Over the week it was easy to see that Cozy really wanted that outing Sweetie Belle had told Twilight about. While Cozy's words to Twilight were still few and far between, Cozy now joined her for breakfast every morning, sleepy-eyed and with a messy mane and tail. It was actually a little bit cute how hard she tried… just like any filly who had been promised a treat in return for good behavior. To be honest, even if Twilight had not been forewarned, she would probably have figured out something was up just from the changed behavior.
She even came into Twilight's study once and asked if Twilight had a broom. Cozy wanted to clean her room. Twilight had taken care of it with a quick wind spell and instantly blown away all dust out through the window. She too felt happy when she woke up on saturday. She deliberately stayed in bed for longer than usual to be sure Rumble and Sweetie Belle had the time to get to her door. And she had a good book to read anyway; staying in bed for once was nice.
Once she finally rose and stretched her wings she thought she could hear the clip-clop of small hooves outside her door. She opened.
"Good morning Princess!" Cozy greeted her with a respectful dip of her head and a large grin.
"Good morning, Cozy," Twilight said with a smile. "I'll go get some breakfast."
"Oh… is there anything I can do for you first?" Cozy asked. She shifted on her hooves. She was clearly nervous.
"You have done plenty, Cozy," Twilight said mirthfully. "But, if you feel like a game of chess later…"
"Sure… uh, tomorrow?" Cozy said. "I had… plans, for today…"
"That's fine Cozy. More than fine."
Twilight opened the door to her wing, and just like she expected, both Rumble and Sweetie Belle were waiting. Rumble looked decisive and Sweetie Belle, who knew Twilight would accept, just looked happy to be here. "I took the liberty of preparing some pancakes," Rumble said and lifted the silver lid from the tray with a refined motion of his wing. "Starwberries, cream, blueberries and chocolate sprinkles for topping. I'm told it is your favorite."
"Indeed, Rumble. Thank you," Twilight smiled she pretended not to see Cozy and Rumble hoof-bump when she turned around.
"Princess, I had something I would ask, if you don't mind," Rumble said.
"Oh?" Twilight said.
"Well… fall is a good time for flying, with the winds picking up and the cool air. I was thinking that maybe Cozy could do with some practice? We pegasi are made for the sky and it's not fair that anypony would have to remain inside all the time."
"Hmm…" Twilight pretended to think a little.
"I'll be responsible for her," Rumble hastily ensured.
"And I trust her!" Sweetie Belle piped up.
"I don't know… Cozy, is it certain I can trust you?" Twilight added just a little authority in her tone. "You aren't trying to use your friends to run away?"
"Don't worry, I'll be good! You could use a tracking spell if you want!" Cozy said, shifting on her hooves still.
"Hmm… I'd feel better if you had an adult with you, just in case…"
"Rarity is free today," Sweetie Belle said.
"Alright, then it's fine," Twilight said. "You ribbons please, Cozy."
Cozy sat down and untied the cream-white ribbons from her mane and tail. "Sooo… do you have room for another friend to come with?" Sweetie Belle asked. "I know Rarity just bought some pastries…"
"Well, I'd not take Rarity and leave you all alone," Cozy chirped while Twilight worked her magic on the ribbons. "Where are we going?"
"To the westernmost part of White Tail Woods," Twilight said. "It's property of the Equestrian royalty and forbidden for most ponies to enter. No one will disturb you there."
"Is that a good place to fly at?" Cozy asked Rumble.
He shrugged. "Unless you want to do something special, just about any place outdoors will do."
Twilight was more than satisfied with how it had all turned out. Cozy would be better off getting some fresh air and exercise, and she had certainly made friends ready to stick up for her. That would a cornerstone in her reformation. "Then let's get you underway," Twilight said and ignited her horn. The three foals huddled up and closed their eyes as Twilight's magic enveloped them all.
Just a few minutes later, Cozy Glow, Rumble, Sweetie Belle and Rarity all stood at the edge a clearing surrounded by oak trees. They were just starting to bleed from green to yellow and the acorns were brown and ripe, ready to fall. The air was just a little chilly, but it was late enough in fall that they had started to gain their thicker winter coats. The cill was, in fact, perfect for Cozy, as it would make sure she did not get too warm. With her lack of training, she knew flying would be pretty demanding.
