The Filly and the Thief

Chapters

Chapter 1: The Stranger
Chapter 2: The Game Plan
Chapter 3: The Wolf

Chapter 1: The Stranger

The land of Equestria was known for many things, and magic was one of them. Its essence flowed through the very ground the ponies walked on. It gave them control over the weather, let unicorns cast spells, and allowed the country’s rulers to raise the sun and moon. Without magic, the peaceful kingdom was doomed to fall, and everyone knew it.

Now, what would happen if all the magic in the world suddenly disappeared? What if the alicorn princesses became nothing more than your average pony, stripped of all power and influence? What if one pony could rise up and lead the country through such dark times?

Cozy Glow was supposed to be that pony. She may have just been a kid, but her intelligence was well beyond that of a normal child. She knew she had talents when she managed to turn every single bully at the orphanage against each other. When a rook piece appeared as her cutie mark one day, she knew it was her destiny to control others.

Well, perhaps destiny was wrong, because everything Cozy worked her entire life for fell apart in a single night. Twilight Sparkle and her friends escaped Tartarus, and Twilight’s annoying students exposed her scheme.

Considering that her attempts to drain magic not only would have destabilized the entire country, but also may have caused deadly accidents such as ponies falling out of the sky, Cozy was promptly arrested and sentenced to Tartarus itself. That sentence was a bit extreme if you asked her. So what if ponies died, there were millions more of them anyway.

There was perhaps a bit of luck on her side, however, as she managed to slip past the royal guards. Now, as the sun rose in the sky, she was left to wander around aimlessly in a forest. Her mane was a mess, scrapes and bruises covered her body, and to make matters worse, she was pretty sure she was lost.

A small bunny poked its furry white head out of a bush to watch her quietly. Cozy stopped to glare at the little animal. “What are you looking at?!”

The bunny scurried off in fear, which made Cozy smirk. Having some sort of power over something, anything at this point, was satisfying. Her little boost of confidence was short-lived though, as her focus returned to the path ahead. There was nothing but endless rows of trees that probably stretched on for miles. She wasn’t ready to admit it, but the realization that she was in serious danger had started to creep in.

“Okay, I need to get out of this stupid forest.” With a flap of her wings, she rose into the air. She was still too young to fly above the trees, but she managed to get high enough to see the forest open out into a clearing. Beyond the clearing was a small dirt trail, so she decided to follow it, hoping it would lead her somewhere safe.

***

The trail led Cozy out of the forest, and now instead of endless trees, it was endless fields. Yellow and green grass spread out beyond the horizon, with clusters of trees planted here and there. There was no sign of a town nearby or any indication of where the dirt path led. So, with a sigh, Cozy did what she had been doing for hours, which was keep walking.

Another hour passed as she walked, and still nothing. For all she knew, the path was leading her further into the wilderness. Well, maybe that was for the best, as all of Equestria could be hunting her at this point. She imagined that before long, she would become the kingdom’s number one fugitive. The best thing she could do now was to leave the country and regroup, but that was kind of hard for a small filly with no food or money. She needed to get some supplies first, preferably from a far-off town on the outskirts.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she spotted a bipedal figure laying on the ground, clutching onto a brown backpack. Cozy froze in her tracks, fearful of being recognized, but the creature didn’t move. She thought about turning around, but the idea of backtracking after hours of walking did not sit well with her. So, after taking a deep breath, she slowly trotted up to the prone figure. Upon closer inspection, she recognized it as a diamond dog. They were a relatively sparse race of creatures who traveled through kingdoms in search of gems and other precious resources. They were also known to be aggressive and hostile towards other species and hoarded their wealth like dragons.

This particular diamond dog wore a plain black jacket over light gray fur. His chest moved up and down in rhythm with his soft breathing. Cozy didn’t pay attention to his features for long though, as her focus shifted to the backpack he held onto. Anything could be of use to her, and if the dog was stupid enough to not hide anything important, he deserved to have it taken from him.

Very slowly, she reached out a hoof to snatch the bag of items, only to freeze when two blue eyes shot open. With a yelp, she jumped back and the dog sat up instantly. With the bag still in his hands, he glared at her. “Did you just try to steal from me?”

“Oh golly, mister, I didn't mean to startle you,” Cozy exclaimed. “I’ve just never seen a diamond dog before.”

The dog eyed Cozy suspiciously before answering. “Well, you’ve seen me. Now bug off.” He turned his back to her and lied down again.

Cozy rolled her eyes and turned to walk away, but paused when the booming sound of thunder shook the sky above. Dark clouds began to form a mile off, blocking out the sun. It was clear a storm was brewing and not a small one either. Stupid weather ponies always have to be inconvenient, she thought to herself.

Cozy stood in place and frowned, she knew her options were limited. She would never find shelter in time, and as a filly with no real protection other than her natural coat, it could be a death sentence for her. Unfortunately, it now seemed that her only real option was to ask the diamond dog for help. Well, she was a master at manipulating ponies, how hard could it be to trick some grumpy mutt?

