Melody slowly made her way towards the Sorceress. The closer she got, the clearer it became that this was Cozy’s mother. The Sorceress flinched and closed her eyes, trying to fight back these feelings, but the sight of Melody was enough to awaken the real Cozy Glow within.
Inside the Sorceress’s prison realm, Cozy’s ears perked up. She turned around in her cage as it faded away into smoke.
“That voice…” she said as she dried her tears and walked towards an image of Melody where the Sorceress’s vision could be seen.
Suddenly, a cloud of black smoke with the Sorceress’s face appeared to seize Cozy. She yelped and stumbled backward as it consumed her, attempting to keep control of her body and never die.
“Cozy, look out!” shouted Rainbow Dash.
“Come on, y’all! Let’s get this beast!” shouted Applejack.
The cages the parents were in had also begun to fade away. They broke free and wrangled the Sorceress, who was already unable to fight back.
“NOOOO! YOU FOOLS! DO NOT TAKE THIS FROM ME!” the cloud of black smoke screeched.
Cozy leapt out of the smoke and rushed forward to look harder at the image of Melody.
“It…it can’t be…”
Out in the real world, the Sorceress’s power had weakened tremendously. Her hair had stopped flowing in the wind and her tears were now dripping to the ground instead of defying gravity around her face. She closed her eyes and opened them to reveal they had already turned back to normal. Although she stuttered to speak, her voice was already starting to sound more like Cozy Glow’s.
“Ma…Mama?” she whimpered.
“It’s me, Half Note,” Melody replied.
“Half Note? Is that my real name?”
“It is.”
As they spoke, everyone else watched carefully. A nearby group of news ponies had a camera centered on them. All across Equestria, ponies were tuning in to the news to see Cozy finally reunite with her mother. Back in Ponyville inside the crystal castle, all of the children and the accompanying adults watched a hologram from the Cutie Map as the events unfolded. Buttercream, Pumpkin and Annie had already started crying after hearing Melody’s song. Their brothers all had their arms around them for comfort. Even Stormy looked like he now pitied Cozy rather than fear her. They all watched as mother and daughter spoke for the first time.
“I…I don’t understand,” Cozy said. “Why did you leave me? Didn’t you want me?”
“Of course I did, dear,” Melody replied, “I loved you more than anything. I never wanted to give you up, but I was impoverished and made some terrible decisions as a result. Your father left not long after you were born and I had to fend for myself.”
“My father’s gone?”
“I don’t know where he is, but I never saw him after he left us. I had to raise you by myself and it was too difficult. I couldn’t get by even with a job. I couldn’t feed you. I couldn’t even afford a babysitter. It was so foolish of me, but I felt you’d be in better hooves if I left you at that orphanage. It was the worst thing I’ve ever done and I hated myself for it every single day. When I came back years later to check on you, that orphanage was shut down, but you never found a family, did you?”
“N…no. Nopony wanted me. All the other kids were chosen but me. The ponies at the orphanage called me the ‘runt’. I had no friends there. All I could do was read books and educate myself. I ran away and named myself Cozy Glow and tried to get ponies to do what I said by manipulating them with my innocent looks. Eventually I found the school of friendship and I thought I’d be happy there, but I was still so angry about everything else that I couldn’t help it. I became a villain, Mom. I’ve done terrible things.”
“I know. It’s all my fault. I never would have left you there had I known this would happen. I didn’t know it was you all this time until I heard you say you were dropped off at an orphanage. That’s when I realized the colors you shared with my own baby wasn’t just coincidence. That’s when I realized you were my baby. You humming my lullaby on the news earlier further confirmed it. I wish I didn’t miss this all those years, but I shouldn’t have left you there to begin with. It was so stupid of me.”
Melody started crying bitterly and walked over to hug the tall dark alicorn that was once her baby girl. Cozy noticed her cutie mark was blinking from being called by the Cutie Map. Clearly this reunion needed to happen today.