She stepped forward, out in the clearing proper and stretched her wings as wide as they went. A small squeak of delight rose in her throat as she finally, finally felt the wind lick her feathers again. A pleasant shiver crept up her spine at the tender caress. She took a deep breath from the invigorating forest air, and instantly felt better than she had since she woke from her statue prison.
"Now, darlings," Rarity said, instantly commanding Cozy's attention. She was not stupid; even if she was out, she knew that Rarity had the full authority to call this paradise off if she believed Cozy became unruly. Cozy had endured too much humiliation to take any risk of losing her hard-earned reward. She had to be on her best behavior while still making the most of her day. "As Sweetie Belle was kind enough to inform me of this little excursion, I took the liberty of ordering a little something from Sugarcube Corner for later. Tell me when you get hungry and we will eat. I think I will remain here for a while…" she looked around at the colorful trees and smiled "… just soaking up the fall season inspiration."
"That's our cue to get going," Sweetie Belle said quietly. "She is in 'the zone' and won't come out for a while."
"Good, then we can start flying," Rumble said. "Man, it was too long since I practiced for real… being Ramson's apprentice doesn't leave a lot of time! Gotta make the most of it!"
"You're telling me!" Cozy said. She crouched down and gleefully launched herself into the air, feeling laughter bubble in her throat as her wings at long last got to send her as fast as they could towards the endless sky. She cleared the treetops in a couple of seconds and found herself in the middle of a forest, no buildings as far as her eyes could see in any direction.
Thus, free as a bird, she abandoned any pretense of restraint and just shouted out her happiness!
"You really needed that, didn't you?" Rumble smirked as he came up next to her with ease.
"It's better than I remembered!" Cozy said and pushed her wings to the max again. She felt like they were filling with energy, like she was finally able to stretch after having been still for too long. Rumble still kept up easily. As Cozy glanced, he closed his eyes and turned his wings.
With a movement the looked as natural as breathing, she started to lean backwards and glide into a smooth loop before breaking out and flapping his wings hard, overtaking her.
It looked simple. Just sort of angle your wings upwards, and it should work, right? Her innate pegasus-sense for how objects behaved in the air said it should work. She flapped her wing s a little harder for speed and then shifted her wings.
The sudden drag made it feel like she had left the air entirely and suddenly flew underwater. She did not go into a loop at all but instead stalled out and lost speed. She tried to keep her wings open, but her lack of real flight training had left her muscles weakened and her wings were slapped backwards against her sides from the wind resistance. She flailed wildly in the air before she managed to righten herself and regain control of her flight.
"Something tells me you need some training." Rumble's slight smirk was perfectly audible.
"NO I DON'T!" Cozy shouted, instantly shutting him up. She hated being humiliated. "It can't be that hard anyway… you aren't that much older than me."
"Yeah… You'll get it in no time, I'm sure," Rumble replied with a lopsided smile. "Just maybe practice over by those clouds? I mean, not even the Wonderbolts practice without something to catch their falls."
Cozy glanced towards a couple of fluffy clouds slightly underneath her. "Tsk… I guess it can't hurt." She set the course for the clouds. She heard how Rumble followed her, which she was secretly grateful for. She knew she would need some help, but she could not admit that to him after her outburst or she would look silly. She wished she hadn't snapped at him; her temper had just gotten the better of her for a moment.
"You mean here?" she asked and pawed the cloud she had landed on.
Rumble nodded. "I'll just… go practice someplace else."
"Wait! Could… you maybe show me that trick again? The loop?"
"Sure," Rumble said. "Watch my wings closely."
He flew off to get some speed before preforming the same trick again, just in front of her. She didn't really see any difference. He just slanted his wings a bit, basically just what she had done.
"I already did that," she huffed. "Exactly that! Why didn't it work for me!?"
"Are… you absolutely sure you don't want some help?" Rumble asked carefully.
Cozy made sure to glare a few moments before relaxing her expression. She had her reputation to uphold. "I guess I could use some pointers. If you have the time… don't you wanna train too?"
"My bro says that training somepony else is really helpful too," Rumble said. "The Wonderbolts have a rotating schedule, so everyone takes turns setting up a training session. So I'm sure I'd learn something from helping you too."
"…Okay. If you want," she said. a little bashfull. It was hard for her to accept help like that. She didn't want to appear weak to anypony.
"Sure," Rumble said. "Grab a cloud and we'll move them down. Trick flying is easier if there is no wind."
"Are you already done?" Sweetie Belle asked when the two pegasi came flying down, pushing pieces of clouds. She had busied herself with a book she had brought.
