For the first time in a long time, the cutie map summons a particular student of Twilight Sparkle to solve a friendship problem. The problem? Teach three familiar characters the power of friendship. It won’t be easy.
When the cutie map calls for Luster Dawn after being dormant for a long time, many questions stir within her mind. However, her anxiety increases when she discovers her friendship problem may be one of the hardest ones anypony ever had to endure.
It’s been a month now. A month since Luster Dawn realized the true power of friendship. And she couldn’t have been happier. After hearing the story of Princess Twilight’s coronation and seeing her friends, she has befriended so many creatures and ponies.
A couple days later, Princess Twilight assigned her something that has been assigned by her own mentor so many years ago: write down letters explaining any lessons of friendship. It was a start for Luster.
She was on her way to meet Princess Twilight at her old castle at the very moment. It was something about a map she wanted her to see. She couldn’t tell because when she got the letter in the mail, she dropped it in a puddle, resulting in half of the letter getting smudged.
As usual, she waved to any passerby she could wave to. Now that she made friends, it’s easier to be social instead of having to worry about losing a friend.
“Luster! Over here!”
The voice caught Luster’s attention after greeting the wall-eyed grey Pegasus that delivered her mail. She turned her head forward, surprised to see the large castle before her. She must have been so caught up in socializing, that she barely noticed the large structure.
At the entrance, a large purple and green dragon stood next to a carriage harnessing guard ponies.
She ran over as soon as they got her attention.
“Hello, Spike,” the unicorn greeted. “Princess Twilight wanted me to meet her here. Said something about a map.”
“You mean the friendship map?”
“That’s what it’s called?”
Spike glared at her and crossed his arms.
“You dropped the letter in a puddle again, didn’t you?”
Luster’s cheeks turned red.
“Ok! So I have a habit of reading letters while I trot someplace, making it hard to see my surroundings. If my mentor sends me a letter, I have to read it!”
Spike chuckled.
“Trust me. Twilight did it too. But it was more to books than scrolls. Anyway, we should head inside. Can’t keep a princess waiting.”
With that, Spike opened the door and walked inside. Luster followed suit.
The castle, at the moment, was empty, since the caretakers were on a field trip with the students from the school of friendship. It was still as shiny as ever. The first time Luster saw it, she thought she would go blind.
Finally, Spike and Luster reached a big set of doors.
“It’s in there? I was never able to go in there!”
“Well, it’s a friendship map. The Princess figured it would be best to show you the map at the right time.”
Spike pushed it open and held it for Luster.
“Ladies first.”
Luster smirked.
“You didn’t do the same thing outside.”
“That’s because the Princess wasn’t watching me.”
Luster smirked and pointed her hoof to Princess Twilight, who stood there with an amused look on her face.
Spike’s face flushed red before he spoke.
“Making me rat myself out. Good move, Luster. But watch out. I’ll get you back someday.”
The Princess spoke, a smile still on her face.
“If you do, it’s back to chore time, mister.”
Luster held back a laugh as Spike’s face turned into a darker shade of red.
“Anyway, I would like to thank you for coming Luster.”
“No problem, your majesty. You wanted to show me a friendship map?”
“Come with me. Spike, you too.”
Princess Twilight turned and began walking to a large table, with Luster and Spike coming after her.
“This...” the Princess said, motioning her hoof across the large table, “Is the Cutie Map.”
Luster looked amazed.
“Wow! It’s so big!” she turned her head to the seven chairs. “And were those where your friends sat?”
“Yep! Did the cutie marks give it away?”
Luster nodded.
Spike whispered to Luster, “I had the small chair next to Twilight’s.”
Luster smiled before walking closer to the large map. It was shiny and looked as if it had all of Equestria. She couldn’t hold back anymore. She had to ask.
“So... why is this map important?”
Twilight spoke, looking at the map.
“You know about the Tree of Harmony, right?”
Luster nodded.
“Well, a while after I became an Alicorn, the next Summer Sun Celebration was only a short time away. However, on a night where the celebration was around the corner, Princess Celestia and Luna vanished. The sky had both the sun AND the moon, splitting it into two. Even worse, vines and clouds from the Everfree Forest started to cover Ponyville. My friends and I soon discovered we had to bring the Elements back to the tree, where they originally belonged. The tree was dying without them, allowing the vines to spread. When we put the Elements back, not only was the day saved, but a mysterious chest showed up too. We had no idea where the keys were, however. As time passed, we all did certain things that resulted in us getting objects. Not just any objects, though. They were the keys. Soon, all keys but mine were found.
“But on the day Tirek attacked us and convinced Discord to join him, it looked like it was all over. But when I saw my friends and Discord captured, I chose to give up my magic for my friends along with Discord. As a result, Discord gave me a medallion he got from Tirek because he now saw friendship in a whole new light. The medallion glowed, and I saw it was my key! We unlocked the chest, defeated Tirek, and as a result, the chest transformed into a castle!
“Soon, we saw a table emerge in the room with our thrones. The Cutie Map! The purpose of the map was to call a certain pony fit to solve any certain friendship problems in Equestria.”
Twilight rubbed her hoof on the map.
“It’s been dormant for so long now. But looking at it gives me pleasure of all the memories of my friends and I solving friendship problems..”
Spike chuckled and looked at the map.
“Heh. Just imagine. The map suddenly ‘wakes up’ again and calls some random pony to solve a friendship problem.”
Suddenly, a faint glow caught Spike’s eye. Twilight took notice too. When they turned their heads to the glow, their mouths opened in shock.
Luster’s cutie mark was glowing!
Luster turned her head to her flank and took notice too. Suddenly, her facial expression turned to worry.
“P-Princess? What’s happening?”
“The map! I think it’s calling you!”
Suddenly, a projection of Luster's cutie mark emerged from her flank and floated around the map, soon circling around a very familiar area.
“The Canterlot Garden! But why would the map call Luster there?” asked Spike.
“I have no idea,” Twilight replied. “But I think it’s time to head to Canterlot. Because it looks like Luster has to solve a friendship problem.”
Luster gulped. It looked as if this day just got weirder.
The wind blew against Luster’s face and carried her mane with it as the carriage carried her, Spike, and Princess Twilight through the daytime sky. While the feeling would normally be calming, Luster instead felt only wonder and pure anxiety.
Spike was the first to notice.
“Luster?" the dragon said with concern. "Is something wrong?”
Twilight also turned to look at her troubled student.
“It’s just...” Luster started, “It’s just that, the map’s been dormant for so long. Sure, I only knew of its purpose for an hour. But I find it weird that, of all the ponies it would call for after so many years of being dormant, the pony it would call for would be... me.”
Princess Twilight and Spike listened with high interest. They knew she wasn’t finished yet.
“I mean, I only truly accepted friendship for a month. I only had a large group of friends for a month. I only started being more social for a month. I can keep on going on and on and...”
“Luster?”
The voice of Princess Twilight turned Luster Dawn's attention to her mentor.
“I understand your frustration," Twilight continued. "Sure, I didn’t have as much anxiety and confusion when I was first called by the map with my friends. But I valued friendship longer than you at the time.”
“Yeah. She was in that know-it-all phase," Spike chimed in. "You’re still in the writing letters phase.”
The Princess looked at Spike.
“Oh, hardy-har-har," she said, jokingly rolling her eyes. "Listen Luster. I have felt your anxiety. Even if it WAS for different reasons. But let me give you some advice from my experience: just don’t get anxiety too often or else your friends will make you a verb.”
“The last time I heard the verb ‘Twilight-ing’ was two weeks ago," Spike muttered. "Those ponies don’t know when to quit do they?”
Twilight giggled before adding a comment of her own.
“Ok, ok. So I’m still a verb. But now that I think about it, it is kinda funny.”
“Funny?" Spike lifted a brow. "I find it hilarious that it’s still a thing.”
Twilight face hoofed, smiling, before pointing her hoof at Spike.
“You know, I wonder what will happen if I made you my maid. With a dress and everything.” she joked.
Luster and Spike both looked at her with weird looks on their faces.
“What?" Twilight smirked. "A princess can have a sense of humor too! Trust me! I’ve seen Celestia’s humorous side FAR too many times.”
Luster snickered.
“You know..." Luster began. "You two always say things that make me want to laugh. I think I feel better now.”
“Well, don’t go around forcing us to do that...” Spike muttered.
The Princess ignored Spike’s comment and smiled at Luster.
“Well, I’m glad you’re feeling better," Twilight said. "And just in time too! It looks like we’re here.”
Luster saw that they were, indeed, there. Her face showed signs of wonder and amazement as the lush green gardens came into view, with many colors on the leaves and a few stone statues lying around. It was amazing how big the entrance was: it could fit 10 carriages. Otherwise, Luster would have had to walk there on hoof.
Finally, the carriage slowly came to a halt as the guard ponies driving finally managed to find a spot. The mixture of the carriage and the guard ponies armor both landing still wasn’t enough to make any noise from the plush green grass they landed on.
Twilight exited the carriage. Luster and Spike immediately followed. They were right in front of the entrance, with another pony standing there with a hazmat suit on. When he noticed the three friends at first, he looked alarmed, until he seemed to have calmed down. His horn under the helmet glowed a shade of lime green, before the helmet slid off his face. Under that helmet revealed the face of a young male unicorn, with a yellow coat, orange mane, and lime green eyes
“Well, if it isn’t Princess Twilight,” he said, bowing with the utmost respect. “It’s good to see you, your majesty.”
“It’s good to see you too. I take it the garden has an infestation?”
“You have no idea! We’ve been spraying the plants for days! The pests moved out, but since the gas is still settling, it’s still too dangerous for anypony to go in!”
“Well, I have to go in on royal duties. But thankfully, I know a little spell that will protect my friends and I from the gas.”
“Well, as long as you know a spell, I guess I've got nothing to worry about. After all...” the stallion looked at his watch. “I got a lunch break! If I’m the first one there, then it’s hello free donuts!”
And then, he galloped away, leaving the three friends alone with the guard ponies.
“Ok then...” Princess Twilight began. “I need you two to hold still so I can focus.”
With that, her longhorn ignited it’s magenta glow, before the glow covered Luster and Spike, as well as herself. Immediately after, the bright glow faded.
“There,” Twilight said. “This should protect us from the gasses. Let’s look around the place. I bet two of the workers here are arguing or something. I bet they’re forgetting it’s lunchtime.”
“Makes sense of why they are the only ones here,” said Spike. “They all have hazmat suits.”
Luster spoke up. “I just hope it’s something simple. I’m still new at this. That’s also another reason why I’m worried. I’m still so new at all of this friendship stuff. I’m learning left to right, but it only feels like yesterday you told me about the coronation.”
“We will see,” Luster’s mentor said. “We will see.”
And with that, the trio entered the garden, while the guard ponies loosened themselves from the carriage to watch the gate.
The flowers and leaves all looked like they have been rained on, despite the fact there has been no storm for days. Although the garden was large, it took them thirty minutes to realize there was nopony there.
“I get the deep feeling that nopony's here,” said Spike. “You can hear anything in this garden, with the calming atmosphere and stuff.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” Twilight pondered. “Why would Luster be sent here for a friendship problem if nopony was here. The only other living beings here besides us are... wait!”
“What? What is it?” Luster asked her mentor with obvious worry.
“I think I might know who the subject of the problem is!”
“Who?” Spike asked.
“Come with me,” Princess Twilight ordered, before continuing forward.
Luster and Spike looked at each other before following the Princess.
It didn’t take long for Princess Twilight to find what she was looking for. She stopped to stare at what she was looking for.
Luster Dawn walked closer to where her mentor was staring. There, a specific stone statue with three figures stood in place. One figure looked like a small filly with a curly mane and a frightened facial expression. The second looked like a small centaur, holding up his arms and sporting a facial expression with closed eyes and a frown. The third figure was undoubtedly a changeling. But different. She sported holes on her legs, wings and long mane. She had a long jagged horn protruding out of her head, with a small crown perched behind her horn. And her position showed her lunging at her enemy, with a facial expression of rage and bitter hate.
The pedestal the figures stood on had a small gold sign on it that said “Cozy Glow, Lord Tirek, and Queen Chrysalis: The baddies of the century.”
Luster suddenly felt uneasy in her stomach. These were undoubtedly the villains that Princess Twilight told her about. These were the villains that nearly destroyed Equestria a while before the day of Twilight’s coronation.
“Luster...” the Princess began. “I think you have to help... them!”
“So let me get this straight...” Luster Dawn began. “You’re telling me that I have to help THESE three villains with a friendship problem? The same villains that almost destroyed Equestria?”
“It makes sense,” Princess Twilight said. “If there was an argument going on here, Pest Bomber would have told us before he left.”
“Maybe Fluttershy is trying to defend the pests,” Luster suggested. “Maybe there’s a feud with her and the exterminators.”
“Actually, the exterminators use gasses that cause the pests to immediately evacuate to another area. While it doesn’t hurt the pests, it can be very harmful for us, which is why we wear hazmats or use protecting spells. The villains are the most logical target for a problem. They don’t understand friendship very well! I don’t know why the map waited until today to call for somepony, but if there is a friendship problem, it seems only fair to take care of it.”
“I see. I only have one question: HOW can I make this work? These villains will want to either escape or attack me once we let them out.”
“I have just the solution. Hold on!”
And with that, Princess Twilight’s horn lit up its magenta glow before disappearing in thin air.
POOF
“I wonder what she’s getting,” Spike said.
“As my mentor, I think she’s getting something to assist me. I just wonder what-“
POOF
Twilight suddenly reappeared, using her magic to carry two large boxes, a large cooler, and what looked like four bags of tents.
“I know I can’t usually intervene on friendship problems unless the map calls me, but I figured I’d give you the right equipment. Reforming villains is no cake. With how long it took for Discord to fully change his ways, this may take weeks since we have THREE villains instead of ONE. So I grabbed four tents along with a couple boxes. One has food. Another has cooking tools, plates, silverware, straws, and cups. The last one has sleeping bags. The cooler is full of drinks.
