Twilight Sparkle flinched as her burns, secured under various bandages, twisted and contorted as she walked down the halls of the Canterlot Jail. After being rescued from the Storm King's warehouse, her and the others had been immediately rushed to the hospital, partially thanks to the insistence of Shining Armor, who'd been terrified for the safety of his little sister. Other than the burns from Tempest's cattle prod, they'd been practically unharmed, though those burns would leave their marks. Rainbow had taken that revelation particularly well, overjoyed at the new battle scars she'd have to display.
Once they'd reunited with Sunset Shimmer's group, Shining Armor had returned, officially to take their statement, but also to slip them the details of Tempest Shadow's confession, in order to get their story straight. According to police records, Storm King had suspected that the girls outside of Verko's apartment might have something to do with the super heroes who'd thwarted his protection racket, so he'd sent Tempest to find them. She'd found Twilight spending time with Applejack, Rainbow, and Fluttershy, and kidnapped the four of them, interrogating them for information they didn't have. Storm King had ordered them killed in frustration, an order Tempest had refused to carry out, leading to her taking out her former boss in a fight, as well as his guards. Shining Armor had coincidentally learned the Storm King's true name at the same time, and the warehouse raid was just in time to see the aftermath of the infighting. Tempest, overcome by remorse, had turned herself in, promising a complete testimony on everything she knew about the Storm King's criminal organization. Basically, the Storm King was finished.
Twilight swallowed nervously as she walked up to the booth, the glass barrier separating her from the familiar young woman, wearing an orange jumpsuit. She took the phone, pressing it to her ear.
"How are you holding up?" she asked, nervous about this conversation.
"Oh, y'know," Tempest shrugged, "rolling over onto my boss. Having the prosecutors look for some kind of loophole in the deal I'm offering them. Could be worse, all things considered."
Twilight sighed sadly. "Please, tell me they're at least giving you some kind of benefit for this."
"Kinda funny, considering I'm responsible for those burns on your skin, huh?" Tempest joked. "They haven't finished adding up my charges yet, but even with my deal, they say I'm looking at around ten years." She gave bittersweet smile. "Now why don't you ask the question you really came here for?"
Twilight took a breath. "Why did you help us? You gave me that whole speech about not trusting anybody, but you refused to kill us. I just don't understand."
Tempest was quiet for a few seconds. "God as my witness, kid, I have no idea. I'd never had to kill before, and I thought about it, and...I just couldn't do it."
Twilight though for a moment. "Maybe you weren't trying to convince me," she finally said. "Maybe you were talking to yourself. Maybe you believed that even you didn't have the capacity to be good like that. But you were wrong."
"Doesn't really matter now, does it?" Tempest answered. "It's over, isn't it? I'm giving up the Storm King, then I'm going to be locked up for a while. All there is to it."
"That's not true," Twilight declared, looking directly into Tempest's teal eyes. She placed her hand up against the glass. "I don't know what happened to you, but you're not the monster you think you are. You risked yourself for us. I promise, I won't abandon you, and when you get out, I'll be waiting to help you get back on your feet. All of my friends will."
"You don't have to do that," said Tempest. "You don't owe me anything, kid. Especially since I tortured you with a cattle prod, and everything."
"Well...okay, that's true," said Twilight. "But just because you've done bad things doesn't make you irredeemable. Believe it or not, I know a thing or two about that." She flinched quietly, memories of Midnight Sparkle surfacing once again.
Tempest gave what was actually a genuine smile. "Well, it'd be nice to have something to look forward to once I get out, I guess," she admitted, "You'll visit me more?"
"Of course," Twilight assured her.
"You know, I never did actually get your name."
"Twilight," said the girl. "Twilight Sparkle."
Sunset Shimmer and the rest of their friend group sat quietly outside of Canterlot High, as Rainbow, Applejack, and Fluttershy all nursed the wounds they'd sustained during their kidnapping. Rainbow and Applejack were in the process of comparing scars, trying to decide who looked more badass with them. Sunset sighed as she remembered the hospital visit immediately following their rescue. Granny Smith and Big Mac had given the farm girl an earful, while Rainbow and Fluttershy's families had been more concerned with fussing over their daughters. Twilight's family just seemed happy to know that she was okay, though Sunset would have to be an idiot to miss the glares Shining Armor sent her way. Not that she needed them, the guilt was already piling up. At least he hadn't pulled her aside and screamed at her.
The clopping of nearby footsteps alerts Sunset to Twilight's approach. She looked up, seeing the girl with a warm smile spread across her face. That let Sunset relax, at least a little.
"How is she?" she asked.
"Tempest is hanging in there," Twilight replied. "She says they'll probably cut her some sort of deal for rolling over onto Storm King. It's not amnesty or anything, but I think it's the best we can hope for."
"Oh thank goodness," said Fluttershy, and Twilight was once again struck by the timid girl's capacity for kindness, considering how Tempest had treated her.
Sunset breathed a content breath. At least this fiasco had a happy ending, even if it hadn't come entirely from their efforts.
"So," she began, awkwardly, "I'm sorry, everybody."
Twilight immediately looked concerned. "Sunset, it wasn't your fault. There's no way you could've predicted they were on to us that quickly."
"Yeah! And now we have these beauties on us!" said Rainbow, thumping her scars proudly. "Look at me, I'm—"
She was silenced by a glare from Applejack.
"Rainbow," said the farmer, "as much as I enjoy competing with you over these here scars, this is serious."
"Don't worry about those, darling," Rarity chimed in. "They look fine. And if you'd like to cover them up, I have so many makeup tips to share!"
"Ew! No!" Rainbow responded.
"My point is," Sunset continued, "I was the one who prompted us to do this. But I wasn't thinking of the consequences, of what could happen to you guys. I should've been more careful, or maybe you wouldn't have been kidnapped." She looked at Twilight with renewed determination in both eyes. "Don't get me wrong, I don't regret us starting this little crusade. We took down the Storm King, after all. But nobody should've gotten hurt like that. I'm sorry."
Twilight cringed as she remembered the electric shock pulsing through her skin. She remembered the sheer terror as she woke up chained in that warehouse, wondering if she was about to die. She gingerly touched the scar that sat on her neck.
"I'm not mad, Sunset," Twilight answered, finally. "If we'd gone with my position from the beginning, we never would've stopped Storm King, and who knows how many people would've gotten hurt. Tempest might've never turned on Storm King. I'm glad we did it." A small smile found its way to her face. "Can we please be a bit more careful next time, though?"
Sunset returned the smile. "God, I hope so."