Fizzlepop leaned against the right-side window of her seat on the Friendship Express, resting her head on her hoof, trying not to fall asleep and instead enjoy the beautiful visage of the starlit prairies of central Equestria. It had been a long day, and now she was ready to fall into bed and call it a night. She wasn't sure she was going to make it that far, as the rhythmic sound as the train wheels traveled down the rails was nearly enough to make the unicorn catch forty winks.
Whenever she made the return trip to Ponyville via rail, she was always reminded of when it happened the first time...
It felt like ages since she had seen such beauty. There wasn't a cloud in the sky as the last train from Canterlot steamed down the mountain. Down in the prairie, settled between the bank of a river and a large expanse of forest was a fairly-sized town that only got bigger with time. The voices of Princess Twilight's friends seemed muffled and distant as Tempest stared down at her front hooves, looking at the black steel hoof guards that were still around them. She was still stunned beyond belief that they weren't in chains, and that she now had a view like this, instead of three cobblestone walls and a set of bars.
"Tempest?" Came the voice of Twilight, who was sitting next to her on the cushioned bench. "Are you alright?"
The unicorn tore her eyes away from the moonlit hills, and looked to the Princess of Friendship. Those eyes... No judgement, only genuine concern.
"I... I don't know, Princess." Tempest answered.
"Tempest, please. To my friends, it's just Twilight."
She was still bewildered how a pony this powerful could open herself up to someone who had just tried to take her power not even a day ago.
"You have to understand, Twilight... Ever since I left Equestria, I've had to scrape and fight for every single thing I could ever call my own. I was always chasing after rumors that I thought could make myself whole again. I did so many reprehensible things in the name of making myself stronger. I don't want to blindly accept this clemency. I want to earn it. That, and your friendship." She said, returning her gaze to the prairie that kept getting higher as the train came down from the mountain.
"Let me make one thing clear, Tempest. My friendship? It's not something you can earn. It's something I offer freely, and you have to choose whether or not you want to accept it. You've been away from home, and alone, for a long time. And just as I told my very first student; if you're willing to learn, I'm willing to teach you what I know. You'll have the power to make Equestria an even better place."
The unicorn glanced back at the Princess, and nodded without a word.
"And don't worry; the bedroom where you'll be laying your head at night; I'm sure you'll find plenty of opportunities to earn that."
The train's speed began to slow as it pulled up to the platform, as ponies started to get up and gather their things. Tempest stood up after Twilight. The brakes hissed, the Friendship Express came to a complete stop, and she followed her to the open doors and stepped out onto the platform.
"Welcome to Ponyyyyvilllle, Fizzlepop!" Pinkie Pie called as she bounced down the street on her way home.
"Here's hoping she's not off to get her Welcome Wagon. It's nearly midnight." Twilight said with a chuckle.
Her group of friends slowly parted one by one to their residences, until it was just her, Twilight, and Spike, walking up to a most impressive looking castle.
"Welcome to Ponyville, Tempest. There's no place I'd rather be."
Fizzlepop was completing her morning walk of the castle after breakfast before she headed out, after another good night's rest after a day with Twilight and the others up in Canterlot. She checked her timepiece as she stepped down into the main foyer, and as if on cue, the front doors opened, and Derpy came floating up to her and began digging in her mailbag. Fizzlepop smiled as she noticed the mailmare had polished up her Pink Heart of Courage that she kept on the bag's strap. Princess Twilight had very quickly arranged for her to formally receive one at a ceremony in Ponyville after her actions in the opening moments of the Canterlot attack.
The pegasus' hoof came out of the mailbag with another yellow envelope, and it left Fizzlepop wondering who was interested in joining up.
Gallus was up bright and early, ready to continue helping with Welcome Week preparations, as ponies and creatures were starting to arrive from all over for the official start in just a couple days. It was a great short-term gig, in addition to helping out in the castle kitchen and school cafeteria. So far, over the summer he had been staying in the dorm that he had shared with Sandbar throughout the school year. With a new one starting shortly, he was probably going to have to vacate if he wasn't an active student. He had been in the process of hunting around Ponyville for a room to rent.
After he had washed up, he grabbed his saddlebags, and went and opened his dormitory door just as the head of the Ponyville E.U.P. was about to knock on it, surprising them both.
"Oh! Oh, good morning, Lieutenant Colonel Berrytwist. What can I do for you?" Gallus asked as she stepped aside so that he could step out into the hall.
