//------------------------------// // Epilogue // Story: My Filly From Tartarus // by 5u0myn0n4 //------------------------------// Princess Twilight Sparkle had now been ruler of Equestria for a number of years. She's well acquainted to the throne, and had been warmly accepted by most all creatures of Equestria. Thanks to her experience and leadership, the land felt more closely connected than ever. Today was a special day, as Twilight's throne room was being visited by a group of three energetic ponies of a new generation. The three were tight friends, and their names were Sunny Starscout, Izzy Moonbow, and Pipp Petals. The three of them, having recently met in a unified and peaceful Equestria, were making the rounds as some of Equestria's biggest influencers. Thus, Twilight invited the group into her throne room to give them an insight into how Equestria's highest authority operated, but more importantly they could teach Twilight how to connect better with today's youth. The rambunctious yet collected group were greeted by Princess Twilight. The three were curious and asked numerous questions. Most of their curiosity was piqued by the numerous stained glass windows that decorated the throne room. From windows depicting the mane 6's defeat of Discord, as well as windows dedicated to each of Equestria's six princesses. Everypony in Equestria already knew the story of the former princesses, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Princess Cadance. Very few questions came up about them. They seemed like old news. It was Equestria's three current princesses that perked the curiosity of the EUP group, Sunny in particular. They wanted to know about Equestria's latest princess, so Twilight Sparkle had spent the last hour or so telling the story of the Princess of Leadership, Princess Cozy Glow. "And that, girls, that is why Equestria's sixth princess, Princess Cozy Glow, is older than Equestria's fifth princess, Princess Flurry Heart." Twilight explained. "Flurry Heart was born into royalty, but Cozy Glow had to earn it. Even though Flurry Heart has technically been a princess since birth, she took control of the Crystal Empire pretty much when she became of age, which just so happened to be just a little bit of time after Cozy Glow's coronation." Sunny was frantically taking notes about Twilight's tale. "So Cozy Glow was made Princess around the time she turned 18. Then later, Flurry Heart became in control of the Crystal Empire when she turned 18, which would have put Cozy in her 20's at that point." Sunny said. "You must be so proud of her, Princess." Pipp said. "From what you described, considering where she came from, how she started, to where she is now. And it's all thanks to your guidance and leadership." Twilight blushed, fondly recounting the fond memories of her time raising Cozy Glow to be a perfect mare. "Well, Twilight was guided by the Princess Celestia herself. I'm sure her lessons rubbed off on you, and you can guide anypony to greatness." Izzy said. "Oh please. It never would've happened if Cozy wasn't willing to change her ways." Twilight said. Twilight was delighted to see such an enthusiastic group of young ponies. "I'm glad I could inspire you three, and fill you all with hope. Just seeing you guys together fills me with hope as well. Seeing an earth pony, pegasus, and unicorn as a trio of friends. It reminds me of the first Hearth's Warming, where the EUP tribes united for the first time." "The EUP?" Sunny asked. "EUP. Standing for earth, unicorn, pegasus. But, *giggle* that's a story for another time." Twilight said. "Sorry for all the questions. This is just so cool." Sunny said. "It's fine. Ask away." Twilight assured. With Twilight's okay, Sunny went ahead and continued to ask away. "I just want to know, when exactly did you decide that Cozy Glow was ready to be a princess?" Sunny asked. With such a loaded question, this meeting could have gone on for another hour easily, but Twilight had explained so much already, so she summarized things up. "The thing about that is, it was something that'd been on my mind for years. Cozy Glow had been an exceptional Royal Advisor. She's exceptionally skilled at getting a group of ponies going. Sure she used that ability at first for her own gain, but as soon as I gave her a more serious chance, I saw how her natural talent could be used for the better of Equestria. It could have