"Announcing: Sir Theodore, retired Captain of the Guard."
Theodore – a large, muscular pony of blue fur, sporting an orange mohawk and clad in steel armour that covered his body upto the base of his neck – stepped forth from the crowd. He walked tall-and-proud down the red carpet leading to the two thrones where Equestria's majesties sat.
As he reached the end, he bowed. "Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, my daughter has been found guilty of treason and sentenced to Tartarus."
"That is correct," Princess Celestia responded.
"Do you not think such a punishment to be a bit harsh? She is but a filly-"
"A filly who came very close to draining the last of magic from all of Equestria," Luna interrupted. "She is a dangerous threat, who cannot simply be left unattended."
"With all due respect, princesses, do you have that little faith in your own guard to keep track of one little filly?" Theodore rose his head, his deep blue eyes bearing into the princesses'. "Are our boarding schools so inadequately supplied that they cannot handle one more child? Are you soldiers stretched so far?"
"Sir Theodore," Celestia began, "I understand your concerns and I sympathise with you, but you have to see the bigger picture here – releasing your daughter would be a risk to the entirety of Equestria."
Theodore gritted his teeth. "Just like freeing Discord from his stone imprisonment, all his powers in-tact?"
"The situation was different," Celestia argued.
"Indeed. Cozy Glow is a pegasus. She has no magic to turn against us of her own." Theodore's eyes narrowed. "Or perhaps, we should turn that thinking around. She has no magic that you can use, so there is nothing in it for you to free her."
"How dare you," Luna spat.
"Is that not the case? In that past year, you have given not only Discord free reign to move about as he pleases, but also former tyrant Starlight Glimmer, and Tempest, a pony who betrayed Equestria to the Storm King and attacked yourselves personally!"
"The difference is that Starlight Glimmer and Tempest Shadow both showed remorse for their actions."
"Is that the difference between eternal damnation and walking freely with no supervision? A simple apology?!" Theodore rose to his hooves, and Celestia's guards readied their spears. "Even if she showed remorse, it would not change what she did, nor what little a threat she is to us all! At the end of the day, this punishment is unjust!" Theodore looked around the room. "You have to agree! I know that you all do!"
Ponies turned their heads, none speaking up as Theodore regarded them with pleading eyes.
Finally, Celestia cleared her throat. "Sir Theodore, the decision cannot be overturned. Your daughter has committed a grave offence, and for that she must be-"
"Save it," Theodore said as he turned to leave. "I should have known I would get nowhere with you. Your image is all that matters."
As Theodore stormed out of the room, he could hear the hushed murmurs of the ponies around him. Ponies talking about how it was over for him. That everything he had built over his long career was at an end. How he should be thankful he retired long ago.
The voices fell silent as the doors behind him shut. Waiting for him in the castle's courtyard, a young, white-coated mare with a flowing pink mane stood anxiously to the side. Her cutie mark was that of a candy heart, though it was barely visible behind the first aid satchel attached to her side.
"How did it go?" Sugar Heart asked.
Theodore shook his head. "As we feared, they wouldn't listen."
"But she's just a filly!" Sugar Heart complained. "And a pegasus at that! They have to know she's no threat!"
"Oh they know," Theodore responded, opening his wings to welcome his wife into a soft embrace. "That's just it. We're only pegasi – pegasi make the weather, but that's a job any unicorn can do just fine. Better for her that she look like the hero that caught the monster."
Sugar Heart cried as she tucked her head into Theodore's chest. "So… now what?"
Theodore simply stared ahead, a cold glare in his eyes. "… We've no choice. If they won't listen, then we'll take Cozy Glow back by force."
"And then, I'll take a potato chip… and EAT IT!" Cozy Glow cackled maniacally in her cage, eventually choking on her own laughter and having to stop to clear her throat. "Ah… Anyway, that's what I'm gonna do when I get out of here."
"Mhm…" Tirek responded, his eyes closed and his palms connected as he mediated in his cage.
"Say, did I ever tell you how I got my cutie mark? It was two years ago. I played a game of chess for the first time, and I won. I won, and that's when my cutie mark appeared. I was so happy! I was a chess pony! I was gonna be the bestest at chess! I was gonna win all the tournaments and meet lots of stronger ponies!" Cozy Glow scoffed. "Yeah, that didn't last long. Turns out chess wasn't what I loved. Know what it actually was? Winning."
