The Brilliance of a Restful Mind

Chapters

1: The Unaware Visitor
3: A Family Reunion
2: Releasing the Smallest Prisoner

1: The Unaware Visitor

Near the entrance to the Everfree Forest, a deep, dark, highly vegetated area on the outskirts of Ponyville, a pony-shaped figure comes out. This pony is a female adult unicorn, covered in silvery lilac fur, possessing a mane and tail of a dark purple colour with a vivid cyan ring on both. Her cutie mark is a dark blue blanket. She walked on the path with a look of relief.

"Thank Celestia, at long last. Ponyville." said the unicorn. She took a good look at the pleasant town ahead, inspecting the activity going on there from a distance.

The unicorn walked further until she set foot on the edge of Ponyville. The first thing she got a close look at was a bunch of earth ponies, pegasi and other unicorns going about their days. None of them seemed to notice the new face. The unicorn passed through, not minding the lack of attention in the least.

"Now this is refreshing, walking around a friendly environment for once." the unicorn remarked. "All those moons spent surviving the realm of those nasty cacosaurs has made me weary of desperate survival." For a moment, she stopped to think about the fact she was talking out loud to herself, and how it could make others look at her. She turned her head.

"Hello." said a big, yellow male earth pony with a purple mane and tail, plus a five-fingered hand coming out of a hole for a cutie mark. He looked at the unicorn with his gigantic eyes.

"Oh, hello." greeted the unicorn politely. "Lovely day."

"Yes it is." the earth pony responded back. "It's so lovely... I want muffins." Suddenly, the earth pony was swiftly crawling along the ground, distancing himself from the unicorn.

"Huh? Did you say muffins?" the unicorn called out. "I could go for some of those!" Like her life depended on it, she chased the earth pony as fast as she could.

The earth pony stopped for a moment, turned his head back and said "Keep up, I know just the place."

Moments later, the two went to Ponyville's local bakery and confectionery store, Sugarcube Corner. They grabbed a ton of muffins to take on the road. The earth pony handled payment.

"Thank you, sir." said the grateful unicorn, eating a blueberry muffin. "I don't know how I would've gotten sustenance without you."

"You're welcome." the earth pony responded, standing up tall on his hind hooves, eating a chocolate chip muffin and holding a bag of other muffins with toe-like appendages on his right fore hoof. "I've never shared a big bundle of muffins with anypony else."

"Really?" the unicorn wondered.

"Well, except for this one pegasus girl I know." the earth pony stated, holding up one of the toe-like appendages on his left fore hoof. "Say, are you new here?"

"Yup. Just came into town a few minutes ago." the unicorn answered. "I've had a long trip."

"Well, let me be the first to welcome you properly to our humble home sweet home." said the earth pony warmly. "I'm Clutch Forward."

"I'm Toasty Blanket." said the unicorn, holding out her left hoof. She and Clutch had a friendly hoof shake, assuring trust in one another. "I'm here to find someone."

"Oh? Whom?" Clutch asked, his interest piqued.

"My child." she answered. "Someone I sent here many moons ago, and haven't seen since. So, i'll catch you later, Clutch."

"Later, Toasty." said Clutch, walking off with his muffin bag. "I hope you find your kid."

Toasty happily waved good-bye to Clutch, then continued on her way through the town with her own muffins.

Toasty walked all the way to the other side of Ponyville. There she spotted a beautiful building surrounded by a lustrous lake.

"That must be the School of Friendship." Toasty said to herself. "If I hadn't gotten sidetracked and cut off from the rest of the world, I would've come to see it sooner."

She approached the front doors of the school. She eyed the place inquisitively, when just before her the front doors opened, and out came another pony. This time, it's a pale, light grayish heliotrope unicorn, possessing a moderate purple mane and tail with pale light, grayish aquamarine highlights. She was dressed in formal attire.

"Oh, geez. Sorry." muttered the dressed unicorn. "Didn't see you there."

"It's alright." Toasty said. "Hey, do you know who runs this school?"

"Why do you ask?" inquired the dressed unicorn.

"I wish to know the head of this establishment." Toasty answered. "I believe they know of the child i'm looking for. I'm their guardian."

"Oh, well, maybe I can help. I'm Headmare Starlight Glimmer." the dressed unicorn formally greeted. "I was about to go get something to eat on my break, but I can take a little time to help with your troubles. I did used to be a guidance counselor."

"I'm Toasty Blanket. I sent my kid to your school a long time ago, and... some complicated stuff happened in my life." Toasty started.

"Well, I believe that kid has long since graduated." Starlight said, her look turning confused. "I wish I could tell you where they've been, but i'd need identification of the subject."

"I don't have a photo, unfortunately." Toasty admitted, scratching her hooves together.

"Just give me a name." laughed Starlight, rolling her eyes with a smile.

"Oh, it's the most beautiful, sweet name in the world." Toasty fondly recalled. She happily spoke the name of the child to Starlight. But when she did, it transformed Starlight's smile into a frown. Suddenly, the atmosphere between the two unicorns was getting uncomfortable. There was eerie silence for five seconds.

"Uh, Headmare Starlight?" Toasty worriedly said. "Are you OK?"

"Oh yeah, nothing wrong." Starlight lied, sweating a little. "I think you'll want to take that one up with a higher power."

"Why?" Toasty wondered, raising her left eyebrow innocently.

"It's a long story." Starlight responded. "I better get some food before... I get too hungry. Take the train to Canterlot, you'll meet the princess there." She bolted off from the school.

"Well then..." Toasty said, confused. "I better seek Princess Celestia. If she can't help me, who will?" She walked away from the school in the same direction Starlight went.

Starlight looked back at Toasty. Her expression, as she watched the silvery lilac unicorn walk towards the train station, was filled with unease. "That poor girl's got no clue what she's in for."

Fortunately, Toasty didn't have to wait long to catch a train to Canterlot. She rode the Friendship Express all the way to Canterlot. She didn't interact with anyone on the train. All she thought about was the child she so badly wanted to see again. Before arriving at the Cantelot train station, Toasty had a pretty painful cough. This actually got people looking in her direction, which she responded to with gestures to move away from her. Finally, the Friendship Express stopped and some fresh air could be had again.

"Headmare Starlight had to have suggested coming here for a reason." said Toasty, stepping out of the train and looking upon the beautiful, lively sights of Equestria's capital city. "Before this day is over, i'm going to find out why."

Toasty walked through the city, looking left and right. She noticed something that felt rather surreal to her. There weren't just ponies gathered in this place, but also dragons, griffins, yaks, creatures of all kinds.

"Gosh, i've been gone from Equestria far too long." Toasty remarked. She continued down an open pathway, where none of the surrounding creatures got in her way. Just then, a crystal ball rolled in her way, and out of the crowd came three small figures. One was a young male yak, one a young female dragon and the other a young female griffin. "Oh, excuse me."

"Don't think of touching our crystal ball, ma'am." growled the female dragon, baring her empty claws. "We claimed it first, so it's rightfully ours to play with."

"Easy, children." said Toasty, raising her hooves. "I'll leave your ball alone."

"You can try to compete for it, though." the female griffin added. "Unicorns like you are a challenge we welcome."

"Right. But I've got business to take care of, so if you don't mind..." Toasty continued.

"Yak like speed! Race sometime!" shouted the male yak. Then he heard the sound of an angry old lady yelling out for her crystal ball. "Make haste!" He, the dragon and griffin ran back into the crowd with the crystal ball. The old lady, a fortune teller unicorn, chased after the kids with a cane.

