Chapter 1: The Sacrifice

“Enough!” yelled Queen Chrysalis. “Or the dragon’s wings get plucked!”

Before Spike could even react, he was violently lifted off the ground by his wings and placed on display for his friends to see, with Cozy Glow holding Grogar’s enchanted bell keeping Spike in place. Tirek and Chrysalis both smiled with callousness at one of their enemies in pain.

Anger was replaced with horror on Twilight’s face as she saw her best friend in excruciating pain.

“No! Don’t hurt him!” she practically begged.

Spike was in unimaginable pain as he felt his wings about to be dislocated from their sockets, but he put that aside. He knew that Equestria’s fate was worth far more than his wellbeing.

“Don’t worry about me! Just save-Argh!” The purple dragon was abruptly cut off by another jolt of pain.

Spike mustered up the energy to open one of his eyes just a little bit, only to find his six best friends standing down. He then felt himself being thrown toward his friends; the wind felt cool as he flew through the air. The feeling of falling was quickly replaced with a pair of hooves surrounding his small body as his friends all formed a protective huddle around Twilight.

“Turns out that the magic of Friendship proves to be your greatest weakness,” Tirek taunted. “A fitting end to your pathetic story.”

The villains grinned wickedly as they charged up their magic and prepared to finally rid themselves of their burdens once and for all. In that moment, Tirek’s final seven words hit home as the Mane 6 realized just how much trouble they were in. Spike suddenly felt all his pain vanish as he looked up and saw his friends’ horrified faces. The adrenaline raced through his body at lightning speeds, and everything slowed down. He knew that his friends needed to be saved and he was the only one to do it. Without another moment to spare, he broke free of Twilight’s grasp and flew as fast as he could towards the object that nearly cost him the use of his wings.

Twilight was shocked at what she saw, her best friend was flying toward the monsters at breakneck speeds and had successfully nabbed the bell from their grasp.

The next few seconds were a blur to Spike. One second, he was on the ground, the next he was in the air, nabbing the enchanted bell from the monsters’ grasp. His adrenaline levels were through the roof. Never in his life had he ever felt more determined on a mission to save his friends. If he was in pain before, he sure didn’t show it now. His wings, however, weren’t as mobile as before, no doubt in Spike’s mind that they were likely broken due to the severe abuse they received no more than one minute ago. The villains were furious.

“Give that back, you repulsive, little brat!” Chrysalis spat as she prepared to zap Spike.

Out of pure instinct, Spike stuck Grogar’s bell out in front of him and the green jolt of magic hit it. Somehow, the bell absorbed the magic blast, which avoided further injury to Spike. Spike looked at the bell and noticed It was lined with cracks and faintly glowing a moderate shade of green. He had no doubt in his mind that Chrysalis’ magic had damaged it. He then quickly laid out a plan in his mind to defeat them. For this to work, he’d need to trick them into zapping the bell several times to overload it with magic and then fly it toward them at the last second before the enchanted object exploded. He already figured it would likely kill him too, but for Equestria it was worth it.

“You want this bell so bad?” Spike taunted from above. “Then come and get it.”

Cozy Glow growled. “Challenge accepted, lizard.”

The evil Pegasus turned Alicorn flew after the pre-teen dragon and fired another magic blast at him. Spike once again stuck the bell out and blocked it. It looked more cracked and was glowing a bit brighter.

“Spike! What are you doing?! You’re going to get hurt!” Rainbow Dash yelled.

“Don’t worry about my safety, Rainbow! Just get out of here. All of you!” Spike called back as the third blast of magic hit the bell and made it glow even brighter.

Spike’s adrenaline was starting to wear off and he began to feel the pain in his wings return as the fourth blast of magic hit the bell. It was now badly damaged with cracks much larger lining the surface of the enchanted object, it was now glowing a very vibrant shade of green, and it was giving off a low hum.

“One more blast should do it,” Spike said, his adrenaline and newfound strength gradually waning.

The little dragon's eyes seeked out his targets like two green missiles until they finally fell upon them after no more than two seconds of looking. He flew toward the fiends with all the strength he had. This was it. This was the climax of the plan; destroy the bell and render Cozy Glow, Chrysalis, and Tirek useless. Everything seemed to slow down even further for Spike as his vision narrowed down to the three beings that he zeroed toward.

***

Less than 50 feet away, Twilight and her friends watched the scene with horror. They had easily put two and two together and knew Spike was trying to sacrifice himself to save them and Equestria. They immediately huddled together.

“We can’t leave him,” Applejack said. “He can’t lose his life because he’s trying to save us.”

“Agreed,” said Rarity. “We can’t leave Spikey-Wikey to die at the hands of these monsters.”

"C'mon," Rainbow Dash said. "Let's get a plan together and save-"

Before Rainbow Dash could say anything more, her friends and she heard an ear-splitting explosion. They turned around only to find a huge, white beam of light shoot towards the sky. All six ponies felt their hearts sink and fresh tears welled up in their eyes as they knew full well that they were too late to save their friend.

***

As Spike sped towards his targets, Cozy, Tirek, and Chrysalis powered up another blast of magic each. This time, instead of firing individually, they unleashed their blasts all at once. The three separate blasts quickly connected with one another, and it formed the biggest blast of magic that the three evil-doers had ever seen in their lives as it raced toward the teenage reptile. Right as the blasts connected, Spike stuck out Grogar’s bell once more, and the villains instantly realized that they had screwed up. The blast hit the bell, it detonated, and was blown to smithereens and enveloped all four of them in a huge surge of magic.

Spike felt all his strength and adrenaline finally fade away as the bell detonated, and it enveloped him in its overloaded magic surge. The bright, white light was too much for Spike's eyes to handle and he shut them tightly and gritted his teeth. Whatever pain he had felt before was nothing compared to what he felt now. Fragments of the bell lodged deep into the crevices that divided his Lavender scales. Other parts of his body had their scales ripped off like paper by much larger fragments, lining his under-scales with deep cuts. The surge of magic tore throughout his immune system and internal organs. The skin and muscle tissue on his wings was charred instantly and began to slowly flake away. Revealing his cracked and slowly crumbling wing bones, which were also losing pieces fast. He began to feel an extremely awful burning sensation all over the front of his small abdomen. The adolescent had lost the ability to smell and taste due to his sinuses being fried almost instantly and his ears rang loudly. He hit the ground on his back with a small thud. The second Spike did hit the ground, his already badly cracked wing bones finally shattered to pieces, and it sent another enormous rush of pain through his destroyed nerves. However, every bit of pain he felt reminded him of his heroic deed.

“I did it,” Spike thought as the magic beam began to fade. “I saved my friends and Equestria. I did the best I could, and I triumphed. I may be dying, but if the girls are safe that’s all that matters to me.”

He looked at the now clear, blue sky and the afternoon sun.

"Such a beautiful sight," Spike thought as he closed his eyes and waited for death to fully grasp his small body.

***

Twilight and the girls could only show horror as the giant, white beam gradually faded away. All was eerily quiet afterward. With the bell destroyed, the villains had lost their powers and now lay unconscious on the ground. Cozy Glow had turned back into a Pegasus, Queen Chrysalis was stripped of her enchanted body armor and head crest and her teal mane was singed at the end, and Tirek’s rejuvenated state had vanished. He was now the old, frail Centaur that Twilight and her friends had run into in Tartarus. The ponies didn’t care about what the state their assailants were in, they wanted to find Spike and see, if by some miracle, if he was still alive. They soon found him lying on his back near where the center of the magic blast had erupted. The tears that had been welling up in their eyes now slowly oozed down their faces and it took all their strength not to throw up when they saw their terminally wounded friend. The lavender dragon was impaled by several shards on the bell, with red blood already seeping out of the many cuts that lined his body, the entire front of his abdomen was dark grey and smoking, and he was barely breathing. Pieces of his outer scales, small bits of scorched, smoking tissue, and shriveled up, blackened flakes of skin which used to be on his wings that had been ripped off by the shards of the destroyed bell now lay scattered around him. Large and small pieces of bones which made up the structure his new wings also joined the pile of debris that consisted of pieces of Spike's body and Grogar's Bell. The grass and dirt that lay beneath Spike was already saturated and tinted red from the increasing amount of blood that was slowly oozing out of him.

Spike felt a drop of water hit his forehead. He reopened his eyes just a crack and saw his friends looking down at him, not a single eye was dry on the six ponies as they looked down on their friend. It was nothing short of a miracle that he was still alive, but Spike knew it wouldn’t be that way for long.

“Girls,” Spike croaked before coughing up thick, dark, red blood.

Twilight almost lost composure when she heard how terrible her number one assistant turned Royal Advisor looked and spoke. She knelt down beside his body as Spike grew weaker.

“I’m here, Spike. You're going to be okay now,” she managed to say between cries.

Spike felt sorry listening to Twilight's optimism. He knew that no matter how much she hoped or tried, she couldn't make him better.

“If only that were the case. It looks like this is the end of the line for me,” Spike wheezed, sounding even worse than before. “I had a good run with you girls.”

Twilight felt her whole world crumbling around her. Her best friend that had been with her since the beginning was on the ground, moribund and accepting his fate. Her friends, as much as they hated to do so, realized that this was the end of their friend that had saved them all from certain death and Equestria from certain defeat. They all cried silently at the fact. Twilight, however, didn't seem to be on the same boat as they were.

“Spike, don't talk like that! You're going to be fine. Please just stay awake and hang on! Don’t go,” Twilight pleaded as she finally broke down in a fit of sobs. “I can’t lose you, please! You can't die! Not this young!"

The other five element bearers could only watch through their tears as Twilight repeatedly begged for Spike to stay awake, before she turned her attention towards the sky as if to beseech anyone up that was up there to keep Spike alive.

"Please, Celestia. Don't take him. He just turned 13! I'm begging you! Please let him live through this!!” Twilight cried looking up at the sky with fresh tears still in her eyes.

Seeing Twilight, as well as her friends, like this made Spike feel worse than all his injuries combined. He knew he had one shot to hopefully provide them with some type of consolation to ease their grief about his passing.

“Twilight, there's nothing you can do. We both know I won't make it, but it's okay. I don't care about my safety,” Spike rasped as he coughed up more blood. “As long as I know that Equestria is safe, more importantly, as long I know that you’re all safe, there's nothing more I'd want to know in my last moments than that. Listen, please don't be too hard on Discord, alright? He never intended this to happen.”

Spike felt his vision start to go blurry. He knew he had a few seconds left to finally tell a certain unicorn how he truly felt about her.

“Rarity,” the dying dragon choked out, getting the heartbroken, teary-eyed fashionista's attention. “There’s something I need to tell you before I go.”

“What is it?” Rarity asked. A feeling of guilt slowly overcame her, she already had a feeling of what he was going to say.

Spike found it harder and harder to speak as the last few seconds of his short life passed. It was becoming more of a challenge to even breathe, he felt a numbing sensation starting to move up his body, and fatigue was starting to slowly overwhelm the tiny being.

“I...love...you,” Spike wheezed out, his message barely audible to the ponies around him. No sooner did he say his last word, then did the numbness finally spread all the way up his body. His eyes slowly fluttered shut as his last breath left his nose. He did it, he finally told Rarity how he truly felt about her, he had saved Equestria, and his friends were out of harm’s way. He was now at peace as the last of his senses faded away. According to Spike, he couldn’t have asked for it to turn out a better way.

The Mane 6, however, didn’t seem to share Spike optimism. They all began to bawl uncontrollably as their friend finally passed on, even Applejack, who was always known for crying on the inside, was a sobbing wreck. Seconds felt like minutes and minutes felt like hours as they unleashed their sorrowful cries. They were soon surrounded by a clear, dome-shaped forcefield as their allies and the Princesses crested the top of the hill. With Grogar’s bell destroyed, the Princesses and Discord had now gotten their magic back. The Mane 6 paid no attention to their allies’ arrival as they continued to grieve for the loss of their friend.

Thorax and Ember were at the front of the pack. They saw the villains still unconscious and the ponies sitting and hunched over someone or something. They flew down and inform the rest of the group.

“Tirek, Chrysalis, and Cozy Glow are knocked out. They don’t seem to have their enchanted powers anymore either, and Twilight and the girls seem fine, but they’re hunched over someone or something,” Thorax relayed.

“Can we head down there to see what the fuss is about?” Ember asked.

Yes, we can go with you,” Princess Celestia said. “My Sister and I will have our guards subdue these creatures before they can do anymore harm.”

With the company of the Princesses, Ember and Thorax flew down to the Element Bearers. As they got closer, they heard what sounded like crying coming from the ponies.

“Thorax, it sounds like they’re crying,” Ember said.

“Yeah,” Thorax replied. “I wonder what’s got them so upset.”

Celestia and Luna broke off with their guards to restrain the villains, while Ember and Thorax landed behind the ponies. The ponies didn’t acknowledge the arrival of the Dragon Lord and Changeling King. They just continued to sob hysterically. Confused by their conduct, they walked around the force field to get a better look at what got them in such a hysterical state. Once Ember and Thorax got to where they were facing the ponies, their eyes widened, and they let out a horrified gasp. The ponies stopped crying and looked up at the new arrivals.

“N-No, i-it can’t be,” Thorax sputtered.

“I-Is he d-dead?” Ember asked, hesitant to say the last word of her question.

"Y-yes,” Rarity managed to choke out between sobs. “S-Spike’s d-dead!”

Ember and Thorax felt tears welling up in their eyes as they saw the dragon that had helped them get into the position they were in now.

“Celestia! Luna!” screamed Thorax, trying his best not to break down and start sobbing right then and there.

“What? What's wrong?” Luna asked as she and Celestia ran over to them.

“Spike’s gone! He’s dead!” Thorax cried as he finally broke down.

Celestia and Luna ran over to where the sobbing Element Bearers were, saw Spike’s limp body, and quickly flew up to the hill crest where all of Equestria was waiting.

“Deactivate the forcefield, now,” Celestia ordered, starting to feel nauseous from the gruesome sight of Spike's corpse.

“What’s the matter, Princesses?” Chancellor Neighsay asked.

“Spike is dead, we need to get a better look at the damage to him,” Luna said trying her best not cry.

Without another word every Unicorn’s horn stopped glowing. The forcefield vanished instantly. The second it did, Ember and Thorax bolted to the huddle of ponies and joined them. Once they got a good look at their fallen friend, they almost passed out. They immediately noticed how Spike's little torso, arms, and legs were impaled by so many shards of Groger’s bell, how his body was drenched in about 70 percent of his blood volume from all his deep cuts and scratches, how his abdomen was burnt almost to a crisp, the only thing on his wings that remained were two bloody, fleshy, stumps on his back, how there were burned pieces and bone fragments of him that peppered the grassy field under and around him, and how the ground beneath him was soaked in red from the other 30 percent of his lost blood. His eyes were peacefully closed. If it weren't for all his horrible injuries, they would've thought he was sleeping.

“Spike, no,” Ember choked out as she felt tears starting to ooze down her cheeks. "P-Please, no."

She put a finger on Spike left wrist, which was surprisingly undamaged, to somehow hold out hope that he was still alive. She didn’t feel a pulse. It was at this moment that Ember and Thorax knew that Spike, the dragon that had helped clear Thorax’s name for him to be accepted into Pony kind and the dragon who had melted Ember’s walls and had helped her reach the Bloodstone Sceptor in order to become the new Dragon Lord, was no more.

The Princesses, after what seemed like forever, flew down to join the other eight lamenting creatures. They were all overcome with grief. The villains were defeated and Equestria was safe from the Legion of Doom, but at what cost? Spike, a kid, had given up his life for his friends, his family, and his home.

“Twilight,” whispered Celestia, her eyes starting to fill with fresh tears. “What happened?”

After hearing this, Twilight stopped crying and got the composure to speak. Celestia felt heartbroken staring down at her pupil’s sad, red-rimmed, puffy eyes.

The lavender Alicorn tearfully explained how Spike had grabbed the bell, had taunted the Legion of Doom into chasing him, and how he tricked them into destroying the object that was responsible for all their powers. She found it harder to speak as she went into detail about finding him in the rubble, how he had already accepted his fate, and in his final words to them saying that as long as his friends and Equestria were safe, that was all that mattered.

The thought of reciting the awful scene to the Princesses, Ember, and Thorax made the Twilight and her friends cry even harder. Thorax and the Princesses all silently cried. Ember, however, was a different story.

“No! No! No! This isn’t fair! THIS ISN'T FAIR!!!” Ember screamed as she fell to her knees, repeatedly punched the ground, and finally began crying hysterically looking at the destroyed body that was once her best friend. “Spike didn’t deserve this!”

From the hillcrest above, Dragons, Ponies, Changelings, Griffons, Hippogriffs, Yaks, Buffalos, and Kirins all began to cry silently. No creature had peeled their eyes away from where the Princesses, Element Bearers, Dragon Lord, and Changeling King were all huddled around their fallen comrade.

Equestria hadn't lost an ordinary hero that day, it had lost its savior that day.

There was one creature, however, that felt the saddest and guiltiest out of them all. Discord.

“Oh, Spike,” he whispered to no one in particular, tears stinging his eyes. “I did this. I’m so sorry.”

Chapter 2: The Aftermath

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Twilight and her friends never ceased crying as they were transported back to the Castle of Friendship. When they walked into their home, they all silently and slowly headed for Twilight's room, crowded onto her bed, and embraced each other as tight as they could. Within a half hour, they had fallen asleep, due to sheer exhaustion from crying so much. The princesses were relieved to see the Element Bearers finally asleep and away from any depression. They looked peaceful as they softly snored the remainder of the day away.

Thorax and Ember were too emotionally shattered to fly back home. They were given a guest room that was one floor above Twilight's room. Unlike the ponies, however, Thorax and Ember spent the remainder of the day, and half the night, embracing each other tightly and crying their eyes out into each other's shoulders. Anyone who passed by their room knew it was best to just leave them be.

When Starlight Glimmer heard about her best friend's fate at the top of the hill from the princesses, she immediately went pale. When she returned to the castle with her sobbing friends, she quickly trotted into her room, locked the door, and refused to come out unless she needed to eat or use the bathroom. Every time someone in the castle greeted her in the rare moments that she was out, she'd wave back, but her expression always seemed so blank, and they got no words of acknowledgement. For the time she was in her room, Starlight would usually be seen blankly staring out the window. Anyone passing by would get a small wave from the pink Unicorn but nothing more.

THE NEXT MORNING

Twilight let out a groan as she woke up, her eyes were sore and her whole body ached. She felt like she had just flown and run a marathon at the same time. She looked around at where she was. She realized that she was in her bedroom with her friends, who were lying on her bed still asleep. From the looks of it, they had all fallen asleep in a tight hug. There were tear streaks on the pillows and sheets.

"Ugh," Twilight groaned. "What did we do last night?"

Then she noticed something. In the middle of the cuddle puddle was a small hole that would've fit a small, purple Dragon. Twilight didn't know why Spike wasn't with them. Twilight suddenly felt sick to her stomach thinking about him, but she didn't know why. She couldn't recall a single thing from yesterday, but she felt this was serious, very serious.

She bolted out the door and to Spike's bedroom. She peeked inside, expecting him to be asleep in bed. He wasn't there. She looked in every room in the castle, but couldn't find Spike anywhere. Twilight felt even more sick to her stomach and she felt a bit sad too. Why was she feeling like this? She ran back to her bedroom and woke up the rest of the Element Bearers up.