"Mhm…"
"Yeah, I loved seeing my opponent's face after they lost! And the more challenging the victory, the sweeter it tasted! That's why chess lost its edge – my opponents were… too boring…"
"Mhm…"
"That's when I saw all the stories about Twilight and her friends, who had beaten so many powerful enemies with just their friendships!" Cozy giggled. "To think, I had come this close to beating the one who beat Nightmare Moon, Discord, and lots of other powerful bad guys!"
"Mhm…"
"But even she was too easy! That's why I put my name in my letters to you. I gave her every chance to catch me, but even then she almost never did! But, she still beat me… Sure I was mad at first, but hey, now I get a second chance! I hate losing…" Cozy Glow clutched the bars of her cage. "Next time, I won't lose."
"Mhm…"
Cozy Glow sighed as she watched Tirek. Watched him do… nothing. And more nothing. And even more nothing. "Y'know, I kinda thought you'd be more fun than this."
"And I thought you'd be more useful a protégé, but I suppose disappointment comes naturally in this place," Tirek quipped.
"Sheesh, fine then. I just wanted to be your friend," Cozy said with a pout, crossing her forelegs as she looked around. "Not much to do here, huh?"
"This is Tartarus, not a foals' playhouse." Tirek turned to stare at the filly sitting in the cage beside his own. "You seem awfully calm, considering your plan failed, and you'll be trapped here for the rest of time."
Cozy Glow giggled. "Well, maybe you will. I'm a master of getting what I want, though. When the guards come back, I'll just act like I've learned my lesson and that I'll behave myself!"
Tirek laughed, drawing a confused look from Cozy Glow. "Oh that's rich! You think that they- AHAHAHAHAH!"
Cozy Glow frowned, and sweat began to drip down her head. "W-What? What's so funny?"
"Y-You think that the guards are coming back?! HAH! They only come for one reason: to drop off a new inmate!" Tirek shook his head. "Ohhhh, no, my dear. I'm afraid that, once you're thrown into this place, it's forever."
A chill ran down Cozy Glow's spine. She turned her head away from the cackling centaur, her hooves tightening on the bars of her cell. "Y-You're lying…"
"Oh believe me, I wish I wasn't."
Cozy Glow's breathing picked up. She looked through the bars of her cell, and suddenly the world seemed to stretch. The gates that led to the outside world seemed to get further away, and she could hear something loud thumping against her eardrums. A steady rhythm at first, but then it grew faster. "No…"
"Yes," Tirek hissed.
Cozy Glow slammed her hooves into the bottom of her cage, and screamed. "NOOOOOOOO!" She turned towards Cerberus, whose heads had turned towards her in the commotion she had caused. "L-LET ME OUT OF HERE! PLEASE! I-I CAN'T BE TRAPPED HERE FOREVER!" Tears streamed from Cozy Glow's eyes, but Cerberus gave no response. He simply gave her a blank stare, and then went back to his nap.
"LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT LET ME OUT LET ME OOOOOOOUT!" Cozy Glow clutched her head in her hooves and curled into a ball. "Nonononononono! This wasn't supposed to happen! This is all wrong! I can't- I just- I don't-"
"Oh great," Tirek sighed, resting his head into his hand. "And now this."
Soon, Cozy Glow had quieted down. Her tears dried along her face, and her shaking slowed to a gentle rocking as she stared off into space. "Mommy… Daddy…"
thud thud thud
Tirek opened his eyes. "Hm? What's this?"
SLAM!
"COZY GLOWWWWWW!"
Cozy Glow gasped. It couldn't be… Had she truly heard her father's voice? Was she simply imagining it? She was almost afraid to sit up and check, yet her body moved of its own volition.
There, standing at the other end of the room, her father stood clad in armour, a long, red cape flowing behind him and a large sword in his hoof. His wings were tipped with sharp points and spread wide as he charged forward.
"DADDYYYYYY!" Cozy Glow yelled, reaching through the bars of her cage.
Cerberus roared, rising to his feet and running to meet with the intruder. He thrust his middle head forward with a ferocious bite, but the swift pegasus evaded into the air and dove down, swiping at the large dog's back and drawing blood.
Cerberus howled at the pain, and turned to find the pegasus, but Theodore was already gone. Looping in the air, Theodore returned to his original position, and he took a swing at Cerberus' right paw, bringing to beast to its knee.
"I thank you for your years of service," Theodore said, "However, for my family, I must ask that you stand down!" Theodore propelled forward between Cerberus' right and middle heads, his wings slicing the sides of each one and causing the dog to slump over.