"Weird kids." Toasty muttered. She shrugged and continued on her way. She looked up towards the royal castle, eagerly awaiting the moment she could speak to the most important figure in all of Equestria. She was nervous, but determined to see her little one.

Inside the throne room of the royal castle, a tall, lanky alicorn with a pale, light grayish mulberry coat, a waving dark sapphire blue mane and tail with moderate purple and brilliant raspberry highlights and a pink six-pointed sparkle for a cutie mark sat on her royal seat, bearing some golden attire. She was reading a gargantuan book she couldn't take her eyes off of.

"Careful, Twilight. Any longer now and you're going to drift off to dreamland reading that thing." teased a big, winged light mulberry and light spring budish gray dragon with moderate harlequin spikes.

"Tch, Spike, you act as if i'm getting bored." Twilight laughed. "This book is too gripping."

"Exactly." Spike said. "That hypnosis will make you miss the whole day."

"I'll have all the time to tackle this monster, as long as nothing comes through that door." Twilight said confidently.

"And three, two..." Spike started counted. Before he could say "One", a blue male griffin in golden armour burst through the doors on the other side of the throne room.

"Princess Twilight!" hollered the armoured griffin.

"Ah, mistimed it." Spike growled, snapping his claws.

"Captain Gallus, come in!" Twilight shouted to the griffin.

"Somebody wants an audience with you, your majesty." Captain Gallus explained.

"Present the visitor to me immediately." Twilight ordered.

"Here she is." said Captain Gallus, moving aside to show Toasty into the throne room.

As she nervously stepped into the presence of Princess Twilight, Toasty stumbled a bit, almost like she was going to collapse. Captain Gallus quickly came to her aid.

"You good?" the griffin asked, looking at the unicorn with concern and helping her keep her balance.

"I've been better." said Toasty, wearily. "I've had the longest trip." She rubbed her head with her right hoof and proceeded forward. She stood tall in front of the majestic royal alicorn sitting upon the elevated throne. Her expression changed to one of confusion. "Hey, you're not Celestia."

"Of course i'm not." Twilight stated. "I'm Twilight Sparkle. Celestia has stepped down."

"What about Luna?" Toasty asked, tilting her head to the left.

"She has joined Celestia in retirement." Twilight answered. "I am the princess of Equestria now, so you may address me as such."

"Where was she during the coronation?" Spike whispered into Twilight's right ear. Twilight gave him a stern look and motioned her right hoof as if to say "Sit down, Spike."

"Princess Twilight Sparkle, my name is Toasty Blanket." Toasty formally greeted. "Sorry for my rudeness. It is an honour to be standing before you today. I've come to ask you about something. Recently i've escaped from a realm disconnected from our natural reality - a realm filled with deadly beings called cacosaurs."

"Did you say cacosaurs?" Twilight wondered, raising her right eyebrow. "But those have only been recorded in horror stories. Nobody believes them to actually exist."

"Well, I have met them face-to-face." said Toasty matter-of-factly. "For many moons i've fought for survival, all because I made a wrong turn. I was supposed to be enjoying a good exhibition, but I got lost and met those awful creatures. Before my horrific trials began, I left one of my own in the care of those who worked at the School of Friendship."

"Did you discuss this matter with Headmare Starlight Glimmer?" Twilight asked.

"I did, and she told me to consult you." Toasty explained. She sat down and put her fore hooves together in a pleading position. "You may be my best hope in finding my child. I miss her so much. I trust that she was taken good care of at the school, but I also know that she'd want us brought back together."

"Well, I don't have any important royal duties or friendship reunions to attend to right now, anyway." said Twilight, stepping down from her throne and approaching Toasty. "I'll help you and your child reunite any way I can, because helping others, well, it's what we do. So, let's start with her name."

"OK, name." Toasty replied. "Headmare Starlight got a little spooked when I mentioned it to her, but perhaps you can understand?"

"I'll understand, Toasty." Twilight assured the unicorn. "Maybe Starlight thought you were talking about some delinquent who trashed one of her plant friends." She joked.

Meanwhile, at the School of Friendship, in Headmare Starlight's office...

"Huh. I don't know why, but all of a sudden I feel like I need to sass Twilight." Starlight thought out loud. "You feel that, Dentro?"

Her potted plant, Dentro, stood silently next to her.

"Yes, I know, that falafel stunk." Starlight grumbled.

Back at the royal castle in Canterlot...

"Jokes aside, we'll make sure to seek her out. Now let's hear that name." Spike said, walking up to Toasty.

"I'm glad I could count on your guidance, your highness." Toasty thanked, bowing. She stood up, faced the alicorn and dragon with a smile and put her right hoof to her chest. "Her name is..."

Twilight and Spike lent their ears down to Toasty's mouth.

"Cozy Glow."

"WHAT!?" Spike shouted after hearing the last syllable of that name. He jumped back in fright and bewilderment.

"Oh boy." Twilight mumbled as she raised her head and put her left hoof up on it, rubbing against her forehead. She slowly shook her muzzle back and forth in doubt. The atmosphere around everyone, just like with Starlight earlier, became bleak and awkward.

Toasty wasn't smiling anymore. She had faith that the princess would understand what she was seeking. But after her and Spike's reaction, great doubt grew in the silvery lilac unicorn. Unaware of what happened so many moons ago, Toasty could only wonder "What happened with my little girl? What did she do while I was away from home?"

Author's Note

Toasty Blanket, Clutch Forward, and those dragon, griffin and yak children (Scrape, Duster and Rolly) are characters of my own created for the MLP:FiM universe. Cacosaurs are a type of creature that i've also made up, and they will be a regular part of my MLP:FiM stories.

3: A Family Reunion

Toasty Blanket and Cozy Glow found a private place to speak; it was a visitor's bedroom with a luxurious, comfy looking bed and a golden table. The setting sun gleamed through the windows. The two ponies faced each other. Cozy nervously looked up at her guardian, who was bearing a downhearted glare.

"H-how much of the story were you told, exactly?" Cozy asked.

"The princess told me everything." Toasty answered calmly, but gravely. "I didn't want to believe it. But there was the proof, painted on stained glass."

"S-stained glass. That's a pretty b-bad sign." Cozy muttered.

"I put my heart into raising you. I taught and trusted you to share with others what you received from me. Remember?" said Toasty, looking on the verge of sobbing.

"Y-yeah, I know." said Cozy. "Warmth and love."

"I thought if I sent you here to Ponyville, to attend that school, that you'd meet creatures who'd accept it and you could find happiness with everyone there." Toasty continued, gritting her teeth. "The students knew the values of friendship, and they saw you as a friend. An idol. An inspiration. They loved you."

"Well, being rather cute and lovable sure helped with that." said Cozy, putting on a very brief smile.

"They didn't do anything to hurt you." Toasty stated with a rise in tone. "All they wanted was to give from the heart, and those atrocities were how you repaid them? Did all that kindness mean nothing? What possessed you to do it, Cozy!?" The volume of her voice was now high, and the anger in it was perfectly clear.

"I just couldn't help it. The promise of friendship just came with this tempting potential for power." Cozy explained. Her face took on a devious appearance. "It felt... fun to have all these creatures, surrounding me and making me feel like an empress."

"And you never considered for a second how wrong that was!?" Toasty yelled, wiping the evil grin off Cozy's face. "You didn't get it, did you!? You had everything! All of those nice kids, and all the adults, they were happy to be part of your world, to have you look out for them! I thought you would've treasured that, but instead... you just tossed it out like garbage!"

