Scootaloo whizzed through the blackness with a strangely echoless ‘Woohoo!’ as she executed a perfect loop de loop followed by a flawless barrel roll. Her powerful wings beat against her sides as she continued to fly.

“Scootaloo!” Starlight shouted from somewhere far below. The orange Pegasus was little more than a dot in the not exactly sky from where the Unicorn stood. “Come down! We’re supposed to be waiting for the princess!”

Apple Bloom approached the headmare and lightly placed a hoof to her withers.

“Shh,” She said gently, in between licks of her ginormous yet seemingly strangely weightless ice-cream cone. “Let her have this. It’s not very often she gets to fly.”

Starlight gently jabbed at the space between her eyes as she scrunched her face up and sighed deeply.

“We’re supposed to be presenting an organized, united front to present this final draft to Twilight.” She moaned. “I’d prefer it if she could see us being just a tiny bit professional before she shows up and tears it to shreds.”

“She won’t,” Apple Bloom replied kindly. “You - we all – have worked hard at this. She’ll see that.”

Starlight smiled warily in her direction as the Earth Pony continued to attack the ice-cream. Despite Apple Bloom’s best efforts, it didn’t seem to be diminishing in size.

They were standing in a featureless void, similar to the one that the headmare had found herself in when Twilight had invaded her dreamscape. The whole experience had given Starlight much food for thought, one of which had been the notion that while she may not be able to traverse the dream realm, any exceptionally magically gifted idiot could link sleeping minds together. Hopefully it would save some time once Twilight arrived, and it also gave them a chance to go over any last-minute preparations they might have.

In theory.

The problem was that many Ponies seldom encountered the lucid dream experience, and Starlight’s team was no exception. When presented with carte blanche to do literally anything, it had a tendency to lead to...well, this.

Scootaloo’s joyous cries drifted down from somewhere in the overhead distance as she continued to effortlessly execute an old Wonderbolts routine.

“Where’s Spike?” Starlight asked, dreading the answer.

“Right here.” The Dragon replied, as he sauntered over, dressed in a pristine tuxedo and a pair of mirrored sunglasses.

The Unicorn emitted another groan.

“What?” Spike said, vexed. “I thought I looked pretty good.”

“Very sharp.” Apple Bloom grinned.

“It’s not a question of how you look!” Starlight whined. “We’re supposed to be presenting an action plan to the princess, not mucking about!”

“There’s no reason we can’t do both,” Spike intoned. “Relax Starlight. We made the changes that Twilight asked for, the plan is solid, she’ll give us the go ahead.

Starlight rubbed at her eyes in frustration before nodding.

“Where’s Sweetie Belle?” She asked.

“Over there looking at refrigerators.” Apple Bloom pointed a hoof over the headmare’s shoulder. Starlight wheeled around in the direction of Apple Bloom’s leg and beheld the white Unicorn, wandering between two rows of mini-fridges. She idly opened the door on one of them and nodded approvingly at what she saw inside.

“For crying out loud...” Starlight grumbled.

The headmare squeezed her eyes shut and clutched the base of her horn. She briefly allowed her mind to drift to Trixie, and she found that her current frustrations melted away somewhat. That was, at least, until she felt a jab of guilt in her chest over how she’d left her friend that morning. When she’d awoke the blue Unicorn had still been asleep, splayed and drooling over her twin bean chairs. Starlight smiled at the memory, in spite of the contrite feeling in her chest. She had quietly stepped over her sleeping friend and silently exited the caravan. Looking back, she wondered if she should have left a note, something, just to say how thankful she was to Trixie for just being there for her when she needed her the most. Would it be weird if she visited the caravan for a third time in as many days? Celestia, why not just show up with half a dozen roses, a box of chocolates and a mariachi band? Having said that, they were friends, weren’t they? Friends spent time together, didn’t they? That was something that they didn’t seem to get to do all that much these days. Yes, that was the answer. Visit Trixie again, and hide behind the excuse that they aren’t able to spend as much time together as they used to. It’s totally not because she wanted to sleep in the blue Unicorn’s bed once more, but this time with her in it too.

Starlight buried her face in her hooves, hiding her reddening face in a faux display of frustration.

“Hello?” a regal voice called out in the darkness.

Starlight frantically gestured for the others to stop what they were doing and just, be normal, for Celestia’s sake!

“Twilight!” The Unicorn beamed falsely. “Please, come in.”

Starlight gestured to an empty area of darkness nearby where at her will a circular table and six chairs faded into existence. One of the chairs had a higher backrest, and bore a facsimile of Twilight’s cutie mark.

The Princess emerged from the void with an incredulous expression on her face.

“Starlight?” She asked questioningly. “I don’t remember teaching you how to dream-link?”

The headmare gave the Princess a slight eye-roll to go with her smile.

“Well, you know, I might not be able to access the dream realm, but several creatures sleeping in close proximity, I figured, how hard could it be? To link their minds, I mean.”

“Well, I’m impressed.” Twilight said, walking over to the table. She lightly ran a hoof over the polished surface, at length her gaze landing on the chairs.

“Well, I guess this one’s mine.”

Twilight magically eased the wooden chair out from the table and sat down. Starlight gestured for Applebloom and Spike to do likewise.

“Excuse me while I round up the rest of my team,” Starlight said quickly. Her smile remained fixed in place, but her eye twitched involuntarily.