tremendously helpful applications. I wanted to promote Cozy Glow because, well, Princess Celestia wanted me to be Princess so I would have more opportunity to use my talent to assist more creatures, so it only made sense to allow Cozy Glow to have the same reach. That is once she became of age of course, as we went over already." "Wow. So she went from a mischievous filly from some obscure town, to a full fledge alicorn Princess herself." Sunny said. "Sort of reminds me of Princess Cadance. A pegasus from nowhere turn alicorn Princess." "Interesting observation, Sunny. I hadn't thought of it that way before. Huh, no wonder Cozy and Flurry Heart get along so well." Twilight said. "Was Cozy nervous?" Pipp asked. "About the transition I mean. It seems like such a big responsibility." Twilight nodded. "Tremendously." she replied. "Why don't I tell you all about that now." Twilight Sparkle proceeded to tell the tale about the time she presented Cozy Glow with the biggest opportunity of her life. Cozy Glow had been Twilight's royal advisor for a few years by this point. She matured a lot in these past years, and was even more well versed in friendship and harmony than ever. She was a welcome member of the royal court, nay, the royal family. With Cozy Glow's 18th birthday fast approaching, Twilight Sparkle felt that Cozy had outgrown her role as royal advisor. Twilight felt that Cozy had the potential to be much more. On a quiet night, Twilight and Spike met with Cozy Glow inside the observatory. "You wanted to speak with me, Twilight?" Cozy asked. "Yes. Take a seat, Cozy." Twilight replied. Cozy sat on a cushy pillow across from Twilight and Spike. "Cozy Glow. As your 18th birthday fast approaches, I have been thinking a lot about your role here in Equestria. You have done a tremendous job as my royal advisor for the past few years." "Thank you, Twilight." Cozy thanked. "Which is why there is no doubt in my mind that once you turn 18..." Spike whispered into Cozy's ear the rest of Twilight's proposal. It was something surprising, and shocking. Cozy gasped. Cozy was shocked. She gave a look of befuddlement. Twilight nodded to affirm it was serious. "Listen, Royal Advisor is already such a tremendous honor. But, Princess? For real? Does this mean you're stepping down?!" "No, I'm not retiring. We'll rule together. That, or we can find a stretch of land for you to lead, akin to Cadance and Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire." Twilight explained. Cozy was flattered. But deep down, the idea didn't seem right to her. Or at the least, the role didn't seem right for her. "But... I'm just a pegasus who robbed an old goat's bell to become an alicorn. Do I really deserve this?" Cozy asked. "I believe you do. It matters not where you came from, but that you're here now. I believe you'll feel right at home as royalty, and I think you have just the right qualities to do even more good for Equestria." Twilight said. Cozy looked quite nervous. It was then that I remembered the time that Celestia and Luna announced their retirement to me. I don't recall having much say in the matter, at least not until push came to shove, and the pressure really started to set in. I wouldn't dare burden her with a lack of say in the matter. "Do keep in mind, Cozy, that the choice ultimately is yours." Twilight said. "If you're content with where you are, don't feel pressured by me to uphold more responsibility." "I um..." Cozy said, softly, and unsure. "I'm gonna have to sleep on this one, maybe for a couple of days." "That's fine, Cozy Glow. There's no rush. I'm not retiring, I'll still be ruler. It's just a matter of if you feel like you're ready to bear more responsibility and do a lot more on your own." Twilight said. Even though I'd been hinting at it for years, and she'd been by my side for so long, part of me thought I was being a bit pushy. I saw little reason why she should be nervous, but it turns out being nervous is just a natural part of reacting to change. Back in the present, Twilight capped off the story. "Later down the line, Cozy Glow affirmed to me that she was ready. She told me she was ready to take charge and make changes for all of Equestria." Twilight said. "So if she's good now, then why do you keep this stained glass window of her defeat?" Sunny asked. "Funny you bring that up, Sunny." said somepony at the entrance to the throne room. Everypony looked