//------------------------------// // Subject 164: An Explanation // Story: Interviews With Equestrians // by Jmaster49 //------------------------------// What could she have wanted at that time? Gah, there was no time worrying about that right now. If there was something that Starlight needed my attention over, it must have been important. So I bid Cozy a quick goodbye and left with the unicorn. I wasn’t worried about leaving her alone though. The surveillance we applied to the outside of her home would hopefully be enough. With that in mind, I followed Starlight to her home, and she started to show me a few things. I took a seat at her dining room table, and she levitated a few documents over to me. “I want you to take a look at this,” she said as she sat down, “Please don’t be upset with me...but I took the liberty of doing some research into magical artifacts and what I found was...shocking, to say the least.” I peered over the words of the paper. To sum up what it said, it was essentially: “The Bewitching Bell has a rather unfortunate side effect. Those who attempt to use it run the risk of their magic being drained, and as a result, their mana ‘data’ is stored within it so that their magic can be stored. This is exactly why the Bell is indestructible. It has absorbed too many forms/types/sources of magic over the course of its existence, and because of that, it can activate any sort of magical field to counter other forms of magic on a dime. Think of it as a shield that can reshape itself to defend against whatever it comes in contact with. That is why Gusty the Great was unable to properly dispose of it. So he hid it within a magically sealed cave atop Mt. Everhoof to prevent it from being tampered with any further.” “I see…” I mumbled as I read over the rest of the words. Starlight went on. “If it’s possible...this could mean that Cozy Glow presents a greater risk than we ever could have anticipated. Coupled with the fact that Grogar has been rumored to be resurfacing...well, you see where this could go.” There were numerous things I wanted to say to her in that moment, but I elected to control my temper, and take a deep breath. “...hrm…” Instead, I focused on the more imperative aspect of the conversation. “I’m...already aware. My question to you is...why are you bringing this to my attention?” Her lips contorted into a rather low frown, and she gazed at me with a concerned look in her eyes. “...Isn’t it obvious? I know better than anypony about being close to causing unrelenting destruction for the world. But for something like this...I won’t allow her to come into any harm. I can promise you that. I’m going to help you defend her and this town no matter what.” I...wow. To be quite honest, a part of me knew that Twilight had likely already informed her about this situation before I had arrived back in Ponyville. But beyond that, I had to wonder. Did Starlight truly wish to help out of the goodness of her heart or did she only desire to assist to make herself look better? Wait, what? What was I thinking? There was absolutely no place for thoughts such as that. If anything, I should at least give her the opportunity to explain herself. “Wait...you really want to help her?” I asked with a bit of hesitation. “Of course I do,” she gave a solemn reply, “I’d never wish fate like that upon anypony. And I can see now that you’re…” she looked up and to the right. That was odd. Just what caused her to hesitate? “I’m…?” I asked a lingering question. “How can I say this--” she looked down at me once more, “While I don’t necessarily agree with you on everything. I still want safety and prosperity for everyone that wants to live in peace here. So I’m willing to put my personal opinions aside for the sake of a dangerous situation.” Okay, there we go. That was a much better explanation that made me feel more comfortable with the decisions I made. It was impossible for us to agree with everyone on everything. But if we could come together when it mattered, well--that’s all that counted. “Alright...I trust you, Starlight. I’m glad that you and I can come together on something despite our rocky...terms that we stand on. But what do you recommend for Cozy?” She let out a heavy sigh. “...I’m sure you already know. She needs to stay home and keep herself safe. I don’t really know how she feels about it all, but it’s what’s best for her right about now.” Now that was a curious thought that part of me considered, but I wanted to know exactly what she meant by this. “How she feels? Would you mind elaborating on that?” “Well, think about it,” she went on, “You’re essentially her caretaker. For the most part, she tends to stay behind and allow you and your friends to take care of things. While I can’t speak for her, I know that I would start to feel extremely guilty about this. I would never want somepony else fighting for me when I know I can fight for myself. Do you think it’s possible that she’s...mentally hurt over all of this? And bottling it up when it really needs to be expressed?” That was...a very concise point. So far, I had never received the vibe of Cozy Glow being annoyed or displeased with herself. Quite the opposite actually. Ever since she started to make other folk’s lives better, she’s been all smiles. Is it possible that she’s simply buried any personal grudges she bore against herself so down deep that it would be impossible for anyone to figure it out? “I...I see…” was all I could really say. It wasn’t something that I felt ready to give a definite yes or no answer to just yet. After all, such emotions were a proverbial minefield that needed much discretion in order to cross properly. For now, I simply nodded, and accepted her words to make use of later. “Thank you for the advice, Starlight.” “It’s no problem,” she put a hoof against her neck in a sheepish fashion, “Trust me. If anyone is an expert on pent up emotional turmoil, it’s me. But I could only get over it when I finally faced my problems. Don’t be afraid to help Cozy with that….when she’s ready, of course.” “Absolutely,” I said as I got up, “I appreciate you taking the time, and would love to have your assistance on the field if possible.” She gave a short nod with a small smile. “Yeah...you just might.” After I bid her goodbye, I left Starlight’s house with a bit of a new perspective on some things. A perspective that I needed to consider with how dangerous things were about to get around here. But there was one other question that I had on my mind throughout all of this: Would it really be possible to destroy that Bell?