They encountered Berry Punch in the Sugarcube Corner. The earth pony took a lot of breaks there, perhaps in some attempt to make up for being a somewhat poor party guest to Pinkie Pie in previous years. The mare was sitting in a corner, bent over the table, holding a pencil in her mouth. A half-eaten piece of cake was sitting next to whatever she was focusing on. She wasn't wearing anything to cover the scar on her side, although the regrown fur around it made the blemish appear smaller.
Twilight called out as they approached. "Hey Berry."
"Hey, Twilight." The earth pony looked up, rolling the pencil into one corner of her mouth. Didn't precisely help her clarity of speech. "Help ya?"
"Is that a coloring book?" The smirk was practically audible, one didn't have to turn to look at Starlight Glimmer's face.
That did appear to be the case, although the repeating kaleidoscopic pattern on the page wasn't something Twilight would expect in a foal's coloring book.
"Yeah." Berry put the pencil down gently. "Spike got me this one. Nothin' but weird stuff in it, so you don't feel like you're picking wrong colors or something." She shook her head with a smile.
Twilight nodded. "I do remember him mentioning that. Seemed kind of silly at the time, though." She was a little old for that stuff.
"Well, I heard your brain sometimes runs away with you." Berry grinned knowingly at Twilight. "This is just something to focus on. Keeps your mind from running all over the place, without bein' stressful. I like to go running for that, but in this weather, I don't always want to work up a lather."
"And you need that sort of thing?" Twilight couldn't help sounding skeptical. Berry hadn't often struck her as a big thinker.
The earth pony quirked a brow. She took a long time to answer, and she sounded disappointed, Twilight thought. "Yeah, I do. I need stuff to focus on, or I'll just dwell on what a hot mess I am, doesn't lead anywhere good."
"But you managed to quit!" She had thought quite well of Berry, this last year. The mare had been getting along with Spike, who appreciate being taken seriously, and she had persisted in treating Twilight like a neighboring pony instead of a princess.
Starlight Glimmer shifted uncomfortably, having no context for the conversation, Twilight knew.
Berry chewed her lip. "Yeah. Of course." She shook her head. "So, what's up?"
"Starlight Glimmer here and me have cutie marks on the mind. How'd you get yours?" She was glad for the change of topic. Spike was still better at talking to Berry, somehow.
Yet the earth pony frowned. "I normally only tell the story to ponies I can hit in the teeth when they give me a hard time about it, Princess." She gestured at Twilight's wings for emphasis. "You're seeing my problem?"
"I could step outside while you tell Starlight?"
"Wow, thanks a lot, Twilight." Still, it appeared as though her student was interested. Of course she'd be interested in a cutie mark story that a pony might not feel wholly positive about.
Berry snorted. "I'll just tattle to Shark if I gotta. She's still looking for an excuse, anyway." She stuffed the rest of her cake into her mouth. "How about y'buy me another piece?" It came out muffled, speaking with a full mouth as the mare was.
"Uh, sure." Twilight hoped that certain ponies weren't going to start regularly extracting money or favors from her in exchange for interaction. She gave Landshark some leeway on account of being an alien, but she'd have to put her hoof down if ponies started doing it. Still, they were technically asking Berry for a favor, first.
It was a small thing to purchase a round of cake for them all and settle in. Berry took a bite, but thankfully finished chewing before speaking. "I think I was around ... thirteen or fourteen years old at the time? Gets a bit fuzzy."
"That's pretty late, isn't it?" A fair point by Starlight Glimmer.
"Oh yeah, compared to here? Sure. But hardly anypony in the neighborhood had any work in the first place. There just wasn't much stuff to try and do, you know? We mostly just hung out all day and got into fights with kids from other streets. Anyway, at about that age I spent a year or so behind bars on account of bein' involved in a robbery. The first time we knocked over the liquor store was real easy, second time didn't work out nearly so well. Still, they didn't lock me up as long as the bigger older kids."
That wasn't entirely news to Twilight. The earth pony had mentioned something about a robbery during the previous year, but Twilight had had other priorities and hadn't inquired further.
Berry chuckled to herself. "Anyway, this other filly let me in on how to start fermenting fruit in secret. Couple of days later, when we were passing that swill out to the others, ta-da, one cutie mark. Good times. No matter where you put enough ponies together, one's going to figure out how to brew up some drinks. S'what dad said once he heard."
"I'm terribly sorry," Starlight Glimmer spoke up first. "Must be hard when everypony is expecting your cutie mark story to be a big revelation about yourself, or at least uplifting in some way."