After a few minutes of Starlight teleporting around the dreamscape and wrangling the remainder of her staff, all of the creatures were seated around the table. Twilight couldn’t help but smile to herself about their respective ‘dream selves’.

“Okay!” Starlight began, attempting, perhaps too hard, to stay positive after the unprofessional antics on display. “We’ve reworked the plan according to your feedback the other day-”

“New and improved.” Spike muttered. Both Starlight and Twilight threw the Dragon a sideways glance but neither passed comment.

“-and hopefully we now have something workable that you’ll be happy to sign off on.”

The Princess nodded approvingly.

Over the course of the next hour or so, Starlight outlined the plan to her mentor. Though it was precisely as she’d planned it with her team, it felt as though she was outlining it to herself as much as anypony else. She still couldn’t quite believe that she was heading into this project with one hoof tied behind her back, but, as Twilight wanted it, so shall it be done. That wasn’t to say the Princess’ words hadn’t made some sense to her; she supposed that she was still just a little bit raw about the whole thing. If she didn’t get the go-ahead now, she honestly didn’t know what she’d do.

The plan itself was pretty much the same, just with the pieces that Twilight took issue with removed; which, now that she dwelled on it, was another reason for her to be nervous; this wasn’t a plan, it was a skeleton. To make up for the fact that there didn’t seem to be much substance to what they were proposing, Starlight went into detail about some of the activities and friendship building exercises they’d be attempting to forge bonds with the three with, and by extension, get them to forge bonds too.

Specifically, it would be music lessons and culture studies with Sweetie Belle, nature studies and potions with Apple Bloom, while Scootaloo took sports. Spike, as ever, would be helping out wherever needed, as well as taking notes for Twilight’s benefit. Starlight would then be given a summary of their progress on a daily basis, and would adapt her counselling sessions accordingly.

Twilight for the most part simply listened, nodded and asked the odd pertinent question. After Starlight had finished her summary, and if the truth be told, rambled for a good deal longer than necessary out of fear of the Princess’ response, Twilight finally offered her verdict.

“It’s a good plan.”

“Yes?” Starlight stammered. “It is? It is!”

“It is.” Twilight smiled. “I’m still not totally sold on the idea of splitting them up-”

Starlight could see a Dragon rolling his eyes like he was suffering a particularly extreme demonic possession at those words out of the corner of her eye, but thankfully it seemed that it went unnoticed by her mentor.

“-but I can see the need for safety and security. Have you decided on who the first subject will be?”

“Yes, yes we have,” Starlight struggled to regain her composure. “Cozy Glow.”

“Cozy Glow?” Twilight raised an eyebrow.

“Yes.” Starlight continued. “Our thinking was that we would work from least to most dangerous. That puts Cozy up first. No magic, no powers. Hopefully she’ll be an easy starting point.”

Spike and the Crusaders nodded along in agreement, while the Princess kept her eyebrow aloft.

“Mmm,” she murmured thoughtfully. “She’s not as harmless as you might think, you know.”

“We’re all well aware of how dangerous she is, Twilight,” Spike piped up, a stern edge to his voice. “It’s just that she isn’t as dangerous as the other two.”

Twilight looked in the Dragon’s direction, choosing her next words carefully.

“I’m just saying, she’s probably the best of the three at ‘faking it’,” The Princess made air quotes with her hooves. “In all likelihood, she’ll play along with your teachings and tell you exactly what you want to hear. You’re going to have to be exceptionally careful to make sure you’re actually getting through to her.”

“All the more reason to start with her, then.” Starlight interjected. “If we can crack her then we can crack any of them.”

Twilight frowned at her protégé’s wording, but allowed the moment to pass.

“Besides,” Starlight continued, “I’ll take common psychopathy over devouring magic or the ability to look like anycreature.”

Twilight looked at the faces around the table. They all met her gaze evenly, an edge of determination in their eyes.

“Fine,” she sighed. “If you’re all sure.”

Starlight looked to her team briefly before answering.

“We are.” She said firmly.

“Good.” Twilight smiled. “The plan is solid, and I’m happy to sign off on it.”

Starlight silently breathed a sigh of relief.

“I have some literature that I think will come in handy,” Twilight mused, placing a hoof to her chin.

“I’m sure you do.” Starlight remarked dryly.

“I’ll drop it off tomorrow. I’m thinking that, since we’re releasing them one at a time, we should re-home the other two here for the duration. Somewhere out of the way, out of sight, and secure. I’m open to suggestions.”

The other creatures looked blankly at each other for a few seconds.

“There’s some caverns under the school?” Scootaloo offered. “Behind the big waterfall.”

“Too close to the school.” Twilight shook her head. “The last thing we need is some student stumbling across them.”

Silence returned to the table as five Ponies and a Dragon wracked their brains.

“The Everfree forest maybe?” Spike ventured.

“Too dangerous.” Starlight grumbled. “Celestia only knows what’s roaming around in there. We wouldn’t be able to guarantee their safety while they’re frozen or ours when we have to go retrieve them.”

“I’ve got it!” Apple Bloom exclaimed excitedly. “The Tree of Harmony!”

The other creatures looked at each other.

“That could work...” Starlight said thoughtfully.

“Hold on, isn’t there a risk that students will find them there too?” Twilight asked, concern furrowing her brow. “The tree must be visited by students all the time!”