Cozy trotted back up to the dog and tapped him on the shoulder. He shifted his weight slightly but refused to sit up, so she tapped him again. “Hey mister, are you awake? Hello?”

“Go away,” he grumbled.

“I hate to disturb you, sir, but I really need your help,” Cozy confessed.

The dog finally turned around to look up at her. “Get your parents to help you.”

“Oh, uh… I don't… I don’t have any,” Cozy replied, dropping her head down. She was used to pulling out the sympathy card to manipulate ponies, but the dog’s stone-cold expression reminded her that she wasn't dealing with a pony at all.

“No parents?” The dog sat up and scratched his head. “Is that how things work here? Ponies just leave their young in the wilderness when it's time to prove themselves?”

Cozy tilted her head quizzically. “Huh? What makes you think that?”

“Because I’m talking to an annoying kid in the middle of the wilderness,” the dog answered bluntly.

That actually made Cozy laugh. “You’re not from around here are you?”

“No, I’m not. I know next to nothing about pony land, and I already regret coming here.”

Cozy sighed. “Look, I’m lost, okay. I got turned around in that forest back there and now I don’t know where I am. Also, there's a huge storm coming in case you can’t hear it, and I’d rather not get stuck in it.”

The dog glanced behind him at the darkening clouds. “Hmm, yeah I wouldn't want to either. I guess it's a good thing you woke me up. Alright, kid, I'll take you somewhere safe." He rose to his feet and stretched out his limbs. "There were some royal guards I passed up ahead. Not sure why they're -"

"Don't take me to them!" Cozy blurted.

"Why not?"

Cozy knew they were still close to Ponyville, and the chances of a nearby town knowing of her magic theft was very high. If she had any hope of escaping the country, she needed to convince the diamond dog to help her avoid the guards. Of course, you can't just tell a stranger that you're a supervillain on the run, so she needed to come up with something fast. Deciding to use his lack of equestrian knowledge to her advantage, she said, "Because the princesses who rule this kingdom are evil!"

"What?"

"They're tyrants who rule with an iron hoof!" Cozy continued. "And her guards cause nothing but trouble!"

"That doesn't make any sense. From what I've heard, the alicorn princesses are very peaceful."

"Well, you heard wrong! Believe me, I'd rather trust a criminal than a royal guard."

The dog didn't respond right away, and Cozy could tell he was taken aback by what she said. "Jeez, what kind of country did I travel to?"

"A pretty bad one."

"Yeah clearly. Uh… Alright, I guess I’ll help you get out of this storm, away from those guards"

Cozy smiled at him. To the untrained eye, her smile appeared to be bright and cheerful, but in reality, it was deeply sinister. I can't believe how easy it was to trick this fool. At this rate, I could probably convince him to take me anywhere I want!

“Thanks a lot, partner!” Cozy held out a hoof to shake his hand, but he just grunted and walked past her. Not skipping a beat, she trotted next to him. “I’m Cozy Glow by the way! What’s your name?”

“Jay,” he said simply.

“Your name is a letter?”

“No, it’s spelled J - A - Y”

“That’s a pretty short name.”

“And Cozy Glow is a pretty stupid name.”

“Hey, no it's not! My name is cute and adorable, just like me!”

“So, you're annoying and full of yourself. Great.”

“And you’re rude and irritable. Great.”

Jay didn’t bother to respond after that, and the two walked along the path in silence. Cozy kept glancing at him, hoping he might re-start the conversation, reveal more about himself, but he kept his view forward. Cozy knew the best way to manipulate people was to get them to like you, so she decided to take the initiative. “So… What do you do for a living, Jay?”

“Doesn’t matter.”

“Jobless, eh? I guess you’re homeless too. That sucks.”

“I’m not jobless,” Jay replied, giving her a quick glance. “and I don’t have a home because I move around a lot.”

Cozy flew up to his eye level. “Must be a cool job if it requires you to move all over the world.”

Jay’s only response was a short grunt, but Cozy wasn't going to let him end the conversation there. With her wings still flapping, she tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Hmm, I bet I could guess it.”

“No guessing.”

“But it would be fun!”

Jay shook his head. “No games. We’re not friends. Once this storm passes, we’ll part ways.”

Cozy’s eyes widened in feigned fear. “You can’t leave me in this dangerous country all alone!”

“Even if these princesses are tyrants like you said, what would they want with a little kid?”

Cozy flew ahead so she could be face to face with him. “They kidnap kids all the time! I don’t know what they do with them, but it can’t be anything good!”

“Look, kid, I’m not -”

Tears welled up in Cozy’s eyes, and her bottom lip quivered as she tried to form her next sentence. “I-If you leave me out here, I’ll… I’ll die!”

