Psychoanalyzing Her Reflection
Somewhere, in Twilight Sparkle’s heart, there was a nagging doubt. Buried under what could only be described as years of study, devotion to the Princesses, and her friends, there was a tiny seed of it. It nipped at the bottom of her soul occasionally, but never badly enough where she regretted a decision.
For the most part, Twilight never regretted anything she did for Equestria. Everything she’d done for the country she now ruled was for the greater good, and most of the time, there were very little casualties. On the contrary, even the casualties that should have existed during times of trial, battles, or freak accidents, were simply disproportionate. There should have been more issues after years of battling things out with magic rainbows and laserbeams, Twilight always thought, but in the end, she was happy it ended up this way.
There was very little that could sway her beliefs of way of life now. The windows in the Canterlot castle cemented her faith, the rainbow light shining through the glassy murals themselves being a reflection of her and her friend’s own magic. Twilight relished in the colored sunlight, occasionally opting to stand quietly in it’s beams, and take in the warmth. She would have passed it off as something the recently-gained pegasus side of her instinctually made her do, but she knew better. She knew that as a very young unicorn, she would play in Celestia’s golden sunbeams, coming through the windows of her mother’s kitchen. The best place to nap in the entire house was on the warmed stone flooring, listening to the idle chatter of her older brother and her parents.
But that was just it. That strangely anxiety-inducing feeling only got worse when Twilight thought of things like that. Pleasant memories of her own childhood that she couldn’t push past or ignore shook her a bit to her core at the moment. Yet again, another thing she decided to try and forget about, something she attempted to shake her head at. Something that she’d sit up with, late at night in her large, empty bed. Something she’d mull over during a beautifully prepared breakfast, made by a multitude of loyal servants. Something that would make each and every second spent in the castle gardens torturous.
She almost wished Celestia hadn’t moved them there. It had been this way for weeks now.
Putting one hoof in front of the other seemed like such a simple task, but lately, it was proving to be more difficult than she anticipated. The next step, the next right thing, the next meeting, it usually flowed so well in Ponyville. Perhaps the power she had on that sort of scale was such an insignificant fraction, that it didn’t prepare her well enough for the life she now led. Why was it so difficult to carry out the duties that she should have been accustomed to by now? Again, deep down she knew the answer.
Truthfully, if Twilight Sparkle were to stop running from her own feelings on the matter, maybe it would not have spiraled into the sort of problem it ended up being now. But, she already cemented the echoing idea in the back of her mind. The once small seed of doubt had slowly turned into a sinking thought that would crawl into the rest of her body, taking over her mind and muscles as she tried to ignore it.
Did she do the right thing?
In theory, yes. Twilight did the right thing. She always did the right thing. If she DIDN’T do the right thing, Celestia would have told her so a long time ago. She had saved Equestria, with the help of her friends, with the help of her allies, and with the help of hundreds of creatures who believed she was doing the right thing too. She had stalled the destruction of everything, and she’d stopped magic from being omitted from all of Equestria. That’s how she knew she did the right thing, that her moral compass was still in working order. And usually, thinking of that would temporarily release her from the hold of the now inescapable dread.
But she couldn’t think past that point. She couldn’t bear to think about how Equestria would perceive her rule, much less her decisions. Of course, they’d praise her. They’d praise the former Elements of Harmony, they’d praise the Princesses. And yet, it wasn’t satisfying to Twilight. The words of everyone around her weren’t comforting anymore, merely water rolling off of her back. Because, no matter how hard she moved her doubts aside, she could only ever prove she did the right thing for two of the members of her garden. The same garden that was a gift that the always generous and benevolent Celestia, one that she did not appreciate.
Twilight couldn’t even look at the courtyard without feeling ashamed. Yes, she could only ever prove that she did the right thing for two of the members of her garden, not all three.
That was what was keeping Twilight Sparkle up at night. The idea of being wrong about this sort of thing plagued her nightmares. Discord had told her once that when he was held captive by the stone spell, he was able to hear everything around him still. Did that apply to Cozy Glow? Could she hear everyone mocking her in the garden? Could she hear all of the guards whoop and cheer at the prospect of her downfall? Could she hear the sounds of life going on without her?
By the time Cozy glow would emerge, if ever, the entirety of her childhood would have been squandered. There she’d be, possibly hundreds of years old, and still trapped in the body of a foal. Yes, trapping them in stone was the correct thing to do for Tirek and Crysalis, the likes of which Twilight barely spent a second thought on. Yet, for Cozy Glow, Twilight couldn’t convince herself that the same punishment applied.
That was a student. That was her student. Someone Twilight had failed to correctly teach. Someone she had allowed the Princesses to decide wasn’t worthy of redemption. How could she call herself the Princess of Friendship, if she couldn’t extend due mercy to a troubled foal? The equivocy of her thoughts made her want to push her breakfast away, run to her room, and curse into her pillow for hours. She couldn’t do that to Equestria though, not to the millions of denizens she had managed to save. She couldn’t abandon all of her sheep, for the lost one that had run away.
When Twilight had brought it up with her own friends, they had giggled initially. Pinkie pie had hopped over to her with a gentle pat on the back, assuring her that they had all done exactly what had helped Equestria. Rainbow Dash had expressed disgust for all three of the garden-dwellers, mocking them and their attempts to hurt her friends. Rarity had let out a sort of disgruntled huff, expressing disdain for anyone who pitied them. Applejack had given her honest opinion, that ponies and creatures that could hurt so many people didn’t deserve that sort of sympathy. Even Fluttershy, who wasn’t normally verbose, piped up to explain that it was completely justified for creatures who had almost destroyed the world as they knew it, to still be alive to some degree, living in the nicest garden in Equestria.
