//------------------------------//
// Chapter 16- Schism 
// Story: The Once and the Future Princess 
// by Silvermyr 
//------------------------------//

Cozy yawned when she went into the castle. Rumble was right, it had been a long day for all of them. Sleep sounded like a good idea… time to put her old anger and paranoia behind her and get a new deal tomorrow. Maybe then Flurry had also came down from cloud nine and they could play a bit together… and if Cozy passed it off as a friendship lesson, maybe she could even get out of her normal lesson a bit earlier too. 

Also, even if Flurry was an okay pony, Cozy was still almost sure she was a goody-four-horseshoes who really needed to learn how to properly prank ponies before they could really become friends. And since Cozy was not only cute and lovable, but also a kind and patient pony, teaching her the art of making glorious mayhem shouldn't take too long.

And now that Cozy had Rumble as her coltfriend, that should ensure her an endless supply of quesadillas for them to hide in Twilight's room while she was asleep. That'd be good! Or maybe she could switch Twilight's shampoo with tree sap. Or why not take some books in her library and put them at random spots to mess up her shelving. Simple, yet effective.

She spent the rest of the way up to her room thinking of other ideas. Not only did it give her a good laugh just thinking about it, but it also kept her from missing Rumble too much. It was silly, since they'd already see each other again tomorrow, but still.

"Hello, Twilight. I'm back!" She called when she entered the door to Twilight's wing. 

Cozy could see Twilight sitting in her office just ahead. But she was not the pony who took up Cozy's focus. 

Her good mood dissipated instantly. 

Her blood began to boil and her breath began feeling heavy, as if she could not get enough air down into her lungs. 

Cozy had hated Twilight for keeping her locked in stone. Her crime was the silent acceptance of Cozy's punishment.

But if there were any ponies she hated more, it would be those who locked her in the statue and sent her to Tartarus. Celestia and Luna - the ponies who had, practically, killed her. It took more than a thousand years before Celestia even considered releasing Discord, and it still took him escaping on his own first. No, Celestia and Luna and Discord had almost certainly meant to keep her in stone forever! Or for so long she didn't even recognize the world she woke up in! 

And now both Celestia and Luna stood before her, just next to Twilight. 

"Oh, hi, Cozy," Twilight said from between the two elder alicorns. "I just wondered where you went. You know, you could tell me when you leave."

"Cozy Glow," Celestia said. She didn't look remorseful, just curious. Not that it would have mattered; Cozy would still have hated her. "Twilight tells me you have been making great progress in your studies. But if you ever feel she is becoming too strict, you can always send me a letter."

Celestia smiled. 

Celestia had the audacity to smile to the pony she had gleefully executed and probably never thought twice about! Cozy felt nauseous. She wanted to… to just grab the white alicorn and bend her spine to the point of cracking and then just… hold her there to see what she'd do! A million words filled her throat to bursting, but not one made it over her lips! 

"Cozy?" Twilight's voice managed to reach her… and even calm her just a tiny bit. She sputtered something at Celestia and then ran into her room, slamming the door behind her. 

Just getting Celestia's twisted grin out of her sight helped a bit. Anger ran off her. 

Worry took its place. 

Resignation followed. 

She was not redeemed. Not entirely. The demon in her heart was driven back, and her friends could guard against it, but it was not dead. 

All it took was enough anger, and she would return. She cast one fearful glance at the mirror. Thankfully she did not see any reflection from this angle. 

Somepony knocked at the door.

Please let it be Twilight and not Celestia… she could handle Twilight. She had… almost, forgiven Twilight. 

"Cozy?" She had never been so happy to hear Twilight's voice. "Is there something wrong?"

Cozy nodded. No more secrets, not after last time. She turned to her mentor. "I can't… be near Celestia," Cozy said. "Not after what she did to me. She and her sister."

Twilight looked surprised by that. Cozy narrowed her eyes. Surely Twilight understood her… right?

"She…" Twilight hesitated. "Okay, Cozy. I will… tell her that." She looked like she wanted to say more than that, plenty more in fact, but she didn't. Cozy was grateful for that. She knew Twilight well enough to know how much respect she held for the has-been princess. Even though Celestia certainly did not deserve any respect. 

But Twilight probably knew just as well as Cozy that if they started arguing about this, they were going to end up ruining much of what they had built up today. This was a subject where they stood worlds apart, and one where none of them could even imagine compromise. This was a subject none of them dared to touch, a line none of them dared to cross for fear of how the other would react. This wordless agreement was for the best. Twilight would not mention Celestia, and Cozy would not either.

