Romancing The Stone

Chapters

Prologue
Having A Party
Head Games
Schoolgirl

Prologue

I always stared at the statue when I was in the Canterlot Gardens. When I was still a foal, I was terrified of the snarling changeling, Chrysalis. It took me longer than I really wish to remember to be able to look at the statue without covering my eyes with my hooves or wings.

The centaur, Tirek, always mystified me. I’d never seen another centaur, and I still haven’t. His expression was one of resignation. It was as if he’d just given up on the world like an elderly widow in a nursing home who sees her family once in a blue moon. From what I learned in history class, I suppose he really didn’t have anything left there at the end. None of them did. His power was gone, and he’d long since turned his back on his family.

And then there was the terrified pegasus filly. Back when I thought this was just another statue, I always wondered why the sculptor had given her such a sad, scared expression. I thought that maybe she was scared of the changeling. I know I would’ve been! It was only after I found out that the statue was comprised of formerly living beings that I learned she was an evil mastermind. Cozy Glow was a liar who’d say or do anything to get ponies to like her, so she could use them to her own ends.

These days, whenever I came to the garden I focused on the filly. She was my age, just barely old enough to have a cutie mark. I’d finally gotten mine a few weeks earlier and was still randomly turning around and staring at it. I often wondered what hers was. The history books never showed her behind, just her face. Maybe history would be less boring if they started showing pictures of butts instead of portraits. I giggled at the absurdity of that notion, knowing darned well it would’ve kept my attention better.

Mom and Auntie Twilight never talk about her. I’ve asked questions, and they just shrug it off and say they’ll explain it when I’m older. I’m older now! I’ve got my cutie mark and everything! I should ask again. I know they worry when I’m out here in the garden for hours on end. But I need to understand. Someday maybe they’ll explain what happened and then I’ll know. But until then, I just sat and fantasized scenarios that could’ve led to their stony imprisonment.

Maybe they didn’t eat all their vegetables before having dessert. That seemed like a thing Auntie Twilight would punish. She doesn’t like it when I hide the icky, slimy tomatoes instead of eating them. But she’d never do that to me, because I’m her favorite niece! I’m also her only niece, but that’s beside the point! She gets uptight like that sometimes.

Were they pirates? Sailing the seas looking for booty. I snickered. Booty! I shook my hindquarters, content in the knowledge there were no other ponies around to see my silly display. Shake, shake, shake…shake, shake, shake, shake your cutie! Shake your cutie! I flopped in the grass giggling like the schoolfilly I was. I couldn’t imagine spending my childhood locked up in a statue.

Maybe they were zombies, come back from the dead to eat ponies’ brains! Ewwww! Run away! Every mare and filly for herself! I darted around the enclosure, pretending they were shuffling after me. Tirek was old and slow, hence easily avoided. The changeling’s lunges were predictable and easy to dodge. She had one move, and that was to attack. It was the filly who was always sneaking up on her silent little wings. Ahhhhh! She’s got me! She’s got me! Don’t eat my brains, Cozy Glow! Blood! Blood! Blood! Death!

“Flurry Heart!”

Uh-oh, it’s Auntie Twilight. I better hightail it out of here before she catches me by the statue again. I frowned. She doesn’t like it when I hang out here. But they’re just rocks – they can’t possibly hurt me. She worries too much. Sometimes I think she worries more than Daddy does.

“I knew I’d find you out here.”

Busted. Teleporting is so totally cheating! Why didn’t I think to do that? I gave Aunt Twilight my best sheepish smile. “I like it here. It’s always peaceful and quiet. Nopony else goes near this statue. All the other ponies are spooked by it.”

Twilight massaged the bridge of her snout. “With good reason, Flurry. These are the worst villains Equestria’s ever faced.” She sighed. “All right, you’ve been pestering me to tell you about these three ever since you learned to speak. Chrysalis, the changeling queen. She replaced your mother, kept your father under a trance, and then led an army of changelings against Canterlot during what was supposed to be your parents’ wedding. Tirek, the centaur who can steal the magic from any creature he encounters, leaving them all drained husks unable to move.”

“And Cozy Glow?”

“A bigoted manipulator with a silver tongue. I know she looks cute and innocent, but she’s evil. She tried to turn the three tribes against one another. She tried to suck all the magic out of Equestria. And scarily enough, she almost succeeded. She was probably closer to success than the other two.”

I looked back towards the statue. “So not pirates then?”

Twilight looked from me to the statue and back again. “Some of my friends are pirates.”

I looked at her expectantly, and she sat down and told me about another evil invader by the name of the Storm King, and how she’d been helped by her friends, including Captain Celaeno and her band of parrot pirates. Auntie Twilight is so lucky to have gone on so many cool adventures. I bet she didn’t spend her childhood cooped up doing schoolwork. So lucky.

I turned my back on the statue to follow Twilight back to the castle. “I guess I never realized that some creatures, and even some ponies, are completely evil with no good inside whatsoever.”

Auntie Twilight paused in front of me and I almost smacked into her flank. “That’s just it. I don’t think they’re completely evil inside.”

I cocked my head and looked at Auntie Twilight expectantly. “You saved Discord and Starlight and Sunset and so many others. Why couldn’t you save them too?”

“They didn’t want to be saved.” A lone tear trickled down Twilight’s cheek.

“But neither did the others,” I argued. “The Elements of Harmony forcibly removed Nightmare Moon from Princess Luna. Discord had to be tricked into befriending Fluttershy. Starlight Glimmer almost killed every living thing on the planet and only reformed when she realized there was no other choice...”

“Chrysalis refused the olive branch Starlight extended her, Tirek drains magic and is too dangerous to attempt to reform, and Cozy Glow was a student of mine at the School of Friendship at the time she launched her first scheme, and if she couldn’t learn friendship there, then there’s no hope for her.”

I turned back to look at the statue one last time. “How sad. A life without friends seems hardly worth living.”

Auntie Twilight smiled at my comment.

Author's Note

Story notes: https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/989273/story-notes-romancing-the-stone

Having A Party

Of course, Auntie Twilight was no fool. She knew I was almost as friendless as Cozy Glow. Perhaps even more so, since there were plenty of ponies who wanted the attention of a princess. Parents who wished for their foals to be my best friend in the whole world, mostly for the prestige it would bring them. I didn’t attend a public school. I’d suggested it many times over the years, but my parents refused to even consider the idea. As absurd as it sounds, I’m a filly who wants to go to school. Unheard of, right? But it gets boring here in the castle. Sure, Sunburst tutors me occasionally when he isn’t helping run the School of Friendship with his wife, Starlight Glimmer. My crystalparents, the ones who’d take over my ‘care’ in the event something happened to my real parents.

Most of the time though, I have stuffy old Gilded Cage as my teacher. He’s boring. I don’t doubt that he knows a lot, but he can’t teach to save his life. He couldn’t hold my attention if he locked it up in a shiny golden cage like the one decorating his flank. And that’s what it feels like most of the time when I’m in ‘school’ – like being trapped in a cage. I want to interact with other ponies my age. I want to make awesome friends like Auntie Twilight did and go on amazing adventures with them.

There was no better reminder of my situation than my birthday party. I was the only one there under the age of thirty. It was an epic party, worthy of a princess, but one would expect no less considering it was thrown by Cheese Sandwich and Pinkie Pie. I was now twelve. Twelve and alone in a sea of adults. I did my best to capture the attention of the cool adults. Rainbow Dash was a Wonderbolt. A racer. A celebrity. A hero! I want to be like her when I grow up. I could be the first ever Wonderbolt Princess!

Rainbow was never far from the buffet table or the punch bowl, and I made my way towards her. I grabbed one of the cups and filled it with the fruit punch. Pinkie never divulges her recipes, but this is far and away better than anything the chefs in the Crystal Palace know how to make.

“Happy birthday, Squirt.” She tousled my hair.

Even the coolest pony in the room is treating me like a foal. I rolled my eyes, but made no attempt to fix my hair. Rainbow did nothing with her own mane, so I followed her lead, letting it stay mussed up.

“Thanks!” It was all I could really say. I had nothing else interesting to lead into a conversation, and her attention was already elsewhere. Rainbow was hard to pin down to any one spot for long.

The Wonderbolt drifted away into the crowd, and instead I set my sights on Pinkie Pie. Pinkie was always silly and happy. Certainly she could spare a few minutes to chat with the birthday girl.

“Oh! Somepony’s trying to sneak up on me! You’ve got to do it sneakier than that, silly-willy. And then when you get close, you’ve gotta wiggle your rump like a cat and pounce on me.”

I wiggled my rump and leapt upon the party planner, and she giggled and tumbled to the floor in mock surprise. “Thank you. It’s a great party.”

“No it isn’t.” Pinkie’s smile faded almost imperceptibly. “You’re not happy. The party is for you, so you’re the one who’s supposed to be happy, not everypony else.” She whispered, “I tried to get some other kids in, but your folks wouldn’t let me.”

That wasn’t surprising in the least. But at least Pinkie Pie still had her playfulness. She hadn’t grown up nearly as much as the other adults. “Maybe next year?”

Her smile faltered. “I’ll keep trying, but I can’t make any promises.” She tapped a hoof to her chin in contemplation. “You know what will turn your frown upside down?”

“No? What?”

“Oh! Oh! Oh! I know the answer! I know the answer!”

“You asked the question.”

She gigglesnorted. “That I did! It’s time for presents!” She shouted that last word, drawing the attention of everypony in the room.

I opened Rarity’s gift first. Out of all the ponies in attendance, she was one of the few with a good track record of giving great gifts. Sure, it was always clothing, but it was always nice clothing made especially for me. Inside the box was a formal ball gown, and I immediately slipped it on. It fit perfectly, as if I’d expect anything else from Rarity. I curtseyed and thanked her. This would very likely be my favorite gift this year.

Though if anypony could give Rarity a run for the money, it was Pinkie Pie. I was mystified when I opened her present to find several bottles of Mane ‘n Tail shampoo, soap, combs, and assorted other hygiene products.

“Uh? Are you trying to tell me something?”

Pinkie Pie shrugged. “I was really struggling with what to get you this year. You’re in that awkward transition between filly and mare, and I didn’t want to get you anything you’d outgrow in a few months. So I checked in with the best gift givers I know, even if it meant a long trip up to the Frozen North, and they were confident this was the perfect gift for you this year. I’m sorry if it isn’t?”

“No, no, no, it’s fine. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t think I smelled bad or something.”

“Of course not, you silly filly!”

When everypony else’s attention was elsewhere, I discreetly took a few sniffs of myself just to make sure. I certainly didn’t seem rank… But maybe I was just used to it and couldn’t smell it? What did they call that? Nose blind?

Applejack got me Sweet Apple Acres cider. Nothing surprising about that, but it sure was tasty. Fluttershy got me a kitten plush toy. It was cute, and I’m sure she would’ve given me a real kitten if she thought my parents wouldn’t object to it.

Speaking of my parents, their gift was a necklace with a crystal pendant of my cutie mark. It was awesome, and I immediately put it on. Between this and the new dress I felt so very pretty.

“An autographed picture! Thanks, Rainbow Dash!” It was the same thing she’d gotten me the year prior. And the year before that. Honestly, I liked the Rainbow Dash Wonderbolt action figure she gave me the year before that better, though. I guess she thought I was too old for that now. Everypony was always in a hurry for me to grow up.

“And there’s one last gift from your Auntie Sparkle.”

I could already guess what it would be: a book. Sure, Rainbow Dash’s gifts were always Wonderbolt-themed, specifically themed to her, but at least there was some variety. Action figures, posters, autographed photos… With Auntie Twilight, it was always a book. Always.

I was surprised to see her motion to follow her. Oh great, it must be an entire set of encyclopedias. Wouldn’t want me to be left uneducated, would she? I love my auntie, I really do. But despite all the epic adventures she’s been on, she seems to struggle with the concept of something as simple as fun.