“Thanks your majesty. But why tents and food?”
“Just in case you had the thought to travel someplace far from where they can’t cause trouble.”
“In that case, I’ll take them.”
“Very well.”
“Thank you.”
“So Luster... where are you gonna go?” asked Spike.
“I’ve been researching a lot of areas in and out of Equestria and I think I have JUST the place.”
“Where?” asked the Princess.
“You know that small field surrounded by a forest that’s even more dangerous than the Everfree?”
“I do. And I believe that may be fitting. As long as the villains are only restricted to getting away on hoof, they wouldn’t even set foot in the forest. Since some of the required spells are only Alicorn worthy, I will come with you to your location and perform the spells.”
“Thanks your majesty. Do you want to come, Spike?”
“No thanks. I can hang back at the carriage. I got a card game rematch with the guards that brought us here. And I will not lose again!”
“Very well, Spike. I will see you then,” Twilight said.
Spike waved goodbye before turning around and leaving. Now, Luster and Princess Twilight were alone with the imprisoned trio.
“Ok...” Princess Twilight said. “First I can take us to your chosen location. Then, I will try to perform the following spells at the same time: I will release the villains, make them unconscious, restrain their magic, and then paralyze Chrysalis and Cozy’s wings. I don’t need to use a spell to make them unconscious, because the type of stone spell that was used on them made them unconscious. Even when we release them, they will still be asleep for an unknown amount of time.”
“Are you sure that’s safe?”
“Meh. I once had the power of three other Alicorns mixed with mine. I don’t know if this is more tame or extreme than that situation, but it’s worth a try”
“I just don’t want you to get hurt. Or worse.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.”
Luster took a deep breath.
“Ok then. I think I’m ready.”
Princess Twilight smiled before the magenta glow enveloped her horn. A small white ball of light was perched at the top of the glow. The light got brighter and brighter before flashing very brightly. A loud POOF followed the blinding light before it enveloped not only Twilight, but Luster and the statue as well.
Immediately after, the light faded and the two ponies found themselves in a small open field surrounded by dark trees covered in vines.
“Ok. Here goes nothing. Make sure to shield your eyes.”
Again, Twilight’s horn lit up, with a small ball of white light sticking out at the end of the magenta glow, expanding as the seconds passed.
Suddenly, another loud and bright explosion of light covered the field. Luster did as she was told and immediately closed her eyes, along with using her hoof to shield them. Even then, she could still see the bright light. Fade away a mere second after it blew up.
When she was certain the bright light was gone, Luster moved her hoof away from her eyes and opened them. She immediately saw her mentor’s limp body lying on the ground.
“PRINCESS!!!!”
Luster ran over to the Princess’s aid. She didn’t even bother to see if the spells worked
“Are you ok?”
Luster breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Twilight’s eye open weakly. Slowly, Twilight rose up on her hooves. Luster backed away to give her some space.
“I-I’m fine. I have a headache, but I’m fine. Shall we see the condition of the villains?”
Luster nodded and walked past Princess Twilight to see the result of the spell. Gone was the stone statue of the three malevolent villains. In its place were the three villains, lying limp on the ground, with no traces of stone on their bodies.
Luster turned around to see her mentor facing her direction.
“Are you sure you’re ok?”
“Yeah. I might need to get some rest as soon as I can, but I’m fine. As for you...” Twilight places her hoof under her students chin.
“You have a friendship problem to solve. You will know you’re done once your cutie mark glows again.”
For the last time that day, Luster watched as the Princess backed away and lit up her horn. Twilight looked at Luster Dawn one last time before saying, “Good luck, my student.”
After her mentor vanished, Luster Dawn stood still for a minute and pondered what to do for preparation. She didn’t know when the villains would wake up, but if she was gonna teach them friendship, they should know how good-spirited she is. Will it do anything to convince them to consider the power of friendship? Definitely not. But it was a decent way to pass the time.
First: tents. Luster didn’t have a lot of knowledge of setting up tents since she spent most of her time at magic school. She did go camping ONCE after she made friends, but she wasn’t the one to set up the tents.
Still, worth a try.
Luster opened the first tent bag and dumped out the contents. A small, thin booklet was the last thing to fall out. Using her magic from her horn, Luster levitated the booklet to read the title.
TENT SETUP MANUAL
“Well, at least I have instructions...” she mumbled to herself.
It took a few tries, but twenty minutes later, Luster set up a perfect tent. Fortunately, setting up the rest of the tents was quicker and easier. The setup for the last tent only took five minutes. Not bad.
Luster backed away to acknowledge her work. Luckily, all the tents were different colors. That way, nopony will be confused about which tent is theirs and which tent isn’t.
Luster opened the large box of sleeping bags and put one in each tent. She noticed a large black cloak in there as well it had a note.
Give this to Tirek.
-Princess Twilight
Not wondering why Princess Twilight wanted her to give Tirek a cloak, Luster put the cloak in the red tent. She assumed that Tirek would pick the red tent to sleep in.
Next: Where to cook and eat. Luster knew that her location would prohibit searching for food, since nopony would enter the forest. She opened the food box to check if there was any food that needed cooking. There was. There were plenty of frozen hayburger patties, along with a couple apple pies and other goods as well. After opening the third box, she saw a bunch of cups, straws, plates, and silverware. After some more digging, she also saw a grill grate and spatula at the bottom for the hayburgers. Bonus! Luckily for Luster, she could easily use her magic to hold the grate above the fire and also hold the spatula to flip the patties.
Luster put everything back in the box and then searched the field to see if there were any large logs or rocks on the border of the forest to make the cooking area. Luckily, she found enough rocks to make a fire ring and four logs to make the seats that surround the fire.
Now, she just had to put the rocks and logs in their places.
Luster successfully made a fire ring by pulling out a patch of grass to make a circle, before using the rocks to surround that grass-free area. She then placed the logs close, but not far from the fire, so she and the villains could be warm.
Again, she admired her work.
“Sheesh. Maybe I should have got a cutie mark in camp setup. This is amazing.” Luster said to herself.
“Oh, I bet it is! I bet it is indeed!” a voice said. “It’s nice that you set up a campsite. However, I would be surprised if this setup immediately convinced the villains to listen to your friendship lessons.”
Luster recognized the voice. She only met the owner once or twice, but she knew who it was.
“Discord?”
POOF
The master of chaos himself suddenly appeared out of nowhere, wearing camping getup.
“Yes, yes. It is I! Discord! My, I love what you’ve done with the place! It totally SPICES up the field, don’t you think?” said Discord, a floating pepper shaker appearing and sprinkling pepper on the field by itself.
“Why are you here? How did you know I was here?”
“Well, since you ask...” the pepper shaker disappeared and the camp outfit Discord was wearing vanished too. “How I knew you were here, I will never tell. But the reason why I’m here is to tell you this: I have done evil deeds too. I’ve nearly took over Equestria twice. And yet, I was given the chance to reform! It wasn’t easy for Twilight OR dear Fluttershy, but I soon came around. Sure, I joined Tirek at some point, until I came around again!”
“What made you reform? The first time?”
Discord stood silent for a few seconds, before he cleared his throat and began telling his story. A projection of the events appeared as Discord started speaking, changing video clips as his story carried on.
“Well, my precious Fluttershy was in the process of reforming me, but as the fiend I was, I decided to mess with her. Pretend. Manipulate. At some point, she called herself my friend. I was happy to hear that, because I never had any friends. But I still did chaotic things to Sweet Apple Acres, such as turning a flood occurring there into ice. Fluttershy and her friends tried to stop me, but I refused... until I realized I would lose the only friend I had. So, I stopped, and decided to change my ways. That is, until Tirek got me to join them.” the projection immediately vanished when Discord finished his story.
“So... should I become their friend immediately or...”
“Luster, listen... these villains are different than me. THEY are gonna be a bigger challenge. ESPECIALLY Chryssie over there.” Discord, pointed at the unconscious former changeling ruler and continued. “I am not sure if they require the same methods Fluttershy used to reform me. They may say no to your friendship offer, or not feel as overjoyed about making a friend as I did. All I’m saying is, it’s gonna be tough.” Discord’s arm suddenly grew buff before shrinking again.
“So... what do I do?” Luster asked.
“It’s your friendship problem, not mine. Now, I got to go. Fluttershy and I are going to a new tea store that opened in the Crystal Empire! She really wants to go there and try some tea and sandwich samples.”
Discord held up his talon, ready to snap.
“Have fun with your friendship mission,” Discord said, waving goodbye with his lion paw.
POOF
And Discord was gone.
Luster Dawn was silent. Discord had a point. Would they even accept friendship like Discord did? Or would they treat the situation differently?
Luster Dawn sat down to ponder some more about the situation, until a faint sound caught her attention.
She suddenly heard faint moaning from behind her. Luster stood up and turned around, only to see the bodies of the three villains moving.
They were waking up!
Luster Dawn took in a deep breath, and then exhaled.
Luster Dawn quickly used an invisibility spell she learned in magic school to hide herself as Queen Chrysalis, Lord Tirek, and Cozy Glow all got on their hooves. She didn’t want to be noticed right away, and she wanted to learn about them more.
“Ugh... What just happened?” asked Cozy Glow, rubbing her head.
“Last thing I remember, those pathetic Princesses and Discord cast the stone sleep spell on us.” said Chrysalis.
“Makes sense if it was stone sleep. If it was the other stone spell, we could hear the reasons for WHY we’re here!” Tirek stated.
“Well, we’re free NOW! Maybe we could get out of here and thank whoever freed us. Maybe they could help us to conquer Equestria,” Cozy said, with high confidence in her voice, as if she thinks the other two villains will continue to work with her.
“What do you mean WE?!?!” Chrysalis said. “You all could have blasted Twilight instead of listening to her speech! INSTEAD, we got defeated AGAIN and TURNED to STONE!!!!!”
“Um... HELLO?!?! YOU didn’t do anything EITHER!!!” Tirek stated.
“OH YEAH?!?!? Well, YOU or Cozy could’ve snapped me out of it, OR you could have tried to attack her YOURSELVES!!!!!” Chrysalis rebutted.
“Maybe, if you had given ME more magic, I could have destroyed them ALL with one blast at ANYTIME!!” Cozy said. She then arched her back up, straining, before she regained her original posture. “W-WHY CAN’T I FLY?!?!”
“Um...” Luster spoke up. “I think I can explain everything...”
Luster Dawn suddenly appeared in front of the trio as she deactivated the spell.
“Obviously more than why you can’t fly, of course.”
“WHO in the hay are YOU?” Chrysalis asked, a scowl on her face as she pointed her hole-filled hoof to the unicorn.
“I am Luster Dawn. Twilight Sparkle’s student.”
“TWILIGHT SPARKLE!?!?!?!” Chrysalis yelled alarmingly, revenge and anger in her voice. She leaped at Luster and pointed her horn at the surprisingly brave-looking unicorn. Nothing happened.
Chrysalis lifted her head. “Wha-“ she pointed her horn at Luster again. “WHAT HAPPENED TO MY MAGIC?!?! Tirek, can YOU do anything? STEAL HER MAGIC ALREADY!!”
Tirek stepped forward next to Chrysalis’ left, leaving Cozy behind. He opened his mouth and inhaled. Nothing happened.
“I can’t do anything either!”
Cozy stepped forward next to Chrysalis’ right. “WHAT HAPPENED TO US?!?!” she asked in a commanding tone, stomping her hoof.
“If you don’t try to destroy me, I can tell you.”
Chrysalis opened her mouth to speak.
“And don’t think of physically beating me either. I have magic too, you know,” Luster said.
Chrysalis closed her mouth, before speaking again.
“I can just FLY out of here. Cozy may not, but I CAN!!!” Chrysalis arched up her back, and strained.
“You can’t fly either you know.”
“Sweet mother of... I CAN JUST RUN OUT OF HERE!!!” Chrysalis suddenly ran forward, laughing maniacally. Luster jumped out of her way, landing on her stomach. She rolled onto her back and saw Tirek and Cozy following suit.
All Luster did was grin.
“They’ll be back,” Luster said. “They’ll be back.”
***
It was already dusk. Luster sat on one of the logs, with the warm fire comforting her. She knew the villains would come back. At some point. “AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!”
The sound of all three villains screaming suddenly echoed in the field. Luster turned her head to the left to see Chrysalis, then Tirek, and then Cozy, bursting out of the forest. Chrysalis stopped first, panting. Tirek once again stopped on Chrysalis’ left, and Cozy once again stopped on her right. Both were also panting. Luster couldn’t help but wonder if they were ALWAYS in that order when they were in a line.
The panting lasted for a minute. Chrysalis was the first to snap out of it. She cleared her throat before walking over to one of the logs. She sat on the one in front of Luster. She glared at Tirek and Cozy Glow. They took one look at her, before they ceased the panting, looked at each other, nodded, and headed over.
Tirek took the log on Luster’s left. Cozy took the one on the right. Now Luster was certain that where they place themselves is intentional. Wouldn’t hurt to ask. At some point.
Chrysalis said only one thing.
“Talk!”
“It would make sense if you asked me a question, first.”
“Listen! I’ve already been humiliated for the fourth time in my life, and we have nowhere else to go. Before we ran out of that... forest, we agreed to try and get answers from you if we had no choice but to stay here. After that, we would try to avoid you as MUCH as possible. Now talk! How long have we been in stone?”
Luster cleared her throat.
“Well... my guess is... I don’t know. Princess Twilight never gave me a specific date when she told me about you. She only said ‘a while before my coronation.’ “
“Hold up. Hold up.” Cozy began. “Coronation?”
“Yeah. Princess Twilight has been the princess of Equestria for years. She was crowned before I was born.”