"No, but it's better to practice this near the ground, with less wind," Rumble explained. He sat down next to Sweetie Belle, and Cozy flew away a small distance. "Okay, try again now! Remember, don't be afraid to fail! That's how you learn!"
She grumbled to herself; she really did not like the idea of failing in front of Sweetie Belle and Rumble. Cozy took a deep breath and tried to relax her wings. Even she knew that being tense made flying harder. She started flying and accelerated up to a good speed. Rumble had not flapped his wings once while in the loop, so she needed enough speed to make it through.
She shifted her wings from flat to angled, and immediately experienced the same stall again, only this time she flew into the cloud placed to catch her before she had any chance of righting herself. Struggling to orient herself, she finally plopped out of the cloud and fell the last way to the ground.
"Don't laugh at me!" she snapped at the grinning Sweetie Belle, who quickly scrunched up her muzzle and looked someplace else.
"I'm not," Rumble said, even if he too sounded a little to happy for Cozy's liking. "You're too fast when you try to shift your wings. Look here." He stood and went up before Cozy, extending his wings. "Here is what I do. Look closely."
He slowly rotated the anterior margin of his wing ever so slightly, so the feathers pointed a little downwards. Then he folded his wings back.
"Now, this is what you do."
He extended his wings again and rotated them nearly ninety degrees, so the feathers pointed straight down. The motion was not unlike the defensive flaring of the wings for when a pegasus was afraid. He folded his wings away again.
"You need to take it slower and make a much smaller motion. It's not uncommon that ponies do either like you, and stall out, or that they hardly move at all because they change direction too slowly. It takes some time to nail down. You get it?"
Cozy nodded. "So I just need move my wings slower?"
"Yeah. Let's try again."
Rumble took his position next to Sweetie Belle again while Cozy flew off to the starting line. She stood down on the ground and extended her right wing. Curious, she glanced at it as she tried to mimic his motion, flicking it up and down a few times. "Okay, slower this time," she said to herself when she thought she had it right. She flew up and tried again. At the exact moment, she flicked her wings again and started rising before… falling backwards? She understood that was what she should be doing, but she couldn't suppress the instinct to try and right herself; pegasi were not meant to fly upside down. Folding one wing a little, she began to spin.
It would have been a perfectly simple move if she had been flying normally and needed to right herself, but now she was already at a low speed from her half-loop and instead found herself falling as her speed ran out. She had just enough time to be surprised before she fell on her back onto the clouds underneath her.
"That's much better," Rumble said. "You got the motion right."
"It didn't feel right at all, flying upside down like that," Cozy said and hopped down from the clouds.
"Most of learning to do a loop like that isn't actually mastering the motions," Rumble said. "The though part is getting it right in here." He tapped the side of his head. "Took me a few weeks, and I still can't do it all that well."
"But you look great when you do it," Sweetie Belle pointed out. "Like, real smooth and stuff."
Rumble shrugged. "I guess, but can't really string it together with other tricks yet. If you wanna do real trick flying, you can't do one trick after another, you must be able to do it like it's all one long trick! That's what looks good.”
"So I just have to practice a bunch, and I can do that too?" Cozy asked. She had never really had an interest in trying trick flying herself, but she liked the idea of ponies admiring her. Even if she would never join the Wonderbolts, being able to do some small tricks was sure to give her a little respect whenever she interacted with other pegasi.
"Sure!" Rumble said. "Back to it! I'm sure you can do one before we leave today, so you get all the movements down. Even if you got the first part right just now, you need to continue slanting your wings a little as the loop progresses, and then flick them back real quick when you have gone all the way around. Once you get all that, then it's just a lot of practice before you can do it on your own."
Cozy narrowed her eyes with determination and flew back to the starting line.
And so she practiced on for a few hours. She thought she would loose interest after a while, but Rumble's careful instructions and Sweetie Belle's positive attitude made her feel comfortable, even if she failed most times. Once Rarity called them to eat, she was panting and warm, but she also felt really happy. She knew it was because of her friends, but for some reason, this feeling was even stronger than when she had all those friends dancing to her tune in the Friendship School. If she had not been so busy practicing and enjoying herself, she would have asked herself why two friends could make for a stronger feeling than dozens of friends.
"I trust you are enjoying yourselves?" Rarity asked and prepared to unveil the picnic basket she had brought. The question was directed to them all, but she kept her eyes on Cozy.
