The Cozy Anthology

by Silvermyr

Chapter 3- Unforgiven

Saturdays are good days to be a pegasus pony. When you are an adult, you got your salary on Saturdays, and when you are a foal, you got to buy sweets. And while Canterlot did have some of the finest confectioners in Equestria, Cozy's birthday present from Sweetie Belle had convinced her that Bon-Bon's sweets were the best, even if it meant you had to take the train to Ponyville to get them.

Actually… there was an idea.

"Hey, Rumble, can you make candy? It's pretty much the same as cooking, right? And your cocoa is great!"

Her special somepony tore his eyes away from the train window and turned to her. "I've never tried… Ramson doesn't like sweets at all."

"He doesn't?" Cozy asked. Of course, she knew Ramson was brutally harsh and abrasive, and she honestly couldn't see him eating sweets, but still. Who didn't like candy?! Was he even a pony, or some sort of primal magical force imitating a pony?

"No, he says that fruits are the only real sweets a proper pony needs," Rumble said, though it looked like he didn't entirely agree.

"Hmm…" Cozy said. "But you'll try for me, right? I'll even see if I can talk him into it! I'm persuasive like that, so I'm sure it will work!"

"Uh…" he swallowed audibly. "Maybe?"

"Tsk, scaredy-pony." Cozy nudged him.

Then again, even if it was a bit of a hassle to take the train to Ponyville and back just for some sweets, it was well worth it. Sometimes it was nice to get out of the capitol anyway, especially since ponies didn't stare at her as much in Ponyville as they did in Canterlot. The Ponyville ponies were forgiving… probably because of Twilight's influence on their little town.

The train came to a halt and the two of them hopped off. The day was comfortably warm for the season, so they didn't need any clothes other than their saddlebags. Most of the trees had shed their leaves on their own or with the help of ponies. Walking past the market revealed only a few stalls still open for business; most fresh food had been collected and were preserved for the cold season. Still, there were mushrooms, chestnuts and Apple family apples.

Cozy was about to ask more about the Apple family, when something caught her eye and made her tense up. Just turning away from a stand with fall wreaths were six creatures that made Cozy freeze in place: Sandbar, Smolder, Gallus, Ocellus, Silverstream and Yona.

She did not know what to think about them. Officially she had apologized for what she did through her letters, but actually seeing them here… Even if she knew that what she did was stupid, even if it ended horribly for her... They had ruined everything. If it weren't for those six, her very first plan would have functioned. While they hadn't locked her up or turned her to a statue, they had still, indirectly, been responsible for all of Cozy's woes since then.

"Hey, Cozy? Is there something wrong?" Rumble asked. She had slowed her steps to a standstill while considering how to approach the six students.

"No, I… don't think so," Cozy said and started past them. This would need some thinking. She'd just avoid them until she had figured herself out. That sounded like a good idea. No need to open this can of worms right now.

Rumble shrugged and followed her. After about two seconds one of the six creatures must have spotted her, for suddenly they all turned around to stare at them.

Cozy knew it was better to ignore them, like she did all the other stares, but something inside her made it impossible now. Her pride forbade her from cowering. They had to see that she was still strong, that she was not afraid of them nor ashamed of herself. She stopped, lifted her head and met their stares head on.

"Uh… Cozy?" Rumble asked uncertainly.

"Hi… Cozy?" Ocellus spoke first. She approached timidly, but with a small, hopeful smile nonetheless. "I… I got your letter."

Cozy's stare moved to the shy reformed changeling. "Hi, Ocellus… I got yours too," she said neutrally. She tried to keep the wariness out of her tone, but it was difficult.

"That's good. So… are we good?" the young changeling asked, hopefully. It made Cozy hesitate for a second, since Ocellus really looked apologetic.

"Golly… I guess...." Cozy replied, watching the bug give her a shy smile. As silly as it was, it made Cozy feel a little more comfortable too. Maybe things didn't have to be any more difficult than this.

"I dunno, Ocellus," Gallus said with a suspicious glance. "It's not like she doesn't know how to trick people."

As soon as she heard these words, Cozy had to bite back her sharp answer, mostly because she didn't want to cause a scene in front of her special somepony. For her own sake she was more than ready to give a skewering retort. Clearly, Ocellus's idea wasn't shared by all of them.