“I came back here to say I’m sorry. I’m sorry for everything, Half Note. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there for you like I said I would be in my song. I’m sorry I didn’t try harder to get us through those rough times. I’m sorry this all had such an affect on you and caused you to do the things you’ve done, but today I resolve to never let it happen again.”
Melody stopped hugging her daughter and took a few steps back. She sniffled and then looked her in the eyes while speaking.
“Half Note, please come back. I want you in my life again. Give me the chance to be the mother I should have been years ago. I’ve gotten my life back together and I’m more than capable of taking care of you.”
“But…the Sorceress…”
“Don’t listen to her. She’s using you. You are loved and you don’t need to turn to villainous deeds again. It’s going to get better from here on out. I’ll always love you, Half Note.”
Cozy stood still for nearly an entire minute. A ray of sunshine appeared from the dark clouds and shone on both of them. She closed her eyes and cried, but they were tears of joy now. She reached up and wiped her tears away as she opened her eyes again. Smoke began to emit from her as she spoke one last time in this form.
“You know…all these years…that’s all I needed to hear.”
Cozy smiled warmly and closed her eyes. Her corrupted alicorn body began to glow and dissolve. A silhouette of a small pegasus filly appeared in the center. The true Cozy Glow slowly dropped to the ground as the rest of the spirit billowed up in the air like flames from a bonfire. Melody watched as the horrible creature was expelled from her daughter. For a moment, the air was filled with the smell of nauseous smoke, but it did not last long. The shape of a bestial alicorn head could be seen crying out one last time in anguish.
“NOOOOOoooooooo……”
The smoke and flames faded away and the demon was finally banished forever. Melody’s cutie mark stopped blinking. She smiled and looked down at her true daughter. Her hair was bedraggled and her coat was dirty, but she was in a far better state now. Cozy was out for a moment but slowly regained consciousness. She felt a cool fresh feeling slip over her body like she had just woken up from a good night’s sleep. The demonic spirit was finally gone and so was the pain. She slowly opened her eyes and saw her mother standing before her. For a moment, they shared glances until their eyes flooded with tears. Cozy got up on all fours and ran in to hug her mother.
Everyone around them instantly erupted in applause. Flashes of light could be seen all over Canterlot. Parents were already reappearing next to their children. Flurry noticed Shining Armor and Cadance standing right next to her after they too were transported out of the prison realm.
“MOM! DAD!” she shouted as she rushed to hug them both.
“FLURRY!” Cadance cried.
“Hey kid! We knew you’d figure it out!” Shining Armor said.
“Don’t thank me! Thank Melody! I had a strong feeling she was more than just a great singer!”
“She did it! She actually did it!” shouted Spike in the crystal castle as he gave Buttercream a big hug.
“Spike, my heart…I can’t take it any longer! BAHAHAHA!” Buttercream cried as fountains of tears gushed from her eyes.
The kids in the same room all watched as their parents appeared one-by-one right next to them.
“MOM! DAD! YOU GUYS MADE IT!” Pumpkin cried as she and Pound hugged Mr. and Mrs. Cake.
Stormy and his siblings and grandparents rushed to meet Rainbow Dash and Thunderhead while Chip, Annie, Apple Bloom, Big Macintosh and Sugar Belle reunited with Applejack and Tex. The room was full of cheering and parents crying happily. Starlight and Sunburst both bawled and hugged each other. Trixie patted them both on the back while humorously rolling her eyes. Pinkie watched with Cheese Sandwich, holding his hand.
“You know Cheese,” she said as tears started to form in her eyes. “It’s a good thing we’re going to be married in a few days, cuz this makes me more ready to be a mother now than ever before! WAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHA!”
Pinkie gave her fiancé a tight hug. He reached up and patted her on the head.
“There there, Pinkie,” he said, laughing.
As everyone in Canterlot continued to cheer and ponies watched the news on their television monitors, kids all over Equestria had their parents returned and happily embracing them. The entire countryside celebrated the return of the kidnapped parents and the defeat of the Sorceress. While not everyone was pleased with Cozy Glow herself, this event generated much sympathy for her and there were already calls for her to be pardoned by Princess Twilight.