That was just it though, wasn’t it? Twilight bit her tongue in front of her friends and continued on with whatever activity they had planned for the day, but she couldn’t help but notice what they had said. Ponies, creatures, statues... None of those words implied that one of them was a foal.
Today was going to be different than all the days before. Today, Twilight wasn’t going to trip herself up with what-ifs and wrestling with her own thoughts. She was going to finally do what she needed to do to let go of this entire thing: Erase every trace of Cozy Glow from the school she had once attended.
The idea had been suggested to her by Rainbow Dash initially, after she had complained that Cozy Glow was on her mind more often than she should have been. The concept made sense to Twilight at the time; if she just got rid of everything that reminded her of the filly, maybe she’d stop being inclined to think about her so much. She had delayed the inevitable long enough, but now it was time to finally jump over that last hurdle.
It was easy enough to sort out which of the desks Cozy Glow had sat in, her own name etched onto the sides of them with some sharp object she had found around the school grounds. Twilight had interrupted so many classes that day, removing every desk and giving a discreet order to a faculty member to have them sanded, repainted, or disposed of. They, of course, happily complied.
Sometimes, the desks would have little remnants in them. A forgotten ribbon was one of the more notable finds Twilight had discovered, as well as a small notepad with scratches scribed in its interior. Once it was probably a list, but now every piece of information was covered up with clouds of ink, and the other half of the pages were empty. Twilight held back the urge to take the notepad back to her castle, in order to recover the lost information. The ribbon and notepad were ordered to be burned. That, too, was an order happily complied with. She had made a good decision entrusting that to a dragon student.
Twilight had scrubbed some bathroom graffiti off of the walls herself. Despite being clean for the most part, some of the walls had messages of devotion to the pink filly (Twilight chalked this up to rebellion). Other students had written down curses directed towards Cozy Glow. It didn’t matter what they represented, as long as it mentioned her or hinted at her existence, Twilight would happily clean the walls of the school from the traces of her. With each soapy streak through the foal’s name, Twilight could feel that relief course through her head. This was the right thing, she had to rid these walls of the irked past.
Twilight Sparkle was pleased with herself for the most part. She had almost left the building entirely too until a member of the staff had tapped her on the shoulder. Twilight didn’t mind staying a bit longer to help if she needed to, she had cleared her schedule to be here anyway. The one who tapped on her shoulder was a pony she didn’t recognize fully, perhaps a new hire? It didn’t matter to her at the moment, and she surely forgot afterward who exactly it was that brought the last part of this project to her attention. Yes, she couldn’t leave the school until she had addressed the most tainted area of all: The dormitories.
Twilight’s hard work felt like it crumbled in front of her in seconds, soul being sucked out at the sound. Despite this, her expression masked this intense discomfort, and the worker pony was none the wiser. She had simply nodded, thanking the unnamed pony and trotting towards the living quarters the students shared. She hadn’t even thought to check there.
Cozy Glow was a pony, right? There weren’t a lot of ponies that stayed at the dorms without a reason. Sure, it was well furnished, and it was convenient to be so close to all of your friends, but if you already lived in Ponyville, what was the use of it? Cozy Glow, Twilight thought, had moved to Ponyville, assumedly with her family or guardians, and didn’t stay overnight at the school like some of the other students.
She was dead wrong.
The entire room was littered with her belongings. She had been staying there for some time to amass this sort of destruction. Somehow, Twilight had assumed that the room of such a cunning pony would be in perfect order, like her own as a filly, but she was proven wrong at the display of memorabilia. After thanking another staff member for the room key, she dismissed them, walking inside of the full, yet hollow room.
Papers were scattered about the ground, for one. They seemed to carry a thin layer of dust upon them. Some were covered in drawings of Cozy Glow herself, self portraits of the alicorn she wished to become. Some of the papers had red ink on them, phrases like “I NEED POWER!” and “I HATE TWILIGHT SPARKLE!” etched on their once pristine white faces. Those were understandable, and even expected. Twilight had grabbed a bag to put them all in, pushing them down with her hooves to make room for more.
The closet was even more predictable, one or two dresses that would make sense for a filly her age to have, especially if she was attempting to blend in with the crowd. Nothing about these dresses stood out to Twilight. She also put those into the bag, barely allowing herself a second thought. If she had allowed herself to reflect on the slices of normalcy wedged in Cozy’s busy life, it would only cause more conflict.
The sheets on the bed, along with the comforter, were crumpled and dirty. They were once a pastel yellow, with purple lace accenting the bottom. A very pretty, yet neutral, choice to have in the dormitories. Most student’s rooms all held small clues to who they were as creatures, especially some of the older students with defining characteristics. Some ponies could afford bedspreads with their cutie marks and mane colors all over them, sometimes they were covered in cute pictures or something designed to match their personal style. For some reason, Cozy Glow seemed to not have changed them since she had started staying at the school, despite that being what most of the students did. And for some other inexplicable reason, they had been thoroughly stained. Twilight couldn’t explain that one very well, nor did she want to. The mare clamped her jaw shut in mild disgust as those, too, were placed into the bag, and shoved down with her hooves.
There were death threats pinned to the walls. She had taken those down.
There were books on the desk, all about the magic that Cozy Glow herself couldn’t wield. Twilight made a mental note to return those to the castle library.