"Actually, I'm here to see what I can do for you. Derpy dropped this off this morning." Fizzlepop said, walking with him down the hall, opening a tall yellow envelope, and magically pulling out an application to the Ponyville E.U.P., with Gallus' claw writing and signature. "May I ask why you want to enlist in my squad? Cooking not cutting it anymore?" Fizzlepop asked, having gotten used to seeing the griffon helping Grubber in the cafeteria most afternoons.
"No, it's not that. I'm enjoying helping Grubber cook for the students, and I'd also like to do so for the rest of the E.U.P. I just figured that I'd need to build up some actual military experience if I want to eventually join the Canterlot E.U.P." Gallus told her as they stepped outside into the central gardens of the school campus.
"That's certainly an aspiration you've got there." Fizzlepop admitted.
"Thanks. Princess Twilight, and really, all of Equestria, changed my life for the better. Getting what help I could to face down Chrysalis, Tirek, and Cozy at Canterlot... That felt great. If I could eventually work my way up to helping the Princess of Friendship on a daily basis, I'd consider that a pretty successful military career." The griffon continued.
"Well, in that case, Gallus. Meet me in my office this afternoon, we'll get a few things signed, and after Welcome Week, you can begin training to be the first international member of the E.U.P."
"Sounds great, Lieutenant Colonel. See you then." Gallus said with a salute, then made his way to the commons while Fizzlepop left back towards the castle, where, in the ten minutes she was in the school, had a wagon of luggage currently parked out front next to Lieutenant Berryshine.
"Ma'am, you have a couple visitors in the foyer. I believe they're looking for you." Berryshine told her when she was back out front.
"Thank you, Lieutenant. As you were." Fizzlepop replied as she trotted up the steps, and returned inside the front doors, seeing a unicorn stallion and mare walking towards the main staircase.
"Where do you think we should start looking? It's a pretty big place. She might not even be in here." The mare asked, a voice she immediately recognized.
"Glitter? Spring?" She called, and they turned upon hearing their names behind them, and their smiles widened when they saw their old friend.
"There you are!" Glitter Drops exclaimed, as they galloped down to embrace the childhood friend that they hadn't seen in several months.
"What are you two doing here?" Fizzlepop asked happily. "You know anything about that wagon out front?"
"Yeah, that's ours. Princess Twilight didn't tell you? She offered us a break from Vanhoover weather management. We're your new castle caretakers!" Spring Rain told her. Fizzlepop's smile only widened.
"Y... You're moving here? Really?" She asked excitedly.
"I guess maybe she wanted to surprise you. Yeah, she told us if we wanted a chance to reconnect with you on a more constant basis, that she had an opportunity for us. We immediately accepted." Glitter added.
"Well, let me help get your things inside." Fizzlepop offered, heading back towards the front doors and opening them all the way. "So from weather to castle management? That's quite a career shift. I don't ever remember pegasi putting unicorns on Ponyville's weather team." She commented, grabbing the first couple suitcases.
"Well, I was an event coordinator a couple of times up in Vanhoover. Managing something like the palace in Canterlot is a whole other level of crazy, so this seemed like an appropriate step up. The pay is reasonable, and it reunites us with an old friend.
After all the pair's belongings were in the foyer, the three of them returned to the wagon and began to take it back to the train station.
"Twilight effectively wants to donate the castle to the town. She said Ponyville did so much for her that she wants her castle to be a way to continue to give back to the town that made her the Princess she is, even when she's away." Glitter Drops said. "Plus, I've always wanted to study some of the Everfree Forest's wildlife in my spare time, and this is the perfect location to do that from."
"Well, I'd very much appreciate it if I or one of my squad accompanies you for those studies. It's a dangerous place, but adventurous." Fizzlepop replied.
"And I'd love to see the Castle of the Two Sisters. So much untouched history and catacombs." Spring Rain added.
"Something tells me I'm going to be accompanying you two quite a bit." Fizzlepop chuckled. But it's not like she wouldn't crave the adventure to begin with. A few minutes later, they had the wagon returned, and were on their way back.
"Well, let's get your stuff organized, and then you can see how amazing of a chef Grubber is." Fizzlepop told them.
"He'd better be, with a name like that." Spring Rain laughed.
"We've got our work cut out for us. Twilight informed me that she wants the next council meeting to be down here. So we'll have to plan for that, plus everypony who's going to want to see her again." Glitter said, already eager to get to work.
Fizzlepop smiled.
"You guys are gonna love it here."