The present for me to unwrap was significantly larger than a book. It was far larger than even an entire set of the Encyclopedia Equestria. It was almost as big as I was. You could’ve heard a pin drop when the room got a good look at what was inside.

“Is that…?” Rarity clutched at her chest, dramatically.

“Twilight Marie Sparkle!” Grandma Velvet wasn’t pleased.

I know Auntie Twilight’s middle name now.

I recognized the smallest part of my favorite statue though. But why was Cozy Glow’s terrified face looking out at me? “Auntie?”

“I thought that instead of giving you a book this year, I’d give you something a little different. You’re twelve now, and it seems like a good time to entrust you with a friendship mission that even I couldn’t succeed in. But you’re not me. And I’ve been thinking about it, and I think that if anypony in all of Equestria could teach Cozy Glow friendship, it’s you. If you’d rather have a book instead, I have one picked out…”

“No, no, no, this is fine.” Better than fine. I get my own friend!

Mom and Dad looked uncomfortable with this whole situation. How dangerous had one pegasus filly truly been to be this deeply feared by every adult in the room? Especially considering that almost everypony here wielded incredible magical abilities. Every single alicorn in the world was in the room with me. The fastest pegasus alive was here. My crystalparents were present, and Starlight was likely the most powerful unicorn alive, and her husband, Sunburst, knew more spells than anypony even if he couldn’t cast many of them personally. Dad had his protection spell he could wield in the event of an emergency. Even my paternal grandparents were no slouches in the magic department. Spike could overpower her with brute strength if needed. If Cozy Glow stepped out of line for even a second she’d be incapacitated before she could take a single step. They were probably more concerned with what might happen to me after they all returned to their homes, forgetting that as the first natural alicorn I had more magic than all of them combined. My magic lessons were primarily focused on containing my powers rather than actually using them.

“And while I know there will be some objections due to your age, that’s precisely why I’m giving you this opportunity now. You’re her age. Maybe you can relate to her in a way the rest of us couldn’t. Perhaps more importantly, you weren’t there. You don’t hold the same biases the rest of us do. Yes, even myself. Especially myself. She was my student assistant once. And I failed her.”

“Beg pardon, Twi, but don’t you mean she failed you?”

“No, Applejack. We were her teachers. She was right there under our snouts and none of us realized she needed help. We failed her. I have faith that Flurry Heart won’t. I know this is unconventional, but I have a good feeling about this.” My parents were giving her death glares. Considering how close she was to both of them, that was disconcerting. “Before I release her, I need to talk to Flurry Heart. Alone.” Twilight glanced around the room. “I know most of you don’t agree with me on this. But if we don’t at least offer Cozy Glow the chance to see friendship as something more than a means to an end, are we any better than she is?”

“I’d reckon we are, sugarcube, on account o’ not trying to rid the world of magic or take over Equestria multiple times. Just sayin’.” She held up her hooves before Auntie Twilight could interrupt her. “But you’re the Princess of Friendship, and if y’all think she can change, I’ll support you. Sometimes it takes a lot of kindness to show somecreature the path to friendship.”

Fluttershy nodded in agreement. “I, um, I think I see where you’re coming from Twilight. It worked for Discord, and Cozy Glow is still at her core a pony. She shouldn’t be as hard to change. But if you don’t mind, I think I’d like to be in the other room when you release her. Please?”

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Seriously, Fluttershy? I mean Tirek or Chrysalis I could understand, but Cozy Glow’s not a physical threat to any of us without some kind of magical artifact of some sort or another. Like the one in the latest Daring Do book, where there’s this…”

Twilight zipped the pegasus’ mouth shut with a zipper spell. “Spoilers, Rainbow Dash. I haven’t had a chance to read it yet since I’ve been busy making preparations for this.”

The zipper disappeared and Rainbow apologized. “Right, sorry. Anyway, my point is, if she attempts a break for it, I can chase her down, or any of the gifted mages here could restrain her, or one of the earth ponies could jump her. She only gets dangerous when she starts talking. ‘Oh golly, gee, I didn’t mean to make such a big mess. Can you ever forgive me? Pwease?’”

“Dashie’s right. And if she sees all of us glaring at her like meanie-mean-pants’, she may decide to stay a meanie-mean-pants.”

“I do believe what Pinkie’s trying to say is anypony who doesn’t feel they can be sincerely happy to see her again should perhaps wait in the other room with Fluttershy.” Rarity put on her game face. “I refuse to give the little brat the satisfaction of seeing me cower before her. None of us trust her. I doubt any of us could ever trust her. Even if she truly changes, how do you expect ponies to believe anything a habitual liar says? Celestia left Discord in stone for over a millennium until ponies forgot he even existed. It’s only been a decade. Nopony’s had a chance to forget Cozy Glow yet.”

After listening to her friends eventually rally to her side, Auntie Twilight pulled me into one of the empty rooms, going so far as to put a silence bubble around us. She really didn’t want anypony overhearing us, not even my parents.

“Flurry Heart, if you’re uncomfortable with this, you’re under no obligation. I’ll put her back in the garden with the rest of them and forget about redeeming her until a better opportunity comes along.”

I gulped. “I don’t know. I mean she’s just a filly like me, but everypony here is terrified of her. I didn’t realize she was that scary.”

“She uses her age and her adorableness to get what she wants. I could never entrust this to an adult. The ones who remember what she did would never give her the chance to change her ways, while the ones who don’t remember her crimes would only enable her to start all over again. Rather, it seems the best chance she has is a filly her own age. Somepony cuter than she could ever hope to be.”

I blushed.

“Furthermore, I could never let a pony without generous reserves of mana be near her. Somepony needs to be able to stop her. Between you and your honor guard, you can handle her. She’s deceitful. I have no doubt she’ll go right back to scheming the minute she’s out of that stony prison. Part of me wonders if releasing her is truly a good idea. If I was doing it solely for her benefit, I’d probably take Rarity’s suggestion and wait a few centuries until she’s buried in the history texts. But I have ulterior motives.”

I looked up at Auntie Twilight. Scheming wasn’t normally in her nature.

“You’ve probably spent more time playing with that statue than you have playing with fillies or colts your own age. I love my brother and Cadence very much, but they’re overprotective. When I was your age, I couldn’t be bothered to make friends and that was my choice. I was wrong, but it was my decision to make. That’s not you. You’re a filly who wants to make friends, but your parents won’t let you. Not out of maliciousness, but out of looking out for your best interests. Cozy Glow has no family that we know of, so nopony’s going to be using her to gain influence for themselves. Even if things don’t work out with Cozy Glow, maybe they’ll be more willing to let you try making friends with others instead once they get used to you hanging out with another filly your own age.”

“Does that mean you won’t be mad if I can’t help her?”

Auntie Twilight smiled that goofy smile she has. That awkward hesitation her lips have, as if being forced to curve upwards is unknown territory for them. Likely brought on by too much isolation and studying. You know, like me. I hope my smiles don’t look that weird to everypony else.

“Of course not. Cozy Glow is a special case. She may be incapable of making friends entirely, and I certainly can’t hold that against you. I couldn’t reach her, nor could any of my friends. So if you can’t get her to see the light, you’re in good company. But if you can…” Her smile grew, passing the awkward stage and flowing into something more natural. She tousled my mane. “…Maybe Cozy Glow can get through to Tirek and Chrysalis. I could do with one less statue in the Royal Gardens. What do you think?”

“Are there any other ponies trapped in the garden?” I couldn’t help myself. I blurted the question out without even thinking about it first. I covered my mouth with my hooves, as if that could take the words back.

Twilight paled. “I… I don’t know. I never asked. Most of the pony statues are oversized, too big to be real ponies.”

“But there are some life-sized ponies.”

Twilight nodded. “I’ll make it a point to speak with Celestia while she’s here. If there are …other ponies… trapped in stone, I intend to help them too. Not right away, of course. I’d have to find out who they are, what they did, and then wait for an opportunity to come along. Sort of like this. You’re only going to be Cozy Glow’s age once, and I think you’re the right filly for the job. You’re outgoing, you want friends. You’re smart enough not to be fooled by all her tricks. You’re strong enough magically to stop her even if she does manage to pull the wool over your eyes. If she does, don’t think of it as a failure. She outwitted me too. And if she manages to best you physically somehow… I’ve authorized your guards to use lethal force on her.” Auntie Twilight looked as if she was going to turn visibly ill. “You mean the world to me, Flurry. I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”

None of the princesses supported the death penalty. That was why Tartarus and petrification spells existed in the first place. If she was willing to throw one of her core values out the window, it meant that even Auntie Twilight was worried about this. I did the only thing I could do – I hugged her. “It won’t come to that. I promise.”

“I have faith in you.” She nuzzled me. “Come on, let’s get back to your party. You have a gift to unpetrify.”

The various conversations in the room quieted down the instant we returned. Every eye in the room was on the statue. Cozy Glow had been placed on her stomach, lying on the floor so as not to fall to the floor upon her release. It was a greater kindness than many of those gathered felt she deserved. But it was Twilight’s decision to make, and she’d made it. Most of the ponies looked nervous. Twilight went around to everyone individually, conversing with them and explaining what to do.

Auntie Twilight stood directly in front of the petrified filly in our midst, while my parents stood on either side of her. They obviously disapproved of what she was doing, but they trusted her enough not to stop her. Celestia and Luna stood behind the statue, their faces as still as Cozy’s. Hiding their emotions was a trick honed from centuries experience in ruling, one I desperately wanted to learn myself. Starlight Glimmer and Sunburst stood to Cozy Glow’s left side, with Rarity across from them. Rarity’s face mirrored that of the princesses’, a mask concealing her true thoughts. Rainbow Dash hovered over the scene to prevent the filly from attempting to fly away, while Spike blocked the doorway to the rest of the castle. It was absurd. It was overkill along the lines of using three cans of whipped cream on one cupcake…

That cupcake, and the pink mare who made it, were both within my field of vision. I was soooooo going to enjoy that particular dessert. Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich were the only two ponies in the room who truly looked happy at this turn of events. Knowing them, they were already planning a ‘you’ve been freed from stone’ party for her. The ever honest Applejack had excused herself, as had Fluttershy and my grandparents.

Twilight lowered her horn and took aim at the statue, and with a sigh the other princesses followed her lead. Mom was the last, a look of resignation plastered on her face. She really needs to work on her poker face, especially if Cozy Glow really is as devious as everypony claims. I stood next to Rarity, lowered my head, and charged up my own horn as well. If she was going to be my responsibility, I felt obligated to help free her. Doubly so, since I was probably the only one who genuinely wanted to. Curiosity had finally overcome the fear of meeting this criminal. Was ‘criminal’ the right word? Or would ‘villain’ be more appropriate? It was too late to ask now.

Eight beams of arcane energy struck the statue and it started cracking, releasing a pink pegasus filly with a curly blue mane from her stony sleep. She gasped, taking her first breath in years. “So…un…clean…” Her eyes darted around the room, catching those of the gathered ponies who’d remained behind to witness her extrication.

“Cozy Glow, by royal decree I hereby…”

She craned her neck up to look at the princess towering over her. “Oh golly, you got taller. And sparklier.” She shivered, but continued on, her voice scratchy from dryness and disuse. “Spare me the friendship speech. I will literally do anything not to be stoned like that ever again.” She closed her eyes. “I’m a germophobe. There’s no punishment you could have possibly conceived worse than this to me. I will never be clean ever again.” She looked down at the stone shards underneath her and shuddered. “Pigeons everywhere. I can still feel them. Please, if you have any mercy, I beg of you a long, hot shower and a one-way trip back to Tartarus. Just let me rot there, please.”

“Cozy Glow, your coat was protected by a layer of stone. The pigeons weren’t roosting on you directly.” Whatever Twilight Sparkle had been expecting from the filly, this probably wasn’t it.