"Oh yeah. Not such a big deal in my neighborhood, but a nice place like Ponyville? Can get awkward. My mom hated it, too, cause she hates everypony else in the family. Granny, my uncle and my cousin work a vineyard together, so seeing me get something like a family business mark just needled her. Didn't visit me once while I was in lock-up, either. Dad ... step-dad I guess, was real happy, though. Was a cutie mark you could go legit with, right?"
"You've been drinking since you were that young?" That sort of claim didn't seem credible to Twilight.
"Yeah. I mean, I wasn't getting blind drunk every day, but a little bit of liquid courage goes a long way when you're about to get into a fight or something." Berry sighed and poked at the remains of her cake. "Sometimes a pony just doesn't want to feel like herself for a while, anyway." She shrugged. "I quit last year. For good, I hope. Don't say anything," she smirked at Starlight. "I'm well past the celebration stage, by now it's expected to just work."
"Your cutie mark is still with you, though," Starlight Glimmer remarked. "Where ever you go, you'll be there. No getting away from that."
"Sure," Berry agreed easily. "But so what? It's a nice one to look at. Solid earth pony mark. Fruit's good for ya. I got other stuff to worry about, like raising my daughter." She dismissed the remark with casual ease. If Starlight had been looking for an opening for a statement about the ill effects of cutie marks, she hadn't found it.
"Fair enough," Starlight conceded before nodding towards the coloring book. "Anything specific you were worried about?"
Before Twilight could remark that Starlight was being nosy, Berry replied with a lazy shrug. "Maybe worried's too strong. I've been thinking that maybe Ruby Pinch, my daughter, that she's been too nice."
"Well, that seems pretty silly." Ruby Pinch was a well-behaved filly, for the most part, and Ponyville citizens were probably glad there had been only three Crusaders. Most other children had been less driven.
"No offense, Twilight," Berry grinned. "You oughta can it an' hear me out."
"Yes, go on," Starlight requested politely.
Although it was jarring to hear, Twilight assumed the number of ponies willing to tell her to shut up and listen would only go down as time passed. On the whole, a good thing, but she could humor Berry, since she knew the earth pony didn't think ill of her, and probably hadn't been fishing for compliments about her daughter, either. "Alright."
"Well, it's like this," Berry started. "I reasoned it that way. Pinchy knows I don't get along with my mother at all. She knows I used to be a troublemaker at her age, and a bully."
Berry put her hoof down on the pencil she'd set down earlier and rolled it back and forth. "She knows that I could be a real sad sack, too. And I'd sometimes get into fights. Also, she knows ponies used to look down on me, I think." She shrugged. "Sure. All that isn't so true anymore ... but she grew up with that."
Twilight wasn't sure where Berry was going with that line of thinking, or what it had to do with Ruby Pinch being supposedly 'too nice'. It wouldn't serve anypony for that filly to go around getting into fights.
Starlight nodded slowly, a look of dawning understanding on her face. "You're worried that she was good out of obligation, or maybe fear, because she loves you and didn't want to make things any worse?"
"Heh. You get into ponies' heads like that often?"
"I've ... had my moments." Starlight looked away. She probably had experience with the way certain types of pessimistic ponies always worried about the bleakest possible explanations for their problems, otherwise she likely couldn't have initially convinced her little band of citizens to stay around.
"I doesn't seem productive to worry that Pinchy is just faking it. Why would you do her a disservice like that?" Of course, some of Berry's friends could fairly convincingly display a good mood. "I know Bon Bon has to pretend to some extend because she needs sales, but I don't see why you'd suspect it of your own daughter."
Berry cleared her throat and seemed as though she was about to spit before remembering where she was. She swallowed with a grimace. "That's such a Twilight answer." She scowled. "I just think she shoulda had more chances to notice that I'll still be here even in case she screws up big. Trying to get a shot in on Filthy Rich's daughter for her bullying barely counts. I've been hard on myself, I don't want her to worry like I'd be hard on her, too. I want her to feel like she can tell me stuff I maybe don't care to hear. If all she ever worries about is pleasin' ponies, maybe from fear of making me look or feel bad, that gets toxic. Ditzy told me that, and I think she was on to something. Even if you love helpin' out ponies, you've got to be able to call a time-out and be clear about your own needs an' wants or risk getting ground down and burned out."
