Chapter 10
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“I was skeptical at first, obviously, but… after hearing them all out, it was hard not to start doubting whether this filly truly is Cozy Glow,” Cadance finishes.
She’s just spent the last half hour or so explaining the situation to everyone present.
During that time, Bright Mac and Pear Butter had been sticking close, making sure I was okay.
Aside from being fawned over like a child, and having to wear this damn inhibitor ring, I’ve been fine. Plus, having to wear this amulet called the Truth Talisman of Tonatiuh isn’t exactly comforting either. It makes whomever is holding or wearing it tell only the truth. You literally cannot lie while in contact with this thing.
So far, none of the questions asked of me have been a bad thing, but all it will take is the wrong kind of question and I can blow my cover completely, revealing this world comes from a flippin’ cartoon show.
“So… this is Cozy Glow, but also isn’t?” Dash asks, looking very confused as she glances around at the gathered group and then me.
“Yep,” I say, deadpan. “Brat used a spell to swap bodies with me shortly before you hit her and Tirek and Cheese Legs with the Rainbow Laser.”
Star Swirl frowns skeptically at me. “How can we be sure, 100%? Cozy Glow was quite knowledgeable. It is possible she could’ve used a spell to create false memories within herself to trick herself into believing she isn’t who she is.”
I keep my deadpan as I look to the grey stallion. “Okay, now you’re just grasping at straws for ideas as to how I could be her.”
Cadance looks around at my allies, including the three yaks. She closes her eyes, frowning. “With all the evidence provided and the fact my daughter seems at ease around her, it does suggest this Autum is telling the truth.”
“About time you all got the gist of it all,” a cheery voice says, making my eyes widen, before they narrow.
There’s a mighty flash and the Lord of Chaos himself is standing by the throne, looking proud and dapper.
“You knew about this the whole time?” Celestia looks to Discord, a very unamused expression on her face, one I’m sharing.
Discord waves his claw. “Puh-lease. I may not have had my magic back when the spell was cast, but once I had my magic back I noticed Cozy’s energies were different.”
“So, how do you explain the Cozy on the statue?” Rarity asks, cocking an eyebrow.
He shrugs. “A fake. Why do you think I asked to help cast the spell on the villains to begin with?”
“So… you knew I wasn’t Cozy the whole time and didn’t do anything to help me?!” I yell, glaring.
He gives me a slight frown, folding his arms. “If I had just helped you out right away, you wouldn’t have been able to help the Apple parents find that baby sphinx, nor would you have known aside from second hand about Ahuizotl being a good guy, nor helped him stop that pathetic Mojo pony. You needed to forge true bonds if you were going to become the new princess of Equestria.”
“Yeah? Well, I…” I pause, cocking an eyebrow in confusion. “New princess? Um, dude, I don’t wanna hang around. I wanna get back to my body as soon as possible so Cozy isn’t in it anymore.”
He says, giving me a “You’re being really stupid right now, you know that?” kind of look. “Even if you did return, it would do you no good right now.”
Every creature looks around at each other in confusion.
“Discord, what do you mean?” Luna asks, looking worried and her being worried makes me worry and I don’t like that.
Discord snaps his talons and a massive screen appears in the middle of the room. It has static on it for a few moments, before an image appears on it… and I can’t believe what I’m seeing.
It’s clearly me, or rather, Cozy in my body, but she’s fishing alongside some random asiain woman I don’t recongize, though my body looks more ragged and Cozy clearly did a poor job at shaving my face.
“Um, what exactly are we looking at here?” Star Swirl asks, looking very confused.
Discord chuckles. “After she stole little Autum’s body here, Cozy Glow had nowhere to go. No money, no idea of the whereabouts of Autum’s family, nothing. She remained on the streets for several weeks, traveling through the city and further into the country until she found a boat bound for a country called China.”
I blink. “How the flipping,” I glance at Flurry, “hay did Cozy make it all the way to China?!”
“Like our Chineigh?” Spur asks, looking worried.
Discord nods. “You’d be surprised by the similarities to locations here in our world,” he gives me a knowing wink. “Anyway, shall we contact her for a goodbye?”