"Girls," Twilght said. "Girls, wake up."

One by one, the other Element Bearers slowly began to stir, and they were not happy about it.

"Ah, what the hell, Twi?" Rainbow Dash groaned. "Why are you waking us up?"

"Girls, Spike's missing," Twilight said. "I've checked everywhere, and I can't find him."

Everyone's fatigue vanished and they jumped up out of bed. They rushed out of the room to start a search party when they were greeted by Princess Celestia and Luna near the staircase. Twilight, as well as her friends, were confused. Since when did the Princesses drop by for a visit?

"Celestia? Luna? What are you doing here?" Twilight asked.

"We're here to provide comfort for you, Twilight," Celestia responded. "Do you not remember what happened yesterday?"

Both sisters felt their guts drop when Twilight shook her head, "no". It was clear to them that they had no choice but to recap the results of the battle that happened no more than 17 hours ago. Without another word, the royal sisters uttered a spell and a screen appeared before the six Element Bearers. The second they saw what was on it, the Element Bearers became horrified. On the screen was Twilight, along with her friends, huddled around a mortally wounded Spike, who was croaking out his sixth-to-last to third-to-last sentences to all of them.

“Twilight, there's nothing you can do. We both know I won't make it, but it's okay. I don't care about my safety. *cough* As long as I know that Equestria is safe, more importantly, as long I know that you’re all safe, there's nothing more I'd want to know in my last moments than that."

At that moment, all the memories from yesterday hit Twilight and her friends like a wrecking ball. They began to sob silently.

"A funeral is to be held in Canterlot in three days' time at 12:45 P.M.," Luna stated.

"O-Okay," Rainbow Dash sniffed. "W-What about Starlight? How's she taking it?"

"Well," Celestia sighed. "She's not saying anything about it. Most of the time, she just stares out her window and doesn't show any emotion. Ember and Thorax are also here. They're too emotionally hurt to fly back home, so they'll be here until the day of the funeral. We must be off now. The funeral preparations are to start in an hour and a half."

"Oh, uh, thanks," Rainbow Dash replied, her tone sounding meeker than Fluttershy's.

With that, the Princesses flew out the door and to the Canterlot Cemetery, leaving the six heartbroken ponies alone. They all agreed to go to their separate bedrooms to be alone with their thoughts. As they walked back to their bedrooms, Twilight kept uttering the same thing to herself over and over again.

"Why," whimpered Twilight. "Why couldn't I have done something? I could've saved him."

Left with nothing better to do, everyone crawled into bed and cried themselves to sleep. It was going to be a long three days.

Chapter 3: The Funeral

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THREE DAYS LATER

This was the day that everycreature in Equestria dreaded, Spike's Funeral. Everyone had the day off so they could come to the terrible event. The day was hard for everyone who knew and loved Spike. For the Elements, Starlight, Ember, and Thorax, however, they felt like they were going through hell. Everything felt so slow from the moment they had woken up and realized what day it was. The train ride from PonyVille to Canterlot would've been fun for them if they weren't surrounded by mourners and ponies from the Crystal Empire. After what seemed like forever, the nine devastated creatures finally came to a large gate with a sign that read "Canterlot Cemetary". They felt tears welling up as the gate opened up and they walked inside.

The Pegusai had rejected to do their duties for the day, leaving a cloudy, grey sky up above. The gloomy weather seemed to fit the atmosphere very well. There was a giant crowd of Ponies, Dragons, Yaks, Griffons, Hippogriffs, Buffalo, Changelings, and Kirins that all stared at a small hole in the ground in the shape of a perfect 10x8 rectangle.

The despondent ennead walked to the front of the pack without saying a word and sat down. Accompanying them at the front were the Young 6, Twilight Velvet, Night Light, Shining Armor, Queen Novo, Princess Skystar, Tempest Shadow, Gabby Griffon, Garble and his posse, who were hugging and trying their best to comfort a sobbing Smolder, Pharynx, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and Big Macintosh, who was doing everything he could think of to help to console a grief-stricken Discord, who was also crying uncontrollably.

Just as they sat down, Princess Celestia, Luna, and Cadence came from the left in a slow, steady trot. Behind them was a gold-plated coffin bathed in Celestia's yellow aura. Everyone felt sick seeing it knowing full well who was inside. The crestfallen Princesses all walked to the center of the front of the crowd and set the casket on a stand for everyone to see. Behind the coffin and Princesses was a giant object that was covered by a large, white sheet.

"Good afternoon, Mares, Gentlecolts, Fillies, Colts, Dragons, Griffons, Hippogriffs, Changelings, Yaks, Buffalo, and Kirins," Celestia started before wiping away a tear. "We are gathered here today to mourn the end of the life of the greatest Dragon ever known to all of Equestria. Four days earlier, Spike bravely fought against the Legion of Doom to prevent them from killing his friends. The autopsy revealed that his wings had been broken before he had died. Yet, despite his injuries, he still fought against the threat. He successfully tricked the Legion to fire magic blasts at the very object that granted them their power. The magic overloaded the bell and it exploded, stripping the Legion's members of all their powers. Unfortunately, Spike was also caught in the blast. Shards of the destroyed bell were sent into Spike's little body, which tore off 60 percent of his outer scales off of him and left his underscales with severe lacerations, some of them were fatal. The magic blast also burned most of the scales on his abdomen, as well as the skin and muscle tissue on his wings, to a crisp and, according to the autopsies, his ability to taste and smell were lost almost instantly due to his sinuses being fried beyond repair. The coroners also determined that his wing bones had been completely shattered when Spike had hit the ground after being airborne for an indefinite amount of time. The magic was also powerful enough to destroy his immune system and his internal organs were so badly damaged, they were almost unrecognizable."

Everyone in the front row immediately broke down upon hearing the extent of Spike terminal injuries. Garble and his buddies tried their hardest not to cry as they had to stay strong to provide comfort for Smolder, who was crying harder after listening to just how badly her deceased friend had been hurt for the last few moments in his life. For the Mane 6, Starlight, Ember, and Thorax, however, it was just another sickening reminder of why they were there.

"By some miracle, he survived the blast and told his friends before he died that if they and Equestria were safe, that was all that mattered to him," Celestia paused again and wiped away another tear. "He was known by many in the Crystal Empire as Spike the Brave and Glorious and there couldn't have been a more perfect demonstration of that term than what he did to save not just the ponies, but every creature in Equestria."

Everyone, despite their sorrow, found a sliver of comfort from Celestia's speech. The Mane 6, Ember, Thorax felt the most touched out of them all. It was the most beautiful thing they ever heard. Celestia cleared her throat, and everyone fell silent once more.

"Anyone who wishes to say their final goodbyes, may do so now," the Sun Princess said and looked over to Luna and Cadence. They nodded to each other, and the top half of the coffin was surrounded by Celestia's yellow aura as it slowly opened it to reveal its contents.

Everyone's sliver of comfort from Celestia's speech vanished and over half the crowd lost control of their emotions at the awful sight in front of them.

Spike was wearing a tuxedo, his arms were folded over his chest, his eyes were still as peacefully closed as they were since his death three days ago, and a small smile plastered his mouth. Yet, there was one thing about his body that no seemed to notice. Spike's face hadn't received a single scratch and it seemed to still hold the beautiful glow when the little Dragon was still alive.

Rainbow volunteered to go first, she sighed heavily before speaking.

"Spike, what you did to save all of us is beyond brave. You really are gutsier than I probably will ever be. I know I sometimes I pick on you, but everytime, you've proven me wrong and you don't even gloat about it. I've idolized the Wonderbolts for all my life. Now that I've become one, I haven't had anything to idolize until now. Spike, you're my new idol. I want to be more like you. To be honest, you'd probably be a better candidate for Loyalty than I would. You showed my element when you broke free of Twilight's grasp and fought against those fiends despite your wings broken," she felt tears welling up as she kept her eyes locked on the deceased dragon's face. She leaned in and kissed Spike right between his eyebrows. "Thank you, Spike, for everything."

Rainbow Dash found it harder to walk as she made her way back to her friends. Applejack and Fluttershy noticed this, met Rainbow halfway across the floor, and assisted her back to her seat.

Pinkie was up next. She slowly made her way to the coffin that served as her friend's final resting bed. Her mane was deflated and her fur seemed a darker, more dreary shade of pink. She felt tears welling up in her sky blue eyes as she looked at her friend.

"Oh, Spike," she whimpered fighting back the urge to break down right then and there. "I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry. You had your whole life ahead of you, and you could've touched so many lives with your smile, your laugher, and your joy. All those fun times we shared together, all those delicious goodies we baked together, and all those happy memories we made together. All the things I can't do anymore without you," she paused as she wiped a tear from her eye then smiled sadly. "But you know what? I bet you're making tons of friends already on the other side with your jokes and humor, and that is something I can smile about," she planted a little peck on his right cheek before walking back towards her friends, still wearing that sad smile.

Fluttershy got up next. She swallowed hard and wiped away her tears.

"Spike, you truly are the kindest creature I've ever met. You've always set aside your needs to help someone else, even at the expense of your own joy or pleasure. Before I met you, I always feared dragons and I avoided them whenever possible. You, however, showed me that there's more than meets the eye on your species by breaking that mold and giving others like Thorax a chance and saving Ember from drowning and giving her the Bloodstone Sceptor even though you got to it first. Then you met your ultimate fate. At first I was devastated by what happened, but as time went on, I came to realize you did it for us. You were kind enough to give your life up just so we could all keep going. In a way, you represented my Element of Kindness that day. I've learned a lot from you, Spike," she paused as she smiled at Spike. Contrary to Pinkie, however, this one was with happiness, her turquoise eyes radiating with hope and warmth. "Grateful doesn't begin to describe how I feel for being your friend. Even though I accept what happened, that doesn't mean I won't miss you," she said in a voice that was a little bit louder than her usual timid tone before leaning into the coffin and kissing the fallen dragon right on the tip of his nose. She made her way back to her shocked friends, even though it felt good pouring her heart out in that speech, she still felt weary of the catastrophic results that unfolded after that horrendous battle four days earlier.

Applejack took the next shot.

"Well, Spike, I guess this is goodbye. I feel so lost without you. Who's going to work off for a life debt for me after I saved them from a timberwolf?" she stopped and chuckled sadly, remembering that self-imposed debt that he had promised to work off after she saved his life. "Spike, You truly are a dedicated friend and worker. You represented my Element, when you were thoroughly honest when told us how grateful you were that we were all safe even though you were dying. It's gonna be mighty quiet without you around. I'll miss you, sugarcube. I've always thought of you as my brother. I would've considered you to be my younger brother except you acted mature enough to be my older brother," she sighed and tears began to well up in her eyes. "I know I usually cry on the inside, but this is something that even I can't keep bottled up." She looked down toward him and tried her very best not to break down in a fit of sobs, "You were such a good soul, Spike. You didn't deserve this," she choked out. Now, it was taking every ounce of the apple farmer's strength not to break down. She shakily kissed Spike's head just below where his head crest ended. The usually strong, tough earth pony looked like a foal that had just gotten a knee scrape. She got no more than three-eighths to her seat before it all became two much to bear at last and she finally collapsed, curled into a ball, and silently cried not caring who watched. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash immediately got up to cart their emotionally crushed friend back to her seat. The two Pegasi sat between their woebegone teammate when they did reach her seat, embraced her with both their legs and wings, and refused to loosen their grip.

Next up, were the Cutie Mark Crusaders followed by Applejack's older brother, Big Macintosh. Apple Bloom was riding on her brother and was sobbing heavily into the back of the stallion's crimson neck. In fact, Apple Bloom hadn't stopped crying once since last night. It was physically exhausting for the young filly to the point where she couldn't even walk.

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle jumped up on Big Mac's back. Once she saw her friends with her, Apple Bloom felt a bit of comfort knowing that she now had company who could help her composure rather than doing it alone.

"Spike," Sweetie Belle began. "You have always been Apple Bloom's, Scootaloo's, and my best friend. You've always pitched in to help us find our cutie marks and supported us when we felt discouraged after failing. When we did get them, you never left our side."

Sweetie teared up as she remembered a time when her friends and she accompanied Spike and Rarity on a gem hunting trip hoping to earn their cutie marks in mining. Unfortunately, they didn't do well. Spike, however, didn't like seeing Sweetie and her friends so downtrodden after what happened. He lifted their spirits when he told them that there was a whole, wide world full of talents out there. They just needed help finding theirs and the purple dragon was more than happy to pitch in to help them out. True to his word, he had helped the trio of fillies out with trying over three dozen talents, but still no luck. Despite this, Spike's optimism never faltered.

"Adding to that, you've stood up to those who bullied us," Scootaloo said. "And you made sure we were okay after you dealt with them."

The orange Pegasus recalled a short time ago when a colt was chewing them out for something relatively minor. Spike saw what happened and confronted him about it. After a brief argument, they both got really angry and likely would've fought each other that day had Ms. Cheerilee not intervened. After Ms. Cheerilee sent the colt away, Spike had calmed down and asked if any of the three fillies were hurt. Much to Spike's relief they weren't.

Apple Bloom had gotten herself together and managed to look at her slain friend.

"Then there was the time you spent your day off at Sweet Apple Acres staying with me when you heard from Applejack that I had a cold. You refused to leave my side and I remember you even sang me a lullaby to help put me to sleep. All those kind things you've done lead all three of us to eventually grow a crush on you for your kindness. We just wish we could've told you sooner," Apple Bloom confessed, feeling a small amount of relief after getting her confession off her chest.

The trio of filies leaned into the casket and simultaneously kissed Spike's still cheek. The heartbroken trio then hopped off Big Mac's back and ran back to their seats without another word.

Once the filles were back to their seats, Big Mac turned around and faced Spike. The usually stoic stallion had felt sad when he thought Sugar Belle had dumped him, but it was nothing compared to what he felt now.

"Spike," he began. "It's gonna be really different now that you're gone. I'm still trying to comprehend how you decided that you wanted to go out like that, just to keep us out of harm's way. Guys' night won't be the same without you. Discord's been feeling really, really guilty about what happened. I convinced him to come, but he's too emotionally distraught to even speak." The crimson stallion sighed heavily. Like his other close friends, Spike's death had done a number to him emotionally. "I also knew about Apple Bloom having a crush on you. At first, I thought she'd get over it, but overtime I saw her falling for you even more, and I wasn't surprised. You know how to treat her right and that's something I really respect in someone. I wanted her to confess her love to you, but like all kids in love, she was just too nervous to do so. I remember all those times that Apple Bloom always comes home telling me about how she and her friends would always strike out on quests for cutie marks and how you'd always come in to lift their spirits and encourage them not to give up hope. You've shown me how much of a kind, sweet boy you are, Spike. To be honest, if you would've gotten together with Apple Bloom, I'd trust you without a second thought. You are without a doubt, the coolest guy I've ever met," Big Mac finished. With nothing left to say, he slowly trotted back to where the Cutie Mark Crusaders were seated and hugged all three fillies tightly.

Even though he may have not been Spike's biggest fan, Garble felt like he owed Spike this one. He was a little reluctant to leave his Smolder's side as she had never ceased sobbing when they had first gotten to the funeral, but his buddies took his place comforting her. He took a deep breath and rubbed the back of his neck.

"I may not always liked you, Spike, but after today, you've undoubtedly earned my full respect. Looking back, I am beyond thankful that you came to the dragonlands to cheer me up despite me being a total jerk. I know I've always mocked you for being a wimp, but it seems, as usual, I was wrong about you. That day, you proved you really are as tough as me and my buddies, maybe even more so. When Smolder and I received news that you had perished after successfully saving all of us, we felt like our whole world came crashing down. I've heard that you always put your pony pals ahead of yourself. At first, felt like all was lost for me, until I took one look at Smolder when she heard the news. I made me realize that I needed be there for her and I could deal with my emotions. That's what friends and family do for each other. You may be gone, but you've successfully done something no one else would dare. Straightening me out and teaching me a very valuable life lesson. So long, little buddy. I cannot thank you enough for helping guide me down the right path," Garble smiled sadly before giving a military salute to his former rival. "Rest easy, warrior. You've fought well."

After some coaxing from Garble, Smolder had managed to get her emotions together and slowly stood up. The usually tomboyish dragon felt numb to the bone.

The orange dragon turned to her older brother. "Did you bring it, Gar-Gar?"

Garble nodded and handed Smolder what she was asking for, a red rose that had been stripped of its thorns.

"Thank you," Smolder whispered. She then slowly made her way to where Spike lay in his golden casket. She slipped the rose in-between the fingers on his hand that was on top and the back of his hand on the bottom before she took a shaken breath and began to speak. "Spike, you truly are an example of what it means to be a dragon. You're tough, cool, brave, strong, and you have a heart of pure, solid gold. I am fortunate to have become your friend even if was for a very short time. There's also something else I need to get off my back. Ever since you helped reform my brother, Garble, I started getting this weird feeling whenever I was around you, my heart would feel so light and fluttery and my face would always heat up a bit. I also got this feeling when I began thinking of you. I asked my friends why I felt this way and they told me I, like the Cutie Mark Crusaders, had fallen for you. At first, I didn't believe them, but as time went on, I realized they were right. I love you, Spike. More than anything. I wanted to tell you this after the battle with the Legion of Doom, but I guess fate had other plans in mind," she paused as she leaned into the coffin, closed her eyes, and planted a kiss on the dead center of the sleeping adolescent's forehead. "Sleep tight, cutie pie."

Smolder backtracked no more than one-quarter of her path back her seat before she collapsed and broke down in another fit of tears. Garble immediately sprang from his seat, scooped her up, carried her back to where his buddies and he were, and held her tightly against his chest for the rest of the time.

Gabby sniffed as she got up to share her speech. The usually happy, go-lucky Griffon felt like going to sleep and never wanting to wake up. She had felt awful when she thought Spike didn't want to hang out with her, but that was nothing compared to what she felt now. She wanted to throw up looking at the body in the casket that once was not just her best friend, but her crush too.

"Spike," she started as two large tears rolled down her cheeks and she squeezed her eyes shut as she tried to keep herself together. "You truly are the best creature I've met in my life. You've done whatever you could to make me happy, you've hung out with me in most of your free time with me, which got someone jealous because she felt lonely without you, and you've always treated me with top-of-the-line respect. No matter how grateful I am to be alive and safe today, I just don't know how to accept this, Spike. If the truth be told, I've fallen in love with you, Spike. I've felt this way about you for about a full month. Your kindness, like Smolder and my fellow Crusaders, seemed to make me believe that you were the perfect one. I would've been more than happy to share you with them. I love you, Spike. I-I just..."

Gabby got no further before she collapsed on the ground and began to cry hysterically. All that pain and horror from four days earlier kept chipping away at her composure throughout her speech and it finally managed to destroy the last of it. The poor, grey griffon tried to stand up, but her legs buckled and she fell back down again, still crying.

"I-I-I'm s-so s-s-sorry, S-S-Spike!!" Gabby choked out through her sobs. "W-Why did y-you have to go?"

Sensing that Gabby couldn't continue on without going into a full mental breakdown, Starlight got up and helped the still bawling Griffon back to her seat.

Thorax decided to go next. The shaken King felt like throwing up looking at Spike in his final resting place. After 15 seconds of pure, dead silence, Thorax broke the ice and began to slowly but surely got out his words.

