• Published 29th Oct 2019
  • 3,072 Views, 98 Comments

Who We Choose To Be - milesprower06



As she prepares to take over for her longtime mentor, Princess Twilight reflects on the tribulations that got her here, and what the Elements of Harmony intend for her to do next.

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The Child, Part 2

"Well... I can certainly see why you came to me for advice. This is a considerable conundrum." Princess Celestia told her former student, sitting with her on the couch after she had listened to what had happened over the past month. Twilight had first come to Celestia and her sister, asking them what they had thought of trying to redeem the three of them, after everything had happened. The Princess of the Sun knew that Twilight wouldn't try anything foolish that could possibly endanger Equestria. In fact, they had received nothing but good news when it came to Chrysalis, and there had been no word from Scorpan as of yet.

But Cozy Glow was an entirely different story.

"Her own father wants absolutely nothing to do with her, and he has perfectly justifiable reasons." Twilight explained, sipping at the tea that her mentor had provided when she had been invited inside.

"A Princess' reign is full of incredibly difficult choices, Twilight. And there are times where such choices may indeed seem impossible. A balance has to be struck; depending on the scale, you have to decide what you believe is best for an individual, a group, or for all of Equestria, and at the same time, no matter the scale, you have to be sure that it is a choice that you can live with." Celestia told her.

"And if I feel like I can't live with any of them?" Twilight asked.

"Also understandable. You have to weigh the possible outcomes and alternatives, and pick the lesser of two, or three, or even more evils."

Twilight stared down into her tea.

"That reminds me of one of my favorite fantasy novels. It was about the travels and adventures of a monster hunter for hire. One of my favorite quotes from that book is how evil is evil, lesser, greater, it doesn't matter. If the choice is between one evil and another, he'd rather not choose at all. An understandable position." Twilight said.

"But choosing not to choose, isn't really a choice. That only leads to indifference and apathy. You taught Rainbow Dash that, remember?" Celestia reminded her.

"What about your battle with Luna? How did you choose what to do with her?" Twilight asked, sipping at her tea.

Celestia certainly understood why such a subject was brought up at this moment; it was probably the most relatable thing to Twilight's situation that could be discussed.

"In a way, I didn't. I had always shared the responsibility of wielding the Elements with Luna. Using their full force against her on my own was considerably taxing, while not even getting into my emotional state at the time. I had no way of knowing what the Elements would do to her. The Mare in the Moon prophecy came to me later, in a dream. It was one of the hardest choices I had to make in my life, but the difficulty was in the action, Twilight, not the choice. The choice was straightforward; banish my sister, or condemn the entire world to darkness and famine. That was it. Your dilemma is a bit more complicated."

Twilight considered Celestia's words.

"If I release her, even if she appears remorseful... There is absolutely no telling if it would be genuine. If I keep her petrified, it may as well only be a matter of time before she could escape, just as with what happened to Discord. I know Equestria has traditionally not believed in killing their prisoners..." Twilight paused, setting her tea on the end table.

"But what if ending her existence is the most merciful option?" She finished.

"Is it about mercy? Or is it about what is right and wrong? What is just?" Celestia retorted.

"I have a feeling you and I could discuss this for days. Weeks, even."

"I have no doubt. I can't tell you what to do, Twilight, I can only offer advice, because the choice is yours. My advice is unchanged; make sure you can live with your choice. Killing Cozy Glow may bring a couple ponies closure, but you must understand, taking a life is one of the heaviest choices you will ever make."


Starlight waited patiently in the hedge maze a short distance away from the two honor guards that watched over the center of the hedge maze, who she understood would not let her pass without Twilight present. She heard hoofsteps on the path behind her, and turned to see not Twilight, but a pony she hadn't seen in some time.

"Sunset Shimmer?" She asked, seeing Twilight's first student come up to her with a half-hearted smile under the Canterlot moonlight.

"I see Twilight needs quite a bit of help with what she has planned." Sunset answered as she came up to give her friend a hug.

"I wish I could say I was completely comfortable with this. To say that this is an ethical gray area is... an understatement." Starlight confessed.

"I think we're both here because of how much we trust her. She didn't come to this choice lightly." Sunset assured the other unicorn.

"I'm just wondering how she came to this choice." Starlight wondered.

"After weighing and thinking about all the options, this is the one I believe I can live with." The familiar voice said as she came around the other corner, the two unicorns turned to see Princess Twilight approach from the other side of the corridor. "And I absolutely appreciate your help with this, both of you. So, are you both ready?"

They both nodded, almost simultaneously.

"Alright then." Twilight stated, turning to the guards, who saluted, and let the trio pass into the center garden, where the petrified Cozy Glow floated, staring endlessly uncertain. Princess Twilight began charging her horn with magical energy, followed quickly by the other two as they took their places by her side.

"Surgere!" Twilight yelled as a purple beam shot from her horn.

"Veraque!" Sunset declared as a yellow beam shot from hers.

"Animus!" Starlight shouted, a white beam shooting from hers.

The three beams converged on the petrified pegasus filly, and exploded in a flash of white light that could be seen from anywhere in the city. It shined like a beacon for several moments, before returning the capital to the dark starry night.