Jay rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Uh, look… I know there’s a town close by, I’ll take you -”

“It’s gotta be a town at the edge of the country! The princess’s influence isn’t as strong there.”

“That’ll take forever!”

Cozy dropped to the ground and gave Jay the biggest puppy eyes she could muster. He crossed his arms and looked away. “Don’t give me that look. I’m not a nice person, okay. I don’t care if you…”

Her expression got sadder if that was even possible, she even pouted her lip out and added a soft whimper for dramatic effect. Jay clenched his fists and growled. “Fine. I’ll look for the quickest route to a far-off town, and then we never have to see each other again, got it?”

Cozy’s sadness melted away instantly, her frown replaced by a joyful grin. “You got it, friend!”

“Don't call me that.”

“Sure thing, partner!”

Jay sighed and rubbed his eyes tiredly. “Let’s just go.”

He started to walk again but stopped when he heard voices in the distance. Cozy heard them too and perked her ears up to listen. They sounded male and were getting closer by the second.

“You sure she might be here?” one of the voices asked.

“I would think so,” the other replied. “If the witness that saw Cozy was right, then she'd probably exit the forest somewhere around this path."

“It's the royal guards!” Cozy took to the air and flew straight into the forest. Not sure what else to do, Jay followed. Cozy landed on the ground behind a thick bush and Jay knelt beside her. She didn’t have to look at him to know he was glaring at her. In a venomous whisper, he let his frustrations be known. “You didn’t tell me the pony guards were already after you.”

“Okay, I may have had a previous run-in with these guys,” Cozy tried to explain. “But a lot of ponies do! These guards are monsters!” She grabbed Jay’s arm with both hooves. “You’re not going to leave me now, are you?”

“Get off me,” Jay said, pulling his arm away. “No, I wouldn’t do that. Just next time, don’t leave out important stuff like this.”

Cozy opened her mouth to respond but froze as the clopping of hooves on dirt grew louder. Two earth ponies dressed in gold-plated armor marched down the path, stopping right in front of the bush. Jay swore under his breath and Cozy bit her lip.

“This trail goes on forever man,” one of the guards complained. “You really want to get caught in that storm.” He pointed at the black clouds, which loomed over the green fields like a shadow.

“Yeah, I’d rather not.” his partner agreed. “Let’s just take a peek inside the forest real quick, then call it a day.”

“Goddammit,” Jay swore. “Alright, slowly, we move back until we’re a good distance away from them, then we can run.”

Cozy nodded. “Good idea.”

They both slowly moved back as the guards made their way towards the trees. Cozy winced at every little twig and leaf that snapped under her hooves. She began to sweat, one false move and they would be - A tree branch snapped loudly under Jay's foot, and Cozy froze in horror.

"Hey, what was that?" The guards rushed into the forest and spotted their target. "There she is!"

“Oh crap, run!” Jay yelled. He sprinted away while Cozy followed in the air. The trees around her became a blur and she flew past them, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't catch up to Jay. His long legs carried him far while her little wings hindered her speed. She could only push herself so far, and after a few minutes of endless flying, she had no choice but to slow down and catch her breath. She only breathed in and out a few times before one of the guards tackled her into a puddle of mud. She tried to wiggle free, but he kept her firmly in place. “I got her pinned!” he called out.

“Let me go!” Cozy screamed, thrashing and squirming under the pony's weight.

“Take it, easy kid, it’s over,” He said calmly. “Just relax and we’ll -”

“Hey!” a voice yelled.

The guard looked up, just as Jay cracked him over the head with a large piece of wood. He fell off Cozy and hit the dry part of the ground with a thud. The other guard ran into view and halted at the sight of his fallen partner. "Hey, what do you think you're doing!?"

Without even thinking, Jay hurled the wooden piece at him. It smashed right into his face with accurate precision and knocked him out cold. Cozy jumped to her hooves and looked down at the now unconscious guards. “Wow, you’re strong.”

“Not really," Jay replied. "A good hit to the head with a blunt object can knock out just about anyone.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Cozy grinned. “Good job partner, we really showed those mean ponies!”

Jay crossed his arms and frowned. “I showed them. You got knocked into a puddle like an idiot.”

“Hey! You shouldn’t speak to a child like that!” Cozy snapped.

“Yeah, I’m sure you’re all busted up about it.”

“Well… I could be!”

Jay rolled his eyes. “Yeah right.” He turned to walk away, while Cozy stuck her tongue out at him.

***

Cozy Glow stood inside the entranceway of a small cave, watching as heavy rain fell from a blackened sky. The roaring sound of thunder boomed above her while streaks of blue lightning lit up dark clouds. “Wow, we made it just in time.”

“Huh huh.”

Cozy looked over at Jay, who sat against the cave wall with his eyes closed. His backpack stood next to him, and Cozy wondered if it had any food in it. She hadn't eaten anything the entire day, and that fact was finally catching up with her. Her head felt light and her stomach rumbled loudly. Without saying anything, she trotted up the bag and reached out to open the zipper, but Jay’s voice made her freeze. “Get away from my stuff.”

