> A Cozy Hearth's Warming
>  by SoloBrony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> The elephant in the room
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I started in surprise as I heard a loud crack outside. Cozy must have been too tired to teleport back properly.

I suppose she must have gotten into a tough fight again... I wish she would be more careful, but I can't deny the good work she's doing.

I set aside the apartment listings on my desk and rose to my hooves just in time for her to open the door and stagger in. She huffed a loud sigh, but she smiled when she saw me.

"Oh, Luna, you're awake! I figured you would be passed out by now."

She cracked a genuine smile at me, but it was worn with fatigue. I tried my best to smile back, but I knew from experience I wasn't the best at faking that sort of thing. Besides which, she was partially covered in soot, and some of her feathers were out of place – I could only imagine what sort of villain she had run into.

"Been out fighting again?"

Cozy rolled her eyes and laughed faintly.

"I wish! Turns out the screaming was a bunch of foals playing in the street. When they spotted 'Dashing Savior' they demanded I stick around to sign autographs, and then one of the local police officers drafted me into helping with a fire that had gotten out of control. It was just a bunch of busy-work."

My smile became genuine at that. For all that she was complaining, she had stuck it out and gotten the job done – and I could tell she felt gratified by it, at the end of the day.

"I'm really proud of you, you know that?"

Cozy stuck her tongue out at me and blew a raspberry.

"Come on, don't get all mushy on me!"

She laughed as she started making her way to the bathroom. Tired as I was, I knew I'd end up putting off talking to her for another day if I didn't catch her now, so I held out a hoof and cleared my throat. She stopped and looked up to me with a quirked eyebrow.

"Cozy, I was thinking... wouldn't you like for us to live somewhere a bit bigger?"

I expected a few potential responses. I had braced myself for her to say something like she wanted to live on her own, and I hoped she would be excited to move in somewhere appropriate. Instead, she just seemed confused.

"Huh? Why? Do we need more stuff or something?"

It was my turn to be confused.

"Err, no, I just thought you might like your own room and so on. I mean, I've enjoyed staying at Silver Shoals, but it's hardly a place to bring up a foal."

Cozy giggled at that and shook her head.

"I don't have all of my memories back yet, but I remember that I spent the last year either sleeping in a cage in Tartarus or in a cave in the middle of a swamp. Having a soft bed to crash on and not having to smell sulfur all day – what is it with Tartarus and the swamp smelling the same, anyway? Totally unfair, even Tirek couldn't stand it – is just a major step up. I really don't mind at all. I like it here."

I winced at the reminder of how the last year had gone for her. Of all of the responses she could have given, this was easily the least expected. I glanced at the apartment listings and considered it for a few seconds.

"Well... if you change your mind, just let me know, alright? I know we met under odd circumstances, but..."

I trailed off and chewed my lip. How was I supposed to bring up the specifics of our situation? I had effectively adopted her before either of us realized what was happening, but I still had no idea how she felt about any of it.

I felt the same ball of nerves and stress in my gut that had plagued me any time I really thought about the whole thing over the past few weeks; was I ready for this? Was she? Were we a family, now, or was she just crashing here while she figured her life out?

Cozy studied my face carefully as I fought with myself. She opened her mouth, but then she tapped her chin with a hoof. For a moment I wondered if she was coming up with some way of manipulating me, but I tried to push that paranoia to the back; she'd been nothing but straightforward over the past few weeks, even after she accepted ponies using her real name again. She shook her head and finally spoke up.

"If you're considering getting a place for us, then I guess this is for real, huh?"

And just like that, that bundle of nerves leapt up into my throat. I couldn't read her emotions at all from that, but she smiled at me with a warmth I hadn't ever seen from her before – not the bright, goofy smile she threw on for crowds, or the coy smile she'd used so often before, but a soft, unconscious expression, as she went on.

"Luna, thank you. For, like... everything. You really caught me when I was at my lowest, and I don't think anypony else would have let me have the freedom I needed to get through all of this. I've kinda been going with the idea that I'd have to go sooner or later – I thought you were just being nice, but I was wearing out my welcome here. But if you want me to stay around, I'd be... well, I'm just really happy."

I'd never actually heard Cozy struggle with her words before. The realization that this was for real after all, that I'd just adopted a daughter, that she wanted to stay, that she was happy to be with me, was almost too much to take. I swept down and pulled her into a big hug; I wasn't much inclined towards such things, but I simply couldn't help it. Cozy cooed and leaned into me.

Then she giggled. "You're getting soot all over you, y'know."

I snickered at that. "Nopony shall notice; my coat is far too dark already."

Cozy snorted at that. We parted gently and she rolled her eyes at me.

"Well, I'm not washing it out of the bed when you inevitably pass out without another shower."

I gasped playfully, holding a hoof up to my mouth in mock indignation.

"Cozy! It is unfitting to speak thus of a Princess!"

Cozy snorted again as she trotted to the shower. "Mm-hmm, but I'm at that sassy teenage period, so I can say whatever I want about my mom."

I was too stunned to respond as she closed the door.

Ooh, that little—! She did that on purpose!

I laughed softly at that. Then the real weight of what had just happened hit me, and I started prancing in place like my sister.

Oh, oh! I need to go tell Celestia!

I dashed out the room to tell my sister the good news.

Of course, the mood was a little ruined when she immediately noticed the extra spots in my coat from the soot and cracked a joke about them!
> Inversation
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I leaned against the wall of the shower while the soot washed out of my coat and tried to get my breathing under control. My heart was hammering so hard against my ribs I thought it would burst any second now.

I called her mom! I can't believe I went there! She's going to think I'm messing with her or something!

I thunked my head against the shower wall while I tried to get my thoughts straight. I wasn't even sure why I'd cracked that joke; I was just desperate to get some privacy before I freaked out in front of her.

It's not like I'm unhappy about it all! This is great! It's just...

You remember our old parents.

... Barely.

Do you remember torching the orphanage records so nopony would know about them? So we could have a clean start at Twilight's school? I guess it backfired now that you've lost your marbles.

I didn't torch those records, YOU did.

Same difference.

Ugh!

I thunked my head a little harder against the wall. I had formed this image of what I used to be like in my head based on what other ponies told me, and now that I was recovering some of my memories I kept holding conversations with 'old Cozy Glow' in my head whenever I tried to think back.

I knew it wasn't healthy, so I kept trying to push it out, but I'd just sort-of slide into it whenever I thought about events before my memory loss.

Unfortunately, pushing the voice out just brought me back around to what I'd been worrying about before. Luna had been an angel to me so far, but who was to say things would stay that way? Maybe she just wanted to keep an eye on Equestria's most psychotic child, and she was just humoring me. Getting me to trust her, to need her, so I wouldn't act out again.

Or maybe she just wants a spare alicorn to point at problems, and you're nice and vulnerable. Remember when we used to be the ones who—

Shove it, Cozy Glow!

It's the truth, though. You can't really trust anypony. They all know what we did, so of course they're going to walk on eggshells around us. Their goal is always going to be to control us and keep us from causing problems, at best, and at worst you're just a chess piece. A rook to send out to take the opposing knights, just to be sacrificed to the pawns.

Oh good GRIEF, did I really think in chess metaphors back then? SO LAME. It's like I was an overachiever at being a cliche villain!

That got a chuckle out of me, despite myself, and I sat down in the shower and tried not to think too hard about what kind of pony laughed at burns they laid into their own mental alter-ego.

Oh yeah, just deflect rather than acknowledging my point. Sure showed me!

What point? That they want to use me as a shield against villains? HELLLOOOO, I'm a super hero! I volunteered for that! that's the whole point! I AM the rook on the front line, remember?!

More like a pawn.

If they want to sacrifice me, why should I care?!

I groaned and rubbed my face with my hoof. This was definitely not a healthy way to think.

I should just be happy right now! I've got a new family! One that isn't awful!

That's just it, though. Do you really? You know how this game is played, and you know she could be working you over just like we did to those easy marks at the school.

... Fine. I don't know for sure. But there's buck-all I can do about it right now, so I might as well trust her and hope for the best. I should focus on something I can actually do. Like more heroics, or studying.

Sure, sure. Be 'Quillon' and go save the day; right up until you need real strategy and manipulation to get things done, of course.

Just because I'm good at manipulation and I use it to save the day doesn't mean I'm a bad pony.

So why does it bother you so much?!

I huffed and shut off the shower.

This is dumb. I'm going to bed.

I forced my mind to be quiet as I dried off, trotted over to Luna's bed – our bed, I guess – and slumped over.

Despite everything, the last thing that came to mind for me was Luna's smile when I told her I wanted to stay with her. I smiled back as I drifted off, though there was still a twinge of uncertainty in the back of my mind.
> Adulting
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Sister, that's not funny!"

