//------------------------------//
// Chapter 77: Returning Home 
// Story: Pandemic: Starting Over 
// by Halira 
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We dropped the Creams off at their home and headed back to ours. We were about halfway back when my phone started ringing.

"Hello, Sunset Blessing here," I answered.

"Hi, it's Josie. Can you please tell these security dorks that I foalsit for you? I came over, and they grabbed me and put me under guard! You're on speaker, so they can hear you."

I sighed in exasperation. "Whoever is listening. This is Sunset Blessing; I'm on my way home and should arrive within a few minutes. Miss Woods does foalsit for me, so please let the mare go."

"Thank you!" Josie shouted. I heard her blow a long wet raspberry at the security officers, which could be taken as the equivalent of a pony giving the middle finger. Not the most mature thing to do, but I could understand her anger and frustration. 

"I'll see that you are compensated for the trouble, Miss Woods," I said. "I shall see you shortly." I then ended the call. 

"Josie Woods?! The night pony?" I heard Rosetta yell from the back of the bus.

I was sitting near the front and turned to face her. "Yes, you are not mistaken about which Josie Woods is being discussed. Is her presence a problem?"

"Do you have any idea what that mare is guilty of?" Rosetta asked in disbelief. 

"She is only guilty of being manipulated and used," I answered. "God forgives, and if he can forgive, so can the rest of us. Considering she is still capable of making coherent sentences, I think the Dreamwardens have already made their call, don't you? And don't her crimes fall under their jurisdiction? It was they who recommended her to me."

"Uh...what did this pony do?" Mike asked. 

I frowned. "A very insidious form of mind control, on a global scale. It is not her fault, as I said. She was groomed to be used since she was a child. It was only well after the fact that Miss Woods discovered the truth about what had been done to her as she grew up. She is a victim."

"And every pony on Earth was her victim," Rosetta said darkly. 

I scowled and stood to face her. "And how many continue to suffer or have suffered due to my foolishness? I can't even claim to be a victim who was tricked into doing what I did. Miss Woods was a teenager who was imbued with great power for a single purpose and tormented for many years to make her Sunset Shimmer's tool. She was a foolish youth who didn't realize her actions were being dictated to her by another. She has to live every day of her life now, knowing what was done to her and why. She was violated, not sexually, but in deep and personal ways none of us can understand. She is afraid of even being around her own tribe, and she belongs to a tribe that is already the most isolated and lonely. The mare has suffered enough without you being a judgmental prick."

"Wow..." Robby breathed and inched in his seat to get further away from his guardian, no doubt expecting an explosion. My grandfoals cowered away as well, knowing a fight was about to start. They gave me dirty looks, but didn't say anything. 

My daughter-in-law gave me a scathing look. I was fully prepared for her to give me the tongue-lashing of a lifetime as soon as she gathered herself. 

"Excuse me, if I may comment," Lántiān said in a quiet voice, only heard because everyone else was holding their breaths, waiting for what came next. "If we are going to speak of ponies that did unspeakably horrible things and were forgiven. I think it is worth bringing up Phobia Remedy. My mother never went into detail—she couldn't, but I'm told night ponies witnessed true horror when she punished others. Horrors like that of Sha'am Maut, and even the Warden of Death was scared of the Warden of Fear. Phobia Remedy supposedly repented of her actions, but if they were so terrifying that even Death herself walked low near her, I think the Warden of Fear's spouse could stand to give forgiveness to a pony who never meant to hurt anyone."

I was torn. Lántiān was technically taking my side and defending Josie. Those were things to be proud and happy about. However, she was accusing my daughter of wrongdoing, and that was not okay. 

"Thank you for your support, but I think you are misinformed about my daughter," I said, trying not to be angry. "My daughter would never—"

"No, she's right," Rosetta said in a sad tone. "You wouldn't know, most ponies wouldn't know, but the first trial, the one that happened before Tonya's… Phobia taught the night ponies to fear her during that trial. She cried so much after she woke up because she was so horrified by her actions, but that doesn't mean they didn't happen. I also know that Phobia threatened Sha'am if Sha'am didn't behave, and Sha'am took it very seriously. Sha'am was indeed afraid of her."