"H-hey, buddy," Thorax sputtered almost hesitant to speak. "This is pretty hard for all of us especially Ember and me. You were always there for both of us and you never asked for anything in return from either of us. I'm partially to blame for that one because I never thought to give you anything. My biggest regret, as well as Ember's, is that we couldn't be there for you, to return the favor. If i weren't for you, not only would I still be on the run from everyone, but the changelings would also not be reformed," He paused, almost losing composure. "I feel like a piece of me is missing now. I feel scared, Spike. I was told by Twilight how you were so brave that day, how you were able to make a split-second decision to save those you loved, and how you fought through your pain to destroy the Legion. I could never have thought so quickly, let alone work through that much pain. Then to add to that, you displayed your selflessness one more final time when you told your friends that as long as we were all safe, you could rest easy," Thorax said, then he sighed. He had no tears left to cry. "I hope you're well taken care of on the other side, Spike. You've earned it." Thorax walked off, feeling not just sad, but empty too. His head hung low and his usually vivid purple eyes seemed faded.

After Thorax sat back down, Ember made her way next to the deceased Spike.

"I don't know what to think right now, Spike. Like Thorax, I too feel like a piece if me is missing. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be the Dragon Lord. You weren't just my friend, you were the torch that had helped light my way and guide me through the other end of the dark tunnel that was my opinion of ponies and friendship. With you gone, I feel like I'm entering a whole, new, dark tunnel, except this time I don't have a torch to guide me through it," she paused for a brief moment. "Thorax and I were absolutely devastated when we saw you. We were so broken up in fact, that we couldn't even fly back home. We were granted a room in Twilight's Castle and we did nothing in that room except just cry thinking about you. Unfair is an understatement of what the results of that battle were that day. You didn't deserve this, Spike. You had so much to look forward to in this world and you threw it away saving us. Even though I'm eternally grateful of what you did, I would give anything to turn back the clock to just show up five minutes earlier than we did," Ember began to tear up and it felt harder and harder to keep her composture. "This isn't fair. What could you have done in your short life that was horrible enough that fate decided that such a painful death at such a young age was an acceptable response to it? Not a damn thing, that's what. When I think about it more, you deserve the title of Dragon Lord more than I do. You got to the Bloodstone Sceptor first, but you handed it to me out of pure kindness." Ember started feeling really bad, "What did I do for you in return? Nothing. I never considered ever asking you if I could help you out with anything important. You always came to me if I needed help. I promised you that you always had one friend in the Dragon lands and that was me, but we barely caught up on any good times we had after the whole Thorax incident and after we managed to hatch the dragon eggs." Ember could take no more, and became the third creature that day to break down and cry at the funeral. All that guilt that suddenly reared its ugly head to her during her speech made her feel the worst that she'd ever felt in her whole life. She realized all her mistakes, and she could now do nothing to fix them.

"I don't deserve to be your friend," she whispered through her tears. "I don't know how you kept me by your side until you died."

Fluttershy quickly ran over to the sobbing Dragon Lord and wrapped her wings and hooves around her in a comforting hug. "Shh, there there. It's okay," she whispered soothingly before slowly helping Ember back to her seat.

After Ember was Starlight. Even though she held that same blank expression from the time Spike had died to the night before the funeral, she now looked just as sad as everyone else. She was in such shock since Spike's death and her mind felt so empty, like a big, white, unpainted canvas. For those four days, the reality of the results of that grueling battle were slowly setting into her mind. By the time she had woken up today and realized with the others that today was the day that they had to come say a final goodbye to their dearest friend, everything had been fully digested. Now that she was up and it only added to how real the situation was. She looked down at him and began speaking without even realizing it.

"Spike, you don't know how lucky I feel to have met and become friends with such a special dragon like you. You were always there for me in my time of need. You were always on the front lines to help me out of a jam when I needed it most. Even after my many, many screw-ups, you never got mad at me. Instead, you accepted me for who I was and you still considered me your friend no matter what happened. I was looking forward to making so many happy memories with you after this hectic adventure was over. Unforunately, the Legion made you throw all that out when they threatened the lives of Twilight and the others. In that moment, you made a choice and single-handedly saved your friends and defeated the villains. In the time you died to this point, I was in such shock by what happened. I spent every second of the last 96 hours trying to fully comprehend your good deed," she let out a sad sigh and a tear hit the ground. "I know you may be gone, but your heroic deeds as well as your spirit lives on inside our hearts and memories." She finished, then before she walked back, she planted a kiss just below his ear fin.

Once Starlight was seated, Rarity had been scheduled to go next. This was the moment that the fashionista looked forward to and dreaded at the same time. The last three words that Spike had said to her still circled around her head. His raspy voice, his vibrant, Emerald eyes slowly losing their light as he croaked out his confession to her. She had completely ignored that he had a crush on her for so long. She had brushed off the way he had always carried her baggage for her, how he'd volunteer to be her pincushion, and how he looked at her so lovingly. She had a small saddlebag in her which had surprisingly gone unnoticed by everyone there. Her mascara was running down her cheeks and staining her perfect, white fur. How she looked, however, was the last thing on her mind.

"Oh, my little Spikey-Wikey," Rarity whimpered out feeling a whole, new wave of guilt and sadness rush over her remembering that nickname she had given him. "I don't deserve you. You've always had a crush on me and I never really took it seriously until now. After you perished saving us and you managed to croak out that you loved me, I slowly began to recall all the things you did for me. The time you volunteered to be my personal pincushion, the time you gave me that fire ruby, and all the times you've carried my baggage, all the while not asking for anything in return. When I look at it more, I realize you represent the element of Generosity more than I do, especially during that battle. You were generous enough to give up everything, including your life, just to ensure that your best friends were all safe. When I look back, I've realized I've taken advantage of your affections and I feel absolutely ashamed of myself. You've always stood by my side when I've cried over stallions who aren't interested in dating me. All this time, the universe was trying to tell me to stop pursuing stallions and get with the one who had always stood by my side no matter how out of line I acted. Unfortunately, I was too blind to see it" she paused and sniffled before using a tissue she had brought to blow her nose and wipe her eyes. "After all you've done for me, Spike, I think it's high time I returned the favor."

She reached into her saddlebag and pulled out the only thing inside, Spike's fire ruby except that it didn't have it's golden necklace. It still looked as flawless and shiny as it did when it was given to the fashionista all those years ago. Spike's still hands were suddenly enveloped in Rarity's light blue aura and lifted up off his chest. Rarity was careful not to disturb Smolder's rose as she levatated the fire ruby into the coffin and gently wedged it inbetween the little dragon's hands and chest. She smiled down at the finished product, before leaning into the coffin and kissed Spike for a solid two seconds on his lips. She broke away and looked sadly at him.

"You've given me your heart so many times, Spike. I regret that I have just this one time to give you mine," Rarity said. She walked away after casting one last look at her knight in shining scales.

Now, it was Twilight's turn. She felt the most crushed out of everyone there. She had hatched Spike and had spent everyday of his short life with him. He was always considered to be her "Number One Assistant". Overtime, however, the two grew closer and the lavendar Alicorn slowly began to consider Spike as, not just a friend, but as her son.

"Spike," Twilight choked out overcome with unbelievable grief. "You're the best best thing that has ever happened to me. You've always been there to keep me in check if I'm ever on the verge of going insane, you've always helped me to get my jobs done without complaining. I know I've always considered you my number one assistant for things like that. As time went on, however, I felt like you were more than an assistant to me. You made your way into my heart enough to make me consider you my son. I rue the fact that I never told you this sooner. In fact, after the battle, I was planning to take you with me so you could see me signing the adoption papers so I could be your foster mother, but because of my neglect to come up with a plan to save you, my only child, we can never share the happy times that a mother and son usually share together," She began to cry. "To top it all off, I realized that my friends and I have almost never considered taking you on our missions. You've always been stuck at the castle or the library cleaning up the place so it looks nice for us when we get back." By this point, Twilight was full-on sobbing. All her past mistakes that she had done without even realizing them hit her full-on. "I'm a horrible mother," she whispered through her tears.

Upon hearing this, Twilight Velvet, Night Light, Shining Armor, Starlight, AppleJack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie immediately got up, walked over to Twilight, and embraced her as tight as they could in another comforting hug.

"It's okay, Twi," whispered Applejack. "We know you never meant to hurt him."

The nine ponies slowly carried the sobbing Princess back to her seat and reembraced her for the rest of the time.

Once Twilight was carried back, Celestia, Luna, and Cadence were about to close the coffin when a Phoenix came flying overhead followed by another 200 more. The Phonix squawked orders at the other Phoenixes and they began to make a shape while flying in the sky. Within 30 seconds, the shape was complete, and everyone realized that the Phonixes had made Spike's head in the sky while flying in place. Then the Phoenix in the lead broke off and flew down toward the coffin hovering no more that two feet above Spike. It didn't take a genius to figure out that was Peewee. Peewee looked down sadly at his owner lying in his final resting bed before looking up to the sky and letting out a mournful squawk to the clouds. The other Phoenixes followed suite and squawked toward the sky, mourning the Dragon who had saved Peewee from certain death. After finishing his mournful squawking, Peewee landed in the coffin, wrapped his wings around Spike head, and nuzzled his cheek lovingly. The he flew back up to join the other Phoenixes in the sky. They all cast one last look at the open coffin before flying back to the Everfree Forest.

Once they were sure the Phoenixes were done, The Princesses closed the coffin, lifted it off the stand, and gently levitated the small, golden box the six feet underground to its final resting bed.

Before the Princesses were able to get it even a foot under, however, Ember, Garble and his posse, Smolder, and all the other dragons stood up, walked to the hole in the ground, formed a line on either side of it, turned 180 degrees to face the crowd, looked up, and breathed fire at the sky for a solid 30 seconds. The fire altered colors as it was emmitted, changing from purple to green and green to purple. Everyone watched in awe as the dragons put on their fire show to honor Spike. Most of the dragons were successful in holding back their tears. Smolder and Ember, however, didn't even bother trying.

As the Pewee and his flock dissapeared over the horizon, the rectangular hole was slowly refilled with the dirt that had been dug up earlier. It felt painfully slow for The Element Bearers, Ember, Starlight, and Thorax to watch Equestria's rulers bury their life-long friend.

After what seemed like forever, the hole was refilled and the tragic event was almost over. The princesses went over to the object that was obscured by the white sheet and they slowly pulled the white sheet away. Once it was off the object was revealed to be a statue of Spike. He was wearing body armor and holding a sword in his right hand while looking up at the sky with a determined expression. There was a plaque on the front of the base of the statue with letters carved into it.

Here lies Prince Spike
Savior of Equestria
Aged 13 in pony years
May he forever be remembered

"Attention, everyone," Celestia cleared her throat. "Although my sister and I loved the name "Spike the Brave and Glorious", we felt that it seemed underappreciating for him to keep it after he threw away everything, including his life, just to push not just the ones he loved, but all of Equestria, to safety. Therefore, he shall be known from this day foreward as Prince Spike."

The statue looked beautiful and well detailed. Unfortunately for Twilight, it only seemed to taunt her by making her realize just how real this was. Spike, her soon-to-be son, was dead and wasn't coming back. She was literally living a nightmare. The lavendar Alicorn began to feel even worse and her friends as well as the other Princesses took notice.

One by one, Ponies, Dragons, Griffons, Changelings, Yaks, Buffalo, Kirins, and Hippogriffs slowly began trickling out of the cemetary. The Mane 6, Starlight, Twilight's parents, Shining Armor, Ember, Garble and his pack of friends, Smolder, Gabby, and Thorax all stayed behind to gaze at the statue and be reminded of Spike.

Celestia walked over to the still sobbing Twilight.

"Twilight," she whispered in a tone that was even softer the Fluttershy's.

Twlight sniffed and looked up her mentor. Her purple eyes reflected unimaginable amounts of pain and sorrow.

"If you or any of your friends ever need any emotional support, please don't be afraid to ask us for help. With each other's help, we can be strong and hopefully be able to move past this event," Celestia said. "Spike would've wanted it that way."

Twilight broke down again. She eventually got her composture together and gave Celestia the scariest glare ever. Celestia gulped and felt chills run down her spine. She knew she had said that wrong. Now, she could only prepare for the toungue lashing that her former student was about to give her.

"I'm sorry, but HOW do you expect us to "move on" from this?! Spike was the rock that supported ALL OF US in our time of need! Now he's gone not because of his heroic actions, but because I was LITERALLY too stupid to put a plan together and save my son," Twilight choked out between sobs before she began crying even harder. "It's all my fault."

Fluttershy immediately spun Twilight around so that she was facing the cream colored Pegasus. Fluttershy pressed her nose to Twilight's and gave her a very stern glare.

"Twilight," Fluttershy began in a serious tone, her usual soft tone had vanished. "I know you miss Spike more than all of us combined, but I want to get something straight right now. None of this was your fault, you could've done nothing to prevent this. I too felt like this could've been prevented, but then I realized he did it for all of us. He gave up his future, his dreams just to ensure that Equestria was safe again. If it were you in that casket and Spike was here, he would've wanted to be there for us and would've wanted to know that we were able to fully cope with loss before being able to move on. If you want to remember Spike the most, take lessons from what he did so you won't be able to make the same mistakes in the future. I know it's tough for all of us now, but we'll find a way through this, I promise."

Gabby, who hadn't said a word since her tearful breakdown, also spoke up. "Adding on to that, we all should remember him for not just who he was to us, but what he meant to all of us, Twilight," the grey Griffon said. Her usual perky, happy demeanor was gone, but in its place stood a Gabby that was there for someone in need of a shoulder to cry on.

Twilight teared up again. Except this time, it was out of happiness.

"Thank you, Fluttershy. Thank you, Gabby. I really needed that," Twilight said through her tears. For the first time in three days, she felt her hope and strength return to her.

"Anytime," the Pegasus and Griffon said in unison.

Everyone cast one last look at Spike's statue before slowly making their way out of the cemetery.

"Hey, Twilight, Celestia," Garble asked. "If it isn't too much to ask, can my buddies and I stay with Smolder in her dorm room? I want to be there for her to help guide her through this."

"I don't see why not," Twilight smiled at Garble.

"Thanks" Garble smiled back.

"Night Light and I would also like to stay in the castle," Twilight Velvet said. "We need to also be there to help Twilight in case she needs it."

Princess Celestia beamed warmly, "Certainly, you two."

"Well, we got to head back, but Thorax and I will make sure to visit you all at least once a week," Ember said.

"Take care, everyone," Rarity said.

"Thanks, Rarity. You too," Gabby responded with a little bit of her perky attitude returning to her voice.

Everyone bid each other farewell before heading back to their respective homes.

As everyone headed back home, they were all filled with new hope. Spike's death was a true tragedy, but in that tragedy, lessons were learned and in a way, they had all come out stronger because of it.

Chapter 4: Discord's Guilt: Pt. 1

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TWO DAYS LATER

It had been two days Since the funeral and six days since Equestria had lost Spike. Everyone was still sad, but they were trying their best to move on with what happened, just like Spike would've wanted them to do.

There was one creature who had felt more awful than anyone and found himself unable to move on. It was none other than Discord. Ever since he had heard about Spike's fate at the top of that hill, he'd never felt so guilty in his long life. He had tried to boost Twilight's confidence by banding the Cozy Glow, Chrysalis, and Tirek together under the guise of an ancient, Cornflower blue Ram named Grogar so the lavender Alicorn and her friends could get a confidence boost. Unfortunately, his plan went off the rails when the vicious trio found him out and stripped him of his chaos powers and the Princesses of their magic. Lucky for Discord, however, the Legion of Doom didn't get to overthrow all of Equestria, but that was because one of his closest friends had lost his life saving all of them. The Draconequus had no doubt in his mind that Twilight and her friends hated him unconditionally. Discord believed he was fully responsible for what happened and knew it was best not to make any contact with them again.

Hearing Discord's situation and feeling bad for him, Celestia and Luna had a spare room in the castle and offered it to Discord. He said yes without hesitation and made a mental promise to stay away from the Elements, Celestia, and Luna whenever he could.

THREE DAYS LATER

True to his promise to himself, Discord stayed as far away as he could from Twilight and her friends as well as the other Princesses. He had never felt so alone.

Celestia and Luna thought the ancient Draconequus would eventually snap out of it, but as time went on, the two Princesses noticed Discord seemed even more downtrodden with each day that passed. Finally on the third day, the royal sisters decided they had enough of seeing Discord moping around and blaming himself for something he couldn't have prevented. They decided that tommorrow, they'd pay a visit to The Friendship Castle.

THE NEXT DAY

The second Celestia woke up that morning and Luna was off duty for being Equestia's dreamkeeper, the two quickly freshened up, had a quick breakfast, headed outside, and got in the enchanted chariot that was waiting to take the royal sisters to the Friendship Castle. They landed in front of the large building where Twilight and her friends resided. After ordering the Pegasai who pulled the cart to wait for them, they both slowly walked to the entrance of the Friendship Castle, looked at each other, took a deep breath, and knocked on the door.

Twilight was walking down the hall when she heard a knocking on the front door.

"I'm coming," she called as she rushed to the door.

She opened the door and saw the two royal sisters standing before her.

Hey, Celestia and Luna. What can I do for you?" Twilight asked. She did still seem a little sad.

"Hello, Twilight. May we come inside, please? We need to talk with you and your friends," Luna responded calmly.

"Certainly," Twilight smiled. "Can we discuss it in the map room?"

"Of course," Celestia replied.

With that said, Twilight rushed off to gather her friends and the Princesses headed to the map room and patiently waited inside. It didn't take them long to notice a stone chair smaller than the other six. On head rest was a picture of Spike, he was looking at the camera with a big smile. On the seat of the chair were several bouquets of flowers with a golden medal on the top, it was the Royal Advisor medal Twilight had given Spike no more than ten days ago. On the armrests sat two lit candles, one purple and one green, for each side. Below the picture sat a shiny golden plaque which was reflecting some of the yellow glow of the small candle flames. There were cursive letters carved into the plaque, they were easy to read with the help of the light of the candle flames.

Spike The Dragon
Beloved Friend, Brother, and Hero

The Princesses teared up a bit at the bittersweet sight of all the things that decorated Spike's chair. They heard a door opening as Twilight walked into the room accompanied by Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Starlight. They took notice of the Princesses staring at the Spike's adorned map room chair and they all began looking longingly at it, feeling all the good memories of their fallen friend come rushing back and hitting them right in their emotions. Not a word was said as the nine ponies all continued to stare at the perminantly vacant stone chair. If a pin was dropped, everyone would've heard it. After 45 seconds of pure, dead silence, Princess Celestia finally cleared her throat and got the other eight Ponies' attention.

"Ahem, now that we got that out of the way, there's something that I need to talk to you all about," Celestia spoke up.

"Sure thing, Celestia. What's up?" came the heavy southern accent of Applejack.

"It's about Discord," Luna started.

All seven ponies winced slightly as they heard Discord's name. If the truth be told, Twilight and her friends did harbor some anger toward Discord as they held him partially responsible for what had happened.

"What about him?" Rainbow Dash asked with a hint of bitterness in her tone.

"Well, you see, he's taken Spike's death just as hard as you girls," Celestia said.

"Hmph, I should hope so," Rarity huffed. "He's the reason why our Spikey-Wikey is gone in the first place."

"I don't even know why were even bringing him up in the first place," Applejack added.