and saw- *gasp* The three young horses shrieked in excitement and jittered. "It's her!" "Oh my goodness!" "Princess Cozy Glow!!!" they exclaimed together. At the doorway stood Princess Cozy Glow. She was adorned with her own crown, and golden slippers. "That's my name. Don't wear it out." Cozy said, cheerfully. "See, we keep the stained glass window of my defeat because, well, it's not a bad thing to leave it up. It's to help remind me of my mistakes, and remind me where I came from. Besides, it's a nice piece, it'd be a shame for it to go to waste." The trio of newbies surrounded Cozy Glow. "Wow!" Pipp said. "You're so cute!" Sunny said. "You're WAY cooler than Princess Flurry Heart!" Izzy exclaimed. The three of them crowded Cozy closely. In the excitement. Izzy's radiant horn came a little too close to comfort for Cozy. "Watch where you're pointing that thing." Cozy said, nervous. Somepony put a tennis ball or something on that horn. Cozy Glow was nevertheless humbled by their enthusiasm. "Gosh, I'm humbled by your enthusiasm, gals." she said. "Twilight says you were REALLY nervous about the prospect of being a princess." Pipp said. "How'd you muster the confidence to do it, Cozy?" Sunny asked. Cozy looked at Twilight, but Twilight turned her eyes away, embarrassed. "Well, I don't have all the answers. But uh... it just sort of came to me a few nights later." Cozy replied. "I was assured that there was nothing to worry about. Besides, with Twilight's guidance, I had nothing to worry about." "Cozy Glow has been an exceptional Princess, teaching creatures what they could do for Equestria, and teaching them how to be leaders themselves. I've never seen Equestria so unified, and frankly, I attribute that mostly to Cozy Glow." Twilight said. Cozy Glow was flattered by Twilight's compliments. "I'm so glad we made this change. Cozy Glow's redemption almost didn't happen, and I can't imagine Equestria being this peaceful without her." Twilight said. Pfft. "You're such a great Princess already though, Twilight. What's the worst that could've happened?" Sunny asked. *giggle* "Nothing too bad I suppose. Still, it helps to have a friend by your side." Twilight said. Later: Cozy Glow was escorting the three ponies out of Canterlot castle as she finished up her story. "It really does warm my heart to have such adoring fans such as you three." Cozy said. "Believe it or not, in spite of my sheer adorableness, my coronation was met with a little... skepticism..." "WHAAA??" the trio exclaimed. "I mean, maybe ponies are sick of new princesses, but sometimes it feels like someponies still haven't forgiven me, and I don't think I'll ever have a 100% approval rating..." Cozy wept. The three looked at each other, and thought about how to cheer Cozy up. "But like, who does? No one! Why strive for perfection?" Izzy asked. "Most ponies are nice to me now, but I still feel bad about what I did. Many creatures still remember what happened, and some insist on reminding me." Cozy said, looking down. "Sometimes I feel like what Princess Luna felt during her first Nightmare Night back in Equestria." Cozy was suddenly hugged by an apologetic Sunny, Izzy, and Pipp. "Well, for what it's worth, you're our favorite princess." Izzy said. "Besides me of course." Pipp added. "Twilight told us all about your history. The school. The bell. The weird time paradox thingy that didn't make a whole lot of sense to us. The time you saved Twilight on the night of her coronation." Sunny said. Cozy's eyes watered up. She was filled with joy by the aura of the young ponies. "It's always a pleasure to make a good first impression on any creature I meet. It feels nice to act like me, but now this me is so warmly accepted by every creature." Cozy said. Cozy exhaled in relief. She was enjoying her time with the ponies, however, it was getting late, and Cozy had business to attend to soon. "Well, I think you three have a lot to share with your peers." Cozy said. "Looks like it's time for us to part ways for now." "But we still have so much we wanna ask you!" Izzy said. Cozy, not being one to want to disappoint anypony, allowed them to ask one more question. "O-okay. I'll answer just one more itsy bitsy question." Cozy said. "What happened with you and Diamond Tiara?" Sunny asked. "And what about Pip? Pipsqueak I mean, not me." Pipp asked. "...Well, that's not an itsy bitsy question." Cozy replied. The three