That's how it would have to be.

For now. But if Twilight did defend Celestia's actions, then she would pay the consequences, Cozy promised herself. She would never forgive Celestia. Never ever forgive Celestia.





Twilight had never seen the point of profanities, but right now she almost felt like she did. She and Cozy had been so close, so very close to reconciling everything, and then this happened. Of course Celestia would be a sore point for Cozy. With how hateful she had been to Twilight, Celestia must be even worse. Why had she not seen that before? Prepared for it somehow? 

Sadly, Twilight knew the answer, and it made her feel ashamed of herself. She had not seen this coming because her own love for Celestia was simply so great that she could not realize anypony hating her. Celestia was like Twilight's second mother… so kind, sweet, intelligent… and just about every other positive adjective there was. The very idea of a friend of hers hating Celestia felt unnatural to her. It was as wrong as rain falling upwards or sunlight being cold.

Of course she should have seen this! Of course she should have realized what Cozy must feel about Celestia! 

But she hadn't. And now Twilight felt lost. Torn between two ponies who both represented different parts of her life, her past and her future. Celestia had been her mentor and very first friend, the one who guided her since she was a filly. Cozy was her own diligent student and symbol of everything Twilight hoped to achieve as Princess.

How could she have two such integral parts of her life never come into contact with one another? 

"Twilight, you seem troubled," Celestia said when she returned to her own room. Of course Celestia would know… hiding anything from her was impossible. Twilight dragged out on the steps that took her back to her chair to buy herself a few more seconds to think.

"It's just that… Cozy was a bit… tired and…" Twilight grimaced and shook her head. That was not the way. After the theatre fiasco, she knew that lying would only make the inevitable confession all the more painful. "Never mind… Cozy has asked that the both of you stay away from her. Both of you."

She did not even need to look up from the table to know of their reactions. Celestia would be more surprised than anything, and Luna would take offense for her sister's sake. 

"Stay away?" Luna asked with that tart tone that meant she was displeased. 

"She blames the both of you for her imprisonment," Twilight explained. "And we… that is, she and I, have had some difficulties with each other. It would be easier for us if you… were to stay out of her way as much as possible. Our relationship is still fragile, and I don't want to poke at old wounds when we have just healed the ones between her and me."

Luna huffed. "Tis not my sister who attempted to conquer our kingdom. Her punishment was justified, and our sister need not be ashamed of it."

"No, sister," Celestia held up a hoof. "Remember, Twilight is the princess now. If she deems this right, then we must comply… although, I will admit I had hoped to see how… well, how my student's student was doing."

Twilight nodded. "I know, but it's not my choice. And I know that if I had been your student and asked you to keep somepony away, then you would have done that for me. So I will do the same for Cozy."

Celestia nodded. "If that's what she wants… although perhaps you can tell her that if she has been redeemed like you say, then I was wrong to petrify her. And that I'm sorry I did."

"I will tell her that," Twilight said, though she knew Cozy wouldn't listen. In fact, just by saying that she was probably going to make Cozy furious again. She would have to extend Celestia's apology eventually, but for the moment she would have to wait. 

"Princess, you should know, that even if Cozy Glow has redeemed herself, we are of the opinion that her punishments were earned," Luna said. "Redeemed or no, she committed heinous crimes upon our kingdom and put innocents in danger, including several young ponies at thine own school." Luna's statement was as cold and eloquent as one could expect from the Princess of the Night. "We shall defer to your will, as Princess. But thou nonetheless deserve to know where we stand in this matter."

"True… I meant to ask you, Twilight," Celestia said at length. There was a rare hesitation in her tone. "I understand that Princess Cadence… and many others, had expected you to take on Flurry Heart as your personal student. You have saved Equestria multiple times, and Flurry is certainly destined to achieve great things too. It would make sense for her to learn from you. So… what made you pick Cozy Glow over her? I'm not criticizing, I just want to understand your thought process."

Twilight squirmed a little in her seat. It was hard not to feel like Celestia was judging her decision. And why wouldn't she? She had been the Princess for longer than Twilight could understand; it was not strange that she wanted to be sure her successor had some plan for how to lead the nation. And picking one of her mortal enemies to be her student only months after her installation as acting Princess could not be the sort of thing to inspire confidence. 