“I could feel them. Please, I don’t care about your friendship offers or whatever other reason you have for freeing me. Just give me at least an hour in the hottest shower you have. And as much soap and shampoo as you can spare. No tricks, no escape attempts. I promise.” She was breaking down in tears. “I’ll never be clean ever again. Please, if you’re just going to turn me back to stone, keep my statue inside. I know you hate me, but can you grant me that one little mercy? In exchange I’ll offer you no resistance whatsoever.”

“We’re not turning you back to stone, nor are we sending you back to Tartarus. You’re going to learn friendship for real this time.”

Cozy Glow groaned.

“How bad do you want that shower?”

It took less than a second for any defiance left in the filly to crack. “Friendship it is, then. Shower first, please?”

Auntie Twilight looked from the wretched filly on the floor to me. “Cozy Glow, by royal decree I hereby declare you turned over to the custody of Princess Flurry Heart for rehabilitation.” She nodded to me. “You can start by helping Cozy get clean.” She mouthed ‘I’m sorry’ while Cozy’s eyes were still shut.

Her eyes flew open. “You’re Flurry Heart? Oh golly, you’re my age.” She did the math. “Eleven years.” She shuddered. “Eleven years of bird doo. Why didn’t Discord eradicate them when he had the chance?!? If I’d known this was going to happen to me, I would’ve done it myself when I stole his powers.”

I was glad Fluttershy was in the other room. Hopefully she hadn’t heard that. For that matter, hopefully Discord hadn’t heard it. I was somewhat surprised he wasn’t here, but he always had a way of turning up when somepony spoke his name.

Rainbow Dash landed and the princesses just turned and looked at one another in confusion. I’d spent enough time around all of them to know what they were thinking. They honestly couldn’t tell if the filly was being sincere or if this was yet another trick. It worried them.

On a side note, Pinkie’s gift turned out to be precisely what I needed. Or rather, exactly what Cozy Glow needed.

I spent the next hour scrubbing Cozy Glow as clean as equinely possible. Since I was helping her bathe, it wasn’t hard to finally get an answer as to what her cutie mark was: a rook. I guess that symbolized manipulation and strategy fairly well. She hadn’t even resisted my accompanying her to the shower. Like it or not, she’d have no privacy from here on out. Nopony was going to trust her left alone to her own devices. Certainly not me, even if she’d done nothing yet to earn my distrust.

Two of my personal guards, both mares, kept their eyes on her the whole time. The rest of my honor guard secured the hallway to prevent anypony from disturbing us, and to prevent the highly unlikely escape of a waterlogged pegasus.

Was she sincerely this disturbed by her punishment? Was this a ploy to separate herself from the most powerful of the gathered ponies to make an escape attempt? Or was she just trying to gain sympathy points with the ultimate sob story? She’d apparently had a lot of time to think while she was a statue.

“So,” I said, trying to make conversation as I scrubbed her withers. “You’re a germophobe?”

She nodded. “It’s why I hover everywhere. I don’t like walking on the ground. It’s icky and disgusting. I don’t have magic so I have to use these hooves to eat!”

I nodded. I had never thought of it that way before, but of course I was fortunate enough to have magic. Auntie Twilight had mentioned something about Cozy Glow being potentially bigoted. She wasn’t entirely sure if that was something Cozy truly believed, or if it was just a method of exploiting those around her. Being jealous of unicorn magic would certainly give her some motivation for wanting to rob the world of magic. Maybe I could figure this filly out one piece of the puzzle at a time.

My thoughts were interrupted as I took a stream of water right to the face. I sputtered, glaring at Cozy as she turned the shower head back towards herself. “What was that for?”

“Because I’m ‘evil’. Everypony’s expecting me to do bad things, I wouldn’t want to disappoint them.”

“You’re so gonna get it!”

“What are you gonna do? Turn the hose on me? Ha! Joke’s on you, I’m already drenched!”

I magically switched the hot water to cold, eliciting a squeak of surprise from her as she practically jumped out of the shower.

“All right, you two, playtime’s over.” One of my guard detail turned the water off with her magic. “It’s been almost an hour and a half. Let’s get you both dry and then we can go back to the party.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m sure nopony’s been missing the birthday girl.”

Cozy Glow gasped. “It’s your birthday?” She looked at her hooves. “Golly, I hope you can forgive me for not getting you anything.”

I chuckled. “Technically, I think Twilight gave me you as a present. I don’t think she completely thought this one all the way through. But if it’s any consolation, you’re the best present she’s ever given me. Normally it’s a book.”

She laughed. “Does she ever think things through? Put a book in front of her snout and you’ll never get her attention.” She sighed. “It wasn’t exactly hard to convince her she needed a student assistant.”

“Gonna keep scheming?”

She laughed. “I’ve already got three schemes and a gambit in progress.”

“What’s a gambit?”

“An opening move in chess where you sacrifice material in order to achieve better position. After all these years it’s time for a new game.” She huffed. “The other princesses are sore winners. But now the pieces have been reset and we’re in the opening moves.”

“Why are you telling me all this?”

She shrugged. “Dunno. Maybe I’m being nice and giving you pointers for a game you’ve never played. Maybe I’m just trying to get into your head before you can so much as take one of my pawns. Or maybe there’s no game and I just want to make you paranoid.” She smiled. “The world may never know.”

I was starting to see why the adults didn’t like her. “Or you could just accept friendship.”

“Where’s the fun in that? Friendship is power, but that ship has sailed, I’m afraid. Nopony will ever be my friend now. Alliances have proven just as useless, as my stony compatriots can attest to. But the third time’s the charm. I’ll win this time.”

“Or die trying.” One of my guards spoke up. It was Moonracer, a mint green unicorn. She scowled at the filly. “None of us like you. You hurt the princess and you’ll be nothing but a bad memory.”

“See? Like I said, nopony’s ever going to be my friend again.” She pouted. I had to admit, she was pretty good at the whole adorable thing. “But right now it’s show time. Let’s see just what the Princess of Dusty Old Books and Way Too Much Magic has to say.” The guards opened the door and we walked in.

Half a dozen conversations came to a halt as we trotted up to Auntie Twilight. She was talking with my parents, who put on their biggest, fakest smiles when we approached. Cozy Glow sat on the floor directly in front of my aunt. She also plastered a smile on her face, and despite knowing Cozy’s was unauthentic, it still looked more genuine than any of the other smiles in the room. “Thank you for indulging me with that shower. Now let’s cut to the chase. Tell me why I’m here, and what you expect from me.”

Cozy Glow was incredibly disrespectful, but that was to be expected from a villain such as her. Auntie Twilight took it in stride though. She smiled at the master manipulator. “You’re here so you can learn friendship. I expect you to behave.”

“I always behave. Bad behavior is still behavior.”

Auntie Twilight didn’t take the bait. “Cozy Glow, I’m giving you a chance despite my better judgement and against the advice of all my advisors.” She motioned around the room to her friends and the other princesses.

“Let’s be honest, Headmare Twilight. You hold all the cards right now. But we both know I’m never going to stop scheming, and someday when you let your guard down I’ll be there to take advantage of it. I gave you the opportunity to send me back to Tartarus. I’m a mare of my word and I really did appreciate that shower. Send me back right now and I won’t put up a fight. But if you’re going to insist on this whole friendship thing, then you’re going to have to earn my redemption.”

“That’s not really how reformation works, Cozy Glow. You have to earn your own redemption.”

“I don’t do things the same way everypony else does. I would’ve thought you would’ve figured this out by now. If you want to see this work out the way you want it to, you’re going to have to earn it, not me. It may even require some sacrifices on your part.”

“Your call, Flurry Heart. Should I send her to Tartarus, seal her in stone, or do you want to take a chance on this conniving megalomaniac? As you can see, she has no respect for authority.”

“I don’t want your pity or your friendship! Just leave me alone!” Cozy Glow backed up against a wall.

“Nopony will hold it against you if you decide to send her back to Tartarus.”

“Lock her up! Lock her up! Lock her up!” I’d been wondering when Discord would show up. He was wearing a police uniform and dangling a pair of hoofcuffs.

“This was supposed to be my birthday party, not a parole hearing.” I sighed. As always, what I wanted didn’t matter. All I wanted was a birthday party with fillies and colts my own age. There was precisely one pony here who fit that description, and she was Equestria’s most hated filly. She would just have to do. “Cozy Glow, put this on.” I teleported an old dress that no longer fit me into the room and hoofed it over to Cozy Glow. Even though we were the same age now, she was no alicorn, so she was smaller than me. My hoof-me-downs would fit her perfectly, even if the wing cutouts were a little bigger than she’d need.

She glanced from me to the dress. “Why?”

“Because as of right now, you’re my guest. You’ll act like you want to be here and everypony else will treat you like they’re happy to see you. Seriously, you’re acting like a spoiled brat throwing a temper tantrum. And the rest of you aren’t acting any better. So you want my decision? I’m deciding that this is a birthday party and I want to have fun.” Once Cozy was wearing the dress, I took her hoof and led her to the dance floor.

Pinkie Pie was always down for a party. It didn’t matter that one of the attendees was a vile traitor, she cranked happy, upbeat tunes for us to dance to. Cozy Glow wasn’t much of a dancer. She looked as out of place on the dancefloor as I felt at my own party. “Like this.” I demonstrated the dance’s steps, and she imitated my moves. It took her a few tries, but she was a fast learner.

After a few dances, she was smiling. “What is this?” She motioned around the room to the party in general.

“My birthday party.”

“I know that, but I mean, this feeling. It’s almost like having fun, but there’s no gloating and no pile of defeated enemies begging for my mercy.”

“You can have fun without gloating or, uh, ponies groveling for their lives.”

She looked genuinely surprised at that. “Golly, I never realized that. Are there other ways to have fun?”

“Of course there are.”

“Golly. Though this would be better with more groveling.”

“You really think so?” Cozy Glow nodded. “Well then.” I slipped into the Royal Canterlot Voice. “Listen up, everypony. Empress Cozy Glow demands you all grovel at her hooves.” I returned to normal volumes. “Let her have this.”

To my surprise it was the least humble of all the ponies gathered who actually decided to go through with it. Rainbow Dash dropped in front of Cozy Glow, crawling on the floor. “Me? Grovel for your…” She coughed before continuing, “…for your mercy? You have no mercy. Make sure your next move kills me, or I’ll…” She coughed again. “…I’ll stop you.”

“Such heroic nonsense. Your feistiness will get you nothing more than a death sentence.” Cozy mimed slashing her neck. “Next!”

Pinkie Pie dropped down in front of the filly and gave her sad puppy eyes. “Pwease? I’ll be your best friend?”

“That sounds like something I’d say. Hmn, did it work for me?” Pinkie shook her head. “Exactly.” Cozy once more mimed slashing her neck. “Next!”

It was Fluttershy who next approached. Unlike her friends she didn’t drop to the ground in fake deference. Instead she reached out a hoof and slapped Cozy across the cheek. “How dare you.” Cozy winced at the blow. “Do you think this is all fun and games? Those are my friends you’re pretending to execute. I used to worry about you, a little filly all alone in Tartarus. I didn’t agree with locking you up, even if I didn’t see any other options. Look me in the eyes.” Fluttershy stuck a hoof under Cozy’s chin and forced her to look directly at her. “You will stop being a bully. You’ll stop being a power-mad would-be empress. You will be nice. You’ll behave, and by that I mean good behavior. Do you understand?”

“I will stop being a bully and a power-mad would-be empress. I’ll be nice and on my best behavior.”

The Stare. I never thought I’d see it in action. I also never dreamed Fluttershy would use it on a pony. It was pretty much mind control.