“I don’t speak much Chinese,” I say, rubbing my chin in thought. “But, as long as some of them speak a little English and I speak in small sentences, I should be able to get something done.”
A tutting sound makes me look to Discord. He’s shaking his head, arms folded.
“What?” I ask, annoyed. “I’ve been overseas before. Sure, I’ll have more difficulty without my passport, but I know the Chinese authorities would help me if I could get in contact with my family, especially if I get to Hong Kong.”
Discord pouts, looking away. “If not for the fact the real Grogar’s magic was used in the spell that switched you, you would be right.”
I blink, hesitating. “Huh?”
Discord looks very annoyed. “Thanks to Cozy’s unfinished spell, she unintentionally locked that world the moment you both switched bodies. The only reason we can even view it right now is it hasn’t completely been locked off yet, but the window of opportunity is closing fast. It won’t last for more than a few more hours at best. After that… that world will forever be lost.”
“Then I need to go back now!” I cry, fear gripping me and I hug the Apple parents and Flurry. “I wish I could stay a little longer, honestly, I do, but if I need to go now I’m going now!”
“You misunderstand,” I turn back to Discord… who worries me when I see he’s giving me an apologetic look. “You cannot go back.”
I slowly let go of Flurry Heart, turning around, my voice small and weak. “What?”
He rubs his arm, looking ashamed. “I’m so sorry. Had I had my magic back shortly after Cozy cast the spell, I could’ve sent you back right away. But, within seconds of the spell being cast, the link to your world she created began to close, even sealing it off. She clearly didn’t want anyone coming after her if they figured out she’d made a switch.
“Once I had my magic back and sensed you, I realized the cruel irony of not getting my magic back the moment Grogar’s was taken from the other two. In fact… I got it back a second before the link was sealed too much for me to send you back.”
“Wait. So… it’s my fault?” We all turn to Pinkie Pie, who has a horrified look on her face.
“What does she mean?” Auhizotl asks, looking confused.
“Pinkie had Discord magic for a very short time,” Twilight’s eyes widen. “In that time, Discord had to fly up, use Grogar’s Bewitching Bell to take it back out of her and then return it to himself.”
“If… if I hadn’t taken Discord’s magic for those few seconds…” Pinkie’s mane deflates and she slumps to the ground. “Autum’s trapped here because of me.”
Fluttershy and Somnambula fly over and start to comfort her.
“Now, there’s no way I could send Autum back to her own body,” Discord looks solemnly at me. “Her family think she’s dead, since she never returned to her new home or contacted them. Her wallet was found several weeks after the switch and no one knew where she was.”
“How long has it been?” Pear Butter asks, holding me as I slump, feeling numb.
Discord looks down, eyes closed. “Five months.”
Months? Months? Barely more than a week here and there it’s been months?
Discord looks apologetically at me. “I’m sorry. Had I only taken my magic from Pinkie as soon as it started raining chocolate milk without my doing it, I might’ve been able to send you back and none of this would’ve had to happen.”
I stare at the pink mare. Part of me wants to hate her. Part of me wants to lash out at Pinkie for her holding things up preventing me from returning… but how can I blame her?
She had no idea Cozy had switched bodies with me. She couldn’t have realized her having it for a few seconds would lock me out. But… but if I’m locked out then…
My body goes limp in Pear Butter’s hold. “I’m… stuck in this body? Forever?”
Discord nods. “The link is sealed too much for me to affect anything in that world directly anymore. Even communication will soon be gone.” He sighs, looking genuinely heartbroken, his voice solemn. “I’m sorry, Autum. I wish there was more I could do.”
I just stare out into space for several minutes, not sure how to process this. I’m never going to see my family ever again. I’m going to be trapped in Cozy Glow’s body for the rest of my life, which, if the theory of Alicorns being immortal is true, means all eternity.
“Isn’t there somethin’ you can do?” Meadowbrook asks, looking from me to Discord.
He looks to her, before looking down dejectedly. “All I can do is offer Autum the chance to say goodbye to her family. I’m afraid that’s all I can manage.”
I look up to him, my eyes brimming with tears. “That’s all?”