Theodore continued on his path, landing just before the cage that held his daughter. There the young filly looked up at her father with a mixture of relief and horror.
"D-Daddy, I-"
"We'll discuss your actions later," Theodor said, casting a stern look down at the filly. "However, as for punishment… you've served more than enough here. It's time for you to leave."
"Y-Y'know, I've been keeping her company while she was here," Tirek said, offering the pegasus the best smile he could muster.
"I'm glad you're safe, Cozy," Theodore said, tears welling in his eyes. "Now stand back."
"Um, sir?" Tirek asked.
Theodore rose his sword, humming as the muscles in his forelegs began to bulge, and then swung. For a second, there was nothing… but then, the bars that kept Cozy Glow imprisoned all shattered at once.
Cozy Glow took one step forward, before she was swept up by two white forelegs and smushed against the crying face of her mother. "Oh thank heavens! You're okay, sweetie! Mommy and Daddy are here to save you!"
"M-Mum, you're hurting me…" Cozy protested, though she couldn't deny the warmth she felt as she felt her mother's embrace once more. "So… you two don't… hate me?"
"Oh we're mad," Theodore said.
"Furious," Sugar Heart added.
"But we'd never hate you," Theodore concluded, smiling as he reached down and patted his daughter's head. "Whether you're an angel or a hell-spawn, you're our little girl. Nopony's going to take you away from us, and we certainly won't allow anypony to take away your freedom."
"That's sweet and all," Tirek said, "But you do realise that this place has an alarm that alerts Celestia to intruders, right? Even with her lack of security she at least thought of that much. Now, I would have no trouble clearing a path out of here, really, were I only not in this cage-"
"We're not freeing you," Theodore said. "You're the bastard who had my daughter perform that spell, aren't you?"
Sugar Heart covered Cozy Glow's ears, whilst Tirek simply scoffed. "She asked. I simply answered her questions."
"Either way, you can rot in here for all I care. Though knowing Celestia, she'll find some way to make use of you at some point, so enjoy that, I guess." Theodore turned, only to find Cerberus picking himself back up. He readied his sword, but an arrow to the back of Cerberus' left head forced the dog back down.
"We have to go," Sugar Heart said, preparing another arrow for the automatic bow attached to her hoof.
Theodore nodded, and the three of them made a break for the exit. As they neared, a portal opened up, and out stepped Chancellor Neighsay, accompanied by several ponies from the Royal Guard. "I suspected you might try something like this, Theodore. You never were much for following the rules."
"Rules are made to protect ponies and uphold justice," Theodore said, pointing his blade at the chancellor, "But this time, it failed on both counts."
"Wrong. Cozy Glow's incarceration has protected all of Equestria. Overkill yes, but better safe than sorry as they say." Neighsay's horn glowed, and the guard accompanying him readied their spears. "And as for the second point, justice is decided by those at the top!"
"Justice is justice! It's easy to see at a glance!" Theodore thrust his sword at the chancellor, only for it to be parried by a spear. He dodged back as Neighsay fired a beam of magic and hovered in the air.
"That's idealistic nonsense! Ponies will never agree on anything – it's up to those with power to decide right and wrong!"
"Then I'll decide for myself, and won't feel bad for striking you down!" Theodore ascended into the air, and then dove back down, aiming for Neighsay. As he neared, Neighsay charged magic into his horn… but Theodore turned at the last second, and in his place, several black clouds covered the chancellor and his backup. "Thunder Barrage!"
Theodore slammed his hooves onto the clouds, unleashing bolts of lightning that struck wildly at the ponies below. The guards' spears ate the majority of the bolts, and what few ignored them managed to miss the chancellor. However, the sudden attack had startled him, and he had lost the magic he was storing up.
As the clouds parted, Theodore descended to Neighsay's side. He delivered a swift blow to Neighsay's side with the hilt of his sword, and the winded stallion fell to the ground, clutching his waist as he tried to find his breath.
Theodore turned to Sugar Heart, whose hooves held several condensed clouds, and smiled. "Let's go," he said, and his wife put the clouds into her bag before scooping up Cozy Glow. The three of them flew out of Tartarus' opening, and fled into the darkness of the night.
Two hours later, the family had reached a small, no-name village in the middle of some drylands. They rented a room and retired immediately, hoping to get an early start the following morning. That is, after some words with the daughter who had committed treason…
"Just, help me understand: why?! Why did you think that any of that was a good idea?!"
Cozy Glow, sitting on the smaller bed in the room, stared at the floor with a scowl on her face, completely silent as her father paced back-and-forth, fuming and red in the face. Sugar Heart waited by the door of the room, listening for hoofsteps.