But Fluttershy wasn’t done. She scooped the filly up in her hooves and held her, dropping to her haunches as she wrapped a wing around Cozy Glow. I could hear Cozy Glow sniffling as she cried on Fluttershy’s shoulders. “There, there, little one. It’ll be okay. You did some bad things but we’re giving you a second chance.” She patted her wing against Cozy’s back as the filly started wailing. “Shh, it’s going to be okay. You’re not a bad pony, you just made some bad decisions. You’re going to be a good filly from here on out and eventually everypony will forgive you.”

With the wind taken out of my dancing partner’s sails, I guided her towards the refreshments. It had been years since she’d last eaten anything. Perhaps food would make her feel better. “I’ve been so bad. Why was I so bad?”

“Only you can answer that.”

“I don’t want to be bad anymore.” That was the Stare speaking and I knew it. Still, it would be nice if it were true.

“Only you can change who you are. If you really want to be a better pony, how about you tell me what your current plans are?”

“Gathering intelligence. I don’t have enough information to properly scheme yet. One objective attained: released from stone. Hopefully permanently?”

“I promise you that if you have to be punished for some reason, we won’t leave you out in the garden again. If you’re turned into a statue again, it’ll be indoors. I’ll personally see to that, no matter what you do. Why so anxious to go back to Tartarus?”

“Beats learning friendship.”

“Not buying it.”

Her façade cracked for a moment, but she put her game face back on. “I have no idea why you think I’d want to go to Tartarus.”

“You mentioned you were running a gambit, and explained that requires a sacrifice. Since you have nothing, the only thing you could possibly sacrifice is yourself. And that got me to thinking. You go back into stone, you win. We both know Auntie Twilight would never be capable of leaving you a statue forever. I’m sure she’s already planning on how she could reform Tirek and Chrysalis too. It’s just how she rolls. So she frees you at some point in the future, after your misdeeds have been forgotten to history, and you start all over again. It would be easier to do it then, as opposed to now, because you’d be anonymous again.”

“That sounds like something I’d do.” She smiled, and it looked genuine. “And here I thought Headmare Twilight was going to waste my time with somepony unworthy. Go on, tell me why I’d want to go back to Tartarus. I’m genuinely curious to see how much you’ve figured out.”

“I have nothing but speculation. Either you have a way to get out, or you stashed something there that Discord didn’t bring with you when he bailed you out. Maybe even both.” I paused. I wasn’t sure just how much to reveal. Maybe I was giving her too much credit as is, or perhaps I was still underestimating her as badly as everypony else had done. One way to find out. “Or, conversely, you were trying to employ reverse psychology on Auntie Twilight in the hope she’d leave you here, amongst the royal family of the Crystal Empire, where your misdeeds aren’t quite as well-known as they are elsewhere around Equus, without actually agreeing to the part about learning friendship. And that’s only what I can guess based on what I know. I wouldn’t be surprised if you have another dozen plans in place based on the success or failure of your current ploys.”

Cozy Glow clopped her front hooves in appreciation. “Well done, my new little nemesis.”

“I’d prefer to be your new friend.”

Cozy Glow grinned at me. “There’s only one way to become my friend. I mean, for real.”

“And that is?”

“I can’t spoon feed you all the answers. You’re a very clever little filly. If anypony ever figures it out, I’m sure it’ll be you.”

“Are you really under the effect of the Stare right now or are you just playing?”

“That’s a good question. Do you trust me?”

“About as far as I can throw you.”

“And how far is that, anyway? Your father once threw your mother to save the Crystal Empire. True story.”

I’d heard them talk about that. Mom still razzed Dad about it periodically. “Let’s find out.” I grabbed Cozy Glow in my aura and trotted over to the window. I unceremoniously dropped Cozy into one of my hooves, then I let my foreleg fall back before whipping it forward. She went sailing out of the castle. “Looks like I can throw you pretty far.” Then I noticed her flapping her wings for all she was worth. “And she’s making a break for it. Of course.”

Auntie Twilight patted my shoulder as Rainbow Dash leapt through the window to retrieve the retreating pegasus. “Welcome to the club. She’s played all of us like that at one time or another.”

“So does this mean the Stare didn’t work on her?”

“Probably.”

Rainbow Dash returned shortly with a squirming Cozy Glow tucked under her foreleg. “Let me go!”

“Yeah, I don’t think so.” Cozy Glow pouted but went nowhere until Rainbow presented her to me. “I believe this belongs to you? There are leash laws you know.” Cozy Glow grumbled, but my aura restrained her from going anywhere, or from lashing out at either Dash or myself.

“So we meet again, Miss Glow.”

“Golly, you sure did throw me far! You must really, really trust me!”

I rolled my eyes. “Nice try, Cozy Glow. But seriously, let’s be rational about this. Where do you expect to go where nopony would recognize you? Do you honestly think you could so much as trot down the block without having the Royal Guards called on you?”

“There are places I could go. Maybe.”

“There are little calves in Yakyakistan who know your face.”

“My adoring public.”

“They’re so adoring, they’re even grabbing torches and pitchforks. Just for you.”

She nodded. “My beloved subjects, your empress orders you to pillage, then burn. Always pillage first.”

“You’re a horrible pony. I hope you know that.”

Cozy grinned. “I know it better than you do. You haven’t seen the things that go through my mind.”

“Why?”

“’Why?’ she asks. Of course you wouldn’t understand. Your life is perfect. You’re a princess with a loving family and surrounded by friends. I never had a family or friends, nor will I ever be a princess. You have everything and I have nothing. So if I can’t have them, why should you or anypony else?”

I hugged her. I probably shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t help it. I couldn’t tell if she was manipulating me or not. And frankly I didn’t even care. Somepony was going to care about Cozy Glow, and if nopony else would do it, then I would. “Even though you’re probably lying to me for sympathy, that’s still horrible.” I turned to my crystalmother. “Starlight, is there some kind of truth spell you could perform on Cozy Glow?”

“There is, and I already have. It was completely ineffective. She believes the words coming out of her mouth, just like she believes the words contradicting them ten minutes later. I even resorted to combing through her memories. A highly invasive and usually illegal form of mind magic… As a criminal, however, Cozy Glow forfeited her right to privacy. Her memories actively changed in front of my eyes. The longer I was observing them, the more they changed to include me – events that never happened, but showed Cozy Glow and I bonding, becoming friends. It was bizarre and I’ve never seen anything like it all.” She shuddered. “It’s almost as if her fantasies were her memories. Normally the procedure leaves the patient with a nasty headache, but when we were done I was the one with a migraine and she was perfectly fine.”

“I told you my mind is a dark and disturbing place. And to think, I was only showing her the happy memories. We were friends once, so I focused on that. She’d never sleep again if I showed her the rest.” She smiled, but unlike most smiles there was nothing reassuring about this one. It was kinda scary. I didn’t know smiles could be scary.

“Flurry Heart! It’s bedtime.”

Oh sure, now it’s bedtime. I never thought I’d say this, but I really wish bedtime had been about five minutes ago. For once I didn’t complain about going to sleep. I didn’t beg to stay up later to enjoy my party, I just followed Mom to my room. She dragged a struggling Cozy Glow along with her magic.

“What are you going to do with Cozy?”

“Auntie Twilight didn’t give us advance notice that we’d be hosting a…” she trailed off, looking for a suitable word. She finally decided on one and continued, “…visitor for an extended stay. We don’t have an appropriate room prepared for somepony of her… uh, status. So, for tonight, she’ll be sleeping in the dungeon.”

“And only for tonight?”

Mom made a rather noncommittal noise as she closed my door. “Love you, sweetie!”

It was a good thing my birthday fell on a Saturday this year. I lay there in bed, not sleeping. My mind was going a mile a minute as I tried to make sense of everything that had happened in the last few hours. Auntie Twilight had trusted me with what she felt might be one of the most important friendship missions of all time. That was good. She’d given me access to a filly my own age. That was also good. But that filly was a manipulative, scheming, amoral brat. That was bad. Can I help her? And if so, how? What would Auntie Twilight do? For that matter, what had Auntie Twilight already tried?

My mind refused to shut off as I laid there thinking. I could occasionally hear my birthday party still going on, sans the guest of honor. Amazing how that works.

Head Games

The next morning dawned several hours before I actually got out of bed. Sleep had come late and fitfully, and I wish Luna hadn’t had the night off because I really could’ve used some help with my nightmares.

Breakfast was waiting for me regardless. One of the many perks of being a princess was having any kind of food available at a moment’s notice. I’d had too many sweets the night before, so I opted for a simple bagel with a decent dollop of cream cheese smothering it. Okay, so maybe I hadn’t had enough sweets the night before. According to Pinkie Pie there was no such thing as ‘too many sweets’ and wiser words had never been spoken.

Dad was waiting for me at the dining room table. With my sleeping in, I wonder how many duties he’d needed to reschedule just to be available to lecture me? Even though I had nothing to do with Auntie Twilight’s decision, I was sure he was going to give me some sort of lecture. Probably the ‘big responsibility’ lecture, like every time I asked about getting a kitten or a puppy.

“Sleep well?”

“No.” I answered honestly.

“Got a lot on your mind?”

I remembered how Cozy Glow had just cut Twilight Sparkle off midsentence last night, and wished I was brave enough to just cut to the chase. Instead I just nodded. But maybe I could head off the inevitable lecture by beating Dad to the punch. “It’s a big responsibility. I wasn’t expecting it. Life’s going to be different from now on. Any idea why Auntie Twilight would do this?”

“We spoke after you went to bed. Your auntie has a rather enviable track record of redeeming former villains: Nightmare Moon, Sunset Shimmer, Starlight Glimmer, Discord, and Fizzlepop Berrytwist all come to mind. I think it irks her that Cozy Glow, one of her former students, was the one that got away. I think she feels guilty about not helping her. I can’t help but agree with her that we should give Cozy Glow another chance, but I don’t agree that it should be your duty to do so. If you don’t want to, you don’t have to.”

“I understand. But I want to give this a try. I know there will likely be a few missteps along the way. She’s a sneaky one, but I think I can do it. I spent some time talking to her last night.”

“You also inadvertently facilitated her brief escape from the castle.”

I blushed at the reminder. “I said there’d be mistakes along the way. I’m new at this. She got the best of me last night, and I’m sure she will again. How do you and Mom feel about this?”

It was Dad’s turn to blush. “We hate it. We don’t like the idea of having that deceitful little monster living with us. And we especially don’t like the idea of you spending time around her. Just remember, you’re to rub off on her, not vice versa.” He kissed my forehead. “We worry about you, sweetheart. Your mother and I love you and we don’t want to see anything bad happen to you.” He took one of my hooves in his own and looked me in the eyes. “It’s your decision to make. If you think you’re ready for this, we’ll support you any way we can.”

“Thank you.” I kissed his cheek. “Where is she, anyway?”

“The dungeon. If you’re not with her, that’s where she’ll be. We’re not letting her run free in the castle without supervision.”

“Would it hurt to treat her like a pony? Let her have a guard detail, much like my own. You’ve probably got an entire squad guarding her in the dungeon. But we’re only setting her up for failure if we can’t show her the kindness we want her to show us. Let her have a real room instead of a dungeon. It doesn’t need to be fancy; it just needs to not look like a jail.”

“Interior room, no windows. Spartan furnishings.”

I shrugged. “She doesn’t need much. I’m going to donate some of my old clothes that I’ve outgrown to her. And I think there’s one other thing she needs. Call it a hunch, but let’s get her a chess set. Her mark’s a rook, and she enjoys playing the long game. We may as well give her an outlet for all her scheming.”

“Who’s she going to play?”

“I don’t suppose you’d like to teach me how to play chess? Daddy-daughter time!”

Dad chuckled. “You’ve got it, sweetie.”

“Auntie Twilight mentioned she doesn’t have any family. How about friends?”

Dad shook his head. “She’s a complete mystery. There’s no record of her existing in Equestria at all. We don’t even know her birthday.”