But at least Twilight did have an answer. "Cozy shows immense potential too," Twilight said, trying her best to do the impossible and speak to Celestia as an equal. "Actually, her achievements, for the lack of a better term, far outweigh what I had done when you made me your student. You..." Twilight swallowed. "Just like with Discord, her abilities can make a great change for Equestria, if they are only used for good instead of evil." Twilight felt her voice grow more secure when she spoke. This was essentially the same reasoning Celestia herself had used with Discord. "And as the Princess of Friendship, I feel like she has more need of my help than Flurry does. If necessary, another pony could have taught Flurry Heart magic. Sunburst, or Starswirl, who taught the both of you, could have helped her. But nopony else would or could have helped Cozy! And now when she is making friends, it's just like when I started to become the pony I am today!"

Luna's eyes narrowed minimally. "The way you speak of Cozy… the way you compare her development to your own. Art thou considering… to let Cozy Glow ascend?"

Twilight took a deep breath. That was a loaded question. 

A set of hooves interrupted their discussion. All three alicorns turned to the door and saw Cadance stepping towards them, wings lifted. 

"Shh," she put a hoof over her mouth to signal quiet. "I know Flurry was supposed to sleep in here tonight, but I wanted to ask if she could sleep in mine and Shining's room instead. It's been too long since I got to have my little one near me." As she spoke she carefully lowered her wings to reveal a barely awake Flurry drowsing on her back. Her lidded eyes briefly met Twilight's, but there was no attempt to talk. She was more asleep than awake. 

Twilight nodded, grinning at the cute little filly. "Sure, Cadance."

"I'll just tuck her in, then I'll come and help plan the rest of her cute-ceañera."

Cadance turned to leave, tiptoeing as to make as little sound as possible. 

Twilight was thankful for the interruption since it gave her some time to think about Luna's question. Was she considering letting Cozy ascend to alicorn status? True, Twilight had insinuated that Cozy could ascend into an alicorn once, but it had not been a promise. And Cozy was still far from ready for such a position. It would take many years before the question could be considered in a serious manner. But it would eventually have to be considered… and it would be a lie to say Twilight hadn't played with the idea.

Sometimes, on the edge of sleep, when her judgment began to lapse and she indulged in her own little guilty pleasures, she had thought about it. How it would truly be the perfect story of redemption, something that could be told and retold down the ages forever: the story of how Twilight's great adversary had redeemed herself, performed great deeds and finally been granted the utmost reward. That would be a story to inspire ponies forever, just like the hearth's warming stories did today.

A perfect, symmetrical bookend of a story. 

Both Celestia and Luna were able to decipher her silence. Of course they could. 

"As former Princess of Equestria, we cannot stress enough that we oppose her ascension, completely and utterly," Luna said. Somehow, her finality and complete certainty made Twilight feel guilty just for considering it. 

"In this respect, I can only say I agree with my sister," Celestia said, though her voice was soothing… forgiving. "I know what it's like to see your student challenge every obstacle, only to come out on top in the most spectacular of ways… to see her learn, and grow, and to want to reward her. But Cozy is not like you, Twilight. There is a darkness inside her that has never been inside you. You have forgiven her, and that is good. But you should not forget who she once was."

Twilight nodded numbly. "I... promise to consider your opinions, if I ever have to make that choice." she said. It did not feel good. She was so sure she had the right idea with Cozy, to wait and see. Maybe she would deserve to ascend one day, or maybe not. She neither could or would write the idea off like Celestia and Luna had. But how could she ever convince them of that? Especially since Cozy herself evidently had no interest in working with her to do it.

Somepony coughed discreetly. The three alicorns looked up and saw Cadance had returned. Twilight briefly wondered why she had not noticed, but figured she must just have been too deep in thought to pay much attention. She didn't even know how long Cadance might have been standing there. 

"Flurry is asleep," Cadance said. "Let's continue drafting up plans for the holiday. If we have a proposal ready by the morning, I'm sure we can have it all ready by this weekend. The sooner everything is over, the better for everypony, I think."

"Right," Twilight said, leaping at the chance to leave the uncomfortable subjects for something much more enjoyable. "I will ask Pinkie in the morning, but I think we all know she will agree to help plan Flurry's private party. That leaves us to figure out how the rest of Equestria's celebration should look."

"I was thinking that perhaps it could be fitting to make this a day especially for foals," Cadance said. "With activities set up to help other ponies find their cutie marks. We could encourage shopkeepers and workers to set up activities related to their trades for fillies and colts to try out."

