Rosy turned pale under the moonlight. "Oh, no, that.. That wasn't his fault." she stammered. "I was just really late and he was worried. That's.."
Rosy recoiled in anticipation when Frozen raised a hoof, but when she realized he meant no harm, she calmed. "The guards? Oh, no, please don't do that. Ed... It was my fault. I was really late, and he just got scared. He was drunk, and he didn't know what he was doing. It.. It wasn't his fault."
"He struck you for being late?"Frozen asked, sudsenly rather angry. "There's no valid excuse to hit a mare, but that one is a joke of an excuse!"
"No, please.." pleaded Rosy, recoiling a little in fear. When the words registered with her, she tentatively stood up straighter. "Please, please don't call the guards. I.. I should probably be heading back. He's probably asleep now, and he might have left the door unlocked."
"You really want to go back to somepony who hits you?" he asked. "You deserve a lot better than that you know.." Poor mare, letting herself be treated thus.
"Really, he's very kind to me, when he's sober. He just doesn't know what he's doing when he is intoxicated." she said, tucking her hair back. "He doesn't realize it."
She hesitated, but after a moment, she looked and met Frozen's eyes. "I'm Rosalind, but people call me Rosy, generally. I guess you might have already heard that."
Frozen nodded, "Well, come on Rosy, let's get you out of the cold night air." Frozen felt a little conflicted. Honestly, he didn't want to take her back to that stallion, but she was insistent. Still, it didnt mean he would just let him hurt her.
Rosy could see the mixed emotions on Frozen's face. "Seriously, Mr. Heart." she said, attempting to be polite. "You do not need to worry about Ed. He'd never hurt me if he wasn't drunk."
"As you say miss Rose," he said. Of course he wouldn't, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was he lacked the fortitude to resist the alcohol. Frozen knew a bit about resisting the urge to cause harm, he struggled with it daily. Even now he had to fight the temptation to feed off of this mare's suffering. Finally they reached their destination, and Frozen stopped on the porch. "Well, here we are miss Rose," he said.
Rosy cocked her head as she looked into Frozen's eyes. She sensed something.. different about him, but she couldn't figure it out. "Okay. I'm.. I'm really sorry about all this." she said, ducking her head.
"Believe me when I say it's no trouble," Frozen said as they neared her house, "Well, here you are. Listen, i'll be in town a few days If you need me.."
"I will be okay, I think." she said bravely, smiling, and then wincing, and placing a hoof to her face. "If it gets any worse, though, I may take you up on that offer." she said, sheepish.
"Goodnight, Mr. Heart." she replied. She entered the gloomy house, and quietly went into the living room. A sigh of relief swept through her, before she could stop it. He wasn't there. "Am I really that happy to not see my own fiance?" she asked herself, ashamed. She went to the couch, and found a blanket that she used to sleep on the couch. She curled up there, and she heard a creak. She shot up quickly, but after minutes of waiting in panic stricken silence, she lay back down. Her entire night was frequented with this pattern, while that question pounded through her head the entire time.
Frozen stalked the darkened forest, hunting for the chimera said to be stalking these woods. Three fillies had disappeared from the town over the course of the past week alone. Frozen was moving more quickly now; beneath the light of Luna's moon he had shed his guise, a cerulean mist moving through the midnight fog. Once thought to be extinct, Frozen used his abilities as a Windigo to bring fear to the monsters that roam the equestrian countryside. Those who resisted were destroyed, those who didn't were left bound near town hall, squealing about a Windigo nopony believed existed.