Luna pouted at me, and I covered my snicker with one of my great white wings. They really were just splendidly versatile like that.

"Aww, but you look so adorable as a dapple, Luna!"

Twilight was suppressing a snicker of her own. For a moment I wondered if Luna was really offended, but she just rolled her eyes and grinned. In fact, she seemed almost giddy, just as she had when she first approached us.

She must have finally broached the family issue with Cozy. And it looks like she got a positive answer!

I smiled and politely waited for Luna to explain, but she smirked at me slyly instead.

"Sister, you didn't perchance just guess what I came to tell you, did you?"

I looked up and away as innocently as I could. "Could be. Who's to say?"

Twilight looked between the two of us in confusion, but Luna's smirk grew and she leaned in.

"Tia, did you happen to think through the part where this means you're an aunt now?"

Oh. Oh right. That's a thing.

Luna belted out a decidedly unprincessly guffaw.

"You didn't! You didn't even think about that!"

I cleared my throat forcefully, trying to push down the sudden excitement I felt so as not to let Luna one-up me. "But I already am an aunt! To Cadance!"

Luna snorted. "That has nothing to do with this, and you know it!"

Twilight leaned in. "Umm, sorry to interject, but... whaaaa?"

I grinned, but Luna beat me to the punch. "Cozy accepted my adoption of her! She even called me her mother – as part of a jest, granted, but nonetheless!"

Wow. Is it possible she's just trying to manipulate Luna...? No, based on what I've seen of her, it's more likely the filly was trying to put on a brave face. I suspect she has a troubled past, and is equal parts joyous and terrified by this...

Twilight put on a somewhat unconvincing smile. "Really? That's... great! But, um, wasn't that a bit, y'know, quick?"

I smirked almost imperceptibly before I returned to a more neutral expression.

Hah, still a step ahead! This old nag's not useless yet!

Luna hesitated, her grin faltering, and I set a hoof on Twilight's withers. "Perhaps, but Cozy's not like a normal filly. She's very perceptive, especially when it comes to social matters. I'm sure she was just as excited as Luna, and just wanted to express that."

Twilight locked eyes with me for a moment, and then took a sigh of relief and leaned back. "Right, I'm sure that's what it is. Sorry, I'm just still processing the whole, like... Quillon, Cozy, super hero thing. Even Discord was less chaotic when it came to redemption. Sorry, Luna; I didn't mean to be a downer."

Luna smiled and shook her head. "It's fine, Twilight. I know you're just concerned for my well-being. You haven't been here to see how different she is in-person, so I understand how hard it must be for you to imagine."

Twilight seemed to give this some thought before responding. "It's not that hard to imagine. I mean, I've seen plenty of ponies reform. It's just that none of them posed as my friend or student beforehand. I was so taken in by Cozy, and I felt so betrayed by what she did, I just... I guess I'm just still hurt. I can't believe I failed a student so badly."

Luna frowned, her ears flattening. "I spoke with her about all of that. She said she wanted to apologize, but she feels she needs to remember what she did wrong for it to be sincere, first."

Twilight nodded. "That makes sense. Honestly, I'm not fishing for an apology. I just wish I understood better. Maybe... if she starts to remember more, you could ask her to speak with me about it?"

Luna hummed in agreement and nodded, and a somber mood was about to descend on our little gathering.

Can't have that! This was supposed to be my happy tea time with Twilight, and it's a happy event for Luna!

I cleared my throat. "So, Luna, you were looking at apartments, correct? What did you settle on?"

Luna balked slightly. "Sister, if I was going to make a final decision I'd obviously want to invite you to come with us!"

I smirked. "Oh? I thought you'd want to avoid having me steal your thunder."

Luna fidgeted, and I realized I'd misread the mood.

"Sister... I actually wanted you to spend more time with her. She has so few friends to speak with, I worry she feels like she has nopony else to go to when she can't discuss something with me."

The part Luna omitted was that she wasn't much better-off herself; she would feel isolated if she moved somewhere without me. I mentally chided myself for the misstep and smiled at her.

"Of course I'll move wherever you head. And I'll make more of an effort to connect with Cozy, as well. So what's the plan, then?"

Luna chuckled and shook her head.

"That's just it; she said she's actually happy here. She doesn't seem to have any interest in meeting other ponies her age. When I brought it up, she just pointed out what a step up over Tartarus this place is, and shrugged the whole thing off. I'm not sure if she's just trying not to cause a problem, but... the impression I got is that she doesn't want unnecessary change right now."

I leaned back in my chair and took a moment to breathe and process that.

"That does make sense. Things have been so chaotic for her I'm surprised Discord hasn't gotten jealous. But it's probably not the best idea to let her carry on in isolation like that."

Twilight nodded vigorously, and chipped in at that.

"I can attest to that. She's throwing herself into her magical studies in every spare moment; I can tell just from the book orders she sends. I know she needs to learn all of the basics, since she just got her horn, but the rate of learning she's putting in definitely doesn't strike me as just obsessive studying. I think she's trying to distract herself from everything with it, and, well... that just puts off dealing with those feelings and memories. She needs to make new memories, good ones, to help deal with it all."

Luna and I both beamed at Twilight, and I was starkly reminded then why I put her in charge. I nodded and looked to Luna.

"I agree with Twilight. Luna, you should urge her to make some friends. Especially with Hearth's Warming coming up, I think it will do her a lot of good."

Twilight laughed. "Here's hoping the fate of the world doesn't depend on her making friends like it did for me! I don't know how many more crises I can handle during my first year in office!"

Luna cringed slightly. "Tempt not ye fates, Twilight."

Twilight snickered. "I'm sure it'll be fine."

I facehoofed.
> Grand achievements through apathy
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

My brilliant plan to fulfill my 'friendship homework' by making friends through my super hero work had one major flaw: ponies didn't know the real identity of the Dashing Savior, and if they did, they probably wouldn't want to be friends.

Of course, I only realized this flaw after spending extra time chatting and hanging out with ponies after my most recent heroic escapade. Now I'd wasted three whole days and I hadn't made a single real friend!

It was pretty cool getting to know all of those ponies, though.

Who knows how they might be useful to us in the future? It's good to have a widespread contact network.

Well... yes, but it also gives me a gratifying perspective on how diverse and important the 'faceless crowd' really is. It's the kind of lesson you'd never get, old-Cozy.

Sap.

Jerk.

As much as I didn't want to get wrapped up in my own head like that, I had nopony else to talk to. I'd headed out to Ponyville to make some friends, but word had gotten around about who 'Quillon' really was, so my new coat color wasn't fooling anypony. Ponies glared at me as they went past, and kept their distance. I sipped on my milkshake and tried to at least be thankful nopony was throwing anything.

They're too scared. Because we're powerful, remember? We don't need them anymore!

'Power' implies I can get what I want. I want ponies to like me, but all of the alicorn magic in the world can't make that happen. Not for real, anyway.

... Touche.

Turns out, winning an internal argument against a voice in your head that was actually trying to cheer you up, does not result in you being happier. Who knew?

I was about to give up on Ponyville and head home when an unfamiliar voice made me start slightly in my chair.

"Oh, hey there. I don't think I've seen you around Ponyville before. You alright?"

I looked over to see a light-yellow unicorn mare with a firey red-and-yellow mane staring at me.

"Uh, yeah, I'm alright. I'm not from around here, though. Just visiting."

"Dropping in on friends, huh? Yeah, same here."

I snorted and focused back on my milkshake.

"I don't have any friends to drop in on. I was trying to fix that by coming here, but nopony will so much as speak to me."

The unicorn walked back around into my field of view and sat across from me. I might have thought it presumptuous of her, but I had just basically said I wasn't waiting on anypony. She cocked her head at me.

"They won't? Why not?"

I sighed. Of course I could lie to her, but then it wouldn't be a legitimate friendship – plus, it would be pretty unheroic, not to mention manipulative. Manipulating ponies was old-Cozy, not me.

"I tried to destroy all the magic in Equestria, got locked up in Tartarus, and then when I got free I went on a deranged rampage with a couple of other horrible villains, which got so bad that the windigoes returned. You probably noticed."

I expected the mare to realize who I was and... well, I'm not sure what I expected after that. An amused-looking smirk wasn't it, though.

"Oh, is that all? Sorry, I was out of town when that happened, though Twilight told me about it."

First-name basis with the Princess, huh?

'Out of town'? Nopony anywhere in Equestria could have missed that! Something's off about this mare, we need more information on her!

Or... I could just not give a horseapple.

I shrugged. "Fair enough. Yeah, that's all, aside from my being a backstabbing, manipulative nightmare who saw friendship as a tool for power."