"Answer me, Cozy Glow!"
"I told you, I just wanted to win! What's wrong with that?!"
Theodore facehooved as he stopped in his tracks. "'Win'?!"
"What's wrong with wanting more power?! Everyone wants power! You and mommy and the princesses-"
"There's nothing wrong with self-improvement, but not at the expense of others!"
Cozy Glow's eyes shifted back to the floor. "What about when you got your promotion by killing on the battlefield?"
Theodore regarded Cozy with a stern glare, and the room filled with a heavy silence. "Those were enemies. I never turned my blade on my friends… before today."
"Well, what about mommy? She got a promotion by getting her boss fired."
"She earned that promotion and there unfortunately was not enough room for the two of them," Theodore stated. "Don't confuse that with attempting to harm everypony in Equestria!"
"I didn't know the spell would be permanent!" Cozy argued. "He never told me that!"
"And how many times have I told you, not to speak with strangers?!"
"But I thought I was supposed to make friends!"
"With the right ponies!"
"And who are the right ponies?! Because he's the only one who understood me!"
"Then you weren't trying hard enough!" Theodore stamped a hoof, and Cozy Glow fell silent. Her lips quivered as tears began to well in her eyes, but she made an effort not to cry. Theodore sighed. "You never try hard enough… you want quick, simple wins. You always look at the present but never consider the future. What were your plans after you became headmare? What were you expecting?"
Cozy Glow shifted on the bed. "I don't know…" she muttered.
"Did you think that everypony would just accept that you won and let you do what you want?"
"I don't know!"
"Exactly! This is exactly what happened when you started playing chess! You would only look five moves ahead instead of fifteen! You would sacrifice everything to win one battle, and then lose the war!"
"Just, stop it already!" Cozy Glow yelled, fluttering her wings rapidly to hover in the air. "You don't understand either, so stop acting like you do!"
"And what don't I understand?!" Theodore asked.
Cozy Glow didn't answer immediately. She stared her father in the eyes for a moment, and then slowly descended back onto the bed. "You don't understand…" she said as she curled into a ball.
"Then explain it to me!"
Cozy Glow closed her eyes and turned around, her back now facing her father. "You don't!"
"Cozy-" A hoof on Theodore's shoulder stopped him. He turned to find his wife behind him, shaking her head.
"Your turn to stand guard," she said with a smile. Theodore simply huffed, but accepted Sugar Heart's offer and walked over to the door. Sugar Heart approached the bed and waited to see if Cozy Glow would turn around. She didn't, so the mare gently climbed onto the bed and reached for her daughter.
As Cozy Glow felt two hooves wrap around her, she offered no resistance, and allowed her mother to pull her into a hug.
"You know," Sugar Heart began, "Your father can be mean sometimes." She could practically hear Theodore's objections despite no words coming from his mouth. "When he was younger, he was quite the bully. He would steal ponies' homework assignments or their toys, he would throw things at his classmates, trip ponies over when they passed him…" Sugar Heart giggled, and turned to Theodore. "Hey, remember that time you hung all of my dolls on the tree outside my house?"
Theodore turned away, his face red. Cozy Glow, still not looking up, asked, "Well, why did you marry him, then?"
Sugar Heart looked back down at her daughter and pulled her closer, resting her head into Cozy's mane. "Because beneath all that, he wasn't so bad. He was only kind and sweet, when nopony was looking. I guess you could say that… I was that one pony who understood him. Who wanted to understand him."
Cozy Glow slowly lifted her head, and turned her attention to her father.
Theodore cleared his throat and scratched the back of his head. "… I wasn't good at anything, back then. Bad grades, couldn't cook, couldn't dance, couldn't use a hammer or read a map. But the thing I was perhaps most bad at was… interacting with other ponies.
"I couldn't speak to them, and when they spoke to me I didn't know what to say, or how to fit in. Sometimes it felt like we were on totally different levels, like… I was in another world, far from home… So I lashed out. Did all sorts of stupid things, thinking that if I couldn't make friends the 'normal' way, hey, at least I'd still get noticed."
"He sure was," Sugar Heart assured with a giggle.
"And at some point, I decided that being on top felt great. That I'd rather be feared, than fear those around me." Theodore frowned. "Since I didn't have friends, it felt nice to know I at least had power… And I never felt bad for those I bullied because, as far as I knew, I was the only one suffering…"
Sugar Heart hummed, stroking her chin with a hoof. "Well Teddy, that sure sounds like a unique experience. I wonder if there's anypony else who might have a similar story." She looked down at Cozy Glow, who winced and turned her head to the side whilst rubbing her foreleg.
