"...Alright." Valey sat up straight, alone in the mountain cave with Shinespark and Wallace. "You wanna get to the root of what ails me? Bananas, can't even count how many times I've had this conversation... Give it your best shot."
"My best shot, you ask for?" Wallace arched a bushy eyebrow. "Already accomplished, my little pony." His face softened. "I'll ask one more time: are your goals no longer something you're proud of? Or does the thought of returning your sister to the land of the living fill you with unspeakable shame?"
Valey winced as if slapped. "I just told you, no it doesn't! I'll get her back, okay?"
"Yet it's still the sorest of subjects," Wallace sighed. "You've met with many roadblocks on your way to restoring her, too many of them of your own making. You're ashamed of your own performance in this matter."
"I..." Valey choked on her words and trailed off. "Look, who wouldn't be? We had a body for her for like a whole month that no one was using, and I was lazy and just sat on her all that time because I knew it would be a hard task and a huge commitment and, like... And then when we did, I was feeling good about stuff, and the very next day I got dragged away by your stupid windigo. It feels like every time I try to be better for her she gets out-prioritized, or something dumb happens, or..." She sniffed. "You wanna know the worst part? We went all the way to the grand temple at the other end of Mistvale, I got to talk to an avatar of the Night Mother in person, and made the whole conversation about me. I forgot to ask her if she could put her back together, and we even had Nyala's body and her soul on the ship! We still do! Bananas, yeah, I'm ashamed of my performance."
"I see." Wallace's face returned to neutral. "And that wouldn't be the only thing troubling you like this, would it? What else weighs on your shoulders?"
Valey stared at the ground. "I dunno."
Shinespark hesitantly stepped closer. "...Wallace, we've had a hard time on our travels, and..."
"I know it well, my little pony." Wallace nodded. "Even as seasoned adventurers who have had more than our fair share of mishaps, some things still pierce straight to the heart. How do you think Morena, Diego and I felt learning the province to which we had entrusted our daughter was performing experiments on her in the name of betraying the crown?" He bowed his massive head. "There are some details about what happened to her that, in our ensuing checkups and examinations, have come to light... I won't trouble you with their harrowing nature, but rest assured we felt it keenly, the realization that we were too quick to trust."
Valey blinked. "Yeah, that... would have to stink. Bananas. And you guys fought for them in the tournament for years? Trying to get Izvaldi a wish to thank them for helping..."
"Indeed we did." Wallace spoke slowly and deeply. "This is not a request for pity. It is a demonstration." He lifted his head again, eyes suddenly blazing with determination. "That life will betray you from time to time, and moreover you will betray yourself. Whatever you want, young Valey, no matter how fervently you dedicate every inch of your being to achieving a friend's salvation, there will come times when you fail to reach it through no fault but your own. This is not because of you. It is a facet of living, and happens all the more often the harder you push yourself. That you feel it so keenly is nothing more than a sign that you are among the best of us."
Valey's mouth hung open, torn between pushing back and thinking harder about Wallace's words. "...Yeah? That doesn't change the fact that any of this happened..."
"I know of no power that can change the past," Wallace declared, straightening to his full height. "Not even the Night Mother can grant a wish of time travel. It is impossible. But do you need to change it to surpass yourself and do justice to your heart's desire?"
Valey narrowed her eyes. "Well, I need to change something! I'm making a mess of things with her over and over and the more times I get distracted and have to go beat up someone to keep my friends safe, the harder it is to... bananas..."
"The harder it is to look your goals in the eye," Wallace finished. "But who do you think your sister would rather have? A champion who has failed time and again, yet still gives her hope of a return? Or no one whatsoever?"
"If it was a choice between watching me mess up and let her down, and being stuck in moon glass and not having to watch that?" Valey raised an eyebrow. "What do you think?"
"The former," Wallace replied without any hesitation at all.
Valey blinked.
Wallace smiled, exhaling. "Does that come as a shock to you, young Valey? The world has many creatures who are powerless, who struggle and strive to improve their circumstances yet can never quite seem to reach all the way. If you reach down to help them, they won't care about how much of a failure you are or how many times you haven't made a difference before. Extending that hand is the essence of being a hero."
Valey looked at the wall. "I know I'm gonna mess up again. You watch. I bet you we won't get past the next tournament fight without something big happening that takes up all my attention for the next who-knows-how-long."
"This is true for everyone," Wallace confirmed. "But the only way for you to truly fail is to let it prevent you from trying."
"Yeah..." Valey stretched, getting to her hooves. "Guess I just gotta keep going at it. Thanks, bathtub. Don't you worry. I won't be giving up yet. Time to get practicing for being in the tournament to the end..."
As she approached the cave entrance, a huge wing suddenly barred her way. "And where do you think you're going?" Wallace Whitewing asked with a grin.
"Uhhh..." Valey blinked. "Back home, right?"
Wallace laughed. "And who told you we were finished? You're still holding out on me, young Valey. Do you know how I know?"
Valey blinked harder. "Wait, what?"
Wallace grinned his surest grin. "Because you lack the daredevil smile of someone who knows they live in a good-for-nothing world that will betray them at every turn, hounding them with failure and ill omens as it does everyone else in it! I know your history, young Valey. Ironridge and its reputation have not escaped my team's travels, nor your role in it. You have that ability, when the world laughs in your face to laugh back harder, straighten your shoulders and take what you want through guile and force. Only this time around, you have the heart to guide your motives true."
"What the...?" Valey stared at Wallace, uncomprehending. "Is this another talk about how I behaved in Ironridge? No. No way, no how. I was a jerk, I was a jerk, and I am not doing that again!"
"Oh, really." Wallace moved to stand in front of the cave entrance. "Force of personality is one of the most powerful tools anyone can have, and there's a difference between using it in ways your friends will appreciate and not using it at all. Are you afraid of offending someone?" He beckoned with a feather. "What if they deserve it? Or what if they have a sense of humor and it builds goodwill? You're holding back on yourself. You're being meek! And you say you want to leave this cave? Hah." Wallace's grin twinkled. "Show me you can surpass the fear that holds you back, or else fight your way through and prove you can win with your best hoof tied behind your back."
Valey blanched, looking back at Shinespark and expecting disgust. "Sparky, he's bonkers, ri...? Sparky?"
Shinespark was watching Wallace with curious contemplation, and nodded at Valey. "I'm staying out of this. Wallace hasn't given me any reason to doubt he knows what he's doing."
Wallace beckoned again from the entry.
"...You know what?" Valey turned to look Wallace squarely in the eye... and sat down on the bare floor. "I guess this means we'll be here for a while, then, because the mare I was in Ironridge is dead and I'm never being her again."
Wallace kept up his challenging look for several seconds longer before dropping it with a sigh. "Then make yourself comfortable, young Valey. If even a challenge like that fails to rile you out of complacency, we have a long road yet to cover indeed."