She actually laughed at that!

"Wow! Yeah, that sounds about right! I guess Twilight and her friends helped you turn it around, huh?"

"As if! They just shot me with a giant rainbow doom laser thingy."

"Oh yeah, that thing. Did it strip you of your deranged-rampage powers and set you on the path to redemption?"

"Nope, it just wiped my memory."

The mare leaned back and smirked at that.

"Man, that thing is so unpredictable. Sent Luna to the moon, turned Discord to stone..."

Who IS this mare?! Find out now!

Nope. Don't care.

"Tell me about it. Luna ended up taking me in – long story – and she thought I should make some friends. So here I am. Making friends."

I gestured around at the empty space, and the mare snickered at that.

"Well, you can't just wait for friends to come to you. You've gotta do stuff with ponies to start forming bonds."

I rolled my eyes. "I know that. You can manipulate ponies into being your friend with shared experiences, favors, that sorta thing, but I'm trying not to be a crazy, manipulative villain anymore."

The mare quirked an eyebrow at me, and I realized that what I said probably sounded a bit foolish in abstract, but it was still the thought process that led me here. Then again, you'd need to meet a pony first to even try sharing an activity.

She grinned slyly and leaned forward conspiratorially.

"Well, can I manipulate you into playing some pool with me? I heard they recently put a table in at the new 'rec center' wing of the library here, and I could use the telekinesis practice. I've gotten really rusty."

GAAAH, WHY WOULD A UNICORN BE RUSTY AT TELEKINESIS?! FIND OUT MORE! And don't go anywhere with her, you have no idea what her deal is, she could be dangerous!

Golly, you really ARE helpful! It's a guide for what NOT to do and/or care about!

I shrugged. "Sure thing."

"Great! Let's go. Oh, my name's Sunset Shimmer, by the way. What's yours?"

"Well... I'm Cozy Glow, but I kinda prefer Quillon now."

"Oh, putting some distance between you and old-you, huh? I can see that, with the whole memory thing. Alright, Quillon, let's see if you can use that horn of yours."

I giggled. Something about this mare was just really likeable, as long as I ignored the screaming alarm bells coming from my manipulative side, my common sense, and my general survival instincts. None of which had served me very well in life, really.

"Oh, you have no idea. You're on!"
> A bear of a time
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It turned out Sunset's claims of rustiness at telekinesis were just covering for her being the best pool shark in Equestria. She took a few hundred bits off of cocky ponies before they got wise to her expertise, and no amount of magical expertise let me keep up with her skills with a cue. We'd been at it an hour before I finally called it quits; it took all of my self-restraint not to snap the stick out of sheer frustration.

Good thing we didn't gamble; we barely brought enough bits to cover lunch.

I don't think Sunset's the type to gamble with a foal anyway. She's got a sly streak, but she seems pretty well-intentioned.

You might be right. You know, if we asked, she'd probably stand in for us as a 'friend' to get Princess Lunatic off of our back.

Ugh, why do I think stuff like that. Wait, why not just really become friends with her? She's been fun to hang out with so far!

Oh sure, just let her manipulate you instead, why not.

Really, why not?

I took the resulting silence as a victory in my own head as I put away the pool supplies in the rec center closet with Sunset. We both had a laugh at the bulging sack of bits she'd acquired; there was no way the ponies of Ponyville would fall for that again. Maybe.

They'll practice, think they can take her, and be ripe for picking again in a month or two.

"Soo, Sunset! You said you were out of town, right? What brings you back to Equestria, then?"

Sunset shrugged as we started to make our way out into the town. "Honestly? Sometimes I just miss it. But I actually came by to visit Twilight today; I was about to head back home when I ran across you."

"Huh? But Twilight's in Canterlot, so why would you stop in Ponyville to go home?"

Sunset laughed a bit nervously. "Well, it's a bit complicated..."

I looked up at her slyly, mental gears turning.

"You've got some kind of portal here that acts as a shortcut?"

Sunset froze and stared at me. I laughed. "Hah, yep! That's gotta be it."

"How did you know that?!"

"I didn't, though your face sure gave it away! But honestly, I use portals to get around sometimes too, so it's not, like, a big deal or anything."

Sunset seemed to process that. I could practically see the gears in her head turning, asking who the heck this foal was.

Horseshoe's on the other hoof now, huh?!

I couldn't suppress a grin at that. Sunset made an 'ahem' sound and spoke up.

"So, there are other portals? Where do they lead?"

"Oh, I just had an incident where I had to teleport all the way from Vanhoover to Baltimare, and that really took it out of me, so I made this personal portal focus. I still have to activate it, but it's a lot easier than a straight teleport."

She huffed a sigh of relief. "Oh, okay. That's pretty impressive, though."

She's not really the least bit impressed! Most ponies would be awed! She didn't even ask what I was doing teleporting clear across Equestria!

Shut up! It doesn't matter! I'm not trying to impress her!

Get real, yes you were. That's why I let you do your thing; peddling your power into fame and friends is what you should have been doing from the start, dummy!

I started in surprise as I realized that on some level I had been trying to impress Sunset with bragging. The fact that she was totally nonchalant about it had just made me try harder, too. I felt a deep-seated anger towards myself rising.

This friend-making thing is way too hard to manage while I'm trying to police my own mind and getting hit with random memories! ARGH, why can't I just pound some monster face or something?!

A huge roar shook Ponyville, causing everypony aside from Sunset and I to scream in surprise and dive for cover. I glanced over at the source of the sound – oh hey, looks like the local Ursa Major is rampaging for some reason – and grinned.

For once, random coincidence works out in my favor!

Sunset rushed forward a bit, putting herself between me and the giant bear as it casually trampled a house on its way towards the crystal castle. "Quillon, get to safety! I'll try to distract it until Twilight and the others can get here!"

I trotted up beside her casually, but before she could utter a phrase to match the consternation on her face, I leaned in and said, "Hey, Sunset, you can keep a secret, can't you?"

She was utterly nonplussed at that. "Huh? Uhh, I guess so?"

I cast the instant-costume-don spell I'd been practicing, and just like that, I was Dashing Savior. "Great! Now if you'll excuse me—" I zipped off towards the Ursa Major, "—it's time for some therapeutic, misplaced, AGGRESSION!"

I fired a hornblast at the Ursa to get its attention, and began weaving through the air, distracting it and luring it back away from the occupied buildings. I really hoped nopony was in that house it already trampled.

Ursas tend to be territorial and defensive of their young, but not aggressive. If it's here, it's either likely looking for its baby, or somepony who hurt it; that, or someone magically agitated it. Retrieve and deploy Fluttershy against it; she's local and an expert on these sorts of things.

If it's a curse, the Ursa Major will just attack her.

So?! That's like a 1-in-3 chance at best, and she's a hero, she's ready for that kind of thing!

You and I both know she'll get hurt or worse if we drag her into it already. I've gotta send this thing packing on my own, first!

UGH, fine! In that case, try talking to it and see if it seems coherent! And go Shrew!

Roger; we are 'go' for Shrew.

I dodged a massive paw-swipe, opened my mouth to speak, and was nearly deafened by a subsequent roar. I took a moment to process just how truly massive the creature was; I wasn't even the size of one of its fangs.

I pushed down a fear reaction and augmented my voice. "HEY, UGLY! IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR YOUR KID, THEY AREN'T HERE!"

The Ursa paused when I spoke, processing the sudden source of loud noise, but then simply lifted a paw to swipe at me again.

Oh, right. Ursas don't understand language anyway.

It didn't matter either way; during the brief time the Ursa had been distracted, I'd been busy. 

My old special moves might not work on something this size, but I had been practicing.

As soon as I dodged its swipe, the Ursa slammed its paw down on a sinkhole and went down to the shoulder in the ground.

"Hah! Another oversized villain falls to the Shrew Style: Headless Pony technique!"

So-named because I usually buried the creature up to the head with the move, in this case it was far less effective; the Ursa was already trying to yank its shoulder out of the hole, and it was only Sunset rapidly turning the ground under it into quicksand that prevented it from getting enough of a foothold with its remaining three legs to do so. The creature sank up to its neck in the mud and sand, roaring in either terror or bloodlust – could be both, really – and struggling uselessly.

Yowza. That unicorn has some serious magical expertise.

Quicksand. That's a much more energy-efficient transmutation than our sinkhole spell. Gotta make a note of that for the future.

I zipped down to Sunset and alighted gently next to her. "Think it's safe to get Fluttershy to see what's wrong with him now?"