“Ah, not as much as you might think,” Apple Bloom responded, her mouth pulled back in an awkward smile. “The pukwudgies keep a lot of ‘em away. Plus, a lot a’them aren’t all that interested in history.”

“Oh.” Twilight replied, a twinge of disappointment in her voice.

“I’ll send a memo making it out of bounds,” Starlight dismissed with a wave of her hoof, swiftly moving the conversation on. “We’ll say it’s for repairs or something. It’s perfect!”

“Do we need to worry about Cozy Glow being recognized?” Sweetie Belle questioned. “If we’re going to be doing friendship activities with her in and around campus, we’re not going to be able to keep her from running into other students completely.”

Starlight shook her head.

“I don’t think that that will be too much of a problem, at least not with Cozy Glow.” she mused. “Like Apple Bloom says, the majority of the students aren’t that well up on their history. As long as we’re careful and don’t let her run her mouth too much, we should be fine. If we have to, we’ll say she’s her own long-lost niece or something.”

“And if she is recognized?” Twilight raised an eyebrow.

“Then we contain the rumours.” Starlight said gravely. “A quiet, polite word with yours truly should be enough to stifle any Ponies who want to blab about the project before we’re ready.”

Twilight sighed lightly.

“Fine. Though I’ll have to think of something for the other two, but I suppose we can cross that bridge when we get to it.”

There was a pointed pause.

“So, when do we start?” Sweetie Belle asked tentatively.

“Tomorrow.” Twilight replied.

The early morning sun had just begun to peek over the horizon, its warm rays refracting through the Crystal Treehouse, creating numerous tiny rainbows on the patchy grass around the Ponies.

The treehouse was situated in the ruins of the Castle of the Two Sisters, and as such was surrounded by the remains of stone archways and random blocks of masonry that had fallen over the years. There was a fine coating of dew over everything, making the grass, trees and brickwork glint and glisten almost as much as the treehouse itself. The crystal blossom that protruded from the top of the tree cast a pink glow around the surrounding area as the early light passed through it.

Starlight paced nervously out from under the pink shade and tapped the excess water off her sodden hooves against a convenient nearby slab.

“Where is she?” She asked to nopony in particular. “The sun’s up, so she must be.”

“I’m sure she’s on her way,” Spike sighed from the archway he was slouched against. “Don’t panic.”

“I’m not panicking.” Starlight almost snapped. “I just don’t like being kept waiting.”

The Cutie Mark Crusaders exchanged troubled glances from their vantage point under the blossom before Apple Bloom stepped forward.

“It’s okay,” she soothed, in much the same way she had the previous night. “Twilight’s probably jus’ doin’ some last-minute checks an’ stuff. Maybe she’s lookin’ for that book she mentioned. Y’know how she is.”

Starlight turned on her hooves and managed to shoot the Crusader a strained smile.

“Yeah.” She sighed. “Yeah, I do. Sorry everycreature. I’m just a little nervous.”

“It’s okay.” Apple Bloom assured.

“We all are.” Sweetie Belle added.

Starlight nodded, and turned her attention back to her pacing. One, two minutes passed, before there was a familiar roar of magical energy, and with a bright flash, Twilight Sparkle appeared looking slightly dishevelled and with the colossal grey statue of the three behind her.

Her mane was unbrushed and her eyes were narrowed and twitchy, betraying her lack of sleep. On her back she wore her saddlebags bearing her cutie mark, but her crown and usual regalia were curiously absent.

“Sorry, sorry,” She blustered. “I got held up. I had to make a few excuses to get away unnoticed. It wasn’t easy. And then there was these three...”

She gestured to the petrified forms behind her.

“It’s fine.” Starlight assured. “We haven’t been waiting too long anyway.”

The headmare pointedly ignored the sly smiles that were being fired her way by her team.

Starlight held a hoof up to Spike and Crusaders, gesturing for them to hang back for a moment. She got some curious looks in return, especially from the Dragon. Undeterred, Starlight strode over to the Princess.

“Twilight,” She spoke in a voice just above a whisper, so that the others couldn’t hear. “Have you been up all night?”

“What?” Twilight said with faint outrage. “No! Well, not completely. Most of the night. I got a few hours in. Well, a couple. Well, one.”

Starlight rolled her eyes.

“Twilight!” She chastised. “You need more than that!”

“Has Spike been talking to you?” The Princess raised an eyebrow. “I’m fine. I’m alert, I’m raring to go. What’s the problem?”

“Twilight, I say this as a friend, and I mean no offence, but you look like death.” The headmare said bluntly. “Is this really what you want Cozy to see when you first free her?”

Twilight’s eyes widened slightly.

“I hadn’t thought of that.” She whispered, an edge of fear to her voice.

“Hm, first impressions are everything,” Starlight nodded. “Tell me you at least brought your crown.”

“My... I... Yes!” Twilight floundered before rummaging around in her bag. “I know it’s in here somewhere, I... Yes, here we go.”

She retrieved the shining tiara-style crown from her bag and plonked it unceremoniously on her head. She beamed unconvincingly at the Unicorn who in turn reached up and straightened it for her.

“Now if you’ve got a mane brush in there too, we’ll be in business.”