Theodore sighed. "… I'm sorry, Cozy," he said. "I know you've had trouble making friends in the past. I know it isn’t easy for you. I thought that Twilight's school would help you, that sending you to a school designed specifically to make friends would do the trick. But I guess this time, I was the one looking for an easy win." The room was silent for several seconds, before Theodore spoke up again. "Still, though, I didn't expect you to try to drain all of the magic from Equestria. Can't really pin that one on me."
Cozy Glow smiled, despite everything happening all around her, and said, "Well, it wasn't exactly hard to get the artefacts. Like, the combination was Twilight's birthday. And it was written on a note on her desk!"
Theodore and Sugar Heart snorted, trying not to laugh, but when Cozy Glow started giggling, they couldn't help it anymore. The three of them laughed, loud and jovially. It was a laughter that resounded through the room and lasted a long time.
After some time, they calmed down. "But trust me, Cozy," Theodore started after catching his breath, "You're not the only one who's hurting. Others may be able to hide it better, and look happy all the time, but everypony has problems, and everypony struggles to keep themselves together. You have your mother and me, so you never have to feel lonely… We'll never abandon you."
"We did just break into Tartarus to get you back," Sugar Heart said, patting her daughter's head. "Though next time they might upgrade their security, so let's try not to get sent there again, okay?"
Theodore's ear twitched. He motioned a hoof across his lips and hurried to the nearby window, peering outside from the side. Down in the street, he saw three soldiers conversing with the inn's owner. The owner pointed at the building.
"We have to move," Theodore said in a hushed tone. "There's a back exit to this place – let's use that and head south. The weather for today has higher cloud coverage there."
"But won't they be surrounding this place?" Sugar Heart asked as she wrapped a cloak around her daughter and gathered her things.
Theodore hurried over to a small table beside the door, where a switch lay on top. He pressed it, and then motioned for the three of them to leave. Moving first, Theodore ensured that the hallway outside was empty, and led his family to the emergency exit at the end.
"I hear something," Cozy Glow whispered. "Whistling?"
An explosion sounded, followed by more, and then raised voices and the scrambling of hooves. "I prepared a diversion on the other end of town," Theodore stated. "Just a little fireworks show, but it'll give us an opening to escape."
Sugar Heart opened the emergency exit, checked outside, and then led her daughter by her hoof. "Nopony's around. Let's fly until we're out of sight of the town."
Theodore gave a nod, and the three took off into the sky, staying low to the ground and not looking back even once. They gained some distance, before encountering a stallion in purple-coloured armour standing in their path, forcing them to come to a halt. "Get behind me," Theodore said as he pointed his blade at Shining Armor.
"I'm not here to fight you," Shining Armor said. "That's not my assignment right now. I'm on my way back to the Crystal Empire, and just happened to bump into you."
Theodore eyed him suspiciously. "Well, isn't that a coincidence?"
"Small world, huh? But as you can see, I did not come prepared to fight the famed hero of Ponyland."
True to his word, Shining Armor had not a single weapon on his body. Still, Theodore did not lower his guard, keeping his attention fixated on Shining Armor's horn. "Then I suppose we will just be on our separate ways."
"Well, since you're here anyway…" Shining Armor pulled a small envelope from his armour, and threw it to Theodore. The other stallion caught it with one hoof, keeping his other on his sword. "A friend of mine asked me to give that to you, should I 'happen' to run into you."
Theodore opened the envelope, revealing a letter inside. He glossed over the contents, and then turned his attention back to Shining Armor. "… You must have read the contents yourself. The seal was already broken. Wouldn't delivering this to me be considered treasonous?"
Shining Armor shook his head. "I have no idea what you mean. There's no proof that I opened that letter, or knew its contents, or that I was aware that the two of you were fugitives."
"What I mean, is why should I be willing to believe you'd go this far to help criminals like us get away?"
The two stared each other down for many tense seconds, Sugar Heart holding Cozy Glow close to her with her wings flared the entire time.
"I have a daughter too," Shining Armor finally answered. "The last thing I would ever want is to lose her." Shining Armor turned away. "As I said, I am simply an off-duty soldier, passing on a letter from a friend to a couple I happened to stumble upon on my way back home. That is all."
