still see me as a friend.”

“Well, you’re always welcome here Blood.” Anson smiled, kneeling in a little to whisper “Both you and Jack.”

“Yepperoni! I’ll even make sure to throw you a Welcome Back to our World party when you come back! … Say… You kind of remind me of my sisters back at my family's rock farm.” The Earth Pony replied, looking at Blood from all angles. “Do you happen to be secretly related to me somehow? Because if you were, I’ll be super happy to find a long lost sister!! We can bake cakes, throw parties-.”

Blood Cleaver laughed at Pinkie’s enthusiasm but shook her head. “Pinkie, while I would love that, I’m from another universe and not even the same race as you are. But You’re not entirely wrong. While not technically correct, you could say I am indeed your sister in my home universe.” Blood Cleaver explained.

Pinkie gasped, which soon lead to her hugging Blood Cleaver so tight that she would probably slip out of her arms. “Oh my gosh!! This is the best Hearth’s Warming EVER!!!”

“Pinkie…” Anson raised an eyebrow, looking at her. “Can you give her some space?”

“Whoops! Sorry Sis…” Pinkie complied, letting go of her grip on Blood Cleaver.

“Don’t worry, I don’t mind. I’m used to worse.” Blood Cleaver chuckled. “As glad as you seem about having an additional sister Pinkie, I’ll have to warn that the circumstances around my creation are not a very pleasant experience for all involved. I try and prevent it from happening in any universe where I'll likely be created.” Blood Cleaver warned with a serious expression.

“Don’t worry,” Anson smirked, while Pinkie was just bouncing around joyfully in the cold snowy streets. “I’ll be making sure to keep an eye on her and if anything’s up, I’ll summon you… Which reminds me… I never gave you my token, did I?” He asked.

“Ah, no. I should give you mine as well, shouldn’t I?” Blood Cleaver said as she took out her token and presented it to Anson. Blood Cleaver’s token was a black kitchen knife with a red sheen around the edges and a crimson red handle, each side of the blade decorated with a single equally crimson rune. Just like the one she had given Robin.

Anson soon got his token out. A dark purple Gem that was known as a Dark El Shard. “Just use the crystal and I’ll come.” He told her as the two of them exchanged tokens. “Have a safe journey, Blood Cleaver.”

“Aww, you’re leaving?” Pinkie pouted to herself. “Well, that’s a shame. I had so many things to ask you, but I guess that can wait.” Pinkie pouted.

“Pinkie, I’m not leaving just yet. The party is still going, isn’t it? I’ll be leaving afterward since I have my work in the Multiverse cut out for me, but I’ll make sure to visit sometime.” Blood Cleaver explained smiling.

“Yay!!” She squealed, hugging her one more time. “Happy Hearths Warming!! Come on, Sonny!! Let’s get inside and go sit by the fireplace.” Anson smiled, agreeing with Pinkie and waving goodbye to Blood as they walked inside the Nocte family’s new home.

“You too Pinkie, you. But you had questions for me you said? We still have some time. I can try answering some for you if you wish.” Blood Cleaver offered.

“Well… Why would you want to prevent your birth in other worlds?” She asked. “Are they like big meanies or something? Oh, and why can’t you return to your universe? You’re not banished or something now are you?” Pinkie asked.

“Oh, no. I’m not banished, there’s nothing physically keeping me from returning, but I’m kind of a wanted woman in my version of Equestria. And the reason I wish to prevent my creation… It’s a bit complicated, but it has to do with a few circumstances that if not changed or controlled could end very badly for all involved. The only reason I avoided the worst outcome was that I met my world’s original Displaced. But many of the worlds where I come into being… they’re not as lucky… And since there’s not much point to letting more versions of me pop up and live miserable lives that they can’t escape like I did, I try to prevent it all from happening.” Blood Cleaver explained to Pinkie Pie.

“Oh… so if you don’t help them, they’ll be sad all the time?” She asked.

“Well… perhaps not all the time. The reason I’m wanted, the reason I wouldn’t have had a good life unless I changed somehow is because of my creation. The reason I say it’s complicated when I call you sister is because I’m not technically your sister. Even in my universe, I’m more… part of what once happened to be Pinkie Pie. And her other half who has adapted to her role and taken on the name, that’s who I call sister. So… You see why I don’t like myself being created? For me and my sister to be created, the original Pinkie Pie has to cease to exist. And even though we’re both created as a result, we’re both incomplete. Only after several years do we become whole enough to count as separate entities instead of two half-souls who are two parts of a whole.

