Tempest Shadow stood before her parents with her eyes wide open and her mouth dropped open in shock. She couldn't believe that after all this time, she was seeing them again. However, the looks of disappointment on their faces meant that this would be no happy reunion.
"Mom! Dad!" Tempest gasped as she approached them. "Is it really you?! Look, I know you’re disappointed in me and…"
But, a raised hoof from Tempest's mother silenced her. "Fizzlepop," She sighed, approaching her youngest daughter with a look of disappointment registered clearly on her face. "You have shamed us greatly with your actions. We could have helped you, but instead you ran away. Why would you disgrace us like this?"
"Mom, dad, I…" Tempest cried, looking away from her parents in shame. "I…I couldn't live my life the way I did. Not after what happened."
"That's no excuse to run away from home and never return, Fizzlepop," Tempest's father scolded. "We would have loved you for who you are, but you threw that all away. It doesn't matter if you lost something physical, my child. All that matters is you are what you are, even if it's hard to accept. We knew it was going to be difficult after you lost your horn, and we were ready to help, but instead you ran away and we never saw you again until now."
Tempest turned back towards her parents with a shocked look on her face. However, she began to think back to when she’d managed to use her broken horn to create a light show during Songbird Serenade's concert. Twilight had told her that her horn was just as powerful as the pony who bears it. Had the princess really meant it? "Then, what can I do?” She asked.
“Razzle struck me and banished me from ever setting foot in our home again. I really don't blame her at all after all that I did, but the wound still stings."
"Don't worry about what Razzle did to you, Fizzlepop," Luna spoke up, walking over to Tempest's side. "Myself and the other princesses will handle her in time. It will not be an overnight change, it may takes months or even years for your sister to fully accept you again. But what you need to do is to…"
"-Atone for my actions?" Tempest interrupted, turning away to look at all the nightmares that ponies across Equestria were having thanks to her. "Twilight says that becoming her Royal Guard captain is the only way to do it."
"And she’s right about that," Luna advised. "Look at all these dreams, Fizzlepop. They are all nightmares that need to be turned back into dreams. The good deeds you will do as Princess Twilight's Royal Guard captain, will help to end these nightmares."
"It’s not too late, you can redeem still yourself, Fizzlepop," Her mother encouraged. "You can't change the past, but you can set up your future as a servant of Equestria's royalty. You’re more than what you have become, Fizzlepop."
"But how can I redeem myself if I'm not who I used to be?!" Fizzlepop demanded.
"Your parents, myself, and my fellow princesses see so much potential in you, and know that there is good inside of you. In time, you’ll see it too,” Luna advised, taking to the air. “Even though you committed heinous acts against Equestria, we don't have the heart to punish you severely."
Tempest took these words to heart and realized that there was no backing out now. She knew that she had been given a second chance by Twilight Sparkle, and she needed to take that second chance to heart. For her own sake, as well as for the sake of Equestria. "You're right," She sighed rather heavily. "If you say I have good inside me, then I should show it to all of Equestria. But, it's just that…"
"Go on, Fizzlepop." Luna encouraged.
"Will Razzle Fizzle ever forgive me for my actions?" Tempest asked with concern.
"That remains to be seen," Tempest's mother advised. "However, your father and I both hope that she will forgive you eventually. However, it’s not our place to say. That’s for her to decide on her own time."
Tempest felt a sense of reassurance, even if it wasn't complete the way she would have wanted it to be. "I promise you that I’ll make her proud," Tempest vowed. "I’ll make all of you proud, even if it won't be easy."
Soon, the dream came to an end, and Tempest awoke from her sleep knowing what needed to be done. She turned over towards the Friendship Festival Crown, sitting on her nightstand. "Well, at least I won't have to listen to the crown, even if I don't want to," Tempest thought as she climbed out of bed. "But, I know that I'm going to have to start accepting it for who it is eventually. And Razzle Fizzle, I hope you can one day forgive me."
Meanwhile, Twilight was greeted at the front door of her castle by her friends as they came over for a weekly breakfast. However, Twilight noticed the animosity that was developing between Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Rarity concerning Tempest herself.
"Twilight, I..I know you want to forgive Tempest," Applejack spoke up, as they all ate breakfast. "But, part of me feels like I want to see her punished. I mean, she did…"
"I know it's hard for the three of you, believe me, it's been hard on all of us," Twilight spoke up. "But, do you really think that Tempest deserves to be severely punished? I mean, she's just a victim of Storm King's terror as much as anypony. And if we punish her to the extent she punished us, how does that make us any different than her?"
"Keep in mind that Tempest froze…" Rainbow Dash started to remind Twilight, but Starlight Glimmer interjected.
"We know what she did, Rainbow Dash. Believe me, Trixie and I spent three days in hiding from Tempest and those hulking monkeys." Starlight spoke up.
"All we are saying, sugarcube, is that Tempest does need to have some kind of punishment put against her,” Applejack explained. “Maybe serve a short sentence in Tartarus so she can think about her actions. Or somethin’ like that, somethin’ that’ll make her realize what she did was wrong and that she can’t do it again. That’s not too much to ask for, right?"
Twilight couldn't help but feel herself conflicted by the opinions of her friends. Yes, she knew that what Tempest did was wrong, but she knew deep down that Tempest didn't deserve to be treated so poorly. Part of her wanted to lash out at her friends like she did on the beach after they were banished from Seaquestria, but she couldn't bear herself to do that. Not after all they’d been through. "Look, I know why you want to see her punished," The princess sighed. "The Cutie Mark Crusaders weren’t the only ones treated so poorly. So many of our friends and families were subjected to cruelty, but many of they will only settle for blood. Is that really the price Tempest should pay for her actions?"