"It's more than that, though," Berry continued, glowering at Twilight. "Maybe I don't want her growin' up as a pony who goes mental when she thinks she's not meeting expectations in the most perfect way. And ... and I want her to be comfortable with those parts of her what society maybe isn't too fond of. Everypony's got those. I don't want her to beat herself up whenever she has a thought that's not fit for a 'good filly'. I want her to be fair to herself."
Berry sighed. "Lastly, down here with the regular ponies, you gotta have some spine to get ahead in life. Fluttershy's a lovely mare and all, but I'd rather not see my daughter hide away in some cottage all her life, afraid of making another pony frown or something, 'cause the safe bet is, Pinchy won't turn into some kind of national treasure to make up for it an' make ponies give her the time of day. Ponies like us gotta be willin' to grab life by the throat sometimes, even if others wouldn't prefer it. There's always gonna be some punk who'll cut in line ahead of you if you can't open your mouth to tell 'em off."
Tapping a hoof on the coloring book, Berry continued. "Spike had to know there was a risk I'd feel insulted and think it was foalish, but instead of staying quiet, he decided that the idea was worth maybe having to argue for it. He's not so afraid of annoying a pony that it makes him throw out his ideas."
The earth pony took a deep breath and seemed to sag a little. Berry wasn't, in general, a pony who ranted at length, Twilight thought. She ignored the hurtful implied reference to her desire to please Celestia for the moment to wonder where Berry got such ideas from. Probably not Landshark, the construct might be opinionated, but had previously admitted to knowing nothing about child development. Bon Bon might think it presumptuous to comment on it even if she had made an observation like that.
Maybe the idea had originated with Lyra, she'd probably read more material on the topic of mental health than all of her friends combined. Could be that she'd stumbled onto something regarding child development? That could be it, although Twilight would have loved to know if that hypothetical piece had been properly peer-reviewed.
"But you mentioned that you wouldn't call it worrying," Starlight probed.
"Mhm." Berry worked her jaw. "Maybe I got lucky. Got folks in my life who're teaching ... or taught her better. So maybe I'm not the first pony Pinchy trusts for unpleasant news, but I doubt she'd worry about talking to Ditzy, she's known her since before she could talk. Best friends with Ditzy's daughter, y'see. And folk like Bon or Shark, dunno if you met 'em yet, they're good examples, maybe."
"It can't be that bad," Twilight reassured her. "You dealt pretty well with it when Pinchy told you about her poker playing. You're probably reading way too much into it. Pinchy is a good pony."
Still, she supposed that if the Crusaders had learned nothing else from their past escapades, they'd still learned that acting out wasn't the end of the world, their families might discipline them, but they'd still love them, too. If, as Berry had claimed, Pinchy really had picked up on the fact that her grandmother had a terrible relationship to Pinchy's mother, that probably hadn't been helpful at all. It might give a little pony the subconscious notion that it was easily possible to gamble away a mother's love with misbehavior.
"On the other hoof," Starlight cut in, "I doubt you have the capacity to imagine what it's like to have deeply flawed role models. Your parents do well for themselves. Your brother used to be Captain of the Guard before marrying royalty." She made her statements matter-of-factually. "You grew up fixated on Celestia, so you arrived at the way you deal with falling short of expectations from a different direction than most ponies – your role model was too perfect for a filly, not too weak."
Twilight reeled under the sudden accusation, presented as fact. She was still grasping for a rebuttal beyond 'I so just imaged it,' when Starlight continued.
She inclined her head towards Berry, offering an explanation. "I spied on Twilight pretty extensively. I don't know you, Berry, but from your own descriptions of yourself, you're probably on to something. Your daughter might have picked up different baggage than other ponies her age. And what she got from you means more than what your friends show her."
"Yeah, but she's still a filly." Berry nodded. "My mom's nasty, and I'm only just learning how to put up with myself without drinking, but Pinchy, she's still got a real shot at just being okay with herself and others, despite all that." Suddenly, her expression brightened into a smile. "Even if she did pick up some stuff that's not helpful, there's still got to be time to ... " Berry hesitated. "Learn about it, I guess."
"I don't know that I would share all of your concerns," Twilight cautioned, "but you might want to talk frankly to her about them, anyway. If my friends and I learned one thing about each other, it's that everypony has unhelpful impulses or ways of reacting to life that aren't constructive. They don't go away just because we learned a friendship lesson, but they help us notice when we're about to respond poorly and chose a better reaction."
It had been a battle to get Applejack to accept help for the harvest, that first year Twilight had been in Ponyville. Her refusal to face her family after not winning any prize money at the rodeo was another reminder that Applejack wasn't very good at admitting weakness. "Real friends and family don't go away just because we slip up every so often."