“How sad. I don’t know if I can get any honest answers out of her, but I’ll try. There’s a good chance she doesn’t even know.” I kissed Daddy on the cheek one last time and then headed down to the dungeon to get Cozy Glow.

I’d been wrong. Daddy hadn’t entrusted Cozy Glow to a mere squad. There was an entire platoon watching her like a hawk in the dungeon. Two dozen soldiers stood quietly as the filly blabbed their ears off.

Cozy Glow saw me and her eyes lit up. “Flurry! I’m over here!” As if it was hard to find the only prisoner in the dungeons. “I’ve been talking to the guards all morning, but they’re not very friendly.”

“Did you sleep well?”

“Like a statue! And believe me, I’d know!”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at that. Despite their best efforts, I saw a couple of the guards repress the slightest of smirks. “I bet it felt good to actually sleep again. What was it like as a statue?”

“Horrible. I could feel and think, but I couldn’t see or talk. And there was no privacy. I could hear Tirek and Chryssie’s thoughts as easily as they could hear mine. It’s really hard to scheme when you have two other villains nitpicking, critiquing, and laughing at you.”

“To be fair, the whole point of locking you in stone was to prevent you from scheming. So it sounds like that was actually rather effective.”

“And of course, the birds.” She shuddered again. “They made fun of me for that too. Telling me that real villains aren’t afraid of a little dirt or bird doo. There were a few times we were covered in graffiti. And I don’t know what kept happening to Chrysalis, but she cursed herself for leaving her mouth open. Maybe birds were nesting in there?”

Cozy Glow was released from her cell, and the entire platoon fell into step around us. “What would you like to do today? I’m guessing you’d like something to eat, but after that our schedule’s clear. It’s a Sunday, and we don’t have any other obligations.”

“Breakfast would be great.” She had a bowl of cereal, while I grabbed another bagel. She asked a few questions on what had been happening in Equestria while she was gone, and I did my best to catch her up on current events. I was careful to keep things to just what was known publicly. As a princess, I had access to more sensitive information, and Cozy Glow was probably the last pony I should be discussing matters of the state with.

After breakfast, which was late enough we could have just as easily called it brunch, we went to go see a movie. Our platoon of guards split up, two guarding each door on the outside, and another two guarding them from the inside. One guard sat to Cozy’s right, while another sat to my left. The rest spread out around the theater. I’d let Cozy pick the movie, and she’d opted for a cutesy movie about a cat and dog lost in the wilderness and trying to find their way back home.

Normally, such a movie would attract families bringing their foals, but my parents had opted to buy every seat in the theater. So we had the place to ourselves, and a giant bucket of popcorn to share. If only Cozy were a hunky colt I could pretend this was a date. As if my parents would ever allow me to date anypony. Maybe when I’m thirty.

After the movie was over, I led the way to a toy shop, but paused as we passed the newsstand. The lead headline of the Crystal Empire Chronicle was Cozy Glow Paroled: Flurry Heart To Reform Former Villain. The cat was out of the bag – I suppose we couldn’t keep it a secret forever, especially once she was inevitably seen in public with me.

We continued on to the toy store. I had an allowance, and a fairly generous one at that. I was going to be spending a lot of time with Cozy Glow, so I decided to blow my entire week’s budget on things we could occupy our time playing. A chess set was my number one priority, but I let her pick a few other games out. We ended up with a deck of playing cards, a deck of Uno cards, half a dozen board games, and I snagged a Rubik’s Cube too, thinking puzzle games might be to her liking.

I levitated the purchases in my field as we cantered back to the castle. Normally I had trouble going anywhere without encountering at least one paparazzo. Today though, the paparazzi were out in force. Everypony wanted a shot of the youngest princess with the recently freed Cozy Glow. The scandal sheets were going to have a field day with this. Cozy Glow took it in stride, hamming it up for the cameras. I made a mental note that she loved to be the center of attention. It made sense, considering everything else I knew about the filly.

“Want me to get rid of them?” she volunteered.

“That would be great.”

“You got it!” Cozy fluttered a few feet above the ground, twirling around for the photographers, who were more than happy to take pictures of the recently released convict. Then, mid-spin, just as a number of flashbulbs went off she lifted her tail, exposing her nether regions to the paparazzi. “Oh golly. Did all of you just take naughty pictures of a filly in front of all these Royal Guards?”

Several of the photographers tried running or flying away, but we had an entire battalion with us. Two dozen highly trained soldiers versus a dozen paparazzi. They rounded up each of them fairly easily, and they joined our procession back to the castle.

Cozy Glow didn’t even attempt to escape in the turmoil. She landed gently beside me as we watched the madness. “Lesson number one: When somepony’s exploiting you, they don’t expect the tables to be turned on them.”

“Huh?”

“Your first lesson. Con artists are easy to con. You just need to the right bait to make them think they’re scamming you.”

“They’re not really con artists. They’re just doing their job. Also, I’m the one who’s supposed to be giving you lessons.”

She chuckled at that. “You’d have to have something worth teaching me, first. Instead, being nice and good just lets them exploit you, your family, and any other celebrities in their near vicinity. But manipulation? I get results, as you can see for yourself.”

“As much as I hate dealing with the paparazzi, I despise you even more. I’d rather put up with all of them than just the one of you. And I don’t want you filling the princess’ head with your nonsense. You’re nothing but trouble, Cozy Glow.” Moonracer glared at the filly.

“I’m not always evil you know. Sometimes I do the wrong things for the right reasons, like right now. Other times I do the right things for the wrong reasons. But mostly I do the wrong things for the wrong reasons.”

“What about doing the right things for the right reasons?”

“Maybe once or twice, completely by accident. I try not to think about those failures though.”

“You really are awful.”

Cozy Glow shrugged. “I didn’t ask to be released. I mean, I would’ve, if I could’ve, but it’s hard to talk when you’re stone. You could’ve left me a statue. But you’re better than that. You’re better than me. For now.”

“You’re going to try to knock me down instead of you climbing up, aren’t you?”

“Very good! You get an ‘A’ for today, my most faithful student! Today I help you. Tomorrow I hinder you. Maybe Tuesday I’ll let you teach me something. Thursday I sit around all day eating pancakes.”

“Wait… what?”

“Seriously, I haven’t had pancakes in eleven years. There are lots of things you take for granted that have been denied to me for over a decade. And I plan on making up for lost time. Blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, whipped cream, butter, maple syrup…”

I left her droning on about pancakes and turned to Moonracer and motioned to the paparazzi. “What are you going to do with them?” I was genuinely concerned about their welfare. They hadn’t intended to do anything illegal. Maybe unethical, but not necessarily illegal.

“I’m sure some kind of arrangement can be made where all the film gets destroyed without being developed, and everypony just trots away without this getting nasty. Right?” She looked at one of the photographers. He nodded, as did the others in earshot. “And maybe you’ll all think twice about harassing the royal family from here on out.”

We returned to the castle, and Cozy followed the bulk of the guards to the barracks. “I want to personally verify every last negative gets destroyed. Wanna come with?”

“No thanks. I’ll put these games away, and you can find me when you’re done.”

“Okie dokie!”

We went our separate ways for the time being, with Cozy supervising the Royal Guards, much to their chagrin. I’m sure it was a mind game on her part, but she raised a valid point, making it impossible to say for sure one way or the other. Ambiguity was par for her course. I was slowly getting a handle on the way she worked. I could see why a logical mare like Auntie Twilight would despise dealing with her. She has Auntie Twilight’s intelligence, Rarity’s creativity, and Pinkie’s playfulness. She’s easily bored and needs outlets for her creativity.

Dad interrupted my thoughts as I was putting the games away in my room. “How goes foalsitting Equestria’s vilest filly?”

I caught him up to date on what had happened, and the insights I’d gained about her character. “She’s not completely beyond help.”

Dad nodded. “If she was, your auntie wouldn’t have entrusted you with her rehabilitation. She just wasn’t the right mare for the job.”

“Is her room ready?” I looked at my overloaded closet and motioned to the games I’d picked up. “I don’t seem to have room for these.” Maybe I was just a little spoiled.

Dad nodded. “Follow me.” I didn’t have to go far – she had the room right across the hall from mine. My room had a prime position, along the exterior wall. Hers was an interior room formerly used as a storage closet. “Go on, sit on her bed.”

I did, and it was lumpy, uncomfortable, and smelled musty, as if it had been stored someplace damp for an extended period of time. “This is horrible.”

“I had a few privates go through the Guard’s inventory of beds to find the worst of the worst.”

“Daddy.”

“It’s still more comfortable than a dungeon cell. She’s a criminal, sweetie. We’re not giving her the guest suite. Maybe she’ll earn better accommodations through good behavior. But right now? She’s starting in the basement.” He motioned to the contents of the room that was spartan even by military standards. “This is more than she deserves.”

“Be that as it may, if we keep treating her like a criminal, she’s going to stay a criminal. If we show her that we have faith that she can reform, maybe she’ll actually do so. I’m keeping the games in here. Maybe I’ll get her some books too. She has an incredible mind, Dad. She’s probably a genius. We need to stimulate her brain in ways that don’t lead to world conquest.”

“And yet you bought her chess and Risk. Great plan.” He scanned the games I’d purchased. “If you really want to see where that filly shines, and just why she’s so dangerous, add the game Diplomacy to your next shopping list. You’ll need a few more players, but I’ll authorize some of her guards to play multiplayer games with you.”

“Why?”

“Because while you’re trying to reform her, I’m trying to get inside her head so I can defend against her if she ever goes megalomaniacal ever again.”

“Do you want to join us for some games?”

Dad shook his head. “Absolutely not. I’m not in the habit of showing my potential enemies how I strategize.” With that, Dad left the room.

I sat alone in her room for a while, planning various decorations to liven it up. That’s where Cozy found me. “Oh golly, I would’ve thought the princess’ room would be more luxurious than this.”

“My room’s across the hall. This is going to be your room from here on out. Forgive us for throwing you in the dungeon last night, but my parents weren’t expecting Auntie Twilight to do this, and hence we had nothing prepared for you.”

“That’s okay. I liked the dungeon well enough. It beats Tartarus and being encased in stone.” She laid down on the bed. “Gosh, I get a real bed all for myself? I haven’t had a bed since I got kicked out of the School of Friendship.”

“We just need to get you a bedspread and pillows. I figured you’d want to pick all that out for yourself. Maybe get a few posters for the walls. What singers and bands do you like?”

“I don’t really have any favorites. Music’s just noise.”

“How about we get some posters of hunky stallions to liven the place up. Who do you like?”

She shrugged. “Romance is an unneeded distraction.”

I blinked. “What did you have decorating your room at school?”

She laughed and waved a hoof, dismissively. “The most stereotypical cutesy posters designed to make me seem as innocent as possible. You know, kittens, puppies, flowers.”

“Would you like any of those?”

“Is anypony going to believe I’m innocent?”

“No.”

“There’s your answer.”

“So we should just get you maps of Equestria and the world so you can plot your future domination?”

“Oh golly, that would be swell! Oh, and if you could get me a skull too, preferably one with severe head trauma, that would be super!”

I was about to laugh at that until I remembered that such an item had been discovered among her belongings at the School of Friendship. Nopony had ever figured out where she’d obtained it, though tests had successfully proven the victim was dead long before Cozy Glow had been born. This was as good a time as any to get some information out of her. “Why would you want such a thing?”

“It intimidates ponies, throwing them off their game and putting me in a better negotiating position. Besides, skulls are totes cool.”

“If you say so. Where’d you get the one you had years ago, anyway?”

She giggled. “I dug it up somewhere.”

Forcing the issue didn’t work with Cozy Glow, so I dropped it. Instead I picked up one of the games. I didn’t feel confident in challenging her to one of the strategy games just yet, and Dad had yet to teach me chess, so I opted for something simple. “Wanna play Twister?” I’d picked the pegasus edition, since we both had wings.