Cozy slowly pulled her hoof back. “You got any food in there?”

“Nope.”

“But I’m really hungry.”

Jay opened his eyes. "So am I, kid, but we’ll have to wait until the rain clears."

"What are we supposed to do until then?" Cozy asked, her annoyance starting to slip through her tone.

Jay pushed his back off the wall to stare at her intently. "Well, why don't you tell me why those guards were after you."

"Oh, those guys? They tried to kidnap me once and I escaped," Cozy said simply.

"That's it?"

"I told you, they take ponies all the time. And they really don't like when one gets away."

"Okay, well how bout this,” Jay continued. “What were we doing wandering around the countryside all alone? You said you don't have parents, but someone must have been looking after you."

Cozy expected that question to be asked sooner or later, but she wasn’t going to reveal anything for free. "Tell ya what, I'll talk more about me, if we talk about you first.”

"Alright never mind, I'm going to sleep."

"Oh come on! I bet your backstory is super interesting!"

"It's not." Jay leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes.

"Super sad?"

"Go to bed, kid."

“Oh, you’re no fun!” Cozy huffed. Her new companion was playing things close to the chest, and that greatly irritated her. The more you knew about a person, the easier it was to manipulate them. She would have plenty of time to learn more about him though, so she gave up for now and walked back over to the entranceway. She stared out at the expansive forest and watched as the trees soaked in the rain.

Her thoughts drifted beyond the forest to Ponyville, where her life got permanently ruined. She wondered what her former headmistress, Twilight Sparkle was up to, or Professor Starlight, or those annoying goody two shoe students. They were probably all hanging out together, enjoying each other's company like a bunch of losers. Cozy swore she would make them all pay, she would force them to grovel on the floor and beg for mercy, and then crush them like the insects they were. She knew it would take a while, but once the heat died down and she could come up with a new plan, Equestria would be hers for the taking.

***

When the rain cleared up, Jay stopped by the nearby town to bring back some food for him and Cozy. With a black hood pulled over his head, he slowly made his way through the marketplace, weary of any watchful eyes or royal guards. Every pony he passed gave him a funny look, but he could tell it was out of curiosity and not suspicion. He assumed most of these ponies had never seen a diamond dog in their lives. Still, those guards had to have talked to someone, so he didn’t want to overstay his welcome.

While he searched for something to eat, he passed by a pony sitting on a bench in front of an old store. He was reading a newspaper, and something about it stopped Jay in his tracks. To his shock, there was a very familiar name on the front page. In big bold letters, the title read:

Cozy Glow has escaped!
Is Equestria safe with a magic stealing lunatic out on the streets?

Jay stared at that name for a long time, slowly realizing the situation he was in. Oh man, what have I gotten myself into?

Author's Note

This is a story that’s been in my head for a while now, so I finally decided to write it! I hope someone out there enjoys it!

Six chapters left…

Chapter 2: The Game Plan

Cozy Glow didn’t have to wait long for Jay to come back with some food. She stood at the edge of the cave and watched him approach with anticipation. The closer he got, however, the more she noticed that something was off about the way he was walking. No, walking wasn’t the right word, it was more like he was marching. His footsteps were heavy and his facial expression was anything but happy. Cozy took a few steps back when Jay entered the cave and threw a newspaper onto the floor. Her ears fell back when she saw the name written on the front page, she was busted.

“What the hell is this!?” Jay yelled.

“Uh… I can explain,” Cozy said slowly.

“Well go on then, explain.”

“Uh, those… those are lies!" Cozy blurted. "It’s all propaganda!”

“Propaganda?”

“Yeah! The Princesses make it so they can turn their subjects against anyone who escapes from them!”

Jay shook his head. “Oh, you’re so full of it. It's just my luck that I end up helping an actual villain! Can life not give me a break for once? I mean, seriously? How is it that you’re the first pony I run into in this stupid country? Have I not been punished enough?”

While Jay ranted, Cozy's innocent mask gradually faded until her true self crawled to the surface. When Jay went quiet, she fixed him with a deadpan stare. "So what now? You gonna turn me in?”

Jay didn’t seem to get startled by Cozy’s sudden change in mannerism, instead, he appeared more annoyed than anything. “No, that's off the table.”

That was not the answer Cozy was expecting. She knew most ponies would be more than happy to appease their precious Princesses, but once again she was reminded that she wasn't dealing with a pony. Still, he had to have some sort of angle here, so she narrowed her eyes. “And why is that?”

“Well, for one thing, I’m not really a fan of law enforcement,” Jay revealed. “I’d rather stay away from the capital city if I can. And two, I knocked out those guards, remember? That essentially makes me your accomplice.”