As it turned out, Twilight, somewhat predictably, did not have a mane brush to hoof, but luckily Sweetie Belle had the Princess covered. After a hasty spruce-up, assisted by Starlight, Twilight looked ready to proceed.

“Of course, if they are aware of their surroundings then it’s all moot,” Starlight grumbled, as she used her magic to straighten the Princess’ crown. Twilight frowned in her direction before waving her magic away irritably.

“Never mind all that.” She said curtly. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

Starlight nodded, grimacing ever so slightly at the tight knot of fear that she felt in her stomach. She mentally repeated to herself that it was just Cozy Glow they were freeing, a mere foal. A mere foal against whom they held all the cards. They knew of her deceptive, manipulative nature, and they knew how to defend against it. She should be the one to be afraid, not them.

So why hadn’t Starlight’s body got the memo?

She looked over the faces of Spike and the Crusaders briefly, gauging their expressions. Though she felt slightly guilty, she felt considerable relief at the fact that they looked just as uncomfortable as she felt. She flipped her attention to Twilight. If the Princess was nervous, she was hiding it well; her face simply bore a determined frown.

Twilight wheeled around and faced the petrified villains. As her horn crackled with magical energy, Starlight beckoned the others closer with a hoof. The Crusaders approached quietly and cautiously, while spike pushed himself of his archway with an audible grunt and grumpily made his way over.

The five creatures watched with a mixture of awe and alarm as the magic of the Princess’ horn formed a beam which, comparatively slowly, stretched out towards the statue until it collided with the frozen, terror-struck face of Cozy Glow. From there, the grey of the stone around her face began to fade away, replaced by the soft peachy pink of the filly’s coat. A few more seconds and it began to stretch down her body, the grainy texture of the rock being replaced with fur. A few more seconds, and her cutie mark became visible once again. Horrifyingly, for the creatures present, this regenerative effect did not stop with the foal, as the colour of a small portion of Tirek’s back and the tip of Chrysalis’ wing also began to return to normal.

“Uh, Twilight?” Starlight whispered with concern. “You’re, uh, kinda hitting the other two there as well...”

“I know,” the Princess said through gritted teeth. “This isn’t easy when they’re stuck so close together. Don’t worry, I’ve got this.”

Just as it looked as though the magic might spread to the other two members of the trio, Twilight cut the beam with a jerk of her head. For a second, the now alive Cozy Glow hung in mid-air before her eyes blinked, her forelegs fell limply to her sides and she succumbed to gravity. Twilight attempted to grab the filly in her magic before she could hit the floor, but Starlight was faster. Cozy barely fell a foot before she was engulfed in the headmare’s turquoise aura and gently placed on the grass in front of herself and the Princess. The filly slumped to the floor in a limp pile while she blinked rapidly, her expression one of complete shock. After a few moments she struggled to raise her head, and at length managed to roll onto her haunches. She raised a shaky foreleg and shielded her eyes from the sun.

Slowly, Twilight and the others advanced towards the foal, their hooves (and in Spike’s case, claws) lightly tapping on the stony ground. The sound alerted Cozy Glow to their presence, and hoof still raised, she glared in their direction. She stared for a few seconds, her eyes becoming used to the idea of being functional once again for the first time in years.

“Sparkle,” she grimaced in her sweet voice that belied her character. “How nice.”

Her eyes shifted to Starlight.

“Oh, and Glimmer too. To what do I owe this dubious pleasure?”

“Cozy Glow,” Twilight stated as gently as she could under the circumstances. “Your time being frozen in stone is over.”

The Princess took a measured breath to continue, but Cozy Glow spoke before she could do so.

“Oh, I see. So what it is now then? Exile? Back to Tartarus? Oh, I know!” She clapped her hooves together. “Why not just execute me and have done with it?”

At this, Spike snorted a near silent chuckle through his nose. Starlight shot him a warning glance.

“Nothing like that,” Twilight continued sternly. Then her voice softened and her eyes dropped to the ground. “There were...grave mistakes that were made when you were apprehended the first time around. For that I am truly sorry. Now is the time to correct them.”

Twilight again met Cozy’s gaze. The foal wasn’t even trying to hide her scowl and naked hatred as her eyes bore into the Alicorn.

“You will be taken into Starlight’s care, and given a full education on the true meaning of friendship. During that time the school will be your new home.”

“I see.” Cozy hissed. “For how long?”

“However long it takes.”

There was a pause. None of the assembled creatures dared breathe, anxiously awaiting the Pegasus’ response. The wind blew some tiny dry leaves in minute circles across the ground.

“And if I refuse?” She replied finally.

“That has not been considered.” Twilight said thoughtfully. “I would strongly advise you not to though. Whatever the alternative is, it is sure to be far less pleasant than what I’m offering to you right now.”

Cozy’s shining pink eyes narrowed, signalling her understanding, before they drifted over the Spike and the Crusaders.

“And I suppose that this is my own personal reformation team?” She smiled an evil smile. “Well, golly gee. Aren’t you going to introduce me?”

“You’ve already met.” Twilight replied bluntly.

Only then did the scowl and the air of confidence falter for a moment, replaced by a look of confusion. Cozy took a second look at Dragon and the trio of Ponies, this time her gaze lingering on their faces. Her eyes widened as the spark of recognition flashed in them. Her head snapped back to Twilight.

“How...” She started, swallowing back her rage, “How long was I...?”