And because of this, because I’m unhappy about this turn of events, the still undeveloped form of me does something that gets her wanted. She tries to kill the one responsible for doing it to her and her sister.

By now, I have found a way to reverse the effect, unfortunately the spell I know will only work for a short time after the split, after that, they’re too different to be turned back into one.” Blood Cleaver explained with a saddened expression.

“Oh… What about me? Do I run the risk of having it happen to me too?” Pinkie asked, a little worried as she snuggled close to Anson. “I don’t want to disappear from Sonny.”

“Don’t worry Pinkie. Your Equestria is far too different for it to happen, and I’ve already made sure to remove any of the factors I could that would lead to it happening. But if you want to be extremely sure, I know some things you could do to prevent it all entirely if it was to creep up after all.” Blood Cleaver reassured Pinkie.

“Okay, Thank you, Sis! Goodnight!” She told her, holding Blood and Anson together in a group hug before the two of them walked back inside. But Blood wasn’t alone as Faith soon walked up to her, with Jack by her side. “Do you two have to go?" She asked. "We were having such a great time earlier.”

“Unfortunately we can’t stay Faith. I need to get Jack back to his universe, and I have to continue doing my duty. We can come and visit from time to time, but ultimately we do have to leave.” Blood Cleaver explained. “But yes, I believe I speak for both of us when I say we had a grand time here.” She said.

“Indeed,” Jack confirmed.

“I’m going to miss you two.” Faith told them, getting closer and hugging Jack unexpectedly, slightly blushing. “You know, I would be lying if I didn’t say that Jack looks… cute.” Faith said.

“He certainly does have the looks, but don’t be fooled. He is… how old are you again?” Blood Cleaver asked.

Jack blushed at the comments on his appearance and took some time to respond. “Well, in my Equestria I’d be a little under sixteen thousand years old, however, the cycle of a year is slightly longer on my Equestria than it was on earth, so I’m not really sure to be completely honest, never thought it would matter to keep counting my age in Earth years,” Jack explained.

“Right, so he is a bit old for you Faith. Unless your appearance isn’t the only thing not to age.” Blood Cleaver asked with a mischievous smile.

“My body is the only thing not affected by time, and in my loneliness, certain of my emotions have unfortunately dulled. I’m not sure I’ve felt attraction to a female during any of my sixteen thousand years on Equus. So the topic about any such relationships is unfortunately not currently up for discussion and I would appreciate if you’d drop it Blood Cleaver.” Jack told Blood Cleaver and gave her a stern look.

“Still, I think you should have this,” Faith said, going up to Jack’s shoulder and kissing him on the cheek. “I care for you and see you as a family guardian, so I don’t want you to be left out or feel lonely.” Faith told him.

“Oh, he won’t be lonely. From what I gathered he will have a hard time getting rid of the Cutie Mark Crusaders.” Blood Cleaver commented.

“Eh he he…” Jack nervously chuckled as he recalled what little he had learned about the three trouble makers during his stay here.

“Still, I’ll miss you Frosty. Goodbye and Happy Hearth’s Warming!” The Code Queen told him before walking inside and joining her father.

“Well, I guess our time here is running out. What do you say we leave them a few presents before leaving?” Blood Cleaver suggested.

Jack nodded and began thinking of what to leave behind while Blood Cleaver began preparing her gifts. After they were done, Blood Cleaver decided to make sure Pinkie Pie would find them and make sure everyone got their presents. As they finished, Blood Cleaver took Jack’s hand and practically dragged him back to his universe.

Author's Notes:

A big thank you to Muranuse, The Dark Brony and Dream Seeker for helping out with the editing.

Crossover with FrostTheWolf's "Of Magic and Machines".

There we go. This officially marks the end for crossovers for Jack. (Not forever, just an extremely long time.) I will admit I made a mistake with making so many crossovers, but they were partly required for the development of Jack as a character, especially the one where he kills another Displaced. The crossover that was a Blood Cleaver exclusive was partly to assure you people that she is now a part of this story. She will continue to do crossovers. These crossovers however will not be appearing here. There will merely be links to them since they won't be important to Jack's story until the time comes for him to crossover once again.

Hopefully, this will also mark the end of my slow progression of this story, and mean that I will be a bit more productive in keeping you people entertained.

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