The more Twilight explored the space in front of her, and the more she placed into her large bag for incineration, she felt the weight of what she had done lift off of her back. Cozy Glow clearly didn’t want help, did she? The evidence buried in this room was all mounting against her, and Twilight was relieved to feel justified in her own actions. This was not the filly she had nightmares about destroying the life of, this was a monster. A creature twisted from her own pride and greed, someone who could never truly understand friendship at its fullest. Each small token she placed into the bag seemed to guide her, nudging the purple mare towards the direction all her friends had been pointing in for so long.
A saddlebag, filled to the brim with hoof-drawn maps of Equestria. Impressive, but the writing on the sides of them, depicting what she’d do to every city, sickened Twilight to look at. Good, she had found something else to ease her worries. Into the bag, it went.
A hairbrush. Easy enough. It was a bit dirty, with remnants of Cozy’s blue mane stuck in its bristles. Twilight deemed the wooden brush further evidence still that she had been correct, musing that if Cozy took better care of her things, it would show her capacity to care about anything at all besides her dark plans for everyone around her. Into the bag, it went.
By now, the very last thing to remove from the room had come into Twilight’s view. After all of the papers detailing Cozy’s intentions were thrown away, after all of the floor had been swept and mopped to perfection. After the comforter and sheets and pillows had been taken off the bed, after the clothes in the closet had been placed in the bag. After everything had seemingly been finished, Twilight was fully ready to congratulate herself on healing her own itching wounds, turn to walk out of the school, and burn the bag she had brought with her at her castle.
Under the bed, there was a box.
It wasn’t a very large box, and it wasn’t ornate in any way. It was a simple, rustic wooden thing, a brass latch keeping it shut, with no paint or decorations on it to dress it up. It wasn’t an interesting shape either, just a square box with a flat lid. The wood was thin and cheap, the smells Twilight had come to associate with wood weren’t even present. There was no aroma of pine or cedar, there was no smell of the lovely trees on the Apple Family Orchard, and there was nothing hinting to her at what type of wood it was. The top of it had the same thin layer of dust that the floor, bedding, and desk had on them. Twilight blew out through her mouth, allowing the dust to soar off the box and dissipate in the air.
Part of her, the invigorated and enlightened part of her, wanted to throw the box into the bag and be done with this entire situation. It would have been so easy to ignore such a boring and unassuming thing. It would have been incredibly easy to toss it aside, dismiss its existence, and forget about it tomorrow.
And yet, the terrible sinking in her belly came back with a vengeance. The swirl of conflicting feelings and doubt crashed over her in just an instant, metaphorically knocking her body further into the seas of her own internal moral dilemma. Despite all of the evidence pointing to exactly what Twilight’s friends had assumed, she couldn’t help but surprise herself with more left-over anxiety. The Princess of Friendship couldn’t manage to turn her back on the stupid little box, and that aggravated her. She wished she could just let go of the frustrating feelings that had been plaguing her. That’s what this entire day, this entire cleansing, was about, wasn’t it? Why after all of this, could she not let this single item be thrown into the bag?
With a grunt of resentment, she unhooked the latch of the box.
Immediately, she knew why she couldn’t have left it by itself.
The magic she had been using to hold the box up dissolved, sending the wooden box careening towards the floor below. Twilight herself felt her face contort in shock, her legs not obeying her as she slowly walked backward, her gaze completely locked onto the contents.
All of the feelings Twilight had, buried deep inside of her all this time, pressed at her eyes and mouth. She couldn’t escape the hot tears that had decided to form now, pricking at her eyes and trickling down her face without her command. Stumbling slightly, she sat down on her rump, her quivering lip threatening to release sobs that she had been containing inside herself for what felt like years.
In this dusty box, there was no secret journal. There was no plan to ruin Equestria. There was no plot to kill her and her friends, and there was no incriminating evidence ready to damn her to her life as a statue. Twilight should have been grateful for the change of pace, but the purple mare couldn’t manage any graitutufe. Trembling on the ground, Twilight Sparkle stared straight into the eyes of a matted, dirty, and familiar teddy bear.
Her chest tightened as she cried, covering her eyes with her hooves to try and block the image out of her mind. After all of this, after everything she had painted over, thrown away, and left to burn. After everything she scrubbed free of the foal’s influence. And after everything Twilight’s students and friends had tried to convince her to believe. After the exhilaration she had felt when she was finally letting go of her own guilt, after everything was said and done.
Cozy Glow really was just a foal.
Had Twilight ever seen her parents? She couldn’t remember a single parent-teacher meeting they had attended. Had Twilight ever seen anybody take care of her, besides the staff of the school? She couldn’t remember that either. Cozy Glow had silently lived her life under the muzzle of the head mare herself, plotting herself to her doom inside of this tiny room, without any adult to guide her. Practically alone in a school meant to consolidate friendship and teamwork.
She could have been there. She could have shown Cozy Glow the way, and she and Starlight could have worked on some sort of plan to help Cozy get back on the right track. And yet, after the first infraction, the so-called logical next step for the Princesses to take was to send that foal-- a child that slept in a dirty room alone with a teddy bear hanging on by threads, a child who desperately tried to make friends and tried on pretty dresses like her peers, a child who played outside in Celestia’s golden sun like Twilight had as a filly-- to live an eternity in stone.
The alicorn princess couldn’t hold back any of the offending thoughts anymore. Lowering her upper body to the ground and placing her hooves over her head as she sobbed, Twilight tasted the bitterness she had felt towards Cozy Glow wash away, and be replaced by pounding, nauseating guilt.