She trailed off, her eyes betraying a sheen of tears.

“Ten years.” Twilight replied grimly.

Cozy nodded, her face twisted into a grimace of unadulterated fury. She hung her head low, momentarily hiding her face from the creatures present. Starlight and Twilight took the opportunity to exchange anxious glances.

The Princess was about to step forward, perhaps to attempt to say a comforting word or two. Whether that was the case or not would never be known, for it was at that very moment that Cozy’s head snapped back up, a smile fixed on her face, and all previous hints of anger and despair seemingly gone. It was such a stark transformation that Twilight almost took an involuntary step back. Mercifully, she managed to steel herself and hold her ground.

Cozy’s head turned slowly, almost robotically back towards the Crusaders and Spike, her smile not flickering for an instant.

“Well, where are my manners?” She drawled sweetly. “Cutie Mark Crusaders, so good to see you again. Been locked in any good closets lately?”

The Crusaders shifted uncomfortably, none of them speaking. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle avoided the Pegasus’ eyes, while Scootaloo forced herself to look directly at her addresser, her expression one of annoyance. As quickly as Cozy Glow had turned her attention on them, she shifted it to the Dragon.

“And Spike too,” She grinned. “Still the Ponies lap-dog, I see. Golly, how you’ve grown.”

“You haven’t.” Spike shot back, over the top of folded arms.

Cozy’s smile widened at the jibe.

“Well, what can I say?” she cooed. “Say what you like about being trapped in stone for a decade, but it does wonders for the complexion.”

The filly paused for moment and nonchalantly examined a hoof.

“Not so great for the psyche, self-esteem or inclination to learn about friendship, but I suppose you can’t have everything, can you?”

Cozy emphasized the word ‘friendship’ in the most patronizing way possible, her eyes flitting to Twilight as she did do. The Princess was surprised to feel a pang of anger rise in her chest at this miniscule gesture.

“Cozy, I’m going to need an answer.” The Princess said with strained patience, just managing to keep her emotions in check. “Do you accept the terms I’ve described, or do we need to come up with a contingency plan?

“It’s not much of a choice, and you know it.” Cozy snapped, her smile finally disappearing and the hatred bubbling back to the surface.

There was a long silence, during which Cozy Glow continued to stare daggers right at the Princess.

“I accept your terms, Sparkle.” The foal finally growled.

“Good,” Twilight nodded. “We’ll use the rest of today to get you acclimatized to your new home, and then we’ll get you started on your lessons tomorrow.”

Cozy merely glared at the Princess by way of a reply.

“You won’t be seeing me much while you’re under Starlight’s care, as I have duties to attend to, but I’ll be watching.” The Princess continued.

“Well, colour me devastated.” The Pegasus sneered.

“Good luck, Cozy Glow.”

The return to the School of Friendship was a somber one. Cozy Glow walked a ways ahead of Starlight and Twilight, flanked on all sides by Spike and the Crusaders. The sun had crept higher into the sky, drying up the morning dew and bathing Equestria in its warm rays. The birds sang their merry song in the blue sky, the flowers shone their colours brightly, and all seemed right with the world.

‘Seemed’ being the operative word.

“What do you think?” Starlight said quietly out of the side of her mouth, her eyes glued to the back of Cozy’s head.

“I think that that went about as well as could be expected,” Twilight responded in a similar fashion. “It doesn’t take a psychology expert to see that she absolutely hates me, and she’s not too keen on you either. I think you’ve got your work cut out for you.”

Starlight remained silent for a few paces.

“If she had turned down your offer, what would you have done?”

“I have no idea,” Twilight sighed, breaking her stare and allowing her eyes to drop to the dusty path. “This whole plan is about giving them a shot at redemption, but it’s also about finally eradicating a stain that has remained on my reign as Princess from the very beginning.”

Now it was Starlight’s turn to break her gaze. She looked up at her mentor, and took in her contrite expression. The headmare ran a hoof through her own mane thoughtfully.

“I’m sorry about the other day.” She said, staring at the ground.

“Hm?” Twilight grunted, returning her eyes to the foal walking ahead of them.

“I know it wasn’t you that turned them to stone. I shouldn’t have said that. I was upset.”

“It might as well have been,” Twilight shrugged. “As far as they’re concerned, to all intents and purposes, it was me. I’ve held the keys to their prison for the last ten years.”

After a few more steps, the Princess continued.

“You don’t have anything to apologize for. I understand.”

Starlight nodded. She felt as though there was something she wanted to add; to apologize more, somehow, but Twilight had dismissed her insecurities and that seemed to be the end of it. Why then, did she feel like it wasn’t? That she hadn’t properly atoned for her behaviour the other day? She frowned at her shadow on the uneven path.

“Will you take a look at Cozy’s living space when we’re back at the school?” The headmare asked, more to fill in the silence than anything else. “Make sure it’s all up to code?”

“No,” Twilight shook her head. “I’ll walk back to the school with you, but after that I think it would be best if I disappeared. Based on Cozy’s reaction, I think I’m a detriment to what we’re trying to achieve. The more I’m around, the farther she’ll be pushed away.”

Starlight hummed a neutral response.

“Don’t worry,” Twilight smiled. “I’ll be back in a flash if you need me to be. Just tell Spike to come find me. You’ve seen his new toy?”