"But we don't want to settle for blood," Rarity cried, stamping her hoof down on the table. "We just want her to…"
"Out of the question!" interrupted Twilight, cutting Rarity off. "What Tempest needs is help and a little guidance, not a jail cell in Tartarus! She’s not like Tirek or the Storm King, she doesn’t deserve that! I'm sorry you don't like this idea, but it's the best I can do given the circumstances of the situation. If I turn her over for a trial, then they'll be screaming for blood! They don’t want justice, they only want revenge!"
As Twilight spoke, Tempest came down the stairs and could hear what was going on.
She put her head to the door and listened in on what was being said.
"Twilight, I know you’re sympathetic to Tempest, seeing as she told you about her past," Fluttershy spoke. "But, if she doesn't at least accept responsibility in the eyes of Equestria, then the cries will only grow louder. Let her at least plead guilty to the princesses and do some kind of sentence that will fit the crime, as well as help her redeem herself."
"I think Fluttershy has a point, sugarcube," added Applejack. "You do need to give your subjects what they want, Twilight. Even if it’s not what you want. You can’t think only about what’s best for Tempest, you need to think what’s best for all of Equestria."
Hearing this, Tempest realized that she needed to formally accept responsibility for her actions, so she took a deep breath and walked into the dining room.
"Tempest?!" Twilight gasped. "What are you doing here?!"
"Twilight," Tempest said firmly. "I overheard what you all have been saying, and you’re right, I need to be punished for what I did. It’s the only way anything’s going to get better. So I'm going to turn myself into the authorities."
Twilight sharply gasped and her mouth dropped open at this decision that had been made!
Tempest definitely made the right call here, now the princesses need to do their part to show their subjects that revenge is not the same as justice.
Oh, boy...I'm not sure if this is a good idea or a bad idea.
Twilight has a point in that most of the ponies just want revenge, not justice. Her friends also have a point though in that Tempest needs to show the citizens of Equestria that she's excepted responsibility for her actions and isn't just trying to move on like nothing happened.
That was amazing,please continue .Do not change it.This is the best chapter ever.Keep going
Don't you think having Tempest turning herself in counteracts what she discussed with her parents and Luna in her dreams?
8577803
agreed
I think this is probably just because of the mood I'm in right now, but somehow I don't exaclty like Luna here, or more how she tries to be the wise one here. It is probably a combination of this and that I don'T remember everything.
Not sure how she explained it, but isn't it bad to prevent her parents from resting in peace at the moment, or for that long time they seems to have planned?
? I'm pretty sure if she would demand to get into prison, some of them would even start to say she is only there to escape all those people that hate her for what she did and that she wants to hide or something like that.
I'm pretty much happy with what she is doing already. Well....if they wouldn't want to kill her, she could help more personally and make stuff right.
8577813
While I'm somehow remembering that I thought what Tempest wanted at the beginning was something I agreed too (whatever that was) and that the princesses decited for a to easy punishment I think, I believe at this point it was maybe more a stupid idea.
Rotting in prison wouldn't really make me think of she is sorry okay I don't hate her anymore or something like that.
She would just have to do more personal and not only guard work. Something where they see her maybe covering their shifts or doing some dirty work no one else wants to do, maybe even helping those with personal issues that doesn't want to kill her.
I mean that is the thing if she could just help with everything without fearing that they try to kill her when being outside by herself I think she would do it.
I bet that after she comes out of prison they are just trying to get back at her again and then it is like "see if the elment barriers are happy with it, you have to be happy too Yay!". Of course it depens on how the author let's it turn out, but I don't think that would help so much.
8577936
That too I guess.
Oh yes, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow, and Applejack. Tempest did many horrible things. But what about that one mare who tried bringing Night Eternal to Equestria that would have killed everyone off very slowly. WHat ever happened to her? OH! And what about that one mare who nearly destroyed the world a dozen times over by trying to forcibly rewrite history over a decades long Temper Tantrum. None of you are demanding punishment for them.
Being a fellow Christian, this disturbs me. Even assuming it were possible for Luna to communicate with the dead in dreams (which strikes me as just not possible), Tempest's parents should be the first to love and forgive her. It seems that they have withdrawn their love until she repents, which is against what we are ordered to do, which is to love others no matter what wrongs they have done and to forgive them fully when they repent of it, which Tempest is clearly doing, not to mention she is clearly torn up inside and that's obvious even to her parents here. I can understand her sister and common ponies not immediately forgiving her, but the parents should be receiving criticism for not forgiving their daughter and for not offering her support.
What Tempest did during the invasion was flat out evil, but she is sorry for what she has done and if her parents went to Heaven and to God as I think you are implying, then they should be forgiving and loving her, not acting ashamed and disgusted.
This is a great story overall, and I ask your forgiveness if I seem petty, but these issues are rather worrisome to me, along with the crown sequences (and, if I am not mistaken, you are having God speaking through the crown). If I may do so, I'd like to ask why these scenes have been set up as they have?
8742274 I understand you're concerns, my friend, but what I was going for was that Tempest's parents were watching everything their daughter did from beyond the grave and were very disappointed in her. As for the crown, I wanted to have it be both a reference to the talking cricket from the original "Pinocchio" stories (since both the crown and the cricket were stomped to death) and to Jacob Marley from "A Christmas Carol."
Many people here think Tempest should suffer for what she did. MANY people. Am I the only one who thinks the other way around? Tempest was alone, left alone by the ponies she was part of, only because her horn was broken. Never mind that she had a part of herself destroyed. How would YOU feel if your arm or leg gone missing? It's more than part of body, though. It's part of her being unicorn. Then she stumbles upon someone who promises to restore her, and to punish those who left her. In the end he only betrayed her.
Am I the only one who UNDERSTANDS it, and wants everyone to stop being so fing blind?