"But Princess Twilight trusts her," Sandbar pointed out. "She's got to know, right?"

"Yeah, because last time Twilight trusted Cozy it went super well," Smolder said, rolling her eyes. "I'm telling you, you ponies are way to kind."

"But you guys also got a letter, didn't you?" Ocellus said with a placating look to both her friends and to Cozy.

"Yeah, and I see no reason to trust anything she wrote," Gallus said gruffly. "She's tricked us before, and I'm not gonna let it happen again."

Rumble went past her, up to the six students with his ears flicked straight back and tails swishing angrily. "Do you guys have anything to say to my special somepony, at least have the guts to say it to her face, or better yet, to me," he snapped.

All of them looked taken aback by his declaration. The stinging, smoldering anger that always came so readily to her, quickly was replaced with warmth. A relieved and surprised smile even threatened to ruin her glare! Her special somepony stood up for her! She… she didn't have to face her problems all alone anymore!

Gallus recovered first. "Wait, you're her coltfriend?" he asked, looking like he was quite sure he had misheard. "Do you have any idea who Cozy is? Like… actually?"

"A better idea than you, clearly," Rumble growled, immediately extending his wings, like readying a pounce. It was a defensive reflex among pegasi.

"Don't bother explaining, Rumble," Cozy concentrated her glare on Gallus. "He was always a poor friendship student… I mean, not even I nearly caused all my friends to lose their Hearth's Warming break because I was jealous of everypony."

She knew she shouldn't be saying things like that. She shouldn't make new enemies. But at least enemies were something she knew how to deal with. She could handle enemies. Having somepony defending her like this was new. And while she appreciated it, she also couldn't let him think she couldn't stand up for herself. She was not a crybaby filly. She may not want enemies, but she wanted to keep her pride in front of her special somepony more.

Smolder looked almost amused by her comment. Almost, if you could see past the many layers of anger. "Oh, yeah, 'cause you're definitely one to talk. How many times have Twilight had to stop you from conquering the world last week, anyway?"

"Everycreature-" Ocellus began timidly.

"And at least I learned my lesson," Gallus hissed. "I bet you haven't! I bet you're still just using Twilight, and your coltfriend too."

Rumble flushed red, but Cozy hardly saw it. She found herself remembering how she and Rumble had met in the first place… how she had pretended to be Twilight's captive daughter to get his sympathy, how she had adopted the name "Sheltered Light". She had planned to use him. She had planned to dupe him into helping her escape. The accusation seemed to sting and stab inside her head. I bet you're still just using Twilight, and your coltfriend too.

Fury bubbled to the surface, so overpowering that she was left stunned, torn between the options of screaming out her anger at his stupid face, charging at him to bash his teeth through his skull or kick him in the groin, repeatedly.

But before she could make any step, any move, a silent, bone-chilling voice stopped her.

"I don't want your advice, hear me?" Rumble whispered. Cozy felt her own coat standing up on her neck; she had never heard him this angry before. His ears and tail were both flicked straight backwards and his wings were wide and tense, every feather flared. And his eyes… had narrowed to pinpricks, the purple warmth of his irises suddenly seemed cold like amethyst. "If you," he spat the word like it was a blasphemy "are the type of creatures Twilight takes into her school, then Equestria is better off alone."

He turned around and slapped his tail across Gallus's dumbfounded face.

Cozy still wanted to mutilate the gryphon … but she also didn't want Twilight to be cross, and Rumble's declaration could suffice. She sent another glare at each of the six creatures. Only Gallus and Smolder met her eyes. Ocellus and Silverstream both were on the verge of tears, and Sandbar and Yona looked from her to their friends and back, seemingly unsure of what to do.

Then she turned away and went with her special somepony away from them.

Even when they were out of sight the mood was still oppressive. Anger still simmered inside her, mixed with shame for what she had said. She shouldn't have said things like that... she was supposed to be better than that now. She sensed Rumble was also trying to process what had just happened, something she was secretly thankful for. She needed to calm herself down properly before she was ready to talk…

What could she do now? Twilight had wanted her to write letters to the six of them to make up and move on… and Ocellus had wanted to. But now what? She was not going to ask forgiveness, no, this was not on her. She hadn't picked a fight with them, and she was not going to meekly roll over. She was Cozy Glow. She was a proud, strong filly. Those six losers didn't scare her, and they never had.