“Yeah that’s true, isn’t it?” Cozy agreed with a smirk. "Guess we’re both screwed, huh?"

Jay grunted. “So that leaves me with only one option. I need to get out of this country, but there's no way I'm gonna leave a kid alone in the middle of a massive forest."

Cozy had to stop herself from bursting into a fit of laughter. Because of her, Jay had been backed into a corner, and now she had a free ticket out of Equestria. The only problem was how exactly he planned on leaving. She dropped her smirk to appear more serious. "So you want me to come with you. Do you have a plan?"

"Yeah I do actually," Jay answered. “I traveled here to find an old friend of mine. He has connections and can smuggle both of us out of the country."

"How do you know someone like that?"

"Don't worry about it. He's reliable and can get it done quickly."

Once again, a small grin crept its way onto Cozy's face. There was more to this diamond dog than she initially thought, and she planned to utilize his connections and abilities to the fullest. “Alright then… you can count me in! I have nothing else to lose anyway! And now that we’re partners in crime, we have a whole road trip to get to know each other!”

“I’m not going on a road trip with you,” Jay retorted. “I’m going to sneak you onto a train, find my friend, and be done with this by the end of the night. Then we never see each other again, which is my favorite part of this plan.” He pulled something green out of his pockets. “Here, I got you some food, eat it quickly, and let's go.”

He half haphazardly tossed the food at Cozy, who caught it with her hoof. Her friendly smile dropped when she saw what he had picked out for her. With a straight face, she looked up at him. “Asparagus, really?”

Jay shrugged. “What? Kids need their vegetables, right? That’s as healthy as you can get.”

“I hate asparagus.”

“Well, how was I supposed to know that?”

“Have you ever met a kid before?”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“No kid wants to eat asparagus for lunch!” Cozy explained angrily. “Seriously, you must have had like a hundred options to choose from, and you went with the worst one.”

Jay crossed his arms in annoyance. “Well, aren’t you a spoiled little brat.”

Cozy flung the green vegetables at the wall. “Get me something else!"

“Yeah, you wish,” Jay laughed. “Eat up Cozy, it's all you’ll have until we reach our destination.”

Cozy grit her teeth and growled at Jay as he walked out of the cave.

***

After forcing herself to eat her least favorite food, Cozy followed Jay around the border of the small village. Jay’s friend lived in a port town near Horseshoe Bay, and the train could take them there in a few hours. In order to stay hidden from the royal guards, Cozy was forced to hide in Jay’s backpack. He kept it unzipped so she could breathe but she had to lie under a sweater in case anyone peaked inside. It felt degrading to be carried around like a little dog, but it was the only way they could board the train.

The station itself was nothing special, just a big empty space with grey tracks in front of a small building designed as a brick house. Jay casually walked up to the train, paid for his ticket, and got on board. He made sure to pick an empty coach before speaking to his hidden companion. “Okay, the coast is clear.”

“Finally!” Cozy jumped out of the bag so she could stretch her limbs. “I don’t ever want to do that again.”

“Well, you’ll probably have to,” Jay stated. “Your name is literally written on every single newspaper in the country."

“Yeah, don’t remind me.” Cozy took a seat by the window. She expected Jay to sit across from her, but instead, he moved to the very back. When he took his seat, Cozy turned herself around and chuckled at him. “You’re a real loner, aren’t you?”

Jay leaned back and closed his eyes. “The coach is empty, I don’t need to sit with you.”

As the train began to move, Cozy rolled her eyes. “Whatever, I don’t need -” she cut herself off when she heard voices. They were muffled and appeared to be coming from the other coach. It was probably just passengers chatting about nothing important but Cozy could have sworn that one of them mentioned her by name. Deciding to find out for herself, she stood up and crept over to the far door. She peaked through its window and saw three ponies dressed in blue vests speaking to a group of commuters. “Relax folks, this is just our hourly check for the wanted fugitive known as Cozy Glow.”

“Are you saying that foul child could be on this train?” a posh-sounding mare asked.

“Not likely, ma’am,” the pony replied. “but by royal orders, all transportation must be checked every hour until she is found.”

Cozy backed away from the door. “Oh, this is bad.” She ran up to Jay and shook his arm. “Jay, wake up, we have a problem!”

Jay opened his eyes and frowned. “You know, this is the third time you’ve woken me up today. Can you take a chill pill for two seconds and let me relax?”

“There are security guards on the train looking for me!”

Jay shot out of his seat. “What?”

“They're in the other coach!”

After a short pause, Jay nodded. "Okay, wait here for a second.”

Very slowly, he tiptoed over to the green door and put his face up to the window. He saw the ponies all look at each other with worried expressions. "Are you going to stop the train?" one of them asked.

"No, this doesn't take long," the security guard replied.

“We gotta hide!” Cozy whispered loudly.

The guards made the passengers stand up so they could check under their seats and search their belongings. Jay backed away, having seen enough. “No, they're checking everywhere, we gotta get off this train!”