“Great! That’s JUST great!” The filly huffed.
“Any OTHER changes in Equestria?” Tirek asked.
“I was told all creatures used to live separately. Now, they all life in a mixed community. Yaks. Dragons. Changelings. You name them.”
“I see.” Chrysalis said, a low growl in her voice. “And WHAT convinced the Princess to free us?!? And why do we have to be stuck with YOU?!?!” Luster could have sworn Chrysalis’ eye twitched when she asked.
“Well...” Luster began. “It started earlier today. I got an important letter from the Princess telling me to meet her at her old castle. When I got there, she and her royal advisor, Spike, showed me this cutie map.”
“I think I learned about that map in school...” Cozy said.
Luster resumed her story. “The Princess then told me the origin story about the map and the castle.”
She pointed a hoof at Tirek. “She mentioned your attack, when they defeated you the first time by unlocking a chest from the Tree of Harmony, all that stuff.”
“That memory is still as fresh as day,” Tirek mumbled.
Luster continued. “When she finished her story, my cutie mark suddenly glowed. A projection of it appeared and floated above the Canterlot Garden, which is where you all were while you were imprisoned. After examining the place, we discovered that everypony who was exterminating the place of pests were gone. The only ones alive besides me, Spike and the Princess were... you. So, Princess Twilight and I decided to take safety precautions. We would send you three with me to a location where you will cause no harm. I chose here, since this field is surrounded by a forest that is even more dangerous than any forest in Equestria. The Princess then cast a few spells that freed you from your stone prison, along with restraining your magic and flight. She also sent me with some food, tents, and other supplies.”
Nopony said anything for about thirty seconds. Chrysalis finally spoke. She still had that growl in her voice.
“Well... I think that answers all our questions but one. Has the cutie map ever been in the... wrong range?”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Has it done anything wrong? Has it been wrong?”
“If it was wrong, or has done SOMETHING wrong, the Princess would tell me. How would it do anything wrong?”
“How long have you valued friendship?” Cozy Glow asked.
“A-a month.”
“Then this may or may not surprise you.” Tirek said. “We despise friendship. But that doesn’t mean we don’t know a thing or two about how it functions. You can’t force it.”
“Tirek is right.” Cozy agreed. “Why would the cutie map send you on a mission to FORCE friendship?!?! That’s not how it works.”
“You have to be WILLING!” Chrysalis said. “We would never be willing to accept friendship. We WILL stay here. But we will also try to show you just how unwilling we are to listen. And then, you will give up. Your pathetic Princess will soon discover that and give up too. She will come here, turn us back to stone, and you will both leave discovering the cutie map tried to make you do something that wasn’t right. Since you betrayed the map’s mission, you will be DISHONORED by the map! It will have considered you and Twilight giving up MUTINY! It may even have a sort of magic that won’t let you in the castle ever again!”
Silence. Luster Dawn sat there, processing all that has just been said to her.
“I... think it’s time to turn in.”
“I think so too.” Chrysalis said. The growl was gone, replaced by a tone of smugness.
Since the tents were behind Luster, she rotated herself on the log, careful to not get any splinters on her rump. She faced the four tents. The colors of the tents, from left to right, were dark pink, black, red, and light pink.
“Take your pick,” Luster said, still staring at the tents.
“Well, since it matches the color of my coat, I choose pink,” Cozy said.
“I’ll do the same. Red,” said Tirek.
“Black.” Chrysalis immediately said.
Luster sighed out of relief. Back at the castle, Princess Twilight had a room that was full of tents of many colors. Although she never knew why that room existed, she was thankful that it was there. She wasn’t in the mood for anymore bickering.
Luster heard the sound of moving, but she didn’t look. But she did see the villains enter her eyesight as they walked to the tents and opened the entrances, before all three of them looked back at Luster, smugly. Finally, they entered the tents and closed the entrances. Luster got up and walked to her own tent, using magic from her horn to lift the zipper and open the tent. She didn’t enter just yet.
Could it be true? she pondered. Is the map sending me here to FORCE these villains to accept friendship? No. It couldn’t be. Everything but what they said about the map is true. There has to be another way...
Then, Luster entered the tent and closed the entrance.
Sunlight beamed into Luster Dawn’s eyes as she exited her tent to start her day. She projected a clock with her magic to check the time. It was thirty minutes until noon.
"Huh... I must have REALLY been out..."
Surprisingly, nopony else was there, so it was safe to assume the villains were still sleeping.
"I guess they are out of it too..."
Questions of the map and what to do with the villains still swarmed in her head. Oh well. It was something to think about while cooking breakfast.
Luster opened the food box to find breakfast materials. All she saw when she first looked into the box were hayburgers and pies. But she knew there were more things.
One by one, she examined her rations, removing what she wasn’t looking for as she looked.
Luster levitated the carton out, set it on the grass, and then levitated everything back into the box, closing it when she was done.
Next: Take out the tools. Luster opened the next box full of cooking ware. Just like the food, she searched for what she needed before finding the items and putting everything back.
Finally: The cooking. Luster went around the field and gathered some more wood surrounding the forest. She was grateful that they were near a place that, while it was scary, contained the perfect burnable materials inside AND on the border.
Gathering all wood in a nice pile in the fire ring, Luster prepared to use her magic. Suddenly, a small flame appeared on the tip of her horn. It was hot, but thankfully didn't burn. Luster lowered her horn, allowing the flame on her horn to ignite the wood. The fire immediately spread, giving out a nice glow.
Success! she thought to herself. Finally, she used her magic to levitate everything in place. She sat on the log that allowed her to see the tents before she resumed work. First, she brought the cooking grate above the fire, immediately putting the pan on top. Thankful that she can multitask, Luster turned her head to the egg carton. Once again, her magic opened the carton, levitated an egg out, brought it to the fire. It only took one tap against the rim of the pan to crack the egg open. Luster poured the egg's contents into the pan, the smell already hitting her nose.
ZZZZZZZIIIIPPP
Luster looked up and saw the small filly exit her tent. Since Cozy couldn't fly, she had to grab the zipper with her mouth and jump up. Cozy walked to the fire, a nasty look on her face, not even caring that she left the tent open.
"You know," Luster began. "If there was a calendar that said we had rain today, I would tell you to close the tent."
Cozy sat on the log across from Luster and glared. She still had that nasty look. But only for a brief moment. She suddenly changed her expression to where she stuck out her lower lip and her eyes started to resemble that of a puppy's. Luster knew what she was gonna try and do. The Princess HAD told her about what the villains could do a long time ago.
"Golly!" said Cozy. "Maybe you're right. How could I forget something as simple as that? Wanna know ANOTHER simple thing I forgot?"
"What?" Luster asked, playing along.
"How important friendship could be! When I crawled into that sleeping bag, I decided to think about YOUR side of things instead of what WE said about your map. Yes, friendships CAN'T be forced, but I know A LOT about it! Maybe if YOU let me teach, my pals and I could have second thoughts about our evil ways. As for YOU, you can get ALL the rest you want."
Luster smirked. "Nice try. Twilight told me about your antics. You're just trying to have me make YOU teach, so then you and the others will secretly pretend to listen to me. Then, when the Princess comes and lifts all restraints brought upon you, it would just result in you and the others trying to destroy the world again."
Tears started forming in Cozy's eyes as her bottom lip quivered.
"Don't try that either. Twilight told me you seemed likely to use that as a second resort."
Cozy's sad, tearful face suddenly vanished, being replaced by a look of anger.
"SON OF A HORSEFEATHER!!!!!" Cozy erupted. "YOUR PRINCESS REEEEEAAALLY WANTS YOU TO PLAY IT SAFE HUH????!!! WELL, SEE THE CUTIE MARK ON MY FLANK?!?! IT REFERS TO THE FACT THAT I CAN MANIPULATE YOU!!! NOW DO AS I SAY!!!!"
ZZZZZIIIP
Luster looked past Cozy, who was huffing, and saw Tirek poke his head out of the red tent.
"We are trying to sleep here!"
Cozy rotated herself on her seat to look at Tirek.
"DO YOU SEE THE SUNLIGHT?!?!" The filly screamed maniacally.
ZZZZZIIIP
Luster and Cozy saw Chrysalis poke her head out of her own tent. Tirek turned his head right to see her.
"Although that insipid yelling woke me up, the filly has a point."
Chrysalis left her tent, leaving the entrance open, but Tirek went back in his tent and closed the entrance. When she got to the log on Luster's left, she seemed reluctant to sit down before she turned her head to the left. Cozy was still watching Tirek's tent.
"TIREK!!!!" they both said at, coincidentally, the same time.
"ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT! I'm coming."
The tent once again opened and Tirek walked out, also not closing it. He was wearing the cloak Luster put in the tent. It fit perfectly.
Huh. Guessing he would pick the red tent was a good call after all, Luster thought to herself.
Tirek sat on the log on the right side of Luster's viewpoint, not even thanking her for the cloak.
"Anyway... I'm making breakfast. I hope you're hungry."
"I agree with her. I wouldn't even take food from my brother if he offered it to me." Tirek said.
"I'm with them. But I have another reason." Chrysalis said.
"Let me guess... although changelings eat love, they can eat other things, but you're not accepting my offer out of protest?" Luster finished.
"EXACTLY!!!!! DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT WAS TO FIND A DECENT MEAL I WANTED AFTER MY HIVE LEFT ME?!?!?"
"Hard?"
"VERY! VERY!! HARD!!! THERE WAS NO FOOD WHERE I WAS HIDING BUT BERRIES!! I HAD TO EAT BERRIES!!!! AND I HATE BERRIES!!!!"
"Well, whether you like it or not, I'm making you all eggs."
"Why?" Cozy asked. "So you can FORCE us to eat eggs like how you're forcing us FRIENDSHIP?"
"No. I'm doing it to show you that if you give friendship a chance with someone who is doing NICE things for you, you will feel like a better being. I am making you breakfast, and you're not even gonna eat it. WHAT does that tell you?"
"It means we don't want what you'd call... food." Chrysalis hissed.
"Fine. Don't eat. But if you end up hungry, be prepared for me to say 'I told you so.'"
Luster levitated a plate out of the cooking ware box and slid the egg she was cooking onto it.
"Really, huh? I do think hunger is better than your friendship lessons." Cozy Glow said.
Luster smiled. "I already gave you a lesson."
"OH PONYFEATHERS!!!" Cozy yelled.
"Look. I don't know what is keeping you from understanding friendship. Hasn't there been ONE time where you helped somepony else and felt GOOD about it? When you felt that helping others felt better than making things WORSE and taking EVERYTHING away from somepony?"
The trio looked at each other. Tirek was the one to speak.
"It happened on the day we got the bell," Tirek said.
"Well, would you like to tell me?"
The villains looked at each other.
"Ok, Ok," Chrysalis grumbled, displeased that she was actually going to tell this story. “But first: Princess Twilight DID tell you that Discord disguised himself as Grogar right?"
"Yes."
"And that he grouped us together in Grogar's lair?" Cozy asked.
"I think so."
"Then this will be a lot easier," Tirek said. He cleared his throat and began the story.
"It all started on the day when Grogar... or Discord to be precise... sent us on a mission to work together. The mission? Scale to the top of Mount Everhoof to retrieve the Bewitching Bell."
"It started kind of... How do I say this? Rocky," Cozy said. "Chrysalis went off on her own. I did too, but I had trouble with the mountains protector... Rusty Bucket was it? As for Tirek, he stayed behind to learn from our mistakes."
Chrysalis was the next to speak. "Eventually, we grouped up. Tirek and Cozy Glow were the first to meet up. I soon arrived as well and saved their flanks by draining the love out of an Ophiotaurus that was about to attack them. After sharing how we felt about your Princess, we decided to work together."
"And it worked," Tirek resumed. "When we made it to the top, we decided that I would drain the magic out of Chrysalis and blast a hole in a forcefield surrounding the bell. But it was only big enough for Cozy Glow to enter. Luckily, she successfully entered the forcefield, retrieved the bell, and exited before the portal's magic overwhelmed mine."
"And this is when things get surprising to us," exclaimed Cozy "When I got the bell, Tirek had to choose between keeping the magic or giving it back. And... he gave it back. We suddenly felt that helping others instead of taking everything away was pleasing. That is, until Chrysalis brought us back to reality."
"But it left its mark on us," Chrysalis finished. "We all decided to work together. We traveled to Canterlot, sabotaged the Summer Sun Celebration, and stole a book we needed to unlock the powers of the bell. Judging from what Twilight told you, you probably know the rest of our story before we got turned to stone."
Luster stood still. She didn't do much as the story was being told. She ate her egg and set the cooking ware aside. Now, there was nothing.
It was only a minute before she finally spoke up.
"Can I give you my honest opinion?"
"What?" asked Tirek.
"I may not be a princess... but hearing your story makes me see potential in you."
Chrysalis scoffed. Cozy crossed her forehooves. Tirek rolled his eyes.
"Hmph," Tirek grumbled. "You really think so?"
"Yes actually," Luster admitted.
"What makes you think we could change? If it didn't work on us then, it CAN'T work on us now." Chrysalis said.
"It could if you gave it a try."
"It sounds like you're trying to force friendship again." Cozy said.
"I'm not-" Luster stopped. She felt that the trio had some sort of chance of change. She wanted them to learn friendship. But they were right. A few of the things she said or did made it seem like she was forcing friendship.
"I... need to lie down."
Tirek raised an eyebrow. "What? You're not gonna watch us and make sure we don't escape?"
"You're probably not."
Luster left her log, walked to the tent, opened the entrance, went into the tent, and closed it.
The trio was alone. They made sure that the conversation that followed was quiet enough for Luster to not hear.
"So..." Chrysalis said. "Should we... try to escape?"
"Definitely not!!!" Cozy said. "I do NOT want to go back in that forest."