He nods, closing his eyes. “That’s all.”
I feel Pear Butter hold me closer and I hug her tighter in return, tears falling down my face, soaking her coat.
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“Decent catch,” the woman said, watching as he pulled the net in. “Put away, then clean the nets.”
Cozy nodded, not bothering to speak.
How has her life become this? How?
Five months ago she’d been an all-powerful Alicorn, on the edge of dominating all of Equestria and now look at her, or rather, him. A pathetic, powerless human male who fishes for his meals.
Soon as she switched with the pathetic human, she’d learned too late that he had no form of identification on him. Idiot must have lost it somewhere.
He’d wandered around the strange concrete city, with no idea where the human fool lived and, judging by the many odd looks he got whenever he tried to talk to the inhabitants of this world, didn’t know anyone in the city, either.
He’d spent the next few days traveling on foot, sleeping outside like some homeless bum, having to scavenge food just for a simple meal. After about a week, he’d found his way to a beach, where he eventually found a boat filled with the smell of fish.
He’d never eaten fish as a pony, but, other humans did, so he’d had to as well and it tasted fine, he supposed. The smell wasn’t great when they were raw, but it was better than starving in this magicless world.
Yeah. This world literally had no magic. Of all the world’s the spell could’ve randomly chosen to switch her with an inhabited of, it had to be a defective human in a world with literally no means of magic.
Stowing away on the ship, it had eventually come to this country, so similar to Chineigh, it was creepy.
Feeling it was better to stay hidden, he’d travelled the country for a bit, looking for anywhere that would be good to hide, when he stumbled upon this pretty much abandoned town.
It was called Houtouwan. It had been mostly abandoned a long time ago, though a handful of humans still lived here.
He’d been able to sweet talk his way, despite not speaking much Chinese as they called it in this world, into a place to live, even if it was an old house he had to clean tons of foliage out of first, and was a serious downgrade even from the home he used to have back in Hayseed Swamp and even a job so he could get food… but compared to what he could have had in Equestria, this was pathetic.
And serves you right, you heartless bitch!
Cozy started, standing up and looking around. That was her voice. But how?
Yeah, I see you, Cozy. Serves you right for trying to ruin my life.
Cozy looked to the sky, scowling. “It’s you, isn’t it?”
Yep, his old voice said back, sounding none too amused. And your little plan didn’t work. I’m not going to pay for your crimes. Discord and my not being a bitch like you has seen to that.
His eyes widened. “What?! You mean I went through creating that spell and suffering in this world all this time for absolutely nothing?!”
Correct, a different voice said matter of factly.
Cozy narrowed his eyes. “Discord?”
Yep, the Lord of Chaos replied cheerily. Oh, but don’t mind me. I’ve just been helping your victim say goodbye to their family and letting them know they don’t have to worry about her. Just pretend I’m not here.
I despise, you, Cozy Glow, the human in Cozy’s body said, sounding utterly disgusted. Or should I say, Tempo?
Cozy’s eyes widened. How in the world did that worthless human learn his real name? Nopony knew it aside from the family he left behind.
I’ve never hated any being as much as I do you, his filly voice went on, sounding utterly disgusted. However, I take comfort knowing you’re going to spend the rest of your retched, pathetic life in such a place while I live on in Equestria.
“If you don’t like being me so much, switch back with me!” Cozy snarled at the sky. “I’m sure you’d be happier, wouldn’t you?”
And let you return to Equestria without suffering any punishment for your crimes? The human laughed coldly. Not a chance. You’ve sentenced yourself to your own punishment, Cozy. Much as part of me thinks you deserve what Tirek and Cheese Legs got, I honestly think this punishment is more fitting. You’ll have to live with what you’ve done, knowing you can never come back here to Equestria, no matter how much you want to or beg any being. This is your life now. Deal with it.
“So, why bother contacting me then?” Cozy narrowed his eyes.
Your spell had the unintended side effect of sealing off my world, the human replied, sounding sad and angry. Within moments, the window between it and Equestria will close forever. I just wanted you to know that, so you’ll know there is literally no way for you to ever return to this realm.
Cozy’s eyes widened. “WHAT?”