Sunset looked confused for a second, and then her eyes brightened. "Oh, right! Fluttershy! Who lives in Ponyville! Good thinking. Yeah, I'll go get her if you want to hold the Ursa down – I burnt a lot of energy on that spell."

I nodded and casually rolled my head around, popping my neck in the process. "No problem. No random Ursa is a match for DS!"

"DS?"

"Dashing Savior!"

I almost felt offended she hadn't heard of me.

"Oh. Well alright then."

As Sunset galloped off to retrieve Fluttershy, and I sighed as I casually zapped the Ursa in the face to dissuade an escape attempt.

That mare couldn't be more unimpressed with me.

What happened to the whole 'I'm not doing heroics for fame' bit?

She's cool! I want her to be excited about what I'm excited about! That's, like, lesson zero in friendship!

Suuure, justify it however you want.

This back-and-forth over my own motives continued until Sunset returned with Fluttershy. Almost as soon as Fluttershy arrived, the Ursa calmed down, and the two began chatting. I stood up, nodded to Sunset in a businesslike fashion, and spread my wings, putting on my 'hero' voice.

"This seems to be settled, which means it's time for me to make good my escape before my identity gets compromised."

Sunset giggled at that, holding a hoof up to her mouth. "Right, that seems like an important concern. Well, want to meet up again in a few days?"

I nodded a bit too hurriedly. "Definitely! Ponyville on Saturday?"

"See you then."

And with that, I zipped into the sky, only to teleport out of sight. I reappeared in Luna's room, and had barely taken off my chanfron when Luna sprang from her bed and leaned in towards me, expression serious.

"Cozy! I saw thine armor vanish from atop the dresser! What has happened?"

Uh-oh. She only goes medieval speech when she's really freaked out.

"Uhh... well, there was a monster, so I dealt with it. No big deal! Don't worry!"

Luna hardly seemed reassured, and I could tell she was about to reiterate that my hobby was dangerous when I suddenly had the perfect idea for how to distract her.

"I made a friend today, though! She even helped with the monster!"

Luna paused. I could tell she knew I was deflecting her criticism, but to be fair, she was only going to go off on that rant again because she felt like it was her job as my guardian. She took the out.

"Oh? And who was this pony?"

Oh yeah, I'm Quillon, the totally-not-manipulative pony who—

Shut up, talking to mom.

THAT'S NOT OUR MOM!

I said shut up!

"W-well, her name is Sunset Shimmer..."

I reiterated the events of the day to Luna, trying to shove that nagging old-Cozy voice to the back of my head. Something about trying to accept Luna as my mom was really bothering me, and honestly, I was so distracted by that stuff I never bothered asking what had set off the Ursa Major in the first place.

Things would probably have gone a lot easier for me past there if I had.
> Not a moment's peace
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Very good, Cozy. Hold it just like that."

Cozy squinted in concentration, but otherwise kept a calm poker face while she held up the complex apparatus of machinery. It was a very delicate bit of telekinesis; if she offbalanced the machine even slightly, the bearings would slide out of place and it would fall apart. In terms of raw power, even with her abilities faded somewhat since the Battle of the Bell, she was still alarmingly advanced, but her inexperience with a horn made such a fine task quite hard.

It was a great surprise, then, when she spoke without missing a step.

"I appreciate the help with my studies, Princess Celestia, but I wanted to ask; why are you taking an interest all of a sudden?"

There's that formal demeanor she takes with me. Probably worried she'll try to manipulate me if she doesn't keep herself reined in.

"Well, there's the simple fact that you're my niece, now. And I would have participated sooner, but Luna thought you needed the space to work on your own. We had the impression your magical training was your alone-time."

Cozy nodded slowly, eyes still fixated on the apparatus.

"She wasn't wrong. I'm still working things out."

"But you don't mind the company now, do you?"

She took a few seconds to answer – whether due to difficulty maintaining the levitation or because she was considering her answer, or both, I couldn't be sure.

"No, I don't. It's nice. You don't talk too much or try to dig into my head."

I almost laughed at how lukewarm that sort of compliment sounded, delivered so bluntly, but I checked myself.

She's trying to be honest. I can't undermine that.

"I try not to tread where I'm unwelcome. Or be careless with things I don't understand."

Cozy smiled at that.

"See, you get it. If there's one thing I really hate, it's when ponies assume they know exactly what's going on in my life and then dictate what I should do about it."

"In my experience, everypony hates that."

"You'd think they'd know better, then."

It was my turn to laugh.

"If ponies actually learned how to treat others from their own experiences, and consistently treated others with that kind of tact and care, I doubt they'd even need leaders to settle disputes."

Cozy thought that over while she experimentally turned the apparatus horizontally without tilting it vertically.

"I guess other ponies struggle with empathy, too, sometimes."

I considered that, digging back through years of experience settling disputes rather than giving a snap answer.

"I think most ponies find empathy itself easy, but then fail to apply what they know. They form bad social habits, and don't really question them."

"Huh... so if you asked them, they'd know what would or wouldn't hurt somepony else, but they'll do it anyway without even thinking that through?"

"More or less."

Cozy took on a quizzical expression that bordered on comedic.

"But that's dumb."

"I wouldn't say that... it's more just a matter of how much effort ponies put into socializing. Most interactions don't take much thought, so it's habit-forming not to take it too seriously."

Cozy's face lit up at that, like she'd just discovered how to cast a new spell.

"Oh. So that's how it is. I guess I've gotten used to overthinking how I speak and act, because... well, you know why."

I scooted closer to her as her countenance darkened.

"That's not necessarily a bad thing, Cozy. That kind of awareness could make you the best friend somepony could ask for."

I got a loud, unladylike snort out of her in response to that.

"Right. Ponies are just lining up for a chance to hang out with the most destructive filly in history."

I actually tried to evaluate whether she was, in fact, the most destructive filly in history for a moment before realizing it wasn't productive. (Tough call, though; I mean, Luna threw some impressive tantrums, and depending on the age range considered, Starlight did technically destroy Equestria, and I'll just stop now.)

"Most ponies have short memories, Cozy. Even if you struggle now, things will get better. And I heard you did just make a new friend in Ponyville, the other day, right? It's not as though you need a great many friends; for one such as you, the depth of even a single friendship will go much farther than it does for most ponies, I suspect."

Cozy chewed her lip over as she set the apparatus down.

"Maybe. But the friends I have right now tend to be pretty busy, and we only know each other in passing. I don't feel like I've gotten a real chance to get to know anypony aside from Luna. It's kind of funny that I felt so accomplished for having so many 'friends' before, but I didn't have a single pony who really knew me. And the only things I knew about them were details on how to mess with them."

This filly is far too good at assessing her own weaknesses, failures, and shortcomings. At her age, in her situation, that kind of self-awareness is more of a burden than a boon.

I gently extended a wing around her. "Well, what about gathering together with your friends for Hearth's Warming? It's coming up in a few days, and I know Luna was looking forward to putting on a big celebration this year with Twilight."

Cozy huffed, rolling her eyes at me and grinning. "Oh, I know. She talks about it constantly! 'Cozy, you should make some friends your own age, I don't want to see you alone at Hearth's Warming', 'Cozy, what kind of outfit do you want to wear at the Hearth's Warming Party', 'Cozy, does this dress make mine posterior appear inordinately rounded'?"

That took me so off-guard, the mental image so vivid and her voice impression so terribly caricatured, I giggled so hard I snorted for breath halfway through, and Cozy started laughing with me (or possibly at me).

"Oh, my stars. She did not say that last one!"

"Haha! No, not really, but she might as well have. I saw her checking her flank out in the mirror with that big frown she gets when she's stressed about what ponies think."

Cozy made a dramatically huge frown to demonstrate, and that got another round of giggles out of me.

"That's it, that's the look! I remember seeing her make that face whenever delegates wanted to see both of us!"

Cozy snickered and shook her head, directing her gaze out at the clouds. "I can imagine, yeah. I bet she was really glad to get out of the castle."

"We both were," I confirmed. "It wasn't doing our relationship any favors, either. I like the freedom we have now; it's been untold centuries since I could simply be with my sister and explore what kind of ponies we are to each other."

We settled into a companionable silence for a while after that, until a nagging thought crept up on me.

"So, Cozy... are you looking forward to the Hearth's Warming party at all?"

Cozy's gaze flattened slightly, and she eventually let out a sigh. I could tell she was struggling with whether to lie about her feelings.

"No. I kinda hate Hearth's Warming."

I pursed my lips and considered that before responding.

"I won't pretend to know precisely why you feel that way. I suppose it must be related to your past?"

Cozy nodded stiffly, but didn't elaborate. I was going to gently push for more when we were both startled by a buzzing, humming noise that went off periodically. We both looked around until I noticed her flank was glowing.