“Huh?” The Unicorn uttered, momentarily confused. “Oh, oh, the EEA medallion. Yeah, I’ve seen it. I’m sure it’ll come in handy.”

“EEA medallion?” The Princess smirked. “Is that what he told you it was?”

Starlight threw a bewildered look the Alicorn’s way. Twilight’s soft giggle floated through the warm morning air.

Spike pushed the door open and waited for Cozy Glow to step inside. The room was clean and welcoming, if a little drab and boring. The Dragon noticed with some amount of ire that it was not that dissimilar from his own room back at the palace.

There was a generously sized four poster bed with floral bedsheets, a pine bedside table with a chrome lamp, a writing desk shoved against the wall, and a matching pine wardrobe. Not that Cozy would be likely to put anything in it of course, the Dragon idly mused.

“Your room,” he said unnecessarily. “Bathroom’s down the hall, first door on the left.”

Cozy Glow didn’t reply, merely stepping into the room, slowly running the frogs of her hooves over the luxurious pale blue carpet. Spike looked down his snout at the foal, in every sense of the phrase. He couldn’t say he was too disappointed that she wasn’t feeling too talkative; he was in no mood for any more of her barbs.

“The school layout hasn’t changed much since you were last here,” He monotoned, anxious to get away. “If you want to go to the library or anything like that.”

Cozy turned and snorted a laugh in Spike’s direction.

“So, this will be my cell, huh?” She said, turning her attention to the windows that noticeably had foal proof chains attached to them to prevent them from being opened too far. “Oh well. I guess it beats wherever Sparkle’s had me stashed for the last ten years.”

“It’s not a cell,” Spike bristled. “Like I said, you can go to the library, or anywhere else in the school, just as long as you don’t interfere with any lessons.”

“Sure it’s not,” the Pegasus replied, her eyes fixed on the windows. “You, Sparkle and Glimmer might be kidding yourselves, but don’t for one second think you can kid me.”

Spike snorted angrily, a tiny lick of green flame momentarily exiting his nostrils.

“You’ve seen the inside of a real cell, as I recall.” He growled. “I’m sure if this isn’t to your liking we could arrange for you go back there.”

Cozy wheeled around, a wide grin plastered on her face.

“Ooooo!” She exclaimed with her own brand of saccharine sweetness. “Is that where we are already? Threats? On day one? I’m sure Sparkle will be thrilled to hear that.”

“Princess Twilight would forgive me.” Spike said, folding his arms. “Just like she’ll forgive you if you lose the attitude and make some effort.”

Cozy Glow scowled, breaking her eye contact with him. Spike allowed his lip to curl in a humourless half smile.

“I’m in the room next door,” he said simply. “Let me know if you need anything.”

With that, he turned on his heel and strode out of the room, closing the door behind him. He had better things to do that stand around trading insults with a gremlin all day.

Alone in the room, Cozy fluttered up to the window and opened both sides of it as far as they’d go, which was to say, not very. She extended one hoof outside and allowed herself to feel the cool breeze for a few moments. It really was funny, the things you miss.

Not that she could recall much from her time in the stone. Just the vague passage of time. Coming back to the land of the living was a shock, like waking up suddenly and knowing that your alarm clock had failed to ring.

After a few moments she flapped to the bed. Pulling the covers aside she sat in the middle and pulled the duvet around herself. She managed to sit quietly for ten, maybe twenty seconds before the tears came.

It was okay. It was o-kay. She’d gotten through miserable situations like this before, she’d do it again. She was a survivor, and that wasn’t about to change now. Her tears ran down her cheeks and dripped a light drizzle onto the mattress, but she didn’t allow herself to sob. She had to assume that they were listening in on her, maybe even watching too, but she wouldn’t give them that. One of the first rules of being a survivor was never letting them see that they’ve got to you. Just do what you do best, Cozy. Bide your time. Find an angle. Wait for an opportunity. She may be alone, separated from her...well, not friends, exactly, but...associates? Whatever, it didn’t matter. The only creatures who would know how she felt. She may be separated from them, but it didn’t matter. She’d been alone before, and look how much she’d accomplished! How close she came! Sooner or later Glimmer and her cronies would make a mistake, and when they did, she’d be there to exploit it. Until then, play their game, but don’t give them an inch. It wasn’t much of a plan, but it was enough for now.

The small foal in the middle of the big bed continued to weep silently.

“Headmare, while I fully respect and understand Starlight’s decision to place you in charge whilst she assists the Princess, I’m afraid that as your vice I’m going to have to insist that you actually complete some of the headmare’s tasks around here.”

Trixie took a swig from her mug of coffee and set it back down on the desk, sans coaster. The Unicorn rolled her eyes and idly swung herself back and forth on her friend’s swivel chair. Across the desk from her, Sunburst paced around in circles on the carpet of Starlight’s office.

“Oh?” Trixie exclaimed. “What tasks are these?”

“Well, there’s lesson plans that need writing, there’s some scheduling issues that need ironing out, I need you to talk to payroll because there’s several staff members that haven’t received their overtime from last month...” Sunburst rattled off.

Trixie sighed and cast her eyes to the ceiling.

“Sunburst,” Trixie said shrewdly, “I hope this isn’t jealousy raising its ugly little green nose.”