"Golly yes!" Cozy chirped. "It's been so long since I got to fly! And having friends around makes it even better!"
"Of course it does! Friends make everything better!" Sweetie Belle said and levitated over a hearty sandwich.
Cozy motioned to take one of the muffins in the basket, but instead another sandwich seemed to fly into her hooves, caught in ice-blue magic. "Lunch first, desserts after, dear," Rarity said patiently. "Besides, you can't build up your strength by eating only sugar, now can you?"
Cozy would have protested, but caught herself in time. She could not bicker with Rarity, or she risked the rest of her outing! And while she liked to practice, she still had some wild, recreational flying she had to get out of her system before they left. "I guess not," Cozy said instead and took a bite of her sandwich. It was better than she expected. She guessed Pinkie Pie must have made them. The four of them ate in silence for a while before Rarity spoke again.
"So… Cozy Glow," she began tentatively. "How does Twilight treat you?"
"Once I'm on the throne, I'll send her straight to Tartarus! See how she likes that," Cozy said while sipping on some juice. "And I won't give her any books to read!"
"You have studied her weaknesses, I hear," Rarity said with a faint smile. For some reason she did not sound too intimidated. "But surely she must have earned herself a little favor with you by now, no? She did take you to the Wonderbolt derby, after all, and she did trust you enough to let you out today."
"If it weren't for her I'd still be Equestria's Princess! And an alicorn!" Cozy said, her voice rising before she remembered she had to be polite. "Uhm… she's taken a lot from me," she corrected in a more modest tone.
"True," Rarity said, much to Cozy's surprise. She had not expected any of Twilight friends to admit even that much. "She… or we, I should say, did not treat you fairly. But, in my humble opinion, you are not treating her fairly either, now are you?" Rarity had that stern look that Cheerful Sun always wore when Cozy was in trouble.
"I think it's fair," Cozy said. "She is still holding me captive against my will. She's got to make amends first."
Rarity sighed. "I'm not going to bicker with you, young miss Glow, but I do hope that you understand that Twilight is already trying to do exactly that. I'm saddened to hear you have not been very keen on accepting her tries."
"I would too accept them," Cozy huffed. "She could just let me out."
"I won't discuss that decision; it rests solely in Twilight's hooves," Rarity said. "I really just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry, Cozy, for the role I played in your imprisonment. It was wrong of me to do that to a filly, and I hope I can make it up to you some day."
Cozy watched in bewilderment as Rarity extended a hoof. Judging by their faces, neither Sweetie Belle or Rumble had expected this either.
"Then you'll help me if I need you sometime, right?" Cozy asked. She was not a fool; Twilight's friend had to have some ulterior motive, right?
"Within limits, yes," Rarity said.
"Hmm… I'll hold you to that," Cozy said. Rarity looked happy when they finally bumped hooves.
Once she was done with her lunch, she politely helped Rarity pack up the picnic cloth and plates and stack it all in the basket before going back out in the clearing. She all but threw herself back in the air, wings beating fast. She already felt a little tired from before, but a growing pegasus that had stayed cooped up for so long would not be satisfied until her wings drooped in exhaustion.
She all but shot past the canopy, giggling like a pony possessed and burst out into the sunlight. She didn't even care Rumble looked back at her when she flew by. It was still a little chilly, but to her it was just perfect. While she still could only barely do a loop, she could still twirl about freely. It did not serve any real purpose, but pegasi her age had done things like that for as long as their tribe had existed. Why wouldn't a young foal play in her sky home, after all? The whole world was her playground, and every cloud her toy, as an old pegasus adage went.
She leveled off her flight and instead dove forward, pressing her wings tightly to her sides for a few seconds before she flared them again. She laughed at the ticklish feeling in her stomach when she broke out of her high-speed dive. Her wings felt taut and stung just a little, but it was a comfortable feeling; the feeling of freedom. She all but swung herself upwards again, ready to do the same thing again. She flapped her wings hard…
And Cozy screamed.
She felt something strain in her wing joint a burning pain lashing both up her wing and into her side. She instinctively folded up her injured wing a little and made for a nearby cloud. Gliding was still painless, even if she did not want to move the afflicted wing. Panting heavily from pain rather than exhaustion, she touched down on the cloud and immediately looked over her wing. She did not see anything, but even the small tentative flaps she tried while standing made her hiss in pain.
She cursed her folly; she knew she was not a strong flyer and that her wings would be a bit tender from disuse. So why did she not take it easy? Why did she try to fly like that when she knew it put extra strain on her wings?