"Because he was trying to help you. We miss Spike just as much as you all do, but clinging to the past won't do any of us any good," Celestia said curtly.

"Oh, and how did he "help" us as you put it?" Rainbow dash asked, the bitterness in her tone becoming a bit more evident.

"Remember how he realized his mistakes and how he promised to make it up to everyone?" Luna asked.

Rainbow fell silent, she remembered how Discord swore to them that he'd make it up to them, how the cyan Pegasus herself told him that, "it would have to be a pretty epic make-up". The ancient creature, however, was true to his word. He grabbed a crystal rock while trying to work out a bargain with the three fiends, eventually getting into a verbal fight with, and eventually angering Tirek to the point where the rejuvinated Cenataur tried to blast Discord. At the last second, Discord stuck out the crystal rock, Tirek's blast hit the rock, it ricocheted off of the object's reflective surface, and it ultimately obliterated the shard of Chrysalis' old throne that was subdueing Starlight in her cage, causing her to break free and the pink unicorn was able to break out every other creature. When Rainbow Dash, as well as her friends, thought about that way, they realized that while Discord may have gotten them into his mess, he managed to get them all out of it.

"Do you also remember what Spike said in his final moments about you all being hard on Discord?" Celestia added.

The seven ponies all joined Rainbow deep in their thoughts.

"Listen, please don't be too hard on Discord, alright? He never intended this to happen.”

It was painful to remember his voice and seeing him dying on the ground right in front of them, but at the same time they realized that unlike them, Spike held no ill will toward Discord and knew that the ancient creature had good intentions.

"Huh," Said Applejack. "When you put it like that, I guess he did really try to help us, he just didn't plan for the villians to betray him so suddenly."

"Precisely," Celestia said. "Discord wasn't trying to bring you down. He just didn't think it through."

"He's in our castle right now in a guest bedroom. Celestia overheard him one time saying to himself that it was best if he never talked to any of you again," Luna added.

"Well, I think it's time we paid him a visit," Fluttershy spoke up, her meek tone replaced with a determined one. "He needs to know that his heart was in the right place and that Spike, like the kind, caring soul he was, held no hate towards him"

Everypony agreed. With that being said, the nine ponies raced outside to Celestia and Luna's chariot, climbed inside, and they rode back as fast as they could to Celestia's and Luna's castle, determined to go find Discord and sort things out with him.

Chapter 5: Discord's Guilt: Pt. 2

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Discord sighed as he looked out the window of his guest bedroom. Everything that was either purple or green reminded him of Spike. It didn't help that there was a tree right in front of his window surrounded by grass. Discord would always cry himself to sleep each night, but just because he was asleep didn't mean his troubles were over for the day. In his dreams, a vision of Spike would appear in his mind, covered in blood and cuts, he had a charred abdomen, and he wore a blank expression. Worst of all, five seconds after his vision of Spike appeared, the injured dragon would open his mouth and just let out a blood-curdling scream for a full minute then collapse on the ground and before being enveloped in a cloud of smoke. When the cloud of smoke cleared, Spike was gone, the only thing that reminded Discord of what he just witnessed was a small pool of blood on the ground. Discord would always wake up in a cold sweat after he looked at the pool of blood and it would take an hour, sometimes two, to fall back asleep. Discord experienced the same nightmare at least twice each night during those ten, gruelling days since one of his close friends died. The worst night was the night after the funeral, when Discord had the same nightmare seven times and had only gotten two hours of sleep. He had put a spell up that prevented Princess Luna from seeing his horrifying nightmares believing that this was part of what he deserved. The Draconequus was known for being a bit of a troublemaker even after his reform, but the one time he tried to do something for his best friends it went horribly wrong. He knew that the second that Twilight and her friends found him, they'd turn him back into stone. Of course, he believed it was what he deserved, but every time he got the courage to get up and go to the Casle of Friendship, it died at the last minute. Every time this happened, Discord felt ten times worse than he did before.

A knock was heard at the front door and Discord slowly walked to it and looked through the peephole. Instantly, his gut dropped. He could see Twilight Sparkle and one or two of her friends. He knew Twilight was going to turn him back into stone. He knew there was no point in running, he did this and it was time to face the music. He slowly opened the door, the wooden object letting out a low creaking noise as it slowly revealed the depressed being behind it.

"I know why you're here, Twilight," Discord sighed sadly. "I know what I did, but no matter how much I hope, no matter how much I try, I cannot see you or your friends ever forgiving me. So, please, just turn me into stone again and get it over with. I deserve it."

Twilight was taken aback. She already knew Discord was upset, but she hadn't expected him to be tore up to the point where he wanted to be petrified in stone for a third time. Celestia, Luna, the other Element Bearers, and Starlight also seemed a little shocked by Discord's behavior.

"Discord," Luna spoke. "We're not here to turn you back into stone, we just want to talk."

"Oh, do you have another punishment in mind?" Discord asked, his tone seemed the same.

"No, Discord," Celestia said calmly. "We're not here to punish you at all."

Discord was shocked, "I-Is this a joke? Please don't toy with me like this. I know what I did was wrong, but don't leave me in the dark about my punishment."

"No, we're not joking. Listen, Discord, we may be angry for what you did, but we know deep down that you never meant for this to happen. You may have drug us into your mess but you also managed to get yourself out of it," Twilight said kindly

Discord remembered what Twilight was referring to. How he'd freed everycreature in Equestria by goading Tirek into blasting away the chard of Crysakis' throne restraining Starlight, causing a domino effect for everyone else.

"While I see your point there, it still doesn't take away from the fact that one of our close friends lost his life due to me," Discord said, beginning to tear up. "I've been having the same nightmare about Spike every night."

"What sort of nightmares?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Discord gulped and then went into detail about his recurring nightmare about Spike. How he was so badly injured, how he had that blank expression, and how he'd just let out that awful scream before collapsing on the grond in a bloody mess. He also recalled how he woke up in a cold sweat every night at least twice. When Luna asked why she couldn't see his nightmares, he told her he had put a spell up to block her from seeing it because he thought this was part of was what he deserved. When he was finished, he looked like he was about to cry.

"The worst part about this whole thing is Spike died hating me for what I did. He's not wrong either, I feel fully responsible for what happened to him. If I hadn't put them together, he'd still be alive," Discord choked out. Unable to bear the pain any longer he broke down and began to cry.

After hearing this, Fluttershy trotted over and hugged her Draconequus before looking him right in the eye.

The cream colored Pegasus looked very serious, "Listen, Discord. I am your best friend and as your best friend, I know you very well. I know that you're sometimes a troublemaker and mischievous person, but you have a caring heart deep inside you. You tried to do something to help us and it unexpectedly went south. You couldn't have thought that Chrysalis, Tirek, and Cozy Glow would've stabbed you in the back like that. I also want to make something very clear right now, Spike was not angry at you or hated you for what happened to him. In fact right before he died, he used one of his last breaths to tell us not to be hard on you. He said that you never intended this to happen. If he were alive now, he'd want us to go over there and forgive you, it's just who he was. If we cannot forgive you, we are going against his final wishes and thus dishonoring his memory ," Fluttershy said, her turquiose eyes vibrationg with the same seriousness, but at the same time hope, at the day of the funeral when she gave a similar speech to an emotionally broken Twilight.

After listening to his best friend's speech, Discord felt like crying again, but this time it was out of happiness.

"Thank you. Thank you all so much," he whispered as he wrapped Fluttershy in a hug as he wept.

Slowly, the other ponies, even Celestia and Luna, joined in the hug and Discord couldn't be happier.

For a full minute they all just hugged each other and didn't say a word. Afterword they broke away before Fluttershy spoke up again.

"You've been couped up for too long in this small room and you need help dealing with your night terrors. It's time we headed back to the Castle of Friendship for some tea and we can talk about the things that we loved most about Spike. How does that sound?" Fluttershy asked sweetly.

"That would be lovely. Thank you, Fluttershy," Discord smiled back.

Fluttershy turned toward the other eight ponies. They felt so touched at Fluttershy's actions at reconnecting with Discord.

"Well done, Fluttershy," Princess Celestia said. "Today, you and your friends have proven that you all have a little bit of Spike's spirit in you."

"I couldn't agree more," Luna added. "I have no doubt that Prince Spike has never been more proud as he's looking down at us from the heavens."

With that Discord and Fluttershy took the lead as they walked back to the chariot to be transported back home, all feeling their hope they had gotten from each other right after the funeral strengthening twice as much.

Chapter 6: The Villains' Awakening and Sentencing

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TEN DAYS EARLIER, CANTERLOT DUNGEON, ONE HOUR AFTER THE BATTLE

Chrysalis' vision was blurry as she felt herself come around. She felt like someone had taken a battleaxe to her head.

"Ugh, what happened?" she groaned.

The room that she was in was made of stone and only had one window with three bars. Then she noticed she was on the bottom bunk of a bunk bed. There was another bed on the other side of the room and its occupant was Cozy Glow, who was still unconscious. Chrysalis wouldn't have payed much attention if she didn't notice that Cozy didn't have her horn and her wings seemed a lot smaller. The reality of the situation slowly sunk in for the former Changeling Queen. She jumped out of bed and looked at the top bunk. There was Tirek, who was also unconscious, and he looked like the fragile, old Cenataur when they first met him in "Grogar's" lair. Chrysalis then bolted to a mirror and sure enough, her enchanted powers were gone too. She looked like the same creature that she did after she had been defeated by Starlight Glimmer. The only differnce was that now, the ends of her teal mane were singed a moderate shade of grey.

Cozy Glow was next to wake up. She too had a splitting headache and felt a lot weaker. She looked back at her wings and noticed they were a lot smaller. She put a hoof on top of her head and noticed that her horn was no longer there. She tried to wrack her brain to figure out what happened, Chrysalis was doing the same thing. Then all their memeories hit both of them simultaneously like a fully loaded freight train. How Spike had nabbed Grogar's Bell from them, how they had chased him and fired at the bell without even thinking about if that would damage it or not, and how they blew up the bell when they fired all their blasts at the same time, all the while thinking Spike was the dumb one flying toward the power-hungry trio.

"I can't believe it," Chrysalis growled. "That repulsive, little reptile defeated all three of us."

"Yeah, thanks to you," Cozy Glow bitterly remarked.

Chrysalis was taken aback, "Oh, really? And how was it my fault that we got defeated?" she snapped.

"Oh, I don't know you were the one who had that idiot in your magic grip. You couldn't have just ripped off his wings right then and there?" Cozy Glow replied.

"How was I supposed to know he would go and pull something like that? I thought I pulled on his wings hard enough to break them and render them useless. I just wanted to give him back to those stupid ponies so they could all enjoy a miserable death together," Chrysalis hissed back.

Cozy and Chrysalis' argument soon found it's way to Tirek's ears. Af first, it worked it's way into his dreams, but then it slowly drove the Centaur into consciousness. He let out a groan and sat up. Chrysalis and Cozy didn't seem to notice him, they were too busy arguing. The old creature looked around at his surroundings, a medium-sized room made of stone with just one window with bars on it, one bunk bed, and one regular bed. He looked himself over and instantly realized that his hulking, muscular, rejuvinated frame was gone, replaced with his old, brittle, skinny frame. Like Cozy and Chrysalis, he too recalled the events of his defeat at the hands of Spike. Unlike Cozy and Chrysalis, however, he didn't jump in and argue with them, but instead rolled back into bed, pulled the covers over him. He figured he was in enough trouble as it was and felt it was best to just keep his mouth shut.

Eventually a guard passing by overheard the Pegasus and former Changeling Queen's argument and banged against the wooden door.

"Quiet in there!" he barked.

"Get lost," Chrysalis shouted back. "You've already defeated us with that horrid dragon of yours. Isn't that enough?"

The guard's expression suddenly darkened and his tone seemed a little bit angrier.

"I'll have you know that "horrid dragon" is dead. The magic surge killed him in a very brutal and painful way. So show some respect for him. That's the very least you can do," the guard said.

Cozy and Tirek seemed a little surprised by the news. Chrysalis, however, just grinned evilly.

"Oh, dear," Chrysalis sarcastically began. "I'm so sorry that had to happen to him, but look at it this way. After I met Cozy Glow, she told me about how Spike was an orphan. Maybe now that he's dead, he can reunite with his parents in the bowels of Tartarus and they can all enjoy the comforts that it has to offer to them together. As a family."

Chrysalis threw back her head and began to laugh at her own callous comment. Cozy and Tirek couldn't help but seem a little shocked at Chrysalis' harsh words. They hated Spike just as much as she did, but they had enough dignity to respect the dead. The guard's look changed from angered to disgusted. He shook his head in disbelief at the former Changeling Queen showing no remorse for the death of a kid and continued walking down the narrow hallway.

Chrysalis finally finished laughing and looked at her cohorts. She seemed oblivious at their shocked expression as she continued to speak.

"What? Aren't you excited? That miserable lizard is now dead and I can only imagine what torture those ponies are going through," she said, her tone rivaing that of a filly in a candy shop.

"Chrysalis, don't you have any respect for him at all?" Cozy Glow asked.

"Not a chance in hell," Chrysalis responded coldly. "Don't tell me you feel sorry for them."

"Well, we did have a little respect for them being our rivals and all," Cozy Glow admitted.

"We also shouldn't disrespect the dead," added Tirek. "Sure, Cozy and I hated all of them just as much as you did, but we also should know where to draw the line."

"Oh, please," Chrysalis said. "He was a complete nobody and I honestly cannot believe either of you speaking out in support in him."

Cozy and Tirek could see there was no point in arguing anymore with Chrysalis. They both let out a sigh and crawled back into bed.

Chrysalis just walked toward the window and she stared out of it. Even though she was miffed at her cohorts feeling sorry for their enemies, it didn't dampen her good mood. Even though she was defeated, the fact that one of her enemies was killed was reward enough for her.

11 DAYS LATER

Today was the day that the defeated villains were expecting a visit from Twilight, her friends, and the other Princesses. This was the day that Cozy and Tirek both dreaded, but Chrysalis was really excited. She knew exactly what to say to them to hopefully get them really angry. Sure enough, Twilight Sparkle came to face them in their cell, along with the other Element Bearers, Starlight Glimmer, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, Shining Armor, and Discord.

Cozy and Tirek both wore annoyed expressions. They weren't looking forward to the tongue lashing that the Princesses and Twilight were going to give them. Chrysalis, however, was probably the most happy she had been in her whole life. Words couldn't describe how eager she was to see how her insults would play out on the new arrivals.

"Hello, Chrysalis, Tirek, Cozy Glow," Twilight said bitterly.

"Hello, Twilight," Chrysalis said, her voice oozing with venom. "Say, where's that little pet dragon of yours? I would've assumed he'd want to come along too."

Everyone except Cozy Glow and Tirek winced slightly at Chrysalis' words, feeling disgusted with her unremorseful attitude.

"I think you know what happened to him," Celestia said simply.

Chrysalis snickered before Twilight spoke up.

"Listen up, you've all been charged with 1st degree murder. Cozy, since you're a child, we cannot charge you with treason. How do you plead?" Twilight said curtly.

"Guilty. No contest," Cozy and Tirek said in unison. The Centaur and filly Pegasus knew it was no point in saying innocent. The chips were stacked too tall against them and a trial would only prolong the ordeal for them.

"Chrysalis, we didn't hear your plea," Luna said.

Everyone turned to face her.

"Guilty. No contest," she answered, a smile etched at the corners of her mouth.

Everyone felt even more disgusted with Chrysalis' attitude. Even though Tirek and Cozy were just as guilty as her, they, at least, looked a tiny bit remorseful at first glance, although they didn't want them to see it. Chrysalis didn't even look like Spike's death affected her in any way. In fact, she seemed happy about it. It was as if she had wanted this to happen all along. Chrysalis looked the perturbed ponies and Draconequus standing before her.

"What?" she asked innocently, pretending to be oblivious to why they were all glaring at her in the first place. "Why are you all angry?"

"Oh, I don't know," Starlight began. "Maybe it's because you're still showing no remorse after killing someone, a kid for that matter."

Chrysalis glared at the angry visage of her arch-enemy, she hated Starlight most of all. Instead of lashing out at her, however, she just grinned wickedly.

"Oh my," Chrysalis mused. "Whatever happened to the Starlight I knew who wanted to reform me? Certainly, out of everyone here, I would've expected you to be the one who extended me a hoof of friendship hoping to lead me down a better path."

"That was before you became a deranged psychopath hellbent on trying to kill us all," Starlight snapped back. "Had I known that you were going to go and pull a stunt like this, I would've just put you out of your misery right then and there."

"But you didn't," Chrysalis said in a sing-song voice before laughing again. "And, boy, did you pay a price for it. Such a shame too. That hideous salamander was such a promising soul, so full of life, so ready to take on all the challenges the world had to offer to him. He won't be missed. Ever."

Starlight glared at her arch-rival. Chrysalis' taunts were really starting to make her angry.

"Well, just remember that I'm not the one in the cell," Starlight snarled. "Before I leave here though, however, I just want ask one thing. Was it worth it? Was not being my friend just to try to take Equestria but failing miserably worth all this?"

This was the shot Chrysalis was waiting for, rub Spike's death in everyone's faces a little more and really get under their skin.

"On the contrary, it is actually us who have defeated you," Chysalis smirked. "See, you may have stopped us, but at what cost? We may be defeated, but the fact that we got one of you is more than reward enough for me. Plus, if I remember correctly, he was an orphan. I'm willing to bet money that he's probably already reunited with his parents in the bowels of Tartarus. Now, they can all enjoy rotting down there together. So, in a way, I did him a favor. Now, rather than having no other choice but to consider any of you idiots his family, he gets to be with his true family. It's honestly funny how things work out sometimes. Wouldn't you agree?"

Starlight's vision and face went redder than Applejack's cutie mark. Never in her life had she ever come across a creature so cruel, so shameless, so callous, so evil before. The pink unicorn let out an uncharacteristic growl. If given the chance, she could very well have killed Chrysalis right now. Cozy and Tirek both took a step back. They knew it was best not to intervine with them as that might be just the thing to push the ponies and Draconequus over the edge and they didn't want to get into any more trouble. They couldn't help but feel more shocked at Chrysalis' harsh, cold words.

Chrysalis gave herself a mental pat on the back looking at the incensed face of Starlight Glimmer as well as everyone else in the hallway. It had worked, she had said what she wanted to say just to be a brazen, unapologetic jackass.

"Something the matter, Starlight?" Chrysalis asked, holding back another snicker. "You look a little red. Do you have a fever?"

She paused briefly as Starlight let out another furious growl.

"Or was it something I did?"

Before Starlight could open her mouth to retort, Fluttershy stepped inbetween them. She whispered something in Starlight's ear for a few seconds, which seemed to calm the Pink Unicorn down, before the cream colored Pegasus turned to face the arrogant, barefaced, disgraced Changeing Queen. Her turquiose eyes vibrating with determination for the third time in less than two weeks. Chrysalis just looked right back at her with the same smirk, but she wasn't aware of what this usually shy pony had to say to her.

"You may have taken Spike's body from us, but there are two things you will never, ever take away from us. The first is his spirit. We all hold a little bit of him inside us. His kindness, generosity, laughter, loyalty, and honesty all live on inside our hearts. The other thing is all the happy memories that we have made with him. We will always have things that will remind us of all the fun things we all did together with him. I think I'll leave you to think about that as you sit here until your sentencing," Fluttershy said, her tone had shifted to Bold Fluttershy.