Who else did Twilight know that didn’t understand the value of friendship, even as a cutie-mark aged foal? Who else did Twilight know that studied magical power above all else, who was expected to hold the weight of the world as an adult, and make good conscious decisions? Who else was given so much responsibility at such a young age, the murmurs and whispers of the adults around her implying that she really was such a mature young pony, that she was Celestia’s prized pupil?
Where was the kindness and tenderness when she broke a dish at home, and her parents berated her, saying that she was too old for mistakes like that? Where was the loving guidance when Twilight made mistakes in her oral reports, when teachers shook their heads disapprovingly, because she should know better than that by now? Where was her sympathy when she had no friends at school? There was none. Only cheerful exclamations about her being too smart, too mature, too grown up for the other ponies her age.
She assumed the kindness would be with Celestia. At some point, the distant leader of Equestria would invite Twilight to her personal living quarters, and brush her mane, telling her that such a little filly should be getting to bed by now. She’d tell her that all the problems in the world shouldn’t matter to her yet, and that studies so advanced should be left until she was old enough to fully comprehend them. Celestia would hold her tightly, whispering about how brave and courageous Twilight was to be going to such a prestigious school all by herself every day, and how sad it was that the little purple foal couldn’t understand her peers.
Her assumptions were wrong. Celestia had interfered just in time in the end, pushing Twilight towards making friends, and moving her to Ponyville to slow her studies down. Twilight knew that it was probably Celestia’s OWN guilt, this same feeling that was shaking her entire body and ringing in her ears, that made her attempt so little so late. Maybe, for Celestia, it wasn’t too late to try and mend some of the hurt that she had caused. The sneaking hurt that had been weighing Twilight down for years.
Twilight Sparkle was not an adult.
She had been, at the time of meeting her friends, yes. But before that, when she was studying at the school, or living by herself at the Canterlot library. Before that, when she was told that playing with toys was for little fillies and that she was too old and gifted to be thinking about things like slumber parties and painting her hooves. The hurt that had festered when she was robbed of her childhood by something of a quiet killer, puzzling and bizarre in concept until this moment. On the floor of Cozy Glow’s former room, the memories of her foalhood causing her eyes to burn from the tears that escaped raw lids. She finally could articulate the dread she had been feeling sink in her stomach for so long.
Twilight Sparkle had not been an adult when she had started being treated like one.
And Cozy Glow was not an adult when they had punished her like one.
She had been sent to Tartarus without a second thought. She had been treated like a mastermind instead of a very sick little filly who needed guidance and love. She had been outcasted for crimes less severe than what other ponies had been fully redeemed for. Twilight gagged.
Starlight Glimmer had tried to change the entire course of history, moving through timelines and destroying them effortlessly, and without much care. She didn’t even care when Twilight had told her how many ponies she was hurting, not until she had shown Starlight how it affected herself. That selfishness was rewarded. Starlight was redeemed. No one in Equestria harbored any hate for her anymore.
Fizzlepop Berrytwist, a pony who had worked under The Storm King loyally, was accepted back into pony society with open hooves. Her distaste for Equestria, her attack on the Princesses, all was forgiven in an instant. Forgiven with the help of Twilight.
Discord, a being who had destroyed everything Equestria held dear twice, had been having tea with Fluttershy on a weekly basis. The two of them were growing so close that Twilight and her friends couldn’t help but joke about the pair beginning to date. He was allowed to be reformed.
Those were all adults. Adults who had committed far worse crimes against the ponies of Equestria consciously. So why then, was the filly Twilight saw herself in, sent to the depths of pony society’s hell, and encased in stone?
Twilight cried on the floor for what felt like hours. Her entire body had begun to ache after a while, and once the tears slowed to a manageable amount, Twilight rose to her hooves. Sniffling faintly from what she’d tell anyone was the dust in the abandoned room. She shook her mane to try and settle the straight indigo and pink hair back to a presentable state. The bag she had collected was tied up silently, lifted into the air with the crackle of magic. The key Twilight had used to get into the room was left on the side table, next to the stripped mattress.
The box that the bear had been resting in since Cozy had last touched it had been thrown into the bag of things to burn. Twilight hoped to Celestia- No- to herself, that she could manage to get over the feelings she couldn’t control today. There was no way to fix anything that had been done, Cozy Glow had already been damaged enough where Twilight doubted she could ever heal her to the point of redemption. The spell was cast with the help of Celestia, Luna, and Discord, and there was no way to undo it by herself anyway. Her friends, mentors, and allies would advise against it, and attempt to bar her from it.
Maybe Twilight would never be able to control her feelings. Maybe the guilt would etch in her soul forever, but maybe one day she’d be able to release herself as a victim of circumstance. Maybe she’d be able to shift the blame to one of the other Princesses, onto the other terrorists of Equestria, or onto Cozy Glow’s dead or negligent parents.
The purple mare shut the door behind her, walking through the halls of her school with feigned pride and excitement. No one dared mention the bloodshot red of her eyes.
- - - - - - - - -
Secretly, later that night, Twilight couldn’t help herself.
Her body was sore enough from the day’s work to rest, and her eyes were heavy enough to close, but her heart wouldn't stop racing. She couldn’t manage to relax her mind enough to sleep, despite having one of the most expensive and comfortable beds in Equestria.
So, as quietly as her hooves would allow, Twilight stalked her way down the steps of the castle, into the garden that now belonged to her and the residents that were cursed to stay there forever. A gift given to her by the sometimes generous and benevolent Celestia, one that she did not appreciate. Perhaps though, if Discord was correct, Cozy Glow would appreciate the one Twilight had brought for her.
