Childish Hope

For the longest time, Cozy Glow had been a horrible villain. She’s been looked at as one of the most surprising and cruelly talented bad-examples in the history of Equestria. And now, she is working alongside seven of the other most vile creatures in the catalogue of evil: King Sombra, Lord Tirek, Queen Chrysalis, All-Mighty Grogar, the (now tamed) Windigos, the Pony of Shadows, and the Tantabus, not including the armies of creatures they have with them.

It was merely a year ago when Cozy Glow took over the School of Friendship. Sometimes Cozy Glow thinks back to those days, reminiscing how she had enjoyed those long afternoons forging new letters to send to Tirek, all in an attempt to get the keys to unlock the door to her destiny: Empress of Friendship. However, she had been caught, got a stern punishment, and left in the dust.

Even now, she gets herself riled about how cruel it was. She was only a child, at least to everyone else she was. And her punishment didn’t come without backlash, but it was eventually decided in less than two months that she deserved to spend the rest of her foreseeable future there. But now…

Here she was, atop of the world. She had an army at her side, as well as seven deadly villains with unknown capabilities. She felt mighty, strong, and almost unconquerable. Her dreams that were merely just dreams before she got busted out of Tartarus now seemed to be obtainable, within hooves reach kind of obtainable.

If she and her allies won this next battle, the country would belong to them, and they could shape it to fit their own political views, as well as achieve ultimate power.

If you were now told that, after all of this, Cozy Glow gave this up over night to become a slave of her enemies, would you believe it? Well, truth be told… that’s exactly what happened. But there’s more to it than just a snap decision and a twist of fate. It’s been brewing in her mind for over a month, a thought that she’d tried to desperately push down in order to keep her true goals and desires afloat in her conscious thoughts. But, like that one task you keep putting off, she can’t seem to get rid of the thought, or rather, the realization.

Late on night, whilst sleeping in a castle forged of Sombra’s dark crystals, Cozy Glow had a thought. A long, creeping thought that crippled into a depressing realization about her life. She had begun to understand that, even though she loved evil, she was wrong.

It’s good to admit when you have a problem, and Cozy Glow took a while to do so, but she did so nonetheless. Her problem was how guilty she felt upon realizing how much she had messed up. Her realization truly started when the thought of her possibly being wrong popped in her head. She then entered a rabbit hole of ideas about what might happen to her if she was defeated, and if her allies are redeemable or only worthy of a cruel punishment. She viewed them as distinctly evil and couldn’t imagine seeing any light within them. But for herself, however, she saw some hope, though that could be her own illusion.!

Cozy Glow reflected well that night. She slowly but surely picked apart her view on friendship in the most honest way she could, and it eventually hit her: true friends aren't just pawns in a game of chess; true friends help and care for you and others because they all have a special bond, and it’s not to take over the world, but keep it stable and friendly.

To accompany this was an overwhelming guilt. Cozy Glow had basically reformed herself, seeing how friendship truly worked (because she previously concluded friends were nothing but a source for power). But guilt came in the wake of this sudden shift for the filly. She realized that all she had done over the past year was all truly wrong. It didn’t take a genius to find out that a few things she did in particular were really cruel, and Cozy Glow knew this beforehand—however, with this new-found context, she now felt the reality of it weigh in.

It was miserable realizing that she had ruined such a good thing. It also seemed impossible to fix the problems she created and undo the harm she inflicted, but the filly was (blindly) determined to do so. She was a child, after all, so it might be easier to be forgiven than if she were a giant centaur whose record involves charges worthy of a prison worse than Tartarus and Alcatraz combined.

So with that, she had a new outlook on her career as a villain. And with that, she forged a plan that go horribly wrong—but she felt it was worth the risk.

October 30th, 2025 (the date in Equestria in human terms).

It was like any other day for the villains; Tirek scouted the castle grounds in search of foes with an army of enslaved guards; the Pony of Shadows (possessing an unknown body) paraded around in his study, thinking about ways he’d slay the Pillars; Queen Chrysalis was sucking the love out of enslaved guards whilst indulging in a good past time: putting pins in a Starlight Glimmer doll; the Tantabus (shrunk to the size of a mare) sat at attention in the dining room, seemingly in a world of its own; Sombra dabbled in black magic, trying to understand foreign spells to cast in battle if needed; and Grogar, the most fierce but calm villain of all, petted a windigo as he stared into his orb. He used his bewitching bell to summon a portal, and the winigo flew through, understanding his time was up. When the portal dissipated, Cozy Glow behind it with her most adorable look she could muster up.