As Shining Armor left, Sugar Heart and Cozy Glow hurried to Theodore's side. "What does the letter say?" Sugar Heart asked.
"It's from Starlight Glimmer," Theodore said, causing Cozy Glow to gasp. "It says that she wants to help us escape. She's prepared a boat for us, and directions to reach it."
"Starlight Glimmer? Isn't that Twilight's right-hoof pony?"
"Her friend," Cozy Glow corrected silently.
"This is clearly a trap," Sugar Heart stated.
"I wouldn't be so hasty," Theodore argued. "Celestia is not in the habit of setting so subtle a trap, and besides that, Shining Armor was able to find us on his own. There's no need to set a trap."
"But how can we be certain?"
Theodore looked down at Cozy Glow, who was staring up at the note, trying to read its contents. He lowered the paper for her, and asked, "You know this mare. We don't. What do you think?"
"… I think that…" Cozy Glow bit her lip, turned her head to the side, and then closed her eyes. She took in a deep breath, and then exhaled. "Well, Starlight's uh… nice… and stubborn, and doesn't really play things by the book, and…" She opened her eyes and sighed. "I think she's telling the truth…"
"… Well then, I guess it's worth checking out," Theodore said.
"But-" Sugar Heart began, but was cut off by Theodore lifting Cozy Glow onto his back and laughing. "Oh, fine! You two are just gonna team-up against me anyway…"
"Don't worry. We'll approach her carefully and if she makes a wrong move, we're out of there!"
Cozy Glow smiled. "She's got powerful magic, so watch out!"
"I'll be sure to keep that in mind."
Sugar Heart simply shook her head as her husband and daughter laughed, following after them through the night's darkness.
Luna stopped her troops as the crested a large hill. She peered off into the open wilderness before her, which was covered by a thick veil of mist.
"The weather for today says nothing about mist," one soldier reported. "This is being created illegally."
Luna huffed. "Trying to throw us off your tracks, are you?" Luna examined the ground beneath her. "That means that we're heading in the right direction. They think that moving at night would provide the best cover, but by moving in darkness, they've put themselves at a disadvantage."
"Your Majesty, should we dispel the mist?"
"Not just yet. We don't want them raising their guards." Luna smirked as she found a hoofprint in the dirt. "Moving at night means they have to move slower, and can't cover their track as easily. Meanwhile, my eyes are able to see anything in darkness as though it were clear as day." Luna waved a hoof, motioning her troops to follow her. "This way, and quietly! Turn outs your lights and stay close together." A grin spread over the mare's face. "We're going to catch them by surprise."
"One hundred bottles of cider on the wall, one hundred bottles of cider. Take one down, pass it around-"
"Cozy," Theodore said, bringing a hoof to the bridge of his nose. He turned to his daughter, who was hovering in the air beside him. "We're trying to keep a low profile, remember?"
Cozy Glow huffed and kicked the ground as she landed. She felt a hoof on her shoulder, and found her mother looking down at her with a mischievous grin on her face. "One hundred bottles of cider of the wall," Sugar Heart began, in a more-hushed tone. "One hundred bottles of cider."
Cozy Glow smiled, and sang along with her mother. Theodore sighed, but decided it best to just accept his fate.
As the number of bottles hit ninety-five, Theodore heard a stomp in the distance, followed by a quiet whistling…
"GET DOWN!" he yelled, and a barrage of flaming arrows sailed over the family, landing ahead of them and to their sides. The area lit up, and as Theodore drew his sword, an army of guards charged from behind.
"Criminals, surrender now and face our mercy!" Luna shouted, perched on a black cloud high in the sky, looking down on the scene below. She raised her wings, charged magic into her horn, and gave a mighty flap. The mist dissipated, leaving the area clear once more.
"Daddyyyyy!" Cozy Glow screamed, though as she reached for her father, her mother held her back.
"You two go on ahead!" Theodore ordered. "I'll hold them off!"
Luna's eyes glowed as she hovered into the air. "So be it."
Sugar Heart attempted to fly past Theodore with Cozy Glow, but two pegasi soldiers blocked her path. She fired arrows, forcing them to evade, and narrowly passed through the opening it provided.
"You shall not escape," Luna said, appearing suddenly to Sugar Heart's side. With her magic, she teleported Cozy Glow out of the mare's hooves and into her own.
"COZY!" Sugar Heart screamed. Her daughter struggled in the princess' grasp, trying to break free. "Let her go, NOW!" Sugar Heart fired arrows at Luna, but they all evaporated in a magical field protecting her.