The purple mare carefully placed the mangled stuffed animal on the extended wings of Cozy Glow, those wings that were frozen in time, and whispered a desperate plea of forgiveness.
Even with the dimness that came with subtle moonlight, Twilight couldn’t help but notice the disheveled, brown teddy bear in front of her, with one of the buttons for the eyes coming loose, with patches crudely sewn onto rips to try and hold the lumpy stuffing inside, looked a lot like Smartypants.
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Super sad and tragic story. I would argue for a tragedy tag being added to it. It hits the nail on the coffin for why Cozy's treatment was absolutely wrong and disgusting.
Damn hypocrites. Especially Fluttershy who is friends with Discord. I hate them so much here.
Yep, this is pretty much what happened in the show.
She just needs to try harder to convince them. She can still bring up the previously reformed villains or how the whole thing is still effecting her, Heck, she can still do it herself with magical artifacts and as the sole ruling princess simply outrank everyone that tries to bar her. She doesn't have to give up on her. That filly needs and deserves help.
Twilight really needs to tell sunbutt off sometime.
This was a great read. I also found myself really disappointed with the end given to the the Bad Three and Cozy Glow in particular. In a series where redemption was given out so readily, the stoning of Cozy Glow really didn’t sit right. Excellent work and I hope you do well in the contest!
that's what I always thought when you are stuck alone in a place, can't see anything, can't move anything, that is enough to make you lose your mind. Discord got in easy because he has live for a long time and is not a mortal. But when you lock a child like that,only way Twilight can't help her is to give her euthanasia,end her suffering
Very nicely written. Freedom for Cozy Glow!
thug at my heartstrings why don't you.
10932187
Thank you for your comment!!! I super agree, it would be insanely hard on Cozy Glow even if she was brought back or healed only a week or two after. If solitary confinement and sensory deprivation stuff is cruel or unusual, Equestria's forms of punishment really need looking over
Not like putting Luna on the moon after she got possessed by a force she couldn't control is much better though... hmm...
10932175
I'm really glad you liked our story enough to comment!! Thank you!! All your commentary on each part shows me how much you really read through and analyzed it! I appreciate that sort of thing so much, you have no idea.
While she probably could convince them with some effort, I, unfortunately, love stories with bitter endings that leave you lying awake in bed at night
At the end of the day, maybe she did convince them! My story only stops here for dramatic effect :>
10932185
Thank you so much for commenting!! The ending left a bad taste in everyone's mouth, I hope. You're right that it completely didn't match the themes of the show. It's strange, to take a show based on teaching social skills and friendship to little girls, and make it all about redemption, only to not redeem the only little girl villain in the entire show. I have no idea what sort of message is implied there? Maybe something about "If you do bad things when you're young, it means you'll be bad forever and don't deserve to be allowed to change and grow"
Either way, I'm glad you agree with me on how funky it was! I'm glad everyone else seems to be enjoying this take too!
10932538
Well, in the case of Luna I always got the impression that Celestia wasn't actually in control of what happened to Luna. Celestia was crying when she used the Elements on her sister, she clearly didn't want to fight against her, so if she could win without harming Luna I think she would have. In contrast, the Mane Six didn't even know who Luna was or know she was Celestia's sister, so I'm not sure they were intending to reform her either, that's just what happened. It seemed like a lot of the time the Elements just kind of did their own thing with the bearers merely acting as a power source, they only seem to be actively controlling what the Elements do a few times.
That kind of harsh punishment feels more understandable when it's not entirely in the heroes control. Also, most of the earlier punishments were carried out on villains who were still at the peak of their power and an active threat, as opposed to Cozy both times and the other two as well in the finale, who were already beaten and rendered non-threats and powerless to defend themselves, so that makes a difference too. It's one thing to stone a rampant Discord because he's being unreasonable and you have no other clear way to make him stop, it's another to stone a little filly who's already beaten and powerless.
10932547
I thought the story was a good one - especially the descriptions of the various items Twilight found.
A bit of a plot hole in the story though. It makes sense for Celestia/Luna/Discord to wish for Chrysalis/Tirek/Cozy Glow to be entrapped in stone forever - they wanted revenge and to make them suffer as seen by the grins and Discord's open gloating. In your story however, Twilight has pity for Cozy Glow and this opens up the plot hole - Twilight can simply cast a "reforming spell" as mentioned in S3E10 "Keep Calm and Flutter On" and no more evil filly.
With 9 seasons it is easy to miss stuff like this - especially in the early ones. Someone pointed out to me that Ocellus had a family, that I was not aware of, and that was in Season 8!
This story really highlights everything I didn't like about Cozy Glow's story line. Good shit, man.
10932601
On one hand, she could. But then Twi would be doing something that Starlight Glimmer got, and still get, heat on. That "reform" spell will basically be her using mind control to "reform" Cozy by forcing her to think a certain way against her will, so she would be "reformed" all right. However, being effectively brainwashed might still be preferable to being a stone, expecially if Cozy was awake and not in some kind of suspended animation.
Even then, something like that happening might put a sour taste in other fans' mouths. There was one fan that said that they would be against that more than what did happen, and I highly doubt they were alone, More so given the number of fans that were okay with even Cozy being stoned, or had mixed feelings about it, like I do..