"Erm, Cozy? Your cutie mark is glowing."

Cozy's eyes shot wide and she stared at her flank in disbelief. A few tense moments passed before she groaned and facehoofed.

"Seriously?!"
> Lashing out
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight, Sunset and I stared at the cutie map in stunned silence. I watched Sunset's cutie mark dance with mine for a while before finally shaking my head.

"So we're supposed to solve a friendship problem in Ponyville? The most friendly place in Equestria? The map specifically chose a horrible ex-villain and a foreigner to solve a problem here?"

Sunset twitched when I said 'horrible ex-villain', but visibly relaxed when I finished the statement. A pony who cared might actually look into that. Twilight just shrugged, still staring at the map.

"I... guess so? The map doesn't really make mistakes with this stuff, in my experience, so there must be something only you two can solve. I mean, I shouldn't be surprised! You're both brilliant, and you have a lot of insight I don't. Still, it's kind of disappointing to think there's some big, important issue left unresolved right here in town."

Sunset trotted over to me and set a hoof on my withers, meeting my gaze with a winning smile.

"Hey, we made a good team against that Ursa the other day. I, for one, am looking forward to getting up to more adventures with you."

I considered that for a moment, and then huffed slightly and smiled. "Alright, yeah. This might be kinda fun. And it's not like I don't want to hang out more, I just really figured we could do it outside of super hero hours this time."

Sunset's grin just deepened. "Trust me, I know all about heroics getting the way of your social life. You've just gotta get used to the two worlds overlapping all the time. Once you accept it, it gets a lot easier."

... Huh.

Huh.

"Huh. I guess I'll do that, then. Thanks. We should probably go look for this problem, right?"

Sunset nodded and held up a hoof towards the door with a dramatic flourish. "Lead onwards, Quillon! Because I never really learned my way around Ponyville!"

I snickered and turned to leave, just before Twilight chirped up.

"Say, Sunset? How'd you know you were being summoned?"

Sunset laughed. "Oh, it was super weird. My cutie mark appeared on the back of my hands and started glowing, and I had to stick my hands in my pockets really fast. My teacher yelled at me for leaving my phone on in class!"

Hands? And what the heck is a phone?

I gave Sunset a sympathetic eyeroll and shrug.

"I totally hate it when that happens."

She snickered. "Right? Let's get a move on."

We managed to get outside before she realized we didn't have phones in Equestria and I was just messing with her. It was good for a laugh, and we continued throwing jabs at each other for the next few hours as we searched for some sign of a problem in Ponyville without success. We finally decided to give up and grab some milkshakes, bantering the whole way and straight into the line in the store.

"So then I just screamed 'Flying Hydra Punch' and knocked it right on its rear with this massive, flaming uppercut!"

"Oh come on, you did not!"

"I totally did! You want me to demonstrate on you, missy?!"

Sunset laughed and held up a hoof.

"I'm good, thanks! I'd like my chin to stay where it is! So why would you call your attack like that, anyway? What are you, some kind of comic book character?"

"Trying to be!"

Sunset froze for just a second at that and laughed again.

"Fair enough, I guess! But I don't think you're nearly cliche enough to make that really work, Quillon."

"Not yet, but I figure if I just start eating way more food than any pony could reasonably digest, do a bunch of ridiculous training that has nothing to do with fighting, and make sure to act like a total idiot when it comes to socializing, I'll be most of the way there."

"Nuh-uh! You forgot the tragic backstory!"

"Oh, I've got that covered, don't worry."

Sunset giggled and was about to make another comment when the cashier – a grey earthpony stallion – called out at us angrily.

"Hey, unicorns! You're holdin' up the dang line! Make your order already!"

It took me a second to realize that between my horn and the cloak hiding my wings, he was referring to me.

How dare this slovenly rube address me like that? I'll get back at him! I bet I could get the health department to shut his precious little place down with a little sabotage!

OR, I could be mature and stop holding up the line, and not let every little thing draw me into drama and stupidity while I hurt everypony around me.

He's still a jerk, though!

Sunset and I meekly trotted up to the counter to make our orders. The worker irritably took them down and made our shakes, being overly forceful and irate the whole time. The end result was shakes that were visibly sloppy compared to the others in the store, with mine even having some of the ice cream improperly mixed and spilling over the side of the glass slightly.

Sunset quirked an eyebrow through the display and stared at the shakes pointedly after he slammed them down.

"Sir? Is there some problem?"

The stalion huffed. "Just take your shakes and get back to Canterlot."

Sunset was visibly confused, but I'd put the situation together already and leaned forward.

"Okay, spit it out. What's your problem with unicorns? I thought the rumors dividing Equestria were dealt with at the Battle of the Bell."

The cashier snorted. "What, you think the Canterlot crowd gets a pass from me after kicking my daughter out of their shelter, just because we banded together for survival in the end? She almost froze to death trying to make the run back to Ponyville! All because she didn't have a horn!"

Sunset gasped. "That's awful! Why would they do that to her?"

I set a hoof on Sunset's withers. "Things got really ugly in Equestria leading up to that whole confrontation. I heard about how the unicorns shut themselves off in the magic school; I'm not that surprised."

The stallion squinted at me. "Heard about it? Well where were you, then?"

This one's easy. Just make up a story about—

No! No more lying and manipulation!

I leaned over the counter a bit, glaring up at him.

"I was busy trying to destroy Equestria along with Tirek and Chrysalis."

UGH! What's even the point of talking to this waste of space?

Shut up!

The stallion reared back, his eyes going wide in recognition.

"You're Cozy Glow! I heard your coat color changed, but I didn't know—"

Forget the map, let's just blow this whole thing off!

UGH, SHUT UP!

I waved a hoof and cut him off.

"Yes, yes, I've HEARD it all already, save your shock and indignation. Now listen up; somepony did something awful to you – or somepony you care about, in this case – so you're being a total boor to random strangers who happen to have horns. I did the exact same thing, venting my anger about stuff in my past on ponies who had nothing to do with it. So tell me something, ice-cream pony..."

I popped my wings through the hidden cuts in the cloak and flew up to his face, uncomfortably close.

"Does any of that make you feel good about yourself? Do you go home and take a deep breath and say," I put on a bad imitation of his much-deeper voice, " 'YEAH, I sure was a JERK to those random unicorns I saw today! I can sleep just great tonight!' Think somepony will build a statue in honor of your efforts?"

More than anything, the stallion seemed confused by my presentation, and that just made me more angry.

He's literally too stupid to get the point! Stop wasting time doing what Twilight and some arbitrary MAP tells you to do!

The voice in my head was also just ticking me off, making it hard to think straight. What I said next came out a lot more forcefully than I intended; I didn't have the vocal strength to speak so powerfully before I became an alicorn.

"Does doing this make you feel warm inside? Huh? Does it? You proud of yourself?"

The stallion glared at me and shouted back.

"So what?! I just let ponies walk all over me and I'm supposed to be the bigger stallion?!"

Something about his behavior reminded me of a long-buried memory; something from way before Twilight's school. I felt my stomach invert on itself, an icy, wet sensation of dread creeping up my spine. I crushed that under sheer, blind anger, but when I spoke my voice came out calm – though it barely sounded like me anymore.

"Do you even get why that's what you're supposed to do? It's because it has to end with you. Taking your anger out on others will just make you miserable, them miserable, and soon it will come back on you again. It's pointless. It's stupid. And you already know that or you wouldn't have bothered trying to justify this horseapple nonsense to me. And you can kiss your business goodbye—" I gestured to his customers, who looked thoroughly disgusted at him, though just as many looked alarmed to realize who I was, to be honest, "—as soon as ponies find out that you treat unicorns this way, since nopony in Ponyville is going to want to be near you."

The cashier was about to make a retort, but I cast a spell that distracted him. The two poorly-made milkshakes on the counter transformed into an old pre-Equestrian symbol; a coat of arms with a unicorn horn below it, signifying that unicorns who trespassed would be attacked. He stared at it for a second before I saw recognition dawn in his eyes, and that was enough for me; I flew right out of the store before folding my wings back into my cloak.

Sunset teleported to my side a moment later. I saw her open and close her mouth as she kept pace with me and tried to work out what to say. We'd gone about thirty paces before she finally settled on something.

"Quillon, are you okay?"

"Nope."

"Right, uh... wanna talk about it?"

I bit back a particularly nasty invective.

"Let's wait until tomorrow, when I've calmed down."

"For a second I thought you might just demonstrate that flying punch after all."

I shook my head, starting to shake as the adrenaline bled off of me.

"I didn't want to hurt him, I wanted to just ignore him and leave. I probably should have; I doubt my rant made any difference."