Startled, Grogar jumped from his seat. The filly always managed to give him a heart attack, sneaking into his lair at the heart of their cursed castle.

“Hello, Grogar!” Cozy Glow said with glee. She flew up in the air and did a twirl.

“What do you want this time?” Grogar asked. Her presence never failed to annoy him. Truth be told, she was his least favorite figure to work alongside with. Her cute looks and unassuming personality (when she wasn’t being crazy) drove him slightly nuts.

Cozy Glow landed next to the orb, which was set on a crystal table. “Well,” Cozy Glow began. “Did you talk to that Tantabus thing about being more lively? Every time I go into the dining hall, it stares at me. It’s creeping me out.”

“I already told you I did,” Grogar grumbled. Her turned his gaze back to the orb, trying to imply that he’s uninterested in having this conversation again.

“You’re lying to me,” Cozy Glow taunted.

Grogar face palmed. “No, I’m not. I did talk to it, but it remained very quiet. It barely say anything. Now, please,” Grogar urged, “I’m trying to focus.”

“Focus, schmocus,” Cozy Glow brushed. “The Tantabus thingy is still staring at me whenever I walk in there. Even at dinner, and I know you’ve seen that.”

“I’m aware,” Grogar said through gritted teeth. “But for my sake, shut up. I’ll deal with it when I’m done.”

“You’re the boss,” Cozy Glow gushed, then patted him on the head to further annoy him. She then flew out of the room before Grogar could protest.

Cozy Glow wandered the castle halls, making her way to the dining room to see if the Tantabus left. She barely knew what it was; the being seemed genderless but it’s voice—of what little she heard of it—seemed feminine, as well as the form it took; Grogar briefly mentioned that it’s some kind of figment of princess Luna’s guilt, and at night, it plagues ponies dreams. Cozy assumed its goal was just that, so make nightmares every night and defeat Luna. But why it was so tame for it being basically being a flimsy-existing version of Discord was beyond Cozy Glow’s understanding. She assumed it was like a cobra, waiting for the right moment to strike. Just like Cozy Glow was, but of course, no one knows that yet.

The dining room was located south of the front door. Cozy Glow liked to wander the vast dining room because of the architecture and atmosphere. She never told anyone this, but she really liked fancy architectural design; if she weren’t a villain and weren’t a chess master, she’d absolutely could’ve became an architectural genius.

Sitting in their usual spot in the dining room was, as anyone could guess, the Tantabus. They barely moved from the room and barely spoke, but it was just likely due to the lack of social interaction it ever had. Cozy Glow assumed it might be shy, but nonetheless its astral appearance and lack of eyes or any features made it hard to even consider approaching.

The Tantabus sat at the far end of the dining room, right next to where Grogar’s spot was (he was the one freed them and United them, and was looked at as their leader). It gazed across the room at Cozy Glow. Sometimes, the filly wondered if the being could even see her, if it were just following Cozy Glow’s sound. It sure seemed to look at Cozy Glow in specific when the filly talked, like it knew her well.

“What’s up with you?” Cozy Glow asked not expecting an answer, which she didn’t get of course. “Great talk.”

Cozy Glow wandered the room. The chandelier made of Sombra’s dark crystals was a work of art. Cozy Glow flew up and looked at it closely. It had great detail for being made in mere seconds.

“You lying cunt,” the Tantabus suddenly said sharply. It startled Cozy Glow, but that was likely the intention.

“Wh-what the-?” Cozy Glow uttered, staring at the now standing up entity. Cozy Glow found her snarky self a minute later. “Look who finally spoke up,” Cozy Glow taunted.

Strike one.

The being stared for a moment longer. “You’re not evil,” the Tantabus continued. “I’ve been trying to sense it… and I can now smell reformation on your mind.”

“Me? Not evil?” Cozy Glow lied. Cozy knew she wasn’t evil anymore, and was keeping up the lie for a while longer to work up a plan. “Are you high?” Cozy Glow questioned.

Strike two.

“If you deny the truth one more time, I’ll summon your allies to come and exterminate you,” the Tantabus threatened.

“Woah—okay, settle down, please,” Cozy Glow whispered, lowering to the ground. “What is it to you?”

“You don’t belong here. Your intentions are against ours,” the Tantabus explained. “If you won’t speak the truth, I’ll make you.”

“Speaking of speaking…” Cozy Glow‘s voice wandered off.

Strike three. She was out.

The being went silent. Dead silent. It just stared at the filly, letting her realize that Cozy Glow—might have very well—fucked up.

“My bad,” Cozy Glow uttered. “Please don’t tell them, okay?”