But Twilight wasn't going to see things like that. She'd want Cozy to apologize, nice and proper. In fact… as Twilight's student, she'd probably expect Cozy to do it on her own. How would she take it when she found out about this?

"Well… here we are," Rumble said without much mirth. In fact, he sounded like he was ashamed. Cozy jolted, realizing they had reached the confectionary. "Can't say I feel like candy anymore though."

It felt like something heavy was sitting on her chest. She felt awful, not only because of what happened, but by how it ruined their day. And Gallus's accusation still pricked and stung inside her head. "I'm not trying to use you anymore. Or Twilight! Honest!" Cozy squeaked, just to get the thought out of her head. The candy could wait, she had to say that!

"I know, Cozy," Rumble sighed. "Don't listen to them, alright? I know you're a good pony. They don't know how much you've changed. But I still shouldn't have said that. It wasn't nice."

"Even if it wasn't nice, they deserved it," Cozy muttered. They'd only ever judge her for who she had been, she knew that. But it still hurt. I bet you're still just using Twilight, and your coltfriend too. Cozy sighed discreetly, there went her good mood. "But I'm still happy you stuck up for me like that," Cozy said honestly, a small smile forming on her face. Rumble blushed slightly and nuzzled Cozy's cheek. It felt… a little bit better, after.

"You know… Bon-Bon does sell ice cream too," Rumble suggested. "Like… if you want that instead." Cozy recognized the inane talk as a way to try and get her to think of something else. But she was still happy to do exactly that. She nodded.

"Maybe she has some blueberry ice-cream left," she said, adding some extra vigor to her voice.

They went inside. There were only a few other ponies, and none of them wanted ice cream. With the weather cooling a little every day, even more cold was probably the last thing most ponies wanted. They took their ice cream in a pair of cups and returned outside to sit by a table. Since neither of them could use magic, they didn't bring spoons, but instead licked and ate the cream directly from the cups instead. She saw how Rumble got some on his muzzle, even if he wiped it clean with a towel directly after.

It was really nice ice cream, Cozy noted. It tasted very much like blueberries, and not only the sour taste that she associated with frozen berries. No, it was sweet and… and blueberrylike. Bon-Bon sure did know her sweets.

"I guess you've ran into those guys before, haven't you?" Rumble asked tentatively.

Cozy nodded. "Yeah. They were my classmates in Twilight's school. And if it weren't for them, I'd have won back then."

"Oh… that explains why they were so angry. Not that they are right, but it does explain where they're coming from," Rumble added the last part quickly. Maybe he was afraid she'd be mad.

She nodded and took a lick of the ice cream. "Tsk. If it weren't 'cause Twilight will be mad at me for this, I'd tell her that her so-called friendship students seem to have missed a few lessons."

"I'll back you up if you want," Rumble said. "And I'm not afraid to tell her, even if she'll be angry at me for what I said too! But nopony is going to tell me that standing up for your special somepony is wrong!" To her surprise, she didn't see any sign of fear in his eyes when he said that. He really meant it. He really would stand up to an alicorn if she asked him to.

Even if he knew Twilight better than most, it was still not a mean feat to do that.

"Oh…" Rumble said and glared over Cozy's shoulder. She turned around, following his eyes.

Silverstream and Ocellus stood a small distance away, looking slightly lost. Cozy let her eyes narrow, just a little. She didn't really want to scare them off, since they had clearly come to her for some reason, but she did want them to know that she was still not happy about it.

"Uhm… hi, Cozy," Ocellus said shyly. "Do you mind?"

Cozy huffed. "Well, since your friends just insulted me, and my very special somepony, I'm going to say I do." She relaxed her glare, just a little bit. "But I suppose you did say we were good before, so I'm going to be the bigger pony." She beckoned them over with a flick of her wing.

Both Ocellus and Silverstream looked relieved and came over. Since there was only one other chair by the table, Silverstream sat down directly on the ground. She was so tall she still got up to eye level with the rest of them.