"At least I only got thrown in Tartarus for that." said Cozy. "As horrible as that was, it was way better than... that never-ending... suffocating..." The pegasus filly shivered as images of stone surrounding her and everything going to pitch-black flashed in her mind.

"And then you use your second chance at freedom to just be evil some more, almost destroying and enslaving the entire world?" Toasty added. "You didn't care who you were going to damage, what you were going to bring to ruin? Did you not even care If I was caught in the crossfire? Did... did you forget about me, Cozy?" She sobbed after finishing her sentence.

"I was under the impression that you forgot about me." Cozy replied honestly. "Truth be told, if you were there, you are the last pony I would've allowed to get hurt."

"Even so, I would not have defended your horrible crimes!" Toasty said.

"So you'd let me stay locked up in Tartarus, then?" Cozy cried, giving a hard glare at her guardian.

"By Celestia, NO!" Toasty shouted, closing in on the child with widened, teary eyes. "I would never allow you to starve or suffer, you know that!"

"I-I know. S-sorry." Cozy apologetically moaned.

"But the rest of the world, they see you as a monster! You made them hate you! You affected them so negatively they considered you as big of a threat as two of the most notorious terrorists that ever lived!" Toasty ranted. "And for what? A life of "power" where you would eventually end up all alone, and a tyrannical rule that wasn't going to last?"

"To be fair, I did have the power of the Bewitching Bell." Cozy noted. "Tirek, Chrysalis and I agreed that once we won, we'd rule our own individual kingdoms by ourselves."

"For how long!?" Toasty exclaimed, throwing her fore hooves into the air. "Those creeps weren't known for honesty! They could've gotten bored of their "kingdoms" and attempted to usurp you! No amount of planning or ancient, apocalyptic power could possibly save you from an attack by them, and in that "kingdom" you intended to rule, nopony would've genuinely pledged their loyalty! You would've been at risk of facing betrayal and meeting a gruesome fate every day for the rest of your life! You could've been taken in your sleep!"

"Huh. When you put it that way..." Cozy mumbled.

"I feel like the worst mother of all time right now." Toasty sighed. "I raised and watched over a child in need, and I sent her away so she could find love and generosity in another place, but all she found was temptation, and I wasn't there to keep her from falling victim to it. I should've gone with her, because a good parent would keep their little ones company. To help them think clearly. I neglected that duty, so I suppose i'm a villain for that, too." She buried her face deeply into her fore hooves.

"Oh, mama, please don't beat yourself up." said Cozy, tearing up a little.

"Why did you think it was "cool" to be evil?" Toasty asked, a lump in her throat. "How could you find so little value in friendship and compassion? Was it really that hard to find and hang on to somebody who'd stick by you and treat you warmly, as I have?"

"I don't know. I guess I was always expected to do it, all the darn time, and it got intimidating." Cozy rationalized.

"That's no excuse to stomp all over their goodwill!" Toasty scolded. "You were on your way to a wonderful life most creatures would dream of having, and you backed out in favour of megalomaniacal malice like a coward!" She stomped the ground in a rage, then took a deep breath. "I know it may have been alot easier to manipulate and terrorize, but after all my teachings you should've known better and had some respect for your own well-being!"

"My well-being?" Cozy uttered, holding her chest.

"You must understand the consequences of what you've done! Not only is evil easy, wrong and absolutely stupid, but worst of all... it's self-destructive!" Toasty explained. "No matter what steps you took, the path you walked was going to tear you apart! I mean, look where it lead when you crossed the line! Was that truly the life you wanted to live?"

Cozy Glow lifted a hoof and opened her mouth, ready to speak, but her mind drew a blank, and a chill was felt in her back. She sorrowfully whispered "No."

"I know there's a better pony inside you." said Toasty. "Discord and the others may have deemed you a lost cause, but me? I didn't take a filly off the streets and give her a home just so she could destroy herself."

"So, what are you going to do with me?" Cozy asked, putting her fore hooves up to her gritted teeth.

"I'm taking you on a tour." Toasty confirmed.

"A tour!?" Cozy yelped. "To see all those creatures I attacked and struck fear into? Is that the plan?"

"Yes, and i'll have us synchronized, so I can always watch." Toasty added. Her horn glowed with a magical aura, only this time it wasn't the pleasant colour from before. It was a dark, unsettling mixture of black, purple and yellow, and at that same time, her eyes radiated energy of the same colours.

Cozy Glow looked at her guardian, wide-eyed and slack-jawed. Suddenly, she felt a shock to her brain and froze, becoming still as a statue, for a moment. Afterwards, she looked around confused. "What was that freaky magic!?" Cozy anxiously questioned.

Toasty Blanket's magic stopped, and her face returned to it's natural state. "It's just a small spell that'll allow us to communicate and notify each other through our actions and mental processes; for simplicity's sake, let's call them thought waves." Toasty elaborated as if nothing weird had happened. "It's something I picked up while I was trapped in the Cacosaurs' realm."

"Cacosaurs? I'm a kid and even I realize they exist only in scary fairy tales." Cozy skeptically commented.

"You think i'd lie, when I was gone for the longest time and came here from a hard, difficult journey for you?" said Toasty. "Believe me, cacosaurs are very real, and the spell I used is only one of many... demonic arts I learned to get through being trapped with them for moons on end. I never meant to end up with them, but they took me by surprise and pulled me into their nightmare world, so I had to adapt."

"Golly, I never took you for one who'd want to learn dark magic like that." Cozy stated.

"If I wasn't dragged into that realm, if I had been allowed to see my little girl in Ponyville at the time I wanted, if I had a choice in that matter, I wouldn't have had to." Toasty affirmed. "And most of all, we'd be together already a long time ago."

"OK, I guess that makes sense." Cozy accepted. "But if cacosaurs are real, i'd need to see them."

Toasty paused for three seconds in acknowledgement of Cozy's words, sighing. "Regardless... i'm sorry that I made you feel abandoned, Cozy." she expressed with guilt, wiping her eyes. "It was never my intention. Please forgive me."

"Don't be sad, mama. I can." Cozy assured the mare, placing a hoof on one of hers. "I'm sorry that I grew doubtful of you ever showing up."

"Frankly, i'm lucky to be here right now." Toasty remarked. "As long as that spell's active, we won't be far apart."

"But... if the spell's demonic, should I be concerned about it's effects?" Cozy inquired out of unease.

"I've only set up synchronization between the two of us, and i've trained my mind to receive more thought waves than send, so no harm will come to you, sweetie. I'll make sure you're in good hooves, and i'll stay close until we can fully change your fate. I promise." Toasty vowed. "Do you trust me?"

Cozy Glow eyed her mother's face, which once again had a serene, motherly expression of affection. Her frown turned into a slight smile, and she responded with "Uh-huh."

The two ponies, unicorn guardian and pegasus child, looked at each other. Toasty smiled and nodded in good faith, while Cozy was obviously worried, but did have a somewhat good feeling about how things would shape up, now that she was accompanied by an adult she knew well and believed in. The mare invited her adoptive daughter to ride on her back, which she accepted excitedly.

Outside of the bedroom windows, Scrape and Duster were flying and taking peaks little enough that they wouldn't be noticed. They followed the whole conversation between Toasty and Cozy with great interest. They couldn't hear it, so they only had the movements to go off of.

"So the unicorn lady knows a form of dark magic." Scrape said to Duster. "My girl, we've got our first clue."

"Probaby not intending to teach it to the little she-demon, what with her being a pegasus." Duster hypothesized. "But I guarantee it's a dangerous doozy that mare is preparing, like a ticking time bomb getting set to go off in the right place."