“I guess. Out of these games, it’s the only one you have a good chance of winning.”

“Not very limber?”

She fluttered her wings. “Your wings were larger than mine when you were born. My wings are still the same size as they were eleven years ago, and yours have grown even larger. Unfair advantage, much?”

I hadn’t thought of that. “We could skip the wing spins.”

“Nah. I’ll give you this one. Twister’s way more fun when you use your wings.”

For simplicity’s sake, we asked one of our guards to spin for us. She did so, and we each reached our left front hooves to yellow. As Cozy had predicted, my wingspan did prove exceedingly helpful. But sometimes they got in the way, and Cozy was surprisingly flexible. We were tied 7-7 and had agreed that this would be the final round. Right wing blue was called and Cozy was in a far better position than I was. Still, if I bent over backward and stretched, I could make it work. As I stretched past her she kissed me. Startled, I collapsed to the ground in a heap.

“I win.” She fluttered over my prone form and dropped the spinner in the box. “Better luck next time.”

“What was that for? You probably would’ve won anyway!”

“Where’s the fun in that? Seeing the look on your face? Priceless!” She offered a hoof to help me up. Part of me wanted to yank her down to the floor. But my brain replayed the snippet of conversation we’d had earlier, about her knocking me down to her level. I wasn’t falling for it. Instead I took the hoof and raised myself to my hooves. “Good game. You got me fair and square.” I rubbed my mouth with the back of my hoof. “Ugh.”

“I thought you liked kissing ponies.”

“Handsome colts.”

“Suit yourself! Pity I squandered my first kiss with someone who just wiped it away.”

“That was your first kiss?” It suddenly dawned on me that it was also the first time I’d ever locked lips with somepony other than a family member. “I guess it was mine too.”

“I’m not a handsome colt though, so it doesn’t count.”

“It can count if you want it to? I’m sorry I wiped it away. You just surprised me is all.”

“That was the idea. Worked like a charm, too.” She giggled. She had the most adorable giggle. But that was her modus operandi. Everything about her was intentionally done to maximize cuteness. I just had to remind myself not to fall for it.

We’d played Twister right up until dinnertime. There’d be no shopping for a bedspread tonight, so I requested one of the maids do up her room while we ate.

Mom and Dad had always been big on spending time together as a family, made ever more challenging by their respective positions. Sunday dinner was always a family dinner, end of discussion. This time it was family plus one. I hadn’t been entirely sure if my parents would let Cozy Glow join us, but they raised no objections and the wily filly sat next to me. Cozy stared at her plate and mumbled something.

“What was that?” Mom was looking right at her.

“Thank you.” She still couldn’t look up at them. “I know you hate me. Just so you know, I don’t blame you for that at all. Nothing I say or do will ever convince you I’ve reformed, but that’s okay since I’m not planning on reforming anyway. I know you’re giving me the worst accommodations you can, but even your worst is orders of magnitude better than what I’m used to. Your dungeon was more steps up than you can imagine. So thank you.”

“It’s better than what you deserve.” Dad was still unpleased with the intruder to his home.

“In your eyes. Of course, it’s the winner that writes the history books. You’re happy with the old regime. Strike that, you are the old regime.”

Only Cozy Glow could somehow manage to turn a simple thank you into blaming them for her failed rebellion.

I did the only thing I could think of to diffuse the situation. “Mm, these potatoes are great.” They really weren’t in all honesty, but it was a new topic of discussion.

“They are,” Mom agreed. “And you’re welcome, Cozy. I’m pretty sure I heard a ‘thank you’ in there somewhere.”

The Princess of Love to the rescue. Mom couldn’t find it in her heart to hate anypony, not even Cozy Glow. Though she probably doesn’t love the mischievous filly as much as she loves everypony else, and I know she doesn’t want her in the castle, and especially not anywhere near me.

“Flurry’s tutor will be by tomorrow morning. You’ll be sitting in on her lessons from here on out to continue your own education. If you refuse to learn, that’s your own decision, but you won’t disrupt my daughter’s lessons. Do I make myself clear?”

“Crystal. Get it, because this is the Crystal Empire?” She giggled, but nopony else did. “Tough crowd.”

You know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and mares. Mom hadn’t anticipated Gilded Cage taking one look at Cozy Glow and refusing to teach her. As a result, he was summarily dismissed from royal service. So Monday ended up being a reprieve from classes.

I had Daddy teach me the basics of chess, and then I spent the rest of the day having my rump hoofed to me by Cozy Glow. She checkmated me in ten moves or less… Every. Single. Game. I threw my hooves up in frustration, and Moonracer offered to sit in a game for me.

“A wager?”

Moonracer laughed. “What could you possibly have to offer?”

“You win, Flurry Heart leaves the room and you get to smack this smug smirk right off my face.” She flashed her trademark grin.

“And if I lose?”

“I just want a pillow. You know, a nice comfortable pillow for my bed, instead of this lumpy thing.”

“Royal Guards don’t gamble.”

“What’s the matter? Afraid you’re going to lose to a little filly like me?” She fluttered her eyelashes and once more flashed that smug grin.

“I don’t accept your terms. I refuse to strike a pony unless they’re putting somepony else in danger. Even when it’s as tempting as this is.”

“Suit yourself, but if I beat you I’m still expecting that pillow.”

Moonracer rolled her eyes and settled in for a game of chess. She did way better than I did. She lasted twenty moves. Cozy dispatched the rest of our guards, one by one, winning a comforter, sheets, two pairs of slippers, and a robe in short order.

Despite none of the guards actually accepting the bet, they each delivered the filly’s winnings before nightfall.

“Voila! Bedspread.”

“You know; I was going to take you shopping.”

“My way is more fun. And it reminds your guards just who they’re dealing with.”

“Yes, remind them that you’re far too clever to be left unguarded for even a second.”

“As if I need to be unguarded to be dangerous!”

“You’re incorrigible.”

The rest of the week passed in a similar manner. We played games and got to know one another better. Mostly we played chess, and she started teaching me how to be a better player so I could be a ‘challenge’ instead of ‘the tutorial mode’. Even with her tips, she continued trouncing me.

Saturday night I returned to my room after dinner to find my bags had been packed. Mom sat on the corner of my bed, and I could hear her sniffling.

“What’s wrong, Mom?”

“We couldn’t find a tutor for you. Sunburst has too many obligations at the School of Friendship to become a full time tutor here in the Crystal Empire, but he can teach you in Ponyville.”

“I get to go to the School of Friendship?” I could hardly contain my joy. I’d miss my parents, but it would be nice to get out and make some friends like Auntie Twilight had.

Mom nodded. “You and Cozy Glow both. She’s your obligation, don’t forget.”

Schoolgirl

We left the next morning, with Dad accompanying us. Mom couldn’t get away from her royal duties, so it was just the three of us… and the now familiar battalion of Royal Guards.

“I’m uncomfortable with this.”

I turned from the window I’d been gazing out of to look at Cozy Glow. “What’s wrong?”

“The last time I was at the School of Friendship, I was kind of an awful pony.”

“Kind of?”

Cozy winced at Dad’s words. I glared at him for her, while she stared at her hooves as if they were the most interesting thing in all of Equestria.

“I’m trying to give friendship a chance. Not gonna lie, there’s still a well above average chance I’ll backstab all of you and make a power play, but I really am making an effort. Being reminded of past failures isn’t very friendly.”

Dad grunted something unintelligible that may or may not have been an apology, and the rest of the train ride to Ponyville passed in silence.

The train rolled into Ponyville’s station and we disembarked. I’d forgotten how much rustic charm Ponyville had – it’d been years since the last time I’d been here. We were trying to keep a low profile, since Ponyville had been ground zero for Cozy Glow’s first attempt at world domination, but go figure, a prince, a princess, a reforming villain, and an entire battalion of Royal Guards stood out like a sore pastern.

Ponies lined the streets of town as we marched through. At first there were cheers from Ponyville’s population, but they turned to jeers the instant the crowd got a look at Cozy Glow. Unlike her upbeat, cheery demeanor in the Crystal Empire, mugging for the paparazzi, here she kept her eyes firmly on the ground in front of her, tail firmly tucked between her legs in a posture suggesting shame and humiliation. As always with her, it was impossible to tell if this was legitimate guilt, or if she was trying to earn sympathy points with the ponies she’d hurt the most.

Dad had insisted she walk in front of me, despite my outranking her. I suppose that even in front of all these ponies, he didn’t trust Cozy Glow not to stab me in the back. Half of our guards were between us, but I could still see her fairly well. I could also see when ponies started hurling bottles and rocks at her. I put up a shield around her and ran past the guards. This isn’t happening. She’s my responsibility, and that means standing up for her when nopony else is willing to. Once I was alongside her I threw a wing around her, and pulled her close to me. I looked around the crowd, silently daring any of them to assault a princess. There were no takers.

The rest of the walk to the School of Friendship was uneventful. Starlight and Sunburst were waiting for us, and ushered us into the school.

“We’ve made arrangements as best we can.” Starlight paced around the headmare’s office. “Flurry Heart, you’ll be staying in your aunt’s old room in the castle. All of the surrounding guest rooms are reserved for your guard detail. Which leaves one last detail to discuss.”

“She can sleep in my room.”

“Flurry.”

“No, Dad, let me talk. You saw how everypony in town reacted to seeing Cozy Glow. The only way she’s going to be safe is if she’s near me. I want a guard detail in our room at all times, even if neither of us is there. And I’ll say this for the benefit of the guards, Cozy Glow is under my protection, which means she’s not to come to any harm unless she, herself, is the threat. So if somepony attacks her, I expect you to react exactly like you would if somepony attacked me.”

Auntie Twilight’s old room turned out to be fit for a princess, which was logical. There was more than enough room for a second bed. Starlight and Sunburst helped us prepare the room, while Dad returned home to the Crystal Empire. I thought he had other duties to attend to, but that evening two additional platoons showed up – one to be Cozy’s personal guard detail, and the other to rotate in and out with my detail and hers. It was overkill.

The next day was our first day of classes – for Cozy, it was a bit of a homecoming. The building was the same, but to her relief, there were very few ponies at the school who’d been there when she was. Starlight had become the Headmare in Twilight’s absence, but the students and most of the faculty had turned over in the decade she’d been away.

There were, however, some exceptions. Auntie Twilight and her friends had moved on, leaving empty positions amongst the staff. They’d been replaced by faces very familiar to Cozy Glow: Silverstream, Smolder, Ocellus, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and of course Starlight Glimmer. Starlight had approved our request to allow Cozy Glow to return to the school, and neither had mentioned their past the previous day. They’d have to sit down and talk about it eventually, but it appeared for the moment they were both content to let sleeping dogs lie.

Our first class was with Ocellus, and we sat in the back of the classroom to avoid drawing attention to ourselves. That didn’t work at all. For some reason the teacher hadn’t shown up, so the class focused their attention on us. Well, primarily me. They ignored Cozy Glow for the most part.

“There’s a princess in our classroom!”

“It’s Flurry Heart!”

“Oh my gosh! Are you a student here?”

I nodded and the group cheered in pleasure. Cozy, meanwhile, pulled out a textbook and stood it on end, using it for cover. No one had yet noticed her, and she liked it better that way.

I swiveled an ear as the filly sitting on the other side of Cozy started a conversation with her.

“Hi! Are you new here?”

“Sort of. I used to be a student here but… you could say I dropped out for a while.”

“Is that really Princess Flurry Heart?”

Cozy nodded.

“Cool! I just wanted to check. See, our professor’s a changeling, and sometimes she sneaks in and poses as a celebrity to catch us all off guard.”

“Ocellus, right?”

The filly nodded.

“I remember her from when I was here the first time. She was a little shy back then.”