"Me neither! The EVERFREE isn't even as SCARY as that one," Tirek said.
"I hate to admit it but... but..." Chrysalis started.
"You don't want to go back in either?" Cozy said.
"YES!!!" Chrysalis yelled at the filly, once again sporting anger in her voice.
Cozy flinched. But she didn't fall.
For the next few minutes, there was silence.
"You know..." Cozy began. "I tried to get Luster to let me teach the friendship lessons."
"Why, may I ask?" Tirek questioned.
"If she did, I would have attempted to have a secret meeting with you. We would have captured Luster."
"But... couldn't we have just done that WITHOUT you teaching?" Tirek asked.
"Well, if I taught, I would give you signals on when to take action. If I gave a trust fall lesson, and had Luster fall while Tirek had to catch her, I would have given you a signal to let her fall. Then we would take her hostage and force her to let us go. When Twilight gives us our magic and flight back, we will attack her and flee."
"Decent. But those ponies are quick and smart," Chrysalis said. "How about..."
A grin suddenly spread on her face. "How about we pretend to value the lessons?"
"I like the sound of that," Cozy Glow said.
"Seriously?" Tirek said. "We couldn't think of that BEFORE?"
"We had other focuses." Chrysalis said. "Plus, we enjoy more complex plans. This one seems fitting enough, though."
"Then it's settled. When the pony comes out, we will just pretend." said Tirek.
"Maybe later. I am kinda feeling... *yawn*... tired, all of a sudden." Cozy wearily said.
"I kinda... feel sleepy... too..." Chrysalis said, her eyelids drooping.
"Same... can... *yawn* we make it to the tents?" uttered Tirek.
"I don't think we-" KLUNK! Chrysalis didn't get to finish her sentence. She fell backwards and was immediately unconscious.
"Chry-" KLUNK! Cozy Glow immediately followed.
Only Tirek was left. But not for long.
"Oh, pony-" KLUNK! And just like that, Tirek was asleep.
A few hoofsteps away from the fire pit, a small crack drew on the ground. Three white streaks of smoke suddenly poured out of the ground.
The streaks floated over to the unconscious villains. One of the streaks came over to Tirek and suddenly entered his ear, until it vanished. The other two did the same to Cozy and Chrysalis.
Finally, a fourth streak poured out of the ground and headed for Luster's tent.
Luster Dawn sat in her tent, thinking, when it happened.
She was pondering on how to convince the villains the value of friendship without forcing it when she suddenly felt a strong sense of sleepiness. It only took a few seconds for her to collapse, becoming completely unconscious.
She awoke in a strange void. There was no ground to stand on, yet she was standing anyway. There were endless swirls of cyan colors, sporting what looked like stars. She didn't get to turn her head to marvel at the sights, because suddenly, a small magenta light appeared in front of her. It started getting brighter, causing Luster to turn her head anyway, close her eyes, and shield them with a forehoof.
Finally, the light faded, and Luster saw that, in its place, was Princess Twilight Sparkle.
"Princess!!!!!" Luster shrieked. She ran over and hugged her mentor, who hugged back in a warming tone. However, when Luster stepped back, she noticed something different about her mentor. She looked a lot more... sparkly. And she seemed a little see-through too.
"What are you doing here?" Luster said excitedly. "How-Why-What..."
What Princess Twilight did next shocked Luster. She didn't help Luster answer any questions. She said only one thing:
"Come with me."
Luster didn't question the Princess. As soon as Princess Twilight turned and walked away, Luster galloped toward her before slowing down and walking by her mentor's side.
The void suddenly started changing. The swirls suddenly intensified into waves until a familiar landscape was formed: the campsite. It looked like the way it was when Luster first arrived, with only the fire ring and two of the four logs being the only things there.
"Sit down, my pupil." The Princess said. Again, Luster did as she was told and sat on a log. Her mentor sat on the log across from her.
"Why... are we here?"
"So I can help you. Yes, this is your friendship problem. But while I was watching you, I soon saw conflict."
"You were... watching me?"
Princess Twilight nodded.
"I wanted to know how you were progressing. Those villains were the toughest of the tough after all. They hated friendship after all. But at the same time, they made a point: You can't force friendship. That point eventually brought you internal conflict. So when you were asleep, I decided to help. Give you some of my personal advice."
"O-ok?"
"You said to them you saw potential. I think so too. Although forcing friendship is wrong, it couldn't hurt to get through to them."
"How?"
"Learn about them. Figure out every reason they have for being bad. Every reason for vengeance. And every reason to hate friendship. Then, tell them the actuality of it: their lives would be different if they learned friendship. They wouldn't feel abandoned. They wouldn't feel betrayed. If they also learned to give instead of take, they would learn that if they kept taking, there would soon be nothing left. Nothing to take or destroy. Just pure emptiness. If they learned friendship, however, there would be an endless amount of power to gain. The power of friendship.”
“But they won’t listen to me!”
“Then dig into their past. Figured out what made them that way. And then show them the good sign of things. After all, friendship is better to learn when it’s not being forced. Like they said, you have to be willing to learn friendship. In order for them to be willing, you have to get through to them.”
“Oh... ok.”
Silence. A silence that Luster broke a few seconds later.
“There... is another thing. You probably know this, but I still have confusion. I still question why the map would call somepony like me after being asleep for so long? These villains LOATHE friendship. I have only valued it for a month. And yet, the map brought US together. Like Spike said: I have only known and VALUED friendship long enough to STILL be in the writing letters phase!”
“That may be true.” The Princess said. “But every two days, you would have learned a lesson about friendship. I haven’t even given you due dates. They came at a coincidental pattern. When I delivered letters explaining what I learned about friendship, it would have taken longer to find and deliver them. I once freaked out because I couldn’t get a friendship lesson delivered on the due date. Of course, the due dates changed to ANY time I learned something. And I was probably overreacting. But you... you have delivered lessons at a QUICK rate 24/7. For ME, it would be rare for lessons to be delivered only two days after the last one. You know more than you think you do, Luster. I believe in you.”
Luster wiped a tear from her eye.
“Thank you Princess. That means a lot to me.”
“Any time, Luster.”
“So... what am I gonna do now?”
"So far, you have done a few things that are going to help you."
"What are they?"
"You will know when the time comes. However, let me give you a tip: When you wake up and leave your tent, the villains may or may not want to be left alone."
"If that is so, is there anything I could do?"
"If I were you, I would try to give them a little chuckle, if you know what I mean," said Princess Twilight, giving Luster a wink. "I wish you luck, my student."
Suddenly, Princess Twilight and the whole area surrounding Luster illuminated in a blinding glow. Luster squeezed her eyes shut and covered them with her forehoofs, but the light was still as bright as the sun. And it continued getting brighter and brighter.
And then Luster woke up.
She sat up and found herself back in her tent. She could still see the sunlight through the fabricated walls surrounding her and her sleeping bag.
Once again, she had a hard time processing everything that had been said to her. But if the Princess gave her suggestions on how to deal with the villains, she figured it would be worth a shot.
Tirek woke up, finding himself to be standing on... nothing. He looked around to find himself in what looked to be an endless cyan void filled with swirls, along with what looked like stars in the distance.
The void's look was sickening, but relaxing. He only got to look around for 30 seconds when a bright light suddenly appeared.
Tirek turned his head away, closed his eyes, and shielded them. He had no clue what was going on.
Finally, the light faded. And in its place, was his new enemy: Luster Dawn.
But something seemed off. She was more sparkly and transparent. And she seemed more calm... and peaceful.
That wasn't the majority of Tirek's wonder, however.
"WHAT are YOU doing here? Since when did YOU have the ability to go into our dreams?"
Luster said nothing. She just smiled and lit up her horn. Tirek again closed and shielded his eyes to prepare for more blinding light. But nothing happened.
Tirek unshielded his eyes and saw the void getting wavey, sporting a very peculiar movement. Finally, a landscape started to form. One all too familiar to the centaur. He didn't even think of running. But once the thought crossed his mind, it was already too late.
The landscape finally finished transforming into the place he dreaded to see... his old prison in Tartarus. It was exactly how it was when he was there last. His cage was there. Cozy's cage was there. Even the rock sculpture of him and Cozy that the evil filly made was still there.
But Tirek wasn't out of his cage.
He was in the cage.
Immediately when the landscape finished forming, Tirek ran up to the bars making up his cage and clutched them. Fear and rage were the only emotions he showed.
"Why are you so afraid and upset?" Luster asked with only harmony signified in her voice. "You know all too well this is a dream."
"I know... but I never wanted to..." Tirek didn't finish his sentence. Instead, he turned around.
"WHY DID YOU BRING ME HERE?!?!" he demanded.
"To talk some sense into you," Luster said. She sat down and gave Tirek a look, telling him to do the same. Although reluctant, it only took him a few seconds to obey.
"Now then... what is it you want most of all, Tirek?"
"Hmmmmm. I'm surprised you already don't know that. I thought you would have learned that by now after your 'Princess' told you EVERYTHING about us. After everything WE told you?"
"All I wanted was an answer. Not a rebuttal."
"Fine. What I want most of all is ALL of the power in Equestria. Along with REVENGE! I want to drain EVERY ounce of power from this pathetic land, and then use it to exact revenge."
"I see. Well, the way I see it, it seems well thought out by your standards. But I also see that there are many flaws in that plan of yours."
"Really? Like what?"
"For starters, would you like revenge against a challenge?"
"No. Anything that results in the destruction of ponykind under my reign is passable."
"Understandable. Now, what would you do if there was NOTHING left?"
"What do you mean?"
"All of the power in Equestria is amazing for villains like you. All the revenge is amazing. But what happens when there is nothing left to take? Nopony left to exact revenge on? Nothing left to destroy? What would happen then?"
"I... well... I..."
"You see? You haven't thought it out. Your desire for power and vengeance will soon lose it's fun. And you've already lost a lot with that desire without even conquering Equestria."
"Like WHAT?!?!"
"Your brother."
Tirek fell silent.
"But if you gave... you would gain more than power. You would regain all that was lost. You wouldn't gain fear, but RESPECT!!! And there would be nothing to lose if you went that route. On Mount Everhoof, how did it feel when you gave Chrysalis her magic back after taking it?"
"It was... surprising... but pleasing."
"How did you feel when you took away the magic of almost everypony in Equestria?"
"Amazing."
"See? The quest of power is a habit. It makes you feel good. But giving also makes you feel pleased. However, only one route will have eternal pleasure."
"Yeah... but... but..."
"You know how you think your brother betrayed you?" Luster asked, changing the subject. "Well, this may or may not be surprising. Your brother NEVER betrayed you. If anything..." Luster's smile turned into a frown. "You betrayed him."
"He left my side," Tirek rebutted.
"Because he did what was RIGHT!!! You did what YOU did for YOUR own gain. The way I see it, betrayal is mostly done for that creature's own GAIN!!!"
Tirek was at a loss for words. He refused to believe what had just been said to him. HIM betraying SCORPAN?!?! Impossible. Scorpan left HIS side and it resulted in him, Scorpan's OWN brother, being sent to Tartarus.
He didn't even know what to think anymore.
BEEP BEEP
Luster looked at a watch that magically appeared on her forehoof. Tirek was still stricken by what has been said to him, that he didn't even bother to wonder.
"Time's up." Luster said. She looked back at the strict centaur and continued. "Looks like you're about to wake up. I hope my lessons make you more willing to listen to Luster's lessons."
That last sentence gave Tirek the courage to speak.
"Uuuuuh... did you just refer to yourself in third pony view?"
"Perhaps... or I'm not the pony you think I am." Luster winked before her horn illuminated a bright light. Tirek closed his eyes and shielded them. But the light was still the brightest one he has ever seen.
Again it got brighter. And brighter.
And then Tirek woke up.
He sat up to see the villains doing the same. He stood up, stepped over the log he was sitting on, and sat back down on it.
The other two villains did the same. Not a word was spoken.
Cozy Glow opened her eyes. She noticed she was standing on nothing, causing her to gasp. The high intake of air echoed around a strange void. Hearing the echo caused her to look around her surroundings. The void had cyan colors, along with many swirls and what looked like stars.
She wasn't satisfied with what was going on.
She walked forward and looked around, a scowl on her face. When she finally looked straight ahead, she immediately stopped. A bright light started forming, and only got brighter by the moment. Closing her eyes and covering them with her hooves, she prepared for the worst.
Nothing happened.
"You can unshield your eyes. I'm not going to hurt you," a familiar voice said.
Cozy, uneasily, did what was told. There, she saw the owner of the voice: Luster Dawn. But something seemed off. She was sparkly and transparent and Cozy got a weird vibe from her."
"I thought only alicorns like LUNA could go into dreams!"
"Luna and Celestia have retired a long time ago, Cozy. But I'm not here to share facts on what you missed out on. I am here..."
"To WHAT?"
Luster didn't even flinch. She just smiled. "To teach."
Cozy suddenly saw Luster's horn light up. She didn't shield her eyes, but she looked around and saw that the void was changing. Swirls became waves and started forming a structure. Cozy suddenly saw Luster float up into a sitting position. A chair for Luster to sit on formed immediately after. As the landscape became more vivid, a desk appeared, being the only thing standing between Cozy and the surprisingly calm unicorn.
Cozy's confused face became one of horror as the landscape finally finished forming.
She was in the School of Friendship. Not only that, but it was one of her least favorite rooms of all.
The Counseling Room.
"WHY are we in the COUNSELING ROOM!” Cozy barked. “I DON'T NEED COUNSELING!"
"You say that..." Luster said, the glow on her horn fading. "But you need it as much as the other two."
"You don't know ANYTHING about me!"
"I know your backstory."
Cozy fell silent. But Luster continued speaking.
"You don't have to tell me. But just because you have a peculiar backstory ALONG with a cutie mark of a rook, it doesn't mean you have to do bad things."