"What could scare a Dreamwarden in the dream realm?" Jess asked in fearful curiosity. 

"There are things worse than death and pain," Rosetta said with a sad shake of her head. "Sometimes, you would rather face death than confront your darkest fears. Phobia can bring those fears to the surface and make them a thousand times worse if she chooses. It's her power. You do not want to witness it, even when you are watching someone else face it."

"And do you think that Josie Woods or Ma'am have not cried over what they have done?" Lántiān asked. "Do you think my mother did not cry over many things? I do not know my mother's past, but I caught her on more than one occasion staring at her violin and weeping. I asked her why she cried, and she would not tell me. She only told me there are things that we do that we can never take back. They can happen in a single instant, but we must live with them for the rest of our lives."

The filly took a deep breath before continuing. "I do not know what my mother did that made her cry so. It makes me angry that she hid so many of her thoughts from me and cloaked her past in mystery. I can tell that sometime in the past, she did something that hurt her and others. I know she must wish with all her heart that whoever she hurt back then would grant her forgiveness, even if she cannot forgive herself. Perhaps I am a hypocrite as well, for I hold a grudge. I understand how you feel; it is hard to forgive when someone has made you so angry."

She broke down crying at that point. "I want to forgive her, but I can't! She's dead, and she gave her life for me, and still, I hold resentment! I truly am a faithless daughter, undeserving of her love!"

I couldn't let this go. I raced over to the filly… no, the young mare, and pulled her into a hug. "Your mother has every reason to be proud of you, and I'm sorry she never showed you that. I'm proud of you."

Her daughter and brothers joined me in hugging her. 

"We love you, Sister," Líng cried. 

"Mama!" Méng wailed as he hugged. I had no idea how he knew anything his sister had just been talking about, but he somehow knew on some level that it was about their mother. Qīng Yǔ echoed her uncle's wail, if only because she was distressed to see her mother crying. 

We stayed like that for minutes, and the rest of the passengers did nothing to interrupt us. We only broke from it when the bus finally came to its destination in front of the manor, and only then did anyone else dare to speak. 

"I forgive Mom for doing bad things. I know she's very very sorry!" Charlotte announced. Her siblings murmured agreement, and Rosetta hugged them all. 

I stepped to the front of the bus and addressed everyone. "It has been a long day, and I know we are about to have to figure out what's new with these security protocols. I wanted you all to know I have enjoyed your company and am happy to call you family and friends. Now, let's get off this bus, get our purchases inside, and rescue poor Josie from the security."

We all got off, and I went to the mansion's front door to meet the new security. They opened the door and looked at me. 

"Sunset Blessing? We were told you dyed your fur yellow; why are you red?"

Oh, come on!

We didn't run into Josie right away. The security needed to take a picture of each person who belonged in the house. I feared we were about to get ID badges, but they explained the new system had smart recognition software, and as long as it had a picture on file, it wouldn't be flagging us as potential intruders. They said I could add others to the list of okay guests, which would be needed since I needed to add Number, Josie, Starlight, Trixie, and possibly the Creams. Wild was the boss for all these guys, so she was already okay. I'd consider adding Sapphire to the list, if she didn't annoy me too much. If Twilight ever came by again, it was unlikely they would try to do anything to her, and the same went with Phobia. Some ponies you just let go where they wanted to go, and you stayed out of their way. 

The photo-taking took several minutes and left everyone standing in the entry area waiting for the others to finish. While the Youngs were trying to get their youngest two to stand and pose for the camera, Rosetta approached me. 

"I wanted to say that I was not embarrassed to be associated with you today," Rosetta said in a calm voice. 

"I'll take that as a compliment, I guess," I replied in a wary tone. 

She sighed. "Sorry, it's hard letting go of resentment sometimes. You behaved like a pony I should be proud to know, and I am happy to see this side of you, instead of the manipulative bitch who makes backroom deals and has a hazy relationship with right and wrong."