"I could ask the Cutie Mark Crusaders when I am in Ponyville tomorrow, see if they have any ideas," Twilight said.

"It sounds like a wonderful idea, Cadance," Celestia said. "I'm sure everypony will be so inspired by Flurry's mark, they will leap at the chances to help other ponies find their marks as well."

"Tis will be a day of great enjoyment for both young and old," Luna said. "Sister, what say we ask some of the castle staff if they want to host some activities?"

"Celestia… you know the Hearth's Warming Pageant is closing in," Twilight mused. "I'm sure there are many foals who would love to try acting it out, if they knew the Princess herself was watching and helping."

Celestia's whole face brightened and a small neigh of delight escaped her lips. "Oh, Twilight, you know me so well!"

"Hmmm… then maybe I shall take it upon me to teach the young the secrets to a successful Nightmare Night scare," Luna suggested. "Tis a bit late for the holiday, but it is nonetheless my favorite season of the year."

"I'm sure it will be lovely," Twilight said. "And when the rest of Equestria hears you both are helping out, I'm sure everypony will want to do the same."

"That will be perfect," Cadance said. "And I'm sure my little one will like it more if she sees it as everypony helping fillies like her find their cutie mark, rather than celebrating her."

"Do you think the kitchen could let ponies try out baking?" Celestia asked suddenly. 

The four of them continued pitching ideas and writing down suggestions far into the night. Soon the uncomfortable topics regarding Cozy's future felt like little more than shadows in the back of Twilight's mind. They would be questions for other times. For now, she was just a pony surrounded by friends, planning a way to celebrate another of her friends. 

And when the day came to face those questions, then she would be ready. 





The next morning, Cozy woke up to the sounds of something tapping a tune to the glass pane of her window. She rolled over and groaned into her pillow, willing the intruding… bird? Or Mailpony? Or Invading changeling? Or whoever it was to fall off of her balcony and let her sleep in peace. Sadly, the tapping didn't cease. In fact, it only got more and more insistent. 

Scowling, Cozy threw off the blanket and marched up to her balcony door, quite ready to beat whoever was out there up with her bare hooves. This was not how she wanted to start off her day. She pulled away the curtains and fixed the intruder with a searing stare. 

Rumble froze up with a hoof lifted to tap against her window. Cozy saw his larynx move when he swallowed. He felled his ears and eyes. In fact, his expression would not be out of place on a pony who had just read his own name on a tombstone.

She opened her balcony door with a huff. "That's not how you wake up your special somepony. That's something you should only do with hot chocolate and breakfast at the bed. So I hope you have a reason for this, or I might have to reevaluate our relationship."

"I… sort of forgot to tell you yesterday that my brother's having his tryout today," Rumble said. "And I've really got to go and see him. You know, offer moral support and stuff. And I wondered… if maybe you wanted to come with? To Cloudsdale."

"Oh." Now it was Cozy's turn to swallow. She had only met Rumble's brother Thunderlane once, very briefly. Would he approve of her? She was not exactly well liked by most ponies… In fact, he'd probably not at all like the idea that his little brother was dating a convicted criminal, no matter how cute and lovable Cozy was. 

But she couldn't really refuse either. This was important to Rumble… and she would like to see her tribe's capital again. She had visited the Circus Altus with Twilight some time ago, but other than that, she had not seen it for many years. 

"Okay, I'll… I'll come."

"Sweet! The airship to Cloudsdale leaves in ninety minutes, so I'll just grab some breakfast real quick! Ramson's taking my work today in exchange for me working during Saturday instead, so your food should already be done. I'll come up when I'm done."

Cozy nodded, her bad mood already gone. "Okay! See you in the common room!"

They parted ways and Cozy started combing her mane and tail before putting the ribbons in. Then she made her bed -she hated leaving the bed unmade; she didn't want ponies to think she was tardy. Finally she stretched her legs and wings and went to the common room. 

Flurry Heart was already there, as was Twilight and... Princess Cadance? When had she arrived? Cozy hesitated in the doorway. There was another pony who might well dislike her. But since Cozy had helped with her daughter's cutie mark, maybe she wasn't too angry? Maybe?

Cozy plodded in warily, keeping an eye on Cadance. 

"Good morning, Cozy! Slept well?" Twilight asked. 