"We wanted to say we're sorry about what Gallus and Smolder said," Silverstream said with a resolute tone Cozy had never heard from the bubbly hippogriff before. "And I wanted to say that I got your letter and I really did want to reply… I just, um... sort of forgot about it," she blushed. "Uh… I had exams to read for, and when they were done it had slipped out of my mind."

"I want to apologize too," Ocellus peeped. "Twilight taught us that it's better to have friends than enemies. And if she hadn't given us a second chance, then we changelings wouldn't even be able to live in Equestria. So I'm going to do the same to you."

Huh. Cozy hadn't taught about that. Maybe that's why Ocellus had been the first to answer her letter and want to make up? As for Silverstream, Cozy did find it all too believable that she had forgotten. She had always been a bit of a ditz. "Well… I did mean what I say in my letters, so I guess I can give you another chance," she said. "But only one. And only you two. You can tell the rest of your friends that they'll be the ones to send me letters before I talk to them again. And Rumble too."

"I'm sorry for what I said!" Rumble said loudly, anxiously. "I know it wasn't nice… and didn't mean it. I just got… really mad. So I'm… sorry."

"Oh, yeah!" Silverstream chirped. "I didn't know you had a mate, Cozy! Are you on a date right now? I'd love to go on a date with someone too, someday! Eating together, walking together… sit on benches, look at stairs with someone who doesn't think I'm weird! Oh, and I can accept your apology!"

Rumble cocked his head to the side with a confused glance towards Cozy. "She… likes stairs," the filly explained, though she realized that odds were that explanation only confused him more.

"You'll find somegriff too," Ocellus said. "And I'm pretty sure you ponies don't say 'mate', do you?"

Both Rumble and Cozy shook their heads. "I'm her special somepony," Rumble said. "Name's Rumble by the way… I don't think I said that. Sorry." He smiled sheepishly.

"Oh, right!" Silverstream said and shook Rumble's hoof so vigorously she nearly pulled him from his chair. "I'm Silverstream, from Mount Aris! Nice to meet you!"

"Ocellus," Ocellus said. "I'm… a changeling."

"Oh… you don't look anything like Chrysalis," Rumble pointed out. "Or her statue, anyway."

Ocellus blushed. "No, I'm… not. We're not anything like her anymore."

"No, I didn't mean it like that!" Rumble hurried to say. "I just haven't met a changeling before." He swallowed. "I'm… really not making a good first impression, am I?"

Ocellus smiled shyly. "Well… how do you know you've never met a changeling before?"

Rumble opened her mouth, then closed it, and then he furrowed his brow. Cozy could practically hear his mind grind to a halt and catch fire. She giggled at his expression, and Ocellues looked pleased as well.

"But… seriously…?" Rumble asked, looking quite lost. He flashed Cozy a small glare and nudged her. "Hey, stop laughing!"

"Don't worry! We don't change much nowadays," Ocellus chirped. "King Thorax says everyling should try to find their own beauty by being themselves now, so that's what we're doing."

Rumble looked relieved. "Oh. Right. Makes sense. I… deserved that."

They all fell quiet. Cozy took the opportunity to eat up the rest of the ice cream.

The quiet was not hostile, but not exactly completely comfortable either. Cozy still felt like there was a slight chafe between her and her former classmates.

She supposed she shouldn't be surprised. Even if they all wanted to be friends with one another, they were responsible for Cozy ending up in Tartarus. She could forgive them; if she could forgive Twilight, then she could forgive them. But she didn't forget, because she never forgot a grudge. And she was certain that if Ocellus and Silverstream would ever have to choose between her or Gallus and Smolder, then they wouldn't pick her.

She could accept it, and they could be friends… but not friends. She could not share her secrets with them, and she could not wholly trust them the way she could with Rumble or Sweetie Belle. Perhaps they felt it too?

"You're… nicer than you were, Cozy," Ocellus said. "Twilight's really been a good influence, right?"

"Rumble's been more important," Cozy said with just a little bit of sharpness to her tone. "But Twilight isn't… bad, I guess."