“Certainly not.” Sunburst responded irritably. “As I said, I fully understand why Starlight placed you in charge. You’re her best friend, you’re familiar with the ins and outs around here, and with me on vacation and how she had to drop everything to help the Princess with...whatever that is, you were the best choice.”

He paced a few more steps.

“At the time.” He added under his breath. If Trixie heard his last comment, she didn’t rise to the bait.

“Hm.” She tutted. “How was the Crystal Empire, by the way?”

“Fantastic,” Sunburst replied wistfully. “Flurry Heart’s magic is coming on in leaps and bounds. She’ll be a very powerful spellcaster one day.”

“Sounds as though the future of the Empire is in safe hooves.”

“Yes.” The stallion responded, suddenly realizing that he’d been successfully deflected by the Unicorn. “But never mind that right now. The fact remains that these things need to be done. I’ve barely been back two minutes and I already have numerous staff members coming to me, asking if I can ask you to take care of-”

“Yes, yes, yes,” Trixie cut him off dismissively with a wave of her hoof. “I’ll take care of it all. Write schedules, fix the lesson plans, put a hoof up payroll’s flank. I’ll take care of it all. Just get Trixie a ‘to do’ list, will you please?”

She fluttered her eyelashes at her vice-head in what she hoped was a cute gesture. Sunburst rolled his eyes and ceased his pacing.

“Fine,” he sighed. “I’ll get it to you ASAP.”

“Thank you,” Trixie smiled. “Now, do we have anything special on today’s agenda?”

“Nothing significant.” The Unicorn shrugged. “Starlight and the Princess are here, I just caught them on my way to your office, but I got the impression that they wouldn’t be sticking around for too long, so-”

“The Princess?” Trixie excitedly cut him off yet again. “Twilight’s here?”

“Yes?” Sunburst replied uncertainly. “I just saw them in the lobby. To tell you the truth it was a little strange. They had a foal with them that looked just like...”

He trailed off.

“I suppose I must just be mistaken...” He murmured, his mind clearly elsewhere.

“Hold all my meetings,” Trixie uttered suddenly. “I need to speak to the Princess.”

“Wha...?” Sunburst was shaken from his ponderings. “What meetings? I’m not your secretary!”

“And clear the office.” Trixie continued, darting around the desk and heading for the exit. “I’m going to need some privacy.”

The Unicorn breezed to the office door, and with the application of a dash of magic, through it, leaving Sunburst alone in the room.

“Uh, okay, I guess.” The stallion muttered to himself.

Twilight and Starlight hung around in the lobby of the school, each momentarily lost in their own thoughts. They had not long watched Spike and Cozy disappear up one side of the staircase, and after a brief conversation with the Crusaders, they too had retreated to the ‘treehouse’ to prepare for the coming first day of Cozy’s rehabilitation. The lessons were in session, so the lobby and halls were for the time being quiet, just as they’d planned it.

“Well, that’s that then.” Starlight murmured, breaking the silence.

“Yes, that’s that.” Twilight replied. “I’ll head back to Canterlot and leave you to prepare. I’ll eagerly await Spike’s first report. If you need me, or anything at all, don’t hesitate to contact me.”

“I will.” Starlight said, her eyes still fixed at the top of the stairs. “What will you do now?”

“I’m not sure,” the Alicorn bit her lower lip. “I think I should maybe let our Draconequus friend know what we’re up to here.”

“Are you sure that’s wise?” Starlight questioned, flitting her gaze to her mentor.

“He’s going to find out sooner or later.” Twilight sighed. “It would be better if it came from us than if he just stumbles across it. He’s much more likely to interfere if he thinks we’ve deliberately left him out.”

“I can deal with him if I have to,” Starlight muttered.

“Yes, well,” Twilight conceded. “Hopefully it won’t come to that.”

The silence returned as both mares became lost in their thoughts.

“Oh,” The Princess said suddenly. “Before I forget, here’s that book I dug out for you. It might come in handy.”

The Princess magically lifted a flap on her saddlebag and levitated a worn paperback out. She floated it over to the headmare, who accepted it gratefully. Glancing over the cover, Starlight read the words ‘The Psychopath Test, by Bronco Roanson’.

“Interesting...” The Unicorn murmured.

“It’s an impressive piece of investigative journalism,” Twilight announced enthusiastically. “Did you know that-”

“Twilight Sparkle,” a new voice echoed in the lobby, cutting the Princess off.

The Princess recognized it instantly, and she was slightly surprised at herself at how much she bristled at not being addressed by her proper title. Though she was a Princess she generally thought of herself as being pretty down to earth, and not one who insisted on formalities constantly. Perhaps it was the condescending, slightly mocking tone that was rubbing her the wrong way.

“Trixie!” Twilight responded, forcing a smile onto her face. “How are you? Is the school running smoothly?”

Trixie did not return the smile, forced or otherwise. She was wearing her usual purple starry skirt with a matching suit jacket and purple bow over a white shirt. Her face was stern, and she brushed a whisp of white mane out of her eyes as she approached the mares.

“Princess, a word in private, if you please.” The Unicorn dispensed with the pleasantries.

“Oh. Um, of course.” Twilight stammered, taken aback by the intensity of the request. She glanced to Starlight, hoping for some clue as to what this might be about, but the headmare was too busy eyeballing her friend suspiciously. Seemingly, she too had no idea as to what was going on.