"I'll try to keep that in mind for myself," Starlight commented drily.
"Yeah," Berry nodded. "Anyway, there you go. That's why I gotta keep busy or my mind just goes in circles around stuff like that. I hate it." She shrugged. "But you should tell Spike that I liked his idea. It's a nice distraction."
Twilight was in fact proud of Spike for being so thoughtful, and resolved to tell him as much. "I absolutely will. I'm glad it's helpful for you." Still, it was probably time to take their leave. She'd earmarked plenty of time for conversations, but this seemed like a good time to say their goodbyes. "By the way, have you talked to Bon Bon today?" Twilight thought it might be best to gauge the candy maker's mood before dropping in unannounced. She should have remembered to check with Lyra, earlier.
"Uh, sure?" Berry eyed her warily. "She's at work, like usual."
"Well, I was considering a quick visit, unless she's in a bad mood, then I'd rather postpone it."
Berry smirked. "Heh. Good luck with that. She was doing alright earlier." She nodded towards the unicorn. "Nice meeting you, then."
"Thanks for your time." Starlight nodded in return.
Berry Punch went back to her coloring book as Twilight and her student left.
"That was pretty unexpected."
"How so?" Starlight didn't know Berry, after all.
"It's pretty insightful to realize that even though Pinchy probably isn't going to turn out unpleasant, like her grandmother allegedly is, or a juvenile delinquent like Berry, she might go too far the other way, isn't it? Even if it's not entirely realistic." Twilight still wasn't entirely sure what to make of the idea herself.
Starlight shrugged. "Parents tend to worry, it's not that unusual, and probably not totally unrealistic, either."
"I might have underestimated Berry," Twilight admitted. "I was surprised she didn't threaten you. She tosses out threats like Applejack uses countryisms." After a few moments, she shook her head. "Okay, maybe not quite that much, but still. Her solution to magic problems seems to boil down to 'see if there's a horn to break off.'"
Starlight winced audibly, sucking in air through her teeth.
"Direct quote: 'That's how we shut up unicorns in the old neighborhood.'" Twilight shook her head. "I never know what to say! A few weeks ago, she was teaching her daughter how to dislocate wings!"
"Charming." Starlight grimaced.
"By the way, I didn't really appreciate the way you talked about me." She was getting used to ponies looking at her as an alicorn princess, she didn't like to be reminded that even before that, she'd been sheltered and privileged compared to many other ponies.
"I felt like she needed to have some validation, not being told by the royal smart pony that her worries were silly." She shook her head. "I apologize, but I felt like I needed to put your stance into perspective. Thank you for saying so, though," she added. "I am here to learn about friendship."
Probably wouldn't be useful to accuse Starlight of just wanting to take a shot at her right now. She'd change the topic, for now. "Bon Bon might not like you."
"Okay."
The response was a little too disinterested for Twilight's tastes. "In case you get to know each other better, step lightly regarding your ideology. This is an educated guess, but I'm pretty sure she and Lyra would consider their compatibility an achievement of their relationship, certainly not its prerequisite. They've not responded well when their relationship seemed to be under scrutiny in the past." Well, that had been mostly Lyra, Twilight recalled.
"I'm not looking for converts, Twilight."
"Well, look, it's possible that she'd prefer to keep the relationship strictly business."
"That does seem appropriate for a provider of goods and/or services in exchange for bits." Starlight raised an eyebrow. "I feel like you're expecting me to react more strongly."
Twilight had, it was true. "You haven't dealt well with rejection in the past, so I'm just trying to prepare you."
Starlight glowered at her. "I figured I'd just not try to crowbar my way into that mare's circle of friends if she's not interested, you know? Or do you have any indication that the world as we know it will end if I don't befriend a candy store pony?"
"There's no need to be snide about it. If you're going to be my friendship student, you need to apply yourself."
"I don't understand. I didn't say I was going to shoot her down if she does want to be friends. I'm just not going to lose sleep over this pony I've never seen before. We can just send Spike to buy candy, right?"
"She doesn't like me, alright?" Not the admission she was happy to make towards her new student. "I'm always planning to try and get on her good side and then I always chicken out."
"Huh. That really troubles you, doesn't it?" Starlight seemed suddenly interested.
"Yes," Twilight admitted morosely.
"Well, you're close friends with all the other princesses, saved the country a few times, and, crucially, you're the Princess of Friendship. Have you tried ordering her to be your friend?"