"Maybe, but there's no telling what it is exactly." Scrape pointed out. "We've got to do some research."

"Where, Scrape?" said Duster. "Obviously, you can't just get info on forbidden, creepy spells from a commonly published book."

"Well, we've got to find out somehow!" Scrape retorted. "It's vitally important to prepare for whatever evil sorcery she knows!"

"Yeah, so we probably won't have the time to study, anyway. We need to keep track of those two, so we need a bird's-eye view unlike any other." Duster declared.

"Duster bird." Rolly mentioned from below.

"Not me." Duster corrected. "I'm thinking more along the lines of Discord."

"Ah, the classic team up through common goals and common enemies. Good idea, if we can find him... and if he'll tolerate us." said Scrape.

"Better make sure his mood is improved." Duster noted, putting a claw on the bottom of her beak.

"Rolly help Discord watch cute pegasus and strange mom!" Rolly yelled. "Rolly so quick he catch both in act! Scrape and Duster watch!"

Scrape and Duster flew back down to the ground where Rolly was, and the three of them looked at each other in contemplation.

Back in the throne room, Princess Twilight and Spike had returned from the castle garden. Twilight sat back on her throne with a look that was easily recognizable by her dragon advisor.

"What's on the mind now, Twilight?" Spike asked.

"I've been wondering if releasing Cozy Glow is something I should've allowed." Twilight replied, holding her chin up with a hoof. "It was the right thing to do, to make Toasty happy, but maybe it wasn't the smart thing."

"And you've had this thought since... when?" said Spike with a raised eyebrow.

"Only a few moments ago." Twilight confirmed. "If I denied Toasty the chance to reunite with her only family, i'd look like a heartless princess. But while I wish not to interfere with their business, there's no telling what could happen now that they're back together. Even if Cozy feels true guilt for being evil and upsetting her guardian, she's still bound to get hurt out there in a world that knows her as a vile villain, or worse. Toasty's bound to take all that heat, too, thanks to association."

"My first concern was Cozy's history of manipulation and tyranny." Spike commented.

"That too! It's all-too-likely Cozy is not only not actually remorseful, but she's also in reality bitter with Toasty and faking her happiness from seeing her, and she's going to toy with her emotions to get what she wants, and have her revenge against everycreature who stood in the way of her past plans!" Twilight continued, beside herself with worry. "Oh dear, that poor mare! I don't think she could take the heartbreak that'd come from that!"

"Hey, no use dwelling on possibilities!" Spike snapped.

"Catastrophic possibilities, my friend!" Twilight shouted. "Another scheme from Cozy Glow could only mean a new crisis to threaten all of the harmony in Equestria, as well as the lands beyond. And that in turn will get in the way of Luster Dawn's studies in Ponyville."

"Never mind the power of shooting evil-stopping rainbow beams you and the many friends we've made all possess when we unite." Spike mentioned with a cocky smile, putting one of his claws on Twilight's back.

"For the sake of respecting our friends' busy lives, I hope it doesn't come to that." said Twilight with intense eyes. "But I fear we'll need a miracle."

"Did somepony address the Lord of Fortune?" said Discord, his voice echoing across the throne room. He descended from the ceiling upside down. "Twilighting as usual, eh?"

"If she ever truly stopped, nopony would recognize her anymore." Spike joked.

"Yeah, you're right, I do need to learn to cool down and take it slowly about these pressing matters." Twilight sarcastically responded.

"Hey, no one likes sarcasm, Twilight." Spike teased, wagging his right index claw. The alicorn princess returned this with a grumbling sound.

"So, I released the evil pegasus for you, and i'm still expecting something out of all this." said Discord. "It can be anything, except for confiscation of my magic, white milk, a position of school-related authority or anything that has to do with making Fluttershy sad." He raised every finger on his lion's paw, one by one, as he spoke.

"Whatever you want, can't you get it yourself?" Twilight snarked.

"Hey, I know!" Spike chimed in with a sharp look at Twilight. "How about, uh, an Ogres and Oubliettes-dedicated game room, a penthouse suite and jazz club in the sky, a pet giant squid that spits lightning and an active volcano ride?"

Discord transformed his hands into big, floating thumbs-up symbols. "At least one of us can sweeten the deal."

"I doubt you're here just for that anyway." Twilight commented with a raised eyebrow.

"You're right, i'm not." Discord admitted, changing his hands back to their natural shape. He snapped his eagle claws and a vision with Toasty Blanket and Cozy Glow in it popped up to his left. "It is indeed all-too-likely that Cozy Glow is angry with her guardian, and she will stop at nothing to pay us back for stopping her plans long ago and trapping her in a prison of stone."

The vision moved, displaying the events of this hypothetical outcome.

"At long last, all these moons unable to move, or breathe, or even age, and my waiting's about to pay off!" declared the vision's Cozy Glow. "Equestria's rightful empress has returned, and she's going to make her impudent subjects pay!"

"Cozy, what are you doing!?" yelled the vision's Toasty Blanket.

"Bow to your queen, peasant, and take your punishment!" the vision Cozy snapped.

"I am your mother! I came all this for way for you!" the vision Toasty cried.

"I have no mother!" the vision Cozy retorted with a giant frown. "I walk this world alone, but thank you for setting me free and getting me a new toy to play with."

"You used me?" the vison Toasty gasped.

"I'm a villain. It's in my genes." said the vision Cozy with the cockiest smile. "Now bear witness to the unbridled power... of my vengeful wrath!" She held up some kind of mysterious artifact that made her glow ominously with black, purple and yellow magic. The sky around her and the vision Toasty turned red, the earth erupted in flames, malevolent spirits appeared out of nowhere and ponies were being mutated into horrific abominations. Equestria had transformed into a nightmarish wasteland. Cozy burst into insane laughter.

"NO!" the vision Toasty screamed. At that moment, the vision ended and vanished.

"But that's only a single possibility." said Discord. "If you can agree upon that, then you must also consider my favourite..." snapping his lion fingers, he casted another vision featuring the unicorn guardian and her pegasus child. "The chance that this is all a great, big, convoluted scheme that Toasty character is cooking up, and it will culminate in her and Cozy teaming up, becoming an even worse threat to all we hold dear."

"Oh Toasty, it warms my heart that we've come together again." said the vision Toasty in a sweet-sounding, but eerie voice. "I've had so much fun playing that sugary princess and her silly subjects! It went so perfectly!" Now she sounded totally devious, a wicked smile stretching across her face.

"And we did it as a team! A family! Two heads with all the power!" the vision Cozy added.

"You know, I almost feel sorry for all these creatures, just for how easy they are to manipulate. To control for our convenience." the vision Toasty laughed with a smile brimming with malice and confidence.

"If they spent time being smart and villainous instead of dumb and heroic, they'd be so much better off." said the vision Cozy.

"Nopony will see us coming, but when they do, they will bow to us, the rightful empresses of Equestria!" the vision Toasty proclaimed, raising her right hoof. "All living things across the land, this is payment for subjecting my little girl to a horrible life in a statue! You brought this upon yourselves!" the vision Toasty held up that same mysterious artifact from Discord's other vision, and the same events took place. One difference was that the vision Toasty transformed into a tall demon unicorn with wings made of crimson energy.

"This is the best way to be bad ever!" yelled the vision Cozy. Then she let out a great laugh. Suddenly, the vision changed to a scene in the throne room.

"Hey princess, I think you're done keeping that seat warm!" the now demonic vision Toasty shouted. She released a wave of that ghastly magic towards the vision's Twilight, which caused the big alicorn's body to leak a gargantuan stream of magenta energy and quickly decay. All of it went into the vision Toasty's body. The scene then changed again.