Luckily, this was not the first time she had made this mistake, and the injury would not be severe. A few days of rest and she would be fine to fly again, and in a week she'd be completely restored.
But Cozy did not have a few days. This was her first time outdoors in weeks while a normal pegasus her age would be outside all day when not eating or sleeping! She had to make the most of this opportunity, she just had to!
And that meant she had to… reveal this weakness and ask for help to get back up here every time she glided down. But not from Rumble. He would have to carry her like a yearling, and that would be far and away too awkward. And Sweetie Belle was not strong enough.
So that left her with one of the ponies responsible for her fall from glory: Rarity. She grimaced to herself as she sat on her cloud and thought it over one more time, just to really give herself the chance to convince herself that the humiliation of asking Rarity for help was not worth it.
It didn't work. Kicking at the cloud in frustration, she opened her wings and started gliding down into the clearing. As long as she did not actively flap her wings it was not too bad. The landing was a little painful, but she could live with it.
At least Rarity should agree to help her.
"Oh, hi Cozy! You done?" Sweetie Belle asked hopefully. With both her friends flying, Cozy guessed Sweetie Belle did not have a whole lot to do, other than watch them or read that book she had brought.
"No… but I think I strained my wing," she said. Hopefully, if Cozy played her cards right, she could get Sweetie Belle to ask for her. That might save just a little bit of her pride. "So I can't get back up."
"Maybe I could levitate you!" Sweetie Belle said quickly. "I've gotten much better lately! Really, I have!"
"Are… you sure?" Cozy asked uncertainly. If unicorns were anything like pegasi in how they matured, then what Sweetie Belle suggested should be impossible. But maybe they matured earlier than pegasi?
"Sure I'm sure… almost," Sweetie Belle added. "But I have levitated another pony once! It was not that difficult."
Cozy still hesitated, but Sweetie Belle would not actually be so wildly optimistic to suggest something that was completely impossible, right? And it would save her from having to ask Rarity.
"Okay, sure," she said. "Can you levitate me up there?" She pointed at some of the lower clouds above. Rumble was currently flying in rings around them.
"Uh… that's a bit higher than I levitated Pipsqueak," Sweetie Belle admitted, not that Cozy knew who Pipsqueak was. "But I suppose it can't be so bad. And you can glide, right?"
Cozy nodded, even if Sweetie Belle's question did not really make her feel any more confident in this idea. "Okay, here goes!" Sweetie Belle chirped. She closed her eyes and a soft, green glow surrounded her horn. Cozy lifted from the ground with a lurch. It was as different from flying as night is from day. There was no refinement at all; just a lurching, twitching ascent that made her innate sense for flying seasick. But it did work, aside from feeling so very wrong.
"That's something you don't see everyday," Rumble remarked and flew up next to her. "What's happened?"
Cozy blushed a little in embarrassment. "Wing strain," she mumbled. "I thought I could glide a little if Sweetie Belle helped me up…"
Rumble nodded. He didn't seem to judge her. "Just take it easy so you don't mess up your wing anymore."
With a slight fizz, Sweetie Belle's magic suddenly popped out in midair. By reflex Cozy quickly extended her wings. The movement caused her to wince in pain. She slowly began to fall. She could not really glide without any forward momentum. Or at least, that's what she thought she would do until Rumble caught her around her barrel and quickly took her the last way up to the clouds.
"I guess you should ask Rarity instead," he said and set her down.
"Yeah…" Cozy said, now flushed for a whole other reason. That had basically been a hug! No colt had ever hugged her before! Even now she still felt where he had touched her!
She rather liked that feeling…
Shaking her head, she took a deep breath and slowly extended her wings. Then she threw herself out in the open air again, gliding in gentle spirals downwards. It was not the rapturous flight from before, but the wind still tickled her feathers and coat in a blissful way that only a pegasus could truly appreciate.
"I'm sorry, Cozy! I really thought I had it!" Sweetie Belle said once she had landed. "Rarity says I've got a talent for magic! I really thought I could do it!"
"Don't worry," Cozy said. She did not feel like admitting that she had kinda liked what the accident resulted in. "But maybe you could ask Rarity to help me instead?"
Sweetie Belle rushed over to her big sister, eager to make up for her mistake. Cozy did not have to ask after all.
And so everything worked out in the best possible way. Cozy grinned in satisfaction.