As if on cue, Grogar stormed in.

“Not a villain?” He screamed.

Cozy Glow gulped. “What?” She asked, confused how he found out.

“The Tantabus just sent some weird transmission into my brain, saying you weren’t actually evil,” he explained. “Is this true?”

Grogar lit up his horns and yanked the filly over to him in a flash. In the next instant, Cozy Glow felt a burning pain. Grogar’s eyes were on fire, clearly upset by the news.

“I mean, I’m kinda, sorta, semi not… in a way?” Cozy Glow said, afraid to admit it full on. Any wrong words spelled out her doom clear as day.

Tirek appeared in the doorway. “I’ll be damned—you’re not a villain,” he said. “This is interesting news.”

“Very interesting,” Sombra said, following him in.

“Wait, I—“ Cozy Glow attempted to choke out, but she was quickly strangled by Grogar’s magic.

“Honesty shall save your life today, you fool. Now tell me,” he ordered. “Are you with us or against us?” He loosened his magic for an answer.

Cozy Glow wheezed, her throat feeling sore. “I am evil… I mean, I was,” she coughed.

Grogar grunted. “What does that mean?” He questioned.

“Well,” Cozy Glow began. “I was one… and I still am one, I swear! It’s just—“

Cozy Glow felt a tentacle creep around her mouth, shutting her up.

“The child is lying. She’s no longer one of us,” the Tantabus said, muting Cozy Glow’s protests.

By now, all of the villains had show up from the Tantabus’s psychedelic signals. None of them looked happy about the news, or yet at least.

Grogar edged Cozy Glow closer to him. The Tantabus’s tentacles retreated.

“Like I said,” Grogar said sternly. “Honesty shall save your life. ARE YOU WITH US OR AGAINST US?”

Cozy Glow didn’t know how to respond. Would the truth get her killed? But if she didn’t tell the truth, would they torture it out of her?

“Oh, you guys!” Cozy Glow started. “Do you think that I, Cozy Glow, the most deranged filly you’ve ever met, has suddenly gotten stupid? I was messing around with that Tantabus for always giving me a weird look. You know, trying to get a reaction out of it.”

That answer seemed to somewhat satisfy Grogar. “Is this true?” Grogar asked the Tantabus.

It remained dead quiet. The Tantabus didn’t respond for what seemed like half an hour, but it eventually spoke up.

“Yes, it’s true. She was just entertaining the idea to get a rise out of me,” it confided. “Sorry for wasting your time.”

Tirek rolled his eyes. “Bullshit,” he said. “I mean, not that you’re evil—but I wanted you gone.”

Cozy Glow laughed and flew over to him and landed on his head. “I’m like a cockroach: I keep coming back!”

Tirek groaned and moved out from under her and retreated to the hall. Everyone else just teleported away, annoyed by the event. Grogar instead left on food, but not without a warning.

“If you’re lying, I’ll find out,” he regarded.

Cozy Glow gave him her all-too cutesy smile, as typical of her. Then, he left without another word.

Cozy Glow then stared back at the Tantabus, who reminded completely idle, not speaking a word or even making a sound. It was like they were giving her a death stare. Then, it spoke—but not audibly, via a transmission, a psychic transmission.

“I’m plaguing your dreams tonight. And after that, I’ll strike when you least expect it. And strike again, until you’re no more, you lying little shit.”

Not exactly kind words. They definitely didn’t make bedtime the most anticipating event of the day, but nonetheless, Cozy Glow had snuck her way out of trouble—but the Tantabus clearly had other ideas. They gave up when Grogar began to believe Cozy Glow, even though she’s known to be a master manipulator.

The filly rushed out of the room, not wanting to go anywhere near the Tantabus anymore. It knew her secret, how she accidentally reformed herself upon an unsettling realization. And it might know more about her if it could read minds to an unknown extent.

Cozy Glow found herself in her room, staring up at the ceiling. It seemed like she’d have to form a plan sooner than later, but she’d have to be careful to not think about it near the Tantabus. If it figured out that she might want to escape, it might tell the others—or worse, finish Cozy Glow off.

The thought of the Tantabus being the final thing she ever might see deeply disturbed the child, but Cozy Glow shrugged it off and got to work on an escape plan.

The castle wasn’t a prison, but if anyone found out she was leaving, they’d get suspicious. Fleeing under the cover of darkness might be her best bet. No one would be up at that time.

Except maybe the Tantabus, but that would be less risky than during the day with everyone being up.

Where Cozy Glow would go was beyond her. The best idea she had was to hide out in the forest—after all, she was an alicorn, and she could survive easily. But it wasn’t an ideal idea.