10932624
There is a very good Youtube video on the morality issues on the Ending of the End that I highly recommend watching:
Why the MLP: FiM Series Finale is Disappointing (The Ending of the End Review) - YouTube
I don't want to drag this into an argument - let's just say from a purely pragmatic viewpoint torturing someone forever is INFINITELY a greater sin for a "good" character than brainwashing/imprisoning someone for say 80 years or just killing them.
You mention that they may be "sleeping" but this is not possible - Discord/Luna/Celestia wanted to make them suffer so they must be aware to accomplish that.
I cannot think of another cartoon that showed anything close to the number of immoralities displayed by the "good" characters in two episodes. You almost have to think the less evil side actually lost in S9E25 if you include Discord on the "good" side! Here is a good video on how these episodes pretty much ruined Discord.
MLP:FiM Finale - The Grogar Twist And How It Ruined Discord - YouTube
The guy is a bit animated though.
10932573
Interesting take! I feel like you're right. If Celestia had no control over what she did to Luna, i'd feel more understanding and compassionate.
And then, if they really could control what they did to Cozy, that makes it all the more tragic.
Especially when you account for what you said. I hadn't even thought about the fact that they'd already been beaten!
10932710
which is totally fine, not everyone has watched every single episodes multiple times like a maniac.
I wouldn't actually argue that they are sleeping, since Discord commented in season 3 episode 10 that he could hear everything since being imprisoned. "Being turned to stone doesn't keep me from hearing every word Celestia says" is the exact quote. Anyone who would say they were sleeping wouldn't be taking that into account
Thank you for the video recommendation though! I'll check it out!
10932601
) to use mind control on a child instead of something like therapy. A better punishment or containment, yeah! But I don't know if, like ThePinkedWonder suggested, everyone would consider it morally better than the stone thing. Oh well! It comes down to Pony philosophies in the end.
Yeaaah.. I don't think it's a good idea for our moral anchor of the show (for the most part, damn, why are you so mean to Trixie, Twi?
10932760
One interesting take in that video was the youtuber thinks the Elements of Harmony decide the appropriate punishment for each villain. He uses as examples Luna being spared compared to Sombra being killed. Had not thought of things that way.
Great story for a first one!
I can really feel the anguish and guilt here, and it's so well done. You've written a masterpiece, and I applaud you for it.
I feel like Cozy was meant to be an eldritch abomination disguising itself as an innocent filly, and somewhere along the way her true identity got lost/cut.
And that's how MLP ended up sending a child to pony hell and then turning her into a (possibly aware) statue for ETERNITY.
i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/845/004/3ad
Nice! I always found it weird to turn a child into a stone statue with that fearful expression, let alone Princesses accepting Discord's idea (who brought these villains together). It literally makes no sense that he got to decide about their punishment.
There's even more - watch the petrification moment and take a closer look at the sparks while this spell was in the progress
These sparks are white, just like Discord's when a combined shot of magic was flying to them. I have a theory that Princesses' blasts only destroyed that cupcake when Discord's magic was turning them into stone statues
lh4.googleusercontent.com/id3_8SdKga0C7bFyYRRs9FNkePQ7th6jQlGy2vpuBC2TIVeSABRoQq-t0_aYwbByMhP3_7ZNT9BG5e2Oru9mvBm42q4rphDp3YwPOxsjechy8J7xR7PfHE7ppPHAQq4BdP9YFKrv
Oh my..........
You have captured the fact beautifully that no matter what the reason was, Cozy was and is still a FOAL.
On a side note, have you considered auditioning as the writers of MLP?
10933032
tecnicly they were the only real threats left to him with chrisalis having the knolage of how to make the throne (i assume), tirek having his abilitys and cozy having the info on how to steal magic herself. while you can say that the main 6 and princessess might be able to stop him we dont know for certin that the rainbow powers will work on him plus he knows alot more of their strengths and weaknesses now.
this proberbly isnt the case but it would be an interesting consept if he did plan this and took over
10932858
Thank you so much for your kind words!! I'm really glad you consider this a masterpiece :>
While this is my first post on fimfiction it's definitely not my first story, and certainly won't be the last!
10933219
not unless they were trying to do something like. Live action MLP. Y'know how they fucked up the PPG? Haha!
Do you mean on the writing staff? Because i've wished I could have done that for YEARS!! It's a real shame I was too young during the run of the show to have a job, doing something like that would be a dream! I doubt they'd like my angst filled nonsense at hasbro though
Thank you so much for reading and taking the time to comment :>
10933032
Discord's hand in all of this is sort of.. really funky. Why should he not be turned back to stone for being at best an accomplice and at worse orchestrating the entire thing? He shouldn't get a say in what happens to them at all!
You bring up an interesting point
I think it boils down to, in our world, the writers needing some sort of "satisfying ending" and thinking them being turned to stone, with Discord being reformed would provide some sort of irony. But it isn't ironic! It's just weird. And.. sort of rushed. I'm sure someone would have been reformed sooner or later if the series went on, just for views.
In the MLP universe though? Oh yeah. Discord is an asshole.
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10933201
10932882
Ohhh, you think the writers forgot about something? That could totally be it!
Personally, I think that'd be weird. I thought her "performance" or behavior in the first introduction to her was quite genuine, if not misguided. She really did want help? At least a little bit. I understand that she knew it was power, but she wanted to make some friends too, right? She is like. What. 10? Maybe 12 if you like to age the crusaders up because of the Eqg franchise?? It's not weird for her to want to make friends at the friendship school. Maybe on rewatch i'd be able to catch something I missed that'd hint at that sort of storyline. Good take!
10933364
I definitely do!
All the best for the contest!