Chrysalis' smirk slowly faded. By the time Fluttershy finished her speech, Chrysalis looked at her in shock. At the back of the room, Cozy and Tirek's shock changed to dumbfounded amazement, both their mouths hung slightly open. They had never expected such strong words to come from such a meek, quiet Pegasus. Everyone else seemed a little shocked by Fluttershy's change in demeanor as well. Fluttershy looked back at Twilight who began to step forward to say when the villains would be sentenced.

"Since you have all plead guilty no contest, you will not have a trial. Your sentencing date will be scheduled in two weeks time," Twlight said, looking all three of them right in the eye. "This meeting is concluded. I will see you then."

With nothing left to say, Twilight looked back at her friends and other Princesses. They all looked back at her, nodded to each other, and trotted out of the dungeon hallway, leaving one evil-doer shocked into silence and the other two evil-doers in dumbfounded amazement.

TWO WEEKS LATER

Twilight let out a sigh as she walked into Celestia and Luna's throne room. Today was the day that the Legion of Doom was finally going to be sentenced for their crimes. Accompanying the Lavendar Alicorn and her friends at the sentencing were the Young Six, Discord, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Thorax, Ember, Garble and his posse, and Gabby. Twilight took the lead as she lead the group to the side door to the throne room.

Chrysalis and Tirek were both facing the death penalty. Tirek didn't even care about what his punishment was. He had already accepted his fate from the minute he had woken up in his prison cell bed. Chrysalis had also accepted her fate. In fact, she was looking forward to getting sentenced to death and just get it all over with.

The large group of creatures were lead into a side door that lead them all to two lone chairs on an elevated platform. The two chairs faced the front door and in those two Chairs sat the Royal Sisters themselves. Celestia and Luna heard the door open and looked in that direction. They saw Twilight followed by her friends, her friends' little sisters, the God of Chaos, the Dragon Lord, the Changeling King, the Young SIx, four teenage dragons, and a grey Griffon.

"Hello, Celestia," Twilight said.

"Greetings, Twilight," Celestia responded, giving her former pupil a hug.

The warm moment was broken up by a knock at the front door.

"Enter," Celestia called out.

The door opened to reveal ten royal guards forming two lines. Between those two lines stood two creatures shackled and, in Tirek's case, handcuffed. They didn't say a word as the stoic guatds led them to the Royal Sisters and the 23 new arrivals. Celestia and Luna glared at the frail Centaur and former Changeling Queen both as they slowly walked up to face them.

"As you both know, today is the day that you will be sentenced for your crimes. Do you have anything you want to say before we sentence you?" Celestia asked, not letting up on her glare. Neither did Luna.

Neither Tirek or Chrysalis said a word.

"Very well then, we shall proceed," Luna said. She took out a scroll and read what the decided sentence was for both creatures. "For the punishment of 1st degree murder, the decided sentence is life in tartarus for both of you. Do you have anything you'd like to say for yourselves?"

Chrysalis and Tirek once again remained silent.

"Alright then, this sentencing is concluded. Take them to prison please," Celestia ordered the guards.

"As you wish, Princess Celestia," the guards all said in unison before beckoning to the two prisoners to come with them. They all trotted slowly to the front door, matching the pace of the two convicts. It seemed like forever, but eventually the guards were out the front door. Once the guards were out the door, Twilight, the Element Bearers, Celestia, Luna, the Young Six, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Thorax, Ember, Discord, Gabby, and even Garble and his buddies embraced each other in a giant group hug. For a solid minute, all the 25 creatures did was hug each other and not say a word. The throne room was peacefully quiet as they did so. Finally they broke away. Twilight took out a picture and everyone looked at it with a sad smile. The photo was of Twilight and her friends forming a circle and in the center was Spike. It was his last birthday party with them, exactly two months before he perished.

"Justice was served for Spike today. Thank you, Luna and Celestia," Twilight said wiping away a tear.

"It was nothing," Celestia said, hugging Twilight again.

"Although I can't help but feel a little sorry for Cozy Glow," Thorax said. "Even if she was dispicable, it really is sad that she had to go through all that pain."

"Agreed," Twilight said. "It was unfortunate what she ad to go through, and I wish we would've helped her instead of sending her to Tartarus."

If everyone was being honest with themselves, they all felt sorry for what she had to go through and what led up to her becoming evil. At the same time though, they were glad that those other two fiends were off the streets for good. Today was a good day, justice had been served for all of Equestria, more importantly Spike, and there world be no more attacks threatening all of Equestria anymore.

Chapter 7: The Story Cobalt Blitz and...Cozy Glow???

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13 DAYS EARLIER

A young Unicorn Colt with moderate blue colored fur, a sky blue mane and tail, cyan eyes, and wore a turquoise baseball-style hat and a saddlebag was running to the Friendship Castle as fast as he could. His name was Cobalt Blitz and he was famous for running away from home and making the bad side of Canterlot free of its thugs, getting the nickname "Runaway Ruler". There was one secret, however, that he had never told anyone about when he was living there. That was going to be revealed to Twilight and her friends today.

***

Twilight was getting no luck trying to find any parents or siblings for Cozy Glow. Not even any aunts, uncles, or cousins were showing up in her data base, but her friends and she were about to get the shock of thier lives today. There was a knock at the front door, and the lavender Alicorn trotted over to answer it. She opened it to reveal a Unicorn Colt with moderate blue colored fur, a sky blue mane and tail, cyan eyes. He wore a turquoise baseball-style hat and a brown saddlebag. He was out of breath and could barely speak.

"May I *pant* come in *pant*, please?" He croaked out, sounding like he had a sore throat.

"Uh, sure," Twilight said. She assumed that this colt was another one of her many fans.

"Thank *pant* you," He said, sounding a bit better than before now that he had stopped running.

"Twilight, what's goin' on out there?" came a heavy southern accent.

Cobalt instantly recognized that voice as Applejack's. He was a big fan of all of them and had seen them on several occasions. He was a very smart kid and could recognize anyone by their voice.

"We have a visitor, Applejack. Oh, I almost forgot, what's your name?" Twilight asked.

"Cobalt Blitz," he responded, his voice almost fully restored.

Applejack came into the hallway, followed by Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Starlight Glimmer. When Pinkie saw Cobalt, she immediatly became really excited.

"Ohmygosh! Ohmygosh! Ohmygosh! Girls do you realize who this is?!" She squeaked.

"Uh, no..." Rainbow Dash, confused by her friend's sudden change in demeanor.

"You seriously don't know the story of Cobalt Blitz? The Runaway Ruler?!" Pinkie asked, shocked by the oblivious nature of her friends.

"Well, we've heard of him, but we've never seen him," Rainbow Dash said.

"Well, I'm him," Cobalt sighed. Like many ponies, he wanted to make his mark on the world, but this was not what he wanted to be known as. He was honestly expecting ponies to be mad at, or even shunning, him for pulling a stunt like that. He wasn't expecting for every kid in his class asking for his autograph, nor was he expecting ponies on the street congratulationg him for his efforts, let alone the heroes of Equestria that he stood before today.

"No. Way," Rainbow Dash said. "I can't believe it. Cobalt Blitz is in our castle. I have so many questions to ask. How many ponies did you defeat who dared to stand in your way? How did you manage to get every thug out of Canterlot? What was it like being a runaway?"

"Okay, we're getting off topic here. This is not why I came here," Cobalt said. He opened his saddlebag with his magic, which had mastered very recently, pulled out a photo, and showed it to the ponies.

Everyone's faces were given quite a shock when they saw it. It was a picture of Cobalt Blitz, but it was who he was next to who got everyone's attention. It was Cozy Glow. Cobalt and Cozy were looking at the camera with a big wide smile.

"I believe you know who this is," Cobalt said.

"It's...Cozy, b-but...how?" Starlight stammered, feeling absolute shock come over her.

"Listen, I've never told anyone this, but I was the only one who was the closest to Cozy Glow. She had no family and no friends since she was a foal," Cobalt said. " I've heard that you're trying to find anyone who might be considered family to Cozy. It's best you quit now, please. Trust me, You're going to find absolutely no family members on her. I've tried that myself and I too came up with nothing. If you could get Celestia and Luna to come over here so I can talk to them about Cozy's origins and why she's so crazy, that'd be great."

"Certainly, Cobalt," Twilight said. "Rainbow Dash, can you please go get Celestia and Luna? You're the fastest flyer out of all of us."

"You can count on me, Twi," Rainbow Dash said confidently. "I can get there in ten seconds flat. Okay, that's an exaggertion, but I can get there pretty fast."

With that Rainbow Dash grabbed the photo of Cobalt and Cozy (after asking politely of course), ran out the front door, and flew as fast as she could to Celestia and Luna's castle.

***

Celestia and Luna were calmly sitting on their throne chairs when the front doors suddenly flew open and Rainbow Dash skidded to a stop in front of them.

"Rainbow Dash, what's the rush?" Celestia asked.

"Listen, do either of you know of the "Runaway Ruler"?" Rainbow Dash asked back.

"Yes, what about him?" Luna said.

"He's got pictures of himself and, you're not going to believe this, Cozy Glow!" Rainbow Dash said. She out a picture of Cozy and Cobalt smiling at the camera and showed it to them, both Royal Sisters were shocked. "He's requested a visit from you both specifically. He says that he wants to help us with Cozy's origins so we can finally figure out why Cozy is so psychotic."

Celestia nor Luna didn't need to be told twice. They jumped off their thrones and followed Rainbow Dash out the door.

***

Cobalt had taken a seat in the Living room of the Castle, patiently waiting for Rainbow to return with the Princesses. The other Element Bearers and Starlight were looking at all the photos from Cobalt's saddlebag he brought along. There were so many pictures of Cozy and him smiling at the camera. There were also pictures of Cozy and Cobalt alone in the shot. No doubt the other was holding the camera. Everyone heard the front door open and in stepped Rainbow Dash, followed by the Royal Sisters. Cobalt jumped off the couch the second he heard the door open and bolted down the hallway as fast as he could. Celestia and Luna were surprised to see a blue unicorn colt barreling to them at full speed. He skidded to a stop in front of them and stayed silent for a few seconds to catch his breath.

"Hello, Princesses. My name is Cobalt Blitz. I have information on why Cozy Glow became the way she was," Cobalt said, his eyes locked onto those of both Royal Sisters'.

"Yes, we've seen the picture Rainbow Dash gave us," Celestia said. She looked up to see Twilight running to the front door also, no doubt to find where Cobalt had run off to.

"Twilight, do you mind if Luna and I talk to Cobalt alone, please?" Celestia asked. "I promise we'll tell you everything he's told us after he's finished."

"Very well," Twilight said. She gave Cobalt one last warm smile, which the colt returned, and trotted back to the living room area.

Cobalt was more than happy to go with the Princesses. At long last, the reasons behind Cozy Glow's insane nature would finally be revealed. The Princesses and colt walked to the throne room and all sat down. Cobalt noticed Spike's throne chair decorated with flowers, lit candles, and a golden plaque. He felt bad staring at it, the thought that Cozy's unstable mind and uncontrolled rage took a life never left his head.

"Alright, Cobalt," Luna said, snapping Cobalt out of his trance. The Princess of the Moon took out a clipboard with several pieces of paper attatched to it. "Tell us everything you know, don't miss any detail."

The second Luna finished her sentence, Cobalt started talking, although slowly. He told them how he had run away from home because at the time he was always getting into arguments with his parents and he claimed he was "sick of his parents setting up playdates for him with kids he shared absolutely nothing in common with" and believed his parents didn't "understand him". He knew his parents would be both in bed by 10:30 P.M. and planned to be ready to leave home by 11:15 P.M.

Using his allowance that he managed to save up over two years and change that he managed to scrounge off the street dropped by other ponies, he bought a tent, enough food and drinks to last him six months, a sleeping bag, two toothbrushes, two tubes of toothpaste, a comb, 10 dozen rolls of toilet paper, and shampoo and body wash so he could wash in the river. It wasn't easy, but he managed to stuff all his survival supplies under his bed and in the very back of his closet. He was able to obtain all these materials because he enjoyed watching shows about survival expeditions. He gained all the knowledge of the great outdoors and the dangers that came with it.

Tonight would be the night he put all of his knowledge and materials to the test. Cobalt pretended to fall asleep that night and it was an agonizing two-and-three-quarters-of-an-hour wait for his digital alarm clock to finally signal when he could hit the road. The second the clock hit 11:15 P.M. that night, Cobalt grabbed a giant duffel bag, that he had also had stashed under his bed, carefully put all his supplies inside of it, and was out the door like a rocket, although quietly because he didn't want to risk waking his parents up. The second he was out the door and was all alone in the middle of the night, he felt calm and at ease. The night was quiet, the air was cool and crisp, and the moon seemed to stare down upon him. His only sighting of any life was an owl that greeted him with a friendly "Hoo". Cobalt gave it a friendly wave back.

The runaway survivalist-wannabe had already found a perfect place in mind, Canterlot. He always wanted to go there, but his family and he never had time to go there. He lived about 15 miles outside the big city, but fortunately, he was right next to a train track that lead right into the heart of it. He trekked no more than a mile on hoof before a slow moving frieght train approched him. He jumped in a nearby bush to avoid the conductors spotting him, before noticing one of the boxcars had a broken lock as it approched him. With no time to spare, he ran as fast as he could from his bush, jumped onto the boxcar, opened the door, and climbed inside. He was able to open a crate and stuff both himself and his duffel bag inside. Within an hour, the train arrived at the final station. Cobalt stayed inside his crate until he was transported to a warehouse right next to the final station. Then he snuck out with his supplies like a camoflage soldier. By now, it was almost 6:00 in the morning and fatigue was finally catching up with Cobalt. He looked for a place to set up his tent and catch a few hours of sleep.

Then he came across a bench in a nearby park covered with newspaper. He would've paid it no attention if there wasn't a strand of sky blue mane sticking out of it. He walked over to it and, very catiously, pulled the newspapers back. Instantly, his fatigue faded. There laid a Pegasus the same age as him. She has pink fur, scarlet eyes, and it seemed she was getting sick, no doubt from the elements. Cobalt was shocked at what he saw and just couldn't leave her behind to suffer. He grabbed the unwell Filly, hoisted her up on his back, and continued on. Many were surprised to see such a small colt carry so much weight. Although most didn't know it, Cobalt was actually a very strong and tough kid who stood up for anyone who was bullied. He had a black belt in karate and he was captain of the wrestling team. He'd sometimes be seen wrestling an older, meaner kid to the ground if he found them trying to intimidate or physically harm other kids who were younger and meeker.

Cobalt managed to find a secluded place with an herb bush at the top of a hill that overlooked Canterlot. The hill had a steep drop-off and the duo had a charming view of the sunset. He set his tent up, unrolled his sleeping bag, and placed the sick Cozy Glow inside. Then he went over to the herb bush, plucked off a few branches, and began using his knowledge from his survivalist shows to whip up a cure to prevent his new friend from getting worse. That night, Cobalt slipped into the sleeping bag with Cozy and held her tight to keep her warm. Within two days, Cozy Glow was feeling well enough to talk. When Cobalt asked about where she came from, Cozy claimed that she didn't have a home or family and had been living on the streets since she was a foal. She also said that she had no clue who her parents even were. Cobalt felt absolutely horrible for her. This was a child who had no family, grew up on the street, and had no idea who her parents even were. It was a miracle to Cobalt that she was even here today.

By day five, Cozy was fully well again. She thanked Cobalt for what he did to make her feel better and was about to head back down the hill, but Cobalt stopped her. He absolutely refused to see this poor filly go all the way back down to those horrid streets where she had to fend for herself 24/7. He told her after all that she had gone through, seeing her back on the streets where she could very well get hurt again was the last thing he wanted. It wasn't just fear for Cozy's safety that Cobalt had on his mind, he also felt a personal connection with her as well. Cozy felt so touched. No one had ever cared this much about her before.

Then one day while the two new friends were on a walk, they both noticed a masked pony walking into a convenience store. Both kids immediatly realized that from the way that pony acted, he was most likely going to rob the store. Cobalt and Cozy immediately followed the pony into the store and sure enough their suspiscions were confirmed and the pony aimed a gun at the clerk and demanded all the cash in the register. Cobalt nor Cozy could stand by and watch as the clerk nervously dropped the bits into the robber's sack. The duo ran inside and Cobalt taunted the robber into chasing him while Cozy sneakily flew overhead and called the police. By the time the Police arrived, Cobalt had pinned the robber to the ground and he actually begged the cops to take him away claiming that Cobalt was "crazy". The Police didn't need to be told twice, they handcuffed him and took him to to the Police Station. The media caught wind of Cozy and Cobalt's heroic actions and they were swarmed with attention. Cozy and Cobalt couldn't care less about the media attention, they were just happy with their heroic deed. They would go on to prevent three crimes for back-to-back-to-back days. Two were robberies, the third was a murder attempt. Other bad guys began to catch on to the heroic duo's reputation. Most didn't have the guts to hurt them. They were kids after all. Seven of them, however, believed that they could easily beat in a fight Cozy and Cobalt if they all fought the duo together. The heptad were in for an unpleasant surprise when they met them, fortunately. Cozy had been taught fighting moves from Cobalt and Cobalt himself gave a personal demonstration of his favorite wrestling takedown moves on their would-be assailants. Within 15 minutes, Cobalt and Cozy had take down every one of their foes. The cops arrived just as Cozy knocked out the last foe standing. They were very surprised because they had been called by someone fearing for Cozy and Cobalt's safety. Yet, here they were taking down their assailants single-handedly. All seven, like the first robber, cried and begged the cops to take them to jail. Cozy and Cobalt's reputation once again became stronger and now all criminals fully knew that it was best not to cross them ever.

For three months, the Pegasus and Unicorn were happy as can be with each other, fighting off the bad guys and gals and living like a King and Queen in the heart of Canterlot. That was until one fateful night when they were out stargazing at the top of the hill. The two had already set up their tent and had planned to go to bed in an hour. That's when they saw Cobalt's parents leading a group of police officers to them. Cobalt was later informed that an "anonymous source" tipped off the cops to their cops to their location. Cozy had already figured it out from the moment she saw the cops. They would've taken Cobalt back without a fight had an incensed Cozy Glow not interfered. During the struggle, Cozy tried to tackle an Officer, he shook her off, and she slid off the edge of the hill, bumping her head hard on the way down. There was a rock with a flat surface about halfway down and Cozy, by some miracle, landed on that rock. She was unconscious, but somehow still alive.

The police radioed to get a helicopter to get Cozy out of there, but they used the word "recovered". When Cobalt heard that, he finally broke down and cried. His life long friend was dead...or so they thought. When the Police arrived a few hours later to get Cozy off the cliffside, they couldn't find her anywhere, meaning she was still alive. Cobalt was overjoyed to find out his friend wasn't dead, but was worried that she was lost and could be anywhere in Equestria. Throughout the next couple of months, ponies reported sightings of Cozy all throughout Equestria, but were unable to get a clear picture to confirm the cops' suspiscions. No one dared confronting and chasing her as that might've short circuited Cozy's temper.

Somewhere along the line, Cozy met Tirek and he convinced her to help him conquer Equestria. It was very likely that the hit to the head made Cozy Glow unable to control her rage, unpredictable, and very, very unstable. Tirek must've figured that out and exploited that to make her his minion.

