“Little girl, why are you weeping?”

“H-huh?! Who are you?! S-stay back!”

“Calm yourself, child. I do not wish to harm you.”

“Who are you? W-w-what do you want with me?”

“My name is Divinity. Yours is Cozy Glow, is it not?”

“Yeah, b-but how did you know that? How did you get in here? How did you know where I live?”

“Little girl, won’t you tell me what’s the matter?”

“I’m… It’s none of your business! I’m just crying because I felt like it!”

“You mourn because you seek friendship, am I correct? All you’ve ever wanted was to make friends, to feel like you belong, but this world is cruel. Instead of greeting you with open arms, people shun you, torment you and drive you away, even though you’ve done nothing of malicious intent towards them.”

“...How did you…? Miss Divinity, how do you know all this stuff about me? You didn’t just come to bully me, did you?”

“No, Cozy Glow. I come bearing you something much more valuable than friendship.”

“You… You do? What is it? What's more valuable than friendship?”

“Power, Cozy Glow.”

“Power?”

“Exactly. I want to offer you my friendship and sisterhood, but at this time, I think it would be better if nobody found out about you.”

“What do you mean? Why don’t you want anyone to find out about me? I’m sorry, Miss Divinity, but I don’t understand just what you're trying to say.”

“You will understand in time, child. Are you interested?”

“Well, you’re kinda scaring me… But… you say this power thing is even better than friendship?”

“Correct. I would say that without power, the world would fall into chaos. Let me ask you another question, young Cozy Glow. Why exactly do you seek friendship?”

“Well… I guess because I just want people to like me.”

“And why do you want that?”

“Huh? So people won’t be mean to me, of course!”

“That’s what I thought. You see, with power, nobody will ever be mean to you again.”

“They won’t?”

“In fact, I would say that with power, you could have more than just basic friendship. You could make every single person in all of Equestria your friend. You could even become the empress of friendship if you so desired.”

“The empress of friendship...? Actually, that doesn’t sound so bad… But… If power is really that valuable, then why are you giving it to me?”

“A most dreadful event is about to take place, young Cozy Glow. I need to make sure that we will be prepared for the future if the worst comes to pass.”

“Miss Divinity? This is starting to sound less like a hypothetical and more like a prophecy if you ask me.”

“...I hope not, child…”

“So let me get this straight. You’re here because you can give me what I want so that I can be your backup plan in case something goes wrong?”

“Exactly.”

“W-what exactly would I be the backup for?”

“I wish I didn’t have to say.”

“Well, I’m not agreeing to anything without getting all the details! Besides, I still have no idea who you are or how you found me!”

“Simple enough. I found you with magic.”

“With… magic?”

“Indeed.”

“...Ooooookaaaaaaayyyyyy? Miss Divinity, this has been fun and all, buuuuut you should probably leave my house now.”

“Do you not believe me?”

“Oh, suuuuure I believe you! I just know of this really great psychological ward down the street that would just love to--why am I floating?”

“Do you still not believe me, young Cozy Glow?”

“Why am I floating? Miss Divinity, are you doing this? I’d like to be put back on the ground, please. I don’t know how you’re doing this, but I’d really appreciate you putting me down now!”

“Fine.”

“Thank y--Oof! Oooowwwww… You could have set me down slowly, you know.”

“I would hope that you would trust my word when I tell you that I can use magic now.”

“That was kind of impressive, but can you do anything else?”

“Anything else? Like what?”

“Liiiiiiike can you materialize a chocolate chocolate chip sundae in my hands?”

“...You must be joking…”

“Hey, I understand if you can’t do it, but that would mean--Holy guacamole! It actually worked! You can actually use real life magic!”

“Please do not doubt me again, child.”

“Alright. Point taken. Now will you please tell me what I’m supposed to be the backup for?”

“There is about to be a war between magical girls such as myself. I’m afraid that my sisters and I might not live to see the end of it.”

“Hang on! And you want me to be the backup in case you lose?!”

“This is why you will be kept a secret. Nobody will know that you are a magical girl other than the two of us.”

“And if you lose, what exactly do you want me to do?”

“Your job is not to fight. I want you to remember that very, very clearly.”

“Right. No fighting. If you die, I sure as heck wouldn’t do any better. Is that all, though? I feel like there should be more to the plan than this.”

“There is, young Cozy Glow. Your purpose actually has nothing to do with our war. You see, I won’t be the one bestowing your powers upon you.”

“Huh? Then who is?”

“Her name is Autumn Blaze, and she is the reason we need you more than anything. If we lose this war, I want to make sure that there is someone who will be there to keep her safe.”

“But… you just said you didn’t want me to fight!”

“And I sincerely hope it doesn’t come to that, but you must do everything within your power to prevent that fight from occurring. Please, let us count on you to keep Autumn Blaze safe, as our final plan, our last gambit.”

“Will I get all the same powers that you have?”

“Unfortunately no. I have a specific power that I would like to bestow upon you. If any girl were to have the same powers that I have, it could lead to total chaos, and chaos is something that I tried to get away from many years ago.”

“Awwww! Do I still have to wear the same funny outfit as you?”

“Heheh. No, you may dress however you’d like.”

“There it is! I knew you could smile!”

“...I… I am, aren't I? Thank you, child. It’s been a long time since I’ve experienced laughter, and I sincerely hope that this won’t be the last time, either. Come now, Cozy Glow. Let me show you to the world of magical girls where Autumn Blaze lives, a world we call... Everfree City.”