"You need to work on your complementing skills; you know that?" I replied but didn't get angry. "I suppose it's fair, though. I'm trying to be a better pony, a better person."

"Well, you're doing a good job at being a better mother," Rosetta said with a weak smile. "I know those foals come with a lot of baggage, Lántiān showed that very clearly, but you are doing a good job. I just wanted you to know I see that, and I hope you keep doing what you're doing. If you do, I think they'll turn out alright."

"I appreciate that," I said as I looked over to where Lántiān and Qīng Yǔ were. Lántiān had gathered all of her daughter's new stuffed animals into two bags and was trying to get her daughter to settle on just one to bring to bed with her. This seemed to be a challenging task, as Qīng Yǔ seemed determined to grab all her new plushie friends. "Lántiān can still get difficult often enough, and her moments of maturity are only matched by her moments of acting like a spoiled foal. She's definitely the most troubled of them."

Rosetta nodded. "Teenagers are like that. I know I was no angel as a teen. Robby has his issues, and I hear from their parents that Jess is a new adventure every day. Neither of them can raise a candle to the stuff that filly must be carrying around. You are doing as good a job with her as anyone can hope. Don’t you remember what you were like as a teen?"

I shrugged. "I went through many phases. Up until my senior year in high school, I had the whole goth thing going on."

Rosetta broke out laughing. "You? You were a goth?"

"Yep," I confirmed. "Black everything, spike collars, black makeup, the world is misery, and we need to pull down the system. I even smoked regularly, stole alcohol from my parents' stash, and experimented with drugs."

She gave me a shocked but doubting look. "You? The person who became the super strict Sunday school teacher?"

"I told you, I've gone through a lot of phases. That transitioned into the super-liberal women's liberation front girl I was as I entered college before I got caught up in the church," I said dismissively. "I hope this is my last phase, and it can be one I'm proud of."

"I'm still in shock you were ever a goth," Rosetta said with a half-laugh. "I just can't picture it." She paused as Josie came out of the other room, glaring at all the security guards like she was itching for a fight. Then Josie spotted Rosetta and took two steps back like she wanted to run back into the other room. 

"It's okay, Miss Woods," I called out to her. "Rosetta isn't going to accost you. These guards do need to take your picture, so security knows you are welcome here."

Josie flicked her tail with her ears still laid back, but nodded. She then started walking over to where the camera was set up for pictures. Rosetta watched her the whole way. 

"Your mark is unsurprising, although I doubt you get much use of your talent," Rosetta said to the slightly younger mare.

Josie froze. "It depends on how you interpret it. I have many powers and defending myself isn't a crime. I've got a dozen different ways of taking you down before you know what hits you if you try to come at me."

Rosetta flinched back while flattening her ears. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to come off as hostile. I don't want to hurt you or make you feel unwelcome."

Josie looked doubtful. "Just keep your distance. I don't trust other night pony mares, at least not adults. I've had too many bad experiences. The whole lot of you are a messed up aggressive batch of creeps. I trust the foals and only the foals."

"So much for trying to be friendly," Rosetta muttered as Josie sat to have her picture taken. 

I touched a leg to Rosetta. "Just give her space. I don't know the whole story, but I got the impression she's been through hell. In no small part because of the Dreamwardens cracking down on her and her followers to the point everyone avoided her. She's scared shitless of Dreamwardens. So don't bring them up."

"For someone you want me to have sympathy for, she's acting pretty damn guilty," Rosetta growled. "But I'll give her space. If she's going to be here tonight, then it may be a long night." Her frown shifted from angry to worried. "Wait, is she bluffing? Is she as dangerous as she claims to be?"

"I don't know," I answered. "I know she can do stuff I have never seen a night pony do, and I have no idea the full extent of her powers, but I can confirm she is registered as the most potent inherent magic among night ponies. You've seen what suped-up versions of earth pony powers look like from your sister. Josie isn't quite on that level, but she is still heads and tails above any night pony you have ever met. I would expect multiple mind magic abilities, tons of dream magic, and probably a lot of other things we have never seen a night pony do."