"You must be the student! Your master has fallen, and now you will study under us!" the vision Cozy cackled at the vision's Luster Dawn, who was cowering in the corner of a darkened room. The vision Cozy touched the cerise unicorn, hitting her with a spell that morphed her into an unsightly mockery of her regular appearance.

"Alright, that's quite enough!" the real Twilight snapped, glaring at Discord. The vision ended and disappeared just like the one before it.

"We can't afford to forget about the stakes, you know." said Discord indignantly.

"What's that creepy artifact supposed to be? Anything you happen to know well about?" Spike asked with an accusing look.

"Oh, just a dime a dozen item of ultimate power that I made up." Discord answered casually. "It can surely happen. Equestrian history's jam-packed with those."

"I doubt anything could have as much cataclysmic potential as Grogar's bell." said Twilight somewhat optimistically. "That can be guaranteed, at least."

"And one more thing: I think something's up with how that mare hugs." Discord proclaimed. "No child gets pacified that fast from a tight embrace, especially not one who's been trapped for moons in a claustrophobic prison."

"Shush!" Twilight yelped in a new burst of anxiety.

"Are you suggesting Toasty was casting some dark mind control magic at that moment?" Spike inquired.

"Precisely. It must've been her hugging that persuaded our dear princess here to help her." Discord deduced.

"OK, that can't be the case. I think you're just assuming now." Twilight rebuked. "Or trying to scare me."

"It's a mystery." said Discord slyly with ghost-like movements and whistling. "Now, since you've ordered Gallus and the royal guards to stand down, I have to go out and watch the two disasters waiting to happen, lest I, and everypony else, fall victim to devastating deception again."

"If you see or hear anything, and I mean anything suspicious, report in." Twilight commanded with a sharp stare. "Only you can spy on them and stay hidden."

"I'll be back before tea time with Fluttershy, princess commander Twilight ma'am!" Discord called out with a soldier's baritone, magically placing a hard hat on his horned head and hitting it with a lion's paw salute. Then, in a quick flash of light, the draconequus Lord of Chaos vanished from sight.

"Me and my friends have consistently maintained the peace in Equestria, and all the lands beyond, for ages now." said Twilight. "I hope I don't live to completely regret bringing those two together again. I pray that Toasty Blanket can set Cozy Glow straight, and won't be a new enemy on her level."

"Shall we go back to reading that book?" Spike requested, placing his left claw on the royal alicorn's back. She turned her head to him and nodded in approval.

In Canterlot City, Toasty was walking around with Cozy riding on her back. The sight of the pegasus filly turned every creature's head towards the two. The reception from the massive crowd was a mixture of fear, loathing, confusion and rage; understandably so. Toasty pressed onward while Cozy anxiously covered up in her guardian's long mane.

"Run! It's Cozy Glow!" screamed a random mare. She ran off, and other screaming ponies followed.

"I thought she was petrified." said a random bewildered dragon said.

"Where is the princess!? Where are the guards!? They can't be allowing this!" a random griffin cried out in outrage.

"Hey, miss, I don't know if you've noticed, but there's a beast on your back!" hollered a colt.

"Don't make me come over there." Cozy whimpered. "Mama, how are we going to find a place to sleep?"

"I'll... figure that out." Toasty said with uncertainty. Then she bumped into the old fortune teller from earlier. "Oh! Sorry! So sorry about that! You OK, miss?"

"Don't worry, my dear crystal. Mommy's here for you." the fortune teller said to her crystal ball, levitated in front of her by her magic. She turned her head and saw Toasty. "Oh, hello."

"Uh, excuse me, but if you're not too busy..." Toasty started. "I'd like to know if you can predict an ideal place for us to rest." Cozy peaked out from her guardian's mane and looked at the fortune teller.

"A place to rest, you ask." the fortune teller echoed. "What do you mean "us", though?" Then she caught sight of the small pegasus filly, staring meekly. In one second the old mare howled frightfully, backed away and dropped her crystal ball. She quickly covered it with her hooves, scowled and grumbled "The decision of where the next rest shall be had is up to you."

Toasty walked through more of the disdainful and terrified crowd until she and her little one reached the Canterlot train station. It was just about ready to leave for Ponyville.

"Any passengers left to board?" called the stallion conductor.

"Sir, I need to get on." said Toasty, approaching the outfitted stallion.

"Well ma'am, you've come at a good time. We have room for two more." the conductor confirmed. "Please offer up your-" He then noticed Cozy Glow. His eyes instantly widened. "What is she doing here!?"

"Sir, I know what she's done. I'm trying to find her a place to stay, so please let me and her on." Toasty explained and pleaded.

"It's against the law to allow admission of train entry to notorious would-be conquerors and terrorizers!" said the conductor. "Is she your daughter?"

"Yes." Toasty confessed. Cozy gritted her teeth. "She's harmless, I swear. As long as my eye's on her, she won't hurt anypony. Now please, let us on so I can take her somewhere safe."

"Saying "please" won't cut it. I must follow the job policy." the conductor firmly protested. "Now, if we can come to a single passenger agreement, then you can-"

"I'm not getting on without her!" Toasty said urgently. "She can't fly all the way to Ponyville, and I have a job to do as a mother, so let the both of us on. Please!"

"If that's what you wish, ma'am, i'm sorry. It can't be helped." the conductor uttered softly.

Toasty looked down on the ground, downtrodden, her eyes obscured by the shadows cast by her mane. Then she rose up on her hind hooves. Cozy flew off her back and watched her guardian stand tall over the conductor. Toasty opened her fore hooves wide and dropped down on the conductor, giving him a great big, tight hug.

"Hey, ma'am! What are you doing!?" the conductor growled. "Get your hooves off at once! You are invading... invading... in..." he suddenly felt a warm sensation that soothed his nerves. His irritation turned to tranquility. "Is it getting hot in here? It feels... nice."

"I beg of you." Toasty whispered into the stallion's ear. "It's a long way."

"I've always wanted a warm hug on duty, but nopony cared to do so until now." the conductor murmured. "I feel... loved. Appreciated. Glad." He smiled and let out a peaceful sigh.

"Sir, my mama has the warmest hugs in all the land." said Cozy truthfully.

"I can tell." the conductor said back.

"A dedicated stallion like you has more than earned it, I believe." said Toasty softly, loosening her grip and rubbing a fore hoof on the dressed up stallion's chest. She looked at him with dazzling eyes.

"Alright, ma'am. Maybe I can work something out for the both of you after all." the conductor agreed. He then raised a hoof warningly. "But keep it between us. Now, how about that ticket, dear lady?"

"Thank you." Toasty said in humble gratitude. She lit up her horn and magically pulled a train ticket out of her mane.

"Where do you get the bits for that?" Cozy curiously asked. In response, the unicorn guardian put her muzzle up to the filly's ear.

"It's another dark spell I picked up." Toasty whispered. "It allows me to hold anything I need in a pocket dimension right up here." she pointed to the top of her bouffant mane. Cozy hung her mouth open and stared in fascination.

The moon was now rising. A fair distance away from the train station, Discord popped into a remote part of Canterlot City.

"Discord's log number 11-13." Discord narrated. "Toasty Blanket has taken Cozy Glow on the train to Ponyville - can't wait for the welcome parade that little vermin gets - and i've sensed some frightening magic coming from the pair. A poor train conductor has also fallen victim to the witch's charming squeeze. This is only the beginning of what is sure to be much terrible news to report to her majesty Twilight Sparkle for the sake of-"

"Hey, Discord!" shouted Scrape. "Just the chaotic trickster we wanted to see."