“But it’s moving!”

“Doesn't matter.” Jay raced past Cozy to get to the other door. He pulled on its handle but it refused to budge. “You gotta be kidding me, it’s locked!”

“What!”

“Why would they lock this? The other one wasn't locked. What purpose could they possibly have for having one door locked and the other one unlocked?”

“I don't know, but we need to think of something!”

Jay went up to one of the side windows and pushed his face against the glass. The train zoomed past fields and trees, but something up ahead caught his eye. “We’re coming up to a bridge with a river under it. If we jump off there, we’ll survive.”

“But we’re still trapped!” Cozy reminded him.

“I’m going to break the window.” Jay took a step back and pulled his jacket off. Cozy watched intently as he wrapped it around his fist. After taking a deep breath, he punched the glass as hard as he could. It didn’t break, and Jay cried out in pain. “Ow, that really hurt!”

“Try it again!” Cozy insisted.

“No, I’m good,” Jay wheezed, holding onto his throbbing hand “That was not fun. I’m really not having fun right now.”

Cozy growled angrily and flew over to his backpack. She opened the zipper and rummaged through it, tossing clothing and other items all over the floor. “There’s gotta be something in here we can use!”

She found a small hatchet at the bottom of the bag, it looked old and worn out, but Cozy was out of options. She grabbed it with both hooves and flew into the air. Holding the hachet over her head, she hurled it at the window. She missed the mark, and the top of it bounced off the bottom frame. It spun through the air back towards her, but she ducked down to avoid the flying blade. Jay didn’t notice, and the wooden handle hit him right in the face. He covered the spot it hit and grunted painfully. “Ow, what the hell, Cozy! Are you trying to kill me!”

Cozy smiled sheepishly at him. “Sorry about that.”

Jay picked up the small ax and marched past her. “Get out of my way.” With both hands firmly grasping the handle, he hit the window with all his force. The blade cut through, creating several cracks. He pulled it out and swung again, creating more cracks. “Third time's the charm.” With all the strength he could muster, he swung the hatchet one final time. The window finally broke under the pressure and shattered into a hundred pieces.

Cozy glanced towards the far door, knowing that any second the guards would come bursting through. Jay, meanwhile, stuck his head out the window to see how close to the bridge they were. “It’s coming up, we gotta jump now!”

Cozy gulped. The train was moving really fast, and she knew the winds were too high to give her proper flight, but it was her only option. She could either jump and pray that she didn't flatten like a pancake next to the river, or spend the remainder of her days locked in a cage deep within Tartarus. It wasn't a hard decision to make, and the next thing she knew, she was standing next to Jay, mentally preparing herself to jump out of a moving train.

With the river fast approaching, Jay pushed the remaining glass shards off the bottom of the frame and stuck his leg through. With one hand holding the top of the frame, he sat on the ledge and reached his other out towards Cozy. "Okay, take my hand now!" Cozy did just that, and Jay helped her through the window. They heard the door burst open and someone yell, “What’s going on here!”

The guards were too late, the river came into view and the dog and filly jumped for their dear lives. Cozy screamed as she fell through the air. The second she hit the water, her whole body was submerged by the rushing current. She tried to fight against it but was dragged further down by the powerful force of the river. Panic began to set in as the cold water threatened to enter her lungs. She thrashed and squirmed with all her might, desperately trying to claw her way to the surface, but she wasn’t strong enough. Luckily, a hand reached into the water just in time and pulled her out. Jay dropped Cozy safety onto the ground and the two took in some much-needed air.

Still breathing hard, Jay rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Yeah, so that was probably not the best idea, was it?”

Despite the pain in her lungs, Cozy looked up at him and grinned. “Forcing a child to jump out of a moving train into a dangerous river? Nah, not terrible at all!” She may have not liked his attitude, but Cozy had to admit, Jay was a quick thinker and he got things done. All the more reason to keep him around until his usefulness ran out.

Jay smiled back. "You're a tough kid. Now come on, those security guards saw us. We gotta get the hell out of here."

With the train out of sight, the two began their trek to find Jay’s friend.

Chapter 3: The Wolf

With transportation no longer an option, Cozy and Jay were forced to walk the rest of the way. They kept to backwood trails and forests in order to avoid any royal guards, but that made their trip far longer than intended.

The trail they followed was out of sight and surrounded by trees. It made for a scenic but boring walk, so in order to pass the time, Cozy told Jay step by step what had happened to her the previous night. Jay, who was usually stone-faced and dismissive, actually listened intently to her story.

"And then I ran into the nearest forest to escape the guards!” Cozy explained. “It was intense, but they're useless, so I lost them pretty quick."

Jay shook his head in astonishment. "Wow, that's… crazy. I can't believe you managed to pull that off. And you would have won too if it wasn't for that, what did you say? Friendship… magic?”