Sunset set a hoof in front of my barrel, causing me to stop in surprise. Then she turned me around, and I saw the pony's customers streaming out. After a few moments, he came out and called after them in a panic.

"Oh, I think you made a difference, alright. I doubt he'll be giving unicorns any more trouble – at least if he likes having a job."

I groaned. "Great, I ruined another pony's life."

Sunset turned my head to look at her, and fixed me with a serious expression.

"Quillon, there's nothing wrong with what you did. You just spoke your mind and stood up to someone doing something wrong, even though it hurt to do. I mean, maybe you could have been more... I dunno, diplomatic? But on the other hand – er, hoof – maybe your way was the only one that would get through to him."

I shuffled and looked at the cashier, who glanced in our direction; he looked less 'angry' and more 'dismayed'. I didn't particularly like either option.

"Maybe, I guess. I think I'm just going to go home; we didn't find the friendship problem yet, and the sun's already setting, so we'll just try again tomorrow."

Sunset shuffled in place and looked like she had more to say, but finally just concluded with, "Alright. See you then."

I took the train home, and spent the whole time trying to get old-Cozy to shut up and not think about the memory I'd recalled in the shop.
> Blocking with the quillon
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I pulled my coat tighter around me as I sipped my hot cocoa. I'd shown up a bit early to meet with Quillon, and things were bitterly cold that morning.

Definitely need to talk to the weather team about this; I don't think anypony wants Hearth's Warming celebrations subdued by it being too cold to go outside.

Thankfully, I didn't have to wait long; Quillon showed up just a few minutes after I'd sat down by the castle.

I guess she's as eager as I am to get this resolved. She's certainly diligent!

Quillon looked as cute as a button in her parka and beanie cap, and she pulled it tightly around her as she cleared her throat.

"Hey, Sunset. Are you ready to get started today?"

I nodded and finished off my hot cocoa with a gulp, hoping the warm liquid would help keep the frost at bay.

"I actually did some poking around town after you left yesterday. Seems like there's still a lot of tension between unicorns and earth ponies here in general; maybe we should start with looking into that? It could be what we're supposed to fix."

Quillon looked embarrassed by the reminder of yesterday's events, but shrugged.

"I guess that's as good a place to start as any. Where should we go first?"

"I figured we could go talk to Mayor Mare about it. She'd likely know something about what's going on, right?"

"Well, you'd think so. I mean, maybe. On the other hoof, the school of friendship has kinda become the center of the town; somepony over there might know more."

I nodded, surprised. "Right, Twilight told me about that whole project, and I've seen the school as I passed around town. I just never bothered to actually check in on it. Starlight runs it now, right?"

Quillon nodded, tapping her chin with her hoof. "The school should be pretty deserted over the break, so I think I can head over there without too many creatures freaking out."

I winced. "Right, you have history with that place. Well, I'll be there to back you up if anything goes wrong."

Quillon smiled, almost apologetically. "Thanks, Sunset."

I grinned as we started walking. "Oh, don't mention it. I know all about going back to a school that hates you, trust me. We'll get through this."

Quillon seemed deeply distracted for a second, like she was listening to somepony else, but then shook her head and kept walking.

I keep dropping these hints about my past, and she never asks after them. At first I thought she just wasn't interested in me, but now I think she just wants to take me as I am. It's kind of refreshing, actually.

We carried on to the school in companionable silence. Starlight looked surprised to see us, to say the least.

"Sunset! Er, Cozy! What brings you two here?"

Quillon twitched at the use of her old name, but covered it quickly with a friendly – and definitely strained – smile. I just nodded to Starlight, and walked up to her desk.

"The map sent us. Best we can tell, it seems like there's a lot of tension around town between earth ponies and unicorns these days?"

Starlight leaned back and sighed. "Yeah, the students have talked about it a bit. Nopony's been rude to me, but I've definitely heard unicorns who try to visit get the cold shoulder from locals. Some of the students and their parents have been affected. I'm not sure what's going on with that; I figured after the Battle of the Bell this would all be resolved, but I guess that was naive."

Quillon piped up, though she seemed almost scared to voice her thoughts. Not that I could blame her.

"When did this start, exactly? When did you start hearing about this?"

Starlight furrowed a brow in thought, leaning forward on her desk.

"Hmm... I guess I first heard about it almost a week ago?"

I blinked a few times and shook my head in surprise.

"Wait, the battle of the bell was almost a month ago, wasn't it? Why would they just be starting to squabble now?"

Starlight sighed. "I have no idea! Now that you mention it, it is really odd; you'd expect the tensions to be highest right after the battle and wear off over time, not get worse, but that's just what's happened. I got a single report almost a week ago, but just before the student break began I got six of them."

Quillon shuffled awkwardly and walked up to Starlight's desk. "Do you think somecreature like Chrysalis could be spreading strife again? It's what she did before..."

Starlight frowned. "I suppose it's possible, but Chrysalis is still encased in stone, so who could manage something like that? And... why?"

Quillon and I traded a glance. It was clear this was going to be a rough investigation.

Visiting Mayor Mare yielded much the same; things had been fine after the Battle of the Bell, but as Hearth's Warming approached things were just getting steadily worse. We'd spent some time questioning ponies around town, but there didn't seem to be any obvious connection between the incidents, nor any common actor between them. We ultimately went to the outdoor cafe in Ponyville where we'd met to regroup.

"I'm not sure where to look next, Quillon. It seems like a bunch of coincidental incidents, and I can't imagine anypony wanting to drive a rift between the tribes in modern Equestria anyway; what would the point be?"

Quillon, for her part, sipped her dark cocoa with an irritable expression that clearly wasn't directed at the drink. She eventually looked up at me, doing her best not to let her frustration be directed at me.

"There's got to be something, Sunset. Somepony who doesn't like things the way they are, or who was affected by the Battle for the Bell differently from everypony else, or maybe just really hates unicorns, or something. Maybe we just don't have the right piece of information for the whole... like..."

She made a gesture like she was trying to fit together some kind of jigsaw.

"Puzzle to come together. It's got to be something like that."

I leaned back and folded my front hooves – a human expression I just couldn't shake, even in my unicorn form.

"What makes you so sure it's somepony acting up, anyway? Maybe we should start there, and that will help us fix our perspective."

Quillon nodded, leaning across the table as much as her small frame would allow.

"Right, that's a good idea. So, what got me thinking that was the similarity to how Chrysalis manipulated things leading up to the Battle of the Bell, but that's not all. Monster attacks have been suuuper-frequent since the big battle. Everypony blamed it on the windigoes re-emerging and disrupting the monsters, but it turned out there was a pony agitating them."

My eyes lit up. "Oh? Which pony? Could they be behind this?"

Cozy shook her head. "Nah, it was Chancellor Neighsay, and he was under the influence of the Alicorn Amulet. It made him super powerful but it also made him kinda kooky."

She made a circling gesture at her head with her hoof to punctuate her point, and I giggled despite the gravity of the situation.

"Okay, fair enough, but what was he trying to accomplish?"

"Well, he still had a low-key grudge against Twilight for integrating Equestria with other creatures and teaching them friendship, and I guess the amulet dialed that up to wings-on-backwards crazy levels. He was causing all of the strife to undermine her leadership, and then tried to go after her directly. I ended up stomping all over him, though."

Wow. She had a real all-out battle with a villain like that?

I just nodded along and contemplated what she'd said.

"Well, undermining tribal relations would help disrupt the kingdom, and it sounds like he had issues with integration..."

"Yeah, but he's a unicorn. And he doesn't have problems with ponies, just other creatures. He was all, 'Equestria won't be safe if other creatures have the power of friendship.' He was dumb the same way I was, thinking of friendship as a weapon."

Quillon glanced away bitterly at that, but I quickly cut in to keep her mind off of it.

"It's an easy mistake to make, honestly. Looking from the outside in, that's kinda what it seems like. And anyway, you got over it, and you stopped him – that's really impressive! So, um, why was he wearing the amulet in the first place?"

Quillon shrugged. "I actually didn't stick around for the explanation, but according to Luna it was some kind of freak accident. He didn't even realize he'd put it on until he already had."

I frowned at that, suddenly sharing her suspicion of foul play. "That sounds like somepony might have slipped it on him. Somepony who knew about his grudge and how he'd react. Once that plot failed, they might have moved on to this."

Quillon chewed her lip, thinking it over.

"You're right. That's exactly the kind of thing I'd have done."

I nodded. "Same here. It makes sense. But it also narrows our suspect list a lot; we're looking for someone who could have gained access to the Canterlot Archives—"

Quillon cut me off with a wave of her hoof and a roll of her eyes. "Anypony could do that. I stole books from there to study magic when I was on the run; it's not even hard."