"What hub? A fan club?" said Discord jokingly, turning in the direction of the dragon and her friends.

"Well actually, I really am a fan." Duster blurted out. Scrape hit her on the back of the head.

"You can ask for an autograph later, kid. I'm on an important mission." Discord stated. "Hey, I think Spike told me of three kids that look just like these. You, for example, daughter of... Garble, was it?"

"Correct. That's me." Scrape said. "I'm Scrape, and these are Duster and Rolly."

"The resemblance is not lost on me." Discord acknowledged while stroking his beard. "Why have you been looking for me, though?"

"My friend, we're all aiming for the same thing." said Scrape. "We know as well as you do that Cozy Glow and her mama are surely up to no good."

"Let me guess, you'd like us to team up on this, based on common enemies and common goals?" Discord presumed. "What do you have to offer?"

"Strength." Scrape replied.

"Intelligence." Duster responded.

"Speed!" Rolly yelled.

"Meh, i've got it all covered." said Discord, wrapping his long body around the kids.

"Even direct action?" Duster asked.

"Uh... no." Discord replied as he uncovered the kids and stood up straight again. "I have to stay hidden and report suspicious activity to the princess."

"Well then, you've got yourself some partners." Scrape declared.

"Strength, Intelligence and Speed, multiplied by two, one half out of sight, and the other in sight." said Discord. He rubbed his eagle's claw and lion's paw together. "This ought to make the exposé a little more interesting."

Scrape, Duster and Rolly joined their forelimbs together and let out a triumphant cry of "For all Equestria, and all the lands beyond!"

Author's Note

I hope this was worth waiting all these months for. With how long it ended up being, it'll serve as the benchmark in length for every chapter to come.

Yeah, the journey that Cozy Glow is going on is about her facing the effects of what she did, and any wish to continue down the only path she knew is to be challenged.

I really wanted this to be the chapter where I revealed who Scrape is related to, since she's meant to be a key player in the storyline.

Also, this whole story does indeed take place after The Last Problem. All it takes is a little change of perspective to open up a new book.

2: Releasing the Smallest Prisoner

"You're Cozy Glow's mother!?" Spike exclaimed, still in disbelief at the name he just heard.

"Well, i'm her guardian." Toasty explained. "I'm not really her mother, but she and I are family." She took a moment to look at how Twilight and Spike's expressions had become tense. "Your majesty, what happened?"

"How should I say this?" Twilight whispered to herself.

"What happened with her?" Toasty asked desperately. "Please, tell me!"

"You want the truth?" Twilight responded solemnly. "First, look to your right." She pointed Toasty towards the stained glass windows to the left of the throne.

Toasty turned right and gazed upon a row of beautiful, colourful illustrations depicting many great battles and events that took place over the past many moons of Equestria's history. She analyzed each of them. For a moment, she wasn't sure why she was told to look at these amazing glass pictures. Then she came to a stop at one particular image. It was the stained glass window illustration of a bunch of colourful symbols striking three figures with a white lightning bolt. Toasty instantly recognized the pinkish gray pony on the right.

"Th-that's her!" Toasty gasped. "What is she doing with... Tirek, and... the changeling queen?"

"It's a long story." said Twilight, approaching the window with Spike.

"Was she friends with those guys?" Toasty asked, growing fearful.

"In a loose sense." Spike replied, raising his shoulders.

"I know you're not going to like what you're about to hear, but you came all the way here for it, so..." said Twilight, clearing her throat. "Here's how it all began."

For the next several minutes, Twilight explained how a long time ago, a group of young ponies called the Cutie Mark Crusaders discovered Cozy Glow near their clubhouse and helped her with a few Friendship Tests. In the time after, she had gotten to know the other students and seemed to make some friends. At some point or another she discovered a cave beneath the School of Friendship, which was connected to the Tree of Harmony. It turned out Cozy Glow was infiltrating the school the entire time, and she took advantage of everyone, even the ones who trusted her, looked up to her, treated her with nothing but kindness and never held any mistakes against her. She trapped Twilight and her friends in Tartarus and almost sent all the magic in Equestria to another dimension. Only with the Tree of Harmony's help did they stop her, and for her crimes she was thrown in Tartarus to spend the rest of her days with the monstrous centaur she was conspiring with - Lord Tirek.

Toasty listened to the story with disbelief, never asking any questions throughout. When Twilight paused, Toasty finally spoke up.

"N-no. That can't be. Not my Cozy Glow." Toasty uttered in horror and disbelief, holding her head with her fore hooves.

"It's true." Spike confirmed. "She used everybody for the sake of power, because she didn't seem to think friendship was worth anything else."

"I'll admit she always wanted strength in her friends." said Toasty, thinking back to her own life with her pegasus child. "But to seek power like that?"

"And that's just the beginning." Twilight mentioned formally.

Several more minutes went by, and Toasty heard of how an ally of Twilight Sparkle and her friends, Discord, the Lord of Chaos, busted Cozy Glow out of Tartarus and teamed her up with the former changeling queen, Chrysalis, Lord Tirek and King Sombra. Under the guise of Grogar, Equestria's first emperor, he tried to build up the villains up as a powerful adversary to Twilight Sparkle as a way to boost the princess' confidence. Unfortunately, Sombra set out on his own and Cozy, Tirek and Chrysalis played Discord for a fool after he sent them to get Grogar's Bewitching Bell on Mount Everhoof. With the Bell's power, Cozy and her group almost conquered Equestria and nearly destroyed it's greatest defenders. But the magic of friendship and togetherness came through, and the villains' plans came crashing to a halt. Their punishment was quite severe.

"Severe?!" Toasty shrieked, trembling. "But she's just a kid!"

"In the face of her crimes, Cozy's age is irrelevant." Twilight said sternly. "Anyone with enough of a mind to commit atrocities against their own people must face the dire consequences of their actions."

"Still, you couldn't have sent her somewhere to get rehabilitated?" Toasty suggested, shedding tears.

"With a cunning brain like hers, I doubt any detention centre would get her under control." said Spike. "And going by your story about getting stuck in another world with cacosaurs, sending her to you was out of the question."

"For the safety of our world, what was done, plain and simply, had to be done." Twilight affirmed.

"Is Cozy still around?" Toasty asked, putting her fore hooves together again. "I want to see her."

"Of course she is." Twilight assured. "But..."

"But what?" Toasty asked.

"This next part is something you'll have to see to believe." said Twilight, scratching her head with her right fore hoof. Although she was in full agreement of Cozy's fate, she wasn't blind to the longing in Toasty's eyes. "She really means that much to you, doesn't she?"

"Absolutely! I was the only one there for Cozy Glow when nobody else was." Toasty replied, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Oh." Twilight said quietly. Toasty's words reminded the large alicorn of how she took care of Spike, a dragon who never met his parents and grew up among pony society.

"When she and I first met, she was wounded from an accident she had; that was the event that left her orphaned." Toasty started. In no time, she was reminiscing about some happy memories. "I took her in, helped her recover, taught her about creative thinking and mathematics and lived happily with her in the city. Every cold night, I would lay next to her and be her warmest blanket. Got her to sleep faster everytime. I don't understand how she could've used what she learned to commit all those terrible things, but wherever she is, she must need my warmth more than ever."

"I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you." Spike commented in a deadpan tone, believing that Cozy was only waiting for an opportunity to return for revenge.