looked down in disappointment. It seemed like Cozy wasn't interested in telling this story yet. But why keep such a good story bottled up? So Cozy thought about how to best summarize the tale of her and her special somepony, and she came up with a creative and fun angle to tell it. "I tell you what. You guys wanna hear about the time I stole Twilight's crown?" Cozy asked. *gasp* "You did what?!" they exclaimed. "I thought you were a good girl now." Sunny said. "It's not like that. Allow me to explain." Cozy said. Cozy Glow began to explain how she borrowed Twilight's crown, and later discovered who her special somepony was. A few years ago, years before her coronation, maybe a year after Twilight's coronation. Cozy Glow met with the foal who would become her special somepony. She invited them to a little private picnic because that's what she wanted to find out. As they snacked on sandwiches, and drank juice, Cozy was growing eager, and so she came on strong. "Notice anything differently, Diamond Tiara?" Cozy asked, smiling, and posing as if there were cameras pointed at her. Diamond Tiara noticed a golden tiara on Cozy's head. "That's a nice crown on your head?" Diamond Tiara complimented, feeling unsure. "Why yes it is. I'm glad you noticed." Cozy said. "I've uh... I wear this now. Are you impressed?" "So you finally made it? Twilight made you a princess now?" Diamond Tiara asked. Cozy didn't want to lie. But she pretty much was already lying by wearing the crown, so she ended up taking long pauses between her answers. Diamond Tiara noticed something didn't add up. When probed and pressured that Cozy should be a princess in the past, she would use the excuse that she wasn't old enough, or that she didn't deserve it for whatever reason. So why would she be a princess now? Not to mention, that crown sure looked familiar, and a tad large for Cozy's head. Diamond Tiara had figured out what was going on. "Okay. So Why'd you steal Twilight's crown?" Diamond Tiara asked. Cozy's ears drooped. Steal was a strong word. Cozy didn't want to admit the real reason she stole the crown. So she came up with an alternative reasoning. "I thought I'd sort of bring back mischievous Cozy for a bit." Cozy said. "I mean, sure it's nice to be liked by everypony for a change. But don't you miss mischievous Cozy? I'm just so likeable for real now, it's almost a little boring." "Hmm. I do miss having an edge sometimes..." Diamond Tiara said. "But, don't you enjoy having real friends now?" "I mean, of course I do. It's just-" Cozy bit her lips, and started to sweat. Lying just wasn't as much fun as it used to be, especially not to a close friend like Diamond Tiara. So she came clean. *sigh* "Okay. I only stole the crown because... I thought you'd only like me if I was actually a Princess..." Cozy confessed. "What made you think that?" Diamond Tiara asked. What did make Cozy think such a thing in the first place? Well, Cozy got a tip from one of her most reliable sources. Pipsqueak told her to. Or at least, said it might work. Earlier in the week, Cozy met with Pipsqueak on a picnic to find out if he was her special somepony. As their time went on, she didn't feel it in her heart. She liked spending time with him, but she didn't like like him. "Listen, Pip, I don't know how to say this, but..." When Cozy paused, Pip interjected and spoke. "Oh, by the way. I can't believe I almost forgot. I have something to give you." Pip said. Pip handed Cozy Glow a piece of paper. It was a letter. "I found this letter at the school of friendship. I think it's for you, from Diamond Tiara." Pip said. "Diamond Tiara wrote me a letter?" Cozy read the letter. "She wrote you several letters. She was the one writing you all those letters while you were tutoring at Cheerlie's school. Not me." Pip explained. Cozy skimmed through the letter quickly, and made it to the bottom. At the bottom it wrote: "Love, Diamond Tiara" "L-Love?" Cozy said aloud. "Very peculiar choice of words she made." Pip said. Turns out this was a productive picnic. Cozy did find out who her special somepony was. Except it wasn't the colt in front of her. "Well, if that's how she feels, then, why try to hide my feelings any longer?" Cozy wondered. "Go out and tell her, Cozy." Pipsqueak said. "And you don't mind? Since we um... we had that little phase for a while." Cozy asked. "Hey, you follow your heart, Cozy." Pip said. "You weren't