As for Cobalt, after reuniting with his parents, they all underwent counseling together, and he has since rebuilt the bridge with them both.

Celestia and Luna were, to put it very lightly, shocked by what Cobalt Blitz had told them. Here was a boy who was able to melt Cozy's walls and become close to her and in the span of two minutes, it all fell apart.

"Look I know Cozy's probably going away for life because of this, but I just wanted to get that off my chest before she gets sentenced," Cobalt said.

"Well, thank you for sharing your story, Cobalt. I know that was hard for you to talk about," Celestia responded, placing a hoof on his shoulder.

"No, I wanted to tell you sooner," Cobalt replied. "I was planning to pay you a visit when I heard Cozy was imprisoned in Tartarus, but I misplaced my photos and I feared you wouldn't believe me without them. By the time I did find them, I got word Cozy had mysteriously vanised from Tartarus. I never heard her name again until I saw what happened during that battle on the news and I knew this was my last chance."

Just then, two royal guards came into the room, followed by the Element Bearers and Starlight.

They both took a bow, "Your highness."

"Greetings," Princess Celestia repiled. "What can I do for the two of you?"

"It's Cozy Glow," one guard said. "It seems she's going back and forth between emotions. She's crying one minute and the next she's laughing manically."

"She's also saying something about it "teaching you a lesson about taking away her best friend in the whole world"," the other guard added.

Cobalt felt his gut drop. It was at this point he knew that Cozy had finally passed the point of no return. He just looked at the guard in shock before it turned into one of sadness. Celestia and Luna felt sorry for the young colt. Twiight and her friends also took notice of Cobalt's demeanor and they too felt sorry for the little guy.

"Alright, thank you for the information," Luna said. "We will head to the Canterlot dungeons shortly."

"Sure thing, your highness," the guards replied and took another bow.

Celestia and Luna had a feeling that this was coming. Even when Cozy seemed like a sweet and innocent filly, some ponies couldn't help but get a small vibe that something was off inside her mind.

Celestia and Luna thanked the guards for the new information and planed a visit for the dungeons tomorrow. They offered to take Cobalt along and he accepted the invitation in a heartbeat. He'd do anything to see his best friend one last time and have at least have some kind of closure.

Little did they know they were in for another unpleasant revelation when they next saw Tirek, Chrysalis, and the now finally snapped Cozy Glow.

Chapter 8: Cozy's mental breakdown / A Surprise for Cozy

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MEANWHILE IN THE CANTERLOT DUNGEONS

When Twilight had left the Dungeons in Canterlot, Cozy Glow broke down into a fit of sobs, tearfully saying how she was sorry for causing Spike to die. Two minutes later, it was a different story. Cozy's sobs slowly transitioned into manical laughter, babbling on about how Spike's death would "teach Celestia and Luna a lesson for taking her best friend away from her" and that they now "knew how it felt to lose someone close to them". She kept going back and fourth between crying and laughing manically. It was needless to say that at this point, the last of the severly mentally ill Pegasus' sanity seemed to have finally given out. Chrysalis seemed to enjoy Cozy's mood swings, even chuckling when she was about to shift moods. Tirek, on the other hand, couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable by Cozy finally snapping right in front of him.

THE NEXT DAY

Right on schedule, Celestia, Luna, Cobalt, Starlight, and the Element Bearers were at the dungeons and were being lead to Cozy, Tirek, and Chrysalis' cell. As they got closer, the ten ponies heard sobbing coming from their cell. By the time they got to the front of the cell and were facing the three villains, the sobbing was now slowly transitioning into manical laughter. Chrysalis saw the ten new arrivals, and could not be happier to see them. Even if she loathed them unconditionally. Tirek saw them too, but didn't say a word.

"Oh, thank god you're here," Chrysalis growled. "Shut that brat up, she's been crying and laughing all night. I haven't been able to get a wink of sleep."

24 hours ago, Chrysalis would've found Cozy's insanity funny, but that was before she was kept up all night by Cozy's loud crying and laughing.

The ten heroes looked into a corner and there they saw Cozy Glow curled into a ball facing away from them. She was surrounded by a puddle of tears and her mane and tail were a tangled, soaked mess. Cobalt felt tears brimming in his eyes at the sight of his first friend finally going off the deep end. At Celestia's command, the guards unlocked the prison cell and they all stepped inside.

Cobalt bolted to Cozy and gently tapped on her shoulder. She flipped around and everyone felt a bit uneasy looking at her face. Her face had a twisted smile on her face, her eyes were red-rimmed and puffy, her pupils were dilated, her cheeks were soaked with tears, and she looked really, really crazy. When she saw Cobalt, however, her crazed expression turned into a shocked one. It seemed the sight of her best friend was slowly bringing her back to reality.

"C-Cobalt?" she spoke softly. "I-Is-Is it really you?"

"Yes, Cozy," Cobalt said, wrapping his friend in a hug. "Shh, it's okay. I'm here now."

Cozy suddenly broke free of Cobalt's grasp and stood protectively in front of him, glaring hatefully and growling at Celestia, Luna, and the Element Bearers.

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!!!" she screamed.

"Whoa, Cozy, chill. What's the matter?" Cobalt asked

"OH, I'LL TELL YOU WHAT'S THE MATTER!!!" Cozy yelled. "CELESTIA AND LUNA IMPRISONED TIREK IN TARTARUS BECAUSE HE WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO KNEW CELESTIA AND LUNA TIPPED OFF THE COPS TO WHERE WE WERE IN CANTERLOT!!!"

"Cozy, we didn't tip off the cops to your location," Luna said calmly.

"YEAH, RIGHT!!!" Cozy snapped back, her voice never lowering. "JUST HOW STUPID DO YOU THINK I AM?!! YOU WERE GONNA KILL ME IF YOU FOUND OUT WHY I WAS THERE IN THE FIRST PLACE!! TIREK WARNED ME ABOUT THAT!!! SO I HAD TO MAKE UP A LIE TO PREVENT YOU FROM FINDING OUT MY TRUE MOTIVE!!!"

Celestia turned to Tirek wearing a stern expression, "Tirek, care to explain what Cozy Glow is talking about?"

Tirek sighed. He knew he had nothing to lose and lying wouldn't do him any good. He explained that Cozy came down to Tartarus, assuming whoever had given up the whereabouts of Cobalt and her would be hiding there, assuming she'd never look for them down there. Cozy figured that whoever did tip off the cops would probably figure Tartarus would be the last place the crazed Pegasus would ever look. Tirek overheard her angry, insane rants about what she'd do to the culprit and beckoned her over to his cage. He told her he knew Cobalt and told her the Princesses were the ones who tipped off the cops to their locations. He wanted to tell Cozy Glow immediately, but the Princesses intercepted him and sent him down here to prevent him from ever telling her. Any normal pony would've blown Tirek off, but Cozy's fractured mind coupled with her lust for revenge and her unrestrained rage made her believe him. Tirek also said that Twilight and her friends were also involved in tipping off the police to Cobalt and her hideout. The Centaur advised her to try to start out as their friend because he claimed that was what they were "hellbent on teaching everyone". Before she went, however, Tirek said if she ever got caught, he wanted her to say that friendship was power to cover up the real reason about why she was there. The old Centaur "feared" that she'd be killed by Celestia and Luna if they found out her true intentions.

After Cozy left Tartarus, she found out that they had their own school of Friendship and she instantly realized how she could infiltrate their ranks. Her attempts were foiled and she was sent to Tartarus. Then she was suddenly teleported out of her cage and into an old lair in the middle of the Everfree Forest. She wasn't teleported alone, however. In the lair with her was King Sombra, Tirek, and Chrysalis. The one who had teleported them out of there was an ancient cornflower blue ram named Grogar, who assigned them all tasks that would help them out for the final assault on Equestria. King Sombra, however, believed he could take on Equestria's heroes alone and was ultimately defeated. The other three villains soon met the same fate, but not before a young life was unfairly cut short in the process.

Everyone was, to put it very lightly, irate at Tirek's revelation. Cobalt probably felt the most rage out of them all. He jumped up on Tirek's bunk, grabbed the Centaur's goatee in his magic and yanked him down so they were at eye level.

"How dare you?" he growled. "How dare you exploit a pony's mental illness, a kid for that matter, for your own SICK, TWISTED, NEFARIOUS SCHEMES OF VENGEANCE?!!"

Tirek just gulped nervously as Twilight came up to speak next.

"You are a lot lower than I thought," she said in a low voice. It didn't sound angry, but rather dissapointed, as if she expected Tirek to be better than that despite being a villain.

With nothing left to say the Celestia ordered the guards to send a team of paramedics to take Cozy Glow to the hospital for a mental evaluation. The Royal Sisters already had a feeling the Cozy might be too incompetent to stand trial. When they went to pick her and put her on the bed, she resisted them. Eventually, they worked out a deal with her: She'd go with them, but only if Cobalt stayed with her the whole time. Cobalt was also on board with the plan. With that said, they loaded Cozy into the ambulance and they rode off to the hospital. On his way out of the prison cell, Cobalt shot one last, piercing glare at Tirek. The old Centaur felt a chill run down his spine when Cobalt gave him a final dirty look. He had never stopped to think about the consequences of his actions. All he cared about was getting revenge on Princess Celestia and Luna for defeating him.

FOUR DAYS LATER

Cozy's test results came back quicker than expected and the Royal Sisters' suspicions about Cozy being too incompetent to stand trial were confirmed. Cozy's tumble off the top of the hill had given her a severe case of bipolar disorder, PTSD, schizophrenia, and it seemed she had brain damage. She'd have to take meds and undergo psychotherapy for the rest of her life. Twilight and her friends couldn't help but feel sorry for Cozy. The only reason she was so evil all this time was because she was a pony who became mentally-ill because of a concussion and was manipulated by Tirek for his own wicked deeds to bring Equestria to its knees. The idea alone that the wicked Centaur exploited the fractured mind of a child to get what he wanted made Twilight both enraged and sick to her stomach at the same time. Yet, she also felt partial blame for what happened as well. She remembered how her friends and she pressed Tirek in Tartarus and he revealed that Cozy Glow was his ally. If they weren't so eager to get out of Tartarus, the Element Bearers would've likely questioned him further about how exactly Tirek met Cozy and possibly get him to crack sooner. If they had gone with that option, not only would Cozy already be fully reformed, but Spike would, without a doubt, still be alive too.

As for Cozy's sentence, all charges against her were dropped because of her insanity. When she started taking meds for her Bipolar Disorder and PTSD, her memory was, at first, very hazy and she really couldn't remember much. When she was told in detail all the bad things she had done, however, the doctors experienced a side of Cozy Glow no one had ever seen before, a woebegone, sad, and remorseful Cozy Glow. Everyone half-expected her to switch to manical laughing after one to two minutes, but she never did. She sobbed for a full six hours, mumbling for forgiveness from Celestia and Luna. Luna's dream relm saw Cozy having nightmares of either Celestia and Luna glaring before her before they used their magic to petrify her into stone or she'd be alone in a room with the only light being an invisible spotlight shining on her, before another spotlight would also come on right in front of her and she would see a purple dragon covered with shards of Grogar's shattered bell, soaked in blood, his abdomen was burned to a crisp and smoking, and his face was a blank expression. He'd look right her and whisper the words, "You did this," or, "You killed me. Why did you kill me?", over and over again.

Cobalt didn't know what to do. He could never leave Cozy's room, because everytime he did, she'd break down and just bawl, even to just use the bathroom. He tried his best to comfort his distraught friend, but no avail. During their time together in Canterlot as runaways, Cozy would sometimes have nightmares, but Cobalt was always there to support her and lull her back to sleep. The blue colt was able to do that, but he would always be woken up several times throughout the night by Cozy's screams. It'd take almost an hour to assure her it was just a dream. When they were runaways, Cozy would usually be back to sleep in less than ten minutes. After another four days, Celestia and Luna decided enough was enough. They weren't alone either, even Twilight and her friends were onboard with the plan. If the truth be told, they also felt at fault for what Cozy did. Sending her down to Tartarus seemed to only make her become even worse. The fact that the one who had instigated it was with her the whole time didn't help much either. There was also something else that motivated them to reform her as well, but they'd reveal that to her when they got to her hospital room.

LATER THAT DAY

Cobalt was glad that Cozy was finally getting some sleep. He had seen Cozy wake up eight times last night from nightmares. It seemed they were getting worse and worse and Cobalt was running out of plans of comforting her. Now, however, she had been sleeping for almost four hours without one nightmare. A nurse came into their room and stopped in front of Cobalt.

"You have visitors, dear," she said.

"Send them up, please," Cobalt responded.

The nurse left the room and a few minutes later, Celestia, Luna, and the Element Bearers trotted into the room just as Cozy Glow let out another scream and woke up from another horrifying nightmare. They covered their ears until Cozy was fully conscious and stopped screaming. Cozy saw the three Princesses and knew instantly that her fate was sealed...or so she thought.

"Hello Princess Celestia, Luna, Twilight," Cozy said in a sad, defeated tone. "I know why you're here. I screwed up and I can't fix what I did. So just take me to the dungeons and get it over with."

Celestia and Luna didn't respond. Instead they muttered a spell and both their horns began to glow. Cozy had a feeling that this was the end of the line for her as she saw a white sphere begin to form over the heads of both Princesses. That was until Twilight turned off the lights and the filly Pegasus saw the silhouette of a small figure beginning to appear on the large, white, sphere of magic. After a few seconds, Cozy recognized who it was. The sight made her feel shocked at who it was. There, on the portal in front of her, was a purple dragon who didn't have a scratch on him. His dragon wings were replaced with a pair of snow white, feathered wings and a golden yellow halo hovered above his head, but other than that he looked the same.

"Spike?!" she exclaimed. "How?!! I saw you dead! How-How are you here now?!"

"We've mastered a spell that can make a portal that directs you to the heavens above, Spike can hear and see you, but he cannot reach out and touch you. You cannot do the same to him either, I'm afraid," Celestia explained.

Cozy felt a whole new wave of guilt was over hear as she looked at the little dragon whose life she took part in ending. She teared up before crying as hard as Twilight and her friends did when they first found him terminally wounded.

"S-Sp-Spike," Cozy choked out. "I-I'm s-so sorry. Y-You didn't deserve this."

Spike felt sorry for her. When the Royal Sisters mastered the spell, they filled Spike in on what had happened over the last couple of weeks. When he heard Cozy's story and how she was manipulated, Spike convinced the Royal Sisters to drop all charges against Cozy and wanted to talk to her personally. He also heard about Cobalt's story and that seemed to only make him more determined to talk to Cozy.

"Shhh," Spike soothed. "I know, Cozy. I know why you're the way you are. I forgive you."

Cozy's sadness was replaced with surprise.

"What? B-But why???" she stammered.

"Because Cozy, you and I have a lot more in common that you think," Spike explained. "We both have no real parents, we were both outcasts from society, and we were both taken advantage of. Yes, I too was manipulated by someone as well. He was a Dragon too and his name was Sludge. Smolder and I were on a walk around Ponyville when he suddenly crash landed in front of us. He said he was okay, but I knew better than that. With Smolder's help we took him back to the castle and got him the medical care he needed there. Before he headed back to the Dragon Lands, however, he dropped a giant bombshell that no one expected: He came to Ponyville looking for me. He claimed that he was my father and had gone through a lot of trouble to find me, but as it turned out it was all a big trick just so he could live in the castle and be waited on hand and foot. I was devastated at first, but I realized that I had my true family, Twilight, was with me all this time. How Sludge took manipulated the fact I was an orphan was bad, but how Tirek manipuated the fact that you lost a friend and that you were mentally ill is 100 times worse. I'm sorry we didn't, I didn't, think twice about sending you to Tartarus. It seemed sending you down there only seemed to push you further toward the edge. Which is why when Celestia first mastered the spell and told me about what happened I asked them not to charge you."

Cozy gawked at Spike in dumbfounded amazement. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. The kid who she had killed was forgiving her AND convinced the Princesses not to charge her with any crime. She didn't know what to say.

"I-I'm-I'm speechless. Thank you, Spike," Cozy sputtered. She teared up again, but this time it was out of happiness. "How do I ever repay you?"

"Just promise me you'll be better from now on. I know things were tough for you back then, but I promise you, it will get better," Spike said, his emerald eyes meeting Cozy's scarlet eyes.

Cozy could clearly see Spike soul in those two pools of green that were full of hope. Spike saw the exact same thing in Cozy's eyes, it looked like her soul was broken but smiling right back at him. When the purple dragon saw that, it was at that point he knew that this little Pegasus did indeed have good in her.

Twilight felt tears of pure joy welling up in her eyes. Spike was a kinder soul than anyone could've ever imagined. Everyone else, even Luna and Celestia, teared up with joy as well. Twilight trotted to face her number one assistant on the heaven portal.

"Spike," Twilight said. "You don't know how proud I am of you."

"Aw, come on, Twilight," Spike said. "I'm just doing what everyone should do."

"The key word is "should", sweetie pie," Rarity spoke up. "There are many people who would reject Cozy in a heartbeat because unlike us, they'd only notice her flaws but they'd never notice her pain."

"Well that ends today," Spike said. "It's time we help Cozy back onto her hooves and place her back in society."

The Ponies were more than happy to fill Spike's wishes.

"I must be off now," Spike said. "I promise, though, that I will visit all of you every chance I get."

He placed his claw on the portal screen, and everyone else took the hint and planted their hooves on the portal as well. Even Cozy and Cobalt joined in. Spike waved goodbye to his friends and they waved goodbye back. Then the portal slowly evaporated and the lights came back on. Cozy and Cobalt both had liquid pride welling up in their eyes. They felt so touched by Spike's kind words and gesture. She stuck out her arms for a hug toward Twilight and she was quickly met with one for the lavender Alicorn Princess. Cobalt, the other Element Bearers, Celestia, and Luna quickly followed along and they all hugged each other for a solid minute. They broke away and gave one last, kind smile to Cozy before leaving the hospital room, all except Cobalt. Seeing Spike act so kind to a former villain only increased the bold, blue Unicorn's detemintion to help Cozy out of her slump ten-fold.

As for Cozy, it was from this day forward that the pink Pegasus decided to be a better pony. For her own good. For Equestria. Most importantly, for Spike.

"I'll be better," she said to herself. "For Spike. Not the hero I deserved, but the hero I needed...to show me the light. Rest easy, Prince Spike. I pray the heavens pamper you to no end."

Chapter 9: Forgiving Cozy Glow

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TWO DAYS LATER

Cozy eventually was released from the hospital after a few more tests. She was eager to meet up with Twilight outside the hospital to help start a new, better life. The moment a nurse came in to escort her out, Cozy was out of bed like a rocket, with Cobalt Blitz hot on her tail. She was given a drug prescription for her meds at the front desk and stepped outside followed by her best friend. There, she was greeted by the Lavender Alicorn herself.

"Hello, Cozy," Twilight said sweetly.

"Hey, Twilight," Cozy replied shyly. She was a little scared at being outside again. Although it felt good to be out of that stuffy hospital room, she felt a like an outcast in Equestria. She was worried what everyone would think of her being out again instead of rotting in jail.