"Isn't manipulation only used for WANTS?!?!" Cozy huffed.
"Perhaps. But if you try it in a certain way, it would be a great tool for things that would benefit many. You may be young, but if you changed your ways and were older, you would be like an agent or something. Manipulate others so your allies can help do good deeds."
"I'll never change."
"Can I tell you something?" Luster asked, catching Cozy off guard. "How do you compare yourself to Tirek? What makes you like him?"
"I don't know."
"Your desire for power. But in a whole other way. Tirek thinks he gets it by stealing magic and causing destruction. And that may be true. But your view is different. You think you need FRIENDSHIP for power! But let me ask you something: Who wants to be your friend?"
"C-Chrysalis and Tirek?"
Luster's smile faded.
"Wrong!” she said, her calm voice a more serious tone. “You three are only ALLIES! In actuality, NOPONY wants to be your friend. Because they know the REAL you. The news of what you did that led to your imprisonment in Tartarus was only known in a few cities and towns. But the news of what you did with Chrysalis and Tirek that led to your imprisonment in stone is known by ALL of Equestria. EVERYPONY knows the real you. They've SEEN your appearance in the papers while you were in stone. They saw you were afraid. But they can understand why you and the other two were punished. You nearly destroyed a pony who was going to become the new Princess of Equestria. You and the others brought back the Windigos. You did a LOT of things wrong. Now that nopony wants to be your friend, you have nothing, and you will get nothing."
“Gee, thanks," Cozy mumbled sarcastically, rolling her eyes.
Luster smiled.
"But if you change and the news spreads to all of Equestria... if you start treating friendship like magic... you will get the friends you deserve. Not for power. But for happiness. Don't you want that?"
Cozy looked down again. "I... I don't know."
"Think about it. Remember what you did on Mount Everhoof? With Chrysalis and Tirek? What did you feel when you got the bell?"
Cozy sighed. "Pleasure. Helping them felt like pleasure."
"Didn't you love that feeling?"
"Well... I did until Chrysalis snapped us out of it."
"Would you want it again?"
This time, Cozy had no answer.
"Listen Cozy... I trust that every answer you say is the truth."
"What makes you say that?"
"We are in your mind, remember? Hearing every honest answer you gave me makes me see that you have a chance. The long pauses you have only makes me think that more."
"Just because you learn about me through my thoughts doesn't mean you know me."
"But I do," Luster said.
Luster looked up at the clock on top of the doorway that stood behind the troubled filly.
"Would you look at the time! It looks like our session is nearing a close. When you wake up, I hope you and your other two allies treat Luster well."
Cozy looked up. "And WHY are you saying your own name in third person?"
Luster chuckled. "Perhaps you would have learned about me in school."
"Wait what do you mean by-"
Cozy had no time to finish. Luster lit up her horn, once again illuminating an expanding light. Cozy shielded her eyes, but that didn't stop her from seeing the flash that was the brightest light she had ever seen.
And then Cozy woke up, her eyelids darting open.
The filly sat up, noticing Chrysalis and Tirek escaping slumber as well. She stood on all four hooves before she got back on her log and sat down. Chrysalis and Tirek did the same.
Not a word was spoken out of either of them.
All they did was stare at the charred fire pit.
ZZZIIIIIP
The villains didn't even look up as Luster Dawn's tent opened.
Chrysalis, the former changeling queen, slowly opened her eyes as she came to. She noticed that she was in a void with a very sickening shade of cyan. The swirly pattern and the many stars made her want to vomit more.
She didn't even get to yell in rage, because suddenly, a bright light appeared. Chrysalis shut her eyes and shielded them from the blinding light, only increasing in brightness.
Finally, it faded. Replacing it, was the pathetic unicorn sent by Twilight Sparkle to teach her, Cozy, and Tirek friendship: Luster Dawn.
Not even thinking, Chrysalis lunged forward to her prey, only to be stopped midair. Chrysalis shuffled in the grip, before giving up and discovering why she was floating. Luster was levitating her with her magic! Chrysalis then got to notice the features of the unicorn. She was more sparkly and transparent, and her vibe was... off.
The changeling finally spoke after a few seconds of silence.
"Aren't you gonna say something? Rub it in that you always have the upper hoof? And how are you able to enter my dreams anyway?"
Luster just shook her head, smiling.
"Tsk tsk tsk. You may be a bigger challenge than I thought. No matter!"
Luster suddenly ignited her horn, producing a dimmer glow. Chrysalis suddenly noticed that the void started transforming into a peculiar landscape. Although she has never seen it before, it became more clearer of where she was as the landscape finally finished forming.
"Do you know where we are?" Luster asked.
"Let's see... traces of a changeling hive... sickening flowers and vines... the urge to vomit... this must be the new hive, I presume?"
"You guessed correctly. Shall I put you down and believe you won't attack?"
"What's the point? You HAVE magic! There is no reason to attack if you have the upper hoof."
"Good choice."
Chrysalis suddenly felt herself being lowered, before her hooves finally hit the ground.
"Now then..." Chrysalis began. "Why did you bring me here?"
"To give you a reality check."
"How?"
"You say your hive left you, correct?"
"I thought you would have taken the hint already! After seeing changelings yourself and hearing all of those stories about that day, I would have suspected you wouldn't ask."
Luster's smile faded into seriousness. "It's a yes or no question."
"WHAT DO YOU THINK?!?! MY SUBJECTS HAVE ALL LEFT ME!!! ACCEPTED THE WAY OF LIFE OF THOSE PATHETIC PONIES!!!!!"
"Did they all fly off? Did they say you were a lost cause?"
"Well... I-"
"Or did one of the ponies that saved them from your reign offer you friendship?!? From MY perspective, a LOT of the changelings thought the same way SHE did. It was either YOU joined them or LEFT them. But instead, you rejected the offer and flew away. YOU betrayed them! YOU left them! YOU abandoned them!!!!"
"You don't know ANYTHING!!!!!" the changeling hissed bitterly.
"If you would have joined them..." Luster said sternly. "You would have had it ALL! Friends! Family! A home! Instead, you left them and became reduced to NOTHING! Even when you worked with Tirek and Cozy Glow, you got an even WORSE outcome by being turned to stone. Again, you became NOTHING! And look where we are now! AGAIN, you are being offered another chance at life!"
Luster finally stopped talking as Chrysalis sat down. She was shocked by what had just been said to her. WHY would a pathetic pony stand up to a fierceful queen like HER!?!?! She could attack! Attack the pony! But then again, she has no magic! The pony has it all! Even though she was in a dream, Chrysalis knew that she was still stripped of all magic.
Silence struck the two before Luster continued.
"Your way of life has corrupted you. The THIRST for revenge has corrupted you. I understand that changelings have been through a lot less than you have. But that doesn't mean you can call friendship 'poisonous'. Friendship didn't destroy your hive. It didn't destroy your life. YOU did. ALL that has happened to you was because of YOUR choices."
Luster sat down.
"Back then on Mount Everhoof, when Tirek gave you your magic back, how did you feel?"
Chrysalis finally spoke.
"I felt... surprised."
"And how did you feel after that?"
"I felt... pleased. I felt like helping others was worth the time."
"And WHAT did you do next?"
Chrysalis didn't answer.
"You rejected friendship AGAIN! You've snapped out of it. You've snapped Tirek and Cozy out of it. You just threw another chance out the window! You could have taken it! But no! You continued your evil ways and it resulted in you getting turned to stone!"
Chrysalis stayed silent and looked down at the ground. She was lost. She didn't know how to view herself anymore. All of those things said to her... it hurt. But it also felt... true. She didn't know why. But it just did.
Chrysalis continued staring at the ground as Luster stared at her. Silence carried on for about a minute until Luster spoke up.
"I think that is enough for our appointment today. From the looks of it, I may have finally broken your shell. I hope when you and the others are awake, that Luster digs even deeper and convinces you the better ways of friendship."
That brought Chrysalis out of her silence.
"Did you just refer to yourself in third pony view? You ponies sure have a weird way of closing off speeches."
Luster's smile finally returned.
"Maybe. Or maybe I'm not Luster."
"What? What does that mean? Who are-"
Chrysalis never got to finish. Luster finally lit up her horn again and emitted a bright glow. The increasing brightness resulted in Chrysalis closing her eyes and shielding them with a forehoof again, but even still, she could see the brightness through her eyelids.
Finally, Chrysalis woke up in the waking world, again at a loss for words.
The former changeling queen sat up and saw Cozy and Tirek do the same. Nopony spoke as the three villains got on their hooves, positioned themselves, and sat back down on their logs.
It didn't take long for Luster Dawn's tent to open with a loud ZIIIIIIP.
Luster stepped out of her tent and closed the entrance behind her with her magic. She stood in front of her tent and saw the villains. The villains, who were looking at the ground, looked up at Luster. Immediately they brought their gazes back down at the ground. From the looks of it, Princess Twilight was right: The villains DO look like they want to be left alone.
What was it Princess Twilight suggested to me? Luster thought. Bring a little chuckle in their lives? Does she mean make them laugh? How can I-
Suddenly, an idea formed in her head. The villains hated ponies like her. But seeing something stupid happening to them seemed likely enough to make them laugh. And Luster has just the idea. As long as the villains don't watch her, she should be fine. Luster didn't want them to think she was gonna intentionally make them laugh.
Luster walked forward to begin her plan. Using her magic, she levitated the nearby carton of eggs and opened it. She placed it in front of her. If she was lucky, she wouldn't get severely hurt.
Luster walked around the firepit before turning around and facing the empty log that Cozy Glow was facing. The villains didn't even look up once. Luster started walking again. Closer she got to the log in front of her. Closer until...
Trip
CRUNCH! SPLAT!
The villains finally looked up to see what had happened: Luster, who had an open carton of eggs in front of her, tripped over the only log with nopony on it, and fell right on the eggs. Her muzzle was only three inches from the fireplace and her forehooves were right on the rocks. Her eyes were also squeezed shut. The villains didn't react. They only had looks of shock on their faces.
The eggshells didn't hurt Luster badly. The impact on her barrel from not stopping her fall was what she felt the most. She also felt the stickiness from the eggs.
But Luster wasn't done. She brought her forehooves back from the firepit and hoisted herself up. When she got on her hooves, the egg carton that was stuck to her barrel fell off. Luster took a few steps forward with her eyes still shut... and tripped over the firepit again.
Again, she got a surge of slight pain as she impacted not only the fireplace, but the rocks surrounding it, without breaking her fall. She felt the charred, burned wood stick to her coat. Luckily, the burnt wood was basically dust, so she didn't feel anything from that.
Luster opened her eyes and looked up at Cozy Glow, who was on the log in front of her. She did nothing for a few seconds before she snickered. The snickering immediately became hard laughter. Luster turned her head to the left and saw Tirek laughing as well. One glance to the right showed her that Chrysalis was in on it as well. She did it! All three villains were laughing maniacally at her expense.
Luster, proud of her work, got on her hooves, the charred black powder sticking to her. She turned around, headed to the log she tripped on, and sat on it.
The laughter still carried on before the villains calmed down and brought the frowns back on their faces.
"Better?" Luster asked.
Chrysalis cleared her throat and gave Luster her answer, her usual frown returning.
"What made you think we needed it?" she asked.
"You looked like you needed it. Plus, when I entered my tent, I suddenly fell asleep and had this weird dream with Princess Twilight. She told me to make you laugh if you were acting like that."
"Wait, what?" Chrysalis said. She suddenly looked as if she was caught off guard.
"What?" said Luster.
"I thought you were in MY dream. Yeah, I soon became convinced that it WASN'T you in my dream, but STILL!"
"Hold up, hold up. Luster was in MY dream too! She ALSO made me think she was somepony else before I woke up!" Cozy said.
"Huh. Great minds think alike. The same happened in MY dream!" Tirek said.
"I'm confused," Luster said. "First of all, WHEN did you all fall asleep?" Luster asked.
"I think we all fell asleep at the same time after you entered the tent," Cozy said. "so we fell asleep the same time as YOU!!!"
"Did you all ALSO say all of your dreams had ME in it, only to soon become convinced it WASN'T me?"
"YES!!!!" Tirek said, shocked.
"In your dreams, did I SAY something to make you upset when you woke up?"
No answer was spoken for a few seconds. The first answer was from Cozy.
"Well... you did. You said a lot of things that I didn't want to believe. But at the same time, I had the strange feeling that you were right! You also mentioned what happened to us at Mount Everhoof."
"SAME!!!!!!" Tirek and Chrysalis said at the same time.
"Weird..." Luster said. She put her hoof on her chin in thought. Finally, she had one more question.
"What I said... what you believed is true... the events of Mount Everhoof... it all leads me to this one question. Are you willing now?"
"Willing to what?" Tirek said.
"To let me teach you all what I know about friendship! From the sounds of it, whoever spoke to you in your dreams wasn't a dream bit. It was somepony pretending to be me. Whoever it was, it sounds like she had gotten through to you. So if that is true... are you willing to give my lessons at least ONE chance?!? Willing to just spend SOME time with me so I can tell you the lessons? WILLING to relive that feeling from Mount Everhoof one last time to see if it is a WORTH it feeling?!?"
The villains had no answer for many seconds. Tirek was the first to answer.
"Fine. I guess I could give it a shot."
Cozy and Chrysalis looked at him with shock. Cozy immediately spoke.
"UUUGH!!!! FINE! Let's just see what friendship is like for magic instead of power."
Luster looked at Chrysalis. Chrysalis looked away, reluctant to answer. But only for a brief moment.
"GRRRRRR!!! OK!!!! FINE!!! I guess can give it a shot."
Chrysalis pointed a hoof at Luster,
"But DON'T think this means anything!!! For ANY of us!!! JUST because we will give friendship a shot DOESN'T mean it will work!!!"