After the cheering had finally calmed down, the dark clouds in the sky had disappeared and a more peaceful atmosphere returned. Over by the entrance, Tirek could be seen blubbering, while Discord offered him a tissue box he had summoned with his powers. Celestia and Luna congratulated all the teachers for their efforts with the Elements. After they left to go speak with Discord and Tirek, the teachers all saw the apparition of the Spirit of Harmony in the form of Twilight Sparkle. She smiled to them and nodded before disappearing. The teachers all joined each other in a group-hug.
“Well guys, I don’t think we need to be so frustrated with the Elements refusing to work anymore. Now we know why we didn’t need their full power this time,” Gallus told them.
“Yeah, but at least they helped create that shield,” Smolder added. “The Spirit was right: there’s a time and place for the Elements to be used, and Melody was the key to getting Cozy reformed all along.”
“Smolder right. What really matter is Cozy with her mother now. Pony happy and that make yak very happy too,” Yona said as she began to cry and Sandbar patted her.
On the other end of the balcony, Flurry stood next to her mother and father, watching happily as Cozy and Melody made conversation.
“So Flurry, I’m guessing Aventurine appointed you the regent while we were gone?” asked Cadance.
“Yeah. It wasn’t very fun, but he’ll be pleased to know you guys are back,” Flurry answered.
“Don’t worry. We’ll get back to the Crystal Empire and get everything sorted out,” Shining Armor replied, stroking her head.
“Mom, you didn’t tell me you had Melody’s CD,” Flurry told Cadance.
“Well after you sent me your letter about what Night Shade did and then told me about this Melody Heartsong, I thought I’d throw out all my Night Shade CDs and buy some from her instead. That’s an artist I can definitely get behind,” Cadance told her daughter.
“I have a feeling Melody’s going to be making a lot of sales from that album. It’s just so great to see Cozy happy now and having a real mother,” Shining added.
“Yeah. After all these years of her being a villain, she’s finally right where she belongs,” Flurry replied.
Twilight then walked over to Flurry and they shared a hug.
“You did well, Flurry Heart,” she told her niece. “Everyone helped out, but your idea to use that song had such an impact.”
“Thanks, Twilight.”
“Now I know you said you wanted to wait and see what happens with Cozy till you send a friendship report about her, but are you ready for it now?”
As Flurry watched Melody and her redeemed daughter, she began to deliver her friendship report.
“Yes. I learned today that child and parent relationships are one of the most important components of society. A child without a proper parent figure or two can grow to be very resentful and violent. That’s why parents should always be there for their children. I saw a very bitter child open her heart today because her mother returned and promised to take responsibility. It really is amazing what a mother’s love can do.”
Twilight put her wing around Flurry and wiped a tear from her eye. She felt such satisfaction over today’s events. Cozy Glow had finally been redeemed and they found one of her parents. She still wondered in the back of her head what had become of the father, but for now, a mother as loving as Melody would be just enough to keep the young filly happy.
As everyone else talked amongst each other, Cozy was in a state of pure bliss being able to talk to her mother for the first time ever. She wanted nothing more than to be with her and be cherished by somepony. All the things she had done before seemed like hundreds of years in the past. All that mattered to her now was being happy to have a mother.
“Hey Mom?” she asked.
“Yes, dear?”
“So why did you call me Half Note?”
“Well when I would sing to you, you would try to sing back, and you always sang in half notes. I thought it was cute, so that’s what I decided to call you. What made you come up with Cozy Glow?”
“Well, all my life, I really envied ponies with parents. Every time I saw parents hugging their kids, it made me feel… warm inside. I really wanted to feel the same thing, but I couldn’t. After I ran away from the orphanage, I wanted a name that would make me feel that way, so I guess I just thought of ‘Cozy Glow’ and it stuck.”