Twilight could sense Cozy's uneasiness, scooped her up, and placed her on her back. Cozy buried herself into the fur on Twilight's back and used some of her mane to cover herself. She didn't do a good job, though and she could feel other ponies looking at her. However, they weren't glaring at her. Instead, they were giving her looks of sympathy and sadness. News of how Cozy had her head injury and how Tirek had manipulated her spread like wildfire and everyone now knew why this little Pegasus was the way she was. The sad looks were worse than glares in Cozy's opinion, it just reminded her of how she'd never be a normal pony like everyone else. Cobalt reached up and rubbed her back comfortingly. He could tell she was trying to hide from everyone and he hated seeing her like this. Cozy felt a little comfort knowing that her friend was beside her no matter what.

ONE HOUR LATER

After what seemed like forever, Cozy, Twilight, and Cobalt finally arrived at the castle. Cobalt decided to head into the living room to hang out with everyone else, while Cozy was escorted upstairs by Starlight Glimmer. The second she was inside, Cozy now felt safe again. No one was looking at her and no one was judging her. She felt calm and at ease as she was slowly led to her new room by Starlight Glimmer. At Spike's request, Cozy would be given a room in the castle because she had nowhere to go after she'd leave the hospital. Cozy couldn't be happier. She now had a place to call home and she had ponies she could call not just friends, but family as well.

As she left the staircase behind and walked down the long hallway, she spotted a door that was ajar. Her curiousity overtook her and she creaked open the door and stepped into the room. Instantly, she wished that she didn't, but she couldn't help to look around. The room behind the door turned out to be Spike's room. It had a new shelf on the wall that was the farthest from the door. On that shelf were several Power Ponies comics that seemed to be on display and there was a banner above that read, "SPIKE'S FAVORITE COMICS". On the bed were several boquets of flowers. there was a small crown made of tinfoil resting on a stand inside a glass display case and it had a wooden base with a golden plaque that had cursive letters carved into it. The plaque read, "SPIKE: FOREVER THE WINNER OF THE SIBLING SUPREME". There was another wooden stand that held a large book on top of it. It had a medium thickness and the cover read, "THE ONE WHO TAUGHT US EVERYTHING: THE LIFE OF SPIKE THE DRAGON". Cozy began to flip through the pages. She teared up as she made her way to the middle of the book, reading how he saved the Crystal Empire twice, how he befriended a changeling named Thorax, and how he competed in the Gauntlet of Fire just to ensure the safety of his friends, family, and home. Then she gulped as she neared the end, knowing full well what would be waiting for her. She decided to suck it up and read the end of the book. Sure enough, the end of the book went into detail about how the final battle went down as well as Spike's fatal injuries. Then something in the middle of one page caught her attention. There were two lines with bold text in quotation marks that were inbetween two paragraphs. Cozy began to read them over.

"As long as I know that Equestria is safe, more importantly, as long I know that you’re all safe, there's nothing more I'd want to know in my last moments than that." --- Spike telling his friends how he viewed the results of the battle as he lies terminally injured on the ground, slowly growing weaker.

“I...love...you.” --- Spike's final words to his long-term crush, Rarity, before fully succumbing to his wounds at the scene of the battle.

Cozy felt both shocked and sad at the same time. Sad because she was just reminded of what she did when she was trying her very hardest to try to forget and shocked because she had never seen a creature express such bravery and selflessness before, aside from Cobalt of course.

"Like what we did with this place, huh?" said a voice.

Cozy turned to face the source of the voice and it had come from none other than Starlight Glimmer. She wore a sad smile and she seemed a bit happy that Cozy was exploring the new additions to what was her best friend's room. Cozy, however, believed she stuck her nose where it didn't belong.

"Oh, uh, sorry. I was just heading out," she said in a tone as meek and Fluttershy.

"No, no, it's cool," Starlight replied. "You were bound to come in here eventually and I'm happy to see you interested in Spike. He was a kid who always made sure everyone was happy and always helped out those who were less fortunate than he was. Did you know that he had five girls who all were in love with him?"

"You know, at this point, I'm not surprised," Cozy said. "Who are they?"

"Smolder, Gabby, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders," Starlight said. "You know, when I think about it more, I think I have a light crush on him too. Rarity was his crush ever since he moved to Ponyville and he'd do anything to impress her," Starlight sighed. "I just wish she would've seen his feelings sooner. She still feels a bit guilty about it though. Twilight read that dragons are polygamous so no one would've had their heart broken."

Cozy felt bad for her. More importantly she felt bad for everyone who not just had a crush on Spike, but who knew Spike in general. She began to tear up again. Feeling guilty for what she did began to feel normal for her. Starlight saw this and wrapped the filly in a comforting hug. After a full minute of hugging, they broke away and decided to go around and look at all the new things in the bedroom turned memorial room. Cozy was fascinated with Spike's Power Pony comics and she was very interested on how he had become Sibling Supreme. Eventually, after about 45 minutes of Starlight reminiscing good memories of Spike to Cozy, the duo left the room and headed into another room one door down from Spike's memorial room.

She was told where everything was by the Pink Unicorn and was told that she would be going back to the school of friendship in one week. Before Starlight left, however, Cozy had one last question for her.

"Hey, Starlight," she said. "I hope you don't mind me asking, but what's going to happen to Tirek and Chrysalis?"

Starlight winced slightly at the mention of Chrysalis' and Tirek's names.

"Well, they'll be sentenced in two days, Cozy. It's likely they'll both get life in Tartarus," Starlight replied simply. She didn't want to go too deep into conversation about the two other villains who had done deeds that were unforgivable.

Cozy could see that Starlight looked a little uneasy by her question so she decided to wrap the subject up quickly.

"Oh, okay. Thanks for the information," she said.

"Anytime, Cozy," Starlight replied.

"Enjoy the rest of the day, Starlight," Cozy said with a warm smile.

"You too, Cozy," Starlight replied and left the room, leaving Cozy alone with her many thoughts.

As she lay in bed later that night, Cozy thought about everything that had happened in the last month. She had gone from a villain to a good girl and she was getting top-of-the-line help with rebuilding her life and she felt happy knowing that she had ponies who'd be with her every step of the way. Although, deep inside, there was a feeling of fear inside her of what everyone, particularly the Young Six, would think of her, but, for now, she was exhausted. She needed to get to sleep and she did just that. Contrary to the nights in the hospital bed, she didn't have a single nightmare that night and, for the first time in a full week, slept like a log.

ONE WEEK LATER

*BEEP!* *BEEP!* *BEEP!*

At 8:00 A.M., Cozy's alarm clock blared throughout the castle. Cozy immediately jumped out of bed and shut it off. Today was the day she'd be heading back to the School of Friendship. She was somewhat excited, but, at the same time, was scared of what other students would think of her. She had pushed those feelings aside all week and now it was time to face them. She combed her mane and tail, washed her face, brushed her teeth, and washed down a pill for her PTSD, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder with water before barreling down the stairs to meet up with Starlight at the front door. When she got down there, however, she was surprised to find not just Starlight waiting for her down there, but Cobalt as well.

"Surprise!" Cobalt shouted. "Starlight and I agreed that it wouldn't be fair for you to go back to school alone. So, we contacted my parents and they agreed to let me go to the School of Friendship with you to ensure you're alright."

"Aww, thanks, you two. This really means a lot to me," Cozy said softly. She felt truly touched by the kindness of every one of her new friends.

"Hey, it was nothing," Cobalt replied. "I'm just looking out for my best friend."

With that said, the three ponies began the moderate walk to school.

TIME SKIP

Eventually, Cozy, Cobalt, and Starlight arrived at the School of Friendship. Cobalt was excited, he was looking forward to meeting other creatures who possibly shared the same hobbies he did. Cozy, on the other hand, was nervous about seeing the same faces who she had try to defeat no more than a month ago. Starlight could sense Cozy's nervousness and assured her everything would be alright. With a gulp, Cozy led the way as she slowly opened the front door and stepped inside. Waiting for them in the hallway were the Young Six. Cozy immediately became fearful upon seeing them. The all smiled warmly at her, but Cozy still ducked behind Starlight's front legs and tried to hide. After a little coaxing from Cobalt, Starlight as well as the Young Six, however, she eventaully came out and they all walked down the hall together to their first class.

If this were two weeks ago, the Young Six would be furious at seeing Cozy return, but upon learning her backstory and how she was manipulated, all their anger and hatred went towatd Tirek and they saw Cozy in a new light. Then they got word of the heaven portal and how Spike persuaded Celestia to try and reform the Pegasus rather than punishing her. The six creatures felt absolutely touched by the angel dragon's forgiveness and kind words.

There was one member of the Young Six who felt the most touched by Spike's forgiveness and kind words, Smolder. Just when she thought she couldn't fall in love with him more than she already had, he proved her wrong by forgiving the one who had taken part in ending his life. When she was notified of the spell that was mastered that could show them to Spike in the heavens, Smolder felt reborn again. Even if she couldn't hold him, just seeing him and hearing his beautiful voice again was more than enough for the lovesick, tomboyish, teen dragon.

There was another member of the Young Six who felt for Cozy because he could also relate to the pink Pegasus' situation. It was none other than Gallus. Like Cozy, he too had no family, but he had never been manipulated like Spike into believing he had a long lost parent, nor did he have a mental illness caused by a head injury. He felt beyond sorry for her when he heard about her backstory. He also couldn't help but feel like he had a personal connection with Cozy now.

Eventually, they arrived at Cozy's first class of the day. She was purposely given a seat right next to Cobalt so she felt more at ease. Even though she was right by the one who she knew and cared for most, she couldn't help but feel like everyone was staring at her. She wanted nothing more than to shrink down and dissapear into any cracks or holes in the floor or walls. She did, however, pay close attention to what all the Professers said in each of her classes and spoke only when spoken to by a professor, although her tone seemed quieter than Fluttershy's and she'd sometimes be asked to repeat herself. At lunch, she politely asked Rarity if she could eat lunch in her room instead of the cafeteria as the fashonista's class would be the one she had right before lunch. At recess, she left Rarity's classroom, but instead of going outside, she went to the library and curled up on a couch. She didn't cry, but anyone passing by could tell something was bothering her. When they asked her what was the matter, Cozy politely told them that she was fine. Reluctantly, they left Cozy alone. The real reason Cozy was being so distant was because it felt so wrong to her to be back with the ones that she betrayed no more than a year ago. She felt deep down, that everyone hated her and it was best that she just left everyone alone.

"I can't face all of them again," Cozy sighed to herself. "Not after what I've done. They probably all hate me for betraying them."

Unbeknownst to the little, pink Pegasus, however, there was a griffon, dragon, yak, pony, changeling, and hippogriff listening in on what she had just said and decided to confront her about it. They would've gone out to recess as well, but they noticed Cozy's demeanor and decided to follow her and witnessed her sad and somewhat sulky demeanor. They knew exactly how she felt and finally decided to pull her out of it once and for all.

"Hey, Cozy," Smolder called, getting Cozy's attention.

Cozy turned to face them.

"Oh, uh, hi, everyone. Uh, what's going on?" Cozy asked.

"Nothing much," Gallus said. "Although we couldn't help but notice how you've been moping around all day."

Cozy gulped, she knew she was caught.

"It's that obvious, huh?" she sighed.

"Well, yeah," Ocellus said.

"But why do you still feel this way? We've all forgiven you and you know it too," Sandbar said.

"I just don't understand it. Less than a month ago I was so bent on getting rid of all of you and now you want to become my friends. Yes, I get my fractured mind was the main reason I was driven to my villainous nature, but I can't help but feel partially responsible for what happened because I chose to stay with the one who manipulated me and I didn't ever stop to think if what he was telling me was a lie or not," Cozy explained.

Smolder was next to speak up. She looked very serious.

"Listen, Cozy. I want to straighten something out. You were not responsible for your actions in any way. Tirek was the one who pulled the strings, and he could've, at any point, said, 'you know what, Cozy? I lied to you what I told you was actually an attempt to bring Equestria to its knees and I'm sorry'. Did he do that? No! Yes, I know I was angry at you. Hell, we all were. That was until Twilight told us how insane you looked when they visited you in your cell and when Tirek came clean to them about how he met and manipulated you. What ultimately motivated not just me, but all of us, to help you out was when Celestia and Luna surprised us when they had revealed they had mastered a special spell, which was always thought to be a myth until less than two weeks ago, that made a portal which showed us to the heavens," Smolder explained.

"Wait a minute," Cozy said. "I saw that same portal. Spike was an angel and he told me about how he had forgiven me and told me to be better."

"Precisely," Smolder continued. "I was beyond overjoyed when I saw Spike again. When we did see him, he told us how you acted towards him in the hospital room and he asked us to forgive you because he, and I quote, 'saw your soul in those scarlet eyes and it seemed broken'. He said he wanted nothing more than to lead you down the right path so you could have a great and fun-filled life. I remember wiping the tears that were brimming my eyes and I felt my heart pumping faster. I already was in love with Spike because of his kindness, but I felt like I was falling for him all over again. Only this time, my feelings for him felt deeper than last time. Another thing I want to add is that no one here hates you. After the other students heard about what Spike ad said about you, the only thing I heard of in the hallways...was you. Everyone was saying they were eager to have you back so they could fill Spike's wishes of reforming you. In his last moments, Spike also begged the Elements to forgive Discord, because he already knew Discord's intentions were good at heart. In fact, the only reason Discord’s plan went wrong was because the Legion betrayed him because of a nook they stole containing detailed notes on how to use the bell. If he had about 30-45 more seconds of life left in him, I bet there'd be a 95 percent chance he'd ask us to consider reformation for you too. In fact, you want to know a little something? Discord told all of us directly while you were in the hospital that if his plan had gone accordingly, he was going to do everything he could to try and convince Twilight and the others to reform all three of you after the battle. What he didn’t realize, however, was that two of those three creatures he was trying to reform were already a lost cause. He literally saw your soul in his eyes, like Spike did, and knew that you had good in you. What he also didn't realize, however, was about how Tirek met you and manipulated you. If he had known that, he wouldn't have pulled him out of Tartarus as well."

Discord appeared out of nowhere in a puff of smoke, taking everyone by surprise, even Smolder.

"I can vouch for that," the Draconequus said. "Little Cozy, I despised seeing you get sent to Tartarus at such a young age and I wanted to do something about it. Unfortunately, this plan was the first thing that came to mind, and I didn't bother considering other options. I was also eager to finally try and get Equestria’s most feared foes to become our allies, not seeing the other two for what they truly were. An unremorseful murderer and a child-manipulating coward. I'm sorry for what you had to go through at the hands of that monster, as well as my own hands. If I had known what he had done to you, I wouldn't have picked him up and I would've verbally told the Princesses to consider reformation for you. I also understand if you do not want to forgive me for what I've put you through."

When Discord had finished, Cozy was beyond shocked. She hadn't expected anyone to be so eager to have her back especially after all that she had done.

"I-I don't know what to say," Cozy stuttered. "I guess I really do have opportunity to make new friends here. I just needed a push in the right direction. Thank you, Smolder."

She then turned to Discord.

"Discord," she started. "I must say that I need to thank you. While you did, to put it frankly, put me through hell, if you didn't do what you did, I would've become probably too insane to re-enter society."

Discord smiled warmly. He felt touched by Cozy's words. Smolder also smiled, seeing Cozy starting to learn new things already.

"Exactly. Now you're getting it, kid."

Then the bell rung, signaling recess was over and it was time for their next class. Cozy turned to face the Young Six.

"Want to go up together?" she asked.

"You bet," Gallus replied.

"Well, you all do that," Discord said. "I have other things to attend to, but make no mistake. I will be checking in on you whenever I can."

With that said, Discord snapped his fingers and disappeared in another cloud of smoke. Once he was gone, Cozy and the Young Six all walked to their next class. They all were in the same room. So, they didn't have to split up, much to Cozy's relief. As she sat down, Cozy felt a new hope filling the inside of her as she basked in what Smolder had said. It was at this point she knew that things were now truly looking up from here.

Chapter 10: Leaving the Castle/Twilight's Coronation

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TWO MONTHS LATER

This was the day that Twilight was mentally preparing herself for. Ever since Celestia and Luna annonced their retirement and chose Twilight as their successor, Twilight was both excited and nervous about the event. She would've had her coronation sooner, but Spike's death threw a wrench in their schedule and they spent the last three months trying to heal. Now, however, her friends and she were packing up the last of their things in the castle and were getting ready to leave it behind for good. Cozy, Cobalt, and the Young Six pitched in to help too, but everyone noticed something was off about Twilight. She seemed a bit sad and distant from everyone else. Eventually, the Lavender Alicorn Princess excused herself from the rest of the group and went upstairs. Cozy and Cobalt could sense something was wrong and tailed her. They watched her as she climbed the staircase. Twilight was climbing it very slowly and there were teardrops falling off her face and onto the floor and stairs. She opened a door and walked into a room. The two kids saw the side of her face for a split second. Her eye was full of tears and she was trying not to break down in the hallway. Immediately, they realized their suspiscions were confirmed and notified everyone else.

"Hey, everyone," Cozy called, getting everyone's attention.

"What is it, Cozy?" Starlight asked.

"Twilight's crying. We don't know why," Cobalt responded.

The second they heard that, everyone dropped what they were doing and followed Cozy and Cobalt up the stairs. As they climbed the staircase, they noticed teardrops on the stairs as well as on the floor that turned left and stopped at a closed door. Cozy opened it and she, as well as everyone else, realized that they were at the entrance of Spike's bedroom turned memorial room. Twilight was sitting on the floor and she was facing away from the door. They could see the edges of an open book in front of Twilight.

"Twilight," Cozy began. "Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine," Twilight began. Her tone was low and cracked as if she was trying not to cry.

Cobalt and Cozy weren't convinced. They quietly walked up to Twilight and looked at the book that was in front of her. It was a large book with several photographs glued onto the pages. The photos displayed images of Twilight and Spike smiling at the camera while their friends were sometimes doing fun activities in the backround. There were several fresh teardrops on the pages and Twilight was looking at the photos with possibly the saddest expression Cozy and Cobalt had ever seen her with.

"What's wrong, Twilight?" Cobalt asked.

"It's nothing, Cobalt. Honestly, I just miss Spike, that's all," Twilight sniffled.

Cobalt knew that was a lie and so did Cozy. They knew Twilight was always sad looking at pictures of Spike and her, but she never looked this sad.

"Come on, Twilight," Cozy coaxed. "You can tell us. We're your friends."

Twilight let out a shaken sigh. When she thought about it more, she knew it wasn't good to keep her emotions bottled up like this.

"Well," she started. "I just can't bring myself to leave the castle or Ponyville. For one thing, if I leave here I feel like my friends and I will grow apart because they're all living here in Ponyville while I'm in Canterlot."

Everyone gasped in shock at Twilight's revelation. Cozy and Cobalt listened more intently as Twilight continued on.

"I also can't leave here because Spike and I have made so many happy memories in here together. If I move out of here, I feel like I'm leaving all those memories behind and I won't ever be able to get them back," Twilight finished, feeling even worse, but at the same time, glad because she finally opened up to her friends and felt a huge weight being lifted off her chest.

Everyone was shocked by Twilight's revelation. Cobalt probably felt the most sympathy for the soon-to-be ruler of Equestria. If the truth be told, Cozy and he both felt a little blame internally as they had always noticed Twilight had always seemed distant and had always excused herself each day to go into an upstairs room when they were packing up. Yet, they had never believed it was this bad. Now, it was time for them to help Twilight out of yet another emotional slump.