"What Spike means is that we have no idea what'll happen if we were to release her, given what she was doing just before her punishment." Twilight said, giving a quick, sharp look at Spike. "But don't worry, Toasty. I promise that you and Cozy shall be reunited. First thing's first, though, we need to make a call to the one who arranged Cozy's penalty: Discord." She then felt her own left fore hoof getting the silvery lilac unicorn's fore hooves wrapped around it.

"Thank you, Princess Twilight!" Toasty exclaimed with joy. "And i'll make sure to give her a talking to about the bad stuff she's done."

Toasty walked out of the throne room with Captain Gallus, and all of a sudden she felt weak again, nearly falling flat on her face.

"I think you're gonna need a walker, ma'am." Captain Gallus remarked, catching her.

"I could use a spot to lie down." said Toasty, weary from all her walking, now combined with the emotional stress she gained from hearing Twilight's explanations about Cozy Glow.

Later that day in the castle garden, Twilight was negotiating with Discord, a tall draconequus with yellow and red eyes of asymmetrical sizes, large eyebrows, a long fang sticking out of his upper lip, a flame-shaped beard growing out of his chin, a pony-like head with a deer antler and a goat horn on top, a lion's paw and an eagle's claw for hands, a goat's hoof and a lizard's foot for feet, and a serpentine dragon's tail with a white tuft of fur on the tip.

"Absolutely not!" Discord yelled, spreading his arms out with his hands wide open. "If that Toasty Blanket mare heard the stories and still wants that little demon out of my perfect, symbolic stone prison sculpture, she's a national crisis waiting to happen!"

"I was afraid you would have this attitude." Twilight said, gritting her teeth.

"The fact that she has the gall to demand a remorseless criminal's release is an offense in and of itself." said Discord, wagging the index finger on his eagle claw. "Send her to a detention centre before it's too late."

"I agreed to Toasty to have her reunited with Cozy, and it wouldn't be polite to deny her that." Twilight explained. "Besides, it's not like you'll have to reanimate the whole statue."

"Yeah, I know, i'm your guy for bringing stone statues back to life." Discord sarcastically remarked. "But wait, don't you and your friends have the Elements of Harmony? That'll work, just go and use that." He folded his arms and turned his back on Twilight.

"It's not my place to interfere with their busy lives for the sake of this one task!" Twilight snapped, putting her hoof down. "You're everywhere at once and never too busy with anything! I'm keeping a promise, and I require your cooperation!"

"How do you even know that this Toasty Blanket character isn't some kind of shady mastermind, coming to recruit Cozy Glow in a joint effort to rule the world?" Discord hypothesized.

"There's no proof against that." said Twilight. "Nor is there proof of it. You're no stranger to giving the benefit of a doubt, Discord. That's what Fluttershy gave you back in the day. You have my permission to do what you do if things go south, but until something like that occurs, give this poor mare a chance. Set Cozy free. Nobody deserves to be eternally separated from the ones they love."

"What are they gonna do for me, then?" Discord asked, turning his head slightly back towards the crowned alicorn.

"Those wise in friendship ask for no reward, no matter how much they may have earned it." Twilight answered, rolling her eyes. "Besides, you're the Lord of Chaos. What do you want?"

Just then, a rustling sound was heard in the bushes. Twilight and Discord paused for a moment.

"What was that?" Twilight whispered.

"I sense a presence." Discord stated. "It feels... not of this world. Whatever it is, though, it's not out for anybody."

"Then it's nothing to get distracted by." said Twilight. "Let's get down to business." Then she walked in a dignified manner.

"Yet." Discord mockingly muttered. He had a gut feeling that there was something of great concern in the future, and it wasn't just the imminent release of Cozy Glow.

Later that same day, as the sun got lower in the sky, Princess Twilight, Spike, Discord, Captain Gallus and Toasty Blanket had joined up in the middle of the castle garden's labyrinth.

"Ah, the labyrinth." said Discord, spreading his arms out. "This place gives me a sharp rush of nostalgia."

"I'll never forget that wild goose chase." Twilight added, remembering how obnoxious it was to get stuck in the labyrinth, watching her friends getting corrupted into exact opposite versions of themselves.

"Did you have a good nap, Ms. Blanket?" asked Captain Gallus.

"Yeah." Toasty answered, stretching. "I had a dream, though."

"It was about her, wasn't it?" Captain Gallus guessed.

"Yeah. I was in this room filled with crystals, and there was this giant magical ball, and before I knew it, I tripped and got pulled into it." Toasty explained. "But I didn't just trip. I was pushed... by Cozy. She and I looked each other in the eyes, I reached my hoof out to her... and she just circled around the bubble, laughing. Her eyes became like dots on giant balls of light, her mouth stretched unnaturally and she grew a disgusting amount of extra teeth. She lost her mind, and she didn't even acknowledge me. It was like... I was nobody that mattered to her."

"Whoa." Captain Gallus said, feeling uneasy. "Now i'm getting a sharp rush of nostalgia, and not the good kind."

"Well, it was just a nightmare. Everyone's subconcious goes wild while they sleep." Twilight remarked, trying to comfort Toasty. The explanation of her dream, however, unnerved the princess. She could sense that as much as the silvery lilac unicorn wanted her adopted daughter back, she as well feared how Cozy was going to react, even in her guardian's presence.

"Alright, enough talk about hopes and dreams." Discord said impatiently. "Let's open up the gates."

Twilight and Discord cast a magical spell that opened a portal in the middle of the ground. Something big, hard and chiseled rose from it in a veil of black and violet magic. Before too long it was standing tall in the middle of the garden labyrinth on full display. This was a statue of Equestria's most evil villains. Standing frightened with his hooves on the base was Lord Tirek. Flying next to him in a rage was Queen Chrysalis.

"Here we go, one symbolic villain statue, straight from Tartarus." said Discord with an air of pride in his voice and gestures. "Their poses were perfectly timed, if I do say so myself."

"My goodness, it's them." Toasty commented in surprise. She gazed up at the large stone sculpture. She seemed impressed, amazed even to see two of the deadliest menaces in the world turned to stone.

"You know, for a time I wasn't too big on turning creatures into stone, but after these three made a fool out of me, the Lord of Chaos, petrifying their sorry hides was nothing short of cathartic." Discord confessed. "I got the idea to place them at the core of Tartarus, to serve as an example for all of it's future prisoners."

As Discord went on, Toasty got a good look at the top of the statue and saw the third creature. Floating above the other two villains, gritting her teeth and holding her fore hooves up to her head in complete horror was Cozy Glow. Toasty, recognizing the solidified form of her long-lost child, let out of the most shocked and horrified gasp that any creature could let out. She swiftly put her right hoof to her chest as if her heart had been poisoned, and collapsed.

Toasty was only out for a minute before being awoken by Captain Gallus.

"Oh, thank Twilight." said the blue griffin in relief.

"COZY!" Toasty screamed, her eyes once again getting teary. "MY BABY, HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN TO YOU!?" She looked to the draconequus and reached a breaking point in her anger. "YOU SCUM!!!"

"Look lady, she was a power-hungry, destruction-worshipping little foal!" Discord retorted, indignantly. "What was I supposed to do, put her in a corner!?" A small, magical beam from the angry Toasty's horn came at him. Reacting quickly, he blocked it with his right hand.

"YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO GO THIS FAR!" Toasty yelled, shooting another beam at Discord, only for it to be blocked, too. "SO WHAT IF SHE HAD A BAD ATTITUDE!? WAS SHE REALLY A THREAT ANYMORE WHEN YOU... WHEN YOU MADE HER INTO THIS!?" She held her right hoof out to the statue as tears flowed like rain down her face.