Thanks for writing this. I always thought the endings of S8 and S9 were surreal after how the endings of S5 and S7 in particular went. I never actually thought about how Twilight's friendless childhood under Celestia's mentorship had similarities to Cozy's situation though, makes it feel even more messed up.
10933365
Discord is indeed an asshole. He probably just wanted by revenge by making them feel what he did for a thousand years - no one is beyond being petty. His mindset was perhaps "They stole my magic, I'll make them pay because I know Sparkle and friends will win in the end"
Seriously? Cozy Glow tried to kill several others including Twilight herself and her friends. She has zero regrets and lies constantly to get what she wants.
I really don't get the pity party that people throw for her. All three villains do show a hint of being redeemable in 'frienemies' but they would first have to want to change. As of the finale, they still hate friendship because they see it as a weakness rather than a strength.
10933414
Beyond that! He literally brought King Sombra back from the dead just to have him killed again. That is Dracula level evil (check the 2nd link in my prior post just to see how evil the ending made Discord).
On a side note, has anyone ever given thought to who was delivering the pen-pal messages between Tirek and Cozy Glow?
Now who remains that has that kind of power to get into Tartarus? If you follow the old Conan Doyle quote "If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth" you have only one possibility left. Discord. That would make Discord the cause of both S8 and S9 takeover's of Equestria.
10933697
I'd like to point out that Discord did not want to change initially. When Celestia first ordered him released to be reformed, he mocked the entire concept of it, laughed in the ponies faces, tried to manipulate Fluttershy and did his best to get away with as much as he possibly could, only "Behaving" at all because they had the Elements ready to go and be used on him when necessary. It took nearly a whole episode before he even started to show any positive traits or reciprocate anything.
My point being that yeah, Cozy Glow is unrepentant, as are the other two. But this idea that they have to want to change first before our heroes can try and reform them is wrong. Yes, ultimately for a villain to truly change they have to want it, but that doesn't mean they can't be convinced to want it if our heroes try to show them the way. Starlight Glimmer is another example, she didn't require a whole episode, but Twilight had to first show her the unintended consequences of her actions, ask about and listen to her past and then keep trying to reason with and empathize with her to get through.
So, yes they need to want to change, but they need to be given a reason to want that, don't they? They aren't just going to magically change their minds for no reason if the rainbow lasers aren't doing it for them. Most reformations in this series that weren't done by rainbow laser only happened because the heroes reached out in some way first, giving the villains a reason to think there might be another way. Tempest only reformed because Twilight saved her life despite Tempest having done nothing to deserve such a thing, Twilight and Starlight flew into the darkness itself to hear things from Stygian's point of view, etc.
Chrysalis is really the only one of the trio who got that from the heroes, from Starlight back in Season 6. Tirek last got it over 1000 years ago with Scorpan and Cozy got literally nothing. Twilight asked her why she was doing it, yeah, but the second Cozy spouted her "Friendship is Power" schtick Twilight just gave up immediately, didn't try to dig deeper and see if there was a reason for that mindset or even try to convince her otherwise. Especially considering what Frenemies showed us, it's entirely possible she could have been reached if there had been more effort in reaching out, but we'll never know because they just never tried.
10933697
The point of this story isn't that she didn't do terrible things. What i'm trying to convey is that, even if she doesn't want the help, she's still a child. Abused children kick and scream and bite and fight their caretakers, teachers, and a lot of people that attempt to come close. But it doesn't make them bad people. They aren't bad people yet, because they have the chance to change as they grow and get older. Our job as adults in their lives is to care for and guide them, even if they don't appreciate it yet. Have you ever seen a toddler act out violently against someone before? You don't hurt them back. You explain why it's wrong gently and calmly, and put them in a time out. You don't damage them for life over something that they might grow out of in a few years.
THAT'S what was wrong with Cozy Glow's punishment. If she was an adult, it would be completely deserved! Chrysalis and Tirek get the same treatment pre-reform Discord got probably because they aren't as magically powerful/beneficial to have on Equestria's side. The issue is that Cozy Glow is the same age as the Crusaders, or very close to it, and shouldn't be tried as an adult who has had chances to stop.
10933393
I'm so glad you enjoyed the read!! Using Twilight as a comparison was fun to do, especially when she sees herself in someone Celestia would consider a villain
10933735
VERY interesting.. I never thought about how those letters were getting sent there. Why WOULD Discord allow that sort of thing to happen? And, for that matter, more of this punishment should be placed on the adults of this situation (Tirek and Discord) to stop this? Instead of blaming it on Cozy Glow?
Children and young teenagers, even young adults will actively seek out relationships with older mentors or friends, or even romantic prospects that would harm them. It's never the victim's fault that someone has groomed them, even if the victim came to the adult first. The adult's job is to shut it down and say no. Personally, I wonder how much of Cozy's philosophy came after she had already been imprisoned in Tartarus the first time, and how much was taught to her by the beings there. If Celestia or Twilight had just taken her in then..
Hm
10934089
I think that a toddler throwing a tantrum is different than premeditated murder. Anyway, it's a fictional character so you can interpret it however you want, I'm just surprised how many people see Cozy as different from other villains just because of her supposed age.
I do think Twilight would try to reform her and the other villains once it's safe, but they've demonstrated pretty clearly that they can do a lot of damage if left unchecked. It would have been interesting if in the last episode where we saw "the future" if the villain trio were reformed or at least "on parole" in some capacity.
10933991
Well I do think all the trio has shown some redeemability. I don't think they'd ever truly be able to become "friends" with the mane 6 but they could probably be convinced to leave Equestria alone and pursue other goals besides power.