Cozy Glow pulled a map from her desk. It showed the surrounding landscape, as well as the distance from there to Canterlot.

Canterlot… maybe that was a safe bet. Cozy Glow would only have to travel seventy miles, and by flight that would take about eight hours excluding stopping for air and rest.

They had previously attacked Canterlot, their guards taking out Twilight’s troops as the seven of them and their windigos attacked the leaders. It ended… well, that’s a detail for later. But it wasn’t pretty. But for Cozy (at that time) and her allies, it was glorious.

She assumed that some folk might be living there, and she could easily fight them off if needed. If no pony were there, it would be a solid fight. Considering the conditions it was left in, Cozy Glow concluded it was abandoned and planned to be repaired after the war.

So, it was set. Cozy Glow was going to head to Canterlot, and she’d go from there with approaching Twilight Sparkle.

Leave at night, head for Canterlot. It was simple enough, but there was something else that bothered her: bringing him along

In their last battle, they had kidnapped one of the heroes of Equestria. It was a way to keep Twilight from attacking their base, since they had threatened to kill him if the arrival of a siege on them occurred. It kept her at bay well enough, for it had been almost two months since the attack.

If Cozy Glow helped him out and borough him along, it could persuade Twilight into seeing that Cozy Glow has truly reformed.

But would he cooperate? It’s not like he could fight back. He was shackled and his mouth has a case around it, disallowing any talking or screaming. All he could do was groan, grunt, and do rude claw gestures for communication, only varying in volume for the latter two.

Assuming he cooperated and was able to fly okay, it was a done deal. Cozy Glow would sneak him out, helping her “enemy” team defeat the villains she found herself working with.

The plan was done. It seemed simple enough, and it’s not like they were forcing her to be there. She just simply obliged with helping them take over the world.

Cozy Glow felt happy with the plan and decided to take a nap. She’d need all the energy she could get for her journey. Sure, she could teleport to Canterlot around five-sixths of the way done with the journey, but nonetheless, it was going to be a long flight.

The filly settled into her bed, ready to make her escape that night.

The entire day was a blur after her nap. Dinner went by, and then she went to bed, not really paying any attention to everything going on. She was more focused on escaping, but she had to think about other things at dinner thanks to the Tantabus.

Finally, it was night, and Cozy Glow lied in her bed, thinking over her plan. She’d put into motion not too long from then, but she still had to wait to assure that everyone was sound asleep.

All except the never-sleeping Tantabus, that is.

Thirty minutes of intense boredom passed. Cozy Glow felt it was safe enough by then to head out and wander the halls, but she decided that, for extra measures, to wait a little while longer. Grogar tends to stay up late.

Again, minutes passed. Everything outside the door was quiet, and it was almost half an hour past midnight by then, so Cozy Glow finally left her room.

And came face to face with the Tantabus.

The filly tried to scream, but she was shut up by a magical force. The Tantabus then communicated to her.

“What are you doing up so late? I was trying to give you bad dreams.”

Cozy Glow was allowed to speak by then. “I couldn’t fall asleep,” she lied. “I was really dreading you giving me nightmares.”

It remained eerily silent in the room. The two stared at each other, and after a minute, the Tantabus entered the room and closed the door, ever so slowly so to agonize Cozy Glow.

“Don’t lie to me,” it told her telepathically. “We wouldn’t want an incident.”

“Ha… yeah, we wouldn’t,” Cozy Glow replied nervously, in a soft but trembling whisper.

The Tantabus made their way to Cozy Glow, and it began to change shape into the shape of an ink blot. Then, it regrouped itself, taking the form of some kind of lanky creature, with long arms, short and tender legs, and a head with sharp horns and teeth, all in the same astral shade of purple.

“Let’s stop fucking around, Cozy Glow. You’re trying to escape. I can taste the very thought in your conscious mind, and it’s VERY appetizing,” the Tantabus spoke telepathically.

“Yeah, but… uh…” Cozy Glow’s voice trailed off as she realized how little she could argue against the Tantabus.

It knew her intentions. It knew every thought that went through her mind, like how she felt screwed at the moment. She couldn’t manipulate her way out of this. That’s why it waited until now to strike.

“Understanding your doom now?” It said, now out loud. And then, without any warning, it used its magical abilities to blast Cozy Glow out of a window, it shattering against her delicate body.

Taken by complete surprise, Cozy Glow didn’t even process that she was falling until she nearly hit the ground. Thankfully, the Tantabus spawned below her, using the night to quickly swim through the currents of shade to blanket her fall.