"I can tell Yona and Sandbar you really are better now, if you want," Ocellus offered. "I don't think they want to be mad with you. Or at least not Sandbar, and if he's okay with you having turned over a new leaf, Yona will probably be okay with you too."

"Tsk, if they're fine to let that dragon and griffin pick on my special somepony, then maybe I don't care to have them as my friends in the first place." Cozy huffed. Ocellus cowered back. For a moment it looked like she would protest, but in the end she didn't. "And why would Yona care so much for what Sandbar thinks?"

"She's absolutely smitten by him," Silverstream smiled. "You wouldn't believe how weird it is to see a yak all flustered!"

"Silverstream, don't go around telling everyone that!" Ocellus shouted anxiously. "She hasn't even confessed yet! And… well, Sandbar is pretty dense in this matter."

"Really?" Cozy slowly. "Yona and Sandbar? That's…"

"Kinda strange?" Rumble supplied. "Not that I care about who they like or not, but… it's still a bit strange."

Cozy could only agree, even if she didn't say anything. Just like Rumble said, it was none of her business, and she had no interest in who those two losers liked or not.

But still… if Sandbar accepted her confession, then he'd be the first pony ever to date a yak. That was pretty... cool?

"Uh… don't say anything to anypony about that, okay?" Ocellus asked with a slightly pleading look in her eyes. "She doesn't want anypony to know yet."

"Okay," Cozy said with a shrug. It was a testament to how far she had come that she meant it. Before she would figure out some way to use this information to gain some favors or improve her standing in somepony's eyes. But now the idea didn't more than cross her mind briefly before she brutally quashed it.

"Of course," Rumble said. "We'll keep quiet. I know how hard it can be to gather the courage to ask somepony out."

"Thanks," Silverstream said sincerely. "It was just a slip of the tongue… I shouldn't have said anything."

They quieted down again. This time Cozy stood up. "It's been… nice to talk to you two. But we've got to get going now. Got to catch the train back to Canterlot."

"You're welcome back if you want to though," Silverstream said cheerfully. "Or maybe we could meet up in Canterlot sometime?"

"Golly… I'm sure we could do that," Cozy said, even if she honestly couldn't see herself extending an invitation. But maybe sometime…

---

Loyalty as a concept went ways back in the pegasus tribe. Ages before Rainbow Dash took up the mantle of Element of Loyalty, the tribe had been more of an army than a state. Even then, loyalty to the Commander came before family, friends and self. Throughout all of their recorded history, loyalty had been priced and venerated.

But that didn't make Rumble's current predicament any more enjoyable. When they returned back to the castle, Twilight had looked peeved about something, and it wasn't too hard to figure out why. Of course she knew about Cozy's and his quarrel with the dragon and the griffon… as the Princess of Friendship she could probably tap into the very mass-mind of Friendship and sense every friendship mistake in Equestria… or maybe she had the pony black-ops watching them… Or maybe somepony had just told Starlight Glimmer, and then she told Twilight?

He didn't know, but she clearly did know regardless. As such, now he was forced to live up to his promise and owe up to what he had said himself too.

So he told her everything… word for damning word. At least he had Cozy there too.

Wasn't it supposed to be a romantic thing for the two loved ones to go down together? That's what all the books said. But Rumble didn't feel very romantic; he just felt like Twilight was going to banish him. Or lock him up… banish him and then lock him up in the place where she banished him to?

Cozy finished her explanation, and Twilight sighed. "I honestly thought you two were better than this," she said sternly. "As my friendship student, I expected you to be able to turn the other cheek, Cozy. I know you aren't trying to use me. I am absolutely certain of it, and you know it too. So why would you lash out rather than just ignore it and move on with your day?"

Cozy looked up at the annoyed alicorn and replied with no fear in her eyes. "Because… I'm too proud to let anypony talk down to me or my special somepony like that," Cozy said with a hard, unrelenting voice. "And besides… they were also talking about you too. They said that you made a mistake and you've been fooled."

The sincerity and no trace of sly tones in Cozy's voice did seem to mollify Twilight just a little bit."It's good that you are honest when you tell me, at least. However, I am certain I'm not fooled and I am not making a mistake. While I'm sad that they doubt my judgement, this is not a reason for you to behave like you did," Twilight replied, her voice losing some of the annoyance. She sounded… marginally more explaining rather than accusing.