"It was that stupid Tree of Harmony," Cozy grumbled. "It's not fair, it came out of nowhere!"

Jay actually nodded in agreement. "Yeah, sounds like a cheap move to me. So no one technically beat you then."

"Exactly! I came closer than anyone!" Cozy boasted. "Do you have any idea how many villains have tried to conquer Equestria in the past few years?"

"Not really."

"A lot. And just like them, the newspapers will say that Twilight Sparkle and her dumb friends outfitted me. No pony can outwit me!"

"Well, I believe it. If you did all that as a kid, I can only imagine what you'll be like as an adult."

"At least someone appreciates my genius.” Cozy was happy to see Jay opening up more. If she was going to continue to use his skills, she needed to build a friendly rapport with him, and that meant getting to know each other. “Well, I told you more about me, so how about we talk about you now?”

Jay seemed hesitant to reveal anything about himself, but with the tension between them loosened a bit, he finally relented. “Uh… alright, fine. What do you want to know?”

“What do you do for a living?”

“Uh…”

“Let me guess… you're a criminal?”

Jay stopped in his tracks, his eyes widening. “What? H-how do you know that?”

“Oh please, you got criminal written all over you!” Cozy laughed. She knew Jay wasn’t a normal diamond dog when he mentioned having a smuggler for a friend. Also, the way he reacted to her story was incredibly telling. Any normal person would be horrified at the evil deeds she committed, but not Jay, he was actually impressed.

“Wow, I thought I was more subtle than that,” he chuckled. “But you’re right. Truth is, I’ve been a criminal for most of my life. I’ve been all over the world, worked for a lot of different people, and at one point I was considered the most wanted thief in my country… until I got caught.”

“How did you get caught?”

Jay shrugged. “I got reckless. Thought I was untouchable.”

Cozy rubbed her chin in thought, then looked at Jay and grinned. “Well, now that you’re out, I have the perfect job for you!”

Jay raised his eyebrow. “And what’s that?”

“You can be my henchmen!”

“I’m not taking orders from a kid.”

Jay started to walk again, but Cozy flew up to block his path. “Oh come on, we could accomplish so much together!”

“Like what? Getting locked up in Tartarus? I’m good.” He pushed her out of the way. “I’ll leave world domination to you.”

Cozy dropped to the ground and scowled. “Of course you would say that. I should have known a henchman would have so little ambition!”

***

They still hadn’t made it to their destination by the end of the day and were forced to camp out for the night. Cozy was very persistent on getting marshmallows, so Jay reluctantly bought some from a nearby town. Well, he claimed to have bought it, but Cozy assumed he just stole it. When he returned, the two hiked deeper into the forest to start a fire. After setting it up, Cozy was the first to speak. "Do you know how to pick a lock?"

Jay looked at her suspiciously. "... I do."

Cozy grinned. "Can you show me how?"

Jay paused and thought for a moment. "Well… I can't show you in the middle of a forest, but later? Eh, why not. Picking someone's lock would probably be your least offensive crime anyway."

Cozy nodded excitedly. "Thanks! Looking forward to it, friend!"

“Don’t call me that.”

“Oh, come on, you don’t have to be so uptight around me anymore,” Cozy giggled. She stuck a marshmallow to a stick to roast it above the flames.

"Just because we jumped out of a moving train together, doesn't make us friends,” Jay retorted.

“Allies?”

"No, I would say… forced acquaintances."

Cozy shrugged and took a bite out of the marshmallow. "Whatever works for you." He could call them whatever he wanted. At the end of the day, it was his skillset that mattered, not his approval.

She reached out for another marshmallow but froze at the sound of rustling leaves and the snapping of twigs. Jay heard it too and stood up to peer into the darkness surrounding them. “Do you hear that?”

“Yeah, I do.”

Something was moving towards them, something big. Its heavy footsteps shook the ground while a shadow loomed over them. Cozy stood up fearfully as the creature stepped out into the burning light, revealing its distorted features.

Jay’s eyes widened and his voice lowered into a whisper. “What the hell is that?”

“It’s a timberwolf,” Cozy answered, her own voice starting to quiver. “B-but they never leave the Everfree Forest!”

“Well, this one did.”

“I didn't know they could get that big.” Cozy’s eyes trailed up the wolf’s body, which stood a foot taller than Jay. It must have been an alpha! They were extremely rare and only spotted a few times throughout history. Cozy would have laughed at their terrible luck, but her fear got the better of her.

Jay began to back up slowly. “Oh, man.”

“Y-you’re a dog, right?” Cozy stuttered. “Can you like… talk to it or something?”

“What are you, stupid?”

Cozy glared at Jay, but he didn’t take his gaze off the hulking creature staring them down. Its glowing green eyes followed their every move, like a predator stalking its prey. Cozy began to back up as well but winced as a twig snapped under her hoof. The wolf reacted by baring its yellow fangs, followed by a deep growl.