interested in being more than friends, but that's fine. I don't hold that against you. Everypony has their special somepony, and everypony deserves to find them. Don't miss out on this opportunity." Cozy's eyes shimmered at the thought of finding her special somepony. "Okay, I will." Cozy said, optimistically. Cozy hugged Pipsqueak, and thanked him for his support. Saying was one thing. Doing was another. And Cozy quickly became nervous thinking about how to actually tell her. "But, if I'm going to close the loop, I'm gonna have to impress her. She's already seen me at my full power. How do you think I can still impress her?" Cozy asked. Pipsqueak recounted his first time seeing Princess Twilight Sparkle. "Well, I still remember the first time I saw Twilight as a Princess. Gosh, every filly in Ponyville was chasing her down in excitement." Pip said. "Every filly?" Cozy asked. "Yes, even Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon." Pip said. "Hmm. If that's the case, then I wonder if... wait. Who's Silver Spoon?" Cozy asked. Suddenly it seemed like things were going to get more complicated. "She's Diamond Tiara's best friend. She's been awful busy lately, so I suppose that's why we haven't seen much of her lately." Pip explained. "She already has a best friend?" Cozy asked. Back at the picnic, Cozy stared into space. Diamond Tiara tried to get her attention. "Cozy? Cozy?" Diamond Tiara waved her hoof in front of Cozy. Cozy shook her head. "Oh, right. See, Pipsqueak told me about the time you first met Princess Twilight Sparkle. You were so excited. Somepony you already knew of, elevated to such a level of importance." As Cozy explained, things only got more awkward. "I just thought you'd be impressed. But there's nothing to be impressed about. I'm just a naughty filly who stole her caretaker's crown..." Cozy said, removing the crown from her head and setting it down in shame. Diamond Tiara noticed that Cozy looked very sad. So she did what she was best at doing, and attempted to cheer her up. "Cozy Glow, I like you for who you are." Diamond Tiara said. "Whether or not you want to be a princess, or if Twilight thinks you're ready, that's your family matter. But as for me, I like you no matter what. Doesn't matter to me whether you wear a crown or not. You're still the same cute filly who I can't stop thinking about." "Yeah, and I like you whether you have a million bits, a thousand bits, or not a single bit." Cozy said. "Let's not get crazy." Diamond Tiara said. Cozy giggled a tad. Then she took a deep breath. Diamond Tiara mentioned that she couldn't stop thinking about her? Was this another hint? Cozy Glow figured it was. If her suspicion was correct, then that meant it was time to admit to Diamond Tiara the truth. "You can't stop thinking about me? But like, you already have Silver Spoon. I just don't wanna make things awkward..." Cozy said. "Oh. Right. See, Silver Spoon and I go way back. She's sort of like a sister to me. She's definitely one of my closest friends." Diamond Tiara explained. Cozy looked down again. "J-Just one of. I mean, I don't mind having more friends, or even, being more than friends with you..." Diamond Tiara said. Cozy Glow looked at Diamond Tiara nervously. She didn't seem to mind exploring with other friends. Were their feelings mutual? There was only one way to find out. "Um... Diamond Tiara?" "Yes, Cozy Glow?" The two fillies exchanged looks. "T-There's something I've been wanting to tell you." Cozy said, rubbing her shoulder. "What is it, Cozy?" Cozy gritted her teeth and sweated. It was too difficult to speak the truth aloud. "So uh, first I want you to close your eyes." Cozy said. "Alright. If you say so." Diamond Tiara closed her eyes and put her hooves over them. "My eyes are closed, now what?" Cozy Glow was shivering in place. This was her moment. With Diamond Tiara open, and waiting, Cozy Glow she... she... But all of the sudden, Cozy realized that she didn't want to finish her story to these three strangers. Cozy abruptly ended her story. "You know what? Don't you ponies have somewhere to be?" "Aww...." "Oh come on!" "What happens next?" The three ponies stomped their hooves. "Heh. Maybe I'll tell you guys next time." Cozy said. "Aww man...." "Well, we are running late. Hitch and Zipp are waiting for us at the train station." Izzy said. "Well, thanks for the meet and greet, Cozy Glow." Sunny said. "We