"Yes, Twilight," Cozy said. Cadance regarded her with mild curiosity, but no hostility from what Cozy could see. Good… she took the risk of looking away to Twilight instead. She looked a bit tired, or as tired as an alicorn could look, anyway. Eyes a little heavier, mane in a frazzle. "Have… you slept well?"

Twilight stifled a yawn. "A bit too little. It was a late night. Cadence and I have been planning Flurry's cute-ceañera."

Cozy nodded. "Rumble asked me to come with him to Cloudsdale, since his brother is trying out to become the coach for one of the Wonderbolt teams," Cozy said. Normally she wouldn't tell Twilight of her plans, but Cadance would probably like her more if she thought she and Twilight were close, right?

"Oh… Do you remember the Wonderbolts, little one? They performed for your tenth birthday?" Cadance asked Flurry. 

"I'm not little," Flurry grumbled. "I'm a big pony now. I have my cutie mark! But I remember them."

"Would you like to see their tryouts too?" Cadance asked mildly. "Perhaps you can ask if you can come with?"

"Sure! They were really good last time. Can I come too?" Flurry asked earnestly. 

Cozy would have preferred to spend this time with Rumble alone, but saying no was definitely going to make Cadance peeved, and Cozy did not want her as an enemy too.

"Sure," Cozy said with a smile. "I mean… you'll have to ask Rumble too, since it's his brother who's trying, but I'd love to have you with! Because we are friends now!" That was not even a lie. She did want to spend some time with Flurry… get to know her a bit.

"Lovely," Cadance said, with a warm smile. 

Cozy decided that Cadance at least was not cross with her yet, so she sat down and started eating. She wondered if she should try small talking, but decided against it. The mood wasn't bad just because it was silent, and since she usually didn't talk too much with Twilight, odds were Cadance would notice something was off if she tried. 

"Okay, Cozy, you done?" Rumble opened the door and went in, only then realizing he had the eyes of no less than three alicorns on him. "Oh, uh… good morning, Princess Cadenza," he dipped his head. 

Cadance tittered. "What a gentlecolt. You must be Rumble?"

"Yes, he is!" Flurry confirmed. "We're friends."

Cadance nodded. "Well, Rumble. Cozy mentioned something about your brother trying out for the position of Wonderbolt coach. Would it be okay for my daughter and I to come with? It was long since we got to see a show."

"I… sure?" Rumble answered, clearly surprised. "I'm sure my bro will be honored to have you watching."

Cadance nodded. "Then it's decided."

"I can take you there, if you want," Twilight chimed in. "I'll just teleport you there and pick you up after a few hours."

"Yay!" Flurry said. "It'll be great! Do you think they'll do the loop with the spin-around after? They did that the last time I saw them, and it looked really difficult."

"You mean the loop into the corkscrew?" Rumble asked. "No, he's trying for the Gamma team, the weather-manipulators. They'll be doing light shows,cloud sculptures and stuff like that."

"Oh, I didn't know there were different kinds of Wonderbolts," Flurry said. 

”There are four main teams,” Cozy said. This was something she knew and liked to talk about. "Team Beta are stuntponies. Gamma are weather-manipulators and Delta are formation flyers. The Alpha team is made up by those who have graduated from the other teams, or those who have really, really special abilities."

"Yeah, Alpha are by far the coolest team," Rumble said. "Plus, they've got Soarin. He's the second best Wonderbolt, after my bro Thunderlane. He's the only pony who's flown from Manehattan to Las Pegasus without landing."

"Pah, don't listen, Flurry, he's being silly again. Fleetfoot's way better," Cozy said. "She's got the record time on the Cloudrush Raceway, and has more derby titles than anypony else."

Flurry giggled, as Cozy and Rumble looked at each other, both bearing the same mix of surprise and slight insult on their scrunched faces.

Cozy and Rumble then spent the next few hours debating the superiority of their respective favorite, while also trying to convince Flurry which choice was the right one. It felt… nice. Really, the fact that she could sit still for hours on end and just… talk like this, without any ulterior motives, with Flurry Heart of all ponies, was enough to make Cozy feel a little proud of herself. She absently noticed Twilight and Cadance talking about something else, even if they both kept sneaking glances towards the foals. Cozy didn't particularly like it, but decided it was not worth bickering about. It made sense they would keep track of how Cozy and Flurry interacted for some time. Once they had seen there was nothing to worry about, they'd stop. 

"I think it's time to go," Cadance interrupted. "We can't be late."

"You enjoy yourself now," Twilight said. She looked at Cozy. "Don't worry about a thing. It'll be fun!"