“She’s still somewhat shy.”

“Where is she, anyway?”

“I heard Headmare Starlight called all the teachers into a special meeting this morning. I bet it has something to do with Princess Flurry Heart being here.”

“You don’t seem to be as enthralled with her as everycreature else.”

“I am, but I don’t want to bother her. She’s a princess. You said you used to go here? Tell me about that.”

“I’d really prefer not to.”

“Please?”

“I was expelled. But they’re giving me a second chance.”

“Expelled? For what?”

“You know, the normal. Trying to take over Equestria, draining the world of magic, the usual.” Her tone was less boastful than normal. Not quite remorseful, but more flippant, as if her actions hadn’t been a big deal.

The filly laughed. “Oh, that’s a good one. You had me going there for a minute.”

That struck me as odd. She recognizes me, but not Cozy Glow? Everypony knows Cozy Glow. Granted, she’s about my age, so maybe she doesn’t remember it personally, but she should’ve learned about it in school at some point. I reminded myself I was at the School of Friendship – perhaps history and Equestrian politics weren’t as crucial to the curriculum as they were in my private studies.

Once I was sure there wasn’t going to be any drama between the two of them, I turned my attention back to the herd of ponies and creatures asking me questions. “No, I’m not going to sign autographs. I’m here to learn, same as you. I’ll be here for a while, so I’m sure there’ll be plenty of time to get photos.”

Forty minutes later the bell rang and Cozy and I stood up.

“Oh, um, Princess?” The filly who’d been talking to Cozy finally addressed me.

“Yes?”

“Could you hang out here for a minute, please?”

She’d treated Cozy Glow like any other student and gave her a sense of normalcy. The least I could do was return the favor. “Sure.”

Once the rest of the class exited the room the filly changed into a light blue changeling.

“Ocellus?!?” Cozy Glow’s jaw dropped. “But… huh? Why?”

“Welcome back, Cozy, and welcome Princess.” She bowed to me. “Forgive the deception, but I wanted to talk to you without any past biases bleeding through. Thank you for indulging me. I believe there’s hope for you, Cozy Glow. That said, I have another class coming in and you have another class to get to. We’ll talk soon.”

Cozy and I walked to our next class in silence. Ocellus had even started the conversation by saying the professor liked to catch everyone off guard by posing as a student and we still didn’t catch on. Cozy wasn’t taking it well at all. I could tell her mind was replaying their conversation, looking for clues she’d completely overlooked. She’d taught me all about setting traps in chess, so for her to fall for one that seemed so obvious in hindsight was annoying her. I could tell she was beating herself up over it and I slipped a wing over her haunches.

“Not used to someone pulling the wool over your eyes?”

She grumbled. “I’ve probably spent more time around Chrysalis than anypony alive. How could I miss the signs?”

I shrugged. “I missed them too.”

She rolled her eyes. “You wouldn’t notice if you dad turned into a dragon.”

Mental note: Cozy lashes out at others when she’s angry at herself. “Look on the bright side: at least she’s not mad at you or harboring a grudge.”

“You could look on the bright side of a train wreck.”

I let her wallow in her self-loathing while we walked to our next class. We were the last ponies to arrive, which made Silverstream tackling Cozy and hugging her even more awkward due to the number of witnesses.

“Long time, no see! What was it like being a statue? Are you still evil?”

“Yes, it has been. Boring. That’s for me to know and you to find out.” She winked at the hippogriff.

Silverstream winked back. “Why are we winking? I love winking!” Cozy Glow had been knocked onto her back by the glomp, and Silverstream was sitting on her barrel, with her beak pressed against Cozy’s muzzle.

“Aren’t we supposed to be having class?”

Silverstream nodded but made no move to get up. Instead she faced the students who were sitting at their desks. “Cozy and I go way back! We were students here together eleven years ago. Well, it was eleven years ago for me, but only a few months for her. I might have sorta helped defeat her nefarious schemes on a few occasions, and she might’ve shot some alicorn laser beams at me. All zap! And blam! Then the princesses sealed her up in stone and we haven’t seen each other since. We left on bad terms eleven years ago.” She frowned. “What should we do to make up with one another?”

The class shouted in unison. “Hug it out!”

Cozy groaned. “Please tell me they said ‘slug’ and not ‘hug’.”

Silverstream quizzically cocked her head. “’Slug’? How do you slug something out?”

“By bucking or kicking. You’re familiar with the concept of fighting, right?”

“Nope!” She leapt off Cozy and picked her up and held her tight. “Yay! Hugs!”

“I need an adult.” Cozy grimaced as Silverstream continued clinging to her.

I noticed there was only one open desk and I quickly claimed it. Looking around the classroom, I couldn’t help notice that it was decorated with adorable posters with slogans like ‘Hug Life’, ‘Group Hug’, and ‘Huggogriff’.

“Usually, it’s considered polite to ask for permission before beginning hug therapy. But sometimes you have to take the initiative and launch a sneak attack. Especially on former villains. They’re all macho and claim they don’t like affection. But does Cozy Glow look annoyed?”

Yes. I probably know her moods better than anyone else in the school, and that is definitely her annoyed face.

“Probably! But that’s just an act! Deep down inside she loves knowing she’s valued and cared about.”

“It’s not an act.”

“You’re not getting out of this embrace!” Silverstream singsonged. “Oh, oh, oh! Who thinks Cozy Glow’s stubbornness is going to win?”

Silence answered her. Someone dropped a pin for emphasis.

“And who thinks hugging will win the day?”

There was stomping and cheering, and I happily added to the cacophony.

“When I get out of this hug and take over Equestria, I’m going to hold all of you responsible for this.”

“Somepony’s still grouchy! You know what this calls for?”

“Group hug!”

“That’s right! Come on down, everycreature!” Soon the whole class was embracing the tiny filly, or rather, we were all clustered together in the front of the room, hugging creatures that were hugging other creatures, and a few of them were actually hugging Cozy Glow and/or Silverstream.

“I hate all of you so very much.”

“Yay! It’s working! Sarcasm is how this particular reforming villain shows affection.” Silverstream patted Cozy’s curls. “Isn’t she just adorable when she pouts?”

“If you think this is going to work with every villain, you’re crazy. This would be a meal to Chrysalis. She would eat your affection and get more powerful. Tirek would just steal your magic.”

“Maybe, maybe not. But it’ll work on you. So soft and cuddly!”

“It will not!”

“Will too!” the rest of the class chorused.

We spent the rest of class wrapped in a giant group hug. The next class we had was Sweetie Belle’s, but Cozy directed me to Smolder’s classroom instead.

“Yo, Smolder! You in here?”

“Yeah. What do you want?”

“Eat me.”

“Come again?”

“I just came from hug therapy. I don’t ever want to go through that again, so eat me. I’m probably on the sweet side, so use whipped cream as a topping.”

Smolder laughed. “You? Sweet? If anything, you’re so bitter I’ll have to drown you in barbeque sauce just to make you palatable.”

Cozy giggled. “We cool?”

“If by that you mean, ‘do I still hate your guts?’ then the answer is yes.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

They grinned at one another, and she bumped a hoof into the dragon’s claws. I followed Cozy back into the hall. “What was that all about?”

“Smolder never liked me, not even before my first power play. After all the hugging, I just needed to hear her say that.”

“You’re a very strange pony.”

We trotted into Sweetie Belle’s class and took our seats.

“We have some new students in class today, so let’s give them both a warm welcome to Feelings 101!”

There was cheering from the rest of the class.

“Today’s first completely hypothetical situation is being intentionally locked in a closet by someone you once considered a friend.” Cozy visibly paled at Sweetie Belle’s words. Sweetie Belle looked around the class, lingering on Cozy for a moment. While still looking at Cozy, she called on me. “Princess Flurry Heart. How would that make you feel?”

“Not very good. Betrayed even.”

Sweetie Belle nodded. “That seems like a reasonable response. Later, when you eventually got out of the closet, how would you feel?”

“Probably angry, maybe confused as to why someone would lock me inside to begin with.”

“Would you offer your forgiveness if the creature in question asked for it?”

I nodded. “Of course.”

Sweetie Belle smiled. “As would I. Is there anyone in class who wouldn’t?” Sweetie’s eyes once more lingered on Cozy Glow. “If someone wanted to apologize for such a thing, how should they do it?”

Most of the class raised a hoof, claw, or another appendage. Cozy put her own hoof up and Sweetie Belle immediately called on her. “Yes, Cozy Glow? It’s so nice to see both of our new students interacting with us so quickly! It’s a great feeling! How would you apologize?”

“Miss Belle, I’m very sorry I locked you in a closet. You got in my way. With the benefit of hindsight, my way needed to be blocked.”

“That’s good. See, Cozy has built on the apology by adding a reason for her actions. Now some may consider such a thing an excuse, but having the motivation for an action makes it easier to see where the offending party’s mind was at the time of the incident. It also helps in making a decision. In this case, do you think Miss Belle should accept the apology?”

The class nodded.

“Very good. A sincere apology should always be accepted. There will likely be a loss of trust between the parties, at least temporarily, but that gives you something to work with to rebuild the foundation of friendship. If both sides are willing.” She smiled. “An apology and an acceptance usually indicates that both sides wish to patch things up.”

Cozy put a hoof up again. “Yes, Cozy Glow?”

“What if, hypothetically, an apology comes from a master manipulator and habitual liar. How do you know it’s genuine?”

Sweetie Belle shook her head, sadly. “You don’t. You have to hope for the best, or burn the bridge entirely. Sometimes you have to give up on someone.”

“What if… What if that master manipulator isn’t even sure if it’s genuine or just words?”

“Then it sounds like this completely hypothetical compulsive liar is making progress.” She smiled.

“Huh.” Cozy paused. “Huh.” I could see the gears in her head turning, processing that information.

Sweetie didn’t call on either of us again for the rest of class. I had no idea how many of our classmates were fooled by the ‘completely hypothetical’ disclaimers they’d both used, but I certainly wasn’t one of them. I’d known there was history between them, and I’d known that the Cutie Mark Crusaders had been locked in a closet during Cozy’s first rampage. They’d gotten off far better than Starlight. But even Starlight had seen it in her heart to forgive Cozy enough to welcome her back to the School of Friendship. Sweetie Belle had forgiven Cozy – she wouldn’t be a very good friendship teacher if she couldn’t.

As for Cozy, she’d actually thought about something and questioned her own motives to the point where she wasn’t sure if she was only lying to everypony else, or to herself too. Maybe, just maybe, she could learn friendship. If not, at least it would be hilarious watching her get hugged by Silverstream every day.

The next class was gym, and we changed into workout attire. An orange pegasus greeted me with a smile, and Cozy with a glare. I could feel her eyes lingering on us as we sat on the gymnasium floor.

“Fall in mares… and you too Cozy Glow. We have an intense workout ahead of us. Today, we’re playing dodgeball! I’ll award extra credit to anycreature that hits Cozy Glow.”

“Hey!”

Scootaloo shrugged. “You’re the smallest target. It’s going to take precision to nail you.”

A hoof went up. “Yes, Pumpkin Cake?”

“What if we’re on the same team as Cozy Glow?”

Scootaloo tapped a hoof to her chin. “An excellent question. I’ll still give you extra credit if you hit her. Gotta watch out for those sneak attacks from the rear, because you never know when somepony you trust might backstab you.”

“I feel singled out.”

“I see your observational skills haven’t diminished at all since we last met. If the others get extra credit for hitting you, then you get extra credit if you manage to avoid getting hit for the entirety of class.” She blew her whistle. “Line up! Today’s team captains will be our newest students. Flurry Heart, stand on my left. Cozy Glow, on my right. You get to pick your teams.” She looked at me.

“Since Cozy’s wearing a giant bullseye, why don’t we let her have first choice.”