"What? No!" She'd been expecting something comforting at the start, there. "It doesn't work that way."
"Maybe mope about her rejection where the local gossipers can hear it? Bad for business, not being friends with a Princess."
Twilight glared. "I try to be very careful about that kind of thing. We're going to have to have a talk about your problem solving later, Starlight. This isn't funny."
"It just seemed to me that it would be worthwhile to make rejecting you the least attractive option."
Did Starlight Glimmer only agree to be a friendship student because she feared the dungeons or banishment of some kind? Twilight would have to keep an eye on her attitude. "Let's just go."
Starlight Glimmer appreciated being introduced to new ponies. She really did! But Twilight was acting weird about it. At least the ones she'd picked today hadn't asked in detail about Starlight's past, that tended to make things awkward in a hurry.
They entered the store during a quiet moment, it appeared. It certainly was a tidy place. Aside from minor dirt associated with the day's hoof traffic, the interior was impeccably clean, or near enough, in any case. On second glance she detected a smudge on a glass case a younger pony must have pressed their nose against. Shelves on the walls were lined with glass jars containing the wares on offer.
The proprietor appeared to be an unremarkable earth pony which Starlight Glimmer realized she'd seen about town once or twice without really seeing her. The mare was talking to a unicorn stallion sporting the most peculiar look, dreary grey coat, white mane, his body covered in white markings. It was a creative look which meant nothing to her. None of the designs were of any arcane significance.
"Alright, here's the receipt for those door mountings." The stallion moved a piece of paper towards the earth pony.
"Right." The mare nodded before taking a look. "Thanks, Rimey. I might get that signed by Shark, too, just in case." Her expression soured as she looked at the writing. "Oh come on!"
"Uh ... what's wrong?" The stallion shied back at the outburst.
A questioning whine from behind the counter revealed the presence of a dog in the store.
"Does everypony in this stupid town have nicer writing than Lyra? She's a Canterlot unicorn, for cryin' out loud, and you're ..." She sighed. "Sorry, no offense meant. Tell Shark you did a good job." The earth pony shook her head before throwing a treat to her unseen pet.
"Sure thing. Have a good one, then." He turned about with an awkward expression. "Oh, uh, Hi Princess. Don't mind me, just getting back to work. Bye!"
"Of course, Soft Rime," Twilight smiled and nodded. "Hope you have a good evening!"
By the time the stallion had made his escape and the two of them had turned their attention back to the shop keeper, the earth pony was smiling brightly at them. "Princess! To what do I owe the visit?" She sounded chipper enough, which was especially puzzling, since she'd sounded genuinely annoyed just earlier.
"Bon Bon, I'd like to introduce you to Starlight Glimmer."
The earth pony nodded and continued to smile politely at Starlight. "I woulda sold her candy without knowing her name."
"It's nice to meet you," Starlight offered. It cost nothing to be nice.
"How are Fleet Feather and Soft Rime doing?" Twilight shifted her weight awkwardly.
Starlight wondered about Twilight suddenly appearing to walk on egg shells.
Bon Bon furrowed her brow. "Ask Shark or whatever bureaucrat is in charge of tracking them. They've been staying out of trouble, far as I know."
"Good! That's good. I'm happy they're doing well." Twilight hesitated. "Starlight Glimmer here has ... made some questionable choices in the past, but she's my friendship student now."
Starlight Glimmer nodded. It was a vague way of putting it, and she wasn't sure why it had been necessary to bring up. Before she could ask, she took note of Bon Bon looking at her. She no longer looked like any given other half-vapid salespony. Starlight was not comfortable with the calculating look she was receiving.
Bon Bon shrugged. "A'ight. I'll add her to the cronyism list, Princess."
"I – That's not!" Twilight seemed to slump. "Alright. Thanks, Bon Bon."
This certainly wasn't the Twilight Sparkle who had promised that she could fight Starlight Glimmer 'forever' if necessary. Some pony giving her lip like that was just absurd. "What does that even mean?"
The earth pony pursed her lips. "It means you get away with stupid stuff because friendship, I guess." She shook her head. "Well, you gonna buy candy?"
"Uh, licorice?" She couldn't help her curiosity. "Seriously though, what's this about?"
"Regular, salty, or double salt?" Bon Bon inquired, pointing a hoof towards a shelf lined with glass jars. "Well, let's just say I wouldn't have wanted Twilight's gang to give half the town food poisoning out of my kitchen."
"What about red?" Starlight noted Twilight grimacing.
"That was years ago," the Princess pointed out.