"Fair enough," Luster said. A smile appeared on her face.
No matter what the villains said, if they were willing to give friendship lessons a shot, maybe there was hope for them after all.
"Alright..." Luster began. "For our first lesson, let's get one thing straight: Friendship is Magic."
Chrysalis scoffed. Tirek rolled his eyes. Cozy Glow blew a raspberry.
"Anyway..." Luster continued, ignoring the villains snarky remarks. "What do you three consider yourselves to be?"
"Allies," Tirek replied.
"Anything but friends," hissed Chrysalis.
"What they said," Cozy said.
"So... technically allies..." Luster tapped her chin. "An answer I, of course, expected. Now, as we know, being allies and being friends are completely different things. For allies, you don't care for each other, but even if you do, it's only a little bit, and for your own benefit and misdeeds. Plus, you won't want to lose them because it will mean you'll have greater chances of failure. For friends, you do care for each other a whole lot more, and what you all do for each other is for their benefit. And when you don't want to lose them, you care for them and want the best for them. Now... here's another question... do you three care for each other?"
"Why should I care for these two?" Chrysalis scowled. "If anything, I should have picked better allies who know what they're doing, and are quick to react."
"Oh yeah?!" Cozy sputtered. "My allies should have known when to listen to me, and not think they're so smart just because they're bigger and done a lot more!"
"That's not even the case in the slightest..." Tirek replied. "Maybe my allies should have less anger issues."
"Why you..." Chrysalis prepared to leap.
But before Chrysalis could do anything, she felt her body become incased in Luster's golden magic.
"I can hold you in my magic all day, if I have to," Luster said. "Unless you promise to not do anything harmful."
Chrysalis mumbled something, but Luster had the feeling that she wasn't refusing. Immediately, Luster placed Chrysalis back on the log and the golden glow faded.
"Your lessons are going nowhere." Tirek pointed at Luster. "At this point, why continue trying? Obviously, it should be obvious that we're irredeemable!"
"Because everypony and creature deserves friendship," Luster stated. "Or at least... should give it a try, at the very least."
"Shouldn't being allies count?" queried Cozy. "I mean, we didn't try to destroy each other. If we thought of our peers as our enemies, we'd try to make sure that only one of us is on top."
"I mean actual friendship," Luster explained. "Not... nearly learning it, throwing it out, and working together. Actually embracing it. Being friends and doing certain aspects. Not trying to destroy each other out of genuine care."
"And do what else with it!?" Chrysalis barked.
"Many things," Luster shrugged. "After all, I didn't embrace friendship alone. I had the help of my other friends, all of them I care deeply about. And just hanging out with them feels a whole lot better than doing things on my own. You should make friends at every opportunity. Not fight it."
"Give us valid reasons on why we shouldn't fight friendship!" Chrysalis growled. "I lost my hive to that pathetic Starlight Glimmer because she brought friendship to my subjects!"
"And friendship brought my brother to betray me," hissed Tirek.
"And in the end, friendship us what turned us all to stone and brought us to you!!!" Cozy snarled.
"Now wait just a minute," Luster said. "Friendship is not the main problem! Each of you are your own problems. Why? Because you fight friendship. Not only that, but you refuse to quit. If you keep fighting friendship, then what will you gain?"
"Satisfaction," Tirek claimed.
"Victory," Chrysalis sneered.
"Revenge," Cozy rubbed her hooves together.
"Wrong. Each of you fought friendship more than once. And each time, you lost. If you always lose to friendship, then what makes you think that you'll emerge victorious? Obviously, there are only three of you, and so many of us! Even with all that power you had, it can't rival all of Equestria."
"Because these idiots didn't give me Discord's magic," snarked Cozy.
"Whether you'd still win with Discord's magic or not is beyond me," Luster said. "After all, maybe you would of won with Discord's magic. Or maybe not, considering we all have friendship, and friendship is the greatest magic of all."
"And what if it's too late?" Chrysalis queried. "What if it's too late for all of us to finally end our grudge against friendship?! We've had the satisfaction of near-revenge and near-victory enough to the point where we have no idea what will happen if we abandon the only thing that we believe will satisfy us."
"Sometimes you have to take risks," Luster stated.
"And some risks end with disaster," Tirek pointed out.
"While others end with success," said Luster.
The trio was finally silent, giving Luster nothing but unsure glares. Even Chrysalis had a bit of uncertainty.
Am I finally getting through to them?... Luster pondered.
GRRRRRRRRRR...
The sound of Luster's stomach broke the silence. Luster blushed and chuckled.
"So... what do you want to teach us first?" Cozy asked.
"I'm open for suggestions," Luster said. "Just ask me anything. If I have an answer, then I can tell you."
"How about YOUR views on friendship? How do YOU value it, and do you remember WHEN you valued it?" Tirek suggested.
Luster just looked at him. She then turned her gaze to the fireplace and took a deep breath. She explained her story.
"Basically, I didn't truly value it until last month. I just thought that since friendships drift apart, I didn't want to take that risk. So, I stayed caught up in my work and studies. Then when I told Princess Twilight my dilemma, she told me the story about her coronation. She told me how her friends paid so much attention to the coronation, that it seemed like they didn't care that she was leaving. She told me that the coronation didn't go very well, and she told me about a scrapbook she got as a gift. The final key to helping me value friendship was when I witnessed Princess Twilight's friends reuniting with her in her throne room. That's when I decided to give friendship a try. And it worked out well. I made many friends and even took refuge in Ponyville. Then a month later..."
Luster spread out her forehooves.
"... I was sent here by the cutie map to teach the three of you friendship."
"I see..." Tirek said. "So what is the lesson you learned after hearing about the coronation? Is that if friendships are strong enough, they would never drift apart?"
"I guess. I also learned a couple of other things, like that it wouldn't hurt to make new friends."
"Have you learned other things?" Chrysalis asked.
"Certainly! After I came here, Princess Twilight gave me an assignment that HER mentor gave her: everytime I learned something about friendship, I would have to write a letter and send it to her. It worked out well. I learned a lesson every two days. And it wasn't even assigned to do so."
"Well then..." Cozy said. "Did you BRING those letters?"
"No. I never get them back. I don't mind though. The lessons stick to my mind like glue. Plus, I didn't see Princess Twilight carrying a third box or any scrolls."
"If the lessons 'stick to your mind like glue', would you care to tell us one?" Tirek asked.
"Certainly. One of the things I learned was to always help a friend in a situation, even if it really wasn't a big problem. You should be there for them when they really need it. Otherwise, the problem could become more serious."
"How did you learn it? Did you or one of your friends go crazy over something that really wasn't a big deal?" Chrysalis asked.
Luster was about to answer, when she heard a noise come from her tent. She saw a blinding flash come from her tent as well.
"What was that?" Tirek asked.
"I better go check." said Luster. She got off her log and headed to her tent.
The villains were left alone. That didn't go the way they expected.
"Well..." Cozy began. "That was one heck of a story."
"You said it," Chrysalis said. "From what we gathered, the pony didn't value friendship. Like us. But it was in an entirely different manner. She didn't want to go through the stress of losing friends, because she thought they would drift apart. As from us, we just find it to be... our main enemy. A sickness that tries to eternally affect us."
Silence remained for a minute before they spoke up again.
"I feel... unsure of what to do anymore," Tirek said. "What about you two?"
"I don't know what my goals are, anymore. Golly, what is friendship DOING to us? It's like Mount Everhoof all over again!" Cozy said. "I mean, I want friendship for power. But at the same time, I wonder what it would be like if I used it like everypony else.
"It's changing us," Chrysalis said. "I hate to admit it, but honestly, this small bit inside of me wants me to keep giving this a chance. Change and accept the realities I have been told in my dreams. But another part of me doesn't want to let it take its toll on me again! Like Mount Everhoof."
"Me neither," Cozy said.
"I feel the same way," Tirek said.
"We have two options of how we can move ahead from here. We could stay here. We could learn a lot from this student of Twilight Sparkle. We could change our ways and live our lives in a way we never imagined we could. Or, we could go. Try again at escaping." Chrysalis said.
Silence once again struck the trio.
"So... what should we do? Should we stay or go?" Cozy asked.
The villains all looked at each other. They all had the same choice.
A few minutes ago...
Luster Dawn got on her hooves and left her log after a strange sound and light came from her tent. When Luster opened her tent, she saw a small box in there, nestled on top of her sleeping bag. She stepped further in her tent and sat down. The unicorn levitated the box and opened it. What she saw confused her even more. "What the-"
In the box was nothing but what looked like six shards that came from gems. Each had their own color: Blue, purple, orange, pink, red, and magenta. Strangely, the blue, purple, and orange ones were glowing. Luster felt that it wasn't light that was making them glow... but magic. It gave off a strange feeling... but she couldn't put her hoof on it.
How and why did this get here? What are these? Luster pondered. I better ask Princess Twilight if she sent these here when I get back.
Luster set down the box, backed out of her tent, and closed it when she was fully out.
"Guys, I-" was all Luster managed to say before she turned around. What she saw surprised her.
"They can come back... they did it before and came back. Who's to say they won't come back again?" Luster Dawn said, pacing around the firepit. She was shocked that the villains even thought of leaving again, and honestly, it gave her anxiety.
"They could have gone in their tents... yeah, that's it!" Luster headed over to the black tent and opened it. Chrysalis wasn't in there. She checked Cozy and Tirek's tents too. Neither of them were there either.
"LUSTER DAWN!!!" Hearing her name made Luster stop in her tracks.
The unicorn turned around and saw her mentor, Princess Twilight Sparkle, facing her. Again, the Princess was transparent and sparkly. But the appearance of her mentor was the least of Luster's worries.
"Princess!!! What are you doing here?"
"I've been watching you and the villains," Princess Twilight replied.
"Really? But how? And how did you get here so quietly, anyway?"
"Those are questions for another day. Now then... I bet you're wondering where the villains went."
"Yes. Do you know where they went?"
Princess Twilight suddenly lit up her horn. A projection of the three villains' heads suddenly appeared.
"I guess we could still leave," the projection of Tirek said.
"It isn't the worst idea," the Cozy Glow projection said.
"I place my vote to leave. And if anything tries to scare us, we could just hide. Anything to go anywhere but here," said the Chrysalis projection.
The projections suddenly vanished.
"I don't think the cutie map would send you to take care of three beings that are basically lost causes," Princess Twilight said.
"What do you mean?" Luster said.
"No matter what is offered to them, they always try to get out of it. Even if it means putting themselves in danger. Face it Luster, I pretty much think the cutie map sent you to help somepony else."
"N-no. I saw potential. You saw me say that."
"Yes. I also heard what they said about their dreams. But did that convince them? No. No it didn't."
"B-but..."
"Now listen, Luster. I will give you two choices. One, you go after them and try to stop whatever plan they have in store for you. You can try your hoof at convincing them once more. Or you can come back with me. We could find the REAL friendship problem and not one that we mistakenly thought was the problem. We could stop them and turn them back to stone and maybe even put the statue in Tartarus for good measure."
Luster was in deep thought. Something about the Princess didn't feel right. She couldn't piece it. But she would ask later. She had to choose: help the villains, or go home.
It didn't take long for her to choose.
"The villains may or may not be the main subject of the cutie map..." Luster began. "But I saw potential in them. And I feel like they are conflicted. So I'm sorry, Princess, but I'm gonna stay and try to find the villains. Even if it means searching the forest that's even scarier than the Everfree.
Luster turned to leave.
"Wise choice," said Princess Twilight.
Luster turned around to respond, but saw that the Princess was already gone.
"How did she-" Luster cut herself off. She would ask the Princess later. She ignited her horn to cast a spell to avoid what made the forest scary in the first place. She turned back around and galloped into the forest.
Meanwhile, inside the box that rests in Luster's tent, the red gem shard started to emit a bright red glow.
Luster Dawn searched for the forest for what felt like an hour.
She was beginning to think the villains either escaped or avoided the frights of the forest when she noticed a large piece of clothing on a branch. Upon closer inspection, she realized it was Tirek's cloak. Suddenly, Luster heard a familiar noise.
"AAAAAAAAHHH!"
It sounded like the screams of Cozy Glow.
Luster galloped to the direction of the yelling when she saw it: the three villains were all huddled up against the base of a cliff. They had signs of fear on their faces. They were shrieking many things.
"NO! NO! NO! NO!" Tirek screamed.
"PLEASE STOP! I'M SORRY! NO MORE INSULTS!!!" Chrysalis shrieked.
"THEY CARE! PONIES CARE! THEY CARE!!!!" Cozy yelped.
Luster immediately lit up her horn and cast three beams at the cowering villains. Immediately when she finished, the three villains opened their eyes.
"What the- you found us? How? And everything we saw..." Tirek began.
"Were illusions. That is what makes this forest even scarier than the Everfree. It shows your fears and everything you're afraid of. Like King Sombra, another villain the Princess told me about. Only... the fears are handled in an even more extreme, frightening manner."
The villains all got on their hooves.
"So... you came back, huh?" Chrysalis asked. "Why?"
"I see potential in you. The story of Mount Everhoof convinced me enough."
Luster stepped forward.
"From what I know, all of you abused friendship, rejected it, or was never offered it. But if somepony comes back for you and saves you from whatever this forest does to you, you would be even crazier to not even come back."
Cozy scoffed.
"The last time we gave friendship a chance, we ran off from you."
"And I came back," Luster said. "And saved you. What the forest was doing to you would eventually drive you mad and cripple your minds to nothing. You would eternally suffer, and you would probably even do things to yourself that ponies would find crazy. Tell me: what was the forest showing you?"
All three villains looked down.
"That nopony would care about us if we changed," Chrysalis said. Her voice started to feel shattered.
"I kept on seeing..." Cozy said. "That ponies would consider me mental. Psycho. They never would want me." a tear rolled down Cozy's cheek
"Everypony would back away from me, afraid I would steal power from them. It felt like it hurt. Even my own brother said to me that he would never accept a traitor like me,” said Tirek.