Scootaloo nodded. “Now that’s true sportsmareship right there. Cozy, pick your poison.”

“I’m partial to hemlock.”

An earth pony in the class stood up and trotted over to her. I bet Cozy didn’t see that coming. I certainly didn’t!

She looked at the mare incredulously. “You’re named Hemlock?”

“Yes.”

“Very good. Yes, you shall be my first ally. Serve me well and there will always be room for you in my future empire.”

“Uh, it’s just a game, Cozy.” Hemlock looked nervous.

I pointed to a minotaur. Cozy Glow picked a pegasus. When we were done, Cozy had a team comprised entirely of ponies, including almost every pegasus in the class. I had a team comprised of creatures of all shapes and sizes, and only a few ponies. Cozy had even picked Pumpkin Cake, much to the latter’s surprise and dismay.

Wings were bound and horns were inhibited, then play began. Cozy barked out orders, and Scootaloo blew her whistle to start the game. Cozy wasn’t one to lead from behind; she raced out to get a ball, and succeeded in doing so. Ponies were faster than many other creatures, and her team acquired most of the balls that had been placed on the dividing line between our respective sides of the gym.

Cozy had even managed to grab a ball of her own, and as balls were thrown back and forth between our teams, she whirled around and nailed Pumpkin Cake with it. My team hadn’t forgotten the bounty on Cozy, and the little pegasus deftly dodged the balls lobbed her way. With all the attention focused on Cozy, and the little megalomaniac’s example of what would happen to traitors from her own team, her team decimated my ranks in the first minute of play.

“Leave Flurry Heart for me.” None of her teammates had attempted to take me out, and now Cozy had justified that decision for them. I couldn’t issue the same command without denying my teammates’ chance for extra credit.

Even without the use of her wings, Cozy was skilled at avoiding incoming projectiles. The first game was over in less than three minutes, with Cozy delivering the final blow, taking great delight as she ‘toppled my regime.’

The next game started with Hemlock taking out Pumpkin Cake. Cozy had instilled loyalty into her team through fear, and their victory in the first game had also dissuaded dissention in her ranks. As the games continued, I got a look into the pegasus’ brilliant mind. Much like when we played chess, her battle tactics were ingenious. She wasn’t afraid to start big, nor did she hide from the field of scrimmage. She actively drew the fire from my team, leaving room for her own teammates to mop the floor with my team game after game after game. Nothing I said to my team convinced them to forget the bounty and focus on winning.

After seven decisive victories, Cozy started toying with me in the eighth game. As previously, her team had picked mine off creature by creature, and I was the last pony standing on my side. But this time Cozy didn’t send a barrage of dodgeballs my way. She kept feinting, making me dodge left or right to dodge the ball that never came my way. Eventually I picked up a ball and lodged it at her with all the might my leg could muster. She responded immediately, rearing, and bringing the ball in her own hooves up to deflect the one I’d thrown at her. It ricocheted and nailed me in the face.

“Golly, you should stop hitting yourself.”

Scootaloo blew her whistle. “That’s game.” She looked at the clock. “I don’t think we have time for another round. Congratulations, Cozy Glow, on eight straight wins.”

“Thank you for the battle simulation.” She turned to her team. “Good game, ponies! Thanks to my genius leadership, we’re undefeated. Come to think of it, I didn’t get hit even once. Golly, I think that means I get extra credit.”

“Unfortunately, I’m afraid not.”

Cozy wheeled around just in time to get struck in the muzzle by the ball Scootaloo had lobbed at her while her back was turned. “Better luck next time, Cozy Glow.”

“But the game’s over! I won fair and square!”

“I said if you got through class without getting hit. It’s a shame you let your guard down while gloating. Now class is dismissed. Hit the showers.”

Cozy was livid as we cleaned up. I scrubbed her back while she vented. “Of all the treacherous, underhooved tactics…” The irony of her words was lost on her.

I did my best to change the subject. She liked having her ego stroked, so there was an easy way to swing her mood back to the positive. “Regardless, you did amazing out there. Goading everycreature into putting all their attention on you, while your teammates took care of decimating my ranks.”

Cozy shrugged. “Wouldn’t have been my first strategy, but Coach Scootaloo forced me to change my tactics accordingly. Not bad for an improvised battle plan.”

“You came up with that on the fly?”

“Of course. No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy. Victory goes to the side who can best adapt to continuously changing conditions.”

“Hey.” Pumpkin Cake approached us. “Princess.” She bowed. “Cozy, look, I’m sorry. I wasn’t planning on going after you, I was just curious because I thought it was unfair that only Flurry’s team was going to get extra credit for hitting you. I’m sorry, please don’t hate me.”

Cozy grinned. “My opening move was to take out one of my own teammates. Anypony who was even considering turning traitor to collect the bounty thought better of it after that. It worked out for me, so no hard feelings. But don’t ever cross me for real. I’m not the forgiving type.”

Pumpkin gulped and bowed to Cozy as well. Cozy grinned as the unnerved filly didn’t bother toweling off and instead galloped to her next class soaking wet.

Once we were dry, it was time for the last class of the day. We returned to Smolder’s room, this time to actually learn something. Once more we took seats in the back, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. By this point, almost everyone in the school had seen both of us, but there were bound to be a few in the class we had yet to interact with.

Smolder stepped into the room and looked at Cozy Glow. “This isn’t your class, Miss Glow.”

“Flurry and I have the same schedule.”

“Except for this one. Headmare Starlight and I agreed there’s another class here that you need more than mine.”

“Like what?”

The door to the classroom slammed open and Silverstream flew in. “There you are, Cozy Glow! I thought you might be hiding in here. You’re late for your one-on-one hug tutoring.”

“Nooooooooooooooooooooooo!”

“Yeeeeeeesssssssssssssssssssssss!”

Cozy Glow zipped around the room trying to escape, but Silverstream blocked the door and none of the windows were openable. It wasn’t long before the hippogriff scooped up the nefarious pegasus and carried her off.

Instead of teaching us, Smolder regaled us with tales of Cozy’s misdeeds. She’d been instrumental in stopping both of her failed schemes. It was much-needed insight into Cozy’s mind, from someone who’d known her longer than most.

“So now that you know Cozy Glow, be cautious not to be led astray by her manipulations. But to effectively give her a second chance, you can’t treat her any differently than you would if you didn’t know all this about your new classmate. Just be wary and if something doesn’t seem right, report it to one of your teachers or Headmare Starlight.”

The bell sounded, and classes were over for the day. Unlike the mad dash I’d heard happened in most schools, no one seemed overly anxious to leave the School of Friendship. I trotted back to Silverstream’s classroom, where I found the hug professor still embracing Cozy Glow.

“School’s out for the day.”

“She’s getting extra credit. We’ll meet you in the cafeteria for dinner at five.”

Cozy just whimpered in reply.

I closed the door to the room. I hadn’t gone far before Starlight pulled me into her office.

“Princess! I trust your first day in class has gone well?”

“It was amazing! I met so many ponies today! I know I’ll become friends with all of them.”

Starlight smiled. “And Cozy?”

“I don’t think her day was quite as good as mine.”

“Silverstream?”

I nodded.

“It’s unconventional, but without the Elements of Harmony to forcibly purify her as they did so many other villains, we really have no idea how to help her reform. Showing affection to her, and making her feel cared about – that was all Silverstream’s idea and I’ve yet to hear a better alternative.”

“If nothing else, it’s amusing for the rest of us.” I chuckled.

Starlight laughed and pulled out a scrying crystal. We were looking at Silverstream’s classroom and the pegasus filly clutched in the professor’s forelegs.

“She doesn’t look completely miserable,” I noted.

“Just mostly.”

We giggled at that. Then I asked a serious question. “Do you think she can do it? You’ve been there yourself, so you’d probably know better than most.”

“She can do it. She wouldn’t be at the school if I didn’t think she could do it, and she wouldn’t be out of the statue in the first place if Twilight didn’t think she could do it.” Then she looked at me, mirth gone from her face. “I know everypony is counting on you to do reform her. But you can’t. There’s nothing in the world you can do to make her be good. You can show her the right path, you can show her all the perks that come with a life well-lived, but at the end of the day you can’t make the decision for her, just as Twilight Sparkle couldn’t make it for me.”

“I can punish her when she’s bad.”

“Won’t work. You can’t punish that filly because there’s no punishment that deters her from what she wants to do. The more you tell her she can’t do something, the more determined she is to prove you wrong.”

“Like take over Equestria.”

“Exactly.”

“Want to join us for dinner?”

“Sure. It wouldn’t hurt for me to check in with two new students after their first day of classes.”

Starlight and I trotted into the cafeteria. Looking for Cozy Glow wasn’t necessary, there was no way to miss the little pegasus sitting on a hippogriff’s lap. She was complaining, and Silverstream was ignoring her.

“Awww! Who’s a cute little megalomaniac?” Starlight booped Cozy Glow’s snout and patted her curls.

“I. Will. End. You.”

“I was just stopping by to check on how your day went. Looks like you’re still busy learning, Cozy, so I’ll just mark today down as a ‘success’ and get back to my office.”

“Wait! Don’t go!”

Starlight turned around. “Oh?”

“Make the hugging stop. Now.”

Starlight shrugged. “I don’t interfere with my staff’s lesson plans. Sorry I can’t be of assistance.”

“Does that mean you’re also going to condone Scootaloo singling me out and hitting me in the face with a dodgeball?”

I recapped the events of gym class to Starlight and she pondered the information. “Intentionally hitting a student in the face with a ball is an issue. I’ll have to get her side of the story, of course. If I consider it a problem, it’ll be addressed.”

That seemed to placate Cozy Glow. Starlight left the table and the filly turned to me. “She won’t actually do anything about it. At most, it’ll be ‘don’t hit Cozy in the face again.’”

“That sounds like an improvement to me,” said Silverstream. “Isn’t it?”

“Only time will tell. But if it continues, I won’t be held responsible for what I do to Coach Scootaloo. I’m trying to be better. Admittedly, I’m not trying very hard, but I really am making a token effort. Making me angry isn’t helping.”

Silverstream hadn’t released the naughty filly from her clutches, and try as she might, Cozy couldn’t quite reach the food on the table in front of her. She flatly refused to let the hippogriff feed her like an infant, so she stared her food wistfully. I levitated her plate and utensils so they were within her reach. She thanked me under her breath, while I was thankful the meal was occupying her mouth so she couldn’t complain.

It had been a long day, but a good one, for me at least. Cozy had had her ups and downs. We’d been invited out to the movies by some of our classmates, not just me, but they asked Cozy to come too. Most ponies were making an effort to treat Cozy with kindness, though that might’ve been self-preservation kicking in.

I yawned as I pulled on my pajamas. “Goodnight, Cozy.”

She mumbled something from across the room.

“Goodnight, Silverstream.”

“Goodnight, Princess! G’night, Cozy!” She squealed in delight. “You’re just so huggable!”

“Kill me now.”

“Nope! I’m just gonna keep hugging you forever!”

I snickered at that thought – Cozy Glow would never be able to take over Equestria if Silverstream was holding her tight the whole time.

“Don’t you have some family of your own to get back to?” Cozy asked.

“Nope! There’s just me, myself, and I. Oh, oh, oh! I know! I could adopt you! Then my house wouldn’t be so lonely!”

“No! Absolutely not! No, no, no, double no, triple no, infinity times no.”

“I’m pretty sure I can make that happen, Silverstream.”

“Yay!”

“Don’t you dare!”

I closed my eyes and grinned. Obviously, I had neither the power, nor desire, to arrange for Cozy Glow’s adoption, but if nothing else, I had something new I could threaten Cozy Glow with. Perhaps if she were truly redeemed, I could send her home with Silverstream, but until then she was my responsibility, and mine alone.

Author's Note

Story notes for the prologue and first three chapters: https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/989273/story-notes-romancing-the-stone