look forward to seeing you again soon." Right as they were about to head out, Pipp got an idea. "Oh, before we go, selfie!!" Pipp exclaimed. "Self-what?" Cozy asked. Pipp reached into her mane and pulled out her cell phone. Izzy used her magic and held the phone far enough in front of them. The three crowded around Cozy Glow and posed for a picture. "Smile!" Izzy exclaimed. *click* The bright flash dazed Cozy. The three others seemed unaffected. "Now that one's a keeper." Pipp said, looking at her phone, excited. Cozy Glow shook her head and reoriented herself. "There's so much I don't understand about this generation's youth." Cozy said. Cozy waved goodbye to Sunny, Izzy, and Pipp. As they were leaving, between the three of them, they exchanged some fun little gossip. "I'm calling it now. They totally kissed." Izzy said. "Well, through deductive reasoning, I suppose that's one of the more likely outcomes." Sunny said. "What do you think, Pipp? Pipp?" Pipp was barely paying attention, or watching where she was flying. She was so engrossed in her phone. "I'm totally gonna post this, so everypony can see that we met the Princess of Leadership." Pipp said. As the three trotted away, Cozy shook her head. "Sometimes it feels like even I don't understand today's youth." As Cozy watched them walk away, she felt really good. She was happy to have ponies like them who admired her so much, and she hoped that their paths would cross again soon. Telling this story brought back fun memories. *giggle* "Good times..." Cozy said to herself. Although story time was done, Cozy continued to reminisce about the fondness, and thus the flashback continued in her head. The flashback resumed. Diamond Tiara sat with her eyes closed. "Alright, Cozy. My eyes are closed. What was it you wanted to-" Suddenly, she felt a little something warm touch her cheek. Diamond Tiara opened her eyes, and noticed Cozy Glow swelling up with blush. She sat down and rubbed her forelimb in embarrassment. "Cozy... I...?" "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to invade your personal space..." Cozy apologized. Cozy teared up feeling a pinch of remorse. Diamond Tiara put her hoof to Cozy's shoulder. The sensation eased Cozy's nerves. She eased the alicorn filly. Cozy Glow closed her eyes and laid on her back in the grass. Diamond Tiara ran her hoof through Cozy's messy mane, which further served to ease her tensions. "You know, I've had a hunch for a while now." Diamond Tiara said. "You always act sort of funny around me. *giggle* You're a very special pony, Cozy Glow." "Yep... *sigh* The filly from Tartarus. What a strange and evil case I am." Cozy said. "I don't think you're strange. I don't think you're evil. I don't think you're uncool cause you're not a princess. You're perfect, Cozy. You're perfect the way you are, and I love just how you are." Diamond Tiara said. *sniff* "I love you too, Diamond Tiara!" Cozy cried. Cozy felt tears run down her face. Diamond Tiara wiped them away and... and... In the present time, Twilight found Cozy Glow laying on a patch of flowers, daydreaming. "There you are." Twilight said. Twilight appeared and flew by Cozy's side. "I wonder if we should have made you Princess of the Sky. You always got your head in the clouds." she teased. "Very funny, Princess." Cozy replied. "Ready to continue your duties, Cozy?" Twilight asked. Cozy nodded. "Alright. Let's make it swift though. I have some fun plans for this weekend." Cozy stood up and stood besides Twilight. They both flapped their wings and lifted into the sky above Equestria. The Princess of Friendship, alongside the young Princess of Leadership, were ready to continue their work in making Equestria a better place for every creature. Twilight taught everyone that friendship is magic, and Cozy Glow taught everyone how to lead and unify. Cozy Glow had changed so much, she was almost unrecognizable from the filly who lied in Twilight's School of Friendship, or the alicorn filly who tried to take over Equestria. No longer was she seeking power for the sake of having control. Her desires were changed, thanks to Twilight's kindness, and forgiveness. In the end, Cozy Glow had everything she could have ever wanted, plus a lot more. She didn't have to steal it, or lie to make it happen. She earned it all just by being nice. And all Twilight had to do, was to give her a chance. The End . . . . . . . . . . . . . .