Luster watched the three villains. Sadness and tears became noticeable on Chrysalis and Cozy's faces. Although Tirek seemed calm, Luster could tell he was crying a river inside.
Luster has to show them how much she cared.
With a little kindness.
"Hey... it's ok. Are you really gonna believe a few lies a forest tells you?"
Luster smiled before she continued.
"You WOULD be wanted. You WOULD be forgiven. The forest may tell you that none of you matter. But you do. It may tell you that you can't change. But you CAN!!! It may say nopony will care about you because of what you did. But I DO! And OTHERS would If you trust me."
The villains looked at each other.
Suddenly, Tirek walked forward to Luster's left. He turned around and faced the others.
It only took one minute for the next villain to give in.
Surprisingly to Luster, it was Chrysalis who gave in next. Although reluctant, she slowly walked to Luster's right and turned around to face Cozy. Tears were still on her face, but there wasn't anymore coming out of her eyes.
Cozy Glow looked at all three of them. Tears were also on her face. But unlike Chrysalis, the tears continued coming out.
Thirty seconds later, it transformed into ultimate bawling.
Luster felt sentiment. She walked forward to the bawling filly. When she was right in front of her, she sat down, bent forward...
... and wrapped her forehooves around Cozy.
The filly writhed around to fight back. But only for a little bit. She soon stopped... and hugged Luster back.
Luster felt Cozy's tears on her fur. Suddenly, she felt more weight on her.
She immediately knew what it was.
Chrysalis and Tirek were hugging her as well.
And she knew why they were hugging her. It wasn't just because they needed comfort.
But it was also the remorse they held in their hearts.
When Luster and the villains finally returned to the campsite, they all immediately returned to their tents. It was getting late, but none of them had plans to rest. The villains went into their tents to think. Luster went into her tent to check on the box.
When Luster entered her tent, she saw that the box was still there. Opening it, she noticed that something was different. Before, the blue, purple, and orange gem shards were glowing. Now the red and pink ones were as well.
What is going on? she thought to herself.
She closed the box. She would figure it out later.
She had villains to comfort.
Exiting her tent and closing it, she decided to stop by Chrysalis' tent first. It was the closest, so it made sense.
She rubbed her forehoof on the entrance.
"Hey, it's me. Are you awake?" she asked.
"Yes. Why? Do you want to come in?" replied Chrysalis.
"I do. Is that ok?"
"I don't care what you do anymore."
Luster decided to risk it. She opened Chrysalis' tent and saw the former changeling queen sitting at the other side. Luster stepped in and sat in front of the exit, blocking it.
"I was hoping we could talk," Luster said.
"About what?" Chrysalis said. Hate wasn't in her voice, but instead there was defeat.
"Usually, you are the last one to give in to my offers. But what happened back at the forest surprised me. You were the SECOND villain to give in. I'm surprised you gave in at ALL!!! Why?"
Chrysalis looked down.
"Friendship and love has ruined me for a long time. It especially ruined my hive. I thought I could exact revenge for the THIRD time by escaping. But after you saved me from those hallucinations, I realized many things. First off, I realized that I had nowhere else to go and nothing else to do. I had no magic. No flight. Nothing. If I tried exacting revenge in my condition, it would only take a second for me to fail. Second of all, what you said was touching. What I saw in the forest illusions was the changeling kingdom telling me they would never want me back. That I had my chance and blew it. But after you told me all of that, I discovered something tied to those two reasons: I won't have nothing left if I just accepted friendship. And I would be accepted if I showed them all how sorry I was." A few tears rolled down Chrysalis' cheeks as she spoke.
For a moment, Luster was speechless.
"Well..." she said. "I'm glad to see you open up. I'll leave you alone for the rest of the night."
Chrysalis sniffed and nodded before Luster got up, backed out of the tent, and closed it.
Next stop: Tirek's tent.
Once again, she rubbed her forehoof on the tent.
"Who is it?" Tirek asked.
"It's me. I'm coming in, if that's Ok," Luster said.
"You have my permission."
Luster opened the red tent. Like Chrysalis, Tirek sat at the end. Luster again sat at the exit. Suddenly, she realized something.
"Shoot! I think I left your cloak!"
"Leave it. It's fine."
"Oh. Ok then. Anyway, I came here to ask you something."
"What?"
"Why are you ALWAYS the first to give in to my offers or requests?"
Tirek scratched his chin.
"I honestly don't know. Maybe it's because I come to my senses quicker than them. Probably because I knew I couldn't do anything. What is the point of betrayal if you don't have any magic that's needed to steal power?"
"Oh."
The unicorn and centaur were silent.
"I have another question... have you ever felt that your brother leaving you was the right thing for him to do?"
"Hmmmm... I guess at this point, I'm considering the belief that your assumption is correct."
"Do you... miss him?"
"Maybe."
Luster smiled. She learned about Chrysalis' thoughts as of the moment, and now she learned about Tirek.
Only one more villain to go.
"Alright then. That is all the questions I have for you. Thank you for your time."
Tirek didn't reply. Luster got up, backed out of the tent, and closed the entrance. She then started to make her way to Cozy Glow's tent.
When she got there, she rubbed her forehoof on the tent once again.
"Go away!" was the only response from Cozy Glow.
Although Cozy Glow allowed Luster to hug her, and even hugged her BACK, Luster wasn't at all surprised at her attitude.
"I'm coming in anyway."
Luster opened the tent and saw the filly still bawling. Cozy cried all the back to the campsite after what happened in the forest, so seeing her still in tears gave Luster pity. At least Chrysalis waited until she got back to her tent to allow some more tears to come out of her eyes.
"I said go away," Cozy said.
Luster didn't obey. Instead, she walked in and sat down in front of Cozy's exit.
"You are always the second one to give in. But in the forest, you were the last. Why? What made you break down?"
Cozy sniffled.
"Don't you know my story?"
"No."
"But- oh, right. That 'WASN'T you in our dreams!'" Cozy mocked.
"It really WASN'T! Aren't you already aware that you need a certain amount of power to do that?"
"Well... I guess not."
"The reason you broke down... was it because you lost the only beings you considered allies?"
Cozy nodded and Luster continued.
"Tirek lost his brother. Chrysalis lost her kingdom! And they seemed to mostly hold it together when I offered them to join me. Sure, Chrysalis shed some tears, but she was through a lot."
"Well, it's different," Cozy said. "I'm WAY younger than them! Along with the fact that I have been through a decent amount of stress in MY life too."
"Understandable. But you seemed to accept it."
"Being evil was fun! But all of those truths and compliments that were thrown at me all day just made me feel... different."
"Didn't you feel like all of those truths told to you in your dreams were CORRECT?"
Cozy looked away.
"I-I did. But only for a little bit."
She looked back at the unicorn.
"But what can I do? This cutie mark of mine has ties to ALL of my misdoings!"
"So use it for good reasons. Put your own spin on it! Use it for good!"
"How?"
"My advice? Wait for it to come to you. I'll leave you be, but at least TRY to consider the GOOD that will come out of you listening to me, ok?"
Cozy nodded and whispered, "Ok."
Luster backed out of the tent and closed it. Although she only ate an egg early in the morning, she was in the mood to hit the sack.
As she made her way back to the tent, she hoped that at the end, everything would turn out okay for the trio.
Luster exited her tent to start what was hopefully her final day on this mission. Again, nopony else was at the firepit. She still felt slightly uncomfortable since there were still bits of raw egg and burnt wood stuck in her fur. It sure didn’t make sleep easier.
Since she was out of eggs due to what happened yesterday, she decided to root for a hayburger brunch.
She came to the decision to cook one for herself and then see if the villains want anything when they wake up.
The hayburger was good, and it gave her stomach satisfaction after not eating for almost 24 hours.
Despite the time it took for her to cook and eat, the villains still didn’t exit their tents. It was only about 30 minutes later when the first villain came out.
It was Tirek.
He exited the tent, closed it, and made his way to the firepit before sitting on the log that was on the left of Lusters viewpoint.
Luster decided to hold off from asking. Something inside her told her to wait until all the villains were gathered.
Only a minute later did Cozy leave, taking the log in the right of Luster’s viewpoint. Another minute passed before Chrysalis came out and claimed the log facing Luster.
“Are any of you hungry?” She offered. “You haven’t eaten at all when we were here.”
“Maybe in a bit,” Tirek said. “I think I should be honest with you: After last night, I discovered something. I have a new respect for you, along with friendship. I also discovered that I began to feel deeply sorry for what I did. To my brother and all ponykind.”
“Really? I feel the same. Suddenly, I feel that I was the one who deceived my hive. All they did was change their ways and become better beings,” admitted Chrysalis.
“I hate to admit it, but I now see friendship in a whole new light,” said Cozy Glow. “It’s power, sure. But a different KIND of power than I thought. The GOOD kind.”
“So... you’re telling me you're sorry?” asked Luster.
The villains didn’t speak for 30 seconds. Luster once again saw a tear roll down Cozy’s cheek, but it didn’t develop into crying. Once again, Tirek kept his composure, but it was obvious he felt the same as Cozy and Chrysalis, who also had a tear roll down her cheek as she finally spoke.
“W-we are,” Chrysalis said, with a slight tint of quivering in her voice.
“Even though I wasn’t around at the time of your attacks, I forgive you. And I would be more than happy to be your friend as well.
The former villains looked at each other. When they looked back at Luster, they all smiled.
“I would like that,” Tirek said.
“It would mean a lot,” said Cozy.
“I accept your offer as well, Luster Dawn,” said Chrysalis.
Suddenly Luster closed her eyes for a split second. When she opened her eyes again, the trio saw her eyes glowing a bright white light.
Luster’s body suddenly illuminated white light as well as she was lifted off the ground.
RRRIIIIPP
The villains tried to turn their heads and see where the sound came from, but immediately, a few objects flew over them. They turned their heads back and saw them floating over Luster’s head. Most of them were horizontally circling around what was probably another object.
And all of them were glowing!
The former villains suddenly felt themselves lifting too. When they were in the air, Chrysalis slightly floated back. Cozy and Tirek floated back in an even greater distance until they were directly on either side of Chrysalis.
It only took a second for the next step to take place.
Luster lifted her horn and shot a bright white beam right into whatever the other objects were spinning around. The spinning objects suddenly rotated upward, allowing
the former villains to see what the objects were spinning around: a glowing magenta gem shard.
As Luster continued shooting the beam, the magenta gem shard continued getting brighter.
So did the glow that was coming from the trio.
“What’s happening?” Cozy asked.
“I don’t know!” Chrysalis replied.
When the glow around the trio and the magenta shard hit its peak, the former villains finally emit a blinding white light that surrounds the whole entire campsite.
It only took a few seconds for the glow to fade. The trio landed safely on their hooves while Luster landed on her log in a perfect sitting position.
The white glow was still in her eyes until she closed them.
“Ugh... what just happened?” she questioned, rubbing her head.
Then, she opened her eyes and they shot open with surprise.
Luster saw the trio standing behind the log that was facing her, with THEIR eyes now glowing white. She saw something different out of each of them. She got off her log and examined the changes made to their bodies without bumping them. But as she made her way, she saw that her tent had six holes in it.
"What the-"
She passed the trio, came closer to the tent, and looked in one of the holes. There, she saw the box, which had six holes in it as well.
"How did-" Luster shook it off. Maybe she could figure it out after inspecting the changes to the former villains. She wanted to get a better description of the changes made to them.
Luster left the tent and finally started to examine the changes to the trio
Tirek had very significant changes to his body. He was bigger in size and strength. His horns were bigger as well.
Chrysalis also had significant changes to her body. She now had a peach color on her chitin. Her barrel consisted of what looked like orange fuzzy fur. She had no holes in her hooves, horn, wings, tail, and mane. Her mane and tail were still teal at the roots, but as the mane got closer to the end, it started to show off a green color. She had purple elytra covering her clear purple wings and teal carapace, and her belly was also teal as well.
Luster thought it looked pretty.
Cozy Glow had the least amount of changes, but Luster noticed ONE change on the filly's body: her cutie mark was gone, so now Cozy had no cutie mark at all.
Luster finished examining them before sitting on the log the trio was in front of. Finally, they blinked and their eyes returned to normal.
Chrysalis and Tirek all looked at their own bodies and gasped when they fully came to their senses. Cozy also gasped when she saw what happened to their allies. Tirek and Chrysalis started to examine their bodies and saw the changes.
"I-I'm in my second form?" Tirek gasped. "I haven't even stolen magic!"
"Did-did I just transform? I look so... pretty!" Chrysalis said. Her voice no longer sounded vain.
"Nothing happened to me!" exclaimed Cozy.
"Look at your flank," Luster pointed.
Cozy did as she was told. Her expression of confusion quickly changed to a mixture of shock and fear.
"Where's my cutie mark?" she asked.
"How did this happen?" Chrysalis asked.
"It must have been when all of... THAT happened," Tirek said.
"When what happened? Luster asked.
It took a few minutes for the trio to explain about what happened to the shards and their transformation to Luster Dawn. After their explanation, Luster spoke up.
"Hold up. Did you say, 'magenta gem shard'?"
"Yeah."
Luster got off her log and went to the other side of the firepit. There, behind the log farthest from the tent, are the six gem shards that Luster found in the box.
"Are those the objects?"
The former villains made their way to where Luster was. They all surrounded the shards with Luster, forming a semicircle with the log.
"Yes... I think they were," Tirek said.
"What are they?" asked Cozy.
"Those, my friends, are shards from the Elements of Harmony," a familiar voice said.
Luster and the trio looked up and saw Princess Twilight sitting on the log closest to the tents. Again, she was sparkly and transparent.
"Princess Twilight?" Luster asked.