As for your family, you know, the ones you outright left behind for just for power? The disgust in their voice became deeper. I asked if they wanted to say goodbye, but they’re too heartbroken. The idea that, despite how they were willing to give you their love unconditionally and you threw it away for power? They’re shattered by how little you cared for them.
“And I’m supposed to care about those widdle babies feewings being hurt because?” he snarled.
Goodbye, Tempo, the human said coldly. Live whatever you have to live for. It’s all you’ll ever have from now on.
“What do you mean?” Cozy yelled up to the heavens.
There was no answer.
Mmm, now let's see what happens from now on. What is the plan?
going to guess crazy end up being taken in eihter by twilight so she can learn to control her new magic or by cadance who feel sorry for her and cause furry heart keep tp to her,
You know, I do believe that Cozy Glow got what she deserves. Heh, to think she thought she would get away unpunished. This is the perfect punishment for her.
Take that cozy you lil brat
Oh please let it be your human to Apple Bloom story.
I'm liking the way this is coming along :3
Hmm...
*skips to the latest chapter *
Ehhhh.....
At least, Discord should be able to make Autum NOT looks like Cozy, right?
can you also add in cozy's death sentence?
like how humans eyes and ears can fail after 50, their strength and organs past 40, and death can happen past 60?
meanwhile, alicorns are known for lifespans well in excess of 1000 years like the royal sisters
She earned it.
I am loving this I mean really great touch with Cozy Glow sealing her own fate, and her escape plan backfiring on her so badly. But anyway good news is the truth is now out and cleared up, the bad news is Autumn is stuck in this world forever.
So unless she wants to take her chances in the mirror world for a fresh human start, she's now likely to be Equestria newest Alicorn and princess. But i'm guessing even with the truth cleared up and known by our favorite ponies, the rest of the citizens of Equestria might have some difficulty trusting and believing her, and possibly Cozy's shadow might give her trouble for some time yet.
I can say that this is coming along great, but there is one thing that i thought you should have done and that is when autumn was speaking to Cozy she should've called her by her real name that would have hurt her even more heck Autumn still has to let the others know that Cozy is not her real name as well
Ooh, now this is the kind of comeuppance I enjoy.
Had the misfortune of switching with one of a small portion of the world's populace, that holds a great deal of knowledge about your world, while unfortunately being completely ignorant of theirs.
Now you're trapped
With no ID
No money
Unknowingly entered a nation illegally
Everyone back home who knows your body, thinks you're dead
Can't understand a word from those around you
Welcome to Survival Mode
Now that the current story is over, what happens now, when this is past the series end?
FINALLY, nobody's judgement is clouded by rage, just doubt
Karma is truly a fickle mistress.
Cozy Glow, congratulations, you played yourself.
He means Cozy bucked up
Like I said, she bucked up
Cause you're a case of a high INT but low WIS character
HA! I called it in chapter 1! Suck it BITCH! …….Poor Autum though…
EDIT: I actually called it in the prologue.
Everything in the chapter feels fine, but the last part of the chapter just greatly confuses me, due to some missing dialogue and characters in what feels should be essential in the last part. Doesn't Cozy, or Tempo rather, have family?
It feels really wrong to bring in Tempo's uncle, aunt, and cousin into this whole story, only to completely leave them out in what's essentially the last few moments Tempo has to talk to anyone in Equestria. Spur not speaking up that she wants to talk to her, and Discord ignoring that she had family who might've wanted to speak to her doesn't make sense.
For the little time that we knew the three of them, we knew that they still genuinely cared about Tempo, as family naturally does. Spur especially with how sad she reacted to her cousin not actually being there, even going as far as not wanting Autumn to leave initially.
Though, how Tempo would react to finding out about being stuck alone in this world forever as a result of all her failures, and talking to her family afterwards, who'll really miss her, after all that realization fully hits in... It's admittedly hard to predict and know how someone, even a sociopath like Cozy, would react to hearing those hard-hitting news and circumstances. That's not even considering her family's reactions to it.