"I know how powerful mind magic alone can be. If you are looking for a guard, you could do far worse than her," Rosetta said. "I'm still curious what all she can do. If only because I am curious about what the limits of night pony powers are."

"She isn't likely to be forthcoming," I warned. "I think a fair number of her abilities can get her in trouble with the Dreamwardens. She used some ability I'm completely unfamiliar with to find the Youngs, one Starlight was unfamiliar with too, and the Dreamwardens slapped a fine and temporary ban on her using said ability for her effort."

She didn't reply as the security finished up with Josie and turned their attention to me. "Miss Blessing? We would like to go over the security systems with you now."

I nodded and looked around at everyone else. "I think they have what they need from you. Feel free to put away your stuff and settle in for the night. Josie, you have Méng. I don't know if Alice will be staying up as well, but if she does, she may want to help you for a while." I pointed to Alice. "That's Alice. She may become Méng's other foalsitter. I need to discuss with her and her parents how I'm going to be paying her for the job if she does become a regular foalsitter for him."

With that taken care of, I followed a security guard down into the basement. 

Down below, they had pushed shelves to the side of the room and set up a large wraparound office desk with four large monitors on it. Three of the monitors were displaying camera feeds for the house. On each of them was a grid of different feeds. The fourth monitor sat simply saying no input. A night pony mare was at the station watching all the feeds and munching on donuts. 

The head guard, a human with a name tag that said Stan, gestured to the screens. "This is the main monitoring room. From here, our guards can watch every room and corridor in the house and will be able to see the outside as well; once those cameras get working. It has a backup generator if the power goes down, keeping it running up to twelve hours. Each of the cameras has night vision and infrared vision option along with an internal battery that will last for up to twelve hours."

I nodded and looked at the screens. It seemed there was one monitor for each wing of the house, with the third monitor viewing things like the kitchen, entryway, dining room, and stairwells. I saw a feed of the basement and looked around to find the camera, finally spotting it due to a tiny red light. It wasn't a big thing, barely noticeable if you weren't looking for it. It looked like it was about the size of an old eight-track music cassette. 

I turned my attention back to the monitors and saw people bringing things to their rooms and saw the Youngs in the kitchen getting some final snacks before bed. Josie, Alice, and Méng were in the large family room, and Méng was happily showing off his new toys to his foalsitters. My eyes drifted to a different screen, and I spotted Lauren sitting on a toilet from an odd angle that didn’t really see much.

"Not much for privacy," I remarked. 

"That's why I'm watching instead of these humans," the night pony mare explained. "If the humans strip their clothes off, it is better if a pony is watching rather than a human. It won't always be me since we were in shifts and have days off, breaks, and lunches, but there will always be a pony watching the feed. There is no connection to the internet for this system so that no one can hack into it and spy on the house."

"Most of the security will stay down here, outside, or in the entry area. You won't see us all over the house," Stan explained. "We'll probably get down here set up with some regular TVs and couches and stuff for guards to relax on—turn it into a bit of a rec room. They will make frequent walks of the grounds and head back here. The idea is for us to stay largely out of sight unless we see something on the feeds. If a camera gets obstructed or goes down in a room, expect a guard to be knocking on that door within a minute or so."

"If I see anything really bad on the monitors or anything that definitely shouldn't be there, I'll be calling the police immediately to let them know we have a situation," the mare added in. "The same goes for if we lose contact with a guard who was sent to check out a camera."

"It seems in order," I said as I continued to look at the feeds. "Will you be doing increased patrols outside until the outside cameras are up? Also, have you already gotten the pictures for the two crystal ponies that are on the grounds?"

Stan blinked. "Two crystal ponies? What two crystal ponies?"

My brow narrowed. "Malcomb and Silvia, you haven't seen them? We left them here today."

Stan shook his head. "No crystal ponies. If they went out for the day, we'll note that two crystal ponies should be returning to the house."

I frowned in concern. "I'll call them. Have whoever is here in the morning alert me if they didn't return."

"Yes, Miss Blessing."

I walked up the stairs and immediately started searching for Malcomb's number.