"LET MY DAUGHTER GO!" Theodore yelled as he swooped up from below, kicking any pegasi in his way out of the sky. He dodged a bolt of lightning fired from Luna's horn, and slashed at her hoof, easing her grip on Cozy Glow and allowing him to rescue her. "I've got you!"
Cozy Glow gasped, and hugged her father tightly. "I-I thought she was gonna put me back there!"
"She won't!" Theodore assured her. As he began to turn around, a sudden barrage of lightning forced him to swerve and move lower to the ground. There, a soldier was waiting for him. The soldier thrust his spear at Theodore's hind leg, forcing the stallion to crash onto the ground.
Laying on his back, Theodore grunted as he pushed himself upright – only to find the tip of a spear pressed against his throat.
Cozy Glow rubbed her head as she picked herself up from the ground, and gasped as she saw the soldier towering over her father, his weapon ready to kill. "DADDY, NO!" Cozy Glow screamed.
Sugar Heart saw her daughter racing towards the scene. Her hooves shook and a chill went down her spine as she saw where he daughter was headed. "NO, COZY GLOW! COME BACK!"
"Sir Theodore," the soldier began, a tear welling in his eye, "Though it pains me, I hereby place you under arre-"
"GET AWAY FROM HIIIIIIM!"
Theodore froze. Luna froze. Sugar Heart held her hooves to her mouth, tears streaming from her eyes. The soldier that had pinned Theodore to the ground… slowly turned his head, as blood began to pour from his mouth. He turned to see what Cozy Glow had done to him. The pain, the burning sensation that coursed through his body…
Cozy Glow released Theodore's sword, leaving it buried in the stallion's body, and took a step back. She looked up, and could see the pale-faced soldier staring into her eyes, his expression one of fear and uncertainty. She could feel something warm on her face and reached a hoof up to find out what it was. Something wet, and sticky, and red…
"D-D-D-Daddyyyy… D-D-D-Did I k-k-k-k…" Cozy's eyes grew wide, she gritted her teeth together and began to breath quickly. Her hoof trembled as she stared at it. The stallion slowly fell onto his side, hitting the ground with a resounding thud. Voices shouted all around her, but they sounded distant compared to the ringing in her ears. "Aaaaaaaa…" Why was it ringing? Why was the world shaking? Why was the stallion on his side?
What did she do?
"AaaaaaAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!"
Sugar Heart pulled out several black clouds from her saddlebag and hurled them above the princess, whilst the latter barked orders to apprehend Cozy Glow at once. "SHE'S MY DAUGHTER!" she shouted as the clouds pooled together over the princess. "YOU. CAN'T. HAVE HER!"
Luna gasped, realising too late that she had let her guard down, and was struck by a bolt of lightning. She groaned as she used her magic to resist it, but bolt continued to rain down on her, one-after-another.
Sugar Heart took the chance to soar down and scoop up Cozy Glow before any of the soldiers could. "I HAVE HER! LET'S GO!"
Theodore nodded, and took off flying alongside his wife. The soldiers gave chase, but Sugar Heart threw the last of her mist packets out, together with clouds filled with rainfall. The mist hid their escape, whilst the rain fell so heavily, pegasi could not fly through it. The soldiers came to a stop, and by the time the lightning above Princess Luna had subsided, the family were long-gone.
"How is she?" Theodore asked five minutes later, when he was sure that they were safe.
Sugar Heart looked down at her daughter, who she had wrapped in a blanket during their flight. The screaming had stopped, but in its place, the filly shivered and muttered vague sounds repeatedly, her eyes twitching and the colour fading from her coat and mane. "I ki- ki- Aaah- Wha- Kil- Ahhh I- I ki-"
Sugar Heart shook her head. "She's alive, but…"
Theodore bit his lip, narrowing his eyes as he focussed on what was ahead of him. 'Don't cry Theo… Not until we're in the clear…'
The two flew in silence for the rest of the journey, the only sounds being the nonsensical ramblings coming from their daughter…
Theodore approached the cloaked mare cautiously, his hoof on the hilt of his sword the entire time. The mare removed her hood. "Starlight Glimmer, I presume?"
Starlight nodded. "I'm glad that you trusted me."
"It was my daughter who trusted you. I still have my doubts." Theodore narrowed his eyes. "… How did you know we would be attempting this breakout tonight? You managed to write and deliver that letter a mere two hours after my invaded Tartarus."