“In the office,” Trixie said simply. She looked to her friend briefly. “Starlight.”

“Trixie,” the Unicorn replied in a low, wary tone.

Trixie pushed open the door to Starlight’s office and strode to the chair behind the desk. Sunburst had, thankfully, taken the hint and made himself scarce. The Princess followed her in and lightly closed the door behind them. Trixie sat, and gestured to the chair on the other side of the desk.

“Please, your highness. Take a seat.”

Twilight did as she was asked, sitting rather stiffly. Based on the blue Unicorn’s tone and body language, if she didn’t know better, she’d say she was in trouble.

“Princess, I’m sure we’re both very busy, so I’ll be blunt. Starlight showed up at my caravan in tears the other night. I think you know why.” Trixie said evenly, idly retrieving a grey orb from the desk drawer and rolling it over her hooves with considerable skill.

Realization washed over Twilight. So that was what this was about. She allowed a reproachful expression to settle on her face.

“Oh.” She said sadly. “I knew she was upset, but I didn’t think...I didn’t mean for...”

“I’m sure you didn’t,” Trixie frowned, before pausing. “At least, I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt that you didn’t. However, the fact remains that you did.”

Trixie just about managed to keep the glee off her face. It was so rare that she held the moral high ground, and never before against Twilight Sparkle. She’s witnessed Starlight dole out enough dressing-downs during her time at the school, she’d even been on the receiving end of her fair share of them. She just hoped that the stern, formal words didn’t sound silly coming out of her mouth.

“I just told her that I couldn’t authorize the plan as it was!” Twilight protested. “It was just constructive criticism!”

“So, you didn’t call her a torturer then?” The Unicorn raised an eyebrow.

“I-” Twilight started angrily before she stopped herself. “I may have used that word-” she continued more calmly, “-but you’re taking me completely out of context to suggest I called her a torturer.”

“Hmm.” Trixie tutted. “I didn’t call you in here to debate the semantics of what you may or may not have said. I just wanted to draw your attention to how hurt your meeting left Starlight.”

“I...see...” Twilight responded feebly. Her face crumpled as she stared guiltily at the carpet. She knew Starlight had been upset, but she didn’t think she’d been that upset. Argh, and she’d apologised earlier too, and Twilight hadn’t apologised back! The Princess mashed a hoof into her cheek fretfully.

“Starlight told me the bare bones of this ‘project’ of yours,” Trixie made the air quotes with her hooves, “and I don’t think I need to remind you of how much of a burden you’ve placed on her shoulders, or what a huge favour she’s doing you. I daresay you’d do well to bear that in mind when you’re critiquing her work.”

“I’m...sorry...” Twilight squirmed.

“Trixie isn’t the Pony you should be apologising to.” The Unicorn smiled thinly, continuing to toy with her orb. “Also, you owe her a new blackboard.”

“A...blackboard?” The Princess repeated dumbly. “I don’t understand...why?”

“She destroyed hers in a fit of frustration.”

“O-oh. I see.” Twilight stammered, feeling rather wretched. “I’ll have a new one delivered here as soon as possible.

“Good. Well, I’m sure you’re very busy, as is the Great and Powerful Trixie, so I’ll let you get back to your business.”

“I...uh...yes.” Twilight stumbled. She rose from the chair and turned for the door when a thought stopped her.

“You really care about her, don’t you?” She asked, looking back to the Unicorn.

“Somepony around here has to.” Trixie sneered.

Twilight nodded, suitably abashed. She knew that Trixie was twisting the knife now, but she figured she’d let her have her moment. Besides, she’d just provided some interesting information regarding Starlight’s dilemma. Not that Twilight would actually be able to do anything with that information, but still, it was interesting. Maybe if -

“Trixie will never understand what she sees in you.”

The Unicorn’s words instantly derailed the Princess’ train of thought. She looked at Trixie in wide-eyed shock.

“What?” She cried. “What do you mean by-”

Twilight never got the sentence out, as at that moment a smiling Trixie allowed her orb to fall to the floor, and in the instant before it landed, Twilight recognised it for what it was.

The smoke bomb shattered on the floor with a crack, and instantly the room was filled with inky, grey fumes.

“Ack!” Twilight spluttered. “Trixie, wait!”

She swatted at the air in front of her with her hooves in attempt to dissipate the smoke more quickly.

“What did you mean -” She started, but stopped when the smoke had become thin enough for her to see that the office chair was empty, Trixie nowhere to be seen.

“Hm. She’s getting better at that.” She whispered softly.

She stood in the room for a few moments, organising her thoughts. Did Trixie think that Starlight had...feelings for her? That’s certainly what her words implied. First off, that was ridiculous, but secondly, and more importantly, why would the magician care if she did? Unless...unless Trixie’s animosity towards her was partially fuelled by jealousy. Twilight stroked her chin. This was getting more and more interesting. It was entirely possible that Trixie had a little crush on Starlight too!

And here she was, unable to tell either one of them about her findings because of stupid ethics.

With a sigh, she turned and exited the office. The idea that these two best friend mares were in love with each other but cruelly trapped just out of reach from one another because of misunderstandings and denial was something that would torment her thoughts for some time to come.

Not as much, however, as the sudden realisation when she returned to the palace, that the cyan Unicorn had obviously, obviously, just been hiding under the table.

Author's Note

Sorry it's been a while.