"Umm... why do you look like Celestia?" Cozy asked.
"Well, you see, when I was coronated, the Princesses fused their crowns to form mine, granting me their powers."
"Oh," Cozy said.
"Uuummm... Princess? I have to ask... when you're all sparkly, is it you magically contacting me or something?" Luster asked.
Princess Twilight took a deep breath.
"Luster, Tirek, Chrysalis, and Cozy... it's time for me to tell you the truth... I may look like how Princess Twilight looks today, but I am not her."
"Huh?" the four said at the same time.
"I am actually the Tree... or Treehouse... of Harmony. I usually prefer to take this form when I am speaking to you."
"Wait... were YOU the one who gave me the option to go home or stay here when they ran off?" Luster said, motioning her hoof to the trio.
"Yes... I was. Oh, and do you remember when all of you fell asleep at the same time?"
"Yes," the four said at, again, the same time..
"I was the one who put you all to sleep. I was the one who visited your dreams. Luster, I visited your dream in this form. As for you three, I visited your dreams as Luster."
"That was YOU?" Chrysalis asked with surprise in her voice.
"Yes... it was."
"But why?" Luster asked. "Why did you do this?"
"Luster, normally I stay out of friendship missions. But this one is different. These villains would never listen to you unless you could talk some sense into them. They would refuse to converse, and even if they gave in, you probably wouldn't get through to them. So I put them to sleep, along with you, so I could talk some sense into them. I put you to sleep to provide advice."
"Oh. You know, normally I would be offended or upset at somepony for intervening for things assigned to me. But... I actually am thankful for your help, because you're right. I don't have as much knowledge of friendship as you do because you are basically the embodiment of friendship. But I only have one question: why did you send me, of all ponies, on this mission?"
"Because, Luster, I wanted to show you that you knew more about friendship than you thought."
"I didn't even teach them much."
"But you showed it. Watch."
The Tree Spirit lit up her horn and a projection appeared in front of Luster and the trio.
First, it showed Luster telling the former villains she was making them eggs.
"Generosity," the Spirit said.
It switched to Luster telling the trio she saw potential in them.
"Honesty."
Then, it showed Luster falling on the eggs, before getting up and then falling in the firepit.
"Laughter."
It then showed Luster saying she was gonna go back for the villains.
"Loyalty."
Then, the projection switched to Luster hugging Cozy.
"Kindness."
Finally, the projection showed Luster offering the trio friendship, and then showed Tirek, Cozy, and then Chrysalis accepting the offer.
"Magic."
The projection faded.
"That's why the shards were glowing, Luster. Every time you did something resembling an element, the element would glow. Once you got the magic element to glow, all of what just happened to you and the trio escalated. Now, Tirek is in his second form, and even when he gets his magic back, he is unable to steal power..."
"Even if I had the ability, I wouldn't do it anymore," Tirek said.
"...Now, Chrysalis metamorphosed..." the Spirit continued.
"I still can't get over how pretty I look. I haven't even seen my face!" Chrysalis said. She still couldn’t help but marvel at her appearance change.
"... And now, Cozy Glow doesn't have her cutie mark anymore, allowing her to find a new destiny."
"I hope it's something good..." Cozy said.
"The shards changed their appearances, allowing them to have a fresh start. But there has been a bit of an effect... their personalities have undergone an amount of purification. They will act different. Granted, some of their old ways remain... which would pave the way for new learning opportunities... In the end, you did do a lot, Luster. And I'm proud."
Luster smiled.
"Thank you."
Suddenly, Luster saw a faint light illuminate behind her. She looked at her flank and saw that her cutie mark was glowing.
"Uuuh, what does that mean?" Tirek asked.
"It means her friendship mission is fulfilled," the Spirit said. "I may be a spirit, but I can still take you home. Is that ok?"
Luster nodded.
"Yes."
The Tree Spirit suddenly lit up her horn and a blinding flash illuminated the field.
The bright light faded, and Luster found herself back where she was... the entrance to the Canterlot Garden. The former villains were there too. One look at her flank told her the glowing finally stopped. Cozy Glow went to the entrance and looked in.
"Wow... the garden looks beautiful," Cozy Glow said.
"Don't go in. It's getting fumigated," Luster warned.
Cozy Glow backed away.
"Oops. Sorry," she said.
"So... should we see the Princess?" Chrysalis asked.
Luster nodded. "Follow me."
Princess Twilight Sparkle sat on her throne. Recently, Spike left on an important royal adviser mission, and would probably be back the next day.
She was wondering how her prized student was doing when she saw the door open. Gallus, the captain of the royal guard, poked his head in.
"Your majesty?" he called out.
Princess Twilight got off her throne and made her way to the griffon.
"What is it, Gallus?"
"You know that friendship mission Luster went on that you told me about?"
"Yes?"
Gallus smiled.
"She did it."
The Princess gasped as her expression turned to joy.
"May I see her?"
Gallus opened the door even wider, showing Luster and the three reformed villains.
Luster immediately galloped to her mentor and hugged her. Twilight herself wrapped her hoof around her student.
When they released each other from their embrace, she saw the three former villains.
"Chrysalis. Tirek. Cozy Glow," she said, stepping forward, with Luster getting out of the way. Her smile remained.
"It is a pleasure to see you, Princess Twilight," Chrysalis said, bowing down along with Tirek and Cozy.
Twilight knew that she wasn't being made fun of, but instead, they were being as modest as they could be.
"You two have changed a lot."
"Oh we have," Cozy said. "Tirek increased to his second form. Chrysalis metamorphosed. And as for me, I lost my cutie mark."
Cozy then showed the Princess her blank flank.
"Well then, before we figure out what to do from there, just let me remove your magic and flight restrictions."
The Princess lit up her horn, with the light getting brighter and brighter. Three thin streaks of white light streamed out of the light.
Every streak touched the forehead of one former villain.
Finally, the glows faded.
When the glows faded, Cozy arched up her back and suddenly levited off the ground, flapping her wings.
"I can fly again!"
Chrysalis turned into Twilight before becoming herself again.
"I can change forms again!"
Everypony looked at Tirek.
"Don't look at me! I may have my powers back, but I feel like I am unable to steal magic anymore." Tirek smiled before he finished. "And I'm thankful for that. Ability to steal or not, I wouldn't do it again anyways."
"Ok then. Now that this is all cleared up, what are your plans for your futures? Would any of you want to go home?" Twilight asked.
There was silence.
"Actually..." Chrysalis began. "You can tell the hive I've changed, but I don't want to come back until I've learned everything about friendship."
"I want my brother to see a major difference in my attitude. Just reforming is not enough," Tirek said. "I need to learn everything."
"I don't know if anypony related to me is still out here... and as it turns out, I still have so much to learn about the REAL way of friendship," Cozy said.
"Very well," Princess Twilight said. "Chrysalis, Tirek, and Cozy Glow! You three are to live in my old Ponyville castle until you all are comfortable with going home or finding a home. Does that seem fair?"
"It does," Chrysalis said.
"I can also try to get you three into the School of Friendship... but that can wait until the news has been spread."
"Decent plan," Tirek said. "As long as it works, I'm happy."
"May I escort them now, your majesty?" Gallus offered.
"As you wish."
With that, Gallus led the three villains out of the Canterlot castle.
"Luster... I'm proud of what you've accomplished," Twilight said.
"Well... I wasn't alone. I've had some help."
"Really? Who?"
Luster was about to answer, before she decided to wait.
"Maybe you know her. I wouldn't mind meeting you two up someday when your schedule is clear."
Twilight looked confused before brushing it off.
"If you insist."
"Or maybe now," a voice said.
Twilight and Luster turned their heads and saw who was the one that spoke: Princess Twilight Sparkle. Only, she was more sparkly.
Luster knew who that was... the Tree Spirit.
"I-uh-what?" Princess Twilight asked. She obviously hasn't met the spirit before.
"I bet you are confused, so I will make this easy. I may look like you, Princess Twilight. But I'm actually the Tree of Harmony."
For the first time, Luster saw her mentor in complete jaw-dropping shock.
"I-uh-but-Tree..."
"I have never contacted you like this, Twilight. But I have contacted others. I contacted your students a long time ago. And just recently, Luster and the former villains."
"HOW? You've-"
"Been destroyed and turned into a treehouse? Yes. But I still carry the ability to contact anypony."
"So... you helped Luster on her mission?"
"Indeed I have. She couldn't do it alone. Plus, she was wondering why the map sent her in the first place since she valued friendship for a month. Although she remembered the letters, at the same time, she believed she didn't know anything else. So I talked sense into the villains, brought a shard from each Element of Harmony, and brought it to the camp. When Luster performed each deed related to the element, it would activate a magic surge. When the trio accepted her friendship request, everything happened so fast. The next thing any of them knew, the villains all had a physical change to their bodies."
Princess Twilight remained speechless until she finally decided to speak.
"Thank you. My student and I are thankful."
"Yes," Luster said. "You were right. Despite all I learned, I thought I was far from where the Princess is at. But now I see that I know more than I thought. I learned that even if I can't force friendship, if I perform the right amount of deeds like the Elements, I can get through even the nastiest of souls if they ever listen to me."
The Tree Spirit nodded before she extended her wings. A blinding light emitted through her barrel. Luster and Princess Twilight shielded their eyes. When they opened them again after the light faded, the Spirit was gone.
Nopony said anything for a minute.
"So... what now? Should I go get the tents and the supplies? When we came back here, they were left behind."
"That's ok. We can wait until tomorrow. Until then, I suggest you go home. Since you told me what you learned over the mission, you don't have to write anything tonight."
"Meh. I'll write anyway."
Twilight chuckled.
"If you say so."
Princess Twilight and Luster nuzzled each other as a farewell before Luster left the castle, ready to go home.
"Well... um... sorry, I may need more time to prepare for this. You told me to say it in my own words and I need to get it right."
*Chapter 1, Take 2*
"You know about the Tree of Harmony, right?"
(Luster nods, but then her nose twitches)
"ACHOO!!!"
"CUT!!!"
*Chapter 1, Take 5*
"You know about the Tree of Harmony, right?"
(Luster nods. The boom mic hangs down when the shot returns to Twilight)
“Well, a while after I became an Alicorn, the next Summer Sun Celebration was only a short time away. However, on a night where the celebration was around the corner, Princess Celestia and Luna vanished. The sky had both the sun AND the moon, splitting it into two. Even worse, vines and clouds from the Everfree Forest started to cover Ponyville. My friends and I soon discovered-"
"CUT!!! Sorry, Princess, but the boom mic was in this shot."
(Twilight sighs and Luster giggles)
*Chapter 3, Take 4*
(Twilight dims her horn after pretending to free Chrysalis, Cozy, and Tirek from stone)
"ALRIGHT, BRING THE STATUE OUT OF HERE! PRINCESS, GET READY TO ACT WEAKENED!"
(Camera shows ponies putting the statue of Tirek, Cozy, and Chrysalis on a cart and rolling it away. Camera moves to show Chrysalis and Tirek on a bench)
"I have to say, they got every detail right."
*Chapter 4, Take 1*
(Luster is setting up the tent. But then a pole recoils and smacks her face)
"AH! SON OF A-"
"CUT!!!"
*Chapter 4, Take 2*
(Luster is finished setting up the tent, but then it crumbles to the ground)
"Seriously?"
*Chapter 5, Take 3*
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!"
(Chrysalis, Tirek, and Cozy run out of the woods, but then Chrysalis trips and lands on her hoof)
"ACK!"
"CUT!"
*Chapter 5, Take 4*
(Chrysalis, Tirek, and Cozy run out of the bushes. Tirek exits later, stumbling)
"Sorry, sorry! A branch hit me in the face!"
(Camera shows Chrysalis facehooving while Cozy giggles a little. Luster just watches.)
*Chapter 6, Take 1*
"NOW DO AS I SAY!!!"
(Luster giggles)
"What?
"Sorry, it's hard to take you seriously..."
*Chapter 6, Take 3*
"NOW DO AS I SAY!!!"
(Luster snickers loudly)
"Come on! That's the third time!"
*Chapter 6, Take 5*
"NOW DO AS I SAY!!!"
(Luster full-out laughs)
"Ok, can we just practice until she gets used to it?"
*Chapter 7, Take 9*
(Everyone is asleep. A clicking sound is heard. Seconds later, a blue pony calls out.)
"THE SMOKE MACHINE ISN'T TURNING ON!!! IT'S JAMMED!"
(Chrysalis opens her eyes)
"Really?"
*Chapter 12, Take 4*
"But DON'T think this means anything!!!...
(Everyone is staring at Chrysalis)
"Sorry, I forgot the rest of my lines. *begins chuckling* I didn't have enough time to read the script."
*Chapter 14, Take 9*
(Cozy runs over to Luster and begins crying. Chrysalis and Tirek join them in a group hug.)
"AAAAANNND... CUT!!!"
(Chrysalis, Cozy, Tirek, and Luster seperate. Cozy wipes her tears.)
"How was that? Was... was that good? I've been doing fake crying for years, that had to be good."
(Laughter)
"What? I'm serious."
*Chapter 16, Take 6*
(Tree of Harmony spirit takes red gem out of box. It projects something.)
"Loyalty..."
(She puts the gem away and takes out a pink one. It projects something too.)
"Kindness..."
(She puts pink gem away and looks in the box.)
"And... hey, where's the magic gem prop?"
(Everyone looks at Spike.)
"What? I was hungry and I didn't know it was the prop."
(Camera moves to show Cozy talking to Chrysalis)
"I'm surprised they even got the real Tree of Harmony Spirit to participate in this."
*Chapter 18, Take 4*
(Tirek, Cozy, and Chrysalis sit in a circle in their reformed appearences. Tirek opens a card package.)
"AND THAT'S A WRAP ON 'THE DAWN OF A NEW MISSION'!"