“Screw this,” Jay said under his breath. Cozy looked over at him as he shook his head. “It’s gonna attack, we have to run now!

He sprinted away, and Cozy took to the air to follow. She didn’t look back but could hear the wolf’s heavy breathing as it gave chase. Its massive paws hitting the ground felt like an earthquake, watch only added to Cozy’s terror. She knew that a single slip-up meant death, so she pushed her wings to their limit. She even managed to catch up with Jay, who was panting hard.

A minute into their chase, Cozy’s lungs had started to burn while her wings cramped up. Jay looked equally tired, which is why he failed to notice a tree root sticking out of the ground and tripped right over it. The diamond dog fell flat on his face, but Cozy pushed on, her adrenaline taking control of her actions.

To her horror, the wolf jumped over Jay and continued after her. “Oh come on, why are you still chasing me!"

Before any real panic could set in, Cozy noticed the trees open up into a clearing, where the ground split into a massive gorge. With a smirk, she flew towards it. When she reached the edge, the wolf behind her skidded to a halt. It barked aggressively as she hovered above the massive drop.

"HA! Try and get me now, sucker!" the filly mocked, sticking her tongue out.

As if to answer her challenge, the wolf pawed at the ground and lowered its back. Cozy dropped her grin. There's no way it can - It leaped over the gorge with terrifying speed and bit into her wings. She cried out in pain as it flew through the air and dug its paws into the opposite wall. While Cozy dangled helplessly from the wolf’s mouth, it kicked itself off the wall to land back onto the ground with its prey pinned underneath it. The filly punched and kicked it in a desperate attempt to escape. "Get off me, you stupid mutt!"

Her screams were silenced when the wolf growled into her face, salvia dripping off sharp teeth that were ready to tear her apart. At that point, all she could do was close her eyes and await death… but death never came. Instead, Jay ran up and shoulder-checked it with enough force to knock it off the edge. With a rageful howl, the timberwolf fell to its doom, and the sound of wood shattering echoed throughout the gorge.

After taking a second to regain her senses, Cozy rose to shaky hooves. "Wow… that was really close."

Jay rested his hands on his knees so he could catch his breath. "Man… screw this country. I'm… happy to be leaving here!"

Cozy laughed and trotted to the edge so she could peer down into the gorge. The wolf's body had splintered into a dozen pieces and its wooden limbs were strewn across the dry ground. However, upon closer inspection, she noticed the wood had begun to shift and vibrate. It was almost like an invisible magnet was pulling them back together. Within seconds, the fragmented corpse of the timberwolf began to reattach itself. Cozy took a step back and shook her head. "This isn’t over!"

"What!?" Jay ran up next to her just as the wolf stood up. With its body fully intact, it looked up at them and howled. Jay threw his hands up in exasperation. "How the hell is that thing not dead?"

"They can reattach their bodies!"

"Oh, that is so stupid! These things suck!"

With incredible strength, the wolf pierced the stone wall with its nails and began to climb. Jay witnessed this and sighed deeply to himself. "And now it's climbing up the wall. Okay, we're screwed."

"What do we do!?" Cozy yelled.

"We could run again, or…" Jay bit his lip and glanced around. Suddenly, his eyes widened at some sort of realization. "Wait, I have an idea, but… you'll need to trust me."

***

The wolf made it to the top of the gorge and found Cozy standing alone with a nervous expression. Instead of pouncing right away, it looked past the filly to the trees behind her, almost like it was analyzing the surrounding area. When it seemed satisfied, it returned its attention to the pony in front of it. Cozy watched as it took the same stance from earlier and let out the same deep growl that would haunt her nightmares.

After taking a deep breath, she shouted, “What are you waiting for, you dumb piece of wood! I’m right here!” This better work, Jay.

The wolf sprinted towards her, but she refused to budge. As it got closer, Cozy closed her eyes and flinched, but right before it could reach her, Jay popped out of the ground and grabbed its hindleg. It fell on its chin and Jay pulled it towards him. It bit and scratched the air but Jay managed to flip it onto its back and hold its neck down with his forearm. With the wolf pinned below him, he raised his hatchet into the air and brought it down with one hard strike. The wolf cried out as the blade stabbed into its wooden chest. Jay brought the hatchet back up and swung down again, then again, and then one final time. The last strike pierced the animal's heart, causing it to whimper painfully. When Jay removed the blade, the timberwolf went limp, its green eyes dimming into blackness.

With the wolf now dead, Jay slid off its body and sat on the ground to take in some air. Meanwhile, his filly companion slowly rose to her hooves, having watched the whole thing intently.

"Wow, you were right! Diamond dogs are great at digging! Good job, Jay! And look at you, protecting your boss." Cozy flew up and gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. "That's some real henchman material right there!"

Jay looked over at her and frowned. “I’m going to say it again… screw this country!”