"Actually, I didn't. But after seeing you at Celestia's hearings this morning, I had a feeling you'd go far to rescue your daughter. I was in the midst of preparing my own breakout plans when Twilight heard word of the break-in. I just rewrote the plans to facilitate your escape and asked her brother to deliver them."
"Tell me: why do all this for the filly who tried to do you, and all your friends, harm?"
Starlight took a moment to answer. "Because that's my job as her counsellor." Theodore tilted his head, and Starlight reached into her cloak. "I'm truly sorry, Sir Theodore, for failing your daughter. I was her counsellor, it should have been my job to see her true nature! But, the job isn't over yet. She needs help, and she cannot get that in Tartarus."
Starlight pulled out two brown books. "These books are enchanted with magic. What's written in one will appear in the other. With this, and with your permission, I would like to continue as Cozy Glow's counsellor. I would like to help her, and I don't even need any payment. Just one day, I would like to see Cozy Glow and her friends, living happily together, smiling, dancing, going on dates, talking about the future… I want her to have the kind of life I never had."
Theodore regarded the books for a moment, and then released his sword to take one. "Well, it will ultimately be up to her, should she ever recover…"
At this, Starlight gasped. "'Recover'?!" She looked over Theodore's shoulder, to find Sugar Heart carrying an unresponsive Cozy Glow in her hooves. The filly's eyes were void, her mouth hung open, and her hooves were limp. Her mane and fur were dull, and almost all colour was gone from them. Starlight held a hoof over her heart, and asked, "What happened?"
Theodore leaned forward, and whispered, "She may have killed a pony tonight." He pulled back, and saw the shocked look on Starlight's face. "You still want to help her?"
Starlight swallowed, and with a stern stare, she answered, "Now more than ever."
Theodore smiled, and Starlight led the family to small boat, docked not too far away. Inside the boat was a blue unicorn with silver hair, a single lantern, and a map. "So, we doing this?" she asked.
Starlight nodded. "Trixie will guide you from here. Her illusions can keep you from being detected, so long as you stay quiet."
"I thank you," Theodore said, and then helped his wife into the boat.
Sugar Heart sat Cozy Glow down. The filly slumped to one side, but for the most part stayed perfectly still. "Ah… Ah…" were all that occasionally escaped her lips, but the sounds proved that she was still alive.
When the three were ready, Trixie extinguished the lantern, and Theodore and Sugar Heart began to row.
Five days had passed since the night of the breakout. After making it out of the Equestrian border, Theodore and Sugar Heart bid farewell to Trixie, and walked several miles through the open wastelands that lay to the west. They eventually found a town, where they took the time to rest. Theodore sold his armour and used the money to buy food and water, and the three took train-after-train, travelling over one thousand miles, to where they would start their new lives.
There, in Dream Valley, ponies lived much simpler lives, and were welcoming of strangers from all over the world, without any need to hear where they came from. It was perfect for starting a new life. Still, despite the time that had passed, Cozy Glow's condition had not improved.
She would sleep, and she would eat or drink when something was spoon-fed to her, but apart from that, she would not respond. She simply stared off into space, her hooves hanging limp from her body and mouth forever open. Her mother would brush her mane and wash her body, and the two would continue to talk to her and read her stories, but there was simply no response…
Then, one day, Theodore asked Starlight to imprint the newspaper from a few days ago into the book. Starlight was reluctant, but accepted. When the deed was done, Theodore looked at the article she had copied, a cold sweat dripping down his brow. As he read, he smiled. "Honey, look at this!" he called out. "It says here that the soldier Cozy Glow stabbed was wounded, but not in serious condition! He made it out!"
Sugar Heart gasped, tears welling in her eyes. "Then you mean…"
"Yeah," he said, the two of them turning to Cozy Glow. Her eyes had moved… they had shifted, and she was looking at them. "You hear that, Cozy? You didn't kill anyone." Theodore sniffed, wiping the tears from his face. "You didn't…"
Suddenly, Cozy Glow's eyes began to focus. The colour started to return to her body, and her lips dared to curve upwards into a smile. "I didn't?"
"That's right!" Theodore shouted, pushing the book into Sugar Heart and running to hold his daughter. "That's right, Cozy Glow. It's okay. It's all okay now."
Cozy Glow nestled into her father's warm embrace, and closed her eyes. "I didn't kill anypony…"
Sugar Heart smiled as she watched the scene unfold. Whilst the two were busy, she opened the book and ripped the page from inside. She tossed it into the lit fireplace behind herself, and as the obituary turned to ashes, she rushed to her family's side to join in the group hug.