I actually laughed at that. "Okay! Fair enough, but they still had to know about Neighsay's motives and the Alicorn Amulet, and they must have a problem with the pony tribes getting along... probably a grudge against Twilight, too."

Quillon groaned, rubbing her head. "That makes me the prime suspect. I can't think of anypony else like that in Equestria."

I laughed and rolled my eyes. "Well, unless you have an evil split personality, I think we can rule that out."

Quillon didn't laugh. She froze and looked worried for a second, but then rolled her eyes. "Y-yeah, no, the timeline on that wouldn't work out, heh. I have an alibi with Luna. I think."

I quirked an eyebrow at that, but decided to play it off as a joke and chuckled. "So yeah, what you should do is ask yourself; who else fits that kind of criteria? If you're the prime suspect, then they must be somewhat similar to you, right?"

Quillon shook her head. "That's no good, then! I was just some random foal until I put my plans in motion; this could be anypony, somepony you'd never notice or suspect, if they're acting the way I did."

"Hm. The subtle approach, huh? I never went in for that, personally... but if you did, then you must be able to think of some way to get them to reveal themselves or catch them."

Quillon winced. "I don't really like digging into those memories, like, at all. I've been trying to suppress that side of myself as much as I can."

"Learning to use your capacity for wrongdoing to empathize with other ponies and protect them is an important step. It's painful, but... it helps. Trust me."

Quillon took a sharp breath and nodded. "I'll try."
> Super heroics (ish)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The trap was set. Twilight Sparkle had agreed to visit Ponyville, because if I knew anything about villains in Equestria, it's that they always tried to neutralize her first.

It almost worked for us!

It stood to reason they'd want to remove her before striking on Hearth's Warming for maximum drama, so I'd set up a scrying-detection field around her, since our villain was likely to be some kind of wizard, and I waited. The moment anypony attacked her or tried to spy on her with magic, Sunset and I would know.

It was a boring couple of hours waiting for a ping. By the time it finally came, I had almost fallen asleep.

"Quillon! We've got'em! They're hiding out by the swamp!"

I groaned. "Ugh, really? I have to go back there?"

Sunset smiled apologetically. "Seems like it. But I'm sure we'll wrap this up quickly, and then we can focus on Hearth's Warming."

I huffed at that as we set out. "Honestly, if it's a choice between thinking about that or spending all Hearth's Warming Eve fighting some villain, I'll take the fight."

Sunset sighed. "Not a holiday pony, huh? I had a rough first Hearth's Warming after I reformed, too. But my friends helped me through it... Sorta."

I quirked an eyebrow at that. "Sorta?"

She grimaced. "Well, they were also kinda why it was rough in the first place? There was a misunderstanding."

Friendship is dumb.

I thought friendship was power?

Dumb power.

I shook my head to clear it. "That's awful. I'm glad it worked out, though."

Sunset nodded. "Our friendship grew stronger as a result, and honestly, I had a good time once it was all resolved. Still, it's a vulnerable time for ponies."

I hummed at that. "That's probably what our villain is thinking, too."

Sunset's gaze darkened. "Probably. We've got to put a stop to them; this is a time ponies should be recovering from everything that happened this year, not another time of terror."

I winced slightly at that, but nodded. "Right. They deserve some peace with their families after everything I did."

Sunset snapped her gaze to me in alarm, looking deeply apologetic. "That wasn't what I meant!"

I shrugged. "It's a fact. I can live with it. Let's just focus on bringing down the badguy."

Sunset frowned, but nodded. "Okay."

We made our way into the swamp quickly and in silence. I could tell we were both nervous about what we might find, but the reason was probably different; Sunset was anticipating a fight, whereas I was worried that I had a direct hoof in motivating whatever villain we'd come across. To my surprise and concern, the spell led us directly back to 'Grogar's' lair.

"This is where we stayed when we were plotting against Equestria! Somepony moved in after we left?"

Sunset grimaced. "That can't be a good sign."

We shared a meaningful look and pressed onward, but we hadn't reached the entrance when a booming, familiar voice rang out to us from the balcony.

"I see I've been found out. But you've merely come to your destruction, little ponies."

I stared in total disbelief as Grogar strode out onto the balcony and stared down at us. There were minor differences between this individual and what Discord had shown us; a slightly different horn shape, an older appearance, and freaking red eyes.

Sunset scoffed. "Discord! Knock it off!"

"Uh, Sunset? I don't think that's—!"

Grogar roared at us, and bolts of yellow electricity blasted the entire region around where we were standing. Sunset had just barely managed to put a shield over it, and it shattered when the first blast hit it; she teleported us just in time for the second bolt to blast apart the ground where we had been standing.

We appeared inside the treeline, and Sunset was visibly frazzled. "What was that?!"

I fought down a panic response, clamping down on it with a cold determination.

"I think that's the real Grogar. He was trapped the same way Sombra was, in the aether; now, I'm not an expert on this, but using his bell might have made a bridge thingy for him, right?"

I knew Sunset was an expert on magic, and she didn't disappoint as her eyes lit up. "That was his magic focus! But he would need some kind of gap between the dimensions to escape from that place!"

"You mean like the windigoes tearing through it because Equestria was in chaos?"

A few trees around us exploded as Grogar started blasting nearby hiding-places. Sunset smiled uncomfortably.

"Yeah, like that. Oh ponyfeathers. We need to get help!"

I opened my mouth to agree, but then clamped it shut. When I spoke, it came from somewhere different than before.

"You're right; go for help. But if he gets away there's no telling how much strife he will cause, and I've studied his magic back when I was planning to betray him. I'll hold him here."

Sunset stared at me like I was crazy, but a nearby explosion shook her out of it.

"Quillon, he'll kill you!"

I smiled up at her, completely sincere.

"Don't worry; I'm a super hero. I'll pull through, one way or the other."

I didn't think I really would, but that wasn't the point. Sensing time was of the essence, and seeing I wouldn't be dissuaded, Sunset took off at a gallop for Ponyville. I took a deep breath and strode out of the treeline, Luna's hoof-crafted armor shining brilliantly as the sun hit it. I used a voice-augmenting spell.

"HEY, YOU OLD GOAT! I'M RIGHT OVER HERE!"

Grogar sneered down at me, halting his assault to leap over the balcony and slam his hooves into the ground. He strode up to me, and I strode up to him, determined not to show any of the fear I felt. He snarled down at me.

"Cozy Glow, isn't it? You've changed your appearance, but it doesn't fool me. You were one of the fools Discord duped with my disguise."

I raised an eyebrow, trying to play it cool. "S-so, how do you even know any of that?"

Grogar laughed – not the unnerving, sinister thing Discord had put on, but an off-putting guffaw. "Discord was a fool! He used my scrying sphere for all of his theatrics, and so I was able to gaze out from the abyss at what he saw, and at all of you!"

Oh. Well that explains that.

Good, you got your answers! Time to leave!

So, what? The great villainous Cozy Glow is a coward, now? I can take him!

... Then let's kick his stupid goat rear while he tries to brag!

Grogar grinned horribly down at me. "I know all about you, Cozy Glow. You were a fool to reveal yourself; you won't defeat me with social niceties, nor with the magic you stole from my bell!"

Speaking of which, I noticed he had his bell on him. Given that it was meant to be in the Canterlot Archives, I put together who had sabotaged the artifact-transfer process and manipulated Neighsay.

Got to give it to this old goat, he is much sneakier than he seems.

Grogar tapped his bell, expecting it to suck my magic right back out.

Nothing happened. He tapped the bell again, as if trying to kick it into working, and glanced down at it in confusion. I just laughed.

"Aww, is the widdle goat's toy bwoken? Maybe it's because I studied how your magic worked when I planned to backstab you, you old goat!"

I didn't give him time to process what I said or respond before I blasted him full-on, sending him flying back into the wall of our old hideout. He roared in frustration, and I saw his horns and bell light up as he prepared another lightning barrage.

"LAAAAME! Don't you know any other moves?!"

I formed an intricate spiderweb of energy just before he fired, and his blasts slammed against it, slowly deforming it into a ball of concentrated energy far in excess of what I'd ever held before.

So he has all of the magic that was wiped out of Tirek and Chrysalis by the powers of harmony. Great. He's just twice as strong as me.

AND NOW HE SUFFERS AT HIS OWN HORNS!

"DRAGON BALL!"

I fired the massive vortex of energy at him before he fully understood his attacks were being redirected, and I heard a satisfying yelp as the blast went off, wiping out the entire hideout and most of the surrounding terrain, leaving a massive crater. Soil, wood, and stone rained down from the sky, and I casually put up a shield to keep it off of me. I took to the sky and scanned the area, hoping to spot him lying unconscious somewhere nearby.