"Well, I don't think she had any plans to surrender." Discord stated. Then he was hit with something sharp that poked him in his right foot. It was Toasty forming magic around her horn that made it look a sharp blade, and striking Discord while avoiding his vision as he talked. He howled and jumped back.

"LET HER OUT THIS INSTANT!" Toasty demanded, her eyes having now turned red and her teeth gritting like mad. "LET HER OUT, OR I'LL MAKE YOU..."

"CALM YOURSELF, TOASTY!" Twilight called out. This was enough for Toasty to ease up. "The release of Cozy Glow shall go as planned. Discord, set her free." she said in her regular tone of voice.

"Just so you know, Toasty, i'm on to you." Discord said darkly. "And this will not look good for the statue. You do not get a good pose like that on purpose. Am I not right, princess?"

"Just do it!" Twilight yelled in a commanding, impatient volume.

"OK. But the moment she starts doing that sweet-talking routine with the overly saccharine face, i'm reverting her back." said Discord warningly. "I'm not going to be tricked by that twerp again." He took one more quick look at Toasty, who stared at Discord with a look that said "You better watch it, buddy."

"None of us are." Captain Gallus assured him.

"Well, this is it." said Spike. "I better have my guard up." He took a battle-ready stance, anticipating any sudden moves that Cozy might make when she's finally released.

Everyone looked at the statue. Discord looked at the petrified pegasus filly through a square made from his hands. Then he extended the little claw on his right hand, shooting a small bolt of lightning at Cozy. Twilight, Captain Gallus and Spike stared and stood cautiously as the smallest prisoner of the sculpture was enveloped in electric shocks. It began to crack. Toasty grew a look of worry and quickly covered her eyes as the cracks got bigger. Then at last, the stone surrounding the little pegasus exploded into countless pieces. Cozy Glow was restored to her regular self, pinkish gray with a curly, pale, light grayish arctic blue mane and tail, plus a red chess rook for a cutie mark. Maintaining her horrified expression, she noiselessly fell to the ground in front of the statue's base.

"Cozy!" Toasty squealed as she uncovered her eyes. She ran as fast as she could to the pegasus filly. She put her left fore hoof on her body and shook it a little. "Cozy, speak to me!" Then she rolled the little one over so that she was on her back, and she could look into her eyes.

Just like that, without warning, Cozy let out a great gasp. Her movements were frantic, and she kept inhaling and exhaling. "AH!" she yelped, frightened out of her mind. "WHERE AM I!? WHAT MOON ARE WE ON!? IS TWILIGHT SPARKLE PRINCESS!?"

"Cozy!" Toasty called out. "It's me!"

"NO, PLEASE! DON'T HURT ME!" Cozy shrieked. "I SURRENDER! I DON'T WANNA..."

"Please, come into my hooves!" Toasty demanded firmly.

Twilight, Spike and Captain Gallus looked on at Cozy like they were seeing something bizarre. Cozy Glow wasn't having a triumphant release from her stone prison, but instead, she seemed scared and confused. Discord looked at Cozy's current actions thinking "what is this all about?".

"Come here, little one." said Toasty, crying over the feeling of reuniting with her lost child, and expanding her fore hooves.

"PLEASE DON'T TIE ME DOWN AGAIN!" Cozy cried, crawling backwards on the ground. "GO AWAY! DON'T LET ME BACK IN THE DARK!"

"Relax, baby girl." Toasty said soothingly. She wrapped her hooves around the pinkish gray filly and held on tight, covering her up like a blanket. "You're going to be OK."

"AH!!!" Cozy screamed. "HELP! I CAN'T BREATHE!" Soon, her screaming was replaced with choking sounds. Tears rolled down her face and she coughed. "I DON'T WANNA... IT'S DARK... IT'S COLD... I'M SCARED..." she continued, until she slowed down, laid there and began to feel warmer. She felt a nice, comforting sensation that was familiar to her. Her anxiety began to mellow, and her breathing relaxed until it was barely audible. She nestled in quietly and remained motionless for a quarter of a minute.

Now in a calmer state, Cozy looked up at the pony who was giving her that pleasant embrace. "Mama?" she said, recognizing the adult unicorn hugging her tightly.

"Sorry I kept you waiting." said Toasty kindly.

"You came for me." Cozy murmured. "You remembered me." She put her left hoof up to Toasty's face.

"I'd never forget the filly I raised as my own." Toasty stated lovingly. "I thought of you every single day for the past many moons."

The silvery lilac unicorn and pinkish gray pegasus had a deeply affectionate hug, sharing a tender, wholesome moment between adoptive mother and adoptive daughter. Twilight, Spike and Captain Gallus looked on at the two, realizing that what they were witnessing was true familial love. Discord watched on in surprise.

"This was unexpected." the draconequus spoke under his breath. He felt dissatisfied that he got caught off-guard again by Cozy anyway, though not in the way he predicted.

A moment later, Toasty and Cozy released each other. The former turned to Twilight and Discord.

"Thank you for letting me see my little girl again." said Toasty, bowing before the princess.

"Thank you for setting me free." said Cozy in genuine gratitude. "I was all alone in a cold, black limbo. I've never felt more fear in my life. And golly, how much time has passed?"

"Quite a number of moons have gone by since your imprisonment." Twilight confirmed. "Equestria has changed. A lot."

"Remember me?" Captain Gallus asked, turning Cozy's attention to him.

"Gallus?" Cozy presumed, recognizing the blue colour of the armoured griffin. "You're all grown up."

"So are all the other kids from the School of Friendship." Captain Gallus mentioned.

"Oh, why did I ever think being a villain was "cool"?" Cozy moaned, showing regret. "I got made into a monument, and everyone I ever knew has come of age without me."

"Speaking of which..." said Toasty. Her soft, motherly smile became a stern frown as she focused her gaze on her daughter. "We have some catching up to do, Cozy. I want a word with you about... what you've been doing in my absence."

"They've told you, huh?" Cozy guessed softly. "I understand. I'm ready for whatever punishment i'll receive." She looked back at the others. Twilight, Spike and Captain Gallus, all smiling, gestured Toasty and Cozy to go ahead and deal with their family business, while Discord, with a neutral expression, pointed his right claws to his eyes, and then to Toasty and Cozy.

Toasty Blanket and Cozy Glow walked into the labyrinth, intending to leave the garden. The former ignited the magic in her horn and disappeared from sight in a flash of light with the latter.

In the hedge walls, some figures were watching the events undetected. It was the dragon girl, griffin girl and yak boy from earlier that were playing with the Crystal Ball.

"If Discord planned to keep those lowlives as a statue, why not smash it to pieces?" said the dragon girl. "Can you believe this, Duster?"

"I have a feeling it's because he had a little pity for Little Miss Sunspot." Duster, the griffin girl, assumed. "Great big adults wouldn't shatter a child, Scrape. But other children could. Wouldn't you say, Rolly?"

"Rolly want to see how fast cute pegasus can fly." said Rolly, the yak boy.

"Well, i'll be darned if we let that little beast walk around and stir up trouble with her suspect relative." Scrape, the dragon girl, declared. "It's up to us to expose them for what they are, and have them sent to Tartarus together." Duster and Rolly nodded in agreement.

Author's Note

So yeah, i've given you an idea of my take on why Cozy Glow was what she was in the show. I believe she was spoiled by the idea of strength in numbers, and she just found the concept of evil-doing really cool.

The way I portrayed Cozy Glow here is the result of being petrified, but still alive for so many moons. Her only company for the longest time was the coldest of endless, crushing, pitch-black darkness.