The castle had been quiet all day, just like the rest of the capital in the wake of the Storm King’s brief but disturbing rule. A day of forced slave labor followed immediately by a combination of freedom and a friendship party was perhaps one of the most exhausting experiences that any of the Canterlot locals had ever lived through. The princess were grateful for the lack of pressing matters, it gave them time to set up recompenses and to plan as to the full recovery of everypony involved. Including giving themselves some time to recover from their own period of suspended animation.
The exception to this get together was the Princess of Friendship, Twilight Sparkle. She had excused herself from the impromptu meeting of the other princesses in order to see to a particular pony who, it seemed, was not completely happy with the resolution of the day prior, particular the part that had let her off the hook for the part she played in it.
“Tempest.” Twilight looked to the unicorn, but her gaze was not reciprocated. Twilight gave a long suffering sigh before looking first to the bars that Tempest stood behind, than to the slightly ajar door, than to the keys that lay on the stone floor of the castle prison. “Tempest, why did you try to lock yourself in a cell?”
“Because I’m an evil pony Twilight!” Tempest whirled around to finally return the stare that she’d felt drilling into the back of her head.
“You’re not an evil pony, you just-”
“I am Twilight! I lost a couple of foalhood friends as a filly so then I, completely unjustified, joined a dictator who wanted to rule the entire world! I lead an invasion on Canterlot! I trapped Celestia, Luna, and Cadence in stone and I locked you in a magic proof cage! I chased you and your friends to the badlands and beyond and when you were at your lowest I sang an evil musical number about how disillusioned you were about how life works! I am very definitely a bad pony Twilight Sparkle and I can’t understand how you want to just pretend none of that ever happened!”
Twilight remained silent as Tempest collected her breath then, after another pause to collect her own thoughts, launched her counter argument. Where Tempest’s speech had been a flurry of caged feelings and high emotions Twilight’s was carried by a calm and steady tone. “But you only did all that because you were trying to restore your horn, I can’t blame you for that, I’d probably have gone to extreme circumstances too if I were in your place.” Tempest made to interrupt but Twilight cut her off by quickly continuing. “And then you helped save the day, you risked your life to save Equestria. And then you made those beautiful fireworks for Pinkie’s- Well, my party I guess.” Twilight locked eyes with Tempest for a moment before Tempest looked away. “You aren’t a bad pony Fizzlepop. You’re a good pony who got lost for a bit. That’s the way most ponies are. That’s the way Starlight was! If Starlight Glimmer can change than anypony can!”
Fizzlepop “Tempest” Berrytwist’s ears flicked up at the last sentence. “Who- Who’s Starlight Glimmer?”
“Oh, she’s my protege. She was running a town where she sort of ruled as a dictator and then when me and my friends stopped her plans she tried to go back in time to make it so I never met my friends which would’ve caused a cascade of evil going forward leading to the potential eternal rule of Nightmare Moon or any other number of horrible outcomes. She lives at my castle back in Ponyville.” Said Twilight Sparkle in an infinitely too-cheery tone for Tempest’s taste.
“What?”
“She’s very nice. She just had long standing trauma from when her best friend abandoned her as a filly. A lot like you now that I think about it.” Twilight seemed giddy from the memories. Tempest looked on dumbstruck.
“And she lives with you in your castle?” Tempest said in disbelief.
“Oh yes. I’ve been giving her friendship lessons and she’s a very quick learner. I mean, there was that time that she mind controlled my friends but she’s been getting a lot better at being a good pony. She even saved Equestria once already!”
Tempest decided not to question the fact the Equestria seemed to constantly be in need of saving and instead directed her breath into the words she was much more eager to say, mainly because she desperately needed some sarcasm to feel better. “Any other former archnemeses living with you in your castle then? Or is it just the one?”
To Tempest’s horror, Twilight stopped to consider. “Well there’s Trixie sometimes but I don’t know if she counts as-”
“Twilight!” Tempest shouted in anger. “You can’t just blindly let former evil villains live in your castle where you sleep at night! One of these days one of them is going to kill you!”
Twilight lowered her gaze to look at the floor, her next words came slowly. “I have to.”
“Excuse me!?” Tempest felt her face turning red from the uncontainable anger.
“I have to!” Twilight shouted, making Tempest back away from the cell door in worry. Twilight paused, took a deep breath, and continued, her voice even. “I’m the Princess of Friendship.” Twilight explained. “I have to make friends with all the good ponies who got lost. Someone has to. If the Princess of Friendship wouldn’t do that then… who would?”
Twilight let out a slow, shuddering breath before collecting herself, or trying to and failing miserably. Tempest looked on in shocked silence. Twilight continued, a sliver of a mad grin on her face. “Why do you care anyway? You said you were a bad pony remember?”
“That doesn’t-” Tempest caught herself. “I’m worried about you Twilight. You could let them get their own housing or- something! You can’t just treat yourself like garbage just so nobody else is inconvenienced. Holding yourself to standards that high isn’t healthy.”
“Says the mare who tried to lock herself in a prison cell.” The slight gleam of madness that Tempest had seen in Twilight’s face faded away, but the slight smile remained. She could feel the tension leaving the air and felt her own emotions rising in its absence.
Tempest looked around at the cell walls, as if seeing them for the first time, and looked to Twilight with a shrug. “Guess we’re both pretty bad at it.” Tempest offered a smile which Twilight returned.
“Guess so.”
“I’d be willing to learn then, if you would too.”
Twilight’s whole form filled with vim and vigor as she excitedly jumped into the air. “Great! I’ve already got a room set out in my castle and-”
“Geez Twilight, at least buy me dinner before asking me to live with you.” Twilight fell silent, blushing madly in embarrassment as Tempest grinned in momentary victory. Then, she continued, the levity in her tone played accompaniment to the somber meaning it held. “It sounds nice Twilight, but you’re not off the hook. I refuse to progress in whatever schedule you’ve got planned unless you’re coming along for the ride.”
“Honestly?” Twilight said after a pause. “That sounds… nice.”