Instead, my shield was shattered by a bolt of power that knocked me right out of the sky. I heard Grogar scream "ARROGANT WHELP!" from somewhere in the crater just before I dug a trough through the dirt with my chanfrom.

"Ow."

Yeah, that didn't do it justice. My whole body ached from the electricity arcing through it, and I felt like I'd nearly broken my neck with that crash. Still, I forced myself to my hooves and readied a spell. Grogar climbed his way over the edge of the crater just as I cast it. He bellowed – almost a bleat-like sound – and charged at me, firing lightning blasts the whole way.

But I could see where he would fire based on his posture. My magic pushed my reflexes into insane overdrive, like the world was moving in slow motion, and I ducked under the first blast, charging a spell of my own, and bounded forward, sliding under the second. The third he over-corrected, hitting the ground in front of me and providing me with a screen of dirt and debris; I juked to the left, knowing he would end up pivoting the other way, and I was rewarded for my guess when his third shot missed outright.

He caught sight of me again and screamed in pure rage, but I leapt over his next shot, bringing us dangerously close together. Just as he fired his last bolt, I formed a reflective shield in front of me, and his blast rebounded directly into his eyes.

He screamed.

I cackled manically.

"YOU THINK YOU'RE EQUESTRIA'S GREATEST VILLAIN?!"

I leapt on his back, hooking my hooves around his horns, and blasted him point-blank with a flamethrower spell, right in the face. He howled and desperately tried to buck me off, to no avail; he shot spells randomly, but couldn't aim behind him.

"YOU'RE YESTERDAY'S NEWS! YOU FAILED, GUSTY THE GREAT PUT YOU OUT TO PASTURE!"

I blasted him in the back of the head several more times before he finally managed to kick me off. I flipped in midair and landed just in time to weave around a blind shot of his that came dangerously close. My voice grew even louder as I returned his assault with blasts of fire.

"AND I'VE GOT NEWS FOR YOU, GROGAR—"

I dove under one of his attacks and came up underneath him.

"—YOU SHOULD HAVE STAYED THERE! FLYING HYDRA PUNCH!"

I actually cast a spell to grow myself in size just before I leapt upwards, giving him the force of a superpowered, adult pony straight to the jaw. He went flying back into the crater, and I dashed forward as quickly as I could to keep him in view. I just barely got a shield up in time to catch a blast from him as he landed, and I rebounded the shot on him. I charged up my horn, pouring everything I could into it; my rage born from the pain wracking my body, my self-hatred both for being a villain and for losing to the heroes, my resentment of my parents for what they'd put me through before I'd even had a chance to understand who I was, all of it.

Grogar staggered from the rebounded shot, and yelled up to me.

"YOU LOST AS WELL, FOAL! YOU'RE NO BETTER THAN I AM!"

I cackled down at him as my horn overcharged so much it began to emit arcs of electricity into the nearby area.

"You should know by now, Grogar! From your own experience, from watching us!"

I juked around another lightning blast and fixed my eyes on him, grinning like a crazy pony.

"VILLAINS ALWAYS LOSE! SAY HI TO SOMBRA FOR ME!"

I loosed the ridiculous overcharge in my horn, and the recoil sent me flying backwards like I'd been bucked in the face. I barely got a chance to see Grogar melting back into the aether with a scream before I slammed back into the dirt.

Something about his face – utterly disbelieving, horrified, furious – struck me as the funniest thing I'd ever seen. I started giggling, and before long went into full-blown addled cackling that would have done Discord proud.

I kept it up until I was out of air, and even kept laughing after that, until I finally passed out.
> A very cozy Hearth's Warming Eve
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I cracked an eye open just enough to see I was back at home, in bed. It took a moment for me to remember what I'd just been through, and another to imagine how I must have gotten here. Then I closed my eye and smiled.

I get it, now.

I took a deep breath, feeling the energy return to me, and slowly lifted my sore neck up off of the bed.

"Cozy!"

Luna's voice was swiftly followed by her physical presence, wrapping me in a tight hug. I leaned in to her and hummed in appreciation.

This mare gives good hugs, no question.

"Cozy, what were you thinking taking on Grogar by yourself like that?!"

I groggily leaned back a bit. "Nuh-uh."

I cracked my eyes open just enough to see her perplexed expression. It made me giggle.

"What?"

I leaned back into her and closed my eyes. It took me a minute to work out a response, which came out a bit slurred.

"You're not 'llowed to be angry at me. I beat the badguy. Hero... stuff."

I yawned loudly, scratching behind one of my ears. Luna scoffed.

"I know you did, but that doesn't mean it wasn't incredibly reckless!"

I groaned, and smiled despite myself at her concern, and how silly she was acting.

"Reckless, heroic, whatever. It was a..."

I waved my hoof as I tried to remember what the word was.

"... calculated risk. I'd studied Grogar."

Luna sounded incredulous. "Studied him? How?"

"Mph. Back when I thought Discord was him, I studied how to backstab him properly. Then, when I got books on combat magic, some of them were theoretical ways to combat—" I was cut off by another strong yawn, "—to combat his magic. Seems like some of the old wizards were really into his whole legend."

"Well of course they were, he was the greatest villain this land faced for millenia... but Cozy, none of that makes what you did safe, or sensible. Why didn't you wait for us? Why didn't you tell all of us what you were doing?!"

I shrugged into her. "I didn't know it would be Grogar. I thought we were up against some two-bit mage or another pony with a weird artifact like Neighsay. Once I realized who it was, I knew I had to stop him. But you're right, I should have told you, and I have been reckless."

I leaned into her and looked up at the ceiling as I gathered my thoughts.

"I guess I've just been trying extra-hard not to get other ponies wrapped up in what I'm doing because... I want to prove I'm good at it, on my own. That I have value."

Luna pulled tighter around me. "Cozy, of course you have value—"

"I don't mean to you."

That stunned her into silence. Honestly, I hadn't meant to say it out loud. I sighed.

"I needed to prove it to myself. Between... realizing how awful, and dumb I was before, and the fact that I was defeated by a bunch of students... knowing ponies will always see me as 'the crazy foal'..." I sighed. "Can we just put off talking more about this for now? I don't want to get that deep in my own head."

Luna nodded, which surprised me. "Of course. I was just... very concerned for you. I am glad you emerged triumphant, that you're back safe with me, and this whole nightmare is over. And I'm glad you've awoken in time for the celebration!"

I blinked in confusion, and then realized no light was streaming through the window. "Wait, it's night time? It was early morning when I fought Grogar! I missed Hearth's Warming Eve?!"

I was equal parts happy and crushed by that realization, but Luna just snickered.

"Nay, not at all! You've awoken just in time for the best part!"

One quick shower and some cleaning up later, and we were on our way to a huge Ponyville celebration. I was more than a little nervous about how ponies would react to me there, but Luna's presence kept me grounded.

So you can imagine my surprise when cheers erupted from everypony when I walked into the Ponyville castle foyer. Dash was in my face before I could even blink.

"Cozy! Is it true you took Grogar down by yourself?! You're like the next Gusty the Great!"

I chuckled nervously, eyes darting around the room, but I was surprised to see no hostile faces there. "Er, well, Sunset helped. Not only did she help me track him down, she got me out of the way of his first attack. If that hadn't happened, I wouldn't have been able to beat him at all."

I spotted Sunset striding up from the side, and she just scoffed and waved a hoof dismissively.

"You're being way too modest, Cozy. You're the one who went back and went toe-to-toe with him. So what happened, exactly? All we found were the fragments of his bell and a giant crater; Discord had to check the aether to confirm he was imprisoned again!"

I opened my mouth to respond, only to realize the entire crowd had gone silent, listening intently.

This calls for some proper exposition.

I cleared my throat, and began weaving the epic tale of Dashing Savior's triumph over Grogar to my rapt audience. Part of me liked having the ponies wrapped around my hoof like that, and I didn't worry about that.

Some days later, Luna and I had that talk, and I told her that I had realized I didn't have to worry about being good or evil. At some point in the fight with Grogar, I'd realized it, subconsciously; I have habits, I have tendencies, I have thought processes that aren't very nice...

But what defines us is the decisions we make. It's what I do with my thoughts and skills that define what sort of pony I am. It's been a few months since the Shattering of the Bell, and I haven't struggled with my own thoughts since then.

I've become a lot more comfortable with the pony I am. Starlight's even suggested I come back to her school next semester, and I might just take her up on it. One way or the other, there's one thing that's definitely true, as Grogar could attest:

If anycreature tries causing trouble in Equestria, they're going to have to get through me, and my friends!