Cozy actually believed her. She could have fun together with Flurry.

Who would have thought?

Everypony huddled up next to Twilight and closed her eyes. Briefly, Cozy felt… strange, all over. She could never describe the feeling of teleportation, but she could recognize it. Then, immediately when the strange feeling ended, the temperature dropped as she transitioned from the warm, dry air that smelt of firewood and books, to the crispy, clean air of Cloudsdale. Her hooves sunk a little bit when she left the hardwood floor and instead found herself standing on a puffy cloud.

Opening her eyes revealed a lot of white and blue. They had appeared exactly where Twilight had taken her the last time Cozy visited Cloudsdale, just next to the Circus Altus, the largest and most prestigious racing track in Equestria. This time it was significantly more subdued though. No Wonderbolt banners decorating the sides, and the plaza where they had appeared was nearly deserted.

"Alright," Cadance said. "Let's go. Hope they will let us in." As the one adult, the three foals followed behind her. 

"Have you been in Cloudsdale before, Flurry?" Cozy asked. 

"Only a few times," Flurry answered. "But I like this place even more than Canterlot. Everything's so soft. And the air is really clean."

"Have you been here during a thunderstorm?" Cozy asked. "It's really cool! You can watch the storm from above and see how lightning flashes everywhere in the clouds below! And it's perfectly safe! When I lived in the orphanage, thunderstorms were the best thing to watch!"

She almost walked into Cadance, who froze mid-step. She turned to Cozy, looking at once shocked and sad. "Orphanage? You've never… I mean, Twilight has never mentioned… I-I didn't know..."

Cozy bit back her snappy answer and pretended not to notice the shift in atmosphere. She did not want anypony pitying her, least of all an alicorn. They may say they were sorry, but what would they know about it? They, who were adored by one and all, did not understand the first thing about how it felt not to be wanted. 

Even Flurry balked at the revelation, eyes wide and sad. "Don't you have a mom and dad?"

Cozy clenched her jaw. "No," she said shortly. Her tone let everypony know what she thought about that line of questioning.

After an uncomfortable moment of silence, Cadance said silently with sadness in her voice. "I'm so sorry, Cozy". 

"I'm sorry too!" Flurry squeaked. 

"Never mind," Cozy said indifferently, trying to change the subject. "It was a long time ago… and we are here to cheer for Thunderlane! Don't look so sad!"

"Yeah! Big bro's gonna need our support out there! Don't be such downers!" Rumble quickly replied, flapping his wings. 

"Whoo!" Flurry cheered, clearly affected by her friend's enthusiasm. Cozy felt Cadance's eyes dwell on her for a moment longer, before they continued their walk. With everypony else's attention diverted, Rumble turned to her and gave her a small, affectionate nuzzle. 

Her sour mood dissipated. That gesture meant more than any "I'm sorry" ever could. 

Getting in turned out to be easy. The pony in charge of the circus spotted Cadance and insisted she'd use the Princess Loge, just like when Cozy was here with Twilight. It was a special segment of the bleachers, walled off and placed just next to the racetrack, just by the starting line for perfect view. 

Cadance sat down next to the cloud railing, directly on the floor so Flurry could sit on the stool next to her. Cozy and Rumble flew up to the railing a little bit away from the two alicorns, and clung to it with their hooves for the best view possible.

There were maybe a dozen other ponies in the middle of the circus, half of them dressed in the blue and yellow uniforms of the Wonderbolts. The rest were huddled up and listening to one of the 'Bolts. 

"That's got to be the retiring coach," Rumble pointed. 

"So that's the guy your bro's got to impress, right?" Cozy said. 

"No, everypony gets to vote for who they think is best," Rumble said. 

"Look! They're doing something," Flurry said and pointed with her hoof.

The old coach held out a small bag, and all the participants put something in it. She shook it a few times, opened the bag and retrieved a small object. Cozy could not see what it was, but when she showed it to the others, three of the aspiring coaches took flight and left one behind, an orange pony with white mane and tail.

Cozy settled in for a relaxing morning. She and her special somepony, watching a Wonderbolt event together with a friend and her mother. This was going to be nice, she could feel. Absently, she reached out with one hoof to the side, while holding on to the railing with the other. 

When Rumble took it in his, Cozy sighed in contentment. With a warm smile and heart as light as clouds that surrounded them, she completely forgot about princesses, anger and anything that could bother her.