If need be, that last sorta talk can happen off-screen to keep the intended karmic satisfaction from being affected, though it would be odd to skip that sorta conversation, and there's still likely some sad relatives afterwards. I honestly don't know how to go about something like that, to be honest. But in the end, this is just criticism, and it's your choice on how you want to write or keep something.
FUCKING FINALLY SHE GETS WHAT SHE DESERVES! COZY YOU BITCH!
2 chapters in a day? You’re lucky...
Whenever I do two chapters, I get sued.
Karma.
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Indeed you do.
9954309
You know you're right if this was part of her universe she would've helped by now. Still it was a good theory.
Suck it Cozy Glow in trying to avoid punishment for your crimes you inadvertly gave yourself a worse punishment. *gives Autumn a hug*i'm sorry you lost everything but i believe you have a lot to offer Equestria and i can guarantee you will be able to beat the stigma around your new form eventually, but it will take time, but i believe in you. Hell you got the best PR for it. The Pillars, the elements, now the princesses, the Apple parents, even Ahoizotle, Discord, the yak mother you saved and her child, and best of all little Princess Flurry Heart a baby Alicorn who has the uncanny ability to know you weren't evil the first time she met you hell she defended you against her own parents. I'd say your in great hooves. To Autmn Breeze great chapter again you are a very gifted writer. I look foreward to where you take this and other stories you're writing that i'm following. I wish i could be apart of each of these story worlds you created. They're so fun and engaging. Keep up your great work.
Well, since Autumn is now going to lead a new life, I believe a new look is in order! Maybe the other ponies can alter her appearance or even swap the genders so Autumn can be a HE again!
Well now that that's settled...
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Good story none the less!
9954631
The story isn't complete yet, soooo... This should be interesting~.
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Only issue: all alicorns are mares
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I admit...i forgot she was alicorn when I wrote that...
*phew* Finally, after everything poor Autumn has suffered, including that nightmare and that freaky Sombra fear vision, things are finally starting to look up for her. At least, now everypony's got his story. It really helped his case having all those ponies and creatures he helped out, and, of course, Flurry's trust in him.
It's a shame that he's cut off from ever going back to his home again, though. He never asked for this, even if his life was at in a downward spiral in the human world. Even Discord feels sorry for the poor guy, especially since he could've prevented it. But Pinkie shouldn't blame herself. How could she possibly have known? How could anypony?
Even so, that ending felt incredibly cathartic. Cozy's now stuck in the human world, unable to ever come back, with her victim's taunting and cold speech being the last thing she ever hears from there.
Checkmate, you demonic little hellspawn...
Can't wait to see what's next in store for Autumn, and to see him hopefully adjust to life in Equestria.
Feels good, and genuine.
Would like to see the goodbye between our MC and his parents, but not a big deal.
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Well, it’s not canon that only mares can be alicorns. Plus, alicorn magic will probably be taken. Although, if it isn’t taken, it’d be interesting to see what happens if she is turned into a stallion, and could lead to some romantic drama.
I wonder if they’re going to apologize for the way they treated Autum. Because they have every reason to and she deserves one.
Trixie demands More!!!!
This is quite enjoyable, can't wait for some more.
I vote a love bug’s life.
This was freaking awesome to read, I want more!
Great story!
Dang this is good! Really enjoying reading it, hope to see more chapters of it when you get around to writing more.
It worked in my opinion, you’ve made it. It felt genuine in a few aspects and even the last “Fuck you!” was a nice touch. Now she will live with the consequences a few of us desired.
Even Chrysalis or sombra could have the opportunity to redeem themselves but... Cozy glow and tirek? Fuck em’, they just desire pure power and always plan some scheme. Those two are real villains with an undying determination to win... So fuck em’ we say.
Crap. I haven't seen s9 yet. Well, in the interest of having NO SPOILERS, I think I'll set this one aside for now and come back after I've managed to scrounge up enough dough to pay my Netflix subscription.
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Oh. Well, either way...
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Ah, sweet, thanks.
*clenches at throat* Ghuu-ghuuur-ggg....blah.
X_X
Okiee, ah’m done. Won’t dislike story, but ah think ah’m done. Farewell. *floats away*
Plz continue
Can he asked Discard can he return him as a male.