"Twilight," Cobalt said, getting the crestfallen Alicorn's attention. "I know how you feel. In fact, I was once in the same position you were in right now. When Cozy turned up missing, I was very reluctant to leave Canterlot. Not just because I was worried about my at large friend's whereabouts, but also because I believed if I did leave Canterlot, my happy memories that I made with Cozy would eventually fade away. However, they never did. In fact, my happy memories became more detailed, as if I had done them all over again with Cozy just a couple of hours ago. In the process, I learned that you don't have to stay in the same place to keep your old memories. From the time she went missing until I heard that she was here, I though about times Cozy and I shared together almost every free moment I had and I prayed every night that she was alive and safe."

Cozy felt tears of pride welling up in her eyes at Cobalt's confession. His care for her went a lot deeper than she had ever imagined, and it filled her with happiness.

"Plus," Cobalt continued. "You know your friends. They'd never forget you and you'd never forget them. In fact, I suggest that we all meet once a moon."

Twilight stared at the young unicorn colt with amazement. There was a full 90 seconds of pure silence as the Princess of Friendship fully processed what Cobalt had said. Once he was sure Twilight was done processing what he had said to her, Cobalt wanted to add one last thing, but he needed confirmation on one question.

"Also, was it true you lived in a library with Spike?" Cobalt asked.

"Yeah, why?" Twilight replied.

"Because I have one last question for you. Did any memories you made with Spike in that library fade away?" Cobalt asked.

Twilight thought for a moment.

"N-No. Not a single one's gone, and I have a scrapbook of everything I did with Spike in that library," Twilight said.

"Exactly," Cobalt said. "You left behind one place but took the memories with you. You can do the exact same for this place. If Spike was alive and here now, he'd agree with me 100 percent."

Twilight embraced Cobalt in a tight hug. Everyone else soon joined in the embrace shedding tears of joy from Cobalt's words of motivation.

"Thank you, Cobalt," Twilight whispered. "I really needed that."

"Anytime, Twilight," Cobalt whispered. "Anytime."

When they broke away, Twilight had an announcement to make.

"Thanks to Cobalt, I just have been given an idea for my first royal decree as ruler of Equestria, and that is to establish this Council of Friendship!" Twilight announced with pride

Everyone cheered upon hearing Twilight's little declaration.

"And what a wonderful decree it is!" came a voice that startled everyone.

They turned around to find Celestia and Luna standing at the entrance and chuckling at their reaction.

"Uh, how long have you two been standing there?" Cozy asked.

"Long enough to see Twilight lose her way for a brief second, before little Cobalt here directed you back on the right path," Celestia responded.

Cobalt chuckled, "Aw, come on."

"Wait, weren't you supposed to meet us at the Canterlot station?" Twilight asked.

"Well, we just couldn't wait to se you all so we traveled here to meet you," Celestia explained.

"Anyway," Luna said. "We came here to pick you all up for Twilight's coronation."

"We're almost done packing," Cozy replied. "Although, I have an idea of what this Castle can be now that we've moved out, but I need Starlight's approval first as she's the one who owns this castle now."

"I'm listening," Starlight said.

"Well I know everyone's a little sentimenal about moving out, so I figured, 'what if we turned this place into a museum of all our achievements in friendship?'," Cozy explained.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea, Cozy," Starlight said. 'i'll give that a try."

"Thanks."

With that said, everyone headed back downstairs to finish packing and say one last goodbye to the Castle of Friendship before going out to catch the train to Canterlot.

ONE HOUR LATER

The journey took less than an hour, but to Twilight it felt like she lost ten years of her life on that ride. She was eager to get to, what was soon to be, her castle. They all walked up to the front of Castle where it seemed everyone in all of Equestria was there waiting for them. The CMC and Garble quickly broke away from the crowd so they could join their respective sisters, or in Scootaloo's case, role model. Gabby also ran up to join them as well. Everyone cheered when they saw their soon-to-be ruler and her large group of friends approching them. The large group of Ponies, Dragons, Buffalo, and Kirins were sitting on bleachers on the left side of a red carpet and on the right side of it sat the Griffons, Changelings, and Yaks. The Element Bearers, The Young Six, Cozy, Cobalt and the Royal Sisters walked up the red carpet to a stage at the front of the pack of creatures with a large, wooden podium in the dead center of it. Celestia had decided to say a little speech before officially passing on the role as Ruler of Equestria. She cleared her throat and the crowd fell silent as the listened to what Celestia had to say.

"My sister and I have ruled this land for quite some time, but even we know that change eventually comes to us all. And though we know it can be unsettling, it's as natural as the rising and setting of the sun and the moon. Both of which my sister and I feel confident leaving in the hooves of the pony who will come after us," Celestia said.

There was a pause of silence before continuing.

"So without further ado, I give you the new ruler of Equestria - Princess Twilight Sparkle!" Celestia announced.

Everyone cheered as Twilight walked up to the stage and beside her former teacher. Before she even had a chance to speak, however, Luna and Celestia's horns suddenly came to life and a large ball of white light came to life inbetween the now-retired rulers. Twilight looked back and watched what they were doing. Within 15 seconds a silhouette appeared on the portal. Another 15 seconds passed and everyone realized who it was on the portal. Smolder, Gabby, and the CMC's immediately blushed when they saw their long-term crush on the portal.

"My loyal subjects," Celestia announced. "Up until very recently, the heaven portal spell was only thought to have been a myth for hundreds of years, but seeing Twilight and her friends so broken up after Spike's funeral, we decided to see if this myth could be proved or disproved. It took a sleepless two weeks, but eventually we managed to master the spell and one of the first things Spike said was that he wanted us to forgive Cozy Glow. He had heard about what had happened with her at the Canterlot Dungeons and it didn't sit well with him if we charged her. He seemed to feel his point was proven during the hospital visit. After the hospital visit, Spike said when he looked into Cozy's eyes, he said that, and I quote, 'He saw her soul in those scarlet eyes and it seemed broken'. He is truly someone we can take notes on and we will continue to do so as the next years come and go. Without further delay, I will now give the reins to Princess Twilight Sparkle."

Celestia stepped off the podium, looked back at Twilight and gave her a silent signal to head up to the large, wooden stand.

Twilight took the hint and stepped up to start her speech.

"When I was first enrolled into Celestia's School For Gifted Unicorns, I had no idea what friendship really was about. That was until I met the Ponies behind me when Celestia sent me to Ponyville for a life-changing test. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rarity all helped guide me through the other side of the tunnel and helped me realize that Friendship is indeed magic. There is an unsung hero to all of this, however, and it is none other than Spike. He was the one who started it all when I hatched him for my first entrance exam. He had no family so I took him in and cared for him. He grew very attached to me within maybe the first four days. Had it not been for him, I would be completely oblivious to what a friend even is, and I owe a big thank you to him for helping to show me the true meaning of friendship. Even though Spike's body may be dead, his spirit lives on. Literally and figuratively. We can all take very valuable lessons from his life. How he saved the Crystal Empire twice, how he managed to bring the Dragons and Changelings together with the Ponies, how he saved all of us with one quick thought that ultimately ended his life, and how he forgave someone who had been forced down the wrong path by her broken mind and by someone determined to bring us to our knees. Yet, in in just over 13 years on this planet, he's touched so many lives and, in some cases, hearts. Words cannot describe how proud I am of him for being there for me every step of the way. I promise to lead and rule by Spike's example. It's the least I can do."

Everyone cheered when Twilight was finished. Spike, on the other hand, teared up with pride. He felt absolutely touched by what Twilight had said about him. Smolder, Gabby, and the CMC all looked back and smiled warmly at the angel dragon. Whenever he was happy, it filled all five of them with an indescribable feeling of warmth and pleasure.

"Now, before I came here, I had a little trouble with saying goodbye to the Castle as well as Ponyville," Twilight continued. "I was worried that if I did leave, my friends and I would grow apart and all the happy memeories we made in the Castle would eventually fade away. Cobalt, however, showed me that wasn't the case. When Cozy and he were separated, he thought of her every chance he got and prayed that she was okay and safe, because his care for her went a lot deeper than it seemed. He then asked me if I had forgotten any memories I made with my friends in the Golden Oaks Library after it was destroyed. I realized I had not forgotten a single one. Cobalt asked me if I could do that with the Golden Oaks Library, why couldn't I do the same with the Castle of Friendship? I realized he was right and Cozy chimed in with a great idea: Converting the Castle of Friendship into a museum of all our accomplishments and adventures. I honestly believe that's the best way to ensure that the memories of the past stays alive. Plus, we get to keep the memorial we have set up for Spike in his bedroom. Here's to turning the page to a new chapter in Equestria's future!"

The crowd erupted with cheers and applause as Twilight finished her speech. A small handful of them teared up as Twilight's speech was a little emotional. Twilight and her friends slowly walked off the stage and toward the front door of the Castle with the portal to the heavens never fading. As they walked into the throne room with Spike still on the heaven portal, Twilight had one last surprise in store for her little assistant turned Royal Advisor.

"Spike, before you go, there's one last thing you should know," she said.

The Lavender Alicorn pulled out a piece of paper and the little Dragon read it over, before shock came over his face.

"Wow, Twilight," he said. "You mean it?"

"Yes," Twilight said, smiling warmly at him.

On the paper was an executive order to make Spike's birthday a national holiday.

"It was Cozy that first came up with the idea and we felt like we owed you after all that you did for us," Rarity said. "Our little Spikey-Wikey."

Spike blushed, "Aw, thanks a lot, everyone. This really means a lot."

"No, Spike, you don't have to thank us for this," Rainbow Dash said. "You've always been there to help us out of a jam. This is just our way of returning the favor."

Spike teared up with pride once more.

"I trust that you all will make the right choices to make sure the safety of Equestria," he said.

"You can count on us, Spike," Cozy Glow said.

"I know I can," Spike said. "When I first found myself slowly lifting into the sky and the heavens, I saw how devastated you all were when I died. I felt absolutely devastated watching my own funeral and how you poured your hearts out just for me. Smolder, Gabby, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo, I'm sorry I never realized your feelings and returned them. Then I saw from above how you all forgave Discord as my dying wish. Then I saw how Cozy Glow's behavior became erratic because the last of her sanity finally gave out. I overheard Tirek's confession to you all about how he met Cozy and it digusted me to no end. At the same time, however, I realized Cozy isn't a bad pony, just misunderstood, and everyone deserves a second chance. When I saw how you were so willing to forgive her too, I knew, at that point, that you were ready to become the ruler of Equestria. I must be off now, but please remember that I'll always carry all of you all in my heart."

With that, Spike placed his claw on the portal screen and everyone else, even Celestia and Luna, placed their hooves and, in Smolder's case, claw on the portal screen in return. Spike's eyes flashed briefly a for three times and this time, everyone seemed to have noticed it was his soul that was flashing in that pair of Emerald irises. Then it came around for a fourth time, but it didn't go away this time. For a solid minute everyone had their hooves and claws on the portal screen and didn't say a word as they all smiled warmly. Spike's soul seemed to silently say to them, "I'm proud of you all."

"Well, I must go now, but remember that I always think of you up above," Spike sadi as he waved goodbye to his friends. They waved goodbye back until the portal fully dissapeared.

A new hope filled everyone in the throne room. They knew things were going to look up from here on out. It seemed that there were no more rough waters ahead for Twilight. She could now rule Equestria and peace, not have to deal with any major conflicts anytime soon, and she could still see her friends so she didnt have to worry about them growing apart. According to the new ruler of Equestria, life couldn't be any better.

BONUS CHAPTER: 20 Years Later

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20 YEARS LATER: PRESENT DAY

20 years later, Twilight was paid a visit by her new student, Luster Dawn, because she had a few questions about what was the true meaning of friendship and what was the point of it all. To help her out, Twilight, who had just mastered the spell that shows her friends and herself to Spike on the heaven portal, had gathered all her friends together, Cozy and Cobalt included, to tell Luster the story of how Spike saved Equestria in exchange of his own life. They believed this story was just the thing to help Luster back on the right path, because they could all use the lessons they learned from Spike's sacrifice and pass it on down to her. They had also gotten a hold of Spike on the heaven portal, because they felt he knew exactly what to say to fully help her back on the right path.

Physically, Twilight now looked almost exactly like Princess Celestia She wore a golden crown, a golden breastplate, and four golden shoes for her hooves. However, not much had changed about the others physically. Rainbow Dash now wore a Wonderbolt jacket and her rainbow-colored mane was now sticking up, resembling a mohawk. Rarity's mane and tail now had a grey stripe running dow the middle of it and she wore a large, blue fur coat with a white collar. Applejack now wore a bandana on her neck with apples printed on it and her blonde tail was braided. Pinkie Pie's mane was in a giant poof on the back of her head. She had also married Cheese Sandwich and they now had a son named Li'l Cheese. He had a yellow coat with bubblegum pink mane that was poofy like his mother's and Fluttershy's mane was in a pony tail. Cozy now wore a sunhat and a vest, but her mane remained the same as it did 20 years ago. Cobalt wore the same baseball hat, just in a bigger size and he had a small goatee. His mane, like Cozy's, remined the same.

"And that, Luster Dawn, is the story of how Spike saved Equestria," Twilight Sparke finished.

"Wow," Luster Dawn said. "I guess friendship really is magic. Spike was a true hero that day."

"Heh," Spike chuckled on the heaven portal. "Well, it wasn't really that hard for me to choose. My friends were in trouble and I wasn't about to leave them hanging. It was so much more than just saving my six best friends. I had made friends with other rulers of different species. There was Ember, who's walls I successfully melted and I had helped throne her the new Dragon Lord. Then there was Thorax, who's kind was originally feared due to them sucking love from creatures so their Queen and they could feed off of it in their hive. When I saw, Cozy, Tirek, and Chrysalis powering up that blast and seeing my friends' horrified looks thinking that was it for them, the thought of not just them, but also every creature in Equestria, dying or submitting at the hands of those power-hungry fiends hit me like a loaded freight train. It motivated me to throw everything aside just for them. I explicitly remember all my pain suddenly dissapearing and every thing moved about a mile an hour in my eyes."

"Just goes to show you what type of person Spike is," Rainbow Dash said. "Lightning Dust even told me the kid's got enough guts to become a washout."

"Quite right, Rainbow," Rarity added. "Spike does do everything he can to please us."

"But why did you forgive Cozy Glow?" Luster asked. "I understand she was mentally-ill at the time, but certainly I would've never met anyone who would've forgiven someone who tried to kill them."

Cozy winced slightly. Even though she had been on the right path for over 20 years, reminders of when she was evil still hurt her deeply.

"Ah, that," Spike said. "I was watching over every single event from up above in the heavens and I overheard Tirek confessing to Twilight of how he met and manipulated Cozy. It filled me with anger and disgust hearing it. Yet, at the same time, I realized that Cozy was not a bad pony, she was an emotionally broken pony who was drug down the wrong path by someone who was determined to bring us to our knees by any means nessasary. While I was thinking that, another thought hit me. When we were interrogating Tirek in Tartarus, we should've pressed him further and make him crack about how exactly he had met Cozy. There's no doubt in my mind that if we went with that option, Cozy would've been reformed sooner, the Legion would've been a lot weaker, and we would've had a lot less carnage. When we sent her to Tartarus, I believed that made straddle the line between insane and normal. Then I was suddenly summoned here by Luna and Celestia because they mastered a spell that was originally thought to have been a myth for thousands of years. They filled me in on what happened and told them not to charge Cozy Glow with anything because I believed that I could reach into her and reveal the good in her. I wanted to talk to her personally. When I did see her, not only did she seem remorseful, but I could, no joke, see her soul in those scarlet eyes and it seemed broken. Cozy had promised me that she'd be a better pony, and true to her word, she did. She passed all her classes with flying colors. Twilight even said it was as if she knew as much about friendship as she did. She didn't go to school alone, however, her best friend, Cobalt Blitz, also went with her, just make sure that she would be okay. By the end of her first day back at school, I knew, without a doubt I had made the right call with forgiving her. There's a lesson to be learned from Cozy, Luster. You may meet someone who's a bully and may try to act tough on the outside, but on the inside, they may act like that because they are broken or, like Cozy, were drug down the wrong path and extorted for someone else's nefarious purposes."

Cozy felt tears of pride welling up in her eyes. 20 years later and Spike's opinion of her had never soured. She still vividly remembered seeing Spike's soul when she first looked into his eyes at the hospital.

"I saw Spike's soul in his eyes too," Cozy added. "It was literally looking right at me and silently saying, "You're going to be okay, now. I promise"."

Luster was amazed.

"Wow," she said. "I really hope I meet someone just like Spike. He could really guide me through all hard times with ease. Before I met all of you, I never thought about friendship being something to work at, and I don't mind work. I guess if they don't have to fade away, maybe making friends isn't the waste of time I thought. But I've been so focused on my studies, I wouldn't know where to start."

"That's all right, because I know exactly where to send you," Twilight said kindly. "It's a little place called Ponyville. There, I too learned the true meaning of friendship. I have no doubt in my mind that it will do the same for you too."

***

The Magic of Friendship grows

[ Twilight Sparkle]

When I started out, I was unsure
I thought I knew all that I needed, didn't know what to expect
But when my walls came down, I saw the truth
All along something was missing
And I think you'll see it, too

This is where the magic happens
This is where the magic lives
Our friendships weave together stronger
The bonds grow deeper, lasting longer
And the greatest spell you'll know
Is how the Magic of Friendship grows

[ Pinkie Pie]

And no matter how much time goes by
The party will still be here with some fun new games to try

[ Rainbow Dash]

Big adventure's waiting obviously
Long as we're still here together
We'll be flying happily

[Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash]

This is where the magic happens (where the magic happens)
This is where the magic lives (where the magic lives)
Our friendships weave together stronger
The bonds grow deeper, lasting longer
And the greatest spell there is
What the Magic of Friendship gives

[ Applejack]

And it's somethin' true to pass on down
To generations yet to come

[ Rarity]

And we'll never stop believing in
The generosity of the friendships we've won

[ Fluttershy]

And because the love that I feel
For every single living creature is something that is real
Friendship happens so naturally

[ Twilight Sparkle]

Oh, and how I used to wonder

[Choir]

(Ahhh-ahhh-ahhh...)

[ Twilight Sparkle]

What friendship could be!

[All]

[ Twilight Sparkle]

How the Magic of Friendship grows

TIME SKIP

The Element Bearers, Cozy, Cobalt, Luster, and Spike were now in Ponyville and were getting ready to send Luster off.

Twilight and Luster parted ways after they gave each other a quick nuzzle. Luster ran off to join her friends, but not before waving goodbye to the Twilight, her friends, and angel dragon. She seemed to be fitting in just fine already.

"She's learning quick," Spike said.

"Yep," Rainbow Dash said. "Just like Twilight."

THE END (for real this time)

Spike's Sacrifice

by 1jckuhn

Chapter 1: The Sacrifice

Chapter 2: The Aftermath

Chapter 3: The Funeral

Chapter 4: Discord's Guilt: Pt. 1

Chapter 5: Discord's Guilt: Pt. 2

Chapter 6: The Villains' Awakening and Sentencing

Chapter 7: The Story Cobalt Blitz and...Cozy Glow???

Chapter 8: Cozy's mental breakdown / A Surprise for Cozy

Chapter 9: Forgiving Cozy Glow

Chapter 10: Leaving the Castle/Twilight's Coronation

BONUS CHAPTER: 20 Years Later