Cozy Glow, stunned and confused, then plopped to the ground, and the Tantabus stood over her, proud of its work.

“Fuck,” Cozy Glow cried. “I-I can’t… woah.”

“The shock will die down in a few moments,” the Tantabus regarded. “And I’ll send you to meet your maker if you don’t promise me one little thing.”

“What?” Cozy Glow asked, still lying on the ground.

The Tantabus titled its head down to her. “You’ll extinguish all thoughts of leaving this place, and reconsider your lane carefully.”

“That’s two things,” Cozy Glow said. Her snarky self had kicked in.

“They complement one another,” the Tantabus explained. “They’re basically one thing, you brat.”

Cozy Glow stood up, her side having a slight ache in her side. “I can’t promise that,” Cozy Glow confided. “You know that I can’t. And besides, what’s the harm if I leave?”

“Forgetting something?” The Tantabus taunted. It then yanked Cozy Glow by her horn. “You’re an alicorn. You have power.”

“Oh,” Cozy Glow realized. Since she had powers, if she switched sides, she could he considered a threat.

The Tantabus turned to go inside. “You’re also planning to take him with you. I could taste it in the back of your mind,” it told her.

“Invade ponies’ privacy much?” Cozy Glow teased.

“I can also sense that you’re planning to make a dash for it,” the Tantabus spoke.

“Jeez, you’re a mind reader AND a cheater,” Cozy Glow said glumly.

The Tantabus turned around. “Neither. I’m me,” it confirmed.

Cozy Glow teased once more. “So… you’re a mind reader, a cheater, and yourself: a narcissistic being who gets off to picking on little girls.”

The Tantabus just stared. They seemed far out of it, not processing their surroundings and processing the information like a computer on low WiFi.

“I’ll let you leave,” it offered, “but you’ll have to let me fix that horn of yours.”

“Excuse me?” Cozy Glow questioned. She took a few steps back. “What do you mean fix?”

The Tantabus then disappeared, but not only that, the whole world disappeared before Cozy Glow’s eyes. She tried to speak, but the words couldn’t form because Cozy Glow’s body was gone, and so was her mind.

It seemed like hours had passed in the time Cozy Glow had spent seemingly not existing, but she found herself at the same place at the same time upon reappearing in the world of Equestria—assuming she even left.

One thing had changed though, and it was her horn: it was gone. Now Cozy Glow was a mere Pegasus.

“And if you’d like to keep your wings,” the Tantabus began, reappearing, “then stay in your own lane. Now go, you worthless cunt.”

Cozy Glow stared at the Tantabus a moment longer.

“You can’t take him to Twilight. Don’t even think about it,” the Tantabus warned.

“O-okay,” Cozy Glow responded. With that, she left. The Tantabus let her go off on her own—but Cozy Glow couldn’t really make a difference on the opposing side now, not being an alicorn and all.

Or so it seemed she couldn’t.

As for what happened next… a lot of walking. A lonely walk into the humid, nightly atmosphere. A walk… into the future.

After seven hours of flying with some small breaks and intermissions, dawn broke out into the sky. Cozy Glow had traveled roughly the entire distance there, but she still had about an hour to go until she reached Canterlot.

During her trip, she had some troubling thoughts. Since she wasn’t an alicorn anymore, could she fight off any pony who might still be living there that decides to attack her? And what if they had been affected by the war? Would they kill her?

The best case scenario, Cozy Glow concluded, was that it was barren and everyone had migrated to—what her old allies assumed the most likely scenario—to the Crystal Empire, which they haven’t attacked yet. However, it was nearly impossible to do so with everyone in Canterlot, so that implied some stragglers, which Cozy Glow had been worrying about.

About ten minutes before she reached Canterlot, she spotted it. It was just up the mountain, a short flight or an hour long walk away. However, Cozy Glow had sensed that someone was living up there.

More than sense, actually, when she looked closely and could’ve swarm she’d seen smoke trails. However, she’d already come this far; backing out was not an option in her predicament. So, she pushed on—for about a minute, until she walked right into a trap.

At the edge of a clearing, just below the giant mountain that housed the city she had sought out for, her leg caught on something. It didn’t take more than a second to recognize the work of a hunter’s trip wire.

In the next moment, an alarm went off in the forest nearby—and Cozy Glow was shrouded in a white glow as a magical barrier trapped her.

For a moment, nothing happened. The alarm blared on and on, and the magical encasement endured. Then, finally, a figure emerged in the sky, followed by a hoard of figures in similar attire.

They were Royal Guards. Cozy Glow was caught.