“I do like that name a lot. Would you be okay if I still called you Cozy Glow?”
“I’d like that.”
Cozy hugged her mother once again. Tears were still on her cheeks, but they were drying up now. She exhaled deeply and calmed herself as she rested in her mother’s arms. Even in her tattered state with her uncombed mane and dirty coat, she felt so much better to know it was all over. The pain from the Sorceress and her own self-hatred was finally gone now that her mother was there for her.
EPILOGUE
Cozy stayed with Melody in a reserved Canterlot apartment for the next day. She had been cleaned up and had her hair combed differently. She wore two large bows in her mane and tail that were the same shade of yellow as the bows she had before. She figured it was time for a new look with the previous chapter in her life now closed. After Melody had some things worked out, she hired some ponies to start moving her belongings.
The following day, Twilight and two of her guards walked with Melody and Cozy through the streets of Ponyville. They were on their way to a house that Melody had just purchased for her to live in with Cozy. As they drew closer to the house, Twilight discussed the matter on Cozy’s status as a citizen of Equestria.
“I’ve taken all the measures necessary to grant Cozy a full-fledged pardon. The parliament was in full agreement as were all of my advisors. Of course we are facing some opposition on this from delegates from other provinces like the Gallopfornia region, but what’s done is done. Cozy has been pardoned for her crimes. As the princess of Equestria, I have made it official.”
“Thank you, Twilight,” Melody said. “Ponyville is such a nice little town and I think Cozy and I are going to love this house.”
“I always did like Ponyville ever since I first came here,” Cozy added.
Melody stopped walking and looked at a thatched roof cottage before her.
“Is that the house, Mom?”
“That’s it, dear.”
Cozy took a moment to study the quaint little cottage. It wasn’t exactly like the dorms in the School of Friendship, but it was far better than being homeless or living in the Everfree Forest with only an evil spirit to keep her company. Cozy was just so happy to have a normal house now.
“It looks great!” she said, hugging her mother.
“I hope you two do well here,” said Twilight as she stayed behind with her guards. “Let me know if you ever need anything. I am more than willing to help.”
“And we’ll be here for you too,” said Flurry behind Cozy and Melody.
Cozy turned around to see Flurry with all her friends. She also noticed Spike was standing next to a chubby yellow dragon with pink spikes that looked similar to him. She then remembered that Spike had just recently found his family as well. Despite the fact that she had stolen all of the kids parents, they were all smiling and looked happy to see her. Even Rainbow Dash’s son Storm Streak didn’t seem so scared of her anymore.
“Hey guys,” Cozy said, bashfully. “Sorry about all your parents.”
“It’s okay, Cozy,” said Pound. “They’re all doing fine.”
“They’re actually really proud of you,” Chip added.
“We forgive you, Cozy,” Flurry said, stepping forward.
“Yeah, Mommy and Daddy say they’re okay with you,” said Stormy. “Also, I forgive you for almost turning me into a newt.”
Everyone giggled as Cozy joined in.
“And Melody, when the Harmony Clubhouse is finished, she can come over any time to visit us. Both of you can,” Flurry told Melody.
“Thank you, Flurry,” Melody said, cheerfully. “I’m glad to see Cozy will be surrounded by good children.”
“Also, congratulations on finding your family, Spike,” Cozy told Spike.
“Hey, thanks, Cozy. This is my sister Buttercream, by the way,” Spike said, pointing to Buttercream.
“Great to finally meet you, Cozy!” Buttercream said, waving as Cozy waved back.
“Well guys, I’m glad to be here,” Cozy told them all. “I’ve just been so angry all these years and I took it out on those that really didn’t deserve it, but the fact that I’m with my mother again and you’re all willing to accept me makes me feel a lot better.”
“That’s what friends are for,” said Flurry as she stepped forward to give Cozy a hug.
Cozy hugged her back and the rest of the kids and the dragons joined in. Melody and Twilight watched them happily. Cozy smiled, closed her eyes and shed a tear. She was finally home.
THE END