"Well, they were the ones who started it," Rumble said. It may be the most foalish reply in the book, but it still felt good to say it. "They were the ones who decided to pick on Cozy, even when she had said she wanted to be friends! It's not like I'm just gonna let them do that!"

"So you decided to insult them back?" Twilight asked patiently. "While you have never been my student, Rumble, I still know you are better than that. I am not disappointed that you stood up for Cozy, but I am disappointed in how you did it. And as much as knowing who started the conflict may be important sometimes, I doubt it in this case."

Twilight sighed and shook her head sadly. "I know that just bringing you all together and making you apologize isn't going to do any good; neither of you will put your heart into it. So instead I want to ask you this: if you ever meet with them again, please ignore any provocations. You two are smart ponies and you are better than that," she finished, looking at two foals. The sour mood filled the silence that fell between all three of them. Twilight crouched down to be at the same level as their unhappy faces. "Listen, many conflicts, from personal to international could have been avoided if one side just stopped firing back. I am… proud that you two stand up for each other, and of how you reconciled with Ocellus and Silverstream after, but the squabble with Gallus and Smolder is unacceptable. I'm not going to force you or them to do anything, but at some point I want you all to apologize and make up, somehow." Twilight nodded, in part to herself.

She stood up again and lifted her wings a little. Rumble swallowed and beheld her in her full alicorn perfection. "Rifts between creatures, once created, can quickly widen and ruin your friendship, if you ignore them for too long. I know you all can be good friends and I count on you two to fix this damage eventually. No matter who started it, who said what - a good friend will want to make the first move. I believe in you two." Twilight finished, looking at Rumble and Cozy with a calm, patient face.

"I… We understand. And we will try to do it, okay?" Cozy said. Rumble decided to guess she too was moved by Twilight's conviction, rather than just looking to beat a hasty retreat. "And, well... are… we being punished?" By the way she said it, Cozy had to bodily drag the words out of her mouth to speak them.

"I don't believe in punishments," Twilight shook her head, looking at her student in front of her. "You can go, but I really hope you will remember and take this lesson to your heart. Because I will expect better from you both in the future, okay?" They both nodded. Twilight closed her eyes with a tired sight. "Good. Now if you excuse me, I have a pair of letters to draft to another two of my students who have disappointed me today."

Rumble watched her leave, feeling thoroughly wretched. He had let her down… He had let an alicorn down. By Cozy's look, even she could feel just a sliver of remorse for the disappointment she had caused her teacher.

Comments

[vito]

10751002

Doesn't Rumble have school?

Equestria is a weird mix of real world past laws, cultures and systems, I think dual education system or just straight apprenticeship sounds pretty legit for foals.

[Teaspoon of Godzilla]

many conflicts, from personal to international could have been avoided if one side just stopped firing back

Or, more likely, turned from conflicts into genocide.

[asdtroi8895]

I suppose something like this was ineviable, especially since stubbern teenagers were involved. It makes sense that Gallus and Smolder would be the ones to hold the biggest grudges given their personalities and cultures.

She'd just avoid them until she had figured herself out. That sounded like a good idea. No need to open this can of worms right now.

This makes me wonder if she's met and talked to any of her former teachers or anyone she personally knew in Ponyville before the magic draining thing besides Pinkie and the CMC.

Cozy felt her own coat standing up on her neck; she had never heard him this angry before. His ears and tail were both flicked straight backwards and his wings were wide and tense, every feather flared. And his eyes… had narrowed to pinpricks, the purple warmth of his irises suddenly seemed cold like amethyst. "If you ," he spat the word like it was a blasphemy "are the type of creatures Twilight takes into her school, then Equestria is better off alone."

Methings Ramson may have rubbed off on Rumble a bit. I bet even Smolder felt that burn.

"Good. Now if you excuse me, I have a pair of letters to draft to another two of my students who have disappointed me today."

Nice to see that Twilight still consideres them her students even if she doesn't teach them anymore.

[Scroll]

I thought that the student six were well in character. This is exactly the role I expected for each.

[cozyloveme]

This is a great chapter!！！！

[Silvermyr]

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