"Well, I got a long memory," Bon Bon shrugged. "Earth ponies are nature's elephants."
She made eye contact with Starlight. With a patient, although perhaps slightly strained smile, Bon Bon shook her head again. "Y'know how you get it red? Flavoring it with stuff that's not licorice extract. I got wine gums. Some of 'em are red." She pointed another way.
Well, learning about candy had never been her top priority. She nodded and turned her attention in the indicated direction. "Sounds good, thank you." Might as well get something out of this.
"I'd like the extra salty ones," Twilight spoke up.
"Good call." Bon Bon seemed to be hiding a smirk. "I used to work with a gryphon who was a big fan of those. Try one before you buy."
It didn't take much for Twilight to liberate one of the lozenge shaped candies from the jar and pop it into her mouth.
Neither did it take long for her to form an opinion. The Princess grimaced. "I've made a terrible mistake," she moaned. Twilight puckered her lips and appeared to come just short of dry heaving. "Who buys these?"
"They're a niche product," Bon Bon commented blandly. "Acquired taste, really."
"I should've wondered why I was getting a free sample from you." Twilight shuddered after swallowing.
Bon Bon snickered. "Terribly cynical way of looking at things, Princess." The earth pony turned serious again. "What's your angle? You don't swing by here to enjoy yourself."
Starlight browsed for candy which was not licorice as she listened. She couldn't help but be amused at the turn of events.
"I'm planning to introduce Starlight here to Landshark," Twilight stated, as though this constituted an explanation.
"And?"
"I'm not certain how that'll go. What's your assessment?"
That seemed like an especially puzzling question to Starlight Glimmer, since Bon Bon knew nothing about her. She had no idea who was being talked about, either. "Is that somepony's relative?" It wouldn't be anypony she had directly wronged, but the ponies of her community might have had relatives or former friends who were upset about the whole thing.
She found herself the target of another searching look from Bon Bon before the earth pony shrugged. "You know Shark is gonna be polite to just about anypony who doesn't burst into her place to start a fight."
"For a given value of politeness, anyway."
"No sympathy here, Twilight. If you think Starlight will somehow offend Shark ... well, so what? If Trixie didn't manage it, you've got to have some kind of specific suspicion, but you're wasting my damn time, since I don't know anything about your new pal here."
"I agree, this seems entirely pointless," Starlight pointed out.
"Sorry, it just felt natural to come by, since I also introduced her to Ditzy, Lyra and Berry."
"Hmpf." Bon Bon snorted. "There you go, then. You don't mess with those three, or the kids, Shark's gonna give you a fair shake."
Twilight rubbed her forehead. "Alright, good. I'll take a bag of extra salty licorice, I'm sure Rainbow Dash won't be able to resist a challenge."
"Right. Don't bother trying it with Applejack, you'll just look stupid."
As they made their selections and paid up, Twilight seemed genuinely surprised that Bon Bon had bothered to warn her that trying to bait Applejack into eating extra-gross licorice wouldn't work. "Thank you."
"What was even the point of that?"
"You know, Bon Bon is a lot better at pretending to be happy than your citizens were," Twilight pointed out, seemingly at random.
"I don't suppose she has an overbearing community leader we could remove to make her really happy?" Her citizens hadn't had any difficulty to stay with one another after Starlight had left, after all.
"I can't even tell whether that's your guilt talking or whether you're taking another shot at me." Twilight frowned. "I'm not qualified to address Bon Bon's problems. She's struggling with mental illness. It doesn't have anything to do with magic and it doesn't involve her cutie mark. Sometimes we have to pick our battles, Starlight. No matter how much you love your particular hammer, sometimes the problem isn't a nail." She sighed. "And Bon Bon would hate to know I used her as an example to make a point."
"I'm sure she would have preferred to tell ponies that on her own terms. I already got that my approach was wrong, there's no need to ram the point home."
Starlight wondered where Twilight drew the line. Berry Punch had obviously been troubled also, likely warped beyond what most ponies considered normal by a bad childhood. Yet Twilight had seemed vaguely frustrated by Berry's alleged violent tendencies while being reasonably patient with Bon Bon, who'd been rather confrontational. Just because Starlight was no longer trying to sell ponies on her ideology didn't mean she couldn't treat everypony equally. Everyone was odd in some way, after all.
"True enough," Twilight allowed. "Anyway, time to meet Landshark. She's established herself as a blacksmith, but she used to be a minion. In case you ever get back into the mastermind business, this will count as networking."
"Hmpf. Who isn't being funny now?"