Cold Hearts Never Thaw

"Are you are sure that she is a vampire?" a voice asked, looking at a frustrated and desperate Starlight Glimmer. Around her were five other ponies, each sitting in a circle around the single pink unicorn. Starlight looked at the Princess of Friendship, the one who had helped her see the light, see the mistakes she had made, and prevented even more from being made.

"Yes Twilight..I am sure. I saw her. I saw her fangs, I saw her and heard her admit it! And she is living in my- I mean, the village! Double Diamond is even considering make her a permanent resident!" Starlight said, looking around at the ponies.

"If what ya say is true, an' Ah reckon it's best to give ya the benefit of the doubt, then all Ah can think of is this: How did ya get this information? Ah highly doubt that a vampire would actually reveal such things without some...knowledge that might give her an advantage." An orange earth pony piped up, giving Starlight a suspicious look, "How do ya know it's not all just a cruel joke? You have no proof!"

"Yeah! Besides, you aren't the most truthful of ponies, Starlight Glimmer." A cyan blue mare growled, folding her forelegs over her chest and scowling. She blew a tuft of her rainbow mane out of her face, a brow arching. "You could be jealous of this new mare! And want her gone!"

"Oh..I am sure Starlight wouldn't come to Twilight without a really good reason to..I mean..a vampire...that sounds so scary..." Fluttershy murmured quietly,, looking down at her own wings, looking up as a white unicorn chimed in.

"I for one say give it time dahling. If what you say is true, then it will come to light eventually." Rarity said, going back to her work, her red framed glasses perched delicately on the bridge of her nose. "I was called in from working on a new seam for a very important client. While I do not appreciate this delay in my work, I will not choose to act rashly. There is a chance that this may not be true at all." she said, threading the needle and beginning the stitch work.

Princess Twilight Sparkle listened to each of her friends, her face becoming one of disappointment. They still didn't trust Starlight, and the purple alicorn couldn't blame them. What Starlight had done was inexcusable, and the Princess of Friendship knew that Starlight was still facing the risk of being brought to trial before the Celestial and Lunar Courts. She kept this information to herself of course, shaking her head and giving Starlight an apologetic look. "I'm sorry Starlight, but without proof of your claims, there isn't much anypony can do. Your case will have to be put on hold for further investigation."

"But she is a threat NOW Twilight! She is going to prey on my friends!" Starlight pleaded, her face contorting into anger. "Some Princess of Friendship you are!"

"Hey! First of all, you are assuming these things, and that makes you look bad!" Rainbow Dash snarled, leaping from her chair to dart over and hover in front of Starlight, pressing their snoots together, "And don't you ever dare question Twilight's friendship! She is the Princess of Friendship! Obviously she knows what she is doing!"

"Rainbow Dash please!" Twilight pleaded, her eyes narrowing and she gestured for Rainbow Dash to step down. Reluctantly, Rainbow Dash moved back to her seat, scowling furiously at Starlight. Twilight let out a sigh, and she looked at Starlight, "She is right. You are assuming that she is going to do these things, and that doesn't help your case Starlight.."

"I find that hard to believe Twilight." Starlight growled. "She has fangs. She has admitted to being a monster!" Starlight was frustrated, and she turned her head at the orange earth pony spoke again.

"But has she ever admitted to her diet? Has she said she liked blood? Has she eaten pony food?" Applejack asked, a brow arching as she gazed at her friends. There was a murmur and the six ponies looked at each other, before focusing back on Starlight.

"I....no...now that I think about it, she has never mentioned it at all, and she can eat pony food..." Starlight hesitated, "And some ponies, like bat ponies, do have fangs..."

"So there is a chance she is just a normal pony." Twilight said, her voice firm. "Until proven otherwise, no actions will be taken against this mare." she raised a small hammer with her magic, about to strike the arm of her throne before Starlight interrupted.

"But what her cutie marklessness? She has no cutie mark!" She said, "What normal pony never gets their cutie mark? And she said that she will never get it!"

"And that is something else entirely. Being without a cutie mark has nothing to do with one being a vampire. Discord for all his faults, if he takes the form of a pony, has cutie mark. And as you know, it is possible to remove a cutie mark. Maybe she lost it, or never gained it. It's a mystery, that is for sure, but that doesn't mean she is a monster because of it." Twilight said firmly, and she sighed as Starlight gave an exasperated sound.

"If my memory does recall correctly, Cheerilee, who I went to school with, did not get her cutie mark until she was well into her Senior Year of high school." Rarity said from where she was finishing the last of the stitches, snipping the threads and looking up. "She could be a late bloomer. It's not uncommon. Most fillies and colts get their cutie marks at a young age. Others wait years."

"Again, a very good point. Thank you Rarity." Twilight said, smiling softly. She looked at Starlight, "No more Starlight. You aren't making this easier for yourself at home, I am sure." she said.

Starlight gazed around at the ponies, before she lowered her head, folding her ears back in defeat. "You're right..there is a chance she isn't what I believe...I may have been...hallucinating...I am sorry I wasted your time." Starlight turned, quickly walking out and closing the door behind her.

"Well that was certainly interestin'." Applejack said. "A vampire? Ah am not saying it's funny talk. Superstitions an' all that are rampant these days, that and Ah reckon anything is possible. Ah mean what happened to Fluttershy could happen to anypony else!"

"I wouldn't want to inflict that on anypony else..." Fluttershy sighed, "But Applejack is right. It is possible that others have turned into vampire ponies and learned how to act normal."

"But isn't Red a pegasus? When Fluttershy became a vampire, she grew icky bat wings and weird ears! From what Starlight said, Red looked like your everyday pegasus!" Pinkie Pie said, a look of concern on her face.

"I will need to do some research on vampires and vampiric traits and types." Twilight said, rubbing her temple with a hoof. "Until then, we aren't to do anything that might spark anymore animosity with Starlight...even if she is...reformed..she is still a threat as well..a powerful unicorn like herself...I don't want her going rogue again.."

"You are right to be concerned Twilight," Fluttershy said, giving the purple alicorn a kind smile, "We don't want tensions to rise..."

"And with that, this meeting is adjourned. Thank you..for being here. I am sorry for the inconvenience..." Twilight said, smacking the gavel lightly on the arm of her throne, and she took to the air, flying off presumable to the library to begin her research.

The other ponies looked at each other, before they too went their separate ways, and once the throne room was empty, Starlight peeked in, sighing. "That could have gone better...but..I guess it is up to me then..I will do this on my own.." she said, and she looked at Pinkie Pie's throne, eyeing the balloons, and a smile, a dark and devious smile, formed on her face.

"And I know just where to start.."