I think Twilight would try to reform them at some point, but it would take a while for her to be ready for that. The trio has done alot of horrible stuff to her. Chrysalis kidnapped her, her family and friends several times, not to mention waged war on Equestria. Tirek destroyed her home and nearly killed her pet owl. Cozy took advantage of her friendship, tried to imprison her forever, and murder her and her friends (ironically if Chrysalis hadn't intervened Cozy would have just destroyed the mane 6 on the spot and the trio would have won).
Compared to that stuff, I don't think the crimes of any of the reformed villains really compare and I see Cozy as the worst offender.
10934668
Meanwhile, Starlight Glimmer stole her and her friends cutie marks, locked them in a brainwashing room, stalked her, used a spell to change time and almost ended up causing the apocalypse with it, blasted one of her best friends Rainbow Dash out of the sky when she was just a child, and trapped her and Spike in a crystal falling to their death. Discord twisted her friends minds until they became the opposite of themselves, taking pleasure in it the whole time and trying to permanently break up their friendship, then after reforming he betrayed them all and helped Tirek steal all their magic and conquer their kingdom. Tempest Shadow led an army into Canterlot and invaded it, and turned three of the Princesses, all of who Twilight is very close to into statues to let them have their magic drained. Sunset stole Twilight's crown, kidnapped Spike, planned to use Equestrian magic to turn a bunch of people into her slaves to invade Equestria, and actually did attempt to kill Twilight and the Humane 5 too.
I don't really think the trio's crimes are all that meaningfully worse than all the others really. Many of them also tried to conquer the kingdom, kidnapped and imprisoned Twilight or others she cared about, betrayed her or even tried to kill her or somepony else. Most of them only showed any remorse for any of this once being reached out to. She forgave Discord for his betrayal in Season 4 and counted him as a friend still for instance, despite him doing nothing to apologize or show he's sincerely sorry to her until after she did that. If the trio's crimes are any worse, it's only because they haven't been reformed and thus they keep coming back to do the same things, which is what basically any of the other villains would do too if they weren't reformed. Discord would almost certainly have just gone back to causing chaos and wreaking havoc if he broke out on his own again, Starlight almost certainly would have continued to seek revenge on Twilight if she was defeated without reformation, etc. Now, maybe the trio can't be reformed, but that can't be known until a solid attempt is made.
With Cozy, Twilight back in Season 8 made it clear she felt as if she had failed Cozy and that she was sorry for that, which is another reason her fate feels so bad. If she feels she failed and is sorry, then why not try to teach her again now that she's shown her true self? If she's willing to forgive Discord's betrayal why not hers? The Season 7 finale was all about trying to reach out and understand a villain and not just giving up on them because they seem to be nothing but a monster on the surface, but that's what they did to Cozy when she didn't immediately fall down and beg for forgiveness.
10934100
You could take this a step farther .. how does Cozy Glow become the empress of Equestria? Celestia/Luna were heading to Ponyville with the army so even if all magic goes away she will simply be captured and imprisoned. She would have to be an idiot not to see this coming.
Isn't it convenient that Discord was away so that he would not lose his magic? With Discord's backing Cozy Glow's plan to get rid of magic makes sense ... Discord eliminates all those who can challenge him and thus could easily put Cozy Glow in charge (assuming he does not change his mind).
There are a couple of things in Cozy's favor. She is the only one of the trio who deliberately went out of her way not to kill. If you recall in the throne room the guards charged her and she opened up a portal dropping them into the moat. She could just as easily have sent them over the cliff. Also, think about it, Cozy would have to show a great deal of care in subduing the royal guard and not accidently killing one.
If your into mysteries .. riddle me this ... if Cozy Glow wanted to kill Twilight than why is Twilight not dead?! As soon as she drops the guards in the throne room she zaps Twilight who is taken completely by surprise (no shield, no counter spell, no armor, no anything). The only possible answer is Cozy Glow deliberately avoided killing her. Why?
Arguably the most evil of all villains, Dr. Caballeron, who actually tried to murder multiple people multiple times gets turned into a writer at the end. Go figure.
10934761
I love how you worded this because, I totally wanted to say what you did, I just didn't know how to go about it. You listed the other things that came to mind perfectly!
10940140
The Storm King's death was a total accident, not an execution. He attempted to attack Twilight with one of those stone gas bombs, but when Tempest leaped in front to protect her the gas spread to him, turning him to stone and he fell and broke. That's an accident that was brought about entirely due to his own actions, literally nobody attempted to kill him.
Sombra also wasn't an execution either time, since both times he died he was an active threat at full power. Killing a dangerous foe in combat isn't execution. Also, I'm uncertain whether anypony actually truly meant to kill him either time, and if that wasn't just what the magic of the Heart and Friendship did entirely on their own. Still, you are right that nobody tried to reach out and help him, so similar situation to Tirek.
The trio being stoned is really the only thing in the series that resembles an actual execution, since the trio were left powerless and at the mercy of the heroes before their stoning, while any other similar punishments in the series were usually done to villains who were active threats and were done as a means of stopping them.
It's always sad to see comments in stories like these defending what amounts to either child murder, or child torture. With the implication that it's OK to do so if the child is evil enough.
10943598
I'm really glad you liked the story enough to comment though!! I appreciate you!
Agreed :< And I didn't really wanna start fighting about it either so, I sort of gave up. I personally can't compare the likes of Tirek, Sombra and the Storm king to a literal middle schooler. Glad some people in my comments section agree, haha!
Great story.